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xiao-come-home · 1 year

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How Genshin men wake up with you;

and spend their morning with you.

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✰ Characters: Kaeya, Diluc, Zhongli, Xiao, Itto, Ayato, Kazuha, Dainsleif, Alhaitham.

✰ Words: ~3,5k.

✰ SFW ; gn!reader, no mentions of pronouns. fluff.

Warnings: a lot of physical touch and kisses, reader is implied to have hair, ayato is a bit sus, kazu deserves the world, alhaitham makes kavehs life a bit difficult by choice. msg me to add more.

A/N: this is a sequel to How Genshin men sleep with you post, with two new characters added cuz it was fun to write :') a lot of alhaitham's morning routine is assumed because usually, id try to base it off canon, so yeah ;3;

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Kamisato Ayato:

as the Yashiro commissioner, he has to wake up pretty early. but... there's only one problem - Ayato hates it with passion. poor Thoma used to shake him awake every 15 minutes, at least three times. ayato would just swat his hands away, press his face into the pillow and sigh loudly, promising Thoma to get up in a few minutes. (he didn't)

now that you're living with your boyfriend, you share the same bed. which means a few things - he clings to you the entire night, your limbs are tangled together in the morning, and now you're the one in charge of getting him out of bed (Thoma almost cried in happiness). he annoyingly turns off the screaming alarm and snuggles back into you.

he has a habit of, quite literally - squishing his cheek against yours as he lies next to you. he also likes to nuzzle into your neck and grip you like a monkey that found the last banana in its vicinity. he hums at you and lies down with his eyes closed if you ask him questions or say anything. you can tell by the tone he hums with whether he agrees on something or not, but generally, that keeps him enough busy not to fall asleep again.

i can't stress this enough, he's ALL over you. if he's in his "cheek-against-cheek" mode, he literally cradles your other one with his palm. if his face is in your neck and you lie on your back, his fingers are intertwined with yours. the more awake he is, the more kisses are being placed by his lips.

he definitely requests breakfast in bed. at this point he's cuddled enough, so now he wants to feed you. literally. he picks up the food skillfully with his favorite chopsticks and carefully brings it to your mouth, "open up my love," he speaks in his usual, soft-spoken tone, but it's clear his morning voice is still there. "that's it, you're so good for me. is it good? would you like some more?" hmm..

just so you know: he wants you to feed him too and will pout and threaten (playfully) to go back to sleep if you don't. since he likes to sleep more, there aren't many activities you share in the morning; as a result, he cherishes the morning snuggle and sharing your first meal together a lot. Ayato is always curious to hear about your upcoming plans for the day - but he won't say no to lighthearted conversations either. he just really wants to hear your voice.

Arataki Itto:

listen. he either sleeps until 6am or 1pm. there's no in-between, sometimes he stays up all night or falls asleep on your lap on the couch as soon as he comes back home. no, he won't move.

it's hard to say whether he's a morning person - but probably not; he whines a lot into your hair when he has to wake up early and hasn't rested enough, babbling how dark it is outside and that you're too warm to let go of.

speaking of, he holds onto you in the mornings like his life depends on it - you have to work? no, no, no - just stay for a while longer, while he smushes your face right into his... um, prominent chest. you feel the warmth of his bare skin, his chin on top of your head, his large hands drawing invisible patterns of stars, clouds, or hearts under your pajama t-shirt; he sneaks a few kisses on your hair, humming in contentment when he feels you hug him back with your arm over his own hip.

he's totally willing to make you a nice meal before work though, and wake up earlier in the process. most of the time it ends up in absolute disaster and him taking twice as much time to clean it up. but... if you decide to make breakfast together, itto can actually cook up a nice meal (with "a little of your help"). while the preparations are done and the meal is almost ready to be served, the oni hugs you from behind and sways a little from side to side, nuzzling into your neck drowsily and trying not to drool on you.

generally, he's very touchy after waking up (as you can probably guess by now), so he wants to accompany you everywhere before you have to leave. he'll cuddle you before leaving the sheets, link your pinkies when you wait for the water to boil, go showering together, have his hand on your thigh if you do your makeup, attempt to help you with your makeup which might end up in very interesting results, and trying to mischievously steal some kisses just as you're about to leave.

Itto's hands cup your cheeks gently and he flashes you a boyish smirk; he leans in and connects your lips, purring as some of his unruly hair falls onto your shoulders. he always claims he "just wants to give his little sunshine a good luck kiss for the day," but in reality, he just wants to feel you real good before you depart for today. also, he really likes flavored lip glosses, and you keep buying them, so it's not his fault for giving in to your "devilish temptations"

Kaeya:

the bed is an absolute mess. the pillows are everywhere, his part of the duvet is barely covering him from the stomach down, and probably, he has one of his arms on your face.

it takes a while for him to fully wake up; once he opens his eyes just barely enough to see, he scans the room to make sure you're near him - and then he either gets up or decides to snuggle up to you, kiss your temple and go back to sleep for a bit more.

if it's a work day, he uses all his willpower (read: 30 alarms) to wake up earlier and just admire you. he likes to big spoon you and have his arm over your hip, gently grazing your hand with the pads of his fingers; Kaeya just can't get enough of the smell of your shampoo, of your warmth, of your presence.

before properly getting out of bed, he hovers above your sleeping form - it gives him butterflies to see you so peaceful; therefore, he always bends down and places a few butterfly kisses on your cheek with his pretty lashes. he chuckles lightly when he sees you stir in your sleep because of the interaction, so he gives your cheek a proper kiss and (unwillingly) leaves the warm bed.

just so you know - he WILL attempt to get in your pants if he has a day off. Kaeya's hands start to wander automatically as he kisses you awake (or at least attempts to), and if he feels like a little shiet enough - he might place his cold feet on your legs to help you wake up and have some fun! :)

you might need reinforcements if he doesn't wanna get up in winter when it's cold. Kaeya clings to the duvet like he's about to meet the grim reaper himself.

Diluc:

he has a routine that he strictly follows - but at the same time, he's an expert at being quiet and letting you sleep. he takes his time getting dressed up though - he can't help but cheat a bit and watch you snore.

even if it's his day off, he still wakes up earlier than you. but there's a catch - he then leaves your shared bed for a moment to greet his maids and order them to make you a mix of your and his favorites for breakfast. he doesn't want to wake you up, but he really wants to talk with you again - so he might do that with that precious scent of freshly prepared food..

an absolute sucker for playing with your hair in the morning. he runs his fingers through your hair in the gentlest way possible, shifting closer to you and pressing a sweet, warm kiss on your forehead that he lets to linger for a bit longer.

likewise, when you play with his hair to wake HIM up - he might just feel his heart explode and shed a few happy tears. he's never believed there will be a day he meets an angel like you, even more so that graces him with such affection, sincere affection that makes your eyes sparkle.

Diluc leaves you his t-shirt he sleeps in just before going to Angel's Share - it smells like his body wash with a little bit of his natural scent. He usually takes it off in the middle of the night anyway, finding himself to feel a bit too hot for his liking.

Either way, you love cuddling with it. He's not there physically, but it's a reminder that he made it safely and spent the remaining hours of the night next to you.

Zhongli:

he also has his own routine! he wakes up as soon as the sun begins to rise, quietly walking to the kitchen and carefully making a cup of tea for himself. he drinks his tea slowly, shuddering at the taste; his taste buds overflown with the right combination of spices. he finishes his drink just in the right time - it's time to wake you up now.

Zhongli sits on the bed and brushes some of your hair behind your ear; he kisses your forehead and begins to mumble good morning to you. He smiles at you and caresses your cheek with his thumb when he sees you trying to convince him to get just 5 more minutes.

while you finally get up and groggily change your clothes, he goes to prepare your favorite drink, be it tea, coffee, or anything else. he likes to put some mild spices in it to make your usual drink feel a bit more special and surprising. if you can't handle spices, that's fine! instead, he can give you a small snack :)

he really, really wants to brush your hair and vice versa. it's probably one of his favorite morning activities. he's trying his best not to pull your hair and if he does, he places an apologetic kiss on the crown of your hair. he'd be even happier if you let him style your hair, going to the garden or a flower shop nearby and decorating it with small flowers.

but... if you persuade him to get back to bed, he'll oblige. though, in return, you can't fall back asleep - he keeps you awake by asking you if you had any dreams or nightmares, to tell him about them, or what you'd like to eat.

he asks you to do his makeup! Zhongli's perfectly able to do it himself, but he loves seeing how focused you are on the given task, the corners of his lips going up when he hears you curse under your breath, trying to suppress his laugh.

Xiao:

a morning bird (ha!) just like Zhongli, but he has no routine... unless killing demons counts as one. considering this, he usually isn't around when you wake up :( (not that he sleeps anyway.. 90% of the time.)

however, all it takes to make him appear is to call his name - Xiao never misses it and always prioritizes you first. he might roll his eyes if you call him "just" to lie in bed with you. but it's fine - he "berates" you (not really) while almost spooning you.

there are some rare mornings shared together with Xiao, though; he says he has to watch you to keep you safe and hopes that you won't question the excuse any further, but you know it's something else. After all, his hands covering the rosy cheeks seem to give everything away.

in reality, Xiao's cold heart gets well-deserved warmth whenever he sees you sleep. of course he still wants to protect you, but realizing how much trust you have in him to fall asleep without second thoughts is more than anything he could ever want. he smiles, eyebrows knitting together ever so slightly when he pecks your face all over; his kisses are quick and chaste. even though you can't really feel this now, you know his lips leave a tingling sensation.

he lets you sleep a bit longer on his bare hand and doesn't care if it falls asleep. he's so mesmerized by your faith in him that he just does not care. even as simple as it sounds.

when the tiredness gets the best of him, the next morning you find him breathing steadily next to you. you don't wake him up though, probably because as soon as you'd do that, he's gone off to fight the evil. give him a blanket and prepare a plate of almond tofu - the disbelief on his face quickly turns into adoration, accepting the meal and savoring every bite. after he's done, he kisses your knuckles and whispers "I love you" against your skin.

Kaedehara Kazuha:

yet another person who wakes up extremely early. he opens his eyes slowly, blinking a few times to get used to the light; his crimson orbs scan the environment, and his face lights up when there's no danger around. he stretches his arms to shake off the remains of sleepiness and presses a good morning kiss on your shoulder.

he later decides to hunt or fish for fresh meat - depends on what you like more, but he'd be overjoyed if you let him do his signature dish! he doesn't go far, just enough to still keep an eye on you. don't worry - he's also prepared if you don't eat meat at all! he's more than happy to learn recipes to accommodate and just to simply make you smile more.

he starts a small fire nearby your sleeping form, the distance is enough to make you feel warm, but not enough to possibly hurt you. the crackling of fire wakes you up, along with the delicious smell of Kazuha's cooking. when he notices you slowly awakening, his mouth curves into a smile; he shifts next to you and kisses your nose.

he's trying to fight the grin creeping on his face every time you enjoy his food. really, that's why he does that every time you're traveling together. also, by this point - he still has a massive bed hair. please brush his hair in return. and braid it too - he'll touch the finished piece with a blush on his face and shyly thank you for being so kind to him.

also! he trusts you a lot and lets you change his bandage every morning. particular spots hurt more than the others and Kazu tries not to show his pain; but seeing how much care you're putting into it, disinfecting it, and kissing the pain away when he winces - the love stored in his heart makes the relief appear faster.

he ALWAYS makes sure you're all warm and comfy, especially in winter. Kazu covers you entirely with a thick blanket from his bag, the sole item in it during your shared travels. he's also willing to stay cuddled up together for a bit longer when he notices the snowfall outside. his warm breath fans over your neck as his arm over your waist tightens and brings you closer to him.

Dainsleif:

again, another morning person - but slightly less by choice. as soon as Dainsleif shoots open his eyes, he tries to calm down his racing heart; he lets out a sigh of relief when his indigo eyes notice you sound asleep.

he smiles shyly at your intertwined hands. he brings them closer to his face, pressing a sweet kiss on each of your knuckles, careful not to wake you up and give you a bit more time to rest.

even though you've expressed multiple times that you hate it - Dain can't stop guarding you right after awakening himself. He won't get back to sleep no matter what, keeping an eye out on the possible danger. He's aware that you don't like it - but he can't let anything happen to you, not even a scratch if he's nearby. You're everything he has left. He's lost everything else and despite being aware of the strength that gods possess, he's willing to cross blades with them if it meant extending your life more in return.

he always shifts your resting body on his - sometimes just your head on his lap so you can sleep a bit more comfortably, or entirely, so he keeps you secure between his legs, using his chest as a pillow and having his arms wrapped around you tightly.

"Good morning, my star. How was your sleep? Did you have any pleasant dreams?" is his daily mantra he says when he sees you arise. Next, Dain caresses your lips with his own in a tender kiss. if you decide that you feel cheesy that morning, answer something along these lines: "it seems like I haven't awoken from my pleasant dream yet." his cheeks will flush cherry red, hand flying to cover the blush immediately; even if you can't see it, you know it worked. it always does.

Dainsleif might not be kazuha-tier when it comes to cooking, so he prefers to take you to various taverns for your first meal if it's possible (yes, he's in mom-mode when it comes to breakfast and won't stop until you eat, because "breakfast must not be skipped. it's the most important meal!"). however, when that option isn't available, he prepares you a meal himself. some recipes are long forgotten, they taste like nothing else you've eaten before - they taste bizarre at first, but later on dain finally hits the jackpot and discovers your favorite. while your stomach gets filled with khaenri'ahn delicacies, his chest almost suffocates with the warmth and he watches you with twinkling eyes and the most tender smile.

Alhaitham:

this man. he ZOOMS out of bed as soon as the alarm rings. immediately puts on half of his clothes. when he's about to leave the room... he comes back near the bed, gives you a quick kiss on the forehead, and then moves to the kitchen to make himself a cup of coffee and your favorite drink.

he really wants to avoid Kaveh. he will NOT deal with him in the morning, nuh uh. unless he can make his day a bit worse than Kaveh anticipates...

either way, he lets you sleep 20 more minutes. the exact moment the clock on his wall hits 7:20am, he returns to your shared room and gently shakes you to wake you up. if you don't comply, he just takes you bridal style to the kitchen and sits you on his lap, regardless of whether you still sleep.

he loves pressing you tightly to his chest, inhaling the fresh scent of your laundry detergent and your own, natural one; he hides his face in your neck, closing his eyes. his lips connect with your neck and leave a trail of kisses, while his defined arm tightens around your waist. perhaps that will wake you up?

hearing Kaveh entering the kitchen and greeting you (and mumbling something to him too, but clearly not genuine) he looks at him with a slight annoyance. Kaveh merely lets out a "hmph" sound, clearly unaware of what Alhaitham is about to do. the scribe locks eyes with him shortly before going back to kissing your neck, but this time marking you; the obscene noises cause you to immediately awaken if you haven't, and Kaveh storming out of the room with a blush, muttering curses under his breath. Alhaitham only chuckles as you turn your head to face him, "good morning, love. you've finally woken up. we have to leave soon, so hurry up and drink it before it gets cold like last time."

on his day off, his day starts similarly - he wakes up a bit later though, but still needs his morning coffee. with the steaming drink on his nightstand, he joins you back below the cozy sheets, sitting down with his back against the headboard. he glances at you one last time and kisses your lips ever so slightly, the touch so tender that you barely register it; then, his eyes are glued to the book in hand he's been reading for a few days. if you wish, he'll gladly have you between his legs and let you snore on his chest - you don't even have to say a thing - he automatically rises his arm and waits for you to move without moving his eyes from the book. once you've settled comfortably, he pulls up the duvet and puts his chin on your head (and occasionally rubs your back gently, but denies it. even if you catch him. every time).

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lilywastaken · 1 year

Text

⇝ together .

Simon "Ghost" Riley x Fem!AFAB!Reader.

PART THREE OF MÉNAGE.

SUMMARY: A month after his return, you start warming up to Simon, only for him to ruin it.

WARNINGS: AFAB!Fem!Reader (no use of Y/N!), Fluff for once, Angst, mild nsfw, mentions of child abuse and abuse in general, canon typical violence, choking (not in a sexy way).

A/N: Finally finished!! I'm so sorry I haven't been able to get this out sooner, these past weeks have just been chocked full of assignments I had to finish 😭 I hope this lives up to everyone's expectations!!! Please don't forget to reblog and leave a comment, it helps a lot!!

