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#i should just sleep and see how the world fares tomorrow
fish-and-forbear · 1 year
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Really just hope things will be okay. I know they will be, I know I have always done all I could with the information and means I had but.
Hindsight is 20/20 I suppose.
Just need to learn to forgive myself and move on, with many many things
- Fisher
#just thinking about a lot of things#I think we all just need a nap#drank water ate half a sandwich got blankets and a dog and the queue is full of funny and nice and thoughtful things#finally made a doctors appointment for my heart rate#didnt entirely destroy beautiful friendships so thats REALLY good#just thinking about. other relationships too (all kinds) and how talking so much and believing when people say its ok but its not#really end up hurting everyone. even though i try so hard to not do that#i need to learn to forgive myself#for a lot of things#because i did all i could to fix so many things and sometimes the most healthy and gentle thing to do is. just to stop trying#damn. thats really depressing. :c#i need a nap. everyone feels quiet and rattled. we just need to sleep and reset I think#i just. hate that I cause people distress by being myself. everyone wants me to be myself but time and time again no one actually stays#when they see what I am.#that doesn't feel entirely true. its just mean neurotypicals who do that. or. people who simply need more space#and thats never their fault. EVER. i just wish people knew I mean it when I tell them I want to support their boundaries and won't be upset#if something is wrong I just want to know so we can fix it... or find a better solution#just. need to learn to stifle my emotions a bit more. I've always been emotional and loved so strongly and felt so deeply.#this is all a mix of... sound reasoning and... just the tiredness talking.#i should just sleep and see how the world fares tomorrow#i just hope the people i care about who need space... don't entirely regret me meeting them.#my dear friend here at home seemed upset at us tonight for some reason and wont respond to my message#i hope she isnt upset for real. i am terrified that... some of the behaviors Grist has will remind her of a Bad Time#Grist means so well. but he can't meet her yet. That breaks my heart.
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1kook · 3 years
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skirt chasers — drabble iv
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THIS IS A SKIRT CHASERS DRABBLE - FIND THE OTHERS HERE ! SUMMARY Jungkook was a man. A skirt chaser. He could only withstand so much torture before he broke, and seeing your gorgeous, smooth legs on display after so many weeks of starvation awoke an ancient being inside of him. WARNINGS JK POV!!!, attempted solo masturbation, k*ssing, jk’s extensive knowledge of pornos, grinding, cunnilingus, face sitting, spit kink, light choking, praise kink, self nipple play, a love for boobies, unprotected sex, use of the pull out method, i love u kink, its kinda hinted tht oc has a somnophilia kink? not rlly but tagging just in case -_- RATING m (18+) WC 6.3k this can't even classified as a drabble anymore wtf 
NOTES i have had this in my drafts since may 3. it is december 21. everyone point n laugh. anyway i very much love stimbo sc jk and i think he’s very cool so here’s a whopping 6k of the inner mechanisms of his big nerdy, college hottie brain <3
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He doesn’t notice you’ve drifted off until he’s three solid paragraphs into his semester-long research paper. “Babe, can you toss me my charger it’s over…” 
 Jungkook swears he’s gonna take every single one of those stupid skirts and burn them to ashes. They had done their duty well, had given him the girlfriend of his dreams, but now they were just pushing their luck. What was once the epitome of a cute and sweet girlfriend, has now become the bane of Jungkook’s existence. He loathed them, he hated them, he could go twenty million decades without ever seeing them again because the torture they inflicted upon him was borderline inhumane. 
 Holy fuck, he knew you were gorgeous— hello, he was your boyfriend, thinking you were gorgeous was very high on the list of requirements you searched for in someone of his position —but he’s absolutely positive that you’re probably the sexiest woman he’s ever seen in all his twenty-two years. And Jungkook’s seen a lot of porn. Like, a lot. 
He can’t help himself. Before Jungkook knows it, he’s rolling his desk chair over to where you’re sprawled across his bed, skin so soft where it presses against his pillow, lips so plush, and he’s pretty sure there’s a tiny, tiny droplet of drool begging to escape from between your puckered lips. Normally, he’d tease you to hell and back for this, knows how flustered you become when he catches you off guard, but today he lets it slide in favor of focusing on something else about your dozing form. 
It’s the soft curve of your hips from where you lay on your side, smooth legs tucked close to you, and that goddamn pleated skirt giving you absolutely no protection from the eyes of the world around you. Luckily, he made sure to lock the door to his room when you came over today. And he’s almost positive Taehyung isn’t home anyway. So there’s no potential roommate to see you here, cuddled against Jungkook’s teddy bear, blue lace panties tucked between your folds. 
They were his favorite. 
Adorable and soft, and he knows that particular style— the cheeky kind —is your preferred style, because it’s the one he sees almost every time the two of you fuck. Seamless, because you hate when they tug against your skin, and baby blue simply because it was your favorite color. He can’t recall the last time they had been so exposed like this. 
God, how many times had this same situation occurred? You dropping by to encourage him to do his homework, before eventually falling asleep and leaving him to his own devices. A lot of times, Jungkook guesses, because each and every time you wake up and nab one of his protein bars from the stash by his bed. Jungkook’s gone through four boxes in the last month. 
But how many times had this happened with you in a skirt? Never. This was a rarity. 
As the year progressed and yours and Jungkook’s relationship reached new levels of intimacy and adoration, Jungkook is sad to say the skirts had begun appearing less and less. It was winter and, unlike the furnace that was Jungkook’s body, he’s pretty sure you were a cold-blooded reptilian at this point, always leeching off of him for warmth. So since you couldn’t stand the cold, the skirts slowly faded into the background, replaced by Jungkook’s second favorite: the leggings. 
He was no complainer, Jungkook respected your decisions! He wasn’t going to pressure you into wearing those cute tiny skirts he loved so much just because it fueled some PornHub-esque fantasy in his brain, especially not as a harsh winter descended upon you and the days became colder. He would not risk a sick girlfriend in the name of a horndog daydream. 
But holy mother of pearl, Jungkook was a man. A skirt chaser. He could only withstand so much torture before he broke, and seeing your gorgeous, smooth legs on display after so many weeks of starvation awoke an ancient being inside of him. 
Sure he’d seen them every time you guys fucked— duh. But this was not the same. It was different, seeing the tender skin of your inner thigh when he knew you weren’t trying to, your skirt stuck between you and the bed as you shifted about. It was different, knowing he could so easily have you, just flip up the skirt and tug your underwear to the side, not having to worry about fighting your leggings or skinny jeans down your legs. It was different and it was good, so painstakingly good, to have you in the skirt, but the worst part was Jungkook couldn’t even do anything because you were fucking sleeping. 
He’d subconsciously pictured you like this for weeks, sprawled out on his sheets in the flimsiest clothing and ready for him to just slide right in, but Jungkook was a good boy—you’d told him as much just last week when he’d paid the bus fare for that ragtag group of teenagers, smiling up at him like he was your entire world. Was he sometimes a little too mean, a little too wild? Yes. But at his core, Jungkook lived for your praise. He couldn’t just stomp on that title you’d so lovingly bestowed upon him, a title he’d worked hard for since! 
Furthermore, even if Jungkook wasn’t a good boy, to touch you in your sleep just seemed wrong. You’d mentioned in passing once that you wouldn’t mind as long as it was him (“I’m yours,” you had purred at some party, hand crawling down his abdomen, “your doll, remember?”), but Jungkook couldn’t bring himself to when you were so vulnerable and just… not there. It wouldn’t feel right to use your body when you weren’t awake, and no amount of encouragement from you would change his mind. 
So he does what all good boys do and prepares himself for a quick, self-administered handfuck. 
Sue him, his girlfriend was hot!
It’d been a little over two weeks since the last time the two of you had fucked, and it was mostly his fault; clinicals and research papers had practically consumed what little free time he had in his schedule. And if Jungkook remembers correctly, he wouldn’t be that lucky this upcoming week either. Something tells him your period was approaching. 
Jungkook doesn’t know what type of sorcery you’ve done to him, but in the time you’ve been dating, it’s become increasingly more and more difficult to nut without you. Whether that be fucking you, listening to your voice, or just imagining your pretty face in his head, you held a monopoly over Jungkook’s libido, one that he feared you’d never let go. 
He had years stacked on years of browsing PornHub and Brazzers, can recall experiencing some of the craziest orgasms of his life while watching some girl get fucked. All things come to an end. Ever since he started dating you, not even his favorite video could make him hard anymore. Oh, how the great have fallen. 
But with your blue panties before him, his cock hardens by the minute, nearly doubles in size when you move about and sigh a heavenly sound. Frankly, he doesn’t feel bad jerking one off to the thought of you. You were his girlfriend! He knows that you know that you’re the main character of all his right-handed adventures, and you’re not going to be mad at him for jerking off to you now. In fact, Jungkook imagines you’d be mad if he’d woken you up just for some frenzied quickie. This way, he’s blowing off some steam and you’re getting an extra ten minutes of napping. Everyone wins. 
He’s barely tugged himself out of the confines of his sweats when a soft mumble of his name has his soul leaving his body. “Kook?” 
“Baby,” he exhales, immediately tucking himself back into his underwear before moving closer towards you. You roll onto your back, skirt useless as fuck, he thinks, as it sprawls around your waist. “What’s up?” he murmurs, voice gentle, a hand carding through the nape of your neck because that’s how you always wake him up. Jungkook would be a liar to say it wasn’t one of the best feelings in the world. 
You say something, but it’s a mess of gibberish and too quiet for him to understand, before turning on your side again and shuffling closer to him. Jungkook smiles, runs the tips of his fingers over your cheek, before moving to caress your back, massaging some feeling back into your muscles. Some more mumbled words, but this time he deciphers them as something along the lines of “c’mere.” 
He chuckles, ducking down to kiss your cheek. “Don’t wanna interrupt your nap, baby,” he hums. “Go back to sleep.” 
You whine in protest, suddenly catching his hand in yours. “Please,” you sigh, eyes fluttering open, but they’re unfocused as you gaze at him. Jungkook clenches his teeth. Technically he should be working on that twelve page research paper, and even just trying to jerk off right now would have been a huge setback. Crawling into bed with you, where you’re so sinfully laid out for him to take, would completely offset his plans until tomorrow. He had to be a responsible student here. 
“I really gotta finish my paper…” he says, trying to let you down as gently as possible, flashing you an apologetic gaze. He thinks he has it in the bag, and your extended silence almost has him rolling back to his desk, when you suddenly snap into action. 
“But what about your dick,” you murmur, and Jungkook chokes. 
“My what—?” he splutters, voice a little too high. 
You say nothing, craning your neck to release a series of cracks, soft huffs leaving your lips. Jungkook’s on edge the whole time, eyes following the movement of your neck, the hypnotizing expanse of skin that bares itself to him. “Saw your hand down your pants,” you say, eyes blinking open, and though they’re droopy with sleep, at least you can hold them open this time. 
Jungkook laughs nervously, rubbing a hand against the back of his neck in embarrassment. “You saw that?” A soft hum. He wants to die. “Ah, baby, don’t worry about it. Know you’re tired, so just nap,” he sighs, caressing the back of your head once again, and he thinks he’s finally convinced you so he lets his guard down. 
You moan softly, and he’s almost entirely sure it’s one of those waking up types of sounds, the ones you make when you’re stretching around the bed in the morning. “Want your cock.” 
Jungkook swears he’ll die, right here, right now. 
He groans, lowers his head to rest on the mattress. “Jesus, fuck, baby,” he huffs, has to count to ten to will the stirring of his slowly hardening cock away for the second time that day. “Don’t say stuff like that when you’re half asleep, please.”
You ignore him, the hand that had been wrapped around his wrist tugging him closer. You barely succeed, muscles still so weak, but Jungkook humors you and rolls his chair right beside your head, where he ducks down to press a kiss to the corner of your mouth. “Noooo,” you whine when he draws away too quickly. 
A laugh blossoms in his chest, and Jungkook proceeds to rain down a series of kisses on your pretty face before he can stop himself. You melt under his touch, his affection, and Jungkook adores the way your body is so soft and pliant like this, back arching towards him after he places a hand on your waist. 
“Come here,” you urge, voice a quiet plea. So soft, so needy. 
Jungkook malfunctions for just a second before he’s clambering over you on the bed, manhandling your body until you're both on your sides, facing each other, with you pressed tightly to his chest. Even with your hands brushing up and down his back in the way that sends every nerve in Jungkook’s body tingling, and your leg thrown over his hip, some stupid part of him convinces himself you’re just cold, trying to warm up after walking around campus in that tiny little skirt all day. He cuddles you as best as he can. 
And even with his dick twitching in his pants and his caveman instincts yelling at him to thrust up into your inviting core, Jungkook remains as professional as someone in a relationship can be when in bed with their lover. He’s so stuck on his self-control that he almost doesn’t hear the snort you muffle against his neck. 
“What are you doing?” you laugh, reaching up to pinch his cheek. Jungkook blinks, eyes wide like a doe caught in headlights. “Are we gonna fuck or what?”
He chokes. He doesn’t even try to muffle his reaction like other times, because the way you’re looking at him and the heel you press against the back of his thigh preoccupies his thoughts instead. Your hands are still tracing along his back, melting him with your dainty touches. “Baby?” you question after he’s been silent too long, distracted by the way you use that hooked leg to tug your bodies closer. 
“You… you’re still asleep,” Jungkook says, though it’s definitely a question. 
You scoff, a smile curling around your features. “Mm, definitely not asleep,” you tease, and shift to push him onto his back, wiggling on top of him until those baby blue panties are pressed against his quickly hardening member. “Why? Wanted to touch me when I was asleep?” you continue, and Jungkook’s eyes nearly burst out of their sockets. 
“No!” he exclaims, hands clutching your hips in alarm. He can tell he surprises you, because your eyes go wide for a brief second. “Never…” he mumbles afterwards, looking away from your imploring gaze. “Only like you when you’re awake.” 
You sigh, pressing a sweet kiss to his cheek that makes his heart flood with adoration for you. “You’re a good boy, Jungkook,” you say back, just as quietly. “A blueprint for the perfect man.” Another kiss, this time against the corner of his mouth that makes Jungkook’s hands twitch against your sides. 
A soft moan tears itself from his throat, fingers digging into your hips as you slowly roll them against him. The heat emanating from your core seeps past the thin barrier of his sweatpants, makes his cock twitch in his boxers. He knows how it feels inside of you, has your body memorized like the back of his hand. But it’s in moments like these that he finds himself aching for you, desperate to feel the fluttering walls of your pussy, the pitiful whimpers that fall from your kiss swollen lips. And, well. The skirt makes it all too easy.  
He places two hands on the backs of your thighs, runs them up until he’s pushing your skirt up over your waist. You pull away from his lips with a sneaky little smile, pointer finger stroking down the side of his face lazily. “Mm?” you tease, leaving a coy little peck against his mouth. “Now you wanna touch?” Jungkook rolls his eyes, snaps his teeth at your wandering finger when you draw it too close to his mouth. The giggle you let out is so damn precious, makes him want to put you in a glass case and never let anyone else touch you. Coincidentally, it also makes him want to rail you into the mattress until you cry. 
“I’ll fucking ruin you, doll,” he settles on murmuring, subtly pushing you down against him. A soft giggle. Jungkook knows it’s your favorite nickname, even if you won’t admit it. He's the only one allowed to call you it, something about his intentions being pure or whatever, he’s not really sure. Anyway, you’re still so cute and soft on top of him, blinking slowly and prettily, so he’s dragging it out a bit, hoping you’ll become more alert in a few more minutes. 
As sleepy as you may be, you never miss out on a chance to rile him up. “As if, doll,” you retort, his nickname for you rolling off your tongue seamlessly. It sounds heavenly, sparks this weird emotion in him that he never considered before. Him, a doll? No way. But there’s something about the sweet lilt of your voice, the starry-eyed gaze you level him with, that has him throwing all reservations aside. Put him on a shelf and call him Barbie, because he would be anything you wanted him to be. 
Anyway, Jungkook’s sappy thoughts last all of two seconds before he’s rolling you over, successfully trapping you beneath his body. “Oh, so scary,” you feign, hands fluttering to clutch at your chest. 
He glides his hands down your body, let’s them trail over your hip and down the side of your thigh. “Don’t get sassy with me,” he warns, thumb peeking beneath the hem of your skirt. Jungkook really wants to burn the piece of fabric this time, because after all that time it spent torturing him with its halfhearted attempts at covering you, it chooses now to do it properly. 
Hands are thrown around his shoulders, the overwhelming scent of your perfume and body wash tickling his nose when you pull him in for another kiss. “Or what?” you purr, irises swirling with lust. “Gonna use your manly man strength to hold me down?” 
He shushes you with a kiss, slow and languid just how you like. Your taste is familiar, feels like coming home, so Jungkook can’t be blamed for getting too carried away. It starts gentle— it always does. But then a tiny mewl gets stuck in your throat, the following moan swallowed by his tongue, and Jungkook nearly loses it. He nips at your bottom lip, waits patiently for you to open up for him, and when you do he wastes no time diving in. Your tongue against his is slick and wet, makes the most lewd sound. Your little sharp intakes of air fill the gaps, shuddery breaths that Jungkook takes as a good sign. 
He strikes while the iron is still hot. 
It’s amidst your lazy kissing that he secures his hands around your waist, two reassuring squeezes thrown your way before he’s abruptly rolling onto his back again. “Kook!” you squeal, clutching at the front of his shirt. A pouty frown paints your face, sleepy eyes narrowing him with a rather unimpressed look, tainted with the barest hints of confusion. 
Jungkook grins, reaching back to yank his pillow out from beneath his head. “On my face,” he commands suddenly, and you snort. 
“What?” you ask a little incredulously, leaning back to level him with an even more lost expression. “Since when do we do that?”
Jungkook shrugs. “Since I decided twenty seconds ago,” he answers rather bluntly. You still don’t look too convinced. It’s not a position the two of you have ever tried. You’re a little on the sappy side, always like to look at his face while you fuck, hold his cheeks in your palms, kiss him sweetly. On the one hand, Jungkook totally gets it; he’ll proudly admit that the sight of your orgasming face paired with your fantastic tits have done him many favors these past few months. 
However, Jungkook is a lover of head. Giving or receiving, it’s very high on his list of sexual acts and whoever invented oral deserved all the praise in the world. Not only did you look drop dead gorgeous with his cock in your mouth— tears trailing down your cheeks, drool clinging to the corners of your lips —but you also looked absolutely sexy receiving it. 
Kinda. 
Probably. 
Okay, so maybe Jungkook can’t really say, considering he always has a hard time catching a glimpse of your face when he’s down there licking and slurping your clit like a madman. Which is what leads him to this exact moment, an experiment weeks in the making. Jungkook has a theory that needs to be tested. “Please ride the fuck out of my face,” he tries, hoping the polite tone will win you over. 
He’s met with an eye roll. Still, you’re kinder than you let on. “Okay,” you give in, and Jungkook will remember your heroism for the rest of his life. “But only because being on top is empowering.” He just barely contains an over-enthusiastic fist pump into the air, settling on a rather modest smile that has you leaning down to kiss him again. You reach for the zipper on the side of your skirt. “Just let me—“
“The skirt stays on,” he says quickly, hand on your wrist to stop you from removing his most favorite article of clothing. 
“Baby,” you say, giving him a rather serious look. “It’ll cover your face.”
“It won’t,” he urges, reaching for the buttons on your blouse instead. Jungkook has had one too many encounters with tops like these, and has long since learned not to tear them apart like a crazed psycho. As much as he loves the sound of your buttons scattering across his bedroom floor, he can’t say he’s too fond of the scolding he inevitably gets afterwards. Anyway, the shirt comes off and so does your bra, leaving your tits in his face, tiny skirt on your hips. “Get up here,” he murmurs, ushering you up his body until your knees are pressing into the mattress right above his shoulders. 
If it was up to Jungkook, he would have just grabbed your hips and shoved his face against your pussy. Luckily, it’s not, and your common sense shines through just in time. “One sec,” you say, and then finally, finally, the blue panties come off. 
And then it’s just Jungkook and your glistening pussy. 
“Holy fuck,” he groans, taking the opportunity to wrap his arms around your thighs. You squeak when he pulls you closer, hand instinctively reaching for the front of your skirt to hold away from his face. The view from here is heavenly, just your swollen clit, gorgeous tits, and shy face. 
The muscles in your thighs are a little stiff. Or maybe you’re just nervous. Jungkook isn’t sure, all he knows is that it takes one encouraging tug for you to finally sit on his face. He doesn’t even register the surprised gasp that leaves your throat because he’s too busy tasting your pussy from an all new position. And it’s absolutely amazing. 
Something about the position, having you carefully poised above him, does something to Jungkook. He likes to think he knows your body inside and out, knows what makes you melt and what makes you scream. He knows just how to lap at your cunt until you’re cumming, and how many fingers it takes for you to really feel it. But it’s like having you in this position changes all of that, rearranges all the tidbits of information Jungkook has spent months collecting. 
(Jungkook is a meticulous man; he’s got a near perfect GPA right now that was the direct result of his carefully crafted note-taking techniques. Whether or not he abused the power of his perfectionist learning abilities to master the mechanisms of his girlfriend’s libido was no one's business but his own.) 
One kitten lick against your swollen pearl makes you buck forward, clit brushing against his nose. Jungkook can’t remember you ever doing that on the first lick. “O- oh my—,” you cry, all airy and whiny. Your hand is pressed to the wall behind his bed, the other bunching the front of your skirt just above your mound. He’s rather happy to learn that, just as he’d hypothesized, this position does give him a better view of you. 
He’s graced with the sight of your face, twisted up in pleasure. It’s the stereotypical eyes squeezed shut, lip caught between your teeth look. But there’s something different about it knowing that he’s gotten this reaction out of you with his mouth alone. 
Jungkook quickly repositions you over him, tugging you back until his tongue is lined up with the front of your slit. You’re so warm down here, make him feel like he’s drowning with your heady scent alone. Tentatively, he lets his tongue dip between your folds, the very tip nudging your swollen clit. A moan tears itself from your throat, the hand that had been flush against the wall suddenly jumping forward to bury itself in his hair. “Oh- oh, fuck,” you shiver, hips jolting forward once more. 
You taste good on his tongue, the arousal that coats your lips is sticky and sweet. When he laps his tongue along your folds, quivering hole to stiffened bud, you let out a sob that resonates deeply within Jungkook. And also Jungkook’s cock, which stirs beneath his trousers in excitement. What was once the focus of his mission, a quick handfuck to sedate himself before finishing his research paper, has long since been forgotten. It’s for the greater good, he tells himself, blinking up at you from between your thighs. 
Eye contact lasts for exactly three seconds before you’re looking away bashfully, the fist clutching at your skirt trembling against your tummy. You’re so fucking pretty, Jungkook’s heart can’t take it. 
And so he sets out on a mission to make you cum as soon as possible, abandoning his slow kitten licks in favor of suctioning his lips around your clit. “Kook,” you wail, tugging at his hair. Whether you do it purposely or not, Jungkook is a little shocked by how good the pain feels. It’s not an emotion he can ponder long, because then you’re using that same grip in his hair to tilt his head backwards, jerkily moving over him. 
It’s rough and sudden, the buck against his face, but Jungkook loves it. The drag of your pussy against his lips, the wet glide of your juices smearing across his chin and Cupid’s bow. It all feels so good, and the fact Jungkook is getting a front row seat to the absolutely torn look on your face is just the cherry on top. 
Jungkook has seen you make a lot of faces. He’s seen you shiver and drool as he nails you into your bed. He’s seen you sniffle and sob as he slowly fucks you in a rose petal filled bubble bath (a six month anniversary special planned by yours truly). He’s even seen your mirrored reflection fall apart as you bounced away on his lap in front of a mirror. 
He’s never seen you like this before. 
Needy and desperate, moaning his name softly, practically humping his face in your greed. Tiny skirt clutched against your waist, tits bouncing as you hurriedly grind against him. He has half the mind to burn this scene into his eyelids for the rest of his life. 
He’s given up on doing anything with his tongue, simply sticking it out for you to do as you wish. Normally, he’s not a huge fan of letting you do things yourself. After all, Jungkook was your boyfriend. Making you cum was his job. But you’re moving so fast, so frantic, in your mission to cum. So Jungkook sits back and lets you go to town on his mouth as a series of moans spill from your lips. 
And then something unforgivable happens. 
Jungkook will admit it: he’s staring at you almost a little too dreamily, heart eyes and all. He thinks you’re fucking hot, taste like heaven and have these absolutely delicious boobs bouncing up and down. He’s a little distracted by your glorious figure that he doesn’t notice one crucial bit of information. 
Your hand. 
The desperate need to cum has your muscles weakening, thighs moving at a latent pace, and, much to Jungkook’s horror, hands trembling. It’s your own pleasure that lets the unimaginable happen: your skirt flutters down. Your grip on it loosens and before Jungkook knows it, the sight of your pretty face and nice tits are gone, snatched away before his very eyes. Even your wet cunt is impossible to see, his world suddenly shrouded in darkness. 
Leave it to Jungkook to foil his own horny plan with, well, his horniness. If only he wasn’t so hopelessly in love with the image of you in skirts. Maybe then he could bask in the beauty that was you riding his face. 
He acts fast, reaching for the material before he can miss out on anything. But the angle is weird, and without Jungkook’s hands holding your hips, you’re left weakly rolling forward instead. And he’s not the only one frustrated with this turn of events, your face quickly returning to its normal composed form as you level him with a frown. “Everything okay?” you pant. 
Everything was not okay, but Jungkook isn’t sure how to tell you that without ruining this delicate moment. So he tries to show you with actions instead, releasing the skirt he’s got in his fist and letting it flutter over his face again. You giggle. “I told you so.” 
It takes more willpower than he’d like to admit to pull away from your wet folds, pulling off with a lewd sound that has you biting your lip as you gaze down at him. “I told you so,” he mimics, a little mean but you don’t take it to heart. “Hold your skirt up.” 
You hum, the grip on his hair loosening as you push away his dark locks instead. “Mmmm,” you hum. “No.”
“No?” he repeats, actually really scandalized. Okay, so he’s a little spoiled when it comes to you— it’s not his fault! You made him like this, conditioned him to think that you would always give into his every whim because you were just so sweet and considerate and wanted him to be happy. And Jungkook also wants you to be happy, and in his opinion, being happy right now means having him fuck your pretty brains out for ever getting sassy with him. 
“I don’t listen to men,” you tease, followed by a cute little nod, skin still a little warm from your looming orgasm. Jungkook takes advantage of your tiny moment of weakness, and strikes like a viper.
A girlish squeal leaves your lips, hands stretching outwards as he knocks you backwards onto the mattress. “Jungkook,” you gasp, sprawled out artfully, beautifully, over his sheets now. He doesn’t waste a second longer, crawling over your body until you’re a shivering mess beneath him. 
Hand against your throat, the other blindly reaching for the front of his sweatpants. “What is it, doll?” he drawls meanly, reveling in the way your eyes roll back when his newly-freed cock lands against your slit. A choked gasp leaves your throat, lashes fluttering wildly until Jungkook loosens his grip. 
You’ve done a nice job riling yourself up, lips squelching wet and loose when he runs the tip of his cock along them. Your knees are pulled up for him, spread perfectly for him to fit between. You’re so good for him, Jungkook feels a little bad for how hard he’s going to fuck you now. 
The sympathy doesn’t last long.  
Once upon a time, you had been the epitome of a cute and sweet girlfriend. Had picked him up from class, encouraged him to do his homework, wore these cute little skirts around campus. Deep down inside, Jungkook knew everyone else was jealous of him— you were just so pretty and cute, a girl straight out of everyone’s dreams. 
Until he sunk his horny claws into you. Jungkook will be the first to admit he spends a little too much time browsing porn sites— he’s a man, cut him some slack —which had never caused him any problems before. Even when the two of you were just friends (pining ones at that), you had never seemed even remotely affected by his extensive pornographical knowledge. It was a known fact among your friend group that Jungkook’s best friend was his right hand. 
But then, of course, you started dating Jungkook and it was like a save file of all his horniest fantasies was downloaded directly into your brain. Which leads him to this. 
“Spit in my mouth,” you shiver, got these huge, watery eyes pointed his way. His cock twitches. 
There’s a little groan that tears itself from his throat when he leans forward, cock sliding along your folds, to grasp your chin between his fingers. “Open,” he commands, and you do. Your lower lip quivers, tongue pressed against it as you wait for Jungkook to spit down your mouth. He can’t say he regrets letting you peek through his porn stash, not when it leads to this, you whimpering at the hot glob of saliva he shoots down your throat. “Filthy,” he pants, memorizing the movement of your throat when you swallow like the good girl you are. 
Before he can write another twelve sonnets about that dazed look on your face, he’s roughly grabbing at your thigh. You whine, limbs so pliant beneath his touch, letting him hike your knee over his forearm as he tugs you closer. “Fuck,” he groans, reaching down to align himself with your quivering hole. You’re still so wet, make the most lewd sound when he sinks into you. Not that Jungkook really hears it, the sound of your strained moans practically drowning everything else out. 
“Fuck,” you cry, one hand clutching at his forearm, the other toying with your breast. It’s a magnificent sight, and Jungkook is suddenly feeling a little cocky when he realizes he’s the only one who gets to see this. It’s this presumptuous nature that fuels the first round of thrusts into your cunt, fast and full. He makes sure you feel every inch of him, tip to base, as he pistons his hips forward. “J— Jungkook,” you pant, back arching beneath him. 
You take it so well, walls sucking him in every time he draws back out. “I’ve got you, doll,” he moans, hiking your leg further over his shoulder. Every roll of his hips has your tits bouncing back and forth, lower lip as well with the dopey, open-mouthed look you got on for him. And the damned skirt that got him here, fucking you with a punishing pace, sits perfectly around your waist. He has half the mind to take it off for you, briefly wonders if it hurts, but just looking at it reminds him of about thirty-seven pornos he’s seen. So it stays on, works alongside your lovestruck face to actively rewrite all those pornos anew with you starring in them instead. 
It sure helps when you start your usual mindless babbling. “I love you,” you gasp, face screwed up in pleasure. “I- I love you so much.” 
He’s contemplating doing a study on you and your weird mid-fuck confessions. You do this a lot, and while Jungkook doesn’t mind, it sure does leave him curious. “Love you too, baby,” he says anyway, repositioning his arms so he can hold your waist with both hands. 
“Really?” you ask, voice so whiny, eyes brimming with tears. From emotion or your need to cum, Jungkooks not sure. (Hence the need for a study!) 
Another brutal thrust that has you moaning loudly. “Really,” he reassures you, glancing down to watch his cock sink into your hole as he picks up the pace. Your arms are practically limbless, and his stomach is beginning to feel tight. The end was soon. “Love your pretty little face.”
Another whine, your fingers pulling at your pebbled nipples. “M- My pretty face?” you whimper, blink these long lashes up at him. They make Jungkook go a little mad, bring on a wave of jackhammer thrusts that cut your moans into choppy little cries instead. 
“Prettiest girl I know,” he groans, not once stopping the movement of his hips. You’re quivering like a leaf beneath him, your entire body locking up as Jungkook guides you toward orgasm. “A fucking doll, baby— so beautiful for me,” he praises. 
It’s exactly what you want to hear— secretly, Jungkook hypothesizes that you’re a little bit of an attention whore —crying out when he slows to a grind against you. Each roll of his hips has him rubbing over your swollen bud, leaves you trembling until you’re eventually unraveling beneath him. “Oh- Oh, fuck— Jungkook—“ you sob, writhing beneath him as you cream his cock. 
Your tits look amazing, nipples stiff from your arousal and all the attention you’d been giving them. Your features soften, gasps framed by your pillowy lips. As Jungkook has said before, your pretty face was the most dangerous weapon. 
He manages a few more pistons of his hips, mostly for reputation sake, before he’s eventually pulling out. His right hand, once the sole hero of his solo sessions, makes a valiant return now as he jacks himself off over you. It takes a few harsh pulls of his cock until he’s spurting his jizz over you, painting your tummy and your tits in white ribbons of cum. You flinch, a tiny whimper leaving your throat at the mess he makes. “Fuck,” he groans one last time. 
When it’s over, you have the audacity to shyly pull down the front of your skirt. As if your tits aren’t out and about, but Jungkook pretends he doesn’t see it. Instead, he channels his energy into peppering your face in kisses. “Best girl,” he praises, even though he knows you hate the nickname. “My beautiful feminist queen.” 
A pinch against his cheek. It hurts like hell, but he endures it for now, still very much in love with your performance today. “Get me a towel,” you huffily ask, uncomfortable with the jizz sticking to your tummy, as if he didn’t spit in your mouth a few minutes ago. 
His research paper is waiting for him at his desk, the materials he’d spent weeks collecting waiting to be typed up. But his girlfriend is so soft and sleepy, asking him to stay for another nap. 
There was never a choice.
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pirate-au · 3 years
Text
A Pirate's Life for a Prince (Part 2)
Summary: Roman was a dashing Captain, content with his exciting life out at sea, diving head first into adventure both on and off land. He wouldn't give up his life for anything, and yet he found himself...lacking something. He was never sure what.
When he meets Virgil, a seemingly common traveler in an old tavern, that lacking feeling in his chest goes away for the first time in a long while. So surely there's no harm in offering the stranger and his friend a ride, right?
Notes: TW for panic attacks, brief suicidal thoughts, mentions of abuse
Thank you again to @cheshirevalentine for editing being the best
part 1 part 3 part 4 part 5 part 6
Virgil lowered himself to the bed, hands trembling as the weight of his decision finally dawned on him.
He pushed thoughts of Roman out of his mind for now, how the Captain had just given up his room for him, and instead turned his attention to an exhausted Patton who clearly just wanted to go home.
“They said they aren’t leaving until morning,” he said, watching as Patton lowered himself to the chair across the room. “You can probably still sneak off. I’ll be fine, I’ll… make up some excuse for why you left.” Patton looked up at Virgil as he spoke, lowering his hands from where he had been rubbing his eyes under his glasses.
“What do you mean? It's much too late to be out and about, and I'd make it heck for myself getting back on the ship before they leave."
“You wouldn’t need to get back on the ship.” Virgil leaned forward, fighting the urge to fall back on the bed and close his eyes. He could feel the exhaustion weighing down on him, thick and heavy. “You’d go back home. I’d just rather I get to say goodbye than you being gone when I wake up tomorrow.”
Virgil stared at his lap, painfully aware of Patton’s eyes on him, hands clasped in his lap as he tried to ignore the ache in his chest, pushing down a sob at the thought of losing Patton. The man had been there nearly as long as he could remember. To be without him would be foreign and terrifying.
