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hlizr50 · 3 years

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Aggressive Affirmation

My first Elorcan fic, y'all. And it's smut.

It wasn't supposed to be smutty, but things escalated.

I'm not sorry.

Lorcan is sick and tired of Elide not acknowledging the incredible things that she has done. She doesn't give herself enough credit, doesn't see what she has to offer the home she hopes to rebuild. Lorcan encourages her to admit that she is intelligent, brave, and strong.

Read on AO3

Lorcan hadn’t even attempted to hide his wide grin when Elide had agreed to ride with him. It still surprised him that he could feel so carefree with her, so comfortable with letting his emotions dance across his features. But it was only for her. She had torn down every wall, crashed through every locked door, even faced death to earn his vulnerability. And he would pay it back in spades.

The midnight-haired beauty had rolled her eyes, still seemingly unaware of how her proximity to him could spark such an exuberant reaction. Lorcan found it difficult to understand how she didn’t presume she was the most incredible thing to have happened in the many years of his life, a strong woman in possession of near-bottomless bravery, fierce intelligence, and unbreakable dedication to the people and land she loved.

The journey would not be the longest they had together, though it would most certainly be the safest. Lorcan allowed himself to relax, as much as he could, and enjoy the feeling of the woman wrapped in his arms.

His wife.

The last time they had ridden like this he had been at death’s door, Elide urging the mount onward toward the keep at Anielle. What a relief it was to be with her now – to wrap his arms around her. As if to remind himself of what she felt like, his hand widened across her stomach, fingers stretching to feel as much of her as he could. Lorcan was pleased to find that her ribs were no longer so present below the tunic she wore, their time in Orynth slowly erasing the effects of months – perhaps years – of scarce food and near constant fear.

Soft strands, black as his own, brushed over his hands as he held Elide tighter against him. She turned her head, tilting her chin up to cast him a sidelong glance.

“What are you doing?” Her question was reflected in those fathomless eyes that he swore he could drown in. Lorcan grinned, dipping his chin to brush his lips over her forehead.

“Just thinking, wife,” he answered. “Of the last time we were on a horse like this, after you rode out into hell even when the mightiest of soldiers were retreating into that keep.” Elide’s lashes lowered as she looked away, as she often did when confronted with her own strength. “And how you thought up the plan that would defeat Erawan. And how you ran him through to keep him immobile so Yrene could finish him off.”

Silence was his only answer.

Lorcan sighed but let the quiet persist. His thumb traced back and forth over her abdomen, a motion that was meant to be soothing to her, but seemed to bring him comfort, as well. A spring breeze whispered past them, carrying the chirping of birds and the rustle of leaves on the trees lining the road. And echoing louder than any of the sounds of their journey was his wife’s silence.

“Elide.”

She didn’t answer, but she turned her head again and traced her fingers over his forearm.

“What’s wrong?” he prodded.

“Nothing,” she murmured, even as he felt her tense against his chest.

“You lie,” Lorcan crooned. “I know you better than I used to, Elide. You may be the cunning liar that thawed my cold heart, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to let it go. Tell me what’s bothering you.” His wife heaved a sigh, sagging into him.

“I am… anxious. About returning to Perranth,” she mumbled, turning her face forward again. His brows furrowed, lips pursing in confusion. Returning home, finding her queen, and rebuilding the city had been her aim as long as he’d known her – likely far longer.

“Tell me why.”

And just like that her back was straight again, shoulders tense, the small space between their bodies like a chasm. Lorcan’s eyes narrowed.

“Elide.”

Still she didn’t answer.

And judging from her reaction to his praise moments before, knowing her, Lorcan had a sneaking suspicion that he knew why she was hesitant. It grated against him, how little she thought of herself – how she refused to acknowledge her many feats of bravery and strength.

A snarl rumbled through his chest as he swung down from the saddle. He grabbed Elide before she had the chance to give a startled yelp and tossed her, gently, over his shoulder.

“Lorcan! What in the gods names are you doing?!” she shrieked. Ignoring her protest, he turned to their travel companions and dipped his chin.

“We’ll catch up,” he grumbled with a scowl before stalking off toward the tree line. This nonsense needed to end, sooner rather than later.

“Lorcan Lochan, you put me down this instant!”

His lips ticked up at his new surname, and he was glad she couldn’t see his amusement. He found a small clearing, a boulder jutting out of the grass. Schooling his features, he carried the still-grumbling woman to the rock, pulling her back over his shoulder and plopping her gently atop it.

“Why?” he demanded, eyes boring into her midnight pools that darkened with confusion. Lorcan released a frustrated sigh. “Why don’t you see your own worth, Elide?” He studied her with a frown as her eyes widened and her lips parted in a gasp.

“Lorcan?” she breathed. He ran a hand through hair that had become unruly in his less-than-graceful prowl into the woods. Then, taking a deep breath, he cupped her cheeks, allowing callused thumbs to graze over her high cheekbones.

“Do you think you’re strong, Elide?” Her eyes narrowed as she stared back at him, uncertainty painted across her pale features. Her answer, however, came quickly and assuredly – proof to the male that her belief was deep and unyielding.

“No.”

Lorcan flinched.

He lowered his gaze, doing all in his power to keep his breathing even. It was all he could do not to pace across the clearing in anger and frustration. “Elide-“

“I’m a cripple, Lorcan.” Her voice trembled slightly, and his eyes shot back to hers. They were hard. Uncompromising. As if her perceived weakness was just an unfortunate truth that she had come to terms with. Gods, it enraged him so – that she had practically been raised to believe that she had such little value. “I can barely walk, much less fight. I was a prisoner in my own home. For years. And after that I was little more than a slave. For ten years I was only allowed to live because someone else willed it. And in those ten years I did nothing for Perranth, for Terrasen. And what have I to offer now?” Lorcan cursed the shimmer of silver in her lashes as she pulled his hands away from her face and lowered her chin.

“I can’t even read, Lorcan,” she whispered wetly, her delicate hands clutching his. With a growl he pulled his hands away, fisting them in his hair as he, indeed, began stalking back and forth across the clearing. His ire was a living thing, writhing under his skin. What he would give to have her uncle in front of him now, so Lorcan could tear him apart like he deserved.

“Are you angry with me?”

The roaring in his head ceased in an instant, the timid question ringing clear as a bell through the heat boiling in his blood. He practically ran back to her, grabbing her face again.

“I’m not angry with you, love. Never. But it is absolutely infuriating that you believe it. That you have been made to believe it” Lorcan leaned pressed his forehead against hers. “You, Elide Lochan, are one of the strongest people I’ve ever known. I have fought beside fae and humans, men and women, the legendary and the ordinary. You are brave and strong and so incredibly clever.”

The lithe woman in his grasp opened her mouth to argue, but he pushed her chin back up.

“It…” He swallowed, realizing the vulnerability he was about to show. “It hurts me, Elide. When you just dismiss all the amazing things you’ve done. When you speak as if you have nothing to offer your queen, your home. When I found you, you were walking to Terrasen. And I have no doubt you would have made it. You picked up an axe against the Ilken. You rode out into the hell of Anielle in the face of certain death. You concocted the plan that defeated Erawan. Someone who is weak would not have done any of those things.”

Elide’s eyes bore into his, wide and shimmering. He leaned away, trailing his hands down her arms until he could link their fingers. Lorcan didn’t dare break that gaze, didn’t want to.

“Please. Please, try to acknowledge that. For me.”

“Well that’s not fair,” she laughed, tilting her head back. “Not when you put it that way.”

“I never said I would fight fair, wife,” Lorcan chuckled, then leaned in to capture her lips in a kiss, moaning when she immediately opened up to him. He explored her with his tongue – he would never get tired of her mouth on his.

Elide pulled back, breathing ragged. “We should probably get back,” she sighed. “They probably think we’re doing any number of questionable things.”

His large hands found her hips and tugged her to him, earning a startled giggle. “Well I would hate for them to be wrong.” He kissed her again, sliding his fingers below the band of her breeches. She gasped against his lips, and he snickered in response.

“Lorcan,” she hissed as his lips moved to her jaw, planting kisses up the sharp line. A murmured ‘mmmm’ was his only response as his fingers deftly unknotted the ties to her pants. “Lorcan, people will talk!”

“Let them talk.” His voice was like silk against the shell of her ear. “There is nothing wrong with a male wanting to pleasure his wife.” Elide’s hands fisted his hair, and he slid a hand between her legs to dip a finger into her. He felt her soft cry vibrate against his lips at her throat as his finger slid further, finding heat and wetness. “It would seem that your protests aren’t entirely heartfelt, Elide,” he purred against her neck, inserting a second finger.

“Oh Gods!” she panted. With a growl, he lifted his head and crushed his mouth over hers – a possessive, demanding kiss. He pistoned his fingers inside her, bringing the heels of his palm to rub against that sensitive bud. She mewled against his lips, and he pumped his fingers deeper as he swallowed every gasp and moan that lifted from her throat. Lorcan pulled back, watching Elide’s delicate flushed features lift and scrunch, reacting to the pleasure he was giving her. He wrapped his arm around her, supporting the small of her back with a hand that nearly spread the entire width of her body. When he brushed his callused thumb over that bundle of nerves, he felt her body tremor against him.

“How do you feel, wife?” he snickered, fingers never faltering. Her breathing became increasingly erratic, those little noises growing more frantic.

“Godsdammit,” she cried. He plunged his fingers as deep as they could go and held them there, then flicked his thumb across her again. Her hips bucked as she howled.

“If you want to cum, you will do as I say,” Lorcan growled, a feral grin spreading his lips. “Do you want to cum, Elide?” He wiggled his fingers inside her for emphasis.

“Yes! Gods, Lorcan,” she groaned. He started pumping inside her again, slowly and deliberately. He leaned in so his lips brushed right under her ear.

“Tell me that you are brave, Elide,” he crooned, continuing his ministrations.

“Wh-what?” Elide panted, pleasure and arousal clouding her comprehension of his request. He flicked his thumb over her again, her body convulsing.

“Tell. Me,” he demanded. He could feel her body shuddering around him, and he kept his rhythm slow and steady, drawing out her pleasure and forcing her to wait for her release.

“I- I’m brave!” Her voice cracked as her breath sawed in and out of her. “Lorcan!”

“Tell me you’re intelligent,” he murmured, pace increasing ever so slightly. Elide moaned, a guttural sound from her chest.

“I’m intelligent! Gods, please Lorcan,” she begged. Her fingers clung desperately to his shoulders, and he felt her trembling as she rode his hand.

“Tell me that you are strong, Elide.” His mouth dipped to the soft, sensitive skin below her ear, suckling there as he curled his fingers inside her. “Say it, love.”

“I- I… I am strong!” she gasped. Satisfaction rumbled through his chest. Her frantic pants surrounded him as he unleashed himself, long fingers pumping and thumb grinding into her most sensitive spot.

“Yes, you are. Now cum for me,” Lorcan groaned against her before lifting his head, watching his wife as she rode his fingers. A reverent smile graced his features as she finally found her release with a hoarse scream. Pulling her panting form against him he tucked her head under his chin, a hand stroking through her hair and over her back while he pulled his other hand away from between her thighs. “You are strong. You are beautiful. Perranth is lucky to have such a woman to lead them, and the world is fortunate that you saw fit to help save it. Never forget that.” He pressed his lips to her hair as he listened to her breathing return to normal.

“I love you, Lorcan Lochan.” Elide’s contented sigh vibrated against his chest, dainty fingers tracing soft paths over his stomach. How long had he lived, never knowing that happiness like this could exist for him?

“I love hearing that name. Knowing it’s mine.” Lorcan pushed her shoulders, gently pulling them apart so he could press a soft kiss to her lips. “I love you, Elida Lochan.” Reaching down, he tightened the laces to her breeches. He knew the rest of the ride probably wouldn’t be the most comfortable, and he cursed inwardly that he had been so impatient that he hadn’t at least thought that it would be better to just take them off. “We’ll find an inn tonight. Get you a proper bath. Get these clothes washed.”

A dusting of pink colored her cheeks, realization of why she would need those things heating her face. Lorcan chuckled and stood, letting a hand graze her jaw and tuck a lock of onyx silk behind her ear. “Come, wife,” he declared as he swept her up in his arms, cradling Elide against him as he started walking toward the road. She giggled, winding her arms around his neck and craning to plant a kiss on his cheek. Lorcan smiled down at her, grateful for the path that had led him to her. Grateful that their futures were forever intertwined.

“Let’s get you home, Lady of Perranth.”

Tag list: @tealnymph-writes @trashforazriel @secretlovelybeauty @meher-sumedha @imsointobooks @positivewitch @tanvee1231 @imwritingthesewords @camreadsum @vikingmagic33 @shisingh @gwynrielsupremacist @sagureads @katiebellf @deedz-thrillerkilller16 @sv0430

*NOTE* I used the tag list that I have used for all my other fanfic posts, but those have all been ACOTAR. If you would like to not be tagged in Throne of Glass or From Blood and Ash posts, please let me know. Otherwise, I will continue to use the same tag list for all of my fanfic posts!

#throne of glass #throne of glass fanfiction #elorcan #Elorcan fanfiction #Elorcan smut #lorcan salvaterre #elide x lorcan #elide lochan #ao3 #ao3fic #ao3 fanfic #fanfiction

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brittledame · 3 years

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Characters: Ushijima Wakatoshi, Tendou Satori, Yamagata Hayato, Reon Oohira, Semi Eita, Shirabu Kenjirou, Kawanishi Taichi, Goshiki Tsutomu

Word Count: 5.7K

Tags: SFW, gender neutral reader, first date nerves, fluff, ages not specified

Notes: I did this instead of working on the other projects bc I wanted some fluff and here it is!

Ushijima:

On a visit with his grandmother is when he’s told about a local pottery masterclass happening the following weekend, piquing his interest

After some research, he comes to learnt that pottery is the perfect relaxing hobby with the added benefit of fine tuning his dexterity

It didn’t take much else to convince him to go

It was only after talking to a friend that he realises he should probably invite someone to tag along

After his grandmother politely declines, he follows her coy suggestion of inviting someone he likes

He invites you seemingly out of the blue

You’ve known him for a great deal of time and done some activities with him that could be construed as “romantic” and only started dating when Ushijima stated your relationship status to his team nearly a month ago

The look on your face when you found out at the exact moment as his team was priceless

After that, Ushijima left your relationship status on no uncertain terms and practically broadcasted it in his own unique way

This pottery class serves as another way to spend more time with you

After a few minutes of the pottery teacher painstakingly going through the motions to make a basic pot, a whirring noise followed by wet splattering steals your attention away from the clump of clay that is slowly taking form.

You glance over to find Ushijima looking at you, nonplussed at the mess of what was his pot now decorating his mock and forearms, his face is not left unmarked with the few splotches painting his cheek

You gape at him as he blinks as if coming out of a daze and looks down at the poor clump of clay and murmurs a small, “Oh.”

You didn’t mean to laugh, not really, but the utter surprise in his tone topped you over

After a mild scolding from the teacher and a new clump of clay, the two of you were good to go once again

The both of you took longer than most of the class, you with fussing about the tiny bumps you just couldn’t seem to smooth out and Ushijima with his second try

The class seemed to have unlocked his innate mastery of the ancient craft, as the pot looked near store-quality, you note with an ounce of envy

The group takes a break over some snacks and drinks as the pots are loaded into the kiln

Ushijima meticulously picks through the various glazes they had to offer, seeking your assistance after you picked your own out

You suggest the purple as homage to Shiratorizawa, where you two met, and the dark-rich brown, claiming it reminded you of his eyes

He considers you for a moment, a long enough pause for you to think over your words and begin to regret them before he nods decidedly and proudly presents the glazes he picked to the lady

With the class wrapping up, the lady running the class pops up as you two inspect your creations.

“Do you mind if I take a picture to post on our social media?”

Ushijima shakes his head as you answer, “We don’t mind.”

She flashes a wide smile and aims her phone in your direction. “Great! Say ‘pottery’.”

On cue you plaster on smile and brandish the clay creation as the camera clicks.

The lady, who is somehow even more dirtied than Ushijima, inspects the picture.

“You two are so cute together!” She fawns over the two of you. “I hope you enjoy the rest of your date together.”

She disappears before either of you can correct her.

You blurt out, "Is this a date?"

A pause. Then a hum, "I suppose it is."

A shared smile, you leave the studio with linked hands.

When you get home, you prowl through the studio’s page and find the picture and break out into gut-clutching laughter at the almost-pained looking smile Ushijima makes, tiny pot perched in his large hands adding a comedic effect.

After you recover, you end up saving it and making it your screen saver.

Tendou:

For all his casual confidence, you’re the one to ask him out and he’s the one to officially declare it the “big” first date

The plan was to go manga/book shopping and eat at the in-store cafe

It sounded like a pretty cut-and-dry standard date but with Tendou anything can turn into an adventure

Ecstatic is an understatement on how excited Tendou was for the weekend

He was nearly berated a dozen times for not paying enough attention to what he was doing and almost caused a small fire at one stage

You didn’t fare much better, either

The pair of you got a great deal of laughter from relaying it to one another in the late night hours before meeting up

Although underneath it all lurked the residual anxiety he tried to fight away, so he reminds you during the call, just to check that you didn’t regret inviting him out

As much as he despised the thought, the dark voice whispering at him that you would stand him up were quickly silenced when you show up with a bright smile and his name on your lips

Tendou reckons it’s the sweetest noise he’s ever heard, right after your laughter that he coaxes out with the little melodies he sings to himself as the two of you make way to the popular bookstore

After arriving, you wonder apart to check out separate sections and end up meeting at again the in-store café with books in hand

Over the chocolate cake slice Tendou brought to share, you take turns to gush over the selected choices spread across the tabletop

“I mean it isn’t that over done.” You argue, popping another forkful of the overly-sweet cake into your mouth.

Tendou throws his hands into the air. “Are you serious? Hero meets bad guy, then they fight a whole bunch, bad guy kills a bunch of people and the hero never kills the guy because he ‘doesn’t want to stoop to their level’,” You don’t mask your laughter at the overexaggerated deep voice Tendou imitates. “It’s not fair to the people that the bad guy goes to hurt later on.”

“Oh, I entirely agree with you there.” You take a moment to wonder how Tendou has eaten nearly half the thing to himself already, you’ve barely been seated for longer than a few minutes. “When done wrong, the whole ‘taking the high ground’ troupe is really tacky.”

Tendou blinks at you like he didn’t expect you to respond. You raise a brow at him as a toothy grin spreads over his face, a slight pink painted across his pale cheeks.

“What?”

“Nothing. I like talking to someone that knows their stuff, is all. Don’t get me wrong, miracle boy is great company, but I can only try to convince him to read more than the ads they run for so long before I go insane.” He chuckles under his breath, words heartfelt enough that a matching heat spreads across your cheeks.

“I enjoy this too.”

A wide grin overtakes his face at your admittance.

“Well then, let’s not stop!” He offers, stretching his hand towards yours. You clasp it, feeling delicate against his larger one. “I still have to tell you about the whole ‘boy is given power he doesn’t know how to control and needs to find a grumpy mentor’ troupe next!”

You squeeze his hand. “I’d love to hear your thoughts on that one.”

Tendou clicks his tongue and wags his finger at you. “It’s not necessarily about my thoughts, it’s the conspiracy I think the troupe ties into.”

The seriousness in his tone made you pause, looks like you were in for a long one.

Amongst him linking the heroes journey and the innate desire for power over others, you marvel at the way his whole body comes alive when talking about something he loves.

It’s much later on, when he’s introducing you to his friends at a reunion, that you notice the bubbly and animated way he presents you to his friends, love evident in each and every word.

Semi:

Now you would think he’d be the calm and collected one after knowing each other for half a decade and dating for a month

Nope.

He's the type to plan to ask you at the perfect time, and will be in a pissy mood if he misses the "perfect" opportunity to ask

When he does finally pose the question, you’ll say yes and he’s ecstatic

Though, he will play it cool and be like, "Ok I'll text you the details later." And flash you the biggest smile that has you melting inside just a little

When he's trying to sleep that night it finally hits him

Oh shit he has to plan a date with the girl he’s been hopelessly pining for

After one text from you confirming you don’t mind where he picks, he’s both relieved and more stressed because now he has to analyse every little thing he knows about you and eventually starts doubting himself

In the end, he decides to play it safe and go with the popular, family owned cafe that plays live music Saturday afternoons

It was perfect, the music act would be quiet enough to still talk if you two wanted or serve as a mediator to break any awkward silence should it pop up

It is honestly the perfect date, in his mind

Comes the day and he swings around your place after agreeing to walk to the café together

The walk is characterised with the brisk autumn wind and catching each other up on what’s been going on during the week

The conversation doesn’t stop from there – something Semi could cry happily over

After ordering and grabbing a seat close to a stage set-up to the side, you note how bright and talkative Semi is and vow to yourself to see this more often

As he takes a sip in the middle of explaining the difference pick positions affects plucking sounds, you comment on his excitement

Even with the flush on his cheeks, he holds a suave facade and merely says that it’s hard to unwind when his friends can be so chaotic when they get together

From there he starts opening up and imparting little facts about himself that you commit to memory

You come to learn that his favourite colour was corn-silk yellow before he went to Shiratorizawa, now it’s royal purple. He loves tekka maki and boasts his mum’s hand-made ones to be the best in the world and offers to share it with you next time she makes them

All of these things slot into what you know about Semi, filed alongside the nuance’s you’ve noticed yourself.

When he’s unsure or embarrassed, he tousles his hair. And when he talks about something he’s passionate with, his hands start gesturing all about the place

You could’ve spent the whole afternoon like that, in the intimately-lit café, hidden amongst the dull chatter of the surrounding patrons, just listening to Semi’s soothing timbre

But life had other plans

The lights on the stage brighten as someone wearing comfortable clothes strolls on and perches up on the stool set-up in front of a lone microphone. She didn’t give off any signs of discomfort at being stared at as she sets up her guitar, giving a few testing strums before introducing herself and launching into her music.

It was only then that conversation broke and ushered in a lilting voice floating on gentle notes.

“They’re amazing.” You breath, eyes not leaving the stage until the musician dismounts from the stage.

“That’s what I want to do one day.”

You turn to him. “Really?”

“Yeah.” The corner of Semi’s lips quirk up a bit, a secret shared unto himself.

“Why?”

Genuine curiosity spurs you to ask, to know. While you could picture Semi perched on the same stool with a guitar all too easy, you never really thought Semi would pursue a career in the industry.

Semi finally turns to you, a fire in his eyes that was normally caused by volleyball and a good challenge. “I want to make people happy and sad - all the emotions really. I want someone to look at me like you did to that girl.”

Tilting your head you say, “Looking at her like what?”

Semi audible swallows. “Like someone that loves the music I make.”

Reaching over the table, you run your thumb over the backs of his knuckles, a comforting gesture. “Semi, I already love talking to you and hanging out, so why wouldn’t I like the music you write?”

The resultant blush on Semi’s face was answer enough to that, even though he tries to hide it behind his cup.

After that, meeting up at the café ends up becoming a weekly occurrence, an oasis that you both look forward to in the midst of life’s chaos.

Yamagata:

Yamagata actually is the smoothest out of them all

After a two weeks of dating, he bounces up to you after a particularly hard day and offers to take you somewhere fun the next day

Your definition of ‘fun’ varies from his, as you soon find out

Where Yamagata believes the best way to get to know someone and have fun simultaneously is putting them through challenges, whereas you believe sitting down and chatting to be the most optimal method

Unfortunately for him and fortunately for you, the paint ball range is closed

Amusement park it is

He leaves it as a surprise and doesn’t tell you until you question the sign of the park he visited frequently as a kid

Overall, you have an absolute ball with him, never a dull moment

Especially after the ferris wheel when Hayato goes to reach for his phone to check the time and finds it missing

The only reason he had it out in the plastic swinging booth was to take a sneaky picture of you looking carefree and relaxed as you gazed down at the park – not that he admitted to that when you asked just how it escaped his pocket

Obviously, it was a very slippery phone since this was the third time this week alone he lost it

After tracking it down with the help of the kind but tired ride operator, the two of you were on your merry way to the next ride, but not without a few light-hearted digs at Yamagata’s forgetfulness

You get to learn a lot about each other personally while waiting in line and over lunch after recovering

At the end of the day, your cheeks ache from much smiled

“I don’t remember it being that crazy as a kid.” Yamagata says, looking pale and breathing shallowly, as if to keep himself from being sick.

You couldn’t blame him, the rollercoaster he convinced you to go on under the guise of “This was my favourite one as a kid! You wouldn’t deny a man from reliving his childhood, would you?”

And like a fool you caved under the pout like a badly cooked soufflé. Now you wished you put up a bit of a fight against going on it. The screams of the riders before you were not exaggerated in the slightest.

“I don’t know how they allow kids on that.” Is all you supply, feeling a little green as well.

Yamagata directs you to the nearest bench and you follow his lead and slump into the seat.

“I don’t know how I forgot how much that thing threw me around. I must’ve just about fell off as a tiny kid. Remind me to thank my dad for coming on with me.”

You try not to laugh at the image of a tiny Yamagata ecstatically cheering as the ride swings around corners at full speed as his dad frantically tries to keep his clueless son from getting tossed out of the cart.

“Your dad is a brave man to go on that thing wilfully.”

Yamagata grimaces. “Brave is a nice way of putting it. I’d call it being insane to put up with me wanting to ride it eight times over.”

This time you do laugh.

“It must be hard saying no to your own kid, though, so cut him some slack.” You joke, knocking your elbow against his side.

He playfully pushes you away, widely grinning once again. The heat from the sun blaring ahead suddenly floods into your cheeks. The sensation of your heart feeling too large for your ribcage seizes you.

And the feeling doesn’t leave, it sticks with you as he laughs, as he drops his ice cream and pouts like a child. It intensifies as a dreamy look enters his eyes as he recalls a fond memory associated with a ride.

You hope that one day that he makes the same expression when he recalls this day spent with you.

Reon:

For some reason, Reon seems like the kind of guy to be inherently talented with gardening

He’s the resident green thumb alongside Ushijima, people pass their dying plants into Reon’s hands for magical resurrection

So it was a no-brainer for him to take you to the local botanical gardens

Rife with both native and exotic flora, there were many scenic walks available, thus was the perfect place for a first date to Reon

Reon meets you at the gates with a soft greeting and an outstretched hand – you two walk through the park with your hand intertwined like that for the rest of the day

Throughout the walk, he points out flowers and gives you their common name and their meanings, along with the meanings he gave them as a kid

It was entirely too cute for your poor heart

“And those are yellow carnation.” He points to a patch of bright yellow flowers with soft-looking ruffled petals. “They represent dislike and disappointment towards the person you give them to, but as a kid I thought they meant that she was my sunshine because of the colour. My mum got quite the kick out of it when I gave them to her for her birthday.”

You burst into laughter, unable to smother it even with Reon’s apparent embarrassment at the event

If your allergies start to play up too badly, Reon will take you to his favourite part, a densely packed section of the gardens filled with trees, concealing a secluded tiny red bridge stretched across a large koi pond with the largest and most colourful koi you’ve seen

Everything within you wanted to stretch this moment out, you could easily live in this moment forever. The buzzing of cicadas in the distance, the grass blades tickling the palms of your hands from where you sat, the soothing rumble of Reon’s voice – this is your personal slice Elysian peace

You did not want to give this up

It’s there that he finally unlinks your hands and brings out the packed lunch he made.

“You made all this?” You gape, taking in the diverse range of food he brought out of his bag.

From seared fish placed neatly atop seasoned rice, to perfectly rounded onigiri. In the next box he opens sat seasoned chicken and beef slices that made your mouth water. Not to mention the salad of rich greens, reds, and yellows that called your name.

Reon chuckles at your awe. “Yeah, I did. I thought it would be nice to eat something home-made while out here, but if you wan to grab something else-“

You cut him off immediately. “Definitely not! This looks and smells amazing. It would be a crime not to eat it.”

The corners of Reon’s eyes crinkle as he smiles, rubbing at the back of his neck. “I did try not to burn it, so I hope it tastes nice.”

“If it tastes even half as good as it smells, you’ll have to fight me to stop eating.” You reply, accepting the plate he holds out and give thanks as he starts loading your plate.

“I’d never stop you from eating,” he clicks his tongue in false sternness, to which you grin at. “If you’re hungry, I’ll feed you until your happy.”

“I’m happy right now, but I definitely still want the food.” You cheekily fire back.

Reon shakes his head, a small smile tugging at his lips.

“Well then, eat to your heart’s content.”

Taking a bite, you startle Reon with your enthusiastic reaction.

“This tastes better than I imagined.” You gush after swallowing, immediately scooping up another forkful and eating it.

Reon brushes off your compliment in favour for leaning forward and brushing some crumbs off your face. The proximity as your breath stalling in your throat as he lingers for a heartbeat longer, then withdraws.

“I hope we can do this more often. This is the most fun I’ve had in a while.” He quietly admits, the mood taking an intimate turn even with the shouts of kids playing in the distance.

“Me too. I don’t want this date to end.”

