#once the summer vacation gets here i am pressuring my parents to let me go visit my grandma semi regularly

[niharikaslernings]

Is nature worths money?

Introduction:-

For new viewers, let me give you a quick information of what I write. So, I write blogs on what I learnt from the whole day because every day has it's unique sense and it always taught you some tiny lessons but in pressure of your goals, you forget those micro learnings. In simple words, I write blogs on everyday's learning. This particular blog is about what I learnt from today. Therefore, be with me till the end and most importantly enjoy the blog of today.

Incidence:-

My summer vacation holidays are about to over. So, my parents thought to visit at our village for once because after when the holidays will over, we will not get sufficient time to come here. It was a perfect decision. The weather was also fantastic. Let me explain you, today's weather a little bit. So that you can feel my words. It is a cold, stormy, rainy & cloudy weather in which we were traveling. Whenever we move from a city to a village area, it feels like we are going nearer to nature. When you start the journey from a city, you see pollution & vehicles everywhere, there is no sign of nature, no trees anywhere gradually crowd of peoples, vehicles, markets, pollution starts vanishing. The only thing you see on the road, when you enter into a village area is trees and a little quantity of peoples. Honestly, I was feeling like I am in nainital right now (If you belongs from India's village. So you can better relate with what I am saying). I had felt this many times that nature increases our productivity and creativity. Nature feels like home. For writers, musicians, artists, creators nature is the most suitable place but unfortunately I have to go back at that crowded place (city) again. While analysing this awesome & charming day, I realised about a great learning.

Learning:-

Before, this day I believe that travelling needs alot of money, being in touch with nature will worth high. But I learnt that for being in touch with nature, it is really not a necessity to pay. You can waste your money by paying for looking at nature, if you are soo rich but it is not necessarily important. After researching I came to know that the places which are famous and are listed in top 10 tourists attraction, there beauty is getting depleted day by day because of extreme interference of peoples 24x7. Another reason for this massive depletion is local peoples. Inhabitants are trying to find new ways of earning money by doing experiments with nature, they are doing it carelessly without pondering about it's harmful impacts on nature. We always have a agitation to visit famous tourist attractions which worth lots of money but I realised today that the places which are not globally famous are the real gems. At last I want to say, don't be stagnant in life with your old belief systems. Make changes in your perception, when you find a truth. This is the real mantra to improve your life.

#A generous effort by me to change your perception #Nature #belief #positivity #village

[retrievablememories]

somewhere only we know | doyoung (m)

title: somewhere only we know pairing: elf!doyoung x dryad!reader genre: fantasy, major angst, fluff, smut, royal!au, 1800s!au summary: as the Crown Prince faces increasing pressure to select a wife, he finally falls in love over the course of a summer—charmed by the sounds of nature and a mysterious tree nymph. word count: 32,000+ warnings: major character death, descriptions of death, familial conflict, discrimination/prejudice (both regarding familial lineage and species), classism, physical violence, descriptions of fire, voyeurism (but not in a kink context), strict gender roles/gender stereotypes, sexism/sexist language, some sexual jokes/vulgar language, outdoor sex, fingering, oral (male receiving), unprotected sex (don’t try at home) a/n: this felt like writing a movie, especially towards the end, and i am TIYADDD. i usually actively avoid writing this many characters/plot points because it gets hard to keep things organized, so this fic was a serious test of my abilities lol... there may or may not be an epilogue after this, but that depends on the audience’s (y’all) interest in one

as always, let’s keep in mind this is just fiction and not a judgment of or truly accurate representation of the personalities of any of the idols depicted in this story. 

@constipation08​ thank you for the request and fic idea, this has been a wild ass ride lmao 😭

“Why do we have to leave the kingdom?! I was doing just fine right here!”

“Because our parents say we have to,” Mark replies nonchalantly, already growing weary of hearing Donghyuck’s griping about the King and Queen’s decision. The younger male throws himself onto his bed beside Mark, sighing loudly the entire time.

Donghyuck turns over on his back to give Mark a look. “But why do we need to leave to take gentlemen’s lessons? None of us here need to learn how to be gentlemen, we already are. At least, I am.”

“Your behavior is saying otherwise,” Doyoung counters, watching the two younger men from the bedroom’s doorway. “Perhaps it won’t be that bad. You’ll get to get away from the kingdom for a few months. It’s almost like a vacation.”

Donghyuck rolls his eyes. “No vacation I’ve ever heard of involves work.”

“I don’t know, I’m a bit interested,” Mark says. “Everyone says Eupheme has the best gentlemen’s tutors in the country, so maybe it’ll be—”

“Ugh, don’t say fun.” Donghyuck grabs a pillow from the head of the bed and smacks Mark across the face with it, causing the other man to yelp in surprise and topple over. They soon become embroiled in a battle of who can land the most hits with their respective pillows, which eventually evolves into them wrestling each other.

“See, this is why mother and father say you all need etiquette lessons. It’s like everything you learned as kids evaporated as soon as you hit puberty.” Doyoung shakes his head, but he also can’t help but laugh a little at their continual bickering. “You’ll spend a few months in the company of the other princes, too, so it’s not all bad. I really don’t know why you’re complaining.”

“Maybe because he won’t get to see Nayeon while he’s gone,” Mark says this while Donghyuck has him in a headlock, and the younger boy’s grip tightens around his neck.

“Shut up, Mark!”

Doyoung snorts. “Oh, how could I forget?” Nayeon was the daughter of a local lawmaker and someone who Donghyuck had obviously fancied for a while. Nayeon seemed to enjoy his company well enough, and she was undoubtedly within a proper social standing that everyone approved of, should marriage ever come into question. And, perhaps most importantly, she was also of elven blood. Nevertheless, there was talk that her heart had already been captured by another. “Absence makes the heart grow fonder. Maybe she’ll realize she really is in love with you while you’re gone.”

“Or she’ll enjoy the sweet silence she gets without hearing Donghyuck chatting her ear off at every available moment.” This comment from Mark sends them into another bout of rolling around on the bed, trying to land hits on each other.

“I pity your future wife,” Donghyuck huffs as Mark tries to overtake him. “She’ll get the title of princess in exchange for what? A husband who will be too frightened to peel the sheets back on her first night!”

Doyoung rolls his eyes when he sees the fighting clearly isn’t coming to an end any time soon. Despite that, he certainly isn’t inclined to try to break them up; the last time he got in the middle of one of their scuffles, he ended up with an accidental black eye. The thought of trying to explain to the public what had happened was too embarrassing for words, and he was resigned to stay confined to the castle as it healed.

It would not surprise him if that incident were a part of the equation that finally convinced their parents to send them away for additional royal training. He, for one, isn’t complaining about it.

Doyoung waves his hand and decides to take his leave, quickly tiring of their theatrics. “You two have fun, then. Try not to kill each other; we’re expected to arrive in Eupheme all in one piece.”

They spend the next few days making the necessary preparations to leave for Eupheme—picking out luggage, selecting which outfits to bring, and deciding which guards will accompany them. Their parents have already arranged for them to stay with the King and Queen of Eupheme, who they are long-time friends of, and their three sons, Jeno, Jaemin, and Jisung. Once there, Jungwoo, Mark, Donghyuck, and Sicheng will receive gentlemen’s tutoring alongside the younger three men.

Though they have been to Eupheme and the King and Queen’s home in the past as adolescents, their destination this time is a little different, with a new royal castle only just coming to completion a few years back. The King of Eupheme, always one to pull out all the stops with luxury and extravagance, had seen it fit to build a bigger and more attractive castle in the very center of the kingdom. Their old mansion would go to the oldest son and Crown Prince, Jeno, whenever he married.

The King and Queen of Ceres decide to appoint Doyoung as a chaperone for the boys because of his seniority as Crown Prince—and also because he’s the only older brother they’ll even attempt to listen to. Yuta and Jaehyun stay behind to handle other royal affairs and ambassadorial duties in Doyoung’s place. Some members of the Royal Court are far from thrilled by Doyoung’s departure and Yuta’s taking over a portion of his responsibilities in his absence, but they also know better than to air their grievances out in the open where any of the family could hear.

Yuta is initially not too pleased about being left out of the trip, but he knows there are obligations to attend to in Ceres. He also won’t deny that he relishes being given this role to play, feeling like he has obtained some heightened level of importance within the family for the first time in a long time. He tries not to be so conspicuous about how often he thinks about the position of Crown Prince, and what it might be like if he were only a year older and born of the same mother as his brothers. Yuta tends to think of himself as a master actor in maintaining his unfazed façade concerning his lowered station within the family, with no one the wiser. Well, except for the one he can trust.

Jaehyun, on the other hand, is not nearly so chagrined by having to stay as Yuta is. But of course, leaving would mean having to pause his budding romance with the daughter of the Marquess, so he’s more than willing to stay if tasked to do so.

The day of their departure comes fast. Soon, they’re all standing outside the castle as the servants load the men’s things into several of their stagecoaches. The five of them bid their farewells to their parents and two brothers, if a bit over-exaggeratedly.

“I hope you won’t miss me too much when I’m gone,” Donghyuck says, crowding up to Jaehyun and annoying him with kissy faces.

Jaehyun smiles and rolls his eyes. “I don’t think that will be a problem. Try not to torment our cousins too much.” Even with his joking, he gives the younger boy a hug and pets his hair before letting him go off to bother Yuta.

Doyoung is already there talking with Yuta, placing his hand on the younger man’s shoulder. “Take care of things while I’m gone, yeah? If there’s anyone around here who can do it, it’s you.”

“Of course, brother. I always honor my duties.” Then Yuta smirks. “Don’t let Jaehyun hear you saying that, though.”

Sicheng isn’t happy about being separated from Yuta for a span of months, but he doesn’t complain in front of the others about it. He simply gives his brother a long hug, sighing into his shoulder. “It’ll be fine,” Yuta insists, trying to get Sicheng to wipe the pout off his face. “Look at the bright side of it. When you come back, you’ll finally have some proper manners.” Yuta gently pinches his ear and Sicheng makes a face at that, though his lips quirk up in a small smile.

“Maybe. For their sake, perhaps these lessons won’t go to complete waste.” Sicheng glances at his other brothers as he says this, and he gives Yuta another nod before walking to one of the stagecoaches.

“Do take care of your brothers,” the Queen says to Doyoung, fixing his collar and patting his shoulders like she often did when he was smaller. Then she sighs. “We have not been parted for such a long time in years. Hurry back, my son…and please remember to be patient with them…you know how they can be.”

Doyoung smiles as she pats his cheek, though he feels a little embarrassed at his mother’s fussing over him. “I promise everything will go well, mother. We’ll be back before you know it.”

Sicheng and Mark take one stagecoach while Doyoung, Donghyuck, and Jungwoo take the other; their guards and servants have another two to themselves. After everyone is loaded in, they wave goodbye to the King and Queen as they ride away from the castle and towards a summer ahead in Eupheme.

In the stagecoaches, it takes a journey of nearly three days to reach Eupheme. By then, everyone is more than ready to get some space away from each other. Their stagecoaches are more finely outfitted than the ones used for public travel by the common folk, but that still doesn’t make them pleasant to keep an extended stay in. There’s nothing quite like being stowed up in one small space with your siblings for days to realize the value of alone time.

 The castle, they find out as they ride along the path leading to it, sits not too far from a nearby village. Beyond that village, an expansive forest stretches out along the land. As to be expected, new property comes with new people and sights.

 The princes had not last visited Eupheme since before the new castle was completed; now, all this newness comes as a welcome surprise. Donghyuck and Jungwoo press their faces up against the stagecoach window to catch glimpses of the village through the trees as they drive past. It’s raining lightly outside, and the waterdrops slide against the windowpanes as they peer out, obscuring their vision slightly.

Doyoung can already see the rapt excitement in their eyes. “Remember we didn’t come here to play in the village all day,” Doyoung tells the others, sighing deeply as he already knows what their plans will be

“Doesn’t mean we won’t, brother,” Jungwoo chuckles, and Donghyuck voices his agreement.

In Sicheng and Mark’s stagecoach, they also look at the scenery with fascination.

“It’s quite different from their old home,” Sicheng remarks. “But prettier.”

Mark presses his palm against the stagecoach’s interior wall, beside the windowpane, and focuses his energy to create a small portal to the outside. He sticks his hand through it to feel the raindrops pattering against his fingers; the air outside is humid and sticky.

“Showboat. You could’ve just opened the window,” Sicheng points out, though he smirks in amusement.

Their cousins’ castle is a grand thing. It’s similar to their own in many ways, but one thing the Euphemian royals have always prided themselves on is their outstanding landscaping. Their front lawn, backyard, and the surrounding fields create a vast world of their own, filled with intricately-shaped hedges, rare flowers, unique stone statues, and even a winding maze of greenery leading to the castle’s front entrance. It was more than enough land for anyone to get lost in for days. One could spend a week just traversing their entire property alone—forget the village and forest.

As their entourage of stagecoaches makes its way through the path to the mansion, the men talk more excitedly with each other, planning the things they hope to do once they get settled in. The King and Queen of Eupheme and their three sons are already standing in front of the castle steps ready to greet them once they arrive.

“Doyoung!” Jeno calls out the prince’s name as soon as he sees his head pop out of the window, and Doyoung waves excitedly to the younger man as he and the others get out.

Once all five men exit the carriage, they bow to the King and Queen.

“It is so good to see you all again after such a long time,” the Queen says, clasping her hands together with a warm smile.

“Surely, you’ve all grown into fine young men.” The King is a big, intimidating man, even for someone of his rank, and the current smile he wears does little to take away from that fact, but the five men return the gesture all the same.

The men get reacquainted with their cousins as the servants unload their things from the stagecoaches.

“You’ve grown up so much. Let me look at you,” Doyoung says, fawning over Jeno as the other men look on and laugh.

“You act worse than a parent,” Jungwoo says, giggling at Jeno’s blushing face.

Sicheng nods his agreement, looking at the two with an embarrassed expression. “Quite obviously—why do you think they picked him to be our chaperone?”

“Come on, we’ll give you a tour around the castle,” Jisung says, excitedly pulling Mark and Donghyuck along with him as he heads for the castle steps.

“I think we’ll be walking around for an entire day.” Donghyuck snickers. “It’s huge.”

Jisung grins, a knowing glance in his eyes. “An entire day? Oh, cousin, that’s just the east wing.”

Unsurprisingly, the group of brothers aren’t immediately unleashed to go exploring in the village.

Their tutors have them settle into a couple weeks of lessons before adding unsupervised free time to their schedules for them to do whatever they please with. It’s not a lot at first—only 30 minutes at a time—but Doyoung knows that’s more than enough time for them to get into trouble, if they so wish.

The men were hardly impressed with being treated like reckless children and would take whatever chance they could to escape the tutors’ watchful eyes, which meant staying on their best behavior and trying to adhere to all their professors’ instructions until they were granted more leniency.

By that point, their instructors were almost being driven crazy by the men’s frequent and not-so-subtle side conversations about what they’d see in the village once they finally got there.

“Alright, here is your first free break of the day. Go on, make use of it. I say, I’ve never seen a bunch of royals so infatuated with what the commoners are doing,” their music tutor exclaims, shaking his head. “Wouldn’t you much rather stay in here where things are clean and predictable and safe—and most importantly, clean?”

“Hmm, no. Clean’s boring!” Donghyuck counters, and he’s the first one to take off and leave the room once he’s gathered all his things. The rest of the men soon trail out of the room after him, with Doyoung heading up the rear. By their parents’ request, he usually sits in on their lessons to make sure they follow their tutors’ orders, or to help them out with whatever questions they have if the teacher is preoccupied with someone else.

“Are you all going to accompany us?” Donghyuck asks Jeno after the older man catches up to him in the hallway.

Jeno gives him a suspicious look. “Accompany you where?”

Donghyuck lowers his voice to prevent Doyoung from overhearing their conversation. “We’re going to visit the village today, see the lay of the land. There’s no time to waste, so if you want to come…”

Jeno shakes his head, a slightly unimpressed look coloring his features. “You go on ahead. If you’ve seen it once, you’ve seen it a thousand times before.”

Donghyuck looks at him skeptically, then claps a hand on his back. “Suit yourself!”

It doesn’t take long for Donghyuck to convince Sicheng, Jungwoo, and Mark to use their free time to go to the village with him, and they decide to take the horses to shorten the time it’ll take to get there. They bypass their rooms and head straight outside for the stable, leaving their books and writing utensils sitting in a heap in a corner to avoid wasting any precious time with putting their things away.

While they’re out in the stable, Donghyuck fawns endlessly over the horses. He’s particularly drawn to an all-black one with a shiny coat and an impossibly long mane. Her expressions are almost elven-like, her eyes showing a certain eerie understanding of the words he speaks to her. A large golden label on her stall reads Lily in black curly lettering.

“She’s amazing,” Donghyuck says, gently stroking her muzzle as she peers at him with her huge black eyes. Mark and Jungwoo come over to take a look at the mare, and Mark agrees to Donghyuck’s observation, grinning softly as he brushes his fingers along Lily’s soft coat. Their moment is suddenly disturbed, however, by a voice coming from the stable entrance. The three of them jump a little in surprise.

“Where are you all going?” It’s Doyoung, of course. Donghyuck scoffs and rolls his eyes, trying to ignore his older brother as he keeps petting the horse.

“We’re going out,” Sicheng says, laughing from the other side of the stable as he leads one of the horses out of its stall.

“Obviously, but where?” Doyoung walks further into the stable with the other boys, though he screws up his face at the strong smell of horse and hay. Much like the others, riding horses is an activity he quite fancies, but he doesn’t enjoy the smell of it.

“Leave us for once, brother, please! If you come with us, it’s just going to spoil the mood. Between the tutors and the King and Queen, we have enough overbearing people breathing down our necks.” Mark shushes Donghyuck at that, as if he half expects the King and Queen themselves to come out from the shadows and reprimand them.

Doyoung crosses his arms. “I have no intentions of stopping you, but I’m also not going to let you return here with a herd of angry townspeople on your tail if you do something to set them off.”

“Yes, which means you’ll stop us from doing anything fun,” Sicheng retorts, nearly pouting. He’s used his sad eyes and natural charm on his older brothers to get his way in many situations in the past, but Doyoung isn’t budging this time.

“Doyoung is going to come regardless, can the rest of you just bear with it so we can leave?” Jungwoo says impatiently, leading one of the other horses out and fixing its saddle on. “We don’t have all day to argue.”

“Fine.” Sicheng and Donghyuck aren’t thrilled about the prospect of having their older brother tag along to thwart any mischievous plans they might’ve had. They don’t truly hate it, though; they rarely miss an opportunity to try to get on his nerves if they can, and now is no exception.

After they’ve all picked a steed, they mount their horses and take off to leave the castle.

On the horses, it takes only 5 or 6 minutes to reach the village rather than the 20 minutes they’d spend walking there. When they get there, they are greeted by a sign that reads Arthenia Village. It shows obvious signs of wear, but it looks to have been recently covered with a fresh coat of green paint.

From the first glance, it’s easy to tell that the small town mostly consists of supernatural beings—though they could figure that from the atmosphere alone. The air is thick with magic, and it dances across their skin like static. Fairies and orcs and the occasional elf like themselves walk, ride, or fly through the streets, plus many more beings beyond those. Even a small portion of humans live there, though they blend in almost seamlessly with the others—except for their lack of a magical aura.

Some townspeople stop to watch the men enter the village as they trot down the cobbled streets on their horses, all dressed up in their fineries. In the men’s own eyes, their outfits are quite average for a day of schooling, but the villagers rarely see such luxury in their daily lives.

The townspeople are not really used to interacting with royalty, due to the castle’s inhabitants mostly keeping to their own circles of nobility—and seeing everyone else as beneath them, even if they don’t immediately concede to it. Some villagers are in awe of their entrance, while others look on with expressions of contempt. Donghyuck doesn’t mind the glares, though, and waves excitedly to anyone who’ll wave back.

“I wonder about you sometimes,” Mark says to the younger man, and he narrowly avoids Donghyuck trying to reach out and swipe him off his horse.

They eventually dismount the horses and tie them up at a nearby stall so they can walk around the Market Square. There’s little danger of anyone trying to make off with one of the animals; their saddles decorated with the royal colors and insignia would immediately incriminate any person who’d attempt it. And in any case, a punishment of being sent to the guillotine is more than enough to keep potential thieves away.

Arthenia may be small, but it’s still filled with a distinct culture and a sense of hominess, with people selling their homemade wares and groups of little kids playing and weaving through the streets. A group of girls gathered at a small jewelry shop whisper animatedly among themselves as they watch the men walk by, and they freeze when Doyoung meets their eyes. He waves to them with a warm smile on his face, just as he was taught to do, and they wave back enthusiastically, their free hands covering their mouths to disguise their giggles.

Jungwoo quickly becomes entangled in a game of Horseshoes with a group of adolescents who bet he can’t beat them at their own game. And, despite Sicheng’s earlier complaints, he ends up trailing behind Doyoung for most of their trip, unsure how to interact with the villagers except for following his etiquette training and simply smiling politely at them. If he were in an “I told you so” kind of mood, Doyoung might’ve pointed out the irony of the situation, but he decides to let it be, knowing Sicheng is still trying to adjust.

At the very edge of the village, a small dirt pathway gives way to the same forest they saw on their way to the castle. The expanse of the forest is easier to see when outside of Arthenia itself; it spreads like a thick patch of dark green against the lighter green fields and hills. Up close and personal, though, the forest entrance is thick with foliage, making it hard to see through. The unknown nature of it beckons. Donghyuck catches Mark’s eyes lingering in that direction, and he comes up next to the older man, throwing his arm across his shoulders.

“Is that our next conquest?” he proposes, mischief written across his face. “Want to see what lies there?”

Mark looks back at him, his eyes sparkling with anticipation. “I’m willing if you are.”

A seller at a nearby stall—an elderly orc—overhears their conversation and shakes his head, chuckling as if he’s just heard something utterly ridiculous. “Young men...don’t go in there with bad intentions. The women will drive you out.”

Donghyuck and Mark turn to him with confusion written on their faces. “Women?”

“There are women who live in the trees,” the seller continues. “They protect the trees, protect the forest. Everything there is under their dominion. Before you step foot in there, make sure you’re thinking with your head up top,” he taps a finger against the side of his head, “and not the one between your legs.”

“U-um, that wasn’t—alright.” Mark is openly flustered at being called out, and Donghyuck only laughs, steering Mark away from the stall and back towards the heart of the village.

“Don’t get so discomfited about it, brother. Desires of the flesh are natural for men.” Donghyuck slaps Mark on the chest, and the other coughs a bit at the sudden hit.

“But do you think he said that just to deter us? Or is it true?”

“I’d say there’s only one way to find out.”

Sicheng turns a corner and nearly runs into them, and they both startle at his sudden appearance. “Whatever you’re so eager to find out, it’s not happening today. It’s time to go back already.” He’s no more happy about it than they are, though, rolling his eyes at the prospect of heading back to the mansion when there’s still much to see.

“Already?” Donghyuck questions Sicheng as he starts heading back to the Market Square where their horses are stationed. Sicheng unfolds his pocketwatch and shows him the time, nodding without a word before continuing on. “Ah, shit. We’ll see the forest next time, then. Don’t forget! We’ve got to make haste.”

“Remember what that old man said, though,” Mark says, calling back to Donghyuck as he follows Sicheng. “We aren’t using up all our break time to find lovers or concubines.”

Donghyuck scoffs. “Who do you take me for? No one can find a lover in just 30 minutes, Mark, unless it’s you. Then you’d only need 5 minutes at most.” Then he takes off through the streets as Mark chases after him, threatening to kick his ass once he lays his hands on him.

It’s another week before they can make it out to the village—and therefore, the forest—again, but once the time rolls around, Donghyuck is once again the first out of the castle with Mark on his tail. Jungwoo and Sicheng decide to tag along too, along with Doyoung, which none of them are particularly surprised about.

The villagers’ responses are less awe-struck this time, though some of them still express some surprise at seeing the men come to their little town two weeks in a row. Many of them give friendly waves, though others look on with skepticism as they see the men heading for the woods. They pass by the same elderly orc from last week, who gives them a knowing look; Mark shoots him a nervous smile in return.

Entering the woods on horses requires them to duck their heads a bit to avoid the overhanging foliage threatening to poke them in the eyes or get tangled in their hair. A few of them gripe about this, but they quickly grow captivated with interest as they journey deeper into the terrain and survey the woods.

“This place is nice,” Jungwoo comments. His eyes dart to and fro, though, as if he expects one of the aforementioned women to come out of nowhere and sternly rebuke them for entering their forest abode.

“I can’t wait to see what kind of beautiful women live in this forest,” Donghyuck announces.

“Don’t be so eager, I’m positive none of them would be interested in a kid,” Sicheng scoffs. No sooner do the words leave Sicheng’s lips do a pair of pinecones come falling out of a tall pine tree just a ways above their heads. One only narrowly misses Sicheng, but the other catches Donghyuck on the shoulder.

“Ow! Did you see that?” He grabs his shoulder as if it’s injured and whips his head to look up at the pine’s towering trunk, but there’s no sign of anything other than a few unsuspecting birds.

Doyoung shakes his head. “I wouldn’t say anything else foolish if I were you, brother. Seems like the forest already has something against you.” He laughs to himself, steering his horse away from the others to explore more of the woods.

“It’s not the forest, it’s the women that stall vendor was talking about,” Donghyuck insists, looking over his shoulder for any more falling objects.

“Sure. Next, you will tell us you’re no longer an elf.” Sicheng is less convinced by the presence of the dryads than the other men, but he’s along for the ride anyway. He will at least get to see what all the fuss is about, and even if it’s not true, he’ll have some time away from the castle. Although the King and Queen are as dutifully welcoming as they should be, he can’t shake the feeling of the King’s judgment brewing just underneath the surface. It’s like his aura intentionally closes itself off to the younger man, too haughty and refined to be in the presence of a concubine’s son.

“Let’s just keep on and see what we come across,” Mark says, steering his horse around a fallen log as he traverses further ahead.

Doyoung catches sight of a large oak tree just a little ways off. It doesn’t look much different from the other trees around, save for a hollow hole in its front, but he’s intrigued by it and decides to look more closely. Once he gets over to it, he climbs off his horse and walks up to its large trunk, carefully maneuvering around the thick roots beneath his feet.

Cautiously peeking into the hollow, he sees a nest, but there are no current occupants. He presses one hand against the trunk and feels the grooves and ridges of its texture underneath his palm. It feels old and powerful, and he guesses it must’ve been here for a long time already.

Doyoung hears rustling a few feet above him from the branches, and a few leaves drift down, brushing his face. He expects to see some bird or squirrel when he looks up, maybe the owner of the nest come back to object to his snooping around, but he’s shocked at the sight of a woman.

Doyoung only catches a glimpse of you, for when you notice him looking at you, you gasp and dart further up into the tree’s branches, causing more leaves to fall on the way. Doyoung shields his eyes from them as they come cascading around him, but he fails to get another look. It’s like the tree has enveloped you entirely, hiding you from view.

“That was odd,” he says aloud. So the seller’s words were true after all. He lingers for a while longer, hoping to maybe stay long enough to see you again, but you’ve disappeared. He’s a bit reluctant to leave, but it’s apparent you’re not going to reappear while he’s still around, so he leads his horse away by its reins and looks for the others.

“I saw something,” he says as soon as he spots Donghyuck. “Or someone.”

“Seriously?” Donghyuck’s eyes light up. “What did she look like? Was she pretty? Did you get her name?”

“‘Was she pretty?’ Is that all you can think about?” Doyoung sighs. “I didn’t get anything. I barely saw her. She was among the tree branches one minute and gone the next.” Donghyuck slumps a bit at that, but he’s still determined to see one of the forest’s female inhabitants for himself.

“Hmmm…no matter. There’s many more chances where that came from. We can always return later and see who shows up.”

Their conversation is cut short by a nearby shout from Mark, who’s loudly complaining about his head. Apparently he’s been struck by something much messier than a pinecone—a robin’s egg. “Ugh. What have you fools gotten into?!” Donghyuck calls out, spurring on his horse.

Doyoung mounts his own horse and follows the younger man in search of their brothers. Just before they get out of sight of the oak tree, Doyoung throws a glance backwards, still burning with curiosity. He’s startled to see the same face from earlier staring back at him from the uppermost reaches of the tree, your eyes wide with an inquisitiveness he thinks must mirror his own.

When he blinks, you are gone again.

Even though the other men look at him a bit oddly for it, Doyoung decides to bring a gift the next time they go to the forest.

He doesn’t know much about tree nymphs. He does know, however, that there is a library full of books in the castle; many being history and reference books, no doubt. After visiting the library one day after his brothers’ lessons, he manages to scrape up a little information on tree nymphs—or dryads, as they’re also called—even though he isn’t entirely sure what he’s looking for.

His research tells him the tree nymphs are friends of the gods and goddesses, and history shows that the higher beings have always liked—even demanded for—gifts. So why wouldn’t the women of the forest be the same way? Maybe if he brings a gift, the women will warm up to their presence and realize they aren’t just a bunch of horny travelers. At the very least, maybe they wouldn’t have any more pinecones and eggs thrown at them.

When the brothers get a chance to go to the forest again, Doyoung carries a couple cinnamon scones and a small, bright clementine from their earlier breakfast in his saddlebag. The chef’s scones are the best he’s ever tasted, and he doesn’t think he could ever go back to eating the ones from their cook back home—not that he’d ever say that out loud, though.

Everyone likes food, right? He figures there’s no way to go wrong with this idea, and even if the girl in the oak tree doesn’t like it, maybe one of the other tree nymphs or woodland creatures can eat it.

You aren’t in sight when he stops by the oak tree again. Donghyuck, who’s accompanying Doyoung on his personal quest, watches as he leaves the food in the small tree hollow, keeping it carefully wrapped in its blue and white handkerchief.

“You think she’ll take it?” Donghyuck asks, keeping his voice low. He doesn’t really want you to hear him talking about you if you’re still around somewhere, which could possibly alert you to their presence and scare you off again. But unbeknownst to him, that’s unlikely to happen; dryads always know when someone enters their forest.

“I wouldn’t reject free food,” Doyoung says, laughing quietly. He steps back once he’s finished with his job and looks towards the branches, as if he expects you to appear right then and accept his offering. That won’t likely happen, but he wouldn’t mind seeing what you look like more closely.

“Well, come on then.” Donghyuck waves his hand. “There’s still more to see. We can double back and see if it worked later.”

They hear rustling among the trees as they guide their horses through one of the forest’s many paths, but they don’t see any signs of the dryads. There’s only the occasional forest creature, such as a racoon or squirrel. Mark, Sicheng, and Jungwoo are farther away in another part of the woods, though the two men can hear them talking faintly, their voices carrying on the wind. Sunlight from the midday sun filters through the leaves, turning the landscape into a speckled show of light and shadow.

When Donghyuck and Doyoung get far enough away from the oak tree, they eventually come across a lake that splits the forest in half. It’s not very wide, but if you tried to jump across it you’d almost certainly land in the water instead of on dry land.

There are signs that sprites have recently been near the lake, or quite possibly live within the forest. The ground is littered with half-eaten berries and chewed-on leaves, but that’s not the only clue; that could be the work of any forest animal. Sprites, however, leave a very distinct tinge of magic in places they’ve visited. It’s akin to walking through a spiderweb, or feeling the air change when you go from the hot outdoors to a cold room. Doyoung almost swears he can hear tiny tinkling laughter next to his ear, though it fades away as soon as he turns around.

Donghyuck is more interested in the lake, though, and guides his horse to walk along the edge of the grass where the water begins. “Do you figure we could go swimming in it?” he calls back to Doyoung.

Doyoung scoffs. “Now?”

“Of course not now! Maybe some other day, when we don’t have 20 other things to do.”

“Maybe. The water seems safe enough…” Doyoung peers into the running waters himself, watching a few twigs and stray leaves float past. There aren’t any apparent dangers or concerns, and the water’s shallow enough where you can see the bottom of the lake, but appearances aren’t always as they seem. It’s always essential to be wary in magically-charged places like this forest.

They ride through the woods for a while longer, listening to birds cry out from the trees and sing softer chirps that serve as background music. Despite the forest’s inherent mystery, it’s almost calming at this moment, with the steady hum of wildlife around. It’s like time has been suspended and they’ve been enveloped in a dimension separate from their own, even though they can see familiar signs of life prospering all around them. The contradiction of the forest’s calm and unsettling quality is both strange and wonderful to experience.

By the time their half-hour of exploration starts running out, they circle back to the grand oak tree to see what’s become of Doyoung’s offering. He’s actually a bit surprised to see it gone, handkerchief and all, and he gets off his horse to inspect the tree hollow.

“It worked!” Donghyuck exclaims this a little too loudly and a nearby bird takes off. He flinches reflexively, expecting another pinecone to come hurtling at him from the trees, though none do.

“It did,” Doyoung agrees, pressing his fingers against the wood as he looks into the tree hollow. He’s even more pleased than he expected to be, a small grin playing on his lips. “It did.”

Doyoung leaves more gifts over the next few weeks, which ends up in him actually buying things for your merriment. Many of them are cute and inexpensive little trinkets from the Market Square, like smooth blue moonstones and jagged sharp crystals that the vendors swear have been blessed with witches’ magic, though he often still leaves food.

Even with these regular visits, he’s still yet to catch more than a few glimpses at a time of you. Unbeknownst to him and Donghyuck, these sightings, no matter how sparse they are, are largely due to you throwing them a bone and allowing them to perceive you. At any other time, it would be all too easy to just disappear completely and wait for them to leave after depositing their offerings.

They don’t always see you when they come to the tree, but it happens enough to be worth noting.

Despite this inability to get you to stay, Donghyuck still tries his luck with calling out greetings to your retreating form. These words, no matter how friendly they are, are often swallowed up in the rustling of the leaves.

The same thing happens today. Donghyuck spots your feet peeking out from an uppermost branch, not quite concealed by the leaves, and he rushes out the first thing he can think of to say. “Hey, there—” At the sound of his voice, though, you quickly retreat. “Uh, nice tree-climbing skills? Oh, alright, okay…”

“I don’t think she wants to talk right now,” Doyoung remarks, a smirk on his face as he goes to leave his token for today. This time, it’s another food gift; a pair of peaches and a biscuit with jam.

“That’s fine!” Donghyuck tries not to seem embarrassed about his fruitless greetings. “I’ll just keep greeting her until she does feel like answering. It would be rude not to say hello otherwise! Unlike someone else here. Not very princely of you, huh, brother?”

Donghyuck sticks his tongue out at his brother and spurs his horse to gallop off into the trees, feeling the air whip past his cheeks. In the back of his mind, he himself knows why he keeps calling out to you even if he won’t get an answer, though he doesn’t intend on letting Doyoung know why. Some things are better kept to oneself; he’s had to learn that lesson over time.

He eventually ends up on a small hill in the forest, which is surrounded by tall trees and covered in sparse patches of moss. He hears giggling above him from one of the trees, though when he turns his head to look, there’s nothing there.

Still chagrined from the time he got hit with a pinecone, he keeps his head turned skyward, trying to see if he can spot anything among the tree canopy. However, all he sees is green and more green. He’s about to give up and go about his way when an acorn comes zooming down and hits him square in the forehead.

“Hey!” he shouts, rubbing the sore spot on his head. His exclamation reverberates off the tree trunks and bounces back to him. The echo of it almost overtakes the small set of giggles from just in front of him, but his ear catches them. “Whoever you are, come out!”

Donghyuck’s horse whinnies softly but does nothing else to alert him to where the possible culprit might be hiding, and he sighs heavily. He decides to get off the horse to walk around the area, inspecting it more closely as the wind stirs his hair and tickles his ears. The forest is almost eerily silent the entire time; all Donghyuck can hear is the sound of his own breaths and his boots in the grass.

Suddenly, he yells when a mop of black hair falls on top of his head. The shock of it sends him falling to the ground, dirtying his pants. When he gets enough distance between himself and the strange black hair, he realizes it’s one of the tree nymphs. Not you from the oak tree, though, to his slight disappointment. This one hangs upside down from a thick branch as she looks at him, her eyes playful and bright.

“You’re a cute one, aren’t you?” Her voice sounds like windchimes tinkling in the breeze, light and airy. Donghyuck tries to respond, but he finds himself lost for words after finally facing one of the women who have been an enigma this entire time. When she sees he isn’t responding, she says, “Cat got your tongue?”

“Who...where…?” Donghyuck scrambles to his feet, and the girl rights herself on her tree branch, skittering along the length of it to hide partway behind the tree trunk. She doesn’t appear to actually be shy or apprehensive, though. Her grin tells him that this is all part of her game.

