#just maybe a little more demandingly than the others

[ponderingmoonlight]

Gojo going berserk after his wife got injured

Pairing: husband!Gojo x reader

Word Count: 1,5k

Warnings: slight injury, language, Gojo being really mad lol

Notes: My dearest @hitori979, this one is dedicated to you! Thank you from the bottom of my heart for supporting me since day 0, always liking and commenting my brainrot. I hope you enjoy this fanfic as a little thank you from me 🤍 How other JJK men react when (y/n) gets hurt here Choso with injured (y/n) who has blood phobia here

„Do you really have to go, babe?“, Satoru’s oh so sweet voice mumbles against your neck.

You know exactly what he’s up to. Satoru always acts this way when you’re about to leave for a mission. How much he hates to see you walk through the door. While he’s fully aware of the fact that you’re a damn strong jujutsu sorcerer, he just dislikes the thought of you getting injured on some stupid mission. If he had it his way, you would stay at home, maybe teach here and there at Jujutsu High, but that’s it.

You are way too precious to risk your life on a mission.

“You know I have to. This is my job, remember? And I have to let you go every day, knowing that you’re not even paying attention. May I remind you that I haven’t been injured for over a year?”, you softly reply.

“That’s not true, I am paying attention!”

You raise your eyebrow demandingly by the way he ignored your last question.

“At least sometimes…Come on babe, this is not fair! Just because you haven’t been injured for some time doesn’t mean you won’t get injured today! Also, I wanted to spend the day with you!”, he complains, arms wrapped around your frame so tightly that it’s getting hard to breathe.

“You always want to spend the day with me. As much as I’d love to stay here, I have to go. Megumi will assist me.”

“I should assist you…”, he mumbles.

“They wouldn’t even send me, then”, you chuckle.

“Promise that you’ll text me, I already threatened Megumi to take care of you.”

“I will, darling. Now let me go or I’ll be late.”

With one last grumble and kiss, he finally lets go of you while you smile to yourself. God, how much you adore your husband. Even though it can be quite challenging from time to time, you admire the way he cares about you.

“I love you”, you shout before you close the door behind you.

“Love you too!”

-later-

“Don’t worry, one or two hours and we’ll be done with this”, you reassure Megumi who stands beside you.

“This doesn’t look good”, he comments.

Unfortunately, he’s right. You don’t know why there are so many curses around, but an uneasy feeling spreads in your guts. This isn’t the right place for a grade 2 sorcerer, let alone a first class student. Well, maybe even you…

“Try to stay behind me. This will get ugly”, you instruct Megumi when another wave of curses appears.

“Gojo-sensei will kill me if you get injured because of me.”

You wink at him while as you unsheathe your sword.

“Who said I will?”

Without wasting another precious minute you sprint forwards, eyes darting around the area. There are so many, way too fucking many, curses around here. This isn’t normal, something is very wrong here. But you don’t have time to think about it any further – Megumi’s and your life depend on your abilities.

You fight off more than 40 curses with ease, slashing your sword over and over. Fuck, this has no end. As soon as you exorcise one curse, two more appear on your sides and try to attack you. With every passing minute it becomes clearer and clearer to you that you won’t be able to complete this mission unscathed with Megumi alone.

“Here are many curses around, I can’t explain why though. It wouldn’t hurt to send some help”, you instruct into your headphone, fully aware of the fact that your husband is able to hear your decent cry for help as well and might freak out.

Where do all of these curses come from? This is a public place, it shouldn’t be possible for them to develop here this well. Expect this aren’t traditional curses…

“I won’t lie to you: Something’s off here. I’m not entirely sure if these are normal curses. Just stand your ground, I already informed the higher ups about this”, you inform Megumi with firm voice, fighting off a curse just before it is able to scratch your face open.

They come from all directions, almost absorbing you. Desperately you fight back with all your abilities, holding onto your sword so tight that your knuckles stand out white. You have to get through all of these curses, you have to find out why they’re here and why on earth so numerous.

But you can’t. Your thoughts wander to Satoru and his words this morning. He’ll definitely go insane when he hears about this. And for a moment, a wave of relief washes over you by that thought. Because this means he’ll come here and end this madness without Megumi getting hurt.

Megumi.

You almost miss the way a curse lunges from behind towards him while he’s busy fighting off three other ones at the same time. Instinctively you sprint forwards as fast as your feet carry you, breath going sharp and fast. No way in hell this thing will hurt Megumi. Not when you’re in charge.

“Bend over!”, you scream on top of your lungs, blade already on its way to cut through that curse.

But just before you hit it, its claws find their way into your face, scratching your forehead slightly before it falls to the ground lifelessly.

You hiss, a stinging pain crawling up your skin. But when you gently scan the spot with your fingertips, only a minor stain of blood shows itself. You let out your breath, relief flooding your body. This is nothing serious, nothing to worry about.

But before you sprint back in action, a reflex holds you back.

“Don’t move an inch, Megumi”, you warn the boy next to you.

In the split of a second, a wave of hollow purple rushes past your orbs, killing every curse on its way. You let out the breath you didn’t know you were holding, heartbeat picking up in an instant. It’s him. It has to be him.

“(y/n)!”, he cries out, large frame suddenly by your side.

“What is this?”, he hisses.

Frantically, his eyes scan your forehead, widen in blank horror.

“Oh, this? Just a minor wound, nothing to worry ab-“

“Nothing to worry about!? You promised to be careful, you promised not to get hurt!”, he literally scolds you while his fingertips inspect your wound.

“Stop that”, you warn him, slapping his hand away.

“I did the best I could but they were just too many. And there are always more to come, look.”

Not even a minute later, dozens of new curses begin to flood the streets.

“We need to get back to work!”

“No”, he interrupts you roughly.

“Not you, you’ll stay here.”

You can’t believe your ears, mouth too stunned to speak for a second. He can’t be serious, right? This is your mission. You won’t give up because a small wound on your forehead that isn’t even bleeding severely.

“This is my mission, Satoru. I will help you exorcising these curses”, you state in all seriousness.

“Oh yeah? Watch me, then.”

You aren’t able to react any further. With breathtaking speed, Satoru lunges from curse to curse, ripping their heads off in the most violent way you have ever seen while all you can do is stare at him in disbelief. Of course you always knew that your husband is not to be trifled with when it comes to his precious wife, but you’ve never thought that his concern would reach as far as him going berserk because of you.

Because of a minor laceration on your forehead.

It doesn’t even take him 30 seconds to kill all the curses entirely, leaving you completely speechless and a little dizzy. When he walks towards you, a maniac smile is plastered on his blood-covered face.

“No one is hurting my wife and gets away with it. Especially not some random curse”, he announces under his breath, gaze still stone cold.

“How are you feeling, love? Is your head doing okay? Did you get injured somewhere else?”

As soon as his eyes meet yours, they are filled with nothing but concern and love, making your heart skip a beat.

“N-No…I’m fine…”, you stutter while getting lost in his bright blue orbs all over again.

His hands roam around your body gently, gaze scanning every inch of you with that worried expression plastered on his face. Moments like these show you with all urgency how much you really mean to your husband.

“I will kill every single curse walking on this earth to save you, (y/n)”, he speaks out with low voice, lips hungrily brushing over yours so strongly expressed that you feel like fainting.

“I’m sorry you were worried”, you mumble against his mouth.

“You’ll never get hurt by a curse again. I’ll make sure of that.”

#jjk #jujutsu kaisen #jujutsu kaisen x reader #jjk x reader #jjk imagines #jjk season 2 #jjk fluff #jjk fanfic #jujutsu kaisen imagines #jujutsu kaisen satoru #gojo x reader #jjk gojo #jujutsu gojo #gojo satoru #gojo saturo #gojou satoru x reader #jujutsu sorcerer #jujustsu kaisen x reader #gojo jjk #jujustu kaisen #satoru gojo #satoru #gojou x reader #satoru x reader #satoru x you #gojo #jjk satoru #jujutsu satoru #gojou saturo #saturo gojo x reader

[feelingdozy]

A Tinge of Jealousy

Dina x Fem!Reader

Request: "hey can I please request Dina x fem! reader? Like where Ellie mistakes that reader is single and flirts with her and dina gets jealous and it might end up in smut? If not smut than just fluff I love Dina 🫶" | by @nickeverdeen

Note: thank you for the request! I also love Dina so this was super fun to write. | Dina Masterlist

Summary: Maria decides to host a party for a big clearing of infected, and you decide to be Dina's date. Unknown to Ellie, she decides to flirt with you. After that, Dina wants everyone to know you're hers.

Warnings: smut, fingering (r receiving), groping, biting, bite marks/hickeys, swearing, teasing 18+

"I should let everyone in here know you're mine, huh?"

The voices that mixed within the crowd overloaded your ears, creating a pounding inside your head. You sat by the bar, head falling into your hands for the fourth time that night. You rubbed your temples trying to calm it, but of course it hadn't worked.

It had been a fun party of course, Maria always went out of her way with them to congratulate whatever was to be celebrated. But tonight it was just a little too much for your head.

After an annoying day of patrol and fighting off some infected, Dina had convinced you to come with her.

And since you hadn't been out in a while to have actual fun, it affected you quite a bit, more than you thought it would. Probably because of the socializing, which you didn't have to do with infected.

"Please! You haven't been doing anything fun, and I think it'd be good for you to take a break baby!"

She said as you looked down to your feet, knowing it was true. You hardly did anything other than patrol, feeling like that was your only purpose in the town that had kept you safe, the people welcoming you in from first sight.

"maybe- it's just.. you know how it is after patrol-"

"c'mon baby! It'll be fun, I promise." She said, trying to convince you for at least thirty minutes now.

"Okay, okay fine! I'll go. Only because you promised."

She looked at you with a smirk, coming closer to your tired and tense body.

As her hand made contact with your cheek you immediately relaxed into her touch, your muscles leaning toward her, wanting her to hold you in her arms like she always did.

Dina was the only one who you could really relax with, being she was with you from the beginning. Right when you came to Jackson, she'd be by your side everywhere you went and eventually, the feelings that had grown between you two couldn't be avoided.

You went in to kiss her, stopping as her finger reached your mouth, sitting at your lips

"nuh-uh honey. Not until after the party. I know how you get when I kiss you." She laughed as a sad playful smile reached your face

"that's just because you kiss really good- it's not my fault you get me worked up!"

She laughed again, her contagiousness working on you as you laughed with her.

Your mind pounded even more as the song had changed, somehow becoming even louder than it was before. Suddenly, you felt someone's presence beside you on another stool. You looked up as you sensed their heavy stare on you, being faced with Ellie.

"Hey pretty girl, you okay over here?" She said, her tone going low and seductive.

"yeah, my heads' just pounding." you said as you saw her nod, her body turning more towards you.

"so, you here with anyone?" She asked again as she looked you up and down.

"would be a shame if no one could appreciate you in that outfit-"

before Ellie could say anything else, someone else's hands made their way around your shoulders.

They laughed behind you and you recognized the voice, and you could hear the mass amount of jealousy laced with it.

"sorry Ellie, but this pretty girl is already taken, by me." She said almost demandingly, making Ellie get the hint immediately.

Ellie put her hands up playfully, going

"my bad, my bad, guilty as charged." She said as you laughed. She slowly got up from her spot at the bar and walked away, nearing the crowd of people dancing towards the middle of the room.

You felt the pair of hands dip down on from the spot on your shoulders, now turning your torso around, another making its way to your chin and tilting it up. You looked Dina in her eyes, and you could see the desire and jealousy that formed in them with the long contact you had.

"Jesus Dina, you're gonna make me horny with that look." You laughed, noticing how it was a serious look, no longer playful as you once took it.

"I should let everyone in here know you're mine, huh?"

She said as she took your wrist in her hand, making you rise from your seat immediately. Your knees almost buckled as she said that, the tone getting you worked up. She dragged you to the bathroom, locking the door as soon as you entered.

"can I touch you?" She said before moving on. You quickly nodded, agreeing to her words.

Her hands pinned you to the wall, her leg swiftly making its way up to your clothed cunt and rubbing slowly against it, making you whine with need from the sensation. A wet spot had formed on your panties as she continued, your hands locked underneath hers so you couldn't escape the tease.

"fuck Dina, please" you said, almost whispering as you pleaded, trying to keep the noises down.

"hm? What did you say? Couldn't hear you over the music, baby."

Your whines became more high pitched as she finally released your hands, immediately feeling lonely as the warmth disappeared, her rough grip gone.

She kissed you with force and desperation, hands gliding all over your body. You went to touch her, immediately stopped by her hand that was once nearing the fabric of your underwear.

"can't touch, baby. This is a punishment."

You mumbled "fuck" under your breathe as she continued, hands finally now making their way to your jeans, unbuckling them.

As they fell to the cold tiled floor of the bathroom, one of her hands made their way under your shirt. She groped your tits, the coldness of them spreading throughout, immediately making you gasp at the sensation.

"fuck baby, your hands feel so good-"

you said as she interrupted you when one of the hands now dipped into your pants and pushed your panties aside. Her fingers rubbed through your folds, collecting what she had done.

"fuck your wet. All 'cause of me huh? Nobody can make you like this except for me."

She said as one of her fingers made their way inside you, making you moan at the sudden intrusion. She started to curl her finger up as her other hand remained on your tit, continuing the rubbing on it.

She lifted your shirt, moving her hand from the comfortable place it once was on your body, swiftly raising it for you to grab ahold of.

"keep that shirt up for me baby, let me see your pretty body."

You quickly obeyed, bunching your shirt in your mouth to keep too many moans from spilling out. Her lips suddenly came to your tit, licking it slowly.

At the same time she put another finger in, sliding in and out of your wet cunt.

"shit Dina, I'm gonna fucking cum-" you said muffled, hoping she'd understand the message.

"oh? Who said you could cum?" She said as she slipped her fingers out of your cunt, her tongue giving one last suck to your hard tit.

"Dina- why-" you said breathing in deep breaths, as she kissed you again hungrily before moving down to your neck.

"what did I say about this being a punishment, hm? Get dressed. We're gonna go enjoy this party like I promised."

Her mouth bit down on your neck, making you moan as she sucked a dark hickey into your skin for everyone out on the floor to see. So everyone could know you only belonged to Dina. No one else.

As you both exited the bathroom, a wet spot remained growing on your panties as her hand tightly gripped yours. She dragged you to the dance floor, throwing her arms over your shoulders. You felt the stares of all the other people, thinking they spotted the obvious dark and new hickey that had appeared on your neck. At this point you didn't really care who stared or how, focusing on the girl who stood in front of you.

"you're so evil" you said with a laugh as she smirked back.

"what can I say, I'm good at punishments." She said before rocking you both to the slow music that played, the pounding in your head gone as the only thing that filled it now, was Dina.

"let's enjoy this for a bit, hm? And then when we get home, I'll give you a reward? How's that baby."

"dunno if I'll be able to last that long, Dina" you said teasingly, knowing that it'd affect her in some way.

She loved getting you off, or any display of affection in that matter. Kissing you, hugging you, even dancing slowly like you were was able to turn her on if executed right. Only you were able to spark something deep inside her.

"shut up." She said as you laughed, continuing to sway with her to the music.

#dina nolastname #dina x reader #tlou2 dina #dina x reader smut #dina #dina x reader fluff #dina x fem!reader #dina x fem reader #dina smut #dina x fem!reader smut #tlou fic #tlou fluff #tlou smut #the last of us fic #the last of us fanfiction #the last of us fanfics #the last of us fluff #the last of us smut #tlou fanfiction #elliemygf

[animasola86]

The Darkness Within: Tom's Reward

Notes: Chapter 9 of The Darkness Within is here, two months after the last one, oops! As usual, I am giving you the smut part here, but I'm encouraging you to read the whole chapter over on AO3! Thank you and enjoy!

Pairing: Tom Riddle x f!mc // Genre: Smut // Words: 2.7k

Warnings: NSFW! MDNI! Explicit sexual content (fingering, vaginal sex, bj)! It's rough, it's Tom Riddle, what do you expect?

Synopsis: After giving Genevieve the Dark Mark, Tom decides to indulge in her deepest desire and lets her have it, maybe not quite how she had expected it.

This is part of my Sebastian Sallow/f!mc fanfic The Darkness Within. To read smut with her and Sebastian, check these out: Chapter 7 smut + Chapter 8 angsty smut!

Last warning: Dark smut below the cut! Enemies of the heir, beware!

Context: MC dies at the Battle of Hogwarts, Sebastian resurrects her and they both land 62 years in the future, but separate from each other. He ends up becoming an Auror and she meets Tom Riddle and gets pulled into his cause/charm. This scene takes place after he gives her the Dark Mark to ensure her allegiance to him. (She is 21 here and he is 10 years older.)

Excerpt of Chapter 9:

"Tom's Reward"

With her forearm still tingling and carefully propped against the back of the sofa, she found herself lying on her back, her chest rising and falling fast as she watched Tom slowly unbuttoning his shirt. She still felt a little delirious from the pain of his branding and the sensation that had been their first kiss, no matter how short it had been, and seeing him now, actually engaging in those things he didn't deem worthy of his time, left her breathless and with her head spinning even more.

She blinked and suddenly he was right on top of her, his hands holding her face as he leaned down to close his lips around hers. Her gasp was the culmination of all those feelings she had harboured for him over the years, all the longing and lusting and need for him. Finally feeling his hands on her, his mouth, his lips and his tongue, his weight and his body, his knees pushing against her thighs as he forced her legs open, it quickly overwhelmed her enough to surrender herself to him completely.

She didn't even wonder that, despite his obvious aversion against any physical touch or desire, he knew exactly what he was doing. He kissed her demandingly, his tongue forcing its way into her mouth, and pressed his pelvis against hers, and even through the layers of clothes that were still between them she could feel his excitement for her pressing right against her core.

She'd assumed it was because of her, but unbeknownst to her it was just his desire to take her, make her his, bask in the power he had over her. Tom didn't want to bring her pleasure or satisfy her needs, he wanted to own her, dominate her, bend her to his will, and most of all, he wanted to feel that power surging through her – and what better way to experience that than by becoming one with the vessel that held it.

Because that was what she was to him: a body sheltering something that was useful to him, very, very useful, if he played his cards right. And he knew he did, when she started moaning softly beneath him, just from having him kiss her. She was putty in his hands and knowing that only spurred his desire to claim her even more.

He leaned back then and looked at her, and all he could see behind those brown irises was lust. Lust for him, lust for the things they were about to do, lust to indulge in these activities he had kept her from thinking all these years. She was very imaginative, he had to give her that, if he would have the sense for it, he would have blushed under the ideas this little girl kept in her pretty head. He took inspiration in her thoughts for a little longer, before he gave her a smile and another peck and then leaned back once more.

She watched him breathlessly as he moved back, settling between her legs. He didn't waste time to undress her the old-fashioned way, he just flicked his finger, not even his wand as she noticed with growing admiration, and she felt her clothes disappearing into thin air. And suddenly she lay completely bare before him, her chest rising and falling fast, making her breasts move in a steady rhythm, and her legs were splayed and unable to close and hide her most precious place as he was still kneeling between them.

Under other circumstances she would have felt embarrassed and mortified to be this vulnerable and exposed, but under Tom's dark gaze she felt oddly calm, ready to do anything with and for him. And he knew as much, she could tell. He was watching her closely, his eyes wandering over her naked body, taking in every little detail. When he looked directly into her eyes, she froze on the spot, completely mesmerized by the void that were his dark eyes.

She didn't even notice his touch at first, only when he would curl his fingers inside her did she realize he had pushed them past her folds and straight into her wetness and the feeling left her breathless. It wasn't just his fingers, it was what he was doing – and she couldn't be sure, but she felt tingles like tiny electric shocks surging through her body as if he would channel his magic right against her most sensitive spots, only increasing the sensation.

Her moans came sudden and loud, her whole body convulsing under his touch, and while she was consumed by pleasure, her head spinning and full of static, he kept going, fingering her to the brink of insanity, as she thrashed her body into the cushions of the couch, only held in place by his other hand on her stomach, whose thumb was pressed right against her clit, issuing the same kind of magical touch as he rubbed it roughly.

Orgasm after orgasm rolled over her and she had no idea how she was still functioning under the pressure of having her body going through all these types of stimulations. She felt utterly spent when he would finally let go of her, not that she would have noticed right away as the tremors were still shuddering through her every nerve and limb.

Breathing heavily, her lips parted and trembling and dry, she opened her eyes slightly and found him sitting on the edge of the couch, watching her, his wet fingers held out in front of him. Somehow she knew what he wanted and without any word shared between them, she sat up and cradled his hand between her shaking fingers as if it was his most priced possession. For her it was, having brought her these amazing feelings still resonating through her lower body.

Her eyes were on his face when she leaned closer and brought her lips to his fingertips, tasting herself on his skin as she sucked his fingers into her mouth one at a time, swirling her tongue around them feverishly until she deemed them clean enough. He watched her almost curiously, no other emotion evident on his handsome features. As she was about to lower his hand, he insisted on pushing two of his fingers past her lips and deeper into her mouth.

She felt him caressing her tongue and the inside of her cheeks as she sat very still and let him explore her mouth, and she didn't even flinch when he moved his fingers deeper, pressing against the back of her throat, teasing it with his fingertips. Holding his gaze, she successfully fought the urge to gag around him and he rewarded her with a dark smile as he continued forcing his fingers deeper. Tears rolled from the corners of her eyes and she held her breath, her entire body stiffening under the sensation.

But she didn't fight it, of course she didn't. She was his to do whatever with. And he knew that very well. Suddenly she felt his other hand around her throat, squeezing against his fingers lodged inside her. Her eyes stared at him pleadingly as the urge to gasp or gag or do anything against his literal choke-hold grew almost unbearable. He stared right back, not giving in just yet. Feeling more than light-headed, she raised her hands to claw at his wrists before even holding them there felt too much for her to handle.

Just as her grip loosened as her body was about to fall into the tight embrace of unconsciousness, he let go of her throat and pulled his fingers out, urging her to breathe. She was barely able to do so, gasping soundlessly, then coughing violently, her entire body shaking against whatever it had just experienced. His wet fingers grazed her cheek and she calmed down slowly, her eyelids fluttering as she looked at him.

“You're such a good girl,” he praised her as he leaned closer to press his mouth against her trembling lips, his voice causing her to smile despite the slight discomfort in her throat.

In the haze nestling inside her head, she then felt him moving her, laying her down on her back again as he grabbed her thighs and pushed her legs upwards against her torso, holding her wide open as he positioned himself right against her. She heard the faint rustle of fabric, her head still spinning, and she barely registered him pressing his tip against her core. Her hands snaked around her legs as she hooked them around the back of her knees and held them in place, her feet dangling in the air as she watched him closely.

His cold gaze was on her, no emotion whatsoever on his pale face, as he crawled over her, one hand lining himself up with her entrance, the other propped next to her hip to support his body as he leaned over her slightly. With his eyes fixed on hers, he then lowered himself and in a swift, almost harsh motion drove himself right into her tight warmth. She moaned, shuddering under the intrusion as he buried his cock as deep as possible, pushing his entire weight down onto her pelvis.

He then shifted against her, leaned on one knee, while his other leg moved to the floor, giving him more leverage to start moving against her as he grabbed her thighs firmly and folded her legs almost brutally against her, before he settled into a fast rhythm that knocked any remaining air right out of her. Her noises mixed with the slapping of skin against skin as he thrust into her at an ever-growing pace, deep and fast and hard, in and out until she could barely feel anything any more.

She was a whimpering mess beneath him, pushed into the cushions by the powerful snaps of his hips, her breaths too erratic to let any new air into her aching lungs, leaving her breathless and light-headed, and yet she felt like she had never felt before as he quickly brought her back to that sensation of pure bliss. Every thrust moved her up the sofa, every downwards motion pulled her back towards him, his hands bruising her skin, his girth filling and stretching her, scraping past those special spots that made her toes curl up painfully.

Her heart felt as if it would explode inside her chest at any second as her insides convulsed and her walls tightened around him rhythmically, gripping him, squeezing him, pulling him in deeper. Amidst the blindingly bright pleasure exploding within her and her ear- and room-filling moans and feeble attempts to breathe, she then heard a groan coming from the man above her, and for a moment she just stared at him in awe, seeing him so affected by what they were doing, his jaw clenched, his brows furrowed in concentration and his lips pressed tightly together. There was even a faint hint of a blush on his high cheekbones.

When he noticed her gaze, the tension on his face shifted into an almost soft expression, causing her to feel an immense rush of warmth flooding her insides. It might have been his seed pouring out of him as he came inside her with a deep shuddering of his hips as he halted his movements for a moment, or it was something else she was too afraid to name. Whatever it was, it made her lean up past the tight grip he had on her folded legs and once he let go of her, she was able to sit up and grab his face, before she pulled him down to press her trembling lips to his, kissing him through his release.

He kept moving against her, slower now, one of his hands finding the back of her head as he held her tightly in place, kissing her back just as eagerly. Once he stopped twitching inside her, she was almost disappointed that he pulled out immediately, painting her walls with his seed as he did so, leaving the last drops of his cum on her heated skin as he leaned back. She saw him breathing heavier when he let go of her face, watching her closely before his eyes moved down between her legs where his release was spilling from her quivering core.

Something dark washed over his features then and she had barely time to react when he suddenly pushed his fingers back into her hole, the squelching sound quite obscene even in her pleasure riddled mind. She shivered against his touch and frowned slightly as she realized what he was doing. He was scraping his seed out of her. His fingers moved deep and curled inside her and it was not to give her more pleasure, he was actively trying to clean her tight channel.

Just as she was wondering why he would do that and why with his fingers no less, he grabbed her chin with his other hand and made her look at him, before he forced her jaw open. She obeyed, not that she had any other choice, and gasped deeply when he would push his cum covered fingers into her mouth. His gaze was dark and she understood immediately as she began to flick her tongue around his digits, licking his salty seed right off his skin, ignoring the tear falling past her lashes.

Once he deemed his fingers to be clean, he would shove them back past her wet folds, scooping up more for her to clean and swallow, his grip on her chin never easing. She endured the procedure with her heart racing and her body quivering and when he would finally release her chin, she inhaled sharply, trying to relax, only for him to grab the back of her head and push her face right against his groin.

She whimpered against him, scrambling into a more comfortable position to be able to focus on the new task he had for her. With shaking hands she cradled his half-hardened cock between her fingers and started licking it gingerly, tasting more of his bitter seed, yet the more she put on her tongue, the better it felt as it slid down her hurting throat. Breathing through her nose, she barely noticed his tightening grip in her hair as he pushed her further onto him until her lips were wrapped around his shaft as his tip scraped against the back of her throat.

Too numb to gag around him, she focused on pressing her tongue against him, feeling him growing harder and thicker inside her as he started moving her head back and forth to give him the friction he apparently desired. Her hands gripping his thighs, she let him use her to his liking and he did so without hesitation, not letting her catch her breath or rest her aching jaw or swallow the saliva pooling around him.

He even started pushing his hips against her as well, forcing his length deeper and deeper as he angled her head to allow the motion. All she could do was whimper and squeeze her eyes shut as more and more tears fell from her lashes, and not even her fingernails digging into his skin stopped him from pushing in and out of her mouth at a rapid pace. Only when she felt him twitching against her tongue would he release his grip on her and allowed her to pull back, and as she took deep shuddering breaths he wasted no time to shoot his load right into her face.

She flinched against it, feeling it hitting her cheeks and nose and eyebrows, before he pushed his throbbing tip back past her lips and emptied himself right onto her tongue. He held her jaw tightly, not allowing her to escape the grasp, as he filled her up more and more until it spilled past his length and down her chin, and this time she couldn't help but gag against the sheer amount of it. He pushed her head back then and she spluttered and coughed, trying to swallow what he had given her.

While she was still trying to regain her composure, she noticed him standing up. Looking up at him, she met his dark gaze. His pale face was hard again, no emotion whatsoever on his handsome features as his eyes wandered over her soiled face and body. “Clean yourself up,” was all he said to her, before he turned around and left through a door into the deeper parts of Borgin and Burkes.

End notes: And I thought I'd enjoy writing a Dark Sebastian, when all I had to write for was Tom in his natural habitat! I feel almost sorry for poor Genevieve...

Picture of Tom by the lovely @esolean!

[ AO3 ] [ fanfiction masterlist ]

#tom riddle #tom riddle smut #tom riddle x mc #tom riddle x oc #harry potter #crossover #hogwarts legacy #hogwarts legacy smut #sebastian sallow smut #sebastian sallow #hphl #hp fanfic

[mcufan72]

Cold winter days, a lonely woman on a bench, a stranger in the park...

An Encounter in Winter ❄️

Loki and female reader

Chapter 15

Chapter 14

18+/adult themes/talking/flirting/slow burn/ fluff/angst/smut

Warnings: implied smut, some sweet soft smut, doubt and self-doubt, some answers and new questions

"Are you sure you don't know that person, Snowflake?"

"Yeah, I couldn't even figure out if it's a man or a woman… I'm just glad the girl is back in her dad's or mum's arms," and you watched them leaving the park.

"Snowflake, I'm truly concerned…what if someone tries to harm you?"

"Lo, why should someone want that?"

"I don't know. You tell me."

"Please, stop dramatizing it, Lo. Maybe that person thought they knew me and just wanted to find out if it was like this or not. And I stick to "not". I'm sure it was just a case of mistaken identity. Let's go back to the hotel, Lo. I'd like to spend a cosy last evening with you."

You wrapped your arm around his waist, buried your hand in the back pocket of his stone-grey tight-fitting jeans and Loki slung his arm around your shoulder. He loved that you wore your sleeveless flower dress today so his fingers could touch and caress your bare skin. Loki took a deep breath and looked sceptically at you. He wasn't sure what to think about this whole situation. He didn't want this wonderful free time and these holidays to end but now he just wanted to bring you back home safely. Tomorrow you two would be on your flight back home to New York and somehow he was glad about it.

