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starksvixen · 3 years

Text

Part 4 - Beskar and Broken Hearts

Masterlist

Summary: You and Din had admitted everything, all cards on the table. But it was all for nothing. After you had escaped Navaro, the Mandalorian started treating you the same, like the kiss never happened. Tensions had risen and hit it’s peak by the time you found her...Ashoka Tano.

Warnings: Lots of angst ahead, semi-unhappy ending,

A/N - I’m doing a major time skip cause *tension*. Also, I didn’t really have any ideas except for lots of squabbling between the reader and Mando so here’s the result.

“Wanna explain why you’ve been ignoring me?” the modulated voice speaks up from beside you.

“Not particularly,”

You move a bit faster, moving your hair to the side, free from your hood you had burned back on Navaro. The patch with the Mythosaur skull rubs against your bicep, something that you thought signified you joining Din’s clan. It was obvious his feelings had changed.

The Mandalorian grew cold, acting as if nothing happened. Like the kiss and three words meant nothing. Maybe he was just trying to spare you from embarrassment. But even that pisses you off, the thought of being babied making a dull static fill you.

You stop walking ahead at the soft cooing of the Child, the only reason you had stayed with Mando up till then. Gently, you take him from Din, not sparing him a glance as you walk with the tiny bundle in one arm.

Entering the small town, you look at its desolate state in suspicion. Din had been sent here in search of a Jedi known as Ashoka Tano. The name’s familiarity resounded within you, memories of the name being passed around during your time on Mandalore.

“You stay out here with the Child,” Mando says gruffly. “I’ll see if I can find the Jedi’s whereabouts,”

“You’re seriously benching me?” you hiss.

“No, you’re protecting the kid,”

And without another word, he walks into the city, leaving you in the dust. With a huff, you hold the kid close to your chest and walk towards the forest line near the outer gates of the city. Once you place him down, you find a rock to sit on, watching as the kid curiously held up anything that looked like food.

“Sorry, buddy, no frogs here.” you sigh, leaning your forearms against your knees.

It didn’t take long for Mando to return, only to be met with silence once again on his behalf. You could feel your heart race beneath your skin, your shoulders practically kissing your eyes with the fire radiating off of them. How the hell was he still silent about this situation?

Before any words could be spoken that you could regret, you shove the kid in his hands, mumble a poor excuse to get ahead, and let your feet take wind into the forest. You’re smart, staying close to the duo so you don’t get lost or encounter a threat alone. But being near that man, it made you crawl in your skin at his actions. Like saying those three words were nothing. Like that kiss didn’t mean something. It haunted you.

A rustle in the bushes catches your attention. On instinct, you twist your arm behind you and pull out the staff that rested on your back.

“Din?” you yell into the air.

“I only see a few beasts to the North,”

“No, that can’t be i-”

Yeah, that definitely wasn’t it. Because before you knew it, a sea of a cloak floats in front of you, white lightsabers at the ready. Barely, just barely, you block her attack with the staff, only to have the metal melt in your hands. As the Jedi pulls back for another hit, you kick her square in the gut before ducking to miss the next hit. The hiss of singed skin fills the air, it’s smell nearly making you gag as you brace yourself with the Earth.

Before you even had to think, the sound of light and beskar rang in your eyes. Looking above you, Din has his arms crossed to block the Jedi’s next hit, one that certainly would have killed you. As girly as it was, your heart fluttered at the protective move.

Swinging out of the way, you protect the Child with the small knife as the Mandalorian and the Jedi come to a truce.

“Bo-Katan sent me!” you hear Din yell, his blaster ready.

Slowly, she disengages, her hood falling gracefully towards her shoulders, looking at you and the Child.

“I hope it’s about him,”

Din paces back and forth at an alarming rate before you, the small light up ahead bouncing off the clean metal and refracting with each movement. Ashoka sits with Grogu, a secret communication taking place between the two of them, something you couldn’t help but admire.

As you lean against a rock, the searing pain at the top of your shoulder alarms you to your latest injury. Slowly, you peel back the singed jacket you had. It was a superficial burn, barely there. It wouldn’t even leave a scar. But the fear in Din’s voice would leave a scar upon your memory.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were hurt?” he mumbles quietly.

In the time you were looking at your wound, you failed to notice the beskar covered warrior crouching in front of you, med pack at the ready.

“Didn’t think you would care,”

“Cya-”

“You don’t get to fucking call me that. Not after ignoring me this entire time.”

“Let me explain...”

“You should have weeks ago...” you mumble.

With the snatch of your wrist, you place a bacta patch on your shoulder, shrugging your beat up leather jacket off and onto your lap. Ashoka coaxes you both towards them. Din offers his hand to help you up, but in turn you glare and stand on your own, tightly tying your jacket to your waist and following the Jedi.

She takes you to a more comfortable plateau, the trees offering safety, something you didn’t expect this deep in the wilderness. You sit beside the kid, gently scratching the space between his ears, earning a coo in return.

“Were you two speaking back there?” Din questions.

“In a way,” Ashoka responds. “Grogu and I can hear each others thoughts.”

“Grogu?” you and Din ask in unison. The poor thing didn’t know who to look at first, making you chuckle softly.

“It must be nice to hear your real name again, huh?” you whisper softly while peering down at him.

You listen quietly to Grogu’s dark...dark story. For the first time since you thought you were going to lose Din, you cry. Silently, of course, not giving way to hysterics. But the thought of your poor boy having to endure things that you yourself had faced, it broke your heart.

As the Child starts to fall asleep, he curls up into your jacket that lay on your waist, making you smile softly at the motion. With one hand, you gently pick him up to lay on your chest. In one swift motion, you stand and walk towards a tree with him close to you. Laying against the rough bark, you let your eyes begin to drift close. Not without seeing the glint of beskar staring right back at you.

It was early when Ashoka had risen you, the Child void of your chest, instead in Din’s arms. Your gaze quickly averts away from him, opting instead to follow Ashoka.

As you all walk deeper into the forest, you engage in quiet conversation with the Jedi. She obviously could sense the tension between you and Mando, subtly using probing questions to solve her mystery. But you were used to these types of people, you knew how to deflect.

Once you make it to your destination, and Grogu was placed somewhere comfortable, you watched intently as Ashoka tested his abilities. While your boy could take the rock floated towards him with ease, sending it back, or taking it, was the problem.

“He doesn’t understand.” Din interjects.

“Oh jeez...” you mumble, already sensing the long day ahead of.

“He does,” Ashoka reassures, stepping closer to the youngling. “He’s hidden his abilities to survive over the years. Let’s try something else. Come over here.”

You both take a step forward. The tense glance that Din sends your way forces you to take a step back, arms crossed in defense as you turn away. As the intense feeling begins to build, Grogu’s upset builds also. He softly whimpers at the sight of you two, refusing to make any eye contact.

“For this to work, you both need to be in harmony. Not fighting whatver lovers quarrel has settled upon you.” Ashoka says frankly.

“We’re fine...” you say, your voice void of any emotion.

Ashoka turns to the Child, a soft nod the only signal of their communication before she picks him up and walks away, leaving the two of you alone.

“We need to figure this out, for the kid,” Din says.

“Yeah, and only for the kid,” you scoff.

“What is with you lately?! What have I done that is so wrong!”

“Where do I kriffing start Din?!”

“How have I mistreated you?”

“It’s not mistreatment! It’s the lack of said treatment...”

“Dank Farrik!” he exclaims, his hands flying in the air. “Will you just spit it out already!”

“Fine! You’ve treated me like every other bounty you’ve dragged into the ship ever since our escape from Nevarro.”

The world falls silent, but your heart refuses to let up its song. You can feel it in your ears, your throat. The vulnerability that settles upon your shoulders is crushing you as you wait for a response.

“What I said back there...I never should’ve said it. I never should’ve kissed you like that,”

Your jaw clenches, your arms grip your own body tighter then before.

“Are you saying...”

“Its not true, what I said. We’re just partners.”

With a scoff and a quiet sniffle, you can’t bring yourself to glare at Din at the moment. All you can feel is a pain, wedging itself in your heart, deeper then any blade could.

“Just partners in crime, right?” you spit at him, turning away from the man that you knew you still loved.

A harsh sigh pushes through his encoder, his hands falling at his hips in frustration.

“I’ll pretend to be normal around the kid. But once he’s back with a Jedi, you’re dropping me off at the nearest planet.”

You wipe a stray tear away before walking off in silence.

Tag List: (leave a comment on the Masterlist to be added)

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plus-size-reader · 4 years

Text

Hiding

Zuko x Plus size!reader

Word Count: 1170 words

Warnings: none

Summary: Taking Zuko and Iroh in when they’re made fugitives

Part 2

——————————————————————————————————

It wasn’t everyday that you came across two strangers in the woods while on your daily walk, but today wasn’t just a normal day. Apparently, you were just in the right place at the right time.

“What are you two doing out here?” you called, ducking out from behind a tree with a big grin on your face.

Your father had always said you were too friendly, but in times like this, being friendly was the only thing that you had. After all, it wasn’t like your father was around anyway.

Strangers were just friends you’d yet to meet, and you had to believe that, now more than ever.

“What? Nothing. We’re no one, we’re not doing anything” the younger of the two rambled, looking as if he’d seen some kind of monster at your arrival.

You had startled him, but you didn’t care.

“I didn’t accuse you of anything. I just asked you a question” you assured, holding your hands up in defense. You didn’t do anything wrong, at least as far as you were concerned.

Luckily, before he could panic that much more, the older gentleman smiled. “We’re travelers, just passing through” he informed, doing his best to let you know you hadn’t offended them.

After all, they didn’t have much room to be rude to anyone while running from certain death or imprisonment. Zuko had yet to learn that, apparently.

“I see. Well, you seem like nice people. How about I make you some hot dinner and get you out of this heat for a while?” you offered, not wanting to leave them in the woods like this.

As best you could tell, they were probably refugees running from the fire nation and you didn’t want to leave them here alone.

“No, we’re fine” the first spoke again, refusing you in a way that you couldn't say surprised you. You had only been talking to him for a few moments but you already could tell he wasn’t super friendly.

Not that you could blame him.

People were always rather guarded, especially in this war torn world. At his age, he had probably been raised with that distrust, just like you had.

“Are you sure? I have all sorts of tea and as much roast duck as you could ever want” you hummed, dangling the offer of a warm dinner in front of them like bait.

You had to do something to get them out of here and something told you that they hadn’t had a hot meal in quite some time.

“That sounds excellent, thank you” Again, the older of them smiled.

“Wonderful. Now, what are your names?”

“That is quite the scar? What happened?” you wondered, turning your attention to Lee. Maybe it wasn’t the sort of thing you should have asked right away, but you couldn’t help yourself.

It was just something you had to ask, before the not knowing drove you crazy.

“None of your business”

Feeding them had done nothing to ease the strain that Lee felt within himself, obviously. He had something going on, something that you just couldn’t ignore.

“That’s fair I guess, but could you please tell me something? What are you running from?” you wondered, knowing it could be a number of things.

Personally, you were running from the very obvious murder and imprisonment that had faced your people at the hands of the fire nation...but something told you it wasn’t so simple with these two.

There were a thousand stories behind their eyes.

You just wished they would share something about themselves with you.

“It isn’t what we’re running from, so much as what we’re going toward, young one” Mushi started, joining you now with a big bowl of duck and that same grin you’d grown to enjoy.

That was one way to look at it.

“I’m sure it’ll be much better where you’re headed, away from the fire nation I’d hope” you shrugged, wishing you were at a luxury to do the same.

Unfortunately though, you were likely never going to get out of this town. Not that there was anywhere to go that you would actually be safe.

“There is nowhere away from the fire nation” Lee bellowed now, shocking you with his sudden outburst. He hadn’t said more than a few words here and there for the past few hours, but he was being rather vocal now.

It was kind of refreshing.

...And depressing.

“I don’t think that’s true. There was a time before the war, and there will be a time after” you decided, reaching out to take Mushi’s hand casually.

“You believe that, don’t you?” you asked him, knowing that if anyone was going to have your back on this, it was him. Lee wasn’t all that enthusiastic about anything, so he probably thought the world was doomed.

All he did was nod.

It had been quite some time since Iroh had seen a young person with so much optimism within them and it warmed his heart to see it. You had such a refreshing way of thinking.

If only Zuko could learn something from you.

“Now, where are you two headed when the sun comes up?” you wondered, knowing that everyone was headed somewhere. If there was one thing you’d learned from living in such a travel port, it was that everyone was always coming or going.

You were the only thing that ever seemed to stay the same.

“No idea. What about you? Any travel plans?” Mushi asked, making small talk to fill in the space. Small talk that would continue until much later in that evening when the older man turned in for the night.

You enjoyed the time that you’d spent with him, but now that it was just you and Lee, you found yourself glad for the privacy.

Maybe now you could understand why he was the way he was.

“It never used to be this quiet” you started, sitting down beside him on the porch. He had excused himself during dinner to be alone, but now that there was no one else to occupy your attention, it was his turn.

Lee said nothing in regards to you, but you didn’t let it bother you. If he didn’t want to talk to you, you weren’t going to make him.

...But, nothing stopped you from talking.

“Until recently, this was a fire nation base. I grew up surrounded by soldiers, and you know something?” you hummed, your voice casual, though Zuko should have known there was more beneath it.

You wore your emotions on your sleeve, and even Zuko could pick up on the way you were feeling. There was something serious coming, but he wasn’t sure what it was.

Luckily, he didn’t have to wait long.

“What?”

Zuko decided to speak finally, shocking you that he would address you directly. Not that you let it distract you too much from what you’d noticed in the time since you’d picked them up.

“You carry yourself like a firebender”

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tallstars-rewrite · 3 years

Text

Chapter 41

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The rain continued through the rest of the night and into the pale gray dawn. Talltail and Jake remained close together inside the wet Thunderpath tunnel. Jake was the first to stir and properly examine his wounds. Several parts of Talltail’s body stung badly and his shoulder was horribly sore, probably a result of jumping from a tree and awkwardly hitting the ground. The back of his neck was horribly sore too, like there were teeth marks in his scruff.

At last, Talltail felt strong enough to speak. “What are you doing here?” he rasped.

“I trailed your scent of course.”

“But how did we get here? I don’t remember.”

“I carried you, mostly,” Jake replied simply.

“How...in StarClan’s name did you carry me?”

“‘Don’t really know honestly, I think panic made my legs move quicker. I might have bit your scruff too hard. It was difficult to get you onto my back. But, hey, I told you I could carry you if I had to.”

“Jake I…” Talltail coughed and tried to catch his breath “I’m so sorry. For everything. You shouldn’t have had to go through any of this.”

“I’m more sorry you left so quick.” Jake bumped his muzzle against Talltail’s cheek. “I was afraid when I couldn’t find you anywhere, and then when I saw the fire…Why did you just disappear like that, without even saying anything?”

Talltail ducked his head in shame. “I just…” Finding a good explanation was hard. Looking back on it, he felt more foolish by the second. Jake’s eyes were round with concern and Talltail couldn’t meet his gaze for long. “...I just thought it would be easier that way. The sooner I left you alone to get back to your life, the sooner you could start getting on without me. You had your own grief to deal with. If it weren’t for me, Dusty may not have left and maybe he wouldn’t have gotten so bad so quickly, and you would have been able to spend more time with him. And after how much you disapproved of what I was thinking of doing... I just didn’t want to make you upset more than you already were. I’ve been no good to you.”

“Talltail…” Jake stared at him “I don’t understand what you’re saying at all. You had nothing to do with Dusty’s death. I’d known he was sick for a long time, I just...didn’t want to admit it. No one could have done anything about it. But you, being with you has meant everything to me! Even if I’ve gotten a little singed, and you nearly had me dropping dead from fear. I was only so afraid because I don’t want anything to happen to you. I meant what I said before, I wouldn’t have traded meeting you for anything.” Jake almost laughed. “Here I felt like all this time I was using you as a distraction. I thought I was pushing myself on you because I wanted something.”

“I...I thought I was the one doing that.”

“Well we’re both silly then. I was happy traveling with you. Were...you?”

“Yes.” Talltail’s reply was instant. “More than I had been in a long time. I felt so guilty for it.”

“But I don’t understand why? It’s like you never let yourself be happy for more than a heartbeat before you're trying to move alone. And you still haven’t fully explained why it was so important for you to get this far. I know I can’t understand fully, but I want to at least...try. If you’ll let me.”

Talltail was hit with the sudden realization that he did want to explain, desperately, if he only could figure out how to. “I don’t know, Jake. I don’t know why I can’t get rid of this feeling. I just thought...ever since I was younger it felt like--I thought that my family...Ugh, I don't know how to say any of it clearly!”

“Just start somewhere, anywhere. We can figure it out along the way.” Jake nudged him gently.

“Why in StarClan’s name am I like this?” Talltail buried his nose in his paws with a miserable groan. Taking a moment to sift through his jumbled thoughts, he took a breath and tried again. “My father didn’t have to be dead right now. I wanted to do something, anything, right by him. I just felt like someone had to pay for everything that had happened. And maybe if I did that, if I did something, the guilt would go away. Or lessen.” He peeked up at Jake and laughed mirthlessly. “It doesn’t even make sense when I say it out loud. I was so desperate I barely thought about what I was going to do. Looking at it now...I don’t know how I fooled myself into thinking it would help. It was terrible. I didn’t feel like myself. But I just...didn’t know what else to do.”

“Did you?” Jake asked hesitantly, as if he was afraid to hear the answer. “Did you do it, I mean?”

“No.” Talltail said weakly. “I tried to. But I couldn’t do it.”

Jake let out a sigh and leaned his chin across Talltail’s neck. “Good...Thank you. I mean, I'm really glad. I know you thought Sparrow did bad things, but I don’t think it would have made you feel better.”

“He did do bad things! He even confessed to what I was already sure of, of helping ShadowClan, of being directly responsible for my father dying in the tunnels. It was his fault! But for some reason no matter what I told myself, it just...felt so awful.”

Talltail dimly remembered what he’d screamed at Sparrow, while trying to work himself up to the task. Unbearable shame flooded through him as he imagined if Jake had seen him like that. Who even was that cat? They were more comparable to a burning ball of despair and resentment strung together with fur and bones. And that resentment still lingered. He tried to imagine what it would have felt like to go through with it. To sink his claws into Sparrow’s throat and rip the life out of him. He felt sick. The resentment didn’t feel eased. It never would have made me feel better. Even if he deserves it. There’s really nothing I can do...

