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ahkaahshi · 3 years

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a parenting moment [miya atsumu x reader]

pairing: miya atsumu x fem reader

genre: fluff

warning(s): none

word count: 2.3k

overview: when yours and atsumu’s five-year-old daughter gets into trouble at school, it’s up to him to practice his good parenting skills

note: though this is a reader insert story, it focuses more on atsumu’s relationship with his daughter and sheds some light on how I think he would be as a dad :) also I wrote this months ago and am just now posting lol hope you enjoy

Atsumu’s features settle into a look of discontentment as his honey colored eyes scan his young daughter’s short figure, taking note of her dirtied shoes and the slightly disheveled appearance of the French braids he’d woven into her dark hair that morning. Wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead and letting out a small sigh, he asks, “What happened, girly?”

She turns her (e/c) gaze towards the polished wooden flooring of the large gym and mutters, “I got in a fight at school and they made Mommy pick me up.”

Instead of towering over her, as he had inadvertently been doing before, Atsumu kneels down in front of her and places his hand on her shoulder. “Hey, look at me, (daughter’s name),” he requests, making her tilt her chin up the smallest amount so her eyes can meet his. When their gazes connect, he purses his lips before saying, “We’ll talk about it when we get home, ‘kay? Right now, Daddy’s gotta practice, so jus’ sit tight with Coach Foster for a bit ‘n hang out.”

She nods slowly and Atsumu lifts her light blue backpack off of her shoulders to carry it with him over to the bench beside the court where his team is currently running through serve-receive drills. The head coach gives him a small nod of acknowledgement and a promise that he’ll protect her from any rogue volleyballs as she takes a seat.

Knowing that his daughter’s safety is in good hands and that she’s occupied--since she had pulled out a notebook from her backpack to doodle and write in--gives Atsumu a sliver of comfort as he returns to his practice. It takes himself some time to get his thoughts off of her, however, given the situation.

Minutes earlier, you had appeared at the gym with (daughter’s name) and offered a brief explanation of the matter at hand. You’d had to pick her up from school after receiving a call that she’d gotten into trouble, but, because of your own responsibilities at work, you’d had to drop her off with your husband. According to what the teachers had explained, she had gotten into a physical altercation with another student that had ended in tears, screaming, a few scrapes, and a dropped popsicle--your daughter’s, unfortunately.

(Daughter’s name) was a well-behaved, studious girl--though she did have a bit of a wild, energetic streak in her, thanks to Atsumu--so to hear that she’d been involved in a fight was understandably shocking to both of you. Sure, she enjoyed roughhousing with her dad and her uncle, but you’d been adamant about reiterating that real fighting was not allowed.

Atsumu hated seeing his daughter so distressed. It broke his heart. Usually, she was upbeat and full of life, but, now, she looks so defeated and ashamed. In an attempt to cheer her up in any way he can, he enlists the help of Bokuto and Hinata to tell her funny stories during each water break; and while they provide her some temporary relief, the cloud of sadness casting a shadow over her still lingers.

Though she holds onto his hand and clings to his side during the commute back home, she’s unnaturally quiet, and goes straight to her room upon returning to the house. He decides it best to leave her alone for a bit, but he can’t ignore how quiet the house feels without the sound of her favorite show blaring from the television in the living room. To busy himself for some time while you’re at work and she’s in her room, Atsumu sets himself to whipping up a snack after he’s taken a shower, and icing his aching joints.

After preparing some onigiri that looks rather sloppy compared to that his brother always serves, Atsumu shuffles down the hallway towards his daughter’s room. Her door is open, so he can see her sitting on her bed with a selection of colored pencils strewn across the comforter, and one in her hand that she’s using to color in a project she has to complete for class.

“Hey, girly,” he greets her and stands in the doorway, “Wanna eat some onigiri with me?”

She doesn’t respond verbally, but nods her head without lifting it to look over at him. So, he walks into her room and plops down on the bed beside her, setting the plate down in front of him. Before he can even get so far as to offer her one of his homemade creations, he hears her sniffle loudly.

Turning his honey-colored gaze to her brings him to the realization that she's stopped coloring and, instead, has her hands pressed against her face as her body shakes with quiet sobs. His paternal instincts to protect and comfort her immediately kick in, and he pushes the plate aside so he can sling an arm around her shoulder to pull her closer to him.

“Hey, hey, li’l princess, what’s goin’ on?” he murmurs.

She leans closer to him but keeps her hands over her face. “It wasn’t my fault, Daddy,” she whimpers softly, the sound of her strained voice nearly shattering her father’s heart, “There’s a really, really mean girl in my class. She always pulls my hair, a-and takes my markers, and cuts in line so she gets the last orange popsicle--and that’s my favorite flavor--and... I hate her!”

Atsumu grabs a tissue to dab at the tears spilling down her cheeks once he gently moves her hands away from her face. He’s silent for a moment as the previous sadness he felt at his daughter’s suffering morphs into anger upon hearing that she was being bullied. “Didja hit ‘er 'cause she was bein’ mean?”

She nods and cries, “S-She pushed me during recess ‘nd I got mad and pushed her back,” before finally lifting her head to gaze up at him with watery, (e/c) eyes. “I didn’t mean to hurt her, Daddy! I-I was just scared she was gonna hurt me!”

Wrapping both of his arms around her small frame, Atsumu brings her face to his chest and holds her tightly in his embrace in an attempt to comfort her. “It’s alright, (daughter’s name). Mommy ‘nd I will make sure this gets fixed, ‘kay?” The grip she has on the back of his t-shirt tightens slightly as she presses her face into his shoulder. One of his hands rubs her back to calm her down while the other smooths down any stray hairs sticking up from her head.

After a few minutes of crying, whimpering, and venting, she’s finally relaxed enough to let her dad lead her into the living room so they can sit and watch a few episodes of her favorite show together while snacking on onigiri.

“Hey,” he calls out to her, making her tear her wide-eyed gaze away from the television screen, “I know me, Mommy, ‘n Uncle ‘Samu always say that fightin’ ain’t the right way ta go about things, but I’m proud of ya for stickin’ up for yourself, girly.”

A small smile sprouts across her lips that’s made even cuter by the fact that her cheeks are puffing out from the amount of rice she has in her mouth. The sight makes him chuckle and ruffle her hair.

“But don’t go tellin’ Mommy I said that. Instead, use yer words, find one of the teachers, ‘n let ‘em deal with whoever’s givin’ ya trouble, alright?”

When she’s finished chewing her food, she replies, “M’kay.”

“Mind tellin’ me what started the fight in the first place?” he asks, one of his thick eyebrows raising in curiosity.

She twiddles her thumbs and slowly directs her gaze back to the television. “She made me drop my popsicle when she pushed me.”

“And it was your favorite flavor, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah...”

With a hearty laugh, he comments, “Man, you really are yer mom’s daughter, ya know that? She don’t mess around when food’s involved.”

The sounds of his daughter's giggles ripple through the air, sending waves of warmth over him as he continues telling her stories about all the times he’d dealt with you getting on his case about food or treat-related issues. He made sure to include an anecdote about a time when you’d nearly knocked him over after he’d jokingly swiped your candy bar during lunch in high school.

Needless to say, he never did it again out of the fear that Osamu wouldn't let him live it down if he got destroyed by a high school girl over food. However, the passion and unrelenting desire he’d seen in your eyes that day had made him absolutely sure that you were the one for him.

By the time you step into the house a few hours later, your daughter--being the mature, young girl she was--has moved her schoolwork from her bedroom to the living room table to do her assignments while her dad snoozes on the couch. Upon noticing that she’s in a better mood than she had been when you’d dropped her off at the gym with Atsumu, your heart lifts slightly.

“Hey, honey,” you greet her as you slide off your shoes and set your purse down on a table in the entryway, “What’re you up to?”

She holds up a piece of paper with colored markings on it that vaguely resemble Atsumu’s tall figure holding what you assume to be a volleyball, along with a few, familiar faces in the background. “I have to draw a picture of what you and Daddy do at work to show my teacher.”

You smile at her and plant a kiss atop her head before commenting, “Looks good so far. You drew Bokuto-san’s hair perfectly.” She chuckles and quickly returns to her masterpiece, since your compliment seems to spur her to keep creating. “I’m gonna talk to Daddy, real quick, okay? I wanna see how you draw Omi-san’s hair when we’re done.”

With that said and your daughter on a mission to produce her version of the prickly, outside hitter on Atsumu’s team, you rouse your husband from his nap so the two of you can head into your room to talk about the situation. Once out of earshot, he explains what your daughter had told him and the two of you work together to devise a plan and time to speak with her teacher about the true story. Amazingly enough, this entire exchange occurrs without your usual, good-natured--but sometimes cumbersome--squabbling.

“Hey, ‘Tsumu,” you call out to him, reaching for his hand and wrapping your fingers around it gingerly.

He had been on his way to the bedroom door so he could head to the kitchen and start making dinner while you showered, but he stops in his tracks and turns to face you once more. When your eyes meet, your heart skips a beat, like always.

Taking a deep breath, you tell him, “Even though we may argue from time to time about parenting, and you sometimes let her have just a tad too much sugar before conveniently deciding to take a nap so you don’t have to deal with her going berserk, there's nobody else in the world that I’d rather share a kid with than you. She loves you so much, and so do I.”

His unoccupied hand finds your waist to pull you closer to him, and he leans down towards you to plant a gentle kiss on your lips. As per usual, the tender moment you shared doesn’t last long, since he always has something smart to say. “What’s gotcha all sentimental, (f/n)? Does seein’ me doin’ fatherly things give ya the hots for me, or somethin’?”

“Oh, yeah, sleeping on the couch while our self-starter of a child does homework by herself is so fatherly.”

He frowns. “I had a long practice. Bein’ a professional athlete is hard work, baby.”

With a sardonic smile on your face, you mention, “Working a nine-to-five is pretty tiring too, baby.”

“Fair,” he groans and slides his arms around your back, “But, seriously, what’s got you feelin’ all in love with me, huh?”

You snicker at his tone and the mischievous look on his face as you brush his golden hair away from his eyes before letting your hands come to rest on his cheeks. “It’s just that when I picked (daughter’s name) up from school today, she was all sad and mopey. Yet, when I come home after dropping her off with you, she’s all smiles and rainbows again. It just reminds me of how good you are to her and it makes me happy that she has you as a father.”

A genuine smile rather than a sly one appears on his lips, and you press your own against them to give him a few, affectionate kisses.

“You know I’d do anything for my favorite, li’l girl, (f/n). She’s only as good of a kid as she is 'cause of you, anyway.”

Your lips form a giddy grin, as if he’s a high school crush who’s just delivered the sweetest of compliments to you, and you allow him to pull you closer so he can shower you with more kisses. “I love you, baby,” you murmur as you plant another peck on his cheek.

“I love you too, sweetheart.”

There’s a short moment of silence as he pulls you into a tight hug that seems to wash away all the stress that you didn't even realize had been building up within you at the day you’ve had. His breath fans across the tender skin of your neck when he nestles his face there and allows his hands to roam up and down your back. However, after the two of you release each other, you notice a sneaky smile playing at his lips that oftentimes makes you wary.

“Hey.”

“Yeah?”

“Wanna go see (daughter’s name)’s rendition of Omi-Omi?”

Chuckling and following him out of the bedroom, you agree, “Wouldn’t miss it.”

masterlist ⭐︎ treat me to a coffee!

taglists (see pinned post on my blog for form)

general: @krynnza, @yamagucji, @tendo-sxtori, @dinablossom, @newfriendjen, @devlovesramen, @ohbyunhunn, @aftcrlust, @mister-future, @kyleclxin, @kac-chowsballs, @osamusmiya, @nit-sir-hc, @arixtsukki, @shinsurou, @ichorizaki, @dominikmagnus

atsumu: @pretty-setters, @misora-msby, @why-aminot-dead, @lotsoffandomrecs, @tsumue, @heyhinata

#haikyuu x reader #miya atsumu x reader #atsumu x reader #haikyuu fluff #haikyuu!!#hq!!#x reader #reader insert #anime #manga #miya atsumu #fran writes hq!!

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dsmp-agere-stuff · 3 years

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Hello Jade ! it’s 🍒 again but could you write little!ranboo with cgs!tubbo and tommy? for plot maybe ranboo has been stressed with syndicate meetings, but when he wakes up regressed he’s confused because he’s never done it before. he becomes overwhelmed and scared so he gets tubbo. tubbo understands but has never been a cg so he calls tommy (tommy has been a cg to wilbur before) so tommy comes over, him and tubbo take care of ranboo. maybe they play hide and seek / tubbo carrying ranboo thanks!

Sorry this took me a while to get to!! It came out a lot more angsty than usual, so- beware of that.

Tw: described panic attack that ends after ——, Shame about regression, believing you aren’t deserving to regress

Ranboo rolled over in his bed and stuffed his face into the pillow, shaking his head some to burrow it in more. He pulled his blanket closer and hummed into whatever was in his arms. He whined when a piston went off somewhere and burrowed his face into the thing he was holding, which was a grass plush. He looked up once the sound was over and carefully got up, trying to find something to eat, but wobbled too much to get all the way to the fridge. He just sat down on the floor and whined to himself, going to bite his nails. He looked around for something to get, too tired, he thought, to really think. Which meant he couldn’t do anything, which sucked. He knew he had stuff to do today! He had meetings!! He had to tell Techno that Quackity was being mean!! He wasn’t supposed to be tired now!

Ranboo rubbed at his face with his sleeves to try and get the water off his face, staying on the ground as he got a message from his little communicator.

Tubbo. Tubbo was supposed to- Tubbo-

Ranboo’s Brain was far too foggy to read and he was absolutely not telling Tubbo about this of all things. So, he just slid it to the side and went from chewing on his nails to sucking on his thumb, trying to calm himself down about the meeting by reasoning with himself, which was usually the opposite of what actually happened, like this time, where he just catastrophized himself into a corner.

His communicator was an awful background noise to the whole thing as he finally got the energy to get up and start pacing around, still wobbly but needing to move in some way. He almost tripped so many times but he managed.

——

Someone knocked on the door and opened it anyway, “Why’re you ignoring me!” Tubbo joked as he knocked on the ladder downstairs, expecting Ranboo to be busy.

Ranboo let out a little whimper, shaking his head out of guilt, not getting that Tubbo was joking.

Tubbo heard the noise and ran upstairs with a laugh until he saw Ranboo and paused, “yo. You okay boss man?”

Ranboo shook his head and messed with his clothes, still pacing.

“Hey, hey.” Tubbo walked closer to him, “what’s wrong? What do you need?”

Ranboo shook his head again and rubbed at his face with his sleeves.

“Tissues?” Tubbo guessed.

“Nooo!” Ranboo Drew out in almost another whine, then looked down in what seemed like shame, still walking.

Tubbo rolled his eyes, “work with me dude.”

Ranboo made a softer version of aggressive noises he could make, still tearing up.

Tubbo sighed, “I’m calling Tommy, okay? Let’s get you to sit down, okay?”

Ranboo shook his head more.

Tubbo glanced at the block on Ranboo’s bed, “just mess with your blocks, man. I have to talk to Tommy.” Tubbo sent Tommy a message about it.

Ranboo begrudgingly went and grabbed the block, stuffing his face in it again. He continued to pace, holding the plush as tight as he could. He couldn’t remember where he got the plush from but he didn’t care, it was making him think a bit less and that helped.

Tubbo came out from the corner of the room and went over to Ranboo, “Hey, Ranboo, are you little?” He asked softly, trying to not be too alarming in case Tommy was right.

Ranboo just looked confused and shook his head, not even looking Tubbo’s way. Tubbo huffed and continued to text Tommy, “Tommy’s gonna come over to check on you, okay? He knows mental health stuff better than most of us, sadly.” Tubbo shrugged and went to the corner again

Tubbo looked around the room while Ranboo started to rock himself in place, singing to himself in light little noises.

Tommy eventually ran in and was clearly holding in his usual yells, “alright, what is this then?” He exaggerated his accent to try to cheer Ranboo up, maybe.

Tubbo sighed, “Ranboo’s being a downer- more than usual.”

Tommy watched Ranboo for a moment, then went over and tilted his head, “you scared, big man?”

Ranboo immediately shook his head and bit onto the plush, looking away from Tommy.

Tommy took a step back, “hey, hey, it’s fine.” Tommy turned to Tubbo, “he is *so* little. Tubbo, he’s literally babbling.”

Tubbo shrugged, “hey, I don’t know what it is.”

“It’s your husband!”

Tubbo sighed, “yeah, but you kinda need to tell me what to do ta- ya know- deal with it??”

Tommy rolled his eyes and shrugged, “I mean you have a kid right?”

Ranboo finally let out a little vwoop, glaring at the two’s heads.

“Sorry.” Tubbo mumbled.

“Just treat him like any other kid.” Tommy suggested.

Tubbo nodded confusedly and walked over to Ranboo, not looking up at Ranboo, “hey, big man, let’s sit on the ground, okay?”

Ranboo glanced down then carefully sat down, pulling his legs close to himself.

Tubbo smiled and laid on the ground, “you have no clue what being little is, huh?”

Ranboo shook his head.

“Well, neither do I. Tommy!” Tubbo got up and gestured for Tommy to sit down.

Tommy gave Tubbo a face then sat down in front of Ranboo. “Fine, fine.”

Tubbo smiled, “I’ll go get us food.”

Tommy and Ranboo just sat near each other for a bit, until Tommy spoke up, “sooo- regression.”

Ranboo mumbled something against the plush.

Tommy sighed and set his bag to the side and started unpacking it, “what’s a good way to phrase this... okay, okay, so you know how like, we all cope with the ssstuff that happened on the smp. The usually coping method is you know making a new country. Wonder what that says about Karl... anyway! A probably like- better one is what you’re doing, which is called, you guessed it, age regression!”

Ranboo was too tired to guess anything, trying to find a comfy spot to sit, but the floor was stone so that wasn’t happening.

“It’s like- you feel like a kid and you act like one? And it helps?” Tommy scrunched up his face, then shrugged, “Wilbur did it before... you know and like. It did calm him down some. He was really fun too, like how a puppy is fun for like the first 10 minutes, but drag it out for- I don’t know? An hour? Who cares, you get what I’m saying.”

Ranboo has absolutely no clue what Tommy was saying and just nodded, scooting closer for comfort.

Tommy rolled his eyes in mock annoyance and got close enough for Ranboo to lean on him, which he did. Tubbo came up with a bunch of crackers and things to go with it, “yooo?”

Tommy shrugged with his free shoulder and held out his hands for the food.

Tubbo set the plate in front of the two.

Tommy looked over at Ranboo, “we should get you regression things.”

Ranboo shook his head, “no nee’.”

Tommy rolled his eyes, “do.”

“No”

“You do.”

“M-m.”

“Ranboooo, come on, big man. You can’t tear your plushies to shreds.”

Ranboo pulled his mouth far away from where he was biting it, pouting and whining.

Tommy snorted, “you know I’m right.”

Ranboo shook his head, “won’ b’ b’b.”

“Huh.” Tubbo asked mid bite.

“You’re almost definitely going to be a baby again. We should be prepared for that, at least a little bit, you know?”

Ranboo stuffed his face in the plush again, “nooooo-“

Tommy huffed, “why not?”

“Go’a ‘tay biiig!” Ranboo bounced on of his legs.

Tommy shrugged, “you really don’t have to. Tubbo and I and like- your other friends can help watch you whenever.”

“Listen, if it helps you, poggers man.”

Ranboo made a loud screech and threw his plush to the wall, then ran over to his bed, getting on it and hiding under the blanket.

Tommy and Tubbo both stopped mid everything and watched Ranboo, confused as to why he was suddenly so agressive.

Tubbo took the grass plush and set it next to Ranboo on the bed. Ranboo got out of the blanket to take it and put the blanket back over. Tubbo sat in that spot and gently laughed as Ranboo immediately hugged him around the stomach. Tommy sighed and went over to the other side of Ranboo’s bed, “we’ll talk about it when you’re big. For now... how old you feel, big man?”

Ranboo shrugged and hugged Tommy’s arm, trying to hug both and the plush. Tommy messed up Ranboo’s hair, “you seem like a tiny little toddler.”

Tubbo smiled and rubbed Ranboo’s ring, “sooo, just about carrying age?”

Ranboo very audibly gasped and held his arms out.

Tubbo snorted, picking Ranboo up carefully, “there we go.”

Ranboo was immediately almost bouncing out of Tubbo’s grip out of joy. He babbled and vwooped out something neither one of them knew, but both cooed at the cute noise.

Ranboo kept babbling, pointing at things and telling them about whatever he felt like, trying to gesture to further elaborate, but at some point Tommy gave him a rattle (made from a little jar, beads, and a stick) and Ranboo gave up trying to make sense in favor of making as much noise as he could. Tubbo tried to respond as well as possible. Ranboo just enjoyed them both listening, almost talking himself back to sleep.

