Tumgik
#i NEED to see someone else get the Big Correction so i can have half the mental work done before my turn and get the individual corrections
daycourtofficial · 3 months
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A Bite Sized Romance
Summary: you offer to make dinner for Azriel, but he gives you half-assed reasons as to why he can’t make it.
Author’s note: I love love love this idea it’s been floating around my head for a LONG time 💕
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“Have you ever had ratatouille?” You ask Azriel, taking a bite of the dish in front of you.
Every Thursday, you and the shadowsinger go out to a different restaurant, usually in Velaris, occasionally in other courts. Seeing the shadowsinger could be difficult during the week, especially with your busy schedule, so you two set aside Thursday nights to eating dinner together.
Your brain had a hard time understanding that these were not necessarily dates, even though that is exactly what Cassian, Mor, the whole IC, and even Azriel and yourself call them.
“No, what’s rat patootie?” He says, taking a bite of his pasta.
“Ratatouille,” you correct, sighing wistfully, “it’s a traditional dish my mom used to make when I was a kid. I don’t think annyone in Velaris makes it. This dish kind of reminds me of it, but it’s not the same.”
You sit up, a smile stretching across your face. “Maybe next Thursday I’ll cook it for us. It’s so much better homemade - what do you say?”
He stills at your words, almost choking on his food. Through coughs he tells you, “surely there’s somewhere we can go for it, I wouldn’t want to trouble you with cooking.”
“But I like cooking,” you object. “And despite the copious amounts of meals we’ve shared together, I don’t think I’ve ever cooked for you.”
He doesn’t want to budge, so you pull out the big guns.
You pout your lip, making your eyes look as sad and endearing as possible, “please, Az? It reminds me of being a kid again. And I’d love to share that with you.”
Mother forsake him, he couldn’t say no to your sad, puppy dog eyes.
“Fine,” he grumbles, sure he’ll figure a way out of it before Thursday comes. Perhaps he could find a way to get impaled.
You squeal, “oooh you’re going to love it!”
-
Thursday was fast approaching, and Azriel was trying to use every excuse in the book to keep this dinner from happening. He told you Rhys had to send him on a mission that night, which you immediately turned around and went to Rhys’s office and asked him to send someone else.
Rhys, having no idea what you were talking about, sees Azriel in the doorway who tells him mind to mind, “come on, say you have to send me.”
Rhys sends the equivalent of a smirk to Azriel mentally and tells you, “my mistake, I didn’t realize what day I was telling him to leave.”
Azriel stood in the doorway and gave his brother the finger from behind you.
Azriel made excuses, all ranging from Cassian needing help with training, Feyre needing an escort to the Hewn City, even to Mor needing help with the upkeep of the horses in the guard. Every excuse was denied by his so-called family, not allowing him to use them as scapegoats. It was starting to make you suspicious.
Thursday morning after Azriel’s last ditch attempt to get out of the dinner, involving some excuse about Eris needing rescuing, you sigh, exasperated.
“Okay Az, it was just an idea. Clearly you don’t want to do it, so just.. don’t bother, okay? Go save Eris from whatever it is that’s attacking him.”
You turn, wanting to leave the kitchen before Azriel sees how much this actually upsets you. “That’s not-“ he starts, trying to grab you as you pass him, but you wriggle from his grasp, disappearing into the hallway up to your bedroom.
Az was sitting on the kitchen counter, wallowing in self-pity over how poorly he handled that situation, when Cassian walked in.
“And what do you have to be so upset about, pretty boy?”
Azriel lifts his head, looking at Cassian eating a stupid banana. Gods, he wanted to throttle him. “Oh no, I’m Azriel and a beautiful woman wants to cook me dinner, even though I eat dinner with her most nights and have weekly dates with her even though I deny anyth-“
Cassian stops, taking a bite of his banana. He looks up, and realization dawns on him.
“Oh my gods,” he says, his mouth full of banana. Azriel decides to play the denial game, because surely Cassian did not figure out the secret he’s kept guarded for several months while eating a fucking banana.
Cassian looked at him, turning to look up the stairs where you had left just a few moments ago, “you two?”
Azriel rolls his eyes, “we’re friends, yes.”
Cassian rolls his eyes even harder. “I’m not an idiot. You follow her around like a pitiful puppy,” he says, coming closer to his brother, “you two eat just about every meal together, but the one day she offers to cook for you suddenly you can’t find time for her?”
Cassian narrows his eyes at Azriel, “you ashamed of her or something?”
Azriel’s eyes widen, not only at Cassian’s question that he could ever be ashamed of you, but also at Cassian’s change in demeanor.
Cassian slips into the protective big brother role when it comes to you quite easily, Azriel thinks as Cassian puffs out his chest while he strides over to stand next to Azriel.
“Now why on earth would I be ashamed of her?”
Cassian inspects Azriel for a second before asking, “then why haven’t you told her?”
He pauses, then asks, “how long have you known?”
Azriel huffs, “known what?”
“That she’s your mate.”
Azriel stills at Cassian’s words. They liked to poke fun of Cass, calling him a dumb brute, but Cassian was no fool. If any member of his family were to discover his secret, it would be Cassian.
Azriel looks at him, “a few months. I’ve been… waiting.” He sighs, “I keep wanting to tell her and then I psyche myself out. Once I tell her, things will be… different.”
Azriel hates how quiet his voice becomes as he says, “what if she is ashamed of who the mother picked for her?”
Cassian’s chest deflates, all sense of protectiveness over you gone and replaced with protectiveness over his brother.
“Then she’d be a fool.”
Looking down, Azriel watches as Cassian’s foot gently nudges his own, a silent request from Cassian for him to look up.
“There is no way she would ever be ashamed of you or be upset that you’re her mate.”
The way Cassian is looking at Azriel makes him want to shy away, but Cassian keeps his gaze steady, almost locking Azriel’s eyes into place.
“I’d be willing to bet she has journals full of doodles where she draws little hearts with your names in it, and she also writes “Mrs. Shadowsinger”
The rise in octave in his brother’s voice causes a laugh to burst out of him, but Cassian continues.
“I once tried to sit next to you for a meal and I’ve never seen anyone move as quickly as she did to claim her seat. Honestly, this will come as a shock to no one.”
Azriel looked back up at his brother to find him already looking at him, a soft gaze grazing his face.
“We’re happy for you two.”
Azriel scoffs, “I take that to mean you’ve already told Rhysand?”
Cassian starts walking away, going to pick up the remainder of his banana. “Oh yeah, we’ve had a bet for about a year now. Rhys thought the bond had snapped for her, but I knew it would be you. You’ve made me a much richer man, Az.”
Cassian bows in thanks, ducking out the door as Azriel throws a different banana towards the space he was occupying.
-
You had been sulking in your room for what felt like hours after Azriel’s latest rejection. You spent the whole time flipping between thinking about all the little moments that had you swearing there was something happening between you two, and each and every excuse he had made to get out of this dinner.
Was your cooking that bad? Was he tired of you taking up every one of his Thursday nights?
The two of you spent an absurd amount of time together - you ate most meals together at the house, you saw each other multiple times every day. Were you wrong?
A knock on the door pulls you from your thoughts, but before you can respond, the door is opening and Cassian pokes his head in. He has a hand covering his eyes, but he’s made a slit between his middle and ring fingers, allowing him to still see.
“Are you decent?” He asks, looking around the room.
He sighs at seeing you dressed on your bed, pulling his hand away from his face as he walks in, closing the door behind him.
You giggled, “Cass the whole point is to not see someone naked.”
He rolled his eyes as he plopped down next to you on your bed, “you don’t even want to give me a peak? I’ve had such a hard day, a little skin would make me feel better.”
You laugh, picking up a pillow and hitting him with it. He lets you hit him, pretending to fall dramatically onto his back.
“Tell Rhys I loved him,” he sighs dramatically, pretending to die.
You laugh at his foolish antics, but Cassian continues to pretend he’s dead. You lean into him, about to poke his face, when he grabs your waist, hoisting you over his shoulder.
“Now come on, I’ve got shopping to do and I need your help.”
-
After Cassian had left, Azriel spent some time trying to decide how he could make this up to you. He didn’t want to force you into accepting a bond that you didn’t know about by presenting him with food.
He paced his room, his long legs gliding across the wooden floors making no noise. His shadows were combing through the house, trying to find out where you had gone after your earlier spat.
Azriel replaced with pacing with purposeful steps as he headed towards his bedroom door, the perfect solution coming to him.
-
“Thank you Cassian,” you say, squeezing his arm your hand was tucked into.
“For what? My incredibly charming presence?” He smirks down at you.
You scoff, “I felt awful earlier but you pulled me out of my spiraling, thanks.” You say, nudging him a bit.
Cassian had gotten you out of your room and the two of you walked around Velaris, mostly people watching and talking.
He hums, “well, both of my brothers are idiots,” he says, getting a laugh out of you. “They take turns on who holds the idiot stick. Today it’s Azriel.”
“Do you ever hold the idiot stick?”
“Occasionally, very rarely, I will pass it between the two of them, so I only have it for a moment or two.”
You snort, looking down at your feet. If Cassian thought Azriel was being stupid, does he see what you see?
You start to ask him, to prod him for more answers about Azriel, when he pats your hand, turning your attention to where the two of you had ended up on this walk.
The townhouse.
Your brows crease in confusion as Cassian removes your hand from his elbow, pats your shoulder, and tells you to have a good night.
You start to sputter, wanting to know why you’re here. He shrugs, “I don’t question my orders.” He gives you a two finger salute before turning around and walking away.
You turn back around, looking at the entrance to the townhouse, afraid of what you’ll find on the other side of the door, but going up and knocking anyway.
The door opens, but no one is there. A small shadow swirls around you, moving up from your feet to your face, caressing your cheek before zipping off to the kitchen.
You step through the threshold and a new shadow comes and shuts the door, another two come and help you take your coat off and hang it up for you.
You walk towards the kitchen, where you can hear the clattering of plates and some delicious aromas filling the whole house. Inside the kitchen you find Azriel, with a frilly apron tied around his waist, putting the finishing touches on two plates at the table.
“What’s all this?” You ask him, doubt creeping in that this isn’t meant for you.
“Sit, sit,” he beckons, pulling out a chair for you. You look around the room, covered in flickering candlelight and flowers. He must have been working on this for hours.
You look down at your plate, the bright colors of ratatouille catching your eye. You gasp, wanting to know how much effort he went to find a recipe for it.
He takes off the apron, sitting across from you.
“I… made an ass of myself, and I’d like to apologize first and foremost for that.” You open your mouth to interrupt him, but he holds up a hand. “Let me finish, I have.. a lot to tell you.”
He takes a deep breath, stilling his nerves. You look so pretty in the glow of the candles, and the slight concern you’ll hate him is enough to distract him, but he has to tell you this.
“There’s a reason I didn’t want you to cook for me. A few months ago we were in the library, reading, and I looked up and I watched you tuck your hair behind your ear, laughing at something in your book and I.. felt it.”
You’re in a trance, listening to him speak.
“I felt like I was dying and coming back to life, like your hand was wrapped around my heart, squeezing in time, keeping it beating. I made up some half-assed excuse to leave, because I needed to talk to Rhys.”
You looked at him, hoping your gaze would encourage him to continue.
“Rhys confirmed what I thought it was - the bond snapping. And I was terrified.”
He sighs, running a hand through his hair. “I was terrified if I told you, you’d deny the bond, you’d break my heart. So I… put off telling you. I couldn’t.”
He looks down at his lap, fidgeting his fingers.
“I kept trying to tell you, then I’d chicken out. Then when you offered to cook for me, I couldn’t let it happen. I couldn’t let you accidentally accept the bond, accept me without knowing about it.”
He sighs, “I felt awful when I realized you thought I was rejecting you. Far from it. So I’ve uh.. made you dinner.”
You finally speak, “you made me dinner.”
“I made you dinner. And dessert, actually.”
Leave it to Azriel to outdo himself by finding the time to make dessert.
You weren’t letting a single emotion show on your face, and it made a shiver run up Azriel’s spine.
After what could have been hours, you slowly smiled, looking at him, “what kind of dessert did you make?”
He pauses, “I uh made you- us, uh chocolate mousse. I made two, but I thought we could share one.”
He looks at you, still not giving anything away, “if you want to, of course.”
He shifts, your silence making him uneasy.
“If you don’t want to accept it, I understand. I kept it from you, and I’m me, loving me would be rotten work- what are you doing?”
In the middle of his rambling, you picked up your fork, getting a nice helping of food on your fork, bringing it up to your mouth.
“Well, my mate made me dinner, and it looks incredible. Why would I not want to take a bite?”
He looks at you, a rush of emotions flooding him. Surprise, confusion, elation.
“But, but I can promise you to love me, to be my mate, it’s rotten work.”
You smile, “not to me it’s not.”
You pause, “not if it’s you,” and take a bite.
His chest sings, feeling warmth radiating throughout him. Feeling love radiate through him, and he realizes that’s you.
You keep eating the food, that hum getting louder and more vibrant, until you’ve cleared your plate, and stride over to him.
You grab his face in your hands, tilting his head so he’ll look into your eyes. “If you think I am not aware of who you are, what you do, your darkest parts, you are mistaken. And if you think I will shy away from those things, you are a fool.”
He hadn’t realized he was crying until you swiped your thumb across his cheek, swiping it away.
You smile down at him, and he has never felt so loved, so whole as he does in this moment. His mate, the one person the cauldron deemed would understand him, just chose him.
He feels like that little boy, looked in the dungeon, daydreaming about being saved by an angel. And he has.
He stands up, cupping your face in his hands, “I was in love with you before the bond snapped for me. I’m not here just because the cauldron told me to be, let me assure you that.”
You smile, a heat creeping up your cheeks. “I’m only here for the chocolate mousse.”
He laughs, a genuine, roaring laugh.
You pull his face in close to yours, gazing into his eyes. “And I have been in love with you since the day after I met you.”
His eyebrows shoot up, “the day after?”
You smile, “well I thought I was in love with you that first day, but then on that second day I heard you speak, and I knew no one would ever compare.”
You feel his happiness in your chest, as if his heart is also in your ribcage, yours and his intertwined, dancing through your chest together.
“Can I kiss you?” He asks, his mouth so close to your own your breaths are intermingling.
You smile at his thoughtfulness, his hesitation.
“Only if you promise to never stop.”
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kalki-tarot · 1 month
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A conversation between you and your future spouse – timeless pac 💌
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Disclaimer : this reading is for entertainment purposes only and does not guarantee any possible outcomes. Tarot is not 100% correct all the times. Your life is in your hands and you are responsible for your own actions and decisions.
Pile one 💫
This situation seems like some third party is affecting your relationship. The third party can be anything from people to things to addictions etc. You assumed thay future spouse may have lied to you about something which caused a fight between you guys. Remember that fights are normal in a relationship. And can be resolved with proper communication and understanding.
Your fs : See, I'm too disappointed with this situation and i deeply regret it. But you see, it's not entirely my fault..
You : I'm completely heartbroken because of you
Your fs : I clearly left and ignored that woman when she approached me darling, I walked away! I don't even know that woman!