Shirabu:

This man prides himself on being observant and not oblivious like how his friends are

And yet, contrary to this, it takes him several trips to realise that he’s been on what would count as a date with you

You'll talk about needing a new jumper for winter and Shirabu will ask to tag along. You wanted to watch a movie? Shirabu is coming too. Like having someone besides you while studying? Shirabu was your go-to study buddy, whether in silence or as a conversation partner when your brain was overloaded

Out of the blue, he asks with no certain amount of panic, "Were those trips I went on with you dates?"

"I never really gave it much thought…” You match Shirabu’s expression as you consider his question. "I didn’t want to be presumptuous and assume that they were, and you never brought it up, so I left it be."

"Let me have a re-do." Determination flares in his usually guarded eyes and you couldn't refute.

“Gladly.”

Shirabu glances away from your face, unable to bear looking at the fond expression you wore for too long without his heart suffering. “I want to take you somewhere nice.”

“Everywhere I go with you is nice, Shirabu. It’s less about the place and more about the person.” You rebuke.

Shirabu looks away before you catch the full extent of his blush at your words. “No, I mean I want to take you somewhere that can become special for the both of us.”

You catch his hand in yours, tugging it for him to turn back towards you. Gone was the characteristic impassive façade, now replaced with a tenderness that makes you near melt.

Your first official date with him is a picnic in a park on top a hill to watch the sunset

Something he thinks is extremely cheesy and overdone but the look of excitement on your face immediately silenced his rebuttals

There was no way in hell that he was going to be the reason for your disappointment if he can help it

As such, he went all out

Hiring the gazebo and ordering food to be delivered from a restaurant he knows that you’ve wanted to try out for the longest time

Not that he actually tells you, but it wasn’t hard to deduce his excitement when he waits for you at the gazebo with a small smile, dressed nicely in pressed slacks and a dress shirt with a bundle of flowers

Upon the wide-eyed stare he receives from you, he spends the first minutes of the date describing what the florist thought best for him

A bunch of camellias ranging from a deep and vivid red to the first blush of love pink to the innocence of white gathered in a golden ribbon. He doesn’t exactly tell you their meanings other than a short, “Flowers are flowers, all I want them to show is that I love you.”

What he didn’t know was that the florist had the foresight to hide a card detailing the meaning of each flower amongst the paper holding them

White camellias meaning “You’re adorable” to red camellias meaning “You’re a flame in my heart” (something you blush at in the security of your own home) and the pink one representing longing

As the meal arrives and the two of you eat, the conversation drifts from current events to bits and pieces of everything and anything

The highlight of conversation was Kenjirou’s answer to the question “What do you think you’ll see first: a ghost or an alien?”

Apparently Kenjirou was secretly a space-lover

From the lecture he launched into about the statistics of it all and you come away from that conversation with more knowledge of possibility of E.T's versus spectres than you would’ve thought

The afternoon starts fading into dusk quicker than you realised, too wrapped up trading short anecdotes of your respective families

Shirabu only realises the fading light once the fairy lights decorating the space become brighter, and it is only then that Shirabu like a gentleman, brings out a blanket and escorts you to the grassy knoll besides the gazebo

Laying out the blanket, you notice it’s the perfect position to watch the sun set and you can’t help but give him a quick hug in gratitude before you sit down and make yourself comfortable

It floored you how much effort and consideration he put into this one afternoon amongst all his classes and assignments – it made you feel incredibly warm against the cool night air creeping in

As you shift to get comfortable, your hand lands on top of his. You’re just about to whisk it away, but he shoots you a soft smile and twists his hand in your grasp and gives it a squeeze

Your hands stayed intertwined as the blues faded into pinks and oranges, then into purples and the deep satiny blue of the night sky

The sunny photos with matching smiles from that afternoon soon decorate your wall

Kawanishi:

Unlike the others, Taichi really doesn’t care about being seen as “basic” for taking you out to watch a movie and grab dinner afterwards

He asked you out so casually, you agreed without it even hitting you that it was a date until he grinned at you and cheekily replied, “Great, it’s a date then.”

The movie in question was one you’ve been waiting forward for its release and Taichi was interested in it as well, so really it was an excuse for the both of you to watch the movie together instead of alone.

It went great, asides from the old couple staring the two of you in line, not so quietly reminiscing their first date

Embarrassment aside, Taichi was sweet throughout the entirety of it

Arguing to pay until reluctantly splitting the bill when you argued that it wasn’t fair

Waiting outside for it to start, Taichi and yourself bide the time by guessing what the other movies were about by their posters and making each other laugh

Once the movie starts, the chatter between you two dies down, yet the casual intimacy doesn’t fade in the slightest

Sharing an arm rest, the both of you exchange glances at one another throughout the movie, and bump elbows when something interesting or funny happens

It was a far-cry from the intimacy of the other’s dates, but it was perfect for the two of you

By now, the two of you have been friends much longer than you have been dating

Neither of you wanted to rush things, happy to take it as it comes and retain that familiarity from years of friendship stay untainted from the innate awkwardness of new love

Coming out of the theatre, Taichi is the most talkative you’ve seen him yet as he offers his opinion on the film

You avidly listen without a word of complaint

It was nice to hear what went through Taichi’s mind when he always kept his emotions close to his heart, you felt damn-near jubilant over him coming out of his shell – even after all the years of friendship

He offers to grab dinner and after a mild debate over which place is better, you end up flipping a coin and grabbing some fast food and eating it at a near-by park

Eating the meal in relative silence, it was only broken to point out the ducks and giving them names. It was laid-back and you were enjoying yourself, yet Taichi remained stiff by your side.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m sorry if this isn’t exactly the most romantic date.” Taichi rubs at the back of his neck, avoiding your eyes.

You quirk a brow at him. “How isn’t this a romantic date?”

Taichi finally looks at you, although in confusion. “Because I should’ve taken you to a nice, fancy restaurant for our first date.”

“I work on the belief that anywhere is romantic if you make it so. It depends on the company.” You shrug.

Taichi’s mouth curves into a smirk. “Oh? So you wouldn’t mind having our next one at a cemetery?”

You dig an elbow into his side and roll your eyes at the performance he puts on.

“That’s not what I meant, smartass.”

Taichi stops the pouting and slumps into the seat. Hating the sombre mood he’s in, you curl your arm through his and tuck into his side.

“Besides, you can always make it up to me in the future. I want the place to be so expensive that the proportions are baby-sized.”

Taichi’s rich laugh rumbles through you. It was a losing battle against the rapid thrum of your heart and the thoughts of warmth that consume you with his proximity.

You also didn’t try to fight the urge to cuddle further into his side, something he gladly accepted as he wraps his arm even tighter around you.

“I promise.” He sighs, a happy noise as he rests his head against yours, two bodies becoming one whole on that one spring afternoon.

Goshiki:

Not everything in life is a competition, yet Goshiki couldn’t thrive without it

Besides, if he thought too long and hard about it (which he did) an arcade date was the best option

It presented the perfect chance to show off his skills and impress you

When he finally works up the courage to ask you, it had been a while since you’ve been, so you were more than happy to accept

Goshiki deflated with relief because a back-up option didn’t exist

Even after dating for over a month by this point, this would be the first official date he’s taken you out on

After worrying that it was too childish or not at all romantic for a first date, you spent the better half of the afternoon before it convincing him otherwise

At the arcade, Goshiki takes your hand and guides you around the place, pointing out games he bested as a teenager before finally settling on war-cross-zombie two player shooting game

With the growing win streak, the two of you continue playing the game until Goshiki accidentally gets his player killed

Pouting, he suggests a different game to soothe his bruised ego

The pout disappears as he finds a different game he’s decent at, tickets flying out as the points rack up

He glows as you praise his skill

It was too easy to bait him into playing hoop games, which he surprisingly sucked at

You discovered him to be especially gifted at reflex games, where the both of you won the most tickets

With each claw game he stubbornly refuses to “eat his hard-earned money”, he proudly passes off each plushie to you

Goshiki wins whatever prize your eyes linger over, no matter how frustrated it makes him

With each one, you promise to keep and inwardly muse that you’ll have to install a new shelf for them

A few hours deep, you had managed to win him an eagle. It’s the only prize you had won big enough to portray the amount of affection you held towards the bowl-cut male.

It was a bit mishappen and looked more fit to be the mascot for a horror game than a children’s show, however you still offered it to him.

His eyes grow wide. “Really?”

“I mean, I can get you something better if you give me a few minutes…” You frown at the plushie as Goshiki holds it up. It’s even uglier in the light. Why the hell would they have this as a prize?

You reach out to grab it from him and Goshiki snatches it away from your grasp, pressing it into his chest and curling around it protectively. “No!”

You stand there, stunned, as Goshiki flushes at the looks he got from the shout and starts stumbling over his words.

“I mean, it’s fine and not creepy at all – No, I mean it’s cute,” he unconvincingly amends at your wince. “It’s something that you worked hard to get. I’ll treasure it forever, I swear.”

The conviction in his voice was enough to ease your concern.

“I could get you a better one, though. One that’s less creepy.” You offer, gesturing towards the wide array of claw machines boasting figurines and cuter plushies.

“No thank you. I like this one.” Goshiki is stubborn and you should’ve expected that.

You sigh, lips unsurely pulling upwards. “If you’re sure?”

Goshiki gives a sharp nod, and you know that that’s the end of that. He would not budge.

Yet you couldn’t find it within yourself to be exasperated at the awe-filled look he gives the plushie as you two leave the arcade, holding it like it was made of expensive finery instead of cheap thread and fabric.

Months later you got to see the monstrosity again, tucked up on the shelf above his bed, proudly sitting between medals he’s won through the years.

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wanderinginksplot · 3 years

Text

Rex + Engineer!Reader

This is the prequel to the Rex + Blanket Fort + Kisses one-shot found here on my masterlist. As this is a prequel to that story, you don't need to have read it for this to make sense. And as you could probably tell from the picture, this takes place during the Onderon arc.

Rex x gn!reader: intended to be early romance, but could be read as platonic.

Word Count: a bit more than 3,400

Warnings: canon-typical violence, including spoilers for the Onderon arc (S 5, E 2-5) of Star Wars: The Clone Wars

---

"And Captain Rex will train everyone in the encampment on basic combat skills and maneuvers," General Skywalker announced.

You didn't pay overly much attention to that. The general was younger than you had anticipated, but he was clearly used to combat and had the kind of authority usually honed through commanding large groups of soldiers. Still, you knew his order didn't apply to you and moved to slip away from the area. Your schematics needed a lot more work before the rebels could attack without bringing buildings down.

"And where are you running off to?" a muscular man with light hair asked, stepping into your path.

You gave a tight smile. "Classified, sorry."

The man nodded toward the general. "General Skywalker says everyone needs combat training."

"Oh, not me," you reassured him. "I'm a contracted engineer, not one of the Rebels. I'm just here to make sure they destroy as little of the infrastructure as possible while they take back control."

"And do you live in the encampment?" he asked.

You narrowed your eyes at him, feeling sure this was a trap. Eventually, you gave a short nod.

"Then you'll be training with me," he said firmly. "Captain Rex, 501st Legion."

You reluctantly shook the hand he offered and introduced yourself, finishing with, "-but I'm strictly an engineer."

"We're worried that this isn't likely to end without one or several attacks on this encampment," the captain told you. "A few hours of training could save your life."

"And a few hours of work on the city's schematics could save the lives of countless civilians," you argued. Sending that he would continue trying to convince you, you shook your head. "The Gerrera siblings are the ones who hired me. I'll let them make the final choice."

"And I'll leave it to the Generals," Captain Rex agreed.

Clearly not taking chances, he marched off toward where Steela Gerrera and Lux Bonteri were talking with Generals Skywalker and Kenobi, as well as a Togrutan female you vaguely remembered as being a commander.

"Generals, Commander," Captain Rex greeted with a crisp salute. You rolled your eyes. Soldiers. "We were hoping you could settle a difference of opinion."

"A difference of opinion?" General Kenobi repeated with a frown.

"What opinion would that be, Rex?" General Skywalker asked.

The captain explained the situation while you stood in silence. Steela met your gaze at several points during the conversation, looking concerned each time.

"We're only here to train the rebels," General Skywalker said after Captain Rex had finished talking. "Not anyone else."

"All of us are rebels," Steela argued, ignoring your signals that you didn't want training at all. "Just by being here in opposition to the Separatist forces, we are all considered a threat to their power."

"A contracted employee is different than someone who joined your cause because they believe in it," the commander countered, wrinkling her nose. "We aren't offering training to mercenaries."

"We're talking about an engineer, not someone hired to perform assassinations," Lux contributed. "What could it hurt?"

"Generals, Commander," Rex said, his quiet voice somehow drawing their attention. "I think every member of the rebel group needs to be trained. I think it's important."

"Rex…" General Kenobi sighed, but Skywalker interrupted before he could expand on his thoughts.

"I trust Rex's instincts," he told the older general. "If he thinks everyone needs to be trained, we'll make it happen."

You made a frustrated noise before you could stop yourself. "I don't need training. I'm an engineer. I don't work in combat situations."

"That's the thing about combat," Skywalker said with a shrug. "You don't always have to look for it. Sometimes, it comes to you. Especially in wartime."

The group split up immediately afterward, seemingly having come to an agreement. You followed Steela, determined to make your case and get back to your schematics.

"Steela, you know I'm not here for fighting," you said, jogging to catch up to the young woman who had hired you. "It isn't part of my contract."

"It isn't, you're right," she agreed. "But I would think carefully before I turned down a chance to learn such a valuable skill considering how dangerous the galaxy is right now. Surely this could be helpful as a freelancer traveling the universe alone?"

You didn't have an immediate answer to that. Steela clearly noticed, nodding solemnly at you before turning away. "The choice is yours to make."

You gritted your teeth, but your feet refused to move from the spot. To your left was the strategic tent and your unfinished set of schematics. To the right, the Jedi were helping the rebels set up some kind of training ring.

"Well?" a voice prompted. You already recognized it as belonging to Rex.

You stood still for a beat longer before giving a loud and heartfelt groan as you turned toward the freshly constructed training ring.

---

You were bad at fighting.

It wasn't really a shock to you. You had never been particularly graceful or good on your feet. That was why engineering had been such a draw - all mental work, almost no physical.

Rex, to his credit, turned out to be a surprisingly good teacher. He had kept everyone basically together as they learned new skills and practiced as a group. Still, he was determined that you would learn to defend yourself and here you were, fighting to shoot targets in the dying light, long after everyone else had scattered.

"I'm sorry," you apologized yet again as you missed. You were half an hour into intensive shooting lessons with Rex and you had yet to hit a single target.

"You don't need to apologize," he assured. "We'll just keep working until you get it down."

"I don't know if I can," you admitted, lowering the heavily modified blaster pistol until it was resting on the table in front of you. "We're losing the light and it's a bad idea to illuminate any more of the jungle than we have to."

"That's true," Rex agreed, rubbing at his neck while he studied the unharmed target. After a moment, he took the blaster pistol from your hands and holstered it at his side, then removed the holster belt as well.

You nodded sympathetically, hoping you could call it a night and put in a few hours of work on your schematics so the day wouldn't be a total waste.

Rex sighed, removing the subtly armored jacket he had been wearing during that day's training. "I guess we'll… we'll just have to switch to something less impacted by visibility."

"Wait, what?" you had time to ask before the stoic captain flat-out tackled you.

You were aware enough to know that Captain Rex had twisted to take part of the impact himself, but you still hit the ground hard enough to knock the breath from your lungs. In that moment of hollow gasping, Rex had pushed you onto your stomach and pinned your hands behind your back.

"The first rule of unarmed conflict is that you can't let anyone surprise you." Rex paused for a moment. "Actually, that's the first rule of any kind of conflict."

"Is the second rule that you shouldn't suffocate your sparring partner?" you croaked out, turning your head slightly so your face wasn't actively being pressed into the dirt anymore.

Rex laughed. It was the first time you had heard anything other than firm orders from him and you paused. It was a nice laugh. You were forced to gather your thoughts a moment later as he released you and helped you to your feet.

"You probably won't see a lot of hand-to-hand fighting with droids, but the armies aren't capable of anything beyond following orders. The armies are commanded by sentients, and those sentients are often closer to the armies than you would think."

"I have no intention of going after Grievous without a weapon," you joked. "Preferably more than one."

"You should stay away from Grievous no matter how many weapons you have," Rex advised. "But this is good to know, anyway."

"Actually, I agree with that," you said, surprising you both. "I'm a freelancer. Anything that helps me defend myself in a potentially hostile situation is a good thing."

"Okay, let's work on your hits, then," Rex suggested.

What followed was two full hours of unarmed combat practice. Rex was always the target, letting you throw punches and kicks against his open palms. When he realized that you were pulling your strikes because you were afraid to hurt him, he found a padded guard among the assortment of equipment the Republic had sent along.

Eventually, though, you were panting and bone-tired. Rex seemed to realize that without you saying anything.

"One last set of strikes and you're done for the night," Rex told you. It was the most beautiful thing anyone had ever said to you.

But as you punched, Rex moved the guard you had been aiming for. You shot him a look, but he only held the guard up, wiggling it slightly. You set up again, but Rex pulled away at the last second, dodging your fist to bop you on the shoulder with the guard.

"What are you doing?" you asked, exasperated. "You said this was the last set."

"It is. Or, it will be as soon as you actually manage to make contact."

You grimaced at him. This time, when he twisted the guard away, you turned with it. You were focused on keeping your footwork correct and your hit strong. You never even saw him move his foot between your ankles, but with a light tug, you were on the ground again.

"Seriously?" you asked from your spot in the dirt.

Rex laughed again, and this time, you didn't enjoy the sound at all. "Do you think your opponents are going to stand there and let you hit them? They're going to fight dirty - they always do. You just need to-"

As it happens, you never did learn what you needed to do. Rex had stepped too close, and your engineering experience told you that his ankles were at an angle that made him vulnerable to a hit. You kicked his ankle lightly, barely making contact, but it was enough to send one of his feet careening against the other. Rex stumbled, failed to regain his balance, and fell.

All of this was done on instinct and you felt as surprised as Rex looked when he landed on his butt in the dirt next to you.

"Good job," he said, breathless but sincere.

"Thanks," you accepted with a grin. "Does that mean I surprised you?"

"Not a bit," he denied, deflating your ego a bit. "I knew you were capable of it. You're an engineer. Engineers like angles and math. That's all combat is, adjusted for whatever you think the other side is going to do."

"Wait, that's… that's a really good point," you mused slowly. "Can I see your pistol again?"

Rex didn't move. "If you shoot me, you'll surprise me in the wrong way."

You snorted. "I'm not planning on shooting you, Captain. I just want to test how the application of math might help me."

After eyeing you for a moment, Rex stood in an enviably graceful motion and hauled you to your feet as well. Wordlessly, he handed you one of his blaster pistols. He had warned you before you began shooting that he had made numerous alterations to them, but you were still surprised by the weight of the weapon in your hand.

This time, instead of relying on instinct - point, aim, shoot - you worked to apply some logic. When you were sure about your angle, you squeezed the hyper-sensitive trigger and watched the resulting beam of weaponized light hit the target.

It wasn't a perfect shot, of course. Math couldn't fix everything. Still, you had hit the target and you cheered aloud, echoed by Rex's congratulations behind you. You had the presence of mind to set the pistol down before you turned, then Rex was grasping your forearm in the odd way warriors shook hands.

"Great job!" he told you warmly. "You're getting better."

"Thanks," you accepted, trying to vocalize your gratitude. You probably could have been offended by the tone of surprise in his voice, but you chose to overlook it.

"Now we just have to dial in your aim and get you comfortable with firing at moving targets, especially during chaotic situations."

Despite your best efforts, you felt your expression fall at that. Rex laughed again. When had he gotten so cheerful? "I'm kidding. That can be done tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" you repeated doubtfully.

Rex folded his arms across his chest and stared at you steadily. "In one session, you've gone from unable to shoot a gun or throw a punch to knocking me down and hitting a target. If you can keep that pace of improvement, you'll be a force to be reckoned with."

"Or at least be able to stop clients who try to cop a feel," you added.

Despite his darkening expression, Rex's tone was unconcerned. "I'm sure you could break the hand of any di'kut dumb enough to try it now. With some training, you'd be able to tear that hand off completely."

And so you continued to train with Rex after everyone else had finished learning to disable tanks and other intense activities. During the day, you finalized schematics, studying holoimages of Onderon’s capital city of Iziz. Your goal was to record your best guesses for the most and least structurally-sound sections of the city.

The dedication the rebels showed for the safety of the Onderonian people was a big reason you had agreed to take this job. Despite what the Jedi seemed to think, you weren't actually a mercenary. You chose your jobs very carefully, and if something didn't match your morals, you would respectfully decline.

Between schematic work in the day and training at night, your time with the rebels flew past. Captain Rex continued to be patient and helpful as you worked to master the combat moves he taught you - ones decidedly more focused on self-defense than the moves he taught the rebels. The first day you had beaten him in a grappling situation, he had beamed up at you with dirt on his face and told you how far you had progressed. The squeezing of your heart at the praise warned that it was probably good that the captain and both Jedi generals were withdrawing from Onderon shortly, leaving Commander Tano to assist with the remaining rebel efforts.

Despite your determination to stay out of the conflict, you had eventually been forced into it when the Separatist armies had attacked the rebel base. One of the rebels you had known by appearance if not by name had been hit by blaster fire before he could use the rocket launcher held in his hands. He had held it up to you, begging with his eyes that you take out the ship that had fired on him before it could do more damage.

You had accepted, and the ship was a roiling ball of flame before you could make yourself nervous about shooting anything other than Rex’s now-familiar blasters. You tossed aside the rocket launcher and found a discarded blaster. From that point until the combat had ended, thoughts of schematics or building solidity were gone from your head. You were as much a part of the rebel group as anyone else, and you watched with the same horror as Steela Gerrera fell to her death, despite the best efforts of Commander Tano.

The funeral was lovely. Onderonians didn’t believe in mourning for their dead. Instead, they truly celebrated all that the departed had done to create a better society… and Steela had done a great deal.

When things had ended, you were sitting on a raised set of stairs overlooking the ceremonial area. The dais holding Steela’s cloth-draped casket was filled with people far too important for you to bother. You were glad to see Saw speaking with King Dendup. After he had handed you the agreed-upon payment for your services - despite your many attempts to refuse the credits - Saw had left, ignoring the sympathy you tried to offer. He needed to speak with someone, and if that someone was the man he and Steela had worked so hard to save, so much the better.

“Nice ceremony, huh?” someone asked from behind you, and you twisted a bit to find General Skywalker standing there with Captain Rex beside him.

You nodded, but you could feel that it was a half-hearted motion. “Steela was so young. She had a lot of promise.”

“She died fulfilling the mission she set out to finish,” Captain Rex countered. “She knew the risks and thought Dendup was worth it. Her choices were her own. All we can do is respect them.”

With a joyless smile, you said, “Doesn’t make it any easier.”

“It never does,” General Skywalker admitted, sitting next to you. Rex’s comlink chimed and he stepped a respectful distance away before answering it.

Skywalker sat beside you in silence for a while. Normally, you would speak first just for sake of politeness, but you weren’t feeling that generous. You let the silence linger while you watched the activity on the dais.

“Have you ever thought about using your talents for the Republic?” the general asked eventually.

“I thought I was a soulless mercenary?” you asked before you could think better of it.

“And I thought you didn’t work in combat situations,” Skywalker countered. “But I’ve seen the battlefield recordings. You handled yourself well.”

You glanced over at him in surprise. “Are you trying to contract me on as a soldier?”

“Force, no,” he denied quickly. “As an engineer. I sent samples of your work to a friend of mine who works as an engineer in the private sector and they were impressed. The GAR is struggling to find good engineers comfortable working in combat. The pay is a bit lower than you’re used to, but it’s steady work.”

Ah, he had cut straight to the heart of your problem with freelancing. The fight to survive between jobs meant that anything extra you were making was eaten up by the time you were hired on again. And your morals meant that jobs weren’t nearly as frequent as you would like them to be. But being in constant combat… Yes, you had survived this time, but that didn’t mean you were rushing to repeat the experience.

You grimaced. “I appreciate the offer, really, but I don’t know if it’s for me. Combat engineering isn’t really my specialty.”

“I think you’re selling yourself short,” General Skywalker told you seriously. “I’ve seen samples of your past work, and a lot of it is on worlds that have a lot of fighting. I’m sure you know that none of your structures have sustained extreme damage, no matter how much combat was happening around them. That’s an impressive record.”

“You researched me?” you asked, feeling a little stunned.

“Well, the Republic likes to know who they’re hiring. But honestly, I’m not the one who did the research,” Skywalker said, looking past you. You followed his gaze to Rex, who was suddenly very intently looking at his comlink. With a mischievous grin, the general added, “I think my captain has taken a liking to you.”

You fought back a grin, turning away from the captain, and your eyes fell on Steela’s casket once more. Suddenly, keeping a straight face wasn’t as much of a struggle. “If I said yes, what would my official job duties be?”

“You would oversee a group of construction experts - both civilian and enlisted - using maps and satellite footage to find the best possible choices for locations to build bases, bridges, or other structures to help us complete campaigns,” he answered easily. “Preferably, to win campaigns, but that’s more on us than you.”

“And would I work with your group?”

“The 501st?” Skywalker asked, sounding surprised. “I’m not sure, but probably. We’re a planetary landing battalion, so we always need someone who has the knowledge of places to build. You might have to stay behind on some planets to supervise base construction, but you could always catch back up with us. Is that something you would want?”

“Yes,” you said firmly. “If I did agree to that-”

“I’m no good at negotiations,” he interrupted with a self-deprecating smile. “You speak clearly about what you want and I’ll do what I can.”

“I’ll work for the Republic,” you said, feeling the nerves twist in your belly. “If you can make sure I’m permanently attached to the 501st.”

“Deal,” General Skywalker accepted immediately, holding his hand out for you to shake. “Welcome to the 501st.”

---

A/N - I assure you that there is no timeline of any sort happening in my writing, so don't think too hard about where this should fit into the narrative. It won't end well.

Thanks for reading!

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wiypt-writes · 3 years

Text

Leave No One Behind

Ch 14- Well, fuckin’ Shalom.

Co written with @icanfeelastormbrewing

Summary: After another dangerous encounter with Ahmed’s troops, Ari is back into a corner and comes out fighting.

Warnings: Bad Language words. Smut (NSFW, 18+) Violence, angst and death.

Pairings: Ari Levinson x OFC Hannah Horowitz

A/N: It’s Hannah’s birthday today so Happy Birthday, Firefly!

Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction and classified as 18+. Please respect this and do not read if you are underage. I do not own any characters in this series bar Fliss Gallagher and the other OCs. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer.

Leave No One Behind Masterlist // Main Masterlist

Chapter 13

Ari pushed a grumbling Simon off his face and sat up, trying not to move too much. Once out of bed, he stretched before sorting himself out in the bathroom and dressing as quickly and as quietly as possible so as not to wake Hannah who was, thankfully, fast asleep.

After the events of the previous day, when Rachel had gotten him and Sammy out of jail and they had driven back to the resort only to find Ethan was shutting them down, Ari had had a rough night, memories of the ordeal making his already light sleep almost impossible at times. He had spent a few hours wide awake in the dark, lying still to avoid disturbing Hannah, simply staring at the ceiling of their hut as his restless mind continued to deny him a peaceful sleep.

He had been, and somehow still was, physically and emotionally exhausted. The mere thought that Hannah had intended on ending what they had just a few hours ago still made him shudder. Following their heartfelt conversation on the dock they’d stumbled into the hut, and he’d loved her softly, slowly and intimately in the shower before they’d collapsed into bed. All of that combined with the whispered sweet nothings they had shared in the still of their hut might tell a different story, but Ari was well aware he had fucked up and almost lost her a second time.

And it made him sick to his stomach.

Ari shook his head, a reflex action, almost as if it would shake the thoughts from his mind and he sighed gently into the quiet of the hut as he finished buckling the laces on his trainers, turning from where he was sat at the edge of their bed to look at his Firefly sleeping with Simon who had curled up by her side. He smiled softly at the scene as he leaned in to place a loving kiss on her head before leaving the hut.

A few minutes later, Ari emerged in the breakfast area after a short stroll down the beach. The bruises and cuts on his face and over his left cheekbone were beginning to heal but the dull sting of his skin was a clear reminder of what had gone down in that prison cell in Khartoum and the depth of Sammy’s anger towards him. Still, as arranged the previous night, Sammy showed up along with Jake and Max early so no one else was around. As he brewed a pot of coffee, Ari went over his plan to set off to find Kabede and explained his last-minute decision to only take Max and Sammy with him, leaving Jake in charge of the resort and the girls. He wasn’t willing to take any risks after the events of their last mission only a couple of days before.

“Don’t lose sight of them, Jake. However feisty they get, especially Hannah.”

“Sure thing, boss.” Jake agreed as he took the mug Ari was handing him and Max snorted.

“You know she’s gonna give him a hard time, right?”

