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gimmeurtmi · 1 year

Text

when are you coming home? — seungmin

pairing: kim seungmin x fem!reader

tags: friends to lovers, situationship-ish, boys on tour, smut!!!🔞

warnings: swearing, sexting, dirty talk, undefined relationship status, lewds, a painfully obvious hand kink that is not a reflection on me in any way shape or form 🙃, alcohol, drunk!reader, phone calls, fingering, countless cockblocking, mention of toys.

inspo: ……hands.

wc — 4384

notes: this was supposed to be a short blurb. also ty to @lino-nyangi for giving me the confidence to finish this 🫶🏻

you were a fool. a complete fool.

you just made out with your friend the night before he goes away for his world tour for a good few months. you just ruined your friendship, put yourself in a horrible situation that won’t be resolved until he comes home, risking the chance of him coming back and being too awkward to even talk to you.

all because you were thinking with your heart (and maybe your pussy was making some good points too) and not your brain. your brain would’ve said to stop. it did say to stop.

but you chose to focus on kim seungmin’s lips instead.

it wasn’t like he didn’t kiss you back… in fact, he was the one who grabbed your waist and pulled you onto his lap. he was the one who slid his tongue into your mouth. he was the one who said your name softly as you pulled away.

and you were the one with a cockblock of a roommate who had to call you at that exact moment to say they forgot their keys and they’re stuck outside in the cold.

looking down at seungmin’s puppy eyes made it near impossible to care about your friend’s wellbeing, but you snapped out of it and sighed.

“i need to go home,” you said, hands flat against seungmin’s chest.

he nodded at you, jaw clenched lightly before he sighed the tension away. then he smiled.

“do you need me to walk you?”

“no, it’s okay, they’re so desperate to get out of the cold that they’re calling me a taxi.”

“when’s it getting here?” he asked, and you noticed his hands were still firmly on your hips. they were warm, which made it impossible to miss just how much of your skin was covered by their warmth.

you looked down at your phone and the tracker map, the taxi was still seven minutes away.

“then come here,” he mumbled, snaking a hand onto your cheek and pulling you back to his lips.

his lips were so soft, and he tasted of the cupcakes you were eating when you watched that movie together—right now you couldn’t even remember the plot of it. all you could think about was the sweet coffee frosting and the way his tongue moved so skilfully against yours. all you could think about was his firm chest against your palms, the way you couldn’t quite tell who’s heart beat you were feeling underneath them.

and then your phone rang again and it was the driver and you grabbed your things and seungmin walked you outside and you wished him good luck on his tour and then you were gone and the next day he was gone and it’s been a week and not a single word from him.

when you finished all your work that day and retrieved your phone from where you were charging it you saw a few new messages.

seung: tour has been super busy so far i don’t think i’ve slept more than six hours this week

seung: if i dissociate hard enough does that count as a nap?

seung: also tell ur roommate they’re on my hit list now

you: why are they on ur hit list????

you: and please sleep minnie

seung: i can’t believe they ruined my one shot

you: wdym

seung: the thought of you kissing me won’t leave my head

seung: since chan’s bday party it’s all i wanted

seung: then i get that and you’re gone

you: you’re gone too mate you’re in fucking thailand

seung: and if i wasn’t in thailand?

you: what..?

seung: if i was home now. what would happen?

you take in a deep breath before you type your next words, a tingling sensation running through the tips of your fingers.

you: if it was up to me?

you: something something your fingers

seung: i don’t speak shy

you: you’re gonna make me say it??

seung: only if you want me to do it

you: kim seungmin

seung: no need to be so formal

you: if you were home now i think it would be nice if your fingers were inside me while we kissed some more

you: if that’s something you wanted ofc

seung: fuck

seung: yeah yeah that’s something i want

seung: that’s something i really really want

seung: i need to go soundcheck now fuck

seung: will be thinking of that forever thanks

you fell asleep with your phone still in your hand, trying to distract yourself with tiktoks until seungmin had another spare moment for you. but that moment only came at 5:47 am when he texted you saying he had no idea what to have for dinner. you asked him what he ended up getting to which he only replied ten hours later.

you were used to communicating like this with him. when he was on tour he was always busy, going from one place to the next and doing interviews and shows, and of course, timezones played a part too. but you noticed this time he was making more of an effort, always texting you random details about his day when he had the chance.

and you did the same for him in return, always snapping pictures of your lunch and sometimes of your outfits too.

before you kissed him, he’d just say normal things. friend things. like “that looks cute!” and “why are you wearing a hat it’s winter”.

now he’s a bit more forward. or maybe it was because you innocently snapped a picture that showed off your body pretty well, in an outfit that was meant to do the same.

seung: where are you going?

you: to the clubs!

seung: yeah you look hot like that

you: thanks

seung: you gonna shoot your shot?

you: i already did

seung: and how did that turn out?

you: got kissed and then abandoned :(

seung: who would do that

you: some guy who cares more about his fans than he cares about me

seung: that is so not true

seung: promise me something?

you: what….

seung: don’t kiss anyone or flirt with anyone

seung: please

you: seung. what is that supposed to mean?

seung: that outfit is gonna drive me crazy

seung: ur body

seung: u could get anyone you wanted you know that?

you: way to avoid the question

seung: it’s all the media training :)

you: i’m not gonna promise anything if you don’t give me a reason

seung: goddamit you know the reason

seung: just… please.

you: seungmin.

seung: i just don’t think it would be fair. i’m not there to beat the other people to it

you: what other people?

seung: i wanna be the only one

it was around two in the morning when you arrived home, the alcohol still rushing through your body and blurring your vision slightly. even though you didn’t make any promises to seungmin, there wasn’t any reason to. no one has been able to catch your attention ever since you first started developing a crush on him, and after kissing him (and the constant flirting since) it was obvious to you you didn’t want anyone else. but seungmin didn’t need to know that yet.

you texted him to tell him you were home, like he asked you too, and a few moments later an incoming facetime call drew your attention to your phone.

you quickly answered it.

“minnie!” you slurred, waving at the camera enthusiastically.

“drunk?” he chuckled.