"You've been so sweet with the little girl. It seemed she liked you."

"If you say so… and yes, she was a cutie, and she seemed curious and… impressed?"

"She definitely liked the fireworks you had conjured for her, Lo …I liked them too," you said softly.

"Mmhhhh, I can conjure other fireworks for you, my love," he purred like an amorous tomcat and nudged his nose against your cheek.

"I'd love that, baby," you giggled.

"If we ever decide to have children, I just want to have them with you, Lo. You'll definitely be a good dad."

You turned your head towards him and his soft gaze met yours.

"Do you still think that? You can't know that. Maybe I won't be a good dad," he answered with sad eyes.

"Do you think I'd be a good mum?" you asked him demandingly.

"You'll be the best mum in the nine realms and you…what?"

You couldn't stop chuckling.

"How can you know that Lo baby?" you questioned him, a big grin on your face.

"Okay, okay, I'm already quiet but… sometimes my insecurities make an appearance again. Sorry, my love."

"Don't be, Lo. You have me now to make them disappear again," and you pecked a gentle kiss on his cheek, a shy smile curving his mouth.

It seems you were a better magician than him because you always did the right things for him and made him immediately feel better again.

"That little girl reminds me of my sister."

"How come and why?" He asked you bewildered.

"When we were children and out on the playground or a little trip she tended to run away to more exciting places. She…didn't really run away, I always knew where she was. For us, it was fun and just a game but for our mother, it had been a catastrophe… every single time," you laughed.

"You had been very naughty girls, you and your sister. Scaring your mum to death was not nice, Snowflake," he stated with a teasing undertone.

"Says the god of mischief," you teased him back playfully, " and…Had been? I'm still naughty, Sir…but nowadays only for you," you said chirping and with your hand, you gave his ass cheek a firm squeeze.

"And I appreciate it, my Lady," he hummed in response and kissed your lips promisingly.

Once back in the hotel he would want you underneath him as soon as possible and fuck the naughtiness out of you. Would his addiction to you ever get less? Hopefully not …and he felt how your heartbeat quickened in sheer anticipation.

"When we're back home, we will try to find your sister, okay? I haven't forgotten the promise I gave you. You still miss her, don't you?"

"Sure, I do." you said thoughtfully. "I hope we find her, Lo."

"We will, I'm sure, my love," and he kissed you tenderly.

"Please don't you ever run away again! I was scared, honeybee. You must stay with me, I can't lose my baby!"

"I didn't run away, I wanted to see the fairies and…and…I needed to see if they live between the yellow rose petals," the little girl tried to explain her excursion.

"There are no fairies, my little honeybee and you can't run away from the playground without coming to me first and telling me that you want to go somewhere else, okay?"

"I'm sorry…I'll never do it again, I promise," she said quietly and her voice was full of guilt.

"It's alright, honeybee I'm just glad that nothing happened to you and that I have you back… did you talk to the woman? And what about the man who knelt in front of you? I saw it from afar when I was looking for you."

"I didn't talk to them, I know I mustn't talk to strangers. The woman was nice and soooo pretty, her name was y/n and the man was a wizard!"

"Honeybee, there are no wizards…"

"He.Was.A.Wizard! And his name was…was…his name was Loki," she pouted and crossed her small arms.

"I've told you too many fairy tales, I guess."

"He was a wizard and sooo nice to me. He made funny lights and sparkles in his palm… the pink ones I liked the most!"

"Oh, honeybee you have way too much imagination. What was the woman's name again?"

"Her name was Y/n."

"Uh hm …come, let's hit home, honeybee."

"Can I have pancakes for dinner?"

"Of course, honeybee, we make pancakes for dinner."

"Yes yes, pancakes," she cheered, clapping her hands. "And he was a wizard," she whispered to herself.

When you were back at the hotel you two got quickly rid of your clothes. Loki carried you to the bed, never loosening his grip around your waist and giving you demanding kisses. He laid you down into the cushions with him on top of you, your hands roaming over the toned muscles of his back. You felt his veiny pulsating cock sliding into your dripping wet cunt and you enjoyed his weight on you and the feeling of his soft skin on yours. Loki gave you slow and deep strokes and held your hand the whole time. He whispered sweet nothings into your ear and you told him again and again how much you loved him.

He made the sweetest, deepest love to you and it didn't take you long to cum around his throbbing length. Loki insisted on making you orgasm one more time before he wanted to find his release in the velvety warmth of your cunt which convulsed about his cock. When his passion overtook him he spent his seed deep inside you, with a low moan until you were dripping. As much as he loved rough sex, the slow lovemaking made him always feel safe and content. And this time he felt so close to you.

Tonight his incredible tenderness and how he looked into your eyes while making sweet love to you, made you cry. He kissed your tears away and after many more love confessions, you took a shower together and had a last dinner at the hotel's restaurant. Later, when you both went to bed again, you snuggled into him and before you fell asleep in each other's arms, you made a decision. Never before have you been more convinced.

Back in New York, day-to-day life had you two in its claws again, sooner than you had expected. Bruce and you had so much work to do in the lab, intensive biological and theoretical studies and tons of paperwork. In this case, it means all of your research results had to be fed to the computer files and systems. Loki and the other Avengers had to go on new missions, shorter ones and longer ones and Loki's and your wonderful holiday slowly faded into a beautiful memory.

One afternoon, when the Avengers were on a new mission again, you took a break from work to have a cup of tea and met Jane in the compound's kitchen. You two have become friends since she lived here too. Things between her and Thor have become more serious and so she decided to move in with Thor. The fact that Jane and you got along with each other well was also a blessing for Loki and Thor. The two brothers were closer together than ever before and both appreciated it.

You hadn't had much time talking to each other since you and Loki had returned from the holidays so you were happy to meet her now and have a little chit-chat with her. You also had a feeling there was some news she wanted to tell you because a few days ago you had spotted a ring on her left hand.

"Hey, Jane, so good to see you!"

"Hey, y/n, it feels like it has been ages since we last met, right?"

"Yeah, I've been so busy since we returned. I'm already stressed again," you laughed and you two hugged each other.

"How are you doing?" you asked her, pouring some tea in a mug. "Fancy a cuppa?"

"Oh, yes please. I don't feel well today."

"Why? What happened, dear?"

"I miss Thor," she answered sadly.

"Oh, yes I understand … I miss Loki terribly."

"I have gotta feeling that something has happened to them…"

For a short moment, you leaned back at the kitchen counter, closed your eyes, and listened to your heartbeat. It was strong, steady, and calm. And there was something like a second voice or a bass line in a choir; strong, steady, and calm…Loki's heartbeat. You opened your eyes again and smiled at her. With teary eyes, Jane looked quizzically at you.

"They're alright Jane, Thor is fine, " you told her calmly.

"How do you know that?"

"I can feel it," you explained.

"You can feel it? What can you feel? I mean, … how?"

"I'm bonded with Loki and somehow I…I just can feel it when I listen to my heart. It's just there."

"Wow, that's awesome. Are you… are you already immortal like him and like Thor?"

"No. Are you?"

"No, neither. I'm still unsure…"

"But…you're engaged already, aren't you?" and you smiled brightly at her and pointed to the ring on the ring finger of her left hand. It was a wonderful brightly shining ruby and diamond ring. "Congratulations!"

"Ohhh, yesss…thank you. We're very happy."

"And I'm happy for you two, dear! I hope it was a romantic day when Thor proposed to you."

"Very romantic, as romantic as Thor can be but yes, he was cute and extremely nervous. The ring fell on the floor twice before he placed it on my finger. He was so afraid I could refuse him," Jane said and giggled with reddened cheeks.

"What about you and Loki? When did he propose to you in Norway? Ohh it must've been so romantic …"

"He didn't propose to me, neither in Norway nor in London," you said quietly and looked at her with questioningly raised eyebrows.

"Oh, aahhmm it's just… Thor meant…"

"What did Thor mean?"

"Oh..nothing, sweetie, nothing. Forget it, forget my question. I'm sorry…"

With a frowning forehead, you questioned yourself if there was something she knew and you didn't. Did Loki want to propose to you in Norway and if so, why didn't he do it? Everything seemed fine during the vacation and you were convinced that you had done nothing wrong. You wouldn't get an answer right now. It seemed you just had to wait until Loki came back. And a proposal or not, nothing could change your deep love for him. Maybe you were a bit disappointed right now but you still loved your pretty alien King.

Jane was slightly irritated and maybe she should've kept her big mouth shut but she clearly remembered what Thor had told her. He recited what Loki said to him before you and Loki headed to Norway:

'This gorgeous woman, who owns my heart, deserves a very special marriage proposal and a wonderful wedding.'

Maybe they shouldn't have assumed Loki would ask you in Norway to marry him. But it seemed to be the perfect place to do it.

"I'm really sorry, y/n. I should've kept my mouth shut."

"Don't worry, Jane. Everything is fine," and you smiled reassuringly at her.

"Did you ever think about eating Idun's apple, y/n?"

"No, never because this is not my path to get the same kind of immortality as Loki."

"It's not?"

"No. As you know Loki isn't Asgardian by birth so I have to do it the Jotun way."

"And… What is the Jotun way?" she asked curiously.

"We're already bonded and we're already one body, one soul and one heartbeat. The last step is to become one blood."

"Wow. Are you afraid of doing it? I mean, it's such a big step, a life-changing decision."

"I'm not afraid of it, I just thought about if there would be something I had to abandon because of my then prolonged life span… but I don't have a family anymore, I just have Loki and my love for him is endless… and then finally it was an easy decision to make."

"Yeah, that makes sense, I've the same thoughts as you… we would have each other then, you and I gossiping forever and ever," she said and you two laughed in unison.

"Wouldn't that be great?" You asked her.

"Absolutely fantastic!" Jane agreed with you.

"Just take your time, Jane. Speak with Thor about it again…and everything will be fine."

After some more chit-chat and exchanging some more of the newest gossip, you returned to the lab. The day's work still wasn't done yet.

A few days later you had the opportunity to take the afternoon off. First of all, you strolled through the park and after that you sat on your and Loki's bench for a while, watching the people and the scenery. It was late summer already and the beginning of autumn was near. Some leaves of the trees were already slowly changing their colours and you looked forward to cosy autumn afternoons. You would sit together with your lover in front of the crackling fireplace and hold each other's hands or you would sit on the sofa, snuggled up into each other under his fluffy black blanket, you and Loki preferably naked, while drinking hot chocolate.

Loki, the love of your life, owner of your heart. You sighed heavily while you thought of him and felt how much you loved and missed him right now. Soon he would be back from the mission and you could hardly wait for him to take you in his strong arms again. You missed his kisses and touches, his scent, his voice, you missed talking to him and cuddling him and of course, you missed the feeling of him buried deep inside of you and his soft skin on yours, his moans and sighs when you caressed him and scratched his scalp, twirling the curls of his black mane around your fingers.

You craved endlessly for him, it almost caused physical pain. You were sad and a bit disappointed when Pepper told you yesterday that she got a message from the team that they would need two more days because of a special mission they were asked to take care of before they could return to New York. You knew that something like this could happen at any time but still, you just wanted Loki to come back to you as soon as possible.

And Loki knew how much you missed him because he missed you terribly as well. He had problems falling asleep without you in his arms. He missed the warmth of your beautiful body, your soft skin on his. He missed spooning you the whole night and the deep and funny conversations you often have before falling asleep. He missed your gaze at him, your plump lips on his, your hands buried in his hair, tugging lovingly at it. He craved you desperately and he wanted nothing more than to return to you as soon as possible. But this special mission was extremely important and he truly pitied that he had to make you wait for him for two more days.

He had recorded a voice mail for you and Pepper had sent it to your phone. You inserted your earphones and listened to his message for the umpteenth time now but his deep smooth and calming voice eased your desperate wait for him.

"Hello, my love, my pretty Snowflake, my precious Queen. Do you miss me? When this message reaches you, you are probably asleep by now. I can tell you, it's not easy for me to fall asleep without you in my arms and I can't wait for the day when you sling your arms around me again. To have you not by my side is torture…and you've no idea what naughty things I'll do to you when I'm back… can't tell you more right now, too many curious listeners around me and what I want to tell you is destined for your ears only. I miss you, darling, I miss you terribly and I can't wait to see your face and your beautiful smile again. Think of me, my love, never forget to stroll daily through the park and sit on our bench. Think of me then, dream of me like I dream of you. Don't forget me, my love, and promise me that you eat and drink properly every day! And trust me I'll recognise it if you don't! Take good care of yourself my sweet darling and wait for me. I'm back soon, I promise. I love you, Snowflake."

A smile curved your lips and you pressed your phone to your chest. He had no idea how much his message comforted you. Before you headed back to Stark Tower you visited your favourite bookstore. You haven't been there for a long time now and today you wanted to have a look at some newly published novels and crime stories. You also wanted to buy a small gift for Loki, maybe a book about myths and legends in ancient times. You weren't sure but you would find something for him. Also, you felt the need to talk to him as soon as possible.

After the conversation with Jane, you had been absolutely sure about your final decision. You wanted to be his blood, you wanted eternity together with him. You wanted to ask him to bring you to Jotunheim so you could have the ritual and after that, you would be completely and irreversibly his and he would be yours, united in this unique bonding he had created with you. You already had a considerable number of books stored in your arms while you still strolled through the bookstore. The staple of books in one arm, you flipped through a book for vintage style for apartments when you felt someone standing behind you. Before you could think further if you maybe blocked someone's way, the person addressed you.

"I finally found you!"

You turned around, jumped and all the books you had stored on your arm, fell rumbling to the floor. Your face went pale and you felt the person's hand grabbing your forearm and you saw the tattoo that adorned the hand. You looked upwards into the person's eyes and you couldn't believe whose eyes they were.

"Josephine!" You said, hoarsely and shocked and you stared into your sister's face, which you hadn't seen for nearly two years now.

🫢🫢🫢🫢🥲🫢🫢🫢🫢🥲🫢🫢🫢🫢🥲🫢🫢

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@lokisprettygirl @wheredafandomat @anukulee @stupidthoughtsinwriting @fictive-sl0th @lokixryss @smolvenger @lovingchoices14 @huntress-artemiss @obscureenigmatic

#loki #loki x female reader #loki x reader #loki x you #loki x reader fluff #loki laufeyson #loki x reader fic #loki x reader angst #loki x reader smut #loki x female reader angst #jotun loki x reader #loki x fem!reader #loki x female reader smut #jotun loki x female reader #loki x female reader fluff #loki x female reader au #loki laufeyson x female reader

[anonymityisfunwriter]

Two Sides of The Same Coin - Chapter 22: "Safe and Sound'

"Don't you dare look out your window, darling, everything's on fire. The war outside our door keeps raging on..."

Pairing: Sunshine!Reader x Grumpy!Bucky Barnes

“So what did you talk to Sam about?” Bucky asks, trying and failing to be nonchalant. "After what happened - the kidnapping, I mean."

He couldn't deal anymore, not knowing, the waiting for you to voluntarily tell him - it bothered him. He'd been a frantic, antsy mess since your kidnapping and this was one more thing that he just couldn't not know.

It had been a little over a month since your kidnapping. The dust had settled since your kidnapping, your face healed, and he waited and waited for you to tell him anything. To tell him the kiss meant something or that it meant nothing. To tell him that he crossed a line, something, anything.

But it never came.

Steve was right about the terrible timing, Bucky saw you struggle the last few weeks without missions, aimlessly walking around the Compound with someone always walking right on your heels. He didn't want to push because he knew you needed that stability more than he needed to talk about what happened, but his frayed nerves couldn't take it anymore. 

“About what Rumlow said.”

“Oh,” he frowns, not sure if it’s better or worse that you didn’t say anything to Sam. On one hand, he’s glad Sam isn’t going to try and kill him for his awful timing. On the other hand, it’s a blow to his pride that you didn’t mention it to Sam, especially considering that you tell Sam everything. Now he can't help but think that maybe this wasn't important enough for you to tell Sam.

“Why? What did you think I was telling Sam?” you ask, hoping to imply what you weren't brave enough to outright ask. Just like Bucky'd been waiting on you, you were waiting on him. 

“Nothing, I was just wondering.”

“Okay,” you shrug, trying to hide your disappointment by scribbling away in your journal. Bucky loudly groans in frustration, prompting you to close your journal back up and turn back toward Bucky. “Is everything okay?”

“Just great,” he grouses.

“Really? Because you seem kind of frustrated.”

“Really? Do I seem that way to you?” he snarks.

“And a little more grumpy than usual,” you add.

“I wonder why,” he scoffs.

“I’m wondering why too!”

“Agghhh….” he groans, clenching his fist tightly. 

“James?” you urge. 

“Maybe I want to know why you didn’t tell Sam about the kiss!” he thunders, clenching the wooden table so hard you're worried it's going to break.

“Oh,” you state, your eyes widening at Bucky's sudden outburst. 

“Yeah,” Bucky exhales, standing up and turning to walk out the door. 

“Wait,” you call, a burst of air flinging the door shut.

“What?” Bucky grunts, turning away from the door that was just slammed in his face.

“Alright, I’m pretty sure I’ve seen this before in movies and I hate the way it plays out, so we’re not going to do that. I know if I let you walk out that door right now, you’ll avoid me for a while, we won’t talk, and things will just get worse and worse until we can’t stand to be in the same room anymore, so you’re going to sit there and listen to me talk,” you ramble, demandingly pointing to the chair across from you.  

Bucky sighs, already feeling a smile tug at his lips. It’s a good sign that you refused to let him just walk out of your life, not that he wanted to in the first place. “Go ahead then. Talk,” he mutters, pulling the seat out again and taking a seat.

“Right,” you nod, though you’re unsure of where to begin.

“Well?” Bucky probes.

“Well, I just - I didn’t tell Sam because I figured we should talk about it first.”

“Oh,” Bucky replies, feeling awfully stupid at how simple of an explanation that was.

“I've just- I've been trying to sort through everything. Not that this isn't important, but I've had a lot on my mind," you breathe. You see Bucky's eyebrows begin to furrow, a mix of worry and concern on his face, so you add, purposefully keeping your tone light and playful, "And if you weren’t being so dramatic and just asked me, I would have told you that.”

“I thought that maybe…” he trails off.

“That?”

“Maybe it didn’t mean anything to you.”

“You know what they say about assuming,” you quip, placing your elbows on the table and leaning closer to Bucky.

“What?” he smirks, mimicking your actions and leaning into you. 

You chuckle, “You make an ass out of you and me.”

"Who's making an ass out of themselves?" Tony asks, walking in from the other room. 

"Just you," Bucky grumbles under his breath as you straighten your back and stand from your seat.

"Be nice," you playfully scold, slapping Bucky's shoulder. 

“Anyway, you're with me today, Pinkie-"

"Wait, really?" you exclaim. You'd given up checking on what missions and assignments two weeks ago, mostly because you knew Sam was adamant about keeping you benched. 

"Really," Tony wryly affirms. "Unless you don't want to?"

"No, I want to," you quickly insist, following Tony as he lazily strolls out of the room. He knew you'd been chomping at the bit to do anything. He understood that much: the not wanting to still still and ruminate after traumatic events. So he'd made a case for you, and after a little bit of convincing Steve and Sam, you were finally getting taken off the bench. 

"Should you really be going on a mission so quickly?” Bucky asks you as the three of you walk down the hall to the conference room. 

“Ah,” you wave dismissively. “I bounce back fast. Plus I was only tied up for like 3 hours. That’s nothing. Try 3 weeks - now that’s bad.”

They both suddenly get very quiet as both Tony and Bucky both stare at you with widened eyes. "Uh, you can laugh. It was just a joke." "Then you have a strange sense of humor," Tony remarks, guiding you into the conference room. As you all walk into the room, Tony gestures to the unfamiliar man that just appeared in front of you. "Pinkie, this is Dr. Strange, a somewhat reluctant, partially absent ally of the Avengers."

“I thought I’d be meeting you today,” Dr. Strange mutters, looking particularly unimpressed by you. Your eyes flicker to Tony for reassurance. 

“Everything okay, Strange?” Tony asks, looking equally confused.

“Interesting,” he nods at you. “Will she be joining us?”

“That’s the plan,” Tony replies.

“Then I won’t be,” he states.

“What?” you chuckle awkwardly.

“I’m sorry- It’s really nothing personal, you’re just not ready yet.”

“I know she doesn’t look it, but she’s been on plenty of missions before,” Tony jokes.

“I’m not talking about missions, Tony. I can't actually tell you. In simple terms, she's just yet to pick a side."

“I’m confused,” you reply, your eyes flickering to Tony, who you hope can shed some light on the situation. 

Tony shrugs. “Don’t look at me. I’m as confused as you are.”

Strange takes a deep breath, his necklace opening up to reveal a green stone. “Pretty,” you awe, subconsciously reaching your hand out to touch it. 

“Don’t touch,” Strange orders, his eyes still closed. He exhales one last time before opening his eyes. “I can show you.”

“Oh, where are we going?” you ask, voice filled with forced excitement.

“I’m going to show you in here,” he says, lightly tapping his temple.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Tony warns. "Last person that messed with her head did not come out unscathed."

“I’m not messing with her head, I’m helping her understand,” Strange cryptically explains.

“Okay,” you nod, taking Dr. Strange’s hand. And the second you touch his hand, you’re sucked out of the room. Tony and Bucky are no longer standing in front of you, you’re no longer in the Compound. It’s almost like you’re watching a movie, watching yourself like a weird out of body experience. You look around for a moment and see nothing. You look to Strange for reassurance but he's not there either. You reluctantly take another step forward and then you see it: 

-

You see a stunned Bucky standing in front of you. Your face splattered with his blood. The blood of the love of your life. The life that was just taken in exchange for yours. His lifeless body slumps down in front of you. Your Bucky. Dead. Killed.

"James," you squeak. "James!"

"No, no, no," you hyperventilate, throwing yourself over him and frantically trying to figure out how you can save him.

A borderline animalistic scream leaves your body. You throw yourself on top of him, begging him to wake up. The winds start to pick up, there's rumbling underneath the ground that sends chills up Steve's spine. And when you look up, Steve's not even sure he recognizes you. You definitely don’t recognize yourself. 

With one hand you send Steve flying against a building. “There’s nothing to gain from doing this," he shouts.

“We were done. We were walking away. We were going to be happy," you ominously state, the anger building in your voice. "Now Sam is dead. James is dead. I’ve got nothing left to lose.”

-

Then you're in a brand new scene - this one almost equally jarring.

“You’re going to just leave me in here? You fucking traitor,” you call through the metal bars. At first you can't make out the figure standing in the shadows, but the second he steps forward you see that it's Sam. 

You’re in a cell, completely restrained in a straitjacket and large black collar around your neck with Sam watching you, a coldness in his eyes you’d never seen before. “You’re a murderer. You’re exactly where you belong.”

“You did this to me. You and the Avengers turned me into this,” you spit.

“He’s dead,” Sam snaps. “And it’s your fault. Your’s and your’s alone.”

“When I'm done with you, you’re going to wish you never met me.”

“I already do,” Sam seethes. 

You bitterly chuckle. “When I get out of here, you’re gonna see what a real betrayal is.”

-

The scene changes and you’re in the forest in Wakanda, you look around confused about the sudden change of scenery. Then you see it, Bucky dusting right in front of Steve, your name on Bucky’s lips as he fades away. 

“James,” Steve hears you call from somewhere nearby.

“James?” he hears again, this time more frantic.

“Steve, where’s James?” you pleadingly ask, finally walking into Steve's sight. Your face drops as soon as you see the look on his face.

“I’m so sorry,” Steve whispers.

A pained, devastated expression forms on your face. Your chest heaving like you can't breathe. "He's gone?"

"I need you to calm down," Steve pleads, winds howling around him. 

"We'll get them back- I swear to you- we will get them back, but right now I need you to calm down," Steve says, wrapping his arms around you. You're unable to contain the scream building in the back of your throat or the way your familiar powers rage against you. Wind begins whistling, clouds turning an eerie gray as your turmoil continues. Trees all around you begin to burst into flames, the violent winds making it all worse. The ground starts rumbling and with each sob large cracks form in the field you just fought on. "I need you to breathe. It'll be okay."

"He's gone," you sob again.

"Steve, what's going on?" Natasha says, surveying the new destruction around her.

"Bucky," Is all he says, his arms still wrapped around your convulsing body.

"Oh my God," she whispers, her heart breaking for you.

"You guys need to get out of here. She's lost control."

"What about you?"

"I'll be fine. She wouldn't hurt me."

"Maybe not on purpose, but if she's lost control..."

"I'll be fine. I just have to calm her down."

The scene fades once more. You’re not in this one, not at first. You see Bucky walk into the compound, eyes frantically searching for someone.

"Where is she?" Bucky says, craning his neck to look over Steve.

"Bucky..." Steve sighs, holding out his hand to stop Bucky

"Where is she?" Bucky demands more urgently.

"Buck..."

"Where is she?" Bucky shouts this time. "She's not...She can't be-"

"No, it's not like that. She's alive," Steve assures him, though it's not much of an actual reassurance. 

Bucky sighs in relief. "So where-"

"After you dusted, it was bad. Really bad. She burned down that entire forest."

"No," Bucky whispers. "She wouldn't do that."

"It was an accident. I knew that- I still know that. Once we got her calmed down, she couldn't do it. Be here without you."

"So she left the team?"

Steve lips pull in, unsure of how to explain to his friend the tumultuous days after the Snap. It wasn't fair, Steve knew that. Five years later, he was still pleading your case. But after the Snap, there was only one thing that the remaining government and SHIELD members could agree on: you couldn't be allowed to walk away. "That was the plan, but the government- SHIELD, they didn't want someone like her walking around, doing whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted."

"I won't ask again, Steve,” Bucky barks. “Where is she?"

"I'm sorry- I tried to talk them out of it. She wouldn't stay without you and they weren't going to let her leave."

Bucky approaches, what can really only be called a cell, slowly. He looks at you through the one-way mirror. You're in a straightjacket with that same collar, huddled up in a corner, humming to yourself. Etched on all the walls are little scratches, marks keeping track of your time there.

-

The scene fades again and this time you and Sam are on Vormir. 

The two of you listened to the explanation, a sacrifice had to be made. Sam looked down at you and nodded, pulling you into a tight embrace. You instinctively knew that this was him saying goodbye, that he was going to try and make the sacrifice himself.

When you pull away, you wipe away the stray tears and mumble, "I'm sorry."

"What?" he breathes. Your eyes flicker downward and he looks to see stone completely encapsulating his leg, rendering him almost completely motionless and most importantly, keeping him from making the sacrifice. “No, you can't do this. I will never forgive you if you do this,” he barks as you back away from him.

“And I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t,” you reply, standing at the edge of the cliff trying not to look down. “Take care of James for me. Tell him I love him.”

“I mean it,” Sam tries again, his voice cracking with desperation and helplessness. “I will never forgive you. Ever. I’ll hate you for the rest of my life. I swear it, I will hate you forever.”

“That’s okay,” you swallow, giving Sam one last tear-filled smile. “Love you, Sam.”

-

There’s other, shorter flickers. Like if Nick Fury hadn’t found you when he did, your hardened, embittered self on the run without a single ally, resource, or connection. 

-

“What is this?” you call out into the nothingness.

“It’s you. Different timelines. Alternate realities, whatever you’d like to call it,” Strange says, having reappeared by your side.

“I don’t understand. What does this mean? I’m…bad? I'm- what? Why did you show me this?” you anxiously demand.  

“It means you haven’t reached that choice. That choice that sways you one way or the other.”

“But what choice is it?” you ask, turning back around to face him. But you're just as suddenly back at the compound, Tony and Bucky arguing in front of you, Strange to the side of them like nothing happened.

“I can’t tell you," he replies simply, still mostly ignoring the two other men. "But you’ll know once it’s made.”

“That couldn’t have been more cryptic if you tried,” Tony snarks. 

“Doll, are you okay? What happened?” Bucky asks, frantically looking you over to make sure you’re unharmed.

“I don’t know,” you absently mumble, still staring at Dr. Strange.

“Don’t listen to him. He’s full of shit,” Bucky states, though he has no idea what you were shown, it could've been true or something dire, but he just knows you look completely rattled, and that he instinctively wants to make you feel better. 

The tension in the air is palpable as you keep thinking about what Dr. Strange just showed you.

“I don’t think he is,” you brokenly whisper.

Next Chapter

"Two Sides Of The Same Coin" Chapter List AnonymityIsFun Masterlist

#anonymityisfunwriter #anonymityisfun #grumpy sunshine trope #grumpy x sunshine #james buchanan barnes #james bucky barnes #bucky barnes #bucky #sam wilson #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky fanfic #bucky fic #bucky barnes fluff #bucky fluff #bucky barnes angst #bucky angst #bucky barnes x reader #bucky x female reader #bucky x y/n #bucky barnes x female reader #bucky reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes x y/n #x reader #inspired by taylor swift #reader insert #marvel fanfiction #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes au #safe and sound

[evelhak]

The ship bingo is very interesting... I would love to see KagaKuro done by the KagaKuro expert pretty please 🩵

The KagaKuro expert... My ego is very well fed.

It wasn't literally love at first sight... It was "koi no yokan" the feeling upon meeting someone that you will inevitably fall in love with them. If they had been able to listen to themselves carefully enough in the beginning, they would have known it, but they weren't, and in some paradoxical way that's what made their love possible, because they would have been too scared to know each other if the idea had been in their heads.