“What am I doing?” Talltail moaned. “I barely understand why I’ve acted the way I have. I left everyone I loved behind. It was such a useless thing I tricked myself into thinking would have made my father proud of me. But it’s too late for that, and now...”

“Do you think it would have?” Jake asked. “Made him proud, I mean, if you could still talk to him?”

“I don’t know. I don’t think he would have had qualms against it. Some cats believe rogues aren’t protected by the code.”

“Well...Maybe your father was wrong, Talltail.” Jake said.

Talltail stiffened, his old defensiveness flaring up like a reflex.

Jake shifted uncomfortably. “I know it’s complicated. I didn’t know your father, and I don’t know what your relationship was. I don’t know what he thought of you, or what he would think that you should do now. But whatever else you are, you're not a killer.”

“You haven’t seen what a coward I can be.”

“Who told you you were a coward?”

Talltail didn’t reply.

“I’ve seen you do a lot of things. I wouldn’t call any of them cowardly. I don’t see why one cat's opinion is the only one that matters...We don’t have to talk about it all now, if you don’t want to.”

Jake looked down at him with obvious pity, and Talltail couldn't help wanting to hide from it. He could feel he was on the crux of an embarrassing meltdown, and Jake could surely see that too. It wasn’t going to be easy coming up with an excuse to brush it off. “You just lost your best friend, Jake.” Talltail mumbled into his paws. “You shouldn’t have to fix me too.”

“I’m probably not going to fix you. I wouldn’t even know how to start. But I needed you before, and you came back for me despite everything else you had to worry about. So now I’m here for you. How about we just manage one thing at a time?” He stood up. “First thing is to take care of your injuries. You’re hurt and you need some kind of medicine. I’m going to look for something to help. Try not to sit in the muddy water, and I'll be back soon. Just promise to stay put and rest, don’t disappear on me again, and lick your wounds if you can. It’ll be ok.” Jake rasped his tongue over Talltail’s forehead and padded out of the tunnel into the rain.

chapter list / previous / next

#cw self loathing #self loathing #FRU41 #chapter 41 #very short...one of those chapters i wonder if it could have been combined into another #but once you have 50 neat chapters i want to keep it at 50 lol

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olivemac · 3 years

Text

heartbeat | chapter three | b.b.

Summary | When Steve Rogers asks Kate Stark to find the Winter Soldier, she gets too involved.

Notes | Captain America: Civil War re-write, essentially. Starts just after the events of CA: Winter Soldier.

Pairing | Bucky Barnes x fem!oc, Bucky Barnes x Stark!oc

Genre | romance

Rating | explicit

Story Warnings | mild angst, fluff, romance tropes, so many romance tropes, coarse language, alcohol use, canon-typical violence, smut (m/f), oral sex (f&m receiving), 18+ ONLY

Chapter Warnings | all the romance tropes, coarse language, mild alcohol use, smut (m/f), oral sex (f receiving), 18+ ONLY

Citations | Du Maurier, D. (2018). Rebecca. Virago Press.

Things are starting to heat up.

master list | AO3 link

_____

prev chapter

_____

The next morning when Bucky sees Kate, she’s sitting on the front steps of the building feeding scraps of a meat-filled pastry to one of the stray cats that’s always congregating on the block.

“If you keep feeding that thing, it’s going to invite all its friends,” Bucky says by way of greeting.

“Good,” Kate replies, squinting up at him. “Maybe they’ll catch all the mice in the building.”

He chuckles and sits down beside her. She offers him the bag of warm pastries, which he accepts, pulling one out. He's drawn to her, he realizes. He doesn’t quite know why he finds it so easy to be around her, but he likes it.

"Did you just get back from a run?" he asks, looking at her trainers.

"Yeah." She looks at the bundle in his hands. "Bookstore?"

He nods, "They have a fairly decent selection in English."

Kate hums in response and takes a bite of her own pastry. "What are you reading?"

"Rebecca. Daphne de Maurier," he says. He doesn't mention he purchased it because the title made him think of his sister and he was afraid the memory of her name would slip away.

"A classic."

A bit of pastry filling lingers at the edge of her mouth and before he can stop himself, Bucky wipes it away with his gloved thumb. Their eyes meet and Bucky is staring at her like she's a puzzle he's trying to solve.

Kate looks away first, blushing. "Dinner again tonight?" she asks. "I mean...obviously, if you have plans, but...I'm terrible at cooking for one so...." She laughs nervously.

"Okay," he replies, a mirror of the first time she asked. He's still staring at her intently, but it's softer now.

"Okay," she says, her nerves disappearing.

_____

When they finish eating dinner, Kate asks Bucky if he'll read to her. His words have been few and far between, letting her carry their conversations – which she doesn't mind – but she's found she's lured to the deep timbre of his voice.

He hesitates for only a moment before agreeing. He ducks next door to grab his book and when he returns, they settle on her couch – Bucky at one end, Kate at the other.

He starts to read, "'Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.'"

_____

The next few weeks go by much the same. Kate cooks for Bucky and they eat together; they alternate between reading aloud to each other. Kate reads mostly newer releases – contemporary fiction, fantasy, the occasional thriller – while Bucky sticks to the classics, anything released before World War II.

He doesn't always listen when she reads. Sometimes he focuses on the steady rhythm of her heartbeat.

"You're staring," she says one night, not looking up from her book.

"Sorry," he replies.

He runs his tongue over his bottom lip, leans forward, and wraps one of the curls falling over her shoulder around a gloved finger before pulling away. Then he reaches down and pulls his gloves off slowly, first the right, then the left. He pushes his sleeves up over his forearms. His titanium arm catches the light, and Kate lets out the smallest gasp at the sight. At first, he thinks she's scared, but she sets her book down and takes his metal hand between both of hers, holding it tightly. He leans forward again and lets his bare right hand sink into the curls at the back of her neck. He's still staring at her, his eyes the color of stormy, midnight skies.

Kate thinks he might kiss her, and Bucky is certainly considering it – certainly wants to – but instead he bows his head forward onto her shoulder and breathes in the scent of her skin, his plush lips soft against her neck. They stay like that for some time, just holding each other, until finally, he presses a kiss so delicate behind her ear Kate isn’t sure it was real; he pulls away and stands.

"I should go," he says.

Kate nods, and before she can say anything, he's gone.

_____

Kate lays in bed that night thinking of his arm and what it means that he showed it to her. She's read his file, she knows about the enhancements HYDRA gave him, the torture they put him through. Tears sting the corner of her eyes, and before she can stop herself, she’s crying into her pillow.

Kate falls into a restless sleep, and when she dreams of her parents’ wreck, she sees Bucky standing outside the car.

_____

A few days into December, Tony texts Kate to ask how things are going, which is code for: You haven't been kidnapped, have you? Because that would be very inconvenient for me, but I'll put on the suit and come find you if I need to.

She’s blocked Tony from tracking her, but she knows he could if he really wanted to. He doesn’t.

She sends him two selfies. In the first, she's giving a thumbs up – the background discreet enough to be anywhere in Europe. In the second, she's wearing sunglasses and sipping coffee.

Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, Tony texts back, and Kate rolls her eyes before tucking her phone into her coat pocket.

She’s thinking about heading back to her flat, curling up with a book or writing some new code to impress Tony with when she finally goes back to New York. But the park is quiet, and she likes the sting of the cold wind on her cheeks.

Bucky finds her there a short time later.

"What are you doing?" he asks, sitting on the bench beside her.

“Enjoying the cold,” she says.

Bucky grunts. He’s always hated winter, hated the cold. The cold meant Steve would be sick – his asthma or some other ailment bothering him – and Bucky would be without his best friend for months. Then Bucky was on ice for so long, stuck in the cold of cryo. No, the cold isn’t for him, he thinks.

But he likes the way Kate looks, bundled up in her coat and scarf and hat. Her nose is a pretty shade of red that reminds him of the color it turns when she drinks too much wine. And he loves wine-drunk Kate almost as much as he hates the cold. That Kate laughs loudly and uses any excuse touch him – a hand on his shoulder or a brief touch of his bicep. Bucky didn’t realize how much he missed being touched until the night she slipped his titanium hand into her own.

Bucky's been preparing himself for Kate to leave Bucharest at the end of December for the holidays and never return. He always had the feeling she never intended to stay in the country long, thinking maybe she was here to escape an ex-boyfriend or irritate her older brother. He knows she has enough money to do something like that, though they never speak about it.

“I saw a flyer outside our building for a Christmas market at the end of the month,” she says after a while. “We should go. I’m in the mood for mulled wine.”

“You aren’t spending Christmas with your brother?” he asks, turning his head to look at her.

"No," she says, "Christmas isn't really...our thing." She pauses before continuing, "Our parents died in mid-December so Tony either completely ignores the holiday or goes way overboard to compensate. I prefer the former."

Kate takes Bucky’s gloved left hand in hers and presses her bare fingers against the metal of his wrist where his glove meets the sleeve of his coat. She never asks about his arm, and Bucky is grateful for that. He isn't sure how he would explain it.

“Aren’t your hands cold?” he asks, frowning. “Where are your gloves?”

“I must have forgotten them,” she shrugs.

“It’s cold, let’s go home,” he says, and a spark of heat catches in Kate’s belly at the idea that he thinks of their little apartments, where they’ve spent so much time together over the past few weeks, as home.

“Okay,” she says.

“Okay,” he smiles in return.

_____

The Christmas market isn't as busy as he thought it would be, which Bucky is grateful for. He pulls his baseball cap low over his eyes and watches Kate look over a table of wood-carved ornaments. She returns to him empty-handed, and he passes her the thermos of mulled wine they've been sharing.

There's Christmas music pumping through speakers somewhere and a band setting up in a tent. They wander the market slowly, passing the thermos back and forth until it's empty. Kate's nose is red again – from the cold and the wine – and Bucky can't stop staring at her.

They've stopped to look at a Christmas tree in the center of the market when a group of kids – shouting and laughing – come careening down the walkway. Bucky pulls Kate against his chest to keep her from getting run over. He holds her close for a few moments longer than is necessary before dropping his arm from around her back.

“Mistletoe,” Kate whispers, her head titled upward, and Bucky looks up.

He remembers this somehow, remembers his mother hanging mistletoe in the doorway to their living room each Christmas so she could catch his father in a kiss. Remembers getting caught beneath it himself with his younger sister, bending down to smack a wet kiss to her cheek as she squealed.

When he looks back at Kate, she’s holding his elbow and gazing at him like he hung the damn moon, which makes a fire curl low in his belly. Before he can second guess himself, he’s leaning toward her, capturing her lips with his own, and suddenly, it’s like fireworks are exploding behind his eyes. His gloved hands reach up to cup her face and hers tangle into the knot of his scarf, pulling him impossibly closer. When they break apart, something unspoken passes between them.

He guides her back through the market toward their building, inside and up the endless series of stairs. Outside her door, he kisses her again, sweeping his tongue into her mouth. She tastes like the mulled wine they shared, and Bucky thinks he could get drunk on this alone. She pushes him away, laughing, to unlock the door, then pulls him inside with her.

When the door is closed, he turns her and presses her back against it. She reaches up to push his hat off, then pulls off her own and tosses it aside. Next, she's pulling off her gloves and then reaching for his.

"I want to feel you," she breathes, tugging at the leather around his hands, “all of you.”

When his gloves are off, his hands find her face, cupping her cheeks gently. “I haven’t done this in so long,” he rasps.

“We can slow down.”

“No,” he growls, pushing his hips against hers. He’s hard against her lower stomach, and she moans.

Kissing her, holding her like this – Bucky hasn't felt this much like himself since the war. And he can't get enough of it. He tugs at her scarf, unwrapping her like a present, while she unknots his, and they both shrug out of their coats. His bare hands slide beneath her sweater, up over her stomach to her breasts. Kate sighs at the contrast between flesh and metal on her skin. He leans back and tugs her sweater over her head, and she unhooks her bra, letting it slip down and off.

Bucky lifts her into his arms, and Kate wraps her legs around his waist. His mouth is hot against hers as he walks her to her bed. When he lays her down, he lets his lips trail down her neck, across her collarbone, and to her chest.

He pulls back slightly, beaming down at her, “God, you’re beautiful, doll.”

She reaches for the hem of his red Henley, but he stops her, covering her hand with his.

“My arm,” he says, nodding toward his left shoulder, “it’s not pretty.”

Kate doesn’t say anything, just pushes gently on Bucky’s shoulders until he’s lying flat on his back with her straddling his hips. She kisses him hard, stroking her tongue inside his mouth. With one kiss, she tries to convey how much she doesn’t care about what his arm looks like so long as he keeps touching her, keeps smiling at her, keeps letting her be part of his life.

Bucky reaches for the hem of his shirt.

“You don’t have to,” Kate says breathlessly, pulling back to look him in the eyes.

“I want to,” he says, licking his lips. “You said you wanted to feel all of me."

She smiles and lets him sit up. Bucky tugs the shirt over his head and tosses it off the bed. Kate's eyes linger briefly on the angry scars where flesh meets metal, then she bends and presses her lips there. Bucky growls and grabs her by the hips, flipping her so that's he hovering over her again.

His mouth finds her breasts, working a nipple with his tongue until she’s panting. He kisses his way down her stomach to the waistband of her jeans; he pops the button and pulls the zipper down.

"Can I taste you?" Bucky asks.

“Please,” she mewls and helps him push her jeans and underwear off.

His mouth is hot against her. He takes his time, running his tongue across her folds before pressing against the spot that makes her keen and slipping his fingers inside of her. His metal arm holds her hips in place when she comes, keeping her from moving away from him. Bucky could stay in this moment forever, he thinks, here, with his head between Kate's legs, listening to the soft sounds of her bliss, her heartbeat slowing as she comes back down.

But Kate has other ideas. She tugs at Bucky's long hair, pulling him back up to her mouth, tasting herself on his lips. Her hands work his jeans open, and she pushes them off his hips, letting her fingers glide across his buttocks slowly. Bucky groans.

"Are you sure?" he asks, pushing her hair out of her face.

"Yes," she says, and she leans up to kiss him deeply as she reaches down to stroke him.

"Do you..." he pauses, panting, "fuck, do you have a condom?"

"I have an implant. And I'm clean," she says, her eyes meeting his.

Bucky nods and tries to tell himself to remember to ask her what exactly an implant is later, but for now, he's too enraptured with the feeling of her hand around him to argue.

When he pushes inside of her, Kate gasps and moans and Bucky thinks he might actually die. It's been so long since he's felt pleasure like this, and he's lost in the wet, tight heat that is Kate. His head falls to her shoulder and he stills, allowing himself a moment to just enjoy this intimacy.

Kate runs her hands up and down his back. "Please move," she finally whispers in his ear, and Bucky lets out a strangled laugh.

He's a goner, he thinks, as he moves against her. Despite his past, despite his uncertain future, he loves her, and there is no turning back. He props himself up on his left arm and looks down at her.

"You're perfect," he says, and it's Kate's turn to laugh. Her laugh fades into a gasp as Bucky reaches between them and presses his fingers against her in a rhythm he's already memorized.

When she comes around him, clutching him tighter than he thought possible, he sees stars. He follows quickly behind, collapsing on top of her, and as he lays there, panting, and careful to hold his weight off her, Bucky has the sudden urge to laugh at how blissful he feels. When he eventually lifts his head from her shoulder and meets her eyes, Kate is smiling.

"Hi," she whispers, softly.

"Hi," Bucky returns, smiling along with her.

He rolls onto his back, tucks Kate against his side – his flesh arm solid against her back and waist – and falls into a dreamless sleep.

_____

next chapter

#bucky barnes #james buchanan barnes #james bucky barnes #sergeant barnes #bucky barnes x oc #bucky x oc #bucky barnes x ofc #bucky x ofc #bucky fic #bucky fanfic #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes smut #bucky barnes romance

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honeypirate · 3 years

Text

Easy Living part two

Part one

Obi Akitaru x Fem!reader

Obi Akitaru falls in love with the girl at the rock show

Also ducks survived the cataclysm

Song one

Song two

Song three

Song four

Song five alternate version

Obi didn't see you outside of the office where you were doing paperwork. He thought you were avoiding him but you interacted with him during office hours so he couldn't really convince himself at first. You had said you were too tired to eat with everyone and just wanted to rest, which is how you got out of family dinners and could sneak in and eat after everyone leaves.

After a week and a half of this, he plans to find you and talk to you. Oh how he missed your jokes and your presence. You get back from your physical therapy and he meets you at the door “come with me” he says and takes your good hand “we’re going out”

You get ice cream, and just walk the town for a while. You figured he would want to talk soon but to be honest you havent quite dealt with your feelings yet. You didnt know what to say. Hey sorry Captain I’ve been avoiding you a little so i could squash all the romantic feelings i have for you since you only want to be best friends. No hard feelings? Also I feel like a failure because Im useless right now?

No. You couldn’t be that honest, but you would be honest enough

He stops by a bench next to the trees that have started to bloom in the warm spring air. You sit beside him, a little farther than usual and he sighs “talk to me. Please” he says softly and you swallow “about what?” you ask, your voice a little shaky and nervous. “y/n” he sighs “okay, i’ll just ask. Why have you been avoiding me after we had tea?” he leans his elbows down on his thighs and looks over at you.

You swallow hard and look down at your toes, giving your ice cream cone you were nursing a lick to buy some time.

“Obi, i’ve just been really tired. It wasn’t you. I promise. As you said, we are best friends forever. Please dont think im avoiding you i promise im not really. It’s just so hard to not use my arm, i cant do my job like i need, i feel like im useless. And youre my Captain! i dont want to be less than you deserve as a team member”

He brushes your hair back behind your ear and you gasp, looking from your toes into his eyes. “I’m your friend first remember? And so here I am, asking you as a friend, please dont think you have to avoid me. I dont think less of you because youre injured, youre not broken or ruined, youre just hurt. And you’re perfect the way that you are at any moment so dont even start with thinking you’re less than anyone. Youre incredibly strong and smart always. Let me be there for you. Right now as a man and not as your captain. Okay?” you feel your heart rate beat erratically in your chest and you kick yourself form coming along. Those perfect things he said to you from the perspective of a f r i e n d. God you loved him so much it hurt. Hurt because he doesnt love you back. More than a best friend anyway.

You do your best to go back to normal, you talk to him more, forcing yourself to attend dinners and joke like normal, ignorning the growing cracks in your heart.

A few weeks later, after a mission you werent allowed to go on, Obi announces a celebration “Since we just had a successful huge mission, we will be celebrating and inviting the companies we have friends in. so the 5th, 7th, and 2nd, will all be attending.” you dont deny that youre excited. You love celebrations because it meant the best barbeque plus you cant wait to talk to Hibana and Konro.