“obviously,” you rolled your eyes.

it was then you noticed he was wearing his stage outfit, spotting his overalls and jewellery and in-ears.

“you look so good,” you groaned. he laughed. “when’s the show?”

“in like two hours,” he nodded, looking to the side to supposedly check the time. but all you saw was his jaw.

“woah,” you sighed, “god.”

“huh?”

“you’re so hot,”

“you’re still in that outfit,” he retorted.

“well, i can take it off if you really want,” you said before you could even register what you were thinking.

seungmin jumped in his seat, eyes wide and staring at you.

“if i take my shirt off will you give me something in return?”

“huh?” was all he managed.

“can you show me your hands?”

“yeah, yeah,” he stuttered, “anything you want. but—“

you crossed your arms in front of you, rolling the bottom of your shirt up your stomach before seungmin put his hand up as if saying stop. so you did.

“what is it?”

“you’re drunk and i shouldn’t let you.”

“you don’t wanna see my tits?” you grabbed them, drawing his undivided attention to your chest.

“god, how much i want that,” he grumbled. “but not like this. i wanna see you for the first time when i get home.”

you pouted at him, which sent even more of his blood rushing towards his dick. he clenched his jaw tightly.

“did you keep your promise?” he decided to change the subject.

you nodded quickly. “obviously. wouldn’t wanna fuck anyone that isn’t you.”

evidently, any filter you had had drowned in the alcohol and was now rendered useless.

seungmin gaped at you.

“you want us to fuck?”

“so bad,” you groaned, “like, if i was there and you just had two hours to chill i’d beg you to fuck me in your dressing room.”

“you’re trying to kill me,” seungmin mumbled.

“you know ever since chan’s party i think of you when i touch myself,” you said, casually.

so casually that seungmin was left to blink at you as the words registered in his brain.

“what do you think about?”

“i dunno,” you shrugged, bringing a finger to your collarbone subconsciously, “just… being with you.”

“oh, like—“ but before seungmin could say anything else han walked into his room, speaking loudly about something to do with the food he found for lunch.

you said hello to jisung and talked to him for a few more minutes before felix came into the room as well.

you could see seungmin’s side eye at his members, and it made you giggle loudly, but neither of them focused on that too much when they realised you were just drunk.

after a catch up with felix you decided you were tired and went to bed.

seungmin couldn’t believe how bad his luck is.

seungmin’s wish to see you for the first time in person was quickly forgotten. the more times you asked him if he wanted to see you, the more he considered just how long it was gonna be before he came home. so when you suggested it again on one of your two am facetime calls, seungmin let out a breathy “please.”

he bit his lip, smiling cheekily at you as he watched you through the screen running your hands up and down your chest.

he brought his thumb to his lips, mumbling something as he clearly wasn’t focusing on your face.

“what was that?”

“you’re so beautiful,” he said, rolling his eyes in frustration. “i wish i was there.”

“only a few more weeks, minnie,” you reminded him, shifting around to show off a better angle of your body.

“i wanna touch you and hold you and kiss you and fuck you and—“ he groaned again, “—this is so unfair. why can’t you come out here?”

“because—“

“—i’ll pay for everything, we’ll book a room for you and whatever you need.”

“i can’t ask work to just let me go next week.”

“then the week after?”

“i need to ask like six months in advance,” you sighed.

“that’s such bullshit. quit your job and come on tour with us.”

“and you’ll pay my rent and my bills and my t—“

“i’ll pay for everything,” he repeated. and although it gave you butterflies you knew that wasn’t realistic. you couldn’t ask that of him, and besides, you didn’t want that. you did want to see him, but you also had your life. and that came first.

“whatever you say, minnie,” you dropped it quickly.

“okay,” he knew to drop it as well, blinking the bangs away from his eyes as his gaze settled back on your face.

“i do really miss you. regardless of all the things we’ve been talking about lately. i wanna hang out with you again.”

“yeah,” you smiled at him, “i miss you, too. when are you coming home?”

the tour was coming to an end, the last few shows left. you still talked to seungmin almost every day, about work and your life and his life and the tour and everything in between. and most nights it would end up with most of your clothes off in front of each other, whispering dirty things down the phone.

with only a couple weeks left, you were really starting to lose your patience. you felt a longing for seungmin, which wasn’t new, but with it being obvious that the only thing in your way now was distance it drove you insane. you dreamt about him and thought about him and wanted him.

you never thought your stupid kiss would lead to anything other than awkwardness, but making your feelings known to seungmin was all he needed to push him out of the pining phase and into the chasing the girl he liked phase.

as you were eating your breakfast you opened your social media and started scrolling aimlessly; until you gasped, finger hovering above your screen as you stopped on seungmin’s latest instagram post. you weren’t even sure if he was trying to take a picture of his face at all—when all anyone could see was his hands.

his really really beautiful hands.

without even thinking about it you opened your chat with him and typed out a quick message. before you could overthink it you switch back to the pictures, admiring them in their full glory.

you: kim seungmin.

seung: either you’re mad at something or you opened instagram

you: so it was an intentional attack i see

seung: yes

seung: planned and executed to perfection

you: and what might this attack be in retaliation too?

seung: had a dirty dream about you

seung: needed your attention

you: could’ve just asked????

seung: not as fun

you: what was your dream about?

next came a voice message. you squeezed your thighs without even realising it, anticipation crawling up your skin as you pressed play.

seungmin went into great detail about a date in one of the fancy restaurants he visited in japan recently, about how cute you looked and that felix was your waiter and there were only cupcakes on the menu.

and then he laughed, deep and slow, before he said, “and you just dragged me to the roof of that restaurant and begged me. you were on your knees and everything.”

you started typing, urging him to tell you more about this dream of his when another message came through.

“as soon as i touched you i woke up, which is ironic considering we keep getting cockblocked by someone.”

“felix would be a good waiter,” you recorded back, “but i wouldn’t trust him with a tower of cups.”

“is that your main takeaway?” he laughed loudly. you could almost picture him covering his smile with his hand.

“sucking you off on a roof would be cool,” you shrugged, even if he couldn’t see it.

his laughed echoed through your ears before he wished you a good day, and told you to eat lots of food.

you knew seungmin was back home when he called you through his normal number and not his apple id.