WORD COUNT: 9.2k

MASTERLIST.

If you want to be tagged on future works, please follow and activate notifications on this account! — @lilynottaken !

Also on Ao3!

"'m blaming this on you."

You grumbled to Simon as you watched your son clap his hands against his father's, happy coos and gurgles leaving him.

"What?" He turned away from Tommy to look at you with a confused look, well, you assumed it was confused by the way his eyes were squinted. "How is this my fault?"

"He's copying you." You yawned, curling into the foetal position and pulling up the blanket over your body, head almost rolling off the sofa as you continued to pay attention to your son and his father's every movement. "You don't sleep so he doesn't."

"Not sure that's how his brain works yet." You could hear the amusement in his words, rolling your eyes as you switched your gaze from them up to the telly, that was playing some football game Simon had put on a few hours ago. "Think he's just not tired."

You know you should've expected this, Tommy's doctor had warned you at the last appointment when he'd gotten his first shots that he might experience some type of sleep regression, which meant more hours of staying awake while watching your son. And maybe it would've been worse for you if Simon wasn't there experiencing the same stress as you were. Weirdly, it felt nice to have another person in the same boat as you, even if he didn't really seem that keen on needing to sleep like you did.

Tommy seemed to had taken a liking to his father ever since the first day they'd both met, but that was kind of a given after Simon had spent the whole month after that coming over almost every single day (except for the days where he'd warned you before time that he'd be gone for work) and spending it all with his son.

You kind of hoped that Tommy had started to recognise him as a father like he did with you as a mother, since he was at the age where he was able to recognise caregivers; but even if he didn't, he did still cling onto Simon's hand every time it was time for him to leave like he did to you, tears bordering at his glassy eyes when you stood at the door with him in your arms waving goodbye to Simon.

You almost started crying every time he'd start making grabby hands at Simon, who'd rest his face against his son's tummy and let his chubby hands pull at the cloth of his balaclava, sometimes even pulling it up over his lips so he could press a quick kiss to his cheek, hiding his face immediately once you came in, unknowing that you'd been watching them before.

It wasn't like the bad blood that you had with Simon had magically been solved, you were still sometimes on edge or a bit snappy at him when it came to Tommy or your "relationship" with him, but you weren't as furious with him as you were when he first showed up.

"Not interestin' enough for you, am I?" Simon grunted as Tommy's attention drifted from the clapping to the telly above him, eyes wide as the presenter talked about some red card.

"You've bored him." You snickered, outstretching an arm to click your fingers, the sound immediately catching your son's attention. "Hi, duck!"

"He's not a bloody cat." Simon grumbled, picking up Tommy carefully from his spot on the blanket you'd draped on the floor for him to lie on, moving him onto your chest so he could cuddle into you.

You were about to snap back when Tommy interrupted you both with a wide yawn, chubby hands clinging onto your sleep shirt and eyes threatening to droop closed, although they were still stuck to the image of the footballers running across the field on the TV.

Both of you froze, Simon having been mid way to getting a toy he'd dropped not so long ago so he was stuck in that position, eyes wide and staring at his suddenly sleepy son.

You placed a soft hand on his back, pressing him further into your chest so the sound of your heartbeat would lull him to sleep easier.

But as luck would have it, a goal was scored right at the moment where his eyes finally fully closed, the commentators shouting out excitement and forcing your son back awake with a cry.

Simon and you groaned in unison, the man finally picking up the toy and collapsing on the ground, lying on his back right next to the sofa and glaring up at the ceiling, listening to you try and calm your son down from his abrupt awakening.

"Who scored?" You grumbled, masking your annoyance with interest.

"Not Manchester." Simon grunted back, raising a hand to take Tommy's, his fingers brushing against your chest in the process. "Haven't had a bloody win in a while."

"Sorry." You mumbled, remembering the disappointment that had shone in his eyes when you'd told him about some of the losses of the teams he liked he'd asked you to take a note of while he was away for work.

He'd done well at keeping his promise, sending you messages every time he had to leave, no longer disappearing without a trace, even if it was just a single day of paperwork or a check up at base. He sometimes also sent you pictures, whether it was him in his car showing you that he was close to your flat in case you weren't prepared for him or the takeaway menu at your favourite fast food place, asking for your order. They were always dark and a bit out of focus, but you couldn't deny that you hadn't let out a laugh when you'd seen the failed attempt of him trying to get out of frame, his skulled balaclava peeking out from a corner of the picture.

He'd been gone for a week this time, which explained why he was being so clingy towards Tommy ever since he'd arrived, takeout in hand and arms itching to wrap around his son, and had spent the whole last hour catching up with the both of you.

"Are you sleeping here tonight?" You yawned, closing your eyes for a moment and trying to ignore the squirming boy on your chest, his hands digging uncomfortably into your clavicle.

"Yeah. Though I probably won't be doing much sleepin'." He rumbled, letting Tommy wrap one of his chubby hands around one of Simon's big fingers. "Y'know I can just take over. Go get some rest."

You bit the inside of your cheek at that, looking away despite still having your eyes partly closed, your grip unintentionally tightening around Tommy's small body.

You were still put on edge whenever you left Tommy alone with Simon, even though he'd shown no ill towards you in any way, you just couldn't help it, the thought that something might happen to your sweet boy when he wasn't under your supervision was enough to strike an unexplainable fear into you. You knew that he'd noticed how your face turned sour whenever it was mentioned, but he hadn't ceased asking completely, knowing that sooner or later you'd have to entrust him with your son like you'd both agreed.

"Is that okay…?" You whispered, your voice barely audible over the cheers and cries of excitement from the telly, but by the way he turned his head towards you and squeezed Tommy's hand, you knew he heard you.

"Yeah. Don' worry. You need some rest."

You both stayed put for a few seconds, your hands slowly falling from their place on your son's back and scooping him up carefully before pushing yourself off the sofa, forcing Tommy's hand out of Simon's in the process.

You watched carefully as he shifted off the floor to sit next to you on the sofa, his built arms moving to cradle his son in their crook, rocking him slowly as you got up, anxiously fidgeting with your fingers as you stood and watched them both for a moment, almost terrified of taking a step out of their vicinity.

"Go." Simon commanded, getting comfy on the sofa as he turned his attention back to the game playing on the telly, the assertive tone that his voice took enough to send shivers running down your spine, nodding your head out of instinct before scurrying away like one of the rookies Simon was oh-so used to ordering around back at base.

After having a well deserved shower and pulling on some of your cosiest pyjamas, you let your body collapse onto your bed, curling into the middle where the mattress dipped and covering yourself up with your countless amount of blankets due to the chill that had overcome the country after a few rare weeks of warmth.

You smiled as you remembered how happy Tommy had looked when you'd taken him out in his stroller and let him bask in the sunlight for a bit while sitting next to him at the park, trying your best to focus on his giggles and not on the shadowy figure of his father standing behind you, more like a bodyguard waiting to take out any threats to you both instead of the father he claimed to want to be.

You let out a huff at the memory of how cautious Simon had been at first around you both, almost like a stray cat getting used to their new family: always standing around you but never too close, bringing you small gifts (i.e. takeout or groceries he thought you'd need or Tommy's new favourite teddy bear he now slept with instead of his duck), slowly making your home his own unconsciously by leaving some of his clothes packed away in a small corner of your wardrobe or packing the fridge with some of how own personal food items.

You'd noticed, of course. How could you not?

At first, when you'd found some of his clothes in the midst of the batch of laundry you were tending to, you were struck with fear. Fear that everything you'd worked hard to build was going to be invaded by this barely known presence you were just starting to get used to, but as time went on, you realised there was nothing scary about it.

It was oddly comforting, in a way. It made you feel less alone when you spotted the extra toothbrush he'd plopped in the glass next to yours, the mug he'd brought over after he'd exclaimed his concern that all of yours were fit for coffee and not for tea or the hoodies he left lying around that Tommy loved curling into whether Simon was wearing it or not.

You pulled a pillow into your arms, simulating the feeling of your son in your arms you'd gotten so used to in order to fall asleep, closing your eyes and letting the muffled sounds of the football game still playing on the TV and your son's faint giggles lull you slowly to your first proper sleep in a while.

You were pulled awake by the sound of your phone going off, your whole body jerking up and rushing to grab it out of instinct, the bright screen illuminating your room and forcing a groan out of you at the disturbance, letting your eyes focus until you were able to properly read the notification.

A frustrated sound left your lips at the message from one of the dating apps you'd forgotten you had informing you that you'd matched with someone, angered that it had been something so stupid that had woken you up from one of the best sleeps you'd had in a long time and not something important.

You fell back down onto the mattress, planning on closing your eyes and curling back into the pillow you'd been spooning moments before, but as your body slowly calmed down from the initial shock that had filled it, you were met with nothing but silence.

Your eyes had adjusted enough at this point that you were able to turn your head over to your door, frowning at the lack of light that normally came from under the door when the living room was lit, raising your head from the pillow slightly in an attempt to catch out any sounds that might be originating from anywhere in your flat.

But once again, silence continued to rule over your home.

You could've just closed your eyes and willed yourself to fall back asleep, but the creeping feeling that it was too quiet for how it normally was, that something might have happened in the few hours you'd let yourself rest was slowly burrowing itself in your mind.

And fuck, what if Simon had done something? What I'd you'd misjudged him? What if he'd taken advantage of your tired state and just fucked off with your son in his arms, leaving you broken and abandoned once again?

The fear that struck your body at that train of thought was enough to wake you up properly, allowing your body to act like it had just consumed countless amounts of caffeine and rush over to the partly open door, slowly pushing it open before looking around frantically, eyes landing on the back of the sofa and on the turned off TV in front of it.

Your hand landed on the headrest, your heart skipping a beat as your eyes landed on Simon's sleeping body, his arms protectively wrapped around Tommy, who was resting on his chest like he'd been with you before you'd gone to rest.

You made it fully around until you were standing in front of the sofa, one of your hands coming up to grab at your thin sleep shirt right over the place your heart was currently hammering against out of relief.

Fuck…

Of course he hadn't left.

You were just being paranoid.

Simon had shown you no ill will the whole time he'd been here, but you were still on edge, assuming the worst from him…

A staggered breath left your lips, your hands coming up to cover your face as you willed your body to calm down, your legs trembling as the adrenaline that had rushed through you momentarily started to fade, leaving you confused and exhausted.

One of your legs threatened to give out, and as soon as you were getting ready to collapse, a warm hand grabbed at your thigh, a silent scream threatening to leave you until you realised who it belonged to, staring down with wide eyes at your son's father, one of the hands that had been cradling Tommy now holding your leg with the same care.

"What happened?!"

You could see the panic in his eyes despite the darkness that enveloped the room, his thumb slowly rubbing up and down your skin, his best attempt at soothing whatever pain you were harbouring that he had no idea about.

He called your name, pulling you closer to the sofa so you were kneeling on the free space of the plush sofa, staring down at Simon's chest and raising one of your hands up to your son's little head, running through his thin hair.

"What happened?" He repeated, more assertive this time rather than the panicked tone he had taken before, his hand moving from the back of your thigh up to your waist, almost like it was natural to do so.

"Nothing…" you finally let out, blinking away some of the tears you hadn't realised that had formed at your waterline. "Just… Uhm…"

"...Nightmare?" He offered an easier excuse than the real reason you'd pulled yourself out of bed at such an hour, slowly nodding your head in agreement and causing him to let out a sigh. "Do you-"

"I'm okay. Just… shaken up." By the way you were anxiously running your fingers through Tommy's hair as if to assure yourself that he was real, that he was indeed lying there asleep (something you hadn't realised up until that moment, Simon had somehow actually gotten Tommy to take a nap.), he assumed that whatever nightmare you'd had was related to him. "Needed to check that he was okay."

Yeah, that cemented it.

Simon would be lying if he said he hadn't a few nightmares of his own about Tommy ever since he'd met him properly, whether it was him forcibly being taken away from you by one of the many enemies he'd made across his life or a freak accident ending any hopes he'd had of all of you being a family.

And maybe they were a bit out of pocket, he'd made it very hard for anyone to trace you or Tommy back to him by always parking his car a few blocks away, making sure that Tommy had your last name instead of his and that the military had no idea about his offspring.

He couldn't have any records that would link you two to him, he couldn't even risk taking that chance, he knew that as soon as two of his weaknesses were revealed, it would only be a matter of time for them to be exploited by his enemies.

So, he understood. He understood the fear that came with a nightmare about your son, the need to see him and reinforce the fact that he was okay in your head.

"He is. Tired 'imself out a few hours ago." He moved towards the back of the sofa, allowing you space to sit next to them both, his hand still continuing to rest on your warm skin and pulling you along carefully, ready to pull away the moment you showed any signs of uncomfort.

"How come he sleeps for you?" You mumbled, more of a thought to yourself rather than something you wanted to share, but it caused Simon to smile beneath his mask nonetheless, raising his other hand up to Tommy's head to run a finger down his little nose, ignoring the way his heart rate spiked when it brushed against yours.

He thought about making a joke about being his favourite, hoping that it would brighten the mood a bit, but then remembered the look of dismay that would come over his teammates' faces whenever he made one about anything, and on second thought, maybe he'd have to wait a bit until you were both comfortable enough to enjoy his stupid jokes.

"Guess he's bored of me. You're much more entertainin' to be awake around." He rumbled, a soft chuckle leaving your lips at what you assumed was an attempt to lift your spirits.

"Yeah…" you smiled, leaning your body on the arm that was propping you up, your hand ceasing its brushing of Tommy's hair and simply resting on his small head, your heart growing bigger as he let out a little coo, snuggling further into Simon's hoodie.

You hadn't even been thinking about the hand cupping your waist, too focused on your son's sleeping figure and the warmth that it brought you, unconsciously wriggling a bit further into the touch, but you froze once Simon's hand immediately snapped back from you, as if he'd taken that as an immediate sign that he had broken a few boundaries by getting too close.

"Sorry."

You bit on your tongue, not wanting to full admit how much reassurance his touch had brought you and how much you'd give to have it back (you blamed the neediness on how exhausted your body was and the delirium that came with the lack of sleep you'd been subject to recently), not making any move to answer and instead focusing fully on your son.

"You want to take him?" Simon offered, leaning further up the sofa so he was kind of sitting, kind of lying on the arm rest. "Don' kids sleep better with their mams?"

"I… I think that may be a myth." You breathed out a chuckle, shaking your head as he made a move to hand Tommy over to you. "No, it's okay. I move a lot at night, I don't - I don't want to hurt him, you know?"

Simon turned down to the fragile little human he was holding, remembering the exact moment he'd realised that you were both in charge of taking care of him, of keeping him out of danger and stopping anyone and anything from shattering the little being that seemed to be made of glass.

"That's fine."

Silence fell over the both of you, an awkward atmosphere forming as you didn't move, feeling as time went on that you were invading the little personal space he was allowed to have in your flat.

"D'you want to stay?"

What?

Your brain short-circuited, blinking at him owlishly, as if he'd just spoken in an unknown language, the words still processing in your mind.

"Stay?" You managed out, looking down at the space between you both, a space where you could easily fit into if you were to snuggle into his side and let him hold you.

But surely, he wasn't suggesting that.

Memories of how he'd held you that fateful night flooded your mind, his warm calloused hands sprawled out against the bare skin of your waist, the sound of his heartbeat drumming against his ribcage lulling you to sleep…

"Yeah, stay."

…It made you want to accept.

Made you want to melt into his side and wrap an arm around his wide chest, tangle your fingers in your son's soft hair and lie there with them both, making sure that no harm could come to Tommy thanks to the protective shadow that was Simon Riley.

But you couldn't. You knew that.

The walls you'd built while carrying Tommy in hopes that you'd never be hurt or abandoned again, the walls that had kept you relatively safe within the expanse of your mind refused to crumble, refused to make way for the man that had come barreling back into your life and threatened to destroy them.

You couldn't risk it.

So, you didn't.

You pulled your hand away from your son as if he burned, cradling it against your chest and looking away from Simon's imposing stare, the look in his eyes making you want to squirm and cry and adhere to anything he wanted.

"No." If you'd still been looking at him, you would have noticed the way his shoulders slumped, the way the dim light in his eyes proceeded to disappear at the single word that left your mouth. "Thanks."

