#i really just can’t help myself when it comes to adding blood

[justmeinadaze]

Children of the Night Part 4 (Steddie X You)

Warnings: Vamp Daddy Eddie/Human Sub Steve/ Human Sub Fem Reader, SMUT (I was in a particular mood), Steve breaks a rule and gets punished, spanking, edging, overstimulation, A bit of FLUFF (there is love here especially between Eddie and Steve being that their relationship is more established), ANGST, blood drinking (brief), Steve and reader can feel Eddie's emotions, another vivid dream of Eddie's memories continued from the last chapter, Steve has a bit of a panic attack but Eddie and Y/N got him.

Word Count: 3962

You awoke the next afternoon on your side being a little spoon to the vampire behind you as his steady breath continued to warm your shoulder. The sound of another slightly heavier exhale caused you to open your eyes and land on the beautiful boy in front of you. 

Steve’s eyes were squeezed shut as he tried to control himself from making too much noise, biting his bottom lip as an added measure of protection. The blanket below his waist was moving up and down with not-so-subtle schlick sounds that made it hard to misinterpret what he was doing. 

“Steve.”

“Fuck.”, he grunts at the sound of your voice, turning so his eyes can meet your own. “I’m sorry. I tried to be quiet. I’m…I’m not even really supposed to be… doing this but you two look so beautiful…together…”

Your hand reaches out to caress his face and he sighs in pleasure at the gesture.  

“Do you want some help?”

“Y-You don’t have to…honey. You’re probably still…still sore from last night.”, he pants.

“I can use my mouth.”

“Fuck. I…I should ask Daddy…if it’s…okay.”

“We can be quiet.”, you whisper. “Quieter.”

Once he finally nods, you carefully crawl out of Eddie’s embrace and pull down the covers that were blocking Steve’s actions. Your mouth salivated at the sight as his hand slowed its pace over his red, leaking cock that was fully standing at attention. 

As your tongue darted out to lick his mushroom tip, his eyes rolled back and fluttered closed again. Fully enveloping his length, his jaw went slack as a silent moan pushed through. 

“Fuck, baby, that feels so good.”, Steve murmured as he tried to control his hips from moving too much and shaking the bed. As your head bobbed, your nails ran along his thighs and up his tummy making him groan.

The growl that rumbled low beside you startled you both.

“Y/N, sweetheart, I know you’re new here but Steven knows to ask my permission first when it comes to his pleasure.” The man’s cock twitched in your hand at Eddie’s tone. He liked it. A ring covered palm reached out to grab his boyfriend’s throat. “What? You thought because she’s here my rules changed?”

“N-No. No, Daddy. Please…I’m sorry. I needed to cum.”

“Oh? You need it? So fucking greedy.” Without tearing his eyes from Steve, he addressed you. “Keep doing what you were doing, baby, but don’t hold back this time. You’re both already in trouble. May as well go all in now.”

Taking him into your mouth again, you fully descend his length till your drool was spilling out of your lips and down his shaft. 

“Yes.”

“Feel good?”, Eddie asks condescendingly to Steve’s whimpers. “What feels better? Her mouth or you disobeying me?”

“I’m sorry, Daddy.”

“Yeah, you will be. Didn’t I make you cum last night?”

“Yes, Daddy. I-I just—”

“I don’t want to hear it. I don’t care. What’s our rule?” Steve gets distracted when your hand replaced your lips around him and you stroke him as you suck on his balls. “Focus, little boy! What’s our rule?!”

“Y-You handle my pleasure in here. I-I-I can’t even…pleasure myself. Fuck, Y/N, that’s it!” His palm gripped Eddie’s neck as he brought his lips to his. “Her mouth feels amazing. Shit. I’m gonna cum.”

The vampire placed his forehead on his boyfriends as Steve panted against his face. His body shuddered as his face scrunched and his spend hit the back of your throat. After swallowing everything he gave you, you pulled away, allowing his now softening cock to fall against him. 

“Thank you, Daddy. I love you, baby.”

“I love you to, you idiot.”, Eddie teased. “Your punishment will come in a moment. For you young lady, this is your warning.”

“I’m sorry, Daddy.”

“Y/N, maybe, now would be the time to talk about our relationship. You’ve been calling me Daddy and Steve said he was fine with it but I need to fully hear you agree to it. I have rules for him that would go for you as well.”

“What are the rules?”

“Well, the first one you know now. I control your pleasure; you can’t even touch yourself or have him touch you unless I allow it.”

“Can I kiss him and hold him?”

Steve grins softly at your question, loving that that is something you continuously want to do with him telling him that for you this wasn’t purely sexual. 

“Yeah, of course, sweetheart.”, Eddie smiles as reaches out to touch your cheek. “So adorable. Do you have any don’ts we should avoid?”

“My exes were always…too rough. They always went one step to far every time. They would choke me too hard or, obviously, hit my too hard. Don’t be too rough.”

“That’s a little vague, honey.” Their eyes scan you over as you meekly apologize. “These past few nights…how was that?”, Steve asked. 

“I liked it. I, um, I kind of wish I had all of Eddie last night. Not that I mind the vampire, just…I want to know you.”

“That’s fair. Whenever you’re ready, we can—”

“I’m ready!”, you shout a bit to enthusiastically causing both men to laugh.

“Didn’t I fuck you both? How can you both still be so needy?”, the vampire teases. 

“You’re not sore?”

“I am little but not enough to need a break or anything.”

Eddie squints playfully in your direction before bringing his wrist to his mouth and flinching as he bites down drawing blood.

“Munson, what are you doing?”

“Helping. I figure if my blood can heal her maybe it will help with the pain between her legs.”

“She said she’s fine through.”

“Steven! Calm down, okay? She’s a big girl.” After offering you his arm, you crawl forward and sit on your knees as your lips connect with his flesh. “Fuck me, why does that feel so good?”

The way he cut himself was small enough to allow for trickles to fall on your tongue but to you it wasn’t enough and you desperately wanted more as you tried to suck his wound harder for sustenance.

“O-Okay, baby, that’s enough.” Ignoring him, his eyes rolled as a low rumble left his chest causing Steve to sit up. Forcefully grabbing your hair, you panted as he pulled you back and tilted your head towards his face. “What part of ‘I control your pleasure’ do you not understand, little girl? If I say that’s enough, it’s enough. Am I being clear?”

“Y-Yes.”

“Yes, what?”

“Yes, Daddy. I’m sorry.”

Shoving you away, he glances towards Steve who’s watching you intently. 

“Y/N, honey, if at any point you feel uncomfortable I want you to say the word ‘Red’ ok? If for some reason he doesn’t hear it, I will.”

“Because I’ve never heard it in the past?”, Eddie pouts. 

“Lots of trial and error when you’re dating a vampire.”, the other boy smiles, seeing the question in your eyes when you looked at him. “He’s come a long way though. Eddie and Daddy are diligent… the vampire on the other hand…”

The long-haired man’s jaw tightens as he looks away guiltily. 

“Ok…say ‘red’ if I feel uncomfortable.”, you repeat. 

Steve’s eyes scan you over with careful curiosity. “Does it really taste that good? His blood I mean. I’ve never…”

“Would you like to?”, Eddie asks after you nod your head.

As his boyfriend blinks nervously, the vampire bites himself again and offers his arm out for him to try.

“Wow. You really do heal quickly.”

“Yeah. The smaller the wound, the faster it heals.” His chocolate eyes never leave Steve as he speaks, watching him as he stares at the blood that begins to fall down his forearm. “Baby, you don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

Steve exhales heavily as he leans forward and runs his tongue along his skin, collecting the sweet syrup before attaching his mouth to the bite. Eddie’s eyes close as he grunts, trying to control the vampire within. 

“Ok.” His long brown mane whips across his face as he tilts his head towards your voice. “Ok I accept your rules and I want to be in this relationship with you two. I trust you.”

“Steve…Steve stop.”, Eddie grumbled. Just as he was about to tug him back like he had with you, his eyes opened, following your movements as you crawled towards the other man, and gently began kissing his neck. 

“Steve, Daddy wants you to stop.”, you whispered as your fingers firmly pinched his jaw. As he let Eddie go, his hair fell into his face as he panted almost like he had just come back from a run. Making you straddle his waist, his arms circled tightly around you as his large palm pushed at the back of your head, bringing your lips to his. 

His energy was like a man possessed as he tried to hold you tighter to him, grinding his hips against yours. 

“Let her go, Steve. Don’t forget, you’re in trouble.”

Loudly groaning, his head fell against your chest as you tenderly ran your fingers through his hair. 

“Please. Please, Daddy. I want her.”, he pleaded in a tone you had never heard from him before. Even Eddie’s head tilted at the sound as he tried to remain in control. “I can feel everything. It’s been so long since I felt so… alive.” The man breathily laughed as he shifted his gaze towards him. “I can feel how much you want to fuck her. Oh my god.”

Licking your lips, you clung to him tighter as you felt those feelings heighten inside of you as Eddie got more turned on. 

“I can feel how much you want to fucking ruin me for disobeying you. Do it, Daddy. Please, baby.”

The wind blew as you were both abruptly pulled apart and positioned in different places; you on your back with your legs open and Steve on all fours with Eddie behind him. A couple of pillows were placed behind you so you could lay back and have a good view of the men in front of you.

“Here are the rules of your punishment, greedy boy. I’m going to spank you while you eat this pretty girl’s pussy. If you cum before I get to 10, I start over. Understood?”

“Yes, Daddy.”

“You, baby girl, just lay there and watch how a punishment can be delivered. Once I’m done with him… you’re mine.” Your body shuddered at his sexy smirk as his hand came down hard on his boyfriend’s ass. “Count.”

“One.”

Taking hold of your thighs, Steve’s tongue licked a stripe through your folds eliciting a small whimper from you. As his hand came down again, the other boy counted the number and wrapped his mouth around your clit, sucking the bud before coming off it with a loud smacking noise and repeating the process. The vibrations from his groan sent a shock wave through you as Eddie reached between the boy’s legs to casually stroke his stiffening cock.

“That’s it, Stevie. Get her nice and wet for me.” Licking his palm, he rubbed Steve’s balls as his free hand pushed a finger into his hole. “Tell Daddy how that feels.”

“Fuck.”, you mewled as he spit into your cunt, sliding in two of his long, thick fingers.

“It feels so good, Daddy. Fuck, I can feel you everywhere.”

After spanking him again, your eyes rolled back as Steve’s tongue flicked your bundle of nerves faster as he pumped his digits.

“You both look so sexy like this.” Steve felt his pending orgasm approaching as Eddie felt his cock in his grasp twitch. His palm came down and the boy whined as his boyfriend released him from his hold. “Don’t cum, little boy. We’re only at 4 right now. You should make Y/N cum though. She looks like she’s on the edge.”

Doing what he was told, he pressed his tongue against you, thrusting his fingers till he felt you tremble and your pussy quiver around him as you came while Eddie spanked him again. Starting his rhythm once more, he built Steve up till he was just about to explode before stopping completely till he calmed down. 

It took the human boy a while to catch on but after the fifth spank, he didn’t do it again until after you came. By number eight, he was doing everything he could to get you there faster unsure of how much more he could take. 

“Two more, sweetheart. You can do it. Remember, this is punishment. It’s not supposed to be easy.”

“D-D-Daddy…”, Steve sobbed. “I want to cum. Please…it hurts.”

“What color are we at, babe?”

“Green.”, he whined.

“Good. Good boy. What about you, princess?” Eddie couldn’t help but chuckle as you flashed him a thumbs up sign. “Good girl. My good little beauties. Keep going, Steve.”

Shoving his face between your puffy lips, his fingers dug into your thighs as he devoured you desperately. A burn you had felt before coursed through your veins and you opened your eyes just in time to see Eddie guide his cock into Steve’s entrance. 

“Oh fuck.”, Steve grunted, his tongue lapping faster inside of you. 

“St-Ste-Steve, slow down.”, you whimpered as you softly pet his head. 

“FUCK! Nine!”, the boy screamed as Eddie’s palm came down hard. Tears streaked your face as his head shook between your legs, his tongue flattening and pressing hard against your clit as his hands held you in place. 

An overwhelming feeling of euphoria crashed over as you came and while you were still lost in heaven, the sound of a smack reverberated through the room as well as Steve’s garbled voice as he counted out his final number. His head hung as Eddie thrust into him at a faster pace, building his boyfriend back up. Limply, you slid your body underneath him and placed his head on your shoulder. 

“You can cum now, baby. You did good. I want you to cum on me, Steve.”

Lifting his head, his lips locked with yours, both of you moaning breathily into each other’s mouths as you felt Eddie’s arousal heighten. Pounding roughly into him, the boy underneath him grunt as his jaw went slack and he placed his forehead on yours. Reaching between your bodies, he pumped his cock aggressively till rope after rope of his seed landed on your skin. 

“Ah, shit…”, Steve groaned, wincing as he continued to milk his overstimulated length till he was empty. 

“That’s it, Steve. You did so good. I love you so much.”, you cooed as you ran your nails along his chest and back.

Eddie’s lips softly trailed up his back till they landed on his boyfriends with an encouraging smile. 

“She’s right. You took your punishment like a good boy. Why don’t you lay back and rest while I take care of baby girl here.”

Steve lazily nodded as he collapsed beside you and you moved one of the pillows to place under his head. The vampire smirked and winked at you as he slowly crawled up the length of your body, kissing parts of you along the way. Hovering over Steve’s release, his eyes met yours as his tongue darted out to clean up the mess. 

Your stomach moved underneath him as you pleasantly sighed, petting his head as you watched him below you. 

“This is going to sound so weird but I like feeling you breathe.” When you smile down at him with half lidded eyes, his own grin grows. “I think it’s something I don’t take for granted anymore since I actually stopped breathing for a time. When Steve would sleep, I always kept my hand on his chest as I would watch it rise and fall. I don’t know why but it just made him more handsome to me.”

As his kisses continued to move their path up your sweaty skin, he paused again to lick the valley between your breasts relishing in the sound of your little moans as he wrapped his mouth around one of your nipples. A heavy breath escaped Steve’s lips as he turned his head towards you both, keeping his eyes closed as his hand rubbed along his chest. 

“Are you alright? We can stop if you want to.”, Eddie whispered when he finally reached the shell of your ear. “You have to use your words, sweetheart.”, he lightly scolds when you nod. 

“I’m ok, Daddy. I don’t know if Steve can take anymore though.”, you murmur, throat sore from moaning and screaming. 

Chuckling, he extended his hand out to the man and caressed his cheek as his thumb moved along his bottom lip.

“Babe, can you still feel me?”

“Uh huh.”

This time you both giggle at his exhausted answer causing Steve to smile as well when he feels how warm it makes Eddie feel hearing the sound of your genuine laugh.

“Do you need us to stop?”

“Nu uh. Jus go slow.”

The long-haired boy’s beautiful eyes focus on you again as he grips your thighs and wraps your legs around his waist.

“That’s the plan.”

While delicately kissing your lips, Eddie reaches between you and guides himself into your core. Both men at the same time release a long moan as the vampire gradually thrusts his hips, pumping his cock into you inch by inch. 

“Fuck, sweetheart. Steve really got you ready for me, didn’t he?” As his forehead fell against yours, you clung to his shoulders as your jaw fell and you quietly panted against his mouth. “God, you are so tight.”

His last word came out deep and heavy causing your eyes to open so you could look at his face. Eddie’s mouth open in a silent O and his nose was scrunched in focus as he continued to deliver long, smooth strokes that had your toes curling. 

You and Steve could both feel it within him, the aggressive energy that just wanted to fuck you into the mattress but even he didn’t want that right now. He wanted to take his time and feel every part of you. More than anything, he wanted to maintain control. It really bothered him that Steve mentioned the vampire within him struggled to be reined in sometimes. 

What bothered him most was that he knew it was true. He didn’t want to go overboard and hurt either one of you. He would never mean to if it happened but sometimes the vampire demanded attention. 

“Eddie. Eddie, baby, look at me.”, you whispered softly as you tilted your nose to graze his. When he was finally able to do what you asked, his black irises reflected back. He expected you to be frightened or even disappointed but when you gently smiled back at him, a wave of comfort flowed through him. “It’s ok. Come back to me, Daddy. Come back to us.”

Blinking, his beautiful eyes returned to their normal color as he leaned down to kiss your lips. Both of Eddie’s palms glided along your arms as you lifted them over your head and he took hold of your wrists as his head fell beside yours.

Rolling his hips slowly but firmly, his cock roughly hit that sensitive spot inside of you that had you mewling. 

“Yes. Just like that.”

A second set of lips should have startled you but it didn’t; you welcomed the feeling. Steve sucked and nibbled at your neck as his hand ran along his boyfriend’s back. 

“You feel so good, pretty girl. Your pussy was made us. Fuck, you take me so well. Cum, baby. Cum again on Daddy’s cock so I can fill you up.”

The bed lightly rustled underneath you as he thrust into you faster. The coil that had begun to wind snapped and you cried against his cheek as he continued to murmur praises in your ear.

“I know. I know, baby girl. Daddy’s got you. That’s it, sweetheart. Good girl.”

With a few more rough pumps, his rhythm faltered and you felt him paint your walls with his release. They both continued to kiss your neck, whispering how much they cared about you and how beautiful you were as your eyes closed and you fell asleep. 

############

“Eddie?”

The vampire huffs as he tosses the boy he had been feeding on to the side and grabbed the other to do the same. Something touched his shoulder and he angrily turned, grabbing their throat as he held them back. Steve gasped as he came face to face with the man he loved. 

Silently, Eddie let him go and his thumb grazed along the man’s busted lip. He growled loudly as his palm caressed his cheek just beneath his blackening eye.

“H-How? I…we…we thought you were gone…”

“I was.”

At the sound of his voice, Steve collapsed into his arms and sobbed. He thought he would never hear his boyfriend’s voice again. 

“I tried to bring you back home. Henderson and I tried but we couldn’t. I hated myself for leaving you there.”

Tilting his head back, he cupped the metalhead’s face and pressed his lips to his own. Eddie’s hands slowly lifted to grab his face as well, the fog of his hunger dissipating, and his love for Steve pushing through. 

“I missed you so much, honey. You have no idea how lonely its been without you.” Wiping his eyes, he grabbed the man’s hand and started to tug him towards where his BMW was parked. “We need to get out of here. They still blame you for the murders and I’m not going to let someone take you away from me again.”

“Steve?”

“Yeah, baby?”

“I’m still hungry.”

Your eyes snapped open at the same time as Steve’s except he wakes up panting aggressively. 

“So…Eddie’s greatest hits? How was volume 3?”, Eddie sassed from his spot at the end of the bed where he had been waiting for you two to wake up. 

The other man promptly threw back the covers and chaotically moved around the room, sliding on boxers as he headed for the closet. The metalhead swished to his side and grabbed his wrist right as he was reaching for the suitcase they kept in the corner. 

“Steve, what’s going on?”

“I…we…I need to…pack…we need to leave…”

“Why?”

Moving around him, he threw the suitcase on the bed just as you hastily moved out of the way and grabbed one of his shirts off the floor to put on. 

“Steve, baby, slow down. Talk to me.”

“I can’t…we need to…I’m not…” His eyes searched around the room as if he couldn’t figure out where he was. “We…Eddie…”

“Is it because of your dream? What did you guys see? I felt the hunger again and your grief.”

“Steve realized you weren’t dead and said you needed to run.”, you answered for him causing Eddie to sigh as he tried to get his boyfriend to focus. 

“Sweetheart, look at me. We’re safe, ok? We’re not in Hawkins, you got me out and away. Come back to me, babe.” Steve began to panic, trying to yank his arms out of Eddie’s firm grip. “Everything’s ok, Harrington!” “It’s not okay! I’M NOT GOING TO LET ANYONE TAKE YOU AWAY FROM ME AGAIN!” 

The vampire caught him as his boyfriend’s knees buckled and he fell into his arms, slowly guiding him to the floor as he held him. 

“Everything’s ok, baby. I promise. You’re not alone anymore. I’m right here and so is Y/N.”

Sliding to your knees, you held his hand as he cried and Eddie rocked him against his chest. 

“I’m not going anywhere, Steve.”, you cooed as his fingers intertwined with yours. 

############

@chelebelletx @mandyjo8719 @nailbatanddungeon

#steddie x reader #steddie fluff #steddie smut #steddie fanfiction #steddie #eddie munson #steve harrington #eddie munson fluff #eddie munson smut #eddie fanfic #eddie stranger things #steve fanfic #steve smut #steve stranger things #joe keery #joseph quinn #stranger things #fan fiction #steddie x you #steddie x y/n #steve fluff #dom!eddie munson #sub steve harrington #sub reader #vampire eddie munson #vampire eddie x reader #vampire eddie x steve #camboy steddie #stranger things au

[dream-a-little-bigger-x]

The Stranger | Spencer Reid

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Pairing: Spencer Reid x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Your usual CriMi stuff. Guns. Someone's being shot.

Author's note: Was on my nth rewatch when I thought about this. It's basically season 6 episode 21 - The Stranger. This isn't any good, but I needed to let the idea out and figured I could share it with you.

Words: 4.939

“It’s so unnecessary. There’s too much blood and gore and… bleh…” 

When Spencer invited me to the horror movie festival at the cinema complex in town, I didn’t expect it to be a group activity. For a stupid, naive moment, I thought the resident genius had actually asked me out on a date but when Penelope and Derek rocked up, I realized it wasn’t a date. 

I had been working at the BAU for about four years. When I first started working there, it was very hard for me to merge with the already super tight group. I didn’t want to impose, so I merely stayed in the background and only did what was asked of me. Until there was one time where I didn’t agree with our boss, Aaron Hotchner, and told that right to his face. 

Ever since, the team held me in high esteem, even Aaron. 

It also brought me and Spencer closer together. Our bond had grown stronger on the field, and subsequently also off the field. I can’t remember at what point we started hanging out after work, too, but it was long before I actually started to develop feelings for my coworker. 

So, when he asked me out to the movies, my heart leapt with joy. 

I had donned a cute outfit, did my hair and makeup all prettily, despite having just come off a twelve-hour workday. 

And then Penelope and Derek joined and I realized Spencer had not only asked me, but our coworkers, as well. It stung, at first, but in the end, I had such a nice time that I didn’t care for it as much anymore. 

“Garcia, it’s a slasher film,” Spencer retorted to our blonde coworker. “How do you do a slasher film without violence?”

“You imply it,” Penelope said, almost angrily. 

“Baby, the movie is called Slice 6. What were you expecting?” Derek questioned, grinning. 

Penelope’s eyes widened, an answer at the ready. “Uh, a refreshing beverage with a twist of comedy.” Spencer and I chuckled at the same time, and our eyes met for a second. “I’m gonna have nightmares for a week.” 

I tilted my head slightly so I could look past Spencer at Penelope. “With everything that we do and see on a daily basis, that got to you?” I asked her. 

“Listen, Blaze, you may be all Sigourney Weaver ass-kicking tough, which is awesome–” I giggled at the nickname Penelope had baptized me with on that day I stood up against Hotch. “But the mystical mavens of innocence like myself jump at things that go bump in the night.” 

Penelope was so intense and dramatic most times, it was my favorite thing about her. 

“Why are you worried? I’m sure that Morgan will protect you,” Spencer added, then looked up at me to share in the upcoming joke. “As long as he’s not jumping out of his chair like a prepubescent schoolgirl.” 

The three of us laughed at Derek’s expense before he started to defend himself. “The only reason I jumped is ‘cause you guys woke me up.” 

“How could you sleep during that?” Penelope asked, grabbing onto Derek’s bicep. It gave me the urge to do the same with Spencer, but I withheld myself from doing so. Instead, I looked up at him and studied his features for a second. 

His side profile really was remarkable. With his sharp jawline and his button nose. I liked his hair short, in comparison to how long it was just a year prior. I liked the dimples in his cheeks when he smiled and I liked how his tie was perpetually crooked. I knew I shouldn’t fall for my coworker, but with Spencer, you couldn’t help but fall for him. 

“Villain,” Spencer’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts. 

“What?” Derek asked, which reassured me he wasn’t talking to me. 

“In movies, UnSubs are called “villains”.” 

Derek chuckled. “My bad.” 

As the four of us continued our walk towards the car, I couldn’t help my mind to wander. While I was disappointed it wasn’t an actual date, I actually really enjoyed it. Mostly because I had Spencer whispering facts into my ear about the movie or things that didn’t make a lot of sense scientifically, calming the fear that had built up inside of me due to the suspense. 

“Do you wanna know why horror movies are so successful?” Spencer then asked us. 

I couldn’t help but smile while Derek asked, “Why’s that, Genius?” 

“They prey on our instinctual need to survive,” he started. “In tribal days, a woman’s scream would signal danger and the men would return from hunting to protect their pack. That’s why it’s always the women and not the men who fall victim to the bogeyman.”

I smiled and finally stopped fighting my instincts to grab his arm. “Count on you, Reid, to break a movie down to science,” I said, softly squeezing the fabric of his coat. Almost like a secret code to tell him that I loved it when he whispered facts to me during the movie. “My favorite thing about horror movies is the suspense factor,” I then continued. 

“Oh, the ticking clock,” Spencer added, eyes widened slightly for dramatic effect. 

I wiggled my eyebrows, a grin tugging at my lips as I lowered my voice to a suspenseful hush. “The helpless victim walks through the dark… Shadows reaching out to get her.”

Then, Spencer went on, his voice lowering an octave to add a bit of spookiness to his own words. “A sudden noise draws her attention. Is someone there–” He leaned down to say in my ear, “or is it just in her head?” 

“It’s totally unrealistic,” Penelope cut through our scary-movie-rundown. “No one should be walking through a dark alley by themselves at night.”

Derek cleared his throat, drawing attention to himself. “Hello?” 

“Ah, no one should be walking through a dark alley without a Derek Morgan by their side,” Penelope corrected herself, grinning up at the man beside her. 

“But the best part of a horror movie,” Spencer went on. “You never know when the end is gonna come.” 

In my mind, I thought, I don’t think I wanna know when the end is gonna come, though I was only thinking of the end of our night. 

“Well, I think the end of this lovely night has come,” Derek said when we had reached the cars and Pen was stifling a yawn. “Another day at work tomorrow,” he reminded us as though we needed it. 

Spencer had carpooled with Penelope and Derek. They had just returned from work while I had to go home first to feed my cat. But instead of joining them by Derek’s car, he remained by my side, even though I had let go of his arm to do so. Seemingly having noticed this, Derek looked at his coworker. 

“You coming with us, Reid?” he asked. 

Glancing over at me, he shook his head. “I think we’ve learned from this movie that we should never leave a woman alone during the night. I’ll see to it that Blaze gets home safe.” 

A flutter erupted in my stomach whilst heat crept up to my cheeks. I was lucky that it was so dark, so no one would be able to notice. “Oh, that’s fine, Spence. I’m sure I won’t be murdered on the way home.” 

“No, I insist,” he said and stepped forward towards my car. 

Penelope grinned and winked at me before saying, “Well, Blaze, seems you’ve got your very own knight in shining armor.” 

Completely ignoring the effect this insinuation had on my body, I chuckled. “More like brains in shining armor, you mean.” 

Only momentarily, and only to give me a hug, Penelope let go of Derek’s arm. “Tell him how you feel tonight,” she whispered into my ear. 

Penelope Garcia was the sole confidante privy to my secret crush on Spencer. Surrounded by a team of keen profilers, one might assume others would catch on, yet fortunately, my feelings remained unnoticed by all except Penelope. It was she who skillfully coaxed the admission from me. Since then, our weekly girls' nights became a sanctuary, overflowing with ice cream and dissecting Spencer Reid's flirtations of the week. Penelope's enthusiasm often led me to believe Spencer reciprocated, only for reality to swiftly dispel such notions upon our next encounter.

“You know I won’t,” I whispered back, only to earn a glare from the blonde. 

“Bye, my loves!” Penelope waved as she made a beeline towards Derek’s car. 

Once Spencer and I had returned the goodbyes to our coworkers, we got into my car. Silence engulfed us, only broken by the soft hum of the engine and soon thereafter, the music playing from the radio. I felt a tingle on the back of my neck, suddenly completely aware that I was all alone with my best friend. 

“Did you enjoy the movie?” He then asked when we drove off. 

