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trashmouth-richie · 10 months

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eddie x Fem! Reader

honey I’m home masterlist

TW: 18+ hospitals, trauma, crying, etc

A/N: this is a short little chapter. the next one will be longer— thank you for hanging onto this story even though it took me forever to get it started. I have most of the next chapter done so it’ll probably be posted next week.

The blue and red lights are blinking in rapid succession. Painting the curtains in washes of ruby and royal.

The sirens should have been loud but Eddie figured it was the blood trickling down his head and into his ear canal that was preventing him from hearing clearly.

He fought with the first responders.

Fought with the people fussing over him and trying to rush him into an ambulance.

He refused to leave you.

He didn’t need to be cared for.

He didn’t care about anything.

Only you.

Mr. Derry’s loud knock and burst through the door was the exact distraction needed for Eddie to grip the bat in his bloody hand.

Rings squeezing tight around blood and the wooden handle, he swung hard. A suddenly athlete in a smokers body. He felt the thuds and friction vibrating in his forearms when the nailed head connected with flesh. But he didn’t stop until there were two crumpled bodies collapsed on the red stained carpet.

And when the ambulance crew met him at the door, gurney ready, you were wrapped tight in his arms. A faint pulse echoed like a whisper against your skin. Eddie’s tears streaming down his face and onto yours.

His promise pressed delicately to your lips.

—

“What have we got?”

“According to the patient’s friend, she is twenty-one-year, sir! you need to be looked at, and lived by herself for the past few months..”

I’m fine! Jesus— get off me and help her!

“…call came in at 2208 from a Mr. William Derry— the neighbor— claiming there were screams coming from across the street of his residence on Cherry Lane. Dispatch didn’t think to respond right away due to the many calls Mr. Derry has submitted to the Police Department.”

“Sir, I am not telling you again, you need to be checked out!”

“Jesus Christ.”

“When nobody showed up, the neighbor went across the street after hearing more screaming. Patient was held up by her throat by the DOA”

“Bill has him in truck 011, ID found on the body confirmed he was Chad Cunningham.”

—-

Eddie is standing before you, looking the same has he did the morning g after Halloween. It’s similar but different. There’s more light in the kitchen, and he is rosy cheeked like a cherub, his movements almost floating like angel wings as he moves the carton of orange juice hp to his lips, small glints of a silver nipple ring peaking out from the cutoff shirt he wore.

When he speaks, it’s like a harp is playing, all song and beautiful notes, extending and echoing around the room.

“So when do I get this trophy sweetheart?” He says with a grin, “thinking of putting on a shelf in my room,”

Your laugh feels like butterflies tickling your stomach, “you can’t be serious.”

His head dips as he walks towards you, smile displaying the prettiest teeth, “damn straight, want the whole town to know I had the best costume!”

“Stolen costume,”

“Pppffft, I just borrowed it.” the wink he delivers is almost sinful, toothachingly sweet enough to give a dentist a cavity, and you melt on the spot.

—

“Miss? Can you tell us your name? Can you tell us anything?”

Sterile.

Chemical.

You were either in a hospital or a morgue. You didn’t feel any pain so it very likely could be the worst of the two options. Whatever you were laying on was cold. And when you tried to move you found you couldn’t.

Is this death?

Eyelids heavy and unable to cooperate and make the connection with your brain on flicking open so you could see what was happening.

The only thing constant was a buzzing in both ears. A tug along your eyelids and rubber glove fingers on your body. But you were trapped in your mind, unable to speak, to scream, to show any physical movements other than the involuntary rise and fall of your chest and your lungs being filled with oxygen, fed through flexible plastic of the oxygen mask placed on your face.

Oblivious to your surroundings.

“Severe trauma to both eyes, laceration to the back of the head, severe swelling and possible damage to the larynx, Katerina, what did the CT show?”

“CT came back clear, X-Ray showed a break to both zygomatic bones, 5th and 6th ribs and a lacerated spleen…”

“Look at her nails, poor thing fought for her life,”

“they both did.”

You found the will to whisper what you needed to tell them. Voice hoarse and barely audible, removing the mask they look in horror back at your words, and immediately the feeling of warm liquid entering your veins and the blur of sleep covers your body.

—

He visits you again, this time you know it’s a dream. The pink clouds flow behind his head even though you are standing in the living room. But it’s different, blurred on the edges, hazy sweet and refined. How heaven could be described.

“I look good in this don’t even lie,” Eddie says with a spin, the white cotton of your robe resembling a mini skirt on his long legs, “but if you want me to take it off all you have to do is ask, I’m a pleaser, baby.”

He was every version of himself, handsome, gross and menacing. Sweet and caring, eye twinkling, soft voiced: Eddie. The beer taped to his hand like it was all those months ago when you splashed him awake, threatening to kick him out.

Delivering his classic one liners that you now knew helped fuel your love for him.

“What? Hair of the dog baby, gotta keep drinking to avoid a hangover.”

And maybe your love for him was always there.

Showing up in the background, fluttering bird wings of your heart before you even noticed.

Developing into something sweeter, deeper, so heartbreakingly sick it took a disaster and almost the last pulse in your veins for you to be able to admit it.

Steve had been pacing the cream colored tiles for over thirty minutes. The squeak of his Nikes against the floor were something Eddie was trying hard to focus on instead of worrying about you in the ICU, but so far it wasn’t working.

The nasal cannula was annoying, he could breathe fine on his own. The stitches in his eyebrow itched and stung with each weave through his skin, pulled taut around the swelling in his face.

The shot the nurses had administered to calm him down after screaming and trying to fight his way to you, was making his mind fuzzy— still, Steve’s pacing kept him company. Step step step squeak, step step step hand in hair, followed by an agitated huffing breath.

A nurse with a long blond ponytail braided down her back opens the polyester curtain with a drag and slips inside the room. A black rubber and steel stethoscope around her neck, before she could introduce herself Steve exploded with fury.

“Tell me what the hell is going on in this poor excuse for a hospital, right now!” Steve’s hair shook from its feathered position when he spoke, his demanding voice booming across the tiles.

Without missing a beat and clearly dealing with high strung men before she said almost monotonously, “Sir, you need to calm yourself down, this is a h-”

But Steve’s fire was only fueled by her dismissive tone, his voice never wavering, “No, I will not calm down! The police were made aware of this situation a year ago and nothing was ever done!”

The police officer standing outside guarding entry to the room tipped his head in slow, “Mr. Harrington, we hear your complaints but there isn’t anything we can—”

“Bullshit!” A tear stain cheeked Robin sobbed, her face red and blotchy from hours of crying and rubbing her freckles clean, “Eddie told you what happened yet he’s still cuffed to a bed like a fucking criminal!”

She broke down again, clinging to Steve’s side like a wounded child, sobbing into the soft cotton of his crewneck sweater. “This is unethical! Unco—”

“Alright that’s enough hot shot,” Hopper shouts in finality towards Steve, a wrinkle burrowed deep in his forehead accompanied with graying thick eyebrows set in a devastating frown.

“Chief,” Wayne interjects, cap wringing in his calloused, wrinkle bared hands, his voice wobbly but steady, runny nose and wet tears cling to his scruffy beard, “my son was protectin’ that girl, you know Eddie…he’d never hurt someone unless his life or someone he cared about was in danger.”

Hopper tore his gaze from the one of the richest in the room to the poorest, hanging his head with sorrow, “ ‘m sorry, Wayne— but until Mr. Derry’s statement comes back and Eddie is cleared… the cuffs stay.”

Wayne hung his head low, the few wiry hairs on his balding head stuck in all sorts of directions despite his attempt at raking them into submission.

“Jim Hopper you should be ashamed of yourself,” Karen Wheeler spoke up now, head held high, claw clip teetering with each gesturing movement of her head, “you know good and well this boy couldn’t have done that to her! They loved each other!”

Since the pacing of Steve’s feet had stopped Eddie’s heart rattled hard in his chest, he clawed at the heart monitors on his chest, tried to bite the IV’s from his arms, caged like a wild animal he let out a broken cry, “ple— please, she needs me.”

“Mr. Munson,” the nurse with blonde hair replies sternly, “she is in critical condition, we don’t know if or when she will be able to to recover, she is heavily sedated and needs rest, her only visitors will be family at this time.”

“Speaking of,” another nurse chirps, young and fresh gilled, entirely too eager to please her superior, “do you know how to get a hold of her family?”

He shakes his head slow, causing a pounding headache, “I am her family,” Eddie grunts through clenched teeth, pushing himself up on the bed as far as his cuffs would allow, Steve’s hand on his shoulder. “Look around this room! Ted and Karen Wheeler, Steve Harrington, Robin Buckley, Nancy Byers.. we are all she has,” a single tear falls down his bruised cheek, liquid salt in the cut in his top lip.

“Okay sir.. who is responsible for her?”

“In regards to what? Financially? You money hungry pricks just don’t let up so you?,” Ted Wheeler finally speaks behind his wife, shock and anger evident on his wrinkled features.

“Not exactly…”

“Whatever it is, I will handle it, alright?” Eddie interjects, annoyed with the questions, worried only about you, “I’m responsible for her.”

“Oh,” the nurse says, perking up slightly, marking a red check mark on her clipboard, smoothing out her uniform, “so you are aware of her condition then.”

Light bulbs click for everyone in the room but the curly brown haired metal head.

Oh my God

…Tooty

Holy shit.

“That she got the shit kicked out of her by that fucking psycho Chad Cunningham?”

Eddie.

Ma’am can we talk privately in the hall?

“…obviously I’m aware! I was there when it happened! That dumb fuck already took my statement!” he said gesturing to Deputy Wallace.

“No, Mr. Munson..”

This isn’t the time for this! Wayne tried to warn the nurse, but it fell on deaf, naive ears.

“…she’s right around twelve weeks pregnant.”

A pin dropping could have been heard from a mile away. The oxygen was sucked from the room. Karen’s hand was clapped around her mouth. Nancy and Robin choked back sobs.

Everyone was struck with horror, but not Eddie.

His mind playing that beautiful night between you like a movie in his head. The way your skin felt, the way his heart ached with fullness at your shared fervor and passion.

REWIND

PLAY

The curve of your lips on his skin, kissing him sweet and slow, no noise, just the love making swallowing you both whole.

REWIND

PLAY

PAUSE

Your soft snores as he counted the popcorn marks in the ceiling, his girl. His entire universe.

STOP

EJECT

The tears rolled like a ferocious river down his face, carving a path down his cheeks and under his wobbling chin, wetting the hospital gown he was forced into when he got here.

You were alone.

He didn’t know anything about pregnancy besides the woman usually got sick right? Every emotion that most men feel when finding out they were going to be a dad hit him all at once.

But not fear.

He imagined you with a big swollen belly, feet too pudgy to fit into shoes, he’d rub them with lotion until you could fall asleep.

He’d imagined his arms holding you from behind, your baby wrapped in his arms still in your womb. The relief you might feel from the weight being in his hands.

You were experiencing this pain all by yourself.

He couldn’t fathom how you were feeling. Scared. Hopeless? He had no idea. And the thought of you being alone had him nauseous.

Why didn’t you didn’t tell him?

Why didn’t anyone tell him?

His fury built and shook as his voiced boom with grief as he screamed at Steve, dark eyes blood shot and red rimmed.

“How could you,” he broke, struggling through the words, "why would you not tell me?!” The cuffs around his wrist broke skin as he tried to claw his way out of them, trying to reach at Steve’s shirt demanding to be heard.

“Ed— fuck man!” Steve started, mouth gaping at Eddie’s arms dripping with blood from his fresh wounds, “we didn’t know!”

Robin speaks now, trying to reach for Eddie’s hand to offer him some comfort, “She didn’t tell us, Eddie—Steve is right, she didn’t say a word to any of us about it.”

“Fuck!” Eddie screams, slamming his wrists into the bed sides, “I sh—should h-have..,” the end falls silent as his long legs were pulled to his chin and he buried his head into them.

In the minutes it had been since he found out, he was already a shitty fucking dad.

The pain of what happened to you and him not being able to stop it quick enough was killing him, and now, realizing that you were carrying his child and you were all alone?

There weren’t words for the gut wrenching feeling ripping through him. Overwhelming dread, chest tight with panic and pain. The nausea overtaking him. The vomit came fast, splashing allover himself and the bed, landing in thick puddles on Steve’s shoes. He cried harder and sobbed uncontrollably. When his stomach was empty he could only dry heave.

Wayne moved across the tiled floor in quick steps, careful not to slip in the wayward puke in his path. Sitting down hard and with purpose next to Eddie. This wasn’t his first rodeo of seeing Eddie in this turmoil. But never as a grown man.

He tried his hardest to hold back the tears he swore he’d never let fall in front of his boy, but gravity won the fight when Eddie pulled him into a bone crushing hug, his sobs snuffed by the canvas of his work jacket.

———

It was a full 12 hours before Mr. Derry’s statement was released. Tough old bird, he couldn’t be coerced even with the gentle threat from the Cunningham’s came down hard breathing down his neck.

Surely not their son? Their angel?

But the proof was there. An eye witness statement and a severely beaten woman, the record from years past and the statement from both Steve and Robin on what happened last year at your apartment, stood its ground.

Eddie was cleared as a free man, self defense in the eyes of the law. The second his cuffs were off he was throwing his boots onto his gripper socked feet, and untangling himself from wires and needles.

Steve and Wayne had both taken off work to help Eddie pick up his medication and make him go home and rest. When he tried to protest, Wayne gave Eddie a look that could pierce steel, the kind of look saying no bullshit, and begrudgingly he followed the men out to Steve’s Mercedes.

Nancy and Karen stayed behind at the hospital, filling your room with heavily perfumed flowers. Hushed whispers between the mother and daughter as they prayed and hoped that you would make it out of this horrific nightmare.

The doctors would only speak to Eddie. Letting him aware that your condition was improving but they would not be able to lift the sedation just yet. A day passed then another. Eddie slept in the hospital grade recliner in your room each night. Singing you sweet lulls of your favorite song. Promising you the world if you would just open your eyes.

He was weak himself. Fighting the urge to break down in front of anyone again with each hour that passed.

4 days led to 5 and the nurses and doctors whispered behind their clipboards. On the 6th day they decided to lift the sedation to see how your body would tolerate pain.

Eddie never left.

Machines beeped and ticked. Tubes and wires connecting from you drip with fluid and monitoring systems. The white walls and outdated curtains of the hospital shine a yellowed glow into your room, bringing with it a warmth to your cotton thread blanket and warming the skin on your arms. A welcomed feeling compared to the cold needles of the IV poking into your skin delivering flows of medicine and liquids to keep you hydrated and your pain manageable.

Foiled balloons printed with get well wishes bounce and sway with the kick on from the vent.

One of your hands is unexpectedly warmer than the other. A rough drag across the knobs of your knuckles is a familiar feeling, and you smell him before you even open your eyes to acknowledge that it’s him.

The clinging smell of cigarettes on a freshly washed shirt and the spice of deodorant force their way into your nose. It’s a different shampoo than the one you’re used to catching on him. More manly. All sandalwood and musk a hint of citrus. And at first you think he’s someone else… maybe Steve picked up smoking heavily again?

But when a tuned hum reverberates low against your hand followed by a pair of lips kissing gently around the IV and tape poked and laid against your skin, you know for certain it’s the man you’ve been dreaming about.

The one you cried for.

The one who visited your sleeping mind and told you everything was going to be okay.

His name falls from your lips like choked frozen honey, thick in your mouth and on a dry tongue.

It was the most beautiful noise he had ever heard.

His girl. His whole world. Awake.

#eddie munson #eddie x fem!reader #eddie x you #eddie munson fanfic #eddie munson x reader #fic recs #eddie munson fluff #eddie munson angst #stranger things

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ew-selfish-art · 8 months

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Dpxdc AU: Danny can’t fix Jason’s whole…deal… and doesn’t want to answer any questions on ectoplasm but he can get Jason to the best therapist he knows! Jason mistakes Danny constantly pushing Jazz his way as an awkward little brother move to set them up romantically- which uh, isn't necessarily a bad thing? Jazz has her own vested interests.

… heads up that this got long...

Jason ran his hands through this hair, relieving them from their previous position of cradling his face in embarrassment. Why was he sitting in a nice cafe with Danny’s redhead sister and a five dollar chai latte? For all the awkward live wire feelings he had, at least she was calm and composed. How many times had this happened already?

“So… the green stuff again?” Jazz asks, taking a sip from her own stupidly expensive drink and giving him eyebrows that beg for his explanation.

“Yeah. I was trying to get your brother to explain stuff without all the science mumbo jumbo. I just, I guess that means he defers to you.” Jason sighed, and tried to not think about how pretty her eyes were as she observed him.

“Not likely. But is the search for your answers helping you cope from day to day or making you climb an impossible mountain?” Jazz asks and it makes Jason fluster.

“It’s a moving goal post, sure, but I need answers if I’m going to fix my-“

“I think it might help you to realize that people don’t need to be fixed, they just need to grow.” Jazz interrupts.

They finish their drinks in a comfortable nonchalance, the rest of their conversation doesn’t go anywhere beyond their mutual hobbies and he’s grateful for that.

Jason's been doing a lot of introspection since this all started.

——

The first time it happened was months ago.

He confronts Danny after a mission, just wanting a simple answer on whether or not Danny thought the Lazarus pit contained ectoplasm? Could ectoplasm be separated from blood? Danny looked a little uncomfortable.

“Look dude, I know you want to know more but like, having this info isn’t going to help you. You need to talk it out.” Danny sounds sad and his eyes are filed with something adjacent to pity. It riles up the pit inside him.

“Oof. See that whole reaction thing. That’s not ectoplasmic, that’s something different. C’mon follow me.” Phantom cringes as he talks to him, and then floats across the rooftops, going slow enough that Jason can keep up on his grapple.

The arrive at a modest apartment building, not too far from his territory but clearly outside of it. Danny opens a window and slides in ahead of Jason, and all of a sudden he’s seated at a kitchen table with hot chocolate and teal blue eyes peering into his soul.

“Danny, some warning next time you’re bringing a crime boss to my apartment.” Jazz sighs and its not said with any malice or sarcasm. Danny gives her a grin and a peace sign before disappearing.

“So you want to talk about it?” Jazz turns back to him and asks.

“About?” Jason’s deep voice is going through the modulator and it sounds more sinister than it should.

“Death. Dying. The afterlife. Those are the normal things Danny brings people to me for.” She blinks.

“There’s a misunderstanding, I don’t need to talk, I need answers on Ectoplasm.” He grits out.

"Hm. Well that's not my field of study, but I can tell you that however your feeling is probably a valid response towards the trauma you've faced in life. Do you think showing yourself some kindness might lessen your desire to know the knitty gritty details?"

Jason scoffs.

"Oh. You're serious. No. I don't think being kind to myself is a valid approach to dealing with an infection that's cost me a lot of family relationships." Jason rolls his eyes. The woman looks contemplative for a moment and Jason can tell that while the dim kitchen lights are doing her no favors, she's incredibly beautiful. He pockets that information and refuses to think about it.

"So...Lets take this a different direction. Do you think successful people know what they're doing or do you think successful people need help to get where they want to go?"

"Most people are dumb and trying to get by." Jason grits out.

"So, accept that you're dumb. And then get by." Jazz replies, and then sighs and leaves the room.

Jason however, is now pissed off. Who the heck was she to say that to him?

____

The next time he finds himself across the table from Jazz, he's been on a wild goose chase with Danny and lands himself in a fancy restaurant. Why the hell was she here?

"Uh, it's called self care." Jazz replies, because apparently Jason asked that out loud. But he's not going to let this lead get away from him.

He takes off his helmet, years of muscle memory make him check that his Domino mask was in place, and sits down across from her. She raises a brow and then sighs.

"You think Danny might give me answers if I hold you hostage over, what is that, some kind of gnocchi dish?"

"Mm. Probably not." Jazz says, taking a bite and pulling out her phone.

"You're just going to ignore me then?" Jason finds himself a bit flabbergasted, he was a fucking crime lord, not someone to be ignored! Like he's just- just some bad blind date!

"Uh huh. You don't want to work on your issues and it's not my job to lead a stubborn horse to water."

"The expression is that you can lead a horse to water but you can't-"

"Can't what? Or are you still going to tell me it's not a huge waste of my time to tell you that you need to accept and forgive yourself to be able to move on. Find peace. Rest." Jazz is taking bites between her last few words but her glare remains unshakeable.

Jason is about to get up and leave when a terrified waiter comes over: "A dish, as compliments from the chef. Your guest's meal as well." He's shaking as he speaks and it makes Jason feel bad.

"Thanks." He grits out.

"...Is that the lasagna?" Jazz is looking at his food curiously, and Jason pushes it forward to indicate that she can take a bite. Probably not the safest thing for a civilian to do considering people regularly try to poison Jason but, meh. He's kind of pissed off at her still.

"It's pretty good. I was debating between that and the gnocchi- Okay let's think about this differently. You want to know about the green stuff, Danny is never going to tell a mortal about it and you keep denying yourself basic self-respect. What does your support system look like?"

"You're really pushing my buttons lady-" Jason can feel the green, but after a breath and seeing her unimpressed gaze "-I have a few friends who know what my deal is, I have an older brother who claims to forgive me, and a merry band of goons that I call my henchmen."

"Henchpeople?" Jazz asks.

"I mean, sure. That's more accurate."

"What do you do for fun?" She asks.

"I take down crime syndicates-" she levels him with another glare, he wonders why its so effective on him "-I read."

"Yeah? What genres?"

"Classics." He can admit only that much.

"Nerd. Are you going to eat any of that? You really shouldn't let food waste like that when it's not even fighting back."

"I don't know why I'm even bothering to talk to you right now." Jason spoke plainly.

"I dunno either but it's easier to tolerate you without the stupid helmet speaker. Anyway, If you like to read, hopefully that means you like to see new scenarios, new plots, stuff like that. You ever think to put yourself in side-character mode and contemplate what your whole deal is bringing to the table?"

"...How so?"

"Like, if you don't think it's worth it to treat yourself well, how do the main characters feel? Or, you know, if you were a child reading your story, what would you shout at them to move forward differently?"

"... I've decided that I only read poetry." Jason grumbles, trying to deflect with humor the fact that he does have some thoughts about what she's saying. She actually laughs at his joke though- he hadn't anticipated that.

"Uh, what is the Dr. Suess line? Stop telling outlandish tales, stop turning minnows into whales? something like that."

"Dr. Suess? Really?" Jason laughs.

"Sorry Mr. Classics, I spent most of my childhood raising my brother, forgive me for not knowing any fancy poetry." She huffs but he can tell she's laughing with him still.

They get off the topic of his mental health crisis and it turns out the Lasagna isn't half bad.

----

Jason keeps chasing Danny. Danny keeps leading him to Jazz. It goes for a few rounds before the ghost kid makes a joke about Jason liking her better anyway. Jason asks what the hell Phantom means by that, but Danny just laughs and says that Jason should just ask for her number.

...This does not sit right in his gut all of a sudden. Does he think that, that Jason is only pursuing this knowledge to keep talking to Jazz?? Does Danny want him to pursue Jazz? Does HE want to pursue Jazz???

----

He spots the Replacement in the Cave's lab before he heads upstairs to grab a cookie and leave as a civilian. The reason he even looked that way being that Tim is holding glowing green vials.

"Is that-"

"Yeah. They're literally the same except for the magic mumbo jumbo that Ra's has mixed in with the pit. Leave me alone now."

"So there is a way to heal it or, or extract it or-" Jason can feel his heart racing, but his constantly-exhausted sibling is looking at him like he's grown a second head.

"Dude. You're not gunna be able to flush it out with like, a juice cleanse. You're probably better off trying to find a magic user to deal with the curses and a therapist to do the rest." Tim looks like he's trying to be patient despite being deeply, deeply vexxed.

"Therapist- why in the hell would I-"

"I mean hasn't that been Danny's entire solution for you? He's only had one strategy the whole time he's lived in Gotham." Jason rolls his eyes.

"His solution is setting me up on dates with his sister not-"

"Dates!?! His sister is THE break out psychologist, she's done more for Arkham in the last year than decades of political reform! You've been goin on- wheez- oh my god I have to call Danny-" Tim is cackling, the lazarus water all but abandoned.

"Don't you fucking dare!"

After a (from both brothers) number of punches, a few headlocks and a large portion of threats, Jason agrees that Tim can tell his boyfriend but no one else.

Kon can keep a secret right? That's why he's the favorite?

----

"So... You and Jazz huh?" Danny looks amused as he floats by- Kon could not be trusted. The entire Justice league knows. Jason might have to die again. Apparently he said as much.

"Oh buddy, it's okay! You don't have to die again! I'm sure that if she likes you, she likes you just as you are, weird little zombie boy." Danny teases, turning intangible as Jason swings a punch at him.

"What do you mean if she likes me?" Jason asks, swinging with his grapple, trying to keep up with Danny.

"You think I read her diary or something? Weirdo. You need to talk to her about it tho, it's funny and all but I'm sure she's not a fan of the JL hot goss."

"I didn't start any of this-"

"My guy. Chill. I know, but uh, I did definitely tell her about it so... Oh look! We made it all the way to her apartment! BYE!"

Jazz is standing in the window and she looks like an absolute vision. Her glare makes him want to shit his pants however, and he knows that it's going to take all of his brain cells making contact to survive this encounter.

He sits on the fire escape when he realizes that she's not moving from her spot in the window, blocking his way. Ouch.

"So let me get this straight, you thought this whole time-"

"I thought Danny was being annoying and trying to set us up! I didn't know you were a shrink!" He tries to defend himself.

"...Why should I date an idiot?" the like yourself goes unsaid but he can hear it. Jason is scrambling.

"...I can make even better lasagna than that fancy restaurant you like." is what he lands on. Jazz bursts out a laugh.

"I was just fucking with you, but honestly what a great response." She's wiping tears of laughter from her eyes.

"Just fucking with me?" He grins a bit, unable to stop himself from getting excited.

"Yeah, I've been telling everyone at work that I'm dating the Red Hood for like, months now. It's been stellar for my hostage record, I haven't had an issue since I started the rumor!"

"We're dating?" Jason asks, a bit bewildered but charmed.

"I wouldn't give free therapy to just anyone! Now about that Lasagna-"

Something, something, something- they seal the deal with a kiss.

#dcxdp #dpxdc #dc x dp #dp x dc #dc crossover #dp crossover #anger management ship #hardcover ship #jasonxjazz #jazz x jason #long post #phanfic #jazz fenton

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flowerbetweenfangs · 18 days

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Marked By the Moon: Part One

CW: Dubcon due to heat/breeding. Originally posted on A03.

An oldie, but one of my favorites.

Buzzing shook the nightstand. Bluelight pierced through the blackness, making it impossible to ignore.

Reaching forward, Carmen groped across the polished wood, then seized her phone. Sitting up on her bed, she pressed the glowing screen to her ear. Sleep clogged her throat and eyes as she grunted out a greeting.

It was just after four in the morning. She knew better than to say “Someone better be dying”, because a call this early meant somebody probably was.

“‘Lo?” She gurgled, blearily staring in the darkness. Sweat clung to her face and clothes in the summer heat. Her window was open, the breeze doing little to cool her off.

“Carmen!” The voice on the other end was frantic. “You’re not going to believe this!” Several dogs barked and howled in the background. “I’m sorry for waking you up, but we’ve got an emergency surgery.” There were several grunts as her coworker pulled something. “I think some poachers got to him. It looks like he was torn open by a bear trap.”

The words floated in the air, before bringing horrific images to mind. Carmen’s phone beeped, indicating there were messages sent, images attached to them.

“I’ll be there soon,” Carmen was out of bed and throwing on her clothes. “Start prepping.” She pulled her dirty blonde hair back without brushing it, making sure it was secured in a knot at the back of her head. Squeezing into her jeans and a presentable shirt, she quickly grabbed her phone and quickly looked at the incoming messages.

What followed were images of a male ginger wolf, with a large wound on his leg and shoulder. His fur was damp, having been cleaned up. There was a muzzle around his snout, but his eyes were open and alert. He looked directly at the camera with what could only be described as a lupine scowl.

No matter how many injured animals she saw. Carmen always sniffed and felt a pang of pity for them. From little Spot and Mittens getting into a spat to the various wildlife people brought in, every creature needed a caring touch.

“He really tried to fight me when I put on the muzzle.” Anna’s words read. “ But a good jab of sedatives has him going night night. He’ll be completely under when you get here.”