It seemed every little step of progress you'd both taken together the whole month immediately dissipated away thanks to his idiotic question.

Of course you'd fucking refuse his stupid invitation, what was he thinking? That you were both a happy couple who didn't pass on any chance to hold each other in your arms? That he was your husband, the proper father of your son who you loved and cared for, who you enjoyed having pressed right against you? He was a fucking idiot. He couldn't contain himself for once in his life and he'd gone and ruined everything.

"Okay." Despite the inner turmoil that raged inside of him, that simple word of affirmation was all he could get out, and he hoped to whatever god was up there (that apparently loved torturing him) that you'd both wake up the next day without a single recollection of what had happened last night.

"Good night." You whispered, pushing yourself off the sofa and wrapping your arms around your chest, immediately regretting every single one of your actions that night as you gazed upon how truly comfy and warm Simon and your son looked snuggled together, wishing that you had the emotional capability to let your resentment go and indulge in Simon's touch.

"'Night."

You willed yourself to take the first step back, tearing your gaze away from them and heading back to your bedroom, your face erupting into warmth out of a mixture of embarrassment and sadness, a clear sign that your body wanted nothing more than to just burst into tears and let Simon wrap you up in his arms and soothe you down like you knew he could.

You buried your face into your pillow as soon as you made it back into your now-cold mess of sheets, tugging one of the pillows back into your arms and doing your best to imagine that it was someone else, someone else who was as willing as you'd imagined Simon had been before to have you in their arms, to stroke your hair and calm you down because they loved you, because they cared about you and wanted nothing more than to see you as happy as you'd been a mere few hours ago.

You passed out soon enough, a few tears running down your cheeks as you subconsciously wrapped yourself around the pillow like a koala, the tear stains quickly disappearing during the night and lacking any evidence that they were once there when Simon walked through your door in the early morning, standing at the side of your bed for a few moments before he leaned over, pulling up the covers and tucking them around your sleeping body.

The sound of the shower coming alive and the pipes groaning was the thing that pulled you awake, struggling a few moments to rid yourself of the covers that pushed onto you, wondering to yourself when and how you'd tucked yourself in so aggressively, turning your head towards your bathroom and listening to the clinking of shampoo bottles and the water as it hit the tiled walls.

Your bathroom was unfortunately directly connected to your bedroom, so in order to get into the shower, Simon would have had to pass by your bed and… tuck you in? Did he really tuck you in?

You pulled languidly at the covers, looking down at your nightwear and growing warm as you saw how transparent your shirt looked in the morning light, leaving almost nothing to the imagination of whoever were to look down at your chest.

Simon had seen you like that.

You squeezed your eyes closed out of embarrassment, as if he was right there judging you with his stupid thousand yard stare, lifting yourself off the mattress and looking around your wardrobe for a shirt, restoring to a band one you'd stolen from one of your ex boyfriends you'd never had the heart to throw out.

You were mid straightening it out, your previous night shirt now pooling at your feet, when the door to the bathroom opened, your immediate response being to wrap your arms around your chest and let out a cry of warning, turning around so he was facing your back.

"Fuckin'-"

"Go back in!" You cried out, wanting nothing more than for the earth to burst open and swallow you whole, feeling too tired to be dealing with this kind of embarrassment at such an early hour of the morning.

You cracked an eye open as the door closed, letting the grip you'd had on the shirt go as you faintly heard Simon curse, trying to erase the memory of what had happened out of your brain.

As you pulled on the shirt, you willed yourself to think about anything other than the glimpse of flesh you'd seen before turning around, the wide chest that had been littered with the scars he'd once let you trace over, the towel around his waist that had barely cov-

Stop!

Unknown to you, Simon was having a similar dispute with himself from inside the bathroom, resting his flushed face on the cool tiles of the wall as he listened to you shuffle around your room, cursing himself out for being so goddamn stupid and exiting the bathroom without even checking if you were awake or not.

That wasn't the only reason he should've checked, he thought you'd still be asleep, so stupidly, he'd gone out with barely any coverings, including the one on his face, so he was pretty sure you would've seen the way his eyes almost immediately darted down towards your chest if you hadn't been busy enough with covering yourself and ogling at his chest.

"Fuck…" he breathed out, running his fingers through his hair and looking at himself in the foggy mirror, the tired, broken stare of a being he could barely consider a man staring back at him.

After a few more moments of staring at himself he couldn't bear it anymore, grabbing his discarded balaclava and pulling it over his what he considered broken face, his other clothes continuing as he did his best to cover every single patch of skin he could, hand landing on the doorknob once he was finished and asking for confirmation.

You'd about finished putting on the shirt when he'd piped up from inside, letting out a small "you can." before he opened the door again, face now covered and eyes darting down at the oversized shirt you'd pulled over your bottoms, closing it behind him.

"Didn't know you'd be changin'." He grumbled, his way of apologising without saying the exact words, eyes scanning the band on your shirt. "Y'like Joy Division?"

"Huh?" You looked down at the shirt, straightening it out to properly look at the band you'd forgotten was plastered on the front, shrugging slightly. "Yeah, they're good. I'm, uh, not the biggest fan. This was my boyfriend's."

"Boyfriend?" He spat out, almost with malice.

"Ex." You clarified, pulling at the ends of your shirt out of nerves, the way he was staring down at you reminiscent of how you'd assume higher ups looked down at their soldiers when they were in the wrong.

"Right." He grunted, looking away from you and training his stare at the bedroom door, nodding towards it. "'M gonna go check on Tom."

He brushed past you, leaving you standing in the middle of your bedroom twiddling your thumbs, confused and embarrassed due to the interaction you'd just shared.

You walked into the kitchen, stopping in your tracks when you noted that the dishes you'd left last night after Simon had brought take away had been cleaned right up, the plastic bowls from the curry thrown away in the recycling along with the other trash you'd used when making Tommy formula (you resorted to using that instead of pumping or breastfeeding when Simon was over).

God, now you felt even worse for what had happened last night.

You rubbed your hands all over your face, digging your nails into your scalp as you ran them through your hair, snapping your head up as your heard your son giggle, going back a few steps to look through the crack of the door, your chest tightening as you watched Simon feed Tommy, murmuring a string of words you were too far away to understand.

Fuck, you really felt awful.

You pulled out a few ingredients, acting almost on autopilot as you fried the sausages and toasted the bread, making his tea subconsciously the way you know he liked it (he'd never forced you to make tea, you'd seen the sticker on a takeaway cup he'd left on the counter), and pouring it into the cup he always used.

"You didn't have to." Simon mumbled as he walked out of the nursery, holding the empty bottle of milk in one hand and a plastic bag with a dirty nappy in the other, looking down at the plate of food you'd made him.

"I wanted to." You mumbled, taking a bite out of your own buttered toast as you watched him walk around the kitchen, throwing away the bag and cleaning out the bottle before starting on his breakfast, standing at the island instead of sitting like you were. "As thanks. For, uhm, cleaning up."

"It was nothin' deserving of this." He mumbled underneath his breath, shoving a spoonful of the baked beans into his mouth, now visible thanks to him pulling up his balaclava, the taste of the normal breakfast he'd have at whatever café he normally went to complete shit compared to yours.

"It's fine. I went a little overboard, it's been a while since I've cooked for someone."

He let out an amused huff, nodding his head. "Yeah, babies don' really need a full brekkie."

You both went silent after that, your eyes looking around at everything but at him, secretly hoping that he was enjoying the food, wishing you would've put on the radio or the news so you weren't sitting in complete silence.

The tapping of his fingers against the counter finally pulled your gaze towards him, watching him carefully as you continued to eat.

"Laswell called."

Laswell?

The face you made must've made him realise you had no idea who he was talking about, his hand coming up to grab the mug of tea and take a long sip before speaking again.

"Station Chief Laswell." You nodded along, hoping that he'd believe that you actually knew what he was saying. "She's got a mission f'us."

Oh.

"When?" You spoke out, a bit choked up as you tried your best to focus on the food instead, you always got unexplainably nervous when he left for a mission, despite the fact that he always came back.

"Gotta be there by 1."

You turned to look at the time on the microwave, the 09:00 displayed there striking unexplainable fear in you.

"You should get going, then."

"I should."

Neither one of you moved.

"Did you say goodbye to Tommy?"

"I did." He took a final sip of his tea, placing the cup down and turning to look at the nursery, the strangling pain he felt every time he left you coming back to haunt him. "Changed his nappy too. Like y'taught me."

You smiled at the memory. A few days after he'd first shown up you'd tried your best to teach him how to change Tommy and you'd gone through almost 10 nappies by the time he'd been able to put one decent enough (you'd quickly changed it yourself after he'd turned around, you didn't want the nappy to cut off your baby's circulation), so you hoped that he'd actually done it properly this time.

"Thank you…" You offered him a small smile, looking down at your own cuppa, wrapping your arms around the now lukewarm mug. "Go get ready. I'll clean up."

Simon really didn't want to, he wanted to continue standing there talking to you, gazing at your tired face and how cute you looked taking small bites out of the food you'd made that you'd undoubtedly wouldn't finish and would slide over to him like you'd done all those times before.

But he couldn't. He was a soldier. One that was trained to kill and follow orders no matter what and no matter the circumstance, one that would be laughed at if he called in saying he wanted to stay with- well, whatever you were to him.

He was about to zip up the duffle bag he'd left in your room during his small stay when he caught a glimpse of something he'd forgotten about.

The gun was relatively light in his hand, one that was smaller than the ones he was used to carrying out in the field, but could quickly figure out how to use in the span of a millisecond.

He called out your name, rapping his knuckles against the counter to catch your attention, raising his arms in surrender as fear filled your face, dropping the plate into the sink and taking a step back as soon as you caught sight of the gun.

"Simon! What the fu-"

"It's not loaded." His other hand waved around the magazine, placing them both down on the island in front of you both. "I'm not going to use it."

"I would fucking hope so!" You cried out, wiping off the soap suds on a towel and pressing your back into the counter, gripping the edge of it as if he was really threatening you with the gun.

"Do you know how to shoot one?"

You shook your head. You'd never even seen one this close apart from the rare policemen that carried one, let alone held one.

"Come." He picked them two items up, walking back into your room and waiting for you at the door to follow, worried about what he was planning on doing. "Where would you keep a gun?"

You turned to him with a raised eyebrow, once again expressing your confusion with a single stare before turning to the bedside table closest to the side you normally slept in, pulling the drawer out and immediately growing warm as you gazed down at the string of condoms along with some other items.

"Here, I suppose…" You watched him sit down on the bed, the mattress immediately sinking beneath his weight as he raised the gun and magazine up into your line of view.

"Take it."

You shakily did as he said, the gun feeling heavy in your palms in contrast to how easy it had felt for Simon, turning it around a few times as he continued to speak, pointing out every single detail and part of what he had soon let you know was a Glock.

"It's the one most policemen carry. Not very heavy, but still capable of takin' down a man." He murmured, almost letting out a chuckle as he took the gun and cocked it, making you jump at the sudden sound.

"Why would I want to take down a man?" You asked tentatively, taking it back from him and trying to fit in the magazine like he'd instructed you to.

A warm hand came up to cover yours, stopping you in your tracks and allowing him to get up and take the firearm from you, pulling out the magazine and placing them both in the drawer, trying his best to ignore the other items that were scattered around.

"Listen to me." He turned his head as he slammed the drawer shut, staring directly into your eyes to make sure that you were paying attention. "I cannot ensure your safety while I'm gone. There's tons of fucked up people who'd take whatever change to tear me down and would not think twice about using you or Tommy to do so. This is just in case. You only use this if you or Tommy are in imminent danger. If there is someone threatening any of you, you do not hesitate, you take the gun and use it."

Use it.

Use it!?

His hand came up to cup at your cheek, pulling you out of your swarming thoughts so he could be sure you were listening.

"I- Simon, I can't- I'll go to jail if I use it, I can't-"

"You won't." He interrupted, shaking his head. "I won't let them. You're under my protection, this is just in case of emergency when I'm not around."

You nodded, not knowing what else to do, the gun that had been in your hands mere moments ago feeling like a burden despite it being locked away.

"Oi. Lovie, look at me."

That immediately caught your attention.

"Tell me you understand."

Your mouth had gone dry, the combination of the shock behind his little surprise and the nickname that had slipped out of his mouth proving to be too much to handle.

"Tell me. You understand."

You took a deep breath, nodding your head. "I understand, Simon."

Even after he'd left, you couldn't shake yourself off that foreboding feeling, terrified that the moment where you'd have to use the gun would arrive sometime soon, the thought of you or Tommy coming into danger while Simon wasn't around enough to make you want to crumble into tiny pieces.

You'd stood by the door like you always did, although this time Tommy was fast asleep in his crib and your arms were empty, leaving you to say goodbye to Simon (although looking up into his eyes, you knew he wasn't Simon anymore) all by yourself.

"When d'you think you'll be back?" You whispered as he opened the door, not wanting to disturb any of the neighbours that might be loitering around (despite knowing that news about the terrifying man that resided in your apartment had travelled quick after he'd threatened your neighbour), handing him his jacket.

"A week, tops. I'll send you a text as soon as I know." He grunted, shoving on his jacket before pulling up his duffle bag, swinging it over his shoulder. "You need anythin', you call base, okay? They'll relay the message if it's necessary."

He'd given you the number to his base a few weeks ago, but you knew you'd never have the heart to call it, too embarrassed that the little problem you were currently having was nothing compared to what Simon was going through, and you didn't want to disturb any of his work if it really wasn't that important.

"Sent you money this morning. You got enough for a month." He went through his mental list of everything he should say to you before going, leaning against the door frame and looking down at you through heavy eyelids. "Get some takeout, don't strain yourself any more than you already are. Doctor said you should take it easy."

You dismissed the urge to roll your eyes, cursing yourself out for even allowing him to take you to the doctor in the first place and listen in.

"I know. I'll be fine, Simon. You just worry about yourself."

"Always do." He said, nodding his head as a form of goodbye before pushing himself off the doorframe, heading towards the elevator and leaving you standing there, only closing the door when you heard the front door close from all the way downstairs.

— I think he misses you.

— Won't let go of the teddy bear even though it's all dirty :(.

‍‍‍‍‍‍‍

God, if Simon wasn't wearing his mask he was pretty sure he wouldn't have been able to contain his smile, zooming into the picture you'd sent him of your small boy lying in your bed fast asleep cuddling the little plushie he'd gifted him.

‍‍‍‍‍‍‍

— More.

‍‍‍‍‍‍‍

He hoped you understood what you meant by that, and by the way a few more pictures loaded in within seconds, he was glad you did.

He had to print some of those.

He'd once made a joke about one of the soldiers who wore a picture of their beloved in a small locket to Soap, commenting how it reminded him of the soldiers in WWI, when they were really just on their way to disarm a bomb.

But now he felt the need to have some type picture of you both or trinket that you'd given him right in the pocket over his heart, one that he could easily pull out in the middle of a mission to remind himself of why he was doing this, of why he couldn't let himself get caught by the enemy, of why he always had to come back to you.

He couldn't even bear the thought of his dog tags arriving at your doorstep instead of him one fateful day.

"Your nephew?"

Ghost snapped his head up, meeting the curious gaze of his captain and the bright orange tip of his cigar. "What?"

"Your nephew." Price gestured towards his lieutenant's phone, where the picture of Tommy drooling around one of his toys was still displayed. "You told me about him once at that bar in Vienna. What's his name?"

"Joseph." Ghost answered, shaking his head. "No, he's… Not a baby anymore. Must be a bloody teenager by now."

Price hummed, taking another puff from his cigar before looking away, squinting his eyes from the sun, wishing he'd been as smart as Ghost by bringing a pair of sunglasses.

"So."

"So?"

"Who's he, then?" Once again, the captain looked down at the dimly lit picture, where he could barely make out the features of the little boy, but by the onesie and plushie, he was able to decipher the not so difficult puzzle.

"He's…" Ghost trailed off, taking one last look at the picture before turning off his phone, sliding it into one of his pockets and crossing his arms over his chest. "No-one."

"No-one?" Price huffed out, amused. "So you just have pictures of random babies on your phone, is that it, Lieutenant?"

Ghost flared up at his captain, the frown obscured by the sunglasses he'd put on after the clouds had dispersed, but by the way his body had tensed, Price could only assume he'd pissed him off.

