#and the asks too i keep reading over them thank you. much love i hope everyone's in a good place đ
"They found her"
SKZ -> ot8 x 9th member fem! reader
This is a part 2 to this fic, but it can be read as a stand alone as there's not much reference to the original fic.
genre: hurt/comfort, angst
wc: ~3,800 words
cw: kidnapping, guns and gunshot wounds, hospitals, some brief cursing
Summary: Since the incident, the guys have been extremely over protective of you. You heed their warnings, but still go out unaccompanied by security on your vacation, only to have to pay the price for your poor decisions.
A/N: Hiiii, ik I've disappeared off the face of the Earth again, but I've brought gifts back with me this time. This one's a bit heavier, but it's the long awaited part 2 to "Did you know?", so I hope you guys enjoy. I hit 500 followers since the last time I posted, so this is kind of a celebratory post as well. Thanks guys!
Masterlist | Happy Scrolling!
The time has come around again when JYP has given you and your members some well-earned personal vacation, and you've chosen to spend that time back at home with your family and friends.
Upon hearing about your vacation, your childhood friends started blowing up your phone, asking about when you'll be in and if you wanted to hangout. Of course, you've missed them just as much and gave them all the details of you're arrival.
The day of said plans has finally arrived, and you couldn't be more excited. You and three of your closest friends have decided to go to this cute breakfast cafe for brunch, run by all your favorite stores for some shopping, and then round your evening out with some bar hopping.
"You have got to see this!" Ha-Yoon, a friend you've known since grade school, explodes from beside you in the passenger seat, fanning herself. "Look at how hot this guy is? Think he'll give me his number if I DM him?"
"Are you being for real?" Dae cringes from the backseat, leaning forward to get a closer look at your friend's new internet crush. "He's kinda ugly."
This elicits a bickering match for the remainder of the drive, with you and your remaining friend, Soon-Bok, rolling your eyes at their silly banter.
You decided that you'd pick them all up from their homes, figuring that you'd get to spend some more time with them that way. You didn't really think about the fact that perhaps more time was synonymous with too much time. Just because you hadn't seen your friends in months, doesn't mean that they didn't see each other literally every single day.
With a clear of your throat, they stop insulting each other's fantasy love interests, both squealing when they realize you've pulled into the parking lot for the cafe.
The four of you get out of the car, you pulling your keys out of your purse to lock the doors. While walking towards the doors of the cafe, you're hit with a strange feeling- like someone's watching you.
Immediately, you whip your head around in search of anyone getting a little too nosey, but you come up with nothing. You keep your guard up though, knowing you can never be too sure.
Since the stage incident a few months back, you've been feeling a little paranoid. Understandably so, especially since the mean and threatening comments never subsided. It's gotten to the point where the staff have begun to send out a few extra security guards each time you leave the JYP building. In fact, JYP gave you all this nice little vacation in hopes it'd help some of the comments die down. To your dismay, they have not.
The guys have been incredibly protective since then, and you're actually grateful for it for once. Their constant questions about your whereabouts and wanting to tag along with you everywhere you go used to annoy you, but you'd never think to complain about it now.
Just this morning, having told them about your exciting plans for the day, they sent a barrage of texts telling you to be careful. Chan practically demanded you take a security guard with you, but for the sake of your friends' comfortability, you declined. Was it stupid? Possibly, but you're only wish for this vacation is to make things seem normal again. Having constant security around is not normal.
You placated Chan by telling him that your family knows of the places you'll be, and your family and the rest of your members all have your location at all times. He was reluctant, almost threatening to fly himself to your home just to go out on your little excursion with you, but he eventually gave way, not without first lecturing you about how important your safety is- like you didn't already know that.
~ ~ ~
"And then he pushed him down the stairs! How crazy!" Dae finishes, your eyes widening at how her story ended. She had just finished telling you all about how her boyfriend got into this big fight with a guy at the bar the other day. Apparently, the random man thought it acceptable to lay his hands on Dae, and her boyfriend did not appreciate that.
"Your boyfriend is so hot," Ha-Yoon comments, her eyes looking dreamily off into the distance.
"Excuse me?" Dae questions, raising a brow at Ha-Yoon's confession.
"I mean-"
"Ok!" you interrupt, pushing your chair back from the table you've all been sat at. The brunch was nice, catching up with your friends was much needed and the food was warm and comforting, but enough is enough, and your friends are starting to get a bit squeamish. "I need to use the restroom quickly, then we can head to the mall? Does that sound ok?"
There's a chorus of yesses, and they shoo you off into the restroom, picking up their phones to distract themselves until you get back.
You make your way to the back of the cafe, noticing how the bathrooms are secluded down a small hallway in the corner of the restaurant. Your eyes glance out the emergency exit door, and you tilt your head in confusion upon seeing a large white van sat outside it. It is not parked in a parking spot; it's just parked directly outside the door.
You quickly do your business, not wanting to keep your friends waiting for too long, and head back out to the front of the cafe.
Stepping outside the restroom, a hand is immediately thrown over your mouth, a piece of foul smelling cloth pressed up against your nose. You try to scream, but this only causes you to inhale more of the chemical.
You fight, attempting to throw an elbow behind you to dislodge yourself from the person's vice like grip, but this only leads to your elbow being grabbed at a painful angle. You whimper slightly as the person pries your elbow behind you, and it almost feels as if your arm could snap if you were to move another inch. You become lightheaded, and it's hard to keep your eyes open and your mind alert. Unable to fight any longer, you give in and slump down into the arms which hold you captive.
~ ~ ~
"She's been gone awhile, I'm gonna go-" Soon-Bok is cut off by an alarm inside the cafe going off. All the customers heads perk up at the noise, their attention drifting to the employees.
The waitresses look to one another in confusion before one makes their way over to where you went for the restroom a few minutes before. The cafe is silent as the waitress disappears, looking for where the alarm would be coming from.
It's silent for another minute, before there's an audible gasp. She comes back with your purse in one hand and your cracked phone in the other.
Your three friends quickly get up from their seats, rushing over to the waitress. "Where'd you find this?" Dae asks, her eyes tearing up.
"Just outside the bathroom. I was just able to catch a glimpse of a van speeding off. Do you think someone was taken?" she asks, her eyes widening at the thought.
"I think- I think our friend was kidnapped," Ya-Hoon whispers.
~ ~ ~
"This is why I said she needed a security guard with her! This would have never happened!" Chan snaps at their management in anger, rising up from his seat in the meeting room.
Upon hearing about your kidnapping, the rest of your members were immediately brought back to the JYP building. They were all livid.
"Chan, I understand you're upset, but there's really nothing we can do now but wait-"
"Wait for what? Huh? Wait for her to just magically appear here?" Minho cuts off the head of security, his face red with anger.
"Of course the police are on the case and doing everything they can to find her. As for the eight of you, you are not to leave this building until we get all of this under control. Do you hear me? We do not need more than one missing member." JYP is stern as he speaks, leaving no room for discussion. "This meeting is dismissed. We will update you all if we hear anything."
With that, everyone else clears out of the room, leaving your eight members.
"This is awful," Felix says, his head hanging in his hands.
"No shit, Felix, why not state more of the obvious," Jisung narrows his eyes at Felix.
"We can't turn on each other," Changbin butts in, deterring them from getting into it any further. "We have to stick together and just wait this out. She's strong; she'll be ok."
"But what if she's not," Hyunjin speaks up for the first time since they got back. He's been huddled up against Jeongin since they got there, his head hung low. It's obvious he's been crying with the way his cheeks are stained with tears, his eyes red from how often he's rubbed them.
"We can't think like that," Chan says, moving over to Hyunjin. He lays a comforting arm around his shoulders, and Hyunjin immediately moves to the comfort of the leader, turning his head to hide it in Chan's chest. "They saw the van leave, it couldn't have been too long before the police were there. They'll find her, and then she'll be right back here with us."
"To never be let out of our sights again," Seungmin grumbles from the couch, wearing a similar expression to that of Felix's.
"Correct," Minho agrees, leaning back in his chair.
~ ~ ~
"Seungmin, you have to sleep. Staying up for 72 hours straight is not going to make her come back any faster," Chan lays his hand on the back of the boy's neck, slightly rocking him side to side.
"Maybe not, but I'll be the first to know when they find her," he counters, his bloodhsot eyes meeting Chan's. "You're one to talk; you haven't slept either."
Chan just sighs in response, plopping down on the couch next to him. It's quiet between the two of them, but neither are complaining about it. The peace is nice after what they've been through the past few days.
"Hyunjin hasn't stopped crying. Jeongin and Felix have had to take turns laying with him," Seungmin breaks the quiet, his soft voice travelling throughout the practice room. "Han hasn't eaten since we found out."
"I know, I've been trying to get everyone up and moving, but no one's interested."
"Chan, we're not expecting you to be the hero. We know you're in pain, too, and it's ok to act like it," it takes Chan a minute to process what Seungmin had said, but as his brain takes time, he realizes that it's been so long since he's cried, so long since he's truly let his emotions out.
With another moment passing, Chan's breath quickens and tears spring into his eyes. Without another thought, he turns his head into Seungmin's shoulder and cries. He cries for you, and how scared you must be right now, and he cries for the rest of his members, knowing how bad this is hurting them. He cries because he can't take away their pain or yours, not this time.
~ ~ ~
"Wake up." You feel a cold splash of water hit your face, and you're abruptly brought to consciousness. Your eyes open quickly in response to the cold, but you squint once you're hit with the blinding light coming from the ceiling light above you.
You try to talk, to say anything, but you quickly become aware of the duct tape placed snuggly over your mouth.
You gain some more proprioception, feeling the tightness of the rope around your wrists and how your ankles are tied to the legs of the chair you're currently sat on.
"Hey!" Your attention is brought to the large man standing in front of you, and your breath hitches in your throat at the sight of the gun in his hand. "Eyes here. And quit squirming so much!"
You freeze at that, stilling your movements. "Now listen here," you hear another guy say from across the room. You are just noticing him for the first time, and you realize that this guy in front of you must be the brawn of the operation. "We need some money. A lot of money. So, if you want to make it out of here alive, you need to call your family and have them bring us 350 million won. No less. Think you can handle that princess?"
Tears well in your eyes at the mention of death. You can't die like this, at the hands of these awful people. But you also know you don't want to get your family involved. So, deciding this is your best bet, you sit stoically. You look straight ahead, your focus unwavering.
"The silent treatment, huh?" You can see out of your periphery the man at the desk across the room stand from his chair. He makes his way towards you, but you pay him no mind, keeping your blank stare on the wall in front of you.
"If the threat's not enough to get you to talk, maybe this will be." He's quick to take the gun from the other man's hand, and before you can even flinch he's pointed it at your lower leg and let off a shot.
You choke on your own spit when the pain registers. You close your eyes and strain your body not to react, but there's only so much you can do. The tears you were successfully keeping at bay before now slide freely down your cheeks. Your hands are in tight fists behind your back, and you feel you may pass out from the white-hot pain radiating from your calf.
Your consciousness teeters, and all words being spoken by the men sound gibberish in your state. Just as you feel you may fall completely unconscious, you're startled by a loud bang from behind you. Your eyes lazily drift to the men, and you see their gazes widen before they quickly raise their hands in surrender. You make eye contact with the one that shot you, and that's the last thing you see before your eyes shut, your body and mind going completely numb.
~ ~ ~
The practice room door is flung open, bringing Chan out of his sleepy state. "What the hell? Be a little quieter would you," he mumbles, rolling his eyes at Jisung who stands in the doorway. For the first time since the news, Chan is attempting to get some sleep. It wasn't exactly on his own accord, though. After the constant hounding from the rest of the members, and even a threat from Felix that he'd sneak melatonin into his water, he decided it would probably be best for him to try and get some shut eye; he'll be of no use to anyone if he's delirious with sleep.
"They found her."
At this, all of Chan's previous drowsiness vanishes. He sits up from the couch faster than he ever has before, his joints cracking with such a sudden movement. "What?" he asks for clarification, fearing it might be too good to be true.
"They've found her. She's on the way to the hospital right now," Jisung's contagious smile makes more sense now, Chan wearing a similar expression.
"Where are the rest of the boys?" Chan stands from the couch in a rush, quickly slipping his shoes on.
"They're in the meeting room. They just bought our flight there, we're leaving now."
~ ~ ~
"Thank you," you tell the nurse, taking the small cup of water from her hands. It's been a few hours since you woke up from your unconscious state. Upon arriving at the hospital, they immediately took you into surgery to remove the bullet from your leg. Thankfully, it missed all the important stuff, leaving your bones completely in tact. You're left with some muscle damage, but the doctor assured you with some physical therapy you'd be back to normal again.
You're now laying in bed recovering. The wound has been stapled and is wrapped tightly. You have your leg resting on a couple pillows, hopefully to help prevent the swelling. Beside you on the couch is your family, having come in immediately upon hearing the news. Some silly K-Drama is playing on the T.V, but it's enough to keep your mind occupied for now, so you're thankful for it.
Nobody confirmed it for you, but you were sure your members were well on their way. Your family told you that you had been kidnapped for a few days. You told them you only remember being awake for a few minutes, but apparently they kept knocking you out again and again.
After talking with the police, you find that they were using you for ransom, and they kept knocking you out because they didn't have everything squared away yet; whatever that means, you're not quite sure.
As if on cue, the door to your room swings open, revealing Chan and Minho. They're out of breath and sweaty, looking as if they had just run a marathon.
You're given no time for formal greetings as they both launch themselves at you, throwing their arms haphazardly around you until you feel like you're squished beneath them. Your mom makes a protesting sound, but you wave her off with a gesture of your hand. They missed you, and you missed them. They weren't hurting you or anyone else by hugging you.
"You're never leaving our sights again," Chan says, his cheek pressed against the top of your head.
"Never ever," Minho agrees, his torso laid lightly across your lap.
"I'm okay-" you start, only to be cut off by an angry looking Chan. His face pops into view at your words, eyebrows furrowed.
"You are indeed not okay! You were kidnapped, unconscious for hours on end, and then shot! How are you possibly trying to convince us that you're ok?" Minho stands up at his outburst, laying a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm alive, and that's okay enough for me."
With your response bludgeoned into their minds, they both collapse on top of you in another hug.
You bask in their warmth a bit longer, only being interrupted with the door creaking open. Felix and Hyunjin stand there, teary and red-eyed.
"Your time's up," Hyunjin sniffles, moving out of the way of the door so the two can exit.
"We'll be back," Chan leans down to kiss your forehead while Minho grabs your hand, giving it an assuring squeeze.
They leave, and Felix and Hyunjin scurry in after them. They crowd around your bedframe, hesitant to even lay a hand on you.
"Hey," you whisper, reaching over to grab both of their hands, "I'm okay."
Hyunjin breaks down in sobs, and it only takes Felix a minute before he's right there with him. You let go of their hands and open your arms to welcome them in for a hug. Both of them hesitate again, but eventually bend down to give you the gentlest hug you've ever received.
"Does it hurt?" Felix mumbles, his arms tightly wrapped around your shoulders.
"They've got me on some serious meds, so no. It probably will when I come off of them, though. I haven't tried to walk-"
"And you wont either. Not for a long while," your mom cuts in from the couch.
"Thanks for your input, Mom."
"No problem," her gaze shifts to the boys, "She's been moody since she came out of surgery. They say it's because of the meds." They both let out a huffy laugh at that, and while you're absolutely dying to argue, you're just thankful to see Hyunjin and Felix smile.
There's another knock at the door, and all your heads snap to Changbin and Jisung. "Our turn," Jisung says, gesturing for Felix and Hyunjin to get out.
"We'll see you soon," Felix says before making his way to the door.
"Love you," Hyunjin says, hugging you for a second longer.
"Love you, too," you tell him, and you watch as he gets up and walks toward the door.
Once they're gone, Jisung and Changbin come into the room.
"Chan is never letting you out of his sight again; you know that, right?" Changbin asks, pulling up a chair beside you.
"Uh, not just Chan, all of us," Jisung argues. "You know how when girls go out they all have to, like, go to the bathroom together? That's about to be us bestie."
"Um, ew," you grimace just thinking about all your privacy being stripped from you.
"We'll wait outside, of course," Changbin says, trying to make you feel better.
"Oh, how thoughtful," you sass back, giving them a sarcastic smile.
"But for real though, are you ok?" The atmosphere turns serious at Jisung's inquisition. "We were all worried sick about you."
"I guess I could be better, but I'm gonna be just fine. Doc said some physical therapy and I'll be good as new."
"Did you know they didn't even realize you were an idol at first?" Changbin says, piquing your interest. "They said they thought they just picked up some random person at the cafe. Apparently that's why they kept you knocked out for so long; it made things more complicated."
"I did not know that, actually. The police only gave me a quick run down, said they'd be back later for some more questioning and to give us some more information."
Another knock is heard at the door, and you look to see Seungmin and I.N standing there, the last of your boys. "Our turn now, move along," Seungmin says, tapping his foot impatiently.
"That's our cue, we'll see you later." They both lean down to give you a kiss on the cheek before walking out of the room.
Seungmin and I.N come in, seeming even more urgent than Chan and Minho did earlier.
They both come crashing down on top of you, all concern for the wires attached to you out the window.
Wanting to tease them, you say, "What if I was, like, seriously hurt? And now you two just came running in here like a pack of wild animals?"
"Give me a break, everybody said you were fine and that you were accepting hugs," Seungmin throws back, giving you a firm poke in the side.
You bark out a laugh at that, a smile gracing your features. "They also said that you hadn't smiled yet. So there," Seungmin nuzzles his head back into your shoulder, and you feel him breath a sigh against your neck.
"We missed you," I.N says from the other side where he's latched onto your arm.
"I missed you guys more."
"Not possible, I'd never seen any of the guys so worked up before. Chan didn't sleep the whole time you were gone, and as soon as we convinced him to, they found you," Seungmin says.
"Well, I'm here now," you comfort them, rubbing a hand on each of their backs.
"And we're never letting you go again."
~ ~ ~
Part 1
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Unwanted: Chapter 28, Unwanted - Pt. 1
Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Avenger!Fem!Reader
Summary:Â When your FWB relationship with your best friend Bucky Barnes turns into something more, you couldnât be happier. That is, however, until a new Avenger sets her sights on your super soldier and he inadvertently breaks your heart. You take on a mission you might not be prepared for to put some distance between the two of you and open yourself up to past traumas. Too bad the only one who can help you heal is the one person you can no longer trust.
Warnings:Â (For this part only; see Story Masterlist for general Warnings) Language, violence, death
Word Count:Â 861
Previously On...: You're boyfriend's back and Jade's gonna be in trouble. Hey na, hey na...
A/N:Â THREE MORE CHAPTERS LEFT OMG HOW DID WE GET HERE?!
NOTE! The tag list is a fickle bitch, so I'm not really going to be dealing with it anymore. If you want to be notified when new story parts drop, please follow @scoonsaliciousupdates
Banner By: The absolutely amazing @mrsbuckybarnes1917!
Thank you to all those who have been reading; if you like what you've read, likes, comments, and reblogs give me life, and I truly appreciate them, and you!
Taglist:Â (Sadly, tag list is closed; Tumblr will not let me add anyone new. If you want to be notified when I update, please Follow me for Notifications!)Â @jmeelee @cazellen @mrsbuckybarnes1917 @blackhawkfanatic @buckybarnessimpp @hayjat @capswife @itsteambarnes @marygoddessofmischief @sebastians-love @learisa @lethallyprotected @rabbitrabbit12321 @buckybarnesandmarvel @fanfictiongirl77 @calwitch @fantasyfootballchampion @selella @jackiehollanderr @wintercrows @sashaisready @missvelvetsstuff @angelbabyyy99 @keylimebeag @maybefoxysouls @vicmc624 @j23r23 @wintercrows @crist1216 @cjand10 @pattiemac1@les-sel @dottirose @winterslove1917 @harperkenobi @ivet4 @casey1-2007 @mrsevans90 @steeph-aniie @bean-bean2000 @beanbagbitch @peachiestevie @wintrsoldrluvr @shadowzena43
Tumblr will not let me directly tag the following: @marcswife21 @erelierraceala @jupiter-107 @doublejeon @hiqhkey @unaxv @brookeleclerc
Jade was dragging you through the hallways of the base by your hair as she frantically searched for an exit that would keep her out of Buckyâs reach. At first, you tried to keep track of the path you took, making note of turns and counting doorways as you were pulled down long corridors in case the opportunity to escape presented itself and you had to retrace your steps, but the route was so convoluted, and your head so battered, that you quickly lost track of where you were going, and any sense of direction youâd been able to hold onto.Â
âI need eyes,â Jade said, more to herself than to you, and soon she was shifting directions. Within moments, she was throwing open a metal door that appeared to lead to a security center. Tossing you unceremoniously inside, she bolted the door behind her and heaved a heavy breath.
âWhatâs the matter?â you asked, your tone dangerously mocking. âIf he loves you as much as you think he does, you shouldnât have any reason to run from him.â
âShut up, shut up, shut up,â Jade chanted. She moved over to the row of security monitors and began quickly cycling through the screens. âGotta find an exit,â she murmured to herself. âThere has to be a way out where he wonât see.â
You took the opportunity her distraction provided to study the rest of the monitors, hoping to find some subtle way to contact Bucky, to let him know where you were or, at the very least, to try and find an escape route of your own.Â
âHow did he know where to find you?â Jade muttered as she continued to flip through the feeds.
You opted not to answer; youâd be a fucking idiot to reveal your distress bangle now. If you could keep it a secret from Jade, youâd ensure that Bucky would have the ability to find you, no matter where she ended up taking you. It would also let him know you were still alive.
You scanned the rest of the monitors, instead, and were shocked by what you saw: Room after room was littered in corpses; bloody, mangled, bodies where there had once been Hydra agents. Your eyes landed on a monitor in the far left corner of the room, and you saw him. Bucky was covered head to toe in the blood of his enemies, dual guns raised in the air as he opened fire on anyone who stood in his way. Though you couldnât hear the words coming from his mouth, you could read his lips well enough to know he was screaming your name, searching for you as he tore through the facility, slaughtering every Hydra operative that crossed his path.
You had never seen him so enraged before. Yes, you knew that, as the Winter Soldier, heâd been capable of immense violenceâ youâd seen video footage of him in action, after all, but this? This was so much worse than that. Because Soldat complied. And Bucky Barnes? He was out for blood.*
You should have been frightened by the blatant display of absolute brutality, should have been repulsed by it. But instead, it excited you. It thrilled you, because you knew that he was doing this for you. To get you back, to keep you safe. He was willing to damn his soul to hell to protect you when you needed him. You should have been disgusted, but youâd never been more turned on by him in your life.
âGotcha!â Jade exclaimed, drawing your attention back to her. Sheâd stopped her cycling through the security feeds on a non-descript door that, so far, seemed to have been spared from the ongoing carnage. Moving to a locker beside the desk, Jade reached inside and pulled out a handgun and several clips of ammo, tucking them snuggly into her belt.
âCome on,â she said, reaching out and grabbing your hair once more. âYouâre my human shield for getting out of here.â She dragged you back out of the security station and into the hallway, looking both ways before turning left and sprinting down the corridor. It was all you could do to keep up; you had no doubt that if you faltered, sheâd drag you across the floor behind her without a second thought.Â
In minutes, you were at the door youâd seen in the feed. Jade let go of your hair and trained her gun on your head. âOpen it,â she commanded.Â
You winced in pain as you yanked on the door with your right hand, the left dangling limply and uselessly at your side. âHurry up!â Jade shouted at you.
âIâm trying,â you grunted as you pulled. âThe doorâs fucking heavy, and in case you forgot, Iâm down an arm because of you.â
âJesus Christ,â Jade grumbled, reaching around you to yank the door open, herself. âDo I have to do fucking everything around here?â She jabbed the barrel of her gun into your back. âGo,â she urged.
You stepped into the darkness of the open tunnel and, doing your best not to stumble or jostle your ruined arm, began to walk.
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Back To You - (Din x Reader) Epilogue/Prologue for Close To Home
A/N: IT IS HEREEEEEEE!!! So sorry it took so long. So much happens. I was going to divide this and then I thought, âHmmmmmâŠ. No.â As one does. Another note at the end to avoid spoilers. Seriously. Donât read it until youâve read the whole thing. Youâve been warned. I have spoken. This is the way. Yada yada yada. âŠ..You just jumped forward and came back didnât you? đ Also, once again, there is some lore in this that @writerlyhabitsâ wrote in a fantastic short, and I loved it so much, I asked if I could use it.
There are parts of this you wonât understand if you didnât read the Dincember 2022 Drabble Carry You With Me, but they are very small mentions, you will be fine as a whole if you donât want to read it. But why wouldnât you? đ„ș
(This takes place two years after the other one, and goes to the beginning-ish of episode 1/5 of TBoBF, Return of the Mandalorian.)
I do not own Star Wars or itâs characters. Sadly. But I carry them in my heart. Does that count for something? My soul says yes.
Warnings: Tooth rotting fluff, Grogu being the cutest thing you ever did see, (Nobody touch me heâs still here okay?) and Din is once again a warning in and of himself in this one. Helmetless Din. What? Who said that? đŹ Typical show violence. Swearing. Space swearing. Grogu is a menace. Arguing? Mandoâa. Show dialogue, so spoilers? (But if youâre here, you know how this works.) Return of past characters. Tears. Shenanigans. Lots of banter. Throwback to chapter one with dialogue repeats but in the bestâąïž way, and copious amounts of me trying to work in back to you as a normal thing in a sentence bc why not.
Word count: 16,655 (I said what I said.)
As always, thanks to @grippingbeskar for encouraging me, looking over this for me, and being the one to introduce me to Din fanfiction in the first place, getting me hooked. You are fantastic and I always love our chats.
And for @fordo-kixed-rex, you deserve so much more than a shoutout for reading all 75 million iterations of this massive chapter from start to finish, and helping me in between. Youâre a real one, friend. This series would not have gotten this far without you.
Also a shoutout to @what-the-heckin-heck, @dontletyourchildrenwatchthis, @lloweryourstandardss, and @littlemisspascal for being a sounding board for me over this whole process. (Also to @deceiver-of-gods for all of your help over all the chapters with the Mandoâa. I hope I got it right in this one.)
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Xxx
Two years laterâŠ.
Tatooine was bustling. As always. Vendors with their wares, smells and brilliant sights everywhere you turned. Something new and exciting to pull you in and suck all your credits dry just like the planet's heat stole every drop of moistureâŠ.Â
But it was all nothing without the kid. It was dull and drab without Grogu at your side. His soft babbles, the odd âPatuâ heâd throw at the next snack heâd like to stealâŠ.Â
Dank farrik! Turning away from the hanging frogs at the nearest vendor, you swiped at the most recent batch of tears rising to the surface. Sniffling loudly, you melted into the warm hand that came to rest on your back, eyes fluttering shut.
âItâs okay, meshâla. I miss him, too.â The modulated voice at your ear carried unspoken sorrow of its own, sadness itâd never dare to even whisper into the universe, lest that make it real. If he kept it hidden, secretâŠ. Like his face, nothing in the galaxy could use it against him. Somehow it made him stronger. And you both resented that and wanted to squeeze the life out of him for it at the same time.Â
âItâd be nice if youâd show it once and a whileâŠ.â You grumbled, turning toward him but keeping your eyes cast down to stare at the sand.
His hand fell to his side slowly. âWhat?â Head tilting to the side as he peered down at you in question, barely any space left between you, it leaned the other way when you shook your head with a sarcastic grin.