“what are your plans tonight?” he asked, before saying hello or anything else.

“i’m having dinner with my friends,” you said.

“do you want me to pick you up after?”

“no,” you let the silence stretch for a second or two before adding, “it’s close to yours so i’ll just come over after?”

“you had to be a little shit, huh?” you can hear his smirk. you’ve grown so used to only hearing him, and sometimes seeing him through your phone, your heart races at the idea of getting to see him in front of you.

it’s eight hours later when you knock on seungmin’s door.

he opened the door, your chest rising as you took in a deep breath. his hair looked much brighter in person, and he was a little more tan than the pictures showed. and he was smiling at you as he flicked his bangs away from his face.

“hello,” he said, formally, bowing at you.

you slapped his chest, pushing past him as you toed off your shoes and walked inside.

“you have no manners,” he tsked at you, as he wrapped his arms around your shoulders and pulled you into his chest.

“i missed you,” you mumbled into his hoodie, locking your arms behind his back and squeezing him closer to you.

you could feel his chin resting against your head, his thumb rubbing against your shoulder.

and then his finger wrapped around your chin as he brought your face up to his, brushing your lips together.

he pulled away, ever so slightly, smiling softly down at you.

“hi,” he grinned.

“hi,” you sighed.

he brought his hand to your cheek, pulling you in closer, kissing you passionately. it was as if all those months apart was leading to this moment, to the what if you never had to leave that first night you kissed him.

somehow you got pinned against the kitchen counter, and then seungmin grabbed onto your thighs, mumbling a soft “up,” against your lips before he lifted you onto the cold marble.

he slotted himself easily between your legs, his arms caging your body from either side.

“wait,” you said, pushing at his shoulders. the pair of you caught your breaths, looking at each other with nothing but want. but as soon as you pushed him away seungmin straightened himself up, creating more distance between you.

“where are the boys?”

“out,” seungmin nodded, “i told them not to come back without warning.”

you laughed loudly at that. “so we’re not getting cockblocked this time?”

“we most definitely are,” he sighed dramatically, “but this time it won’t be seconds before i take my dick out.”

the memory from that one call in melbourne was still painful in your mind, hyunjin coming into seungmin’s room at the worst possible moment. but at least the pair of you could laugh about it now.

“let’s test that theory,” you grinned, running your hand down his shoulder and all the way to the band of his sweats. you gripped it as you pulled him closer to you.

seungmin’s eyes gaped at you, his jaw dropping slightly before he started laughing.

you locked eyes with him, silently asking him if you could keep going. the eager look in his eyes was enough to tell you to cup him through his sweats.

he brought his hands to your knees, gliding them upwards before he grabbed your thighs and pushed them open.

you captured his lips in yours, a small groan leaving his lips as you started palming him through the soft material, his cock hardening under your touch.

seungmin wasted no time in returning the favour, running his thumb up and down your core as the kiss got more passionate, more sloppy.

“bedroom?” he asked when you pulled away for air.

you practically jumped off the counter, grabbing his hand and pulling him towards his bedroom.

his suitcase still stood in the corner of the room but you didn’t say anything about it, mainly because seungmin lifted you up and placed you in the middle of the bed before you registered what was going on.

then his lips were on yours again, and so were his hips, and the pair of you moved against each other—small moans filling the room.

“god, i can’t believe this,” he mumbled against your skin, kissing your neck and jaw as his hand inched closer to your chest. “i waited so long for this.”

“me too, minnie,” you nodded, grabbing his hand and kissing his palm. “want your hands.”

“where do you want them?” he smirked, watching in awe as you started kissing his knuckles, his fingers, his wrist.

“anywhere,” you giggled, “everywhere.”

“like them that much?” he raised his eyebrows, grinding his hips into yours. the pressure was just right, a loud moan leaving your lips. seungmin repeated his actions, eyes locked on your lips as you kept kissing every part of his hand you could.

his other hand slid underneath your shirt, grabbing your chest as he rolled your nipple between his fingers.

you arched your back at the pleasure, neglecting your task of admiring his hand.

“y/n,” he called your attention, finger running against your lips, “focus, yeah?”

you nodded, kissing the tip of his finger. you weren’t sure what possessed you to do what you did next, but you slowly opened your mouth and let his finger fall against your tongue. then you sucked on it, giggling slightly at seungmin’s bewilderment.

he only started moving faster, urged on by your muffled moans, before he scrunched your shirt all the way up and started kissing your chest.

“seung,” you breathed, slipping your hand into his hair. you didn’t need to tell him anything else as he slowly wrapped his lips around your nipple, sucking and licking and smiling as you arched your back in response.

he planted more kisses against your chest and then your stomach and then over your leggings, where the wet patch was getting embarrassingly visible.

“want my fingers here, bubs?” he asked, carefully, running a light finger over the spot you seemed to enjoy the most.

you nodded eagerly.

he slipped his hand into your underwear, smirking at you as he slowly rubbed the tip of his finger around your entrance.

“wet…” he mumbled softly, “wet and warm.”

“minnie, please,” you bucked your hips up.

he clicked his tongue, shaking his head.

“i know what you want,” he kissed your cheek, “so just trust that i’ll give it to you.”

“but,” you sighed, “waited so long.”

“what’s another five minutes then?” he smiled, rubbing up and down your folds.

“you were gone for weeks,” you complained, but it fell short when his finger rubbed your clit softly and you gasped desperately.

“and i wanted you for months,” he said, face inches away from yours. “god, i’ve wanted you for ages. thought about you all the time, wishing i could have you.”

“then have me, seungmin, stop teasing,” you whined.

he clicked his tongue again. “payback and all.”

“how is it payback when i wanted you too?” you exclaimed, laughing airily.

“didn’t say anything,” he shrugs, “so i’m teaching you to use your words better. for next time.”

“next time?” you blinked.