“Sorry buddy,” Carmen said aloud to no one. “But your jaw could tear off our arms.” Shoving her phone back into her pocket, she started to psych herself up for the upcoming meeting with this new patient. There were several wolves in the area, but they tended to stay in the mountains and parks, away from the city. A local wildlife reserve rehabilitated them and worked closely with the clinic, taking on all sorts of feral creatures that didn’t belong in the city.

The poor thing was probably all sorts of confused.

Going to the bathroom, she splashed cold water on her face and sputtered, slapping her cheeks to wake herself up. Quickly, she brushed her teeth and let the rush of mint further energize her. This was going to be one for the books.

Seizing a canned coffee from the fridge, Carmen grabbed her keys and stumbled out the door. Guzzling it down, she drove through the dark streets, slowing strategically at speed traps. The one good thing about her random late night trips, the normal people of the world were still asleep. Although it was nearing a full moon, so the crazies of the world would be out.

Something dug into her hip. At first, she tried to ignore it, but it dug into the sensitive skin at every movement. It felt sharp. Adjusting how she sat, Carmen tried to keep her eyes on the road. She was waking up, but the risk wouldn’t be worth it.

Once she pulled up to a stoplight, she looked down to see a flash of silver wrapped in a leather string.

Reaching down, she fished it out and saw the trinket she’d bought a month ago, a piece of rose quartz with wire wrapped around it, a small crescent moon, tree, and wolf charm tied to the gemstone. It had been a weird impulse buy. She couldn’t help but think of how thematically appropriate it was.

Ducking her head, Carmen slipped the leather over her head and tucked it under her shirt. The light turned green, and she floored it once she got on the highway. The night whipped by. Rolling down the windows, Carmen let out a scream to further wake herself up. It was going to be a long day.

It was barely four thirty when she pulled into the animal hospital.

Anna let her in before she reached for her badge. She looked frazzled, her eyes wide and bloodshot. There were small scratches covering her arms, but it was a side effect of the job they were more than used to. Passing off the coffee, Carmen took the clipboard and quickly skimmed the contents. They didn’t have a lot of time.

“He’s completely out,” Anna said as they rushed to the surgery room. “I think he’s a juvenile. But it’s hard to tell.”

“Then let’s make good use of the time,” Carmen stopped to wash her hands. Once she was certain they were sufficiently clean, she went through the door.

On the metal table was the body of the wolf. His hind legs were being propped up by a stool. His paws and ears twitched in his sleep. Instead of chasing rabbits, he was probably thinking of chasing sheep. Or perhaps deer. Hell, he probably could take down a bear if he wanted to.

“I knew wolves were massive, but this guy is just…” Carmen fanned herself with the clipboard, trying to wrap her head around the sight.

“Huge?” Anna asked, arching a brow. “Even when I worked at the park as a teen, I don’t think the wolves there got this big.” She took a long drink from the coffee. “He’s bulky too. Nothing but muscle in there.”

“Yeah.” Carmen rubbed her eyes. The sight of the patient had completely sobered her up and released sleep’s hold on her. “Alright. Let’s patch this guy up.” Approaching the table, she placed a hand on the wolf’s haunch.

There was almost an audible snap as his jaw clenched, lips curling back to show his fangs. His whole body went rigid under her touch. Slowly, his upward eye opened and tracked, staring at her.

Carmen’s stomach dropped and she sucked in a breath. His paw twitched, brushing against her thigh. His claws could easily tear open her clothing and skin if he so chose. Silvery drool dribbled from his mouth, hitting the floor with a wet smack.

Blinking rapidly, Carmed put a hand to her chest and kept her breathing under control. The gemstone firm in her grip, she willed the wolf to go back under. Something tugged at her, and she smelled something… Musty.

The wolf’s eye rolled back and slowly closed again, his body relaxing. The drooling stopped. When Carmed rubbed her eyes, the puddle of drool was gone.

She was more tired than she thought. But she needed to give this patient the best care.

At least the sedatives were doing their work. Anna hadn’t seemed to notice the incident, having rushed to the front desk when the bell chimed, indicating they had another patient. No doubt this one would be making the rounds on social media, if not the local news.

She washed off the wounds again, then made quick work of them. His skin and fur were so thick that her tools were warped and bent when she started. Putting away the tools, she went and found the newest set she’d managed to scrounge up the money for.

Sutures were simple. Once she’d pieced most of him together, she bandaged him up. It was almost comical to see an entire roll wrapped around his leg, tufts of fur peeking out between the cloth. His paw twitched when she touched it.

Now she had to convince a wild animal to ignore his base instincts. With man’s best weapon. Painkillers and more sedatives.

His eyes moved under the lid, his nostrils flaring and lips twitching.

They didn’t have an Elizabethan collar big enough to put around his head. Carmen doubted it would stay on even if there was one. He would probably find some way to tear it off.

Hurt, thrown into the hospital parking lot, muzzled, sedated, then probably going to wake up drugged out of his mind.

“Don’t worry,” She said, patting the side of his head. “I’m sure the assholes who did this to you are going to get what’s coming to them.” His heartbeat thrummed under her fingers. Hands sinking into his fur, Carmen found it somewhat comforting. Warm. She found herself leaning down to rest her head on his side. Stopping herself, she pulled back.

How tired was she? Maybe she should have drank the coffee instead of passing it off to Anna.

Sighing, she rubbed her eyes.

Then, there was a growl.

Eyes opening, she saw the wolf staring at her again.

No, not staring. The light was gone from his eyes. His paws twitched, like he was running in place, but in his sleep. She debated on tying his paws, but knew the poor thing would only wake up more confused and scared. The sedatives would work on him for another couple hours. Moving the patient to another large kennel, she locked him inside.

Exiting the room, Carmen went to the back room and sat down, curling up in a chair and closing her eyes.

It felt like she’d only blinked when she opened them again. Her whole body was stiff and sore. Tilting her head back and forth, she heard her joints popping and cracking. Taking in a deep breath, she got up and went to check on the patient.

He had been moved to the kennels, a private section to keep him away from the domestic pets. His head laid on a pillow, his whole body limp. The exhaustion came through the glass, his expression pitiful.

“I called the Wildlife Reserve.” Anna said, coming in with a steaming mug. “They’ll be here to pick him up in half an hour. They had some… Colorful words for me when I told them we had already gone ahead and done surgery on him.”

Carmen crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. “I still want to know who the hell did this to him? Who sees an animal and thinks “You know what, I should hurt him?””

“I dunno. Crazy.” A buzzing rang through the room. Sighing, Anna turned on her heel and went to greet the customer who had just walked in.

Walking up the glass, Carmen put her hand on it. The wolf tilted his head to look up at her, eyes looking sorrowful. His sides heaved, the barrier muffling the whines.

Then, his head snapped to the area behind her. Looking back, Carmen saw uniformed men with a large cage. They towered over Carmen, their bodies thick with muscle. Their uniforms had the logo of the local wildlife reserve.

“Oh. I thought you wouldn’t be here for a while.” Carmen straightened.

“When we heard about the wolf, we had to make quick time.” One said, offering his hand. “Especially knowing he was injured.” The gloves were thick, ready to take on any bite. He was maybe mid thirties, with salt and pepper hair and dark eyes.

Carmen took the hand, shaking it. She wasn’t even sure if his fingers could move within the fabric.

“Well, he seems to be responding well to the medication. Here’s what we dosed him with.” She found the chart and passed it over to the agent as the other moved to the wolf’s room. He was younger, maybe in his early twenties with dark hair pulled back into a tail.

“Good. Thanks for taking care of him. We’ll try to see if he belongs to a pack not too far from here. If he doesn’t, then we’ll make sure to release him somewhere safe.” The man handed her a card. “If you want to visit him.”

“Of course,” Carmen heard the sounds of a struggle. Whirling around, she saw the wolf snarling and growling, lunging at the Agent despite the muzzle. They had him in a hold with a catch pole. He went to try and paw it off, before collapsing with a yelp when he put weight on his injured legs.

“Stand back, ma’am. I have to go help him.” The agent rushed into the room as the wolf continued to pull and twist, trying to get himself free.

When he opened the door, the wolf suddenly shot forward, knocking him aside and heading straight for Carmen.

“Shit!” Carmen didn’t have time to move as the wolf barreled into her. When she hit the ground, the Agents managed to get hold of him again.

Then, he lifted up a massive paw and raked it across her arm. Two long crimson lines formed across the skin. Blood welled up, dripping onto the floor.

“Carmen!” Anna shrieked, rushing over. “Oh my god, are you okay?”

“It’s fine.” Carmen insisted, getting to her feet. Drops of crimson fell on the floor. The skin was already red and puffy. “Jesus.” She struggled to draw in breath, her heart leaping into her throat.

The wolf continued to pull and tug at the Agents, but the second wind seemed to have gone out of him. Once they got him into the cage, the fight completely went out of him. With a metallic WHUMP, he collapsed, staring at Carmen through the bars.

“You need to go to the hospital.” Anna insisted. “That looks bad.”

“ER visit is not in the cards.” Carmen argued. “Can’t afford that.” She winced and cradled her arm. “How far away is the closest urgent care?”

Walking to the desk, she pulled out a first aid kit, popping it open with one hand. At least they had plenty to handle small incidents. No way was she going to walk through the front lobby while bleeding like a stuck pig. Pulling out disinfectant, she went to the bathroom and applied it.

The burning sensation nearly made her black out from the pain. Her head hit the wall, and she barely registered what Anna was saying. The other Agents were apologizing, or at least Carmen hoped so.

“- about ten minutes?” Anna frowned. “I’ll fill out the incident report.” She looked Carmen up and down. “You don’t look so good, you should take the rest of the day off to rest. I’ll call someone from the other clinic and see if they can cover the surgeries. Thank God those guys knew the nearest Clinic offhand.”

“Probably go there all the time themselves." Carmen shrugged. Anna reached over and helped hold her arm still.

"Thanks, Doll.” Carmed winced again, seizing a roll of bandages and binding her arm the best she could. The Agents were gone, with the cage loaded in a trailer. “I’m not even mad. Poor boy was probably scared out of his mind.”

***

The Urgent Care had just opened when she pulled up. Once admitted, she sat in the room, still cradling her arm. She didn’t dare unwrap the wound to get a better look at it.

When the door opened, Carmen jerked her head up to look.

The man who came through was older, maybe mid to late 40s. His hair was completely white, small bits of stubble on his face. Tired brown eyes looked her over, dark circles under them. A fatigue they both seemed to recognize and share a sympathetic half smile over.

“Alright, tell me what happened.” His voice rumbled, still raspy from sleep. He held up a clipboard, clicking a pen to take notes. Old fashioned, then. She caught the name on his nametag, Esau Remington .

“So, I’m a vet,” Carmen began, unwrapping her arm as she recounted what she thought was needed. He paid attention, unblinking and nodding.

By the end, his brow was furrowed, the pen’s clicker tapping against his lips.

“Are you sure it was a wolf and not a really big dog like a shepherd or a husky?”

Fishing her phone out, Carmen showed him the pictures that Anna had sent her. His frown deepened, his brows rising to meet his hairline, the pen twirling back and forth between his fingers. The corner of his lip twitched, and he sucked in a sharp breath.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” His cheeks flushed and he gave a nervous chuckle.

“Sorry about the language. It’s not every day you see a wolf.” Clenching his jaw, he looked at the wound on her arm. “Just the scratch? He didn’t bite you anywhere?”

Carmen shook her head. “No. They had a muzzle on him.” She winced as he rolled her arm between his fingers to look the gash over, making sure there was nothing inside it. The skin was more swollen, the congealing scabs weeping with clear fluid. “I’m up to date on my rabies shots and the like, unless you think I should take a booster?”

Shaking his head, Dr. Remington sighed. “No, I think you do need sutures though. He did a number on you.”

The pen scribbled as he took down a few notes. “I’m going to write you a prescription for some antibiotics and steroids. Take them all , even if you feel better.” The tone did not offer an argument. “And I’m going to recommend you take the next few days off. If you have a wily patient, you’re going to rip the sutures back open.”

Carmen let a groan slip past her lips. The Doctor seemed taken aback, pen pausing mid scribble. Brow cocked, he looked her over.

“I’ve got a lot of patients I need to look after.” She complained. “The wolf was a wild card, normally I just handle check ups.”

“I’m sure your patients would appreciate you in a healthy state.” Remington argued back gently. “Take some time off, don’t strain yourself.”

He looked over his shoulder, then back to her. “I know when I have some days cleared in my schedule, I like to go camping with some of my friends. We go hiking, swimming, and get to see nature.” Looking pointedly at her wound, he shrugged. “Although it wouldn’t surprise me if you’re a little sick of nature right now.”

With a sigh, he began to prep her arm. Another round of disinfectant, making her hiss with pain.

“I don’t mind nature.” Carmen shrugged, wincing as he began to apply the first suture. “Just don’t know if it’s a good idea to make a spontaneous trip into the woods with a messed up arm.” She tried to force a smile, but hissed when he pinched her wound closed.

Dr. Remington tilted his head to the side with a grunt of agreement. “True. But it was just a suggestion.” His Adam’s Apple bobbed and he swallowed hard, his lips moist. “Not to mention the meds you’re on… Probably will make you too woozy to do anything strenuous.” He chuckled. “I got a little ahead of myself, sorry.”

Carmen shrugged. “I get it. A little early, trying to wake yourself up.”

"I find it hard to sleep some nights. Especially around this time of the month. Always finding people doing stupid things. Must be the full moon."

Once he’d finished stitching her up, he presented her with a prescription and doctor’s note. After calling the clinic back, Carmen assured Anna that she would be back as soon as possible.

At home, she popped the first round of pills and collapsed onto her bed.

When Carmen woke up next, sweat soaked her sheets. Panting, she pulled herself from her blanket cocoon. The cool air of the night was like ice. Shivering, she popped another round of meds, then got into the shower, letting the water pour over her.

The sweat and grime from sleep rolling down into the tub made her feel a little more like a human. Her phone was blowing up with texts from Anna and other coworkers. Pushing her phone aside, Carmen collapsed onto her bed again, shivering and trying to cover herself up enough to combat the shivers, but not feel overheated.

Shaking, she tried to claim sleep, but it refused to come. Getting up, she began to pace back and forth across the floor, feet slapping loudly across the hardwood. The walls around her seemed to close tighter.

Opening her window, she popped out the screen and leaned out. A spell of dizziness hit her. Head swimming, she nearly fell forward. Holding tightly to the sill, she yanked herself back in, rear slamming hard against the floor. Leaning against her bed, she took a few shaky breaths.

Closing her eyes, she drug the sweat soaked blanket down from her bed and wrapped it around herself, falling into a fitful sleep.

When the first rays of sun pierced the open window, chilly winds of dawn rolled over Carmen and made her hair stand on end. The necklace pressed into her hip, leaving red indents over her skin. Fishing it out, she simply tossed it aside, watching it skitter across the floor and come to a rest against her dresser.

Crawling to the window, she pulled it closed and then collapsed under it. Curling into the fetal position, Carmen fell into another fitful sleep.

She found herself standing next to a woman made of stone. A crescent moon covered her eyes like a mask, her mouth open in a howl. A silver wolf draped itself across her lap, head thrown back to mimic hers. Cracks and chipped off pieces had worn it down, but it still held a beauty to it.

The grass around it was green and lush. Thick trees grew around the statue, the song of the forest crying out. Animals, insects, bubbling streams, wind, all of it calling out to something in her. Taking a few steps forward, she looked at the wolf. Its stone eye seemed to move, looking right at her. Even though she was clothed, it made her feel naked and nervous. Stomach flipping, she took a few steps back.

“Come to me, my child.” A woman’s voice whispered in the wind.

The golden sun had become the silvery moon when Carmen opened her eyes again. Her whole body ached. A throbbing in her head and arm helped drag her away from the land of sleep. She saw the necklace tightly clutched in her grip, leaving an impression of the moon in her palm.

Every muscle protested when Carmen drug herself off the floor and took the meds. They went down hard, nearly making her throw it back up.

Filling up a tall drink of water, she guzzled it down to fill her stomach. Hunger gnawed at her, staving off sleep. Breathing hard, she took another shower and let the hot water soothe her muscles.

The strange fever and fatigue had worn off, replaced with an energy that she hadn’t felt in years. Blood sang in her veins, wanting to run. Even in the shower, she found herself shifting from one foot to the other, eager to start… Something.

Stepping out of the shower, she found herself dressing quickly. Hair still damp, she pulled it back and mapped out a potential run she could do. She just had to go outside. Get away from the walls of plaster and sheetrock.

A smell made her pause. It was buried under her smell. But she could still pick it up. Pulling out her pants from the other day, she pulled out the business card and sniffed it. A small drop of blood was on the corner. Hers? No. The scent drove her wild. She held it close and inhaled deeply, before pulling it back.

“What the hell am I doing?” Setting it back down, Carmen rubbed her face, sweat pouring down her brow. She stared at the address, the image of the wolf coming to her mind.

He stared at her, looking pitiful. Then, his claws flashed and raked across her arm. When she fell to the ground, she saw the statue.

“ Come to me, my child .” The woman’s voice whispered in the wind again. “ Join the hunt. ”

Walking outside, Carmen let the night air roll over her and went to the car, heart thrumming. Pulling out her phone, she punched the address of the wildlife reserve and then prepared to travel.

Her drive was a blur. Tunnel vision made her unaware of how fast she arrived, or even if she was driving safely. Static crackled in her ears, making her hair stand on end.

The mechanical voice telling her she’d arrived at her destination was what brought her back. She stared at the spot illuminated by her headlights. A line of trees, then a chain link fence. More foliage behind that, but it was too thick to see past.

Getting out of the car, Carmen slammed the door and began to take a few steps toward the fence. The wind shifted, blowing a scent toward her. Wrapping her fingers around the links, Carmen inhaled.

Closing her eyes, she let the smell wash over her. It caressed her very being, tugging at something within her. Dropping to her knees in front of the fence, she clenched the links tight enough for her knuckles to turn white and her injured arm to throb. Metal warped under her grip, the coppery scent of blood following.

Bringing her hands down, Carmen saw crimson pooling in her palm. A laugh escaped her and she sat with her back to the fence. Lapping at the wound, shook her head.

“What on earth am I doing?” She started to stand. Her body protested at the movement. The soreness was back with a vengeance. Closing her eyes, she pressed her bandaged hand to her face, pulling it away to see it soaked with sweat and grime.

Staggering to her feet, she ignored the tantalizing scent as she headed back to her car. When Carmen put her hand on the roof, the smell hit her like a load of bricks. Opening her eyes wide, she turned back around to look at the line of trees. The area around her was tinted with a silvery-blue hue, but it was almost as bright as day.

This had to be a dream. None of this made sense. Leaning down, she touched her forehead to the warm metal of the car.

“Just wake up.” She urged herself. “You’re having a bad reaction to the medicine.”

Slowly, she raised her head.

Time seemed to slow down. Turning back toward the fence, she felt her feet moving on their own, dragging across the asphalt.

Something glistened on the links in the silvery light. Reaching out, she brushed her knuckle to it. Once she touched the metal, it sent a jolt through her.

Then, she saw the small gap in the links. Someone had cut through it with bolt cutters. But they’d put it back to where it was almost invisible to anyone far enough away. No wonder she had been able to bend the metal so easily.

Clenching the fence, she pulled it back and crawled through, metal raking across her back. Wincing, she dropped to her stomach and drug herself through, feeling more tugs at her clothing.

Once she stood up, her arm was throbbing, the pain making her head spin. Staggering, she sniffed the air. The scent was stronger than before. Her whole body ached, but she had to follow it. Cradling her arm, she began a slow walk.

Cicadas cried, a creek flowed, and the wind continued to blow, stirring a few stray wisps of her hair out of its knot at the back of her head.

Then, she came to a break in the trees, showing a sheer drop. In the meadow, a group of wolves ran around, wrestling and snapping at one another. Her breath caught in her throat when she saw one stop, then stand up on its hind legs and sniff the air. It turned a massive head around to look right at her.

“I knew you’d come.” A voice called behind her. It was gruff, like it wasn’t used to speaking. As it rumbled through her ears, Carmen’s hair stood on end.

Slowly, Carmen turned to see a bipedal wolf looking at her, its hindleg bandaged and stiff. Its shoulder was also wrapped up.

The wolf took a few shaking steps toward her. Then, it dropped down onto all fours. Even then, it still looked her in the eye. Drool glistened on its teeth as it licked its muzzle. Then, she saw the same eyes, in what she recognized as a lupine scowl.

Her ginger wolf from the clinic.

Now she knew she was dreaming.

It took another step toward her. She backed away, stopping when she felt the give of the ground, warning her of the drop below. Heart hammering in her throat, she could only stare at the wolf as it took a few steps closer to her.

Her stomach fluttered. Fear? No. Something else she couldn’t identify. Head swimming, she tried to string thoughts together to make a plan of escape. However, her vision began to blur. Daring to blink, she took in a shaking breath.

Something tore through the grass. But she didn’t dare take her eyes off the creature approaching her. Caught between a rock and a hard place, she focused on the visible threat.

“The Goddess has blessed you. And you’ve been marked by her hounds.” Ginger grumbled, nose nearly touching her. The inhales were strong, almost like a human.

“You’ve gone into heat.” His tongue lolled out of his mouth, hot breath rolling over her skin. Something about it made the ache worse, spreading it through Carmen so fast she nearly screamed. “You’ll send the rest of the pack into rut.”

Then, a large silver wolf slammed into the ginger, swatting him with a human shaped front paw. The action was so quick, Carmen could only gape. Her knees nearly gave out, but she managed to keep herself upright. If she went over the cliff, she’d drop and probably break below. But if this was a dream…

Ginger flew back, screaming in pain. The noise shook her thoughts loose and she gasped, reaching out for him. Crimson blossomed on the bandaged haunch and shoulder. His back legs gave out as he struggled to get on all fours again.

“You bastard!” He barked at the silver wolf. “You broke my leg!” Yelping, he looked at Carmen with pleading eyes. “Help me!”

Carmen took a step forward, only to feel a hand clamp on her shoulder. Claws dug into her skin, making her stand still. Then, she was whirled around to face the silver wolf, who towered over her.

“You shouldn’t be out here.” The voice rasped. “Not without being taken into the pack first.” His nostrils flared, his pupils blowing all the way out as he stared at her. Brown eyes, glinting with the want for a hunt. His scent overpowered Carmen.

Squeezing her eyes shut, she whispered to wake up over and over again.

The fear held fast to her, not allowing her to move a muscle in fear of both wolves tearing her to shreds.

Then, the hand on her shoulder went to her waist, picking her up. Before she could scream, it squeezed tight enough to push the air from her lungs. Finally, she opened her eyes to see that she was moving. Well, the wolf was walking, simply carrying her like a ragdoll. His massive paws had wrapped around her, although he’d taken care to not scratch her further with his claws.

Ginger flew at them with a snarl, his back leg suddenly seeming to work perfectly.

Silver swatted at him, then heaved. The wolf flew through the air, screaming as he went down into the meadow below. When he hit the ground, the crunch echoed through the night. Carmen felt sick, her stomach heaving. Covering her mouth, she squeezed her eyes shut again.

There was a grunt. Air whipped around Carmen, stirring the scents again. An impact jostled her, and she opened her eyes. They’d landed in the meadow, the other wolves approaching, much more cautious in their steps. A few sniffed, inching closer with flared nostrils, but never close enough to touch.

The smell made her mind swim. Heat flushed in her cheeks, and she shivered. All the eyes on her were like hands, caressing her very being. Each one hungrily taking her in, assessing her.

The ruined pile of fur and bone groaned.

“Your brother decided to go against the rules and try to bring another member into our ranks. Without permission. Or consent, for that matter.” Silver growled. “So now, he must put himself at the mercy of Diana.” He set Carmen down, setting his massive hand on her shoulder so she couldn’t run. His touch froze her further. Not even a breath passed her lips.

The wolves sat or laid down in the grass, staring at the pair. They knew who the one in charge was.

“What’s going on?” Carmen choked out, eyes watering. “Please. Tell me or let me wake up.” She slapped her cheeks, stopping when Silver’s hand wrapped around her entire uninjured forearm. It was a gentle, but firm grip.

“No one touches her.” Silver insisted, before forcing her to face him. His eyes seemed to stare into her very being. They looked alert, but so tired. More fluid dribbled onto her legs and shoes. But she didn’t dare break the gaze. To assert dominance with a canine, you couldn’t be the first to break eye contact.

Hopefully the same rules applied to lupines. Alpha and Omega only applied to captive and family packs, but this was all she knew to work with.

As they stared at one another, Carmen felt the fear and desire to know more about everything warring with one another. Part of her wanted to escape the dream no matter how, the other part wanted to stay and listen. Sit on her haunches like the other wolves, watching him speak.

His eyes explored hers, flicking over her form to take her appearance in. The gleam only added to his dangerous look. His pupils were slightly dilated, his muzzle twitching. His tongue tasted the air around her.

Silver broke away first. A sigh of relief escaped her, and she dropped to her knees. Silver’s grip on her arm didn’t release. Closing her eyes, she urged herself to wake up.

Then, she was being pulled back to her feet. Arms cradled her, twisted and alien enough to make her uneasy, despite the strength behind them. She tried to not shake, but her body refused to listen.

“What do we do?” One of the wolves asked. “Her scent is going to roll on the wind. If she’s changed, there might be others we don’t know about.”

“Guard the entrances. Make sure no one else gets in.” Silver rumbled, before he started to walk, each step jostling Carmen enough to nearly make her cry out.

Then, he took her away from the meadow. There was a hole on the side of the cliff. Bowing his head, Silver brought her inside. Only then did he set her down on the stone floor. Once he’d done that, he went to the mouth of the cave and sat down.

“Can you please tell me what’s going on?” Carmen begged, not daring to move from her spot. “Did… Did you kill that wolf?” She’d have to call the Wildlife reserve when she woke up to check on him.

“No. If Diana is merciful, he will be healed when the moon and sun switch.” Silver didn’t look at her. “You care about the one who did this to you? Was he your mate?”

The question made Carmen blush. “N… No. I just…” Her brain felt addled. Why was she getting flustered over a wolf? “I took care of him. He was already hurt.”

Silver snorted. “We’re sturdy. Don’t worry.” He slammed his paw on the ground. The open palm slapped hard, the noise amplified in the cave. Carmen resisted the urge to clap her hands over her ears. “As you saw, he wasn’t nearly as injured as he pretended to be.”

Still, getting flung over the side of the cliff…

Carmen shuddered. “I just… I want to go home. Or wake up.” She scratched at the side of her head. The blood on her palm smeared on her cheek.

Silver turned to look at her sideways. “You think this is a dream?”

“Talking wolves, seeing them walk upright, it’s like a werewolf movie.” Swallowing, Carmen flinched when she felt the sting of pain, more blood dripping on her clothing.

Standing upright, Silver approached her, taking her hand in his massive paws. Rolling it back and forth, he stared at it. Then, he slowly leaned down and ran a large pink tongue over the wound. The sensation sent a shiver up Carmen’s spine.

The wound slowly began to shrink, before sealing itself closed. Carmen stared at it in awe. She flexed her fingers and brushed them against the twisted digits that now clutched her hand. Silver’s fur suddenly bristled, and he dropped her hand, turning away from her again.

“You are werewolves, aren’t you?” Swallowing hard, Carmen tried to calm the roaring in her ears.

“Correct.” Silver sighed. “We don’t bring pack members in willy nilly. It was supposed to be a tight ring.” He scratched at the ground, his claws bringing up grains of stone. “And not without my permission. Every werewolf in this pack is under my protection. They abide by my rules. In exchange, they are given this area to run every cycle.”

“Why haven’t I changed?” The words were hard to force out.

“You’re refusing to.” Silver turned to face her fully. “You’ve surely felt the way your body is hurting? How you need to do something, but you’re not sure what?” His nostrils flared, his pupils nearly overtaking his iris. “The Goddess has touched you. But you’ve managed to keep control, I’m impressed.”

His hands shook as he reached for her. Claws traced her cheeks, making her hair stand on end. The scent of him was overpowering, making her mouth almost water. Something in her ached.

“You are safe now. If you give into the change, you will not harm yourself or others.” He assured her. “I will take you into the pack. Every moon, we will come here. Once you are recognized as a member, we’ll do what we can to make sure that this is as painless as possible.”

His hands on her, the rumbling of his voice, his scent, the way the air tasted around him drove Carmen crazy. Trembling, she felt herself nearly falling again. Why was she so weak in the knees?