That night after your physio you talk to Maki and Vulcan, planning to take care of the entertainment for the night. Vulcan on the drums, Maki on the electric guitar, and you on vocals. You spent the next few days preparing and getting all the music sheets for them from songs you all put together. A list of 8 songs that everyone would enjoy, or so you hoped.

Your arm didn’t have to be in a sling anymore, it was healed but the muscles were tight and the scar tissue hurt. you had to work through that but your physical therapist said you would work that slowly and it would be almost 100% again.

When the day arrived for the celebration you felt nervous as hell. “Are you excited to do this?!” Vulcan says and pats your good shoulder and you laugh “I’m nervous and excited” Maki squeals as she does a sound check on her guitar “this is going to be so cool!”

When you guys move out to the stage, you get everyone’s attention by tapping the mic, a squeal going through the speakers before Viktor adjusts some settings on the computer.

“Hey guys. We put together a little entertainment for you all. Hope you enjoy it” you look around at everyone as they make their way over to the stage. Obi’s eyes were wide and he was grinning ear to ear, you didn’t tell many about this so it could be a surprise and you knew that was a good choice with the look in his eyes. He made his was to front of the crowd, whistling loudly as Maki began to strum.

Vulcan hits the drums as you begin to sing

“Scar tissue that I wish you saw

Sarcastic mister know-it-all

Close your eyes and I'll kiss you 'cause

With the birds I’ll share” after the first verse your eyes flick down to Obi and he has the biggest smile you’ve seen. It makes your heart flutter as you wink at him as you sing the chorus

“With the birds I'll share this lonely viewin'

With the birds I'll share this lonely viewin'”

The end of the first song everyone cheers loud and you feel proud as you laugh with the excitement and atmosphere. Obi is your loudest cheerleader.

Vulcan leaves the drums to stand by the keyboard for the next song as Maki plays the chords.

“You belong among the wildflowers

You belong in a boat out at sea

Sail away, kill off the hours

You belong somewhere you feel free

Run away, find you a lover

Go away somewhere all bright and new” your eyes flick down to Obi and you smile softly

“ I have seen no other

Who compares with you”

Some people hold up lighters and those with fire abilities hold some fire up and sway side to side, the atmosphere is light and easy, a moment where no one is thinking about infernals and government problems.

You sang the four softer songs Maki chose first before taking a water break then going back on stage to finish strong with four songs you were excited about since you knew they were some of your and Obi’s favorites.

You look down at Obi when the music starts and the recognition in his eyes makes you grin. You know most people in your company know this song because of Obi. “You show us everything you've got

You keep on dancin' and the room gets hot

You drive us wild, we'll drive you crazy

You say you wanna go for a spin

The party's just begun, we'll let you in

You drive us wild, we'll drive you crazy

You keep on shoutin', you keep on shoutin'”

You feel your body feel with pride when the crowd sings the chorus and you realize more people know those song then you thought

“I wanna rock and roll all night and party every day x4”

The cheering at the end of this song makes you laugh before you take another drink of water and move on to the next few songs until you end with the last two you were excited about.

“Okay everyone. Two left” you smile at the boos that are scattered “ We’re glad you liked this show and hope you had fun here. There’s extra food so if you’re hungry make sure you fill up” You wink at Obi again as you begin to sing the song as he whistles loudly when the guitar begins, throwing his fists in the air doing his devil horns.

“This is a thing I've never known before

It's called easy livin'

This is a place I've never seen before

And I've been forgiven

Easy livin' and I've been forgiven

Since you've taken your place in my heart”

This one was one of your favorites and you got into it dancing around on the stage. When it ends you laugh and smile as they cheer. “Okay guys. I dedicate this last song to the companies here tonight thank you all for making this not a complete failure. I was nervous but now.. this has been a dream come true of mine honestly. Anyway. For you” you look down at Obi and he nods and then whistles again when he recognizes the song

“A company always on the run

A destiny, oh it's the rising sun” the crowd cheers and you get goosebumps

“I was born, a shotgun in my hands

Behind the gun

I'll make my final stand, yeah

That's why they call me” you look down at Obi and he sings with you

“Bad company

I can't deny

Bad, bad company

'Til the day I die

Until the day I die”

Your voice fades out and Vulcan and Maki finish their notes and the crowd goes nuts. You bring Vulcan and Maki up and you hold hands and bow before waving and exiting the stage.

A few pats on the back and many people telling you how great that was was a little overwhelming and Obi could tell. He pushes through the crowd and takes your hand “gotta borrow this rock star for a moment excuse us please” he says and takes you with him behind the stage where he could let you take a breather.

“Looked a little overwhelmed with the loving crowd” he says and leans against the side of the wall behind the stage. “Just a bit. Thank you Obi” he hasn’t stopped smiling and his eyes are filled with stars for you. “I didn’t know you could sing Little Duck” he says and you chuckle “there’s a lot you don’t know about me Obi” you say with a smirk and drink of your water bottle. “And I love discovering new things about you.” he says softly and you feel your cheeks flush under his soft gaze “is that right?” You ask in a flirty tone and you cock your head with a smile. “Yes. It is” he says and you stare into each other’s eyes for a moment, soft smiles and a warm feeling growing in your bones.

“Hey y/n I brought you some food since we missed out” Vulcan says and hands you a plate “you’re a lifesaver Vulcan thank you!” You say and take it with a grin. Obi kicks himself for not thinking of that and scowls at the weird jealousy he feels spike in his heart at the way you smiled at Vulcan. He shakes his head and excuses himself to go talk to Hinawa.

“That was weird” Vulcan says and you raise an eyebrow in question, mouthful but he understood you “he looked at me like I just flirted with his girl. How weird is that?” You laugh and your cheeks dust slightly pink “I’m sure there was something else on his mind, we’re just friends” you say and take another bite of your barbecue, moaning a little about how delicious it is. Vulcan just shrugs “that was really amazing. Great idea y/n! It was so fun. If you ever wanna jam again I’m down” you smile and nod “I’ll take you up on that sometime”

“Are you sure you don’t have feelings for her?” Hinawa says, acting like it’s annoying him that he has to have this conversation to hide the fact he finds it entertaining that his Captain is so blind. “She’s been my best friend for so long. Wouldn’t I have had feelings for her before today?” Hinawa sighs “are you sure you haven’t?” Obi feels like his mind expands as he connects the dots. “Well damn” Obi says with a slight smile teasing the corners of his mouth and Hinawa shakes his head.

After that night you didn’t see Obi outside of work for a week. It was weird. Like the tables have turned and now you don’t know why he’s avoiding you. He calls you into your office and you feel a little worried.

“You wanted to see me sir?” You said as stood at attention in front of his desk. Outside of this room you felt like he was your Obi but every time he calls you into his office you feel completely different. The atmosphere he held in that room for you, powerful and commanding, you were intimidated and slightly turned on but you never would allow yourself to think of that.

“I wanted to check in on how your therapy is going” he says, his face was stoic and level, but you see there’s something in his eye, something has changed. “It’s going well Sir” you raise your arm and show your limited range of motion “she says I’ll be back to good and cleared for duty soon, since I’m well enough now to have more frequent appointments.” he nods and makes a note on his small pad of paper. “Are your ignition abilities okay? Do you need training there?” You shake your head “no Sir. My abilities haven’t been effected” he nods once and then smiles, a soft smile that shows way more emotion from him than your used to “that’s all. I’m glad you’re doing well. Dismissed” “thank you Sir” you salute and then turn and leave, feeling extremely confused at the emotion you saw in his eyes.

You chew your lip as you pace the walkways of the company, pacing and thinking, (more like overthinking amirite) and trying to decide if you should talk to him. You somehow end up in the tallest room of the building, looking out over the town and the sunset. You get a flashback to your first day as a fire fighter, walking back to the truck with your team you were in the back of the group by Obi and he stopped to look at the sunset for a moment. “Remember y/n, take a moment to appreciate the beauty around you. It’s always taken for granted” that’s what he said to you that made you admire him. The original seed your feelings grew from. You smiled and turned, running down the steps to try and find him, to tell him.

“Hey Arthur have you seen the Captain?” You asked when he was the first one you saw “oh yeah. He just left with the girl from the flower shop” you raise your eyebrows “left with Margret? Why?” He shrugs “I don’t know. Probably a date. She seemed really happy” you laugh once in shock “huh” you say and he just shrugs, going back to his pretending to be a knight with his plasma blade as you walk out of the room.

You pace the halls again until you eventually give up. You won’t tell him. He’ll never know. You hope he’s happy with Margaret, she seems like a lovely woman.

Every day being around him sucks, you wish you could take some time off to go away for a little bit so you wouldnt have to see him, wouldnt have to feel the pain anymore. It made you look forward to your physio appointments but even those are ending soon, only two left before you're cleared. Dont get you wrong, you are excited to be cleared to work again, paperwork was beginning to annoy you, but you were going to miss the excuse to get out every once in a while so you wouldn't have to see him anymore. At least until you have gotten over him.

He notices you pulling away, avoiding him again. He doesnt understand everything was going so well. He was planning this big confession and spent forever with the florist planning the perfect bouquet and getting her help on what girls would like in a confession, he has the whole thing planned out but now you wont even look at him uness you have to. He’s so frustrated! When did communicating with each other get this hard?

You get back from physio and he meets you at the door again, this time hiding his emotions and just giving you a look that tells you to follow him. He takes you to the same empty room you were in yesterday, at the very top of the company. “Captain?” you ask softly, your eyes on the ground and your hands gripping the strap of your bag that is across your chest hard enough to lighten your knuckles. “Little duck” he whispers softly, his voice held something you couldn't place, something you never heard from him before, and when you realize what it is your eyes meet his. It was pain.

“My little ducky” he says softly “why?” you feel your walls break, your hard work to build them up and forget about your love for the captain turned to ash as you cover your face with your hands, tears burning your eyes. “I.. I just” you swallow hard and pull yourself together, you wont cry in front of him. You sniff and grit your teeth, dropping your hands and controlling the emotions on your face “I hope you are happy with Margaret” you say and look behind him, knowing if you saw his pain you’d for sure cry.

“What.. who the hell is margaret?” he says and you furrow your brows as confusing fills your mind. You look to your feet “Arthur said you’re dating Margaret, the florist” he laughs “her name is Margaret? I thought it was Molly, that’s awkward. But no, I am not dating the florist. Why would you believe aAthur? He thinks he's a knight ninja king or something”

“I uh, i gota go” you say and turn to leave but he takes your hand, pulling you to his embrace. “No you dont” he whispers and gently holds your head to his chest. “Tell me. I need you to tell me what is going on. Right now on this roof we are going to tell each other everything we’ve been hiding, starting with how you have been avoiding me again” you feel your eyes burn again, this time because of how frustrated you were with your stupidity..

“I feel so stupid i dont want to say” you mumble into his chest and he laughs “my precious ducky, please tell me” he says softly and you pull back, deciding to look into his eyes when you tell him the truth. “I couldn't deal with being around you knowing how much I love you since I thought you were with someone else. It hurt too much to see you. I thought i lost my chance”

He laughs softly “how could i fall in love with anyone else when the best woman is right in front of me?” you look up at him with a shocked expression and you almost turn to look behind you to see if there was anyone else there but you controlled yourself. You just cleared your throat and asked “what?” he laughs and cups your cheek, his strong callused hands holding you gentler than you could have ever imagined after seeing him crack a jar of pickles when he was opening it.

He leans down to your ear and whispers “I love you. I've loved you since the beginning. My little ducky” you gasp and turn your face to connect your lips to his. You melt into him as his strong arms wrap around your waist, lifting you to his chest as he kisses you deeply, his tongue swipes at your lip and you meet him with your own, making him hum in approval as you runs your fingers across his short cut hair on the back of his head, the shaved hair tickling your palms before you move higher to get his longer lengths in your fingertips.

You didn't even remember him picking you up until your feet touch the ground again. “You love me?” you ask when you pull back, right up against his lips and he sighs softly, pressing his forehead into yours. “I love you y/n” he says and you feel your stomach flip as a slow grin spreads over your face before your hands move to his shoulders as your bag falls to the ground and you jump, wrapping your legs around his waist as he catches you easily with a laugh

You kiss his lips again, overcome with happiness, pecking them a few times quickly before peppering kisses around his face “i love you” you whisper between kisses and he laughs as he holds you tight, his heart fluttering to know you feel the same. You pull back and smile down at him “i'm sorry i was such an idiot” you whisper and then hop down from his arms. “you’re not an idiot sweetheart. If i found out you were dating someone else and not me, that would hurt. I would have to avoid you for a while too. I dont want you to be with anyone else but me” he says and you blush, your heart melting as you take his large hands in your own “so when ya taking me out on a real date big guy?” you ask with a blush and he smiles “since you asked, sweetheart, that’s kind of the reason i was with Maggie to begin with” “margaret” “yeah margaret. She was helping me plan the perfect way to confess to you, i had this whole pan. So this friday, you and me, 7pm. I have a reservation downtown and will be getting you the best bouquet of flowers you ve ever seen so get ready” you laugh a little awkwardly “sorry for ruining your plan” you say and he smiles, kissing your forehead “you haven't ruined anything. you love me, nothing is better than that. Plus this means i can kiss you sooner than i was hoping” he leans down and presses his lips to yours softer than before shooting tingles down your spine “and it’s so much better than I imagined” he admits and you grin “then dont stop” you whisper and he smirks “anything for you sweetheart” he says before his lips are crashing into yours again

BOONNUUSSSSS

“So whats this about a duck”

Shinra asks at dinner and you groan as Obi laughs hard. You look pointedly at everyone there “okay but this does not leave this table and if it does i will beat ALL of your asses, so its more incentive for one of you to not say a thing because imagine how the rest of you will feel about the one who spilled” they all nod with a laugh and Hinawa rolls his eyes, knowing you’d never dare to beat his ass.

“Back when Obi and i were greenies” you look to him and he has a shit eating grin on his face as he lays his hand on your knee under the table. “We were just normal fire fighters, so calls like getting a cat out of a tree was nothing new. But this was a call about a duck. I answered the phone and it went a little bit like this” you put your hand to your ear like a phone

“thank you for calling the Fire Defence Agency, my name is Y/n how may i help you today?”

your voice changes to sound like an older gentleman “yes, my duck is stuck, please help.”

voice is yours again “your duck sir?”

“Yes. Herbert the duck. He cannot fly. Come immediately. 2836 the street name rd”

“Then he hangs up. Obi and i were the only ones there since we were greenies and had to man the phones during lunch hour so we roll out and get to his house and sure enough a duck is stuck on top of this mans roof” you hold your hands up and try to shape it out for them “he had this house where the top was sort of curved like this just above his front door” you bring your hands up and around in an arc. The truck we have doesnt have the laddder but it’s not too high so Obi puts me on his shoulders and as i go to grab this little bastard he screams in my face and pecks my eye” Obi is laughing remembering it “hush let me finish” you say to him with a smile

“So this damn Herbert the duck, my eye is watering and it hurts and i'm cursing up a storm as Obi laughs his ass off and tries to hold me steady. i get a hold on Herberts back, holding down its wings so i can easily lift it into my arms and as i pull it towards me he pecks my OTHER EYE” Obi is holding in cackles, he knows whats coming and can hear the mans voice as clear as day in his head “then Obi brings me down and im crying uncontrollably, my eyes burning as this duck watches me smugly hand him over to his care taker and then the gentleman goes”

You change your voice to mimic the mans again “watch out, he’s a pecker” Obi is laughing so hard along with Vulcan and Shinra, the rest chuckling along with.

“And i'm standing there, eyes leaking unctronably from being pecked in both eyes, and he just takes his duck and walks inside his house. I had to go to the doctor and get vaccines for all these diseases that ducks apparently have.” Obi catches his breath and wipes his tears “you should have heard her on the way back from the doctor, two eyepatches on and going on a tangent about how ducks should have gone extinct and left the geese since they are much cuter. I couldn’t stop laughing the whole drive home”

You slap his arm playfully “you saw that picture at the museum they look so cute and kind!” he smiles and holds your hand “I wonder how Herbert the duck is doing” he asks and you smile “probably not as well as I am” you smile around the table at your team and friends, all smiling and still chuckling softly imagining your story.

(Later)

“I can’t believe that one of the first things you liked about me was my tangent about ducks” you say as you crawl into bed beside him. He laughs and wraps his arms around you, hugging you to his chest “you were so cute and funny. I knew I needed to keep you around me because you made life fun and wonderful because that’s who you are” you kiss his cheek as he continues, rolling over and holding you “I knew I wanted to have you forever but I was too dense to realize I loved you” he nuzzles into your neck and lays on your chest, his weight and warmth comforting. “I love you” you whisper and he kisses you neck softly “I love you sweetheart”

#obi akitaru x reader #obi akitaru x y/n #obi akitaru x you #obi x you #obi x reader #fire force obi #obi akitaru #fire force imagines

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thiswasinevitableid · 3 years

Note

Have you seen the post going around about the zoom class with one guy and his full streamer setup vs the guy whose just in the middle of the woods? I know you have a prompt list rn but I’m just saying there’s a sternclay fic in there somewhere...

It is! Here you go!

Life is better with order. Or, at the very least, with some attempt at patterns, organization, or consistency.

Which is why Stern has carefully arranged his desk, his chair, and his equipment in the background. Streaming as a hobby and a side hustle means he has some (okay, a lot) of practice making his digital self look just right. He needs to make a good impression on the first day of the semester.

Unlike some people.

“Holy shit man, are you in the woods?” Duck, the guy in a “Monongahela National Forest” shirt, grins as he asks this of another student whose screen consists of a forest clearing, a log, and the name “Barclay.”

“Yeah. Hang on, lemme finish getting the phone balanced.”

“Dude, that’s like, way better than my background” this comes from Jake, in front of a poorly rendered half-pipe.

“Can’t really take credit for it, just where I ended up.” Barclay sits down, and Stern gets his first look at a man so tall he barely fits in the frame, with a short, coppery beard and an honest-to-god man-bun.

Damn west coast schools.

“How is your battery going to last long enough for class?” Stern leans back in his chair, certain Barclay will have “battery trouble” halfway through as an excuse to cut out early.

Barclay smiles, lifting up a small green and black rectangle, “solar battery. Not everyone needs fancy gadgets for school.” He aims a pointed stare at Sterns set-up.

“It’s important to have the right equipment.”