I hummed. “Mm-mmm, yeah. My favorite moment was when the slicer’s brother was in the closet. I did not see that coming.” From the corner of my eye, I caught Spencer’s wide smile and the nod of his head. 

“Yeah, I noticed that. I believe you nearly broke my hand from how hard you were squeezing it.” 

My cheeks flushed again at the memory of us holding hands during the movie, just because I was scared. “I’m so sorry,” I whispered, chuckling. 

“No, don’t be,” he said. “I didn’t mind it.” 

When I looked over at him for a split second, he was already looking at me, giving me a warm smile. Spencer had the most beautiful smile, one that reached his eyes with a twinkle. Not falling in love with this man was impossible. 

During the car ride, the two of us rehashed our favorite parts of the movie before we lapsed into conversation about work. It was inevitable not to talk about the most recent case we had as it was still so fresh in our minds. 

“Why don’t you come up for a moment?” Spencer asked when we had arrived at his place. “I can tell you’re still a bit shaken up from the case and the movie hasn’t done much good to help that feeling.” 

I hesitated. It wasn’t like I hadn’t been to his apartment before, we’d spent many a day together after hours, just hanging out. But the idea that this evening was a date still haunted the back of my mind. Then again, the idea of being home alone with the anxiety still sitting on my chest didn’t entice me either. 

“Uhm, sure,” I heard myself say before unbuckling and putting the car in park. 

His apartment was cold when we walked in. We had been on the case for a couple of days, so Spencer had turned down the heating, of course. Whilst he took care of turning it back on, I kicked off my shoes and went to find a blanket to wrap around me in hopes it would warm me up a bit. 

As I waited for Spencer to return, I replied to a couple of messages from my mother, my sister and Penelope that I had missed during the movie or, in the last case, during the drive home. 

Tell him!!! 

Penelope’s message read, but it was quickly forgotten when Spencer returned with cups of tea, handing one over to me before sitting down next to me. The steam of the hot beverage wafted in my face and the aroma of it alone told me it was chamomile tea, my favorite. 

As Spencer and I settled onto the cozy couch, steaming cups of tea in hand, the ambiance of the dimly lit room enveloped us in a sense of tranquility. Conversation flowed effortlessly between us, seamlessly transitioning from discussions about our latest case to lighter, more random topics. Spencer's animated gestures and thoughtful insights never failed to captivate me, his intellect a constant source of admiration.

Lost in our exchange, time seemed to slip away unnoticed, until the credits of the movie we had intended to watch began to roll. With a shared chuckle, we realized we had become so engrossed in conversation that we hadn't even started the film. Determined not to let the evening go to waste, we decided to press play anyway.

However, the warmth of the room combined with the soothing rhythm of the movie soon lulled us into a state of relaxation. Before we knew it, our eyes grew heavy, and the soft cushions of the couch beckoned us into a peaceful slumber. Side by side, cups of tea empty on the coffee table, we drifted off into a contented sleep, the gentle glow of the screen casting a serene aura over the room. 

I was startled awake the next morning by the sound of my phone ringing and buzzing on the coffee table. Slowly but surely, my brain started to wake too, which was the moment it dawned on me where I was and what was happening. 

Spencer and I had fallen asleep on the couch, my head on his shoulder, his arm wrapped around me. The idea of it alone sent shivers down my spine. Though I couldn’t revel in the feeling for too long when my mind snapped back to the ringing on the coffee table. 

Garcia was calling me. 

“Hello?” I greeted, unsure about what she was calling me about. 

“Sorry to be calling so early, my sweetling, but duty’s calling,” she informed me. “So, get Reid up and get your sweet asses to the BAU.” At the mention of his name, my eyes flicked towards Spencer next to me. He was rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, making him look like an adorable toddler. 

The words finally registered in my brain, causing me to furrow my brows in confusion. “Wait– How do you–” 

“I came to pick you up at your place, but when you weren’t here, I figured you’d have stayed at Spencer’s considering the movie we watched last night,” she explained with that cheeky tone in her voice that told me she was smirking all the way through. 

I cleared my throat as I removed the blanket from my body. “Right – We’ll be right there.” 

“Drive careful, my love. Toodaloo.” 

Once Penelope had hung up, I nudged Spencer along. The two of us got ready in silence before heading out the door and getting into my car. We only stopped at the coffee shop at the corner of the street where Spencer got us both coffees. 

Entering the BAU, the two of us were quickly joined by some of the team, though only Penelope shot me a knowing look at the outfit I was wearing; yesterday’s clothes. Rossi, however, was only interested in hearing about the movie we watched, which Spencer was all too happy to divulge into. 

“What we didn’t see coming was that the slicer’s brother was in the closet,” he mentioned, which made me smile. It was the exact moment we had talked about the night before. 

“Frightening,” Rossi commented as the four of us moved through the hallways. 

“Did you tell him?” Penelope asked in a whisper, hooking her arm with mine. 

I shook my head. “I chickened out,” I said, earning a stern glare from the blonde. “I just– I don’t want anything to change between us, Pen. We’re in a really good place right now a-and I don’t wanna blow that.” 

“Speaking of horror,” Rossi’s comment had us all stopping in our tracks when we noticed Strauss talking to Hotch in his office. 

The four of us looked at the scene in front of us as Spencer asked, “What’s Strauss doing here?”

“Whatever it is, I cast my vote on “not good”,” Penelope replied. 

The four of us piled into the briefing room where Derek already was, ready to be presented with the case. It took a few moments before Hotch joined us, undoubtedly getting a stern talking to from Strauss. “Let’s get started,” he muttered once he walked through the door. 

Penelope briefed us about the case and we were soon on the jet to San Diego, bouncing theories off one another with the first impressions we had about the case. As we started building the profile, the UnSub attacked again, leaving us with four victims before we were able to give a profile. 

While Morgan, Rossi and Hotch delivered the profile to the rest of the police department, Spencer and I were tasked to inform the officers on-campus. The entire time we were there, Spencer allowed me to do most of the talking, only chiming in when he felt necessary. It was the perfect dynamic of going back-and-forth. 

Spencer and I turned away from the girls we had been talking to and convened together a little further away, bouncing theories off each other. I was in the middle of a sentence when Spencer reached out and wiped my cheek with his thumb.

"Eyelash," he said, showing me the single lash he had caught on his thumb. The tantilizing electricity zapped between us, sending shivers down my spine.

Before I could say anything else, we were whisked away on the next part of our case. There was never a moment to breathe. 

There were two more victims after that, two in one go before we found who the UnSub could be. As we all geared up to get Greg Phinney, Spencer turned towards me with a worried look on his face. 

“What’s wrong?” I asked. 

“Will you be careful?” his question was intertwined with mine, making it almost impossible to hear it. 

I wasn’t sure where this sudden worry had come from. We’d been doing fine for over four years. He had never worried about me until now. “Of course. Always.” 

With a quick nod, Spencer turned on his heel to join Derek while I tagged along with Hotch and Rossi. Soon enough, we were informed that Greg Phinney wasn’t at his own apartment and that we’d better floor it towards Kate’s. It was a whirlwind of phone calls and theories and words until Hotch snapped me out of it. 

“y/l/n, I want you to come in with me. Leave your firearm here.” There was no time to object, so I handed my gun over to the officer next to me before falling into step with my boss. “Be compassionate and sympathetic to him. Let him tell you how Kate betrayed him and how much you understand his devastation,” he informed me. 

I simply nodded my head and with feigned confidence, I knocked on the mahogany door. As the door softly creaked open, a chill swept through me, raising the fine hairs on the back of my neck. 

Greg's appearance was ordinary yet unsettling, his features shrouded in an eerie stillness. His eyes, a piercing blue, bore into mine with an intensity that sent a shiver down my spine. They seemed to hold secrets untold, each glance a silent invitation into the depths of his darkness.

His jawline was sharp, set in a firm line that betrayed no emotion. A hint of fear pooled in his eyes, sending a ripple of unease coursing through me. It was as if he knew something I didn't, as if he held the upper hand in a game whose rules remained a mystery.

In that moment, as our eyes locked in a silent standoff, I couldn't shake the feeling that Greg Phinney was more than just a suspect—he was a predator, waiting patiently in the shadows for his next opportunity to strike.

“I never said you could bring in anyone else,” he said to Hotch, but keeping his eyes on mine. 

“I know, but I thought if we talked inside we could work this out ourselves,” I retorted, surprising myself with the amount of strength that was audible in my voice. 

Greg blinked. “Are you some kind of a negotiator?” 

I didn’t respond, but waited for Greg to make the first move. He looked out towards the police cars standing behind me, officers ready to go in when necessary. 

“No guns,” he finally said. 

“No guns,” I agreed. 

Greg opened the door further, revealing that he had Kate in a chokehold with one arm and a knife against her throat, a gun in his other hand. “Okay,” he whispered and cocked his head to the side, urging us to come in. He moved towards the living room with Kate as Hotch and I followed behind. 

“Close the door,” he ordered to Hotch, who obeyed politely. “All right. Stand over there.” 

Hotch moved over towards the spot Greg was pointing at. “You need to put the gun down,” he said. 

“We need to get out of here. Is that gonna happen?” Greg asked instead. 

“As long as you’ve got a gun, if one of the agents outside has a clear shot, he’ll take it.” 

Inhaling deeply, regaining my determination, I took a tentative step forward. “Tell me what you want, Greg.”

“You know, I don’t want to get locked up again,” said Greg, still holding on very tightly to Kate with a knife against her throat and a gun waving around. 

A thousand ideas were whirling inside my head until I landed on one. “Don’t you really want Kate to apologize for making your dad forget your mom?” I asked, cautiously and very slowly approaching Greg. 

“No, I didn’t do that though,” Kate chimed in. 

My eyes flicked towards Kate, my jaw clenched and my eyebrows furrowed in feigned anger. “Unless the next words out of your mouth are “I’m sorry”, I don’t wanna hear anything else from you.” When I looked back at Greg, I made sure to soften my features. “I understand, Greg. I do. She took care of you. You trusted her. And then she betrayed you as soon as your mother was gone. It must have crushed you when Kate married your dad. How did it make you feel, Greg?” 

Greg didn’t know what was happening. I could see the gears behind his eyes whirling whilst he became more and more agitated. 

“I’m sorry,” Kate whimpered. 

“You felt betrayed, didn’t you, Greg?” I continued, certain of my tactics and it seemed Hotch was on the same page I was. 

“Ask her the question, Greg,” he said. Greg looked at my boss in surprise. “Go ahead.” The young man opened his mouth to ask the question he wanted to ask, but hesitated. “Ask her,” Hotch ordered again. 

Then, the question Hotch and I had both anticipated rolled off Greg’s lips. “Why not me?” A single tear slipped down Kate’s cheek. “Why not me?!” he asked louder. 

“Answer him, Kate,” Hotch ordered. 

Kate whimpered and gasped for air before her answer came out in a whisper. “Because you were just a … boy.” 

Glancing from Kate towards us and back, Greg said, “But I loved you,” and he almost sounded incredulous as if he couldn’t believe she would never reciprocate his feelings. He tightened the knife against Kate’s throat and I knew something needed to happen. “I loved you.”

Hushed apologies rushed from Kate’s lips as Greg continued to declare his love for the old babysitter. 

Behind them, I noticed Rossi sneaking up, gun aimed. Hotch was quick to dive away and as Greg turned, wanting to fire back, I took the opportunity to grab Kate and bring her to safety in a small hallway to our right. Two gunshots went off. 

Greg fell to the floor against the sofa. Through the whirlwind happening in my mind, I heard Hotch call for backup as he himself approached the unconscious young man, discarting him of his firearm before checking his pulse. 

Once the scene was deemed safe, I guided the distraught Kate outside where I brought her to the EMT’s to get checked up. I made sure she was all right before turning to rejoin my coworkers on the scene when another EMT stopped me. 

“Agent y/l/n, is that your blood?” she asked, pointing at my left arm. 

When I looked down, the sleeve of my burgundy long sleeve shirt had turned even darker and was slightly ripped. Only then did I realize that the second gunshot wasn’t Rossi firing twice. It had been Greg, wanting to shoot at Rossi but instead nicking my arm. 

“Huh,” I said before everything went completely dark. 

“You fainted at the sight of blood?” Morgan’s voice chimed through the hospital foyer when he came to pick me up afterwards. I was cleared to go after being treated for the gunshot wound that had grazed my skin. Though I didn’t think it was so bad, I still had to wear a sling for a couple of days. 

I shrugged as the two of us fell into step to walk out to the car. “You know, I think it was the adrenaline of it all more than the blood itself,” I retorted with a giggle and hopped into the passenger’s seat while he took the driver’s. 

“There’s someone who isn’t all too happy with your actions,” he commented. 

I furrowed my brows. “Who?” I asked, certain it wasn’t our boss since it was all his idea. 

“Reid, of course,” he replied as though I should’ve known the answer. For a fleeting moment, our eyes met before Morgan focused back on the road. “I think it’s time you and Reid had a good conversation because this is ludicrous.” 

Before I could even ask him about any of it, we had arrived at the airport where everyone was waiting for us on the jet. Determined to ask Spencer about what was wrong, I approached him but as soon as he saw me, he put on his headphones. Okay, that’s clear, I thought and instead sat down on the other side of the jet. 

“Hey,” Rossi captured my attention. “Good job today, kid.” 

I mustered up the best smile I could give. “Thanks, Dave.” 

All the way back to Quantico, I pondered about what might be happening inside that genius’ brain. Why could he be upset about me doing my job? He had gotten into danger more often than I had, much to my dismay. Those had been the most harrowing cases; where I’d almost lost him or any of our other team members. 

I tried to talk to him when we got back to the BAU, but he simply walked past me and ignored me completely. Though he was going to change his course in a couple of days, I didn’t have much patience for that. So, after a frustrating shower and a change of clothes, I rocked up to his apartment in a fury. 

“What the hell did I do wrong that you don’t want to talk to me?!” I asked as soon as he opened his door, pushing past him and dropping my back on the sofa. 

“Are you kidding?” he asked, then scoffed. “You put yourself in danger and I’m not allowed to be angry?!” His voice matched mine, the anger dripping from his words. 

I shook my head. “No! You put yourself in danger more often than I have and I have never been allowed to be angry at you! I was doing my job, Spence! A dumb bullet just grazed my skin. It’s not like I was inside a building that exploded or got shot in the fucking knee! I’m fine!” 

Spencer’s face faltered. His eyes fell to the floor as he tucked his hands into the pockets of his sweatpants. “I was… I was scared to lose you, y/n. I heard you were shot and you were in the hospital and I just… I couldn’t believe Hotch would ever put your life in danger like that. I just– I can’t stand to lose you.”

Suddenly everything clicked in my mind. Every subtle touch, every glance sent my way, all the coffees he’d bought me or when he ordered my favorite food on cases, … All along, Spencer Reid might have felt the same way for me as I did for him. 

As he kept on babbling about how he was so scared to lose me and what the statistics are of people in our field dying during cases, I took a few tentative steps towards him until I was mere inches before him. For a heartbeat, I hesitated, but then a surge of confidence boosted me. I lifted his chin between my index finger and thumb, forcing him to meet my eyes before I softly kissed his lips. 

For a second, I thought I’d made the wrong move until he kissed me back. His lips moved with passion and fervor, his hands covering the sides of my face while my hands moved to his waist, fingers gripping at his shirt. 

In the midst of our passionate embrace, the weight of unspoken words hung heavy in the air, mingling with the heat of our entwined bodies. With each tender caress and fervent kiss, it was as if a lifetime of longing was finally being released, flooding our senses with an overwhelming rush of emotion. In that moment, there was no room for doubt or hesitation, only the undeniable truth of our connection, burning brighter than any statistic or fear. As we lost ourselves in the sweet surrender of our love, I knew that no matter what challenges lay ahead, we would face them together, bound by a love that was as unstoppable as it was undeniable. And as the world faded into the background, all that mattered was the beating of our hearts, entwined in a timeless rhythm of love and devotion.

Everything taglist: @calamitykaty @n0wornever @wanniiieeee @unnowhatthisistbh

Criminal Minds Taglist: 

@kenseverything @samsbirks @tinaasthings @dysphoricsanity @love4lando @elenamoncada-ibarra @r-3dlips @magstheslayer @astess @sylvcaplath @tillypettitt @mordechaisworld @ssameadows @spikedhe4rt @spencers-bookworm @littlemissaddict @kirbybean

#spencer reid #criminal minds #spencer reid fanfic #spencer reid imagine #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid x fem!reader

[ramblingthoughtsofayoungadult]

Unpredictable, Part 9-Limoreau x black!fem!reader fic

A/N: I'm finally updating! Thanks for your patience. Also, I didn't fully rewatch the episode so there will be some differences. Let me know if you wanted to be added to the taglist. Also, if you were on the taglist and aren't on it for this post, it just means when I typed your username, it didn't pop up. Enjoy!

Word count: 7.1k

Warnings: Swearing, sensuality, some angst, and general reader! insecurities about relationships

Series Masterlist

Taglist: @badbishsblog, @gardenof-venus, @morelovemorepeacemoretattoo-blog , @darksoul100, @simiinthemirror

The first thing I noticed when I woke up was the blood around my mouth. The coppery taste made my stomach lurch as I sat up and touched my mouth.

At least it was dried blood.

The second thing I noticed was the dejected expression on Cate’s face as she sat up on the couch across from me. She stared down at the ground, but she wasn’t looking at anything. For a second, I started to reach a hand towards her but stopped when I remembered what she’d done.

Just as I set my hand back in my lap, Marie and Jordan jerked awake, making me flinch in the process. It wasn’t until I settled a little that I noticed they were flanking me, and I looked down at my lap to hide my wide smile and warm cheeks.

“Is this real?” Marie asked.

“Yes, this is real,” Cate confirmed.

Immediately, Jordan jumped to his feet and shifted to their female form. They grinned so widely at the result that their dimples showed and Marie visibly relaxed next to me. Then, I noticed Marie glance at me.

Maybe if it worked for Jordan…

I took a deep breath and tried to focus on what else would unfold in the day. Instead of a picture, all I saw were hazy black and gray figures in my mind and it felt like my brain had hit a wall. I swallowed the lump in my throat and shook my head.

“Really?” Marie asked, placing her hand on top of mine.

“Don’t worry about it,” I muttered, slowly pulling my hand away.

“I’m sorry, Y/N, your powers should come back soon,” Cate voiced hoarsely.

 I thought I nodded as I slowly moved to my feet. “I’m gonna go clean myself up.”

“Do you need any help?” Jordan offered.

“No, I got it.”

 After a few minutes of wandering through Dusty’s house, I found a semi-clean bathroom and locked the door as soon as I walked in. The faucet handles were slippery, and it took a few tries before I finally got the water running. When I reached for the paper towel roll on top of the toilet, I realized that my hands were trembling.

“Stop it, Y/N, calm down,” I hissed. “There’s nothing to worry about.”

Don’t cry, don’t cry, don’t cry ran through my head like a mantra as I patted my face with warm water.

“I do not need my powers to be myself,” I muttered. “I’m still me even if I can’t see potential future outcomes.”

Or help my friends or loved ones or pass any crim classes or get a job as a supe.

Then, I was thankful that the running water drowned out my sobs since I wasn’t sure how much of a noise blocker my hand was. I almost collapsed over the sink as my back shook with sobs and the hot tears ran down my face.

No matter how much I wanted to stop crying, I couldn’t. It was like all those years of holding it back made me incapable of doing it in the moment.

Why did this happen to me? Why do I have to get screwed over all the time? bitterly ran through my mind.

I never did anything to Cate to deserve this, nothing at all and she wiped me twice without thinking of the consequences. Wiping two days’ worth of memories from four people’s minds must have been a first for her. There was no telling what that could have done to her powers, and she still did it.

I don’t know why my brain decided that was the time to remember Cate’s playful smile when she talked me into sneaking off campus with the others or her sincerity when I processed my feelings about Jordan and Marie with her. My chest ached and it wasn’t like I had a chest cold----it was almost like I took a direct blow from Luke, but it ached worse than that.

None of Cate’s actions made sense at the moment. Shetty must have put in a lot of effort to manipulate her because she was my friend, almost like the big sister I never had. When I really thought about it, Cate was one of my most attentive friends. Whenever I was stressed or anxious, Cate would take me to her favorite campus green to meditate; when a creepy guy approached me at a party or club, Cate was one of the first people to intervene; and she always insisted that I joined her, Jordan, Andre, and Luke for study groups.

I had to know how she could go from that to rendering me powerless. As I finished cleaning the blood from around the left side of my mouth and nostril, a sinking feeling came over me.

If Shetty could do that to Cate then what had she done to me?

Knock! Knock!

The sound made me jump and shook me out of my stupor.

“One second!” I called, frantically wiping at the other side of my face.

As I stared at my reflection, I internally winced at my red, puffy eyes. It would take at least three rounds of Peter Thomas Roth under eye masks and endless eye drops to remedy them.

“I just wanted to check on you,” Marie’s voice softly called.

I almost froze and huffed.

“Oh, I’m fine.” I sniffled and wiped at my nose.

“I’ll believe you when you open the door.”

Did Marie have some sort of fixation with seeing me at my worst?

“Seriously, you can go back to the others,” I tried to insist.

“If you don’t, I will break down this door.”

“You wouldn’t do that.”

Marie paused. “Jordan would.”

I huffed and threw the used tissues and paper towel in the trash can. After taking three deep breaths to calm myself, I unlocked the door and let Marie in. She immediately entered the room, forcing me to back up. Slowly, her hands grabbed the sides of my face, and she looked me over, eyes softening at the bits of blood I hadn’t been able to clean.

Then, I carefully grabbed her hands and started pulling away. “You don’t have to get that close to see that I’m fine.”

“Oh, I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable,” Marie apologized, then, she frowned. “Actually, no. After everything you said, you pushed me and Jordan away and ran as soon as we woke up; it’s confusing.”

I sighed and turned away from her as I grabbed more paper towel. “I’m sorry. After everything that happened when we were in Cate’s head, I didn’t want you or Jordan to see me like this…again.”

As soon as I turned towards the sink, Marie stepped in front of me and gently took the paper towel out of my hands. She gestured towards the toilet, and I sat on the seat as she wet the paper towel in the sink. After a few seconds, she turned off the faucet and leaned down in front of me.

Marie’s gaze was laser-focused as she cleaned up the rest of my face. The silence in the space was comfortable but I couldn’t stop fidgeting with my braids as she worked.

“When are you gonna understand that Jordan and I don’t care if you don’t look perfect all the time?” she finally uttered. “They just told you how we’re all messy in our own way and it’s okay that you’re a part of it.”

“I didn’t think I had any more tears left in me but I guess I was wrong,” I muttered with a shrug.

Marie hummed in response as she continued gently wiping my face. A few more seconds passed until she was finally done.

“Finding you and Cate scared the shit out of me,” she stated. “It felt like the ground fell out from under me and I had no idea what to do. Jordan had the idea of slowing down your heart rates and it worked but, I’m scared to think what would happen if it didn’t.”

“But it did work because you have amazing powers.” I grabbed her hands. “You saved me, and Cate and I know you’ll save more.” Then, I let go of her hands. “Well, not know-know.”

“Hey, you’ll get your powers back. We’ll figure something out,” Marie insisted. “But what if we don’t” hung on the tip of my tongue and I didn’t let it fall out. Instead, I watched Marie throw away the dirty paper towel and then she grabbed my hands.

“It’s okay to let us help you,” she said.

“But, you’ll get tired---”

“I won’t and I know Jordan won’t either. People take care of each other in relationships.”

I looked down at our clasped hands. “That’s all…new for me.”

Marie squeezed my hands. “Me too but, I know the basics.”

Having a loving family must have been nice; at least Marie had a normal baseline for how to be in a relationship. Then, I realized that she kept looking at me.

“What? Is there something else on my face? Did my eyes get worse?” I rambled.

Marie laughed. “No, your face is fine; pretty.”

My cheeks warmed at her words, and I couldn’t keep the grin off my lips. Then, I felt myself lean towards Marie and she quickly closed the gap. Her lips were slightly chapped but mostly soft against mine. As I pressed my lips against hers, I let go of Marie’s hands and tangled my hands in her twists. Marie’s hands ghosted up my hips and underneath my cardigan, pulling me closer to her.

I sighed at the feeling but didn’t stop kissing her. Somehow, Marie didn’t break the kiss as she stood, pulling me to my feet and running her hands up and down my back.

I could have stayed like that for a while but a scream followed by banging interrupted.

“SAM!” Emma yelled.

We broke apart and I grabbed Marie’s hand and tugged her out of the bathroom with me. When we got to the living room, it was a mess. On one end of the room, Jordan and Andre were picking themselves off the floor and trying to avoid all the broken glass and other furniture casualties. On the other end, Sam held a weak Cate up against a wall that already had a sizable hole in it. Based on the dust on Cate’s clothes, Sam had attacked her. Emma stood behind Sam, eyes wide but her voice calm. “Sam, it’s okay, you can let her go.”

“She hurt you---she made you forget,” Sam griped.

“But I’m okay now, everyone is okay now. You can let her go, she’s not going to hurt anyone else.”

It was hard to gauge how much I agreed with the last part of Emma’s statement, but I doubted Cate would go after one of us again soon. Slowly, Sam let her go and Cate collapsed on the ground, gasping. Marie hurried over to Cate’s side to help her up and Sam backed away from them, eyes still boring holes in the top of Cate’s head.

My eyes flitted to Emma, who seemed a little more relieved, and ran a hand through her messy hair.

“Why is your hair that messy?” I asked.

“What is it with people asking me that today? Why is your lip gloss smudged?”

Then, Jordan turned to me and raised an eyebrow. “Great timing, freshie.”

I thumbed at my lips and my cheeks warmed even more. “Get your head out of the gutter. Anyway, what brought you two back here?”

Emma straightened up. “We were looking for you guys because I wanted, well, actually, Sam has something he would like to say.”

Then, Emma gave Sam the same look her mom gave her when she needed her to improve on a take. Suddenly, Sam’s shoulders slumped, and he pouted as he gazed at the tips of his dirty sneakers.

“I’m sorry for almost killing you guys…twice. I’m working on getting better control of my emotions but being locked up for eighteen years really screws with your head,” Sam stated.

The silence that followed was almost unbearable. Cate’s eyes never left Sam as if she was waiting on him to pounce again; Marie frowned; Andre’s jaw clenched so hard that I wasn’t sure he would speak for a while; and Jordan cocked her head to the side.

Finally, Andre said, “You didn’t almost kill us.”

“Fifteen more seconds and he might have,” Jordan admitted.

“My head is still sore from the last time we met but I’m willing to move forward if you stop attacking us on sight,” I added.

“I’m really sorry about that. You’re Y/N, right? Emma talks about you all the time,” Sam commented.

I grinned. “Oh, really?”

Sam nodded. “Yeah, she was saying that you’re great but clueless about relationships and----”

Emma patted Sam’s chest. “Okay, Sam, that’s enough. We don’t have time to talk about that because of the other thing.”

I narrowed my eyes at Emma. “Clueless, seriously?”

She smiled sheepishly and I sighed.

Unfortunately, Emma wasn’t fully wrong, but she didn’t have to tell Sam that. Besides, I was working on it.

For the next few minutes, the two filled us in on everything that was going on in the Woods. How Shetty had Dr. Cardoza experimenting on supes and how several people Sam knew down there got sick. Even though most of them got better, a couple died.

“And they never experimented on you?” Andre asked.

“Not the way they did with Tommy. He was super messed up but a funny guy. One day, they took him away for a session with Cardoza and I never saw him again,” Sam recalled.

“And Shetty knows about all of this and is doing nothing to stop it?” Marie confirmed.

“She hates supes; she wants us all dead,” Sam griped.

Cate shook her head. “That…that can’t be true. Indira always helped me and Y/N.”

Jordan glared at her. “Come on, Cate. Shetty manipulated the shit out of you because she knew we were getting too close.”

“And I want to know why she wanted the two of us to be so close,” I added.

Cate bit her bottom lip and played with the hem of her sweater. “This…this is a lot.”

I nodded. “But it sounds like they’re working on a virus that targets supes. Based on what Sam described, maybe they picked strong supes that weren’t as useful as Sam to be guinea pigs.” “So, they come up with a virus to kill all of us?” Andre asked.