Your anger calms down when your fs explains themselves. And you feel relieved. You may have insecurities about your fs leaving you for some other woman, so you got angry.
You : You know that I'm scared of you leaving me alone for someone else
Your fs : I know that, and i will never leave you sweetheart! Do you get that!? Don't get insecure about anything. I'm always yours. You are my better half and you are the only one with whom i feel at home, at peace.
Your fs comforts you and tells you how much you mean to them and you need not worry about anything or anyone. They also hug you and rub your back for sometime. This situation may take place while you guys are on a trip or traveling somewhere.
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Pile two 💫
Wow, this conversation will take place when you are getting married or about to get married to your fs. You are happy and excited but you are also having racing thoughts and a restless heart. You are just feeling nervous about the whole thing, some of you guys actually suffer from overthinking and anxiety. And you are having intrusive thoughts at this moment.
Your fs : Hey honey ~ why are you standing there all alone? Come! Have fun with all our friends and relatives. Let's have a drink together ^^
You just stand there silent and say : Umh, I'm actually kinda scared.. to get married i guess..? This all seems to fast to me. I'm having intrusive thoughts, my mind is thinking of all the possibilities ahh! I'm getting frustrated... this feels like a big change for me. It's not that i don't want to get married with you it's just.. too fast for me!
Your fs : Hey hey hey! Calm down! I'm here for you. This may feel too fast but think of how joyful you were when we first decided to get married! It's a new beginning for both of us, i can understand you. You just need to relax. Don't worry about anything, I'll take the lead and do everything for you. You just take a deep breathe and calm yourself.
Your fs calms you down and assures you. You feel better when you hear them talk about taking care of you well. And you know from the deep corners of your heart that they will make a good spouse. Your anxiety feels relieved. And you are happy to have them in your life as a counterpart.
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Pile 03 💫
This conversation can happen when you are going through a tough time in regards of your career. You are struggling between work and deadlines. You are completely exhausted but you are still working hard. Even people in your workplace may not appreciate you enough and you feel disappointed with yourself.
Your fs : hey nerd ;) where your eyes lookin' at? Come let's have some fun, take a break would you? Let's go out somewhere shall we?
You : Can you please not disturb me? I'm doing something important rn. And I'm not going anywhere till i finish this !
You frown and continue with your work. Your fs notices that.
Your fs : what happened dear? Is everything alright ? Are you stressed about anything?
You : yes! I am! Anything to do with you?
Your fs : why are u getting mad sweetie? 😋
You : AHHAHASAHAH, I'm so f**king stressed about this damn work i have to do. no one even notices my hardwork and patience! I'm sick of this!
Your fs : I appreciate you, your family appreciates you and you should change your godamn job if it keeps you hurting all the time yk? You have so much money already you should start some business or smth.
You : You know what! You are absolutely correct. I should start something of my own.
Your fs motivated you to leave your toxic work environment and start something of your own.
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woso-dreamzzz · 4 months
Text
Little Buddy
Arsenal Women x Teen!Reader
Summary: Three members of the team take you under their wing
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"There you are!" Steph said as you pulled open the car door, slipping inside and immediately placing your hands in front of the heater," I thought you got lost!"
You rolled your eyes. "Ha, ha," You said dryly," I didn't hear my alarm go off."
"Didn't your parents wake you up?" Steph pulled off from the curb, turning down the music from the radio.
"Dad's on the early morning shift and Mum was on the night one, she's knocked out in bed," You replied. You dug through your bag to check that you'd brought everything.
Waking up with twenty missed calls from Steph and another one coming in was not exactly the nicest wake up calls - especially when it was paired with getting dressed and ready for the day in under five minutes.
You yawned slightly as you tugged your bag closed again, head moving to rest against the rest.
"There's breakfast and a drink in the back for you," Steph said as she turned onto a roundabout. "You look like you need it. Have you eaten yet?"
You gave her a deadpan look at you leaned toward the back and snatched up the brown paper baggy. "Well, seeing as you woke me up this morning. I'll let you guess."
Steph laughed as you practically attacked your breakfast wrap. "I didn't think I would get your sass this early."
"Thanks," You said brightly, your mouth full of food," Leah calls it my moody teenage hormones."
"Don't listen to Leah," Steph said as she turned another corner," She's just jealous that you're younger and fitter than her."
Your ride to the training grounds made you feel much better than when you woke up and by the time you and Steph pulled up, you were energised and ready.
"Mornin'," Katie said, getting out of her car at the same time you two were.
"Morning," You said brightly and she groaned.
"How can you have this much energy so early?" Katie looked annoyed but you knew she wasn't by the way that she threw an arm over your shoulder and steered you inside.
"Steph gave me food!"
"This wave of energy is recent," Steph assured her," I had to get her up this morning. Her alarm didn't go off."
Katie gave you a look. "You parents couldn't get you up?"
You gave her the same excuse as you gave Steph. "Besides," You continued," It's not really a big deal. Mum and Dad are always busy. I'm pretty self-sufficient."
"You're sixteen," Katie deadpanned.
You shrugged. "And? I'm doing better than most kids my age." You puffed out your chest in pride. "I have a job."
Katie laughed, ruffling your hair as you approached the locker room. "Look at you, superstar!" She said, a hint of teasing in her tone," A job?! Wow!"
"Stop teasing me!" You batted her hands away as she continued to knock you about. "I'm going to bring this up in therapy in a few years!"
She laughed at you again, knowing that your threat was meaningless, but still let you scamper off to your cubby to change.
As usual, Alessia was already there. She wasn't changed yet though, typing away on her phone. You leaned over to read what she was saying. "You spelt that wrong."
She rolled her eyes but corrected herself. "Anything else, grammar police?"
"Actually, yes." You dug through your bag and pulled out your school planner. "I have to go in tomorrow morning and I need someone to sign off on my schoolwork." You offered her a pen.
"Gladly!" Alessia signed with a flourish and you gladly took your school book back.
"What?! Why couldn't I sign?!" Steph sounded outraged.
You rolled your eyes as you pulled your training shirt over your head. "Because you don't know a thing about my schoolwork."
"That's a lie!" She said and you sent her a pointed look.
"Oh, yeah?" You challenged," What classes do I take? Hell, where even is my school?"
"I know your address, isn't that enough?"
"Not when I need a responsible adult to sign off on my work."
This seemed to get Katie's attention.
"I'm responsible!"
"Yeah, for more than half of the yellow cards we get," You said with a laugh.
"Alright, that's it!" She leapt across the changing room and got you into a headlock. A rough noogie was pressed onto your head and no matter how much you tried to get away, Katie wouldn't release you.
"Say you're sorry!"
"Never!"
You howled with laughter as you were suddenly shoved into Steph, who hoisted you over her shoulder like you were nothing but a sack of potatoes.
"Don't know what you're laughing about, Russo," Katie said," You're next!"
●~●~●~●~
You panted as a cross came in from Katie. You barely had any space but you still went for it.
Your foot kicked out and connected with the ball. You didn't try to watch it go in, more focussed with landing on your feet after your bicycle kick.
But suddenly, you were eating dirt.
A body crashed into yours, pushing the air from your lungs.
You were stunned for a moment before you felt more force on your back and then the pressure was released. You gasped for breath, groaning in pain. You could feel a pain and ache in your face.
A hand turned you over and you looked up into Alessia's eyes. She looked concerned and reached out to steady you, helping you sit up. She wiped at your cheek.
"That was a nasty fall," She said," How are you feeling?"
You didn't answer at first, still struggling to draw in the breath that had been forced out of you. You smacked your chest a few times as Alessia rubbed your back.
"Wh-What happened?" Your breathing was still shaky but you had enough in you to speak.
"Ouahabi tried to stop your kick," Lessi said," Crashed into you as you landed. You wiped out." She rubbed a bit of dirt from your cheek and you leaned away, the pain becoming worse when she touched you.
"Did I get the goal?"
Steph laughed as she jogged over, catching your last question. "Of course you did."
"Did it look cool?"
"Real cool."
Together, she and Lessi got you to your feet. With the dirt rubbed off your face, it became clear to both of them that there would be a nasty bruise on your cheek in a couple of minutes.
It seemed Katie came to the same conclusion because she squared up to Ouahabi without prompting, shoving the other woman back with force.
"You wanna have a scrap?!" She demanded," I'll have a scrap if you really want!" She looked like she was a second or two from getting another yellow card so you hurried over and took her hand.
She quietened for a moment and allowed you to drag her away.
"You should watch your back, Ouahabi," Steph warned as Katie tucked you under her arm and walked you back to your position.
"I think I can handle McCabe for another two minutes or so, Catley."
Alessia stepped forward. She was taller than Ouahabi put not by much so they were practically eye to eye. "She wasn't talking about Katie."
Across the pitch, Katie wiped at your cheek. "We'll get some ice on that as soon as its full time. You're gonna have quite the shiner."
"It'll look cool though."
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thought--bubble · 2 months
Text
In Need of an Heir Pt 7
Aemond X (Baratheon! Reader)
Warnings after the cut
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Aemond (Canon Era) Masterlist
In Need of an Heir Masterlist
Full Masterlist
Banners by @arcielee
Warnings:: Aegon being a creep. Aemond is a little cunty, OFC is too.
You wake up in a dark room, your legs numb from hanging awkwardly over the side of the bed. When you roll your head to the side, Aemond is asleep beside you, your two hands still gently wrapped around each other.
You hate to wake him up, but the need to move your legs supercedes your wish to keep him asleep.
You grunt as you sit up, and groan at the soreness of your back and start to try moving your numb legs around to get the blood circulating again.
Aemond wakes up with a jolt shooting up from the bed and then stumbling over his own numb legs before gripping the bedpost to hold him upright.
You can't help but giggle at his disheveled state.
"My apologies" He grunts "I am not accustomed to waking up with someone beside me.
"We did..... we did not perform our marital duty. They will blame me" You nervously wring your hands knowing that it is partially your fault but what you don't want to do is have the King angry at you or Aemond.
"No one shall know. That will be a secret between you and I. " Aemond removes his dagger from the holster hanging over the chair next to the bed and nicks his wrist, allowing a few droplets to land on his sheets. "As you said before, does it truly matter if we do it today instead of yesterday?"
You nod your head at him gratefully. "Thank you"
"Hmmm." He nods curtly toward you. "Let us get ready for the day.
You leave his quarters heading back to your own to get ready for whatever today shall bring you. You snicker to yourself, knowing you were able to get around consummating your marriage, earning yourself one more day at least before Aemond attempts to stuff a child into you.
After getting dressed you are escorted to morning meal. King Aegon has requested the family sit down together this morning. You inwardly groan. This is the last place you want to be. All those eyes on you trying to decipher whether or not you and your husband did your duty. The thought of it made you queasy.
As you enter, you immediately locate Aemond in his usual seat at the head of the table. You sit to his right across from Criston and wait for King Aegon to be carried in.
"King Aegon second of his name" the guards announce as Aegon is carried into the room. You stand along with everyone else as he is carried around the table and placed between his mother and princess Jaheara.
"Ahhh, so we are all here, then," he loudly announces. Half of the big table is empty. An ominous reminder of just how many members of their family were lost during the great dance of the dragons.
"So. .. am I correct in assuming that everything went well last night?" Aegon immediately pries.
You can see the prickle that travels up Aemond's entire body at the question.
"All is well," Aemond curtly replies, seemingly annoyed at his brothers prodding.
"So I can expect a nephew? You were able to get the job done?" Aegon cockily smiles toward Aemond.
Aemonds knuckles turn white as he clenches his fists tightly in frustration.
"This is hardly table conversation." Alicent tries to politely steer the conversation away from the direction she knows Aegon is headed.
"Oh mother, calm down. I know my brother and sometimes...... he......struggles with these types of things. Just have to be sure. " Aegon snickers to himself like he just made the funniest joke in the world.
"Everything went well. He was kind and gentle, as a good husband should be. " The words seem to just come flying out of your face. You couldn't stand Aegon poking fun at Aemond. You felt the need to defend him as if it was your job to protect him.
"That..... that is most pleasant to hear my goodsister. " The look of shock on Aegon's face at your outburst wasn't difficult to see, but when you turn from Aegon and look at Aemond you are shocked to see him looking at you with a softness. He brings his hand over yours and gently rubs his thumb over your knuckle.
The rest of the morning meal is uneventful. When you rise to leave, Aemond accompanies you.
"You did not have to do that. I had it handled, " Aemond states as soon as you exit the room.
"Handled or not, I wished to say my piece, so I did"
He chuckles and scratches his chin. "Yes, it seems you did"
"Walk with me?"
"Is that not what I am doing currently?" He lifts his eyebrow and smiles.
You huff and lightly smack his arm. "I meant through the gardens. We had hardly any time to get to know one another prior to the wedding. I would like to at least know your interests and passions before you bed me"
"Shh," Aemond looks around like his head is on a swivel and you cringe.
"Right, should most likely not go announcing that through the hallways." You giggle and walk ahead. " May make our claims at morning meal less believable"
He stands still in the hallway, a small smirk on his face watching you as you beckon him to follow you.
"Well, come on then!" You start to walk toward the gardens without him. It only takes him about four strides to catch up to you.
"So.... what are your passions?" You question playfully.
"My passions?" He raises an eyebrow.
"Surely you aren't that dull. You have passions, I assume? Things you do that you find enjoyment in? For example, I enjoy reading." You wave your hand in front of you mimicking the act of turning a page in a book.
"I also enjoy reading."
You look at him exasperated. This was going to be a long, difficult process of getting to know him if all of his answers were going to be short and made up of no more than five words.
"Enjoy reading what?" You prod. You were going to get to know this man whether he liked it or not. You refused to spend your life chained to a cold stranger.
"Philosophy,history" he stares straight ahead as he answers and right before you release a sigh of frustration you are pleasantly surprised when it is him that tries to continue the conversation. "And what of you wife? What do you enjoy reading"
"Fantasy." A huge smile spreads across your face, and your eyes light up. " tales of heroes and princesses saved by their knight in shining armor who would travel the realm 3 times over just to get back to her."
"Hmmmm...." He strokes his chin briefly. ",You wish to escape"
You stop in your tracks and look up at him "what?"
"Fantasy. It's a means of escape. To immerse yourself in a world unlike your own. A world where there is love and passion, and a neat happy ending."
You crinkle your nose at him. "There is love and passion in this world, Aemond. Just because you choose not to experience it does not mean it does not exist"
"No. I'm the monster in those books. The one the hero slays, only in the real world sometimes the villain wins"
You roll your eyes, "the villains hardly ever announce that they are such. They do not feel like they have to. The world just knows" You start walking again. "No you are a lost character. Did some things he has not quite reconciled and is not quite sure where he is going."
"I know exactly where I am going." His voice is tense so you decide to keep pushing.
"Do you?" You enjoy pushing his buttons if not for any other reason then to break him out of his cold stoicism. Anger is an emotion a strong one and even if it is not the emotion you prefer to see it is something.
"The iron throne will pass to me upon me, brothers' death." He tilts his chin in the air, the pride emanating off of his body.
"That is where your body will be, but your mind, your heart, your soul. You do not know where those will lay." You put your hand to his chest over his heart.