“I don’t much care.” Ari snapped at Max with a stern voice, causing the man to raise his hands in mock surrender. At that Jake sighed so Ari turned to look at him, his voice softer. “If she’s getting an attitude, tell her to take it up with me when I’m back. There’s a reason why her and Rachel don’t know where we’re going. And they won’t need to either until it’s done.”

As he finished instructing Jake on how to act upon a more than probable tantrum on Hannah’s part, Ari could clearly see Sammy rolling his eyes.

“More lies, huh.”

“Will you stop with your comments, Sammy?” Ari groaned. He’d had enough of the man’s accusatory looks and snarky comments to last him a lifetime. “I get it, you hate me, you already made your point.” And to make his, Ari gestured to the bruising around his face.

Sammy didn’t answer, but simply maintained giving his so-called best friend a cold stare until Max’s groan put an end to the war of deadly stares.

“Come on guys. This is it, we’ll be out of here in a few days. Let’s go find Kabede, give him the news and-” he sighed, “-wrap it up and get out of this fucking sandpit.”

Ari looked at Max at he spoke and then back at Sammy who scoffed and, without so much as a word, started walking to the jeep as he lit a cigarette.

Ari looked down and sighed, hands on his hips before his head tipped up to the sky. He then turned to Max, who simply shrugged and stuffed a piece of toast in his mouth as he followed Sammy.

***

When Hannah woke later that morning, she instinctively turned and reached for Ari, missing his touch. She was used to waking up him either holding her from behind, sometimes peppering kisses on the back of her neck or, as the case usually was, hearing him groaning and cursing as he pushed Simon off the mutt’s preferred sleeping pillow, his face. But that morning there was nothing, because Ari wasn’t there. Blinking she laid still, listening for any sound that gave his whereabouts away, but she could hear nothing at all, no sounds of the taps running, or the water from the shower splashing down into the tray. Frowning, she stretched her arm and her hand felt Ari’s side of the bed to find it was cold, well, as cold as it could be in a beach hut in Sudan with no air-con.

As she sat up, Hannah thought to herself that the most likely explanation was that Ari had just gotten up and gone for a run after he had been unable to sleep following the events of the previous thirty-six hours or so. He’d been restless all night, and no matter what she had tried to do to help, and she had to admit she had tried a lot of things to help him relax so to speak, Ari couldn’t settle completely.

Hannah sighed, remembering her attempts to soothe her Lobo’s uneasiness as her eyes roamed the hut and when her eyes landed on Ari’s bedside table she noticed his watch wasn’t on it. He never wore his watch when he went running as it irritated him but, strangely enough, his running trainers were gone too so she was at an utter loss.

“Where’s your daddy, huh?” She asked softly as she looked at Simon who moved his tail and gave a little yawn and a huff in response making her chuckle, scratching his ear. “You couldn’t care less, huh?”

Pondering, Hannah got up and, after washing and dressing, she went outside. The sun was particularly scorching that morning and she had to pull her shades down as she greeted some of the guests who were already milling about. But as hard as she tried to spot Ari, there was no sign of him on the beach. She made her way to the main building, Simon hot on her tracks, and found Jake and Rachel serving breakfast.

“You slept in.” Rachel said as she greeted her with a warm smile.

“Yeah sorry, must have been tired after everything. Guy was tossing and turning all night.” She apologised in her thick, Spanish accent, as she looked around at the various tables sporting the guests. “Where is everyone else?”

“Luca says the guys went to the market.” Rachel deadpanned, but Hannah could read the disbelief behind her words so she frowned at the blonde woman.

“To the market? Ari?” She scoffed, dropping her voice. “And with my brother?” Hannah then turned to look at Jake who had approached them but he only shrugged as she arched her brow. “You’re full of shit.”

“Hey, that’s what they told me, Red.” He repeated as he started walking into the kitchen area to fetch another tray of toast.

“Where are they really?” Hannah inquired, following him.

“Told you. Market.” Jake answered as he left the tray on the serving counter by the kitchen.

Hannah noticed he was avoiding her stare and when their eyes met for a split second she took advantage of it and glared at him. “I know you’re lying.” She hissed.

But Jake wasn’t going to give in that easily. Whilst he feared Hannah’s rant, he also feared Ari’s should he blow their cover, so he was determined to play the part he had been asked to till the very end. Thus, he had no choice but to shrug again, the expression on his face unreadable, and keep on with his breakfast duty- to bring a pot of coffee to a guest table.

Hannah huffed in frustration and turned to Rachel. “Do you believe him?”

“Not a single word.” Rachel smiled

“Then where the hell...” she began to ask, more to herself than to her friend and team mate. And the frown on her face softened as her eyes opened wide when it suddenly dawned on her what was really happening and she groaned.

“Kabede.”

“Yeah, that makes sense.” Rachel nodded with a little sigh.

“What the fuck... why didn’t they tell us?” Hannah scoffed, her hands laying on her hips. And Rachel thought she couldn’t look more like Ari when she did that even if she tried.

“I’m betting on Ari’s stupid sense of protection.” Rachel shrugged.

“Yeah well, he’s gonna be the one needing protection when he comes home. Fucking asshole.” Hannah growled as she grabbed a piece of toast and chewed it, angrily.

****

When Ari, Max and Sammy reached the shanty town, it was instantly apparent something was wrong. They found Kabede slumped against a wall, a stab wound to his chest that Sammy suspected had resulted in a punctured lung. But his injury was completely forgotten by the man when Ari informed him that Mossad had pulled the plug on the mission.

“Mission? This is not a mission for me. This is my life. My family. You go.”

Ari was torn. Kabede was right, this was more than a mission. It had been his life for two years and on top of that, he wasn’t sure he could go back to Israel knowing that they were leaving over three hundred innocent lives behind to their fate at the hands of a tyrannical regime which, most likely, would torture and kill them once they were found.

Ari swallowed and looked at Max and Sammy, jerking his head and the three of them headed out of the hut into the heat of the sun.

“You wanna pull off one last rescue, don’t you?” Max asked once they were outside.

Ari looked at him and it was all the answer he needed to give as Sammy groaned at his silence.

“I can't force you guys to do this one. This is up to you. You know the risks.” Ari spoke calm but determined, his mind made up.

“I'm in.” Max deadpanned as he nodded.

Ari then turned to Sammy who rolled his eyes. He looked back at Max and asked him to give Sammy and him some alone time and Max obliged, heading away without a glance back.

“Whatever you want to do, I'll back you up.” Ari told Sammy once he found the words to convey the most honest message he could give his friend. It was not the time for absurd displays of testosterone and he knew it.

Sammy scoffed and blurted out a “Fuck you.” before bringing the cigarette to his lips.

Ari stood there, his arms folded but didn’t protest at his friend’s jab. He lifted his head to look at him instead and spoke softly. “You're right. I'm an asshole. I let my ego get in the way. I get an idea, and I go with it. I don't listen. I take risks. Sometimes it works, sometimes people get hurt. I'm sorry. And if you wanna go home, I'll back you up.”

“I'm not going home without Hannah, Ari. How can I? How can I leave her here with you?” Sammy snarled though he knew better than to raise his voice where they were.

“I’d never do anything to...” Ari began to defend himself but was cut off.

“To what? Put her in danger? You already did! By simply bringing her here, her neck has been on the block, in fact all our necks have.” Sammy hissed gesturing at him with his hand before throwing his cigarette down and stamping on it, looking up at Ari before shrugging and dropping his head again.

“Here we go again, huh?” Sammy spoke after a few seconds, his eyes piercing Ari’s before he shook his head as he walked off.

****

When they arrived back at the resort, Ari was on edge for a number of reasons and his anxiety was compounded when Hannah railed at him for leaving without telling her where he was going. After a very heated exchange, he finally managed to calm her down enough to get her to listen along with Rachel and Jake as he filled them in on what he, Max and Sammy had found. When Ari explained that he needed either her or Rachel to go with them to pick up the refugees, Hannah nodded and said she would go, much to Sammy’s annoyance. But as usual, she paid her brother absolutely no attention whatsoever.

The problem Ari had, was that he was back to operating with no plan. His priority was getting the refugees out of harm’s way but after that, he was flying blind and banking on managing to talk Ethan around. But, as usual, he was in act now, think later mode. And for the most, it was working. The collection went without a hitch, and a few hours later, just as darkness had fallen, they were pulling back up to the resort.

And then they spotted the military jeeps.

Ari exchanged a look with Hannah who let out a curse and an exhale as she too spotted their unwelcome visitors. Ari hopped out of the truck, and motioned to Max and Sammy, indicating the jeeps. They both nodded to show they’d understood, and then he took Hannah’s hand.

“Follow my lead, okay?” He looked at her, squeezing his fingers around hers and she nodded as they headed inside. Ari began to laugh and Hannah, picking up on his signal, grinned at him as he closed the lattice door behind them, his hand still round hers, the other running through his hair. He gave a little false surprised start as he looked at the man in front of him, his best acting skills on show as he gave the man a smile and a puzzled look.

“Colonel. To what do we owe this pleasure?”

“I was just treating my men to some of Abu Aziz's famous cooking.” The man drawled back.

“Great,” Ari let go of Hannah's hand and planted his palm on the base of her back, guiding her forward, “let's not keep him waiting.”

They both walked past him, smiling at a few other guests, but Ahmed didn’t follow. “Stop.” He spoke loudly and Ari did as he was told, glancing at Hannah before the pair of them turned to look at him. “I just want to see what is in the back of your truck.”

“What for?” Ari shot back, a frown on his face, his stomach in nervous knots.

“It will please me.” Ahmed gave a huge grin displaying his bright white teeth before he barked something in Arabic to a soldier who obediently ran off.

Ari looked at Hannah, then to Rachel, fake puzzlement on his face as the two women both gave an exaggerated shrug, feigning nonchalance. There was a lot of shouting, as they all waited with bated breath, but eventually Ahmed’s smug grin slipped and Ari felt a huge wave of relief wash over him.

But, his relief didn’t last long. As they sat for dinner, the soldiers continued to patrol around the resort and the tension in the air was palpable, not merely across the team but also the guests. Ari was getting more and more frustrated and nervous as the seconds passed not least because he actually had no idea where Max and Sammy had hidden the refugees. He cleared his throat a little, his right arm leaning on the back of his chair, almost facing Hannah who was sat next to him, her body language tense. His left hand dropped to her back, gently rubbing circles over her T-shirt which was tacky with sweat as they both watched a soldier who walked amongst the tables, with his rifle held in his arms.

“Is there something I can help them find?” Ari turned to Ahmed.

“They are just doing their jobs.” The man shrugged before he looked at Nathifa who had come to clear away their starter plates, and began speaking once more in Arabic. Ari, Hannah, Jake and Rachel all exchanged a look. Whilst they had no idea what was being said, they could hazard a pretty good guess the man was digging for information. As he watched, in the corner of his eyes, Ari saw Rachel glance around, before she turned to him, taking a deep breath.

“I'll be right back,” she stood up. Hannah’s eyes followed her before she glanced at Jake who met her puzzled expression with one of his own. Giving a little cough, she reached for her glass of water at the same time Ari shifted in his seat, his hand dropping to Hannah’s thigh as he spoke to Nathifa who was now visibly distressed.

“Nathifa, go help Aziz with the food.”

Taking her leave, she did just that and a few minutes later their main course arrived. But, unlike normal, the entire resort was pretty much silent bar the chatter of the soldiers who were raucous around the table. Ari really wasn’t hungry, none of them were, they were too nervous as it wasn’t just their safety that was on the line but the hundreds of refugees hidden around the place, not to mention the guests who were all equally as tense at the armed guards. Taking Ari’s lead, Hannah forced herself to eat, keeping up appearances, and after what felt like a lifetime Ahmed placed his knife and fork down, letting out an appreciative noise.

“This was delicious.” He waved his arms over the table. “Maybe I'll bring Abu Aziz to come cook for me, hey?” He let out a chuckle as Nathifa made to move away with the plates, but in a flash he reached up and grabbed her arm, once more speaking in Arabic. And none of them needed to be able to understand the language to know the man was being forceful, and the young girl was scared.

Ari took a deep breath through his nose as Hannah’s hand dropped to his thigh and he steadied himself, quelling the anger that was simmering in his mind at the assholes treatment of the girl he had hold of. When he spoke, his voice was calm but stern, a far cry from how he felt inside. “Don't do that,” he shook his head, his gaze locked on Ahmed, who simply stared back at him, that arrogant, smug nature he exuded was almost suffocating. The man tossed his head at Ari, goading him further as he made a simple noise of questioning whilst he continued to feel up the young woman, his hand round her waist, rubbing up and down her thigh.

Ari clenched his teeth together, Hannah’s nails now digging painfully into his leg through his denims and he was aware of the deathly silence that had filled the room, all eyes now on him and Ahmed waiting to see how the clash of the two alphas was going to play out.

“Do you know why I love Hadandawa women?” Ahmed snorted as his hand slid round to Nathifa’s ass. “Because they are absolutely wild in the sack.” With a laugh he pulled her onto his lap as the soldiers around laughed as she let out a sob of protest.

“Hey!” A voice shouted from the rear of the room and Hannah turned her head slightly to see Rachel had returned and was stood a little behind them, her eyes fixed on the scene as it played out, her face set in anger. And then, in the corner of her eye, Hannah saw Ari slipping the steak knife off the table, his hand clenched around the wooden handle. His entire body was coiled like a snake, ready to attack, and Hannah knew he’d reached the point where if he was pushed anymore he wouldn’t think once, let alone twice.

Ahmed ignored Rachel completely, and continued his disgusting little monologue. “Because they don't feel anything down there.”

Hannah glanced at Jake, who shook his head slightly as he too had noticed Ari take the knife, and Hannah realised then she had to diffuse the situation before someone got killed. Ari might be fast, and strong, and in normal circumstances she’d bet on him to win, but these soldiers had guns. And he wouldn’t stand a chance, none of them would.

“Their fathers cut them when they are very young, so...” Ahmed chuckled, his hand straying across Nathifa’s thighs travelling slowly upwards. “You have to be very rough for them to feel anything at all.”

Hannah felt Ari besides her, moving as if he was going to get up, but before he got the chance, she reached over and deliberately knocked the water jug across the table. There was a sudden flurry of activity, as the liquid spread across the table, some of the soldiers jumping out of its way, and Ahmed made a clicking noise and pushed Nathifa up off his lap as the pool of water spread towards him. The sudden movement caused the girl to stumble to the floor and before Ari could stop her, Hannah jumped up to help.

“Do you have to be rough with your girl, Mr Thomas?” Ahmed asked, and Ari’s eyes flicked to his, his palm gripping at the knife even more as the man’s eyes moved to Hannah, a grin on his face. “Does she like it? Maybe I should try and see.”

And that was it, Ari was done. No one threatened his girl, no one.

Ahmed’s hand moved towards Hannah as she helped Nathifa to her feet, but his fingers had barely brushed her arm before Ari was out of his chair and right in front of the asshole.

“Don’t you lay a finger on her,” he hissed, the blade of the knife pressed into the man’s neck, fury radiating from every inch of his body as he glared at the man who dared to threaten his girl. Around him, soldiers were all raising their guns as everyone else stood stock still, the sound of his own breathing was all that Ari heard for a moment before Ahmed smirked.

“Or what? Huh? What is it that you are planning on doing with that knife, Mr. Thomas?”

“Hopefully just eat my dinner.” Ari’s voice was low but threatening, because consequences be damned, he wouldn’t think twice about slitting the man open, ear to ear. The two men faced off, neither backing down, the tension simmering until Ahmed eventually gestured for the soldiers to lower their guns. As they did so, Ari let out a deep breath, the hand holding the knife dropping slowly, his eyes not leaving Ahmed for a second.

Which was a mistake, as he missed the soldier approaching him from behind. The first he knew about it was a scream from Hannah at the same time he registered a searing pain as he was clubbed on the back of the head by the butt of a rifle. With a grunt, Ari fell to his knees, hands clutched to the back of his head as stars exploded in front of his eyes. His hands clutched to the back of his head in an attempt to alleviate some of the pain as he slumped back against the leg of the table, his head spinning. He blinked as Hannah dropped to her knees in front of him, her hands reaching to cup his face as he struggled to focus. He was aware that a few people were talking, and then there was a flurry of movement, and he blinked again, the room fading back into view as Hannah looked at him, her eyes full of tears.

“Lobo? Hey, let me see.” She whispered and he shook his head, swallowing as he brought his hand back in front of his face to check for blood. There was none.

“I’m okay.” He nodded to her, and she looked at him for a second before she stood and offered him her hand. He took it and rose to his feet, the other hand still pressed to the back of his head as he watched the remaining soldiers leave the room. The last one had barely left before he moved and pulled Hannah to him, his arms wrapping around her as he grimaced against the throbbing in his skull. Taking a deep breath he held Hannah’s trembling frame tightly, pressing a kiss to her head.

“Did he hurt you?” he asked, cupping her face and she shook her head.

“He barely touched me, Ari. I’m more worried about you.”

“He shouldn’t have even done that.” Ari ignored her concern as he shook his head, swallowing. He turned his head to glance around at the guests who were all watching with trepidation. With a nod, he gestured to the kitchen just as Max and Sammy both appeared and the team headed away from prying eyes.

Ari immediately headed to the lattice screens over the windows, his hand wrapped around Hannah’s as the pair of them watched the jeeps driving off.

“They're gonna be back soon. With numbers.” Ari said, as he turned to look at his team over his shoulder as he felt that horrible, shitty cold feeling of dread flood his system. Their timescales had just shrunk, dramatically.

“Especially when they figure out they're one man short.” Max sighed.

“What do you mean?” Hannah frowned. “What did you do?”

At that, Max shot a pointed look at Rachel as Sammy looped an arm round her shoulder, giving her a squeeze. Ari blinked as Rachel looked up at him, swallowing, and he gave a groan as he realised what was going on.

“Where is he?”

Less than a minute later the group of them were looking at exactly where he was. Dead on the floor of a hut. As they all stared down at the deceased soldier, none of them sure what the next steps were, Ari was frantically wracking his brain for a solution. This was his responsibility as leader after all.

But, it was Sammy that broke the silence to state the obvious. “We need a plan, Ari, and fast.”

Painfully aware that Sammy was right, Ari rubbed his face with his hand before he took a deep breath. He had been hoping to back Ethan into a corner and force him to backtrack and effectively mount one last rescue op before they all bailed, but that had completely gone out of the window. There’s no way they could even attempt it, not now that Ahmed was into them and one of his soldiers lay dead by his feet.

This was a fucking mess, and Ari suddenly found himself wishing there was one of Bowen’s dammed cargo planes coming for them…

Oh. Oh...

“Okay.” Ari gave a nod as the bones of a plan formed in his mind, letting out a deep exhale as he turned to Rachel and Jake. “Buy me a day, make sure they're taken care of but completely invisible. Don't let the staff in here.” Rachel nodded as he looked round at the guys in turn as he spoke. “Max, Sammy, take the truck, get the rest of the group.” He then looked at Hannah, squeezing her hand. “You and I gotta call Ethan.”

And you’re not leaving my side till we’re out of this fucking country…

Hannah looked at him, frowning a little and Ari knew why. Given that Ethan had warned him not to go near the remaining refugees he knew he was in for it. But he didn’t give a shit. Ethan could yell at him all he wanted, Ari’s priority now was his team and the hundreds of frightened people they had hid at the resort.

Quietly they all left the hut, peeling off in different directions. Rachel and Jake strode back up to the main part of the resort to see to the remaining guests that were still milling around following dinner, whilst Max and Sammy headed off to the trucks. Ari led Hannah back towards the resort a little behind Jake and Rachel, running through his plan in his head. It was such a long shot, but the only one they had.

“What are you gonna do, Ari?” Hannah’s voice was soft and he paused, turning to look at her.

“I’m gonna tell Ethan we need imminent extraction.”

“What? He can’t. There’s no exfil plan!” Her eyes widened as she shook her head. “And even if he could, now we have like three hundreds refugees after he told you not to get them!”

Ari dropped his head, hands on hips. “I know, sweetheart, which is why we’re gonna have to play the Bowen card.” His eyes met Hannah’s as she hesitated, and then frowned, opening her mouth to no doubt protest but Ari cut her off. “He knows who we are and what we’re doing, Han. He even mentioned your father’s name.”

“Yes, but what the fuck makes you think he can help when our own government can’t?” She shook her head. “Ari, this…”

“He talked about cargo planes, didn’t he?” Ari pressed. “Coming to evacuate them all?”

“Yeah, but... “

“We just have to convince him to get us one.” Ari shrugged, as if it was an easy and obvious solution, but he wasn’t fooling Hannah. She scoffed and snorted.

“Why would the US give a shit about-“

“You got a better idea?” Ari snapped, “because if you have, now is the time to share it.”

Hanna’s mouth pressed tightly into a thin line and she folded her arms across her chest, looking away. Ari gave a sigh, and when he spoke his voice was softer, contrite almost, but still carried an unmissable tone of frustration.

“Just hear me out!” Ari implored as Hannah continued to stare into the distance. “Because it’s the only thing I got. And last time I checked I was still in charge.”

Hannah raised her eyebrows at that, and after what felt like an age, she turned to face him, her face stony and Ari took a deep breath as she looked at him.

“Go on then.” She instructed as Ari raked his fingers through his hair, the way he always did when he was stressed or thinking.

“We reach out to Bowen tomorrow, come clean,” he licked his lips, the salty taste of his sweat mixed with the sea air stung his tongue as he took a deep breath. “If we can get Ethan on side he might be able to pull some strings, get our people to call his.”

Hannah blinked, before she shook her head, letting out a deep breath from her nose. “If you say so.”

Her tone was flat and Ari’s shoulders sagged a little as he glanced out over the dark surface of the ocean. She didn’t think it was going to work, and even he had to admit he wasn’t sure it would either. But right now, he could see no option. They were past being discreet, this wasn’t merely dangerous, it was now a straight out battle between life and death, and he wasn’t going to sit around and simply wait for the inevitable to happen.

“Hannah, I know it’s a long shot…” He turned back to look at her as she gave a derisive snort as she met his eyes.

“Long? That’s an understatement-“

“-but right now it’s the only shot we have!” His voice rose once more as he threw his arms out to his side, his palms slapping against the outside of this thighs as the snapped back down. “So I’m gonna take it, with or without your help.”

Hannah’s tongue poked the inside of her cheek and Ari could tell she was biting back another response, undoubtedly a smart quip about this being no change from normal, that he came up with these off-the-cuff ideas and ran with them, because he was a reckless asshole. But this time was different, he was in a corner and there was no alternative but to come out fighting. And, unlike normal, he was unable to find it in him to assure her it was all gonna be okay because he didn’t know it would be, not for certain. And he couldn’t lie to her.

Instead he waited, impatiently, simply watching as she stared back at him, an expression on her face so like Sammy’s when he too thought Ari was being a dick, as she shook her head, her tongue making a clicking noise against her teeth. “Fine.” She popped her shoulder. “Let’s call Ethan.”

*****

As predicted, Ethan blew his absolute fucking shit. He railed at Ari and Hannah over the radio, firing Ari, again. Both of them knew better than to interrupt his mad rant so they let him continue his angry diatribe until he finally finished and Ari picked up the conversation calmly and quietly. As he spoke and explained the spark of idea, Ethan’s logic kicked in and he agreed to do what he could at his end, but reminded them what they were already painfully aware of, essentially they were on their own. This whole operation had been illegal and off radar of the main Israeli government, so whilst Ethan was certainly able to provide them with a glimmer of an idea as to where they could exit the country, it was completely up to them to sort the when and how.

They spent the rest of the evening going over how they were going to approach Bowen and pull this off, Ari growing increasingly frustrated at the fact he didn't have the answers to Jake and Rachel’s questions. Eventually, Max and Sammy arrived back, and their attention then diverted to getting the remaining refugees quickly and quietly into the huts, providing medical treatment where needed and then some food. By the time that was done and the group reconvened in the kitchen area, it was almost half past three in the morning. To Ari's surprise, when he explained his plan to go to Khartoum and that he wanted Hannah to go with him, Sammy raised no objections, most likely because he was as keen to put as much distance between her and the potential returning soldiers as possible. And, whilst they were effectively about to officially blow their cover to the CIA, the US Embassy was the safest place for any of them to be.

They both took a quick shower and changed, Hannah dressing in a pair of faded jeans which grazed her ankles along with a pair of sneakers, whilst Ari pulled on a denim shirt and a pair of dark jeans before he sat on the edge of the bed to push his feet into his trusty boots as Hannah tied her hair back with a scrunchy. They then took Simon down to Max knowing the dog would try and follow the jeep unless he was occupied, and made a swift and quiet exit.

Ari could have driven the long journey to Khartoum with his eyes closed, it felt he'd done it that often over the past two years, but he was glad his eyes were firmly open as they both got to see the stunning sun rise over the desert horizon. It was a slight reprieve in an otherwise tense journey, both of them caught up in thoughts about what they had to do. At one point, however, Hannah fell silent mid discussion and Ari turned to see she'd fallen asleep. With a soft smile, he turned his attention back to the road happy to leave her to it. She might be exhausted but she was safe.

They arrived at the US Embassy at just gone Nine-Thirty, and a flash of Ari's 'Guy' Passport saw them through the guarded gate.

“Can I help you?” The receptionist looked up and Ari flashed her his most charming smile.

“We’re here to see Walton Bowen.”

“Do you have an appointment?” The woman beamed back, batting her eyelids at Ari, but before he could try and win her over with any more of his charm, Hannah rolled her eyes and cut in.

“We don’t need one.” She gave the woman a curt smile. “Tell him Guy Thomas and Rosa Gomez are here. He’ll see us.”

The receptionist blinked and Ari looked away, fighting the smirk that was threatening to spread across his face at Hannah’s tone. She kept her eyes on the receptionist, her mannerism not faltering for a second and the woman behind the desk gave a little cough as she reached for the phone. After a short conversation she replaced the receiver and looked up.

“He’s going to send someone down to collect you, in the mean time I’ll need you to sign in as Visitors.”

“Thank you.” Hannah replied sweetly as the woman slid over the register she needed them to fill in before she moved to a filing cabinet at the back. “What?” Hannah raised an eyebrow at Ari who simply shook his head.

“Nothing, Firefly.”

Less than five minutes later they were being led into the office upstairs, Bowen greeting them both in the main part before he led them through to a smaller room at the back which was clearly his office. They both politely declined his offer of something to drink, taking a seat opposite where Bowen himself sat at his desk. Ari’s hands clasped together in his lap as he took a deep breath, his eyes on Bowen,

“So, are you going to finally tell me who you really are?”

Frustration filled Ari’s system at how deliberately obtuse the guy was being. “You know who we are.” Ari��s voice was calm but authoritative, indicating that he wasn’t in the mood for whatever stupid horseplay Bowen was trying to tease them into. “I wish we had time to play games, but we don't.”

“Right.” Bowen was completely unfazed by Ari’s tone as he leant back in his chair, gesturing to them both “But I'd really like to hear it. From you.”

At that Hannah stiffened and took a deep breath, she was pissed off too. Ari gently laid a hand on her arm, as he turned to Bowen.

“Hypothetically?” Ari spoke, his eyes fixed on the man. “I'm the Israeli government.”

“Well fuckin' shalom.” Bowen’s voiced was laced with sarcasm as his eyebrow raised, a smirk on his face. Ari took a deep breath as he narrowed his eyes, Hannah making an angry noise through her nose as she shook her head, glancing around the room, teeth worrying at her bottom lip in a nervous, yet irritated manner.

“Let's assume for a second that we know something about these disappearing refugees.” Ari broke the tense silence. “And, we theoretically need your help getting about four hundred of them out of the country, immediately.”

“Oh?” Bowen questioned, although both Ari and Hannah could tell he wasn’t in the least surprised. “How would I do that?”

“You mentioned planes.” Hannah looked at him as she crossed her left leg over her right. “Here on the ground in Khartoum, cargo planes.”

“Uh-huh.” Bowen replied, taking a deep breath before he shook his head. “Even if I could help you, Ari and Hannah.” He paused, levelling Ari with a look as Ari stiffened at the use of their real names whereas besides him Hannah merely blinked. “I don't have that kind of pull.”

“Okay, look,” Hannah uncrossed her legs and leaned forward, hands resting on her knees, “my dad didn’t found Mossad for you to come in riding shit shot over everything we’ve done or are trying to do.” She paused as Bowen took a deep breath, not an inch of surprise on his features confirming Hannah’s suspicions that he knew a dammed site more than just their names. “These are our people. They’re hungry, sick and being persecuted in a way you couldn’t possibly imagine. So much so that they’re willing to risk their lives to escape. Now, if we don’t find a way to get them out of here, then you’re gonna have a massacre not only on your hands but your conscience. So, I’ll ask again, are you gonna fucking help us or not?”

Her voice as steely, and as Ari looked at her, she was radiating a deathly, silent fury, fire burning in her eyes and for the first time since they’d started their meeting, Bowen’s cocky demeanour faltered a little as he shifted uncomfortably under her glare.