Something in her finally let go. The world exploded in silvery blue, the scents, sounds, and feelings overpowering her. Gasping, she felt her back arch.

She suddenly jolted forward, slipping from the grip of Silver. He stared at her with wide eyes, flinching when she touched him. Burying her hands into his fur, inhaled his scent, listening to the rapidly increasing beat of his heart.

The touch seemed to awaken something in him, his rapidly growing erection brushed against her midriff, pushing the hem of her shirt up.

“N-no.” He weakly tried to push her away, nearly tripping over his feet as he tried to get away from her. “You can’t.”

A fire formed in Carmen’s belly. She felt the emptiness inside her clawing up into her womb, begging to be filled. Dropping to her knees, she panted, sweat trickling down her brow and upper lip.

“Please.” She said, her mouth dry. “Please. Help me.” Her eyes widened and she felt heat flash through her. The scent rolling off her mingled with the air. It was hard to resist the urge to tear off her clothes and start plunging fingers inside herself.

Silver’s erection grew, beads of precum dribbling from the tip as he inhaled her scent, tasting it in the air. Silvery saliva drooled out of his mouth, and he stared at her. But he didn’t dare move. His hand gripped the mouth of the cave, looking ready to rip it down rather than come near her.

“You must have your first change,” He urged her. “Please. Let the Wolf inside come out.” He flexed his free hand. “My fangs and claws would rip you to shreds.” His voice was growing more raspy, each word a chore to push past his teeth.

Carmen’s body twisted as she cried out with a need she’d never felt the intensity of before. Her throat felt raw from the primal screams escaping her. She tried to find the part of her mind and push for the change to occur. Begging the wolf to come out.

The other wolves were making their way over. Their scent made Carmen launch herself, only for Silver to clothesline her. With a grace that suggested practice, he managed to push her back into the cave. With his hand still tight around her waist, he laid Carmen on the floor.

“Diana, forgive me for what I’m about to do.” He muttered, holding her to the ground. “You can’t scream like that. You’ll make every wolf in the area come running.” His cock brushed against Carmen’s clothed groin, the sensation sending another blast of lust through her.

“Please.” Carmen panted, unable to catch her breath. “Help me.” Eyes watering, she reached for the Wolf’s arm, gripping it tightly enough she thought she might burst her stitches.

“I could rip you in half.” He shook his head. “You’re not changed. You’re not made for it.” His nostrils flared, his hands shaking and gripping her tighter.

“Help me change.” She urged him. “Please.” Why was she in so much pain if it was a dream? There was no way she’d been this horny in real life. Sure, she’d wanted sex before, but never this bad.

Sighing, he looked over his shoulder to the entrance of the cave. It was empty. But each movement and second he made her wait was agonizing.

Slowly, he took his hand off her. With considerably less grace and control, he tore off her pants and underwear. The full scent of her arousal hit him. His hand slammed the open area above her head, his cock dribbling onto her thighs. A few drops landed on her exposed groin. Crying out, she bucked her hips up, reminding him what needed to be filled.

Leaning down, he nuzzled against her neck, his nose cold. Fangs traced over her skin, making her gasp. Warmth followed as his tongue went across her neck, trailing to the collar of her shirt, leaving a large wet spot. Tensing, he ran his hand up her stomach, slipping it under the fabric of her top.

It rested there, his open palm’s warmth mingling with her own. Slowly, he slipped it off her, taking care to not tug on the bandages on her injured arm. His claws tore through the cheap fabric of her sports bra, but the loss wasn’t going to break her heart.

His eyes rested on the necklace now laying against her chest.

“Diana forgive me,” He said again, before pushing her legs apart. His fur tickled her bare skin. It was softer than she thought it would be. Lowering his head, he lapped at the wetness forming between her legs and spilling out into the floor.

The touch of his tongue made her cry out. Her legs locked around Silver’s head, forcing him to inhale her scent and arousal completely. Whether the motion or her cries finally made him let go, it seemed to awaken something in him.

Growling, he sent a rumble through her that shook her very being. Breath escaped her, and she fell back flat, drowning in the pleasure.

Grabbing Carmen’s thigh, Silver plunged his tongue in deep, rolling his head with each lick. She thought she would scream, but all that came out were quiet moans of satisfaction. Her hands tried to grab at something, to distract her from the sensation long enough to hold her rapidly approaching climax. She settled on resting her hand on his head, pushing him in further.

Her legs went slack, shaking with desire. He gave a few more licks, before pulling back and running his tongue over her clit. Each movement sent a wave of pleasure over Carmen, making her cry out and arch her back, wanting to be filled again.

Then, he pulled back, fur slick with her arousal. Breathing heavy, the Wolf stared at her entrance, his warm breath tickling her wet folds. Leaning down, he licked the ground and lapped up every drop of her that had spilled out.

He picked her up off the ground, pressing her to the wall. Carmen’s legs snaked around his waist, barely able to hold herself up. Rocking his hips, Silver, growled in her ear. The breath tickled the curve of her neck, making her shiver.

“Tell me you want it.” He rasped, the tip prodding against her. She could feel their fluids mixing together, dirtying the cave floor.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, Carmen nodded.

“P-Please.” She begged.

Then, he entered her. She was so slick it slid right in. Once she’d wrapped around him, he grabbed her shoulders and pulled her down. Rolling his hips, he thrust up into her. Arms wrapped around Carmen’s body, he kept her from scraping against the stone of the cave. Cradling her head, he had her look at him.

“Your pupils are so wide, I can’t see your iris anymore.” He growled, each thrust sending pleasure through Carmen. “I didn’t think my cock would fit, but you’re taking it so well.” The words weren’t teasing or hurtful, he seemed just as surprised as her. “It’s like you were made for me. There’s a little bit of the wolf getting teased out.”

Carmen couldn’t deny the pleasure sweeping through her. She wriggled her hips and took him to the base, gripping him tighter. The growl that escaped him was one of pleasure. His thrusts were strong, each one filling her with white hot heat. Every moan and gasp that escaped her echoed loudly in the cave, no doubt funneling into the meadow.

“Hold me tightly.” He encouraged her. “Scratch, bite, yell, let yourself fall to your base instincts.” His thrusts became almost vicious, impaling Carmen and reaching deeper than she thought possible.

She screamed, tearing at his fur. The cries encouraged him further, and he bucked his hips hard, slamming into her. Bareback scraping against the wall, Carmen took it all in, pleasure building in her stomach and bringing her closer.

There was no way she should have been able to take his cock. It was too big. The thought of it entering would have made her scoff, but now she was drawing it into her like it had always belonged.

Then, she grew uncomfortably tight. Wincing, she dug her nails into his thick fur. Part of her was tempted to bite down on his shoulder, but the sensation would probably shock him into letting go of her.

She grew more slick, wanting to take him all the way in, thicker cock be damned. It needed to be all the way inside when he came. Rolling her hips, she tried to press herself down against him when he thrust up.

“Fuck… The knot.” Silver panted. “I’m about to-”

He winced when she wrapped her legs tighter around him. “Wait, I’m going to-” His eyes were clouded with lust, his tongue lapping her neck. Words became grunts and growls

Carmen’s body tensed. Throwing her head back, she nearly slammed it against the wall of the cave as the orgasm ripped through her. She clenched down onto the cock inside her.

The pressure made Silver howl, and he erupted. Thick ropes of fluid filled Carmen, then dripped onto the floor. Two more aftershocks followed, although they paled in comparison to the first, merely spilling more onto the stone and Silver’s feet.

Panting, Silver brought her down, collapsing onto the cave floor. His rapidly shrinking and softening cock was still slick with Carmen’s wetness.

Carmen crawled over to him, falling onto his chest. His rapidly beating heart gradually slowed, his shallow breaths becoming deeper. Within moments, he was snoring.

Closing her eyes, Carmen laid against his sleeping form. Even though he was a beast, it felt safe. His clawed hand rested against her thigh, the other encircling her chest and pulling her to him.

***

Slants of light fell on Carmen. Groaning, she tried to move. Soreness filled her body, her joints and muscles straining against the movement as she tried to rouse herself. The floor underneath her was cold and hard. Hadn’t she closed the window last night?

Looking down, she saw her naked body. Bruises traced up and down her hips and thighs. Stone was beneath her, scents of sex and animal mixing with her nose.

Warm hands clutched her close. A half hard cock rubbed against her leg.

“Mmm…” The person holding her groaned, pulling her back down to the ground. Stubble scraped against her bare shoulder, followed by a kiss. Squirming, she resisted the urge to twist away.

“Morning.” The grogginess was clear in the voice.

Carmen felt a familiar soreness between her legs. Panic seized her when she realized what had happened wasn’t a dream.

Slowly, she turned to look down at her partner.

And into the half asleep face of Doctor Remington.

#monster boyfriend #monster lover #monster fucker #monsterfucker #monster fuckery #werewolf #werewolf boyfriend #werewolf lover #werewolf smut #terato #terat0philliac #teratophillia

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all-alone-he-turns-to-stone · 3 months

Text

Crazy, Stupid, Love

Dean Winchester Masterlist

Summary: When Dean has to work at a café to learn infos on a hunt, he thinks it's the worst. Until he meets her. At first, she's only kind of an annoying coworker. But an unfortunate event brings them closer, and Dean starts feeling things for her. If it's love, he doesn't know. But for the first time, he starts wondering how it would feel to have a normal life. A normal job. And a normal relationship. But first, he needs to get her revenge against that shitty boss.

Note: this happens in the begining of season one

Word Count: 9k

Pairing: Dean x F!Reader

Content Warning: Toxic work place, rude customer, humiliation, bullying, swearing

Squares: Humiliation for @hurtcomfort-bingo,/ Revenge for @jacklesversebingo

A/n: I'm gonna be honest, at first, I didn't want to post this fic. When I saw the attention the last few fics I took so much time to write got, it made me sad... But then I remembered how much fun I had with this one, so decided to post it in case someone else has the same fun reading it. ALSO! This was for @eevvvaa writing challenge! I picked the movie Crazy Stupid Love but actually used the quotes! They will be in bold in the text. Happy reading!

Usually, this situation would have upset him. After all, he was stuck here 8 hours per day, 5 days per week and always finished too late to go to the nearest bar afterwards. It also wasn’t the best first real job to have, as it was lame, boring, and always the same thing. But working at a café also had its advantages.

Like the beautiful barista that he had the chance to see on his first day. She was leaving, as she was only working mornings, and he was working evenings, but Dean couldn’t detach his eyes from her. Beautiful body, hair immaculate even after 8 hours of wearing a net, skin tanned to perfection.

“Oh great, another one.”

That wasn’t the girl he was talking about. No, the girl that just spoke was Y/n. At first glance, she looked like the manager. With the most seniority in here, she knew how things were done and how to do them quickly. But she was no boss. To make her agree to be his trainer and show him the basics, the real boss had to insist a lot. He didn’t know all the details, though, but she ended up accepting.

It was for a hunt. Otherwise, Dean would never be here. Sam said there was something weird in the neighborhood, and that the best way to discover what was going on was to talk with the community. And the best place to have conversations with people that didn’t want to talk with the police was of course at the local café. All the rumors and crispy details of the town were floating in there. The reason why it wasn’t Sam doing the whole barista thing was as simple as upsetting.

“Dean, you have all the charm. People- ladies- will open up to you like blooming flowers in the spring.”

Ugh.

Back to the present, Dean ignored Y/n’s comment and tilted his head to the side, still eyeing the morning employee that was leaving. “What do I have to do to get on the morning shift?”

A groan of annoyance resonated behind him. His smile fell. He was stuck with her for a while, as they were both working evening shifts.

Alone together.

There were 60 seconds in one minute. And 60 minutes in one hour. A shift lasted 8 hours here. That was way too many seconds to spend doing nothing but wait to leave.

All that was in his head was the hot chick he kept seeing since he started working here. After only bumping into her these past 2 weeks, Dean finally decided to ask her on a date. And since he was Dean Winchester, no one could tell him no. And the same day, after his shift, he would meet her in front of the pizza place that was two blocks away.

And he couldn’t stop looking at the clock, head in his hand, hoping that staring at it would make the time go faster.

“I asked for a hot caramel latte with almond milk and no foam, what the hell is this?!”

It was near the end. In 15 minutes, the shop would be closed and then it was cleaning time. Weeping the floor, throwing away the remaining food that was not sold, washing the dishes, etc. That was always his favorite part, because even if Y/n was a pain in the ass as his supervisor, she was chill and allowed him to choose the radio station while they cleaned and he could leave once his part was done.

At first, the voice didn’t alert him, and Dean kept on making himself busy with cleaning tables that didn’t need it. But then, something broke, the sound heavy of meaning, and he was on alert. Every fiber of his body was on and he turned to the source of the sound.

Right at the counter, there was a man with his back to him. Without seeing his face, Dean knew he was angry. Pissed, even. At his feet, a broken cup, porcelain in pieces covered the floor soaked in coffee. Two steps allowed Dean to know what the man was looking at, and when he saw her…

He immediately rushed without thinking.

“I’m gonna ask you to leave, sir,” Dean put his hand on the customer’s shoulder, which made him jump. The man turned to him and aggressively stepped back.

“Don’t touch me,” the man hissed. “You’re working here, huh?” He looked up and down at Dean, noticing the apron of the café he was wearing. “Must be the manager here. Well, your employee here is worthless, you should be careful who you hire, for fuck sake!”

At that, Dean couldn’t help but wince. That was unnecessary rude to say. He glanced at Y/n again and felt his heartbeat with pain. Her head was down, probably to hide tears. That was probably not the first time she had to serve asshole customers, but it was the first time Dean noticed it. Working in customer service was not easy at all, you had to be strong to endure all of that everyday.

He only knew Y/n for about two weeks, but he already knew a lot about her. She was calm. Kind. She cared about doing her job right. Yeah, she was a bit bossy and used every opportunity to send subtle little insults towards Dean just enough to annoy him, like how he couldn’t even do a coffee, in this economy? But it was never mean and he liked that side of her that didn’t let people step on her toes. But right now, in front of that man? She was small. She wanted to hide. It wasn’t the Y/n he knew.

“I’m not the boss,” Dean answered finally, placing his gaze back on the man. “But we’re closed, so I’m gonna ask you to leave.”

The rude customer was the last one in the café, so it wasn’t like he was breaking any rules. And he was Dean Winchester. He made the rules.

Red seemed to eat at the man’s face so much he was angry. “Not before I get what I fucking paid for!” He started yelling. Dean didn’t mind being screamed at, he was used to it with his dad, how sad it sounded. But when the man turned to Y/n to yell at her, Dean couldn’t hold himself back. “You useless cunt!”

“I said, out!” Dean grabbed the customer by the neck and quickly sent him backwards. His legs met the table right behind him, but it wasn’t enough to make him understand. The man lunged forward in an attempt to hit Dean, but he didn’t know.

Dean was waiting for it.

The fist missed, and the man stumbled into the void and collapsed on the floor like a clown.

“This isn’t over,” the man growled and got up. Sure he would strike again, Dean was ready to fight. But this time, the fist didn’t miss. The pain came later, a few seconds after the hunter realized he got hit in the face. Fortunately for his ego, Dean managed to stay on his feet and not fall pathetically on the floor.

He reached for the wound.

It was right near his left eye, it would bruise for sure.

With deadly flames in his green eyes, he looked at his target.

“Oh, you’re dead.”

The rest happened quickly.

Dean decided he wouldn’t hold back anymore. As his head throbbed with ache and anger, he was about to hit with everything he got. But at the last moment, something interrupted him. A body, warm, soft, encircling his own, stopped him from moving.

“Please stop…”

Her voice woke him up completely. Shaking, she put herself between the two men to stop the fight even if she was scared.

The man took the opportunity to run away, the bell chiming behind him as the door closed violently.

A long silence followed the departure of the aggressive customer. A couple of seconds passed, then minutes, before she realized there was no silence actually. Things were happening around her, words were spoken, and the only person besides her was running around locking doors and closing blinds, cursing every word he could think of at the moment.

Her hearing was nothing but a shrill sound, almost painful, like she was deaf. It took another minute and him calling her name for her to come back to the present.

"You okay? He didn't hurt you?" Dean was kneeling in front of her. She finally noticed she was sitting down on a chair. Shaking her head, she tapped her hands in her face to finish waking herself up from her slumber.

"You're hurt and you ask me if I'm okay?" She stood up as she spoke, Dean doing the same. Then she seemed to disappear in the backstore to come back with a bag of frozen vegetables they used for the soup. "Sit down," she instructed.

Dean would have been impressed by her capacity to focus after such an event, especially with how she was a couple of seconds ago, but he knew better. She wouldn't meet his gaze, her head was down, and when he glanced at her hands, it was to see them shake.

"Y/n-"

"Oh, come on, sit down, your masculinity won't suffer too much, I just want to check," she rolled her eyes and almost pushed him to the chair. Dean let himself be moved around with a smirk. That was the Y/n he knew. "There, it's not that bad, huh?"

"It's no big deal," he tried to convince her, after all, as a hunter, he got hurt more than once before and healed perfectly fine. But when he saw her, he understood. And he let himself be checked by her only for her. To reassure her it was nothing, it was fine, it would bruise into a black eye and nothing else.

"Okay, it's not that bad," she sighed in relief as she said that.

"Told you," Dean snickered with a smile. "Ouch!"

The frozen bag was now on his bruise and Y/n was turning her back to him. His first instinct was to ask her if she was okay, check on her, after all, she seemed pretty shaken up, but he knew she needed time, that was all.

"We should call the police," Dean ended up saying. Usually, he would never propose that, but the customer was human. A monster in some sort, but completely human, so the police could take care of it.

"No!" She turned harshly towards Dean, surprising him.

"Why not?"

Pacing back and forth, Y/n seemed to get lost in her thoughts. "It's not necessary, I doubt the customer will come back, and it would put the cafe in a bad spot, we would lose customers and…"

Again, Dean knew. Y/n was a good employee, she loved doing her job right, but she hated the place, hated the menu and the disgusting coffee served here, and hated the management. But they were the ones giving her her salary at the end of the month, so she couldn't disappoint them.

"I can deal with the boss," Dean said, standing up, the bag still on his eye.

In front of him, Y/n sadly shook her head. "It won't be necessary." She pointed at one corner of the cafe. Then another. "There's cameras around, and he loves to watch. Loves to tell us everything we do wrong. He probably already knows it happened. We'll see tomorrow, I guess," she sighed. Then, like a thought crossed through her head, she lifted her head completely and crossed gaze with Dean. "Your date! You're gonna be late!"

Dean wanted to laugh. So badly. Of course, he talked to her about it. Kristina, their coworker from the morning shift and Dean's date, was waiting for him. But after what happened, it completely got out of his head. Smiling, he shook his head and placed the bag of defrosting vegetables on the table beside him.

"I'll call her, say something came up. She'll understand."

Y/n cringed, biting her lips and frowning. "I don't think she cares enough to understand. But you're cute and sexy so maybe she'll forgive your ass."

Immediately after saying those words, Y/n became a puddle of embarrassment. Her body flushed with the realization of what she just admitted.

"Really?" Dean would not let that go. "You think I'm the perfect combination of sexy and cute ?"

"Shut up," she murmured between her teeth, grabbing the nearest thing, the cloth he was using to clean the tables, to throw it at him. "Get out of here your shift is over."

"Yeah," Dean surprised himself by what he said next. "But I won't let you walk back home alone. Consider me your cute and sexy bodyguard," he laughed at her reaction, but it was nothing compared to the sound leaving his mouth when he received another cloth on the head. "Hey, this one was wet"

"Oops!"

The next day started pretty badly. After a complicated night with barely any sleep and lots of nightmares, Y/n got up early to get ready. Even if her shift started at 3pm, she knew the phone would ring and the ruthless voice of her boss would order her to come in to talk.

About what happened.

It was not even noon when it happened. She was at her third coffee, so she had energy even if she felt dead inside. Since she was already dressed, all she had to do was grab her stuff and head to the cafe. Like usual, she had to walk since she didn't have enough savings to buy a car.

The weather was quite nice, compared to how gloomy she was feeling. It was warm and sunny outside. Y/n barely made a step out, locking her door, that a loud engine startled her. The sun was reflecting strongly on the hood, blinding her as she walked with caution towards it, and for a moment she thought maybe it was the customer that found her and came to finish what he started. Fortunately she recognized the car quickly, as it was the same car that drove her home last night.

A 67 chevy impala.

It was even more beautiful than when she saw it yesterday.

The drive to the cafe was quiet, apart from the chichats. How are you? Do you feel better? So, did he call you too? Usually, Y/n would have commented on something random just to annoy Dean, but when he turned his head towards her at a red light to ask her a question, she saw the bruise around his eyes, reminding her of the night before and how everything was her fault. If only she hadn't messed up the order…

Once parked in front of the cafe, Dean stopped the engine to turn to Y/n. "Hey," he said in a calm and steady voice. "Whatever happens there, it was neither our fault."

"I appreciate it, Dean, but it was. I was in charge, even though I told the boss more than once that I didn't want to be, so what happens on my shift is my fault." Without leaving him time to answer, she opened the door and left the car to enter the cafe.

The moment she stepped inside, a loud silence echoed around her. Every employee stopped chatting to stare at her, the customers mimicking their actions, wondering what was so much more interesting than getting their order right and fast.

Y/n hated that. The attention. The eyes on her. The silence. Her body started shaking, both with anger and humiliation, the tears almost painful to hold back. But then, as she was about to step towards the boss' office, a warmth settled on her shoulder, stopping the tremors at once. And a voice she was starting to grow fond of whispered near her ear.

"Ignore them. They don't matter right now."

With Dean, she felt safe. Strong. Like she could do everything and never feel afraid anymore. That was until they were sitting in the office in front of the boss.

“Y/n, I am wildly disappointed with you. What you did was beyond unprofessional, and I can’t believe I have to do this. You’re suspended.”

It was nothing less than what she expected from her boss. Since working there, she had done everything to stay in his good graces, sometimes doing other people's jobs to compensate. Everything to keep the restaurant clean and to continue serving fresh food every day. It wasn't Kristina who would write down expiration dates on perishable products, or place the new arrival of breads behind the ones already there to prevent the oldest ones from remaining at the bottom of the shelf, covered in mold. If this place passed the health inspection every year, it was thanks to Y/n’s efforts, efforts that no one had ever noticed or considered.

It was probably better that way.

Head bowed, Y/n took a harsh breath and opened her mouth to apologize and admit her boss was right. However, the words could not come out of her mouth fast enough, because someone else was already speaking.

“This is bullshit,” Dean exclaimed. A quick glance in his direction, and Y/n could see his hands forming fists on his thighs. “Y/n did everything perfectly, it’s not her fault if customers don’t respect anything, not even themselves!”

“Dean, I think you're new here,” the boss replied with a calmness that didn't mean anything good. Y/n tried to draw Dean's attention to her to signal him to shut up, that it was nothing, that she could survive a week suspended, but the young man paid her no mind. And one look at his face showed her the same anger she had seen in him the previous evening, when he had decided to defend himself against the customer. “I watched the surveillance cameras carefully. Your reactions with this client, although undoubtedly intended to be heroic, were completely unacceptable. The next time you make a mistake, you will suffer the same fate as Y/n. For now, take your day, see you on Monday, Dean.”

"That's all?!" This time, Dean stood up as he spoke. “Y/n gets suspended, and I only get a warning and a day off? What the f-”

“Thank you,” Y/n quickly cut him off, grabbing his arm firmly to silence him. Strangely, like the day before, her intervention seemed to calm Dean down very quickly. “See you next week.”

As she was about to leave, her hand still holding Dean's wrist to drag him out of the office, a voice called out to her.

"Two weeks. See you in two weeks.”

It took a lot of control for her to say nothing. The inside of her cheek hurt from how hard she bit it, dragging Dean out of the office and then out of the restaurant. It was only once outside, far from prying ears and vulture eyes, that she was finally able to breathe.

“FUCKING BULLSHIT! FUCK YOU!” Suddenly came out of her mouth. If Dean still had any anger at that moment, it suddenly vanished when he heard so many curses coming out with so much anger from the usually calm Y/n. “Oh. It feels better."

Having never seen her like this, it took several seconds for Dean to compose himself. Large green eyes were fixed on her, wide, shocked, even, until a good hit on the arm woke him up completely. "Ouch!" He rubbed his arm as if it hurt even though her fist had barely tickled him.

“What the fuck was that, seriously?! Talk to the boss like that? You’re born stupid or you’re just too dumb to think, fuck, Dean!”

Still as surprised and shocked, Dean didn't respond immediately. Y/n was angry. More, even. Beyond pissed. Which was completely normal under the circumstances, except Y/n wasn't normally angry. She could get upset, complain about the system, the management, the customers, or how she was the only one doing all the little things that made the café special and comfortable, but she was never angry.

“I couldn’t let him talk to you that way, I just couldn’t,” Dean explained calmly. It was quite rare for him to be the calm one in a heated argument. But in this case, he knew he had to keep his own rage to himself, she didn't need more anger. She needed to speak, to expel this emotion out of her like a demon that needed to be exorcized.

“Well, that was fucking stupid,” she pointed at him, her gaze meeting his. This surprised him again. Y/n was shy, although she was a good leader, and he noticed she had trouble looking people in the eye for several seconds. She always ended up looking away, and he knew it wasn't because she was dishonest, but rather that she was afraid of the judgment in the eyes of others. So that she was yelling at him while staring right at him… That surprised Dean again and made him speechless.

For a few seconds, he forgot that he was being told off by a girl for defending her, and lost himself in the contemplation of her magnificent orbs. Since he had known her, he had never really seen them, or bothered to look at them.

And her eyes were beautiful, even filled with anger.

Probably noticing the eye contact was getting considerably long, Y/n finally broke the almost trance-like effect to gaze elsewhere.

“Have you had it long?”

She was still not looking at him. "What?"

“The uncontrollable need to save the damsel in distress.” The corner of her lips lifted up in a smirk.

“I-” He couldn’t tell her that this was actually his life. Saving the woman and the orphan, killing the monsters, it was so ingrained in his life that it was part of him.

“Come on,” she muttered, still not meeting his gaze, gesturing to him to follow her.

"Come on… Where?" It was the longest conversation he'd had with her, and it was only because she was angry, he remembered. He was here for a hunt, he had to learn more about the people of the town. Concentration and focus were required, but yet... This side of Y/n, her confidence, how she wasn't afraid to yell at him like that, when she was normally so gentle...

He liked that side of her. Not that he disliked the rest, it was just-

“I think you have tonight off, and I, well, the next two weeks.” Starting to walk towards the impala, she then stopped and turned her head just enough to look over her shoulder at him. “I’m going to help you rediscover your manhood. Do you have any idea where you could have lost it?”

A big smile stretched Dean's lips. This was the Y/n he knew. “Probably over there,” he pointed to the horizon. “Near the pizzeria. You hungry?”

The pizza was the most delicious thing that had passed Y/n's lips in a long time. Very greasy and dripping with cheese, the junk food was simply good after such a catastrophic day. And sharing this moment with his colleague, accomplice, even, and perhaps friend- if he wanted to- was the icing on the cake.

Her heart always beat a beat and a half faster when he was near her. And although she tried not to like him, not to get attached to what was clearly a bad boy who preferred girls like Kristina, who just hung out with her because he had free time… She simply couldn't deny it anymore. What her heart desired was starting to win over what reason screamed at her.

Don't fall in love.

And yet, as that evening at the pizzeria after her suspension turned into an almost daily routine, her heart prevailed. The crush she immediately had for the young man with emerald eyes and cheeks covered in a milky way of little freckles was slowly transforming into something deeper.

A week had passed since her suspension, it was Saturday again, and as usual, Y/n and Dean found themselves at the pizzeria. The owner himself now came to take their order, even though he already knew what the two wanted since they always ordered the same thing. Everything was going exactly as usual, Dean recounting his day at work, how slowly everything was going downhill without her.

“I worked with a new guy, and son of a bitch, I’ve never seen someone take their time so much. It’s like he did it on purpose,” Dean sipped his drink. Y/n’s gaze followed the movement of the Adam’s apple rising and falling as he swallowed. She was barely concentrating on what he was saying. “We had two complaints that the sandwich bread had mold, but the person in the kitchen didn't get in trouble for it. It’s like the boss knows that no matter the wait time, the quality of the food, or the attitude of the employees, the cafe will always make money since it’s the only one in town,” Dean let out a little laugh which only spread the butterflies in Y/n’s stomach. “Let me tell you that over the past week, some regulars have stopped coming. Oh, and many have asked where you’ve been.”