“Hmm. Well, when you figure out what you’d like to say, call for me.” The girl disappears completely behind the tree trunk, and Donghyuck darts behind it, expecting to see her still hiding there. However, there’s nothing but air.

“But I don’t know your name?” Donghyuck calls after her, but there’s only his own voice reflected back to him.

“Don’t know whose name?” Mark’s voice makes Donghyuck turn around in surprise, a blush coloring his cheeks. He hadn’t even heard the older man’s horse come trotting up.

“No one,” he mumbles, shaking his head as he walks back to his horse. “You must be hearing things.”

You and three other dryads sit in a circle in a small clearing one night, talking amongst yourselves, eating berries, and gazing at the moon as it shines directly upon your little spot. Cassia lays her head in your lap, her long black hair splaying across your legs. The other two, Peony and Daphne, cuddle close to each other, their legs entangling as they feed each other berries.

You all only come out like this when you’re sure the forest is free of any unwelcome visitors or sudden drop-ins, so you can enjoy each other’s company in peace and talk without prying ears or eyes. And speak of the devil—the subject soon turns to the men who’ve been gallivanting through the forest as of late.

“We can never have any peace,” Cassia says, though her tone is laced with laughter. “If it isn’t one group of thirsty and untouched men, it’s another.”

“That one man always comes around this area, the one with the long hair. Along with the rest of them…all on their horses, making so much noise and chaos,” Peony complains.

“It’s impossible not to notice their presence. I wish they’d just stay wherever they come from; they make far too much noise out here,” Daphne says, shaking her head. “They must scare away every woodland creature within a 20-foot radius.”

You’re quiet and thoughtful as you listen to the other girls’ complaints. Finally, you decide to chime in. “I don’t know. They do seem a bit mannerless at times, but they’re kind of interesting.”

Peony shrugs. “Not surprised you’d say that. The one with the long hair is always looking up your tree and leaving you gifts.”

“She just doesn’t want the stream of admiration to stop,” Cassia giggles.

You sigh. “I don’t think it’s quite that simple, but whatever you say.”

“Everyone in the world likes attention, it’s nothing to be ashamed of,” Cassia admits, “especially when it’s coming from someone who isn’t half-bad. This batch of men is by far the most attractive we’ve seen in a while.”

“Hmm, if you say so,” Peony says, and her and Daphne giggle to themselves like they’re in on a joke only the two of them know.

“He must think he’ll get in your good graces if he gives you enough presents,” Daphne adds in. “What say you?”

You tilt your head and think. “Get in my good graces? That depends on what he wants.”

“What he wants?” Peony separates herself from Daphne and crawls over to you, mischief shining in her eyes. “And what do you think he wants?” Her grin doesn’t diminish as she waits for your answer. Daphne smiles and laughs and licks berry juice off her hands as she observes you both.

You stare at the other girl for a long moment, not wanting to laugh but cracking a grin anyway. “I couldn’t possibly know! Maybe you should ask him—or ask the younger one you all have been obsessed with.”

Cassia stretches her arms upwards toward the night sky, crossing her fingers over each other. “Nope. He’s just fun to tease.”

“Fun enough for you to reveal yourself to him,” you point out.

“Say what you will,” she responds. “But at some point, you will probably have to talk to the man. Think carefully. You want to make a good impression on your not-so-secret admirer, don’t you?”

“Maybe,” you say nonchalantly, though you are already thinking of what you might say to him the next time he comes around.

Daphne looks to Cassia, then at you. “Well, just remember this. I wouldn’t waste too much of my good time with him if I were you. We all know elves don’t like us.” The mood shifts a bit at this, with the three of you giving each other unsettled looks as a familiar thought drifts in the back of your minds. It is not uncommon for elves to demean other species, nor is it rare for them to use this perceived superiority to take what they want from others.

Cassia pulls up a handful of grass and throws it at the other girl. “Must you spoil the mood? We’re just having a bit of fun. Besides, these elves obviously don’t object to us if they keep hanging around here unprovoked.”

“I’m trying to look out for the best interest of a fellow dryad,” Daphne protests. “Elven men are very seductive…everything you want them to be until they’re not. But, by all means, do as you please.”

“Like Cassia said, it’s just fun.” You keep your voice nonchalant, though you are already rising to your feet to walk back to your tree. “And thank you for the concern…although I’m not certain it’s warranted.”

The other girls let you walk back alone, knowing you need a bit of time to yourself to think. You wonder what the man’s motive could truly be, and what it means for you. The elves of Arthenia have historically been easy to get along with as they don’t share the views of many others in their race. The same can’t always be said for elven people outside of this small area, though.

You suppose there’s only one way to find out.

One day, Doyoung manages to go out to the forest by himself while his brothers are still busy with their studies.

He plans to leave you something again, maybe hoping to see you fully this time, though he’s also content to just be out in nature and enjoy the scenery if that’s not possible. At least that’s what he tells himself. Fortunately for him, Lady Luck takes his side today.

After getting off his horse, he heads straight for your oak tree with his gift in hand. It’s a small piece of dyed glass that he got from the Market Square, shaped like a maple leaf. It appears to change colors when held up to the light, as if it were a real leaf with the sun shining through its cells.

You’re already sitting on one of the upper branches when he comes to the tree. He stops in his tracks, thinking you might run off again if he comes any closer, but you simply sit and look at him, your knees close to your chest. He thinks about what a precarious position that is to take on a tree branch, but you’re obviously used to keeping your balance up there.

There’s a tense silence. Doyoung’s afraid you might leave, but he’s surprised when you stay put as the seconds tick past, wrapping your arms around your knees and watching him. When he becomes a little more confident that you won’t try to escape, he steps closer, albeit slowly. “Hello,” he says, keeping his voice even and quiet. Like he’s speaking to something vulnerable and scared.

After a few beats of silence, you say, “Hi.”

“It’s nice to meet you. I’m...Doyoung.”

“Doyoung.” You cock your head, weighing whether you should tell him your name or not, but you eventually do.

“It’s a pretty name,” he says, and he actually means it rather than saying it just to be polite. “Um…” He looks to the glass leaf in his hand, which is cradled in another handkerchief. “I was wondering if I’d ever get to see you in person.”

“I’m always here,” you say.

Doyoung nods and chuckles. “Well...I can’t argue with that.”

“You’re always here, too. With your group of men. Making so much noise that you scare all the creatures in the forest away.”

Doyoung winces. He already knew that they weren’t the quietest mice in the bunch whenever they came to the forest. “I’m...sorry about that. I’ll tell the others to keep it down from now on.”

You nod. “That would be nice. The other girls don’t like the noise.”

“What about you?”

You shrug. “They’re not wrong for being irritated about it.”

“Could this make up for it? At least, for you?” Doyoung pulls away the handkerchief and holds the glass leaf up for you to see. You climb down from your high post to look at it more closely, though you don’t leave the tree entirely; you just balance on one of the lower branches.

“It’s pretty,” you whisper, and Doyoung notices your eyes seem to sparkle a bit more at the sight of the ornament even though your outer demeanor is calm.

“Then I’ll leave it here.” Doyoung tucks it into the small tree hollow where he’s always put the rest of his presents.

“Thank you,” you tell him quietly, and he is surprised to see a slight smile on your face; the first one he’s ever seen from you. He realizes he’s staring at you a little longer than he should and catches himself.

“Ah, y-you’re welcome.”

You nod but don’t say anything more, and Doyoung knows he ought to speak again soon if he doesn’t want to surrender this small opportunity he’s had to talk to you.

“Are there...many of you here?”

“Dryads?”

“Ah, yes...dryads.”

“There are many, yes,” you answer. “Not every tree has a keeper; some are just empty. But many do. We live in our trees.”

“In?” Doyoung realizes this may be referring to something other than just literally living among the branches, which he didn’t think of until now. You nod.

“Maybe it’s a little different from your elven magic.” You glance at his ears and momentarily think of the conversation you had with the other dryads. “But it’s a type of magic all the same.”

“I see…” Doyoung remembers to file that bit of information away so he can tell Donghyuck, who’s been burning to know. The books in the library only provided so many answers, much to their disappointment, with them not having much recorded information on the tree nymph race. Dryads seemed to be a thing of mystery to many, though he could easily guess why.

“You’re not Eupheme-born,” you say abruptly. “Where do you hail from?”

“The kingdom of Ceres,” Doyoung answers. You nod, and he takes this as recognition. “Have you been there before?

You shake your head. “I can’t leave the forest.”

“You can’t? Why?”

“We’re connected to the trees. They keep us alive, and vice versa. If we’re separated over too far of a distance, both will die.”

“That’s grim,” Doyoung says, his eyebrows drawing together. “Don’t you ever want to leave? Go somewhere else? It can’t be happy to be chained to one place forever.”

You raise your eyebrows and laugh, incredulous at his statement. “Chained? The forest is my home. There’s nowhere else I’d ever want to be.”

Doyoung shrugs. “You have a much stronger constitution than me, then. I don’t know that I’d want to be tied to any one place for my entire life.”

You squint your eyes, staring at him carefully. “You’re royalty, aren’t you?” He nods in response. “Enjoy your freedom while it lasts. You can come to this forest however you please and have fun, but you’ll have to have a family sooner or later...something more permanent to tie you to this world.” You slip down from your branch, letting your feet touch the ground, and Doyoung steps back a little to give you space. “Men like to roam and be free and sow their wild oats. They’re more than welcome to do that, but I’ll stay here among the trees.”

He stares at you in wonder, your words repeating in his head as you gingerly take his gift out of the hollow. You turn back to him momentarily, giving him a quick parting smile and a nod before skipping off into the trees.

“A letter came!” Jungwoo holds up a cream-colored envelope that sports their family’s familiar crest on a wax seal on the back. It’s a letter from their parents—their first correspondence since the men have left the castle.

“What does it say?” Mark and Donghyuck crowd around him to persuade him into opening the envelope faster. Before Jungwoo can read it, Sicheng plucks it out of his hand and holds it up to the light, making a show of squinting at the inky black handwriting. “Well? Go on!” Donghyuck prods him.

“Hmm...” Sicheng purses his lips and crinkles his brows as if concentrating hard, then gives them all a sly smile. “It says you’re all kicked off the inheritance and I’m becoming the next Crown Prince.”

Doyoung shakes his head and takes the letter from Sicheng as the younger man laughs. The other three boys balk at his attempt at a joke, and Doyoung knows the atmosphere could easily turn awkward if he doesn’t step in now. “Anyway. Let’s see what it really says, I’m sure they must be missing our presence…”

They all stand around Doyoung as he reads the letter out to them, trying to look over his shoulder as if he can’t read fast enough to satisfy their curiosity.

“Dear boys, we hope Eupheme has been finding you well.

Affairs in Ceres have been running as normal in your absence, thankfully, and Yuta and Jaehyun have been handling their new duties well. They also send their regards and hope to see you back soon.

“There is also important news for our Doyoungie. We are considering a potential match for you—the Duke of Ceres’ daughter, with whom you should already be familiar—and plan to set a meeting as soon as you return at summer’s end. We think you will find her very agreeable...” Doyoung’s voice falters a bit.

“Aw, is our indecisive brother finally going to become a married man this year?” Jungwoo slings his arm around Doyoung’s shoulders, and the older man lets out a puff of air.

“By the beginning of next year, who wants to bet?” Donghyuck snickers. “Girls naturally love you, it won’t take long for you to charm her. Either way, it’s not like you have very much longer to wait.” Mark elbows him in the side and he complains in turn, but not before cuffing Mark over the head.

“...I suppose.” That comment about being a “ladies’ man” might have drawn a laugh or two or even a boast if it were said months ago, but now Doyoung just feels strangely unsettled about it all—the impending courtship and his inevitable marriage. He continues reading the rest of the letter, though if someone were to ask him later, he wouldn’t be able to remember the rest of the words.

“We think you will find her very agreeable and are thrilled for you to get to know each other better. It is nothing to worry yourself over now, but do keep this in mind.

“Boys—remember to keep following all of your tutors’ instructions, and please refrain from making yourselves bothersome. You all are guests, and the King and Queen of Eupheme are being very honorable by hosting you this summer.

“We all send our best regards.”

That night, Doyoung tries his best to fall asleep but is kept awake by the contents of the letter. It’s hard to tear his mind away from what will happen once he returns to Ceres. Though he’d thought he’d be prepared for this, he feels unexpectedly nervous and averse to the idea of yet again courting someone he barely knows for months—and quite possibly marrying them this time around. He doesn’t know how much longer their parents’ patience in allowing him to take his time with finding a partner will last.

It’s proper. It’s tradition. It’s what’s expected of him and his brothers, and he’s been primed for this duty his entire life. Yet, that knowledge does nothing to quell the uncomfortable sensation—dare he call it dread?—creeping upon him.

He watches the clock on the mantle across his bedroom, just above the fireplace. Its little black hands tick by endlessly, counting down the seconds, minutes, hours. When another hour passes and he’s still staring at the clock, Doyoung peels the covers back and decides to leave the castle for a bit. He already knows of a few tucked-away passages he can slip out of that lead to the outside in some way or another, having bribed Jaemin into telling him where they are in case any of his brothers tries to sneak out. How ironic that he’s now using that knowledge for his own gains.

Although he’s not sure if he’ll need it, Doyoung throws on a cloak for good measure before escaping to the outside. He spends a while walking through the castle’s extensive gardens and making sure he’s staying out of sight of the guards, though he feels no sleepier than he did when he first got there. Exasperated, he’s about to turn around and head back for the indoors when the woods beyond Arthenia pop into his mind.

Should he? He’s already outside; what’s the harm in it? Admittedly, the answer is a lot if he’s caught, but he pushes those thoughts away, as his feet are already turning to lead him away from the castle grounds. Doyoung decides he’ll use his glamor for a bit to disguise his face and elven ears once he gets to Arthenia, though there probably won’t be many people awake at this time of night.

Without a horse, the walk to the forest is long. Doyoung doesn’t create any of his light orbs until he’s sure he’s far enough away from the castle to not be spotted by any of the night watch guards. When he thinks it’s safe, he conjures a small ball of burning blue light in his palm, which is enough to illuminate his footsteps.

Doyoung’s boots are wet from the damp grass by the time he reaches the Market Square, and he passes by the rows of houses and outbuildings without a sound. Some lights are still on in some homes, glowing a warm yellow in the dim light of the half moon, while others are pitch black and fade into the surrounding darkness.

The forest looks even more intimidating at night, even with the limited light. He hesitates at the forest entrance for a minute, wondering if it’s safe to go inside. He’s yet to see anything truly dangerous during the daylight hours, but things can be different at night. He didn’t think to possibly bring his bow and arrow from their archery lessons, and there will be no easy escape on horse if something menacing crosses his path. Shaking his head and sighing, he enters anyway and prays to whatever goddess will listen for the best. He’s already walked this far.

Doyoung convinces himself that he’s just going to walk around for a bit, maybe sit at the lake for a while, but after turning in a wide, looping circle, his feet eventually end up leading him to the oak tree. You are already sitting on a low branch when he arrives, as if waiting for his appearance. He notices you’re wearing the moonstone he once left in the tree hollow; somehow it’s been fashioned into a necklace, and he wonders where you got the tools to do that. One of your legs trails off the tree branch you’re perched on, swinging leisurely in the cool night air, and he tries not to stare.

“Y/N,” slips from his lips. “You’re awake at this hour?”

You smirk. “So are you.” Doyoung moves the cloak’s hood away from his face with this free hand, and you study the glowing orb in his other hand. “You’re a Light User...that’s interesting.”

“I guess it could make for a fun trick at a ball,” he says, and tosses the glowing orb up into the air. He does this a few times until he throws it up one last time and it hovers in the air, as if stuck by an invisible force. Doyoung manipulates the orb with his fingers in a way that causes it to split up into a dozen more bright glowing spheres, all suspended in the air. By now, the entire area around the oak tree is lit up from the light emanating from these numerous orbs.

You laugh softly at this display, reaching out to touch the orb nearest to you and discovering that, despite your hand passing through it, the air still feels oddly warm in the spot where the light glows. “Very pretty. It’s peculiar to see you at this hour, though. Are you even allowed to be out this late?” you ask, your eyes still lingering on the orb.

“No, but…” Doyoung trails off, unsure if he wants to revive that concern. “I couldn’t sleep.”

You finally look back at him, and your face creases slightly. “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know,” Doyoung says, and he doesn’t know, really. Getting married was always a part of the plan, as royalty. So why is he doubting it now? Maybe he knows more about why he’s feeling this way than he’ll admit to, but there are things he’s still not even sure of himself at the moment.

You decide not to press the matter for now, especially after seeing his conflicted face. “You don’t have your horse. Was it a long walk?”

He nods and laughs a little, thinking maybe it was a bit ridiculous to walk all the way here in the middle of the night. He still has to walk all the way back, which isn’t an appealing thought. “Nothing like a bit of exercise to tire you out, I guess. Hopefully I’ll sleep better after.”

“You sound like a troubled sleeper. I eat jasmine petals if I have trouble sleeping. You know, there’s a bush of them around here.” It’s an offer for him to partake, if he wants to.

“My mom likes jasmine tea,” Doyoung says, grinning slightly. “Do you often have trouble falling asleep? I would think it would be easier being surrounded by nature like this.”

You slide off the lower branch and land on the grass with a soft thump. “Not always…but I’d rather have an easy remedy than be left without one when I needed it.” Then you move to follow a dirt path leading away from the tree, but not before turning back to look at Doyoung. “Come on, then. I’ll show you the bush.”

Once again, he hesitates like he did just before entering the forest. “Is...it safe?”

You squint at him. “Safe?”

“I mean…there must be other creatures in this forest besides the agreeable woodland variety.”

“Yes…but they mostly live on the far outskirts. And either way, none of the other inhabitants will hurt a dryad. We’re the forest’s keepers. So you’ll be safe if you’re with me.”

Doyoung decides to take your word for it and follows you along the path, his blue orbs trailing after him. He sends some further ahead to light the narrow path so you both can see better, though you already know where the bush is by heart.

Soon, you’re both standing in front of the aforementioned bush, which is laden with white jasmine blooms. They seem to shine unnaturally brightly under the illumination of the blue orbs.

“Take some,” you say, carefully plucking one of the flowers from the bush. You hold it up to his nose so he can smell it, and he does so. The scent envelops him like a warm hug, and if he didn’t know any better, he’d say it’s already making him feel better. When you hold the flower out to him, he takes it gingerly. He doesn’t fail to notice the soft blossom’s texture, or the equal softness of your hand.

“Will your friends be okay with this?” Doyoung asks tentatively, holding the flower in his hand with a certain fragility.

“They will. And if they aren't, it can be our secret.” There are no secrets in this forest, really, but you humor him anyway, wanting to do something nice in return for the gifts he’s given you.

Doyoung nods and takes a couple more of the flowers, their leaves included, for the tea. He tucks them safely in the pocket of his pants.

You smile at him once he’s taken what he wants. “You’re quite gentle,” you remark. Doyoung doesn’t expect to hear that from you, and he looks at you quizzically.

“What do you mean?”

“You just appear to be very...cognizant. Many people who’ve come to the forest before don’t give any thought to disturbing the natural balance of things and taking what they want. Not the villagers, but others.”

“I see,” Doyoung nods, feeling his face grow warm. He’s never had that particular attribute associated with him before. Gentle. Men are meant to be strong and brave and fearless; gentleness is for the fairer sex. He doesn’t dislike it, though. Quite the opposite, in fact.

You nod in return. “Well, it’s getting a bit late...later than it already is, anyway. I don’t know how things at your castle work, but you may want to be getting back before someone notices you’re gone. The sun will be rising soon enough.”

Doyoung smiles slightly. “You’re quite right.”

“Would you like me to walk back with you? To keep you safe, you know.” You giggle at this. “I will only go as far as the edge of the forest. But you should be alright beyond that point.”

“That’s fine with me.” Doyoung can’t help but feel a little embarrassed about being on the receiving end of such niceties, thinking that this is the kind of thing he’d be doing for you in any other context. He’s not going to pass up the offer of safety, though—and the opportunity to spend a few more minutes in your company.

You talk in low voices on the way back towards the forest’s opening. Mostly about things in the forest, though Doyoung does mention his brothers once or twice. Secretly, you think it’s a bit endearing how much he cares about them even if they get on his nerves.

“We’re here,” you say once you’re in view of the village again.

“Thank you for walking with me. And thank you for the jasmine.” Doyoung pats his pocket.

You grin and wave. “You’re welcome. Sleep well.”

Doyoung starts walking off but suddenly turns back to you as if there’s something more he wants to say. You raise your eyebrows in question, waiting for him to speak, but after a second, he only smiles—if a bit nervously—and returns your wave.

You shuffle back into the underbrush a bit, though you stay there and watch him walk away until he’s just a speck amongst the backdrop of the village.

Doyoung makes it back home undetected and climbs back into bed feeling tired enough to sleep now, though he also attributes some of his sleepiness to the pleasant smell of jasmine still clinging to him.

When he slumbers, he dreams of a soft hand touching his, ripe with the scent of jasmine flowers.

The days get progressively hotter as the summer months settle in. With their tutors’ increasing lenience thanks to them taking well to their educational and etiquette lessons, the men get more time to themselves to do whatever they wish. The heat encourages them to spend more time outdoors, whether it’s running through the castle’s expansive yards, shooting arrows at targets or some poor stuffed mannequins, or heading to the village—and subsequently, the forest.

One hot day when they have little responsibilities to tend to, Jungwoo comes up with the brilliant idea to head to the lake for a couple hours, perhaps to cool down from the heat by wading in the water for a while. Sicheng, who has grown a bit disenchanted with the forest, decides to spend the day with their three cousins instead.

However, when the men get within shouting distance of the lake, they realize it’s already occupied.

“Wait!” Mark hisses, pulling on the reins of his horse to make it stop. He holds a finger to his lips, and before any of the men can question him, the sound of shouting, laughter, and water splashing drifts to them on the wind. It appears they aren’t the only ones who’ve had the idea of visiting the lake today.

“Oh?” Donghyuck’s eyes widen, and he and Jungwoo waste no time with getting off their own steeds to head for the riverbank.

“Wait, where the hell are you leaving off to?” Doyoung whisper-shouts, but the two pay him no mind as they creep over to a cluster of bushes near the edge of the lake. The shrubs are big enough to conceal them while still providing a few gaps to peek through, and from their new post they spot the dryads farther down the length of the lake, standing in a shallow portion. The women aren’t near enough to spot the men hiding in the bush, but they are still close enough to see clearly from this distance.

“W-what do you see?” Mark asks, his body poised as if he wants to get off his horse and join them too, but he’s still unsure.

“You’ve got to see it for yourself,” Donghyuck snickers, waving the older man over.

Mark looks to Doyoung. Doyoung gives him an incredulous look, and Mark shoots an apologetic one back before dismounting his horse and going over to join his brothers, squeezing in-between them as they crouch on the ground. He sees a group of six dryads playing in the lake, splashing each other with the water. Two more sit on the bank observing the festivities and talking about something they’re holding in their hands, though Mark can’t quite make out what the small objects are.

Donghyuck has only barely seen you during the times he’s gone with Doyoung to deliver your gifts, though he instantly recognizes you as one of the girls standing in the lake. His breath catches a bit as he watches you with water glistening off your skin and your dress clinging to your body.

“Isn’t this a little distasteful?” Mark mutters, his big eyes darting nervously between his brothers. He shifts uncomfortably, looking like he’s ready to make a run for it if need be. “I mean, watching them through the bushes like this…”

“Probably,” Jungwoo replies. “But as long as they don’t notice us…”

Mark almost shouts at feeling a hand come down on his shoulder, and Donghyuck whips his head around when the same happens to him; however, it’s only Doyoung. “You all need to get up right now,” he hisses lowly. “Haven’t you learned anything over the past few months? This is inappropriate—”

“Why are you standing?! Get down before they—”

Before any of them can realize what’s happening, what must be a gallon of lake water splashes down on all four of their heads. Screams of shock ring through the forest, along with a loud round of laughter—coming from both above them and further down the lake.

Mark, Jungwoo, and Donghyuck get to their feet in a rush, looking and feeling very much embarrassed. They look up toward the treetops and see two dryads sitting in the cleft of some of the sturdier branches, openly giggling at them. Jungwoo notices they aren’t holding buckets or any other objects that could’ve explained how they got the water up there in the first place—just a net woven with leaves, which he is certain they couldn’t have been transporting the water in. And yet… “How did you...?”

The women aren’t interested in answering his question, though, and instead disappear into the branches, leaving nothing but a few stray leaves fallen to the ground.

“I think we probably deserved that,” Mark says, sighing and trying to shake some of the water out of his clothes. The rest of the dryads who are still in the water follow the lead of the other two girls, running out of the lake and scattering through the forest, the echoes of their laughter the only evidence that they were ever there. The only ones who stay are you and the two other tree nymphs sitting on the riverbank. Now that everyone is in full view of each other, Mark belatedly realizes that the “objects” the two girls were holding and cooing over are not objects at all, but small sprites.

You step a little closer to the group of men, and the other two girls watch them intently. “If you wanted to play with us, you could just say so. It would benefit you not to be a bunch of cads about it.” You roll your eyes, though you are somewhat amused by seeing them standing there looking soaked and embarrassed.

“O-of course! I tried to tell them, but you know how it is with these kids...we were just leaving, actually.” Doyoung grips Donghyuck and Jungwoo’s collars like he’s about to drag them off like two misbehaving children, and Donghyuck’s face flushes at being treated like a kid in front of you.

“Are you sure about that?” you ask, and Doyoung raises his eyebrows at your question. You lower your hand into the lake water as if you’re only checking its temperature or letting it flow through your fingers—which is why they’re taken off guard when you draw your hand back and send a big splash of water flying in their direction.

Donghyuck is the first to react, pulling away from Doyoung’s grasp and rushing into the water to splash you back. It’s not long before things quickly evolve into another splash battle, with the other boys wading into the lake to join. The other two girls give skeptical glances at first, but they eventually bid goodbye to their sprite friends and jump into the lake, too.

You all spend what feels like hours running through the water and splashing each other, and your two friends take more quickly to the men than you expected. When the hour for them to leave comes rolling around, you are all soaked but smiling.

“We’re never going to hear the end of it,” Mark says, looking down at their wet clothes. Still, there’s no concealing the bright and amused smile coloring his features.

Your two friends wave to the men and quickly slip off back to their trees, though you linger for a while longer as you watch them climb out of the lake and try to wring out their clothes. Doyoung’s the last one left standing in the water with you, and you turn to him.

“Did the flowers help?” you ask.

“The flow—? Oh, the flowers! They worked just as intended, thank you…” Doyoung blushes a little at the memory. As the others head for their horses, Donghyuck hangs back a little to hear the conversation, wanting to be nosy and wondering what flowers you’re referring to.

“I’m glad to hear that,” you reply, smiling and feeling a little proud that your remedy worked—even though you knew it would. “You know, if you ever need anything else, you can just ask…there are a lot of resourceful things here. It’s like living in an apothecary.”

“Well, I’m interested if he isn’t!” Haechan interjects.

You smirk lightly at him while Doyoung shoots him an irritated look. “Sure. I suppose you’ve taken interest in the forest itself and are no longer just looking for a pretty woman to mess around with?”

Donghyuck flushes at your words, and his smile falters a little at being called out on his earlier intentions. Beside him, Doyoung gloats internally, and he bites his lip to stop himself from laughing out loud. “Um…sorry about that.”

“It’s nothing new,” you say matter-of-factly. Then you turn to Doyoung. “Anyways…don’t forget what I said. I’ve gotten used to seeing you around here, so...don’t be a stranger.” You go to leave then, but not before turning back around once more. “And don’t go snooping around. You’re not as stealthy as you think.”

Donghyuck only nods, too embarrassed to respond and unable to justify himself. Both men watch as you walk away, likely back towards your tree. Doyoung turns to the younger man. “Come on, then. Let’s be heading back; maybe our clothes will dry out on the way there.”

After the lake incident, Donghyuck insists on using all his lesson breaks for the next couple of weeks to go with Doyoung whenever he travels to the forest to see you. Donghyuck becomes even more invested in this after knowing that Doyoung had already met you face-to-face after going to the forest by himself. The older man acquiesces, though deep down he’d like to spend more time with you alone—especially with managing to make these visits only once or twice a week. Still, seeing you with his little brother clinging to his side is better than not seeing you at all.

Donghyuck is talkative and lively and inquisitive in your presence, much more willing to learn new things from you than from even the highest-rated tutors in Eupheme. Doyoung finds that particularly ironic, though he doesn’t remark on it. Instead, he listens intently along with Donghyuck as you tell him about the many different kinds of plants within the forest, including what purposes they serve. Doyoung is always reminded of the night you gave him those jasmine flowers, and even now, he stares at your hands as you point out different leaves and subtly wishes he could have any excuse to touch them again.

“These berries are safe to eat, though they look very similar to poisonous Pokeweed berries. That’s why you want to be sure you can tell the difference between them…” You place a few in your palm and hold them out for Donghyuck to see.

Donghyuck—who looks at you like you know everything in the world. You know many things, but not everything; but you’ll continue to let him look at you so admirably, because you find it endearing. He somewhat makes you think of what it might be like to have a younger brother or an amiable male friend. Someone to offer you a different perspective of the world external from the community of women you’ve always lived in.

Could Doyoung be that male friend or curious brother, too? Maybe, but maybe not.

Whenever you turn and speak to Doyoung to keep him included in the conversation, you don’t get that companionable feeling. There’s something much warmer there, something that makes you smile a little wider and causes more interesting facts to pop into your head. You enjoy telling him more about the forest, your home, and you somehow feel like you’d tell him anything he wants to know whenever he looks at you.

You like to see his smile, and the way his eyes grow smaller as he laughs or grins at something you’ve said. You haven’t felt this in a very long time, but if there’s anything to compare it to, it’d be eating warm honey straight from the honeycomb, or breathing in a lungful of jasmine scent before drifting off to sleep.

You don’t dwell on it for too long, simply wanting to experience the emotions as they are rather than spend too much time worrying over what they mean. Nevertheless…your idea of Doyoung is quite different from a friend or brother, indeed.

Although it is a Saturday when Doyoung comes to visit you, the sky is a dark and restless contrast to the day’s liveliness, the clouds looking heavy enough to drag down to Earth. He knows it’ll likely rain soon, which means he should probably stay in the castle and keep dry, but he ventures out to see you anyway. Today is the first time in a while he’s been able to see you without Donghyuck by his side, so he’s taking the opportunity.

You’re not in your tree when he comes. He thinks maybe he might go and look for you, but you’ll know where he is faster than he could find you. It takes a few minutes, but as expected, you appear from the further reaches of the woodland, laughing to yourself and holding a ring of flowers. There’s a similar one on your head made up of purple and white blooms. Doyoung thinks you look something like an angel against the sky’s gloom, with a halo made of blossoms instead of light.

“You’re here now? It’s about to rain,” you say, though your tone shows you’re clearly happy to see him.

He shrugs. “I felt like getting some air...I’m not concerned with a little water, as you probably already know.” I wanted to see you, is what he’d really like to say, but he doesn’t want to jump the gun. You nod in understanding, then hold up the ring of flowers in your hand; it has a few blue ones reminiscent of Doyoung’s light orbs. You offer the flower crown up to him, and he bends so you can place it on his head.

“Now you look like a true prince,” you say, smiling in satisfaction at your masterpiece. “I’ve never seen you with a crown until now. That’s a shame.”

“It is a shame.” Doyoung brings a hand up to feel the petals of one of the flowers between his fingers, and he grins. “I’m quite handsome in one.”

“Oh, my prince!” You start prancing around Doyoung and his horse like a fairy, or maybe like a young maiden at a fancy ball, brushing your hand along the animal’s shiny coat as you do. “It’s such an honor for you to grace our forest with your elegant visage.” You finally stop in front of him with a curtsy, though you have to take a moment to readjust your flower crown when it almost flies off at the sudden stop. “What can I have the pleasure of doing for you today?”

Though he laughs at your acting, he’s also a little awestruck for a moment, taken away by your cuteness and humor. Doyoung realizes there’s an awkward silence settling between you as he’s yet to say anything, and he finally stutters out, “There was something I...w-wanted to tell you.”

“What is it?” You come out of your curtsy and stand straight in front of him, all ears open for whatever he’s about to say.

“Well, it’s…” It’s a lot scarier to say what you want when you’re standing in front of someone and not just practicing in front of the vanity mirror. Doyoung is still piecing the words together when a few drops of rain hit his cheek. He doesn’t think much of it at first, but the droplets become impossible to ignore when they suddenly come hammering down without pretense, as if the gods have given word for the heavens’ floodgates to open.

“Come on!” You start running and Doyoung has no choice but to follow, tugging his horse along with him. It doesn’t take long for you to lead him to a small cave he’s never seen before. To his defense, that’s likely because the opening of it is partially obscured by hanging vines and other vegetation. It’s tall enough for someone of Doyoung’s height to stand in comfortably, which he’s relieved by. He doesn’t consider himself to be one of the more uptight royals like many others he knows, but he also wouldn’t be thrilled by the idea of sitting down in a cold, dirty cave in the rain. Even with your haste, though, you’re both quite wet by now.

Though the cave is spacious enough for you two, it becomes apparent that both of you and the horse won’t fit. Instead, Doyoung guides the animal to take shelter nearby under a willow tree with overhanging branches.

The cave is not very deep at all, only extending a few feet backwards. Perhaps that’s reassuring, at least for Doyoung, because there won’t be any disgruntled animals popping out to protest against their space being invaded.

“Well, that was interesting.” You chuckle as you squeeze water out of the hem of your dress.

“Suppose I can’t say I didn’t see it coming.” Doyoung does the same for the ends of his hair, though he knows it will be a while before it gets acceptably dry.

You laugh and nod. “You said you wanted to tell me something. What was it?” you ask.

Doyoung pauses and looks at you carefully, with rainwater dripping off his chin and darkening his clothes. He looks very serious, which is something you haven’t really seen before. It makes concern rise in your stomach, thinking maybe he has some bad news to deliver.

However, you’ve mistaken the intensity in his eyes for somberness when it’s something else entirely.

“I...love you.”

You regard him with wide eyes, feeling a little taken aback. The rain pours noisily in the background, but you’ve heard him loud and clear.

“I know we have only known each other for a few months,” he continues, “but I love you. I want to be with you.”

You’re surprised that he feels this strongly about you already, but it’s also true that you’ve felt yourself falling for him in the past few months, with his thoughtful gifts and kind smile and soft voice. You release a breath you didn’t realize you were holding, lips parting minutely. He catches the small movement of your mouth, like he notices everything about you—whether you acknowledged it before or not.

Doyoung takes your hand. Though his palm is wet from the rain, you don’t care about that. “I think about you when I’m not here in the forest…and when I’m overseeing my brothers’ lessons. I dream about you when I sleep at night. Every time I get another gift for you, it’s because I want to see you smile so brightly like that again, because of me. I never want to know a day without you.”

You know Eupheme isn’t his home, that he has to leave someday. You know elves don't generally think kindly of dryads, viewing you all as frivolous and foolish and loose; and even if him and his brothers don’t, there’s no telling what the rest of his family thinks. You also know that even without those two things standing in the way, he’s still a prince who’ll need to be married to a suitable bride at some point. All of those things make you nervous. There are many obstacles before you, but you allow yourself to forget them momentarily as you stand in this cave with him.

You bring Doyoung’s hand up to your lips and kiss his knuckles softly, taking what warmth you can despite his cool skin. You hold his hand tightly, like it might be taken away from you otherwise. “Doyoung…you have charmed me unlike anyone else.”

You bring that hand closer and place it over your racing heart, and he seems a bit hesitant at first because of the proximity to your breast, but he doesn’t move. Instead, he readily responds to the kiss you give him afterwards, drinking in your warmth as a balm for the sudden cool air. For a while, there’s only the sound of rain coming down and your lips connecting with each other’s.

You don’t know how long you kiss each other, but there’s nothing else you can do in this small cave, so you continue without thought to the outside circumstances. Even after your lips part, you huddle close together. You close your eyes in Doyoung’s embrace, listening to the sound of his heartbeat and breathing underneath your ears and basking in the fullness of your own heart.

When the rain finally stops, Doyoung has to leave. The sun will be setting soon; the downpour went on longer than either of you anticipated.

“I promise I’ll come back soon,” he says, clinging to your hand with both of his.

“You always do.” You already trust him more than you can say.

Doyoung nods to your words, smiling somewhat bashfully. He steps out of the cave and lets your hand slip from his. But before he can get more than a few feet away, he turns around and comes back to kiss you once more on the lips, his fingertips on your face like he can’t believe you’re real.

You laugh once you separate from each other. “The sun’s getting low, and the others will question you. Go on now.”

Doyoung keeps to his word and makes his way out after fetching his horse, but he keeps glancing back to you until he’s completely disappeared among the brush.