“I don’t know if that’s the goal, though. Vought has invested way too much money in making supes and if all the GOD U students dropped dead, that’s the next lineup of the Seven gone,” Jordan interjected.

“And society is built around supes, and the fallout would be bad,” Marie said.

“But if Shetty hates us so much, she wouldn’t care,” I thought.

“How is she getting away with this when Vought watches everything? She has to report to them all the time,” Jordan wondered.

Since Brink died, Shetty had to have even more people working under her than before. It would be easy to have certain people cover up for her or maybe the woman was gifted at hiding heinous plots. Seeing how much effort she put into manipulating Cate, there was no telling how far Shetty was willing to go to hide the Woods.

“Shetty could lie on the reports; it’s not like Vought reads through everything carefully,” I pointed out.

“So, what do we do?” Emma asked.

At the moment, I wished that I had my powers. It would have made it much easier to come up with a plan. Instead, I didn’t try but racked my brain for ideas.

“I can help here,” Cate announced.

Everyone turned to her in unison, and no one looked confident. In all honesty, Sam seemed to be contemplating going after her again; Emma looked as though she wished Cate would stop talking; Andre somehow clenched his jaw more; Marie side-eyed her; and Jordan’s glare almost made me feel bad too. I tried to relax my shoulders and forced myself to listen.

“I know that no one trusts me right now but, I am the only one with a direct line to Indira,” Cate said. “Please, just let me try.”

“How do we know you won’t turn on us again?” Andre asked.

“I won’t, I promise,” Cate insisted.

“Yeah, well, your promises don’t mean shit to me right now,” Andre hissed.

“I agree with Andre; after this, anything’s possible,” Emma said.

Cate hesitated and turned to me. “Y/N, please, you know me. I may have messed up but I wouldn’t do it twice.”

A part of me wanted to believe her, really, but the other part was the giant gaping wound of being manipulated so badly that I had no powers. My stomach sunk when I looked at her and I suddenly felt nauseous.

I hugged my arms tightly around my waist. “I don’t know, Cate. I want to trust you again, but it’s difficult.”

Cate’s expression fell and I didn’t know if I wanted to comfort her or scream at her. Everything was so confusing and it didn’t help that I had this gnawing feeling that something else was going on; something that none of us knew.

Marie stepped forward to stand next to Cate. “I think this could be a good first step for you to start earning our trust, but I don’t blame Y/N for feeling how she feels.”

“Same here,” Jordan agreed.

I smiled at their words and had to fight to keep myself from crying even more.  

After some deliberation, we decided that Cate, Andre, Marie, Jordan, and I would focus on getting Shetty to expose her plot while Emma helped Sam hide from Vought or Shetty or whoever he’d upset.

That decision led me to leaning against the wall in a booth at an off-campus diner. It was fairly quiet, save for the handful of families laughing with their kids and the game that was on the outdated TV perched on a corner stand. Even though there was a giant plate of fries and greasy burgers on the table, barely anyone ate. I couldn’t stop staring at Cate, who was on her phone in the front corner of the restaurant.

“Can anyone hear anything?” Andre asked.

“No,” Marie said.

“And she’s not even facing us so we can’t even try lip reading,” I muttered.

Marie turned to me. “You know how to lip read?”

“Yeah, every crim major does. It’s part of the body language class,” I explained.

Marie nodded slowly. “This school is nuts.”

“We know,” Jordan muttered.

Finally, Cate hung up the phone and wandered back over to us. “I can’t see her yet; she’s in the city all morning.”

“What does that mean?” Jordan asked.

“I’ll have to wait at her house and get her to talk then,” Cate said.

Andre shook his head. “That’s too much time.”

“Did she sound different or suspicious of you?” Marie asked.

“No, she sounded fine. I’m sorry this isn’t turning out how we hoped.”

Based on her slumped shoulders, I guessed that Cate was telling the truth. The situation was both irritating and relieving since my list of questions for Shetty grew every minute and I was itching to ask them, but I was also thankful for a chance to gather my bearings. The thought of confronting her made me fidget since Shetty had helped me a lot.

How could someone be so kind and so hateful at the same time?

“…and stay out of our heads!”

Jordan’s exclamation jerked me from my thoughts, and I watched them shift to their male form and storm out of the diner. Andre ran his hand over his face and started messing with a straw while Cate looked down at her gloved hands.

“I’ll be back,” Marie muttered, slipping out of the booth and trailing after Jordan.

I blinked and turned back to Cate and Andre. “Sorry, what did I miss?”

“Jordan’s pissed because we have to wait at Shetty’s to get any info out of her and we’re on a timer pretty much,” Andre explained.

“This is all my fault,” Cate muttered.

Instead of answering, I dumped a handful of fries on my plate and started using them to make patterns in the ketchup between bites. When I bit into a burger, I almost moaned at the taste.

Either I was ravenous, or this place had decent food.

When I glanced back up, Cate and Andre stared at me.

I swallowed. “I got hungry.”

“You’re not gonna go after your…partners?” Andre asked.

I straightened up and continued munching on a fry. “We never labeled ourselves as anything and Marie’s got it.”

“Well, I’m glad the three of you have figured something out,” Cate offered.

“Thanks, but, I don’t know how much we have figured out.”

With everything going on, I never paused to think about how this relationship would work. In all honesty, I was shocked that I was able to tell Jordan and Marie how I felt and even more when both reciprocated. But I wondered what happened from here. How did we figure that out?

“It takes time,” Cate answered.

I snapped my eyes up to her. “Could you not probe my mind for a second?”

“Sorry, I can’t help it right now.”

Just as I was going to take another bite, my phone buzzed in my lap.

M: Come outside.

I quickly typed back, Omw.

“If I’m not back soon, just get a box for me.”

“Got you,” Andre said.

When I got outside, the chill made me wrap my cardigan tighter around me. Fortunately, Jordan and Marie were just around the corner and it was a short walk. Just as I got around the corner, the two were kissing. It only lasted a few seconds until Jordan pulled away, a smirk on his face, and I imagined Marie had a similar expression.

“What was that about my bad timing?” I called.

Marie turned at the sound of my voice and Jordan’s smirk deepened.

“Don’t be jealous,” he sang.

Funnily enough, I wasn’t jealous the first time I caught them; just shocked and confused. This time, watching them made me smile all over.

I rolled my eyes at Jordan’s words and sauntered over to them. “Please tell me you didn’t make Marie summon me in an attempt to make me jealous.”

“He didn’t make me do anything, but I thought you should be a part of this conversation,” Marie explained.

Then, Marie launched into hers and Jordan’s idea to break into Shetty’s office, find damning evidence of the Woods and the virus, and bring it to Victoria Neuman. The more she talked, the more the uneasiness set in.

“That town hall is happening today so it’s perfect timing,” Marie concluded.

Jordan looked at me expectantly and I glanced at the giant blue and red poster of the political candidate on the side of the building. Politicians had this strange fixation on looking hopeful, trustworthy, and powerful in all their photos. According to Coco, it was one of the most challenging parts of the field. No matter what any politician did, it all seemed fake to me. Maybe it was because I could see what they would really do if they were elected.

Even though I couldn’t use my powers, something about Victoria Neuman seemed off to me.

“Say it, freshie,” Jordan encouraged gently.

“In theory, I think it’s a good idea to get this information to someone with massive influence,” I started.

“But,” Marie said.

“But I have a weird feeling about her, actually, I’ve been having a weird feeling all day now,” I admitted.

“This is our best shot to expose Shetty right now,” Marie argued.

I nodded. “And I’m not saying not to take it. I’m saying I’m not sure how it’ll play out.”

“Is this about your powers?” Jordan asked.

“No, sort of, anyway, like I said, if you want to go rogue, do it.”

“You’d be coming with us too.” Marie reached a hand towards me, and I unfolded my arms to let her play with my fingers.

I sighed. “But I don’t know how helpful I’ll be.”

“This is gonna sound cheesy as hell, but you don’t need your powers to be helpful. You figured out that Cate manipulated you twice and you figured out that their goal in the Woods is to create a virus against supes. And you did all that without your powers,” Jordan pointed out.

“You’re amazing, Y/N,” Marie added.

I smiled and flipped my braids over my shoulder. “If you say so.”

Marie shook her head and Jordan grabbed my other hand.

“So, this may not be the best time to ask but are we…”

“You’re my girlfriend,” Jordan answered.

“Our girlfriend,” Marie corrected.

“She asked me out first.”

“No, I didn’t. I told you I liked you first,” I argued.

Jordan shrugged. “Same thing.”

Marie swatted Jordan’s arm with her free hand. “This relationship isn’t a competition.”

“Said the sore loser.”

Just as they were about to start bickering, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I let go of Jordan’s hand to grab it, ignored his feigned insulted gasp, and swiped through it. Sydney had texted Sasha, Alina, Lydia, and me in our group text.

S:911. Meeting in an hour.

“As much as I would love to continue this, I have to go to Si Chi,” I said, slipping my phone back in my pocket.

“Really? Now?” Jordan asked.

“Emergency meeting and I need time to get ready. I’ll text you both later.”

When I moved to hug Marie, she pecked my lips instead and I flinched. She smiled mischievously and I blinked at her.

“And I thought you were this shy, sweet freshman,” I muttered.

“I learn quickly,” she teased.

I shook my head and turned to Jordan, who immediately pressed his lips against mine, hands roaming all over my back. I was in a daze as he moaned but when one of his hands squeezed my butt, I yelped and jumped away.

“Jordan!” I rasped.

Even though Jordan apologized, he did not look sorry at all. As I sauntered off to get an Uber, I couldn’t help but wonder what I had gotten myself into but couldn’t deny the buzz of excitement at the thought.

Exactly fifty-five minutes later, I sat in the large conference room in Si Chi, freshly showered and made up. The cherry red Ralph Lauren tennis mini dress and white Chanel platforms paired with my braids swept up in a messy bun made me feel exposed but pretty. A minute later, Alina and Lydia waltzed in together. Alina’s hair was in a low bun with pieces framing her face and her black long-sleeved Naked Wardrobe skirt set flowed around her with each step. Lydia wore a deep plum Givenchy blazer over a white Oxford and dark Levi’s, her deep auburn hair fell around her shoulders in soft curls.

Immediately, Lydia took a seat across from me while Alina took a seat on my right.

“Hi, Lydia, Alina,” I greeted.

“Hi, Y/N,” Lydia chirped.

“Hi,” Alina said.

 As soon as they sat, Sydney breezed in, her knit white DKNY dress catching the light as well as her diamond studs. She pushed a wavy strawberry blonde tendril out of her face as she took a seat at the head of the table and set her canvas Marc Jacobs tote on the glossy table.

“Hello, girls,” Sydney said.

“Hello, Sydney.”

Our unified voices sent a chill down my spine.

Finally, Sasha burst in, sweat coating her forehead as she quickly took the seat next to Lydia and adjusted her deep green wrap dress. “Sorry, there was a big crowd because of the rally.”

“It’s okay, Sasha. Just remember to factor in big events when you’re commuting for other meetings,” Sydney advised evenly.

Sasha seemed to gulp and nodded.

“That leads me to the topic of this emergency meeting. I know that the town hall on campus is going to be packed and it’s been a hot topic for weeks since it was announced. This morning, all the Greek presidents met and determined that each house will decide their own policy for attendance,” Sydney explained. “I’ve debated this for a while. Our high standards and reputation attract ambitious women and plenty of them will want to attend the town hall. However, I am also concerned about the safety of this event since there is so much opposition on both sides.”

Sydney paused.

“That is why I believe that no Si Chi girl should attend the event,” Sydney stated.

Even though she worded it softly, Sydney was forbidding all of us from attending. If anyone was caught, that would mean an automatic exit from the house.

“It’s especially important for us as leadership to be role models for the initiates. We must choose our events wisely and we don’t want any of them risking anything because of their ideologies or to try to go viral,” Sydney explained.

“It makes sense. Those pro-supes are rowdy,” Lydia agreed.

And ignorant, I thought.

“I’m all for supe rights but I don’t want to be caught in a riot,” Alina added.

“How do we communicate this to the other girls?” Sasha asked.

“Y/N can send something out in the house Discord.” Sydney smiled at me. “You know how to make it tasteful but authoritative.”

As much as I appreciated the compliment, I couldn’t stop thinking of how to persuade her. If I had my powers, this would be nothing but the only thing I had was my wits. The more I thought, the more I was concerned that my wits abandoned me.

“Well, that’s it unless anyone has something to add?” Sydney prompted.

Finally, I had something.

“Yes. I agree that everyone’s safety is important, but I don’t think we’ve thought about the political science majors. Their professors will be all over this and more and more of them want first-hand footage. I think discouraging everyone will put them at a real disadvantage,” I said.

My heart pounded in my ears as I watched the gears turn in Sydney’s head. It wasn’t my best work but it might have made a difference.

“It’s a shame but, they’ll have to figure something else out,” Sydney said.

“Well---”

“Have that done in thirty, okay?”

Sydney’s words were light but her eyes were so intense that my words stopped in my head. I nodded and she dismissed everyone. Sasha grinned widely at me as she stood and walked out.

“I guess your friend will have to figure something else out. With it being junior year and all, it’s even more important that she doesn’t fail anything,” Sasha said.

“Her name is Coco and even though this is an inconvenience she’ll figure something out.”

As confident as I was in Coco, I had no idea what I was going to do. Surprisingly, writing up the Discord message was easy, even though plenty of the girls were upset, it was a simple fix of, “If you’re disappointed, Sydney is more than happy to answer your questions.” However, I wasn’t sure how I was going to tell Jordan and Marie that I couldn’t help them get the information to Neuman.

Of course, the time we set to meet up outside of Shetty’s office arrived too soon and I found myself pacing down the hall, filled with dread the closer I got to Shetty’s office. When I arrived, the door was already open and my heart lurched into my throat.

Oh no, we’ve been caught, this won’t work, I panicked.

Then, I forced myself to take a deep breath and crept closer to the door. It took five more deep breaths for me to get the courage to peek around the corner. At first glance, Shetty’s office looked like it normally did: peaceful but professional. Her space was light and airy with the perfect amount of light from the sun seeping through the windows. However, when I looked closer, there were papers sprawled over her desk, something that she would never stand for.

Just as I started to creep in, Jordan popped up from behind the desk and cursed loudly when she saw me.

“You could have said something, freshie!” Jordan admonished, one hand pressed to her chest and another holding a file.

“Well, I didn’t know who was in here!” I defended, wandering further in. “You should have closed the doors behind you.”

Jordan smirked. “You say that like I’m not the one who taught you how to sneak into places. I would have just told whoever that Shetty needed me to find something.”

“Technically, you all contributed to teaching me that but okay.”

Then, I turned back towards the doors to start closing them when Marie slipped in. We nearly collided but I took a half step back.

“Shit, sorry!” Marie exclaimed.

“It’s fine, I guess it’s my karma.”

I let her slip past me and made sure the doors were secured behind us before joining her and Jordan at Shetty’s desk.

“Have you found anything yet?” Marie asked.

“No, just different files on different kids.”

I perked up. “Like the ones she checks in with?”

“I think so. I didn’t read any because that felt wrong.” Jordan paused. “And don’t go looking for your file; you need to be focused.”

“Fine,” I groaned playfully.

We decided it would be best for Jordan and me to go through Shetty’s physical files while Marie searched her computer. As I skimmed the documents, my brain circled around how I would tell them that I couldn’t go to the town hall. There was no great way to say, “Hey, I can’t help you expose a major conspiracy because my house president said ‘no’ and if I disobey, I’ll be ostracized.” I would find better words but that’s what it all boiled down to.

If only Si Chi and rankings didn’t matter so much.

Then, I paused at a newspaper clipping I found. It was from that plane crash a couple of years back, the one that Queen Maeve and Homelander failed to save. The thought of all those people dying made my stomach churn. As I kept reading, my stomach settled a little and I felt myself buzzing.

“Look.” I set the file down on Shetty’s desk and Jordan stepped closer and Marie swiveled in her chair.

“It’s from that plane crash,” Marie observed.

“Why would Shetty have a file on this?” Jordan asked.

“Because of this.” I flipped through the documents and pointed out the passenger list. “It’s right in the middle.”

After a few seconds of reading, both their eyes widened.

“Holy shit,” Jordan breathed.

“Her kid and her husband were on that plane; that’s why she hates all supes, it makes total sense,” Marie said.

“It’s only motive but, it might be useful for Neuman. But no one’s found anything on the Woods?” I asked.

Marie and Jordan shook their heads.

“Great, this couldn’t get worse,” Marie muttered.

Immediately, Shetty’s office door handle started jiggling and our eyes snapped to it.

“I thought you locked the door,” Jordan hissed.

“No, it would have been suspicious if the door was locked,” I whispered back.

“We don’t have time for this. Hide whatever you can.”

Frantically, we shoved the unimportant files in random drawers, and I kept the one about the plane crash under my denim jacket. Just when the door pushed open, someone dragged me down and I found myself sandwiched between Jordan and Marie underneath Shetty’s desk. It was a tight squeeze, and I didn’t think that I could move if I tried but, I was more focused on keeping my breathing even as someone entered the office.

“Nice digs. I guess this is what you get for screwing over everyone,” a masculine voice drawled.

“That’s Cardoza,” Jordan mouthed.

My eyes widened and I could feel my heart rate pick up. For a few seconds, I couldn’t focus on any of my surroundings, and I couldn’t hear anything either. This shouldn’t have been happening, I took my medicine, I knew I did.

Just breathe, Y/N, and use your exercise.

I see three of Jordan’s rings, I smell Marie’s hair oil, I feel really warm, and----

My thoughts were cut off by Marie grabbing my shoulders and muttering, “It’s okay.”

In the next few seconds, my heart rate slowed down, and I breathed a lot easier. I would have turned to thank her if it would have blown our cover.

For the next minute, Dr. Cardoza ranted about how his medical prowess was misused and how no one was supposed to get hurt.

“It was all for science! But screw science and me, right?” he bellowed.

Then, he got quiet for a second, but it was quickly filled by the sound of something trickling. Since she was in the most convenient position, Jordan poked her head out from her hiding spot only to immediately retract it and shake her head.

I hated where my imagination went.

Finally, the sound stopped, and the man groaned. “Here’s your precious data.”

Something plopped onto the desk, and we all perked up. As soon as the door slammed behind him, we rushed out from our hiding spot. Marie grabbed the USB that Dr. Cardoza dropped and plugged it into the computer. In seconds, we had everything that could expose Dean Shetty and the Woods. Some of the details made me wretch and some things did not need visuals but had them.

It was perfect ammunition.

“Wow,” Marie said.

“How long were they doing all this?” Jordan muttered.

I shook my head, grabbed the file from my jacket, and took pictures of the important parts. “I don’t know if I want to know at this point.”

After Marie grabbed the USB and we put everything else back to normal, we got out of that office as quickly as we could. While we walked down the hallway, my thumbs flew across my phone screen.

“I just sent the pictures to you both,” I said.

“Why? Are you afraid you’ll accidentally delete it?” Marie asked.

Okay, here it goes.

“I can’t go to the town hall,” I confessed.

“Are you scared? No one’s going to do anything, they’re all talk,” Jordan said. “And I wouldn’t let them touch you.”

“Neither would I,” Marie affirmed.

“I appreciate that but, it’s not out of fear. Si Chi girls can’t attend; president’s orders.”

They stopped walking at the same time, and I lagged a little, dreading facing them. At first, they both looked stunned then Jordan looked like she would strangle someone, and Marie was confused.

“That’s bullshit,” Jordan hissed.

“Yeah, they can’t tell you where you can and can’t go,” Marie agreed.

I shifted my weight from foot to foot. “Well, they sort of can. If I go, it’s immediate expulsion from the sorority.”

“But this is important. They have to make an exception,” Marie offered.

“I couldn’t tell them about this. Sydney would get an ulcer at the thought of breaking into the dean’s office and going through private files,” I argued. “Plus, if I told them about any of this, they’d think I’m a crazy conspiracy theorist.”

“This isn’t a conspiracy or a theory; they did this shit and no one did anything about it,” Jordan insisted.

I huffed. “I know that, Jordan, but I also know these girls and they don’t like to leave their comfort zones. Even though Sydney is one of the more progressive presidents, she still has to maintain the standards.”

“Even if it includes covering up Shetty’s plan to make everyone sick?”

I hesitated. “I…I’m not sure.”

Marie groaned. “Come on, Y/N, you don’t have to do every little thing they say. You’re high up in the house, doesn’t that mean anything?”

“Yes, it means more status and respect but also more eyes, so I’m almost double forbidden from going.” I sighed. “I’m sorry but, this is as far as I can go. Text or video call me if you need anything.”

The moment I turned on my heel and started walking away, I understood what a kicked puppy must feel like. I only made it a few steps before both grabbed one of my wrists.  

“Stop running,” Jordan said.

“I’m not running,” I argued.

“Bullshit, this whole thing is,” she challenged.

I paused and narrowed my eyes at Jordan. “It might be to you but it’s very important to me. It always has been.”

When I pulled at her hand, Jordan let me go and I turned to Marie, but her expression hardened.

“You don’t have to do this,” she insisted.

I scoffed. “Yes, I do. Vought already gave you their stamp of approval, so you’re set. I have to play it smart, and I can’t do anything to lose Si Chi right now.”

“That’s not fair, Y/N,” Marie said.

“It’s the truth, though. I’m on thin ice with not being able to use my powers and I can’t mess up anything else!”

Jordan stepped closer to me. “The Woods is bigger than anything at this school. Screw rankings, Si Chi, and GOD U. Shetty wants us all dead and you have a chance to stop her. You have a chance to be a hero.”

They were right, this was a fantastic opportunity to help people and make GOD U a better place. We had no idea how many kids were still trapped down there or what they were experiencing. This plot needed to be exposed and everyone needed to be held accountable. At any other time, I would have jumped at the chance to help but I couldn’t.

If only Sydney hadn’t given that order.

I wanted the ground to swallow me up and take me somewhere far away from the two pairs of deep brown eyes that bored into me. I also wanted Marie and Jordan to stop looking at me with such intensity; it just made everything harder.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

“You’re not the only one risking your ranking here, you know. I don’t get why you insist on doing all this shit after everything,” Jordan spat.

I flinched at her tone and swallowed thickly. I knew she was referring to my family and how awful they were. The worst part was I didn’t know why I was like this either.

How could I have made so much progress just to end up back where I was?

Just a few hours ago, I was giggly about having a new girlfriend and partner. Before my meeting at Si Chi, I even made spreadsheets of some dates we could have and gift ideas for holidays and birthdays.

Seeing them both look at me with such hurt in their eyes almost broke me and I wanted to forget about the smug expression on Sasha’s face and Sydney’s tone. But, I just couldn’t.  

#black!reader #gen v x reader #jordan li x reader #limoreau x reader #marie moreau x reader

[spasmsofthought]

you fell hard, I thought good riddance (j.s. x reader)

An angsty thing inspired by “Best” by Gracie Abrams. (I wrote this at work cause I had the free time and couldn’t help myself.) Let me know what you think! (Probably some inaccuracies, especially if you squint - my step-dad may have done a career in the Navy, but I did and will not lol.) Wrote this all at once, so please have grace for any spelling or grammar mistakes. xo 

Next

https://open.spotify.com/track/5HO2RD12vZ5NcIdAULo43M?si=0ce82485daa44829

+++

Jake knows what he did. 

While not at the forefront of his mind, it weighs on the deepest part of his consciousness and he’s reminded of what he did in what feels like the most random moments. 

When he’s swallowing the last drops of beer in the bottle that’s pressed to his mouth. Or when he’s standing on the beach as the waves are softly rolling against the shore and it’s quiet. Or when he ends up on the couch watching crappy television at 3 a.m. because his flashbacks are keeping him awake and the moment his eyes close, he feels like he’s startled awake because a brightly-colored ad is flashing on the TV screen. 

He sees you every once and a while, he thinks. Whether it’s when he’s tipsy at The Hard Deck and sees someone turn the corner who looks just enough like you from the back. Someone can laugh just the right way down the hall when he’s in the office at work and he has to do a double-take to make sure it’s not you that’s laughing. 

He’s never actually, though, confronted with your physical presence until he finds himself at a joint military exercise in European waters and you are on the same carrier. He’s walking into the cafeteria after a morning of training exercises and immediately zeroes in on you. Once he’s aware of you, he can’t look away. 

It takes a moment for your senses to catch on. (To be fair, the cafeteria is not really known to be an oasis of peace. It’s loud and busy. You’re sitting with friends anyhow.) Your eyes flit to the area where he’s making his way in and he can tell the moment your mind makes sense of what you’re seeing. You glance at him for one long moment, and then you turn towards your friends and stay that way until you all leave. The only thing that has changed about your demeanor is the frown that settles on your expression throughout the rest of your meal. 

He thinks you look even better now than you did back then. 

He thinks he took you by surprise. That you’ve gotten so used to not seeing him around on your deployments and where you’re stationed that you didn’t think you would need to brace yourself on this go around. 

Jake knows what he did and he feels terrible. He didn’t then, but he does now.

Seeing you in actual flesh and blood makes him remember. 

He remembers your utter devotion during your brief time together. 

He remembers that the first time he approached you, he made you laugh. The kind of laughter that leaves a person gasping for air and makes their eyes water. You fell hook, line, and sinker. He remembers the way you would try to make time and space for him whenever you could, despite how busy you were trying to progress in your career. He remembers how he didn’t do the same. 

He remembers that on your off days, you would come over and stay the nights. He remembers the smell of you when you would climb into bed next to him after showering. And when he couldn’t sleep, when his mind was churning and taking him back to things he just wanted to forget, you would sit next to him on the couch at 3 a.m. as he turned the television on. When he closed his eyes, he knows you were the one to turn to TV screen off so he didn’t wake up. He remembers how you would kiss him: sweet and complete and open, always moving in step with him. 

He remembers how wholehearted you were when you were with him. Giving your whole self, all the time. 

Even when he would say sharp, caustic words that would make tears form in your eyes, even when he shut his bedroom door so he wouldn’t feel responsible for making you cry, you stayed. 

He remembers the way you stayed. 

And he remembers how his half-hearted attempts, quarter-hearted attempts really, to draw you back in eventually ran you dry. You were willing to do so much, and he wasn’t really willing to do anything. He was young, but he knows that’s not an excuse now. 

He remembers the light in your eyes changing. He remembers the way you stopped coming over. He remembers the way you didn’t have the courage to tell him you wanted to leave. 

He remembers that you held onto him until the bitter end. 

He knows you won’t talk to him. Every time you see him on the carrier, you make a point to avoid him or walk the other way. He knows you probably resent him (there’s a reason he can’t find you on any social media platforms). He understands why you don’t seem to want anything to do with him. 

So, he investigates. He does what he knows how to do best: he talks and charms and weasels his way through the crowds of people on the carrier. Making his way from one group to another, day and night, Jake gleans for information and eventually finds what he needs. He knows your bunkmate’s name now (and their shift and their position, and even where they like to hang out and what time they prefer to go to the gym). 

You may never read it, he knows. You may can it or tear it up and throw it out into the ocean. You may even wait until you can set it on fire and watch it burn. 

But he knows he has to try. 

So when he finds your bunkmate, he hands them a piece of paper and tells them it’s for you. It’s small and doesn’t take up much room. Your bunkmate only nods, a look of confusion passing over their face. He says it’s important that it be delivered to you. Those are his only instructions. 

If he had the opportunity to talk to you in person, he might have the chance to elongate. To say more, be more. But he might not ever get the chance to do that, so he’s going to take what he can get. 

You pass your bunkmate between shifts: you’re just getting back for some sleep, and they’re heading out. They say there’s a piece of paper you need to read on your pillow. Hand-delivered, they say the instructions were. No follow-up is required. You wait until they leave. Until you’re left alone. 

You open up the folded-up piece of paper. 

This is what it says: 

I’m sorry. You deserved better. 

#top gun fic #jake seresin fic #jake seresin x you #jake seresin x reader #jake seresin x y/n #Jake Seresin x female!reader #jake seresin x oc #jake seresin angst #jake seresin x f!reader #jake seresin imagine #jake seresin drabble #hangman x reader #hangman fic rec #top gun maverick #top gun hangman #top gun: maverick #top gun fanfiction #top gun imagine #glen powell #hangman angst #hangman fanfiction #hangman x you

[cirilla-fiona-riannon]

Elbert Greetia Episode 0

Translations may not always capture the exact nuances or tone of the original text. Expect grammatical errors.

