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#alice really said friendship rights and i love her for that
bernard-the-rabbit · 2 years
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"I couldn’t quite believe how much I seriously loved Aled Last, even if it wasn’t in the ideal way that would make it socially acceptable for us to live together until we die"
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qierxing · 7 months
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A/N: An interpreted continuation of @shiny-jr wonderful fic. (checks calendar) Uhm, happy three month update to this series AND 1k notes on the first part! I would say sorry for the wait, but I really did need it LOL. Anyway, it's not super obvious, but the timeline is a bit all over the place in this part, because I'm jumping back and forth between past and present.
TW/CW: Immolation, violence, implied stalking+actual stalking, obsessive behavior, mild psychological and body horror, toxic relationships, Yuu uses it/its pronouns, we get a little meta in here, the boys are FIGHTINGGG I. II. | Isekai AU | Yan! Heartslabyul x Reader
“Who are you?” said the Caterpillar.
This was not an encouraging opening for a conversation. Alice replied, rather shyly, “I—I hardly know, Sir, just at present—at least I know who I was when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then.”
“What do you mean by that?” said the Caterpillar, sternly. “Explain yourself!”
“I ca’n’t explain myself, I’m afraid, Sir,” said Alice, “because I am not myself, you see.”
— Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Caroll
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vi. Mourning
It is incredibly hard to get Yuu alone.
Whether it be by the forces of fate or just because so many vie for their attention, there is rarely, if ever, any time when someone is able to spend time personally alongside them. The only exception to this rule is Grim, who was practically the player's companion from the beginning.
So when Ace Trappola manages a rare chance to snag some one on one time with Yuu, he guns for it. Course, he had to time it perfectly. 
It was just another night like any other. Ace and Deuce decided to come over to hang out for a casual sleepover as usual. The four of them did initially start out studying, before the textbooks and worksheets were being abandoned in favor of more exciting things, such as the deck of cards that Ace brought with him.
Sending Deuce and Grim off to get snacks through a won bet over a card game was easy as pie.
"Hey Ace?" 
He hums in response, letting Yuu know he's listening. His nimble fingers shuffle the worn cards, flipping through them with practiced ease. Stacking them up quickly, he wonders if he should try to impress Yuu with another card trick to gain their enthralled praise.
"Do you…like…being my friend?"
The question makes him blink and look up in surprise at Yuu. It feels blasphemous to hear such doubt lingering in their words.
"Why? Scared I'm gonna ditch ya?" He teases.
Yuu doesn't respond, only giving a sheepish smile back. 
"I-It's not like I don't like being friends with you." He tries to keep his cool. "I just-"
Yuu's smile doesn't falter. "It's okay, Ace."
He's reminded of his previous girlfriend in middle school. It was more of a fling than a serious thing, but it's something he remembers vividly. Their breakup, after all, was rather dramatic.
"You're too much, Ace. Sometimes you just take it too far." 
What was even her name? Elizabeth? He could barely even remember, but for some reason, he still recalls the intense way her face was twisted in burning resentment. He tried to bury it in the past. He swore he would never fall in love or get into another relationship, preferring friendships over any kind of romantic trysts.
Now that he looks at Yuu, he already knows he's screwed up big time.
Yuu's gaze is no longer meeting his, instead staring into the fireplace that Grim had so generously set up earlier. The crackling blue flames reflect in their irises and in that moment, dread curls inside Ace's stomach. Yuu doesn't seem right.
"Hey…you okay?" He asks hesitantly, placing a hand on their shoulder.
Yuu doesn't move, still staring at the fire intently. He opens his mouth to ask again, but then they speak.
"If I wasn't acting like myself, would you still like me?" 
Another question out of left field. 
"Even if you somehow grow anemones on your head, Yuu's still Yuu, right?" His heart swells in pride at the way their lips quirk at his inside joke. 
"Yeah…" they murmur back. 
"Wanna see somethin' cool?" he says, holding out a card. Yuu tilts their head questioningly.
"It's the ace of hearts. What about it?"
"It's not just the ace of hearts!" Ace puffs out his cheeks. "Don't you know the meaning of this card?"
Yuu shakes their head.
"It means good news for yourself or someone close. Practically a lucky charm!" Ace waggles his eyebrows suggestively. "So how can things go wrong now that you have me?"
Yuu snorts and shoves him playfully. "Yeah, yeah, okay, Mr. Lucky Charm."
But it works. The foggy clouds clear from Yuu's eyes, finally returning them to the familiar luster he's used to. For the rest of the night, there is no hint of hollowness within them. And Ace hopes he will never see that sight again.
-
He should've known something was up since that night.
When Headmaster Crowley personally makes an appearance at their dorm, he should've realized it then. If there was anything that the old raven hated more, it was having to do more work than usual. 
"That person wasn't an imposter." Crowley says, coughing awkwardly into his fist.
The solemn words echo in his head on end. The rest of the Headmaster's words start to tune out for Ace. Automatically, his legs begin to move on their own. The calls of the others chase after him, but he ignores them, racing out of the lounge and towards the mirror portal.
Because if you didn't hurt Yuu-
-then what had he done?
When he first arrived in NRC, he didn't even know that Ramshackle dorm existed. Not until Yuu came to reside there; until he had to beg for shelter from them when he was chained with that damn collar. He knew that they didn't have to take him in. But they did, and maybe that's why Ace couldn't turn his back after that. 
The building before him is no longer the broken down hovel that he remembers back then. He remembers how the roof was almost caving in and wooden beams were always in danger of collapsing. Each knock on the entrance doors would send cascades of dust upon his head. Now, the walls are painted with a fresh coat of paint, the roof has new shingles, and the place actually looks like a house you could safely live in. 
Bang! Bang! Bang!
"Prefect! Are you there?!" He yells, desperation leaking into his voice. "Please!"
Bang! Bang!
He's gotta be out of his damn mind, acting like some crazy person. But he can't help but be blinded by his fear. So he keeps hitting the door with his fists, praying, hoping, for…well that someone would open the door.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
"Yuu!!" He screams, and his voice echoes around him, mocking his helplessness. His fists are becoming numb from slamming the wood so hard, but he can't stop himself.
"Yuu–!"
"Oi! Ace!!!" A rough hand on his shoulder shoves him back and before he could knock the souvnabit-
"Ace, look at me!"
He's stopped by Deuce's fists meeting his in an even match of strength. Like an illusion broken, Ace stills and yanks his hands back.
There's only heavy breathing in between them for a long while. 
"...they're not here." Ace snaps to look at Deuce, who only closes his eyes in a painful grimace.
"What do you mean, 'not here'?" Ace asks.
Deuce doesn't say anything for a beat.
"What do you mean they're–"
"They're in the infirmary." Deuce's words flow out in a breathless rush. "The Headmaster said that after you ran."
Fuck, he just acted like an idiot then. No wonder no one was responding to his absolute earth shattering door banging and yelling. Then the meaning of Deuce's words begin to sink in. Oh Seven, no–
He turns and before he could even step in the direction of the main building, his arm is yanked back.
He snarls at Deuce. "Let me go! I have to see the prefect!"
"Housewarden is calling you back." Deuce forces out through gritted teeth and closed eyes. "The Headmaster said that…they don't want to see anyone."
And like a fire put out, Ace's anger chokes to flickering embers.
He lets Deuce guide him back, all the way from the Ramshackle dorm, to the mirror portal, and then back to Heartslabyul's lounge where the other three are grimly awaiting them.
Ace half expects to be yelled at once he passes the threshold. Or get some kind of lecture on how he should have better manners than to just run off like that. It would've been just like his housewarden to only care about weird, arbitrary rules when there were other arguably more important matters.
But his housewarden sits silently on his gilded velvet throne with glassy eyes. There's no anger burning behind them, and the freshmen are terrified to see their once proud and fearsome queen reduced to this husk. He almost would rather him back to the state where he was barking out orders for them. The silence in the lounge is deafening.
Ace swears they must be all thinking the same thing.
Please let this be a bad dream.
-
He tried calling you. Texting you. Hell, he even tried messaging you on Magicam! Magicam, of all things! 
Anxiety claws at his heart with each unread message and dial voice tone greeting. He has so much to say, to ask for-
Deuce wasn't faring well on his side either. He had also tried calling and texting you, to no avail. Grim, that traitor, hadn't come back to visit Heartslabyul at all since the incident. Never mind the fact he had only himself to blame for that—he thought at the very least the cat direbeast would have some sense of pity for their friendship and throw them a bone. 
Ace tried two more times to meet you. 
First, during your infirmary stay, when you were still unconscious.
The second time was when you returned to Ramshackle dorm with Grim.
Maybe the Seven were punishing him for his hubris. Or he supposes this is just karma. Because both times, he fails spectacularly at the front door of Heartslabyul. Because of this, he's the reason why Riddle had put them all on house arrest (with the exception of academic reasons, of course).
It's a declaration that would've been met with mutiny from all of them, if it weren't for the fact that even Headmaster Crowley had explicitly forbade anyone from showing up on Ramshackle's doorstep or trying to meet you. So he understands. Really! He does. He's seen how Riddle holes up in his room, muttering to himself while carrying out boxes upon boxes of crumpled paper. When he manages to snag a stray paper that flutters out on garbage day, Ace realizes that Riddle is also just as frenzied trying to reach out to you. Even if he is going about it in an old fashioned way.
He'll chip in to help. If his housewarden is left to his own devices, they’ll all be fossils by the time he sends what he deems a satisfactory letter. 
And the faster they do this, the faster they have a chance of reaching you.
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vii. Embalming
The most horrifying thing is that it doesn't seem to care about dying.
That cursed pile of ceramic shards had disappeared—no, pieced itself back together—and once again, it became the smiling face of Yuu, the being they all knew and used to adore.
Riddle Rosehearts immediately smashed it to pieces again under the weight of his magic.
No one had tried to stop their housewarden. Not even the faceless mobs. Even if they were all alarmed at the erratic behavior of their housewarden, they could not deny the fear of seeing something dead come back alive. With not so much as a dent or wound in them, for that matter.
The third time it happened, Riddle ordered for the remains to be dumped into the school’s incinerator at the highest heat level. Surely, that would be enough. 
He watched as the incinerator roared and shuddered, shaking as if the pits of hell had opened. After a few agonizing minutes, the rumbling stops, and before he can even breathe a sigh of relief, the iron hatches creak open, and out strolls Yuu, perfectly fine and pieced together again.
It's magic. Or some kind of century old curse. Of course it is. After all, it was at a higher power than even Draconia's comprehension. Why he didn't consider the possibility beforehand is something he berates himself now. 
What might be the most damning thing is that it has no fear or suspicion in its face; even after the multiple times it’s been maimed and torn apart. Not like you, who immediately closed themselves off at being hurt so thoroughly. 
The irony isn't lost on him. The temptation of letting the puppet take its place back in favor of just bringing everything back to how it was is something Riddle could not deny. But now that he's actually met you, Yuu just seems more of a shadow of what he remembers during your interactions together.
It has your face. It acts like you.
But it's not you.
When Ace asks after the commotion at the Unbirthday party on how he was able to figure out that it wasn’t [First], he had to take a moment to gather his thoughts. Ace’s face changes into something of disbelief when Riddle merely replies with: “[First] takes their tea with two sugars and a dash of milk.”
“You were so sure only because of that?”
He doesn’t want to think what Ace’s face would look like if he had explained his whole list of reasons how he realized that the puppet wasn’t you. How he soaked up as much as he could when you came over for the tea party. Your expressions, your little habits, the way you fidget…it was all filed away in Riddle's head and later, his private notebook.
But that doesn’t matter now. Now, there’s an even bigger problem than the puppet resurrecting itself.
Grim is missing again.
This alone should've been more worrying than anything for Yuu, but it merely shrugs and says it’s not sure where he scampered off to. He's more than suspicious, of course, but there is no proof, which is infuriating already.
But without Grim, they are missing the key to finding [First]. 
The others raise hell once they hear the news Riddle reports at the weekly housewarden meeting. A new wave of tension washes over NRC and with it, an unprecedented deep disdain for the puppet. It returns back to classes unannounced, making Ace and Deuce rant to him about how weird it is that it’s trying so hard to act like nothing had happened. It attends school events with their camera, drumming up conversations like normal between all of them; despite the fact it gets ignorance or violence in response (depending on the person it greets).
But none of them are really sure on how to interact with Yuu.
The nicer ones, like Trey or Deuce, entertain Yuu with frigidly civil responses, in hopes of boring the puppet and making it flit away to another victim. Meanwhile, he and Ace have finally come together on an agreed opinion: that they would rather die before letting the puppet even think it could take [First]’s place.
“Go away.”
Yuu merely smiles in response to Riddle’s annoyed voice. The puppet leisurely lounges in the chair across the table from him. The school library is vast but empty, his authoritative voice echoing down the long halls. Several floating books flit past above their heads and the chandeliers above flicker with bright candlelight.
“I just wanted to keep you company.” Riddle purses his mouth in disgust. It’s invasive, it’s gross, and most of all it feels wrong to hear those words coming from Yuu. 
“I didn’t ask for your company,” he replies coldly. “Shouldn’t you know that it’s bad manners to bother someone who wants to be left alone?”
“I don’t think you like being left alone, Riddle.” He flinches at the way Yuu’s eyes bore into him. “Well, then again, you sure like to pretend you’re fine, don’t you?”
His hand tightens around the textbook he’s reading about cursed dolls. There would be no point if he brought out his magical pen and reduced it to rubble. But he is tempted, if only to get some peace and quiet for just a few minutes.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Riddle says.
“Hmm…” Yuu hums into its hand, “...then I suppose I will just let you be. What a shame, I had something entertaining to tell.”
“What? What do you mean?” 
Yuu giggles and waves him off. “No, no! You said you didn’t want my company now. Why should I tell you anything?”
He resists the urge to incinerate the book in his hands. “Fine! I would like your company. What is this ‘entertaining’ thing you want to tell me so badly?”
“Hmm…how insincere,” Yuu tilts its head coyly with a smile more akin to a smirk. “But I guess that’s the most I can get.”
“Since you’ve all been driving yourselves crazy, [First] is safe.” The floor feels like it’s been yanked underneath him. The puppet is smiling still, as if it’s all some big joke rather than the revelation it delivered. He can hear his blood roaring through his ears.
“You…” Riddle snarls, face heating into a bright red rage. “What did you do to them?”
It bursts into laughter at his face. 
“Why, I only granted their wish!”
Its laughter is cut short by the sound of ceramic being crushed, and Riddle is left shakily breathing at the pile of shards that used to be Yuu. The puppet’s words churn over and over in his head.
What did you wish for? 
-
It is currently 3:20 on a Wednesday afternoon. 
In his planner, the bullet point neatly penned on the schedule shows ‘Studying for History Test’ in bold blue ink for the time slot. ‘History of the Queendom of Roses’ is laid open on his desk, to the chapter about the local mythos of the area, just as he intended. His notes from lecture are next to it, with several of his stationary needed to jot down annotations. 
And yet, Riddle has yet to touch any of these items or actually adhere to his daily schedule—he’s too distracted by what he should do in order to reach the player.
Riddle's already embarrassed enough, resorting to handwritten letters with the best calligraphy he can muster. He's sent only a couple that passed his satisfaction, and they have all been met with judgemental silence. He’s hunched over another crumpled letter near ripping his hair out when someone knocks on his bedroom door. He quickly shoves the envelope under some textbooks out of frantic instinct.
“Come in.”
A familiar bob of red orange hair pops out behind his door, and Riddle raises an eyebrow at the underclassman who enters.
“Ace? What is it?” Normally, Ace would never be in his room if he could help it. If he was in Riddle’s room, it most likely meant he was either being scolded or punished. And Ace’s eyes are shifting side to side, as if he was trying to sneak his way in. 
“Out with it, Ace.” He’s not in the mood for the underclassman’s shenanigans.
“Housewarden, you’re writing letters to the prefect, aren’t ya?” The question completely takes him off-guard sputtering.
“W-What does t-that have to do with you?” He tries to maintain his composure, but Ace is already giving him a smug smirk for the one up on him. Of all people, it had to be him finding out. 
"I had an idea, Housewarden. Why don't we send them something with the letter?" Riddle blinks in surprise.
“...How smart of you for once, Ace.” It was so simple, yet he marvels at the idea's brilliance. Perhaps there was merit in trying this proposal.
“Hey! What the hell does that mean?!” His underclassman snaps back in a huff. “Whatever, point being, maybe we should switch it up instead of letters all the time.”
He crosses his arms, “And what do you suggest? There’s not much we can really send that hasn't been sent already by other dorms.”
Ace winces. Clearly he didn’t think about the other dorms with more affluent people; people who had more than enough thaumarks and prestige to spend it to appeal to you. Riddle can't blame him either: although he is at the top of the school and his parents are well known mages, it's not like any of that could help him here. All of them, in a sense, were stuck in that situation. 
For once, he starts to resent not having more.
"Ugh, well…maybe it doesn't need to be so fancy, you know?" Ace rubs his neck, face scrunched in frustration. "Like…uh…you know-flowers! People send flowers all the time, yeah?"
This is true. And for Queendom of Roses’ residents, it has become custom to send bouquets with subtle messages left in petals and stems. Although he is a bit loath to admit that he isn’t as well versed in the language of flowers compared to hedgehogs.
"And what do you recommend, Ace?" He asks. "What would be the best flower to send to the prefect in our circumstance?"
"We got all these roses, why not send them that?" Ace responds, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. Riddle coughs in annoyance. 
"Why not just procure some from Sam's shop? Today is Wednesday. Do you not remember rule 228?" He chides. Ace groans, rolling his eyes. 
"Not the weird rules again…"
"Ace."
"Yeeesss Housewarden…" The card soldier mock salutes with a deadpan expression. "I'll see if we can get some flowers at Sam's."
"You better, or else it's–" 
"-off with my head, I got it, I got it." Riddle seethes as Ace cuts him off and dashes out of his room before he could get another word in. So troublesome…
Still, there's nothing to do except wait for his card soldier to report back. He turns back to his desk, bringing out the crumpled letter from its hiding place. Running a hand over the crumpled pages, he attempts to pick up his pen again, but fails as his thoughts begin to wander. 
Riddle only manages to pen a couple legible sentences when his door slams open, banging against the wall. He almost falls out of his chair in shock from the loud noise. How was Ace back so quickly?
"Have you not heard of knocking?!" He scowls, turning around to see Ace panting and sweating as if he had run a marathon.
"Never mind that, Housewarden, I saw them!" Ace shouts. 
“What are you jabbering…” Riddle trails off in realization. “You better not be horsing around, Ace.”
“Do you think I would lie to you about this?” Ace retorts frantically. “I saw them at Sam’s shop working the cashier!”
For a moment, his mind races with this information. If you were working at Sam’s shop, it would explain why you weren’t showing up to classes, let alone in the hallways or rooms of NRC. It’s a clever ruse—classes may be over during this time of day, but nearly all of them were participating in mandatory club activities or study labs. No wonder no one else has caught on to this. Riddle rubs his chin in thought, settling back in his chair.
“What are you going to do now, Housewarden Riddle?” Ace asks hesitantly. His eyes are filled with some kind of anticipation and hope, no doubt wondering if he could get some leeway in his own agenda. Normally, he would go right away as there was no need to hesitate about these kinds of things.
But. Crowley’s stern announcement comes back to his mind and guilt starts to creep in. 
“First, we’ll go with your idea, Ace.” He responds. “The ban hasn’t been lifted, after all.” Ace opens his mouth to protest, but he holds a hand up to interrupt him.
“But if that doesn’t work, then I’m sure even Crowley can’t say anything about coincidences.”
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viii. Calling Hours
“I’m not joking around, you two.” 
There’s very few times that the vice housewarden of Heartslabyul gets truly mad. His patience seems boundless, honed by years of taking care of younger siblings at home and then dealing with rowdy underclassmen in NRC. But even his saint-like patience could only stretch so far.  
“I told you, we didn’t do it!” Ace scowls with furrowed eyebrows and crossed arms. Meanwhile, Deuce is silent by his side, face twisted with conflicting emotions. “You don’t even have proof! You just singled us out just because!”
“Who else was around the kitchen when I left it?” Trey asks, voice starting to rise in anger. “Did you think I wouldn’t notice you two lurking around before?”
The two freshmen began to speak out, voices rambling over each other and cascading into a loud shouting match that was barely intelligible.
“We just wanted to see if we could get something from the fridge, how were we supposed to know someone would-”
“Me and Ace just wanted to bring something along when we deliver the Housewarden’s invitation to-”
"You dumbass, don't just say that out loud-!"
It’s at this moment that Cater Diamond strolls in, takes one look at the mess of the situation and does a 180 back round to the door. But it’s too late, because the interruption is just enough for Ace to sink his hooks into him.
“Cater-senpai, you believe us, right?” Ace shouts after the orange head, making him flinch in place. “You saw us get the order from Housewarden Riddle!”
Cater turns around slowly like a door on rusty hinges, with an expression that screams of not wanting to be involved. "Oh Acey! Uhm, you mean the letter Riddle gave you two-"
"Yes!" Deuce interrupts in earnest, already trying to barrel his way to proving his innocence. "Housewarden Riddle entrusted us to deliver the tea party invitation ourselves personally." 
Cater turns to Trey, who is rubbing the bridge of his nose, eyes closed with a tiredness that seems comically reminiscent of an old man. "Well, I'm not sure what this is all about, Trey, but maybe you should cut 'em some slack and let it go."
The other senior nods in reluctant agreement and the two freshmen all but nearly trample over each other trying to run from the tension filled room. But they're stopped in their tracks when Trey calls out again.
"Wait, you two." The duo slowly looks back with cautious eyes.
"You wanted to bring something to the prefect, didn't you?" Trey tilts his head to one of the many strange topsy turvey cabinets in the kitchen. "I have some leftover cookies that I made yesterday. Take them. I'm sorry for accusing you guys like that."
Ace and Deuce exchange confused glances, and although Ace looks away in denial, Deuce nods in gratitude. They leave the kitchen just as chaotically, this time with the aroma of lavender following them.
A brief silence follows their absence, while Cater raises an eyebrow at Trey.
"Sooo…care to spill the tea?"
"Don't even start." Trey groans.
Cater seats himself on one of the stools near the counter, waiting. Trey busies himself with cleaning the stoves and counter, trying not to meet Cater's eyes. Silence falls, but it's with none of the comfort that Cater is familiar with. Giving up, he turns to his phone, refreshing his Magicam dash mindlessly. This continues for a good while until finally—
A low sigh, then– "Somebody took my candied violets."
Cater looks up from his phone. Another beat passes, and he realizes it's not a passing statement. 
"It's not like you to get this bent out of shape over your ingredients going MIA." Cater shifts his face onto the elbow meeting pristine marble while shoving his phone away. "You sure that one of the froshes didn't just end up taking them thinking they were for everyone?"
Trey lets out a rough guffaw. "You know better than I do that the others don't touch our stuff."
Cater taps his fingers on the polished white granite, hands already itching to grab his phone and check for updates, but he restrains himself. "That's…mostly true."
"That can only mean one of you guys has taken it." The hairs on Cater's neck raise at Trey's tone.
"Hey now," Cater grins, raising his hands in mock surrender, "you heard it from those two. I was with Riddle when he gave them that invitation."
"I know." Cater's fingers twitch as Trey carelessly tossed aside the rag used to clean the counter into a bucket. The soggy fabric makes a hollow sound against the wood, echoing rather loudly in contrast. "But Riddle would never do such a thing either."
Cater resists the urge to roll his eyes. It's true that their cute housewarden would hardly dare to stoop to thievery, but Trey's blind faith in him can be annoying at times. After all, didn't their little teapot tyrant threaten to kill the prefect at one point?
He supposes that was his fault, though.
"Then it's back to square one." Cater shrugs. "Besides, what were you even planning to do with them if you weren't gonna eat it?"
The baker runs a hand through his mussed forest green hair and frowns. "I was going to bake a cake with them as a peace offering to the prefect."
Cater's mouth forms an 'o' shape in realization. "That's pretty big brain."
"Yeah, but look how that turned out."
"It's fine~you were able to at least send cookies this time round." Cater finally cracks, digging into his pocket for the familiar grooves of his phone case. "All's well that ends well, right?"