“mhm,” he started circling your entrance again, pushing his finger in slowly, “next time.”

he sunk his finger all the way inside you, the length enough that you could feel a pressure in your stomach. and although seungmin really wanted to keep teasing you, the reaction he got was too good—and so he pushed his fingers in again and again and again until you were chanting at him not to stop.

and then you came all over his fingers.

seungmin softly kissed your shoulder as you caught your breath, brushing your hair out of your face. he slowly pulled his fingers away, delicately, and was about to grab a tissue from his nightstand before you grabbed his wrist.

he looked at you questioningly, his jaw dropping when you brought his fingers to your mouth again and licked them clean.

“holy fuck,” he chuckled. “i fucking—“

and then his phone rang. “oh, im gonna kill someone. yeah, im going to kill them.”

you chuckled at him when you looked over at his phone and spotted felix’s caller id.

seungmin answered, huffing out a sound as a greeting. “cool, thanks.”

he threw his phone into the pillow before he collapsed on top of you, burying his face in your chest. “they’re on the way back now.”

you soothed his grumbling, running your hands across his shoulder softly.

“that’s okay. do you wanna watch a movie now?”

after you cleaned yourself up the pair of you migrated to the living room, putting on a movie you both watched before as you snuggled closer to seungmin’s chest. he had his arm around your shoulder, his finger playing with your hair.

even though the movie was playing, and you were supposed to act normal, you still spent your time kissing his knuckles—unable to just not when his hands were so beautiful. seungmin laughed at you for it.

when the boys got back, jeongin made a comment at how he thought seungmin was actually getting some and that’s why they were asked to leave.

“thanks for that,” seungmin said, sarcastically. the boys didn’t notice how you buried yourself in the blanket as a blush crept up your neck.

the next day seungmin told you he was leaving again in two days for some fansign event for their album. it wasn’t an airplane away, but it was far, and he wouldn’t be back for a few days.

“but don’t worry, i got you something to make up for it.”

“you got me something?” you gasped. “no, you didn’t need to at all!”

“it’s for me too,” he smirked at you.

just then the waiter came around to ask for your orders.

“what does that mean?” you whispered after they left.

“you’ll see. it’s getting posted to yours.”

three days later, after sending seungmin a selfie on your walk home so he could see you were safe, you found a package by your door.

you quickly opened it, knowing it was seungmin’s gift as you didn’t order anything.

you felt your whole body tingle when you realised what it was. an app controlled vibrator.

you: kim seungmin.

seung <3: it isn’t my hands, but think you wanna use it?

you: yes!!!!! but only if you still send me mirror selfies.

seung <3: obvs. tell me when to turn it on babe

you: you’re gonna use this for evil, huh?

seung <3: don’t act like we’ve just met

you: ugh. menace

seung <3: your menace 😗

you: …

you: i hate you.

you: when are you coming home?

#skz x reader #all.works #stray kids x reader #skz x y/n #skz smut #stray kids smut #seungmin x reader #seungmin x y/n #seungmin x you #kim seungmin x y/n #kim seungmin x you #kim seungmin x reader #kim seungmin

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neonghostlights · 10 months

Note

I saw you got your first request! That’s so sweet and lovely I love your writing :)

I was wondering if maybe I could request something pretty please? Angstyyyy and fluff

what if eddie has substance abuse problems like rockstar!eddie or Eddie needed something to cope with the events of s4 but it’s wrecking him and your relationship and you love him and have tried to help him but is basically like it’s me or the drugs

My second request ever! Thank you so much (: I went with Eddie coping after the events of season four and tried to leave it open to him using either drugs or alcohol. I've watched someone struggle with addiction before so I based it a little off of that.

Warnings: Substance Abuse, Addiction, Rehab, Established Relationship, Intervention, Angst, Fighting, Sad Uncle Wayne, Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, 18+ only

Wordcount: 2.2k

Pick And Choose

It started with him being late to everything and then he stopped showing up completely. Phone calls became few and far between. He didn’t even play DnD anymore. Then it was the fighting, the lying, and the stealing.

It all came to a head last weekend when you drove around town looking for Eddie, who had fought with Wayne over his behavior and disappeared without a trace. Steve eventually found him passed out in someone's basement at a party with no memory of how he got there. The fight that took place between the two of you the next morning was the worst you had ever gotten into.

You hadn’t talked to him since then. A week of complete silence on your part. Eddie had called you a few times and left you some unintelligible voicemails that you didn’t respond to.

You had watched Eddie slowly wither into himself. At first, you didn’t allow yourself to believe what you were seeing. The happy and healthy man you knew was decaying right in front of you.

The last six months had been hard on Eddie. From watching Chrissy die, to almost dying in the upside down and then waking up to a town that wanted to lock him away forever.

The charges were dropped and the physical wounds healed but Eddie still wasn’t okay. You knew it, Wayne knew it and your friends knew it too.

You made excuses for Eddie whenever Dustin, Mike or Lucas wanted to see him and he wasn’t answering the phone. But they were starting to pick up that something was wrong. They were smart kids and you couldn’t lie to them forever.

Wayne opened the trailer door for you when you knocked, letting you in silently. He nodded his head towards Eddie’s room, the new one since the old trailer had been destroyed.

“Has he been up at all today?” You asked quietly, not wanting to risk Eddie knowing you were there yet.

Wayne shook his head with a pained look on his face.

You let out a deep sigh, setting your things on the counter.

“Maybe we should call that Harrington boy up here too. Just in case he tries to fight,” Wayne suggested.

You thought for a second. Steve was able to be some of a voice of reason when Eddie went too far but there had also been times when Steve sported a black eye after Eddie lashed out. Steve had already been hit far too many times over the years and had such extreme headaches that you didn't want to risk it.

“I-I think we should just do it. Just us. I don’t want him to feel cornered,” you finally said. “If it goes too far we’ll back off and try again another day.” The thought of having another day with Eddie was wishful. You woke up everyday terrified that you would get a phone call informing you of the inevitable. He could only go on this way for so long.

You grabbed the pamphlets out of your bag and handed one to Wayne. He stared down at it, not opening or reading it, just observing.

A loud bump and crash could be heard coming from Eddie’s room. You looked at Wayne who was still staring at the pamphlet. It was show time.

You sat down on the couch alone. “Wayne?” You asked, breaking him out of his trance.

The man slowly sank down in the recliner across from you.