Pale lips, bloodless white cheeks, trembling limbs.

My first impression was that she didn’t look like a person suited for sin.

Elbert: “Al, do I have to go too?”

Alfons: “Yes, seeing how it’s such a lovely evening. Also, there might be something you’ll like at the target’s mansion.”

Elbert: “I see. Okay.”

Victor: “Tonight, let’s pledge our loyalty to our evil deeds again.”

The Crown, an organization directly under Queen Victoria, is composed solely of “cursed” individuals.

From espionage to assassination, we undertake shadowy jobs that the police or the military cannot handle.

I’m a member of that organization, but一

(I don’t really like going on missions.)

Using my ability to “revive the opponent’s saddest memories” and seeing the target suffer with it is like adding to my sins, making it harder to breathe every time.

(But as Alfons says, maybe I’ll find what I’m looking for.)

Something that can atone for my sins. Something worthy of what I’ve taken away.

(The most beautiful thing in this world.)

I gently close my eyes, feeling a dark, murky lump wriggling deep in my chest.

Victor: “By the way, William found a cute Robin in the city today.”

(A robin?)

Robins are not very rare here in the UK. In fact, people love them because they are friendly and familiar.

If he’s specifically saying he “found” it, then it’s likely not about a bird.

Alfons: “When you say Robin, are you referring to someone very lovely?”

Alfons: “Or are you referring to someone who brings water to sinners and gets burned by the flames of hell?”

William: “Well, maybe both.”

William: “According to Victor, she apparently defended a poor girl who had stolen jewelry on the roadside and paid for the stolen items in her place.”

Elbert: “That’s very kind of her.”

Alfons: “But she seems like the type to suffer losses.”

William: “You could also say she has her own sense of right and wrong.”

(To think she’d defend someone who committed a crime...)

(She must be strong and kind.)

Elbert: “If she’s that kind of person, it might be best for us not to get involved with her.”

William: “That might be true.”

With a narrowed gaze and a smile, William seemed to be expecting something contrary to that.

William: “Hm? Aren’t you the little Robin I met earlier today?”

Kate: “Huh? Eh? What?”

As it turned out, the woman referred to as “Robin” appeared before us.

(Is that her...?)

Amidst the deep darkness and the blood-red dance hall, she stood alone, bathed in moonlight and shining brightly.

(I don’t know why, but I can’t take my eyes off her.)

Pale lips, bloodless white cheeks, and trembling limbs.

(She doesn’t seem like the kind of person who would be fit for sin.)

A feeling similar to envy suddenly came to mind.

Liam: “Is she your acquaintance, Will? Does she know about us?”

William: “We just talked a bit in town, Liam. She doesn’t know about the Crown.”

Liam: “I see. Then we’re in trouble. What should we do?”

Harrison: “I apologize for scaring you, but this is just a prop for a stage play.”

Kate: “Y-You’re lying...”

Harrison: “Pretending to believe would’ve been for your own good.”

Harrison: “What do we do about this, Will?”

William: “Of course, we should take her to the palace’s grim reaper.”

Jude: “Tch. I told you to lock the door.”

Roger: “Haha! I didn’t think anyone would trespass. You’re quite the naughty girl, aren’t you, little lady?”

Ellis: “Why don’t you come over here? You can’t escape, anyway.”

The moment she heard the words “can’t escape,” she grimaced.

Her appearance, a mess of fear and confusion, resonated with a younger version of myself.

------------Flashback------------

Maid: “Kyaaah!! Someone! Someone help! Madam is!!!”

---------Flashback Ends---------

The fear and confusion that had overwhelmed me when I peeked through the gap in the door and heard the maid’s scream from my mother’s room resurfaced.

(Poor thing.)

It was awful and heartbreaking.

My mother’s death was undoubtedly my fault. That's why my fear back then was something I deserved to experience.

(But you're different.)

You had no connection to the scene unfolding before us.

(A kind person who even extends a helping hand to a sinner doesn't deserve to experience fear.)

(Why did you even end up in a place like this?)

William: "Let me invite you to tonight's dinner. What's your name, dear guest?"

Under the control of William's ability, she introduced herself as Kate.

I thought it was a sweet name.

As she was being taken to the castle, she had been staring anxiously at the sky the whole time.

Kate: "I'm sorry."

Elbert: "It's fine. Are you alright?"

I held her staggering shoulders, and she looked at me for the first time.

Kate: "I'm okay. Thank you."

Elbert: "Is that so?"

(Still, why am I captivated?)

Is it because I felt sorry for her?

Or is it because I heard that she is a strong and kind person from Will?

An inexplicable urge to gaze at her welled up from the depths of my heart.

(Or maybe...)

Because she's beautiful?

I felt like I heard a deep and heavy whisper from within my heart.

Then, as a result of negotiations between Victor and her, Kate decided to stay in the castle as a "fairy tale writer" for one month.

I asked Alfons if she was beautiful, but he simply denied it.

On sleepless nights, as always, I wander around the garden.

Gazing at the blooming white roses, I looked up at the castle and saw a light in a room that should have been empty until yesterday.

(Is she still awake?)

She probably couldn't sleep through the night either.

(One month, huh?)

(If, by any chance, I have the opportunity to accompany her on a mission, the only thing I can do is close her eyes so that she won't get hurt anymore.)

While I was thinking about such things, her eyes suddenly came back to my mind.

(But if she is what I am looking for...)

I would obtain her, even if I had to hurt this innocent girl.

Conflicting emotions of anxiety, fear, anticipation, and excitement surged and engulfed me.

Elbert: "Are you what I am looking for?"

Elbert: "Kate..."

No answer came back from the dimly lit window, and before I knew it, a freshly picked, pure white rose lay in the palm of my hand.

#ikemen villains #ikemen villain #elbert greetia #ikevil elbert #ikevil #ikevil translations #cybird

[bloodynereid]

Reapers & Ravens

<< prev | chapter iii | next >>

pairings: jordan li x oc

tw: swearing (like A LOT but come on it's gen v), seizures, mentions of death, drinking of alcohol, mentions of sex, iffy morals, bad parents

description: the story of a girl. a girl cursed by compound v to live a life without touch.

a/n: so this chapter is a little shorter that the rest cause i tried to stay as faithful to the ep as i could! hopefully u enjoy the addition of vic's dad and some more convos and interactions between jordan and vic. lmk if you wanted to be added to the taglist and my asks are open if you feel like chatting :) also one of my wonderful mutuals (the same one who created gemma) helped me write a few of their interactions so writing credits to them as well <3

The harsh white light that illuminated the stairwell cast strange shadows on Cate’s face as she convulsed. It had already been over 3 minutes and she wasn’t stopping, Andre and I were completely lost on what to do. We couldn’t just call an ambulance - we were in a restricted area of the school where a top secret Vought bunker was literally placed.

Then I remembered the incident with Luke’s blood, the way that his power seemed to have soaked into my veins when I absorbed the remaining energy in his cells. If I could control it, I could save Cate. Control over greed. Control over greed. Fuck okay I can do this.

Taking a deep breath, I looked over at Andre, watching as he scrambles to do anything and everything to get Cate out of her seizure. Goddammit. I start pulling off my gloves and stretch out my now naked fingers.

“Andre… I have an idea.” He looked up at me with pleading eyes but then he realized that my hands were uncovered.

“What- Vic, you know what don’t tell me, just do it.” I nodded and inched my hands closer and closer to Cate’s convulsing face.

“You need to be prepared to pull me away if I can’t stop myself.”

“Wha-” Before Andre could finish his exclamation my fingertips shakily laid on top of Cate’s forehead. As soon as I felt her energy start entering my body I wrenched my hand away and took a deep breath. I could feel everyone’s life force around me, even the ones behind the concrete door.

“Vic what the hell did you just do?” 

Ignoring Andre’s voice I focused on the foreign force that tingled in my brain. Unlike the cold fire that corresponded to Luke’s powers this sort of felt like spicy chocolate. Sweet but also imbued with something peppery.

I focused the power on my hands. I delicately placed them again on Cate’s face, this time I didn’t feel any of her life force seeping through. Only human skin. Oh wow so that’s what it felt like.

“Stop Cate. Relax.” Once the words left my mouth Cate stopped spasming and the spicy chocolate feeling left my brain, suddenly replaced by a rush of my power which instantly started to absorb her life force. I jerked my hands away and rubbed my wrists. I did it. I actually did it.

“Oh my god Vic, what the fuck?” I blinked up at Andre and pulled on my gloves, taking extra time to do up the clasp.

“I- I don’t know Andre. Something happened when Luke’s blood hit my body and I took a chance.”

Andre opened his mouth to respond, thankfully his eyes didn’t seem to hold anger, just a whole lot of confusion and something like… awe but then Cate let out a loud groan.

“Uh guys?” My eyes left Andre’s and looked down at the blonde, she had a confused but weak smile on her face and her eyes were all bloodshot.

“CATE! You’re okay, oh thank god.” Andre gingerly encased her in a hug and a fragile laugh was heard in the corridor.

“Aww thank you I wasn’t aware that I’d been raised to the status of god.” I said with a chuckle and Cate looked at me with a confused look on her face.

“What exactly did you do Vic?” Andre asked while we both helped Cate to her feet, I unrolled my sweater from where it laid on the floor and pulled it onto my shoulders. Carefully maneuvering around the guards, we stealthily (not really) walked up the staircase.

“So you know how I told you ages ago that I never once absorbed a supe?”

“Yeah… what does that have to do with this?”

“Well, a few days ago when he umm died, I was sort of able to siphon some of his power from the blood that hit me. I don’t have any idea how I did it but if I didn’t do anything Cate could have gotten really hurt so I needed to at least try.”

“You two are literally going to be the death of me. It’s like looking Reckless #1 and Reckless #2 over here.” Andre said with a roll of his eyes but a teasing lilt in his voice.

“Oh and you’re one to talk.” Cate adds meekly, a teasing tone evident in her statement. I laugh slightly and make her lean more of her weight against my side.

Once we got Cate to her dorm room, I left Cate and Andre to talk. They had this tension between them that I very much didn’t want to get involved in. Then a realization hit my brain like a freight train. The fucking interview! Shit I had promised Jordan.

I twirled around in place and started sprinting to the auditorium where we had the shoot earlier today. My heels clicked hard against the concrete and my enhanced stamina helped me stay at the same furiously fast pace until I reached the doors.

Slamming them open with as much force I could muster (with supe strength it ended up with the doors being knocked off their hinges slightly) and walking into the now darkened auditorium. The only things in sight were not camera equipment, a talk show set or even any other people. At the end of one of the rows, I heard whistling and saw one of the school’s janitors mopping the floor.

I let out a frustrated sigh through my teeth and rubbed a hand over my hair. Pulling on a couple of the blonde strands, I twirled around and made my way back out into the warm night.

“Fuck!” I moaned out, kicking a stone into the green grass surrounding the walkways. I needed to find Jordan. I needed to find them quickly.

I ran over to the junior dorms, knowing that Jordan’s dorm was only a few rooms away from Cate’s. Pounding on the steel door, I prepared myself for the inevitable backlash my decision was going to result in.

“Fuck off.” Jordan’s voice seemed almost distant because of how muffled the door made it.

“Jordan look I just wanted to say I’m sorry.” I heard some distant scuffling inside before the door was unlocked and pulled open. There stood Jordan, eyes rimmed with red and in pajamas. Still looking as stunning as ever.

“What?”

“I don’t really know how to explain this without fucking things up but uh Cate and Andre needed me.”

“Oh really? So you just decide to go against your promises for a quick fuck?”

“WHAT? No, no. Where the fuck did you hear that? I didn’t sleep with them.” I frantically tried to explain myself, stumbling over my words like there was no tomorrow.

“Yeah sure.” Jordan’s face was now covered in a mask of annoyance and indifference, a sarcastic smirk trying to cover the cracks of her vulnerability.

“Jordan… Cate had a seizure, Andre was busy doing something illegal again and dragged me with him. Cate tried to help but she pushed too much. I was trying to help her.”

“Oh. Shit. Is Cate okay?” Jordan’s face no longer looked angry instead pure worry seeped through their pores, they instantly shifted with a soft pop.

“Yeah uh Andre and her are in her room.” I chuckled slightly but Jordan just rolled his eyes.

“Sorry for assuming I just thought-”

“No you’re good, I would have done the same thing. Probably would have blown up more to be honest. I should be the one saying sorry.”

“Oh it’s fine, not like the trustees would do anything different.” Jordan answered in a self-deprecating tone.

“Did Marie at least say something?”

“Oh no she was playing her part like a perfect little puppet.”

“God I’m really fucking sorry, Jordan.”

“The system’s fucked what can I say? At least we have the memorial ball tomorrow, I can try to get some sponsorships and stuff there.”

“Fuck right the ball. My dad’s supposed to be coming to that.”

“Shit I’m hoping and praying that my parents don’t show up. Uh do you want to come in?” A smile immediately blossomed on my face at their suggestion.

“You wouldn’t mind?”

“Nah come on in. It could be like our first meeting of the shitty parents club.”

“Oh do you have stories cause I have plenty?” I aaked as I shut the door behind me and stood slightly awkwardly in the middle of the room.

“I’ll give you one better, I have stories and weed.” He said as they held out a bag of gummies.

“Fuck yeah!”

I, as silently as I could, carefully opened the door to my shared dorm. The sun had risen about an hour ago and it felt like I was living the literal definition of ‘walk of shame’ even if Jordan and I hadn’t actually done anything yesterday.

Somehow I had completely forgotten that Gemma was an early bird so the second I stepped through the heavy door, my roommate jumped up from her bed.

“Ah Vic where have you been? Did you sleep with someone? Ooo was it Andre? Tell me everything.” Gemma said as she joyfully jumped up and down around me, before I could even take notice of her barrage of questions I realized that her hair had changed. It no longer was her usual shade of red instead it hung down her shoulders in strawberry blonde ringlets.

“Your hair? Also wait- Andre? Why does everyone keep thinking I’m sleeping with Andre?”

“Oh right, I got bored last night but come on! Tell me what happened. And I don’t know you guys just have this vibe.”

“We do not! I think we’re going to need all morning for me to clarify the fact I’m very much not sleeping with Andre.”

“I don’t have any classes and I’m pretty sure you don’t either so stop making me wait.”

“Alright, alright.” I let out a laugh at her contagious joy and spent the next hour discussing every minute of last night’s adventures, even the illegal bits.

After our little catch up, I decided to get changed out of my day old clothes and finally get some softer gloves on my hands. When I had inevitably crashed on Jordan’s bed last night, I wasn’t able to change into my usual pair of sleep gloves. So after having leather on my hands for more than 24 hours I was more than glad to welcome the feeling of soft and pillowy cotton.

Once I had put on a whole new outfit and washed my face I felt like an actual person again. The soft sheets crumpled around my body as I readjusted my reading position. In front of my eyes stood the text of a psychology book on conspiracy theories. It was actually pretty interesting and so far removed from my usual school readings that the world around me just disappeared for a little while.

Unfortunately, my little moment of solitude was disturbed by our dorm room’s door flinging open and as I turned to look at who the intruder was I recognized her to be Emma. Emma who hadn’t even realized I was there so she just kind of threw herself onto Gemma’s bed. Since the divider to our room stopped me from being able to see what was going on I just decided to rely on my senses. Closing my eyes, I blindly shut the book and focused.

“Gemma, I- fuck I need you to shift into me.”

“Uh okay sure?” 

A second later I hear sounds of kissing and my mouth drops, oh OH shit. The sounds of moaning and whimpering seemed to start increasing in volume and I realized I probably should leave. Two sets of loud moans made me make up my mind instantly. Yup definitely leaving.

As silently as I could, I grabbed my books, iPad, headphones and phone before shoving them into my canvas bag. I also put an extra pair of gloves, purple this time, in case they were needed for whatever reason.

Tiptoeing my way over to the door, I risked a glance at the couple with a slight smile on my face. Gemma deserved the fucking world and hopefully Emma would be able to provide some of it. I twisted the knob of the door and just as I stepped through the door I turned back one last time.

“Wear protection!” I said with a teasing lilt in my voice and let the door slam close as a loud ‘fuck’ echoed through the hallway.

Group Chat with Cate, J, A.A. & Luke

Me: anyone free?

don’t have classes until the afternoon

i’m boredddd

J: can’t

got some stupid essay i need to do for a fucking extra branding seminar about lunchboxes

Me: lol what

why r u taking that?

J: fuck if i know

it’s mandatory supposedly

Cate: WHAT

no it’s not

who told u that?

also vic i’m free meet me @ the tables outside the caf

Me: k omw

J: ITS NOT MANDATORY?

fuck that little fuck louis

A.A.: really?

u trusted louis?

J: he’s my academic advisor u bitch

ofc i trusted him

Laughing, I locked my phone and tried to spot Cate at the tables. My eyes caught hers at one of the end tables and she waved with a smile on her face, urging me to join her.

“Hi. It’s good to see you’re doing better.” I said once I put my bag down on one of the benches and got a good look at the blonde. She looked absolutely radiant today, clad in a sage green blazer and dangling pearl earrings.

“Yeah, thanks for that. You quite literally saved my life.”

“Hey that’s what friends are for right?” I asked as I laid my gloved hand over hers. She smiled and tugged a flyaway strand of her hair away from her face.

“Of fucking course, now tell me all about what happened with Jordan last night.”

“How did you know?”

“I have my sources.” She says in a sing-song voice as a smirk paints her face. I huff out a laugh and shake my head fondly.

“Fine, keep your secrets but… you have to tell me everything that happened with Andre.”

“Deal.”

Cate and I talked for what seemed like hours (in the best way possible) and we ended up ordering lunch. A pasta dish that was probably one of the best things I had ever tasted.

“Vicky, I didn’t realize you had already made some friends.” The familiar voice made my spine seize up and goosebumps appear on my arms, and not the fun kind. Cate’s mouth had dropped open as I swiveled around to look directly at my dad’s hazel eyes.

“Hey dad.”

“Kiddo! Come on, give me a hug.” He had a wide smile on his face, he looked genuinely happy - not buzzed happy. That was probably one of the only reasons why I actually decided to hug him. After he left me out of a slightly too tight embrace, he looked towards Cate and smiled.

“Oh right dad, meet Cate Dunlap. Cate, meet my dad.”

“Uh hello Mr. Oaks or uh Frostbite, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” She said, politely offering her gloved hand.

“Nice to meet you as well Cate. These are beautiful gloves, similar powers to my daughter then?”

“Uh kind of, I can mind control people using my hands.” Dad’s eyes widened as he whistled appreciatively.

“Wow, now that’s a cool power. If you can excuse us, I need to pull my beautiful daughter away for a bit. We have a fitting.” Right, the memorial gala. Ugh. 

“Yeah sure. I’ll see you there.” Cate quickly encased me in a hug and then leaned close to my ear, “I forgot how hot your dad was.”

“Cate!” An outraged gasp left my mouth as she just laughed while she walked in the direction of her dorm.

“Well isn’t she a charmer?” He was watching her walk away with a smirk on his face causing my mouth to turn into a disgusted sneer.

“Dad, really? I told you I had a rule about my friends, plus you’re like decades older than her.”

“I know, sweetheart. Come on, I found the perfect dress to match my suit. After your little interview stunt you’re going to need all the help you can get to stay in the top 10.”

“Yeah dad, I get it.” 

I rubbed my temples as we made our way to one of the many cars that are in dad’s collection. This one was an Aston Martin DB5, the James Bond car. It was a wrap gift from one of Vought’s many rip off movies my dad starred in, he had gotten to play James Bond-type for 3 movies and somehow managed to still get roles.

My heels sunk into the plush of the red carpet, flashes of the many cameras seemed to permeate my eyes and kept me changing my poses. I was wearing a beautiful sleeveless dress that made me seem like I was floating. The folds of bluish gray mixed perfectly with the pearly white, even my gloves were designed specifically to complement this outfit.

Sometimes you had to give my dad some credit, he did have an eye for fashion. He stood next to me with an open white shirt and steely gray suit. Once I had done enough solo posing I skipped my way over to dad and gave him a one armed hug, painting on a cheerful smile for the cameras. I was careful not to let any exposed skin near his hand because that would be bad… not for me but for literally everyone else.

It was like the cameras exploded, so many flashes were now directed towards us that it was blinding. I endured it for another minute before thankfully dad dragged into the ball… where we were greeted by even more cameras. I adjusted the ribbon that dad insisted I wear and gave a little smirk to the cameras. Dad walked next to me until finally the cameras focused on Marie and the dean behind us. Now that was a weird pair.

“Good job sweetheart. You ready to mingle?”

“Are you?”

“Always.” He flashed me his politician smile and quickly grabbed two glasses of champagne before handing me one and moving towards a group of old white guys, the trustees probably.

I took a sip of champagne and looked around the room, spying quite a few familiar faces before I landed on Gemma’s, she was standing off to the side with a glass of water - staring out into the sea of people with a thoughtful look on her face.

I weaved my way through all the trustees and potential donors until I finally sidled up next to her and offered the glass of champagne in my hand.

“You look like you need this more than I do.” Gemma jumped slightly at the sound of my voice and turned to look at me.

“Shit you scared me. Ooo champagne thank you.” She passed me her water and then proceeded to down the entire flute in one go.

“Okay wow, what is going on?”

“Nothing. You look incredible by the way.”

“You do too,” I looked down at her impeccable suit, it had bubbled sleeves and a sheer patterned shirt under the white blazer, “but there is clearly something up. Come on, you know I’ll probably just ridicule you slightly and not actually judge you for it.”

“So you know how I slept with Emma…”

“Yes? I was there for like the first bit of it.” She cringed back for a second and took back her glass of water, taking a sip before she continued with her admission.

“I don’t think I can actually have a serious relationship with her.” Oh okay wow, heavy topics already and I had only had a sip of champagne.

“Okay do you mind if I ask why? You know I support you in anything you might choose.”

“Well… she’s really hot and sweet and so goddamn nice but I can only see us that way in the short term. I was able to help with the whole video thing and I’m actively trying to help her realize how fucking incredible she is but I don’t think we would be good together.”

“Gem, for the short time that I’ve known you, you are quite literally the most selfless person ever. That’s really fucking rare for people like us so if you feel like this is something that is going to help you then I think you need to choose it. Keep being friends with Emma and have fun but do what you need to do.”

“Yeah, I just don’t feel like I’m at a point in my life where I can be a serious girlfriend. I literally just made it to university and everything is already pretty fucking insane. We talked about it a lot... afterwards. Emma knew that I was happy to help her get through this and to learn to love herself - a bit literally I guess - but we both decided that she needed an actual partner and not a shapeshifting fuckbuddy therapist. She needs someone that is going to be there for her in ways I can’t. I just… I feel like I change too much. ”

“Woah hey, you’re perfect how you are but honestly I agree with you, getting into a serious relationship right now might actually mess up everything else so I’m glad that you actually know what is good for you. I’m so fucking proud of you Gem, and it’s good you talked about this with Emma so now you’re both on the same page and weird shit won’t go down.”

“Aww stop it. We’re going to make each other cry and our makeup will get all kinds of fucked up.” I laughed wetly and pulled her into a hug, gingerly maneuvering so none of my very exposed skin was touching hers. The single problem that this dress had was that I could literally kill anyone instantly.

“VICKY! Darling get over here, look who I found.” Gemma and I both turned to look in the direction of the voice that just shouted my name. My dad was standing next to Andre and his dad and was frantically waving me over.

“Your dad?”

“My dad. I’ll talk to you later okay?”

“Yeah thanks for checking up on me. I think I really needed that.”

“Anytime.” I smiled at her and then started making my way over to the little group, dropping off the champagne flute on a passing waiter’s tray.

“Hey dad, Mr. Anderson. Good to see you again.”

“You too Victoria. You look absolutely beautiful tonight, as always. Doesn’t she Andre?”

“Hmm yeah Vic, you look incredible. The color really looks good on you.”

“You have to thank dad for that one, he picked out the entire thing.”

“Aww Vicky you give too much credit to your old man, I have way too many designer friends that were happy to finally design something for you.”

“Right, Adrian - you and I have some catching up to do. Let’s leave the bright young heroes of tomorrow to mingle.”

“Yes, let’s see if they’re serving any of that top shelf whisky.” I heard their chuckles as the pair walked off towards the bar and I turned to Andre.

“So… you and Cate huh?”

“Fuck off.” He answered with a laugh clearly slipping into his voice as we started making rounds around the groups of trustees. Better to be a united front against these people.

I grabbed two glasses of champagne and made my way out of the main reception. There were too many people and everyone’s clothes kept brushing against my naked arms. All I wanted to do was grab someone’s exposed hand and take away every inch of their life force just to feel a little less staticky. So I thought that the next best thing was to absorb any and all of the plant life outside the building.

Sitting down on the stone steps I pulled off one of my gloves and eased my fingertips into the soil. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath and focused. The little pulses of the underground root systems started to sing against my power, each cell produced enough energy that after a few minutes the static that filled my mind faded away. I dusted off my hand and pulled my glove back on and was about to head back into the hall when I heard some leaves rustling.

“Uh, is anyone out there?”

“You know if this was a horror movie you would definitely be dead right now.” Jordan’s unmistakable voice rang out into the night making let out a laugh.

“Aww don’t kill me Jordan, I want to make it to season 2.” Jordan walked out from behind one of the bushes and ran a hand through their hair. It made her look so fucking good that it should be a criminal offence.

“Of course you like Scream. What are you doing out here?” They asked as they took a seat next to me and grabbed one of the champagne glasses, shifting as their mouth made contact with the rim of the glass.

“Killing some plants and trying to get away from all the people. Why are you out here?” I took a sip from my own glass and leaned back so my elbows made contact with the cold concrete floor.

“Trying to get away from my parents. They’re just so fucking frustrating, like I know they’re trying but I’m not just their son. Fuck you really don’t want to hear this.” Just as they were about to get up, I extended my hand and grabbed her forearm.

“Hey look, I do want to hear about it. You don’t need to pretend everything is perfect all the fucking time cause it’s not.”

“I- yeah thanks. I just don’t want to be too much and we literally just met.”

“Hey! We got high and have gone through more trauma than most people have in their lifetimes. I think we’re bonded for life now.” He lets out a chuckle and traces a hand over my gloves. A giddy little smile appears on my face.

“Yeah I guess we are.” His eyes level up with mine and something softens in them, they are about to open their mouth again when I hear a loud shout from inside.

“Vicky!” Fucking hell not again.

“Seems like someone is calling you.”

“Yeah my dad is having fun showcasing me like a prize trophy to all the trustees. We’ll talk later?”

“Definitely.” They switch with a pop and extends their hand. My leather gloves stop the contact from feeling too intimate but it still felt like sparks were extending all over my body.

“Vicky!”

“Fuck, see you in a bit.” I blow them a kiss as I dash inside searching the crowd for my dad, once he sees me he points at the people next to him with a smile and mouths: ‘trustees’. Great, just perfect.

I leaned my head against the cold bar top, the dean’s speech had grated my already raw nerves and dad had almost started giving me an entire lecture on why I should have been up there with Marie. I was happy for her truly, but this whole situation was fucked.

“Oh wow you two look rough.” Cate’s voice made me look up from my position on the bar to see that Jordan had silently joined my side and was downing a glass of champagne. 

“I hate this.”

“What happened to you?”

“Parents.”

“Dad.” I said at the same time as Jordan and we sent each other empathetic looks.

“Say no more.” Cate took off her glove in a swift move and pressed her fingers to the bartender’s hand. “Vodka. The expensive shit you save for the big swinging dicks. Oh and three glasses.”

I got up from my position and smiled gratefully, grabbing the extra glass I followed the duo over to one of the more secluded sections of the room. We spent the next few minutes, while everyone pretended to give a single fuck about Brink, steadily downing multiple shots of vodka and talking about campus gossip and the latest shitty show Vought had put out.

“Hey Moreau.” I turned to look in the direction that Jordan had directed her spiteful tone at, there stood Marie, looking stunning in that red dress. As their argument progressed I silently poured myself another shot (if you could even consider it a shot) of vodka.