Bestest most OTP of my life second to nothing under or beyond the stars. No other pairing has punched me to the gut with the way they complement, not complete each other, to this extent, the way their story embodies the "I want to be with you even when I don't need to be with you" in other words, I've read so many love stories that never develop beyond co-dependency and their story explores what's beyond that and how much more a relationship can be when you need each other less. Or how much more love consists of looking together in the same direction than staring at each other. (Not that they don't do the latter as well, especially literally.) I have not exhausted my thoughts on them in over a decade, they are the deepest well to me.

The fandom hasn't ruined it as a whole, the fandom is mostly amazing and inspires me like nothing else I love you fandom. But because I get times I'm so desperate for new KagaKuro content I have sometimes read things I knew were not for me in any capacity and it took a lot of effort to erase the atrocities I saw from my mind. 🎶 "I know things now, many valuable things, that I hadn't known before... Isn't it nice to know a lot... And a little bit not".

Can we just call it canon... I literally sometimes forget that it's not canon and am surprised at the realisation that maybe the author doesn't see them together. A crazy thought. For real, I'm aware my reality is not other people's reality but I like mine very much. And you can too! I dare you! (That was said so gently and not at all demandingly.)

Yeah forget about three page essay it's a 900 000 word fic and my favourite joke with my translator friend right now is what will happen first... I hit million words or they finally have sex.

I... do want to smash them together like barbies. It took a long time to get to that mindset, but now that they're almost out of high school in my head, I'm going to challenge myself to writing sex eventually. It just seems like a natural progression.

Romeo and Juliet not really (and I have no clue what the rest of that even means) but there are definitely family members opposing their relationship, and some balconies, in various forms so I was just trying to get a bingo. (In vain.)

I want what they have in the sense that I never would have believed I would want my story centered around their relationship to become so huge for me that I would want it to be my magnum opus, my footprint in the world. But. Here we are. I don't so much want what they have as I want them to just keep doing whatever they do in my head because it gives me life.

Facebook status is complicated because it wasn't easy for them to tell their friends and family about their relationship. There were a lot of obstacles in the way before they ended up in a comfortable place.

I'm high just writing this.

#knb #kagakuro

[apparitionism]

Confection 2

Seeking to extend what little Christmas momentum I might have, as the new year breaks upon us, I offer the second part of my holiday story—I realized about two seconds too late that a better title here might have been “Seasoning,” so maybe keep that in mind as we proceed, if you’d be so kind. Both titles are applicable because this AU concerns the making of comestibles, both competitively and otherwise; Myka and Helena are chefs who’ll be competing against each other on a TV show—they also share an as-yet-unrevealed past, upon which this part will begin to draw back the curtain. Or lift the cloche, or whatever it is I mean. Anyway the setup will most likely be a bit more clear if you start with part 1.

Confection 2

Claudia had known she shouldn’t let Myka off the hook by giving her extra details: better to let her take just as much Helena-Wells-related rope as she needed from “know each other” to get to whatever hanging of herself she was going to do by speaking.

A good thirty seconds of dead-air rope spooled out, and Claudia was still thinking So far so spectacular—but Myka then said, “I do. I used to work for her.” Pretending, with totally unconvincing chill, that she was holding no rope at all.

“Really,” Claudia said, then shut up: another offer of metaphorical rope, for that metaphorical hanging.

Myka nodded. “At Chef Caturanga’s restaurant, Apples. But not for long.”

So much for the hanging. This was now running toward so far so frustrating. “I heard she’s super demanding,” Claudia tried.

Myka seemed to give that more consideration than necessary. “Well, that’s true,” she eventually said. Like she’d heard a lot of untrue things?

Whatever. Acknowledgement of “demanding” was helpful, if not spectacular. “Conflict,” Claudia enthused. “History of! You hate each other! That’s the story.”

“We hate each other,” Myka echoed. She followed that with, “The story.”

Claudia took that as confirmation. Building on it, she said, “So you worked for her. Tell me what that was like.”

Myka looked at Claudia as if she’d been asked to perform an interpretive dance about the recipes Helena Wells had demandingly insisted she follow. For a second, Claudia imagined being able to actually get that if she leaned in—she went so far as to inhale, prepping for a huge “dance, baby!” cheer that she could obviously never deliver—but then Myka shut her face down. She said a terse “Intense.”

“I need more than that,” Claudia said. She was actually kind of sad that interpretive dance wasn’t on the table. Or the menu.

Myka’s eyes held steady but a little unfocused, like she was searching her brain with the backs of her retinas, like she really would be able to find a file labeled “more than that” if she chunked through all her storage. Then the search ended: Myka shrugged and said, “I was so tired all the time. Except when she was looking over my shoulder.”

That actually seemed like a reasonable file to have found. “High stress,” Claudia said. “Fantastic. Did you have to be medicated? Get addicted to anything?”

“What? Of course not.”

Great, Claudia thought. She’s a “how dare you think that of me” tightass. But then she reminded herself, because it was necessary, No, she’s a saint. Get that buy-in, Claudia. She said—with true regret that she just knew was diseasing her karma—“Too bad. Audiences love addiction redemption stuff... but the hate’s almost as good. She’s evil, you’re righteous. You’re good with that, right?”

Not a week before, Claudia had said to Helena Wells, “So you’re evil and she’s righteous. You’re good with that, right?”

“If that’s the story,” Helena had said.

“If?” Claudia asked, sensing... something.

Helena had responded, “Yes. If.” In those two tiny words, she managed to sound magnanimous, hostile, and noncommittal—all at once. Claudia wanted lessons. “You should ask Chef Bering,” Helena advised. Or commanded. Or concluded.

Lessons.

And so Claudia had asked, but Myka’s response was a bit different: “Evil. Righteous. Is she? Am I?”

“That’s the story,” Claudia said, as innocently as she could. “Eyeballs stick to rivalries. Particularly between women, sad to say. And anyway a storyline’s easier for them to stick to—to connect with at all—than you weirdo chefs with your weirdo personalities. No offense.”

“Well,” Myka began, her face hardening.

Claudia, sensing she was losing any possible buy-in, proposed, “Look, women are way better weirdos. Dudes are just all alpha, which they are anyway, but then you put ‘chef’ in the mix and you know it’s bizarre that they get all chest-puffy about dressing their arugula better than Mister Other-Dude-Chef.”

“Mister Other-Dude-Chef?” Myka skepticked, with a raised eyebrow. But then, “Chest-puffy,” she said. And she laughed.

Bingo. “If you do this,” Claudia told her, “you’ll do okay. Better than okay.”

“I hope that’s true,” was Myka’s thoughtful, take-a-minute (still-no-rope) response.

Claudia knew that Myka didn’t have to hope: the story—the long-term story—was working in her favor. It was already pretty much set, in the absence of crazy to the contrary. But Claudia couldn’t tell her that.

Claudia was twenty-five years old, and she hated, some days, that she already felt like a veteran of all the wars. She wasn’t sure what she thought of how easily she could tell, now, the stories that would sell, or of how willing she was to sell them...

...but she knew what her job was. She wasn’t going to not do it, particularly not when she had this juicy Bering versus Wells story to work with—work with and sell. So she set to making it happen in a sellable way.

****

Steve says, “This is a special competition, one that will unfold over an unusually long day for our chefs. We’re asking, in each round, for essential parts of a traditional Christmas dinner—and no, not without the Christmas.”

He directs his gaze at each contestant in turn, and each look of challenge is followed by a responsive medium shot of each of them, looking variously confident (Wells, Sykes) and skeptical (Bering, Nielsen).

“We’re looking for creativity in your substitutions,” he continues, “and, of course, great taste in the dishes you present to the judges.” He then smiles in the direction of the panel. “Each judge has published a classic Christmas cookbook, so they have expertise in this arena. Welcome Irene Frederic, Vanessa Calder, and James MacPherson.”

The judges offer visages that are, in turn: severe, encouraging, and haughty.

Steve then notes, “One of our contestants, Chef Helena, isn’t new to the show; she’s returned to try for redemption after a disappointing second-place finish several months ago, during our Beef Wellington challenge. Will Santa grant her Christmas wish? Or will the other chefs say bah humbug to her hopes?”

****

It had begun to occur to Myka, upon Claudia Donovan’s reveal of Helena Wells as one of her competitors, that she might not win.

And “occur to” really meant “flatten,” while “might not” yielded to the creeping inevitability of “would probably not.”

Because Helena Wells was... Helena Wells.

That reality—the reminder of that reality—led Myka to think fully back to when she had, indeed, worked for Helena Wells. She tried not to do such thinking. It pained her, for it spoke less of what had happened than of what had not... for what had not happened had been the focus of more wishful thinking than did Myka any good to revisit.

Contrary to what Myka had implied to Claudia, the true intensity of that time had had nothing to do with cooking. Yes, her first service—also their first meeting, with a newly hired Myka on the line and executive chef Wells barking instructions in her ear—had of course been intense, but Myka had initially been frazzled simply due to being new. She’d had zero awareness of who was yelling at her about what she was doing wrong and how impossibly slowly she was doing it.

In a hot second, however, she had become aware, the voice bringing her up short, not because of its authority but because of it, and once she knew that frequency, it canceled out all others.

The voice at first, at first the voice, but as time passed, not only the voice...

Myka had always been attuned to the sensory aspects of food and its preparation; that sensitivity was what made her see the rightness of it as a life’s purpose, in defiance of all other expectations.

In the kitchen at Apples, however, she was increasingly conscious of becoming—and then of being, settling into being—similarly attuned to Chef Wells.

Myka additionally became attuned to the fact that Chef Wells, when presiding in the kitchen, engaged in a great deal of over-one’s-shoulder observation and instruction.

Leaning, speaking—and did she lean closer over Myka’s shoulder than other cooks’?

If Myka was imagining that, still she wished it were real and true.

But aside from any wish Myka might have had to know Helena Wells’s authoritative breath in her ear, against her neck, close close closer... whenever she was near Chef Wells, she felt the possibility of connection, something additional to, yet not apart from, breath and body. The sense was tentative, surely, the thread not fully pullable, not yet not yet. But making such things possible was what time was for.

It was. Wasn’t it?

Some moments had made her think the answer was yes.

Their first instance of palpable accord had happened early, early. Myka had come to the restaurant early, early, hoping to get a jump on prep—both actual, physical prep and her attitudinal adjustment to the rigor and speed of the kitchen. She’d been taking a moment, just for herself, breathing calm in the usually overwhelming space, but then came a surprise: Helena Wells had appeared, equally calm, equally early, early.

“You’re here early,” the chef said as she entered the empty, and thus cavernous and metallically echoing, kitchen. Stating the quiet obvious.

“So are you.” Stating it back. Was that too daring?

“Peace. I enjoy it.”

Myka couldn’t hold back another potentially daring observation: “You don’t make that obvious.”

Chef Wells smiled a very legible that-is-by-design smile, and she moved her right hand to tuck her hair behind her ear. But no—the hand merely pushed the hair in the ear’s direction, no tucking. Was the motion designed to tantalize an observer (this observer?), to make that observer wish for the ear to be revealed?

What was actually revealed to Myka in that moment came like a clout to the head: she had never seen Helena—no: Chef Wells, you’ve never seen Chef Wells—with her hair down.

Myka’s hair was down too. She couldn’t have anticipated any such shared intimacy in that early morning, but: “Do you eat breakfast?” she ventured, her confidence bolstered by the casual similarity.

“Occasionally,” Chef Wells said.

“Would you be willing to try something I’ve been working on? I brought it just for me, but there’s enough to taste.”

That was too daring, but the chef surprised her: “Of course,” she said. Not indulgently, but as if she were accustomed to granting Myka’s requests.

“Better if it hadn’t traveled,” Myka said; it was a self-protective backpedal, but also probably true, and Chef Wells would probably know it.

But the chef surprised her. “Don’t apologize for travel. I was a caterer, long ago, and... well. Transport.”

That invited Myka into the past, if only for a glimpse, and she did cast her mind that way, picturing Helena younger (picturing her “Helena,” speaking of daring) in a vest, a tie. Picturing her extending trays of small bites to insufficiently appreciative attendees of events.

Though the imagined sight pleased Myka, it was probably an inappropriate grasp at commonality. Vest, tie. Myka had worn them; she had extended trays.

But none featuring this bite: it was a base of butter-scrambled egg, glossed with a sheen of goat cheese, upon which were layered thinly sliced pickled strawberries. A mound of shaved raw asparagus topped the dish, and Myka had finished it with a scatter of porcini mushroom salt.

Myka watched the chef working through the flavors... no, she enjoyed the chef working through the flavors. The sight of her. Changes, microexpressions: their subtleties offered still more surprises, in this calm and early morning.

Chef Wells’s first comment was a considered, “Chèvre. I like that choice.”

“I thought about mascarpone,” Myka said. “But I wanted to limit the sweet.”

“Limiting the sweet? You pickled the strawberry. Another chef might have pickled the asparagus.”

“They might,” Myka said, even as she thrilled to the idea of this chef implying that Myka too held that rank. “But pickled fruit... I enjoy it.” She paused, for the microexpressions now being presented to her weren’t easy to read. Yet more daring: “You look like you’re thinking about whether you do. Or would. Or could. Are you?”

That won her a laugh. “I’m thinking about the brunch menu. We’re always seeking innovation there, and this dish could work. It’s so different. And I’ve served enough brunches to predict that the limited sweet would likely lead to orders of side sweet. And so I predict also that pastry will praise and curse your name in equal measure. May I recommend it to Caturanga?”

“That would be... something,” Myka said. She wasn’t at all clear on what she intended that “something” to mean.

“I’ll credit you of course,” Chef Wells said.

And she had. Caturanga himself had subsequently taken a moment to stop Myka in the kitchen and say, “Lovely dish. Eggs, strawberries! That pickle! Simply lovely! I’m delighted you gave Helena leave to bring it to my attention.”

When some weeks later Chef Wells murmured (over Myka’s shoulder, into her ear), “Praise and curse, equal measure, as prophesied. But brunch reservations happen to be up this month, surely due to you,” with what seemed like mirthful fellow-feeling, Myka had to talk herself down from an instant wild tension, an internal torque that begged to be released by a turn and a touch...

She tried to tell herself that any such thoughts were nothing but fantasy, luxuriously physical imaginings to occupy idle moments... not that she had many of those, so conjuring meaningful depth into her interactions with Chef Wells was a rare pleasure.

As this concatenation of memory washed over her, Myka thought also on Claudia’s “She’s evil; you’re righteous.” How, how and why, could Helena Wells be evil? Was Claudia confusing that with what Myka had known as imperious strength? They were emphatically not the same thing... but if Claudia was reporting right, what had happened in the time since Myka had left Apples?

She knew one thing that had happened, but only one: Helena had assumed ownership of Apples when Caturanga retired.

In the aftermath of the Claudia interview, dwelling on questions and causes, Myka had asked Pete, “Will we turn into terrible people once we have our own place?”

“Why would we?” he asked back.

“I don’t know. Because power?” It was the only corrupting influence she could imagine... but even that had to be wrong, for Chef Wells hadn’t seemed to enjoy wielding power so much as she had valued the way any power she had could push others to produce good work, and she pushed herself with equal force. When she cooked in the kitchen, everyone could barely keep from stopping to stare—to look and marvel—for they knew they were witnessing inventiveness and skill they should strive to emulate.

“Your eyes produce nothing,” Chef Wells would say, admonishing yet smirking.

But Myka hadn’t been so sure about that. Her own eyes, when directed at Chef Wells, seemed to produce a quickening of the blood in her body, a new and different heat.

“You do like to boss people around,” Pete said, bringing her back to earth.

“Is that evil?”

“Depends on if you’re actually their boss.”

That surprised Myka by sending her into thoughts of whose boss she might want to be (no kitchens involved) and whether that was evil or... well... greedy? Covetous? Yes, she concluded, all of that, and shockingly so. All right: so she’d come up with accurate words, but the thoughts themselves were supremely unuseful, so she tried to shut them down. Hard.

She mostly succeeded. But that was before she fully processed that she’d be seeing Chef Wells (Helena, the past-anchored part of her keened, you’ll be seeing Helena) in a matter of days... so she tried to shut them down harder.

This time, she didn’t succeed. Chef Wells, she tried to repeat in her head, Chef Wells... then, Oh, stop, she told herself, acknowledging at last: Helena. This is all about Helena.

TBC

#bering and wells #Warehouse 13 #fanfic #Confection #part 2 #AU week #holiday (but not yet Gift Exchange) #I can't conceive of a universe in which these two don't spark with great immediacy #that's probably a failure of imagination on my part #but I'm content to live in this shortcoming #(that of course isn't to say they necessarily get together with great immediacy in all such universes) #anyway 'make them wait' is a good motto to live by #whether 'them' refers to the audience #or to the principal players

[parcequecestnotreprojeeeet]

Anon's #2 beautifully sad story made me think of another example where someone did something despicable. Read it for yourself. Your Strawberry

The book

He knocked briefly and then entered her office. Three pairs of eyes looked at him. "I read your message," he explained. She nodded. "Would you excuse us, please?" he turned to her two co-workers. They immediately stood up and left the room. She could literally feel his anger and when the door had closed, he formulated, stunned, "This can't be serious." "Yes, she is," she said quietly. "I can't believe it. What is she trying to achieve? What does she want to write anyway?" he turned to her. "A novel about us," she brought laboriously to her lips. "Because she knows so much about us," he added sarcastically. "That's just beyond belief." He ruffled his hair and paced restlessly. "How can anyone be so hypocritical. She tells you she's your friend and then she plunges a dagger in your back about publishing a book." At that moment he realised how little she had said since he had entered the room. "What do you say to that?" he asked demandingly.

For the first time since he had entered the room, he looked at her properly and took notice of her consciously. As he did so, he realised how distraught she seemed. She was looking at him, but seemed to be looking through him. He noticed how she was breathing shallowly and how she was holding on to the armrests of the chair with her hands. He could literally feel how shaken she was. Concerned, he approached her and squatted down in front of her. "Look at me," he asked softly, feeling her eyes search his. "Breathe in and out slowly." Then he touched her ice-cold hands. "Let go," he begged again, and immediately grasped her hands as she loosened them. Without another word, he rose, grasping her hips as he did so and pulling her tightly against him. Reassured, he felt her return his embrace and lean her head against his shoulder.

He heard her whisper. "I can't take any more and I don't want to. We can't trust anyone." The pain in her voice was unmistakable. He stroked her back. "I don't want anyone to write about us. I don't want us to be talked about. I don't want our relationship exposed." "I know," he said with a sigh. In a tear choked voice she added, "It will never stop." "Please don't cry," he pleaded. "What can we do?" she asked desperately. "I will talk to my counsellors and find a solution, but you must calm down."

He pushed her slightly away from him and grasped her shoulders. She sought his gaze. "You need to stop obsessing over this," he said sternly. "You are not alone. We've been through and survived everything together until now. This woman will not succeed in bringing us to our knees." He paused and continued, "This," he touched her tear-stained cheeks with one finger, "is not you. You're not going to let this get you down because someone wants to write a book about us. It's not the first and it won't be the last." He clasped her chin and held her face so that she had to look at him. "You are brave, strong and confident. A rebel doesn't give up when she's come this far. You don't give up!" he insisted.

With a small smile, she asked him, "I need you to hug me again to give me some of your strength." Grinning, he complied with her request, for he realised that his words had helped. She had regained her composure. Again he stroked her back and thought about what he would do next.

Hellooo sweet 🍓! ❤️

Aaww such a touchy piece 🥺 The bitch playing Brigitte’s friend and then just writing a book for the fame and money 😤

Yes, they really can’t trust anyone... other than each other ❤️

Emmanuel’s strength, maybe even when he’s on the edge of breaking too, just for Brigitte, to reassure her, to make her feel good... no words are enough to describe this love and connection 🤧❤️

Thank you so much, Strawberry! ❤️❤️❤️

#fanfic #strawberry

[juminly]

hello! may i please have number 3 with fenrir, marius, or diluc - sfw or nsfw - for the kiss event? thank you ❣️

A breathy demand: “Kiss me” - and what the other person does to respond.

Marius Von Hagen - Tears of Themis Your fever wasn't going down and you sounded 'beautifully awful', according to Marius. So, expected from your adoring boyfriend, he dropped everything he had, cancelled all meetings just to be by your side. There was nothing more important to him than you and he would never pass up the chance to show you that.

It's only been what? A few months since you've started dating but Marius treated you like a queen, as if you were truly the center of his universe, but not in an overly obssessive yandere way, but in that simpy 'You're my Goddess' way of his. So being his Goddess meant that you could ask him for absolutely anything and he would buy it for you, get it for you or do it for you. It's all completely and entirely yours the moment a request or a wish left your lips.

Sitting at your bedside, Marius couldn't stop staring at you. Your nose so red from blowing your nose way too much and too hard, your sniffles nonstop and your cheeks flushed red from the fever that still wouldn't break. Despite all of that, you looked absolutely beautiful to him.

"You wanna say something, baby. I can tell." When Marius lifted an inquisitve eyebrow at you, you raised one of your own. "You've been staring at me for the past hour ever since I started playing this show. My fever doesn't dull my sight."

Marius let a little chortle escape him, knowing how sometimes the depth of how infatuated he was with you could be awfully obvious. "I never thought I was that easy to read." He punctuated his words with a flirtatious smile. "But maybe I'm such an open book when it comes to you, Y/N."

"Just spit it out, Marius." You giggled, squeezing the hand he had in yours. "I'm only gonna be awake for so long till I suddenly collapse. Now's your chance."

"Okay then." He leaned closer, bright amethyst locked your gaze in his, so beautiful you could get lost in them, before they drifted slowly to yours lips as he breathed demandingly. "Kiss me, Y/N."

You pressed your index over his lips, narrowing your gaze at him with silent scrutiny, not having to use your words for him to understand what you were thinking.

"But I really want to kiss you, baby." He spoke against your finger, giving it a soft kiss while he was at it.

"No means no, pretty boy. I don't want you getting sick." Scolding was never really a tactic that was effective with your boyfriend because somehow, it only spurred him on further.

“Calling me pretty boy won’t make me wanna kiss you any less. If anything, it makes me wanna kiss you more.” Marius grinned, fully knowing that he was going to get his way no matter what you said.

“And you’re just gonna leave out the part where I said I’m sick?”

”I have chosen to selectively listen to what I want and right now, I’m gonna do exactly what I want too.”

"You're really not going to let this go, are you?" Why did you even bother asking him a question that you already knew the answer to? It was a fight you had already lost. There was no stopping him the moment he set his mind to something.

"Come here, you." You clicked your tongue, the smile on your lips showing the opposite of what should be reticence when Marius smirked triumphantly, inching closer to you to press his lips against yours.

Pretty boy gets what he wants. Not almost all the time, but always. Every damn time.

Fenrir Godspeed- Ikemen Revolution

Erupting with laughter with a loud splash, Fenrir pulled you into the water fountain, you squealing as you fell in right by his side, both of you completely drenched and drunk in the middle of Cradle at midnight. Empty streets were filled with your rambunctious and contagious giggles and snorts, if anyone saw you, they would immediately think...

Fools in love. Simply, absolute idiots.

When your laughter finally subsided, your backs on the statue spurting water around you, both of you sighed happily, a series of fortunate events bringing you to where you were in that moment. Having lost the other Black Army soliders in your drunken haze, Fenrir was glad that you ended up alone with him and not anyone else. It's nothing that he's thought about for very long but he experienced something he hasn't with anyone else before you.

His mind has been lagging on the thought of you. Impulsive or not, he decided he was going to act on it, not wasting a second sitting back when he could simply just seize the moment. Turning his head to look, you found yourselves staring into each other's eyes with so much more fondness that what friends would share yet neither of you had spoken a word of it before.

"Y/N?" Breaking through the silence between you, he shifted in the water so his body could face you, gulping as he swallowed the sudden nervousness he felt, despite feeling his entire body filled with so much boldness.

"Mhm?"

"I haven't thought this through and man, I might just be really drunk but I know now that I really like you and I've... - He took a long breath as he rambled on, his carmine pink eyes fleeting from your eyes to your lips over and over, his body instinctively drawing closer to yours as he spoke. "I've been thinking about you all the time and I couldn't figure out why. I just thought it was because you were just new here but I just really wanna kiss you right now.

"What are you waiting for then?" Your interest in Fenrir had always been there yet you didn't think much of it, when you thought he was too taken by combat and training and not you. But now you knew, you were mistaken and you wanted to give in to the feeling that had been tingling inside you. Mirroring his body, you placed your hands over his thighs, leaning towards him so you could meet halfway. You smiled playfully, drunk on the anticipation of what was to come, breathing lightly against his lips. "Kiss me."

Wild, his kiss was, his lips ravaging yours while his tongue explored your mouth ravenously, making you moan lightly into the kiss while his hands gripped your waist tightly, urging you forward as you linked your arms around his shoulders, fingers entangled in his tousled hair. Neither of you caring that you were sitting in the pool of a water fountain, completely doused but too captivated by one another to let anything else but this moment, this kiss matter.

#ikerev #tot #ikemen revolution #tears of themis #lu jinghe #fenrir godspeed #lu jinghe x reader #marius von hagen #fenrir #fenrir x reader #marius von hagen x reader #ikemen revolution fenrir #tears of themis x reader #tears of themis marius #tot marius von hagen #tot imagines #tears of themis fanfic #ikerev fenrir #kiss event #tot lu jinghe #ikerev x reader #tot x reader

[interlagosed]

hello this is cat!lando fic. enjoy.

--

The sun filtered brightly through the curtains. They had gone undrawn because of the distractions of the night prior, and now the sun had found its way directly onto Carlos’ closed eyelids. He groaned and considered going back to sleep, but the promise of a warm body beside him drew him from the clutches of slumber. Carlos yawned and stretched.

“Buenos dias, mi vida,” he murmured, turning over to take Lando into his arms. Only, when he turned and reached his arms out, there was no one beside him.

Eh?

Carlos opened his eyes and was even more confused. It was rare, indeed, for Lando to awaken before Carlos. Perhaps he got a call from home?

Seized by the fear that Lando might have been drawn out of bed because of bad news from home, Carlos flung himself out of bed, quickly donned a pair of sweatpants, and poked his head into their en suite bathroom.

“Lando?”

Nothing in response. No one. Carlos frowned and headed downstairs.

“Lando?”

Nothing. And, even more confusingly, no one. They had other rooms in the house, but those were utterly unused. Other than Lando’s streaming room - but he was not going to be using that room until they, eventually, revealed themselves as lovers, as married. Still, he poked his head in there. Nothing!

“Ay, mi vida, where are you?”

He looked out one of the windows. The car they used most frequently was still in the driveway! The garage: all the cars were there. Pacing, his heart hammering a terrible rhythm, Carlos ran upstairs to find his phone and called Lando, walking back downstairs as he waited, anxious.

Nothing. Except-

He heard a distant vibration. Carlos followed the sound as best as he could. He triangulated its source as the living room. Carlos walked back into the room they used most frequently and froze.

A cat. Perched on the couch. Staring at him. Glaring at him.

Carlos stared back. What the f-

The cat mewled demandingly, its tail flicking sharply from side to side. Carlos slowly approached it, hanging up the phone call for the moment. The cat didn’t stop glaring at him. In fact, as he approached, the cat meowed again, and for some reason that sound made him hurry towards the small creature. It was a tabby cat, slightly smaller than a standard adult of the same breed, with a little dark squiggle across its forehead. Its eyes were hazel, odd for a cat, and it looked, for all the world, like it was scowling at him.

“We,” Carlos said, “do not have a cat.”

“Mrow.”

“How did you get in here…?” Carlos murmured, looking around at the windows. They were all closed. The garage door had been closed shut too. This was shaping up to be a weird day. Carlos crouched down to examine the cat further. He gave it his knuckles to sniff, but instead, the cat just nuzzled his hand entirely. That was sweet. It extended its neck, and Carlos could see no collar. A stray? But it looked very put-together for a stray, well-kept and groomed.

“This is insane,” Carlos mumbled. “I have lost my husband, but I have somehow found a cat. But how-“

The cat meowed insistently, butting its head against Carlos’ knuckles. Carlos chuckled a little despite himself. “You want attention, no?” Carlos murmured, scratching the cat’s chin. It started purring loudly. Its expression was deeply satisfied. Adorable. Oddly reminiscent of-

Ay, no. That would be ridiculous. That would be absurd. Such things did not happen.

Except.

How did the cat get in there? And where on earth was Lando?

“Okay, mi amigo gato,” Carlos said, running a knuckle over the cat’s forehead. “I am going to say something. You will think I am silly. Well. You will probably think nothing, because you are a cat.”

The cat opened its eyes and meowed in protest. Such striking eyes. “Okay, okay. Maybe you are able to think, eh?”

Carlos took a deep breath, feeling oddly nervous. “Are you…are you my Lando?”

He immediately felt extremely stupid. And yet, the cat began purring loudly. Carlos’ eyes widened. No. It was just random. Out of nowhere. Cats purred! And he was scratching it still. So he stopped, and the cat made a little disgruntled noise, but it stared at Carlos. Oh, dios, its eyes…they were such a familiar color.

“If…if you are Lando,” Carlos said, feeling very stupid, “will you…do something that Lando would do?”

The cat stared at him. Then, it hopped onto its hind legs, balancing its forepaws against Carlos’ chest, and stretched its head out to lick Carlos’ cheek. And then it bit his cheek.

Carlos yelped and scrambled backwards. The cat, off-balance, toppled over and caught itself semi-gracefully on all-fours. It- no, he because surely this cat was Lando, and there was no way Carlos couldn’t see it now: the squiggly markings that looked like a tuft of curls, the unsettlingly accurate eye color, the cat’s very demeanor and expressions: Lando.

But how the hell?

The cat- Lando chirruped accusingly, and Carlos, hand on his heart, approached him again. He knelt and stroked Lando’s…fur. Lando mewled pitifully, and Carlos’ heart broke.