“It’s not surprising,” she finally answered after a few seconds of silence where only the chewing of Dean devouring his pizza could be heard. On the table, near the windows, the dessert was already there, two slices of pie that the owner had reserved for them knowing they were coming. Her gaze fell on the dessert as she spoke although she really wanted to look him in the eyes. Admiring the perfect color of his orbs, admiring how everything was perfect about him. It was so difficult. “What’s surprising is that the health inspection hasn’t closed this place yet.”

These words hung in the air for a moment, accompanied by silence. Finally glancing over at Dean, she found that he had stopped eating mid-bite, staring blankly at her. It was almost as if Y/n could see the gears moving in his mind.

“Yet.” That was all he said next, taking the time to finish his bite before continuing. "I have an idea."

“I could figure that much,” she laughed as she took her drink, anything to occupy her hands and look normal in his presence. Luckily he couldn't hear her heart thumping against her ribcage.

“We're going to avenge you,” he pointed ahead, at her, and that was enough for her eyes to move from his finger to his eyes. She managed to hold his gaze for several long seconds which seemed to her like hours of torture. "You'll see."

"See what? Oh, how cute,” a voice broke the bubble Y/n and Dean were in. She hadn't heard that voice in a week, and it had been the best thing her suspension had given her, except for all the time she'd spent with Dean since.

“Kristina,” Y/n muttered under her breath, her eyes immediately going to her pizza. A weight seemed to settle on her chest, pressing down hard with its gigantic pressure.

“Hey,” Dean greeted her, and the pressure thumped harder against her heart. “How you doing, Kristina?”

His tone was kind. Friendly. Sweet. Just like he was with Y/n. But with a bonus, he was flirty.

Obviously.

She was not special.

“Oh, I'm doing well, much better,” she laughed. “Especially since Y/n isn’t at the café anymore. No one is ordering us around anymore, right, Dean?”

Out of the corner of her eye, Y/n could see movement. Raising her head just enough to have her in her sight without looking directly at her, she could see her hand on Dean's shoulder. Besides, she wasn't alone. Two other girls from the cafe were standing with her. Without looking at them, Y/n knew. She felt their gaze on her, burning, like vultures around prey.

“I actually liked working with Y/n,” Dean replied as calmly as ever. His words created a spark of hope in Y/n who this time looked directly at Dean. “It’s not as fun without her,” he continued.

“Oh,” Kristina laughed, and her two henchmen followed suit. “I know you want to stay in her good graces by saying all this,” she leaned towards him to whisper in his ear, but made no effort to lower her voice. “But you don’t need to. I think she's going to get fired. The customer came back to file a complaint against her.”

"What?" Dean leaned back slightly to get a better look at Kristina. Now he had his face so close to hers that only one movement was necessary to kiss her. And he had a perfect view into her cleavage. “But…” He turned his head towards the girl sitting in front of him, obviously not understanding why she was being fired and not him.

“You don’t have to lick her boots anymore,” Kristina put a hand on her hip. “I know she’s in love with you, but at this point, it’s pity, right? Spending time with her… Poor little thing. No friends. No boyfriend. Only feelings for those who don’t love her. Just like last time, always falling for the new guy.”

Her face was burning. Y/n was seething, with anger, with sadness, with humiliation. And the worst, the worst was Dean's expression. His gaze, which he constantly fixed on her, seeking to meet her gaze, wanting so much for her to grant him one look, was now stuck in emptiness. And a look of pure confusion made him frown.

Dean refused to look at her anymore.

It was too much.

“Ew, friends to friends,” Kristina added, as if the stabs she had already thrown didn’t hurt enough already. “Ew.”

Standing abruptly, Y/n slammed her hands on the table. Head bowed, her hair cascaded in front of her face, trying as best as they could to hide the tears that welled up in her eyes and inevitably rolled down her cheeks. A ton of insults raced through her mind, but they all got stuck in her throat with this lump growing and growing, until finally, the tears flowed.

One.

Two.

One fell silently onto the table. The other, on her plate, right next to the barely eaten slice of pizza.

Before the third tear fell, Y/n was already out of the restaurant and walking as quickly as she could towards her house. The tears continued to flow without her being able to stop them, but she remained silent. If she could control one thing tonight, it would be her voice. No sound would come out of her mouth until she was alone, at home, in her bed. Only there, she would let herself scream all this pain into her pillow.

No one tried to catch her.

“Good news,” Sam announced before his brother had even closed the door. “Get this. There was no monster from the beginning. It was actually kids who created the whole thing to attract attention. You don’t have to play barista anymore.”

"Oh."

Looking up from his laptop, Sam fixed his gaze on Dean. The door closed slowly and he took off his coat just as slowly and placed it on his bed. The motel was shabby, like all the others, and usually, Dean would never place his precious leather coat on those blankets which he called "the most disgusting object the universe has known." He'd cleaned the covers several times to be sure, but the comforter had kept this unnatural color, so he still didn't trust it.

“Dean.”

“I'm going to take a shower,” his brother grumbled as he headed towards the bathroom, completely ignoring what Sam had just said.

“Okay, but-” the door slammed. “Okay.”

Sam waited for Dean to finish his shower for almost an hour. The only reason Dean Winchester would take such a long shower would be the fantastic water pressure, but having used this bathroom for over 3 weeks, Sam knew that really wasn't the case.

Finally, Dean came out.

“Are you going to tell me what’s going on?” Sam closed his laptop to put his full attention on his brother. The latter sat at the end of his bed, dressed with fresh clothes, his towel on his shoulder to catch the droplets falling from his hair.

“Have you ever dreamed of a normal life?” Dean answered his question with another question. At this, Sam rolled his eyes.

“I had a normal life before, remember? Before you picked me up to find Dad?”

Dean made a sound that was a mix of a sigh of guilt and a grunt of frustration, probably directed at himself. "I know but…"

“I can't believe it,” Sam stood up at the revelation. “You like working there.”

“Nah,” Dean slapped the air like he was chasing away the stupid idea. “Actually, yeah, but not anymore. Working in customer service is horrible.”

“I feel like there's a but,” Sam went to sit next to his brother on the bed.

“But,” Dean took a deep breath. "There is a girl."

Sam sighed. Obviously it was about a girl. “Have you slept with her yet? Because if you want to stay here for a one night stand, I swear-”

“She’s in love with me.”

Sam turned his whole body towards his brother, his eyes wide. "Oh."

"Oh."

“Do you like her back?”

At this question, Dean's face disappeared under his large hands. “I don’t know,” his voice sounded muffled by his palms.

“What do you mean you don’t know?”

"I don't know!" Dean exclaimed, removing his hands at the same time. It was his turn to avoid looking at someone, staring at the void instead. “I don’t know what it is to love. How to love. If it’s love. It was never explained to me, you know, it wasn’t dad who would tell me how to know if I love someone.”

A silence followed his words, but not for long.

“With Jess…” Sam began slowly, as if the words he was about to say were poisonous snakes that could bite him at any moment. “It was simple. I felt good with her. She felt good with me. And together, we were good.”

“Okay,” Dean listened intently, as if the answers he was looking for were on his brother's lips.

“Do you like spending time with her?” He then asked.

Dean didn't even think for a second. "Oh yeah."

“When you're not with her, what do you do? You think about her, right?”

This time, Dean took a moment before answering. “Well, I worked at the cafe, so obviously I was thinking about her, since she wasn’t there but she used to. And then, when I finished work, I would go see her and we would order food or go to the pizzeria.”

“Okay, and then?”

"And then what?" Dean finally looked his brother in the eye. He still had questions, still doubts, confusion, but that was completely normal. A soft, understanding smile stretched Sam's lips.

“What are you thinking about right now?”

“Oh, how I want to punch that shitty boss in the face,” Dean clenched his fist to mimic his words. “I never hit women, but that girl, Kristina, humiliated Y/n terribly earlier. And I reacted too late, she was gone and-”

He stopped speaking suddenly, as if enlightenment had finally reached his mind.

"And?"

“I have to join Y/n, apologize, I-”

“Dean.”

Stopping just as he was getting up and putting his coat back on, the green eyed man turned to his brother.

“If you're in love, I can't tell you, Dean. But I can confirm that you like her. But for tonight, let her breathe, these feelings are new for the both of you.”

At these words, Dean collapsed on the bed. “Oh, you’re probably right. I don't want to rush her, you know, she's so shy, but at the same time, so... Fierce. She's the perfect balance of sweet and spicy. And I let her down.”

To that, Sam didn't know what to answer. He knew that feeling, the one of having abandoned the person you love. That's how he felt ever since he lost Jess.

“I'm sure you'll figure out how to make amends,” Sam placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“Actually… I think I already know,” Dean turned his head towards him, green eyes meeting amber ones. Green eyes sparkling with a new resolution, probably very wicked. “And you, my dear brother, will be able to help me.”

Turned out, losing another employee during the busiest time of the year was a sufficient reason to terminate a suspension preemptively. And although, clearly, this did not seem to make certain employees happy and even less the boss who hated coming back on his decisions, Y/n was able to return to work after barely a week of forced leave. And also, strangely, the customer’s complaint seemed to have vanished from existence. Or maybe it was another lie that Kristina came up with to hurt Y/n.

And what a surprise when she arrived and saw the place.

It was depressing. Everything was messy and upside down, unopened boxes that needed to be refrigerated were lying around everywhere, and other products that needed to stay at room temperature, like syrups, ended up in the freezer. No rotation had been made, and it was with sadness that she had to note all the food they lost and throw everything away. It took her a long time, long enough for someone she despised to come and tell her how to do her job.

"What are you doing? Customers are waiting! Have you forgotten how to work?”

After making this more than derogatory comment, Kristina returned to her favorite position, the one that required the least effort.

Her heart was heavy. Filled and at the same time, empty. Since the last time with Dean at the pizzeria, she hadn't received any news. No call. No text. No, her heart wasn't big with heaviness, it was broken. Split. And now that she had returned to the café, she learned he no longer worked there.

Good for him, she thought as she put away one last box before heading towards the front of the café to deal with the customers. At least he was out of this hell. It was maybe better that way.

“Sorry for the wait, what can I get you?” The usual words were so ingrained in her that they came out of her mouth as soon as she was behind the cash register, without even looking at the customer.

“I would like you to give me the chance to talk to you,” a familiar voice said in front of her. That voice, low, hoarse, and so perfect. She had started to get used to hearing it almost every day. But this time, it forged yet another crack on her heart.

“Dean,” even saying his name was painful. The pain of a lost friendship and crushed hope. The pain of a humiliated moment, a bad memory where he had sat there in silence while she was being crushed as an inactive witness.

“Y/n. There’s no word to express how sorry I am for-”

An apology, of course, wasn't exactly what she wanted, but it was more than she had expected. He was there, in the flesh, in front of her. So, for once and although it was difficult because looking at him would hurt her even more, Y/n raised her head and stared into his sad gaze. Ready and open to hear what he had to say.

There was a sadness almost identical to her own in his beautiful green eyes. Guilt, regrets, he seemed sincere-

“Dean! I thought you had left the ship,” Kristina suddenly entered Y/n’s bubble, who didn’t waste a moment to move to the side. It wasn't unknown that Y/n didn't like being touched or having someone in her bubble, and Kristina knew it, so she did it on purpose. All the time.

“Excuse me, but I was talking with Y/n,” Dean replied in a neutral voice, almost annoyed, even.

“Oh, sure, you want to feel better about last time, but you don't have to,” Kristina continued, crossing her arms over her large chest.

Dean rolled his eyes and shifted his attention to Y/n. “I’m serious, Y/n. Come with me, I need to talk to you. And they don’t deserve you.”

Y/n's mouth opened, then closed, tears welling up in her eyes at an uncontrollable speed.

“Seriously, Dean, don’t you see how pathe-”

“Kristina, shut the fuck up. You’re bothering us.”

This really didn't please the girl who made an offended sound, threw an unimportant insult, and left without another word.

Once finally alone again, Dean was ready. Ready to tell the beautiful barista in front of him everything that was on his heart, even if he didn't really know exactly what it was himself. He had some in the past, girlfriends, one night stands, crushes on the most beautiful and popular girls in school, but that wasn't the same thing. He felt an attachment to Y/n, a different feeling that he couldn't describe. If it was love, he didn't know. But he knew he didn't want to lose her.

“It's a little too late to come to my defense,” her voice said instead of his. Taken by surprise, Dean's mouth opened then closed, like a fish looking flabbergasted. “Although I really enjoyed seeing someone tell her to fuck off for once,” the shadow of a smile drew on her face for a second, but quickly faded away. “Now, if you don’t mind, I have a lot of work-”

“Wait,” Dean found his voice just in time.

“I don’t have time, Dean,” Y/n turned her back on him, giving him one last eye contact above her shoulder. Her eyes were filled with sadness and seeing her like that physically hurt him.

“On the contrary,” Dean insisted, a smile tugging at his lips as he knew the plan was going like clockwork. “You will soon have plenty of time.”

Seeing the obvious confusion spread across her face, Dean jerked his head towards the boss's office. This caught the attention of not only Y/n but also the other employees, because at the same time, voices were heard coming from that direction. Loud voices, displeased, and then the door opened.

“I am very disappointed with the state of this place. It's deplorable. I’m afraid I won't change my mind, the café is going to close.”

“Wait,” the boss looked tiny behind the person who had just spoken. Like the weight of reality was finally falling on his shoulders. Stomping him to the ground like a pest, just how he had always treated his employees. "You can’t, you don’t have the right!"

“I have all the rights, I am a health inspector, and this place is completely unsanitary.”

Witnessing the whole scene in the front row, like she was in the cinema, Y/n was jubilant. Finally. Finally this place was recognized as being good for trash. Finally, the boss got what he deserved. Finally, things seemed to come full circle and it was all over.

The health inspector subsequently introduced himself to the employees. He looked very young for this job, early twenties, probably, long hair parted in the middle of his forehead and hazel eyes, but regardless, he had done his job properly so Y/n didn’t care about the details.

“This place is going to close. But don't worry, you are entitled to unemployment compensation. Time to find something better for you,” the inspector finished his speech with a wink. If Y/n wasn't so excited by the idea of being rid of this miserable job, she would have been sure that the wink was aimed at her personally.

A laugh brought her attention back to Dean who was still in front of her. As the health inspector informed the customers present of the situation and put a note in the door to say the café was permanently closed, Dean was giggling.

“You did this,” Y/n finally understood.

“Told you we would get you revenge. Now, can you please come with me and listen to me? I need to talk to you.”

“After what you did for me, lunch is on me,” Y/n laughed as well, took off her apron which she threw behind her, and left the café without a glance behind her.

“Listen. So uhm, how can I say this, so uhm… God, I’m so bad at chick flicks and emotional stuff.”

The two had been sitting at the pizzeria for about an hour and a half pizzas. The same place as usual, with the same order, but this time everything was different. It was not simply out of friendship that they came to share a meal, there was more. Hidden feelings, others clearly visible but which had not yet been addressed, and frustration mixed with regrets.

Dean had been trying for two slices of pizza now to say something, but would immediately turn red the moment he tried to open up emotionally. And Y/n couldn't even blame him, seeing the efforts he made for her, what he did at the cafe, for her, and now he was trying so hard to explain and make it up to her… He could say absolutely nothing and she would be satisfied.

“Take your time,” Y/n mentioned between mouthfuls, leaving all her attention on the young man in front of her who still made her heart beat so quickly. Of course, he had made mistakes, and to forgive him just because he had the best revenge for her was pretty stupid, but oh well. Love makes you stupid, right? “It’s not like someone is waiting for me.”

“It’s just,” Dean sighed and ran his hands over his face. Y/n's gaze stayed on the ring on his finger, a ring she had already noticed before. “Not easy to say this. I mean, not to you, but like, talking about my stuff like this. But there’s one thing I know I have to say, and here it is,” he finally seemed to find his bearings, beautiful green eyes anchoring into hers, his red cheeks creating a nice color contrast. "I'm sorry. Sorry for not saying anything when Kristina was there being a bitch. I guess I was taken up by surprise with what she said, but that’s no excuse.”

“Dean, it’s fine,” Y/n shook her head and closed her eyes briefly. When she opened them again, she knew exactly what she wanted to say to him. She took a big breath, words and sentences forming quickly in her mind. And it all came out of her mouth as quickly. “I am not ashamed to like you. Not at all. Because you are nice. Pretty. Hella sexy. And I feel comfortable whenever I’m with you. And I like spending time with you, and always wanna spend more. I won’t be ashamed to think all those things about you, because they are true, and they only make you a better person.” Pausing her words, Y/n forced herself to keep her gaze on Dean's again. She noticed that since those words had come out of her mouth, it was easier to hold his gaze. “You don’t have to have the same feelings, I understand. You don’t have to reciprocate or answer my confession, I can already see how bad it is for you to express feelings,” she laughed briefly at his scowling expression. “What I’m trying to say is… Yes. I like you a lot. And if you only like me as a friend, well, I’ll take that. It might hurt, but it would hurt more to not have you around anymore.”

Phew. It was hard to say, but once everything was out, Y/n felt better, lighter even. A heavy weight was finally leaving her heart, but there was still a little left. That was pressing. And tightening with the question… What will his answer be?

Dean took a brief moment to think before answering. Everything had gone silent, neither of them were eating, and both were probably holding their breaths.

“I've only known you for a short time,” Dean finally broke the silence, and the breath left Y/n's lungs which burned as it passed. She could feel the “but” coming. “But…” And there you go. “I really appreciate your company. A lot. I don’t know if it’s the same thing you feel, or if it’s love, but for the first time in a long, long time, I don’t want to leave this town. And I want to continue spending time with you.” Hope was reborn in Y/n, a wave of indescribable emotions suddenly invading her. “I'm going to have to leave, eventually, for work, but... I really want to take a break and try. I don’t know if I can do it, have a normal life, be with you, and just quit my job, so… I can’t promise you anything. I will probably leave eventually, I have so much stuff to do and…”

“You know,” Y/n continued when she saw him struggling with his words, hope now so strong in her body that she was almost vibrating. It wasn't a confession of love, but it was even better. This attachment Dean felt for her was worth even more than any cheesy love confession from the romantic movies or books she loved to delve into. “I no longer really have any ties to this city. No more jobs. If… We realize that things are working between us, and that you need to leave, nothing stops me from coming with you.” Realizing that it was probably too direct since they weren't even together, Y/n quickly adjusted her mind. “But those are just random ifs and thoughts,” she hurriedly took a bite of her pizza, just to make her stop talking.

“Y/n,” raising her head, she looked back at Dean. The latter had a big smile on his face and shook his head, clearly amused by her words. “If I told you what I did for work, you would never believe me. And when you”ll see it with your eyes and will be forced to believe me, you’re going to want to run away from me.”

“You’re a secret agent then?” Y/n hurriedly said, her mouth still full of pizza, her eyes wide. “Wow. Impressive.” She laughed, and Dean nervously laughed with her. If only it was that, it would be so much easier. “It really reminds me of my uncle.”

“Your uncle was a secret agent?” Dean asked, amused by the change of subject and how she was easily taking everything he said to her.

She was really the right one. Maybe she wouldn't run away after all.

“No, actually. When I was young, I often spent time at his house, but my parents stopped visiting him. They said he had lost his mind. But I loved these stories of ghosts and werewolves, he always told me he hunted them, saving people, like a secret agent of the supernatural,” a big smile stretched her lips at this thought, past memories flooding back into her head. It was so long ago, but she kept good memories of her uncle. Expecting the same reaction from Dean, Y/n only met a shocked face, frozen in a position that didn't suit him at all. Eyes wide, mouth parted, his skin white like he actually saw a ghost. She waved her hand in front of his face. “Earth to Dean?”

“Y/n, what’s your last name again?”

Taken aback by the sudden question, she blinked once and then twice. “Uhm, I don’t think I’ve ever told you. It’s Singer, why?”

A long silence answered her questions and her face dropped a little bit. Why did it matter?

“Your uncle… What's his name?”

“Dean, I haven’t seen my uncle in almost 15 years you know-”

“Y/n.”

“Robert. It’s Robert. But I always called him…”

“Bobby.”

It was her turn to have her eyes widen. “Yeah…?”

“I think you and I have more in common than I thought. And you really need to meet my brother,” he immediately stood up and threw two 20 bills on the table. Standing up in turn, confusion filled her entire expression.

“Dean, that’s way too much for two pizzas- Dean?” But she couldn't add more, and the confusion turned into this small, pleasant flame in the middle of her chest when Dean's hand met hers. “Okay, but you’re going to have to explain it to me because I don’t understand anything.”

“You'll understand,” Dean's smile was indescribable because it was so big. But that smile was hiding something else. Secrets that his beautiful lips had surely sealed away for far too long. “Let’s go,” he walked outside, said goodbye to the restaurant owner, and led her to his car. But once inside, he stopped before starting the engine, frozen yet again as another realization hit him.

“What? Something's wrong?”

“You… uhm… might recognize my brother, actually.”

“Why, was he a customer at the café?” Y/n laughed, fastening her seat belt. This whole thing was so sudden, so random, she just wanted to burst laughing. She felt good even if she didn’t quite understand everything that was happening.

“It was the health inspector,” he finally started the car and backed out of the parking lot and onto the road in one smooth, sexy motion.

“Oh. Wait, he’s a health inspector?”

“Not… Really?”

“Dean.”

Silence.

“Dean, did you fake the inspection?”

“Not really?”

“Dean!”

“Please. I’ll explain everything once we arrive. Do you trust me?”

For a second, Dean took his eyes off the road and looked into hers, and she held the gaze for the entire second and saw nothing but honesty. Then, he turned his head and broke eye contact, but out of the corner of her eye, she could see his right hand raised slightly towards her, waiting to be picked up.

“Yeah,” she finally said, gently placing her hand in his. It was warm. Comfortable. And how he squeezed, tenderly but also firmly, showed worry about losing her. “It might be crazy and stupid, but I trust you, Dean Winchester.”

Forever taglist: @nitnat6245 @eevvvaa @wickedinspirations@fictional-affairs @awkward-and-indecisive @peachyaliien @katbratsupernaturalwhore

Supernatural Tag List: @peachyaliien @sexyvixen7 @stixnstripesworld @charred-angelwings @treat-winchesterswith-kindness @lyarr24 @fiftyshadesgrl @this-is-me19

Dean Winchester Tag List: @akshi8278 @kazsrm67 @wtrpxrks @deanwanddamons @thoughts-and-funnies @charred-angelwings @jensendreamland @deanswaywardgirl @happyt0exist @waynes-multiverse @djs8891 @mimaria420 @this-is-me1 @syrma-sensei

#dean winchester fanfiction #jacklesversebingo23 #hurt comfort bingo #dean winchester #supernatural fanfiction #dean winchester x reader #dean winchester x you #dean winchester x female!reader #dean winchester x f!reader #baby dean winchester #supernatural dean #supernatural dean x f!reader #supernatural dean winchester #supernatural dean winchester x female!reader #fluff #barista!dean #barista!reader

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quin-ns · 1 year

Text

Inevitable (Kang the Conqueror x Reader)

Word count: 1.8K

Summary: you don’t know kang, but he knows you

Tags: antman and the wasp: quantumania spoilers!!, canon divergent, avenger!reader, one-sided affection, soulmates (kinda), denial

Request: anon: “Ohohoho the DRAMA of a Kang fic okok so how about an avenger who’s super powerful, and loves Scott as a friend and is a good person and has a strong moral compass, somehow they end up in the quantum realm with scott and cassie etc…. And when they meet kang it’s like he knows her… he shows her them in the future being lovers etc… it’s almost like they’re soulmates and she is horrified, she thinks he’s good looking but nuu he’s a bad guy…. How will it all turn out o.O”

A/N: loved this prompt- I did deviate a towards the end but still hope it lives up to expectations. kang was fun and interesting to write for. complex villains are the best ngl lol

cross-posted to ao3 • mcu masterlist • writing masterlist

You didn’t blame Cassie for her invention going haywire and pulling you all into the Quantum Realm. Still, it wasn’t exactly ideal.

When you, Scott, Cassie, Hope, Janet, and Hank all got sucked into the Realm, you all got separated. You, Scott, and Cassie ended up together thankfully. You could only hope that the others were all together as well.

The three of you did your best to stay out of trouble. Except that’s exactly what you got into because, well, who knows? Avengers seem to have bad luck. If you were superstitious you’d say that you and Scott both being there amplified that.

There was an attack by what you thought was a sun—you all quickly found out it wasn’t—and then some big purple… thing. You were saved, but then next thing you knew, you were being captured by what Cassie called quantum people.

Great.

They separated you and brought you to their weird town. It was a marvelous setting, but you didn’t exactly get to admire it all that much. The people surrounded you and chanted loudly, spiking your anxiety. At first you were scared, especially when they poured red ooze into your mouth. You suddenly could understand them.

The leader, Jentorra, warned you that because you were from above, he would be hunting you. The Conqueror. He didn’t sound like someone you wanted to be captured by.

The attack was sudden. Ships shooting blue lasers descended. Robots, or what you thought were robots, began to go after people. It was a mess. Some of them evacuated, some fought. You, Scott, and Cassie ran. You all knew that you were the targets and you couldn’t get captured. Not before finding the others. You saved as many people as you could along the way.

There was a giant floating metal head—MODOK is what it called itself—that stopped you.

Turns out, it was an old acquaintance of Scott (and sort of Cassie). Darren, they called him, showed his—maybe this was mean, but it was true—hilariously ugly giant face. He took you to a tower and divided the three of you into cells. Scott cracked some joke about how he had been in jail four times—one more than Cassie.

Darren revealed that he worked for the Conqueror, who built him into what he was. As it turned out, the Conqueror built a lot of what you were seeing.

You were pacing around your cell, trying to devise a plan, when the sound of heavy footsteps began to echo through the hall. It caught your attention. You watched as a man in a green and purple suit approached Scott. His face was veiled in blue and his eyes shone with the same color.

He walked right up to Scott’s cell and they began to conversate. You were diagonal to Scott and next to Cassie. You weren’t sure if the man even saw you.

You heard Scott tell him he was an Avenger, and the Conqueror casually asked if he’d killed him before. “I’ve killed so many, they start to blur together…” the Conqueror mused.

Scott asked who he was, the Conqueror told him he was the man who had lost time. He began to explain that he had a plan for Scott.

You couldn’t fully hear him, and you decided to speak before you could think to stop yourself. “Hey, if you’re revealing your evil plan, can you clue us all in?”

The Conqueror fell silent. He turned to face you. The moment he laid his eyes on, a chill ran through your spine. The blue mask was gone. You could see him more clearly now. The look on his face… there was recognition in his eyes. Sure, he said he’d killed the Avengers in other universes, but this didn’t seem like that.

“Oh, you…” the Conqueror said, seemingly surprised. Pleasantly surprised. “MODOK said there was one he never met. I didn’t know it was you. I should’ve, though.”

The fact that he was handsome threw you. You were expecting someone… scarier looking? Or more alien. Although you supposed not every villain you dealt with after Thanos would be like him.

“Am I that much of a surprise?” you asked, raising your brows.

“A bit,” he admitted. “You look so… well, like you.” The Conqueror approached your cell, Scott forgotten.

“Okay, what does that even mean?”

“I haven’t seen you in so long,” he sighed out. There was a longing in his eyes that seemed so out of place given everything you knew about the man. “It’s good to see you.”

“I don’t know you,” you told him, shaking your head.

“Oh, but you do,” he replied smoothly.

The barrier on your cell dissipated suddenly. The Conqueror extended his hand out to you, passing easily through the barrier that had once been.

“If you would come with me, Y/N.”

You hated the way he said your name. There was an unearned sense of familiarity. Despite the allure in his tone and the gesture of his hand, you ignored it. The Conqueror let out a sigh. He turned on his heel and began walking away. Slowly. Waiting for you to follow him like he knew you would.

You looked to Scott’s cell. His eyes found yours. He didn’t speak, but he was trying to warn you silently.

That was Scott, always looking out for you. But if you had a chance to negotiate, maybe get you all home unhurt. You had to try, right?

You stepped out of the cell. The Conqueror hadn’t gone out of sight. The moment he heard your movement, he halted his own. You didn’t know the man, but you could see the victorious smile he wore before he even turned to face you.

“I knew you couldn’t resist,” he said knowingly. You began walking towards him cautiously. “I have something to show you, dear. I think you’ll find it quite enlightening.”

You stopped next to him, jaw clenched. “Who are you?” you questioned. “I want a name.”

“Kang,” he revealed. “You can call me Kang.”