"I told you already I am not capable-"
You cut him off. "What you say and what you do...... they do not align. The love for your mother is obvious. Any fool can see it. The love you have for sweet Jaheara, even the love and patience you have with Aegon! Maybe you will never love me, but you love them. I know you do. Thus you are capable."
"I am loyal to my family..." He trails off not wanting to continue the conversation but you are determined to make him see. You don't know why but you need him to admit he is capable. That there is something the two of you could work toward with time and effort. Some kind of hope.
"It is more than loyalty. If you can not see that, then you are blind. " You turn to head back to your chambers, deciding you have had quite enough of your husband for one day. Aemond is not finished yet.
He grips you by the shoulder and turns you around to face him. "Do not ever speak to me that way." He growls."You are my wife. You do not have to like me, but you do have to respect me. "
"I respect you just fine." You jerk your shoulder from his grasp. " but I do not believe you"
"Believe me?"
"You so desperately want the world to think you are cold, but I see it. The warmth it is in there, is it such a crime that I, your wife, wish to see it? That I do not wish to spend my days chained to a mountain of ice when I know there is a flame hidden inside?"
" You demanded the truth, and now that I have given it to you, you are unable to accept it. I did warn you." He closes his eye and clenches his jaw. "I am a creature of habit."
"I can not bare children for a man incapable of love! Could you imagine the damage that would be done to a child when their father does not love them?"
Aemond's shoulders slump and he looks down to the floor. "I am painfully aware of what that can do to a child"
"Then why would you wish it upon your own children?" You again turn on your heel and sail down the hallways toward your chamber gritting your teeth.
"I will not have children with that man." You grumble under your breath.
"You will not be getting that heir from me"
Part 8
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wrathofrats · 2 months
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WRATH YOUR TAGS ON THE SWISSALPS??? HOW DARE YOUUUU IM IN SHAMBLES FUCKKKKK IM GONNA KMS IF U DONT WRITE IT PLEASEEEEEEE
LMAO HI DONT DO THAT I GOT U BESTIE
Original post
I got carried away and blacked out and it became 2k, idk what happened either.
Swiss is so inexperienced and very anxious and mountain is the sweetest actually. This is so awkward because these two are dorks so good luck.
Small small mentions of blood but it’s taken as a joke.
It wasn’t long after Swiss was summoned that he truly started to understand the bands dynamic. Day in and day out of watching his pack mates eye each other like a piece of meat, constant touching and flirting and there was many parts of Swiss that yearned to be included in it.
He didn’t feel ready. Half split between feeling left out as the two ghoulettes he came with have been bonded and together since summon, and the other ghouls really seemed to take to them after a couple days anyways. It wasn’t like no one took to him, but he’s never propositioned, desired, at least not in his line of sight. He feels like he would be intruding if he were to say anything. So he waits.
The other half worries partially about being inexperienced. Never used a human body, barely has even touched himself and god he’s probably embarrassing, no one wants to be with someone so inexperienced right?
He continues to think about it. Fuck he practically studies the other ghouls and sex and whatever the fuck they’re doing together because when the time comes he doesn’t want to embarrass himself. He’s genuinely afraid he will just get laughed out of the room if he’s not ready though he’s sure he’s probably acting insane.
Truly Swiss has no clue what to think.
He sits on his bed, tosses a toy around in his hands. Nothing insane, something normal sized since he’s a beginner but he worries about it anyways. Hypothetically he knows where it’s supposed to go but
How?
He has no clue.
“I’ve seen dew take two before” rain smirks “shouldve seen him around me and aether, didn’t know the tight whore could do it!”
Does Swiss need to be able to take two?
He rolls the dildo in his hands again and gulps.
Maybe that’s a lesson for another day.
“Rain talks a big game but you should see how whiny he gets when he’s got a drop of blood in front of his nose. Had him drinking from my wrist the other day, he’d do anything for it” aether laughs
He almost winced hearing about it the first time. Never really considered… that being a part of things but ….. he can accept it if he has to, if that’s what the others want.
Swiss is probably getting ahead of himself.
He takes a deep breath and lays down in his bed, just stares at the toy in question because he really isn’t sure what to do with it. There’s no question of what he has to do but he doesn’t understand.
There’s a point where Swiss just decides to rip the bandaid off, reaches between his hiked up legs and pushes it into the tight ring of muscle.
It hurts, burns, doesn’t go in more than a millimeter and he thinks he’s probably fucked it up somehow or maybe he’s just awful or whatever other reason but he decides to simply give up for the night. The worries left to eat at him for the next day.
The morning is really no better for his mind. Stands at the kitchen counter lost in thought before anyone else comes in, the boisterous laughter breaking him out of his anxiety induced trance.
“Feeling ok sunbeam?” Mountain gives him a worried look, standing next to him to lean on the marble.
“Yeah! Didn’t sleep well, I’m fine”
“Well if you ever want help sleeping just let me know” mountain winks at him.
Was that?
It couldn’t be. Right?
Did mountain just finally proposition to fuck him?
He can’t say no. He’s come too far and wanted it too bad so he has to go to his room tonight right?
Questions race around Swiss’ brain. He’s the bottom right? Mountain is like a foot taller than him so that has to be it? But what if he that’s not correct and mountain gets offended? What if the rest of the pack hears and hates him? What if-
He desperately needs his brain to shut the fuck up.
The hours pass like molasses. Swiss swears every time he checks his watch after he’s sure it’s been an hour it’s really only been 10 minutes.
What time is he even supposed to go up there?
God he wishes more than anything he could stop this anxiety.
Swiss decides around 10 pm is good. Late enough for a reasonable bedtime but early enough he knows mountain won’t actually be asleep.
Mountain is shirtless, wearing low grey sweatpants when he answers the door. Swiss thinks he may be drooling but attempts to collect himself enough to speak.
“Didn’t think you’d actually come up here, been waiting for you to come to one of us sunbeam” mountain chuckles and motions through the open door to invite him in.
“Been waiting for you myself, hard to ignore such a big guy like you” Swiss pushes himself against mountain. He’s heard in pornos that men like to be called big. That was right to say, right?
“Didn’t know you were so eager” mountain smiles and lightly shoves Swiss onto the bed, straddling his small waist against the sheets.
“Course I’m eager, been waiting for this for ages, want to drink the blood from your wrist” Swiss winks.
Mountain sits up, “what?” He looks at him confused.
Did Swiss do it wrong? Aether made it seem like that was normal….
“I- um …. Yeah, want you to fuck me stupid, make me your whore?” He loses all confidence to his voice, looks scared to even say it and the concerned expression on mountains faces turns to laughter. So he really did fuck it up huh.
“Swiss…… have you done this before?” Mountain gets out between laughs.
Swiss should probably get up, leave with his tail between his legs and god he’s going to be laughed of the band for this,
“No… I’m sorry I ruined it I’ll go-“
“No! You don’t have to do that. Didn’t expect you to know.” Mountain smiles at him “come here, can I teach you? You sure you want this?”
A large hand caresses Swiss’s waist. Mountain moves him against the pillows, studying his language for any sign of hesitation or regret.
“Please” Swiss mumbles
It’s cute to watch him suddenly so shy, came in like a speeding bullet but now can’t look mountain in the eye.
“How much do you know? Have you ever touched yourself sunbeam?” Oh the tone to mountains voice should not be turning Swiss on but god it’s deep and gravely and yeah Swiss definitely may be desperate.
“No.. I tried but I don’t … know how? I’m sorry-“
“Don’t apologize, you’re ok, you’re safe here”
Swiss does feel safe. Safe enough to let mountain undress him, gently lift his shirt over his head and unbutton his pants.
“I’m going to touch you, alright? Tell me immediately if you start to feel strange” mountain caresses his cheek, staring into his warm brown eyes before reaching down for his hardening cock. It doesn’t take much for it to stiffen up fully, just a couple of touches and Swiss is hard against his stomach, still watching for mountains next move.
“There we go, gonna move your knees up. Is it ok if I put my fingers in you? Need to stretch you out if you still want me to fuck you”
Swiss just nods in agreement, bites his lip in favor of speaking and watches as mountain pours some kind of thick liquid onto his fingers.
“Just lube, it’s going to help”
It feels weird at first, more like some kind of intrusion than any mind numbing pleasure he’s heard about it. Swiss moans anyways, doesn’t want to hurt mountains feelings if it’s really supposed to feel good.
“Swiss…. It’s ok it’s not supposed to feel good yet, you don’t have to fake it for me” mountain laughs at the multi ghouls rapidly reddening face
“Besides, you won’t have to fake it here soon”
It’s embarrassing that a drop of pre bubbles at his tip just from that sentence. Mountains smile doesn’t drop, only a little cocky from the situation.
After three fingers mountain starts to push deeper, rolling them up instead of scissoring and-
Oh.
Swiss nearly yelps, vision blurs and jumps off the bed when mountain hits something inside of him.
“There you go, did you like that?” He laughs. God he needs mountain to stop laughing at him, needs his cock to stop jumping at his laughter too.
“Think you’re ready? Still ok?”
“Please” Swiss whines
The first inch feels wrong again. Nothing like when he did it the other night but mountain is much bigger than his toy and it honestly feels like it may be too much. He holds his breath, the stretch knocking the air from his lungs anyways but he grips the sheets and waits for mountain to sink the rest of the way in.
It’s overly slow, mountain being overly caring as always but he can feel every inch carve its way into him and he just waist for mountain to be down so he can collect himself.
“You’re ok, promise I’ll make you feel so good alright? You’re doing so well”
Swiss mentally notes the way his words make him see stars. That’s a kink to deal with another day.
“Gonna move ok?”
The outward thrust feels like it takes years, before mountain quickly moves back in him, trying to loosen him up before really taking him and mountain deserves an award in patience for being able to control himself for so long with Swiss so hot and tight around him.
“Fuck mount- feels- mountain-” Swiss gasps once mountain gets to pace. Eyes closed tight and mouth agape. Soft moans and whimpers escaping his lips and Swiss throws his hand over his mouth to attempt to silence himself.
Mountain quickly grabs his wrists, holding them above his head, “wanna hear you, wanna hear what I’m doing to you, fuck- Swiss want you to be loud for me”
A hot pit forms in Swiss’s stomach, burns in his abdomen and has his eyes crossing with the feeling,
“Mountain- I think I’m getting close I- please i think I’m going to-“ Swiss doesn’t even get the sentence out before he’s spilling hot and thick all over his stomach.
“There you go, fuck Swiss, so good feel so fucking good wrapped around me”
Mountain cums not moments later, pulls out and jacks himself onto the sheets as to not be ungentleman like for Swiss’s first time.
“Feeling alright Swiss?”
“Holy fucking shit I get it now”
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Text
Being a former Schoolteacher in the Van Der Linde Gang
Prompt: {Reader as a Former Teacher in the Van Der Linde Gang}
Fem!Reader x Various
Summary: It’s no secret that the Van Der Linde Gang brought together all sorts of misfits of all sorts of backgrounds. Hosea had been a stage actor, Bill had been a soldier, and Javier was once a revolutionary. However, with all these strange yet vibrant histories, yours always made you stand out. Far to off in the eastern side of the country, you had lived a modest but respectable life as a schoolteacher. 
Note: Reader is written as being in her late twenties to early thirties. I only have Arthur, John, Dutch, Abigail, Mary-Beth, Javier, Molly, and Sean in this post. I do intend to write the others, I just didn't want this to be too long. I can also write specific imagines or romantic hcs if requested!
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ARTHUR
He’s likely to be the first to develop a crush on you. Honestly.
Arthur finds you comforting. You carry yourself with a warmth and a certain air of confidence that makes him feel safe in your presence. He didn’t have much schooling, so he sometimes gets shy about talking about academic subjects. Still, you do manage to coax him into deeper conversations than just “mornin’” and “lovely day, ain’t it?”
Arthur is softer than he seems and sees more than he’s always willing to say. After cracking through the awkward small-talk phase of your friendship, you and Arthur begin to talk more on philosophy. He’s never considered himself all that smart, but you tell him that he’s insightful. Insightful? Him? It's enough to make him blush sometimes.
As he gets to know you better, Arthur starts to do small favors for you. Nothing too big. Just things like bringing back books from town or little trinkets he thought you might like. If you need help with your chores, he might just join you if Miss Grimshaw ain't around. Certain people in the gang have taken to calling him, "teacher's pet."
JOHN
He hardly paid you any mind, at first.
After you spent a few weeks with the gang, he started seeing you with Jack. Thought nothing of it, at first. Then it became a regular occurrence and despite himself, he got just a touch paranoid. You were brand new to the gang. A stranger. Why would Abigail let you near his her son? He confronted her only to find out that Abigail had asked you to teach Jack as his own private tutor. Needless to say, he felt a bit silly.
From what he can tell, you're not half-bad of a teacher. Jack's learning his numbers, writing his name, and is starting to ask for more books. While a part of him wants to be happy... it only vexes him further. Why would such an innocent civilian such as yourself be all the way out here?
John takes a while to warm up to you, but you proved to be less stuffy than you looked. You have a firm yet gentle way about you. And somehow, you can correct someone without ever making them feel stupid or simple for it.
DUTCH
He enjoys your keen mind and education, but he also resents it.
Dutch won't share with the others how he found you or how you became an outlaw. He likes to say that it's your story to tell. Really, he just like to know something no one else does. His reason for recruiting you was just as simple, he hadn't met someone like you before.
It's not everyday he meets an ex-teacher-turned-outlaw. Dutch found your situation interesting, unique. He does so like to collect outcasts. Especially one as educated and clean as you. Dutch starts to linger by you as you do your chores to initiate a playful debate. Unlike most in the gang, you disagree with some of his philosophies and have counterarguments that make him pause. That's not to say you've ever convinced him to change his mind, oh no. His pauses are more for him to steady himself so he doesn't show how bothered your resistance makes him.
As much as Dutch loves to spar with you mentally, he secretly finds offense in your obstinance. What you see as playful debate may just turn into a case against you as a traitor.
JAVIER
Now, this one may seem odd, but Javier is second most likely to develop a strong attraction for you. 
When he first saw you, it wasn’t precisely love at first sight. You were new, having joined just after Charles. Javier agreed with Bill that you wouldn’t last long. Everything about you just screamed, “civilian.” You dressed modestly, wore spectacles, spoke proper English, and seemed clueless as how to survive in the west. The only reason he didn’t outright resent you was because Dutch had been the one to bring you into the gang. 
The crush started around the same time you got more comfortable at camp. Sometimes you let your hair down, literally and figuratively, both of which he found very attractive. You have a mouth on you, and you aren’t scared of much. Seeing you stare down Bill for swearing in front of Jack was enough to prove that. He likes how tough but fair you are. How you’re educated but you’re not stuck up about it, unlike some he’s met. 
MARY-BETH
Is shy about it, but eventually goes to you for help with her writing.
Mary-Beth finds out that you both like “silly romance,” books and she starts to talk about how she writes her own. With it being so hard to find new things to read, you jump at the chance to read her work. Mary-Beth is quite shy about it, but she lets you read a few pages. Much to her surprise, you praise the work and ask for more. She starts to use you as an editor for some of her short stories. You enjoy her writing quite a lot and encourage her to keep going. 