Despite everything, Ari couldn’t help but smile at how quickly Hannah had turned this round on Bowen by calling him out and he was reminded exactly why he had wanted her on the mission in the first place. Sure, her skills lay in the medical field but in situations like this she was fearless, quick thinking and had an authority about her when she was in this mood that could make the bravest of men quake in their boots. Right there and then, he didn’t think he could love her any more if he tried.

And he was also highly inappropriately turned on.

Bowen sighed and shook his head, an apologetic look on his face, his body language now shifting from cautious to open. “Honestly, the best I can do is talk to my bosses.”

“Well then,” Hannah nodded to the two phones on his desk, her arms folding back over her chest, chin jutting upwards in a display of defiance, “get talking.”

Bowen looked at her before he took a deep sigh and picked up the phone. From then on in it was a flurry of calls, back and forth it went as Ari explained in detail his idea and what he had agreed with Ethan.

For hours the wrangling went on until Bowen made the final call and informed them there was nothing more he could do formally. Ari, frustrated by the amount of red tape the man seemed to be caught up in had started pacing up and down, hand running through his beard. Hannah remained nervously in her seat, her foot tapping the leg of Bowen’s desk as the man gave her a small smile.

And then the red phone rang.

All three of them looked at it, Hannah rising to her feet as Bowen took a deep breath before he reached to pick it up, but Ari stopped him, hurrying over from his spot in the doorway, panic flooding his system as he suddenly realised there was a pretty big chance this wasn’t gonna go the way they wanted.

“Wait, wait, wait!” His large hand curled on the receiver to prevent Bowen answering as it continued to ring shrilly. “I don't know what this person's gonna tell you. They may tell you to throw me out of the building or the country, but I promise you, what you do right now will be your legacy.” He paused as Bowen looked at him. “When you look back on this moment, it will either fill you with great pride, or great shame.”

Bowen looked at him, before Ari moved back and he picked up the phone. “This is Walton.”

Ari and Hannah exchanged looks, her hand slipping into his giving it a squeeze as Bowen spoke. Eventually, he put the phone down and took a deep breath.

“They told me to throw you out.” He shrugged and Hannah felt her heart sink.

“Fuck!” Ari slammed his hand on the desk before he stood up, both hands flying through his hair.

“But lucky for you, we’re cut from the same cloth Ari, I don’t much care for stupid decisions from up the chain either.” Ari blinked, his hands dropping to his side as he stared at Bowen, who shrugged a little. “You’re right, I don’t want four hundred deaths on my conscience so I’ll get you a plane, but I can only get you one.”

Ari let’s out a sigh of relief, his mouth dry as he thanked every single one of his damned lucky stars. He turned to Hannah who was looking up at the ceiling, swallowing and blinking back tears, letting out the breath she had been holding pretty much since the phone rang.

“We got a thirty minute window tonight.” Bowen continued, as he turned and walked to a filing cabinet, pulling out a scroll “I can’t buy any more time.” With a flourish he unrolled the paper out onto his desk and Hannah instantly spotted it was a map as he pinned it down with a stapler at one side and a book at the other. He glanced up at Ari then Hannah, pointing to it. “You mentioned an air field?”

****

By the time they had fleshed out their plan, which involved numerous calls on secure lines back to Mossad HQ, it was almost two in the afternoon, and Ari was conscious that they needed to go if they were to stand any chance of meeting the schedule. After bidding Bowen a hasty good bye, they made their way swiftly to the jeep, hopped in and Ari sped away from the embassy back down the main road that would lead them out of Khartoum for what Ari was hoping would be the last time.

They felt like it was taking forever, and this time it was the setting sun that filled their eyes as Ari navigated the jeep down the deserted dirt track through the desert, once more avoiding the main road. They made small talk, a mix tape playing over the speakers as they went, Hannah mostly concentrating on going over their plan so they had it down to the last detail. But after a few hours, Ari had fallen silent and had taken to huffing impatiently, the foot which wasn’t pressed on the accelerator was jiggling nervously and his jaw was clenching in that tell-tale way. After half an hour or so of watching this silently, Hannah instructed him to pull over and take a moment before they had an accident, something he was extremely reticent to do but obliged anyway because she knew she was right. He needed to stretch his legs and clear his mind as much as he could. He would be no use to anyone if he arrived home in this state. He needed to be calm, focussed and together.

Ari left the ignition running, in case they needed to make a quick get-away and climbed out of the vehicle where he had pulled off the dirt track slightly and parked in the shelter of two sand dunes. He cracked his neck, ran his hand through his hair and began pacing a little, his toes scuffing at a few loose rocks as he took a deep breath, while Hannah watched from her spot against the rear fender of the jeep where she leaned back against the warm metal, her eyes tracking his every movement.

Ari bit his lip as he paced, running anxious hands through his hair, wringing them together, murmuring to himself. He thought back to his conversation with Sammy the day before and the incident in the dining room which until now, he had managed to compartmentalise. He was so desperate and determined to get this escape out properly without further damage to any of them, not least make sure Hannah was safe, that he had focussed all his energy and mental capacity on plotting and organising their route out. But now, the realisation of how close he had come to risking everything getting blown in a split second crashed over him, and it felt like a knife in the gut that was being slowly twisted, compounded by a constant hammer on the head, reminding him of exactly how dire the situation was.

Abruptly, he quit pacing and stalked over to Hannah, his hands cupped her face and crashed his lips to hers in a kiss that was bruising and possessive, but ever so careful as well, a combination Ari managed effortlessly when it came to his Firefly. “I love you. I love you so much...” he mumbled against her mouth.

She made no protest, bar a huff of surprise, but she welcomed him, almost like she needed the release as much as he did. Their kisses became more heated, and before he knew what he was doing, Ari's hand was fumbling for the door. Then effort was clumsy at best, teeth clashing together as he blindly pried the door open and pushed her inside till she was lying on the backseat.

Hannah grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him down to her, furiously kissing him, teeth clashing, beard scratching as she emptied every single emotion she was feeling into his mouth as he pressed her into the well-worn, creaky back bench of the jeep, groaning as he ground his hips down against hers. It wasn’t comfortable, trying to contort his large frame across the rear of the car but, right at that moment, comfort was the last thing on his mind as her hands tangled into his hair, nails scraping his scalp as she keened underneath him.

Ari pulled away if only for a second but Hannah's eyes told him everything he wanted to hear.

"Make me yours, Lobo," she whispered against his ear as his lips nipped and licked at her neck.

"You're already mine, Firefly," he all but growled, moving so that he had one leg bent on the bench, the other extended into the rear foot-well. The clanging of buckles, zipping of trousers and the rustling of fabric filled the car as, with a swift, hurried movement, Ari undone his belt and jeans, shoving them and his boxers down over his hips, just enough to allow his erection to spring free.

With a feral movement, he swatted Hannah’s hands away from where they were fumbling with the flies at the top of her own faded blue denims and quickly pulled them and her panties down over one of her legs, leaving her to kick them off the other, or not, he didn’t give a shit as long as they weren’t in the way. He shoved her legs apart as best he could, the tight position of the back seat giving them little room as she braced herself against the door arms above her head palms flat against the door.

Ari wasn’t wasting any time, because they simply didn’t have any to waste. Not only were they up against the clock due to their schedule, if they got caught as they were, out in the open, well, there was a jail cell waiting for both of them, and all things considered, had he been thinking straight he wouldn’t have instigated any of this. But he wasn’t, he never was as far as this woman was concerned.

Laying back over her, with a long, deep rut forward he thrust up into her, making her groan loudly as he nipped roughly at her neck whilst he retracted his hips and thrust back into her, harder still. A few thrusts later, his hips were set in a rhythm, snapping back and forth with a pace and a vigour that was merciless as he pistoned in and out of her again and again. His hands firmly gripping her hips as his lips met hers in a hard, deep kiss which was furious, tongues lashing against one another, obscene noises filling the vehicle, the inside of which was already hot and sweaty thanks to the heat of the day still being present, and was growing muggier by the second thanks to the heavy, exertive activities taking place on the back seat.

After a particularly deep thrust, an animalistic growl burst from his throat as one of her hands snaked into his long hair and gave a tug. As he glanced down at her, he could see the pupils of her eyes were blown wide with a desire he would never tire of seeing. She titled her hips up against him, causing him to drive deeper and she let out an almost primal cry he had never, in all their times of being intimate together, heard her make before. It simply revved him up even more, his rapid movements growing even more urgent.

“Fuck, Lobo,” she moaned, her head falling back, smacking against the metal of the car door as Ari thrust into her harder over and over again and it wasn’t long before he felt the tell-tale flutter of her clamping around him, a sign she was close and her hands flew from where they’d been braced against the door to his back.

“Firefly,” his hand reached up, grasping her chin between his finger and thumb, forcing her face round to his and his lips claimed hers once more. “Come on, baby,” he panted against her mouth, his thrusting pausing for a moment as he ground up against her, causing her to cry out. “Cum for me, Hannah.”

Another rotation of his hips saw her mouth drop open in as she chanted his name, again and again, her tight heat gripping him like a vice as she came, her back arching, hands clawing at his skin over his denim shirt. The bite of pain from her nails overwhelmed him and he felt his own stomach tighten.

“Shit, Hannah, I’m gonna…” His words tumbled into her hair as his movements became desperate before his hips stuttered as he came with a surge that made the world around him go silent, almost like someone was squeezing the air out of him inch by inch.

They lay there in a tangle of clothing and limbs, chests heaving, sweat glistening on every part of their bodies that was exposed, clothes sticking to the parts that weren’t. Ari held his girl to him, panting and shaking, and he was desperate not to let her go, but he was also painfully aware that their stolen time together today was coming to an end. As he managed to gain enough control push himself up on his arms, Hannah looked up at him, gently brushing the tendrils of hair that had fallen over his face back, raised her head, her lips pressing gently to his in a soft, tender kiss, a stark contrast to the violent ones they had shared moments before.

“Marry me.” He said softly, his eyes only on hers, awaiting her answer.

Hannah blinked as the two simple words resonated in her brain and those gorgeous eyes that Ari could stare into all day long grew wide in surprise. “What?” Her question was nothing more than a breathy whisper and Ari took a deep breath, before he spoke again, his voice clearer than it had been moments ago.

“Marry me, Hannah.”

As he watched her process his request, her eyes began to water and a single tear trickled down her cheek. Ari reached up to wipe it away, his hand shaking a little with nervous apprehension. Had he overstepped? It really wasn’t how he’d ever seen himself asking her, in a million years, but he wanted her to know just how much he did love and need her, especially as they were about to embark on the most dangerous part of their mission yet. And if it did go wrong, then at least she would know what she meant to him truly.

“Han?” He managed to croak her name out as she laid there, simply looking at him. And after what felt like an age, she gave a sniff and then the faintest nod.

But a nod nonetheless.

“Yeah?” Ari inhaled, hardly daring to believe it but then her face cracked into a huge smile and she nodded once more.

“Yes! A million times yes! It’s always been you, Ari Levinson.”

He spluttered a happy chuckle as her words sunk in and the sheer joy flooded his system at her answer, the love he felt for her warm in his chest like a talisman as she beamed at him. Grinning like the Cheshire cat, he closed the small space between them, sealing their engagement with a kiss. As much as he wanted to slowly make love to her until the sun crested the dunes and the stars started to shine, they were on a time crunch and this little detour would have already set them back some. But it was all fucking worth it, it would be. He had to believe it, or no one else would.

They made themselves presentable and began the rest of their journey back to the resort, time no longer on their side. And as Ari drove, Hannah's left hand nestled lovingly and snuggly in his right, he pressed his lips to her knuckles.

“I didn't mean for this.” Ari sighed as he glanced at her and then back to the dirt road ahead. “Well, I did in a way but not for it to end like this. I don’t know how I would have made it through any of this without you.”

“Ari.....” Hannah gave a little tsk. “You’ve pulled a lot of missions without me in the picture.”

“Maybe but,” Ari shook his head, “this is different.”

Hannah sighed now herself and leaned over to kiss his cheek, “the Red Sea Diving Resort will always have a place in our hearts, huh? If we make it, that is.”

“Don’t...” Ari shook his head. “Don’t say that. It’s gonna be fine.”

“I really wanna believe you.” She whispered, looking down at their entwined hands, taking a deep breath. “In an ideal world, then yeah, but I don’t know, Ari. I’m scared.”

He felt defeat in that moment, for he wanted nothing more than for Hannah to feel safe and secure. His body slumped a little in his seat and for a little while he didn't utter a word, his mind reeling and when he spoke his voice was a sad, barely there whisper. “I’m sorry, Firefly. I’m so sorry I dragged you into this. Fuck...Sammy’s right, I’m an asshole, I...”

“Hey!” Hannah cut him off sternly, “You listen to me right now, I wouldn’t change this, any of it for the world. It brought you back to me and even now I’d go back and do it all over, just to make sure we had these last two years.” She trailed off with a little swallow and a shrug as Ari took a deep breath.

“We’ll have more, Han. We didn’t go through all this to fail now. We’re gonna make it. We have to.” It was a plea more than a statement, his eyes searching hers as she held his gaze, pleading with her to give him this, assure him he was right, because for once in his life, Ari Levinson wanted his gut feeling to be wrong.

And she did. “Okay. If you’re telling me that then I trust you.”

Despite the tension of the day, Ari felt himself relax a little, both from the touch of her hand against his and by her words. He pressed a soft kiss again to the topside of her hand.

He couldn't admit it, maybe later once this was all over he would, but he was scared too.

**** Chapter 15

#leave no one behind #Ari Levinson #ari levinson x ofc #ari levinson x original female character #red sea diving resort #red sea diving resort fan fic #chris evans #chris evans characters

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ikeromantic · 3 years

Text

More Than Life

A mini-fic for @scruffymctee featuring Shingen and his honeyed tongue (cough) for my 400 Follower Celebration! Approx. 1900 words

May, Shingen, Sweet and (very) Spicy!

Shingen did not love flowers as much as Yoshimoto did, but flowers, as every wise man knew, were one way to please a goddess. He focused on that as Yoshimoto walked him through hanakotoba, pointing out each type of blossom, color variation, even the shape of the leaves and stem . . .

“The perfect bouquet for a woman should indicate your reverence for her beauty, your passion, respect for her wisdom and will, the qualities you love in her, and -”

Shingen stopped, confused as Yoshimoto stopped talking. The Imagawa clan head was staring off into the distance with a sublime smile. He followed Yoshimoto’s gaze to one of the garden paths. There, his goddess walked. Petals fell around her, landing in her hair and shoulders, covering the path beneath her feet. As if the world sought to worship her as he did. His beauty.

After a moment, both men coughed, shuffling their feet. Yoshimoto’s gaze slid to a vining morning glory as if it was that which caught his attention.

“I think I know what flowers I will choose, Yoshimoto. Thank you for helping me with this.” Shingen smiled at his friend.

“Of course. It is the least I can do.” The Imagawa clan leader bowed low.

After Yoshimoto left, Shingen sat on one of the sun-warmed stones. Though he meant to be looking at the flowers, his eyes strayed to her. She’d found a shady spot to watch the koi pond while she worked. A bit of cloth lay in her lap, and thread.

Shingen wondered what she was working on. He loved her creativity. Was there a flower for that? He couldn’t recall if Yoshimoto mentioned it. Something with ‘a’ . . . aster? No.

“Are you watching me?”

He started in surprise, wondering just how long he’d been lost in his thoughts.

“I don’t like being stalked.” His goddess frowned at him, her hands in small fists at her hips.

Shingen thought fast, trying to come up with something smooth. Words to win her back to him. But his mind hit the same refrain he’d been stuck in since their argument. “I - I’m sorry! Please, just talk to me . . .” but she was already turning away. Damn. Shingen’s fist connected with the stone, painful, but not as much as the hole in his chest.

He saw Sasuke approach and take her arm. She leaned on his shoulder as he guided her out of the garden. Shingen wasn’t jealous. He knew Sasuke too well to worry the ninja would try to steal his girl. He was her friend and it was good she had someone to talk to.

Shingen stood and stretched. His hand was throbbing but he ignored it. He had a plan to win his goddess back and it started with a bouquet. Something so beautiful that she would soften her rage and let him apologize.

He heard footsteps and turned, hoping it was Sasuke. A word with the ninja would be good. He might have some insight, afterall. But it was only Yukimura. Yuki was a fine young man, but he knew nothing about women and even less about romance.

The two men scowled at each other in a friendly way.

“You look awful,” Yuki said after a moment. “You’ve got a stain on your collar and leaves in your hem.”

Shingen brushed at his clothes self-consciously. He hadn’t really been thinking much about his clothes the last few days.

“Anyway, Kenshin says to leave you be but I figure he knows less about this than I do. I mean, he hates girls. Not her - but most of ‘em.” Yuki’s frown looked more sad than anything else. “You really messed this up, didn’t you.”

It wasn’t a question. Shingen nodded, feeling another wave of sharp pain in his chest. “I only meant to go drinking and be back by dark,” he sighed.

“Sure.”

“Nothing really happened.”

“Right.”

Shingen sighed. They’d had this conversation a thousand times. Telling Yuki again did him no good. It was his goddess that needed to know. She had to believe him. The girls with their tokkuri, pouring him drink after drink. He’d barely noticed them. It was only his bad luck that one had . . . well, not fallen. Jumped. On him. Right at the moment she’d come through the door.

It looked bad. Shingen couldn’t deny that. But he had eyes only for his goddess. Only wanted to touch her. His princess was the only woman he could see, and if she didn’t want him . . .

“Come on. Don’t make that face or we’ll both end up crying.” Yukimura slapped Shingen’s arm lightly.

Shingen swallowed. “Sorry.” He cleared his throat. “Is there - did something happen?”

It was Yuki’s turn to look uncomfortable. “I, uh, I’m not - I mean, girls are - anyway - I wanted to help you. If you need it. ‘Cause you can’t fight like this.” He shrugged.

“You're a good man, Yukimura.” Shingen tried on a smile. It almost fit. “There is something you can help me with, actually.”

A few minutes later, Yukimura hurried from the garden with his marching orders.

Now to find Sasuke. Or rather, to be found by. The ninja leapt down from a rooftop just as Shingen reached his rooms at Kasugayama.

“She is still angry.” That was what the ninja said, one eyebrow slightly raised for emphasis.

Shingen nodded. “I figured. And I deserve it. I shouldn’t have let those women treat me to a round.” Several rounds, if he was honest but it didn’t bear mentioning right now.

Sasuke nodded. “I am glad you realize that. She said, and I quote, ‘He probably called them all princess,’ and then burst into tears. You are FUBAR.”

“What? Food . . . bar?” Shingen shook his head. Something from the future, he guessed. “But . . . you said she was crying. I - I promised I wouldn’t make her cry.”

“I know.” Sasuke watched him, his expression flat and unreadable.

Shingen thought the ninja might be a little angry with him too. “Did you tell her I said I was sorry?”

“Affirmative, but there was no positive reaction to that statement.” After a moment of silence between them, he added. “I hope you have a better plan in mind.”

“I do.” He pulled the ninja to the side and gave him the general outline.

Sasuke nodded thoughtfully. “It might work. So what do you need me to do?”

“Keep her out of her room for the day - preferably outside the castle.”

“I can do that. But fair warning. If this doesn’t work, I didn’t know and I wasn’t involved.”

Shingen gave a pained grin. “It’s on my head. And don’t I know it.” He went back to his rooms and began his part in this plan. A letter. Words to open the heart of a goddess, he hoped.

The next morning, he put his plan into action. Sasuke took his goddess to the town to see a new fabric dye he'd found. Yukimura brought sweets and new wine from a local shop she liked. And Yoshimoto helped Shingen pick the finest flowers. When they were done, her room was covered in blossoms.

There were sakura bunches, the last of the season. Delicate purple sumire, and white anemone. Lilies, roses and camellias. Yoshimoto arranged them in layers of meaning. Apology, remembrance, all of the things he loved about her, and finally, love and passion. The center was a red burst of camellia and rose, the petals lying against each other in a profusion of delicate beauty. And there beside them, his letter, the sweets, and wine.

And just in time too. He could hear her laughter from the gate. And Sasuke’s voice, though he couldn’t make out the words.

“We should go. I don’t want to be here when she first sees it.” Shingen followed his friends out of the room.

Yoshimoto gave him a heartfelt smile. “She will see the truth of your heart, Shingen. Good luck.”

Shingen retired to his room. He tried to read, but couldn’t focus. Then he stood, pacing back and forth like a caged tiger. Waiting was impossible. He had to know if his princess could possibly -

His door slammed open and she stood in the glow of sunset, red light glinting off her skin. His goddess. Her eyes were damp from crying. The curve of her lips trembled with some strong emotion.

He opened his mouth to say something - anything - but his throat closed tight.

“I hate you so much,” she whispered hoarsely, closing the distance between them.

Shingen was ready for a slap. For her to shout. For whatever she wanted from him, whatever it took to earn her forgiveness. He wasn’t prepared for her to throw her arms around him and kiss him.

He could feel every inch of her beneath the thin fabric of her kimono and after days of distance between them, she felt like heaven. Like coming home. Shingen drowned in the taste of her, the way she smelled. He felt like a man dying of thirst, finally granted spring rains.

She pulled back, her eyes studying his face intently. “I should still be mad at you. But I - I just can’t . . .”

“I’m so sorry, princess. I was an idiot. I am an idiot.”

“You are.” She gave a laugh that was half-sob. “I feel like you tore my heart out.”

“And mine with it.” Shingen cradled her like the treasure she was.

She kissed him again, her tongue claiming his mouth with a possessive passion. Her teeth scraped his lower lip lightly as she pulled back. “Mine.”

“Every piece of me,” Shingen agreed.

Her lips traced from his mouth down the line of his jaw, and nipped his neck. “Mine,” she breathed.

Shingen’s voice was hoarse, almost a groan as he agreed. It wasn’t just her kisses. Those wicked hands of hers slid under his clothes, scraping little lines of fire down his sides. His goddess wanted to mark him and he wanted to let her.

She pulled open his kimono, mouth hot on the skin of his chest. She kissed his nipples, her breath making them hard and incredibly sensitive. “Mine,” she growled.

Shingen could only groan agreement as she went lower still. He’d never realized she had such a possessive streak. Nor that it would feel so good to be possessed.

Her fingertips trailed down the tender skin at his hip. Teasing. Drawing little circles that brushed against his most sensitive places.

He was so hard that he ached to be in her. To feel her heat. But he held himself still, letting her lead. And lead she did, pushing the cloth of her kimono back to show how very deliciously naked she was underneath.

His goddess wrapped her legs around him, kissing back up his chest. When she reached his lips she stopped and held his gaze. “God. I missed you so much, Shingen. Don’t you ever, ever, ever do that to me again. Because if you do . . .” her voice shook.

“I am yours, princess. Heart, soul, and body. I never want to be without you.” Shingen held her by the waist, resisting the urge to do more. He could feel how much she wanted him though, with her pressed this close. It was maddening. How could one woman be angel and demon all at once? Filling his heart and driving him mad with desire for her. She was everything.

She smiled. It was a hurt smile, one that said trust would take time to rebuild. But it was a smile nonetheless. “Do you . . . want me?” A question heavy with meaning.

“More than life.”

“Show me.”

Shingen did. He gave her every breath of longing he’d had since their fight, every shred of himself. He worshipped her with his tongue and his hands and his cock. With his eyes and his words of love. And angel that she was, she blessed him with her pleasure until, exhausted, they slept.

#ikemen sengoku #ikesen shingen #shingen takeda #otome guys #otome #fanfiction #fanfic #spicy #really spicy

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leejungchans · 3 years

Text

— beach confessions.

word count: 1.4k

warning(s): mentions of struggles with self-esteem

notes: words in [ ] represent the editors’ comments added in post-production; words in bold represent those spoken in english!!

summary: juliet opens up during the beach confession activity on ateez treasure film.

a/n: watching this episode made me super teary :’) i hope you like this one! thank you for reading and feel free to leave feedback and/or chat with me!! have a nice day!! 💕💕

you can watch the episode here!

On one of their last nights in Sydney, the production team takes ATEEZ to the beach for a team mission they titled “Be bold enough to be blamed”, where they are to be honest with each other and confess to their blunders.

“Let’s listen to what each other has to say, no holding grudges, though!” Wooyoung says to them.

“No holding grudges!” Hongjoong agrees passionately before saying, “Forgive whatever each other confesses!” with Wooyoung in unison.

Juliet laughs. “Life is all about forgiveness,” she jokes, to which the leader turns on her and nods approvingly. [The maknae’s wise words]

“That’s right.”

She ponders over what to confess as she gazes out to the shoreline. It’s truly a beautiful night, the beach isn’t too crowded due to the late hour and the moon illuminates the waves. From where she is currently standing on the platform leading to the beach, she can still see the glimmering lights of the Sydney skyline.

Off-camera, the staff asked her to go first seeing that she is the youngest, but she was so nervous that Jongho volunteered to go instead. Juliet gives him a grateful smile and a gentle squeeze of his hand before he walks down the stairs from the platform and down to the designated spot on the beach, where more staff members are waiting with their filming equipment.

Jongho starts his confession off by asking them to scream for five seconds. Surprisingly, most of the members oblige without giving it a second thought. To her right, Seonghwa looks on in bewilderment. “Why are we doing this?” he murmurs, causing Juliet to giggle and elbow him softly.

“As the youngest member!” Jongho starts, but Wooyoung chimes in before he can continue.

“Come again?”

The youngest member laughs, already able to picture Jongho’s frustrated face. [ㅋㅋㅋ Wooyoung is funny] She is not disappointed when he angrily yells back a “Listen carefully!” in response, and the members dissolve into a fit of laughter at his cute reaction.

Despite the hilarious beginning, the rest of the youngest male’s confession takes a serious turn as he admits to having trouble expressing his feelings, as well as thanking the group for embracing this trait of his regardless.

Without realising, tears start forming in Juliet’s eyes as she listens to his heartfelt words. As the maknaes, Jongho is her partner in crime and a silent support, always there to encourage her. Despite his confession, she thinks that his company and friendship mean more to her than he can ever imagine.

When Jongho finishes, she reaches up to dab at her eyes gingerly with the sleeve of her sweater while the others shout praises, also clearly touched from his words.

Seonghwa cranes his head to find the maknae already wiping away her tears. “Oh no, she’s already crying,” he coos, arm reaching around to pull Juliet into a half-hug and rubbing her shoulder comfortingly. [Jongho’s touching words makes Juliet cry] This attracts the attention of the other members and the staff, and Juliet waves a hand in front of her face to signal to the latter that she’s okay and that the filming can continue.

“Aigoo, don’t cry, Julie,” Yunho, who is standing to her left, says as he strokes her hair. “There’s still eight of us left, you’ll be sobbing mess by the end,” he teases lightly.

Yeosang goes next, followed by Wooyoung, who confesses to being the one who didn’t do the dishes after eating ramen, prompting shouts of protest from the members.

“This is not cool!”

“So it really was you!”

Yunho leans on the railings. “Hey! You were the first one who got mad!”

Juliet smiles fondly, remember the chaos that ensued that night as they all debated on the culprit as no one had stepped forward to confess. At the time, it did cause some slight tension because someone had to have done it, and everyone was frustrated that no one was admitting to it. But looking back years later, it was a memory that the nine of them alone shared, no matter how many times they recount the story over their lifetimes.

She watches in relative silence during Mingi, Yunho and San’s turns, only bursting into giggles when the tallest member divulges that he accidentally kicked Mingi’s laptop the day before, causing the rapper to roar with halfhearted outrage.

However, the tears make a reappearance when San talks about his low self-esteem and thanks the members for their constant encouragement and affirmation. It genuinely pains her to see San, or any of the others, for that matter, to think of themselves poorly, because she couldn’t imagine any other people to share this journey with.

“You’re the best!” she yells with all her might, hoping he feels her sincerity.

The staff decides that she will go after Seonghwa and before Hongjoong. When Seonghwa’s turn ends, she races down the beach to give him a hug after his sentimental sharing. The eldest hands her the white flag printed with ATEEZ’s logo that each member had been holding during their confessions before running back to the others.

“Members! Can you hear me?” she yells as she waves the flag enthusiastically upon realising that they are further away from her than she had thought.

“Juliet! Please don’t cry!” San call out to her.

“If you cry, we’ll cry too!” Mingi adds.

“No promises!” she responds, laughing nervously and taking a deep breath. “I know it can feel weird having only one girl as your member, so I’m really sorry if my addition to the group has made any of you feel uncomfortable. I don’t think I’ve ever told you guys this, but I always worry that I’m going to affect ATEEZ negatively and be a burden to you...” [The youngest opens up about her deepest feelings]

More tears spring to Juliet’s eyes once the words leave her lips, and she pauses to wipe away her tears. A staff member discreetly passes her a tissue off-camera. [Don’t cry, Juliet...ㅠㅠ] She’s kept such feelings buried for a long time, not knowing how to approach this topic with the boys and not wanting them to feel bad for her.

But she’s seen the comments—comments saying that her addition to ATEEZ will only drag the group down, like how they wouldn’t be able to be nominated for any boy group categories at award shows as ATEEZ isn’t a boy group for as long as she is in the group.