You nodded. Okay, that was something. You waited for him to lead the way, and he did. He didn’t offer his hand again, he realized you had no intention of making contact with him.

You looked over your shoulder one last time. You couldn’t see Cassie from the angle you were at, but you gave Scott an assuring look. The one he returned didn’t quite match your confidence.

“I have to say, I wasn’t expecting to see you here,” Kang revealed once the two of you were alone.

“Yeah, because this is what I had on my schedule today,” you replied sarcastically.

Kang let out a laugh. It was short, but genuine. It was an odd sound to hear from someone who’d sent an army to take out civilians. That reminded you that you in fact should be scared of him.

You arrived in what appeared to be the center of Kang's tower—or whatever the hell he wanted to call it. It didn’t matter what it was, it was where he had been leading you.

“What’s on your mind?” the Conqueror asked, looking your way. You were put off by sincere curiosity.

“Okay, what is going on?” You couldn’t keep it in any longer. “Why did you bring me here? Huh? Why just me?”

“Nice to know some things never change,” Kang said, mind distant for a moment. Then, his gaze refocused on yours. “You always were a curious one.”

“Stop talking like you know me!” you snapped.

Kang remained eerily calm. “But I do. That’s what I wanted to show you.”

Without further word, Kang turned his attention to—well, you weren’t sure what it was. Your best guess was something similar to a projector. He did something, you couldn’t tell what, but suddenly beams of light shot out of it.

In front of you was a projected image of… you? You weren’t alone, though. At your side was the Conqueror himself. His arm was around your waist and your head was resting against his shoulder. You were both dressed formally. You couldn’t tell where the two of you were or what you were looking at, though.

The way the projection displayed, you were staring into your own eyes. It was unnerving to say the least.

“I liked this universe,” Kang spoke up. You nearly jumped, suddenly becoming aware of the fact that he was at your side in reality as well. “We had a lovely wedding.”

Your head snapped to him, unable to believe his words. Kang looked at you and let out a content sigh. “We’re married in a lot of universes. And even in the ones where we aren’t, we’re bonded.”

“You must’ve forced me.” It was the only explanation you could think of. “You say you’ve killed the Avengers—I’d never abandon my friends to love someone who’d do that.”

“There was no force.” He sounded briefly offended before regaining composure. “As for the ‘why’?” Kang allowed a small smirk to cross his face. “I won’t spoil the ending, dear, but I’ve seen it. I’ve seen every ending.”

“Why are you showing me this?” you asked.

“Because, I need your help. Well, you and your friend. Scott, right?” he finally recalled. “I need to get out of here,” Kang explained.

“I saw what you did to those people,” you argued. “Why would I help you?”

“My future directly impacts yours,” he explained simply. “If I get out of here, you could come with me.”

You let out a mocking laugh at that. “No way. I already told you, I’d never be with someone who has done the things you’ve done.”

He looked offended. Hurt, even? But it wasn’t like you lied. There was even a flash of anger but he regained composure.

Kang stepped close to you and you stepped back. Behind him, the holographic image changed. You and Kang. Then it changed again, then again. Picking up speed. You were watching as your future in hundreds of different universes played out. Different paths, different lives, but they all ended up the same way. With Kang.

He was proving a point.

“You and I are inevitable, Y/N. In every universe where we exist,” the Conqueror revealed calmly—calculating—and continued to approach you.

You shook your head. “No,” you stated firmly.

Kang tilted his head slightly, eyeing you curiously. “You really believe that, don’t you?”

It was right in front of your eyes and yet you refused to accept it. “I know it’s not true.”

“You don’t know anything,” he dismissed passively. Like he just knew he was right and didn’t see the need to genuinely argue. “Not yet, at least.”

It wasn’t until Kang’s hand rose to your face, his gloved hand brushing your cheek, that you’d realized you had fallen still in front of him.

“But you will see,” he revealed in a way that you could only label as ominous. “You always do.”

#quin-ns writing #request #kang the conqueror x reader #kang x reader #kang #kang the conqueror #quantumania #ant man and the wasp quantumania #kang the conqueror fic #jonathan majors #marvel #mcu

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thehusbandoden · 8 months

Text

Words as Sweet as Honey -Aizawa Shota x Reader

A/n: technically this is for a request but also it's givin' me a break O.o

I may write and post another one in a few hours, but no promises! <33

General info:

Genre: fluff // wc: 1,388 // female reader

Summary: Aizawa Shota never knew that words could be anything but hurtful or empty until he met you.

Aizawa Shota brought many different emotions and thoughts from a lot of different people. But almost none of them were endearing.

"Moody and grim. Doesn't seem like the type to have a social circle."

"Myserious and untrustworthy. I'm sure he's the traitor of UA."

"Strict and unreliable. He likes to sleep and lie a lot."

Were all some of the things Shota heard many times in his lifetime, in the beginning they bothered him, but after a while he develeoped an immunity to such cowardly insults.

He thought words were meaningless and wouldn't affect him anymore. But he never thought that mere words could make him feel so... warm.

It started with one goregous, playful, kind, and bold assistant. She had just got her degree for teaching and started working as an assistant. Even though Aizawa complained about having to 'pick up her slack' Principal Nezu didn't even bat an eye and assigned you to him. A part of him actually thought the two of you would work quite well together and partially hoped you'd take a liking to the tsundere teacher, and he'd do the same for you.

It took so long that he started to loose hope, but after a year and a half Shota asked you out. The two of you dated for nine months before you jumped into engagement, and then marriage three months later.

Nezu was pleased, the students were flabergasted, your fellow coworkers were smug -and a few quite richer then before-, and the two of you finally found somone who made you happy.

Even when Shota was dating you, he kept telling himself that the reason your sugar filled compliments made his face so hot and his knees so weak was because you two were still new. It was exciting to have someone he cared for that felt the same for him, and he was xsurex that you would eventually stop having that effect on him.

And he continued to make exuses and brush your words off until one night three weeks into your marriage.

~~~~

You were both quietly holding one another, him on his back, and you on his chest. After a very meaningful night full of one another and kisses as sweet as honey, you were simply bathing in one another's presense, so in love with eachother that your hearts ached.

"Shota.. you're so goregous.." you murmurred, causing his chest to shake in a chuckle.

"Say what you want Princess."

"I mean it." You replied, holding yourself up to gaze into his dark eyes.

"Okay, whatever floats your boat."

"Shota. You're goregous. Why do you keep thinking otherwise?"

Shota just sighed in annoyance, resting his hand on your head to gently guide you back to his chest.

"Don't worry about it Kitten.. let's just go back to silence."

"No no no. This is important.. why do you keep denying how goregous you are?!"

"Y/n.. I'm sorry for worrying you, I just don't see what you mean, you don't need to worry my love."

"Shota Aizawa. Look at me." You demand, pushing up to grasp his chin, caputring his gaze with your piercing e/c eyes.

"You. Are. Goregous. You are literally the sexiest man alive- I have never seen anyone more attractive then you. Your black eyes that may seem cold but are actually full of love, your smile- though sometimes creepy- is very endearing. Your hair is so soft and dreamy.. and your-"

"Okay okay- that's enough." Shota blushed, face a deep red.

"Do you really?" You ask, eyes piercing his.

"Y-yeah.."

"Good." Releasing your grip on his chin you move it to brush a strand of hair out of his face, staring into his onyx eyes. Leaning down, you pressed your lips against his, kissing him sweetly.

Moving one hand to your waist and another to cheek Shota kissed you back, causing you to hum and entangle your hands into his hair.

~~~~

Since that night Shota acknowledged how your words affected him, letting himself indulge in your honey-sweet words, returning them with his own, one upping you by giving you a breath taking kiss with each compliment.

After a while his world expanded into three people instead of two, your son holding a special place in his heart, mere inches below your own special place.

Aizawa Satoshi, first born son of Aizawa Shota and Aizawa y/n. He was deemed a genious since the beginning, and he shined from his light. He was full of smiles and laughter, he made friends quickly, due to his friendliness and kindess.

He had his Mama's eyes, and his Dada's hair. His facial structure leaned towards his Mama's, but he had his Dad's jawline.

Shota's love continues to grow each day, and so far has had eight beautiful years with his firstborn son. Even though some days were harder then others, he loved his son entirely, and was eternally greatful to you for both carrying and birthing the children the two of you shared.

Next came Emiko, your daughter. Once again she molded another place for herself, completely level with her older brother.

Emiko was sweet as sugar, and made anyone she ran into melt. Like her brother, she smiled all the time, and was a pro at negotiating.

Once again like her brother, she had Dada's hair and Mom's eyes, but she looked identical to her Dad, only resembling her Mom'd appearance with her eyes, height, and nose.

She was loved by all, but her number one fan had to be her brother.

The older boy took care of his sister since day one, she immediately took place as his best friend, and they were inseperable. Even though most days they fought like cats and dogs, if xanyonex dared try and harm her they'd have to go through her big brother, and then had to deal with their parents a few seconds later.

Emiko was only two years younger then Satoshi, and will be turning six in two weeks.

And then came Seji. Much like his older siblings he was full of smiles and kindness, making friends just as easy. Though a bit spoiled, he got along with everyone well.

Unlike his silbings, he had familiar onyx eyes and h/c hair, and instead of resembling most of one of his parents he had a largte mix in him, barely leaning more towards you.

Once again his special spot was level with his siblings, number two in Shota's entire world, mere inches below his Mama. Seji just turned two, and was protected by his entire family- including the cats.

If the Aizawa kids' goregous Mama wasn't enough to convince Shota that words weren't just empty or hurtful, but that they could be full of love, his kids finished the job.

Shota was truly spoiled. Spoiled beyond compare- in his opinion.

Every morning he was greeted by the cutest 'Dada!' or 'Daddy~!', creating a warmth that exploded from his chest, spreading all across his body.

To accompany the sweet nicknames, his kids made sure to tell him that he was very handsome, that they loved him very much, and spread secrets about their Mama.

"Mama said that you were the bestest Daddy ever!"

"Dada, Dada! Mommy says that she loved you a week after you met! Did you love her then too?!"

"Mommy says that she wants another baby!!"

"Daddy~! Mommy bought a pillow with you on it!"

Shota chuckled as the little ones rambled to him, always saving the information to tease you with later.

Due to Shota working so much, he got the kids ready for school, holding Seji the majority of the time, and then poutedly woke you up, apologizing as he gives you your morning, breath taking kiss, and handing you your toddler.

He would then take the older two kids to school and then hurry to UA himself. He would also pick the kids up and then come home to you and Seji, smiling as the toddler grabbed for him, making sure to give you a kiss while shuffling Seji around, making sure both himself and the three year old were comfortable.

Though your family wasn't perfect, and you had many rough patches- as every family does- you all loved one anther greatly, and you would make sure to get through and hard time together, no matter how imposibble it seemed.

~~~~~

Shota's masterlist | Navigation

Tips <3

Reblogs help spread and therefore support my work but any support is appreciated <33

~~~~~

Do not copy, repost, nor plagiarize my work. Ask before you translate or use my work in any way -minus reblogging.

#mha #bnha #mha fanfiction #mha x reader #bnha x reader #fluff #mha x reader fluff #shota aizawa #aizawa shota #aizawa x reader fluff #aizawa x female reader #aizawa x reader #husband aizawa x reader #dad aizawa x mom reader #bnha x reader fluff #thehusbandoden

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moni-logues · 1 year

Text

Kintsugi 1

Pairing: Yoongi x reader

Genre: strangers-to-friends-to-lovers, non-idol!au, angst, smut, tiny bit of eventual fluff

Summary: In a fit of spiteful, post-break-up self-improvement, you sign up to a baking class. Yoongi, in a bid to appease his demanding girlfriend, signs up, too. Determined to make him your friend, you end up with more than you ever imagined.

Word count: 5.5k

Content: no real warnings for this chapter, reader makes a couple of jokes about killing herself/dying

A/N: ahhhhh it's finally here!!!!!! This story has been going around and around in my head since last summer and I am so excited (and nervous lol) to finally be posting it! Unlike with AFL, I am posting this one as I write, so I've only got this first chapter written. I have no planned schedule for updates right now; we're just going to see how it goes.

Enormous thanks to @here2bbtstrash and @btsgotjams27 for beta-ing this one for me and, honestly, turning it from something that was like, fine, to something actually good, that works how I want it to etc.

Masterlist | Chapter Two

Chapter One - Peaches

You wiped your wrist on the tea towel hanging from your waist. The juice from the nectarines and peaches you were peeling was all over: your hands, the counter, threatening to drip onto the floor, to run the length of your arm. You were sticky-sweet and anxious. You tried to focus only on the task at hand, taking it one step at a time. Peel the fruit. Chop the fruit. Place the fruit on the pastry base.

You grabbed the knife with still sticky hands and cut the flesh from the stones. You tried to do this neatly, elegantly, so the resulting slice of fruit would look pretty in the finished pie. Your knife skills were still not really up to it.

“It’s the thought that counts,” you whispered, resigning yourself to the fact that this would be a very ‘home-made’-looking dessert – as was everything you baked.

Peach and nectarine pie. When you first made this as a crumble, almost a year ago, Yoongi tried to call it ‘peachtarine’, but you were not convinced the name worked. It was also nearly a year ago that you and he first met. You would never have imagined that a chance meeting would have given you one of the most important people in your life. There were so many little things that had to happen to put you both in that room on that night. You were grateful that the universe got it together to make it work. You were extremely nervous that you were about to fuck it up.

As you placed the fruit on the pastry in the pie dish, you stared, unseeing, out of the window. The late afternoon sun, dying in the sky, shone bright into your apartment; it highlighted the swirling dust motes in the air, sparkling almost like glitter. The cherry blossoms were falling from the trees as if time were running out. The air was still today so they floated and settled like snowflakes; on windier days, they looked like a blizzard.

It had always felt like such a transitional time. Winter was cold and hard and barren. Not without beauty, but it was dark and difficult and so much easier to hole up in your apartment, hide from the world, forget about sunlight and joy. Then cherry blossoms burst upon the scene, a bright reminder that life still goes on. The trees that had looked desolate and empty now embowered with new life. There were two weeks of blossoms everywhere, inescapable. They swept into doorways, fell into your hair, collected beneath the trees like matching rugs. An enormous burst of life after the bareness of winter. Then they all fell and were gone and the weather swept you up in its warm arms as summer arrived again. You liked the cushion, the ushering in, the fortnight in which you could adjust to the world being beautiful again. It was your favourite time of year.

You were pulled from your thoughts by the beeping of the oven. It had reached its required temperature. You finished placing the fruit and carefully slid the pastry lattice over the top. You brushed everything with egg wash and awkwardly elbowed the oven door open, trying not to get your sticky hands everywhere. You slid it in and set a timer. You washed your hands. You washed the dishes. Now all you had to do was wait.

You stood outside Yoongi’s front door, pie held carefully in your hands, breathing deeply, taking a moment to try to soothe your nerves. It was outrageous, you thought, that you could be this nervous. It was Yoongi. On the other hand, it was Yoongi. It was not every day that you confessed to harbouring romantic feelings for one of your best friends. It was not every day that you ripped yourself open and placed your fluttering heart before them, hoping, praying that they felt the same.

It was not every day, but it was today.

You squared your shoulders, shuffled the pie so it rested on the palm of one hand, and used the other to key in the entry code.

“I’m here!” you called as you strode in and shut the door behind you.

You tidied away your cooking stuff, creating as much space as you could. You stacked the drying dishes and equipment on the rack and your tupperware tubs on top of one another, full of still-steaming food. You looked around the room to see how many people were doing as you were: taking both classes. Home-cooking for beginners and baking for beginners. Just one cog in your wheel of spiteful, post-break-up self-improvement.

A good handful of people left, their own tupperware clutched in hands or safely tucked into bags; a few new faces arrived. The last of these entered late, after the teacher had begun. You could see him scanning the room and you wondered for a moment if he was lost, the way he was frowning as if confused, looking almost shifty. But he continued on, walking slowly further back into the room, his eyes darting across the counters, looking for a space.

You waved in his direction to get his attention; the only space left was next to you (and you were doing your damnedest not to take that personally). You made sure all of your things were gathered on your side, not encroaching on his. He flicked his eyes to you and then immediately looked away but did eventually take his place beside you with a small nod.

You guessed he was about your age, maybe a little older, and you wondered what he was doing there. You wondered who he was, who he’d be baking for. His dark hair fell like a curtain across his face, blocking him from view. He tapped one slender finger silently against the countertop.

As you peeled the skins from your nectarines, you could feel him looking at you—not just looking at you, but watching you. You turned your head to look back.

“Are you alright?” you ventured, when it became clear he wasn’t going to say anything.

“Those aren’t peaches,” he said simply.

“Oh, no. No, nectarines.”

“But we’re supposed to be making a peach crumble.”

You shrugged.

“Yeah, but they’re almost the same, aren’t they? Except nectarines are nicer, so I chose them instead.”

His eyebrows drew together in a small frown as he continued to watch you disrobe your fruit.

“Gonna tell on me to teacher or something?” you asked with a laugh and he huffed an exhale in response, the corners of his mouth flickering up for a second in something that might almost have been a smile.

“No. I’m just not sure I agree.”

“Oh, well, in that case...”

You took your knife and cut a slice of nectarine, the blade gliding through as if it were butter. You held the fruit sliver up between you and he took it with his mouth, his lips just grazing over your thumb and finger. You swallowed your tiny gasp and watched his face as he chewed and swallowed. He said nothing, but cut a slice from his own peach and popped that into his mouth. Then he sighed.

“Yeah ok, you’re right. Nectarines are better.”

He turned back to his own station, head straight, looking down at his peaches, doing nothing. He tapped his finger again. You took your two remaining nectarines sitting in their bowl of iced water and placed them in front of him.

“You can use them, if you want.”

He looked at you with another frown.

“But you won’t have enough. You need these.”

You stretched across him and took two of his peaches with a shrug.

“It’s a trade. We can make peach and nectarine crumble.”

He grunted but said no more; he simply picked up his peach from the counter and carried on. After a moment, he grunted again: a small thank you. You turned back to your own fruit and continued peeling.

As you began to cut the flesh from the stones, you became aware that he was mumbling something; you glanced at him to see his head cocked on the side, looking upwards, thinking.

“Peachtarine?” he asked, turning to look at you.

“Huh?”

“Peach and nectarine... Peachtarine. It’s not great but I can’t think of anything better.”

You hummed and thought about it yourself.

“I think you’re right that it is the best option but I’m not sure it’s any better than saying peach and nectarine.”

He chuckled and shrugged.

“I’m sticking with it.”

It was all the encouragement you needed. He started talking to you first, technically. If he didn’t want to talk to you, if he didn’t want to be friends, well, too late, he started it.

“I was a little offended, you know, when I found out the first class was going to be crumble,” you began. “And next week is brownies, did you see? I get that this is a beginners’ class, but is it even possible to get this wrong? No one is going to be impressed by something this simple, are they? And what’s the point of going to so much effort if no one will be impressed?”

He didn’t reply but this did nothing to put you off. He had broken the seal and you were absolutely going to flood him with conversation. It was a relief to finally be talking; you didn’t do well in silence.

“I did the class before this one, too: that’s home-cooking for beginners. I’m useless in the kitchen; my bo- ex-boyfriend would gripe about it all the time. And now he’s my ex so I’m spiteful and bitter and learning to cook so I can show him that I actually do know how to take care of myself, y’know? Not that he’s going to know or care. I haven’t seen hide nor hair of him since I moved the last of my stuff out of our apartment. He’s really washed his hands of me. Which is fine. I get it. I would have done the same. But anyway, that’s why I’m here. Running on bitterness and spite but it’s better than being dead, I guess, right?”

“Are they the only two options?”

Your head span to him in surprise; you hadn’t been sure was even listening to you.

“I don’t know,” you replied. “Sometimes it does feel like spite is the only thing keeping me alive, yeah.” You laughed, harder than you really wanted to, trying to ward off any tension, to make sure he knew you were just joking. “That and now I’ve paid for these classes so I have to stick around until they’ve finished so I get my money’s worth.”

He nodded as he finished sprinkling the top of his dessert with brown sugar and put it in the oven.

“What about you?” you asked as you did the same. “Why are you here?”

You thought he wasn’t going to answer because he was quiet for some time.

“The women my girlfriend works with apparently all have husbands who bake them things to take into the office. I was asked why I didn’t.” He shrugged. “I don’t bake. Never learnt. Until now I suppose.”

“Why do you have to be the one to bake things? If she wants to take stuff to the office, can’t she make it?”

He laughed lightly, a little exhale of disbelief.

“No, that’s not the point. The point is that she wants to go into the office and show off that I’ve made her something. I never do anything for her apparently.”

If you had said it, the bitterness would have been strong enough for him to taste in his own mouth, but he didn’t sound bitter. You thought he sounded resigned. Maybe even sad.

“Yeah, but she could just make them and lie, tell them that you did it.”

“Oh, no, she would never do that. I’m not sure she’s ever picked up a spatula in her life.”

You bit your tongue because, until a couple of hours ago, the same could have been said of you. You were aware that you had been spoilt and were embarrassed that you were a grown adult who didn’t know how to cook even the simplest dishes, but, hey, at least now you were trying. And you never made your ex bake things for you or even cook if he didn’t want to. You could at least manage instant ramen and frequently did (which somehow seemed to annoy him more than having to cook for you). You wouldn’t have starved without him—you hadn’t starved without him. The bitterness you felt about your break-up leaked through and you felt unreasonably annoyed by this woman you didn’t know. You were broken up with for being an incompetent adult and here she was, with a boyfriend who was learning to bake so she could what? Keep up with the Joneses?

“So, neither of you can bake but you’re the only one here even though she’s the one who wants the baked goods. Hmm... Make it make sense.”

He huffed and you couldn’t tell if it was amusement or annoyance, then he ducked down to peer pointlessly into the oven. You took that as a sign to change the subject, so you thrust your hand out to him and introduced yourself. He looked at your hand warily and then took it.

“Yoongi.”

“Nice to meet you, Yoongi. Sorry your girlfriend is a dick.”

You knew you shouldn’t have said it. It was rude, for one thing. And you weren’t 100% sure it was true, for another. But your tolerance for romantic partners – even ones you didn’t know, had never met – was at an all-time low and, really, who gives a shit what people at work think? Who makes their boyfriend commit to twelve weeks of classes just so you can take a cookie to the office? You didn’t expect a response – a grunt; maybe he would turn his back on you; there was even a chance he might argue and defend his girlfriend’s honour.

He laughed.

“Yeah, me too.”

You weren’t able to stop the bark of laughter that rushed out and you felt a sudden rush of warmth for this stranger, this new friend.

“Well, hey, if you do want to break up with her anytime soon, there is plenty of spite to go around. Misery loves company; you know that, right? And I am fucking miserable.” You kept your expression bright to try to counter-balance the admission and chuckled lightly when he just looked at you.

His mouth was a flat line, expression serious, then it softened and his mouth twitched up at the corners. You were struck by how pretty he was when he let his face open, even a little.

“Here she is! Michelin star chef extraordinaire!”

“Shut the fuck up, Teddy.”

“Ouch, someone’s crabby this morning. Did it not go well?”

You plopped heavily into your seat and shook the mouse to wake your computer.

“No, it went fine. It went well, actually. I’ve made a friend.”

“Oh, have you now? A real friend or is this like every woman you ever meet on a night out where you sa-”

“Yes, a real friend and he’ll be a better one than you, I’m sure.”

“You are crabby! Are you going to fuck this guy or what? Sounds like you need it!”

“Kim Taehyung!”

“What? I haven’t said it for ages! So, let me tell you again: you just need a good rebound-fuck. Is he not attractive?”

You pretended to ignore him as you logged in and pulled up your emails.

“Not attractive, bummer.”

“I didn’t say that.” Your defence was quick, too quick.

“So you do want to fuck him! This is progress; I like it.”

“Will you stop? I don’t need to fuck anyone, ok? I don’t want to.”

“Are you sure? Because if you need it, if you really want me to-” Taehyung scooted closer to you and turned you around, resting his hands on the armrests of your chair, looking at you with his sweetest, most earnest and angelic face. “-I will fuck you.”

You cried out and pushed him away as he cackled.

“I would literally rather kill myself than sleep with you.”

He clutched at his heart as if you had stabbed him and replied in song.

“Don’t go breaking my heart!”

You wanted to resist. You wanted not to sing back to him. You wanted, for once, to not be one of the two most annoying people in the office. But you can’t always get what you want.

“I couldn’t if I tried!” you trilled back.

“Oh, honey, if I get restless-”

“Baby, you’re not that kind.”

You grinned at each other, knowing exactly what was coming next.

“Oooh ooh! Nobody knows it!” you belted together.

“When I was down-”

“I was your clown!”

“Wow, someone’s got that Friday feeling!” your director called as she walked from her office at the end of the room. She clocked you with a raised brow. “Might have known it would be you two.”

“Oooh ooh! Nobody knows it!” you cried after her before collapsing into giggles and, eventually, turning back to your work.

“I’m serious, though,” you said. “I’d rather kill myself than sleep with you.”

“The feeling is entirely mutual, darling, as you already know. My point is that you should-”

“Sleep with someone, anyone, yeah I know.”

“I’m not trying to push you to do something you don’t wan-”

“That’s exactly what you’re doing!”

“No! Alright, maybe a little, but I think it would be good for you. We’ve talked about this and I dropped the subject but now you’ve met someone new, someone who might be a good... distraction, rehab, palate cleanser.”

“That’s a gross way to talk about a person, Teddy.”

“Not if they’re on the same page. Not if it’s mutually beneficial. I know you feel like you aren’t ready for it but, honestly, I think you’re going to feel that way until you do it and, once you have, you’ll realise you were worrying over nothing.”

“It’s not nothing. I have slept with one person in the last four years. It’s not nothing to... to open yourself up and... display yourself in front of someone, some stranger.”

“You’re taking it too seriously; you don’t have to open up. You don’t even have to take your clothes off: go out in a short skirt, pull your underwear down, and away you go!”

“That is so crass. I have more class than that.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t.”

You sighed. A part of you knew Taehyung was right. You just had to get back on the horse. Like riding a bike. Maybe. But your bike had changed since the last time someone new saw you naked. And you didn’t really want to just fuck someone, anyone. You wanted someone to love you. And that felt about as distant a possibility as going to the moon.

It was Friday and you did not want to be made miserable before 10am.

“Besides,” you said, hoping it would put a stop to the conversation. “He has a girlfriend.”

“Ah, alas.”

“Though I don’t think he’s happy with her.”

“Oh dear. I think I see where this is going. Please do not interfere in this man’s private life.”

“I’m not going to! I’m just saying! I called her a dick and he laughed.”

“I’m sorry, you called this stranger’s girlfriend a dick? And you expect me to believe you’re not about to interfere? Just because you are bitter and alone does not mean everyone else has to be.”

“Hey!”

“I’m just saying: you’ve met this guy and you’ve known him for all of two hours and you’ve already decided his relationship is trash and his girlfriend is a dick and you would love for them to break up so that you aren’t the only one who got dumped, so that you know other people are also miserable and bitter and you can lean into those feelings rather than facing the fact that you are heartbroken and lonely.”

You dropped your head into your hands and groaned.

“Didn’t fancy giving me some sugar with that pill? It’s Friday.”

“So come out with me tonight and I’ll buy you a drink.”

“Buy me three.”

“Two.”

“Deal.”

Yoongi was late to the second class, too. You had deliberately saved the space next to you and you waved him over as before. As before, he barely glanced at you before taking his place. As soon as the teacher had finished talking, you started. You were not trying to interfere in his personal life; you were not trying to fuck him. You were just trying to be his friend.

“Did your girlfriend like the crumble?” was your opening gambit. “Not exactly something she could take into the office to share out, but still.”

There was a pause before he answered, just long enough that you thought he wasn’t going to.

“She didn’t eat any.”

You immediately dropped your sieve and turned to him.

“What do you mean she didn’t eat any?”

He shrugged.

“She said she didn’t want any.”

You blinked, buffering, trying to understand.

“I don’t understand; I thought she wanted you to take this class?”

He shrugged again.

“Well, she’ll have something to take to the office this week, if she wants it... Everyone loves brownies,” you offered, conciliatory, sensitive to Taehyung’s accusation that you might be interfering, trying to find the benefit of the doubt to give this woman.

There was no response from Yoongi, so you dropped the subject. It wasn’t often that you were lost for words, that you didn’t know what to say, but your mind was blank.