"Name's Tommy. That's all you're getting." He grunted out, looking away from the older man like a child admitting to something embarrassing.

"Like your brother?" Price commented, letting out a groan before sitting down on the wall next to Ghost. "Isn't that a coincidence?"

"No, she didn' know when she named-" Ghost stopped himself from saying anything further, the slip of the tongue already having revealed the existence of a 'she', and he did not want to say any more.

"'She'?" Price grinned, blowing out some of the smoke before bringing his cigar up to his lips. "Come on, Simon. We're not on duty, are we? Not your captain right now."

He'd promised himself to keep quiet. He couldn't have anyone find out about you or Tommy, he couldn't risk having that information out in the open, his weakness out there for everyone to know.

But Price… Well, Price was different. He'd saved him multiple times across the span of time he'd spent working for the army, he'd been the one to pull him out of the deepest of holes, the one to trust him enough to allow him to join the 141.

They trusted each other.

"She's… I don't know." He let his head cock back, looking up at the forming clouds. "I knocked her up."

"Fuckin' hell, Simon." Price breathed out along with some smoke, turning to look at him with a sort of horrified and disappointed stare. "You're a dad?"

"Yeah."

"Christ, you're makin' me feel fucking old." He grumbled, taking the phone from Ghost as he handed it over, squinting at the dimly lit screen. "Cute little bugger, isn't he?"

Ghost smiled beneath his mask, watching Price scroll through the countless pictures you'd sent him across the month he'd been back, resisting the embarrassing urge to point out small details of every picture like an art major in a museum, instead keeping quiet and itching slowly to grab his phone back.

"Think you're a good dad?" Price asked, taking Ghost back a bit as he slid his phone back into the confines of his pocket, shrugging his shoulders as he squinted at two figures in the distance.

"Not the worst. Don't think he's got the mental capability to recognise if I'm good or bad to 'im. Least he doesn't cry every time he sees me." He breathed out a chuckle, snapping his mouth shut as he saw Soap and Gaz approach, the conversation sizzling away as they plopped down next to them both.

As the others started talking about another topic, Ghost thought about the question he'd been asked before more in-depth.

He wasn't a bad father, right?

He wasn't like… that.

Simon would be caught dead before even thinking of inflicting onto Tommy the same pain his own father had inflicted onto his family.

Imagining his small boy going through the same trauma, the same horror, the same fear he'd felt during his childhood was enough to tear his cold heart apart.

And he'd never treat you like his father had treated his mother, he'd never subdue you to the same pain she went through every day, he wouldn't let himself fall into the circle of abuse that had started way before his own father.

And Simon wasn't perfect. He knew that.

But he wouldn't stoop as low as his father had during the beginning of his life, where instead of the love and care a child was supposed to receive from his parents, he received the abuse and pain that no one deserved.

Just like him.

He closed his eyes as he remembered the burning shouts as his father berated him, always comparing the both of them and forcing Simon into tears, the mere thought of ending up as horrible as his father reducing him to sobs.

Even now, he still felt sick when he'd stare at the pictures of his father his mother still kept around her room in the nursing home, horrified whenever she'd point out their similar eyes and same blond hair.

But he wouldn't end like that. Despite whatever physical similarity he shared with his father, they had nothing in common personality wise.

Simon wasn't a monster.

He wouldn't hurt you or Tommy.

He wouldn't let anyone hurt you or Tommy.

He was a protector, a soldier trained to serve his country and the civilians who resided within it.

And he would protect. No matter what.

"S'alright, lovie… Jus' me."

"Simon…" You breathed out, letting your eyes flutter closed as his hands roamed the exposed skin of your chest, broken lips pressing kisses the whole way up to your jaw.

"That's it… Such a good girl f'me… Pretty, pretty girl." His warm hands cupped at your chest, pulling another whine out of you as he toyed with your breasts. "My good girl, right?"

"Mhm…" You mumbled, letting your head loll back onto Simon's shoulder and look up at him through tear covered eyelashes, your brain not functioning properly to process the blurred mass of what you assumed was a man's face staring down at you with those beautiful eyes, his breath hitting your lips as he leaned down to press the kiss you'd been longing for for so goddamn long—

Your body jolted awake, an uncomfortable ache between your legs quickly making itself known as you tossed around in your messy bed, brows furrowed as your brain tried to catch up with your suddenly awakened body.

What had you even been dreaming about?

You rubbed at your eyes with your wrists, digging them deep enough so you saw a few blinding colours, letting go and resorting to staring up at the ceiling.

You didn't even bother checking your phone, already knowing that the only notifications you would have received in the few hours you'd spent asleep were the ones from the dating apps you still didn't have the energy to delete.

None from Simon, of course. He'd been gone for over two weeks by now, which wasn't surprising, since he had let you know that this mission would be a long one and had warned you in advance.

Considering the last mission he'd gone on was almost a month ago (and had only lasted a few days, you think he finished as soon as he could to be back with Tommy, by the way he'd barreled through the house to get to the nursery) and that you and Tommy had gotten him all to yourself for about two weeks straight, you'd expected him to be called sooner or later.

You weren't really looking forward to him coming back, since you'd have to break the news to him that he'd missed Tommy's first attempts to sit up without support and the success that came after.

Luckily, you'd filmed most of it, although you did end up throwing the phone on the sofa to congratulate your son personally, pressing kisses to his chubby rolls and listening to him giggle before accidentally helping him fall back onto your bed, causing him to burst out crying.

Okay, well, maybe you could just edit the final part out.

You were pulling the covers over yourself, snuggling back into the warmth of your mattress before attempting to close your eyes and fall back asleep (hopefully to return to whatever dream you'd been having before), when the sound of the creek of your floorboards snapped you out of it.

Your heart stopped, listening out for any further sounds, breath hitching in your throat as what you feared you'd heard continued, recognising the footsteps going from the living room into the kitchen.

You leaned over to your phone, hoping to God that Simon had finished the mission early and had sent you a quick message telling you he'd be coming back soon, but as you unlocked the phone…

Nothing.

So whoever was walking around your house was not Simon.

You heard muffled whispers, too quiet for you to understand but loud enough to send a cold shiver down your spine.

It terrified you. That cemented the fact that there was actually someone in your home, walking around like it was nothing.

But there was more than one voice. Two. Or was it more?

You assumed the sound that had woken you up had been the door opening, which inflicted even more fear into you at the thought that they must have had a key instead of knocking your door down since the sound hadn't been enough to stick with you after pulling you awake.

Your eyes instinctively darted over to the bedside table, where Simon's gun still laid untouched every since he'd "gifted" it to you, staying frozen until one pair of feet got a bit too close to your door, mind racing and adrenaline pumping through your veins as you scrambled to open the drawer as quietly as possible and pull out the gun and mag with shaky hands, carefully pushing it in before cocking it, hissing at the loud sound it made.

You stepped out of bed, body shaking as you neared the door with the heavy gun in your hand, listening out carefully for what they could be saying.

"—ce gaf. Didn' expect this from ya."

"You're a classy one aren't — your sofa?"

The voices were broken and muffled, leaving your brain to try its best to complete them.

God, this was terrifying. You could feel your whole body shaking, waiting for the moment where it could give out.

It's okay. Deep breaths.

You can do this.

The doorknob rattled, the moment it twisted seemingly happening in slow motion, your heart skipping a beat before you raised your gun up to the attacker, finger grabbing at the trigger just in case they made a dangerous move on you, your frantic eyes meeting the surprised ones of the man you were currently pointing a gun at (which you'd never used before, mind you).

"Steamin' fuckin'-"

You didn't even have time to react before his arm instinctively raised towards you, hand grasping at your throat in an instant, like the only thing he'd been taught to do was to kill.

"What the fuck are you doing!?"

You heard a familiar voice roar as the hand tightened around your throat, the gun now abandoned at your feet as your hands scratched and tugged at your attacker's hand.

The last thing you saw before your eyes clouded over was the large shadow coming up from behind your assailant, their face one that despite the tears that blurred your vision you could tell was ready to rip apart someone.

You didn't even have time to think if it was going to be you or his partner.

TAGLIST: @selfassassin @ess-perspective-blog @crazyfandomist @webreathfandoms @warners-wife @prodyng @gaycrystalbitch @uhhely @mentallynot-here @jordanwalkersworld @skepticalleo @bratsukisworld @screamingoverfiction @comedinewithmeyeh @gojosbucket @mikasakuchiki @jonhswife @tea-effect @thelittlejinx @cafesho @daddylorianisastateofmind @63sucker @simpingforleoandnico @simonsslvt @embers-of-alluring @uriahs-sketchings @alexisv15 @alexkellersleg @jordanwalkersworld @tabalugax @diekoniginvonfernet @thatoneautor0123 @technicallyvirtualmilkshake @littlezarp @crazyfandomist @hypernovaxx @am-3-thyst @madamemelancholysstuff @lylesx @anxietydrogz @jaymum @coacaiyne @emmmmmmmaaaaaaaaaaa @ghostsfavhoe @maviee @pedropascalswhore @d4z01 @beakami (if your name is in white, it means I couldn't tag you!)

#simon riley x reader #ghost x reader #simon ghost riley #simon ghost riley x reader #simon ghost riley x fem reader #ghost x female reader #cod mwii #call of duty #ghost x you #ghost fanfiction #ghost x fem!reader #ghost fic #cod mwii x reader #ghost ansgt #ghost fluff #simon riley fluff #cw pregnancy #— ménage

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luna0713hunter · 7 months

Note

"you'll have to teach me " with zoro please and with

neck kisses / kitchen counter kisses

Kisses to keep your lover quiet but zoro kisses the reader

Lazy make-up

Thank btw I love your work

Author's note : its currently 3:30 am that im writing this request and gosh so many cute kisses with Zoro! And thank you for your nice compliments!!i hope you enjoy it 💕

"you'll have to teach me"

"neck kisses"

"kitchen counter kisses"

"kisses to keep your lover quiet"

"lazy makeout"

Based on this prompt

Zoro Roronoa x reader

Warnings : none,lots of fluff and kisses,cute couple

*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘˚˳°*.✧∘

Getting some privacy in a ship is nearly impossible.

You cant really blame anyone;its a public space that all the crewmates share,and no one has the actual time to relax and spend time in their lover's company.

But there are also mornings like this: where everything's soft in the glow of the rising sun;the ocean calm and the sky so blue with few clouds, it has you closing your eyes and wishing for that moment to last forever.

As you lean back on the kitchen counter after you've made yourself a cup of tea,you enjoy the rare moments of loneliness. You close your eyes and take a sip of the sweet honey flavor liquid and let the rays of the sunlight warm your face.

When you hear the sound of someone stepping inside the kitchen,you open your eyes;ready to greet Sanji, assuming he's going to make breakfast since he's always the first one to wake up. But what greets you is the sight of a very drowsy Zoro making his way toward you. You pour him a cup of tea as well and offer it to him;and eye him as he accepts it with a grunt. You grin and bump your shoulder to his,making him grunt again.

"not awake yet,sleepy head?"

"not my fault. Usopp snores. And Luffy talks about food in his sleep."

You snort around your own cup of tea, "what about Sanji?"

Zoro takes a moment to consider your question,a when he speaks next,he seems genuinely surprised by his answer.

"he... actually isnt so bothersome when he sleeps. Which is weird, considering how annoying he is when he's awake."

You throw your head back and laugh;the sound so refreshing in the silence of the morning. Zoro takes a sip of his tea,and leans on his forearms next to where you're currently sitting on the counter.

"why are you up so early?"

You shrug and tilt your head toward the window.

"the weather was too nice to sleep in."

"is that so?"

You close your eyes when the skies clears again and the rays of the sunshine warm your face.

"yeah."

You two bask in each others' presence;no need for any words,just enjoying the silence. The tea finishes soon,and with warm belly,you eyelids start to droop again.

"sleepy?"

When you open your eyes,you see Zoro's face inches away from yours;having you caged between his arms. You lean forward and rest your forehead against his, smiling when he lowers his head and presses his lips to your neck. You shiver,and wrap your arms around Zoro's neck.

"you know,i always dreamed of kissing my boyfriend on a kitchen counter."

An amused chuckle escapes his lips,and he tilts his head to one side while eyeing your lips; pretending to be confused.

"oh?then I'm afraid you'll have to teach me how to do it."

You giggle and pull him closer

"that,can be arranged."

When your lips meet,the morning feels even better. Zoro's lips are soft and move slowly against your own. Its everything you've ever wanted,and even more.

Because of mornings like this,you try to wake up earlier than usual every now and then;so you can have a small alone time with the man you love before everyone else wake up.

When a small sound escapes your lips as he bites your lower lip lightly,Zoro pulls back slightly and rests his forehead against yours.

"you have to keep it down,babe. Don't want other to wake up now,do we?"

And one shake of your head is enough answer for him to dive back in,and capture your lips again.

And you pray to every god you know,that mornings like this last forever.

#opla zoro roronoa x reader #opla zoro x reader #zoro roronoa x reader #zoro x reader #one piece live action x reader #one piece x reader

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glowstick-cafe · 11 months

Text

♡Across the Spiderverse: Relationship Hc's♡

Hobie Brown x reader

Genre: Fluff(?)

Warning: Hobie is so cool and he knows it, black peepole(British rizz) being in love, as always reader is gender neutral.

Summary: You actully hated him at first, but the line between hate and love are often blurred.

A/n: You guys liked me being delulu with Pav so imma be delulu with Hobie. Also, leave a comment if you want. :]

_______________________________________

You are a part of the spider society, Miguel just picked you up and said, "You're coming with me, kid." And you've just been on it ever since.

Your often aided Margo with her work(not like she minded), mostly because talking to spiders other than her, Miguel, Jessica, and Lyla were scary.

That's when you met Hobie, you truly had no idea what the hell he was saying for a full hour into him talking becauseof his accent, and he probably picked up on that from your constant confused nodding.

Hobie was fine with you not wanting to talk, which you appreciated; the boy was always happy to carry the conversation, and he assumed you wanted to be friends because you've been following him around and listening to him attentively.

Your friendship with Hobie was great, you've even stayed over at his house a few times to watch a movie you never made it through because you always fell asleep.

That was when Gwen came into the picture. You didn't hate her, she was actully really sweet and you had a lot of fun with her, but Hobies' attention began to be more on Gwen rather than you.

When Hobie began to notice how distant you were becoming he confronted you when you both were watching a movie at his house again, for old time sake.

"You've been ignorin' me lately, why?" He asked bluntly, Hobie was laying on your lap looking straight up at you.

"I'm not ignoring you, you have Gwen to talk to, anyway." You quickly realized how you sounded and cursed yourself, you looked down to meet Hobie's gaze only to see him with an amused expression. "A bit jealous, are ye?" He jokingly questioned, then sat up from you lap.

You could feel the heat emanating from your face, "No! Not like that- I just....fuck off!" You retorted, before you could embarrass yourself futher, Hobie placed a finger under your chin and gave you a peck on the lips. "It was never like that with Gwen, you idiot."

Safe to say that you stayed awake for that whole movie.

When you and Hobie started dating, he became more touchy, in the sense that he has to be touching you in some way.

He loves showing you off, it's like Peter B. showing off his kid, he takes offense if they don't wanna see you.

Hobie likes to rest is head on yours, it happens everywhere, standing in a line, washing dishes, it great for him, not so much for your neck though.

He also likes to likes to hug you from behind, but since your a bit jumpy about hugs the alternative is using your head as a pillow, or using your shoulder.

"Mate, wha chu' mean you don't wanna see my partner?"

He's so soft for you, even with he doesn't want to be.

He absolutely melts when you lightly tugg on his pinky finger or his jacket when you want his attention for something.

You love to kiss all of his piercings individually when you notice he's not having a great day.

You can't do cornrows for the life if you, but Hobie got you covered. He sits you down between his legs and does your hair as you watch whatever.

God forbid you touch your cornrows while he's doing them, he will hit your hand with that comb and it will hurt. "Why you tryin' to mess up my work, nah?"

#glow;atsv #spiderpunk x reader #hobie x reader #hobie brown x reader #hobie brown x y/n #hobie brown x you #reader is black #blk reader #spider punk x reader #spider punk x you #reader is a poc

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impactedfates · 8 months

Note

You're taking requests?