Reading those comments hurt. A lot. Juliet knows that the boys are aware of them, and she also knows that they do their best to shield her from seeing them. But if there’s one thing she’s learnt from being an idol, it’s that no matter how hard people—your company, your members, your family and friends—try to protect you from malicious remarks, they will find you regardless, plaguing your thoughts during the day and haunting your dreams when night falls. They make her question if she truly belongs, even if she knows deep down that the boys love her more than anything.

“Please don’t think like that!” Seonghwa yells, his voice cracking at the end. The maknae can’t see his face at the moment, but she will soon find out from watching the episode that his eyes were glossed over, overcome with emotion.

She hears Hongjoong’s voice next. “Yah! Who told you to think like that? I’ll beat them up!”

“That’s right!” Wooyoung agrees, “Jongho will come and beat them!”

“I will!”

Juliet laughs weakly at their half-serious threats before continuing with her confession. “The last thing I want to say is thank you! Thank you for being nothing but kind to me since the very beginning! I was really scared at first, but you guys quickly proved to me that I had nothing to worry about.”

She stops momentarily to sniff softly. “I hope you know that you all are very precious to me, and I wouldn’t want anyone else to be my second family. And I’m so thankful that you got to come to my hometown with me! Members, fighting! I hope ATEEZ can stay together for a long time! I love you!”

“I love you!”

With a bow towards the camera crew, Juliet runs clumsily back up the beach where she meets Hongjoong halfway as he heads to where she previously stood for his turn. The leader wraps his arms around her.

“Seonghwa’s right,” he says quietly so the microphones can’t catch his words, “don’t think like that. You are never a burden, Minyoung-ah, you are just as important to the group as any of us are.”

Juliet nods, raising her head from Hongjoong’s shoulder to see that the others have joined them on the beach, pulling the both of them into a group hug. [Nine makes one team ♡]

Juliet doesn’t know how she feels about destiny, but she thinks that it brought her to these eight boys who became her second family. For the first time in a while, she feels like she truly belongs.

#scenarios.juliet #ateez 9th member #ateez ninth member #9th member of ateez #kpop oc #idol oc #ateez oc #kpop addition #idol addition #ateez addition #kpop imagines #idol imagines #ateez imagines #kpop au #idol au #ateez au

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auncyen · 3 years

Text

chasing dumb ideas from work lol

Ren’s Palace takes the form of a video game world, bright and zany. The Shadows have their silhouettes color-coded according to difficulty, the cognitions are NPCs repeating stock dialogue--Mona pops up surprisingly often, considering he and Ren haven’t really hung out since May--and some of the logic used to progress is worthy of a click-and-point game. Which means it’s lucky they have Futaba with them, since she’s the only Phantom Thief who understands the logic of click-and-point games. Still, it’s such a breeze that it takes only three hours to reach the center of the stage, and Oracle complains they never even left the hand-holding tutorial.

Ren’s shadow smiles at them when they arrive, and hands Ryuji a controller for the P4Storm his parents took away from him and sold after his arrest. “Wait--is this the Treasure?” Ryuji blurts. “We didn’t give you a calling card, though.”

“Hmm...we did talk with him about what he thought the distortion might be, though,” Futaba muses. “He’s the NPC who knows the most about our methods, so that might have accidentally triggered the effect. Good thing we moved fast.”

The shadow nods at Futaba’s explanation. “I didn’t want to give you guys too much trouble. You’re my friends, after all.”

“Dude, you gave us no trouble at all,” Ryuji says with a laugh. “You’re way too nice for your own good!” Still, in this case, he’s relieved it’s not coming to a fight. Ren’s a friend, and he hasn’t seemed all there lately--they might have curbstomped his shadow if it’d come to that, and wouldn’t that feel awful.

Ren’s shadow smiles shyly, and waves them off before disappearing in bright light. The PT make their usual escape. The Palace crumbles.

So does the controller in Ryuji’s hands.

Despite the alarm the crumbling treasure causes for the entire group, Ren seems to take his change of heart just fine, doesn’t even throw himself a week-long slumber party like Futaba did. He stays home from school one day, Futaba reporting that he seems a bit sleepy but nothing too serious, and then the next day, Ren gives Ryuji a fist-bump and smile outside Shujin. Ryuji grins and tackles him into a headlock. He’s so glad the change of heart didn’t hurt Ren. Ren’s his best friend. The Phantom Thieves might have given Ryuji a reason to stay at Shujin and not drop out, but Ren’s pretty much an honorary Thief anyway, and he’s been running with Ryuji, and helping him deal with the track team’s problems, and he’s just so good at knowing exactly what to say to make people feel better. Ryuji’s thrilled he could help Ren for once.

And then, days later, he gets a text from Makoto during class, which he knows is urgent because Makoto texting during class: “Ren is still logged in the MetaNav on my phone for some reason. The location and distortion have been erased, but his name is still there. Is anyone else seeing this?”

Yusuke starts typing. Futaba and Ann chime in well before him that yes, they see it too. Ryuji opens the Metanav on his phone. Ren’s name is glaring on the screen, a partially-complete entry that shouldn’t be there at all.

“Class was that bad?” Ren asks when Ryuji trudges out of his classroom, prompting the blond to immediately shove the phone in his pocket.

“Uh, yeah,” Ryuji mutters. “Hey, Ren, can we talk about the--uh--you-know-what?”

“The completely unsuspicious you-know-what, yes, what about it?” Ren answers, because oh good the change of heart gave him his sarcasm back. Actually--that would be good news. It means the change of heart worked and the Metanav’s got some random glitch. “Let’s get off school grounds first.”

Ryuji manages to only jump a little when his phone buzzes.

When he checks, the Metanav has accepted “school” as the distortion’s location, even though the Palace was actually at the scramble in Shibuya and, more importantly, doesn’t exist any longer.

They go to Leblanc, where Shiho and Futaba are both waiting to talk to Ren as well, which helps Ryuji with the conversation ahead. It’s...kind of hard to muddle through ‘hey, we were trying to help you with your heart, but something might have gone wrong and we don’t know what’. It both helps and doesn’t that Ren stays calm the entire time, doesn’t get worried or pissed off that they might have screwed up. Wouldn’t a distorted person get mad? Wouldn’t a normal person at least be nervous?

Then again, Ren’s always had nerves of steel underneath the nerdy glasses. It never made sense to Ryuji why he didn’t awaken to a Persona when Ryuji and Ann and Shiho all could, not until they found his Palace. He’s got the guts for it.

Futaba openly prods Ren on how he views the school, and he shakes his head. “This must be a glitch. You guys have already helped me. I feel better, and everyone else has only needed their heart changed once. Why would I be different?”

Shiho purses her lips but then agrees. Ryuji feels a little antsy, wants to push but also wants to trust Ren, and even if the change of heart didn’t work for some reason, his friend is pushing back now. Ren’s not hurting anyone. His heart is his call just like Futaba’s was hers, and even the hacker, for all her curiosity, respects that. They gotta drop it.

But it stays on the back of Ryuji’s mind for weeks as the entry stays in place, 2/3s complete, and everyone else is worried too because they all like Ren and something does seem a little off about him--like he’s trying too hard to be normal, to convince them everything is fine--and then apparently one morning, right before class starts, Ren startles Ann by leaning over her shoulder and drily reciting: “Ren Amamiya, Shujin Academy, theater”.

The keywords work, Ren supplying them is taken as an implicit request, and there’s a good chance their calling card timer is already running just like the first time, since Ren knows how they work after tagging along for most of the first Palace and helping them with supplies for later ones. So they go.

Ren’s second Palace is a theater. It’s completely different from the video game world, with dark, muted, traditional colors, yet unmistakably Ren’s, and Makoto has to get their navigators back on task several times because Morgana and Futaba are going nuts theorizing (because who has a second Palace to begin with?). Luckily Shiho doesn’t have much trouble leading the group through anyway. Once again, Ren’s Palace is weirdly easy. The Shadows aren’t color-coded any longer, but they also don’t seem to care about the Thieves as long as they don’t interrupt the show on stage. It’s...an improv show, Ryuji thinks? Yusuke says it might be an avant garde direction on a play. (Ryuji has no idea what the difference would be.) What happens is Ren’s shadow is always acting, and sometimes a cognitive audience member will leave their seat and join him. All of the Thieves are there, even Morgana, which the cat seems touched by, plus Mishima, and Ms. Kawakami, and Ms. Chouno, and Ryuji is about to question why Ren has the hots for so many teachers when Ushimaru gets up and that thought becomes cursed, and the newspaper club girl, and that cute gardening club girl, and actually, Ryuji still thinks Ren has some kind of bias for hot girls going on here. Even if the (former) stalker girl is pushing it.

That’s probably nothing to do with the Palace distortion though, since Ren’s interactions are always a simple back-and-forth with the cognition: they request something of him, even if it’s just to talk, and Ren obliges them admirably, or sometimes he acts as though he’s ignoring them at first, only to swoop in at the last second and give them something even better than they asked for. It’s interesting maybe the first couple times? Morgana stands out again because his cognition nags Ren to study and make infiltration tools, something Morgana says he’s never done, which makes sense because Ren is one of those aggravating people who never needs to study to ace exams and Shiho’s always made the infiltration tools just fine. After Morgana, though, it just falls into a predictable pattern, and the only reason to keep watching is to see who else comes up to stage. And once cognitive guest stars start repeating, the Thieves are out. Every improv act has been slightly different, but the flow is so obvious that it’s become mind-numbingly repetitive anyway.

They sneak past security into the back halls and find a dressing room. Futaba and Morgana both detect the Treasure inside. There’s a white-and-black domino mask sitting on a vanity in a dark corner of the room that both navigators swear up and down has to be the Treasure. It almost seems appropriate for a Thief mask. Maybe because Ren’s seen most of the team’s? It fits the theater setting, at least, but...

“Are we just...taking this?” Ann questions, with an uncertain look around the dressing room. “Seriously? His Shadow’s not even going to talk to us?”

“I would not complain about us being proper thieves and going undetected for once,” Yusuke points out.

“Okay, point, but it just...feels like I understand Ren less than I did before the video game place.” Ann sighs. “I thought he was just a quiet guy, but he saw part of Tokyo as a game? Now he’s acting with everyone at school? I wish I got what it actually meant...”

“We can ask him about it later,” Shiho reassures her. “Right now we just have to take the Treasure.”

That suits Ryuji. They take it. The Palace collapses.

The mask crumbles in Shiho’s hands as soon as they reach the real world, and she makes a small noise of distress. Morgana and Ryuji spit out the same curse in a rare moment of heartfelt unity. Futaba, on the other hand, just whips out her phone. “Hey-hey,” their navigator says, “Guess who doesn’t want to leave the Metanav?”

Ren is sympathetic with his thief friends not being able to steal a Treasure, which feels wildly inappropriate to Ryuji because it’s Ren’s heart in question here. Ryuji thinks in his shoes, he’d be losing his mind. Ryuji’s in his own shoes and he’s still losing his mind a little, because the only answer the group can come up with for what’s going on is that Ren’s somehow got three distortions.

No, sorry. It’s that he has at least three. Three may not be the magic number. Ren doesn’t seem to think it is, anyway, because now he puts down his foot. “I’m not hurting anyone. I’m fine.”

“Yeah, you weren’t even down for a day like last time,” Futaba mutters, giving him such a suspicious look that Shiho nudges the girl. Ren is their friend, and he’s been helping them be Phantom Thieves. They’ve got no good reason to antagonize him.

Ren gives her a long, silent look before shaking his head. “You guys should be figuring out your next target.”

They should be.

They do.

Ren helps them less with supplies this time. Ryuji wonders if it’s because of the distortion, and then he catches himself and realizes he’s been wondering if everything with Ren is because of a distortion or not. It’s probably not even Ren’s fault. They’re just not talking to him about Thief business as much, since...yeah. The only upshot might be that Morgana has been making some effort to get to know Ren better. Because Morgana was a jerk when they first found him--he’s still a jerk sometimes, but even Ryuji would say he’s gotten a lot better--and he pretty much brushed Ren off in favor of people who were actually awakening to Personas, like everyone else. They never really argued or anything, though, and apparently judging by Ren’s Palace...s, Ren’s fond of him, and Morgana seems to have finally realized that sometimes, making friends is its own reward, even if they can’t wield kickass Personas. So that’s a thing, now, Shiho passing Morgana off to Ren so they can trot off and do whatever people do together when one of them is a cat (apparently watch movies, get food, fish, and just talk).

And that’s why when Morgana says “I think I know Ren’s keywords” at the start of a Phantom Thieves meeting, Ryuji blurts out “I thought you stopped being an asshole” with a disappointment so deep that it kind of surprises him, because, wow, he really had been expecting that Morgana was just trying to be nice and not obsessed about Palaces and Treasures for once, huh?

Morgana blinks at him across the table. “I have never been an asshole,” he says, outright lying. “Though there are a few things I could say about you--”

“Morgana,” Shiho says, heading off that argument. She looks upset, too. “We don’t have any reason to pursue Ren’s Treasure. He’s not hurting anyone. He...seems to be doing all right,” though the hesitation is audible in her voice, and quickly followed with, “and even if he isn’t, it’s his heart. You’re not getting a unanimous vote here, and if this is why you’ve been friendlier to him lately, I... don’t know what to say, except that I thought you were better than that.”

There are two Phantom Thieves who can scold Morgana and actually make him feel ashamed: Ann and Shiho. Sure enough, she lands a critical hit; Morgana’s ears pin back, and he nearly ducks down under the table to escape her stare before stopping himself. “I’m not asking for a vote,” Morgana says. “If we took his treasure it’d probably just crumble again. But I want to check if I’m right about the keywords. It could be critical information.”

There is a long moment of silence. As much as Ryuji’s still pissed off at Morgana, he can’t deny being curious. If they at least knew the keywords, even if they didn’t go in, they’d understand Ren better, right? Though...after how the last two distortions went...

As it turns in, they go in anyway, because Makoto taps on her phone to open the Metanav, places it in front of Morgana, and when he utters “Tokyo, Metaverse,” the app responds “beginning navigation”, and--

“Fascinating,” Yusuke says.

“That’s not the f-word I’d use,” Ryuji says.

“Huh, Kaneshiro’s Palace is here,” Morgana notes, because that is indeed an effing bank flying through the sky, narrowly avoiding a blimp. The cat continues getting down to business despite the absurdity of the situation he just launched everyone into. “That means both that he’s seen it, and that his mental map of the Metaverse isn’t accurate. It might be based on his most recent memory? We never brought him in the bank, though. What do you think, Or--” He stops when he actually turns to Futaba and sees her face. She’s paler than usual. “...Oracle? Are you okay?”

“My Palace is there,” she says, pointing in the direction where Yongen Jaya would lie. The golden tip of a pyramid gleams over dozens of other riotously colorful, stylistically mishmashed buildings. “How does he know what my Palace looked like? How does he know about any of these? There’s at least two hundred--maybe three!”

Three hundred palaces is a stupid number of Palaces for anyone to personally remember, but it’s especially stupid for a guy who doesn’t even have the Nav on his phone.

the idea: “if persona users simultaneously having a Palace can be justified with wildcards having multiple personas (for one to turn into a shadow while the others remain to use), what kind of shitshow would Ren create if all his Personas just--” and then ng+ shenanigans wandered in

#persona 5 #ren amamiya

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jazy3 · 3 years

Text

Thoughts on Grey’s Anatomy: 17X7

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

They did it! I can’t believe it! They actually killed DeLuca off! I’m so happy right now! As long time readers will know I have never been a Andrew DeLuca fan and I speculated back in the summer that they might be planning to write his character off after it was revealed that the planned finale for Season 16 included an explosion that was supposed to claim the life of one of the characters. I speculated that DeLuca was the most likely candidate with Tom and Jackson being the most likely runners up because I felt that they had gone as far as they could with DeLuca’s character and there wasn’t much left for him to do on the show.

Add that to the fact that the actor who plays DeLuca said a bunch of stuff to the press last year where he spoiled some pretty major plot points and stated that he knew things about where the show was going when he hadn’t even read a single script for the season yet and I was pretty sure his days were numbered. That being said, the show had teased us a bunch of times about firing, killing, or writing off the character during seasons 15 and 16 and they never went through with it so a big part of me was skeptical that they ever would.

But it turns out I was right! His days were numbered and they wound up killing him off in the Mid-Season Premiere! I’m still in shock. It hasn’t really sunk in yet to be honest. This episode honestly made me wish we’d gotten to see the remaining episodes and finale of Season 16 as planned. Based on what we know it looks like the plan was for Richard, Bailey, Meredith, and Carina to stage an intervention, DeLuca was to go away and get treatment and return to the hospital only to die tragically in an explosion.

Season 17 would have opened with the characters finding out about that and mourning his death and I think it would have been interesting to see Meredith navigate that as in the Finale Hayes asked her out and she said yes. It seems likely that if the COVID-19 Pandemic had not hit when it did and shut down production and altered filming for this season we would have seen Meredith and Hayes go out for a drink and start dating.

Seeing Meredith navigate the loss of her ex-boyfriend who she was no longer close to while in the beginning stages of her relationship with Hayes would have been very interesting and I’m sorry we didn’t get to see that. I’m also sorry that due to safety restrictions Meredith and Hayes haven’t had much screen time this season, but it looks like that’s about to change as I’ll get into a bit later.

Back to the episode at hand. I never liked DeLuca as a character and I hated him with Meredith so I’m glad that they killed him off and that we never have to deal with that nonsense again. I’m glad that they caught the human trafficker Opal and took those people down. I was never super invested in that storyline so I’m glad they wrapped that up. I feel so bad for Carina though. She’s a great character and is wonderfully acted by Stefania Spampinato.

My heart broke for her in this episode because while I won’t miss her brother I know that she will and will be absolutely gutted when she finds out that he’s died especially after she worked so hard to get him help and treatment for his Bipolar Disorder. I’m glad she has Maya there to support her.

LOL at Bailey sleeping through the whole damn episode! What did I miss indeed! That poor woman slept through DeLuca getting stabbed, almost dying, not dying, having surgery twice, and then actually dying as well as the other shenanigans going on at the hospital. I loved that she was asleep at Meredith’s bedside especially after they spent a good chunk of Season 16 fighting.

I also feel really bad for Richard in that he’s obviously grateful that DeLuca helped save his life and wanted to help and when Owen turned him down because it wasn’t a good idea for him to scrub in Richard lurked in the background in the OR gallery the whole time to make sure that everything was okay. Plus he can’t talk to Meredith about it right now because she’s in a coma which must be so difficult for him. The extra stress also puts his sobriety at risk and that worries me.

I got to be honest I am struggling to understand Teddy’s point of view this season. She’s being really awful! She’s being cruel to Tom. She was cruel to Owen. I don't know what Teddy expected to have happen. Both Cristina and Amelia walked away from their marriages to Owen and moved on with their lives in large part because they realized Owen was in love with Teddy and always would be.

And then she finally gets what she’s wanted all these years and the minute she realizes Amelia’s baby might be Owen’s and not Link’s she runs back to Tom and has a several months long affair with him and then drops him like a hot potato as soon as she realizes that the baby is Link’s and after Owen finds out about the affair she refuses to talk to Tom for months and then comes crawling back to him and wants to be his friend after Owen makes it clear he wants nothing to do with her. WTF?

I feel bad for Tom. I really like his character. He’s super interesting and complex and he deserves better than someone who treats him like that. Tom is a good man at heart and he treated Teddy like gold and in return she’s done nothing but break his heart and stomp all over him when he’s already down. He deserves someone better. I’ve never been an Owen fan, but honestly Teddy is behaving so horribly I’m on his side on this one.

They had some great scenes in the OR together, but Teddy clearly read too much into it. Every time he gives her a crumb she’s convinced he’s forgiven her and wants to give her a second chance and that’s not it at all. Owen has been clear. He doesn’t forgive her and he doesn’t want to get back together with her. All he wants is to co-parent peacefully and work together as colleagues because he values her skills as a surgeon. That’s it.

It was cute to see Teddy Face Timing with Leo. I’m glad they are finding safe ways to incorporate the kids into the story. Speaking of which, the scene where Amelia and Maggie tell Zola that her Mom has been placed on a vent and she might not come off it was heartbreaking. That kid has grown into her own as an actress and really holds her own in that scene.

Her line about how she didn’t want them to tell Bailey or Ellis yet because they’re too young to understand broke me heart. Zola’s only a few years older than them but she’s old enough to understand the impact of what’s happening in a way that they can’t. And she remembers how hard it was when Derek died. When Cristina left. When Alex left. She doesn’t want to put her siblings though the same thing especially when Alex’s departure is still so fresh for them and they never got a chance to really know their Dad. The fact that Zola can recognize that at such a young age is raw and heart breaking.

We saw Winston and Maggie reconnect this episode which would have been super hot and enjoyable if Meredith hadn’t just been put on a ventilator! The scene where Jackson showed up looking for Maggie was too funny! I loved the scenes with Jackson, Link, and Winston in the backyard having beers! Winston has a great sense of humour and seems to be a calming presence. I like the idea of those three being friends.

Link’s face when he realized that Winston doesn’t know that Maggie and Jackson used to date and are also step-siblings. I’ll be interested to see Winston’s reaction when that comes out. I loved Link’s rant about how worried he was about Meredith and what her declining health and potential death was doing and would do to Amelia. Did anyone else catch that he called Amelia his wife? I’m calling it. They’re foreshadowing an Amelink wedding!

I liked hearing Jackson talk about how Meredith is family and they’re all worried and Winston’s comments about how all they can do is just keeping moving physically and metaphorically. I’m also loving Amelia and Maggie’s wardrobes this season. Their sweaters in this episode were gorgeous! Hats off to the wardrobe department! They’re looking good!

I loved seeing Jo and Hayes work together again because I love their friendship, but to be honest I was expecting more of the friendly teasing and banter of last season where she egged him on about Meredith and they traded barbs. Their scenes in this episode were a lot more intense and agitated. She totally played him with that line about Meredith.

He kept saying no to taking Luna to see her Mom and so Jo made it personal for him. If Meredith asked to see her kids Hayes would never say no and he would move heaven and earth for her. By making that connection Jo got him to agree to her plan. I also love that the reason he kept saying no in the beginning was because of what happened to Meredith.

She went from laughing and joking to being put on a vent and he doesn’t want to run the risk with any other patient and it’s obviously eating him up inside. He misses her. He cares about her and he’s clearly terrified about the possibility of her not waking up. That being said, Jo’s line where she compared Alex leaving her for Izzie because he found out he had kids he didn’t know he had and sending her a heartfelt letter to Hayes spending years watching his wife and the mother of his two boys die of cancer was way out of line. Super not okay. I really think that Jo is going to adopt that baby. I think that’s why they are setting up her interest in OBGYN.

In other news, Nico is still a terrible boyfriend to Levi. I honestly don’t know why Levi puts up with him. Levi really shone in this episode I think. He felt responsible for what happened, but instead of bungling things and making things worse like he might have done in the past he got out of his own way and asked Dr. Khan who was a vascular surgeon in Pakistan prior to immigrating to the U.S. to take his place.

I feel like this episode implies that the Beach is limbo now as I don’t know how else DeLuca could have ended up there as he wasn’t someone who was close to Meredith the way that Derek, George, Richard, and Bailey are. Not sure how I feel about that as I was kind of liking the is it a COVID dream is it the afterlife ambiguity.

Onto next week’s promo! I’m not excited that they appear to be setting up an episode in which the other characters mourn DeLuca’s passing as none of the other characters apart from Carina were really that close to him. They spent the last two seasons establishing that everyone hated his guts, considered him a nuisance, and only put up with him because they had to. So to me the other characters mourning him doesn’t feel authentic or real. It just feels forced.

There are several things I am excited about though. Seeing Maggie’s reaction to his death I think will be interesting. She was visibly upset and ran to his side when Alex beat him up in Season 13 and mourning the loss of your ex-boyfriend who you were no longer close to while being in a committed relationship with someone new I think is an interesting dynamic. She’s kinda standing in for Meredith here because she’s on a vent.

I’d like to see Catherine support Richard and make up for her horrible behaviour last season. And the best thing of all: Hayes!!! In the promo trailer we see Hayes sitting at Meredith’s bedside talking to her about how she needs to fight and how they all need her to fight. Bring it on! It’s about damn time! And Derek’s back and he’s … fishing? I’m excited to see what happens there and if they actually get to talk and have a real conversation this time. It has also been announced that Sarah Drew will be returning for a cameo as Dr. April Kepner this season so I’m excited for that!

Until next time!

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preciousthingsareprecious · 3 years

Text

With a Heart of Scars Ch. 10

Hey guys! I hope you are all doing well and staying healthy. This chapter splits POVs between Dick and Stephanie because both of them had short scenes.

AO3 Link

Dick woke to a splitting headache.

He blinked up at the roof of the cave and wondered how he’d gotten there. The last thing he really remembered was the building coming down around him. So, who had gotten him home?

“Grayson? Are you awake at last?” a small voice asked from beside him.

Dick turned his head and saw Damian, curled up in a chair, hands wrapped around his legs, wearing a Nightwing hoodie of all things.

“Dames?”

The boy scowled, “Tt, I see you finally recognize me. Perhaps you did not lose all your sense when you allowed a building to fall on you.”

At that, Dick remembered his rescue. The image of Nightwing’s symbol the only clear thing on Damian’s then blurred figure, his terrified tone, and unrelenting grip as he dragged Dick to safety. He swallowed, at the memory of being lost in grief over Bruce, and wondered how much he’d admitted out loud.

“Hope I didn’t worry you too much.”

Damian rolled his eyes and laid his head back down on his knees, facing away from Dick, which Dick took as “yes, you did worry me.” He wouldn’t have needed the eye roll to know that. Damian had come after him, hardly dressed to be on patrol with little more than a domino and utility belt to help him, and was here sitting by his bed. Yeah, the kid was upset.

“Drake should have been there.” Damian mumbled, voice muffled due to one cheek being squished against a knee.

Dick pushed himself up so he was sitting, his chest twinged at that, but wasn’t nearly as painful as it might have been. His legs, however, were not pleased with the movement, and Dick winced at the sharp pain in his thighs.

“It’s not like he bailed, Damian. I planned to go out on my own.”

The boy squeezed his legs tighter, “He failed in his duty as Robin.”

“Batman used to go out all the time without Robin. I mean, when I was growing up I only went with Bruce on the weekends for the longest time. A partner is not a requirement, Dames.”

“He has not been a partner though, has he?” Damian asked, raising his head suddenly to level a serious look at Dick, “He has hardly been here for weeks, he left Batman at one of his most crucial times, while you were getting used to the cowl, and now because no one was by your side you almost--” he broke off, swallowing whatever he was going to say, “a building crashed down on you. It is not a question of what Batman has done in the past, but what he needs now.”

He dropped his legs to the ground, and balled his hands on his thighs, “You need a partner, Robin or not. This is a different Gotham than Father’s, if only because you are a different type of Batman.”

Dick was surprised that Damian didn’t tag on a jab at his skills as Batman as he’d done regularly. He expected to be told that he needed a partner because he wasn’t good enough to be Batman. What he had not expected was a heartfelt --for Damian-- speech about Dick needing to be safe.

He leaned forward and took one of Damian’s hands in his own, Damian hadn’t released his fist, so Dick ran this thumb over the top of his hand, “I’m sorry I made you worry. Thank you for looking out for me no matter what, and thank you for being so patient with me while we sort things out.”

He wanted to tell Damian he’d been thinking the same thing, and how much he wanted to bring him out as his partner, but he bit back those sentiments. He still needed to talk to Tim.

“I’ll talk to Tim when he’s back, see if he can stick around a little longer or something.”

Damian pulled his hand out of Dick’s and stood, “Good.” the word was clipped, “Let us hope he decides to stick around long enough to keep you alive this time.”

“Are you leaving?” Dick asked, frowning at him.

He hesitated, “I was going to get Pennyworth and let him know you were awake.”

Dick reached his hand out again, “Stay for a bit longer? You haven’t even told me just how much damage the building did to me.”

Damian sighed, and flopped back down into the chair, “You are surprisingly indestructible. Between your armor and pure luck you only need contend with a concussion, some heavy bruising, and mild lacerations to your thigh.”

“I’m sure Alfred will insist I stay in bed for a week.”

His brother shrugged, “He mentioned something of the sort. Brown and Cain have also agreed to look into the explosion while you are incapacitated. They would have gone after I returned with you, but by then emergency crews had arrived on the scene."

He wrinkled his nose, which made Dick raise an eyebrow.

"It took far too long to rally any kind of emergency response. Considering the time it took me to arrive and find you, firetrucks should have been swarming the area. It is as if something had delayed the signal."

"We'll have to look into that too then." Dick hummed.

He was about to ask Damian for more details, when the sound of a bike roaring came into the cave. Both Dick and Damian looked to see who was arriving. Robin's Redbird bike pulled in, and Tim was just turning it off.

“Damian, don’t start a fight, okay?”

“Tt. I will go get Pennyworth.”