“Why would I be gone in the morning?” Patton asked. “I’m not goin’ anywhere, kiddo, c’mon.”
Virgil couldn’t help but roll his eyes. He really wasn’t in the mood to be given false hope out of kindness. Patton wouldn’t rat him out, he knew that, but he wasn’t going to uproot his entire life when Virgil couldn't even repay him. “You’re not coming with me, Patton. I’m never coming back.”
“I figured you weren’t coming back, Virge,” Patton said, his concerned frown only deepening. “Do you not want me to come with you? I figured you might, I know you hate being alone around new people."
“No, I… of course I want you with me,” Virgil said. He’d always known that one day he’d have to say goodbye, and it hurt, but Patton was… really not making it easy. “Pat, I'm spending almost everything I have on this ride. I'll barely have anything when we make it to Deigh. I can't pay you anymore.”
Patton just shook his head, leaning back in the chair. “I don’t care if you pay me, Virge. It’s not about the money.”
Virgil blinked, wondering if the stress and lack of sleep was making Patton delirious. "Pat, that's… that's why you're here. You stay with me because someone pays you to, and I can't do that.”
“I stay with you because I love you,” Patton said softly. “Not because of my job. You know I’d follow you to the ends of the Earth if you asked me to.”
Virgil let out a shaky breath, unable to look at Patton as he wrapped his arms around himself. "You don't have to do that. I've known you were paid to stay with me since I was a kid, Pat. I just… really would rather say goodbye now than never get to."
“We’re not saying goodbye. I don’t care about my job, Virgil. I care about you. I stayed with you because I loved you, not because I got paid.”
“Right,” Virgil scoffed, desperately trying to keep himself from crying. “You don’t care about getting paid. So if the king offered you more money than you’ve ever seen in your life to bring me back, you wouldn’t take it?”
“I wouldn’t take you back for all the money in the world,” Patton said firmly. Virgil knew that if he cried Patton would follow, so he had to hold it together for both of them. Patton’s voice seemed to falter for a moment, the man looking down at his hands. “You don’t know how much I wanted to get you out of there.”
Virgil sniffed, rubbing his eyes and staring down at his lap, listening to the creaking of the boat as people moved around above them.
“We used to talk about it a lot,” he mused. “When I was younger. I always asked you when we were running away, and then I... “ He trailed off, wiping his face insistently. He couldn’t cry. It was for both of them. “I grew up and I never... thought we actually would.”
“Well, we are,” Patton said. “You’re not going back. Not ever again.”
Virgil hunched his shoulders, still refusing to look up. “You… you have a life, Pat. You have responsibilities. I’m not worth leaving all that behind.”
“You’re worth the world, kiddo. You’re worth so much more than any amount of money the King could offer. I love you more than anything, you know that. I’m here to stay, just like I always have. I promise.”
“You have family—”
“You’re my family,” Patton interrupted. “You’ve been my kid since you were six, Virgil. I love you.”
Virgil swallowed, pulling his knees up to his chest. “You have pretty bad taste, Pat.”
“No, Virge,” he said. They’d had this argument more times than Virgil could count. “I don’t. I- I’m sorry. I know what they did and I’m… I’m so sorry I didn’t get you out of there sooner.”
"It's not your fault." And it wasn't, Patton had done everything just right. Virgil wouldn't have made it this far without him. "You did everything you could. I never… knew why you were so nice to me.”
Patton had been the first one to be kind, to not try to hurt or use him the second he met Virgil, and up until tonight, he’d been the only one.
Roman’s hadn’t tried either. He hadn’t seemed to consider it, not even once. And maybe it was stupid to trust him so easily, to jump on a ship with a man he’d only just met, he’d never get an opportunity like this ever again. It was worth the risk.
Patton sighed, shaky and small, and Virgil suspected he’d catch a glimpse of stray tears if he lifted his head. “I could have done so much more for you.”
“You did everything you could,” Virgil said again. “You made sure I wasn’t alone and that’s… that was what I needed.”
He heard Patton stand and make his way over to the bed, lowering himself beside Virgil. Shakily, he reached out, taking Virgil’s hands in his own. "I'm not gonna let anyone hurt you like that again, okay? I couldn't stop it then, but I can now."
He squeezed his eyes shut, hating himself for being the reason Patton sounded so miserable. Patton never should have seen the things that happened to Virgil, he’d be so much happier if he’d left it all behind years ago.
“I’m glad you’re here,” he admitted, barely a whisper. “But you can still change your mind. I won’t be mad.”
Patton lifted a hand, cupping Virgil's cheek, his thumb brushing gentle strokes as he watched him. “I won’t. I’m not going anywhere without you, kiddo.”
“What if someone finds out?”
“They won’t,” Patton said. “You’d know if Roman was suspicious, and I spent some time talking to Logan while you two chatted. We’re just two common travelers, and we’re gonna make it to Deigh and figure it out from there. Anything you want to do, we can do it.”
Virgil laughed, wiping his eyes and dropping his head on Patton’s shoulder. “We’ll be okay,” he agreed, closing his eyes again when Patton cradled the back of his head. “We made it out.”
“This is a whole new start,” Patton said. He pressed a kiss to the crown of Virgil’s head, holding him like he had since Virgil was a kid. “I can’t wait to adventure with you.”
-
The next few days at sea weren’t as peaceful as Virgil had imagined they’d be, but the excitement was something new to him and he found himself watching everything intently, awestruck.
Casting off that first morning had been hectic, Virgil woken up by booming yells and thundering footsteps above him, he and Patton clambering out of the bed they were sharing to hurry up to the deck to watch.
The crew had been scuttling around to their respective places, all smiles and jovial chatter, Virgil stepping back to watch them work.
The crew was loud and a little intense, but each one had smiled or nodded pleasantly when they passed, Virgil returning the gesture with a quiet wave. It took a bit of getting used to, and he knew Patton could tell he was caught off guard. Virgil had never been surrounded by this much kindness in his life, everyone pleasant and free.
Roman was busy directing the ship and his crew, too busy to really spend much time with his passengers those first couple days, so Virgil was careful to give him some space.
He was always polite when they did see each other, just as charming as he’d been when they’d first met, no sign of him dropping the facade for something more sinister now that Virgil was practically trapped on his ship.
It felt… genuine.
The Captain would stop what he was doing when he saw Virgil or Patton, hurrying over to say hello and check in, asking how they were faring on the voyage.
He’d get called over by a crewman eventually, bidding Virgil farewell as he rushed back to work, and Virgil would sit by the rail with Patton and watch the waves crash against the side of the ship.
Even in a new environment, Patton knew when Virgil was overwhelmed or anxious, always ushering him over to hold him at the perfect moment. Virgil still sought him out on his own when he needed the reminder of safety, but Patton always seemed to have some sixth sense that let him know when Virgil needed to be held.
He was grateful beyond words that Patton had stayed with him.
It was still taking Virgil some time to get his “sea legs” as Roman had put it, stumbling with each step when the wind would pick up, the ship rocking against the unpredictable waves.
That first morning, Logan had put down his work and made his way over to teach Patton and Virgil how to work on keeping their balance, as well as some methods to keep them from getting seasick.
Logan was… nice. Virgil was a little wary of him, and he knew Patton would keep a close eye on the first mate for a bit, but he didn’t seem to have any ill intent, intimidating as he was.
A few days into their voyage Virgil had gone exploring by himself, Patton busy with introducing himself to as much of the crew as he could.
Roman was up on the bridge, smiling as he gave orders to his crew, the wind tangled in his hair, eyes lighting up when he caught sight of Virgil.
The ship had chosen that moment to tip, almost sending Virgil stumbling right into the Captain’s chest, and Roman had leaned forward and swiftly caught him around the waist.
He’d had to spin a little to keep them from falling, leaving Virgil feeling wonderfully lightheaded, and when they’d steadied themselves Roman had given him an infuriatingly pleased smile. He’d held him around the waist just long enough to wink before he let go and returned to watching the sea.
Virgil had run right back to Patton after that, face burning bright red, refusing to talk about what had gotten him so flustered.
It had only been a few days, but Virgil had never felt so content. Unfortunately, this much excitement and change was making it nearly impossible to get any sleep.
Patton was sound asleep on the other side of the bed, but Virgil was stuck staring blankly at the ceiling, plagued with thoughts of his new freedom, his future, and Roman's stupidly innocent flirting (that absolutely did not make him blush) his head running wild after the last few days of a brand new life.
There was no point in laying here all night, listening to the endless creaking of the ship. Besides, he kind of wanted to see the ocean at night.
He was careful not to wake Patton when he eventually crawled out of bed, creeping across the cabin and slipping out the door to make his way out onto the deck.
He was still a bit unsteady on his feet, holding his arms out a little to steady himself, but the night was beautiful, stars scattered across the midnight sky, the air crisp and the breeze pleasantly cold.
He almost wasn’t surprised when he found Roman leaned against the railing, facing out towards the sea with the wind in his face. Virgil froze when Roman turned around, but immediately relaxed when the Captain smiled, laughing softly at Virgil’s unsteady movements.
“Why’re you up?” he called, motioning for Virgil to make his way to the railing. “It’s pretty late, isn’t it?”
Virgil really hoped his blush wasn't visible under the moonlight, and he wondered if Roman would be proud of himself if he knew he was the only person to make Virgil genuinely flustered. Not that he’d mention it.
“I could ask you the same thing,” Virgil said, finally making it to Roman’s side. “You’ve got a whole ship to run.”
With the moonlight dancing between the two of them, Virgil could swear he could count the specks in Roman’s eyes. He felt his cheeks flush and he quickly turned towards the sea, closing his eyes to the wind, the light spray of the salty water stinging pleasantly.
“The ship isn’t run solely on me,” Roman said. “I don’t get much sleep, anyways. I’ll be alright. What about you, don’t you need your beauty sleep?”
Virgil's blush definitely darkened at that and he smiled at the cheesy line against his will. He could feel Roman staring, and he ducked his head to let his bangs fall into his eyes. "I think it's pretty clear I don't get much of that as it is."
Roman turned and Virgil glanced over to him, the Captain giving him a soft, almost private smile.
“As if you were on fire from within,” Roman recited, putting his chin in his hand with his elbow up on the rail. “The moon lives in the lining of your skin.”
Virgil turned to him, laughing softly when he briefly caught Roman's gaze. For once, someone staring didn't make him feel tense or exposed. "I didn't know you liked poetry, Captain. Pablo Neruda?"
Roman froze, his face going beat red, and Virgil grinned as the Captain realized he’d been found with his hand in the poet’s journal.
“You caught me,” Roman laughed, his smile guilty as he straightened up and wiped his face with his palm. “Where did you come across Neruda?”
“Relax, it sounds better coming from you, anyway.” In the face of Roman's embarrassment, Virgil found himself much less nervous to respond with a teasing smile. “My, uh…my uncle always wanted me to be well read. Ever since I was a kid.”
“And he thought Neruda was a good place to start?” Roman teased, leaning forward. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d assume you were a royal, Virgil.”
Virgil knew he was teasing, that it was just another lighthearted joke. He hadn’t meant to react with anything other than a scoff, but suddenly his throat was dry, face paling as he tore his gaze from Roman to watch the sea again.
“Oh please,” he forced out, hoping his brief panicked stumble went unnoticed. “Can you imagine that? Me? Living up in a fancy castle?”
He felt Roman staring, the silence stretching on a moment too long, and Virgil clutched at the railing with suddenly unsteady hands.
“That would be crazy, of course,” Roman said slowly. “You wouldn’t be running away on a pirate ship if you were a royal.”
Virgil laughed again and- shit, his hands were shaking now. Maybe he could blame it on being a walking anxiety attack all the time. “Of course not. I’m just teasing you, Captain. Why don’t you recite more of your poetry?” He said, his nervous laugh catching in his throat.
Roman stood up straight now, and his smile was gone when Virgil glanced over. “Surely you’re not a royal. That would be crazy. You’re not a royal, are you Virgil?”
Virgil clenched his jaw, clutching the railing and keeping his eyes on the ocean. “I’m… I’m not a royal.”
He couldn’t look up when Roman took a careful step forward, setting a hand down on Virgil’s shoulder. His breath caught in his throat, and he just hoped Roman couldn’t tell he was shaking.
“I need you to look at me and tell me that you’re not a royal, Virgil. This isn’t a joke. I can’t kidnap a member of the royal family on a whim.”
Even now, shaking on the deck of an unfamiliar ship and desperately trying to force himself to just get it together and lie before everything fell apart… he couldn’t help but feel grounded with Roman’s hand on his shoulder. “I…you’re not kidnapping me.”
“I am, Virgil,” Roman said, his frown deepening. “Unless you were specifically given permission, this is kidnapping. Did you-” he paused, lifting his hand from Virgil’s shoulders to run it through his hair, turning to step away. “Did you get permission? Or did you just leave everything on a whim?”
Virgil still couldn’t meet Roman’s eyes, feeling a bit like he was going to be sick. His heart was racing in his ears, beating so fast and so loud he wondered if Roman could hear it too. “I didn’t… actually think I would get out of the city so quickly.”
Roman froze, barely a heartbeat of silence passing before the Captain’s voice took over the deck, no longer excited and jovial.
“So you climbed on the first ship you found?” Roman whirled back around, arms thrown out to the side. “You can’t just abandon your duties like that! You have responsibilities, don’t you? Shit! I’m so fucked if I get boarded by a Navy boat!”
Virgil shrank back when Roman raised his voice, watching as the Captain began to pace the deck, first away from Virgil and then back. He mourned the loss of Roman’s touch more than he probably had the right to.
“I’m sorry,” he tried, letting go of the railing in favor or wrapping his arms around himself. “I just...I- you were nice and you offered me a ride and I—”
“You can’t trust everyone who’s nice to you, Virgil!” Roman turned back, his face a furious mask of frustration. “You ran away! Next you’ll be telling me you were the fucking Crown Prince!”
Virgil flinched back a little too fast, his breathing picking up. He felt small and cornered, the feeling unfortunately painfully familiar.
“I- uhm…” he trailed off, warily looking up to meet Roman’s eyes, not quite sure how to answer with words. “I’m sorry.”
“No.” Roman dropped his arms to his sides, staring at Virgil with eyes wide in disbelief. “No. You’re not the heir. You did not run away from the crown of your kingdom on a whim. Surely.”
Abruptly, Virgil wondered if Roman was going to hurt him. He was angry, and rightfully so, much larger, and they were all alone- up on the deck in the middle of the night.
He wondered if he could make a break for it and get to Patton before the Captain grabbed him. Probably not.
“I’d been…thinking about it for a while,” Virgil said quietly. “So it wasn’t technically on a whim.”
Roman stared at him for a moment, the air between them tense, the only sound coming from the crashing of the waves below. "We're turning around. I'm taking you back. Go tell Patton, we'll be back by the end of the week."
“What?” Virgil felt everything screech to a halt, panic and dread hitting full force as Roman’s words settled and the Captain turned on his heel. He was moving to intercept his path before he could stop himself. “No! No, you can’t do that!”
Roman stopped, just for a moment to look down at him. “Yes, I can. You should get to bed now, it’s late.” He stepped around him, a hand on Virgil’s arm to get around. “Sleep well, Virgil.”
“No!” Virgil wasn't thinking anymore, acting on pure panicked instinct as he reached out to grab Roman's arm, desperate to keep him on the deck. “Please, please you can’t. You can’t take me back, I- I can’t go back. Roman, please.”
“Let go of me, Virgil.”
Virgil didn’t move, despite being acutely aware of how much bigger Roman was, and how close they were. It wasn’t pleasant anymore. “Please Roman, please. I’ll—” he hesitated for a moment, considering his desperate words. “—Roman, I’ll do anything. I’ll do anything.”
“I don’t want anything from you, Virgil,” Roman said before the words were even out of Virgil’s mouth, the Captain tensing in his hold. “You have to go back. Now let go.”
“I can’t.” Virgil couldn’t move, still clutching Roman’s arm, and he distantly realized he couldn’t catch his breath either. “I’m- I’m not going back. I’m not going back, Roman I’m… please don’t make me. I can’t- I can’t do it again.”
Roman finally turned, firmly taking Virgil by the shoulders and bending down slightly to be eye level with the smaller man. “You have a duty, Virgil. And so do I. This is bigger than you and it’s bigger than me. I know you’re scared, and it’s ok to be, but you have to go back. I know it’s hard. Believe me, I do. I understand more than you know.”
“No you don’t.” Virgil was crying now, hot tears streaming down his cheeks, but he couldn’t find it in him to care. He twisted out of Roman’s grasp, frantically backing away. “You-you don’t, I… they’ll just hurt me again if I go back and it’ll be worse and I can’t- I’m…I can’t do it again, Roman!”
Roman let him go, quickly pulling his hands away like he’d been burnt when Virgil started to back up. There was a moment of silence, the furious waves once again the only sound on the deck, overshadowed only by Virgil’s quick, panicked breathing.
“Again?” Roman repeated, voice quiet. “What- who hurt you, Virgil?”
“Everyone!” Virgil couldn't breathe, he couldn’t… he couldn’t go back. Not after finally coming so close to getting away. “They all- they all keep…they won’t stop and I hate it! You…you didn’t hurt me. You didn’t even try so I trusted you and- and now you’re taking me back.”
“You’re shaking, Virgil,” Roman said softly. He reached for him, freezing when Virgil scrambled back again. “I won’t hurt you. I… I’ll figure it out when we get there, you're not without help.”
Virgil could barely hear Roman at this point, too busy frantically trying to remember how to breathe, shaking uncontrollably as the Captain spoke.
All he knew was that Roman was still insisting on taking him back.
Because nobody cared if Virgil was hurt or used or trapped. He was the Prince. He was just property made to look pretty, wasn’t he? A pretty pawn to be placed on the throne.
He found himself glancing at the railing, the only thing separating him from the endless sea. “I’m not going back.”
“You have to go back, Virgil.” The Captain took a few steps towards Virgil, slow and steady, his hands out in front of him. “It’s the only option. You’re not safe out at sea or with me.”
Virgil took a step back as Roman approached, eyes darting between the Captain and the railing of the ship, tears now running freely as the hopelessness set in. Because no matter what he did, as long as he was alive he’d end up right back where he started. “I- I don’t care. I can’t do it again, Roman!”
And then, before any rational part of his brain beyond the panic could talk him out of it, Virgil darted forward towards the railing, eyes on the dark water below. He made it to the edge, lifted himself up and—
And then there were arms around him, grabbing Virgil by the waist just as his hands closed around the railing, hoisting him up and back away from the edge.
“No!” All he could register were hands wrapped tight around him, grabbing him, dragging him onto the ship that was taking him right back to the place he’d been trying to escape since he was a child.
He twisted and kicked and thrashed in Roman’s grasp, chest screaming in pain as he fought to catch his breath, but the Captain’s hold never loosened. Virgil’s stomach dropped when they both went crashing to the ground, the sick feeling in his stomach rising up into his throat until he felt like he was choking. Roman’s hold only tightened when they fell, Virgil’s back against his chest.
“Please,” he begged, the words falling from his lips without his permission, terrified and desperate. “Please, Roman not you too. Not…please don’t, please don’t do this—”
“Do what?” Roman asked, incredulous. “I’m trying to keep you from jumping off the ship! I’m not going to hurt you!”
“You’re making me go back.” Virgil couldn’t breathe. It felt like his lungs were being crushed every time he struggled to take a single breath. “You…you can do whatever you want to me just please. Please don’t make me go back. Please, just help me.”
Roman didn’t respond for a long moment, or maybe Virgil just couldn’t hear anything over his own panicked breathing, but after a moment the Captain’s hold loosened slowly until his arms were just loosely draped around him. Virgil didn’t have the energy to make a run for it, and he was terrified of the consequences of getting caught again.
“I’m not going to hurt you, Virgil. I don’t want anything from you, I—” he paused for a moment, his breathing heavy, and Virgil squeezed his eyes shut. “I’m not taking you back.”
Virgil still couldn’t catch his breath, lightheaded from the pain in his chest, so it took a moment for Roman’s words to register. He froze, stopping any futile struggling, eyes flying open again.
Slowly, still hesitant and cautious, he reached up with a trembling hand to clutch weakly at Roman’s wrist. “You…you’re not…really?”
He’d begged before, countless times to countless people over the years, but nobody had ever bothered to listen.
“No, I’m not.” Roman tightened his hold just a little, but it felt more like comfort than restriction. “If you’re that desperate not to go back, I’ll trust that it was that bad. I’m not taking you back.”
The flood of relief was dizzying, somehow more exhausting than the panic, and Virgil took in a desperate, shaky breath which quickly dissolved into a sob.
He twisted around, the Captain’s hold loose enough to let him turn until he could wrap his arms around Roman, holding on as tight as he could manage and dropping his forehead to the other man’s chest.
“Thank you.” Distantly, he figured he should be ashamed of how badly he was still shaking, but he couldn’t seem to stop. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
“Don't thank me,” Roman said, hugging Virgil to his chest. “It’s just human decency. I’m sorry I scared you.”
“It’s not,” Virgil said, voice muffled by Roman’s shirt. “No one…no one else would. So thank you. Thank you so much.”
He still couldn’t stop trembling, cold and terrified, and he no longer had the strength to keep his eyes open on his own. Roman maneuvered slowly to rest a hand on Virgil's head, carefully running fingers through his hair just like Patton always did to calm him down.
“It’s okay,” he said softly. “You’re safe here. I promise.”
Virgil melted into the embrace, letting out another shuddering breath as his own hold on Roman began to loosen against his will. He felt himself being dragged down to sleep, exhaustion weighing over him like a blanket. He didn't mean to say anything else, but he wasn't exactly thinking clearly right now. "I… I don't want to be hurt anymore."
“I won’t let them hurt you ever again,” Roman said. Virgil felt him reposition his hold to have one hand under his knees, the other against the Prince’s back. “You’re safe.”
Moving slowly, Roman stood up and took Virgil with him, holding the smaller man against his chest. The Captain’s arms around him were the last thing he registered before everything faded, and he let himself drift off to sleep.
Taglist: @i-really-like-dragons @stitches-system @poettheythem @remy-the-lemon-berry @shrubs-and-bushes @i-sexually-identify-as-a-mistake @wordsmithandworm @the-dead-and-the-decaying @hope340 @winterwynd @thomas-sanders-tothe-standers @angstysunshine @sunshineandteddybears @pixelated-pineapple
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meltwonu · 4 years
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| 🍒 CH-CH-CHERRY BOMB! 🍒 |     [CHAPTER 8]
pairing; dom!seungcheol x camgirl!reader
this chapter’s notes; camshow, sex toys, dom!seungcheol, blowjob, cumplay, overstimulation, minor degradation/dirty talk, big dick seungcheol is in the house ladies ‘n gents, what we’ve all been waiting for!!! 😩💕 this was actually meant to be a shorter chapter which I guess depending on how you look at 5k words I guess that can be seen as short!!, anyway thank you so much for your patience 🥺 I know a ton of you were waiting for this and it’s finally here!! hehe~ enjoy! have a great weekend!! 🍒 
chapters; 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - ? 
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“Well… It’s not much but welcome home for the next few days.”
Seungcheol helps you into his studio apartment; setting your things by the bed before turning to you.
“So, I take it the cat isn’t real then, huh?” You joke, plopping down onto the sofa. He shoots you a sheepish smile when he sits on the other end, cheeks blooming crimson.
“Uh… no, sorry... If there’s anything I lied about, it was definitely only the cat.”
The two of you share a laugh as you look around the apartment, noting the cookbooks on the kitchen countertop and the extensive PC setup on his desk. “Oh, I should show you around. I mean, it’s not much, but I figure I should let you know where everything is.”
You nod, getting up as Seungcheol starts showing you around the place. He shows you to the bathroom, lets you know where he keeps all of his snacks and even pauses to give you the wi-fi password. You follow him around the place, remarking that it seemed more homey and lived-in than your space did.
“I mean, it’s not much, but it’s comfy. I even tried to be a plant dad but I forgot to water them so that didn’t really work out.”
“Maybe just buy the fake ones for aesthetic purposes, y’know? Give it a greenhouse vibe.”
Seungcheol nods; chuckling as he brings you back to the living space. “Okay, I should go get the things from ‘Guk before it gets any later. And you have a show to do tomorrow too so we should definitely setup once I get back.” He makes sure he has all of his things, keys jingling in his hold as he makes his way to the door.
“Do you need anything else while I’m out? I’ll probably be about 45 minutes, give or take an hour if I catch traffic.”
You shake your head ‘no’ in response, walking up to him. “Just drive safe~” Waving, you wait until the door lock falls into place before you let out a breath you didn’t know you were holding.
In truth, you’d never stopped thinking about the video you had uploaded hours earlier. It had lingered at the back of your head the entire day despite Seungcheol’s valiant efforts to keep your mind off of the entire thing. 
It was the first time you were alone all day and you were finally ready to face the repercussions of your actions, should they have gone sour.
Sitting on the sofa, you unlock your phone before hesitantly opening a web browser and typing in the URL for the camming website. Taking a deep breath, you login, already nervous when the browser lags due to the amount of notifications.
Your eyes quickly flit across the multitude of comments; cheeks hot as your fingers go numb.
“Oh my god…”
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Seungcheol gets an earful once he gets the equipment from Jeongguk’s place; the younger male’s smug face ingrained in Seungcheol’s head even when he gets back to the apartment in record speed.
It takes him a bit of trapezing to get everything in one go, cables spilling out of the box that Jeongguk haphazardly put together, but Seungcheol manages to get the door open.
“Oh my god, ‘Cheol, there you are! Please hurry, come look at this!”
He quickly drags in the box, kicking the door shut before hurriedly jogging over to the sofa where you sat with your laptop. “I--I… I don’t know what to say, I’m just…” You quickly turn the screen to let him read the comments, a wide and giddy smile on your face.
‘Whoa… this is amazing…’
‘Wait who’s the guy???’
‘Please please more content like this’
‘Fuck you sound so good begging for daddy like this…’
‘In public? Such a naughty girl… but daddy will give it to you since you asked so nicely…’
‘Shit you really do look good getting fucked like this… better than your toys tbh’
“Whoa…” Seungcheol breathes out, scrolling through the rest as he sits next to you. “It seems like it did pretty damn well, huh?” You nod feverishly, leaning over him as you click on the video’s revenue page.
“‘Cheol look at this… The donations and revenue from this video alone... I--It’s… it’s more than I get in some of my live shows…” You trail off, wide eyes meeting Seungcheol’s equally shocked face.
The two of you sit in silence for a moment; various thoughts running through your head at the possibilities.
Seungcheol fares no different, already feeling the atmosphere change when you place the laptop on the coffee table.
“Seungcheol…” He can only chuckle in response, already knowing the next words that would spill from your lips.
“Let me take a wild guess… You want to film more like this?”
Nodding, you lean in close to him, wrapping your own arms around his as you rest your head on his shoulder. “I know we kinda… agreed to not get intimate so fast and--and I think we have a lot we need to talk about but ‘Cheol… I--I don’t want to beg but… Would you? Film some videos with me, I mean? They don’t have to be, like, both of us, they can just be from your POV and we don’t have to do anything you’re not comfortable with doing on camera!”
He bites the inside of his cheek as he stares off into the living room. “How about this… Let’s set up, since you have a show to do tomorrow. And then Tuesday morning before I head to work, we can talk about it. I’m not saying no, I’m just… there’s some ground rules I think we need to put down first. Hard limits, things we’re okay with filming… Y’know, just, what we’re comfortable with.”
“Okay, yeah! That makes total and complete sense~” You open your mouth to speak again, only a small squeak coming out instead. “Hmm? Something the matter?”
“Just… Thank you. For everything. I really didn’t expect this to do as well as it did and--and just, I guess I’m in shock?” You laugh, pulling away from Seungcheol as he stares down at you. “And to be honest… I mean, it’s not like we haven’t thought about each other, right?”
Seungcheol feels his body getting warmer by the passing second; gulping when he understands what you mean. “Y-yeah, it’s just.. Hah, I guess I thought I’d have more time to woo you over.”
Letting out an airy laugh, you stand from the sofa and make your way towards the momentarily forgotten box of equipment; dragging it towards the bed before you sit on the floor next to it. “You have plenty of time to do that~ And anyway, who says I’m not already woo’d over?” You place a ring light down by your side just as Seungcheol sits on the bed, watching as you go through the items.
“Wow, Jeongguk sure has a lot of really nice equipment in here! Are you sure it’s okay we borrowed it?”
“Yeah, he’s a bit of a nerd for video equipment and I’m pretty sure as long as we don’t break anything we’re good.”
It only takes about 35 minutes and Seungcheol stepping on an outlet plug to finish setting up all the lighting equipment and camera as you and Seungcheol finally plop down onto the bed.
“Jeez, I never realized how convoluted it was to set up a few ring lights and one camera. I don’t want to see another cable for at least 50 years.” Seungcheol jokes; wiping a bead of sweat that trickles down his temple. “Is this how it’s set up at your place?”
“Mmhmm~ All the time. It’s like I’m never really ‘offline’.”
He stands from the bed a second later, walking to the fridge to get some water for the two of you. “Really? You don’t ever put the equipment away?”
You sigh softly, flopping onto your back onto the cold sheets. “In a perfect world I would, but it gets really annoying to always take down and put everything back up so I usually kind of just leave them in their places. But it’s fine ‘cause it’s only me anyway and I’m lazy~”
Seungcheol laughs as he places a glass of water next to the bed. “I guess that’s fair. I’d probably do the same.” You get comfy on his bed; eyes already threatening to slide shut.
“We should probably get some sleep, huh? I have work in the morning…” He mumbles, watching as you already seem to drift off into sleep.
“Mmhmm~”
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Seungcheol’s bed is comfy.
So comfy that you barely register him leaning down to let you know that he’d be leaving for work. And so comfy that you spend most of your day in it until he gets back.
“Honey, I’m home~” He singsongs; kicking his shoes off at the door before making his way into the kitchen. “I grabbed some takeout on the way back, hope you don’t mind. My cookbooks came in a while ago, but to be honest, I’ve barely even looked at ‘em, much less even opened them up.”
“I don’t mind~ And thank you!”
The two of you set up in the living space, placing the food on the coffee table and easing onto the rug. “So how was work, darling~?”
Seungcheol chokes on a bite of food in an instant, hand on his chest as he tries to swallow it down. “Urgh, f-fine!” He pauses as he clears his airway. “Jeongguk really won’t let me live it down but it’s okay. He asked what you saw in me and that killed my ego a bit.” He snorts.
“Pfft, there’s a lot to like about you! He just doesn’t see ‘that’ side of you, y’know?” Seungcheol blushes, clearing his throat before trying to change the subject. “How was your day? Hope it wasn’t too boring?”
“Mmm~ Not really... Your bed is really comfy though! I didn’t wanna leave it~ Oh! And I spent some time brainstorming some ideas ‘n stuff for tomorrow!”
“Yeah? Anything good?”
Your cheeks flush crimson; a shy smile on your lips. “Maybe~ But we’ll save it for our talk!!”
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dom.cheol: aren’t you a pretty lil thing?
angelhan has donated $70
dom.cheol has donated $300
artist8hao: oh? A new location again? It looks nice
alphagyu97: are we all forgetting the most important thing??
alphagyu97: whos the dude???
universe_WZ: you sound pressed over there, u ok?
hoshi_tiger_xx: honestly idrc that video was HOT
“Oh my gosh~ You guys!!” Your eyes flit to the side where Seungcheol sits with his phone in hand; a sly smirk on his face when your eyes meet. “Actually, I didn’t know you’d all like it so much… I kinda just thought to do it on the fly and my---my friend, um, agreed to help me…” Mumbling, you shyly readjust on Seungcheol’s sheets.
gc__koo: a friend? interesting tell me more
sleepy_wonu: who tf
kitty_junjun: i see our babygirl is getting more regulars~ so popular~
You giggle cutely as you tuck a stray hair behind your ear. “Did my video do that well?” You already know the answer but you read off a few more responses, biting your lip when you glance Seungcheol’s way again.
“Actually… my friend is here with me. He’s making sure I behave~”
Seungcheol pauses, head tilted questioningly at you. He mouths a simple ‘what are you doing?’ to which you wink back, readjusting yourself against the headboard.
“He’s really shy though… So he won’t be on camera~ But… But thinking about his fingers so deep in me… Fuck I’m--I’m already…” You trail off; hand reaching for the small bullet vibrator next to you on the bed.
gc__koo: guess he really gave it to you good huh?
xcaliburDK: fuck we kno he did… god that was so hot
tangerine_kwan: ur cute lil pussy was so wet and tight around those fingers, fuck
chwenon has donated $45
chwenon: it was so diff from seeing your own fingers or toys but in a good way
You trail the small vibrator across your body; mewling when you press it against the growing wet patch on your panties. “S-so you guys wouldn’t mind seeing more?”
gentleman_josh95: fuck yea i wanna see more
therealchan99: yes god plz, wanna see that cute lil cunt stretching around a fat cock
Seungcheol blushes as he clenches his jaw, suddenly a little embarrassed.
“Yeah? Mmh, I--I want that too…” You whimper. Using your free hand, you hook your thumb into the waistband of your panties as you shimmy them down before you continue. “Do you think my friend would be so kind as to give it to me~?” You tease; spreading your legs wide in front of the camera.
dom.cheol: if you behave, maybe he will.
artist8hao: mmm he’s right, only good girls get their pussies filled with cock
“Heeeey, but I’m good, right?” You pout, brows furrowing cutely at the camera. “I’ve been so good lately… Think I deserve a reward~”
dom.cheol: do you though? Have you been good, baby?
therealchan99: uh oh trouble in paradise?
gc__koo: maybe hes jealous
Jealous!? Seungcheol exclaims in his head; reminding himself to keep quiet as he stares at you incredulously.
You can only laugh loudly in response, shaking your head as you bring the wet toy up to your lips. You lick the wetness off of the silicone, lips settling into a sly smirk when you set the vibrator to it’s strongest setting.
“Let me show you how good I can be.”
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“So, restraints?”
“For me or for you?” You blink up at Seungcheol from a mouthful of cereal, hair messy as you lounge in one of his shirts you happened to find on the floor. “Uh, well, mostly for you. I’m--I’m not opposed to it but… Yeah.”
You get comfy in his makeshift sofa bed, giggling as he sits across from you. “I’m totally cool with it! Oh! Um… you��� you’re clean, right? Before we continue.” He nods in response, clearing his throat. “Yeah, I got tested a few weeks ago… Just in case.”