You and Mary-Beth get on very well. You’re both bookworms and not too keen on violence for violence’s sake. Privately, you talk about what you hope your life will be like some day.
SEAN
Finds the fact that you’re an outlaw to be completely hilarious. 
As he gets more used to your presence, Sean starts to come to you with questions about the world. He does this because, as a teacher, he assumes you must know the answer to at least some of these. Questions like, “Why do we call ducks and geese different things when they look alike?” or “How’d we even decide what to name things? Did we see an orange’n on a trre an’ tink, ‘Oh now that’s an orange!’ or did we already have the color all sorted out? How’d they name colors to begin with?”
Sean will sometimes follow you around camp to ask you these questions, and the gang finds it quite funny. You’ll just be doing your chores with Sean slinking behind you as his mouth runs a mile a minute. What surprises most is that you usually at least try to give him an answer. Some folks didn’t believe you were really a teacher when you first joined… They believed you after they saw how patient you can be with Sean. 
ABIGAIL
First, she was suspicious of you. Then, she trusted you more than most.
Once Abigail was certain you weren’t going to sprint back into town to turn everyone in, she had a favor to ask. Jack was getting older and although Hosea and Dutch offered to teach him to read and write, they hadn’t the time to start. She asked you to teach him whatever you could when time allowed. You were excited to help, eager. Jack being as young as he was, took to your lessons fast. In little time, you were helping him sound out sentences and write his name. This started a new problem for Abigail, however. She never learned to read or write herself. Jack would try to show her his work, or ask her to read him a story, and she couldn’t.
Instead of shaming her, you offered to teach her how to read as well. Abigail refused at first, but relented when you said she could teach you how to sew in return. Through her, you start to feel more a part of the gang.
MOLLY
She only started to have a problem with you once she realized you weren’t some old hag.
When you first joined the gang, you were still dressing like a teacher. Your clothes were bulky and formless, hair all pulled back in a bun, and you were quiet. As you got more into the outlaw life, you started to dress a bit more like the other women. Started showing more of your personality. And more importantly, Dutch started to pull you aside more often. 
Molly can’t help but feel paranoid about you and Dutch. When she spies in on you two, all she sees is you both reading or debating. It’s not as if he’s holding your hand or whispering in your ear… but it feels wrong. Dutch talks to you about things he won’t talk to her about. Books, philosophy, world events, the strange and esoteric. It feels like you satisfy him in a way she can’t, and Molly comes unglued thinking about it. 
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graveyard-cuddles · 2 months
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If you attack ascended Astarion at the epilogue party as a mindflayer, all the rest of the companions will join in the attack with you. Which doesn't make a ton of sense from my perspective because frankly, they should all be just as scared of mindflayer Tav as they are of ascended Astarion, if not even more so. Let's just be real and admit that Astarion, as "mean" as he is when he breaks up with mindflayer Tav, is 100% correct. Tav is not Tav anymore. Ilithids don't have souls. They're not a person anymore. And Tav can prove it by attacking him out of the blue at a peaceful-ass gathering. Even Astarion with how cruel and egotistical he becomes when ascended is still more "human" than a mindflayer because he at least retains his soul and personality, as warped as it becomes. That's all besides the point, though.
My main point it I just find it weird how so many so-called Astarion "fans" revile in this scene and find it so funny how Astarion "gets his comeuppance" in this scene or whatever. And I don't know about anyone else, but I find this scene incredibly sad and tragic. Both Astarion and Tav have lost themselves completely (Tav even more so than Astarion, I would argue). And it kinda baffles me how so few fans of Astarion can see how much he's clearly hurting here as well?
He claims he hasn't thought about Tav in the past 6 months, and he delivers the line in a way that is clearly meant to sting as much as possible. People point to that moment as a "gotcha" moment that Astarion genuinely doesn't miss Tav. But he then immediately contradicts this a few sentences later when he says thinks all the time about what could have been if they had stayed his consort and never became a mindflayer. And that all his power is nothing without Tav by his side (paraphrasing).
"OH he's just manipulating Tav" why would he say anything that would make him look weak or vulnerable? If anything, he should be bragging about how GREAT he's doing without Tav. How awesome his life as a vampire lord is without them. And at first he does just that, the first half of the conversation is all bragging. But the longer he talks to them, the more the little hurtful truths slip out behind the hateful words. Like for as much as fans claim to understand that Astarion will often say one thing but mean another some of them sure are shit at being able to tell when he's clearly covering up his hurt with vitriol.
And again there's something weird about cheering on mindflayer Tav when their turn can be considered just as tragic as Astarion ascending. Like don't get me wrong I enjoy letting a monster do their thing. But it's like this weird double standard where mindflayer Tav's monstrosity is good and cool to idolize and joke about them wanting to eat the brains of their friends but the second someone has fantasies about being Astarion's consort they need to be psychoanalyzed.
And it's also ridiculous that if you even so much as suggest that hey, maybe there's more going on with ascended Astarion than meets the eye, maybe he actually is suffering in his isolation, ect. you get called a delusional idiot because people just really want to believe Astarion is truly a 100% different person from his ascended self when that's simply. not. true. Again the writers have confirmed the ritual didn't consume his soul. The ritual amplified all his worst personality traits that he already had.
I'm not saying you need to love ascended Astarion BUT if you love his character for what he is you should be able to at least appreciate him. You should be able to at least find him tragic and compelling. Kinda annoyed that many fans, who are seemingly uncomfortable with being confronted with this side of him, would rather turn him into a big joke or reduce his full spectrum of emotion to just "smug apathy."
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huneyism · 6 months
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okay hear me out. married harvey and donna decide to move out west and start their own firm. harvey and donna have been having a lot of issues since they’ve been married. Donna is no longer just a secretary and therefore looking for someone to replace that.
it’s different than what harvey is used to. city isn’t near as big as new york but decent. still busy night or day but there’s a more relaxed pace here. maybe it’s the beach that’s only 5 minutes away but everyone works slower walks slower. harvey didn’t know that was something he needed.
they do interviews for a secretary - all of them are boring and just say whatever they think harvey wants to hear. here comes mike ross, skateboard tucked up his arm. worn leather satchel hanging across him. bright blue eyes and a thousand watt smile stuns harvey into silence. after his moment of silence he starts the interview and finds the boy is a genius and way too good for the position
“you should be a lawyer.”
“got knocked into a different life, here i am. be going for a chance to come back.”
it pulls at his heart but he’s not here for a sob story. he knows the kids too good for the position and deserves better but somethign about the kid says he doesn’t think he doesn’t.
he hires him. and within a week harvey realizes he’s already in too deep. the kid can match him quote for quote. can make him laugh at the silliest things and seems to be able to do everything in credibly fast and correct the first time.
a couple weeks donna gets suspicious about how close mike and harvey have gotten. harvey spends more nights at the office with mike than he does at him. she’s jealous and angry that harvey would rather talk to mike than try and fix their marriage. she goes in one evening after waiting for harvey to come home. she’s about to barge into his office when she sees through the window before they catch both of them smiling. harvey smiling in a way she hasn’t seen in a long time. his tie is gone his sleeves rolled and a button is undone. she’s never seen him so… relaxed and happy. it pulls at her heart seeing him like that with someone else but she gets it. donna and harvey might have been best friends but they were never meant to be lovers. but mike… mike pulls something out of harvey that donna couldn’t. that harvey needs. mike makes harvey human and oh so happy.
she’s only a little hurt that a year and a half after their divorce she receives an invitation to their wedding. the divorce hurt but somehow through it all their friendship stayed intact. it hurts knowing that she isn’t the love of his life but she would never take away mike. harvey’s happiness
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roguenancy · 1 year
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do you have any tips for writing canon accurate bitchy steve? thanks!! :)
First, I want to preface this by saying that you’re absolutely going to need to bear in mind that this is just my thoughts and opinion. People interpret all sorts of things differently, and where I see one thing, you or someone else may see another, and that’s okay. Furthermore, a lot of this looks very simple and one note on the surface, but I’ve found that you actually have a lot of room to play with when it comes to them. They’re just the tip of the iceberg. Nothing is set in stone, so I think no matter how you choose to explore them in your writing and characterization for Steve, you’ll be on a good track as long as you still have the bare bones.
Steve essentially has two levels of ‘bitchy.’ The first is what I consider his surface level — his typical, day-to-day I-Was-A-Mean-Girl-In-A-Past-Life bitchiness that he just can’t seem to shake. This one comes out the most often and is responsible for the things we see from him, like the eye rolls, smart-ass remarks, annoyance, and pettiness. As I said, this one tends to jump out a lot. Some canon instances include “Oh, God, that’s depressing” regarding Jonathan in season 01 while he was hanging up missing posters and “What, to hang out with you and Eddie "the freak" Munson?” with the “Ew. Gross.” dramatically forced gag from season 04. 
This level of bitchiness, while it can be insulting, is harmless. At least in a general sense, anyway. Still very important to note that, regardless, Steve never seems to show any remorse or guilt about letting this come out. Whether it’s because it’s a default he’s grown used to and feels too comfortable using, doesn’t realize how it’s being perceived by others, or simply doesn’t care is up to you and how you interrupt him. You could come at it from a few different angles and still technically be correct. 
This side of him becomes more prominent whenever he’s in situations that he finds greatly uncomfortable or stress-inducing or when he’s tired, upset, etc. [Re canon: the elevator freak out from season 03 and most of the instances regarding his interactions with kids in season 04.] The most important thing to note here is: Steve is someone who is very easily aggravated and annoyed. It doesn’t take much to get under his skin - a skin that isn’t nearly as thick as he tries to make it seem. Things that you and I, or other characters, may not see as a big deal or even think about, for that matter, have a very high chance of inducing some sort of reaction from Steve. And because of this and his tendency to get so worked up so quickly, he does act out on it without much as a second thought. The first scene that comes to mind showing this is in season 04 when Dustin and Max come into Family Video, and Dustin knocks over the stack of Steve’s tapes. He gets very annoyed very quickly, and rather than just sigh or let out a complaint to Dustin and then fix them, we see him drag his hands down his face, through his hair, do a little half spin and throw his hands up in the air. It’s a very outward response. The cool thing here is that you have plenty of room to play with why he acts that way: Is it a situation of overstimulation? Is it a leftover of theatrics and the need to do things ‘big’ when acting out because he’s used to being King Steve, where everyone watched and waited for his responses on things? Does it do it because he feels unheard otherwise and has learned from his youth that if he isn’t loud about things, he will get ignored? The list can go on and on.
A lot of people view Steve as a sort of Golden Retriever type that they’d feel comfortable being around, and while that can sort of be true, it’s not as true when it comes to first appearances and more basic interactions. 9 out of 10 times, Steve displays some sort of “resting bitch face” and looks every bit of the scary dog privileges. He’s the guy you’d pass in the halls and think— oh yeah, he’d totally talk shit about me, and you’d be right because once upon a time, he probably really would have. The question is out on whether or not it’s a facade built up for security reasons that go hand in hand with the former King title, if he even realizes he’s doing it, or if he simply cannot help it because, hey, that’s how his face looks! Enter 101 possible interactions where someone close to him mistakes it for something it’s not and asks him if he’s mad/upset, only to find out he’s fine. He just looks like that. Again, it’s something to play with, which is cool so long as you keep in mind that the only time Steve seems to forget/drop this look is when he’s completely and totally at peace or feels content and safe. Unfortunately, these moments are more rare than not, but they do happen.
He has no issue telling people “no” or shutting things down, even when it’s against the mass majority. I feel like this one gets forgotten by fanon a lot which is a little funny considering most of Steve’s scenes in seasons 02 - 04 revolve around him screaming no or opposing something. It can be anything from something as simple as rides to the arcade for the kids or helping Robin to sneak out to something as important as allowing a cursed Max to fulfill her last requests or helping to clear an innocent man’s name. If Steve doesn’t want to do something, he’s not going to do it, and while he can be swayed by his loyalty to others and generally good heart, it won’t be his first instinct to give in. He’s the type that doesn’t really back down or move once he’s made up his mind, at least not without some heavy pushback from someone else. [Re canon: a lot of his relationship with Nancy in season 02, Max’s “I’ll get a lawyer” car ride in season 04, his worked up and angry refusal to budge on letting the kids leave the Byers house in season 02 to help, and the entire speech about Eddie’s innocence that it took to get him on board in season 04.] Yet another thing you could play around with a lot if you wanted to because clearly, Steve has got to have some sort of limits he sets for others and himself. What are those? Why are they what they are? And how much is he willing to bypass for the sake of things like friendship and love?
No one is safe from this side of him. While yes, I think Steve is essentially respectful when the situation calls for it, likely doesn’t go after kids without cause, and knows how to schmooze his way around adults when needed… There really is no specific group that can get away from bitchy Steve when he comes around. Not even those closest to him, who we know Steve adores more than anything, like Robin, Nancy, or Dustin, are free from the backlash. It’s pretty simple and straightforward but important nonetheless because it feels like far too often, there’s an instance in fanwork where Steve is harsher to everyone but those close to him, and that is not necessarily true.
The other level runs a touch deeper. It’s his Wow-I’m-Defensive-And-Going-To-Act-On-It response and seems to come out only in certain situations. Usually, where Steve has gotten hurt in some way or another— emotionally or physically damaged, although more often than not, it is in response to emotional damage —and puts up his defenses. This is the side of Steve that’s more dangerous than others and a hell of a lot meaner too. It’s not as common to see this level of bitchiness from Steve in a standard day-to-day setting, and it should be reserved for more special/higher-stakes situations. 
Where the first level was rude but harmless, this one is not. This level is all about defense and is treated by Steve as such. It’s the part of him that causes him to shut down and emotionally close himself off or pick fights and choose sabotage over communication. A prime example of this is in season 01 when Steve finds Jonathan in Nancy’s room. Almost instantly, we see the smile drop from his face, and his kind look is replaced by something harder. By the time Nancy finds him in that alleyway, Steve’s energy has shifted into someone almost unrecognizable. His jaw is set, his eyes are cold and distant, and he almost looks deadly. He then goes on to poke the bear repeatedly, and while I’ve talked often about how that fight with Jonathan was provoked by Steve himself, it is still a very basic case of Steve being hurt and wanting to hurt someone else as a result. And while yes, Steve has changed and grown a lot from that boy who stood in the alley that day, that kind of reaction runs bone deep and is not something someone shakes overnight. Three years isn’t nearly enough to wipe away what was once a critical part of who Steve was, even if we haven’t seen it head-on since that part of him is still there. He’s going to act as such. [Re canon: season 04, when Dustin is questioning his intentions and judging his choices and relationship with both Nancy & Robin, Steve threatens to hit him so hard he’ll knock his teeth back out.]