“Whatever you say, man.” He lifts a cup of iced coffee into the frame, sipping it through a straw. It’s the picture of relaxation, as if nothing is wrong in the world. As if this is all totally normal.

Stern wants to reach through the screen and slap some sense into him. Preferably while he’s shirtless.

He chalks that thought up to not having gotten laid since last December and pulls up his note taking software as Professor Chicane enters the room.

------------------------------------

Private Chat 9/20/20

Duck (he/him): I timed it, we’re already at ten minutes of arguing.

Indrid (he/him): I know Ned enjoys their demonstrating the different modes of rhetoric, but this is a bit extreme.

Duck: To be fair, Joe does seem kinda uptight.

Indrid: Yes, but Barclay should know by now that zeroing in on him during our practice debates only results in this.

Duck: Yeah. Oh shit, are they for real wrapping up you think?

Indrid: We can only hope. Skype me tonight?

Duck: Of course, sugar.

--------------------------------------

What is Joseph’s problem? He’s got a set-up that would make a pro-vlogger jealous, what looks to be a well-lit apartment with some houseplants and the kind of coffee-cups that are weirdly lacking in personality. His clothes are immaculate, his hair slicked back as if he;s in a business meeting rather than an online class in the midst of a chaotic world. So why is he acting like everything is terrible? And why is he always arguing with Barclay, when there are plenty of other people in the class to disagree with?

“Now” Mr. Chicane’s voice booms through the tiny speaker on his phone, “if you all had a chance to read over the instructions, we will begin the first mock debate. Do we have any volunteers?”

He and Joe raise their hands at the same time. Mr. Chicane raises an eyebrow.

“While I appreciate your eagerness, gentlemen, I would like two other volunteers this time.”

That’s fine by him. It’s not like he likes listening to Joseph get all wound up and passionate, making everyone on the call sit up and take notice of him. It’s not as if he enjoys being the center of his focus.

Nope, not at all.

-----------------------------

Private chat 10/11/20

Jake (he/him): Dudes, did you see who got paired up on the final project?

Aubrey (she/her): Chicane must be getting them back for all the times they’ve hijacked discussions.

Duck (he/him): Man, for their sake I hope it works out.

Indrid (he/him): This is going to be a disaster.

--------------------------------------

“Are you out of your mind!” Stern is talking before Barclay’s video is fully on.

“Nope. And you don’t have to yell, my speaker works just fine.”

“You’re outside, for all I know there’s a ton of ambient noise.”

Barclay, phone obviously in his hand as he walks through the trees, groans.

“And don’t try to derail this; how can you possibly suggest I come out there so we can do the project in person? We’re supposed to be limiting travel and gatherings.”

“Look, Joseph, we both agree that trying to generate our own cryptid hoax is the best way to demonstrate all the techniques Ned wants us too, right?”

“Yes” he hides his answer behind the rim of his coffee mug.

“We’ll do a way better job if we work in the same space. And if it makes you feel any better, I haven’t had any human contact in three weeks; all quarantined up, unlike whatever you’ve been doing in the city.”

He sets the mug down with a thunk, “I haven’t been out in a month. And before that was only for one grocery run and a hospital visit.”

“Uhhh-”

“I cut my hand cooking. So. Yeah.”

Literal crickets chirp, courtesy of Barclay’s end of the line, as the silence stretches on.

“If it helps, it’s real easy to stay isolated here, and I’ve still got utilities and everything.”

“And you’re not subsisting only on MREs or granola or something?”

A deep chuckle, the kind that makes his skin prickle, “Nope. That much I can promise.”

Stern glances around the studio apartment, clean and empty.

“What’s your address?”

------------------------------------

Look, all Stern is going to say is that he’s seen and read plenty of stories that start with a cabin in the woods and none of them end well. Which is why he’s still sitting in his car, parked beside a beat-up Subaru, rather than knocking on the door.

Breathe in, five counts. Out for four. Repeat four times.

Waiting for him on the door is a note.

Joseph,

Key under mat, make yourself at home.

Barclay.

He brings in his bags (a matching set of three, a gift from his aunt last year), placing them in the tiny guest room. It’s not much more than a bed, a dresser, and a tiny table. But there’s a heating unit below the window looking out into the woods, which is pretty pleasant. He’ll be keeping the blinds closed at night, though; he hates the thought of something being able to look in.

Stern’s busy evaluating the laundry closet when the front door opens.

“Hey, glad you found the place okay.”

Barclay stands in the doorway, a basket full of fruit in one hand. He’s remarkably kempt for a man living in the woods and that, combined with the deep voice being even richer in person and the fact Stern has to actually look up to meet his eyes, has him stumbling for words.

“Your directions were very thorough. Thank you. Um. I put my things in there, should I, um-”

“I can give you the grand tour.” The taller man sets the basket on the dining table, notices Sterns puzzled expression “there’s a piece of property about a mile thataway that has orchards they don’t really use. They let me come and pick whenever i want, less for them to clean up.”

Barclay keeps up a steady monologue as he shows him the cabin. The lower level is the living room and dining area, a kitchen which leads onto the back deck, Sterns room, and a bathroom. As the cabin is A-frame, the upstairs is Barclay’s room, all dark wood and pine colored plaid. It’s as Barclay is telling him about the woodpecker that sometimes nests in the eaves that he realizes why he’s talking so much.

He’s nervous.

Neither of their nerves improve when he gets to his last point of order.

“Uh, so, the bathroom downstairs is only a half-bath.”

“So...if I want to shower, which I do, I have to come up here.”

“Yeah.” Barclay scratches the back of his neck, “sorry. I don’t, like, sleep naked or anything so we should be fine.”

“Disappointing.” Stern sighs, only to sail past sarcastic and land face first in sincere.

Barclay blushes, then shrugs, “Trust me, after the first night, you’ll see why.”

Stern does. He’s warm as long as he’s in bed, but the moment he ventures into the bathroom in the middle of the night he’s cocooned in cold.

The morning brings cinnamon and coffee on the draft coming under the door. He plods into the kitchen in search of caffeine, finds Barclay in an pron, the counter covered in trays of dough.

“Morning!”

“Morning. Coffee-”

“Right there, sugar and stuff’s in the cabinet above it, cream and such is in the fridge.”

Blessedly, there’s heavy cream to be found, and soon he’s sipping from an enamel mug emblazoned with a UFO made of veggies.

“Is this all for your job?” Barclay mentioned he was a cook during an icebreaker.

“Yep. Way it works is I bust my ass baking once or twice a day, and Thacker, who works with Mama at the Lodge in town, comes and takes them over there. Normally I’d just be there but, well, y’know.”

“Everything is on fire? Figuratively, I mean.”

“Sometimes literally too, but yeah.”

As he’s turning to grab his clothes and head showerward, Barclay adds, “You a scone man, coffecake man, or a cinnamon roll man?”

“Coffeecake?” It comes out hesitant.

“There’s no right answer, man.” Barclay sounds amused, “what do you want?”

“Cake, definitely.”

“Cool. I’ll save you a slice.”

Once he’s showered and on the wi-fi, his day runs like normal; one lecture, reading, a research paper, his initial half of their project, and working either his copy-editing or transcription job in between, and planning his next stream. Barclay comes and goes, stops now and then to see if he needs anything, leaves a sandwich in front of him around dinner time. Then it’s time to crawl under the covers and dream of a less-stressful world.

The next day, just before one, Barclay taps him on the shoulder.

“Ready for class?”

“Yes…” He gestures to his laptop and notebook.

“C’mon, join me out here, it’s way nicer, and we can share the phone.”

“Barclay, it’s a nonsensical way to attend class, just stay in here with me! Even this set-up has to be better than the woods.”

“This set up. You mean my house?” All the friendliness leaves hi voice.

“Yes. Look, I agreed to come out because you’re right, if we want to ace this thing that’s worth sixty percent of our grade, this is the place to do it; I don’t have to go along with the whole self-sufficient woodsman aesthetic while I’m here. “

“Yeah, I’d say you’re pretty far from self-sufficient. See you in class.”

Stern stews through the entire session, but where he’d usually find something Barclay says to latch onto, he instead gnaws on himself. Why didn’t he just go with him? Why snap at someone who’s been nothing but nice since he got here?

Whatever the answer, how can he fix it?

---------------------------------------

Barclay tromps back through the twilight, done with his second class of the day. If Joseph is in the main house, he plans to ignore him until tomorrow morning. That all goes out the window with the clank of dishes from the kitchen.

Peering in reveals the other man bent over, pulling a casserole from the oven. He waits to announce his presence until Joseph is out of the danger zone, enjoying the view as he does.

“Smells good.”

Blue eyes flick over to him as Joseph opens drawers, “it’s mostly cheese and chips, so I’m not surprised.”

“Servers are in that one.”

“Thank you. Nacho pie?” He scoops some into a bowl, holding it out.

“Sure. Uh, look, Joseph I-”

Joseph holds up the server, “Wait. Before you apologize I, um, I wanted to say I’m sorry for my comments. And for being so...me-ish.” He sighs, staring at the utensil in his grip, “I’ve always been a little bit tense, tried to be polite and effective and friendly in spite of it. The last six months made that harder to do. I don’t love it when I can’t be organized, when normal systems go out of place. But that’s no excuse for being rude to you, even before you invited me here. You’re just so...you’re always so calm and relaxed, like nothing was wrong and I just honed in on that way more than made sense. I’m sorry.”

“If it makes you feel better, I kinda did the same thing. You’re always so put together, it looked like you had this organized life in the midst of this whole shitstorm. I feel lik everything is slipping away, like my world is just this cabin. I mean, I assumed you were seeing friends in the city, while I haven’t seen Mama in person since April. So” he sets the bowl down, rests his hand on Joseph’s shoulder, “I’m sorry too.”

Joseph laughs, softly, “turns out we both had failures of imagination, huh?”

“Yeah” he runs a hand over Joseph's back, “now come on, this dinner’s not gonna eat itself.”

-----------------------------------

“You sure you don’t wanna wear the bigfoot costume?”

“Positive. Besides, it suits you.” Joseph finishes styling the fur on the head of the costume to look more realistic, “I just hope we get this done before that storm comes in; as mush as the rain would add to the mood of the scene, that’ll be hell to dry and you’ll be miserable. So, go lurk over there while I finish up getting the camera settings where they need to be.”

“Yes sir” Barclay pops the head on, leaves crunching as moves to his appointed tree. He smiles as he watches Joseph fiddle with the camera; things have been so much better between them these last two weeks. They trade off cooking dinner, study side by side, and watch movies or play games in the warmth of the heater. They have a similar sense of humor and taste in books, and are tidy to boot. Joseph’s even come with him to listen to lectures in the woods, the pair sharing a thermos of coffee under the astonished gaze of their classmates. There’s just one problem.

Barclay’s buried crush is now blooming in every direction. Animated, argumentative Joseph was attractive. Joseph, in all his moods and mannerisms, is devastatingly enchanting. He’s come close to telling him this, but the other man is his guest and also only here for another two and a half weeks, so a confession is setting himself up for heartbreak at worst and awkwardness at best.

He almost blew it last night when they were washing dishes (Joseph scrubs, Barclay dries and puts away).

“Last one.”

“Thanks, blue eyes.”

“What was that?”

“Uh, blue eyes? Like a, uh, a nickname?”

Joseph laughs, “Sounds like something from a Raymond Chandler book. I like it.”

On the plus side, if Joseph thinks it’s just a nickname and not a pet name, maybe Barclay can keep using it.

“Are you ready?’

He sticks up a hairy thumb and calls, “you know it, blue eyes.”

That same laugh as Joseph takes up his position. Maybe it’s the weird film over the costume’s eyes, but Barclay swears he sees a blush.

-------------------------

Stern trawls through the search results. Their video is getting some traction, with two cryptid hunter sites claiming it’s credible footage. He’s making note of how the information spread, which threads lead to belief and which to doubt, when Barclay calls from upstairs.

“Joseph? Little help?”

The other man is in the bathroom, and when Stern knocks he says, “Think the pilot light on the water heater went out again, all I’m getting is cold water. Can you go relight it?”

“Sure.” He gets to the stairs then, stops, “where’s the key to that closet?”

“Huh? Oh, shit, right, hang on” Barclay says at the same time as Stern’s “don’t worry, I can find it.”

Which is why the instant he turns back into the bedroom is the same instant Barclay steps out of the bathroom, blue towel around his waist.

Any blood that doesn’t head south goes instantly to Stern’s cheeks.

“You okay there, blue-eyes?”

“It’s completely unfair how good you look without a shirt.”

He clamps a hand over his mouth.

“Idn’t ean to ay at out oud” The mumbled explanation makes Barclay smirk.

“You like this, should see what’s under the towel.”

The unusually bold statement from Barclay kindles his own confidence.

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, big guy.”

“Who says I won’t.” Barclay sits down on the edge of the bed, nonchalant and leaning back on his hands, “got plenty of time to make good on them.”

“We literally don’t. I go back in a week and two days.”

Barclay toys with the lint on the towel, “you could stay. Through break, through next semester, for however long you wanted.”

“Do you mean that?”

A shy nod, “I like having you around, Joseph. Even beyond the huge fucking crush I have on you I...everything is a little better when you’re around.”

“I, um, I guess it could work. We know next semester is online too, and so is work, so…” there must be variables missing, something he’s not seeing, some reason this is too good to be true.

“You want some space away from shirtless me to think about it?”

“That’d be great.”

Barclay stands, hesitates, then plants a quick kiss on his forehead, “take all the time you need, blue eyes.”

------------------------------

Private Chat log 1/11/2021

Barclay (he/him): Did you see the look on Duck’s face when we turned up in frame together.

Joseph (he/him): Yes. Pretty sure Aubrey yelled something about him needing to pay up. I wonder what the bet was.

Barclay (he/him): Whatever it was, pretty sure I came out the biggest winner.

Stern snorts, trying not to blush on camera, and leans over to kiss his boyfriend on the cheek.

#agent stern/barclay #sternclay #taz amnesty #college AU

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sunnyrosewritesstuff · 4 years

Text

Bagginshield Bingo- Soulmate/Ones

First entry for the game! I headcannon Bilbo to be about 14-15 in this in human terms. Remember, if I don’t get any asks, I will choose the next one for tomorrow! I hope you guys enjoy.

Title: The Souls of the Feet

Summary: Hobbits have soulmates and while Bilbo always tried to avoid finding his, it seems that his soulmate found him instead.

Amongst the scholars and philosophers of Middle Earth, the oldest and, most likely, well worn debate stems from the location of a being’s soul. Depending on which race is being asked, the answer differs greatly. Take the men for example, hardy and hopeful, and they believe that the answer lies in the gut. After all, ‘gut instinct’ must arise from somewhere, and surely food must power both the body and the soul.

However, if the question is posed to an elf, immortal and elegant, they would argue that the soul must rest in the chest along with the heart and the lungs. All necessary for sustaining life in this world. Loud scoffs would come from the dwarrows, secret and proud, who know that the forging of one's craft is the most soulful experience one can have, and that would be in the large hands Mahal gifted them with.

All are logical arguments and definitely merit consideration. Still, all wrong in the eyes of a hobbit. The poor, simplistic creatures believe the soul resides in their feet. As if their claim was not peculiar enough, they state it as an absolute certainty. The Big Folk just smile and indulge the hobbits with a pat on their head, and it’s this level of cynicism that keeps them from knowing the secret truth of the Shire.

Yavanna, in all her wisdom, granted hobbits the ability of knowing their soul mates. With the feet that touch the earth blessed by the Green Lady, to be touched on the foot ties a string of fate between those two souls. Always feeling, always knowing, exactly where to find their soulmate so long as their feet still walk the earth.

Because of this, the care and attention to their feet was almost sacred. To touch another’s foot with ill intention was seen as downright criminal in the Shire.

Now, accidents happen and it is by the will of Yavanna whether those people pursue a romantic relationship or just remain touched by fate. Bilbo Baggins, a young hobbit of twenty-six, was not about to take the chance.

He kept mostly to himself and away from the other tweens. More interested in chasing imaginary elves and fairies in the woods as a child, he now took walking holidays across the whole of the Shire spending his free time reading his books and his maps from the treetops. He never saw a problem with his self-instilled isolation. His parents fretted, and his father especially questioned how he was to find his soulmate if he kept to himself? However, Bilbo figured his soulmate would find him when the time was right.

It was on one such day that Bilbo was lazing in a low branch over the river. Turned facing the trunk, his head was cradled by the leaves and berries. His right foot bent up at the knee, while his left swung freely below. Lost in the inked words of heroes and magic, Bilbo was completely oblivious to his surroundings. So when something brushed against his hanging foot, he sat up nearly dropping his book.

“Excuse me.” A voice called up as the person reached up and grabbed Bilbo’s foot to gain his attention.

Bilbo released a loud shriek as he jumped to his feet backing away. His foot! Someone touched his foot! In such distress, he seemed to have completely forgotten that he was in a tree, and there was really no place for him to go but down. His stomach flew to his throat as he was completely weightless for a small moment. Then he was plunged into the Brandywine.

If there had ever been Stoor blood in his genealogy, it had died out long ago as Bilbo sunk like a rock beneath the current. His lungs and nose burned as he wildly kicked and flailed hoping in vain to reach the surface. His head broke through for only a moment, and he gulped in air while he could.

“HOLD ON!”

Bilbo barely heard the roaring voice before he was plunged back below. His chest ached with desperation, and he was so tempted just to open his mouth and be done with it. Then he collided with something solid. His limbs instinctively wrapped tight in the hope of salvation even as his eyes refused to open.

Honestly, Bilbo wasn’t sure how he got onto the banks. One moment, he was fighting against the rushing waters, and the next he was on his hands and knees. Spluttering, coughing, hacking as water and snot ran down his face. His limbs shook as the fear wore off enough for the exhaustion of his journey to seep in.

“Are you alright?”

There was a warm hand on his back that made Bilbo look up. Blue. He was drowning once more. Numbly words tumbled from his mouth.

“My foot.”

A soft frown touched the being’s face, and Bilbo was able to break away from his eyes long enough to take in the sharp nose, short dark beard, long soft locks to match, and the large hands that were common among Aule’s children. A dwarf? The dwarf looked down at his foot, and Bilbo was now consciously aware of the deep throb resonating through his sole. The dwarf reached down taking his foot in hand, and Bilbo released a gasp.

Sweet Yavanna, he didn’t know that one could feel waves of pure bliss in this way. It was as if the sun had been gone without him even knowing, and he finally was feeling its warmth for the first time. His body went limp, and he turned his head so he could get a good look at his soulmate. His soulmate. He wanted to be annoyed by his method of contact, but he was too mesmerized by the beautiful creature to care about the accidental touching.