“I didn’t know I had powers until my first period… I couldn’t control the blood so it sliced right through my mom’s body. My dad came, same deal.” My heart dropped, holy shit - and I thought my situation was bad.

“Fucking hell.” I said I took a sip of my glass.

“Yeah so if you can excuse me, I have just spent the entire night being dragged around like a fucking showpony.” 

“Hey.” Cate pulls up one of the seats to the table and pats the cotton cushion.

“My family and I were on a camping trip, my little brother kept kicking at my shins. I didn’t know about my power so I grabbed him by the arm and told him to go away and never come back. He did just that - they sent out search parties and everything but… we never found him. My mom never touched me again. Neither did my dad.” I swallow dryly and move a drop of condensation along the rim of my glass. Why the hell would Vought do this to us? Greed probably. It’s always about greed and power.

“I had no idea. I’m so sorry.” Marie stuttered out and I cleared my throat.

“It’s not your fault. Your parents gave you a dangerous drug as a baby to make a buck off you-”

“No, no they weren’t like that.”

“Yes they were, they did this. You didn't, so don't you spend a second crying over them.”

“I- uh. I know the official story is that my mom died giving birth to me and that I got my powers much later but umm that didn’t exactly happen. I don’t remember it much because supposedly I was just a few days old but she touched my hand while singing me to sleep one night. My dad puts on a show for everyone most of the time. He expects perfection because that’s the only way he can cope with the literal murderer of his wife living under his roof.” 

I felt a tear slip from my eyes and wiped it away quickly as the entire group just looked at with guilt in their eyes. 

“So yeah there’s my little sob story. I still feel responsible even if dad gave me these godforsaken powers, which fucking sucks.” I laughed wetly and took a swig of vodka, letting the burning sensation cloud my thoughts.

“Vic, holy shit. I’m so fucking sorry.” Cate rubbed my shoulder and I smiled at the feeling of warmth that radiated from her gloves against my skin.

“You know… I killed my grandpa with my powers.” I turned to look at Jordan who was staring at me with a neutral expression on their face.

“No you didn’t.” Cate responded.

“Yeah I know… I was just feeling left out.” I let out a loud snort and covered my face with my glove as I continued to giggle. Jordan smirked at me and nudged their pinky against mine.

“Hey… umm guys - I fucked up.” Andre said as came up to the table, panic clearly showing in his eyes.

“Andre…” I started, a clearly annoyed tone seeping into my voice.

“What did you do?”

“It’s about her roommate.”

“Emma?”

“Who the fuck is Emma?”

“Andre…” I repeated as I realized what he had done. Oh no.

“I think she’s stuck.”

“You didn’t.”

“Where? Where is she stuck?”

“You know where.”

“Andre. You promised.” 

“Andre, you fucking idiot.” I leaned back in my chair as I uttered the words and closed my eyes tightly. This nightmare seemed to be never-ending.

links to the outfits cause i was bored: vic's dress but greyer, vic's dad's suit, gemma's suit

lmk ur thoughts <3

taglist: @neapolitantoebeans @scorchedfangirl @losers-club6 @vvyuqi @bubblebuttwade @fix5idiots @ponypickle @nellyboosworld

#gen v #gen v fanfic #gen v amazon #gen v spoilers #andre anderson #jordan li #marie moreau #luke riordan #golden boy #the boys #the boys fanfic #the boys tv #oc fic #gen v tv #victoria oaks #maria writes #the boys series #the boys amazon #cate dunlap #emma meyer

[lovelyfirebouquet]

Okay, so. I had this really cute idea that player/MC/(Y/N) is playing GoGM and Jack gets jealous. After all, why play a game about a ghost when his sunshine has a perfect loving ghost right here? Spicy implications but nothing directly explicit. Short (~1030 words) because I’m just getting back into writing and stretching the creative muscles. Criticism and feedback are welcome!

The Groom of Gallagher Mansion and Something’s Wrong with Sunny Day Jack are both 18+ games, minors DNI! Thank you!

--- Leg bouncing excitedly, I adjust my headphones over my ears and grin at the familiar music. Both spooky and jovial, I hum along as I admire the tattered blue wallpaper on the game’s title screen, decorated with roses. The momentary blackness as I begin a new game seems far too long. Taking a gulp from the water bottle Jack had so kindly left on my desk earlier, I let out a tiny, excited cheer and began clicking through dialogue.   Having just recently added voice acting with the new update, I’ve been eager to play all week. Listening along, one line causes me to chuckle.  ‘G-g-g-ghost clown?! No!’ ‘Poor Taylor would be screwed knowing me, poor guy.’  I think to myself, lifting one side of my headphones. The sound of splashing and happy humming from the kitchen told me Jack was still doing dishes, so I fixed the device back on my ear and smiled. ‘Thankfully, my ghost clown isn’t too scary.’  Moving through the familiar dialogue, my character begins their performance and I can’t help but follow suit, dramatically laying the back of my hand to my forehead. “Alas, my poor aching heart!” I grin, leaning back with a theatrical flourish. Before I can give my next line, I hear Jack’s heavy footsteps approach. “Sunshine?” He leans against the doorway, broad shoulders on display in his normal white shirt, his jacket presumably left somewhere in the kitchen. “What are you doing?” “Oh, well,” I pause a moment, a tad embarrassed, “I’m playing a game, actually. Did I disturb you?” “No, of course not.” He flashes his signature grin, slipping his gloves back on as he comes to stand beside my chair, glancing down at the screen curiously. “What kind of game?” “Well..” I’ve explained a fair bit of modern technology to Jack in the months we’ve known each other but disclosing the idea of a romance game still seemed somewhat embarrassing. “It’s a… romantic visual novel, which is just as it says. It kind of acts as a choose your own adventure book, with added sounds and visuals.” He nods along and listens intently, though he raises a brow at the mention of romance. “So, what’s this game about then?” At that I grin, nerd brain taking over as I click idly. “It’s about you and your college friend, Taylor, summoning a ghost in a spooky cursed manor. You make choices to see who you end up with, but I always choose Elias.” Coming to the beginning of Elias’ dialogue, I unplug my headphones and raise the volume, smiling as the familiar line echoes from the speakers. “Alack, alack, what blood is this, which stains the stony entrance of this sepulcher?” I mouth along with the words and click through, watching Elias’ ghostly sprite fade into view. As I glance back at Jack he wears an odd expression, furrowed brows and pursed lips forming a slight pout as he stares at the screen. “Jack? What’s wrong?” I return the game’s audio to its normal level and spin my chair to look at him fully. He studies me a moment, warm brown eyes reflecting unknown emotions. Before I have time to process, he grabs my hand and presses a warm kiss to my knuckles. Immediately my face turns a bright shade of red, heat emanating from my ears as I stutter. “I- you… Why?” Smiling lovingly, he lowers my hand and brings his gloved one to my cheek, brushing his thumb against it. He brings his face closer, pressing his forehead against mine. “Why play a game when I’m right here, Sunshine? Fantasies can be fun, but too much can be bad for you.” His hot breath fans across my face, blue hair tickling my cheek. His body is so warm looming over me. “Maybe you should take a break?~” He hums, tilting my chin upward slowly, taking a single breath to examine my flustered state before pressing his lips to mine. All at once soft and sweet and intoxicating, I find myself leaning into him, reaching upward to hold his hand on my cheek and wrap my arm around his neck. Locked together like this, we kiss until my lungs begin to burn, aching for breath. I pull back first, taking a great gasping breath as I recover. Looking up at him, his cheeks are dusted a light red and his breathing is more ragged than before. My face burns like hot coals as he looks at me, purest love mixed with building desire reflected in his eyes. “(Y/N)?” His tone is sweet, and yet it sends a shiver down my spine. “Yes?” He grasps my forearm gently, pulling me from my seat and carefully guiding me to the bed. My heartbeat thumps like distant thunder as he nudges me, motioning to lay upright against the pillows. Within a moment he straddles me, his arms acting as a heavily muscled cage. Leaning down to my neck, he plants a knowing kiss, murmuring into my skin. “I love you.” I gasp at the sensation, craning my neck unconsciously. “I love you, Jack.” With those words he melts into my arms, peppering me with kisses and divine praises. Our bedroom is filled with laughter as I am enveloped in a warm embrace, arms and legs cocooned under his hold. A sunny grin takes over his features as I weakly wiggle, seemingly proud of his capture. “Good.” He chuckles, leaning down to peck my cheek. Rubbing my arm lovingly, I notice his expression shift subtly as he glances back to the computer, still softly looping the game’s background music. “You know… I’d love to show you just how I feel,” he sighs, running his hands over my sides and gently teasing my inner thigh, “but if you’re busy…” I groan, looking back toward my desk and the sprite of Elias waiting patiently on the screen. Looking back at Jack, acknowledging my own arousal, I make up my mind. “I guess it can wait a liiiiiittle longer.” Jack got off the bed, quickly powering down the computer and fixing the desk chair before returning to his perfect, waiting sunshine. He’d make sure to delete that game later.

#minors do not interact #minors dni #Something's Wrong With Sunny Day Jack #The Groom Of Gallagher Mansion #Snaccpop #SDJ #GoGM #sunny day jack #oneshot #original writing #please be kind I am nervous #I don't write often anymore

[musings-of-a-rose]

Pairing: Rhett Abbott x f!reader

Word Count: 900+

Rating: Mature - 18+ ONLY!

Warnings: Just like ao3, “creator chooses not to use warnings.” If you click Keep Reading, that means you agree that you’re the age to handle mature themes. Also by clicking Keep Reading, you understand warnings may not be complete in order to avoid spoilers for the story. 

Notes: I don’t know, I saw a gif of Rhett being pushed onto the kitchen table and punched by his brother and I thought of this instead. Thanks to @mermaidxatxheart for listening to me ramble about this and for giving it shape! 

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**Reader is not described

Main Masterlist

Rhett Abbott Masterlist

“I don’t see what the big deal is, doll.” Rhett opens the front door and I storm in behind him, the gentle closing of it setting me off even more.

“Don’t see the big deal? That slut was all over you and you said nothing.”

Rhett chuckles, a small smile hitching up the corner of his mouth. “She was just bein’ nice.”

I scoff, throwing my small purse onto the couch as I follow him into the kitchen. “Being nice? No one wears that low cut of a shirt and that short of a skirt and is just nice.”

Rhett opens the fridge, taking out a beer and popping it open before taking a long swig. “Was I just supposed to say I had a girlfriend?”

I cross my arms. “Oh, so you do remember I exist.”

“Why are you getting all weird about this? She just said hello-”

“Rhett, I know girls. She was touching your arm, batting her whore lashes, and all but twirling her damn hair. If I hadn’t have walked up, she would’ve shoved her hand in your pants.”

“You’re over reacting.”

“Oh really? How would you feel if it were me?”

His eyes darken slightly. “A girl shoving her hand down your pants?”

“Rhett Abbott, stop trying to change the subject! I can’t believe you didn’t mention me!”

“I didn’t think I needed to tell everyone I have a girlfriend right after they say hello!”

“You do if they dress like a whore!”

“You need to calm down!”

I can’t take it anymore. Stomping over, I push him and he barely moves, setting his beer down on the counter. “Are you pushing me?”

“Maybe I am!”

He takes a couple steps away from the counter, but I don’t back down. I try to push him again but his large hands wrap around my arms. I thrash, throwing my weight at him as he pulls me to him, spinning us around as Rhett bumps into the kitchen table. He loosens his grip momentarily and I shove all my weight at him, hands pushing against his chest and he falls back onto the table, his long, jean clad legs flailing up. Before he can stand, I jump on him, legs straddling his hips, my pulse racing, blood rushing between my legs. Rhett’s hands squeeze my hips as I fumble with the ridiculous buckle he has on, huffing audibly when it just won’t open. His hands try to help but I swat them away, finally opening the belt and unzipping his pants, pulling out his already hard cock. I lick my hand and jerk him a few times before pushing my panties aside, grateful for the dress I wore as I drop myself onto him, both of us audibly groaning as he pushes at the back of me. 

His fingers tighten on my hips and I grab his wrists, pushing them into the table on either side of his head. His eyes are wide, darkened with lust as the anger in them starts to dissipate with each move of my hips over his, a small moan escaping him. He tries to lift his head so I drop his hand and tangle my fingers into his hair, gripping him tight and pinning him down to the table as I continue to fuck him. His hand comes up and encircles my forearm, not trying to push me off him, but connecting with my skin as I take him, my orgasm quickly rising. Our breaths fill the silence, ragged and panting as the table scrapes slightly on the floor. And then the warmth rising in me pops, spreading out to the end of my limbs, my head thrown back as I cry out, hips sputtering, only vaguely aware of the pants coming out of the man under me. I look down and meet his bright blue eyes and I lean forward, gripping his hair tighter, my opposite hand moving to gently grip his throat, his nails digging into my wrist as I speak in his ear. 

“Come for me, baby.”

He grunts, mouth hanging open as little pants escape him, his seed dripping from me. We stay like that for a moment, both of us heaving and trying to catch our breaths. My hand is still wrapped around his throat, my other hand tangled in his hair as I stare down at his face, his beautiful fucked out face.

“You’re mine, Rhett Abbott. And don’t you forget it.”

—----

General Taglist:

@frankie-catfish-morales @chaoticgeminate @janebby @astoryisaloveaffair @balekanemohafe @greeneyedblondie44 @hoeforthefictional @marvelousmermaid @hauntedmama @giuliarogers-blog @icanbeyourjedi @wretchedmo @sunnshineeexoxo @livingmydreams13 @adventures-of-a-noodle @sara-alonso @theewokingdead @punkerthanpascal @giggly-otter @f0rever15elf @phandoz @dirtytissuebox @gallowsjoker @lovesbiggerthanpride @sarahmilesbendrix @booksarekindaneat @mrsudontknowme @swol-bear @charlispersonallyhell @xoxabs88xox @amneris21 @gooddaykate @alindeluce @avengers-fixation @paintballkid711 @harriedandharassed   @ladykatakuri @marrianena  @practicalghost @Withakindheartx @batdarkladyvampir @justanotherkpopstanlol   @mermaidxatxheart @alexxavicry @ichigodjarin @justreblogginfics @sullyosully @kmc1989

#rhett abbott #rhett abbott x reader #rhett abbott outer range #rhett abbott fic #rhett abbott smut #outer range fic #outer range #rhett abbott x you #rhett abbott x f!reader #lewis pullman #lewis pullman character #lewis pullman fanfiction

[paddockbunny]

One

Summary: Aria Armund is hired by Alpine as an "image guardian" for a reluctant Pierre Gasly - AKA she is hired to be his "babysitter". What happens as the season progresses and both of them have their buttons pressed by the other? And what happens when one of them suggests making a rather interesting bet? Rating: 18+. Pairing : Pierre Gasly x Aria Armund (OC) Word Count : 4,418 Trigger Warnings : 18+, NSFW, misogynistic Pierre, language, mention of sex & blowjobs, descriptions of women's bodies etc. 💞Authors Note : This is going to be written from a first person narrative and will switch from Aria's POV and Pierre's POV. No idea how long this will be but I'm considering posting every race day (not sure yet due to work commitments, as usual). OH, and if you want to be added to a tag list then please comment on the newest chapter's before I make a dedicated page for it!!

Pierre

I let out a long, laboured sigh as I slide into the car. I really didn’t want to be doing this. I would much rather have been still in bed with Jessica - or was it Jenna or maybe Jennie, fuck maybe it was Julie? It began with a J in any case. And anyway, who fucking cares?! All that mattered was I had to peel myself away from her this morning to get to the factory on time for this dumb as fuck meeting. A groan escaped me as I suddenly remembered how fucking phenomenal Jessica (Jenna, Jennie or Julie) was at giving head and how I would much rather be getting sucked off right now rather than go to this boring meeting where some big wigs will talk AT me not TO me for a few hours and waste my day.

Ben opens the door on the other side of the car and gets in. He slides into the back next to me and I can’t help but glance over at him as as he checks his watch and tuts about the fact we’re going to be late. I let him stew instead of answering him. There’s no point. Last year I realised pretty quickly he was one of those types of guys. The ones that were so regimented and anal about doing things right and on time that even a minute behind schedule and he would be having an internal meltdown. I just let him do what he wants without input from me. So I pull my phone from my jeans pocket and smirk to myself when I see a DM from a Jocelyn Silva pop up - JOCELYN! Her name was Jocelyn! - so I click on it and it’s a photo. She’s lying in the bed I had just left her in throwing the camera some “come hither eyes” with a tiny little pout dancing across her full (filler injected) lips. But I only fleetingly glance at her face, it’s lower that I pay more attention too and the fact the bedsheet barely covered her exquisite boobs and the deep sun kissed glow from her tanned skin. I’m sure she said she was a model or trying to be a model and really, it wasn’t a stretch to imagine her in a bikini or lingerie in front of a camera. I swallow instinctively upon remembering what she tasted like last night before actually reading the text that went along with her provocative pic.

Jocelyn_S_Silva: 💋 last night was fun Papi, let’s do it again sometime?xxx

Was it too soon to ask if she would be down for tonight? That picture she sent was enough to give me blue balls for the rest of the day. I clear my throat so I don’t laugh aloud at how ridiculous I sounded. No pussy was that good to go chasing after so quickly. So I sent a stock response back;

PierreGasly: until we do…give me something to remember you by?🍑

And click off my phone to stare out of the window hoping I could stay in control of the blood rushing down toward my dick. It was raining (again) in England. The country looked so dull and grey in comparison to some of the other places we visited with the travelling circus that was F1 but they wanted me here, in Enstone for a meeting ahead of flying out for testing next week. Ben’s ear had already been significantly chewed off about that. I was supposed to be at the PSG match tonight, had a date lined up and everything - Aletta Dekker, sister of Lars Dekker the Dutch tennis player. We’d gone out a few times, fucked a lot, but I actually got on well with her. We could chat without feeling the need for it to go anywhere. It was just some fun with no strings attached. I didn’t have the balls to let her down over the phone so chickened out and text her saying I needed a rain check. The irony now as the rain hammered down on the car as we drove down a monotonous English motorway was not lost on me.

It took close to two hours to get to the factory. I never stayed near it simply because there was fucking nothing there so we’d come up from London to the factory and go back when the day was over. It wasn’t like all those years at AT where you could at least be in the beautiful Italian countryside and take in the stunning landscapes out the window, not fields and copious amounts of cows and sheep. When we finally pulled in front of the building where all the offices and important rooms with important people in them were, Ben finally asked if I knew what this was all about. Seriously, he didn’t even question this random meeting until the moment he stepped out of the car and I couldn’t help but shake my head at him. I liked Ben, he had become a good friend over the course of last year. It’s hard not to grow close to someone you see pretty much every day and does everything with you.

“No idea.” I told him as he rounded the back of the car as I shut the car door. “Hope I’m getting a raise for dealing with all that shit last year though.” Ben laughed at my words, which weren’t intended as a joke but must have sounded like one. As two of the guys from Alpine came out from the building to greet us, apologise for the bad weather and issue us inside my phone buzzed in my pocket and I wondered if that was the photo I had asked that Jocelyn girl for earlier. Took her time didn’t she? I made sure I didn’t scoff and tried to stay professional as we walked through the building while the guys I had met a million times before talked about the weather and asked me if it was better in Paris - clearly not clocking the tan I was sporting to realise I had certainly not spent my winter break in Paris.

“We’re just in here, Pierre.” The shorter, more rotund one of the two opened the door and held it open for me. I’d been in here before. It was where I had that big meeting with the big bosses after the incident in Singapore but the less said about that the better. I recognised everyone in the room. Otmar and the like were all sitting around the oval table and got up immediately to welcome me. But my eyes were firmly trained on the mass of long brown curls and feminine shoulders that were still sat at the table facing away from me. This was a new addition. There hadn’t usually been a woman at these meetings before. I glance around and confirmed no one had been fired and I hadn’t found out. So maybe she was just a new PR girl or one of the girls that worked in the offices at the factory. Otmar suggested I take a seat and so I did. The mystery girls head turned slightly, enough that I could make out some of her features. Cute straight nose, naturally full lips and high as hell cheekbones. She had to have only been around 23 or 24 perhaps? But maybe I was wrong and she only just looked younger - I wasn’t the best at women’s ages and my I knew better than to presume I knew anything about the feminine being anyway - anyway, as Otmar started speaking I would be sure to find out exactly who this new addition was.

“As you know, at the end of last season I told you I would be discussing things with some of our bosses and whatnots at the end of year review we have. The big debrief meeting where all the heads of department get together and talk about the good things and the not so good things that happened and how we could look to improve in the future. Y’know, like our race debriefs at the end of a race day….” Yeah Otmar, I know, I’m not fucking stupid get to to point. I pull my leg up and rest my ankle upon my opposite knee while I sit back in the chair and nod in the right places. “Well, one of the things that kept coming up was the tension between yourself and Esteban and the incidents that arose last year.” He means him running me off the track at two separate races, trying to break test me anytime I was behind him, me bashing him in front of the cameras any chance I got but it was probably, the public near fight caught by cameras in Singapore when I tried to get my own back by flirting with his girlfriend that was what he was really referring too.

“Pierre with your results last year there’s no doubt of your future within the team but the negative attention the pair of you have garnered has raised a lot of concern.” “Otmar I…” I was going to tell him it takes two to tango and if this conversation was happening with me it better be happening with Ocon too. He was as much to blame for last year as I was. But a hand made me pause while he continued. “However, after some deliberation on how to resolve the conflict and how we can possibly move in a more positive direction for all of us involved. We have decided to bring in an image guardian.” I look at him like he’s grown another head. What the fuck was an image guardian? And that was when I saw his hand flick over toward the girl that had momentarily occupied my mind before Otmar started talking.

This time, when I looked over at her, she was looking straight back at me with quite possibly a pair of the most striking blue eyes I had ever seen before. A soft, sincere smile spread across her lips as her hand rose from her lap in a “that’s me” gesture. Fuck, I couldn’t help but imaging those eyes staring up at me while she had her lips wrapped around my cock. Which involuntarily twitched in my jeans while I had to blink a few times to make sure I wasn’t daydreaming. The words “image guardian” were still ringing in my ears so I most certainly in reality and not a twisted dreamland. “Sorry, what exactly is an image guardian?” I had truthfully never heard of the term and was one hundred percent certain they were making this up. “Well, we felt that the added pressure that the press and marketing teams had to face last year was rather, unfair to them. Their jobs turned into looking after or, perhaps that’s not the right words, making sure the both of you were looked after which meant some of those PR people weren’t as focused on their jobs as maybe they should have been.” I knew he was indirectly referring to Claudia without actually wanting to say her name but the less said about her the better. “So we created the role of an image guardian specifically to make sure your own PR game is onboard with ours. Someone who can liaise from your side with regards to meeting the needs of the team.”

Things took a minute to click in. He was bullshitting. This was a totally made up job so they could make someone my fucking nanny. “A babysitter?” I exclaimed loudly, my anger clearly evident in my voice and body language mimicking it. My foot fell back to the floor and I leaned in. “I don’t need a fucking babysitter.” I glance back over toward this girl whose name I didn’t even know (but who moments ago I had envisioned fucking) that was now labelled as my fucking au pair. “Pierre, it’s image guardian and we feel that you do.” Otmars voice changed tone. He was now not as breezy has he had been. He turned direct and much more commanding. “This is bullshit.” “Esteban has also been given an image guardian who will consult regularly with Miss Armund to ensure a more harmonious season this year. I can’t stress enough how this needs to work, Pierre. You know what can happen if it doesn’t.” I fucking knew. I had seen how people like Ricciardo and Mick Schumacher had been treated. Fuck! How I myself had been treated a few years ago at Red Bull. But a minder? Really? “And what is it she’ll do?” “I think Miss Armund is best to talk to you about that.”

“Hi…” She was nervous. She took a pause after simply saying hello. I was probably glaring at her like I wanted to set her on fire which might not have helped, but rage ran through my veins like boiling hot lava. “Firstly, I just want to introduce myself. I’m Aria Armund. I was born and raised in France till I was 10 and then moved here to England so if you want to talk to me in French you can, I’m bilingual.” There was a pause when she looked at me and I could tell she was waiting for me to say something polite (probably in French) but absolutely nothing came to mind that I wanted to say to her. She took a little breath in and it was usually while I was giving girls the come on when they got this nervous around me. I rolled my eyes and pressed my tongue to the roof of my mouth as the pause seemed to get longer. I observed her straightening up and let out a quick exhale. She seemed to be gathering herself and I clocked her little touch of the bracelet on her wrist as if it was somehow giving her the strength to keep going.

“So basically, what I’m here to do is to look after you. You’re not particularly incorrect in thinking I’m a “babysitter” as you called it. My sole purpose is to keep you out of trouble. To minimise any issues you may have with your team mate and prevent them from leaking into the media. I’ll also help make sure your image doesn’t suffer from all of your liaisons with various….friends, and you don’t end up on the gossip pages as you have done in previous years. I’ll make sure your reputation and that of Alpine isn’t damaged in any way, shape or form.” Where did her sudden directness come from? Her nerves seemed to evaporate immediately. It was confusing it happened at such breakneck speed. But how she managed to take control of herself and take charge was nothing shorter than a major turn on. She could take control of me anytime she wanted. “Ok?” She smiled and it was now on me.

I had nothing to say or at least nothing came to mind as those swimming pool blue eyes stared into mines like they were trying to read my mind. As she turned her head away and Otmar went to speak suddenly a question did pop into my head. “Who does Ocon have?” I asked the question in the direction of her turned head. When she looked away some of her glossy curled locks fell across her shoulder and drew my attention directly to her ample chest. She was a woman - very much a woman - and I had a horrible feeling that Alpine might have been trying to set me up for failure. What with everything that happened with Claudia. “Excuse me?” Otmar seemed confused. “Who is looking after Ocon? You said he had a babysitter too.” In those minutes my question went unanswered, I hoped it would click on someone’s brain about why I was asking and I wouldn’t actually have to fucking say it. “Uh….” Otmar sat back in his chair and narrowed his eyes at me in a fashion that told me he twigged and he realised the intonation behind my questioning. He didn’t expect me to react like this, did he? During the increasingly awkward pause I fully believed that he was imposing this girl on me as a way to trip me up so he could get rid of me at the end of the year. If Esteban got a guy babbysitter then there was my answer. He would be getting off with his dickhead behaviour last year. “Mr Ocon’s guardian is Kyle Gilby.” Aria spoke up and I let out a quick exhale of air. Why the fuck did this not surprise me? I knew it. I could sense it from the way Otmar was staring at me. Ocon gets someone he can talk to, level with and I get stuck with her? Typical. “Is there a problem Mr Gasly?” Fuck her calling me Mr Gasly. Girls only usually called me that in the bedroom, not a boardroom.

I pretend there isn’t but there is. The whole thing is totally fucked but what can I do? I don’t want thrown out my seat so I have to play ball. And if that means I have to have a babysitter then fine, I’ll do it. This whole thing was feeling like a massive, risky, fucked up game of temptation? I made an audible scoff because I know where this is going and I know she won’t last long meaning they’ll probably get their way. I can’t help the fact I was born a flirt and women always fell for it. I’d give it two or three months before they’ll be having conduct meetings with me after she breaks her fraternisation contract clause after firing her for sleeping with the person she’s there to manage. It’s happened before and it will happen again. After all, it’s their own fault for hiring someone that would look more at home in Playboy or Sports Illustrated than working in an F1 team. They seriously couldn’t have hired someone less, tempting? They couldn’t have given her to Ocon and at least pretend they weren’t setting me up for failure?

Thankfully the meeting was over rather quickly. There were orders to go with her somewhere so she could do something or other and go over stuff but by that point I was zoned out. I cancelled my plans for this? They could have just told me over the phone. I didn’t need to be here in person when it would have been a quick email. I try not to sigh when I lean forward in my chair to get up but notice her move first. When she rises from her seat I can’t help but cast my eyes over her body. A perfect rack was hidden behind a satin-y type blouse and her smart, tight trousers did little to stem my attention away from her perky, peachy rear practically begging to be spanked. I was right. Playboy or Sports Illustrated. She would look so pretty on her knees. Give it a few weeks, I tell myself. By Miami she’ll be begging for me. I can tell.