Unlike his surface-level bitchy, Steve shows remorse and guilt over letting this more profound reaction come out, likely due to the extremity it brings with it. This reaction can be delayed (the fight with Jonathan in season 01 took close to a whole day to get him to come around and apologize) or immediate (in season 04, he instantly recognized his comment to Dustin as too far and apologized), but ultimately does seem to vary based off the situation and just how hurt or upset Steve is. As far as the reasoning goes for why Steve responds to situations like this, you have the field to explore it however you like. Maybe it’s because of how he was raised, or is some sort of response created based on actions he’s seen from his parent(s). Maybe it’s a cover for the raw self-esteem issues he has and all the insecurities. Maybe he prefers anger over feelings of being hurt because he finds anger easier to deal with and live with. The choice is yours so long as you remember that the reaction is there. 
This is not a reaction that comes out when only he feels threatened. It also extends out to others and is more likely to come out faster on behalf of someone else. Remember the comment I made about Steve looking every bit of the scary dog privileges? That’s never been more relevant. Despite his bitchy nature, Steve really does have a good heart, and he’s not someone who tolerates seeing people he cares for being unjustly treated or targeted. His loyalty runs so deep, in fact, that he never thinks twice about involving himself in situations that he otherwise could/maybe should have avoided, even despite the danger they could bring. [Re Canon:  going back into the Byers house in season 01 after being threatened and told to leave to face off against the Demogorgon, the fight with B*lly in season 02 where Steve was seemingly neutral when the anger was directed at him but instantly enraged the moment it was turned towards the kids/Lucas, and crashing the car he had come to love in season 03 into B*lly’s with a concussion and lord knows what else after the other boy nearly crashed into Nancy, Jonathan, Will, and Lucas.] And while Steve isn’t the textbook definition of someone who likes to hurt others for the sake of doing so (not without reason, self-placed or not) and does seem to favor non-violence when he can, at least towards humans anyways, it is essential not to forget that he isn’t absolutely opposed to it. 
Much like the other, no one is safe from this side of him either. Whoever or whatever draws this sort of reaction out of him is likely to catch the brunt of the impact, but it is not entirely without reason to imagine that sometimes there is/can be run off. However, it does appear that he is more likely to regret it faster and/or feel more guilt if the reaction was directed at one of the kids as opposed to a fellow friend or adult.
All in all, bitchy Steve is and will always be there, but at the end of the day, it is whatever you make of it. Every response can have some deeper meaning, or maybe it just is what it is. The choice is yours, and as far as my personal feelings go, so long as you’re not totally trying to excuse bitchy Steve’s actions or twisting them to make him out to be an unwarranted mean bully figure, something he hasn’t been in its entirety since before season 01, then you can’t really go wrong. Just have fun with it, remember the source material is there to check if you need it, and enjoy yourself. 
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bigwishes · 1 year
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Since I heard you’ve got a few of those vials back in stock - perhaps I could get some for this new group of lads I’ve taken on for the year. Hopefully it’ll give my team the edge!
Sure thing coach! anything for a friend. Although surely you know that players "enhancing" themselves never goes the way they want it to, but no matter all your players have already picked out a vial from the shop.
Thought they'd all get the same vial? nah not enough of this stuff to go around but why dont we check in with some of your players to see how they are going.
--
First there is Kyle, a block you were hoping to be your star player of the season, 7ft tall with the same amount of muscle as some of the blokes training for Mr Olympia! all at the age of 24, the dude sure was going places on the field, playing ruby he could basically just carry the ball from one side of the field to the other, anyone who'd try to tackle him would basically just bounce right off. I see he took a vial called "Prince Power". A pretty unusal choice for a guy that massive to pick up a vial like this but hey who am I to judge.
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I see Kyle has shrunk down from 7ft to 5 and all that muscle seems to have evaporated. I guess he didn't read the back of the bottle or maybe he wanted a change of scene because "Prince Power" turns whoever drinks it into a power bottom who drools at the smell of another mans musk and needs a big strong knight in shining armour to come rescue him from practically anything...yeah he might be useless on the field now, unless you want to take one of the enemy players off the field by having Kyle here..."distract" him behind the goals half way through the game.
--
We of course also have Tyler, a bloke who only really started trying to get big when you signed him for his skills. 22 and 5.5ft the guy wasn't much wider than a twig which is why I think "Wall 'o' Mass" caught his eye, very popular in the muscle fetish community but providing Tyler is good at math he should be able to work out the correct dosage lets check on him now.
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Wow he has really beefed all the way up in a matter of hours, good for him, 1/4 of a bottle was a good starting point now he can-.....what's that? Tyler took more? well I'm sure he didn't- oh, he wanted to be bigger than Kyle and be the new star player? SO HE DRANK THE WHOLE BOTTLE? man someone get this man a couch to get comfortable because I give it 40 minutes before he is swollen into a massive meathead who is unable to move, well the vial wasn't called "Wall 'o' Mass" for nothing, drinking the whole thing means you'll turn into a bodybuilder so big all you can do is flex, a literal wall of mass.
Boy will he be kicking himself when he finds out what happened to Kyle, bro threw away his mobility for nothing.
-------
What about Jake? well Jake did the smart thing, he wanted enough mass to be able to move freely but also drop anyone who tried to tackle him, so I sent him over to our Bear section, although I can't tell you which one he took I was busy taking stock in the back.
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The man is definitely going through some changes, nice muscle growth definition, I see he has become insanely hairy. What else will happen? well let's check which one he took now that I'm free, hmmm, oh man, none of your players are fucking smart are they bro, Jake could have taken anything off the shelf to get the results he wanted but he had to take "Wild Bear". No that doesn't mean he's a bear with a wild partying side. Let's put it this way man, I'd hide any cans of salmon you got lying around and maybe send animal control around to his house in the morning, looks like the zoo will be getting a new exhibit and you'll be looking for a new player.
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magicbystarlight · 23 days
Text
Venomous - Part Eleven
Masterlist, Part One
Summary: A wife. A mother. A witch with someone else's name. That’s the life you didn’t want. So Tom offered you more.
Word Count: 3K
Warnings: 18+, a bit of an angsty one, arranged marriage, age gap relationship, ptsd, war. Minors DNI.
A/N: Our poor reader can't catch a break.
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The last days at the Manor passed mechanically. Wedding appointments set for Easter Break—dress, cake, invitations, dinner. A book left unread despite the pages turned. Smiles that didn’t reach your eyes. Laughs that were hollow. Unanswered letters. No word from your brother. Nothing in the papers about the Muggle war.
Abraxas was at your side, arm slung too casually around your shoulder as you walked through Platform 9 ¾. Your trunk somewhere behind being dragged along by the Malfoys’ oldest house-elf Honey. Or was it Bunny? An unsubtle reminder to the growing crowd that you were a Malfoy, even if not in name yet.
At least your mother hadn’t come.
His goodbye was drawn out. You smiled and dutifully let him kiss you again and again until he couldn't keep you any longer. You hoped your own face didn't betray your joy as you stepped onto the train. The compartments were full as you dragged your trunk. It took longer to find Larissa and Abigail than usual thanks to the added weight.
Their concern felt wasted on you when you stepped into the compartment. Too much of your friendship had been spent on your petty problems when their families lived in constant danger that you knew nothing about.
You insisted you were fine, that it had only been a bit of stress, and everything was okay now. You brushed off concerns about Abraxas’ behavior, rewriting his jealousy as protection. You were fine, everything was fine.
The conversation veered to them and you listened intently. A funny story about Larissa’s mother getting on the wrong train in the underground. Talk of Abigail’s father’s wonderful cooking. Love letters they found under her little sister’s pillow. It made your heart ache.
“We should set up a dinner or something for the Easter holiday,” you said as the laughter was starting to subside. “So I can meet your families.”
Your friends shared a look that didn’t look pleased with the idea. “Won’t you be too busy? With all the planning? We don’t want to add to your stress.”
“Too busy for you? Never.”
“It’s just,” Larissa said slowly, trying to find the words to say, “well, we know how your family feels about half-bloods. You might not mind, but they’re not gonna be happy with it.”
“They know we’re friends, it’s not that big of a deal anymore. Maybe they’ll be upset if they find out one of Abby’s parents is Muggle, but we can go somewhere Muggle and they’ll never even know. Make a day of it, a real day, show me more of the Muggle world. I’ve never even seen London past the windows in the Leaky Cauldron.”
Larissa went to say something else, another argument against it from the frown in her face, but Abigail cut her off, face lacking its normal color. “We’ll see. I’ll need to owl my parents and ask if they can make the time for it. Easter’s pretty busy for them.”
Your face fell before you could catch it and school it into something false.
“We can do Cambridge instead!” Larissa offered quickly, too eager compared to her hesitation a moment before. “I’m sure Mum would love to have you both over. And it gets so pretty in the spring there—” 
She continued, naming reason after reason Cambridge was the place to be for Easter. You worked your smile back, though it was as hollow as it’d had been at the Manor. A tentative date set for the Tuesday after the holiday—you had no appointments set and Abigail would be too busy helping out around home before then. Color still hadn’t returned to her face.
When enough time had passed, you excused yourself to use the restroom. They didn’t offer to join you.
Scalding water splashed from the tap, causing your hands to retract with a hiss. You waited for the temperature to correct itself and tried not to scratch at the pain.
Abigail didn’t want you meeting her family. Larissa could spend a week with them and you couldn’t even have dinner. You always knew they were a little closer. How could they not be when you barely put any effort into the friendship? They may have been your best friends, but today you realized you weren’t theirs.
That was okay, you told yourself. You would do better.
You looked up into the mirror as you scrubbed your hands. A crack cutting diagonally down it you hadn’t noticed before. How poorly were these restrooms maintained?
The door swung open.
“—almost punched Ralph McLaggen in the middle of Diagon Alley! Over her? Can you—“
The Slytherin girl from Potions cut off abruptly as her gaze met yours in the mirror. The one who loved to tell people about your torrid affair with Slughorn. You’d have to remember her name eventually. 
Her grin was sickly sweet. “You looked great at the Minister’s ball.”
“Thanks, but,” you said, matching the acidic tone. “I don’t remember seeing you there?” Then you laughed, shaking your hands dry and turning to see her now scowling face. “Oh right, you must have seen me in the paper! I’d almost forgotten.” 
You walked to the door, eyebrow raised expanctly at her friend who still stood in its way. She squeaked out an apology before moving aside. “Well lovely to see you, Judith. Hope your holiday went well.” Maybe you didn’t have to learn her name.
Dumbledore wasn’t at the welcoming feast. It wasn’t unusual. Since First Year he’d been in and out of class aiding in the fight against Grindelwald. But you felt the absence more now. You’d wanted to talk to him about Warrick. 
There were eyes on you. More than usual it seemed. You kept your back to the Slytherin’s table. 
Abigail had recovered, at least. 
Her smiles were warm again as conversation swirled at the table around the next Quidditch match. Ravenclaw had only had one match the previous semester and it left them at an advantage, same as Slytherin and it was expected the match would be tense. You listened attentively as some of the team’s players explained how many points they’d need to rack up to gain the lead. It surprised you how attentively they listened when Larissa started dissecting Slyhterin’s weaknesses and strengths. Her insight was, well, insightful. 
“We’ve got the pitch on Thursday, you’ll be there?” Erin Lockhart, this year’s captain, asked her as you all made your way back to the tower. 
Larissa’s face was bright. “Haven’t missed one yet, have I?”
It was past midnight when the three of you finally clambered up the stairs to your dormitory. Normal. A truly normal night. Not a mention of engagements or wars or stalkers. Filled instead with Quidditch and school worries and silly little jokes. So many new things noticed about people you’d known for years. Funny how that can happen when you’re not existing solely in your own head.
Larissa was giggling about how good Henry Higginbottom’s hair looked when she stopped abruptly after opening the door. You thought maybe the ladies at Twilfitt and Tattings had outdone themselves and delivered early, but a melodic chirping drowned it out.
On your bed, in a rather large and intricate gilded cage, was Ravenclaw’s emblem. A Golden Eagle.
Their eyes were such a familiar shade of brown. 
“When did you get an eagle?”
“I didn’t.” You felt cold. “I’ll take my chances with whatever gilded cage awaits me rather than whatever crate you’re offering.” Could Tom never stop with his fucking metaphors?
Abigail was the one to investigate. She plucked an envelope from the bed, turning it over. Your name was on the front in familiar handwriting and an even more familiar teal seal.
Of course Azar was still doing Tom’s bidding.
Anger seized as you took the letter she handed over. Blood splatters marred the parchment.  
Found her in Astrid’s owlery. 
A likely story.
Apparently she’d been there a while and now she seems a bit confused about what she is. Thought getting her out of there was for the best,
You scoffed. Of course he would decide what he thinks best.
but the dungeons aren’t a good place for her. She needs to spread her wings. 
One thing he wasn’t wrong about. 
I know Selene said no to getting you an owl, but she never said no to an eagle.
He remembered that? It’d been years since you’d asked. 
Dippet was happy enough to approve her as a pet for you. Unsurprisingly, you’re one of his favorites.
It was a surprise to you.
She prefers hunting for herself, so she won’t be a bother. She’ll even take the post for you. You’ll have to give her a name though. Our aunt only ever called her örnen.
That sounded like Aunt Astrid.
Sinc Love,
Uggy Az
P.S. There’s no excuse. I’m sorry.
P.P.S. She was perfectly tame until I put her in the cage. You’ll get along well, I think. 
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The anger had dissipated by the end. Not gone entirely, but less. You still weren’t convinced it wasn’t some new trap laid, but for now you’d let it be what it seemed. A sincere apology. Those were so rare.
“Uggy Az?” Larissa questioned, reading the letter over your shoulder.
“It’s what I called Azar when I was really little. It was supposed to be Uncle Az.” You reached for the latch, pulling the door open. “Mum hated it cause it sounded like I was calling him an ugly ass.” Cautiously the bird stepped out, stretching her wings and legs. She was beautiful.
You knelt at the end of the bed and she met you there. This close you could see the gold speckled throughout her eyes. When you reached your hand forward, she bent her head and let out a chirp at the contact.
“What should we name her?” you asked, stroking her.
“Princess?” Larissa offered before her face immediately went sour and shook her head. “She needs something more classical. Aethon?” 
That made you shudder. Would that make you Prometheus? 
Abigail’s fingers joined yours to stroke the brown feathers. “How about Drein?”
The eagle let out another chirp.
“You like that?” you asked. “Drein?”
She chirped again and seemed to nuzzle against your hand. 
“Well,” Larissa laughed, joining you and Abigail in your affections to the bird, “Drein it is.”
Sweat covered you as you shot up from bed. A nightmare. You couldn’t remember much beyond explosions, screams, and a hand around your throat.
The hands of the clock pointed to a quarter past five. Too early to start the day and too late to try to sleep. Not that you’d be able to sleep anyways.
Drein stirred from her perch atop your wardrobe when you moved. It was odd how comforting it was when her eyes followed you to your desk. Being watched by a predator was normally so unsettling, but for once you didn’t feel like prey.
You took a piece of parchment and your quill and began to write. It wasn’t right. You scratched it out and started again. Still wrong. Dashed through the new sentences and tried again. No. 
Curiosity got the best of Drein, her wings fluttering softly as she landed on the edge of the desk. Her head cocked as you ripped off the bottom, bare part of the parchment.
Why? You wrote. Your quill hovered for a moment more. I miss you. A few tears landed on the parchment before you wiped away the rest. Drein crept forward, pushing her head against your hand.