Eddie’s bedroom door crashed open, hitting the wall and surely adding to the dent that was already there. You watched as he stumbled into the kitchen, sweatpants and t-shirt baggy on his thinning form. When he noticed you on the couch he paused suddenly, swaying slightly.

“What are you doing here?” He croaked, eyes squinted like he couldn’t see you.

“I’m here to talk,” you said, keeping your voice light.

“Come sit down with us, Eddie,” Wayne spoke up, craning his neck to turn and look at his nephew. You could see the slight wince when he took in Eddie’s shape.

“Okay?” Eddie said, dropping down on the couch beside you.

Up close you could see just how bad he had gotten in a week. His eyes were bloodshot and rimmed red. His hair hung in lifeless strands surrounding his face. His cheeks were hollow and pale. You just wanted to wrap him up in your arms and heal him with everything you had. But you weren’t a superhero. You didn’t have the powers to fix this.

Eddie looked away when he noticed the look on your face.

“What’s up?” He asked, like this was some sort of friendly neighborhood chit chat. At least he was in a good mood for now.

You took a shaky breath. “I love you, Eddie.”

His eyes softened slightly at this. “ If this is about our fight I don’t really want to talk about it right now,” he said, gesturing towards his uncle who sat with a stoic look on his face.

“We need to talk about it though. I’m worried about you,” you said.

Eddie let out a humorless chuckle. He leaned his head up against the back of the couch. “I’m fine. We’re fine. Everyone is fine,” he muttered.

“No. Everyone is not fine. I think you should go get some help,” you informed him in a soft voice.

Eddie’s head snapped up to look at you. “If you’re here because you think you can tell me what to do then you can just leave. I don’t want you here anyways.” His mood changed in a heartbeat when he was like this. The second he felt like he was being criticized he snapped.

You swallowed, trying to fight the harsh sting of his words. You had to remind yourself it wasn’t him talking. He didn’t mean it.

Eddie used to be so full of life. He never would have spoken to you like that before this. Sometimes you wished you could crawl into a time machine just so you can have old Eddie comfort you the way you needed. You’d give anything to hear him tell you everything would be okay again.

You pulled the pamphlet out from under your leg and handed it to him with a shaking hand. “Um, I got you a bed here. They’re ready to take you tonight if you’ll go.”

Eddie snatched the papers out of your hand and ripped them in half without even looking at them. He stood up now, his form trembling with the effort. You wanted to ask him when the last time he ate or drank anything was but now wasn’t the time.

He pointed a finger into your face. “You think you can just show up here after abandoning me for a week and tell me what to do. You just think you are so goddamn perfect all the time. Everything would be fine if you would just shut up and let me do what I want to do.”

You clenched your hands into tight fists, fighting the anger and hurt. The counselor at the facility had told you this might happen. It was very important not to engage in this behavior.

“Eddie,” you said softly, a stark contrast to the tone he had used to speak to you. “We can’t keep doing this. You have to choose either me or the way you’re living. You can’t have both. I can’t sit here and watch you die.” You started to cry then at the thought of this killing him. You turned your head, quickly wiping the tears off of your cheeks.

You could hear Eddie take a trembling breath. “If that’s what you want then go. Get the hell out,” he demanded.

You looked up to him to see his eyes wide, nostrils flared and hands balled up at his side. You weren’t going to get through to him. You weren’t going to be able to save Eddie like you thought.

You stood slowly, giving him the chance to change his mind. He just stood there, staring at you as you went to walk out of his life for good.

A few sniffles had you pausing your journey to the front door. You turned to see Wayne with his head in his hand and his shoulders shaking violently. You had been so caught up in talking to Eddie that you had forgotten that he was even there.

Eddie’s expression crumbled as he watched his uncle sob.

“Wayne,” he stammered, placing a hand on his uncle's shoulder. “Why are you crying?”

“Because I can’t do it anymore, Eddie. I can’t sit here and watch you end up just like your father.”

Eddie winced like he had been struck. “But I’m not like him.”

Wayne looked up at him with red swollen eyes. “You are though. This is exactly like he was. I can't sit here any longer and watch history repeat itself. And watching the way you just spoke to someone you’re supposed to love. That’s exactly how your father spoke to your mother.”

You watched silently, waiting for Eddie to snap back at his uncle or lash out but he never did. He collapsed onto the couch, folding into himself as he wrapped his arms around his waist. He slowly started to rock his body back and forth.

“No,” he denied, looking at you now. “You know I didn’t mean it right. You know I love you. I just don’t feel good.”

Eddie was crying now too. His uncle's words making some sort of breakthrough. It was now or never.

“Then go get help, Eddie.” You approached him slowly, sitting down beside him carefully. “It’s already all set up for you. You just have to go.”

“And how are we going to afford that? I can just get clean here,” he argued.

You shook your head. “No. Don’t worry about the money it’s already taken care of.”

He would blow a fuse if he found out Steve had given you a significant loan to fund Eddie’s treatment. Steve insisted you wouldn’t have to pay him back but you were going to work the rest of your life to make sure he got every penny.

Eddie chewed on his already chapped lips before he took another look at his uncle's tear streaked face and started to nod.

Ninety days came and went in a blur.

Eddie’s room had been cleaned out prior to his arrival home. Anything that wasn’t good for him was tossed out.

You leaned against the side of Wayne’s truck while he went inside to collect Eddie. The warm breeze swept through, warming your skin. It was a beautiful day for Eddie to be free again.

You and Eddie didn’t speak for the first thirty days of his treatment. He was in worse shape than you thought when he first got there. There had been a few times when he almost left. Around day thirty five he called you to let you know that he was okay and that he would be sending you a letter he wrote.

It was a letter of apologies for everything he had done and said since he started using. With promises to get better. He told you that he loved you and he never stopped loving you even when things got rocky. That the addiction made him act that way and he would do anything possible to never hurt you again. You sobbed when you read it. You kept it folded up in your nightstand for when the nights got really lonely and you needed a reminder that Eddie was going to get better. And that he still loved you despite the way things were left.

The glass doors to the facility opened to reveal Wayne with a tall figure following closely behind him. You pushed off the truck to get a better look when he started speed walking towards you.