"Ay, Lando, how did we get into this mess?"

Then Carlos scooped him up and held him close, and Lando purred so loud and content that there was no denying it: Lando had turned into a cat.

Mierda.

“Okay, mi amor,” Carlos murmured, nuzzling the crown of Lando’s little head, “We will figure this out. Somehow. Yes?”

He made a noise that felt oddly like yeah, we freaking better.

Well, Lando had become a very good communicator. Perhaps that was a boon here.

Carlos paused. Lando was mouthing at his chest hair.

“Okay, querido, this is weird with you being a cat, eh?”

Some moments later found Carlos having retrieved a can of tuna and placing it before his husband-cat (cat-husband?). He sat on the ground in front of Lando and thought about his options.

Who could he even go to? What would he even say?

“Is this like a true love kiss thing?” he wondered out loud. Lando looked up at him, licking his chops. He tilted his head and Carlos sighed. “Yes. That is stupid. I know. But…maybe it is a curse, no?”

Lando stared even more incredulously. Carlos glared back. “I am trying my best, Lando!”

Then he winced and said, “It is weird calling you Lando. Okay. Can I come up with a name for you?”

“Mrr!”

“I will come up with something good, okay? I promise.”

“…meow.”

That sounded like ambivalence. Carlos scooped Lando up and carried him to the kitchen. All of this excitement had him starving. And he needed an espresso. As he set about his chores, he called aloud some options.

“How about Catdo?”

Lando yowled a loud protest, and Carlos held his hands up defensively. “Ay, this is only the first attempt, mi vida. Er. Meow vida?”

Lando walked over and nipped Carlos’ fingers, nearly forcing him to drop the espresso. “Ow! Okay, okay, fine. Land…purr? Landpurr?”

Lando arched his back and hissed at Carlos, his eyes screaming offense. Carlos rolled his eyes, muttering, “You try coming up with these on your own, yes, and we shall see what you come up with. I would be Clawlos, of course.”

Two hazel eyes narrowed at him. Carlos sighed. “Okay. Nothing with Lando. What about…Meowrris? Lando Meowrris! That is cute, eh?”

The cat paused for a moment, considering. Then, to Carlos’ great relief, he purred. Carlos cheered and raised his little cup to Lando. “Lando Meowrris it is!”

Lando Meowrris nuzzled his knuckles with his wet little nose, and Carlos was suddenly overcome with sadness. He sighed and leaned against the counter, kissing Lando Meowrris’ head. “You are very cute,” he said, “but I wish I could kiss you. As a human. No offense. I was really worried, you know?”

An apologetic mewl. Carlos smiled a little and let Lando Meowrris sniff his espresso. “It is not your fault, pequeño. You were probably as surprised as me, no?”

Lando Meowrris mewled again, and then crawled up onto Carlos’ shoulder, carefully curling up against his neck. He purred loudly, and Carlos couldn’t help but chuckle. “You are very cute, at least,” he said, before sighing loudly. “Okay. I am lost. And you are also. I think we need to just…stay in today, yes? And try to calm down. Maybe then we will come up with some solutions.”

If there were any. But Carlos didn’t voice that part out loud. At least he had his husband in some sense.

Lando Meowrris followed Carlos around the rest of the day. He perched up on the washing machine as Carlos loaded in some clothes, grumbling, “Very convenient, eh? Turns into a cat so he doesn’t have to do his turn with the laundry…”

In fairness, he did look incredibly smug.

While Carlos showered, and for much of the day thereafter, actually, Lando Meowrris groomed himself rather meticulously. It was incredibly silly to watch him with one hind leg flung up in the air beside his head, but Carlos learnt to keep his chuckles to himself after the first two times his cat-husband nipped his ankle for the impudence. Though he couldn’t resist the urge to compliment the cat’s “lovely, glossy fur, Lando Meowrris, very good!”

Luckily, his only rebuke was a half-hearted glare, the effect mostly ruined by Lando Meowrris’ subtle purrs.

The rest of the day, however, was spent mostly…chilling, really. Carlos had gotten accustomed to having a cat around. He did miss Lando’s human body, but then Lando Meowrris would do something so undeniably Lando that he didn’t have to pine after Lando’s personality at the very least. And somehow, before they knew it, night had fallen.

“Movie, meow vida?”

“Mrrrrrrow!”

“Ow! Sorry! It is very hard to resist calling you that, okay? Maybe you will understand when I turn into a cat.”

“Mrr.”

Still, despite his annoyance, Lando Meowrris was quite vocal about what movie he wanted to watch. They ended up settling on Stardust, which felt oddly appropriate though Carlos could not quite place why. Carlos worked his way through a bowl of popcorn as Lando settled down on his chest, curled up tiny and precious. Carlos scritched his little crown. So soft. Lando Meowrris was a warm weight on Carlos’ chest, and the constant, light purring had an oddly sedative effect. Despite what should have been an utterly stressful day, Carlos felt…relaxed. As he nodded off, a sleeping cat on his chest, Carlos considered how odd it was that he had fed his Lando two full meals that consisted entirely of fish.

One perk of my husband being a cat, I guess…

What an odd thing to think. // Carlos couldn’t breathe. His chest was constricted, his lungs tight, the airflow hard to come by. He tried gulping in oxygen but it was no use. His eyes shot open and he tried to sit up, but even that was hard, because-

“Lando?!”

Lando - human! With hair just on his head! And clothes! - looked up at him, drowsy, then sat up and yowled in alarm. And Carlos screamed.

“Ay, dios, you are- you are human again!”

“Mrro- wait, what the fu-“

Carlos threw his arms around Lando and hugged him tightly, kissing his face, his cheek! His human cheek with human skin! “I can’t believe you’re back,” Carlos whispered, oddly emotional. It had been, actually, quite a ridiculous day. But…

“D-did that really happen?” Lando said, his voice sounding oddly hoarse. He stole the words right out from Carlos’ mouth. Then, he coughed. And then he hacked, rubbing his throat. “My throat-"

“Hairball?” Carlos offered. Lando glared at him, but then his eyes widened, and he promptly got off Carlos’ lap and ran to the bathroom where he had, possibly, the worst vomit of his life. Carlos couldn’t bear it; he just rubbed Lando’s back and averted his eyes.

It was still the middle of the night, and Lando complained that he was starving, so Carlos set about making him proper human food. There was silence between them. Both of them were trying to process what had just transpired.

“We,” Carlos began, quietly, “can never tell anyone this.”

“Who would freaking believe us?” Lando muttered, licking then rubbing his face with the back of his hand. He froze and stared at his hand and scowled. Carlos pretended not to have seen. “Yeah, no. We’re not telling anyone. Promise?”

“Promise.”

Then Carlos turned to Lando and hugged him close again, breathing him in. Lando melted in his embrace, making a soft little noise that didn’t sound unlike a mewl. But then, that sound was quintessentially Lando in - apparently - all his manifestations.

“I missed you,” Carlos murmured. Lando smiled and nuzzled his jaw. That was another Lando-ism.

“What did you miss?”

Carlos sighed, cupped Lando’s cheeks, and said, “Mostly this,” before kissing Lando’s lips long and deep.

#hibi writes #carlando #carlando au #carlando crack fic #carlando fic #f1 rpf #f1 slash

[ichor-and-symbiosis]

Obedient. (Shigaraki x f!Reader; NSFW)

Commission for @kazooli​.

Shigaraki knows you are upset. Not that he needs to use his intuitive perceptiveness to notice your downtrodden mood -- you are, and always will be, an open book of emotions. 

You try to be on your best behavior. You always try. Nobody needs to see their teammate moping around the decrepit hideout when everyone has their own problems to deal with. It could always be worse, you tell yourself. And you need to stay strong for your leader. 

But he knows. Finds you pouting on the ripped up sofa, even though you are the one who should come to him when called. You look up at him with your doe-eyed, downtrodden expression, and Shigaraki’s expressionless eyes sweep over you before walking past. Your gaze lingers on his broad back, wishing you could reach out and grasp the fabric of his coat just to keep him around a little longer. 

He pauses in front of the door. “Come with me,” he commands, and you are on your feet before you even think to ask why or where you are going.

-

The exhilaration of walking by your leader’s side through winding streets is enough to keep your mouth shut. Better to be quiet for now, anyway. Better to move like a shadow, like Shigaraki’s shadow. It must be a mission. You keep your eyes and ears sharp and primed, ready to take on the next challenge. 

Until Dabi’s words ring through your mind and you feel yourself deflating all over again.

Shigaraki pays no attention to you. He leads and leads, guides you towards a destination only he knows, and you are grateful for the chance to simply follow. You try not to question him when he stops at a food stall. Two orders of takoyaki, spoken with a quiet, serious request. Your stomach grumbles and you grip it in embarrassment. When was the last time you ate?

The worker holds out your meal. Shigaraki looks at you expectantly, and you realize he wants you to take it. And you do, rushed and mousy as you thank the worker, and then you spend the next minute mentally berating yourself for saying thank you at all. You are a villain. Why would you thank a random nobody? You should be thanking your leader instead. And you do.

He offers a grunt and keeps walking. Your heart flutters at the sound. 

You end your journey on a rooftop. The building is not familiar to you, and you doubt Shigaraki knows it either. A random building with a roof that smells like asphalt and cigarettes. You take a deep breath as the wind wafts the takoyaki steam toward you, and your stomach growls demandingly. 

You wedge yourselves into a narrow space, hidden from surveillance or anyone who may come onto the roof. Your only view is that of Shigaraki sitting across from you and you are perfectly okay with that. Very okay with that, in fact, especially since his legs are forced to bend and rest on either side of you. Your only choice is to sit cross-legged for his comfort, and you try your very best to avoid staring at his crotch.

It’s right there in front of you. He just brazenly has his legs spread out and brushing along your knees and you shove the takoyaki into your drooling mouth to keep yourself occupied. All you would need to do is bend forward, and it wouldn’t be the takoyaki in your mouth anymore. It would be something else entirely, something musky and warm and solid, and you squirm in your spot as heat pools below your belly. 

Shigaraki silently eats the first stick of takoyaki and sets the box aside. You pause your eating and wait, because he has that pensive look in his eyes right now. His arms are limp and resting on his knees, and you allow yourself to admire his beautiful hands. Beautiful to you, long and slender fingers, blue veins peeking through pale skin, oh how desperately you want him to touch you - 

“So.” The word hangs in the air between you. You stare at him, obediently waiting for him to continue. He doesn’t look at you. “What happened.” 

“U-um … “ You wrack your brain as your anxiety builds. Did you do something wrong? Were his plans compromised? “I’m sorry, I don’t - “ 

“You’ve been looking like a kicked dog all day.” 

“Oh.” You muster up a weak smile. “It’s nothing serious. Maybe I was just hungry, or … you know. Present circumstances and all that.” 

“Don’t lie to me.” 

Perceptive. You don’t want to burden him. It really was such a silly disagreement with Dabi. “Really, it’s - “

He says your name. You look at him, transfixed by his solemn stare. His eyes are sharp, commanding. “Tell me.” 

And you do. Nothing at first, trapped in your throat, and then all at once.

“Dabi is just such an asshole,” you blurt out, and Shigaraki’s snort encourages you to word vomit. “He took me with him on a scouting mission and things didn’t go as planned and he kept blaming me! He said it was my fault and that - and that I’m … useless.” Your head hangs in shame as you stare hard into your lap. “He said I’m useless and that the League doesn’t need me. So I’ve been thinking all day about that. If I wasn’t useful to society and I’m not useful to the League, then ... “ You don’t know where your trail of thought was going. “I don’t want to feel useless,” you whisper. “I don’t want to hold anyone back. I don’t want to waste your time like - like right now.” 

Shigaraki waits for you to finish. He looks a little surprised. “That’s a lot.”

Your mouth gapes like a fish before you shut it tight and dig your nails into your thighs, hoping the pain would counteract your burning embarrassment threatening to swallow you whole. “Sorry. I talk a lot.” 

He eyes you with a calculated expression while you silently flounder in your awkwardness. “Come here,” he suddenly says, and your confusion makes him grow impatient. “Turn around. Back to my front.” He motions to the space between his legs. “Right here, puppy girl.” 

You nearly choke on your gasp.

Your body moves mechanically, too stunned by shock to make your body look anything other than enticing. You sit as he directed, back to his front, and wrap your arms around your knees as you try to calm your breathing. A gap remains between you, because there is no way Shigaraki would want you pressed up against him, except he does and you let out a startled squeak when he places his arms beneath your thighs, spreads your legs over his, and makes you lean back onto him. 

“What are you doing?” you breathe out, heart stammering in your chest as you soak up his body heat and pray to god that this moment will never end. 

“Testing out your obedience,” he off-handedly comments, and your clothed cunt immediately becomes flooded from the vibrations of his voice, the low rumble so close to your ear. His hands move to grip your forearms, and you jolt at the contact, all wired up with frayed nerves and anticipation. “I want to know what makes you think I’m wasting my time here.” 

“W-we’re talking about me.” 

“Yeah. And you know what I learned?” His mouth is close to your ear now. You shiver at the feeling of his breath tickling your skin. “I learned that you’re not at the top of your game right now. You’re drowning - “ He taps a finger to your temple. “ - from all of these fuzzy little thoughts in your head. And I can’t have an obedient puppy girl if she’s thinking too much.” 

“I - “ 

“Quiet.” One hand cups your throat, middle finger poised over your pulse. The hold is firm and encompassing around your neck. It makes you tremble with desire. “We have to get rid of those thoughts, don’t we?” His other hand brazenly cups your mound, and you let out the most pathetic sound of your life. “There’s a lot of ways to release pent up feelings,” he continues conversationally, fingers delving past the waistband of your bottoms. “I’m feeling charitable enough to help you out.” 

Your endless stream of thoughts fizzle out as soon as he finds your swollen clit. “Thank you,” you sob, gripping his arm and gyrating your hips for more of his touch. “Thank you, thank you, thank you - “ 

The hand at your throat moves up to cover your mouth. “Shhh.” Fingertip moves lower, runs itself through the slickness oozing out of your tight heat. “Relax.” You whimper brokenly, slump back against him as he rubs your clit in feather-light strokes. His hand moves from your mouth and rests on your temple, fingers buried in your hair. “This is what you’re good for.”

Shigaraki is not an expert by any means. Sometimes he loses his momentum, rubs too hard or too slowly, doesn’t really know how to set a proper pace. But you have never felt more wet before. Never has your heart raced this quickly, never has a simple touch driven you to mindless pleasure. 

He plunges inside you unexpectedly, shushing you once more as you let out a wordless cry, and even through the pain of being stretched far too soon, you feel your pussy loosen to accommodate your beloved leader’s thick fingers. He works you open good and proper, thorough in his thrusting, forcing you to take him down to the last knuckle. You lie there and take it, moaning and writhing in his lap as he fucks your sloppy cunt. 

“Just let it all out,” he murmurs in your ear. “It’s not good to keep the bad shit locked away inside. Or else one day … “ His fingers ease out of your pussy and leave a trail of juices clinging to his fingertips. You try your best not to whine as he brings his fingers up for inspection. “ … It’s all gonna come pouring out.” 

You don’t know what he is trying to do. You don’t know what he wants from you when his fingers tap against your bottom lip, but your mouth falls open all the same to let him smear your juices onto your tongue. A pathetic, desperate whimper escapes as you taste yourself on his fingers. And you taste him. Your leader’s fingers are buried in your warm mouth and your stretched cunt contracts from dizzy exhilaration. 

Your tongue licks away the evidence of your arousal, and for one delirious moment you think you hear Shigaraki hum in approval. He pops the digits out of your mouth and you begin to ramble before you can stop yourself. “Y-you don’t … have to do this,” you shyly stutter, cheeks burning from shame as his hand drops back between your trembling thighs. “I was being dumb, I’ll get over it, you d-don’t have to worry about me like this - “ 

You break off into a choked gasp as he traps your clit between two fingers and slowly runs them up and down. 

“It’s fine,” he murmurs, lets your head fall back onto his shoulder. “A leader takes care of his subordinates.” 

A burst of emotions burns your chest at the statement. How could something sound so detached yet intimate? You wonder what this means to him. You wonder if he’s done this for anyone else. The very thought of it makes tears well up behind your closed eyelids, but you do not let them fall. This is your special moment with your leader. Here and now, he chose to take care of you. You focus on those words instead, focus on how full they make you feel, just as his fingertip rubs your soaked entrance and slips back inside with ease. 

“Just trust me,” he murmurs. “I’m gonna train this greedy puppycunt to only think about me.”

Shigaraki keeps talking. He is so, so chatty, and it is hard to focus on his monologuing through the sound of your wet pussy being played with so thoroughly and invasively. You bury your face in his neck to stifle the whiny demands on the tip of your tongue, ignoring your monumental need for him to stop talking and just kiss you. It’s a selfish thought. Your leader is speaking to you. You should listen, you should let him take care of you, you have to trust him, you have to chase the high and let go, just as he always does on the battlefield. 

“You’re doing so well for me.” 

A heavy pit of pleasure builds deep within. 

“Always so obedient.” 

The thumb buried in your hair strokes slowly. 

“My favorite puppy.”

Your pussy clenches, fighting to suck him in and keep him inside. 

“Mine.” 

You come with a shrill keen, trembling and shaking through your orgasm as Shigaraki’s fingers pump in and out, squelching and sloshing your juices as loudly as he can. Your mind is adrift, completely gone. All you can do is lay limp in his arms and breathe heavily, letting him settle your underwear back over your messy cunt. 

There is silence for a moment. Only the sound of your breathing. His hand settles over the top of your head properly this time, ruffling your hair in a movement that might have been accidental if not for the fact that Shigaraki never makes mistakes. “I like you like this,” he says. “No thoughts or worries. Just a properly trained cunt and an obedient subordinate.” You smile a little at that. If only he knew how badly you wanted to be used by him. “I decide who’s useful to me, not Dabi. You’re around for a reason, got it?” 

Your heart aches with happiness. “Yes sir. I’m yours.” 

#shigaraki tomura #shigaraki x reader #shigaraki/reader #shigaraki tomura/reader #shigaraki tomura x reader #i can't believe this isn't problematic #just some finger fuckin goodness and reader pining #i also can't believe i finally finished a fic

[bukojuiice]

You got questions, I got answers tonight, babe.

ೃ pairing: (pro hero! katsuki bakugo x pro hero! fem reader)

ೃ  warnings: nsfw (18+)

ೃ genre: smut

ೃ word count: 2,139 words

ೃ  my nav  →  my mha writing masterlist  → my katsuki bakugo x reader smau

  ೃ  shoto’s valentines fic → izuku’s valentines fic  → virtual valentines hcs 

ೃ  please reblog, reply or leave like if you enjoyed! it means a lot! c:

ೃ song inspo: love by dean ft. syd

ೃ you and the bakusquad drag bakugo to a short vacation after such an intense week of hero work, much to his annoyance. however, his stress and pent up energy was more than you expected, so you knew exactly how to release all his frustrations.

After an intense first week of Pro Hero activities, you were given a 5 day rest period. The Bakusquad had a wonderful idea of going on a short vacation to Okinawa before you guys have to face reality again.

You practically dragged your boyfriend, Bakugo to come along as he had second thoughts and didn’t want to ruin his so called “villain streak” by taking a well-deserved rest and relaxation when he could just continue fighting off villains.

Kirishima, Kaminari, Mina, and Sero were so excited for this trip that they could not shut up about it. In turn, Katsuki was more irritated than usual as you take the plane ride there. He was forced to go on this trip after all.

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

You had arrived late in afternoon and the first thing that you guys do as soon as you arrive at the hotel was dropping the bags in your respective hotel rooms. You and Bakugo were in one room while everyone else had separate rooms entirely to themselves.

Before you could even take a full look at the room you were staying in, your pink-haired friend came knocking on the door.

“(Y/N)-chan!” Mina spoke from behind the door, her gleeful voice ever so echoing. “We’ll meet you two at the swimming pool lounge okay? We’ll be ordering food already!”

“Alright! We’ll see you later Mina-chan!” You shout back, and as soon as Mina heard your words of confirmation, you could hear her footsteps as she walks away.

Bakugo continues to rummage through his things, cursing under his breath.

“Is there something wrong?” You ask him sweetly, poking his cheek. “Look, Katsuki-kun… you need to rest. It’s been an intense week, even the Hero Commission wanted us to-“

“Yea. Yea. I get it. Let’s go to the lounge.” He says harshly. He leaves the door open as you follow suit.

“That was… cold.” You blink, trying to process what your boyfriend had just said.

The two of you arrive at the lounge area however the rest of the Bakusquad was nowhere to be seen. Bakugo approaches a waiter and begins to order whilst you decided to go around the area to look for your other friends.

You were minding your own business when a weird and bad-intentioned man begins to approach you. You didn’t pay him any attention at first since you were occupied with looking for your friends, but the weirdo was persistent.

“A pretty girl like you alone in a resort like this?” He coos, trying to catch your attention. “I must be dreaming.”

“Piss off.” You snarled before he could even touch your arm, you quickly run back to Katsuki, as the weirdo loses sight of you. You slowly pace back to Bakugo who had an annoyed expression on his face. When you arrive at the area where he was standing, he grabs your hand and takes you to the elevator.

He clicks on the button that led to your floor and swipes the card key to your room, he comes to a sudden stop when you enter your dark hotel room, and he looks down at your hand in his like he’d forgotten he’d been holding it.

You pull Katsuki closer, twisting your hand around to take his more firmly.

His strong fingers fit perfectly between yours, and you know he can feel it too by the way he tightens his grip. His other hand settles on your waist, holding you against him, so close you can practically feel his heart beating.

“Did you really have to pull me out of the lounge area like that?” You pout seductively.

“Tch. (Y/N)….” He says your name in his low voice that sounds like an “I want you,” but you need to hear his actual words. You can see he’s so used to trying to brush things off that it’s an instinct, but he fights against it.

“Because I couldn’t stand to see an asshole try to make a move on you while I was at the other side of the area, waiting for the food. Who the hell gave him permission to even be within a few meters of you?”

His voice is irritated and strained. Your heart races under the intensity of his gaze, all his unspoken desire just beneath the surface.

  “It’s okay Katsuki-kun. You saw how I brushed him off… What did you take me back here for?”

He moves suddenly, backing you against the wall. You gasp, and then he’s right there, pinning you to the surface, hands on either side of your head.

As you shift, you hit the light switch, and the room is illuminated, revealing the bed. Katsuki goes still as he sees it.

“Of fucking course. Of course Mina would book one bed instead of two.”

His voice is tight, barely restrained. As if he wants to release an intense surging energy inside him. Your body is attuned to his tension. He’s coiled so tight, you feel it radiating off of him.

“Katsuki. Answer me. What did you take me back here for?”

His eyes drop to your lips. You feel his breath skimming against them.

“The way that fucking sleezeball loser looked at you… I couldn’t help it. You’re everything. And I want you more than anything.” Your stomach swoops at his intensity. He’s finally giving you the honesty you’ve been asking for but your conscience chimes in for a second.

“Katsuki…”

He brushes his thumb against your lips, and it’s like a bolt of electricity races through you, leaving you tingling for him.

His stare becomes more and more intense, as if he was craving for something.

“(Y/N), tell me. Right here, right now, what do you want?”

“It’s you, Katsuki. I want you.”

He sucks in a breath then crashes his mouth to yours. You both let out moans as he pushes you harder against the door and you pull him closer.

He kisses you hard and you melt at the feel of his lips and tongue, the sounds of your gasps and needy moans filling the quiet hotel room.

“Fuck. I’ll never ever get enough of this. Every time I kiss you, I get more desperate for the next one.” His throaty groan makes your stomach swoop again, and you tangle your fingers into his spiky hair.

You wink at him, your eyes giving off the same passion and love in his. “Then don’t stop.”

He brushes his lips against yours. It feels so light, yet the desire and the lust behind it is so powerful you can’t help but not resist.

“(Y/N)…”

A shiver runs through you as his mouth covers yours. Everything narrows to the feeling of his kiss, slow and intense like he’s taking his time tasting you.

His hands slide down to your sides to hold your hips, the heat of his body radiating against yours.

As your desire grows, you try to deepen the kiss to match the rate of your racing heart, but he draws back as it starts to get intense.

His eyes smolder, intense and teasing at the same time.

He nips gently at your ear and you arch against him. His hands slide up to grip your waist, pulling you tight to his body while still pushing you back against the door.

“(Y/N)… say my name again…”

You crash your lips to his again, feeling and pouring all your desire and impatience into the kiss. He grabs your wrists and pins them to the door above your head, his show of power making you giddy. You arch against him, and he sucks in a harsh breath, fingers digging into your wrists with delicious pleasure.

Katsuki’s eyes darken, and he captures your mouth with a desperate kiss, tongue sliding against yours, leaving you breathless. You tip your head back against the door as he runs his lips down your neck, nipping and sucking with every inch of his love.

He grabs your hips and pulls you off the door, steering you to the center of the room. You throw your arms around him and speak with your lips pressed onto his. You moan as he kisses down your neck, gasping as his teeth scrape against your skin and he soothes the spot with his tongue.

“(Y/N)…” He says demandingly. “I need you. Right now.”

He takes a step back and starts to undo the buttons of his shirt, but you still his hand with your own.

“Sit back and relax Suki-kun. Let me do it.”

He bites his lip at the term of endearment, or maybe at the thought of you peeling off his clothes.

You brush your lips against the corner of his mouth, and feel him shiver. His chest rises and falls as you continue to slowly unbutton his dress shirt, grinning wolfishly as you toss it to the floor.

“(Y/N)…” there’s an impatient growl in his voice. His hands flex at his sides, and you know he’s dying to touch you, to rip your clothes off.

“Shh. Your patience will be rewarded.”

You press your palm to the center of his chest, then drag it downwards over the ridges of his abs, following the path of his well-toned abs. He rolls his hips forward as you undo the clasp of his belt, and he catches your wrist in an iron tight grip.

“I can’t wait any longer.”

The hunger in his voice makes your brain feel like it stopped for a second, and before you realize it, he’s undressing you.

“Ah. Yes. I will never get tired of how impatient you are.” You shake your head yet feel nothing but arousal from the way he looks at you as he continues.

“I can’t help myself when you’re so irresistible,” He shrugs then smirks.

You help him undress you, and soon your clothes are lying in a heap on the floor. He hooks an arm around your waist and pulls you against him. You both moan at the feeling of your bodies pressed together, the heat emanating from the both of you.

Your stomach swoops as he spins the two of you around, backing toward the bed. He falls down onto the mattress and pulls you down on top of him.  He laughs, his voice husky at your look of surprise, bringing his hands to your waist to steady you as you lift yourself up to look down at him.

Still laughing a little, you lean down to kiss him, and it quickly grows heated as the intensity between the two of you spikes.

He’s still in his pants and you make quick work of the belt and zipper. He lifts his hips up to pull them off and throws them aside. 

You press your hand against his cock over his underwear, and he bucks against you, head thrown back.

“Ah…”

You feel the heat of his desire through the fabric, but what you want is right beneath.

 You close your teeth around the waistband and tug them down. He groans, lifting his hips to help you get them off. Once you cast his underwear aside, you wrap your lips around his member and suck briefly, a teasing touch that has him arching higher off the bed.

Before you could even process what had just happened, he throws a leg over you and flips the two of you over so that he’s on top and your legs are parted around his hips.

You call out his name as he roughly removes your underwear and creeps between your legs to tease his fingers against you, sending bolts of pleasure racing through all parts of your body.

“K-Katsuki…”

His mouth is hot against your neck as he speaks in a rush, hips rolling against yours.

“Make this one last the w-whole night,” you whisper in between breaths.

Lust flashes in his eyes and he growls deep, slowing the movement of his fingers against you.

You gasp as you feel him push into you, taking one of your hands and lacing his fingers with yours.

He sets a tantalizingly slow pace, making you groan loudly at the purposeful way he thrusts into you.

You grip onto his muscular shoulders, giving yourself over to the exquisite feeling as he bites back several deep groans of his own. He ducks his head to kiss your breasts, then begins to suck your nipples, sending shivers through your body as pleasure coils tighter and tighter inside you.

He stills suddenly, and you groan in a mix of pleasure and frustration, lifting your hips to search for more.

“You want this to last the whole night, huh? I’m going to give you what you want.”

You throw your head back as he starts moving again, your moans filling the room as he teases you toward that bliss, as you lose all sense of time.

_______

“(Y/N)! BAKUBRO!” You hear Kaminari knock on the door playfully. “Were you guys THAT exhausted that you did nothing but sleep yesterday!? We didn’t see you guys by the pool! Is something wrong? Are you guys sick!?”

You were cuddling with Katsuki after such an intense but amazing night, still wearing nothing, the blankets and comforters being the only ones shielding you from anything. 

“W-we’re fine Kaminari-kun.” You say groggily, Bakugo’s strong arms still wrapped around you, giving you all the warmth and comfort you need. “W-we’ll be down in an h-hour.” 

“Ok then! See you!” Kaminari leaves as soon as he arrives. You sigh softly and turn to your explosive boyfriend who was still sound asleep, you rest your head on his chest as you too, drift back to dreamland, excited for what else this vacation has in store for you.

-Fin. 