Fifteen minutes later we were sat in a smaller, more bland impersonal office while she tried to convince me to hand over my social media passwords. “Mr Gasly, I assure you that your accounts and information will be safe with me. I simply need access in order to keep on top of any potential Alpine related business.” She was getting me riled up at this point. “Last year I believe there were, incidents, over social media with some questionable comments?” She was referring to the emoji’s wasn’t she? The PR girls laughed about them last year but she said it with a straight face. “I simply need to be able to delete anything that would be unsavoury toward your own reputation and the team.” “Telling people my favourite sex position through an emoji is not damaging to my reputation or the team.” I retort back with a smooth laugh. I thought it would throw her but the silence and stoney face I was met with made me push it even further. I smirked before adding; “it’s the dog by the way.” Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I couldn’t recall the last time I wasn’t able to flirt and smooth talk a girl into at least raising a smile. But there was nothing from her. “It’s the dog because my favourite position is doggy…” “Yes, I gathered that Mr Gasly.” She hastily shut me up and I noticed her roll her eyes. Was she not into men? Maybe that’s why my forwardness wasn’t doing it for her.

“Please, your passwords.” I watched as slowly she placed her pen on top of a notepad and pushed it across the glass topped table toward me. Her eyes didn’t leave mine. They stayed trained on me as if she had gone through military training. Unflinching. I would have been complaining if they weren’t so fucking captivating. You could get lost in these eyes.

“Earn them.” I glanced over toward Ben and smirked again. It was a game at this point. I couldn’t help myself. “Excuse me?” “I said, earn them.” I didn’t even know where this was going or why it was coming out of my mouth. I just went with it. I liked how women would squirm a little when I turned it on and I desperately wanted to know she was eating out of the palm of my hand, so sue me. But if I expected her to crumble like all of the others she surprised me. She sat back in her chair and took a deep breath before exhaling. For a brief second I thought I won and I managed to rattle her but unfortunately for me, apparently not.

“Listen, looking after a twenty-seven year old self confessed playboy is not something I thought I would be doing when I got this job so if you think your flirting will have an effect on me and I will pull a Claudia, was it? Then you are very much mistaken.” It was I that was rumbled. And she had to mention last years indiscretion by name so she had clearly been told all about it - or had she read about it online and didn’t need anyone else’s judgment about it to pass her own judgment on to me? “Now…Mr Gasly, your passwords.” Touché. Fucking Touché.

I reached for the pen and notepad and noted how much I felt like a child. It was as if I had been sent to the Alpine School’s principle’s office for being naughty in class. As I wrote down the passwords for her highness, my phone buzzed again in my jeans pocket and it suddenly l dawned on me that she would see everything I received. She would see all of the DMs I was sent along with the mountains of nudes (such as those waiting on me from last nights hook-up) that various girls sent me, mostly without a single shred of prompting. I should probably have felt a little embarrassed or ashamed by them in all fairness but for some reason - probably because she was acting like a fake ball buster she actually was one - I wasn’t. Let her look. There’s probably a fair few suggestive ones of myself on there she could find too if she really wanted too. I cursed the route of thought my own mind suddenly drove me down as now I was imagining her sliding her hand down past the waistband of her tight trousers to get off on the risqué pics I had floating around in some conversations. But she didn’t seem like the type. Fortunately for me the passwords were enough to appease her, for now. She smiled - a fake one of course - and said that was all, I could leave before adding she would would see me at testing. She would be at testing? This girl was really going to be sticking to me like glue, wasn’t she?

Thankfully, this whole fiasco was clearly coming to an end and I glanced toward the door and was desperately trying to think of something smart to say and a way to get out of here. I didn’t want to hang around for any longer than I needed to and certainly not long enough for her to continue getting one over on me or getting a metaphorical upper hand again, but it looked like she had and there was nothing I could do. When I happened to look toward Ben I realised he was smirking and clearly holding back a laugh. He was married and so never really joined in (nor understood) with the flirting and flustering behaviour I was king at. Now, after I had lost the opening match against her, it was as if he could read my startled little mind and I certainly didn’t like that. I arose out if my seat opposite my new babysitter and stared at her for a moment. I couldn’t help but wonder if she had ever worked in F1 - or even just a sport - before because she didn’t act like how all the girls usually acted around guys in sport. She simply seemed unimpressed. Stoic almost. “Goodbye, Mr Gasly.” A normal girl would be turned on by saying that over and over again. By now imagining how it would feel to be bent over the glass desk and having me rail them into next week. But she used it formally, professionally and without a single shred of sarcasm. I just about managed to get to the door to the office when my phone buzzed loudly one more time and I paused to remove it from my pocket.

“I hope that isn’t something I am going to have to get involved in?” Her sweet, soft voice echoed from behind and my sudden laughter filled the room as my brain had come up with the most perfect of perfect responses. “Not unless you want to make it a threesome?” I didn’t hang around long enough for her to respond and mentally high fives myself for my quick retort. She lead herself into it and my brain couldn’t catch up to my mouth. She may have been hired to be my babysitter, but that didn’t mean I had to make it easy for her.

#pierre gasly #pierre gasly fanfiction #pierre gasly fanfic #pierre gasly fic #pierre gasly series #pierre gasly x oc #pierre gasly imagine #pierre gasly imagines #pierre gasly multi chapter #f1 smut #f1 fanfiction #f1 fanfic #f1 fic #f1 imagines #f1 imagine #f1 series #f1 x oc #bet trope #grumpy sunshine trope

[fandom-alley]

Rose Coloured Lenses | Spencer Reid Fanfic

Summary: Reader cuts her finger while cooking and Spencer bandages her up Pairing: Spencer Reid/Reader Warnings: accidental knife cut, lots of mentions of blood/bleeding, kissing, swear words Category: Fluff Word count: 2k a/n: This is my first reader insert short. Got inspired because it's the 2 year anniversary of me cutting my own finger while cooking lol Also available to be read on AO3

Saturday nights were my designated home cooked meal nights. Even if Spencer was out of town on a case with work, I’d invite a friend or two over to the apartment for dinner. And on the rare occasion that no one was free, I would cook an extravagant meal to myself, playing music and dancing around the kitchen while belting out my favourite Taylor Swift song and hoping one of the neighbours don’t start knocking on the walls to get me to shut up.

Even though we've only lived together a short while, Spencer know’s enough to vacate the kitchen on Saturday nights, letting me take up all the space needed for multiple bowls, cutting boards, pots and pans. So when he arrives home from work a few hours early to see I’m on speaker phone with best friend, hair tied back and sleeves rolled up, mixing my famous meatball recipe, he knows not to get in the way. 

However, even with the rule of staying out of the kitchen, Spencer can’t help himself but to come in and give me a quick kiss hello, which I don’t mind. 

“It already smells amazing.” He say’s while tucking a strand of hair that fell out of my bun back behind my ear. 

“It’s really just onions and garlic right now, but thank you.” I smile at him. “Now get lost, I’ll call you when it’s ready.”

“Hi, Spencer. Bye, Spencer.” My best friend, Becky, say’s through the speaker phone, having heard our interaction. 

“Good evening, Becky.” He turns to leave but thinks better. Stopping to place a hand on my cheek and pull me in for another kiss. It’s sickeningly sweet as he gently rubs his thumb along my cheekbone. I wish my hands were anywhere on his body instead of stuck inside a bowl of ground beef. There’s no way Spencer would let me get away with touching him before washing my hands. 

“Get a room you two!” Becky laughs from the phone. “I can hear you making out.”

“That was definitely not making out. That was just me saying hello to my beautiful girlfriend, whom I missed dearly at work today. And if she wasn’t wrist deep in ground beef and on the phone I would already have her on my bed.” Spencer says with a smirk, leaving me speechless.

“Oh, spicy boy! Where do I find a man like you?” Becky manages to ask through her continued laughter.

“Okay! Spencer, that’s enough of you. I would really like to get my hands out of this bowl, so I’m going to need you to leave so I can finish cooking, please.” I say.

“Of course, sweetheart.” Spencer leans forward for another kiss but I pull my head back as far as my constricted hands will allow.

“Stop trying to distract me! I’ll call you when it’s ready.” I laugh.

Finally, he walks out of the kitchen to grab his work bag. I watch him pull out a new novel and head into the office, where I’m sure he will finish reading it in a few minutes. 

“Alright, now that he’s gone. What were we talking about?” I ask Becky for a reminder. 

“I believe we were chatting about the rising costs of butter, to be honest. Not the most riveting conversation.” Becky laughs out.

“Oh yeah. Didn’t we star out by talking about Justin’s new girlfriend? How did we end up on butter.” I laugh with her. 

As we continue our conversation, I portion and roll out the meat balls. Then I brown them off in a pan before adding the sauce I made prior to Spencer arriving home, turning it down to low so they can simmer. Finally after what feels like hours, I’m able to wash the meat off my hands and gather the ingredients needed for the salad. 

“I should let you go, y/n. It’s getting late and I’ve got to give my mom a call as well and make sure she remembers about our lunch plans tomorrow.” Becky explains while I’m at the sink washing lettuce and carrots. 

“Of course, it was a great chat. What has it been, two hours? We should get coffee soon. Continue the convo in person.” I offer.

“Yes, definitely. Alright, have a good night, I’ll text you tomorrow. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do with Spencer after dinner.” Becky says, and even though I can’t see her I just know she’s wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. 

“Ha ha. Goodnight, Becky.” With Spencer tucked away in his office and Becky officially off the line, I decide to play some music from my phone to fill the silence. “Nothing like some good ol’ Miley Cyrus.” I mumble to myself as I hit shuffle on her new album. 

I make sure it’s not too loud, so as not to disturb whatever Spencer is working on in the next room, and get started on prepping the salad. The lettuce gets chopped and dried, then tossed into the big bamboo salad bowl I convinced Spencer to buy at a market a few weeks back. 

“It’s so pretty and it fits the vibe of the apartment so well. If it doesn’t force us to eat more salads at least it’ll look nice on the kitchen table full of fruit.” I had told him. But I don’t think it were my words that convinced him to buy it. I think it was the look I gave him through my eyelashes, silently trying to convey that buying the bowl wasn’t just for the greens, but as a way for him to show that he really was serious about me moving in and making changes to the apartment he’s lived alone in for so long. 

With all the lettuce in the bowl, I move on to cutting the carrots into cubes. As I’m working away, Miley’s song Flowers starts playing from my phone. I refrain from singing along, to spare Spencer and the neighbours of the noise, but I can’t help moving my hips to the beat. It’s easy to get carried away dancing to this song, which I do. So much so that I forget I have a sharp knife in my hand.

The inevitable happens. As the song reaches the chorus, I start to hop up and down to the beat and my knife slips off the carrot and into the side of my ring finger. 

“Shit!” I drop the knife onto the counter and grab my injured hand with the other, bringing them to my chest as I squeeze my eyes closed. I can feel the wetness as blood pools out of my finger. I breath in through my nose and out through my mouth, trying to calm my already racing heartbeat. Knowing I need to assess the wound, I slowly bring my hands away from my chest and peak my eyes open. I barely move my uninjured hand away before I catch sight of the blood.

“Fuck.” I say, shutting my eyes and closing my hands together again. The sight make’s me feel nauseous and I end up crouching to the floor of the kitchen, unable to stand up any longer for fear of passing out. The initial adrenaline starts to ware off as my heart rate returns to normal and I can feel pulsing in the finger that I cut. 

After a few more seconds of sitting, I give in and lay fully onto the kitchen floor as I call out for Spencer. The sound of his office door opening is a relief. 

“Y/n?” I hear his footsteps come towards the kitchen. “Where are you?”

“Down here.” I groan from the floor behind the kitchen island. I don’t see Spencer come around the corner because my eyes are still squeezed shut, but I hear him. He rushes to me and kneels down to my side.

  “What happened? Are you okay?” His hands are on mine, gently trying to pry them apart to see the injury, but I don’t let him.

“I cut my finger.” I cry to him.

“Okay. Did you fall? Can you sit up?” He speaks softly, gently wiping a tear off my cheek that I didn’t know was there.

“I was starting to feel like I was going to throw up so I came down here. I didn’t fall, but I don’t think I can sit up yet.” I explain to him.

“That’s alright. That’s good that you didn’t fall. No head injuries to attend to. Okay give me a second, I’ll be right back I just need to grab the first aid kit from the bathroom.” Spencer says and I hear him run off down the hall

When he returns I hear the first aid kit hit the ground beside me and feel him sit down next to my chest, where I’m still clutching my hands together. I gasp and open my eyes when something cold is placed on my forehead.

“Sorry, should have warned you.” Spencer says when I look at him. “It’s just a cold cloth to help sooth you.”

“Thank you.” I breath out. 

“Of course.” Spencer’s eyes are soft on me. He caresses my cheek, making me sigh in delight. “Can I take a look?”

“Yeah.” I close my eyes again so I don’t catch sight of it, then open my hands for him. He gently takes them into his own and I feel him inspecting them.

“There’s quite a bit of blood but from what I can see it’s not that big of a cut. Do you think you can make it to the sink so we can wash it off?” He asks gently.

“Um, yeah. I think so.” 

  Spencer helps me up with an arm behind my back, then holds onto me as we walk over to the sink. He tests the water until it reaches a warm temperature then gently pulls my hands under the stream. I open my eyes to take a peak and all I see is red washing down the drain.

“Oh, gross.” I groan and put my head down onto the counter. 

“I didn’t know you were this bad with blood.” Spencer says as he helps me into a chair after rinsing my hands.

“Neither did I. I’ve never cut myself with a knife before. How do you deal at work? I’m sure you’ve seen more blood in one day on the field than I’ll see in my lifetime.” 

Now that there’s no blood all over my hands, Spencer brings my injured hand close to his face to inspect the cut. He’s very gentle, but as his fingers grab the one that I cut, I can’t help but to gasp out in pain. It’s so tender.

“Sorry.” He apologizes. “It took a while to get used to. I guess I might not even be that used to it. But it’s part of the job and we try our best to not get attached to the scenes, makes it a little easier to sleep at night.”

“Wow. I don’t know how you do it.” I say.

“It helps that I have you to come home to now.” He says sweetly. “Well, I don’t think you need stitches. Just some good gauze wrap and maybe an Advil if it’s still hurting.” Spencer says. I watch him intently as he wraps the gauze around my finger, securing it with a little piece of medical tape. When he’s finished he brings my hand to his mouth to kiss my fingers.

“Thank you, doctor.” 

“It was my pleasure.” 

“I didn’t get to finish dinner. I still need to make the pasta.” I sigh, making a move to stand up but Spencer pushes me back down from the shoulders.

“I’ll finish up dinner, you go sit on the couch.” He says.

“Are you sure? Saturday nights are my home cooked meal night.” 

“I’m sure. It’s still going to be home cooked even if it’s me cooking it.” He laughs.

“Thank you. I love you.” I pull him into a hug and he tucks me under his chin, holding me tight.

“I love you, too.” He says with a kiss to my forehead. 

#spencer reid fluff #spencer reid fanfiction #spencer reid fic #spencer reid #criminal minds fanfiction #alleys writing #title is not really indicative of the story #i was just listening to miley cyrus as i wrote this #and thought it might fit a little bit lol #haven't totally gotten the hang of finding or making a gif or moodboard that really fits the story #but they hug at the end so this ones what i thought of lol

[dariuchihasen]

What is the akatsuki like?

hiiii my loves🫶🏻sorry for my inactivity, I’ve been really busy with work😭 for those who have never seen my page, I’m a shifter, mostly to Naruto, but I also shift to Bleach, demon slayer, arcane, and JJK. Everything I post is based on my DR.

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I’m going to start off by saying the akatsuki are my family, we may not be blood related at all but our bond as friends is unbreakable🖤I truly feel accepted with them^.^

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Also! We have 4 extra members of the akatsuki, who will be added to this description!

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Konan: she’s a quiet natured woman, calm and level headed yet calculated. I swear I’ve never seen her scared or even anxious. She’s so strong, physically and mentally! She’s a romantic too. In my DR she’s married to Pain, and Nagato and omg. Such a lover girl, it’s the cutest thing seeing her with them. (Only time I see her get flustered☺️)

Pain: just like his wife, he’s more on the quiet side. He handles handing out tasks and assigning missions. If he’s not away on a mission himself, you’ll most likely find him tucked away in his office handling the countless paperwork the man has to handle. He enjoys reading and learning to cook(he isn’t the best and has burnt more things than making anything edible. Konan is teaching him :)

Nagato: lives in Amegakure and comes to visit every once in a while. He handles a lot of more private affairs which is why he doesn’t live with us full time. Insanely powerful and every time he visits, he trains 1on1 with every member to help strengthen our skills. He’s really kind and gets nervous easily lol!

Itachi: he recently went through a break up and for a while was rather down about it but his spark came back! He’s insanely patient and an absolutely amazing big brother. Sasuke will come visit time to time or he’ll pop into the hidden leaf to visit his parents. Family is everything to him. He keeps his bedroom neat and clean, everything has their own place lol. His favorite genre of movies is thriller

Kisame: for starters, the dude is MASSIVE. In height and size in general. He works out daily, and before the end of the day will be found outside training. Itachi is like a brother to him, he can read Tachi like an open book and tends to know when he’s upset before Itachi even realizes it himself. Was quite the ladies man before getting into a committed relationship with a sweetheart ^.^

Zetsu: May be a bit of an odd ball but I mean that in a sweet way. His sense of humor is rather interesting and tends to be funny when he can’t read the room. Likes to magically appear to scare people or to pass on messages from other members. He’s very close with Tobi and myself so he’ll hang out with us time to time when he’s bored

Orochimaru: tends to be in his lab, all the time. If any of us want to hang out with him, we’d have to go downstairs and enter his laboratory to do so. He doesn’t mind it, he enjoys the company and isn’t afraid to admit as such. Weekly, he’ll visit the Hidden Leaf to have lunch or dinner with Lady Tsunade and Jiraiya. (Was the one to encourage Jiraiya to finally ask Tsunade out, and they’ve been together for quite some time now!)

Kabuto: he’s surprisingly super shy. He only trains with Orochimaru and only does so when the compound is primarily empty. He’s very respectful and just like Itachi, he’s very patient.

Zabuza: level headed, and an extreme strategist. Rather loud, especially when he talks about something he enjoys. Tends to work out with Kisame a few times a week. Haku is his assigned partner and they’re away a lot of the time, as they both like to be on the move but Zabuza always enjoys being able to come home and relax on the couch, watching a movie. (Doesn’t have a favorite genre, he’ll watch anything)

Haku: soft spoken and kind. Can be a smart ass which is rather amusing because he always has a comeback for everything. Enjoys baking, and on the days he’s not running around, you’ll find him in the kitchen, reading from a book as he works on a new recipe.

Deidara: confident! He’s proud of his scars and doesn’t shy away from past mistakes or ‘failures’. He’s also what a lot of the akatsuki refer to as a pretty boy since anytime we all go out, the girls flock to him. Takes pride in his hair and appearance but he’s never cocky. Has never outright said it but it’s presumed he’s bisexual🥰

Sasori: just like orochimaru, he tends to be in his room, working on new creations and preparing damaged puppets. Deidara will also be found in his room more times than his own. Doesn’t smoke like some of us do but he’ll enjoy a nice cold glass of sake at the end of a tiring work week

Tobi: goofy, childish, flamboyant, and easily excitable. Now, sometimes this persona will falter, mostly whenever he’s in our shared room where Obito takes over. As Obito, he’s much more reserved, dominant, intimidating and a major softy. He helps me work on repairs(I have my own business of custom made weaponry, Kunai’s shuriken, etc) he’s also a medical ninja, and his level is very close to Sakura’s.

Kakuzu: quiet, and grouchy. Tends to not be as vocal about his affections unless him and I are alone. He’ll never admit it but loves having his hair played with or back scratches. Has fallen asleep in my lap from me doing so. His favorite food is onigiri, all kinds of doesn’t matter what the middle is filled with. He’s not a picky eater in the slightest. Just like Kisame, he’s massive. He’s the tallest member, standing at 6’5.

Hidan: anytime he’s in the mood, he’ll team up with Tobi. It’s a recipe for chaos. If he wants attention, he’s taken after what Tobi does and have multiple shadow clones ‘annoy’ me until I give in and pay attention to him lol. Hidan is very in tune with his emotions and knows when he needs to step away and take a break from things. He’s also an affectionate drunk, so he’ll be found wrapping his arms or his body around me. Trailing along behind me like a lost puppy🥺

•

If you got this far, thank you☺️

Ps: if you want to know more, please send in requests, I love talking with you guys. Also don’t be scared to ask about my other DR’s, or even a specific person!

#desired reality #naruto shippuden #shifting #alternate universe #naruto #naruto shifter #hidan #hidan x you #kakuzu #kakuzu x you

[staycalmandhugaclone]

If you're new, this all starts with Touch Starved - Echo! You can read this little chunk as a standalone, or head back to the beginning for the full experience!

Apparently, I felt like Crosshair didn’t get quite enough whump in that first one… So sorry my beloved… Continuation to Muzzled.

Febuwhump Day 3 Ch 2

Muzzled – Crosshair

Warnings: This one's gone some proper medical procedures - gore/blood/injections. Adult language. Good bit of guilt and angst.

WC: 4,079

We were aboard The Dominator for mere minutes, just long enough to drop Rex and his men off before being ushered to the far side of the galaxy. I’d have argued – insisted on a few days med-leave for Crosshair’s jaw to heal, but we��d be traveling for nearly a week. Not accounting for some unforeseen complication, that would be ample time for the bacta to help knit the fracture closed.

Halfway through that first day of our journey, I noticed the extra meal bar in the small kitchenette. After learning of how they’d starved from insufficient rations for most of their lives, I’d begun tracking inventory more closely, both to record how much food Wrecker actually needed as well as ensure no one fell back into the habit of rationing their meals for fear of not having enough. At least to that point, there’d seemed no cause to worry over the latter, but it didn’t take much thought to understand who’d skipped their morning meal and why.

I found Crosshair dozing in one of the crash seats in the cabin. Echo and Wrecker chatted quietly nearby while the taller man used the overhead racks as pull-up bars, speech intimidatingly even despite the tempo of his movement. Treading lightly across the room, I nestled into the seat beside the resting sniper and lightly tapped my knee against his to wake him.

“Hey, I want you to drink this.” I said quietly, undeterred by how quickly his lips pulled into a frown as he turned to face me.

“No.” The simple brusqueness of his response drew a soft chuckle from me before, with a pointedly deep breath, preparing for the coming fight.

“Cross, you skipped breakfast. You can’t do that while using bacta.” His frown deepened into an unimpressed glare. “Would you rather I shove a tube down your nose to force-feed you?” I asked blankly and had to fight to ignore the stifled snickers behind us. Crosshair held my gaze a moment longer, debating how far he wanted to push me.

“What is it?” It wasn’t cooperation, but it was a start as his eyes dropped down to study the cup.

“It’s a meal replacement shake – all the calories and nutrients of a ration bar without needing to chew.” I couldn’t help the quiet laugh that bubbled past my lips at his skeptical grimace. “Don’t worry – it’s not GAR-regulation chalk flavored. I keep a few different ones on hand – let me know if you don’t care for how this one tastes.” I shifted forward in a gentle offer, smile growing as he reluctantly took it.

“Oooh, can I try one?” Wrecker asked eagerly, abandoning his workout to trot toward us, and I immediately shot him a toothy grin.

“Of course, big guy.” I answered warmly, pushing myself back to my feet. “Why don’t you come choose which one you’d like?” The brilliance of his joy was a thing I’d never weary of, unabashed glee lightening his movements as he eagerly agreed. “How about you, Echo? They’re really gentle on the stomach.” I added at that first whisper of doubt on his face.

“Sure.” He sighed with a shrug. Stealing a final glance to see Crosshair still merely studying the cup, I reached out to let my hand just brush softly over his shoulder before starting back toward the kitchenette.

He didn’t fight me when I presented him with another one that night, thoughtlessly bringing the straw up to his lips after I’d handed it to him. I tried not to show the pleased smirk. It was such a simple, little thing, but just knowing I’d managed to offer even that tiny bit of comfort made my heart dance.

“The other one was better.” He muttered before walking out, ripping a bark of laughter from me.

-

My attention kept wandering to that tall grump, mind churning over the certainty that I was overlooking something. He’d been more quiet than normal, but given the trauma of being tortured, that was hardly unexpected. It wasn’t until he leaned absently against a wall, body instantly flinching for barely a fraction of a second before shifting to stand upright that it clicked.

“Hey… Crosshair…” I called hesitantly, unbothered by the way his frown deepened, tongue shifting a toothpick across his lips as he stared me down. “Are you still having pain in your back?” Caught. That tiny flicker of tension that flashed over him told me everything. “What’s wrong? Did I not give you enough bacta?” I pressed, stepping closer to him. His arms folded across his chest stubbornly, and I didn’t try to silence the loud sigh. “Would you just show me?” I asked, words fleeing on an exasperated breath, but he didn’t move.

“You’re going to make me say it?” His cold expression remained pointedly unfazed. “You really just want to hear me say it, don’t you?” Still nothing. Movements overly exaggerated, I clasped my hands together, head tilting in a flirtatious sway, “Oh, Crosshair, it would mean so much to me if you would please take your kriffing shirt off so I can make sure whatever’s wrong with back doesn’t cause lasting tissue damage.” The sickly-sweet tone carried through each word, bringing an initial flash of confusion to his face before it fell back into that familiar snarl for the split second it took the sharp pain to shoot through his jaw and force him back into a violent glare. Brows raised expectantly, I waited mere seconds before motioning my hands impatiently toward him.

The begrudging movement of his limbs was more than enough to send tendrils of worry through my chest. He was letting me help. With so little argument, he was submitting to my request. Something was wrong. My worry overrode the whisper of appreciation I couldn’t help but feel at the reveal of that muscular torso, abs dancing beneath caramel skin in a display of raw power that I’d never get used to as he slipped the skin-tight suit over his head.

Without waiting for him to turn, I immediately moved to see his back, and that worry turned to ice in my veins. Several dark bruises still covered that gorgeous skin, but the one that I couldn’t rip my eyes away from lay just between the top ridges of his shoulder blades, skin stretched taut over a massive ball of nearly black swelling. I could see a starkly defined line of healed and unhealed damage, and I didn’t need to ask.

“Your shoulders,” I sighed, heart rending beneath the realization I should have made days ago. “They were hurt from how you’d been restrained… you couldn’t reach your back until they healed.” He purposefully avoided even glancing at the desperate regret tearing through my eyes, shifting to stare blindly through the far wall. Drawing a carefully slowed breath, I dragged my hand over my face, fingers clawing into my hair in a frenzy of guilt and frustration. If he’d just said something, anything, given me some tiny hint, he’d be almost free of pain, but now, the dark mass lying dangerous near his spine was an very real concern.

“Listen, I really need you to be honest with me right now.” I prompted, voice abandoning any teasing lilt or sarcastic drawl. His frown deepened, hesitating at the shift in my tone, but then he moved just enough to glance over his shoulder, eyes finding mine with that unsettling stillness. “Are you having any numbness or tingling in your fingers? Or have you noticed any limited mobility?” He watched me for a long moment, and I could see how carefully he thought over my question before his head dipped in a small nod. My chest sank, body deflating in a slow, tense sigh.

“Okay.” Maker, he wasn’t going to like this. My hand reached for the painful ball of swollen tissue, pausing barely an inch away as I gathered my thoughts. “Crosshair, I need to drain this. And I need to do it now.” His expression didn’t change, but I saw how the air stilled in his lungs. “I can numb it – like I did your jaw, but the longer we wait, the more likely that nerve damage becomes permanent.” The resignation that slowly settled over him was a thing I hoped never to see again, and I hated myself for the relief I felt as he nodded once more.

“Come on.” I breathed, hand automatically slipping around his arm in an instinctive need to offer some measure of reassurance. I nearly pulled back the instant I realized what I’d done, but he didn’t shy away from my touch. I didn’t know how to feel about that. Was he in so much pain that he didn’t notice? Had he decided the annoyance of my absent caresses weren’t worth fighting? Or was he so distraught over the possible disability, that even he found himself needing that tiny measure of comfort?