Trey doesn't respond and Cater is too engrossed in his phone to look up to see his expression. He slides off the stool naturally, tapping through recent posts and comments, eyes laser focused on recent posts on his dash. 
"Cater." 
There it is. It's the most recent story reel by Ace(according to the time stamp, about two minutes ago). It's an inconspicuous black out picture with several cute teapot and teacup stickers decorating the screen. The banner message is short and sweet: 'Dorm tea party bout to get real this month 🤔😶'
"Cater." Cater's attention snaps back and towards his friend, who gazes at him with dark eyes.
"Please don't lie to me next time."
With that, Cater watches as his long time friend finally leaves the kitchen. 
Thank the Seven he did. He might have been a decent actor, but Trey has been with him through thick and thin, and it's given him the annoying ability to see through his tells.
Really now. Trey knows that he hates sweets. Shouldn't that be enough of an alibi?
It's not fair that Trey already has everything to set him up for a good relationship with you. Even if they're all set back by their violent reaction to you arriving in this world, he's sure it would only take a couple tries with Trey offering genuine heartfelt food to get to you.
It's just not fair. 
Isn't he fun to hang out with? He consistently gets compliments online for his suave looks and easy personality. So why couldn't he compare to-
He shakes his head. There's no point in overthinking it now. Cay Cay #3 had easily taken the cutely decorated jar of violets and discarded it in the dorm dumpster. Like candy from a baby.
He knows it's petty. But for once, he feels much better, knowing that he upset Trey's original plans to ensnare you.
Now, he once again checks Ace's story reel and screenshots it, while quickly pulling up the search bar. He just needs to level the playing field.
-
There can only be one fake bitch in this house and Cater has had enough of the competition.
“I wasn’t aware that you were going to visit me, Cater.” 
The puppet tilts its head with a warm smile, but there’s a frosty undercurrent to the greeting. It’s clear that he’s not welcome, if the way it’s blocking the doorway of Ramshackle has anything to say.
“Yeah, I ended up losing something here. You mind if I look for it, Yuu-chan?” Cater asks innocently. “Promise it won’t take too long.”
“Hm, sure. But I don’t think you’ll find what you’re looking for.” Yuu's grin is sharp as a razor blade. It knows what he’s here for and it’s definitely taunting him. That little–
“Well, it doesn’t hurt to look~” He responds back airily. His fist curls around his phone in his pocket tightly. The puppet shrugs and walks off, leaving him standing in the doorway.
It’s been a while since he’s personally been at Ramshackle dorm. Cater remembers how Ace complained about the house being a real fixer upper, but then again, he doesn’t remember much of that, since Yuu always spent most of the time at Heartslabyul dorm. The renovations certainly made it much more pleasing to the eye and more importantly, livable by HOA standards.
There’s nothing to write home about the living room. The coffee table is bare and there’s no wrinkles in the sofa cushions at all. It’s a little eerie—as if no one even lived in the house in the first place. The only sign of living was perhaps the fact it is clean of dust or dirt. 
Nothing in the kitchen either. He gives a wayward glance to the second floor, searching for any signs of movement. Couldn’t hurt to be thorough. 
Rows of tall doors pass by as Cater opens each one of them. A storage closet, a spare room, an electric cabinet, another storage area–it all blurs by after the fourth door. There really is nothing, as if the whole house has been wiped of any trace of you. He's about to toss in the towel when an old, dusty memory crops up. His little freshman, Ace. Cater swears he had been making fun of Yuu for seeing strange things at night. Something about a mouse?
Right, their room! Why didn't he think of looking there?  
His feet take him rapidly from memory to the door that was the third from last in the hallway in the east wing. He manages to wrench the door open to see a regular bedroom, bed sheets barely stirred. Before he can even put one foot in, a throat clears behind him. 
"It's rather rude to go into other people's bedrooms, don't you think?"
You got to be kidding me. Cater turns around with the fakest smile plastered across his face. Yuu looks unamused, tapping its foot impatiently against the wooden floorboards. 
"Just wanted to make sure, y'know?" Cater replies. Yuu gives a tight smile back. It goes around him and shuts the door with a hard thunk.
"Ever heard about how curiosity killed the cat?" 
Cater shakes his head in surrender, "I guess I need to look elsewhere for my lost item."
The entrance doors slam shut behind him hard enough to startle several birds out the dead trees in the yard. Cater doesn't bother giving a look back as he strides out of the yard and past the gated fence surrounding the property. That glimpse was enough and much more. Cater smirks to himself, taking his phone out and sending a quick text message to the group chat. Yes, curiosity may have killed the poor kitty cat…
But satisfaction brought it back.
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viiii. Eulogy
It might surprise people to know that Trey Clover's first real friend is Che'nya Pinker.
That's not to say that Trey had trouble getting along with others as a kid, oh no. Everyone in his neighborhood agreed that he was a very sweet boy, who looked out for others around him. When he wasn’t taking care of his baby sister, he would be asked by other parents around the block to look after their own children, whether that be playing soccer games with the more energetic kids or patty cakes with the quiet ones. So it isn’t a stretch to say that he’s friends with nearly everyone. But Che’nya was a special case.
Their first meeting is still burned into Trey’s memory.
“You see it too, don’cha?” The boy had greeted him while swinging upside down on a low hanging tree branch. Trey had half a mind to scold him for the dangerous action before he actually looked at him. 
The first thing that takes Trey off guard is that he has eyes. They’re a shiny yellow, just a shade lighter than his. His pupils are long and thin, not round like his at all. He supposes it must be like a cat’s pupils—for he’s never seen anything like it. Then it’s his unique colorful hair, streaks of light pink intermingling with dark purple, making a strange striped pattern across the chopped uneven hair. Trey faintly recalls a certain cat from their local legends, whose fur boasted those very same colors. 
“...What are you talking about?” Trey eyes him warily. The cat boy gives a cheeky grin. He vanishes and then reappears in front of him, albeit with missing arms.
“The people around us who wear the faces of strangers.” Trey’s skin gets goosebumps at the way the boy observes him. He is not looking through Trey, but at him. Their eyes are directly making contact. “But you’re different. You have the face of a friend.”
“And what do you mean by that?” Trey furrows his eyebrows. The boy's grin stretches wider in response. (His teeth were rather blunter than expected, but his canines were pointed.)
“You’re strange. I’m stranger. Together, we can both be strange,” the cat boy chirps back lightheartedly. “The name’s Artemiy Artemiyevich Pinker. But you can just call me Che’nya.”
Something in his mind had clicked then. It’s hard to explain the feeling–just that it felt like a puzzle piece put into place. He hadn’t known it then, but at that point, the hands of fate had moved. 
Whatever the case may be, Trey was grateful to have Che’nya. Because now he knows that he isn’t crazy; not when he couldn’t see his parent’s faces nor his baby sister’s or even his other friends'. Che’nya too, only shrugs his shoulders when Trey asks him about his grandfather.
“The old man? Yeah, they say I have his eyes, but I wouldn’t know.” The statement is so casually delivered that Trey can hardly believe he’s talking about his only living relative and guardian. “His face does not mirror mine in my mind.”
Staring down at you, shivering with cold and hunger, he feels something churn in him again, just like that fateful day. 
He has his orders from Riddle: bring in the imposter alive. Trey isn’t a violent sort and nor does he enjoy boasting his strength over others like a sadist. And he cannot deny the feeling of cold rage that day when Yuu shuts down, fear inundating him that he may never, ever, get an explanation for the world he was born in. Why he and Che’nya were special, why he had to witness Riddle suffer under his mother–what was it all for?
Your face. There is no blank stretched skin—he can see your wide open eyes, bloodshot and fixated on him. Your mouth too, shaped in a pained grimace, lips bruised and bloodied from previous skirmishes. Surely, surely, there must be a reason why you were here. Why you bear the same face as Yuu. You hold all the answers, if you would just cooperate.
“Hey, I’m not gonna hurt you,” Trey tries reaching out, but you scurry back into the hedges, squinted eyes wary and untrusting. You remind him of a frightened hedgehog, prickly spines bristled and body curled in to protect yourself. “I just wanna talk.”
“Go away, please,” the imposter quietly pleads. “Just pretend you never saw me! I swear I didn’t even know how I got here…”
Trey swallows hard. 
“Just come quietly. Please.” He is the one begging now. “It’ll be easier for all of us.”
“For who?” The imposter barks a sharp laugh. Trey doesn't miss the way they wince in pain from their wounds. “For me? Or for you?”
He doesn’t have an answer. The sound of running footsteps has him turning, and when he looks back, you’re already gone. The only traces that you were there at all were faint splotches of red blood and crushed grass.
Trey wonders if this, too, was meant to be fate.
Trey’s been lovingly dubbed as someone reliable. Some consider him to be an older brother figure due to his nagging and supportive care. It's ingrained in him at this point from the years he’s spent playing babysitter. Trey knows the students around him are not his younger siblings who need constant watching (although their actions say otherwise).
But he worries.
Just a bit. Trey knows better than anyone that you can take care of yourself just fine. He's seen how you carry yourself within those hedges. 
It's just that, he doesn't know if you're okay right now. How could he know? You've been silent even in the face of Riddle's unceasing letters. So of course he's just a bit unsure if you're actually okay, or if you don't trust them enough to say so.
Trey finds himself more frustrated with the ban they're under. Not because of the inability to see you, although that is part of it. No, it's because Riddle has managed to skirt around that rule to desperately grab onto you, and that was just enough to wear you down. 
He thinks if he was bold enough, he could've tried.
As if it wasn't enough, even Ace and Deuce find their own way to get to you, snatching up the chance to deliver the monthly tea party invitation. It takes everything in Trey to clench his teeth and let go—even when Cater ruins his plans. He can't get mad here because it won't get him any closer to you. He has to be the bigger person.
If there is one thing Trey knows about Cater, it's that he absolutely hates getting sweaty or dirty. If Cater wasn’t trying to get out of running those P.E laps, he would absolutely be shirking any extra work assigned. So he's more than suspicious when Cater bounces up to him with a grin saying he could help cover Trey's science club duty of watering plants. 
Trey likes to think he can tell when Cater’s lying. His close friend's happy go lucky demeanor often throws off others, but he’s been with him long enough to pick out his subtle tells. His eyebrow twitches when he’s particularly anxious and the corner of his mouth tends to perk up if he’s feeling particularly daring or desperate. Trey figures this must be something that even he can’t trust Trey with, if he’s going out of his way to take on extra work.
So Trey considers this repayment for letting him take his violets. He watches as Cater dashes off in labwear, waiting for a minute, before following after him. His duty was in the tropical zone of the botanical garden, so he has no worries even if he does lose him. 
He nearly does a double take when he sees you walking in the courtyard hallways by yourself. And before Trey could rethink his actions, he follows behind you, eyes not leaving your form for a minute. 
You look like you haven't slept well. There's dark circles under your eyes. He hopes you're brushing your teeth. There’s no signs of bandages or wounds that he remembers you in, which he supposes is one relief. Even if he so desperately wishes to cook you a proper meal—you look like you could fall over at any minute.
The realization your path is leading to the botanical garden comes just as Trey catches sight of the glass dome. He wants to rush in after you, but he stops himself just as the door swings close behind your form.
Cater is in there. It all makes sense now. Trey has to give it to him—Cater really does know every little happening in the school. But Trey knows him well too—and if he had to guess, even if Cater manages to talk to you, it won’t end pretty. His inability to be genuine will definitely only set you on edge and less likely to reciprocate. 
The waiting game he plays is nothing compared to the silence he had to endure before. Trey doesn’t have to look to know that you’re the one slamming open the doors to the botanical gardens, labwear dirtied and face twisted in a frustrated anger. He watches as you enter Professor Crewel’s office again and after some time, pop back out in completely different clothes. 
His chest tightens in longing as he continues to follow after (more from an instinctual drive now, rather than deliberate), trying to keep you in sight within the stone pillars. He wants to call out after you so badly and ask you what’s the matter, if you need help with anything. If there was anything he could do to make you forgive him for watching you bleed out on dewy grass. The sun is about to set, warm golden rays flickering between pillars and casting long shadows. Trey’s so enamored with following after you that he flinches back when the sun directly shines into his eyes, blinding him momentarily. 
He barely manages to get a hold of himself. By the time his eyes blink away the blurry blots, he realizes you’re looking back at him. His breath stops. Your eyes are wide and frightened as they are that day, and his heart drops to his stomach. Both of you don’t move, merely staring at each other. 
You finally break the connection, turning around and quickly walking away. Trey gasps, remembering to breathe, lungs screaming for air. 
What was that?
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x. Entombment
It's a nice sunny afternoon in the Heartslabyul domain. There weren't any track club activities nor dreaded remedial lessons. If anything, this free time would have been perfect for a nap. He hadn’t been up to any large shenanigans like this since the whole fiasco of [First] and Yuu. 
“I don’t think this is a good idea.” 
Ace scoffs, rolling his eyes. “You got a better one, loosey Deucy? If we don’t do this now, then all of us are stuck until Housewarden grows a pair of balls.” 
Deuce Spade bites his lips. “I just think there might be a better way around this.”
“Yeah? And the sky is blue. Keep going, we don't have much time." Ace cranes his neck to the side of the bush, eyes warily looking out to make sure the coast is clear. 
Deuce grumbles but continues plucking, some roses already tucked within his arms. They chose a bush the furthest away from the dorm, in a hidden corner where no arched windows could overlook them. It was necessary, because today was Wednesday, and the Housewarden would have their heads for plucking his beloved roses out of all the flora.
His fingers are bleeding already, finger pads torn from repetitive tugging on the thorns and stems. They couldn’t afford taking any of the gardening tools, lest they be questioned for what they were doing with them. Still, even he had his limits.  
“Why is it that you aren’t helping at all?” Deuce snipes at Ace, who scowls back. 
“You want to be caught by someone, genius?” Ace replies snarkily. “Someone has to keep look out.”
“Doesn’t explain why I have to do all the work.” 
Ace rolls his eyes, deigning not to bother engaging in another futile argument that would lead to nowhere. Deuce is about to cut off a particularly stubborn rose when Ace pipes up again.
“...Did they ever respond to your texts?” Deuce only deflates in response. Ace’s mouth slants crookedly in an annoyed grimace. The two of them know full well what the answer to that was.
“Damn that cat…” Ace mutters bitterly under his breath. Deuce doesn’t say anything. He too, is finding it hard to not feel petty towards Grim right now. Weren’t they friends? He could’ve afforded to help them out somehow. But it’s no use. Their texts went unanswered. Headmaster had banned them from stepping foot onto Ramshackle grounds. It’s like you had closed everything off from them.
It’s why he doesn’t protest this plan, as reckless as it is. He’s not any better than Ace—he needs to see you. He and Ace were your closest friends, your first friends! He loved you. That had to mean something. If it didn’t, then…
“I think this is enough.” Deuce adjusts the messy bouquet in his hands, attempting to hold them without crushing the delicate petals. Ace looks over and nods in approval. He takes out crimson ribbons and a silk handkerchief and begins tying it around the stems in a very artful way that has Deuce’s eyebrows raising.
“Where did you get that?” Ace smirks in response at the interrogative question.
“Don’t worry about it.” Ace snatches the bouquet from his hands and slips in an envelope with the housewarden’s seal. Deuce silences the questions on the tip of his tongue. For whatever Ace has planned, he’s rather not know anything more troublesome than necesscary. 
What he failed to account for was getting caught. Housewarden Riddle was beyond furious for what they did. It was only by Trey and Cater's gentle reminders that what they did was for all of them, that he only calmed down.
Deuce supposes three days with the collar is better than a week. Even if it is a heavy thing that weighs on his very soul.
He only hopes that you don't notice the thorns they forgot to trim.
It’s a given that although Trey is the right hand of Heartslabyul, Cater is considered the left hand of Housewarden Riddle. It’s been that way since Deuce himself enrolled in NRC, and possibly even further back. He hadn’t understood it quite then, but after some time, he realized something that he should’ve realized a long time ago. 
To never get on Cater’s bad side.
There are events where the five of them gather outside of Yuu’s influence. Administrative meetings, monthly tea parties, and the occasional casual hang out. When you’re aware of how much of your life is affected from being not like the others, it’s common to side with those who are like you. 
Cater had called the meeting this time. It was a bit out of the blue, at least for him and Ace. It’s only when they’re all gathered around the playing table in the lounge, not another soul in sight, when Deuce realizes Cater has that gleam in his eye. One that screams that he got a viral lead on a hot topic. His upperclassman must have been investigating.
"Remember how mirrors are considered to be portals?"
Deuce's neck prickles.
"Your point, Cater?" Their housewarden is impatient, not aware of what the question poses. His arms are crossed with his eyebrows furrowed in a frustrated glare. Deuce realizes that he must have been the one to send out Cater.
"There's a mirror in the prefect's bedroom." Deuce blurts out, and Riddle’s steely eyes snap over in surprise. Cater nods in affirmation.
"Yeah. I only managed a glimpse, but Yuu covered their mirror." Cater says. 
“Hold on, you went into the prefect’s bedroom? Scratch that, to Ramshackle?” Ace asks. “Why are we just getting this now?”
“Because I just came back Acey,” Cater flicks his forehead, causing Ace to exclaim in pain. Trey smiles faintly at the action. “Also Riddle told me to keep it confidential—you two would have ran straight out if we had told you.” 
Deuce sheepishly rubs his neck at Cater’s pointed sentence. Riddle rubs his chin in thoughtfulness, eyebrows still furrowed. 
“But there isn’t anything magical about that mirror, is there?” Riddle asks, skepticism coating his tone. “The puppet could have simply covered that mirror out of an odd preference.”
“Acey, didn’t you mention that Yuu always mentioned seeing things in that mirror?” Cater responds, deflecting the question upon his underclassmen. Ace straightens as he and Deuce both exchange a glance.
“Yeah…something about a mouse in their mirror,” Ace answers slowly, face scrunched in an effort to recall memories. “I always thought it was just crazy dreams but…”
“Yuu was always insisting about it,” Deuce chimes in. “Said the mouse speaks to them and everything—that there was another world it was in.”
Trey and Cater share a furtive glance together before looking at Riddle. Their housewarden seems to be taking in the new information, closing his eyes in thought. For a while, no one dares to speak. 
“What do you think, Riddle?” Trey finally breaks the heavy silence, and Deuce breathlessly releases a sigh. Leave it to Trey to speak for all of them.
“If the mirror in the bedroom is magical, then that changes things.” Riddle pronounces with conviction. “If that mirror potentially holds a dimension, then that would be the perfect place to trap someone.”
“Cater.” The orange head straightens to attention at the stern command. “Find a way to get the puppet out of the dorm for a while. We’ll need to look into this ourselves.”
Cater smirks and a chill runs down Deuce’s spine. While Cater still has an easy going look, his jade green eyes have darkened with a sadistic gleam. 
“Roger that, housewarden!” His upperclassman chirps, already taking out his phone. 
Riddle is already barking orders that each of them are to take up within this mission of theirs. But Deuce nearly misses his task, eyes stuck on Cater’s face as he scrolls his phone.
He catches a glimpse of a photo before it’s quickly clicked away. Deuce snaps back to Riddle just in time for Cater to shoot him a wary glare, checking to make sure no one else was looking. 
Deuce is very glad he is working together with Cater.
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ecoamerica · 20 days
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milfsloverblog · 9 months
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Green-Eyed Monster (NSFW)
Jane Murdstone x fem!reader
A/N: This is a request that I got a long while ago, something about Jane and some drama/smut. I apologise to whoever sent the request, I can’t find it in my inbox anymore. I started writing this fic so long ago, all the wips in my notes cheered when I typed in the last word. As always, Jane is the reddest redflag. Enjoy!<3
AO3 link in title
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You loved Alice, you loved the way she always found a way to make you laugh. When she joined the staff at the Murdstone mansion, you immediately knew you two would be good friends.
Oh yes, you loved Alice. But not like you loved your Lady. Not like you loved Jane.
Loving Jane was like sitting in the sun after a long day of hard work. It warmed your heart and soul, making you feel incredibly alive.
Jane, on the other hand, had thought of a thousand ways to get rid of Alice. Going from simply firing her and making sure she’d never find work again all the way to wrapping her strong hands around the maid’s frail neck and squeezing until it snapped.
She would never, of course. But she was thinking about it. The thought of Alice being overly friendly and so close to you made it really hard for Jane to work through her feelings of homicidal rage.
It wasn’t fair. It was not fair that this silly little thing was allowed to spend her days by your side, making you laugh at her idiotic jokes while Jane could only spend a couple of hours with you late at night when the whole household was already asleep.
“She is being overly friendly to you, and I do not like it.” Jane groaned as you pulled the pins out of her hair.
“There is nothing more than friendship between Alice and me, Jane, you know that.” You reassured your lover, placing a soft kiss on her freckled shoulder.
“To you, perhaps! I see the way she is always trying to touch you, squeezing your shoulder as she walks by or holding onto your arm when she delivers one of her idiotic jokes. Has she never been told that we must not touch what is not ours?” The tall woman huffed, getting more agitated by the second. That silly little maid gave her murderous thoughts.
“I don’t think Alice sees me as anything more than a good friend, and even if she does…I’m yours.” You whispered, brushing your fingers through Jane’s raven locks and gently massaging her scalp.
Jane’s shoulders visibly relaxed and you pushed a soft smile, locking eyes with your lover in the mirror.
“I’m afraid I can not stay with you tonight, Jane. Mister Murdstone has asked me to be up at sunrise to run some errands, and I could use the sleep.” You gave the tall woman an apologetic smile, feeling her shoulders tense once more. You would have loved to spend the night with Jane but you barely got any sleep when you did, the two of you usually too busy making love to each other.
“Right.” She spat out, her lips pressed in a thin line. “Go back to the servant’s quarter, I bet you are craving to get back to your Alice.”
“Jane,” You tutted. “You are being rude, my love. There is nothing I want more than to spend the night in your arms, but I can’t. Not tonight.”
Jane huffed loudly, crossing her arms against her chest and refusing to look at you.
“Fine, sulk if you want.” You kissed the top of the woman’s head and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. “Sleep well, Jane.” You said, taking a last look at her reflection in the mirror before leaving the bedroom.
But Jane didn’t sleep well. She barely slept at all, her mind filled with thoughts of Alice’s hands on your body. It was unbearable, so much so that Jane came up with a plan. She needed that stupid girl to understand that you were hers, and she would make sure of it.
-
You had not expected Mister Murdstone’s errands to be taking so long to run. You had been gone from the house since sunrise and only came back around tea time, letting a sigh of relief out as you placed the heavy baskets you were carrying down. Food, clothing, newspapers, it was as if Edward Murdstone had decided that everything that could be fetched from town needed to be fetched that day.
You had barely stepped into the servant’s quarter when two hands wrapped around your waist and spun you around.
“I thought you would never be back! Thought you had run away for good!” Alice’s lips spread in a wide smile, making you laugh.
“Sure, and to go where, mm?” You shook your head. “Those errands he makes us run, they get worse every single time.”
“I know. I think he enjoys exhausting us as much as he possibly can.” Alice nodded. “Oh, Miss Murdstone has asked for me to take care of her tonight.”
Your body froze for a second and you had to take a deep breath before acting unfazed. You were about to ask for more details when a bell rang in the quarter, signalling that the Lady of the house was ready for her afternoon tea.
“Let me take care of it.” You pushed a smile and disappeared into the kitchen, quickly putting the kettle on.
A few minutes later you stepped into the study where Jane was sitting with her embroidery.
“My Lady,” You nodded, placing the tray on the table right next to her.
The tall woman barely acknowledged you as she placed her embroidery on the side and poured herself a cup of tea.
“I was made aware that you requested Alice to assist you tonight. Is my presence no longer required, my Lady?”
Jane’s eyes snapped to your face and you hoped she understood the hidden meaning behind your words. Do you not love me anymore?
“Were you made aware that your presence was no longer required?” The woman asked, her eyes slightly narrowing.
“No, my Lady.”
“Good. You shall be in my bedroom at seven sharp, as usual.” She said before taking a sip of tea and shooing you out of the room.
-
You knocked on the bedroom door at seven sharp, pushing it open and making your way inside only to find that Alice was already there.
“Good. Well, now that everyone is here…Sit.” Jane told Alice, pointing at the chair in the corner of the room. “Can’t you follow a simple order?! Sit!” She hissed when the maid didn’t obey fast enough.