You didn’t have time to react before you were being lifted off the ground in a tight hug. You melted into his arms, savoring the feeling of him.

“Don’t hurt yourself,” Wayne called out as he approached.

Eddie put you down, holding you out at arms length so he could get a good look at you. His skin was no longer sunken in but healthy with a glow. His hair shined in the sunlight. Two brown eyes full of life stared back at you.

Words escaped you. Part of you didn’t expect him to look better. You had expected to still see the sick and crying Eddie you had dropped off three months ago, not the one grinning at you now. The counselors had told you that this wasn’t a cure and he had to work hard for the rest of his life but it was a start to being better.

“Holy shit,” you blurted out.

Eddie's smile turned shy, his hands reaching up to cup your face. He looked at you for a second, making sure what he was about to do was okay. You nodded slightly, leaning in for your lips to meet. Eddie kissed you like he had been away for ninety years and not ninety days.

When you finally broke apart, he whispered into your ear the words you wanted to hear. “Thank you for saving me.”

#tw addiction #tw substance abuse #eddie munson au #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson #eddie munson fanfic #eddie munson imagine #eddie stranger things #eddie munson angst #eddie munson x you #eddie munson request

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spookyserenades · 10 months

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Trouvaille - Chapter Seven

Pairing(s); BTS OT7 x Reader

Genre/Themes; Hybrid!AU, themes of the supernatural and the occult, religious themes, violence, hurt/comfort, horror, romance

Rated; 18+ for swearing, violence/gore, future sexual themes. Reader discretion is advised.

Word Count; 22.3k

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Hello darlings, it's Dana! Welcome to Chapter Seven; a pretty jam-packed update. As a warning, this chapter features a lot of angst, some violence, fighting, swearing, and some heated, sensual scenes (more scenting!) I hope you enjoy this emotionally charged update, there is a lot to unpack and process, and it was a chapter that I've spent a lot of time on (both writing AND editing!) I'd love to hear thoughts, feedback, theories and comments from readers as always! Additionally, if you'd like to be added to the taglist; it is still open (just send me a message) and PLEASE make sure that you have your Tumblr settings adjusted so you can be tagged in posts. Thank you for reading and supporting Trouvaille, and enjoy Chapter Seven!

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Ears ringing, Y/N stared at her mother with astonishment, her brain scrambling to come up with a semblance of a response to what her mother had just seen. I wasn’t like Y/N could deny that the vision happened– her mother had part of it right before her eyes. Still, mortification washed over her, unable to process what she had just been told.

“Stop, that can’t be true!” Y/N whisper-shouted at her mother as soon as the glaze over her eyes evaporated, whatever images she saw clearing from her sight. Booze rose up in the back of Y/N’s throat, horrified by the possibility of Taehyung hearing the nonsense coming out of her mother’s mouth. “Tae is sweet, gentle, he’s not how you described him at all! I mean, come on, you’ve met him, he wouldn’t hurt a fly. There’s no way he could ever kill somebody!”

Her mother took a shuddering breath, gliding her hands up Y/N’s arms to hold onto her biceps with concern. Y/N refused to believe what her mother had seen was based in reality; the image of Taehyung’s innocent smile imprinted in her mind’s eye, the way he clung to her side, and his quiet voice in her ear. As the seconds ticked by and the shock wore off, she grew incredulous and impatient with the predicament her mother had put her in– how was she supposed to shrug that off, and pretend everything was perfectly normal when they returned to the backyard?

“Honey, you know that these particular visions of mine nearly always ring true. I need you to be careful around him, be watchful. I agree with you, he’s seemingly lovely, but there’s a darkness that clings to him,” her mother’s features morphed into sympathy, likely reading the worry that was pinching between Y/N’s brows. “A couple of the others have interesting energies, too. The elk hybrid, even dear Seokjin…”

“Mom, please! I can’t do this, not again. I won’t have visions and cards get between myself and the ones I love. This is the exact reason why I stopped reading cards in the first place, it nearly drove all of my friends away growing up!” Y/N snapped, unwilling to hear anything else about her hybrids. If she wanted information about them, she’d wait for them to come forward rather than snooping around with oracle cards.

“And abandoning your practice didn’t result in something dangerous? Y/N, you’re an adult now, and you know enough about the Craft to realize that once you expose yourself to the other side, you can hardly go back to ignorance of the energies around you,” her mother responded gently, Y/N stiffening with every word. “You don’t think I didn’t know about that spirit that was in the house? I sensed it last week when we came with the groceries. But I knew you’d be able to handle getting rid of it yourself, even though you’ve sworn not to begin practicing again.”

“I didn’t even get rid of it, Jeongguk and Namjoon did! If you knew about it, why didn’t you say anything? You and I could have done a cleansing that afternoon and saved the hybrids from witnessing something I would have rather not put them through! I mean seriously, they probably think I’m nuts!” Y/N hissed in exasperation, feeling her blood pressure rise as her mother dropped her hands from her arms.

“Because even if I wanted to, I wouldn’t have been able to exorcize that spirit. I’m not even sure what it was. Your talents have surpassed mine, even while you weren’t practicing– Y/N, that spirit was kept at bay for years simply because you willfully protected yourself energetically. You let your guard down when you brought those boys home, and that’s why the spirit was able to come into the house,” her mother explained something she was already able to figure out herself, and Y/N barely heard a word.

She was simmering with rage, trying her best to calm down so she could return to the backyard; she was sure that people (and her hybrids) were wondering where they were. She couldn’t stop thinking about Taehyung. Head spinning, Y/N recalled how Jimin had told her Taehyung had been brought into the shelter in a blood-soaked jacket, his threat level rating on his profile, and the other hybrid’s clear distaste and avoidance of him. A little voice in the back of her head was urging her not to ignore these pieces to the elusive puzzle that made up her Taehyung, but even with all of those puzzle pieces she still couldn’t consider the possibility that the Kodiak hybrid was a dangerous threat.

“So Namjoon and Jeongguk were able to banish the spirit? How interesting… you know, I’ve never been able to get a very good read on Namjoon, perhaps he’s practiced some kind of–” Her mother began thoughtfully, Y/N cutting her off by holding up her hand.