“Okay cool, so… Hmm… ‘Cheol is there anything you don’t want to do?”
“I should be asking you that, baby. ‘Cause I’m okay with anything you want to do… I think.”
“Okay so no piss kinks and no weird diaper baby stuff then.”
Seungcheol snorts, running a hand through his hair. “Sounds good to me. Is there anything you’re… really opposed to? Like choking or spitplay or degradation... I mean, you talking about it on your camshows is different from us doing it in real life so I--I just want to make sure you’re really okay with it.” You nod slowly, taking in his words.
“Yeah… I mean, I wanna try it with you. I trust you.” Pausing, you bite your lip as you try to hide the giddy smile on your face to no avail. “If we’re being honest, the thought of you being rough with me and spitting in my mouth is kinda really hot.”
He grits his teeth, already feeling his cock throb when you say that. “Ooookay, baby, I gotta go to work after this so let’s… not go there right now, okay? I don’t need ‘Guk having any more ammo against me.”
“Sorry, ‘Cheol~ I’ll be good! And--oh, by the way… Um, what about your v-voice? What are we gonna do about that…”
Oh, right.
Seungcheol bites the inside of his cheek, contemplating. In truth, he’d been thinking about it since you asked him to help the first time and he knew eventually he’d have to revisit the topic. It seemed like a minuscule thing, but a part of him was a little worried that he’d be recognizable. “I--I’ll think about it. I’m more okay on the idea of it but I’ll let you know before we do anything.” Nodding, you get up from the sofa the same time Seungcheol does, walking with him towards the front door.
“Oh and one last thing, ‘Cheol!”
“Hmm?”
“Safe word?”
He takes a second to think, brows furrowing as he stares up at the ceiling.
“Cranberry.”
You raise a brow, blinking up at Seungcheol. “Really? Cranberry?”
“Yeah, why not, it’s easy to remember and it’s not Cherry but it’s kinda similar?”
“That’s fair, I guess.”
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“Hey hyung, cool apartment! Didn’t think I’d see it like that, if you know what I mean.”
“Don’t you have popcorn to burn?”
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Seungcheol sighs a breath of relief when he turns the lock to his apartment door; already excited to see you when he gets home from work.
“I’m back!” He yells, toeing his shoes off at the entrance as he sees you quietly shuffle to the entrance.
“I… I was bad today…”
Confusion crosses Seungcheol’s features as his eyes dance over your form still dressed in one of his t-shirts.
Oh.
Ohhhh. Okay.
“You were bad, huh? Wanna tell me what you did, baby?”
You nod in response, linking your hands with his as you guide him back towards the bed. You hand him your phone, already having it in video mode and recording by the time he adjusts it in his palm
“You don’t have to… say anything if you don’t want to.” Seungcheol nods.
Gulping, you peer up at him once you sit on the bed. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you after you left for work… I--I couldn’t stop touching myself thinking about you…” You rub your thighs together; already feeling the wetness pooling between them again.
“I made myself cum and I--I used your pillow to make myself cum and got them dirty… ‘m sorry…”
Seungcheol feels himself slip into character, bringing his free hand up to your hair before he slightly tugs on it.
“So your greedy ‘lil pussy couldn’t wait ‘til I got home from work? And you got my favorite pillows dirty? Naughty ‘lil thing. I can’t even leave you alone for a few hours, can I?”
You feel your body heat up incredibly fast, head tilted up towards the camera as he brings it in closer. You were fully expecting him to keep quiet, but you were incredibly elated to hear him interacting with you. “I k-know, I’m sorry! I couldn’t s-stop thinking about your cock…” He scoffs, grinning down at you when he sees the lust already pooling in your eyes.
“How are you going to make it up to me, baby?”
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“Fuck, you’re so pretty choking on my cock.”
The tears blur your vision as you swallow around him; pussy throbbing around your fingers at the feeling of him already being too big for your mouth. His hand guides you down until your lips almost reach the base of his cock, a strained moan on his lips when you gag around him. “Ngh, god, your mouth is so fuckin’ small. Bet you can’t wait ‘til my cock is in that pussy of yours, huh?”
You moan around him in response; head getting fuzzy when the lightheadedness starts to bite. You continue to thrust your own fingers into your pussy, prepping yourself for Seungcheol as you scissor and curl the digits.
Seungcheol holds you onto his cock a second more before he tugs on your hair, pulling you off of his cock as you sputter and catch your breath. “You look good like this, baby.” He smirks, letting the camera catch your messy hair, teary eyes and swollen lips before he lets go of your hair.
“Now get on the bed. Legs spread for me.”
You nod; getting up from the floor on shaky legs as Seungcheol lets the camera follow.
You strip off all your clothes and get onto the bed before resting against the pillows and spreading your legs for Seungcheol to situate himself between them.
“You need to be punished for misbehaving, sweetheart. You know you’re not allowed to cum without my permission. And you got my sheets dirty.”
“I know…” You whimper, “I couldn’t help it…”
Scoffing, he rolls his eyes. “I know you can’t. All you ever think about is my cock inside that pussy of yours. What would you do without me, baby? Do you think anyone could satisfy you like I do?”
Seungcheol slots himself between your legs, making sure to keep most of himself out of frame. He wraps his free hand around his cock, running it up and down before bringing his cock to your wet folds. He runs the head through your folds, letting it tap against your clit as you jolt.  “Do you want me?” He whispers; his eyes meeting yours.
He knew this was the second everything would change for the two of you, and he wanted to make sure you truly wanted it before he took the leap.
“Yes, please… I want you so bad…” You whimper, legs wrapping around Seungcheol’s waist. He nods shakily, making sure your phone is angled down as he slowly sinks his cock into your pussy.
The two of you share a broken moan as Seungcheol’s grip on your phone tightens and your own hands find purchase in the pillow tucked underneath your head.
Seungcheol was big.
And the stretch had you whining; a small sting biting into you as he slowly eased his cock into you. “Relax for me, sweetheart. You’re already so fuckin’ tight around me. You need to relax a little more.”
You try your best to even your breathing as you also attempt to relax; pupils blown wide when you look straight into the camera. “G-god, you’re so b-big, oh, I--I’m--a-ah!” Tiny cries spill from your lips as you cum unexpectedly, nails digging into the pillow as your walls flutter around him.
“Hmm~ Only got half my cock into your tight pussy and you’re already cumming? So easy.” He laughs, letting you ride out your high as he waits.
Internally, Seungcheol was dying. There were so many things he wanted to say but couldn’t; knowing he, too, at this moment, was playing a character with you.
“Fuck, your pussy is so warm and wet and I’m not even all the way in yet. Think you can still take the rest of me, baby?”
“I, hah, y-yes, please! Wanna fuh--feel all of y-you…” Mumbling, you don’t even wait to come down from your high before you’re already wanting more; squirming underneath him.
“If you say so~”
Seungcheol inches in the rest of his cock, exhaling harshly when he bottoms out completely. “Holy fuck, you’re so goddamn tight!” His free hand grips your thigh, nails digging into the flesh as he gives you a second to adjust to his size. You can feel your entire body trembling, pussy clenching around him as the sting from the stretch starts to subside and bleed into unadulterated pleasure. “God, please--please m-move!”
He starts slow at first, only shallowly thrusting into you as the two of you get used to each other’s body. And despite your first time together being on camera, Seungcheol doesn’t seem to mind all too much, although he does remember to keep himself out as much as possible.
Your breathy moans and clipped breaths are music to his ears when he starts going a little faster; the sweat starting to trickle down his temple when he keeps at a moderate pace. “O-oh, fuck!” A string of incoherent curses follow as you wince when the head of Seungcheol’s cock taps your cervix.
“Oh, go----d, right there, please, it feels so g-good!”
“Right here? Does it feel good when you’re full of my cock?” Seungcheol clenches his jaw when you tighten around him, small curses falling from his own lips.
“Yes, yes, god, fuck… I--ngh!” Your eyes clamp shut as you fully get lost in pleasure; your head tossed back into the pillow when Seungcheol thrusts into you particularly hard.
You hear him laugh lightly, followed by a buzzing noise that has your eyes peeling open. “H-huh?”
Seungcheol smiles down at you, eyes filled with mischief when he plays with the settings on the vibrator in his hand.
“Well, you wanted to cum so bad that you did it without my permission, right? Since you wanna cum so bad, let’s see it, sweetheart.” He brings the toy to your clit; letting the vibrations throw your body into overdrive as your back arches off of the sheets.
“A-ah, Seu--Mmh! Fuck ‘m g-gonna cum a-again!” You cry, thighs quivering around his waist as he keeps the silicone toy pressed up against your swollen clit.
He doesn’t let up as he starts to thrust into you quicker, fucking you through your orgasm as he chases his. “God, your fuckin’ cunt was made for me. Bet you want me to cum inside too, huh? Fill you up nice and good until it’s spilling out of you?”
“Please, please, please!”
“You gotta cum for me one more time, baby. Get my cock wet.” You let out a choked cry, lashes wet with tears when he sets the toy to its strongest setting.
“Mmh, ‘m so s-sensitive… I--- I don’t know if--if I can, ah, cum a-again…” Seungcheol licks his lips watching your fucked out expression, cock throbbing between your walls. “I know you can, baby. I can feel you already getting tight around me again.”
And Seungcheol’s right; only a few more thrusts from him before you’re cumming one last time, heels digging into the small of his back as he finally shuts the toy off and grinds against you. And this time, your lips part in a silent scream, back arching off of the bed as your entire body goes rigid underneath him.
He makes sure to do a full sweep of your body through the camera in the midst of your high, halting his movements as he lets you ride it out before he continues.
“Oh my g-god, I--fu--fuck…”
Your body finally untenses after a few minutes; chest heaving in deep breaths as Seungcheol resumes his pace.
“Ready for me to cum inside that cute ‘lil cunt of yours?”
“Mmh, yes, give it to me~”
Seungcheol snickers, thrusting into you hard one last time before he pulls out completely. “That’s too bad~” He taunts, wrapping his free hand around the shaft of his cock. “Only good girls get creampies~” He lets out a cocky laugh, running his hand up and down his cock as he positions it over your abdomen.
You clench around emptiness, a weak moan floating through the air when Seungcheol finally cums, painting your chest in warm wet streaks of the salty substance. “Fuck, but you look so pretty covered in my cum too…” He grits out, cock throbbing in his palm as he works himself through his orgasm.
You watch him through foggy eyes; licking your chapped lips as you watch his brows furrow in concentration and his eyes slide shut as he, too, gets overwhelmed with bliss.
It takes a moment for him to catch his breath, palm sweaty around the phone as his thumb hovers over the ‘stop’ button. “W-wait…”
“Hmm? What’s wrong, baby?”
You run your fingers through the rivulets of cum coating your skin, gathering the viscous liquid on your fingertips before you bring them up to your mouth to lick them clean. “We can’t let it go to waste, can we?” Popping the digits into your mouth, you moan around your fingers as you clean Seungcheol’s cum off of them.
“You’re right, baby. We shouldn’t.”
You smile up at him, eyes dancing towards the camera for what feels like the first time in a long time before popping the digits out of your mouth.
Seungcheol’s eyes follow your movements, throat dry when you run your fingertips through the settling cum again. Except this time, you drag your fingers down until they’re teasing your clit, coating it in his cum. “Ngh, w-wanted you to cum inside but…”
His shaky eyes follow the way your fingers dip lower and lower until your cum coated fingers sink into your swollen pussy. He mentally screams, half tempted to shut off the camera.
“That’s right, baby. You want my cum so bad that you have to do it yourself, huh? Maybe next time you’ll remember to behave, won’t you?”
Nodding, you repeat the same steps a few more times; fingering Seungcheol’s cum into your pussy until most of it is cleaned off of your chest.
“I promise I won’t misbehave again~” You coo.
You wait a few seconds before you lean up, hand circling Seungcheol’s wrist as you bring the phone down and press the ‘stop’ button yourself.
“And scene!” You blurt out, laying back down in a tired mess as Seungcheol chuckles above you.
“Well, can’t say I expected that, if I’m being honest.” He moves back, eyes fixated on his cum that dries on your skin and the little bit that trickles from your pussy. “I’ve gotta ask, did you really… before I got home…”
“Honestly? Yeah… I mean the--the pillows were a lie ‘cause I didn’t wanna get them dirty but…” You chuckle tiredly, aiming to sit up which you find difficult to do. “Fuck, ‘Cheol, I think you broke me!” He pouts in response, leaning over you to make sure you were okay.
“Did I though? Be honest. ‘Cause I wasn’t expecting to go that hard on our first time together but it just---it--I--”
“Whoa, it’s okay! Seungcheol, relax. You didn’t hurt me… I r-really liked it actually… It felt--You felt really good. And I just wanted to, um, say sorry. I kinda sprung that on you out of nowhere too.”
“Honestly? I didn’t mind. I seemed to fall into character a lot easier than I expected which shocked me too.” 
The two of you fall into a comfortable yet shy silence; catching your breath.
Seungcheol makes the first move, sliding off of the bed as you fight off the sleep that threatens to take you. “Hey, we need to get you cleaned up and hydrated. I need to change the sheets too.”
“Mmm.. but ‘m tired, ‘Cheol…”
He smiles at your tired form, helping you into a sitting position before shuffling to the kitchen to get you a glass of water. “I know you’re tired. And you can go to sleep after we get you cleaned off, get the sheets changed and probably eat a little, okay?”
“Mmkay~ Oh, but the video…” He passes you the glass, making you finish it before you continue.
“What about the video?”
You wipe at your dry lips, handing the glass back to Seungcheol. “We… We should probably watch it back and edit it a bit to make sure everything’s okay, shouldn’t we? Just in case we, um, said something we shouldn’t have or something...”
A blush blooms on Seungcheol’s skin, suddenly shy at the idea that he’d have to not only listen to himself but also watch, at least, part of himself on camera. “R-right, which--which we can do tomorrow when I get back from work. If that’s okay with you?”
You nod up at him, a beaming smile on your face.
“It’s definitely okay with me~”
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crocworkships · 3 years
Text
Strange Woman
(A/N: This is a little sequel I wrote to this post, from Illumi’s perspective! It does have feminine pronouns to refer to the Hunter-Reader character, and refers to her as a woman more than once, because I was writing it more as a self-insert than a reader-insert. It also mentions that the Hunter has red hair. Other than that, though, not much to identify the Hunter-Reader one way or another! Enjoy!)
He didn’t understand her.
The strange Hunter woman who had attached herself to his Kill. She was strange, bold, like a mother crow attacking a cat and putting herself in danger just to protect some eggs. No one outside his family had ever spoken to him the way that this Hunter had, and no one inside his family had spoken to him like that more than once. He wondered why he had allowed her to live after she snapped at him for trying to talk sense into his little brother. He couldn’t remember the last time he had seen a mother other than his own try to defend their child from him; he made it a habit not to allow his marks to detect him before he killed them, so was this fierceness because she felt responsible for his brother in the short time that they had spent together during the Hunter Exam? Or was this simply another case of an arrogant person who thought themselves invincible bristling at a perceived challenge to their power? She might have taken a liking to his Kill, and decided he was hers now, and Illumi putting her in her place may have caused her to react aggressively.
Although, he pondered, had she not immediately rushed to reassure not only his Kill, but the other boys in their little group, when they had expressed concern after her arrogant display of fearlessness? She called the smaller one, Gon, “baby,” and kept repeating that she was fine, not to worry about her. Was it not the role of a mother to reassure her brood and remain strong for them? To give anything to protect and keep them, even her own life? Perhaps she truly did care, in her own way, for his Kill – an issue he would still have to rectify, he decided – and made those children her brood.
But why would she have done that? They were not hers. One of them was his. And how did she expect to keep them safe and under control if she let them do whatever they wanted?
“He’s a human being, with a will and mind of his own, not your toy!”
This angry shout still echoed in his mind, hours later as he prepared to sleep, more than the declaration that she was not afraid of death. How presumptuous this Hunter woman was. Did she truly think he thought of his little Kill as a toy? She didn’t know anything. She had no idea what his relationship with his Kill was. What it meant to be a Zoldyck, a master assassin and part of the world’s tightest-knit clan.
But perhaps she could, whispered a strange voice, unbidden, in his mind. It sounded unsettlingly like his grandfather. He silenced it immediately, and resolved not to think about it. The last thing he wanted was yet another aggressive, strange redhead annoying him, especially when this new one was more likely than not to turn her aggression on him. Still, she was nowhere near as strong as Hisoka, though he would still have to observe her to see how strong she was…
Why did he want to observe her? She stood between him and his brother and criticized how he spoke to him, and she was old enough to know better than the small one, Gon. He should have killed her immediately. Why didn’t he?
She will keep my Kill safe while he’s having his little rebellious phase, said the strange voice, she may not be the strongest, but she is fierce and deeply caring. She will keep him safe. This made sense, so he decided to wait. Wait until tomorrow, see how she took care of her little makeshift brood, and see how well she fared. Perhaps he would even let her live after he took his Kill home.
And God help her if she ever met his mother.
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daydream-believin · 3 years
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The Never-Ending Roadtrip (Autumn in New York, pt 2)
summary: (ch 1) Reader joins Douxie in the quest for Nari’s safety. He’ll need company won’t he? - ch 10) an end to our NYC journey
warnings: swearing, alcohol mention, lots of food, NYC, pizza rat
word count: 6k on the dot
a/n: i wrote most of this when i should have been sleeping,,, so yeah. i wanna go to nyc now. HERE IT IS THE FINALE BON APETIT Y’ALL
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Y/n opened her eyes very slowly. In the in-between of sleep and wake, her brain had painted a picture of her old room in the bookstore. Yes, she could still see the curtains blowing in the breeze let in by the open window. The early morning glow on the floorboards. Douxie’s soft snoring filling her ears. Yes, yes, she was home and everything felt right. And then, slowly, it wasn’t. The warm wooden floorboards faded into a white carpet, and suddenly she didn’t know what she was looking at anymore. It was disorienting. She wasn’t in her own bed. Right. New York.
She turned over onto her back and was startled when she realized Douxie was actually there, next to her. His snoring wasn’t her dream, like it had been many times before when this exact thing had happened to her. Right again. Douxie loved her back now. That was an actual thing in real life and not just her dreams. Y/n supposed it would have been weirder if he wasn’t next to her. In the scheme of things. But that didn’t mean she would be used to it any time soon. But that was good. A pleasant surprise every morning. A little burst of serotonin, as a treat.
Y/n looked at the little hot pink alarm clock. 5:48am. Good! Right on time. Just enough minutes to get everyone out the door by 6:30 as was planned. Douxie… was not going to like this. She looked over the wizard’s sleeping form. She’d let him have his rest while she showered, leaving him blissfully unaware of what’s to come. Even then he might put up a fight. Y/n popped her head into the living room to check on Nari. Still sound asleep, snug as a bug on the fluffy couch with Archie. All good. She preceded with her morning routine.
Y/n pulled on her sneakers. She supposed she really must wake Doux now. They were running out of time. She stopped dead in her tracks when she caught sight of him. If an awake Douxie was cute, then a sleeping Douxie was absolutely adorable. All Y/n’s adoration belonged to this man who was sound asleep, and therefore could not fully appreciate her doting. She had to get some pictures. Just a few, then she’ll wake him up for sure this time.
Y/n was leaning over Doux, getting closer for a better angle, when she heard his voice, muffled by the pillow he had his gorgeous face half buried into. She strained to be able to make out what he was saying.
“y-y/n…” The dopiest grin spread across his still-sleeping features.
Y/n heart was filled with so much love it might burst. And her face was so hot it might catch on fire. He was dreaming. Of her. It looked like it was a good dream, too. Even when unconscious, he stilled cared for her. His snoozing brain could have conjured up anyone, anyone in the world he’d met in the last nine centuries, and it chose her. What a wonderful feeling it was to be chosen. He had married her, she knew he had chosen her, but it still felt special to be chosen again, and again, and again, as it would through the future to come. She didn’t even know why she had done it, asked him to marry her, that is. What had possessed her. Even as she did, she had half expected him to brush it off, or maybe offer a ‘someday’, but never in her wildest dreams would she have expected him to take it as seriously as he did. Never would she have expected him to be so eager. To declare, tomorrow. She ran her hand down his arm.
“Dewdrop, you need to wake up.” He half-opened his eyes, before groaning and shutting them again in defiance. Five more minutes. Douxie was not a morning person. Neither was Y/n, but she always seemed to be up before him still. He needed to get back to her anyways. She was waiting for him in-. Someone tapped his nose repeatedly. Fine. Awake it is then.
Douxie finally opened his eyes, taking in the form of the goddess leaning over him. Oh. Maybe this was better than the dream. Were her hands on him? Yes, she was stroking his face. This definitely was better. With the small price to pay of being awake. He’d pay it happily. Give her all he had. His time, what he was made of, was a sacrifice to the most beautiful goddess. Aphrodite be damned.
She pulled him out of bed by the arm and led him to the shower. “Come on, get ready, we have to go.” She started the process of braiding back her hair.
“Wait,”
“What?”
“Stop, I want to do your hair for you.”
Y/n laughed, dropping the strands in her grasp. “Okay.”
Douxie brushed through his own drying hair and tossed it back. He went to go find Y/n, who was sitting on the edge of the bed, scrolling through a website on her phone, double checking a time. He sat next to her. Douxie ran his fingers through her locks.
“Hmm, I’m thinking… a pretty five strand.”
“and I’m thinking you need to put on some clothes first,” She pointed to the towel wrapped around his hips, “You can always braid my hair later, but you need to be dressed so we can walk out the door. We’re on a time crunch here, Dewdrop.”
“So be it.” Douxie smiled as he got up to go fulfil his wife’s request.
Now fully dressed and actually ready to go, Douxie busied himself with Y/n’s hair again. “How are we on time?”
“We should be good, as long as you don’t do anything too fancy.”
“I won’t-”
“You said five strands, like a challah bread or something. That’s fancy.”
Douxie laughed, “Okay, but it won’t take long, I promise.”
Douxie’s fingers made quick and clever work of the strands of hair. He made sure to keep it tight, but not too tight. He used to see lovers plait each other’s hair back in the day. He would look on longingly, wishing he had someone to do the same with. And now he did. Maybe he would consider growing his hair back out, if it gave Y/n the same opportunity. Not the manbun though. He was not considering bringing back the fucking manbun by any means. But having Y/n plait it every day, that would be pleasant. Not at all a cringey hairstyle. And Y/n had mentioned to him how pretty she thought past-his long hair was.
He pulled the strands further away from her neck as he was getting closer to the ends. He had to admit, he had planned on doing something a little fancier, but this would have to do. Y/n seemed anxious to make whatever deadline she had given herself. He leaned in to whisper in her ear.
“You know, I’ve always wanted to do this,” he chuckled, and his breath on her ear made her shiver, “You cannot imagine how many times I’ve dreamed of running my fingers through your hair, My Love. It just. Looked so soft.” Douxie pressed a kiss to the nape of her neck. “And… Done!”
Douxie leaned back to admire his work. Simple, like she wanted, but very intricate the same. Y/n turned around to him as she headed for the bathroom mirror, taking note of how proud he looked. She turned her head this way and that in the mirror.
“Wow, this is so cute, Dewdrop. How’d you get so good.”
“Thank you, centuries of practice you see.”
Y/n giggled as she checked the clock. 6:34. “OH come on we’re gonna miss the subway.”
~~~
The subway was a magical place. Y/n sure thought so. All you had to do was step down a random staircase in the middle of the sidewalk, a nifty portal, and suddenly you were in an underground maze of commuters. Nari thought the turnstiles were odd. She just walked under it, and no one around the seemed to care, so Y/n just let her. Paying one less fare was no sweat off her back. The tiles that lined the wall were very dirty. There were mystery stains on the floor. Well, not that one the she just pulled Nari away from. That was definitely dried blood. The sound of a million grumpy people milling about and the coming and going of trains was all that Y/n could hear. She gripped Douxie’s hand tight as she double checked the map to see if they were about to board the right line. The 4 train would take them to the Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall station, right where they needed to go. This was the right way.
Right before the train arrived, Nari pointed to a spot across the hall. “Look, Archie.”
Crawling up the side of the platform was a rat. A big, fat rat. A big, fat rat with something in its mouth, carrying it up to the top. Once the rat did pull his prize up to the platform, it was plain to see. A slice of pepperoni pizza. Douxie had no idea where such a creature would acquire a perfectly whole slice of pizza this early in the morning, or, at all. Maybe it someone dropped it last night and abandoned it? The rat looked a bit scruffy. Did he have to fight off other rats for this prime piece of pie? This month had started of pretty normal for Doux but now he was standing in a subway station, holding the hand of his wife, pondering the secret life of a New York rat with a slice of pizza in its little mouth. Marvelous. Douxie felt Archie dig his claws into his shoulders, and making a chattering sound.
“Please Arch, we don’t have time for you to eat that rat.”
“But you just know it tastes like pizza, it’s got the grease all over its fur-”
“Archie, I fucking swear-”
Doux was cut off from his swearing by the train pulling in. The people who exited it rushed past, all having somewhere to be. None of them stopping to take in the wonder that was the pizza rat. Archie was sad to board the train and leave the rat. He’d get over it. The crowd of people all rushing in at once startled Nari. She clung to Y/n’s side. Since it was so early in the morning, a lot of commuters filled the train, and there wasn’t any seating left by the time they got there. Douxie gripped the ceiling bar, Y/n gripped his arm as if it was a ceiling bar, and Nari held on tight to Y/n. Douxie stared out the window in a trance as the world wooshed by him. This truly was a bizarre situation to be in. If you had told him last month that he would be here, he would have, well, not laughed, since his life was strange enough that he wouldn’t doubt it, but he would at least harbor some disbelief. There was their station.
Y/n checked the time as they stepped out onto the platform. 6:59. They needed to hurry. She tugged on Douxie’s arm. “C’mon!”
They made it to the Brooklyn Bridge just in time. Douxie was still confused about why Y/n was so adamant about being here so early in the morning. As they walked over it towards Manhattan, he understood. The early morning sun started rising just as they started the walk. The city skyline was glowing. The brilliant pinks and oranges painted the sky and everything around them. Each skyscraper glittered with the light reflecting off the windows. It was breathtaking.
The walk itself was quite relaxing. Douxie wouldn’t call the air fresh, smog and all that, but it was nice, cool and crisp. Pigeons flew by, adding their two cents in conversations only they could understand. The cars on the road next to them zoomed past. Every car had a person, and that person had somewhere to be at this early hour. Doux hoped they made it to their destinations safely. Every once and a while he would hear a honk, although he wasn’t sure from where it came. Douxie put his arm over Y/n’s shoulder to pull her closer to him. The journey from Brooklyn to Manhattan took about forty-five minutes, but it was peaceful thinking time, and Doux was grateful. Sure, plenty could go wrong, with them being on a bridge above the ocean that they were sharing with lots of fast cars, but with Y/n so close to him, he was able to put all that out of his mind.
As they reentered Manhattan, Y/n took no time at all in leading her family to a diner. She was hungry, okay? She needed breakfast. And coffee. Surely Archie would agree with her. It was food time.
Diner coffee was the best. Douxie didn’t care what fancy gourmet stuff the trendy coffee shops came out with, diner coffee would always be the best. It just had a certain je ne sais quoi. Maybe it was the vibe. Whatever it was, it was just what he needed right now at 8:00am. Not only was he unsure of how he made it this long without any caffeine, Douxie was kind of surprised he was getting away with having Archie with him, in all these places, in broad daylight. Guess his shoulder cat wasn’t the strangest thing New Yorkers had seen. Said shoulder cat was scarfing down a plate of eggs and bacon.
Y/n told Doux the rest of what she planned on having them do today over breakfast. Not much else, but enough. They’d still be out of the house until evening. That was fine. He couldn’t think of anywhere he’d rather be than wherever she was. As they left, they passed by a couple of kids inputting songs into the jukebox with devilish smirks. They were leaving just in time then.
Next up was a ferry ride to Staten Island. The ferry was constant, running every half hour, therefore they only had to wait a few minutes before it arrived once again for them to board. They found their seats on the upper deck, as per Y/n’s request. Apparently, this was because their reason for riding the ferry was not in fact to get to Staten Island like Douxie had thought. The purpose of the trip was to look out and see Bedloe’s Island and Lady Liberty who made her home there as the ferry cruised by it.
Y/n made Douxie hold Archie up so she could get a picture of him with the statue in the background. Archie was used to the strangeness of his familiar and his wife so the dragon cat didn’t question it. Archie_the_emo_kitty fans were going to love this. Y/n also got some of Nari and the gang. And a couples picture, but sadly, kissing Douxie’s cheek for a photo just didn’t get the same reaction as before. He was still a little pink though, as he was during all her showers of affection, so Y/n counted that as a victory.
Staten Island is hailed as the greenest borough, and thus the perfect place for Nari. After letting her run through a park for a while, they grabbed lunch at a Sri Lankan restaurant before taking the ferry back. Their clothes would smell like curry and spices for the rest of the day. Delicious, and worth it.
~~~
“Why are we going to a bar at 2pm?”
“Oh, you know, I figured day drinking was the next step for our vacation vibes,” Y/n answered Archie sarcastically, “Yeah, no. We’re just going up there to look out their window for the view.”
“You humans and your obsession with views.” Archie really didn’t see the big deal here. Whatever. He’d have to go whether he liked it or not.
Looking out over the city form the skyscraper bar’s wide window, Douxie felt uneasy. This bar’s claim to fame was this window that offered the view of the Empire State building. A building that used to be the tallest in the world. And then a younger and brighter architect built a higher one in Dubai. Makes sense. Nothing ever lasts long. He looked down at Y/n standing beside him. Maybe something would last long. He’d do everything in his power to make sure of it.
The last touristy thing Y/n wanted to see for the night was Broadway. It was getting chillier now that the sun was sinking, and Douxie magicked Y/n up a coat that was thicker than his old hoodie that she had been wearing nonstop since she stole it he gave it to her. However, she had been complaining about it losing its smell lately and telling him he needed to wear it again. Although she’d yet to let him have it back. She looked cute in the new coat. She looked cute in everything. Douxie was biased.
Broadway was covered in bright lights. The rows of theaters advertised their shows on big, dramatic signs. They weren’t going to go see any of the musicals, but it was fun to stroll down the street and see everything it had to offer. The world was bathed in an opulent gold, even the light in Y/n’s eyes as she led him down the way. Fitting, she was golden. Douxie felt like everything she touched turned to gold, like that old myth. He supposed that made him golden too.
One last stop before they went home for the night, a grocery market. They passed by so many Italian restaurants on their way from Broadway, Y/n was craving gnocchi. After hearing her talk about it during the walk, Douxie was too. Douxie held the handbasket while Y/n gathered the produce they needed for the soup. Plums were in season, and Y/n convinced Doux to let her make a few into some sweet rolls. Well, not convinced, he was all for it, she just had to ask. His cheeks were tinted just ever so slightly pink. He knew she’d known him for a really long time, so of course she knew all his favorite foods, but it still made him feel special that she’d take the time to memorize it. To memorize him. They got the cream, eggs, and butter they needed before starting the journey back to the apartment. Douxie carried all three of the bags. He wouldn’t let Y/n or Nari take one. He appreciated them offering, but, it’s not like they were heavy.
The ole’ valentines suite was just as lovey dovey as when they left it. They got to work on dinner as soon as they took off their coats. Nari and Archie took their places perched on the couch. The thing about being cute is you never have to work for your dinner, someone is always feeding you. It was alright, Douxie liked it this way better anyhow. This way he got to cook with Y/n as a special thing, just the two of them. They used to cook with each other a lot back when they were roommates. In fact, every weekend they put aside time to cook a meal together. It was tradition. Douxie had always wanted hug Y/n from behind while she stirred whatever was in the pan. He couldn’t do that then, but he definitely could now. Every time she had lifted a spoon to his lips, instructed him to taste, had been a knife jammed into his chest. She was always right there, so close he could touch, and he couldn’t do anything about it back then. He’d have to make up for lost time then.
Y/n put the potato pot on to boil and started on the sweet roll dough, asking Douxie if he’d chop up the vegetables for the soup. Aww, guess he had a job and couldn’t just spend this whole time hanging on her. Oh well, he’d chop. That was often his role in their cooking exploits. He’d admit, he had almost chopped his fingers a few times when he got too distracted sneaking glances at Y/n. He was a danger to himself really.
Y/n set the dough out to rise and started pitting and slicing up the plums. They wouldn’t need them for an hour or so, but might as well get them prepared and set aside. Douxie was still chopping the soup veggies, albeit slowly. Y/n thought he looked like he might be a little too far into his head.
“Hey Dewdrop,” Douxie looked at her, puzzled, “lets sing something to pass the time, yeah?”
Douxie was happy to sing with his beloved, and Y/n was happy to get Doux distracted from whatever was bothering him. And it was fun. Really fun. Y/n forgot how much she missed singing with people. Douxie’s voice meshed really well with hers. She really couldn’t believe that he liked her voice and that it was as pretty as he had been telling her lately, but she didn’t really care about that anymore; whether or not her voice was good or if it was embarrassing. She just liked singing, and sharing that with Doux felt special.
Potato mashing was a fun way to let off steam, Douxie had found. The more anger you let out on the potato, the better it was. Reminded him of back when Merlin would put him on kitchen duty for a day as punishment. He took out his frustrations on the potatoes then too. The old kitchen master encouraged it. After Douxie mashed those potatoes for her, Y/n added in the flower and salt, and began kneading the dough. Now Y/n didn’t know about mash potatoes for anger management but dough kneading was where it’s at. This was just gnocchi dough though, so it wasn’t worked too hard.
Now for the fun part, making the shapes. Now you could just go with the normal fork rolled gnocchi, but where’s the creativity in that. No, Douxie and Y/n liked to have little competitions of who could come up with the coolest looking gnocchi shape whenever they made this recipe. This time, Douxie won by making his dough ball into the form of a little rat, a tip of the hat to this glorious city they were in, and Y/n lost her shit. She wouldn’t let him make any more though, they didn’t need to be eating rat soup. That would be disrespectful to ratatouille.