You feel like your mind has been filled with soft moss, all airy and soft and tangled together with unending thoughts. You walk back to your tree feeling as if you could float there instead, enjoying the damp grass under your feet.

The time slips by blissfully.

Doyoung keeps coming out to see you during his free time each week, as he has done since he’s been in Eupheme, though sometimes he’s able to manage more than just one or two visits. On those weeks when he comes out more often, whether it be at night or during the day, you hold him especially tightly, enjoying the extra time with him and wanting to live inside of it—to freeze a moment in time and keep it close to your chest for as long as possible.

“I wish you could see the castle,” Doyoung says this low and close to your ear like he’s telling you a secret. He lies on his side beside you in the grass, playing with your fingers. A gap in the treetops lets a lopsided circle of sunlight shine down on your faces, warming you both from the inside out. “Walk through the maze of land...or see the stable.”

You hum softly. “Hmm...I’m sure it’s nice.” Doyoung laughs, knowing you’re not interested in any place else other than your forest; you can’t hide the neutral note in your tone, though he knows it isn’t towards him.

“Or I could live out here with you.” He strokes the pad of his thumb along the length of your ring finger, and you don’t fail to notice this.

You turn to him, full on grinning now. “I thought you said you’d never want to be tied to one place. Remember?”

Doyoung grins sheepishly along with you. “Maybe I changed my mind.”

“Mmm, how indecisive you are…if you stay with me here, you can’t ever leave.” You pluck a tiny blue flower from the ground and brush it against his lips, tracing the shape of his cupid’s bow with it. “Make your choice wisely.”

Doyoung purses his lips against the small flower, as if giving it a kiss, and does the same with your fingers as they ghost across his mouth. “I’ve chosen already, princess.”

You lean in to kiss him, and he meets you halfway. The little blue flower slips from your hand. You don’t know if there could ever be a more perfect moment, kissing him like this with the warmth of the sun on your back and your ears full of the sounds of birds chirping and insects purring—and, in the very distance, the lake water running.

You don’t get to bask in the moment for too long, though, before something is interrupting you; and it’s not one of the other women like you might’ve expected.

There’s a rustling and a crash in the bushes, and you whip your head towards the noise, but it’s only a deer—or maybe some other creature—running off. You catch a few glimpses of its brown coat before it becomes obscured by the leaves. You still keep your gaze turned towards the bushes. Though there is nothing else there, you still get the odd sensation of being watched, the hairs on the back of your neck standing up.

“What’s wrong?” Doyoung whispers, his index finger touching your cheek. He glances at the source of the noise, but his eyes stay mostly focused on you.

“I know it’s odd, but…have you ever felt like you were being watched? Even though nothing’s there?” you ask slowly.  “I’ve…sort of felt like this a few other times when we were together.”

Doyoung looks suspicious for a moment, though he eventually shakes his head. “No, I...not really.” He sits up to look at the same space you’re staring at, but he doesn’t see anything more than you do. “If someone else were out here besides the other dryads and the animals, wouldn’t you already know?”

“I suppose that is true,” you say, though you still look towards the bush, trying to see if there’s something you’re somehow not spotting. The sense that you have a pair of eyes at your back still doesn’t go away, even when Doyoung finally pulls you away from the spot to walk further into the woods.

In the middle of August, the Archduke of Eupheme holds a ball. He has been renown for his exorbitant parties for many years, and although he couches this party in the excuse of making the Crown Prince and his brothers feel a bit more at home in the kingdom, everyone knows it’s really just a reason to get drunk and have some fun. No one would dare complain, though; after all, who’d pass up the chance to attend? To rub elbows with handsome men and women and forget more pressing worries for a while?

The King and Queen of Eupheme see it as a good way for the young men to show off their newly acquired social etiquette they’ve been sharpening during their lessons—and possibly mingle with noble women. Similarly, none of the brothers will object to the latter idea. Except for maybe Doyoung.

“Cheer up! I’ve never seen you look so unsettled when going to a party,” Jungwoo says, pinching Doyoung’s cheek. They’re all loaded into their separate stagecoaches, with Jungwoo, Doyoung, Jaemin, and Mark in one and the other boys inside another behind them.

“I’m fine,” Doyoung insists, waving away the concern and plastering a hesitant smile on his face. He can already guess what’s in store for tonight.

The ride to the Archduke’s place is shorter than Doyoung expected. It’s been a long time since they last visited the Archduke’s mansion, and he swears he remembers the journey being longer than this. He sucks in a deep breath as he steps out of the stagecoach. The mansion looms large up ahead, obviously not quite as big as the King and Queen’s castle, but extravagant enough to be of note. Its stone interior glows with rows of brightly burning torches decorating either side of its grand entryway.

The Archduke’s large ballroom is filled to the brim with high-ranking officials and other nobility, with everyone mingling together in a big glittering clump of bodies and puffy dresses and long hair. There’s no other race but elves there, which is usually expected at royal balls like these; other species are often relegated to roles of servant, cleaner, waiter, and so on.

There’s a notable stir when the King and Queen and the eight men enter, and the room parts down the middle to make room for them.

The men wave and smile and mingle like they’ve been taught to, though some revel in it a bit more than others. They’re quickly embraced by the crowd, and the Archduke and Archduchess come to greet them. A young woman walks slightly behind them, her brown hair pinned up in an elaborate updo, wisps of hair clinging around her elven ears. Doyoung remembers her as their daughter and only child, who was never allowed to play in the yard with them as children because “such rowdy behavior wasn’t fitting for a lady of her sensibilities,” as her mother used to say.

“I’m sure you all remember Eunomia,” the Archduke says, encouraging the young woman to come to the front. The brothers all nod in acknowledgement, answering her curtsy with their own bows.

“You’ve grown even prettier since we were young,” Jungwoo says, smiling politely. The girl smiles timidly back to him.

“Thank you. You’ve become quite handsome yourself.”

“We’re so glad that we could be graced with the presence of the Crown Prince of Ceres tonight,” the Archduke continues. “We’ve all been looking forward to your appearance since we got word of your family visiting Eupheme. The timing, especially, is quite extraordinary, as we’ve been vetting possible suitors for our Eunomia.” It’s everything just short of an actual proposition to marry his daughter, and Doyoung’s lips twitch as a thousand different thoughts flit through his mind.

Doyoung bows his head slightly in acknowledgement of their statement and schools his expression into something neutral and amiable. “Extraordinary timing, indeed.”

It’s not long before the music is rising to a grand swell again. The other boys part ways to search for dance partners in the crowd, and Doyoung already knows what’s expected of him. He holds his hand out to Eunomia. “Would you like to dance?”

She nods and takes his hand. Doyoung leads her onto the main dancefloor beside a few other individuals who have already coupled up. A relatively fast tune carries their feet across the floor like the wind.

Eunomia is pretty, nice, and quiet. She’s too shy to meet Doyoung’s eyes directly—no doubt as a result of her parents’ training—and she lets him lead the conversation the same way he leads their dance. She would make the perfect wife to any other man but him.

Doyoung might have been more willing to pursue something with her if this gathering had happened a year before or even a few months ago, before their visit to Eupheme. Now, he only feels uninterested at best—and burdened at worst—about it all. He’s uncomfortable with the way her hand sweats in his palm, and with how fragile she feels in his hold. His mind keeps drifting back to the forest, though he tries to be present in the here and now.

The next few dances go similarly. Though his brothers and cousins seem to be enjoying themselves with the number of pretty women they have at their behest, Doyoung doesn’t feel the same. He ends up approached by various noblemen throughout the night, all holding some prestigious rank or another and seeking to introduce him to their daughters and insinuate a dance. And of course, being the gentleman and prince he is, how can he say no?

Each of the women is unique in their own way, but still not quite enough to hold his attention for long. He’s already made his mind up about who he wants, though you can’t be with him here now—or anywhere but the forest, really. This knowledge is equal parts comforting and disagreeable. He finally has an answer to the question about whether he’d ever find someone to love, though it turns out he cannot even be with you in an easy, convenient way.

By the time the night ends and the royals are on their way back to the castle, Doyoung is rather tightly wound. His mind swarms with thoughts of everything that occurred earlier in the evening and how annoyed and restless it all made him. Increasingly, he’s beginning to feel like he’s up against a wall that he just can’t surmount. He almost yearns for the days when he unquestioningly accepted his duty and actually received some enjoyment from his courtships, but he’d never truly want to go back. Not if it meant not knowing you.

“Are you okay? You seem upset,” Mark says hesitantly, noticing Doyoung’s tensed jaw as he keeps his face turned towards the window, looking out at the nightscape. Doyoung only gives his brother a quick glance before nodding curtly.

“I’m quite alright.” It’s a lie, but Doyoung doesn’t feel like trying to explain his mood at the moment. Though it’s easy enough for them to guess why Doyoung’s visits to the forest have been so much more frequent over the past month or so—and subsequently, why his mood is so sour now—it remains an open secret.

Jaemin settles back in his cushioned seat, grinning slightly to himself before looking up at Doyoung. “Your name must be on many a lady’s dance card tonight, Doyoung. I suspect every woman at the party had a turn, if not the Archduchess herself.” Mark elbows him in the side, but the younger man doesn’t think anything of it.

“I suppose so.” Doyoung rubs his finger over his lower lip. “But maybe you should be more concerned that the competition is diminishing your chances.” Mark and Jungwoo chuckle at that.

“Not to worry. When the time comes, the only choice they’ll have is me.” The younger two laugh even more enthusiastically, and Doyoung only shakes his head, grinning slightly despite himself.

 Once everyone is settled in for the night, Doyoung waits in his bed for an hour to be safe and then decides to sneak out to see you. Once again, he doesn’t bother with visiting the stable to take the horse, nor does he try to make himself look “presentable,” tired of being princely for the night. The only thing he does is pull on his pants and shoes and button up his shirt halfway before losing his patience and yanking his cloak on.

He uses his glamor to momentarily disguise himself as he passes through Arthenia, though the few stragglers outside don’t pay him much mind.

“Y/N?” Doyoung calls out your name, slipping his cloak to the ground once he gets to your familiar oak tree. He soon hears and sees the fluttering of tree leaves as you descend from the canopy and touch the ground, alighting from the branches as gracefully as if you’ve been doing it your entire life—which you have.

“My, sir. Here at this hour again? What could b—” You don’t get to finish your sentence before Doyoung is gathering you up in his arms and kissing you hard, his forearms wrapped tight around your waist. He picks you up off the ground and you let yourself be lifted, toes barely grazing the grass.

It’s a long moment before you can regain your breath. You look at him incredulously as he sets you back on the grass, pressing his forehead to yours.

“What...what’s got you in such a state?”

“Love,” he mumbles, pressing another kiss to your lips. You laugh at that, holding his flushed face in your hands.

“It’s a pleasant thing, isn’t it? But really, what is it? You seem tense.”

“I am tense,” Doyoung says, though he keeps his lips close to yours. He’s not really in the mood to go into detail about the evening and disturb what’s currently unfolding between you. “It’s just...royal niceties. They can become quite tiring.”

“That’s a pity,” you reply, though you pause in your next thought when his lips find your jawline and press against it firmly. This is the most intimate contact you’ve had since you met, or since he confessed to you, and it ignites a burning flame in your chest. “Maybe there is something that can help you with that.”

Doyoung pulls back to look you in the eyes, wondering if you’re insinuating exactly what he thinks. You step away from him and tug on his hand, pulling him away from the tree. “I’ll show you.”

You both walk along a section of the forest that Doyoung isn’t familiar with, and he conjures some light orbs to illuminate the pathway. You spend a long time walking—so long that he’s almost afraid he won’t be able to find his way back out. Or maybe he’ll encounter one of those unfriendly creatures that you previously mentioned lives on the outskirts. Wherever you’re taking him is farther than he’s ventured before.

You finally stop when you get near the west edge of the forest. The trees are slightly sparser here, and there’s a path through the middle that trails off onto the bottom of a steep hill. The hill marks the end of the forest and flattens out onto a field of tall grass. He catches glimpses of the grass swaying in the breeze under the moonlight and the light of his own orbs.

That’s far from the most eye-catching thing here, though. Another lake sits before you two, though it’s much smaller than the other one—more like a pond—and forms a nearly perfect circle.

You walk along the grassy bank and pull Doyoung along with you, and he’s surprised to feel heat coming from the water as he gets nearer to it. It’s not a burning hotness, but a comfortable warmth.

“Shall we swim?” You look at Doyoung over your shoulder, letting go of his hand to tug at one strap of your dress. He nods, watching wordlessly as you peel your dress off in front of him. His throat tightens to see you’re wearing nothing underneath. Standing nude underneath the combined glow of the moon and his own blue light makes you look positively ethereal, and Doyoung mentally imprints this image in his mind, filing it away as a permanent memory.

He watches as you step off the grassy bank and get into the pond, the black water lapping at your legs as you wade further into it. He’s still standing and simply observing you as you turn around to look at him and lift your arms out of the water, like you’re asking for a hug. “Are you going to leave me all alone in here?” You give him your best pleading eyes, and it doesn’t take long for him to strip his clothes off and come in after you.

He dips underneath the water’s surface and swims around you, and you giggle as you can just barely make out his form under the water. You can only spot the ripples he leaves behind.

Doyoung’s head pops above the water on the farther side of the pond, with his long black hair sticking to his face and covering his shoulders. It makes his ears stand out more, and you laugh. You swim over to him and he pulls you into him when you’re close enough, your naked bodies molding themselves to each other. You’re about to say something, but his lips quickly envelop yours and you forget any words you formerly had. You kiss for a while in the lake’s warm water, with the full moon and Doyoung’s lights serving as your only illumination.

You haven’t done much else but kiss so far, but you can still feel something hard and warm pressing into your stomach. Doyoung’s lips separate from yours to travel to your neck, pressing against your pulse point and softly sucking the skin there.

You pull away to look at him, your body feeling strangely light and hot all at the same time. “Maybe we should get out of the water,” you say, smiling coyly.

Doyoung nods and scoops you up, carrying you out of the lake and setting you down on the unnaturally soft grass surrounding the waters. It feels almost like a cotton blanket underneath you.

You’re both fully exposed in front of each other now, though you don’t really feel embarrassed about it. Doyoung’s hands are warm as he cups the sides of your face and nudges his nose against yours, teasing you momentarily with the promise of his lips before actually kissing you again.

You like feeling his hair underneath your palm, all wet and slick beneath your fingertips, and you run your fingers through the strands. They coil around his neck and shoulders like little snakes, or maybe vines on a climbing plant.

His member stands against his stomach, already leaking precum from the press of your lips and the warmth of your body against his. You reach out to touch him, tracing your fingertip against a vein and feeling the stickiness of the precum, and Doyoung sighs against your lips. His hands come to your inner thighs, pushing them a bit further apart so he can dip his fingers between them and feel you wet and warm for him.

You gasp sharply when he slides a finger into you. He reaches deeply inside you, his palm rubbing against your clit as he fingers you, and it makes you spread your legs wider and push your hips closer into his touch. You wrap your fingers around him, and you enjoy the pulse of his cock in your hand as you stroke him.

Doyoung soon slips another finger into you, stretching you out more for him, and you moan as he does. You press your mouth against the base of this throat and his collarbones, feeling the firmness of them as you lightly drag your teeth over them. As if by luck, he shifts his fingers a certain way and brushes against that sweet spot that has you leaning further into his body and moaning hotly against his neck.

“Doyoung…” you sigh. He gives you an answering moan as your fingertips slide over his tip, purposely lingering at the slit. Your lips brush against each other’s, not quite kissing but making some semblance of the motion. Despite how good you’re feeling now, with his hand working you up to an inescapable high, you decide you need to have more of him; you need to get as close as possible. “Doyoung, please.”

“What do you need?” he asks, his voice unbearably gentle and breathy in your ear.

“You.” You take your hand away from him to guide his body on top of yours, parting your legs to invite him in-between. You are less preoccupied with foreplay at the moment and just want him inside you, which he has no complaints about.

The firm press of him inside you is unlike anything you’ve felt in the recent past. It’s not like dryads go their entire lives without sexual pleasure—of course, there’s always self-pleasure and the company of other women, and even the occasional agreeable male visitor who comes into the forest—but it’s been a long time since you’ve experienced it delivered by another person’s body. It’s almost strange, but also good and familiar, if only a little painful at first.

You try to breathe evenly as Doyoung seats himself inside you, his hands stroking you so adoringly that it makes you lose your bearings. Him leaning forward to kiss you only takes more of your breath.

“Is this good for you?” he asks quietly. You’re not quite sure what part of it he’s referring to—him inside you or his hands strumming along your breasts and clit—but you nod enthusiastically. Everything he’s doing feels undeniably good. Just when you think it could not get any better, he pulls out a bit and starts thrusting into you. His pace is slow, allowing you to adjust, but it’s enough to make you cry out loud, gripping his slick shoulders for support.

Doyoung brings himself close to kiss your lips again, grinning against your mouth. “Shhh, my princess. If you’re too loud, you’ll wake all the others.”

You nod against his wet forehead, breathing heavily, though it’s a bit hard to keep yourself quiet as he fills your body over and over again. You press your thighs tight against his hips, feeling the muscles in his body flex as he thrusts into you. His movements create a slick sound between you, and the lewd quality of it entices you more.

While one of his hands slides slick and slow across your clit, you grasp the other and bring it up to your lips, kissing his fingers like you did the day he told you he loved you, and then nibbling on them, sucking them into your mouth. Doyoung twitches inside you when your mouth tightens around his fingers, and he groans into the night air. You’re reluctant to let his hand go, but you do it so he can leverage himself enough to dip his head lower and give more attention to your breasts, drawing his tongue across the round firmness of them and catching your nipples in his mouth.

He angles himself a bit differently so he can find your spot again and concentrates on repeatedly pushing into that sensitive part of you. His attentions bring you to your climax soon, and you can barely quiet yourself as you come around him. The pleasure seems never-ending, like it’s pouring into you from a bottomless well, and small tears bead at the corners of your eyes. Doyoung cups your face and kisses your tears away, and you hold the back of his head as he does.

When Doyoung gets close, he slips himself from inside you and thrusts in between the tight space of your thighs, his tip rubbing across your stomach. He comes soon after doing this, his seed pooling on your skin, some of it running into the grass.

You both lie in the grass after the aftermath, with Doyoung pulling you so you can lay your body on top of his. His heartbeat is still fast; you hear it hammering in his chest as you rest your head against his breast. You close your eyes and let the sound of it calm your own restless body.

After a few long moments of listening to the insects and night creatures making their midnight songs, you stir from your position on his chest and draw yourself up. “Doyoung…” you murmur, straddling either side of his waist so you’re hovering over him. You press your lips against his and he responds with a slow kiss. You can practically feel how satisfied he is as his lips push against yours, like a drunken sprite who’s gotten into a cup of ale.

You depart from his lips and trail your mouth over the rest of his body until you’re level with his softened cock. It jumps a bit when you grasp it, and Doyoung groans softly; his voice increases slightly when you press your lips to it, still tasting the remnants of his salty release and your own pleasure. His hand comes to hold the back of your head as you take him into your mouth, licking the shaft and feeling his balls in your other hand.

Though he was the one who’d hushed you earlier, now he has to choke back his own moans as you suck him and stroke your tongue around his tip.

You draw your mouth away from him, and a trail of spit follows your lips. “Does this feel good, my prince?” you ask, still stroking him languidly to keep his pleasure stoked. You know it does, but you want to hear it from his mouth anyway.

“So good.” He makes a noise between a whimper and a groan, and it travels straight to the apex of your thighs. His stomach tenses with his strained breaths as you take him back into your mouth, focusing your attention on the leaking slit.

His thighs tremble when he gets closer, and as much as you’d like to have him come in your mouth and drip over your chin, you decide to pull away and straddle your legs around his waist again. Doyoung whines needily, though his complaints are quickly forgotten when your sex slides over his slick shaft. He waits with bated breath as you grab the base of his member and line him up with your entrance, pushing him into you as you sink down on him. Feeling him part your walls makes your legs shake a little, and you readjust your posture so you can maintain your stability.

You seat yourself fully on top of Doyoung and let him press himself up into you as you push back down on him, your hands scraping for purchase on his chest. In this position, you can control the pace and ride him just so that his tip is pressing into your most sensitive spot.

Eventually, you lean forward with your mouth covering his. Another orgasm approaches you fast, and you pant against his lips as you search for that release again. “I love you,” you moan softly, trying to muffle your sounds with the touch of his lips.

Doyoung’s hands roam your body, coming up to palm your breasts and thumb at your nipples. “I adore you,” he whispers.

This time you both come within moments of each other, moaning into each other’s mouths. Doyoung pushes himself into you until you’re leaking over him once more, and then he hurriedly pulls out and comes across your thigh, leaving trails of white dripping down your skin.

Doyoung knows he’ll need to get up and get dressed at some point—and begin the long trek back to the castle—but he doesn’t think about that right now. He just pulls you closer and enjoys the warm stickiness of your bodies together, the lukewarm breeze stirring his hair, and the gentle grass tickling his skin.

“You don’t seem like yourself lately.”

Jungwoo brings this up to Donghyuck during one of their archery lessons as they sit beside each other underneath the sun. The younger man was noticeably not as concentrated or effortless as he’d usually be, and many of his arrows ended up being off-mark, if not missing their targets entirely.

Currently, they both sit in the grass after their instructor called for a break earlier, stating that they needed some time to cool off and pull it together—Donghyuck in particular.

“I’m fine,” Donghyuck grumbles, sighing deeply and closing his eyes. If he could close his ears, too, he would. Unfortunately for him, his brother doesn’t take that as a sign to stop talking.

“That’s doubtful. Really, what’s chafing you? I know all the lessons can be annoying, but there is nothing we can do about that for now.” The younger man doesn’t answer at all this time, but Jungwoo continues on. “I know Doyoung isn’t with us during our breaks as often as he was before, but isn’t that a good thing? He can’t tell us what to do all the time.”

Donghyuck groans, wiping his hands over his face at the mention of their older brother. Jungwoo perks up at this. “Oh? Is it something with Doyoung that’s bothering you? What is it?”

Donghyuck is quiet for a moment longer. When it’s clear Jungwoo won’t leave the matter alone, he turns to face his brother fully, looking at him more closely. He hesitates for a moment before finally saying, “What would you do if you wanted something you couldn’t have?”

Jungwoo thinks for a moment. “I don’t know. It depends on what it is. Maybe the logical answer would be to just give it up and stop indulging a fruitless case.”

Donghyuck sighs, hanging his head. “Of course. But what if...alright, what if it was a person? Someone you’re particularly fond of. And…they just make you feel as if…if they looked at you once, you wouldn’t hesitate to hand them anything they could ever want. Then would you give up on them so easily?”

Jungwoo’s eyes widen, and Donghyuck thinks he must’ve said too much. Before he can speak to try to defuse the situation, Jungwoo says, “Don’t tell me you’re still upset about Nayeon. I’m sorry Donghyuck, but—”

“Ugh,” Donghyuck pushes himself to his feet, taking up his bow and arrow again and walking off to one of the targets farther away from Jungwoo. “Nevermind.”

After Donghyuck gives a few more unsuccessful tries, the instructor decides to dismiss them early and encourages Donghyuck to keep his head clear for their next session. “I am well aware of what you’re capable of, Donghyuck, and I know you understand your own abilities. Just look at it as simply having an off day, but do try to keep your concentration next time.”

“Yes, sir,” he replies, already feeling drained even though they’re only halfway through the day. The walk back to the castle with Jungwoo is quiet, though crossing the ample landscape gives him plenty of time to think to himself. What you’re capable of...Yes. What is he capable of?

Maybe there was still a way to alter the course.

“You’re particularly quiet today,” you remark, studying Doyoung’s face. You’re both sitting in the small clearing where you and the other dryads often gather at night, only it’s daytime now and the other girls are off doing their own things. Deeper among the woods, you can hear their laughter from a distance.

Doyoung came to visit you with a solemn look, and though you can tell he is still glad to see you, there’s also a tinge of disquiet beneath it.

A strong gust blows some strands of hair into his face, and you brush them away before he can do it himself. He turns his head and stares at you as you do, his eyes big and imploring and brewing with a distress you can’t place. “Actually, you seem to be a bit different since...that night,” you continue. Your face warms at the thought of your first time together, and how Doyoung took you in the grass and whispered sweet adoration to you. “Is something wrong?”

Doyoung’s lips part like he wants to speak, though he remains silent for a few moments more. Then he says something that nearly makes your heart stop, the words coming slow off his tongue. “I want to give up my title.”

“Your title? As Crown Prince? How can you do that?”

“I could do it,” he says, his voice still low. “There’s no law against it. It might be...dishonorable. No, it would certainly not be…” He pauses, then abandons whatever he was about to say. “But there’s no law to stop me.”

“But why? I thought you liked being royalty, at least to some degree. Your station in life affords you many things others don’t have.”

“It doesn’t afford me you.” He grasps your hand where it lies in the grass. “We can’t be together if I’m still Crown Prince. If I walk away, though...”

You’re also quiet now, unsure how to respond to a declaration like this. For Doyoung to give up his royal title for you...it’s a much bigger implication than you think he’s really considering.

“But, the throne...you’re the heir, and it just…” You’re almost desperate to come up with at least 100 reasons why he can’t do it, though you aren’t sure why. Maybe you’re too afraid to hope it could be possible, even if it’s the slightest chance.

“I have six other brothers. Any one of them could...” Doyoung falters, remembering Yuta’s and Sicheng’s controversial parentage, and then sighs but tries to remain hopeful. You look at him with wrinkled brows, worry crowding your heart. You sigh and rest your head on his shoulder, looping his arm with yours.

“I don’t know if they’d ever agree to it,” you say it almost inaudibly.

“There’s no way to know if we don’t try…” Doyoung replies, hugging you tightly to him. “I don’t care about giving up my title.”

You shake your head. “There are so many other things to consider, Doyoung.”

Doyoung knows you’re worried and doubtful, but he holds you close to him and kisses your temple and tries not to think about those things. He only wants to think about all the good things the future could hold for you.

A small grin appears on his face as he wills his mind to drift elsewhere. “How many children would you like to have?” Doyoung asks suddenly. You give him an incredulous look, though there is a grin of your own slowly taking over your lips.

“I don’t know. Maybe I don’t want children.” You roll your eyes and laugh. “As long as I’ve been on this Earth, I’d have them by now if I wanted them.”

“Then it’d be just the two of us forever?” Doyoung pulls you so you’re both lying down and entangles himself with you, his head on your chest. He listens to your heart, a steady rhythm that lulls him into a sense of sleepiness. “That’s fine with me.”

You feel a tug at your heart, like the chambers are contracting in pain. “Yes, an eternity together.”

Despite your many doubts and questions, you have a warm dream that night. One of you and Doyoung living in the forest together, running through the hills, jumping across creeks, and enjoying each other’s company to your heart’s content.

Donghyuck knocks on the door of the King’s sitting room, his palms sweating as he waits for a response. Sicheng stands beside him, quiet and waiting to see if the man will respond. The King of Eupheme may be a long-term friend of their father’s, but Donghyuck can’t help the slight fear he feels whenever he’s in the man’s presence. Something about him has always been a little colder, more unforgiving, and more unyielding than their own father is.

“Who is it?” The man’s voice booms from behind the door.

“It...it’s Donghyuck and Sicheng, Your Highness.” Donghyuck’s voice wavers a bit as he speaks, and he tries to suppress the tremors in his speech. “We’re here for our...meeting.”

“Come in, then.”

Donghyuck turns the doorknob and enters the room, closing the heavy door behind him and his brother.

“Well, then. What is the pressing matter you have to inform me of?” The King raises one eyebrow, looking skeptical about whether Donghyuck has anything to report or not, though he waits patiently for the boy’s response.

The elven King’s presence seems impossibly heavier in this singular room, filling every corner of the space and physically weighing down the Earth’s gravity. Donghyuck almost doesn’t know what to do with himself in response to this force. Sicheng is less affected by it—or better at hiding it—though his face creases minutely. Donghyuck ends up speaking without thinking clearly about what he practiced prior.

“D…Doyoung is courting a dryad.”

“A...what, boy?” The King slowly leans forward, his sharp eyebrows drawing together, one hand coming up to stroke his long beard. They both know that he knows full well what a dryad is, but he seems unable to comprehend what Donghyuck has just blurted out. Or maybe he thinks the younger man is lying.

“A-a dryad, Your Highness. He’s been using his assigned free time—and sneaking out at night—every week to see her, in the forest beyond Arthenia. H…he’s even thinking of asking to be relieved from his title to be with her.” Donghyuck feels sweat gathering on the back of his neck, as if he’s the one about to be punished.

The King’s brows furrow even more, though this time his eyes hold a hint of rising anger. He leans back in his seat again, holding Donghyuck and Sicheng with a hard stare. “These are quite damning claims to make. Where is your proof?” Before either one can respond, the King continues on. “He will doubtless be questioned, but I would think that both of you have ample reason to try to sabotage the Crown Prince—especially you.” He directs his gaze to Sicheng at this, and Sicheng’s face falters. “A whore’s son will always believe he’s owed more than he’s worth.”

Disgust and hatred rises up in Sicheng’s chest at being regarded like this—always as less than his half-brothers—though he tries not to let his rage show. His jaw clenches as he speaks, keeping his tone measured, and it takes him a long moment to force out a proper response. “We indeed have proof…Your Highness.”

“If you’ll allow us, we need a mirror, Your Highness,” Donghyuck adds.

Still with a skeptical look on his face, the King waves his hand towards a small round mirror hanging on the east wall, sitting formerly unacknowledged despite all its ornate trappings. Sicheng walks over and takes it off the wall, coming back to stand in front of the King with it. Donghyuck comes up behind Sicheng and lays a hand on the back of the older man’s neck, pressing his index and middle finger where his brain stem would be. Donghyuck closes his eyes and concentrates, while Sicheng keeps his own eyes open, staring into the depths of the mirror and his own reflection.

In the mirror image, his eyes turn a foggy gray. Donghyuck’s memories flood into his mind as if they were his own, experienced with his own five senses; he can almost smell the forest grass and feel the sun burning his skin. Sicheng then takes his right hand and presses his fingertips against the mirror, forcing it to bend to his power and replicate what he’s seeing in his mind’s eye.

When the image becomes steady, Sicheng holds the mirror up to the King and lets him see what it displays; you and Doyoung lying in the grass together, with you dragging a tiny blue flower across his lips. Doyoung tilting his head up to accept your kiss. You looking straight ahead, trying to figure out why you sense a disturbance in the forest, only to see a deer—and missing the invisible form of Donghyuck staring at you and your lover from the bushes. Your conversation is hard to hear, consisting of mostly vague echoes, as if you were speaking underwater—channeling sounds is harder than conjuring up images—but there’s no need for words to understand what’s going on.

The King’s eyes are a windstorm of emotions at this point, a close rival to the actual stormy gray of Sicheng’s eyes as he reveals the memory. He is silent for an excruciatingly long moment. Still, he continually strokes his beard in a repetitive motion, though his gaze displays the true anger burning beneath the surface.

“And where is Doyoung right now?” he finally asks, after it seems like an eon has passed. Then he waves his hand sharply towards the mirror. “I’ve seen enough of that.”

“He has no duties to attend to as of right now, so he must’ve gone to the forest,” Sicheng responds. Donghyuck takes his hand away from his neck then, stepping back in a jerky motion as he tries to regain some of the energy spent from transferring the memory. Likewise, the mirror image fades once Sicheng takes his hand away from the glass, and the normal brown of his irises bleeds back into his eyes. “To see her again, no doubt.”

The King nods, pressing his fingers together into a steeple, his thick rings glinting in the light of the room. “Just as you say, the matter is quite grave. The King and Queen of Ceres will have to be notified immediately...and it will be handled accordingly.”

Donghyuck and Sicheng nod to the King’s statement, shooting each other looks out of the corners of their eyes. Donghyuck feels a small sense of triumph at knowing his brother will likely be sent back to Ceres soon—or at least, forbidden to see you anymore—even if he knows deep within that he shouldn’t be reveling in Doyoung’s impending heartbreak like this.

“Unfortunately, it also cannot be forgotten that you two, and all your other brothers, withheld this information for months.” The King blinks slowly. “I must also assume that my sons have been swept up in concealing this utter nonsense, to some degree. Those transgressions will be dealt with accordingly as well.” He draws the last sentence out to emphasize his claim, though the men have already heard him clearly. The tiny smirks they allowed themselves to show quickly fade.

Donghyuck feels as if he’s just had a bucket of cold water poured down his back, and Sicheng’s fists curl tightly around the mirror.

Donghyuck is the first to respond, bowing his head. “A-as necessary, Your Highness.” Sicheng lowers his own head after the younger does, though with noticeable reluctance.

The King waves his hand as a signal for the two men to leave, though he still looks thoughtful for reasons neither of them could guess. “You are both dismissed.”

Sicheng is fuming once they leave the sitting room, though Donghyuck’s anxiety manifests itself as tense silence, which is a true rarity for him.

“Look what your impulsiveness has gotten us into this time,” Sicheng gripes once they’re far enough away to not be heard. Donghyuck reawakens at that and shoots his brother daggers with his gaze.

“I didn’t think we’d get punished, too! And if you thought it was such a bad idea, you should’ve never agreed to it!”

Sicheng shakes his head, scoffing. “It’s neither here nor there anymore. Whatever comes of this had better be worth it.”

“You’d better hope,” Donghyuck continues. “Like we don’t know you’d sell us all out to have Yuta, your favorite brother, as the Crown Prince instead of Doyoung.”

Sicheng whips back around to Donghyuck. “I’d think he’d deserve it more than any of you ingrates who’ve had everything handed to you. You could never even imagine what it’s like to have to fight and scrape for an iota of respect among your own family.”

Donghyuck wants to scream something childish and hurtful back at him, but he’s lost on what to say. They all know Sicheng and Yuta have always been a bit separate from the rest of them despite their best efforts to make them feel included, but he hadn’t realized Sicheng felt quite this forsaken. The King’s earlier words certainly don’t help. Donghyuck has enough conscience left to feel guilty, though he refuses to acknowledge that aloud now.

When Sicheng sees that Donghyuck doesn’t have a response, he nods in vindication and stomps off.

After Doyoung returns to the castle that afternoon, the atmosphere in the castle is notably more tense. It’s as if storm clouds have gathered in the rafters, waiting for the perfect time to rain down hell. He senses this acutely, though he can’t quite understand the reasoning for it.

Donghyuck is uncharacteristically quiet today, and Sicheng is similarly reserved. Jeno, Jisung, and Jaemin conduct their business as usual, though there is a certain stiffness to their auras; the kind of careful and cautious demeanor you learn to adopt when living under the constant presence of a ticking timebomb. Mark and Jungwoo, who accompanied Doyoung on his visit to Arthenia and the forest, remain just as clueless as him about what’s wrong, though they also feel uncomfortable underneath the weight of the tension.

The air stays this way for hours, including during their nightly dinner. The Queen and King don’t do or say anything out of the ordinary, though Doyoung can feel the King’s eyes on him as he eats. The sensation of being watched makes his stomach curl into a ball, and his heart kicks up like a drum at the thought that pops into his mind. Maybe he’s been found out? But how? He’s been as careful as he knows how to be. He doesn’t truly believe any of his brothers would tell, and his cousins have been too disinterested in the affair to go stirring up trouble behind it.

Their three cousins eat quietly with their eyes glued to their plates, wondering what could be the cause of their father’s anger this time. They’ve known him long enough to pick up on the telltale signs of his rage, even when not openly expressed.

It’s nothing short of a relief when dinner is finally over, though Doyoung’s blood turns to lead when he hears the King’s deep voice booming from behind him. “Doyoung. Come with me.” The other men shoot him varying looks as they file out of the dining room, though none of them say a word. Donghyuck throws him a concerned glance in an attempt to remain unsuspecting, though there is a slight unsteadiness in his step.

By the time he gets to the King’s sitting room, Doyoung’s heart is beating overtime. He stands in front of the older man with his spine ramrod straight and his lips tucked into a thin line. The King doesn’t even acknowledge his presence for a few moments, simply stroking his beard and looking at some spot in the distance. Doyoung can’t decide if this is worse than being pinned under his gaze or not, though he quickly gets his answer when the King finally looks at him.

“Do you understand your position as Crown Prince?” This is not what he expected to hear first, though it fails to ease his anxiety.

“Of course, Your Highness. It’s a high honor, and one that requires a certain discipline.”

“Then why have you allowed yourself to become quite so undisciplined in your activities?”

Doyoung doesn’t know how to respond to this at first. He blinks rapidly and sweat breaks out over his skin. “Activities?” he stammers out, his mouth drying up.