âNothing. Forget it.â Your eyes lifted up to meet his visor finally, squinting against the glare of the twin suns. âGot everything?â
Din nodded. âAlmost. Just need the-â
His words were cut short when the satchel across his chest suddenly dropped to the ground, the strap cut inconspicuously by a passing Rhodian seeming to casually bump into the Mandalorian only moments before.
You turned to try and find the culprit but Din tugged on your upper arm.Â
âForget about him. Heâs just the-â Both of you looked down at the ground to find the satchel missing, â-distraction.â
You smirked. âI see.â
As Dinâs head began to swivel in search of the thief, you attempted to reach out through the crowd with the Force, searching for the familiar signature of the contents in the satchel.
âHow did you not get an alert?â
Now your head was on a swivel. Directly to the Mandalorian. âA what?â
âYou know.â He wiggled his fingers like Cara always did when referencing the Force. âWhy didnât you know?â
You rolled your eyes with a sigh, looking back to the crowd. âIt doesnât work that way.â The world weary words youâd said a thousand times felt like a mantra at this point. Then after a moment you added, âIâm not a security system.â
âWell that would be handy,â Din said offhandedly, beginning to walk purposefully in the direction the two of you had come not minutes before.
Stumbling after him, your face scrunched like youâd eaten something sour, you pulled on his upper arm to try and turn him around, but it only stopped him, his head still on a swivel. âWait, what?!â
Din sighed in frustration. âI donât know. Iâm just looking for the thief. That bag has something impor-â
âYour old armor, I know.â Dinâs full attention was on you now, his head tilted slightly in question. âEverything has an energy, thatâs a really simplified way of how the Force works. Right now Iâm trying to track the signature of your armor.â
âWhat is it?â He asked hesitantly, his weight shifting to one side.
Smiling softly, you took a step forward, grabbing his hand and pulling him down a side alley toward where you felt the signature grow stronger. âNothing but goodness, Man- Din. Light and strength.â You stumbled over his name, still not used to using his actual moniker in public.
He chuckled at your fumble, shaking his head in disbelief. âFrom that dingy old stuff?â
âItâs not the quality of the armor that Iâm reading.â You looked at his visor over your shoulder, eyebrow raised. âItâs the quality of the warrior who wore it.â Turning back forward to navigate between the street crowded with lifeforms, one side of your mouth lifted in amusement. âThat type of thing leaves an impression.â
âYou didnât answer my question,â he finally grumbled quietly. When you looked back at him once again, your brow arched higher than before, he huffed. âHow did you know it was there?â
Smiling softly as you held the gaze of his visor, you turned back to face forward, moving a bit faster. âYouâre about as subtle as your new armor.â Din let out a soft, annoyed groan. âI saw you packing it back in Peliâs hangar.â
âI can be subtle,â he groused, slowing his steps slightly.
With your own groan, you turned to face him with a toss of your head for emphasis. âYes. So subtle, Mandalorian. My big, shiny tin can. Now come.â Grabbing his hand once again with both of yours, you began to walk backwards, pulling him along with you. âWe have a thief to catch.â
The alley had quieted down, the masses of beings thinned out so it was basically only you and Din, and maybe a handful of beings milling about, using the cross way as a shortcut to somewhere else. No one was lingering, their faces streaking by as they hurried to move on with their day.
âHold that thought.â Din pulled you to a stop, planting his feet as he turned his head toward a crate on his left. On top of the box sat his satchel, untouched, his armor still causing it to look awkward and lumpy. âWe may have just lucked ou-â
A surge of panic behind you caused you to turn toward the source, a small figure darting out of your line of sight as a familiar small voice muttered, âOh shi-â before spinning around in Dinâs hold, his grip around their forearm holding them tight.
âOkay, you little nerf herder, nice try- Sola?â Dinâs voice dropped on the name.
You turned to fully face the pair, eyes going wide on the small girl now a young adult, maybe twelve, possibly thirteen years old now.Â
She looked between the two of you, her expression a mirror of your own, as her body deflated in Dinâs hold, her weight going slack in his grip while she cried in disbelief, âItâs you?!â
You couldnât help the highly intelligent thing that tumbled out of you next. âItâs you?!â
Sola sighed a sigh worthy of a Mandalorian before she grumbled, kicking one foot at the sand path of the alleyway. âI knew I recognized that armband.â
Reaching up, you traced over the ribbons on your left bicep with the tips of your fingers on your right hand, eyes darting down to look at it briefly before they pulled back up to level a stern glare on the girl.
Before anything else could be said, heavy footfalls came racing up behind your little gathering. A female stumbled the last few steps, coming to a stop and collapsing, slapping her hands onto her knees before you could see her face, struggling to catch her breath. You opened your mouth to greet the newcomer, but she held up one finger before you could utter a sound.Â
Din finally muttered in disbelief, âCara?â
Your head whipped over toward the figure, eyes wider still. âItâs you?!â A hand came up to rest on your forehead, massaging back and forth as if that would help things sink in and make more sense. Your brows practically knit together in confusion with this new information, one arching up as you stared at the woman. âIâm so confused.â
Standing up, with one last heavy breath, Cara offered the two of you a tired smile. âFollowing up a lead.â
She held up a hand to stop Din before he could even ask, her eyes closing in mock annoyance. âLong story.â She opened them once again to land directly on you with a wink as Din sighed in exasperation before her attention turned onto Sola, her hand falling to gesture to the adolescent before landing at her side with a graceless slap. âAnd this little womp rat stole my commlink.â
Din looked down at the girl, giving her arm still in his grip a little shake. âThis is Sola.âÂ
The girl shrunk under the stare of three adults.Â
Caraâs gaze flicked up towards his visor, almost accusingly. âFriend of yours?â You nodded, and she sighed, hands going to her hips, weight shifting to one side. âWhy am I not surprised?â
âSola,â you tried calmly, going over to grab Dinâs satchel before it was forgotten in the chaos. âExplain, please.â
âNothing. It was nothing. I just grabbed hers by mistake, thatâs all.â She shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant.
Cara leveled a look on the girl, her tone dry. âOff my belt?â
Sola tried a grin. âWhoops?â
The Marshal lifted the look to Din.Â
âDonât do that to me,â he complained. âI didnât teach her that.â
âDonât even pretend to look at me next, Cara,â you held up your hand to stop her before she even tried. âI only taught her good things.â
Sola rolled her eyes and tried to tug out of Dinâs hold, but the Mandalorian easily held her in place.
âHave a seat,â you offered sweetly, pulling the crate the bag had been on toward you with the Force, and giving her a nudge to sit. âTalk.â
She stared over at the wall behind you, grinning in disbelief. âIt was a dare, okay?â Her eyes pulled up to meet yours, their hard stare melting slightly once they did, revealing something vulnerable, something broken. Her voice softened just slightly, but still held the mock vibrato she started out with, making you huff as she continued. âSome kids dared me to take someoneâs bag, and I was just unlucky enough to choose you.â
âAnd my comlink?â Cara tried.
Sola turned to her with a cheesy grin. âThat was just bad luck on your end.â
âIâll show you bad luck,â Cara grumbled, stepping closer to the teen.
You stepped between them. âCara.â
âWhat?â She barked, trying to peer over your shoulder at the girl before looking you in the eyes.
âNo.â
âShe stole-â
âSheâs a kid,â you corrected. âTell me you didnât do dumb stuff when you were her age. Hell, you do dumb stuff now.â
âYouâre one to talk,â Cara grumbled.
You smirked, arms crossing over your chest as your weight shifted to one leg. âAh, but I travel with a Mandalorian. Whatâs your excuse?â
Cara scoffed. âI knew him first, if weâre going that route.â
âIâm right here,â Din said, somewhat offended, reaching out to gently push Sola down by the shoulder without a second glance when she went to stand up.
You kept your voice even, mildly distracted as you spoke somewhat flippantly. âMandalorians who shot their partner in the leg donât get to talk right now.â
âI didnât shoot you!â He protested, voice going up at the end in agitation.
âYou shot her?â Cara asked at the same time Din spoke, turning to look at him with raised brows.
âI didnât shoot her!â Din corrected before Cara could even finish, his visor swiveling back to you. âIt was a ricochet.â His head tilted to the right as he stared at you. âOn Gideonâs ship. The bolt bounced off the droid when she launched at it, and-â
You waved your hand dismissively, gaze landing on nothing in particular across the street. âSame thing.â
âIt is no-â
âUgh!â Sola threw her head back and groaned, staring at the sky with wide eyes, her voice went up with each following word. âThis is torture!â Her head lowered back to look between the three of you, eyes narrowed to slits before they fluttered shut and she heaved another heavy sigh. âFine. Iâll talk.â She leaned back on her palms on the crate, her face finally relaxing to something more neutral. âJustâŠ. Stop whateverâŠ. This,â she gestured vaguely with one hand while her nose scrunched up slightly in disgust, âis.â
You turned back to face her, nodding for her to go on, but Din interrupted.
âLater.â
You rolled your eyes as he waved his finger at you in admonishment before landing them back on the girl, smiling softly. âGo on, Sola.â
She hesitated before taking a quick breath and letting it all out on an exhale, speaking quickly. âMy parents are diplomats from a planet in the Mid Rim.âÂ
âWoah, woah, woah, slow down, kid!â
Sola glared at you, taking an exaggeratedly deep breath before speaking overly clearly the rest of her explanation. âWeâre here to broker peace between the different ruling houses and our world.â
âHey, if youâre going to have an attitude, we can just leave,â you warned.
âGreat!â Sola beamed. âBye!â She went to rise from the crate but both Din and Cara pushed down on a shoulder on each side respectively, earning a soft oomph! from the teen.Â
She sighed resignedly before going on. âBut as you can probably guess, that goes as smooth as sand in a hyperdrive.â She took a deep breath. âIâm not allowed to do anything. I have to keep up appearances, and stay inside most of the time now because we have gotten death threats after a deal gone bad recently.â
Din visibly stiffened beside her, Cara, too. A chill ran up your spine as she continued.
As she relaxed further back into the crate, her words seemed almost lazy, lackadaisical. âSo I started sneaking out. Nothing major, just needed some fresh air, well, itâs Tatooine, so, air.â Her tone went rigid with her posture, the spark in her fading to a dull ember as her volume faded to a mere murmur. Her index finger traced lines along her knee as her eyes followed the invisible trails it made. âThen I met them.â
âWho?â
Sola met your eyes, almost startled when you asked, like sheâd forgotten people were listening. She shrugged one shoulder, her eyes dropping back down to her lap, her tone still soft. âDoesnât matter. A group of kids. They do petty crimes and stuff, I wasnât going to do anything, but they said they were going to tell the people who had been sending death threats how I was sneaking in and out at night.â Her hand stilled, then began poking at the ankle of her foot tucked up under her absently, her eyes cast down at the ground. âThey had been watching me, I guess. Let them know all our weak points in security. If I didnât do a job for them, then theyâd tellâŠ.â
âAnd one job turned into moreâŠ.â
She nodded at your comment. Her eyes flickering up to meet yours for only a second before they pulled down again.
âWhy didnât you just tell your parents and beef up security?â Dinâs voice was in planning mode.
Sola peered up at him, squinting against the sunsâ light. âAnd prove Iâd let them down?â She looked down at her lap, fiddling her thumbs. âSneaking around, been committing petty crimes? Would you have done that?â
Din looked at the ground, his voice quiet. âProbably not.â
âGive me my comlink,â Cara said, holding out her hand toward the girl.
You huffed, arms crossing over your chest. âReally, Cara? You hear all that and youâre still banging on about your damned-â
Once the device was in her hand, she took a few steps away and spoke into it in a professional voice. âThis is Marshal Dune. Please call off the search. It wasnât stolen, I just dropped it. Sorry for the confusion.â A male voice you couldnât quite make out garbled over static on the other end. âYeah, Iâm fine,â Cara replied, turning to face the three of you. âAlso, Iâm going to take off the rest of the day. Found some booths I want to wander through. Weâll pick up our meeting tomorrow. Yeah. See you then.â
She made her way back over, clipping the comlink to her belt. âI just bought us about twelve hours. Whatâs the plan?â
âPlan?â Sola looked between the three of you with wide eyes.
You smiled. Her gaze was up and off the ground for the first time this conversation. And it was full of hope.Â
âOf course,â you said, smiling gently. âNobody messes with a member of our family and gets away with it.â Sola grinned at your words. Youâd do pretty much anything to keep it there. âNow, letâs go scare some thugs, shall we?â
Xxx
âNow, I know that you packed it,â you said, standing in the fresher of the Crest, voice jiggling as you hopped slightly to pull the armor higher up your chest. âBut I donât know why.â
âOh, the Jedi is stumped, is she?â Dinâs sarcastic amusement was muted through the door, making you roll your eyes.Â
Setting your weight to one hip, you pressed the button, and the durasteel barrier hissed open to reveal your Mandalorian leaning against the frame. His arms across his chest as he waited for you, his posture easy and relaxed, he looked like a growth on the walls of his ship.
Cara and Sola were out in the hangar with Peli, their voices faintly heard along with the annoyed bleeps and bloops of R5 as they echoed off the stone walls and up the open ramp.Â
âNot stumped,â you countered quickly, walking around him to the middle of the cargo hold as you pulled your gloves on, chin held high as you chose your next words with care. His visor followed you as you went. âJustâŠ. Curious.â You finally landed on with a huff, looking down at your hands as they fiddled mindlessly before adding on a mumbled, âAnd Iâm not a Jedi.â
Din pushed off the wall, his head shaking gently in disbelief as he walked toward you slowly. âI was going to have Boba melt it down and forge it into something better.â He stopped somewhere behind you. You were purposely not paying attention, trying not to get distracted and make sure your armor was set up correctly, only faintly registering the absence of the soft thud of his boots on the metallic floor of the Crest right behind you before he went on. âI donât know where the armorer is right now, and itâs not full beskar anyway, so any smith could do it, but I trust him.â
âSomething better?â You turned to face him, head tilted to the side as you clicked your vambraces into place, their gears whirring to life. Stumbling back an inch as you startled, his chest plate brushing against your nose he was so close, you reached out to swat his arm lightly in annoyance, muttering a Donât do that and shaking your hand out to the side with a grimace after it pinged off his beskar. Craning your head back to look up at him properly, you couldnât help the small grin when you found him already peering down at you. âLike what?â
Dinâs head tilted just so to the right. âSomething for you.â He didnât miss a beat.Â
Your eyes widened slightly before they narrowed to slits. âYouâre not going to tell me, are you?â
He was smiling. You could tell by the lilt in his voice as he leaned into the tilt of his head, his body following and started down the ramp. âYou know me so well.â
Reaching out, you grabbed his cape. âNu-uh. Not so fast, Tin Can. Hold up.â Pulling him back to you, though he gave very little resistance, you leaned around to look into his visor when he was a few inches away, his hands on his hips in mock annoyance. âYou donât have to do that.â Your voice had gone soft. He turned to face you fully. âI know that armor is important to you.â
âSo are you.â
You grinned. âSmooth, Shiny. Real smooth.â
Din shrugged one shoulder, his hands falling to rest at his sides loosely. âI have my moments.â
You nodded, starting down the ramp, and talking over your shoulder. âAnd they are few and far between.â
Din scoffed. âLucky for you. You couldnât handle me at full throttle.â
Grinning, you looked down at your vambraces and twisted them a bit. âThat sounded like a threat.â
âItâs whatever you wanted it to be, meshâla.â
âYou look like a Mando.â Solaâs voice pulled your attention away from the man at your back before you could reply.Â
âWhat? In beskar?â You gestured to the armor down your body. âNo.â
The young girl rolled her eyes at you.
Grinning, you reached up to adjust your scarf tucked in to make the armor fit a bit better, and noticed her posture go rigid.
âYou kept it,â she mumbled, pointing lamely toward the blue material around your neck.
âYeah? Why wouldnât I?â
She shook her head. âNo, itâs not that. Itâs justâŠ.â She pulled at her flowing poncho, revealing her bright pink scarf, still vivid as ever, tucked away underneath, close to her heart. âI have mine, too,â she amended softly. âI keep it hidden so it doesnât get dirty or torn.â
âKind of like my armbandâŠ.â You mumbled, closing the last few steps between you before reaching out to softly roll the fabric of her scarf between your thumb and index finger as she traced the ribbon on your bicep with the tips of her own.
âI still have no idea what hyperspace looks like,â she mused, staring at the glittering fabric with a sad smile. âI was so little when we came here, and my parents wouldnât let me anywhere near a cockpit. Iâve only ever been in a cabin while the ship was moving. No viewportsâŠ.â She met your eyes again, hand falling to her side. âSupposedly we flew beside some purrgil and even then they wouldnât let me look.â
Letting your own hand fall to your side, fiddling with the air aimlessly, you held her gaze. âWhy not?â
Sola shrugged. âNot sure. They said something about safety at the time, and I just never pressed it, but now it just feels suffocating.â
âI know itâs annoying,â Din chimed in softly from behind you, his shadow looming over the young girl in the dying sunâs light, âbut I would give anything to have my parents be overbearing one more time.â
Solaâs eyes flew up to the Mandalorian. âWhat happened to them?â
âA story for another time,â he said stoically, turning to the right and going deeper into the hangar. âLetâs confirm the plan.â
You turned with Cara and Sola on your left to head that way, Peli falling in step on your right as the droids followed along behind.
âThey arenât around anymore. It happened when he was very young, about the same age as when we met you. Thatâs why he became a Mandalorian. Thatâs all Iâll say,â you offered quietly. âThe rest is his story to tell.â
The first stars were twinkling overhead as the sky said good night in brilliant shades of red and orange.Â
Once your party had circled around one of Peliâs many cluttered tables off to the side, the top of it littered with ship parts, Din turned to you.Â
âGar beskar'gam jate slanar?â (âYour armor good to go?â)
You nodded. âElek. An jate.â (âYes. All good.â)
Sola turned her head slowly up toward Cara, one brow arched in confusion.
The Marshal slowly shook her head, eyes closed. âThey do thisâŠ.â
âDo what?â You asked, brows knit toward your friend.
Cara leveled you with a look. âStart speaking in any one of a thousand languages none of the rest of us know.â
R5 started beeping animatedly, trilling as he wheeled back and forth on his treads excitedly, and ended on a raspberry, making you and Peli laugh.
âOh, great,â Cara rolled her eyes, âeven the droidâs are in on it.â
BD and Treadwell made their way into the circle, the Pit droids not far behind, all of them chattering away as they approached you until Din sent a blaster shot pinging off of a piece of scrap pipe over in a corner.
The droids all screeched before going silent, freezing in their steps as Peli cried in protest, âHey! Watch it!â
âYeah, we donât want another ricochet,â you mumbled, adjusting your armor for no good reason besides looking down and away from his judgemental visor.
Cara and Sola snickered from their spots across the table from you, the weight of Dinâs stare beside you nothing short of stifling.
âIf you stare any louder, Din, they may ask you to be quiet all the way on Coruscant,â you muttered quietly, adjusting your vambraces needlessly for the umpteenth time to hide the growing smirk across your face.
âIâll just tell them itâs because of you, they'll understand. Garner sympathy.â
Only your eyes lifted up to glare daggers at his visor, his head tilting to the side teasingly as he held your gaze.
âThe plan?â You groused, looking across the table with a sigh as your weight shifted to one side - away from the Mandalorian.Â
His tone was light, as if it held a smile, while he laid out the steps of the plan one more time. âSola said they would be meeting her back at the market in an hour. She meets them as planned. The three of us follow her, and stick around in the shadows, as inconspicuously as possible-â
âSays the man whoâs a walking mirror.â
Din didnât even bother to look at you, only sighing at your remark, his shoulders rising and falling with the effort before he went on. âFrom there, we follow them back to their base of operations. From what weâve heard, shouldnât be too hard to get into. We get in, cause a little chaos, get them to release Sola from thisâŠ. Contract, then we leave as quietly as we came.â
âNo one dies.â
Cara nodded at your words, Din nodding once in agreement, his body going stiff at your next statement.Â
âEven if we run into a Jawa.â
He took a deep breath to begin to protest, but you held up a finger to stop him, mocking his words from earlier.
âLater.â
Xxx
Spotting the culprits was easy enough. They werenât sly about anything as they paraded through the streets with their puffed up chests, smirking as people scattered from them should they get too close. They hassled a vendor or two, shaking them down for a payout, and Cara grumbled beside you, gripping the buckle that showed she was a Marshal tightly through her poncho she wore to conceal it.
Before you could do anything, Din was hot on their heels, handing the vendors a stack of credits to make reparations as soon as the thugsâ backs were turned. They would try and insist he keep it, lightly shoving the money back into his hands, but Din somehow managed to sweet talk them into accepting every time, his head ducked down slightly, hand over theirs in a calming gesture. You wished you could hear what he said.
âIâve never seen this side of him,â Cara muttered offhandedly. âCaring, soft almost. It looks good on him.â
âYeah, it does,â you agreed softly. âThatâs how he is with the kid. Grogu brought out a side of him I donât think would have seen the light of day otherwise.â
She elbowed you. âOh, I dunno. Youâre pretty persuasive. Think itâdâve come out eventually.â
You slid only your eyes sideways to look at her. âWhy must you shit talk me?â
âBecause if I donât Iâll simply fade away. It gives me sustenance. I could go days without food, but teasing you? That simply wouldnât do.â
Turning your head to peer at her incredulously, you spoke in a low voice after a long moment of silence. âIâm going to go stand over there,â you pointed behind you, âas far away from you as possible right now.â
Cara scoffed. âGood. Go. Your beskar'gam is drawing too much attention, anyway.â
With a grin, you began walking backwards down the street, keeping to the shadows. âAw, you paid attention.â
Your friend glared at you. âDonât make me regret it.â
A shit eating grin was across your face. âYouâre speaking MandoâaâŠ.â
Cara huffed, her attention turning back to the street as she mumbled, âLast time I make that mistake.â
Stopping short, you stood up straight. âAw, donât be afraid to show your feelings, Cara. Feelings are a good thing. They make us human-â
âIf you donât stop talking-â
âAre you two done?â Dinâs voice across the alley from the two of you pulled both sets of eyes his way. âThey left a few minutes ago, but I couldnât get a word in edgewise, what with your bickering.â His head swiveled between you and the Marshal, judgment heavy through his visor. âSola is with them, I gave her a tracker, slipped it to her when no one was looking while someone,â he looked at you pointedly, âwasnât paying attention.â
âI was paying attention,â you groused, voice lowering as you kicked at the sand below your feet. âJust not to that.â
âShe was talking about you,â Cara tattled, stepping out of the shadows and into the moonlight, stretching like a loth cat.
âSo were you!â You protested, also stepping into the nightlight, making Cara squint as she held up a hand as if to block the glare of the reflection off your armor. Swatting her hand down, you knit your brows at her. âItâs not that bright out here, donât be dramatic.â
âChildren. Iâm surrounded by literal children,â Din muttered, turning and walking away exasperatedly.
âThereâs no need to be rude,â you grumbled, following after him.
âThen prove me wrong,â he called over his shoulder. âRight now youâre worse than Grogu.â You gasped. âWhen he needs a nap.â Cara gasped. âAnd heâs hungry.â You both gasped.
âI take it all back,â Cara stormed past Din, her words brusque and aloof. âYouâre the meanest person I know.â
âPerson?â Your tone was incredulous as you sped up to fall in step with her ahead of the Mandalorian, head swiveling to land on him with a sly smirk over your next word. âDroid.â
Din stopped in his tracks and sighed, head tilting back to the sky just slightly with a gentle shake. âOh, this mission is off to a great start.â
When both you and Cara kept walking ahead of him, the bounty hunter finally called out on a hiss, âHey! Are you two done?â
âI donât know, are we?â You turned on your heel to face him, hands on your hips as you planted your feet and arched your brows in question, almost accusingly.Â
Din bit his tongue before he turned this into a whole something else before this entire endeavor even got off the groundâŠ. again. For the third? fourth? time. Heâd lost track of how many times theyâd gotten off track in the last five minutes alone, let alone today as a whole.
With a jut of his thumb to his left down a narrow alley, he tilted his head that way for emphasis. âThugsâre that way.âÂ
Both you and Cara hesitated for only a moment, weight shifting slightly from side to side before you dropped your hands from your hips with a huff and headed toward the alley, your Marshal friend in tow.
As you passed by Din, he muttered a low and amused, âOh wise one.â
âIâll tell Sola you said so,â you shot back in a low murmur. âShe already knows Iâm the smart one.â The alley was so small you had to form a single file line, and somehow you were in the front with Cara behind you, and Din pulling up the back.Â
âShe just lets you think thatâs what she thinks,â Cara hummed. âWe all know itâs me.â
Din snorted. âItâs neither of you.â He shook his head at the two sets of eyes shooting daggers at him over their shoulders as they came to an abrupt stop in front of him. âIâm the one with the map and the tracker, remember?â He tapped the right side of his helmet with his index finger.
âOh, will you just get in front and lead, you overgrown Tin Can?!â You hissed, flattening yourself against the wall to let him pass, the heat of the day still clinging to the wall at your back.
Cara rolled her eyes as she squished herself, allowing him through, but it was still a tight fit all around between the three of you. When Din passed her, his back against the opposing wall, she grimaced though he moved quickly. âWill you just get out of my face, Shiny?â
âWhat, you mean you donât want to get to know me this well?â Din relaxed his weight a little, leaning into her slightly. âI thought we were friends.â
Cara shoved him with one arm toward you, making him laugh as he kept going, stumbling slightly from the impact. âWe wonât be if you keep on that thread of conversation, Mando.â
Din stopped directly in front of you, tilting his head sideways as he muttered softly, âHi, meshâla.â Leaning his forehead into yours, he chuckled softly at Caraâs over exaggerated gag in reaction.
âIâm trying to be mad at you,â you grumbled, fisting one hand into his cowl as you ignored Caraâs groans, elbowing her in the ribs with your free arm when she continued.
âWhat was that for?!â She cried in protest.
âJust because Iâm happy, doesnât mean you need to moan about it.â
Her face scrunched in disgust as she looked away at the wall across from her. âGo be happy somewhere else. We have a job to do.â
Din sighed. âSheâs right,â and pushed off the wall to get in front.
You held on to his cape from behind him. âNo. No, sheâs never right.â Cara landed a swift kick to the back of your boot. âOw! What was that for?â
âFor being so wrong all the time!â
âDonât make me speak Mandoâa to you,â you grumbled. âOr how about Huttese? I also know Shyriiwook now, too.â
âHow about you speak silence.â
Din snorted at the Marshalâs words from his spot in front of you, Cara huffing out a laugh from behind.
âWhen all of this is over, you both are gonna pay.â
âYou donât scare me,â Cara scoffed.
Looking over your shoulder, you arched a brow, holding up one hand by your face and wiggling your fingers. âWell maybe I should.â
Her face went pale, her steps faltering slightly as understanding dawned on her features. âYou donât scare me,â she repeated, her voice softer after she swallowed roughly.
You chuckled, turning back to face Dinâs cape once again. âThe Force works in mysterious ways.â
âWhatâs that supposed to mean?â
Before you could answer, Din cut in, without bothering to turn around, âIt's just her way of threatening to trip you. Donât read into it too much.â
He no sooner said that than he was stumbling forward down the alley, reaching out to brace himself on the walls with his forearms.
âLook at that? My boot also works in mysterious ways.â
âWhat happened?â Cara asked, oblivious to you tripping Din with the toe of your shoe.