Eventually, Y/n did start standing around stirring the pot of broth, and Douxie got his blessed hug from behind opportunity. Yep, this was just as good as he dreamed it would be. He got to watch what she was doing from over her shoulder, pepper her neck in kisses, and every now and then she’d turn to grab his face and kiss him too. At one point, tired of the short pecks, Y/n fully turned around, throwing her arms around his neck, pulling him down for a more serious kiss. Y/n was obviously the more forward one in this relationship, but it still took Douxie by surprise every time. A good surprise, the best kind even. Each and every kiss they shared became the new favorite moment of his life, this one was no exception. Their lips moved together slowly, taking the time to savor every second of each other’s presence. Maybe a little too much. They didn’t pull apart until they heard Archie make a gagging noise. Y/n laughed as she turned back to the soup. Douxie shot Archie an angry glare before going back to his place over her shoulder. Yes, this was the most perfect way to spend an evening, rude dragon-cats aside. The soup smelled heavenly. But he didn’t want it to be ready quite so soon. Soup could wait, cuddles were priority right now.
But of course, the soup did finish cooking, and the lovebirds had to separate. Y/n though it was adorable how disgruntled Douxie was at this development. Actually eating the soup cheered him right back up however. It was delicious, It was the best soup they’d ever made. Must be the love. And the cuddles. Yeah, that’s what made it so tasty. This was honeymoon soup.
After dinner, Y/n got to work on the sweet rolls. After kneading the dough one last time and rolling it out, she let Nari help her place the filling and roll em up. The little goddess thought rolling up the dough was entertaining, and she liked how the end result looked like little roses. After putting the bake in the oven, Y/n gravitated over to that floor to ceiling window.
The city never slept, and it was just as abuzz as it was during the day, if not busier. Y/n sat cross-legged on the floor, gazing out at it all. Headlights of cars flew by. Pedestrians strolled with their shopping bags, bundled up in coats and scarves. Every moment passed was the present, and then suddenly it was the past. Y/n couldn’t tell the future. She couldn’t guess what person or car she would see next, and who knows what or who will walk by in this city, New York. There was a way to expect it and yet no way to know for sure.
The oven timer dinged, and Y/n got up to take the rolls out. The sugary smell filled the apartment. Y/n tried to swat Nari’s hand away from the just-out-of-the-oven pastries, but turns out the heat didn’t affect the veggie lady’s hands at all. Nari had heat resistant paws. Y/n supposed that probably came in handy dealing with that other Order member that was all fiery. Douxie was the real one she had to watch. It seemed he never got past the moppet stage of not thinking about the consequences of putting a molten hot sweet roll in his mouth. And he was good at sneaking them too, from all his years of doing so in the castle. Y/n rolled her eyes at his antics, but secretly thought it was cute. After the rolls had properly cooled, she took her own to-go as she found herself pulled back to that window once again.
Y/n ate her plum roll, watching it all, thinking about the future that was simultaneously always present and never coming. Y/n felt Douxie sit beside her, silently. He had yet to say a word to her after a few seconds, so she scooted a little closer to him so she could lay her head on his shoulder. Soon she felt his arm wrap around her, pulling her in tighter against him. Y/n waited another beat before speaking up, “Hey,”
“Hey.”
“I was wondering.” She said slowly.
“Yeah?”
“What happens after this?”
Douxie was taken off guard. He cleared his throat, “uhhh, I-”
“Like assuming we ever do defeat the order, which we will,” Douxie smiled at her confidence, “what’s next for us, Dewdrop?”
Doux had to take a moment to think. It’s not like he hadn’t thought about this himself, and if anything being able to give Y/n a good future consumed a lot of his thoughts, but he’d never been able to find a plan he felt like he could stick with. “I- I don’t know, Love. I’m sure we could return to Arcadia, if that would be something you would want. I’d never really settled down anywhere before that little town. And, I think, I’d want to go back.” Douxie’s eyes stared unblinking into the city lights, “It’s home now. In a perfect ending where everything resets when the war’s over, that is.” He rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. “We’ll have to wait and see. Things never really stay the same for long. Even if we can’t go back, we’ll find home somewhere. We’ll go home.”
Y/n pulled her legs out from under her, bringing them in close to her chest. “It is something I would want. Take me home, Hisirdoux. Is that a promise?”
Douxie took her hand and kissed her knuckles, “That’s a promise.”
The silence enveloped them once again. Stars knew how long they sat there, looking out in silence. Y/n practically fell asleep leaning on Doux. She yawned really big and Douxie smiled fondly as he got up, taking care to not disturb her too much as he scooped her up bridal style. “Come on Love, let’s go to bed.”
After gently placing Y/n in bed and snuggling in with her, Douxie let himself savor this now mundane moment between them. It was strange to think that just last month this simple thing would have short circuited him. He heard her giggle sleepily and raised an eyebrow.
“If we ever rebuild the bookshop, I want,,” She trailed off. Now Douxie was curious.
“Yes?” He further prompted.
“I want to make half of it a tea room, can we do that?”
“I- yeah I can certainly see about that.”
Y/n giggled again, “With fancy teacups?” she said groggily.
Douxie smiled, humoring her, “With fancy teacups.”
“Aannddd. And. Maybe,,” she whispered, “a baby.”
Douxie took in a sharp breath. Wow. He tried his best to keep his voice from cracking, “and a baby.” He wasn’t sure if Y/n even heard him as she was now snoring in his arms. A baby. He’d give her every baby she wanted. Raise a whole brood of moppets. Or just the one. Or none if she changed her mind. He’d be happy either way. But there was something about the thought of her wanting to have a baby with him that just made his whole face flush. He probably wasn’t going to be able to sleep tonight now. Douxie was anything but new to insomnia, but he’d never had such a sweet thing to be the cause of it before. His heart was going to melt. He pressed a kiss to Y/n’s hair. Yeah, he would be happy to melt here with her.
~~~
No early start to this day. Y/n didn’t have many things planned, so sleeping in was the main event of the morning. Douxie was completely okay with that, encouraged it even. He rarely got a day off to sleep in. And with Y/n in his arms? It was that much sweeter. But eventually they did leave the house, grabbing some leftover plum rolls on their way out for breakfast. They couldn’t just keep Nari indoors, it didn’t take long for her to get antsy. There was still plenty of things to do and see in New York so off they went.
First stop of the day, the flat iron building. They stood on the sidewalk across the street from it, the crowd instinctually parting to walk around them without caring.
“look at it. It’s triangular.”
“It, it sure is.” Douxie kinda looked to the side, unsure of how he was supposed to be reacting.
“Yeah I didn’t know what I was expecting.” Back in the subway and on to the market then.
Specifically Chelsea Market. Douxie got a weird feeling as he walked through the doors. Strange, he felt like they were being watched. Which of course they were, they were in one of the most populous cities in America after all. But like, a different, more sinister feeling of being watched. He brushed it off.
They wandered through the shops for quite a while. Y/n and Archie had decided that they needed to see everything that the market had to offer before they picked something. Douxie was just hungry. These damn foodies he lived with were always making him wait for lunch. Just pick something. Food was food. Most of the time he could say no to Archie but there was no way he could say no to his wife, ever. He had to work on that.
One of the signs caught Y/n’s eye immediately, Fat Witch Bakery. Well, they couldn’t not check that out. Once inside, they discovered the little shop exclusively sold brownies. Good brownies at that. Douxie wasn’t found of brownies, or anything chocolate flavored, but he had a couple bites of Y/n’s. It was okay, one of the better chocolate things he’d had. Y/n scarfed the rest down.
“Mmmm, good thing we don’t live here, or I’d be a fat witch myself in no time.”
A lot of the market was decorated for Christmas already, despite it being October. The lights were pretty. Y/n was disgruntled they skipped Halloween though. Douxie had to laugh at her little pout when she complained about it. She really was the cutest thing on the planet. He couldn’t help teasing her about it, which she responded with mock anger. He gave her a quick peck to help placate her. It worked.
They came across a seafood place and suddenly Archie was done looking around. It was nice to have some fresh fish, as they were on the coast. Archie missed that about California. All this traveling inland was depriving him of his proper seafood diet. Dragons like him could only eat so many hamburgers before they got sick of it. Fresh caught fish was the best food that existed.
After finally having lunch, it was time to head over to the next sight-see. Grand Central Station. They had nowhere to be, no reason to use the station for its intended purpose. Douxie guessed this was just another thing Y/n wanted to stand in and look at. He didn’t quite get it himself, but he thought it was adorable that Y/n had so many things she wanted to see, so much of the world she wanted to touch. He wanted to take her everywhere. He was old, and had seen so many things that not much amazed him anymore, but not her, the world was still magic in her eyes. He loved seeing that twinkle in her eyes, made him feel like he was shiny and new too.
Douxie posed with Archie in front of a clock for Y/n in the station. Doux stuck out his tongue, giving her the sign of the horns while Archie stood on his shoulder, trying to look tough. She snickered as she took the shot of her boys. She took photos everywhere they went. Not of the tourist destinations, per se, but of Douxie, Archie, Nari, interacting with them. Her family, having fun. Good memories to be stored. She was slowly rebuilding her association with the word family into something positive. Every passing day, her past felt like more of a bad dream. The future may be uncertain, but at least there would be love in it.
Nari wanted to go visit Central Park again. There was a petunia in one of the gardens was a particularly good conversationalist, and Nari wanted to ask them how their day had been. The park was a great way to spend the afternoon, so of course they’d indulge the veggie lady without qualm. Y/n was looking forward to getting to explore more of the park they didn’t see last time.
As they were walking around a corner, on their way to said park. Douxie got that strange feeling once again. They were being watched. He tried not to let it show. He didn’t need Y/n to worry, and he was confident he could take care of whatever it was that was making him feel this way. He was Hisirdoux Casperan, successor of Merlin Ambrosius and currently the most powerful wizard alive. There was nothing he wouldn’t do to protect his family. If whatever was stalking them dared to show its face, he’d be ready.
There was a scruffy man on the street corner, shouting about the end of the world.
“The world’s gonna end, we’re all gonna die!”
This man wasn’t completely crazy, but it’s not like he actually knew what was going on in the world of magic. Douxie tossed him a coin.
“Not on my watch.”
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Opposites Attract
Request: hey may I request a one shot for your Peter Pan story if yes can you, use my real name (Zai) instead of Y/N if you please and can you have me pans total opposite like sweet, shy everything he would hate but in the end he falls for her and becomes really protective
Pairing: Pan x Zai
Warning: None
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Part 2 >
It was so surreal, everything around me seemed to move in slow motion as if I were a character stuck inside of a movie, high pitched ringing pierced through my ears and stung my brain like a thousand tiny knives pricking it. An uncontrollable tremble grabbed a hold of my body refusing to let go, toying with my muscles as though I were nothing but a puppet on a string dancing for the demon that now had possession of my tiny frame.
The air was cold, so very cold, nipping and scratching at my fare skin as I silently sat on the leaf-covered floor. So many questions ran through my mind, too many to count, too many to keep ahold of. What was this dark place I had found myself in?
Dirt and pinecones filled my nostrils as I took heavy, deep breaths in and out, in and out, in and out.
A pair of eye's shot daggers at the back of my head, sending shivers to travel up and down my spine. The knotting in my stomach became apparent, growing tighter and higher by the second. I tried my hardest to fight off the fear which coursed through my veins and stole my heart, but I couldn't. There was no power in the world, no bribe was big enough, and no prize was worthy enough to get me to turn around and meet the eyes staring at me.
As time passed I felt more and more eyes creep up behind me, taking their place and just silently watching. That's when I heard them, footsteps, shuffling, whispers in the night running through to cold air from person to person, or perhaps from monster to monster.
"What have we got here boys?" A jovial voice sounded, too old to be a child's but it held the power and wisdom of a thousand lifetimes.
"We-we think it's a girl, Pan." Another said.
Pan, so that was the creature's name. In any normal circumstance, someone might jump for joy at the sign of another person, but this was no normal circumstance and the confirmation of other people only made my skin crawl. Every red flag was waving and alarm bell ringing, I was not safe, not one bit.
"She might be dead, or unconscious," Someone sounded, "she hasn't moved in a while."
Whoever this Pan was leant down close to me, so close I could feel his breath travel down the nape of my neck. He placed two gentle fingers on my pulse, paying for a second.
"She's not dead," He confirmed, "James and Dan set up a tent for her, Felix see if she has any wounds and take care f them if she does."
It was Clear Pan had authority over everyone else there as if he were some kind of mayor or leader, the boys named did nothing to displease him as their footsteps grew quieter and quieter.
"Where are you going, Pan?" A rather deep, husky voice spoke, curiosity dripping off every word yet he was confident in his ways. Maybe he was somewhere higher up on the food chain in this strange land that he had to power to question and possibly even disobey.
"To ask the shadows why they bought a bloody girl to the island." His tone had changed, sounding more aggravated than intrigued.
There were no other words exchanged between the two and I could feel myself being lifted off the cold ground, I felt weightless in the arms of this stranger that I was too afraid to look at.
Perhaps I would become a burden to the boy, but I had no energy left to think about that, I had no energy left to think about anything. I wanted nothing more than to drift off into a peaceful sleep but my body would not allow it for the danger had not yet passed, it kept trying to fight and fight but finally lost the battle and sleep had won out.
I woke up, my head pounding like there was no tomorrow. I found myself in a white tent, laying upon a mattress, only a thin blanket keeping the cold from consuming me. Swinging my legs over the side of the make-shift bed I walked towards the fabric flaps, sunlight poured into the room as I pulled them back, almost blinding me.
A tall figure hovered over me, blocking out the sun. For a split second, he looked like a dark, black giant but once my eyes adjusted I took a closer look at his face. Is pale blue eyes stared at mine for what seemed like a few minutes, becoming familiar with my brown ones. I noted down the scar that ran down his cheek, how did he get it?
"Pan," He called, "she's awake."
My eyes averted to the boy, who looked no older than seventeen, quickly stalking towards us. Panic flashed through my body enduring my paralyzed, there was nothing I could do but watch as they got closer and closer despite the urge of wanting to run and flee.
His eyes stood out to me the most, the vibrant green colour seemed to radiate off him, capturing and gaze and holding it there. This boy had power, that much was obvious, what scared me was how he used it. There's no doubt in my mind that he could mortally wound or even kill me if I looked at him the wrong way, the safest route is to be obedient otherwise I could end up dead.
"Follow me." He said sternly, I didn't dare speak, I didn't dare to even breathe I just nodded my head in his direction before silently following after him like a little lost puppy.
One step after another I felt more and more eyes scanning over my body, however, I would never meet anyone's gaze. I wouldn't dare give any of these people the satisfaction, after all, they still need to tell me how I got here in the first place. I felt like an animal caged up in the zoo, just a pretty and unusual thing for them to stare and gawk at, all the meanwhile missing my home.
A pain shot through my chest, a deep aching at the thought of my family and friends, at the thought of everything I had left behind.
"Sit." The leader spoke, snapping me from my thoughts.
I complied without any issues, placing myself onto the wooden stump poking its head out of the ground to say hello to the golden, glowing sun beaming down on everything below it. I hadn't noticed just how beautiful this place was in the day time, the lush green trees, the birds tweeting, the odd deer walking by before scattering and running off from the wild people whom they shared the land with.
I felt his strange green eyes watching me, finally, I had worked up enough courage to look into them. They were filled with wonder and amazement, much like a child seeing snow for the first time.
"You can start by telling me your name," The boy's thick British accent becoming prominent.
"Zai," I whispered, nearly audible but he heard it and so did the forest.
"Zai," He repeated as if he were testing out how my name sounded on his tongue, "Cute. Now, what are you doing on my island?"
Oh, so it was his island.
"I don't know," I said, my tone sickly sweet but the boy in front of me could tell I was being genuine.
"You're a strange one aren't you?" He claimed, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear an act that made my cheeks turn a deep shade of red as I desperately tried to hide my face from his view.
I should be afraid, I should be terrified, running for the hills and never looking back. There was danger behind those vibrant green orbs, so much danged but for some reason that only drew me in more. The very thing that should make me leave is the same exact thing compelling me to stay, how can that be?
I had never been one for diving into the deep end or taking risks, I liked to be in control of my fate and how everything played out, I know this boy could never give me security so why am I being pulled closer and closer t him?
He's attractive yes, as if he were chiseled by the God's themselves, but it's more than that, it's deeper than that. The risk, the excitement of it all is what drew me in and managed to hold me there. Maybe staying here wasn't as big of a heartache as I previously thought.
"Well I guess that's irrelevant, I'll be sending you home now." He announced.
"What makes you think I want to go home?" I asked, standing up defensively.
He raised a single eyebrow at me, the expression on his face caused me to shiver, "So you want to stay little one?"
I could feel a smile creeping its way onto my face at his words, "Perhaps to do, I could be of use to you,"
I desperately tried to come up with a list of jobs I could do just so he could let me stay, although I was still scared I had this feeling deep inside on me. Way down in my bones as if I were meant to be here as if my soul belonged here.
"I can cook." I blurted out.
Only to be met with a smirk, "My boys can cook too."
"I can clean," I said.
"So can my boys." The leader retaliated.
"Can they?" I asked, raising my eyebrow to him, mimicking his previous actions, he gave a low husky chuckle to my somewhat sassy comment.
"Oh, I'm sorry princess, is it not up to your standard?" The boy smirked in return, toying with me a little. He could sense when I was on edge, I knew he could, maybe a skill he had picked up in the years that he had been alive.
"Please, I'll do anything, anything you ask of me!" I pleaded, hoping and praying that he would allow me to reside here with him.
"It doesn't matter what you want." His demeanor suddenly turning nasty at the flip of a switch, the green eyed boy stalked closer and closer to me until my back had been pressed against a tree, leaning down he whispered, "I don't have girls on my island, you're weak I have no need for your kind."
I felt my blood being to boil, this misogynistic-
I held myself back from doing something that I regret, out of the fear that I could possibly end up dead at any second.
"Maybe they are where you're from," I said in a low yet innocent tone, my words sounding like a smooth lullaby slipping into his mind, "But I am different."
"Fine, I'll be interested to see how long you last around here." He stated, "I'll get Felix to show you around."
He took a few steps back, giving me the space that I craved. I let out a breath that I didn't know I was holding in until now. Pan's comment not only sprinkled fear and dread into me once more but also seemed to excite me as if I had something to prove to these people. One thing was apparent, they were not people I wanted to play with or tourment. I was better off just seeing how this plays out and trying not to end up dead in the process.
Within the day I had circled around the island twice seeing all the beautiful sights and scenery as Felix, who is the second in command around here, told me what was what. His explanations were only met with a nod as I was far too shy and nervous to open my mouth around him or any of the boys for that matter. Luckily for me, Felix wasn't much of a talker either, we spent most of our little adventure in awkward silence.
The more I explored the more I wanted, no longed to stay here. The crystal blue seas, the majestic waterfalls, the tall towering trees, and the white sandy beaches. This place seemed like paradise, shame the people who inhabited it didn't radiate the same energy.
The once pale blue sky turn to a dark navy as tiny, white sparkling dots hang high in the sky, a roaring fire was situated in the middle of the camp the boys all sat around eating, laughing, and having a good time. They all seemed so happy, yet the damage behind their eyes was apparent, they all had the same look behind them.
I felt a presence sit down beside me, "Zai," they spoke, to which I said nothing. I didn't turn my head to look at the person whose voice I had heard not hours before.
Before I knew what was happening a hand was placed under my chin, forcing me to look in their direction, "It's not a wise idea to ignore me, little one."
"Sorry," I whispered, I knew he heard my faint words but I wasn't entirely sure they made that much of a difference.
"Funny, just hours ago we were having a perfectly fluent conversation and now you seem so shaken up you're hardly getting your words out, tell me, why is that?" He knew what he was doing, it was apparent, he knew he had the upper hand, he knew I was still scared.
I shrugged at their so-called king, not giving him the satisfaction he craved, he wanted me to squirm, but I wouldn't allow that to happen.
As the days went by my shyness didn't disappear or get easier, in fact, it seemed to get worse. I was on edge, especially around Pan, it wasn't hard to tell that the boy was ruthless.
It was hot, the sun beaming down on the island. We all slowly walk deeper and deeper into the forest the boys not only thankful for the shade but excited for the activities ahead. Pan had promised us a game of target practice, something that I had learned I was terrible at.
Silently, I watched from afar as the boys took turns shooting apples off one another head. Of course, there were many injuries but they loved the thrill of it. I got many stares, none of which I paid any attention to, but what riled me up the most were to comments.
"What's she even doing here?"
"Why would Pan allow a girl into the camp?"
"Look at her she wouldn't even hurt a fly."
"She doesn't have what it takes to be one of us, she's too sweet."
"I wish she would just go back to where she came from."
Biting my tongue, I tried not to let their words get to me. Sometimes I fantasize about those boys tied to a tree, no means of escape or survival, I would pull the arrow back tight, stretching the string of the bow before letting go. The arrow would soar through the air before landing deep into their skulls with a satisfying think, bullseye.
I could feel the wicked smile on my face grow as my heart became that little bit darker. What was wrong with me? I had never wished ill will upon anyone before, so why was I starting to know. Maybe it was the island, supplying me with anger as if it were some kind of git, some means for survival if in a wretched yet beautiful place.
Suddenly, everything stopped and silence grabbed hold of everyone around. My interest was peaked, I rose from my makeshift seat to see what was going on. There the leader of the lost boys had one of his very own pinned to a tree by an invisible force, choking and spluttering as his legs kicked and kicked.
I wasn't sure what had brought this on, but my gaze was held hostage by the scene unfolding before me, the boy begged and begged apologizing relentlessly, but none of that mattered to Pan. We all stood there and watched, some boys with tears in their eyes as their friend asked for mercy and was not given it, I almost felt bad for the boy until I had realized who it was.
Adam, the little ring leader of the group of boys who liked to push my buttons.
We all looked on as the light slowly left his eyes, his cold body slumped to the floor, no one dared to move.
"Fun's over boys," His powerful voice boomed, echoing all over the forest, "Get back to work."
One by one the boys went back to camp, they were shaken up, but not as bad as I was. I still felt a sense of remorse for the poor boy, but the more I reminded myself of all the things he said the sad about it I felt. I still wasn't able to take my eyes off his lifeless body until there was no one else around apart from Pan.
I looked up at him, but no words left my mouth, they were all choked up in my throat. The smirk on his face let me know he was proud of what he had accomplished a minute ago, what kind of a monster was he?
He left, leaving a wink as his parting gift to me.
A cold shiver ran down my spine, I didn't like what he had done and worst of all I didn't like how he had just made me feel.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I hope you guys like part 1!!
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hysterialevi · 3 years
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Hjarta | Chapter 15
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Fanfic summary: In an AU where Eivor was adopted by Randvi’s family instead, he ends up falling in love with the man his sister has been promised to despite the arranged marriage between their clans.
Point of view: third-person
Pairing: Sigurd Styrbjornson x Male Eivor
This story is also on AO3 | Previous chapter | Next chapter
A FEW HOURS LATER
THE COAST OF BJORNHEIMR
The clouds rumbled with the drums of distant thunder, sending a subtle flash of lightning throughout the sky. Sea mist broke free from the restraints of its majestic waves, and gently tickled the skin of the warriors who sailed across its arctic tides. Meanwhile, the ocean rose and fell underneath their feet like the chest of a sleeping giant, and calmly guided the longship back to its home.
Life solemnly carried on with its infinite cycle despite the numerous souls that had just slipped free from its grasp, and offered no comfort to those left behind. The world remained entangled with the threads of endless stories that had yet to unfold, but even then... Eivor felt as if everything had come to a pause.
In his arms, Thora lay motionless beneath a layer of cloth, wrapped in her brother’s cloak to protect her from the elements. Her body was no more than an empty husk awaiting the fires of a ceremonial pyre, and yet, part of Eivor kept hoping that she wasn’t truly gone.
His mind still couldn’t quite fathom the idea that he would never see his sister again. He had gotten so used to having her company, that a world without her felt completely foreign to him. A fraction of Eivor even tried to convince himself that this was all a dream that would eventually come to an end, but in reality, he knew better. Thora would forever roam the halls of Valhalla from now on, and he’d have to accept it.
He just dreaded delivering the news to his father. Arngeir was already stressed enough due to Thora’s absence, and Eivor didn’t know if he carried the strength to inform him of what happened. His father was one of the most steadfast men in their clan, but even then, Eivor had seen the loss of a child break those he once believed to be invincible.
“...Eivor.” Sigurd whispered, lightly nudging the young man with his elbow. He waited until the Wolf-Kissed broke out of his thoughts, and then pointed to the land before them. “We’re home.”
Eivor peered at the battle-worn village with a deadpan expression on his face, barely shifting his body.
“Eivor?” Sigurd repeated, quickly taking note of the man’s empty nature. He leaned closer to his lover, wrestling with the urge to pull him into a hug. “Are you listening?”
The lifeless viking kept his gaze nailed on the village, swaying softly with the longship’s rhythmic motion. He hadn’t uttered a single word ever since their departure from Kjotve’s Fortress, and yet, Sigurd felt as if he could see his very thoughts etched into his eyes.
“...What am I going to tell my father, Sigurd?” Eivor finally replied. “Or Randvi? What do I do?”
The prince bowed his head in sympathy, unsure of how to answer the question. “I... I wish I knew, Eivor.”
The younger man glanced down at his sister’s veiled body, placing a hand on her arm.
“Thora’s death will destroy them. There’s not much in this world that can rattle my family, but... I have no clue what they’ll do once they realize she’s gone. I don’t even know if I can tell them.”
Sigurd offered his help. “I could do it in your stead, if you wish.”
Eivor shook his head. “No. It should be a family member. I found Thora’s body, so I should be the one to deliver the news. But thank you.” 
The older man nodded in understanding. “Of course. You know I’m here for you. I certainly don’t envy your position, though. You bear the burden of a lifetime. But don’t cast away your hope just yet...” Sigurd took a glimpse over his shoulder, glaring at the new captive sitting on their ship, “...we have Gorm now. And he will tell us what we need to know.”
Gorm struggled in his binds and let out a few muffled grunts, attempting to speak through the cloth that had been tied around his mouth.
“Be still, Kjotvesson!” The prince barked, his voice rough with spite. “Or I’ll hurl you over the edge and leave you to drown. Your cries mean nothing to the men here.”
Ulfar chimed in from the head of the ship, sharing Sigurd’s hostility towards the man.
“Indeed,” he added. “Normally, I’d say you’re fortunate to be alive, Gorm, but after everything you did to Thora, I imagine you’d be better off being swallowed by the ocean. Consider yourself lucky if the jarl doesn’t fashion wings out of your bones.”
The restrained viking tried to reply again, causing Ulfar to become even more irate than he already was.
“Osmund,” he said to one of his men, “silence this yapping dog, will you?”
The raider wasted no time in following Ulfar’s command and turned to Gorm, slapping him with a firm backhand across the cheek. The prisoner instantly fell silent upon the strike, and reluctantly complied with his captors’ wishes.
“...Anyway,” Ulfar said with a fatigued sigh, “we’re finally home, men. I know this has been an onerous journey for everyone, but you lot can rest for now. Tomorrow, we’ll bid farewell to those who have fallen, and raise a horn in their name. In the meantime, tend to your families. Odin knows they’ll need all the support they can get.”
Bringing his attention to the surrounding scenery, Ulfar remained quiet for the rest of their journey and leaned against the ship’s figurehead, doing his best not to linger on the thought of Thora’s death. He hadn’t felt this awful since Linnea first fell to Kjotve’s axe, and he grew increasingly restless as he pondered what to do with the rat hiding amongst them. He was more than positive that he knew who the traitor was by now, but the method he’d use to deal with them was a little less clear.
In the meantime, his men steadily shut the sails and lowered the mast, taking a hold of the oars as they brought the ship to land. Their bodies ached due to hours of huddling in the vessel’s cramped space, and their palms grew callused from the continuous toil of rowing the ship. They were eager to finally set foot on solid ground, and they longed for the warmth of a soft bed.
Eivor, on the other hand, dreaded their upcoming arrival. Much to his dismay, he spotted Arngeir waiting at the docks with Ingrida by his side as they anticipated their return, anxious to hear any news pertaining to Thora’s rescue. A glimmer of hope flickered in the jarl’s lost eyes, but the Wolf-Kissed knew it would soon be snuffed out. And it ruined him.
“Ulfar!” Arngeir called out, approaching the end of the pier. “You’ve returned safely, thank the gods. How do you fare, brother?”
The raider waited for the ship to come to a complete stop before hopping onto the docks, still somewhat wobbly from the ocean’s waves.
“I’m well, Arngeir,” he replied, “but I regret to inform you that Kjotve still lives. The bastard escaped.”
The jarl furrowed his brow in concern. “Escaped? How? Where is he now?”
Ulfar shrugged in annoyance. “No idea. He fled the fortress before we even arrived, the coward. I believe one of our own people warned him beforehand.”
Arngeir let out a breath. “...Is that so? Any ideas on how to track him?”
The other man glanced at the ship. “Yes, actually. Sigurd managed to capture Gorm alive. He claims to be unaware of Kjotve’s whereabouts, but with a blade to his throat, I’m sure he’ll sing soon enough. It’s only a matter of time.”
“Then there’s that, at least.” Arngeir paused for a second. “...And what of my daughter? Where is Thora? Is she with you?”
Ulfar’s expression dimmed at the question, and he found himself at a total loss for words. His silence alone was more than enough to plant a sickening fear in the jarl’s gut, but when the man saw Eivor stepping onto the pier with a blanketed body in his arms, his heart instantly froze inside his chest.
“Eivor...?” Arngeir said, mindlessly pushing Ulfar to the side as he strode towards the anguished boy. He looked down at the unidentified corpse and desperately waited for an answer, terrified by his own suspicion of who it was.
“Eivor,” he urged, gripping him by the shoulders. “Who... who is that?”
The boy met his father’s sturdy gaze, afraid to even speak. A million different thoughts swarmed his mind like voracious insects scouring a battlefield, and he stared at the jarl as if he were peering into the depths of Hel itself.
“...I’m sorry, father.” Eivor whispered plainly. “I couldn’t save her.”
Reaching down to grab his cloak, the young man slowly removed the sea-weathered fabric from Thora’s face and revealed who was hiding underneath, causing Arngeir to plummet into an abysmal pit of dolor. A sense of despair clouded his eyes like frost spreading across a lake, and his aura crumbled within a matter of moments.
It was clear that the jarl was one step away from completely breaking down, but for the sake of his clan’s morale, he simply reached out to Thora’s body and requested the solace of his daughter’s company, unable to fully process what was going on.
“...Give her here.” Arngeir said, gently taking Thora into his arms as if he were cradling a newborn infant. A single teardrop immediately streamed down his cheek upon touching her corpse, and he clenched his jaw in an attempt to stifle his agony. 
“My daughter...” he lamented, “my sweet, sweet daughter.” The jarl glanced at his son. “What... happened, Eivor? How did she die? Did she die with an axe in her hand?”
The young man shook his head without saying a word.
Arngeir shut his eyes in disappointment and sighed, already overwhelmed by grief.
“...I see. Then may her journey across the Gjallarbrú be swift, and may she find her way into her mother’s embrace.” He pulled the cloak back over Thora’s face, bidding his daughter farewell. “Rest easy, skǫrungr. Your battles are over. We shall meet again someday.”
Trying to offer the mournful father some comfort, Ingrida quietly walked over to the man and placed a hand on his shoulder, beckoning him to follow her to the temple. The seeress’ appearance had changed significantly compared to when Eivor last saw her, and it was as if twenty years had been added onto the woman’s face.
“Come, Arngeir,” Ingrida said softly. “Let us bring Thora to the temple. I shall say a final prayer for her, and prepare her body for the funeral. She will not venture the Gjallarbrú alone.”
“...Thank you, my friend.”
Guiding Arngeir away from the docks, the seeress led the melancholic jarl through the village as the rest of his clan settled into their homes, practically falling into the laps of the nearest benches they could find. The ocean’s wintry chill had seeped into the marrow of their battered bones, and their movements had become sluggish with fatigue.
As for Ulfar, the raider simply stayed in place and watched the jarl vanish in the distance, heartbroken to see his old friend in such a state. He couldn’t imagine the man ever being the same again after a loss as great as this, and for the first time in years, even Ulfar himself felt helpless. 
What would they do when they found Kjotve? If they found him? Would the strength of their alliance finally bring them the advantage they needed to win this war, or would they just end up sending more men to their deaths, and darken the shadow that already hung over Bjornheimr?
At this point, Ulfar no longer knew what to think. His ultimate dream was to witness Kjotve draw his dying breath, but he had also grown tired of ordering people into battle, only to never see them return. He may not have been directly responsible for their untimely demise, but he couldn’t deny that the casualties were starting to take a toll on him.
He just wanted this godforsaken war to end, and he knew exactly where to start.
Diverting his focus to Dag, Ulfar watched the man like a lion waiting to pounce and followed him off the docks, finally deciding to put this damned charade to rest. He hadn’t the faintest idea how this confrontation was going to unfold, but he was sick of keeping silent about his thoughts. Even if he didn’t get the outcome he desired, he simply wanted the people of Bjornheimr to be aware of the wolf hiding among their sheep -- and it all started now.
“Dag!” Ulfar blurted out, approaching the warrior as he wandered away from the longship. “Hold a moment.”
Despite having no intentions of doing so, the raider turned a few heads with his thunderous voice and attracted the attention of nearby onlookers, including Eivor and Sigurd themselves. They all stopped what they were doing to see what the commotion was about, and paused out of curiosity.
“Yes, Ulfar?” Dag responded, clearly not reflecting the man’s antagonistic mood. “What is it?”
Ulfar prowled towards the viking, unable to hide the glower now plastered on his face.
“The jarl’s daughter lies dead in a pool of cold blood... and you have the audacity to feign ignorance?”
Dag scoffed in a bewildered tone, shrugging innocently. “I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
The older man halted in his tracks, keeping no more than a couple meters between them. “Do you think me blind and deaf, Dag? You know exactly what I’m talking about.” 
Ulfar began grumbling under his breath, pacing back and forth. “Damn it. I’ve been doubtful of you for a while now, but I never had anything to confirm my suspicions until today. I should’ve done something sooner.”
Dag rested his hands on his hips, growing impatient with their conversation.
“What is this about, old man? What are you getting at?”
Ulfar shot a glare at him. “You’re the rat. You’re the one who’s been feeding Kjotve our secrets, and you’re the one who told him to flee. You betrayed us.”
The blunt accusation caused a wave of murmurs to rush through the crowd around them, igniting a sudden spark of worry among the villagers.
“Is that truly what you think?” Dag questioned casually. “I know you’re short one eye, Ulfar, but even you can see how ridiculous that statement is.”