“You’ve allowed yourself to be enamored by a woman who is so low she must live in the forest like an animal and forage for food. And you think this behavior is becoming of a man of your station?”

The room appears to spin. If his heart was hammering before, now it stops momentarily. Doyoung feels like he’s just smashed into a stone wall head-on. “Your Highness...I…”

“Have you lain with this creature?”

“Sh-she’s not...I…”

“Have you? Do not lie.”

Doyoung thinks of your hands on him and feels sick at such an intimate moment being forced out into the open like this, in such a cruel manner. “Y…yes.”

The King shakes his head, his frown deepening even more, if that’s possible. “And is there any chance that she could be with child now?”

Doyoung can’t remember ever feeling this humiliated, flayed open for all to see. “No. I was...careful.” The King pauses for a moment, like he doesn’t quite believe Doyoung’s claim. He doesn’t ask any further questions about it, though, and Doyoung doesn’t know whether to be concerned or relieved about that.

“Understand that you are infinitely lucky that you are not a woman, Doyoung, and can remain relatively unsullied by such acts. Nevertheless, I would’ve thought your father would’ve raised more diligent sons than this.” The King leans forward, and it seems like the Earth itself shifts with this movement.

“Then let one of the others have my title,” Doyoung blurts out, finally finding his voice again. “Yuta or Jaehyun. It doesn’t matter who it is.”

“Yuta isn’t getting anything,” the King spits. “Do you mean to make a complete mockery of your family? Your kingdom? To have a bastard sitting on the throne? Your father is a noble man, but laying with whores has resulted in the two biggest mistakes of his life.”

Doyoung’s head swims, and he has to bite back the first response that rises to his mind. “Your Highness, you’re correct in noting that I’ve made a grave error. Perhaps I’m truly not suited for the role. Don’t you think having my title transferred would be the best way to remedy that? Jaehyun is fit to be the Crown Prince. He can take my title, and I—”

“And you can do what? Live in the forest with the rest of the dregs?” The King draws himself up in his chair, and the action reminds Doyoung of a big brown bear attempting to intimidate a trespasser in its territory. His muscles turn rigid with fear. “It would behoove you to abandon this insane talk if you don’t wish to make the consequences worse for yourself. I’m not your father, boy, but as long as he’s left you under my care, I won’t entertain such dishonor on his behalf. ”

Doyoung wants to continue protesting but also knows that, just like you told him, this appears to be a fruitless case. He lowers his head as his stomach twists and his body tenses up further with the fear of what will come next.

“As you can expect, there will be no more visits to the village or the forest, if you can exercise no more self-control than this.”

Doyoung blinks rapidly, though there are no tears coming. “Will you send me away?”

“That would only draw more attention, which is the last thing we need to do. You are simply to remain in the castle until it’s time for you all to return to Ceres. Barring any more royal events, you will not be going anywhere further than the front lawn.”

Doyoung says nothing to this. To speak or nod would feel like sealing his own fate, though it’s already been chosen for him.

“You are lucky, Doyoung. Remember that. It is easier than you think for all of this to be forgotten, swept under the rug, so you can return to your homeland with your title and dignity intact. See—we do not even need to let your mother and father know. In a year from now, you will be wed, and this will be nothing but a regretful—if vague—memory.”

Still, Doyoung does not respond, his tongue heavy and immobile.

“You are your family’s honor. The consequences will not be as harsh for you...as long as you obey.” The King’s body relaxes now, as if all the day’s tension has suddenly unwound itself, though this is more of a false sense of security than any true calm. “Is that understood?”

Doyoung’s throat burns. It seems like he’s being pressed in on all sides. Not answering the King is not an option. Not seeing you again is not an option, either, if he wishes to preserve any iota of happiness on this Earth. Here it comes, now—the wetness gathering in his eyes and the tightening of his chest.

“I understand, Your Highness.”

It has only been a few days since Doyoung last saw you, but this alone feels like centuries to him, especially with the King’s order trailing him like a cement block tied to his leg.

He doesn’t intend on following it, regardless of the consequences. Maybe he’s not thinking straight anymore, but nothing else matters as much as you to him now.

There isn’t any way to easily get to you, though, considering the guards that have been stationed outside his room every night. And the other guards who follow him around the castle nearly 24/7 now. His glamors only grant him enough leeway to disguise his face, which is no use in making it out of his doorway undetected.

The stress of it all nearly makes him physically sick.

His brothers and cousins are not guarded quite so constantly as he, but they are similarly forbidden from leaving the castle—lest they try to report back to you with a message from Doyoung, or something similar.

Doyoung still does not know how the King found out and has had no free opportunity to question his brothers and cousins about it. In the back of his mind, though, the idea that he could’ve been betrayed lives constantly among his thoughts. Thinking on it for too long makes the back of his mouth taste sour, but he can’t help the festering sense of distrust he feels towards everyone around him.

Frayed and at his wit’s end, Doyoung finally thinks of an idea after an entire week of missing your presence. It’s a lot to ask for and may not work, but he needs to at least try it once before ruling it out. He has to be careful about it, of course, to avoid being found out by any of the watchful guards. Still, he manages to write a note during an etiquette lesson with his brothers, when the guards are standing outside the room. It’s easy enough to disguise his pen’s movements as him simply taking notes.

When the instructor looks down to read something from his book—squinting harshly even in his glasses, for his lack of sight—Doyoung slips the piece of paper to Mark. Mark gives him a questioning glance, though he says nothing. He only opens the note towards the end of the lesson, which is probably for the best because he makes a startled noise after reading it. Thankfully, it goes unnoticed by the instructor who is too busy listening to Sicheng answer a question he just asked him. Mark’s eyes burn into the side of Doyoung’s face, though the older man only gives him a sparing glance and returns his attention to his papers.

 Mark and Doyoung don’t get to talk formally until their next set of archery lessons. Only one of Doyoung’s guards is present that day, and he hangs back far enough outside of the archery range that it’d be difficult to hear their conversation, especially with them talking in low tones. Doyoung is the first one to initiate once their archery teacher becomes preoccupied with showing Jungwoo and Jaemin the technique for a trick shot.

He glances over at Mark after letting his arrow fly, then turns slightly toward him as he grabs another from his quiver. “Mark.”

The younger man’s eyes widen a bit at hearing his name called. “What?” he answers full-voiced, which causes Doyoung to give him a glare. Catching onto what’s going on, Mark throws an anxious glance behind them to the guard and to his left to the instructor, but no one pays him any mind.

“The note.”

Mark makes a face as if he’s been caught doing something he wasn’t supposed to, then quickly tries to relax his expression. “Doyoung, I don’t think…is this really a good idea?”

“I need to see her, Mark,” Doyoung hisses.

Mark’s eyebrows crease. He takes a moment to shoot his arrow at the target, not wanting to come off as suspicious to the others by just standing there. “I’ve never created a portal like…between Donghyuck’s room and mine, back at our castle? Yes, that’s perfectly fine. But from here all the way to the forest? That’s…” The younger man shakes his head, biting his lip.

“You have to try,” Doyoung begs. “Practice it or something. All you need to do is create one to get to my room, and then to the forest. I don’t care if it takes you a while, as long as I can see her again before we have to go back.” He does care, but at this point, he figures it’s better to have something than nothing.

Mark gives Doyoung a long look, shakes his head again, and then nods. “Okay. Okay. I’ll try. But I can’t guarantee anything.”

Doyoung presses his lips together and nods. His eyes are desperate, though he tries not to be. “It’s okay. Just try, Mark.”

Mark spends the next few days in the library in-between lessons. Though he hasn’t taken much interest in this part of the castle before now, he finds himself pouring through old, dusty books in search of something that can help him find a way to create a long-distance portal.

One of the books he finds describes simply just concentrating all your energy into your hands and putting it forth to open up a rip in space—which he is already capable of, but that doesn’t help him with projecting it out further. Another contains a weird chanting verse that he tries to pronounce, to no avail. Even if it did work, he wouldn’t know how to say it.

However, he eventually happens upon something that catches his eye.

“The Root Chakra serves as the foundation of your body and soul. Only when you are firmly grounded in your current body, space, and time can you begin to manipulate other spaces in time…whether it concerns generating long-range portals through space manipulation or even accessing different moments in history.”

“Opening the Root Chakra, huh?” Mark laughs to himself quietly and shakes his head. Despite being a magic user since birth, along with the rest of his brothers, this is the first time he’s heard anything of the sort. But it’s better later than never to learn.

Perhaps he’s more invested in this scheme than he should be, for both his and his brother’s sakes, but he also knows that he hasn’t seen Doyoung so fulfilled and joyful since discovering the forest. If his efforts can make a bit of difference in Doyoung’s current sunken mood, Mark is willing to try.

Therefore, he sets to work on “opening” this purported Chakra, keeping his practice to late-night hours to ensure he won’t be walked in on by anyone else. He feels a bit awkward at first, maybe even a little foolish, with “meditating” and trying to reach out to some strange energy inside himself. He’s never had to put much thought into creating portals before; it’s just something that happens as he wills it. He never considered that there might be more to the practice—that he’d need to tap into some kind of extra energy to improve his skills. He thinks back to the magic crystals in the marketplace and wonders if they’d be any help in this situation, though there’s no way of finding out.

Mark practices opening portals within the floor, knowing his room is above an empty guest room, as it’s too risky to try any of the walls; Jisung and Jungwoo sleep in the rooms on either side of him. He is soon able to make his portals wider than before—where they used to be the width of only his palms—which allows him to peer more clearly into the empty room below, though he still hasn’t tried to conjure anything farther away than that.

Once he feels he has more control over his energy, Mark soon begins experimenting with visualization, a technique the book cites for conjuring up long-distance locations. Allowing his energy to concentrate in his hands, he places his palms just above the floor of his room and pictures a place he’s fairly familiar with by now—the library. If it goes as planned, he’ll have created a portal to the library; if not…who knows what will be on the other side.

He feels the energy flow through his body, from his core, up his back, across his shoulders, and down his arms…it gathers in his palms and fingertips and triggers a small rip in time, which he gradually coaxes open wider, all the while visualizing the library as clearly as he can. Mark pushes the portal open a bit wider still and opens his eyes slightly to see if it’s worked. He’s dismayed, however, when he still sees the empty guest room sitting below him. A heavy sigh leaves his body, and it pushes the rest of his energy out with it; the portal closes with a silent snap.

Guess he’ll just have to try again.

The next few tries work similarly, and on those nights, he often ends up climbing into bed feeling discouraged and sapped of strength and wondering if he’ll ever get it, or if any of this is worth it. He keeps at it, though, for Doyoung’s benefit. And also partly because he’s curious to see what he’s capable of; now that he’s opened these floodgates, he needs to see how far he can push himself.

The first real hint of success takes him by surprise. It doesn’t happen quite as cleanly or perfectly as the book says, but something happens. When Mark opens his eyes that time, he’s still looking at the guest room—but now there appears to be a faint afterimage of the library merged with it, as if someone had tried to paint two different pictures at once. It’s not a complete location shift by any means, and he doesn’t try to go into the portal—afraid he might somehow get stuck between two realities—but it’s a start.

Improving on that start requires a little more time. More hours of meditating, reading, pushing his energy out and expanding it, visualizing. The afterimage begins growing clearer all the while.

On one blessed night, Mark opens his eyes, and the library itself is sitting below him. Not a faint representation of it, merged with some other room of the castle, but the actual library. He’s so surprised that he almost closes the portal by accident and has to steady his concentration to keep the energy flowing. Carefully, he sticks one hand through it. Then the other. It is still hard to keep the entrance open without physically guiding it with his hands, but he can manage it for a minute or two.

He looks at the long distance beneath him to the floor, with nothing but a lounge sofa to break his landing. Sweat breaks out on his skin, but he takes a moment to steel himself and take a deep breath. Then, he jumps through the portal feet-first, bouncing clumsily onto the sofa and tumbling onto the floor. Just as quick as he can right himself, he hurries behind the sofa to hide, afraid he might’ve alerted one of the guards with his rough landing. The portal has already closed above him with the loss of directed energy.

Mark waits for what feels like forever, his legs burning from holding the crouch, but no one comes. When he’s positive it’s safe, he places his hands on the floor and this time tries to create a portal back to his room. The spacetime-rip flickers briefly as if it won’t work, and a surge of panic rises in him, but soon it displays the sight of his bed and the nightstands on either side. A sigh of relief leaves him, and he jumps through the portal as smoothly as he can, landing on his bed this time.

Now, he is ready. He hopes.

The end of September—and the end of their stay in Eupheme—approaches. By that time, it has been weeks since you and Doyoung have seen each other. The one bright spot, though, lies with Mark.

Mark passes Doyoung a note during another of their etiquette lessons. The older man doesn’t wait to open it, though he keeps a watchful eye on the instructor as he does.

I think I’ve done it. Let’s try tonight.

Doyoung sucks in a breath and slowly lets it back out. Then, he crumbles the piece of paper up and shoves it into the pocket of his pants. He gives Mark a small nod, and Mark returns it before facing the teacher again as if nothing has happened.

Even though Doyoung had already given Mark instructions for how to create the portal, he is a bit unsure what to expect that night. He sits on the edge of his bed fully clothed, his hands clasped nervously together as his eyes dart all around the room, wondering where Mark will show up at.

He soon gets his answer when a teal ring of light manifests itself on the east wall of his room. It remains small only for a few moments before widening out enough to accommodate Mark’s form as he steps through it. Mark himself looks a bit shocked at what he’s just accomplished, even though he’s been doing it for a good amount of time now. Doyoung leaps up from the bed, about to speak, though he winces and remembers they still need to be mindful of the guards outside his door.

“You really did it,” Doyoung whispers, watching in awe as Mark closes the portal to his own room behind him.

“I did,” Mark affirms, and he can’t help but grin a little. However, his smile slips. “There is one thing, though.”

Doyoung’s stomach drops, and he can only imagine what this caveat will be. “What is it?”

“Well, once I’ve created the portal, I’ll have to keep it open,” Mark says. “Otherwise, I won’t know when you’re coming back…since we can’t communicate. But…I’ll only be able to keep energy flowing into it for about 15 minutes, maybe less, so…”

“…so make it quick. Right?” Doyoung replies. He is not surprised. Not because of any lack in Mark’s abilities, but more because this just seems to be the kind of luck that’s afflicted him as of late. Mark nods sheepishly.

“Just…be aware of the time,” Mark says, giving Doyoung an apologetic look. The older man only nods silently and steps back as he lets the younger do his work. Mark walks over to the wall he just came from and places his palms against it, taking a deep breath, closing his eyes, and concentrating. He holds the image of the forest entrance in his mind’s eye and shifts the power out from his hands and to the wall, opening up a gap in space as the portal widens.

Doyoung’s heart rate picks up as he sees that familiar forest entrance forming in front of him, still crowded with overgrowth and greenery. He steps over to Mark to see it closer, and he can even feel the cool night air brushing past his skin as he peers in.

Mark opens his eyes and nods for Doyoung to go on, and the older gives him a nervous smile. “Thank you.”

Indeed, the forest on the other side is the exact same one he’s been visiting for the entire summer. The same dirt underneath his feet, the same trees crowding each other in. For that reason, he doesn’t waste any more time with rushing inside, heading straight for the oak tree.

There’s an indignant sentence waiting on your lips when you hear Doyoung crashing into your forest late that night, not having seen him in weeks. You’re hurt, but you also realize there must be something serious going on back at the castle if it’s taken him this long to get back to you. However, the words die when you see the pure anguish on his face as he bursts out of the vegetation.

You slip out of the oak tree to meet him on the ground, and he scoops you in his arms like he did all those weeks ago, though this passion is now charged with fear. “Doyoung, what’s happened? What’s the matter? What has kept you so long?” you ask worriedly, taking his face in your hands.

Doyoung holds you close and simply buries his face in the front of your dress for a long moment, breathing in your scent and absorbing the warmth of your skin. Though you are terrified and confused, you wait for him to calm himself enough to speak to you.

“I can’t anymore,” he says, his voice low and broken. Your heart drops at this.

“Can’t what?” you ask, though you already know the answer.

“The King has forbidden me to come here—I shouldn’t be here now, but Mark...Y/N, I’m so sorry.”

You hold Doyoung tighter against you, as if you could both become one being if you concentrated hard enough—wished hard enough. Your head throbs with the hurt of it, and your heart feels as if it’s being cleaved in two. You don’t say anything for a while, biting your lip so hard that it nearly bleeds.

“I tried.” He presses his forehead to yours. “Forgive me. I tried.”

“There’s no one to blame,” you argue, breathless from the vise pinching your heart and lungs. “I think we both knew how this would end…”

“I don’t want it to be this way. Y/N, forgive me. I should’ve never told you anything…perhaps if I’d kept my feelings to myself, we wouldn’t be in this mess now. You could live happily as you were, and I—”

“Don’t. Please don’t. I wouldn’t trade our time together for any living being…not even the gods.” You shake your head as tears begin to slip down your cheeks. Doyoung tries to wipe them away, though tears of his own escape without his permission. “It may be selfish, but…I-I just ask that…p-please don’t forget about me when you leave and start your own family.”

Doyoung takes a deep, shuddering breath and presses your head into his chest. “I could never,” he whispers.

He thinks he’s safe in your arms, and you safe in his. That’s what he’d like to believe, as you sit here together in the forest for the last time. Unbeknownst to him, something in the castle stirs and then bursts to life, violent and red-hot with rage.

Mark, on the other side of the portal, waits. He feels his energy weakening the longer he holds it open, but he does so anyway as nervous sweat gathers on his temples. He wants to call out to Doyoung to somehow warn him of the time limit, but remembers that the guards will hear it if he does. So he remains silent and waits impatiently as the end of the 15 minutes approaches.

However, he can’t wait any longer as the time ticks past. His magic flickers once, as does the portal, before disappearing completely. Mark nearly keels over at the loss of energy and has to catch himself as quietly as possible, bracing his shaking hands against the floor. He pushes himself up a bit and sits on his knees. He thinks desperately to himself, I should make another portal, but he doesn’t have enough energy for that at the moment.

The next move he makes is a costly one.

He reaches into his pants pocket for his pocketwatch, which he remembered to bring with him. He intends to see how far it is past the time they’d agreed Doyoung would come back, and how long it might take him to regain enough strength for another portal, but his shaky hands cause him to drop the small watch. He tries to grab the chain, but the movement is too sudden and clumsy and causes the watch to bounce even farther away from him, skittering clear off the rug and onto the hardwood floor.

Mark swears all his organs stop functioning at once when he hears a knock on the door. It’s quiet at first, and the silence is deafening. He thinks about scurrying up into the bed and lying there to pretend like he’s Doyoung, still asleep and not out in the forest, but his legs are locked with fear and lingering weakness. The second knock is more forceful, and the guard doesn’t wait for much longer before jamming his key in the lock and swinging the door open.

Mark whips his head around, and they both stare at each other dumbstruck for a moment. The guard’s gaze lingers at Mark in confusion, then quickly sweeps over to the empty bed. His eyebrows draw into a furious expression. “Where is the Crown Prince?”

Doyoung’s heart squeezes painfully at the thought of returning to Ceres without you, his brothers going on with their lives as normal despite his own secret heartache—and it’s only then that he realizes he’s lost track of the time. He jerks away from your arms, looking around frantically. “Wait—Mark.”

“Mark?” you repeat, confused.

“I…he made a portal so I could get here, but I was supposed to…shit. Come on.” Doyoung takes your hand and you both rush to the forest entrance. When you get there, though, there’s no portal and no Mark. Doyoung’s grip around your hand tightens. 

Though you aren’t totally sure what’s going on, a sudden dread overcomes you. “What happened to it?”

“He probably had to close it, but…I’m sure he’ll open it again once he gets his energy back.” Doyoung’s voice is uncertain, though, like he’s trying to convince you both. You look at the side of his face and try not to voice your fears, but as you both stand there waiting to see if the portal will reappear, it becomes apparent that something has went wrong with the plan.

“Explain yourself.”

“Your Highness…I…um…” Mark’s mouth is too dry for him to properly form words, and his legs shake where he stands. Not because of having his energy sapped—because of the King’s overbearing presence. The King stands in front of him, not even bothering to go to his desk this time, and Mark has to crane his neck a bit to look at him, though he can’t meet his eyes. “It was just…”

“I won’t ask again.”

Mark shakes his head and pulls at his hair, silently begging Doyoung for forgiveness in his mind. Still, he doesn’t say anything to give his brother up, keeping his eyes averted more out of fear than deference. “Please, Your Highness…I just…”

When the King sees that Mark won’t give a direct answer, he scoffs in disgust, sweeps the younger man out of the way, and heads for the door. Though Mark only moves a few inches, he feels like he might as well have been thrown clear across the room. The King speaks to one of Doyoung’s guards, who was standing just behind Mark. “Call the rest of the guards. I’ve exhausted my patience on the matter; these lecherous whores cannot be allowed to continue defiling my kingdom.”

“Wh-what does that mean?” Mark’s small voice is lost to the air as the King leaves the room without a glance backwards. The guard goes to enact his order, while the other one grips Mark tightly by the upper arm and drags him out of the sitting room. “N-no, wait, what’s about to happen?”

The guard yanks Mark’s arm in a gesture that calls for the questioning to come to an end. “Best keep quiet, boy. You and the Crown Prince have gotten yourself into enough shit tonight.” Then he chuckles. “One of these days, he was bound to find out that everyone won’t keep coddling him and wiping his ass. About to lose his title over some pussy. Quite sad, isn’t it?”

The guard’s words—and the realization that none of them have ever really cared about Doyoung’s wellbeing beyond being his hired watchdogs—sets Mark off. “Shut the fuck up!” Mark spits in his eye and stomps on the man’s foot at the same time, and the guard curses and lets him go for a split second. Mark doesn’t wait. He takes off down the hall, unsure where he’s going but knowing the castle is big enough to lose the guard—as long as he doesn’t run into anyone else.

He just needs to get somewhere where he can have enough time to create another portal.

“This can’t be good…” you finally say. You and Doyoung must have a death grip on each other’s hands right now, but neither of you are willing to pull away.

Doyoung shakes his head slowly. “No…it’s been too long. Maybe I-I should go back. Maybe if I go back willingly now…” He trails off, not knowing what could come at the end of that sentence.

“Doyoung, no. I…please don’t leave me.” You feel mentally torn between sending him away and knowing this is the last time you’ll see him versus having him stay here with you, if only for a few minutes more. At this point, you’re not sure what the right answer is anymore.

“They might come looking for me, Y/N, and I don’t want them coming here disturbing the forest—"

“Stay! You can hide somewhere, I…as the keepers of the forest, we’ve been handling ourselves against intruders for years. We can protect ourselves—and you. If they come, you can hide out here until they leave. Please, stay.”

Doyoung cannot say no to you or your pleading eyes. He nods. He doesn’t know what’s going to happen after all this—if he wants to go back to the castle, or if he’ll even be allowed to return. He doesn’t know what they’ll do to him in retaliation, and even the vague idea of it frightens him. Having his title removed is one thing, but the King of Eupheme is far more vindictive than that.

You and Doyoung only make it to the small cave you’d hidden in on that rainy day before you hear the distinct sound of another pair of feet crashing through the woods. You both whip your heads around, though you also grab Doyoung’s arm and pull him under the cover of the willow tree. Your mind is racing a mile a minute, and you are too frantic to be able to sense who this new person is; though the question is quickly answered by a sharp whisper.

“Doyoung! Doyoung?”

“It’s Mark,” Doyoung hisses, his eyes widening. He slips between the tree branches and softly calls Mark’s name. In another few moments, the younger man is standing under the tree with you both.

“What happened?!” Doyoung asks, holding onto the younger boy’s shoulders.

“I’m sorry, Doyoung.” This is all Mark can say, and the words roll off his tongue repeatedly. He hangs his head. “The King knows, and he’s sent the guards to come here—I don’t know what he’s going to do, but—please believe me. It doesn’t sound good. He’s done being reasoned with.”

You and Doyoung look at each other with trepidation gripping your chests, realizing the stakes are much higher than you anticipated. This does not sound like just another case of “unwelcome intruders,” but “unwelcome intruders with bloodlust on their minds.”

“But—I can create another portal. I’m sorry, the last time, I just—but I can make one now. Come with us, please.” The last sentence is directed at you, and you shake your head.

“And go where? They’ll still be waiting for me at the castle. Are you suggesting we run away from Eupheme?” Doyoung’s voice is not reprimanding, but more incredulous than anything else.

Mark’s hands shake at the idea of turning his back on his family, which is something he’s never had to consider before—not even in the slightest sense. Things have gotten much more out of hand than he could’ve predicted.

You shake your head again, your hand slipping from Doyoung’s. “Just…I’ll stay here and help the others. You should go.”

“Y/N, I...” Doyoung’s throat tightens as he tries to speak, but his thoughts are disrupted by a quickly mounting commotion. The sound of hooves beating in the distance, though getting increasingly closer. The shouts of men who are ready to wage a battle, with fire racing through their veins.

Though most of Arthenia is asleep at this time of night, the noise of the horses’ hooves and the soldiers’ shouts is enough to begin waking the townspeople up out of their beds. Faces press against windows and peep out of doorways to see what’s happening.

The villagers are terrified when they see a group of soldiers adorned in the royal insignia and riding on horses enter Arthenia with lit torches in their hands, thinking their homes are about to be destroyed. However, they become even more confused and frantic when they quickly realize this band of men is paying their properties no mind and heading straight in the direction of the forest instead.

Some of Arthenia’s magic-wielders rush from their homes to try to put a stop to the men once they understand the situation, and the orcs and ogres meet them with brute force alone. The guards are met with a fight fiercer than they expected, even with their torches and daggers, not realizing the villagers could be so battle-hardy.

The King watches the battle ensuing in Arthenia from a hilly vantage point above the small town. The guards have failed to make much more headway against the villagers, who are gradually inching them back towards the village entrance. Shaking his head in disgust, the King pulls on his horse’s reins. “If you want something done, do it yourself.”

Some of the townspeople notice the King’s appearance just before he rides into the village. A few of them falter and cower in fear, finding the nearest exit point and taking their leave. Some others, incensed at their town being threatened and generally filled with rage at the King’s lack of fair leadership, decide to charge him head-on. They’re quickly extinguished, though, when the King conjures a great sphere of fire in his hands and whips it across them without a second thought.

He does the same to any other Arthenians who attempt to challenge him as he cuts a path through the village, uncaring of the land and homes he sets on fire as he does. A couple of the guards hop back on their steeds and follow him to his ultimate destination.

The King drives forward into the foliage. The women of the forest are armed with their own heavy rocks and sharpened arrows and daggers dipped in poisonous berry juice, though their weapons can barely leave their hands before everything is suddenly being enveloped in a wide swath of fire, meted out by the King’s hand. He leaves a path clear for himself and the guards in the middle, but the trees on either side are sent up in a blaze.

The two guards remain in single file behind him to use his fire as a shield and avoid the sharp rocks and poison-dipped darts zooming past their heads. Perhaps they’ve underestimated these tree-dwellers; already, there have been a few scrapes that were too close for comfort with the jagged edge of a rock or two. The guards light up as much greenery as they can as they go, using their torches to ignite leaves and low-hanging branches.

All around them, there are the sounds of Arthenians and dryads screaming in tandem as their homes go up in flames. A few nymphs lie fallen among the grass, unmoving as their tree homes burn up in the night.

The King, who has had the foresight to bring his shield, keeps it steady in front of him as he blasts fireballs out from behind it, lighting up one group of trees after another. He doesn’t know which one belongs to you, but he is willing to burn down the entire forest to find out. His movements are wilder than they’d normally be, which says a lot even for him, who has previously had no trouble slashing down anyone who stood in his way during battle—even if they were innocents.

“Doyoung!” The King shouts, and he whips up a great blanket of fire. He sends it careening up towards the sky like a shooting star, and it lands high among the tree canopy, heavy and far-reaching enough to burn treetops several feet in every direction. The guards become a bit wary at this, as the flames blaze above their heads and send sparks and burning debris flying down. “Doyoung!” His voice shakes the leaves like thunder. “If you do not wish to burn alive with these forest dregs, show yourself now!”

Doyoung’s spine stiffens as he hears his name echoing through the woods. It comes from a distance behind you all but is still too close for reassurance. If you stay in this spot for another few minutes, the King or one of his guards could be right on top of your heads.

“Come on!” Doyoung pulls your hand tightly as he helps you up the edge of a steep grassy incline, Mark supporting you from below. Though you’d be able to make it up there any other time by yourself, you don’t dare deny the help now. Your whole body feels like a live wire of fear and panic; the forest burns around you, and the encroaching smoke threatens to choke all three of you to death. Most of all, you feel devastated to see what’s happening around you, being essentially powerless to stop it. Nothing of this degree has ever befallen your home before; even the rare small blaze could be easily enough snuffed out. But not when the flames are being stoked and encouraged like this—building upon each other to see which can reach the tallest tree or the farthest edge of the forest.

After you reach solid ground, Doyoung drags Mark up behind you. There’s no time to pause after all three of you are on the ground; Doyoung grips your hand again and Mark follows behind the two of you as you run.

“The tree, the tree, the tree…” These words spill from your lips in a frenzy. Though your tree hasn’t been touched by the flames yet, it’s only a matter of time with the forest rapidly catching on fire. You can still feel the deep anguish of every other tree in the forest as their trunks catch fire, their leaves shrivel up, and the water evaporates from their root systems. Their silent screams and the shouts of your fellow dryads ring in your head loud enough to make you fear that your skull will split.

“Where are we going?” Mark asks, covering his nose with his sleeve and coughing profusely at the smoke all around.

“Out of the forest!” Doyoung shouts back. He doesn’t really know where to go except for the edge of the woods, and you aren’t in a state to tell him where to head. Deep down, he knows you want to turn back and go to your tree. The oak tree lives innately in you and you inside of it, and it calls you to come back, but the path is too dangerous; returning to it would only speed up what appears to be progressively inevitable. The King and his guards are somewhere in the forest behind you all, and turning back would only land you right in their hands or in the tendrils of the fire.

One of the guards feels a tinge of nervousness grow as the fire rages on around them, and he decides to try to reach out to the King. “Your Highness! I will go in search of Doyoung. Perhaps we should fetch him now before some danger befalls him; the fire is spreading exponentially.” The King gives him a signal to depart, though his eyes still burn just as brightly as the flames do.

The guard separates from the King to cut a path diagonally through the woods, going off to find Doyoung. The Crown Prince may have disobeyed the King—which is as good as committing treason against the kingdom—but it would still not look favorable for him to have died in a fire started at the King’s hands. However, the King is too far engulfed in the whirlwind of his own rage to consider these things more deeply.

The other guard stays by the King’s side, though his horse nervously shifts in place at the flames all around. The two men come to a stop in a wide and messy half-circle of fire, their backs to the flames as they watch the woods ahead for any signs of approaching creatures—or Doyoung himself.

Unbeknownst to the King, your oak tree sits only a few feet away in a yet-untouched portion of greenery.

A few leaves suddenly fall off a tree up ahead—too sudden to merely be caused by the wind—and this makes the King whip his head around and raise his hand to unleash more fire. Nothing appears from that spot, however, and the leaves remain as still as they were before. That moment of hesitancy costs him.

A small poison-tipped dart shoots from the leaves, catapulted by the force of a sudden, expertly-timed breath through a wooden blowgun. It lands squarely in the King’s open palm, which still faces the tree. A shout bursts from his throat in response, and it is only then that the guard realizes what’s just happened.

“Your Highness—!”

The shock and pain of the sudden assault causes the King to strike out in delayed anger, sending a wave of fire at the row of trees ahead of him—and a little further beyond, your oak tree in its small, grassy clearing. The dart burns up in his palm as he does, but its sharp point has already broken his skin. His reaction, though hampered by a few seconds, doesn’t afford Cassia much time to do anything but watch as a wall of feverish red and orange overtakes her, but her last few thoughts linger with you—where you might be within the forest right now, and if she could see you again in some faraway afterlife.

You’ve always known you would die when your tree finally did, but you weren’t sure what you expected it to feel like.

Certainly, not this kind of great reckoning—a sensation of every living element simultaneously being drained from your body. It feels like the core essence of your being has been cracked like an egg and is now flowing out endlessly, laid to waste in the grass. The sudden weakness that eclipses you makes it so that you can barely move your legs to continue running, and you collapse to the ground.

Mark nearly trips over your fallen form, but he quickly finds his voice and screams for Doyoung. The older man is already turning around, however, at feeling your hand slip from his. He rushes to you immediately, his eyes growing wide as he tucks his hands under you and scoops you into his arms.

“Y/N, I’m sorry, please! Y/N, please, no!”

“Doyoung…”

“No. No! I’m begging...please, stay with me.”

Tears spill from his eyes in an endless torrent. You would like to touch his face at least once more, and you are infinitely glad—if not also heartbroken—when he grabs your hand and holds it to his cheek. His tears wet your skin, running down your palm.

“I…I already told you not to forget me, so please…”

“Y/N, I’ve got to get you out of here…” Doyoung says desperately, and he struggles to make it to his feet. His legs tremble too much to support him, though, and his shoes slide in the leaves and dirt underfoot. Mark stumbles backwards, his back hitting a tree trunk as his muscles tense in horror at the scene in front of him.

“D-don’t. Leave me here.” Even saying this much feels like a massive effort.

“What?”

“Th-the forest and I are one in the same. I live and die here. Please…do this one thing for me, Doyoung.” You look at him imploringly with as much strength as you can summon despite your eyes growing heavier. Beyond the smoke, the cloudiness of your own tears, and the pull of death, it’s becoming harder to see; his features blur amid your surroundings.

Doyoung is quiet for a moment, though he slowly nods, gripping your hand tightly. He lowers his forehead to yours, and through the smoke and fire, he swears he can still smell the scent of jasmine. “I love you, Y/N.”

“My prince…” The corners of your mouth rise in a tiny smile. “I love you.”

The Crown Prince keeps his forehead against yours, his tears raining down on your cheeks long after you’ve gone limp in his arms.

Mark slumps to the ground, feeling as if his stomach will turn itself inside out, his heart hammering in his chest. He tries to breathe evenly, though his chest tightens painfully from the attempt. Eventually, he buries his face in his hands, trying to physically shut out the ache. He’s not sure how much time passes like that, with him and his brother immobilized on the ground, but he does know they need to leave, soon, as the air around them grows more stifling.

“Doyoung…D-Doyoung, we need to…w-we should…” Mark’s voice cracks, coming out weak in the roar of the noise around them. He coughs again, then shuffles to his feet, leaning on the tree for support.

Doyoung looks up at him without a word, his face streaked with tears and dirt. Then, slowly, he unravels himself from you and lays your body gently on the ground. He shuns his cloak to cover you with it, though part of him desires to stay here and perish with you instead of leaving only a portion of himself behind.

Him and Mark travel a few more yards through the woods, and though he’s never seen this part of the landscape before, he can guess they might be nearing the edge of the forest. The trees have begun thinning out here like they did at the small circular lake.

“Wait—" Mark calls out. Doyoung doesn’t bother looking back at Mark, but he can hear it too. The sound of horse hooves increases in volume, and they soon see one of the guards riding towards them, torch still in hand.

“Crown Prince! Prince Mark!” he shouts. “Come with me immediately!”

Doyoung looks frantically towards the ground. A sizeable rock catches his eye, bigger than the palm of his hand, and he picks it up. Without a second thought, he launches it at the guard’s face. It catches the guard on the left side of his face with a sickening pop, causing him to yell out in pain and fall from his horse. His torch falls from his grasp, starting yet another small fire where it lands.

With its rider gone, the horse slows its pace, though it does not stop. Doyoung catches it by the reins and is able to bring it to a pause long enough for him and Mark to get on. Everything else falls away from him as he guides them towards the forest’s outskirts; he barely feels the wind whipping past them, the lingering smoke stinging his eyes, or even the sturdy animal racing underneath him. He has a brief thought about what happened to those dangerous animals you said live on the outskirts, as there are none here now, but he reasons that maybe they’ve already made their own escape.

The sky is turning lighter now from the approaching dawn. When they finally breach the last row of trees in the woods, they come out onto an expansive field, only broken up by stray trees here and there and other landforms. On the far horizon, another town looms against the sky, though it’s much bigger than Arthenia.

Doyoung signals for the horse to stop, and both he and Mark sit there for a few long moments. Mark sucks in a few deep breaths, as if he were the one running this entire time. 

“W-what…what now?”

Doyoung doesn’t answer at first. Then, quietly, he asks, “Are you coming?”

Mark doesn’t know where his brother intends to go, but he wordlessly understands that it isn’t back to the castle. Or even Ceres. He swallows against the lump in his throat.