Tommy helped get Ranboo back in bed, “now I’m gonna get you more little toys, got it?”

Ranboo let out a good whine before shoving his face back into the grass plush.

Tubbo sighed and pet Ranboo, “you cool with me staying here?”

Ranboo nodded and gestured to Tommy with his shoulder, still nodding.

Tubbo took a breath, “we’ll be downstairs if you need anything. I’ll send Enderchest up.”

Ranboo let out a happy vwoop before genuinely trying to sleep.

“Night big man.” Tommy mumbled.

Tubbo pet Ranboo more, “Night, Ranboo. Love you.”

#agere tubbo #agere ranboo #agere tommyinnit #agere mcyt #little!ranboo #cg!tubbo #cg!tommyinnit #agere dsmp #jade writes

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starsheild · 3 years

Text

AU August 3rd- Royalty

Jazz is the creation of the clan leaders. Close as you get to royalty for them. So there. :)

Jazz couldn’t say that he was terribly pleased with his current predicament, but he supposed there were far worse things he could be dealing with at the moment. Bonding had not been on his processor at all, except perhaps under the classification of ‘things he didn’t want to think about right now’. His choice in the matter had come to an abrupt end when the priests had visited to deliver their blessing on his clan.

Standing with his origin and his twin, he had been eager for the upcoming Boon that would be gracing their clan. As chief of their clan his orginator had been painted first, the swirling tattoos of blessing and protection flowing from brush to the armor under the skillful servo of the priest.

Rico had been next, and Jazz had bowed his helm when they had come to him, only to have a hand under his chin lifting his face. He had found himself staring into the priests visor, and startled as the mech had actually smiled at him gently.

“Greetings, blessed receiver of the Boon.”

Jazz’s jaw had dropped, Rico had gasped, and Punch had looked shocked and pleased at the same time.

His gaze drifted down to his hands, studying the swirls that covered his servos. Different from any that had ever graced his frame, his optics traced the lines as he still tried to process what was going on. The mech was nice, so Rico had said, and easy on the optics as well. Jazz had seen the Boons of past seasons, and he hoped.

“Scared?”

Jazz looked over at his twin. “Wouldn’t ya be?”

“Would.” Rico agreed softly, moving closer, comforting his twin as best he could in public.

“Ori’s wit’m now?” Jazz asked, trying to distract himself and Rico nodded.

“Should be ‘ere any time. E’ryone else is waitin’ ta. Don’ worry-.”

Whatever else Rico had been going to say was cut off as the music and chanting heralded the arrival of the Boon.

Gathering himself, Jazz stepped from the alcove where he had been waiting, walking with Rico to stand before the waiting preist, and was finally graced with the first sign of his intended.

His vents caught. Rico hadn’t been lying. The mech was looker, and it was a bit of comfort that he looked just as unsure as Jazz was about all of this. Punch guided the Boon forward with a gentle servo, murmuring softly.

The mech’s blue optics swept from side to side as he walked forward, taking in all of those gathered. The entire of clan Tempest, gathered to welcome the Boon, the newest of their clan, and to celebrate the blessing.

Friends, family, kin, to Jazz.

Terrifying strangers to this poor mech.

Jazz could see the nanoklik it because too much.

The Praxian’s optics flashed bright then dark, nd he fell.

***

Prowl’s helm ws fuzzy. His frame ached. He processor sluggishly tried to recall what had happened. The chief, Punch, had informed him that he was to bonded, immediately. To one of his own creations, no less.

Being guided to the ceremony, still in shock as he tried to process it all. Then all of the gathered mechanisms, the strangers staring at him, cheering. The priest standing at the far end of the hall. The dark framed Rico, and the tattooed stranger standing with him, looking so similar.

It had been too much.

Soft music entered his awareness and helped him to start to focus, and his optics onlined to the stranger. The music was coming from the small harp in his hands, fingers moving over the strings creating the gently medley that Prowl was finding both comforting and soothing.

The tune drew to an end, then a klik of silence. “How ya feelin’?”

A question, voiced as softly as the tune.

“I ache.” Prowl admitted quietly.

“Processor hurtin’ ya?”

“Yes.”

The harp was set aside, traded for a large cube before the mech turned to face Prowl, holding it out slowly. “Ori thought it would be. Made this fer ya. It’s good fer crashes.”

Prowl wilted at the words, shrinking in on himself. He had not had an episode in vorns, until- his vents stuttered. The gentle touch to his helm startled his optics back on, looking into the others visor.

“Easy now. It’s okay. Drink.”

Prowl vented and obeyed, the first few sips going down awkwardly then, then easier bit by bit as he consumed more.

“Thank you.” He sighed, more than a little amazed at how much better was feeling.

“Sit up?” The mech offered, and then helped Prowl upright when Prowl nodded. “I’m Jazz, ‘cause no one told ya yet.”

“I am Prowl.” Prowl offered in return, finding his equilibrium. “I am.. sorry.”

“Nothin’ ta be sorry for.” Jazz countered, offering Prowl the rest of the cube and retreating to the chair he had occupied before. “We know this ain’t easy fer ya’ll, when ya come. Been talk ‘o changin’ things, but nothin’s ever come ‘o it.”

“Changing things?” Prowl repeated, helm tiliting.

“Havin’ the Boon bond soon as they arrive. Old tradition. Ori might force somethin’ after this.”

“I am sorry.”

“Not yer fault.” Jazz repeated. “Ya crashed. Ori figured ya it ws jus’ too much fer ya.”

“It… was.” Prowl agreed. “It has happened before. I am not always sure what is going to trigger, but high stress is a common factor.”

“We still gotta go through with the ceremony, but Ori’s already said it’ll jus’ be us ‘n the priest. The rest ‘o the clan can wait ta meet ya.” Jazz said.

“Us?”

“You, me, Rico, Ori, and the priest.” Jazz confirmed. “Then we’ll get ya home, and ya can really rest.”

“When?”

“When yer ready.”

Prowl vented softly, focusing inward for a klik, processing his fate. Or… his future. He could be positive about this. After everything that had happened, these mecha had been kind and considerate, as much as strangers could be. He could not go back. There was no way to go but forward.

And forward was apparently the mech sitting before him.

“I am ready.”

#AU August 2021 #J/P #RoughWrite #Offering

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writesowhatnext · 4 years

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please don’t touch the artwork // fred weasley

Summary: Beauxbatons!reader has a thing for Fred – something their friends won’t let them forget.

Request: Hi, I’m not sure if you’re taking requests right now. But I have an idea for a Fred Weasley x reader where this takes place in the goblet of fire, and the reader is from Beauxbatons. Her friends keep teasing her whenever Fred flirts with her. Again I apologize if ur not doing requests rn ahhh

A/N: It took me forever to start this because I couldn’t decide whether French would help oml

Reader: female, Beauxbatons

Warnings: swearing I suppose

You had absolutely no intention of putting your name in the goblet of fire. All you wanted, if not just a holiday and a break from all the schoolwork Beauxbatons threw at you, was an English boy. Your friends, who were more enamoured with the French offerings of romance, thought you were crazy. Whilst you had to admit that French people did tend to be extremely attractive, and you were inclined to include yourself in that bracket, there was something about British guys that attracted you beyond belief. It was hard to explain to your friends why you wanted someone witty and funny; it was harder to explain why you thought Fred Weasley might be just that. And for your complete inability to explain, you were teased mercilessly.

Fred, as you learnt his name was, had caught your eye. When you first danced your way into Hogwarts’ great hall, you looked over the four tables of students with an excited nervousness. The nervousness seemed to fade away when you made eye contact with a ginger boy at the table with a red banner above it. He had a twin opposite him, who was hooting and clapping along with the rest of the students. He wasn’t clapping though; he just stared at you with a handsome smile. You bit your lip, looking away from his stare. When you looked back, though, he was still staring, completely unabashed. To say you were intrigued would’ve been the definition of an understatement.

“George,” Fred said, loud enough for George to hear over the music and his own cheering.

“Yeah, Fred?”

Both brothers stared at the Beauxbatons students. George’s eyes flicked from girl to girl; he made a face as one student he focused on turned out to be a boy but continued with his admiring anyway. Fred’s eyes, though, remained solely on you.

“There’s a girl over there-“

“There’s a lot of girls over there.”

“-And I’m going to make her mine.”

It took him less than twenty-four hours to come and find you. You’d been at the breakfast table with the other Beauxbatons students. Granted it didn’t take a detective to find you, but you were still surprised to see him saunter over, the shouts of his friends, and twin, behind him. Your friends’ chatter and laughing stopped when he got closer, all of you confused. You wondered why he was staring straight at you, remembering him from the day before.

“Bonjour,” he said smiling with his hands held behind his back. He seemed to be both aware and indifferent to how awkward and extremely British his French was and you couldn’t help but smile. Your friends laughed and you were glad when he didn’t seem offended by their giggling, he didn’t seem to even notice.

“Salut,” you replied, biting your lip to hide your smile. He nodded and then quickly looked down at the palm of his hand before looking back at you.

“Vous êtes belle.”

You felt your face heat up at his words, your friends’ giggles not helping. Somehow his clunky pronunciation and cheeky grin made the compliment even sweeter and you found your heart swelling a little that he was trying to impress you.

“Je suis Y/N.”

He frowned for a moment as if unprepared before his red eyebrows disappeared into his hairline. They drew downward again as he tried to figure out how to respond.

“Fred,” he nodded, hoping you’d understand – Hermione had only taught him how to compliment and he was frankly surprised he that he’d even got that far.

“Alors, merci, Fred.”

When you smiled at him, he swore he fell for you right there and then. His cheeks felt like they were going to burst as he mirrored your grin. He only snapped out of it when your friends started laughing at the both of you, with you grinning at each other like fools.

“Alright, well,” he tongued his cheek, wiping his leg with his hands. “See you later, then.”

“Bien sûr,” you muttered, biting your lip, smiling as the whole Beauxbatons table descended into hysterical laughter. As Fred raced back to his friends, you saw smudged black ink on his hand and you found your smile growing even wider.

You had a habit of seeing Fred in the corridors that next week. Nearly always from far away, you’d meet each other’s eyes and wave, sometimes he’d wink, and every time, your friends would giggle. He’d grown accustomed to their teasing; it didn’t bother him at all. He would’ve liked, though, to see you on your own – seemingly an impossible task. It wasn’t until before the champions announcement that he actually spoke to you again. You were stood by your table, talking to your friend, debating who would be picked for the tournament. You didn’t see him approach but familiar laughing from some of the girls sitting down gave you an inkling; you looked up to see Fred, smiling.

You excused yourself to your friend, crossing your arms loosely as you turned toward him. He cleared his throat, sending you a smile before fishing a ripped-up piece of parchment from his robes.

“Je pense-“

“Fred,” you said, stepping closer with a breathy laugh. Your hand hovered over his forearm. He didn’t seem to mind that you interrupted him, a smile lifting his cheeks at your closer proximity. “I speak English.”

“Oh, brilliant,” he sighed in relief, scrunching up the paper and throwing it over his shoulder. “Thanks for that; I bet your friends would’ve loved my little speech. Probably think I’m a right muppet.”

You couldn’t argue with him there.

“Ignore them. They are- how you say- arseholes?”

His smile grew at your words and it wasn’t long until you were both standing there, grinning at each other, again.

“You just get better, don’t you?”

You felt your face heat up and you hoped he didn’t notice how nervous he made you. Looking up at him to see his shit-eating grin, you realised he definitely did.

“I was wondering if you wanted to go to the Yule Ball?”

You raised your eyebrows.

“With me, I mean.”

You let out a chuckle, pursing your lips at his slightly flustered expression.

“Avec moi-“ you heard your friend mimicking him behind you. With your mood souring slightly, you whipped around to face her, hitting her on the back of the head with your outstretched palm.

“Ta gueule!” you hissed, earning a teasing ‘ooh’ from the other students. You rolled your eyes, turning back to Fred.

You expected him to be put out by the mocking or your rudeness, but instead, he was staring at you with wide eyes, his lips parted in awe.

“Sorry,” you said sheepishly, running your hand up your arm nervously.

“Blimey, don’t be.”

Fred wet his lips with his tongue, smirking as your eyes widened and you remembered what he’d asked you.

“Oh! Yes,” you nodded. “I would love to go with you.”

He nodded, too, and you noticed his eyes flick down to your lips. You couldn’t help but smile.

“Sorry,” he crossed his arms cockily and you had to enjoy how confident he was. “I’m just enjoying the view.”

A laugh escaped your throat as a strange murmur filled the hall and people began to rush to sit down. You looked around, your mouth opening as you turned back to Fred. He was still staring at you.

“Oi, Fred!” his twin yelled from his table. Fred didn’t reply and you couldn’t help the amusement that twitched at your lips.

“I just need another minute,” he said, more to you than his twin.

“Y/N,” your friend pulled on your arm.

More and more people began to take their seats, with their headmaster, Dumbledore, walking to the front of the hall. And still, you and Fred stood there, staring at each other. It became more of a joke the longer you stood there; with both lots of your friends calling you to move. When nearly everyone was sat down, he huffed, tutting before walking backwards to his table. You sat down, still facing him.

“See you,” you said, wiggling your fingers in a wave.

“Oh, definitely.”

When he sat down, George nudged him with his shoulder.

“You stared at that poor girl for about ten bloody minutes-“

“Boy, is she worth staring at.”

The other Gryffindors set off in a round of laughter and jesting before Dumbledore began his speech and the whole hall fell silent. Whilst the tournament champions should’ve been interesting, Fred was much more interested in your profile. Throughout the announcement, he watched you with a smile, his grin growing when your eyes met his.

#fred weasley x reader #fred weasley #fred weasley imagine #imagine #writing #harry potter #Harry Potter imagine

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avengershumanresources · 3 years

Text

blood 2 - Strange/Stark!Reader

Relationship: Dr. Strange/Princess!Stark!Reader

Rating: M

Warnings: Adult Themes, eventual smut (like, wayyy down the line), adult language, implied sexual violence, general violence

Synopsis: Reader is the daughter of the legendary King Anthony Stark, Uniter of Lands, The Iron Defender, and leader of the realm. When the king disappears during battle, hope is lost and he is presumed dead.

When the late king’s uncle, Obadiah, takes the throne until your brother Peter is of age, he quickly arranges a marriage for you with a wicked king in a neighboring kingdom.

With the realms politics in question, and rumors of an upcoming siege to overthrow Peter’s rule before it starts, you quickly learn who is loyal to the crown and who is not.

part 1 - part 3

Masterlist

Chapter Playlist

2 - a night at the pub

You parted from Stephen the moment you saw Natalia and James in the crowd at the pub. They were sipping from large beer steins, listening to a bard sing a sorrowful song about the death of the great Iron Defender.

When the music ended and the pub applauded, the entertainer switched to something more upbeat to soothe the mood.

“A bit sentimental for you two, isn’t it?” you asked, pulling back your cloak. Stephen had transfigured your overbearing mourning garb into something that would better fit in the village.

“How on earth did you slip out tonight?” James asked in surprise, brows raised to his hairline. “I would’ve though t they’d have had you under lock and key.”

“Everyone’s a bit... distracted, believe it or not,” you replied coolly, taking a seat at their table toward the back of the room.

“So we hear,” Natalia leaned in. “Any news of the next king? I have a wager with the barkeep’s wife.”

“Anthony has an uncle who still lives,” Stephen supplied, taking a seat at your side. “Or so my companions informed me. Until Peter is of age, he would be the presumptive heir.”

“What do we know about him?” Natalia asked quietly, lowering her head conspiratorially.

“Nothing,” you replied with a long sigh. “He’s been at the winter palace my whole life.”

“Nothing suspicious about that,” James shrugged and took a swallow of his drink. “Nat, what do ya think about Asgard this time of year?”

“Stop up James,” the redhead nudged her companion and returned her attention to you and Stephen. “And if he doesn’t give up the job in six months?”

“He is removed,” Stephen replied bluntly.

“Yikes, you’re scary, did you know that?” James murmured.

“I’ve been told,” the sorcerer grunted, flagging down a barmaid for a drink. He could already tell it was going to be a long night.

“Don’t forget, you owe me,” you reminded him.

“Lose a bet?” Natalia asked in amusement, eye rating between the duo.

“I caught him enchanting my tea without permission,” you replied.

“Uh oh, broke the one rule,” Natalia mused, watching Strange for a reaction.

“It was a protection spell, hardly worth mentioning, I cast them over the princess all the time,” he snorted under his breath.

“All the time?” James asked in a voice low enough that only Stephen could hear.

“That’s dangerous conjecture, Barnes,” Stephen warned. “My responsibilities include keeping my student, who happens to be the princess, safe.”

“If we were being honest, if I were kidnapped or traded away, it wouldn’t do much to the kingdom,” you reasoned, eagerly grabbing the first mug of ale before Stephen could take a sip. He waved a hand over the drink, ensuring it hadn’t been poisoned, before you took a long swallow. “Peter is the one who has to stay safe. Who knows where we’d be without a true heir?”

“You know that’s ridiculous,” Nat snorted. “Gods, you’re so dramatic sometimes.”

“My father’s funeral was today, give me a little sympathy,” you huffed in response, taking another swig of your drink.

“To King Anthony,” James stood up, his voice bellowing through the pub. You ducked your head down into Stephen’s shoulder while onlookers cheered and joined in the toast. “May he rest in peace!”

The pub shouted in response, with steins clinking against one another and another song starting up.

“We’re trying to draw attention away from the princess, you oaf,” Natalia muttered tersely toward James.

“Who would be looking for her here?” the brunette assassin shrugged. “Besides, no one would be able to slip past the three of us.”

Stephen snorted under his breath, giving the room a quick glance to ensure any unwanted attention hadn’t been drawn toward them. James did have a point. Someone in hiding would seldom encourage a room to drink.

Besides, he looked over at you laughing over something Natalia had said, you were genuinely smiling for the first time in weeks. The risk was worth a little relief.

He nursed at his drink while you signaled for another round for yourself and your friends. Stephen did well to avoid becoming drunk in your presence, mostly for your protection, but also as a means of avoiding embarrassing himself in front of you.

The last thing he needed was you armed with an artillery of teasing that he couldn’t even recall.

As the booze flowed and the music picked up, James grabbed your hand and pulled you to the center of the room, dancing with some of the villagers to the upbeat song.

Stephen watched, almost transfixed by the way you spun and twirled so lightheartedly to the sounds. As if you hadn’t a care in the world, and your life was back to the simpler time when he’d first met you.

“You’re drooling a little,” Natalia chuckled over his shoulder.

Stephen’s head whipped around, unconsciously wiping at his mouth before scowling at the nosy redhead.

“What are you talking about?” he asked, doing his best to keep his composure under her hard gaze.

“It’s nothing to be embarrassed of,” she hummed, eyes falling where you and James continued your antics. “You’ve seen the man I’ve dedicated myself to.”

“You know the oaths I have to take,” he murmured.

“Aren’t you the one in charge of said oaths?” she challenged coyly. “I’d never understood your antiquated ways. I would argue that loving another gives you more reason to stay dedicated to your craft.”

She had a point, Stephen reasoned to himself. The ways he’d worked to ensure your protection, the kingdom’s protection, and the advancement of his knowledge at your urging was beyond any work he’d done on his own at Kamar-Tai.

Still, the distractions. The liabilities.

By the Vishanti, if an enemy were to ever get their hands on you… oaths be damned. He’d burn the world to the ground to ensure your safety, and that was the problem.

“She’s going to marry a prince, and have kings and queens as babies,” Stephen replied coolly. "We have our roles and our duties.”

“I’m sure you wouldn’t mind giving her a few babies,” Natalia smirked up at him, laughing when his face went as scarlet as her hair.

“Regardless,” his voice cracked slightly, adding even more to the embarrassment when Natalia quirked a brow. “I would need permission from the king to consider breaking my oaths and wedding a princess.”

“Oh, you’d marry her? That’s a new development,” she replied, eyes falling behind him while you and James returned.

“I’m going to need another ale,” you complained, staring down the empty mug after chugging down your second drink.

“You’re going to need to watch how much you drink,” Stephen replied. “Remember last time. The hungover elixir only works so well.”

“You have a hangover elixir?” James asked. “Gods, I’d murder a man for one of those. Maybe it’s time I go to Kamar-Taj. Find my true purpose.”

“Don’t look at me,” Stephen held up a hand. “Wong is the one who brews it. He claims it’s an old family recipe.”

“Might have to pay Master Wong a visit tonight,” James stated, sliding a pair of fresh ales toward you and Natalia. “This one’s on me.”

“Are you going to tell me which lord you stole the coin from?” you asked, sipping at the drink before Stephen could check its contents.

“It’s the one with the wart on his nose,” James snickered behind his drink. “I picked him specifically because you mentioned he beats his wife.”

“He’s getting another visit from the Widow in a few nights,” Natalia added with a wicked grin.

“I don’t pity the man-,” you started coughing, trying to clear your throat. “-Ah, excuse me-!”