The raider refused to back down. “Give me one good reason why I should believe you. You sailed with me during the assault, Dag. I sent you as one of the scouts. Your job was to pave the way for us, and then give us the opening we needed to ambush Kjotve’s clan. But instead, you ran off to cower behind the fortress’ walls before our warriors could even reach the shore, and you lit the beacon far before we were ready. You forced what few men we had in the settlement to attack alone, and we lost a handful of people because of it.”
Ulfar’s nose crinkled in anger. “At first, I merely planned to berate you for your incompetence, but now it’s clear to me that you knew exactly what you were doing. You wanted the plan to fail.”
Dag did nothing but chuckle in response to the overwhelming accusations and waved a dismissive hand, reluctant to entertain the other man’s skepticism.
“You’re delusional, Ulfar. There is no traitor. We’ve simply been experiencing the horrible realities of war. People are going to die. Not everything is going to make sense. That’s just how it is, I’m afraid.”
Ulfar’s stare sharpened with wrath. “Oh, no. It all makes sense now. I stood idly by whilst you condemned our men to the pits of Hel because I wanted to find irrefutable evidence, but after what happened today, I’m done waiting for evidence. I’ll not allow you to endanger our clan anymore.”
Yanking out his axe, Ulfar brandished the weapon and raised it high in the air, making sure that everyone could hear his words loud and clear.
“I call a holmgang!” He announced. “Here, against the Raven Prince’s right-hand man.”
Sigurd froze upon hearing the challenge, and a stir of panic awakened inside his heart. Was this what Ingrida warned him about so long ago? Was this the betrayal his vision tried to convey?
The prince made haste to the front of the crowd with Eivor in tow, both of them now frightened to see how this would play out. 
“You wish to duel me?” Dag asked. “Are you certain that’s wise?”
The raider aimed the blade at his opponent. “This is no longer something I can take back. I’ve made the challenge. What happens next depends entirely on you. So, either pick up your axe and face me with what little honor you have left, or scurry off to the snake hissing in your ear.”
Dag laughed at the absurdity of the situation and drew his blade, bowing in a smug manner. “...Very well, Ulfar. If that’s what you wish. You’ve made a foolish choice, but I will accept your challenge. We fight to the death.”
Eivor automatically lurched forward, reaching a hand out for the older man. “Ulfar--!”
Sigurd instantly grabbed his arm and held him back, preventing him from interfering.
“Eivor...” he said in a hushed tone, “there’s nothing we can do now. The holmgang is set in place. They must go through with it.”
The younger man hesitated, flicking his eyes back and forth between Sigurd and the warriors. Out of honor, he knew that Ulfar was compelled to cross swords with Dag in a fight to the death, but he also did not wish to see the man risk his life so soon after their return. 
Eivor was already struggling to cope with the loss of his sister. If Ulfar were to perish as well... he didn’t know what he would do.
“I can’t risk losing him too,” he murmured. “Not after Thora’s just been killed. He’s my family. Sigurd, please.”
The prince kept his grip firm, giving him an apologetic look. “...I’m sorry, my love. But we can’t interfere. You know this.”
Eivor remained silent in response to Sigurd’s words and simply shifted his gaze back to the holmgang, uncertain of whether or not to heed his lover’s advice. Part of him wanted to throw himself between the two warriors and force them apart, but the other half knew that Ulfar’s honor would suffer if he did. The man would be relentlessly shamed if he backed down from his own challenge, and to some, that was a fate worse than death.
“...O-Okay, Sigurd.” He said, sighing in defeat. “I won’t interfere.”
Sigurd gently pulled him back into the crowd, trying to ease his nerves. “Thank you, Eivor. I’m sorry it has to be this way.”
Slinking into the prince’s arms, the Wolf-Kissed watched the holmgang from a distance as more villagers gathered around the scene, intrigued by the deadly spectacle. At this point, Ulfar and Dag were circling around each other like a pair of wolves and patiently waiting for the smallest sign of weakness, hoping to catch their foe off-guard.
Within a few moments though, Ulfar was already leaping at his enemy like a bear charging out of the shadows and swinging his axe with the strength of Fenrir himself, causing Dag to stumble backwards in an attempt to dodge the strike.
Regaining his footing, the bulky warrior countered the initial attack with a slice to the shoulder and thrust his blade forward, only to be blocked when Ulfar swatted it away with his axe. The older man whirled around Dag like a flame dancing in the wind and slammed his weapon downwards, aiming directly for the back of his foe’s skull.
Practically hurling himself out of the way, Dag evaded Ulfar’s attack just in time to save the skin on his scalp and sacrificed no more than a few strands of hair, giving him a second to catch his breath.
Dag had to admit -- he didn’t expect the old raider to be so agile after all these years. He assumed that Ulfar’s bones would have stiffened over time, but the man moved faster than many people half his age. It was clear to Dag that he had underestimated him, and now, he was starting to question just how big his chance of winning this really was.
But still, the man had to have a vulnerability. No one was invincible, after all. There had to be something that he could take advantage of. Something that could give him the upper hand.
Dag paused out of realization, suddenly noticing that Ulfar’s weakness was quite literally staring him in the face.
His wounded eye.
The raider’s vision had been cut in half thanks to his old injury, and Dag imagined that he would be able to slip out of his line of sight if he stayed at the right angle. He just had to be fast.
Flanking his opponent from the left, the dark-haired warrior crept into Ulfar’s blind spot and landed a strike on his upper arm, cutting straight through the sliver of fabric that sat between his layers of armor. Fresh blood instantly soaked the plain cloth hiding underneath, and for just a brief moment, Ulfar lost track of where his enemy had gone.
But a moment was all Dag needed.
In the blink of an eye, the larger warrior had bashed the hilt of his blade into Ulfar’s cheekbone and sent him tumbling to the ground, allowing him to shake the balance of the fight.
He relentlessly battered his way through the raider’s defenses and continued to pummel his weapon against Ulfar’s axe, fervently trying to disarm him before he could return to his feet.
Meanwhile, the older man backed away from Dag and slid across the dirt, desperately trying to put some distance between them before even attempting to get up. His arm was growing increasingly sore from having to endure the sheer impact of his opponent’s strikes, and soon enough, Ulfar found himself on the losing side of the battle.
Skirting around the edge of Dag’s blade, Ulfar just barely missed the last of his attacks and scurried back up to his feet, holding his axe out in front of him in a protective stance. By now, blood had leaked all the way down to his wrist, and a number of droplets even started to trail down his fingers. He was admittedly drained from deflecting the brute strength behind Dag’s swings, and with each passing minute, he could feel the energy fleeing from his body.
Still, in spite of the exhaustion now overtaking his mind, Ulfar refused to give up. This was his only chance to eliminate the rat hiding in their clan, and he had no intentions of wasting it.
Lifting his axe in the air, Ulfar steeled himself and prepared to send a vertical slice down on Dag��s forehead, doing his best to ignore the fatigue now hindering his movements. Before he could do anything however, the other man suddenly swerved to his left again and escaped his field of view, attacking him from the same angle. He heaved his blade into the side of Ulfar’s abdomen, and within seconds, the raider had fallen still.
Coming to an abrupt halt, the old warrior simply stared into the space ahead of him and drifted off into silence, unable to suppress the terror that was now swelling in his chest. His entire mind seemed to be paralyzed with an unfamiliar type of fear, and before he knew it, Dag had buried the axe in his torso.
“Ulfar!” Eivor cried, still struggling against Sigurd’s hold.
The raider let out a pained gasp and clutched his chest in shock, horrified by the numbness that was starting to petrify his limbs. The only thing he could hear was the rasp of his own breath scratching against his throat, and by now, the metallic taste of blood had started to envelop his tongue.
Yet, in spite of all this, Ulfar soon felt his fear fading away from him. The ethereal voices of the Valkyries called to him like the gaze of the moon, and in the bleak grey sky standing above him, he could almost see the feathery strips of the aurora forming a bridge to the Corpse Hall.
He had been chosen by the winged maidens, and would soon join Linnea’s side.
The final challenge he had to face now, was saying farewell.
Collapsing to the ground with a thud, Ulfar fell in the center of the arena and landed on his back, sparking a series of gasps in the spectating crowd. Dag’s blade still protruded from his chest like an axe lodged in a pile of timber, and most of the color had vanished from his skin.
As for Eivor, the young man finally broke free from Sigurd’s grip and rushed over to the fallen warrior, kneeling down by his side as the prince solemnly trailed after him.
“Ulfar!” Eivor exclaimed, reaching for his hand. “Ulfar, can you hear me?”
The other man looked up at him, uttering no more than a few words due to his lack of strength.
“...Oh, forgive me, little cub,” he whispered. “...I’ve been a damned fool.”
Eivor examined the raider’s wounds, knotting his brow in distress. “Shit...! Why did you do it? Why did you have to call a holmgang? We just lost Thora, and now you’re dying too? We need you.”
Ulfar felt a pang of guilt prodding him in the heart. “...I know, Eivor. I know. I never meant to leave you so soon. I’m sorry.”
Catching some movement in the corner of his eye, the old warrior turned away from the young man for just a second when he noticed Sigurd joining them, gazing down in a sorrowful manner. He appeared to share Eivor’s grief over the death of his new friend, and his expression was laden with desolation.
“Sigurd...” Ulfar said, beckoning him with a weak wave of the hand. “Come here.”
The prince knelt down, leaning closer to the man. “Yes?”
Ulfar gestured to Dag with a subtle flick of the eyes, giving Sigurd a regretful look.
“...I hate to pass this burden onto you... but you and I both know what needs to be done.”
Sigurd lowered his head in understanding, reluctant to face the horrid reality of the new task he’d just obtained. He despised the idea of finishing what Ulfar started, but he knew it was necessary to keep the clan safe.
“Yes. I do.”
“...Good. I know Dag is like a brother to you, but I need you to promise me you’ll do everything you can to protect these people.” Ulfar reached out his arm, awaiting Sigurd’s response. “Promise me.”
The prince clenched his jaw in an attempt to maintain his composure, admittedly heartbroken by the idea of turning against his childhood friend. Even though their lifelong relationship had reached the point of war, Sigurd would’ve been lying if he said he was willing to kill Dag.
In fact, part of him had even hoped that Ulfar would’ve done the job for him. He secretly wished that the raider would’ve emerged victorious from the holmgang, and he wanted nothing more than to spare his axe from Dag’s blood. But it seemed the gods felt different.
“Alright,” Sigurd assured, shaking the man’s hand. “I’ll do it. You have my word.
Ulfar nodded in satisfaction, barely clinging on to life at this point. “Then my death will not have been in vain. Thank you.”
Letting go of Sigurd’s arm, the dying vikingr finally decided to let the Valkyries whisk him away and closed his eyes in peace, drawing his last few breaths. The environment around him had become nothing more than a massive haze by now, but even then, he could still recognize the muffled sounds of Eivor’s mournful voice.
Ulfar felt terrible for leaving the boy behind. He didn’t wish to abandon him in his time of need, but alas, the Nornir clearly had other plans. 
Fortunately though, Eivor would not be entirely alone. He still had many people in his life who cared for him, and now, Ulfar would just have to trust that they would stay by his side. He hadn’t forgotten about Sigurd’s affection for the young man, and unlike before, he prayed that the prince wouldn’t shy away from it any longer.
As for Sigurd himself, he had become preoccupied with the new path the gods had lain out in front of him. For the first time in years, the road ahead was not obscured by uncertainty, or hesitance, or even fear. It remained clear as day, and yet, it would be the most difficult one for him to venture in his life thus far.
And so, with a heavy heart, Sigurd stood up from the ground and sulked away from Ulfar’s corpse, making a beeline straight for Dag. He laid a hand on the warrior’s shoulder and ushered him to a more secluded area, ensuring that their conversation stayed private.
“Dag,” he said quietly, “join me for a walk.”
The other man threw him a wary look, confused as to what the prince could want at this time.
“A walk? Now? Where are we going?”
Sigurd pointed to the waterfall in the distance. “The Tears of Ymir. Come with me. We’ll be back shortly.”
Dag clearly wasn’t interested. “Can this not wait, Sigurd? We’ve only--”
“--Just come.” The prince insisted, his tone hardening. “...We need to talk.”
Deciding not to question his friend any further, Dag simply went along with Sigurd’s mysterious plan and followed him into the surrounding wilderness, curious to see what the prince had in mind. 
In the meantime, the rest of Bjornheimr’s villagers dispersed from the scene of the holmgang and left Eivor alone with Ulfar’s body, giving him space to grieve on his own. Neither Arngeir nor Randvi had returned to see what had become of their old friend just yet, but he dreaded the moment when he’d have to show them.
How could this be happening? It wasn’t that long ago that Eivor was holding his deceased sister in his arms, and now, Ulfar had taken her place. Just within a day, they had already lost two of the most important souls in Bjornheimr, and gained nothing in return.
Kjotve was alive. Gorm was alive. But somehow, the gods had deemed it necessary to rob Midgard of its benevolent warriors, and leave no more than a grave of ashes in their name.
They always preached about living a life of honor, and yet, they had stolen it from the few who were willing to try.
Well, no matter what happened in the future, Eivor didn’t plan on watching anymore of his loved ones die. He didn’t care what it took to get Gorm to speak, or how long the interrogation would last. He would find the answers he needed, and track Kjotve down before the bastard had a chance to flee.
He promised himself he would kill the man for good this time, and he wavered not at the thought of death.
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When the Weight Comes Down - 1
Warnings: non-consent sex (series); nothing for this chapter
This is dark! (biker) Steve and explicit. 18+ only.
Series Synopsis: Your father’s a drunk, your mother a recluse, and you’re just another small town girl in Birch.
Sister series to Smalltown Bringdown
Note: This series features a very inexperienced and shy reader. Not so mouthy as my usual fare but I hope it’s still fun. I couldn’t resist a hot biker Steve spin-off. Most of this is already written and it’s looking like seven chapters total. Thanks to everyone for their patience and feedback. :)
I really hope you enjoy. 💋
<3 Let me know what you think with a like or reblog or reply or an ask! Love ya!
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Chapter One: She Didn’t Know
There's a lot you can see when there's nothing to do
💀
You stared out the window as you stood at the sink, your hands pruned in the lukewarm water as you scrubbed the last of the dishes. You could hear your mother in the hallway, wiping the walls. Again. Five, six times a day, she’d wipe down every inch of the place; gather up your father’s empties, and vacuum the old cigarette-scented carpets.
You didn’t remember a day in your life when your mother wasn’t manically tidying every inch of the place. Even when her lip was swollen or her eye was blackened. It was a religion to her. Cleanliness was next to godliness, after all. One of her many lessons.
She rarely left the house anymore. She had never been eager to go beyond the peeling walls but as you got older, she grew more reclusive. She got her check from the government, your father too, though his was often spent on beer and smokes. Some of hers too. 
The old house was ramshackle but someone had to pay for it. You’d worked at the bakery since you were sixteen; more than a decade now, closer to two. An excuse to get out as much as a means to pay for the roof over your head. Babs was like a second mother to you and always let you bring home the stale muffins and cookies.
Your eight hours was a brief respite from the home which had been your childhood prison. The cell without a door. Birch itself was impenetrable. Those born there seemed destined to die there.
You’d dreamt of leaving for years; in that very spot, as you washed the dishes and stared out at the lush grass. You’d float away to a world where you had the strength to walk away; from your paranoid mother and your volatile father. 
You belonged there though. You couldn’t leave knowing your father would beat your mother without a buffer between him. You knew one day the beer would push him over the edge. To leave would be to condemn her.
You pulled the plug and dried the plates one at the time, then the cups and the old bowls that belonged on a thrift shop shelf. Well, that’s where they came from. Your mother never bought nice things; your father would only break them.
Finished, you closed the cupboard and found your mother in the living room, sweeping the crumbs from your father’s old recliner into her hand. You straightened the pillows on the sagging couch and stood on the other side.
“Should I leave the leftovers in the stove for Pa?” You asked.
“It’s late,” She checked the old clock. It was broken. She stood and cupped the crumbs in her hand. “What time is it anyway?”
“Almost nine.” You yawned. You would have to wake up at five to get to work to do the opening bake. “I should probably lay down soon.”
“Would you grab some more vinegar tomorrow?” She asked. “And… a new mop.”
“What happened to the old one?” You blinked.
She looked down guiltily. Another casualty to your father’s temper.
“Ma,” You sighed. “Why do you let him break everything.”
“Better than him breaking me,” She muttered. 
You hung your head and touched your forehead. You wanted to ask her why she stayed, but you had too. You were little better than her. You were both stuck.
“You didn’t give him any off your stipend, did you?”
She frowned. She had.
“The electricity is due,” You said. “Tell me you held onto at least something.”
“I’ll pawn another ring.” She mumbled.
“No,” You waved her away. “No. Don’t.”
“But--”
“I’ll figure it out,” You huffed. “Like I always do.”
You left her there and went to your room. You closed the door and turned on the small lamp beside your bed. You reached under your pillow and pulled out the cracked copy of Frankenstein. 
You remembered when you were fourteen and your mother had found it there. A girl at the grocery store had told you she was reading it for class. You always wondered what they did at the school. Your mother schooled you herself. Times had changed and kids were rotten. She didn’t need you corrupted by the wilting branches of Birch.
Your mother had never read it herself so she confiscated it as filth. A monster! Well, you had sneaked into her room and stolen it right back. You were smarter after that; you hid all your good books as you kept the bland ones on your shelf.
Even when you were of age, well beyond truly, you wondered what other people did. Normal people. Working at the bakery, you made up a story for each customer who came in. And when you walked by the bar with Cleopatra over its door, you dreamt of the Egyptian queen and her many lovers. The world was behind a glass; passing you by as you stood still.
You sighed and opened the book as you laid back. A monster betrayed by his creator. So despised and reviled that his heart turned sour. A monster who was more human than his maker. A being who only wanted love. A soul destroyed by neglect.
You didn’t recall falling asleep but when you woke, the crickets chirped loudly outside your window. You yawned and sat up. The light from the living room streamed down the hall and under your door. You marked your page and tucked the book between your bedframe and mattress.
Your mother was in the living room. She sat on the couch as she held a framed cross-stitch and wove roses into the faded white cloth. You checked the time on the kitchen stove. 1:47 am. 
“Why don’t you go to bed?” You asked.
“Your pa hasn’t come home.” She said. “You know I worry for him.”
“It’s not even last call,” You countered. “Go, get some sleep.”
“I’ll wait for him.”
You chewed your lip as you put your hands on your hips. You went to her and stilled her needle.
“He’ll be home in a couple hours.” You assured her. “Besides, you know how he is when he’s drunk.”
She looked down and pulled away from you. You shook your head and crossed the room. As you entered the hallway and headed for the front door, your mother rose from the couch and her soft footsteps followed you. 
“Where are you going?” She asked.
“To get him, so you can sleep.” You shoved your feet into your shoes.
“Oh no, don’t do that, sweet pea,” She said as she clutched the wooden frame. “You’ll only make him mad and, oh, I don’t want you in that bar.” She lowered her voice as she came closer. “It’s full of those bikers.”
“So, go to bed,” You turned to her.
She scrunched her lips and you knew she wouldn’t. 
“Fine,” She relented. “But don’t talk to anyone. There are dangerous men there.”
You stared at her for a moment before you turned and pulled open the door. Your heart beat furiously as the screen door clattered behind you and you tripped down the front steps. You’d only ever walked by The Asp but never went in. You’d seen the men who went in and out and mounted their big bikes, but you kept to the other side of the street.
The walk wasn’t very long, like any in Birch. The spotlights illuminated Cleopatra’s breast and the snake at her throat. You stood on the curb as you thought of crossing the street. Just do it. You’d just get your father and go. That was it.
You hesitated and nearly fell as you stepped down onto the road. As you came up on the other side, a shadow moved and you flinched. A man in leather stood beside the door with his thick arms crossed, a bandana over his thinning hair. You stared at him and then door as you stopped before it.
“Well,” He said. “You going in?”
“I, uh, yeah, I’m just… getting my father.” You explained.
“Right,” He scoffed. “I don’t give a fuck.”
You pursed your lips and pushed through the door. Inside it smelled of alcohol and sweat. There was a group of men at one of the round tables and a couple around the pool table. Your father sat along the bar, two other drunks not far from him. He sucked on a brown bottle as he grumbled to himself.
You swallowed and made yourself step away from the door. You neared the bar and a woman looked up. She didn’t look very happy as she asked you what you wanted. You shook your head. You’d seen her before. You were sure she worked at the diner but you must have been wrong.
“Pa,” You leaned on the stool next to your father. 
“Huh? What’r’you doin’ here?” He slurred.
“I’m here to take you home.” You said.
“Sure,” He laughed. “Got ‘nother bottle then I’ll go when I feel like.”
“Ma’s waiting,” You insisted. “Come on.”
You tugged on him and he knocked over his half-finished beer. You stepped back at the splash and he staggered to his feet.
“You little brat, I tol’ya leave m’alone,” He snarled. “Fuck’s sakes.”
“You’re drunk. You’ll be lucky if you make it home,” You argued. “I’m trying to help… you got beer at home.”
“And you,” He sneered. “I dun’ wan’ drink there.”
He wobbled on his feet and caught the edge of the bar.
“Beer,” He ordered the bartender who looked over his shoulder. She didn’t move. “S’matter, I got money.”
A man with dark hair shifted in his seat as if to stand and another nudged his shoulder and rose instead. He was tall, a thick beard to match his light brown hair, and blue eyes which sparked as he rounded his table. His jacket was marked with the badge of the club. You grabbed your father’s elbow and he shook you off.
“Looks like you’re done for the night,” The man said as he stopped in front of your father.
“I don’--”
“Excuse me,” The man interrupted his argument. “It’s not a request.”
Your breath was caught in your chest. You’d never heard anyone speak to your father like that. 
“I’ll… I’ll get him home,” You said meekly. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” The man looked at you. “You don’t need to apologize for him.”
“Come on,” You whispered and grabbed your father again. 
He followed you. Barely. He stumbled halfway to the door and swore as he fell to his knees and nearly took you down with him. You bent and tried to pull him up and he batted you away as he rolled onto his back. His eyes were almost entirely closed as his hand fell to his stomach and he gave a loud snort.
Two boots came up on the other side of him. You looked up. It was that man again.
“I’m sorry. He fell. I’ll get him up.” You pulled on your father but he was too heavy. You could barely get his shoulders off the floor.
The man grabbed him and lifted him easily. He stretched his arm around your father and you stood.
“I’ll help ya, doll,” He smiled. You couldn’t.
“Really, it’s fine. He’ll wake up and--”
“Let me help you, doll,” He hushed you. “You’ll never get him home by yourself.”
“I can’t--I--” You gulped. Your mother had told you not to talk to anyone. You looked at your father. The man was right. You’d never get him home. “Okay. Thank you.”
He nodded you out the door and followed as you scurried ahead of him. Your father’s feet dragged heavily and you cringed. As you came out into the cool air, the man stepped up beside you, your father on the other side of him. You turned him in the direction of your house and he dragged your father along.
You were quiet. You didn’t know what to say. Perhaps it was better you said nothing. At the bakery, it was easy. You just had to ask people what they wanted. At home, neither of your parents said much; least of all, your father.
“So your Dorritt’s daughter?” He used your last name. “Old man ain’t very talkative.”
You nodded and kept your eyes on your feet.
“Your name?” He ventured. You cleared your throat before you found your voice to answer him. “I’m Steve.” He offered in return.
You were silent again.
“I don’t know you,” He said. “I know everyone in Birch.”
“Well, I… I don’t go out much, I guess.” You replied.
“Oh shit,” He scoffed. “You were the girl who was home schooled.”
You didn’t answer. You didn’t need to.
“We were always jealous of you,” He chuckled. “Hated going to school.”
“I still-- I still had class.” You said. “Just… my ma was my teacher.”
“Ha, wouldn’t expect him to be teaching grammar,” He gestured to your father. “You still live with them?”
You scratched your neck and nodded.
“Nothing wrong with that. Just curious.” He said. “Kinda… respectable. Helping them out and all.”
You were too ashamed to tell him that if you didn’t, no one would. That if you didn’t, your mother likely wouldn’t be able to keep up much longer.
“You’re like your pa,” He mused. “Not much on talking.”
“Sorry,” You said softly.
“But you’re a lot more considerate,” He said. “Apologizing for nothing.”
“So--”
“There you go again,” He laughed. “Look, doll, it’s fine. You don’t gotta talk. Don’t gotta apologize.”
You continued on and your house came into sight. Your father’s old mower rusting in the moonlight as the broken Ford loomed in the driveway. You helped Steve get your father up the front steps and opened the door for him. Your mother appeared in the hallway and gasped as she saw your father and the man who held him up.
“Ma, he’s just helping me get Pa home,” You assured her. “You know how he drinks and--”
She nodded frantically and backed up into the front room. You waved Steve through and directed him to drop your father on the couch. Steve looked around and his lip twitched. His eyes returned to you, clung to you, and he smirked.
“Well, you have a good night, Mrs. Dorritt,” He nodded to your mother then you, “And Miss Dorritt.”
“You too.” You breathed as your mother squeezed your arm.
He turned slowly and you both were still as you watched him go. The front door shut and your mother rushed down the hall. She locked the door quickly as you peeked around the door frame. She turned back and pushed herself against the door.
“I told you not to talk to anyone,” She said.
“I didn’t mean to. Pa, he just, keeled over, and Steve--”
“Steve!” She stormed towards you. “That man was one of those bikers. You better leave him alone. Pray he leaves you alone.”
“I didn’t--”
“Bad enough your pa goes down there,” She slipped past you and looked down at your father. “He’s better off drinking on the porch. No one to knock him one.”
“I wouldn’t blame them if they did,” You hissed. “It wasn’t me, ma. It was him.”
“I told you not to go,” She snapped.
“Yeah, I know,” You sighed as you turned to head back to your room. “You told me.”
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darkisrising · 3 years
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ooo ive got another one for song lyrics (srsly tho Sting takes the whole song to get to where he's going, the fragment from last night - not sure it made enough sense 🤣)
here we go: "The future is a dying art / Laying in a ditch in the dark / I need you here but all I hear (is) / The beating of a broken heart / Don’t wait to say goodbye / you’re running out of time / whatever you believe, it’s easy to see / the whole world’s sitting on a ticking bomb"
(I should leave Sting alone, I also take alllll possible running room to get to where I’m going. I’ll just show myself out 🙈)
Hahaha!!! I mean... same. lololol
Okay, here’s what I got. Not sure it at ALL matches up with the lyrics, but it’s what came out anyway so. This one’s for you! The Future is a Dying Art
Plasma, the color of madness, cuts through Obi-Wan’s chest and for one brief, bright moment the pain is excruciating. It withdraws and with it goes the strength of his limbs. His knees hit the durasteel platform with a crack that he can hear from far away but it doesn’t hurt.
His chest doesn’t hurt.
Nothing hurts.
Through a red shield, Qui-Gon’s eyes are the wrong color, and as the shiver of shock sets in, Obi-Wan can’t help but feel like that is the most unjust part of all. His eyes ought to be blue. His hair ought to be stroked with silver. His face ought to be serene; the face of a man that lives in devotion to the present. Who accepts each new moment as it comes and not a second sooner.
This isn’t the master he knows. Not this anguished creature that roars his name behind a laser barrier that steals Qui-Gon’s voice as surely as the passing seconds steal Obi-Wan’s life.
This isn’t the future Obi-Wan had been promised. The visions that have followed his sleep, clung tight to his dreams, have been murmuring for years about this moment. About the rise of a darkness that was so immense it could fell the great Qui-Gon Jinn. 
Always in motion, the future is, he’s heard Master Yoda say time and time again.
Your visions are an unpromised tomorrow, is what Qui-Gon has told Obi-Wan when he would wake with his master’s hand on his shoulder to a bed creased with sweat and a sleep shirt that fared little better. 
And Obi-Wan had known that. He’d known it, he’d known it, and yet he couldn’t bring himself to tell Qui-Gon what horror has been plaguing him since the night he’d turned eighteen. Hadn’t been able to find the words to express the depths of his anguish at seeing his master fall to his knees over and over again. At seeing his eyes widen and his mouth go slack and then waking up to a master whose eyes were rimmed with disrupted sleep and a mouth that pinched with worry.
Now, though, something’s changed.
Something has altered the course of events that Obi-Wan has known for so long that he can trace them from memory, but there’s no point in wondering what it could have been. Not when the shields are powering down and Qui-Gon is charging toward the Sith lord, green blade burning. Not when his master is slicing at the Sith with a passion that is singed with fury, and it is hard to track what darkness is billowing from the Sith and what is his master’s. 
Obi-Wan’s cheek is pressed to the floor as he watches a battle that he cannot join, his heart beating slower than it has in even his deepest meditation, and then it is over. The Sith is cut neatly in two. Obi-Wan is turned and lifted. Now he is in Qui-Gon’s arms, can finally see the blue eyes he’s needed to see, and this is somehow worse.
The darkness hasn’t left him. It wraps around each of Qui-Gon’s panting exhales. It lingers in the creases of his forehead, in the hollows of his cheekbones. Despair, yes, but worse: anger and fear. He has seen Qui-Gon struggle with these emotions in the past, but this is deeper. This is fathomless.
“Stay. Please,” Qui-Gon bids. “You are meant to be a great Jedi, Obi-Wan. I’ve seen it,” and oh how that pains Obi-Wan to hear. Not the sentiment, but the conviction. The surety. Premonitions are Obi-Wan’s purview, and yet somehow one has slithered away to sting at his master.
Qui-Gon has seen the future, has built a house upon where it sits, not realizing it is naught but shifting sands below.
“Master—”
“I can’t lose you,” he says, and his voice blazes even as the darkness gathers, wraiths whispering promises from the corners of the room, growing louder as they approach. Obi-Wan doesn’t need to hear them to know what they are offering Qui-Gon. He doesn’t need to see the barter to know that Qui-Gon is measuring the price against the weight of his soul.
“Don’t.” His voice is reedy, thin. It is no match for the clamor that fills Qui-Gon’s head. 
Time flows through them both, and as Obi-Wan weakens he can feel Qui-Gon grow stronger. Power—oily, slippery power—slides across Obi-Wan’s skin to seek out the heat of Qui-Gon’s passion.
His lips find Obi-Wan’s forehead, and Obi-Wan tips his head back. If he can live long enough for ramifications, he knows what he is about to do may very well shatter everything between.
Still he has to try. 
Catching Qui-Gon’s lips with his own, Obi-Wan kisses his master with all the ferocity, the hunger, the longing—to possess and be possessed—that he should have renounced long ago.
This is something that he has kept to himself, nestled and nurtured in his heart even as he walked at his master’s side, an exemplary padawan save the one thing that he could never bring himself to purge.
The darkness that has spread through Qui-Gon can taste Obi-Wan’s weakness and it laughs.
In a rush it flows into Obi-Wan, the roar of a river’s rapids that threaten to drown him, but he will drink this down. If there is a choice in this moment, then Obi-Wan chooses it. If there is a fall to be had, then Obi-Wan will gladly be the one to fall.
The shadows descend then—vultures ready to pick at the bones of carrion—and he doesn’t fight them. He welcomes them. They cloak him in a mantle that is unfamiliar and heavy, yet he lets them dress him just the same. The wound in his chest fills with a searing blackness and Obi-Wan can feel his strength return. He uses it to reach up, to fist his hands in Qui-Gon’s hair, to steal his breath from his mouth until they’re both panting with it.
Like clouds sweeping across a sun, the darkness passes through Qui-Gon and with a burst of brightness so blinding it makes Obi-Wan’s eyes water, light returns to his master’s heart.
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nicomacheannothing · 3 years
Text
10-5-2021
I cleaned out my entire closet for the first time in 30 years. Well, more like 28. The first thing my parents did when they moved into this house was to put a white organizer in my closet. I was 2 then. I don't think it's ever even been throughly cleaned since then. It's just always been in use. That closet organizer was old and broken. I was getting so sick of trying to organize around it. There was something satisfying about having to dismantle it with a rubber mallet :p I know that this is probably the most boring thing I could possibly be writing about but really, I'm proud of myself! It was gross in there! That closet has been the center of many of my nightmares since childhood. Even when I moved home from college, I would have sleep paralysis visions of demons coming out of that thing haha. The closet shares a back wall with a nearly identical closet in my brother's room. When we were little, we used to believe that there was actually a whole alternate world hidden in that wall-space between the two closets. We imagined that that was where all of our imaginary friends lived. Weirdly enough, thinking in detail about my closet lore still gives me a bit of a chill. Maybe it is a portal to some mysterious astral dimension :p Of course I burnt some cleansing incense in there once it was free of junk. Just in case. Of course, once I got everything out of the closet, I had to reorganize it and put everything back in. Except I couldn't because the tension rods I got weren't strong enough to hold even half of my massive wardrobe. Plus, I discovered space up in the top part of the closet where shelves could easily be installed. Now, I have to rethink my entire organization strategy and, until then, everything in my closet is piled unceremoniously in my brother's old room. D: It's a wee bit stressful but oh well. It sounds exactly like something that would happen to me. I'll be so happy once I get everything order though. I love having shit together. I know that makes me weird. I'm only really blogging now because I'm waiting for my tan to dry a little before going to bed. I'm also kind of fighting off my hormonal PMDD shite? I'm pretty sure I've mentioned Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder on here before. It's horrible. It makes me convince myself that I'm crap, that my life is crap and that I should just cut off all of my relationships because they're doomed anyway. I don't like feeling this way at all; it makes me feel guilty as hell. BUT. I'm pleased to announce that I do NOT feel this way right now. I felt a bit of the shite creeping in yesterday, but I am much better now. I've been taking St. John's Wort in hopes that it might help. I've been feeling pretty fantastic mood-wise since I started taking it, but I was interested to see how I would fare at this time of the month. So far so good! I hope it holds up cause we have to shoot at the zoo tomorrow. Then Austin and I might have to clean up his house. His uncle is coming into town this weekend and he might ask to see Austin's LED and laser light set-up. I need emotional stamina to shoot and clean. Sorry, I wish this blog could be a bit more interesting. I'm just rambling. I need to get to bed. But first, here's a song from my childhood that popped into my head when I was trying to think of how to describe PMDD feels. It's from a very underrated adaptation of Cinderella called "The Slipper and the Rose". I watched this so many times when I was young; I'm sure it had a huge influence on my aesthetic sensibilities that I don't even fully realize: https://youtu.be/AEmPMgNoWOY?t=322
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shnuggletea · 3 years
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So...I completely forgot to post this one to AO3 yesterday. I had an argument with AO3 and this one got missed. And it’s one of my faves so I’m posting it now a day late.
Want a fluffy college AU with a side of body swap? I can’t tell you how much I love this kiss lol.