Well, it wasn’t blank, but you were not going to actually say any of the things that you were thinking. That his girlfriend was taking advantage of what was clearly a loving nature; that she was ungrateful; that he should stop trying so hard to please someone who didn’t seem to care about him; that their relationship seemed unequal and he was on the losing side. All sorts of things that you didn’t really know, that were clearly products of your own situation, things you were projecting onto this stranger and his girlfriend when you had no right to do so. You might have been right, but you might have been wrong and, even if you were right, there’s a time and a place for telling people the truth they might not want to hear. This was not it.

Yoongi cleared his throat as he gently tapped his sieve.

“So, what illicit ingredient have you brought this time?”

His smile was small and unsure; yours in return was wide, bright, all teeth.

“I simply do not know what you are talking about.”

“You don’t expect me to believe you’re just going to... follow the recipe?”

“You can believe whatever you like, sir. I’m just here to learn.”

As you spoke, you dipped your hand into your bag and retrieved a box of toasted walnuts. Not in the recipe. But, as far as you were concerned, a brownie without nuts was an inferior brownie and you were not about to make inferior brownies.

Yoongi chuckled.

“If you will look here,” you instructed, gesturing to the box, “you will note that this is really, far too many for just one person to use...”

Yes, you had bought extra walnuts just in case Yoongi showed up again, just in case he took the space next to you, just in case he wanted them. You had told yourself that it made sense to buy the bigger box; it was better value; you would have plenty left over to make the brownies again sometime... But you couldn’t deny that you were thrilled; he was here and talking to you and making jokes as if you really were real friends. You could already imagine yourself telling Taehyung tomorrow, smug and obnoxious because you had made a real friend like you said.

Yoongi grimaced.

“My girlfriend’s allergic to nuts.”

Oh.

“Oh.”

An awkward silence arrived and you did your best to shrug it off.

“Maybe next time, then. I’ll make a note.”

You noticed that he looked apologetic and you tried to take it in your stride. It wasn’t personal; it was biological. You weren’t trying to interfere in his personal life and that included not poisoning his girlfriend. It was fine.

You moved the box back onto your side and returned your attention to sifting flour and cocoa powder.

“So how did you like the crumble? I assume you at least tried it.”

“Yeah, it was nice.”

“I thought it was pretty good,” you replied. “The first portion anyway. The second was pretty good, too, but by the time I finished it, I honestly never wanted to see a peach or nectarine ever again!”

“You ate all of it?” His eyebrows raised on his forehead in disbelief, an incredulous grin on his face.

You blushed.

“I mean... not all at once. It took me a couple of days... You might say I could have invited friends over to share it out and you would be right, but I simply did not do that.”

He laughed.

“I did do that. They liked it, too.”

“Oh wow, look at you, Mr I’ve Got Friends Who Eat My Desserts. Some of us accidentally choose to eat an entire dessert by ourselves, ok? No need to rub it in.”

He laughed again and you felt the glow of his approbation like the warmth of sun on your skin. This wasn’t why you were taking the classes—you really did want to learn to cook, to self-improve, to become a fully competent adult—but you knew that, even if you dropped out tomorrow, if you had one more friend to show for it, it would all have been worthwhile.

You chatted as you baked; you tried hard to curb your impulse to steamroll over the conversation, to motormouth your way out of this new friendship. Yoongi was sweet and a little shy and you didn’t want to scare him off, didn’t want to annoy him, didn’t want your desperation to seep out of your pores and cling to him like smoke. No one likes stinking of smoke.

At the end of the class, you carefully scooped a still-warm brownie from your pan and wrapped it in tin foil; you put it to the side while you cleaned and tidied everything away, then you handed it to Yoongi.

“Your girlfriend might have to suffer inferior brownies, but you don’t.”

He blinked in surprise, his eyebrows slightly raised, his mouth slightly open, and looked down at your offering.

A sudden panic hit you.

“Unless she’s like, freakishly, deathly allergic to them and will die if you kiss her having eaten nuts or something.”

You shifted your arm back slightly and looked at him questioningly.

“Or, obviously, if you just don’t want it, you don’t have to take it. I just thought- since-...”

He reached out for the brownie, almost tentative, as if he was expecting you to whip it out of his reach at the last second. You didn’t. He took it. He placed it on top of his things and his mouth twisted as he looked at it.

“Thank you,” he said, his face more of a frown than a smile. Then he nodded, took his things, and left.

You weren’t sure what to make of the exchange. You felt like you had got something wrong, but you didn’t know what. It had all been going so well; you couldn’t possibly have ruined it, could you?

You did not gloat to Taehyung the next day. You kept it to yourself, a small needle of anxiety pricking you whenever you thought of that stupid brownie. A bigger needle pricking you when you thought about your next class.

Your anxiety was proven right. Yoongi was late again – as, apparently, he always was – and you began talking again as soon as your teacher had stopped but, this time, Yoongi didn’t talk back.

“How did the brownies go down? Did she take them into the office?”

Silence.

“Obviously, I can only speak to my own, superior, nut-filled brownies, but I was very happy with them. So happy, in fact, that—can you guess what I’m about to say? Yes, I absolutely ate them all myself!”

You laughed, a little too loud, heat prickling up the back of your neck and onto your cheeks as he still said nothing. You swallowed hard and tried to suppress the anxiety which was bubbling in your stomach.

“I tell a lie,” you continued, self-conscious but not yet defeated. “I did take one in to work on Friday for my best friend. He pretended they were disgusting but that’s just what he’s like; he ate the whole thing so it can’t have been that bad! He actually a- oh, wait, hold on...”

You had been operating on autopilot which for someone with almost no baking know-how or experience was very dangerous. You grabbed the recipe to double-check what you were doing and the silence felt stifling around you. You wished he would say something, anything, even if it was telling you to shut the fuck up. A better person might have given up. A better person might have understood his signal that he didn’t want to talk and listened to it. You were not a better person. The sick need for his approval crawled its way into your throat and spoke for you, made a ventriloquist dummy out of you. Even as you wished, yourself, that you would be quiet, even as you heard yourself, the cheer in your voice more and more forced as his resolute silence strengthened, thickened, grew around him like briars, warding you off, threatening, you carried on.

“He asked me to make them again, actually. I told him where to go because I originally asked him if he’d take this class with me, y’know, for moral support, after my break-up and everything—he is supposed to be my best friend, after all—but he refused, point blank. So, naturally, I told him he would not be getting to sample any of the delicacies I would be making. Then I went and gave him a brownie! Because, of course, I’d forgotten that I’d sworn not to...”

You managed to monologue your way through half the class, but once the fairy cakes were in the oven and the utensils and bowls washed and dried and you had nothing left to do with your hands, you gave up. You sat on your stool and leant on the counter, counting the seconds, trying to will the shame and embarrassment away. You were sticky with nervous sweat, hot and flushed, flustered. You were embarrassed and, in turn, embarrassed by your embarrassment; he clearly didn’t care, so why did you? You couldn’t answer the question except to say that you just did.

The silence was thick and crushing around you until the end of class. Yoongi packed his things with lightning speed and was the very first to leave the room. You took your time, fussing and dawdling, and were the last. It shouldn’t have crushed you. It shouldn’t have mattered at all. You didn’t know each other. You could just as easily have gone the rest of your life never meeting him.

But it did matter to you. It did hurt. Especially because last week had been so nice, so promising; last week, he had felt like your friend. And then you’d gone and spoilt it all, but you didn’t even know how. You had wracked your brain all week, but you couldn’t think of a single reason that that brownie should have ruined everything. It didn’t make sense; it made you feel lost and stupid and exposed and embarrassed and a thousand feelings that you had shoved aside in the months since your break-up.

You reminded yourself every day of all the things your therapist was trying to teach you: it’s ok if people don’t like you; you can’t please everyone; please for the love of god stop catastrophising your entire life (that one you paraphrased). But it didn’t really help. You were taking this one very personally and nothing was going to stop you.

[21:17] Teddy 🐻: Not everyone wants more friends. Some people just want to get through the day and make it home.

[21:18] You: Maybe.

Your phone buzzed again and Taehyung was calling you. You rolled your eyes; that man was incapable of having one single conversation over text.

“Besides which,” he began, not even pausing to say hello. “You said he might be having relationship problems. Maybe he’s having problems at work. Or family issues. Or personal issues! Or all of the above! You don’t know what’s going on in someone else’s life. Maybe he doesn’t want to spill his guts to a total stranger.”

“He doesn’t have to spill his guts!” you protested and you could hear the whine in your voice. “I just want to be friends.”

“And he doesn’t.”

Chapter Two

#yoongi x reader #yoongi angst #yoongi fic #bts x reader #bts angst #bts fic #yoongi #bts

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thatdeadaquarius · 1 year

Note

I found one of your sagau posts about language and got me thinking xD

Reader who knows a lot of languages which gets people confused. Are they speaking in their godly language? Are they really that mad that they switched to another language? Why are they smirking like that--- (Aether/Lumine who understood everything trying so hard not to laugh at people's reactions)

Why did I imagine that after a flowery speech Reader delivers a response so blunt the vine boom sfx can be heard---

Reader trying out flowery speech and failing, while the rest of the people in the background are either A.) Trying to convince you that its alright to talk simply (oh now you turn the tables--) or B.) Some of them fainting in devotion/cuteness because their god looks at them so eagerly for feedback

I heard somewhere that Mondstadt is based on Germany and another post about Snezhnaya (bruh whats the spelling 🤣💀) based on Russia, so I thought that while they speak english they also throw in a couple words of their respective language (or in some drunk cases, full out native language). Cue reader just.... 🧍‍♂️🧍‍♀️

Bilingual reader who uses full advantage of their knowledge into making puns and jokes to Cyno----

WE CAUGHT ANOTHER ONE BOYS

YES YES THE PSPSPSPSS NEVER FAILSSS🛐🛐🛐

(subliminalmessagingpspspspsscometomeaskscomepspspspspssubliminalmessaging)

___________

DUDE ive thought abt just making it where Aether/Lumine are the only ones who understand English/ur language and like, while u can (or maybe cant for shenanigans) speak Teyvatian (ew theres gotta be a better word for that?) Theres NOTHING as amazing as the bilingual experience of pranking bitches

Eula gives like a whole poetry book of a speech to you guys to be more responsible abt gliding in the city (its cute <3 shes actually very concerned bc you know you would do sm that would worry her, i mean i know im just flinging myself off of every surface all the time, esp in Mondstadt im not using no stairs💀)

And you just... turn to Aether/Lumine and say smth in English and they bust out laughing

(Or worse, u two are giggling like little shits✨️)

Dont feel too bad Eula, they do this to everyone

(Paimon's constantly on ya'lls case abt it)

Like u didnt even say anything rude (probably), as u explained to Eula, but its like this all the time, sm ppl even find themsleves jealous of this bond you two have got, tho whether they are jealous of Aether/Lumine or you is still still hard to tell,,)

♧

IM SO GLAD ONE PERSON OUT THERE GOT THE FLOWERY SPEECH -> YOU REPLY -> VINE BOOM 🤝🤝🤝 THING I WAS TRYING TO CONVEY

Thats deadass like how i imagine half the time it would be like talking to ppl, esp if ur critizing smth that person was doing lmao (like roasting them)

Its even funnier if like, u didnt hear the vine boom so to speak, like u got ur back to the rest of the characters/npcs while ur talking to this one person and u dont even know u just said smth that's got like one person crying laughing

(KAEYA, aether/lumine, hu tao, KAVEH, Venti, childe, Yae Miko, SCARAMOUCHE/WANDERER, beidou, off the top of my head)

♡

Another one is just standing there in shock, when will they unfreeze? Only time can tell

(Zhongli, jean, eula, keqing, ayaka, ganyu, kuki shinobu, once again off the top of my head theres so many characters at this point in genshin help)

♡

They're just like,, processing still, theyre probably overthinking everything u say bc to them you give so little information 💀 i can see the like transparent images of their thinking faces floating around them now LMAO

(Alhaitham, zhongli again rip, DILUC, kaeya's also laughing at him not just you his stomach hurts help him, Ei, XIAO, ALBEDO, Ayato but he'd also be muffling a laugh, Kazuha maybe i can also see him just giggling n shit, Kokomi, CYNO, Tighnari but also he'll react like its the funniest joke ever while he's trying to actually think abt it, so he just ends up standing there, thinking outloud, then cracking up over and over again lol)

♤

Oh Cyno u sweet summer child, as soon as u started making puns it was over for him, no one can stop you, even if Tighnari can't understand ur language rn he can definitely just sense there's bad jokes being made, esp if Cyno gets it and his lip like, twitches upward or even worse, he chuckles.

(Tighnari's totally getting onto him for corrupting you)

☆

pLEASE US ACTUALLY TRYING TO SPEAK LIKE THEM 😭😭😭

What a cute image, just some of them reassuring us and some of them thinking its cute for trying, and we look around the room when we try for feedback i know i would 😭😭

If i actually got close tho they better give me a headpat or smth

___________

Anyway THANK YOU for the ask!! (subliminalmessingpspspspspscometomeaskscomepspsps)

That was a BEAUTIFUL✨️ thing to read, got my heart doin backflips and shit 😳😊🥰

God this is so long im so sorry everyone

Cheers,

🌒🌊🌧Aquarius♒️🌌🌘

#my asks #ask box open #please send asks #genshin sagau #not really #im gonna still label it that but its really #genshin isekai #genshin imagines #genshin sagau ideas #genshin impact #im not putting character tags suffer #genshin god reader

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cerealboxlore · 1 year

Note

i just remembered another small idea for de-aged billy thats been playing in my head

so like billy’s been very bitter around the league for the whole time they’ve seen him de-aged and end up taking him out of the watchtower for whatever reason (or he finds a way to leave himself if the league doesn’t let him because they think it’s unsafe for him or whatever) and villainous shenanigans ensue, theres a lot of damage and a very, very, scared child

of course our dear billy goes to help said child (maybe the league try to stop him since they don’t think he can comfort the child in his current bitter state but can’t really stop him?) and that’s the first time they really see captain marvel in him

like they’ve seen his physical similarities (eyes, hair, ect.) but now they see him put on a big cheesy grin for this kid, his posture becomes so much more open and friendly, and he just manages to look like he can handle anything despite the fact that by all means a boy so malnourished should not look that way

i also imagine that the way he talks suddenly holds so much wisdom and kindness (he was very mean to the league lol)

also it’d be so cool if the moment the child’s safe and out of sight he just switches up immediately and looks so weary and tired, the moment he notices the league so much as glance at him funny he switches again to super feral

(seems i had more to say than i thought dear cereal)

I always love answering your asks, sorry that I end up procrastinating so much!

Now time to cook this baby 🔥

De-aged Billy (but not really) is one of my favorite things ever, and it brings forth so many opportunities for this small child to open up and talk about his traumas and problems to the world. (Once more people has seen the newest movie I will be creating my own post about Billy's traumas and how they affect him despite being coined as the immature, childish superhero by every other superhero in his world.) But the beauty and tragedy about Billy having every opportunity and chance to open up and be vulnerable with others, is that he's too scared. Too convinced that what he wants to discuss isn't going to be important to others and that his problems are his problems alone to face and conquer, when he's just a kid. A kid who's grown up too fast for his own good.

I imagine if the league tries to keep little mortal Billy Batson in the watch tower, he'd definitely try and fly the coop. The zeta beams, trying to hitch a ride with another hero back home, or just straight up using a spell he saved to float in a hamster bubble back to Earth in space. (Superman stopped him from that last one).

Ultimately deciding on letting this small and feral child version of Captain Marvel outside in his own city for some fresh air is the smart decision. There may be some of his villains looking for him for any opportunity to strike at him, but I trust that the Justice League wouldn't leave him alone without a partner/chaperone, as they joked. It was supposed to be just Billy and Green Arrow accompanying him while things got sorted out.

Unfortunately Plastic Man hitched a ride on the zeta beam at the last second and completely threw plans WAY off.

They end up getting spotted by a villain, Dr. Sivana possibly, and things get messy, as you said. Green Arrow shoots down his mechanical dummies while Plastic Man deals with dangling the bald man upside down a lamp post. But the catastrophic effect to the clean and nice street was evident. Buildings were crashed into and torn apart by Dr. Sivana, nearly killing off innocent civilians, had it not been for Billy Batson guiding them to safety routes and easing their escapes.

In the chaos of it all, I like to believe that Billy will still find calmness and ease in it, after living a life so full of it for so long. He'd still remain focused, especially when he hears the cries of a familiar voice. A classmate.

They don't know that he's secretly Captain Marvel, and he doesn't know their name. But what does that matter? They're both kids. They're both too young for any of this to be happening to them. Guiding them away from all the falling debris and rubble, Billy keeps his classmate calm enough to bring them away from the dangers of the battle close to them.

Green Arrow and Plastic Man manged to shoot/sneak a concerned and worried look over to their supposed de-aged teammate's way, only to be surprised when they see that Billy is smiling as confidently and with his big cheesey grin as before.

That's when they realize. Even if it wasn't real or a moment in bad vision, it felt like Billy's shoulders were much broader than they seemed. Like the weight of the world was on his shoulders more than they should have been, but that the boy would never complain and only ask for more weight to hold in return. Just like their regular Cap.

It's strange. They never noticed this side of Captain Marvel before. They were meeting so many new sides of him in just one day, despite knowing him for years at this point. Just how much of their friend had they not known?

"Hey, come on, hold my hand! I'll get you out of this, maybe you'll still have time to help give me the math homework answers for tomorrow!"

"B-but! I'm too scared to move!! Everything is falling, a-and I-"

"It's going to be alright. You have to make the first step if you want to keep moving forward. I'll be with you, I promise. Let's get out of here. Together."

At the end of the terrible, no good, very bad day for Billy Batson, and Dr. Sivana is dealt with and his classmate is sent home to their family safe and sound, Billy just collapses, intending to hit the grass and sleep off everything, had it not been for the swift and caring stretched arms of Plastic Man catching him in time.

Billy wants to argue and maybe even tries to scratch at Plastic Man to let him go, but Plastic Man is already swinging and rocking him in the air in his super stretched arms, singing loudly and annoyingly an out of pitch made up lullaby.

Green Arrow gets them zeta beamed back to the watch tower before Plastic Man can start on the next chorus, but at least they were able to give the de aged Captain Marvel some free time for once (even if that was ruined halfway through).

Billy looks so peaceful and soft when sleeping. Malnourished and scruffy, yes, but right now, he was safe, and that was all that mattered. They'd figure out how to age him back to normal soon, and Billy would find a way to get out of this troublesome situation....eventually. But for now? Billy can enjoy this well-earned sleep.

Whew. It feels like I had a lot more to say than I thought, Markus.

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genshinluvr · 2 years

Text

The Soul Puppet

Pairings: Various Genshin Men x Isekai'd!Reader

Summary: You and the men were spending time together at the Mid-Autumn Festival at Liyue Harbor when a merchant called you over to show off a necklace that might interest you. After seeing how much the necklace cost, you refused to buy it. The merchant demands that you take the necklace, and you reluctantly take it in the end. Who knew that things would go downhill from there that cost your life?

Note: I have finally decided to type out this request because I have been trying to plan out this story ever since I first got the request! This is angst; there is no comfort (mainly because I didn't get any comfort vibes from the request). Please don't pop into my inbox to ask if there's comfort or not; read the request, and you'll know whether there's comfort or not. Or, skip to the ending to see if there's a happy ending or not (I do that with every angst I come across). Some angst doesn't need happy endings. To my new and/or returning readers, I post on AO3 as well, so if you have an AO3 and see a work similar to this, it's me (Aaliah_exo on AO3). I don't post anywhere else but on Tumblr (Genshinluvr) and on AO3 (Aaliah_exo).

Warnings: Stabbing, exorcism by using adeptal magic, lots and lots of blood, mentions of death, coughing and vomiting up blood

Word Count: 13.7k

Read Part 2 of the Soul Puppet [HERE].

The sound of the bustling crowd fills your ears as you walk around Liyue Harbor at eight o’clock at night. You were holding onto Zhongli and Xiao’s hands tightly as they guide you through the large crowd with the other men following behind you three. You looked at your surroundings in awe of the decorations all over Liyue Harbor. Lanterns hung on buildings, and children ran by with their lanterns while their parents and guardians chased after them to make sure they didn’t get into trouble.

“I knew that there would be many people celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival, but I didn’t think the entirety of Liyue would be in Liyue Harbor to celebrate it.” You commented, gripping Xiao and Zhongli’s hands tightly as you and your boyfriends pushed through the crowd.

Zhongli chuckles, “It’s one of the most important festivals to the people of Liyue.” You let out a soft “oh” while nodding your head in acknowledgment. Once Zhongli and Xiao were able to guide you and the rest of the men out from the vast crowd, you three released your grips on each other’s hands before scanning around the harbor.

Thoma looks at Zhongli and Xiao before asking, “What should we do first?” His green eyes shone with wonder when he caught a glimpse of lanterns floating in the air.

“You know, I heard that drinking osmanthus wine is one of the traditions of the Mid-Autumn Festival! Maybe we should do that.” You said, nudging Zhongli lightly with a smile on your face. Zhongli smiles down at you and rubs the top of your head affectionately; Zhongli is about to open his mouth to say something, only to hear someone say, “yahoo!” Everyone turned towards where the holler came from, only to see a buzzed Venti strutting up to the group with a bright smile on his face.

“I’m already ahead of you, Windblume!” Venti says, waving a cup full of osmanthus wine in his hands in the air near his head, his cheeks flushed pink as he takes a huge gulp from the cup.

You giggled, “Venti! You’re drunk already!” the anemo archon walked up to you with a cute dopey smile on his face before taking another sip of his osmanthus wine.

“Care to try some, Windblume?” Venti asks, gesturing towards the stall where the food and drinks are held— Ah, so that’s where he got his cup of osmanthus wine. At first, you thought Venti smuggled osmanthus wine into the festival, but alas, you were wrong.

You shook your head before giving him a faint smile, “No, thank you, Venti! I don’t want to drink anything alcoholic at the beginning of the festival. Maybe I’ll have a taste of osmanthus wine later.” You said, tucking your hands in the pockets of your shorts.

Diluc leans down to you before murmuring into your ears, “Good choice, but I recommend for you not to drink at all.”

You whisper back to Diluc, “Is it because I get drunk easily?” Diluc cracks a smile and bobs his head to your question. You pursed your lips and looked away from Diluc, flustered at the thought of you not being able to drink more than one glass cup of alcohol without getting drunk. It wasn’t your fault that you weren’t much of an alcohol type of person, plus you weren’t fond of the taste or smell of alcohol. It makes your nose hairs want to burn just by taking a whiff of any type of alcohol.

“Uh, where’s Itto?” You hear Gorou ask nervously, his eyes scanning the crowd to search for the tall oni, who somehow managed to get lost.

“Hey, guys! Over here!” Itto hollers, waving his hand in the air with a big grin on his face before holding up a bowl of food to show you and the others.

“Ooh! Maybe we should eat something before we explore!” Aether says, his eyes lit up. Paimon appears out of thin air, her mouth watering at the smell of Liyuen cuisines lingering in the air. Paimon nods her head excitedly before flying off to one of the nearby food stands with Aether chasing after Paimon to make sure she doesn’t get lost in the crowd.

You were about to run after them when someone called out to you, “You over there, young one!” You looked around in confusion to look for where the voice was coming from. “Over here! You in the black shorts!” You made eye contact with the merchant, who waved you over to where he was standing.

You turned to look for your boyfriends, only to see some at the food stalls, the game stalls, and the storyteller’s stall. Since your boyfriends weren’t too far from where the merchant was located, you slowly walked towards the older gentleman, who gave you a broad smile as you approached closer to where he stood. The closer you came to the man’s stall, the more you noticed that the merchant’s stall wasn’t just any stall, but he was selling jewelry, expensive yet beautiful jewelry.

“I couldn’t help but notice you with your friend group and think to myself, ‘I think this beautiful necklace would suit them!’” Said the merchant, who then held out a flat velvet box in front of you before opening the velvet box, revealing an extravagant antique necklace.

“Oh, wow! This necklace is very stunning, boss!” You gasped at the jewelry in front of you, eyes scanning the gorgeous orange cor lapis stone in the center of the necklace.

The merchant smiles pridefully before explaining to you the background and history of the necklace in his hands. According to the merchant, the necklace was once owned by a deity, a beautiful one, at that. It was given to her by her lover, who was also a deity, but she lost her lover during the archon war. The god was so heartbroken over the loss of her lover that she couldn’t bear to keep the necklace that her lover gifted her. So, she ended up grabbing it by the pendant, ripping it off her neck, and throwing it into the ocean, where it was swept away by the ocean waves.

“I believe that is how the story goes. But I’m not too sure; it was quite vague when I read about it.” The merchant shrugged his shoulders, examining you closely as you continued to stare at the necklace in awe. While the necklace is beautiful, you couldn’t help but get a strange feeling from the pendant. Your eyes fell on the price tag on the velvet box, and your eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

“While the necklace is beautiful, it is certainly not for me!” You said, letting out soft nervous laughter while scratching your arms. Why in the world did this merchant think that you could afford something that was over one million mora? Did he think you were loaded or something? Wait, was it because you were with Childe and Pantalone? Speaking of Childe and Pantalone, where are they?

The merchant’s smile slips off his face, “O-Oh, well, I can give it to you for free!” He exclaims, shoving the velvet box into your face. You backed away and held your hands up in front of you, laughing nervously.

“No, no! It’s alright, boss! While the necklace is beautiful, it certainly does not fit my taste.” You said, giving the man a polite smile.

You weren’t sure why this merchant was so insistent with wanting to gift you the necklace without having to pay the price. The necklace was beautiful, but it was very expensive, and you did not want to parade around in jewelry that had a tragic backstory to it. It would be very disrespectful of you to do so, and it would make you look bad if you did wear it around and show off the necklace that used to belong to an archon that was now deceased. Not only that but there was something off about the necklace. Yes, it is beautiful, but your gut was telling you not to touch the necklace or go anywhere near it. It was telling you to run.

The merchant frowns at you, his eyebrows furrowing with frustration, “But I want you to be the only one that wears this necklace! I believe that you are the only person who can pull off this antique jewelry! Only you and no one else!” He exclaims, shoving the necklace into your face. “Just take it already!” The merchant growls, his eyes almost glowing with anger.

You let out a frustrated sigh, “Alright, alright, I’ll take it!” You held your hand out nervously, waiting for the merchant to drop the necklace into your grasp. The merchant gives you a satisfied smile before taking the necklace from the velvet box, gently placing the necklace into the palm of your hands.

You huffed, “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a festival to enjoy with my boyfriends.” You said, pocketing the necklace in your pocket before walking off. “What a rude merchant. No wonder he barely has any customers at his stall! I find it strange that he would pick me to be his first customer, of all people at the festival.” You grumbled.

You approached where the men had gathered, you and Heizou made eye contact, and his eyes lit up before pointing over at where you were. The men turned to look at you as you approached closer to them, giving them a fake smile.

“There you are! We were looking for you!” Heizou says, linking his arms around yours.

Ayato sips the osmanthus wine before asking, “Where were you? It was hard to look for you with the number of people in the crowd.”

You debated for a moment on whether you should tell your boyfriends about the merchant being persistent with you taking the necklace or not. You ended up choosing not to mention it to them because you didn’t want it to ruin their joy of celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival, nor did you want them to get into a massive argument with the merchant. You couldn’t get the encounter with the merchant out of your head. It was strange how the merchant was so desperate with wanting to give you the necklace, even though it was being sold for over one million mora. The necklace is beautiful, but there was something weird about the jewelry, but you couldn’t put your finger on the issue.

“I was distracted by many stalls and wanted to get a look at each stall before coming over!” You lied, giving Ayato a small smile as Baizhu handed you a mooncake.

Your eyes lit up, and you gratefully took the mooncake from Baizhu’s hands before taking a bite out of it. The taste of red bean paste bursts in your mouth, making you hum in delight. It’s been a while since you’ve had mooncake, especially in your world, whenever you celebrated the Mid-Autumn Festival with your friends and loved ones back in your world. You examined the mooncake, nostalgia hitting you like a mitachurl.

“Wow, I haven’t had mooncake in ages.” You commented, blushing when you feel Baizhu wipe the corner of your lips with the tip of his thumb.

Baizhu hums happily, “Oh! So you’ve had mooncake before, I presume?” Baizhu asks, gazing down at you curiously before handing you something to drink. Since you weren’t a big fan of alcohol, Baizhu got you coconut milk to drink instead.