“I…I have to see the others.” He means their brothers. He means their parents back in Ceres, if he is even allowed to live. He is not sure what the King will do to him once he returns—if he’ll be tried for treason. Still, his chest burns with the desire to see his siblings at least once more.

Maybe that’s how he justifies it.

He’s not entirely sure why he refuses Doyoung in this moment, even when he thinks back on it years from now. Maybe he is too ashamed of the guilt—of feeling like it was all his fault. (If he hadn’t dropped the stopwatch…) He doesn’t want to serve as that constant reminder for his brother.

“Can you get back, then?” Doyoung asks. Mark realizes he’s referring to creating another portal, and he nods, though somewhat hesitantly.

“Y…yeah. I can.” He swallows again and hesitates for another moment. Then, Mark dismounts from the horse and looks up at Doyoung. “Where…where will you go?”

If the older man has already planned his route, he doesn’t disclose it. He simply looks at Mark with an expression that can only be described as pitiable, broken. His eyes are red-rimmed and his skin is ashen. “Goodbye, Mark.”

Mark stares at his retreating back as he leads the horse away and across the field. The space between them stretches out into forever, with a million unsaid thoughts and emotions falling in the gap.

Behind him, the forest continues to burn, taking all life with it. In front of him, Doyoung’s form turns into a speck against the endless green. It is a long time before Mark leaves that spot in the grass.

In the castle, Donghyuck slumps against his window as he watches smoke rising in the far distance, already knowing where it’s coming from. Like a mirror image of his older brother, tear tracks make their way down his face as he buries his head in his arms.

“What have I done?”

#doyoung fic #doyoung scenarios #doyoung imagines #doyoung smut #doyoung fluff #doyoung angst #kim doyoung #nct #nct 127 #nct scenarios #nct fic #nct imagines #nct smut #nct fluff #nct angst #nct 127 scenarios #nct 127 imagines #nct 127 smut #nct 127 fluff #nct 127 angst #nct 127 fic #ambw #ambw fic #ambw kpop #ambw scenarios #ambw imagines

[fandomfanfics12]

Home Lives With You-Part 11

Title: Home Lives With You. Pairings: Steve x Tony Part: 11/? Warnings: swearing, fluff, angst, blood, abuse (physical and verbal), ptsd, anxiety, bullying Summary: Peter’s been living with the abusive Thompson family for years, it was the only family in the system that would take him. When Steve and Tony get a phone call from the social worker who introduced them to their daughter Morgan for an emergency placement, they feel like they must pay back the favor. But are Steve and Tony taking on more than they can handle, and will Peter be able to adjust to a warm and welcoming family home? A/N: It’s been a while and all I can say is that my life got super hectic. I had a lot of personal stuff on and had to prioritise my school work. Hopefully this is good as I’m a little rusty on the fic writing and I really hope you enjoy it!

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10

Peter did not want to hear this. he wished that he’d never said anything, that he’d never opened his big fat mouth and asked such a dumb question.

“Of course you can call us your parents.” He opened his eyes, stunned by the words.

“Really?” his whole body was trembling, his heart pounded inside his chest so loud he could hear it echoing in his ears.

“Well duh.” Tony said with a small chuckle and Peter could have collapsed with relief.

“Thank you, honestly this means so much to me and we don’t have to keep pretending after the trip but it just makes asking her a million times easier, so umm, thanks.” He stopped rambling and the both of them were giving him the strangest look.

-

And we don’t have to keep pretending.

The words stung, more than Steve would care to admit. Peter stopped rambling on and stared at them, his eyes wide and fear held within them. Steve forced himself to snap into an easygoing smile, hoping that Tony would know what to say. That he would take the lead.

“Well Pete, best you run along and ask her.” Tony said, Steve hoped his smile looked far less forced than Tony’s did.

“Thanks.” Peter mumbled before he dashed off upstairs, Steve turned to Tony.

“run along and ask her?”

“like you did any better, just sitting there and smiling at him.” Tony rubbed a hand down his face and Steve’s stomach churned.

“do you think we should mention our plans for adoption?” Steve whispered and Tony’s eyes rose upwards to stare at the roof.

“No. not until Rhodey can give us the all clear to ask him, I don’t want to bring anymore disappointment into that boy’s life.” Steve nodded but felt a little dejected. He knew that was the best course of action, but the idea of being able to cheer Peter up was oh so tempting.

“I know, but we could explain…” Steve trailed off at the look on Tony’s face. It would be far more devastating for Peter to get the idea into his head that this could be permanent, only for the courts to decide that it wouldn’t be the best course of action. Steve nodded and looked back down at the ground.

“The second Rhodey clears us, I promise you honey that we will tell him.” Tony took hold of Steve’s hands and squeezed. He was right, Steve knew this, but that didn’t stop the bitter taste of disappointment settling in his mouth.

“okay honey, you’re right.” Steve smiled at his husband and Tony stepped closer, pulling Steve into a tight hug.

“The wait will be worth it.” and finally Steve relaxed, they’d get to keep Peter. Things would work out, it would all be okay.

-

Peter was pacing in his room, his phone in his hand, he just had to call her. But what if she was having dinner? What if she was out with friends? what if he was interrupting something super important? Peter went to swipe out of the phone app but instead hit the call button.

“Fuck!” he hissed as the phone began to ring. It rang five times before she answered.

“Peter?” he put the phone up against his ear, a little breathless and suddenly overcome with nerves.

“Hey MJ, how are you?”

“Uh, I’m good. How are you?” she sounded confused, as she should be. She probably thought he was a freak.

“I’m good. Sorry this call is a bit random, it’s just that I wanted to ask you a question. Of course you can say no, you probably have plans and uh…” he trailed off and scratched the back of his head. This was already going super poorly.

“What was your question?” now she seemed amused, and Peter wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not.

“Well it’s my dads. They’re renting out this cabin for two weeks, a summer trip and they said I could bring a friend along and I was wondering if you uh, if you’d like to come along?” there it was. Out in the world, sitting there, the question had been asked and his heart was racing.

“Yeah! That would be great! Just send me the dates and I’ll make sure I’m there.” Her voice sounded light, airy, authentic.

“Really?” Peter couldn’t believe it.

“Yeah, I didn’t have any plans anyway and I’d love to meet your family. is it just you and your dads?” she meant it, she wanted to come along. Peter couldn’t believe his luck. How was this happening to him? A family trip and a friend to bring along!

“Uh, I have a little sister too, her name is Morgan.” And he squeezed his eyes shut. I have a little sister. He wished those words were true. Wished that they could be real. That she could really be his, that Tony and Steve could really be his. That Peter could be theirs.

“Oh right, I saw her with you at school one time.” Peter found himself nodding and then remembered she couldn’t see him.

“Yeah, Morgan’s great. I think you’ll love her.” In the background Peter could hear someone calling MJ’s name.

“Well I have to go, but thanks for inviting me Peter, I’m really looking forward to it.” and then she hung up the phone, leaving Peter to his room. He sat down on the bed, stunned by the conversation. By her agreeing to come along, by how easy it was to pretend that he was a part of this family. maybe he could convince the Stark-Rogers family to keep him. Maybe if he proved himself over the summer, maybe they’d want to keep him. Maybe he could stay, maybe he could make this lie the truth and then he wouldn’t have to leave. Because Peter didn’t want to leave. He wanted to stay right here.

-

Tony was desperately trying to keep it all together. He wanted this to work out, but there were so many variables. So much going on all at once. He was desperately trying to keep Steve together, to hold his husbands’ broken pieces so he wouldn’t fall apart. And then there was Peter, who Tony was trying to give his heart to and kept getting rejected, and then there was his baby girl. Morgan who was growing up so fast and had no clue as to just how much they were struggling. Tony could feel the pressure of trying to hold his family together weighing down on his shoulders.

But he wouldn’t let them down. He wouldn’t break and he wouldn’t let anything happen to them. he would get Steve the help he needed and they would adopt Peter and Morgan could remain blissfully oblivious to the heartache around her. Everything would work out if Tony could just hold onto them all for a little longer. This trip would help, would ease the pain and take some of the pressure off of them all.

“Daddy?” it was Morgan’s sweet voice and when Tony turned to face her she had a mischievous look upon her face.

“What’s up princess?” Tony asked and she looked down at her shoes.

“can we get a puppy?” Tony blinked, then chuckled. As if they could fit a dog into the equation right now.

“no sweetheart I’m afraid we can’t.” Tony ruffled the hair atop her head and she frowned up at him.

“why not? I promise I’ll take care of it!” she insisted and Tony could help but chuckle as he squatted down to match her height.

“I know a puppy is really cute, but are you really going to pick up it’s poop?” Tony raised a brow and Morgan nodded enthusiastically.

“I promise I will!” Tony tilted his head.

“Even if it smells?”

“even if it smells!” Tony sighed.

“I’ll think about it, but we wouldn’t be able to get the dog until we got back from our trip, okay honey?” Morgan nodded, a big toothy grin spread across her face.

“thanks daddy!” and then she darted off back upstairs, probably to play with some dolls. Tony walked through the house to the office, where he sat down and opened up his work email account. Despite the fact that it was a Saturday, he had fifty emails to go through.

“the work never ends.” He mumbled to himself but at the top of the emails was one from Mrs White. The subject title being the PTA.

“Ah shit.” Tony grumbled and opened up the email.

-

Steve was busy booking the cabin for their trip when he felt arms wrap around his torso.

“How are you?” tony mumbled against his back and Steve squeezed his eyes shut.

“I’m good, the therapy has been helping.” He admitted and Tony’s hold tightened.

“you promise?” Tony whispered and Steve nodded.

“Are you okay?” he asked, staring straight ahead at his laptop. Steve didn’t dare move a muscle, he didn’t want to scare Tony away.  

“Yeah, I’m just worried about you and Peter.” He admitted and at that Steve turned around, pulled Tony to his chest and held on tight.

“Baby listen to me. I am going to be okay and so will Peter. I am healing alright and we’re going to go on this trip and I don’t want you to worry about a thing.” Tony stared up into Steve’s eyes and Steve’s heart filled.

“I love you Stevie.” Tony whispered and Steve couldn’t stop the grin that spread out across his face.

“I love you more but baby you have to relax. We’re going to be fine. Just think about the vacation with our family and think of all the vacations to come.” And in his arms, Steve felt Tony relax.

“I got an email from the PTA, they really want us to show up to a meeting at the end of the summer.” Tony made puppy eyes and Steve rolled his own eyes.

“Fine you can be on the PTA, but no intentional plotting.” Tony grinned and nodded.

“Thanks Stevie.” Tony leant up on his tip toes and briefly pressed his lips against Steve’s, there for a second and then gone.

“What’s up?” Steve asked, detecting something odd on Tony’s face. Something suspicious.

“Morgan asked me a question.” At this, Steve rose a brow.

“And what did she ask?” Tony’s smile turned bashful, nervous, hopeful.

“She wants us to get a puppy.”

“A puppy?”

“a puppy, even offered to pick up the stinky poop.” Tony was grinning nervously now and Steve shook his head.

“She will not pick up the stinky poop, you won’t even pick up the stinky poop. I’ll have to do it.” Steve pouted and Tony shrugged.

“Would it really be so bad?” Steve sighed and pressed his forehead against Tony’s.

“Yes.”

“But we could just add one more member to our family.” Tony whispered and Steve chuckled.

“We already are honey.” Tony sighed, pouted and then attempted puppy dog eyes on Steve.

“You sure?”

“Yes I’m sure. But maybe in a year or two when Morgan’s a little bit older we can revisit the idea of getting a dog.” Steve kissed Tony’s forehead and his husband sighed ever so dramatically.

“Fine.” Tony grumbled and Steve shook his head.

“How’d she even get the idea of a puppy into her head in the first place?” Steve wondered just as Peter walked into the room. He froze, suddenly looking sheepish and Steve had his answer.

“Oh that was me, sorry I should’ve talked with you both about it. she was telling me about how Penelope has a dog and I asked her if you guys had ever had a dog and she said no you hadn’t so then I asked her if she wanted a dog and she got really excited and i am so so sorry.” Peter was out of breath by the end and Steve couldn’t stop the chuckle that passed his lips.

“Pete, it’s fine. It would be nice to have a dog around but the timing isn’t great with us going away on this trip.” Peter completely relaxed and nodded his head.

“Oh, okay, of course.” But even Peter looked a little deflated.

“Would you like it if we had a dog Petey?” Tony asked and Peter let out a small smile.

“It’s your house and your family but a dog could be uh cute.” He seemed fidgety, and then before either Steve or Tony could reply he left the room.

“Maybe he’d come out of his shell a little more if we got a dog.” Tony said before leaving Steve alone. A feeling of dread arose in his gut as he realised that the three of them were going to team up against him. They wanted a dog, but Steve didn’t want a dog. He’d be the one who would have to look after it, pick up the poop and toilet train and teach it tricks. They didn’t need a dog. He’d just have to remain resilient.

They were not going to get a dog.

@smallnjh @picklepotatoe14 @thatis-americas-ass​ @briebriebrieee @aftereveryraincomessunshine @meyamoadriytu @loveliestdisappointment

#superfamily #stony #stony fic #stony fluff #stony angst #superfamily fluff #superfamily fic #superfamily angst #avengers #the avengers #avengers fic #avengers angst #avengers fluff #steve rogers #tony stark #ironman #captain america #steve stark rogers #tony stark rogers #peter parker #spiderman #morgan stark #morgan stark rogers #peter stark rogers #home lives with you fic

[pradaxstyles]

Sunrise Encounters

*not my photo*

hi everyone!!! i’m very excited to share with you my submission for @helladirections Summer Feeling Fic Challenge! my prompt was sunrise! this is my first ever fic challenge and i’m very happy with how this turned out. the masterlist for everyone’s work is here. check them out and send them some love!! i hope you enjoy! also a big thank you to @chxrrylove for helping me out and just being an amazing person. don’t forget to reblog! feedback is always welcome and appreciated 🥰

disclaimer - i don’t know anything about perth, australia. so if it’s not accurate or anything just roll with it, it’s fiction

song i listened to while writing (in case you wanna listen to it) - 5am amber run

word count - 2.7k

warnings - small mentions of being alone and uncertainty about life plans. other than that, nothing major. 

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The cool breeze of the summer air ran through her hair, almost as if it were playing with it. She was sitting in a clearing above Perth. The Australian city was brightly lit, creating little shadows on her cheeks. A million things were running through her mind. She knew it was late, but she enjoyed being out during the early morning hours. There was something about the city during 4 am that she loved. Maybe it was the stillness of it. How the usual bustling city sat quiet and dormant. Or maybe it was the vibrancy of the buildings among the horizon. It showed that even though the city lay still, the beauty of it was everlasting. 

The beach was one of her favorite spots in the city. The openness gave her a sense of peace and calmness. It allowed her to process the thoughts that ran through her mind and just let go for a little while. 

Having just moved to Perth, she wasn’t familiar with many places or people. The one place she felt most at home was the beach, watching the stars. It was something she did back home when the clouds didn’t crowd the dark sky. On the rare nights she couldn’t see the stars, she’d turn to her notebook full of poems. Y/N didn’t dabble in poetry often, but when she did, it acted as a release. It was a release of the emotions she couldn’t get rid of. 

Tonight in particular, there were no clouds in sight to cover the universe’s beauty. Her fingers dragged through the smooth sand as she traced random shapes. A sigh left her lips as she wished she could be back home. Y/N had left behind family, friends, and everything she knew to move to Perth for a “new beginning”. Before the move, she was excited. Y/N was excited to see the world and meet new people. But once she arrived, second thoughts riddled her brain. She wasn’t familiar with the area and didn’t know anyone which put a damper on her mood. 

She came upon the small beach when she first moved. Needing to find an escape from a reality for a bit, she ventured to the streets, looking for a place she could call a home away from home. 

This brings her to today, 4:30 am, sitting on the beach overlooking the city. The colorful beach towel lay underneath her, shielding her body from the sticky grains of sand. Y/N leaned back just enough so she could watch the stars while she was lost in her ocean of thoughts. 

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The beach was also Harry’s favorite place. He had a small house in Perth. He’d come when he needed a break, or simply when he needed a vacation. Harry had stumbled upon the clearing purely by accident. During some nights when he couldn’t sleep, he would go for runs and end up watching the sunrise.

On this specific night, he was wide awake. After a night out with friends to celebrate a win for their favorite sports team, he figured he would sleep nicely. Alas, he laid wide awake in bed staring at the ceiling. Sighing, he yanked the duvet off of his body and sat up. The lights strung along the walls lit up the room just enough so Harry could see the clock across from the bed. He closed his eyes in frustration as the numbers read 4:30 am. 

Figuring he’d start his day, he stood from the warm bed and shuffled over to the closet and slipped on some shorts and a tee shirt. Making his way into the bathroom, he flickered the light on. He reached for his toothbrush, turned the water on and began brushing his teeth. 

He sat on the bed and leaned down to tie his shoes. Moving towards his nightstand, Harry reached for a clip and twisted his curls into place so they wouldn’t fall to his face as he ran. 

Waltzing into the kitchen, he munched on a granola bar and sipped some water before making his way outside. The clearing wasn’t far from his house, he estimated about a mile. Taking a deep breath, he picked up his pace until he was jogging. The air whooshing around him filled his ears as he looked around to take in his surroundings. He was used to jogging this late, but it never hurt to observe the nature around him. 

The thoughts of his life consumed his mind. Harry was unsure of what he wanted to do with his life. His parents were both doctors and his sister went on to be a lawyer. There was always a pressure on him to follow in their footsteps, but he knew deep down that he wanted to do something else. He wanted to do something that inspired people. 

Wherever he was in the world, he often found himself watching the sunrise. Harry realized that wherever he went, the sunrise always looked different. When he was visiting Greece, he found the highest point in Mykonos to watch the sunrise. The sun rose above the water and a beautiful array of colors were put on display. Different shades of purple and pink littered the sky as the sun was saying good morning. Or when he was in Colorado visiting some friends at their mountain house, he was blown away at the beauty the sunrise held. Hues of pink and orange illuminated the skies as the snow on top of the mountains seemed to reflect the colors, it was truly one of his favorite sights. 

It was during his escapades around the world that he discovered his love for the beauty of the world. He enjoyed making art ever since he was younger and it’s something that’s stayed with him as he grew up. Sketching people in the park, or painting the sunrises, he came to the realization that he wanted to paint the world in a way people didn’t often look at it. 

He sighed at the memory, a smile creeping its way onto his lips. He felt at peace with the path ahead of him in life. 

A thin sheet of sweat laid against his tanned skin as he glanced down at the watch on his wrist, 4:40 am. The sun was just starting to peak above the earth as he came up to the beach. Slowing his pace, his gaze fell upon a girl who was sitting on the sand. She looked to be his age, but he couldn’t get a clear look at her face. Harry wondered why she was here so late, there was usually no one at the beach this early. Shrugging it off, he decided to just come back on his way home and not bother the girl. 

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Y/N’s eyes squinted ever so slightly, trying to see the stars as the sun was beginning to rise. Laying down against the towel, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She wondered if she’d ever find her place in the world. Y/N wanted to live dangerously. She wanted to go on adventures around the world and immerse herself in different cultures, soaking up all that she could. 

Tapping her phone screen on, the clock on her phone read 4:45 am. Glancing at the sky, she took note of how the stars began to fade as the sun began peeking through the buildings. Along with the stars, she adored watching sunrises. The way the sun brought so much light and warmth as it rose made her feel small in the world, content in a way. 

The sky that was once dark had begun to erupt in hues of pinks and oranges. She sat up, bringing her knees to her chest as she rested her head on them. The sand beneath her was cool, making her shiver slightly.

Above her head, birds soared high and the sounds of their chirps could be heard. Cicadas buzzed and hummed around her. The scene was serene, as if it was something out of a movie. 

Y/N took a deep breath as she admired the changing sky. 

Unbeknownst to her, Harry had come back to the beach. He was contemplating going up and seeing if she was okay or just heading home. He racked his brain, trying to remember if he had seen her before. But he had no idea who she was. Harry wondered how she’d found the beach since it was pretty well hidden from the public. He knew he couldn’t just leave her be without knowing if she was okay or not, so he moved towards the girl. 

“Hey, are you okay?” Harry questioned softly. 

Y/N jumped slightly, unaware there was someone on the beach with her. A hand lay on her chest as she mumbled, “Jesus, you scared me.”

Harry chuckled quietly and moved to sit next to her. He put some distance between himself and the girl, not wanting to make her uncomfortable. Stretching his legs out to sit comfortably, he cringed slightly as the sand clung to his exposed legs. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you. Just wanted to make sure you were okay.” 

She glanced at him and noticed his hair was pulled up into a clip and how his forehead glistened with sweat. “What are you doing here so late?” 

“I could ask you the same question. What’s your name?” 

Her lips curved into a small smile, “Y/N, and you are?” 

“Harry.” 

“Well-” she broke her stare from the sky and met his gaze, “it’s nice to meet you, Harry.” 

He smiled slightly and she returned it. A comfortable silence fell over them as they both turned their heads back to the city in front of them. More cars were seen driving down the streets and people walking around. Harry’s watch read 4:55 am, which is the time the sun officially began rising. 

“I’m okay. I just come here some nights to watch the stars and sunrise.” Y/N whispered, breaking the silence. She kept her eyes on the rising sun that had peaked through the tall buildings, casting shadows everywhere. 

Harry’s face softened at her words. After all, he does the same thing when he can’t sleep. “I do, too. I’m surprised we haven’t run into each other more.” His head tilted upwards as he took in the colors that painted the sky. Different shades of pink, purple, and blue covered the sky. Some clouds had rolled in and they reflected the colors beautifully. 

She nodded slightly at his words, before she spoke. “I just moved her from Tennessee. I found the beach while looking for a place to clear my mind. Its been my favorite place ever since, plus you can see the stars beautifully from here.” 

He hummed in agreement. There had been numerous nights when he ended up on the beach stargazing. It was far enough from the city lights that you could still see everything. “That’s cool, I’ve never been to Tennessee before. I’m originally from England.” 

Y/N giggled softly, “I figured, I could tell from your accent.” She glanced at him just as his cheeks started to heat up. The tinge of red could be seen and Harry knew it, his cheeks were on fire. He laughed along with her and sighed.

“What are you doing in Australia?” 

“I’m here for a new beginning, I guess.” 

Harry’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, “You guess?” 

He turned his body so that he was facing her now. Her head turned towards him as she observed him with curiosity. Realizing what he was doing, she did the same. The beach towel that was underneath her body was long forgotten as the sand also clung to her legs. The pair was now facing each other and Harry finally got a clear look at Y/N’s face. Her delicate features fit her perfectly. 

“Yeah, I guess. I mean, I’m not too thrilled about being here since I have no friends at the moment. I don’t even know what I wanna do with my life.” She spoke lowly while laying her head against her propped up knee. 

“You’ve got a friend, you have me.” 

A smile made its way to Y/N lips and she glanced at Harry, who was already looking at her. He thought she was so beautiful. In his eyes, he felt like she represented the sunrise. A new side of her was always on display, and there was so much more for him to learn, so much he wanted to learn. 

“Well, thank you for being my first friend.” Her gaze lingered a bit longer on Harry’s soft features before she turned back to look at the sky. “Thank you for watching the sunrise with me.” 

Harry could have melted on the spot from her words. He just met Y/N but he was prepared to watch every sunrise with her. “No need to thank me, but you’re very welcome.” 

Y/N scooted closer to Harry and he opened an arm to her. His breath hitched as she laid her head against his chest. She didn’t know why or how she felt so comfortable around someone she had just met, but she felt like she’d known him her entire life. Inhaling deeply, Harry moved his arm to her waist and held her tightly. He loved the feeling of her body pressed against his. It felt familiar, it made him feel warm. 

“So..” Y/N began.

“So…” Harry continued 

“Wanna get breakfast?” Y/N twisted herself slightly so that she could look up at Harry. He glanced down at her and his tummy erupted with butterflies. 

“Of course we can get breakfast. Anywhere specific you would like to go?” 

She shook her head, “I don’t know any good places around here. You seem like you’ve got good taste, you choose where we go.” 

He chuckled at her statement, “Hm, well what are you in the mood for?” 

Y/N thought about it. Back in Tennessee, there was an amazing crepe place by her house. Her and some friends would get breakfast there every Friday before school. She smiled fondly at the memory and made her decision. 

“Are there any crepe places around here?” 

Harry thought for a moment, “Yeah there is. Do you wanna get some crepes?” 

Crepes were Harry’s favorite breakfast, but he wouldn’t admit it out loud. 

“I do, only if you like crepes though. We could always go somewhere else.” 

“No no, we’re going to get crepes. Don’t worry your pretty little head over it.” Harry moved to stand. Dusting off his pants, he reached a hand down for Y/N. 

Y/N was too distracted by his comment to realize his outstretched hand. Harry noticed her red cheeks and smiled to himself. 

“Come on, we can walk back to mine and I’ll drive.” Harry said. 

She placed her smaller hand in his and felt sparks fly through her body. He pulled her up and she grabbed her towel that was left in the sand. “Sounds like a plan.” 

Harry smiled sweetly and Y/N shot him a toothy grin. 

Y/N was thankful she found herself at the beach. If she didn’t feel the need for an escape, she would’ve never met Harry. She could already tell they were going to be best friends. Who knows, maybe she’ll bring him back to Tennessee. 

For once, Harry was happy he couldn’t sleep. He was also happy he knew of the beach. Y/N was like a breath of fresh air. She felt real, like she didn’t care about what anyone had to say. She was the friend he was looking for, someone who he could feel free with. 

The pair walked together, hand in hand, back to Harry’s house. The sun was a bit higher in the sky now, but the remnants of orange and pink could still be seen. Birds were busy chirping high in the trees and people were on their way to work. 

With the promise to watch the sunrise together the next morning, Harry and Y/N both felt giddy about the day to come.

#harry styles imagine #harry styles x reader #harry styles one shot #harry styles x y/n #harry styles #ahhh i hope you enjoyed this #this is honestly my fave piece so far #please dont forget to reblog!! #feedback is always welcome and appreciated ((: #xoxo #aae writes

[pierregasly]

Would love to hear your full take on Pierre,,,

Sorry this took me a few days to get to, I meant to answer it immediately but never found the motivation :( Anyways, onto Pierre. 

I believe you are commenting on a post of mine where I stated my fear that the Middle Generation of drivers (Charles, Carlos, Pierre and Max specifically) have/are going to miss out on opportunities and will never reach their full potential in F1. This is similar to what happened to the “Lost Generation” which is comprised of drivers such as Daniel, Kevin, Nico and Checo. To reiterate something that another asker was confused about: it has nothing to do with talent. The generations are not lumped together based on talent but based on their similar ages/entrance into F1 and I am speaking on the wasted potential that this group never got to achieve. (For example, Nico’s full potential was podiums--he never got here. And Daniel’s full potential was a championship--which he’ll never get.) 

I am not going to waste your time and state what I said briefly about Charles, Carlos and Max but I will go into depth more so about what I hardly touched upon with Pierre. As I said, Pierre is a phenomenal talent. As much as his podium and race win may have proven it to the world, many still call him a “luck driver” who is not good enough for a higher team. This is, obviously, because of  his time at Red Bull dramatically overshadowed his career. 

I started following Pierre around 2017 when I first got interested in F1 because of the history. In 2017 he wasn’t racing in Europe but in Super Formula so I took the time to catch up on his career thus far (I will go into depth on this in a moment). I didn’t start watching F1 until 2018 and the only driver (non-historical) I really was attached to was Pierre (others would comes later). Obviously, if you remember, Pierre ended up taking P5 in qualifying and P4 in a Toro Rosso in front of the whole world in only a few races at Bahrain. It was absolutely incredible and for the rest of the season until his Red Bull announcement, Pierre was dishing points place after points place after points place in only his first full season in F1. Therefore, while it was only his FIRST FULL SEASON, the jump to Red Bull ultimately felt justified. 

Of course, this did not end up being the case. Our joy over Pierre getting to be in a higher team made us completely and utterly forget the track record Red Bull has left with its second drivers. For those of you who are new to F1 (either coming in 2019, mid-2019 or 2020) you missed out on Pierre’s debut season which was fantastic for the car he was given. Furthermore, if you came in during mid-2019 or 2020 and you think that the treatment RB gave to Alex is horrible--you are hardly touching the surface. The treatment that RB is giving Alex versus Pierre is like taking your sons on summer vacation and then having one of them sleep on the comfy twin bed with two blankets and the other kid on the floor without so much as PJs. We haven’t even touched upon Daniil. Daniil would be like the parents leaving the kid outside to sleep. 

Let’s move on. It is very easy to look at Pierre’s season and tout only negative things. It was not his best moment and, yes, he certainly could’ve done better. However, with what he was given? Are we even sure about that? For example, Pierre become open with the media following his demotion. Not only did RB leave it to the very last moment but they also would:

1) Use Pierre’s car and car parts to test Max. 

2) When Pierre requested a more experienced engineer, he was denied. However, when Alex requested the same thing, he was given it. 

3) RB consistently spoke horribly of him in front of the media. They constantly spoke that he needed to do better and never tried to build him up. 

4) Emotionally pressured Pierre to his breaking limit.

Now the difference between RB and many other teams is that when the going gets tough for their drivers, many teams choose to build their drivers up to set them up for success. RB’s method is to tear their drivers down and hope that they can pick up their own pieces once they become annoyed with humiliation. The demotion was far, far too quick. Think of Alex--he has been getting worse and worse and worse with a year and half of time at Red Bull. Pierre managed half a season before they gave him the boot. The boot was also without warning even despite Pierre getting better and better each race. 

This is all information you probably already know, I said earlier I would touch upon his younger career and how this has been overshadowed and forgotten due to his time at RB. Here are some facts/statistics that will be important for my point later:

Finished 3rd in the French F4 championship with four wins, two poles and seven podiums over the course of only fourteen races despite having three retirements (the 2nd placer had 0 and the 1st placer only had 1). 

In his first season at Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 he finished 10th of 51 different racers and every person but one who finished before him in the championship was older than him. Pierre was only 16 when Stoffel V was 20, Daniil K was 18, Oliver R was 20, Norman N was 20, Nyck V was 17, Paul L was 21, Oscar T was 16, Melville M was 18 and Alex R was 18. 

In his second season of Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 he finished first in front of the likes of Esteban Ocon, Oliver Rowland, Jake Dennis, Nyck de Vries, Luca Ghitto and Alexander Albon.

Finished 6th in the 2013 Formula Renault 2.0 Alps Series despite missing half of the season and there being 42 competitors total (everyone ahead of him completed the full season). 

Finished 2nd of 28 competitors in the 2014 Formula Renault 3.5 Series and lost to none other than Carlos Sainz Jr. 

Finished 1st in his second full season of GP2 (now formally classified as F2).

The GP2 race he won in Silverstone happened right after a huge roadcar accident in which his mother ended up in the hospital. Pierre himself fractured his vertebrae and still went on to win the race while his mother was in the hospital and he had a broken bone. 

Was called in to replace a Renault edams driver in Formula E. He was jet lagged, tired and got only a few hours in the sims. He still managed to secure P4 in qualifying and then was set for a P3 finish but he crashed into the wall on the last corner of the last lap and came home in P4. THIS WAS HIS FIRST TIME EVER IN AN FE RACE OR AN FE CAR.

Finished second in Super Formula in 2017 but lost by only half a point. One of the races in the season was abandoned when he was set to win because of flooding and storm. Had it not been abandoned he would’ve finished first at the end of the season. 

All this pretty much brings you up to speed to when he entered into F1 (which all his amazing stuff you should be familiar with). Moving more onto my “take” regarding Pierre. I have shown evidence for why he is an incredible driver, however, now we’re moving onto the not so great bit. I suppose I must answer one question before I move on. 

Do I think Pierre is good enough, against all the rest of the talent in F1, to get consistent podiums if given the proper car? Absolutely. Do I think Pierre is good enough, against all the rest of the talent in F1, to get consistent wins if given the proper car? Absolutely. Do I think Pierre is good enough, against all the rest of the talent in F1, to fight/win a championship one day if given the proper car? This I firmly believe is possible (other thing I’ll get into if someone wants).

The reason I worry and am distressed about Pierre is because I don’t believe he’ll ever get a go at a higher team again. RB really put a shadow over his career, a shadow that is going to worry other teams from placing him into their cars. He has ultimately proven himself with podiums and, of course, the race win. However, seeing as there is so much young talent coming into F1, I don't see there being a place for him. 

Mercedes is set to most likely be Max and George when Lewis retires. Red Bull would never dare to put him in that seat again. Ferrari has their “golden generation” of Charles and Mick to look after. And those are the seemingly “top teams” (if you can even all Ferrari that). Let’s look at the others. Racing Point is going to be Lance and Seb until Seb retires. I don’t see Pierre ever going to Alpha Romeo. And McLaren is set up for the next few years with Lando and Daniel. Haas--I don’t think so. This is ultimately dangerous for Pierre’s career because RB likes to keep fresh meat in their B team car (or if you trust Horner it’s their “sister team” lol). Pierre’s best chance is the escape the RB family. AND I UNDERSTAND that the regulations could make things VERY different in F1 for the future. These are just my hypothesis and guesses--all is subjective and up to interpretation so @ anybody reading this--relax, buddy. So where does Pierre fit in in the future? These are some scenarios I have conjured up. 

1) Mercedes. Let’s say that, possibly. Max never ends up moving into that second Merc seat and instead remains at RB wasting away until they can get him a better car for the rest of his career (ooo burn sorry it’s for the scenario don’t hate me). This would open up a place at Merc for Pierre to truly shine his potential. Most likely, he would play second fiddle to George but hey--it’s still a seat where can utilize that potential. 

2) Red Bull. This would be if they get desperate. I don’t think if given a second chance, Pierre would say no. If Max were still in the team, he would be second fiddle. I can see Pierre going to RB if Max leaves for Merc in the next few years and they want him to lead Yuki or if Yuki doesn’t shine in AT and they end up dropping him they are going to be slim Pickens... I don’t know if being at RB will give him a place where he can utilize his potential but it’s a possibility. 

3) Ferrari. This would be only a chance if Mick doesn’t do great in Alpha Romeo and they need someone to fill the seat of their obvious place holder Carlos. He would be alongside Charles. Other than that.... Ferrari seems pretty set and there isn’t any space. 

4) McLaren. This I don’t see as very possible? I would love to see him in orange but they seem pretty set with Daniel and Lando. I think Daniel is probably going to ride out the end of his career there. Lando seems very integrated into the team and I can’t see him leaving unless he got a better offer like Merc. If Max didn’t end up taking the second Merc seat in the future and remains at RB then Lando might be given an offer which would open up a place that Pierre could possibly take. Do I count this as realistic? Not really, but it could happen. At McLaren I could see Pierre utilizing his potential. 

5) Renault. This is one of the options that seems most realistic to me. They're set with Fernando for the next few years. If they decided, after 2021, to give the boot to Esteban, that would open up a place for Pierre in a French team that would love a French driver (they already have one but Pierre is a FRENCH WINNER). You know that teams loves their nationalism.... Anyways. Or, possibly, Fernando retires after two years (again lol) which would open up a seat for Pierre to take along Esteban. However, I don’t really see Esteban staying long term because Renault probably needs to put one of their Renault babies like Guanyu or Christian in there. 

6) Williams. Lol. No. 

7) Haas. I don’t see it happening really??? I have my reasons but my gut just says... Au revoir.

8) Racing Point. THIS. This I see as 100% 100% a possibility. Let’s say that Seb retires after two years--this would open up a seat. Pierre is a strong, consistent and stable driver who doesn’t make mistakes. Here he could really use his potential!! #PierreInGreen!!

9) Alpha Romeo. As I said... I really don’t see it. They seem pretty busy with all their young guys. 

So to conclude, the future for Pierre lies at either Renault or Racing Point (less chance but possible includes Merc to McLaren). To not take up any more of  your time, this is what I mean by Pierre being an incredible talent who may or may not get a chance at a higher team. He deserves to have more and to have a second chance. He has really proven himself and is pulling the absolutely maximum out of himself. I really want to see him with more, like he deserves. 

Even Charles wanted him as his teammate at Ferrari back in April... that’s saying even more. Everyone on the grid except Esteban rate him highly as a person and as a driver. His potential deserves smth better. He has proven himself time and time again against everyone who told him he wasn't good enough and who still say it was all just luck. There exists luck. But firmer than luck, there exists skill. 

Pierre Gasly is a race winner in an Alpha Tauri. Do not forget that. 

#oh fuck this is long lol #pierre gasly #flood pressles box #sincerely anonymous

[petri808]

Chapter 3/final for Inuyasha Sins week LUST. It’s done! For full story please follow source link 🙃 smut 

A royal wedding could be seen as such a lavishly overdone affair full of too much pomp and circumstance, and this one was no different. It took months of planning and preparation. For you see, there is much more than simply two people in love to consider when kingdoms are involved. The Kamakura and Chiba kingdoms are allies by verbal understanding, but now a formal treatise is drafted to solidify the union. Such details are worked out between the two Kings and the wedding itself left up to the women.