I really love this one. I wish I had more time to write it but I’m still really happy with it lol. It’s up on AO3 here. For the unedited version (some smoots in there) subscribe and read on my Patreon here.
You can read it below too if you like. I hope you drop me some love either here or on AO3. Or Patreon lol.
@underwater0phelia @lavendertwilight89 @mamabearcat @nartista @nopenname22 @echobows @superpixie42 @smmahamazing @redflamesofpassion @jme-chan @cstorm86 @cicleydark-light @ruddcatha @lavaffair @kirrtash @sistasecbhere @obsessandfangirl @britonell @lordofthechips @mcornilliac @faolenwolf @keichanz @phoenix-before-the-flame @artisticloveexpressitsall @lamuertadehambre @noyourenotreal @mitty-san @thenoammonster @little-deeluna @royaltrashpanda @sailorbabydoll92 @storyweaver2017 @malditamigs @adorabubblesblog @lilms-obsessed @petri808 @anniehcresta @fan-dumpp @itzatakahashi @utakuprincess @theschultinator @all-too-ale @little-inukag-obsessed @theseagullqueen @queenofthesquirps @jolinaaa00 @knowall7k @neutronstarchild @fawn-eyed-girl @eringobroke @sapphirestarxx @clearwillow @dangerouspompadour @misspepperpottss  @jayangel10 @master-ray5 @sailorsilverladybug @astraearose93 @egosolivagant @fandompromptsandfun @fandomartlover @holi-holy @kagometaishostory  @liz8080
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She couldn’t take any more of this. Kagome had a huge test tomorrow (midterms) and the jerks next door were having  another  party. She got it. Some people finished up early and were just hanging around with nothing more to do during the break. But it was mostly those who were majoring in “Undecided” with a minor in “What the fuck am I doing with my life?”. 
 Kagome was double majoring. At least, that’s what they called it here but really it was like having two lives. One major was for show and the other a secret. Just like everyone at this university for those who were… different. 
 For example; her roommate, Sango, was majoring in sports medicine and demon-slaying. Kagome was majoring in Psychology and Healing (aka Miko Magic). 
 Her neighbor was majoring in failing. Or at least, that’s what she supposed since all he ever seemed to do was throw parties. And his roommate went along with it. A couple of slack asses with all the free time in the world to torture her with. All because the two of them were ‘the exception’. One a human with a cursed hand and the other half human half demon, they didn’t exactly fit into the school’s ideal student but had nowhere else to go. 
 Couldn’t have the world finding out about them now could they?
 As she spilled out into her hall, Kagome really wished she had the funds for an apartment as the entire dorm floor was out. It was an open door party. 
 It was surprising just how many of her floormates were involved. Kagome was pretty sure at least some of them still had exams to survive. Everyone seemed to be looking at her as she passed; as if they knew she was about to kill the party. 
 Pushing through to the inside of the ‘main room’, the one that was responsible for this mess of a party, Kagome choked on her gasp. Someone knocked on her back until she breathed on her own. “Professor Kaede?? What the hell are you doing here?!”
 Sitting at the table that had been moved into the small dorm room, Miroku sat with his hand in Kaede’s. It looked like she was doing palm readings but that was a parlor trick at best. “I’m determining the students’ futures. Would ye like a reading, Kagome?”
 Kaede went back to Miroku’s palm while Kagome stormed up to the table. “I already know my future. Because I’m going to  fail  my midterm thanks to this jerk!”
 “Come now, Kagome, you’re a very bright woman. I’m sure you’ll be fine. Now, Kaede-san, when will I meet the mother of my child?!”
 Kagome’s jaw dropped as Kaede searched Miroku’s palm with a serious look on her face. “Your palm looks very dark, I’m afraid.”
 “Oh haha, I know about my curse already old lady. What about my future?”
 Kagome smacked the back of Miroku’s head. “Show some respect!!”
 She was about to do more when Miroku shot her a wink but Kagome was pulled off the floor and into strong arms. She didn’t give up the fight, knowing full well who was brave enough to mess with her like this and it only angered her more. “Ignore her, Professor Kaede. She’s under a lot of stress.” Kagome clawed Inuyasha’s arm and got free while he held the scratched arm as if it actually hurt the half-demon. “GAH! What’s your problem now, Kagome!”
 “My problem?” Kagome ignored the complete lack of respect Inuyasha sent her way with her name and let it fuel her rage. “My problem is that I have a huge test tomorrow and…”
 “You always have a huge test or huge paper or huge pain in my ass something tomorrow! LIghten up, Kagome, this is college! You’re supposed to have fun!”
 “Why? Your slack ass is having enough fun for me and everyone else on campus. Damn lazy man whore!!”
 They were in each other’s faces but no one worried in the slightest. The pair always got like this. Inuyasha didn’t take his glare off of Kagome as he spoke to Kaede. “Professor, can you tell me Kagome’s past?”
 “Why would ye want that?”
 “I want to find the demon that put the massive  stick up her ass  and slay them before she ruins my entire college experience.”
 “Drop dead!”
 “You first!!!”
 “Guys! Stop it!” Sango yelled. 
 Kagome rolled her eyes at her roommate, currently chatting with some guy while sipping on a drink. Everyone was having fun besides her. Miroku jumped up from his seat and Inuyasha plopped down, wrapping an arm around Kagome’s shoulders. “Why don’t you have a drink? Take a break from studying for a bit and have your palm read?”
 Shaking him off, Kagome glared at the other man whore in residence. “I can’t take a break, I’m too busy dealing with you asshats. And I already know my future, it’s going to be me out on the street when I fail all my courses!!!”
 “Kagome spreading her legs for money? Well, I guess that’s the only way to get her to…” She leaned down to Inuyasha’s ear and blew into it. He flicked his ears and hands around to get her to stop but always missed her when she did that and she didn’t know if it was on purpose or if he had terrible aim. “Don’t do that! How many times have I told you not to blow in my ears, bitch?!”
 “How many times have I told you to keep the noise down, Bitch?” Kagome cooed in his face.
 She saw something flash in his eyes like a flicker from a flame. It used to scare her but Kagome had seen it enough times now to know it just meant she was really getting to Inuyasha. “Ye two should learn to get along. Ye would fare much better…”
 “Tell me about it.” “I would appreciate it!” They said at the same time.
 Kaede chortled, still holding Inuyasha’s hand. She grabbed Kagome’s as well and held them side by side. “Ye have more in common than ye think…”
 “I’m nothing like him.” “Yeah, if I’d boarded up my cock like she did her vag.” They talked over each other.
 Kagome used her free hand to flick Inuyasha’s ear. “Stop talking about my sex life! You have no clue!!”
 “Fair enough,” he conceded, but she knew better, “can’t talk about something that doesn’t exist, right?”
 “Both of you, quiet!” Kaede yelled suddenly. It made Kagome jump and Inuyasha put a hand on her back until he caught himself and retracted it like it never happened. “The two of ye need to see eye to eye or ye will never be happy.”
 “Agreed. Kagome, can’t you see that I’m only making people happy?”
 “Inuyasha, can’t  you  see that it’s not all about you?!”
 Kaede had Kagome’s hand on top of Inuyasha’s, pushing them together hard with her old and wrinkled hands. “Walk a mile in ye shoes and grow together as a team.”
 Kagome blinked but the image didn’t change. She was laying down but the ceiling didn’t look right. It was the fact that she could see the ceiling that was weird since she should see Sango’s bed above her. They had bunked their beds to make more space in their room. She slowly sat up and found that it was more than the ceiling that was wrong. All of her felt wrong.
 And she was in the wrong bed.
 Miroku was asleep across from her and Kagome had to cup her hands over her mouth to keep her freak out from waking him up. She was in Inuyasha’s bed!!! How the hell did she… the last thing she remembered was Professor Kaede’s weirdness and then… what happened after that?? 
 Oh god… she was drugged! 
 That was the only thing that explained her memory loss AND waking up in Inuyasha’s bed. There was NO WAY she would have slept with him otherwise! Sure, Inuyasha was hot as hell but they had nothing else in common and Kagome needed an emotional connection to be attracted to someone.
 This wasn’t the point, the point was… she needed to get the fuck out of here. She was alone in the bed. Which meant Inuyasha was up already and she hoped to GOD he wasn’t spreading the word around that he had nailed her. 
 Her legs felt weird when she got to them. So did her feet, the carpet not feeling the same as the stuff in her room. But hers was cleaner and she left it at that. Struggling with the door, she looked both ways before barreling out into the empty hall. It was still early so no one else was up yet. She prayed she could get a few more hours of studying in before her exam as she opened and closed her door behind her. 
 Resting against the door, she caught her breath. Her ears were ringing too or something. And the smells around her bugged her to no end. Great, she was getting a migraine. So much for studying, Kagome was going to try and sleep it off. 
 Kagome plopped to her bed only to have it screech back at her. “Fuck, Miroku, I’m not in the mood.”
 Everything stopped; her heart, lungs, eyes, and brain. The body that sat up on her bed was… her. It was her face, her blue eyes, her black hair (a mess), and her mouth that parted in shock as Kagome’s body looked back at her. 
 “What… the fuck….” Kagome’s body shot up and hit her head on the bottom of Sango’s bed. “Awe, fuck!”
 She only knew one person that swore THIS much. “Inuyasha??”
 That wasn’t her voice. That was… Inuyasha’s voice. But it came out of her mouth?! 
 Stumbling, Kagome ended up crawling across the floor to the mirror. When gold eyes met her in the reflection, white hair that was wild around white ears, she felt faint. She tried slapping herself but it was no use. The image in the mirror didn’t change save for the redding of the cheek she’d slapped. Inuyasha’s cheek. 
 She was in Inuyasha’s body.
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  Kagome watched her body pace before her. It was so weird; like those ‘out of body’ experiences that she’d read about in her textbooks. The strangest part was that neither of them was in the clothes they were wearing last night. Kagome remembered the over-sized t-shirt and yoga pants from last night and the tight collar shirt and jeans Inuyasha had worn. But she was in sweats and a faded t-shirt now while her body was in….
 Kagome’s body suddenly stopped pacing and she realized to her horror that Inuyasha was staring at her body in the full-length mirror. “Damn, Kags, you’ve got a nice body.”
 Her hands were going up her belly when she shot to her feet and grabbed her hands. Blocking Inuyasha’s view of the mirror as well as stopping him from using her hands to feel herself up, she made Inuyasha’s face glare down at hers. “Don’t do that. Don’t do anything like touch yourself or look at yourself naked while in my body.”
 He huffed, a strange sound coming from her body. “You can touch yourself all you want in my body. And get a good look at... me naked if you want. I know you want to….”
 Pulling Inuyasha’s hands hard off hers, Kagome moved the body she was in away from hers. “That’s not important! What’s important is getting ourselves… right!”
 Inuyasha was twisting Kagome’s hands around and she saw the blood. “Dammit. You have to be careful! My claws are sharp!”
 “Oh my god, I’m sorry!”
 “Yeah? Tell it to yourself. It’ll be your scar.”
 Kagome moved Inuyasha’s body to the dresser and pulled out her first aid. “You’re right. It’ll be my problem and I did it to myself.” Inuyasha was silent while she cleaned and wrapped the slice to the top of her body’s hand. “But I’m sorry because you’re the one feeling the pain right now.. Aren’t you?”
 Inuyasha twisted Kagome’s face in confusion. This was all too weird for her and she had to look away as her brows creased together in the middle. “I feel the pain, yeah. But it’s fine. What are we going to do about this??”
 “Well, first, we should probably figure out how it happened. How did our bodies get switched??”
 “It was Kaede…” A voice mumbled from above. With everything going on, Kagome had forgotten about Sango who had been asleep above their heads. “She did it so go ask her and let me sleep!!”
 Kagome scoffed (which was far more effective when he was in Inuyasha’s body) and grabbed his arm. Something that was also more effective if he was in his body, nearly falling back on the ass he currently inhabited when Kagome didn’t budge in Inuyasha’s body. “Come on, let’s go.”
 She crossed the thick arms of Inuyasha’s across his equally yummy chest.  “You can’t think like that while in his body!!!” she scolded herself and refocused. “Change first.”
 Inuyasha dropped her head to look down at herself and it was just as bad as the mirror as he took in the sight of her body in nothing more than a tight tank top and panties. “You know, I wouldn’t kick you out of the bed if I woke up to this.”
 “God, just stop it and put on some clothes!”
 Racing to her dresser, she pulled out jeans and a sweater that Inuyasha pulled on. Kagome was never going to get used to this, it was too much to wrap her mind around as she watched herself get dressed. The last thing Inuyasha did was grab her strands and pull them around to her shoulder. Kagome was a little more than shocked when he braided her hair perfectly in a few seconds, holding out a hand for a hair tie. With the braid tied off, he gestured to his hair with one of her fingers. 
 “Could you at least do something about that?”
 She brushed Inuyasha’s fingers through his hair, snagging a few times on knots but otherwise finding it super soft. “Wow.”
 “Yeah, I take care of my shit. So don’t fuck it up while the cat is out of the house!”
 She rolled Inuaysha’s eyes and grabbed a brush. A few moments later, they were standing in front of Professor Kaede’s office door. Inuyasha had Kagome’s hands in the pockets of her jeans, standing just as he did when in his body. While Kagome had her backpack on Inuyasha’s shoulder. It felt oddly lighter even though it was filled the same as it always was.
 “What the fucking hell?” Kagome’s mouth spouted.
 Another student passed, giving Kagome a look from the foul mouth Inuyasha was giving her. But Kagome could care less at the moment. She looked with Inuyasha’s eyes at the door to see the note attached to it. “Family emergency. Be back after break??”
 “Great. Juuuuuust great!! What the hell are we supposed to do stuck in the bodies for the entire break?!”
 Inuyasha’s heart dropped into her stomach. “Inuyasha… my exam…”
 “What?” Kagome’s body spun and then flicked her head up, forgetting about his new height. 
 “My exam. I’ve been studying all week for it… it’s important and now I… I can’t even take it?! What… what I’m I gonna do?!”
 Kagome’s body tried to grab Inuyasha’s shoulders but failed from the height difference and held onto biceps instead. “Hey, I can’t be seen crying! Get your shit together Kagome!”
 It was really easy to stop what she had started, sobering quickly. “Whoa, that’s weird. Do you have no feelings at all??”
 “Yeah. I’m an unfeeling monster while you’re an emotional wreck. Who’s the one really suffering here?” Inuyasha fussed while a tear fell down Kagome’s cheek.
 Without a thought, Kagome gently used Inuyasha’s hand to brush the tear off her body’s cheek. “I can’t fail this test Inuyasha. Do you.. Remember anything?”
 She was hoping that their brains were the same. But that didn’t make sense (not that any of it did) since she didn’t have Inuyasha’s memories or anything. If Kagome thought back, it was all her and not Inuyasha inside her head. It was why she remembered her test and not him. 
 “No, I fucking don’t remember a thing.” He sighed ruefully while she worried Inuyasha’s lip. “Give me your notes.” She dug them out and handed them over. “How long until your exam?”
 “Hour and a half.”
 “Good. I need a quiet place.”
 Leading him to the place she liked to sit and read, she watched as Inuyasha read over all her notes. He didn’t take the full time either, shutting the notebook when he was done and getting to his feet… her feet. “What are you doing?”
 “I’m done. Where’s the exam?”
 “Brooke’s hall, room 329. Inuyasha… I don’t think you understand…”
 “Yeah, yeah, I got it, this exam is important. I’ll try and get you at least a C, alright.”
 Kagome’s body was already moving towards the exam spot while she followed behind in his body. Which was interesting since Inuyasha’s body had longer legs than hers; making it a lot easier to keep up and speed pass. Instead of struggling to keep up, she struggled not to leave her body behind. Inuyasha only stopped to ask for her ID before strutting her body into her exam. She watched from the door, slapping a hand to her forehead when Inuyasha asked the person next to him for a pencil. She was sure the strange look they passed her body was due to her never coming unprepared for class.
 The test was passed out and the heart in Inuyasha’s chest raced. Inuyasha didn’t know this, but her entire college career hinged on this test. This one and everything she was ever graded on. The scholarship she got was fat on funds and prestige. If her grades slipped past a 3.8 GPA, Kagome would be stripped of her funds and have no means for her education.
 It hadn’t been more than thirty minutes since the test landed in front of her body when Inuyasha folded up his test, passed the borrowed pencil back with a smile, and handed in the test. He continued to strut Kagome’s body around and past her as she waited. She was hoping he would spill but he said nothing. “Well?”
 “Like I said, at least a C.”
 “Inuyasha!!”
 “Relax. I got you an A.”
 “An A. You can’t possibly know that! This isn’t funny Inuyasha!!”
 He was chuckling. Making her body make an ugly sound especially from a woman. “It’s a little funny. I mean, how long did you study for this only to have me take it for you?”
 “Inuyasha!” She cried, pushing large fists that she wasn’t used to into the corners of her eyes.
 “Hey! I said no crying in my body!!!”
 “Kagome?”
 She turned at her name, instantly forgetting and even calling out, “Hojo?” Before Inuyasha used her body to slap a hand to Inuyasha’s mouth. But it was too late; Hojo was eyeing them both curiously. 
 “Do I know you?” Hojo asked Inuyasha’s body. 
 Kagome pulled back from the hand on her mouth and thrusted a hand to the back of her head; awkward and embarrassed. Neither emotion was ever displayed by the real Inuyasha that she’d ever seen. “No. I mean yes. Sort of?”
 “I’ve told her, I mean him, a lot about you, Hoji.”
 “Hojo,” she tried as a cough. 
 Inuyasha coughed too and hoped to cover up his mistake. “I mean Hojo.”
 “Are you sick, Kagome? You don’t seem like yourself?”
 Hojo was still looking them both over and Kagome didn’t get it. She also didn’t get the weird smell entering Inuyasha’s nose. It was putrid like old sweat. Was that how Inuyasha’s nose worked? He could smell things like sweat? Kagome watched as her body looked over at her and winked, then moved closer to Hojo.
 “I’m fine, thank you for asking.” She was happy with that response but not with how close Inuyasha was getting her body to Hojo, who just stood there and watched her body too intensely. “So… what are you up to?”
 “Um… I’m just… I was heading to an exam and wanted to stop by to see how you did?” That was Hojo for you, so sweet and caring. “I know you were nervous about this one. How did you do? You finished up early; is that good?”
 Inuyasha pushed a fake laugh out of her mouth and Kagome stared at him hard. “Oh, it was no big deal in the end. My friend Kag… I mean Inuyasha helped me out a lot.”
 “Oh? You’re Inuyasha?” Crap, she had spoken to Hojo often about Inuyasha and how he was the bain of her existence. Hojo leaned into her body’s ear but she could hear every word with Inuyasha’s ears. “I thought you said he was a selfish asshole? And you never mentioned he was a…  hanyou .”
 There was disgust in Hojo’s tone. That made both Kagome’s angry but the one in Inuyasha’s body was the one to react. “You have a problem with Hanyous?” She asked as darkly as she could while stepping up to Hojo. 
 “Oh uh... Nnnno, NO! I don’t have a problem…”
 Even if she hadn’t heard him a second ago, Kagome knew he was lying. His heart was racing and his scent had increased. He was sweating a lot right now. “Liar. You don’t like Hanyous? What did they ever do to you, huh? Inuya… I mean Kagome is half Miko, do you find her disgusting too?”
 “That’s different! She can control her powers. And she doesn’t…”
 “She doesn’t what?!” She screamed, hearing Inuyasha’s voice instead of her own.
 “She doesn’t look like a half-breed.”
 Hojo’s eyes flicked up to Inuyasha’s ears on top of Kagome’s head. And she saw red. “Stay away from Kagome.” She pointed a clawed finger in Hojo’s face for emphasis.
 He dared to look around her to her body behind. Kagome turned to her body and grabbed her arm to pull them away. Inuyasha was looking smug but it quickly turned to concern, putting a hand on her back and pushing her the rest of the way out of the building until they were alone in the cold afternoon air. The sun was hazy behind thin clouds and a breeze made it even colder but she still felt hot!
 “Kagome, breathe.”
 Buckled over, she had her big clawed hands on her knees; taking big gulps of air and still seeing red. “That… that jerk….”
 “I know, I know but you need to calm down.”
 She looked up to find her face frowning down at her, Inuyasha keeping a hand on his body’s back to try and calm her down. “I didn’t know he was like that!”
 “You’d be surprised… a lot of people are.”
 “I’m not!”
 Kagome’s lips twisted into a smile. “I noticed.”
 It took a while but she was finally starting to calm down and feel in control again. Standing back up at full, she looked down at her body in wonder. “You don’t feel anything except anger? What’s up with that?”
 He shrugged. “That’s the demon. Makes it hard to feel much of anything save for primal instincts. Like anger and lust.”
 “Oh, I see,” Kagome’s head whipped up to look back at her face, “so you’re blaming the demon for actions? That’s lame, Inuyasha.”
 A grimace graced her face as Inuyasha disapproved of her words fully. “Yeah? Everyone else blames 
the demon in me so why can’t I?”
 “Because they’re stupid. And you’re not.” They were silent for a few minutes after that until she had to change the subject. “Hey, do we all smell that bad?”
 Suddenly, Inuyasha had to get away from her; taking off in a fast walk away with her body. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
 She could hear it. In his voice and his heart. Her voice and heart. He was lying. “You’re lying! I can hear it!!”
 Inuyasha jumped on her with Kagome’s body; her hand pressed as best as he could get it to his mouth. “Keep that shit to yourself!”
 After a second and some awkwardness, he let her go. “Why?”
 “I don’t want  anyone  knowing that.”
 “Okay… but why?”
 Inuyasha was moving again and she followed without question. “You think people knowing you’re a Hanyou is bad? What if they knew you could hear and smell their lies? Smell what they did an hour ago? Hear their conversations through a wall? Imagine if there were no secrets between you and others; how many people would want to be around you then?”
 She was silent. Because she got it. They were halfway back to the dorm when she spoke again; needing to ask before they were silenced by ‘others’ being around. “Wait… if your nose and ears are this strong, why do you like loud parties?” Inuyasha glanced back, giving her a look with her face. “You don’t like them… you hate them?? Why the heck do you have them then?!”
 They stopped and it was strange towering over her own body but she was pissed. Inuyasha wouldn’t look up at her though, staring off in the distance with her hands in her pockets. “Miroku is the one that wants them and I go along with it. He doesn’t know about my nose and ears and I want to keep it that way.”
 “Then tell him you don’t want to party! What’s the big deal?!”
 “He’s my first friend…”
 “Sango’s my first college friend too but if she wanted…”
 “Not my first college friend.  First friend ever .” Inuyasha used her toe to kick at that ground and keep his attention there instead. “He’s the first person to accept and like me for who I am. I’d do anything for him. Besides, the parties help me blend in, meet people, and have a good time.”
 “You can have a good time with less noise and destruction.” Now Inuyasha looked up at her with a roll of her eyes. “Next time you want quiet comfortable fun, you can come to my room and have it with me.”
 He fought the smile off his face but since it was Kagome’s face, he lost. “That sounds shitastic.”
 She shrugged his big shoulders. “Whatever.” They were moving again and she couldn’t help but sniff the air. “Oh man, you need to shower. You got Hojo’s nervous sweat on you.” She sniffed herself. “Ick. Me too.”
 “You sure know how to pick them, Kags.”
 “What’s that supposed to mean?”
 “Nothing,” lie and she was pretty sure she got what he was trying to say, “we’re lucky we don’t reek of Hoji’s urine too.”
 “He deserved it.” Kagome wanted to change the subject; she was starting to feel hot again. “How are we going to do this?”
 “Do what?”
 Out of habit, Inuyasha opened the door to their building’s lobby. Instead of pointing it out, she rushed through while a few people stopped and stared; laughing as they walked away. “Shower?”
 Kagome’s body huffed. “I may not be used to it, but I’m pretty sure I can clean your body, Kagome.”
 Even if she didn’t have Inuyasha’s hearing, she would know that leaving him alone with her body was a bad idea. “Oh no. No, no, no way! I’m not letting you do whatever you please to my body!!”
 In the elevator alone, she felt no worry of being overheard. Inuyasha leaned her body against the back wall of the small box. He looked just like himself with his body language. “You’d like it, trust me.”
 “I don’t!”
 “Guess we can take a shower together?”
 The elevator dinged and her long legs took her off and away from Inuyasha quicker than she was used to. “We can’t do that! It’s against the rules!”
 “People do it all the time.” She glared back at him and he flustered for some reason. “Miroku told me, nothing more!”
 Like she believed that. But he didn’t sound like he was lying. It made her feel a bit better but she still didn’t like the idea. But what other choice did they have? The floor was mostly empty at this point anyway. They went back to Kagome’s room first, running into Sango who was almost out the door; passing the two of them with her suitcase in hand.
 “Sango? Where are you going?!” Her body asked in a panic.
 Sango looked between them but quickly settled on Kagome’s face. “I have plane tickets and a little brother that would be pissed if I didn’t come home as promised. Sorry.”
 She got it but it still sucked. “Do you have anything that could help us?”
 Staring at her blankly, Sango looked at her wearing Inuyasha’s face for a moment before shaking herself free with a small laugh. “Sorry. That’s just so weird. Cause you both still talk like yourselves but with the other’s voice and body.”
 “Sango?”
 “Kaede said, ‘walk a mile in each other’s shoes and appreciate each other’ or something like that.”
 “We already walked a mile and more!” Inuyasha roared with Kagome’s voice.
 Sango shrugged. “Guess you still haven’t learned your lesson then?”
 She left and they flopped, helpless, in her room. After some silent pouting, Kagome got up and went to her dresser; pulling out clothes for her body to put on. Inuyasha left only to return with clothes for her to put on when she was done. 
 They double-checked the bathroom and when it was empty, they started to strip. Kagome stopped Inuyasha with a growl. “No peeking!”
 He rolled her eyes and pulled off all her clothes. She thought it would be awkward to take a shower with a man she barely knew. But she was wrong. It was weirder than anything she’d ever experienced, watching her own body wash itself. 
 She was in a daze when Inuyasha thrusted a bottle in her direction. “Use that on my hair please.”
 “Yeah… sure…”
 “Hey,” he knocked a gentle fist to her head, “what are you thinking about?”
 “I was just…” she froze, Inuyasha picking up her loofa and putting body wash on it, “whoa, I should do that.”
 She was okay with him washing her hair but rubbing all over her body? It was too… weird! 
 “Calm down, Kagome. I’ll be gentle.” She ripped the loofa from her own hand and started on her front. “I don’t think this is achieving what you think it is. Cause now, I’m still touching your body.”
 “Yes. But you can’t feel it!”
 “No, you’re right. I can just feel it on your body instead of my hand.” She washed her thighs and decided then and there she would just have to wash her nether regions when she was back in her body again. “I wonder if we’ll remember what our bodies did when we’re back in them?”
 “What do you mean?!” She shrieked a little too loudly.
 “I mean,” she stood up straight and looked down at her face, “will I remember what it feels like to wash your body when I’m back in mine?”
 She forced her body to turn around and started washing her back. “Stop it. Stop talking like that. It’s gross.”
 “Why is it gross?!” He said with some serious anger behind it.
 “Because it’s my voice and face saying it! It’s like I’m hitting on myself or something!”
 The tension in Kagome’s body’s shoulders disappeared instantly with her words. “Oh... I see.”
 Inuyasha didn’t refute her claim that he was hitting on her but she ignored it and focused on Inuyasha’s hair. There was a lot of it and it was thick. Not much different from her own hair but she also had his ears to worry about. “How do I wash these?”
 She was pointing to the triangles on top of her head and Inuyasha gestured for her to crouch down. “Here. Let me.”
 It felt pretty good; Inuyasha was rubbing his ears gently. She could tell from this that his ears were really sensitive and she didn’t mean just from sounds. The massage Inuyasha was giving them was nearly putting her to sleep.
 Clean and soggy, they sat in Inuyasha’s room and Kagome took in all the smells it held. There were a lot but mostly faint. She mostly smelled Inuyasha, knowing it was him from her own personal memory of his scent. 
 “So you never answered my question.”
 Inuyasha looked up from whatever he was doing on his phone while she spun in his desk’s chair.
 “Do I smell that bad too?”
 A grin twisted on Kagome’s face. “Smell yourself now and find out.”
 She had already. But they’d just showered now. “I smell good now.”
 “As you always do.”
 “I do?”
 He nodded and she felt a small flush on her cheeks for some reason. But she shook it away with other thoughts. “You also never told me how you did on my exam?”
 “Yes, I did. You got an A.”
 “You  can’t know that! You spent an hour studying!” She dropped Inuyasha’s head to the back of the chair and watched the ceiling spin. “I studied all semester for that class.”
 “Your notes showed that. I wouldn’t have done so well if you weren’t so… dedicated.”
 Inuyasha had revealed a lot about himself to her today. He didn’t have a choice in the matter but she still felt it was only fair to tell him some things too. A few secrets. “I’m only able to afford this school because of a scholarship that requires me to keep a 3.8 GPA. If it drops below that, I’m out on my ass.”
 “Your ass is too nice to be tossed on.” She looked up to glare at him but he was too busy grinning to be phased. “You have nothing to worry about, Kagome. I have a photographic memory.”
 Kagome nearly fell out of the chair; she sat up so fast. “You what?!”
 “How do you think I got into this college? And how I stayed in it?”
 “Sports scholarship?” Inuyasha frowned with Kagome’s face and she giggled. “I hadn’t thought about it really. I just thought you took easy courses or something? That’s really cool! I wish I had that!!”
 “No you don’t,” he groaned, “because once you see something, you can never forget it.”
 “There are some things, some of us, never want to forget.” She said nothing more. A secret she wasn’t ready to reveal. 
 “Looks like we’re stuck in these bodies for the night,” Inuyasha added, interrupting the silence. “You wanna sleep here or in your bed?”
 “Huh?”
 “You didn’t trust me alone in your body for a shower. I figured you wouldn’t trust me alone in it all night long?” He smirked. “And it’s been a stressful day on your body. I could use a release and some relaxation. Or rather, you could. I think I’ll just see what fingering feels like…”
 “Okay! Okay, you’re right! And don’t you dare masturbate my body!!!”
 It felt weird, sleeping in a small bed with her body. Mostly because she felt the urge to snuggle but that was a therapy session she could do without later in life.
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  Without a clue of what else to do, Kagome was packing. She was expected at home today and with waking up, still in Inuyasha’s body, she wasn’t sure what to do. 
 Bag on her bed that was half-filled with her clothes (that wouldn’t fit Inuyasha’s body so she just felt stupid) Kagome’s body rushed into the room with Inuyasha’s phone in his hand. “Answer this.”
 She glanced at the screen and saw the name ‘Kikyo’ on it. “Kikyo? You know her?”
 “Just answer the damn phone already!”
 Doing as told, she sighed and accepted the call. “Hello, Kikyo.”
 Inuyasha glared at her but she just glared back and silently berated his anger with a ‘what?!’. “Hey, Inuyasha. I was hoping to catch you before you left for the break?”
 “Oh uh... Yeah, you caught me. What’s up?”
 Inuyasha rolled her eyes and Kagome decided to ignore him. “I was thinking it would be nice to get lunch? Are you free today?”
 Pressing a hand over the receiver, Kagome whispered to Inuyasha. “She wants to get lunch today.” He nodded while she shook her head ‘no’. “I have to go home!” Inuyasha pointed harshly at the phone. “Uh.. oh… sorry. I’m just checking my schedule.” She pressed her hand to the phone again. “I  have  to go home! We have to go together!”
 He took the phone from her and held it away from them, getting in her face. Which would have been more effective if he was in his body instead of hers. “I helped you with your exam. Help me with this.” He softened quickly. “Please, Kags.”
 She rolled her eyes and took the phone back. “Kikyo? Yeah, I can do it today. How about we meet somewhere?”
 “There’s this nice sushi place on campus?”
 Kagome was shaking Inuyasha’s head but remembered Kikyo couldn’t see her. “Ah.. no, I don’t like sushi.” She remembered very clearly how Inuyasha had reacted to sushi back when they all ate together at the beginning of the year. It had not gone well at all. Kagome blamed that night on why she and Inuyasha started being frenemies. “How about the ramen place on fifth?”
 Inuyasha was staring at her with Kagome’s blue eyes. Was she always that intimidating? No, Inuyasha had to be doing something different with her eyes or something. The way he had them locked on her wasn’t helping; turning from him to finish the phone call. “Sounds good,” even through the phone, it didn’t sound like Kikyo was happy, “see you in an hour.”
 She handed back the phone but Inuyasha grabbed her hand with it and held her still. “If you don’t screw this up, I’ll go and make nice with your family. But if you fuck things up with Kikyo, I’ll get a tattoo on your forehead.”
 Careful with his claws this time, Kagome got Inuyasha’s hand back from the death hold he had on it. “Okay, I get it. I’ll make you look really good, I promise. Geez, you really like Kikyo, huh?”
 It was funny how Inuyasha did the same things while in her body. Like crossing his arms over his chest when he wanted to protect himself. She could hear his heart and breath now though and it was picking up a little like he was uncomfortable or scared. “She’s the only person to show me interest like this so, yeah I like her I guess.”
 “Wow, calm down.” She said sarcastically. “I don’t want my body to stink again.”
 She laughed while Inuyasha bristled. “I’m not good with emotions and your body is a cluster fuck. I’ve never thought about my feelings like this before. No one has ever asked me either so cut me some fucking slack.”
 Kagome was still laughing, the sound strange because it wasn’t hers and she wasn’t used to hearing Inuyasha’s laugh. “Fine. But… a lunch?”
 “What’s wrong with that? She only had time for lunch but she wanted to see me!”
 “If you say so…”
 “You know what, I don’t trust you. You’re going to fuck this up. I’m coming with you.”
 Inuyasha was already starting to dress her body. “What? You can’t bring another girl on a date!”
 “Sure I can! It’ll make her jealous which will work in my favor! Kikyo probably thinks no one else wants me and she has no competition.”
 She placed a hand on her body’s shoulder but Inuyasha ignored her. “Do you hear yourself?”
 Inuyasha shrugged her off. “No, I hear you. Go get dressed!”
 She left him to do as told, not sure of this meeting at all.
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  “Whoa.” 
 They stopped just inside the door of the restaurant and Inuyasha twisted Kagome’s head back to look at his. “What?”
 “I see why you like this place. It smells amazing!”