This time, when Damian stood Dick did not stop him from walking away. He hated it, but the kid was dealing with a lot of emotions right now, and one of those was profound anger at Tim, maybe not Tim himself, but the fact that Dick had gotten hurt without Tim there. It was understandable, and Dick was willing to let him go and cool off a bit. Something told him that the longer he and Damian spent together, the more likely he'd become just about as overprotective as Bruce could be.

Dick shook his head, and put on a smile for Tim.

A light, angry, set of stomping feet preceded Damian’s entry to the kitchen. The sound was enough to alert Stephanie of the kid’s mood. She eyed Cass who nodded, having also picked up Damian’s emotional state even before seeing him. It wasn’t like it was a hard guess. Beyond Cass, the kid was the only one who was still small enough to make a sound that light while also stomping, and Dick was downstairs hurt on a gurney. One plus one equals two, or in this case injured mentor plus stomping feet equaled an upset Damian.

The boy stopped short at the door to the kitchen, his face a veritable movie of emotions as he flipped from deep concentration to surprise, irritation, and at last settled on mild annoyance.

“Brown. Cain.” he said, by way of greeting.

“Hey.” Steph said.

Cass waved, and said, “Cocoa is on the stove.”

Both of them waited for Damian to pour himself a mug of the still warm hot chocolate, and settle on a stool across from them at the island.

“So, what’s the news? Did Dick wake up at last?” Stephanie asked him.

Damian scowled down at his drink, “Yes, the fool is awake.”

Steph raised an eyebrow, Damian wasn’t usually so grumpy when he talked about Dick. At least not anymore, especially since they’d gone out and bought all those art supplies. A genius stroke on Dick’s part, one she’d been planning to make him take if he hadn’t caught on sooner or later. Really, the kid screamed artist.

“What did he do to earn your ire?”

The boy tsked at her and sipped at his cocoa.

“We are not mind readers, Little Brother.” Cass said, gently.

Damian huffed, and looked up, “Drake has returned.”

Ah. That made sense. Steph stifled a smile, Damian’s little rivalry with Tim was pretty one sided, and while it had originally be born out of a need to fit in, it was obvious now it was about Dick’s attention.

“He’s been away a while, I’m sure Dick missed him.”

“Tt. That is not why I am upset.”

“Because Dick got hurt?” Cass asked, though they all knew it was the truth.

The boy squirmed in his chair, his scowl deepening.

“It’s pretty obvious.” Steph said.

“You two are insufferable.” Damian declared and took a large sip of his hot chocolate.

Now Stephanie did let herself laugh, “You know, if you gave Tim a chance I bet you’d find him as ‘tolerable’ as you find the rest of us lately.”

Damian tilted his head back, adding an air of superiority to him, even as he sat there in a hoodie too big for him, cupping hot chocolate in a Superman mug, “If he were here more often, then perhaps I could.”

“That, I can't fault.” Steph said, “But I won’t judge him for his actions either.”

“How is Dick?” Cass asked, changing the conversation.

Damian looked relieved he didn’t have to answer any more questions about his ‘rival’ and tapped a finger on the side of his mug.

“He is surprisingly well, and in far too good a mood for a man who had a building fall on him.”

There was something fond about Damian’s tone, even if he meant it to be dismissive. Steph was oh so tempted to tease him, but held off.

“Good.” she said, shifting in her chair, “Hey, what do you say to a trip to the park tomorrow? I need to get out and get some fresh air that’s not tinged with doom, gloom, and nighttime, and you told me you were bored of painting Alfred’s garden. A change of scenery would be fun.”

“You are trying to ensure I do not start a fight with Drake.”

Steph dropped her mouth open in an imitation of surprise, “Me? Never. I just thought you might want a change of scenery, and --since you’re ten and most certainty grounded from being alone in any kind of vehicle after tonight-- might need a ride.”

Damian groaned, “Pennyworth told you?”

She grinned, “A good deed does not go unpunished.”

The kid glared at her for a moment before nodding, “Fine, but I will not go to the last park we visited. The duck pond had no ducks at all.”

#Dick Grayson #Damian Wayne #Stephanie Brown #Batkids #fanfiction #precious posts #fluff #with a heart of scars #chapter 10 #wahos

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scarletemeterio-thesecond · 4 years

Note

hello, I'd like to request a zuko imagine with an earthbender reader, i was thinking maybe like he likes them but he thinks there's something between reader and sokka so that's why he doesn't say/do anything? and I'd love it if reader was toph's older sibling

I really liked this request! I wanted to try and do something different so it's written from Zuko's pov. It took me like three days to write this and it's pretty long, hope you like it!

-Mica :)

•••

Heartfelt Confessions (Zuko x Reader)

Warnings: None

Genre: Fluff

Fandom: Avatar, The Last Airbender

Summary: See request

Word Count: 2553

Zuko's POV:

Here I was, in front of the people I once tried to defeat, trying to make things right. I really wanted; I needed this to work out. I knew I was destined to help the Avatar.

"Hello, Zuko here" I said. Why did I say that? Of course they knew who I was; I had followed them for a long time!

As soon as I said that, they all got ready to attack and to be honest, I didn't blame them at all. I explained myself as best as I could, which wasn't actually very good at all, and then I waited for their response.

"You can't possibly think that any of us would trust you, can you?" said the waterbender girl.

"One of you has already! And I've done some good things" I said.

"What do you mean by one of us?" asked the little earthbender girl.

I immediately looked at the other earthbender in the group, whose eyes now were full of despair. And as I did that, everyone else did too.

"Back in Ba Sing Se, we ran into each other once" I began, now looking directly at them. "I knew you could tell who I was, I figured you were with the Avatar but you never told them that I was there when you faced Long Feng, did you?"

"What!?" said the earthbending girl. "How could you hide something like that? We could've known Zuko was in Ba Sing Se? I'm your sister, (Y/N); I thought we told each other everything!"

"Just tell us what happened, (Y/N)" said the waterbender, a bit strongly.

"The Dai Li had opened some kind of tunnel to get me away from you. I tried to come back as soon as possible but I found him instead" they said, looking at me. "I never said anything because so much had already happened... between Jet and the entire Long Fend thing I- I'm sorry, I should've told you. I didn't think he would do what he did later in the cave, he had freed Appa and I thought that maybe... He had some good in him. I'm sorry".

"That's right, you should've told us" began saying the guy from the Water Tribe, "but we know you didn't mean any harm, (Y/N)". After that the boy put an arm around (Y/N)'s shoulders.

"S-See! I could've stolen your bison but I set him free! That's something" I said, still trying to get them to trust me.

"Appa does seem to like him" said the little girl.

But they still were suspicious, and things got even worse when I admitted that I had sent an assassin after them. They rejected me and told me to leave, so I did. Thankfully, the following day, after so many mistakes they allowed me to join them and teach firebending to the Avatar.

Aang and I started practicing as soon as possible, but shortly after we were forced to stop; for some reason I couldn't firebend.

"Hey, jerks" suddenly said Sokka. "Mind if I watch you two jerks do your jerk bending?"

"Sokka, don't say that!" said (Y/N) while passing by.

"Get out of here, Sokka!" I screamed, clearly annoyed.

Sokka left while laughing a bit, but the earthbender decided to get closer to us.

"Hey, what's going on, guys?" Is everything okay?" while saying that, they sat right next to Aang.

"I think Zuko lost his firebending".

"I didn't!”

"Well, I think someone's a bit on edge right now. I'm gonna go and do some earthbending with Toph. Maybe I'll be able to annoy Sokka a bit, too" (Y/N) said as they let out a little laugh.

I couldn't avoid looking at them and think about how sweet their laugh was until Aang snapped me out of my thoughts. I really had to do something about my firebending.

After going back to the Western Air Temple with Aang, we quickly got back to training. Although that didn't last long since this time I was going on a trip with not only one but two members of the group.

"I still don't know why you came".

"You have to understand, Sokka, there's no way I would've let you do this by yourself" said (Y/N), still slightly arguing with the boy.

"I wasn't! Zuko was gonna come with me".

"And now I am too. I couldn't just stay there and lie to Katara and everyone about your trip, and I couldn't just do nothing!"

"I just don't want anything to happen to you, (Y/N); I care about you, okay?"

"I care about you, too, Sokka. But we're in this together. All of us" after saying that, they both made a pause, and when I turned around to look at them, they were already looking at me. "We're all on the same side now".

We all nodded in agreement and suddenly there was silence in the air.

"You know, a friend of ours designed these balloons" Sokka said, starting another conversation.

I paid attention to him but I could tell (Y/N) was lost in their own thoughts before drifting off to sleep while sitting next to Sokka. It felt so weird to have a crush on someone who was with another person. It even felt wrong. Ever since I joined the group I've tried to get them off my mind, I've even tried to stay away from them, but it just didn't seem to be working out. I sighed before turning my gaze back to the sky in order to distract myself from my own feelings.

When we got to the Boiling Rock, we decided to pretend to be guards. Shortly after that, Sokka got sent to take someone to the 'cooler', leaving (Y/N) and me behind. On lunch time, we tried to get some information about the prisoners, trying to find out if Sokka's father was here, but we weren't lucky. When we reunited with Sokka, I told him that there were no Water Tribe prisoners.

"What? Are you sure? Did you guys double check?"

"We did, Sokka. I'm afraid he's not here" said (Y/N) while taking his hand, trying to calm him down.

"I'm really sorry, Sokka".

"So we came all this way for nothing? I failed... again".

"Ugh, what would uncle say?" I wondered, trying to be positive. "Sometimes clouds have two sides, a dark and a light, and a silver lining in between. It's like a silver sandwich! So when life seems hard, take a bite out of the silver sandwich".

"Maybe we haven't failed after all" Sokka said, now a lot more hopeful.

"That's the spirit! I can't believe that worked, I didn't even know what I was saying".

"No, what you said made no sense at all".

"Yeah, Zuko, for real" said the earthbender, laughing at me.

"But look... It's Suki".

"What? I can't believe she's here!"

Sokka left quickly to wherever this girl was.

"Who's Suki?" I asked a bit confused.

"She's a friend of ours, and she had something with Sokka a while ago" they explained. "Come on, we have to go!" they grabbed my hand and took me out of there, going to wherever Sokka had left. I couldn't help but blush, thankfully it wasn't noticeable because of my helmet.

(Y/N) and I decided to keep guard outside of the cell, letting Sokka go inside.

"You seem pretty chill about this" I commented, without fully understanding the reason why.

"What? I'm completely terrified; we could get caught in any minute! I'm just trying to remain calm".

"That's not what I meant, I-" I realized a guard was coming towards us, so I stopped talking and knocked on the door, letting Sokka know that we had company.

To say things didn't go well was an understatement. We couldn't just let her get into the cell, so we had to fight back. Now, (Y/N) and I had been arrested for being impostors, which wasn't wrong of course, but it definitely wasn't what we had planned. I was sent to my cell, where Mai's uncle threatened me and then we were told to clean the floors.

"Listen, I think I have an escape plan" said Sokka once we were all together. "I checked out the coolers again. The whole point of them is to keep firebenders contained, right?"

"Yeah…"

"So they're completely insulated and sealed to keep the cold in. Well, to keep the cold in it also has to keep the heat out, right?”

"Just get to the point, Sokka" said Suki.

"Yeah, my brain is starting to hurt" agreed (Y/N).

"I'm saying it's a perfect boat for getting through the boiling water".

It wasn't going to be easy, but we had no other choice; we had to get out of here no matter what.

Once I was sent to the cooler I started taking out every single screw. Sokka came to take me out and we overheard some guards saying that some new prisoners were coming in tomorrow. Some war prisoners, specially.

“It could be your father” I said.

Sokka nodded and I asked what we were going to do.

“I don’t know. Is it right for me to risk Suki’s freedom- all of our freedom- on the slim chance that my dad is gonna show up?” he asked. “What if we get hurt or caught? What if something happens to (Y/N)? Oh my god, Toph would literally kill us!”

“Hey, calm down, Sokka. It’s your call; we’ll do whatever you say”.

We decided to go to the shore after all, it’s not like we could keep the others waiting.

“Are you sure you want to go? You’re the one who said you wanted to redeem yourself, redeem your honor” I said, still not sure about Sokka’s choice. “Rescuing your dad is your chance”.

“What do you mean? Is Hakoda here?” (Y/N) asked, looking at us.

“No, but we heard some war prisoners were coming in tomorrow” I answered.

“I’m going to stay, you guys go. Suki, you’ve been here long enough”.

“I’m not leaving without you, Sokka” the girl said.

“Yeah, there’s no way we’re gonna do that!”

“I’m staying too” I said. (Y/N) was right: we’re all on the same side now.

The others ended up getting caught, and quickly we were in a lockdown.

“The gondola’s moving” said Sokka. “If my dad’s not here we risked everything for nothing”.

“We had to” as Suki said that, she grabbed his hand. I couldn’t help but look at (Y/N); not only because I wanted to hold their hand too, but also because I was afraid that little action could hurt them. Still, they didn’t seem to bother.

Sokka’s dad was in the gondola after all, and we speedily went back to our cells. Not much later, I was taken out of my cell and sent somewhere else, where I saw Mai. I didn’t think I’d see her again, at least not until all of this was over. I guess I was wrong. We had a talk about me leaving her, but when I had the opportunity, I ran out of there, I had to go and meet the others.

“Great, we’re all here. Now all we need to do is grab the warden and get to the gondolas”.

“Good, how do we do that?”

“I’m not sure”.

We started arguing about him not thinking this through but we were cut by (Y/N)’s voice.

“Could you just shut up? Suki’s taking care of it!”

And they were right. Suki was heading towards the warden, successfully making him our prisoner. We ran to them and then we started running to where the gondolas were.

It was difficult, but we managed to escape, mainly because of Mai. I figured Azula had to get there somehow so we took her airship and left.

We had been travelling for a few hours, and everyone had fallen asleep, except for (Y/N) who was looking at the sky.

"Aren't you tired?" I asked.

"A bit, but I like looking at the stars".

"Be careful, I wouldn't want you to fall off".

"I'm fine, dummy, you don't have to worry about me" they said before giving me a soft smile. "The girl who helped was Mai, right? Your girlfriend?"

"My ex-girlfriend, and yeah. I wish I could thank her".

"Was it difficult seeing her there?" I stayed silent for a moment, trying to figure out why they were asking me this, but when they spoke again, it seemed like (Y/N) had read my mind. "I'm asking you this because you're with us now, and I care about you, Zuko".

"Its was… weird, but not difficult. I did feel a bit bad for getting over her and liking someone else, though".

"Ooh, who is it?"

"I'm not telling you".

There was a brief silence between us before (Y/N)'s voice cut it.

"Well, if any of us looks tired then it's you" they said, changing the subject.

"Yeah, well, I'll sleep once we get to the Air Temple" while I was saying that, I saw (Y/N) getting closer to me. "What are you doing?"

"Sorry, it's just that- You're pretty warm and in case you haven't noticed, it's cold". I didn't say anything, I just stood there. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to annoy you or anything, I know you don't really like me".

The last words were said in a soft mumble, but I still heard them. I raised my head, looking at the earthbender's eyes with confusion.

"What do you mean? Of course I like you".

"It's just that, you know, you kind of avoid me so… I figured you didn't like me".

"No, I- I didn't want to come in between you and Sokka so I just stayed away, you know?"

"Between me and Sokka? What do you mean?"

I took a deep breath and turned my gaze away from theirs, trying to think about what I wanted to say.

"You and Sokka are really close so I thought you were dating or something so I stayed away from you in order to not come in between you guys because I kinda like you and I know that's wrong and I- What are you laughing at?" I cut my own words once I started hearing them laugh.

"You really thought that Sokka and I-?" they kept laughing and I had to tell them to be quiet, we didn't want the others to wake up. "Oh, that was funny, I really needed that".

"Yeah, you're welcome" I said under my breath, hoping that my little confession had gone unnoticed.

"Wait, did you just say you like me?" they said, processing my words. "I-I didn't know you liked me like that" I closed my eyes, clearly not ready for the rejection.

"Look, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that, I know you probably don't-" I was cut by a pair of lips on top of mine, giving me a soft kiss. I didn't have any time to react before I felt their lips separating from mine.

"I like you too, Zuko… like that" I smiled cheesily at their words before pressing my lips against theirs again.

#prince zuko fic #prince zuko fanfic #fire lord zuko #zuko imagine #zuko x reader #atla #avatar the last airbender #atla imagine #atla fanfic

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thehouseoflamentation · 4 years

Note

What would MC's first Valentine's Day with the brothers and Diavolo be like?

MC’s First Valentine’s Day with the Boys + Diavolo

(I know I’m super late but just take it ><)

Lucifer

Lucifer isn’t one to wear his heart on his sleeve but Valentine’s Day is the perfect occasion for him to show you his romantic side because if you turn him down for whatever reason, he can use the holiday as an excuse for his affectionate behavior.

He wouldn’t make a huge deal out of the holiday. He isn’t really the most lovey-dovey person to begin with, however he would still put in a lot of effort to make your first Valentine’s Day with him special.

He would often try to save face by saying it's all part of the holiday but you can tell by the way he blushes lightly and turns his head when you make eye contact that he’s genuinely excited and a little nervous about spending Valentine’s Day with you.

When asking you to be his valentine he’ll gift you a bouquet of roses he grew himself. He’s rather proud with how his hard work paid off and hopes you appreciate all the effort he put in.

“You’ll be mine, won’t you?”

His words almost sound like an order but its only because he won’t really know what to do if you actually said “no.” His pride will take a pretty big hit and he’ll be sour and grumpy for a while if you turn him down.

If you do say yes though he’ll start the second part of his plan and take you out on a romantic candle lit dinner date. Depending on the mood after that he might invite you to continue the rest of night back at his room.

Mammon

He’s sweating bullets thinking about what he’ll do for your first Valentine’s Day together with him. Should he buy chocolates or would it be better to make them himself? Can he even do that? Maybe a card? No, no that’s too simple. How about flowers? What were your favorites again?

He wants everything to be perfect and ends up spending waaayyyyyy over his budget to make sure he has enough stuff to give you the best Valentine’s Day surprise. Well that is if he even decided to establish a budget in the first place.

Everyone can see him planning for Valentine’s Day from a mile away. He thinks he’s being real discreet despite having huge boxes from Akuzon delivered under his name in preparation for the holiday.

In the end it was actually a good thing that he bought lots of extra materials. His attempt at creating his own homemade chocolate only resulted in burned inedible bits and spilled chocolate mix. Once he got the hang of it he was barely able to make enough for one box.

He also ordered flowers but failed to order them at the right time. They ended up coming about a week earlier than he planned and most of them ended up wilting by the time Valentine’s Day came around. However in the end he was able to make a small bouquet from the flowers that were still good.

His last redeeming gift was the card he made for you. It was simple and his writing wasn’t the neatest considering he kept spacing out while writing it but every word came from his heart.

“Here! Just...just take it!!”

Once he handed you the chocolates, flowers, and card his heart felt like it would burst out of his chest from how nervous he was. If you agreed to be his valentine he wouldn’t be able to control his emotions and would probably start vibrating from sheer excitement.

Leviathan

You haven’t seen Levi leave his room for weeks up until Valentine’s Day. You were worried about him but in reality he had spent all that time binging dating sims and romcom animes in an attempt to plan the perfect Valentine’s Day with you.

In the end he decided to go with something simple, heartfelt, and foolproof. He pulled his hood over his head to hide his blush while he gave you the traditional box of chocolates and flowers however there was something else he saved for last.

“You don’t have to take it if you don’t want to but...here.”

His hands trembled as he handed you a small object covered in pink and red wrapping paper. It was a charm from an obscure anime he watched a couple weeks ago. In the show the protagonist gave his love interest a matching charm so they would always have a little something to remember each other by.

He didn’t expect you to understand the reference but the fact that he was able to convey his feelings for you was enough for him, even if it meant he was only one who knew the true meaning behind the charm….or so he thought.

Once you tore the wrapping covering the charm your eyes immediately lit up. Without skipping a beat you planted a kiss on his cheek and pulled him into a tight hug, thanking him for the charm. After you pulled away he was red from head to toe as he tried to process the fact that you knew exactly what the tiny key chain meant. Oh yeah and fact that YOU KISSED HIM.

It took awhile for Levi to regain his cool after that but he definitely wasn’t complaining. You ended up spending the rest of the day chilling in Levi’s room. Even though it was simple and laid back, you now knew without a doubt how Levi truy felt about you, and that charm hanging off your D.D.D was more than enough proof of that.

Satan

Satan had done some research on the human tradition once news got out that the holiday was just around the corner. He already knew what the celebration was about but he had trouble figuring out what he should do for the occasion. He wanted the day to be special for you but he also didn’t want to overwhelm you or make you uncomfortable. He couldn’t quite choose between two gifts he had in mind so he ultimately decided on giving you both.

His first gift was simple and just as sweet, a small box of chocolates covered in red wrapping paper. The adorable face you made as you happily sampled the candy was more than enough to convince him to continue with his plan.

Phase two! This was actually the most embarrassing gift he had planned for the day so instead of handing it to you he left it in front of your dorm room and sprinted around the corner before you could catch him.

“A kitten for my kitten <3”

Attached to the note was a small cat plush with heart patterns and a pink ribbon tied around its neck. You couldn’t help but giggle and smile at the adorable little thing in front of you. You held it close to your chest before placing it on your bed and moving back towards the doorway.

Satan had been going back and forth about adding the note but from your reaction it seemed he made the right choice. He turned and was about to head back to his room for a bit when he felt your lips suddenly press against the back of his neck.

He may have been the fourth strongest ruler of hell but that fact was rendered null under the tenderness of your surprise thank you kiss. Now he was beet red leaning against the wall for support while trying to comprehend what just happened, not quite how he pictured himself spending Valentines Day but still just as enjoyable.

Asmodeus

Asmo was all too familiar with the traditions of Valentine’s Day. The gifts, the decorations, the feeling of love in the air along with *ahem* less pure emotions made it one of Asmo’s favorite human holidays.

There was no doubt the demon would go overboard with preparations but what should he start with first? Chocolates and flowers were a main staple of Valentine’s Day but giving you something like that would be way too simple and predictable for someone like him. No, no, no. He had to do something special.

He contemplated what would make the perfect gift until he finally settled on something that he knew would be true to himself and also make you happy. In the end he took you on a couples spa day so the two of you could unwind and relax together.

Then after getting pampered for most of the afternoon, Asmo took you to a candle light dinner at Ristorante 6. The place was nearly packed with couples but he managed to pull a few strings to reserve a table away from the rest of the guests with a balcony view of the night sky. The two of you chatted the night away, enjoying the food and each other’s company until it was time to head back to the dorms. But Asmo still wasn’t done.

Inviting you to his room Asmo held out his final present to you much to your confusion. It was just...his wrist with a ribbon tied around it. It felt like some kind of joke but as you untied the ribbon you found that it actually trailed up his arm and wrapped around the rest of his body. An intricate bondage pattern sprawled over his torso leading down the rest of his body hiding just beneath the cover of his clothes. Had he been tied up like this all day? Well at that point you didn’t know and didn’t care. You were far too busy enjoying your last “present” for the day.

Beelzebub

Beel was in quite the predicament. He knew the kinds of gifts people gave each other on Valentine’s Day but he often found it difficult to resist eating what he was supposed to give you. The handmade chocolates he made first were delicious! Perhaps a bit too delicious though as the rest of the batch disappeared in the blink of an eye once Beel sampled a piece to see if it turned out alright.

Well at least now he knew the right measurements for all the ingredients to make a second batch….and a third….and a fourth. He was down to his last ingredients and it was too late to run back to the store and start the process over again so he knew he had to nail this next batch.

This time around he had a special foolproof safeguard to prevent him from eating the chocolates he was going to give you and his name was Belphie. Every time Beel looked like he was about to have another taste Belphie poked him in the side and reminded him that the chocolates were meant to be a gift. The plan almost worked until Belphie fell asleep on the kitchen counter.

Soon after, Beel’s eyes started to focus on the bowl of chocolate again. His hands subconsciously whisked the sweet mixture faster and faster as his train of thought drifted away. All he could do was continue stirring while fighting back his urge to sample the chocolate again. He was so consumed in what he was doing he didn’t even notice you slip through the kitchen doors.

“Hey Beel! Whatcha up to?”

Your sudden voice and presence made the bowl slip right out of his grasp, flying forward as the chocolate covered the both of you. “I-I….umm….sorry. The chocolates were supposed to be a surprise gift but....” His eyes stared at the floor in embarrassment. This was definitely worse than getting you nothing for Valentine's Day. Beel reached for a small towel to wipe the mix off but ever the opportunist your hand stopped him.

“You know...it would be a shame to let all this go to waste. After all, I didn’t get a chance to taste any yet and I’m sure you haven’t had your fill either, right?”

Beel only nodded in response to your offer, effortlessly picking you up bridal style before heading back to his room.

Belphegor

Belphegor didn’t hate Valentine’s Day but he also wasn’t exactly fond of it. The pressure to buy your partner the perfect gift was often daunting and took some of the fun out of actually choosing a gift. Still that didn’t deter him from trying to find you something awesome for the occasion.

He ended up skipping his morning nap to search nearby stores for anything he thought you might like. Chocolates and flowers were standard but a classic so he ended up buying a box and bouquet for you.

He was just about to exit the store when something else caught his eye. It was something he knew HE would like but he wasn’t so sure what the extra details were for. Well it was cute enough and the two of you could use it together so why not?

After coming back from RAD that afternoon you made your way back to Belphie’s room. You usually stayed with him to nap and cuddle since he often missed you when you had to go to class. This time however, he had a surprise waiting for you.

Handing over the box of chocolates and flowers you immediately lit up and threw your hands around Belphie. He returned your embrace happily before handing you a gift bag with the final present inside. It was a heart shaped pillow with the words YES embroidered on the front and NO on the back.

“Wow Belphie this is.... really thoughtful!!! Thank you!!”

You tried to hide the blush that was spreading across your face. Belphie's innocent smile made you wonder if he truly understood the meaning of that pillow. Did he actually know what it meant and gave it to you as an invitation? Or did he genuinely think it was just a cute pillow? You will never know.

Diavolo

Diavolo gladly embraced human traditions and Valentine’s Day was no exception. He had events planned for the entire day, both for RAD and for you. Since you helped him plan some of the festivities the night before, you ended up staying at the demon lord’s castle for the night. The following morning you woke up to the smell of fresh pancakes, eggs, bacon, and all the fixings.

At first you figured Barbatos had made the food but as you turned to Diavolo and saw the glint of excitement in his eyes as you took your first bite you knew instantly that he was behind this. The food was delicious with most of it also being somehow heart shaped.

Once breakfast was finished the two of you got dressed and headed off to class. Attending RAD during Valentine’s Day was definitely surreal. The gothic halls and classrooms were decorated with pink and red hearts, flowers, and ribbons. You had to admit it was a rather cute homage to the human holiday.

After classes ended, you went back to the demon lord’s palace. Diavolo had requested you to meet him again but gave little to no detail as to why. You suspected it had something to do with Valentine’s Day and prepared yourself accordingly however nothing could prepare you for the surprise that was just behind the castle doors.

Once you entered the main hall you were greeted with hundreds upon hundreds of roses decorating the walls and an eager Diavolo barely able to hold in his excitement. You remember he said he had important plans for the day but you never expected something like this. Even though he already made you breakfast he didn’t want the day to end on a simple, unmemorable note so he made sure to give you something special to remember your first Valentine’s Day together with him.

#obey me!#obey me #shall we date #shall we date?#obey me! lucifer #obey me! mammon #obey me! leviathan #obey me! satan #obey me! asmodeus #obey me! beelzebub #obey me! belphegor #obey me! diavolo #obey me! headcanon #headcanon

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princessamericachavez · 4 years

Text

Fjorester in the Bjreaus talk

It’s yelling about Fjorester hours. I haven’t done this breakdowns in a while but there’s so much to analyze in that Bjreau’s talk and so much subtext and admissions and feelings in Fjord’s explanations that I really need to go step by step

this is mostly focused on the Fjorester side of the conversation because so many people have already broken down the BY in it and maybe i will too later but for now let me focus on my main OTP because wow

Beau: So…. Jester

Fjord: *pikachu panic*

Fjord: There it comes. I was wondering when that melodic intro was gonna hit.

Fjord: J-J-Jester?

THE WAY HE STUTTERS HER NAME. IM SO SOFT.

Beau: You know what I’m gonna ask, dude, right? Like, what’s the deal?

Fjord, still deflecting: when you come with the ‘dude’, yes, I know what you wanna as.

Fjord, getting serious suddenly: What? What about Jester?

THAT’S THE FACE YOU MAKE WHEN YOU KNOW YOU’VE BEEN CAUGHT ON UR CRUSH AND UR TRYING TO PLAY IT COOL BUT YOU’RE FREAKING OUT ENTIRELY

I MEAN THAT SMILE

Beau:

Fjord:

Beau:

THEY BOTH KNOW. THEY ARE JUST DARING THE OTHER TO SAY IT OUT LOUD.

Beau, finally giving in: You know how she feels about you. Or, at least, how she did. I don’t know if she still does.

*Fjord, immediately, starts touching his mouth in that nervous mannerism he always has when his image insecurities are brought up, like he wants to hide his tusks*

*i start quietly sobbing*

Fjord: I don’t either! I have no idea.