Caught in a fit of coughs, Stephen’s focus became you. You couldn’t catch a breath, even when he tapped your back, and you hadn’t had anything to eat- the ale. A wave of his hand confirmed the liquid had been tampered with.

“Find out who served that ale,” he demanded the assassins, grabbing your arm and hauling you outside of the pub.

You gasped for air, clutching at your throat while he drew up a portal back to the observatory. If this was what was happening with the protection enchantment in your system, he hesitated to think of the alternative.

Scooping you up, he stepped through and situated you on one of the chaise’s strewn throughout the room.

He thumbed through his collection of vials before finding a generic antidote and opening your mouth to pour the liquid in.

It worked- kind of. You were able to take a few shallow breaths, but your eyes rolled back and you collapsed, falling back against the chaise.

This was literally his worse case scenario. Everything he’d been afraid of, because he’d let you convince him to go out, and because he’d distracted himself with his conversation with Natalia.

He summoned a spell book, fingers finding the page he recalled from his apprentice days. It was written to purge someone of any toxic entities within them, be it poison or dark magic. Moving his hands through the air and reciting the runes, your body was overtaken by a wisp of winding yellow light.

It threaded itself through you, eventually hitting the source of the poison in your chest and pulling the toxic liquid free in a cloud of rancid black smoke. That was peculiar. Generally such a reaction was associated with dark magic rather than a consumed poison.

Poison was usually a dark red or green.

You stirred the moment the spell had finished its work. Taking a deep breath and clearing your throat, you looked to Stephen in wide-eyed horror.

“I was wrong,” you stated, hand to your chest.

“How do you feel?”

“I’m not dying,” you answered quickly. “Stephen, I am so sorry… I underestimated my… wait, Peter.”

Stephen understood your meaning immediately. He instructed you to stay within the safety of the observatory and opened a portal to the outside of the prince’s chambers.

The knights on guard jumped at the sudden appearance of the sorcerer, who took no time for pleasantries.

“An attempt was made on the princess’ life,” he informed the duo. “Have you heard any disturbance from the prince?”

“No one has been in or out since the prince retired,” Sir Samuel informed him, looking to Sir Clinton with a shrug. “He hasn’t made a noise.”

Just as Samuel finished his sentence, there was a loud crash from within the room.

The guards charged in, finding the prince in a struggle with a masked man. The prince was doing his best to fight off the dagger brandishing assassin, kicking him in the chest when he was distracted by the entrance of the guards.

When the assassin realized he was outnumbered, Stephen saw his hands move rapidly to open a portal, and before anyone could intervene, he was gone.

“Your highness!” Samuel rushed to the prince’s side while Stephen ignited the candles in the room with a snap of his fingers. “Are you injured?”

“Sir Clinton, get to the queen and Princess Morgan,” Peter ordered after catching his breath. He looked to Stephen. “And the older princess?”

“Safe,” came the sorcerer’s response.

“You said an attempt was made on her life,” Samuel retorted.

“A what?” Peter glared up at the sorcerer.

“I took care of it, she is safe,” Stephen assured him. “Are you injured, your highness?”

“I’m fine,” he brushed off the two men and stood up. “I want the guard awoken and informed of what has happened.”

He turned to Stephen.

“I want the wards reconstructed around the castle,” he continued. “I don’t trust the foundations of previous Masters. If you must call in sorcerers from Kamar-Taj, we will provide what they need.”

“Sir, your great uncle is due to arrive in a fortnight,” Samuel reminded him. “Shall we inform the convoy of the attempts on the royal family?”

Peter looked to Stephen with a frown. One of the young king’s first major decisions.

“Let’s address the question in the morning,” he decided. “I want to know my family is safe.”

As if on cue, Queen Virginia and Princess Morgan were led into the room by Sir Clinton and Sir Steven.

“Peter,” the queen pulled the prince into a relieved embrace. “Clint told us what had happened.”

“I recommend we reconvene in the throne room,” Steven suggested with a nervous glance around the chambers.

“The wards are strongest there,” Stephen agreed with a curt nod. “I’ll go retrieve the princess.”

He returned to the observatory and found you sitting, staring down at the floor in deep thought.

“Princess?” he called softly. You leapt up at his voice, hurrying over.

“Are they safe?”

“Peter was attacked, but he fought the assassin off,” Stephen informed her.

“And mother? And Morgan?” you bit your bottom lip anxiously.

“Safe,” he confirmed.

You let out a relieved sigh, your hands trembling slightly at your sides.

“Sir Steven suggested we go to the throne room to discuss our next options,” he offered his arm and she took it gratefully.

He hoped she didn’t feel his own tremors. His own panic at the thought of losing her. The aftershocks of their new reality and his worst nightmare.

“I won’t allow this to happen again,” he promised her quietly.

“It wasn’t your fault,” you assured him, your voice was shaky. “I was hurting, and whoever did this, acted on our vulnerabilities. I’d been selfish to hide in the village when I should have been by my family.”

“You slipped up once,” he countered, slowing his pace down the hall. He could have easily drawn a portal to the room, but he figured you both needed some time to manage your emotions. “You’re human. We make mistakes. It just happened we both made a mistake at the same time tonight. I wouldn’t have allowed you to go if I hadn’t been confident in my judgement of the situation.”

Your hand trailed down to his and you gave it a squeeze.

“Thank you Stephen,” you murmured, holding on a moment longer before replacing it on his arm.

He felt his heart give a small throb at the minute action, his fingers left tingling, and not from the damage from the accident.

“Always at your pleasure, your highness.”

(---)

3 - a new day

TAG LIST (Message to be added to this fic or my general tag list!):

@ayamenimthiriel @drstrangely-strange-deactivated @ladynothing @im-a-bi-disaster-help @idkwhatthisislol

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littlelovelyspiderling · 4 years

Text

The Competition

I’d say oops part 3 but these are so fun to write and bring me such joy that I’m gonna stop apologizing for it haha

The avatar gang competes to see who can get Zuko to laugh first. Adorableness ensues.

word count: 8116

__________________________

“Zuko doesn’t emote much, does he?”

Katara was staring at the young Fire Nation prince as she said it. He was lying against Appa, fully asleep even though the sun had only set an hour ago. She had noticed that, if circumstances permitted it, Zuko tended to rise and fall with the sun, waking at sunrise before anyone else to meditate in the soft morning glow, then nodding off quickly after the last whispers of light had vanished behind the horizon. Perhaps it had something to do with fire benders’ dependency on the sun: the way it fueled their strength and abilities, just as she drew power from the moon.

Whatever the reason, it was amusing—the way he conked out like a baby polar leopard long before anyone else in the group had even considered turning in for the night.

Sokka scoffed, tearing eagerly into a strip of salmon jerky. “Are you kidding me?” he said between bites. “The guy yells every other sentence that leaves his mouth. How is that not emotive?”

“He does have a bit of a temper,” Aang admitted, shooting an anxious glance in Zuko’s direction before continuing. “But it’s something he’s told me he’s working on. I think being angry is like his base temperature, so we should try to be patient with him.”

Aang grinned enthusiastically. Katara shook her head.

“I know he’s good at expressing his anger. I guess I meant emoting in more...positive ways. He barely ever smiles, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard him laugh before.” She stared at him sullenly. “Do you think he’s all right?”

The rest of the group followed her gaze to the slumbering teenager. The campfire in the center of their circle rose and fell with his steady breathing.

“He does have a lot going on, what with the having to betray his nation and leave his home and help Aang defeat his dad and all,” Toph pointed out. “But I think you’re reading this wrong, Katara. Maybe Zuko just doesn’t express happiness the same way we do. Maybe it’s more subtle.” She popped a berry into her mouth. “But that doesn’t mean he’s not enjoying being here with us.”

Katara crossed her arms in thought. “Yeah,” she conceded. “Maybe.” She turned back to the group with a line between her eyes. “It just...makes me sad. It’d be nice to see him be unsubtly happy for a change, wouldn’t it? I know all of your laughs and smiles by heart at this point. I feel like I’ll never know him completely until I recognize his.”

The only times Zuko ever flagrantly expressed himself were when he was shouting angrily about something or shooting awake from another horrendous nightmare, drenched in a cold sweat with tears shining in the corners of his eyes. Happy emotions were restricted to tiny smiles that vanished in a heartbeat and the slightest lift in his otherwise level voice. Katara wondered what kinds of hardships he’d endured to make him this way. What cruel forces had forged him into the teenager that slept by their side—a person who shrunk from joy like it was dangerous, poisonous.

Aang sprung to his feet suddenly, making the others wince in surprise. “Ooh, ooh!” he exclaimed excitedly. “I know what to do! We should have a competition!”

The group sat in silence for a moment. “A...competition?” Sokka parroted, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah!” Aang cheered, pointing at the still-sleeping Zuko. “Whoever can get Zuko to laugh first wins!”

The gang exchanged a look of confusion and intrigue. It was such a silly proposition.

“And I mean really laugh,” he elaborated. “Like, Sokka-after-Toph-inhaled-fire-flakes laugh.”

Sokka burst into giggles at the mention of the incident while Toph frowned at her feet. “Oho man, that was the best!” he cackled, wiping his eyes.

“Yeah, like that!” Aang continued exuberantly. “For the next few days, all of us should try to make Zuko do the Zuko-equivalent of that. And whoever gets him to do it first wins!”

Katara grinned at the idea. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t imagine what Zuko’s laugh might sound like. She needed to hear it firsthand, which would clearly require creativity on their end. Her mind was already grasping for potential leads.

“I like it,” she decided. “Are there any rules?”

Aang tapped his chin in thought. “Hmm. No telling Zuko about the competition or what we’re trying to do. That’ll spoil it. We also have to take turns trying to make him laugh—as in, you can’t try something once then immediately try something else; everyone has to go again before you get to take another stab at it. And everyone has to witness it happening and agree on the winner for it to count.”

Sokka stretched his arms over his head with a smirk. “Well then, the rest of you might as well duck out now. Everyone knows I’m the king of gut-busting jokes and sarcasm. Sokka’s got this in the bag.”

“The Air Nomads are famous for having great senses of humor,” Aang retorted cheerfully. “I’ve got an entire cultural heritage of making people laugh on my side. Don’t count me out just yet.”

Katara rolled her eyes. “You guys are so conceited. Always thinking your hilarious wit is the answer to everything.”

Aang and Sokka shared a puzzled scowl. “What’s your plan then, Miss Anti-Humor?” Sokka asked.

Katara colored. “Um, w-well—” Her eyes darted around their campsite before landing on Momo. She scooped the lemur off the ground and placed him on her head. “I’ll make him laugh with fun! See? Fun!”

Momo warbled lazily as Sokka shook his head. “You’d best leave this to the experts, Katara. Fun hasn’t ever exactly been your thing.”

Momo leapt off her head as Katara pouted. “We’ll see,” she grumbled.

“What if none of us find a way to make Zuko laugh?” Toph inquired. “What happens then?”

“Those sound like the words of someone who is going down!” Sokka cried triumphantly. Aang shrugged.

“Then I guess we just keep trying.”

Toph pursed her lips before hinting a smile. “All right. I’m in.” She polished off her handful of berries. “Oh, and I’m one hundred percent winning this thing.”

“That’s the spirit!” Aang said. He pumped his fist in the air. “The competition begins at daybreak tomorrow!”

The group settled in for the night, brainstorming their own series of elaborate, laugh-inducing schemes to test out in the morning. Zuko slept soundly, unaware of what awaited him once he woke.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You seem distracted.”

Aang blinked, his focus snapping back to the tranquil cliffside and the scowling fire bender standing in front of him.

“Oh, uh, distracted?” he said, balling his hands at his sides with an innocent smile. “No, I’m not distracted.”

“Then get it right this time,” Zuko snapped, assuming a low stance. “Kick up, recenter, then punch out. Fire comes from the breath, so exhale at the peak of your move, not a second too early or late.”

Zuko demonstrated the action again, thrusting his foot in the air, reclaiming his balance, then jabbing his fist forward, flames gliding and shooting with his movements in perfect harmony. A burst of fire exploded from his knuckles at the end of the move, sending a wave of heat washing over Aang.

Aang winced back and swallowed. “Right. I’m sure I’ll have it down in no time.” A smile seized his features. “But before I do that, I have a surprise for you!”

Zuko’s fierce expression shifted to puzzled. “What?” he said, relaxing out of his solid stance for a moment.

“Wait right there!” Aang said, then darted away, disappearing behind Appa. Zuko huffed, crossing his arms against his chest.

“If you’re trying to bribe me out of today’s lesson, it’s not going to work. You still have five sets of fire lunges to get through.”

“It’s not a bribe!” Aang’s voice insisted from afar, echoing down the cliff side. “It’s just a token of appreciation—you know, for joining the group and being such a wonderful firebending teacher.”

He reappeared with a giant grin on his face and his hands hidden behind his back. The rest of the gang sat around their campsite, looking unusually interested in Aang and Zuko’s training session.

Zuko scanned the avatar warily as he approached. Aang stopped a few feet back, chipper as always.

“Are you ready?” he asked, smiling wide.

“I guess,” Zuko deadpanned.

Aang extended his hands forward, revealing his gift. “Ta-da!” he exclaimed.

Zuko blinked. It was...a cake. Of some sort. A small, round pastry with some kind of red jelly in the center. It was surprisingly professional-looking, especially considering they were out in the woods with no markets or ovens nearby.

“I baked it for you with firebending!” Aang explained. “I even flavored the center with fire gummies so it’d taste like home.”

Zuko was taken back by the thoughtful gesture. This all felt largely unwarranted. “Um,” he said, scratching the back of his head. “Thanks? I guess?”

Aang held it out eagerly. “Go on, try it! It’s an old Air Nomad recipe. It’s really good!”

“I’ll try it after we’re done training,” Zuko said, re-assuming his power stance. “Now then—show me the move I just demonstrated for you.”

“Aw, come one,” Aang whined. “Just one bite! Please? I promise you won’t—”

Aang staggered forward suddenly, tripping over his own foot. He hoped it didn’t look too staged—like falling with the cake in his hands hadn’t been his plan all along. The alarm that crossed Zuko’s expression indicated his performance was a success. Zuko tried lunging forward to help him, but it was too late—with a yelp, Aang face-planted into his culinary creation, splattering cake and jelly at the prince’s feet.

A beat passed where Zuko just stood there, mouth agape. Then the rest of the group exploded into hysterical laughter, gripping their stomachs and doubling over themselves.

“Ohokay, that was pretty good,” Sokka admitted between giggles.

“Look at Twinkle Toes, starting things off strong,” Toph agreed.

Aang lifted his face out of the cake, letting the goo and batter slip off for a moment to enhance the effect. At the very least, he expected a smile to cross Zuko’s lips. Instead, he just looked startled.

“Aw, man,” he said, offering him a hand. “Are you okay?”

Behind the layer of flattened pastry, Aang frowned. “Yeah, of course,” he said. “I just tripped.”

“Sorry about the cake. It, uh, sounded like you worked hard on it.”

The others were still cackling like hyena bats behind them. Aang swiped his hand across his cake-covered face bemusedly. It didn’t make sense. Why wasn’t Zuko laughing?

“But don’t you think it’s funny?” he asked. “That I, you know, tripped and fell face-first into it?”

Zuko narrowed his eyes. “Do you...want me to think it’s funny?”

“Kinda! I don’t know. Everyone else does.”

The firebender wasn’t sure how to respond. “You worked hard on something, and now it’s ruined. That’s already bad enough. I didn’t want to make you feel worse.”

Aang couldn’t believe how spectacularly his plan had failed. Everything had gone perfectly except for Zuko’s reaction. This might be harder than he thought. He dropped his face back into the cake, groaning in defeat. While the others continued giggling, Zuko placed his hands on his hips.

“Let’s, uh, break from training for today. We can pick up where we left off tomorrow.”

Aang gave a halfhearted thumbs up as the prince walked away. Zuko: 1, Aang: 0.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was around lunch time when Sokka made his move. The rest of the group watched in anticipation as the next competitor approached their target.

“Hiya, Zuko!” Sokka greeted him. The teen sat by the fire pit with the others, eating a bowl of soup.

“Hi...Sokka,” he addressed him hesitantly, popping the spoon out of his mouth. “Can I help you?”

Sokka jabbed his index finger into the air. “As a matter of fact, you can! I have a very important question to ask you.”

Zuko shot dubious looks at the other members of the group before sitting up a little straighter. “Okay,” he said.

Clearing his throat, Sokka broke into a grin. “Why are firebenders always the slowest runners?”

Zuko thought on it for a moment. A frown wrinkled his features. “We are?”

“Because they get too easily burnt out!” Sokka howled, laughing wildly at his own joke, slapping his knee and hugging his belly. Zuko just stared at him, blinking his strikingly golden eyes. A few seconds later, the tiniest of smiles lifted one corner of his mouth.

“Oh, I get it,” he said. “That’s funny.”

Toph, Aang, and Katara giggled softly behind their hands—more out of pity than anything else. Sokka gawked.

“Wait—that’s it?”

Zuko tilted his head slightly. “What’s it?”

“I spent all night coming up with that joke!”

“I said it was funny,” Zuko said defensively.

“If you thought it was funny, why didn’t you laugh?”

Zuko downed the rest of his soup and shrugged sheepishly. “I’m...sorry?”

The rest of the gang snickered into their palms. Sokka groaned.

“Wait, wait—one more chance,” he pleaded, more to the others than to Zuko. Zuko had no idea why it was suddenly so important that he found Sokka’s jokes hilarious. Recovering part of his trampled dignity, Sokka coughed, then tried again.

“What do you get when you dunk Momo in a pitcher of lemon juice?”

Zuko sighed, leaning back with his hands folded behind his head. “Gee, I don’t know, Sokka. What do you get when you dunk Momo in a pitcher of lemon juice?”

Sokka’s eyebrow twitched crossly. Patronizing, much? “Lemurnade,” he muttered out. “You—you get lemurnade.”

At that, Aang cracked up, his laughter ringing like a bell. “Haha! Good one, Sokka!”

Sokka hung his head. “Thanks, Aang,” he mumbled, then sulked away, heavily chagrined. Zuko watched him go, feeling like he’d done something wrong.

“What’s his deal?” he asked the group.

“Don’t worry about it,” Toph assured him, stifling a snort. “That’s just Sokka being Sokka.”

Zuko furrowed his brow. Was it just him, or were all of them acting...strange? It felt like they were paying more attention to him than normal, and hanging on his every response to their interactions like it was life or death. Around these guys, he preferred to fade into the background rather than be center stage; they were all such good friends, and they had so much history together, whereas he...well, they had history, all right, but not exactly the good kind. He found he was perfectly content listening to them talk from the sidelines, only joining the conversation when he was directly addressed.

After lunch, the group headed to a nearby stream to wash off and cool down. Zuko stood at the edge of the riverbank, watching Momo paw at the minnows in the shallow pools between the reeds, when Katara tapped him on the shoulder.

“Hey Zuko,” she said, looking artificially high-spirited. “You want to see something fun?”

Zuko gave her a questioning look. “Fun?” he repeated, turning to face her. What is with everyone today? He hunched his shoulders. “Um...okay.”

Zuko didn’t know what he was expecting her to do—propose some kind of group activity, show off a new waterbending move, maybe—but it certainly wasn’t her placing both hands on his chest and shoving him full-force into the river. The prince yelped and flailed, teetering frantically on the edge of the bank before tipping backwards and dropping into the water with a splash. Zuko resurfaced a few seconds later, his wet hair sticking to his face, his eyes wide. Immediately, the group erupted into a chorus of laughter, making the firebender blush.

“W-what on earth, Katara?” he stammered, slicking his hair back so it wasn’t falling in his eyes. “What was that for?”

“For fun, of course!” she exclaimed nervously, as if she was trying to convince herself. “Wasn’t that fun?”

“Not really!” he growled. He clambered up the riverbank, griping and grumbling the whole time, steam rising off his thoroughly soaked clothing. The others continued to giggle at his dripping, disheveled appearance. “What part of that was supposed to be fun?”

“I thought it was pretty fun,” Sokka chuckled from the opposite side of the river. Zuko reddened beneath their stares and quickly turned away, crossing his arms tight to his chest.

“Sorry, Zuko,” Katara said. “Here.”

Using her bending, she pulled the water out of his clothes so he was dry again. Zuko scratched at his wild mess of hair, eyeing Katara thoughtfully.

After a pause, Zuko made a rash decision. His arms jerked forward before he could talk himself out of it, pushing Katara into the river, making her fall faster than she could react. She hit the water with a shriek, sending waves in every direction. The rest of the group gaped.

“Hey!” Katara gasped as she broke the surface, hands balled into fists. Zuko smirked.

“I take it back. You’re right, Katara. That is pretty fun.”

The others laughed again, and Katara eventually joined them, drawing the water from her hair and flinging it playfully at Zuko. Zuko flinched back with a smile, but that was the closest she got: still no progress on the laughing end. Not even the tiniest giggle.