#katsuki bakugo x reader #bakugou x reader #bakugo smut #katsuki bakugo smut #bnha smut #mha smut #bakugou katsuki x reader #bakugo x reader #my hero academia #boku no hero academia #mha x reader #bnha x reader #katsuki bakugou x reader #katsuki bakugo #bakugou katsuki #my hero academia x reader #boku no hero academia x reader #mha #bnha #bakugo katsuki x reader #bakugou smut #katsuki bakugo x y/n

[jean-does-not-have-a-horseface]

Hello!! Could you please write an scenario where Levi got hurt (not badly) during an expedition but he refuses to go to the nursery when they got back, making the reader worried for him so she asks if she can tend to his injuries and he lets them? (Maybe while she's at it they kiss if u want) Just some care for our Levi:)) Sorry if my English isn't good, it's not my main language

Yoooo that was a rather hot thing to write 👀👀👀👀 I hope you enjoy, also, don't worry about your English. In fact English isn't my first language either❤️

Pairing: Levi/ Reader

Tags: fluffity fluff, smooches, slurpy hot smooches, yes I'm doing God's work, awkward Levi brrr

The Moon Is Full, I Guess

It was outdated at this point. Your hand clenched in a fist probing onto the dark mahogany door, the beating of your heart that throbbed inside your chest as the though of the person on the other side of the wall swirled through your mind, your ratched breaths, gulped by the lump in your throat, everything was tiring, dull.

The feeling was embarrassing and overwhelming. They way it overtook you, they way it threw you off tracks at his mere presence was causing anger to dwell in the pits of your stomach. But even if you had to look past that, you couldn't get over yourself for wanting to be of help.

It was an egoistical act before it was a selfless one. You wanted to be the first to reach out to him, you wished to be the only one to help him and you felt disgusted with yourself that your twisted brain created scenarios in which Levi felt enamored by your generosity. But love did that to you. And even if you despairately wanted to fight it, you couldn't realistically pick a fight a feeling.

Because if you could, love would have gotten your fists.

"State your name business."

"It's (y/n)." You puckered your lips as your name sourly slipped out of your mouth.

There wasn't anything that didn't plainly scream mechanical and awkward as Levi's grumpy voice ordered you to state your name and business and you anathematized it, cursing softly under your breath as your shagged, hardened palm reached for the door handle upon hearing the familiar grunt of approval to your request. That was it. The small victory of your ego dwelled inside you, poisoning the spit under your tongue.

You panicked, only momentarily, and only at the thought of a sour breath that tingled on the top of your tongue. Your eyes widened below puckered eyebrows as your mind repeatedly alarmed you of the bitter taste inside your mouth canal. Your cool though wasn't bugged further, with a stern inhale you composed your weaker side in the binds of your fond chest.

"Levi."

You stuck your palms to the door, bum extended on them as you leaned with your back on the wood, your goal to simply shut the door tenderly achieved as you heard the tiny click of the handle. It was your footstep that was heard next, the heel of your boot that clashed with the mahogany tile overpowered Levi's hiss of your name. You simply let your footing roll naturally in trying to approach him, although your lungs, agreeing with the part of your brain that accused you of being a rotting egoist, protested.

"Sit." He hissed and your breath hiccuped.

"No, Levi, I won't." Refusing to sit on the loveseat by his desk you set your fiery gaze onto him. "In fact, I'm not here for any reason you'd like to hear."

The movement of Levi's orbs was adorned with a short blink of his eyelids. It caused you to bite the side of your top lip harshly but your heart was already heaping at the sight by the time you felt your canines dig into the soft piece of flesh. You figured Levi didn't notice, whereas it was usual for him to pick up on any reluctancy in your antics, it seemed as if the pain of his injury overpowered his mind. And somehow, in some twisted way, you were thankful for that.

It meant you couldn't really degrade yourself more to him.

"Why didn't you line up for the infirmary when we arrived? You got injured!" You pouted, (e/c) eyes burning brightly into his.

"There were too many who were heavily injured and needed immediate help. My minor injury is not something anyone should be bothered by, probably a shitty broken rib, I'll be fine if I lay on the low for a while." Levi sighed and kept his voice low as he spoke to you calmly.

He averted his gaze off of you for a moment, his own foot started tapping obnoxiously without any certain rhythm on the floor beneath him. In a nervous movement he run his hand through his hair. There was sulk written on his face after he licked his lips. In an attempt to mask his pain, he even bit his own lip, mimicking your previous actions. Whether you considered this a symbolism or not, was completely up to you.

"You're not serious."

"I'm shit serious."

"I figured you'd deny anything actually, but," you sighed "can you at least let me tend to you?"

You were hesitant as you extended your arm to him, (e/c) eyes meeting his for the upteenth time in such a short period of time. There was no denying; the confidence it took for anyone to handle Levi like was something you didn't lack of, you could blame that for having spent half of your life with him in the underground but your stubbornness made up for that abomination of self respect you had. Thus yet, when you were definitely sure you'd have to pull your empty hand back to your embrassed self his palm confidently clasped over yours and your stubborn stomach immediately started churning in a mixture of emotions.

In only a matter of seconds you felt your head drifting and Levi's gaze somewhat softened as it landed on your linked palms, the man finally deciding to balance his weight between his foot and your grip. You forced your strength to gather on your hand to support him as he slowly got up, never letting his hand go off his side.

Levi's boot missed numerous steps as you took the task of carrying him onto yourself and grunts of pain filled the air with every marching you made towards his private quarter. The small chamber smelled incredibly strong of lemon and vinegar, but you chose to ignore it with a scrunch of your nose. You knew what it meant; Levi had pushed himself to meticulously clean the room in the early morning before the expedition began, probably due to his immense amount of stress and you were in no place to bring it to his attention right now. You shouldn't even try to interfere with anything else other than tending to his injury.

But that tiny little day dreamer in your head refused to let you get through with what you had in mind.

Setting him onto the edge of his bed, you clapped your hands on his thighs in a silent instruction for him to stay put. Levi simply bored his eyes into yours, watching as you bucked on your knees in order to straighten your posture and then marching straight to his dresser. You stopped absurdly, seemingly puzzled as you balanced your weight on your right leg, popping on your hip at the process.

His gunmetal gaze was nervously averted at the sight and his cheeks stung as if a thousand needles were punched through his skin; he felt noticably guilty and vague when he caught himself looking at you in such way. It was definitely something he could manage to hide well, he had figured that much at least, because he didn't want to cause anything awkward to inflict between the two of you.

"Where do you usually keep gauze and bandages?" You inquired, throwing your head over your shoulder to look over to his direction.

"In my underwear drawer, top right corner." As Levi spoke, you puckered your lips, despairate to turn your hot head away from him, setting your goal to find the medical supplies you needed to tend to him.

Turning around in triumph, you suppressed a smug smile from spreading on your face as you held the bundle of bandage tightly in your hand. Levi shot you another bored look followed by a sigh as he pushed his lips in a thin line. You couldn't figure if he seemed disappointed in your actions or he was just as bugged as he'd be most of the time, and your stomach punched the insides of your torso in quick anxiety.

Sitting next to Levi on the bed did nothing to stop your coiling stomach, if anything, it sent your whole body in churning fury. You felt miserable and vague, bringing yourself in this very position, but you couldn't simply resent it in the last moment, it probably would make things look worse for you.

Nevertheless, you let out a sigh and avoided his look as you brought your hands on top of his shoulders, quickly slipping them on the inside of his camel leather jacket and sliding them down his shoulders in order to push the piece of clothing away from him to save him from excessive movements. Levi darted his chin away from your direction as not to have his head collide with yours and you almost let out a hitched breath at that.

"Wait," Levi said as you tagged on the collar of his button down shirt. "I have broken rib, bandaging me up won't do any good."

Your head dropped when he finished speaking, your gut burning in the somehow gory defeat of your ego. You sweared under your breath and onto his clothed collarbone, cussing your silly clouded brain for not even considering his actual injury. Your lungs demanded to punish you by refusing to be satisfied with any oxygen you would try to fill them with and you knew you deserved it for being so engrossed with the thought of taking care of him instead of actually doing so.

"You good, brat?"

"Yeah, I- I'm just stupid aren't I?" You spoke, lifting your chin up to meet with his gaze.

"Once a moron, always a moron." He confirmed, almost playfully.

You fondly inspected the skin on his face and neck, trying to worry your guilty eyes away from his; you felt as if he was reading you like an open book, which he could easily do, yet your chest was dwelled with too much pride to allow him to speak any other word of concern.

Pushing any poisonous thought to the back of your brain you demandingly bit on your lip and pulled a few inches away, just enough so you could directly look into him. With another look at his gunmetal eyes you stopped your next breath from exiting your body, feeling your heart throb inside your whole body. With trembling hands you searched for his, engulfing his short calloused fingers into your palms almost immediately upon your blind discovery.

It was now or never.

Yet, you barely spoke. The inability to utter even the most incoherent sounds was conquering your body, probing you to duel with it in any case you wanted to expose the nature of your feelings. Nevertheless, you stomped your foot on the mahogany floor and furrowed your brows dangerously before you parted your lips. Though the line you chose to utter was supposed to be nothing more than an internal thought.

"Thinking of you is a poison I drink often."

"You into poetry yet or what (y/n)?" Levi blinked his eyes boringly into yours as he spoke, never flinching for even a mere second.

You knew, under any other circumstance you would have burst laughing in his casual sarcasm, but as all air exited the room, you weren't sure you could bring yourself to make another sound.

"The moon is full, I guess," Levi sighed, pulling his hands to his face, causing yours -thst never loosened their grip on him- to tag along. Your pointed and middle fingers delicately hung from the space between his thumb and his face, lingering just enough to make your presence still know to him. "I'm a lost cause. If you're looking for romance that is. That's as much as I can do."

Nervously looking back and forth you contemplated on the meaning of his words for a couple of moments, your heart churning as your mind hazed over every single syllabus he had just spoken.

Reluctantly, and only when you made up your mind, your hands came to loosely cup the sides of his sharp face while the gaze you were set to spared on his lips was hesitant and lingering. Your thumb idled with his cheek in soothingly soft circles as your breaths paced back and forth, forming uneven masses of fog inside the frozen room. Yet despite the jawbreaking cold that smothered the two of you in the well known piercing manner, in this very moment everything around you seemed to have gone extinct. Time was slowing down, just for the two of you.

You didn't know what pushed you to act upon that little flicker in your heart, but your head was immediately sent in vertigo as you felt his pointed button nose bump into yours. Nothing could break that moment, nothing could rip you off him now that your lips were hovering dangerously over his. With your trembling hands you pulled him closer, hoping on closing the gab between the two of you.

Your heart hammered in your chest as you steadily engulfed his bottom lip with your own mouth; you moved mellowy, painfully slow as you tried to warm him up, eliciting occasional whines to come out of your own self. It was painful and overally miserable to think about how you managed to drag the actions of your lips against his but your knees were weak with every passing second as you savored his taste.

There wasn't another way to make Levi understand how this over the border peck ignited every flame you had inside of you, but you wished the looked you spared him as you parted could do the job. His gaze was furiously set on you, eyes blinking hard into yours as if trying to predict your very next move. You couldn't simply leave him hanging; there was hunger in his eyes, you recognised as much because you knew him so damn well, thus as if on cue you pressed your lips to his, briefly.

And then you did it again.

And again.

And once more.

And then, before you could repeat the -now familiar- peck you felt his own hands cup the back of your head and in furious movements you were pulled into him, lips colliding and teeth clashing against eachother. It wasn't a serene kiss just like the ones you shared before, this one was sloppy and raw, it took all the air out of your chest and it made you unable to try and seek for oxygen.

Your head was prohibited from moving freely, yet you were mostly dominating over the kiss. With a speactacularly quick wit you sucked on his lips roughly, passionately enough to make him gasp more than a few times. Pulling away from each other wasn't an option -no- you weren't going to take such dispicable chance, you simply tagged on his shagged raven locks before daring to dart the tip of your tongue out of the crevice of your own mouth.

Levi accepted it eagerly, sending his own tongue to welcome yours inside his mouth, occasionally pressing it into his pallette before guiding it on the underside of your tongue. You couldn't know, but he wished your tongue was longer, long enough to reach deeper, simply because he needed it to. There was no explainatiom as to why he enjoyed such sloppy, saliva dripping kiss, but the way you scouted every single inch of his mouth was exciting to a point of no return.

It was only after letting you win over his mouth completely that he pulled back, his hands finally letting go of their grip on the back of head. You stayed in your position, however unable to move, unable to speak, unable to find enough oxygen to fill your lungs with.

"That much.. Sure I can do." Levi coughed.

You simply moved your orbs towards him, wide in despair and surprised by his unmatched sarcasm. Out of breath and flustered enough to ignore the fact that your brain had completely shut off, you hung your head lower before muttering something about having to bring him a cool pad for his injury. Now, you really needed to tend to him in order to repeat that again.

You couldn't help the enchanted smile that masked your face as your finger grazed over your lip, making sure to mesmerize the tingling sensation that boiled inside your swollen pieces of flesh.

Taglist go off 👉🏻👈🏻: @sasageyowrites (love you thanks for reading half of this hshshshhs and telling me it's good) @nobody-knows-anymore (full credit for the line you sent me to include my dear) @ladyofpandemonium @ackermans-freedom-inc @hawkssnugget @berrijam @callmepromise @alrightberries still am I forgetting anyone :( pls tell me if I forgot you, I only have one brain

#levi ackerman x reader #levi x reader #levi ackerman imagine #levi ackerman #levi #levi attack on titan #captain levi #aot #attack on titan #snk #shingeki no kyojin #snk x reader #aot x reader #snk imagines #aot imagine #aot season 4 #snk season 4

[akitokihojo]

Monster - Chapter 15

chapter index

..... sorry guys

She’d been having strange, ominous dreams for days now. Dreams that were so vague, Kagome could barely describe them to Inuyasha once she’d come out of it. He’d said she seemed uncomfortable in her sleep, woke her up once or twice to see if she was having a nightmare, but the moment Kagome roused, it was like the pressing vision faded. She recalled bits and pieces, but she couldn’t remember the emotion present, she couldn’t remember what was happening, and she wasn’t even sure if she knew what was going on while in the dream to begin with.

All she could remember was red.

Everything was in red.

Her hands were red.

The sky was red.

The world was red.

And, waking up to see natural colors, to see the light shade of Inuyasha’s tied back hair, to see his golden eyes reflected with the humble flames of their midnight fire was almost like a shock.

She’d blink, she’d take deep breaths that she wasn’t able to while captured by the vivid nightmare, and after just a few moments, Kagome would come down and forget anything that wasn’t red. She was fine. She’d fall back asleep just fine, and unless she was dragged right back into the vision - which had only occurred once - she’d rest well, thereafter.

Kagome had reduced it to nothing more than an odd string of subconscious play. They were dreams without a meaning. Only a couple of times had they really stolen any energy from her, but other than that, Kagome dismissed what she couldn’t remember and apologized for worrying Inuyasha.

The hanyou chose a high tree branch to perch in one night. Something was off, he could physically feel it, but there was nothing in the air that could guide him to what stung at his instincts. He’d covered Kagome in his crimson robe, and she’d been curled up on her bag as a makeshift pillow, undisturbed and about as comfortable as she could get. Not a single line creased her brow, and her lips were relaxed as she slept through the night, the hoot of owls, the chirp of crickets, and the crack of burning logs the only sounds that stood the potential of waking her. But still, Inuyasha couldn’t shake this feeling. Something was wrong.

There was a sharp twinge of dread hitting his chest, so he stood from his seat, trying to get a better eye over the tops of trees to hopefully spot something. Nothing. There was a scent, but he couldn’t place it. There wasn’t noise to back it up. He heard no yelling, no conversation, no roars, or calls, or even the crack of twigs being broken from the weight of bodies stepping over them. In fact, with this sensation of apprehensiveness hanging over him, the silence was only making it worse.

Below him, there was a small shuffle from Kagome and immediately his eyes fell down to her. She’d merely readjusted herself, laying more on her back now than her side. Her cheek hit her shoulder, one arm was at her hip, and the other rested over her stomach - his robe only managing to cover her belly and down now. Taking a moment to observe her carefully, he gathered the steady rise and fall of her chest. Everything seemed to be as it should. She was fine. So, steadily, his attention shifted back out to the horizon of the forest they dwelled in.

That aroma. He knew it. It was coming closer, and the nearer it grew, the more powerful it became. At this point, it was all a matter of patience. With the direction his body faced, the scent was coming from his right. It smelled of the woodlands and an extremely subtle campfire that he could have easily dismissed as his own immediate surroundings. The only thing that tipped him off was the staleness of the fragrance. It was old, it was laced with an abundance of sweat, and just as he caught the startling odor of that monster appear, the metallic smell of blood singed at his nose.

Kagome opened her eyes, feeling her feet on the hard, packed dirt of the forest. There were whispers around her, but she couldn’t tell what direction they were coming from, feeling incoherent, even dizzy where she stood. She stared at the setting, again shrouded in a haze of red, but everything was so blurry. No matter how many times she blinked, nothing would focus. The world was spinning around her, growing deeper in shade, bringing Kagome to feel nauseous and slap the heels of her hands around her temples to silence the blaring headache that slammed into her out of nowhere.

Her feet stumbled backward, unable to keep her footing, not knowing left from right, up from down, and her back hit the rough bark of a large tree, scraping as she inadvertently slid down to a squat. That was where she was safe from falling, safe to keep her eyes squeezed shut.

Where was she? This time, she was in her own body, she could tell. With a little wiggle of her ankle in her boot, Kagome felt the shape of her father’s blade rub against her, she felt the top beneath her shirt that kept her chest secure with each heavy inhale that pressed her ribs outward, she heard her own voice as she grunted shakily from the bile that threatened her esophagus. Why? What had she done? Where was Inuyasha? Where was she?

The whispers were beginning to reach her ears more clearly now. Kagome could feel the nausea gradually passing. Her fingers still trembled, but they were steadying little-by-little with each focused breath she exhaled. Again, she blinked her eyes open, noticing that now her surroundings were more centered. But, why, why was everything red again?

It felt like looking through stained glass. Every direction she turned was hued all the same. No greens, no browns, no blues, or violets, but the shadows of the night still remained black, terrifying, menacing in this particular environment.

The voices were no longer whispers. They were clear. Two women. From somewhere behind her. Kagome pushed herself from the tree, appreciative to have her own mobility this time around. She moved carefully, watching her step, walking as lightly as possible so as not to give her position away.

“Don’t take me back to him.” One said demandingly. The voice was deep, weighted, muttered between alarming breaths. “I don’t want to die in his arms.”

“I only need your blood. While it’s warm.” This voice was stable, somber.

“Don’t come near me!”

“Look, I didn’t want to do this! I had no choice! I’m telling you he didn’t request for your body; he just wants your blood!”

“For what!?”

“Proof!”

“No!” She sobbed. Kagome recognized that waver, that desperation. She’d known it all along, but had been too in denial to accept that this may be a possibility. Kikyo.

It was Kikyo.

Heedless with her movements now, Kagome rushed through the trees to close the distance, physically stopped by a forcefield that felt to grasp her and hold her captive as soon as she turned the corner and caught sight of the actual scene. It felt as if invisible vines had wrapped around her body, gluing her arms to her sides, immobilizing her and wrapping around her mouth so she couldn’t make a sound - forced to watch but not allowed to interact.

Kikyo was on the floor, trying to sit up against the trunk of a tree, bleeding profusely from her shoulder and chest, covered in sweat and crimson and tears. Her large, beige blouse was sullied horribly, drenched, clinging to her thin frame as if to emphasize her life-threatening wounds.

“Kikyo, I have to! He’ll kill me if I don’t!” She was a tall woman. Beautiful. But, her eyes radiated fear. Her skin was peached, complimented by the moonlight, her short, brown hair tied half up, though strands had escaped to fall down by her cheeks in their charade. Her lips had been painted with a dark rouge, faded but stained.

“I’m not going to survive this! Is that not enough!?”

Kagome tried to scream, to fight, to let this woman know she had a new opponent to take on, to let Kikyo know help was here and she’d be okay, but she couldn’t do a thing. This felt like more than restraints now. She felt like she was under a spell. Or, that maybe she wasn’t even actually there, merely watching on through a red-tinted window. Neither of them had acknowledged her loud footsteps approaching before she’d been caught, neither of them had turned to see her as she ran into the narrow clearing. Even if she was being held at bay right now, the enemy should have at least noticed her.

Quickly, she’d deduced that this was Kikyo’s dark magic at play. And, for the first time, she wished she knew at least a little so that she could subdue the opposite conjurer’s and stand a chance at saving her.

“It’s not! I’m sorry! You know him as well as I do, you know it isn’t enough for him!”

“You’re his creation! You’re practically his child! Don’t act like you pity me! That only makes you appear more vile!”

“You think I care how vile I look right now!?” The enemy snapped, screaming brokenly. “I had no choice, Kikyo! He’s got a little girl in captivity! If I die, what chance does she stand!? I am the only thing protecting her right now, so if it’s between you and me, I choose me! Do not mistake my obedience as admiration for that monster! I hate him! I loathe him! Naraku is the bane of my existence, and I wholeheartedly wished for you to kill him! He knew you were weak, though! He made the call! He sent me alone, because he knew with that little girl’s well being on the line, I wouldn’t come back without my objective complete!

“I do pity you, conjurer. You deserved better. And, I’m sorry I had to do this. Now, I’ll ask again: May I take your blood while it is still warm? Or, must I force it?”

“I hate him! I hate him! I hate him! I hate him. I hate - I hate him.” Kikyo had shattered. Her strong demeanor crumbled into little pieces on the earth, her blood slowly beginning to pool at her seat. The powerful confession shifted to one of saddened pleads, and she wept. She trembled and she wept. “I - I hate him. I hate… I hate…”

The demon respectfully kneeled down, taking the presumably white feather from the bun in her hair and bowing her head an inch. “I am sorry.”

“You promise not to take my body?”

“I swear to you, I will leave it here.”

“You won’t tell him where you left me?”

“If he asks, I will have no choice but to say. But, knowing Naraku, he won’t have the courage to face you. Dead or alive.”

“This is the end?”

“Unlike me, you are free now, Kikyo. Be free.”

“Take my blood. See this through. Protect the girl.”

The woman dipped her feather in the gaping wound of Kikyo’s shoulder, dousing the ends in the thick liquid that seeped out at an unforgiving rate.

“Go.” Kikyo ordered. “I wish to at least be in peace.”

Without another word, the demon nodded, rising to her feet. She didn’t bother to brush the dirt from her black dress before using her powers to create a large feather to fly off on, a powerful gust of wind taking the woman up into the sky to disappear over the treetops.

Within seconds, the world was back to normal. The stained glass had been smashed, and Kagome was looking at the setting in the normal hues their luna provided. The vines had released her so aggressively that she was nearly dropped to the floor, stumbling on her feet and to her butt as she failed to catch herself. But, she wasn’t thrusted back into the reality she’d expected to be. This wasn’t a dream. Ahead of her sat a crumpled Kikyo, trying to hold herself up as she grew weaker and weaker, more and more pale, pained, melancholic, and destroyed.

Scrambling, Kagome crawled as far as she could before she forced herself to her feet to hurry over to the conjurer. Her emotions were all over the place, like she didn’t know what to feel first, if anything at all. Panicked, horrified, angry, anxious, helpless, and they all got in the way of her nonexistent action plan.

“Wh-what? What?” Was all Kagome could stammer. Was she really here? Was this really happening? “Kikyo, you’re… what happened? I don’t -“

“I’m sorry.” Kikyo cried, breathing erratically in the hopes to swallow her own fear. “I couldn’t fight anymore. I just couldn’t fight anymore.”

“Where are you hurt!? What happened!?” Kagome frantically implored, trying to be gentle at first. It was too difficult to see in the night, and there was an awful amount of blood that made it impossible to avoid. It was terrifying, but with a swallow that Kagome forced down her throat, she grabbed Kikyo’s shirt and ripped the buttons apart, looking for the wounds to see what she could do.

The gashes were massive in comparison to her frame. They stretched from her right shoulder to the center of her chest, wide, like cracks in a carefully sculpted clay pot that could no longer contain the contents inside. It brought Kagome to gasp so horridly she choked, coughed, quaked with trepidation.

“I couldn’t fight anymore.” Kikyo repeatedly sullenly. “I’m so sorry, Kagome.”

“You’d been trying to get my attention.” Kagome said in realization, her voice low, broken, her brown eyes never leaving the large wound on Kikyo’s chest. “You needed my help.”

“No, you were too far. I had to find myself closer.”

“You needed me. You were trying - and - and I - you needed my help.” Kagome began to cry, the tears burning at her eyes as they fell to mix with the blood.

“There was no saving me.”

“I could have done - you needed me.”

“I needed you to heed my warning.”

“What - what warning?”

Kikyo took her stained hand, mustering as much energy as she could to softly brush Kagome’s cheek and pull her attention away from the ghastly wound. “That I’m out of picture now. That the responsibility is yours.”

“No.” Kagome’s bottom lip quivered as the words penetrated her mind. She didn’t want to allow them to ring with validity. This wasn’t reality. “No. No, no, no. That’s not true.” She shook her head, softly pressing on the worst portion of the wound and gradually applying more pressure. Kikyo grunted loudly from the pain it added, but didn’t move to stop Kagome as she tried to halt the bleeding. “I can still save you! Inuyasha - he can - I’ll go get Inuyasha! I’ll have him bring my bag so we can patch you up! We’ll take you to a healer! You’re still here, Kikyo! You can still live!”

“Kagome!” She cried. “It’s over! You know as well as I that there is no closing up this wound! I’ve lost too much blood as it is! Please! Just -“ Her voice died down some, gurgled slightly as she coughed and blood rose out of the corner of her mouth.

Kagome moved to sit her up some so she wouldn’t choke on it, putting all of her muscle into pulling Kikyo into her arms to support her body weight.

“I am not afraid of death.” Kikyo whispered as the blood trickled from her lips. “I’ve been dead for years as it is. I don’t have to run anymore. I don’t have to hide or - or fight. I’m tired, I’m so tired. Naraku cannot haunt me anymore if I die.” She smiled. And, Kagome clung to her tighter, trying to stifle her sobs.

“Yeah,” Kikyo breathed, almost happily. “He can’t haunt me anymore. He didn’t win. He merely released me.”

“I’m sorry.” Kagome wept, losing the battle against herself. “If I had figured it out sooner -“

“No, Kagome. I wasn’t asking for help. I needed you to - I needed you to know. I wasn’t running to you to seek your assistance. I showed you bits and pieces only to test how far I still was. It was like a map that guided me your way. I needed to show you, myself. I’ve done all I can. The rest - the rest is on you. And, I truly believe you are capable.”

“I can - I can go get Inuyasha.” Kagome offered again, fruitlessly. It felt wrong to give up, it felt wrong to accept this fate, but she could feel in her gut, in her heart, in her brain that there was nothing she could actually do to fix this. To save her.

“Please, no.” Kikyo breathed. “I don’t want to die alone. If it’s not too much to ask, stay with me. Stay with me, Kagome. Speak of beautiful things.”

“Okay.” Kagome agreed, hugging the conjurer a little closer. She tried to stabilize her breathing, but her heart was breaking. She shook and she gasped, sobbing over Kikyo, but no matter what, she was going to tell her everything wonderful in this world that she’d seen. Everything that had nothing to do with Naraku. Kikyo wouldn’t end her life with that horrible creature tainting her final thoughts, her final breath, the final beat of her heart. Kikyo was going to leave this realm in serenity. “I-I’ve never seen so many flowers as I have since leaving home. Most of the flowers in my area are weeds, or dandelions. Some roses, maybe. Tulips are so pretty. And, I really, really love night flowers. The ones that bloom under the moon. I - I don’t know what they’re called.”

Kikyo smiled, unbothered by the pause Kagome had to take to breath, to calm herself, to allow tears to fall so they didn’t hinder her sight. She reached up, carefully stroking tears from Kagome’s cheeks, apologetic for the blood she stained her skin with in its place.

“A few days ago, I saw a bear cub for the first time. It was so cute, but I think that’s the most scared I’ve ever seen Inuyasha.” Kagome giggled wetly. “Where there’s a cub, there’s a mama. He backed off the trail so fast, Kikyo.”

Even the dying conjurer laughed. “You and he.” She spoke, her voice raspy and weak. “Your chemistry is strong. You make a good team. I was entirely wrong.”

“I love him. And, I’m really glad I didn’t listen to you.” Kagome cried, her smile wavering.

“If that’s the case, then so am I.” She wept. “Not all love is bad.”

“No.” Kagome shook her head, searching for anything she could speak of to bring Kikyo’s smile back. “Kaede. Kaede, she’s - she’s incredible.”

“My sister?” Kikyo asked, her eyes large and hopeful, brimming with tears that streamed down her face.

With a nod, she continued. “She’s headstrong, and brilliant, and a quick thinker, and I’ve never seen a woman bully so many men and put them in their place before. It’s inspirational.”

Kikyo giggled. “Tell me more about her.”

“You’d be so proud of her. The texts about - about enchantments that she got while you two were still together, she never stopped learning them.”

“She didn’t?” Kikyo inquired with astonishment.

Kagome shook her head in reply. “No, and she helps so many with what she can do. People like us, and like Inuyasha. Those who deserve a chance, who haven’t done wrong to deserve the hands they’ve been dealt. She sets up these - these deterrents around her village and it wards demons away from scents they may be tracking, and she has special rooms designated for those on the run. Kaede’s a savior. The first time I met her, I was sick. I used too much strength and hurt myself, so Inuyasha took me to her. She had some remedies at the ready and took such good care of me. She’s sweet, Kikyo. Kaede’s a good person. She’s such a good person.”

Kikyo was reduced to sobs, but the sadness was of her own regret. Of how she couldn’t have witnessed this for herself. Overpowering that was her happiness. Kaede was healthy. She was fighting for something. She wasn’t this frail girl that hid behind people, but in fact was the person others stood behind instead.

“You’ll also enjoy that she constantly puts Inuyasha in his place.”

“I thought they were friends.”

“They are.” Kagome giggled. “But, she’s a take-no-shit kind of woman, particularly with the opposite gender, I’ve noticed. It doesn’t seem to matter who you are, if you step out of line, she’ll be the first to remind you to back up.”