“Can you do me a favor?” you ask her. She blinks. “Take this to my brother.”
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Drein had returned by that night. There was no reply. A week passed. Days that weren’t quite bad, but exhausting. 
Transfiguration was the easiest. An essay to write from the substitute instead of hands-on practice. Astronomy. History of Magic. Ancient Ruins. Herbology. Ancient Studies. Arithmancy. Potions. Care of Magical Creatures. None of them required a wand often. 
But Charms and DADA?
Horrible.
Abigail thought you were sick. First you fainted and now you were struggling in class? You’d gone and gotten checked just to ease her concern. You weren’t sure how no one noticed the crack in your wand, but you powered through. It did seem to work a little better as the days passed. Less resistant. A few more days, maybe a week or two, and it would be fine. Like nothing happened.
Whispers followed as they always did. Some with pity, but more with glee. You’d walked into a room more than once to be greeted with hurriedly hushed voices. Thankfully your housemates were more akin to pity.
Saturday afternoon you sat alone in the common room, where you’d been since after breakfast. It was a dreary day outside, but you couldn’t pull your attention away from the window. There wasn’t anything else to do. Abigail had left for some Divination project she had to work on with a Gryffindor and Larissa was serving a detention she’d gotten the last day of last semester. Abraxas had planned to visit, but something had come up and he postponed for Sunday. Homework was done and you didn’t feel like tracking anyone down to occupy time. 
Why hadn’t Warrick written you back?
A very nasally, high pitched noise came from beside you, breaking your concentration. Myrtle Warren stood there, nose high in the air. She held out a folded piece of parchment. “Avery asked me to give this to you?”
Your eyebrow shot up. Myrtle was muggleborn. Azar didn’t like interacting with that sort, let alone entrusting them with anything.
She cleared her throat again impatiently and wriggled the note.
With a muttered thanks, you took it. She still stood there. It simply read: Library?
“He told me to wait for a yes or no. Wants me to walk with you there for some reason if you say yes. Very odd, I think, but he’s paid me ten galleons just to bring this, and it’ll be another twenty once I get back to him with an answer.”
Ten galleons just to get you a note. Thirty in all to get an answer. And an escort. 
“Was there anyone with him?”
She shook her head. “No, he was all alone. Just like you. And me.” She shrugged. “Probably why he asked me.”
Azar must be hoping to apologize in person. There hadn’t been any chance to catch you alone throughout the week. You’d ensured that. While Myrtle wasn’t your first option of a companion, she was better than nothing. And talking it out with Azar was better than staring out a window. You needed to thank him for Drein, too.
Myrtle was surprisingly patient. You’d had to put your things away up in your dorm and she waited without a single complaint. It was unlike her. She hadn’t gained the nickname Moaning Myrtle for nothing. 
It was probably the promise of galleons that kept her so quiet  as you walked down the staircases.
“Do you mind if we stop by the restroom?” she asked as you landed on the second floor.
Had she not been so patient before, you’d have said no. But she had been. So you relented, eyeing the staircase wistfully and hoping she’d be quick. You wanted to see Azar. Know if it had been real.
Her favors weren’t over. “Could you check if there’s anyone in here? I don’t like an audience.”
You fought the urge to roll your eyes and did as requested. It was empty, thankfully. “All clear,” you called from the end of the stalls. 
“Well that is very,” Myrtle’s voice changed, the nasally high whine turning deep, honeyed, and unmistakable, “convenient.” 
You twisted, wand in hand, to witness as Myrtle’s face bubbled. Her robes stretched to accommodate the added height and width, its blue yellowing to green, Ravenclaw’s emblem contorted into Slytherin’s. You’d meant to Stupify him, but nothing came. A red jet of light shot from his. With horror, your grasp on your wand loosened involuntarily and it shot from your hand. He caught it effortlessly.
“I’m not here to fight,” Tom said evenly. He eyed your wand, surveying the damage. “Not that it seems you’d be able to put up much of one.” 
“Fuck you,” you hissed, despite the pounding in your ears. 
He smiled. “I have missed your quick wit.” When you said nothing, he sighed. “I wanted to apologize.”
You repeated, “Fuck you.” 
“That’s fair.” Your wand clattered on the floor as he threw it back. “I deserve worse.”
You don’t move. You consider it for half a second, hand tensing to reach for your wand, but you don’t. It’s useless.
“I didn’t understand how horrific what I did was. But I do now. And I’m sorry.”
Lies. Lies lies lies lies lies.
“I don’t want your apologies. They don’t mean anything. You regret nothing. You understand nothing!” Your voice rose, angry panic outpacing your ability to quell it. 
“Forgiveness will take time, I know. I’ll be patient.”
Tears seared your cheeks. “Forgiveness?” you questioned. “Forgiveness for what, Tom? For—for trying to kill me? For stalking me? For ruining my life?” Yanking the Malfoy heirloom from your finger, you held it up. “I only have this,” you threw it, aiming for his frozen face that didn’t even flinch and missing by a yard, “because of you. If you’d have left me alone, none of it would have happened. You took everything. And for what? What has it gotten you in the end?” Your arms were shaking as you gestured to the lavatory he’d trapped you in. “Downing polyjuice to corner me here and listen to me tell you that I hate you.”
Quaking shoulders. Terrified and angry and devastated. “Why can’t you just leave me alone?”
“I don’t know.”
It came out so soft, yet the words thundered in your head. He’d been so confident months ago. Spewing nonsense about power and freedom and breaking traditions. Now he stood there and said he doesn’t know why he continues to torment you?
“You don’t know?”
Cracking sounds reverberated against the walls.
“You don’t fucking know?”
Glass shards fell to the floor as the mirrors over the sinks shattered. 
You crumbled.
Your thoughts & reblogs are always appreciated 💕
HP Tag List: @bamboozledflamplant @squishytomatoes @benonlinear @byelannie @itsccc
Venomous Tag List: @pearlsofme @fck-this @ambria @sheeple @strangunddurm @weirdowithnobeardo @emberenchanted
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manias-wordcount · 1 year
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If Only For a Moment (Yoichi Isagi x Reader)
𝗔/𝗡: 𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗮𝗯𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗼𝘁
𝙒𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚? ⇒ 𝙈𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩
𝙟𝙤𝙞𝙣 𝙢𝙮 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙚𝙧?
𝙗𝙪𝙮 𝙢𝙚 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙚?  
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“Yoichi…”
 A scared murmur. A wide-open field ahead of you. No teammates. No enemies. No coaches or refs or spectators or anyone else but you and him. And you’re not sure this is quite the place you belong. Yet…
 “You’re going to be okay. Just do everything we practiced, and it’ll be fine.”
 …he insists on you being here. If only for a moment.
 Your boyfriend looks up at you from his spot a few feet away, a soccer ball now neatly placed on the field. In an instant, you’re met with a soft smile and kind eyes. It’s the most encouraging look he could give you. The most encouraging look anyone could ever give you. Dressed in his practice uniform, he stands tall. He looks disciplined. Powerful, even. It’s just another reminder of what you see every time you visit him during practice or watch him during a match. That this is where he belongs. This is where he shines. A cool sense of confidence. A strong sense of purpose. He has it all here on this big, green field. And as much as you appreciate his desire to get you further involved with his passion, you’re not totally in love with the idea of actually playing with him.
 “Yoichi, you told me like a hundred things!” You frowned at him, crossing your arms over your chest. While you have to admit, it was pretty nice having him stand so close and hold you as he would teach you all the right moves and correct your form, it still doesn’t change the way soccer intimidates you. You’ve watched countless matches where someone got seriously hurt on the pitch while cuddled up in Isagi’s arms. And while you trust your boyfriend wouldn’t do anything to get you hurt, those horrible, injury-filled matches are enough to keep you hesitating. Besides… “ And I’m not even wearing the right shoes!”
 He only takes a glance down at your modest pair of loafers before returning his gaze back to you and giving you an innocent shrug. You huff, and he smiles that same smile he gave you when he first convinced you to learn how to kick a ball properly. It’s the type of smile that makes your cheeks continue to warm ever after you adverted your gaze. And now you’re stuck playing with the sleeves of your high school’s uniform blazer, heavily debating on whether or not this is a chance you really want to take. A chance you’re capable of taking. 
 And because you and he both know that neither of you are capable of going down without a fight, he lets out a sigh, catches your gaze once more, and goes for one last, final push.
 “One kick.” He tries gently, bargaining with you for the umpteenth time today. Dark blue eyes meet yours with a look so soft and sweet it has your face twisting up in a pout instead of a frown. When he says it like that, your fears start to disappear. If only for a moment. When he says it like that, your hopes start to grow. If only for a moment. When he says it like that, you realize that could be something that you want too. “Just one. I know you can do it. I just need you to realize that too.”
If only for a moment. But sometimes…
 “Okay…I’ll do it. I’ll try.”
 A moment is all that you really need.
 He lets out a cheer, his excitement for you visibly growing. It gives you an extra ounce of courage- something you hold onto as you prepare to take the shot. He takes a few steps back from the ball, giving you more space to make your approach- that great big, bright smile of his still on his face. As he moves position, you try not to let yourself become hyper-aware of just how far away the goal is from where the ball is planted. You don’t quite have the eye for measuring distances on the fly that he perfected over the years, but you know you’re not quite in a spot that makes it easy for someone to half-ass it. To try to get by on beginners' luck. 
 He wants you to try. To put your all in this one moment. To put your all into this one kick.
 And this moment? It makes you think of your days when you were younger- just a little middle schooler and elementary school child trying to make it through your gym classes. It makes you think of just how different those moments felt compared to here and now. There were more than a few times when you attempted to clumsy root a soccer ball into a goal. But none of them felt like this.
  Even though you were alone out here with Isagi, there was pressure that came with the fact that you were older. More coordinated than a tiny child. Smarter than a little kid. The stakes felt high. Even though the one person who was watching you take this shot tells you ‘I love you’ before you fall asleep each night, there’s still a desire to prove yourself. To this wide-open field. To this seasoned player in front of you. To yourself.
 And so, the steps begin to echo in your mind- all repeating in one voice. His voice.
 “Start by taking a few steps back.”
 You do. Not too far, but just enough to give you a couple of seconds of speed. You know you can’t afford to hesitate in this moment. So you tell yourself you won’t. You’ll ignore the feeling of your loafers on your feet, and you’ll try to imagine them as sneakers. You’ll ignore the fear in the back of your mind, and you’ll try to imagine it as bravery. And you’ll ignore the way your heart is starting to beat so, so fast- because you had already lifted up a leg and began to make your approach.
 “Remember to lock your ankle, alright? It’ll help you control the ball.”
 You do. You do remember to lock your ankle. It’s the step you had the most trouble with. Understanding and visualizing it came with some difficulty. Practicing and perfecting it came with many hardships. But as you close in on what little distance remains between you and the ball, you manage to do it- you manage to do it right. The ankle of your dominant foot begins to lock, preparing, preparing, preparing for more to come.
 “Shoot with the top of your foot. Right where the laces would be. Never use your toes”
 You do. Even though this was one of the steps that sounded so much easier on paper, You find a way to angle your foot. For a second, your mind thinks about what would happen if you land it wrong. All the things you could break. All the parts of your foot you could even up hurting in this one moment. But before you know it, you’re ready to make contact. You’re about to make contact. The ball sits steadily right next to your steady planter foot- ready to support you in any way that it could. And just you and it. You and the ball. Your vision narrows. Time slows down. Your body speeds up. You’re seconds away. Mere moments. From kicking the ball. From taking the shot. 
 From being the best striker in the world.
 “And the most important part? I just want you to give it your all for me, okay? That’s all I need you to do.”
 If only for a moment.
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You Can Hear It in the Silence | Chapter 1
Could this be a series starting?? Perhaps...  (I’ve not done a series in like a decade so wish me luck) Hope you all enjoy :) 
I genuinely spent like 2 and a half hours stressing over the title and a line in this haha. But - Let’s go!
Kindness is appreciated :)
Chapter 2
Summary: Tom and Peach meet for the first time. (Set in the same universe as Fixed Up)
Warnings: Drunkness and insecurity. 
Pairing: Tom Kazanksy x Gender Neutral Reader
Word count: 1,544
You weren’t exactly in your habitat. Your friend had dragged you to the O club insisting that you each meet someone there as it where all the ‘pretty navy men’ go, despite reminding her that you held no interest in a one night stands or picking someone up from a bar. 
It didn’t take long for Alice to start flirting with someone at a booth and so you were sat at the bar. Mindlessly sipping on a drink and ripping into a napkin, causing a little fringe, you can see someone place their drink next to you.
“Forgive me for saying,” A voice says and you look up to see a man in a naval uniform resting his elbow on the table “you don’t seem like you belong here.”
You can’t help but snort as you finish your drink, “What gave you that idea?” You smile
“Well, the state of your napkin is an indicator.” He’s grinning slightly “Bored?”
“Just a tad.”
“What can I get you to drink?”
“There’s no need for that.” You comment shaking your head.
“Please, at least let me make this place a little more bearable.”
Just looking at him was making the evening better. He was beautiful. So if he was kind enough to try and make you smile by buying you a drink, you should let him.
“My choice is kind of wild.”
“I’m sure I can handle it.”
“A big ol’ apple juice.”
“Woah,” He smiles.
“Feeling fancy tonight. Still think you can handle it?”
A smirk comes to his face and his weight shifts as he leans in slightly, “No question.”
You feel a light blush come to your cheeks as he turns to the bar tender and requests another drink for each of you.
“So, what does bring you here?” He asks
“My friend,” You say nodding your head over to where she was sat next to another Naval man.
“Wanted to see the pretty Navy guys and didn’t want to go alone. But as soon as she found someone..kinda left. But it’s fine, I don’t mind looking out for her.”
“You’re a good friend.”
“I try to be.” You say with a slight shrug taking your new drink and having a sip “Don’t like the thought of her being here alone.”
You see him glance at Alice again, was he liking her too? Was that what was happening? He came to you first to see if he could get with her?
“Hollywood’s a good man.”
“Hollywood?”
“His callsign, as a pilot.”
Your mouth makes an ‘o’, “Are you a pilot?”
“Sure am.” His grin gets slightly more cocky, “Here for training for Top Gun.”
“Is that the training school? Think I’ve heard a few people talk about it.”
“Yeah, only the top 1% get in.”
“I see.” You look him in the eye, he was clearly proud of the fact that he was in, but wasn’t cocky about it.  “What about you? What’s your call sign?”
“Iceman. Everyone calls me Ice.” He states with a confident grin as he straightens himself out, he smelt really good. 
“Why? Does your temperature run lower than everyone else’s? Like a lizard? That would be a cool name. Lizard.” You try to joke.
“I-no,” He says letting out a chuckle and you mentally face palm. Why did you say that? You were getting nervous.  “Ice cold. No mistakes,” He clarifies.
“That’s quite a nickname to live up to.”
“Seem to be so far.”
You fiddle with your shirt, attention like this was rare and you weren’t sure how to act, was he flirting? Just being nice? Were you acting the correct way?
Your thoughts are cut short by what seems to be a spontaneous act of karaoke, you lift off your chair slightly to try and take a peak, “What on earth?”