DO YOU HEAR ME SCREAMING ABOUT FJORD, AFTER 108 EPISODES, ACKNOWLEDGING ALL THE FLIRTING JESTER USED TO DO AND THE FACT THAT SHE MIGHT HAVE HAD A CRUSH ON HIM EVEN IF HE DOESN’T KNOW IF THAT’S STILL THE CASE?

HE’S NEVER ACKNOWLEDGED THAT BEFORE

Fjord: I’m actually the less clued in as to how Jester feels. I actually tried to… ask, but I don’t know.

WHEN FJORD? YOU HAVEN’T ASKED. SO WHEN DID YOU TRY? WHEN DID YOU WANT TO AND DIDN’T? WHAT CONVERSATION WAS YOU CAREFULLY TRYING TO SEE IF SHE STILL LOVES YOU? I NEED ANSWERS

Beau: You have to kinda be direct with Jester. Like, if you tried to side-step it-

Fjord: I get that. It’s just that there are more pressing matters at hand

I KNEW HE WASN’T GOING TO DO ANYTHING DURING TC BECAUSE SHE’S SO STRESSED ALREADY AND HE WANTS HER TO HAVE HER TIME AND ALL THEIR SUPPORT WITHOUT ADDING STRESS

Fjord: And… I feel like I’m the fourth version of myself since I left Port Damali. And I feel like it could change again in a month or three months. I feel as if the ground is shifting underneath my feet every few nights that I wake up. And it’s crazy, I actually love cause it’s all been for the better, it no matter how crazy it’s been, but what I wanted when this all began is so far in the past I can’t… I forget about it sometimes. It comes for me in the middle of the night. But… Jester is hard to ignore.

I HAVE (as you might expect) SO MANY FEELINGS ABOUT THIS WHOLE LITTLE MONOLOGUE

FJORD SUMMING UP SO MUCH OF HIS ARC AND HOW HE’S STILL NOW TRYING TO FIND HIMSELF AND WHO HE REALLY IS AND HOW HE KEEPS CHANGING AND GROWING

but clearly that lack of stability, as much as it thrills him, it also makes him anxious, not knowing who he will be next and what he will believe and what he will want

AN ALLUSION TO HIS DEATH THAT WE NEVER TALKED ABOUT BUT CLEARLY —CLEARLY— IS STILL IN HIS MIND AND SOMEONE NEEDS TO ADRESS ASAP PLS

And then, right there after the nod to his death, Jester comes back into the statement. Fjord describes the changes and turmoil in his life like all of that is already too much to also focus on love… and then says but she’s still there, in my mind, by my side, all the time. In that mess of these pasts few months, Jester is his lighthouse

Beau: Yeah, no. I- I know! I’m pretty certain literally everyone has a crush on her.

Fjord *panics like that Joey meme*: WHAT?

Beau: Like, at least all of Mighty Nein. I don’t know, though, but I’m pretty sure everyone she meets is like ‘well, I’d maybe kill for you, yeah’

Fjord: No, yeah, I totally agree with.

ME TOO BJREAUS. ME TOO.

Fjord: No, I- where is she?

I’M SO SAD THAT FJORD MISSED HIS PERCEPTION FOR HER BECAUSE I WONDER WHY TRAVIS WANTED TO KNOW SO BADLY

I HAVE THE FEELING THERE WAS SOMETHING THERE OTHER THAN BEING CAREFUL SHE WOULDN’T HEAR HIM

Fjord: I...

LOVE HER? WHAT WERE YOU GOING TO SAY FJORD WHAT

THIS PAUSE IS SO LONG IT’S AGING ME

Fjord: You know when someone makes you feel a way that you don’t think you have any right to feel? Or you never thought that you might?

I AM SCREAMING

FJORD

BABY

WHY DON’T YOU THINK YOU’RE EVEN ALLOWED TO LOVE HER

WHY NOT??

YOU DESERVE LOVE AND TO BE LOVED AND YOU ABSOLUTELY CAN LOVE HER LIKE PLS TRAVIS WHY ARE YOU GIVING ME ALL THIS PINING MY ROMANTIC ASS CAN’T HANDLE THIS

BUT ALSO LOOK AT THAT SMILE

HE’S SO IN AWE WITH HIS OWN FEELINGS AND HAPPINESS

Fjord: And that feels... off... because I should know how I feel or what I want!

*low wisdom frustration intensifies*

Fjord: But... there’s a gravity around Jester, at least to me, and she’s the one I’ve known longest in this new part of my... life. And I really thought that when this started there would be an end for me in this, and I would get even or retribution or payback and then I’d be... done. And it hasn’t been that way at all! It shriveled up and died and in its place seven new interests sprouted and...

[i can’t type the whole Academy thing, im too tired and this is so long already but what a great throwback]

Listen listen listen tho

i wanna talk about this

i wanna talk about fjord noticing jester’s crush and not acting on this because he was convinced the m9 were temporary

i want to talk about a part of him always feeling like this will eventually end and be ripped away from him and how then it kept going and going

and this woman he met was just such a steady and supportive presence in his life through it all that finally, finally after months, he can’t deny that she’s part of his life for good??

but that also explains what he said before and how he’s afraid that he’ll change again and lose this

like, there’s SO MUCH TO UNPACK HERE GUYS SO MUCH ABOUT THEIR EARLY HISTORY AND WHERE THEY STAND NOW

Fjord: I... I... I want Jester to be happy.

Fjord: I do feel v-v-very strongly for her.

FJORD LOOK SO FRUSTRATED WITH HIMSELF AS HE —WHO IS KNOWN FOR HIS SILVER TONGUE— STRUGGLES TO PUT INTO WORDS HIS FEELINGS AND KEEPS FREAKING STUTTERING SO MUCH IM SO

Fjord: But I also know, when this began, her affections might have been based entirely on whimsy... I don’t know!

I AM LIVING FOR THIS ANGST

FIRST OF ALL: SECOND CONFIRMATION THAT FJORD NOTICED ALL THE FLIRTING

SECOND OF ALL: HIS INSECURITIES COMING FORTH AND TELLING HIM MAYBE SHE NEVER LIKED HIM ANYWAY

THIRD AND FOREMOST: I FREAKING LOVE THIS TROPE OF PINING SWITCHAROO AND THE WAY THIS REFLECT JESTER’S DOUBTS DURING THE PIRATE ARC ABOUT MAYBE FJORD NOT BEING WHO SHE FIRST MET AND THE WAY THEY KEEP SECOND GUESSING THEIR OWN JUDGMENT OF EACH OTHER EVEN WHEN THEY KNOW EACH OTHER THE BEST

AND LISTEN LISTEN IM JUST

this is the perfect parallel to her talk with caleb in darktow ok

and im fucking living for this angst and this doubts and to see fjord yearn for her the way she did for so long

WHAT A DELICIOUS DYNAMIC

Fjord: And I don’t really feel like asking, either. I almost don’t wanna... know.

THAT HESITATION DESTROYS ME SO MUCH

FJORD IS SO SCARED TO RUIN THINGS, TO LOSE HER, TO HAVE CONFIRMATION THAT HIS FEELINGS AREN’T RECIPROCATED

but here’s the thing. He’s ok with that. He doesn’t expect her to love him back, doesn’t need her to feel the same way. Fjord is just happy loving her and being her friend and being here to support her and make her happy. That’s enough.

How selfless is that? How absolutely romantic and painful and heartfelt?

I love this so much. This love isn’t possessive nor demanding. All he wants, all he really asks for, is the chance to make sure she’s happy and safe.

He requires nothing in return. Being around her light and showering in her warmth are enough. She’s already given him so much support, he can’t ask more... certainly not love in the way he would want, in the way he would hope, because life has never told him he’s worthy of such thing —not a monster like him— so why would she?

Fjord: I just like it and, to me, as long as she’s alright...

hOW MANY TIMES BY NOW HAS FJORD SAID IN DIFFERENT CONVERSATIONS “as long as she’s alright” “as long as she’s happy” “as long as she’s not getting hurt” “as long as she trusts him” HE KEEPS REPEATING IT LIKE IT’S THE ONE THING THAT TRULY MATTERS TO HIM IN THE WORLD IM-

Fjord: It seems like this is not a permanent... thing. It’s not like we’re gonna leave her in this island and we’re gonna just go off which I was worried about before, but it sounds like it’s all... for show and it might be the Nein again after all this.

HEAR ME OUT

FJORD WAS WORRIED ABOUT JESTER LEAVING

ABOUT JESTER STAYING HERE

ABOUT JESTER TAKING OFF WITH THE TRAVELER AND NOT LOOKING BACK

and we know that was a possibility right?

BUT I THINK BACK TO THE VERY FIRST TIME SHE MENTIONED THIS (iirc it was after the giants fight way back during their second xhorhasian mission) HE SEEMED CONCERNED ABOUT JESTER GOING FOR GOOD. THERE WAS A HESITATION THERE

But really I wanna know how long... how long has Fjord been worried about her leaving, about loosing her... how much of what’s been going on has been him —without saying it— concerned that she’s about to leave the group, how many of their interactions and conversations (”i’m glad you’re here”, “we are happy to have you”, all the talks about disappearing and leaving the sad parts of the world behind) had him secretly concerned that she would soon leave??

AND DON’T GET ME STARTED ON WHAT HAPPENED IN THE LATER HALF OF THE EPISODE

Fjord: and then, I don’t know what. I wanna explore the world! I want to see the lands we haven’t seen! I want to find the things that people are scared of and solve them or do what everyone else needs to do...

Fjord: but....... I- I hope- I hope she’s a part of that

I’M SCREAMING PLS BOY HE’S SO IN LOVE AND ALL BUT CONFESSING IT HELP ME PLS

the way he deflates and gets very quiet and earnest as he admits this????

im sobbing

[im not gonna get on Beauyasha territory because as much as that made me want to scream too this is soooo long already that i feel like that deserves a meta on its own]

i do wanna point out that fjord definitely seemed kinda jealous when Beau started describing her former crush on Jester

Like, he’s so excited to talk about her and Yasha but when Beau brings past feelings into this you can feel a note of panic and defensiveness as he says

Beau: so I definitely had a crush on Jester, just since we’re drunk and we can be...

Fjord: when you said it before, it was like a thing... you had a real crush on Jester?

Beau: well, she’s so enigmatic, like you said and she just like... she’s got this way... just when she talks...

Fjord:

Fjord: I’m talking about Yasha! You can go back to Yasha! It’s- uhm-

HE’S SO ANNOYED IM LAUGHING SO HARD

also fun thing

it’s similar to when he’s reacted to the traveler before and jester calling artagan handsome lmfao

im just saying

and I like that he’s being supportive and he listens and all, even when Beau brings Jester back up... but then he confirms that Beau’s feelings for Yasha are deeper than for Jester and he definitely seems happy with that answer, both for Beau’s happiness (you know Fjord is so excited about these two since forever but especially the way he asks when he turns the tables on Beau he’s so excited for her!) but also because maybe it means one less chance that his own feelings won’t be reciprocated? like an... “alright, so we are good? with this? this is not going to hurt your feelings if i.. if i do love her?” and i think that’s very sweet? like regardless he’s gauging the depth of Beau’s feelings in this regard and I think if she confessed something deeper he would, heartbrokenly, step back and let her have a chance... especially since he’s happy just loving Jester from afar

ANYWAY

I WILL KEEP YELLING ABOUT THIS CONVO IN MY CORNER

AND OTHER MOMENTS THAT I WILL PROBABLY BREAK DOWN LATER

BUT THAT’S ALL FOR NOW

OKAY THAT’S A LOT OF YELLING

bye

#fjorester #fjord stone #jester lavorre #beauregard lionett #critical role #cr spoilers #sofia's nonsense #bjreaus

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jaceyneedsabetterusername · 4 years

Text

Can’t Get Rid Of Me (Part 2 to Can’t Lose You)

Pairings: Zuko x Reader

Summary: Part 2 to Can’t Lose You. Y/N has finally found her long lost love but now it’s their responsibility to ensure the end of the Hundred Years War and to bring a new era of peace.

Warnings: Violence

Word Count: 5600

A/N: There are definitely parts of this that are word-for-word from the show and I do not take any creative credit for those. I strictly take credit for what is my writing. But like... I’m actually kind of proud of this particular two-part series thing I happened to write. It was an idea I had for a while and, while I never planned on writing a second part, I’m glad you guys encouraged me to because I actually like how it turned out (and if you’re a writer, you understand how hard it can be to feel like your work is any good). Thank you all for the support <3

___________________________________

Joining the avatar’s group was easier than you’d expected but from seeing the hodge-podge group of people, you figured that they had a habit of picking people up as they went along. For the few days you were at Zuko’s old vacation home on Ember Island before leaving, you’d trained with Zuko and Aang, working with the two boys to develop your firebending as much as possible before the battle. That was before Aang disappeared at least and you all went off searching for him, stumbling upon the Order of the White Lotus instead.

“Are you alright?” You asked Zuko, coming to kneel beside him as he sat outside of Iroh’s tent.

He shook his head, “My uncle hates me. I know it. He loved and supported me in every way he could, and I still turned against him. How can I even face him?” Though you didn’t see much of who he’d become first hand, Zuko had embarrassingly confessed his mistakes over the years to you, especially those concerning the incident with his uncle.

“If there is anyone who understands what you’ve gone through and why you would do what you did, it’s your uncle. I don’t think he could ever hate you Zuko.” You remembered the way Iroh used to treat Zuko, especially after Lu Ten was killed, and you knew in your soul that there was nothing Zuko could do to make Iroh truly hate him.

Zuko glanced over at you with wide eyes, like he was on the brink of tears from just remembering the disappointment in his uncle’s eyes, “But you didn’t see the way he looked at me when I made my decision to rejoin my father.”

“People are allowed to make mistakes, Zuko. You made your choice then but look at the choices you’re making now. Even if he was disappointed months ago, I think he would be so proud to see what you’re doing now. He loves you more than anything.” Your hand reached out to stroke down his bicep comfortingly.

He took a deep breath before pressing himself up to stand, “I sure hope you’re right.”

You spent the night in a tent with Suki, allowing Zuko to have his time to fix things with his uncle. If he needed to talk to you, he knew where to find you. But he didn’t come until morning so you knew it must have gone really well or really poorly.

The next morning, you found yourself sitting alongside the rest of the group, a bowl of porridge in your hands, the only food you’d eaten in two days and it tasted delicious. Iroh was sitting amongst you all, listening to Zuko as he tried to convince his uncle to come with you all to defeat Ozai, “You can beat him and we’ll be there to help!” Zuko explained passionately.

“Even if I did defeat Ozai, and I don’t know that I could, it would be the wrong way to end a war. History will see it as just more senseless violence, a brother killing a brother to grab power. The only way for this to end peacefully is for the Avatar to defeat the Firelord.” Iroh countered and it was clear from the way he spoke that his decision on the matter was final. He would not kill his brother.

This conversation felt wrong to you. Even though Ozai was a terrible man, and you’d seen years of his horrors first hand, it still felt wrong for some reason to be sitting with his son and brother while they conversed about who should get to kill him. But if it was difficult for you to hear, you couldn’t imagine how difficult of a decision it was for them, but mostly for Zuko, which made you so proud of him. He had come so far from that scared little boy, desperate for his father’s love and approval. Zuko had traveled to the ends of the Earth for his father, literally, but was now finding the strength to put everything behind him for the greater good of humanity and, for once, himself.

Iroh had a very valid point in wanting to avoid direct conflict with his brother. From an outsider’s perspective, the battle would have looked simply like a murder for political gain. You could tell from the look on Zuko’s face that he knew as well. “And then… then would you come and take your rightful place on the throne?” He asked, nearly begged.

His uncle looked away, “No, someone new must take the throne- an idealist with a pure heart and unquestionable honor. It has to be you, Prince Zuko.”

Everyone inaudibly gasped at the suggestion. Everyone had a feeling that Zuko would have a large role to play in rebuilding the Fire Nation but nobody had guessed that it would be as Firelord. Zuko looked the most shaken of all, “Unquestionable honor?” He questioned his uncles decision, every regret he had plastered in his eyes, “But I’ve made so many mistakes.”

“Yes, you have,” Iroh began bluntly, “You have suffered and struggled but you have always followed your own path. You restored your own honor and only you can restore the honor of the Fire Nation.”

Zuko’s wide eyes flicked from Iroh to you, trying to accept the reality of what this delegation meant. “I agree with your uncle, Zuko. I don’t think the Fire Nation could be rebuilt better by anyone else.” You encouraged, nodding your head sincerely. What you wanted to do was hold his hand and try to give him whatever power, courage, and confidence you had to offer but you resisted, only offering the small but very heartfelt gesture.

“I’ll try, Uncle.”

A plan was soon devised as to how you would all plan an attack. Iroh and the rest of the White Lotus would reclaim Ba Sing Se. You, Zuko, and Katara would return to the palace to fight Azula and reclaim the throne as soon as Ozai fell. Suki, Toph, and Sokka would all take down the air ships.

Before long, you were about to climb up onto Appa’s saddle beside Katara and Zuko, where he already sat with the reins grasped firmly in his hands. Just as you reached to begin your ascent up the large creature you’d quickly fallen in love with, Iroh’s hand gripped your shoulder, “Y/N.”

You stopped and turned back towards the man you’d come to see as family yourself, “Yes?”

“Azula is strong. Please, keep my nephew safe. Don’t let him get himself killed.” It pained you to hear Iroh say those words, knowing that they held so much more fear than they sounded. The truth was, Iroh didn’t think he could take losing Zuko like he lost Lu Ten.

You swallowed hard, honestly scared to make such a big promise because you knew that truthfully, anything could happen, and the possibility of any of you not returning was very large. But looking into Iroh’s desperate amber eyes, you couldn’t say anything other than, “I will. You stay safe out there, Uncle.” He smiled a little at the endearing term, something that he hadn’t heard you call him in many years, but loved nonetheless because it made him feel like he had children to love.

“May we meet again, Y/N.” He pulled you into a tight hug, bringing your body close to his. An overwhelming surge of emotion coursed through you as you told yourself that this could very well be the last time you ever saw anyone.

“May we meet again.” Your jaw clenched in a desperate attempt to keep your composure and not dwell on the what-if’s, no matter how valid they were.

The ride over wasn’t too unbearably long but it was spent mostly in silence, everyone too lost in contemplation about the upcoming events to find the energy to say much. You’d never done anything this large in your life. You’d been a servant for the first fifteen years of your life and then a runaway turned bead maker for the last few. The closest thing to combat you’d experienced was training with Zuko and the one time you almost lost control with Azula. None of that could prepare you for the agonizing silence before the storm.

“Hey, are you okay?” Katara asked you.

“Hm?” You perked up, shaking yourself out of your thoughts, “Yeah, I’m fine. Just nervous, I s’pose.”

Your chin rested on your knees as you stared down at the ground hundreds of feet below. The distance down didn’t bother you as much as the feeling of impending doom. “I have to believe that we’ll win,” Katara began softly, “And I know I haven’t known you long but, from what I’ve seen, you’re a very strong bender.”

There it was, you realized. The reason you were so anxious. “I’ve never actually used it against anyone but Zuko, and even that was only for training purposes. I have never actually had to fight anyone, let alone Azula. I just… I don’t want to let everyone down.”

“That’s a lot of pressure to put on yourself. We’re all in this together, win or lose.” She reassured. Your eyes flickered up to look at Zuko, whose back was turned to you and Katara while he flew Appa. Katara noticed the movement and was about to move to take over flying Appa so Zuko could talk with you but just as she went to go, a bright light streaked overhead.

All three of you craned your necks to watch the infamous comet streak across the sky, casting an orange glow over everything. “Sozin’s comet…” You breathed out, the celestial object actually much more beautiful than you’d ever imagine but so much more daunting as well.

Zuko looked back to see your eyes trained on the comet and he felt like he was falling in love with you all over again. Your eyes sparkled with determination and courage in the light of the comet, your hair blew wildly around your face in the wind. You looked like the strongest most beautiful woman he’d ever laid eyes on and he couldn’t wait to kick his sister’s ass and restore the Fire Nation with you.

When the palace was in sight, Azula’s coronation was already underway. You smirked a little at the twinge of satisfaction that nobody had actually attended the coronation aside from the few people that were required to be there. Clearly, Azula was far from the preferred Fire Lord.

“We have to stop this now!” Zuko called back to you and Katara just before he landed Appa right in the middle of the courtyard.

You weren’t sure what exactly was being said when you landed but judging by the scowl on Azula’s face, she was unhappy about it. Before Appa could even touch the ground, Zuko was jumping down onto the ground, “Sorry, but you’re not going to become Firelord today. I am.”

He stood there solidly, unyielding. You and Katara too jumped down to stand beside him. Azula began to laugh hysterically, “You’re hilarious!”

“And you’re going down.” Katara threatened.

You stood to the other side of Zuko, staring down the girl who had been the cause of your torment for over a decade. When you locked eyes with her, she scoffed, “And what? You’re going to beat me with some Water Tribe peasant and a servant? You really are pathetic, Zuzu.”

Gosh, how you were so ready to just destroy her. But none of you moved, waiting for Zuko’s call. In the end, this really was his fight.

When Azula noticed that there was no reaction to her insult, an evil smirk spread across her face, “Wait. You want to be Firelord? Fine, let’s settle this,” She suggested, appearing more composed than she had since you’d arrived, which was almost scarier than seeing her look psychotic, “Just you and me, brother - the fight that was always meant to be. Agni Kai!”

No, this was bad.

“You’re on.” Zuko accepted the challenge, much to your chagrin.

You shot a look at Zuko, wondering why on Earth he’d be falling into her trap like this, “She’s trying to separate us!” You hissed at him, “She knows she can’t take us all so she’s testing you.”

He didn’t look at you, though. He just stared straight ahead, locking eyes with his sister who stared hard and sadistically at him. “I know, but I can take her this time.” His eyes narrowed and Azula’s lip turned upwards in a sick smile.

“Even you admitted to your uncle that you’d need help defeating her!” Katara insisted, desperately trying to talk him out of the Agni Kai. Even though she wasn’t Fire Nation, she knew how serious an Agni Kai was to your culture and that it wasn’t something to be taken lightly.

Zuko looked as if he was analyzing his younger sister, “There’s something off about her. I can’t explain it, but she’s slipping. And this way, no one else has to get hurt.” He turned to you and you could almost see the fear in his eyes. Not fear for his own life but for yours and Katara’s.

You wanted to stop him, wanted to talk some sense into your boyfriend. All you could think about was that promise you made to Iroh. Please, keep my nephew safe. Don’t let him get himself killed. Allowing him to fight alone felt like a direct breach of that promise that you’d had every intention of keeping but something in you told you to let him fight her. “Don’t get hurt.” You gave into his plan, hoping, praying, wishing on everything that you were making the right decision.

Within a few minutes, you and Katara were standing off to the side of the large outdoor space, watching as Zuko breathed deep, centering himself before the duel. You found yourself almost shaking, the memories of what happened at the last Agni Kai you’d attended flooding your memory. It was as if your vision was flashing from thirteen year old Zuko, begging his father for forgiveness, to now, where he was kneeling away from his sister. Only this time, you knew he wouldn’t be granted the same mercy his father had given him. At least then he got away with his life. With Azula, you knew he wouldn’t be so lucky if he fell short.

Katara was tense herself but could practically feel the air stiffen around you. She glanced over to see your eyes almost glazed over, stuck in a memory she’d never see. The rise and fall of your chest had also stopped with your breathing. “He’s going to be alright.” Katara reassured you, gently grabbing your hand, “He has to be.”

You looked down at where your hands were joined and squeezed, eyes returning to hers with a small half-hearted smile, just enough to show that you at least partially believed her. With a deep, calming breath, you swallowed the lump in your throat and raised your head high.

Both siblings came to stand up, shedding the cloaks that were slung over their shoulders. “I’m sorry it has to end this way, brother.” Azula apologized insincerely.

“No, you’re not.” Zuko’s eyes narrowed, already in a starting stance.

And just like that, waves of red and blue painted the sky. Roaring flames shot from both Zuko and Azula’s hands, almost deafeningly so. Zuko’s bending was more passionate and stronger than you’d ever seen it before. Azula, on the other hand, seemed less refined and sloppier than her highness had ever allowed herself to be in the past but that did not mean that her bending was any less effective. There was so much rage and power behind both of their strikes.

You watched Zuko’s moves intensely, mentally trying to tell him what to do, what move might be best, even though you knew that he was a far more well-trained bender than you were. But that was when you noticed that his forms were different than what he’d taught you all those years ago. His stance was wider and he looked more locked in place, like he was a boulder that refused to be moved, when he literally split a powerful flame that Azula sent his way in half. It was something you’d never seen any fire bender do before. In fact, he sort of looked like Toph…

In a small gap between Azula’s onslaught of attack, Zuko took the offense, his arms moving smoothly and gracefully, expelling a stream of fire that almost could have resembled the way water benders shoot water. Your eyes widened. These were not traditional fire bending moves. Could he be using earth and water bending techniques to fire bend?

As the flames settled in a small pause, you and Katara noticed that the buildings of the palace were all aflame, slowly burning to the ground in an orange glow. It was a short lived breath of silence though because Zuko interrupted it with a sudden blast of flames at Azula that nearly knocked her off her feet. She managed to catch herself with a jet of blue flames that projected her off the ground and towards her brother. It went on like this, shot after shot in the most heated, equally matched Agni Kai you’d ever seen.

Suddenly, Zuko dropped to his hands and swung his legs around his body, sending whips of flames at his sister. “Isn’t that airbending?” You asked Katara, though your eyes never left the scene before you. The flame landed and sent Azula flying into the ground with a thud, rolling at least fifteen feet before she came to a stop.

“I didn’t know you could use other bending techniques for a different element.” Katara too was entranced by Zuko’s conglomerated, unpredictable moves. It would have been beautiful to see fire used in such a way if it weren’t for the fact that you were all in the midst of a life-or-death situation.

Azula slowly stood up, her eyes crazed beneath her choppy bangs.

“No lightning?” Zuko taunted, “What? Afraid I’ll redirect it?”

Dammit, Zuko, you cursed mentally, This is not the time to show off.

Azula stood, pressing her weight off her knees, “Oh, I’ll show you lightning!” With that, she began her windup. With two fingers, she directed lightning in electric blue streams around her body. Zuko prepared for the strike, stance strong, hands ready to catch it.

What nobody expected though, was the bright blue bolt being sent at you. It was almost too late by the time you noticed it happening. In a split second, Zuko watched in horror as the lightning blew right past him towards you, your E/C eyes wide with shock. “No!” He screamed, running to jump in front but it was too late.

The lightning bolt streaked past before it could hit him, coming right for you.

The world almost seemed to stop for a moment while at the same time, your entire life flashed by in a second. Your parents playing with you as a child, you and Zuko feeding the turtle ducks just over those gates, Azula burning you, moving in with the kind old lady on Ember Island, and finding Zuko again. But then memories that you didn’t yet make began to reel through your mind in a flash. You and Zuko were together, hand in hand, before an altar. Was that a wedding? Things flashed so quickly you couldn’t see the details. Then came one of the two of you in a room with a bald man with an arrow on his head. He could only be Aang but he was too old and beside him sat Zuko with longer hair; he looked at least ten years older. You seemed to be part of a serious conversation with them. Then, finally, one of you with a swaddled baby sleeping in your arms and Zuko beside you.

Something told you that this was not your time.

Just before the bolt could hit you, you clenched your eyes shut and looked away, sticking out two fingers directly at the lethal electricity coming right at you. With a crack, it came into contact with your digits and coursed through your arm. You brought your arm down to your stomach, or as close to it as you could manage in the heat of the moment, and just held the power there. You had no idea what you were doing. You’d never redirected lightning in your life. Hell, you’d never even seen it done. But in that series of flashbacks, a memory of Iroh telling you and Zuko a story as children about a time he had to redirect lightning during a raid of a city. Zuko had excitedly begged him to show the two of you how he did it and, while he didn’t actually redirect lightning before your eyes, he showed you both the movement for it.

In the few seconds you held the lightning within you, you felt powerful and exhilarated. Your hair blew in the storm in and around your body. You had no idea what it was like to feel so strong but you also had never felt so volatile, like the smallest mistake, the slighted breath, could cause a catastrophe.

Just as Iroh had shown you all those years ago, you brought the fingers of your opposite hand to your stomach and shot out the energy at the ground, tiles shattering where it finally struck.

“Y/N!” Zuko cried out, running over to your body as it crumbled to the ground. You panted hard, trying to catch yourself on your hands and knees but your elbows buckled when you did and you fell face first onto the stone tiles. “Y/N?! Y/N, are you okay?!” He yelled, trying to roll your body over to cradle it in his lap but before he could, Azula sent another blast right next to her brother, purposefully not hitting him. Zuko flinched, shielding your body with his from the shrapnel.

She laughed maniacally, body swinging wildly, “Oh, Zuzu! Looks like your precious little girlfriend picked up a few tricks! Color me impressed.”