Queen Higurashi could not be happier to see her daughter finally in a stable relationship with someone who loves her for who she is. She’d worried for a long time that this day would never come. Of course, she’s sad to see her daughter leave home, but Inuyasha brings out the best in Kagome, and she in him. It was all a mother could hope for. So, with the agreement of Queen Kagura and King Sesshomaru, the wedding ceremony and ball is to be held in the Chiba kingdom where the couple met, but once married the Princess and Prince will live in Kamakura.

“Mom, really?” Exasperation dripping from her lips. “You know I really don’t want anything fancy.”

“I know you don’t, but there are traditions to uphold and decorum to maintain.”

“A simple lakeside ceremony would have been perfect,” Kagome mumbles under her breath. “Fine, but do not make me wear a long, heavy train or I’ll tear it off.”

“But there’ll be attendants to hold it.”

“No. I’ll acquiesce to you making all the other arrangements, but I will pick my own dress.”

The Queen gently places her hands over Kagome’s cheeks with a smile. “I’m just excited for you my dear.”

Kagome smiles too. “I know mom.”

As part of the arrangement between the Kings, the couple is built a vacation home next to the lake Kagome loves, to be ready before the wedding. They insist that the home be comfortable but not like a typical summer palace and also refuse any servants. It was a place to memorialize their first kiss and to relax, away from royal life. But the only thing neither King sways on is security. A small barracks to house soldiers during the couples stay is built adjacent to the home as well as a stable.

Over one hundred invitations are sent out to all the high-ranking nobility from both kingdoms as well as other allies in their realm announcing the marriage. Most were not expected to attend, but it is customary to give notice of such a union. In the month preceding the wedding, gifts began to arrive from those that would not be there for the ceremony.

“Figures I’d find you in here.” Kagome chuckles as she stands in the doorway of the stable hands quarters. The position had long been filled, but for Inuyasha the structure itself still held many memories.

“The new guy does a decent job,” he grumps.

“But not as good as you, right?” She walks over and takes his hand. “Is everything okay? Or are you just hiding in here?”

“Hiding. Aren’t you nervous?”

“I am... well, it’s a mixture of emotions. Nervous, excited, maybe a little worried that I won’t live up to expectations.”

“I know you will. It’s me I’m worried about. My brother’s always been so critical towards me, so it’s hard to let that go.”

She squeezes their conjoined hands. “We’ll tackle things together. And I know he’s not one to show it, but I think he is proud of you now. Sesshomaru had to swallow a lot of pride to admit they couldn’t have children and ask us to provide an heir.”

“That is true. I guess you’re right,” Inuyasha sighs. “A family is just another thing that makes me nervous. My father was a great King, and even though that’s not my role, just to trying to emulate him is a daunting task.”

She chuckles softly, “I feel the same way about my mother. Come on,” Kagome tightens her hold on his hand, “I believe the tailor needs you to adjust your suit.”

If they thought the days leading up to the wedding were nerve wracking, the day of was by far the worst form of torture dealt to anyone. All morning, Kagome paced and sat and paced some more as her exasperated attendants did their best to get her ready.

“Princess if you do not sit still, I will tie you down.”

“But Kae—de,” Kagome whines and fidgets on the vanity stool. “I can’t help it! My stomach is doing flips and I just wanna jump out of my skin. All those people here for the wedding, oh why did so many have to show up...”

The palace grounds are filled with guests milling around before the noon ceremony, their chatter wafting in through the open balcony or passing by in the hallway outside her room. A flurry of activity mixed with staff preparing the throne room and great hall, as well as the banquet feast. If Kagome and Inuyasha had their way, they’d escape this madness for he was doing no better, evidenced by a few growls echoing from his room down the hall.

His attendants were buttressed by his groomsmen, Miroku and one more Kagome only met a week ago when the male had arrived. Inuyasha called him a friend, but she swore they are more like enemies. Kouga is from a distant kingdom of okami or wolf yokai that had assisted in stopping the rouges who invaded the inu’s territory. He became King after that battle and was another ally of the Kamakura kingdom. She wondered if his appointment to stand with Inuyasha was the Princes choice or Sesshomaru’s.

“My dear,” the woman places her hand on Kagome’s shoulder, “you have nothing to fear.”

“But...”

“Do you love him?”

“Yes.”

“Do you want to marry him?”

“Yes.”

“This is about you and Inuyasha. Ignore everyone else and just focus on the two of you.”

Kagome sighs, “I know— I know you’re right. Thank you, Kaede. I’ll do my best.”

“You’ll be fine dear. Now let’s get you ready before he thinks you’ve stood him up.”

The throne room is barely recognizable to Inuyasha as he steps through the main doors. Beautiful floral garlands woven over standing trellises provides a backdrop for the ceremony itself and hides the thrones themselves. Large cascading flower bouquets hang from each column along the edges of the room, connected by sheer red and gold valences. The floor is separated by an aisle of red and gold ropes and stanchions, each with a smaller matching bouquet atop them. The aisle leads from the main door to the steps of the throne area. On either side of the aisle, the room is packed with all the standing guests and the melody of wind instruments fill the air.

Inuyasha stands nervously beside an officiate with King Sesshomaru and Queen Kagura sitting in the front row to his left while King and Queen Higurashi on the right. All the scents permeating the room overwhelms his senses, it’s a good thing he wasn’t allergic to pollen with all the flowers. But that is the least of his worries. With so many eyes on him, Inuyasha felt the pressure weighing on his shoulders and with each passing second the urge to run creeps into his mind. Not to get away from Kagome just these eyes...

“She has arrived sire.”

The royal regent whispers into Inuyasha’s ear and all the sounds of the room cease to exist, replaced by a white noise as his body turns on instinct to face the main door. The music switches from woodwinds to string instruments and all the air in his lungs freeze up as the door opens. The first to step through are Sango and Kouga, their maid of honor and best man. Once they are halfway down the aisle, it is Rin and Miroku the brides maid and groomsmen. Each party separating at the front to join their respective sides. Oh god, oh god, oh god, his heart beats frantically in his chest. This is it! This is really happening!

The regent signals the guests to stand up, as now a third and final wedding melody kicks in. Time stops for Inuyasha as Kagome takes center point at the door on the arm of her brother who’ll be giving her away.

“Wow...” he unconsciously lets out the air he’s been holding the entire time and gaining an elbow to his side to close his mouth. But he couldn’t help it! She was like an angel floating down the aisle!

Kagome’s dress is a light gold color, sweetheart form fitting corset top with beautiful red filigree threading and sapphire jewels sewn in. It flows into an airy A-line skirt, adding to the image of her floating over the ground. Her hair is done half up, half down, in soft curls and tendrils with small red rosebuds woven in around a high tiara perched on her head. But is that a?! Inuyasha looks at his brother in surprise, then back to Kagome, for around her neck is a jeweled fang hanging from a silver chain. It was his mother’s, created by his father from his own fang and he had no idea they still had it.

When Kagome reaches Inuyasha, her brother Souta places her hand in that man’s, then takes his place on the side of his parents. She’s so nervous she can’t look up at him. His traditional white suit is radiant. The top is streamlined and cut to fit his frame perfectly. It was embroidered with red Camilla flowers over the sleeves and hem and the waist tied with a red sash. The pants were looser yet still cut to fit well. But the most interesting piece was a fanged necklace around his neck. Her father told her it was a gift given by King Toga long ago to his father as a symbol of loyalty. Whatever the story it stood out over the white ensemble.

He tips her chin up. “You look amazing Kagome.”

“You’re very handsome yourself Inuyasha,” she smiles with rosy cheeks.

As the officiate begins, neither can say they are paying full attention to his words. Kaede was right in a way, focus on each other and the world falls away leaving only them. Most of it was just official bluster anyways. Their eyes simply stay glued to one another, softened and mesmerized, communicating their own personal vows through unspoken words.

“Do you Prince Inuyasha take Princess Kagome to be your wedded wife, to love her, honor her, through sickness and in health for the rest of your lives?”

“I do.”

“And do you Princess Kagome take Prince Inuyasha to be your wedded husband, to love him, honor him, through sickness and in health for the rest of your lives?”

“I do.”

They place rings on each other’s fingers as the token symbol of their union.

“And now by the powers vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”

Inuyasha sweeps in and kisses Kagome before the man even finishes his words. This was truly the best part of the whole ceremony, a simple kiss to consummate a new beginning together. When he pulls away, he keeps his hands cupped over her cheeks. He smiles and wipes away a few tears that have fallen.

“I love you Kagome.”

“I love you too Inuyasha.”

The rest of the night is a whirlwind of dancing, food, and revelry in any given order. It isn’t uncommon for such festivities to last until the wee hours of the morning, leaving guests stumbling back to their accommodations or simply passing out in a corner somewhere from too much drink. But that isn’t their problem. By 8pm or so, Inuyasha and Kagome leave the party in the hands of their parents to deal with. As far as they are concerned, the big fuss was their parents idea so they can deal with the aftermath. They change into regular clothing and take a carriage to their new lake house, escorted by guards. It’s time to do what they want for their wedding day.

“The moon is so gorgeous tonight,” Kagome sighs, standing there at the lake side. With all the commotion at the castle, there wasn’t any time to notice. It’s light mirrored on the dark surface felt mystical, like a beacon pointing home. Arms weave around her waist, the warmth of her husband enfolding her and chasing away the cooler night temperatures. She leans back into his chest releasing another sigh. “I really wish we could just live here.”

“I agree, but duty is duty.”

“I know...”

“At least we have somewhere to run away to.”

“That’s true. Perhaps the longing will keep it even more special when we return.”

Inuyasha turns her around in his arms. “As much as I’d love to just stand here enjoying the moon, there’s another gorgeous celestial body I’d prefer to look at tonight.”

“Is that so dear husband?” She giggles, tiptoeing to place a peck on his lips. “Are you excited to see if your dreams will reflect reality?”

“Oh, I know it will,” he growls low in a smirk. “And you can’t tell me you haven’t fantasized too, woman, cause I’d call you a liar.”

Kagome giggles again then her eyes grow half-lidded. “Well then dear sir, get on with it.”

“Here?!” He feigns concern. “Oh, you wretched woman to give the soldiers such a show! But very well,” Inuyasha pretends to start pulling up on her skirt.

“What?!” Thinking he’s serious, she pushes at his chest to get away. “T-That’s not what I meant!”

He lets out a bellowing laugh. “I’m joking.” Then sweeps her into his arms. “You think I’ll let any man dare look at what’s mine?” He adjusts her body once, bracing her securely against him and readying to...

“Inu what are you?”

Leap. Using the strength of his legs, Inuyasha takes a giant leap towards the house twenty feet away. Kagome squeals and burrows her face in his chest during the quick action. Before she knows it, they’re back on the ground at the foot of the steps.

“Warn me next time!”

Inuyasha just laughs and swiftly enters the stately home, placing her back on her feet once he’s closed the door. He grabs a lantern and lights it so they can see where they are going since neither are completely familiar with the layout yet.

“I think I’d like to take a bath first... care to join me?”

“Hell yes!”

The bath in the home is literally an entire room. Tiled from floor to ceiling with a large bathing tub inset into the center of the floor. To heat the water, porous river stones are heated up in a fire pit next to the tub then placed in a special container in the middle of the tub to contain them. Once the water is added, it heats up to a toasty temperature. More stones are kept heating to add or exchange during the bath.

“Why don’t you get ready while I heat up the stones.”

“Okay,” Kagome kisses his cheek. “Be right back.”

She lights a few more torches in the hallway and bedroom, surveying what options they have for the short stay. They plan to be there for only a week before leaving again for Kamakura, so most of their belongings have been packed and shipped to their section of Shiroinu Castle. Kagome finds towels and sleeping attire, as well as scented bath oils. She strips down, using the towel to cover herself instead, and winds her hair up into a loose bun.

A blush steals away on her cheeks as she looks at herself in the mirror. Up until now they’d only fooled around when no one was watching, but this was it, they were going all the way. Her hand unconsciously covers the area. What if he doesn’t fit?! She’s overheard female staff at the palace talking about a little bit of pain the first time. Oh, no don’t get nervous now! Kagome chastises herself. It can’t be that bad or no one would ever have sex. She grabs her items and heads back the bathroom before she gets cold feet.

As she enters the room, steam is rising from the water and Inuyasha was already submerged inside. He chuckles at her, “I was getting worried.”

Another deeper blush takes over, flushing her body with heat. Kagome waves it off, pretending to be fine. “Just picking the right bath oil,” she holds up a bottle.

“Then get in here,” he smirks knowingly. Inuyasha is just as nervous but doing a better job of hiding it. He could smell the nervous energy flowing from her body. “I won’t do anything you don’t want me to.”

Oh, but she wanted him to do a lot to her. Fear of the unknown didn’t make her any less curious. She sheds her towel and quickly slips into the warm waters, sliding over until she’s beside him. Then she adds a few drops of the scented oil close to the hot stones, diffusing it better into the air. It’s blurry, but in her peripheral vision she can see something hanging between his thighs. Send help, either the water was distorting it, or he looks bigger than her imagination! ‘I wonder what it feels like...’ her hand unconsciously moves towards it.

Inuyasha wasn’t blind to what Kagome was doing, but he didn’t want to spook her either. He watches carefully as her hand gets close, hesitates, then starts to retract. “It’s okay, Gome, you can touch me.”

Shit! He was paying attention! “O-Okay,” Kagome stammers. ‘It’s okay, he’s my husband, silly of course I can touch...’ her hand making contact with the growing appendage, eyes widening and an odd smile taking over her face. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to giggle, it’s just feels so weird!”

“Oi! My dicks not weird, you’re the weirdo who thinks it’s weird!”

But that only serves to make Kagome laugh harder and accidentally squeeze. “I-I know, I’m sorr— oh squishy!”

“Squishy, huh?!” All bets are thrown out now as Inuyasha grabs one of her boobs, squeezes and squeals squishy excitedly, triggering a few back and forth rounds all the more sillier than the last with water splashing around like two children having a water fight.

“Stop! Stop! Stop!” Kagome’s giggling shrieks echo in the tiled chamber.

“C’mere you weirdo,” Inuyasha chuckles and grabs her around the waist, pulling her onto his lap, and adjusting her hips until her legs are on each side and she facing him comfortably. His expression changes, eyes leveled into a heated gaze and hands cupped around her ass cheeks. “You’re such a tease and you don’t even realize it do you?” He pulls forward causing her clit to rub against his cock, gaining a squeak. “Getting him all excited when here I was trying to go slowly.”

Liking the feeling against her, she rocks her hips on her own and pulls a growl from the man. “I appreciate that Inu. I really do.” Kagome cups his cheeks and pulls his face down into a wanton kiss, pressing firmly and pushing her tongue through with force. She too was hot and bothered by that little escapade. Her hands weave behind his neck as their heads tilt to deepen the kiss, tongues dancing and teeth clacking from sloppy movements. His hands still purchased on her rear, rocks her hips slowly, grinding them together. Moans cut between the kisses, growing higher with each grating pass and increasing the burning friction brewing between their legs.

Somewhere along the way, his cock slips down underneath her, thighs squeezing against his own the hotter it burns and rubs the length of the shaft. Her head tilts back unable to contain her emotions as she helps in rocking with stronger alacrity and chasing this new sensation. Her clit rubbing on his public bone couple with her pussy grinding over his cock… They didn’t need the fire stones anymore to heat the water. “Fucking hell Kagome,” his deep reverberating growl against her bosom shoots straight to her groin. He isn’t even inside of her yet and he’s close to blowing.

With her back arched, it puts his face in perfect proximity to her breasts. Inuyasha latches on with a vacuum like suction, his mouth placing kiss upon kiss, worrying the supple flesh and teasing her nipples through his teeth. “Inu...” Kagome mewls. She was anxious and wanted to progress further, her core practically begging for him to take her all the way. “Inu?” She reaches down and takes hold of his cock.

He stops what he’s doing, a look of question and concern gracing his features as he reads her silent communication. “Are you sure?”

She bites her lower lip and nods slowly.

“Try to relax,” he coaxes gently, tone softening despite the race of adrenaline spiking in his body, “go at your own pace and don’t push yourself Gome.”

Inuyasha takes hold of his cock and keeps it upright for her as she guides it to the entrance. Once the head pushes through, she sucks in a breath when she feels the pressured sting of her muscles stretching to accept it. Kagome pauses, allowing her body to tell her what to do, moving when it tells her to. Okay, this isn’t too bad, she thinks.

“Breathe baby,” Inuyasha caresses her cheek, “are you okay?”

She opens her eyes not realizing how tightly she’d squeezed them shut or the burn of her lungs from holding in air for too long. It takes a few moments, but the initial pain or pressure melts away, soothed by the warm cock against her inner muscles and heated waters surrounding them. “I’m okay,” she places a lingering kiss on his lips and exhales, settling more comfortably in his lap again. “I’m okay.”

“You feel amazing,” Inuyasha returns the kiss. “I love you so much Kagome.”

“I love you too Inu.”

Such lingering kisses turn passionate once more, fueled by the burning ache being filled between their legs. Inuyasha goes back to pampering her breasts and peppering them with loves bites he’ll get to admire in the morning while Kagome’s hips rock slowly at first, testing out this new feeling of his cock plunging in and out and building up a heavier friction than before.

“Oh, wow,” she purrs, loving how his cock filled her up. Her muscles still tightly constricted around his shaft yet completely adjusted to his thick length. See, she chuckles in her head, worried for nothing. Faster and faster her hips grind and thrust onto his dick, pounding at his thighs. His hands grip to her ass and his kisses start to falter. He’d been so close earlier and now that priming would be his undoing.

But her first.

Her legs start to shake, and the rocking motion becomes irregular as she fights to keep going. Between muscle fatigue and the orgasm taking control, Kagome struggles. “I—nu...” her head pitches and back arches as the waves hit. He redoubles, using his hands to keep her going despite his own orgasm taking hold or her knees squeezing painfully against his hips. He rocks her forcefully, grinding them together as his seed bursts forth and spills deep inside, her name gritted from his lips, with each syllable caught between the pulsing.

Kagome’s head drops onto his shoulder and body collapses against his as her labored breathing struggling to catch up. Inuyasha kisses her temple and hugs her close, while they bask in the post-coital splendor. It was an amazing first time for the both of them. “How you feeling love?” He questions.

“Complete.”

Oh, she’ll definitely be sore in the morning but why worry? They had the rest of their lives to experience many more firsts and many more adventures together. Raising a family, growing old... Kagome sighs dreamily. “How many kids should we have Inuyasha?”

“Oh, I don’t know,” his tone reflects in thought. “Two, three? But if I can’t keep ya off me it might be more,” he teases.

“Pfft, I think it’s the other way around.”

“You’re probably right,” Inuyasha chuckles. “But we do have one advantage.”

“What’s that?” she questions as she looks up at him.

Inuyasha taps the side of his nose, “I’ll know when you’re fertility is peaking…” his grin widens. “Like now.”

#inuyasha sins week #inukag #inuyasha #Kagome higurashi #inukag fan fiction #inukag fan fic #inukag AU #royalty AU #medieval AU #Lust prompt #full smutty #inuyasha x kagome #inuyasha sins

[soybeantree]

pairing: baseball!johnny x reader  genre/rating: fluff. word count: 1.6k    description: you can’t blame a guy for trying. or for paying the game so, so well. 

Baseball has dominated your family’s life ever since your brother first picked up a glove when he was four. Each summer your family would travel around for tournaments. While your classmates shared tales of their vacations, you shared your brother’s average pitch count. During the school year, Jaehyun had his lessons and camps. You spent many nights doing your homework to the melody of shoes shuffling during sprints and the hard crack of leather on leather.

However, your family’s obsession came with certain benefits. The chief one during your early years being your brother’s teammates. A steady stream of young, attractive, and fit guys parade through your life. Your soul crushing insecurities kept you from taking full advantage of this benefit, but they were nice to look at.

During your later years, you appreciated the benefit of having your parents so far up Jaehyun’s ass that they left you in peace. While your friends had their parents dictating their lives and forcing them into every after-school program imaginable, you had the freedom to go and do as you please. As long as you kept your activities under the radar everything was in the realm of possibility. Even when the time came to choose your college, your choice was made without parental pressure.

College offers a reprieve from the constant onslaught of baseball, especially as your university failed to appear on the list of approved universities your parents compiled for Jaehyun. You easily adjust to a life without baseball at the center until you get a phone call from your mother.

“Jaehyun will be playing a series at your university.” Your mother informs you during your monthly call. She beams with the news. The series is scheduled for the end of next month, and she has already booked a hotel room for her and your father. While never explicitly said, the implication remains that she expects your presence. When you politely inform her that your life no longer revolves around your brother’s baseball schedule. She brushes off the remark and bulldozes ahead. While your life does no longer revolve around your brother’s baseball schedule, you are free the weekend of his series, and it has been a while since you have seen your family.

However, baking beneath the midday sun while the metal bleachers burn your thighs makes you wonder how important family time really is. Your mother screams beside you when the commentator announces your brother’s name. You sigh. Somethings never change, but before you drone her out, your attention catches on the next player.

“Johnny’s on Jaehyun’s team?” You ask your mom as she finally settles back into her seat.

“Yes, dear didn’t I tell you?” She beams at you. Of all the things your mother has deemed necessary to tell you about your brother’s college career, the one thing that you would have deemed necessary is the one thing she left out. “I was so happy when I found out. The Dynamic Duo back together again.” She goes on, but now you do drone her out, as your attention shifts completely to Johnny.

Jaehyun first picked up a glove when he was four, but when he was five, he joined his first little league team and met Johnny. From then on, they had been inseparable. They refused to play on a team without the other, and their chemistry as a pitcher and catcher had bloomed until everyone called them the Dynamic Duo. Their future shone before them until Johnny moved right before high school. The memory is a sour one for everyone in your family for different reasons.

For you, Johnny been a constant fixture in your house growing up. Many mornings, you would walk into the kitchen to find him sitting at the breakfast table. He would greet you with a smile and ask about school and how you were getting along.

Talking with him was easier than talking with Jaehyun. It helped that he was in the same year as you while Jaehyun was a year younger. You ended up confiding in Johnny about things you would never share with your family. You swore him to secrecy, and as far as you know, he never shared your secrets. However, on one occasion, you found him waiting for your outside your school. He insisted on walking you home. After that day, the bullies who had bothered all year long stopped. Johnny had been your fist crush, and watching him now those feelings rise along with others.

Your brother’s team wins the game. How could they not when they have the Dynamic Duo, your mom comments several times. You nod along as you follow her and your father to the opposing team’s dugout to wait for your brother. Your parents plan to have a family dinner, and your heart races as you wonder if that includes Johnny.

Jaehyun walks out of the dugout and grins at you. “How’d I do?”

“You played like shit. I’m kind of embarrassed to call you my brother.” You grimace. “I going to go back to my dorm and pretend I don’t know you.”

“Really?” Jaehyun raises a brow as mischief glitters in his eyes. You dart back but are too slow. Jaehyun’s arm warps around your neck pulling you into a head-lock hug. “Why would you say such a hurtful thing?”

Coughing from his stench, you smack at his arm. “Let me go. You smell like shit.”

“Y/N, is that you really you cussing?”

Jaehyun turns you to face Johnny, and your arms go limp at your side. If Jaehyun squeezed a little tighter, you could pass out, but your brother releases you. Staggering back, you clear your throat and attempt nonchalance. “I am a grown ass adult. I can cuss if I want to.”

“Y/N!” Your mother’s scolding heats your cheeks. For half a second, you had forgotten she was here. “Hello, Johnny.” She pulls him into a hug as you attempt to disappear into the crack on the sidewalk. Once greetings have been completed, you head out to dinner with Johnny in tow.

The restaurant you had suggested is within walking distance of campus. Jaehyun walks ahead with your parents talking with them about his classes and his training. Johnny stays back matching his pace to yours. “How have you been?”

“Good.” You pause at a loss for anything to add. “And you?” You offer.

“Good.”

“I remember you as chattier than this.” You quip back as you twist the hem of your shirt.

“Me?” He scoffs through a smile. “You talked non-stop.”

“Wow,” you shake your head. “And here I thought you were a sympathetic ear. The truth comes out now.”

“I was always happy to listen.” He pauses before asking, “How was high school?”

After your struggles in middle school, Johnny had mentioned that he was planning to go to the same high school as you. Then he moved. “It was alright.” You release the hem and smooth the shirt down your waist. “I made friends who made it good. What about you?” You glance up at him.

“We moved around a lot. I ended up going to three different high schools. I’m grateful for my select team; otherwise, I don’t think I would have been scouted.”

“Your parent’s moved you around that much in high school?”

“My dad’s job required it.” He shrugs.

A snort slips out as you shake your head. “My mom would have waved my dad goodbye and told him to live on his own rather than move Jaehyun during high school.”

Johnny chuckles, the sound as familiar as a childhood toy and just as comforting. “I believe that.”

You grow quiet as you approach the restaurant. When Johnny first told you that he was moving, you had retreated into yourself. Any effort he made to pull you out of your shell had resulted in scathing words or bitter silence. So he stopped. If you could go back in time and slap your younger self, you would.

Dinner is loud and full of raucous laughter. Johnny recounts ridiculous stories from his high school years and even brings up secret antics from his and Jaehyun’s past. Had your parents known about them at the time, you would have become an only child. But now, they roll their eyes and shake their heads. The meal comes to an end too quickly.

Your parents insist on walking Jaehyun and Johnny back to their hotel, and you accompany them. As they say goodbye to Jaehyun, you stand awkwardly beside Johnny.

“I’m glad you and Jaehyun ended up on the same team again. It’s good to know the Dynamic Duo is back together again.”

Johnny laughs a full bellied thing which crinkles his eyes. “I forgot about that. Please don’t say that too loud. I don’t want our teammates finding out about it. We’ll never head the end of it.”

“Good to know.” You muse, tapping your finger against your lips. “Might need to keep that card in my back pocket.” He shakes his head. “Well, it looks like my mom is finishing up on her list of instructions for Jaehyun, so it’s my turn to say goodbye.” You give an awkward bob before heading over to your brother, but Johnny’s hand on your wrist brings you stuttering to a halt.

His hand releases you and goes to the back of his head where it ruffles his hair. “I was wondering if I could get your new number, so we could continue to catch up.”

“Yes,” you squeak. Clearing your throat, you repeat “yes” and hold out your hand. He places his phone in yours, and you quickly add your number and hand it back. “Text me whenever.” You hope the words sound flippant but doubt they do. Your heart is racing, and the heat flushing across your body has nothing to do with the approaching summer.

#johnny suh #nct #nct 127 #johnny #nct johnny #nct drabble #nct fic #nct fanfiction #johnny drabble #hmw #baseball!nct

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #347

“lay your head down, child  /  i won’t let the bogeyman come  /  count the bodies like sheep to the rhythm of the war drums”

Have you ever watched a whole hour long infomercial? Ha, Girt and I have one day when he was hanging out. It was about a vacuum, to be precise. Do you tend to cave into peer pressure? No. Do you think it's attractive for a man to wear eyeliner? Yeah. Are you listening to music currently? Yeah, it's this version of Manson's "Lunchbox" that I hadn't heard before. Have you ever done something you once thought you'd be too chicken to do? Yeah, like going on this one ride at a fair. Y'know, the kind that slowly brings you way up and abruptly drops you. What's your relationship to the child you’re around most? They're my nieces and nephew. Have you ever had an illegal substance in your blood stream? No. What is the worst thing that has ever happened to your hair? More than once, back when I had long hair, it would get so knotted from neglect that I'd brush out just... giant clumps of hair. The joys of depression, right? It's honestly part of the reason I cut it all off, and it's something I seriously recommend for people who struggle with brushing their hair. What do you think about cats? I adore them. Who do you want with you when you're afraid? Absolutely my mom. Who might as well just be your sibling? Ha, Sara. We're just so remarkably similar, and even when we first met in person, we clicked like it was nothing. Would you ever consider working for the government? No; I'm not working with corrupt, lying motherfuckers. What is the weirdest thing you have ever witnessed a sibling doing? Well, your sister "sleepwalking" or whatever she was actually doing and grabbing a knife she'd hidden under her mattress to creep towards her then-boyfriend was beyond just "weird." Your first best friend's name? Brianna. How do you act when you're uncomfortable? "Anxious, impatient, and fidgety." <<<< Same. It's very obvious I want to get out of the situation. What bug would you like to be extinct? Do wasps do like... anything for the environment? I don't want to give a definite answer here that ends up being ignorant, because I appreciate bugs that are even just a regular food source for more vital creatures like spiders, but I don't know a damn thing wasps do that are beneficial. They just kill bees, from what I know. Do you know anyone other than a cop who has ever owned a cop car? No. Have you ever felt fire? I mean, I've never directly touched fire, no. What would you do if your first love asked you back out? I REALLY DON'T WANT TO PICTURE THIS. Do you know anyone that is a lesbian? Yeah. What are your thoughts on roleplaying games? I think they're fun. Do you want to have a bachelor/bachelorette party before you get married? So, true story, I don't even know what those entail exactly. But considering how few friends I have, I probably wouldn't. Ever been texted by mistake and played along & acted like you knew them? No. Would you ever get a name tattooed on you? Noooo sir. Do your parents dress like they’re years younger? Does it gross you out? They don't, but it wouldn't gross me out...? They can dress however they damn well please. Obsession from childhood? Dinosaurs and Spyro probably top the list. Favorite activity to do in warm weather? Just swim, really. I hate warm weather. Favorite activity to do in cold weather? If there's snow, take pictures. If it's just cold, then I like to just stay inside and bundle up in bed. Five songs to describe you? I don't know five, but I know a few I resonate with: "Get Up" by Mother Mother, "That's What You Get" by Paramore, uhhh then idk. Best way for someone to bond with you? Hm. Probably just like... talk about life, like our stories and things we've been through, both good and bad. Just being mutually vulnerable makes me feel connected to people. I like bonding via music, too, and I find it pretty exciting to share songs and, once again, go deeper and share what they mean to you, etc. etc. In summary, I just like getting to know a person at their core. What is the first meme you remember seeing? Hell if I know. Lemonade or tea? Lemonade, by a landslide. Sci-fi, fantasy, or superheroes? Fantasy. Favorite type of cheese? American. If you were a video game character, what would your catchphrase be? I relate very deeply to Henry Townshend from SH4 with saying "what the hell?" about literally everything. If you were an anime character, what genre of anime would it be? I'unno. Character you relate to? Since watching a playthrough of the game the first time, I've related to Max Caulfield from Life is Strange very deeply. An awkward photographer that cares a lot for people. Favorite website from your childhood? Webkinz. Least favorite flavor of food or drink? Grape, usually. Or orange. Favorite potato food? French fries. PC or console gaming? I prefer console games. Writing or drawing? Shit man, why you gotta make me choose? I feel much more satisfaction after drawing something I'm proud of, but I write way more. Who would you put before everyone else? My mom. How many phone numbers do you have memorized? Literally none. Do you get motion sickness? No. Have you ever been on a cruise? No. Have you ever bailed a friend out of jail? No. Have you ever won anything from a radio station? No. What do you do when you go to the beach? Swim for a while and then sit under the tent or whatever we brought and think about how ready I am to go home and get out of the heat. How many pillows are on your bed? Two. Do you like pickles? Yeah. Do you like camping? I've never been *legit* camping; Dad would just sometimes set up the tent in the yard and he and my sisters and I would sleep out there. I LOVED that as a kiddo. I think I'd enjoy like, one night of actual camping, so long as I have my camera and phone. My technology dependence would probably get me by Day #2, lol. Have you ever ridden a motorcycle? No, and I don't plan to. Wrecking in one of those can fuck you the hell up. Even with a helmet, just honestly, it seems... pretty stupid to put yourself at THAT incredible a risk. Have you ever had plastic surgery? No. Were you ever sent to the principal’s office as a kid? I don't think so... but maybe once? I have this super faint memory of being in the office, but maybe I was bringing them something from my teacher? That sounds about right. Have you ever used a slingshot? No. Have you ever driven an electric car? No. Do you live in an area that is prone to tornadoes? They happen here, but I wouldn't say we're "prone" to them. We get tornado watches/warnings a lot when we have summer storms, but it's seldom they actually occur, and it's even rarer for them to be noteworthy at all. What breed was the last dog you saw? One of our neighbors has a German Shepherd she walks a lot. How long have your parents been together (or how long were they together, if they no longer are): I wanna say around or over 20 years? I don't know. What 5 words best describe your mother’s personality? Loving, welcoming, resilient, selfless, and strong. Do you know any transgender people? Yes. Have you ever had a parrot sit on your shoulder? No, but that'd be cool. In the morning, do you eat breakfast first or brush your teeth first? I eat first. What’s something you’ve been struggling with lately? A number of things, but my weight's the real problem right now. All the weight loss progress I once made has almost been entirely erased... and I'm extremely, extremely upset about it. I'd rather move onto the next question than elaborate on this bullshit. Do you carry condoms? No, I don't have a reason to. Would you date someone with braces? Yes. Do you think people look up to you? God no. How often do you have trouble sleeping at night? Pretty much every night. Any vacations planned? No. We've never been able to afford vacations. Who were you last in a car with? My mom. Did you ever watch Sailor Moon? Yeah. My older sister was ooooobsessed. She even had the little toy wand and would dance to the theme when it came on. What do you want for Christmas? Well, it's rather early to think of that, but if I had to pull out an answer right now, it'd probably be either Venus' new terrarium (if I don't already have it) or supplies for it. If by some miracle I've been able to get everything I wanted for it by then, I would seriously love a hognose snake. If you had to get glasses would you wear contacts? I've worn glasses for many years, and I can live with it. I'd prefer contacts so I can get an undereye dermal piercing, but they're just too tedious for me. Best party you’ve ever been to? Maybe a big party my friend Summer had for one of her birthdays many years ago. We played lots of games like darts and stuff while listening to good music and just hanging out. Have you ever been surfing? I have not. Are you thinking about asking anyone out? No. Pink lemonade or regular lemonade? Pink. Chocolate or strawberry milk? Chocolate, for sure. I hate strawberry milk. Are you subscribed to a lot of channels on YouTube? Oh yes. Do you wish you had a better phone? Yeah. I mean, my phone is fine, but I particularly dislike the poor camera quality. Do you find texting fun? I'm officially becoming an old woman in that I don't really like texting anymore, but only because I make way too many typos. I would much rather type via an actual keyboard. Do you have any friends who have had twins? No. Do you have any past mistakes you’ve made that haunt you every day? Yes. Seriously. Are you bothered by something someone said to you years ago? Things especially Bryar and Colleen have said to me are probably going to die with me.

#survey #surveys #questions #lyrics: ''pet'' by a perfect circle

[http-skzhyuns]

summers with you | lee felix

genre: angst, just plain sad and and sht :<

warnings: mild usage of curses,, 

words: 1.2k

requested: yes! bestfriend!felix 

hi, i’m not sure if this is... it. i- but, well, writing this hurted. 😔

summary: you’ve always spent your summers with him. only after this summer, you wondered if things are gonna be the same.

you’ve known felix all your life. you’ve seen him fall off his bike, get scratches, you were there when he had his first dance recital; you grew up together, living in the same neighborhood and having your parents being practically bestfriends with each other. it’s no surprise that you and felix are bestfriends.

you were also there when he got accepted to the company. while, it took a whole lot out of you to pretend you’re not crying when you see him off at the airport, you knew school dances and the neighborhood will never be the same to you, not without felix around.

you can’t remember when is the exact moment you realized you liked him more than the little felix that you grew up with. you didn’t notice when you suddenly began paying attention to how his eyes have twinkled when he talks about this new choreography he learned or all the silly little things he’ll do.