It looked like The Water Tribe siblings had struck out as well.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Toph’s decision to strike at night had been her plan from the start. Laughter always flowed more organically after dark, after all. The more tired you were, the more funny things seemed—even things that arguably weren’t that funny in the first place.

The light from their campfire gilded the group in an orange sheen. Zuko blinked sleepily, watching the flames lap toward the night sky, his golden eyes reflecting the glow in an arrestingly brilliant way. She waited until his heartbeat began to slow before executing her plan. While Sokka studied a map of the Fire Nation, Katara charted the stars, and Aang scratched Momo’s tummy, Toph rose to her feet.

“Watch this,” she said out of nowhere. Then she pounded her heel into the ground, causing the earth underneath Sokka to jump up like a spring, shooting him high into the air. Sokka screamed in surprise, bounced between the branches of a nearby tree, then crashed to the ground with a grunt.

Katara and Aang’s jaws dropped open. Spitting and sputtering, Sokka scrambled to his hands and knees in a befuddled fury. “Toph!” he screeched, leaves and twigs sticking out of his hair.

Toph busted out laughing while everyone just stared. When she realized no one else was joining her, her giggles gradually petered away.

“What? You guys didn’t think that was funny?”

“It was certainly...surprising?” Aang ventured to say.

“A bit violent, though,” Katara added.

“A bit?” Sokka cried, wagging his arms through the air. “She catapulted me into a tree!”

Toph snorted. “Well I thought it was hilarious. Zuko?”

All eyes turned to gauge the prince’s reaction. They were stunned to see his body slack and his head lolled to one side. Their resident firebender was out cold, sleeping peacefully.

With a huff, Toph flopped to the ground. “Are you kidding me? That was some of my best material!”

“Wow,” Aang mused, resting his chin on his kneecaps. “I can’t believe how big of a bust today was.”

“Seriously! I laughed at everything everyone tried with him! All of us are objectively hilarious, but still nothing!” Sokka jabbed an angry finger at Toph before she could respond. “Not you, Toph. I’m going to be picking bugs out of my hair for weeks!” He slumped to the ground, gazing at Zuko through the flickering tongues of the fire. “Man! What’s it gonna take to get this guy to laugh?”

Toph shrugged. “Maybe I was right. Maybe laughing just isn’t the way he expresses happiness.”

“That can’t be true,” Katara stated indignantly. “We’ve just got to keep trying. Maybe in Fire Nation culture, royalty aren’t allowed to laugh or something, and he’s still stuck in that mindset. All we need to do now is find the right way to draw him out of it.”

“First dancing is outlawed, now laughing?” Sokka slapped his forehead. “Why is the Fire Nation so obsessed with destroying all things fun?”

Toph swirled her finger in the air. “Or maybe you’re all just not as funny as you think you are.”

While Sokka viciously protested Toph’s proposal, Aang narrowed his eyes and stuck out his bottom lip. “If we’re determined to make Zuko laugh, we have to find out what he thinks is funny. Perhaps his sense of humor is just different from ours.” Aang smiled at his friends. “Don’t worry, guys. I have a plan.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Zuko yawned and rubbed his eyes as he strolled up the quiet hillside. The grass shivered in the cool breeze and the sky was a painting of pinks and purples and blues.

Morning meditation was a drag sometimes, but it helped him clear his head, reorient his senses, and tame his inner fire. Plus, after his haunting betrayal in Ba Sing Se, it was one of the only ways he could still feel connected to his uncle. Uncle was the person who taught him the value of disciplined meditation—a practice he hadn’t realized wasn’t widely exercised among firebenders until he was older. Rather, it was actually an Air Nomad tradition Iroh had picked up and passed on to his nephew.

Sticking to his uncle’s mindful regime didn’t make Zuko feel better about what he’d done, but...it was something. A small memento to Iroh’s unconditional kindness and wisdom that he could maintain, even if he never got the chance to redeem himself.

As Zuko rounded the crown of the hill, he was surprised to see smoke rising from their campsite. The others were usually still asleep by the time he got back. He heard chatter and the sound of something hissing over the fire. A wave of smells washed over him that was oddly familiar—warm, spicy, nostalgic.

“Zuko!” Aang cried once the prince stepped into view. The sleepy prince was shirtless and wore pants that cut off just above his kneecaps. He tended to run hot, being a firebender and all, so it wasn’t an unusual sight. The others popped up excitedly and grinned, as if they’d been waiting for him.

“What’s going on?” Zuko asked, kneading the heel of one hand into his eye. He sniffed the air and frowned. “Are you...cooking jook?”

“Yeah! And ash banana bread!” Katara presented a hefty portion of each for him. “Aang swung by the market at the base of the mountain and found all the ingredients.”

Zuko blinked at the offering then between his four friends. “This is Fire Nation food,” he said.

“Is it!” Sokka agreed. “Well, our attempt at it, anyway.”

“You guys hate Fire Nation food,” Zuko continued skeptically. “Why are you making it?”

“Just because we hate the Fire Nation doesn’t mean we hate all Fire Nation food,” Toph said, wrinkling her nose. “Although, I think I’ll pass on the jook.”

Sokka took a large bite of banana bread. “And even if we did hate it, it doesn’t matter. You like Fire Nation food, right?”

Zuko hadn’t realized how much he’d missed the delicacies of his country until now. After weeks of eating nothing but what they could forage and hunt in the wild, his stomach ached for an authentic taste of home.

“Yeah,” he finally answered, still unsure what all this was leading to.

“Great! Because we made this for you!” Sokka slurped up a spoonful of jook and smiled wide.

Warily, Zuko accepted the bowl and the bread from Katara. He didn’t know what to say, other than—

“Why?”

Aang cocked his head to one side. “Why what?” he asked.

“Why...did you make this for me?”

The group exchanged a look, like that was the silliest question they’d ever heard. Toph chuckled.

“Because we like you, stupid. You're our friend, and we like doing things that make you happy.”

The words floated around his head for a while before seeping into his brain. Once they did, Zuko’s face flushed warm and pink. “Oh,” he said. He gazed into the steaming bowl in his hand. It looked just like the kind Uncle made for him. Where is all this coming from? he wondered. Was it something I did or said? This slew of kind gestures felt so undeserved and foreign, especially coming from the people he’d spent a significant portion of time terrorizing. A few moments later, a shy smile lifted the corners of his lips.

“Well, thanks. I’m touched.”

“Here, sit,” Sokka said, scooting over to make room. Zuko sat down beside him and took a sip from his bowl. He brightened delightedly.

“It’s great,” he said. Not as good as Uncle’s, he conceded; Iroh had a much heavier hand with the ginger. But still great—better than he could ever make. He fidgeted beneath all their attentive stares. “You guys didn’t have to do this.”

“It was a lot of trouble,” Sokka admitted, earning a whack from Katara. He winced, rubbing the fresh bump on his head. “But—ow—we were happy to do it.”

Aang floated into a sitting position on Zuko’s left, landing beside him like a leaf drifting delicately to the ground. “Speaking of happiness, I’ve been meaning to ask you: can you remember the hardest you’ve ever laughed in your life?”

It was a very bizarre and random inquiry, and didn’t seem at all like a natural segue in the conversation. But that appeared to be a theme among the avatar gang, so Zuko played along.

“Um,” he began, shifting to cross his legs on top of each other. “The hardest?” He grasped for a memory from his youth, but it was all so distant and fuzzy. Whispers and sprinkles of laughter buried beneath years of fear and obedience. Eventually, he shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe when I was little, with my mom. Or maybe with Uncle.”

He went back to his jook, thinking he’d satisfied their curiosity. Katara leaned toward him impatiently.

“Maybe that’s too specific. How about the happiest you’ve ever been? When was that?”

Zuko lowered the bowl from his lips and eyed Katara curiously. “The happiest I’ve ever been?” he repeated back.

“Yeah! Like, what period of your life would you consider the most joy-filled?”

Another unexpected question. This was getting weirdly personal. He could sense there was an end goal to all this prying, but he had yet to pinpoint it. Zuko ran the back of his hand across his mouth.

“Uh...well...again, I’m not sure.” He thought hard about it for a few seconds, trying to recall an era of his life when he’d felt happy—truly happy, for an extended length of time. “I guess I remember moments of being happy, but...not entire periods. Working at the Jasmine Dragon with Uncle was nice while it lasted. But even then, it felt kind of forced.” He nibbled at the ash banana bread. It was warm and cinnamon-y and tasted like autumn. He swallowed and hinted a smile. “But being here, helping you guys...I’d say this is the happiest I’ve ever been. Because for once in my life, I know I’m doing the right thing.”

The statement was small but sincere. As his words sunk in, the group mirrored his smile tenfold. They shared knowing looks with one another, each with the same thought in their head. So this is Zuko’s version of happy. It’s definitely different, definitely subtle, but it’s him—and it’s genuine.

Maybe Zuko didn’t laugh loudly or smile all the time. That didn’t mean he was sad or broken. He just had his own way of expressing joy. And that was okay. It was reassuring to know that Zuko was in a good place, even if he didn’t show it as obviously as the rest of them did. The competition wasn’t over yet—that was a given—but if they continued to fail, at least they knew it wasn’t because Zuko was upset or discouraged.

“Aw, Zuko—ya big softy,” Sokka teased, poking him in the ribs. To his surprise, the prince jerked away from his touch, a small yelp escaping him. Zuko turned to him bewilderedly, eyes wide. Oops, Sokka thought. Had he hurt him by accident? Maybe he had an injury he didn’t know about. He’d nearly made him drop his jook.

“Oh, sorry,” Sokka said. “Are you okay?”

Zuko clenched his jaw. “Y-yeah,” he answered quickly, rubbing at his rib cage. “You—sorry, you just startled me.”

He appeared flustered suddenly, like he was hiding something. Maybe he’d wounded himself in a really embarrassing way and didn’t want anyone else to find out about it. Sokka looked to the others for insight, but none of them seemed to have noticed Zuko’s weird reaction to his touch.

“This startled you?” he inquired suspiciously, poking him again, lower this time. Zuko responded the same way as before, flinching and squeaking like he was being electrocuted. But as Sokka watched his expression change, he realized he wasn’t wincing or grimacing in pain. Instead, a grin flashed across his face, bigger and brighter than he’d ever seen, then vanished a second later, smothered by a look of shock and anger.

“Quit it!” he snapped, hopping to his feet. He pursed his lips to keep them from turning upright.

Sokka recognized his response. He’d seen it from the kids in their Water Tribe village as they wrestled playfully with their mothers and one another. Katara, too, when they’d played as children. A devious smile gradually spread across Sokka’s face. No way, he thought.

The rest of the group looked at Zuko confusedly but shrugged it off. He yelled a lot—it wasn’t anything new. Now was Sokka’s chance.

“Aang, let’s go. Time for your firebending lesson. We’ve got a lot to catch up on.”

He was talking rapidly, eager to abscond this situation before it escalated any further. Aang let out a disappointed groan.

“Okay,” he murmured, floating to his feet. Sokka stood with him.

Oh no you don’t.

As Zuko turned to leave, Sokka ran up behind him, wrapping his arms around his midsection.

“Sorry—one more time. This startled you?”

With fiendish glee, he dug into his torso, wiggling his fingers into his belly and sides. Zuko yelped and flailed, not anticipating the surprise attack. He tried to pry Sokka’s hands away, but the Water Tribe teen was stronger than he looked. His flustered sputtering transformed into stifled squeaks. Two seconds later, the dam finally broke.

“Ahahaha!” Zuko belted out, grappling at Sokka’s hands as they clawed at his tummy. “S-Sohakka! Whahat are you doohooing?”

“Winning this competition, that’s what!” Sokka exclaimed. He poked and prodded at his ribs, making Zuko thrash and giggle.

“Hahahagh! Gehet off me!”

Zuko broke Sokka’s hold and wrenched out of his grip, staggering forward so fast he fell to the ground. He rolled onto his back and scrambled a few more paces away, staring up Sokka in disbelief, blushing violently.

“W-what is wrong with you?” he stammered, hugging his stomach protectively.

It took a moment for everyone to register what had just transpired. But as soon as it did, shock and delight sprawled across all of their faces.

“You…”

“Did he just—?”

“Oh man! You did it!”

“Yeah I did!” Sokka cheered, striking a pose. “Told you I was gonna win this thing! Bow down to your champion!”

“Win what thing?” Zuko growled, his face still tinted pink. He stood up nervously, scowling between them. “What’s going on here?”

“We’ve been playing a game to see who could get you to laugh first,” Aang explained. “None of us had ever heard you laugh before, so we wanted to try to make you do it. And now we finally have!”

“You mean I have,” Sokka corrected him smugly.

The idea that they’d spent the past twenty-four hours committed to hearing his laugh puzzled him. Why did it matter what it sounded like? It wasn’t particularly important or helpful information to have. Why did they care so much about something so trivial? The situation was odd and embarrassing yet strangely heartwarming. But mostly embarrassing. Zuko hunched his shoulders crossly.

“That’s what all this weirdness has been about? Why didn’t you just tell me what you were doing?”

“Because we wanted it to happen naturally!” Katara said, throwing her hands in the air. “But apparently none of us are funny enough for your taste!”

The group giggled. Zuko wasn’t sure what to say. A smirk touched Toph’s lips.

“Huh. I never would’ve thought to try tickling you.” She placed her hands on her hips. “I guess I just didn’t expect the Grumpy McGrouchy Pants prince of the Fire Nation to be ticklish.”

“And that laugh!” Sokka snickered. “Have you guys ever heard anything so adorable?”

Heat boiled to the surface of Zuko’s skin. “I’m not…!” he began, but he had no idea where he was going with this. For people who claimed to be his friends, they sure liked humiliating him and making him blush a lot. With an angry huff, he turned away. “Whatever. I’m going fishing.”

As he started to leave, Katara, Aang, Sokka, and Toph shared a wicked grin, locking down their next course of action without exchanging a single word. Sokka moved first, dashing after him and hooking his elbows underneath Zuko’s armpits, making the prince start.

“Hey!” he cried, struggling against his hold.

“You’re not what, Prince Zuko? Not ticklish, or not adorable?”

Zuko burned inside and out. He tried to throw Sokka over his shoulder, but the other teen planted his feet and hoisted Zuko off the ground, taking all of his leverage with him. He kicked and floundered, feeling small and ridiculous.

“Let me go!” he demanded.

“Either way, we’re obliged to prove you wrong.” Sokka beamed at the others, voice laced with mischief. “Get him, guys!”

Zuko opened his eyes to find Katara, Aang, and Toph approaching him, smirking with fiendish delight. This cued the prince to fight even harder to escape, his legs flailing through the air.

“Besides, we only got to listen to you laugh for a few seconds,” Katara pointed out, curling her fingers into claws. “I’ll need to hear it a little longer than that to memorize it.”

“And to determine just how adorable it really is!” Aang added.

There were a lot of things Zuko had dreaded facing after joining the avatar’s gang. His dark past, the Fire Nation’s tyrannical cruelty, his plethora of failures and mistakes. This, however, had not been one of things he’d had in mind.

Zuko considered heating up his hands just enough to make Sokka release him, but he didn’t want to betray the trust he had only just recently earned from all of them. If he accidentally burned another person on their team, he’d never forgive himself.

Though perhaps that’d be worth avoiding the mortifying predicament he currently found himself in.

“W-wahait!” he yelped, giggly dread amassing in his belly. He kicked in their direction to keep them from getting any closer. “Stay back!”

Sokka wrestled to keep the squirmy prince still. “Toph, a little help?” he called.

Toph grinned and thrust her palms toward the sky. Two hands made of earth rose up from underneath Zuko and grabbed hold of his ankles. As she lowered her hands back down, the earth hands moved with hers, dragging his legs toward the ground then morphing into a pair of rock bonds encased around his feet, keeping them firmly trapped in place.

Oh no. Zuko wriggled and wrenched, but there was nowhere for him to go. Unless he firebent his way out, he was defenseless.

Before he could voice any more protests, Katara closed the space between them, her hands reaching his torso and scuttling up his bare sides. Zuko jolted and gasped, a giant smile lighting up his whole face despite his attempts to squash it.

“Ahahaheehee!” he giggled, squirming and shifting to try to get away. It was no use. Her fingers needled his exposed midsection freely and mercilessly, driving the sensitive prince absolutely nuts. The blush in his cheeks bled down his neck. “Wahait—mmheh—ehahaha!”

“Not ticklish at all, I see,” Katara said smugly. “And certainly not adorable, no.” She scribbled her nails all over his belly, parroting his endearing smile. It was so big and radiant and happy—a hundred times more so than she ever could’ve imagined. His laugh was another matter entirely—bright, bubbly, hysterically shrill. Far too cute for the human language to articulate. Plus, outrageously contagious.

“Stahahap it!” Zuko cackled, tugging uselessly at Sokka’s arms. The boy’s grip was like iron. Katara ignored him, testing and teasing every inch of his twitchy torso, kneading his tummy and pinching his sides and fluttering her fingers underneath his rib cage. He couldn’t believe how much it tickled, or how wild his own laughter sounded. None of them had realized how loud and uncontrollable Zuko’s laugh could get until now—including himself.

Two hands on his ticklish belly were already enough to drive the giggly prince out of his mind. Of all days to meditate shirtless, why did he have to choose today? But then, to his horror, two more hands joined the fray, drilling into his hip bones with diabolical intensity and precision. Zuko bucked and squealed, his laughter reaching an entirely new caliber.

“Ahahahaha!” he bubbled, shaking his head from side to side. “NohohahahAang!”

Zuko thought out of everyone present, the avatar would be the one to approach this situation with the most mercy and compassion. Boy, was he wrong. The airbender attacked his weak points like he’d been trained in the ancient art of tickle torture—as if tickling was a fifth element, and he’d already more than mastered it.

“I can’t believe we went a whole day trying to be funny to make you laugh when all you needed was a little tickling!” Aang chirped cheerfully. “I also can’t believe you made us go this long without hearing what your laugh sounds like. It’s so cute and happy! Why don’t you do it more often?”

If Aang expected Zuko to reply, he wasn’t making it easy. He furrowed his brow and stuck out his tongue as he explored the prince’s sensitive midsection, working in tandem with Katara so that every tickle spot on his torso got a turn being poked and squeezed and stroked. Zuko couldn’t stand another second.

“Guhuhuhuys!” he howled. This was a nightmare. Things couldn’t possibly get any worse. He had to make them stop.

“Try tickling his ribs!” Sokka suggested suddenly, grinning with malicious glee. “He was super jumpy when I poked them before!”

“Ooh, good idea!” Aang said. He skittered his hands up his sides then shook them viciously into his rib cage, making the poor teenager squawk.

The universe just loved proving him wrong, didn’t it?

“NOHOHAHA!” he bellowed, throwing his head back, nearly hitting Sokka in the face. “Gaha! Youhou—jerherherherks! Ahahaaa!”

The gang giggled along with him without slowing their attack. “Hey, there’s the Zuko we all know and love,” Toph chuckled. She sat on top of his buried feet and began skating her nails against the backs and caps of his knees, drawing feathery circles into the sensitive skin and causing goosebumps to shoot up his legs. It was gentler than Aang and Katara’s cruel tickle tactics—a fact he had to be grateful for—but still contributed significantly to his overall state of flustered, twitchy hysteria.

“Aw, look at you, Prince Zu-Zu! So smiley and giggly and squirmy!” Katara bunched up her hands and spidered her nails against his belly button, making Zuko shriek and thrash like a little kid. “I can’t believe we were ever afraid of your adorable little face! If only we’d known back then how easy it is to defeat you! Just a couple tickles here, a few pokes there…”

She moved her hands across his tummy while she spoke, wiggling her fingernails as they dragged along his skin, cooing at him the entire time. Meanwhile, Aang was absolutely wrecking his ribs, grinding his knuckles ruthlessly into the bone.

“Right? He’s cuter than a baby turtle duck!”

“No wonder his uncle adores him so much,” Toph agreed.

Zuko wanted to disintegrate. The relentless teasing was just as cruel as the six hands tickling him to pieces. He’d never been taunted or tickled to this extent before, and the only thing he could do about it was blush tomato-red and laugh himself silly. He didn’t consider himself to be that sensitive of a person, seeing that no one had really tickled him since he was a child, but the avatar and his crew were doing a pretty good job convincing him otherwise. At this point, his entire body was bright pink and sizzling like a space heater.

“PLEEHEASE STAHAHAP!” Zuko begged, hiccups leaping from his throat and puncturing his endless giggle fit. No point in trying to retain some shred of dignity—every last drop had already been spent. “I CAHAN’T TAKE AHANYMOHOHOREHAHAHA!”

“Aw, but this is so fun,” Sokka pouted playfully, poking at his neck with the fingers that could reach. “You sure you can’t take just a little more?”