Could I request your opinions on how Jing Yuan, Blade and Dan Heng confess to their crush please? Modern School AU if you don't mind :D

A/N: Yes yes, I am taking requests, and I don't mind at all doing a Modern School AU! Thank you for the request (and being my first request lol) and I hope you like this :)) I also wrote how I believe they would've met you and/or fell in love <3

Jing Yuan is most certainly one of the more popular boys at school. With his charming smile and pretty face. It's no wonder he got a good handful or more admirers. Let's be honest, you probably are also one of the admirers right? (Or not, who knows)

I can picture Jing Yuan and yourself being childhood friends. His feelings developed when you two were young, and what he thought would disappear in fact grew the more the two of you hung out. Oh but he is absolutely NOT complaining at all. It's you, if he wanted to be in love with anyone it'll be you.

Perhaps during a quiet and peaceful moment, where he would lay his head on your lap after an especially tiring day at school, he'd close his eyes to rest, feeling your fingers play with his hair. He'd mumble out a soft "I love you" as he drifted off to sleep.

He's not even embarrassed when you bring it up to him once he awakes. Just confirms what he said and even specifies that he 'like likes' you.

Blade seems like that one quiet kid in class, but instead of being bullied, people are scared of him. One glance from him and people may shy away. It's tiring to him when he just wants to ask for a pencil or something but he doesn't care really. He has his own small friend group anyways. However when you are partnered up with him and don't shy away from his glance and treat him as a regular person. He can't help but feel a bit surprised.

He couldn't even help falling in love with you due to how kind you were and in general how you treated him normally among other factors. Assuming the two of you became close enough to be friends. I think his way of confessing wouldn't even be him, I don't think he'd confess, not really. I feel like he'd be afraid to be rejected or just not care too much about his feelings, though Kafka for sure noticed how Blade acted a lot softer when you were around. Even if it was unnoticeable by others, you think she wouldn't notice?

On Valentines day at school she would plant flowers and chocolate in your locker or on your desk, sign it off as a secret admirer and request to meet behind the school. And with the help of SilverWolf, convince Blade to go behind the school at the time you'd be there.

With you looking at him softly and the gifts "he got for you" in hand, and the snickers of his friends from behind a nearby corner. It seems he may as well be honest with you about his feelings right?

Dan Heng is also a quiet kid in class. I feel like he'd have a mix of people who secretly talk behind his back, though he always knows what they said and who they are no matter how discrete they try to be. But also he would have admirers. (have you seen how pretty he is??)

I think what would've got his attention on you is when you stood up for him. Some kids were talking bad about him during a free class, and he was going to shrug it off like always when you suddenly called the kids out. He's quick to step in before a loud arguments ensues but gives you a small thanks. He didn't mind what people thought about him but the fact someone who was practically a stranger to him stood up for him? He definitely acknowledges that.

March 7th probably introduced you too the friend group, he gave a small nod hi as he saw you. Due to this, you two hung out more and more together. When he realised he grew feelings for you, he consulted March who almost instantly outed his feelings for you due to how surprised and happy she was for him. And although March tried, none of her suggestions to confess was really Dan Hengs taste or style...He eventually decided to just write a small poem for you to confess instead. Giving it to you after school before retreating to his own house.

First time writing for HSR characters, hopefully it's alright aha. Proof read but I tend to miss things anyways, so feel free to correct me if I missed anything :)

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prismatoxic · 1 month

Note

cause I need to hear more of your sweet thoughts bout those two freaks, favorite laichil moments that have been stewing in the back of the mind?

oh gosh ummmmm

well now that episode 11 is out i am so very deeply fond of laios's visual pan from kensuke to chilchuck's dawning, rage-filled horror at what's happened

i think the swearing was better in the manga--not because the anime let him say actual words (bc i think that's awesome) but bc in the manga i thought they were still running while chilchuck was doing this. good visual

OF COURSE THE BEST EPISODE 11 CHILAIOS MOMENT... TO ME... is when chilchuck tells laios they're going to have a Talk later

the dub delivery kind of disappointed me (as it always does) BUT IN THE SUB the way laios immediately agrees is so very much, to me, a "yes sir" moment. and if you read my fic you know i'm very into this

i have a lot of little canon moments that i'm super fond of and am very excited to see in the anime... my faves are often when chilchuck is being a hostile little goblin but i'm so fucking excited about what i assume will be episode 13. you know. because

okay i have a lot of thoughts actually (MANGA SPOILERS I'M SERIOUS)

so. chapter 30.

chilchuck goes to get the party's supplies from where they were abandoned in the house they had dinner with falin at, having his own character arc along the way. we have seen him try to convince both leed and senshi that the smartest thing to do will be to lie to laios and marcille so they can return to the surface. trying to continue in this state will kill them, but neither of them will rest if they think they can still find falin. neither senshi nor leed agree with chilchuck's plan, and leed insinuates he's a coward. chilchuck stays firm. even after he's clearly pushed off kilter by leed saying he should just tell the truth, we don't have any concrete reason to think he will.

then they return and senshi is struggling to keep a now-awake laios down. laios is wounded and weak and senshi is a dwarf but laios is so deeply, fervently determined to get falin back that he's very hard to stop.

chilchuck, by contrast, is not strong at all, but somehow his added presence gets laios to sit back down. chilchuck rests a hand on laios's shoulder and even before he says anything, laios is looking at him. he knows something is coming. i think he resents chilchuck for it, too--the implication that there's anything to be said here.

we don't know at this point what chilchuck intends to say. senshi still thinks he wants to lie and intends to stop him, but i think it's clear in this moment that chilchuck has changed his mind.

he kneels--proud, all-too-aware of "how his people are treated for their size" chilchuck kneels between laios's legs. and i'm not pointing this out for horny reasons, for once.

he's bringing himself closer to laios--assuming a position associated with pleading and willingly making himself not the authority in this interaction. he believes, wholeheartedly, in what he wants to do and what needs to be said, but...

he also knows laios is hurting.

laios is... devastated. he's terrified. he's angry. but he's also still laios, and he knows chilchuck, insofar as chilchuck has allowed him to. he also respects chilchuck. so this--a teary-eyed plea to do what goes against everything he feels--gives him pause. chilchuck does not beg, and he does not cry.

...and he never talks about how he feels.

but he does, here: he doesn't want to lose his friends. and he does mean all of them, senshi included. he has three people to think of--three people whose lives he cannot in good conscience allow to be put at risk any more than they already have been. even so, he acknowledges that however laios feels about falin is probably incomparable.

but he tries to give laios hope--he gives him a plan of action. he says we will come back. he tries to impress upon laios that this isn't defeat and it isn't surrender, it's being safe. it's giving themselves an actual fighting chance at getting falin back.

laios doesn't want to... but he also doesn't say that. all the things he's feeling haven't gone away, but he's also aware of just how big this situation is if chilchuck opened himself up this way. chilchuck does not and never has done this. up until the fight with the red dragon, you could be forgiven for assuming chilchuck is just a contracted coworker who's a little fond of the party and nothing more.

senshi and leed, the only people who knew chilchuck's plan to lie to the others, don't openly acknowledge his change of heart... but they back him up. they pitch in to push laios just a little further, to get him to agree.

and it works.

so. um. episode 13 will be good i think

#tox answers #chilaios #dunmeshi spoilers #dunmeshi anime spoilers #ummmmm i got a little into this one #long post

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lovelybrooke · 1 year

Text

The Wrath of a Family (Platonic Yandere Ellie and Joel x reader.)

A/N: So, this is a request by someone who wished to remain anonyms and I was really interested in the idea. It takes place during ep.8 (so like warning for literally all of that) Also I'll be honest, the torturing scene was just taken from the episode and rewritten to fit the reader. Please like, comment, and reblog if you enjoy.

Everything was so, so, cold.

The air in the basement you resided in was thick. You didn't know if it was because of the sickness radiating around you, or if it was just your imagination.

You open your eyes to see Ellie and Joel laying on the ground next to you. Joel wasn't awake and Ellie barely was, slipping in and out of consciousness. Somewhere along the line, Ellie contracted something which rendered her unable really anything without being in excruciating pain. That, along with Joel being shot, has put a lot of pressure on you to keep them safe. Luckily, Ellie was able to give him... something, that would help him, before she got too sick. But as she slowly became sicker, it became your responsibility to make sure everyone was okay.

You slowly get up off the ground, your body aching due to the awkward position you were previously laying in. You shuffle over to your bag, digging around looking for any food. The best you could find is a few pieces of stale bread. You look over at Ellie and Joel, contemplating just eating the bread yourself as your stomach rumbles. You choose to not succumb to temptation though.

"Ellie. Ellie, wake up." You shake her as softly as you can in order to not bother her or Joel who is laying right next to her. You can feel how hot Ellie is even though her clothes, and you almost withdrawal your hand to keep it from the heat. "You need to eat." You put the bread near her nose, hoping she smells it and wakes up, but to no avail. Her unresponsiveness makes you want to cry. You don't know what to do. You're scared, and you're so hungry.

Wrapping up the bread in some paper, you place it down near Ellie. "Ellie, you need to eat." You whisper. You look at Joel, who is just as unresponsive, except for a few short breaths. "You need to share with Joel." Your eyes move from Joel to his bag which is resting on the wall. You spot the gun next to is and almost like it was calling out to you, you rush over and grab it, swinging it over your shoulder while trying to be as quiet as possible. You crouch down near Joel, watching as his breath rises and fall. You wipe your eyes at tears that threaten to fall. "I'll be back soon, I promise." There was no response from either of them.

Slowly, you rise from your position near Joel to walk to the door. Once in the living room of the old house, you move a nearby dresser to block entry. You take a deep breath before walking outside and towards the forest. You need to be brave.

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

Moments like this was when you hated Joel the most for not teaching you anything about guns or how to aim. You've been trying to the last roughly 30 minutes to shoot something, but you've kept just barely missing. At this point, it would just be better going back to Joel and Ellie. Your stomach refused though, growling in intense pain. You haven't eaten in days, choosing to give everything to Joel and Ellie, and it's started to affect you. You've been seeing dots in your vision, constant headaches, and you not as vigilant as you were before. You also know Joel and Ellie are getting worse, and they need to eat something of substances. So, you choose to push past the pain in order to help them.

You continue your routine of aiming and missing until you hear rustling in the distance, louder than anything an animal would make. You stand, to quickly you assume, since you are met with a harsh pain in your head. You groan but try to focus on where the noise was coming from, holding the gun near you for protection. Staying completely as silent as possible, you watch as a pale man, along with others, come stalking towards you. Point the gun near them, you watch as the man in the middle raises his hands, telling his men you not shoot you.

"I apologize for scaring you like that, my child." He said calmly, your stance not faltering. "We mean no harm, just passing through."

"Just passing through the middle of the woods?" You questioned, your grip tightening on the gun.

The man let out a curt laugh, his eyes piercing right through you. He lowers his hands to his sides and motions to the environment around you.

"You've caught me." He smiled, causing your stomach to churn. "I heard gunshots and assumed it was the man who killed one of my friends." His look became harsh, almost accusatory. "You wouldn't happen to know here he is, would you?"

"No." The words came out without hesitation. Your strong façade became weaker and weaker as you watched this man walk closer to you, close enough to put his hand on your shoulder. You were frozen by fear, too afraid to even think about shooting your gun as it slowly falls to your side. He leans down near your ear, his hot breath causing you to cringe, almost letting out a whimper which you have to stifle down.

"Don't lie to me." You could feel his gaze on you, even as you looked straight ahead near the two other men. His gaze was almost soft, which made you feel even more disgusted. "It will hurt more if you do."

In a moment of panic, you move away from the man, raising the gun again. Before you could shoot, he grabs the gun quickly and pull it towards him, jolting you forward enough to allow him to hit you in the stomach. You let go of the gun, clutching your stomach in pain, which grants one of his lackies the opportunity to hit you on the back of the head with the butt of his gun. You yell out, the pain in your head overwhelming as you succumb to darkness.

"Find the man. I'll deal with them."

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

Joel was confused. Where was he? Where was his gun? Wait, where are you? He shoots up, hissing at the pain in his side. He lifts his shirt, a bright red scar greeting him. He frowns deeply, letting his shirt fall as he gets up, shuffling around Ellie who is stirring next to him.

"(Y/N)? Where are you! Kid!" He yells, Ellie groaning beneath him. Your bag is here, so where could you be? His breath picks up, prompting him to grab his side as it pulses in pain. "I'm not joking, come out!" He was angry, his voice loud.

"Why are you yelling." Ellie was awake, her skin visibly sticky from sweat.

"Where's your sibling Ellie?" Joel probed, his eyes narrowing at her. She looks at him confused.

"What?" She asked. Joel crouched down and grabbed Ellie by the shoulders, pushing his face closer to hers.

"WHERE IS (Y/N)!" He yelled, disregard for the situation they were in. Ellie's eyes widened, her head shaking.

"I don't... I don't know." She begins to panic, "Shit! They were just here!" She yelled, looking around the room. Joel rushes to the door, pushing it this force when it doesn't open.

"Fuck!" He shouts. Ellie is rushing around the room, getting everything packed up. Her eyes are filled with tears as she clearly doesn't know what to do.

suddenly, a harsh bump stops all movement from both persons. The listen as the sound moves closer and closer their location. Joel puts a finger to his lips, motioning for Ellie to be quiet as he creeps away from the door. His breath is in his throat as he listens to the person move the object blocking the door and slowly enter. Immediately, Ellie shoots him, watching as he falls to the ground. Joel kicks the gun away from him and watches as he bleeds out with zero remorse. Joel takes the gun from Ellie and walks into the main room, where two other men were pointing a gun at him.

Joel wastes no taking the men out, dragging one onto a chair, tying him to it. Joel left the other man alone for now as he looks at Ellie, "Go find them." He directed. Ellie nodded as she hurried out of the house.

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

The first thing you noticed when you awoke was your nose was bleeding. You bring your hand to it, watching as your fingers were covered in blood. You try sniff the blood back up, hissing in pain when you do so, gripping your nose. The next thing you notice was that you were in a cage.

The room around you stunk of blood, you didn't know if that was yours or someone else's. You stand up, your head spinning, and attempt to unlock the gate. It didn't budge however, even as you tug and pull. The sound of the door opening causes you to move into the very corner of the room, trying to camouflage yourself into the wall. The same man who attacked you in the woods entered, your eyes widening.

"How are you?" He paced around the cage, you move away from him, much to his displeasure. You remanded silent as he came closer.

"I promise you; everything will be fine if you tell me where your father is."

"You're lying." You don't acknowledge the father comment. The ma grimaces, gripping the bars of the cage.

"You're lying right now." He pointed out, getting no response out of you. "He killed one of my friends."

"He was going to kill me."

"So, he had to kill him?" You don't know how to respond, so you just glare at him. The man sighs and walks back towards the door, he turns to look back at you, watching as you sit down on the ground.

"We will find him." He says, "And once we do, he, along with you and your friend, will die." You didn't respond, just breath quietly.

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

The bloodied man grunts as Joels fist meets his face for another time.

"Leave him alone." The man sitting in the back, tied up says. Joel looks at him quickly.

"You're next." He responds, pulling out a knife, scaring the disheveled man in front of him.

"Please. I don't know who you're talking about." Joel stabs him, the man yelling out in pain, but Joel doesn't acknowledge it, just stares at the man behind him. "Marco" the man calls out, Joel gripping his hair, forcing him to look him in the eyes.

"He can't help you. You focus right here." Joel growls, shaking the man's head as he moans in pain. "Or I'll pop your fuckin' kneecap off." The man looked down in order to break away from Joel's intense gaze.

"They're alive." He whimpers out.

"Where?" Joel demands. When he doesn't answer, Joel twists the knife in this knee, the squelching sounds reverberating around the room.

"Fuck! Fuck! The town!" He cries out. Joel's rage heightens.

"WHAT TOWN?!" Joel roars, getting closer to the man.

"Silver lake." He replies weakly, Joel pushing him back, his head filling with pain. Joel pulls out a map and looks for the town, "It's not a real town name. It's a resort." Joel looked at him, confused.

"A resort." He remains silent, prompting Joel to rip the knife out from his knee. Joel pushes his head back once again, prying the man's mouth open, shoving the hilt knife that was once in his knee into his bloodied mouth as he groans in protest. Joel brings the map close to him.