“Yes, back in my world, I’ve had mooncake on special occasions and celebrations.” You said, finishing up the last bits of your mooncake. “It brings back a lot of memories, and I’m glad that I’m sort of reliving these memories with the men I love.” You feel your face becoming hot from the number of stares you are receiving.

“Snookums!!! You’re too precious, my love!” Childe whines softly, placing his wine down before walking over to you with his arms wide open. He pulls you into his arms and hugs you tightly, kissing the top of your head with a big pout on his face. Childe leans over and presses a kiss on your cheek while lightly pinching your cheeks.

“Shall we go to the next stall?” Albedo asks, tossing his trash into the trash bin before turning towards everyone.

Kazuha strokes his chin before letting his hands fall to his side, “What stall should we go to next? There are many stalls to check out.” Kazuha says, his red eyes scanning his surroundings. Kaeya’s eye(s) landed on the last stall you were at and was about to point it out, but you pointed at a game stall that had many plushies hung up as prizes.

“How about we go to the game stall that has a lot of plushies?” You ask, hoping that they’d agree to it and not go anywhere near the jewelry stall you were at moments ago. “I do need a new plushie to be added to my collection.” You sang, clinging onto Kaeya’s arm while Childe clung to you.

Kaeya chuckles and presses a kiss on your head, ignoring the glare that Childe gave him for kissing your head. “Then perhaps we should visit the game stall then!” Kaeya rips you from Childe’s grasp before guiding you toward the game stall that you’ve been eyeing.

Dainsleif stood beside you, scanning the prizes that the stall was offering for the winners before looking down at you, “Are there any prizes that you have in mind?” You scrunched your nose while scanning each plushie that was hanging on the racks.

“What if I want one of each?” You muttered to yourself, staring at each adorable stuffed creature in front of you. You knew that you could only get one plush, but boy, you wanted one of each plushie on display.

“Then we will get you one of each,” Scaramouche speaks up, propping his arms on your head while examining each plush on display. While they’re all cute, the one that caught Scaramouche’s eyes the most was a cute purple bunny with a hat. That was the plush that Scaramouche is determined to get for you; he will get it for you one way or another.

“I can get you all of those plushies without lifting a finger,” Pantalone says, biting on his bottom lip, eyeing the most oversized plush of all.

Pierro sighs, “You cannot buy them all, Pantalone.” He crossed his arms over his chest while Pantalone laughed to himself.

“Aw, and why is that? I would love to see children cry from the lack of prizes.” Dottore says, crossing his arms over his chest with a big smile on his face.

Capitano clears his throat, “Aside from taking all of the stuffed animals for [Y/N], you do realize that if we were to take most of the plushes, we would have issues with bringing them all back to the abode.”

“Hmph! Who cares? If it’s for [Y/N]’s happiness, then I’m willing to carry it all back just for them.” Xiao grunts, walking over to the game stall vendor before tossing a few mora at the vendor.

Childe perks up, his eyes lit up with interest, “Do I hear a challenge?” He asks, strutting over to where Xiao stood, who glared at him in return.

“Oh, I’m going to win this challenge! Watch me win all of these prizes for my precious onikabuto booboo bear!” Itto says, flexing his biceps before pushing through the men to get to the front of the booth. The men glared at Itto before rushing to the vendor, tossing their mora out on the booth counter while telling the vendor what prizes they wanted to get for you, despite not even starting the game yet. You stood behind the men and watched them toss a kernel-filled sack at a bunch of mini hilichurls.

The night ended with the men having to carry over fifteen plushies back to the abode, with you holding three tiny plushies in your arms. The festival ended on a good note, and you ended up forgetting about the necklace tucked away in your pocket. Since it was late and the men didn’t have time to construct a new shelf to store your new plushy collection, they all decided to stack the plushes on top of each other in front of your already full shelf.

“We’ll start making you a new shelf for your plushies tomorrow! It’s getting a bit late, and we all need to get some sleep.” Gorou says, kissing your cheeks before bidding you goodnight.

“Alright! Goodnight, everyone!” You said, hugging each man before placing kisses on their cheeks as each man started to leave your bedroom one by one.

Once your bedroom door closed after the last person left, you walked over to your closet to pick out your pajamas to change into after your shower. You took your shorts off and heard a loud clang when your shorts met the wooden floor of your bedroom. You paused for a moment and slowly knelt down to grab your shorts and dug your hands into the pockets, pulling out the necklace the merchant had demanded for you to take. You stared at the pendant for a moment before hiding it underneath your pillow and grabbing your clothes to take a shower.

After your almost forty-minute shower, you walked back into your room and got into your bed. You lay your head on your pillow, pulling out the pendant that was shoved in your face by the merchant. You examined the necklace closely and couldn’t help but admire its beauty and craftsmanship. You brushed off your worries to the side and unhooked the necklace before wearing it around your neck. You closed the clasp around the chain before laying back down on your bed. You pull your blanket up to your chin and close your eyes, feeling yourself gradually doze off.

The next day, when you woke up to get ready for the day, you felt a bit off. You went to your bathroom to brush your teeth, and when you looked in the mirror, your eyes turned black for a brief moment, scaring the absolute shit out of you. You choked on the toothpaste, coughing and spitting the toothpaste out of your mouth and into the sink. You looked back up at your reflection, and you looked like your usual self, minus the fear in your eyes. You shook your head and rubbed your eyes, letting your toothbrush rest on the counter of the bathroom sink before patting your cheeks with both of your hands.

“It’s nothing; it was nothing at all. I’m probably hallucinating.” You whisper to yourself, grabbing the cup of water to rinse out your mouth. “It’s all in your head, [Y/N].” You said to yourself, rinsing out the toothbrush before putting it in the toothbrush holder. What you didn’t realize in the moment of your panic, there was a black mist coming from the pendant before disappearing when you looked back at your reflection in the mirror.

While you were getting ready for the day in your bedroom, the rest of the men were downstairs, waiting for you to come down from your bedroom to have some breakfast. Everyone was lounging around in the living room; some were drinking coffee, and others were drinking tea. It was still early in the morning, but everyone had gotten up early to get ready for the day. You trotted down the stairs, fully dressed and prepared for the day.

You look at your boyfriends nervously, “Can I go to Stormterror’s Lair?” Everyone’s head snaps in your direction after the question leaves your mouth. Why in the world would you want to go to Stormterror’s Lair all of a sudden? Especially since that area is teeming with slimes, hilichurls, samachurls, the eye of the storm, ruin guards, abyss mages, and mitachurls. While the site isn’t as dangerous as it was when Dvalin was taken by the abyss mages, it’s still dangerous for you to go and explore. After all, you knew the dangers of Stormterror’s Lair.

“Stormterror’s Lair? Why would you want to go somewhere that is abandoned?” Aether asks, looking at you in confusion before giving looks to the others in the living area.

You hummed before rocking back and forth on your heels, “Well, I have seen it through a screen, but I would like to explore and see Stormterror’s Lair in person with my own eyes!” You said happily.

Heizou blinks at you curiously, “You’re not going to go all alone, are you?” Heizou asks slowly, getting up from where he is sitting before approaching you.

“Well, I can go alone if you’re all busy! But if not, then we can all go exploring together!” You said happily. “Plus, I have been to almost every region except for Snezhnaya, Dragonspine, the Chasm, Stormterror’s Lair, Natlan, Fontaine, and Sumeru.” You said.

“You technically didn’t go to every region, my love.” Dainsleif snorted, wrapping his arms around your waist before resting his chin on your shoulders.

You huffed, “Alright, alright! I’ve been to three regions except for the ones I’ve listed!” You said, pressing the side of your head against Dainsleif’s head with a tiny pout on your face. “So? Can I go to Stormterror’s Lair?!” You ask, clasping your hands together with puppy dog eyes.

Diluc sighs softly, “You can go to Stormterror’s Lair, but we will be accompanying you there! We don’t want you to get lost or get hurt.” Diluc stated. You squealed loudly and cheered, jumping up in the air in Dainsleif’s grasp. Dainsleif laughs to himself before patting the top of your head; even if Dainsleif were to kiss the top of your head, with you bouncing, you might headbutt him on the lips.

“Finally! I can finally see Stormterror’s Lair in person with my own eyes and not through a screen!” You clapped your hands.

Xiao sighs, “We can go to Stormterror’s Lair after you have breakfast. You shouldn’t be exploring on an empty stomach.” Xiao says, walking over to you before grabbing onto your wrist and pulling you to the kitchen to grab something for you to eat before going to Stormterror’s Lair. You adjusted the collar of your shirt to make sure that the necklace you wore around your neck wouldn’t be noticeable. It wasn’t like you didn’t want to show it to your boyfriends; you weren’t sure if the strange occurrence that had happened to you this morning was all in your head or not.

Plus, you weren’t sure if you should tell the men that a strange man demanded that you keep the necklace even though you didn’t want the jewelry. They’ll insist that you should throw it away, but for some odd reason, you felt very drawn to the necklace. There was something weird but also intriguing about the pendant itself. It was almost like you were meant to find the necklace or the necklace was meant to find you.

After eating the breakfast that Xiao had made for you, you and your twenty-one boyfriends find yourselves at the entrance of Stormterror’s Lair. It was a little bit windy, but the breeze felt nice against your hot skin under the sun. While Venti was talking about Old Mondstadt, you slowly drifted away from the group and walked towards the broken lair. There weren’t any enemies around since some of the men had set out to get rid of the hilichurls, mitachurls, samachurls, abyss mages, slimes, and the eye of the storms before everyone stepped foot into the ancient ruins. When you stepped into the lair, you began to feel strange. Aside from the sound of the wind blowing, the den was eerily quiet. Your footsteps echos the lair while you scan your surroundings in awe. You’ve always wanted to see what the ancient ruins looked like before what it was now. While you were surveying the area, something caught your attention from the corner of your eyes.

You turn your head towards the direction of the item before walking over to where it lay. Your eyebrows furrowed in confusion when you stopped in front of something rusted buried in the grass. You squatted down in front of the rusted item and grabbed it from the ground. You lifted up the item and examined it. The object in your hands was an old, rusted sword.

You turned the sword around, continuing to examine the object. “What’s a sword doing in a place like this?” You whisper, eyebrows furrowing while continuing to take in every detail of the sword in your grasp. Like the necklace, the same black mist oozes from the sword. You dropped the rusty sword in haste, backing away from the sword with a wary look on your face.

“What was that?” The black mist continues to come out from the sword; you stare at the enormous black cloud, eyes wide with fear and confusion.

The fog got closer each time you took a step back from it. The mysterious black fog suddenly shot towards you and flew into your body; you ended up running straight into the stone pillar while trying to escape from it. Your heart clenches painfully in your chest, your ears are ringing, and your head feels like there was a stone lawachurl stomping on your head repeatedly. Your eyesight grew blurry as you collapsed to the ground, clutching your head while letting out labored breaths. Your eyes roll to the back of your head before your vision suddenly turns black.

“[Y/N]! [Y/N]!” Someone was calling out to you, but they sounded so far away.

“Dammit, [Y/N], wake up!” Someone growls, patting your cheeks to bring you out of your unconscious state.

“Wake up!” A jolt of electricity shoots up your body, waking you up. You jolted awake, eyes wide and confused. You looked around you, only to see your boyfriends staring down at you with worry and fear.

“Scaramouche! Why’d you shock them!?” Thoma exclaims, glaring at the electro-vision holder, who shrugged at him in return without giving him a reply.

You winced when another wave of headache hit you, you clutch your head with your right hand, your face pinching up from the pain. “What happened?” You rasped, clearing your throat. Did you suddenly fall asleep at Stormterror’s Lair? What was that black mist? Was it all in your head? You feel weird. Someone was holding onto you tightly while a gloved hand was pressed against your forehead. You winced and looked at the person that was holding onto you; Al Haitham gazed down at you worriedly while Tighnari was eyeing you closely.

“Al Haitham? Tighnari? What are you two doing here? I didn’t remember seeing you two follow along with us to Stormterror’s Lair.” You said, rubbing your eyes tiredly.

“That isn’t important right now. What’s important is your well-being.” Al Haitham stated, tensing up when you moved around to adjust yourself where you were sitting.

“Al Haitham is correct! Our sudden arrival isn’t as important when you were found unconscious all alone.” Tighnari says, frowning at you before removing his hand from your forehead. Tighnari hums while propping both of his hands on his hips, “You don’t have a fever, but you don’t look too well.” He murmurs, getting up before looking over at the men who examined you worriedly.

“What happened? What happened was that you strayed away from the group and ended up here, unconscious!” Ayato says, frowning down at you.

“Oh, I apologize for straying away from all of you. I wanted to see more areas of the lair. I should’ve informed you all about it before walking away.” You said, your eyes downcast.

Albedo knelt in front of you, “[Y/N], did something happen?” You stared at Albedo in confusion before attempting to get up from the ground. Your knees buckle beneath you, and you fall back to the ground. You pressed the palm of your hand against your head, your head was pounding, and you felt strangely exhausted.

“Remain seated; you could have some possible injuries.” Al Haitham sighs, shaking his head while giving you a look. You frowned and nodded your head slowly, staying in Al Haitham’s arms while trying to survey the area around you. The sword was nowhere to be found, and it wasn’t where you’d dropped it.

Baizhu steps forward, “I believe that we should head back to the abode now. We need to get [Y/N] checked up to make sure there aren’t any injuries.” Baizhu says, holding his hand out for you to take. You nod your head slowly and get up from the ground with the help of Al Haitham and Tighnari. You grabbed onto Baizhu’s hands and let him walk you out of Stormterror’s Lair with your back pressed against his chest while the other men followed close behind. Upon arriving back at the abode, Tighnari, Baizhu, and Albedo immediately whisked you off to the medical area of the estate to get you checked up.

“The tests came back, and you’re healthy, and there aren’t any injuries,” Albedo says, sitting across from you.

You sighed and rubbed your temples tiredly, “Then why does my head hurt so much? It feels like something is stomping on my head over and over again.” You said, closing your eyes. Albedo doesn’t say anything and starts to rub your temples lightly; you lean into his touch, letting out a relieved sigh. While your headache was still present, Albedo massaging your temples helped ease the pain a bit.

“The important thing is that you’re safe, healthy, and uninjured.” Said Kaeya, leaning against the doorframe while watching Albedo massage your temples. You cracked your eyes open and looked over at where Kaeya stood; he gave you a small smile before walking into the room.

You laugh weakly, “Yeah, as long as I’m safe, healthy, and uninjured, that’s all that matters.” You said, resting your head on Albedo’s chest before closing your eyes. “Aside from the head-splitting headache I currently have, I’m feeling exhausted.” You murmured.

You hear footsteps coming from the hallway. You cracked your eyes open and saw Zhongli appearing by the doorway, looking at you intently. You gestured for Zhongli to enter the infirmary while continuing to rest your head against Albedo’s chest, listening to his heart beating against his chest.

Zhongli stood in front of you and Albedo while he eyed you from head to toe before speaking, “Did you see anything strange at Stormterror’s Lair while you were alone?” He asks. You blinked at Zhongli in surprise before thinking back to the memory of what had happened before you lost consciousness.

You answered, “Before I blacked out, I remembered seeing an old rusted sword on the ground in Stormterror’s Lair. I picked it up to examine it with my own eyes, but then black mist began to come out of it. Terrified, I dropped the sword, and it got close to me each time I tried to back away from it. The black fog flew at me, causing me to run into the stone pillar while trying to escape from it. My head started hurting, as did my chest, and my ears were ringing. That was the last thing I remembered before losing consciousness.” You answered.

“How intriguing….” Baizhu hums softly, leaning against the desk behind him while stroking his chin.

Albedo pulls from you, both of his hands on your shoulders before looking at you right into your eyes, “You said the black mist flew at you. Did it disappear when it flew at you, or did it disappear inside of you?”

If you were to tell them that the mist flew into your body, how would they react? Surely they can’t do anything about the fog being inside of your body, right? So far, it hasn’t caused any harm to you yet. Aside from the headache, heart pain, ringing ears, and feeling exhausted, the black mist that has disappeared inside of you hasn’t done anything to you. Even if you wanted to hide it from them, it’s no use in doing so when they can all read you like an open book.

You let out a sharp exhale before saying, “It flew inside of me.” Everyone in the room felt their breaths get caught in their throats after hearing your responses. If the black mist flew inside of you, the only way to know whether it’s inside of you or not is by using adeptal magic. “Do any of you know what flew into me by any chance?” You ask nervously.

Albedo sighed and shook his head, “Unfortunately, there isn’t a way for us to know what flew into your body. The only thing we can do for now is to monitor you and check if there are any signs.” Albedo concludes, giving you a sad smile.

Your shoulders slump before letting out a defeated sigh. “I see. Well, I hope we’ll be able to find out what it is.” You gave everyone a weak smile.

Kaeya approached you and held his hand out for you to take, “Let me take you back to your bedroom. You said you’re feeling fatigued; I will take you back to your room.” Kaeya offers. You grabbed onto Kaeya’s hands and got up from the examination table, bidding Zhongli, Baizhu, Albedo, and Tighnari goodbyes before walking to your room with Kaeya by your side.

“A black mist flew into [Y/N]’s body. How strange.” Tighnari murmurs, scratching his ears while reviewing the notes he took during your checkup.

Over the next few days, the men were tasked to keep their eyes on you and your condition. While you weren’t showing any concerning symptoms, your boyfriends continued to check up on you. For safety measures, Tighnari, Albedo, and Baizhu would ensure that you were taking medication if you were getting a headache or strange chest pains. As for ringing in your ears, they couldn’t do much about it, so the trio had come up with the idea that they would conduct some occasional hearing checkups along with eye checkups.

One early morning, the men were residing in the dining and living room, waiting for you to wake up while their coffees were brewing and their teas were boiling. Diluc enters the dining and living area, combing his fingers through his fiery red hair with his hair tie between his lips. Diluc held his ponytail up with his left hand while grabbing the hair tie from his mouth with his right hand.

Diluc leans against the counter while tying his hair up into a high ponytail, “It seems like [Y/N]’s not showing any concerning symptoms other than a headache.”

Childe lets out a thoughtful hum while tapping on his chin, “I wonder what could be the cause of [Y/N] getting a headache.” He rests his chin on the palm of his hands, his head propped up on his hands as he flips through the photobook resting on his lap. After a few seconds of not finding what he was searching for, Childe closes the photo album before getting up from his seat to place the photo album back on the shelf in the living room.

Dainsleif lets out a small chuckle, “Well, not getting enough sleep at night can be the cause of headaches, and [Y/N] has always been the type to stay up past their bedtime.”

Kazuha exits the kitchen with a plate of food in his hands before placing it down on the table, “Do you think [Y/N]’s still asleep? They’ve been getting up much earlier nowadays, but it’s hard to tell whether they’re awake right now or not.” Kazuha says, sitting down in his seat.

Venti looks at Kazuha curiously, “Do you want us to check up on them to see if they’re awake or asleep?” Venti asks, plopping down on the stool with his lyre resting on his lap.

Aether shakes his head, “I think we should let them sleep in. After all, the Stormterror’s Lair incident most likely drained their energy, so we should let them sleep in.” Aether says, smacking Heizou on the back of his head after beating him in another round of rock paper scissors.

Heizou hissed and glared at Aether while rubbing the back of his head, “Bastard.” Heizou grumbles under his breath.

Thoma gets up from the love seat, dusting his clothes off, “Well, while we’re waiting for [Y/N] to wake up, I’ll make us some breakfast if anyone wants something to eat.” Thoma offers, strutting towards the kitchen.

Meanwhile, in your bedroom, you woke up to excruciating pain in your chest area. You kicked your blankets off your body and pulled your shirt collar down, only to see really irritated skin where the necklace sat. You went to your bathroom to get a better look at it in the mirror. You stood in front of your bathroom mirror before pulling the collar of your shirt down again. You let out a choked gasp, having a hard time taking in the sight in front of you. The necklace that you got from the merchant at the Mid-Autumn Festival was buried into your skin; the pendant looked like it somehow melted and fused into your skin. The skin around the charm was bright red and irritated.

“What the fuck is happening?!” You whisper, gingerly touching the charm before wincing and hissing from the contact. “Don’t panic, don’t panic. You’ll figure out how to get the necklace out from your body somehow.” You whisper, leaning towards the mirror.

You backed away from the mirror, burying your hands in your hair with a nervous exhale. You tried to go on with your routine as if nothing was happening, but your mind kept drifting off to the thought of the necklace fused to your skin. You brushed your teeth and combed your hair; each time you looked in the mirror, your head would start to hurt, or your vision would blur. You placed your comb back down on the counter, and when you were about to check your appearance one last time before heading downstairs, navy blue stripes began to appear on your arms. You gasped and looked down at your body; more navy blue stripes were wrapped around your torso and legs.

You looked in the mirror, and your eyes were pitch black. You blinked rapidly and shook your head, hands cupping your cheeks. “What’s wrong with me?” You whisper, looking back up at your reflection, and your eyes are back to normal.

However, the navy blue stripes that wrapped around your arms, torso, and legs were still present. You suddenly feel a sharp pain in your head and your eyes, causing you to double over in pain, biting down on your lips to prevent yourself from screaming out in pain. Once the pain subsided, you noticed that you were kneeling on the floor with your head pressed against the cool tile of the bathroom floor. You weakly got up from the ground and propped yourself up on the bathroom sink; your head ducked down while taking deep breaths. You felt something drip from your eyes and your nose. You cracked your eyes opened and saw droplets of blood on the white porcelain sink. You lifted your hands up and touched your nose, your head slowly turning up to look in the mirror. Your eyes and nose were bleeding, and the blood looked a bit darker than the usual crimson red.

You suddenly hear a deep masculine voice, “Hand it over to me, now.”

You jerked up and looked around your bathroom to search for where the voice was coming from, but no one else was around.

“Back off! Their body is mine!” Another voice growls; you winced and clutched your head. The second voice you heard was shrill and feminine. You felt something inside of you stir; the pain in your head increased, and you felt like your skull was about to crack into two.

“Who are you?” You whimpered; tears blurred your vision before sliding down your cheeks. “Who are you, and what do you want from me?” You cried.

“What do we want from you?” The masculine voice mocks you before breaking out into a burst of maniacal laughter. “It’s obvious what we want from you!”

The feminine voice scoffs, “We? Who is we? I was here first, Decarabian! Go find another vessel, you parasite!”

You could feel Decarabian roll his eyes before responding, “As if you’re not a parasite yourself, Hua Yue!” Decarabian growls. Decarabian. Where did you hear that name from again? Without thinking twice, you ran out of your bathroom and slammed your bedroom door open before running down the stairs.

Al Haitham sits up fast and looks toward the direction of the stairs before looking at the others, alarmed, “What was that?”

You stumbled down the stairs and lost your footing, causing you to trip and fly down the stairs. Itto ran as fast as he could and caught you in his arms, your face buried against his chest, terrified of seeing their reactions to the marks on your body.

“[Y/N]! What’s wrong?!” Ayato asks, running up to where you and Itto are standing.

Itto looks at you in confusion before looking over at the others, “When did you have these marks on your body?” He turns around to have your figure face the other men.

Xiao, Venti, and Zhongli froze at the sight, slowly getting up from their seats with their weapons materializing in their hands. Ever since the Mid-Autumn Festival and the mishap at Stormterror’s Lair, Xiao, Venti, and Zhongli couldn’t help but feel that something was off with you. They didn’t voice their concerns with you. But instead, they would have private conversations about it away from you and the others.

Gorou approaches you cautiously, “What are these marks? They didn’t have these marks on their bodies until today.” Nervous to reach out to place a reassuring hand on you. Alarms were flashing in Gorou’s head, telling him that something was wrong.

Scaramouche goes over to where you and Itto stand, “[Y/N], are you okay? What are these marks on your body?” Scaramouche asks, ready to place his hand on your shoulders when Xiao grabs Scaramouche by the shoulders to stop him.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Xiao stated, shaking his head at the electro user. Scaramouche looks at Xiao quizzically before slowly looking over in your and Itto’s direction. Itto looked pale as a ghost, his face white, his pupils shrunk, and he slowly backed away from you.

You slowly turned towards the other men in the abode, blood bushing from your eyes, your nose, and your mouth. The sight of you in that state sent chills down their spines; everyone stood in front of you cautiously, their hands shaking.

“[Y/N], what’s going on?” Pantalone asks, prepared to walk over to you but was held back by Dottore and Pierro.

“I don’t know! I woke up feeling pain in my chest, only to see this necklace seared into my skin.” You cried, yanking down the collar of your shirt; the skin around the pendant was a deep red, almost bleeding.

Zhongli eyes the necklace, and Xiao and Venti glance over at the former archon nervously; their weapons are drawn. “Dearest, where did you get that necklace?” Zhongli asks, his eyes zeroed in on the pendant around your neck, now fused into your skin. You didn’t want to tell them about the necklace so soon, but it seems like you have no other choice but to come clean to all of them.

“A strange merchant demanded me to take the necklace, saying something that he wanted me and only me to be the one to wear it because it’s meant for me. I didn’t want it at all, but he shoved the necklace in my face, telling me to take it.” You cried, itching to claw at the charm around your neck. It hurts so much, and you just want to scratch it off your body already.

“Did he tell you the origins of this necklace?” Xiao demanded, tightening his grip around his polearm, ready to strike.

You nod your head, “He said something about the necklace that was once owned by a deity. It was given to her by her lover, who was also an archon. But he died in the archon war; she was so upset over his death that she threw the necklace into the ocean, and it got swept away by the ocean waves.” You breathed, your body beginning to get hot.

Zhongli shakes his head, “The merchant lied to you. The necklace was owned by a vengeful archon who lost her lover in the archon war. While she did lose her lover, she wore that necklace until her last breath before possessing the charm itself.” Zhongli says.

You felt your heart clench painfully in your chest; you doubled over in pain, tiny strained whimpers emitting from you. Tears and blood roll down your cheeks. You suddenly lose consciousness. The men around you froze when you suddenly stood still. The sounds of your quiet cries and whimpers were gone entirely.

“[Y/N]?” Gorou asks nervously, his hands trembling at his sides.

‘You’ slowly looked up; ‘your’ eyes pitch black. “If it weren’t for you, my boyfriend wouldn’t have been dead! He’s dead because of you! You killed him!” ‘You’ screamed, pointing at Zhongli and Xiao. Blood continues to cascade down your cheeks. You jerked forward once again. You looked around at the men frantically, almost back to normal, aside from the navy blue stripes wrapped around your body and the blood that continued to ooze from your eyes, nose, and mouth.

“Archons, who was that speaking? Their voice is feminine and very shrill; just the sound of their voice makes my ears want to bleed.” Tighnari questions, covering his ears with the look of discomfort on his face.

“Please, please help me. I don’t know what’s going on.” You cried. “They won’t stop. They won’t stop screaming in my head.” You held your head in your hands, clawing at your scalp.

Thoma’s eyes widened, “They? Are you saying there’s more than one entity using your body as a vessel?” He looks around at the other men fearfully. By now, everyone had their weapons drawn, preparing for the worst. Everyone except for one person had their weapons out and ready while Gorou hesitated; Dottore nudges Gorou, who reluctantly lets his weapon materializes in his grasp.

“They keep screaming at each other, at me! Please make it stop.” You cried; your head was hurting so much, and your chest was hurting from the necklace that was fused to your skin. You looked at the men in front of you sadly after seeing that they were ready to injure you if your body were to be taken over by Decarabian or Hua Yue. You let out a bittersweet laugh, “I see all of you are ready to injure me without questioning it.” You said, your lips trembling before fresh tears rolled down your cheeks.

Aether shakes his head, “We’re not going to hurt you, [Y/N]. We have to be careful because we don’t know how powerful or dangerous the two entities in your body are.”

Al Haitham nods his head, “Aether is correct. We don’t intend on harming you, but we don’t know if the spirits inside of you will hurt us or not.” His sword is held in front of his person, and his grip tightens on the hilt of the sword.

You suddenly began to cackle, “Oh, glad to know that you’re all ready for a battle.” A deep masculine voice fills the tense atmosphere. “Once I’m done with all of you, I’m taking back Mondstadt as mine.” ‘You’ said, smirking right at Venti.

Ayato furrows his eyebrows, eyeing ‘you’ quizzically before muttering to himself, “Take back Mondstadt?”

Venti felt his breath get caught in his throat before choking out, “Decarabian.” Venti stares at ‘you’ in horror. ‘You’—well, Decarabian— looked over at Venti from the corner of your (his?) eyes, a Cheshire smile stretching across ‘your’ face.