He was large. From his broad shoulders to his mannish hands down to his sculpted chest that his wet tunic clung desperately. Wet tunic? Bilbo grinned brightly as he realized it was the dwarf that saved him from the river. His brave, handsome, kind soulmate. If Bilbo weren’t still technically a minor, he would propose right here on the spot.

“Did that hurt?” The dwarf questioned raising an eyebrow.

“Hurt?” Bilbo laughed. “It felt incredible. Here, let me.”

He sat up and reached over for the dwarf’s feet only to stop short at the sight of the dark squared monstrosities hiding his soulmate’s feet. His confusion must have been written on his face because the dwarf spoke up once more.

“You...want me to remove my boots?”

“Yes.” Bilbo nodded, his brow still furrowed.

The dwarf hesitated, but under Bilbo’s putout expression, slowly complied with the request. Bilbo’s jaw dropped aghast to see another layer of wool underneath the dreaded leather beasts. His plight seemed to amuse the dark haired dwarf as he huffed a laugh before removing the woolen socks as well.

Bilbo laughed in incredulous delight. They were so dainty and smooth! He reached out towards one only to hesitate and look up for the dwarf’s permission. His blue eyes tore straight through him as if trying to discern his every possible intention before finally giving a small curious nod.

Bilbo’s touch was revenant, and his heart immediately ached. There was so much pain in his dwarf’s poor soul. The pain of loss brought tears to Bilbo’s eyes. However, there was also a fluttering of hope. It was beautiful and noble and built on limitless dreams of glory and a far off calling of home. Yes, Bilbo’s dwarf was a good one indeed.

He began to rub the foot exactly as his mother told him in order to soothe the pain. Thorin tensed for a moment before letting go with a sigh. Bilbo smiled, happy to do this one small thing for his sweet soulmate. He didn’t know if it was normal to be this attached, but he couldn’t help himself. He continued to rub until contentment settled into the dwarf’s bones.

“What did you do?” He asked softly when Bilbo finally, reluctantly released him.

“I merely dulled the pain and reminded your soul of better times.” Bilbo answered.

“I didn’t even know I had such aches; long has been my journey.”

“It was the least I could do. I mean...you did save my life.” Bilbo ducked his head shyly.

A large hand reached up and ruffled his curls.

“It was the least I could do, Little One. After all, it was my fault you fell in the first place.”

Bilbo was nearly vibrating with the attention until he caught the dwarf’s pet name.

“Little?! I am practically an adult.” He complained.

The dwarf snorted as he proceeded to cover his feet once more. Something else that caused Bilbo displeasure.

“My nephews would say much the same.”

“You have nephews?” Bilbo jumped eager to know more of his soulmate. “How old are they?”

“Let’s see...the younger one just turned...fifty-two, I believe. Which would make the eldest fifty-seven.”

Bilbo blinked owlishly at the dwarf wondering at the purpose behind this jest, but he did nothing to deny it as he laced his boots back up. As it settled around him, Bilbo came to the realization that the dwarf was being one hundred percent serious. Just how old was his soulmate?!

“And what about you? I would imagine on the frontside of fifty. Forty-seven? Forty-eight?”

“Twenty-six.” Bilbo murmured still reeling from the apparent longevity of dwarves.

The dark haired dwarf’s jaw dropped as his face paled.

“Twenty...by Mahal! We need to get you back to your parents right away!”

Bilbo’s face turned crimson as the implication that he was but a young faunt, but then the dwarf took his hand in his, and Bilbo stayed his tongue as he found he enjoyed the sensation. It was incredible to him that dwarves’ hands were so large when their feet were so cute and small. Exactly opposite of a hobbit. It was like Yavanna and Aule planned for them to compliment each other. Bilbo took advantage of the situation and laced their fingers together as he swung the limbs back and forth. The dwarf, Bilbo still had not learned his name, allowed him with an indulgent smile. Wait. Bilbo still did not know his name.

“What’s your name?” He asked immediately seeking the blue orbs for answers.

“I am Thorin, son of Thrain. How about you, Little One?”

Bilbo clearly was not about to lose that nickname anytime soon.

“Bilbo Baggins.” He responded.

“Bilbo.” Thorin repeated fondly.

Bilbo repressed the urge to shiver at how his name sounded in Thorin’s velvety voice. Trying to distract himself from his desire to press closer, Bilbo began to prattle on, telling Thorin all about his home and the Shire in general. He talked about his desires for adventure and his cosy smial. He talked for so long, wanting to share every detail of himself with Thorin that he wasn’t even aware they were home until he walked straight into the gate.

“I suppose this is where I leave you, Little One.”

Bilbo’s eyes widened. Leave? Why would Thorin leave?

“I must return to my home now.” Thorin explained in amusement.

Bilbo ducked his head not realizing he had asked his questions aloud.

“Will you come back?” He begged already hating the distance between them.

“I may.” Thorin smirked.

Bilbo’s grin split his face as he leaned up and placed a chaste kiss to the tip of his nose. Thorin watched completely bewildered.

“Good. Because I have chosen you.”

“Chosen me for what?”

“To be mine.” Bilbo answered honestly.

The dwarf looked confused but still managed to draw a small smile to his face.

“Farewell, Bilbo Baggins.”

“I’ll be waiting! Thorin, son of Thrain!” Bilbo declared waving enthusiastically to the dwarf as he departed down the hill.

Bilbo was able to feel every step he took further and further away from him. It was like a tug on the very soul of his feet. Uncomfortable and strained. It made Bilbo want to run down after the dwarf, and never let him go. However, he could wait. He would become of age soon enough, and then he would chase off into the wilderness after that dwarf. He just didn’t know the wait would be longer than he would ever know. Long enough for him to all but forget about the insistent tug that demanded his attention away from the Shire. However, Bilbo was quickly reminded when for the first time in twenty-five years, the tug eased in its pull indicating his dwarf was finally coming back for him. Now if only he could get this pesky wizard to leave him alone so he could prepare...

#bagginshield bingo #bagginshield #thilbo #ones/soulmates #get it...'soul of the foot'#:D #the nose kiss...literally one of my favorite parts

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the-panwitch · 4 years

Text

My Favorite Color is You

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A/N: This is my first Peter Parker fic and first fic on this site. I really hope you like it and feedback is welcome but don’t be a bully please. Thank you @dreamofaprilsblog for the prompts “Do you need to go to the hospital?” and soulmate AU. Sorry for this being a day late, but I hope you still enjoy it anyways.

Warnings: fire, almost mugging, burns, hospitals, slight angst, petty teenagers, mentions of a person being followed (comment if there’s anything else I should add)

Word Count: 3175

Pairing: Peter Parker x Reader

Summary: Peter Parker is very desperate to find you, his soulmate. He’s looked for you in every person he makes eye contact with. Guys, girls, he’s looked for you in everyone. Well, one fateful patrol leads him to discover his new favorite color.

Side note: I tried to make this as gender inclusive as possible so I used “they” to describe the reader’s pronouns, but just imagine your own whenever “they” is used if it isn’t your pronoun. Peter is bi in this story. If there is a point where I accidentally specify a gender please let me know so I can fix it. Enjoy! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Peter knew about soulmates. He’s read about them in books, learned about famous soulmates in class, and even heard about them in real time from people lucky enough to find theirs. He, of course, was not that lucky. Stupid Parker luck. He knew from what he’s heard and learned that the world actually isn’t dull shades of gray with black and white, but it actually had color. Real vibrant colors like red and purple and green, things his brain didn’t have the capacity to imagine. He knew that all it took was eye contact with the right person to change his world. Too bad he hadn’t found those eyes just yet.

He was sitting on top of a random apartment building while on his usual nightly patrol bored out of his freaking mind. There just wasn’t anything good tonight. He helped a little girl get her kite down from a tree and one man needed help catching his dog who had gotten off his leash, and yeah he was a cute dog, but he could be doing something better. He could be finding you. Of course, he didn’t know who you were yet. Just a bright, beautiful figment of his imagination, and his heart ached for you. Was that even possible? To long for someone he wasn’t even sure existed? Well, guess it is because he’s living proof of the pitiful feeling.

A loud yell shook him from his depressing thoughts and he jumped up quickly.

“Finally,” he muttered with a small grin as he shot a web in the direction the yell had come from. He swung as quickly as his agile body allowed and soon landed down on the pavement in front of an alleyway. He looked around cautiously and could feel the prickling sensation that was his Peter t- Spider Sense. It was his Spider Sense. He shook his head a bit and tried to remain focused as he crept down the dark passage.

“I don’t want any trouble, lady,” Peter heard a low voice hiss from the gloom. “Just want whatever cash and shit you got on ya. Don’t be a bitch about it.”

Peter scowled and kept walking until he was able to make out two figures in the dim light the street lamps provided. A young woman, maybe late teens or early twenties, was pinned up against a wall while a man who was obviously older stood before her, a small knife in his right hand.

Peter sighed softly. “Y’know,” he started as the criminal dude jumped. “If you want money you should probably just get a job like a normal person. I hear the Burger King down the street is hiring.”

The guy quickly turned around and tried to slash at Spider-Man with the knife which the boy effortlessly ducked and grabbed his assailant's arm, twisting just enough that he dropped his knife. The man grunted in pain and swung at him again, but Spider-Man dodged and countered with a kick to the man’s abdomen. The force of the kick sent him flying back into the opposite alley wall and before he had time to even look up, the young hero webbed him to the dirty brick.

“Karen?” Peter whispered softly.

“The police are on their way Peter. Good job,” the AI responded.

Peter smiled beneath the mask. “Hey, thanks.”

The boy turned around to see the girl still standing against the wall, breathing deeply. His heart jumped a bit as he realized that she was about his age, and also very pretty. Try as he might to keep it down, hope surged in his chest as he made his way over to her.

“Excuse me, miss? Are you okay? Do you need to go to the hospital?” He asked quickly as he did a small glance over her.

“No, I believe I’m alright. Thank you Spider-Man,” she breathed out.

She slowly looked up at him and Peter looked into her eyes and-

Nothing… they remained a light grey color just like the rest of his surroundings. He couldn’t help the small disappointed sigh that left his lips before he forced himself into a smile.

“That’s good. I’m glad. Um… do you live far from here? I could walk you home if you want.”

The girl shook her head and gave him a tiny, hesitant smile. “My car is right down the street. I was walking there so that I could get to the library where my girlfriend is probably waiting for me when that guy grabbed me. Speaking of her, I should probably get going. Thank you again.” She smiled hesitantly and waved to him before walking away and taking out her phone, probably to call this girlfriend.

Peter sighed again and watched her to make sure she got to her car before looking back at the man webbed to the wall. “Does everyone have a soulmate except for me?” he questioned without really expecting an answer. Nevertheless, the almost mugger shrugged anyway.

Peter scowled before jumping up and climbing the alley wall. He stood on the roof and waited there until the police arrived to take the guy into custody, and once they were gone so was Spider-Man.

-------------------------

Peter entered his bedroom through the open window and crawled along his ceiling until he was over top of his loft bed. Looking over his shoulder to make sure he didn’t accidentally fall onto the floor, which definitely didn’t happen a lot, he let go and flopped onto the bed with a huff. He tugged his mask off of his head and tossed it over the side in a fit of petty anger.

May, who must have heard him come in, opened the door and gazed up at him. “Long night?” she asked softly to which Peter just shrugged, not in the mood to really talk to anyone.

“Well, I got us some Chinese food if you’d like it.” Peter heard the door creak behind her as she turned around and walked back towards the rest of the house. He would have preferred to stay in bed, but the incessant growling of his stomach said no, causing him to get up. After changing out of his suit annoyedly, he went out and joined his aunt.

Aunt May was sitting at their small dinner table with a plate of chow mein, glancing at the TV which was playing the news report of the latest Spidey save. Peter walked over and sat down in his usual seat across from her. When she looked up at him, she smiled sadly.

“I got you some dumplings and noodles. Also they gave me, like, a ton of fortune cookies. I don’t know who needs sixteen fortune cookies, but apparently it’s us.”

“You counted?” Peter asked with a little chuckle.

“Hey. That many fortune cookies needs to be counted,” May retorted with a smile as she saw her nephew laugh.

They both began eating, Peter slow at first but then diving in once he realized exactly how hungry he was.

Once they finished eating, Peter helped pack up the leftovers and clean the dishes. As he loaded the dishwasher, Aunt May asked softly, “what’s on your mind tonight? The guy you fought?”

Peter shook his head and sighed. He finished loading the dishwasher before turning to Aunt May to answer. “No I just… how old were you when you met Uncle Ben? And found out he was your soulmate?”

Aunt May looked slightly taken aback by this question and pursed her lips a little. She always did that whenever Ben was brought up. “I was 23, I think. Yeah… yeah somewhere around that age. We met at this resort one summer. That’s also where your mom and dad met.” She smiled a little at the memory and Peter watched her with slight pain behind his eyes. “God, when all four of us saw color for the first time, well, we were so surprised of course, but it was really, really amazing. Why do you ask?”

“I just… nothing. Just curious,” Peter answered with a tight smile. “I think I’m gonna head to bed now. Tired. From the fight.”

Aunt May nodded and Peter trotted back to his room. Before he reached the door, he heard her call to him from the kitchen. “You’ll find your soulmate Peter. I know it feels like forever and you just want to meet them now, but I promise you’ll find them soon.” Peter glanced back at her before walking into his room without saying another word.

-------------------------

The next couple of days were a consistent and normal blur. Peter had school, then patrol, then repeat the next day. Everywhere he went he looked around for his soulmate. At one point, this really cute curly haired boy walked past him and he felt his heart skip a beat as he looked into his dark eyes, but nothing again. He sighed in disappointment as the taller boy walked away from him, leaving him to continue his stupid quest.

That had happened two days ago. Now, Spider-Man was patrolling the city, swinging between buildings. It was a relatively quiet night. He helped this one kid find his mom when he got separated from at a park, and he also walked a young woman back to her apartment because she thought she was being followed. After double checking, it didn’t look like she was, but then again that was probably because the shithead saw Spider-Man and turned around. But all-in-all, it was very quiet and chill. That is, until the explosion happened.

Spider-Man quickly started swinging in the direction the loud sound came from, wondering what the hell that was about. It didn’t take him long to find it. A restaurant he happened to pass by a lot was burning up in giant, pale flames. He jumped down and quickly ran inside the burning building.

There was fire everywhere. The heat crashed against him like a ferocious wave. It reminded him so much of his fight with the Vulture that he hesitated a second before continuing to run inside. It looked like most of the people had already gotten out or were running for the exits.

“That way over there,” Spidey yelled to the people running past him. “Is anyone else still in here?” He called out as he ran further into the building. Weak coughing came as a reply. Someone ran up to him and grabbed him while coughing viciously into their arm.

“Spider-Man,” the person said in harsh breaths. “Please you, you have to help. The back room. My friend－”

“I’ll get to them. Get yourself to safety.”

They nodded and ran out the building while the young hero ran in the direction the person had gestured to. He could still hear the weak coughing from earlier, but now he was hearing a tiny “help” and “please” that made his heart ache. He dodged out of the way of falling debris and hissed in pain when he backed into a burning metal rod from an overturned table. Still, he pressed on until he reached the backroom.

The smoke was immense. From the damage it looked like this was the epicenter of the explosion.

“Hello?” he yelled over the roar of the fire. He wasn’t sure if he could even be heard over everything, but a weak call answered him.

“O-over here.”

Spider-Man jumped over more burning debris as he frantically looked around. His eyes widened when he finally saw them. A figure lay trapped beneath a large chunk of wood that had once been the ceiling. They looked badly burned and were coughing harshly and breathing in rough, raspy breaths.

He ran over to them and started to lift up the wood despite the burning in his hands, causing the person below to cry out. Spidey yelled in pain as he managed to lift the debris off of them and throw it to the side.

He quickly crouched down to look at the person he just rescued, and he was met with the most beautiful pair of e/c orbs to ever exist. His jaw dropped as he quickly ripped off his mask, his mask that was now the most vibrant and bright shade of a color he had only ever heard about. He looked back at you, your eyes impossibly wide as you choked out a small, “you?”

Peter nodded. “Me..let me lift you up okay?” You nodded a tiny bit and whimpered loudly as Peter gently wrapped his arms underneath your battered body, lifting you up into his chest. He winced a little from the pain in his hands and his back, but he pulled his mask back on before running out of the now rapidly collapsing building.

The fire was so much brighter now. Reds and oranges and yellows. He could see the burning blue curtains hanging in the window. The shades of green and brown and the colorful painting on the wall that were all turning to black and grey ash. How horrifyingly beautiful.

He ran over to where the ambulances were parked and looked around frantically as he saw the EMTs and paramedics treating people and getting the most badly hurt people on stretchers and into the vehicles.

“Do you need to go to the hospital?” He heard from behind him. He turned around and saw a paramedic looking at him.

“N-No no but they do,” Spidey stated as he held you tightly to his chest. Your eyelids were nearly closed and your breathing was ragged.

The paramedic quickly called her team over and they gently took you from his arms. They laid you out on the stretcher and got to work on getting you on a breathing mask and looking at your wounds. His breath caught in his throat as he began to clearly see how bad your wounds were. Harsh red burns covered your skin, especially your lower body where the wood had pinned you down.

For a moment it was so hard to focus, the sirens and yelling was overwhelming, the bright lights were blinding him, the heat was still so immense, he could hear your heart and your breath so impossibly loud, and just all the colors－

It was all so much he almost didn’t notice the team taking the stretcher you were on away into an ambulance. Taking you away into the ambulance. Away from him. He was not having any of that. They were not taking you away when he just finally found you. Your gorgeous eyes looked at him with fear and desperation as they rolled you away.

“Wait!” he cried as he followed after them. “Wait please you have to let me come with you. I have to go with them.”

“Are you family?” an EMT asked him with a puzzled expression.

“No no I-I’m not but－”

“We’re only allowing family to－”

“I’m their soulmate!” He shouted. “Please. Please don’t take them from me.”

After a moment, just one single moment where Peter could feel his chest constricting and he could sense your eyes on him and his heart was beating way too fast, the EMT nodded and Spidey joined them in the ambulance.

He sat down beside your stretcher and gently took your hand. He stared into your eyes that had started to fill with tears, and he very lightly gave your fingers a squeeze despite the sting in his own hand. You offered him the tiniest smile, and then the ambulance drove off, taking both of you with it.