âGravity. Donât read too much into it.â
Grinning up at the back of the Mandalorianâs helmet where he had stopped in front of you, you let go of his cape still in your grip. âCareful, Din. Thereâs gravity there.â
âWhat did he even trip on?â Caraâs voice was incredulous.
âAir? His ego? PrideâŠ. The options are endlessâŠ.â
âThe foot of an over eager Jedi thatâs about to be in her mouth if she keeps talking,â Din hissed, barely looking over his shoulder at the two of you, arms falling from the walls to his sides.
âHow do you mean?â You scoffed, following after him as he began to move down the alley again.
âWeâre here,â he said with a flourish, the small avenue opening up to a wide street brightly lit with several buildings that dead ended down on the right. With a swooping gesture, he moved to the left, making room for the two of you to step forward beside him, his visor following you closely before tilting to the side. âYouâre welcome.â
âSheâs right,â Cara mused quietly. âYour ego is big enough for all three of us to trip on.â
âAt least itâs well deserved,â Din groused. âI got us here, didnât I?â
âYou followed a map. That was attached to a tracker. A blindfolded bantha wouldnât have had a much more difficult timeâŠ.â You said offhandedly, surveying the area.
Din stared at you for a long moment. âThat armor makes you mean,â he grumbled.
âIt makes me wonderful,â you countered, eyes across the street on a conspicuous crate, narrowing when it jostled slightly. âYouâre just jealous that it looks better on me than it ever did on you.â
âYeah. Thatâs it,â Din agreed sarcastically, his weight shifting to one side as he followed your line of sight. Pressing the side of his helmet, he immediately went into planning mode. âIâve got two heat signatures.â
âMatches up with what Iâm sensing. Two life forms. A whole mess more inside.â You took your blaster from its holster, its gears whirring to life. âEveryone set to stun?â
Hums of agreement came back at you along with nods in your peripheral.
âIâll go in on the right while you two take care of whoever is lurking over there,â Cara gestured across the street with her blaster. âSneak in that side door and start clearing until I find Sola and slip her a blaster, then weâll find this boss.â
âIâm in,â you agreed, while Din nodded in agreement beside you. âLetâs go, Tin Can. We have some thugs we need to introduce to beskar.â
Xxx
Storming the place was easy. These thieves didnât know the first thing about defending their home base.
Getting out on the other handâŠ. That was proving to be more difficult.
You pulled up behind a wall, tucking your arms into your chest as tightly as possible to make yourself a smaller target, your blaster held between both hands at the ready.
âYou said this would be easy!â Din yelled from his mirror position across the hall. Well, almost mirror. He leaned on one shoulder, blaster held up in the opposite hand near his head. His whole body looked just on this side of casual.Â
âI said no such thing. You did,â you countered, trying to mimic his posture subtly. âAnd on that note, Cara was the one who said you and I should go in together, so this is all-â
âOh, no, you donât,â Caraâs voice carried from down the hall, the first word elongated as she slid across the floor on her hip to avoid flying blaster bolts to finally land next to you before popping up. âDonât you dare drag me into this lovers tiff. Nuh-uh.â
Both you and Din spoke in tandem, âThis isnât-â, âWeâre not-â
âYeah, yeah,â Sola said dismissively, jogging up easily behind Din, a singe mark on the shoulder of her poncho.Â
Din stood up straight in an instant, took her arm in his hold gently to examine it, turning her every which way to get a better look. âWhat happened?â
âTold the boss I quit.â She grinned proudly before it melted into a grimace. âHe didnât take it so well.â
Blaster bolts zinged down the hall between the four of you, streaking the air in vibrant shades of purple and red, even an errant green here and there.
âIf I could just use my saber-â you started, cut off by the unanimous voices of your friends.
âNo!â
Letting your head lull back against the wall with a gentle thump, you rolled it in aggravation before facing the others again. âAnd why not?! Iâve saved your asses so many times!â
âClose quarters!â Cara was gesturing with her hands while she spoke, referencing the hall. âToo many people!â She gestured between the four of you. âLaser sword very bright! Very hot!â
You narrowed your eyes at your friend. âI singed one corner of your tunic. One!â
âAnd that was one too many,â Din countered, popping around the corner to let off a barrage of shots before coming back for safety.
âThis was my favorite,â Cara said forlornly, looking down at the smoldering fabric.Â
âIâll buy you another one.â
âNo you wonât,â Cara scoffed. âYou canât afford my tastes-â
âCan we please focus on getting out of here!â Solaâs annoyed voice rang out louder than the blaster fire, pulling all three gazes her way.Â
Din was the first to break, turning back to lay down cover fire once again around the corner. âKidâs right,â he grunted, before letting off a shot that was accompanied by a pained scream at the end of the hall.
âI thought we were set to stun?â You hissed.
Din looked down at his blaster and shrugged meekly, flipping it back to stun. âSorry. Old habitsâŠ.â
âI know I am,â Sola said matter of factly, pulling you back to the topic at hand. âNow whatâs the plan?â
Stepping a little closer to the corner you were tucked behind, you holstered your blaster. âThe plan is for you all to eat your words tonight.â
âWhat are you doing?â Caraâs worried tone sounded at your back, Dinâs incredulous one to your left. âMeshâla, come on, donât do something-â
âTo save our skins?â You finished for him, looking up into his visor with a determined glint in your eye. âWatch me.â
After taking a deep breath, you closed your eyes and stepped out into the hall where the blaster fire had died down just slightly. The few earrent bolts bounced away from you as if they were hitting a force field. Confused whispers from the enemy preceded a pickup in the rapid fire, bolts flying at a new frenzy, none of which came anywhere close to touching you or your friends.
Lifting your hands in front of you, the bolts began to stop, hovering in mid air inches from your face, your hands, some several feet from you. The room glowed with multi-colored plasma bolts hovering above the floor. As the shots died out, silence filling in the blanks left behind, the corner of your mouth twitched up in an amused smirk.
With a small twitch of your index finger, all their blasters were disabled with a tink.Â
When you opened your eyes, the blaster bolts that hung suspended all immediately flew the other way, back toward the senders, but in such a way that they wouldnât hit anybody.Â
Within an instant the group of thieves at the end of the hall were left cowering, curled away from the stranger approaching them from the opposite end of the hall. Some blinked wide eyes while others scrambled back, all of them surrounded by smoke swirling around from the black scorches left behind from the blaster bolts.
âI think we win,â you said calmly, walking toward them slowly.
âNot if I have anything to say about it!â One rogue thief said, jumping to his feet, blaster aimed at you.
âI wouldnât do that,â you warned, not even looking at him.
When he pulled the trigger and nothing happened, he looked at his blaster in confusion, pulling the trigger a few more times before shaking it incessantly. âOh, well.â He shrugged. âI have this.â He pulled a spare from the back of his pants.
In two seconds flat Din had stepped forward and shot him with a stun bolt, dropping him to the ground.
âLike I said,â you pulled the active blaster to you with the Force, disengaging the firing mechanism like you had the others before tucking it into the back of your own pants. âI wouldnât do that.â
âYou donât need another one,â Din groaned. âThat makes what, seven now?â
You scoffed. âNot nearly.â With a dry chuckle, you shook your head. âTry three.â
âIncluding the knife?â
âOh, yeah! The knife. No, thatâs four.â
âGuys!â Cara cried, walking up to stand on the other side of you. âSeriously?â
âWhat?â You looked at her a moment before cutting your eyes toward the thieves still looking on in silence. âIâm just recounting the weapons Iâve won from our various missions! I see something I like, I take it.â
âThese guys donât care.â Cara gestured to them with her blaster.
âNoâŠ. But I do.â You turned to look at the punks with a broad grin. âAnd something tells me they want to keep me really happy. Right?â
They all nodded vigorously. All but one. He got to his feet as he said, âOh, kark this!â He was no sooner on his feet than Din had hit him with a stun bolt, dropping him into a heap of limbs where he stood.
âAt least you remembered to use stun this time,â you threw over your shoulder towards Din, never looking away from the band of thieves still looking on wide eyed at your little party of four.
âYeahâŠ. But Iâve been known to forget things real fast,â Din mumbled, shifting his weight just slightly to rest easily on one leg. The way he held his blaster would make anyone think heâd gone soft, but you knew if someone made a wrong move, theyâd be down in an instant.
âHereâs what's gonna happen,â Cara stepped forward, her Marshal voice in full swing. âSola over here is out. I donât wanna hear of any of you within spitting distance of her ever again, do you hear me?â
Most of them nodded, wide eyed at the Marshal. All but one. Itâs always one, you thought with a smile and gentle shake of your head.Â
âAnd whatâre you gonna do about it? Marshal?â The way the punk said her name dripped with so much sarcasm and venom, you were surprised Cara was still standing. If looks could kill, sheâd be dead right now. âYou donât even live here, so how are you going to enforce anything?â
To his credit, he looked slightly afraid when you and Din took measured steps forward while Cara spoke.
âI have friends all over. I donât think you want to find out just how far my reach can goâŠ. Young man.â
Cara winced slightly on the last words and it took everything in you not to burst out laughing. The way her eyes darted over to you, however briefly, with a mighty rise and fall of her shoulders told you she knew sheâd never hear the end of this.
He scoffed. âLike Iâd believe any of that.â
âBut youâd believe blaster bolts levitating in space then flying the wrong way?â You challenged, taking another small step forward.Â
The kid scoffed again.
âYou believe this?â Din was striding forward, his vambraces whirring to life as the flame thrower charged up.
Reaching out with the Force, you disengaged his vambrace as the wall of fire just started to lick at the toes of the boots of the insolent kid.
âNot now, Mando. I think he gets it.â Shooting your eyes over to the kid before looking back into his visor, you saw him glance over to find the teen cowering behind the others, mumbling apologies.
Din strode over to you, keeping his body facing the group of adolescents to make them think he was still a threat, which he was, but you knew him well enough to know he was looking at you now and not them, his head turned just slightly.
âTurning off my vambraces now, huh?â
You shrugged. âWhat can I say? You shouldnât be frying teenagers, Din. Itâs not nice.â
Leaning closer to your ear, his voice hummed through the modulator, something in his tone different this time. âLater,â he promised again.
You grinned, winking at Cara as she rolled her eyes and walked off with an over dramatically gagging Sola. âCanât wait.â
Xxx
Back at the hangar, the four of you tried to move as quietly as possible, to not wake a sleeping Peli.Â
âI canât thank you enough. I donât know how I could ever repay you-â
Placing your hand on Solaâs shoulder, you smiled down at her when her big eyes looked up your way. So much like the first time you met her all those years ago. âThereâs nothing to thank. Thatâs just what families do.â
âWe help each other,â Cara agreed, stepping up behind Sola and putting her arm around her shoulders. Tilting her head to the side in thought, she added with a grin, âAnd yeah, sometimes we want to murder each other, too, butâŠ.â She looked at Din. âIt comes and goes.â
âMostly comes,â the Mandalorian muttered, adjusting his belt before walking off toward the ramp of the Crest. He stopped at the foot of it, withdrawing a vibroblade from his boot before he turned around and walked back. âHey, kid.â He offered Sola the blade. âTake care of yourself.â
âYou bet I will,â she mumbled around a grin, flipping the blade in her palm with expert precision that had your brow arching. Upon closer inspection, she saw a mudhorn upon the hilt. âThatâs the same symbol thatâs on your armorâŠ.â She looked over at your saber. âAnd yourâŠ.âÂ
âLike I said,â you pulled her into a hug. âWe take care of family.â
âWhereâs my mudhorn?â Cara groused.
Din extended a blaster with a freshly etched mudhorn he had tucked into the back of his belt to Sola as he looked at Cara, head tilted just so. âHidden with your act of valor. Go find it.â
âYouâre mean,â Cara shoved his shoulder.
âYouâd get tired of us anyway,â you mused in response to Cara, wrapping your arms around Dinâs waist in what seemed an innocent manner, then lightly pinching his side in admonishment, smiling at his slight groan in response. Before he could get his own arm around your waist in retaliation, you pinned it to his side with the Force, smiling up at him smugly when he grunted in unamusement.Â
âI already have,â she agreed, looking down her nose at the two of you.
âNo you havenât,â Din countered tiredly as he turned back toward the ship, heading up the ramp.
âWhat do you know?â She called after him.
âEverything!â His voice came from inside the ship overlapping your muttered, âNothing.â
âNot enough,â you amended with a grin, meeting Caraâs eye as she returned your smile. âHe doesnât know nearly enough.â
âItâs a good thing I love teaching, then.â She laughed, offering you a hug before she turned to leave the hangar. After a few steps, she stopped and looked back over her shoulder. âYou coming kid?â
Sola hesitated in her spot in front of you. âBut I donâtâŠ. I donât wear armor.â
âVerd'ikaâŠ.â You reached out and rested your hand on her shoulder. âAdâika. Cyare'se. Daworirâika. KaâraâikaâŠ. Almost all of my nicknames for you had something to do with little.â (âLittle soldier. Little one. Loved ones. Little stink. Little star.â)
âNot so little anymore.â
âI can see that,â you smiled softly. âTal tomad.â
She pulled a face. âDo I even want to know?â
âBlood ally.â You reached out and pinched her scarf between your finger tips. âVerd ori'shya beskar'gam.â
âWhatâŠ. What does that mean?â
You smiled. âI need to come with a protocol droidâŠ.â She laughed. âWarrior greater than armor. It means armor isnât everything.â Moving your hand from her scarf to rest on her shoulder once again, you felt Din come to stand behind you, his reflection beginning to morph in Solaâs watering eyes. âItâs who wears it.âÂ
Xxx
As you watched Cara and Sola walk out of the hangar, Din pulled you to the side gently.
âSpeaking of armor, you donât have any now, either.â
Looking down at the armor still very much on your frame, you looked up at his visor and blinked at him once. Twice. âExcuse me?â
He shifted his weight, hands resting on his belt in his default I already explained this pose. âIâm about to meet up with Boba in a few minutes. Need the armor so I can give it to him.â
You matched his posture, ignoring his indignant head roll. âOh right. For this super secret thing for me I canât know about.â
Din nodded once. âYou got it.â
Shaking your head in disbelief, you turned and made your way up the ramp of the Crest, not bothering to turn around as you grumbled, âYouâre awful.â
âI know.â His tone was nothing short of beaming.
Xxx
The next day, the two of you were up with the suns and beginning work on the Crest with a handful of Peliâs droids.Â
The woman herself had appeared after a while, but she obviously was not intended for morning hours.
Peli had disappeared into the shaded depths of the hangar, citing paperwork of some sort, but her snores could be heard from the main landing area.Â
One thing led to another, and the work on the ship was forgotten in favor of brushing up on footwork with two chosen weapons.
The hanger sung with the clashing of beskar on kyber, his spear standing resilient against your purple blade.
The pit droids were hard at work on the Crest to try and cover up the cacophony of battle sounds rising up into the air.
As it hit a new fever pitch, you and Din drawing close together after some particularly fancy footwork, the glow of kyber straining against beskar painting your faces in a soft illuminated glow as you pulled closer still, you smirked.Â
âI think that means I win, Mandalorian.â
Din scoffed, his modulator popping with the sound. âNayc. Aânuhunla,â he drawled, his voice low. (âNo. But funny.â)
Pulling back from one another, you huffed out a chuckle as you began to circle each other in assessment, waiting for the other to make the next move. âGive it to me in Basic, Mando.â Disengaging your saber, you stopped dead in your tracks, arms dangling limply by your sides. âIâm too tired to fight and translate at the same time.â
âGar Jetiiâkad,â Din pointed to the now bladeless hilt in your hand. âNauâur kad.â (âYour lightsaber.â) (âLight up a saber.â)Â
âDin-â
But he didnât let you finish, his hands tightening around his spear as his weight lowered, ready to charge. âKadâau, Jetii.â (âLightsaber, Jedi.â)
âNe'johaa,â you mumbled, igniting the blade and lowering yourself into a ready stance to match. (âShut up.â)
Once you were set, you stood straight up again, smiling softly when Din let his lowered weight relax as well in aggravation, his modulator hissing in annoyance. âThis was just supposed to be for fun. Some training, maybe. Not-â
âKad,â he almost barked, before launching at you. (âSaber.â)
âMirâsheb,â you hissed through gritted teeth as you blocked an overhead blow from his spear, squinting your eyes as sparks flew from the impact. (âSmartass.â)
He took a minuscule step closer, pressing his weight into you and making you bend back slightly. His voice was low and mocking, but strained to show his struggle against your strength as you continued to push back. âOnly for you.â
With a shout, you pushed him off of you with a last reserve of strength.
âThatâs it. Thatâs it. Iâm done.â You held your hands up by your head. âNo more.â Twirling your saber as you stretched your wrist, you tilted your head from side to side. âYouâve got some unresolved issues with only using the stun back there at the hideout or something,â gesturing to him with a swooping hand gesture, you ignored his snort and slight shift of weight, âbut Iâm done with all your nonsense.â Turning away you took a deep breath and disengaged your saber, mumbling under your breath, âNi copaani buy'ce gal.â (âI want a bucket of booze.â)
The next thing you knew you were flat on your back, sand flying out around you as the Mandalorian stood over you, flipping his spear back to its resting position with a flourish. All you could process as you blinked up at the cloudless sky was heat, grit, and what?
âI think that means I winâŠ. Manda Jetii.â (The state of being Mandalorian in mind, body and spirit.)
Eyes flying to his visor, you had to squint at the glare of the suns off the brilliant metal. You could only blink up at him, taking his hand when he offered it and helped you up. After a shared moment of simply staring at one another, he turned to survey the hangar, repeating your words from earlier. âNi copaani buy'ce gal.â
It was at that point you noticed Peliâs face.Â
Her very, very, very distraught face.Â
Following her line of sight, your eyes went wide as you took in the Crest over your shoulder. Sparks flew, singe marks lined the hull. Did I do that?
A poor little astromech Peli had just acquired was trying to tune up something near the ramp of the ship, and Din, once he turned to survey the damage for himself, spying an unfamiliar droid linking into his ship, let his spear loose without a second thought.Â
If you hadn't had the mind to divert it midair with the Force right before impact, the droid would be a pile of steaming wires right now instead of a trembling pile of bolts.
The screech of terror it let out as the spear made impact right above its head made you want to laugh, but you stifled it into your hand, turning a disapproving glare on Din when he asked why you did that.
âWe donât murder innocent droids.â
âNo droid is innocent,â he grumbled, looking over at the scrappy little astro unit.Â
âThey are until proven guilty.â
âI donât need any proof,â Din mumbled. âHave all the proof I need.â
âYou have nothing.â
Before he could say anything else, the angry mech was rolling toward the bounty hunter with an electrified arm ready to zap him, but you held it at bay with the Force. You also held Din back, snorting when he turned a look on you.Â
âNo.â
Peli somehow materialized beside you, everything about her bewildered and distraught. You let the two arguing tin cans go as you turned your attention to your friend, the final zap from the droid to Dinâs thigh before it rolled off not going unnoticed.Â
Pointing every which way with each new statement, Peli began to protest. âI was- They were- You just-â Her hands slapped down to her sides, her face pulled determinedly. âThatâs not fair!â
She turned to her pit droid crew. âWhy do I get all the defective droids in this town?â They began to prattle but she cut them off. âYou guys couldnât fix the wrong side of a bantha.â
Reaching out with your mind, a twitch of your foot sideways ever so slightly, and one of the compartments at the back of the Crest flew off, the wiring inside plopping out like the ship had drunk too much spotchka the night before and now had something to prove.
âItâs alright, Peli. It wasnât all you.â
âYou bet your beskar it wasnât!â She turned a look on Din. âDonât think I didnât notice that massive spear sticking out of the side of my ship.â
Din had the decency to look sheepish, turning his gaze to stare across the hangar, hands on his hips.
âNow Iâll have to track down the Jawas to find enough ancient parts to fix this hunk of junk.â She smacked the hull closest to her with her palm, her eyes fluttering shut as a panel fell off to her right with a clatter.
Leveling her gaze on you, a shudder ran down your spine as Peli stared at you in silence. Finally she spoke again. âYou. Youâre going to help.â
âAnd you,â she pointed at Din. He pointed at himself in question and she nodded, maintaining the accusing jab of her index. âYes, you. Mandalorian.â Din tilted his head curiously. âYou are going to go to the cantina to look for a job to pay for all ofâŠ. this!â
Peli gestured wildly to the sparking Crest behind her.Â
You winced at the singe marks left behind by your saber, beside the puncture mark from the spear as it had let loose from his hands and flown across the hangar. Its beskar body still stood proudly from the hull, glinting in the afternoon sun.
Reaching up high above her head, Peli jerked it from the body of the ship with a grating screech of metal on metal. Green goo began to shoot from the new opening, coating the sand of the hangar around her feet in several inches in a matter of seconds.
She looked down at it before bringing menacing eyes up to glare at Din.
âIâll be at the cantina,â he mumbled, turning to leave without anymore fuss.
âIâllâŠ. Be here, I guess,â you mumbled, catching Peliâs death stare out of the corner of your eye. âPick me up some of those blue cookies on your way back?â
âReally?â Din stopped, cocking his head at you.
âYeah!â You shot back. âThe kid isnât here, so I donât have to share them.â
âWho says I donât want some?â
You scoffed. âExperience.â Crossing your arms, you stared at him. âBesides, who says Iâm sharing regardless?â
Din took a step back toward you, his voice lowering playfully. âI could make youâŠ.â
âCantina!â Peli hissed.
Youâd never seen Din move so quickly.
Xxx
Peli had dragged you out to the large rolling fortress of the Jawas after she had given her pit droid crew a stern talking to.Â
You couldnât make eye contact with them as you stood just behind her and listened to her admonishments. Their judgmental stares from their single ocular lenses could be felt even across the hangar.Â
Looking over the wares, you were just glad Din wasnât here. Jawas would be dropping like flies if he were. He really had a problem.
Bringing your scarf up to cover your face, wrapping it around your head to keep it secure and protect you just a layer more from the suns beating down and sand blowing in the rough winds, you squinted at an old astromech tucked away in the back near the ramp.
âWhat about that one?â You asked, pointing to it.
The little hooded figure helping you turned, exclaiming something when he realized what you were asking about, then began talking a mile a minute and gesturing even faster.
Holding up your hands, you cut in, âYeah, yeah, hold on little guy,â your new Jawa friend grunted at the name as you turned to call for help. âPeli! Get over here!â Waving your hand to gesture her over, you hoped itâd help her find you a bit faster.
You saw her curls before you saw her, turning your way and quickly weaving through the junk as her grumbling got closer and closer, but the exact words were never quite clear enough to understand. âWhat?â She finally asked in exasperation when she was about ten feet away, a power coupling in one hand andâŠ. Something else in the other, you didnât know what it was, but it had a lot of exposed wires and reminded you of an eyeball on a stick.
Pointing to your little robed shadow, you smiled at her. âTranslate. Please.â
With a roll of her eyes, she focused on your small companion, nodding as he went along. âHe says you want that R2 unit.â She turned her focus back to you, hands on her hips, eye on a stick still tightly grasped in one hand, âAny particular reason? I have plenty of good droids back at the hangarâŠ.â R5 started tweeting and blipping in concern, making her roll her whole head over to look at the droid on her left. âOh, keep your dome on. I didnât mean you.â She gestured to the droid with the eye-stick lazily before her eyes cut over to you. âUnlessâŠ.â R5 let out a mighty whoop before rolling away.
Chirping and blooping from the R2 unit pulled your attention back to the matter at hand, watching in amusement as it rocked from side to side quickly on two of its three legs. Its shiny dome twisted back and forth as it let out shrill beeps and whistles, a lone raspberry cutting off the tirade before it focused on a Jawa coming up to stand beside it.Â
As the tiny cloaked figure reached out to adjust the restraining bolt on its front, one of the droidâs front compartments sprung open in the blink of an eye, a surge of electricity arcing through the air and making the Jawa scream. The little scrapper jumped back, stumbling as its cloak began to smoke, strings of Jawaese getting lost in the wind as the tiny thief marched back over to the droid and swiftly kicked it near its treads.
âStop!â You ran over, holding up your hands to try and intervene, turning to Peli with a pleading look on your face.
She tossed the junk in her hands onto the ground, doing a double take for the eye on a stick before deciding against it and made her way over to you, thrusting the odd part into your chest as she passed by. With a roll of your eyes, you tucked it into the bag of parts to make its way back to the hangar that was slung across your shoulders.Â
The bag was over half full, and getting heavier by the minute, but youâd yet to see anything resembling a part you recognized go into the satchel. At this point you think ninety five percent of what she had picked up wasnât even for the Crest, she was just exacting her revenge on Din. And you had no problem with that.
Peli tilted her head as she listened to the Jawa go on a tirade. Eyes flickering between the tiny robe with eyes and the droid, she finally looked back over her shoulder at you. âHe said this droid is just a problem. Itâs memory hasnât been wiped in too long, so itâs developed anâŠ. Ah, well,â she quirked her eyebrows, her hands landing on her hips as she studied the droid. âA strong personality.â
The R2 unit blooped before zapping the Jawa again, a warbling whistle following after in what almost sounded like a taunt for more.
âStop,â you said again, taking another step toward the feisty astromech. It was very hard to not smile as you studied the round dome, its light blinking red and white at you rapidly as it scanned you up and down, finding something it trusted enough to calm down. It didnât zap a third time, but it kept the utility equipped, sending a surge down the line when the Jawa got too close again as a warning.
It reminded you of Din. It even kind of looked like him. You had to really try to contain the smile as you thought of his reaction if you said that out loud.
The head tilt.
The finger.
âLater.â
The body was the typical white of most R2 units, though obviously worn and aged, some pockets of rust peeking through here and there along the edge, along with carbon scoring like itâd seen some firefights. With a darker silver dome, close to the color of your vambraces, you could tell it had received repairs along the line, the contrasting metals denoting different eras in its lifetime.Â
The bands along its body that contained the attachments and along the sides of its legs were a warm coppery color, while the panels along its head were a dark gunmetal gray that reminded you of the Crest.Â
Altogether it was a patchwork of parts, but it made something beautiful to you. Like when the suns hit the sand just right and caused a reflection in the distance. This droid was a mirage, a shadow.
âWhatâs wrong with it?â You interrupted the Jawa currently on another tirade that made Peli look like she was struggling to keep up. Getting down on one knee, still a good distance from the droid, you stared into its lense as it studied you once again.
Your friend turned to face you more fully. âWhat do you mean, they just told you. It hasnât-â
âNo, why hasnât it moved?â
Peli asked the question, turning to look at the droid as she listened to the answer, its lense now turned on her.
âHe said the tread on the right foot is broken. They have it out here because someone is coming to pick it up to wipe the memory. Its-â
âNot anymore,â you said quietly. âItâs coming with me.â Getting to your feet, you began to walk away, stopping when several Jawa voices began to follow after you, each more insistent than the other. You looked at Peli, brow raised in question.
âThey say you canât do that. Itâs already a done deal. Now theyâre asking if you want any of the other droids, they have an-â
You turned, looking at the gathering of red glowing eyes blinking up at you expectantly. Keeping your voice even, you made eye contact with each pair as you spoke. âYou will release the droid into my care.â
A string of Jawaese was mumbled back to you, which you assumed was just them repeating your words, so you went on.
âRemove the restraining bolt, load it in the speeder, and let us go on our way.â
As they mumbled again, they broke off into groups to do what you said.Â
Tapping the leader on the shoulder, you held firmly when he turned to look at you. âAnd it wonât cost anything.â
He nodded before going to join the others.