“She’s always been like that. I’m so happy to see that it hasn’t gotten her into any trouble. I was always worried about that.”

“No, Kaede holds her own just fine.”

“I am. I am proud of her.” Kikyo confirmed quietly.

“I think she’d be proud of you, too.” Kagome whispered.

Kikyo trembled as she cried.

“I think she’d be unbearably proud, Kikyo. And, I think she’ll understand everything better than you think.”

“Does she know yet? About our last discussion?”

“No. Not yet.”

“Please - please tell her I love her. Add that in. Tell her I said I’ll meet her under the willow tree.”

“The willow tree?” Kagome’s voice cracked as she clenched back her sob.

“In our - in our village growing up, there was a willow tree. We always sat beneath it.”

“I’ll tell her.” She promised, gently stroking the matted hair from Kikyo’s sweat-soaked cheeks. “I promise, I’ll tell her.”

“Thank you. Thank you so - thank…”

More blood was seeping from her mouth. Kagome was drenched in it. It was warm and thick, dressing her hands, her arms, stomach, and legs. Kikyo’s skin was ghostly white, and her eyes lost any vibrancy they held before. Every swallow could be seen as it went down harshly, her throat bobbing with the movements, and it was more like she was looking through Kagome now. Not at her.

“Shh, maybe you shouldn’t talk anymore.” Kagome hushed, stroking her hair. She spoke as her own mother would to her when she was emotional, when she was devastated; softly, soothingly, patiently. The world could wait for just one moment. Right now, it was just the two of them. That’s all. That was all they needed. Just for right now. “Everything’s okay now, Kikyo. You fought so well.”

Hot tears streamed from her eyes, and the dying conjurer looked up toward the sky. The moon was so big even though it was completely full just two days prior. It felt like a greeting from mother nature. A kind, forgiving smile from the goddess that held her hand out for her to take, her long, black hair swaying behind her feminine frame with the breeze.

“I’m s- I’m sorry.” Kikyo breathed brokenly.

“Don’t be.” She whispered in reply. “You did your best. We’re all so proud of you. Thank you, Kikyo. Thank you so much.”

Kagome continued her tender brushing, holding the woman closer to her so she could hopefully feel her own warmth. Kikyo was cold, was small, her hands unable to grasp onto Kagome’s shirt any longer.

“Everything’s okay.” Kagome repeated sadly, but sweetly. “You’re going to be okay now. You don’t have to fight anymore.”

Kikyo’s eyes fluttered closed.

Her breathing came evenly.

Slowly.

Not as it should.

“You don’t have to fight anymore. It’s okay now. It’s okay.” Kagome was sobbing, shaking, fading away.

Her grip on the woman was growing weaker, she could feel it slipping. With Kikyo’s life dwindling, so was the power she used to keep Kagome to her. Carefully, she set Kikyo down so she wouldn’t chance dropping her, continuing to pet her cheeks, whispering the same, kind statements over and over until she couldn’t physically feel her cold flesh beneath her fingers any longer.

There was a moment of pitch darkness. As she blinked her eyes opened, coming to consciousness, it seemed as if all sounds followed. The song of the crickets, the fire popping just feet away. Kagome was back in her camp, her head against the bag that served as a pillow where she’d fallen asleep just hours before.

It was a dream. It was just a dream.

A nightmare.

Either way, it wasn’t real. It couldn’t have been real. I couldn’t have been.

Slowly, timidly, Kagome moved her arms, instantly feeling the uncomfortable drench of her soddened clothing sticking to her skin. It caused her heart to pound inside her chest, it caused her panic to return, and as she lifted her hands above her face, she saw the blood that stained her skin.

“Inu - Inuyasha.” She couldn’t even call out for him, she was so terrified. Her voice came out small and broken, raspy, as if she’d been screaming for hours and this was the aftereffects. “Inuyasha. Where are you?”

He’d heard her from below, movement, but it wasn’t until he’d caught the desperate whisper of his name that his ears twitched in her direction and he looked down. She was slowly sitting up, looking at her hands, and he smelled blood. A lot of it. Instantly, he jumped down from the branch, landing on his feet so roughly that he stumbled forward but never stopped on his scramble to her side.

“I’m right here, baby. I’m right -“ He froze. He was right. The blood. She was covered in it. How? There wasn’t an inch of clean skin on her hands that he could see, her charcoal shirt sticking to her chest, her abdomen, stained with such a deep red that it had his stomach sinking at a drastic rate. Frantically, Inuyasha yanked his robe off of her lower body, looking to see if there was a source, only to find her legs and boots soaked, as well.

He couldn’t speak. A huge lump had formed in his throat from the fright he felt, and his gaze climbed up her body to find her large, weeping eyes.

It had taken a moment to push passed his initial dread in order to think rationally again, but he knew the smell of Kagome. He knew the smell of her blood. This wasn’t hers. This was the metallic odor he’d caught before. He smelled the familiar scent of a person he couldn’t pin, he smelled a horrible amount of blood, Naraku, and then within a split second, it was all gone. It had him further on edge than he’d been before, but he watched. He waited. All for nothing to rise again. He’d felt like he was in a simulation of sorts and he’d just witnessed a glitch in the system.

So, how the fuck was Kagome now soddened in the very same blood he’d just smelled moments before? She was asleep. She was safe. She was under his watch. Nothing could have gotten her, so how in the hell was she looking at him with finger streaks of blood painted on her cheeks that her tears didn’t even bother to clean?

“Kikyo.” Kagome sobbed, holding her hands out before her as if she was afraid to touch herself, or him, or anything in between. “It’s Kikyo. She’s - she’s dead.”

Kikyo.

That was who it was. He knew he’d caught it. It was only once that he’d met her though, so his olfactory system wasn’t familiar enough to have memorized it.

“What do you mean she’s dead, kid?”

“She’s dead.” Kagome repeated, unable to bite back any emotion. “I saw. I was there.”

“H-how?”

She presented her hands, her arms as if they were statement enough. “Her - her magic! It was one of Naraku’s underlings! They killed her! Inuyasha, they - they -“

He closed the gap, pulling her into his lap, holding her tight. He didn’t care about the blood, or the mess. He couldn’t just watch her shatter like that. Inuyasha didn’t understand the magical aspects that some people were capable of, and he’d come to terms with the fact that not everything could be comprehended by others who didn’t experience it firsthand. He didn’t need to understand. He just needed to listen. Kagome had witnessed Kikyo’s death. There was no possible way she could be lying about that while she sat there bathed in the opposite conjurer’s blood.

Kagome shook inconsolably, sobbed loudly, but she clung to Inuyasha with an unmatched urgency. The heaves that wracked her chest became painful, but it felt like no matter how tight she held onto him, she couldn’t feel her hanyou over the liquid that smeared her body. Kikyo was still out there. Her body was still on the ground. She was cold, and alone, and nobody deserved to be left like that after death. If she was able to pull Kagome next to her in such a physical manner, that meant she was close. Very close.

“Can you - can you find her?” Kagome asked Inuyasha between gasps of air.

“What do you mean?” He asked with a gentleness he rarely presented, using the backs of his knuckles to caress her cheek.

“She’s close. She had to be in order to perform that magic. Do you smell her?”

“I did. Before.” Inuyasha admitted. “You were asleep, and I caught her scent for literally a second before it disappeared. Minutes later, you’re waking up like this.”

“But, do you smell her now? She can’t create a barrier anymore.”

Apprehensively, he spoke. “I - I can’t smell anything over you.” And, as wrong as it felt to slide her from his lap and let her go - horribly, sickeningly wrong - he did so, rising to his feet. “Give me two seconds.”

Inuyasha jumped back up to the tree branch he’d occupied before, taking it a step further to go just a bit higher. The breeze should carry something his way. He really had to focus. His instincts were glued to Kagome, his brain only bringing the noises she made, the aroma off of her his way, and he’d had to mentally shove that aside in order to concentrate on their surroundings. The moment he’d caught the heavy scent of copper, Inuyasha locked on the direction they needed to head in, memorizing what he could. He knew the moment he jumped down to grab Kagome, it’d be hard to smell Kikyo out.

His feet hit the floor, and he quickly grabbed the conjurer’s hand. He hadn’t expected her to be on her feet, he hadn’t expected her to be able to run. She was so unsteady in his arms, he’d fully anticipated carrying her, but the woman had relatively pulled herself together so quickly. They left everything at their camp aside from their weapons, and she followed him as far as he could lead. For a while, she had to stay behind him, downwind from Inuyasha so that he could scout the path, reduced to walking now as they trekked through dark, shadowed trails they could barely see through.

It was vague, but there was a sense of familiarity that Kagome felt twinge in her stomach. She wanted to say she knew where they were, but she’d only seen it in red, so how could she be sure? Noticing some disturbed dirt next to a large tree, she reached for Inuyasha, clutching his shirt to stop him so she could crouch down and look without him going too far.

She’d been here. This was where she’d dropped down. This was where she’d almost puked. The disturbed dirt was where her boots had dug into the earth as she’d sunken and scratched her back on the bark of the tree. She did know where they were.

Kagome took off running, rushing in the direction she recalled from earlier, knowing they weren’t far at all.

And, then she abruptly halted. Her feet stopped worked. Her muscles jolted painfully, and her lungs clenched in her chest. The only thing she could feel was an icy sensation swarm over her and the pounding of her heart as it was being forced to slow.

Kikyo laid motionless in the exact position she’d left her in. The moon shined on her, but it illuminated no color except for the crimson Kagome didn’t want to see. There was no pink in her cheeks or on her lips where there should have been at least a slight hue. She was gone. Kikyo was gone. It was real. This hadn’t been a nightmare at all.

She forced herself to amble forward, her chin quivering as she grew nearer the corpse.

“Baby -“

“No. Don’t protect me right now.” Kagome said with a melancholic shake of her head. She’d already suffered through the worst of it. She’d already witnessed the death of someone she never saw falling. If she’d wanted security, a safety net, she would have never asked Inuyasha to find Kikyo’s whereabouts. She would have stayed in camp, continued clinging to him for dear life, closed her eyes and pretended it had never happened.

Inuyasha respected her wishes. He understood this feeling completely. Right now, Kagome didn’t need someone to stand behind, to shield her, but someone to stand directly beside her in support. He could do that. He would do that. If that was what she needed, it was already hers.

The conjurer stopped just a foot away from Kikyo, noticing the markings she’d left behind before she’d returned to reality. “This was - this was where I… I sat here.” Kagome admitted, feeling the hot tears brimming again as she glanced over her shoulder at Inuyasha. “I held her. While she - while she died. I told her about Kaede.”

“You held her?” The hanyou couldn’t help the sympathetic curve of his brow, or the frown that pushed at his lips.

She nodded, looking back at Kikyo’s body. “She didn’t want to be alone. She was just so happy to not have to be haunted by Naraku anymore.”

“Those dreams you’d been having. They’re connected aren’t they?”

“It was Kikyo. She was using our connection to find me. She wanted me to know what was happening first hand, but she needed to be closer.” Kagome found herself kneeling down at Kikyo’s side, feeling like the right thing to do was pick Kikyo right back up into her arms and continue comforting her, but she resisted. If she’d done that, there was a strong chance she wouldn’t have been able to put her down. “That means, she’d been running, and hiding, and doing everything she could to stay alive for days. What’s it been since the first vision? Four? Five?”

“Kagome, it’s not your fault.”

“She should have told me where she was. We could have helped her.” Though tears streamed from her eyes, she didn’t sound to be sobbing. Her tone was so sunken, so sad it was almost devoid of all emotion.

“But, she didn’t. That’s not on you. What did she tell you? She had to have given some sort of explanation.”

“She said she knew she wasn’t going to survive. That she just wanted me to know that - that she was gone. That she couldn’t fight anymore.” Kagome blinked away the sadness that refused to stop flowing through her eyes. Naraku didn’t win. He wasn’t allowed to even think he’d won. All he’d done was set her free. Much like Kikyo said, he’d released her. “I think it was Kagura. The woman that killed Kikyo. She was apologetic. Remorseful. And, she mentioned having no choice but to do this because she had a child’s safety to ensure. That means Sesshomaru’s family is still alive. They’re okay.”

“Don’t worry about that right now, kid.” Inuyasha sighed, sauntering over to kneel beside her. He didn’t like the way she looked right now, how she wouldn’t even glance at him anymore. Her eyes were dull and listless, drowning in grief. He wished she’d weep again. He wished she’d crumble. At least that way she’d be getting all of it out of her system. But, this? This was the works of the sorrow taking her hostage. “Tell me how you’re feeling.”

“I don’t want to think about me right now.” She confessed. “This isn’t about me. Later. I promise.”

“Okay.” Inuyasha breathed, accepting her compromise. He took a moment, sealing his lips, pushing her hair behind her ear as she stared on at the corpse. With the way her fingers twitched forward, he could tell she was wanting to feel Kikyo again, hold her, console her. Like, she was trying to come to terms with the fact that it wasn’t necessary anymore. She was dead.

“We should,” He sighed. “We should bury her. You want to do that?”

Kagome nodded. “Yeah. But, not here.”

“Not here?” He echoed, more for a reach into her mind to understand.

“Kagura told Kikyo that if Naraku asked where her body was located, she’d have to tell him. Kikyo doesn’t want Naraku to have her body. I don’t want him to find her.”

“Okay. Let’s find some place else, then. Come on.” Inuyasha held his hand out for her, waiting patiently until she took it.

He let her guide their way. He didn’t mind the silence, or the loose grip she had on his fingers. He didn’t mind her minor stumbling, or how she was aimlessly wandering. Inuyasha would be able to find their way back, and he would walk however far Kagome deemed appropriate.

They came upon a hillside that overlooked a valley. It was green, dewy from the moisture in the crisp air, and peppered with wildflowers. Instantly, he knew Kagome’s attention was on the single tree just to their right. Before she’d even pulled him in that direction, he knew.

“In the daytime, she’ll be shaded, but at nighttime, she’ll have a clear shot of the stars. What do you think?” She asked. She’d finally stopped crying, her cheeks positively stained with streaks of old blood and salt. Yet, she was still capable of being kind, of being compassionate. Kagome didn’t choose a spot at random, but put some thought into the scenery that felt right.

“I think it’s perfect.” He answered. Pointing to a spot that he felt would be best covered by the branches above, Inuyasha asked, “Here?”

“Yeah.”

It wasn’t the easiest, but they dug a whole that ran deep, one the average demon's nose wouldn’t be able to catch a whiff of the deceased through. One Inuyasha felt would properly shield Kikyo from Naraku within. They traveled back to grab Kikyo, and Inuyasha was careful with how he carried her, handling the former conjurer with extreme care as Kagome followed immediately behind with her discarded bow to bury her with.

The sun was beginning it’s ascent as they returned to the gravesite, and by the time Kikyo was fully laid to rest, the sky blended with awakening tints of pink and blue. Inuyasha remained quiet, respectful as Kagome continued to pat the dirt to ensure it was packed firmly. It was easy to tell she was hesitant to leave Kikyo. He could physically feel the remorse she waded through, but still, he wished she’d shed tears again. It hurt so bad to watch her suffer in silence, to watch her shut down, to watch her fingers tremble while he could do nothing to ease her heartache.

It was one thing to understand a person you knew had died. It was one thing to learn of it from another, or even to witness it from a safe distance. But, to hold them as it happened? To see the light fade from their eyes, to hear their voice trail away, to feel them grow heavy in your arms, it was an entirely different story. It was traumatizing. He’d been there. He held his mother. He held a few strangers he’d found mauled, on their final breath, and so afraid to die alone. It was hard. He knew firsthand that Kagome was going to continue to feel the weight of Kikyo in her arms throughout the duration that she mourned, as if the woman were still present and there. He knew firsthand that Kagome was going to wash the blood from her body but still see it as if it had seeped through the first layer of her flesh and she’d need to scrape it all off until her skin was angry, raw, and prickling with her own blood. And, there was nothing he could do to save her from that. Those feelings were going to demand her undivided attention, and the only thing Inuyasha was aware he could offer was his unwavering support. No matter how badly he wanted to protect her, even steal the emotions away to be felt as his own so that she wouldn’t have to shoulder them, he knew he couldn’t.

In no way did he plan on allowing her to sink into those dark thoughts he was all too conscious of. The ones that dragged you down while you were weakened by a state of grieving, that made you feel like there was no amount of sunlight that could brighten the darkness. As time had passed and Kagome merely stared at the grave, silent, motionless, the hanyou made the call. It was time to go.

At her side, he held out his hand. “Come on, Kagome.” He’d spoken so softly. Her dull gaze slowly shifted to his extended fingers, and by instinct, she went to place her hand in his, but paused halfway.

It was the guilt. That she got to continue living while Kikyo did not. That Kikyo would be left here alone. All alone. Kagome’s hand faltered back and forth between taking Inuyasha’s and touching the dirt that bedded the former conjurer. All the while, he was patient. He knew she would understand that she couldn’t stay here forever, and he didn’t have to articulate the reminder. Kagome would choose to move forward.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered to Kikyo, and before long, her fingers slid within Inuyasha’s gentle grasp.

The hanyou assisted her to a standing. “She doesn’t have to fight anymore. She’s at peace now.”

“I know.” The surviving conjurer replied quietly. He could tell, at the moment, his statement was in one ear and out the other. She wasn’t in the right state of mind to receive reassurance. Her walls were up. And, he had a feeling he’d know when she was ready.

They made their way back to their campsite to gather the few things they’d left behind. Inuyasha knew she wouldn’t want to stay. He didn’t need to kick out what embers may have still remained because they’d long died off on their own. Instead, he took the bag before she could secure it over her shoulders. He couldn’t do much for her right now, but the least he could do was remove the physical weight from her back.

Kagome wasn’t talkative in the least, didn’t even make a sound when she’d accidentally tripped over a root and stumbled into his arm, the gasp she’d released so light even he had hardly caught it. She needed to rest, he was more than aware, but he knew that if he verbally made the suggestion, Kagome would shake her head to decline. She’d closed herself off so much, he was certain she didn’t even realize they were still covered in dried blood and dirt. As far as he was concerned, it was his executive decision to make. So, he sought out a river, or a lake, or any small body of water they’d be able to wash off in.

He’d thought he’d been following the sounds of a stream, but as the rushing water became more thunderous than expected, he’d realized they were at the bottom of a waterfall. It was secluded, it was peaceful, it was where they were calling it a day. And, he meant that. He didn’t care if she wanted to keep going after they’d cleaned up, and he didn’t care if they got into an argument because of it; Kagome needed to sit down and rest. She hadn’t gotten much sleep as it was, and she couldn’t just walk this feeling off. She, of all people, should know.

To his surprise, as they forced their way through bushes to come out onto the greenery that surrounded the pool, Kagome seemed to have no objections. She knew what they were there for, and as he set the bag down, removing the sheath of his sword from the loop in his belt, she dropped her bow and quiver from her shoulders to the ground beside them. After placing her father’s knife in the pile, she followed the hanyou into the water, neither yet bothering to remove any clothing.

Inuyasha reached for her hands, which this time she didn’t hesitate to take, holding the both of his as he pulled her in deeper. For the first time in hours, Kagome sighed out heavily, a little shakily. The pool was cold, it was a shock to the system, and it served to both cleanse her person while jolting her out of the bleak depths of her depressive state.

The hanyou gently began washing her palms off, taking meticulous care, and finally he heard her voice. It was cracked, it was small, but it was her voice.

“I can do it.” She claimed. And, he gave her a small grin of acknowledgment, releasing his meager grip to give her space.

Kagome dunked her hands in the water, beginning to rub the filth on her fingers away. Some of it washed off easily, but a good portion was stuck to her skin. It would have been easier if she had a rag, or maybe something coarse. Something that could lift the crimson stain so she’d never have to see it again. Utilizing the next best thing that she had, Kagome removed her shirt, balling up the ruined cloth and plunging it into the pool. For some reason, she’d tried to rinse it the best that she could, no matter how much of a lost cause it was from the start.

Grabbing an end that wasn’t stained, Kagome used it to scrub at her hands, finding it helped substantially. She continued up her arms, taking her time, but during which, finding her stability wavering. As she washed the remaining evidence of the last of Kikyo’s life away, she revisited the wounds that marred her flesh, her final words, the way her eyes faded, and hot tears quickly brimmed that had to be blinked away.

“I’m gonna dive.” Kagome mentioned, warning Inuyasha so he wouldn’t worry.

She took a deep breath, and down she went, kicking off of the rocks beneath her feet to swim deeper into the pool. Coming up to the surface, Kagome treaded in the water for a moment, quickly acclimating to the temperature now that she’d fully submerged. She backed up until her feet could reach some of the loose, mossy floor beneath, and then continued until she was only engulfed from the chest down. Even the cold didn’t help anymore. Kagome couldn’t silence her grief, tears streaming from her eyes as her breathing became heavy and sputtered once more.

Kikyo was gone. She was gone. She could still feel her in her arms, she could still hear her cries. She was told it wasn’t her fault, but if that were true, why did Kagome feel such a horrible sense of remorse in the pit of her chest? Why did she feel so guilty? Just because Kikyo felt she couldn’t be saved didn’t mean Kagome shouldn’t have tried. Why hadn’t she figured out the visions were coming from Kikyo? How could she not have pieced that together sooner? It didn’t matter that she had never experienced the detrimental tint of red before, it didn’t matter that she was apparently seeing things through Kikyo’s eyes for just small glimpses at a time. They were reoccurring and precise. How could she have dismissed them as nothing more than dreams without a meaning? She was smarter than that. It felt insensitive to have belittled them as such, it felt cruel of her to shrug them off and carry on with her day while Kikyo had been fighting for her life. Kagome had failed. She’d failed herself, and she’d failed her friend.

Her sobs were beginning to wrack her body, like hyperventilated breaths that made it hard to actually attain oxygen. This sadness, this thick sludge of loss was impossible to ignore, and instead of trying to regain control over herself while it wasn’t necessary, instead of reaching for composure that was miles away, Kagome turned around to face Inuyasha.

He’d been watching her. Carefully. Closely. All while minding her space. He, himself, had removed his shirt using it to scrub clean, but he never had his eyes off of her for more than a second at a time. Each gasp he heard her breathe as she began to cry was like a thorn to his heart. It was difficult to respect the distance she’d created, but as the water rippled, and she turned his way, looking at him with such a sorrowful expression, that was all he needed in order to know that he no longer had to. She was ready for him.

Taking his cue, Inuyasha waded over, his arms catching her as she closed the distance herself by bounding into his chest.

“I’ve got you, baby.” He whispered soothingly into her hair, tightening his hold around her as she cried against him. “It’s okay. I’ve got you.”

Inuyasha kissed her head, stroked his fingers over the soaked backside of the top that supported her breasts, gently pet her hair, and waited patiently. He would have stood there holding her all fucking day and night if that was what it took. He didn’t care. If this was what Kagome needed, then nothing stood the chance of pulling him away from her.

As her weeping gradually died down, and the aftershocks of hiccups shook her core, his hands began to massage at her upper back, creating tiny ripples of water with his skillful movements. Her arms had slackened some around his waist, but Kagome still nuzzled into his chest.

“I can’t get all of the blood off of me.” She mentioned, her words raspy. Broken.

“You got most of it. I saw. You want my help?” Inuyasha spoke sweetly.

“Please.” Kagome nodded against him, leaning back the tiniest bit. “Is it - is it still on my face?”

Inuyasha didn’t answer just yet, dipping his hands in the water before bringing his thumbs up and gently rubbing against her cheeks. “Not anymore.”

He didn’t say anything else before his hands traveled downward, washing her chest, applying a little more friction to the mess on her stomach, all the while placing a tender kiss to the center of her forehead.

“I’m sorry. I have to ask this.” Inuyasha whispered into her ear. “But, I wasn’t there, so I don’t know the situation. Were you hurt, kid?”

In response, Kagome shook her head. “Kikyo protected me with her magic. Kagura didn’t even know I was there.”

“Then, what’s this on your back?” He asked, gently rubbing over the scraped area as he had numerous times already.

“That was me.” She said, tucking herself back into his arms so he’d rest his chin on top of her head. “I stumbled into a tree.”

It wasn’t until her nerves had died down and she began to shiver that Inuyasha made the decision to guide her out of the water. Their soaked clothes were set out to dry, and the both of them were soon donned in fresh apparel, sitting around a fire she’d insisted on being the one to build.

Kagome hadn’t wanted to deal with her hair, finding herself growing impatient just by brushing the damp tangles away. As soon as the last of it was smoothed out, she grabbed her hair tie and set to braiding it, uncaring of the uneven chunks of hair that she grabbed while she started at the crown of her head and worked her way down.

“That’s cute.” Inuyasha smiled, crouching before her and taking it upon himself to fix her loose bangs. The only reply she could muster was a lazy crinkle of her nose, bringing a chuckle from his lips as he got some fish cooking over the fire.

At first, he’d figured she didn’t want to talk about anything, but before long, Inuyasha realized it was more that she couldn’t. Kagome looked exhausted. Her emotions were justifiably all over the place, and in her state, how could she be expected to be able to put them into words? He wasn’t the least bit bothered by her silence or how far she seemed to sit from him. Truthfully, he figured it was all absentminded action. At least now she didn’t seem so sunken inward. Her irises were still dull, but there was the glimmer of Kagome in them again. He suspected that slowly, steadily, she would return at her own rate. And, Inuyasha would be right there when she did.

Kagome managed to eat more than he’d expected of her, and though he’d left her alone to rest, he knew she was fighting it. Couldn’t say he blamed her for that. It was twilight, but a monotonous one. No gorgeous colors glowed in the sky to end their day, and from their position behind the mountain, they couldn’t even see the sun as it fell. Before they knew it, the two of them were shadowed completely, the air quickly growing crisp as it lost the warmth that the sun provided.

It was chilly. She sat near the fire, but being so close to the waterfall had a draft hitting them that was hard to ignore. Kagome was trying not to make it obvious. She knew Inuyasha was already worried about her, and he had been so kind, and sweet, and diligent all day, so she was scared that merely shivering would exacerbate his concern. She’d considered laying down, trying to sleep, but it was hard to close her eyes for more than a second without seeing Kikyo’s body. Even now, there was still a hard lump caught in her throat that made it difficult to swallow. She was just all cried out for the moment. Her eyes burned with fatigue, her chest ached from the hiccups that had taken forever to go away, her muscles felt sluggish and heavy, and her head throbbed horrendously.

For some reason, her attention kept shifting to Inuyasha. He was leaning back against a tree, sitting nonchalantly as he gazed up at the sky. Why were they so far apart? Why had she sat alone? Maybe because she was worried about bothering him further or seeming clingy. Would Inuyasha actually mind if she was clingy for a little while? She honestly couldn’t see him being bothered by it. At all. She didn’t want him to just allow it because she was in a bad state of mind at the moment, though. Like he pitied her. She didn’t want pity. She wanted compassion. But, this was Inuyasha. This was her Inuyasha. If she wanted to be near him and didn’t act on it, and he found out later, he’d probably call her an idiot. No, he’d call her worse. If she wanted to touch him but kept to herself out of fear of bothering him, Inuyasha would give her the look. The look that said more than his mouth ever could, and that was saying something given Inuyasha was probably the most outspoken person she’d ever met. It was a glare that scolded, a slant of his eyes that condemned her, but there was no frown. His lips were set straight, pulled in no direction, and it was probably what made the expression worse since she couldn’t read what level of upset he was actually conveying. It was rare that he ever looked at her that way, but she’d seen it twice, maybe three times, before. And, it was the one thing he could do to make her truly pout in shame.

Resolved and hopeful for an inkling of peace she knew his arms would provide, Kagome picked herself up from her spot, sauntering over to the hanyou. His eyes shifted her way, and as she grew closer, a small, welcoming smile appeared. The empty spot beside him didn’t suit her liking, though. As odd as it seemed, it just wasn’t close enough. Feeling a rush of shyness mix into her already-swarming emotions, all Kagome could bring herself to do in order to communicate was glance down at his legs while she stood in front of him. Verbal communication was far out of reach, but she knew Inuyasha was the only person who’d learned to understand her with or without.

Inuyasha’s grin only inched wider when she gave such a subtle signal for him to take. She wanted his lap. Honestly, he was just happy she wanted to be near him right now. He’d fully accepted that she needed her space and was going to respect it, but he’d be a lying sack of shit if he didn’t admit that he wanted to at least be within arms reach for his own sense of comfort. Having her sit across their camp was hard while he knew she was struggling and all he wanted to do was help, but he was more than willing if it was what she’d wanted. But, now she wanted him.

He outstretched his bent legs, patting on his thighs for her to lay on as she had several times before, but this time Kagome gave a small shake of her head. At first, Inuyasha was a little confused. He’d read her correctly, right? She does want his lap, right?

“Not like this?” He asked. And, Kagome replied with a shake of her head in confirmation. “Did you want to sit?”

She gave a small nod, pointing in between his legs. In another attempt to get it right, Inuyasha bent his legs as they’d just been, spreading them wider so she had room to sit between his thighs. Again, she shook her head, a bashful flush heating her face as she bit her bottom lip.

“Oh,” He chuckled. “I know what you want.”

Of course. It was foolish of him not to think of it first. Kagome didn’t want to just sit with him, or lean against him. She wanted to be held by him. She wanted to be tucked so securely against him that nothing stood the chance of harming her. She wanted, just for a moment, to not have to put up a strong demeanor. She wanted to shrink into his chest, his arms, she wanted to close her eyes, and she wanted the sound of his heartbeat to mute all other thoughts her mind could threaten her with.

Inuyasha folded his legs, watching the tiniest smile pull at the corners of her lips when he opened his arms to invite her in. She carefully crawled into his lap, her own legs folding over one of his thighs as she curled into his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist and nuzzling against him.