"You're gonna point to where we are and where your "resort" is. And it better be the exact same spot your buddy points to." Marco shuffles, attempting to get free as Joel talks. The man whimpers out a small 'okay' the best he can with the knife in his mouth. Joel moves away, watching as he makes a spot on the map with the knife.

He spits the knife out, eying Joel once he is finished. "Thats where we are. I swear." Joel doesn't look at him, just the map. "Go ask him. He'll tell you. I'm not lying." Joel stabs him without a second thought. Marco cries out as he watches his friend die. He thrashes in his bindings, attempting to find some way to break free.

"Why the fuck would you do that, he told you what you wanted!" Marco shouts in anger, watching as Joel picks up a lead pipe and stalks towards him. "You motherfucker. Fuck you." He proclaims. "I ain't telling you shit." Joel shakes his head.

"It's okay. I believe him." The man cries as Joel brings the pipe down onto his head.

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

You must've fallen asleep because when you wake up, you smell smoke. Coughing, you squint near the door, noticing bright red flames peak out from underneath. Your heartrate picks up as you begin to violently shake the door.

"Someone, help me." You yell, smoke filling your lungs. "Joel! Ellie! Please, help me." You sob. The metal bars start to become hot, your hands burning as you continue to shake them.

You cries become louder and louder, both from the situation and because your hands were becoming severally burnt.

"Please.... someone." You yell out again, weakly.

"(Y/N)?!" You hear someone yell out.

"I'm in here." You respond. Your breath picks up when Ellie walks into the room, rapidly unlocking the door despite the heat. You ignore the blood that covered her body as she wrapped her arm around your shoulder, leading you out of the room and that was burning down. The main dining room was a mess, fire consuming it. In the middle, however, was the same man who attacked and kidnapped you, laying in a pile of his own blood, brutally scared. You looked back at Ellie and then the man, putting two and two together. Ellie doesn't acknowledge your gaze, simply too focused with leading you out of the fiery building.

Once outside, you collapsed to the ground, your entire body screaming in pain. Your nose was so bloody that you could barely breath, and the skin on your hands were so burnt the dead skin was pealing over, exposing the other bloody layer of skin. You were too tired to notice Ellie hugging you, sobbing loudly.

"I-I'm sorry." She wept, burying her head into the corner of your neck. You attempt to pat her head, but it hurts your hand too much, so you choose to bury it in the snow. You look around, watching as the snow falls. It's so peaceful, you could fall asleep.

"(Y/N)?" You look over to the noise, being greeted with Joel. He's limping, also covered in blood, and your bag is slung over his shoulder. He runs over to you, falling down to embrace you, cradling your head, he brings you in to his chest. Ellie, still attached to your side, moves in closer, refusing to let you go.

You let out a weak sob as Joel begins to cry as well, "You're okay, you're good. I'm here." You continue to cry as he speaks.

"I'm sorry for leaving." You spoke to the both of them. You feel Ellie shake her head. Joel hugs you tighter.

"It's okay. You're safe now." He watches the building in front of him burn, "We'll never leave you alone again."

A/N: Honestly, I think this is my best work yet.

#yandere x reader #platonic yandere #soft yandere #joel miller #yandere joel miller #joel miller x reader #joel miller x platonic!reader #platonic joel miller #yandere ellie williams #ellie williams x reader #ellie williams #yandere the last of us #the last of us x reader #fanfic #fanfiction #yandere #yandere fanfiction #x reader

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luveline · 2 years

Note

I see a lot of Eddie taking care of reader when their sick but what about the other way around? 👀

sick eddie <\3 cw weed ment ♡ fem!reader | 1.2k words

You sit cross-legged on the end of Eddie's bed, waiting for him to wake up with one of his many books in your lap.

He's curled in on himself and snoring. The sound should be irritating and for the most part it is, but it's also a nice reminder that he's alive. From his pallor, you'd assume he was close to death, your poor boyfriend pale as snow.

You're silent. You don't want to wake him up. He needs as much rest as he can get to fight his awful flu.

You don't worry about catching it because you'd already suffered through it, Eddie diligent and doting at your side the entire time. You intend to return the favour and so far you think you're doing a pretty great job.

This comes into question when he groans like he's in pain. You let the book fall away as you slip onto your feet, rounding the bed to stand above him. "Hey, baby," you say softly, eyebrows pinched in concern.

Eddie groans again. The sound is smothered by his pillow.

You bend at the waist and drop your hand to his bare shoulder, rubbing a line up and down the length of his upper arm soothingly. His skin is burning hot.

"Eddie," you duck down to kiss his shoulder, "what's wrong?"

He takes a little while to come around. You can pinpoint the moment where he realises he's awake and sick and in bed, like a soul slipping back into his body. He reaches around his chest to clasp your hand where it lies in the crook of his elbow but doesn't look up. Doesn't move.

"My-" He cuts himself off to cough, his voice scratchy and weak. "My head's fuckin' poundin'."

You give his shoulder another kiss. "Want me to get you some more Tylenol?"

"A joint."

You giggle at him and slide your hand between his cheek and the pillow where it's pressed. You hug him, a precious hug, kissing the clammy skin of his forehead where his bangs have fallen aside lovingly. "Maybe later, okay? You need something to eat, I think."

He sighs, sounding almost happy. "You smell nice," he mumbles.

"Thank you. You smell nice too."

"No, I don't."

He doesn't. He smells sick. But he's your boy and he's aching and the last thing you want to do is make him feel bad about anything. "Can I make you some dinner?" you ask gently, pulling back just enough to tuck a limp curl behind his ear.

He fights to open his eyes. You know from experience how sore they are and go to pull away to get him a hot towel.

His hands jump to your arms and hold them. "No, don't go," he says, squinting at you. There's a hint of desperation there and it's enough to melt your heart.

"Eddie," you murmur, "just getting you a towel for your eyes, okay? I know they're hurting."

His eyes are so brown and soft. You wipe under his eyelashes sympathetically.

"I'll be right back," you promise.

He closes his eyes and lets you go slowly. "Okay," he says, swallowing against his sore throat.

You get him a warm wet towel, some Tylenol and a fresh glass of water.

He's managed to sit himself up by the time you return, hands pressed to the sheets and head dropped into his chest. You climb over his leg carefully and sit more close than you have any reason to, telling yourself it's for his sake when really it's for your own. It hurts you to see him so miserable. Being near helps.

One leg thrown over his thigh, Eddie instinctively pulls you close. You almost tip his water down your front.

"Here," you say, pressing the glass into his shaking hand.

You pour out two Tylenol and hand them over, too.

As soon as he's taken them his head drops back to his chest. "Fuck," he complains, "I feel bad."

"I'm sorry," you say quietly. It's your fault he's sick, and if it wasn't you'd still be sorry.

You fold the small towel in your hand into a neat square and bring it to his face, rubbing under his closed eyes gently.

"Not your fault," he says, palm squeezing your thigh weakly.

You smile. "You caught it from me. Open your eyes?"

He opens his eyes.

"Thanks, handsome." You wipe all the mess from his lashes on either side. "Close them again?"

You unfold the towel and hold it over both of his eyes.

"What are you doing?" he asks hoarsely.

"Is it helping?" you ask instead of answering.

He hums. You take it for yes.

His hand smooths a sluggish line down the length of your leg. You appreciate it more than you can convey; he's sick as a dog and still trying to love on you.

When the towel is more wet than warm you pull it away from him and bunch it into a ball.

His eyes blink open, much clearer than before.

"Hey," you say fondly.

He clears his throat. "Hey, beautiful."

You push your damp hand into his and he reciprocates, squeezing your fingers between his own until they ache. "Ah," you gasp, a startled laugh, "stop, you sicko."

He does as you say, pulling your joined hands to his abdomen. You don't speak for a while, looking at one another no differently than you usually do.

Eventually he smiles. "You look really pretty," he says.

You beam at him. "That's the fever talking."

"Not. You always look pretty." And I always tell you, he implies, raising his eyebrows at you.

"If you weren't so sick I'd be in your lap by now," you say.

"I know."

You lean forward and he lets you kiss his cheek. You try to catch his mouth and he turns his face away from you.

"You'll get sick."

"I can't get sick, I already had it."

"I might not even have what you had."

"Please, Teddy?"

He closes his eyes and sighs. You wait. He doesn't bother opening them again as he says, "Well?"

You take his face into both hands and kiss him very sweetly. There's a certain relief to be found in it. You know he feels it too when his breath catches.

Your hand moves over his cheek, behind his ear and into his hair. You kiss the corner of his lips, his chin, his cheek, and then push yourself under his face to kiss his neck, a tiny press of your lips as you wrap your arms around him and hug his shoulders. You're cautious not to put any of your weight on him.

Eddie's head drops on top of yours. He slouches against you, into you, exhausted.

"I love you," he says. It sounds like a thank you.

"I love you, too," you reply. You're welcome.

You rub your nose into his skin. He smells undeniably like himself, under everything.

#eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson x reader fluff #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x you #eddie munson #eddie munson fanfic #eddie munson stranger things #stranger things fic #stranger things x reader #stranger things 4 #stranger things #eddie munson x fem!reader #eddie munson imagine #eddie munson fic

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thequietkid-moonie · 2 months

Text

S/O is always sleepy

[ HEADCANONS ] [ Tohru, Marin, Shouko ]

[ Kobayashi's Maid Dragon ] [ My Dress-Up Darling ] [ Komi-san can't comunicate ]

Cutieeeeee!! What a cute prompt, thanks for requesting it! I think i'm not usually sleepy but I do yawn waaaay to much haha

Tohru

Once Tohru falls in love she does it hard, she just can't not love everything about you and want to know more and more about you, as well to enjoy everything of you

At first, when Torhu noticed how sleepy you are she may assumed that you haven't had a good rest last night because you were overworking yourself or even just starying up late at night, so she will try to make sure you get a good night of sleep (or a good nap, depending on the time), searching for ways to help you fall sleep and even staying awake while you sleep to make sure nothing disturbe your sleep (she is actually rather prideful of her attempts)

It won't take her much time to realice that no matter what she does you still look sleepy during the day, and that is when she will start to get worried about you, Tohru may just start thinking that there is something bad about you, maybe a sickness she doesn't know about or even that someone is doing something to you (and if you are human it would be even worst since she doesn't know much about humans)

Even if you try to explain her that this is just the way you are it would take her a while to fully understand and accept that is somehow normal for you to be so sleepy all the time, but at the end it would be something that she totally loves

Once she gets used to it she can't help but find cute they way you yawn constantly, or how you rub your eyes whenever you are actually falling sleep but are trying to stay awake and focus, Torhu can't help but stare at you with a loving expression whenever you try to stay awake (she find it so cute, like if you were a little cute kitten)

However, before she fully accept it she will find it a little annoying, it doesn't that she want to go against your naps and yawns but if you keep sleeping all the time she won't be able to have proper time with you, but will see it in a bright light the moment you tell her that you two can cuddle while you nap

Torhu isn't actually of help when you are feeling specially sleepy because she want to spoil you, so she will totally encourage you to just get comfortable and take a nap, she promise to watch over your sleep, the problem is that if you actually do as she says is probably that nothing would be done, Torhu can't exactly do your work for you and the house chores won't be done neither since, even if she offer to do it, she just gets too distracted by looking at you sleep so peacefuly (and will end up cuddling you)

Marin Kitagawa

Marin is a really cheerful and loving person, onces she falls in love she does it hard but also it is a quite innocent love, she loves all of you and can't not find you cute. Marin likes knowing more and more of you over time and holds a lot of respect for you and what you like, she doesn't question you in the slighest (unless there is something actually disturbing)

Marin can be blinded for her love to some extent but at some point she will notice that you seem rather sleepy all the time, at first Marin will just brush it off as maybe you don't having a good sleep last night, but when she doesn't noticed that you are sleepy almost all the time she grows worried

Marin doesn't want to asume the worst imediatly but she can't help but be worried, her mind wander from thinking that you may be having problems to sleep to thinking that you just probably were up until really late because you couldn't stop doing something you were enjoying a lot (she understand since she does stay up until late for watching anime sometimes), so she tries to make peace with it and don't worry more, but she can't

Over time Marin will get more worried but express it in a pretty childish way, she pout and complain about how haven't you tell her that you aren't having good rest a nights, she is your girlfriend and you must trust her with your problems! (is more probably that she complains about it with her friends before bringing the topic to you)

At some point she will finally ask you about it, and when she does she pouts y and acts little childish, just like when she was complaining before actually showing you how worried she had been. Once you finally tell her that is just they way you are and not because you don't sleep at night she is really reliefed, she may even laugh a little at how worried she was

It won't take her a long time to get used to you being sleepy and yawning almost all the time, but she has to remind herself a few times that if you yawn while being with their it isn't because you are bored and just because you are being sleepy

Marin will grow to love how sleepy you are, she just find it adorable and can't help but tease you a little everytime you yawn or rub your eyes, she thinks is quite adorable. As well, there are times Marin suggest that you could take a nap if you want (and probably just take it as cuddle time too!), it isn't always thought, only when she is sure you don't have other things to atent or when you two aren't having a date at home

Shouko Komi

Aside from being flustered for your relationship Shouko doesn't find much troubles about your little habits and quirks, as long as doesn't trigger her anxiety she will be alright with how you are, and at the end she will end up loving all of you

She likes to know you better slowly, bit by bit, although even if she notices how sleepy you are pretty soon she won't say anything about it, not wanting to risk bothering you or even upseting you (as if it were something you were trying to hide)

At first Shouko will just think that you probably hadn't have a good night of sleep, what, with a little bit of further thought, will worry her a lot, in her mind will be running a lot of reasons why you may didn't rest well, every idea being more worring and dramatic than the last one (going from just staying up reading until late, to having a nightmare to even you overworking yourself)

Honestly, once that thought of you may don't resting well for bad reasons gets into her mind it would be stuck there for a while, getting a little nervous everything she sees you yawning or rubbing your eyes, but still she doesn't want to say anything, thinking that you may try to act tough and don't tell her, is more likely that Hitohito and Najimi (probably even Nene) end up asking her what is stressing her so much (because if you ask her Shouko will try to just deny it, even with her friends she will be hesitant to talk about it)

Is probably that her friends end up being the ones with the solution, Hitohito will try to calm her down saying that you probably are naturaly sleepy or don't find school exciting enough, Nene will do the same but will offer to ask you directly, while Najimi will just go and ask you directly in a joking manner, and probably end up teasing you and making jokes about you being so sleepy that even Shouko was worried (but she won't really mention it unless she has a really good joke for it)

Even when you already had explain that that is just normal for you to feel sleepy most of the time Shouko still will feel a little nervous about it, it would take her a little to get used to it, and even when she gets used to it there will be new reasons for why this make her nervous

Shouko will start to feel nervous whenever you are extra sleepy because she doesn't know if it would be alright to just let you fall sleep (specially in school or public places), in the other hand, whenever you doze off or even lay down in your desk and "rest your eyes" she can't help but stare at you a little, she is far from proud about it but she just find your peacefuly sleepy expression so cute! She just want to admire it a little longer, but must of the time she end up being a embarrassed mess whenever you notice or someone else notice she is staring at you, or just when she catch herself staring at you

Requested by @hugbot1998

#kobayashi san chi no maid dragon #kobayashi san chi no maid dragon x reader #tohru #tohru x reader #my dress up darling x reader #marin kitagawa #marin kitagawa x reader #marin x reader #komi can't communicate #komi can't comunicate x reader #shouko komi #shouko komi x reader #shouko x reader #x reader #x gn reader #anime x reader

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perseusannabeth · 4 months

Text

Chapter 1

A/N: Hi everyone, and happy holidays! This is my contribution to the @acotargiftexchange for the lovely @talkfantasytome! I want to thank the organisers for this absolutely brilliant event. It's looking like this fic will be 3 chapters, so fingers crossed that the rest of the parts will come soon!

This has chef Cassian and writer Nesta, aka my favourite combo. I also have to warn you, as per usual, Cassian's Illyrian cooking is in fact how I cook as a south Asian person.

AO3 is currently down, so I won't be able to post this on there until later, but it will be added. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this!

Summary: Cassian is deeply concerned about the fact that his neighbour cannot cook at all. He decides to start cooking for her to save her from an early death, and it becomes so much more.