âHow did youâŠ.â Peliâs voice dripped with amazement. âCan you-â
âNo.â
âYou didnât let me-â
âNo, Peli.â
âFine,â she huffed, crossing her arms and facing the Jawas as they loaded the droid who whistled happily while they worked. âIâm just saying-â
She stopped when you slowly turned to look at her, brow arched.
âYeah, no, forget about it. Not important.â
Xxx
As you unloaded the droid at the hangar, once it was down on the ground, you knelt down slowly to inspect its injured foot.Â
âIâm just going to tilt you a little bit to get a better look, okay?â
The pit droids began lowering some type of harness down to help you, but the droid began to rock back and forth, protesting loudly as its dome swung back and forth.
âOkay, okay,â you held up your hands placatingly, gesturing for the other droids to stop. âNo lifts. Iâll do it myself, but youâve got to trust me. Itâll feel a little strange, but youâre completely safe, I promise. Alright?â
The droid bleeped in agreement after a moment of hesitation, and without further hassle, you nudged it slowly onto its side, floating at the proper angle, held just right by an unseen force. As it moved into the proper placement, the R2 unit blooped an amazed sound.
After poking at the tread for a moment, you wrinkled your brows. âThis isnât broken. What did they mea-â
You were cut short when the tread on the other foot whirred to life where it still rested on the ground, spitting sand in your face in a rapid fire. As you drew back quickly, swatting at the sting settling into your eyes, you just caught a glimpse through your squint of the droid falling the rest of the way to the ground with a screech, your concentration broken.
Before you could really react properly, the R2 unit had popped upright, all manner of Binary curses and colorful language beeping and whistling as it whipped out the zapper it had used earlier on the Jawa, sending a warning jolt down the spine while rotating in a circle to keep all the advancing droids and Peli at bay.Â
Then it started to lift off with some sort of propulsion, a victorious squeal echoing off the hangar walls that was all too soon followed by the sound of sputtering exhaust. Its lense pointed down, watching it all unfold, a quiver of fear warbled out of its voice box. The flames keeping it afloat flickered then died, sending it hurtling to the ground with a scream.
You were just able to stick out a hand, focusing enough to catch it inches from the ground. âI got you!â As you lowered it the last few millimeters back onto the sand, you let out a heavy sigh, relaxing into the warm earth beneath you with a quietly muttered, âI got you.â
âWell, that was a first,â Peli announced loudly, amused, as the R2 unit looked at you, a spurt of oil suddenly spewing onto the ground as it moaned in distress.
âItâs about right on track for me, honestly,â you huffed, laughing as you got back to your feet.Â
The droid quaked as you got closer, worried coos softly filling the hangar.
âHey, itâs okay. Iâm not going to hurt you,â you spoke softly, coming back onto your knees a few feet from the R2 unit. âThat was actually kind of impressive.â You smirked, watching as the trembling stopped. The droid was silent and you smiled a bit broader. âI would expect nothing less, honestly. Itâs what I would do in your situation. Hell, I have done it a few timesâŠ.â The droid whistled softly in amusement.
You laughed, feeling victorious when it wheeled a bit closer to you.
âI have, too. I live a very extraordinary life, my friend.â
A questioning bloop.
âYes, I said âfriendâ. I consider you that, not anything less.â
A series of beeps and whistles, the red light blinking much more slowly now.
âI do speak Binary. Very observant.â
A raspberry.
You laughed, and it was followed by the closest sound a droid can make to the sound, a series of trills.
âCan we start over?âÂ
The droid wheeled closer, bumping its front foot into your knee gently before wheeling back slightly as if to say, âgo onâ.
You introduced yourself, reaching a hand out toward the droid. A panel sprung open on its front, the zapper coming out without a charge, making you arch a brow at the unit as it tittered playfully. The panel closed before another opened, and a small three pronged metal hand extended, closing around two of your fingers and shaking them in jerky movements as it beeped and blooped away.
âR2-B4?â The droid whistled in confirmation, releasing your fingers and closing the panel. âCan I just call you Bee?â A beep that sounded like âyesâ and also meant âyesâ in Binary chirped happily, filling the hangar. âWell, itâs nice to meet you, Bee. How about we get you tuned up, into a nice hot oil bath, run a few diagnostics to make sure youâre running as optimally as you can be, then starting tomorrow we can-â
Some angry bloops and bleeps filled the air, while she rocked back and forth on her feet.
âNo, no, no! No memory wipe! Thatâs not what I meant! I wouldnât do that to you.â She stopped rocking, but her lense scanned you up and down rapidly, her light flashing between red and white faster than you had seen yet. âYou donât know me yet, so I donât blame you. But Iâm not going to do that to you. That wonât happen so long as you are here. With me. With us. That makes you you. I donât want just a droid, I want you, Bee.â
Reaching out your hand, you rested it lightly on her dome and an affectionate beep came out quietly.
âI just meant to make sure youâre running as optimally as you can be. You deserve it, friend.â
It was at this point Din came walking back into the hangar. He stopped short when he saw the new astromech snuggled up so closely with you, the disarray of the hangar floor with the spilled oil and obvious scuffle, and Peli with her army of droids behind her and new eyeball on a stick waving around animatedly as she greeted him with a smile.
âMando! Finally!â She walked toward him. âYou will not believe the day weâve had.â
The look Din leveled on you through his visor was nothing short of stifling. âTry me.â
Xxx
Once Din had calmed down enough to not shoot the new droid on sight, and Bee had calmed down enough to not zap the Mandalorian on sight, you sat down to explain the situation to Din as the astro unit underwent an oil bath.
âI donât know, Man- Din.â You pulled a face at yourself as he chuckled at the slip up. âIt just felt like I was supposed to, and sheâŠ.â You looked straight into his visor. âThe voices stopped when I saw her. Everything did. I donât know.â Looking down to the table top to your right, you began to fiddle your fingers aimlessly. âI swear you wonât have to-â
âOkay.â
âNow donât just- what?â You shook your head to dislodge any sand that may be plugging your ears and causing you to mishear because you could have sworn he saidâŠ. âOkay? âŠ.Okay? Did you just say okay?â
Din laughed softly. âYes.â He nodded. âFine. I trust you.â
Narrowing your eyes, you leaned forward onto your knees, getting closer to him and peering up with scrutiny for an agonizing minute. âWhat did you do?â
Leaning back in his chair with a sigh, he rested his hand on his thigh. âGot you a present.â His head tilted to the side as you sat up a bit straighter. âStill gonna look at me like that?â
Eyes going wide, you sat back and matched his posture.
âThatâs what I thought,â he said with a snort. âI met up with Boba last night, as you know, and after going to the cantina, he caught up to me with the finished product.â
Din reached over and pulled a tarp off a crate to his right, how youâd missed it you had no idea, especially since the item before your eyes still sang with the same signature as his armor had.Â
A jetpack.
Raw beskar and durasteel glinted under the twin suns, polished to perfection and ready to earn their first scuff marks.
âDinâŠ. No.â You looked at him in disbelief. âYou didnât.â
Reaching for the pack, he groaned slightly with the effort, sighing once it sat in his lap. âI couldnât look at you in that horribly fitting armor one more time, and it was just taking up space on the ship.â He set the heavy gift in your lap. âNow I donât have to lug you around anymore.â
Scoffing, you leaned in closer to him, batting your lashes. âDonât lie, you like lugging me around.â
He tossed his head side to side. âIt has its perks, yes, but nowâŠ.â He gently nudged you back with a finger to your shoulder so you were sitting normally in your seat again. âLift yourself, meshâla.â
Sitting up straight as you held the jetpack in your lap, you traced its curves with your hand. âI donât know whether to be offended or say thank you.â
Meeting the gaze of his visor through your lashes, he simply nodded.
âThatâs all I needed to hear. Now, letâs get you fitted and flying - but first, I have to sync them with your vambraces, or else you might-â
âLet me guess,â you sighed, relaxing back into your chair with a thump. âOr else I might blow something up?â Din nodded once in confirmation, and you mirrored him. âSome things never change.â
âAnd some things change all the timeâŠ.â
âWell that was cryptic.â
âFennec found a contact for me that might know where the Armorer is. Where the covert moved to.â
Your eyes went wide and you froze, halfway to attaching the jetpack between your shoulder blades. âExcuse me, what?â
âItâs a job, but I head there in two rotations-â
Your face fell flat, along with your tone. âExcuse me, what?â
âAre you broken?â You arched a brow in question at him. âYou havenât moved since I mentioned the Armorer and youâre repeating yourself.â
With a huff of disbelief, you let the jetpack to the ground beside you with a gentle thud, and faced him once again. âOh, I donât know, maybe itâs because youâre insane?!â
âExcuse me, what?â
âSee?â You gestured to him. âA perfectly valid reaction.â Din huffed, his head tilting to the side in annoyance as you went on. âFirst off I was excited for you, but then you go and say something crazy like youâre going alone?â
âWell I just assumedâŠ.â
âGo on,â you deadpanned, smiling slightly when he trailed off, swallowing roughly.
When he never did, you sighed heavily and forged on for the both of you. âSince Iâm your wife,â you began, eyes cast down to the sand, ignoring the way he tossed his head back with a groan, âI think itâs only right I go with you.â You looked up to meet his visor. âNot to mention I continue to save your skin daily.â
âOne time. IâŠ.â He held up one finger. âThat was. I let that slip one time with Peli and it was an accident.â He huffed, staring at you for a long moment. âYou're never going to let me forget that are you?â
You grinned. âNo.â
Xxx
The two of you landed at the front of Peliâs hangar when you saw an unknown droid approaching in the street from where you were training in the air.
âOh! Pardon me!â The courier droid raised its hands up in surrender.Â
Reaching out, you lowered Dinâs blaster. âYou have a problem,â you mumbled. âYou need to ask questions first, shoot later.â
Din grunted. âThatâs not how I work.â
âWell, maybe you need to upgrade your circuitry, Tin Can.â
Both Din and the courier looked at you.
âBeg your pardon, miss, but that is a Mandalorian, not a droi-â
You couldnât help your snort of laughter. âWhatâs the message?â
âOh. Yes.â The droid reached into a bag fastened to its hip. âYou have a holo from a Greef Karga? Itâs marked sensitive/eyes only. I suggest you watch it someplace private.â Leaning around to look behind you into the vacant hangar, the only other soul being R5 rolling past with an offensive blip, the droid then looked back at the two of you. âOr just stay here.â
Taking the device from the droid with a smile, you were surprised when it didnât just leave.
It reached back into the satchel and procured another device. A puck. And handed it to Din.
âWhatâs this?â The Mandalorian asked dryly, looking at the small device in the droid's hand as if it were the most confusing puzzle in the galaxy.
âCourtesy of Greef KargaâŠ. once again.â When Din made no effort to move, the droid looked between the two of you. âThey go together. I assume they offer some explanation. Otherwise, I have nothing to tell you about them.â
Din sighed, taking the puck and shutting the hangar door before the droid could say another word.
A muffled, âOh. Well, good day, then!â Came through before the retreat of mechanical footsteps was heard.
âThat was rude!â You mumbled, turning to go deeper into the hangar, but freezing when you saw the info spinning above the puck in Dinâs hand.Â
No.
No it couldnât be.
Quickly activating the comm, you let Karga explain what you already feared.
âIf youâre playing this message, youâve already opened the puck. Yes. I know. I was just as shocked, too.â
There, in letters as big as day was your name.
âIt was issued by the head of some small town crime group on Tatooine. Said you decimated their numbers yesterday?â
Din grunted. âNobody died. What do they mean decimated?â
âIâm not issuing the puck to anyone, but be on the lookout. It could make thingsâŠ. Difficult.â
The comm went dead, and all you could do was stare at the puck in Dinâs hand, the info being presented to you but truly not being absorbed as all you could do was watch and blink.
The puck displayed your picture, slowly spinning with all your details next to it.Â
Name: Eesra Kesyk
Last known location: Tatooine
Known associates: Din Djarin, Boba Fett, Fennec Shand, Peli Motto, Sola Kei, Cara Dune, Greef Karga, Mythrol, Bo Katan Kryze, Ahsoka Tano, Luke Skywalker
Karga, Mythrol, Bo Katan, Luke, Ahsoka? For some small time group on Tatooine, they had really gone out of their way to find info on youâŠ.
Your gut sank.Â
UnlessâŠ.
You shook your head. Thereâs no way this went beyond a small town crime lord on a backwater planet. No way.
Focusing back in on the list, you squinted to read the fine print it was in to have everything fit on the little readout.
The rest was just details, date of birth, previous workâŠ. reason for bounty.
âAre they serious?â
Unlawful use of star cruiser in restricted airspace, failure to comply with law enforcement, breaking and entering, damage to public property, battery and assaultâŠ.
Din thought this was all very funny. He was practically giggling by now, snorts of laughter trickling out of his modulator as he stood to your right.
Heâd tried to stop under your glare, he really did, but it just wasnât possible, little snickers escaping here and there.Â
âWho knew I married such a horrible person?â
He did this from time to time. Brought up his little misstep with Peli where heâd called you his wife, leaning fully into the absurdity and embracing the silliness you often tried to pelt at him mercilessly by saying it himself first.
Rolling your eyes, but unable to contain the small grin climbing up your face, you looked back at the puck and crossed your arms firmly over your chest. âYou knew what you were getting yourself into, Tin Can.â Tilting your head at the readout, you pursed your lips. âAnd weâre not actually married, no matter what you said to Peli. Youâre not ready for all of this.â Making a swooping gesture to yourself, you ignored his mocking snort of amusement.Â
You stared at the list for another loaded minute of silence before going on. âBesides, half of these arenât even true!â Gesturing to the list with one hand, you turned to look up at his visor, brows raised. âUnlawful use of starcruiserâŠ. When did we even leave the planet?â
He was still chuckling warmly as he turned to you. âDid I? Know what I was getting into, I mean? I donât know about that, meshâla.â His chuckle grew louder as your face fell into unamusement. âAnd are you sure? Only half?â
Turning to face him fully, you raised one hand to wag a finger in his face teasingly. âHey, youâre the one that keeps coming back.â
Pulling you into his arms, he hummed contentedly. âAnd I always will come back to you.â
Copying his hum of satisfaction, you reached up and grabbed his cowl like always, tucking your face into the fabric and taking a deep breath before turning to the side to look at the holo once again with a sigh.
âThey got my name wrong, though.â
âDid they?â
âMmm-hmm.â Tucking your face into the crook of his neck, you smiled. âEesra Djarin of Clan MudhornâŠ. Thatâs so much better, donât you think?â
He groaned softly. âI-â
Bleep!
Din grunted in mild annoyance as Bee rolled up the ramp, stopping beside the two of you and trilling animatedly. âNot now, Scrap.â
Bee let out as close to a matching grunt of displeasure a droid could make, flipped out the electrified arm on her front, and waved it at Din in warning.Â
âSee? This is why I donât like droids,â Din grumbled.
Rolling forward bit by bit, backtracking just slightly in between, she pried her way into the small amount of space between the two of you, making you step back just slightly to make room.
âWell, hello there,â you mused quietly to the metallic dome whose lense was looking up at you, smiling back at the tiny bloop in greeting. âMay I help you?â
She babbled away in Binary animatedly, charged hand still extended toward Din in warning as she rolled ever so slightly closer towards you, tilting forward just a bit and causing Din to grunt as the forward motion pushed the bottom of her housing into his shin guards with a ping.
âIâm sure R5 didnât say all that. What are you getting at?â
More beeps and whistles, this time containing squeals as her lense switched between red and white rapidly, almost faster than her sounds, as she animatedly continued her story.
âWow,â you finally said when the droid stopped, staring at you expectantly.
âWhat did she say?â Din tilted his head at you.
âNo idea.â You looked up into his visor. âAll I caught was something something BD said and then Peli, JawasâŠ.â
Both of you started to chuckle softly, Bee looking between you as she rotated her dome back and forth, a bloop of disappointment before a raspberry of annoyance, and you couldnât shake the growing grin on your face if you wanted to.
After a moment she reached out just a little further and zapped Din with the electrified arm, tittering a laugh as she rolled away at speed as Din chased after her after crying out in pain. âOw! Get back here, you rolling scrap heap!â
Crossing your arms, you leaned against the opening of the ramp to the Crest, and watched the scene unfold in Peliâs hangar.
Droids, a mechanic, and a Mandalorian all running in circles after a goal you werenât quite sure of. All that was clear was Din was losing.
You were home, with the people you loved.
Looking to the side, you saw the bunk of the Crest open, the childâs hammock still strung across the top. The corners of your mouth pulled slightly down.
Well, almost everyone.
You were a clan of three.
No, it was more than that.
You were also a family.
And someday, youâd all be back together again.
Someday soon.
Youâd find a way to bring it all back to you.
Adjusting your weight slightly, you bumped something on your vambraces in the process causing the jetpack between your shoulder blades beginning to whir with an increasing hum. Flames began to sputter at its base with a growing roar, sending a wall of heat down the backs of your thighs as it prepared to lift you into the skies once again.
âDin?â You called, quietly at first, staring over your shoulder at the new death trap strapped to your spine, then more urgently, âDin!â
He was already jogging up the ramp toward you, his posture easy and relaxed. âCalm down.â
A quick glance behind him showed an amused Peli and her circus of droids, all of them tittering in amusement. Bee rocked back and forth in glee at the foot of the ramp before rolling back to the others.Â
âCalm down?â You repeated in bewilderment, watching him disengage the jetpack from your vambrace with a single button push, as if it was the easiest thing in the world.
âCalm down?!â He began to chuckle, his hand skimming up the inside of your forearm to lightly grab your elbow and push you further into the ship as you went on. âI was almost a flying projectile and you-â
You hadnât noticed the way heâd nudged you backwards completely out of sight of the rest of the hangar until your spine sealed along the bulkhead by the weapons locker, the lights of the cargo hold going to half brightness with a deft swipe of his hand over a control pad to your left.Â
Half, but still plenty bright to see.
âDin?â
Taking in your new surroundings, you looked back up to see him taking his gloves off and tucking them in his belt. His helmet came next, the quiet hiss of the mechanism causing you to screw your eyes shut. The familiar sound of beskar thunking onto the metal floor of the Crest made them close even tighter.
Din chuckled softly, the unmodulated sound tickling your face with his warm breath. âOpen your eyes, meshâla.â
âOh, yeah.â Slowly you blinked your eyes open, looking up to see warm brown eyes, and the sweetest smile waiting to meet you. âI still forget.â
Winding your hands up into the curls at the base of his head, you smirked when he let out a contented sigh through his nose.Â
After a moment of simply holding the otherâs gaze, you muttered quietly, âHello, brown eyes.â
Din was on you in an instant, his groan of annoyance muffled against your lips as you laughed softly into the kiss.Â
âYou always have to ruin it,â he mumbled, crowding you further into the wall, his bare hands coming to cradle your face and making your eyes slip shut at the contact. âNu-uh. Open your eyes, meshâla.â
Fluttering them open, you tried very hard to keep them that way. âSorry. Itâs not every day a Mandalorian is half naked in front of me. Iâll try harder.â
âHalf naked?â He tilted his head, the tip of his nose bumping against yours, one brow arching up in question.Â
âFor you, a helmet and gloves is the equivalent of a-â
Din was back on you again, this time growling in mock frustration against your lips as you laughed a bit louder. The upturn of his lips gave his amusement away, though.
Pulling apart just enough that only your foreheads rested against one another, the two of you held that moment together for quite a while. Simply breathing the other in, and existing in this quiet moment before the storm.Â
Before you left to find more Mandalorians.Â
More Mandalorians.Â
Now that was going to be interesting.Â
After a moment, you rolled your head to the side slightly and peeked up through your lashes to find his eyes closed.
You opened your mouth to speak, only for you both to speak in tandem, âOpen your eyes.â
âI will if you will,â you were quick to retort.
Warm brown eyes met yours once again as the setting sunsâ light poured in through the open ramp somewhere behind him, painting the cargo hold of the Crest in vibrant shades of gold, orange and red.
Din smiled softly, pressing his forehead further into yours, using his hands at your cheeks to maneuver your head back a bit and into a better angle for him to lean his forehead into. âOnly for you.â His fingers began to move up and thread into your hair. âAlways for you.â It was hard to tell where he stopped and you began. âGar cuyi ner aliit. Ni kar'tayli darasuum gar. Gar cuyi ner mir'sheb bal gar utreekov kar'tayli darasuum gar, cyarâika.â He pressed his forehead even further into yours, his lips ghosting over your own with each word. (âYou are my family. I love you. You are my smartass, and your idiot loves you, darling.â)
âGar cuyi ner yaim. Ner yaim'ol. Ner yaim'la.â The light of the day was fading, much the same as the two of you were melding into one another, practically becoming one being, all his hard edges blurring where your soft lines began. The Crest began to fill with long shadows as the lights in Peliâs hangar kicked on, filling the cargo hold with just enough extra light to see. (âYou are my home. My homecoming. My comfortable.â)
Reaching up, you cupped his face in your hand, and he melted into it, his eyes fluttering shut as he leaned into your palm, his voice a low rumble. âNi ratiin yaimpar gar.â (âI always return to you.â)
In the quiet moment, you rubbed your thumb over his cheek bone slowly back and forth before finally whispering with a smile, âOpen your eyes.â
Once he was looking at you once again, you pulled your head back just a bit and tilted it to the side. âSo, where are we going to find the covert?â
He went stiff. âWe?â
You sighed, laying your head on his pauldron. âItâs been how long, and you still havenât learned that Iâm always going to come with you?â
Din looked at you with a matching sigh. He tilted his head at you, his weight shifted to one leg, his hands on your waist moving you along with him. âYou sometimes stay here when I go out on a job and help Peli work on the ship. Itâs almost done after what Gideon tried to do- er, it was until today.â
âExactly. So after this last massacre, I donât think Peli wants to see my face around here anymore,â you laughed, making him shake his head and let out a huff of laughter. âI think Boba would give us a lift to wherever.â
âAnd then how do we get back?â
You smiled as you closed the small space between you, speaking softer as the situation began to feel more delicate. âWeâll figure it out.â
âWhy are your ideas usually half baked or somehow involve fire?â
You closed the distance between you yet again, wrapping your arms around his neck tightly, and pressing your forehead into his. âAnd yet they always workâŠ.â
âYou get lucky sometimes,â he groused half heartedly before he returned the gesture, a warm ungloved hand spread across your back, the other moving up to the back of your head to tuck your face securely into the crook of his neck.
You werenât about to pull away as he held you there gently. Turning your face towards him where it rested on his shoulder, your nose brushed against his neck, and his grip grew tighter. Glancing up towards his face, you thought back to a time in the bar when this all started when all you could see before the helmet obstructed your view was a small sliver of skin that bobbed as he swallowed roughly.Â
Now you had an unobstructed viewâŠ.
âŠ.Of unruly dark curls long overdue for a trimâŠ.
âŠ.Golden skin dusted with a light facial hair that had the slightest hint of grays peppered inâŠ.
âŠ.Kind, warm brown eyes that looked at you with so many promisesâŠ.
âŠ.A nose that had definitely been broken once or twiceâŠ.
âŠ.And a smile that took your breath away.
You turned your head up fully towards his face as you pulled away just enough to look at him straight on, and he turned his gaze down to meet you with a slightly playful tilt of his head like before.
âIâm just that good.â Your hands fell to rest on his chest plate. âNow letâs go find your people.â
âLetâs go find our people,â he corrected.
With a gentle nod, you pulled away slowly after a moment, turning towards the ramp with wide eyes as what just happened sunk in.
Our people.
Din walked past you, looking over his shoulder once he was on the ramp. âAre you coming?â
Our people.Â
Turning your head slightly to the left, you saw he had stopped, helmet back on, gloves securely fastened, and every bit the Mandalorian you had met all those years ago, only now he stood waiting for you, hand outstretched in invitation.
Mine.
You smiled, walking forward and taking his hand. âMoff Gideon couldnât keep me away.â
Xxx
Yes, I gave her a name. Eesra Kesyk. (Ee-sruh Keh-sick) Letâs face it, Meshâla is still whatâs going to be used 99.999999% of the time, and âyouâ the majority of the rest. But weâre going into a part of the story with a whole lot of other new players and I wanted to have something to call the reader besides âyouâ and nicknames. I know this isnât everyoneâs cup of tea, and Iâm sorry. But, itâs my story, and thatâs what I chose to do. I have a plan, so if youâll bear with me, thank you, and I hope we can see it through together. â€ïž Plus, Din still just calls her *sigh* or âstop it!â 99% of the time, soâŠ. đ€
Xxx
Tags to come!
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This Is Always
From the Love Letter Series
Robert âRosieâ Rosenthal x Josephine Harris (OFC)
The holidays are usually a time to be spent together, cold noses warmed by the fire, and joyful cheers as the New Year approaches. This year, Rosie is struggling with being away from Jo, and acknowledging the future that he dreams of sharing with her. A heart to heart with Crosby helps put things into perspective for both of them.
Read Part 3 Here
Follow along with the Love Letters Playlist
January 1944
My Dearest Jo,
Happy New Year, honey pie! Itâs just after midnight here, and though I wanted to be the first person to wish you a Happy New Year, I know that by the time you get this, it will be after the fact. I guess by writing this now, while itâs still â43 back home, Iâm letting myself be greedy in being the first to send you those wishes. I hope youâre doing something fun tonight, and getting all dolled up to paint the town red. Your last letter came just after Christmas, but I would be remiss if I didnât tell you just how happy it made me to hear that you were still doing all of your usual Christmas favorites, even if Iâm not home to carry all your shopping bags back to Brooklyn after a full day in the city. Believe me, I even miss doing that, no matter how heavy some of them are.Â
I got Maâs last letter just a few days before yours arrived, and she mentioned that you went by the house to celebrate Hanukkah with her and Jeanie. I know that made her really happy, and I canât thank you enough for keeping an extra eye on both of them for me while Iâm stuck over here. My sister would argue that she doesnât need anyone keeping an eye on her, but Iâm sure she appreciates your company, and will rub it in my face after the fact that she got to spend so much time with you. Thatâs what little sisters do, isnât it?Â
We had a small thing in the Officers Club for the holidays; nothing too fancy, but there was music, and some good liquor that someone managed to scrounge up for the occasion. The Red Cross Clubmobile girls pulled some resources and, even with rationing, managed to bake a few cookies for us. They were good, but they couldn't hold a candle to yours.Â
I have never wanted one of your Christmas cookies more than after reading your letter, and to know that Jean Crosby took over as the official taste tester this year; oh it broke my heart darling. But, Iâm glad to know that you two girls are keeping each other company, and I know that Croz is happy knowing that sheâs not alone. I do hope you two arenât causing too much trouble while weâre away. Knowing you the way that I do, I know thatâs a bit of a pipe dream, but one of the reasons I adore you the way that I do.Â
At the risk of sounding melancholy, Iâve spent most of today wishing I could take you dancing; spin you around until weâre both dizzy, until finally we can ring in the new year with champagne. Crowded on the dance floor at Mintonâs, wrapped up in each other. Maybe itâs bold of me to ask, or maybe itâs the whiskey, but would you have allowed me a midnight kiss, Jo? I canât picture kissing anyone else as the clock strikes twelve, nor do I want to, on this holiday or any other day. I hope that by next year, we'll be able to spend the evening together, and not have to send holiday wishes in letters that take too long to get there.Â
I dream of you every night, sweetheart, and every night these sweet dreams end with a kiss before Iâm pulled back to reality. Iâve been dreaming of the future, and if the real thing is anything like my dreams, I canât wait for those days to begin. I wonder,do you dream of those days too? Of building a home together, a life thatâs just ours. Living in the city, maybe somewhere near Harry and Jean. We could go to the pictures on Friday nights, and sleep in on Saturdayâs, warm under the blankets until we peel ourselves from the sheets only because we need to make coffee. Iâd spin you around the kitchen while we made breakfast, a record on the Victrola, the two of us tangled together while the eggs burned. The more I think about it, the more it all sounds like a dream come true.Â
Maybe it is the whiskey talking, but itâs getting late here. Or early depending on how you look at it, and even though we arenât flying tomorrow, Iâm sure the rest of the fellas will be returning from the Officers Club soon enough. Iâll be dreaming of you tonight, sweetheart, and counting the days until weâre together again.Â
Sending you millions of hugs and kisses, and all of my love.Â
Yours for always
Robbie
Rosie took a deep breath, and without giving himself a chance to second guess anything in his letter, folded it up and slid it inside the envelope. Heâd address it in the morning and drop it off at APO so that it went out with the next mail call; tonight it would remain on the nightstand next to his bed, with Joâs photo. He was still in his uniform, not having bothered changing after he returned to the Officerâs hut, and was about to take advantage of the empty shower stall, when the door swung open and Harry walked in.