Alice quickly walked to the chair and sat down, eyes wide in fear of what would happen to her next.
You stood still in the middle of the room as Jane circled you, feeling like a prey being hunted and played with by a predator.
“You see, Alice, you have gotten awfully close to something that belongs to me.” Jane said as she came to a stop behind you. You felt her tug at the knot on your apron before she took it off, letting it fall to the ground.
Alice watched in horror as Jane’s hands traveled to your front, groping your breasts through your dress before she moved to unbutton it.
“Did you know our little lady’s maid here loves to forgo underwear?” Jane smirked, watching Alice’s cheeks turn crimson as she opened your unbuttoned shirt to reveal your bare breasts. “Would you like to know how I know that?” The woman asked, placing an open-mouthed kiss on your neck. “I told her to.” She grinned and peeled your shirt from your body, letting in join your apron on the floor.
Alice tried hard not to let her eyes roam on your bare flesh, but she was unable to stop herself which only fuelled Jane’s anger.
“I told you she was interested in more than friendship.” Jane hissed in your ear, causing goosebumps to appear on your skin and your nipples to harden.
“M-Miss Murdstone-“ Alice said barely audibly. “I don’t think I should be here.”
“Quiet!” Jane barked. “Don’t you dare move from that chair or I will have you fired by tomorrow morning.”
“Jane…” You sighed and felt the woman’s fingers grab a handful of your hair before giving it a harsh tug, tilting your head so you’d look at her.
“Oh no,” She smirked. “Tonight you will address me either as Miss Murdstone or my Lady.”
She wouldn’t play nice tonight, then.
“Yes, my Lady.” You whispered, your tongue darting out to wet your lips.
Jane almost considered indulging you, she almost pressed a kiss to your lips but quickly changed her mind. This wasn’t about your or her pleasure, it was about teaching Alice a good lesson.
“Take your skirt off.” Jane ordered, letting her hands roam on your stomach for a second before pulling away. “I doubt you are wearing anything underneath it but if you are, take those off as well.”
A deep blush crept up your chest as you pulled your skirt down and stepped out of it, revealing that you were, in fact, not wearing anything underneath it. A low chuckle came from Jane’s throat and you waited, eyes closed, for the next order when you felt her lips on your shoulder and hands on your waist, her short fingernails digging into your flesh.
“Spread your legs.” She hummed near your ear and you obeyed without a second thought, your body shuddering when one of her hands snaked from your waist to your bush, resting there for a few seconds before she finally pushed two of her fingers between your folds.
“Well, well,” Jane tutted, pulling her fingers away from you and lifting them to show off the wetness that glistened on them. “Do you like having an audience?” She smirked, her eyes locking with Alice’s as she pushed her digits into her mouth and licked them clean.
The heat coursing through your body felt unbearable, a mix of both shame and arousal that made you feel dizzy.
“Yes, my Lady.” You admitted, whining when Jane’s fingers found their way back between your legs.
“You see, Alice,” Jane looked at the girl on the chair. “This one might act like a prude around you, but she is a filthy whore.” She chuckled lowly, her other hand moving to grab one of your breasts.
Jane expertly flicked her thumb on your nipple before giving it a sharp tweak, making you cry out as your sopping wet cunt clenched around nothing.
“Careful, we wouldn’t want the whole household to know you let your Lady have you.”
Jane didn’t let you answer, choosing instead to slip her fingers deep inside you and relishing in the guttural moan that tore itself from your mouth. She let her fingers commence their skillful ballet, pulling them out of you almost entirely only to push them back in up to the hilt.
It didn’t take long for you to turn into a mess, grinding down on Jane’s fingers as she crooked them to press against the soft, spongy spot that sent lighting shooting up your spine.
Your sinful moans mixing with the wet sounds coming from between your legs only spurred Jane on, her blue eyes fixed on the maid sitting in the corner of the room with her mouth wide open.
“Why don’t you tell your little friend who you belong to, mm?” Jane’s voice echoed in your mind.
“You! Y-yours, I’m yours!” You cried out. “All yours, my Lady!”
“Mine.” Jane snarled looking at Alice, hoping the message was clear.
Her free hand joined the busy one between your legs to circle your clit as she relentlessly pounded into you and could hear yourself begging from a distance - please, please, I can not hold back anymore. It felt like an eternity before Jane finally allowed you to cum, your cunt instantly clenching around her fingers as you were pushed over the edge.
The tall woman kept pumping in and out of you for a moment until she decided that you had had enough and pulled her fingers out, giving your core a harsh slap. You fell to your knees, your body still shaking from the intensity of your orgasm, and struggled to catch your breath.
Eventually, you turned around and looked up at Jane who was now standing tall in front of you. You grabbed a handful of her black dress to steady yourself and buried your face into the soft fabric.
“Thank you, Miss Murdstone.” You managed to say with your shaky voice, making the tall woman smirk proudly.
Jane pulled away from you, snatching her dress from your hands before walking towards Alice who was still transfixed by the whole scene. She roughly grabbed the maid’s face with one hand, forcing the girl to look up at her.
“Don’t you dare say a word about what happened here tonight.” She snarled. “No one would believe you. Now get out!”
Alice didn’t have to be told twice. The young woman was on her feet in a second and scurried out of the room as quickly as she could.
“Did you have to be so harsh?” You croaked as you slowly got back on your feet, watching Jane closing the bedroom door that Alice had left open.
“Which other choice did I have?” Jane said, pressing a soft kiss on your lips before moving to sit down at her dressing table. “She needed to be taught a lesson. You are mine, and she mustn’t mess with another woman’s belongings.”
“Yes, my Lady,” You chuckled softly as you started taking the pins off Jane’s hair. “I’m yours.”
-
You weren’t really surprised the next day when entering the servant’s quarters, you heard one of the maids gossiping with the butler about how Alice had been fired by Mister Murdstone at sunrise.
It did pinch your heart a little to know you had lost a friend, but Jane was right, Alice had to learn the lesson. One mustn’t mess with another woman’s belongings, certainly not Jane Murdstone’s.
————————————————————————
tag list: @weemssapphic @larissaoftarthweems @principal-weems09 @readingtheentrails @catechristiesstuff @kimiinou @winterfireblond @im-a-carnivorous-plant
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Oh mah God, your jasper fanfics are so stinking cute! A continuation of the baseball one would be perfect!
Like maybe after hanging out with her the feelings get stronger and he decides to distance himself in worry, and the reader, albeit confused, respects him and is a little heartbroken. Maybe at one point he worries about her for a moment when Emmett tells her she didn't look well (she's sleep deprived from stressing about him but trying to keep it to herself) so he pulls a creepy (can't find a better word) Edward and shows up outside her room and senses her heartbroken ness and feels like he has it too but brushes it off thinking it's just hers instead of his own. She starts getting closer to the wolfs and he tries acting like it doesn't bother him and pretends he could care less when she starts sitting with them in the cafeteria after he shows back up at school. And it's not until Alice has a vision of her getting discovered by volturi and "ended" that he starts keeping an eye on her again, and when a guard of the volturi blends in at the school and he notices does things begin and yeah....or something like that lol take the idea into your jar of boredom writing or something 😂
I feel like you'd write this perfectly! And spot on with the jasper and his accent..
Uhm...YES!? You're so creative this is such a good idea. I should be doing my college coursework right now, but this is all I'll think about so I'm doing it right now!! Also forgive the gammer 🥲😫
Okay, it won't be a DIRECT continuation of the Baseball one-shot bc it's already part of of a different fic I'm writing. I'm just gonna take out Y/n's friends but the baseball game still happened okay?
(sorry 🙏) (I don't know if that made sense.)
>I just like the cold.
>Jasperxf¡reader
>As I said, not a direct continuation but instead the start of a new series? (lmk)
>could be a tad longer that what I'd usually write 🥲
>TW, Panic Attack
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°Jasper's POV°
When I saw her eyes for the first time, in that cramped hallway, I melted inside. My icey veins (filled with the venom that could end her life in an instant) were fueled with warmth as they must've once been long before. And that all too familiar burning sensation at the back of my throat hasn't left me alone since I caught her scent for the first time.
I thought it was just me being hungry. I hadn't eaten that day and it could've been that she just had tasty smelling blood. But knowing my luck, that obviously wasn't it. I can't put my family through this again, I just can't. I've tried to maintain a friendship with her for the fair few weeks she's been here but it's getting harder and harder.
I can't believe I was once angry or annoyed with Edward for falling for a human. I guess karma's a bitch huh? Y/n has no clue about my feelings, I hope. Why would I tell her? So I think it's best, for her safety if I just stop being friends with her. It'll keep her so much safer I know it will.
"I thought that too" Edward said, appearing in the corner of my room.
I didn't jump, I heard him race up the stairs.
"What?" I asked, annoyed I was interrupted by Mr Thought Police himself.
"About Bella. Remember when we left for half a year? And I left her? I thought it'd make her happy. Safe. But it took us both almost dying for me to realise we were safer together.." Edward said, reminding me of the very thing I wanted to try and avoid.
"But that's you, Eddie. You and Bella, by then she already loved you, by then she knew the risk and by then it was too late for stupid mistakes. I'm in a grey area right now, where she doesn't know a damn thing and I just want to keep her safe." I said, sighing as I heard Emmett approach my room aswell.
"Bro, she really likes us.." Emmett said, racing over to the other corner of my room. "I mean for some reason you specifically, but she's told me! We're actually like best friends now so if you want me to be the middle man..just let me know." He said, winking.
I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, I've seen you together before, walking around the school. You've been especially close ever since you almost abliterated her head with a baseball...but oh well."
"Do I detect a hint of jealousy, Jasper?" Emmett teased. Edward laughed as he joined our brother over at his side of my room.
"No Emmett you don't, because I have no right to be jealous in the first place, she's not mine to be jealous over." I said, not meeting thier eyes.
"But you want her to be." Edward said.
This drew my attention as I looked up and saw his face. Care and amusement radiating off of him.
"I'm glad you find my dilemma so amusing, none of us ever laughed at you, you moody asshole" I said, throwing a pillow full force in his direction.
He caught it. "It's just funny to see how much of a little boy you're being about something that is so crystal clear" he said, tossing back the pillow.
"Oh yeah? And what's that?" I asked, fed up now.
"She's your singer. Just like Bella was mine. I've heard your thoughts, they're too loud to ignore. That feeling? that burning? It's nothing you've felt around anyone else is it?" he asked, already knowing the answer.
"Yes, but I don't want to have to go through the same old debate of “do we turn her or not” and that's even if she feels the same way.." I said.
"Dude, you're literally an empath. You can find out yourself" Emmett said as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"I hate using my gift on her as it is. The thought of manipulating her in any way makes my skin crawl, alright? If it's to help her then I can deal with it but I won't just use it to be nosy, that's not fair" I said. "you can still be friends with her if you want Emmett but I can't do it. I won't let myself drag her into this life. I know you wanted the same thing for Bella, Edward but maybe I can make it happen for Y/n. If anyone deserves a blessed life, it's her." I said, walking out my room, speeding out the house and into the forest to clear my head.
I just need to keep away from her. I'll keep her safe that way.
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°Reader's POV°
This week had been..strange. Emmett had been even more friendly then he usually was; it was perhaps due to the fact that he could've killed me the other week with that baseball, but y'know, life goes on. And at no point had I even had a chance to speak to Jasper. Even in class, he'd moved seats. Of course, that was his last resort after they wouldn't let him change his lesson plan.
It ached my heart a little because, I really liked him and for some reason it's like a flip had been switched in his brain and he no longer wanted anything to do with me. It was Friday, and I was determined to atleast get a conversation with him.
While Emmett was babbling on about something to do with gorillas, I interrupted him. "Emmett when did you..uh...see Jasper last?" I asked.
"last I saw he was with Rose and Bella in the cafeteria.." I saw a small glint in his eye as he answered. "But..i don't think he wants to talk to you.." he said just as I began to walk off.
"Have I done something wrong? Did I say something? Is he..is he mad at me for something? Why won't he speak to me?" I rattled off a few of the questions I'd kept to myself all week.
"Woah, calm down. It's..." he hesitated. "it's not my place to say but I think he might just be trying to avoid talking to you because he knows if he does, he won't be able to not talk to you. " he said, in a really confusing tone.
"You've complicated this way too much than you needed to. Is he still there now?" I asked reffering to where he said he saw him.
"Pretty sure, yeah."
I took off without a thank you, which I felt bad about, but I was too focused on getting that conversation with Jasper.
I was almost running to the cafeteria, as I knew the bell was going to ring at any moment. I made it in the cafeteria and spotted him immediately, and he saw me too. His eyes met mine for less than half a second, before he looked to the floor.
He left his conversation with his sisters and went to walk out the opposite way that I was coming in. I ran this time, and caught up to him.
"Hey! What's going on? Have I done something?" I asked, needing answers.
He audibly sighed and closed his eyes, breathing in. "No, you haven't. You haven't done a thing, I promise." He said, and began to walk away again. I moved infront of him to stop him from walking away.
"Don't walk away from me, I wasn't finished. If I haven't done anything then what's the issue? Why can't you talk to me I want to be here for you." I tried to take a hold of his hands but he wouldn't let me touch him. And he didn't meet my eyes, he refused to even look at my face.
"Because...Y/n" I heard his voice shaking. "I just can't be around you, it's not your fault, you're not the reason why I just-" he paused, and bit his inner lip. "I just can't okay?" he said, pushing past me. He sped off down the hall not looking back, leaving me behind.
The bell rang through the halls, louder than I'd ever heard it before. It started to hurt my ears but my eyes couldn't pull away from his figure.
Tears swirled in my eyes as I watched him walk off, and my breath quickened. Then, what I feared, that feeling tightened up in my chest. No. Not a panic attack. I can't, not at school. I took one last look at Jasper walking off before racing back out of the cafeteria and into the school parking lot.
The cold air hit me like a kind wave, and the small droplets of rain coated my face as I looked up at the sky, desperaty wanting it to swallow me whole. It was a small sense of relief before the feeling washed back in like the tide. I ditched my backpack and jacket, throwing them on the floor, needing the coldness on my skin. I tried to slow my breathing down but it wasn't working. I made my way down the steps, now in a short sleeve t-shirt, tripping slightly on the last step as I made my way across the lot. My breathing wasn't slowing and I couldn't stop it, I guess I'd just have to ride it out.
"..Y/n?" I heard from the trees.
I span around, my breath not halting and my panic increasing. As my heart rate was about to rocket even more, Seth Clearwater stumbled out from the trees. I had met him a few times, he and his friends all the way down at the Reservation were good friends with the Cullens.
"Seth?" I aksed, I didn't want to start hallucinating people. That would be a whole new area for me that I wouldn't be able to keep up with.
He made his way over to me. "Yeah, it's me. It's Seth. What's going on? Hey...hey" he was inches away from me now. I tied to move away but he stepped closer in fear I was going to somehow hurt myself. My tears wouldn't stop and my head was looking very which way "Y/n. Look at me."
His order sent a small shockwave into me for a second and I snapped my eyes up, his face blurred due to the tears streaming from my eyes. He took his thumbs and wiped under my eyes, but new tears replaced the stains he wiped away.
"Breathe with me okay?" he asked.
I wanted to try, there's nothing I hate more than this shit. But sometimes you can't help but just ride out the attack until it's done. I nodded my head vigorously and he began to breathe, waiting for me to follow suit.
"Okay in..." he took a breath in and let it out softly. "..and out.."
I tried my best to follow suit but my throat needed as much air as it could get. And it kept speeding up the pattern.
"No Y/n with me, c'mon you got this.." he said, holding my hands.
"In.." he breathed in once again and I followed suit. "and out" he breathed out again.
Slowly but surely my breathing returned to a somewhat normal pace but my shaking didn't stop.
"there you go.." he continued the pattern as he slowly walked me over to a stone wall, and sat me down.
"You're freezing, Y/n." he said, touching my cheek after wiping yet another tear..
"I'll be fine..I like the cold when these things happen.." I laughed slightly, to ease the awkwardness, if there was any.
"I know, it helps a lot doesn't it?" he said, sitting down next to me.
"wait, you've-"
"yep" he cut me off, with a sheepish smile. "I get it. You're inside somewhere when that ugly feeling hits. You beeline it for the nearest exist and the air just gives you something else to feel. It doesn't stop it, but it definitely helps. The cold, it..it helps you feel something different other than that thing in your chest.." he said, describing what it was like for him.
I nodded along as he said so. "yeah..that's...exactly it." I smiled.
He looked up from staring at his feet and smiled back at me, before frowning. "Y/n your lips are slowly going blue, I know how much the cold helps but I won't let you catch hypothermia.." Seth said, pulling me into his chest and offering me a hug.
He was so so warm. It wasn't a stuffy warm either, the kind of warm where you feel sticky. It was that cozy warmth. That homely warmth on a winter morning.
I shivered in his arms at the contact. "Oh..jeez your pretty hot. Are you ill or something?" I asked.
He chuckled slightly. "No Y/n, I'm just a warm person.." he admitted.
"C'mon, let's get you back inside.." he said, rising us up to our feet.
"No!" I wriggled out of his grip, my heart fluttering again, in slight panic. I feel if I see him again today, I'll get worse.
He took hold of me again gently. "Okay..I'll take you home yeah? We just gotta grab your stuff that you graciously dumped on the stairs.." he said, smiling.
I laughed slightly as we walked slowly over to the steps. He jogged up them and picked up my stuff. He placed my jacket over my shoulders and carried my bag over to my car.
He walked confidently over to the drivers seat.
"I swear you're like..16 can you even drive?" I asked, a smile paying on my lips.
"I'm 17 now actually. And it's fine don't worry, hop in" he said, unlocking the car with my keys he must've taken from my pocket.
We got in the car and threw our seat belts on.
"Thanks for this Seth. Aren't you missing a lesson right now though?" I asked, I didn't want to ruin his education.
"Oh nah, me and the boys are on a part time timetable for this school and the one down by the Rez, so don't worry about it...anyways.....where's the handbreak?"
My eyes shot in his direction only to see him holding in a laugh.
"Uh. What do you mean where's the handbreak?" I asked.
He finally giggled. "Don't worry, I'm just joking. We'll be fine. I've never been to your house though, so you can be my sat nav" he smiled turning on the car, and pulling out of the car park.
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°Jasper's POV°
I walked away from her. Every fibre of my being telling me to look back. I fought against it, but gave in. I looked back and saw a glimpse of her as she rushed out of the cafeteria.
What am I doing?
I felt the dread and panic leaking from her as I started to walk away. And I just left her. I left her feeling that way. I know I'm doing this to keep her safe but I can't pretend that I'm perfect, leaving her in fear.
Special thanks to my power, I'm extremely sensitive to even my own emotions and with years of practice I've managed to get a good control of it, but Y/n..I feel her emotions so much more than anyone else's.
My still heart is telling me not to go near her, to keep her safe...but her scent, as much as it tempts me, it deals me a great source of comfort..I can't explain it. I'm near her and I feel safe. I'm a monster and have nothing to fear really, but in her presence it's like we're the only two on earth.
Which is why I must do this. I can't that let angel be manipulated by the devil deep inside me. I won't allow it.
I let out the breath I was holding in during that encounter, again not that I needed to, but I think people would notice if I wasn't breathing. I made my way to the science block and yippee! I was next to Sire Brain Detective and his wife.
I was waiting outside the classroom to catch Bella before Edward got there. I caught her scent in the hallway and rushed to her side.
"Hey Bella, can you just maybe kinda block my thoughts from Edward please?" I asked, a sheepish smile following close behind.
"Why?" She asked, squinting her eyes a little.
"Well you've never had the problem, but Edward is very nosy. And I'd just like my thoughts kept to myself for today." I said.
We kept on walking into the classroom and to our seats.
"So it's nothing to do with Y/n then?" she quizzed.
Even hearing her name makes me feel sick.
"No. Bella..just please can you do it?" I was begging her at this point as I smelled Edward down the corridor.
She looked up as she caught his scent too. "Okay, but you owe me" she said.
"Thanks Bella." I said.
Edward walked in the class and met my eyes immediately, a hint of confusion crossed his face before he sat down next to his wife and realised. "Oh c'mon how is that fair?" he said.
"How is what fair?" Me and Bella said at the same time. We looked at eachother breifely before opening out books as instructed to.
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°Reader's POV°
Awkward, sweaty and sleepless. That's all I feel right now. I close my eyes and he's there. I open my eyes an he's all I can imagine. Everything I tried, I couldn't get him off my mind. I even tried counting sheep, but the sheep soon morphed themselves into horses, then I soon saw him riding a horse, actually imagining him as a Cowboy. I snapped my eyes open and drank some water I left by the side of my bed, before making a last attempt to get some sleep.
After what seemed like hours of tossing and turning in the same directions over and over again, I got up and opened my window. Again, the cold air washed over me and it was almost instant relief. Just like Seth said, it gives you something else to feel.
I watched the trees as they swayed in the wind, thier green leaves brushing against eachother at each breeze. Out of all the places my Mum had placed me while she did her book tour, Washington was probably my favourite so far, well specifically Forks. Since the beginning of the year, (when my Mum's book tour started) I'd been placed in a random city in the state she needed to visit, and Forks was this really nice and small town. Where everyone knew everyone. Of course, the thought of litteraly everyone talking about me as the new arrival didn't appeal to me at all, but when I had moments to myself, it was impossible for me not to gawk at the nature around me. The grey skies, while annoying to some, gave me a nice comforting feeling. The rain, which everyone hated, was my favourite weather. I don't know what it was.. I guess I just like the cold.
I was pulled from my thoughts as my phone buzzed under my pillow. It was my mum calling, I answered of course, but I wandered why she was calling at 4am.
"Mum? what's up?" I asked, trying to hide my tired voice.
"Oh my god Y/n I'm so sorry.. I forgot about the time zones...go back to sleep, I'll ring you at a better time.." she said.
"wait what do you mean the time zones? you're in Washington too?" I questioned, wandering what she meant.
"No..honey, that's why I called. I got to my hotel and they said they had my reservation booked for next year, so they flew me out to the state I was supposed to be in." She said, sounding ashamed. "I tried to mention you, and say how I could catch my own flight..but.. they-they wouldn't listen to me..."
"Mum... Mum it's okay, don't worry about it I'll be fine okay? Just make me proud." I said.
"but I only gave you enough money to last a couple months not over a year..nearly two! And you're in your last year of school, what will you do all day? How-"
"Mum" I cut her off "I'll get a job, it'll be fine. You've been doing book tours since I was like 15, I know how to live on my own." I said.
"but that was when you were 5 minutes down the road...or a bus drive away..now I'm on the other side of the country!" She panicked.
"wait, the other side of the country? where did they fly you to?" I asked. The phone went silent for a few seconds before she answered.
"I'm in Georgia, honey.." She said. "I called you as soon as I had time, I'm sorry I've left you there, I can book a flight and cancel the tour-"
"-No, Mum don't. I'm not gonna pretend hearing you were in Georgia didn't scare me a little bit, but I'm perfectly fine here in Forks. I like it here.." I said honestly.
"but honey-"
"No 'buts'." I said. "Mum some kids leave the nest at early ages, some never leave..maybe it's my time to make a life for myself.." I said, with tears threatening to spill.
"I-in Washington, are you sure?" Mum's voice was shaking by now.
"Mum, I'm old enough. I know it's scary, it'll be difficult too but.. sometimes life just throws you in a new direction and you can't help but see where it takes you.." I said, wiping a tear from my cheek.
"Hey, I'm supposed to be the one full of wisdom little lady" she joked. "well...I guess it isn't the craziest idea you've had." she said, sadly.
"so yeah?" I asked.
She took a deep breath "Yes Y/n, yes. Start your life.." she said.
"Okay.." I said.
It wasn't long before I was off the phone and trying to sleep again. I prayed when I rested my head on the pillow, he wouldn't plug my mind, but much to my dismay he returned and my heart ached.
I closed my eyes and managed to drift off to sleep just before my alarm rang for me to start getting ready for school. The ringing of the bell threw me back to that moment. That moment he left. Just like that.
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°Emmett's POV°
Since the day Jasper told Y/n that he couldn't be near her anymore, she hasn't been in. And I'm worried about how she's taken it.