 He smirked but it dropped quickly, grabbing and pulling her the rest of the way inside. They quickly spotted Kikyo; who stood and waved him down, only to frown at the sight of Kagome with him. She had to put on her game face. No part of her liked this and Kagome told herself it was because of Inuyasha’s words about not being liked by others. The gnawing in her chest was about his obvious lack of self-confidence and settling for Kikyo. Nothing else. 
 “Hey, babe.” Kikyo greeted and Kagome took a beat to realize she was talking to her/Inuyasha. 
 “Hey… honey…” She passed a glance at Inuyasha who glared back at her for her slip up. “I mean… hello.” Inuyasha slid her body into the booth Kikyo picked, sitting between them which made Kikyo frown even more. “Oh uh… this is my neighbor, Kagome. She and I are… friends and she…. Wanted to meet you?”
 They really should have discussed a plan of some sort. She was not prepared for this. 
 Kikyo didn’t miss a beat, turning to Kagome with a plastic smile. Could Inuyasha see how fake it was or was that the demon sight she currently had? “Hello, Higurashi-san. We have a few classes together, don’t we?”
 They did? She didn’t remember Kikyo in any of her classes and the look on Kagome’s face told her Inuyasha was shocked. Then mad, like she should have mentioned it or something. Can’t mention what you don’t remember. “Oh, yeah, we did, didn’t we?”
 “Defense against the Darkness 111 and we were at that offense vs defense seminar last month. Your reiki is very impressive.”
 “Uuuuhhhh thanks.”
 She needed to redirect the conversation because Inuyasha knew nothing about Miko practices. “So, Kikyo, how were your exams? I’m sure you did well.”
 Kikyo looked shocked she asked. Maybe Inuyasha wasn’t this polite? He wasn’t polite to her for sure. “Yes, thank you. How about you?”
 “Ah, you know me.”
 Did she? Kikyo just kind of nodded and turned her attention back to Kagome. “Say how did you create that barrier? No one else could manage it and I must admit I still can’t.”
 Kikyo laughed and it made things more uncomfortable. Kagome’s eyes danced to Inuyasha but what could she do to help in this? “I uh… I practice and study a lot. It’s all I do actually.”
 “Oh? That sounds rough!” Kikyo said but the sympathy in it was faked.
 “Yeah. I don’t party or have fun. I’m pretty pathetic actually.” Inuyasha laughed with her body and Kikyo laughed with her.
 “Aren’t you being a little hard on yourself?” Kagome asked, grinding Inuyasha’s fangs together. 
 Kagome’s shoulder’s shrugged. “Am I? This is the first date I’ve been on all year and it’s not even mine!”
 They both laughed while she seethed. Inuyasha was right but she didn’t like that he knew that. How did he know that, anyway? Something to ask later, trying again to direct the conversation back to Inuyasha and Kikyo. “So… I was surprised you called. Are you not heading out of town for the break?”
 “I am. I just wanted to see you one more time before I left.”
 Kikyo placed a hand on his and rubbed the back of it. But there was something about her tone and heartbeat that bothered her. If it were her, Kagome’s heart would be skipping from touching the guy she liked. It skipped whenever Inuyasha touched her and she didn’t even like him! But Kikyo was calm.
 Kagome’s foot kicked hers under the table and she woke up. “Oh, uh, yeah I wanted to see you too. Thanks for calling and asking me out.”
 “Of course. Since you never call me.”
 “I’ll.. uh… fix that. I promise.”
 The waitress appeared. Kikyo ordered a salad while she ordered ramen. Inuyasha did too. They ate with gentle conversation and she did her best to flirt with Kikyo. Inuyasha passed her the other half of his bowl when he was full and she ate it without issue. They had already discovered (last night) that their appetites changed for the body they were in.
 Now lunch was over but there was a bigger issue. Kagome had been holding it in all morning but now she was about to pop and couldn’t any longer. Getting to Inuyasha’s feet suddenly, she grabbed onto Kagome as she pulled out of the booth. “I need a minute with Kagome. Be right back.”
 Inuyasha fought against her hold as soon as they were out of sight. “What the fuck?! This looks really bad, Kagome!!”
 “I know, I’m sorry but I have to…” she stopped and folded into Kagome’s ear, “I have to pee.”
 “So?”
 “I’ve never… I don’t know how to do it with your… equipment.”
 He chuckled and pushed Inuyasha’s body back. “It’s the same as yours, you just have to stand and aim.”
 “Oh god. I have to touch it?!”
 Inuyasha had ‘washed himself’ for her yesterday. And that had been all sorts of confusing. This was going to be worse. “Just don’t let the size freak you out.”
 That was all he gave her before sauntering back to their table. She took two deep breaths and pushed into the men’s room. Regardless, she couldn’t hold it any longer. Which made it easier in the end, staring at Inuyasha’s member in his hands and not focusing on anything else. She had thought he was just being a jerk but… he was kinda right about his size. Guess that was why it felt so heavy? And she thought it was just because she had something swinging between her legs for the first time? Kagome would never know; this was the only body other than hers she would ever inhabit. Hopefully.
 The heightened senses didn’t help either (the scent of the small room making her feel sick) and she was quick to get out of there.
 She didn’t know if leaving ‘Kagome’ alone with Kikyo for long was a good idea so she was as fast as she could move about it all. She focused on the table, finding she could focus her hearing too; which was cool. Until she heard the conversation being had in her absence. 
 “You already have strong Miko powers. You don’t need Inuyasha for your final. I do.”
 Kikyo was talking about finals? They all had a senior project due before graduation; a show of strength mixed with comprehension and skill. Kagome hadn’t come up with anything yet but Kikyo’s involved Inuyasha? She didn’t understand how and by the look Inuyasha had on ‘Kagome’s’ face, he didn’t know about it beforehand.
 He was pushing her body out of the booth in a hurry when he caught sight of her. Knocking into her as she passed, Inuyasha left her behind to figure out what the hell to do next. So she stomped up to the table and Kikyo gave her a look of pure innocence. “I think your friend is jealous of us.”
 “H… she is? We’re just friends.”
 “KA...INUYASHA LET’S GO!”
 Her voice sounded pained and no part of her wanted to argue. So she dug into the wallet Inuyasha made her put in his back pocket; throwing some money on the table. “I’ll… uh call you.”
 Inuyasha had ‘Kagome’s’ hands in her pockets and a pissed look on her face. “You got tickets to your house or something? Let’s get the hell out of here.”
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  Inuyasha hadn’t said a word since they left the restaurant. She sat across from her body as it silently rocked on the train. It was another hour until they reached home and a thirty-minute drive to her house. So there really wasn’t a lot of time. 
 “So…. I should probably go over who is who. They’ll expect you to know that.”
 “Why not just tell them the truth? Would save us a lot of grief.” He muttered to the window. 
 “NO!” Kagome’s head slowly turned from her outburst, Inuyasha had her eyes squinted in disapproval of her tone, volume, or general displeasure with her for some reason. It was hard to tell. “They can’t know. They can’t know any of this.”
 “Why the hell not,” he growled and this time, it was pretty scary. 
 “Because… if they knew my well being was at risk? My education? My body?! Add in that a faculty member did this to us and they will either force me to come back home or guilt me into it.”
 “Your family cares that much?”
 Confused, she tilted Inuyasha’s head at him. “Yeah. Yours doesn’t?” He said nothing, going back to his window and she couldn’t take it anymore. “Yash… what happened? Did Kikyo say something to you? I heard her talking about her senior project…”
 “Did you know?” She really didn’t have a clue and shook her head to show that. “Fuck I miss my body. Then I’d know if you were lying right now.”
 Thinking it over, she took her body’s hand and placed it on Inuyasha’s body’s wrist. “Here. Ask me anything.”
 The face he wore, even though it was her face she still didn’t know what it meant. Kagome didn’t think she had ever made that face but Inuyasha still squeezed her body’s fingers around his body’s wrist to feel her pulse. “What is your senior project on?”
 “Mine? I haven’t picked anything yet. Buuut this body switch thing would definitely work for it!” 
 She giggled (sounding super weird from Inuyasha’s body) and he smiled -briefly. “Did you know there’s a way to turn a half-demon into either a full human or demon?”
 Nodding, she still wore a frown on the subject. “There are theories but no one has actually done it.”
 “Why not?”
 She sighed. “Because it’s dangerous. Half-demons are rare so it’s hard to find willing subjects.”
 “What if I was willing?” She blinked in her body’s serious face for a few seconds, listening to the heart beating in her body’s chest. “Would you try it on me?”
 Kagome had to force herself to remain still so Inuyasha could feel her pulse. When she really wanted to rip free and smack him. “Are you nuts?! Why would you want to change who you are?!”
 “You’ve been in my body for less than twenty-four hours. You have no clue what it’s like being me!”
 “That may be true but you’re perfect the way you are!”
 “Perfect?!” He spat back. “I’m the very definition of imperfect! Don’t pretend you know what it’s like to be me!”
 “Don’t I?” Inuyasha still held the wrist between them while they stared into each other’s eyes. “You pretend the loud music and crowds don’t bother you all so you can make your best friend happy! You hide your ability to hear and smell falsehoods so no one feels uncomfortable around you. And you work so hard to control yourself so that you never hurt anyone; you’re a Saint Inuyasha. Yet, there are still people like Hojo that look down on you. It makes me sick.”
 Slowly, Inuyasha let go of his body’s wrist and sat back. She did the same; eyes still glued to one another. “And people like Kikyo. She wanted to use me for her senior project and turn me into a full human.”
 She was so disgusted that she felt sick. And hot. “That stupid bitch.”
 “Careful. I’m starting to rub off on you.” Kagome still felt warm all over and it was only getting worse. “Seriously though, you need to calm down.” She was struggling, imagining Kikyo asking Inuyasha to become human over and over. “Kagome…. breath.” Hands were on her knees and she took a deep breath. “Think about something else. Tell me about your family. Everything I need to know to be you.”
 “My mother…” she said releasing the breath she took and held, “stays home and helps my grandfather with the family shrine.”
 “Wait… you live in a shrine?”
 “Inuyasha now is not the time to push me.”
 “I just… I didn’t know that about you, that’s all. Must have been… tough.”
 “People made jokes and assumptions but I got over it.” She opened her eyes for the first time in several minutes. Her body was hunched over with her hands on Inuyasha’s body’s knees. It was oddly comforting to look into her own blue eyes. “My dad passed away when I was four.”
 “I’m sorry.”
 He was sincere. Maybe he had a close family member die too because she could see it in her eyes that he was currently using. All she could give him in return was a nod of understanding. “My younger brother Souta and his wife will be there.”
 “Ooooh, younger brother that’s already married? That’s rough.”
 “What are you talking about?”
 “He’s married while you're in school?” He said with a strange look on his face. 
 “He’s where he wants to be in life and so am I.”
 “Okay, but I’ll be prepared for some sibling rivalry.”
 She shook it off and kept going. “He has a little girl, Mei. She’s only seven months though. I hope you like kids because she’ll be all over me… I mean you as soon as we get there.”
 “Great.”
 “Um… I’m not really sure what else will come up. So I don’t know how to prepare you. What should we say about us?”
 Inuyasha sat back, taking Kagome’s hands off Inuyasha’s knees. “Just say we’re dating.”
 “Oh no.”
 “Would that be a problem for them? You dating a Hanyou?”
 Inuyasha was looking out the window again while she was trying not to get angry. “It’s not that. I’ve just… never brought someone home before. I’m not sure how they’ll take it. Especially when I have to tell them later that it was all a lie or that we broke up.”
 He was silent, Kagome’s blue eyes searching her borrowed face and making her feel weird all over again. “Worry about that later. For now, saying we’re dating makes it easier. If someone says something I don’t know about you can jump in and pretend I told you. You can cover me.”
 It all made such good sense that she felt no fear or worry when they arrived. Inuyasha’s heart was pounding though. It skipped every time someone pulled him in for a hug. She was sure it was weird hugging strangers like family but it didn’t seem like something that would be terrifying. Yet that would be how she described Inuyasha’s reaction. 
 He was scared. 
 It got worse when baby Mei was handed his way. She cooed in his arms for about four seconds then suddenly reached for her. Mei was reaching out to her like normal only she looked nothing like herself. Kagome’s body sat beside her on the couch while she sat inside Inuyasha’s. 
 He didn’t fight her, letting the seven-month-old come to her; a relative stranger was now holding her niece but she was never more excited. Her tiny heart beat wildly as she stretched up on her toes and grabbed Inuyasha’s body’s ears. 
 “So,” Souta sat down next to her body and wrapped a brotherly arm around her shoulders, “are you two dating or something?”
 “Uh yeah.” “Something like that.” They said on top of each other. 
 “Good. I never liked that Koga guy. What happened to him? You kept talking him up; saying you wanted us to meet him?” 
 This was something she really should have told Inuyasha about on the train but she had hoped it wouldn’t come up. “He uh,” Souta looked to her expectantly, “he isn’t a problem anymore.”
 “Good. Thank you, Inuyasha-san.”
 Their mother called for Souta from the kitchen and he rose quickly, leaving them alone with Mei (who was pulling on an ear now). “Why aren’t you being called to the kitchen right now?”
 She focused on getting the baby to not pull so hard while Inuyasha moved her body a little close to his. “Normally, she would but I guess with you here I’m on baby duty.”
 A quick beat of silence and the elephant in the room trumpeted. “So… who’s Koga?”
 “Uh… no one.” She glanced his way, her body tilted away so Inuyasha could look at her with disbelief. “I met him last year. We dated a little. But… then I found out he was dating five other girls at the same time. He even tried to use the fact that he’s a wolf demon as an excuse; saying he was the leader of the pack and had responsibilities….”
 “That’s true actually. You’re lucky he even dated out of his pack at all.” Inuyasha added but his voice didn’t sound like he was as okay with it as he would like to be.
 “I wouldn’t say I was lucky at all.”
 “Did you… really like him?”
 There was something to Inuyasha’s tone; she wondered if she would have heard it if she was in her body. Kagome forced herself not to listen to more; his heart and breath or even smell him as she shook the sound of his… her voice out of her borrowed head. “I… did… I think. It was nice to have someone. But I refuse to be used by anyone.”
 “AH, so cheating is a deal-breaker for you? Good to know.”
 She chuckled, Mei bouncing on her wide chest as Inuyasha’s body laughed. “Isn’t everyone?”
 “You’d be surprised.”
 He didn’t say more and she didn’t press. They were called for dinner and Mei didn’t release Inuyasha’s body until her mother held out her hands for the child. She had missed her family and even though it was like she was an outsider in her own family, Kagome still didn’t feel left out. Not that she ever expected her family to make anyone feel like that, but she expected to feel something like that. Being in someone else’s body was weird in many ways and she missed her life all the more being around her family. 
 Dinner was delicious as expected and the conversation was pretty light and happy. Until…. 
 “So Inuyasha, are you and Kagome going to visit your family during the break too?” Her mother asked, looking right at her.
 “Uh…”
 “Inuyasha doesn't have any family.” Kagome’s body answered for her.
 The room got quiet as all eyes landed on her; on Inuyasha. “Really?” Souta asked and she nodded.
 They didn’t press, of course, but now she was regretting not getting to know Inuyasha before they came here like she had forced him to get to know her. Why hadn't she even asked? It was weird that he agreed to come here so easily, that he was hanging around campus during the break wasn’t it? Miroku had left as soon as break started (she wasn’t even sure Miroku knew their bodies were switched) and yet, Inuyasha was around like it was any other day. But she never asked.
 Normally, she could say it was none of her business but this time; she couldn’t get away with such an excuse, could she?
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  Her mom thought it was funny; putting her in the same room as her body. Inuyasha didn’t put up the appropriate amount of fuss for Kagome to be satisfied either, glaring as her body walked around her room and explored. “You could have demanded I sleep in the guest room or something.”
 “Why? You want to keep ‘watch’ on me in your body, don’t you?”
 That was true. Although, she was starting to care less and less about that. “It sends the wrong message if you just willingly sleep in here with me!”
 “Like what?” Inuyasha turned and the smile on Kagome’s lips told her, she wasn’t going to like what he said. “That the two of us are deeply in love and have slept together so many times now that doing it at your house is no big deal?”
 Nailed that on the head. “Yeah!”
 “I’ll make a fuzz at breakfast tomorrow. Happy?” He flopped to her bed, a twin, and sat back on her hands. “You have a nice family, Kags. And a happy life.”
 She sat next to him and watched his face. “And you? What about your family? I should have asked before we came here, sorry. I hope I’m not keeping you from them…”
 “You don’t need to worry. It’s like I told your family. I have no one.” That wasn’t a lie but it wasn’t the truth either, she could hear and smell it no matter how hard she tried not to. And he knew that too, clearing ‘Kagome’s’ throat and shifting on the bed. “Geez, this is worse than some rom-com with a fake dating plot.” When she eyed him curiously, he caved quickly. “My mom made me watch them with her when I was a kid. She… died. When I was eight.”
 There was no thinking, she just grabbed him; wrapping long arms around a small body was so strange but she shoved that away for now and squeezed him tight. “Kagome… can’t breathe…”
 “Oh sorry,” she loosened but didn’t let go, “I’m so sorry.”
 ‘Kagome’ rubbed ‘Inuyasha’s’ arm and tried to get her to let go. “It’s fine. Would you quit turning me into a pansy? First, it’s crying and now it’s hugging?”
 “Being weak from time to time doesn’t make you a pansy.”
 “Yeah… well… I still don’t like it…” He pushed on her a bit but she didn’t move far. Because her body was starting to emit that strange smell again. “Seriously though, how do you live like this?”
 “Live like what?”
 “This… frustrated?!”
 She fell back to look at herself and Inuyasha pointed to her body. It took her a few seconds but she understood in time. Kagome felt hot under the collar and it had nothing to do with the angry demon in her body. “Oh god.”
 ‘Kagome’ flopped back to the bed completely, laying next to her while she tried not to melt from her embarrassment. “I wish you would at least let me ‘rub one’ out or something. This is just ridiculous. Is it like this all the time?”
 “I’m NOT going to tell you that!!!”
 “I would lose my mind if I was this turned on all the time. This is more than needing to masturbate, you need to get laid!”
 Forgetting her new strength, she slapped ‘Kagome’s’ thigh hard and Inuyasha shot up in pain. “It’s not like this all the time! You’re doing something weird to my body!!”
 He was rubbing the pain out of ‘Kagome’s’ leg and growling. “It’s not my fault….” Inuyasha paused and then looked over at her. She looked anywhere else. “Or is it?”
 “Wh… what are you talking about?”
 Inuyasha made ‘Kagome’s’ face smirk and he turned into her to stare her down. “You smell that?” She shrugged, hoping to play whatever he said next off. “You think I don’t know? That’s my body you’re in; I know you smell your body getting turned on. And I know exactly what it smells like.”
 “Are you trying to tell me that every girl you’ve ever turned on smells the same?” She said with a huff, trying to change the subject to something that would make her mad so she could stop the pounding her blood was doing.
 “No. I’m saying I’ve smelt you, Kagome’s, arousal before. A few times actually.”
 Her jaw dropped and she glared over at her body’s smirking face. “You have NOT!!”
 Inuyasha chuckled with her body and Kagome’s heart started to skip around. “I don’t need my senses; I know you’re lying. There’s no point really. I’ve turned you on before a few times. Took me a while to understand. But, Kagome, you smell... Really fucking sweet when you’re horny.” 
 She was doing everything she could to not look at her body while they talked about this. It was all too weird. How could Inuyasha talk like this to his own body? She was busy having her brain in a spin and stop the blood that was moving south when air hit one of the dog ears on her head. It sent a shock wave through her body so strong, she almost slipped off the bed and to the floor.
 “Wwwwhhat the hell?!” She grabbed the ear too late, her body was already sitting back down.
 To make matters worse, Inuyasha’s penis was now pressing against the inside of his jeans in a painful manner. And Kagome thought going to the bathroom was weird now she had a boner. “You know how I always get so pissed when you blow in my ear? This is why!”
 She was pressing on the appendage and it was only getting angry inside her pants. “Wh… this happens every time someone blows in your ear?”
 “No. It happens every time  you  blow in my ear! Couple it with your fucking scent…” ‘Kagome’s’ eyes had a look to them and a color that she had never seen before. It was crazy, looking at herself turned on like this. 
 It made her wonder what ‘Inuyasha’ looked like right now?
 Standing abruptly, she pushed Inuyasha’s body to leave the room. As it was, the demon wanted to devour ‘Kagome’. “I need the bathroom.”
 “You better not jack off. If I can’t get relief, neither can you!”
 Really, that was the last thing on her mind. This body didn’t want her to find relief with her hand.
 They didn’t speak when she came back, just got into bed and turned off the lights. But laying there, so close together, with ‘Inuyasha’ still hard and ‘Kagome’s’ scent still strongly present, it was impossible to fall asleep. 
 “What if…” ‘Inuyasha’s’ voice cut through the silence and she tried to focus on the sound instead of the origin, “what if we… helped each other.”
 “What do you mean?”
 The lift to ‘Kagome’s’ voice told her, Inuyasha already knew exactly what she meant. “I mean… if we… gave each other a release then it wouldn’t be so… wrong.”
 Inuyasha rolled her body onto its side and stared at the side of his own face. “Kags, I could get this body off myself and it would be far from ‘wrong’. If you want to touch each other then just say so.”
 “That’s not it,” she said in a rush of words, “I was just thinking that if I touch you and you touch me then it would be more like masturbating, right?”
 “It would be better than masturbating.”
 “Look I… I don’t need you to do anything to me. Male ejaculation is pretty straight forward. But I know what I like and I don’t want you fumbling around for an hour…”
 He huffed. “Oh please…”
 “Quick and efficient. We get in and get out.”
 Suddenly, her body was caging her in. Inuyasha had her body looming over her with a hand on either side of her head. “Why don’t we just have sex?”
 “What? No! That would be too weird for me, seriously.”
 “Having sex with me would be too weird for you?” He said with a growl.
 She shoved him back, an easy feat with the bodies they were in. “No, it would be  weird having sex with myself!!!” Inuyasha seemed to understand and didn’t press the issue. So she turned and leaned over her body instead. “So?”
 “Oh? You want my permission? It’s your body!”
 “Okay, okay…” she took deep breaths to try and steady herself, “take your pants off and get on your… my belly.” He didn’t ask; just did as she said quickly. She made Inuyasha put her body in pants and a t-shirt to sleep when normally she wore a lot less to bed. Kagome tried to ignore the awkwardness of it all as Inuyasha panted excitedly; ‘Kagome’s’ heart pounding in her chest as Inuyasha spread her body’s legs and waited. She closed her eyes and that helped a lot. “Shhhh… someone is going to hear you!”
 He growled back at her. “It’s not my fault you’ve been holding out for as long as you have! I’m not being that loud, it’s just your hearing!!”
 She wondered how much of that was true? She could hear the sounds all through the house and no one had stirred since they started this. A few pumps like that and her body shuddered with an orgasm. Laying on her back, Kagome considered going outside on her roof. At least there, she wouldn’t have to smell her body’s juices while Inuyasha’s penis danced in irritation from lack of use. When a hand slipped into her briefs, she closed her eyes and said nothing. The rubbing felt good. Inuyasha knew what he liked too, after all. But then Inuyasha started whispering in her ear.
 “Let’s just have sex.”
 “No.”
 “Come on Kags. Think about it.”
 “I did already. No.”
 The healing hand on her shaft left and she groaned. Even more when Inuyasha had her body straddling his. “You are missing the big point here. Think about the learning experience! No one has ever had this chance to learn about someone else’s body like this!”
 “With good reason, I’m sure.”
 “Come on. It could be how we get our bodies back!”
 She cracked open an eye but regretted it; feeling a bit nauseous at the sight of herself mounting herself. “How does that work in your head?!”
 “Kaede said we needed to get to know each other. What better way to know one another than by fucking?”
 “No way she expected us to have sex! That’s messed up!!”
 “Then push me off,” Kagome told Inuyasha’s body to do it but it wouldn’t move. “You could do it with ease. But you don’t want to. You want to have sex with me.”
 “I don’t want to have sex with myself…”
 “Stop thinking about the outer appearance. I haven’t thought of you as myself since the damn train ride.” He leaned over and she couldn’t take her eyes off his blue ones. “You’re still you and I’m still me. No matter what body you’re in. And I want to fuck you, Kagome.”
 “You… you do?”
 He nodded and then sat back; pulling her shirt off her body in a shift and sexy movement. Kagome closed her eyes again though. Inuyasha might be able to get over seeing himself getting laid by himself but she couldn’t. “I love your breasts.”
 She popped her eyes open to find herself fondling herself. “Hey!”
 “Chill!” He whispered harshly, reminding her to be quiet. “I’ll be gentle”
 ‘Kagome’ was smiling wickedly so she closed her eyes again. As weird as it was, she couldn’t stop Inuyasha. She didn’t want to. But she still tried to understand and maybe talk Inuyasha out of this while he pulled the angry penis out of her briefs. “Isn’t it going to be uncomfortable for you? You’re having sex with a man!”
 “Yeah but… if I’m going to have a dick inside me, at least it’s my own.”
 “That… doesn’t really make sense.”
 “I know, I just want to have sex! How the FUCK do you stand a dry spell like this?!”
 She had nothing to say to that. Because it had been a while and she didn’t want to give any more away to him. Oh god. She was about to have sex with Inuyasha! Of all people… and it was going to be so different from the occasional fantasy she had about him. She did her best to ignore the sounds coming from her body’s mouth; still too weird for her. When Inuyasha fell next to her, Kagome felt another wave of sadness rush over her that had her sniffling and Inuyasha perched over her quickly.
 “What is it now?!”
 “I… I want to… cuddle.”
 “So? We fucking cuddle!”
 She shook her head. “It’s not the same…”
 “Would you cut that shit out? It’s still you and me. Just turn around and let me fucking hold you!”
 Kagome did as commanded, rolling over and letting herself be spooned by her smaller body all night long.
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  When she woke up to her sleeping face before her, Kagome was underwhelmed by it all. Sex had been weird but nice and at least they got it out of their system. Inuyasha got up before her as she laid lazily in the bed. He had her underwear back on but not much else, still touching her breasts as he pleased. But then he froze and groaned.
 “What’s wrong?”
 He shifted his hips a little and made a face. “Okay, what the hell is up with your vag? It feels… weird.”
 She laughed. “That’s how it always feels after sex. For every woman.”
 “It’s unpleasant.”
 “It’ll pass. While men think about how to get laid; women decide whether or not sex is worth unbalancing their PH.”
 He crossed arms over her chest. “It’s not that bad. I’d screw you again in a heartbeat.”
 “Really?”
 “Fuck yes.” He shifted again and blanched. “That’s disgusting. My shit just fell out into your panties.”
 “Oh my gosh, that’s hilarious!” She said, buckling over herself.
 “What the fuck? Are you trying to get knocked up by me? Why the fuck did you come inside, you’re not on BC!”
 She contained herself enough to speak but tears were leaking out of her. “Relax. I’m not ovulating. I know my body well enough to not worry. Actually, I should be getting my period soon…”
 “No… no… no, no, no, HELL NO, no, no, no, no, NO! I’m not having a fucking period for you! I’m calling that fucker Miroku and getting this fixed goddammit!!”
 She was on the floor while Inuyasha stepped over her and picked up his phone. It rang in his hands and he sighed ruefully before answering it. Kagome scrambled to her feet to take it from him since he clearly forgot, but he simply pushed her back as he spoke into the phone. 
 Listening, unintentionally, she heard a woman’s voice on the line. “Who is this? Why are you answering Inuyasha’s phone?”
 “He’s in the bathroom right now and left next to my bed.”
 “Who is this??!!”
 “Kagome Higurashi. And I thought about what you said, Kikyo. But after last night… well frankly I like Inuyasha’s massive demon dick too much to let you change it.” He winked at her while he exploited their sex life to her classmate. She was trying to be pissed but was oddly turned on again. As was ‘Kagome’. 
 “Then let me turn him into a full demon instead! The point is, he's mine, Higurashi!”
 She took the phone from him then, yelling into the phone using Inuyasha’s voice. “Kagome loves me the way I am, bitch. Don’t call me again!” Kagome was busy blocking the number and didn’t notice she was being watched intently until she heard the hurried knocks from someone’s chest. Inuyasha was staring at her with a loopy smile on his face. She didn’t get it, passing him back his phone as soon as she finished blocking Kikyo but then she realized; she probably should have asked. “Sorry, but she pissed me off. And I feel like her suggesting you change is harassment so blocking her number feels smart. Feels right. You can unblock it if you want…”
 He looked away and to his phone, messing with it and she thought he was unblocking Kikyo until he looked up at her with a grin. “I need Miroku to fix this quick so I can fuck you hard.”
 “Huh?”
 He leaned in, somehow making her feel small even while towering over him in his body. “I’m going to make you scream when we get our bodies back, Kagome. So. Fucking. Hard.”
 She swallowed something thick down her throat and sat back on the bed. What just happened?
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  Kagome was surprised at the dedication; Miroku returning in a few hours thanks to Inuyasha’s call. The look on his face told her that he didn’t know about the body swap. She also didn’t know what Miroku could do for them since she had no clue what his powers or even his major were.
 He eyed them closely while they stood in the middle of Inuyasha’s and Miroku’s dorm room. With the hall completely empty, they had the door open to keep from feeling claustrophobic. But she still felt uneasy with Miroku’s probing eyes.
 “So… you’re Inuyasha?” He asked -again- while pointing at her.
 “For the thousandth fucking time, yes!” Inuyasha growled with ‘Kagome’s’ mouth. 
 Miroku looked at him now, eyeing him up and down. “If you’re in her body… then show me your tits?”
 Inuyasha punched Miroku in the arm but she was pretty sure he wanted to punch him in the face. But her body was weaker than his so he took it easy, clasping her hand instead and threading their fingers together. Miroku took note but she didn’t pull away. She was used to it now since Inuyasha had held her hand on and off since they left her room that morning and informed her family they were leaving earlier than planned. She would visit them again when she was back in her body.
 Miroku stood near the door and shook his head. “Kaede just wanted you two to get along. Which it looks like you’re doing so I’m not sure why you’re still switched like this. Maybe you two need to have sex or something?” She felt her cheeks heat up and smelled her body next to her do the same. “Ooooohhhhh hohoho. Well then. Maybe you two are stuck like this then?”
 “That’s the best you’ve got?!” Inuyasha roared next to her.
 Miroku shrugged. “Break ends in a few more days. Kaede will fix this when she returns.” He backed away more and grabbed the door to close as he left. “I'm going to go… for a few hours… so you two can have some privacy…”
 He shut the door but Inuyasha threw a book at it anyway. In a frustrated and angry huff, he sat on his bed and she slowly followed. Putting a hand on his thigh, she tried to comfort herself when she was in need of comforting herself. “I’m sorry, Yash. I know it’s… annoying being me...”
 “Not really. I kinda like it actually.”
 “What?”
 Inuyasha pulled ‘Kagome’s’ head from the hands he had it buried in and looked her dead in the eye. “Don’t get me wrong, I miss being myself. But I’m really glad I got to be you… to get to know you.”
 He leaned in to kiss her and she tried, she really did, but she just couldn’t; putting a hand on his mouth before he could touch her lips. “I’m sorry. I just can’t. It’s too weird.”
 Grabbing her, Inuyasha had her face cupped in ‘Kagome’s’ hands. “I told you to stop thinking like that.”
 “I guess I’m not like you. It’s hard to think about kissing myself…”
 “You’re not, you’re kissing me. Kagome, I’m nothing like you. You’re kind and strong. I thought you were just like everyone else, disgusted by me and half-demons like me. That you kept your distance from me out of fear or something. But no, you’re just hard-working and I admire the hell out of that.”
 “You… you do?”
 “Yeah. It’s sexy.” She rolled her eyes and he smiled. “Everyone is jealous of you and your skills. It’s not the first time Kikyo bitched about you to me. And you’re so beautiful, I never thought I had a chance with someone like you. But in the end… I love you, Kagome.”
 “Wh…” She couldn’t breathe. The gorgeously handsome Inuyasha was telling her he was in love with her. 
 “You didn’t even notice this morning that you told Kikyo that you loved me. Did you? Or was that just to mess with her?” 
 He was pulling back, his heart bouncing in fear. She grabbed him before he got far. “I meant it. I do love you.”
 “Then kiss me.”
 Her eyes drifted close on their own and she was drawn into him and his mouth. It didn’t even feel like she was kissing herself, it felt like she was kissing Inuyasha. Or what she imagined it would feel like, his thick lips pressing against hers. When she pulled back and opened her eyes, she was met with gold. 
 “There we go.” He whispered and before she could wrap her mind around it (being back in her body) Inuyasha pulled her back to him and smothered her lips with his mouth. 
 It didn’t seem to matter that they had been deep inside one another (literally) and knew one another’s bodies better than anyone. Not to Inuyasha as he discovered her body like it was the first time. But at the same time, it was clear he knew what she liked. It was sometime later, curled in Inuyasha’s arms, that Miroku returned. “Wow, you guys are into some freaky shit.”
 “Get the fuck out!” 
 Inuyasha proved they were back to normal by hurling his clock off his bedside table at Miroku’s head. There wasn’t any discussion of the events from that weekend between the three of them after that.
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Little songxiao fic
Hiii! I said I was going to write some little one-shot type of fics, so here’s the first one. The ending is a bit strange, because I also plan to make this a longer fic. But for now, it’s just a canon compliant one-shot. 
Sorry if there are any mistakes! I proofread this pretty quickly, so I wouldn’t be surprised if there are errors anywhere. Feel free to point them out. 
On AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29155305#main
~~
Xiao Xingchen raised Shuanghua and blocked Fuxue, before swiftly turning the sword towards Song Lan’s chest. He saw Song Lan’s dark eyes, unreadable and cold, narrow. Song Lan dodged and deflected Shuanghua, his arm hitting the flat of the blade. Fuxue came up on Xiao Xingchen’s side, a move the man barely avoided, springing backwards and landing lightly.
Song Lan and Xiao Xingchen circled each other for several breaths. Suddenly, Song Lan lunged forward and thrust Fuxue at Xiao Xingchen’s heart. It was a matter of seconds—seconds of metal clanging and rapid maneuvering—before the two cultivators came to a standstill. Fuxue was held at Xiao Xingchen’s throat and Shuanghua at Song Lan’s heart. Another few heartbeats passed. With two smooth movements, the two silently withdrew and sheathed their swords.
“You were a bit more aggressive today, Zichen,” Xiao Xingchen commented. He fell into step with Song Lan as they headed back to the inn they were staying at. Most days, they went into the forest to train and spar with each other. In the beginning, Xiao Xingchen beat Song Lan nine out of ten times, but between Xiao Xingchen’s patient guidance and Song Lan’s stubborn persistence, their matches had evened out considerably. They tied more often than having a clear winner.