“We haven’t even tickled your armpits yet!” Aang protested, immediately shoving his hands under his arms and wiggling his fingers against the hollows. It was a welcome break for his ribs, but also gave him giggly whiplash.

“AHAHAHACK!” Zuko squirmed helplessly, tears welling in the corners of eyes. He barely had the strength to even writhe in place anymore. “IHI’M—GOHONNA—DIHIHIHIE!”

Katara’s hands slowed to a halt against his sides, granting him a sudden rush of relief. “Okay, maybe we should stop,” she said, smiling sympathetically. “He does look pretty wiped.”

“He’s not going to die,” Toph assured the others with a chuckle. She took her hands off his knees. “Still, that’s probably a good idea.”

The absence of Katara and Toph’s tickling gave Zuko the chance to catch his breath a little. The relief was astronomical. Aang, however, had yet to let up, keeping the prince twitchy and giggly with his rib cage and underarm torment.

“EhahahAang!” Zuko wheezed, wriggling helplessly. “Pleehease!”

Aang smiled wryly. “All right, I’ll stop,” he conceded, worming his fingers between each individual rib. “But first, you have to admit out loud that you’re adorable, because I’m still not convinced you believe it. Say that, and I’ll stop.”

Zuko thought it impossible for things to get any more embarrassing than they already were. Wrong again. Being disowned by his father and banished from the Fire Nation hadn’t been as humiliating as the past five minutes. Now this?

The group grinned at him expectantly, waiting. Zuko shook his head.

“B-buhut—I—” he stuttered out between giggles. Then Sokka dug his hands into armpits, making him squeal with laughter and shrink into himself.

“No excuses!” he demanded playfully. “Go on! Say it!”

Zuko tried to thrash out of Sokka’s grip now that it wasn’t so tight, but Sokka still had a strong enough hold on him to keep him trapped—even while he was tickling him. He buried his face into his shoulder to hide his goofy smile and flushed cheeks.

“Ahaha! Youhou’re—s-soho—meahean!” To think that he used to be the one considered cruel and evil. Ponytail Zuko had nothing on these diabolical tickle monsters and their degrading requests.

A moment later, Katara started squeezing his sides again, causing Zuko to twist and yelp. “We’re mean? But look how happy we’re making you! If anything, you should be thanking us.”

Toph wiggled her fingers against the middle of his tummy. “We’re waiting, your highness.”

It was too much. He couldn’t bear it any longer. He needed this to end.

“OHOKAHAHAY!” he cackled, squirming and hiccuping and craving the sweet escape of death. “IHI’M—I ADMIHIHIT IT!”

“You admit what?” Aang asked, grinning innocently as he revved up his rib tickling to a maddening ferocity. Oh, he was so getting them back for this.

“GAHAHA! FIHIHINE! I’MAHAHAHADORHORABLE!” He ducked his head, blushing brighter than their campfire. “NOHOW STAHAHAHAP! PLEEHEEHEASE!”

The group laughed and cheered at his miserable defeat, then finally ceased their attack. Katara and Aang stepped back as Toph freed his feet and Sokka released him from his grip. Zuko was left standing in the center of the team, panting and giggling dazedly, guarding his torso with his arms held tight to his skin. His whole body tingled and burned. His face hurt from smiling so much.

“Well, you heard it here first, folks—Zuko is adorable, and he knows it!”

“And he can laugh! Like, actually laugh!”

“I guess he can express happiness the same way we do. You just have to push the right buttons.”

“Was that emotive enough for you, Katara?”

Zuko was at his wit’s end. Again, with the teasing? Couldn’t these guys give him a break? He was never going to hear the end of this for as long as he lived. Giggling breathlessly, he sunk to his hands and knees, making his friends flinch.

“Whoa,” Katara exclaimed. “You all right there, Zuko?”

For a moment, the team worried that they’d gone too far, that they’d somehow broken Zuko by making him laugh for what might’ve been the first time in his life. Zuko doubled over himself, wheezing dazedly.

“Uhuhugh…” he whimpered, voice muffled. “Y-you’re...gohonna...pahay for that…”

The group let out a sigh of relief. If he still had the strength to threaten him, that was a good sign.

“Don’t worry, Prince Zu-Zu,” Sokka said, patting him on the back. “Having a cute laugh doesn’t make you any less intimidating.”

“It’s nice to know that you can laugh though, even if you don’t do it very much.” Katara smiled somberly. “I was worried something was bothering you, or that you weren’t happy here with us. That’s why we started this whole silly competition in the first place.”

After a pause, Zuko slowly lifted his face from his lap. His cheeks were still rosy, but he was beginning to tame his breathing.

“But if that’s just not how you normally express yourself, that’s okay.”

The prince sat back on his haunches, still seething with humiliation, but to a semi-reduced degree. He didn’t think he’d ever fully understand the way this group functioned, why they garnered such delight out of poking fun at him and each other, why they were so concerned and endeared with his behavior and emotional expressiveness. But it was clear they cared about him, however bizarrely they chose to demonstrate it.

“I...I am happy here,” Zuko eventually ventured to say, his voice still shrill and brittle. Hearing it out loud made him blush some more, but he continued. “I wasn’t trying to make you think otherwise. I’m just…” he swallowed. “Weird. And bad at...stuff.”

The gang snickered. “Yeah you are,” Toph said, hugging his arm. “And we love you for it.”

The firebender blinked and hinted a bashful smile. Aang placed his hands on his hips.

“Who knows! Maybe you just forgot how to laugh for a while, but now we’ve reminded you!”

To everyone’s disbelief, a chuckle escaped Zuko, short and authentic. “Maybe,” he said.

Then, an instant later, he shot to his feet. “But don’t ever do anything like that to me ever again! I’ll burn down this entire hillside and run back to the Fire Nation if you even think about it!”

Flames rose from his clenched fists as he glared daggers into each of them. But Aang just laughed.

“Sure you will,” Aang teased, fluttering his fingers against his side. Zuko winced and smiled, then whirled on him with a growl.

“Touch me again, and I’ll have you doing fire lunges until you puke.”

Aang shrunk away with a nervous chuckle, folding his hands behind his back. “R-right. Sorry, Sifu Hotman.”

If anyone noticed that Zuko started laughing more after that, whether it was at Aang’s antics or Sokka’s jokes or Katara’s ridiculousness or Toph’s sass, they thought it best not to point it out. Now that he’d started emoting more positively, they didn’t want to shy him away from it. It was still small and fleeting, but it was progress from absolutely nothing. Perhaps they had helped the Fire Nation prince rediscover his laugh after all.

But that didn’t stop them from poking and teasing him whenever the urge hit. While his everyday chuckles and giggles were great, nothing compared to the sound of Zuko’s wild, bubbly, tickle-induced laughter. And unless he firebended at them to get them to quit, they didn’t plan on stopping anytime soon.

#ticklish!zuko #zuko #atla #atla tickle fic #sfw tickle fic #sfw tickling #tickle fic #avatar tickle fic #avatar fic #avatar tickling #avatar #avatar the last airbender #the last airbender #zuko fanfic #zuko tickle fic #avatar gaang #lee!zuko

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kessielrg · 3 years

Text

[Kingdom Hearts] Commission Please!

Summary: In which concentrated bits of chaos meet a shy artist. Dedicated to @chibi-mushroom, my Namine-sensei and to whom I’m converting in to a bunny child appreciator. xD

Rating: K

Word Count: 2,210 words

If you liked this story, please reblog!

---

There was always something interesting happening in Disney Town. The colors, the sounds, the smells- it was nearly overwhelming as Namine breathed it all in. The atmosphere of the place always seemed to knock Namine slightly off guard every time she set foot in it. Disney Town was a very alive world, and all the experiences with it flowed through effortlessly. She was always so amazed that every day was different than the last- definitely a stark contrast to how she started out in the world. Today, Disney Town offered something new, something no one had seen before and was quite hard to ignore.

“Where on earth did all these bunny kids come from?!” Lea demanded once they entered town square. They were very hard to ignore. Every foot or so, there was at least one of the small, blue bunnies getting into some sort of trouble.

“Not sure,” Kairi said, just as a bunny kid hopped onto her head, bent down to look her in the eye, happily wave, then bound off of her head. She couldn’t hide her little giggle as she went on to add, “But they sure are cute.”

“Ri-ight.” Lea snorted. He looked down to see a bunny child at his feet. It stuck its tongue out at him before laughing rather maniacally. “They look about as cute as a wart on someone’s toe. Just as persistent too.”

“Lea!” Kairi admonished, gently smacking him with the back of her hand. The taller redhead did nothing to defend himself. Instead he gave them a charming little grin that feigned innocence.

Namine let out a little chuckle as well. Lea turned to her with the most hurt expression one could offer.

“Not you too, Namine!” he whined. “I thought we had amnesty once we became Somebodies. We’re good now!”

“Not when you’re still being cruel to innocent children.” Namine teased.

“I didn’t even touch them!”

Namine and Kairi looked at each other before dissolving into a round of giggles. Lea deflated, knowing that he was never going to win this argument. Their moment of fun was broken when a loud drum march started to play. The three looked up to find the source of the noise. Sure enough, there was a small group of bunny children with drums and leading a small parade filled with nothing but other blue bunny children. One of the bunnies in front was holding a banner reading ‘Lunch Time 4 Us!’ and waving it quite happily.

In high, squeaky voices, the leading bunny children started to chant;

“Who’s the leader of the club that’s made for you and me!”

On cue, another round of tiny voices shouted as they joined the parade, “La-de-da la-de-da la-de-da-da-da!”

“Hey there, hi there, ho there! You’re as welcome as can be!”

“La-de-da la-de-da la-de-da-da-da!”

The chant continued as the parade marched their way through the square and into a cafe.

“Well…” Kairi was the first to muse, “Guess we’re not going to eat in there.”

“Must be lunchtime.” Namine noted with a grin.

“Must be something.” Lea decided as he scratched the back of his head. All the while, the bunny children continued with their march.

“Uncle Mick!”

“Papa too!”

“Uncle Mick!”

“Papa too!”

“Forever let us hold our ice creams high!”

“High, high, high!”

“Come along and sing a song, and join the jamboree!”

“La-de-da la-de-da la-de-da-da-da!”

The bunny children holding up the rear, who hadn’t entered the cafe yet, let out a cheer before slamming the cafe door behind them. The square was suddenly rather quiet without them all making a ruckus.

“I, for one, am glad they’re gone for now.” Lea told the girls. “That is not a song I want to have memorized.”

Kairi gave Namine a wicked glance before turning back to Lea. She didn’t give any warning before she opened her mouth to sing, “Who’s the leader of the club that’s made for you and me?”

Lea suddenly went pale. “Kairi, no!”

“Hey there, hi there, ho there!”

“Kairi! I’m warning you!”

“You’re as welcome as can be!”

“This is your last chance!”

“Come along and sing a song, and join the jamboree!”

“That’s it, get over here so I can teach you a lesson!” Lea hollered as he barrelled at Kairi. Kairi herself let out a little yelp before bolting away. She then let out a joyful laughter as Lea chased her around the square, and out to a different area. Namine considered following them, but decided it was best they get their energy out. There certainly wasn’t any shortage of it in this world.

Instead, Namine made herself comfortable at a nearby bench and simply relaxed. After being accustomed to the energy of the world again, she carefully pulled out her drawing pad, some colored pencils, and did one of the most relaxing hobbies she had yet to replace; drawing.

She started with the square itself. The bench she was on was facing a nice gazebo, which in turn was framed rather well by the entrance to Disney Castle behind it. She wondered for a moment if she had enough colors in her palette to capture the atmosphere just right. If not, maybe it was time to experiment with cross hatching. As she got into her familiar, comfortable groove, Namine started to hum a few bars of the bunny kid’s march. It was a pretty catchy tune. She’d have to ask Riku if he was familiar with it- he came around Disney Town often enough to visit the King, he must have heard it at least once.

Quite some time passed as she drew. Namine didn’t even notice when some of the bunny children started to file out of the cafe. A little pack of four started to play in the gazebo. It looked like a rather fun game of hide and seek. Namine didn’t realize that she had started to draw the bunny children playing until she had finished shading the first blue bunny. She blinked at her page with mild bewilderment. She had heard stories about ‘automatic writers’ and how they would write whole letters by hand while supposedly controlled by some outside force. She didn’t personally believe them until she saw the blue bunnies in her drawing. It was like she didn’t even recognize her own ability.

“Hey fellas!” a high pitched voice said from beside her, succeeding in scaring Namine nearly out of her wits. She quickly looked to her left and saw one of the bunny kids standing next to her. Namine flinched when it whistled to get the other two’s attention.

Its siblings (she assumed they were all siblings, at least) immediately stopped what they were doing. They took a glance at Namine, then at the bunny beside her, then started to bounce on over. They stopped at her feet. Namine was so bewildered at the past minute’s events that she had to take another moment to register what was going on.

“Oh! Hello there.” she finally greeted. “Would you like to see what I drew?”

All four bunny children nodded their heads- the one that had surprised Namine had gone down with the rest of its siblings. There was power in numbers, and she had a feeling those blue bunnies were well aware of it. Despite herself, Namine carefully turned her drawing around for them to see. Her work was immediately accepted with a round of ‘oh’s and ‘aww’s. It made her heart flutter with pride. She felt rather selfish when the four bunnies decided to just up and leave without another word. Namine sighed, hoping that they’d come back, before going back to finish up a few bits on the drawing.

Her wish was granted quite a few minutes after. Just as she was finishing up her drawing, the four bunny children from earlier were coming back to her. At least, she assumed they were the same as before- it was hard to tell when those blue bunnies all looked the same. Regardless, Namine greeted them all with a bright smile.

“Hello again,” she said, “How can I help you?”

The bunny children all stared at the one bunny standing in the back. It was bashfully hiding something as it stepped forward. The other bunnies let out a pleased ‘ta-da!’ while the bashful bunny presented Namine with a flower. It wasn’t anything too special, probably plucked from the caste gardens based on its hue.

“O-oh, thank you.” Namine stammered. “But I don’t need-”

She stopped dead in her tracks- the pitiful, pleading faces of the bunnies made it increasingly hard to say no. After a moment of mental wrestling, Namine offered a smile.

“It’s very lovely.” she said as she carefully took the flower. “Thank you. I’ll use it as a commission.”

The bunny children suddenly perked up. A new word had been spoken to them- one that they could already tell held the promise for more lovely drawings. They looked back up at her expectantly. Namine didn’t think herself that good at charades, but she could almost gather what they wanted to ask her.

“A commission is when you give something to someone in return for their goods. In this case, the flower is your commission for me drawing your picture earlier. Do you understand now?”

The bunny children looked at each other for a moment. They seemed to have a moment of revelation before turning back to Namine with a wide grin. In unison, the bunnies happily nodded.

“That’s good.” Namine smiled, giving them a happy nod of her own back to them.

Giving a grin that seemed rather mischievous in hindsight, the blue bunny children bounded off in different directions to do whatever it was they planned on next. Namine wasn’t aware that she was going to be a part of this plan. Not yet. For now, she decided to put her drawing things away to go find Lea and Kairi. She hadn’t seen them since they ran out a good hour ago. Not that she expected anything bad to happen to them, but still. You never knew in their world.

Thankfully, both Kairi and Lea were safe when Namine found them. Apparently they had raced each other to the go-kart track, which then proceeded to be an even more heated race between them. Namine had caught them at the end of their sixth round.

“Who won?” Namine curiously asked.

“I did!” Kairi boasted at the same time Lea mumbled, “She did.”

Namine afforded a small laughter. With the three of them together again, they decided that it was likely time to get something to eat. On their way back to the square, a large hoard to bunny children came bounding to the trio. They bunnies were so packed together that it was just a sea of rippling blue. Not sure of what to do, or where the bunnies were even heading, Lea, Namine, and Kairi simply stopped in their tracks.

“I don’t like how they’re in a stampede.” Lea murmured to the girls. “Who do you think they’re going to terrorize? That’s a terrorizing formation if I’ve ever seen it.”

The girls just shrugged, but they got their answer soon enough. The hoard stopped right at Namine’s feet. A fact that didn’t surprise her nearly as much until a few started to stack on top of each other. They continued to stack until the bunny child on top was at about Namine’s eye level.

“Hi!” the top bunny child happily said, giving a wave so energetic that it made the tower wobble a bit. The bunny didn’t give anyone time to react before pulling out a picture of their own. It was rather crudely done, but it was still easy to depict a black cat with a pink shirt and matching little hat. Putting on a wide grin, the bunny child told Namine, “This is our mama.”

“We want to surprise her!” one of the bunny kids in the stack said.

“Please draw us for Mama.” another bunny said.

“Draw us for Mama! Draw us for Mama!” the rest of the hoard chanted.

For the longest time, Namine was speechless. When she did try to say something, it only came out in a strangled, “I…” as she looked to Kairi and Lea. They seemed just as overwhelmed as she was.

The bunny children must have been expecting this because a few others formed a second stack. This time, the bunny on top was holding a rather large sack that, when shook, sounded like munny twinkling inside.

“We’ll commission you.” the bunny at the top of the second stack grinned.

“It’s all our allowance!” the hoard cheered at once. “63,000 munny!”

Lea let out a low whistle. “That’s a LOT of Mega-Potions…”

Indeed it was, and it only caused more conflict inside Namine. Why was it so hard to say no to troublemakers when they were being so earnest? Maybe it’s because the bunny children were still just that- children. They weren’t perfect, but when they put their heart into something, it was all they desired. It was admirable. It was hard to say no to.

“Sure.” Namine then decided, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to take it back later. “Why not?”

The bunny children cheered.

#kingdom hearts #epic mickey #kingdom hearts fanfiction #kh namine #bunny children #namine #kh kairi #kairi #lea #kh lea #kh fanfiction #fanfiction #kh fan fic #fanfic #fan fiction #fan fic #writers on tumblr #bunny kids

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musedblues · 4 years

Note

okay hear me out

you're a college freshman in the 60's and have a forbidden romance with your TA, john deacon

sorry not sorry for how long this turned out 😘

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

You floated through the library like you'd breezed into town with nothing better to do. Running the tips of your fingers across the spines of books as your eyes looked ahead to the upcoming shelf. Beyond spaces empty of volumes, you saw him.

John was hunched over a desk doing work with a look of concentration you'd come to recognize and adore. You breezed near, clearing your throat, sure that you were close enough for him to hear, and that no one else would. Like you knew he would, he looked up and saw you. But to anyone who might've noticed, it seemed he didn't care. You knew that wasn't true. You didn't have to look back, as you breezed behind the shelf again, to know he was going to follow you.

Funny. When you started uni, you had no idea what to expect. But besides the overwhelming amount of coursework, and the struggle you had finding friends who stayed sober enough to remember you'd become acquainted, one thing surprised you the most. Out of all the things you'd failed to properly prepare yourself for, getting caught up with a TA... with John Deacon, wasn't one of them. He was in his final year of uni, and a rather unassuming presence. He seemed to stick to the shadows, off-campus. And when he was busy with classroom duties, he was a man of few words then too.

Maybe his quiet nature was what drew you to him. You longed to know the sort of thoughts that ran through his head. If there were any of you... Or maybe it was the look in his eye, when he finally dared to look right at you. No one had ever looked at you like that. With such assuredness. Like something of you belonged to him, before he even knew your name.

After a couple weeks of gathering up the courage to trade longing gazes for something more, you'd planned to take advantage of office hours with your fingers crossed behind your back. You'd made it late that afternoon and John said,

"You shouldn't be here." As he sat hunched over a pile of work, then. Alway so determined with every task at hand.

"Why?" You dared to ask with every scrap of confidence you could feign. "Afraid you'll get in trouble?"

John shook his head of flaxen waves, ever so slightly, scribbling on the papers below his steady hand.

"Afraid you'll be a distraction."

And then he looked at you, in that way you'd come to recognize. But it was always a thrill, that stormy gaze of his. It took your breath away, and you wondered if he knew. If he'd meant to.

Now, like then, John was at your side before you could blink. His fingers lost in your hair, his mouth on yours. Every bit of him fit against you, in a way that made your heart ache at the very thought of him taking one step back.

You only had a few minutes to spare before you had to dash to a class. But you and John had gotten pretty good at this. You knew exactly where to find each other on any given day. And you knew exactly which corner of the room to escape to, where you might get to share something more than a quick kiss or two.

And besides classrooms under renovation or the restrooms outside the gymnasium that no one ever used, the back of the dustiest part of the library was easiest. With little to no traffic, and the perfect nook between shelves, you'd find John here more often than not.

He'd whisper things in your ear that echoed through your head as you sat through one of the lessons he was called in to teach. Here, he'd give you previews of things he'd invite you over to his place to put into practice on extra long weekends and rare holidays you each had nothing planned for.

But invitations over were as rare as holidays themselves. He lived alone, in the quaintest flat with navy walls and lots of extra blankets. And the nights you spent there were the highlight of every odd month.