âThought Iâd find you in here.â Harry spoke, hand coming up to loosen his tie.Â
âYea, I uh, wanted to get a letter out to Jo,â Rosie signed, dragging his hand down his face. âOr at the very least, written.â
âItâs rough around the holidays isnât it.â It wasnât a question. Harry knew as well as he did, and he knew his friend was giving him an opening to get his feelings off his chest.Â
âProbably the most difficult part of all this. Weâve spent every Christmas and Hanukkah together since we met.â
âShe celebrates Hanukkah with you and your mom?â
âJo is the best gift giver in our family, according to my sister.â Rosie grinned.Â
âSounds like your sister will be the disappointed one if you donât put a ring on Joâs finger when we get home.â Harry chuckled, dropping down onto his own bed, across from Rosieâs.
âSheâd have to fight my Ma for the top spot, if I donât marry Jo.âÂ
The two shared a quiet moment as their thoughts drifted to a place far from England. Far from flak and casualties and torn fuselages. No thoughts of missing friends, mission counts or that damned red light never blinking off.Â
Rosie knew that Harry understood better than anyone; how it felt to be so devoted to someone, and yet, he felt compelled to ask the one question that, if he had to wager, everyone asks at some point.Â
âHowâd you know Jean was the one?â He asked after a moment, gaze turned upward to meet that of his friend.Â
âShe wanted nothing to do with me when we met,â Harry balked so loudly that it seemed to echo off the walls of the Nissen Hut. âBut I knew. I didnât want to spend another day without her.â
âJust like that, huh?â
âOh yeah, you just know,â Harry nodded. âWhen did you know Jo was the one? And donât tell me you didnâtâŠâ
âLetâs just say I should have opened my mouth a long time ago.â
âWell, better late than never.â
âWhat if I was too late, Croz?â
Harry stood from his bed, moving around the front to lean himself against the footboard. With a determined gaze, he made sure he had Rosieâs full attention before saying what was on his mind.Â
âYou canât think like that. You need to believe youâre going home to her, that you two will have a life after all this.â
âGod, I hope so.â
âI donât know Jo as well as you do,â He started. âI only know what Jean tells me in her letters, but it sounds to me like sheâs really something. And Iâm not just saying that because she went out of her way to befriend my wife.â
âI told her I want a life with her, a future, our own place, Saturday mornings in bed, lazy daysâŠâ
âYou want the dream.â Harry nodded in understanding.Â
âTold her maybe weâd move to the city, leave Brooklyn, get a place near you and Jean.â
âSounds like weâll be in trouble if that happens, Jo and Jean a stone's throw away from each other?â
âI think the two of us are going to have our hands full when we get home, Croz.â
âI bet theyâre saying the same thing about us,â Harry laughed. âAnd I wouldnât blame Jean. Iâve been a real handful as of late.â
âOh yea, youâre causing lots of trouble all the way over here.â Rosie chuckled, propping his legs up on the bed, feet hanging off the edge so as to not dirty the sheets. He didnât miss the slight look of distress that flashed across his friend's face.Â
He regarded him carefully; he looked like he had something on the tip of his tongue. His face looked worried, like he had something weighing him down exponentially, and Rosie would allow his friend the moment if he needed it. After all, it was the holidayâs and they were the best source of camaraderie that they had; friends should be there for each other. No one understood that better than he did.Â
âNo, Iâve been a handfulâŠâ Harry finally continued.Â
âCroz?â
âRemember after Munster? When Harding sent me to Oxford?â
âYeaâŠâ
âThey double you up when youâre at those conferences, and my roommate, she-â
âAh jeez, CrozâŠâ
Harry sighed, dropping his head, too ashamed to look his friend in the eye. The moment had turned in the blink of an eye, and he wasnât sure how to handle it, or get his friend through it. But heâd be damned if he didnât try.Â
âI donât know how to tell Jean.â
âIs this why you kept disappearing up to London? To see her?â
âHow do I tell my wife that I slept with another woman?â
âYou just do, Croz.â
âThatâs the worst possible thing to write in a letter. âHoney, I miss you terribly, by the wayâŠââ
âAlright, I see your point. But you need to tell her.â
âThis fucking war,â Harry sighed. âI swear, it peels the humanity right from your bones.â
âThen you fight it.â
âMore than we already have? More than what weâve given and lost?â
Rosie knew he was referring to Bubbles, and for a moment he let his mind wander to Nash, and that first mission to Bremen. It would be easy to fold; to pack it up and let the fight take from you more and more. But he would be damned if heâd let it take more from him, and if he had to fight a little extra to make sure it didnât take any more from his friend, heâd do that too.Â
âYouâre not fighting it alone, Croz.â
âFeels like it most of the time.â
âAnd youâre fighting for something back home, even if you feel like you donât deserve it at the moment.â
âI don't deserve her.âÂ
âYea, you do. And youâll tell her everything, whether you write it, or tell her when we get home. And Jo and I will be there for you both.â
Harry looked like he was about to respond when the door to the Officers Hut swung open. He turned, half expecting a replacement officer, but was surprised to see Blakely and Douglass, the former with a cigarette tucked behind his ear, and Douglass swinging a bottle of something in his left hand.Â
âNightcap, fellas?â Douglass lifted the bottle, and Rosie could just make out the label. Vat 69.Â
âWhere the hell did you get that, Dougie?â Harryâs eyes went wide at the familiar label from back home. A very expensive label.Â
âBeen saving it, so come on, letâs have a drink.â
âNo, seriously, whoâd you steal that from?â Rosie asked, watching as Blakely gathered four of the glasses the boys kept on their side tables for brushing their teeth.Â
âI won it in a bet, if you must know.â Douglass grinned, pulling the wax seal from the neck of the bottle before pulling the cork out.
âThe details are not of importance,â Blakely chimed in, swatting Rosieâs legs off the bed to take up the space next to him. âWhat is important is that weâre here, and alive, so stop asking questions and have a drink would ya?â
Douglass poured for the four of them, dropping himself down on the bed next to Rosieâs, while waiting for Harry to join them.Â
âAny day now, CrozâŠâ he groaned, glass between two fingers as he held it out for the navigator. âItâll be â45 by the time you move.â
âDougie⊠fuck off.â Harry stood with a laugh, brushing off his slacks before snatching the glass and taking the seat next to him. âAnd anyway, weâd all better be home by â45.â
âIâll drink to that.â Blakely nodded, holding his glass up to cheers his friends, the only ones left that werenât replacement crews, or trapped somewhere in the Stalag.Â
The foursome sat silently as they sipped their prize whiskey, thoughts turned presumably to home and memories of Christmas and New Yearsâ spent with people they loved and missed.Â
âAlright, what would you be doing if you were home right now?â Ev broke the silence, leaning his elbows on his knees, gaze landing on Harry.Â
âHis wife, dumbass.â Douglass chuckled.Â
âWoah hey, none of that.â Rosie looked between the two, the rules immediately being put into place without having to say them.Â
They didnât talk like that, but he assumed it had been a bit too much whiskey already for Douglass, and with there no mission on the horizon for tomorrow, their guards were all down a bit.Â
âRight, right, sorry Croz,â Douglass held his hands up in apology. âFor real, what would you and Jean be doing if you were home?â
âWeâd go out for dinner, but I think weâd probably be home for the bells,â he closed his eyes wistfully, and Rosie knew his friend was simply hoping that heâd be able to do that next year. âDance in the living room, and yea, off to bed.â
Blakely nodded, reaching across to drop his hand to Crosbyâs knee in a gesture of good faith, that he felt for him in a way, and was hoping heâd get that moment sooner rather than later.Â
âWhat about you?â Ev turned to his right, finding Rosie sitting quietly.Â
âWhat about me?â Rosie brought the glass to his lips, taking a small sip and letting the taste linger on his tongue a moment.Â
âWould you and Josephine be out on the town?â Douglass asked, gesturing to the photo on Rosieâs side table.Â
âOh yea, weâd be at Mintonâs, dancing until they kicked us out Iâm sure.â Rosie laughed.Â
âTogether at the club then?â
âEvery year we go dancing on New Years,â Rosie started. âChristmas and Hanukkah are for family, New Years is for friends.â
âSheâs more than a friend.â Harry looked at him pointedly.Â
âShe is, and a fella can dream that sheâll say yes when I get home.â
Blakely, who had been pulling the cigarette from behind his ear to light it, fumbled, dropping it to the ground at Rosieâs confession.Â
âYou got a ring?!â
âNo, but, thatâs my second order of business once Iâm back stateside.â
âAnd the first?â
âTo kiss the hell out of her.â Rosie confessed.Â
âGood man.â Blakely slapped him on the shoulder, a smile on his face.Â
It was absolutely the whiskey talking this time, but he was among friends. The trust was insurmountable. Between the confessions that had taken place before Ev and Dougie had joined them, and the warmth flowing through his veins, Rosie lifted the glass to his lips to drain it, before standing from his place on the bed. Swiping the envelope from earlier, and a clean sheet of paper from the table, he glanced at his friends with a grin, and offered a two fingered salute.Â
âGentlemen, Iâll be back.â
âWhere are you going! We still have more whiskey!â Douglass hollered after him.Â
âSave it for another occasion!â Rosie called back as he pushed through the doors and out into the chilly January air.Â
He walked until he found a spot under one of the lamp posts, the bench undoubtedly cold as he sat down, but he wouldnât be out here for long. Just enough time, and privacy, to get the thoughts swarming around in his head out on the page before he lost his nerve.Â
Pulling his pen from his breast pocket, he carefully let the paper rest on his thigh before he began scrawling his extra note.Â
Hi Sweetheart,Â
I know this is coming with no context but, I want you to know how much I adore you. I know Iâve said it in different ways, and a few times by now, but, I mean it. Truly, youâre the best thing thatâs ever happened to me, and Iâm sorry it took me so long to say it. And to say it from thousands of miles away, with a war on no less. I wouldnât blame you if you wanted to hit me once Iâm back home.Â
Just know that Iâll always, always, carry your heart with the most careful of hands. Iâll keep you safe, and treasure every moment we have together. Anything you want, itâs yours, Jo. A quiet life together, or a herd of children that jump on the bed on Sunday mornings. Iâll make sure you have it honey.Â
Just know, Iâm yours for however long youâll have me, Josephine. Iâm hoping for forever, but thatâs a question for another day.Â
I love you,
RobbieÂ
A/N: Thanks for reading! This series will continue for Rosie & Jo, so if you enjoyed this, please like, comment, reblog- whichever is your poison. Feedback is always welcome & my ask box is always open. If you want to be added to my tag list, or removed, let me know!
Tag List: @rowdy-redhead @winniemaywebber @sagesolsticewrites @rosiesriveter @bobparkhurst @victoryrollsandredlips @bcolfanfic @major-mads @footprintsinthesxnd @basilone @roosevelt-stalin-cocacola @justheretoreadthxxs @claireelizabeth85 @hephaestn @ktredshoes @barrykeoghussy @peachessndreamss @hellfirequinnie
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Go for his brother part 2
Part 1 here
Part 3 here
username1 DOUBLE BETRAYAL đ
âłusername2 wdym bro wtf Arthur is just getting his karma, he CHEATED on Y/n with her best friend
âłusername2 and Y/n only got with his brother after the breakup
username3 It's so crazy to me how not long ago Y/n was with Arthur at Charles' race and we could see them all lovey dovey and now she's with Charles đ
username4 I hope they actually like each other and it's not just something Y/n schemed to get back at Arthur
âłusername5 And even if it is, so what? Both Leclercs deserve this if she's doing it for the sake of revenge
username4 What did Charles ever do to you đ he's a literal pookie
username6 I am BEGGING to find out Arthur's reaction
username7 I wanna see this on Drive To Survive lmao
âłusername8 The most interesting thing in the whole season lol
username9 Exactly! Men driving in circles? Nah, fuck that, give me family drama
yourusername The Art & The Artist
view all comments
charles_leclerc I took way more than these 2 pictures, should post them all
âłyourusername some would get me bannedđ€
username1 MY OH MY
username2 What did she say đ
username3 I'm jealous but haven't decided if I want him or her
username4 Arthur better not read this comment section (I hope he will)
francisca.cgomes Thanks for blessing my eyes đ«¶
âłyourusername You're welcome bestieđ«¶
username4 it's so nice to see Y/n found a friend who won't steal her bf
username5 You can't be sure, it's Charles Leclerc we're talking about. You think he wouldn't go for his best friends' girlfriend who is now his own girlfriends' best friend after pulling what he's just pulled?
username4 ngl girl I got lost in whatever you're saying
yoursister In your iconic girl era â€ïž
âłyourusername I slayed didn't I đ
username6 Honestly guys I believe it's not just a revenge scheme
âłusername5 What makes you think that?
username6 Given these pictures and the pictures from the gossip page they look pretty much happy to me, too happy for it to be fake
username5 Whatever you say, we'll see. They have to get tired of pretending one day
exbestfriend Glowing âšđ©·
âłyourusername đ
âłfrancisca.cgomes đ
âłyoursister đ
âłcharles_leclerc đ
âłpierregasly đ
âłgeorgerussell63 đ
âłcarmenmmundt đ
âłalex_albon đ
âłlilymhe đ
username7 Y/N AND HER COMMENT SECTION ARE ICONIC đ
âłusername8 I can't stop imagining them having a gc and she sent a screenshot of her ex best friend's comment like "you know what to do, guys" đ€Ł
username9 I just know Arthur is screaming crying throwing up because LOOK AT WHAT HE LOST
username10 Lol who's next? Toto Wolff?
arthur_leclerc My favorite love story is ours â€ïž
view all comments
exbestfriend So happy we found each other â€ïžâ€ïž
username1 đ
username2 Alright they both have the audacity
username3 your love story is cheating on Y/n lmao
username4 Imagine they have a kid one day who'll ask mom dad how did you meet lol
âłusername3 I'd be EMBARRASSED
username5 They deserve each other tbh
username6 Hey but... What if this pic and Y/n's pics were taken on the same day...
âłusername7 wdym
username6 Arthur wanted to keep and eye on his ex and his brother from afar đ
username7 it's terrible but possibly true lmao
exbestfriend I'm so sick of people judging us
âłusername2 That's what you deserve, the both of you
âłusername4 when actions have consequences:đź
yourusername Back at the paddock â€ïž
view all comments
username1 At least she didn't downgrade right?
yoursister You guys look so good together
âłyourusername Thank you 𫶠ily
âłcharles_leclerc Yes we do đ
âłusername2 Y/s/n never commented anything like this when Y/n used to post with Arthurđ
lilymhe It was nice catching up with you when the boys were playing
âłyourusername maybe next time you and Alex could come over so the boys can play some video games together
username3 Pls they're just two single mothers bonding over their toddlers being bestiesđ
username4 I NEED TO KNOW IF ARTHUR WAS THERE
âłusername5 You crazy? Ofc he wouldn't have come, he's too scared of confrontation
username4 Okay but then what if one day Y/n and Charles get married? Will Arthur just skip his brother's wedding?
username5 I think some time will pass before Charles decides to settle down. And not with Y/n, that's for sure
username6 Why not? Y/n makes a much better couple with Charles than she did with Arthur
username5 Charles would never take her seriously lol she dated his brother, Charles is just having fun with her while letting her have her moment
arthur_leclerc Are you wearing the dress you wore on our first date?
âłusername2 SHE'S WHAT?????
âłusername3 wtf are u doing here
âłyourusername Maybe...
username4 Mother keeps slaying đđ
username7 I aspire to be like Y/n fr
alex_albon Lily said we should have a double date
âłyourusername Let's do it then @/lilymhe @/charles_leclerc when and where
arthur_leclerc I just wonder when will you get bored of this
âłyourusername Bored of what exactly? Going to races? You know I've always enjoyed looking at cars go vroooom
arthur_leclerc You know what I mean
arthur_leclerc Of pretending to like Charles just to prove me some delusional point
yourusername You really think I'd waste my energy on that? It's a funny coincidence indeed, but I do like him actually
arthur_leclerc Mhm sure I give you maybe 6 months more, can't keep pretending forever
charles_leclerc A family gathering & the morning after
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username1 OH GREAT HEAVENS
pierregasly Now that's something none of us expected
âłusername2 bro speaking facts
username3 They said fuck you Arthur you'll get a proof we're not pretendingđ
username4 Well at least the family already knew her
âłusername5 Pascale liked Y/n so much she said girl you have my blessing no matter which one u marry
username3 Guys do you think Arthur was there? You know, it's a family gathering, so he had to be there, right?
alex_albon Charles settling down wasn't on my bingo card this year
âłlilymhe Neither was it on mine but I love it
francisca.cgomes Girl you realize there's no going back now? đ
âłyourusername I hope sođđ«¶
arthur_leclerc I still can't believe how disrespectful you both are
âłcharles_leclerc Look who's speaking of being disrespectful
âłyourusername stfu arthur maman literally had to kick you out of the party
username3 The way it used to be "Thurthur" and now it's "stfu arthur" đ¶
username2 at least the "maman" is the same right
username5 I feel like Pascale likes Y/n more than she likes Arthur
username7 wtf guys PASCALE HAD TO KICK ARTHUR OUT OF THE PARTY đđ
âłusername8 That's crazy, imagine how's the wedding gonna look like
carlossainz55 Getting engaged after a few weeks? Is she pregnant?đ
âłusername9 Not funny
username10 Chill that's just millennial humour from back when pregnancy outside marriage was a disgrace
âłcharles_leclerc We've known each other long enough to make this decision đ«ą
carlossainz55 Valid point
arthur_leclerc But for majority of this time she was my girlfriend
charles_leclerc On which you cheated
arthur_leclerc @/yourusername did you use me just to get to Charles? Was it your plan from the beginning?
âłyourusername Sure because I have nothing else to do lmao
âłyourusername We've talked about it yesterday arthur, don't start again
arthur_leclerc I just still can't believe Charles would do something like that to me
yourusername And half a year ago I believed you wouldn't have ever cheated on me
charles_leclerc I said it yesterday and I'll say it again, Arthur I will always love you as a brother, but you messed up big time, you can't be mad at us
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Hello dear!! I have a request for the Radio Demon
Do you mind writing sub!Alastor? Imagine your in lobby of the hotel with your beloved Alastor (on his lap) and you decide to do some frisky cockwarming with him.. well in the beginning he has control but then maybe Charlie or Lucifer u walks in.. you decide to tease him until he can't take it anymore and ends up having to cover his moans as he gums in you..
Welp! That's my requestđ you can delete this ofc but do as you will ~
from windigo anonđŠ
iâm drooling, frothing at the mouth, going insane, i love this idea!!! eeeee thank you so much i hope this was good enough i struggled a bit with cockwarming so i hope i did well
Warnings: 18+ SMUT, cockwarming, SUB!Alastor/DOM!Reader, creampie, possible breeding kink, exhibitionism, Lucifer knows what youâre doing, heâs the devil, and you use him to tease Al, jealous lucifer, lucifer is a cuck lowkey, reader wears a dress but no gendered terms or anything, maybe threesome elements?, OOC ALASTOR, NOT proof read, LMK what i missed! xo
word count: 1.9K
You and Alastor have been a thing for a very long time, and throughout the years heâd become rather comfortable with sexual intimacy. Alastor always held the reigns no matter where in life he was, that is excluding the bedroom. Alastor had made a foolish deal with you long ago, he wanted your soul and you were a fairly powerful demon at the time so there was a sit down conversation about such endeavours. You agreed to sell your soul and tie yourself to him, complete all tasks he needed done, so long as he was your bitch. Well, that wording wasnât used back then, nor was there any sexual innuendos in the mix.
Before it simply meant he couldnât try to place fear into you, he always had to speak truthfully when it came to you, and if plan involved you, essentially to the outside world he was allowed to look like the boss but behind closed doors he wasnât allowed to pull that stunt. You two ended up getting along quite nicely as the years went by, your magic side of the deal made it so if he broke his promises, the deal would be off and more then likely fatal to the both of you, so it wasnât too surprising things went well.
What was surprising was the relationship you developed, Alastor was unable to lie to you about most things due to your deal and most of the time you approached him as a peer lacking judgement. Even when you disagreed with his plans you still still gave your genuine advice and thoughts which made him trust you. Slowly through this weird bond of trust and leaning on each other, Alastor developed romantic feelings and thank god you felt them back.
Alastor was slow to warm up to affections, which meant you normally took over, letting him keep his poise and smile youâd always make the first move, asking for consent to push further whether it was a simple hug, kiss, or a little more frisky. Eventually though, things got to the point theyâre at now, where Alastor craves you like his lungs crave air. He is ravenous for your touch, your kiss, your head surrounding his cock. Itâs a tough couple months during mating season because he begs and begs for you like a starved man.
Because of his eagerness for you, and to please you, heâs very kindly broadened his horizons leading to absolutely tasteful trying of kinks. Recently the two of you have been planted at the hotel, Alastor called upon you the day he got there, and privately when alone explained his plans with the Devils child, your man had always been an ambitious one, but you couldnât say no to him. So of course you stood alongside his plans, and now youâre not only dealing with the Devils child, but the devil himself.
Lucifer moved himself in after the big olâ brawl, and thankfully things have gone somewhat smoothly between Alastor and Lucifer, as in they havenât killed each other yet, but Lucifer made it his absolute mission to try and âsteal you away,â like he did with Adam. Obviously you were committed to Alastor, but your mind would wander to sinful places about all the ways you could show Lucifer how much you loved you deer man. Oh and you just knew how.
Alastor sat in the lobby, looking through a newspaper as he sipped his coffee, music humming softly in the background. The whole lobby was vacant, even Husk was gone for the moment, you made sure of it. Walking into the lobby from the kitchen, your dress flowing around your legs, you walked up to Alastor with a warm smile on your face. âWhatâre you up to my dear?â You ask softly, making him hum eyes shifting from his newspaper to you, dragging up your form. âJust a little bit of reading, nothing much my doe,â Alastor seemed sleepy almost in the state he was in, his voice was soft and lacking his usual enthusiasm, however it wasnât a state you were unfamiliar with knowing him for so long.
Slowly you lowered yourself sideways onto his lap, he complied with your actions wordlessly by whisking his newspaper away with his magic, allowing you to scootch yourself right up on him. Wrapping your arms around his neck, you played with the short hairs at the base, causing him to visibly shiver. Alastor smiled down at you softly, watching you tenderly. âI feel,â You whispered with a pause, mimicking somebody taking a thoughtful breath. âNeedy.â You breathe out with a cheesy smile plastered on your face. Alastor jolts a bit still entirely not used to forward language such as that, but he didnât say anything simply blinked at you.
âI think iâm gonna lift this dress up, and your gonna unbuckle these pants, and iâm gonna seat myself nice n comfy on ya,â You purred hands messaging all around his chest as you spoke, trailing down to the button of his slacks and back up to his shoulders. You felt him twitch against his pants, the blood obviously was already flowing to his groin. âDear weâre in public.â Try as he may, Alastors words were wobbly and his smile looked more like a grimace.
âNo baby, weâre in private, in our new home, at the hotel, where no one can see.â You cooed condescendingly, pulling your hands away to hike up your dress. Alastor dared to looked down as you bunched your dress at your hips. Alastor closed his eyes, head falling back at the sight of you bare, nothing but your dress skirt keeping you covered. Turning yourself around, you put your back to him, grinding yourself down on him teasingly.
âYâknow what to do, donât make me say it dear.â Your voice was stern compared to the tone you held before, Alastor blew out air at your words, head still thrown back at rest on the back of the sofa. Finally he brought his hands from the resting position next to him, and freed himself from his slacks and boxers. You sighed happily as you slowly inched your way down on him, Alastors hands gripped your hips harshly, and his legs kicked out and spasmed every inch you took down.
Once buttoned out, you fixed your gown to flow around you, and backed yourself up against his chest, head rested on his shoulder. Brining his head up to gaze down at you, Alastor gave you a questioning look, sweat already gathering on his forehead. âDear please-â Alastors words got caught off by a boisterous call, and the front door swinging open. Fixing his posture, Alastor snapped into position, positioning his legs up right feet on the floor, straightening his back, wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you up with him.
âHellloooo everybody! Just had an amazing meeting, everything went in my favour, as always.â Lucifer waltzed in swinging his cane. He briefly paused scanning the room to see only you two sitting stiffly. You were more relaxed, eyes littled with an easygoing smile, Alastor however was tense; his smile was tight and unfriendly, with his eye twitching. âWell hello there you two, lovely to see you here.â Lucifer smiled happily plopping himself on the couch next to you, making you two shake.
The small bit of motion from Lucifer throwing himself down, made you clench, your arousal leaking down Alastors cock and onto his pants. Clearing his throat to suppress a moan, Alastor then gave a tiny âhelloâ to the devil. Turning your body more toward the devil, you made sure to pick yourself up off Alastor a bit, and lower yourself back down, making him sink his nails into you.
Wrapping one arm around Alastors neck, you leaned sideways against him, facing Lucifer, your skirt successfully obstructing the entire view of your sin. âDo tell Luce.â You urge pretending to care, Lucifer caught on to the strange behaviour immediately however he wasnât entirely sure what to make of it yet, so he pushed on shrugging and explaining his meeting. You coyly moaned occasionally throughout his explanations playing it off as âohâs and âahâs to his story rather than Alastors twitching cock.
Leaning forward Alastor stuck his blushing face in your hair, breathing heavily into it. âIs he doing okay?â Lucifer asked suddenly, quirking a brow at Alastor. Around your waist Alastors arms tightened, and his legs once again spread and splayed out a bit allowing him more space. Alastor felt pitiful, but in a way he loved it, only you had this power and nobody else, he could live with that. Alastor was too blitzed out to realise heâd subtly humped up into you, needing some sort of release. Playing with Alastors hair, you shrugged your shoulders at the devil, your poise still in tacked.
âYes, I do believe heâs a little sickly.â Lucifer noticed the twitch in Alastors hips now, his eyes growing in size every so slightly. âYknow i just want to stay something Lucifer,â You begin to say, eyeing Al from your peripheral, seeing his eyes closed. âI really think we ought to stop with the battle, Alastor treats me very well, very good,â You purr fixing your posture, making Alastor groan into your hair.
âI think itâs time to stop with the whole âi could take your partnerâ shtick.â You say sharply, with finality, Lucifers eyes at this point were flicking back and forth between the two of you, a prominent blush on his face. You grinned cheekily once again and shifted again trying to fix yourself to face forward again, as you did so you heard Lucifer take a breath to speak, but it got interrupted by a guttural groan from Alastor.