-------------------------

It had been several hours. You were now laying in a hospital bed with all of your burns bandaged and your wounds attended to as Peter sat in a chair beside you, his own burns taken care of as well.

Aunt May had stopped by earlier to check on him and also see you. They talked a bit about all of the colors. How bright they were or how dull they were and how your eyes were his new favorite color because, God, how could one thing be so beautiful? However, he couldn’t see your eyes now as you slept peacefully. Instead, he was staring in fascination at the Spider-Man suit. He really went around in such a bright red and blue suit? How has he not been shot and killed yet?

He was shaken out of these thoughts by the sound of the bed sheets rustling. He quickly looked up and was met by his favorite color. He smiled widely and sat up straighter as you offered him a tiny smile.

“Hi,” he breathed out.

“Hi,” you whispered back.

You both stared at one another for a moment that was both awkward and yet somehow comforting. You cleared your throat a tiny bit before murmuring, “Can I have a drink?”

“Drink? Oh uh yeah of course, sorry.” Peter quickly sprang up to get you a glass of water from the water dispenser over in the corner. He walked back over and carefully raised the glass to your lips, your hand coming up to gently rest over his and he would be a huge liar if he said he didn’t blush as red as his suit.

He set the empty glass down on the bedside table and sat back down in his seat, pulling it a tiny bit closer to your bed.

“So,” you began softly. “Spider-Man is my soulmate?”

“Yeah, I guess so,” he laughed softly. “My name’s Peter. Parker.”

“Y/n,” you answered.

He smiled one of the biggest smiles that he’s ever smiled before. It was one of those where it leaves your cheeks aching afterwards.

“What?” you asked, an eyebrow raised.

He shook his head quickly, his curls bouncing along his hairline. “Nothing just… your name is so perfect. You’re perfect.”

“You found me in the pits of hell and you’re going to call me perfect? You’re an angel.”

He definitely did not blush at that statement. Nope. Not Peter Parker.

He laughed a little and looked at you adoringly. He could already tell he was the luckiest guy alive.

“So, uh, I should probably ask this just to um make it official and all of that,” Peter mumbled after a moment. “Would you like to go out sometime? I mean, obviously once we’re both healed and everything. And… afterwards maybe be my significant other?”

You laughed a little and Peter felt his face fall and his inside twist up in nervousness. Did he do something wrong? What was happening?

“Yeah, of course. I’d love to go out with you Peter Parker.”

He beamed widely at you as you smiled back. You both sat for a few minutes in silence and at some point Peter had taken your hand and was gently rubbing circles into it and you both were talking about absolutely anything, but mostly about all the new colors when a nurse walked in.

“Excuse me, your parents are here. Shall I send them in?”

Peter’s eyes widened as you turned to look at him with a smirk.

“Ready to meet my parents?”

Fuck.

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

Tagging some people who will hopefully like this: @soft-petey @quaksvn @itslokes @tommysparker @greenorangevioletgrass @lxilahm @holland-mendes-always-forever @thespydersargon @angel-spidey @angel-holland @th0ttie4tommy @tonguetiedholland @follow-tom-holland-is-spiderman @tcny-stcrks @spideyyeet @spider-starry @bitchass-slytheriny-snake @dreamofaprilsblog

(Redid the tags cuz apparently they didn’t work)

If you want to be added to my taglist or removed just comment and I’d be happy to do so <3

#peter parker x reader #peter parker #spiderman #marvel #my fics #tw fire #tw mugging #angsty #fluff #mcu #Aunt May #soulmate #au #fanfic #spiderman x reader #tom holland x reader

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bitter-sweet-farmgirl · 3 years

Text

Athtur I’zig

Part 4 of ‘A Deep Misunderstanding’. Who know how many more parts are going to follow… Link to Series Masterlist.

Thorin falls for a Dwarrowdame raised by Elves, and tries to make know his feelings, but accidentally offends her, which leads to another and another misunderstanding between the two.

Based off of @immawriteyouthings ‘Falling Stars’

Note: If you wish to be tagged for certain stories, just let me know and I can add you to a tag list!

MASTERLIST

OC(s) Used: Estel (Lorelei mentioned)