“Better?” He asked just before kissing her temple. Kagome granted him a hum of approval, sighing out deeply as he hugged her close, tight, safe.

Inuyasha relaxed back against the tree, enjoying the feel of how her breath hadn’t yet synced to his. The push of her lungs met his abdomen in disagreement with his own pattern, matching their own rhythm, and it brought him a sensation of tranquility. When their breathing matched, it wasn’t that he didn’t love it. It was more that it just became too second nature and he had to focus to make sure her lungs were really doing their job. But, when she opposed his own, he didn’t need a reminder. He could feel it.

Quicker than he’d expected, Kagome’s weight began to increase against him. She was falling asleep. His arms were snug around her, his chin was resting on top of her head, and if he didn’t risk pulling her from that in between state, he’d be kissing her goodnight right now. It was that in between state that he knew was the most worrisome, though. Where you weren’t quite unconscious so the thoughts that you barely kept at bay during the day could sneak up on you at any given moment without so much as a barrier to hold them back. All Inuyasha could hope for was her serenity. Kagome deserved that much. She deserved to rest right now. And, as he felt her breathing deepen, a small twitch from her fingers on his backside, he knew she’d gotten past it without harm, sleeping soundly in the refuge of his protection.

—

It would be an understatement to say Kagura was shaken. The choice of vocabulary was laughable in comparison to what she’d actually felt. She was no saint. She’d done horrible things in her lifetime. Before she thought to escape her “father,” Kagura had done his bidding without so much as blinking an eye. She’d murdered, she’d robbed, she’d come home covered in blood belonging to numerous people at a time, took a bath, then moved on with her life without feeling an ounce of compunction. It wasn’t that she could claim she had a conscience. In fact, she was sure she was deliberately created without one. If Naraku surely didn’t own one, how could she? That didn’t mean she wasn’t smart enough to know right from wrong. That didn’t mean she wanted to be the same sort of beast Naraku was. That was where he’d made his mistake in creating her. He’d given her a mind of her own.

Naraku was more than vile. His twisted laughter at another’s expense caused her stomach to churn and ache, his malicious smile made her welcome the dark so she’d never have to see it, his unforgiving brutality had her wishing for her own death at times, and it wasn’t all that long after her rise that a switch flipped in her brain and she realized she wanted to be as far removed from him as she could possibly get.

Maybe that meant she did have a conscience. Maybe she’d developed one after so many pleading screams had echoed in her ears. Maybe running away and experiencing love was both the best and worst thing for her, because killing Kikyo was the hardest thing she’d ever had to do.

It was too easy. It was entirely too easy. Why was she ordered to kill Kikyo when she was on her deathbed as it was? The conjurer had run herself dry, depleted her energy, and was so far gone that no matter how well she’d tried to take care of herself thereafter, there was no coming back from it. Kikyo would have died on her own in just a matter of weeks if things continued as they were. So, why the hell did Kagura have no other choice but to savagely murder her?

She knew the story. She knew how Naraku attempted to corrupt Kikyo, how they’d met when she could still be considered a child, how that monster upheaved her life, flipped it upside down, and burned any future she may have been able to create for herself. Naraku had singlehandedly made that woman’s world hell, and Kagura was furious that she had to personally see to the end of it. Naraku killed her spirit, and Kagura killed her heart.

And, she knew what was about to happen. She knew Naraku too well not to know what sort of reaction waited for her on the other side of the manor. As disgusting as it was, while he was still human, he truly did harbor some sort of affection for Kikyo. And, Kagura had her blood dripping down her fingers.

She took a deep breath, easily shoving aside her conflicting emotions so that she could get this over with. She’d been gone for too long as it was, so any feelings that slowed her down were useless right now. Kagura’s heels clicked along the hard floor, a frown curving at her stained lips as she approached the study and entered through the cracked door.

He’d smelled it. He’d smelled her coming, and he smelled the liquid oozing from the feather she held and down her hand. That was why Naraku was already staring at the door, that was why his jaw was hard and set, that was why his red eyes were more piercing than she’d ever seen in her entire life. Kagura instantly understood that she had underestimated the situation. From the way the half demon bristled at the other end of the room, from the way his tentacles curled malignantly, and the spider legs that grew out of the free space of his back appeared and stiffened, from the way his demonic energy began to swirl like she’d only felt a handful of times, things were already appearing to be worse than she’d imagined. It’d caught her off guard. She froze in the entryway, apprehensive, her breathy gasp caught in her throat to emphasize the hollow.

“That - that’s -“ It seemed like her master was in a state of shock. Kagura had never seen his lips twitch this way, or his chin quiver in the manner it did now. “Did you…”

“Miss Kagura, you’re -“ Rin’s small smile of greeting faded as quickly as it had appeared as the man standing just a few feet away from where she sat on the floor playing with dolls screamed at her so loud, his voice cracked.

“SHUT UP!” Naraku had curled his spine some, his thick fingers positively quaking. “Did you do it, Kagura!? Is she dead!?”

“She’s - yes.” Kagura answered unsteadily, eyes wide and breath trembling. “Yes, I did it. Kikyo’s dead.”

“And, that’s her blood?” He didn’t need to ask that question. She knew his sense of smell was somehow stronger than her own.

“It is.”

“You’re unscathed. How? Kikyo is strong, you should have come back half mangled! You’re lying! You betrayed me again, didn’t you!? You made a deal with that cunt and took some of her blood to try and fool me! She’s still alive out there, isn’t she!?” He raced over to her, grabbing Kagura by the throat and pinning her against the wall before she could so much as think to react. She’d had to ignore the little girl’s scream, her broken cry, praying she’d keep the promise they’d made when she’d first arrived. If Naraku were to ever do anything to Kagura, Rin swore to keep her distance. Rin swore never to run up and try and do something her father would, because Naraku wouldn’t hesitate to hurt her. “Isn’t she!?”

“N-Naraku.” Kagura gurgled, trying to push him off, to pry her neck from his grip with her free hand while preserving the evidence she held in the other. “Kikyo’s - Kikyo’s dead.”

It was another moment before Naraku’s eyes went blank, his fingers gradually releasing Kagura, and a thick swallow had his Adam’s apple bobbing.

She gasped in some air, recovering as quickly as she could to give the explanation he was looking for before he could grow angry again. “Kikyo did strike me.” She said, pointing to a tear in her gown on her arm that she’d received days before. “It’s just healed already.”

“She’s a conjurer. You should have been dead from her strike.”

“She was dying, Naraku. She hardly had any power left in her.”

“How is that possible?”

“I don’t know. I don’t know the logistics of their kind. She looked passed the point of fatigue. When I had appeared, she had this look in her eyes. Like, her final chance had just been stolen away. I don’t know how to explain it.”

“Try.” He said through gritted teeth.

“I saw hope, but I saw it gradually fizzle the nearer I got.” Kagura said. “You were the one who’d told me she was weak and sick. Why is this coming as such a shock to you?”

“Such impudence to question me!” Naraku yelled, slapping the back of his hand across Kagura’s face. Forcefully, he jerked the feather from between her fingers. “This will tell me if you’re lying.”

The monster hovered the stained, white object close to his face, observing it intensely, intimately. His red irises traveled over each minor detail of the feather, gazing at the blood with a sense of dedication that steadily shifted into desire. It was grotesque. It was disturbing. It had Kagura pressing herself flush against the wall in an attempt to further separate from the madman.

Dreamily, Naraku dragged the feather over his tongue, the conserved blood coloring the surface of which before he closed his mouth and took his time studying the taste. His eyes blinked hazily, sort of rolling into the back of his head as a vicious grin turned at the corners of his lips. It wasn’t wide, it wasn’t tooth-baring. It was minute, subtle, but speaking volumes of the pleasure he felt. Kagura had to swallow her shudder, tensing her entire body so she risked no involuntary, negative reactions from her muscles.

“I can taste you.” Naraku breathed.

“You sliced her.” He chuckled.

“Your demonic energy is mixed with her mortal essence.” He moaned.

“She still tastes as good as she did before.” He licked the feather again.

“Fuck,” He groaned pleasantly. “I can practically taste her final breaths.”

“She was so pathetically weak when she died.” Naraku laughed, stumbling backward as he grew intoxicated by the blood. “She’s dead. The bitch is dead! She’s dead!” But, then his glee began to dwindle, his crazed eyes glued to the feather as he began to furl his spine forward. The extra appendages on his back began slithering, growing, twitching erratically. His mental state had slipped, his footing was unstable as he continued to stumble backward, to the side, forward, stopping in the center of the floor when his spider legs planted roughly and supported him. He neither blinked nor swallowed, drool with the slightest tint of red dripping from his opened lips to dribble down his chin while his smile fell into a horrible, enraged frown. It was processing. His ex-lover was deceased. She was no more. Kikyo’s existence was gone, and even he, with the decrepit heart that beat within his chest, felt the pain of loss. “She’s dead? She’s dead? She’s dead. She’s - she’s - no.”

With a quick a demanding snap of her fingers, Kagura looked to the terrified and crying girl on the carpet, directing Rin to run to her side immediately with a point. The patter of her feet was rushed as she scrambled up and away from her spot, opening her arms wide for Kagura to grab her and pick her up, securing her against her body.

Naraku’s energy was soaring. It was so irate that a literal strength circled around him, building, growing, sending objects flying, the jar on Naraku’s desk holding Moryomaru’s still and rotting heart shattering against the far wall.

“Kikyo! Kikyo, my beloved!”

As quickly as she could, Kagura tucked rin’s head down against her shoulder and raced out of the room to safety. She’d never seen him like that. She’d never witnessed just how insane Naraku could be. She’d thought she’d seen it all, she’d thought she’d lived through the worst, but the entire place was shaking with his rage, and she wondered if killing the conjurer was truly worth it now.

—

Inuyasha turned to check how far behind him Kagome was trailing. Seeing she was within arm’s reach, regarding him with a small smile had his chest feeling a little lighter. It hadn’t yet been a full week since Kikyo’s passing, just a day shy, and he couldn’t quite claim she was back to normal, but she was handling herself well. He knew the further they got from the place it all happened, and the further they got from the date, the more Kagome’s state improved.

Just recalling how she was a few days ago had a heavy throb making home in his heart. She’d wake up and her irises would seem dull and spiritless, she’d either lay or sit there for a long moment before really coming to, and then she’d check her hands. Every day, she had to make sure they were clean. Kagome said her peripheral vision was playing tricks on her. In the corner of her eyes, she still saw red staining her skin, and first thing in the morning her not-yet-functioning brain would convince her she hadn’t succeeded in cleaning it all off. He’d quickly made it a habit of checking behind him to see where she was. He was so used to her by his side that when she was missing it was unsettling, but he also comprehended that keeping up was a little more difficult at the moment than when she was mentally sound. Inuyasha didn’t want to make her feel like she needed to hurry along, though. Right now, he didn’t mind taking it easy. Their next destination, one he hadn’t brought up to her for the sake of her momentary sanity, wasn’t necessarily one he was eager to get to anytime soon, anyway. As important as it was to get there soon, it wasn’t pressing to get there now. They had a few days to spare; it could wait that long.

Kagome still broke down. She wasn’t an empty shell of herself, and sometimes the pain in her chest became too much to bear and she’d crumble where she stood. It wasn’t difficult at all to be patient, and he hushed her whenever she apologized between shuddering sobs. If she’d stop while walking and crouch down to cry, Inuyasha would stop too. He’d kneel right next to her and either stroke her hair or rub her back. He wouldn’t say a thing unless prompted, because he knew very well that this was just a form of release. If she allowed it to build up, if she swallowed it and pushed the feelings away like she used to, it would eventually become too much to bear and potentially grow worse. It would ultimately effect her mentality, and her spiritual power would be difficult to control. Kagome couldn’t allow her emotions to pave the way, so she had to let them out.

Inuyasha knew that sensation. He knew that stuffiness in the center of your chest where it felt like a literal weight was making your entire body seem heavy. He knew how quickly it expanded, how bleak it made everything seem, how it made you feel like you would never recover and you were bound to be stuck with this burden forever. So, he was glad Kagome was taking care of herself. He was glad Kagome was crying. He was glad when she looked at him with those reddened, puffy eyes and that pouting, bottom lip that jutted out just a tiny bit, and she allowed him to clean the tears from her face and express just how tender he was capable of being.

Gradually, as the days passed, she cried a little less, she fell behind a little less, she replied a little more, she smiled a little wider, and her laughter was beginning to return. Inuyasha reached behind him now, accepting her modest grin by grabbing for her hand.

“Need a break?” He asked.

“I need a snack, is what I need.” Kagome said with a little grumble

“You’re hungry?”

“I mean, I could eat.”

Inuyasha chuckled, squeezing his grip on her hand. “Okay, we can climb down the mountain for some fish and actually sit down to eat a lunch, or we can eat some berries and hope that tides us off for a while. Option A will take at least an hour given we’re pretty high up from the river, option B will take about ten minutes because I’m pretty sure I saw some bushes with berries not too far back. I’m just not sure if they were the poisonous sort or not.”

“Berries!” Kagome chose with a small bounce.

“Okay,” The hanyou had to look away then, standing no chance of subduing his flush. In such a short time, her happiness appeared so far away from him that now that she was beginning to show it again, to be herself again, it made him stupidly flustered. She was cute. Too fucking cute. Irritatingly cute. “How about I go grab the berries and you find a spot to relax?”

“You don’t want me to go with you?” She questioned.

“Nah, you don’t need to. Don’t wander off too far, though.” He replied, slipping his hand out of hers and turning around to backtrack the trail they’d traveled.

Kagome felt a tug on her heart as he grew further. She’d felt so absent this past week that she actually missed Inuyasha, and he’d been right next to her the entire time. He’d kissed her head numerous times, her cheek, her temple, and once even on her hand, but right now she wanted that little bit of affection she’d been too far gone to receive and reciprocate. So, Kagome spun around on her heel, albeit bashfully, as she played with the sleeves of her shirt.

“Hey.” She called out, stopping her hanyou in his tracks.

Inuyasha looked over his shoulder at her, cocking a brow as he waited for her to say something. But, no words came forward. Instead, she pursed her lips, starting small until she lifted her chin, making it evident she wanted a kiss. His heart gave a delightful thud, but his entire body grew uncomfortably warm.

“Use your words.” He teased, trying to swallow his own rush of shyness. She had too much power over him and he was pretty sure she knew it. She knew he was wrapped around her finger just like the red string that knotted around their pinkies, tying them to each other. That didn’t mean he was always going to present himself as the goo his brain turned into. He was still a hard ass through and through, and he’d been nice enough where necessary. Right now, he felt well within his rights to play around with her a little.

Kagome’s mouth fell into a minor pout, finding herself just a bit too timid under his stare to say anything now. He was just taunting her to be a jerk, she was well aware of the games he played. But, she wanted a kiss, dammit. If she gave in and asked, he would only tease her more by saying something like, “Now, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” There was no way Kagome could give him that sort of satisfaction, so again, she tried to communicate her wishes by pursing her lips, this time letting out the smallest whine.

“Is that any way to get what you want?” Inuyasha laughed.

With a skeptic arch of Kagome’s brow, her lips falling into an expression that easily said, obviously, she nodded.

He couldn’t help his sputtering laugh. Yeah, she definitely knew the effects she had on him. With a roll of his eyes and a shake of his head, Inuyasha walked right back over, rushing her at the tail end so she’d squeal and jump back just as he grabbed her, pulling her into a kiss.

“There,” Inuyasha spoke between a peck, his word murmured against her lips. “Happy?”

“Wait, one more.” Kagome replied, just as muted by his affection. “Okay, now I’m happy.” She giggled.

“I’ll be right back.” He lightly stated, giving her rear a small tap before he went to walk away again.

Kagome smiled, turning around to find a good spot to sit down for a moment. They could always just park it on the floor, which they may very well have to do given the trail they were currently on, but it was at least worth looking for a better spot.

They’d been heading uphill for a while already, and she was glad Inuyasha offered a break. She knew she’d been slowing the two of them down for days now, but it honestly couldn’t be helped. And, while she was aware he more than understood her current state, that didn’t mean she wanted to request more stops just because her legs and ass were on fire from the steep mountain they traveled on. If he hadn’t have brought it up, Kagome would have pushed through it all without complaint.

Down below, she could just barely hear the river. It was still so full from all the rain it had recently received, moving wildly along its course. As she traveled just a bit further, Kagome noticed a slim peek of rock through a break in the bushes and trees. It looked like a cliff that extended outward, overlooking the scenery - a wide one that had no previous accessibility until this point, and even now that accessibility was narrow. Still, if she were right, it would be the perfect spot to sit down and rest for a moment.

It wasn’t until she grew closer that she began to feel like something was off. It felt like an object was very subtly radiating demonic properties, yet it wasn’t a demon, itself, she was sensing. In essence, it was similar to Inuyasha’s blade, but for some reason, it also felt very different. Curious, Kagome pushed through the thick shrubbery to come out most of the way onto the cliff - extending longer than she’d anticipated. Immediately, her brown eyes landed on a man at the edge, facing away from her, his hair long, waving, darker than her own, and ruffling in the breeze. Despite the large amount of noise she’d made pushing through the bushes, the man hadn’t seemed to notice her, and if he had, he didn’t bother to turn around. Not straightaway. He was leisured as he slowly glanced over his shoulder, and it was only after the noise had completely died.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Kagome said, trying not to stare into his red irises as he gradually turned around to fully face her. She’d never seen any quite like that. Not where the pupils were white. It was piercing. Intimidating. But, the gentle smile he wore contradicted that, and that was what she chose to focus on. “I wasn’t expecting to find anyone here.”

The man still didn’t speak. His thin lips didn’t even part as if he wanted to say something. He merely gazed on at her, his head leaning ever so slightly to the side.

His silence was unsettling. Worse, his never-dying grin was becoming so, as well. What once was gentle was now disturbing. With the way he stared at her, it would be normal to perceive it as him looking straight through her, but he wasn’t. Kagome could feel it. This man’s eyes were right on her, studying her, eating her up.

“Are you - are you okay?” She asked nervously, unable to help the way her fingers fidgeted. What she truly wanted to know was if this man was mentally present. He was standing unnervingly close to the ledge. One misstep, and he was gone.

To her surprise, he chuckled. His voice was deep, silky. “I can’t even remember the last time anyone’s bothered to ask me that.”

That, alone, had Kagome feeling substantially more uncomfortable. What had he been looking at before she came? What had been running through his mind? What was this man contemplating just before she disturbed his silence and came trudging through the thickets? Her eyes, yet again, fell down to the edge of the cliff just behind his heels, then shifted back up to his face, his mouth.

“If you’re worried I’m going to jump, don’t be.” He said kindly, showing a little more personality with the way he smirked and looked away in amusement. “That’s quite the opposite of what I want. Really, it’d be counterproductive.”

“Oh,” Kagome breathed. While she wanted to feel relieved, there was something off-putting about the man. Severely off-putting. What was the object that drew her attention? She saw nothing on his person. No weapon was belted to his hip, nor his thigh, nor his shoulder. He held nothing in his hands, nor was there a bag strapped to his back. Maybe, it was something else she sensed. Or, maybe she should heed the warning her gut was receiving and leave it alone, back away, find Inuyasha, and rest on the very far side of the mountain. “Well, I apologize for bothering you.”

“You don’t have to leave.” He said before she could even move.

“I have to go find my boyfriend. I promised him I wouldn’t walk off too far.” She quickly stated.

“Then, why did you come out here?”

Kagome tensed. “I - Well, it looked like a nice spot to rest, and the scenery would be pretty. I wasn’t aware you were here, though. The last thing we’d want to do is disturb you. Besides -”

“You want to look at the scenery?” The man offered, his smile widening an inch as he turned to look over the cliff, at the mountains opposite, the green, the trees, the blue sky. “Come. Look. No need to be shy, Kagome. It’s beautiful.”

“Thank you, but I -“ Kagome froze mid-step, turning around to exit through the bushes when it hit her. As a chill ran down her spine, she pushed herself to look back at the man, her lips still parted, her brows furrowed in question.

He chuckled. “You’re not as easy to find as I’d thought you’d be.”

“How do you know my name?” She asked apprehensively.

“Isn’t it funny, maybe even a little ironic, that I would figure out who you were before you would me?” He carelessly ran his fingers through his hair. “Did you even bother to ask what I looked like? Given you’re a conjurer, I’m assuming your vendetta is with me. Of course, that could very well be my arrogance talking.”

No. It couldn’t be. This couldn’t be…

“Oh, there it is.” He laughed, chest and shoulders bouncing with the amusement. “The face of someone realizing just who they’re talking to. So, am I right? Was it me you were looking for?”

Kagome didn’t answer, an alarming sensation igniting in her core. Was this really Naraku? How did he know they were looking for him? Was it because she and Inuyasha had killed Moryomaru and it had gotten back to him? Or, had she been betrayed?

“You look to be in a state of shock. Disbelief? Kagome, it’s really me. Baby, honey, sweetums, pookie, I’m the man you’ve been searching for. In the flesh. Why don’t you seem happier?” He taunted jeeringly.

“Naraku?” She asked. She couldn’t help her skepticism. If she was in the presence of Naraku, why hadn’t she felt his demonic energy? Why hadn’t Inuyasha? It wasn’t a being she was sensing, but an object, and Inuyasha should have picked up his scent given she wasn’t all that far from where they’d parted. But, he hadn’t smelled anyone. Otherwise, the hanyou either would have warned her to be careful, or just purely wouldn’t have left her alone. This couldn’t be right. Naraku was supposed to be insanely powerful, so why wasn’t she feeling him. Was he able to conceal his powers? Was that possible?

“Good job, boo boo.” He said mockingly, smiling.

“But, how?”

“You killed Moryomaru. Did you think I wouldn’t find out?” Naraku shrugged his brows. “If you wanted my attention so bad, there were other ways to go about it. So, what’s up? What did you want to talk about?”

Kagome didn’t know how to read him. She was so thrown off, her perception of this reality was distorted. She needed to get a grip fast, she needed to draw her weapon, but she felt so solid, so confused, so afraid by not only his presence but his carefree demeanor.

“Come on, spit it out.” He wagged his hand in a rushing gesture. “God, for someone with a target on me, you sure seem scared. You sure you can do this?”

“Stop.” She finally spoke. “What are you doing? How are you talking so lightly right now?”

“What do you -“

“You know what I mean!” Kagome intentionally shouted, hoping to catch Inuyasha’s sensitive hearing. “You’re a mass murderer! You’re evil! You’ve been committing genocide, and you want to stand there spewing jokes at me as if nothing’s happened!”

“Yes, yes, yes, and yes.” Naraku nodded, agreeing to everything she’d just listed. “But, see the thing about being evil is, you don’t really care. I know that’s a difficult concept to grasp, what with the whole conscience and all.” He sneered with a light roll of his eyes.

“And, what for? What’s the purpose of all of this? World domination or something?”

“I wouldn’t go that far.” He curled his upper lip in slight disdain. “Sounds like a lot of responsibility. I would probably have to say power. And, recognition. Like, imagine another region saying, ‘Hey, you’ve heard of Naraku, right? Yeah, I wouldn’t want to fuck with him either.’ To see everyone fear me, to be unbeatable, to know that if I did someday want world domination, I could attain it with the flick of my wrist. Yeah, that’s probably what I’m shooting for.”

“Oh, screw you. You said that all as if you didn’t already know. As if you started all of this because you could.”

“That’s the thing, Kagome. I did. I had the power, so why shouldn’t I be the one to rise to the top? In doing that, I’d have to dispose of the waste, silence the challengers, make a few demonstrations to get the word out, so on and so forth. See, you conjurers are weird folk.” He pointed. “Acting like you’re better than anyone else. It doesn’t make sense to me. What’s that about?”

“We don’t kill for fun.” Kagome replied, a deep scowl forming on her face.

“Oh, no, see that’s not what I’m getting at. Sure, you gotta kill to survive sometimes, self defense, I get that. But, like, you guys act like you’re the peace keepers of the world just because you have the power to purify demonic entities. If you think about it, it’s kind of like you guys are acting like you’re the superior species. It’s the same shit.”

“It’s not the same.” She fired in defense.

“It kind of is.” He chuckled.

“You’re just trying to get me to react.” Kagome said, sighing out a deep breath to regain her bearings. “You really can’t put us on the same level as you. The only thing I heard you admit was that we’re competition. Our existence is a threat to yours.”

“Your existence,” He began, his tone taking a slightly darker note. “Is unnatural.”

She didn’t say anything, utilizing the silence to allow her bow to slide down her arm and into her hand. It would have been impossible not to notice, she was sure, but Naraku mentioned nothing about it, not even bothering to glance down at it in her grip.

“Humans aren’t purposed for supernatural abilities. You guys are the bottom feeders. In the game of the wild, you’re the boars intended for demons to hunt and cook over fires. And, yet here some of you are, popping out of the womb with spiritual powers as if you’re archangels placed on Earth to fight, good versus evil. Allow me to set you straight, Kagome, there is no competition between you and I. Whomever told you that was spitting a pathetic attempt at a lie that you idiotically fell for. If no one told you that and you truly feel I think highly of your kind, you’re delusional.”

“Then, what’s your reason for killing us all?”

“Simply because you’re no archangel. I am as close to a god as you’ll ever get, but you’re meant to join the fallen. So burn, Kagome. Burn.”

“You say it, but you don’t look like you mean that.”

“And, you want to pretend you know me well enough to make that determination? You didn’t even know what I looked like just minutes ago.”

“You’re putting up a front. I know how to read emotions, and you’ve got plenty. What you’re trying to do is conceal them all behind a wall of big talk. Yes, you think my kind is unnatural, but you honestly do think highly of us. I can say that with confidence, because if I recall correctly, you asked a certain conjurer to join your fight toward the very beginning. You thought combining your power with theirs would make you significantly stronger. If you really considered us bottom feeders, you’d have never contemplated such a suggestion. You’ve experienced years of struggle fighting against that conjurer, and have since deemed us all a threat. You’re afraid of us.”

Naraku laughed malevolently, almost appearing taken aback by her insinuation. “Fear. That’s bold to suggest since you’re currently too nervous to even pull an arrow from your quiver.”

“I am afraid.” Kagome admitted without apprehension. “My pride’s not the thing up for question right now.”

His smile was one of incredulity as his red eyes gave a small shift to the side. “Are you sure you want to do this? Fight me?”

“Like I have a choice.” She said through clenched teeth.

Naraku gestured to the ledge. “You do. Jump.”

“Never. I was sure I wanted to do this the moment I recognized the war you were waging. Now that you’ve killed Kikyo, there’s no way I’ll ever back down. You’re cruel, and -”

“Hey, woah, hey, hold on a second there, lady.” The demon braced his hands before him to silence her, pursing his lips for a brief second. “Look, I’m gonna be real with you, you don’t want to mention her. I’m sure you’ve noticed by now that you can’t detect my presence. Where’s you’re half breed boy toy? Who knows, because he has no idea I’m here, right? It’s because I’m not. I’m not real. Naraku, he’s kind of - he’s having an -“ He delayed for a second, bobbing his head as he pondered the proper wording for the predicament. “- an episode at the moment. I’m a puppet. A puppet without any strings, if you will, created to complete this task and then - poof - I’m gone. There’s sort of a tether between my mind and his, and god forbid he’s actually paying attention right now. For your sake, you’d better hope he’s still underground. I mean, I’m not trying to play any sort of good guy - it’s nothing like that. You’re still gonna die today, I’m just trying to show a little mercy. Naraku hears her name, he’ll show up because he’ll be able to locate me real fucking fast, and in the mental state he’s currently in, he’ll literally rip you to pieces. Come on now, that’s no way for a girl with a pretty face to go.”

Kagome was grimacing, a deep frown of disgust pulling at her lips. “He kills her and then has the audacity to cry about it!?”

“Drop the subject.” He warned.

“So, you came to kill me in his stead? Just like he had another underling kill her? And, you want to tell me he isn’t afraid!?”

“He doesn’t like to waste his time squishing bugs.”

“Pathetic.” Kagome said, her voice low, demeaning. “How can anyone be expected to take him seriously as a powerful anything if he can’t even do his own bidding? Naraku is a joke. I’ll bet he’s broken inside. I’ll bet he’s fragile.”

“Stop while you’re still ahead.” The puppet had taken on a serious expression, dark lashes fluttering as he blinked his eyes.

“And, I’m supposed to be intimidated by you? You’re not even him.”

“Oh, no, I’m Naraku.” He corrected. “I’m just not him. Count your blessings. I look exactly like the guy, I can do everything he can do aside from multiply, and you really should learn to watch your mouth.” The puppet began to sprout additional limbs from his back, slithering, green tentacles appearing first, soon joined by long, thin legs looking to belong to a spider, planting themselves on the floor to elevate his body from the earth.

Spider-legged-tentacled creep. Koga had said it, but at the time, Kagome hadn’t known how to comprehend the snide remark at Naraku’s appearance. It was shocking, terrifying, but she knew she didn’t have time to stand there and gawk, to take him in, to actually acknowledge her fear.

As swiftly as she could, Kagome drew an arrow from her quiver, about to aim at the monster before she sensed a powerful energy budding from behind.

“Kagome, down!” Inuyasha ordered, and without a moment’s hesitation, knowing exactly what she was feeling, Kagome dropped her body to the hard surface of the rocky cliff. Air was pushed from her diaphragm from how heavy and quickly she’d dodged, but she remained low, feeling that swarm of demonic power blow directly over her, kick against the surface of the ground, and hit Naraku’s puppet.

With a hasty maneuver, Kagome rolled onto her back, lining the knock of her arrow up with the string of her bow to aim at the demon. It was an odd position, one she wasn’t used to, but she powered through it, pulling back her weapon and releasing to hit just as Inuyasha’s wind scar died away. It seemed as though a barrier had protected Naraku from Inuyasha’s attack, and she’d just caught the way the storm of wind rolled right over him, but her arrowhead stuck in the surface of the invisible barricade, penetrating just passed the tip.