It had gone on like this for so long, you were sure you could survive till he graduated. You'd managed to keep your distance when it counted, even on the increasingly frequent nights out with a set of mutual friends. His best mate hooked up with your flatmate, Casandra. She was older, and their match made sense. But how could you know John would be mixed among the crew you'd agreed to meet up with for drinks?

Casandra asked what had you looking so flushed as she shoved a shot into your hand. You shrugged, and said something about how bad the lighting in the pub was. And even though shaking John's hand like you'd never met before nearly made you laugh out of sheer nervousness, you managed through the night without a hitch. He kept his distance, and only shot you that thrilling look a handful of times. You didn't even talk about the run in next time you flagged each other down for a quickie behind the auditorium.

You just kept it up, crossing paths like you had been, and acting like you hadn't when your friends got together. There were ball games, movie nights, and birthday parties you'd breezed through without sitting too close together.

And there were still nights you'd stayed alone together, and those were becoming more common. John would ask you to stay over to waste days with him, and you tried your best at slyly accepting, as to not seem too utterly desperate for his company.

But you really had become attached. You weren't sure if he had, but suddenly, all you thought of was the next time you'd get to see John. Suddenly you didn't even care what it was you'd do together. Suddenly, when he caught your eye in class, you couldn't help but smile no matter who saw.

Then one of your friends bought a new place. And she invited everyone over. All the mates you'd come to love, and some new faces too, who flooded her sparsely decorated home and filled the countertops with sweets and liquor. You were the last to arrive, and when you spotted John across the room, he didn't look your way. You shrugged it off, realizing there were a lot of unfamiliar faces to be wary of, on your way to the kitchen. Still, you fetched a couple of beers and found John in the living room between a pair of art majors, rambling about something you couldn't imagine held his interest.

You approached him and extended the extra bottle, a gift disguised as a greeting- something you'd do for any friend. But without even really looking at you, John stepped to the side and mumbled something about getting his own drink. As soon as you whipped to watch him slink off to the kitchen, another pal slid up and stole the beer you had one too many of. You let him, and laughed a little, hoping to erase the furrow in your brow.

Had you done something? Stepped too close? Looked to John too fondly? Couldn't you still be friends, mixed among so many others? You had done a fine job as such so far, you thought. But something was up. You just had no idea why, or what to do about it.

So as the night moved on, you just kept trying to act like his extra cold shoulder was in fact, the norm. You withheld a frown when John left the rooms you were in, and bit back frustrated tears when he rose from the sofa in a room sparse of people enough you'd hoped to ask him what the matter was.

And when you left on your own, you'd felt lonelier than any time just like this one. You didn't look back to see if John had rushed to meet up or stop you. Because you couldn't decide if it would be worse to find he'd followed, or not. So you went home and waited.

You lost yourself to a never-ending sea of coursework, and prayed that the next time you floated into the library that you'd find John there. You'd never questioned it before. He'd always been there.

But you were right too. Because John wasn't at the table with a stack of work under his nose, that week. You couldn't find him behind the auditorium, and the classroom was suspiciously closed during office hours. You tried not to worry. You figured maybe he needed space. So you debated for hours, the night you'd promised to sneak over to his next.

A ray of hope beamed from the light in the living room he always left on as a signal that it was safe for you to sneak over. But something was still amiss. And you knew John knew so too, when he opened the door with a pursed smile, instead of pulling you in with a sultry grin, like usual.

You lingered near the entrance with your rain-wet boots in place, your arms over your chest.

"What's wrong?" You asked with a waver in your tone.

John shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans and let out a sight before uttering the word "Nothing." As if only to convince himself.

"Nothing?" You breathed. "All month you've been begging me to spend practical weeks here with you, but you wouldn't even look my way at Maureen's party?"

John paced before you, listening reluctantly.

"And I'm pretty sure they know about us, anyway. Last week Jery basically cheered us on when he noticed us trying to quietly sneak out of his walk-in closet."

John said nothing still, bringing a hand to his head. He pinched the bridge of his nose as silence stole the air from the room, and when John's silvery gaze met yours at last, it wasn't like all the other times before. There was a sadness there that drained the colour from your world, and as his mouth started to open to presumably let you down easy, you wouldn't let him.

"I'm sorry I thought this was something it wasn't." You choked out, before spinning to open the door.

John called out your name, then, and you could feel he was hot on your trail. He called for you to turn around and come back, when your feet hit the pavement. But you just kept going, too close to the verge of tears, and John couldn't see that. You marched away until his pleas for you to come back were echoes, and the sweeter things he said over the year mockingly rang in your head.

Cassandra worried over what was wrong as you stormed into your shared flat, and hurried to your room. You threw yourself to the shelter of your bed, and let out the worlds longest held breath. But you didn't let yourself cry. Not yet.

Not until the class he sat in for came around, and John wasn't there. Instead, the cynical old professor who found every reason to skip out on teaching that he could find. The guy started his course by saying something painfully vague about having to find a new TA. All during a dry lesson, you took notes and bit your lip to stop it from quivering. And when the hour was up, you hurried out into the hall and to the corner of campus no one would see you cry.

You wouldn't let yourself for long. You just allowed yourself a moment to let out a little of what you'd been keeping in for so long. All the frustration you'd been confounded by the past week, out of nowhere at all it seemed. Even the thrill of being with John was something you'd been keeping dormant, hidden away from anyone who might've caught a loving gaze or grazing of the hand. Your adoration for John and the hurt that came from his ignoring you all mixed together and weighed heavy on your heart. After your tears bubbled over, you started home with a reluctant plan.

Now, you figured it best to toss out that old jumper of his you'd stolen, the week and a half he headed home and left you all by your lonesome. You'd have to burn the notes he'd leave in your textbooks, the mornings you'd finish work at his coffee table. You'd have to spend the weekend getting over John Deacon, but you really didn't want to.

Out of all the things you'd come to expect from your first year of uni, falling head over heels for someone you just couldn't have wasn't one of them. You'd learned, over the course of time, when he'd pop into halls and pull you around corners that John was very good at catching you off guard.

So, on your sorry stroll home, when the guy on your mind suddenly appeared in the middle of your path, you couldn't be too surprised. It was like him to show up when you least expected, in good times and bad, it seemed. But the pace of John's walk stopped you in your tracks. He shouldered past groups of friends eager to kick off weekend plans they chattered about. And in a couple of strides, John was toe to toe with you. And his fingers were lost in your hair. And his mouth was on yours.

John kissed you, right there on the pavement, in front of everyone. He held you against him, a good thing too, because you couldn't be sure of your own strength to hold you from fainting into a puddle of shock. Surprise took such a hold of you that you hadn't even attempted to kiss John back until he was pulling away from you.

"I'm sorry." He breathed, searching your eyes with his in a way you recognized. "About the party, I'm sorry. Maureen asked me out for drinks and wound up finding out about us. She was so bloody pissed and we got in this big fight about morality. And she threatened to sell me out and cost my job a minute before you showed up, and I was just so caught off guard, but I should have explained so earlier." John told, keeping two firm hands on your shoulders.

Your heart sank with the weight of the realization, all too suddenly recalling Maureen, and the strange things she kept saying that night. About you, and where you belonged in the world. You figured she was just drunk, and maybe she was. But her ramblings about finding your way in life didn't seem so random now.

"So I worked it out. I managed to finish things up early. I've been here for so long, working so hard for this degree. But the moment you showed up I knew there was nothing in this world I'd ever want more." John rang, desperation pouring from his tone. His long fingers dug into your arms as he rambled, and his eyes peered into yours with such intent. "And, that can happen now. I just hope you can forgi-"

You threw yourself toward him, taking the collar of John's shirt in your fists and kissing him with all the stored up adoration you'd been collecting over the year, right in front of everybody. John held you against him, and you fit perfectly like you always had.

Then, with a coy grin, John took your hand in his and you started to walk together like a couple of bashful teens on their first-ever date. Your heart had belonged to his for a while now, though. But you could really get used to acting like it. And you didn't have to ask to know John felt the same.

#john deacon #john deacon x reader

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sigyn-obsessed · 3 years

Text

Reunion

The town was quiet. It was something Sigyn loved about it. People lightly talked in the market, negotiating prices. The shutters brushed against the windows as the breeze blew gently. It was warm out, the sun blazing down, warming them all. The grass swaying, tickling your bare feet.

She truly enjoyed the town. It was the fresh start she needed. When she was young, people would give her the look of pity that said, ‘I’m so sorry your mother left. So tragic.’ The glares some of the soldiers would give her when mention of her father was brought up. The people who believed she was some poor, fragile little girl who never had a constant in her life. It wasn’t what Sigyn wanted anymore.

It didn’t help that the place she grew up in no longer existed anymore, thanks to the All-Father’s estranged daughter. Sigyn couldn’t say she was particularly upset when she found out. It hadn’t been her home in a long time. She was just glad everyone was okay, and offered her healing services if they ever needed it. Sigyn wondered if her mother got out, but the care disappeared when she thought of her mother’s last words to her.

“I hope you burn in Hel for what you did.” Sigyn hadn’t taken the comment personally for a very long time. She knew her mother would be there too, so they could argue then. Right now, she had better things to worry about.

She sat cross legged, the light green floral dress balled up near her ankles. Her long curly blonde hair was pulled back in a bun, keeping it out of her way as she cheered on her boys.

Hey boys. Her sons. The two best things that ever happened to her. They were almost five, which struck her. Had it been five years already? Some days it felt like a hundred years, other days it felt like yesterday. They hadn’t been in Vanaheim too long, but it was enough to have it feel like a home. If they were in Asgard she very much wouldn’t feel like this.

“Mama look what I found.” Yelled Narvi, his blonde curls stuck to his forehead. His small hands cupped a baby snake, casually slithering around his hand. Vali, his younger brother and twin, was staring with stars in his eyes at the little creature. It was likely a garter snake, they appeared quite frequently. They weren’t dangerous, the boys were just curious.

Sigyn snapped out of her thoughts at the little boys pushing the animal near her face.

“Wow! He is pretty isn’t he?” She suggested, gently tracing down it’s back. It was a beautiful emerald green, with little black and gold marks. It warmed Sigyn’s heart. It reminded her of good times. Before everything bad happened.

“Mama you aren’t afraid of snakes?” Vali muttered. He had seen his mother shriek at spiders and centipedes in their home. Surely she would be afraid of snakes.

“Actually boys, I really love snakes. I encountered some pretty cool snakes in my time.” Sigyn gently laid the snake down, watching it slither through the grass as the boys sat next to her, one on each side. Her fingers instinctively ran through their hair, pushing the sweaty strands off their forehead. Vali’s hair was much darker, with a bit of curl. They looked so much like him in their own special ways.

“Mama are you okay?” Whispered Narvi, staring intently at her. She knew they both had magic, and knew they were likely able to tell the changes in hers. She was known as an incantation fetter. Magic was bound to her in everything she did. Her decisions, her relationships, her emotions. She had to keep everything in check.

“I’m okay honey. Just thinking too much. How about we have lunch? I’ll grab some fruit and we’ll bring it outside and eat okay.” The boys excitedly nodded as they rushed towards the back door, barging in. Sigyn took a deep breath, trying to gather herself.

Before she knew it Vali arrived with an old blanket they had on their couch and laid it out while Narvi had grabbed a pitcher of juice. Sigyn came back with some fruit they had thrown together as they all ate together. Everything was silent except for the silent munching. The sun stayed strong, blaring down hard. Sigyn had adjusted them into the shade, knowing the boys overheated easily. They tended to get sunburnt easily as well. She had experimented with many lotions to perfect the salve.

After they had finished, she gently tidied up, the boys going back to their play, exploring the small bushes that lined the back of their house, making sure not to disturb the garden Sigyn spent most of her free time on, when she wasn’t working in the town’s healing ward. The boys attended regular classes, teaching the boys essentials and basic necessities. The boys were extremely intelligent, and were reading and writing on their own already. Their bedroom had a large bookcase that was getting more full everyday. If you asked Vali what he wanted, he would likely say some type of book. Narvi was a bit more adventurous, probably asking for a weapon that was too dangerous for him.

Sigyn didn’t realize that the boys had rushed in, tapping her quickly.

“Mama, someone was outside.” Sigyn's heart dropped. Has someone found them? Sigyn ushered the boys to the living area, telling them to stay there and under no circumstances to leave. She walked outside, peering around at the trees and bushes. The house wasn’t in the town, and was at least a mile away from the closest house. Sigyn felt her hands radiating, magic flowing, tensing just in case she saw something and needed to react. It wasn’t bad that she had a dagger as well to summon. Her breathing hitched, wincing when she turned a corner, ready for something to be there.

She saw a figure, their back turned to her. They were dressed in simple clothes, dark pants and a tunic with tall boots. She was afraid to stride closer, in worry that she would surprise them and they would react as a threat.

“Who are you?” She questioned, her dagger summoned, gripped in her hand until her knuckles were white. She was breathing fast, her mind worrying that someone she had previously wronged may have found her. She hadn’t wronged many, but they had friends.

They didn't turn around, instead she saw them tense. She drew closer, still wielding her dagger. “I asked a question, now answer; who are you?” She demanded.

The figure began to turn but stopped, instead placing their hands out, to show they weren’t armed. It was a swift movement, but it wasn’t enough for Sigyn. She moved closer, the dagger now held by her side. She was close enough to touch them, but she stopped. The feeling was too familiar.

The dark hair that reached their shoulders, the pale skin on their hands.

“Turn around, slowly.” She demanded, and saw their body begin to move. She was hit with familiarity as she recognized the stranger’s face.

Loki?

She met his eyes first, the light emerald she had always loved. She felt her hands drop, the dagger falling flat into the dirt. Shock coursed through her. He was dead. She knew it. Thanos had snapped his neck five years ago. She remembered the day distinctly.

Three weeks later she found out she was pregnant with the twins.

She swallowed, her throat dry, and her mouth unable to form a word. She didn’t know what to say. What was there to say? So much. Too much.

She saw his eyes follow her form, looking her over. She wondered if he recognized her, since both were still in silence. This wasn’t real. He wasn’t real.

She reached out, clasping his chest, feeling the heartbeat underneath. Her eyes flooded, heating her face as they fell. She felt him move closer before she grasped onto him, tightly hugging him. She felt his arms wrap around, almost desperately, unlike he had ever before. She was holding so tightly, feeling his hand grasped in her golden hair. She didn’t want to pull away, for worry that he would just disappear. He pulled back, looking into the blue that had made him feel safe such a time ago.

Her hands wandered to his face, rubbing the tears from his eyes. It felt like before, when they were young and nothing had happened. Like the trauma, and pain, and tragedy hadn’t hit. She pulled him close again, her hands running through his hair. It was longer than ever before. She was so used to his short hair, and how it slightly used to curl and how he hated it. Sigyn would plead with him to leave it alone. She had always loved his curls.

As they pulled back, his hands found hers, gently stroking them. Both were too in shock to say anything.

“Sigyn?” She heard him whisper. All she could do was nod. They stood alone.

“Is this really happening?” She saw him nod his head. Reason didn’t matter anymore. He was here. After all this time he was here. Was he really here? “Is this a trick? Because I miss you and my emotions are messing with me?”

He brushed the hair out of her eyes before closing the space between them. There was no desperation anymore. It wasn’t hard or brash, it was soft and calm, something she hadn’t felt for some time.

“It’s real Sig. It’s not a trick. I’m here.” Sigyn hadn’t felt this happy for some time. Probably since her sons were born.

“Come in.” She led him towards the doors, ushering him inside, where he sat at the small table in the kitchen. She began fixing him a cup of tea. She walked over, gently rubbing his back, scared to finish the conversation.

“Lo, we need to ta-”

“Mama, is everything okay?” Sigyn paused, looking at the two little boys standing in the doorway, confused at the stranger sitting at the table. Loki looked over, his expression hard to read. Everything stopped.

“Everything is okay babies.” Narvi moved towards her, Vali followed closely behind. They hid behind her, looking over at the strange man. It took Loki a second to process the two little boys. They were small, smaller than the average child their age. How old are they? Their face shape was similar, but one had dark black hair and the other golden blonde. It slightly reminded him of Thor and him as a child, but somehow this felt different. The boys held onto each other, staring wearily at him. Sigyn knelt down to them, gently grasping their shoulders.

“Boys, can you please go into the living room? I’m fine, I promise. I just need a moment.” She saw the boys linger, Vali’s small fingers playing with her dress. She saw Narvi receive the signal, and gently took Vali’s hand, leading him towards the living room through the door. Sigyn felt herself sigh. She had played this moment in her mind so many times, the boys meeting their father. It never went this way. Nothing ever went according to plan for them though.

“Loki, before-”

“Who are they?” Sigyn closed her eyes, trying to calm herself. She took a seat at the chair across from him.

“They’re my sons.” She muttered. She read his face, seeing shock. Before she could say anything else she heard him.

“I guess you have a type.” Sigyn stopped, shocked. He read the confusion on her face.

“Their dark hair, pale skin. I always knew you liked men with dark features.” Sigyn sighed, feeling the pent up magic crawling to the surface.

“I always knew you liked to lie, but I never thought you couldn’t tell when others lied.” There was silence between them. “A few weeks after Thanos, I found out.”

“You moved on fast.” Sigyn couldn’t hide it anymore. He was doing this to anger her, to get a rise out of her.

“Are you serious? Loki, I lost the only person I ever loved, that I ever felt loved by. The man that I married and had planned a future with but no! He had to go after the strongest creature in the world with a puny dagger!” She felt her voice crack. She thought the mourning had ended a long time ago, but it had all been brought back. She wiped her eyes, hoping the boys didn’t hear the yelling. They would be worried. They were protective of her, even though they were so little. She was the only thing they had besides each other. Sigyn read the silence and continued.

“Do you remember when we were first married? We went to the turning of the season festival in the outskirts of Asgard? We talked about having kids when the little boys came up to us and you were so good with them. Do you remember the names you adored?”

There was silence for a second and Sigyn was about to interject when she heard him whisper. “Narvi and Vali. We never came up with a name for a girl because we both believed we would never have one. You always joked that there were too many women in your family for another.”

“Their names are Narvi and Vali. After the names their father chose.” It was quiet when she heard the pieces click together. She turned her head, looking into the living room, noticing the boys on the floor playing with some small blocks her father had made them. When their powers acted up they were freeze-proof so they could never be broken.

She felt his presence behind her, a hand on the low of her back.

“They’re mine?” She felt a cry come out before turning around.

“Of course they’re yours. I found out I was pregnant three weeks after Thanos defeated the Avengers. I came to Vanaheim when I heard my family had relocated here after Asgard’s fall.”

“Do they know-”

“They know who their father is. I’ve told them stories about you to them when they ask. I told them that even though you didn’t know them, you loved them. I told them stories about when we were courting, and that you had done bad things because of a bad man. That they were jotun. They know everything and it never changed anything.” She gently rubbed his cheek. “They love you the same no matter what. They aren’t Thor and you. They are your sons and they deserve to meet their father.” She saw him nod before she walked into the living room, watching the boys play, but it seemed wrong. The way they were playing was almost robotic? Sigyn sighed before muttering how much they were like their father. She quickly walked into the kitchen before taking a deep breath, Loki watching her.

“Boys, I know that you aren’t in the living room. Please show yourself. I’m not going to be mad.” Sigyn felt a shift in magic and looked in the corner to find the two boys crouched, listening in on the conversation. Sigyn sighed as she walked over to the boys.

“I assume you heard what we were talking about.” Muttered Sigyn as she knelt down to their level. The boys nodded as she thought of what to say next, but they beat her to it.

“So papa’s okay?” Sigyn stopped and looked at Vali, shocked he had made the first comment. He was a generally quiet kid, and really only opened up to Narvi and Sigyn. Having Loki just a few feet away made Sigyn think he would be hidden and drawn away.

“Yeah, papa’s okay.” Sigyn brushed the hair out of Vali’s eyes. It was getting almost as long as his father’s.

“So that’s our papa?” Questioned Narvi, looking over at Loki from the corner of his eye. It caught Loki off guard, seeing his eyes on such a small little being. It made him swell with immense pride he didn’t know he had. It made him think of his mother. Sigyn nodded and gestured to Loki to take the reins. The boys moved slowly towards him, and Loki knelt down to look the boys in the eyes. He saw Vali tilt his head a bit.

“You look like me.” Loki smirked, and was almost unsure whether to touch them. He was afraid. Here they were, years later, and he was a stranger to his own children. It made him feel guilty. Truly, he had been searching for Sigyn for years, but the fact that she had been raising two boys alone made his guilt rise.

“You don’t look like me.” Narvi muttered. “Mama says I act like you though.”

Loki laughed. He had remembered his mother made a comment when he was young, warning him that he would be in trouble if he had a child that behaved like him. He was sure it was to encourage him not to misbehave. He felt his mother probably smiling and the fact that there were two made him smirk even more. It took a second for them to approach him, and it was seconds later that he was hugging them, holding onto them tight, never letting them go again. What was stranger though was that the boys were holding on tight, like they had saved it up for him.