“Please, can we just drop it for now? I really want to enjoy tonight, the hybrids deserve to have a nice time as well. I’ll drop by you and dad’s next week at some point and we can discuss this more. I’ll heed your warning with Tae, but I still think you’re wrong,” Y/N pulled her mother back towards the garage and the path to the backyard, the latter uncharacteristically clamming up. “If any of the other hybrids ask for readings, could you please just pull them affirmation cards or something?”

“Sure, honey. I didn’t want to upset you, you’ve put so much effort into making the cookout so special this year, I just worry about you. I’m still your mother, after all. And I’m very proud of you, taking a leap of faith and bringing all of these boys home,” her mother murmured into her ear, allowing Y/N to drag her to the gate into the backyard.

“I know, thank you, mom,” Y/N squeezed her mother into her side, embarrassment washing over Y/N with the sentiments, even while guilt began to gnaw away at her stomach. She was being consumed by thoughts racing through her mind, not only about Taehyung, but Namjoon, Seokjin, and Jeongguk too. “Come on, I think Grandmother is probably wondering where you are.”

Watching her mother amble away as if she hadn’t just said anything out of the ordinary, Y/N resisted the urge to grab the nearest bottle of Tito’s and pour it down her throat. The cookout was in full swing two hours in, many of her neighbors swaying to an old rock song with cocktails in their hands. The scent of the grill was strongly perfuming the humid air, Y/N able to make out the forms of her father and Yoongi placing packages of hamburger, hot dogs, and bean burgers on the table beside them.

Hurriedly, Y/N moved to the nearest table with booze on it, filling a cup with ice, a concerning amount of vodka, and a splash of seltzer, not really caring if Hoseok materialized out of nowhere to call her a lightweight. She desperately needed a drink to process, gulping down some of the heinous tasting liquid greedily as she stared at Namjoon’s bedroom window above the table. Y/N had no idea what to do with the information her mother had relayed to her, considering her mother’s visions and predictions were rarely wrong.

She had a hard time wrapping her brain around Taehyung murdering someone, all sorts of concerning thoughts and excuses floating around in her skull. If he had indeed killed a man, who could it have been; was it an abusive shelter worker, someone he worked with in Alaska, someone who looked at him funny, perhaps another hybrid? If the vision was true, what did that mean for the other hybrids, for her? Nothing seemed to make rational sense the more she turned it over in her mind, the bitter taste of vodka doing little to calm her anxieties, even though she was in dire need to compose herself just in case the hybrids could sniff out her distress.

“Y/N, over here! Where’ve you been?” Y/N heard Laura’s voice shout from a distance, flinching and spilling her drink on the grass.

“One second!” Y/N hollered back, quickly pouring herself another drink before turning to locate where Laura was calling her from.

She caught a flash of her green polka-dotted dress by the picnic table, weaving through the crowd of her neighbors blindly. Interestingly, she didn’t bump into any of her hybrids while she navigated through the sea of people in her backyard, finally able to reach Laura perched on the bench with her son on her lap.

“Hey, sorry I disappeared! My mother wanted to remind me not to forget to set up a table for the desserts later,” Y/N covered guiltily, Laura buying the lie easily with understanding blanketing her features.

Leaning down as Kai began to babble up at Y/N, she offered her index finger to the child, giggling as he grasped onto it with his fist. It was amazing how with the simplest of gestures, children could spark such joy that all other worries seemed to fade into the background.

“I talked to your Hoseok and Jimin for a while, they’re really sweet with the children,” Laura began, bouncing her leg up and down to rock Kai. Smiling softly, Y/N peered around Laura’s form, spotting the Jimin tossing a foam water ball to Daisy in the kiddie pool a little ways away, his ears perky as Ben chatted with him. “Al seems to be pretty into Hoseok.”

Freezing, Y/N stared at Laura with unease, Laura appearing to be stifling a laugh. Y/N didn’t know how much of a good idea it would be if one of her hybrids began to date a close friend of hers, considering the break-up would estrange Alice from her for several months and she couldn’t exactly cut Hoseok out of her life. Besides that, a tingly-hot sensation crept into her gut at the very idea of the two of them together romantically, something Y/N immediately found hard to squash down.

“Jesus. I can’t say that I blame her,” Y/N replied lamely, attempting to locate the fox hybrid and her best friend in the mass of people congregating in the backyard.

“Don’t worry, I don’t think she’ll steal him away,” Laura chuckled, the blood draining from Y/N’s face. “You know Al. She gets the ick quickly, and she doesn’t have time to be entertaining romance at the moment, anyways.”

“Hoseok’s charming. I doubt he’d give her the ick,” Y/N muttered, eventually spotting Hoseok’s bright aqua shirt by the ice bucket of beer, grinning down at Alice while she spoke about something passionately.

“Hmm, so I was right, you’re jealous,” Laura teased, the audacity taking Y/N by such surprise that she rocked backwards on her heels in her crouch and landed harshly on her ass in the beaten-down grass.

“I-I’m not! Laura, hush! Hoseok is a free agent, what do I care?” Y/N ground out, flames licking her cheeks as Tyler, Laura’s husband, chuckled lightly from across the table, adding insult to injury as she was unaware he was even listening.

But Laura was indeed right, Y/N was jealous, she realized with a painful shock down her spine. She never predicted she would react this way to any of the hybrids simply making small talk with other women, but the itchy feeling of envy that overtook her as Hoseok laughed heartily at a joke Alice cracked from across the backyard was almost unbearable. Hardly the jealousy type, Y/N swallowed thickly, tearing her eyes from the handsome fox hybrid with great difficulty.

“Need a hand?” Came a smoke-thickened voice from upwards and behind, Y/N craning her neck backwards distractedly as she shoved her jealousy deep down.

A strong, tattooed hand was dangling in front of her face, a teasing look playing across Jeongguk’s face as he peered down at her. Y/N couldn’t recall a time Jeongguk was so interested in interacting with her, raising a few warning flags in her mind distantly. With hesitancy, Y/N barely grazed her fingertips with Jeongguk’s before he grasped her whole hand firmly with his fingers wrapped around her wrist, yanking her to her feet with ease as she ignored Laura’s probable smug reaction. She stumbled over the lip of her left sandal, cursing as Jeongguk righted her with his free hand on her waist.