You hear an irritated sigh from Ice, “Maverick’s trying to impress one of the women here.”
“Oh” You say with a little smile and then turn to him, “You don’t think it’s a good idea?”
“I think there’s better ways to get someone interested, or to show your interest.” He notices the slight dazed look in your eyes “Things like that are unnecessary.”
“Yeah, true. But I-“ You cut yourself
“Go on.” He says resting against the bar fully and taking another sip.
“I suppose there’s a small romantic part of me that think it’s nice? Like proudly showing how attracted you are  or that you care for someone. I know it’ll be embarrassing for a lot of people. And objectively it’s probably not be a good idea, unless you really know the person. I think I’ve just watched and read too many romances.”
“I can almost guarantee you that Mitchell is not doing that to be romantic.”
“Well... there’s that too I suppose.” You say with a light laugh 
His eyes search yours, curious. “Would it work on you?”
“Probably not. I think I’d be worried about annoying other people in the area” You laugh  “ I think I’d also assume they were joking.”
He licks his lips and his brows furrow, “Why would they be joking?”
“You said it yourself. I don’t exactly look like I belong here. In fact you made a point of coming over here and telling me that.” 
“I didn’t mean it like that.” His fingertips are now gently touching the side of your hand, thumb gently rubbing your hand.
“Either way. I don’t come across as the most approachable here. So it’d just seem a bit random and odd. It’s fine.”
Ice looks at you for a moment before he goes to open his mouth, but is cut off by someone throwing their arms around you, causing you to laugh and spin round. Ice’s heart squeezes at the sight and sound.
“Hey,” You smile turning round “Everything okay?”
“Mhmm, got a pretty sailor’s number.” She says her words slurring slightly out of the corner of your eye you can see a heavy arm around Ice’s shoulder as he’s asked a very (non) serious question and turns his attention. You turn your attention back to Alice,
“Yeah?”
“Yep, his name’s Rick and he wants to take me out for a date.”
“That’s nice, Alice. What are you doing over here?”
“The sailors are bringing down the mood.” She pouts “So he promised to take me somewhere quieter tomorrow.” Alice sighs with a dreamy smile on her face, “Wanna go now? I’m bored.”
You look at ‘Ice’ in your peripheral who’s still in deep conversation.
“Yeah, okay Al. Let’s go.” You quickly finish your drink and stand, stretching your legs, the movement catching Ice’s attention, you raise your hand awkwardly “Thanks for the drink, it was nice meeting you.”
“My absolute pleasure, it was greet to meet you too. I’ll see you around.” He says with a smile and you nod in response and you turn to make sure you haven’t left anything, he goes to speak to you again, but unfortunately is distracted.
“Goose!” He hisses at the liquid spill over the counter and turns back round to see the pilot pulling a face and holding his hands up in apology, “Calm down would ya?” He goes to turn back to you to apologise, but his face drops at the empty spot. He didn’t even know your name. He briefly stretches up to see if he could see you, but is without luck.
This was probably for the best. He told himself, when he arrived at Top Gun that he wouldn’t be pursuing anything romantically.
That didn’t stop the frown on his face being there for the rest of the evening though.
 --
“Sooo,” Alice said eyes wide and tugging on your arm.
“’Sooo’ what?” You reply, eyebrows raised
“That guy you were talking to!! What’s his name? Did you get his number?”
“Oh.. I don’t know his name. He just said people called him ‘Ice’.” You reply “And I didn’t get his number, nor did I give him mine.” You add on when she opens her mouth.
Alice’s bottom lip sticks out, “Why not?”
“Because I didn’t want to assume anything. He probably would’ve asked if he wanted it, not sure if he was interested like that anyway. Once his friends were over he was focused on them. Think he was just being nice because someone left me alone.”
“You said you don’t mind!” Alice’s bottom lip is stuck out.
“And I don’t. But it would be nice for us to change it up a bit, we’re both so busy with work, Al.”
“I’ll make it up to you,” She promises, walking backwards and you have to reach out to steady her “We’ll do something, soon. And it’s not as though we never do anything together.”
“I know,” you smile “I’m just being dramatic. I think I’m just bored of bars.”
“…maybe if you had a nice guy you could chat to…? One that you were speaking too…”
“Alice!” You laughed incredulously “What do you expect me to do? Go back in there? Flirt and ask for his number? ”
“Yes!”
“No!”
You sling an arm around her shoulders, “I’m sure I’ll find someone at some point, it’s not as though he’s the love of my life is it?”
You can read Chapter 2 here
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atonalginger · 3 months
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WIP Wednesday
Thanks for the tag @fangbangerghoul! I don't have much but I've got a chunk from a short fic I'm writing with Lila, Sam, and Goose! They were too much fun to not go back and see what they're up to!
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It had been Goose’s idea to rebuild the Bitter Angel. The War Bard was a powerful ship but it was near impossible to sneak up on anyone with its pastel blue paint job and 40m frame. She’d served well in the battle for the Key and Toilman but they weren’t fighting in the war anymore. They were pirates and needed something zippier and subtler than the Bard.
It was Lila’s idea to use a busted up UC transport they’d stolen during the Toilamn conquest as the base for the new Bitter Angel. It already had some of the parts, including the armory, landing bay, and rear landing gears. The landing gears needed repairs but Jazz’s team could manage that.
Sam was the one who pitched the idea of custom habs for the new Bitter Angel. Nothing crazy, just more personalized spaces for longer jobs. Sam and Lila took a Hopetech captain’s quarters and gutted it, leaving only the water closet intact. They installed a large bed in the back of the hab with a sliding divider to close it off for added privacy. A pair of corner couches and a L-shaped desk formed a more physical barrier in the hab to separate the bed from the living space. Goose swapped the Nova all-in-one of the old Bitter Angel for his own room. He picked a Hopetech captain’s quarters as the base, though like his parents he had it gutted save for the water closet. The back half of his hab looked like a computer core with a wall of servers and monitors and a L-shaped desk to separate the back from his sleeping area. He installed a Murphy bed along the inner wall of the hab with a large monitor mounted on bottom frame to be watched from his couch when the bed was up.
“That’s quite the view,” Lila said from the pilot seat. She was leaned forward to look around the blind spots of the chunky bridge frame, “I don’t think I could design a more aggressive docking situation if I tried.”
“That was the point,” Sam was leaning on the seat, “no time for finesse when you’re raiding someone.”
“Yes but from here it looks like the bridge would slam into the mark,” Lila looked back at Sam and Goose, “not to mention you can’t see shit from here. Hopetech really seems to hate pilots being able to see anything.”
“It’s not that bad,” Goose said with a laugh, “plus she’s squirrelly so if you can’t see just tap the stick.”
“Could be worse, could be trapped in a Stroud cockpit, “Sam poked her shoulder, “all that room and one narrow line of windows to see.
“I suppose,” Lila swatted Sam’s hand away as he continued poking her, “You two can have fun flying her, sitting here is tying my stomach in knots.”
“Really?” Goose said in astonishment.
“Yes this cockpit is claustrophobic,” Lila stood up and made her way back through the narrow fuselage, “I might be ancient but I’ve never fully shook the ol’ Terra Firma Syndrome. Why else do you think I like big ships?”
“But you’d said space travel didn’t bother you anymore?” Goose asked.
“Correct,” she leaned against the clean white padding of the fuselage, “but being in a tiny space inches from the void with nothing but a cluster of dinky windows to shield me is too much.” She turned and left the two men in the small bridge, hopping down to the lower level, an echoing thump as she landed on the closed floor hatch to the workshop at the bottom of the ship.
Sam itched his chin, digging at the growing beard. He still wasn’t sure if he was going to keep it, it’s been years since he’d gone more than a few days shaving. Lila liked him either way, though he noticed she was fussing from the scratchy stubble. He’d probably end up shaving it again, if only to escape the itchiness.
He’d only started growing it out because of Goose. The now 18 year old young man wanted to grow out his facial hair but was getting discouraged so Sam agreed to grow his out in solidarity. So far Goose had a decent disconnected goatee going; the hair on his upper lip, chin, and lower lip had grown in thick. He wanted a full beard but the hair got patchier up his jawline and he started shaving it to not get teased by folks around the Key.
Sam watched Goose check over the systems, recalibrating them just like they did with the old Angel. His hair looked feral with the two years worth of grow-out curling every which way. Lila had convinced him shortly after the fight for the Key, when he was still recovering from his injuries, to let her trim all the fried ends from his hair. He hadn’t bleached or dyed his ginger hair since, his curl pattern free to take over. Both Sam and Lila had encouraged Goose to style it in some way, to keep it out of his face, even just run a comb through it to tidy it up but Goose seemed to like it messy and unkempt so there wasn’t much they could do.
At least he bathes and wears deodorant, Sam thought as he lowered himself into the pilot seat. He had a leg up on most his pirate peers with that. Sam flipped on the ship intercom, “if you’ve got any business with the Key say something now, otherwise we’re outta here.”
Lila’s voice bounced up through hatch and down the fuselage, “Let’s bust this joint!”
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uchiwife · 5 months
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𝗦𝗜𝗟𝗩𝗘𝗥 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗧𝗛𝗦, 𝗚𝗢𝗟𝗗𝗘𝗡 𝗟𝗜𝗘𝗦.
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『“I give my all now, can't you see. Why won't you set me free? You got power, you got power, you got power over me.
You're the one that seduced me, lured me in with your beauty. Now I know that you used me, all you did was confuse me.You're no longer what I need, touch me slow, feel my heart bleed.”』
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Pairings: Haruno Sakura/Uchiha Itachi, Haruno Sakura/Hidan
Tags: modern au, heavy angst, attempt at humor, light fluff, established relationships.
Warnings: toxic relationships, gaslighting, verbal abuse, verbal humiliation, emotional infidelity, cheating, self-esteem issues, implied/referenced domestic violence, implied sexual content, panic attacks, Hidan swears, etc.
Word count: 3,427.
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Sakura wasn't noisy, at least not when she was trying to sneak out as she was currently trying to do. She'd woken up with a rush of panic when she'd realized what time it was and that she wasn't supposed to be here. Sakura would have liked to say that she was agile and could get out of any tight spot, but that wasn't quite true. The young woman could be cruelly clumsy. In fact, it was this clumsiness that had caused her to stub her big toe on the bedside table.
“Ouch.” she grumbled under her breath.
“Sakura?” called a voice. It sounded sleepy and husky. She heard him more than she saw him move in the bed, probably because of the rustle of the sheets. She risked a glance over her shoulder and her heart skipped a beat. ”Where are you going?”
She shouldn't have looked. He was terribly attractive in the morning light. His raven locks fell before his eyes, slightly disheveled after their night together, and the sheet hid only his modesty, so she was free to admire his bare torso and the little hickey just above his collarbone. If her eyes went any lower.... ahem. She'd better not. She'd been completely distracted from her original plan.
“Huh... Home?”
“Won't you stay for breakfast?”
“I'm sorry, I can't. I won't have time. I have to go home, shower and change, I have an appointment this morning.”
“ I can drive you home, if you like? Wait, just let me...” He made a move to get up, but Sakura stopped him short.
“NO!” he seemed surprised by her outburst, she flushed, correcting herself: “Sorry. I mean, no, thank you. I don't want to bother you.”
“I don't mind, angel. I wouldn't have offered otherwise.”
“That's sweet, really, but don't worry,” she replied, flustered by the pet name. It wasn't the first time she'd heard it, but it always gave her butterflies in her stomach.
He frowned. She was weird this morning, in fact, now that he thought about it, she was often weird once morning came. He sat on the edge of the bed and reached out to grab her hand and draw her between his legs. He placed a kiss on her belly and felt her shiver in response. He smiled. So responsive. Sakura's hands reflexively clung to his shoulders.
“Are you sure you're okay? You know you can talk to me if you have a problem.”
She nodded and he felt her fingers brush against the nape of his neck, then she slid them into his hair. Her touch light and gentle. He closed his eyes, savoring the sensation, “I know, but I'm fine, love, I promise. I just don't like being late.”
“Hm. What kind of appointment is it anyway?”
“Oh. It's…” she seemed to think for a moment, which was odd too. Why would she forget an appointment she seemed so eager to go to? “The gynecologist.”
He arched an eyebrow at that. “Ah. So you're going to show my pussy to someone else?” he teased. It didn't fail. Sakura slapped him on the shoulder in retaliation, but couldn't hide her blush.
“Itachi!” she scolded him, mortified and scandalized.
He chuckled. “Just kidding.” well, half-joking... Her pussy really was his after all. He'd proved that fact last night. And at other times, in other sometimes incongruous places, but that's another story...
“You're crazy.” she pouted.
“Aa. Crazy in love.” he nestled his nose against her body, loving the smell of her and the feel of her fingers in his hair.
And there it is again; that feeling. The one that makes her heart beat a little faster, but also fills her with a dreadful guilt.
“You have to tell him.”
“I can't.”
“He'll find out one day. It's better if he finds out from you.”
“Angel?”
“Sorry, what?” She blinked, returning to the present, but the guilt still weighed on her. Itachi watched her with concern. She hadn't even noticed that he'd stood up and that his hand was caressing her cheek.
“What's wrong, Sakura?”
“I—”
♪ 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘪𝘯'𝘵 𝘯𝘰 𝘭𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘺 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘳𝘩𝘺𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘩 ♪
♪ 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘺, 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘦 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘥 ♪
♪ 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘪𝘯'𝘵 𝘯𝘰 𝘴𝘺𝘮𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘺 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘦 ♪
♪ 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘺, 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘦. ♪
She looked down at her cell phone, whose sudden ringing caught her attention. She turned livid as she saw the name of the incoming call on the screen, which worried Itachi even more.
“I'm sorry. I have to take this call. It's important.”
“What? No, wait, we were talking.”
“it's really important!” she quickly pecked his lips in apology and left to lock herself in the adjoining bathroom.
She took a deep breath then pressed the "pick up" button.
“Fucking finally! What took you so long to pick up?”
She winced at the harsh tone. “Sorry. My phone was in my bag, I didn't hear it.” She lied.
“Where are you?”
“Huh... not home.”
He scoffed, “No shit? Why the fuck aren't you home?”
Sakura felt her heartbeat quicken and a knot form in her stomach. Her fingers tightened on her phone. "I'm on my way... I needed to run a quick errand.”
“At 8am?” snapped the voice. “You think I'm stupid? I bet last night you went out with that blonde bitch again.”
“Ino isn’t a bitch! Don't talk about her like that!”
He sneered, "That's funny. I didn't say her name and yet you know exactly who I'm talking about. You know I hate it when you hang out with that loser. She's a bad influence on you.”
It wasn't the first time Sakura had felt anger. She hated that he spoke so badly of her best friend. Ino was practically everything to her. He had no right!
“She's my best friend! And she's there for me when you...!” she paused suddenly, as if remembering where she was and who she was talking to,
“When I what? Go on, finish your sentence. I fucking dare you.”
She didn't reply. She didn't have time for this. Nor to deal with it. Least of all here. Especially not here. She was doing her best not to speak too loudly.
“Look, forget it. I'll be home soon.”
“Coward,” he spat. And as usual, he belittled her. She was so used to it by now.