“I love you two so much.” He whispered, afraid to let go of them, that they may disappear or be taken away, his hands running through their hair, Narvi’s light blonde and Vali’s pitch black. Looking at them you couldn’t tell they were twins.

“They’ve been saving this for you.” Muttered Sigyn, rubbing his shoulder as he sat the boys on his knee, giving each a kiss on the forehead. Sigyn rubbed Loki’s back as she looked up intently at him.

“I promise you all, I am never leaving again. I promise you three.” He pressed his forehead against Sigyn’s, holding onto them tightly. Nothing would take them away. Not now, not ever. He had fought to see her again. He traveled across the galaxy to look into Sigyn’s comforting eyes, and nothing would take that away. He had two beautiful children whom he had missed out on. He wouldn’t be Odin. Never. He would be there for them through anything. He was going to be not a father, but a dad. Someone who cared for them and looked out for them and played with them.

Loki was a dad, and he had never felt happier.

#Loki #Sigyn #Loki/Sigyn #*fanfic #Vali #Narvi #Lokasons

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ask-jokeboi · 4 years

Photo

The Party

Hope everyone's having a great holiday season so far! This time of year isn't always easy but thankfully friends and a good distraction can make things easier.

I drew these pic’s to pair with a moderately long fic I wrote to follow up the aforementioned party from earlier, it’s below the the cut! Read it if you want! Either way, Happy Holidays! 💜💚💛

Words: 4,142 Relationships: Harlivy /Harley & Joker friendship / Batjokes (mentioned) Universe: Mine / Lego Batman

A/N: sorry for any typos or weird grammatical stuff, I'm good at art, not writing

Summary: Joker’s felt a little down since Batman’s been out of town, will his best friend Harley be able to cheer him up?

Warnings: Alcohol use, implied depression

_____________________

"C'mon Jay it'll be be fun!" Cheered Harley, mustering all the enthusiasm she could in an attempt to persuade Gotham's former clown prince of crime to pull himself together

"I don't care!…. Go bother your girlfriend or something. Leave me alone…" He was currently piled under several layers of blankets, sunk deep into the ball pit he called a bed

"Nuh uh, I'm not haulin' my butt outta this room 'till you haul yours. You can stay in that pit and cry all ya like, but it won't fix nothin', you gott-"

"I don't GOTTA do anything!" Jay snapped. Throwing his blanket aside and revealing his less than kempt appearance, his face twisted into a frustrated glare

Harley, already familiar with Jay's usual harmless outbursts only sighed as she looked her long time friend up and down, taking in his surroundings with a curious eye

It'd been a month or two since Batman left the scene and his absence was definitely beginning to take a toll on the poor clown.

She could tell it'd been a while since he'd done anything to care for himself…. His hair, which was usually swept back into a flawless green pomp, lazily draped his face. The dull forest black of his roots beginning to seep back into the rest of it. Same could be said for the state his room which, due to his erratic nature, was always a bit untidy but had recently fallen into a state of near disrepair. Bags of half eaten junk food and empty bottles of all sorts of things lay strewn across the floor, particularly around his half deflated bed.

Despite the mess, he still seemed a little...thin… more so than usual to be honest… his ribs visible beneath the loose shirt he wore, arms comparable to sticks despite the muscle.

most of all though, he just seemed... tired. Jay always looked tired out of makeup. It was one of the first things she'd managed to take note of when he'd first entered her office years ago…. But right now the purple rings beneath his eyes that never seemed to go away were deepened to a point that made it clear he wasn't getting much sleep or doing much for himself in general...

Seeing her best friend in a state like this was hard to witness… and although her partner, Ivy, didn't have much but mild disdain for Jay, Harley couldn't find it in herself to leave him like this… which is why she thought a party might lift his spirits a little

"C'mooon! You love parties!! It'll just be a small one anyway!" It was actually much bigger than she was implying but Jay liked big and she didn't wanna scare him off too soon…

"Yeah, like that'll make things any better… who did you even invite?? A good half of the rogues don't even like me…"

"Sure they do!"

Jay only looked at her, bereft and unimpressed.

"I mean ok you and Riddler don't always get along and it took a lot a beggin' ta get ya un-banned from the iceberg lounge but still!!"

"Uhg whatever! It doesn't matter! I don't need those bozos seein' me like this anyway..."

"Like what?"

"I don't know! I'm just…... I'm not in the right… mood for something like that right now.... You know how this works… they'd see right through me. "

Back when Jay was still her patient they'd end up talking a lot about masks…Batman's would come up more often than not but every now and then he'd end up discussing his own…. Or more specifically, the metaphorical one he'd put on every time he picked up a brush and painted himself a new face…..

"Jay, sweetie… you don't have to pretend to be okay… they won't think you're weak or nothin', you know that right?..."

Jay gave her an incredibly tired look before turning away.

"What happened to the Jay that wasn't afraid to let people know how he's feelin' huh? The one that turned every emotion into a show….?"

He kept his head down, shoulders stiff, before speaking...

"....Cause I'm not just sad this time…. " As he looked up slowly an emotion that was rarely seen on the mans face showed itself, flooding his eyes.

"W- when I'd talked to Robin and Batgirl that last time and asked about Batman they gave each other this look and…. Something's wrong… he's in trouble or something I… I can feel it….. W-what if he doesn't come back and he leaves me here all alone an-"

Harley put a polished nail up to Jay's lips and smiled warmly.

"Shhhh…. You're worryin' too much puds… ur big dumb brain is just an overdramatic liar… don't listen to it okay?"

Jay sniffled, giving her an understanding nod.

"You still got me an' your crew an' Bud and all the other little silly things that make ya days good doncha?"

He smiles halfheartedly. "Y-yeah…. But still… he was..."

"I know… he's special….but do you seriously think anything out there could actually kill Batman? THE Batman? C'mon now…. He's luckier than any bastard out there and you know it…"

"Yeah…. Yeah I guess ur right"

"Of COURSE I'm right!… now come on…" she offers her hand and helps her friend stand up. "Let's get that hair done and those nails shined up so you're brain can take a break from making all those nasty thoughts"

Jay smiled a little wider this time, forever grateful he had a friend as great as Harley around… he really didn't know what he'd do without her sometimes...

"Right…. Also… uh…. Harley?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for….uh…. Bein'... around… I guess…" Jay practically mumbled...

Harley smiled knowingly, amused with his poor attempt of gratitude

"No problem, Pud's….." she gave him a peck on the forehead leaving a black smudge behind

"now enough mush...Let's clean this mess and get ya fabbed up"

________________

A few hours later, Jay stood outside the titular iceberg lounge in his best winter fit, a long boa around his shoulders and a pair of unnecessary sunglasses obscuring the mascara he'd only half ruined on the way there….

He truly, honestly, did not feel like socializing with anyone at the moment, but who was he to refuse a doctor's orders?....

Taking a deep breath of the cold winter air, Jay stiffened up, smoothed the wrinkles from his vintage memphis style sweater and entered the lounge, heels high and head high as he could manage

____________

When the doors swung open with a swirl of winter snow, Jay was greeted by a surprisingly full and stunningly silent room. Christmas music cut through the tension like a knife as everyone stopped what they were doing and turned their attention to Joker's fashionably late arrival.

He didn't know if it was because of his natural ability to demand attention or the fact that he hadn't been seen in nearly 3 weeks, but for some reason the room seemed slightly on edge. worried he'd come with another Joker brand surprise perhaps. Thankfully, Harley, who'd left his place a little earlier to get everything ready, noticed who'd finally arrived.

"JJ!! YOU MADE IT!!" she leaped off her stool and came running to grab him, The rest of the room taking it as a cue to un-tense and to go back to their festivities, the lounge lighting up with warm greetings and laughter.

" Hey…" said Jay as Harley put an arm around his shoulder and escorted him to the booth she was sitting at….

"So… is all of this for me or…?"

"No, did she tell you that?" Ivy who was sitting at the booth with his other less than fond acquaintance, Catwoman and someone else he didn't seem to recognize, gave a snide smile, Jay suddenly felt he should probably sit someplace else

"IVY!! SHHH" Harley shushed

"What? He was gonna find out out eventually…. It was supposed to be Penguin's annual winter ball"

"Uh,It still is tho…?" said Kat, mouth full of shrimp

"Well, yah…. Difference is we had to 'finesse' Penguin into letting HIM in" Ivy explained, disdain in her voice

"And you... helped with that?..." asked Jay, surprised. Ivy sighed

"for Harley's sake, yes. not yours"

Jay smiled, amused. "well how charitable of you, here's to hoping you won't regret it"

Ivy rolled her eyes. "As if I don't already" she said, taking a short sip from her drink, Harley sitting down next to her give her thank u peck on the cheek.

"Hey, why'd you get banned from this dump anyway?" Asked Kat, eyes squinting curiously

"I have no idea…." Jay shrugged

"He put a coke and mento bomb in the fountain!" Harley interrupted

"Oh yeah…." He'd totally forgot

"Ha! Awesome…"

"Right uh, anyway, who the hell are you?" Jays attention suddenly turned to the woman sitting opposite of kat. She had light blue skin, bright white eyes and hair that made her look like a human lighting rod.

"Name's Livewire." She said, voice sharp as her appearance

"She's from Metropolis" explained Ivy. Jay rose a brow.

"Metropolis huh?? How'dya like dealin' with boy scout full time over there?" He quizzed

"Sweet!…" she exclaimed enthusiastically "Big blue aint got a thing on me! 'sides, dweeb's been outta town for months now! metropolis might as well be my personal playground"

The mentioning of Superman's absence made something in Jay's chest twist. He'd known their neighbor hero had been MIA for even longer than Batman, Supergirl taking over the workload just like Batgirl had in Gotham. but still… the reminder was enough to worry him. I mean… if superman was taking so much time up there, what chance did Batman have against whatever it was they were so busy with??

Trying his best to shake off the uneasiness building in his stomach Jay took a breath and snapped back to reality, offering Livewire his hand

"Well, uh... Livewire, i'm this city's head honcho while the bat's gone so welcome to Gotham and try not to wear it out"

Harley and Ivy exchanged looks as Jay smiled slyly and took Livewires hand…

...Only for his usual gesture of hospitality to be met with an equally shocking grip that sent blue sparks flying in every direction.

"DAMN, what the- !! " Jay yanked his hand back and held it in pain, hot needles running up his arm.The new addition to Harley's crew laughed crudely and smiled

"why do you think they call me 'LIVEWIRE' genius?"

Jay stayed silent with defeat as the table went up in hysterics "Yeah fine, okay, I shoulda saw that one coming" he sighed and smoothed out his hair which had sprung up to stand on end, his face ever so slightly red "anyway, you ladies have a nice time… i'll set up shop somewhere else and let you guys… idk… flirt with each other or whatever..." without much fanfare he slunk off to sit someplace else.

After the table had settled down completely though, Harley noticed Jay making his way to the bar looking somewhat dejected.

"Aw Jay…."

The rest curiously turned their attention to the direction of Harley's gaze.

"You're not going after him are you?" Asked Ivy after a beat.

"Well… yeah…?" Harley shrugged.

"Uhm, why?" Asked kat, dipping more shrimp into her cocktail "like if he's not in the mood for a joke that's kinda his problem…?"

"Yeah, but still…. I've never seen 'im like this for so long…. He's usually so funny and animated, it's like somethin' drained all the life out of 'im…." The concern on Harley's face was very apparent. Ivy brushed back a few strands of her hair and tried her best to reassure her.

"Look i'm sure he'll get his second wind when Batman comes back at some point… but ‘til then it's not your job to take care of him…"

Harley sighed silently. "I know but… he's still my best friend… and if I hadn't met him, I wouldn'ta met you!" She squished close to her spouse with a smile, Ivy suddenly unable to hold back a small one herself.

"He helped me outta my slump all those years ago, least I can do is help 'im outta his..."

Ivy gave her a soft look before reluctantly caving "Kindness has always been your best and worst trait, silly bee…" she said with a smirk "fine, go ahead and do your thing, I've got plenty of company over here in the meantime…"

Harley smiled happily and gave her one last kiss before running off to join Jay at the bar.

____________

Jay sat alone at the bar in silence until he was suddenly startled by Harley's arrival.

"What's shakin' grumpy gills?" She asked pulling up a stool.

Jay didn't answer as the bartender slid over a funfetti martini topped with the works, Jay lazily catching it and drinking deeply.

"Those guys didn't get ta ya did they? I know they seem mean bu- "

"Ah… I don't care about them…" said Jay dismissively "we're all villains here right? I'm sure they got their reasons… sides, Livewire's pretty fun even if she did fry my Joy buzzer" He said regretfully…

"So what's up then…?" Asked Harley, head tilted

Jay looked down at the table with a frown, fingers anxiously scraping the side of the glass in his hand….

"What she'd said about metropolis…. And… superman…."

"Oh…" Harley nodded "well…. I'm sure they're together wherever they are…. Right? Him and Batman? And I mean, with Superman around, he's bound to be okay….."

Jay had a hard time matching her enthusiasm but that logic did comfort him some. "Yeah… yeah I guess so"

"C'mon Jay, you gotta get that stuff off your mind for a minute! Go mingle! Go dance!… look at everyone who came this time! Turn-out's never been so big!"

As Jay's looked around the room, Harley did have a point, usually these get-togethers only managed to scrounge up about half the gang, but it looked like almost all the rogues in town had come this time. Even D-listers like Polkadot man, Killer Moth, Crazy Quilt ect. Had managed to show up, plus people he didn't seem to recognize…

For example at the bar sat Scarecrow and a… Oddly scruffy looking man he looked to be sharing a drink with. He'd heard from Riddler over the phone some time ago that crow had found himself a friend and that the two were "in cahoots". whatever that was supposed to mean. He supposed that must've been the "friend" in question…

A few tables down sat another unfamiliar in a polkadot shirt and a pair of cracked thick lensed glasses. He had a peculiar looking puppet sitting on his lap which made J raise a brow, but he didn't judge. Looking at his woefully nervous face he guessed it must it must've been a security thing anyway…

Despite the big crowd though, Jay did notice one person missing of whom he hadn't seen in quite a while...

"Yeah I guess everyone is here... except uh, Lex I guess…?" Jay considered himself friends with metropolises king of corruption, even if the feeling wasn't always mutual. Seeing so many crooks he knew in one place made him realize how rare it was to see the mal hearted mogul at these things.

Unfortunately, Harley could only shrug with defeat. "Ah I tried to get Lex but you know how he is… nobody's seen that shut in for ages".

Jay's eyes narrowed at that "How long is ages…. ?" He pressed

"I dunno… a few months guess??? Livewire said he's been quiet lately, probably off in one of his labs making some over convoluted instrument of destruction I guess"

The growing list of missing big shots was beginning to piece something together in Jay's head… what on earth was Lex up to? Where was superman?? Why did the league need Batman's help? How did it all connect?? After a moment Harley noticed Jay slipping into his thoughts again and shook his shoulder lightly to pull him out of it.

"Hey, don't worry about that egghead. he'd only kill the mood if he were here anyway"

Jay couldn't disagree, the billionaire was kind of notorious for being a giant stick in the mud.

"If you're really worried about what's goin' on with those guys, you can come up with a plan Tomorrow…. right now we got a' open dance floor, unlimited drinks and a Karaoke competition that's about ta kick off in ten"

The word 'Karaoke' was enough to snap Jay back to reality. "Did you say Karaoke?"

"Yes, I did."

"Do they hav-"

"Yes, they have Queen"

Jay nearly looked as if someone had told him the best news of his life. "Oh thank god" maybe Harley was right. Worrying would have to wait.

_____________

The rest of the night went on with few hang ups. Drinks poured, music played and poorly screeched lyrics kept the mood upbeat.

The Karaoke stage hosted performance after performance, some more enthusiastic than others. Some painful, others surprisingly pleasant. Jay's teetered off the edge of both categories, but when "somebody to love" burst through those speakers, he'd sung it with his whole chest. The best performance by a long shot though had to be Ivy's who's affinity for 50's ballads lent to her beautifully rich voice and her's was closely followed by the Dent's who'd decided to attempt a duet with no chorus which everyone found somewhat impressive.

Emotions did flare up once or twice though, as they tend to do when it comes to villain gatherings. Ed and Jay got into a fight about something stupid and unimportant, both obviously enjoying themselves, Bane and Croc engaged in an arm wrestle that woefully ended in a tie, and Jay inevitably got worked up about Batman again, this time with a crowd of eager listeners somewhat entertained by his rambling, giving questionable advice here and there.

At the get-together's height, the dance floor had filled to the point where Penguin was just about ready to call the whole event off until Riddler dragged him on to the floor himself.

After another hour or so the party wound down some more and the night devolved into quiet discussions between friends, everyone either ready to leave or half asleep. Eventually Jay and Two-face of all people were left alone. Once Ed, Crow, Hatter and the rest had gone home.

Jay always liked Harv, for someone known for his temper he seemed to have a lot of patience and Jay found both of his selves uniquely interesting in their own ways. Harvey the "handsome" one was always very nice, easily flustered, and had a sadness in his eyes that was hard to ignore. "Dent", the one famous for all those 2 themed crimes, was a bold individual and one of the most brutally honest people he knew. That night though, even he seemed a little sad. He admitted later that it was because it'd been a while since he'd gotten to talk to his old pal Bruce, someone Jay was mildly familiar with of course, and they spent the rest of the night discussing Batman and wayne and how they seemed so similar until it really was time to head home.

sometime after midnight, long after everyone had either left or found someplace to pass out, Harley broke up with her girl gang again to come get Jay who'd fallen asleep in an empty booth.

"Wake up clown" she said loudly, nudging him a bit. Jay giggled quietly in response, turning over after a moment and opening his eyes.

"Oohh what's up??"

"Time to go."

"Aw…" Jay huffed disappointedly, then did his best to sit up straight, his head slowly spinning as he did so "ah jeeze…"

"Don't worry I called one of your guys, he's waiting outside." She explained "I dragged you here, might as well drag you home"

"You did that for me?" Jay smiled "That's so nice…."

"Mhm" carefully, she took his hand got him to his feet, doing her best to keep him up straight. As they headed out they met up with Ivy at the door

"Taking pennywise home?" She asked

"It'll only take a minute" Harley assured

"Alright… don't take too long…" she turned to leave but before she could, Jay suddenly spoke up.

"H-hey, Wait!"

Ivy turned around, brow raised "You have something to say to me?"

"Uh… yeah? I mean… sort of? I just, uh… wanted to say i'm sorry for… messing up your garden all those times…."

Ivy blinked "Why are you telling me this now?"

"I just thought you shud kno…. And that um…. Maybe you'd hate me…. A little less... if I said sorry for once..." the frown on Jays face was absolutely pitiful, Ivy could only roll her eyes.

"I don't hate you… Joker"

"Oh?"

"I just think you're annoying…."

"Oh…." Jay couldn't really tell if that was any better but at the moment he was too drunk to care. "Okay…"

With that ivy turned around to join Kat and Livewire

"Thanks for the apology though I suppose…Take care of yourself…. And, Harley don't take too long… it's only 1:00am we still have plans."

"Don't worry Ive's i'll catch up."

after one last look, Ivy went back on her way and Harley continued walking J to his car.

As they went Jay hummed to himself, swaying slightly, until a certain thought made him go quiet again.

"....Harley….?" He asked suddenly.

"Yeah, J?"

"Am I a bad friend?" The question just as out of the blue as his apology to Ivy….

Harley looked at him, concerned "Why do ya ask?"

"I just…. Please?" He pleaded. Harley hesitated for a long moment but decided being honest was probably best.

" not exactly but… maybe sometimes"

"Hm…" Jay decided he'd have to work on that

"But I also know ya don't really wanna hurt anybody…. That you try your best everyday ta make people happy and that you've been through just as much any of us…. A few mean comments an' dumb pranks ain't gonna make anybody think you're the devil or somethin'….not me or any of the other guys... "

Jay had to smile at that, Harley always had something smart or nice to say no matter what. still, her answer only made him feel worse about how he'd been earlier when she was just trying to help… he really, honestly, didn't deserve her…. But the least he could do was let her know he was glad to have her...

"Harley…?"

"Yeah, J…"

"Thanks for being really, really great all the time… and… y'know… around… " Harley smiled as she secured his arm around her shoulders.

"Thanks J..."

"also sorry for sucking sometimes..."

She sighed. "It's fine Jay…."

carefully, she hauled his ragdolling body a few more feet and shoved him into the back seat of his car. J grunting as his head hit the leather seat.

"Now go home an' try not to get lost on your way to the door" She said sternly. Jay gave her a lazy wink and a pair of wobbly finger guns.

"Gotcha."

with that,Harley slammed the door shut and the J-Mobile's engine roared to life. One his lackeys sitting in the driver's seat.

"Where to boss? HQ?"