Xiao Xingchen was still facing forward but saw Song Lan glance at him out of the corner of his eye. In the two years they had known each other, they had learned each other’s mannerisms and how to communicate with simple gestures. Xiao Xingchen knew Song Lan in so many ways that others didn’t.
He knew that Zichen didn’t like being touched, even through robes. He also knew that he was one of the only ones Zichen allowed to have physical contact with him. He knew that Zichen hid a spectrum of emotions behind a stern and unforgiving facade. Xiao Xingchen also knew that he was one of the only ones Zichen let go of that mask in front of. He knew that Zichen was harsh and strict and merciless, quick to anger, and always willing to fight. He also knew that with Xiao Xingchen, Zichen enjoyed laughing and talking for hours, their conversations often going late into the night, accompanied by a bottle or two of liquor.
From the first day they met—during a nighthunt near Qinghe—Xiao Xingchen could tell he liked Song Lan. He had an aura around him that Xiao Xingchen couldn’t help but be drawn to. And so, for the next two years, he had learned what every strike of Fuxue felt like. If they were both blindfolded, they’d still be able to find each other, blow for blow. Song Lan knew Xiao Xingchen just as well as Xiao Xingchen knew Song Lan.
In response to Song Lan’s look, Xiao Xingchen continued.
“You ended the fight faster than usual. Don’t think I can’t tell you’ve been on edge recently. What is it?”
“I’d rather not say; you won’t like it,” Song Lan said, “But I suppose you’ll find out soon anyway.” Xiao Xingchen tilted his head.
“Oh?”
“Nie Mingjue died of qi deviation, and Chang Ping recanted his allegations against Xue Yang. Lanling Jin is releasing him.” Song Lan said the last part quietly.
Xiao Xingchen stopped abruptly. “What? Weren’t most of the major cultivation sects present at Xue Yang’s trial? How can he simply be set free?”
“Most likely through Lanling Jin’s scheming. He was, after all, one of their guest cultivators.”
Xiao Xingchen’s head drooped, and he let out a rare sound of frustration. “Why is it so hard ƒor them to see what Xue Yang has done? Why does it still matter that he was a guest cultivator? They were just too afraid to go against Qinghe Nie. Cowards.” The last word was mumbled under Song Lan’s breath.
“You are better than they are. You could squish them beneath your feet, but you don’t and that’s what makes you better. Remember why you left the mountain. To improve this cruel, corrupt world.”
“And we’ll achieve that by building our own sect and raising orphans to become cultivators. Yes, Zichen, I remember. You make sure I always do.” Xiao Xingchen gave the other cultivator a gentle smile. Song Lan, too, smiled slightly in response.
~~
After reaching their room in the inn, Xiao Xingchen set Shuanghua down by the wall and glanced outside. “It’s still early. Would you like to go find some other food to try or stay here to eat?”
Xiao Xingchen was always eager to try new foods. On the mountain, he’d had some amount of variety, and the meals were by no means bland. However, there was a certain novelty around eating among unknown people who may or may not be cultivators, eating food that a stranger made with their own hands. He’d also developed a liking for spicy foods. Xiao Xingchen had realized that while Song Lan could handle spicy food, he generally didn’t enjoy it as much. Xiao Xingchen didn’t really mind, as he got more of the dishes he liked.
“Let’s stay here. We should figure out what to do about Xue Yang too.” Song Lan said. Xiao Xingchen nodded and sat on their bed. To save money, they always got one room with two beds. There had been the rare occasion that there was only one bed, so they shared beds once in a while too. This time, they were sharing. “He told you to remember him. Do you suppose he’ll come to find you?” Song Lan asked, sitting down next to Xiao Xingchen.
“Hopefully. That way we can apprehend him quickly. It’d be much more difficult if he made us chase him around.” Xiao Xingchen said. “You’ve been wanting to go back and visit Baixue Temple, right? You should go now, then we can meet back up to go find Xue Yang. I’m not sure when you’ll get another chance.”
“Mn,” Song Lan nodded but looked away. Xiao Xingchen tilted his head in question.
“Is there something else?”
“You’ve always wanted to visit more sects and learn different techniques. Baixue Temple is a small sect that’s fairly peaceful, but I’m sure there’s still something you could learn. Or maybe teach. You did well at improving my sword technique. And also- so- you should just come with me.” Song Lan rushed through the words before ending rather abruptly. Xiao Xingchen brightened at this.
“Really? I wouldn’t be intruding?” Song Lan blinked.
“Of course not. You’re the rogue cultivator who was raised by Baoshan Sanren. The bright moon and gentle breeze. You think they wouldn’t welcome you?” Xiao Xingchen’s face colored slightly and he looked away. “Besides, you’re my friend, so that counts for something too.”
“Ah, I suppose when you put it that way… But yes, I’ll come with you.” Xiao Xingchen turned back to Song Lan.
“Then we’ll leave tomorrow at noon. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can go find Xue Yang, and then we’ll be done with him.” Song Lan decided.
“That’s what we thought last time, remember?” Xiao Xingchen reminded.
“I’ll kill the brat myself if I have to.” Song Lan grumbled. Xiao Xingchen opened his mouth to reprimand Song Lan but closed it when he realized he’d do the same. Song Lan, seeing this, chuckled.
“Stop,” Xiao Xingchen elbowed Song Lan, but couldn’t stop himself from smiling too. “Let’s go order food.”
~~
“You know, I’m quite interested to meet your master. I wonder how well I could fare against him.” Xiao Xingchen said as he and Song Lan prepared to sleep.
“You’d most likely beat him easily. His sword technique is fierce, but he cannot compare to you. He’s more of a scholar. I’ve learned much from him.” Song Lan said with a fond look. “He’ll like you.”
Xiao Xingchen just shrugged in response. He lay down on one side of the bed and waited for Song Lan. “Either way, I’m glad we’re going together. Goodnight, Zichen.”
“Goodnight, Xingchen.”
~~
If you’re still here, thank you for reading!
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SHAKESPEARE AND THE PRETTY SPEECHES OF A KING
@ardenrosegarden @amalthea9 @lioness--hart @princesssarisa @hmmm-what-am-i-doing @suits-of-woe @malvoliowithin @noshitshakespeare
I was once watching Brows Held High review of Laurence Olivier’s Henry V (1944), where the reviewer, Kyle Kalgreen, analized how it faired in the context of British World War II Propaganda Machine,  as a Shakespeare film adaptation and in comparison to the Kenneth Branagh 1989 Film Adaptation. 
There is a moment he pauses to analyze the most popular speech of the play, wich is the Saint Crispin’s Day Speech:
What’s he that wishes so?
My cousin Westmoreland? 
No, my fair cousin.
If we are marked to die, we are enough
To do our country loss; and if to live,
The fewer men, the greater share of honor.
God’s will, I pray thee wish not one man more.
By Jove, I am not covetous for gold
Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost;
It yearns me not if men my garments wear;
Such outward things dwell not in my desires.
But if it be a sin to covet honor,
I am the most offending soul alive.
No, faith, my coz, wish not a man from England.
God’s peace, I would not lose so great an honor
As one man more, methinks, would share from me,
For the best hope I have. 
Oh, do not wish one more!
Rather proclaim it, 
Westmoreland, through my host,
That he which hath no stomach to this fight,
Let him depart. 
His passport shall be made,
And crowns for convoy put into his purse.
We would not die in that man’s company
That fears his fellowship to die with us.
This day is called the feast of Crispian.
He that outlives this day and comes safe home,
Will stand o' tiptoe when the day is named
And rouse him at the name of Crispian.
He that shall see this day, and live old age,
Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbors
And say, “Tomorrow is Saint Crispian.”
Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars,
And say, “These wounds I had on Crispin’s day.” 
Old men forget; yet all shall be forgot
But he’ll remember with advantages
What feats he did that day. 
Then shall our names,
Familiar in his mouth as household words, 
Harry the King, Bedford and Exeter,Warwick and Talbot, 
Salisbury and Gloucester,
Be in their flowing cups freshly remembered.
This story shall the good man teach his son,
And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be rememberèd—
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he today that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition;
And gentlemen in England now abed
Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day.
(William Shakespeare. Henry V: Act IV, Scene III)
Beautifull. Powerfull. Lie.
Because, as Kyle Kalgreen apoints, while the Laurence Olivier had to cut it to make Henry V more simpathetic, the original Shakespeare text and the Kenneth Branagh Film Adaptation have this scene following the Saint Crispin’s day speech, where the young king reads a list of the english man who died in battle: 
Edward the duke of York, the earl of Suffolk,
Sir Richard Ketly, Davy Gam, esquire;
None else of name, and of all other men
But five and twenty. O God, thy arm was here,
And not to us but to thy arm alone
Ascribe we all! When, without stratagem,
But in plain shock and even play of battle,
Was ever known so great and little loss
On one part and on th' other? 
Take it, God,For it is none but thine. 
(William Shakespeare, Henry V: Act IV, Scene VIII)
The death nobleman are named, while the death common soldier is just ‘None else of name’. The death nobleman is ‘so great loss’. The death common soldier is ‘so little loss’. Contrary to what King Henry V promissed, not everybody who died fighting on his name in France will be considered his brother, remembered and mourned by him.
And them later, we watch the consequences of the reign of his son in the Henry VI trilogy of plays, and in Henry VI Part III, our new protagonist gives this beautifull speech about the blessing of a commoner’s life while sitting over a molehill:
This battle fares like to the morning’s war, 
When dying clouds contend with growing light, 
What time the shepherd, blowing of his nails, 
Can neither call it perfect day nor night. 
Now sways it this way, like a mighty sea 
Forced by the tide to combat with the wind; 
Now sways it that way, like the selfsame sea 
Forced to retire by fury of the wind: 
Sometime the flood prevails, and then the wind; 
Now one the better, then another best; 
Both tugging to be victors, breast to breast, 
Yet neither conqueror nor conquered: 
So is the equal of this fell war. 
Here on this molehill will I sit me down. 
To whom God will, there be the victory! 
For Margaret my queen, and Clifford too, 
Have chid me from the battle; swearing both 
They prosper best of all when I am thence. 
Would I were dead! if God’s good will were so; 
For what is in this world but grief and woe? 
O God! methinks it were a happy life, 
To be no better than a homely swain; 
To sit upon a hill, as I do now, 
To carve out dials quaintly, point by point, 
Thereby to see the minutes how they run, 
How many make the hour full complete; 
How many hours bring about the day; 
How many days will finish up the year; 
How many years a mortal man may live. 
When this is known, then to divide the times: 
So many hours must I tend my flock; 
So many hours must I take my rest; 
So many hours must I contemplate; 
So many hours must I sport myself; 
So many days my ewes have been with young; 
So many weeks ere the poor fools will ean: 
So many years ere I shall shear the fleece: 
So minutes, hours, days, months, and years, 
Pass’d over to the end they were created, 
Would bring white hairs unto a quiet grave. 
Ah, what a life were this! how sweet! how lovely! 
Gives not the hawthorn-bush a sweeter shade 
To shepherds looking on their silly sheep, 
Than doth a rich embroider’d canopy 
To kings that fear their subjects’ treachery? 
O, yes, it doth; a thousand-fold it doth. 
And to conclude, the shepherd’s homely curds, 
His cold thin drink out of his leather bottle. 
His wonted sleep under a fresh tree’s shade, 
All which secure and sweetly he enjoys, 
Is far beyond a prince’s delicates, 
His viands sparkling in a golden cup, 
His body couched in a curious bed, 
When care, mistrust, and treason waits on him.
(William Shakespeare. Henry VI Part III: Act II, Scene V)
Also a beautifull and powerfull speech, if a bit revealing of a romanticized view of the poverty that Henry VI never lived. And also a lie, or, at least, a half truth for Henry VI himself.
By contrast to the Molehill Speech, here is the dialogue exchange between him and two keepers, in the next act:
Second Keeper
Say, what art thou that talk'st of kings and queens?
Henry VI
More than I seem, and less than I was born to: A man at least, for less I should not be; And men may talk of kings, and why not I?
Second Keeper
Ay, but thou talk'st as if thou wert a king.
Henry VI
Why, so I am, in mind; and that's enough.
Second Keeper   
But, if thou be a king, where is thy crown?
Henry VI
My crown is in my heart, not on my head; Not decked with diamonds and Indian stones, Nor to be seen: my crown is called content: A crown it is that seldom kings enjoy.
Second Keeper
Well, if you be a king crown'd with content, Your crown content and you must be contented To go along with us; for as we think, You are the king King Edward hath deposed; And we his subjects sworn in all allegiance Will apprehend you as his enemy. 
Henry VI
But did you never swear, and break an oath?
Second Keeper
No, never such an oath; nor will not now.
Henry VI
Where did you dwell when I was King of England?
Second Keeper
Here in this country, where we now remain.
Henry VI
I was anointed king at nine months old; My father and my grandfather were kings, And you were sworn true subjects unto me: And tell me, then, have you not broke your oaths?
First Keeper. 
No; For we were subjects but while you were king.
Henry VI
Why, am I dead? do I not breathe a man Ah, simple men, you know not what you swear! Look, as I blow this feather from my face, And as the air blows it to me again, Obeying with my wind when I do blow, And yielding to another when it blows, Commanded always by the greater gust; Such is the lightness of you common men.
(William Shakespeare. Henry VI Part III: Act III, Scene I)
We can perceive here a condescending tone that King Henry VI has when he talks with two members of the people. He is surprised to see that they don’t believe in a divine right that gives him a “natural kingly aura”. They don’t see him as a superior, wise and benevolent saviour, but only as a man who once weared a crown, but now, without the crown, they don’t have any obligation to obey him. 
And Henry VI can’t accept that.
Later, he is rescued by Clifford, Warwick and Clarence from imprisoment under King Edward IV’s rule. And when those three man offer him back the crown and title of king, he don’t refuse it to live the simple commoner life he described as more beautifull in the Molehill Speech. He accepts it. Even if he intends to let the actual work of ruling to Warwick, Clarence and Queen Margaret, he still wants the sense of superiority, the privileges and the confortable life offered by the title of king that he grew accustomed to since he was nine months old.
By justaposing those speeches and scenes, Shakespeare pulls us of the rug in our view of those two characters, who want the people to believe they are good, heroic and chivalrous kings, anointed by God himself, when in reality what anoints them is their money and their armies.
Intentionally or not, with those plays, Shakespeare was at the same being a precursor and subvertor of the Relatable Royal Trope, showing that those people with the title of kings are like us... but not really.
They feel sadness, fear, anger, love, envy and jealousie like us, but they are more rich, powerfull and privileged then us.And they don’t really  want to renounce that power, because it will take away their sense of being superior to us.
To paraphrase Kyle Kalgreen: 
Beware pretty speeches
(Kyle Kalgreen. Brows Held High: This Day is Called the Feast of Crispian, a review of Laurence Olivier’s Henry V. October 26th, 2018)
Specially if they come from a person that wears the crown of a king.
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siennahrobek · 3 years
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Qui-Gon was meditating in the Garden when Obi-Wan approached him. He was sitting near a patch of flowers that the master and padawan pair had planted together after the plant had been gifted to them when they were both younger. It was one of best memories he had of the both of them. Obi-Wan stood next to him and bit his lip. “Master,” he murmured hesitantly.
His master didn’t open his eyes and took a sharp breath. “Fantastic,” Qui-Gon grumbled to himself, furrowing his brow. “Hallucinations. I knew it would not be good but-,” he sighed.
Obi-Wan took a deep breath and turned to kneel in front of him. He gently took his master’s hands which were resting on his legs previously. “Not a hallucination, master-mine,” he assured quietly. Qui-Gon was silent for a moment, hand shaking and curling around Obi-Wan’s. Tears began to leak out as the older man took another breath. “I am here, master. You can open your eyes,” he coaxed, softly.
“I fear to,” Qui-Gon whispered. “I fear I open them, and you are gone – or worse – someone else is there.”
“I swear to you, on all of those we have ever held dear that I am right in front of you – alive and whole…just with slightly less hair. My apologies, I look fairly terrible.”
Qui-Gon choked back something between a choked sob and a laugh.
“Come on, master. It’s okay. I promise.”
Slowly, the older master obeyed and opened his eyes. A fresh wave of tears washed over him as his hands rose out of Obi-Wan’s to cradle his former padawan’s face, cupping his cheeks. He gasped, disbelieving, as if unable to reach air.
“You look so young without the beard,” he croaked.
Obi-Wan smiled, leaning into the touch just a bit. “Why do you think I grew it out in the first place,” he chuckled, warmly.
“I can feel you,” he whispered.
“This is real, master.”
“You’re alive. How? What…what happened?”
Obi-Wan glanced away guiltily as he took a deep breath, grieved. The older master felt bad for asking. “I’m sorry master…”
Qui-Gon reached quickly in the Force, into his padawan’s presence and felt so much, such a myriad of emotions. He quickly went to interrupt him. In the end, it didn’t matter. Obi-Wan would never do something like this to hurt him so whatever happened, it was probably necessary. He was always doing what was best for others. And he already obviously felt awful about it, Qui-Gon didn’t want to add to that. Force, his padawan was alive. He made his relief known, sending it through the force in waves. “Never mind, padawan. Don’t worry about it. We can talk about it later. I don’t care that much.”
Obi-Wan looked torn. “I had to fake my death. Master, I-”
“Shhh,” Qui-Gon hushed and wrapped his arms around his old padawan and pulled him close. “It’s okay. I’m not mad; I swear I’m not. You did what you must. I am so relieved and grateful you are alive padawan-mine.”
Obi-Wan sighed in relief and nestled into the crook of his neck, like he was still young and a child and as if Qui-Gon could still carry him around easily. “I never wanted to hurt you,” he whispered.
“I know, I know,” Qui-Gon assured in a murmur, rubbing his back lightly. “I simply fear I will lose you to this war; in all of your plans and strategies. That you will get so lost in the war meetings and you won’t come back to me whole.”
“I’m just trying –”
“To save everyone, I know. You have always been a protector, Obi-Wan, a guardian, who only wants to help and protect people. I am so proud of that person, the man that you have become. So much light and kindness and compassion.” Qui-Gon started, and he had a hard time stopping. He had spent so much time during Obi-Wan’s padawanship quiet and closed off; not often giving nearly enough of himself. He always deserved more. It would never be enough, Qui-Gon was sure, but all he could do was try to make up as much as he could with the time he got. Post Naboo, alongside the verbal smacks he got from his friends and colleagues, had certainly helped him realize his relationship with Obi-Wan had to shift. He would never stop trying. “I know you and I know you do not take these things lightly. Whatever, you did, whatever you had to do, I believe you did it for your duty and what was right. You are so good at this, protecting and doing things for the greater good. You always work for the bigger picture. Just please, please do not lose yourself to it. I am not meant to outlive you.”
Obi-Wan exhaled, practically melting into him. “I will do my best, master. I want you to be able to travel to worlds again without the threat of a galactic war. I know you miss the travel.”
“I know. And when this is over, we will go to a beautiful system, something with waterfalls and trees and wildlife. To meditate and eat new food. See the living force in all things. A long and well-deserved vacation. Together.”
Obi-Wan hummed as he smiled against his old master. “I’d like that.”
“You can even let your men tag along if they want. Force knows I would never be able to stop them.”
Obi-Wan laughed, quiet and stifled. “I think I can probably narrow it down to Ghost Company.”
Qui-Gon grinned. “Those men are protective and a bit terrifying.”
“They do keep up with me.”
“Ah, to be young and able to keep up with the Republic’s best high general,” he added, wistfully. How he wished he could still do that; what he wouldn’t give to be able to have his padawan’s back once more. It was difficult trusting others – even ones as capable as Commander Cody and the 212th – to protect Obi-Wan. “I suppose they are a worthy replacement for me.” The two had leaned back, sitting in the grass but Qui-Gon did keep his grasp on Obi-Wan’s arms.
“They’d be honored to hear that, I imagine,” he smiled shyly.
“I hear a few are bragging about being your favorites.”
“Waxer and Boil.”
Qui-Gon grinned triumphantly as Obi-Wan blushed, just a bit, caught in the phrase. “So, they are?”
“They are two of my best,” Obi-Wan admitted and chuckled watching as Qui-Gon’s thumbs rubbed circles on his arms. “You and Waxer would get along, I think.”
Qui-Gon didn’t doubt it. If anyone knew him, it was his former padawan. “I believe you.”
“I imagine you haven’t eaten or slept in quite some time.”
The change of subject nearly caught him off guard. “Hmmm.”
“Let’s go get something to eat. I have to tell Dex I’m alive, anyways,” Obi-Wan explained with a lopsided smile. “He has probably seen it on the news, but I figured I should tell him in person. And you know, get some food too.”
“I would like to see that. He may crush your ribs, hugging you.”
“Perhaps,” Obi-Wan laughed again. “But quite worth it. And then, afterwards, you will be sleeping.”
“I’ve been spending most time at your apartment,” Qui-Gon admitted. Obi-Wan just nodded.
“That’s fine. I don’t really sleep well in beds as of late. I’ll as the quartermaster for a field cot.”
“How is Anakin faring?” Qui-Gon changed the subject as Obi-Wan helped him to his feet. The younger man frowned but kept his footing.
“Not well, I fear,” he hummed. “He is rather cross with me and the Council.”
“But surely he was happy to discover you alive.”
Obi-Wan hesitated.
“Padawan?”
“I’m sure he is…but uh…he hasn’t behaved that way.”
“I’m sorry, Obi-Wan. He will come around. It is unwise not to be grateful for you coming back to us.” Qui-Gon nearly rolled his eyes. Anakin was being foolish and taking this all too personally. Being upset that Obi-Wan died, he could understand. He could even understand being upset that Obi-Wan didn’t tell him (even though Qui-Gon completely understood why Obi-Wan didn’t; Anakin had plenty difficulty controlling his emotions and reactions) but to not show such happiness knowing he is alive? That was ridiculous. What Qui-Gon wouldn’t give to find any of his loved ones alive again.
Obi-Wan’s gaze softened. “Thank you master.”
Qui-Gon linked his arm with his former padawan, this boy that he loved so much, and walked with him through the temple and towards their favorite diner. “Of course, padawan-mine. But for now, we will go buy some good food from good friends and keep everything away until tomorrow. They can wait.”
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tyrilblue · 4 years
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Live for me
Part II - Rome’s power
Marc Antony x MC (Alba)
Word count: 2700
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You can find Part I here
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Ante diem iv Nonas Septembres XXXI
(September 2nd, 31 b.C.)
Roman-Egyptian encampment.
Actium promontory, Greece.
Marc Antony scribbled hastily on a makeshift table, stopping every so often to check for noises. The encampment was eerily quiet in the dead of night, washed by moonlight. The only sound Antony could hear was the crackling of the fire at the center of the tent. He sat in silence, his pen hovering just an inch above the parchment, his head crowded by a million thoughts.The world's future, together with his own, would be decided at dawn. Antony's last, great stand against Octavian's forces could take place any minute, depending on the moment of his enemy's arrival. Thankfully, Cleopatra still did not doubt his loyalty and love. With her support he had his fair chances of winning, but good commanders knew never to take victory for granted.
In that chaos of uncertainty there was only one thing he now knew for sure.
He wanted to see her again.
Antony never thought he could feel such a thing, but after decades of warfare, plotting and bloodshed, all his heart ached for was peace. Of course, power was still his goal, but he did not view it as the only option anymore. A younger version of himself would have laughed at his weakness, and at times he still thought aging might have softened his heart. Still, he wasn't so ready to give up the rest of his life anymore, if his fate was to live beyond that battle.
At that thought, images of Alba promising to die with him flashed through his mind. His heart ached as he remembered her, as beautiful as a goddess in a cloud of white silk, and he desperately, hopelessly went on writing.
«My dearest Alba, I hope this message finds you alive and well. The final battle against Octavian will take place tomorrow in the bay of Actium, and my fate - our fate - will be decided then. All these months in exile have taught me much, but more than anything I now know I do not want to give up on our future. No matter the outcome of this war, if I do not die in battle, I will do everything that is in my power to come back to you. If I lose, we shall flee Rome together. Please, disregard the last message I sent you. If the battle should not fare well for me, run and seek shelter in the home of Lucius Pontius. I am giving this message to him, a trusted soldier, who will be leaving on a merchant ship at dawn. I hope he manages to reach you before the news about my possible defeat reach Rome. I want to live for you, with you, even if that means being idle for the rest of my days.»
Antony skimmed the text once more, waiting for the ink to dry, then he added their secret code, small enough to go unseen, at the bottom of the paper. He and Alba had agreed she should trust no one's words while he was away, even if they should come from his most trusted messenger, so they'd established a code to make sure their letters to each other could not be forged.
He sighed. He felt hopeless, his logical mind couldn't allow him to hope, because he knew that the news about a war's outcome could travel faster than the wind. He read the letter over again, kneading his brow in frustration, then started to wrap the parchment in a roll.
At that moment the entrance to the tent opened, letting in a ray of moonlight that was quickly shadowed by queen Cleopatra's figure. Antony's heart shrank with dread on seeing her, despite the queen's beauty. She was dressed in her night attire, her linen tunic billowing in the soft sea breeze coming from outside.
"Marc Antony" - she said in her typical low, mellow tone, her Latin hinting at her Egyptian nature. "Why did you leave our tent? I have been missing you". She was calm, but there was a silent threat hidden in her soft words. Antony had gained most of her trust, but after Caesar, no amount of flattering and calculation could gain him her absolute faith. Cleopatra walked towards him, and Antony was careful to act natural, leaving the half-wrapped roll of parchment exposed so as not to raise suspicions on her part. The queen laid her golden hands on Antony's shoulders, drawing circles with her thumbs. He let out a sigh of pleasure, only partly meant to satisfy her.
"Is the upcoming battle troubling your sleep?" - she asked, and suddenly her lips were on his neck, kissing him softly.
"Yes, my Queen, deeply" - Antony replied, "But your hands are working a very powerful magic". He let his head fall back onto Cleopatra's shoulder, hoping to concentrate her attention on him instead of his letter on the table. He softly grabbed her wrist, moving her hand from his shoulder to his chest, and lower under his toga. He felt her smiling in the crook of his neck.
"Would some attention from me ease you into our goddess Nwt's arms?" - she asked, her voice as sweet as dates.
"It certainly would" - Antony replied, and in one final move to distract her, he pushed his chair back and stood up to kiss her. The sudden movement caused the the small table to wobble, and Antony's stylus fell with a tinning sound. He couldn't but watch helplessly as Cleopatra's eyes travelled from the fallen pen up to the parchment on the table, narrowing as soon as they landed on his letter.
"Have you been writing?" - she asked, falsely naïve.There was nothing Antony could do to prevent what was about to happen. He gritted his teeth, waiting, his mind racing in an attempt to find an explanation as Cleopatra took the parchment and unrolled it, reading quickly.
"What is this?" - she looked up at him with a deadly stare in her black eyes, "This Alba... Alba, the Gaul courtesan of Rome?".
Antony put on his best smile, faking amusement and shaking his head.
"Yes, my Queen, exactly, Alba of Lena's scholae" - he said, "And my old lover". Cleopatra's eyes flashed with rage at his words, but Antony raised his hands in surrender.
"I am only using her, my Queen, to obtain information about our enemy" - he explained calmly, "Her futile feelings for me have proved invaluable since I left Rome". The artful disdain in Antony's voice seemed to convince Cleopatra, but she kept looking at him with suspicion.
"Of all the spies you could have in Rome, of all the men who would be ready to serve you, why her?" - Cleopatra's voice ringed with contempt when referencing Alba, and for a split second Antony had to clench his teeth in a surge of rage. Then his lips melted into his usual, cool smile, and he stroked Cleopatra's cheek with the backs of his fingers.
"Because she is no common spy, she is still the most renowned courtesan in Rome" - Antony raised his eyebrows conspiratorially, and Cleopatra smiled for the briefest moment. "She has access to alcoves and bedchambers no spy could ever dream of entering". The queen of Egypt seemed to ponder his words for a few, endless seconds, then she turned, seemingly satisfied but still resentful, walking away from Antony with his letter clutched in her hands.
"However useful she may be, you certainly won't need her help now that we are so close to our victory" - she stated, and with a coy smile she ripped the parchment into pieces, throwing them into the fire pit at the center of the tent.
"Now come, my love, I need my commander to be well-rested for battle".
Antony, seething, looked at her as she crossed her arms and stood waiting for him. He cast a glance at the remaining fragments of his message burning quickly among the embers, noticing just one corner of it had been spared. It now lay on the ground outside the fire pit.
"What are you –" - Cleopatra burst out angrily, but was immediately cut off by the sound of a war horn breaking the silence of the encampment.
"Octavian" - she whispered. "He's here".
A few tense moments passed as the two of them looked at each other, a mix of fear, determination and anger in the eyes of both. Outside, the camp was starting to stir with the clang of metal and shouting in both Latin and Egyptian. Then, the horn sounded again, calling for blood.
"One way or another, this battle will show me the extent of Rome's power" - Cleopatra said, and without another word, she left the tent in a cloud of linen. Antony wasted no time trying to interpret her sentence, which sounded a lot like a prophecy. There was no way he could remove the suspicion from her mind now, so he rushed to pick up the surviving scrap of parchment and his stylus. Without thinking, he dipped the pen in a pool of spilt ink on the table and wrote as fast as he could.
«Alba, live for me        
V.XIV.L»
And then he was outside, paper in hand, shouting the first orders and calling for his armour as the black expanse of the sky slowly started to turn into the colour of lavender flowers. As soon as his servants were next to him he turned to one of them.
"Fetch me legionary Lucius" - he commanded.
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Ante diem iv Nonas Septembres XXXI
(September 2nd, 31 b.C.).
Bay of Actium, Greece.
The sky roared with thunder, but it was almost inaudible among the sounds of battle. The waves clashed heavily against the ship's hull, making it rock dangerously as the battle raged on.
Antony couldn't tell how long they had been fighting. The sky had turned a deep, ominous grey, soaked with rain. Standing on the deck of his ship, higher than any other, he could see a landscape of destruction. Wood splintered under the blows of catapults, the water was stained red and everywhere he looked he saw fire, smoke, death. The battle was even, no side was prevailing, and Antony had to make a move to turn it in his favour. Lightning made armours and weapons shine for a split second, and as he was about to order the ballistae to shoot, he saw a movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned, raising his sword in one swift movement, just in time for it to clash with the blade that was about to sink into his neck. One of Octavian's legates now stood in front of him, and Antony gritted his teeth. They had managed to board the ship, probably on a small boat that had passed unseen. A short distance away from him on the deck, he saw his soldiers start to fight with a small squadron of enemies. With a growl, Antony took his sword away from the lock and ducked out of the way, letting the legate stumble forwards. The two of them settled into a fighting stance, swords at the ready. The first drops of rain started to fall, but he was focused on his task.
"You and your Egyptian whore will never win this war, Marc Antony" - the legate snarled in an attempt to distract him. Antony couldn't help but smile. The man clearly believed Cleopatra was the woman he was fighting for. He silently repeated his vow to return to Alba, then, without answering the legate's provocation, he attacked with a cry.
The deck was becoming slick with rain, but Antony couldn't let the fight distract him from commanding the fleet for too long. He dealt a series of vicious blows to the legate's defense, taking advantage of his arrogance and growing tiredness. Whenever he saw an opportunity, he aimed his blade at the exposed skin of his arms and legs in order to weaken him.The legate stepped back from him to catch his breath and Antony smiled at his upcoming victory. He was about to attack once again, when suddenly an enormous wave hit the side of the ship, throwing him off-balance. The legate used his distraction to go back to the offense, and before Antony could stop him, he tore a long gash on his thigh. The pain was blinding for a second, but Antony managed to block the following blow to his throat. He furiously responded, finally locking the legate's sword with his and making it fly from his hand, beyond the railing and into the raging sea below. Before his enemy could draw another weapon, Antony pointed his sword at the legate's neck, ready to slit it open. He was about to let the blade run, when the man's smile stopped him.
"You have been betrayed, Marc Antony" - the legate smirked, "Octavian knows all of your strategies. You cannot win". Antony pressed the blade further into the man's neck, and as he swallowed in fear, a drop of blood ran down its surface. Antony's mind travelled faster than lightning, trying to figure out who could betray him among the few who knew his strategy for the battle.
"Quintus Dellius" - the legate preceded his thoughts, "He came begging for Octavian's favour, offering you on a silver pl...".
His last words were choked by Antony's sword, and the legate's lifeless body dropped to the floor. Blood spilled over the deck, mingling with Antony's, that was dripping thickly down his leg. He looked around frantically for more enemies, but his soldiers were gradually taking back control over the ship. He allowed himself to wince in pain and look down at his wound. It was long, deep and needed mending, but he'd suffered worse over the years. He tore a strip of linen from the garments under his armour, and gritted his teeth as he tied it tightly around his thigh. The blood flow was momentarily stopped by the cloth. It would be enough to get by for some time.
"Ballistae! At the ready!" - he shouted, trying to bring back order in his fleet, but as he looked around he saw his soldiers look at him first, disoriented, then out at the sea. The battle seemed to have died down momentarily.
"Domine!" - one soldier turned towards Antony, then went down on one knee in deference.
"Speak, legionary, what is it?"
"Domine, her Majesty the Queen of Egypt has ordered a retreat!".
Antony looked up, and that was when he heard the sound of the horns. His heart dropped as if it was suddenly as heavy as his sword. The Egyptian side of the fleet was hoisting the sails and putting out the oars, and the first ships were already starting to drift out of the bay. Antony rushed to the bow, trying not to show his limp. Once there, he saw Cleopatra's ship sailing away in front of him. The horns sounded the retreat once again, and Octavian's forces stopped the attacks completely, waiting for orders. For a few moments an eerie silence reigned over the bay, only the crashing sound of the waves on wood to break it.
Cleopatra turned around and locked eyes with Antony. Her look was full of disdain, only colored by the smallest hint of regret. Her words echoed in his mind. One way or another, this battle will show me the extent of Rome's power.Then, she turned her back to him and looked ahead. With a small motion of her hand she ordered for the oarsmen to start rowing, then disappeared below deck.
Antony looked around... Helpless. All he could see were damaged ships and tired, wounded, dead soldiers. Not even the best strategy could possibly turn that into a victory.
The battle was lost.
Rome was lost.
Everything was lost, and he would soon be captured.
TO BE CONTINUED
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