“I don't want to argue, Hidan.”
“Then get your ass home.”
She ignored his vulgar words and said instead,
“I thought you weren't coming home until tonight.”
He snorted, “I finished earlier than expected.So imagine my fucking surprise when I came home only to find our bed empty and my girlfriend missing.”
She cast a quick, worried glance at the closed bathroom door. She had to leave. If Hidan found out where she was and with whom, he'd kill her for sure.
“I'm sorry…” She could only apologize, in fact, that was all she did, apologize. Even when it wasn't her fault. She preferred to avoid unnecessary conflict with Hidan. When he got angry, he could get violent, and she knew better than to provoke his anger.
“Are you now? And what are you going to do to make it up to me, eh?”
“Anything you want…” she replied in a small voice because she already knew what he would want. And the very idea repulsed her to the core.
And she was right, because she heard him laugh and she hated that laugh. It made her shiver and not in a good way. “Anything I want, hm?” He was probably running his tongue over his lips, already imagining the positions he'd take her in. Each more humiliating than the last.
“I think I want to fuck you and punish you, and not necessarily in that order, but mostly fuck you. So hurry back, you wouldn't want to upset me any more, do you, Dollface? Who knows, if you're a good girl, maybe you'll get a reward.”
“Hidan; I’m not…I haven't been feeling well lately, maybe we could postpone this for another time.” It was a poor excuse. But she had to try. She didn't want him to touch her. She'd managed so brilliantly to avoid intimacy with him so far.
“You're a selfish bitch, you know that!? Sometimes, I don't feel well either and yet I go to work to bring home money so you can buy your shit! Do you see me complaining? No! And what do I get in return? An ungrateful bitch who won't even blow me when I ask her to! Is this how you thank people who work their asses off for you, Sakura? Is my girlfriend going to be that ungrateful when her boyfriend is nothing but generous, hmm?”
He spat out the words "girlfriend" and "boyfriend" as if they were some vast parody. Each word was meaner than the last, and despite herself, she felt hurt. It wasn't long before tears blurred her vision. Her situation, this situation, was unbearable. He was mean, he abused her and insulted her incessantly whenever she had the misfortune to do one little thing wrong. Did he love her or was she just a trophy for him? Was she just a hole he could empty himself into whenever he felt like it, even when she didn't? He criticized her cooking, the way she cleaned the house, he even dared to criticize her studies and told her that if she'd failed her exam, it was because she wasn't smart and bright enough. And maybe it was true, part of her had come to believe it, but the other part was aware that it was because she was constantly under pressure. She lived in fear. Fear of saying the wrong thing and having her day ruined. By him. It was as if she were trapped in this relationship. She couldn't get out.
The first time she tried, he came back crying. He'd apologized profusely and said he had a problem but it wasn't his fault. That he was just like his asshole father and that he was sorry he'd hurt her. He'd even begged her, told her he loved her, that she was the woman of his life and that without her, he was nothing. That he would never lay a hand on her again.
He'd promised. He'd pursued her for weeks. Showering her with gifts and attention. And like a fool, she'd gone back to him. Forgave him. Because she loved him. When he wasn't being a monster, Hidan was the most loving man on the planet. At least, when she met him six years ago, that's how it was. Then, after a few years, everything turned upside down and her dream turned into a nightmare. Now, if she had the misfortune to be overzealous, as he called it, and if he was already angry because of his work or anything else to begin with, he could slap her and blame it on her. He'd say it was her fault because she'd pissed him off, that if she wasn't so annoying then he wouldn't have done anything. Once, he even accused her of not really loving him because she'd taken too long to forgive him for one of his countless screw-ups. That if she truly loved him the way he loved her, then she wouldn't be so "difficult". Perhaps the worst was when he called her crazy and told her she was overreacting. Yes, Hidan had become her living nightmare, but Itachi, oh, Itachi... he was her salvation.
Itachi.
Oh.
Oh.
She was in his house. In his bathroom. God. She had to get out of here!
“I... I have to go.”
“Oi you fucking cunt, don't you dare hang—!”
Too late. She'd hung up before she'd heard the end of his sentence. She'd pay for it later, she knew, but right now, she had to go. And quickly!
She wiped away her tears and unlocked the door, rushing outside but nearly stumbling as she collided with a muscular torso. Two arms steadied her on her feet. She raised her head slowly and her emerald eyes met his darker ones. She froze when she saw Itachi's cold, hard face. But there was something else too. Betrayal.
Her stomach dropped. He knows. Fuck, he knows. With a lump in her throat and tears in the corners of her eyes, she asked with a shaky voice:
“How much did you hear…?”
“How long have you been locked in the bathroom?” he replied, his tone sharp and to the point. She flinched.
“I... it's not…”
He laughed humorlessly, "What I think?”
“Please…”
He shook his head. “I'm only going to ask you this once, Sakura, and I hope you'll have the decency not to lie to my face.”
Her heart was about to explode. Fear gripped her. It was over. He was going to leave her. He was going to abandon her. He was going to…–
“Look at me.” She did. His voice was much softer than she'd expected, yet it remained firm. Emerald met onyx. She held his gaze as best she could, and it was the hardest thing in the world.
“Are you in a relationship? I'm the other guy, aren't I?” He seemed disgusted by the term itself. And how could he not be? She'd started an affair with him when she already had Hidan but it was so much more complicated than that.
And although she knew her world was about to crumble, she couldn't bring herself to lie to him. Not anymore. She didn't even notice that her tears had rolled down her cheeks as she nodded. “Yes…”
She was struck by the raw pain in Itachi's eyes. And that look. The disappointment in his eyes... the pain she was inflicting on him. It was killing her. He jerked away from her, but she clung to his shirt, surely he'd dressed at some point during her phone call. But who cared now? All she wanted to do was stop him from leaving.
“Please, hear me out! I... I can explain.”
“Sakura, let go.”
No! He refused to listen. He couldn't refuse to listen to her, he couldn't abandon her. He couldn't. Especially not him. She shook her head, gripped by a sudden panic, it was as if the air no longer reached her lungs. She couldn't breathe. Her vision was blurred by tears and all she knew was that she was clinging to Itachi as if her life depended on it.
His whole body tensed as she wrapped her arms around him. She disgusted him, didn't she? He couldn't stand her closeness anymore? She'd ruined everything. She was worthless. Hidan was right. She was pathetic and good for nothing. Her shoulders trembled, her body shaking with uncontrollable sobs.
“I love you. I l-love you. I love you s-so much. I c-can't imagine living in a w-world where you don't e-exist. I can't bear the thought of a l-life without your arms a-around m-me. I'm sorry, I'm so s-sorry. Please, Itachi. Please don't leave me. I can, I can explain e-everything to you, I know I don't deserve it, I know I don't deserve you. I know I'm n-nothing, but to me you're everything. I'll do anything for you. I'll do anything you want. So p-please let me, let me…” She could no longer speak or breathe. She was going to die, God, she was going to die. And why did she feel so numb? Why was she so hot all of a sudden?
“Ra... ! Sakura!” she felt someone shake her. She thought she heard Itachi's voice, but it seemed so far away. Why did he look so panicked and worried? He shouldn't be. He should hate her. He should let her die on the floor. That's all she deserved.
***
Itachi felt betrayed, his heart broken into so many pieces that he wasn't sure he'd ever be able to rebuild it. Sakura already had a man in her life. He was just her dirty little secret. Had she been lying all this time? What else had she lied about? Was that why she'd never introduced him to her friends? Or even her family? They hadn't been together for long; in fact they should have celebrated their one-year dating anniversary next month. And his world was suddenly turned upside down.
He'd always known there was something off with Sakura but he could never have imagined such a thing. He felt disappointed, but mostly hurt. Shit, he loved this woman. He was in love with her. He thought he was going to make a life with her. And now, all of a sudden, he finds out she's already with someone? He hadn't wanted to spy on her, he really hadn't but he'd been so worried about her and her behavior that he'd ended up eavesdropping.
It didn't take a genius to understand the context of this conversation. All he'd heard was Sakura's voice, but the sound must have been set pretty high, or her boyfriend – (his heart clenched painfully)– was shouting loud enough on the phone for him to catch a sentence or two.
She looked so small and fragile. He barely recognized her voice, it was familiar, but he thought he'd never felt her so... fearful. But of what? He'd always sensed this sensitivity in Sakura, but he'd never realized how much she could withdraw from the world when she seemed cornered.
And now, here they were. She was confessing to him that she was with another man. No, he was the "other man", he thought bitterly. It wasn't what he'd thought. Really? It was such a cliché.
“Sakura, let go.”
From that moment on, everything went to hell. He never thought he'd see so much panic in her eyes. Worse, she was scared. He'd even felt her flinch. Was she afraid... of him? The very idea twisted his guts. Yes, he was disappointed, he felt betrayed to the core and his heart bled so much it hurt, but never, NEVER would he hurt her. Even if he was in pain. He just wanted her to leave so he could calm down, think about the situation, maybe even cry, but that recoiling gesture she had, as if she'd feared he'd hit her.... It made him sick.
Every word was another blow to his heart. She looked so broken and desperate when she cried out her love to him. But something was wrong. She trembled and gasped for air. A feeling of panic rose in him. Shit! She was having a panic attack. A big one at that. He grabbed her by the shoulders, trying to pull her back to him, but to no avail. No matter how many times he called her name, she couldn't hear him. She sobbed loudly and clutched at her heart. His concern outweighed everything else.
He wrapped an arm around her and sat them down on the floor. He knelt before her and cupped her face.
“Sakura, listen to me. Focus on my voice. I need you to calm down. I need you to breathe. Breathe slowly. Can you do that for me?”
He spoke softly, his voice trying to be as soothing and calm as possible. He couldn't give in to his own panic. It wasn't going to help anyone. It was a little while before he noticed that his voice was finally reaching her. He rubbed circles against her back, attentive to her every reaction.
“Look at me, that's it. Focus on my voice. 1,2, Take a deep breath in. 3,4, breathe out. Again. Good. Breathe slowly, breathe for me, baby. It’s going to be okay. Just keep going.”
Sakura followed the sound of his voice, clinging desperately to his every word, his soothing tone. She was breathing for him. An eternity seemed to pass before she finally calmed down. Her eyelids were heavy. She felt so tired. Itachi whispered sweet nothings in her ear and stroked her back. She leaned lightly against him. He was strong. Solid. Reliable. He was her anchor.
“Stay... stay with me…” she murmured. Her eyelids grew heavier by the second. She even thought she felt Itachi's lips kiss her forehead and speak to her;
“I'm here. I'm not going anywhere. Rest, Angel. We'll talk when you wake up.”
“Promise?”
“Promise.”
And that was the last thing Sakura heard before surrendering to sleep. Oblivious to the world and to itachi carrying her to lie in bed.
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worriedvision · 1 year
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Oh!!!! Here’s a silly little idea, maybe an angsty story where reader is like, and adoptive kid of dottore’s or like an experiment he somehow got attached to, and they meet and become freinds with collei?
I think that they would be so silly and so sad, maybe reader looks up to collei as a big sister!!! Omg I’m already attached to the duo
Okay so this contains spoilers for the archon quest, gender neutral reader. Reader is going to be an adoptive kid of one of Dottore's clones. This landed up becoming more Tighnari centric, but Collei is the reader's friend and Tighnari's more of the father figure.
--
Your dad had shipped you to Sumeru, a location you have wanted to visit after hearing all about the forest life that was there. He explained that, due to work, he would be unable to join you and visit the areas you enjoyed the most. Your understanding of your fathers work was him working patients that needed treatment, and you thought the world of him. You never knew you biological parents, them seemingly dying before you can form a connection, and your dad said he took you in because your parents wanted him to do so.
Tighnari was informed of you, and he decided against kicking you out for association with the Fatui. You were travelling alone, your father telling you he trusted you enough not to get lost too easily. Of course, he kept a close eye on you due to his concern that this could be some facade you're putting on. Collei seemed drawn to you, and you both land up becoming good friends.
When you get informed that your father 'extended your visit time for an unmentionable time', you were initially sad. You were looking forward to seeing your dad again, to enjoying his food and hearing about the patients he has saved. Collei sits with you, making you feel as welcome as she can. She understood that you missed your dad, and she heard many good things about your dad.
Tighnari, however, was working closely with the authorities.
See, when Dottore took the deal with Nahida, your father died. Nahida was the one who heard your father screaming out your name, begging Dottore not to hurt you in his experiments. She knew about you, her knowledge on Dottore connecting you.
He had to figure out how exactly to break the news. This wasn't easy. Dottore himself was still alive, but anyone with half a brain would figure out the real Dottore would use you for inhumane experiments. After a meeting with Alhaitham and Cyno, Alhaitham decides that he can break the news. Tighnari states Collei shouldn't be there for the news, letting you process the situation on your own terms.
--
"Your father is dead." Alhaitham states, Tighnari looking over in shock at the bluntness of the statement.
"No...No, that's not true." You retort. "Dad is alive!"
"He has died." Alhaitham states once again, Tighnari regretting the decision to let someone like Alhaitham break such devastating news.
"How are you feeling, _?" Tighnari softly asks, you shaking your head out of dissapproval.
"Dad is a good man! He helped so many people with treatment." You protest. "Dad can't be dead, he knows how to heal himself."
"Your father was a horrible man." Alhaitham coldly lets out, Tighnari nudging him harshly. "He took you away from your parents and used them for experimen-"
"That's not appropriate for this discussion, Alhaitham." Tighnari grits through his teeth.
"But dad told me...He was working on treatment." You weakly let out, trying to convince Alhaitham he was wrong. "Dad wouldn't do that to my parents." you croak out, Tighnari glaring at Alhaitham.
"He did." Alhaitham corrects, showing you the letters your parents sent out in an attempt to escape as well as the dates attached to them.
"But dad... Dad wouldn't..." You tear up. "My dad wouldn't do this to someone. I know my dad!"
"Alhaitham, that's enough."
"I think it's time they knew about their father. Nobody else thinks so nicely of him, and for good reason." Alhaitham tuts, getting up and leaving.
Tighnari looks over at you, seeing you in a mess as you're reading over the letters your parents sent out. The fact your name was there, and they had your date of birth correct. You read through them, morbid curiousity grabbing you as you read about how horrible your father was to those unlucky enough to not be you.
Your father never got permission to take you, and your parents were desperately trying to find you. They both landed up dying, a final letter from the Fatui mocking the people responding to these letters with a confirmation of death.
You run out, Tighnari hot on your heels as he gets a bad feeling about what you were going to do. By some poor luck, you both ran all the way to Dottore's getaway boat, him waiting there for you. Before you take another step, Tighnari grabs you and clamps a hand over your mouth to keep you quiet as he picks up on a whisper between two agents.
"Once that brat comes running, we'll get going." The agent states, Dottore nodding.
"Of course. I can never have too many experiments." Dottore chuckles. "That clone of mine was far too soft for my own liking, and that rat he's been keeping as a pet holds no value alive."
You start to shake, crying softly as Tighnari slowly lets his grip loose as he knew you wouldn't run off. Turning to face Tighnari, you look up at him with a mixture of negative emotions in your eyes before he pulls you in for a hug.
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