"Yup… ah, sorry t' call ya out so late…"

"S'alright boss…. Don't worry about it"

As the car lurched forward, street lights shining in through the windows as snow fell ever so lightly over Gotham like a dusting of fresh powdered sugar, Jay did inevitably start thinking about Batman again, wondering when he'd come back, desperately wishing he knew anything about where he was right now….

The thoughts were hard to ignore and when he got home he knew he'd be surrounded by the same walls he'd spent the last month trapped with them in…. even so, the world felt a little less washed out than it had before he left, and it wasn't just because of the alcohol swirling in his blood.

He may not have had Batman... But today reminded him he wasn't alone.

He had friends… real friends… In a way he'd always considered them such… but deep down there was always doubt. I mean sure he got along better with some than others, but after knowing people so long he shouldn't have been so dumb to think they hated him as much as he thought they did.

When you're a villain in Gotham sometimes all you have are other weirdos in the same boat as you to help keep you and everyone else afloat. People need people in more ways than one… and as Jay drifted off to sleep in the back of his gaudy getaway vehicle, laying in a position that was just barely comfortable, he pushed his worries aside and made sure that was something he'd never let himself forget.

~ End ~

#batman #dc comics #the joker #harley Quinn #lego batman #christmas #blogged

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sixx02 · 3 years

Text

One More

“Arc… Arc… vs Arc… and Nikos… ugh… why are there three of you?” The combat professor scratched his head as he stared at the names on the board. “Whatever…”

Jaune did not like where this was going, they had only been here for a few weeks but he’d seen just how good Pyrrha was. Okay, well he could tell right away after her first fight with Nora. He just kind of hoped they’d be together… ‘Not together together! Just on the same team… right that’s what I meant!’ Yep he definitely didn’t think she was super darn awesome, or really pretty, or super badass or anything like that! He also didn’t notice her well toned arms and legs when they were training, nope! He’d never pay attention to things like that.

Of course… he couldn’t help but pass glances to her now and again, she was really awesome. Though… he doubted he’d have a chance, and honestly he needed to concentrate on himself… right… he didn’t want a repeat of before. Turning towards the professor he waited for the actual teams.

“Ugh, whatever, boys versus girls.”

Both Lie and him stopped, “Uh… sir, could we uh… could you reconsider?”

“No! Now get your stuff and get up there!”

Both boys turned towards one another, “Oh no.”

Lie and him weren’t terrible by any means, heck they were in the upper half of the class! But, well… Nora and Pyrrha were at the very top constantly competing for first place. And there was talk about Pyrrha actually competing in the upcoming tournaments! The trio had opted out of it, they didn’t really want the attention and honestly speaking they didn’t want to be in front of a crowd.

“Hurry up!” Both boys sighed, relenting to their future domination. That was till they were both pulled into a powerful hug.

“Yes! I can’t wait to fight! It’s going to be a ton of fun!”

Jaune loved Nora, she was his wonderful sister after all. But, well… he wasn’t sure he could agree with that last bit. Though he didn’t really have the heart to deny her answer as she continued to squeeze the two boys together.

“Nora I think they get the point.” Pyrrha’s gentle tone caught his ears.

“Okie dokie!” Nora let them go at the behest of her, in her own words, besty better than the resty forever! Honestly despite his obvious… not so obvious, crush on her, he was just happy that she got along with Nora. Like he said he loved Nora, but she had a lot of energy, a lot of energy that caused a lot of people to think she was stupid or dumb, well they always got what was coming to them.

“Still, this should be a grand fight!”

“Right right! Grand.”

“Yes… Grand.” Lie’s response was far less enthusiastic than his own. Both boys however gave way, once they gathered their things adjourning at the arena. The girls had already been prepared, Pyrrha had her own specially made weapon. “It seems they’re taking us seriously.”

“Yep… I wish they wouldn’t!” Jaune didn’t like where this was going! He had seriously thought about how they’d handle the dynamic duo, but every single idea and thought was always just crushed by overwhelming prowess and might. “Well nothing left but to do it then ya?”

Lie simply nodded, they would have to take this one step at a time after all.

The moment they lined up with the girls the professor started the count down.

“Alright! 3...2...1… GO!”

Hopefully this wouldn’t be too terrible.

“This is terrible…”

A week earlier.

Charles couldn’t believe what they’d run into, he was starting to truly and fully believe that him and his wife were harbingers of doom… or at the very least ones that came in the aftermath of great destruction.

“Who would do this? This wasn’t a grimm attack… they don’t just set fires to homes!” Jeanne didn’t like this, not at all… they’d been on a mission when they’d seen the smoke rise into the air. When they got to the small farm they’d found the home razed to the ground, if only they’d gotten here sooner! She clenched her fist as the air around her began to warp, her aura flared wildly, the ground cracking beneath her feet.

“WAAAAAAAAAH!”

In an instant she cooled off, “Did you hear that?!”

“Yes!” Both husband and wife turned towards one another, in an instant they were off, the ground cracking beneath their feet as they made their way towards the sound.

In an instant they found themselves in front of a Cellar, wasting no time they dug through the debris blocking their way.

“What…” Once they’d opened the doors they’d found a young boy who appeared to be the same age as their twins. “Oh god…” Jeanne winced at the terrible wounds on his chest rising up to his neck.

“No… not again. What do we do?” Her husband’s words sunk in.

“We... we have to take him… see if he has family? Find out who he is…”

“P...please… help him…” Their eyes snapped towards a younger woman. They hadn’t noticed her before, but… but she wasn’t going to make it. The clear indications of severe wounds present on her body, scars and gnashes… the seasoned hunters almost looked away. “Please… he has… no one else…”

“Hold on don’t ta…” Charles stopped as he drew closer, “...She’s dead.”

Once more they let the silence seep in, “We… we have to take him.”

Her husband stood there for a moment, “Alright…”

They would bury the woman, and they would take the young boy home with them. The young man who they would later learn the name as Oscar Pines, the young man that would later be known as Oscar Pines Arc.

Jaune had been wrong, he had been terribly terribly wrong! This was worse than terrible! This had gone downright ugly!

His legs buckled at Nora’s powerful swing, the arena beneath his feet cracked. “SERIOUSLY?!” He knew that these things were supposed to be made of sturdier stuff, and he knew that if he hadn’t been pumping aura into this metal sheet of a shield it would have caved right in.

“AHAHAHAH!” Her body was surging with dangerously high levels of electricity.

“Your semblance is so unfair!”

“Says the walking living aura generator! Now on your knees my favorite minion!”

“NOPE NOPE NOPE! LIE!” In an instant Lie pulled himself away from trying to defend from Pyrrha, pumping his aura into his legs he dashed over towards his manic sister, his palm colliding with her waist sending her flying. Unfortunately she was able to stop herself from getting ringed out by smashing her hammer into the ground beneath them.

Jaune’s hand swiped past Lie as he continued after Nora, in a single burst he’d filled his brother’s Aura up once more. WIth a burst of strength his own Aura began to refill, only to stop a Pyrrha peppered him with dust rounds.

“Really Pyrrha?!”

“Sorry! But I can’t let you do that!” She was ever the fighter after all, so he knew she wouldn’t just let him recharge.

“Fine!” Putting up his shield he dashed forward, allowing the bullets to graze past it or hit less important targets, like not his head.

Upon reaching her, he did what he did best, he attempted to ram his shield into her face. Only for her to deftly avoid him, his shield flashed black as she attempted to nudge it away.

Ever since her fight with Nora, she’d apparently been using her semblance a lot more, taking the time to really practice with it. Or at least that’s what she’d told them anyways. Which was great and everything! But it made her really frustrating to fight, so he did what he knew he could. Pumping more aura into the shield he was able to overpower her attempt at control.

“You really do have a lot of aura!” He would have blushed at the comment if not for her shield attempting to ram him into the face.

He didn’t have many options, he couldn’t really avoid it, he wasn’t exactly the fastest person, so once more he did what he thought he could. “ACHA!” With a might slam he hit her shield straight on with his empowered forehead causing her to pull back in surprise.

“Jaune!?” Her worried tone was apparently warranted as that blow nearly knocked his lights out. Aura could do a lot of things, but when he messed up, well sometimes his brain couldn’t really handle the rumbling.

“I’m okay!” Straightening himself he attempted to swipe at her midsection, only for her to parry the blow using her blade.

“Good!” In that moment he felt her aura wrap around his blade disarming him as her knee hit him straight in the gut. Thankfully his Aura protected him, but that hadn’t been her goal. In the moment that he instinctively buckled over she’d applied her aura instantly onto his shield and pushed him straight out of the ring. “Sorry!”

To his surprise Lie had already been there waiting for him. “Did she golf swing you?”

“She golf swung me…”

“Nikos and Arc win!”

The boys could hear the cheering from the crowd, their own egos slightly wounded as no one really had expected them to win, not even themselves!

But, well that didn’t matter in the end, “YOU GUYS DID AMAZING!”

Pink and Sapphire eyes glanced upwards, meeting emerald and turquoise.

“She’s right you know. You had gotten our aura’s rather low.”

Both boys turned towards the monitor at the same time, they’d managed to get both Pyrrha and Nora down to about 60 percent. That may have seemed like nothing, but well, when most people couldn’t drop them even a single percent? It wasn’t a bad thing. “Huh! Hey look at that, we got you guys down another 2 percent this time.” A part of him did want to have a little snark though.

“That we did.”

“Yeah! You guys are improving!” Nora pulled everyone into a tight hug, her arms wrapped affectionately around her family, Pyrrha included.

“I agree you’re both improving at a remarkable rate.”

Neither of the boys could really deny it, while it felt bad to lose, well… well at least they knew they were getting better and that wasn’t a bad thing.

“Alright… well how bout… we go get cleaned up and then we can go to Saph’s house. We could have a sleep over?” He turned towards Pyrrha, “If you can come of course!”

“Oh! Yes, my parents should be fine with it. They quite like your sister.” Pyrrha’s warm smile caused his chest to feel oddly pained. Right, gotta concentrate on getting better.

Pyrrha parted ways with them wanting to get ready and prepared for the oncoming sleepover.

Once they’d gotten home after getting ready, they’d noticed extra sounds coming from the living room. “Saph?”

“MY BABIES!” In an instant the three Arc siblings were pulled into one powerful hug.

“MOM!” Nora was the only one to return the powerful hug meeting one with equal strength.

“Hey kids… we got something to tell you.” As their mom dropped them they eyed a small figure behind them. “Meet Oscar… Oscar Pine Arc, he’s your new little brother.”

#Jaune Arc #Nora Valkyrie #Pyrrha Nikos #Lie Ren #JNPR #Team JNPR #RWBY #Oscar Pine #Lil JNPR

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the-incapable-hero · 3 years

Text

Techno found himself complacent. Now, keep in mind, it's hard for that to even come close to happening. After all, complacency is a recipe for downfall. But he really couldn't help it.

He flicks the blood from his sword and finds that his victory is tainted by monotony. He could hear cheering and awe at yet another victory, though like many other times, the applause became indistinguishable from the other voices in his head that kept his every waking moment permanently barred from even the prospect of silence.

As he continues to clean his blade, he begins to stalk off so that he might wear some nicer clothes. Not that he really needed to change since he hadn't even gotten a speck on his attire. It was flashy, shure, but appearance is important in his line of work. That, and a little extra gold around the wrist never hurt anyone. Just as he was about to leave his audience and former opponent behind, he heard a voice.

"Technoblade." It sounded expectant. He turned at the mention of his alias-turned-name and saw a new arrival standing near. His method of appearance was definitely… unique. Yes, let's put it that way. If there was a way to stray from every single norm, then this guy was it. A porcelain mask decorated his face, pristine as could be and a very simple design of a smile boasted confidence. He had his sword drawn and pointed at Techno. Techno raised an eyebrow as he stared directly into the mask, unimpressed.

"Yeah? You lookin' for a duel?" Techno asked, knowing the answer would be yes. He'd seen it before and had done this whole song and dance. But he didn't want to fight. Not this guy. If he was here, then there was no way he actually had noteworthy skill. He wasn't even in the tournament.

"Of course. Why else would I have a sword?"

"Yer makin' yerself look like a fool. Tournament's over. I'm not fightin' you." Techno could see him tense up and his grip tightened around the sword.

"Yeah? And what's so wrong about an encore?"

"I have a family to feed. I'm not stayin' to fight you. You couldn't even get into a tournament like this. I wiped the floor with the competition here, you really think you'll be any different?"

"I can and will beat you."

"Dream on. I'm goin' home." And so, he left. Back turned and sword sheathed. The masked man he left behind lowered his blade and huffed. This wouldn't be the end.

_____

It had been some time, not enough in Techno's opinion, before he saw that mask again. In his defense, his outfit changed. It looked like he'd put a bit more dignity into choosing how he presented himself. Still though, Techno had refused him. This tournament was higher up in the ranks. More was at stake too. Money. Land. Lives. Illegal? Maybe. But it let Techno really let loose. Though in typical fashion, the masked man had shown up right at the end of the tournament. It was already over but here he was, pointing a sword to Techno and demanding a duel. Techno found himself sighing.

"Listen. You either have no sense of showing up on time, have no guts to be in a tournament like this, or you really just don't have skills to be here. No matter which one it is, it means you'll be like every other contestant I've beaten. So, I'll say it again: dream on. You don't have the skill." Techno didn't even let him reply this time. He didn't give him the chance. Just turned his back and left. He was doing his work and getting his pay, so why was this guy so persistent?

_____

This was where he peaked. Or not. He supposed that the sky was the limit. It probably could be too if he was able to point his blade in all of the right places. A noble's tournament. Felt good. Even, better, these guys actually made Techno pay attention. Not that he'd gotten more than a nick on the sleeve, but hey, it's the thought that counts.

And to be honest, even though he had to hold back from killing anyone, it just made it more difficult. The restrictions made it more interesting. He had to think around them. He decided he liked the noble tournaments.

Though he'd probably like this one in particular significantly more if that mask hadn't interrupted him right before his first duel. Another challenge, another rejection. Techno was starting to catch on to this pattern. If he wasn't in the tournament, then he wasn't going to duel. What could he possibly gain from fighting him? The conversation was going the same as well. Maybe this would become another constant in Techno's life. Or maybe not. Who knows.

_____

"Welcome one and all to the Greater SMP semi-annual tournament. Today, we have some very esteemed guests joining us. To list just a few, Sapnap of the Greater SMP, George of the Greater SMP, Antfrost and Badboyhalo both representing the Badlands, and many more.

"But I know why you're really here, folks. You're here to see the high ranks. The best of the best. Well they're here folks. So get ready." Techno listened to the announcer and couldn't help but smile. He was ready. He'd face off against some real competition. Looking back on it, he felt silly for thinking that he'd peaked already.

There were so many more people he had to beat in combat before he'd be satisfied.

The tournament went about how he'd predicted. The nobles here definitely put up a fight, but not enough to best him. Some came closer than others, but his sword always found its mark eventually. So when the end of the tournament began approaching, he found himself a bit winded. It was him against the other finalist. He was excited, he wouldn't lie about that. But he tried not to get his hopes too high. Best not get too eager and accidentally kill the guy. The announcer came on again.

"Our finalists, everyone. Technoblade, having clawed his way to the top with ease now sits on his fortune, ready to take down challengers.

"And our masked duelist, who until today, has refused to take part in any official tournaments. He faces off Technoblade, eager to add another win to his list." Technoblade found himself pausing at that. Masked duelist? Why was he getting a sense of deja vu?

Well lo and behold. White porcelain emerged to face Techno. He'd stuck with a similar outfit this time, but his body language had changed. He was more confident, if that were even possible.

"Oh. So it's you. You made it into a tournament, huh?" Techno asked, sounding decidedly smug. The man let out a scoff and rolled his shoulders back.

"Yup. You willing to duel me now?"

"Eh. Fine. What's your name? They didn't say it over the mic."

"Yeah, cause I didn't tell them." The masked man thought for a brief moment before his mouth under the mask split into a mischievous grin.

"What have you said every time you turned me down? 'Dream on'? Well,"

He drew his sword and slid his foot back into a ready stance.

"Call me Dream." And he lunged. Techno was quick to parry, but this Dream guy was quicker than he looked. Not to mention calculated. Every single thing he did seemed to have a purpose, and even moments when Techno thought he was about to best him, Dream would seamlessly turn his mistake into an advantage. Techno went laser focused as he found himself struggling to gain and keep a foothold. The sound of swords clashing went on for what felt like an eternity, and even as he was beginning to tire, the sound of his heart thumping in his ears and the voices (audience? He didn't know) yelling for blood put him on top of the world. He hadn't felt like this in a long time.

Though all good things must come to an end, and this good thing ended with Techno's sword frozen by Dream's neck and Dream's sword positioned to plunge into Techno's stomach. Both were heaving for oxygen and frozen in time, even the voices quieted for a handful of seconds before time was set into motion again by the announcer's voice:

"Stalemate!" Dream and Techno dropped their stance, well and truly exhausted. Dream spoke first.

"Okay, not gonna lie, that was awesome. You're a lot better than I thought you'd be."

"Oh don't get all mushy on me. You've earned your duel privileges, but only so I can learn how ta beat you."

"Oh okay, sure. Whatever. I won't let that happen. I'll win, just you wait."

"Ha, like that'd ever happen, Mr. I Refuse to Enter in Tournaments. Dream on."

"I think I will."

_____

"You look like a fish out of water." Techno remarked, looking at Dream's formal attire. Said man was stiff as a board and had his mask, still pristine as the day he met Techno, pulled completely over his face.

"Shut up. Not all of us dress like we just robbed a piglin hoard."

"Excuse me, gold is the best thing to wear and it makes me look fabulous. I'm not the one that looks like he's got glue in his joints."

"Are you two done yet?" A dry voice came from the now cracked open door, revealing the face of one of Dream's closer friends, Sapnap. After Dream's first official tournament, he'd actually found that participating in them was alright. He wouldn't tell you why, but any who knew him knew that it was because he wanted to stick by the friends he'd made at that tournament. He would definitely deny it though.

"Yeah, just waiting on this nerd." Techno said, gesturing to Dream.

"Oh shut up."

"No."

"Okay, just come on. You fought your way to the top so now you have to deal with it. Come on, get a move on." Sapnap consoles while pushing the two out of the room. They'd all seen too much of each other since then, mostly because now that they were of equal standing, they were usually going to be in the same places.

"You two argue too much." Sapnap teased. He playfully nudged Dream to get him to loosen up, but it didn't really do much.

"I mean, Dream is pretty insufferable."

"Wha- hey!"

"He's got a point."

"Oh and that's coming from Panda and Pig."

"Yer not helpin' your case, Dream." Techno pushed. Dream threw his hands in the air.

"I give up. You two are the worst." Techno stifled a laugh, determined to not show how he was warming up to Dream and his friends. He had to make sure he was at the top of his game too. There was going to be a tournament later that day which meant another chance to beat Dream at his own game. Though before another comment could be made, the room they trio was approaching suddenly erupted into shouting. Techno and Dream rushed forward and swung the doors open to find absolute chaos on the other side. Masked people with very off-looking weapons pointed at people there were ransacking the room and all of its occupants for all it was worth.

"Robbery." Sapnap mumbled under his breath. Techno looked over to Dream who looked to already be in a fighting stance. Techno followed suit. With no words exchanged, they leapt into the fray, ready to subdue the thieves. Techno managed to knock a couple out before a blade clipped his ear and he felt a white-hot sting follow it. He quickly flicked it off and slammed the head of the person who'd done that into a nearby table.

"They've got enchanted stuff!" Techno yelled to Dream on the other side of the room.

"Yeah, I got that." Dream shouted back. He was disheveled and Techno wondered why for a brief moment before he spotted that one of the guys he was fighting had donned a dangerously glinting chest plate. Thorns.

"Well, if you can't beat 'em." Techno shouted to the room before wrenching the sword that had clipped him previously from the man's limp hand. Techno would admit that he didn't have much experience with enchanted gear since unless the tournament was underground and very very illegal, enchantments were banned. Not that he ever needed the extra help anyway. Once he had a weapon in his hand though, sweeping the area was easy as pie. Dream had followed suit and grabbed a sword with what looked like sharpness enchanted into the blade. The two eventually found themselves back to back, wiping clean the room of the thieves. The people in attendance had begun to get set free as well and followed the two in clearing the space. Though they weren't able to do much since many of the attackers had already been knocked unconscious by Techno and Dream.

"Well that was fun." Dream remarked. Techno had to agree. Their numbers were indeed impressive and it proved to be an interesting challenge fighting several people at once.

Not to mention, Techno couldn't recall a time he'd fought back to back with someone. It wasn't bad. Maybe he'd try it again.

@1randomperson15 thanks for the idea! I had fun with this one. I hope you don't mind that I took a few liberties with it lol.

And to everyone else, if you have an idea you really want to see written, let me know!

#dream smp au #dream smp fanfiction #dream smp nobles au #technoblade #dreamwastaken #sapnap #dream #fanfic #fanfic request #dream smp

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