Without warning Alastors legs flexed his hips jerking involuntarily up against you, it caught you off guard and made you gasp and moan. It didnât stop after one thrust, Alastor sunk his teeth into your shoulder jerking his hips up into you, panting and groaning without care. With one forceful thrust and growl, you whined feeling him force himself against you fully, cumming far up into you, stealing your breath. Lucifer watched bug eyed and taken aback, he never saw Alastor so pleasured, now he felt a ping of jealousy; before this moment he wanted to steal you away to show you how much better he can fuck you compared to Alastor, now he wanted you to fuck him and make him feel the way Alastor felt now.
Alastors form grew demonic, stretching and contorting, you still in his lap. You didnât move an inch as he contorted, not afraid of Alastor what so ever. Alastors neck snapped inhumanely to Lucifer. âYou are to never speak of this again.â Alastors voice didnât sound like his own when he spoke, and whether or not Lucifer was truly scared didnât matter as he fumbled, stuttered and then stumbled off covering his eyes and apologising. With the snap of his fingers, Alastor magicked the two of you in the safety of his radio tower, where no one dared to enter unwelcomed. âDear, that was unacceptable. But amusing, you get away with this little fiasco only because it was Lucifer you did it in front of.â
Alastor growled at you demonic form on display, smile stretched, he had your cheeks tightly pinched in between his nails. Shrugging your shoulders, you tiptoed up to give his teeth a coy kiss. âWhatever maybe now heâll leave us alone.â
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You Belong To Me - LN
Dark fic 18+ - if you don't like this or the warnings/themes make you uncomfortable. I can't stress this enough, DO NOT READ THIS
In honour of Lando driving around Monaco blasting Taylor Swift but...it's dark and much more twisted đ Also this one is shorter than the others...but I hope you still like it đ
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Summary: Y/n doesn't really like feeling like Lando owns her. Lando knows he owns her and he likes to leave a mark/evidence.
Themes/warnings: Possessiveness, marking, smut/somnophilia (requested), drugging
No part 2 requests please
Lando doesn't care if y/n feels like property with him, as far as he's concerned he does own her and he treats her pretty damn well in giving her a life that millions of others could only dream of.
He sighs tracing the very light bruises on her hips, he didn't mean to hold her that tightly and she always promises she doesn't feel any pain in the moment. Which sort of means he doesn't feel the need to not leave those marks. In fact he loves seeing them.
"You know one day someone is going to see those and they're going to ask if I'm ok."
"And you'll tell them the truth. That you're better than ok." Lando smiles completely uncaring. "I don't care if other people see them anyway, then they know who you belong to me."
Y/n sighs having given up on that argument with Lando and somewhat accepted her role in that he does own her. Everything in her life is paid for by him, the roof over her head, travel, clothes, food, anything she needs he just goes for it.
Despite the dislike of feeling like he owns her. She does finding herself wanting his touch, maybe not so much the marks that come with it. But when she feels him touching her, there's a sort of settling inner peace that sits in her chest over the feeling of him there with her.
"They could see much worse." Lando states and while it sounds sinister it's nothing of more bruises unless you count the gentle bites, none of which actually hurt or swollen lips from heavy kisses. "Anyway, next time you don't want there to be evidence you belong to me. Don't go chatting to some random men in the paddock and let them flirt with you."
Again. Better not to argue. Lando won't accept that he's wrong. Arguing about it is only frivolous.
"I love you." Y/n states instead making the young man smile at her.
"I love you too baby and I always will.â Lando smiles gently taking hold of her throat and using the position to turn her head and pull her into a kiss. âNow find something nice to wear. Iâve got padel with Max, George and Alex. I want you there.â
Aka he doesnât like that she was âflirtingâ with some guys in the paddock and now sheâs not allowed out his sight until he decides otherwise. Usually itâs a good couple months in which he refuses to let her be anywhere without him unless heâs working in which case thereâs one of three occurrences.
1. Sheâs locked in the apartment, the hotel or his house back in England. All dependent on where they are.
2. Sheâs condemned to feigning illness and staying in his drivers room for ârestâ while heâs busy
3. She can sit in the garage, usually as heâs easing up with his control over her every move
Itâs sounds bad because it is, but at some point the option to leave was also beyond her control and completely within his control.
The two get up, despite y/n just wanting to stay in bed. The urge to keep him in a good mood gives her the motivation to push herself up and out of the bed.
She pulls on a tennis skirt and polo top that fits tight to her skin. Finally she shoves on some AF1s because who can go wrong with them? (i actually own 5 pairs and just bought another pair bcâŠi can)
âYou look nice baby.â Lando states appearing behind her with a heavy gaze and low voice.
"Thank you." Y/n smiles lightly feeling his hands fall to her waist, perfectly placed over the marks he's left there through her clothes.
-
Lando loves how y/n looks when she's asleep, so peaceful and soft and actually quite happy. He's sure she smiles more in her sleep than she does when she's awake.
Especially when she's been...aided in her sleep.
Lando doesn't like to label it as drugging, because she takes it with the knowledge of what's going to happen. She knows what she'll wake up to and even in the early days when she tried to voice her dislike of his marks and possessiveness, when he first drugged her, she never fought him on it.
Her body shivers subconsciously at the feel of the cool air from being exposed from the blanket. Goosebumps raising on her skin as she lets out a sigh, as if she'd considered fighting to be awake for a moment but gave up as soon as the thought passed her.
He leans over, kissing down her body before he reaches her pussy and is overcome with the need to just devour her.
Unbeknownst to her, much like she's become addicted to his touch, he's addicted to the taste of her and he'd happily drown in it.
Y/n is certainly more sensitive and somehow easier to please when she's asleep, it's almost as if not being conscious and able to focus makes it so much easier to accept the pleasure.
But there's nothing better than just pushing inside of her, he's in a state of ecstasy. Though that's no different to usual.
"Fuck, baby." Lando groans beginning to thrust in and out of her.
Whines pass her lips before she clearly begins to edge towards an orgasm of her own, her back arches up and her pussy practically sucks him in, pulsing around him and triggering his own as he fills even ounce of cum he has spill into her in a hot rush.
Y/n lets out a breathy moan followed by a whine when he pulls out, a heavy feel of satisfaction.
He could easily go again, in a few minutes, and just leave her stuffed full by the time she wakes up.
So that's exactly what he does before finally feeling spent and almost in pain so he gets up and leaves the drugs to wear off.
It takes till the late afternoon before y/n finally stirs awake, groaning at the gentle ache of her body. Out of habit, she reaches down feeling the crusted and dried cum that's leaked out onto her thighs.
She curses at herself for feeling herself for being turned on by it. Anyone else would feel used and taken advantage of. But Lando's moulded y/n to be the way he wants her, which is compliant to his every want and need. No matter how extreme. The fact she's not just compliant but finds herself attracted to him more for it, is just a nice addition.
Eventually she gets up, wrinkling her nose at urge to actually just spend the rest of the day lying in bed and not moving.
"Hey...I was wondering when you'd be up." Lando smiles as she appears in one of his hoodies, covering up just enough that she's not surprised when Lando's hand moves up her inner thigh when she leans over to give him a kiss.
"I was going to shower and then head down tot he shop to grab something to eat.
"Is it ok if I shower and go down to the shop for something to eat?"
"You don't need to shower right now, just go down to the shop, it's not far." Lando states with a smile making her refrain from grimacing. He really wants her to go out with his cum very much present in and on her body. "Grab my card and just throw some of my joggers on. You'll only be quick."
Y/n smiles and nods then leaning down to kiss him again.
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"darling..." nanami hummed, his hazel eyes peeking over the top of his thin, wire glasses. his book-filled hand dropping into his lap.
"handsome..." you responded back in the same tone, not even sparing a glance away from the text on your phone though you stopped reading as soon as he called for you.
"you know that's uncomfortable right?" kento continued his patient drone, book gently falling closed in his hand.
"what ever do you mean, kento?" you chimed lightly, holding your phone closer to your face to hide your growing grin.
"i mean, do you know that the ice cubes you're putting on my back are uncomfortable?" he clarified, lips tugging into a smirk as he gestured to your legs that so happened to disappear behind his back, cold feet seeking shelter under his shirt.
you gasped playfully, denying you would ever do such a thing.
"is that so?" he matched, shifting so his fingers could dance atop your ankles.
"no..." you warned, "kento, no!" you couldn't help a laugh from escaping, attempting to tug your legs closer to your body only to be stopped, nanami's hands encompassing your ankles. "kento, i'm serious!" despite your words there was no edge to it, chuckles filling in the spaces.
"what ever do you mean, darling?" he parroted with his charming smile, relaxed bangs brushing against his cheekbones as he continued his attacks up your legs, fingers tickling your skin, pushing you toward a breathless fit of cackles.
"i give up! i give up!" you rose your white flag, throat already feeling raw from the shrieks you let out at his very unfair combo to your sides. "i promiseâ i promise i won't put my feet underâ under your shirt again!" you gasped out between giggles, hands shooting down to get his to stop.
by the time you'd caught your breath you two were already face to face, nanami craning his neck to plant a soft kiss on your forehead. "never stop, i'd warm your little ice cube toes even in the dead of winter."
"promise?" you asked before landing a gentle kiss against his jaw, smiling to yourself in mischief as you glued your ice-cold fingers to the sides of his torso, snorting lightly when you felt him go ridged, a slight shiver shaking his posture.
"oh, you are an absolute menace," he chuckled, keeping your hands against his body by sandwiching them under his own, your smiles intertwining, chuckles buzzing through your lips as he kept you warm and cozy despite your ice cube toes.
edit : i previously used the phrase "uncle! uncle!" (now reads: "i give up! i give up!"). i changed it for the clarification that nanami is not your uncle lol in the US it's a phrase you'd say (stemming from a 19th century joke) when you admit defeat and don't want to keep fighting anymore. thank you!
A/N : had me giggle and kicking my feet the entire time I wrote this. hoping to unite the fellow ice cube toes community. god I love him. thank yall for giving so much love to my first nanami x reader headcanon part. I hope yall enjoyed this too! thank you so much for reading ïœĄ^âż^ïœĄ
jâčđč
sweet nanami x reader hcs pt. 1 | jjk men x reader masterlist
bread divider by @ymmyomm
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Hi !!!! Iâm sorry if this is bothering you and if so you can totally ignore this butâŠ
Iâve been thinking about how Ghost would react to reader gradually pulling away from him because she gained some weight and is self conscious and ashamed and doesnât want to be seen by him, so sculpted and beautiful⊠but of course heâs feeling low because he wants to be close to reader and so he asks and she finally explains it to him (ready to be broken up withâŠ)âŠ. And Iâd love to read your take on it !
You can make it female or gender neauteal I donât really care !!!! Thank you anyway â€ïžâ€ïžâ€ïžâ€ïž
Wildflowers Grow in Ruins
(Ghost x F!Reader, word count: 5 k)
Summary: Reader tries to break up with Ghost because she thinks she's not good enough for him.
Tags/warnings: FLUFF, soft sensual smut đ, hurt/comfort, light angst, Jealous!Ghost, Soft!Ghost, self-loathing & self-body shaming. Good girl talk/praise kink. Reader is female and wears a skirt for smut plot purposes.
A/N: I hope you like this take & I hope you don't mind that I tweaked this request just a little bit!) Also: JFC I'm wordy. The "I need to explain why they're fucking!" meme comes to mind every time I write anything.
Wars are exhausting.Â
You know fighting for something can empower people. Fighting against something usually just depletes your strength.
But waging a war against yourselfâŠÂ
Now that is pure hell.Â
It started somewhere in your youth. You thought adulthood would take it away; that reason and tolerance would take it away. You were supposed to feel more confident in yourself, more positive about life. And for a moment, you thought you might just succeed.
But standing beside a god of war is no easy feat.
He came into your life like a walking myth, swept you away, and you only laughed as you went. It was fun at first. He was supposed to be your savior, the solution to all your problems. If a man like him found you attractive, perhaps it was the world that was crooked and not you.
But then you got soft: you started to gain pounds. Meanwhile, he became even more magnificent. It reminded you that it had all been just a dream.
Perhaps it was his eyes that seemed to worship you, that seemed to look past your every flaw. Perhaps it was the hands which never seemed to get enough of your skin. Whatever it was, it was too much. And at the same time, never enough.
The day has finally come to let him go.
You think yourself heroic. It's like it should be: it's only right that you finally release him to someone better than you.
But inside, the noble feelings twist and turn and curl around your throat and stuff your stomach full of ice - the kind they fill glasses of mojito with. The drink you'll always remember him by because he teased you about it: that you wanted an ice-cold summer drink even in the middle of winter.
Now you feel cold all over, and wish he could warm you like he used to.Â
You would forsake all the mojitos of the world to keep him. You would renounce the whole drink if it came to that; if you could make him yours.
But he's not yours. He never was: he was just on loan to give you a taste of what it would be like to have a man like him. That taste should be more than enough for a lifetime. You should feel grateful.
So why is it so hard to let go?
The key on the front door turns, and your heart shoots up your throat: you're supposed to settle this thing once and for all. You're supposed to let go of him today.Â
And still, when he arrives, you can't find the courage to say what you need to say. The words are stuck in your throat, but tears are not. He should already be a memory, but you find yourself suffocating on memories as you cry. You've learned to do even that in silence, like the rest of your suffering.
You take a few deep breaths, wipe the tears away, shove the rest of them down your throat â you save them for later, later, when he's far away and you can finally curl up and cry your heart out without no one there to look. Fucking later.
Good.Â
Good.
Great.
You put your heaviest armor on. It protects weak and soft flesh because you can't meet him all bare. Then you step forward with the knowledge that youâre a thoroughly wounded guerrilla while he is a seasoned, well-rested veteran. The fight is nowhere near even, but it's ok. You are not meant to be in the presence of immortals anyway.
The man looks at you warily as you finally enter the room. That haunted look has followed you for some time now as the distance between you has grown.Â
It should be easy, what is about to come, because he hasn't touched you in weeks. You haven't wanted him to.
Or you have⊠But it's not easy to have his hands on you when your body is only a vessel you hate. How can you even think about pleasure when all you think about is how it must feel for him to caress something as awful as this?
The man is a vision, and he settles for a peasant. It should be against the law, but it's not⊠so you figured a some time ago that you should simply find the strength and grace to do ii: do what's right.
"I need to talk to you."Â
Your voice comes out neutral, and it makes you more confident, if only for a second or two.
He lifts his chin: already knows what's coming, because he's not stupid. You've been shutting down for weeks, and he hasn't done much about it. But when the thunder rolls in, he doesn't flee. Probably because he fears nothing.
"Go ahead then," he says, equally as neutral, equally as icy. Got his armor on, too.Â
This should be easyâŠ
It's really not, so you decide to rip the band-aid off in one yank.
"I think we should go separate ways."
The following inhale from across the room pierces the air like a bullet. You can hear his breaths gain depth and speed all the way to where you're standing.
"Ok."
It doesn't look or sound like he's ok. If anything, he looks like he's trying to process the sudden storm.Â
"OkâŠ" His eyes are on the floor as he rubs the back of his neck. Then he starts to pace around the little kitchenette you've shared for almost six months, just before you started gaining weight.
He stops to look out the window, then turns to you, and the hurt in his stare comes through like a thousand needles pushing through skin.
"Is it because of my work?"Â
"No."
"What is it then?"
Your breaths are getting out of hand, too. He looks like a lost, tired creature in an abandoned animal shelter for a moment, and it breaks your heart. It squeezes the organ inside a flaming fist until it shatters like it has never been nothing more than ice.
Your lip starts to tremble, and he notices, as per usual. Nothing escapes this man, except perhaps the true reason for your anguish.
"Hey. Hey."
He comes to you and hugs you like it's the only thing that matters: to comfort you when he sees you're about to cry, no matter how crushed he's feeling himself. The sudden warmth, the intimacy after weeks and weeks of pain is knee-buckling.Â
"Is there anything I can do to change your mind?"
His voice is soft, so soft⊠The tears rush forth now; there's no way of stopping them. What the hell can you even say to a question like that? That you wish he could grab a magic wand and turn you into someone gorgeous, the woman he deserves?
His embrace feels good, kind of. It also feels smothering because your self-hate makes you want to disappear from existence entirely. His eyes are equal to physical touch, a probing scan that sees every little flaw, not to talk about massive faults, the ones which make you feel like you're simply disgusting. His touch only reminds you how you must feel like to him: soft, too soft, weak.
And he must hate weakness.
"What do you need me to do? I'll do anything," he tries with a parched throat, then swallows.Â
It's fucking horrible. This isn't going at all like you had imagined.
"It's not about you," you struggle out of his hold, and he lets you go with reluctance. You have to basically fight your way out of a bone and steel prison. Why would he even want to hold a pathetic woman who's on the brink of ugly crying on top of everything?
"What do you mean?"
He's slightly breathless â and restless as fuck. He's usually so calm; nothing can get to him, nothing can rattle the tower of raw strength. Now you've not only pierced some invisible armor; you can hear pieces of it falling on the floor.
"Have you found someone else?"
What theâŠ
"No." You put as much weight on that word as you possibly can. To imagine that he thinks you are cheating⊠Fucking cheating on someone like him. "Jesus ChristâŠ"
He takes a deep breath and sighs deeply, sighs out relief, perhaps. Then his razor-sharp stare fixes on you again, and you can see the fear turning into something akin to concern. You suspect you have to tell him the truth, otherwise he will dig it out of you.Â
"I'm justâŠ"Â
Jesus, this is just humiliating.Â
"I'm just not your type."
"What the hell are you talking about," he mutters, the impending fury giving way to momentary surprise.Â
He gets intense sometimes. This time, the ferocity is born of barely concealed distress. He's broad and magnificent, even in despair. Heâs just so fucking fine⊠The perfect man, someone you had never even imagined yourself with. Pulled down to the world of puny mortals, evidently stressing about losing one.Â
Losing you.
"If you have someone new, you can just bloody well tell me."
"It's not that. You don't understandâ"Â
"Try me."
"I justâŠ" A tear escapes down your face as you finally break for him. "I'm fat. Okay? And ugly. Andâ"
"Stop right there."
The look on his face is just⊠It's priceless, you suppose.
"Bloody fucking hellâŠ"Â
He looks at the floor, then runs his fingers through the short cut hair on top of his head. You've yanked those blonde strands more times than you can count, nearly every time he's been between your legs, and you miss it â you long for it, like fallen angels long for heaven.Â
And if there was a time this man was rendered speechless, you would say you were witnessing that moment right now. His brows knit together, then he looks up at you again with blaring disbelief.
"You're serious?"
"Yes."
"This is the reason you wanna break up?"
Ugh.
"Yes?"
His voice grows rougher with every question until it resembles thunder, and you suspect this is the commanding tone his soldiers are used to hearing.Â
But you're not: it's gravelly, harsh, and betrays the feeling of having been insulted. You feel even more devastated with yourself â it appears you can do nothing right.
"Where has this⊠idea even come to your head?"
"I don't know."Â
"And you never thought to ask my opinion?"
"Would you please stop yelling," you whisper and blink back some putrid tears. His mouth is snapped shut, his head pulls back just a little as he realizes what he's done.Â
"Sorry," he says with a half-whisper, and you catch the strain in his throat. You've never seen him cry, but now his voice is suddenly thin and frail. "I'm sorry."
He takes a step, then another, places fingertips on the counter as if to take the faintest support.
"Can I touch you?"
You don't really want him to do that, but you feel pity for the man. He's trying to find a way through this mess, and you want to help him.
"Yes," you whisper, and he immediately comes and takes you in his arms again. Hot tears disappear into his shirt, and you sniff a few times. He feels so good, so safe, even when you're about to lose him. His hold tightens around you, and the kitchen is silent; the whole world is silent. You don't know if you're being put to a grave or if you're in a deaf womb, waiting to be reborn.
"Now I don't know who's said this shite to you but ugly is the last fucking thing I'd call you," he declares above you. As if it was some bully whose fault it is that you were this way, a bully he could deal with with his fists or a gun. If only things were that easyâŠ
"Have I said or done something? To make you feel this way?"
Then the blade is turned against himself. The man desperately searches for a culprit so he can deal with them.
"No," is the only thing you can say because it's true: he has never done a thing to make you feel like you weren't good enough; quite the contrary. But then again, he doesn't have to. It's enough that he exists and resembles a god.
"Then why do you think you're not my type?"
"Because you're so perfect," you hear yourself wail, no, cry into that shirt that smells of sweet safety and familiar musk â his scent, another thing you have missed like it's the only way to heaven.
"That for sure ain't true."
"But it is."
He seems to have the utmost difficulty in grasping what the issue here is. You can almost hear the wheels turning in his head with a rusty, laborious creak.
"Can't believe you wanna break up because of this," he finally says. You've chipped his pride, the ego that lives off of pleasing the ones he loves: the few chosen ones who he wants to give his whole life to.Â
"To me, you're perfect," he then says, and you simply⊠You stop breathing. "You're like⊠my dream woman. Ever thought about that?"
It can't be true, even if you vehemently, desperately want it to be. You reach out to his words like they're precious food after years of famine. Like they're sun and spring rain after being buried in the cold, dark soil whole winter.
"No�"
"Never occurred to you that I might find you fucking beautiful?"
"Stop," you whisper, because it's too much to take in. He sounds so serious, so sincere.
"No, I don't think I will."
He pulls back a little and cups your face. Brushes away a tear, looks at you with so much love that it physically hurts; you feel like it's a lance that slowly drives through your heart.
"How about I kiss every part I love about you?"
You let out a soft little whimper. Fuck, that you want him toâŠÂ
It would also be uncomfortable as hell. To try and let him love you and your body, which you have grown to loathe.
"It's gonna take all night, though. Wanna be as thorough as possible."
"Simonâ"
"Love. I want you. Thought I'd made it pretty clear, but apparently I haven't. If you only knew how muchâ"
He sighs deeply. The man is frustrated with his shortcomings, thinks that this is all his fault. You cry a tear or two just for the sake of how absurd it all is.Â
"I don't want you to go. I fucking love you. Everything about you."
For the second time this afternoon, your lower lip starts to tremble as if this was some stupid, romantic movie. He can be so soft when he wants to, more romantic than the soft-spoken gentlemen in Jane Austen's novels. It doesn't even require any effort: underneath the cynical surface, there's fiery emotion, so powerful and raw that it almost bleeds out of him. Fuck⊠Does he even know what he's doing to you?
"I love you too," you whisper back, and the warmth that starts to bloom in his eyes is an entire sun on its own. It's hope, and you believe him, almost believe him.
"Then I'd say it's a bloody bad idea to break up."
You chuckle while few more tears push through to the surface.
"SimonâŠ" You sigh and look back up at him, your armor falling to the floor too. "I feel like a wreck."
You allow him to see the pain, all of it. His breath is sharp as it hits him, but he still doesn't waver.
"Then let me help you."
The arms around you gain more strength, and you're crushed against a chest made of power. He tries to turn shit to gold, and threatens to succeed. You allow yourself to soften in his hold. How good it feels to be supported â no, loved.
"You don't even let me touch you anymore."
It's a filed complaint, but also heart-rending, soul-wrenching longing. You have evaded him for weeks now â hell, this shit began months ago and has escalated gradually, stealthily, until the moments together were a rarity, the space between you was full of frost; and not the crispy, happy summer drink kind.
"I thought you'd found someone else. Could've found out if that was the case in minutes, but honestly, I didn't wanna know."
Oh my GodâŠ
Has he lived with a growing suspicion and dread all these months?Â
That would explain why he has avoided you tooâŠ
He has allowed you to go to your supposed lover, has given you space to be alone and without too much attention. The man has shielded himself from pain.Â
Jesus fucking Christ.
"I'm so sorry," you say with a strained little breath. "I swear it's nothing like that. I just⊠I feel like a mess."
"Never seen such a gorgeous mess."Â
He speaks on your skin, the kiss on your forehead feels like an absolution.Â
Then you notice it's not only his words which try to assure you. He's growing harder by the minute against your stomach, just from a simple hug. Just from being pressed against you like this, after weeks of dry, bitter longing.
"Miss your taste," he murmurs to your skin, his voice like sand wrapped in burning velvet. "The sounds you make when you want it hard."
Oh Godâ
"Miss your smile when we go to shower after."
"HmhâŠ"
"Don't wanna live without that smile."
You don't have to.Â
God, you don't have toâŠ
"How about we make a deal," he draws fingers down your chin, coaxing you to look up at him. His eyes are stripped from the cold distance that greeted you just moments ago: now they are filled with warmth that spreads to your chest and belly and bones. You drink him in like summertide.
"You come to me every time you feel bad and I'll make you feel good. Alright?"
"...Ok."Â
He tilts his head a little to the side, not entirely satisfied with your shy little answer.
"Come on. Make me believe it."
"It's a deal," you say with more grit to it, even if you're nearly crying again, this time from relief.
"That's my girl."
Oh fuckâŠ
He knows exactly what strings to pull, the good girl talk being one of the things that instantly makes your legs feel like jelly.Â
And why does he always have to use that voice when he calls you a good girl or his girl, that sultry smoke that makes you want to swoon until he catches you and carries you to bed?
The man seems to be a mind reader as well, because he sweeps you off your feet and does exactly that: carries you to your bed which has mainly seen silent tears and painful sleep last months.
"Poor thing doesn't even know how lovely she is."
He sounds amused in the face of your darkness: sees it in full and still doesn't fear at all. He's ready to battle your demons for you, and you feel like shaking: from his touch and that voice, from the stress and loneliness that starts to release as he lays you down on the bed.
He looks so different from the man that has haunted this place for the past months, the complete opposite of the reserved soldier retreating into the shadows.
He moves to kiss you, and it's been â what? Weeks since your last kiss? And even that was only a quick peck, nothing like this⊠Wet, and desperate; a devouring. It makes you clench around nothingness, and you finally surrender.Â
No one can fake such fervor.
You try to accept it: accept the fact that even if you hate yourself, he does not. For some reason, he adores you. His breaths hit your face hot and urgent, and he can't keep his hands to himself anymore. They wander over your waist and hips, they even risk to steal a feel of your breasts, and then he groans in your mouth.
"I've missed you. Fuck, I've missed you..."
You taste notes of burning leaves; tobacco, his only weakness. You fantasize on the thought that you might be another weakness, too.
"Remember when I fucked you in my office?"
"I've missed you too," you utter softly in between the kisses that threaten to turn into a sloppy mess. "So much..."
He smiles at that, and it makes you weak, even when lying down like this.
"Yeah�"
"You were so loud I had to put a hand over your mouth."
His voice is thick as he laughs a short chuckle. Your inner walls clench again at the sound, you throb among the warm syrup surrounding you.
"Never seen you so wet. Almost dripped all over my gear."
"It's that stupid mask you wear," you hear yourself breathe like you've just been underwater. Feel yourself throb some more, feel a burning sensation in the nether areas from the scorched desert turning wet again. You want him so much that it actually hurts down there.
"Knew you'd like it. That's why I kept it on."
If this man keeps talking, your underwear is going to be utterly ruined. And of course he does; of course he continues to pour more love in your ear.
"Everyone looked at you like you were a queen," he grunts in your ear, sounding almost⊠pissed.
"Don't be ridiculous," you try to form sensible words. It's only a faint breath, really, but he huffs at your modesty.Â
"You don't have eyes in the back of your head, love."
Wow⊠He is a bit pissed.