She’d noticed the flinch of his brow, how it pinched inward an inch in observation before relaxing. Was he not expecting such quick reflexes from her? Or, was he not expecting her to make a dent at all?

“So, the half breed finally joins. How long were you listening from the sidelines?” Naraku’s puppet inquired, pretending his expression hadn’t accidentally betrayed him.

Inuyasha didn’t answer. His amber eyes were glowing with anger, his skin was blisteringly hot, and his lips twitched as his glower only managed to deepen. This bastard thought he’d catch Kagome while she was vulnerable and alone? This cheap, knock off, son of a bitch really thought he could kill her so easily? The hanyou was furious.

He’d picked up on Kagome’s voice the moment she’d started talking, and he was sure there was no one on the mountain with them. They were alone, and unless she was talking to a ghost, conversations shouldn’t have been had. Instantly, a bad feeling began to curdle in his stomach, so he headed back. He’d rather be safe than sorry. He’d decided to stay off to the side, listening, peeking through the cracks in the trees to get a glimpse at the man she was speaking to. It was easy to tell something was incredibly wrong. Inuyasha couldn’t smell him. He smelled wood, and just a small piece at that. It was very lightly - very lightly - tainted with Naraku’s scent, though. Something that smelled so far off, it was no wonder he didn’t catch it from down the trail. Then, he admitted to being Naraku, but he knew that couldn’t be the entire truth. He didn’t sense a person. He knew this was an illusion of some sort, but the minute Kagome’s life was so readily threatened was the minute Inuyasha’s anger rapidly bubbled. He was not only underestimating her so disrespectfully, but claiming he was going to put his hands on her. He’d told her to jump off the cliff. He’d claimed to offer her mercy. Inuyasha was going to personally see to this thing’s demise.

This was simply a new message that could be sent the real Naraku’s way. They killed Moryomaru. Now, they would be sending his puppet back in pieces. He was next.

“Tell me you’re okay.” Inuyasha said lowly, stepping through the thickets he’d torn apart with his attack. He didn’t bother taking his eyes off of the underling as he supported his sword in one hand, holding his free one out to help Kagome up.

“I’m fine.” She replied, pulling a new arrow from her quiver.

“Don’t want to bother with small talk? Fine.” Naraku smiled, his tentacles somehow growing. A thick one hastily flew upward to slam down between Inuyasha and Kagome, the two of them dodging but ending up separated.

“Inuyasha, aim at the arrow in his barrier!” Kagome instructed.

“Got it!” The hanyou shouted, dodging another mad tentacle before swinging his sword in another wind scar. Naraku laughed, watching the attack yet again slide over his blockade, missing the arrow entirely.

“What the hell was that!?” He guffawed, his laugh almost choked on as he sputtered to a halt, feeling the disruption of a sharp tear in his wall poking his arm. Another arrow had gotten ninety-percent through, stopping just at the feathers and piercing the surface layer of his flesh through his long-sleeved shirt.

“A distraction.” Kagome stated, pulling another arrow.

The puppet smiled again, but it was daring. Challenging. Kagome could quickly tell he was becoming irate, the way his jaw flexed conveying a lethal threat. She sensed the danger about to come her way, but she fell for his ploy. Naraku sent an appendage shooting at her right, but when she went to swerve left, she was struck by a tendril she hadn’t thought to expect. It sent her flying back onto the ground, a cough sputtering from her mouth from the force, but the puppet failed to pin her. He had lost his grip in the moment, and Kagome rolled away. Still, it would have been impossible of her to get to her feet in time, and again, his tentacle dropped on her, trying to wrap around her waist.

His grip was feeble, sliding away altogether as Inuyasha provided a destructive attack right against the barrier. Kagome looked across the way to see his Tessaiga glowing red, the skin of his face reflecting the bright color, worsening the shade of the fury he radiated. His blade sliced through the barricade, decimating it with the blow, and Naraku’s puppet stood there, stunned.

“Fancy trick you got there.” He growled. “A sword that can break through just about anything, huh?”

“Just about.” Inuyasha said in return, his tone gruff.

Naraku didn’t bother to construct another barrier. If they really wanted to think it would be that simple to take him down, he’d be glad to show them the contrary. To his right, Inuyasha stood with his sword at the ready, the red aura dwindling away to reveal its original appearance. To his left, Kagome stood with an arrow aimed directly at him. She’d shrugged off her backpack in the slim moment his attention was off of her, most likely for better movement control, but the puppet couldn’t help but cock a grin.

He moved swiftly, throwing tendrils of his body outward to distract his opponents. He accepted the hits, laughing tauntingly as he raised his hand and extended it in the direction of the half breed. His demonic powers soared outward, clutching the unsuspecting man in a telekinetic and vise grip, throwing Inuyasha to the ground with a loud thud.

Kagome was trapped, caged, and she didn’t know which appendage to aim at first. It was like they were trying to grab her, closing in to make it harder for her to fight back. It was causing her to panic, to second guess her actions, to back step, and his villainous laughter helped none. She’d heard the loud gasp of Inuyasha colliding with the rocky floor, her panic growing when she called out to him and didn’t receive a response.

Spotting an opening, Kagome aimed between the tentacles, straight at Naraku’s body. One of the slithering things was beginning to snake around her, but despite her trepidation and how badly she wanted to jump away, she stayed perfectly still, waiting for a smidgen of a clearer shot. On an exhale, Kagome released her arrow, her spiritual power demolishing a portion of Naraku’s ribcage, his arm, the tentacles around her dying off, and she quickly jumped out of those that hadn’t yet eroded, shaking them off and scampering toward Inuyasha only to halt halfway.

The hanyou was sitting on his knees, pushing himself back to a standing when his attention flew from Kagome to the monster’s incarnation. Kagome had shot him, had used her powers and blown off a part of his side, but at an alarming rate, Naraku was regenerating.

“I’d be lying if I said that wasn’t impressive.” The puppet spoke, and he almost seemed humored. “I’ll admit, you’re putting up more of a fight than I’d expected of a little girl and a mutt. Bet you didn’t see this coming, though. I’m not real, remember? Your conjurer strength can’t just deteriorate my arm and think it’ll hurt, I’ll scream a little, fall to my knees, and then you’ll be good to serve the finishing attack. It’s gonna take a little more than that, baby.”

“Don’t call me baby!” Kagome demanded, quickly pulling an arrow and shooting it at his body. It nailed the same arm, bringing an annoyed groan from his throat as his skin crumbled, but so rapidly did it heal.

“That make you feel powerful?” He mocked. “Get your point across? ‘Don’t call me baby!’” Naraku echoed in a high-pitched voice. “Stupid ass bitch. You’re not fucking listening, are you?”

Before her very eyes, the puppet’s body seemed to be transforming. More tentacles, vines, slithering demon tails grew from his flesh, entangling around his lower body and plunging into the earth. He was surrounded by a mountain of crawling parts that threatened them and protected his core. Roots began sprouting all around them, loosening the ground that supported the cliff, causing their footing to quake as they stumbled and dodged what grew.

“Kagome, come here!” Inuyasha called, wanting her next to him. He couldn’t protect her this way, he couldn’t adhere to her safety when they were divided, and he couldn’t predict what sort of move this monster was going to make next. In his peripheral vision, he could see the conjurer trying to follow his command, but the puppet was teasing her with his roots, pushing her back. When she finally got over them, Naraku slammed a tendril down in between to keep the two lovers separated.

Ferociously, Inuyasha raised his sword to attack, slashing it down in a formidable wind scar that hit the creature dead on, damaging its faux body. It was insane, the speed at which it regenerated, but the hanyou noticed a small part of his abdomen piecing together just a little slower. That must have been his weak point. That must have been why the demonic parts were protecting his stomach.

“Alright, you’re getting a little annoying.” Naraku commented, swiftly snaking multiple vines around him.

Inuyasha knew it was a distraction, the one that stabbed through his left arm, so he growled and clenched his jaw, but that was the only reaction he allowed himself to give, never taking his eyes off of the damned puppet. Kagome shot another arrow, piercing Naraku’s chest, and as quickly as he could to add his own power to the mix, to end this, Inuyasha swung his sword. His attack rumbled dangerously, shooting over the puppet’s body, but his core was protected in the nick of time.

He hadn’t noticed the tendril around his ankle. He hadn’t noticed the knot it had created. And, it was too late to try and cut himself free before the tentacle yanked his foot back and sent his body crashing forward to the ground. Inuyasha had lost his grip on his sword then, the metal clanking against the rock as he was lifted upward by another root that circled around his waist. He was trying to fight, to free himself, but the root was difficult to slice through with his nails. The ground came flying at his face before he could process as he was wasn’t just dropped, but thrown down heavily, the world going silent and black.

“Inuyasha!” Kagome cried, noticing how he hadn’t attempted to get up or reassure her. The hanyou laid still on the ground, a hand beside his face that neither twitched nor reached for his sword.

It was difficult to focus on what was happening with all the movement around her. So desperately did she want to sprint to her hanyou, but at the moment, she absolutely couldn’t. The second she let her guard down would be the second Naraku would win. It all happened too quickly, though. She’d decided to aim at his body, trying not to be distracted by the wriggling roots and appendages, but just before she could release her shot, something large grabbed around her waist, yanking her back so she’d lose her handling on her weapons, and then thrusting her forward and off of her feet. Kagome was ensnared, the tentacle progressively growing tighter as it wrung around her, pulling her closer to the puppet’s side.

Her groan was pleading, and she pushed fruitlessly at the green flesh around her stomach with her empty hands. It hurt. The closer she got to his burning, red eyes and sadistic smile, the more terrified and panicked Kagome grew.

“So, what now, conjurer?” Naraku asked, hovering her near him. He liked the tiny whimpers that escaped her throat. He liked the way her brown eyes were glimmering with urgency. “Come on, I’m within reach. Now’s your chance. Kill me. Save yourself and your precious mutt.”

She was trying. Kagome was damn near outwardly begging for her powers to work with her. Just once - just fucking once - come through her hands, her skin, anything. Follow the wave through the surface of her flesh. But, nothing was coming. The puppet squeezed her waist tighter and Kagome cried out, but still she tried to utilize that point in her body. She could feel something there. She could feel her powers bubbling where she was being strained, and she pushed, and pushed.

Let it out! Let it out, little bird!

“What a shame.” Naraku lamented. “Who’s pathetic?”

Kagome didn’t have time for this. She wouldn’t, couldn’t, let him win. Reaching behind her, she grabbed an arrow, swiveling the head forward in her fingers and jabbing it into Naraku’s neck.

The demon smiled. The girl was too flustered to apply enough force into her attack. Her powers ran deep, but just an inch further and she would have actually struck his “heart,” protected within his abdomen. It was too bad she’d fallen short. He waited as his body regenerated, plucking the arrowhead from his throat with a disturbed grunt.

“I don’t bleed.” He said, jerking her forward to hover just a couple of inches from his face. His tone died down to a gruff whisper, red eyes staring directly into her stricken irises. “But, you do. Don’t you? How should I do it? Should I make you cry first? Or, would you prefer something quick? Either works for me.”

“You won’t win this.” Kagome whispered, trembling. She was petrified, her heart was pounding, and a thick lump formed in her throat as she felt like the worst was about to happen. It was weird, the way fear would sit in your chest. It made you feel light but jittery, like you should scream to release some of that sensation but you physically couldn’t.

“Famous last words.” Naraku said, stroking the back of his finger over Kagome’s cheek. “How could you possibly take on the real thing if you couldn’t even defeat a puppet, though?”

No. He wasn’t right. They were going to win this.

Weren’t they?

Naraku was moving her over the edge of the cliff, and she fidgeted, gasped, shuddered.

Kagome wasn’t done fighting. She hadn’t seen this through yet. This was just a threat, and she was going to pull out of it. But, why did she get the leadened feeling that she wasn’t?

Why did Kagome suddenly feel so afraid that she couldn’t even breathe anymore?

She heard a sigh, a groan, and Kagome’s attention shifted to Inuyasha as he was coming to, blinking his golden eyes open as he pushed himself up onto his forearms.

Inuyasha was trying to reattain his bearings. His head was throbbing, and blood had gotten into his eye as he opened it, burning. He was still being restrained, his lower body pinned to the ground from the hips down. The battle wasn’t over. How long was he out? Why didn’t he hear Kagome? Where was Kagome?

He blinked some more, stabilizing his lungs as he pushed past the bleary state he was in. At the ledge, held over in a twisted grasp of tendrils, he found her. She wasn’t entirely clear, but he could make out the setting.

And, his stomach dropped.

His vision settled then, and Inuyasha stared on as Naraku grinned, holding Kagome’s life over the edge of the cliff.

| previous chapter | <- -> | next chapter |

#man #talk about a cliff hanger #lololol don't hate me #I had to make the joke before anybody else did #anyway #also #kagome #kagome higurashi #inukag #inuyasha fanfiction #inukag fanfiction #monster #akitokihojo

[mythicamagic]

“bite your lip once more, i dare you”

AN: Woop! This long detour has finally ended! Read the complete fic - here.

Warning: Some smut

---

It was with embarrassment that she bowed and apologised to the patrons and staff outside. Soon enough though, a steady arm around her waist steered her away from their disgruntled faces, Sesshoumaru leading her around a street corner.

"I should really go back and apologise once more..."

"Hn, I sense their moods will not be better improved by it, miko," amusement coloured his tone. His eyes found her in the dark. "What exactly were you doing? Other than...flexing."

Kagome fiddled with her fingers, missing his arm around her the second he released her. "I got tired of keeping a lid on things, I guess. Did they know who you were, in there?"

"Mn, seems so."

"No one knows who I am," she muttered, hugging her arms loosely. "And I haven't been honest with any of them. Not one demon boyfriend. I never showed them my true self, so I just thought, maybe I could start tonight. And instead..." she sighed. "I just made my problem their problem. I better go apologise-"

"I know who you are, Kagome."

The glow in his eyes was unmistakable, stopping her.

Sesshoumaru inclined his head, "and there is no need to express regret over announcing it so loudly. It is something I would have done, a long time ago. Those with power can afford to stomp their feet, just a little."

Kagome looked at him, searching his face for any hint of the overworked person she'd seen at the park. Reaching up, she brushed careful fingers over his striped cheek, mindful of the slight burns.

"I hurt you…"

A large hand ensnared her wrist, thin lips meeting lithe fingers in a lingering kiss.

"They will heal quickly. I am merely out of practice with handling reiki."

Kagome swallowed, tears stinging her eyes at the unexpectedly gentle contact. She glanced away, voice hushed. She couldn't contain what she'd seen a moment longer. "I saw your children."

Sesshoumaru's grip tightened, his form becoming tense. "The kit-" he sneered, flashing sharp teeth.

"He was just trying to help. I… saw them at the park," she murmured, fingers curling to touch his hand, prompting him to release her.

Kagome stepped back, searching his guarded, watchful expression. Slowly, the confident, easy facade he wore melted away, leaving behind a weary near immortal. Sesshoumaru swept the length of his silver hair back over one shoulder, sinking down to his knees.

Blue eyes flew wide.

"W-what are you doing?"

Sesshoumaru bowed his head- forehead descending. Kagome quickly gripped at broad shoulders madly, nails biting in. "Stop! You don't have to!-"

A crescent moon pressed to the dirty street floor as Sesshoumaru remained in a deep bow, large body hunched over. No matter how much she pulled and yanked at him to rise, ugly emotions clogging her throat, he would not budge.

"This Sesshoumaru apologises."

Hot tears leaked down her cheeks as the once cripplingly regal demon lifted his head, catching her gaze. "It occurs to me now...perhaps I should have started with this," thin lips crumpled into a jaded smile. "I cannot claim to be very good at humility. Even after all this time."

Kagome smiled sadly, reaching out and brushing gentle fingers over him, wiping away the mud marring his blue moon sitting proudly upon his forehead.

"My apology comes too late," he uttered, resting clenched fists upon his knees. "There is no Western territory in Japan that I own anymore. I am not a lord."

"How'd that happen?" she mumbled.

"I became disillusioned."

Kagome shifted, seeing the lines that he'd tried to conceal before that cut beneath his eyes. He seemed tired, even more jaded and weary than she. "I was naive," he uttered. "So set in my convictions. After losing you, I tried to convince myself it was for the best. We were an ill-suited pair, that sort of thing. I even approached my Mother, seeking vindication from her. She...who had taught me from a young age, instilled in me the value of our special blood and heritage."

Sesshoumaru chuckled, golden eyes dimming in the moonlight. "It was she who looked at me after I explained everything about our breakup and said, 'why did you do a stupid thing like that? Foolish pup.'"

She bit her lip, knowing how rattling that must've been. He'd explained to her before about the necessity of his role. He'd been the perfect heir by design. The Killing Perfection.

"It had not occurred to me she could change. That I could change. That blood and suitability were just abstract concepts, and in the end did not matter. The realisation came too late. You were...gone," Sesshoumaru looked at her soberly, as though waiting for the verdict of his trial.

Kagome hated the idea of him awaiting judgement, gripping his shoulders again.

"... Let's go back to my place," she said softly. It was there in her tone, living and breathing within soft blue eyes. Forgiveness wasn't clear cut or easy. She still hurt. But...she couldn't let him pass by without at least trying to see if they could last this time.

Helping to guide him up back to his feet, a thought occurred to her. "Unless- do you need to go home?"

"No," he said sharply, eyes wide, as though fearing that the offer would never come again. He relaxed his features, "no, my eldest can watch over the young ones."

Kagome nodded. On impulse, she took his hand and began walking down the street.

Sesshoumaru kept pace with her, long fingers frozen, slack in her hold. Soon they twitched, wrapping tightly around her own.

---

Stepping into her humble apartment silently, with the shadows thick and moonlight pouring in from behind them, having guided their steps- Kagome paused in the dimly lit hallway.

Sesshoumaru stood still in his usual way, so watchful and quiet, having not donned a glamour. Long silver hair tumbled down his shoulders.

Kagome's fingers reached up and buried in it, moving herself up on tiptoe.

Lips crashed, bodies meeting- his back thudding against the wall as she shoved and pressed herself against him hungrily.

There was nothing gentle about it. Hips met and pressed demandingly against one another, clawed hands hooking under her thighs, dragging Kagome up the toned length of his body, allowing her to squeeze them around his waist.

Teeth knocked, noses bumping. Sesshoumaru's tongue forced itself past her lips. He kissed her for so long- too long, indulging in the hot cavern of her mouth. Kagome's blunt nails dragged over his scalp, swallowing his answering hiss and canting her hips.

Inside. Please. I want you inside.

Sesshoumaru pulled away to press sloppy, hungry kisses over the length of her throat, sucking at her neck with a low, possessive growl. Kagome reached for his belt, loosening it hurriedly- finding his hard length ready against her thigh. Yet still he was content to tease, nipping at the sensitive skin of her collarbone. Kagome climbed down in frustration- only to yank and pull at his clothes, discarding them in their clumsy attempt to reach the bedroom.

They made it to her small living room, collapsing to the floor. It would do.

After 506 years, give or take a few- neither had envisioned it to happen on her pastel red rug. Surely a nice fancy hotel room, or at least a huge, plush bed-

Kagome straddled his waist, lavishing attention on his pointed ear with her lips while fiddling with her dress. Pulling it up over her head, she growled as it got stuck halfway, obscuring her vision.

Sesshoumaru took advantage of this, capturing a hardened nipple in his mouth and holding her arched back as she gasped, sighing breathily.

It wasn't until their underwear was shoved down, a condom hastily grabbed and a clawed thumb over her clit, circling it- did they find each other's eyes again.

Kagome stopped, panting.

His face was flushed, hair dishevelled. A bite mark had begun bruising his thoroughly kissed lower lip.

Sesshoumaru caught his breath, staring at her, unblinking. Slowly, Kagome gripped his shoulders, guiding herself down just as he held onto her hips. The head of his twitching, achingly familiar cock nudged inside slick folds, before surging deeper with a hard jolt. Kagome cried out and buried her face in his neck.

Sesshoumaru pressed his nose into dark curling hair, wrapping her up in a tight embrace, skin to skin. He cradled the back of her head, everything stopping for a long while.

They held each other without speaking a word, rendered mute, overcome with finally being connected again. Kagome shuddered, clenching her inner walls tight, as though luring him deeper, forbidding him to never part. She'd keep him locked inside her forever if possible. His body felt so warm and nostalgic, plastered against her own. She nuzzled and breathed in his good smell, sighing against heated skin.

A horrible thought whispered in her ear; It was all so breakable. He could ruin her again. With just a few words, he could undo years of progress.

But now Kagome understood it was the same for him. She could dismiss him tomorrow morning and break him too. Hurt him. Hurt the untouchable demon lord who had broken her heart.

Kagome cupped his cheek, lifting her head to brush an ardent kiss over his jaw.

"I missed you," she said instead. Because it was the truth. Nothing could compel her to willingly hurt someone she loved.

"I have…" he whispered, kissing her closed eyelids, "dreamed of you for centuries," starving lips pressed to her neck, "'missing you' is an understatement."

Kagome gave a broken laugh, saddened. "We're so stupid. We've wasted so much time."

"I wasted so much time," he uttered grimly. "But...perhaps it was not wasted time if it brought us here, eventually. Together."

"We've both made mistakes, let's leave it at that." Resting her forehead against his for a moment and inhaling his exhale, Kagome kissed him tenderly before beginning to move.

---

Laying nestled into a sprawled out Daiyoukai's side with her face pressed snugly against his chest wasn't a terrible way to wake up. Kagome stretched slowly, making a soft noise. She planted a few kisses over his ribs, palm splaying over his abdomen and grazing along the length of his exotically striped body. It lay littered with a few scars that hadn't been there before, new to her. Kagome kissed those too, wondering about their stories.

A velvety chuckle soaked with sleep escaped him. "Minx, you are aware that our late night activities will continue if you persist?"

"Maybe that's my goal."

Sesshoumaru sighed, stroking a lazy, affectionate hand through her dark rumpled hair. "I see your appetite has not diminished."

"If anything, I think it might've gotten worse," blue eyes danced as she bit her lip. "It's your fault, you started it."

"Hn, this one takes full blame," he rumbled, touch shifting to her mouth, sharp nail gliding over her it. "Bite your lip once more, I dare you."

Kagome flushed red- and she'd forgotten she could still blush right down to her toes. She bit her lip, hard.

Sesshoumaru flipped her over and muffled her giggles in the bedding as his lips found her neck and hands wandered all over again.

After thoroughly rememorising each other's bodies, they finally located her bed.

Shifting beneath the covers together, Kagome slung a leg over his hip. Sesshoumaru rested a hand over the back of her thigh under her ass, stroking. Basking in the afterglow, she began asking him about his life.

"How come you adopted so many kids over the years? Hanyous too," the topic soon came up.

"I did not do it for any particular reason. They were abandoned, much like Rin. Whenever I happened upon them, they took to following me in a similar manner. However..." his lips thinned, gaze dimming as it stared at the ceiling. "The first Hanyou that followed me was persecuted quite badly at my Stronghold. I did not intend to feel as much as I did about it. She was deemed 'mine' and so I felt outraged on her account. I experienced protectiveness for her, even if I did not recognise it at the time."

"Change happens slowly," Kagome hummed, shifting to lay atop his chest, their stomachs meeting as she rested her chin on her arms. "Did she marry a demon to extend her lifespan?"

"No, she died of old age, much like Rin."

"I'm sorry."

"Do not be, Erika chose her own spouse and lived as she wished. There is no sadness in that," golden eyes slid shut as she stroked his bangs, combing them back briefly from his handsome face. "There is only sadness when children are taken too early," his tone became wooden, dim.

Her heart squeezed in her chest. "Shippo...said there was a reason you didn't come for me during those 6 years. What happened?"

"I thought it wise to wait since you were experiencing heartbreak. My appearance would have made matters worse," Sesshoumaru's eyes peeled open, hazed with remembrance. "On top of which, one of my children could not be moved from his facility."

"Facility?"

He did not answer.

"...Can I meet him now?"

Sesshoumaru gazed out of her brightening window unseeingly. "If I could stop myself from taking in one species again, it would be humans," the words came softly, like a secret. "You always die much too quickly," he uttered, golden eyes sliding to her heavily. "Ruka was terminally ill."

"D-did you adopt him knowing that?"

"It makes no difference to me," he said a tad bitterly. "Whether they last five years or seventy, it is always too short a time," passing a heavy hand over his eyes, Sesshoumaru let it linger there. "Tenseiga brought him back, briefly. But not long enough. Never long enough."

The depth of his grief felt staggering. Kagome could see it, hidden away in all the corners of his face that he tried to hide behind a placid mask.

"Come here."

Sesshoumaru arched a brow. She persisted, leaning back into the pillows beside him and beckoning the demon closer with arms open wide and inviting. He was not one to refuse such a thing, soon resting a striped cheek directly over her heart. It thudded loudly, quick as a rabbit beneath his ear.

"I have not changed my opinions on some things, miko," he said in a dour, soft tone. "You humans are weak. I curse your weakness- and loathe every mortal child I take in for it. They are so fleeting. Every time they came to be in my care, I promised myself no more. Never again. Surely someone as great as I can have the self-discipline not to heed their cries should I hear them, nor follow the scent of their tears. Surely I do not need a pack so badly."

She could tell his conviction to stop caring for them wasn't working out too well, considering the group she'd seen at the park. He would love human children again, and continue to love and take care of them in an endless cycle of happiness and grief. Such was the way of an immortal guardian.

Kagome bent down, kissing the crown of his head. "You've given them a home. Even if it was fleeting to you, it was a lifetime of happiness for them."

Kagome couldn't see his expression anymore but felt Sesshoumaru's grip on her elbow, tight. His thumb dragged slowly, reverently. Heavy breathing shook, beginning to calm as she soothed his rippling youki.

"I'll look after you for now," she muttered, petting silky silver hair and massaging his scalp. "I can't do it all the time. Sometimes you'll have to take care of me, but we can take it in turns. So you can tell me...if you ever need to get those thoughts out again."

Sesshoumaru made a noise of affirmation, lulled by her gentle ministrations. After a while she figured he'd fallen asleep before he asked;

"Do you think you will desire to adopt, in the future? Raising them alongside our biological children is certainly possible."

Her mouth grew dry, hands freezing. Kagome drew in a shaky breath, vision going blurry with damn tears again. She stubbornly held them back, giving a laugh as she squeezed his shoulder.

"That's a tad presumptuous, isn't it? We haven't even said we're dating yet."

"You just said you'd take care of me, duplicitous woman."

"Yeah, because you're a tired old dog who needs a break," she teased, giggling as he huffed and transformed with a burst of youki, collapsing dead weight atop her in a smaller version of his true form. Wheezing, Kagome whined and wrapped her arms around him, stroking fluffy silver fur.

As she caressed along his muzzle, tired crimson eyes slide shut in a display of utter trust and peace, causing her to smile and kiss his wet nose.

---

They did things carefully after that explosive night, gradually easing into things. It was a couple of months before Kagome was introduced to everyone, not wanting to shatter that which had become so precious to them.

"Come on, come on. We have the place to ourselves for an hour, so go wherever you like," Kagome smiled, spreading her arms wide within the museum, voice echoing.

"It is not as though you needed to arrange for a private tour, you could have just showed us around during your normal working hours," Hiroji observed as most of the other children ran around.

"Ach, but I wanted to do something special..." she put a hand to her heart, pretending to be wounded.

"Hiroji, you're so bad with women!" one of the Hanyou's piped up.

"Bad with women!" echoed the other.

The snake demon grit his teeth sourly, while Kagome giggled and picked up the leopard Hanyou and accepting a nuzzle, gazing at their spots with affection. "I'm teasing. It's just nice to let everyone wander around in the open without glamours sometimes, right?"

"Won't the security cameras see us?"

"We have a face-painting section in the stone age area. Totally explainable," she leaned against Sesshoumaru's side as he wrapped an arm around her waist, markings on full display.

Golden eyes smiled, "and if that is not a suitable excuse- we're a Yakuza family with many colourful tattoos."

Akiko giggled, "that sounds cool!"

"I think a family of demons would be easier to accept," Hiroji grumbled, glancing in Shinto's general direction, who lingered away from everyone else anxiously.

In the snake demon's minds eye, he could see the shape of a powerful reiki source approach his brother. Kagome bent down into a crouch, getting on eye-level with him.

"It's okay, Shinto," she said gently. "You know, they have an interactive computer section in here on the Edo Period."

He brightened slightly. "They...do?"

"Mhm, come on. I'll show you," Kagome gestured, catching Sesshoumaru's eye in passing.

His expression softened, morphing into something she could recognise now. Trust in. They'd probably keep making mistakes, but so long as they weren't quite so costly as before, she felt as though they could weather the storms now. Kagome gentled and returned his smile, grabbing his hand as they entered the Edo section.

His children gasped and pointed at the display case of his armour. "Papa, this was yours!"

"I am aware," Sesshoumaru rumbled with amusement, taking his lips to Kagome's ear. "Do you miss wearing the hankimono to bed?"

She shivered, "maybe a little. They were comfy pyjamas," blue eyes caught the mischievous look skittering across his face. "Oh no you don't- Sesshoumaru! Don't you dare steal them! You donated them to this museum!"

"Technically they were mine first so I would merely be taking them back," he chuckled. "Never fear, dear one," he purred, tossing his head regally. "A bit of thievery is a minor feat for a Yakuza family, and the matter is especially pressing when it concerns comfy sleepwear."

Kagome groaned, burying her face in her hands and hiding another smile. She had centuries more of this to endure.

End

#Sesskag #Sesshoumaru x Kagome #Asks