Word Count: 2,142

Warning(s): None

Translation(s): Athtur I’zig: Star Gazing

Lulkhs: Idiots

Zatagbiri ibriz khama asti: He would melt the sun in his forge for you

~~~~

Several weeks down the road, I finally felt as though I was making some progress. Thorin had slowly but steadily begun to teach me more words and phrases in Khuzdul and I finally felt as though I could hold a basic conversation in that language.

But it was strange. Ever since I had talked with Fili and Kili, they seemed intent on making me see Thorin in a different light as well as discovering why I didn't know Khuzdul. They dropped hints about Thorin to see my reactions--the most memorable being Kili's attempt at romanticizing Thorin's figure.

"But how could you think he wants harm to befall you?" Kili asked in a whisper as he sat beside me in front of the crackling fire. "I mean, I would have thought you'd have fallen for him. Most women gaze forlornly after him whenever we're in a tavern somewhere or out in public."

I saw no need to inform Kili that I had indeed fallen for Thorin, but was trying to push aside those feelings. "I'm not 'most women' Kili. I prefer a different sort." I lied, and Kili grinned at me, scooting closer.

"Oh yeah? What is your type then? Obviously not burly Dwarrows with bulging muscles, dark beards and steel blue eyes who like brooding and talk in deep voices." He said, mimicking Thorin's voice and Fili gave his brother an odd look as he walked by.

I laughed, shaking my head at Kili's description of Thorin. This just egged Kili on till Thorin walked by, and Kili abruptly stopped, unwilling to invoke the wrath of his uncle. Once Thorin had passed by, Kili resumed his questions.

"So, what is your type? Am I attractive to you?" He asked teasingly, and I shrugged my shoulders, unwilling to verbally answer the question. "What about Fili? Do you like him?"

I wrinkled my nose, making Kili laugh. "I don't like either of you in that way, Kili..." I said, and Kili grinned at me.

"Good, because I'm a taken Dwarrow." He said, getting a faraway look in his eyes. I raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, you are?" I asked, and Kili nodded, a soft smile replacing his cheeky grin.

"Aye. I've got a lass waiting back in the Blue Mountains for me to return and bring her to Erebor once we reclaim it." He said in a quiet voice, and I nodded.

"Is she pretty?" I questioned, and Kili chuckled, ducking his head as pink began to tinge his stubbled cheeks.

"Oh Mahal, yes. She's a goddess. Long brown hair that is as soft as a rabbit pelt and gorgeous green eyes that shine like emeralds." He said reverently, "Mahal knows how I ever got her to marry me in the first place..."

"Wait, so you're married?" I said in disbelief, and Kili nodded slowly, the mischievous look reentering his brown eyes.

"That I am. We had one glorious year together before I left with the Company... I miss her more every day." He said softly, his smile turning morose.

"I'm sure she misses you too." I murmured, resting a hand on Kili's shoulder. "It's hard to be away from the ones you love."

After that long and interesting conversation where I had learned more about Kili than I knew about Thorin, I had time to ponder my own relationship with the latter. Weirdly enough, my interactions with Thorin had become less strained the more time we spent together as he taught me Khuzdul. It almost gave me hope that one day I would find my feelings reciprocated in him. Almost.

There were still many times when Thorin was gruff and cold towards me, and although I was able to hide it, I still felt hurt that he didn't like me.

"Miss Estel, if you would remove your head from the clouds, we could continue learning." Thorin's annoyed voice broke me from my thoughts, and I quickly glanced over at where he leaned against a tree, illuminated by the fire's dancing flames as he cleaned his dagger.

"Sorry, I just got caught up in my thoughts; remembering." I said quietly, and Thorin nodded tersely.

"So I noticed. But back to the subject at hand. Do you remember the colours I was teaching you this morning?" He asked, and I nodded.

"Yes. Ziriz, narag, and khagal. Gold, black and blue." I said, and Thorin nodded approvingly.

"Galikh. That means good." He said, and I thought I saw the barest hint of a smile for a moment. But then it was gone, as though it had never existed.

Which, knowing Thorin, was probably true.

"Master Thorin, Kili and Fili said something earlier today that has been puzzling me. I was wondering if you could tell me what it meant." I began hesitantly, and Thorin raised an eyebrow, glancing up from the knife he had been cleaning.

"Fili and Kili said this, you say?" He asked, and I nodded.

"Yeah. I think it was meant in jest, but I cannot be sure."

"What was it?" Thorin asked, and I struggled to recall the unfamiliar words Fili and Kili had murmured to me, gesturing towards Thorin as he led us.

"It was something like 'zatagbiri ibriz khama asti'." I said, sounding out the words slowly. Thorin's sapphire blue eyes widened, and his grip on the dagger tightened.

"Did you understand any of it?" He asked, gaze becoming murderous. I took a step away as he began to walk towards me, shaking my head.

"Not really, I recognized 'he' and 'forge' and 'you, but that was it." I said rapidly, but Thorin just shook his head.

"I have no idea what I'm going to do with those two lulkhs..." He groaned, stroking his chin with a hand.

I was about to ask what the phrase meant when Gloin approached Thorin. "Thorin, it's your turn on the night watch. Dwalin's next." He said, and Thorin nodded to him.

"Alright."

Gloin headed away from us, leaving Thorin and I alone once more. I turned to look at him only to find his eyes already resting on me.

"Would you mind if I joined you on the watch?" I asked softly, "you could teach me more."

Thorin shrugged, his gaze still dark. "I do not mind. Just keep in mind that we will be moving on early tomorrow morning." He said, and the hidden meaning behind his words made me bite my lip.

Of course he had to try and find a flaw somewhere. If I stayed up late with him, there was no excuse for me being tired tomorrow.

Tossing my hair back, I gave him a look. "I will be fine." I said firmly and began to walk out into the forest to scout the perimeter of our camp a bit.

"Miss Estel, you stay here; closer to camp." Thorin suddenly said, striding after me. Ignoring his obvious attempt to 'protect' me--the helpless woman--I continued walking onwards. "Miss Estel!" Thorin growled, and I sensed his temper rising at my silence.

But then I walked out into a clearing bathed in moonlight and stopped dead. Tilting my head upwards, I let out a soft gasp as I saw thousands of stars twinkling brightly in the sky.

"It's so beautiful..." I whispered, a smile spreading across my face at the wondrous sight. It had been far too long since I had last taken the time to look up at the stars; something I used to do regularly back in Lothlorien.

"Miss Estel," Thorin's voice came from behind me, and I turned to look at him, smiling brightly.

"Isn't it beautiful?" I asked softly, and Thorin's brow furrowed even as I watched his sapphire eyes soften.

"What?" He asked in a low voice, and I gestured up at the sky.

"The stars. Aren't they beautiful?" I asked again, and Thorin turned his gaze skyward for a moment before looking back at me, a strange expression on his face.

"I suppose so... But we better get back to the camp. We're supposed to be on watch." He said, motioning for me to follow him. But I shook my head.

"It'll be okay for a couple minutes. I haven't had the chance to properly star-gaze since I joined this Company," I said. "Have you ever star-gazed?"

Thorin shook his head, and I let out a gasp of surprise. "How is that even possible?! Come here!" I hurried over to him and grabbed his hand in mine, dragging him into the clearing. Surprisingly, he didn't resist, and I shot a glance back at him to find him staring at me with wide blue eyes, the faintest dusting of pink tinging his cheeks. How strange.

Really, surprise wasn't that good of a look on him. I preferred that strong, brooding exterior; if only he would smile more. I had seen him smile at Fili and Kili as well as Dwalin, and it only made me fall for him more. His blue eyes would shine as his broad frame shook with laughter; making my heart skip a beat.

Sitting down, I tugged on his hand to get him to join me, which he reluctantly proceeded to do. "This is a bad idea. We could be ambushed and--"

"Shh... Lie back and be quiet. Just forget about all that for a minute." I said, lying back and staring up at the sky. "Just look up at the stars."

Thorin let out a sigh as he reclined beside me, our shoulders barely touching. It was like my dreams had come to life.

We sat in silence for a long while, just looking up at the sky and taking in all of its beauty. Then I caught sight of a shooting star.

"Thorin, look! A shooting star! Make a wish!" I murmured excitedly, closing my eyes as I made mine; wishing that I could see my Naneth again someday. She was in my thoughts more often the Thorin it seemed at times. I missed her more than life itself.

Opening my eyes, I turned my head to look at Thorin. Hearing the grass rustle as I did so, he turned to look at me. "What did you wish for?" He asked curiously, and I laughed.

"I can't tell you... Then the wish won't come true!" I laughed, and Thorin nodded slowly, turning his gaze back up at the stars.

"I see then." He rumbled, and we both became quiet again.

At least, until my curiosity rose within me. "Thorin?" I asked quietly, "what's the word for 'star'?"

Thorin was quiet for a moment, "Thatr." He answered, and I mouthed it once before trying to pronounce it.

"Tha-tur?" I tried, glancing over at the Dwarrow beside me as he nodded an affirmation.

"Yes, that's right."

I smiled to myself, watching as another shooting star passed across the night sky. Another wish; another moment.

"What is your story? The wizard has never mentioned where he met you, and it puzzles me why a Dwarrowdame such as yourself does not know the language of the Dwarves." Thorin suddenly spoke, and I took in a deep breath.

I had hoped these questions would never be asked of me.

"As I said before, Master Thorin, it is personal." I said quietly, trying to shut down this conversation before it could start.

But Thorin refused to let it go. "Are you an orphan? Is that why you never learned Khuzdul?" He asked, sitting up and looking down at me.

I sat up also, looking over at him with a guarded expression. "That is my own business, Master Thorin. Now if you'll excuse me, I believe it is time for the next watch to relieve us." I murmured, rising to my feet and heading towards the camp.

"As the leader of this Company, I believe I have a right to know your backstory. For all I know you are intent on stealing the gold within Erebor's halls for yourself." Thorin's deep voice stopped me in my tracks, and I turned slowly to look at him.

Did he really want to tread down this path? Questioning my integrity and loyalty?

"Gandalf wouldn't have allowed me to come along if he didn't believe I was trustworthy." I said coolly, staring at Thorin as I silently dared him to question me more. If he wanted the truth, he would get it.

But he remained silent, and I turned away from him to continue towards the warmth of the fire, apprehension building in the pit of my stomach. I knew that someday my past would come to light; it was inevitable, but I feared the day it did.

Eru only knew what Thorin would do to me once he knew of my Elvish upbringing.

#Thorin x oc #thorin #thorin oakenshield #thorin oakenshield x oc #fanfic #fanfiction #star gazing #the hobbit #dwarves #the company #angst #a deep misunderstanding #oblivious oc #shy thorin

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chocolatemin · 3 years

Text

word count: 8.51k

contains: fantasy, fluff, angst, crack, psychological issues, violent themes and mentions of explosives, implied fem!reader, mention and description of food, cursing

note: yaaaay! I'm back with another fic for Halloween Special, the story was mainly inspired by none other than my favorite Disney movie, Alice in Wonderland and the word ‘horologe’! I had so much fun writing and this is my longest one yet, about the pairing-- it’s a secret! You’ll find out along the way ;) I hope you enjoy reading! <33

「1st Strike.」

You sat on the bottom of the tree, feeling the texture of the paper on your fingertips as you flipped through the pages of the book you are reading. Horologium, it has been stuck in your bookshelf for years. You always tell yourself to read it after finishing a book but somehow, you always end up forgetting it. The book’s cover has always been intriguing to you, it was simple and pleasing, yet it has a vibe that you cannot determine. You read one of the passage aloud:

“By the time the clock strikes twelve,

Thou shall hear the sound of bells,

Make sure to bid thy farewell,

Or the day shall repeat its spell.”

“What?” Your brows furrowed in confusion, under the passage was a picture of a pocket watch that is oddly familiar to you. You shrugged off the thought and closed the book, ready to head home. It was still early, around 10 o’clock, and the tree created a perfect shade for you to read your book peacefully at, however you have still errands to do.

“I’m late, I’m late, I’m late!” Your ears perked upon hearing a tiny voice not too far from your spot. Huh? You got up from your seat and dusted off your clothes. You carefully made your way towards the source of the voice and tried your best not to create loud sounds as you stepped on the fallen dried leaves on the ground. Quietly peeking from the leaves, you saw a talking squirrel in a suit, running for its dear life. Wait, a squirrel? You must be mistaken. You blinked your eyes a few times but nothing has changed, there really is a talking squirrel in a suit running. Letting the curiosity get the best of you, you quickly followed the squirrel. It seems to be too caught up in being ‘late’ that it didn’t notice you following it.

“Goodness, I’m late!” The squirrel groaned once more before ducking safely under a log. You were almost there when you felt something slipped out from your pocket halting you to a stop. You looked behind you and saw your pocket watch lying on the ground. You immediately picked it up, examining if there are scratches or broken parts and thankfully, there is no damage or else your mother is going to get mad. And when she gets mad, all hell breaks loose.

“Oi, Felix! Whatcha doin’ mate?” You saw a blonde guy approaching another blondie while grinning widely. He has such a nice jaw and cute dimples. He was wearing a sleeveless shirt, showing off his well-toned muscles.

“Look at this egg!” The taller blondie, which you assumed as ‘Felix’, flashed a cute smile, extending his arm towards the shorter one, holding out an egg, “isn’t it cool!”

“What’s so cool about it?” The blonde guy which you didn’t know the name looks at Felix quizzically. Felix’ reaction was a mix of shock and disgust causing a giggle to escape your lips. You instantly covered your mouth but they already turned their heads to you, “A friend!” Felix yelled before they practically ran over to you.

“Hi! My name’s Felix!” Felix asked, holding his hand out to you, “What’s yours?” You were skeptical about shaking his hand but you didn’t want to come off as rude and impolite so you hesitantly took his hand, “I’m Y/N.”

“That’s such a pretty name!” The shorter blonde spoke, “I’m Chan, and we’re brothers. Nice to meet you,” he extended his hand to you for a handshake which you still took skeptically, “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, I was just passing by.” You hid your hands behind your back.

“Do you wanna hear a great story?” Felix chirped with excitement.

“Maybe next time? I still have to go somewhere.” You glanced at your right, where the squirrel headed off, taking a few steps away from them and you could see the dejection in their eyes.

“Wait! Aren’t you curious about the sunset and sunrise?” Chan asked and in which you firmly answered, “No, not at all.”

“Are you sure about that, mate?” Felix followed, wiggling his brows simultaneously.

“Yes.”

“Are you really not going to listen to it?” Chan pouted, giving you his ‘puppy’ eyes. Well, you think it is cute but your curiosity about the squirrel is killing you. You shook your head, “Not a chance.”

“You’re not really going to give it a chance?” Felix clasped his hands in front of his chest and pouted, causing your heart to flutter and become annoyed at the same time. When are they going to stop?

“You’re annoying! Fine. Let me hear about it.” You grunted and you saw them jump in excitement, “Ha! Told ya, you are curious!” Felix cooed.

“I am not. Now, kindly get to the story so you can stop bugging me about it.”

Chan began the story, “The sun is afraid of the dark so it hides during night time.” He created gestures as he continued, “The sun is known to be the warrior of the day, so the Sun cannot afford to lose its reputation by simply being scared of the dark.” Felix continued, “This is where the Moon enters, the Moon cannot stand the day because it was too blinding for him. So, they made an agreement. The Moon shall hide during the day and reign on its glory at night.”

Chan followed, “The sun shall rise and dawn upon the day, but they shouldn’t tell anyone their little secret. They made an alliance, tricking everyone that they both ‘rule’. And so the night came, the Sun immediately hid under the mountain while the Moon glimmered at night. And then, the morning came…” Chan nudged Felix’ side, signaling him to resume the story in which Felix nodded, “And the sun yeeted the moon.”

“No, Felix! The story is not supposed to end that way!” Chan ruffled his hair a little aggressive, placing his hands on the sides of his waist. You watched the two bicker over the ending of the story until you heard the ringing of bells. Your eyes widened as the color of the surroundings started turning into different arrays of color. You felt dizzy and your vision started to swirl. The squirrel! I totally forgot about it, thanks to these two. You feel yourself falling but all you can see is darkness and you’re definitely terrified. You feel your chest tightening along with a lump in your throat while you become lightheaded. Panic washed your body as you experience two of your worst fears– not being able to see and falling from heights. But before you completely pass out you grabbed your watch from your pocket and saw its hands glow as it pointed on 12.

「2nd Strike.」

“Wait! Aren’t you curious about the sunset and sunrise?” Chan asked. You were confused, mouth hanging open upon the happening. What did just happen?

“Didn’t you ask me that earlier?” You tilted your head, looking at him with confusion.

“No, I didn’t.” Chan gave you a puzzled look.

“Really?” They both nod at the same time, you were disoriented by the happenings. First, you met these two earlier and you agreed to listen to their story, second, your sight turned into an unfamiliar vision before free-falling at a void of darkness, and third, you were suddenly back with Chan and Felix. The squirrel! You glanced to your right and saw the footprints left by the animal in a hurry, “but I have to go somewhere.”

“Are you sure about that, mate?” Felix wiggled his brows, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

“Yes, and if you would excuse me, I’ve got something to do. Goodbye.” You waved your hands before running off to the direction where the squirrel headed at. You hear their shouts of disapproval but you disregarded it. You already knew the ending anyway, right?

You hurriedly tried to follow the footsteps but it only led you to a wooden gate. You peeked on the hole to see two tall men wearing extravagant clothes arguing over something you couldn’t quite figure out. What you didn’t expect is for the gate to swing open by itself, revealing your dumbfounded self.

“A guest!” The brown-haired lad clapped his hands, gesturing you to step inside in which you were compelled to, "Welcome to the party. Please enjoy yourself.” He flashed you a captivating smile.

“Hyunjin, what a shame to our guest, tell the chipmunk to hurry up!” The brown-haired lad smacked Hyunjin’s arm to get his attention from dancing on his own. Hyunjin nodded upon the order, taking the bell on the long table, shaking it violently and you covered your ears using your hands. What’s wrong with this guy?! However, your annoyance was cut short by the clanking of porcelain and plates coming from the back door.

“Squirrel!” You almost yelled and the two turned their heads to you. You notice how perfect their faces were, the taller– Hyunjin has a mole under his eye that highlights his pretty eyes and thick brows, he has a pointed nose and full lips. You haven’t seen anyone as pretty as him, heck, he’s even prettier than your sister. While the other lad, which you still didn’t know the name of, looks a lot mature and more masculine than Hyunjin, he was charismatic, his eyes are something, so are his lips.

“Do you have any problem, Miss...” Hyunjin eyed you a bit harshly, causing goosebumps to form on your arms and you decided not to give your true name.

“Alex. No, I just didn’t expect a squirrel out of all to bring the tray.” You feigned innocence, smiling to him and he returned the smile with a hint of mischief.

“Oh, how rude of me not to introduce myself, you can call me Minho.” The brown-haired lad removed his hat and bowed, offering you a blue rose. As you picked up the rose from his hand, you felt your heart skip a beat. You faintly smiled at his courteousness but you were interrupted by no other than, Hyunjin.

“Miss Alice, I think you should join us dance. A party is not complete without dancing!” Hyunjin dragged you towards a spot near the end of the long table, he then walked over to the table, taking a teaspoon and tapped the teacup three times, “Music, please!”

A loud booming sound of a trumpet was followed by the strumming of harp, accompanied by percussion and stringed instruments, and it rather sounded obnoxious to your ears. Looking around, you couldn’t find the source of the music, you were flustered. How the heck is that even possible? There wasn’t even a record player to begin with. You stood awkwardly watching Minho and Hyunjin dance rather crazily than dancing according to the music. Minho noticed you and spoke, “You should dance with us!”

You shook your head, “No, I cannot dance, besides, I have somewhere else to go.” You stepped back.

“Then have a bite first, a party isn’t a party without sweets!” Hyunjin shoved a saucer to you with a slice of red velvet cake with mint chocolate frosting topped with blueberries. You almost puked just by looking at the bizarre combination of flavors, it didn’t even look pleasing to your eyes.

“Thanks, but I’m good.” You forced a smile and returned the saucer on the table. When you looked back at Hyunjin, his brows were knitted and he was glaring at you, shivers ran down your spine and you were frozen at your spot. His pretty face is now contorted with anger and disappointment.

“Your behavior is so ugh!” Hyunjin raged, making Minho stop from dancing. Hyunjin grabbed something from his pocket that looked like a bath bomb, you don’t know whether to feel frightened or laughing because it didn’t seem harmful. But you felt your insides turn upside down as soon as you heard Minho’s celebration, “Bomb fight!”

In a blink of an eye, Minho was already holding many bombs. Fuck, they are out of their minds! Your adrenaline came rushing and before you can even think, your body was already making its way out of the place. You heard Hyunjin and Minho’s steps and explosions from behind, you glanced to your back and saw the squirrel come out running from the mixture of colored smokes. You realized that it that the bombs weren’t catastrophic but it still scared you. As much as you wanted to get away from the two, you can’t help but feel bad for the squirrel so you turned your heels and rushed to it. You frantically grabbed the squirrel and carried it. Albeit getting farther from the two, you didn’t notice the bomb coming at your direction. You were shaking as soon as you saw the bomb drop in front of you, and as an instinct, you ran back to the opposite side inspite of the colored smoke blocking your sight. You felt the ground shake from the explosion near you, making you lose your balance and your body collided with a softer surface.

Upon hearing that the explosions stopped, you pushed yourself up and saw an unconscious man lying under you.

“What the hell!” You stumbled backwards, garnering the attention of the man, he looked young though. His black hair is parted in the middle that flaunts his attractive face and his cheeks sort of resembled a squirrel’s. He appeared like a prince because of the tuxedo he was wearing.

“Wow… you were gorgeous.” Your eyes widened and you shut your mouth from embarrassment. You heard him scoff as he helped himself to a sitting position.

“What do you mean ‘were’? I am always gorgeous!” He rolled his eyes at you and you can’t help but to feel irritated from his cockiness. You stood up huffing as you removed the dust and dirt from your clothes.

“By the way, have you seen a squirrel?” You fanned your hands, trying to push away the smoke that causes you suffocation. The man behind you erupted in laughter and he looked at you in a judging manner. You could feel your irritation growing, you wanted no other than to slap that arrogant smirk off his face. “Did I say anything funny?”

“I didn’t expect you to be this dumb.” He made a straight face.

“Pardon?” You glared at him, clearly offended.

“I am the squirrel, dumbass!”

“But you look.. human...” It sounded more of a question than a statement.

“You know what, nevermind.” He shook his head, “Where are you going anyway? Maybe I can help you.”

You fought the urge to leave a sarcastic comment to avoid an argument. But where were you heading off to? You were just following him. “I was lost, I wanted to find my way out of here.”

“Are you not from here?”

“No… I am from Alium Orbis.” You fidgeted as you gazed down at your worn out pair of shoes. It really wasn’t your intention to travel to a different place, you only wanted to know what the squirrel was late for.

“I’ve never heard of it, but we can inquire at the palace.” He flashed you an apologetic smile and you nod.

The skies were already painted with hues of orange and pink yet you were still out in the woods, the route you were taking is the safest yet longest, according to the man beside you. You have learned that his name is Jisung and he was working at Minho and Hyunjin’s sometimes and he was quite used to the two’s antics. He also works for the king, he said that the king had a terrible anger so he works there as one of the palace’s repairmen. You also learned that he wasn’t cocky, he’s just very good at ‘teasing’ people. He joked a lot from time to time and you realized that hanging around with him was fun and never boring.

“Hey, Jisung.” You broke the silence that engulfed the atmosphere as you walked through the dark forest.

“Yeah?”

“I haven’t eaten since noon, and I’m…” You shyly admitted since you cannot hold in the hunger, your stomach is churning and aching at the same time. You fished out your pocket watch and the timepiece says 8:27. Thankfully, there were lamp posts along the way so you could still see clearly despite the darkness.

“Right, my house is just a few minute walk from this place, can you still wait a bit longer?” Jisung scratched his nape.

“Yes, but my legs are getting weak so you’ve got to carry me when I cannot walk anymore.” You joked, trying to lift up the mood but Jisung stopped in front of you.

“Hop on.” Jisung crouched, his back facing you.

“Wait– no, I was just joking.” You laughed but your feet and legs are already sore.

“I said hop on.” Jisung impatiently argued, turning his head to you. You gulped nervously and obeyed. You can feel the erratic beating of your heart as Jisung carried you on his back on the way to his house. Your cheeks are flushed from another embarrassment with him.

“Jisung, I think I can walk now,” you stuttered, “my legs are now okay.”

“Nah, we’re already here.” You tore your gaze from his back and saw a small but cozy house, “Wait a moment, hold tighter.” You were about to argue but Jisung cut you off. He removed his right hand from supporting your other thigh as he slipped his hand inside his pocket to get the key and opened the door for the both of you. Your heart skipped a beat from his act.

“Jisung put me down.” You declared earning a chuckle from him before muttering ‘alright’, “Thanks, by the way,” you shy away from his gaze.

“You’re probably exhausted from all the running and walking, you can grab a pair from the clothesline and change in the bathroom,” Jisung pointed towards the door at the kitchen back door, “The bathroom is upstairs, the last door at the left.”

You whispered ‘thank you’ before heading to grab a pair of his clothes and go to the bathroom. As you cleaned up and changed into comfortable clothes, you pondered on how you got in this mysterious place. You heard the clanking of plates and pots from the kitchen as you washed your clothes and you couldn’t help the weird feeling in your chest.

Damn, Jisung has it all.

Not only was he funny, kind-hearted and gentleman, he also knew how to do all the domestic chores and it was a bonus that he’s awfully attractive. You felt the blush creeping up to your cheeks so you immediately shook off the idea. This isn’t right. You thought to yourself. It didn’t take you long enough to finish rinsing you clothes and you soon left the bathroom. You went to the kitchen and you were welcomed by the smell of food and of course, Jisung in an apron.