“hey, take care of yourself, okay?” you bit your lip to try and hold the tears in.

he smiled at you before stepping in for a hug, “i will, don’t forget about me. i won’t be there to make your day brighter with fortnite dances”

you let out a laugh, “yeah, that’s one thing i won’t miss from you. have a safe flight, lix”

but, it did changed. and, that made it so much harder to let him walk and board that plane, not knowing when you’ll be able to see him again.

you thought it’d be the end of your usual nightly rundowns of how your day went until felix started videocalling you every chance he gets. although, it wasn’t often, it was better than nothing. your favorite freckled boy is still the same dorky ass you fell in love with. when his mother asked that you come with them one summer, you knew you can’t pass that chance up.

and so it begins, the summers were spent with felix and his family. you would go to coffee shops and visit animals with him during his free time. sometimes, you’re even allowed to visit him at the company and watch him do what he loves the most. you’d tease him about his different hair colors and the mystery of how he kept his scalp intact. you were there when he debuted and you cried at seeing him make his dream come true. somehow, between the summers you’ve spent with each other and the late night videocalls, you knew you’re falling for the lovely boy — and harder than you ever knew.

it took a couple of months before you made your decision. this summer, you’ll confess to felix lee, your best friend and your anchor. when you packed your luggage, you went over the script you made up in your head when you tell him. you decided it’d be best to do so before you leave korea. perhaps, you’re trying to runaway from the possible fallout that might take place after the confession. but, the thought of not having felix in your life is almost enough to make you a crumpled mess. but, so is the overwhelming emotions you have for your bestfriend.

for the rest of the summer, you tried to spend as much time as you can with felix. trying to soak up all the moments for fear that it’ll be the last. what if he starts hating me? you’re scared that the confession will end your friendship, but your heart can only pretend so long until it’ll become a form of punishment.

at the last day of your vacation, you planned to spend it with felix.maybe it’ll be the one last chance i have. lucky for you, the boy has a day-off after his rigorous schedule. 

“lix, do you remember that time when we snuck out at two am to buy snacks?” you randomly asked, as you both watched the waves crash on the shore. the sand felt weird in your toes, but you can’t tell if its the nerves or a tell-tale sign that this is not a good decision.

he laughed at the memory, “ yeah, we were both grounded after that. worse 3 days of my life, i guess. i didn’t get to see you for a while, i had no one to show my new choreography and the viral dances i learned”

you smiled, tracing some random lines and shape in the sand with your finger,  “yeah, i thought i was going to go crazy while inside my house, i don’t even get to call you or something”

silence.

“listen, lix” you started, turning to look at him, you were met with his eyes directly looking at you. his freckles more noticeable in this light, and he has never look more beautiful in your eyes.

“i-“ you swallowed in nervousness. this is your friendship on the line. felix’s face contorted in confusion as he watch you struggle for words.

“are you okay?” he asked.

“yeah, i am. i just-”

“-i like you. a lot.” you blurted out. it wasn’t like the way you imagined your confession to go, but at least it’s out. it felt like a weight is lifted off you. you let out a heavy breath.

“i-i don’t when it started or how, but i” you lowered your head in fear of seeing his reaction.

felix, on the other hand, froze. you like him. he can’t believe that his bestfriend likes him.

“i’m sorry...” and just like that, your heart broke.

“it’s okay... i just want to let you know. i wasn’t expecting for you to reciprocate it, lix” you tried to smile at him, as his brows creased in worry and sadness.

your heart clenched, looking at how his hair shine and how his eyes seems to gloss over, his lips set in a thin line.

“i’m so sorry, y/n. i don’t -” he whispered his apology again, his heart broke when you uttered those words, knowing he doesn’t feel the same way about you.

“please, it’s okay. let’s move on from this moment, okay?” you tried to lift the mood up as you stand up and pat your body free of the sand. 

“come on, it’s time to go back home, it’s almost dark,” you held your hand out to help him stand up. 

once the both of you is standing, you began to walk back. the silence enough to answer the fears you had before confessing. 

the next day, you have to fly back home. walking to felix, you embraced him in a in a tight hug. your chest felt tight, like it’s about to break from the pressure its being subjected to, but you try to keep it together. felix tightened his hug,”i’m gonna miss you. take care of yourself, you dumb ass. good luck on your final year and have a safe flight.” 

you let out a laugh, “i’m gonna breeze through my final year, get better at video games, and fly back here just to beat your weak ass,”

you wave as you walk to the boarding area. turning back, your smile faltered.  felix, on the other hand, dropped his hand as he watch you walk away. his body felt heavier on the way back to the dorms. the both of you knowing that what just transpired yesterday might determine how your friendship will turn out in the future. 

#stray kids angst #stray kids #stray kids au #stray kids scenarios #stray kids blurbs #lee felix #felix lee au #skz angst #skz scenario #skz au #skz felix

[queen-of-deans-booty]

Swap Meat: Part One

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Word Count: 2,829

Warnings: typical supernatural violence, language, angst, blood, you know the usual

Author’s Note: I do not own anything from Supernatural. All credit goes to their respective owners. Any and all comments on these are appreciated. I really want to hear what you guys think about this one!

Feedback is the glue that holds my writing together.

Tags at the bottom

Lucifer. Michael. Amara. Angels. Demons. Apocalypse. Colt. Crowley.

All of those people and places are being jumbled up in your head. It wasn’t fair since you never asked for this. Whoever put you in charge of… anything? Whose bright idea was it to give you powers, especially important ones? Being a witch was exhausting, but there was a whole world waiting to be saved, and only a select few that could get the job done.

Everyone seemed to need you, but the one person you decided to help today was your former babysitter, Donna. She and her family had been having some kind of problems lately with a spirit so you there decided to do her a solid and help out.

“Dean and Sammy Winchester. Can’t forget about Y/N too,” Donna reminisced with a smile. Her and her daughter Katie sat on a sofa on one side of a coffee table while you and the Winchesters sat on the other side. “So, how long has it been?”

“The summer before 6th grade,” Sam answered.

“Mmm, I remember. You assigned yourself your own reading list.”

“That’s right. I forgot about that,” Dean chuckled.

“Your mom happens to be the best babysitter we ever had,” you said to Katie with a smile.

“Well, when I was a maid at the Mayflower, out on the interstate—long before you were even an idea—their daddy used to pass through town and leave the boys and Y/N with me while he went off to... work. One time, he was gone for two weeks,” Donna told her daughter.

“Two weeks?”

“Mm-hmm. Oh, he'd always come limping back. He loved you three.”

“Did you know what he did all that time?” Katie asked curiously.

“Little Sammy kept trying to tell me. Of course, I didn't believe him. Not at first, anyway.”

“Katie, our dad, um, happened to be an expert at getting rid of ghosts. And now, so are we.”

“That's why I called them, sweetie. They can help us,” Donna sighed.

Her husband comes into the room carrying three suitcases.

“So, it sounds like you guys got yourself a poltergeist,” you got down the business.

“Started a month or two after we moved in,” the husband said.

“Yeah, at first it was, uh, just bumps, knocks, and scratches on the walls. Then, it started breaking things.”

“Is that before it attacked Katie?” Sam asked.

“That was two nights ago,” the father sighed.

“Can you show them, honey?” Donna asked.

Katie reluctantly stood up before lifting her shirt, revealing the words ‘Murdered Chylde’ carved into her skin.

“Oh my God,” you whispered. Katie looked to be in a lot of pain, and you knew you could do something about it. “Do you mind if I try something?”

“Try what?” Donna asked worriedly.

“Don’t worry, she won’t hurt Katie,” Dean assured the parents.

Donna nodded, but you looked at Katie for permission. When the young girl nodded, you got up and sat next to her before placing your hands gently on the wound. She winced from the pressure, and your hands turned a soft blue as your magic worked to heal the young girl. Katie, Donna, and her husband watched as the words slowly disappeared one by one until they were all gone.

“No way,” Katie whispered.

“Way,” you whispered back with a wink.

“Thank you so much,” Donna said emotionally.

“You’re welcome.”

“Katie, everything's gonna be fine. I promise. Why don't you guys take yourselves a little vacation, and, uh, we'll take care of it,” Dean assured with a smile.

“Thank you,” Donna whispered once more.

After the family left, you decided to talk about this case and what approach might be best in a small diner close to their house. You and Sam were sitting at the table while Dean went and got the food. Once he did, he brought it back and everyone began to dig in. Sam ordered a Health Quake Salad Shake, and he grabbed the dressing before adding it to the mixture. He shook the container very thoroughly, opened it, and dug in.

“Oh, you shake it up, baby. You know, poltergeist aside, Donna looked pretty good, don't you think?” Dean asked.

“Dude don't tell me you've still got the hots for our babysitter. Not when your girlfriend is sitting right there,” Sam snickered when you rolled your eyes.

“What? No,” Dean chuckled. “I'm just saying that she, you know, she’s doing good. You know, with her husband and her kid. This whole Amityville thing being thrown at them, and they're hanging tough.”

“Yeah.”

“You ever think that you'd want something like that? Wife, rugrats, the whole nine?”

“No, not really my thing anymore,” Sam shrugged.

“Do you?” Dean asked, looking at you.

“I think that’s a conversation for another time, yeah? We’ll talk about it,” you grinned.

Of course, you wanted children, and having Dean’s kids was a heaven in of itself, but there was no way you could have them right now. With everything going on with Lucifer, Michael, Amara, and the Apocalypse, there just wasn’t enough time to spend on a child.

“Yeah. So, Sammy, what do you got?”

“Uh, well, that house of theirs, it's old—really old. Um, hundreds of years. I found a legend. It’s unconfirmed, but still.”

“What does it say?” you asked, taking a bite of your burger.

“Supposedly, in the 1720s, the house was owned by a guy named Isaiah Pickett,” he explained, turning his laptop around to show you and Dean the screen. “Legend has it he hung a woman in his backyard for witchcraft—a woman named Maggie Briggs.”

“Okay, so an angry ghost witch?”

“If it's true. That still doesn't explain what ‘Murdered Chylde’ means,” you pointed out.

“No, or where the bitch is buried,” Dean sighed.

“You know, I mean, it's a long way back, but I can see if I can find something in the town records.”

“It's worth a shot,” Dean shrugged.

The lunch was finished up pretty quickly, and then you three headed your separate ways. Sam went to do what he said he was going to do, and you and Dean went back to the motel.

“So, do you want kids?” Dean asked once you two were in the privacy of the room.

“With you? Of course,” you smiled, sitting on the bed.

“I’m being serious,” he chuckled.

“So am I. Do I want kids now? I don’t know. I mean, do you really think we can raise a child in this mess? Lucifer is still out there, and you know that whoever finds out about this can easily use it as leverage.”

“I know,” Dean nodded, taking a seat next to you.

He grabbed your hand and intertwined your fingers loosely.

“Having your kids would be an honor, Dean. You’d make a great father.”

“Would I though?” he asked, looking into your eyes.

This is one of those times he showed his vulnerability.

“The fact that you asked me that question tells me you would be. You already are. Our kid would be lucky to have you as a father,” you grinned, leaning in and kissing him tenderly.

“You’d make a great mom.”

“Oh yeah, what kid wouldn’t want to have an all-powerful witch as a mom,” you joked with a laugh.

The moment was ruined when Dean’s phone rang, and he picked it up knowing it was Sam.

“So, any luck?” he asked, putting it on speaker phone.

“Bupkis. I can't even find proof a woman named Maggie Briggs existed, much less where she was planted.”

“Alright. Well, we've got a minute to breathe here, so, uh, let's pick it up first thing.”

“Yeah, you bet. See you in a few,” Sam concluded, hanging up the phone.

Laying down on the bed, Dean tossed his phone aside before hovering over you.

“What are you doing?” you grinned, placing your arms around his neck loosely.

“Kids are out of the question right now, but we can still have fun trying,” he smirked, pressing. A few kisses to the base of your neck.

“Sam is going to be back in a few minutes,” you giggled.

“I locked the door, and he doesn’t have a key.”

“Yeah, alright,” you nodded, bringing his lips to yours.

While you may not have all the time in the world, that didn’t mean you weren’t going to have a fun time.

“Is he still not back yet?” you asked, trying Sam for the hundredth time.

He should have been back by now, but there had been no word from the younger brother. This wasn’t like him at all, and you were starting to get worried. Instead of waiting for him to come to you, you and Dean left to search for him. There was only so many places he could be, and he wasn’t in any single one of them. By the time you got back, you were considering asking Castiel for help when you noticed Sam standing in front of a mirror, flexing to himself.

“Sam. Where the hell you been, man? We’ve been trying to call you for hours.”

“I picked up some food. Bacon burger turbo, large chili-cheese fry, right?” Sam said, motioning to the bag of food on the table. “Sorry, man. Really. I—I lost track of time. I didn't mean to freak you out.”

“Thanks. Don't know why it took you two hours, but thanks.”

“Oh, you're gonna want to eat that on the road.”

“Why?” you asked, frowning.

There was something off about Sam, but you couldn’t place it.

“The maid came in, saw that,” he pointed to the weapons you laid out after you and Dean were done for cleaning, “and now they're all kind of freaking out.”

“Why’d you let the maid in?”

“It just happened.”

“Whatever. I got to hit the head, and then we'll take off,” Dean sighed.

“Alright. I—I’ll be outside,” Sam stuttered.

As he was going to leave the room, you stopped him by putting a hand on his chest.

“Hey, do you mind if I try something?” you asked, your eyes turning bright blue.

Sam freaked out for a moment and backed away as if he was scared of what you could do.

“You’re a witch?” he asked, shocked as if he never knew this before.

“What?” you snapped.

“I’m sorry, excuse me,” he muttered, walking around you to leave.

When the door closed, you walked to the bathroom and waited for Dean to be done before expressing your concerns.

“There is something wrong with Sam.”

“There’s always something wrong with him. It’s Sam,” Dean scoffed, going over to the weapons to start packing.

“No, there is seriously something wrong. I don’t know what it is yet, but it’s not normal.”

“I’m sure it’s fine. Help me, would you?” he asked.

Sighing, you helped Dean pack the things into the bags before heading to the car where Sam was waiting patiently.

“Hey. You ready?”

“Absolutely,” he grinned. Getting inside the back seat, Dean was about to turn the car on when Sam stopped him. “Hey, can I drive?”

“Okay,” Dean posed it more like a question.

The two brothers switched seats, and you watched Sam get excited about being behind the wheel.

“Oh, this is so sweet!” Sam grinned, starting the engine.

He loved the sound of the car, so he revved the engine a few times, but you and Dean were staring at him with looks of concern.

“You want to get the lead out, Andretti? Come on,” Dean scoffed. Sam put the car into gear, and when Dean looked over, he began freaking out. “Reverse.” Sam began to go backwards. “Reve—Reverse!”

Sam slammed the gas pedal and rammed into the dumpsters behind you. Gasping, you put your hand over your mouth in shock at his behavior. Dean looked pissed, and the only thing he could do was look at his brother.

“It’s in reverse.”

“I am really, really sorry,” Sam apologized as they got out to inspect the damage.

They switched seats, and Dean got in with a huff.

“Shut up,” he grumbled.

Dean put the car into drive and squealed out of there.

In order to work the case, you needed a motel room, one without freaked out maids. You had to get another one, and this time, you made sure to tell Sam that he shouldn’t let the maids in until after you guys are done with the case. There was something seriously wrong with Sam, and the longer this goes on, the more it bugged you.

“So, uh, where we going, anyway?” Sam asked.

“To work. The case?” Dean said, looking at him weirdly.

“Oh, right. Yeah—the case. Of course. Where, uh, do you want to start?”

“Well, since you couldn't find where Maggie Briggs was buried, we have to do an all-day tombstone roll to see if we can dig her up.”

“Wait. M-Maggie Briggs? You mean, like, the witch Maggie Briggs?”

“Yeah, Sherlock,” Dean scoffed, looking at you with a weird look in his eyes.

You three stopped on opposite sides of the Impala and was about to get in when Sam spoke.

“Yeah, she's in the basement.”

“Excuse me? W-what basement?” you asked.

“Isaiah Pickett’s house. Okay, there's this legend that he hung her, but he didn't. The real truth is that she was carrying his illegitimate child, and he killed her and then buried her in the basement.”

“The murdered chylde. That would explain the scratches. How do you know all this?” Dean asked.

“Oh, I've done all kinds of research on it,” Sam chuckled, but neither you nor Dean found this funny. “I mean, you know, last night.”

“Yeah. Nice work... I guess,” Dean sighed.

“But he was with us the entire night,” you whispered to yourself.

Dean heard this, and he gave you a quick look before you three got into the car. Dean turned on the radio and Bob Seger’s “Rock ‘n’ Roll Forgets” begins to play.

“Aw, man, turn it up!” Sam grinned.

“Seriously?” you and Dean asked at the same time.

“Hell yeah!”

Dean didn’t know what was going on with his brother, but he turned the radio up, nonetheless. He screeched out of the parking spot and drove to the house where the witch was killed in order to get this case over with. Sam told Dean the way, and when you arrived, you three snuck into the basement in order to get this over with. The electricity wasn’t working in the house, so you had to rely on your flashlights to do the job.

Inching your way down the stairs, you looked around for any kind of spirits or other kinds of monsters that might pop out from the shadows. With the brothers behind you, you made sure to lead them the right way since the basement was huge.

“Boo-yah! Master chief is in the house, bizatches!” Sam yelled.

Halting, you and Dean looked at Sam with a scrunched-up face.

“Are you alright?” Dean asked.

“Yeah. Fine,” Sam frowned.

Shaking your head, you headed further into the basement only to see Willow Moss growing in the back room on a bed made to look like a grave.

“Well, I'll be damned. Willow moss,” Dean chuckled.

“Yeah, right. It's, uh, supposed to grow over witches' graves, right?” Sam asked.

“Yeah,” you answered, knowing Sam should definitely know this.

Dean set up shop and took out the shovels, handing one to you to begin digging. While you two were doing that, Sam held up a gun to the back of Dean’s head as if he was going to shoot him. A chilling shock ran down the length of your spine, but you didn’t know why this was happening.

“Hey, man, I'm really sorry about this,” Sam apologized.

“Sorry about what?” Dean asked.

Turning around, you watched as Sam was thrown back by an invisible force. Dean stopped what he was doing to go help his brother, and you rushed over with him despite everything in your body telling you not to.

“Sam! You okay?” he asked, helping his brother up.

“Let's get the hell out of here!” Sam panicked.

“Wait, wait, wait. We still got to burn the body, you idiot. Come on,” you snapped, walking back over to the grave.

However, Dean was forced into the wall just like Sam was not a moment ago. Sam jumped out of the way when a ghost appeared right before your eyes. You rushed over to Dean and helped him up, staring at the ghost who had a murderous look in her eyes. She growled and rushed at you and Dean, but before she could make contact, she went up in flames and disappeared. Sam stood by the open grave with flames inside of it, holding a can of lighter fluid in his eyes.

“Dude, that was sweet!” Sam grinned.

Okay, this has got to stop.

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[writingfandomfeels]

Bellamy Blake - The Exception

A/N: This was a request, and when I had originally posted it I posted it with the request but obviously with the accidental delete, I no longer have it but from what I remember the summary was basically...

Summary: You end up hooking up with Bellamy over the summer and then he transfers to your school but you have a rule where you don’t date anyone from school. 

Smut between ~~~

The machine buzzed as you fed it your dollar bill. You punched in the code for the soda you wanted and just as the vending machine was about to push it for the drink to drop down, it got stuck. You let out a frustrated breath, glaring at the bottle. 

“Need a hand?” A deep voice came from your left. 

You turned to look at the stranger who had joined you on the boardwalk. He shouldered the machine, shaking it and causing the drink to fall down. He wore a mop of wavy brown hair matched with intense caramel eyes and a strong build. He bent down to take the drink from the machine for you and- oops, did you just? No, you didn’t just check out his butt. Nope, nope, nope, nope- although… if you had… you would definitely take note that he does in fact have a great butt, which you definitely didn’t notice and especially didn’t stare are. He stood and faced you again, handing you the soda. 

“Here,” he smiled. 

“Thanks” You smiled back and took the bottle from him, trying to suppress the feeling in your stomach when your hands grazed each other in the exchange. You pressed your lips together, trying to find a way to make conversation. 

“So, you come here often?” He asked then chuckled. “Sorry, that came out as such a line.” 

You laughed too, relieved for him to have started the conversation. 

“Yeah, my family comes to this beach every summer. We rent a cabin that’s just a walk away from here.” You gestured in the direction of the place. 

He nodded. “This is the first time my family has vacationed here. It’s not bad though.” 

“Have you seen the sites yet?” You inquired. 

He looked around. “What is there really to see?” 

“Well,” you began listing the oh-so exciting attractions of the tiny community, “on the boardwalk here there’s Joe’s, he’s got the best fish and chips; if you don’t mind hiking a bit there’s an inlet that makes for more of a small private beach; umm, there’s a cave on the north side of the beach that’s kind of cool to check out; in town there’s an A&W and an arcade aaaand that’s about it.” You shrugged, unscrewing the cap of your soda and taking a sip of it. “They do have this big summer bash tonight though. The community puts it on every year. There’s fireworks and games and a dance floor and everyone brings food to share. You should come if you’re not busy.” 

“Yeah, that sounds like it’d be fun.” 

“Okay,” you smiled, “I’ll see you tonight then, umm-?” 

“Bellamy.” He introduced himself. 

“I’m Y/N.” You replied. 

“Well thanks for the invite Y/N and I guess I’ll see you there.” He winked and took off. 

***

You stood watching as people got set up for the water balloon toss

“Are you playing miss?” An older woman who seemed to be in charge of the game asked you. 

“Oh, no, sorry. I’m just watching. I don’t have a partner.” You clarified. 

“There’s a young man over there who said the same thing to me not five minutes ago.” She said, gesturing. Your gaze followed her direction and found Bellamy in the crowd. “Maybe he could be your partner?” The woman suggested. 

You thanked her and approached him. “I hear you’re looking for a partner.” You stated. 

“Really? Who told on me?” He joked and smiled at the old woman. 

The others began to form a line and you followed suit. Making her way down the line, the old woman passed out the water balloons to each team. When she got to you she grinned, happy to find you had followed her advice. Once the balloons had all been distributed, there was a countdown, and then the competition started. 

“Right, so, I wasn’t paying attention, what do we do?” Bellamy asked. 

You laughed and threw the balloon at him. “Just catch it and throw it back, taking a step backward each time you catch it.” 

“Seems easy enough.” He said, taking the step back and throwing the water balloon back at you. He nearly missed though. You managed to bend down and catch it just in time before it hit the ground. 

You shook your head at him in a teasing way. 

He laughed. “Alright, maybe it is a little harder than I thought.” 

You wound your arm up, pretending you were about to throw it at him hard, overhand like a baseball. But just before you actually threw it, you switched your arm to underhand and threw it normally. You continued to catch and throw a few more times, getting further and further away. The competition was narrowing down and it was now between the two of you and one other pair. 

“You got this, you got this Bellamy.” You encouraged, feeling the pressure and excitement of everyone watching the competition getting intense now. 

He tossed the water balloon at you. But it landed hard in your hands and the tip of your nail dug into the rubbery flesh of the balloon, causing it to burst right in front of your face. You stared in shock as water dripped down your face. Bellamy stared back at you in shock. 

“Are you okay?” He asked, trying not to laugh and failing miserably. “I am so sorry.” 

Using your hands you wiped what water you could from your face and heard as they announced the other team the champions. 

“It’s okay, I’m fine.” You laughed. 

“Why don’t we go find you a towel.” He suggested, putting his arm around you and leading you to the boardwalk. You agreed. 

“Hey, hold on there!!” The old woman called after you. “You forgot your prize!” 

You both turned around. 

“But we didn’t win” Bellamy reminded. 

“Oh you kids got second place there’s still a prize for that.” She said, handing each of you a drawstring bag with the name of the place on it. 

You both thanked her and continued back to the boardwalk. After you dried off, you got some food and then danced with Bellamy a bit. You ran into your friends on the dance floor and they joined you. Your hair whipped around you as you twirled. One of your favourite songs came on and you couldn’t help singing along at the top of your lungs. It was a good thing the music was so loud nobody could hear you, considering you were most likely off key. Bellamy laughed at you when he noticed you mess up the lyrics. You made a face at him for noticing. When the song ended you had to sit down, feeling exhausted after moving so much. 

“Well that was fun.” He stated and grabbed you a bottle of water from a nearby cooler without you even needing to ask. 

“Thanks,” you said taking the bottle. “And yeah it has been pretty great. The fireworks shouldn’t be too much longer since the sun is setting now.” 

You were both quiet a moment while you rehydrated and watched the sunset. You tried to subtly glance over at him. The amber in his eyes sparkled in the dying light. You couldn’t help but feel attracted to him. 

“You know, it might be nice to grab a blanket to watch the fireworks on.” You said, knowing your parents wouldn’t be home at the moment. 

“Okay, you want me to wait here?” he asked. 

“That’s okay, you can come. Gives me a chance to show you our house.” You smiled. 

“Alright sure, let’s go.” He said and followed you back to your small beach house. 

You opened the screen door for the both of you. “I think it’s somewhere in my room.” 

“You don’t say” Bellamy said in a voice hinting that he knew exactly what you were up to. 

He followed you to your room. You began to panic a little, realizing that you had no idea what you were doing. You knew what you wanted to do, and of course you’d done that before, but this whole ‘looking for a blanket’ bit, although seemed like a great excuse at first was now causing you a bit of distress. Were you supposed to find the blanket? Were you supposed to give up? Do you just randomly start kissing him? It seemed like he knew that you weren’t really looking for a blanket, and yet he went along with it too. You opened the drawers of your dresser as you continued to ‘look for the blanket’. 

“Nope, not there.” you stated hoping the sentence didn’t come out as awkward as it felt to you. 

“Wow, look at the sunset now.” He said from in front of your open bedroom windows. 

You went over to join him and admired how the yellow and gold shades in the sky had now transformed into shades of bright pink and violet. 

“Yeah, it’s beautiful.” You agreed. 