“Lay down on your side. Do you want me to explain what I’m going to do?” There was a gentle quiet in the hum of my voice.

“No. Just do it.” He said blankly, movements stiff as he forced himself onto the cot I usually called mine. I wasted no time in gathering my supplies, careful not to let him see. He didn’t want to know what I needed to do, and I was too eager not to tell him, not to grant him any indication of the coming hurt beyond the numbing medication. After slipping a drip cloth beneath him, I took a final breath.

“Quick burn.” I warned but didn’t wait for him to tense before resting the injector against the center of that mass. The muscles curled along his spine, back threatening to arch as he let out a nearly growled exhale, and my heart ached for him. The last whisper of that strained breath faded into a quick huff, tension fleeing him in a rush.

“Alright, a lot of pressure, then a big release.” Again, I didn’t wait before slipping the blade through skin and muscle. His breath hitched, arms wrenching back, and I had to quickly lock my hand around his shoulder to keep him still enough to slip the drainage tube in. I quickly set a catch beneath the incision as the pooled blood and fluids poured from wound and tube alike, and he let out a huff of relief through still clenched teeth.

“The kriff was the damn shot even for?!” He snarled, and I wanted to sob at the tremor in his voice.

“I know – I know; I’m sorry, but it would have been a lot worse without it.” I murmured, thumb absently sweeping over suddenly chilled skin. “The hard part’s over, though.” I offered gently, and his head fell heavily to the thin pillow, eyes clenched as his torso rocked with too-quick breaths. “I want you to try to keep still.” I instructed, reaching out to drag my blanket over his lightly shaking form. “We need to leave that in for a while – make sure it doesn’t swell back up again.” He shifted only slightly before abandoning the attempt.

“Leave… what in?” He demanded despite the weakness trying to drag his voice into a hoarse whisper. “What did you do?” Those words wanted to be a snarl, but the heaviness of his breaths robbed them of any force.

“I had to place a drainage tube. I’m going to secure it so it doesn’t fall out, and then I want you to try to rest.” The way he rolled his eyes granted me some measure of relief – that, at least, had lost none of its strength. Movements meticulous to avoid even the slightest jostle around that painful injury, I applied a few strips of adhesive, pleased to see the flow of liquid slow to only an occasional drip.

“I can give you something to help you sleep.” I offered quietly, hand returning to rest gently atop his shoulder. He answered with that signature glare. “Okay, how about some water? Either say yes, or I’m sticking an IV in you.” I threatened, and I knew how eager he was to twist that aching jaw into a scowl.

“Fine.” He relented, gaze returning to some distant point well beyond the Marauder’s walls.

“Okay. I’ll be right back – no moving.” I added before starting toward the door.

Hunter said nothing as he caught my eyes the instant I was in the hallway, arms crossed over his chest, jaw taut with concern; waiting, and that guilt struck me anew, tears balling in my throat.

“I’ll know more tomorrow.” I told him, “I should have noticed sooner-I… Maker, I’m so sorry.” I hated the way my voice broke, hated the tears that slipped down my cheeks.

“There’s not much you can do when he gets it in his head that things should go a certain way.” He sighed, and I could hear an exhaustion in his voice that spoke of a lifetime of trying to save his brother from himself in far too similar situations. “It’s not your fault, Doc.” His shoulders sank as he stepped toward me, arms falling heavily to his sides before bringing a warm hand to my shoulder. Teeth grinding behind tight lips, I shook my head.

“Of course, it’s my fault.” I nearly growled, “I saw what kind of state he was in when we found him. I knew there was still something wrong. I…” Letting out a breath that threatened to cave into a sob, I forced myself to focus. I still had a job to do. “I need to get him some water.” Without meeting Hunter’s eyes, I pushed passed him to the supply room.

“Why don’t you take a minute? I’ll stay with him.” I was shaking my head before he’d finished speaking.

“I need to monitor that drain tonight – make sure he doesn’t jostle it in his sleep.” Without waiting for him to find some other excuse or futile attempt to lessen my strife, I quickly tread around him to return to the medbay. Crosshair hadn’t moved, but I was please to see his breathing had calmed.

“Is it any better?” I barely whispered the words as I tread lightly to the front of the cot.

“Great.” The rumbled word snapped from still tight lips, but I was certain ridding him of that massive buildup of fluid had to grant some reprieve.

Crouching down slightly, I brought the straw to his mouth, with a quiet, “here,” but he immediately pulled back in disgust, arm tensing to take it himself. I quickly reached out to stop him, hand clasping firmly around his forearm.

“Don’t.” I kept my voice soft, but left no room for argument as I met the obstinate look in his eyes. “I don’t want you do to anything that’s even going to tense your shoulders right now.” Again, I watched that moment of debate war within him, but, when his eyes darted away from mine beneath that wretched flush of shame, he reluctantly shifted just enough to catch the straw between his lips. I said nothing as he drank, gaze carefully lowered to avoid even accidentally glancing at him, nor did I breathe a word of rebuttal at the amount of water still in the pouch when he pulled away.

“Are you alright with me replacing that patch,” I asked, motioning toward jaw, “and getting some bacta on the rest of your back?” I didn’t have to grant him that choice – I could have merely told him I was doing it, and he would have had no valid grounds to refuse me, but I knew he needed it – needed some whisper of autonomy to sooth how violently I’d stripped it from him already. So, I waited patiently until he gave the faintest shift of a nod. He didn’t look at me as I reached for the day-old bacta-patch, but he tilted his neck slightly for me to reach the edge easier, and I didn’t realize how much I���d needed even that tiny show of acceptance until feeling the stiffness lock around my throat.

The quiet that settled around us was a kind one. I let myself melt into it as I carefully tended his jaw before turning my attention to treating each blotch of abused skin covering his back, and I wondered if he was able to find some solace in it, too.

“I’ll check on it a couple times tonight – make sure it doesn’t shift, but I really want you to try to sleep.” My voice whispered softly into that quiet, and I watched him pointedly close his eyes without so much as looking toward me. Moving lightly, I tread to the nearby wall panel and, with a thoughtless tap, plunged the room into near darkness.

-

I spent the night curled atop a chair, legs tucked against me with my ankles crossed over the armrest, aimlessly browsing my datapad with little interest for anything beyond some distraction to keep me awake. Nearly every hour, I crept to the bed, lifting the blanket just enough to confirm everything was still in place before returning to my perch, pleased that he seemed to sleep through my inspections.

Finally, I heard the others begin to move about the ship. Crosshair was still asleep, and I let myself take full advantage as I returned to his bedside once more. Praying the earlier dose would only just be starting to wear off, I touched another injector to the skin just beside the tube, flooding the tissue with a fresh bout of the numbing agent. His shoulders tensed, but only slightly, a soft grunt catching in his throat as the sensation roused him from the light sleep.

“Sorry,” I murmured, “I was hoping it was still numb enough to dull that.” He glanced wearily back at me before letting his head rock drowsily back to the pillow.

“It’s fine.” The absent dismissal rumbled in that subtle slur of near-sleep, and I felt my lips pull into the first earnest smile I’d managed since seeing that bruising.

“Good,” I sighed, “I’m going to check for residual swelling first, but then that tube should be fine to come out – I promise: they come out much easier than they go in.” I added at the way he tensed. He left out an impatient grunt but offered no further response.

The mass was barely noticeable now beyond a lingering discoloration, tissue carrying only a fraction of that excess fluid. With gentle, sweeping palpations, I guided a bit more of that swelling toward the incision. He barely noticed; sensation almost completely dulled from the injection even as I began easing the adhesive strips away from his skin. I granted him no warning before slipping the tube free, knowing the anticipation would be far worse, and he barely flinched.

“All done.” I said with a gentle smile after easing a bacta-patch over the cut. He started to glance back, surprise just twitching over his face before catching himself. Hesitantly, his arm tensed, as though waiting to see if I’d try to stop him, but, reassured by my silence, he pressed his hand against the mattress and pushed himself up, legs swinging over the edge. I watched the tentative roll of his shoulders precede a more confident series of shifting muscles to further test the motion.

“Okay, give me your hand.” I said after granting him a moment. He looked at me with narrowed eyes but held his hand toward me without further complaint. I slowly worked over each long digit with gentle squeezes between my thumb and forefinger. “Any numbness or tingling?” He shook his head, idly watching me as I continued meticulously over his palm, careful not to miss a single inch of flesh before moving to his other hand, and the relief starting to bubble through me was palpable.

“Perfect. Now, try to match my movements.” I continued, hand raising to illustrate touching each fingertip to my thumb, but he showed no intent to follow me. Gaze shifting to his, I readily let my expression fall into the same deadpan glare he sent me. “Fingers. Moving. Now.” I ordered. He let out a loud scoff, attention shifting past me, but, albeit reluctantly, matched my motions without difficulty.

In a flood of relief, my head sank in into my hands with a loud, shuttered exhale, fingers dragging thoughtlessly though my hair as that massive weight finally began to slip away. Body slowly straightening with a deep breath, I looked up to find him watching me, expression carefully blank.

“Crosshair, I really,” Hands falling wearily into the scant distance between us, I struggled for a moment to convince my lips to work, to steady my breath long enough to remember how to speak, “Really need you to understand this: I am here for one reason. That’s it. I’m not here to judge you or report you or belittle you for getting hurt. I’m here… to help you.” His lips tightened into a thin line, but he offered no further response, pulling an exasperated huff from me, but I tried to let it go, focus shifting back to what did matter to him.

“I want to look at your back again tonight, but it should heal up fine now.” I could hear the exhaustion clear in my own voice as I stepped back for him to push himself off the cot.

“Great. Wouldn’t want our effectiveness falling on your watch.”

It would have been less painful if he’d struck me. Breath caught in my throat, I was so taken aback by the venom in those words that I could only stare at him, eyes wide, lips slightly ajar. Part of me saw the flash of regret that instantly stole over him, but I couldn’t focus on that. I thought I was used to his crass remarks. I didn’t expect one to hurt like that. Without a word, I quickly turned and walked away, gaze dropping pointedly to the metallic paneling beneath me.

I don’t know why I went to the storage room, but once there I couldn’t bring myself to leave. Not yet. My hands shook slightly as I aimlessly organized even the slightest disarray of gear, mindlessly grabbing a few packages of shakes to restock what I’d used the previous day. When the door hissed open behind me, I didn’t turn toward them; didn’t want whoever it was to see the still raw hurt in my eyes because, if they did, if they offered even a fleeting look of understanding or sympathy or apology, I knew I’d break, and I wasn’t ready for that.

After several seconds passed without them saying anything, however, curiosity finally drew my gaze back just enough to glimpse them. Crosshair. His arms were locked tightly across his chest, body leaning stiffly against the wall as a sharp glare burned into the shelving beside him. He was waiting, and my heart broke the instant I understood why. He couldn’t quite bring himself to apologize, so he forced himself, instead, to allow me whatever retribution I wanted. Letting out a shaky breath, I set the prepackaged shake mix back down and walked lightly toward him, loathing the way his brows drew even further together.

“You have never… never been just a number to me.” I didn’t shy from the desperation in my voice begging him to believe me, and, as the tension abandoned him beneath something just threatening to become remorse, I felt my chest sink with a sharp sigh.

“I know.” He still wouldn’t look at me as the quiet words breathed over his lips, eyes falling to the flooring beneath us, and hearing him say that was worth every ounce of hurt his harsh words had caused. I didn’t fight the few tears that trailed down my cheeks despite how they seemed to make the normally detached man before me squirm, fingers shifting uncomfortably about his arms as he quickly turned his gaze further away.

Without a word, I leaned forward, pressing my forehead gently to his shoulder, and he went so perfectly still even the air caught in his throat. He didn’t move either to push me away or draw me closer, merely stood there as I stole that quiet moment with him; felt the tension slowly fade from his taut frame.

Chest swelling with a deep inhale, I finally stepped back, grabbed the handful of supplies I’d gathered, and left.

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21 - The Ultimate Hunter

Part 22

Gemini Runaway

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Snuggling closer into the familiar warmth I fluttered my eyes opened smiling a sleepy grin seeing that Nik was sleeping right beside me since after we got home from the dance last night I was too afraid to not be near him. I shifted around as carefully as possible so I was holding myself up by my elbow on the pillow just watching him. “Staring is rude, little siphon.”

“I can’t help it. You look so peaceful when you’re sleeping.” I smiled, bending my head away, blushing lightly.

He sat upright on the bed holding a hand to the side of my face leaning forward pressing his lips against mine. “So the plan is to pack up everything in the house and then we purchase some plane tickets and off to New Orleans we go.”

“It must be so easy to just snap your fingers and go anywhere in the world. How did I ever manage without you?” I joked rolling my eyes playfully.

He put his hands behind his head, smirking at me. “Very boringly that’s how, love.”

“You are so mean sometimes.” I hit his chest smiling until he vamped me onto my back throwing my hair around holding my hands above my head. “Uh you always take the cheater's way.”

He smiled leaning down kissing me slowly with me feeling him intertwining our hands together when he dropped my wrists. “What can I say, Raelyn, except that bad boys have more fun.” Moving my arms around his neck my fingers tangled in his hair instantly the second he kissed me hearing the bedroom door get thrown opened by someone.

Rebekah frantically said, causing me to separate from the hybrid. “Alaric Saltzman just tried to kill me.”

Klaus pointed out not really believing a word she was saying to us. “Alaric Saltzman is supposed to be dead.”

“He said he wasn’t going to turn. So who the hell gave him human blood?” I asked Nik pushing him off me throwing my legs off the side of the bed.

Rebekah threw her hands away from her sides, still frazzled by whatever had happened. “

Well, he's not. And he's vampire thanks to mother's spell with a white oak stake that can't kill him. He is strong, Nik. Too strong.”

Klaus asked getting up from the bed pulling his boots on for the day. “Where is he now?”;

“He's stuck at the school without a daylight ring, but as soon as night falls he'll come after us. We need to leave now.” She warned him looking at me with such a terrified face.

Klaus replied back shrugging on a black jacket over his shirt. “Fine. I'll collect Elena. We'll be on our way. Raelyn and I will have a plane to catch before tomorrow afternoon.”

“Forget Elena! You don't need anymore stupid hybrids.” Bex shouted at her brother. “Don’t you understand that our lives and Raelyn’s life are in serious danger!”

He told her in an annoyed tone. “What I need is protection from Esther's continued assault against us. As for my girlfriend, she is now linked to me so that’s why I am not worried about the history teacher right now. We will have Elena before sunset and be as far away from here as possible.”

“We'll protect each other, like we always have. Always and forever, Nik.” She attempted to convince him.

He replied back refusing to abandon his plan. “I'm not leaving without her.”

“I'm leaving now. You can either walk out that door with me or you are on your own.” He looks at Bex but says nothing. “Fine. Trust your hybrids over your family. Let your spite be the death of you, see if I care.”

Crossing my arms over my chest I sent him a raised brow. “Are you sure we shouldn’t stay and help take him down. If your mother really turned him into a vampire hunter like your father then he will hunt us down wherever we go.”

“Rae, you don’t have to worry about that. I am immortal and can’t be killed. My father Mikael didn’t kill me and neither will the history teacher. Plus I have you and I’ve seen you do some pretty badass spells that I thought would kill you. Together there is nothing we can’t do.” He bent down on a knee placing a hand on my knee meeting my gaze seeing that I was trying to remain brave but in reality I was terrified.

He rose to his feet about to leave until I grabbed his wrist holding him there. “If you’re thinking of breaking into the Gilbert house. Just know that I am not helping you break in. You should just leave the poor girl alone. But I understand the need for protection.”

Damon looks out of the window and sees Klaus pacing with the newspaper in his hand but he focuses his attention onto me just standing behind him not doing anything. “Klaus wants in. We have to keep him out. And his freaking girlfriend isn’t doing a dang thing to stop him.”

Klaus throws the newspaper through the window. The glass shatters into pieces.Damon ducks down, as well as Stefan and Bonnie. “Get down!”

“Missed me.” Damon challenged him taking the picket that got stuck in the wall behind him and hurls it back at Klaus.

Yet Klaus dodges it and he breaks the second picket into two pieces and throws one of it at him. “Missed me again.”

“Nik, are you insane. You can’t burn the house down with her inside.” I shouted at him seeing that he had managed to come back with a propane tank and a burning newspaper.

Stefan comes up to the front door ordering him. “Put it out.”

Klaus threatened him before he put out the fire, throwing the objects into the grass yard. “Come outside and make me.”

Stefan steps outside. “Elena is not here. Alaric has her and Caroline. He's gonna kill them both unless you turn yourself over to him.”

Klaus glared at him intertwining my hand with his hearing my heart beating up quickly at the thought of dying. “Now I know you're not asking me to walk into a certain death.”

Stefan huffed in a frustrated tone. “I really wish we could. But unfortunately, if Alaric kills you there's a 1 in 4 chance that we die too.”

Leaning my back against one of the pillars of the porch I side eyed the boys listening to their plans to take down Alaric. “Okay. How about Damon sneaks in and distracts Alaric, while Stefan grabs Elena and carries her to safety.”

Damon asked, holding one of the fences post that he had thrown into the house over his shoulder. “Huh, that's a great idea. What's to stop me from getting killed instantly?”

Klaus smiled until I hit him in the back with my foot.” Nothing.”

“He’s Caroline’s sire in cad you’ve forgotten. So no letting Damon get killed do you understand me.” I glared at him walking up to my boyfriend. “No matter what we are not putting one of my friends in anymore danger.”

Damon teased the hybrid. “Looks like the siphon doesn’t have to make my point for me because we both know you’ve gone soft for her. “

“I can still skin you alive!” Klaus threatened him by shoving his fangs and wolf eyes to him.

Stefan enters the conversation before things get worse. “This isn't really helping too much.”

Bonnie walks out of the house. “I might have an idea. My mom used a desiccation spell on Michael that immobilized him for over 15 years. If I can get it, I might be able to use it on Alaric.”

Klaus tilted his head to the side at the witch. “If and might your words inspire such confidence.”

Bonnie stepped up to him not caring that he didn’t have faith in her. “I'll get it. But even with the spell, we need a lot of vampire muscle to take him down, including yours.”

“I can do an invisible spell that way Alaric won’t sense us instantly. Then you all can get the jump on him. I should be able to find Elena and get her out in time.” I clasped my hands together eyeing the hybrid standing beside me who just lightly smirked at me. Yet his eyes fell to the black veins that still remain on her arms.

Klaus came up behind me wrapping his arms around my waist and placing his chin on my shoulder. “Just so we're clear. The sun sets in about 8 hours. We don't succeed before then, Elena will be dead, I'll be gone with my girl Raelyn here and the rest of you will be left to fend for yourselves.”

Holding tightly onto Nik’s right hand we entered the high school where the Salvatore brothers could see that I was siphoning him by our intertwined hands but it wasn’t hurting the hybrid as much as they thought since he had willingly offered. Walking through the hallways I whispered to them. “Damon, Stefan, once you aren’t near me the spell will not work. So you’ll have to hide on your own - Caroline?”

Nik vamped away from me and grabs her from behind covering her mouth with his hand so that she can't scream. “Shhh. It's okay. It's okay. It's me. It's okay. You're safe. We'll save Elena. You go straight home, you stay inside. Do you understand?”

He turned her around to face him until I placed a hand on his shoulder undoing the invisible spell. “Hey Caroline. We’re here to get you and Elena out of here. But you have to go now. “

Klaus asked her, still holding her by her shoulders. “Do you understand me?”

Caroline nods, vamping away from us. “Thank you. Both of you.”

“You need to leave, Rae.” Nik turned to face me looking around to make sure that Alaric wasn’t around somewhere near us. “It’s not safe here for you.”

I baked instantly back to the hybrid. “I’m not going anywhere without you, together forever right. So if you are walking into an almost certain death then I will too. Besides you know I can kick some supernatural ass just like you can.”

“Raelyn, “ He started but cut himself short. “Fine, you’re right, we stick together always. And we will make it out of this together.”

He vamped us as close as we could get hearing Damon shout vamping behind Ric trying to hold him down. “Do it now!” Alaric throws Damon off of him and snaps Stefan's neck, dropping him to the ground. Damon tries to attack Alaric, but he breaks Damon's neck, too.

Klaus appears and thrusts his hand into Alaric's heart making him scream in a loud tone until the pair vamped around the hallway in a fight and Ric managed to knock him down onto the ground being the stronger creature. Alaric stands above him and tries to stake him. “Alaric No! I love - I can’t lose him!”

Elena was holding a Knife to her throat when the three of us turn our heads in her direction . “Stop! Let him go or I'll kill myself.

Alaric told her. “Put it down, Elena.”

“I said don’t hurt him.” I raised my hand sending pain through the teachers mind where he vamped away from him my boyfriend for a moment slamming me against the locker where I was sure he would break my neck but he was back over Klaus in an instant.

Elena declared not lowering the blade allowing me the chance to get to my feet even with barely any strength remaining in me. “Why, because you still need me alive? There's a reason why Esther used me to make you, isn't there? She didn't want you to be immortal, so she tied your life to a human one. Mine. That way you have only one life span to kill all vampires and then you'll be gone. So when I die, you die too. That's it. It has to be!”

Alaric thought she was bluffing. “You're wrong.”

“Am I?” Elena begins to cut herself where blood runs down her throat.

But he changed his mind in the next second giving Nik the opportunity to push him and knock the stake away from him. “Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop!” Nik managed to grab Elena and I latched my hand onto his forearm vamping away with them.

Once we reached the house I winced stumbling against the doorway in one of the rooms that he was draining Elena of her blood in. “Woah, love. What's the matter. Tell me what's wrong?" Klaus vamped beside me gently holding my arm seeing that my nose was beginning to bleed a little too.

"I think it's my magic. But I don't understand. I thought this wasn't supposed to happen because of our link now." I wiped the blood away with my other arm.

Klaus vamped me to sit down beside Elena coming back with a glass of water in his hand but also offering his wrist. "Which do you want, love. Normal way or blood way?"

"Blood." I croaked out knowing that whatever was wrong it would heal me faster. He bites into his left wrist holding it out to me where I wrapped my fingers around it pushing through the bitter taste until I was starting to feel better.

He brushed hair behind my ear leaving the room for a moment. "There you go, Rae."

"Why are you with someone like him, Raelyn. You’re a snarky girl but nothing like him." Whipping my head around I eyed the girl he was draining of blood. Did I feel bad for her, yes. But at least she has people who care about her.

Getting up from the chair I stood in front of her. "You don't know anything about who he really is, Elena. Just like you don't know anything about me."

"Raelyn, please help me…Tyler." She begged before I saw the werewolf behind me.

Noticing something in his hands, it was a needle filled with some sort of liquid. "What the hell is that, hybrid Lockwood?" I asked, backing into a corner not sure what he was about to do.

"Sorry siphon but we can’t take the chance you'll stop us." He said vamp shoving me against the wall about to poke me in the throat.

Klaus grabs Tyler by the throat when he vamped back into the room and pushes him against a wall. "Goodbye, Tyler." I dropped onto my knees thinking he was about to kill him when Klaus tries to rip Tyler's heart out of his chest, but Tyler twists his arm around. Damon and Stefan come into the room. Damon grabs Klaus's other arm and Stefan thrusts his hand into Klaus' chest.

"Nik - Argh!" I rose to my feet when he started screaming only to drop down on one knee clutching my heart inside my chest in agony beginning to cry heavy tears. Bending my head down I winced sharply seeing that he was starting to turn gray and get veins all over his body by what they were doing. Forcing myself to my feet I removed the linking ring raising my hands up until I grabbed a hold of Damon and Stefan's shoulders siphoning from them. "Magia tollux de terras-"

"Raelyn no!" Klaus shouted, fighting against their grip. He could see the veins turning really black again after she had removed the ring and wasn't siphoning or linked to his life force anymore meaning that her magic could certainly kill her now.

Fighting through tears I kept chanting the spell feeling both brothers grip starting to loosen. "Magia tollux de terras. Magia tollux de terras!"

"Grab her!" Stefan grunted so he and Tyler were the ones holding the hybrid.

Damon vamped forward pushing me against the wall holding me by my throat making me wince. "Damon,...please don't." I begged the raven haired vampire.

"We can't have you in the way." He picked up the needle sticking it into my throat, lowering my body to the floor where I began to hear my own heartbeat inside my chest.

Damon went over to Elena. Stefan and Tyler finally let go of Nik when his body wasn't moving so I raised my hands seeing my vision blur in front of me trying my best to remain awake. "Imperium fluctus malleus. Imperium fluctus malleus. Imperium fluctus malleus!" Everyone in the room suddenly dropped to the ground by the shock wave leaving the vampire brothers and hybrid to hold their heads with me chanting the spell over and over until I blacked out on the wooden floor.

Waking up a few hours later I frantically looked around snatching the ring, placing it on the ground doing a silent locator spell that transported me to a storage unit. Walking around the unit I heard someone following me where I spun around shoving the figure against the wall meeting Damon Salvatore. "Give me one reason I shouldn't kill you right now for what you did to him!"

"Agh…we're trying to save him!" He grunts trying to break free but I clenched my fist tightly more.

Someone vamped at us where I turned my head at the voice seeing Rebekah was back in town. "Because he told me his plans and I went home to find you. But you beat me to the punch, Rae."

"You're a bastard, Damon Salvatore. Now take me to him!" I growled, dropping my hand letting him catch his breath.

Damon, Rebekah and I are about to put the coffin in the trunk of a car but Alaric arrives, catches Rebekah by the hair. Punches her head against the car and then throws her on the floor "Urgh!" She grunted.

Damon rushes toward him but Alaric kicks him and is thrown on the floor too. Raising my hand I sent pain through the teachers head where he vamped in front of me. "You annoying witch. Right after I kill him I'm going to kill you!"

"Well see about that." Shoving my other hand against his chest I bared my teeth chanting a spell that I didn't remember being taught meaning that it must be one of Esther’s spells that I now have the ability to do when I siphoned her magic from her. "Tenebris anima vestra contundito mortem et conteret spiritum. Frange vitam nolite corde ut sub terra esse, ad tenebras usque in sempiterrnum."

Alaric grabbed his chest almost collapsing to the concrete floor where I thought he was about to die until he drew the white oak stake from behind his back hitting me upside the head with it where Alaric opened the coffin. “Ah! Klaus!”

Rebekah screams. “No!”

Damon shouted back at him too. “No! Don't!” She gets up and screams but Alaric drives the stake through Klaus' heart.

I forced myself to my feet. I gasped sharply, holding a hand over my heart feeling flames almost inside my chest. Gripping my hands into fists on the hard floor I groaned through tears and anger for what he just did. “Klaus! You just killed the man I love.”

Damon gets up and puts himself in front of Rebekah while she was screaming and crying. Damon is holding her but he's in shock. Klaus's body bursts into flames. Alaric looks at them, takes the stake from the burning body and then closes the coffin. He turns himself toward them. "Next."

Pushing myself to my feet I watched my vision beginning to blur and I was almost not able to stand on my feet. I charged forward, shoving my hand against Alaric’s heart chanting the spell again seeing that the veins grew at a faster rate glaring daggers into his eye. “Tenebris anima vestra contundito mortem et conteret spiritum. Frange vitam nolite corde ut sub terra esse, ad tenebras usque in sempiterrnum!”

“No, get off me!” Rebekah cried fighting against Damon watching me seeing that my whole arm was covered in veins but I didn’t pull away. “Raelyn no, he’ll kill you!”

Forcing my hand further against him I grunted feeling blood dripping from my nose until Alaric grabbed me by the throat holding me off the ground then launched me backwards into the pair. Damon grabbed my forearm helping me to stand while holding Bex back with his other. “Rebekah, run. Get Raelyn out of here now. Run!”

“I have to kill him!” I snarled but the blonde original wrapped her arms around me holding me back vamping me away with her.

She grunted in my ear where my whole body went numb in her arms and my heart slowed down. “I can’t let him kill you. Nik wouldn’t let me do that to you - Rae - Raelyn!”