“Hey, Jisung.” Jisung jumped from your voice.

“You startled me!” He placed a hand over his chest dramatically, “You’re done?”

You nodded, “Can I hang my clothes outside?”

“Of course, but better hurry up. I’m almost done.”

The dinner was scrumptious and you savored the food with delight. You didn’t imagine that Jisung was a great chef. You’ve exchanged stories and personal experiences, just like friends in the get-to-know stage. He talked a lot and made you laugh countless times. You offered to wash the dishes as an act of returning the favor, he didn’t even oppose, you saw how his eyes lit up and you couldn’t help but laugh at how happy he looked.

Gazing through the telescope, “Look at the constellation! It looks like a pendulum!” You stood up and ushered Jisung to switch seats so that he could see it too. You sat beside each other at his mini observatory next to his room. It’s been an hour since you two started stargazing and you were having the time of your lives. It’s been a while since Jisung had a companion and it surely made him all giddy inside, but it wasn’t just the thought of having a companion that makes his heart flutter. It was you and he didn’t know why.

“Y/N, I think I might be falling in love with you.” You were taken aback by Jisung’s confession out of the blue. Long silence filled the atmosphere.

“But it hasn’t even been a day since we met.” You whipped your head to face him and you swore, there’s something in his eyes.

“I know, sounds absurd, right?” Jisung shook his head, you’re right, but who are you to tell him his own feelings, “Y/N…”

Jisung stared at your eyes, so do you, you could see that he was trying to see the deep side of you, trying to figure out the puzzle in you. It was funny how you only met him today yet you felt nostalgic. You stiffened the moment Jisung started closing the gap between the two of you, his eyes trailed from your eyes to your lips and a turmoil started boiling inside your chest. Jisung’s lips were only an inch far from yours when you felt dizzy again along with the ringing of bells in your ears. Your vision swirled and you were transported again in the void of darkness, falling. However, this time, there were faces of the clock in different sizes, all glowing as the hands pointed at twelve. You sighed in relief. Thank goodness, that was close.

「3rd Strike.」

You adjusted the telescope to find another constellation and you did. This time it looked like a pendulum, you wanted to show it to Jisung but knew fully well what could happen next, “Jisung, I’m getting sleepy. I think I should go to bed now.” You tried your best not to sound too awkward but failed.

“Yeah, sure.” Jisung got up from his seat, offered his hand to help you stand up and he led you to the room you’ll be staying in for the night.

“Thanks, Jisung,” You stepped inside then turned to face him, “good night.” You smiled at him and he returned the gesture.

“Good night, Y/N.” You waited for him to leave before closing the door behind his back.

You turned off the light and walked over to the bed, it wasn’t very dark since the moonlight illuminated the room just right. You thought that maybe this “12 o’clock” thingy doesn’t seem bad at all. In fact, it saved you two times, but if you were to be given a chance to go back in time, that would be before he was gone. You also felt guilty for Jisung for an unknown reason. You have to put up an act tomorrow and pretend that nothing happened, well nothing did happen, but what almost did.

You woke up the next day feeling energized and ready to head home. Just like last night, Jisung cooked the meal while you washed the dishes since that was the only thing you could do for him in return, for now. You washed the clothes you wore last night and hung it outside, fortunately, your clothes dried up overnight. It was around 9 o'clock when the two of you left his house. On your journey, you noticed how Jisung seemed a bit off and you had a clue why. He still joked a lot and told you some of his embarrassing moments while working at the palace. You shared how your mother always scolded you whenever you did your antics. How you miss your home.

“Jisung, did you hear that?” You moved closer to Jisung as you whispered.

“You heard it too?” You nod at him and the growling sound became louder. You tugged the hem of his shirt as a signal to stop walking. Your eyes darted to your left, observing your surroundings while Jisung kept his eyes on the right side of the route, “Hey, Y/N. Continue walking but stay as close to me as possible.” He whispered in your ear as he pulled you to his side. You continued on your tracks and pretended as if you didn't hear the loud growling behind you.

“Y/N, on the count of three, you hide there.” Jisung eyed the bush near the oak, “walk faster this time.”

“Got it.”

Jisung mumbled, “One, two,” taking a deep breath, “three!” He pushed you away from him before transforming into a squirrel. You followed his instructions and hid behind the bush, as you peeked, you saw a chimera facing Jisung in his squirrel form.

“What the fuck, Jisung?” You cursed under your breath, you could see that if he tries to fight, he would be no match for Chimera’s size and abilities, but Jisung is smart and full of tactics– something that Chimera lacks. You trusted Jisung whatever his plan may be.

“If I don’t come back within an hour, you go first, the town is straight ahead. Look for the blacksmith and wait for me there. When he asks you why, just say “Jisung’s”.” Jisung was rapping and you almost didn’t pick up the last part.

“You wanna eat?” Jisung yelled, “You gotta run first, weakling!”

You wanted to punch Jisung hard, he really was very good at provoking but this wasn’t the best time to do so. You watched Jisung dashed off to the left side of the forest, which was opposite to where you were hiding. You grow more worried as minutes pass by. After what felt like an eternity, you decided to head first according to Jisung’s plan. Along the walk, you became more anxious about Jisung, you hoped that whatever his plan was, worked for him, because unfortunately, there you are, face to face with another creature– Greater Basilisk, oh, how lucky you were. Knowing that you were nothing compared to the beast, all you can do is run. Turning to your heels, you ran with all your might albeit trembling. You ran here and there, making you more lost than you actually were. You were worried as hell for Jisung and now you were running everywhere just to get away from the beast chasing after you. You were on the verge of breaking down when you heard the ringing in your ears. Thank goodness! You felt dizzy, causing you to trip on a twig you didn’t notice. The last thing you saw before your vision swirled was the Greater Basilisk’s mouth. You were transported into the void just in time, that’s when you let your tears out as you fall into nothingness, and you felt grateful for whatever this thing is.

「4th Strike.」

You opened your eyes and you were back in your hiding spot. You left out a heavy sigh and grabbed the clock from the pocket of your kirtle. The hands were pointing exactly at 11:45. So I get transported to the time, fifteen minutes before twelve. This time though, you decided not to leave your spot.

“So, what are we hiding from?” You flinched at the deep voice.

“Jisung?” You turned your head and met a man standing behind you wearing a white dress shirt, black trousers and suspenders worn over his shoulders. The first button of his shirt were unbuttoned, making him appear mature. He has his hair styled up that brags his pretty forehead. Were they all required to look this good?

“You’re staring,” He snorted, “and I am not Jisung.” He made himself comfortable beside you.

“Oh, you have the Horologium.” The man pointed to your pocket watch, “Where’d you get that?”

“What are you talking about? This was given by my mother.” You clutched the pocket watch close to your chest protectively.

“Is that so? I used to have one but I accidentally stepped on it.” He chuckled and that was the most pleasant thing you’ve ever heard since you came here.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” you shoved back the watch inside your pocket, you felt like he has all the answers to your questions and you figured it wouldn’t hurt trying, “Can I ask you something?”

“Go ahead.”

“Where are we?” He threw you a ridiculous look.

“At the forest, obviously.” You didn’t expect his answer but he’s right.

“What is this place?”

“Why are you here when you don’t even know this place!” He hit the bullseye, that’s very stupid of you to follow a squirrel without even having an idea where would it take you, and he notices your lack of response, “You’re in District 9.”

You heard a loud growling not too far from your hiding spot, “I hate reptiles.” You bit your lip and peeked from the bush that hid you and your guess was correct, it was the Greater Basilisk.

“How did you know?” The man beside you asked in a quiet voice.

“I already encountered that monster earlier!” You spoke in an angry tone, “I can’t believe it’ll come here.”

“So that’s what you were hiding from?”

“Not really. It just so happened that I followed Jisung’s plan but ended up face to face with that,” you sighed, should I tell him? “Do you know that 12 o’clock thing? I was transported back here before that monster ate my head off.”

Something in the deepest part of Seungmin’s memory struck upon the mention of 12 o’clock. You were really just like him when he first stumbled at District 9.

“Do you know that your watch can work like magic?” Seungmin asked.

“What are you saying this time?” You eyed him suspiciously.

Seungmin smirked, “The basilisk can smell us, if you wanted to know.” The tiny hairs on your nape stood up and you never wanted to have an encounter with that beast anymore. You took out the pocket watch faster than a lightning.

“What now?” You impatiently asked. Seungmin changed from sitting position into a crouching position before pulling you towards him. He grabbed your hand holding the timepiece and pressed the crown firmly. Your cheeks flushed upon the realization that Seungmin was holding your hand tight but it was cut short by the glowing of light from your pocket watch. The light formed a circle that served as a shell for the both of you.

“What is this?” You asked, bewildered by the hidden power your pocket watch holds.

“The power of Horologium,” Seungmin explained, “It can give you protection and invisibility but it only lasts for half an hour. Pretty cool, right?”

You faced Seungmin and noticed how dangerously close he was. His eyes met with yours and you felt the loud thumping inside your chest, you’re sure that he could see how red your cheeks were. You realized that he kind of looked familiar to you.

“You’re staring again,” Seungmin lightly chuckled, “I can’t believe you are already falling for me, princess.”

“If I push you out of this shield, what would happen to you?” You smiled in a sarcastic manner and he just rolled his eyes at you. He was about to say something whilst you glanced over the bush and the basilisk was standing in front of your hiding place.

“It’s right in front of us! Shh!” You placed your forefinger above his lips to shut him up. Little did you know, Seungmin was already dying inside yet feeling alive from the close proximity, his heart did a series of backflips when your finger came in contact with his lips. He didn’t understand why you have this effect on him and it’s not like he hated it, he was just baffled.

“It’s gone!” Seungmin snapped out of his trance, “But how do I deactivate this?”

“Yeah, right, all you have to do is chant ‘in tempore’.” The shield slowly faded after Seungmin muttered the chant, “See?”

“How awesome!” A wide smile spread across your face from astonishment.

Seungmin couldn’t suppress the smile forming on his lips from how adorable you looked.

“Woah there buddy, get your hands off.” Your eyes darted towards the owner of the stern voice and found Jisung with an extremely disheveled hair.

“Who are you to tell me?” Seungmin helped you get up and smiled at you gently making Jisung grow more irritated.

“Why would I trust someone like you?” Oh, Jisung, stop digging your own grave.

“Why are you so worked up? I just helped her hide from a beast, right?” You nodded enthusiastically. Seungmin enjoyed the sight, he can read him and he wanted to try pushing Jisung’s buttons further, “Why are you acting so protective of her when you literally left her alone?”

Jisung clenched his jaw, he couldn’t admit that he was feeling jealous of seeing Seungmin holding you too close to him for his liking.

“I know you find her cute and all but can we like, leave now? We have something else to do, Min.” A charming young man with cold, fox-like eyes and blue hair came out from the opposite side of the forest. He was wearing a vest instead of suspenders, unlike Seungmin.

“How did you find me?” Seungmin’s ears turned cherry red. How could Jeongin expose him like that?

“You just talked to this girl and you already forgot that I can literally smell you from miles? Oh, greater basilisk, this isn’t you, Min!” Jeongin cackled.

“Hey, I have a name!” You glared at him

“Alright, Miss. But I wasn’t talking to you.” Jeongin snapped back.

“Watch your mouth, Jeongin.” Seungmin threatened, he was not just having it.

“Yeah, sure, Loverboy. Come on, we’ve got to go somewhere!” Jeongin waved his hand in annoyance.

Seungmin rolled his eyes before whispering to you, “I apologize in his stead, he’s not usually like this.” He walked over to Jeongin while Jisung was shooting daggers with his eyes as Seungmin walked past him.

“Let’s go, Y/N.” Jisung gave Seungmin one last glare before pulling you to his side.

“See you later, Y/N, bye chipmunk!” Seungmin waved at you before dragging Jeongin away, seeing Jisung frown made Seungmin erupt in laughter.

Oh god, why does his laugh sound familiar?

“Why were you still there? I told you to go first.” Jisung blurted out unconscious of the anger in his tone.

“Hey, calm down. Why are you so angry? I was almost- if I didn’t wait for you, I would have already been eaten by the basilisk.” Jisung’s anger slowly died down because of your next words, “Also, I was worried as hell for you!”

“You were?” Jisung didn’t notice the smile creeping up his cheeks.

“Why are you smiling like that? It’s freaking me out.” You pushed Jisung away from you jokingly and he just left a hearty laugh, “You’re weird.”

“Call me that one more time and I won’t treat you to lunch.” Jisung deadpanned.

“Alright, mighty squirrel.”

「Last Strike.」

Upon reaching the castle, you were welcomed by the king having tantrums so you were escorted to the garden instead. His loud yelling echoed within the palace halls and you were never terrified of someone in your life until today, not even your mother. You heard a loud shattering of glass causing you to flinch on your seat, across the you was Jisung sighing heavily.

“When you said he’s got a bad temper I didn’t know that it was that bad.” You admitted.

“Not to scare you, but actually... that’s just the tip of the iceberg.” Jisung gave you an uneasy smile as he picked up a cookie on the table.

After what seemed like an hour, the king’s shouting could no longer be heard and the tension inside the palace walls died down, you were asked to come to a room for interrogation. The servant bowed before leaving the two of you in front of a wooden door. You knocked and heard a muffled voice behind the door saying come in.

“Greetings, my King.” You copied Jisung’s actions and bowed.

“You may have a seat,” The king spoke without sparing you a glance, he was busy signing documents, “What brings you here?”

“My King, I found another lost traveler in our land.” You were confused with Jisung’s statement and he has this mysterious aura around him that left an unsettling feeling inside you.

So this isn’t the first time they’ve encountered people like me.

“Oh, really? Please tell me more about it.” The king finally decided to turn to you.

“Here’s Y/N. She said she was from Alium Orbis.” Jisung took a pause, “does our District 9 perhaps have connection to other lands?”

“Alium Orbis… that sounds familiar.” The king rang the bell and a servant entered the room.

“You called, Your Majesty?” The servant bowed to the king, “Do you need anything, Your Highness?”

“Have you ever heard of Alium Orbis? I think we had someone come here before from that land.” You were staring at the king for a very long time now and you notice how intimidating he looked. His eyes had this sense of authority in them, his broad shoulders also added to his intimidating look, as if he can break anyone into pieces.

“Yes, Your Majesty. His name was Kim Seungmin.” You felt your heart jump upon hearing the name.

“Miss Y/N, do you know him by any chance?” The king’s piercing gaze almost made your soul leave your body.

“I do, Your Highness.” Tons of questions about Seungmin flooded your mind. One day you all woke up and Seungmin disappeared just like that. His parents almost turned mad when they heard the news that their only son was missing.

“That’s good news then.” The king turned to his servant, “Where is he now?”

“I believe he’s with the Teller. He still wasn’t able to leave our land.”

“I remember now, it’s been exactly twelve years, right?” The king placed his hand under his chin as he tried to figure out the reason, “Suspicious.”

“Nevermind,” The king opened the drawer and took out a piece of paper before handing it to you, “this is the map to the Teller’s place.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.” You gave him a small smile.

“I advise you to start your journey sooner before the day gets succumbed by darkness.” You were freaked out by the king’s choice of words but you stood up from your seat anyway.

“Thank you, Lord Changbin.” Jisung bowed before the king and the servant escorted you out of the palace.

It took you three hours to get to the Teller’s place, you were feeling nervous and uneasy for an unknown reason. You should be excited, right?

You lightly knocked on the door and you were welcomed by none other than him. You did not expect that he would be the one you’re looking for, “Oh, it’s you. Uhm, you are the Teller?”

“No, it’s Jeongin.” If the man standing in front of you isn’t Jeongin- oh.

“Seungmin?” A large part of you hope that you’re right, despite the information from earlier, you’ve been looking for him all this time, and maybe that was the reason he looked familiar.

“Yes, that’s my name.” Seungmin smiled pleasantly, you mentioning his name sounded mellifluous to him, “You’re looking for Jeongin?” You nodded calmly inspite the storm in your insides.

“We are not here to flirt.” Jisung scoffed behind you and Seungmin rolled his eyes before stepping aside to get in. Seungmin motioned you to follow him and led you to what seemed like a place for rituals.

“Jeongin, someone’s looking for you.”

“Oh, so, it’s your girl.” Jeongin scoffed but Seungmin did not answer, instead rolling his eyes.

“So you’re not denying it, I see.” Jeongin’s smirk grew wider but decided to stop picking on the older’s nerves, but that smirk soon vanished from his face when he turned to you, “I know why you’re here. Do you want me to get straight to the point?”

“Sure.” Jeongin pointed to the seat near the cauldron, gesturing you to have a seat.

“First answer to your question, just like a pendulum, it never stops once you move it, so does the Horologium. You will continue to go back in time when the clock strikes to twelve until you leave this place.” You were amazed and creeped out at the same time, “I know the route to Alium Orbis, Seungmin’s from there too, unfortunately, he broke his clock so he couldn’t return, not only that, he also forgot his memories outside District 9. Seungmin’s clever and all but sometimes he’s just dumb.” Seungmin let out a sound of disapproval and Jeongin laughed, his pleasure truly comes from annoying the older. However, the thought of Seungmin forgetting you does hurt like hell.

“So, Y/N, if you were to leave make sure that you will step out of the boundary before twelve. I suppose there are other ways but I still haven’t found out.” Jeongin didn’t even trip on his words, he wasn’t the Teller for nothing, “But you know, at District 9, once you enter there’s no way of getting out.” Jeongin laughed rather maniacally, his wicked voice filling the house.

“What do you mean by that?” You abruptly stood up from your seat.

“Don’t play dumb, Y/N. You know fully well what that means.” Jeongin walked closer to you, raising his hand that was emitting blue flame. Seungmin stepped in before Jeongin could hurt you, “What now, Seungmin? You’re going to protect her when you couldn’t even protect yourself?”

Jisung who has been silent since you entered the house finally spoke, “Y/N, the truth is... You will never be able to leave this place,” he stood beside Jeongin before he continued, malice notable in his voice, “No one can leave this house.”

As if on cue, Jeongin started shooting flames around the house while Jisung took out bombs similar to Minho’s and Hyunjin’s and threw it everywhere. The colored smoke blocked your vision while the smell of burning wood entered your lungs. Their wicked laughter reverberated within the house, there’s no way you’d let them burn you alive. The suffocating atmosphere inside the house made you hold your breath as you tried to step forward despite the heavy feeling on your legs due to the lack of oxygen to grab Seungmin’s arm, luckily he was just a few steps away from you. You managed to get out of the house unharmed even though you bumped on several furniture and broke objects on the way to find the exit.

However, Jisung and Jeongin were quick to follow you. Seungmin’s movements were really languid as if he didn’t care about anything. Your kicking adrenaline was the only reason you were able to run speedily despite Seungmin’s lazy and heavy footsteps that keeps slowing you down.

“Seungmin, we have to leave now!” You dragged him away from Jisung and Jeongin.

“But Y/N, I don’t want to leave.” Seungmin’s words made you stop on your tracks, “that’s why I intentionally broke my clock.”

“Seungmin, we don’t belong here. They’re all insane!” You cried, at this point, the only thing you wanted to do was to leave this hell of a place. You’ve had enough of all the madness this place bears.

“Didn’t everyone in the town call me that?” Seungmin tightened his fist, his memories came flooding, he could now remember everything– from his childhood to people calling him insults, he was just a kid enjoying his imagination and fantasies, “Y/N, please let me go.”

“No, Seungmin, I cannot afford to lose you again.” You were sobbing, letting your feelings out.

Ever since Seungmin disappeared, not once you did not think of him. He was your best friend who caused the blossoming feelings inside you, the only one you could trust, the only one who could understand your complexity. The only one you wanted to sacrifice your life for and give all the happiness in the world. Your feelings for him never changed throughout the years.

“Please, Seungmin.” That was the most selfish thing you’ve ever done in your life. You only wanted to spend the rest of your life with no one but Seungmin.

“Why, Y/N? Tell me why should it matter to you!” Seungmin yelled, pain and trauma evident from his tone, you never knew that he was suffering inside all those times. You choked on your sobs, the lump in your throat was getting bigger, it’s now or never.

“Because I care for you! Can’t you see that? You’re my best friend!” Oh god, how hard could admitting one’s feelings get?

“You can find another best friend there,” Seungmin started tearing up too, “Just leave me alone.”

“I don’t want anyone else!” Your mouth already has a mind of its own, and you couldn’t believe the next words that slipped out of your mouth, “I only want you!”

It made you even more frustrated with everything. You glanced at the clock dangling around your neck, you only had ten minutes 'till 12 and you wanted to leave, but not without Seungmin.

“If you really care for me, then stay with me here.” Seungmin stepped closer to you, offering his hand.

“Why are you acting so childish, Min!” Your emotions were getting mixed up and from afar, you could hear Jeongin and Jisung’s shouts and twisted words.

“Y/N! I thought you liked me? Why are you running away from me?” The tone of Jisung’s voice made shivers crawl on your body.

“Seungmin, they’re near, let’s leave!” You pulled Seungmin but he doesn’t budge.

“You like Jisung?” Seungmin’s eyes looked hurt and empty as it gazed at your frustrated ones. You wanted to hug him but there’s not enough time.

“Please Seungmin, not this.” Why can’t you just admit it?

“Don’t avoid the question, Y/N.”

“Let’s leave now, please. They would be here anytime soon.”

“Why can’t you just leave me here and go on your own?” Seungmin was really trying to get those words out of your throat.

“For heaven’s sake, Min. Don’t make me say it!” You smacked your forehead in annoyance.

“Say what?”

Screw it.

“Of course, I love you! Why would there be any other reason?” You never thought you would have the courage to admit your feelings, especially not this way.

“I’ll never let Jisung take you.” With those words, Seungmin picked you up swiftly in his arms and ran from the scene as fast as he could.

“Why couldn’t you just say it?” Seungmin asked, his eyes still focused on the way.

“For fuck’s sake, I don’t even know how you feel!” Your voice raised in defense.

“That’s so stupid, Y/N! I already told you many times that I liked you!” Seungmin groaned in frustration, he thought he already made it clear.

“I thought you meant that as a friend.” Seungmin couldn’t be mad at you, though he declared his feelings for you, he never acted on it, maybe that was the reason you didn’t feel it.

“I’m sorry. I did not make it clear either.” Seungmin looks at you with so much regret in his eyes, he swore that this time, he’d treat you right.

“It’s okay, Min,” you wiped the tears that stained his cheeks.

“Hold tight, Y/N. We’re gonna use your watch to leave this hell.” You nodded and wrapped your arms around his neck while holding the timepiece in your left hand tightly to avoid it slipping out of your neck. He sped up, and from his back, you could see Jeongin and Jisung chasing after the two of you.

He stopped in front of a large wall and put you down, “Now, give me the Horologium.” You quickly handed him the watch and he wrapped his arm around your waist, making heart flutter from his action, “Hug me.”

“Excuse me?”

“I said hug me.” You wrapped your arms around his neck and buried your head on his chest.

“Why do you have to say it like that!” You heard Seungmin let out a mischievous chuckle.

“Brace yourself, we’re gonna end this cycle once and for all.”

You saw Seungmin throw your pocket watch on the ground causing it to break. You wanted to cry but you’re fully aware that Seungmin knows better. You peeked from his shoulder, Jisung and Jeongin were nearing you two, “Seungmin, they’re here!”

“I forgot the chant!” You looked at Seungmin wide-eyed, “No, I’m just kidding.”

Before you can punch his arm, you heard him mumble before stepping on the watch.

“In nullo tempore.”

Just in time, you saw Jisung and Jeongin freeze on their spot, as if the time stopped, the surroundings became silent and the only thing you could hear was the obnoxious ringing in your ear. You felt the familiar dizziness along with the pulsating of your head, Seungmin pressed his body closer to yours, if that was possible, tightening his grip around your waist. You saw a blinding light before you were transported harshly to the familiar void of darkness.

You heard Seungmin utter your name.

“I can’t see you but I can feel you,” you cringed at your words, “What I meant is, I cannot see you but I can still feel you hugging me. Yeah, uh, why do I feel like we’re floating?”

“Y/N…” Seungmin spoke slowly this time.

“What?” Your voice echoed in the void.

“Do you really mean it?”

“Mean what?”

“You care for me.” You felt your cheeks heating up.

“I do.” You sighed, “Never once you left my mind. I miss you so much, the thought of never seeing you again kills me more than anything.” A tear escaped your eye and you were surprised to see your tear glowed as it floated above you but you couldn’t care less.

“I felt lonely without you, I thought I was going nuts from the emptiness.” More tears escaped your eyes as you sobbed on his chest.

“I love you too.” Seungmin caressed your locks and it made your heart feel warm; if it weren’t for you, he would have been stuck with his fears and would never have the courage to leave. “Y/N, your tears… Look at them.” You looked up to see the droplets of your tears glowed in different colors, becoming the source of light to the dark void, it formed a constellation that looked like the one you saw through the telescope– a pendulum. Seungmin was beyond ethereal, with the glowing bits of light that casted the surroundings and you’ve never felt so in love.

“Wait, how long are we gonna stay like this?” You faced Seungmin, and you have never seen him look so happy yet sad at the same time.

“Oh, right. I forgot to say the last chant.” You lightly smack his chest and he placed a quick peck on your lips that is enough for the fireworks to burst inside your chest before giving you his heart eyes.

“The pendulum stops here and now.”

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