For a moment the bright colors made you forget your initial objective that brought you to your room in the first place. But Bellamy reminded you when you suddenly felt his lips on yours. 

~~~

In the moment you were surprised, but embraced him nonetheless, wrapping your arms around his neck. You opened your mouth wider to give his tongue access and the two of you began battling for dominance. His hands moved from your waist down to your ass, causing you to smile into the kiss. 

The two of you moved to your bed so you were both sitting on it now. As you continued to kiss, you felt yourself begin to lean back, gradually laying yourself down. He followed your motion and moved to hover over you. 

The heat between the two of you continued to grow, creating an urgency, so you moved your hands down, beginning to unbutton your shorts. Noticing this, he pulled them off of you and threw them across the room. You grabbed at his shirt, pulling it off of him now too. He quickly pulled off his pants but hurried back to holding you in his muscular arms. 

He slid his hand under your shirt and you reached behind yourself, unclasping your bra, giving him full access to your chest. As he kneaded one in his hand, he moved his mouth to your neck. You were certain you’d find marks left there later. 

He took his hand away from your breast and moved it down to pull off your panties. Eagerly you waited on the bed as he now pulled off his boxers and applied a condom he’d had in his pants pocket. You tried to hold back a smile as you took in the sight of all of him. As soon as the condom was on, he returned his body to on top of yours. 

You gripped his bicep as he slid himself into you. Immediately he started thrusting into you, not bothering to take to time to ease into it. He could tell by how wet you were that you were already set to kick it into high gear. It felt as though rather than starting from the bottom and slowly working your way up, you both dived right into the deep end, and it only grew more intense with every second. 

Droplets of sweat trickled down your body, quickly evaporating as the cool evening breeze blew through the open windows and brushed softly against your skin. You kissed his neck, moaning against his skin. The old bed in the beach house creaked with each time he thrust himself into you, feeling deeper every time. 

A loud booming noise echoed from outside, followed by another. Bellamy moved so he was kissing your breasts now. You turned your head to see the fireworks through the windows, exploding into the night sky. The deafening sound coming from them so loud that you could feel it. Bellamy grunted as he began thrusting on the same beats as the fireworks went off. 

You gasped, unable to comprehend the intensity of the pleasure you were feeling in that moment. You wondered how it was possible it could have continued to increase like it did. It felt as though you were reaching your max and yet it just kept escalating. Your body began to feel weaker and your legs started to tremble. It was too much for you, surely your body couldn’t handle it all. 

His body seemed to be feeling a similar way as his thrusts became sloppier and he groaned loudly. And then suddenly without warning you cried out, feeling the release of the constant growing intensity. A warm sleepy feeling came over you, not unlike the times when you've been laying in the sun for long periods of time. Bellamy continued to go for a brief moment longer before he felt the same release and moved next to you, panting. 

“We missed the fireworks.” He noted after a minute had passed. 

“Pretty sure we made our own.” You responded and he chuckled. 

***

After that night you and Bellamy tried to spend time together again but things kept coming up. Either your parents wanted you with them to have family time together or your friends had an important volleyball game you couldn’t miss, or he had to spend time with his sister, either way your schedules just didn’t seem to want to cooperate. Soon his family left and went back to wherever it was he was from. It bummed you out a bit but in all honestly you were a little relieved too. You weren’t really the type to have one night stands and it embarrassed you a little. Not that you thought there was anything wrong with people who do have one night stands, it just wasn’t normally your thing. It relieved you to think you might be able to forget it had ever happened and never see him again. Except that didn’t happen. 

You were standing with your best friend at their locker when you saw him walk down the hallway. 

“Oh shit.” You muttered under your breath. 

“What is it?” Your friend asked. 

You tried to duck behind the open locker door. 

“So, um… remember the guy I mentioned? From over the summer?” You said nervously. You may have wanted to forget about what you did, but obviously you had to tell your best friend still. 

“Yeah?” 

“That… would be him.” You tried to subtly gesture in Bellamy’s direction. 

“Wow. He’s pretty hot.” They noticed. “You gonna talk to him?” 

“What?! Are you kidding me? I can’t do that! What if he expects us to go out now? He obviously has transferred to our school and you know my rule about not getting involved with anyone at our school.” 

“Yeah but that’s because, for the most part, everyone at our school sucks. He didn't seem to suck before, did he?” Your friend asked. 

You thought about this a moment. “I don’t know, let’s just get to class.” 

The two of you scurried through the hallways to make it on time for your English class. The teacher this year had assigned seating. You examined the chart and then found the desk you were assigned to. Right next to…

“Hey stranger” Bellamy greeted. 

“Hey.” You gave him an awkward smile and immediately opened your binder. It was filled with blank paper for you to take notes but he didn’t have to know that. 

“Sorry I never saw you again over the summer. Things were just really busy. You know, I don’t think I even got your number.” 

“It’s fine.” You stated, still focusing your attention on the empty sheets. 

He paused. “You know Y/N, I do feel really awful for the way things ended. Maybe you’d want to-” 

You cut him off, “I don’t date people in my school.” 

“Oh.” He stared at you a little in shock. 

“Sorry,” You apologized, feeling a little bad now for how harsh you’d been. You just really wanted to make sure the message got across. 

He cleared his throat. “No, that’s fine. I get it.” 

The teacher soon entered and went over the syllabus for the class, then she assigned the novel study you’d be starting. 

You sighed once the class had ended. “I hate Shakespeare.” You muttered under your breath. 

“It’s not everyone’s thing.” Bellamy commented, obviously having heard you. 

“I can never understand what anyone is saying.” You complained. 

“If you want I’d be happy to help you get the hang of it.” Bellamy offered. 

You gave him an irritated look. Had he not gotten the picture? 

“Relax, alright? I’m not saying it’s a date or anything. I’m just offering as a friend who has experience in Shakespeare.” 

You thought about this for a moment before agreeing. The next evening, Bellamy came over to your house to help you study. 

“So how far did you get before things stopped making sense?” Bellamy asked. 

“Act 1 Scene 1” You replied. 

“Okay, let’s see.” He said, and you both opened your copies of Much Ado About Nothing. 

Hours went by, but very slowly you began to grasp some of the old language. 

“So, here Benedick is saying… something about not trusting women and wanting to always be a bachelor?” You asked for confirmation. 

Bellamy nodded. “In summary, yes, that’s what he said. That he’s thankful for his mom who gave birth to him and raised him but he asks all other women forgive him for not wanting to be made a fool. He doesn’t want to insult any of them by mistrusting them so he’s just going to avoid them all. When he says ‘And the fine is, for the which I may go the finer, I will live a bachelor.’ There he’s saying that in conclusion, he’ll stay a bachelor and the money he saves in staying single he will spend on dressing nicely.” Bellamy explained. “You’re not doing too bad though.” 

For the next two weeks Bellamy continued to come over and help you understand the Bard. In that time you began growing closer as friends and the closer you got the more you questioned why your rule was so important. You had made it to protect yourself from the fuckboys at your school, but the more you got to know Bellamy, the more you realized he was nothing like them. He was the exception to the rule.

“Benedick: I do love nothing in the world so well as you. Is not that strange? Beatrice: As strange as the thing I know not. It were as possible for me to say I loved nothing so well as you, but believe me not, and yet I lie not, I confess nothing, nor I deny nothing. I am sorry for my cousin.” Bellamy read out loud.

“Bellamy?” 

He looked up from the book, those caramel eyes of his meeting yours, curious as to what you wanted to say. 

“Do you think, after this, you’d like to go get something to eat?” 

“Sure, I’m getting a bit hungry myself. Should we invite-” 

“Actually,” you cut him off, “I was thinking it could just be us. You know. Like a date.” 

His eyes sparkled with intrigue. “What happened to your rule?” 

“I think I’d like to make an exception.” 

He nodded his head and closed the book. “Alright, let’s go.” He smiled at you and held your bedroom door open for you. “After you.”

#bellamy x reader #the 100 bellamy #bellamy imagine #bellamy smut #bellamy blake x reader #my writing

[chaoticspacefam]

OC Playlist Meme - Saarai (of course)

I was tagged by @thehighground​ (thank you! :D) this one was super fun!! I was caught between the twins of who I should do for this one, Saarai won because she is my favourite and her 70-song playlist was basically made for memes like this (yes, you heard me, 70. No it’s not a typo. Yes I have a slight, maybe, problem with her being my favourite LOL) 👍

I’ve shared all their playlists at various points, if you search up the “swtor oc theme songs” and “oc playlist” tag on the blog you should be able to find them! Or if you want links to the full playlists drop me a line and I can link you to them no problem! :D

Just the one this time cause this one’s pretty long, if I get tagged again tho I’ll do Ni’kasi next! :D

I shall tag (if you feel like it, no pressure as always!) @abyssal-space​ @stratosara​ @anchanted-one​ @pauletta-00​ @hypnowinnermugpeach​ and anybody else who wants to have a go, this one’s super fun! Long post so under a cut! <3 gonna pop the content warning up here to: TW for mention of past abuse/manipulation and parental abuse in one of the songs in case ya wanna avoid it. there’s a warning above the specific section as well if you wanna read the rest and just skip that song, up to you!

♦️  Their intro theme: Up The Wolves - The Mountain Goats

“I’m gonna get myself in fighting trim, scope out every angle of unfair advantage. I’m gonna bribe the officials, I’m gonna kill all the judges! It’s gonna take you people years to recover from all of the damage!! Our mother has been absent, ever since we founded Rome. But there’s gonna be a party when the wolf comes home.”

♦️  Their own favorite song: DARKSIDE - Shinedown

(She has to set a good example with being one of the leaders of the Alliance (especially because her saying “don’t do that” is the only reason her sister and Aria don’t go for their new Jedi allies - at least to start with, before the Alliance y’know, bonds and becomes a proper coalition!). But learning to trust Jedi was still hard for her after what they did to her people, and I feel like if it existed in the verse she’d find it relatable and listen to it a lot.)

“Can you hear me, am I speaking clearly? Are you star-struck or just made of stone? Block out the actors, and all these bastards. That took all the fun out of rage and revenge.”

♦️  Their boss battle theme: Castle - Halsey

(it was difficult to pick one for this one, she has quite a few in her playlist that I consider her “boss battle” songs for various points in her life/the two different verses. But I think this one is the most universal! :D)

“I’m heading straight for the castle. They wanna make me their Queen. And there’s an old man sitting on the throne there sayin’ that I ‘probably shouldn’t be so mean.’ I’m heading straight for the castle...they got the kingdom locked up. And there’s an old man sitting on the throne there sayin’ ‘I should probably keep my pretty mouth shut!’.”

♦️  Their love song: (one for each of her main ships, but again, they have whole playlists because I use playlists to “set the mood” of the character/ship while I write. Pro writing tip, do it. It helps [nod nod] <3)

For Zephyrverse/Sash: Heaven’s Gate - Fall Out Boy

“And in the end if I don’t make it on the list, would you sneak me a wristband? Or would you give me, give me, give me a boost? Give me a boost over heaven’s gate. I’m gonna need a boost, cause everything else is a subtitute for your love. Give me a boost over heaven’s gate.”

For Subterfugeverse/Lana & Koth: The Last Of The Real Ones - Fall Out Boy

“I know this whole damn city thinks it needs you, but not as much as I do. As much as I do...Cause you’re the last of a dying breed, write our names on the wet concrete. I wonder if your therapist knows everything about me. I’m here in search of your glory, there’s been a million before me, that ultra-kind of love you never walk away from. ”

♦️  Their sad times song: Bruno Is Orange - Hop Along (tw: mention of abuse/manipulation, parental abuse)

“ ‘Bruno, what happened to your good sense?!’ I broke down ‘That man was good!!’ ‘I bet he works for the government!’ Did you hear about that mother, broke her daughter’s legs in two and said: ‘It’s too dangerous out there to walk so I have to save you!’ ”

♦️  A song that fits their aesthetic: Woman King - Iron & Wine

“Black hoof mare. Broken leg. Eye on the shotgun shell. Age old dog. Hornet’s nest. Built in the big church bell. Hundred years, hundred more. Someday we may see a woman king, sword in hand, swing at some evil and bleed.”

♦️  A song that reminds them of a better time: Downhill - Lincoln

(though most of this song has sad undertones to it, this part in particular would remind her of the short time she had with her father when he was alive, when he would take the twins outside and sit them on his lap to look at the stars <3)

“Cause you were the first one to show me the stars. And they don’t mean much to me, but I still wonder where you are. Some nights I still try to find you, relative to constellations. And all your relatives are still on vacation, or so I heard from a friend...”

♦️  A song that calms them down: 10,000 Enemies - Emeli Sandé

(headcanon that this is a song their mother D’leah used to sing to her and her twin, Ni’kasi, when they were children hiding out on Rishi and it stuck with her.)

“I hear the sweetest sound, blowing from the North. It says ‘don’t panic now, what’s mine is yours...’ I hope 10,000 times you tell me the truth. Cause now there’s much to do. I trust in you. I shall be free...I shall be free. We shall be free.”

♦️  A song that gets them hyped up: Young And Menace - Fall Out Boy

“We’ve gone way too fast for way too long. And we were never supposed to make it half this far. And I’ve lived so much life, lived so much life. I think that God is gonna have to kill me twice.”

I’m assuming this section is meant to mean a song the character would associate with each season? So I hope I’ve interpreted that correctly, I wasn’t really sure what else it was referring to. So that’s what I’m doing LOL

♦️  Spring: Thunder - Imagine Dragons

“Just a young gun with a quick fuse. I was uptight, wanna let loose. I was dreaming of bigger things and wanna leave my own life behind. Not a yes sir, not a follower, fit the box, fit the mold, have a seat in the foyer. Take a number, I was lightning, before the thunder.”

♦️  Summer: The Times They Are A’Changin’ - Fort Nowhere

(a.k.a the time of year where everything went to hell for her, though she uses it to remind her of how far she’s come once she’s older and more at peace with everything that happened so it’s positive in the end!)

“Come gather round people, wherever you roam. And admit that the waters around you have grown, and accept it that soon you’ll be drenched to the bone. If your time to you is worth saving, well you better start swimming or you’ll sink like a stone. For the times, they are a’changin’.”

♦️  Autumn: Dragon - Built By Titan feat. Skyborne

“When I was younger, I had a dragon. We would fly away to places you can’t imagine. And this is a story, of a lonely island. And a boy who found a way to become a lion.”

♦️  Winter: Youth - Glass Animals

(Winter is when Ty was born so it’s a mixed bag of trauma-induced depression (See “sad-times” song above), missing her twin and being sad about what happened but also wanting to make sure Ty never has to experience what she did and just wanting him to have a safe & happy life, so. This song kinda fits that.)

“Boy, when I left you you were young. I was gone but not my love, you were clearly meant for more than a life lost in the war. Oh, I want you to be happy, free to run get dizzy on caffeine, funny friends that make you laugh and maybe you’re just a little bit dappy.”

♦️  The song that plays while they’re lying on the ground bleeding out in a Walmart: Everything You Ever - Neil Patrick Harris (from Dr Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog)

“So your world’s benign. So you think justice has a voice? And we all have a choice? Well now, your world is mine.”

♦️  The song that would play each morning if they’re stuck in a time loop: Ends Of The Earth - Lord Huron

“ Oh, there's an island where all things are silent, I'm gonna whistle a tune. Oh, there's a desert that size can't be measured; I'm gonna count all the dunes.”

♦️  The song they’d listen to while robbing a Wendy’s: Pork Soda - Glass Animals

“Somebody said I’m a fucking slum, don’t know where I belong. Maybe you’re fucking dumb, maybe I’m just a bum. Maybe you’re fucking scum, don’t you go psycho chum.”

♦️  The song they’d accidentally introduce to people in medieval times if they were a time traveller: The Time Warp - Rocky Horror Picture Show.

(Also not accidentally, she has a silly side and she’d probably play this one for the LOL’s to see who got it or who got mad. She’d totally learn the dance moves and do those too XD)

“ The blackness would hit me And the void would be calling Let's do the Time Warp again Let's do the Time Warp again.”

♦️  The song they’d play in the middle of the night when their neighbors are being too loud: Blood // Water - grandson

("Do you think if I play a really loud, aggressively threatening song they’d shut the fuck up? I’m gonna do it. I’m gonna try it.” XD).

“You’ll never get free, lamb to the slaughter, what you gon’ do when there’s blood in the water?!”

♦️  The song that plays at their funeral: Sax Rohmer #1 - The Mountain Goats

“Ships loosed from their moorings capsize and then they're gone. Sailors with no captains watch a while and then move on. And an agent crests the shadows and I head in her direction. All roads lead toward the same blocked intersection. And I am coming home to you. With my own blood in my mouth...yes I am coming home, to you. If it’s the last thing that I do.”

♦️  The song that plays when it’s revealed that they faked their death: Joan of Arc - Arcade Fire

“You’re the one that they used to hate but they like you now. And everything that goes away will return somehow....first they love you, then they kill you, then they love you again...and then they love you, then they kill you, then they love you again.”

#swtor #star wars: the old republic #OC meme #tagged meme #swtor OC playlists #swtor oc theme songs #swtor oc: saarai ahaszaai #sith warrior #sith pureblood #[me cackling gleefully as i have yet another excuse to put my excessively-in-depth character playlists to good use] #except for the time warp obvs that's not in her playlist but c'mon what other song would you play to troll people when you time travel XD #let's face it saarai's basically taken over this blog #i should change my icon to one of my many screenshots of her really #tw: past trauma #tw: past abuse #tw: parental abuse #tw: manipulation

[dstarstories]

38-89 for Steele

89: Who makes you laugh the most: Probably Easton though our oldest Dane is a very close second place.

88: Something I will really miss when I leave home is: My kids, definitely.

87: The last movie I saw: Tangled is actually on right now. All kids movies all the time here *laughs*

86: The thing that I’m looking forward to the most: In general? The new baby getting here.

85: The thing im not looking forward to: When I have to go back to working in the office. Even though I have a lot of flexibility to work from home, I still have to go in from time to time so I’m not looking forward to that once this quarantine shit is over.

84: People call me: Steele or Mouse. Easton calls me Daddy sometimes too *smirks*

83: The most difficult thing to do is: Remind myself that my past doesn’t define me. Even though it’s been three years, staying sober is still difficult at times. I have a great support system though. That helps a lot.

82: I have gotten a speeding ticket: True.

81: My zodiac sign is: Gemini

80: The first person i talked to today was: Easton

79: First time you had a crush: Jesus, I don’t even remember. I’m sure when I was a kid. Telling you the last time I had a crush would be much easier. I know the answer to that one *laughs*

78: The one person who i can’t hide things from: The husband. Naturally.

77: Last time someone said something you were thinking: Easton probably. I think he said something under his breath about how he wished TJ would find a new favorite song to sing soon.

76: Right now I am talking to: Nobody. The younger kids are glued to the tv, Dane is reading on the floor & I’m pretty sure Easton is asleep beside me on the couch. I’d check but I don’t want to move & get poked in the ribs for waking him up.

75: What are you going to do when you grow up: I have to grow up more than this? Nooooooo!

74: I have/will get a job: Have. I help my father’s run Mercury Records. Technically my title is Vice President which means I do a little bit of anything that needs to be done & I’m over the employees & office operations.

73: Tomorrow: Is Friday & will be much like every other day since this shit began.

72: Today: is almost over.

71: Next Summer: I will hopefully be able to have a big family vacation, unlike this year I’m sure.

70: Next Weekend: is... I have nothing. Man, every day is the same right now honestly & when you’re the boss, you don’t get weekends completely off regardless.

69: I have these pets: Two dogs & an evil fucking cat. Well, one dog is mine. The other dog & the evil asshole are Easton’s. Dane has a snake.

68: The worst sound in the world: Tobias when he’s ranting & bitching nonstop honestly.

67: The person that makes me cry the most is: Easton probably, but in a good way usually.

66: People that make you happy: My husband, of course. Our kids. My parents & siblings.

65: Last time I cried: Fuck, I have no clue. It’s been a while. Maybe when Presley was born.

64: My friends are: My husband & my dog. My siblings? Rory, who’s been my best friend all my life. I’m not good at friends. I had to cut a lot of them out when I got sober because they were bad for me.

63: My computer is: My desktop is in my office. My laptop is on the dining room table because Easton was using it to help TJ play some preschool word games or something.

62: My School: sucked so I dropped out at seventeen.

61: My Car: is fairly new because I needed more space for our upcoming new arrival.

60: I lose all respect for people who: shit on other people to get ahead or for entertainment.

59: The movie I cried at was: The Notebook? I honestly don’t know.

58: Your hair color is: black

57: TV shows you watch: Will & Grace, Queer Eye, whatever I’m binging at the time. I like Food Network sometimes. I just finished watching the Waco mini series on Netflix & I may have almost shed a tear at the end of that.

56: Favorite web site: pornhub. I’m kidding *laughs* I don’t know. Twitter I guess.

55: Your dream vacation: I’ve taken lots of great vacations. Easton & I have always talked about going back to Vegas one day without the kids. It holds a special place in our hearts since it was our first trip together & it’s where we basically fell in love.

54: The worst pain I was ever in was: Don’t want to talk about it.

53: How do you like your steak cooked: Medium Rare

52: My room is: upstairs

51: My favorite celebrity is: Al Pacino I guess. I named my dog after him.

50: Where would you like to be: my bed

49: Do you want children: I got ‘em & another on the way.

48: Ever been in love: Yes, once & I still am.

47: Who’s your best friend: Easton

46: More guy friends or girl friends: I get along with both. It used to be mostly females but females are... well... not anymore. My guy friends usually stay my guy friends. Let’s leave it at that.

45: One thing that makes you feel great is: sex

44: One person that you wish you could see right now: My father Tobias or my brother Cyrus.

43: Do you have a 5 year plan: Not really. I’m doing well now so continuing on in my sobriety, in my marriage, raising my kids the best that I can & running the label.

42: Have you made a list of things to do before you die: No. I’d rather live life as it comes along. Having a list means that you can fail. It’s too much pressure to put on yourself & as a recovering addict, that’s the opposite of what’s healthy for me.

41: Have you pre-named your children: Not until they were on the way & it’s the same with this one. We don’t know the gender yet since we decided to be surprised but we’ve talked about names

40: Last person I got mad at: Easton probably *chuckles*

39: I would like to move to: I like it here but maybe one day to Hawaii or some other gorgeous island.

38: I wish I was a professional: book critic

#tiberius hawke #ohsimtastic #steelexeaston #character development #thanks for asking!!

[purplesurveys]

816

Gonna do a before and after of one of the first surveys I took when I was FOURTEEN. Fucking wild that I’ve been doing this for nearly a decade. Kinda my way of celebrating the fact that I’ve just been reunited with my old blog, which Tumblr has apparently changed the URL of. Baffled by the move but still stoked, and @a-zebra-is-a-striped-horse​ is absolutely the coolest person for being able to find it haha. Let’s gooooo 1. Are you registered to vote? No. I still have 3 years to go. < That’s so precious. I’ve been a voter for four years now. I registered the second I turned 18 and I remember being very excited to make it to the presidential elections because only a handful of people from my high school batch were 18 by the time of the elections. 2. When days go by, do you cross them off on the calendar? Only when I’m counting down for something. < This still sounds like something I would do, but I don’t really get to anymore because I have digital calendars on my phone and laptop now. 3. Are you currently counting down to something? If so, what? Summer vacation! 4 days left! < Again, so cute. There’s no countdown that exists because I honestly don’t know when it will be okay enough to go out like normal again, but I am waiting for Covid to go away or at least for a vaccine to be available.

No #4? 5. Ever got injured at work? What happened? Nope. < I sprained my ankle at one of the parking lots in school, while walking to my car. Worst thing was it happened in front of an ongoing rally, and I heard their chants slightly falter when they saw me fall. I tried to play it cool, but my foot clearly felt fucked and someone had to hold my arm as I hopped to my car.

6. What color is your roof? Brown. < Stop pretending like you have a roof, Robyn. The house has always had a rooftop.

7. Do you use MySpace or Facebook more? Neither. < I was still far too young when MySpace peaked so I never did get to participate in its glory days. I definitely use Facebook a lot more, then and now. 8. Last time you sharpened a pencil? When I took a diagnostic test last Monday. < Sometime in 2019 when I was still heavily into coloring and I bought several coloring books and a pack of coloring pencils. I loved coloring and wish I kept it up, but it was just a bit of a hassle for me to sharpen every ten minutes or so. 9. List all the people in your phone under T: Zero, zilch, nada. No phone. < A high school batchmade named Dani, a college colleague named Kate, and a couple of aunts and uncles whose contacts start with Tito and Tita.  10. How old were you when you got into text messaging? I once had a super obsessive text problem when I was 11, I think? < That would be the first time I got hooked with texting, but I got my first phone when I was 7 and was already texting by then. Mostly my parents and grandpa, but still. 11. Do you pay rent to your parents? No. < No. They’ve already told me they won’t pressure me to do so either, but out of gratefulness for taking care of me for 20+ years I have absolutely no problems covering some of the bills when the time comes. 12. What do you think of Obama’s new healthcare bill? I don’t know a lot about it. < Honestly, still same. That’s another country’s politics altogether and we have enough issues in our own nation as it is. I do pay attention to US issues that are more universal like LGBT issues, police brutality against black people, Trump as a person...but not the more in-depth ones like healthcare or student debt. 13. How many icons are on your desktop? 34. < Exactly half of that. 14. Do you spit or swallow? Get outta here!!! < Still can’t relate. 15. Ever wrote something on a bathroom wall? Nope. < Eugh no, public bathrooms are so nasty. I don’t usually touch anything in them other than the faucet. I’ve written on other things though, like the desks in school. 16. What’s your definition of a slut? Uh. < Someone who often has casual sex with a lot of people, is how I understand it. 17. If you use the word “slut”, do you apply it to men who do the same thing as what you listed above? Nah. < I don’t really use the word. 18. Do you dye eggs for Easter? I did once, in a children’s party. < Yeah, just that one time at my second cousins’ place when they were in the mood to paint on eggs and invited me and my siblings. 19. What did you do on the first day of spring? Never experienced spring. < We don’t have spring. 23. Are you currently crushing on anyone? No. < Yes. 24. What color hair did the last person you kissed have? NKSB. < LOOOOOOOOOL I spent like two minutes puzzling over this like who tf is NKSB??? Eventually realized this just meant ‘Never Kissed Since Birth’ oh my god 14 year old Robyn you were SO uncool. Anyway, her hair is black. 25. Do you stand up to say the pledge in school? We don’t have a school pledge, but we do recite our country’s pledge and yes, we stand up every time we say it. < Not anymore in university. Everyone just kinda does their own thing in college and we’re never gathered as one student body for anything, except for graduation. 26. Do you like your eye color? God no. It’s so boring. < I mean yeah it is a bit boring, but we kinda have no choice. Unless you go to West Asia which is nearing Europe as it is, nearly all Asians have brown eyes and black hair. 27. What brand of orange juice did you last drink? Zesto. < That’s the only brand of orange juice I’m okay with drinking, even eight years later. 28. Pens or pencils? Pens. < Still feel the same. 29. Last skirt you wore and why? My school skirt, because I have to go to school. < Omfg again, this is so precious. The last one I wore was my denim skirt, but it’s also been a while since I wore that because one of its buttons has since popped out and I never got around to having it fixed, leaving me with no skirts. 30. Last time you wore heels, what kind were they? A prom I went to. I actually have no idea what kind of heels they are so I’m just gonna say old-women heels. < They were stilettos, you dumbass. I also wore a pair of stilettos the last time I wore heels. They’re my favorite kind, so. 31. Shoes you wear the most? My Keds. < My pair of Onitsuka Tiger sneakers. . 32. Favorite quote at the moment? “YOU DUMB BITCH! I’M NOT HOLDING A MICROPHONE! ARE YOU FUCKING STUPID?” - CM Punk < Holy crap, I do not remember this quote at all and had to look it up on YouTube and – no regrets. Watching it made so many memories come rushing back lmao that clip is hilarious; Punk is the greatest. Right now I don’t really have a favorite quote. 33. What was the last magazine article you read about? I forgot. < It’s from the website version of the magazine, but the last article I read covered a viral Facebook post wherein someone had photoshopped the faces of The Big Bang Theory boys onto the traditional graduation photos of my university out of boredom. Article is here for anyone who wants to see how well the pictures turned out lol. 34. What do you think about communism? I don’t know enough about it. < I completely support the progressive youth orgs, especially the ones in my university, that are aligned with communist, socialist, and Marxist ideals. They speak the truth more than any other orgs, so I don’t shy away from defending them or promoting their ideals, especially on social media, even if it puts me in danger. 35. Are you planning on going to college? If so, which one? Of course. I want to study in Ateneo. < CAN WE CANCEL 14 YEAR OLD ROBYN?????? What a disappointment omg. You were always meant to be in UP, you weirdo. 22 year old me takes that appalling statement back lol I can’t even begin to imagine spending my college years in Ateneo. 36. What’s your favorite flower? Ugh I hate flowers. < Peonies and roses. 37. What’s the nearest beach? I think it’s like…600 km away + a 2 hour boat ride. < No it is not. There’s a beach I come back to in Nasugbu and that’s only 100 km away. 38. Ever been to Florida? Nope. < Still nope. 39. How old is your brother’s best friend? He’s probably 9 as my brother’s 9. < I don’t know if he has one and I don’t really care anymore. 40. What type of car did you ride in last? A Kia van. < Sksksksks this was referring to the school bus I used to ride omg :( I was last in our Vitara, when I had to go to the hospital to get some tests done back when I still had a pesky fever. 42. Are you excited for summer 2013? Fuck yeah. < I honestly don’t remember how it ultimately went, but apparently I was excited for it so that answers the question. 43. What class were your parents (ex. class of ‘75)? They’re the same age so batch ‘89. < There we go. 44. Are you in debt right now? For what? No. < Kinda-ish? I promised my sister I’d pay her for helping me out with iMovie (I wanted to make Gab a video for her birthday, but had never done it before), but I haven’t had the chance to do it since I only have big bills at the moment. She’s asking for ₱200 but I only have ₱1000s in my wallet, so I can’t pay her for now. 45. If you’re old enough, do you have a credit card? If you’re not old enough, do you want one when you’re older? I definitely want one. < Yep, still want one. Though I’ll need a crash course on how to use it because my parents never really taught me how cards work. 46. What color is your phone? No phone. < Apple calls it space gray but it’s really just black. 47. Have you ever had someone read a text message they weren’t supposed to see? Yes. < Yes. That person was me, and I accidentally read a text from my dad meant for only my mom when I was 5 because I had stubborn fingers that would click on anything. 48. What’s the minimum age you think someone should have a cell phone at? 10. < Holy cow, that’s a nope for me. I’d say 12 or 13. 49. Would you ever work night crew? Sure. < Yes. I’ve seen my girlfriend’s mom do it and honestly I find it pretty badass, especially because while everyone is stuck in traffic trying to get to work by 9 AM, she’s cruising down the highway on the opposite lane with no problem, to be home by 9 hahaha. 50. How old is the last person you texted? 41. < 22.

#survey #surveys

[antique-teacups]

a liar and a protector

word count: 2.5k

You see I stumbled across something I should have never seen. But, when I say stumbled, I mean I looked for it. There was a suspicion in my head, and I had to be sure. Now it bubbled up in the back of mind while he made breakfast, while we drove to his place, or while we were sitting on his couch watching movies. I was distancing myself some, trying to figure out how to go about the situation. How do you bring up the fact that you snooped without digging yourself into too much of a hole?

We all sat in David’s living room, a quiet chatter filling the room. I didn’t want to be there. It felt like was there was a hurt billowing in my chest. He might be keeping this secret from me, but he had to of confided in one of them. Scott, Todd, Jason, at least one of them had to know something. That is what hurt more, the fact they might have kept it from me too. But this, this was on him. Their choice to keep David’s secret from me was dwarfed by the magnitude of his own lie.

“Did you finish the vlog to post today, baby?” Zane questioned, swigging back his drink, looking from me to David. He had a look in his eye that was mischievous. A lump formed in my throat. I didn’t dare tap into any heavy liquor or I would surely spill the secret. Instead, I nursed the Corona in my hand. I wanted to drink just to take the edge off, let some of the pain go away.

“You act like I am the one who doesn’t post regularly.” David retorted, shooting me a playful grin. Zane simply scoffed, not offended. The banter between the group never stopped. Never meant to rub each other the wrong way but provide motivation. I glanced around the circle, betrayal rising in my heart.  Maybe none of them knew, or maybe all of them did. I couldn’t be sure.

I leaned over whispering in David’s ear, “I need some air, I am not feeling well.” He grabbed my hand, giving it a light squeezing before I pulled it away. I pushed myself up, tossing the blanket over to his lap, bringing my drink with me. By the time I reached the patio door, tears pricked in my eyes. Tonight, was too much to handle. As I stepped into the night air, I thought I might be sick.

I moved to sit over on one of the lawn chairs, shivering even in the summer heat. I took a long drink, polishing off what remained of my Corona. It did nothing to quell the emotional riptide in me. The tears were slow and steady. I was afraid if I let myself lose control too much, I wouldn’t be able to reign in back in. I looked over the city lights and thought about what I should do. The answer hasn’t been clear no matter how many times I ran it around my head.

I heard the patio open and close, quickly brushing the tears away, I turned to see who it was. The most likely candidate, Jason. He and I have always been close. I felt the same connection with him as I did with my parents, the need to protect. I confided things in him that I had never even told David. One look at me and Jason would know I was hiding something. Should I feel ashamed of hiding it?

“What are you doing out here, kid?” Jason asked, his tone laced with concern. He came to sit in the chair next to me. His shoulders were slumped, and he face looked tired. I knew he was dealing with some relationship stuff of his own, so I felt guilty to unload all of this on him. But I needed to talk to someone, or I might explode.

“I need to go home. Not just for a weekend, not just to catch up with friends, but for a while. I don’t know how to explain why without dying a little inside.” I cried, not bothering to hide the truth. I turned back to the lights, afraid my face would let my secret out.

I couldn’t understand why I felt like I was in the wrong. David cheated on me with Rylee Reid, a porn star. I knew she was suggestive, but I never figured she would dig her claws in deep enough to have even David at her beck and call. He would text her while we were together all the time. He had become glued to his phone, that’s what tipped me off. After a weekend back home in Wisconsin I had started to feel like there was a wedge between us. Normally, he limited his phone time when we were together, savoring the moments. But he stopped paying attention to me talk about work or my new blog post. It was like I was talking to a wall.

“I figured that was coming. You haven’t been yourself lately. No playful banter, not even a snide comment about my belly button fuzzy lately. I am sure David would understand. He could use a bit of vacation himself.” He comforted. I turned back and felt my throat tighten. He had a look in his eye that told me he meant it. I knew he didn’t know about David’s lie. He was really trying to help me out, trying to make me feel better in anyway he could.

“Um actually, I need to go home because of David. I would rather keep the reason between us.” I gushed. I couldn’t bear to look at him anymore. I knew his face would be confused and I would want to explain. I couldn’t explain what I didn’t understand. “Could you drive me to the airport?” I begged. A sob came bursting out of me. My grip on the bottle faltered and it went clattering to the cement. “Please, Jason.”

“Yea, sure. Let me grab my coat.” Jason stood, turned, and walked back inside. I felt the nausea rise in my throat and I fought to keep it down. But it didn’t matter, because the Corona came rushing back out. Kneeling, I vomited out the rest of the contents of my stomach, along with some guilt. My face dripped in sweat, bile, and tears. The pungent smell hit my nose as I rose, the patio door clanging open again.

“Babe, you okay?” David questioned, rushing over. I turned my face away. If I looked at him the flood gates would really open, my composure wouldn’t stand a chance. There would be no saving it for behind closed doors.

“Yea, I am just not really feeling good. Jason’s going to take me home.” I was silently thanking Zane for driving me here tonight. I had already packed a bag at home. The idea to go home, actual home, had been bouncing around in my head since I found out. It hurt too much to stay here in LA. I wanted to get as far from here as possible and Wisconsin seemed enough.

“I’ll take you home, come on.” David went to put his arm around my shoulder, a once comforting gesture. A second wave a nausea rose that I quickly fought back. I stepped out of reach because I was afraid if he touched me, I would lose it.

“Jason’s got me covered. Hang out with your friends. Isn’t Rylee supposed to getting here soon?” I insisted. The last part was meant to be a dig. He didn’t even seem to catch it. A mother bird worrying about her chick. I looked over just enough to watch hurt flash across his face before he concealed it.

“Oh yea, I guess I forgot. Will you please call me when you get home?” He asked, leading me towards Jason’s car without touching me. I knew I wouldn’t, but I lied anyway.

“Yea.” I needed to get out of here. The air was suffocating me his presence. There was a lump in my throat that I couldn’t swallow. I opened the car door and got in, quickly closing it behind me. I turned to Jason who was already buckled into the driver’s seat. “Please go.” The tears were already swelling. I felt like I might break in two.

He put the car in reverse, pulling out of the driveway. I look back to the to the house to see David is standing in the driveway with a dejected look on his face. I felt a speck of remorse for a moment for being so curt before I shut it down. He didn’t deserve my sympathy.

The drive was quiet till we stopped at my apartment. Jason peeked over at me a couple of time, I could feel his eyes studying my face. His concern radiating off him like a smoke signal. I wanted to tell him everything. Spill my guts to relieve some of the pressure around my heart. Part of me wanted to have Jason hate David, but the other part still wanted to protect him. I knew I wouldn’t feel better if I made his life as miserable as I felt.

“I just have to grab my bag.” I whispered, my voice barely heard.

“Ok. Y/N, I am here to talk. Why don’t we talk about this? Are you sure going home is going to fix anything?” Jason questioned. I knew he had my best interests at heart.

I turned in my seat, determination settling in my chest. My decision to fly home had been decided long before I walked into David’s house tonight.  I took a deep breath in through my nose, out through my mouth. I was done crying. “Jason, there is nothing to discuss. What’s done is done. No amount of us hashing it out will make me change my mind.” I retorted. I was ready to go home.

“Y/N, come on. Just tell me what is going on at least. I am not the enemy.” Jason countered, hands up in surrender. I felt a chill come across my body. I knew there was no turning back. I opened the door, slamming it behind me. The walk from Jason’s car to the apartment felt like an eternity. I wasn’t sure what was going to happen while I was home, but that a problem for another day.

I opened the door and was welcomed with the scent of safety, of my LA home. I wasn’t sure it was home anymore though.  I glanced around, sad to be leaving because of such terrible circumstances. There were no traces of David here. I had already packed everything into a box, tucked it deep in the closet, and pretended I was okay. He still had the spare key. I knew once I was gone, he would come poking around. He would notice that the photo of us no longer sat on my coffee table, the blanket he brought from his place here was missing, and that his sweatshirts were no longer haphazard across my apartment. I had removed his presence from my place. If you didn’t know he was ever here, it would be like he never existed.

I swallowed back my nervousness and grabbed my bag. I had already left a note for the land lord about me being gone. Between my land lord and Jason, no one else knew I was leaving. I headed back out the door. When the dead bolt clicked into place the finality caught me off guard. There was no turning around and hiding from the reality of the situation. I had to face it head on. But I wasn’t, instead, I was running away.

The walk back to the car was a blink. I saw Jason’s face before I got it and knew it wasn’t good. When I opened the back door, I heard David’s frantic voice over the speakers.

“Jason, you have to tell me if she said something. There was a look in her eye I didn’t like.” David pleaded, panic clear. I shared a glance with Jason, begging him with my eyes not say anything.

“Give her call, David. I promised her I wouldn’t talk behind her back long ago and I am not about to break it now.” Jason said, a firm tone in his voice.

“Jason, I fucked up big time.” David blurted. “I had sex with Rylee. I was drunk, Y/N was at home in Wisconsin. It all just happened so fast.” He spoke quickly, like he absolutely had to get the words out. “I can’t lose her, what if she knows? I need to explain. I need to tell her I love her.”

“Don’t expect a pity party from me David, you selfish prick. You fucked up big time, you got that right. Don’t you dare beg her for forgiveness, because you don’t deserve it.” Jason spat, ending the call before David could get in another word.

Looking to me, I could see the anger in his eyes, but I knew it wasn’t my fault. “Did you know?” He sighed. I nodded my head, my throat so tight I could hardly breath. “Why didn’t you tell me? Why did you insist on protecting him?”

“It isn’t my mistake to fess up.” I declared. “He is the one who should have to face the vlog squad. The embarrassment and anger is his and his alone. I am just a by product of the situation.” I watched Jason’s eyes soften. I felt a weight come off my shoulders. Jason shook his head, a small chuckle escaping his lips.

“You, kid, are being way to nice to that asshole.” Jason said. He started the car and backed out of the parking spot. The ride to airport was just as quiet as the one to my apartment. There were a million things I knew both he and I wanted to say, but neither of us said much.

“Thanks Jason, for everything. I’ll see you when I see you, I guess.” I lamented. I felt deflated and defeated.

“Kid, you got a heart a gold, I wish this never happened. If there is anything you need, call me. Hell, I’ll even drive to Wisconsin to pick you back up if you want.” Jason chuckled. I knew he was trying to make me feel better.

I reached across and hugged him tight, hoping he could sense how much that meant. I grabbed my bag from the back seat before shooting him a tight lipped smile and a small wave. I walked into the airport, purchased my ticket, shuffled through security, and waited at my gate.

David had been calling me non-stop. The occasional text was filtered in, “please answer”, “where are you? I stopped at your apartment”, “babe please”. My flight was called and I boarded with a with a new wave of hurt washing over me. Before the plane took off, I sent out one message.

“I know about Rylee and I want to break up.” I turned my phone off and slipped it into my bag. I watched the lights of LA fall away, my heart a million miles away.

#david dobrik #david dobrik imagine #vlog squad #david dobrik x reader #david x reader

[nerdierholler]

I was tagged by @ljandersen for the OC interview. Last time I did Ithlen, so this time I’m doing Marie. This is post Reaper War, having retired some place nice and tropical with Garrus.

Tagging @bronzeagelove, @trash-effect, and @heraldofwho but only if want, no pressure.

OC Interview

name ➔ Jane Marie Shepard

are you single ➔ *smiles* No.

are you happy ➔  *thinks for a moment* Yes, I am.

are you angry ➔ I’m not sure anyone ever stops being angry. I think deep down there’s always something we’re angry about. It took a long time to learn that. But I’m much less angry than I used to be. That’s also been a long process.

are your parents still married ➔ *looks at the interviewer, confused* No...      Interviewer: Sorry, standard question list.      Marie: I see. I would like to think they still would be if they were alive.

NINE FACTS

birthplace ➔ I was one of the first children born on Mindoir.

hair color ➔ Black with an increasing number of grays.

eye color ➔ Blue.

birthday ➔ April 11, 2154.

mood ➔ Um, fine? Is fine a mood? I’m feeling very neutral at the moment. Sure, I’m a bit tired, who isn’t most days though, and I’ve got a mental laundry list of things to do later, but I don’t think that’s anything special.

gender ➔ Female.

summer or winter ➔ Summer. Winter is fine for a vacation, but I did move somewhere with a tropical climate for a reason.

morning or afternoon ➔  Morning. Get up, get going, get on with the day. I’m getting better about learning to sleep in, Garrus has taught me that. Then again, this place does have some pretty amazing sunrises if you’re awake to see them.

EIGHT THINGS ABOUT YOUR LOVE LIFE

are you in love ➔  Very much.

do you believe in love at first sight ➔ It’s a nice idea for books or vids, but no. Infatuation that might turn into something more, sure, I’ll give you that, but actual love at first sight? I don’t think so.

who ended your last relationship ➔  There were a lot of factors, most of them outside of my control. Death, security clearances, Cerberus, time, distance, miscommunication. That’s the ancient past though, we’re good friends now.

have you ever broken someone’s heart ➔  I have. I didn’t mean to, not when I died and not when I came back. But like I said, death, security clearances, Cerberus, time, distance, and miscommunication can make a relationship tricky.

are you afraid of commitments ➔ There was a time in my life where I think I was, although I wouldn’t have admitted it. But now, not in the least.

have you hugged someone within the last week? ➔ *gets a huge grin* I have. I would say it’s rare for there to be week where I don’t hug anyone, even if you exclude Garrus. Which isn’t to say that I’m a “hugger”, I value my personal space a great deal so please don’t just come up to me and hug me on the Citadel or something. I might punch you, reflexively of course. It’s not a great idea for strangers to sneak up on a former soldier and attempt to restrain them. However, there are always hugs for my friends. I want the people who mean the most to me to know that I care about them.

have you ever had a secret admirer ➔  Only one that I interacted with. I’m sure there have been many that I didn’t know about or never made it through security protocols.

have you ever broken your own heart? ➔  I’m not entirely sure what this means. But I’ve let myself down, disappointed myself, many times and in significant ways. I don’t know if that’s the same as a broken heart, but those realizations sure hurt like hell.

SIX CHOICES

love or lust ➔  Love, every time.

lemonade or iced tea ➔  Lemonade, it reminds me of summers grown up. I’m strictly a hot tea drinker these days.

cats or dogs ➔ I love both, but I suppose I’ll say cats just because I actually have one. Her name is Junior and, just like us, she’s retired. Former top ranking security and reconnaissance for the colony. *Shepard laughs* Alright, alright, she used to be the mouser at the spaceport.

a few best friends or many regular friends ➔  You don’t save the galaxy three times without a little help. All of those people are special to me, some have stayed a little closer, but I would be there in a moments notice for any of them. *shrugs* I don’t know if that answers the question.

wild night out or romantic night in ➔  Romantic night in, although I’ve unintentionally had my share of wild nights out. Some people in C-Sec still haven’t forgiven me for the restaurant incident....

day or night ➔  Day. Nights and I can have a complicated relationship.

FIVE HAVE YOU EVERS

been caught sneaking out ➔  Does stealing the Normandy that one time count? Seriously though, yeah, after Mindoir I wasn’t very happy with where I was and tried not to be there as much as possible.

fallen down/up the stairs ➔  If someone says they haven’t they are LIARS! The key is to be graceful about it, which I’m not, or laugh about it after if nothing’s broken, which I do.

wanted something/someone so badly it hurt? ➔  Yes, a few times, but I’d rather not talk about them. They’re still painful to think back on.

wanted to disappear ➔ All the time. There are a lot of people who want ‘a quick moment’ of my time to discuss something or try to get me to solve some problem for them. It gets old.

FOUR PREFERENCES

smile or eyes ➔  Tough one, but I’m going to have to say eyes, and not just because of Garrus. Spend enough time around turians and you’ll figure out what a smile looks like for them.

shorter or taller ➔ I’m going to have to go with taller. I’m very spoiled there.

intelligence or attraction ➔ Intelligence. Someone can become more attractive the more you get to know them, but rarely do they get smarter, unless you underestimated them in the first place.

hook-up or relationship ➔  Relationship. In case you haven’t notice a trend yet, I’m pretty serious when it comes to things like that. I like to make it count.

FAMILY

do you and your family get along ➔ Let me guess, another one of those standard questions? *rolls her eyes* We got alone fine. I get along fine with the people I consider family now too.

would you say you have a “messed up life” ➔ I would say ‘had’ rather than ‘have’. I’ve been through terrible things that no person should have to go through. I was lucky and came out on the other side of them. So yes, things were ‘messed up’, but that’s not where I am anymore.

have you ever ran away from home ➔  Just once. Even then it depends on how you define home. I ran away from the place I was living and the people who’s care I was placed under. They didn’t catch me and I didn’t look back.

have you ever gotten kicked out ➔ No, but if I hadn’t run away, I might have been. Although, there is that one sushi place on the Citadel that’s asked me not to come back...  Sorry, had to lighten the mood, things were getting too serious.

FRIENDS

do you secretly hate one of your friends ➔  I have hated people who are now my friends but there was nothing secret about my feelings at the time. I would say I’m shocked that there are people who would do that, but I’m not.

do you consider all of your friends good friends ➔ Yes, like I said, I talk with some more than others, but they’re all close.

who is your best friend ➔ Garrus is the obvious answer here, but after that, probably Liara. 

who knows everything about you ➔ Liara, I don’t even think there’s competition. *laughs* She probably knows things about me that even I don’t know.

#tag meme #Mass Effect #jane marie shepard #femshep #life at nerdy holler