I didn't tell Jasper I was gonna go pick Y/n up today as I didn't want him to go all emo and be like “ugh you're gonna smell like her all day!” so I instead took my absolutely, positively, non-judgemental wife.
"So why are we on our way to a humans house right now?" Rose asked me from the passenger's seat of my jeep. "what purpose is she serving us other than pleasing our noses?"
"Babe, she's my friend..and I'm worried about how she is. She didn't come in at all last week since Jasper didn't want anything to do with her, and I'm not gonna let my idiot of a brother be the reason she fails school.." I said, keeping my eyes on the road.
Rose went silent and looked out the window. "Just let me know when we're there.." she said, closing her eyes.
"That would be now.." I said, pulling up outside her house.
I got out the jeep while Rose stayed in, and made my way to the front door. I hesitated before knocking and waited for an answer. A good minute went by, so I knocked again and as I did, the door flew open.
"I told you three times already, Mrs Henderson doesn't live here anym-" she cut herself off when she saw my amused face.
She rubbed her eyes. "Emmett?"
"The one and only!" I replied.
"What are you doing here?" her voice was drained, and she looked a lot less bubbly than before. Her eyes drooped slightly and dark circles hung below them from lack of sleep.
"To get you to school, missy!" I said, not wanting to comment about the elephant in the room.
"But Emmett, Jasper said-"
"Fuck what Jasper said, it's your life and it's your school too. What..just because he's being a little bitch right now that means you can't get educated? I don't see how that's fair.." I said, crossing my arms.
She rolled her half-lidded eyes. "Okay, let me get changed.." she said, turning back into her house and shutting the door.
I celebrated my victory behind the wood of the closed door and waited for her to open it again. I sat on the step and prepared to wait, when the door swung open again. She stepped out with all her stuff. "C'mon then, let's go." she said, plastering on a fake smile.
"I thought you were atleast gonna cook some breakfast? It's like half seven in the morning..." I said, standing up and leading her to the jeep.
"Nah...not hungry." she said, climbing in.
I got in too, and put the radio back on.
"Hey Rosalie" Y/n said, tiredly a sheepish smile across her face.
My head quickly turned to my wife and I begged her with my eyes to be nice. But she didn't even look at me and instead looked for Y/n in the wing mirror.
"Jasper's an idiot, but he cares about you and he's doing this for your own good, I'd take it as a win." she said, before closing her eyes again and turning up the radio.
I started the jeep up again after a small awkward silence with nothing but the music blaring and began to drive to the school.
"yeah but does he know how much it's actually hurting?" Y/n whispered, any normal person wouldn't have heard it but of course me being a beautiful, immortal, gifted being...I did.
Passing through the familiar streets of Forks, it didn't take me long to get to the school, I parked the jeep and Rose got out. I turned around in my seat to face Y/n. Her sleep-deprived look catching me off guard once again.
"You ready girl?" I asked, grinning.
She sighed. "Not really, Emmett" she replied sadly, staring at a particular stone wall in the car park.
"Well c'mon, you got this. Let's go" I said, getting out.
It wasn't long before she climbed out herself. As she shut the door.
"Thanks for dragging me in Emmett, but I'm gonna go incase he appears from around the corner or something.." she said, with low energy as she dragged her feet toward the doors of the school.
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°Reader's POV°
I couldn't thank Emmett more, I wouldn't have been able to get here on my own accord. It's just a shame I didn't have the energy to express my gratitude to him as much as I wanted to.
It was about 10 minutes until my first lesson so I walked to the cafeteria to get a drink. As I opened the doors, I saw Seth and some of his friends from the Rez sat at a table and so I wasted no time in going over there.
"What are you lot doing here?" I asked.
"Part time, time-table in each school! How do you keep forgetting that?" one of them said.
"Uhm..Seth?" I looked to him for help, I could barely remember any of the other's names.
"Alright, sit down." he pulled a chair from the table behind him and turned it next to him, facing their table. "Here we have Quil, Leah my sister, and Embry." he said.
I had only met the rest of them once but Seth I had seen a number of times, and he's who I was closest to...now for a very obvious reason.
"So what's your first lesson?" Quil asked.
"Science.." I said quietly, biting the inside of my cheek afterward to simmer down the anxiety I felt creeping in.
I started boucing my leg too, which Seth took notice to. He offered me a smile, which I returned, weak as ever.
The bell rang, louder than before, and I covered my ears, burying my head down against my chest. Each time I hear that bastard bell it gets louder and louder, and the memory of that last conversation with him gets clearer and clearer in my mind.
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°Jasper's POV°
"I'm telling you man..she's-"
Emmett would not stop. I told him I didn't want to hear it, but he was following me all over our house, not leaving me alone.
"her eyes don't look the same, she doesn't have nearly as much energy as she used to, I haven't seen her smile, and if I'm being honest I don't think she's eating properly.." Emmett said.
Hearing his words made my non-beating heart ache.
"I've been picking her up all week and she never eats breakfast, and when was the last time I saw her eating in the cafeteria? Uhh let me think, I haven't!" he said, in my face.
I was looking at the floor, guilt riddling my body. She's like this because of me.
"I get it. Emmett. Okay?" I spat, my voice quavering.
He moved back slowly, almost realising that this was hurting me too, and left my room.
After staring out the window for another moment or two, I sped off out the house before anyone could question it. I ducked and dived between branches, breaking them if they were too big for me to dodge. I raced through the woods rembering the route to her house when I met her before school, when we first started to talk to each other. I ran to her. Wondering what I was going to do when I got there, would I beg her to forgive me? Would I stop this madness and just tell her everything? At this point, I couldn't see anything but her angelic face, and hear her sweet voice and before I knew it, I came to a swift stop by the trees of her house.
I approached it slowly, still deciding what to do, until I lingered by the side of the house where her bedroom was. I climbed up a tree that rested just by it and waited to see her or atleast hear her.
"fuck sake..just go away!" I heard her complain as she slammed the door to her bedroom. "You don't want anything to do with me so why won't you get out of my head!" She panicked, her voice wailing as she spoke.
"It's not fair.." she said after a minute of silence. She got up. "It's not fair." she repeated. She tossed her chair on the floor. "It's not fair!" she threw a picture frame against the wall. She repeated those three words, growing more aggressive each time and trashing a new part of her room until she ran out of energy.
She breathed heavily and sunk against the wall, sobbing. She cried, and it was like a thousand hot knives were cutting me all over. She cried and I had to fight as hard as I could not to rush in there.
She cried and I felt heartbreak. My breath quickened too, as her emotions laced with my own. Sat in the tree in that moment I didn't know which emotions were mine and which were hers.
She cried and cried until she fell asleep, and that's when some of her emotions filtered away from my body. Though she fell asleep and tears were still staining her cheeks, the aching in my heart wouldn't leave or subside. It stayed.
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homisexual11 · 2 months
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Jalice SFW Alphabet
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Going off my phone for a while, I won’t be back but until then I hope this’ll hold you. Also don’t be afraid to send requests if you have any :) I’ll accept on any Cullen members or wolves but Jalice is preferred :)
TW: Mentions of vampirism… Maria
A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)
Alice can be affectionate, but she sometimes doesn’t show it. She loves giving gifts and such, and little physical touches. She isn’t a cuddle bug, but she’ll hold your hand, have a hand on your arm, things like that. She’s also very passionate with words, too.
Jasper is affectionate. Although he’s hesitant at first, he is definitely a cuddle bug. If you’re human, he’s obviously worried about it, always needing Alice there for support and normally keeping her right next to you, but after a while he grew to trust himself more. He’ll hold your hand, play with your hair, always have a seat for you (his lap in a non-sexual manner). I mean, you’ve seen how he is in the first Twilight movie.
B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)
You’ve seen Alice as a best friend with Bella, but both of them? Best girl talk. Jasper does give blunt advice, but he’s also like so good to talk to about boys and shit. Alice gets you the delulu stuff unless it’s bad, then she’s honest. But also like they will do stupid shit with you as long as you won’t get hurt, and if you could have two platonic soulmates they would be it.
C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)
Alice likes to cuddle. It’s not her love language or anything, but she does like it.
And we already know Jasper 100% loves it. Also like cuddling both of them? Either you or Alice in the middle, but you could probably convince Jasper if you tried hard enough. But normally he likes holding either one of you.
D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)
If you were turned, they would 100% live alone with you, and maybe even if you weren’t, but it would take a lot of convincing Jasper. Everyone would have their own duties for cooking, but yes they’re both good at it. Also I feel like Jasper would be better at cooking, if you needed. (Alice could probably light the kitchen on fire on accident so she stays away.)
E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)
Jasper would probably do most of the talking because he’s the only one who can be THAT blunt. They would want to be platonic afterwards, but it definitely emotionally devastated both of them. But they wouldn’t have to, because Alice would be able to see that yall would stay together, so unless you end it, they wouldn’t.
F = Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)
If Alice could see a future where you were together, that’s how that shit went. They don’t really marry quickly, I mean, Carlisle was the one that made them get married. So, obviously, it’s complex cause you’re three people, but if possible they’d get married to you after a while. Turning you… they would 100% wait at least three years. Keeping you young enough, but not too old. They waited until Alice said it was time from the visions.
G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)
I cannot stress this enough. 10/10 on the gentleness scale. They could easily break you if they were still human, so yeah of course they’re gentle. Also everything with them is gentle soft love. Somewhat old fashioned too. Jasper is not a woman beater, so even though it’s old fashioned it’s GENTLE. (Help why did I feel the need to say that)
H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)
They are huggers. I mean, Jasper is from Texas. (“I’m from Texas, I’m a hugger.” -my friends mom a couple years ago) and Alice gives a bunch of them. Jasper was hesitant at first, I mean, you’ve seen everything physical, why would this be different. But also neither of them let go first. Just saying.
(Wild card: if you were still human and having a meltdown, like Jasper would just pull you into a hug and hold you. He also knows when to calm you down or not, and if he thinks you need to cry he’ll let you cry.)
I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)
Jasper keeps Alice from saying it and freaking you out. But she says it quickly, obviously the first. He takes a bit longer, but he definitely said it first to you.
J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)
Jasper doesn’t really get jealous, Alice does a little bit, but normally she just squeezes the life (ha) out of Jaspers hand or will come up to you and who you’re talking to and pretend not to be bothered and when that person is away she’ll be unbothered and happy again.
K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)
Alice’s are quick. Little pecks all over your or Jaspers face and neck. She likes nose and forehead kisses for her.
Jaspers are soft but longer as well. He likes kissing your or Alice’s lips or forehead. He prefers lip kisses, but if you kissed any of his scars? He would melt. Absolutely putty in your hands. A little hesitant at first, but when you’re gentle with him? AHH.
L = Little ones (How are they around children?)
I feel like Alice isn’t great around babies but when they’re older she’s better. Jasper is pretty good with children, you see it with Renesmee.
M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)
They don’t really sleep so it’s kind of like every other time for them 🧍‍♀️ but like they have some sort of a routine consisting of the norm, and would be able to adapt to if you were a human and like had a different circumstance.
N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)
Cuddling. Reading. Shit like that. If you need to sleep, they pretty much establish a bedtime for you if you can’t take care of that yourself.
(“But yall don’t sleep!” -You
“We don’t need to, but you, sweet girl/boy, that’s a different story. You need to go to bed, honey.” -Jasper)
O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)
Alice is relatively open, besides the vampire thing, and with Jasper it takes a little while.
P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)
Alice is relatively patient, but she definitely has a breaking point that’s easier to reach. Jasper, on the other hand, has the patience of a saint.
Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)
They remember everything. Well, Jasper doesn’t think he remembers everything, but if someone asks a question about like what your favorite color is or why you have a certain scar or something he’ll immediately have the answer. Alice doesn’t say anything, but she does know and remember everything you’ve told her and she knows random things about you from the future as well.
R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)
You got a camera, and went around taking pictures of everyone in the fall. You had a plan to get a cute picture with you and them, but you all ended up falling and there’s just a picture of that. No one got hurt, but it did turn out an epic picture. Did Alice sense it coming? Somehow, no, which is part of the reason she likes it so much.
S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)
Very protective. Do you remember in Eclipse when it says that Jasper got so many more bites because he was trying to protect her? If you’re human, it’s like that but worse. As long as you keep his heart protected and don’t break it? It’s all yours. Even if you did, it would be yours anyways—
With Alice she’s super protective as well. She knows you can deal with yourself. If a guy is flirting with you? That’s a different story. The same thing goes for her with protecting her heart.
T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)
So much fucking effort. You saw Bella’s birthday and wedding? Yours are like that too, but more stitched to fit you personally.
U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)
I mean Alice’s habit of constantly worrying about things in the future isn’t great, and Jasper sometimes changes other people’s emotions too much. But like…
V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)
Concerned. I mean, they need to look put together. Alice is huge on that, but Jasper is a little less.
W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)
Yes. They didn’t even realize it until they met you, but it’s true.
X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)
Jasper is good at braiding for some reason.
Alice loves planning your outfits so you can match.
They love taking care of you. Like casually.
Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)
Someone who was closedminded.
Maria. (IM SORRY)
Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habits of theirs?)
They don’t sleep :) and don’t watch you sleep, but they like it when you lay your head on one leg their laps and fall asleep.
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kazz-brekker · 2 years
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hotd episode 6 thoughts
ohhhh the family drama in this one was DELICIOUS, i enjoyed it very much.
i will admit i found the time skip a little jarring at first even though i knew it was coming, just because so much stuff happened during those years, but emma d’arcy and olivia cooke were absolutely SERVING and i loved them.
rhaenyra with her kids … rhaenyra obviously loving them so so much … rhaenyra smiling as soon as she saw baby joffrey … oh it was a lot.
as soon as older rhaenyra said “fuck” while climbing the stairs i was like. yes. absolutely. i love you, this is perfect casting.
i have been overly invested in daemon and rhaenyra’s children ever since reading f&b so i feel pretty emotional actually seeing jace, luke, joffrey, rhaena, and baela on my tv screen. they’re real! they’re little and squishy! i want desperately to protect them!
i’m really glad that they included alicent’s “do keep trying, sooner or later you may get one that looks like you” bit, it’s such an iconic line of bitchy dialogue.
i SO wish that we had gotten to see more of the relationship between rhaenyra and harwin (they didn’t even kiss!) but the little bits that we did see of it were really tender and lovely, especially with baby joffrey.
helaena targaryen being a weird little girl with a bug collection is something that can be so personal, actually.
also, her saying something like “you’ll have to close an eye” while aemond is talking to alicent about wanting a dragon … please oh PLEASE let helaena have prophetic dreams, that would be great.
i am aware that aemond targaryen is going to grow up to commit a ton of war crimes but honestly i just wanted to give him a hug in this episode.
alicent being constantly exasperated that her children are growing up to be a bunch of absolute weirdos was really, really funny.
we finally got to see vhagar! she is so large and so ugly and i love her very much and seeing her fly with caraxes was a lot of fun.
i’m really sad that we only got to see adult laena for one episode, she was so regal and self-possessed and i really liked her interactions with her daughters and the fact that she clearly doesn’t want to indulge daemon’s sulking.
the implication that daemon stayed away from westeros for 10 years because he couldn’t stand to be around rhaenyra when they were married to other people … oh man. oh boy. that is so much. can’t deal with this right now, sorry!
alicent and criston having a weird warped version of fealty and courtly love based on their shared hatred of the same person … yesssss i love it give me more.
harwin strong in his dilf era repeatedly punching criston cole in the face is literally everything i wanted to see from him in this episode.
viserys talking about the bonds of friendship being forged through combat together while aegon ii is beating up his nephews is just like. jesus christ. viserys please learn to read the room.
alicent and larys having their scheming little dinner together was so fun, especially since it’s clearly a common practice. seems like larys is going full-on villain and that’s going to be entertaining to watch.
kind of sad to see that daemon and rhaenyra’s marriages are both breaking down, but i can understand why since there are a lot of stressors in both of those relationships.
around halfway through this episode i was like “there seems to be a lot going on here, maybe i won’t have to watch harwin and laena die yet” so the last 10 minutes absolutely sucker-punched me.
rip lyonel strong you were a real one and possibly the only man in westeros with both honor and common sense.
i am not quite sure how i feel about laena’s death, i always thought childbirth was a lazy way to get rid of her and i can see that they were trying to add more dignity/autonomy but it also made it more violent … i’ll have to think on it.
the milf on milf violence in this was just really fun and i can’t wait to see more.
i am READY for the funeral drama next week, bring it on!
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willthewise7 · 5 months
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Henry Creel and Patty Newby
As requested by many, I will be detailing in the form of a long analysis the relationship and, at first, the friendship that Henry and Patty had. Again, if you do not wish to have spoilers, please do not read on!
Firstly, Henry was misunderstood by his whole family. Alice said that it was "not Henry" that was in the house, just a random boy. Virginia was terrified of Henry, especially after the incident that occurred in Nevada that contributed to them moving to Hawkins for a fresh start. Finally, his father, Victor, was very oblivious to many different things and was generally absent. On his first day of school he was pretty much called weird and not listened to by any of his classmates. The only person who he connects with is Patty Newby.
They form an instant emotional bond with each other. You can feel the chemistry between the two of them. The dynamic has been likened by many to that of Mike and El when they first met. However, I do tend to disagree with this statement. Mainly, due to the fact that, Henry and Patty seemed to form an instant and deep emotional connection. They both were on the same wavelength. Patty is convinced that Henry is good and keeps reassuring him of that throughout the play. I'll get to his powers further on in this post.
After they first meet at school by the locker room, they form an instant bond. Henry talks about his Spyglass that he has and how he likes Superman. He even does the Superman pose and nerds out to that. Patty finds this funny and mentions how she loves Wonder Woman. They both bond over these topics. Before they leave the locker room they say an awkward goodbye and Henry walks off annoyed with himself that he made himself look weird and awkward in front of Patty.
The next time they meet is at a rehearsal for Joyce's play that she is organising. She is desperate to leave Hawkins and therefore she plans to do so through a scholarship. However, the play has to be successful for that to happen. Anyway, back to the story. As Patty is auditioning for the lead role and starts to sing, Henry jumps in out of nowhere and tries to help her gain confidence. He has a go at singing, not to an amazing ability, and everyone in the audience laughs at him. Again, you can see the bond as Henry is trying to help her and genuinely has feelings for her. They have further moments in the play where Henry helps her to calm down and sing, which leads us to the next scene they have together.
It's church day, where everyone goes and attends. The Creel family arrive and Henry hides in the backroom of the church. At the back he finds Patty doing the same thing. Patty is nervous to go out on stage and Henry tries to calm her down. They give confessions and Henry says how that he is not right and there is something wrong with him, he has some sort of power. Patty again tells Henry that he's good and maybe he can use his powers for good. Following that, Henry creates a vision for them both where the church turns into a dance. Patty has the lead role of singing and is adored by everyone who reacts warmly to her performance. During the vision Henry tries to put his arm around Patty to try and get closer to her, but Patty gets caught up in the positive chaos of the vision. Henry gives her confidence through his powers, demonstrating that he can use them for good purposes. He is not inherently bad.
They spend literally everyday together, they really have a strong bond. Not only was it romantic love, they had a true friendship. Their next crucial scene together was during a date that they had at Melvalds. This is where Henry reveals to Patty that he can read people's minds and see what they're really thinking. He tells Patty that Karen thinks Ted is an idiot and Ted is afraid of Karen. Also, that most of them in the place were pretending to like it, really they were bored. Patty is astonished by this and also laughs. Shortly after this, Patty and Henry share their first kiss together.
Unfortunately, the next part is where things start going downhill for their relationship. It's mainly all because of what was going on with the Mindflayer, plus everyone else not being accepting of them being together. When I say not being accepting, I don't mean due to it being a race issue. It was simply that they were not approved of being together by some. Particularly Brenner who wanted Henry for himself, he saw Patty as an obstacle to controlling Henry. After Henry broke out of the HNL, due to Virginia contacting Brenner to take him there, Brenner wanted to find him again. One way was through finding where Patty was as he knew Henry would go for her.
Anyways, let's get back to the story again. Patty convinces Henry to look for her biological mother and Henry is not keen. He knows this could go wrong if the Mindflayer possessed him. They meet up and go to Henry's attic to start the search her mother. Patty mentions how it is cold in the attic, which Henry says that he likes it cold, which is what Will says in Season 2. He manages to find her performing and singing. Patty is so happy to hear this news. However, like Henry feared, the Mindflayer managed to take him over whilst he was in the void looking for Patty's biological mother. Patty gets frightened when Henry tells her to leave so that she doesn't get hurt. Patty's father, Principal Newby, finds them in the attic. To give context to this, Victor Creel goes to speak to Mr. Newby after he mentions how he should know that Henry and Patty are dating. He therefore decides to come over as he is not happy with this. So Mr. Newby walks into the attic at the wrong time. He tries to get Patty away from Henry which leads to him being attacked and almost killed. He is lifted up into the air. Patty manages to encourage Henry to take back control and beat the Mindflayer by telling him she loves him. Henry manages to break through the barrier and tell her that he loves her too. This stops the situation and saves Patty's father. However, he suffered the consequences of the attack by falling through the attic floor when he was dropped, alongside being blinded and seriously injured from the fall.
When we see Mr. Newby lying on a hospital bed, he suddenly wakes up after being visited by Patty. He tells her that he was attacked by a monster and that he saw it. He goes on to describe how Henry saved him from the monster. He proceeds to draw an image of what the Mindflayer looks like, detailing the shape of a spider looking dark shadowy creature. He hands this drawing over to Patty.
After these events, this is when Virginia sends Henry away to the HNL with Brenner. Later on after Patty learns that Henry did in fact save her father, she returns to the Creel house to try and find Henry. She calls out for him and manages to communicate with him. Henry contacts her through the void and they both are able to speak to each other. Patty tries to convince him that he's still good and she believes in him. She encourages him to return home and to play alongside her, as they auditioned to do so, in Joyce's play. He commits to this and decides to return, leaving the HNL. He rejects Brenner's attempt to try and make him kill another man and leaves the lab. Brenner tries to stop him and suffers the consequences of nearly being killed.
Brenner has a significant influence over Virginia Creel during the play and provides her with medication throughout, in the form of tranquillisers. He convinces her that Henry needs help. He goes to Virginia after Henry breaks out of the lab and tells her that he escaped. Virginia is immediately worried that he is a threat. Brenner reassures her that he can control him but needs to find out where he could be. He suspects that someone is holding Henry back and asks Virginia about this and she tells him. Although before we get to this point, we need to mention the Creel massacre. This occurs before Henry sets off for the play and to see Patty. When he returns home, he reads his family's mind and sees that Virginia has been contacting Brenner and talking about how Henry has never been good and is willing to give him up for good. He does so through seeing her memories. During this moment, Henry is very angry which allows the Mindflayer to take over. During emotions of hate and fear, this is when he loses control. We can visually see Henry having some sort of fit inside his mind. On the stage of the play we see two versions of Henry to demonstrate that he is stuck in his own mind. Meanwhile, the Mindflayer is controlling his physical body and can be seen hovering over the room. After which, Virginia and Alice are killed. Henry then leaves for Hawkins High to see Patty, hoping to get there before Brenner finds him and her.
Before finding Patty, Henry runs into Joyce. who voices her suspicion that Victor is dangerous and was behind the animal killings in Hawkins. It could be argued therefore that this gave Henry the idea to frame his father. Before she explains who she is suspicious about, Henry is worried she is on to him. So the Mindflayer starts briefly coming through until she reveals that it's Victor. Due to this, Henry calms down and he takes back control.
Moving on now, Henry finds Patty on stage but is momentarily joined by Brenner. Brenner attempts to convince Henry that Patty is the thing that's holding him back from his true potential. Patty tries to convince Henry to not listen to what Brenner is saying to him. Brenner also tries convincing Patty that Henry is a killer and is dangerous, that he killed his family. Henry tries dismissing these claims but he starts to get mad and angry at Brenner. Brenner knows what he is doing and is trying to incite this anger to get him to cause a reaction. Brenner is so deranged that he wanted Henry to keep killing to get stronger powers. The Mindflayer therefore starts to takeover and Henry does his best to try and stop it. Unfortunately, it does not work and he loses control. Patty falls from the rafters after the Mindflayer forces him to push her.
Henry basically is now back at the HNL and appears to try and contact Patty through the void. This is where we then see a scene where Patty finds her mother. So she did survive, this is where it's unclear whether she tried to find Henry again or not. Maybe she can help end this story.