Had they checked your ass out when you visited him?Â
It was the first and, what you thought, the last time you got to visit him at his workplace⊠but you never would have guessed the reason for him not asking you to visit again would be jealousy.Â
"Don't worry. I put those fuckers in their place after you left."Â
Whoa.Â
OkâŠ
First, he had fucked you senseless in his office â a highly inappropriate move for a man in his position â then got jealous because some soldiers had checked you out as you left with his cum practically dripping from your cunt.
You put yourself in his shoes for a moment: he's had to live with thoughts of you running to some other man's arms when he's not home, and then watch you waltz around his workplace after making what was supposed to be the last effort to make him love you⊠When he has loved and adored you this whole time, has watched the sway of your ass with the rest of those home-deprived, horny soldiers, thinking you had fallen out of love and were on your way to go see some other guy.
Had he invited you there to try and win you back, too? By showing himself to you in all his puffed up, masculine glory? A desperate man in a skull mask, hoping to get love from youâŠ
There's so many misunderstandings; they rip your throat. A sob escapes, and he stops his caress.
"Love⊠Tell me to stop if youâ"
"No. No, I don't want you to stop."Â
Your request comes out with such demand that he hesitates only a second or two. Then he moves on top of you and tugs your skirt up. You don't even have time to realize what is happening before he has worked himself out of his pants.
He's hard and heavy between your legs, and your eyes go wide as you realize he's not going to bother to take your briefs off. He just slides a hand under the skirt and draws the fabric aside, and the fat tip of him is pushed in the middle almost clumsily. It's hot, and slips down to your opening with ease.
Oh fâ
"Been jerking off to you nearly every night at the base," he says just before he pushes himself in.Â
"Uhâ...."
Your thighs spread wide as he fills you slowly, inch after inch. The sound that leaves him is starved: a dry, painful sigh. He's been waiting for this for god knows how long, and you're just as hungry to take him in. He seems endless, the way he finally works himself fully inside, spreading you even wider as the thickening base of his cock reaches its end.Â
"Thought you were getting railed by someone else while I only get to fuck my hand."
"Oh godâŠ"
There's really nothing else to say as his balls press against you, heavy and taut. He's not going to last long.
"Yeah. Imagine that," he admits, breathless like you.Â
You look at him with what must be the most helpless stare of longing in your eyes. Then he moves, and you want to grip him to keep him inside. The first thrusts are divine, they're pure heaven, and your head sinks deep into the pillow as you try to get enough air, try to not scream from pleasure already. Somehow, all you are able to utter is a desperate little whisper.
"Simonâ"
His cock is good enough to bring tears to your eyes. You're starving too, you're pulling him in with fierce hunger, and he groans, then nearly falls forward, his weight pressing against you, swallowing you, until you feel like you're an idiot for thinking that you're too big. The thickness of his chest rubs against you as he makes love to you with passion that echoes the first times you did this.
"Just wanna adore you, love." He's panting desperate somewhere above you. A god and a man, both furious and gentle. "I wanna adore you. Just like this."
You answer him with what must be those sounds he told you about, the sounds you make when you want it hard.Â
You want him to fuck you, to wreck you after weeks of loneliness and hate. To love you until you break into a million pieces.
"Simon," you whisper. "...Love me."
He halts, huffs in your neck. It's almost a sob. There's so much emotion and desperation in the air that it could be scooped up and sold in the streets.
"Always," he rasps in your ear, then moves to kiss you again. "Always."
The promise echoes around you, it coats your lips as he loves you with all he has. It's been so long, and he feels so good that you nails dig into his shirt, his shoulder, you try to hold onto him even though he's the wave that rocks you.
"You feel that?" He goes deep; he's out of breath and desperate, even more desperate than you. "That's love. You feel it, yeah?"
"Yes," you sob in his shoulder, tears trying to escape your waterline as you're going dumb from the pure sensation, the sensuality of it all.Â
"That's it, love. That's a good girl," he turns to your neck and gruffs in your ear as you whimper and moan. "Always such a good girl."
ShitâŠ
"I, I'm gonnaâŠ"
Your legs wrap around his middle, your muscles twitch and your hands reach and grab â they claw and yank and tug everything they can: his back, shoulders, shirt, something sturdy to keep you from drowning in a glorious orgasm.
He laughs in your neck and continues to grind you through your climax even when you're shattering, sighing, moaning, writhing under him. He just laughs, the man who never laughs: from witnessing you respond to him calling you a good girl.
Fucking bastardâŠ
Lovable, infuriating bastard who knows you to your core.Â
You're an overstimulated heap by the time he comes as well, not long after you, but long enough to make you feel like you're only a tender bunch of nerves. Your legs have fallen to the side, he has open access to take what he needs: you, your love, all of it.
His whole middle goes tense as he cums, he groans and swears somewhere deep into your neck, rolls his hips over and over again like it's a must that his balls press against you with every thrust that shoot his load.Â
Then he falls slack, nearly collapses on top of you, reminding you of what it feels like to be small under a giant like him. You're throbbing together, you're full and fulfilled, and he is still lodged deep inside you, panting and broken in a sweat.
"Jesus ChristâŠ"Â
He sounds dazed.Â
Relieved.Â
"Should've done this weeks ago."
You laugh at seeing him so done â a man in love, torn by jealous yearning, finally taking what's his. You stroke his neck, his back â it's so good to have him finally there⊠So close, with no barriers in between.
"I should've talked to you weeks ago..."Â
"Yeah. You should have."
"Are you going to punish me?" You giggle a little â the flirt is light and frees your heart further from its recent jail. He moves to look at you with all the tenderness there is. It's too much... His love is too much. But you won't run from it anymore.
"Nah. Think I'm gonna spoil you some more."
He spoils you right away with a kiss. You surrender to his treatment with happiness: happy tears, even.Â
The medicine to your anguish has been the exact opposite to what you had first tried, what you had originally thought. The true remedy for your sickness is mercy. Perhaps some spoilingâŠ
And love.
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Yours Truly, Bradley Bradshaw Part 3 | Rooster x Reader
Summary: You rendered Bradley speechless and left him wondering if your students were the ones who wanted to know what he looked like or if it was really you who was curious. He wanted to know everything about you, but the urge to ask for more was mingling with his duty to keep things professional. You and he teetered on the edge... until you didn't.
Warnings: Fluff, language, Bradley looking hot
Length: 3100 words
Pairing: Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw x Female teacher!Reader
Check out my masterlist for more! Yours Truly, Bradley Bradshaw masterlist
Bradley found himself homesick in a way he never did before. He still had weeks and weeks of this deployment to go, stuck on the aircraft carrier, endlessly curious about someone he barely knew anything about and a classroom full of kids he'd never met. But he felt like he wanted to know more about you and them.Â
At least he was too busy now to dwell on the fact that it had been days since the last mail call. He was never one who was lined up, eager to collect something from a loved one. Vanessa and all of his other ex girlfriends never sent him handwritten notes or snacks. He'd gotten sporadic emails in the past, but nothing that made him smile and laugh out loud. Never anything that made him sad when he realized he had reached the end of the note, hoping for more.
He wanted to go back to the lounge and check his email, but he was afraid he'd have nothing new to read. There was really nobody else other than you who would send him anything right now, and he was sure you had something better to do with your time than comment on the photos he'd send of his jet and the engine parts. And even if you had written back, how long could he really keep this conversation with you going? How soon would you run out of interest in his deployment?
Bradley knew he'd be much better at talking to you in person, but how the hell was he supposed to get there? Jesus Christ, you were probably married. You probably already had someone back home wrapped around your fingers, and here he was, still thinking about you.Â
"Pitiful," he muttered, making his way to the lounge anyway. He would keep it professional with you. One hundred percent. But he still wanted to know if your students got to see the photos and if they had any questions about them.Â
When he logged into his email account, his heart skipped around a bit when he saw that he had something new from you. Then he opened it up and read it, and his lips parted softly in surprise at what you'd sent.
Thank you for the photos. They were very enlightening. We especially liked the ones where you were showing off your cockpit. Or I did, anyway. The kids liked all of them and started on another list of questions for you. Good luck getting rid of us now.Â
We were wondering if you could have someone take a picture of you standing in front of your jet. For size comparison purposes. And also because my students would like to know what you look like. Hearing from you makes our day even better.
Bradley read it again. Still surprised, he read it a third time. Were you the one asking for the photo? It seemed like you might be. Or was he just projecting here? Shit. Maybe. He'd been thinking about how he'd respond if you asked him something personal, and this felt like you and he were teetering right on the edge.
You even echoed his own thoughts, but it still made him warm all over to know that you looked forward to hearing from him. That it made your day better when he sent an email. He decided he was going to keep this going as long as he could.
He logged out again and headed to the mess hall for dinner, because there was no point in responding until he had the photo you just asked him for. One where you'd be able to see exactly what every inch of him looked like. As he ate his meatloaf, his thoughts all settled on that one pertinent question: were your students really the ones who were curious about how he looked, or were you? Because it sounded like it could be the latter. He fucking hoped it was. And he fucking hoped you wouldn't be disappointed after tomorrow when he sent you exactly what was asked of him.
----------------------------
You thought you were ready, but you weren't. Not for this. Not for him. Not even close. Thankfully it was still early enough that none of your students were in the classroom with you, because Lieutenant Bradley Bradshaw had responded to your slightly tipsy email from a few nights ago. He sent exactly one photo, and your only response was to softly moan, "Holy hell."
To say he was attractive looking standing there in his flight suit next to the jet with his name on the side of it would have been the understatement of the century. He was hot. Unbelievably hot. Top tier. You shamelessly zoomed in to get an even better look at his face which was complete with a crooked little smile and a fucking mustache.
"Who does he think he is?" you asked the empty room, voice filled with need. "The audacity."
Even his messy, wavy hair looked soft enough for you to want to rub your face and lips against it. Where did that idea come from? You uncrossed and recrossed your legs as the most delightful thoughts filled your mind. You already knew he was sweet, kind, attentive and humble, but now you knew he was easy on the eyes, too. If only you could hear his voice.Â
After several minutes of uninterrupted gawking, you realized he'd written a few sentences to you as well, addressing you just as he always had. But this felt more personal. Maybe a little intimate.
For reference, I'm 6'1" and 205 pounds. That should give you and your kiddos a good size comparison, yeah? Also, just a little curious myself here.... are you sure they were the only ones who wanted to know what I look like? Or did you want to know, too?
So he called you out. Your whole body felt too hot and too light. You were floating off of your chair even as your heart pounded. You must be two feet in the air by now. He already knew what you looked like, but now you cared more than ever what he thought about you. Because you had a massive crush on your classroom pen pal.
"How embarrassing. You drunk emailed him! How are you supposed to respond to this?" you whispered as you closed your laptop and pressed your fingers to your lips. It was hard to tell if his tone was playful or not. He was smiling in the photo, which made you think that he was. But perhaps he was trying to put a stop to any topic of conversation that could be considered personal.Â
Then it hit you like a bolt of lightning. No way was this man single. He was handsome. That would have been enough on its own. But he also had an impressive career, all of his hair, and he was tall. And that didn't even scrape the surface of his sweet personality! You couldn't embarrass yourself further. You just couldn't. You wanted him to keep writing to your class, because they were already so attached to him. You couldn't ruin this for them.Â
When your students came flooding into the room, they led off with the same question they had every morning now. "Did we get anything in the mail from Lieutenant Bradshaw?"
"Not yet," you replied, still trying to decide how to respond to his photo. "But hopefully soon. He did email another picture though."
All of them were immediately headed for your desk, wanting to see what their pen pal looked like. You pressed your lips together, bracing yourself as you opened up that photo again, and then the kids all interjected into your thoughts.
"His jet is so cool!"
"It's huge!"
"He looks exactly how I thought he would!"
"Can he send us more stuff?"
It took you a good, long while to get them all into their seats. Clearly you weren't the only one who was entranced by him. Their questions overflowed, most of which still had to do with the aviation topics you'd been teaching them. Bradley Bradshaw had turned your classroom upside down, in a good way. And the more you thought about it, the more you just wanted to make sure you weren't missing out on something here. This man was better looking than the last three guys you went out with all combined, and he already made you feel tingly inside before you knew that for a fact.
You went home after work and did it again. You drank some wine and logged into your work email account and wrote back to him less than a day after he wrote to you. Part of you recognized that you'd look desperate, but you simply had to know so you could stop thinking about him if necessary. You started typing.Â
It was definitely, absolutely my students who wanted to know what you look like. It had nothing to do with me. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it. That being said...nice photo. Very nice.
My kids also wanted me to ask you if your spouse or significant other is in the Navy. And they'd like to know how old your kids are if you have any. Once again, just to be clear, I'm only asking these things on their behalf...
"Send," you whispered, doing it before you could stop yourself. Then you were left with your intrusive thoughts and the rest of the wine, ultimately deciding to just go to bed. He wasn't going to respond right away. He was busy working. You just hoped it didn't take too long.Â
But it did. Days passed. You normally tried not to think about your work email account during the weekends, let alone check it. Saturday was miserable as you logged in almost hourly to check and double check if you had something new from Lieutenant Bradshaw. It was so bad, you ended up initiating a movie night with some of your friends, opting to lock your phone in the center console of your car rather than take it into the theater.Â
Sunday was no better. You took yourself to the beach for the afternoon to try to read and sunbathe. But there was a group of guys in US NAVY TOP GUN shirts playing football, and you wondered if Bradley ever did this kind of thing with his friends. Or his family. Jesus Christ, why couldn't he just write back and tell you if he had a pretty wife and six adorable kids who loved to play football on the beach with him?
When two of the guys in the TOP GUN shirts purposely threw the football toward your towel and tried to play it off as an accident, you didn't even feel like returning their flirtatious banter. Neither of them had a mustache or soft looking brown hair. Neither of them left you wanting to know more.Â
You went home and tried so hard not to check your work email, but you failed miserably. But then you were happy you caved, because he wrote back. Bradley Bradshaw actually responded again. And a few seconds later, you were giggling and trying to control the squeal that escaped your lips.
When the mail arrived on the aircraft carrier yesterday, I was one of the first officers in line, and I wasn't disappointed. I got the second box from your class, and I can't wait to start reading and responding to everyone's notes this week. I'll let you know when you've got more mail coming your way.Â
Since your students seem to be showing quite an interest in my personal life, please let them know I actually don't have a spouse or significant other at all. Nor do I have any kids. Their letters (and your emails, too) are the only ones I'm getting this deployment. No one else has been writing to me. Nobody stateside is waiting for me. I hope that answers their questions to your liking.
And now it's your turn to answer a question for me. Is there a guy in your life who is going to try to beat the crap out of me if I tell you that I think you're gorgeous?Â
I'll just be waiting impatiently for your response.
Yours Truly,
Lt Bradley Bradshaw
----------------------------
Bradley was so tired. The kind of bone deep exhaustion that only comes after the completion of a dangerous mission when your adrenaline finally wears off. All he could think about was how badly he wanted to be back at home in his bed in San Diego with a soft, warm body next to his and a sweet voice in his ear. But he was picturing your face and your body, already convinced you'd have the sweetest voice he'd ever heard.
Shit. He needed to focus on what the admirals had to say instead of drift into daydreams.
"No need to report to the strategy room in the morning, Lieutenant," his commanding officer said as Bradley unzipped the top of his flight suit. "Take some time to rest."
He saluted the admiral and walked off toward his bunk and a hot shower. But even as the steamy water eased the ache in his muscles, he thought about how he already knew he wouldn't be able to sleep right now. Not when he still had a few messages from your students to respond to. Not when those notes always made him smile.
This time you'd only included a very short note in the box, but it wasn't typed up and printed out. It was written in your pretty penmanship on a sheet of lined paper.
Lt Bradshaw,
I hope this package finds you well. Please prepare yourself for approximately seven hundred more questions. Thanks again for sharing your time with us.
He didn't mind one bit. In all actuality, he was living for this shit, already thinking about how he could maybe visit your classroom someday soon. Several of the kids asked him if he could. They all asked him to take more pictures of life on the aircraft carrier. Then he laughed for a solid minute over the photo that Jayden sent of his Cocker Spaniel named Vanessa.Â
But Bradley had purposely been neglecting his email inbox for the last few days. He was too afraid to read your words telling him that you were in fact taken, and that he was stupid for thinking you'd been the one who wanted to know what he looked like. He was rather enjoying the delusion that you might let him tell you how pretty he thought you were over email and maybe someday in person. He decided to respond to the rest of the notes in the box before getting rejected, otherwise it would be too hard to do this.
He finished writing back to Oliver and Cooper and then tucked the box away under his bed before drifting off to sleep while dreaming of his own bed. But the next day, he had literally no work to do. He's been given the entire day off. He hit the gym and avoided the married woman like the plague. Then he ate lunch and contemplated going back to the gym again, but his feet carried him to the lounge instead. At the very least, he promised you that he'd let you know when you had mail on the way so the kids could get excited. He should take the time to tell you he'd be sending more responses to your class by air mail.
Somehow Bradley had convinced himself so thoroughly that you were in a relationship, he almost couldn't fathom anything else. But there was a new message from you in his inbox, and it felt like a gift when he opened and read it.
Lt Bradshaw,
I must say, I was surprised to find out that my emails and the letters from my class are the only ones making their way to you. Not that I'm complaining. Not one bit. I just find it hard to believe that you don't have a lot of interested parties hoping for a chance to be the one you think about when you're deployed and all alone.
My last boyfriend didn't like it when I talked about my fourth graders. He didn't really see any value in what I do for a living. He would have never taken the time to read something they wrote let alone answer their questions individually. So no, there's nobody who would be upset with you for making me feel like there are butterflies permanently living in my belly now. If you want to tell me you think I'm gorgeous, I'm certainly not going to stop you.
Here's my personal, non school affiliated email address. Just in case you feel like using it. If not, you can keep responding here, and I can take the hint that we went far enough.
I hope you're doing well and staying safe.
Frantically, Bradley checked the date and time stamp. "Fuck," he growled, his fingers not quite able to keep up with his brain when he realized you'd sent this to him days ago. More than five days ago! "Shit. Fuck!" He had been keeping you waiting! As soon as he got his hands working at the same speed as his thoughts, he copied and pasted your personal email address and started a new thread like his life depended on it.
----------------------------
You were just curling up with a cup of sleepy time tea after a long day at work, wishing someone would put you out of your misery, when your phone vibrated on the couch cushion next to your leg. You were half tempted to ignore it, reasoning that it was probably time to accept the fact that Bradley Bradshaw already lost interest in you and delete his photos from your downloads folder. You should learn how to stop embarrassing yourself.
Then you glanced down and saw that you had a new email. It was from a now familiar sender. It had been sent to your personal account. You immediately scrambled to unlock your phone and read it.
Hey, Gorgeous,
I'd like to take it further.
Yours Truly,
Bradley Bradshaw
-------------------------------
What the fuck, Bradley, you smooth man! Take it further, take it further, take it further! I love how impatient they get when they want to hear from each other. Now go ahead and get a little more personal. Thanks to @mak-32 and @beyondthesefourwalls and everyone who sent me messages and asks about this fic.
PART 4
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id love to request spencer reid with a shy!readerđđ i love him sm and your work even more!! if this doesn't appeal to you thats all cool i hope you have a great day!!!
Love you <3
Spencer Reid x shy!reader ⥠1k words
Spencer peers over the top of his cubicle as you type up your report, the mug of coffee heâd brought you still full and no longer steaming. Heâs got a hypothesis.Â
On Tuesday, heâd brought you a coffee at your desk. It had gone over like most interactions with you; youâd gone a bit red in the face, thanked him profusely, and cradled the mug in your hands like it was the most precious thing in your possession. But when heâd left that night, Spencer had seen the mug sitting on your desk, still full to the brim with dark, cold coffee. Heâd brought you another today to see if those results would repeat. He feels a bit guilty for not just talking to you about it, but heâs got a theory and he knows youâd deny it if he asked. So instead, heâs sneaking furtive glances over the top of his cubicle, waiting until enough time has passed to call it.Â
âWhatâre you peeping at?âÂ
He swivels his chair and Morganâs leaning his hand on Spencerâs desk all suave-like. Spencer makes a face indicating he should be quiet, but you look up with a quiet âHm?â and thereâs nothing Morgan loves more than exposing him for his schemes.Â
âPretty boy here keeps looking over at your desk,â Morgan says. Spencer turns again, and your cheeks are already getting pinkish. Another thing Morgan loves: bringing attention to you, even though itâs your own personal circle of hell. âI just want to know why.âÂ
âIâm testing a theory,â Spencer admits.Â
Unabashed interest gleams in Morganâs eye. He quirks an eyebrow. âAnd whatâs that?âÂ
Spencer tries to convey some apology in his look, and by the wariness in your features you read it. âYou donât actually drink coffee, do you?âÂ
The response is clear even before you open your mouth. Your eyes drop to the full mug on your desk, shoulders hunching inward sheepishly and face taking on a fire engine-esque hue.Â
âI donât,â you say quietly. And if there wasnât already enough apology in your tone, you tack on a quick, âSorry.âÂ
âNo, donât be sorry,â he says quickly while Morgan looks between you two and the coffee curiously. âThatâs what I thought.âÂ
âHold up.â Morganâs eyebrows go up, and you shrink further. âI brought you coffee just the other day. Youâre telling me youâre not drinking it?âÂ
âNo,â you murmur. You look as though you fully expect to be shunned for your answer.Â
âThen why not say something?âÂ
Spencer thinks thatâs fairly obvious, but heâs not going to answer for you.Â
âI justâŠâ Youâve got your hands in your lap now, probably fiddling with something under your desk in that nervous way of yours. Spencer wishes youâd warm up to them. Youâre new and green and always so certain youâre doing something wrong, but he wishes he could pull your hands from beneath the desk and soothe themâsoothe youâuntil you were comfortable. âI didnât want you to think I didnât appreciate it.âÂ
He can see Morgan ready to dissent, so Spencer cuts in.Â
âDo you just not like coffee?â he asks, trying to stay as far from interrogative as he can for your benefit.
You do seem to relax a bit, pulling your stare from Morganâs eagerly. âI just canât do caffeine,â you admit. âIt makes me too jumpy.âÂ
Spencer canât really imagine you much more skittish than you already are on a daily basis, so he agrees thatâs for the best.Â
âI have seen you drink it, though.â Morganâs voice is bemused. âIn the break room. You had a cup just the other day.âÂ
âIt was decaf,â you tell him softly.Â
âWe have decaf?â
âHave you looked on the top shelf of the cabinet?â Spencer asks. âThereâs a surprising amount of variety. We have decaf, teas, hot chocolate mixâsometimes even apple cider mix.âÂ
You nod, starting to look less fidgety. Spencer likes to get you like this when he can. Itâs an ongoing project of his. Maybe itâs just that itâs easier to relax when the people around you are relaxed too, but thereâs something about setting you at ease in particular that makes his chest feel warm and full. That might be something else to look into. When he has time.Â
âYeah, yeah, the wonders of the top cabinet.â Morgan waves this off, as if heâs ever heard of it before (he hasnât, Spencer can tell). âAll Iâm hearing is that you let us bring you coffee for weeks just because you were worried weâd bite your head off if you said something.âÂ
You grimace, but thereâs a bit less tension in you now as you look up at Morgan, thoroughly chastened. âSorry,â you all but whisper.Â
âFine,â he rolls his eyes good-naturedly, âI forgive you. Decaf only from now on, got it.âÂ
âThanks,â you squeak as he turns around, sauntering back to his own desk. Your eyes find Spencer, meeting his for a fraction of a second before dropping to his chin. âSorry I didnât drink your coffee.âÂ
âItâs really fine,â he almost laughs, and the humor in his voice gives you the confidence to lift your eyes to his again. Heâs glad for it. âI donât care, I was just curious why you didnât like it. And for the record,â he leans closer to the short wall dividing your desks, speaking low, âif thereâs anything else like that, you can tell me. I wonât bite your head off the way he does.â He cuts a glance towards Morganâs desk. You push your lips together, tamping down a smile. Spencer grins too, partly to encourage you and partly because he wants to.Â
âThank you.â Your voice is quiet, a new teasing edge to it that he likes the sound of. âIâll let you know if anything comes up.âÂ
âGreat.â He reaches over, taking the mug from your desk. âIâm going to go pour this down the drain. Do you want me to grab you a decaf?â You canât seem to decide between thanks so much and really, you donât have to, so Spencer brings you one anyway.
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sugar rose || theodore nott
Summary: Fool in love, bright like silver, shinning for everyone to see. Life has never been this good for Theo and he'll go out of his way to keep it that way. Or Theodore being utterly and unapologetically in love with you.
Beware: fluff, a bit of smut (which I can't write to save my life), nicknames used (pretty, love), written in second person, no pronouns used, it's just sweet.
I hope this will warm your hearts up a bit, it's a cold winter this year.
Words: 2.1k
Everyone sees it, Theodore being absolutely smitten by you, it's obvious, he has made sure everyone knows that you are his for the taking. Nott was known to be level headed one in the group, like Blaise, never getting into fights but not doing much to stop them either. Unlike Enzo, who was on the other end of the spectrum from Matheo and Draco, always keeping the group out of conflict because he didn't want to lose the house cup, that is. Everyone knew not to mess with the Slytherins, their pride was always at stake.
You were his girlfriend, everyone knows, no-one knows the consequences of thinking otherwise. They'd rather not, it's quite evident that people loved their peace more than to spit some game over a taken girl. That's how it should be, that's how it'll be.
...
You were sitting in Theo's lap, he was reading you the study material for history of magic, you were quite literally bored but your boyfriend was insistent on studying, he was also insistent on doing it with you, he wouldn't let go of you. The common room was empty, it was lunch time and you didn't feel like eating lunch, since you didn't your boyfriend didn't either, so this is how you were spending your time. He was your yes-man, whatever you ask of him, he'll do it in a heartbeat. Infact, he also does things you just think of, as well as the things you expect him to do, he knows you too well, always compliant to your wishes.
You turn around facing him, he puts down the book the very second you smile at him, all his attention on you. The way you look at him, sitting in his lap, with such love, he can feel his heart race, no matter how long it has been with you, the sugar rush never leaves. Theo can spend an eternity looking at you and still not run out of love, he knows it too well, he's far gone, turned too soft but he doesn't seem to mind because it's you. He doesn't care if his jaw hurts, he'll stay smiling when you are around. He starts his day with you in his mind, ends his day the same, dreams of you through the night and is with you throughout the day. He's content like this, there's nothing else he could ask for, he has everything he wants right in front of his eyes.
He doesn't have control over himself when it comes to you, it's all sweet and honey smooth when you are with him, his eyes always drift to you. He isn't hesitant to show his love for you, in fact he's quite shameless with it. You are shy infront of others though, so he enjoys moments like this, when you are alone with him, not afraid to be openly affectionate. Theo likes it when you say his name, "Theo," you breath out, smiling at him as you fiddle with his uniform's collar, unable to look into his eyes for long letting your gaze falter, he nods at you, encouraging you to continue, holding your nape with his hand making you look at him, thumb holding your chin up. You shake your head, smiling again and let your head bump against his chest, blushing, "I'm just happy, Teddy" your face is hidden in his chest, he holds you close, why is it that you are the shy one but it's his heart doing somersaults? "Me too mi amor, me too."
...
Theodore is not a religious man but when he has you infront of him, he'd gladly sink to his knees, thanking the heavens above for their blessings. He's with you in his dorm room, sitting on the loveseat, you in his lap, trailing kisses down his neck. You pull away, sliding off his lap down to your knees looking up at him with such devotion, he feels like a king, you unbuckle his belt with such eager hands he feels his soul escape, as though it has found it's paradise, ready to leave the land of mere mortals.