Cassian had lived in his current apartment for a long enough time to know most of the people in the building. It wasn't a massive building, so it wasn't hard to run into people. The only person he hadn't run into was his neighbour, who had moved in 3 months ago.

Thankfully, there were signs of life, like the post being checked, and he could hear the door opening and closing. The most concerning thing he noticed was that his new neighbour seemed friendly with the fast food delivery drivers. Cassian didn't like judging food choices because he knew that people around him already felt self-conscious when they talked about food. Being a chef meant people assumed he knew best, but he could easily teach people he was willing to learn. Still, his neighbour was concerning him a lot. They must be on their way to a heart attack with the amount of fast food they consumed, and from Cassian's observation, they sometimes got food at least once a day or more. But Cassian had never assumed his neighbour's eating habits would affect him.

"So, have you seen her around? It's been a few days, that's all, and I'm a little worried about her," said his delivery driver, Toby.

"I'm sorry, I'm so tired right now that my brain barely functions. Please, can you repeat yourself?"

"Nesta, your neighbour. She orders from us daily, but I've not had any deliveries for her for 3 days. I'm just a little worried about her, that's all," Toby said, blushing now. The poor guy couldn't be more than 20 years old. At 20 years old, Cassian can't imagine he would've had the guts to do what Toby was doing, so he had to hand it to the guy.

"I'm sorry, I haven't heard from her," Cassian replied, unwilling to admit he'd never seen her before and had just learned her name from Toby. "I'll check on her though, don't worry," Cassian said, to both reassure the man and to get him to leave because, god damn it, his food was getting cold!

"Thanks, man, I really appreciate it. She seems nice, and she tips really well." Toby smiled. Cassian just nodded awkwardly and then waited for Toby to finally (finally) move from his door.

Cassian practically inhaled his food because, yes, he had promised his delivery driver that he would check on his neighbour, but if he was going to check on a potentially dead person, he would not be doing it while he was hungry. Fuck that; he had been in the restaurant since 6am, and he had planned on eating and then collapsing in bed. Now he had to check on his potentially dead neighbour because the delivery boy liked her tips!

By the time he had finished his food, he had managed to work up some energy, mostly just the rage he had to check on his neighbour and delay his sleep. Still, before leaving his flat, he checked his attitude at the door because he didn't want to be rude. He was being neighbourly, even if he was tired.

When he knocked on the door and didn't hear any movement on the other side of the door, he was suddenly wide awake. He had horrific visions of breaking the door down and finding a corpse as he knocked again, trying to delay the rescue mission playing out in his head. When the door flew open, Cassian nearly jumped out of his skin.

The lady in front of him looked pretty annoyed at him, especially as he gawped at her like an idiot. Her hair was pulled up in something that might have once been a bun but was now just a tangled mess. She was in a long t-shirt that had seen better days; it was stained and faded, and underneath, she wore leggings that were in a similar state. But somehow, despite all this and the deep bags under her eyes, she still was the most beautiful woman Cassian had ever seen.

"Can I help you?" The woman said, giving him a quick once over.

That snapped Cassian out of his trance. "Sorry, erm, I'm looking for someone called Nesta?" Cassian asked awkwardly.

The woman had gone from droll to actively suppressing a laugh. "Oh my god, did Emerie actually do it? Are you a male stripper?"

Cassian's eyes widened as he quickly stepped back to distance himself from the beautiful, crazy woman. "Woah, I have no idea who Emerie is. I'm flattered you think I could pass for a stripper, but I'm no magic Mike. I'm Cassian, and I'm your neighbour." Cassian said, pointing at the open door to his apartment.

'Oh," the woman said, now also looking awkward.

"Look, I just need to know if you're Nesta and if you're alright. I ordered some food, and the delivery driver said he was worried because he hadn't heard from you in a few days," Cassian explained, not wanting to linger in awkward silence.

The woman's face went bright red at that, so Cassian assumed that this was, in fact, the mysterious Nesta who tipped really well and ordered food every single day. "Listen, I'm assuming you're Cassian, the chef Mrs Culpepper mentioned. I can only imagine what you think of me since Toby felt chatty today. I'm gonna be honest with you, I can't cook. My friend said not to burn down the building, so I've not tried. Really, my takeaway habit is saving everyone, and as my neighbour, you should be grateful, so don't judge me,"

Cassian held his hands up in surrender. "I'm not judging. Just because I enjoy cooking doesn't mean I assume everyone will. I am, however, slightly concerned. Is that all you eat? That can't be good for your health," Cassian said, frowning as he calculated how expensive that must be and the calories. He wasn't the best with numbers, so he couldn't be sure, but he was pretty sure that was a bad time.

"My friend said the same thing, so she batch-cooked me a few meals. I've got a deadline for work, so I've been even worse than usual, but that's why I haven't ordered any food. When it runs out, which will probably be tomorrow, I'll be back to ordering from Toby," she said with a shrug.

"Okay, I said I'm not judging, but that sounds horrific. I can't let you carry on like that. I don't think my conscience can take it," Cassian said, looking at her wide-eyed. The way this woman was going, she'd be dead of a heart attack in no time.

"I'll be fine; you don't need to take pity on me," Nesta said defensively.

"Listen, it's Nesta, right?" she nodded, eyeing him suspiciously now, which made him want to laugh. She hadn't been suspicious before, but now he was questioning her food intake; she was wary of him. "I get to take leftovers from my work. It's one of the perks, but there's sometimes a lot. I tend to bring them home and make myself something with whatever random stuff there is. It's way healthier than ordering out and helps me not waste food. It's a win-win situation for both of us, really."

"So, you're basically offering to be my personal chef?" Nesta said, trying to figure out what the catch was.

"Well, within reason. If there's anything you hate or won't eat, I'll consider it, and obviously, any allergies. And if you want something specific, I don't mind making that, too, as long as I have enough time to get the ingredients. And I don't really mind cooking; if I didn't love it, I wouldn't do it as my job."

A silence lingered, and Cassian wondered if he had gone in too hard on the sales pitch. He wouldn't be shocked if she said no; it was a weird request from your neighbour, whom you'd only met. But there was something about this woman that made Cassian want to offer to cook for her outside of work. His friends knew he never shared his food, not when he was outside of work. He made traditional Illyrian dishes when he was at home. It was a way for him to stay connected with his culture and mother despite his distance. These recipes had been handed down through generations of his mother's family, but there was something private and intimate about them. But he would share them with his neighbour.

"Are you even real?" Nesta said, staring at him in a bit of a daze. Then, she reached out and poked him in the cheek. "You feel real," she said as she continued poking his cheek.

"I- I think I'm real?" Cassian stuttered, really not sure how he should react. Cassian wasn't shy, but this woman was just something else.

Clearly, his talking pulled her out of whatever daze she was in. "I'm so sorry; I've been working non-stop for my next deadline, so I'm losing my grip on reality right now," Nesta said, shaking her head to get rid of whatever weird thoughts were in her head.

Cassian pulled his phone out of his pocket and handed it to her. "Add your number, and I'll text you so you have mine. Then, you can text me any allergies or anything you wouldn't eat. I'll probably just tell you some dishes I can make with the leftovers, and you can let me know what sounds good. Is that okay with you?" Cassian said.

Nesta nodded, handing his phone back with her number added. Cassian shot her a quick text and then put his phone away. "Thank you," Nesta said awkwardly. "You really don't need to do that, but I'm certainly not going to look a gift horse in the mouth," she said with a shrug and a quick smile.

Cassian smiled back, said his goodbyes and went back to his apartment. As he shut his door, he took his neighbour in, who was watching him walk away with a contemplative look on her face. He shook his head, shutting his door. Cassian was doing a good deed for his hot neighbour, but he hoped and prayed that his friends wouldn't find out about it.

With that, he quickly got ready for bed, practically collapsing into his bed. As he drifted off to sleep, he noticed that he was smiling and had been since he had said goodbye to his neighbour.

***

Cassian had forgotten entirely about the events of the night before when he woke up in the morning. It was so surreal; it felt like a dream. It wasn't until he was getting ready for his morning run that he realised it was true.

He had a strict no phones policy in the mornings, mainly because his doom-scrolling habit was an awful way to start the day. So until he was ready to leave the house, he wouldn't look at his phone. It had helped with his mental health a lot and made waking up for his job so much easier, too.

Since he had the day off, he slept till 9, which was late for someone who left the house at 4am every day for work. When he finally looked at his phone, he froze for a second, because there was a message from his neighbour.

Once he had processed that yesterday had, in fact, not been a dream, he quickly made a note of the things she didn't like (kale being called the devil's lettuce made him laugh way more than it should've); he had a quick glance in the fridge to see what he could make. He figured he would make a quick tuna and avocado sandwich for lunch, and then for dinner, he would make pasta. Both seemed reasonably safe first options for her meals. Then, he could also give her leftover pasta for lunch the next day.

As he finally left and started his run, he realised this could be the perfect opportunity to work on some new recipes for the restaurant. He wanted to update the menu and add more traditional recipes, but he had been nervous to test them out on anyone. By the time he got to the point he turned back, he had a massive grin on his face. He whipped his phone out and sent Nesta a text.

Cassian: I've just had an idea. How would you feel being my new taster for some experimental recipes?

Her reply was instant, which surprised him.

Nesta: you're doing me a favour so if i can help then i'm good with that. Although idk if i'm the best taste tester since my own culinary skills start and end at cereal

Cassian: All I need is your honest opinion, everyone else in my life is too biased.

Nesta: i'm not afraid of cutting a man down, so dw

Cassian laughed at her message, sending her a quick laughing emoji before he put his phone back to go back home. He was in a good mood and excited about cooking for someone new. Of course, he got to cook for new people at his job every day, but cooking for someone one-on-one was so different. He could get her reactions, and she would give him feedback. This wasn't just a faceless customer; it was his neighbour.

When he had assembled the sandwich, he put it into a Tupperware box and then cleaned up the kitchen. Once he was done, he finally gave Nesta her sandwich, trying to ignore the excitement and nerves bubbling in his stomach as he knocked on her door.

Nesta flung the door open with a massive smile on her face. "Well, hello there, neighbour," she said, wiggling her eyebrows at him. "What do you have for me?" Nesta said, looking at the box with excitement.

"I've got a tuna and avocado sandwich with red onion and some homemade sriracha mayo," Cassian said, presenting her the food with a flourish.

Nesta didn't hesitate to open the box to have a look. "Oh wow, this looks so good, like one of those fancy coffee shop sandwiches which is really over-priced. Did you make the bread, too?" she asked, tapping the sourdough.

"Oh nah, absolutely not; I'm not much of a bread maker; it's so faffy, but I love the smell of fresh bread. There's another chef in the restaurant who makes bread, but there's never any left, so this is just some supermarket bread."

"Oh, well, I thought you used leftovers," Nesta said with a frown.

"I do, but I like to jazz them up, so I use things I have at home, too. Don't worry about it, though."

"Nah, absolutely not. I need to pay you for this if you're using your money to feed me. That's not fair on you!" she exclaimed. "I'm not a charity case."

"I don't think you are!" Cassian said, alarmed. "You're going to help me, remember. Maybe I'll develop a new menu for the restaurant."

"I still want to contribute to this because you're saving me a lot of money. Let me pay half towards your groceries at least," Nesta said sternly.

"I- okay if you insist, but I feel bad taking your money," Cassian said awkwardly.

"Well, that's too bad. Text me your bank details, and I'll transfer you the money, and if you don't, I'll just have to hunt you down and hurt you," she threatened.

"You seem like a busy woman, so I'll try to avoid that happening," Cassian winced. Changing the subject, he asked, "So I never asked, but what do you do?"

"Oh, I'm a writer!" Nesta said excitedly.

"Oh wow, that's amazing! What kind of stuff do you write? I've not had time to read in a while, but maybe I should start that up again."

Nesta's eyes widened at that. "Do not read my books. You're not the target audience, and frankly, I would probably have to avoid you if I knew you'd read them."

Cassian frowned at her, and then it dawned on him. "Oh my god, you write porn books!" he exclaimed.

"They're romance books! Sometimes they might have some smut, but they're not porn!" she hissed.

"Right, of course! Well, I'm gonna get going since you've probably got some sex scene left to right or something," Cassian said with a shit-eating grin.

Nesta froze but then smirked. "Actually, I finished writing that last night after you left. You know, since you weren't the male stripper I was hoping for," she said before turning around and slamming the door in his face. He stood there gaping for a while before eventually shaking himself out of it. My god, that woman was something else.

***

"Cassian bheta! It's been too long since you called me," his mother said as she answered the phone. He had decided to ring her while he cooked because it was the best way to cook. He couldn't help but smile at his mother calling him son in their native language. He loved his Illyrian culture; the fact his mother had taught him so much of it gave him such pride.

"Mama, I called you 2 days ago, and I've been texting you too!" he protested with a smile as he diced onion.

"But you're my baby, my bacha, you don't understand. One day, when you have your own children, then you'll understand," she loved saying that line. It was one of his favourites. Now, he was nearing 30 and not even close to being married.

He ignored her comment, knowing no good could come from delving into that subject. "Mama, I'm making Illyrian-style pasta for my neighbour right now."

"Ohh, is your neighbour Illyrian too? Rhys's mum told me that the lady who used to live across the road from her has a daughter in the city! Her name is-"

"Mama! Velaris is a big city; you know I won't run into every Illyrian here, so stop trying to match-make! My neighbour isn't Illyrian, but she said she's happy to try different things. I'm cooking for her because she can't cook for herself."

"She can't cook?" his mother said, sounding scandalised.

"No, and let me tell you, how I met her was crazy."

He relayed the events of yesterday evening while he sauteed the onion in some ghee, diced up some bell peppers and drained the sweetcorn. After the onions started to go soft, he added the basaar, a mix of spices that Illyrians added to almost every dish.

"Well, it's a good thing you're here to look after this girl; the poor thing has been living off those takeaways; she's in desperate need of some good, home-cooked food!" his mother said the word takeaway like it was dirty. She had always been very strict about eating out when they were younger, telling him they could make it better at home. Only as he got older did he realise they probably couldn't afford to eat out for more than the occasional treat.

"That's why I offered mama."

"That's because you're my good bacha," she said fondly. "What's this neighbour's name anyway? And what does she do?" she asked.

Cassian smiled. Illyrian mothers could never resist fishing for gossip, even if it was people they didn't know. "Oh, her name is Nesta, and she said she's a romance writer."

His mother gasped, making him almost drop the pasta as he drained it. "Are you cooking for the famous writer, Nesta Archeron?" his mother asked, her excitement tangible.

"I don't actually know her surname. Why?" he asked, suspicious.

"Oh my god, Cassian!" her mother screamed, so excited that she didn't seem to mind busting her son's eardrums. "Cassian, that woman is my favourite author!"

His eyes widened at that. "Mama! I don't want to know if you read those books!" he said, taking deep breaths and trying to clear his mind of that information.

"Pfft, why? Those books are brilliant, and you're a grown man now, stop being a baby. There are no men in my life, but those fictional men are something else," his mother sounded breathless, which was just too disturbing to think about.

"Mama! Stop, I'll be sick if you carry on, and then how can I feed your favourite author?"

His mother was outraged at that. "Listen here, you! She's writing her next book, so you better feed her well because I've been waiting for this book for a year."

"Geez, mama, I promise I will; now I have to go. I'll give it to her now while it's warm." He said, sprinkling cheese on the pasta he had put in the two Tupperware boxes for Nesta. His mother said her goodbyes because he needed to feed Nesta, not because he said he needed to go. She made it clear her loyalties lie with Nesta, which was concerning.

He knocked on Nesta's door, and she came quickly this time. She eagerly handed him an empty box from lunch, which had been washed, and took the pasta.

"I'm not sure if you know this, but I can smell when you're cooking things, so I've been able to smell this for a while, and I'm starving right now. This smells absolutely amazing, so if this is what Illyrian food is like, keep it coming," Nesta said, not taking her eyes off the pasta.

"Well, this isn't Illyrian food; this is just pasta with an Illyrian twist on it, in all fairness, but I'll keep that in mind." Nesta nodded eagerly. "By the way, my mother wanted me to check. Are you the author, Nesta Archeron?"

Nesta looked up at that. "Yes, I am," she said slowly.

"Right, well, my mother is a big fan and said I need to feed you well so you can write your book because she's very excited. She's basically gonna disown me if I don't cook well for you," he laughed.