Decarabian chuckles and slowly approaches the bard with ‘your’ arms crossed over ‘your’ chest. “We meet again, Barbatos.”

“Listen, I don’t know who you are and your affiliation with Mondstadt. You need to leave [Y/N]’s body immediately, or else we’ll make you leave their body!” Itto says, his grip tightens around the handle of his claymore.

‘You’ look at Itto with a smirk, “Oh? You’ll make me leave their body? A small threat like yours is adorable, comical even.” ‘You laughed. “Since you all wanted a fight so much, let’s make that happen, shall we?”

Everyone starts lunging at ‘you,’ attempting to take ‘you’ down and restrain ‘your’ movements. But ‘you’ were quick on ‘your’ feet, a familiar sword materializing in ‘your’ hands. The sword in ‘your’ grip was once a rusty sword that was used to slay Decarabian. No matter how many people were lunging at ‘you’ while trying to immobilize ‘you,’ ‘you’ were able to escape from their grasp and attacks easily. You weren’t a skilled fighter. In fact, you don’t fight at all, and yet Decarabian possessing your body and making you his puppet made you an even more challenging target to attack.

Scaramouche growls, “How come we can’t land a hit on them!?” Trying to lunge at ‘you,’ but ‘you’ slipped through his fingers every time he tried to grab hold of ‘your’ biceps. ‘You’ look over at him with a triumphant smile on ‘your’ face.

“It’s because you’re all too soft on them.” Pierro states gruffly, appearing from behind ‘you’ before hitting the back of ‘your’ head with a sword, causing ‘you’ to stumble and fall to the ground; the sword that was once held in ‘your’ hands clattered to the ground loudly. Heizou and Aether ran to the sword, picked it up, and stood beside Venti with unfamiliar emotions on their faces. Before ‘you’ could get up, Capitano placed his right foot on ‘your’ back, pinning ‘you’ to the ground while Dottore held a sword up to ‘your’ neck. ‘You’ growled and began thrashing underneath Capitano’s foot, clawing at his legs to let ‘you’ go.

“How do we get rid of Decarabian? Do we get rid of him with the same sword that was used to kill him?” Heizou asks.

Dainsleif nods his head hesitantly, “It seems to be the only way we can get rid of him.”

“But how?” Kazuha asks, looking at the sword hesitantly.

Albedo says slowly, “Perhaps the same way he was slain years ago.”

“You have to stab [Y/N] in the chest with that sword.” Capitano interjects, putting pressure on ‘your’ back while ‘you’ were growling and flailing around beneath Capitano’s foot.

Diluc takes a step forward, glaring at the Harbinger that was pinning ‘you’ to the ground. “No! Absolutely not; we’re not going to stab [Y/N] in the chest with the same sword that killed Decarabian.”

Dottore sighs, “As much as I would hate to see [Y/N] in pain, if we do not get rid of Decarabian, then he will remain inside of [Y/N], holding them hostage as his vessel.”

Childe scoffs loudly, “You do realize that Decarabian isn’t the only dead archon that has taken [Y/N]’s soul and body hostage, correct? Did you forget about Hua Yue?” He crossed his arms over his chest with a deep frown on his face.

“The only way we can get rid of Decarabian is by stabbing [Y/N] with the same sword that took Decarabian’s life. As for Hua Yue, we’ll need adeptal magic to lure her out from [Y/N]’s body.” Baizhu frowns. Zhongli looks over at Xiao, and the two of them nod at one another before Xiao disappears into a cloud of smoke.

Kaeya strokes his chin, “The real question is: who’s going to be the one that stabs [Y/N]?” He raised an eyebrow, looking over at everyone else in the room skeptically. Everyone fell silent and looked over at each other, unsure of who was going to do the most painful part. You finally regained your consciousness and held your hands out.

“Me! I’ll do it!” You screamed, reaching for the sword. “Anything to get rid of Decarabian, please.” You begged, beads of sweat rolling down your face.

“No! We’re not letting you stab yourself, nor are we going to stab you!” Diluc says, shaking his head stubbornly.

You panted, “Just do it! Do you want me to suffer?” You screamed, pounding your fist onto the wooden floor of the abode. “Get him out of my body! I don’t want to be his stupid puppet; I would rather die than be their vessel!” You cried.

“Let’s get it over with then,” Pantalone says, snatching the sword from Heizou’s grasp. He knelt in front of you and caressed your face in his hands, giving you an apologetic smile, “I apologize, my precious kitten. But it needs to be done.” He presses a kiss on your head before flipping you over on your side, plunging the sword into your chest, the blade impaling you.

You let out a choked gasp and scream, blood pouring out from your mouth and chest. You gripped onto Pantalone’s wrists tightly, your nails digging into his wrist. Pantalone winced and drove the sword further into your breast, you screamed, and tears poured down your cheeks like a waterfall.

“That’s enough!” Al Haitham screams, grabbing Pantalone by the shoulders and jerking him away from you. The sword ripped from your chest, and you pressed your bloodied hands over the gaping hole in your chest, heaving and sobbing from the pain.

Your eyes briefly turned black before looking over at where the anemo archon stood. A weak and bitter chuckle resonates in the abode, “Just like how you stabbed me in the chest to kill me, you’re all going to do the same thing and stab them to death.” Blood drips down your face from the corner of your lips. “How does it feel, Barbatos? How does it feel to lose your dear friend to me, but now also your lover?” Venti’s face turns white, staring at you in horror. Your eyes rolled to the back of your head before your eyes returned to what it originally was. The black mist that was once residing in your body slowly flows out of your body and into the bloodied sword on the wooden floor as if it was being vacuumed back to where it originally came from.

“One vengeful spirit down, one more to go,” Venti swallows the formin lump in his throat, eyeing the bloodied sword nervously. The final words that were spoken by Decarabian hit Venti harder than he had expected. Venti shook his head to try to brush the last words from his head. No, Decarabian was wrong. He was only saying that to hurt Venti even more, right? There’s no way that Decarabian was right.

Tighnari pushes through the crowd of men and rushes to your side, “We need to get [Y/N] to the infirmary, stat!” He lifts you up from the pool of blood before sprinting to the infirmary in the abode, with Albedo and Baizhu following after him.

Heizou frowns at the Harbinger, “You were a little too eager to plunge that sword into [Y/N]’s chest.” Heizou crossed his arms over his stomach, giving Pantalone a disapproving look.

“He had to do it,” Pierro says, stepping up towards Heizou and the other men that stood behind Heizou. “After all, you were all too hesitant on getting rid of Decarabian. It’s almost like you all wanted [Y/N] to be the puppet of Decarabian.”

Aether bares his teeth at the first Harbinger, “We don’t want [Y/N] to be Decarabian or Hua Yue’s puppet! We didn’t want to stab them!” Aether scowls at the older Harbinger, his hands clenching in tight fists.

Dottore rolls his eyes, “And you all think we want our precious [Y/N] to be the puppet?” Dottore huffs, shaking his head. “Pantalone had to do what he needed to do in order to get Decarabian out of [Y/N]’s body, and you were all too scared to do so.”

Capitano speaks up, “If it weren’t for Pantalone, Decarabian would still be inside of [Y/N]’s body, slowly killing them while using them as a temporary host.” Capitano glares at the men in front of him behind his helmet, “You should all be thanking Pantalone for saving [Y/N] and for driving Decarabian out of [Y/N]’s body.”

Thoma looks at the sword, then at the puddle of blood that is slowly drying up. The smell of copper lingers in the air, making Thoma feel sick to his stomach. “What do we do with the sword now?” Thoma asks, nudging the bloody sword with his feet.

“We bury it where it was originally founded. It needs to be buried deep where no one can find it or reach it.” Pantalone says, wiping your blood off his hands with a napkin.

“Since the four of you didn’t have an issue with stabbing [Y/N] so easily, you four should go and bury that sword for us,” Itto says, clapping his hands.

Dottore chuckles, “Fine, fine. We will do it if it eases your minds a bit.” Dottore waves his hands around. Dottore walks over to the sword and picks it up by the hilt before gesturing for the other three Harbingers to follow after him. Just when Dottore was about to walk out of the abode, Dainsleif grabbed Dottore by the arms, saying, “You better not do anything funny. Bury the sword and bring your asses back to the abode.”

Capitano grabs Dainsleif by the shoulders and pushes him away from Dottore, “Relax, Boughkeeper. We’ll be back when the sword is buried where it was originally located.” He glares at Dainsleif before walking out of the abode with the other Harbingers following after him. After the Harbingers had left the estate, the men looked at one another anxiously.

Childe breaks the silence, “Should we go check up on [Y/N], Tighnari, Baizhu, and Albedo?”

“I’m really worried about [Y/N]. Pantalone impaled [Y/N] with that sword. He didn’t simply stab [Y/N]! He impaled them with the very sword that was used to kill Decarabian.” Kazuha says, rubbing his temples with a stressed sigh.

Kaeya nods his head, “He was a little too eager to stab [Y/N] with that sword.”

Gorou’s bow vanishes in the air, “We should go check up on them. I’m really worried about [Y/N] and their well-being.” The men nod their heads at Gorou’s suggestion before sprinting to the infirmary where you, Albedo, Baizhu, and Tighnari are located. Upon arriving at the infirmary, the men saw you lying on the bed in the clinic of the estate, unconscious, chest wrapped with gauze and bandages. Albedo, Tighnari, and Baizhu were hovering above you, eyeing the necklace that had sunk into your skin.

“How are we going to remove this without hurting [Y/N] any further?” Albedo murmurs, his fingers lightly tracing the pendant. You whimpered in your unconscious state, face pinching up when you felt the skin around the pendant burn.

Tighnari lightly smears medicine paste on your chest, massaging it into your skin. “I do not know how long this will numb the pain, but it should ease their pain,” Tighnari says, looking up at your face while rubbing the medicine paste into your skin, examining your reaction very closely.

“Shall we wait for Xiao to come back to the abode, or do you want us to take the pendant out from [Y/N]’s chest?” Baizhu asks, putting on his gloves.

“We should wait for that Adeptus to come back. After all, you did say that adeptal magic will need to be used in order to lure Hua Yue out from [Y/N]’s body.” Scaramouche replies, slowly approaching the bed where you lay.

Ayato interjects, “Well, I personally believe that we should remove the necklace out from [Y/N]’s chest before it continues to melt even more into [Y/N]’s skin. After that, the adeptis can continue to lure Hua Yue out from [Y/N]’s body with adeptal magic.”

Tighnari nods his head, “It seems like we have no other choice but to remove it.”

Venti’s eyebrows furrow, “How are we going to remove it? It’s very deep in their skin and will scar once it's removed.” Venti says, eyeing the pendant warily.

“Baizhu said that Hua Yue can only be lured out from [Y/N]’s body with adeptal magic. Maybe it’s the same with the necklace that is fused to [Y/N]’s skin.” Aether says slowly.

Heizou hums, “Well, other than Xiao, who is an adepti?” Everyone slowly turns to Zhongli, giving him a look.

Zhongli hesitates for a moment before letting out a slow deep breath, “Please step to the side and give [Y/N] and me some space.” Zhongli instructs, approaching the bed.

The men backed up two steps from the bed while Zhongli got closer to the bed in the infirmary. Zhongli takes his gloves off and rolls up the sleeves of his coat. Zhongli’s right-hand hovers above the necklace that was embedded in your chest, he places his hands on the pendant, and his hands begin to glow gold. Zhongli feels the charm starting to move little by little. You scrunched your face up when you felt the necklace being slowly removed from your chest.

Thoma’s eyes lit up, “Oh! It’s starting to come out!” He moves around to get a closer look at the charm being removed from your upper chest.

Just when Zhongli was about to remove the pendant from your chest successfully, your eyes snapped open, eyes pitch black. ‘You’ grabbed ahold of Zhongli’s wrist and tackled him to the ground, glaring down at the former archon. Zhongli rips his wrist from ‘your’ grasp before grabbing hold of ‘your’ wrist, flipping ‘you’ over to the ground.

“Did you really think you could get rid of me so easily, Morax?” ‘You’ growled, thrashing around in Zhongli’s grasp. ‘You’ elbowed Zhongli in the stomach before flipping him back on the ground, pinning him to the ground with a smirk on ‘your’ face. “Prime of Adepti, my ass.” ‘You’ spat; ‘your’ hands slid up to Zhongli’s neck, ‘your’ fingers wrapping around his neck before squeezing his neck.

Zhongli didn’t want to kick you back, fearing that he would hurt you if he were to do so. He knows that Hua Yue has taken over your body as a vessel to avenge her dead lover, but regardless of Hua Yue possessing your body, he did not want to hurt you in any kind of way.

“What is going on here?!” A voice bellows, ‘you’ were immediately snatched away from Zhongli by Diluc, Dainsleif, and Childe.

‘You’ growled and gnashed your teeth at the men while trying to get out of Diluc, Childe, and Dainsleif’s iron grips. Dainsleif grabs ‘you’ by ‘your’ waist and tosses you over his shoulders before walking over to the bed and placing ‘you’ down on the bed. ‘You’ looked up and made eye contact with Cloud Retainer, Moon Carver, Mountain Shaper, Madame Ping, and Ganyu.

“Oh, it’s unfortunate to see you all again after two thousand years.” ‘You’ said, glaring at the three men that were restraining your arms and legs against the bed.

Ganyu looks at ‘you’ nervously, “Hua Yue, I see that you have chosen to use [Y/N]’s body as your vessel to communicate with all of us.”

“Release the mortal now, Hua Yue. You’re playing a dangerous game of using a mortal as your puppet.” Moon Carver demands, taking a step forward toward where ‘you’ were restrained.

‘You’ pouted at Moon Carver mockingly, “Aw! But using this foolish mortal as my vessel is so fun! Especially when they mean so much to the archon that killed my lover two thousand years ago!” ‘You’ looked over at Zhongli from the corner of ‘your’ eyes. “It would be a shame if they died as well.” ‘You’ batted ‘your’ eyelashes at the former archon.

Xiao growls as his polearm materializes in his hands before pointing the tip of the polearm blade at ‘your’ neck, “If you hurt them, I will kill you.” Xiao glares down at ‘you.’

‘You’ giggled, “Oh, Alatus, you do realize that if you ‘kill’ me, your cute little lover will be dead too, right?” ‘You’ quirked ‘your’ eyebrow at the yaksha. “Although it does sound like a win-win because if I can’t be with my lover, then none of you deserve to be with your lover either.”

Scaramouche glares over at ‘you’ with his arms over his chest, “You do realize that you can be with your dead lover too, right? In the afterlife!”

‘You’ let out a shrill cackle, “You silly little thing, you really think that’s how it all works?!” ‘You’ scowled, glaring at the electro user from across the infirmary with a heated glare while trying to free ‘yourself’ from the restraints, only to be unsuccessful.

“Restrain their limbs and make sure that they do not escape. If they do, we will not be able to get Hua Yue out of [Y/N]’s body.” Madame Ping instructs. Diluc, Dainsleif, Childe, and Itto grab hold of ‘your’ hands and ankles, immobilizing ‘you.’

“We must warn all of you that luring a dead archon out from a mortal’s body will not be easy. Especially one that is vengeful like Hua Yue herself.” Cloud Retainer says, walking over to where ‘you’ were restrained.

The other adeptis surrounded the infirmary bed, and they all began to glow while chanting under their breath. Zhongli walks over to where Diluc stood and reaches out to the necklace that was implanted into your skin. Zhongli’s hands began to glow. Your body starts to heat up, and the area where the charm was embedded into your skin is beginning to burn. ‘Your’ eyes widened as ‘you’ began to let out a blood-curdling scream, trying to pull ‘your’ arms and legs out of Diluc, Dainsleif, Childe, and Itto’s grasp.

“Don’t let her escape your grasp! We will not be able to get Hua Yue out of [Y/N]’s body if they manage to disrupt the process.” Mountain Shaper instructs over the sound of ‘your’ screams and wails.

Tears and blood rolled down ‘your’ cheeks from ‘your’ eyes, your chest was burning, and you were in pain. Everything hurts; your head, your eyes, your chest, everywhere. The men around you winced and looked away, not able to witness the sight in front of them. You are in so much pain, and they cannot do anything about it. Whatever the adeptis were doing to you, it was for your own good, and they hoped that the outcome wouldn’t be detrimental to you and your well-being. You wouldn’t stop screaming, and it was hard to tell whether it was you that was shrieking or if it was Hua Yue that was screaming bloody murder while trying to free your arms and legs from Diluc, Dainsleif, Itto, and Childe’s grasp.

The ritual went on for what felt like hours to everyone involved. The four Harbingers stood by the door and watched the scene unfold in front of them, their backs pressed against the wall while analyzing what was going on and what the adeptis were doing to you. You— well, Hua Yue, put up a lot of fight. While she was no longer in her archon body and was using your body (a mortal) as a vessel, she wasn’t able to break out of the restraints. Something had finally happened after a few hours of constant adeptal magic being used upon you to drive out the vengeful dead archon’s spirit out of your body. Zhongli was able to remove the necklace from your neck entirely. Blood trickled down your neck and chest, staining the gauze and bandages crimson red.

“Look! Something’s happening!” Gorou gasps, pointing at the strange red mist began to leave your body and enter the bloody necklace slowly.

Itto’s eyes widen, looking at the others, alarmed, “Did it work!? Did we do it!? Is Hua Yue finally out of [Y/N]’s body!?”

“We? It’s the adeptis that did all of the work of luring Hua Yue out of [Y/N]’s body.” Scaramouche gives Itto a look before looking over at where the others gathered around you.

“You may have won again and have gotten rid of me, but I can tell you that after all of these hours of cleansing would have gotten rid of your precious [Y/N] too!” Your eyes flicker from pitch black to your normal eye color. “How do all of you feel after knowing you tortured your lover to death!?” ‘You’ wailed; the men around ‘you’ tensed up and looked away from where you lay.

The red mist was now gone from your system and had returned to the necklace. The screaming soon came to a stop, and so did the thrashing. You collapsed into the bed, limp, barely breathing, and covered in your blood, sweat, and tears. Baizhu, Tighnari, and Albedo were immediately at your side, treating your wounds and cleaning up your blood.

Baizhu frowns, pulling out the gauze and bandage from the first-aid kit that was lying out in the open. “[Y/N] doesn’t look well. The magic and Hua Yue using their body and soul as a puppet and life source has completely drained their energy.” He pressed his hand against your forehead; your skin felt so cold and clammy. It was alarming.

Zhongli handed the tainted necklace over to Moon Carver and Mountain Shaper. While Zhongli wasn’t sure where the two adeptis were planning on hiding the pendant, he had high hopes that the two adeptis would hide the charm from those who went searching for the item. The men thanked the adeptis before they all left the abode.

“Thank archons. This is all finally over.” Childe sighs, collapsing in a chair nearby, running his hands through his hair with a puff of breath.

“It felt like it had gone on for days, but it’s been going on for, I believe, almost thirteen hours,” Ayato says, letting his shoulders relax.

“I would hate to be that person, but it feels like it won’t be ending here,” Kazuha interjects, his eyes trained on your unconscious body. You were limp, barely responding to any noise that the men made. You didn’t flinch or wake up when Baizhu, Tighnari, and Albedo were treating your wounds.

“We don’t know how [Y/N] will be feeling when they wake up, but their wounds have been cleaned and patched up. They should get plenty of rest. After all, two dead archons did take [Y/N]’s body as their vessel.” Albedo says, taking the rubber gloves off his hands before tossing them into a trash bin.

“Is there a way for us to know when they’ll wake up from their slumber?” Kaeya asks, brushing your hair from your sweaty forehead. You let out a soft sigh and strained whimper, eyebrows furrowing with pain. Kaeya frowns and brushes the stray tear that made its way down your cheeks. Even though Decarabian and Hua Yue were extracted from your body, you’re still in pain because of what they have put you and your body through.

Diluc sighs, “Those two are lucky they’re dead already.” He glares at the ground before kneeling beside your bed, grabbing onto your hands. Diluc glares at your hands, letting out a hum before taking his glove off to hold your hand without the gloves on.

“What is it?” Dainsleif takes a step forward, gazing at Diluc worriedly. Diluc motions for Dainsleif to come closer while holding your hand up in the air for Dainsleif to touch. Dainsleif slips his glove off before feeling your hand with his bare hands. Al Haitham walks over to where the two stood and lightly brushes his fingers against the back of your hand.

“Their hands are cold.” Al Haitham states, looking up at the other men in the room.

Zhongli hovered above you and pressed his ears against your slowly rising and falling chest. The ex-archon closed his eyes and listened closely; your heart was beating, but it was very faint. Zhongli lets out a slow sigh before slowly standing up and turning to the others; his expression is grim.

“Their heartbeat is very faint, and it’s weak.” He looks down at your unconscious figure, his eyes downcasted.

“What are we going to do?!” Gorou asks worriedly, his hands trembling with fear while eyeing your unconscious body.

Tighnari frowns, “The only thing we can do now is to monitor them. For now, we can’t do anything else further.”

“And what if something happens to them in the middle of the night?” Pierro asks, staring at Tighnari, Albedo, and Baizhu closely.

“We will be watching over [Y/N] as they rest. Each of us will be taking turns doing so.” Albedo says, caressing your face in his hands. Albedo wasn’t surprised that your body would react this way; you did have two dead archons possessing your body, using your life source as a way for them to communicate and wreak havoc on the entire abode. The only thing they can all hope for is for you to have a smooth recovery, but looking at your current condition, it doesn’t seem like it’ll happen.

Throughout the night, each man would take turns monitoring you as you slept in the infirmary. You hardly moved in the bed; your chest was rising and falling very slowly, and the men could barely feel any air coming from your nostrils as you slept. Heck, you didn’t even wake up to drink water like how you would usually do. The next day, everyone woke up to alarming screams coming from the infirmary.

“What’s going on!?” Al Haitham demands, bursting into the infirmary with the other men behind him.

Gorou and Albedo moved to the side for the other men to see what the commotion was about. There you lay on the bed, barely moving an inch. You looked like a corpse, and your skin barely had any color to it; you were gray. Aether and Xiao rushed up to the bed, their hands pressing against your skin. You were cold. Your skin was ice cold; there was barely any blood circulation. Aether presses his ears against your chest, his heart racing.

“There’s still a faint heartbeat; they’re still alive,” Aether says, turning towards the others.

Tears blur Heizou’s vision, ducking his head. “What is going on with [Y/N]? Why are they dying?” Heizou demands, warm tears cascading down his flushed cheeks.

“They’re not dying, don’t be foolish!” Diluc says, glaring at the anemo user.

Diluc sits at the edge of your bed and brushes your hair from your face. Diluc looks at you closely for a moment, only to realize that you are shivering. Diluc gingerly lifts you up and cradles you in his arms, hoping he is warming you up.

“[Y/N]? Can you hear us?” Ayato asks softly, sitting down beside Diluc. Ayato reached over and rubbed the apples of your cheeks with the pad of his thumb. You cracked your eyes opened and looked around at everyone with bleary eyes. Your eyes are glazed over; there are dark circles underneath your eyes, and your lips lack color.

“Oh, thank archons, you’re awake!” Venti gasped, his lips trembling as he collapsed in front of you. Venti grabbed onto your hands and pressed his forehead against the back of your hand, tears rolling down his cheeks; his body shook with quiet sobs.

Thoma stood above your head, looking down at you, “How are you feeling, [Y/N]?” He knelt behind your head and stroked your hair.

“I don’t feel so good.” You croaked, wincing at the sound of your voice. After responding to Thoma’s question, you finally realized that your throat was hurting a lot; it was very sore and very dry. It was definitely from all of the screaming that had happened the day before.

“The important thing is that you’re awake,” Xiao says. “I apologize for not being able to save you or be able to detect the issues before the issues arose.” Xiao knelt and bowed his head to you.

You shook your head, “No, Xiao. Don’t blame yourself; no one is to blame except for me.” You said, letting out a dry cough.

Itto shakes his head, “Don’t blame yourself either, [Y/N]! You didn’t want the necklace in the first place, but the strange merchant forced you to take the necklace! If it weren’t for that merchant, you wouldn’t be in this position!” Itto exclaims.

Kazuha nods his head, “Agreed. It’s not your fault at all, my dove. The problem began because of that merchant.”

You frowned, “But I wandered off in the Stormterror’s Lair and touched the sword that slain Decarabian.” You let yourself go limp in Diluc’s arms, your head tucked beneath Diluc’s neck.

Kaeya sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose, “It’s still not your fault. It’s no one’s fault.” Kaeya stated.

“I’m going to track down that merchant and kill him for what he had done to you,” Childe stated, clenching his jaws while balling his hands into tight fists.

Before you could respond to Childe’s statement, you felt a sharp pain in your chest, causing you to curl up in a fetal position, your hands clutching onto your chest. You whimpered, feeling something rise up in your throat while the inside of your throat began to itch.

Dainsleif gasps, ��[Y/N]!” His eyes widened in fear when he saw your hands fly up to your mouth, covering your mouth with both of your hands.

“Are you okay!? What’s going on!?” Zhongli asks, pushing through the crowd of men surrounding you.

You whimpered and shook your head, a bead of sweat forming on your forehead. The itch at the back of your throat was so intense that you couldn’t hold yourself back from coughing any longer. You began coughing into your hands while slowly getting out of Diluc’s grasp. You coughed so hard that tears were pooling in your eyes, and your throat and chest hurt each time you coughed. You began to taste something coppery in your mouth, and before you knew it, you were not only coughing up blood, but you began vomiting up blood.

You have never felt so weak before; your legs gave out beneath you. Dottore was quick to catch you before you could collapse into the pile of bloody puke. Dottore carried you back to the bed and placed you on the bed; you were going in and out of consciousness, your eyes glazed over. Baizhu and Tighnari scrambled around the infirmary in search of medication for you to take temporarily before they were able to deduce what was happening to you and your body.

Albedo puts on latex gloves before squatting in front of the bloody vomit, examining the biohazard before touching it with his gloved hand. Albedo lifted his hands up and looked at it closely, his eyebrows furrowing.

“[Y/N] vomited blood; there isn’t any half-digested food in the vomit,” Albedo says, getting up before grabbing a cotton swab and test tubes.

“Do we know what is exactly causing [Y/N] to be in this condition?” Childe asks, sitting at the edge of your bed while holding onto your cold, clammy hands.

Zhongli hums, “Because [Y/N] was forced to be a puppet for two dead archons, their body cannot handle the amount of power the two deceased archons held. Not only did it drain [Y/N]’s life source, but their body was having a hard time healing from the traumatic experience.” Zhongli says, looking over at where you were lying.

“What are you implying?” Pantalone asks, raising his eyebrows at Zhongli.

“[Y/N] is dying, and we do not know whether they will heal from the entire ordeal or if they will ultimately die in the end.” Said Al Haitham, standing next to Zhongli with his arms over his chest. The men around Al Haitham and Zhongli looked at the two in shock and horror. The clinic was silent, but the only thing they could hear were your faint whimpers and weak coughs.

“Is there a way to save them?” Gorou whispers, refusing to take his eyes off of you.

Zhongli shakes his head, “I do not know if there is a cure for such a thing. A dead archon possessing a mortal’s body to use as a puppet is infrequent.”

Scaramouche threw his hands up in the air out of frustration, “Great, so there’s no cure, is what I’m hearing.”

“We can’t lose hope! [Y/N] will be okay! They’ll make it through!” Venti says.

“How can we not lose hope when [Y/N] is bedridden, coughing and vomiting up blood, and how it’s rare for a deceased archon to use a mortal’s body as a vessel!?” Aether asks weakly.

“Believe in [Y/N]. Believe in them that they will make it out alive.” Thoma whispers, kneeling by the foot of your bed while holding onto your other hand.

How does one hold onto the last bit of hope that you will survive? Not only did one deceased archon take over your body, it was two that used you as a vessel, draining your life source and energy for their selfish needs. Is it worth holding onto that last bit of hope when the signs are clear that you wouldn’t make it? All the men could do was stare at your unconscious body, your chest slowly rising and falling.

Note: Whew, I think this is officially my longest Isekai'd!Reader fic and longest request ever! I don't know about you guys, but I didn't really feel the angst. I think it's maybe because I typed it out, but I'm not sure how any of you interpret this fic. One of my closest friend and mod read it for me to see if it's angst, and she said it's definitely angst! I hope you all enjoy this fic! Anyway! For those who are new or returning readers, please keep in mind that I ONLY post on my Tumblr (Genshinluvr) and my AO3 (Aaliah_exo)! Nowhere else except Tumblr and AO3!

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