You love to tease him, knew how to him rile up and you took advantage of it. You pucker your lips around the tip of his length, not giving in easily, your eyes are full of mischief when you look up at him, "Don't tease," he groaned, hand reaching to fist your hair, you giggle as you pull away making him hiss. "Be kind Bella," his jaw was clenched hard with tension, you decide that it's enough, you always think you can hold back from him, tease him a bit more than the last time but your heart just wants to please him. You take his dick in whole, the warmth of your mouth making his jaw fall slack, the tension lifting from his shoulders as you swirl your tongue around the base, dragging it up slowly. Kissing the tip, then pulling away- letting your hand do the work while you give him a coy look. It was fucking sinful, hellish even, the way you were looking up at him. Theo was not a good man he knew that but there has to be a special place in hell for him after this because fuck, the way he loves you on some days is pure filth, there's nothing pure in his mind, there's only his weak submission to carnal desires.
You work your mouth up and down his length, the tip hitting the back of your throat in a pleasurably painful way. "Merlin-" his eyes were blown off to pitch blacks, it was struggle to take him in fully but the fucked out look in his eyes only motivated you. Gagging and choking on his dick, on your knees for him, it was a sight only he could see, only he could take the pleasure of admiring, he relished in knowing that fact that you were only his. Your beauty was for everyone to see, therefore it was something special in seeing you, pretty like this, lips wrapped around him and tear stained cheeks. He loved you more each second, it was worrisome how much he loved you, it even scared him sometimes, he'd go to any lengths for you, it doesn't matter if the world hates him by the end of it, he'll be happy if it means you'll love him a bit more.
Few minutes later he warns you that he's going to reach his limit, you don't let go, hands, lips, tongue, all pushing him over the edge, soon he's coming undone under your touch, you swallow up his release, pulling away your mouth with a pop. You are looking up at him with cum stained lips, zipping him up then straddling him. "That was pure fucking filth, love," he smiles as he looks at your lips, smearing the spit and cum more with his thumb, then pushing his thumb against your lips making you roll your tongue around him, licking away the remains of him, "the only filth I love."
...
Nott wasn't a fan of herbology but when he learnt that you adored certain flowers, he went out of his way to have them potted in your room, asked the professor ways of keeping the plants evergreen, perfected the charm to keep them blooming 24/7, going against nature just to see you smile.
Sometimes you'd make rings out of them, one for him, one for you, he'd wear them till the stems gave out, even then he'd preserve the flowers between the pages of his diary. Some days you'd make pretty crowns for yourself and others, he loved seeing you smile, the way you'd happily run to Pansy and Daphne during your break placing the crowns on their heads. Even they couldn't resist your charm, matching with you throughout the day, smiling brightly at eachother, it was a different kind of pretty, you being happy with your friends. He liked knowing that you had others loving you yet you came back to him, that you loved him more than you loved anyone else, he took pride knowing that his feelings were reciprocated with the same intensity.
"Everyone," you said out of nowhere, standing in front of him with your hands behind your back but talking to his friends instead, the group only sniggered at Theo's reaction, he was trying to get you to look at him, "I have something to confess," you smirked at them, you were wearing one of your flower crowns today and bright clothes as well, quite opposite to the image of the house you belonged to, standing out, everyone played along humming and urging you to continue, "there's this guy I like, a year above mine," you scrunched your nose up, as your friends gasped, "How scandalous, please continue ," Draco smirked, looking at how you were ignoring Theo who just looked confused, "I thought of asking him out on a date, you know with some poppies and roses, how does that sound?" You ask them shyly, still not looking at Theo who was on his feet now, while the others were sitting on the ground, splayed in different positions, all comfortable and happy. "That sounds awfully romantic, he'll surely appreciate it," Pansy quipped, cooing at your blushing face, the others simply nodding and grinning at her words.
Theo called out your name, finally making you look at him, "What Theo?" You ask him, your voice full of innocence, "what are you talking about?" He looks at his friends who just shrug and laugh while he's standing there all clueless. "You know, just confessing to the love of my life, he really is the best" you brightly smile up at him, "it's me, right? Theo?" He laughed lightly,"Ofcourse not silly," now he was confused, what were you on about and why were his friends hollering on the ground.
His face just scrunched up in confusion, you move closer to him, your shoes against his, smiling up at him, eyes full of love. "It's the guy named, Theodore Nott, do you happen to know him?" You were acting up, while his eyes widened, realising that he was being toyed with, not receiving a response, you pull your hands infront, placing the poppy and rose crown you made on his brown curls, "Happy Valentine's Day to guy I love the mostest" it was corny, cheesy and what not but it was sweetest thing at the same time, you were often shy when it came to public display but here you were, telling the world that he was the guy you loved the most- no, the mostest.
Theo was still awestruck, unable to move, only a smitten look on his, you reached up, placing a soft kiss on his lips. All you guys' friends were cooing and cheering when he bent down to kiss you after recovering from the initial shock, poppies and roses on both of your heads, you smiled against his lips as you pulled him closer. You both had drowned the noises everyone was making in the background, which went from cheering to fake gagging when they realised that the kiss wasn't going to end anytime soon. Theo couldn't care less what Valentine's was, for all it meant that he got another reason to celebrate his love for you, "I love you, the mostest." He repeated your words, meaning each and every word, his forehead resting against yours, there was no place better than this, to have you in his arms for everyone to see, for him to see your pretty smile directed at him, full of love and all things sweet and mushy, his face equally as bright. Kissing you again because he could never get enough of you, his heart beating as though he had just ran miles, warmth taking over his body, he doesn't ever remember asking for a life this happy but he's glad his happiness found him because there's nothing better than exchanging stones for roses or maybe it's just you, the rose petals over his gravel, he doesn't care only if it means that he can have you like this, sweet against his lips for the rest of his life. Finding himself closing his eyes, making a promise to himself, of cherishing and protecting this happiness of his, the one he never wished for, being his only wish now.
...
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Hello Mr Gaiman sir, I hope you are having a splendid existence.
Firstly, I love reading your replies to the asks you get but have always been too nervous/shy to send one myself. Howwer, today I just have to.
Last month my best friend over over 20 years passed away quite suddenly. He was only 28. Obviously I am struggling to process this loss. If platonic soulmates are a thing, that's what we were.
Anyway, just after he died my church pastor gave me a copy of 'The Ocean at the End of the Lane' to read as something to focus on and keep my mind busy. I, as a dyslexic person, have always struggled with reading. Don't get me wrong, I love books. But actually reading them takes SO long that I usually give up. But oh my goodness, once I started reading this story, I couldn't stop. I finished it in 2 weeks (a new record for me đ
). I also gave it to my mother to read, she finished it in less than 24 hours (probably also a record for her)
We immediately booked tickets to see the stage play as it was coming to a theatre only an hour away from us and today was the day.
I. Am. In. Awe.
The show is the most incredible thing I have ever witnessed, and I am a massive theatre nerd. Seriously, I can't stop thinking about it. I'm now convincing another theatre nerd friend of mine that we MUST go see it when it's back in London.
The main point of this message was just to say; thank you! This book has been the perfect escape for me during possibly the most difficult point of my life so far. When we buried my friend last week, I imagined to myself that we were giving him to the ocean, and that was a big comfort to me.
Thank you so much Mr Gaiman.
P.s. I'm returning to book to my pastor tomorrow and in exchange for his copy of 'Neverwhere' so I look forward to reading that next!
I'm so sorry for your loss and so glad Ocean has helped, and given you comfort.
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ââ đđđđđđ ;; đđđđđđđ đđđđđđđ
⧠cw :: gn!reader, angst + comfort (bc y'all asked nicely), reader cries a little :), it's a part two to this (please read first) !!
⧠a/n :: @ka0ila & @iam-thevillain-of-thisstory + the ppl asked for a pt two, so here it is !!
âyou're late.â
you nearly jump at the voice, not expecting any sounds to come from the dark place, way too cold to call home. you only note the laziness of his words, and how deeply they come from him.
it's past his bedtime, and he's exhausted. the hurt part of you hates how deeply his mannerisms are engraved into your mind.
you walk towards the stairs, determined to make it to bed without sharing a singular word with him. it's then when you see his figure sitting right there, blocking your path.
âwhere were you?â the red of bakugou's eyes is tinted darker, more bloodshot as he looks at you. you hope your own aren't as red after having cried your soul out at mina's. you half wish you'd accepted her offer to crash there for the night, for you didn't know how exactly this night could go.
âaway from you. isn't that what you wanted?â
the response nips at him and he remembers the words he'd spat at you. you watch how he plays with his hands, smoothing over the rough skin and the thought is almost hilariousâ he looked nervous.
âiâ i didn't mean it, y/n. any of it. i was angryâ and i'm sorry.â
while you were burning in hurt and rage and bitterness and overwhelming sorrow as mina hugged you, you'd listened to your heart beg him for an apology. and now, after it being thrown out, it doesn't hold the same weight as you'd like.
âuntil when, bakugou?â he winces at the use of his last nameâ he was never âbakugouâ to you. âyou're sorry until something goes wrong at work again? you're sorry until i âstart yapping' again? until you can't stand to look at my face?â
while he can't look you in the eyes anymore, let alone answer you, you feel the lump in your throat solidify.
âmove out of the way, bakugou. i need sleep.â
you climb up a step, and the only movement bakugou makes is to stand up.
ây/n, please. pleaseâ stay.â the fragility makes itself known in both your voices and you're too tiredâ your heart is too heavy to fight, to protest.
âbaâ katsuki, i'm tired. you yank me about at your will, and i'm so tired. all i've done is stayâ endureâ and all it has gotten me is here.â
he inhales sharply at the sorrow in how you say his name and it shatters him to see just how hopeless you lookâ all because he can't keep his damn temper in check.
âi'm sorry. please, i'llâ i'll do anythingâ just don't leave. i'll get help, i'll come home earlierâ i'll listen. just, one more chance, please.â
moments pass and the tears well up looking at his face, the prettiest face you've ever laid your eyes on. it pricks at you, watching him ask so softly.
you're weak, and you're so helplessly in love with him.
âi only have one more chance in me to give.â
bakugou exhales, moving slowly toward you. it's when you feel his arms wrap around you for a hug, that you feel your muscles ease up for the first time in so long. your own arms wrap around him, hands grasping at the back of his shirt, and he clings onto you like his life depends on it.
the smell of himâ of homeâ is what causes the tears to finally fall. his shirt catches them and you nuzzle more into him, the thought of letting go seeming unfathomable. you can't remember the last time he'd touched you, let alone held you so close, but you try and hold onto what it feels like. what being at home feels like.
katsuki shuts his eyes, keeping his tears in. as he whispers his apology, he swears to himself he'll never make you cry so much again.
it's the sound of his heartbeat that stops your tears and lulls you to peace, and the warmth seeps back into your home that allows your broken hearts to mend in silence.
⧠â thank you for reading !! rbs and feedback are greatly appreciated <3
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Won't You Suffer for the Angels to Fly?
â Joel Miller x fem!Reader - 2k
â Joel finds religion in the last place he expected to--a preacher's daughter.
â Rated MA for pure blasphemy. a lot of religious imagery and defiling of holy places--please read at your own risk. unprotected p in v sex, creampie, squirting, fingering (f receiving), corruption kink, HEFTY age gap (r is early 20s [unspecified], joel is 56), reader uses feminine pronouns and has female anatomy [please let me know if i missed anything at all :)]
â this is for my mid to plus!sized readers :) you're beautiful and valid and i love you. this was written in basically one sitting after i binged mike flanagan's midnight mass in one night. thank you to my lovelies @ramblers-lets-get-ramblin and @shakespeareanwannabe for talking me through this <3 title is from "heaven only knows" by bob moses
The Bible teachesâat least according to what Joel was able to gleam from the Easter serviceâthat everything happens for a reason. That every pelting raindrop in its descent from the sky, even before it lands heavy and dark in his hair or soaks the lush green landscape of Jackson, has a purpose.
Heâs struggled a lot with purpose ever since hearing that existential crisis-inspiring sermon that Tommy had dragged him to.Â
In the preacherâs defense, it went over well with everyone else. So many people are lost nowadays, adrift in a world that doesnât seem to have space for them. They need that hope, that reassurance that theyâre here for a reason. That theyâve survived hell on earth not out of luck, but out of purpose. He pulled out the big gun that everyone needed to hear on one of the two days a year that everyone in Jackson has their ears open to him. It was tactful, and Joel has to acknowledge that. Your father is clever, if not cunning.
Itâs a trait that youâve learned directly from him, whether purposeful or not. But you sat right in the front row and nodded along to every word, accepting without thought or conflict that purpose is in every action, every reaction, every change of tide and every gust of wind.
And if everything has a purpose, your purpose must be to torture him.
You never have anything but a smile on your face for Joel. Joel, a man older than your own father, a man whose hands have broken every commandment that you hold so dear. A man that should know better than to let you get under his skin and infect his dreams.
He wonders what it would be like to hold someone so perfectly untainted in hands that have killed and destroyed and sinned. Hands that are strong, hands that are experienced, hands that are greedy. Heâs certain he could teach you all about greed. He could make you beg, plead, sob for more and more and more until the only thought remaining in your pretty little head is how much you want to take from him. Until you become a glutton at the altar of his generosity.
And oh, how generous he could be once he had you begging. Minding your manners and asking nicely for what you need, of course, but he would never deny you anything you asked of him.
âCan I help you with that, Mr. Miller?â He hadnât even noticed he was strugglingâand he wouldnât be, really, if he wasnât so distracted. Putting new legs on a pew isnât the issue after all; itâs the fact that youâre sitting there on the stairs that lead up to the altar and absentmindedly swinging your legs as if youâre taunting him. As if you understand that his resolve is slipping with every passing second heâs alone in this room with you.Â
âJoel.â
âHmm?â You shift your posture to lean closer, and that skirt thatâs already way too short to be worn by the pastorâs daughter, in a house of God of all places, rides just a little further up your deliciously full thighs.Â
How is he expected to work, to keep his mind on the job, when all he wants is to know what those thighs might feel like wrapped around his head?
He clears his throat and adjusts âYou can call me Joel, sweetheart.â
He sees it, then. Itâs so subtle, but itâs not imagined. You squirm at the pet name, at the raspy drawl of his voice, and it changes everything for him.
He sees in his mind the sweet girl, barely out of her teens, who sits in the front pew with a Bible in her lap. He sees the girl who sings so sweetly to the tune of every hymn. He sees the girl whoâs so shy that she blushes every time she catches his gaze.
And then he sees everything underneath the act. He sees the girl whoâs bold enough to wear a bright red dress to the Easter service. He sees the girl who makes eye contact with him across the dining hall every night to watch the way he reacts to her lips wrapped so tantalizingly smoothly around her spoon. He sees the girl who knew he would be alone in the chapel todayâthe girl who wore an easily accessible skirt just for the occasion.
You bookmark the page youâre on and set down the book you were reading, eyes fixated on him all the while. âIs there something I can help with, Joel?â
There certainly is, and itâs not the pew heâs supposed to be repairing.
He remembers, vaguely, hearing something about how God spares guilt from sinners when sin is necessary. It must be necessary to teach you a lesson, thenâas you stride over and kneel beside him, your eyes heavy with anticipation and lashes fluttering, he doesnât feel an ounce of guilt.
âHasnât your daddy taught you not to dress like this?â He takes the hem of your skirt idly in his hand, rubs the silky fabric between his thumb and forefinger. Heâs not touching you, not really, but his hand is so achingly close. An inch or two, and heâd feel your warmthâthose plush thighs that God created to rule over Joel Millerâs mind, body, and soul; âtil death does he finally know peace, amen.
You shake your head and even manage to seem smug as you say, âNo. He just teaches everyone else to resist temptation.â
âIâve never been much good at that,â he murmurs.
He thinks that you know that. He thinks that youâre his crucible, his most important moral trialâthat maybe, if he can turn you away now, heâs a good man.
Joel Miller is not a good man. His kiss is crushing. Itâs hellfire, itâs brimstone, itâs everything youâve been taught to fear your entire life. You melt into it so prettily, accepting your damnation with parted lips and eager eyes. A wanton moan gets caught in your throat when his hand slips further up your skirt.Â
No pantiesâin a place of worship, no less. He should bend you over his knee for this transgression, make sure you understand how filthy you are. But thereâs hardly time for that now, not when heâs even more desperate than you are. And you are desperateâdripping down his fingers into the palm of his hand as your teeth leave perfect little indents in the plush skin of your bottom lip.
His free hand grips your chin firmly, guiding your eyes to his. He wants to see your depravity, the flickering embers of lust in your eyes as you come on his fingers and cry out for salvation from the all-consuming pleasure.
âOh my Godââ
His hand tightens around your jaw just the slightest bit in warning. âNo, baby. You moan my name when Iâm touchinâ you.â
And you doâthighs trembling, eyes watering, you cry out his name like a prayer as your cunt pulses and squeezes around his willing fingers.
Thereâs an unpracticed tremble to your hand as you reach to work open his belt, and it makes his cock throb under the confining material of his jeans.
You want every inch of his skin pressed against yours, so desperate for it that youâre nearly in tears when he pulls your fingers away from the buttons on his shirt. Heâs not foolishâno one steps foot into this place during the week, but he knows better than to tempt Godâs sense of humor. This has to be quick and contained, and you know it too; you picked your little skirt for exactly that reason.
He catches a glimpse of your glistening need as you settle over his thighs, and once again he battles to resist temptation. He whispers in your ear as you settle your chest against his and grind that fluttering, sensitive cunt along his lengthâpromises himself more than you, really, that heâll bury his face in your folds and drink from you next time. Next timeâthe promise makes you clench impossibly hard around nothing.
His eyes have never been quite as heavy as they are when you start to sink that dripping heat down his cock. Head tipped back, throat exposed, completely at your mercy. He has to force himself to look up at youâto worship the goddess enshrined on his altar, all his for the taking.
You bite into your lip nearly hard enough to draw blood as your hips settle against his, completely overwhelmed by the burning stretch of his size. Heâs a challenge, certainly, but one that you are determined to overcome.Â
âEasy, baby girl,â he grumbles as you start to rock against him before youâre truly accommodated. His hands rest heavy on your hipsânot anchoring, but encouraging. As wrongâas depravedâas this may be, he wants you to enjoy it without pain. âThatâs right, nice and slow.â
It doesnât stay that way, though; the desperation mounts to a boiling point until youâre bouncing fervently in his lap. Itâs delicious, the way the thick head of him drags against something deep and sensitive within you. He guides you when your thighs start to burn, grip tightening enough to leave forbidden bruises in the soft flesh of your hips. His mouth presses to yours, breathing the oxygen straight from your lungs as he presses his hips up. Thereâs nothing you can do but take it, pliant in his hold, head rolling back to accommodate the wet drag of his mouth and the tickling scratch of his beard against your throat.
He feels it before you doâa subtle flutter as your cunt tries sucking him in even deeper. And maybe, if he was a good man, heâd lean away from it and have mercy on you. But heâs not a good manâheâs a greedy, wanton, desperate man. He angles his hips and thrusts as hard as he can, shoving you into your release with force.
You overflow with it; gushing over him like a flood, staining his hastily pushed down jeans and the floorboards beneath.
He pushes you onto your back like youâre weightless, adrenaline coursing as he starts to slam into you. Itâs not polite or sweet or lovingâhe fucks into you and empties himself like an animal. He growls deep in his throat as his cock pulses within you, instructing you to âtake it, baby girlâ as if youâd consider anything less.Â
You donât know where your release ends and his begins. All you know is his weight on top of you, his mouth on your jaw, the collective breathless pants that fill the room as you both come down together.
Youâre not sure how long it is before he pulls out of your warmth with an actual whine, breath heavy against your neck where his face is so comfortably nestled.
And you start to laugh, because you wish youâd worn panties after allâyou donât know how youâre going to get home with the mess of cum thatâs dripping down the curve of your ass.
He even chuckles with you, until he tears his eyes away from your blissed face and sees the cross hanging heavy on the far wall.
âTh-thatâŠâ he gulps. âThat canât happen again.â
âIt can,â you assure him, and he supposes youâre right.
You keep your head down and your eyes to yourself on Sunday, even as you spot the barely-noticeable stain on the hardwood floor next to the newly-repaired pew on the right side of the aisle. Itâs so faint that no one would notice it unless they were looking for it, but itâs glaringly obvious to you. You should be ashamed; you should be begging for forgiveness. But then you meet Joelâs watchful eyes, and the shame washes away. How can you feel guilty over an act of worship?
THE END
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ROOOOWWWWWWW
REQUESTS ARE OPEN YOU SAY???
Self indulgent because Iâm that bitch.
Maybe shy/ditsy reader (cause I love her) who is like so innocent and quiet out in public and in private is the neediest horniest depraved little slut for her man (obvs can be gender neutral) with either Steve or Eddie, or steddie x reader whatever your heart desires.
I HOPE THIS ISNT A SHIT REQUEST ITS TWO AM AND IM TIRED
- hellfiremunsonn (Lillie) đ©·
Freak Like Me - E.M.
thank you so much for the request lovey! I hope this is everything you envisioned! @hellfiremunsonn ily! đ«¶đœ
Word count- 1.3K
Warnings - pussy slapping, dirty talk, p in v sex, female masturbation (Eddie helps), Eddie teases you, if I miss something please tell me and Iâll be sure to add it here!
-feel free to reblog & interact itâs much appreciated thank you all for reading! I really hope you enjoy this! 18+ only!
âWhere you going sugar?â Eddieâs husky voice says from behind you. One of his ringed hands coming up to grip on your shoulder. You feel your knees go weak, trying your best to remain standing as you look around at all his friends. Theyâre all watching you as you turn to look at Eddie. âBack to the van⊠if thatâs okay, Sir.â You mumble out. A few of his friends chuckle as you hide your face, flushing from embarrassment. He nods, leaning forward and kissing your cheek softly before handing you the keys. âItâs all yours baby be there soon.â You listened as Eddie continued talking about some dnd campaign, the sound of his voice drowning out behind you.
Heâd made a spectacle of you all night long, teasing you in front of everyone. He knew exactly what it did to you, youâd almost not agreed to come out tonight because you knew this would happen. Eddie loves teasing you, and his friends love it even more, watching you babble when he asks you a question because only a minute before he had said something incredibly dirty. The wide smirk on his face causes you to stutter as you squeeze your legs together, praying that no one will be able to see. They do. This time you decide not to stick around to hear the remarks theyâd make.
You slowly open the door to his van, hopping up inside and slamming yourself back onto his seat. The uncomfortableness of your panties sticking to you is too much to handle, so you lift your hips, sliding them down your legs before throwing them in the back seat. All you can think of when you slip your fingers down to flip up your skirt is Eddieâs voice, the way he mocks you, laughs at you, the sweet nothings heâll whisper to you once he has you all to himself. âFuck.â You whimper out, your fingers lightly grazing against your clit.
You shuffle around a bit angling yourself so when Eddie opens the door heâll have a perfect view of what belongs to him. To his friends, youâre shy and reserved, innocent even. Eddie knew the real truth about you and you were none of those things. Your eyes close as you get lost in the moment, you bite your lip hard enough that youâre sure itâll bleed as you circle your fingers around your clit, the sensations running throughout your body as you moan quietly. âPlease Eddie.â You cry out, sliding down against the passenger door.
âWell ainât this a pretty picture.â Your eyes snap back open as a sick smile breaks out across your face. âKnew you wouldnât keep me waiting long.â You say, giggling as Eddie climbs up into the drivers seat. Heâs quick with the door, slamming it before turning to look back at you. Your fingers are still working over yourself, only going faster now that heâs watching. You go to stop but he grabs your wrist, guiding your hand down. âOh please honey, donât stop because of me. Let me see how desperate you are.â
You nod, your eyes half open from the pleasure as Eddie pushes two of your own fingers inside yourself. You groan at the feeling, itâs messy but you couldnât love it more. The sounds of wet squelching and your moans fill up the van as Eddieâs eyes burn with lust. Theyâre latched onto where the both of you are moving together. âThis is so good, but I really need you Edâs please.â You beg. He shakes his head, holding your hand down, rocking your fingers in and out slowly. âI didnât say you could stop babydoll.â He whispers as you buck your hips up, grabbing at his wrist with the hand that isnât buried deep inside you.
Eddie leans back, sitting on his knees as he watches you. He pulls his hand away slowly and makes you do all the work as he palms himself lazily over his pants. âI wish they could see you now baby, absolutely pathetic and I havenât even given you the real thing yet.â He says, your eyes threatening to roll back into your head as a loud moan rips its way from your throat. âFuck. Please.â You whine, your heartbeat speeding up as the tight cord winding itself in your stomach threatens to break. A bead of sweat makes its way down the side of your face as you buck your hips up again, meeting the thrusts of your own fingers.
You sit up a little, your body trembling as you watch Eddie slowly unbuckle his belt. You trail your eyes up to his face where heâs biting his lip, his eyes staring into yours as you continue to pleasure yourself. He laughs a little when he sees tears on the corners of your eyes. âAww darlinâ youâre so ready arenât you? Go ahead, let me see you cum, give me a show baby.â It takes you no more than a small thrust of your fingers before youâre letting go. Your wetness spreads all over yourself and down onto Eddieâs seat as he watches. You can hear him talking you through it but the blood rushing behind your ears keeps you from hearing what heâs actually saying.
He gives you no time to recover, you hear something rush past you into the back of the van before Eddieâs on you like a wild animal. He slowly strokes himself a few times, rubbing the head of his cock right against your clit as you squirm underneath him crying and begging for him to fuck you already. He stops teasing only to reach down and slap your pussy, once, twice, three times. You yelp and just as you go to sit up to scold him he thrusts into you, practically knocking the wind out of your lungs. âYâgonna scream for me sugar? Let all my friends hear how much of a slut you really are for me?â
âF-uckkk Eddie please!â You scream out, the slapping of Eddieâs skin against yours growing louder as he thrusts harder than before. He reaches under your ass to pull you up some, angling you just right so with every thrust his cock rubs up against your g-spot. âThatâs it sugar, itâs okay I got you, let go. Cum on this dick and let everyone hear who makes you feel this good.â Your body trembles beneath him, your stomach flips at his dirty words as you look down and watch him sliding in and out of you. The drag of his cock, enough to make you feel like youâre on another planet entirely as you finally give up. Your eyes roll back as your mouth babbles on, Eddie grips onto your hips, his blunt nails digging into your skin as you feel his cock twitch inside of you. His deep moans blend with yours creating a delicious melody as he fills you up.
You hear him laugh as you both come down from your high, he slowly pulls out of you leaving you empty and sore as you open your eyes to look up at him. âWhatâs so funny?â You say, your voice rough from how loud you were being, he smiles at you before leaning down to kiss your forehead, moving some of the hair thatâs stuck to it away. âOh, sânothin. Just thinking how funny it is that youâre a freak, and they have no idea.â You bite your lip before giggling, slapping his arm slightly as you sit up to fix your clothes. You donât bother with finding your panties as you watch Eddie reach into the back of the van, grabbing his pants. âWell, next time maybe weâll have to give them a real show, Eddie.â You whisper, running your tongue up the side of his ear, his cock throbs at your words, a low moan slipping from his lips.
tag list- @voyeurmunson @vecslut @littlexdeaths @xxbimbobunnyxx @josephquinnsfreckles
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