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subastian-swallows · 10 months
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Dark Whispers, Light Vows
CHAPTER TWO: PAIN
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★ Chapter one
Chapter three ★
Pairing: Dark!Sebastian x AurorMC x AurorOminis - Love Triangle Fic
Words: 6.8k
Warnings: ANGST
Summary: “In a race against time, (Auror’s) Alice and Ominis must work together to recapture their former friend Sebastian, an escapee from Azkaban. But when Sebastian begins to use a mysterious new form of magic to haunt Alice’s dreams, she’s torn between bringing him to justice or helping him escape, risking everything in the process. Love, friendship, and the battle between light and dark intertwine as Alice must decide which path she will take.”  
A/N: Life kicked my butt, sorry for the wait, BUT SHE'S HERE AND SHE'S ANGSTY
“Nobody loves the light like the blind man.” ― Victor Hugo, Les Misérables
Listening to Ominis converse with the Minister—Faris, always felt strange. He always spoke as if politeness equated the same as respect and perhaps, that was why he was respected. Unlike Alice, who cared little for what others around her thought, Ominis always went out of his way to prove himself. When Alice had asked about it, perhaps feeling rather confused by the idea someone as special as Ominis had to do such a thing. She never expected that’s how she would’ve learnt about his family. They say, doing something in spite of others, would eventually lead you to hate it. But Ominis relished the fact that he had found something he loved, while also being able to rub it in their face—Alice perhaps, just loved the idea that he did it so casually, that it drove his family mad. 
Faris must have begun his lengthy speech, about why Sebastian must be stopped, due to Ominis naturally tensing up beside her. But Alice hadn’t truly been paying attention. No, instead she had been focused on the way his hair looked particularly thin and she wondered if he was stressed out. For some reason, Alice was unable to retain anything he said, her eyes locked onto his face to show she was present. And yet, his words sounded nothing like words, but more so, muffled noises—as if he was speaking to her underwater. She wondered if this was a way her mind allowed her to cope, she was there, but not really. Alice didn’t want to be here. She didn’t want to track down Sebastian and she sure didn’t want to see him again. 
Because seeing him again would only hurt, that much was certain and she had gotten so good at pretending—she was better. 
“Alice? Are you still with us?” 
“I’m sorry?” Alice said, realising quickly that she hadn’t really succeeded at acting as if she had been listening. But when she sat up straighter and realised Faris was observing her more closely than before, she gave him a half-assed smile. “I might have missed that last part. Hard to focus on so much information, when no one has any leads. No one does, right?”
Ominis moved to lean away from her now, his chin resting gently against his hand as he attempted to hide the amusement spreading quickly across his face. But when Faris let out a defeated laugh, as if he knew better than to fight Alice, he shuffled in his chair and fiddled with his pen. “We were hoping you two would have an idea on where to start—”
“So you have nothing…nothing at all?” 
“What Alice means…is that we might have some ideas,” Ominis said, straightening again, only to pinch her knee gently. He would have loved to say her bluntness was due to the situation with Sebastian, but Alice never really treated Faris any differently from their other colleagues. It was something that should have gotten her in trouble—but for some reason, Faris simply let it be. “Have you had a team visit his cell block?” 
Faris smiled and clicked his pen, something he did often enough that Alice was tempted to throw it out of his office window. But instead, she just gently gripped the arms of her chair. “We have, but there was nothing of interest. No touch of magic—nothing, it’s like he simply vanished.” 
“Perhaps, they didn’t look hard enough?”
“What are you saying, Ominis? You think he left something behind?” Faris asked, clicking his pen again as he leant forward and this time Ominis’ hand took a firm grasp on Alice’s knee. He knew her too well and she tried to relax back into her chair, when his grip loosened slightly. “Why would he—”
“He must have left a clue…or something. The whole thrill of this, if that’s why he’s done it—was clearly the idea behind being chased.”  
Alice pushed away from the table at Ominis’ words now, the abrupt movement causing him to slip slightly as her chair scraped noisily against the floor. But she didn’t care, moving to stare out the window in a huff. “Perhaps, he just simply wished to leave that place? I mean, wouldn’t you?” 
“And perhaps, you’re just giving him too much credit, Alice?” Ominis said, straightening up in his chair, before he exhaled and stood up. Unlike Alice, Ominis had practised a lot harder when it came to pretending it wasn’t Sebastian they were after, though it sure wasn’t easy. “There has to be more to this?” 
“You and this stupid ‘credit’ talk? Ominis, you’re so focused on the anger you feel towards him—that you’re ignoring the fact…that he might just want peace?” 
Ominis crossed his arms against his chest, eyebrows furrowing as if Alice had said something ridiculous. And yet, perhaps a part of him agreed with her, though, he refused to allow it more space in his heart. That was his way of coping with the loss of a friend. “Regardless of what his reasons for escaping were, it’s clear we need to start at the beginning.” 
“You’re not suggesting we start at his cell, are you?” Alice asked, turning back from the window and stepping towards Ominis who was now tense and looking in her direction. Faris had stayed quiet this whole time, perhaps just to observe and so Alice ignored his presence and moved closer towards Ominis. “You want to visit Azkaban? You cannot be serious?” 
“It only makes sense, Alice. Besides, we might find something the others couldn’t.” 
Alice turned towards Faris, as if he would ever take her words over Ominis’. But his face seemed unchanged and when she rested herself against his desk, it was only then that he clicked his pen and stood up. “Ominis—makes a good point, Alice. What could look like pointless scribbles to us, might look and be something more to you.” 
“So let me get this straight, you’re not only asking me to track down an old friend, but also visit the place we threw him in as a child?” Alice asked, tensing her fingers against his desk and flicking Ominis a pain-filled look. He had now exhaled softly at her words and it was in moments such as this, that Alice realised just how differently they had processed everything. “I won’t go—that’s just…it’s off the table.” 
“You’re being unreasonable, Alice.” 
She scoffed and pushed away from Faris’ desk now and moved to stand beneath Ominis’ nose as he refused to acknowledge her. He wasn’t trying to make Alice upset but it was impossible to deny that her fear was going to make things more difficult and so he swallowed harshly and placed his hands against her shoulders. Ominis might not have been as open as Alice when it came to the pain that lingered due to Sebastian, but it was there and he understood her more than she knew. And it was hard trying to argue over something that even he didn’t want to do, but Ominis also knew Sebastian all too well and he was sure they were missing something. No matter how small. 
“You knew what you were getting into when you agreed to help—”
“Did I? Well that’s news to me, Ominis…in fact, if I knew that it meant I would have to step foot in Azkaban, I wouldn’t have agreed,” Alice said, shrugging off his hands and when his eyebrows furrowed in response, she simply rolled her eyes and turned to face Faris. “You can call me unreasonable all you like, but I’m not doing it.” 
Ominis sat back down now and Alice welcomed the sudden silence from him. Unlike with Faris, who had begun to click his pen again while looking over the scene unfolding in front of him and yet, it’s only after Alice glanced angrily at his hand that he stopped and smiled. “We’re not here to force you into anything, Alice. But Ominis is right, you both have a strong connection to Mr Sallow—” 
“And that’s exactly why this request is ridiculous.”
Alice pushed away from his desk and headed for the door, easily shrugging off Ominis’ touch on her way past. Faris stood, whispering to let her go, before calling out to her as she swung the door open. “Alice, you have until the end of the day. Otherwise, Ominis must pick a new partner—or go alone.” 
She didn’t respond, but the words sunk into her back as if they were digging their way towards her heart and Alice hated it. The Ministry had a lot of tactics, ones that slowly chipped away at you, but using your feelings for someone—was their favourite. Faris knew of their strange relationship, unrequited feelings if you could call it that and he did well to play on it, as if they both were nothing but pawns to them. And that’s exactly what they were, nothing but a means to get things done—when the Ministry didn’t want to get their hands dirty. But unlike Ominis, Alice had always shown the possibilities of going rogue, she was talented yes, but unpredictable and that frightened them. 
Slamming the door shut behind her, Alice barely acknowledged the reactions from those waiting patiently to speak with the Minister and stormed out. She had grown used to being looked at, as if she was a spoilt child—destined to make things difficult. But no one truly understood what she was going through, not really and she despised everyone for it. They treated her like a fool, picking away at how easily her heart controlled her actions and yet, they always asked more of her. Alice had thought often, perhaps more than one should, about leaving the Ministry—only to disappear completely, but she always ended up staying and it was always for Ominis. 
•.•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•:•☾☼☽•:•.•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•
Ominis always knew where to find Alice when she disappeared from the office. Realising that despite wishing to get away, she could never really go that far—something he would often tease her for and yet, he was glad for it. The Ministry held many secrets, with its walls containing much of the knowledge about their world, but the one place Alice enjoyed most was the vivariums they had acquired. They were found in the Department of Magical Creatures, usually off-limits to those that weren’t from that sector, but Alice always managed to slip in unnoticed—it had become such a normality, that they eventually allowed her permission. Truthfully it amused her that her unsanctioned visits became such an annoyance that the department just gave up and left her be, but it wasn’t as if she was doing anything wrong.
No, in fact, all she needed from the vivariums—was a place to hide and being surrounded by magical beasts was just an added perk. Slowly moving the sleeping niffler from her lap, Alice refused to look up when a shadow covered her, perhaps already knowing who it was. And yet, Alice’s fingers twitched slightly as if she was preparing to reach for her wand. The reaction alone caused Ominis to chuckle under his breath and Alice recalled a past memory, one where he had mentioned she tensed her fingers too much. So much so, that he could always tell when she moved them, his explanation being that he had gotten used to the sound. But Alice just thought he was guessing and somehow got it right every time, for it didn’t make sense for him to be so attuned with her—right?
“You need a better hiding spot,” Ominis said, sitting down beside her and when his arm brushed hers, Alice exhaled and leaned back on her hands. She wasn’t mad, no that wasn’t the right feeling, truthfully Alice was disappointed—perhaps she had hoped Ominis would suddenly agree that everything was wrong. But he never did and she hummed sadly, when he nudged her. “I’m sorry for calling you unreasonable, Alice. I, perhaps, should have been more considerate of your feelings.” 
“Should have been? Ominis, all these years and you’re still terrible at apologising. I suppose none of my griping stuck—I sure am glad I even tried.”
Ominis smiled and reached forward to scratch the niffler’s head, which had now awoken and moved to nibble at his shoelaces. Alice pouted as she sat up and moved him away, the niffler whining softly in the process—but her thoughts were preoccupied, when Ominis’ fingers brushed hers. “Isn't that a part of my charm? Being harsh suits me, don’t you think?” 
“Not at all actually, it’s an act you’ve got incredibly good at—but, it doesn’t suit you, nor is it the real you,” Alice said, nudging the niffler to join the others as Ominis rested his head against his arms, which were now perched on his knees. Alice watched him curiously, reminiscing about their moments in the bell tower courtyard, sitting just like this and she smiled when he hummed softly. “You thought I didn’t notice, right? No matter how bad I got, I always noticed you Ominis. You were just always too afraid to let anyone see you—”
“I, let you see me.” 
Alice’s jaw tensed and she looked away. Not because she was embarrassed, that would have been too easy, instead she felt rather guilty. She knew Ominis had fallen in love with her by the end of their sixth-year, but she couldn’t give him her heart fully and so she gave him none of it. “I suppose you did…do you want to know what I saw?”
“Enlighten me…please? I would be lying if I said I wasn’t curious?” Ominis said, moving his head now so that he looked in her direction completely and Alice swallowed shyly, keeping her focus on the grass as she began to pick at it. “What exactly did you see?” 
“Well, I saw pain…and I saw love.” 
Alice smiled as she thought about the memories they had shared and how Ominis brought her back to life. He was the warmth her body craved and he had never strayed too far, it was cruel yes—but they both had gotten so used to it and Alice didn’t want to let him go. “I saw a boy who found the light amongst the darkness, challenging everything it threw at him and yet, you never allowed it to consume you. I wish I could have said the same for myself. But I think what I love the most about you Ominis, is that the real you, is kind—is bright.”
“Bright? Now, I feel like my curiosity has only grown,” Ominis said, his smile quickly hiding against his arms as he turned back to look ahead and he chuckled softly when Alice huffed and nudged him. He could tell she was trying to be sincere, her words seeping their way into his heart, only to restart it again and he gently nudged her back in response—despite wishing to do something else. “Tell me more, I like listening to you talk—especially when you’re talking about me.” 
“How vexing, I think I’d rather stop there…you know, before your head gets too big for your shoulders.”
Ominis nodded in agreement, perhaps just to give up on teasing her and Alice laughed as if she had won something. Truthfully the reason he was here was to try and get her to reconsider the idea of visiting Azkaban and although it seemed impossible, he might have relied too much on their friendship. Hoping she would end up agreeing to the request. “We still need to speak about it, Alice. You do know that right?” 
“And there you go, ruining the mood,” Alice said, before she stood up and dusted herself off. It was clear that Ominis wasn’t here for anything more than what they had been tasked with and honestly, Alice actually felt a little hurt. But it’s not until Ominis followed her and grabbed her arm, that the hurt slowly turned to anger. “I already told you I won’t go, Ominis. I don’t plan to change my mind.” 
“So you’re not at all curious? They told me his cell is filled with writing, scribbles—what if he has left something for us to find?” 
Alice tried to pull away now, wishing for Ominis to get the hint that she didn’t want to do this. She barely liked the idea of Azkaban on its own, but now thinking about it being the place Sebastian had been for the last few years—frightened her and so when she finally yanked herself free, Alice took a step back. “Or, here’s a thought…he might have just gone mad—like everyone else that enters that place.” 
“But don’t you want to make sure? Alice, think logically for a second here,” Ominis said, stepping to the right, just in time to catch Alice from trying to make a beeline for the door and when she grumbled and tried to push him away—he simply held on tighter, until she gave up and looked away. “What if he left something for…you? If you truly want to believe he left to find peace, wouldn’t he have left you a goodbye?” 
“That’s not fair, Ominis.”
Ominis hated himself for the tactics he had learnt from working with the Ministry, but he knew that without Alice, any hope in finding Sebastian would be fruitless and so he swallowed his guilt. “None of this is fair, but we don’t have a choice. I understand the intensity of the situation, but will you truly make me do this alone? I wasn’t lying when I said I needed you with me for this.” 
It wasn’t hard to figure out what Ominis was doing. In fact, Alice almost wanted to laugh at him, as if he had somehow forgotten that they had both been taught the same tactics and although the situation seemed to amuse her, Alice wondered if there was any truth behind it. She hadn’t allowed herself to think about Sebastian in Azkaban, the thoughts filled with so much darkness that even she felt sick from them, but sometimes—when Alice found herself transfixed on her memories of him, they often slipped into her head and she would always end up crying. Perhaps, that is why she didn’t want to go through with it. Alice had created such a barrier in her head, pretending that Sebastian was safe and unharmed, that visiting Azkaban would destroy that. It would remind her of the guilt she felt on the night he was taken and how she couldn’t even bring herself to say goodbye.
Feeling Ominis’ hands slowly move to reach for her face, Alice finally looked back at him and she didn’t realise she had started to cry, until his thumbs delicately swiped at her cheeks. But it’s only after she looked at him properly, her eyes shifting between his softened gaze to his lips, slightly parted—that her hands slowly wrapped around his waist and she pulled him closer. “You’ve gotten awfully good at manipulating, Ominis. I’m not sure if I should be afraid or impressed.” 
“I’m not trying to manipulate you, Alice—”
“Oh? Forgive me then, I must be losing my mind,” Alice said, slowly leaning her forehead against his chest and using his heartbeat as a way to slow her own. Except, considering his own was beating just as rapidly against his chest as hers—her plan failed before it even began and so she could only hum in defeat. “You know, you could have just begged. I might have just agreed if you did.”    
Ominis’ arms had snaked around Alice now, providing her with the comfort she needed, no matter the pain that lingered with it. He didn’t want this, he didn’t want to allow Sebastian back in their lives—purely for the sadness that he brought with him. But perhaps, Ominis had just been hoping their demons stayed in the dark. “Do I look like someone who has to beg?” 
“For me—you should have tried. For this…you should have pulled out every tactic in the book,” Alice said, pulling back just enough to look up at him and she realised his eyes were flickering, as if he was thinking about what to say or what to do, she pouted—she could feel it already stretching them both, ripping at their hearts and she gently reached for his face. “Perhaps then, I could have pretended—”
“And perhaps, I just hoped you would have followed me without question? If I was him, you would have.”
Alice’s hand tensed against his cheek and she would have pulled it away, except Ominis swiftly held it in place with his own. She hated the fact that he was right, she would have done anything for Sebastian—and Alice almost did. “Ominis, you must understand—”
“I understand perfectly well, Alice. Do not forget, I was there too,” Ominis said, his eyes closing softly and suddenly her hand loosened, now laying limp, but he didn’t remove his hand and he certainly didn’t wish for her touch to disappear—so she allowed him to keep them connected. “But, we cannot sit by and let this destroy us. He’s done that enough, ingraining himself into our pain—we need closure…and I won’t lose everything I’ve worked for…for him, I can’t.”
“You can barely mutter his name anymore. Could you actually find it in you, to bring him in?” 
Ominis’ eyes fluttered open and a lopsided smile appeared on his face, almost making Alice want to slap him for the timing of it, but it quickly faded and when his sadness returned—she finally pulled her touch from his face and bundled his hands together in hers. “I’ve said his name plenty of times. In fact, I don’t say his name, simply—because of you. I know it hurts you more…hearing it. So I try my best not to use it.” 
She should have known that from the beginning Ominis had tried to be considerate of her and yet, Alice still wished to refuse. Deep down, she had thought she had it all planned out—only agreeing to help, until things got too intense. But now, Alice was almost too afraid to pull away, realising that the whole time she had been following Ominis along to visit the Minister—the gnawing sensation of guilt and responsibility had slowly been building. She now felt stuck, as if she was torn between hurting herself or Ominis and she swallowed down her fear, knowing she would always choose to suffer over him. 
“How would we do this?” Alice asked, her voice now soft and unsure, as if she was having to force out the words. Because truthfully, she wished to say something else, she would have loved nothing more than to tell him no and be done with it. But Alice always knew that Ominis had a way with words and perhaps, she should have known that despite everything—she was always going to agree in the end. “I’m afraid, Ominis. Auror’s aren’t meant to be afraid.” 
“And who told you that? Alice, do not forget—as an Auror we risk our lives every day? If you weren’t afraid, I would be concerned.” 
Alice forced a smile and gave his hands a gentle squeeze, before she let them go. She was battling herself already, but perhaps overcoming this first step—would eventually help, when she came face to face with Sebastian and so she exhaled and straightened her uniform. “And are you afraid?”
“Of course I am. He—Sebastian, was practically my brother. I would have done anything for him and he broke that trust, Alice,” Ominis said, his voice showing no sign of fear or pain and Alice always felt jealous at how he could hide how he was feeling, while hers lay bare—for everyone to see. “Everything that has happened, was because of his decisions. But, that doesn’t mean I’m not afraid of seeing him again. We are more alike than you know, you and I…I’m just better—”
“At hiding it, yes. It’s as if you’ve read my mind.”
Ominis chuckled softly and reached forward to fiddle with her hair, which she hadn’t noticed was slightly out of place, until his fingers brushed through it. Alice wondered if he knew somehow, or just simply used it as an excuse to touch her—either way, she let him do it. “I would like to say I could read your mind, but I am not sure I would like to…besides, truthfully you’re just consistent and so I don’t have to try too hard to figure you out.” 
“Why does that sort of feel like an insult?” Alice asked, shivering slightly when Ominis’ fingers brushed along the side of her face, before he pulled away and offered her his arm. Ominis was smiling now, a more innocent version of the smile he had donned since earlier, but it was still a smile and Alice grumbled slightly at his reaction. “Do you plan to tease me the whole time? Or just while you try to win me over…is this some sort of new tactic of yours—reverse psychology, perhaps?
“I will neither confirm nor deny that statement…my tactics are my own.”
Alice huffed and took his arm. She had always found it strange how quickly Ominis could calm her down, in a way that made her feel like she could take on anything. And although her fear was now just buried deeper within the pit of her stomach, Alice perhaps had a small inkling of hope. “Keep your secrets then…but I’ll get it out of you one day.”
“If you’re sweet enough, I would consider telling you,” Ominis said, jolting slightly when Alice pinched at his side and so he took it as a sign that they could finally leave the safety of the vivarium, perhaps pulling Alice back into reality. But when Ominis felt her tense slightly, all he could do was hum softly and pull her closer. “Hey…we’ve got this, alright? I’m right here and I’m not going anywhere. We’re in this together.”
“Right, yes…together.” 
•.•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•:•☾☼☽•:•.•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•
Azkaban, what a dreadful place. Nightmares barely did it justice, but despite the icy touch of the wind, drifting in from the sea or the Dementor’s that floated above, desperate to feed on anything good—it was the screaming that Alice hated the most. Now, it wasn’t as if she didn’t believe there were many that deserved to be here. Knowing well that a few of the dark wizards that lay behind its walls, had every right to be locked away. It was the fact that knowing Sebastian was once a part of them, always made her want to throw up and she might have—if it wasn’t for Ominis, comforting her from the sidelines.
There appeared to be more Auror’s stationed at Azkaban now, a lot more since Sebastian’s escape and even Alice had to admit that she commended their courage. Faris had asked her once, more so in passing, if she would be interested in guarding the prison—and she practically scoffed in his face. Even if it wasn’t for Sebastian, Alice was more than aware that she would never be cut out to be stationed here. The idea of being in such a place haunted her dreams and so she was always thankful to have Ominis alongside her, putting in a good word. Faris had commanded the Dementor’s to stay back, just enough so that the Auror’s could walk freely—but Alice made sure to keep her guard up anyway. 
Feeling Ominis pull at her arm, Alice quickly snapped from her thoughts and frowned, realising she had lingered too long at the registrations office. The man behind the counter had long since disappeared, perhaps annoyed by her just standing there and so she slowly turned as Ominis’ hand glided down her arm and reached for her own. “You’ve got this, Alice. I’m right here.” 
“It just feels wrong—”
“This place is just a place—at the end of the day, we won’t be long. So hold onto your strength, even if you have to search deep for it,” Ominis said, his voice soft and toneless, as if he didn’t know whether his sarcasm fitted a place such as this and so he kept his words tense and professional. Alice mocked him silently, knowing that he had opted to be the brave one for once, a title they would usually fight for—but not here, not now. “Besides, we’ve got a job to do. The sooner we find something, the quicker we can put this place behind us.” 
Alice looked at Ominis properly now, realising that she had been trying her best not to look at his reaction to the place and when she finally did, Alice’s hand quickly tightened around his. His face had begun to contort slightly with each new scream that they heard and she wondered just how much more intense the place was to him, to his senses. Slowly moving to place her free hand against his chest, Alice froze with how quickly his heart was beating and her frown only deepened. “You don’t have to be brave, you know? I understand better than anyone.”  
“One of us has to be brave, I’m just choosing for us.” 
“I suppose I have no other option, but to accept. Though I don’t like it,” Alice said, swallowing nervously as Ominis slowly pulled her with him and when her eyes glued to just how tensely he was holding his wand, she leaned into his side. No matter how many times he told her, he was being brave, she would never believe it. “Do we have a time limit? I feel like I’ll need a moment to get over the initial visit—before I can even work properly.”
Ominis chuckled softly and perhaps a little abruptly, the sound echoing off the walls and although it was a little out of place—Alice welcomed the sound. It made her feel grounded, as if she was still whole and so she squeezed his hand again. “Only mere hours ago, you said you’d never step foot in here. Now, you want to make sure you have enough time to have a breakdown and be able to do your job? You’ve always been strange…but, that’s a new one.” 
“Clearly, I’m just full of surprises. Can’t you just be happy that I’m here.” 
“Oh, I’m very happy, don’t get me wrong. It’s just amusing that’s all,” Ominis said, a smile teasing on his lips as he realised that their small talk was keeping Alice distracted enough from the cell blocks they had been passing and so he continued. “Truthfully, I must admit that it makes me feel like you chose to come…well, because of me. I suppose it’s a nice thought, even if I’m wrong.”