#gemini runaway #klaus mikaelson x y/n #klaus mikaelson x oc #klaus mikaelson x reader fanfiction #klaus mikaelson fic #klaus mikaelson x reader #klaus mikaelson x witch reader #klaus mikaelson x you #joseph morgan #indiana evans #caroline forbes #tvd fanfiction #tvd #tvdu #tvd universe #tvd x reader #tvd fic #tvd fandom #damon salvatore #rebekah mikaelson #alaric saltzman #tyler lockwood #gemini coven #siphon witch #tvd siphon #the original hybrid #stefan salvatore #wattpad fanfiction #ask box is open for feedback #comments really appreciated

[ghastlybin]

Lost within myself - Dami

HOWDY HOWDY HAPPY BIRTHDAY KATIE (@panda-writes-kpop) I LOVE YOUUUUU THANK YOU FOR BEING MY FRIEND AND ALSO A FELLOW CLOWN, we love to see it. As you can tell by the AU,,, lol,,, Inspired by our past convos regarding the hunger games. I wanted to switch it up a little… Kinda. I hope you enjoy and that this didn't turn out bad^^ HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY 🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶🫶💜💜💜💜

Also added Taehyun because I needed another tribute since reader is a mentor. Also cause I love him and think he fits the concept somehow.

▾

▾Hunger games! AU ▾ Angst but also some fluff?? If you squint▾ Language & Violence ▾ Death implications ▾Tribute! Dami X Mentor! Reader▾ Y’all know the drill, also Dami has plot armor ▾ FT. Twice Tzuyu & TXT Taehyun. ▾ Taehyun has plot armor too ▾ Tzuyu has plot armor by default ▾ Yes, you are Haymitch. /J ▾ Ending is up for interpretation ▾

▾

W.C▾ 2.8K

pic credit to pinterest.

Everyone feared you.

Whether you wanted them to or not, they feared you. They hated you, even. You killed someone’s child after all. Their sibling, cousin, friend, crush, significant other— Someone who had younger people looking up to them.

You killed a person. People, for that matter.

It was just a game, right?

Games are supposed to be fun. No one was supposed to get hurt in a game.

It wasn’t fun knowing you were taking someone’s life.

It wasn’t fun knowing you were hurting more than one person each time you defended yourself, even if it were you or them.

They had the same goals you did, but only one of you could reach them.

You were the victor in the end.

Another victor with blood on your hands. But hey, you win.

Right?

▾

The ride to the Capitol was unbearably long. You remembered how it felt to ride in the train for the first time after the reaping. How you volunteered for your friend that you don’t see much anymore. The last time you felt alive and not like some monster that ruined other people’s lives.

You were the Capitol’s favorite though.

“Don’t mope around. We have guests.” Tzuyu nudged you. You sat up straight, rolling your shoulders back.

Your expression didn’t change, but you weren’t zoned out and staring outside.

“Do you want me to be happy for them?”

Tzuyu smiled at the tributes before giving you a threatening glare.

“Next car. Now.” She said through gritted teeth.

You got up without a word and followed her into the next car.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t intend to come off as rude.” You apologized right away when the door closed.

“You did. They are already scared, the least you can do is smile for them and help them become more comfortable. Would it really kill you to try?” Tzuyu kept her tone low enough to where you could hear but the tributes couldn’t.

“You’re their mentor now! No body ever survives with a pessimistic mentor.”

“No body survives with an optimistic one either.” You retorted. Tzuyu sighed, shaking her head.

“Please, just try. For them? They need your help more than ever. No body asks for this.”

“Careers.” You mumbled, earning another glare.

Tzuyu glanced through the window of the door, seeing the two tributes sitting and actively avoiding each other. You remembered how you were when you were in their shoes.

Avoiding the other tribute, knowing it would come down to you or them in the end. Even though you had long forgotten the name of the other person you were reaped with, it still wrenched your heart to remember there had been another person with you.

“Tzuyu. Only one of them can survive.” You reminded. Tzuyu acknowledged with a frown.

“I will try my best. Can’t believe they are making me raise murderers.” You mumbled the last bit, walking back into the other car with the tributes.

They both looked at you and Tzuyu. You smiled for them, even if it was forced.

“I apologize for being rude. How are you two holding up?” You asked them, trying to sound as sincere as possible. Tzuyu furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

“Why do you sound like that?” She asked.

“What?”

“Like a… Servant— You sound very fake.”

“No I don’t.” You defended yourself with a scoff, glancing at the two tributes.

“Yes. Yes, you do.”

“Do I sound fake?” You asked the two tributes. They seemed confused on whether they wanted to nod or shake their heads.

Yubin stood up, avoiding your question all together and held her hand up for you to shake.

“I’m Yubin.”

There was something about her that interested you. It wasn't just how gorgeous she was either.

At the Capitol, you couldn't focus on much. All you could think about was Yubin.

A silly little crush, some might say.

It even went as far as forgetting you were the mentor. Not Tzuyu, who at times had to speak for you after so many tries of getting you to focus.

It was your first year as a mentor, after all. You were still the Capitol’s favorite shell of a person.

“What if the Career’s try to recruit you? What would you do?” Tzuyu asked the tributes. You realized you never got the other tribute’s name.

It was only Yubin. Yubin. Yubin.

It was already too late to ask for the other tribute’s name.

Too awkward.

You put your drink down.

“Don’t get close to anyone. You’ll only feel betrayed.”

Tzuyu cleared her throat, “hate to admit it, but it’s true. There will only be one survivor. If it’s not one of you, it’ll be a career you trusted.”

▾

“Anything you want to say to them before they go into training?” Tzuyu asked, crossing her arms. You smiled at them.

“Good luck.”

Tzuyu lightly slapped your arms. You sighed.

“Work on what you know you’re good at. Don’t bother learning new stuff until you’ve perfected what you know.” You advised more seriously.

“Yubin, you’re smart. If I were you, I’d focus on your familiarity with plants, the terrain, survival skills. The difference between a mound and a mine.”

You looked at the other tribute, who seemed surprised you were actually being a mentor.

“And you… Er…” You admit, you felt bad for never learning his name.

“Taehyun.” Tzuyu whispered to you. You awkwardly smiled.

“Taehyun. You’re good with knives. Focus on that.”

“Ah, so you do know something about me.” Taehyun joked. You crossed your arms.

“You are forgetting something though.” He added. You raised your eyebrows, waiting for him to continue.

“I’m good at being invisible.”

You weren't sure if he was just joking to make fun of you for only focusing on Yubin or if he was serious.

“Taehyun, I'm so sorry. I don't usually—”

“I'm serious. I’ve won every game of hide and seek I’ve played.” Taehyun proudly stated.

“Knives and camouflage. Good. Awesome. You two know what to focus on now.” You looked at the two, feeling a sense of pride for getting stuck with the smart tributes and not the reckless ones.

When they left you and Tzuyu waited.

More waiting.

“You did good. Sort of.”

“Sort of?” You questioned, slightly offended. Tzuyu put her hand on your shoulder.

“I’m disappointed that you only remembered one of their names.”

You groaned, sitting down, “do you want me to write Taehyun’s name five hundred times to make sure I remember it next time?”

“That’s not a bad idea.” Tzuyu sat beside you. You threw your head back, staring at the ceiling above you.

“Do you like Yubin?”

“What do you mean?”

Tzuyu narrowed her eyes at you, “you know what I mean. I see the way you look at her when she’s talking or doing anything. I saw the way you froze when she shook your hand. I have never seen you exhibit this kind of behavior before.”

“Is it really out of character to have a crush?” You closed your eyes. Tzuyu smiled a little.

“It’s… How do I put this… Unrequited.”

You opened your eyes again, still staring at the ceiling in such a neck breaking position.

Unrequited seemed to fit. Yubin was a tribute.

She had a one out of twenty-four chance of survival. Even after, a kind-hearted person like Yubin wouldn’t be the same after if she won.

You sure as hell weren’t.

▾

You, Yubin, Taehyun, and Tzuyu sat around the TV waiting for their scores. You pretty much tuned out every other tributes scores from other districts, knowing they’d most likely be average or poor while the careers had the highest.

It was always like that.

You were in the poor range, as hard as it was the believe. A score of three.

So how did you manage to survive?

You were just a person, killing to survive. Dying to live.

“Oh! Pay attention!” Tzuyu excitedly smacked your arm. Yubin chuckled, inching her hand towards yours as Taehyun’s score were first.

You absentmindedly curled your fingers around Yubin’s hand.

Nine.

“Holy shit.”

“Language.” Tzuyu scolded, although she was impressed. Taehyun even seemed surprised.

“Good job, er… What is your name again?” You joked. Taehyun threw a grape at you.

“Very funny.” Taehyun looked back at the screen as Yubin came up.

You were now consciously aware that Yubin was holding your hand. Whether she intended it or not, she squeezed your hand in anticipation.

Eleven.

“Holy shit.” Tzuyu muttered under her breath.

“Sorry.” She immediately apologized. You grinned, “did I hear you correctly?”

“Quiet.”

Yubin’s eyes were glued to the TV in shock, wondering how her smarts got that high of a score.

“You got an eleven. Do you know who the last person to get an eleven was?” You asked Yubin, placing your other hand over hers.

“No, was it you?” Yubin asked while her score registered.

“Absolutely… not.” You had a huge smile on your face. “I got a three.”

Yubin scoffed at your response.

“I got a nine.” Taehyun reminded. You gave him a thumbs up.

“I can hack into the system and make it higher—”

“Hey!” Tzuyu slapped your arm. “Don’t say that out loud. Are you trying to get us raided by peacekeepers?”

You cleared your throat and looked at Taehyun again, whispering this time.

“I can hack into the system and make it higher.”

▾

It was the night before the games and your chest felt heavy, knowing your new friends— as well as your budding romance with Yubin— would be coming to an end sooner than you were ready.

You almost forgot that you were raising murderers despite the countless times Tzuyu reminded you.

“Well, I’m headed off to sleep. Goodnight.” Taehyun was the first to leave for the night. Assuming he just wanted to get it all over with.

Tzuyu was next, although she seemed on edge about how tomorrow would turn out.

Then there were two. You and Yubin.

Yubin stood on the balcony, overlooking the Capitol.

“Hey there, eleven.”

Yubin smiled, already knowing who you were without looking back.

“Hey, three.”

You couldn’t help but laugh, “okay, well this three still survived.”

Yubin laughed half-heartedly and you could tell something was wrong.

Probably the fact she’ll need to fight for her life in an arena of other tributes doing the same.

“What was it like for you? In your games?”

Your smile faded slowly and the pain you’ve held inside became more prominent. You tried so hard to push the memories away despite them being everywhere.

“Full story or a summary?” You slowly joined her, leaning against the railing of the balcony with her,

“You pick.”

You took a deep breath, forcing yourself to recall the memories for Yubin’s sake.

“My name wasn’t called during the reaping. My friend was supposed to be there. But she panicked when she had to go up on stage and I volunteered on a whim.”

Yubin listened to everything you said, admiring your bravery.

“So you do care about people.” Yubin slightly smirked. You lightly nudged her.

“Of course I do. I wasn’t good with most skills others possessed. That’s why I got a three. In the arena, I was terrified and even… I don’t know. I wish I could go back and tell myself to not be so reckless.” You frowned.

“You lived because you were reckless. If I live, it’s because I was the opposite.” Yubin rubbed her hands together. You thought about what she said.

Would you have died if you were more cautious?

“I’m not afraid of dying,” Yubin turned to face you. She grabbed your shoulders to force you to face her as well.

“I’m afraid of losing who I am.”

She smiled at you, but it was sympathetic.

“It’s not too late to find yourself. I loved the moments when I could see the real you coming out. I hope you can learn to forgive yourself for something you were forced to do.”

With that sentence leaving you in a state of shock that gutted you, you stood there, silent as the tears welled up in your eyes.

“I know you’re rooting for me. I’m rooting for you too.” Yubin whispered, kissing your cheek before walking away.

“Goodnight.”

▾

You were coming to terms with everything. Your past and what Yubin said to you that night.

You watched the cornucopia on a screen with Tzuyu.

When everyone ran off of their podiums, Taehyun and Yubin ran their separate ways in the chaos.

Yubin was immediately chased by a group of four careers.

The careers sought her out, knowing they would be unable to recruit her before the games. She knew her score was too high as she ran through the forests. You knew her score was too high.

If they didn’t recruit her, they’d have to target her first.

“Don’t get close to anyone. You’ll only feel betrayed.”

Yubin slid down a slope and into a river, screaming before she was submerged under the water.

You watched, some how determined that she would survive.

And she did, quickly getting up and splashing to the other side as the careers watched her from the slope she slid down.

You smiled a genuine smile knowing they hadn’t got her yet.

Yubin hid on higher ground, using her wits to guide her. Luckily, no one found her or even came to that part of the arena.

She had to be careful about the borders too, knowing what to watch out for.

Yubin spent her first night alone, exhausted and watching each picture of the fallen tributes in the sky.

None of whom she’s met before.

As the days went by, Yubin was alone. No sign of other tributes— Other than the fallen ones that appeared in the sky after the cannon shots.

There were four tributes left, including Yubin.

You watched the screen carefully, supplying her with a parachute that contained food so she wouldn’t have to risk running into one of the other tributes.

Yubin watched as the parachute made it’s way to her, catching it. Yubin looked up at the sky, mouthing a desperate ‘thank you.’

That night, only one tribute died.

It was now Yubin, Taehyun, and a career from District 2.

The next day, the cornucopia was announced to be replenished with food, water, weapons— The essentials.

You knew it was the gamemaker’s way of getting the three together. The ones left knew where the cornucopia was and that they may need the supplies.

Yubin knew how to forage for food. She knew how to purify the water.

But it was growing difficult to find food that wouldn’t kill her or poison her.

It was difficult purifying water she didn’t have the tools for.

So Yubin made her way back to the cornucopia.

So did Taehyun and so did the career from District 2.

You and Tzuyu anxiously watched, although glad someone from your district made it this far— Let alone both of them.

That just made it all the more harder to watch.

The three tributes standing stared at each other, eyeing each other’s movements.

Yubin didn’t want to fight. She was probably the only tribute that hadn’t killed anyone.

Taehyun lost every knife he had over the past few days.

The career seemed the most ready to fight than the other two.

The standoff dragged out for an unnecessarily long time.

“Fuck.” You muttered. Tzuyu glanced at you with curiosity.

In an attempt to help out, you sent the one thing you saved as an absolute last resort. Your secret.

Watching the small parachute floating down towards Yubin, Taehyun, and the career didn’t make it any less tense.

“I don't want to die.” Yubin declared, all of her fear and sorrow building up inside of her.

The parachute landed in between them, and on instinct, Yubin stepped backwards. Taehyun glanced at Yubin, taking a step back also as the career stepped closer to the parachute.

“I don’t want to die.” She repeated with tears welling into her eyes.

She was telling the truth in the words she spoke. You’ve seen it all before because you were there once too. You didn’t want to die when you were in the arena. Why else would you have fought that hard?

“I’m not afraid of dying.”

The truth hurts.

“I’m afraid of losing who I am.”

But secrets kill.

#dreamcatcher imagines #dreamcatcher au #dreamcatcher x reader #dreamcatcher fics #dreamcatcher angst #dreamcatcher dami imagine #dreamcatcher dami x reader #dreamcatcher fanfic #Happy birthday katie!!!!!!!!

[emmy-dekarios-bg3]

Heart of the Weave - A Baldurs Gate fanfiction - part 3

Chapter 4 {not my favorite chapter I’ve written but I promise it gets 10x better}

{View my pinned post for the link to my full fanfiction!}

Gale, Jenevelle, and I finally head home after catching up with Rolan, and Karlach will be meeting us there shortly. We hold hands as we stroll calmly on the brick road through the quiet city of Waterdeep, and Gale is studying my face but trying not to be too obvious about it, though I’m very observant.

“Baby–”

“I know you’re wondering if anything is wrong, and there is. Listen, I saw Gortash, Orin, and Ketheric. Remember at the cookout after I had Jenevelle, and even my baby shower, when I blacked out and heard voices talking about the Absolute? It was them the whole time. This was different though, I saw them.” He stops walking for a moment, gently grabbing my shoulder to catch my attention as he tries to reflect on the word vomit that spewed out of me.

“Hold on, what do you mean you saw them?”

“While we were eating breakfast with Rolan, I blacked out again like I did over two years ago and they showed up. It’s not exactly clear what they wanted from me, but Gortash guilt-tripped me for not dominating the brain.” Gale remains calm and continues to hold my hand despite my outburst. Man, I really don’t feel myself.

“They’re dead, my love. They can’t force you into some preposterous gimmicks, I promise you that. Whatever message they’re trying to convey to you, it’s to get your blood boiling. Why would they wait such a stretch of time to pursue you again?” He has a point. There’s something that isn’t quite adding up. Why in the Hells would they come after me now, after all the time that’s passed? What could they possibly want from me? Well, other than their vengeance and having my cold blood all over their hands. It’s been four years since I’ve killed all three of those evil bastards.

“I love you. My love, my goddess. It will be alright,” he adds.

We make it back home and I decide to get some gardening done to help ease my mind from the chaos that just never wants to end. It’s so relaxing and puts my mind at a temporary rest, feeling the sunshine on my face as I inhale the scent of fresh herbs and pluck vegetables from the ground. The tranquil song of the ocean waves calms my brain and gives me relief.

Gale comes outside to join me for a moment while he holds Jenevelle in his arms.

“Oh, hello you!” My voice is full of cheer as I observe him approaching me. He smiles, watching me pluck some strawberries and placing them in the woven basket next to me.

“How are you holding up, my love?”

“Much better,” I reply enthusiastically as I stand up, wiping droplets of sweat off my forehead. “Maybe I needed some sunshine or to just partake in my love for gardening.” I gently take the baby from his arms so I may nurse her before Wyll and Karlach arrive.

“That’s…well, that’s great to hear honestly… I was truly worried about you.” I hesitate for a moment, raising an eyebrow as I study his facial expression. I’m under the impression he thought I was making it up or something related to that matter.

“Wait, you do believe me, don’t you? You believed me when I said I saw the Chosen Three?”

“It’s not that I don’t believe you. I’m just genuinely curious as to why they would come back after all this time. My inquiring mind is also curious how they’re able to even communicate with you if they’re deceased, especially for so long. It’d be different if you were trying to communicate with them considering there’s a spell for that, but the dead reaching out to you?” Now that he says it out loud, it does sound ridiculous and my mind could possibly be playing tricks on me, but what I saw was very much real.

“Everything you’ve asked were all questions I’ve asked myself,” I mutter, followed by a sigh of defeat. What would explain the unsettling presence within our bedroom, then?

I hear Karlach and Wyll approach the gate to our backyard, but what gave it away was Karlach shouting, “Aye! Are you guys home?!”

“Come on in, you two,” I say, unlocking the gate. They both enter our yard and we all sit down at the little round mahogany table on the porch. This table was passed down generations by Gale’s family, given to us by his own mother. I place Jenevelle in her little rocker so she may get some sunlight and possibly fall asleep.

“So, what’s going on? Are you two doing alright?” Wyll asks, his voice hinting at concernment. I sigh, hoping Gale actually believes me and they will as well. Yes, we’ve been through some rather traumatic situations with the Chosen Three, but they have not crossed my mind in ages. What I saw was real.

“Do you all remember at my baby shower when I fainted and I heard those haunting voices screaming at me about the Absolute? Well, at breakfast today, I blacked out and saw them. Y’know… Gortash, Orin, and Ketheric. Gortash was going on about some nonsense, how I should have dominated the brain, and… Well, after that, he said we’d talk again soon.” Wyll and Karlach’s eyes widen as they drink in this wild information that could possibly convince them I’m crazy.

“Whoa, how on earth is that even possible? Are they doing this to anyone else?”

“I’m not sure, Wyll. From my understanding, it’s just me. Who else would they target?” Gale, Wyll, and Karlach all simultaneously exchange worried glances, and I can tell they aren’t believing me. Or rather, they think I’m dealing with the after effects of severe trauma. “Wow. None of you believe me, huh?”

“Well, it just doesn’t–”

“Trust me, Karlach. I know. Out of everything that’s happened on our adventures, you all believe this is what’s nonsense?” My heart feels enraged, and I’m trying to control it. This isn’t me; what’s happening right now?

“My love, breathe. Please. We believe you. It’s just an unusual predicament is all.” I give Gale a light smile and take his hand within mine, closing my eyes as I feel the calmness of nature overwhelm me. I take a deep breath, then exhale the tension that was built up inside me. Whatever is happening, it’s causing me not to act myself and I have to fight it.

“You’re right, I’m sorry. I was just really hoping I’d never see their horrible faces ever again.”

“So, what exactly did they want from you, Emmy?” Karlach asks. “I’m still in total shock over this whole ordeal.”

“Gortash’s message was so vague, but I suppose I’ll know more details later. Right now, it’s just a waiting game.” Gale places his hand on my back, rubbing it gently with reassurance. He’s worried about me and it shows, but I smile back at him to assure him I’m okay. I’m immortal after all, they can’t touch Jenevelle, Gale, or myself.

“Well, count us in if you need any assistance at all,” Wyll comments. “You know we’re always down to help and kick some bloody arse. For what Gortash did to my father, I can’t fathom having that cruel man come back from the grave. We can’t let him cause any more harm.”

I’m so glad our friends have my back, and that they see I’m telling the truth. Now to only find out what secret is hiding away from me that could potentially be a danger to the whole world, or maybe just myself. Either way, I’m eager to find out so we can stop it.

#bg3 #baldurs gate 3 #gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #karlach #dnd #gale x tav #dungeons and dragons #wyll x karlach #halsin #Orin #gortash #ketheric #ao3 #archive of our own #bg3 fanfic #baldurs gate 3 fanfiction

[the-shattering]

Chapter 14: Confrontation

Torvola couldn’t shake the sense of déjà vu that washed over her as she opened her door later that night to see Venera on the other side. How was it that even out of her fancy robes and dress, clad in a plain linen shift, and her hair down that she still looked so regal? Well … perhaps Torvola was a bit biased. Torvola stepped aside to let Venera into her chambers, remembering all the times before that Venera had paid her a late night visit. Though, she felt that this visit would go a bit more differently than the ones before.

Torvola closed the door and turned to face Venera.

“I missed you at dinner; I hope you’re well,” Venera said.

“Yes,” Torvola replied, “I just …”

She trailed off, looking for the right words to say, to describe how she felt and how she was still feeling. There weren’t any that came to mind.

“… I wasn’t feeling well,” she finished lamely.

Venera furrowed her brow, and she began to look Torvola over, “Is your shoulder alright? Did you get hit anywhere else? Do I need to call for a healer?”

“No,” she replied, “No it’s not that.”

“Then what is it?” Venera asked.

Torvola motioned for Venera to sit on one of the chairs, she noted that the nest of blankets and pillows that her guests had slept on the previous night were no longer there. She wondered if they had all found accommodations elsewhere — did Venera help with that? Torvola sat down in a chair across from Venera but didn’t relax. She felt tense and so very tired.

‘Just tell her,’ a tiny voice spoke up, ‘Tell her how you really are feeling.’

She knew that even after all this time, even after all she had done, Venera still loved her deeply. Torvola took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and tried to relax. She leaned forward and rested her forearms on her knees.

“… It’s hard … coming back here,” she finally said as she looked down at her hands clasped in front of her.

“Not because of you,” she added quickly and looked up at Venera, “It’s everything else.”

Venera nodded, “I understand,” she said.

A small part of Torvola bristled in annoyance — how could she understand? She was so damn happy after they had retaken the city, so damn happy she had claimed her place on the throne. Everyone celebrated that week while Torvola mourned. How could Venera possibly understand the pain she felt?

She felt broken. She had nearly killed Guin today and she wondered why she couldn’t have had that response that night on the hill when it actually mattered? She couldn’t sit still anymore. Venera blinked in surprise as Torvola abruptly stood up and stalked over to the window. She looked out over the city in the dwindling twilight, clouds arced across the darkening skies, painted red in the light of the sun that had just dipped below the horizon.

“We paid for this city in blood,” she said quietly. The red tinged sky brought back memories of the city in flames and of the blood of both her comrades and her enemies that ran through the streets.

“Blood that was willingly given,” Venera replied as she stood next to Torvola, “They knew the sacrifice they were making.”

“Did they?” Torvola asked softly though the pain in her voice was still evident, “Or did they only know of war from the songs of great warriors that the bards in their taverns sang?”

Torvola knew: No one knows exactly what they’re agreeing to until they actually have to experience it. No one knows of war, actual war, through happy songs of glory sung by the victors. To say otherwise would be a lie.

“If it weren’t for them … if it weren’t for you,” Venera said, “I would be dead and this land would still be under the rule of my father. A lot more blood would have been spilled if we didn’t act.”

“I’m not saying it wasn’t necessary,” Torvola said, “but it’s something I can’t forget or forgive myself for. No matter how hard I’ve tried — the war still weighs heavy on my mind.”

“You know,” Venera said as she rested a hand gently on Torvola’s shoulder. Torvola fought the urge to shrug it off, “It’s not a weight you have to carry alone.”

“So I’ve been told.”

“Tell me what’s going on Torvola. Let me help you,” Venera was almost pleading.

For a brief moment she had considered giving in but she shut that thought down. To even think of what to admit to Venera caused her pain. She trusted Venera with her life but even she couldn’t bring herself to admit that she felt weak and broken; that she felt like she was no longer the warrior that had stood by Venera’s side and loved her more fiercely than she fought. Whether her reluctance was due to her not wanting to admit her own weakness to herself or to Venera she wasn’t sure. All she knew was she couldn’t.

She just couldn’t.

“I can’t.”

“Can’t or won’t?”

Torvola looked from the window to Venera, surprised by the hard tone her voice had taken. Venera let her hand drop from Torvola’s shoulder, “You weren’t the only one suffering after the war and you certainly weren’t the only one hurting.”

Venera turned away from Torvola as if she couldn’t bear to look at her anymore. She walked towards the hearth and looked into the dying embers.

“You left me,” Venera said - the pain in her voice tore at Torvola’s heart and she took a step towards the queen.

“Venera-,”

Venera turned so quickly that Torvola took a few steps back, her heart racing at the sudden movement. If Venera noticed, she didn’t seem to care at the moment; she was caught up in her own grief and anger, “My realm was in shambles and I still had enemies wanting to take the throne I had just won. If there was any time I needed help, needed support … it was then and you weren’t there! I wanted to help you and I had to watch as you turned me away again and again.”

“Because you didn’t understand!” Torvola argued, “You never understood!”

Tears pricked her eyes and she blinked to keep them at bay. Her heart thudded painfully, her breath came out in ragged gasps as she fought to keep control of the rage, the grief, and the guilt that roiled inside her. No one could possibly know what she was going through and she didn’t know if she wanted them to. She was hurting, Venera wasn’t helping, and so she had to leave. Simple as that.

“You didn’t even bother to try and make me understand,” Venera shot back, “All you did was sit in this damn room and fucking brood. You barely said a word to me between the time we celebrated our victory and the time you snuck away in the middle of the night. You were too much of a coward to even say goodbye.”

Torvola finally snapped, “If you truly loved me, if you truly needed me, then you’d have come after me. You’d have sent your best men, your best trackers … damn it Venera you’d have rode to the coast yourself. I was out there for fifteen years and you didn’t even bother even send a fucking letter. I left you? You were the one who left me.”

There was a long, quiet moment where neither woman dared breathe as they stared into each other’s eyes. The pain in Venera’s expression was too much and Torvola finally blinked and looked away. Thoughts and emotions tumbled in her mind like rocks in a landslide, leaving her without any words to say over the chaos in her head.

“You aren’t the woman I fell in love with,” Venera finally said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Torvola looked up sharply, opening her mouth to say something, say anything to refute this. That she was still the brave warrior that Venera had fell in love with. She was still the selfless woman that would throw her life down to save the woman she loved. She was still the brilliant tactician who thought out every detail of a battle plan carefully, taking every contingency into account. Then she thought to that night on the hilltop. The deaths that ensued because she wasn’t ready.

Saxus cut down in front of her while she turned heel and ran like a coward.

The words she were going to say died on her lips with her resolve.

Venera stared down at Torvola, a look of disappointment flashed across her features as if she were waiting for Torvola to put up a fight. To prove her wrong. She let out a long sigh and with tears pricking at her eyes she sharply turned her back on Torvola and walked out of the room. The door slammed shut behind her and Torvola was left standing alone in the dark room with cheeks glittering from the tears that now freely streamed down her face.

#part 1: fracture #the shattering web novel