Nesta smiled at that. "She sounds sweet. Let her know that you're doing an excellent job."

Cassian smiled back and returned to his apartment, giving her instructions about how she needed to eat the 2nd box for lunch tomorrow because he would be at work. Nesta thanked him profusely, licking her lips as she eyed the pasta.

Cassian got out of there quickly after that because seeing Nesta lick her lips did something weird that he didn't want to think about. He had only met the woman yesterday, so whatever he felt, he would ignore it.

He got a text as he dug into his own pasta while watching a modern family rerun on TV.

Nesta: this might be the best pasta i've ever had omg you're a god!!!

Nesta: i would eat this for the rest of my life if i could

Cassian: It's not too spicy for you?

Nesta: nah, this is fine, the tomatoes calm it down. Idk if i'm strong enough to handle more than this tho, my tastebuds are probs dead with everything i eat

Cassian: Lolll, noted

Cassian cleared his dishes and got into bed since he'd have an early night the next day. Before putting his phone away, he quickly googled his neighbour, and lo and behold, a list of her books came up. She was popular, and he had to admit, he was impressed. Her fans were practically rabid for her next book. It looked like a series, so he ordered the first book before he could think about it too deeply.

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#nessian #cassian x nesta #nesta archeron #acotar #nesta x cassian

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ravingramblings · 6 months

Text

Fated Order: Twisted Wonderland

Ch 1: No Rest for the Wicked

The Remnant Order is underway and you've already solved 2 of the Psuedo-Singularities. After having a debriefing with Mash and Da Vinci, you head to your room to shower and get some well deserved rest. You turn the lights off and climb into your bed, pulling the covers up and getting comfortable. Closing your eyes, you swiftly drift off to sleep, exhausted.

In your dreams, you see a mirror. Green flames flicker in the mirror's reflection. An unknown male speaks.

"Ah, my dear esteemed benefactor… My proud, beautiful flower of evil. You are truly the fairest one of all. O magic mirror, thy wisdom I entreat… Reveal unto me the visage I seek…"

A black carriage is drawn by horses toward a gate. On the other side stands what seems to be a massive castle with many spires. The full moon illuminates the path ahead. The scene returns to that of the mirror, and the voice speaks once more.

"You, whose image the Dark Mirror did beckon forth… If your heart bids it, take the hand of the one reflected in the mirror."

The silhouette of a hand takes shape within the mirror, enticing. The image is replaced by that of a vermillion flame.

"As flame reduces even the stars to ash…"

A shard of ice appears next.

"As ice seals away even time itself…"

Vibrant green energy swirls within the glass.

"As great trees even swallow the sky…"

The imagery fades to black once more.

"Fear not the power of darkness. Now – demonstrate your power."

A bright light grows, originating from the mirror, until it completely overtakes your vision. Then, nothing but darkness and that mysterious voice.

"To me. To them. To yourself. The hour grows long and time is scarce. Keep steady your grip, no matter what may come…"

You're startled out of the dream by the sound of something trying to open a locked door. You open your eyes to complete darkness. Feeling around, you seem to be in an enclosed space. Had you been unconscious in your coffin upon your return from a rayshift? That can't be right, considering there would probably be a lot more commotion had that been the case. So what happened then?

"I better hurry up and find that uniform before someone spots me…" Somewhat of a nasally, quirky, whiny voice speaks from the other side of the door.

This is also a voice you've never heard before. Could this be a random staff member you've never spoken to before? Why are they looking for a uniform in your coffin? Why do they fear getting caught?

"Urggggh… This lid weighs a ton!"

Did the coffin door get stuck? You try pushing on it from the inside.

"Try this on for size! Mya-ha!"

You don't think you like where this is going. Suddenly, blue flames overtake the front of the coffin and you yelp. You kick open the door at the same time it gives way. The first thing that occurs to you is that this is not Chaldea. But that's to focus more on later; more importantly you bat down the bit of flame sparking on your robes, of which you've never seen before.

"What?! You ain't supposed to be awake!" You now see that the voice belongs to a gray, cat-like creature with flaming ears and a forked tail. You assume it's a magical beast or something, because last time you checked cats don't look like that, nor do they talk.

"What are you? A hellcat?" You squint at the small creature in front of you.

"How… How DARE YOU! I am no mere CAT! I'm Grim, sorcerer extraordinaire!"

"Fou!" Out from your coffin pops none other than Fou. Curious how he always manages to sneak along with you. The small beast scampers onto your shoulder and perches there.

"That thing is more of an animal than I am! Tch. Whatever. You… human! Just gimme your uniform, and be quick about it!"

You cross your arms. "I have a name, you know? And why would I give you the clothes that I'm wearing? They're the only thing I'm wearing and they wouldn't fit you, since they're human sized." Fou makes a sound in what seems to be agreement.

"Oh-ho! You got a lotta nerve talking back to me, human! The name's Grim. Believe me, you won't forget it! Now gimme your uniform, and be quick about it! Cause if you don't… you're going to regret it!" Blue flames flicker to life again and lick at your legs.

Jumping back, you yell at him, "Hey! Stop trying to roast me, you little rat! You're gonna set this whole place ablaze!"

You start to hear a muffled yelp from another coffin, accompanied by some commotion from inside. Next thing you know, the lid flies open and out jumps your dearest kouhai, Mash.

"Senpai, are you in trouble? I'm here to help!" She rushes over to you with a determined look on her face.

"Hey, come on! I'm on a tight schedule here!"

More fire spews forth from the cat-like beast and Mash maneuvers you both away from its reach, grabbing your hand and making a run for it. You burst through a set of doors and dash down an open corridor. You pass what seem to be classrooms and a perfectly trimmed courtyard. At last you both flee into a library. It's like one you've never seen before, and there are a couple of books literally floating around. You take a second to catch your breath.

"Hey, Mash? Do you happen to know where we are? Cause I have no clue."

As soon as you finish speaking, you feel a flare of heat and Mash pushes you away from it again. Standing there, looking smug, is the hellspawn.

"Foolish humans! Did you really think you could slip away from ME? Now, unless you wanna get burned to a crisp, take off those– Me-YEOW! That hurt! What gives?"

Behind Grim stands a pale man, dressed in a suit, holding the offending whip. He hosts a coat with an impressive blue collar and plenty of dark feathers. On his face is a crow-like mask that covers only the top half of his face. The man has beady gold eyes, pointed ears, and wavy black hair. The black top hat on his head has a blue ribbon around the base, with a decorative mirror, keys, and a feather arranged aesthetically.

"Consider it tough love," he starts to scold the gray beast. He then turns to you and Mash. "Ah, I've found you at last. Splendid. I trust you both are some of this year's new students? My, were you ever eager to make your debut." He crosses his arms. "And bringing a poorly trained familiar with you? That is a clear violation of the school's rules."

His voice rings a bell, but you can't tell why. Also, this does seem to be a school, but not any that you are familiar with.

"As if I'd serve some lowly human! Now lemme go!"

"Yes, yes. Rebellious familiars always say that. Do be quiet for a bit, won't you?" The mysterious man places a hand over Grim's mouth.

"Mmmrrph!"

"Yeah, he's not my familiar, I've never even seen his species before today. If anything, Fou here is more like my familiar than that little guy." You shake your head, disagreeing with the man's assumption, before motioning to the small beast still perched on your shoulder.

Unfortunately, it seems he completely ignores you. "Dear me. Of all the students I've dealt with, you two are the first with temerity enough to open their own gates and step out of them."

You go to speak up, but he continues to scold you.

"Does the very notion of patience elude you? No matter. Your orientation has already begun. Let us return to the Mirror Chamber."

"Uhhh, student? I don't recall signing up for school." You look over at Mash and she shrugs back at you.

"You awakened in a room full of gates, did you not? All of the students here at the campus arrived by passing through such gates. Although typically the students have restraint enough to wait until I open them before waking up."

"Yeah, so, that hellcat totally tried to cremate me within mine, so no way I was staying in there. Then Mash heard the commotion and decided to help me not get roasted alive."

"Yes, I helped my senpai evade the flames and we ended up running down here." She nods resolutely.

"Fou-fouuu!"

"You're the one who insisted on bringing it, so curtailing its behavior is your responsibility!" He raises a hand to his chin, "But now is not the time for such prattle. You've a student orientation to attend! Go on, now. Make haste."

You deadpan. He's been prattling this entire time. "Well, first of all, where are we exactly?"

Mash nods. "Yes, this does not seem to be the Clocktower, nor the Atlas Institute."

"Hm? Have neither of you fully regained consciousness? The timespace teleportation must have addled your memories… Well, these things happen, I suppose. I shall explain it to you while we walk. Truly, my magnanimity is boundless."

With that the man turns and starts to walk back the way you came, Mash and yourself following after him. However, you both follow at a distance, so you can speak to one another without him hearing.

"So far, our situation seems pretty bizarre, but that's not too unordinary for us. I think I remember going to sleep in my bed last night, so I have no clue how we got here; I assume that's the same for you. We don't know where 'here' is yet, he didn't seem to recognize the Clocktower, nor the Atlas Institute. We seem to be in more modern times, considering our surroundings, and they know of magic, however not of some of the most famous modern magic institutions."

Mash nods and enters her own input, "These uniforms are not any I recognize either, and the magical energy feels different here. It's not quite on the same scale as the Age of Gods, but not quite the same as our modern magic either. We need to see if we can set up a connection with Chaldea, so we can communicate with them."

"Let's prioritize finding the nearest leyline, if any, and finding out more information on where we are."

Mash nods in response to your order, "Yes, Master, orders received!"

You find yourselves back in the courtyard when the man begins to speak again, "Ahem. This is Night Raven College. It is an institution for students the world over who demonstrate a rare aptitude for magic. It is the most prestigious academy of its sort in all of Twisted Wonderland. And I am Dire Crowley. Having been entrusted with its care by the chairman, I serve as headmage.”

“Twisted… Wonderland?” You question, your expression scrunching up in confusion. You and Mash share an inquisitive look, then direct your attention back to Crowley. “And you have magic here?”

“Only those who the Dark Mirror perceives as having a talent for magic are admitted to the college. Those who are selected are summoned to the campus through those “gates”, which can appear anywhere. A black carriage bearing one such gate should have come to meet you.”

This elicits a hum from your throat as you bring a hand up to your mouth in contemplation. What he’s describing sounds like the strange dream or vision that lingers in the recesses of your mind. “I recall a dark forest…” You mutter to yourself. Mash looks at you curiously.

“Senpai?”

“That black carriage serves to receive a student chosen by the Dark Mirror. It too bears a gate that connects to this campus. And, as you know, sending a carriage to meet someone on a special day is a time-honored tradition,” Crowley says matter-of-factly.

“Huh? Time-honored tradition? Where and since when?” You shake your head in confusion. Mash looks at you and shrugs, looking just as lost as you are.

Grim starts to fuss at this, squirming in Crowley’s grasp. “Mmfff! Mmmmmmfff!”

“Now, let us attend to your orientation,” the headmage ushers you all along, bringing you all back to the mirror chamber.

As your group enters, you hear voices speaking, the first of which being a boy with hair as red as a rose and eyes a striking silver. “We’re done with orientation and dorm assignments? All right, new students - let me be clear. At Heartslabyul House, I am the law. Break the rules, and it’s off with your head!”

The next to speak up is a dark-skinned boy with long, brown hair, sharp green eyes, and lion ears that occasionally twitch, proving their authenticity. It’s a bit odd, as you don’t quite know what he is, but he’s certainly not a Servant. He yawns, looking extremely done with everything. “Well, that ceremony was as boring as ever. I’m going back to the dorm. If you’re in Savanaclaw House, follow me.”

“New students! Allow me to be the first to congratulate you on your achievement,” this comes from a boy with glasses, silvery hair and eyes, and a beauty mark near the bottom corner of his mouth. “As dorm leader of Octavinelle House, I am honored to have the opportunity to support you in what I hope will be a fulfilling campus experience.”

Another voice speaks up to address the group, the owner being a very handsome boy with lilac colored eyes and shiny, blonde hair with purple highlights. “Hey, does anyone know where the headmage went? He disappeared midway through the ceremony…” He trails off.

Before any from your group can announce your presence, yet another voice chimes in. Though, when you look for the origin, you notice it comes from a floating tablet. “Some headmage he is.”

“Maybe he had a tummyache?” Another boy with dark skin responds; he has short, white hair and ruby red eyes.

Crowley finally pipes up, “I most certainly did not!”

“Ah, speak of the devil,” the first boy mutters once more.

Ignoring this, the headmage continues. “If you must know, I was searching for the new students who’d failed to show for orientation. You two are the only ones who have yet to be assigned to a dorm. Step up to the Dark Mirror, and be quick about it. I’ll watch your weasel.”

Grim growls in response to this.

“Again, not mine, but whatever,” you mutter under your breath as you and Mash step up to the Dark Mirror.

Mash goes first, gazing deep into the mirror as it sizes her up.

“State your name.” A face that looks more like a mask is present within the mirror, a scowl etched into its features.

“I am Mash, Mash Kyrielight,” she states, clearly and confidently.

“Mash. The nature of your soul is… unclear to me.”

“What did you just say?” Crowley questions in bewilderment.

“Magic resides in her, this much is true. However, it does not suit this place. The sound of it, its color, and its shape are not any that I’ve bore witness to before. Therefore, no dorm would be appropriate.”

Everything is silent for a moment, then the headmage gestures for you to take your place in front of the mirror.

“State your name,” the mirror states again.

“Y/F/N Y/L/N.”

“Y/F/N. The nature of your soul… is the same, it does not suit this place.”

Silence takes over once more, then Crowley asks, “Are you suggesting that the black carriage went to retrieve two people who are incompatible? But that is absurd! The student selection process has not erred once in its century of existence! How could this have happened?” He brings his hand up to his face curiously.

Grim struggles until he frees himself. “Mmmph! Nnnrgggh… ME! Let ME have this student’s seat!”

The headmage glares at the small beast, “Not so fast, you hyperactive weasel!”

“Unlike those humans, I totally belong here! So let me be a student here!” Grim crosses his arms with a smirk. “Look, I’ll show you! My spells’re the cat’s meow!”

Almost as if sensing the coming chaos, the red haired boy shouts out in warning, “Everyone, get down!”

With what seems to be his best attempt at a roar, Grim unleashes a burst of blue flames within the room. Mash quickly covers you with her body, materializing into her Servant’s attire and manifesting her shield.

The boy with red eyes begins to yell. “AHHHHH! HELP! I’m on fire over here!” He frantically hops about, his tail end smoking. You rush over to help pat out the flame.

“Someone catch that blasted animal before it sets the entire school ablaze!” The headmage shouts out.

The boy with the lion ears sighs, “Ugh. Can I go now, or…?”

“Oh? I thought you fancied yourself a hunter. Go and help yourself to that plump little morsel!” The handsome boy raises a brow with a smirk.

“Too much effort. Do it yourself,” the lion eared boy immediately quips back.

“Allow me to handle this, Headmage Crowley. If none of you are up to the task of catching a small animal, I will accept the responsibility.” Magnanimously, the boy with the glasses offers.

“WTG Azul. Rackin’ up those participation credits,” the tablet sounds off.

The boy with the red eyes looks at you with a bright smile. “Ah! Thank you! You really saved me there!”

“I’m sorry, were my instructions unclear?!” Crowley exclaims, frustrated.

Entirely uncaring, the green eyed boy responds, “Preeetty sure you can handle catching one mangy weasel all on your lonesome there, headmage.”

“How many times do I gotta say it? I’m Grim, spellcaster extraordinaire! I am NOT a weasel!” The offending creature continues to run his mouth, much to all of your chagrin.

Azul chimes in, “Aren’t you a spunky little fellow? Riddle, would you be so kind…?”

“Furry miscreant. I will abide no rule-breaking. You will be judged by my hand.”

Riddle and Azul begin to chase after the creature and you turn to look at Mash. “Mash, go and help them. I’ll stay and help out here!”

“Orders received, Master!” And with that, Mash runs off to aid the two mages in subduing the cat beast.

**I do not own Disney's Twisted Wonderland, Fate: Grand Order, or any of the characters present in either series, all proper rights belong to the proper owners.**

#twisted wonderland x reader #twst x reader #twst x you #fgo x reader #fate grand order x reader

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