Alice hummed softly and noticed the two Auror’s stood guard in front of a cell block and so she quickly let go of his hand. Ominis wasn’t wrong, if she had been asked by anyone else, she would have never set foot in Azkaban. But it was different coming from him and Alice knew that in the end, it was the right thing to do—no matter how much it hurt. The Auror’s stationed by Sebastian’s cell, looked tired, perhaps even sad and when Ominis acknowledged them, ignoring Alice’s sudden silence, the Auror’s nodded and moved to the side. It felt like ripping off a bandaid, the slow pull Ominis had to do as Alice stalled in the doorway, but he had gotten her this far—and so he simply refused to let her turn back now. 
They had been right about his cell. The walls were covered in carvings, some words were legible, while others were scribbled and sporadic. But Alice found her focus had landed on the moulding bed in the corner of the room, if you could even call it that. Before she slowly pulled away from Ominis—and reached out to poke at the moth-eaten sheet, that laid along it. Had Sebastian truly been here, suffering with nothing but his thoughts and the icy touch of the sea, Alice in that moment felt her stomach tense and she covered her mouth. Her vision grew hazy before she had a chance to do anything, realising that it was more than she could bear and it was only after Ominis grabbed her shoulder—that Alice stood up and buried herself into his chest.
“This place…he…Ominis, he was just a boy. We were just kids,” Alice said, her voice broken with silent sobs and she tightly gripped at his coat, twisting it so harshly that it felt as if it was going to rip. But Ominis didn’t say anything about it, he just simply held her close and softly rubbed at the back of her head. “It’s horrible…everything, he was just a stupid kid.” 
“Alice…I’m sorry, I know this is difficult. If you need a moment…” 
Alice shook her head against his chest and tightened her grip. She didn’t want him to let her go and she hated herself for it. All of her confidence had suddenly disappeared now and she felt like she was suffocating, the air feeling tight and restricting. But Alice didn’t want it to be like this and although she sobbed softly into him, wetting his coat ever so slightly, she tried to think of ways to calm herself down—and yet, she had nothing. “I just need…you to hold me. Don’t let me go, please.” 
“I’m not going anywhere, Alice,” Ominis said, resting his chin against the top of her head now and he just held her. Her pain slowly engulfed him, swallowing them both into an intense moment of reminiscing about their school days and of Sebastian. It was sickening and Ominis felt every hair on his body stand up, but he promised her he would be brave—so he had to be brave. “Do you think you can continue…? If you can’t, I will understand.” 
“I just…need a moment, I’m sorry. But, I won’t give up…just yet.”
Ominis hummed sadly and pulled her head back, his hands now gripping her face gently as his thumbs lightly drew circles against her cheeks. His eyebrows had furrowed at her answer and when she tried to pull herself back into him, he held her in place—making her whine softly. “Don’t you ever apologise to me. Not over this, Alice. I don’t ever want to hear those words come from your mouth, do you hear me? I’m no monster…I know this isn’t just another job. But it is now our responsibility to see it through.” 
“You’re too good at this, Ominis,” Alice said, gently straightening out his coat which had now been dishevelled by her touch and he smiled softly at her words. She did mean it though, Ominis always knew exactly what to say and he did it with such ease—that it felt as if he had practised it beforehand. But truthfully, it was just another thing he was perfect at and she welcomed it openly. “Let’s just get this over with…I don’t wish to stay here, longer than needed.” 
“I’ll be right here, you can even hold my hand…if you need to.”
Alice smiled weakly and leaned up to plant a soft kiss against his cheek, before she even realised what she was doing and pulled away. Ominis’ eyes had widened just enough to show that he was surprised by the sudden reaction and so Alice quickly took a step back, reaching slowly for her lips. “Ominis…I…I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me.” 
“It’s alright, tensions are high…I understand. Do not concern yourself,” Ominis said, his voice a little shy and as she watched him turn slightly, reaching a hand to his cheek—the guilt returned in the pit of Alice’s stomach and she frowned, biting at her nails, before moving to look around the room. “Will you…can you tell me what you see?”
“Words…just tons of words, scratched into the walls—against the floor. It’s as if he was trying to remember them…or, wait.”  
Moving past Ominis slowly, making sure to give him a gentle squeeze on the arm, almost in hopes to make the situation less awkward. Alice used her wand to illuminate the darkened walls of the cell, before she realised that some words had been underlined. But what seemed more strange was that the certain words, which had been marked, were perhaps trying to tell them something and soon enough—Alice picked up on what Sebastian had left them. 
“You were right, Ominis. He’s left us something indeed,” Alice said, her voice still shaky and despite clearly feeling proud of herself for figuring it out, her heart still ached from just being in amongst the walls of his cell and so she hummed sadly and turned towards Ominis. “There are certain words spread around the cell that have been underlined, but that’s not all. Within those certain words, each one has a number of lines etched underneath them—”
“A message—he left us a message.”
Alice nodded and moved towards Ominis, outstretching her hand to him. Magic was not allowed to be used within the walls of Azkaban, perhaps with the worry of the prisoners being able to get a hold of it and so they had to go old school. “Do you still have that pen and notepad? I think I can decipher his message.”
“I’m surprised the others didn’t notice this,” Ominis said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out what she needed, before he smiled as she quickly took it and turned him around. Ominis understood well that she wouldn’t want to sit against the floor of the cell, so he happily offered his back—which she used for a table. “Perhaps, they just didn’t look hard enough.”
“It’s a little on the nose…but I only noticed it by accident. Perhaps, they didn’t see the need to linger here.” 
Ominis chuckled softly and Alice whined as the pen slipped slightly, smudging her writing. She had now pushed him towards the wall and placed her wand between her teeth, narrowing her eyes faintly, just enough to still see the walls and when she wrote down the final word—she pulled away. “So? What does it say?”
“It says—’in the heart of where lovers once shared their first kiss, there lies a letter. Find it.’—I suppose, even being in here, he didn’t lose his love for the theatrics,” Alice said, her eyes scanning over the paper, rereading it as if she had gotten it wrong and yet it matched perfectly with what was scratched out against the walls of the cell. “I might be wrong…but I think I might know of this place.” 
“Are you saying this is about you and him?”
Alice looked up as her hands started to shake and she realised Ominis had turned to face her, his jaw tensed just enough that she could see it had caught him off guard and she hummed sadly. They should have known that Sebastian would have pulled something like this, but what did it mean? “Well…there’s only one way to find out, isn’t there?” 
“And where does this letter lead us, Alice?” Ominis asked, his words suddenly more tense and although he was trying to sound like it hadn’t bothered him, for the first time—Alice noticed the shift in his voice and she pouted slightly as she reached for him, only to pull back slowly. “This feels almost too intimate, I wonder how Sebastian would feel with you sharing it with me.” 
“If…I’m right, our next stop is Hogwarts—the Undercroft, to be more exact.”
Ominis chuckled a little defeated and straightened his coat, perhaps to keep his hands preoccupied before he raised his wand and pointed towards the door. Alice could see that this hurt him, in a different way from simply getting a step closer to finding Sebastian and she desperately wished to reach for him—but she couldn’t move and he exhaled softly, moving towards the door. “Well, it seems that we have to take a trip down memory lane. Shall we?” 
Alice didn’t hesitate with leaving, wishing to be as far away from Azkaban as she could possibly be, but knowing that Ominis was upset—made her stomach twist uncomfortably. But, he could never truly stay mad at her for very long and he knew deep down that this situation was going to be hard for the both of them and so he hummed softly, reaching out his hand. There were too many memories attached to this job and Ominis knew it was only going to get worse, the closer they got to Sebastian and so he chose to ignore his feelings—at least for now.
Once Alice took his hand, her grip tightening almost immediately, Ominis forced a smile and pulled her closer. He didn’t want her to feel guilty, his unrequited feelings weren't her fault, but it sure did suck. The pair eventually made their way outside, thankful that the icy wind had grown still with the evening sky and without another word—perhaps just desperate to get this over with, they quickly apparated back to where their story began. 
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
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Love Song for a Vampire Pt.25
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Pairing(s): Edward Cullen x Wolf!Reader
Warnings: none
Words: 1996
Part 1    Part 2    Part 3    Part 4  Part 5  Part 6  Part 7  Part 8  Part 9  Part 10  Part 11  Part 12  Part 13  Part 14  Part 15  Part 16  Part 17  Part 18  Part 19  Part 20  Part 21  Part 22  Part 23  Part 24  Part 26  Part 27  Part 28  Part 29  Part 30  Part 31  Part 32  Part 33  Part 34  Part 35  Part 36  Part 37  Part 38  Part 39
Giving you and Edward privacy, Evita goes back to the bonfire. She does give one last look to the vampire, as if wondering if it was okay to leave you alone with something like him. Regardless, Evita leaves, carrying her bag that held the ritual items she would have used.
You watch her figure join the bundles of trees just to make sure she was heading in the right direction. Satisfied that she’d find her way safely, you turn to Edward who offers his hand out to you. “Care to join me for a walk?”
Hesitant fingers slide along his cold hand. Your body temperatures were solar opposites. The two colliding sent a rippling tingling that started from your palm and up your arm. Edward felt it too as he his body jolts slightly from the sensation.
“Alice called you?” You ask as you fall into step alongside him. “She said you were at Bella’s with the Denalis.”
He nods. “Yeah. But I told them there was somewhere I needed to be. Alice was freaking out. I think I freaked out a little bit more. . .”
The gentle singing of the river gets closer the further you and Edward delve into the forest. Leisurely you bump into one another in a soothing rhythm, wandering with no real destination.
“How is she doing? Bella? I saw her sometime ago and we had lunch.” You hadn’t gained the courage to call her yourself. While the two of you had spoken in a civil manner, you were still uncomfortable with the thought of ringing her up yourself. Jacob wanted friendship to blossom between you and Bella, but it was too soon for that. Especially with Edward making a stance and choosing to go after you.
“Healthy. Healthy and safe.” That was all he ever wanted for Bella. You nod and move to continue along the riverbank but Edward stops you. “Wait. I know we’re fated to be together, but I feel like there is still so much I don’t know about you. You probably know more about me.”
What was there to know about you? Before turning into a wolf, your life had been normal. So normal that it could border on being mind painfully boring. A life of rinse and repeat. Wake up, go to school, come home, do homework, then go to bed to do it all over again the next day. Occasionally on the weekends your small family might go out for a refreshing hike or even fishing.
Going on to tell Edward of your simple life on the reservation, you describe your mother and father; both hard working people and yet always generous to those who had even less n than you did. Like when Harry Clearwater died, they made sure Sue and her kids were fed for weeks. Your mom would stay up late preparing casserole dishes and other easy to heat up meals so that Sue wouldn’t have to worry about her family eating. They even picked up Seth (along with the others) for carpool.
Never wanting them to worry more than they needed to, you tried your entire childhood to be a good kid. Being a wolf though changed that. Now constantly worried about your wellbeing, all you could do was give them hollow promises that you would be safe. That was not the job of a Quileute wolf though. Combating danger was. And fighting vampires guaranteed that you were never safe.
“Do they know about me?” Hesitantly he brings up the imprinting. Unsure of how much your parents really knew about your others life.
Pursing your lips, you relent. “To an extent. They don’t really know imprinting itself but they understand that something is going on between us, whatever that may be. But they don’t know what you or the rest of your family are. Just that you’re descendants from the stories that we tell of the Cold Ones.”
Not it mention that they probably thought you still had a crush on Embry. Your parents saw it immediately when both of you were small children. Their giggles could be heard whenever you and Embry hung out and they were home. Worse was when Quil threatened to tell Embry at one point if you didn’t do whatever he said. That threat didn’t hold up when your hurled your small body at him and pinned him to the ground; hissing that you would spit in his face right then and there if he promised to keep it a secret.
“You know, I still don’t know much about you either. I know that you were the first vampire Carlisle created, but nothing else.” What you really wanted to know was what was his life like when he was a human. But you realize how sensitive that topic could be. His human family was definitely dead by now.
His gaze warms thoughtfully. When he spoke, along with fondness came the sting of sorrow. “Before Carlisle saved me from the Spanish influenza, I grew up in Chicago with a vacant father and a loving mother. Nothing particularly exciting happened during that time. I was seventeen when my mom and I got sick.”
That tender smile twitched downward for a split second at the memory of his mom and the day he became an immortal. You couldn’t imagine losing your own mother the same day you discovered you could live forever.
Edward notices the sad gleam on your face and he makes sure to lift his lips back up into an easygoing grin. “Don’t be sad. I’ve had many decades to mourn and grieve and really understand the opportunity she wanted me to have. With this life I was able to get not one, but two medical degrees, learn a handful of languages, and so much more.”
He truly had lived much longer than you. You were still the young and naive age of sixteen despite looking like a full grown adult thanks to the wolf transformation.
“That’s incredible. I’ve never been out of the state of Washington.” You bemoan and pick through the rocks that lined the slow trickle of water.
He laughs a little. “You still have plenty of time to change that. I never left Illinois when I was human either. There was the option of boarding school out of state, but I didn’t feel comfortable leaving my mom alone.” Edward sits down along the bank with a sigh and leans his head back. The sky was already a dark blanket with stars embroidered into it. His skin nearly glowed in the starlight.
You wouldn’t learn everything about him in one single night. For now, this was enough.
**
Evita couldn’t help but release a relieved breath as she walked out of the thick of trees and back to Sam Uley’s house. Happy that she didn’t have to perform a life changing spell like that. While she was more than capable, there were a lot of things that could have gone wrong for her to intervene with strong forces. Edward and (y/n)’s differences may prove to be challenging, almost to impossible, but Evita had a good feeling that things would work out for them in the end. Patience and communication was required on both sides. (Y/n) had a good head on her shoulders though. At least from what Evita could see from the short amount of time they had known each other.
Already Evita could see the orange glow of the bonfire and hear many voices reveling. For a second, she felt a ping of homesickness. Being among the warmth of a close knit community had her longing for her family. She wouldn’t be able to go home for quite awhile. There was much work to do here. Her mother had understood the duty she felt and commended her daughter.
Most of the seats closest to the fire were already taken by other members of the pack and elder’s council. There was one seat however that was still empty. Next to the only other female wolf.
Leah right?” Evita walks up to her and points to the plastic folding chair propped next to her. “Is it okay if I take this seat?”
The she-wolf flicked her dark umber eyes over to the witch, nodding her consent silently. Leah observed Evita carefully as she sat. “Where’s (y/n)?”
Grinning, Evita looked back over her shoulder at the forest. “Thought I would let her and Edward have some privacy as they talk.”
That seemed to make her draw even further into herself. “I thought I smelled a leech.”
“Oh? What do vampires smell like to you?” She innocently asked with a cock of her head. Leah had never paused to really describe a vampire’s scent.
“Grossly sweet.” Was all she could find to explain.
Humming with thought, she leans back in her chair, her view filled with the laughing faces of the younger members of the pack and the thoughtful ones of the elders. “How funny and odd this world is.”
Leah didn’t think it was funny at all. More like some cruel joke that she would never get the hang of. In every single way, this whole wolf thing had royally messed up her life. There was no solace she could take.
She knew that if she told Evita about Jacob imprinting on her, that Evita wouldn’t find the world quite so funny.
It was on the tip of her tongue as bitterness nearly won her over. Evita was genuine though and only wanted to get to know the pack better. She was willing to protect them with her magic after all.
Gulping back whatever sour thing she could have said, Leah asked her “Was this your first time encountering vampires?”
“Yes. They weren’t quite as I imagined. A visiting witch came to our house one day and told us about them. How terrifying it is to be in front of one. Even of the massive coven called the Volturi.”
(y/n) had mentioned them too. If they were enough to make the Cullens fear them, then they must be a big deal.
Her concern was palpable and Evita told Leah reassuringly “Like I told the rest of the pack, I’ll do my best to protect everyone here in Forks. I just might need to call in one more person. . .”
Eyebrows lift quizzically, Leah sits up a little straighter. “Another witch?”
She nods. “I would have preferred my grandma to come, but she’s too old for traveling and my mom is too busy taking care of my sisters. There’s someone else I know. Thing is they’re in Haiti right now so it would take a while for them to fly here.”
“You don’t think you can do it by yourself?”
“I can make all the wards myself, but I won’t have enough energy to install them strategically around Forks. I would ask the pack to help me, but they need to have a proper knowledge of magic that would take me months to teach. And with the informants that the Volturi possess, who knows how long we have until they know about this Bella girl.”
Anxiety would have besieged Evita, it should have from all the responsibility. She was good under pressure though and knew that she shouldn’t waste her time worrying. Leah watched the expression of determination calm the witch’s features. Even if it was just herself, she would do the best she could.
“Calling your friend is always worth a shot. . .” Leah murmured; Evita’s beaming confidence was contagious. “You never know. Like you said, the world is odd and funny. They might be able to make it if they plan properly.”
Evita shot Leah a bright smile. “You’re right! I’m going inside to call her.”
Knowing she could offer appreciated assistance, Leah grins to herself and glances over at the dancing flames. Her rigid demeanor softened and one could say she was at peace with herself for but a moment.
——————————
TAGLIST: @saltedcoffeescotch , @dangerouslittlefairy , @burn-crash-rqmance , @casedoina , @avadakadabra93 , @daryldixonstorm , @blue-aconite , @xanniestired666 , @esposadomd, @godinho11 , @arin-swear-rose , @alexizodd , @melaninsugarbaby , @lyeatoalinatoheaven  , @ronwownsme , @itsmytimetoodream , @afro-hispwriter , @mutandis-extremis993 , @hxgemxscles , @nightly-polaris , @corrodedcoffins-slut , @ellesalazar , @itgetzweird08 , @crybabyatthediscooffandoms , @sassyandclassyx , @scarlet2007 , @theroyalbrownbarbie , @jennyamanda8 , @stevenandmarcslove , @biancaindaeyo , @loversjoy , @turningtoclown , @vixorell , @xxthackerybinxxx , @daredevilonmyheels , @dumbbitch-juice , @southern-bell-give-hell
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galaxydefenders03 · 1 year
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I read and watched Twilight for the first time recently and I have some thoughts:
- Why are the Cullens in high school ?? They're like over 100 years old and they're going to school with minors ?? Just so they can stay in town for a few extra years ??
- Did the ppl making the movie notice that the owl statue made Edward look like he has fairy wings ? Was it on purpose ?
- Bella's boring and Edward's creepy. There. I said it.
- The book would be so much better if Bella wasn't there and it was just about the Cullens hanging out and playing baseball
- Alice x Jasper ? Yeah I don't see it ( she should be with me 😌 )
- So Jessica, Mike and Co. just like invited Bella into their friendship group and they were really nice to her and she just blew them off for a MAN ?! ( Girl what ??) I would have loved to make friends that fast but she doesn't even care
- Edward sparkling in the sun and being all like "this is the skin of a killer, Bella" 💀
- The Cullens were so proud of the dinner they cooked for Bella and she didn't even want it 😭 Invite me over ! I'll eat it !
- Where did Laurent go ? I swear he was like the leader of the weird evil vampires and he just disappeared? Did I miss something ?
- Edward just like 🧍‍♂️ watching Bella sleep
- Do the Cullens have to keep updating their drivers licenses, birth certificates etc over and over again ?
- Why do the Cullens keep living the same lives just to fit in ? Why can't y'all just live in a castle or something like normal vampires?
- Why are people arguing over Edward and Jacob when Carlisle is right there?
Overall, the book and film weren't my kind of thing but they were fairly entertaining. Yes there are some parts of twilight I didn't like but I will be reading and watching the sequels at some point :)
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gwyns · 1 month
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I was reblogging a pro Elain post to show girlie some love and because I agreed with what it said, but I noticed some of the comments that just rubbed me the wrong way.
One of the comments said “That's the thing. Everyone wants Az with Gwyn because she's now a Valkaryie.. but does Az want that? He hates laryians, and especially hates how they treat the women. And we have a warrior couple.. why would SJM make another?”
And then some of the reblogs said “tbh most 'girl boss' characters are just..childish pick mes—characters like elain are so mature interesting fascinating” and “I don't know about yall but i am sooooo tired of these Feisty, Sassy, girlboss female characters, who smart mouth everybody. A soft feminine and quiet female character, who loves to garden and keep to herself and mind her own business is what we need more of”
I agree that we need more soft and feminine female characters, but to put down another woman just to show love for another isn’t okay. That post didn’t even say anything about Gwyn or ships, but she still got brought up.
E/riel’s say all these thing that they want for Elain, but then they try to make her a spy or a warrior. They constantly change her plot/arc and personality and characteristics just to fit Azriel’s. Make fanart of her with weapons, in leathers, and covered in blood. Complain how we “hate” Elain for being more soft and feminine, but from what I’ve seen, most Gwynriel’s strongly support Elain being soft and feminine. They support that she likes to bake and garden. They’re not trying to change everything about her character to fit a man. It’s like E/riel’s take one small thing that someone might’ve said a long time ago and just run with it, on and on and on.
I’ve seen antis say that SJM made Gwyn’s character to try and not be like other girls. The quirky, cool girl (but now they’re trying to say Elain is like Alice Cullen who is quirky/weird?), how she’s childish & immature because she gets excited, and squeals/makes high pitched noises, and likes to make friendship bracelets. Gwyn made an excited sound because Cassian told her that he knew the former Valkyries personally. It’s normal to make certain sounds when you’re excited about something. And the bracelets were a way to honor her sister who was killed in front of her. Gwyn is rediscovering joy and happiness after being severely traumatized. I don’t see how Gwyn is childish at all. I think the only reason why they’re anti Gwyn is because she’s a love interest for Azriel and that’s just sad. It’s fine if you don’t like a character, but if the only reason you don’t like a character is because she’s a potential love interest, then that’s embarrassing and sad. Sometimes I feel unsafe to voice opinions and love for certain characters. This fandom doesn’t feel welcoming anymore. It honestly makes me really sad.
ohhh boy let me answer this point by point because it got me a little heated
they do realize that there's only so many dynamics between characters, right? and like it or not, az is a warrior. just as cassian and rhys are and both of their mates are warriors in their own right. they're equals to each other. despite feysand and nessian having similarities they're still entirely their own couple, just as gwynriel would be. they wouldn't be a carbon copy of nessian like they claim
if they want more soft and feminine women go... read other books? we know elain is getting a book, why are they acting like gwyn would take away from that? this is rich coming from the "feminist" side of the fandom... you know what reeks of misogyny? dragging one woman down to uplift another
they looooove bringing gwyn up and that tells me all i need to know about their true feelings, they're jealous as hell
i can only speak for myself, and to an extent my mutuals since they're the best gwynriels in existence, but yes! we love that elain is more feminine and not into killing or being a warrior. we want her to be who she truly is and find love along the way. it's e/riels who i constantly see try to change her, to mold her into a character that suits azriel better and wow... would you look at that? it's a character very similar to gwyn! what an amazing coincidence. oh yeah they never let anything go, calling elain boring or simply disliking her is a mortal sin or something to them but sending rape and death threats to people is ok in their book!
i hate the argument that gwyn is a "pick me" or "childish" like damn! don't y'all have joy in your lives? clearly not if you get this upset over a woman embracing life and doing what she finds fun with her friends. i admire gwyn for this, i'm very similar in that i react the same way to things i'm interested in, there is absolutely nothing wrong with doing what makes you happy. no matter if people think you're silly or immature or some other incorrect thing, they're the ones with a problem. here's some simple advice to anyone who wants it, don't let other people dictate what is and isn't "cool", do what you like. the right people will come along and embrace it with you
as for your last point, i agree completely. this fandom has become such a shithole and it's sad. i'm always here to listen and gush about characters with you though, ok? on anon or off or through dms, whatever you want 💖
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minhosimthings · 6 months
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Hold Me Without Hurting Me
Chapter 1: Crocuses and Kindred Meetings
A/N: In which an old friend fills your life with flowers again, along a bumpy sided road.
Pairings: Ceo!Jay × Ceo!fem!reader, includes rest of Enhypen and certain other groups
Warnings: angst-fluff, hurt/comfort, friends to enemies to fake dating to enemies to lovers, Mentions of food and alcohol, swearing, nothing much but it's a bumpy story.
Story prompt: If I had a flower for every time I fell in love with you, I would walk in my garden forever. (This story is based on the language of flowers.)
A/N: whadup y'all it's yo girl Mona back in town with a new fic because all her drabbles have been ignored. So I'll most likely update the fic whenever I finish the next chapters so there won't be a specific time as to when I'll update. Also I got inspiration for this from The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, so please excuse the many flower references.