Azula assaulted the two of you with another barrage of attacks. Zuko again went to use his body to shield yours but Katara jumped in the way, shooting a powerful stream of water into Azula’s arm to move the lightning. Katara took over the battle for the time being while Zuko held you tight.

“Y/N?” He asked again, eyes wide with worry, almost tearing up, “Please, say something. I can’t lose you!” Those same desperate words that seemed to have haunted your relationship came back around.

He held your face, stroking your hair out of the way. Your eyes rolled back in your head as you struggled to open your eyes. “I’m-I’m alright. You can’t get rid of me that easily.” You insisted with a weak laugh before flinching, pushing your arms behind you to push yourself back up.

“When did you learn to do that?” He asked in shock, helping you sit up.

A loud yell came from Katara as she sent attack after attack of water at Azula. You finally managed to open your eyes enough to see Katara successfully holding off Azula. “Go, help her. I’m fine.” You told Zuko, flinching as you allowed yourself to be helped to an upright position. He looked at you with hesitation in his eyes. You grabbed his collar and pulled him close to you, “Zuko, I’m serious. There are bigger problems.”

With a reluctant nod, he stood up and shot fire at her even more intensely than before, now fueled by rage at her dishonorable attack on you. You were aware of what was going on but for a few seconds you felt disconnected from it. You were still shocked that you managed to redirect the lightning, though not perfectly, of course, otherwise you wouldn’t have collapsed. Your body felt like it was buzzing but no longer with power, more so an emptiness where power once was. And beyond that, a dull burning ache ran through your arms and through your stomach, along the path the lightning ran through.

But, beyond that, you felt relatively okay and, for right now, that had to be enough. With some effort, you managed to push yourself to your feet, strength quickly coming back to your muscles as the temporary that shock rendered them useless for a few minutes faded away.

When you stood, you saw how destroyed everything was. Buildings burned, stone tiles were blown up all over, leaving holes in the ground, and now there were waves of ice. Azula appeared to be struggling against both Katara and Zuko but she also seemed not to mind, still plastering that insane smile on her face.

The three of them had made their way under the canopy off to the side of the main open area. Azula was on the roof, stalking Zuko and Katara who stood underneath. Everyone was silent and you could see Katara and Zuko silently devising a plan but little did they know, Azula jumped down, gripping the canopy to launch herself into a flip. Before she could land or fire, though, you shot a stream of flames at her back, knocking her forward and rolling onto her face.

Her eyes were aflame with rage when she stood up, “It’s about time you learned your place, little servant girl. I spared your life several times but you won’t get that kindness again.”

“I’m not afraid of you anymore, Azula.” You moved to take a strong stance, arms out and ready to deflect any attack she sent your way.

Her amber eyes narrowed beneath her dark jagged hair, “You should be.” With a loud scream, she sent another strike of lightning at you, sure that you couldn’t handle another one since you barely managed to survive the first.

But how wrong she was.

Already predicting an attack of some kind, it was easy to change your hand position and you caught the lightning with your fingertips, brought it down through your stomach, and breathed in for a second - a second that seemed to last forever. It was all coursing through your body again: the power, the volatility, the anger, the fear.

Nobody else could see exactly what was happening. A storm of blue currents blew your hair around your face, covering it from view, and the lightning itself distorted the view of what was happening. Zuko and Katara watched in terror, worried that maybe you weren’t able to catch it and it hit you.

Little did they all know, you had caught it and avoided your heart successfully and now, all there was to do was redirect it. Taking a deep breath, you honed all of your attention on the lightning in your control, forcing as much energy into it as you could, before shooting your fingertips directly at Azula, the lightning coming at her with more force than she’d shot at you.

She tried to move to dodge it but before she could, Katara sent a slick of ice onto the ground just below her feet, sending her slipping instead of jumping like she’d intended. The lightning struck the princess with a loud crack and she fell onto the ground, lying on the cold white ice she’d slipped on.

This time, you felt… alright. You didn’t hurt anywhere or collapse. Instead, you ran towards Zuko and Katara who knelt over Azula’s motionless body. “Is she… D-did I kill her?” You asked, honestly unsure what exactly you wanted the answer to be. For years, you’d told yourself that you’d kill her one day if you ever got the chance but now that took that chance, you weren’t sure if you wanted somebody’s life on your conscience, even if it really might have been for the betterment of the world that she was gone.

Zuko reached down to feel for a pulse and shook his head, “No, she’s alive, but just barely.”

Another wave of confliction coursed through you but, surprisingly, a big portion of it was relief. “What should we do with her then?” You knelt down beside Katara and finally inspected Azula. She was barely conscious, her eyes kept rolling back in her head, but that maniacal smile was finally blasted off her face. Her hair was a mess, just barely held back in the tie anymore. A large portion of her pants were missing, burned away just at the thigh to reveal a massive welting red branch-like wound on her pale skin. That must have been why she was able to survive the hit.

“She needs help,” Zuko sighed, almost sounding like he was at war with himself in this decision, “Something’s telling me this is more than her just being a terrible person. She’ll be moved to the asylum offshore to get the help she needs. And to keep her from hurting anyone else.” His voice got tense at those last words.

Katara moved water from the ground and used it to heal Azula’s leg as much as she could. “Just for now, I was thinking we could keep her in ice? I don’t know what else to do.” She rubbed her legs awkwardly.

Glancing to your right, you saw chains hanging on a pillar and moved to grab them. “Here,” You said, beginning to chain her hands and feet together, her limp limbs moving easily, “Just so when we melt the ice, we still have some leverage.”

“Good idea.” Zuko stood up, watching as you looped the last bit of chain securely in a knot. When it was all good and secure, Zuko gave Katara a small nod and she gracefully created an encasing of ice around Azula.

This whole situation felt strange. The accumulation of a hundred years of war was climaxing right at this moment and you, Zuko, and Katara had all just successfully completed your part of that victory. What felt odd though was standing over Azula, the girl who had tortured you for years, and discussing her fate, which literally was in your hands.

“We did it.” Zuko finally sighed out, breaking the silence, “We actually did it.”

“Now we just have to hope Aang beats Ozai.” Katara rubbed her arms, nervous that the ultimate outcome of all of this wasn’t entirely in just your hands.

* Two days later *

Zuko stood in the hallway of the palace, the walls open and overlooking the surrounding city. He leaned against the half-wall, breathing in the fresh air deeply. His clothes that he’d been wearing for much longer than he’d like to admit while on exile had now been exchanged for the robes of a Firelord. “You clean up nice.” You giggled, coming into the wide hallway.

He turned around to see you walking towards him looking more radiant than ever. Your clothes that you had been wearing when you battled Azula had been quite badly destroyed, ripped and stained with soot and debris. Now, you wore a long dark deep red tunic dress that tied with a slightly lighter band around your waist. It had gold along the inner seams and leading up to the high, traditional collar that was around your neck. The bottom had an ornate design sewn in with amber threads at the bottom.

“Wow…” Zuko breathed out, “Y-You too.” He managed to stammer.

Heat rose in your face, “Thank you.” You finished closing the gap between the two of you, coming wrap your arms around his waist, “Are you okay?”

Zuko bit his lip before half-nodding, half-shaking his head, “I just can’t believe this is happening. Ever since I was little, I was sure my father would find a way to pass along the throne to Azula. I never thought I’d actually be Firelord. But now that I’m about to become Firelord, I guess I’m just scared of making mistakes.”

Your hand came up to his bicep as you pulled him in closer, “Hey, you are going to be the best Firelord in at least a hundred years. You just managed to end a century-long war and I know you have amazing dreams for rebuilding the world.”

“I didn’t end the war alone.” He tried to refute but you just smiled warmly.

“And you won’t have to do all the work to rebuild the nation alone either. We are all here to help you - me, Aang, Sokka, Katara, and Toph.” You reached up to touch his cheek gently and he leaned into your soft palm, savoring the touch. It was the first time he’d ever allowed anyone to touch his scar but with you, he felt safe and secure.

Zuko’s eyes slid closed for just a moment and he brought his hand up to cover yours, holding your hand against his face before pulling it away, intertwining his fingers with yours, “Have I ever told you how much I love you? How much I’ve always loved you?”

A sweet chuckle left your lips like music, “I think you’ve mentioned it a few times. Have I ever told you how much I love you? And how amazing you are? How amazing you will be?”

The two of you stood like that for a while, just holding each other and staring at each other, beyond grateful that the universe allowed you to find each other again. Words could not express the pride and love you felt for this man, despite all of his flaws and mistakes. Zuko only wished he could put into words how grateful he was for your love and support, how much he loved you and wanted to protect you (not that you needed it).

“Nephew, it is time for your coronation.” Iroh chimed in gently, peeking at the two of you from around the corner.

You looked back and gave him an acknowledging smile. “Thank you, Uncle.” Zuko smiled politely at Iroh, who was waiting at the door to escort you to the front of the crowd.

You knew you had to watch the coronation from the ground with the rest of the Gaang but you didn’t mind. You only hoped that Zuko could feel the support from you and the rest of the group radiating from the crowd.

“You are going to be amazing, Firelord.” You touched his face one last time, pulling him down for a gentle kiss.

He smiled against your lips. “I can’t wait to build the new world with you.”

__________________________

Taglist:

(Sorry if this is messed up, I suck at taglists)

@oddlypointlessescapes

@eridanuswave

@egm09

#can't lose you #zuko #zuko fanfic #zuko imagine #zuko x reader #atla #Avatar The Last Airbender #atla fics #atla fanfics #atla imagines #fire nation #can't get rid of me

145 notes · View notes

peaceoutofthepieces · 4 years

Text

Sink Or Swim

tag list: @cleocc @feeling-kinda-so-so @hopelessromanticvirgo @dreamy-slytherin @adora8 @lockerfivethreefive @painfully-oblivious @poeticinemaa @jjustonemorething @saraben00 @wedarkacademia @coolguyssyndrome @hischbabe @suckerforsobbe @tayspots @starmansander @theah0lt @zoenneforever @invisibleme @chibibanane

~^~

Thursday, 13:03

Song: Luke Wild - Easier To Lie

Jens watches Lucas smiling at his phone with something clenching in his chest. He’s been tapping away at it all through lunch, while still managing to keep up with the Broerrrs. Jens has been cracking dumb jokes the whole hour, trying to get him to pay attention. He’s only ever rewarded with the same small smile and amused shake of the head. None of the other boys seem to notice, or care much, until Lucas lets out a small laugh at whatever’s on his screen.

They look at him then, Robbe tilting his head curiously around Jens and being the first to broach the topic. “What are you giggling at?”

It takes a moment for Lucas to realise he’s the one being spoken to, to look up and find them all looking back. He blushes slightly at the attention, a pretty red tone creeping into his cheeks, but his smile is casual and unembarrassed. “Nothing, just my friend Isa back home.”

“Just a friend?”

The words slip out before Jens can stop them, unprompted and damning. He resists the urge to look away when he finally has Lucas’s attention, fighting against the heat threatening to redden his own cheeks. His tone had come out light enough, and he keeps his smile the same. He makes the question seem like nothing more than a gentle tease.

“Ahh, is it a special friend?” Moyo adds in, grin cheeky, leaning across the table towards Lucas.

Lucas simply huffs through his smile, shaking his head in denial. “She’s my best friend’s ex.”

“So?” Moyo raises a brow.

“So...it’d be wrong of me to even go there.”

Moyo snorts. “In this group,” he gestures at Jens and Robbe, “there’s no such thing as off limits.”

Lucas sets his phone down on the table and furrows his brows, looking at the boys with a confused smile. “What?”

“Moyo.” Jens looks at him in warning, giving a minute shake of his head as Robbe picks at his sleeve next to him.

Moyo keeps his gaze on Jens for a moment before shrugging at Lucas. “It’s like three separate long stories, man.”

Jens sighs, closing his eyes as Robbe sits up. “Okay, before you make us sound like the assholes, maybe let us speak for ourselves, yeah?”

Moyo holds his hands up. “Bad joke. Sorry.”

“I wouldn’t think you guys are assholes.” Lucas looks between the three of them. “At least, I don’t think you’d set out with the intention of hurting anyone. But you don’t have to tell me,” he adds hastily.

Jens stays quiet, leaning forward and pressing his elbows to the wood of the table, staring through the gap between his friends. It’s difficult, not looking at Lucas when he can feel his gaze, intent and curious.

Robbe, on the other hand, is able to look across at Lucas and give a vague explanation. “He just means that we...could have made some better decisions going into relationships. With Sander and I,” Robbe pauses, licking his lips. “We both still had girlfriends the first time we kissed, for example. And it...complicated some things after that.”

Jens bumps Robbe’s shoulder in a small sign of support, before he can tumble too far back into the memory. Lucas doesn’t seem disgusted or disappointed by the revelation, and his confusion seems to come from one small piece of information.

“You had a girlfriend?”

Robbe shrugs, and his smile is tight. “I had a few.”

“But you said you’re…”

“I am gay. I just didn’t want to be, at the beginning.”

Lucas’s expression turns soft, much more understanding and sympathetic than the boys had managed to be when Robbe came out. It pokes and prods at the sliver of curiosity in Jens’s mind, the little part that asks if Lucas looks too understanding. He shoves the thought away instantly, reminding himself that it isn’t his place, convincing himself that it doesn’t matter, that he shouldn’t care.

“That doesn’t make you sound like an asshole,” Lucas says softly. “It sounds like you went about something a little the wrong way, but that it was still necessary. That you would’ve been a lot worse off if you hadn’t done it. And from what I’ve seen of Sander when he’s with you, I’m betting the same goes for him.”

Robbe’s face instantly lights up in a grin, gratitude emanating from him in waves. Jens takes it in and looks to Lucas with warmth spreading through his chest. He’s been hoping, quietly, that at least Robbe would share his fondness of this new boy, and he feels an irrational pride at the thought of Lucas earning his full approval. Jens has always trusted Robbe’s opinion most. If he likes Lucas, surely Jens hasn’t gone too far wrong.

“It probably would’ve been good to have you here a year ago,” Aaron tells Lucas, scratching at his shoulder and sharing a glance with Moyo.

“Maybe it’s also good that you weren’t.” Moyo’s smile is a mixture of sheepish and apologetic, and he turns it from Lucas to Robbe, only relaxing when Robbe gives a small shake of his head.

Jens bumps elbows with Lucas and does his part of the peacemaking. “Either way, I think it’s awesome you’re here now.”

“Well, I haven’t heard your story yet,” Lucas reminds him. It’s joking, teasing, and Jens deflates all the same. He knows, like Robbe, he went about things the wrong way. He’s always told himself that he was better off for it, too.

It’s just that he didn’t get the same happy ending, and it makes his story seem a little more regretful, and a lot more pathetic.

“Right.” Jens licks his lips, realising he has no idea where to start or how. Lucas watches him expectantly, but with patience, gaze already so understanding, and Jens can’t form any words.

He’s saved from having to by Yasmina, who he hadn’t noticed approaching. She stops at the table with a bright greeting, which they all return as Moyo slides down the bench to make room for her, nudging Aaron out of the way. She perches next to him with an easy smile and directs her initial attention to Lucas.

“Hi. Lucas, right?” Lucas nods and gingerly accepts the handshake she offers. “I’m sorry I haven’t introduced myself before, I’ve been missing out on all the parties. I’m Yasmina.”

“Oh, right.” Lucas brightens. “Amber speaks highly of you. I was wondering when I’d get the pleasure.”

She raises her brows at him as she sets her chin on her palm, and she’s still smiling. “Charmer. These boys could have been doing with you from the beginning.”

“You love us,” Moyo argues, grin cheeky, and Yasmina rolls her eyes.

“She loves me,” Robbe corrects, and Yasmina rolls her eyes again, but she smiles at him, and they know he’s right.

“But you love me more,” she points at him, and it’s Robbe’s turn to raise his brows in curiosity. “Which is why you’ll come to Senne’s Halloween party tomorrow?”

She clasps her hands in front of her hopefully, and while Robbe falters, the shake of his head is resolute. “I don’t think this weekend is going to work for Sander and I.”

Yasmina frowns, but it’s understanding. Moyo, however, appears unimpressed. “For Sander and you, or just for Sander?” At the pause that follows, he shakes his head. “Robbe, you don’t have to babysit him. He will survive a few hours on his own while you go out with your friends. And it’s not even Halloween night, you can still spend that like, cuddling or whatever other gross shit you do with all the shitty candy we get.”

Jens glances at Lucas, and though he looks lost, he doesn’t ask. He catches Jens’s gaze and accepts the apologetic shrug he offers without so much as a questioning look.

When Robbe looks at him, however, it’s entirely questioning. “Will you go?”

“You’re all obviously invited,” Yasmina agrees, still quietly hopeful.

“I don’t know.” Jens resists the urge to sneak another peek at Lucas, not wanting to make his reasons obvious. He doesn’t want Lucas to feel left out.

Truthfully, he just doesn’t really want to go if Lucas won’t be there. He’d made that decision at the start of the week, when the party had first been mentioned.

“Jens, you have to go.” Lucas hits his arm, and Jens whips around to look at him. “Who’s gonna share the bath with me otherwise?”

Jens’s brows fly up. “I thought you were grounded.”

“Not since Tuesday, after a bunch of Halloween decorations and heartfelt talks and a little bargaining. I have a ten-thirty curfew though.”

Moyo snorts, and Jens and Lucas both shoot him a look. “Oh, come on. That’s a bit funny.”

Yasmina shakes her head and smiles approvingly at Lucas. “I’m actually glad. I won’t feel so out of place. Especially,” she adds, twisting back around to Robbe, “if you also come with.”

“Wait, Jens hasn’t even said he’s going yet,” Robbe protests.

Jens is still staring at Lucas. “So, you’re not grounded.”

“Nope,” he pops the ‘p’. “And I’m already in the Halloween spirit. So you have to take me.”

Jens thinks of the few decorations Lies had berated them into putting up at the weekend, taking Lotte with her to pick them out and coercing Jens into all the hard work. He can’t imagine either of his parents being the ones to initiate it, to make an effort towards the festivities for the joy of their children. They wouldn’t have the time.

But Lucas seems filled with joy at the simple prospect of it, and he’s giving Jens his time.

“I’m going,” Jens tells Robbe.

Moyo snorts again. “Well, me too. And I’m sure Aaron is already one half of fucking Romeo and Juliet or some shit.”

Aaron perks up. “Do you think Amber will want to do a couples costume?”

Moyo looks at him for a moment, then shakes his head. “You’re ridiculous, man.”

The others are already awaiting Robbe’s answer, all staring him down pleadingly, and he brings his shoulders up in a half-shrug before giving in with a sigh. “Okay.”

Yasmina cheers, stretching her arm across the table for a high five. Jens adds onto the celebration with a pat to Robbe’s shoulder, and he catches and returns Lucas’s smile as the chatter continues around them.

#van der stoffels #vds #wtfock #skam nl #sink or swim #vds season fic #sos clip

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charged-wanderlust · 3 years

Text

a beautiful hurricane, pt. 2 | jett slater x mc x remy chevalier

OK THIS IS NOT TURNING OUT HOW I ORIGINALLY PLANNED BUT I LIKE IT TOO MUCH TO CHANGE IT SO BARE WITH ME.... these fics literally write themselves i have no say in it i just start writing and black out and boom its done. anyway here's the next part of the piece commissioned by @mcira it's very jett-centric but remy will have his turn in the last part ok. it'll go out with a bang. literally. ALSO SIDE NOTE ik the s1 heists were like. quick. in the canon. but i took some creative liberties and said its taking months bc its more realistic for them to fall in love this Deep in that time ok? ok good lesgo

“You can’t do that.”

“You can’t tell me what to do!”

Heat flares up beneath your skin, which wasn’t uncommon around these particular handsome scoundrels, but this time it was more akin to an angry boil than a pleasant simmer. How dare they? You may be new to the Poppy, but you’re competent on your own and definitely capable for the task at hand.

“You don’t get it, MC,” Remy sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose - you try not to deflate at the lack of his usual pretty nicknames. When has hearing my own name from his lips make me distraught rather than elated? “You can’t let your guard down just because you’re getting closer to him. He’s a conman too, and a good one- besides, would you really leave Jett to handle the break-in alone?”

“Yes I would, actually!” You flash back, hands clenched into fists. “Because unlike you, I realise that Jett is fully capable of doing things on his own, and I don’t tell him what he can and can’t do! You said it yourself - I’ve exceeded your expectations repeatedly since arriving here. So why can’t you trust my judgement and let me do what I set out here to do in the first place?!”

Remy rolls his eyes so hard he probably got a glimpse of his brain, while Jett bangs his fists on the table. “It’s not even a matter about helping me get the painting or not, MC- it’s the fact that you’ll be alone with a notorious conman on a yacht, isolated from any witnesses, who need I mention - is definitely into you and likely will try something?!”

“Oh I’m sorry, I thought you said you weren’t the jealous type!” You hold your ground, arms crossed with frustration. “We already know the Lumiere film is on that yacht. How do you suppose we get it, if I’m not even allowed on the damn boat?!”

“Through a plan,” Remy says decisively, giving you a look that has no room for argument. “We can get him to invite both of us on board, I’m sure. Plant a camera on him to figure out where it is and any security codes… there’s ways, MC. Ways that don’t involve throwing yourself head-first into danger. You know it’s a bad idea when even Jett Slater is saying it’s a bad idea! He literally only ever comes up with bad ideas!”

“Yeah, throwing myself into danger is my job!”

“Says who?! This is just a straight up double-standard; it’s okay if Jett does it, but not me? Cause what, he’s experienced? How am I meant to get experience if you don’t let me?”

“Cause I’d rather get hurt than see you hurt, MC!”

…

“...what?”

“Fuck!” Jett flings his hands up in defeat, then stalks off to his room and slams the door shut, reverberating throughout the penthouse. Remy seems at a loss for words, too, his guard up and expression unreadable.

“You haven’t seen how dangerous this line of work gets, ma cherie,” Remy sighs, plopping himself down on the couch and running a hand through his hair to calm himself down a little. “We don’t want you to find out. You didn’t sign up for that.”

“Didn’t I, though?” You settle yourself next to him, tentatively placing a hand on his shoulder, hoping it’ll ground him just a little. “I knew you were criminals, I knew we were doing dirty work. If I hadn’t expected things to get dangerous, I’d have been even more naive than you thought I was. I’ve spent months preparing, Remy - I’ll get the location of the film and I won’t let him lay a hand on me.”

He shivers. “The thought of that… that bastard anywhere near you is enough to make me want to punch a wall,” he growls, “He doesn’t deserve you. He doesn’t even deserve to think he does-”

“Remy.” You squeeze his shoulder gently, snapping him back into reality. “I personally think it’s more satisfying to feed into his delusion of deserving me, then pry that out of his hands and leave him aching. Besides - this is for the heist, right? I think getting that film is more important than anything relating to Parker. I mean, the first ever kiss recorded on film-”

He cuts you off with a laugh that kisses your ears like a finely tuned guitar, wrapping an arm around your waist and pulling you to his side abruptly.

He’s trying to hide his face…?

“You go from beautifully cruel to brilliantly passionate so quickly, cherie. That’s what I like about you.”

Oh. Oh. Okay. My heart better calm the heck down before he hears it-

Before you could even formulate a coherent thought, let alone a reply, he pulls away, getting up and making for the door. “You’re right. You’re not something - not someone I can control. You’re… something else.”

Shrugging on his coat, he’s halfway out the door before he adds, “Talk it out with Jett. He’ll come around now that he’s had a moment to cool down.”

It’s jarring - he was so angry just moments before, but once the heat faded, it became clear; he cares. He cares far, far more than he lets on - than he wants to, even - and Jett does too. Nodding to Remy, you go for Jett’s room, noiselessly slipping in under the cover of his loud punk music.

Jett’s language is physical touch, that much you know. So instead of calling out to him, you approach him carefully from behind while he’s fixated on an explosive painting full of hot, blazing colours, and lay a hand on his shoulder.

Much like Remy, he instantly softens, turning to look at you with wide eyes that if you squint, were flecked with remorse. You withhold a smile - had you just cracked the code to these men? Just touch them gently and they’re all good again.

“MC, I-”

“Jett.”

He stills, letting you talk. He’s done yelling at you, done fighting; so he listens. And just like before, he’s a surprisingly good listener.

“Look. I know you’re worried for me, and… honestly I’m touched. You’ve been encouraging me to break out of my shell this whole time, and I’m really starting to embrace it. This life, too. I know I can do this because I know myself now, and… all I ask is for your to trust me. Trust that I won’t let Parker even so much as breathe in my direction without me wanting him to, trust that I can secure the location of the film at least-”

“Are you kidding? I’ve always trusted you.”

His reply catches you off guard, his face genuine, body language open. You’re silent for a moment in your surprise, so he takes that as a sign to continue.

“We wouldn’t have picked you for this if we didn’t trust you, MC. You’ve proven yourself over and over again. Just because you can do this doesn’t mean we want you to.” He sighs, collecting himself. “Maybe Remy and I were being a bit of a wet blanket. But you see where we’re coming from, right? This is your first con, and this is practically throwing you into the deep end.”

“Being thrown into the deep end is the quickest way to learn,” you explain calmly, dipping a finger in his paints and dabbing his nose with it. He snorts, but a smile is creeping across his lips and it makes something dance in your chest.

“What if something goes wrong?”

“What do you usually do when something goes wrong?”

He grins, going back to his painting and making a few quick strokes of gold across the horizon line. “I blow shit up, usually.”

“Then give me some of your bombs.”

Jett’s eyes nearly pop out of his damn hand, twisting in his stool to gape at your incredulously. “Are you serious? On a yacht? You’d sink the ship- unless it was a controlled explosion, just enough to cave in a door… or a flashbang, to stun him… or a smoke bomb…”

You can almost see all the ideas popping up in his head, his knee bouncing up and down with slowly increasing excitement. It’s contagious - you find yourself grinning right back at him, mischievous.

“I’ve always wanted to blow something up.”

“It’s settled, then!” He sets down his paintbrush and stalks over to his workbench, grabbing some things and getting to work. “You’re really full of surprises, aren’t you, love? I can’t say I don’t love it, though.”

There it is again, you think, gnawing at your lower lip. All these heartfelt compliments said so casually. How the hell am I meant to know where I stand?!

It’s almost as if the universe answers - or maybe your subconscious knew all along.

Ask.

...Deep breaths, MC.

“You sure throw around the word love a lot, Jett,” you point out, trying your best to sound casual about it. His back is facing you, and you immediately notice his body freeze over at the sudden cold shower of your words.

After a moment, it passes, and he gets back to work. “Yeah. And?”

“And?” You scoff, not believing he’d be oblivious enough as to not get the hint. “I knew you were bad at communicating, but wow-”

He shrugs it off, still not turning around to look at you. “What do you want me to say, MC? You’re Remy’s wife.”

“Fake wife.”

“Might as well be his real one at this point,” he scoffs. “Do you see the way he looks at you? Like you put all the stars in the sky?”

“We’ve literally been practicing the way we look at each other for the con, Jett-”

“I was his husband for a con, once, and I’m telling you he never looked at me the same way he looks at you.”

His voice lowers, and you’re slowly starting to piece everything together. How even his stubborn ass would agree with everything Remy said, how he’d teased you and Remy for being a good couple even more than the rest of the Poppy combined, his joking comments about joining in-

“You’re in love with Remy, aren’t you?”

His silence answers you louder than any words could, and he knows it, too. He chokes out a distraught laugh, finally casting a look over his shoulder to meet your gaze. His is glossy, and you gasp, just as a tear rolls down his sun-kissed cheeks.

“Shit. How could you tell?”

Your instinct is to go over to hug him, and he doesn’t protest, instead going back to tinker with his smoke grenade.

“I mean it when I said I’m not the jealous type, really. It makes me so happy to see you two together. So happy - even if you aren’t really together, I haven’t seen Remy smile like that in a long time. You deserve each other - and I’m glad I can see the two people I care about most-”

“-both of us?”

His voice cracks mid sentence, and he twists around in your embrace to place a gentle kiss to your forehead. “You were a more recent development. But this doesn’t have to make things weird between us - I’ll just need some space.”

You shake your head slowly, cupping his face. “Why are you so convinced that we don’t like you back? You haven’t seen the way he looks at you when your back is turned.”

Just like that, his entire world got flipped on an axis, with you at the center. Struggling to rationalize this new perspective, new information, he starts to ramble. “B-Because you haven’t- I mean he hasn’t- I wasn’t meant to share this, but he’s been in love with you since you first met. Before you even knew you met. He disguised himself so he could talk to you at a coffee shop while you were painting and-”

“Jett,” you laugh, looping your arms around his neck. “Stop talking.”

He puts a finger to your lips before they meet his, the single digit the only thing keeping you apart.

“We should talk to Remy first,” he breathes out. “And- and promise me. If you’re wrong, and he doesn’t feel like that about me - don’t let me get in the way of you two. Please.”

You nod, kissing his cheek instead. This time, he doesn’t flinch, and he doesn’t pull you in for more.

“Let’s go talk to our favourite Frenchman, then.”

He smiles, wild, wide and breathtaking.

“Let’s.”

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