SERIES MASTERLIST
They say that when you meet your soulmate, you don't really know how to love them. The mysterious people who said this were also (not) surprisingly the same people who said that when atoms split to form the universe, they found home in different people. And now these people are soulmates because the atoms connect and blah blah blah all that fairy nonsense. But it is a nice thought which pops up in your brain whenever you see your best friend of 17 years run his hands through his hair and play yet another one of your favourite songs on his blue guitar, which you gifted him two years ago.
Park Jay was, in a word, the epitome of perfection. Well atleast to you he was. Beautiful curls of hair, the universe stuck in his eyes and all of Icarus's melted wings in his smile.
"Jay that was beautiful." You clapped your hands together In excitement as Jay finished playing the song on the guitar. "Teach me please! I wanna learn too!" Jay chuckled at your excitement and ruffled your hair, making you pout and slap his hand. "Yah you messed up the hair I've worked on for an hour! Asshole." You grumbled as he wrapped his arms around you and tickled you, making you laugh out, scaring the birds sitting on the walnut tree nearby. "Be honest-" Jay smirked at you. "You did that pretty hair all good for me, right? And you even put a gardenia in it!" You scoffed at his words and flicked a leaf at him, making his dramatically gasp. "I did it for myself, you idiot. Why would I do it for you?" "Alright Miss Girlboss." Jay held up his hands in defeat, still staring at the gardenia in your hair. "Just don't whine when I don't take you out for your toothpaste icecream." The rest of the evening was drowned out by you chasing Jay around the park, threatening to smear mint choco ice cream on his precious guitars.
Jay Park had been your best friend ever since you were seven, since that unfortunate incident when you had stepped on his sandcastle at the beach. In return, he stomped on your sandcastle too, making you angry and storming off to your mother. However, luck was against you and you found out that he was your new neighbour. The friendship blossomed when he walked up to you shyly and handed you a painted rock and played you a song on his untuned guitar. It was sweet and you were kids, bonding with you over music, plays, books, flowers and the giant walnut tree in the park near your houses. Now as you sat against the walnut tree along with Jay and his guitar, you couldn't help but reminisce about those times of the past. Lost memories of helping each other get ready for prom, crying on each other's shoulders when your dates dumped you, and going out for pizza and ice cream, which ended up with collapsing on his bed together, with bloated stomachs, and filled souls.
"Y/N." Jay snapped his fingers in front of your face. "Are you listening, you dumbass?" It was a cold evening that day, but as you sat there on the grass, with Jay in short sleeved t shirts and the baggiest pants, you didn't feel the cold outside, instead choosing to feel the cold within. A bouquet lay by your side, forget-me-nots, clematis' and geraniums, all wrapped up with a pick ribbon.
Promises were always the sweetest lies. People promise to live for you, and yet they let go, choosing to live beneath mud instead. And yet there's something about certain promises that make you want to stay. That make you want to love, live and cherish.
That's what Jay was. A sweet lie, a kind promise. Promising you that he would stay with for, for you, by you. And yet promises were apparently made to break, and as you watched him about to leave town, your heart broke in two, just like his promise. You knew this was bad, bad like you shouldn't feel like this for your best friend, who had gotten an opportunity abroad. You should have felt happy, elated even, that he had gotten into his dream University. But you didn't and you felt horrible.
"What, you idiot? Im trying to spot some butterflies." You grumbled as Jay chuckled and leant back against the walnut tree. The smell of honeycomb and beeswax hung in the air. "You sure you won't miss me much?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. You really didn't have to think much about the answer for his question. Yes, of course yes you would miss the boy you've been smitten by for seventeen years. Yet, you knew that if you told him that answer, it would only make the heartbreak more painful. And you, of course, never really preferred pain.
"I'll miss you, but don't expect me to get accepted into the same college and come running to you like Harry and Sally." Jay stuck out his tongue at your words and ruffled his hair again. He had had that habit, you assumed since his birth. You often took note of the way whenever he walked into a room, the first thing he would do is run his hands through his fluffy hair.
"You don't have to get accepted into the same University. Plus-" Jay bit his cheek. "You don't have the brains anyway." "Park Joengsoeng!" You slapped his arm and pounced on him, tickling his stomach, making him burst into laughter and shout out 'sorry' over and over again, as both of you flopped back on the grass, not knowing what the days forward might bring. "Promise you'll still write me in our language?" You asked Jay holding out your pinky, which he intertwined with his. "I promise. And it's as big of a promise as Irises are." You sobered in the warmth of the grass, with the boy next to you, simply savouring his existence as the universe moved just like it always did.
8 Years Later
"Miss Yang." Your assistant, Ji-ah tapped on your door. "Come in Ji-ah." You responded, not looking up from your papers. Your hands were all tangled in your hair, and the tip of your pencil, which lay on the clean porcelain table, was all chewed at the end. The atmosphere of your office held a heavy cloud. Perhaps it was the grey wall paint, and the paintings which hung on the wall, but it all felt heavy and downright bad. "I'm sorry to bother you, Ma'am." Ji-ah bowed low to you, slightly adjusting her pressed maroon pencil skirt as she did that. "It's no issue Ji-ah. What is it?" You waved your hand nonchalantly and motioned for her to sit down in front of you. Ji-ah slightly gulped and sat down, pressing a folder infront of you. "I checked your schedule and contacted all the people you've asked me to." Ji-ah said, her tone almost robotic. Her voice rang clear, however, even through the pitter-patter of the rain pouring outside. "And well-" Ji-ah paused and fiddled with her fingers. "I couldn't arrange a day for you to meet Mr Lee privately. You would have to meet him on the day of the joint session." You sighed heavily, as you noticed, for perhaps the first time, how suffocating the room actually was. Even the lilacs growing in the corner seemed to be sad. "Are you sure I have to talk to that man, in a room full of men, who will keep staring at my hips instead of listening to me?" Ji-ah gave you a sympathetic smile, as you gave her the papers you had been working on, instructions her about what to do with them. "Ma'am, if I may-"Ji-ah voiced. "All the men in that room, which you'll be stuck in for a hour or so, they're all below you. So if they do stare at your hips, why don't you just bring it up? Embarrass them? You have always taught me that humiliation is the key to breaking chauvinist pigs." You chuckled at Ji-ah's words, your chest swelling with pride as you listened to her words. "Will do Ji-ah." You affirmed. "Oh and by the way, I've approved your leave for the month but have you found a replacement yet?" Ji-ah promptly nodded and clacked her heels together as she made to go out the door. "He'll be here tomorrow Ma'am. I found the best, only for you." "Thank you Ji-ah. Enjoy your stay at your grandma's. Bring me back something!"
"Ugh." You collapsed onto your bed as your alarm dinged with a notification. 'Dinner time', it read on the dimply illuminated screen. "No I don't want to have dinner." You glared at your phone, as if talking to a human. Your white ragdoll cat, Perry, jumped onto the bed next to you, and sat nonchalantly, licking his paw. "Perry, I'm tired and I want to die." Perry purred lowly, and looked straight ahead at you with a blank stare, as if questioning why you were telling a cat about your emotions. "Oh well, might as well get you your food, Perry. You're hungry aren't you my baby? My scrumpious wittle-" you tried to pick up Perry, all the while baby-talking him, but unfortunately that went down the drain. Perry ran off from your bed and jumped onto your bed table, accidentally knocking off some pictures. "Perry!" You grumbled. "You stupid cat." You mumbled the last part under your breath, as you made to pick the pictures up. There were four of them sitting peacefully in flower frames. They lit up the dire condition of your bedroom, painted in dark blues and blacks, illuminated with yellow lamps.
You picked up the flower lamps slowly but surely, only pausing once to stare at one of them, fit in the most beautiful frame which was embroidered with pink camellias. Against a clear sky and yarrow bushes, stood two teenagers, wearing shirts with cringy mottos on them, with converse in red and blue. You smiled softly at the picture. 17th birthday party for Jay, and right before the moment when you both secretly drank underage. It captured the beautiful moments you spent with each other, before he left your soul broken into pieces, making sure that zinnias grow in the cracks.
"Good morning Miss Yang." A short man with brown hair and cat eyes came up to you as you entered your office building. He was dressed in a clean pressed white shirt and black trousers, making him look like a waiter. "Oh are you the new assistant? Jungwon?" The man promptly nodded and handed you a file. "Miss Ji-ah a-appointed me two days ago, Ma'am. Um, this is my r-resume." You found the man adorable. He looked a bit like Perry, whom you assumed was probably sleeping in your cat sitter's bed. "Well it's nice to meet you, Jungwon. And you didn't really need to wear office wear today." You gestured towards his bowtie. "You're coming with me on the trip aren't you?" "Ah well-" Jungwon turned red, "I-I wanted to make a good first impression." You smiled gently at him, making the red in his face disappear a bit, and putting him at ease, all ready to go off to the land of freedom and eagles.
"Miss Yang." A stout man dressed in black overalls and possibly the most non-wrinkliest shirt you've ever seen bowed to you, gesturing to his two assistants to take your and Jungwon's suitcases and bags, to which Jungwon clutched his purple backpack tighter to his chest. "It is an honour to have you staying in our hotel Ma'am. Might I be the first to welcome you to Seattle?" The man bowed again. He reminded you of a snake, with a heavy receding hairline and slimy hands. Even the way he spoke reminded you of snake hisses. "Thank you." You said, bowing a bit. "I suppose my suite is ready? And one for my assistant too?" The man shot a look at Jungwon and then back at you, bowing again. "Of course Ma'am. The two best suites in the hotel. I would also like to tell you that some of the- ahem- people you are meeting are also staying here, so we would please like to ask you to not bring up any confrontations with them." You merely smiled at the man, as you heard Jungwon giggle silently behind you. "Well of course, my good man." You kept your face cool and calm. "Perhaps you should also tell them not to undermine and ridicule me, like pathetic wet socks, just because they feel- what's the word? Oh yes-" You grinned up the man, "-they feel bitched on by a slut who fucked her way up to the top." The man's jaw dropped as you glided away, heels clacking on the floor, with Jungwon following behind you, a grin imprinted on his face.
"Ma'am, you really didn't have to book me a suite too. I could have just-" "Jungwon, I assure you. It wasn't a problem. Plus-" you smiled gently at him, "I always treat my assistants well." The sheepish smile broke out on Jungwon's face again as he thanked you and rushed to keep the important files on the oak table. "That was amazing by the way. What you said to that man." He complemented you, which you took gratefully. You took a moment to admire the beauty of the suite. The reviews on the hotel's website were right. This really was the best hotel in Seattle. The room was decorated with flowers everywhere of every kind. A vase which caught your eye, was filled with carnations of every colour. It was always interesting to you how the colours of the carnations matched up to make a beautifully sorrowful story. Red carnations for deep heartache, pink ones for a long-lasting memory, white carnations for sweet love and yellow striped ones for refusal of love. It was amazing to you how a single flower can exhibit so many emotions.
"Ma'am, can we perhaps take those flowers out of the room?" Jungwon interrupted your line of thought, pointing towards tiny violet flowers, with yellow pistils, "I'm allergic to them." "You're allergic to crocuses?", You pointed at the flowers, "We can call the front desk to talk them out alright?" Jungwon nodded and continued with his work, not noticing you staring at the crocuses. "You know, they represent youth and cheerfulness? It's an interesting flower, the spring crocus." Jungwon snapped his head to look at you, his eyes rapidly blinking. "Do you have an interest for the language of flowers Ma'am?" He asked you casually, while sniffing a magnolia sitting in a brown vase. "I used to study them when I was fifteen. Along with my best friend." You answered gently caressing the magnolias, feeling their soft petals brush against your skin, while Jungwon sneezed, probably because of the crocuses. "fuck-" you swore under your breath, "Jungwon, go to your bedroom, I'll get the staff to take out the crocuses." "A-ACHOO- alright- Ma'am." He cleared his throat, scratched his nose and quickly disappeared into the bedroom, still sneezing while you took all the crocuses in the suite and went down to the reception area, still in the clothes that you came in with. An olive green shirt dress with your everyday heels. All the way to the reception area, you were slightly distracted by a scent which was wafting into your nose. The scent of your favourite perfume. Infact it was the scent of your perfume, the one you wore everyday and the one you weren't wearing right now. Of course gifts from Italy need to be treasured right? And gifts from lost best friends need to be kept in a locked safe. You had gotten the perfume with you, but it was currently sitting safe in bubble wrap in the depths of your suitcase. So what was the scent that was trapping you in?
"Oh I'm so sorry." Lost in your thoughts, you accidentally bumped into someone's shoulders causing them to drop the flowers they were carrying. "Oh that's all right." A familiar voice rang in your ear. "Wait-", you gasped, "Yah Kim Sunoo is that you?" The blonde boy looked up at you and gave you the widest smile ever. "Y/N oh my god!" The dropped flowers on the ground were forgotten as both of you hugged each other tightly making sure not to let go until the other does. "wow-" Sunoo exclaimed, "we haven't seen each other since-" "since Yeji's party in our final year?" Sunoo laughed and nodded, picking up the flowers he was carrying in the process. "So what brings you to my amazing hotel?" Sunoo grinned. "This is your hotel? So you actually achieved your dreams huh?" You giggled at him, winking. "Did you get your bet money from Niki?" Sunoo rolled his eyes and scoffed at your question. "The kid won't give me anything except for Sunday ice cream. Anyways-" he looked at you as you walked up to the front desk, "what brings you here?"
"Well what brings me to the front desk is that I would like the crocuses in my suite to be removed." You told the lady at the front desk, who promptly bowed and stalked away, probably to get the rest of the crocuses out of the room. "What brings me to Seattle-" you turned to Sunoo, who leaned forward excitedly, "-is a meeting with all the top Ceo's of America. I assume you'd already know about it, since it's gonna be sponsored by your hotel?" Sunoo's eyes widened and his jaw dropped as he clapped his hands excitedly. "So you're the Miss Yang who was registered for the meeting without her first name!" Sunoo rolled his eyes, "Girl, why are you still chasing your mysterious girl fantasies of freshman year?" "Says the person who still has his dumb emo haircut of sophomore year." "Yah!"
"Jungwon? You good now?" You silently peeked your head around the bedroom door, to see Jungwon sitting on his bed and sorting through files. You giggled silently, seeing his face so concentrated on the files. Ji-ah was right. He really was a great assistant. The thought of making him your second assistant would have always escaped your mind if not for- "Ma'am would you like to read the list of people who you will be meeting today?" He'd even looked up the people at the meeting. How sweet, you thought. Hollyhock, you thought, would be the flower to suit him. "Could you read them out to me Jungwon?" You said, as you collapsed onto the bed, noticing only now how tired you were. "Yes ma'am." Jungwon promptly said, pushing up his glasses. "I'll read out the one of importance. You shall be meeting Mr Lee Heeseung, Mr Lee Minho, Mr Park Sunghoon, Mr Jay Park, Mr Hwan-" "What did you just say?" You sat up quickly in bed, scaring the shit out of Jungwon. "I-uh. Um Mr Hwang Hyunjin will be meeting you?" You shook your head frantically and quickly took the paper from him, scanning your eyes through it. There it was. Your ears hadn't misheard. Jjoengsoeng 'Jay' Park, written right on top. "Oh my god." You breathed out, making Jungwon leaned forward to take a peek at the paper. "Ma'am are you alright?" You looked up at Jungwon's concerned face, trying to hold in your tears. "I am perfectly fine. Just-" you put the paper down, "-kind of shocked." "I assume you do not want to talk about it?" Jungwon's voice provided you a slither of comfort. You nodded slowly and scampered off to your room, saying hurried goodbyes to Jungwon and telling him to get ready by seven thirty. As you passed the carnations in the living room, you couldn't help but feel a pit in your stomach, sinking in like a whirlpool, making you feel like the entire world was about to collapse, if you met the person who used to be your everything, this evening.
"Miss Yang, this way." The man guided you towards a meeting hall. "You look very pretty Ma'am." Jungwon trodded shyly behind you. "You look handsome in that jacket too, Jungwon. I bet all the girls here will be swooning for you once I take you to the bar after the meeting." You said, making Jungwon turn a deep shade of red. You took a pause before entering the meeting room and adjusted your knee length plum pencil skirt and slightly rolled up the sleeves of your beige shirt.
"Ah Miss Yang. It's a pleasure to see you again." A tall black haired man came up to you and shook your hand as you entered the room. He was certainly handsome with sharp features and the prettiest hair you've ever seen. "Mr Sunghoon." You bowed to him, to which he chuckled. "Should we drop the antics now? How you doing Y/N?" The man engulfed you in a hug, which you reciprocated, breathing in his smell of oak wood cologne. "I'm good Hoonie. What about you? How's Yeji?" Sunghoon smiled at you and led you over to your chair, which was next to his. "She's good. Pregnant actually. Spending some time with her mum so I could come to this stupid meeting." He flicked some dust from the table away as he picked up a bouquet from underneath the seat and handed it to you. "For you m'lady." "Camellias Sunghoon really?" You raised an eyebrow at him. "Why do you still know the meaning of white camellias? I told you that five years ago in junior year."
"Cause you told me it means a heartless person, and I really want to put up my act of an ice cold prince so that's why I got it for you." You tried to hold in your laughter as you looked at him fixing his hair. You didn't have the heart to tell him that white camellias actually meant adorableness, so you let him keep his ego. You willed away the time as the other people started coming into the room. You would be lying if you said that you didn't feel a little intimidated. The men weren't scary or anything, but so many of them in one room? A girl's gotta feel a bit scared doesn't she? You threw glances to Jungwon from time to time, who seemed to be getting along well with the other assistants, which was good, considering that most of them were young women his age.
"Miss Yang, it's good to see you." Lee Heeseung kissed your hand gently and bowed to you. You had always admired him, wanting to collaborate with him and this meeting was the perfect chance for you to talk to him. So what if you didn't have a chance to speak to him in private? Hell, you would have asked him to do buisness with you, right infront of every man in the room.
"Is Mr Park late yet again?" A handsome long haired man, with pretty pink lips and porcelain skin said, checking his watch. "Well shall we start without him then Mr Hwang? You know what he would do even if an ounce of disrespect reached him." A plum haired man, with a sharp carved nose said, glaring at the man called Mr Hwang.
"Who are they talking about?" You whispered in Sunghoon's ears. "Jay Park." Sunghoon whispered back, fiddling with his tie. "He's basically the unofficial mayor of Seattle. The most powerful buisness man in America." The pit in your stomach kept increasing as you wondered if the Jay Park they were talking about was the boy you knew for seventeen years of your life, the boy who would talk to you about the meaning of flowers while eating mint-chocolate ice cream.
You would have dwelled on that thought for a bit longer if the door didn't suddenly crack open as everyone fell silent. The sound of footsteps rang in your ear as a slightly built man, with hair as dark as outer space and eyes the colour of black coffee, entered the room. Your heart skipped a beat or two as you laid your eyes on the man. Your eyes couldn't believe it. A face from your past, eyes you had been hypnotized by and a voice you could recognise even in the dark. Jay Park stood in front of you, staring at all the people in the room, while your eyes bored into his.
"Good evening everyone. I am sorry for the delay. I merely got caught up picking out an appropriate suit for the evening." You could have laughed out right there and then. And you did.
"Anything funny, Miss Yang?" Jay's eyes turned to you. You could feel Sunghoon tensing up next to you as you stared straight into Jay's eyes. The audacity, you thought, for him to call you Miss Yang. "I just didn't think that picking a neon suit straight from the 70's would take you a long time, Mr Park" you smiled sarcastically at him. "How dare you insult Mr Park!" Mr Hwang spoke, glaring at you, to which Jay held up a hand, so as to stop a war from breaking out. He took a few steps forward and turned his chair, sitting onto it, with the grace of a swan. "You need not defend me, Mr Hwang. After all Miss Yang is an old friend isn't she? She's allowed to make fun of me." What. The . Fuck. Those three words swirled again and again in your mind as you looked at Jay, all suave and calm, sitting in his chair, talking to you as if he hadn't abandoned you and didn't talk to you for eight god forbiddened years. "Shall we start then Mr Park?" Heeseung spoke up, gesturing for his assistant to give him some papers and files. '"Of course." Jay merely responded, staring at the Calla lilies in the vase set in the center of the table. 'Well' you thought, 'this evening was going to be a rollercoaster ride.'
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yukidragon · 11 months
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Remember when we has the option to kiss and hug Jack? In the case of how the first option was handled. How much flirting Jack could take until he's very very happy with his Sunshine?
If "very very happy" is innuendo for "practically pouncing on sunshine to make love with them right this second," I think it depends.
I think how the hug and kiss choices go more depended on MC's motivations for choosing that option. For the "kiss" choice, MC is crossing a line from friends to more, which is what Jack wants. For the "hug" choice, they don't want to "make it weird" between them. In other words, they don't want to go further with their relationship, which leaves Jack feeling less secure.
So, really, I think Jack would be happy being cuddled if MC isn't choosing to be distant from him. It's the intent, I think, that counts.
Which is to say that if MC chose instead to flirt with Jack rather than kiss him right away... well I'm sure Jack would like that very much. It would likely make him flustered and happy before he started to flirt back, since he would very much want to encourage his sunshine to cross this line between friendship and lovers.
Now... an MC who is intentionally teasing Jack to see how far they could push him with their flirting until he snaps and makes the first move? That would be a pretty fun image. Though, really, he is concerned about doing what they want. He can't and won't do anything his sunshine doesn't want him to after all.
Which does give me the image of MC testing Jack's patience by flirting with him until he reaches his limit and...
Aw heck, I should write the scene with my MC, Alice, shouldn't I?
...
Alice was choosing to play with fire, and she knew it.
She could have chosen to just go for it, give in to her urges and damn the consequences. She could have backed off to keep things from getting weird between her and the person who quickly had come to mean so much to her.
Or rather, keep them from getting weirder after Jack pulled Alice into his lap. Her heart still hadn’t slowed down since he tucked her in close to his body, feeling so wonderfully warm, cared for, and safe.
Why risk it? They were fine as just friends, right? It’s not like Jack would want something more from someone like her…
It was the way Jack looked at Alice that made her reconsider these self-deprecating thoughts. His dark brown eyes were soft, and in the reflection of the television’s light they glowed like molten honey. The way he looked at her and held her so delicately made her feel precious, irreplaceable.
…Like she wasn’t something that he was simply settling for until something better came along.
Most of all, Jack made her feel something she hadn’t in far too long… he made her feel loved.
Wouldn’t it then be more foolish if Alice risked losing this chance?
There was electricity in the air between them, one that was only amplified by the heat between them that glowed on their cheeks in a blushing hue. Jack had asked her if something was on his face after she stared at him with such a sweet smile - a silly question from a silly clown to keep the mood light - but he could feel the mood change between them after he asked, particularly in his sunshine. He couldn’t pick up everything she was thinking, but what he caught left his heart racing in anticipation.
“Y-yeah…,” Alice finally said as she reached up to trace one of the red marks painted on his cheeks. “Your c-cute smile.”
Alice couldn’t look Jack in the eye after that, her heart racing all the more as adrenaline shot through her. She did it, she actually took the initiative to flirt with someone she liked but wasn’t in a relationship with (yet)! Intentionally!
Jack’s eyes widened and that very smile grew even wider, which made Alice squirm a little in his lap. Her reaction only made his excitement grow and his blush darken. “Gosh, sunshine. That’s so sweet of you to say, thank you. But you know… the reason why I feel like smiling right now is all because of you.”
Hearing that made her pulse quicken, and Alice bit her lips as she tried to get her racing thoughts under control. This was how flirting was supposed to start, right? Was Jack flirting back, or was he just being friendly while she was just deluding herself? She had to know for sure. “R-really?” She fumbled with her next words, her face burning all the more as she leaned in just a little closer, pressing her body just a little more against his. “Is… is it because of how c-close we are r-right now?”
“Yes,” Jack answered easily, his voice softening a little with a faint breathy richness that made Alice shiver a little to hear it. “Alice… you always know how to make me smile. You make me feel so happy… but I’m even happier when you want to get closer to me like this.”
Alice jolted as Jack traced a gloved finger along her cheek, mimicking her earlier touch on him. He halted when she flinched, but she quickly reached up to press his hand against her cheek so that he wouldn’t mistake her reaction as anything negative. She wanted his touch so badly, even as she felt terrified about taking the next step. “I… I’m happy to get closer.” She took a deep breath, mustering up the courage to look him in the eye again. “I want to get closer to you, Jack…”
“I’m glad,” Jack said as he slowly stroked her cheek. “We can be as close as you like, sunshine.” His voice took on a suggestive note to it. “Alice…” He gently tipped her chin upward towards him just a little as thumb traced just below her lip. “We can be whatever you want us to be.”
They were flirting. They were flirting. They were flirting. There was no way this wasn’t flirting. Alice felt like her heart was racing out of control and her face was on fire, but she couldn’t let the wild fluttering in her chest stop things now. She choked on her breath and swallowed hard to alleviate the dryness of her throat as she fumbled to find the words to keep going.
“Wh-what if I want… more?” Alice flinched as she tried to make her voice sound suggestive and throaty, only for it to crack and squeak at the end instead.
Jack didn’t laugh like Alice reflexively feared he would. His eyes were alight, filled with so much passion that it took her breath away, and the smile he gave her was so tender and inviting. “If that’s what you want, then I’ll be happy to give you more, Alice. I’ll give you anything you want… be anything you want me to be.”
“I want you to be you,” Alice said as she took a hold of the collar of his jacket. “B-because you are… you’re so much more than I…” She bit her lower lip as her worries and self-doubt grew in spite of herself. She tried to force those thoughts back to not spoil the moment, wanting so badly to do things right this time. “I want you… just you… because you’re so sweet and kind and nice and just… you… y-you make me happy… happier than I’ve ever felt before.”
The last words were nearly whispered, almost a guilty confession. Jack felt his heart go out to Alice as he pulled her in just a little closer, drawing her face closer to his so that his warm breath skirted across her lips in the ghost of a kiss. “I’m glad… because you make me happy too, Alice. You make me feel… love.”
Alice practically choked on the word, her eyes flying open wide. “Love?” she sputtered only to mentally kick herself. Why was she so surprised? Sure Jack was the host of a kids TV show, but she was the one actively flirting with him and hoping to nudge their relationship into something more than friendship here! How could she expect to progress if she didn’t think that he knew what love was?
“Yes, love,” Jack repeated, his voice lowering to something softer, more seductive. “I’ve never felt this way before… and I hope I make you feel the same way.”
Alice felt like her heart was going to explode. They were so close, just a breath away from kissing. She ached for it badly, but she sat frozen, staring into those molten honey eyes of his. “I… I do… You do.”
Jack smiled, and the expression of pure delight made Alice feel molten. “Can you say it?” He traced below her lips, aching for just that little bit more. “Just so I know for real?”
Alice swallowed hard and licked her dry lips to wet them, her tongue coming dangerously close to his gloved fingers. She was really going for it wasn’t she? She had come this far, and she trusted Jack. She could practically feel the affection he had for her and the attraction growing between them.
Finally, Alice managed to choke out the words. “I-I l-like you, Jack. Is it… is it okay if I kiss you?”
Jack blinked, caught off-guard that she misunderstood what exactly he was asking for, but just as quickly softened with affection and elation. “Of course it’s okay.”
Gently, Jack brought his hands to her cheeks, softly stroking them. He guided Alice to him, urging her to close the distance between them before he lost control of the desire he had been fighting back for months and finally, finally claimed his sunshine’s lips like he always dreamed.
The kiss was tentative and soft. Alice barely pressed her lips against Jack’s, almost giving the chance to back away if he changed his mind, but instead he drew her in closer. Their lips slotted together, quickly slipping into place like two halves of a whole that were always meant to be united. The feeling of their lips finally meeting was a gentle fire that slowly but steadily burned hotter by the second.
Alice jolted a little when she felt Jack gently prod her lips with his tongue, almost politely asking permission to enter. Tentatively she parted her lips for him, and was immediately rewarded for it. A whimper escaped her that turned into a moan that was muffled by his tongue sliding along hers and exploring her in a way that sent sparks down her spine all the way to her toes, making them curl.
The kiss was everything Jack dreamed of - warmth, love, and everything wonderful and right in the world. It was everything he wanted… Alice was everything he wanted, and so much more. He drank deeply from her like a man who had been dying of thirst for years, unable to get enough of her. It was only when she eventually drew back, panting desperately for air, that he finally, reluctantly, ended the kiss to catch his breath as well, though he didn’t need air quite as much as she did.
Heat mingled between them, in their heavy breaths, their bodies pressed so close together, and in the smoldering looks they gave one another. Things had changed between them, and they both knew it. The kiss made them so much more aware of this heat and especially in this all-encompassing need they had for one another.
Unthinkingly, Alice licked her damp lips, the taste of Jack still heavy on her tongue. “Jack…” she murmured breathlessly.
The sight enticed Jack, almost a tease that drew him in closer to Alice for another kiss, one that she eagerly accepted. Now that his sunshine finally, finally allowed him to kiss her, he didn’t have to hold himself back anymore. Now he could taste her lips as much as he had been craving since the first time he laid eyes on her, delving into her sweet mouth again to drink deeply in the love she felt for him.
More. Jack loved it, loved her, but he needed even more. His hot lips marked a trail down her chin to her neck, peppering her pale skin with wet kisses. Alice shivered, but tipped her head back to welcome him, squirming as his lips explored her greedily. “Alice…,” he murmured, and she shivered again at the feeling of his hot breath tickling her skin.
“Jack,” Alice practically whimpered as she buried her fingers in his hair and arched up into him. She was burning. She wanted more, needed more. She never felt like this before, so hot and needy. She couldn’t stand it. She pulled Jack closer to her, unable to vocalize her need in more than tiny noises that escaped her throat that he marked with his hot kisses.
Jack needed more, he needed to hear it. He needed his sunshine to actually say the words he ached to hear for so long. “Alice…” She shivered again against him. “Can you do me a favor?”
“Y-yes?” Alice asked breathlessly. She would’ve done practically anything for Jack in that moment, and he shivered as well as he could feel her desire to please him.
“Can you say it?” Jack asked. “Can you tell me that you lo-”
A sudden loud and obnoxious ringtone cut him off, shattering the dreamy atmosphere between them. Reality was calling for Alice, and it refused to be denied.
...
I... think I might have gone off topic from a scenario where Jack is teased into pouncing on his sunshine to just an alternate first kiss for him and Alice instead. Oops. Sorry about that?
Anyway, Jack is pretty patient. I think his sunshine could drive him absolutely crazy with teasing him until they finally choose to change their relationship. Once he has permission, then I'm sure this horny clown is going to make sure his sunshine is very, very happy too~
@channydraws @earthgirlaesthetic @sai-of-the-7-stars @cheriihoney @illary-kore @okamiliqueur
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prettybillycore · 2 years
Text
You Never Shut Up about Steve || Billy Hargrove x Reader
Tumblr media
Pairing(s): Billy Hargrove x Reader; Minor Steve Harrington x Reader
Universe: Stranger Things
Summary: You had a big ol' crush on Steve, but it started to fade as your friendship grew with the one and only Billy Hargrove. Max found out that Billy was in love with you and came up with a scheme to settle your crushes once and for all.
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 2.3k
Warnings: Swearing, Possessive!Billy
A/N: I am absolutely and completely in a rabbit hole right now; instead of a rabbit hole that leads to Wonderland, as it does for Alice, it is a rabbit hole with Steve, Billy, and Eddie waiting at the bottom of a dirt slide. Needless to say, I’m not going to be out of this fixation for a long while (thanks autism), so if you want Billy Hargrove content, I will give you Billy Hargrove content. I love your request anon, I hope you enjoy this one-shot <3
Read on AO3 or Scroll down to read it right here on Tumblr <3
Steve, Steve, Steve, Steve, Steve. All you did was talk about Steve fucking Harrington. Billy was getting pissed just thinking about it. You were a sweet girl in his math class. He instantly charmed his way into your life as one of your friends, but he couldn’t get past your crush. You had a crush on Steve Harrington, his archenemy. This crush had been going on longer than you had known Billy. He couldn’t understand it. Steve Harrington was nothing compared to him. Billy was hotter, more popular, and could hold his alcohol way better… and yet, here you were, leaning against his car, and drooling over Steve from a distance. 
Billy thought that you were gorgeous from the moment he laid eyes on you. He knew you were the one for him. He switched into your math class after a week of being in a different one and every night he thanked the stars the guidance counselor had put him in your class. He just couldn’t wrap his head around your crush on Steve. The motherfucker didn’t even give you the time of day most days. Billy didn’t understand why you would still be pining after Steve when he was right there next to you. He watched as your expression dropped. It was like all the life had been sucked out of you. He followed your gaze to Steve; the lanky ex-king was standing near his car, his hands were awkwardly by his sides. His ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend were talking to him about something; Billy could only take a wild guess as to what. He was smiling at his ex like he had all the love in the world to give, even though she clearly did not feel the same way about him. Billy looked back at you; it looked like Steve had stomped on your heart. Your shoulders were hunched and your eyes looked heavy. “Ugh… Nancy Wheeler…” you mumbled. “What does she have that I don’t?”
What does Steve have that I don’t? Billy wondered. “She’s got nothing on you, Doll.” It was a bold statement, but he believed it with his whole heart. You raised your eyebrow and crossed your arms over your chest. He rolled his eyes. “What? I mean it. Nancy’s something else, but she’s nothing compared to you. Steve’s an idiot if he doesn’t see that.”
You tossed him a soft smile. “Thanks, Billy. I appreciate it. Though, Nancy’s with Jonathan now, Steve only seems to have eyes for her.”
God, I would do anything to see her smile all the time. “Anything for you, Doll. Don’t give another thought to Steve. He doesn’t deserve you at this point.” 
“You two are disgusting,” Max said as she approached the Camaro. “Just confess you’re in love and make out already.”
Billy glared at her, but she glared right back. Ever since the day at the Byers’ house, they had a deeper understanding of each other. Billy stayed out of her friendships, relationships, and honestly, her entire life for the most part now. It wouldn’t be long before school ended for the year and he wouldn’t really be seeing her at all. Max now also had confirmation that Billy was in love with you. While completely high out of his mind on Will’s medications, Billy confessed. Max had known it already, but now she had heard it from Billy’s mouth. She wouldn’t let him live it down and he was starting to get really sick of it. His relationship with his step-sister was getting better; he could feel himself becoming a better person overall. Between you and the fight with Steve, he realized his shittiness. He was working on it a lot. Now if Max could just stop being so goddamn relentless in her efforts to get you to realize his crush– “Max!” It was all he could manage. His cheeks were dusted with a light red color. She smirked and you giggled. Billy relaxed a little bit when he heard that sound. Max scooted past you and chucked herself into the backseat of the Camaro. Billy opened the driver’s door and grimaced at her. “Little Shit…” He swore under his breath.
“I only speak the truth, Billy.” Her smirk never faded.
Billy was cursing under his breath again and moved to the passenger side door, to stand next to you. You had started to stare off into the distance again. You were still watching Steve and Nancy. He huffed. “Come on, Y/n. Let’s get you home. You got here early today didn’t you?” 
You tore your eyes away from the couple as Billy opened his car door for you. “Yeah… I did.” You hopped into the passenger seat and Billy shut the door behind you. He looked back toward Steve’s car. Steve was now just talking to Nancy. Jonathan was walking back toward his car. The whole group of them were strange and confusing to Billy. He understood nothing of their friendships or why they all still talked. The rumor was that Nancy cheated on Steve. You were trying so hard to get Steve’s attention all the time. How could he not see it?
He shot an angry look toward Steve. Nancy had pointed out his staring, though he didn’t much care what either of them thought of him. He headed back to the driver’s side door and hopped into his car. He smiled at you. “Do you guys want to stop for milkshakes on the way home?” Max smiled excitedly and he saw it from the rearview mirror. He looked toward you. “So that’s a yes from Max, what about you Y/n.”
You shrugged. It was a content shrug though. Your features were finally relaxed and you were focused entirely on Billy. “Sure, why the hell not.”
| < ♥️ > |
It was almost the last day of school and Billy still felt like he hadn’t made progress on asking you out. You spent almost all your time between classes and during free periods together, but you still seemed hung up on Steve. After your talk over the Camaro, you seemed to calm down some with your crush. Billy thought that maybe, just maybe, you were starting to angle your affection toward him. Steve proved his theory wrong, though, during the last real week before exams. The forming king of Hawkins complimented your outfit one day in the hall. Billy was standing next to you; you were both leaning against the lockers. You were wearing one of his band t-shirts and just about the cutest skirt he had ever seen. It took everything in him not to actually drool when he saw you that morning. 
While you were talking at the lockers, he had finally convinced himself it was worth a shot to ask you on a date. He was about to ask when Steve cut in. “Damn, Y/n. You are looking good today.”
You blushed wildly. “Thanks, Steve! See you at the practice game later!”
“I’ll win just for you, Beautiful.”
Billy just about killed him. His angry glare didn’t go unnoticed by Steve, but Harrington just seemed to brush it off. After that little interaction, you didn’t say anything to Billy about him, but Hargrove could just tell that you were thinking about Steve fucking Harrington.
| < ♥️ > |
When it came time for that practice game, of course, Billy and Steve were on opposite teams. Steve smiled at you when you walked in and sat down on the bleachers. Billy didn’t look at you, he felt like he couldn’t. You were honestly a little hurt by Billy’s lack of noticing you, but you just thought he was focusing on the game ahead of him. A lot of people were just hanging around in the gym because classes were pretty much over for the year. Teachers were giving study halls instead of reviewing so students were all over the place. 
You had settled on watching the game because of Billy, not because of Steve. Of course, you had a crush on Steve for a very long time, but he never showed interest in you. It absolutely crushed you when he started dating Nancy and you felt awful for him when you found out Nancy had, in fact, cheated on him with Jonathan Byers. However, over the course of your friendship with Billy, your platonic feelings turned into romantic ones. You never in a million years thought he would be into you though. You were much nerdier than the girls he usually dated. You just thought he wanted a real friend. You gave him real friendship and your heart began to ache because of both him and Steve. Two hot guys that you thought were completely out of your league? Way more soul-crushing than one hot guy you thought was out of your league. You were absolutely shocked when Steve made the flirtatious comment to you that morning, completely stunned. He had never shown interest in you before and it was just confusing your feelings more. Though, you didn’t speak of this to Billy or any of your other friends. You weren’t sure what Steve’s intentions were, but you promised Billy that you would watch him play in this game, and by God, you were going to keep that promise. 
It was only halftime when the coach pulled Billy out of the game. He had been acting incredibly rough toward everyone on the other team, but especially toward Steve. The coach called a time-out and told him to go cool off. He looked briefly at you before heading completely out of the gym. Before you even really thought about what you were doing, you got up and ran after him. He was still making his way down the hall when you called out to him. “Billy? Billy stop!” Your voice was like music to his ears and he froze in his place until you caught up to him.
He turned around to face you and tossed you a sour look. “What’s gotten into you?”
He scoffed. “Why do you care? Just go back to the game and watch your precious Steve.”
You were used to him sometimes getting an attitude, so you did your best not to let it phase you. Though, inside, your head started spinning. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
He rolled his eyes. “You know what it means, Y/n! You never shut up about Steve and it seems like he’s interested in you now that Wheeler’s dumped him, so why don’t you go back to the gym and stop worrying about me?”
A smirk worked its way onto your face as you connected the dots. “Oh my god…”
“What? Stop smiling like that!”
“You’re fucking jealous! You’re jealous because you think I’d choose to date Steve over you, isn’t that right, Billy?” Your smirk had turned into a full-blown grin. “Can I tell you a secret, Hargrove?” You took another step toward him and gently grabbed one of his hands with yours. “Yes, I’ve had a crush on Steve, you know that. However, what you don’t know is that I have been crushing on you for a little while now and just had no idea how to fucking tell you. Steve’s behavior this morning caught me completely off guard, but I know that he doesn’t really want me, if he did, he would have never dated Nancy. I want to be with someone where I’m their first choice and they’re mine. I don’t know if I’m your first choice, Billy, but you’ve totally become mine. I thought–”
You were cut off by Billy’s hand grabbing your cheek roughly and his lips colliding with yours. You let go of his hand and threw your hands in his hair. Billy was in heaven at that moment. You absolutely tasted like heaven. He really didn’t give a shit if you still had any sort of feelings toward Steve. You said he was your first choice, and he was willing to kiss you until you felt like he was your first and only choice. He backed you up against the lockers without his lips ever leaving yours. Your hands were still deep in his hair and he was loving every second of attention that he was getting. He felt like you were finally giving him your attention, the attention he thought he deserved from the beginning. You pulled your head back slightly and Billy moved his free hand down to your waist. Your lips were puffy and your chest was heaving. You gave him a dull smile and a low chuckle escaped his throat. “Darling, you have been my first choice since the moment I met you and I am so glad that you finally admitted to yourself that you were into me more than Steve, I’ll treat you so good you’ll forget he ever existed.”
You moved your hand back to his cheek. He leaned into the motion. It made your heart swell. “You should have said something a long time ago.”
“I was watching for you, Doll.”
“Glad you lovebirds finally figured it out!” 
Both your heads snapped in the direction of the voice. Back toward the gym doors, there stood Max. She had been the one that called out to you. Next to her, was a kid you both recognized as Dustin; and low and behold, Steve fucking Harrington. 
They were all smiling brightly at you as if Max had not killed the moment. “Sorry about that Billy. Y/n you do look great today, in a completely friendly way, but Max and Dustin asked me to help move along your confessions.”
You laughed as Billy puffed out his cheeks in frustration. “Oh, I am absolutely going to kill all of you!”
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cool-person-yey · 3 months
Text
TMAGP NOTES PART 2 : THE HORRORS ARE AT IT AGAIN
tmagp show notes for episode 2!
again, this will contain spoilers for tmagp episode two and it is tagged with " tmagp spoilers"
if there are any confusing misspellings please tell me so I can fix them
anyways, here it is yall
• I've said this before and I'll say it again OMINOUS MUSIC
• making adjustments huh
• * more office noises*
• will this be an actual office drama
• more of the... interesting filing system I suppose
• Blasphemy? maybe ?
• "we aren't here to decide the system" oh cmon!!! let the guy try
• "unpack that ominous silence later" Alice I'd die for you
• "time isn't real "fuck yes. preach
• ohhh already at a doctor's office?
• court ordered ? ohhhh
• still on the body dismorphya theme suppose ?
• fuck instagram
• oohhh
• I don't understand anything about tattoos so idk really
• not the dugstep
• influencer-"style" stuff just sets me off for some reason idk.
• if a stranger asks me about my personal life you can bet I'm runnin outta here
• " The artist becomes the canvas"
• STARTED A LIVESTREAM????WTF
• WHAT
• WHAT???
• THAT SEEMS SO PAINFUL
• BLOODY LIKE. ACTUALLY BLOODY OR JUST
• what
• wait what
• I mean?? at least you didn't have to pay I suppose???
• damn instant tattoo
• the random motivation at late nights and the mess that ir creates is a mood
• falling asleep while drawing too lmao
• don't stare at it too much. do not. you will starting seeing Things That You Did Not See Before and you will cry
• yes. ignore al the pain and fatigue to continue your work. that's extremely healthy
•"just a small tweak" yeah right
• WAIT WHAT??? THE KNIFE SCRAPED BONE ? WDYM???
• YES YOU SHOULD'VE. GO OUTSIDE STARE AT A TREE WATHEVER DONT DO WHAT YOURE DOING PLEASE
• OH MY GOD
• "nothing much" yea right
• the tatto is leaking??? oh no
• that's an artist's life. you think you finished up a piece and guess what? another 35 details it would be cool to add and another 157 mistakes you need to fix
• eventually you just gotta say " fuck it" and leave it be
• she has a roommate??? oh my god is she not recognizing the other?
• " perfect" but not usable or healthy if I understood it correctly(???)
• acid? oh boy
• Alice being dramatic again love her <3
• * more little noises *
• honestly the Gwen-Alice friendship ( or frienemiship???) is just gold
•"expanding external operations" huh
• wait who you're talking to Alice
• OHHH SISTER???
• play an instrument? we got a musician over here
• yeah Alice does give big older sister vibes
• so Alice's sibling is an aspiring rockstar huh
• ok so his name is Luke
• last time someone had a brother in a Rusty quill podcast it didn't end very well for them
• the band names .just. the the band names.
• I will actually use The Box In The Incinerator Method from now on
• Alice being serious oh dang
• * more ominous music*
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horizon-verizon · 23 days
Note
I’m not sure if you’ve answered this before but I’d love to get your perspective of what you think might’ve happened/how Alicent would’ve reacted if Rhaenyra had told her what had happened with Daemon in the show?
She would have been horrified and told Otto, specifically in the circumstance of Otto going to tell Viserys. Maybe berate Rhaenyra for it before she went to Otto. Or, more likely, she'd tell both men, Otto first and then Viserys. Why Otto first? If she has some hesitance-- bc she genuinely doesn't want Rhaenyra to get angry with her, or she worries Viserys will be upset with her, or/and she doesn't want to become the "cause" of further friction between them--to see how he will direct her into how to approach Viserys with this information.
Point is that she definitely blabs; she's never going to keep information about something she thinks will destroy or severely disrupt the plans of these two men, plans for Rhaenyra's future and marriage. And she won't respect Rhaenyra or see her the exact same way she had been for however long because for the past 3-4 years she's been in her apologetic & attempting-ly conciliatory mode towards Rhaenyra so seeing Rhaenyra break such an integral rule of female sexuality just, in turn, breaks her wall of tolerance. On her end, it looks like Rhaenyra is totally unappreciative of her efforts to "understand" and grow a new "friendship" based on their stepmother-stepdaughter relationship. She thinks Rhaenyra will not properly reciprocate her efforts by submitting to this point of the status quo, of disobeying her father Viserys when she has her entire life as never felt she could disobey Otto // when she has "dutifully" followed every order her father gave her as "good" daughters do. Many tg cite that she feels like she should be "rewarded" for giving Viserys sons. I think that for the pain--emotional and physical--she gets in this marriage must mean or convert into her having the proper authority of a Queen Consort.
Daemon, as both characterized by his mortal enemy/her father, Otto, is as she said in that episode, a man "without limit", so for Rhaenyra to be her sexual partner of all men is also to make Alicent think she has either also become a person "without limit" or to motivates her into believing that she never really knew who Rhaenyra was. It's not to say that if it were some rando or if Rhaenyra had just told her it was Criston that Alicent wouldn't go to either Otto or Viserys (because the premarital sex is still a rule for women and girls that Alicent expects all noble women & girls to follow). It's that that it is Daemon that makes it worse, and even WORSE that it is Daemon instead of Rhaenyra stopping them before they can go further that will anger Alicent more. If it had been Rhaenrya stopping Dameon and showing some sort of regret as she says in episode 4, Alicent might be tempted to ask for a lighter punishment or treatment but still think that that punishment was only Viserys' right to exercise on Rhaenyra & for Rhaenyra to "properly" learn her lesson. If anything, it's likely that she'd think she's "saving" Rhaenyra by making sure Viserys knows and punishes her and exiling Daemon/separating Daemon & Rhaenyra.
Yes, Alicent appeared to have liked Daemon's attention back in the epi 1 tourney on Daemon when he asked for her favor, but it's been 3-4 years since then and it's possible Alicent has emotionally distanced herself from him in her marriage or repressed such feelings enough to sufficiently demonize Daemon. Or she's been swamped in screaming children. But of course, HotD doesn't really answer this question bc of the jump cut between epi 3 & 4, so this is my conclusion made from looking at her life in those episodes. Criston, Alicent makes the execption for because she sees his violence as protest and pain from Rhaenyra's daring manipulation. Criston trying to kill himself is really where she'd think he's worthy of being "taken in" again. And bc she feels she needs him, is rehabilitating him, is participating in his redemptive path while also feeling he has redeemed himself already. Likely also rationalizing that she needs him to protect her as she tries to get Rhaenyra replaced. So Criston, rather than Daemon, gets her benefit of the doubt or grace.
Which is why I will never understand this relationship or how it came to be. HotD has not sufficiently given us reason to think these two are or ever were friends or close -- ex. when Rhaenyra is just NOW learning that Alicent prays to her mother for self-soothing (epi 3).
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