“Atta girl, steady now,” Jeongguk grunted, Y/N balking at the edge of cockiness to his tone and the implication of his words. As swiftly as he had touched her, his hands were gone, moving to lazily sit a couple of feet away from Laura on the picnic bench.

“You’re Jeongguk, right? Oh, The Cure! Y/N, my sister, and I were crazy about them in high school band class,” Laura pointed to Jeongguk’s graphic tee, letting Kai down so he could clumsily waddle towards the direction of the kiddie pool.

“God, I remember that. The heavy eyeliner and total lack of awareness that the eighties had come to pass,” Y/N snorted, recalling the images of her and the twins listening to gothic 80’s music in her garage back in high school, drinking tequila smuggled from her grandmother’s bar cart.

“The Cure never goes out of style,” Laura exclaimed in response, patting the space between herself and the elk hybrid, Y/N perching on the bench before she teetered over again. “I wonder if the food will be out soon. I’m starving, and everything looked so good when I took a sneak peak in the kitchen.”

“I should probably help with bringing things out in a minute, huh,” Y/N murmured, narrowing her eyes at the slider door into the kitchen, making out shapes of her parents pulling things out of the refrigerator.

“I think that kid Tony or whatever has it covered with Taehyung… and Yoongi the kiss-ass, of course,” Jeongguk lounged lazily on the bench beside her, Y/N shooting him a be nice look that went right over his antlers as he leaned backwards on his elbows. “Let’s let them do the work, since they seem so happy about it.”

“Bratty, aren’t you?” Laura teased, peering around Y/N’s shoulder with a smirk. “You should be careful with those cigarettes, unless hybrids are cancer-immune or something.”

Sending pointed looks at both the pack of Marlboro Reds sticking out of one of Jeongguk’s leather pockets and the unlit cigarette poised behind the industrial piercing of his left ear, the elk hybrid offered Laura an amused snort, much to Y/N’s surprise. Jeongguk was certainly behaving a bit out of character that afternoon, making an effort to mingle, as Y/N believed he’d shut himself into the house to avoid interaction with others.

“We’re half-human, aren’t we? Besides, last time I checked, animals can get cancer too,” Jeongguk retorted, spreading his legs lazily as he ignored the bratty comment.

Laura cocked a brow at his response before she dropped the subject, opting to ask Y/N about her new job at Judy’s. Enjoying the distraction from all of the disturbing thoughts circling around in her headspace, Y/N relayed some of the strange inventory items she could remember off the top of her head to Laura. The scent of food cooking on the grill had her stomach churning, basically running off of alcohol and nerves at that point. Yoongi, with his long tresses pulled back in a red scrunchie Y/N had given him that morning, was turning corn on the cob on the grill with tongs, the visual bringing a soft smirk to her lips.

Half-listening to Laura and Tyler discussing the content of their upcoming vlog they were working on, Y/N scanned the backyard for some of her other hybrids. Of course, Hoseok was still with Alice, while Jimin was now conversing with Roy while they watched over Daisy and Kai in the shallow kiddie pool. Jimin, for the first time that she could remember, seemed pretty tipsy, his cheeks rosy as he wobbled on his feet in a crouch beside Roy. Giggling softly, she tried to find Namjoon, who had sought out her mother by the bonfire much to her dismay, and he was pulling cards from a stack in her mother’s hands with a tiny dimpled grin. Unfortunately, her mother had not followed through on her request to only pull affirmation cards, Y/N catching the Rider-Waite image of The Magician on the printed card stock he selected.

Shaking her head, extremely peeved, Y/N was only comforted by the fact that her mother already knew Namjoon and didn’t seem to be bothered by his surliness; and the wolf hybrid himself was so fond of her. Seokjin was nearby Namjoon, looking comfortable in one of the chairs beside her grandmother by the bonfire, taking small sips of sangria. Humming along to the Aerosmith song reverberating from the speakers, Y/N searched for Taehyung among the crowd next, pretty much taking a head count. There was a sickening feeling in her stomach when she couldn’t see him immediately, panic flooding through her with the possibility that he may have heard her conversation with her mother earlier. Biting her lip, Y/N caught Jeongguk stiffening next to her through her peripherals, wondering if he could sense her edginess as she scanned the backyard frantically for the Kodiak hybrid.

She finally managed to spot Taehyung after several tense moments of rapidly roaming her eyes across the familiar faces of her neighbors, the Kodiak hybrid pulling the slider door of the kitchen open and trudging outside with the large bowl of fruit salad. Sagging with relief, Y/N’s eyes trailed after him dodging a few tipsy members of Sal’s family, apparently making his way to the table she was sitting at. As if he felt the weight of her gaze on him, Taehyung locked eyes with her, a pointy-toothed smile peeking through his lips. Instantly, everything her mother had relayed to her was forgotten with the easy innocence of his smile.

“Yoongi said the food will be ready soon. Tony put everything that needed to be heated up in the ovens,” Taehyung announced softly as he set the bowl of fruit on the table, Laura immediately forking some of it onto a little plate. Y/N wasn’t sure if Laura had even heard Taehyung, as he spoke close to Y/N’s ear and barely above a whisper, as he usually did.

“That’s great! How’s it going, Tae, are you having fun?” Y/N asked, shock flooding through her as she watched him round the table to take a seat beside Tyler. It was interesting to see Taehyung be so willing to have a closer proximity with people other than herself, between Tony, her mother and grandparents, and now Tyler. For several of the hybrids, it seemed that they were making great progress with coming out of their shells a bit that afternoon; it warmed her heart.

Taehyung nodded in response to her question, accepting a fresh bottle of beer from Tyler with a grateful smile. Tyler, Laura’s highschool sweetheart, was extremely easy to get along with, so it came as no surprise when he began to strike up a conversation with Taehyung about the Kodiak hybrid’s outfit. Laura rolled her eyes playfully, informing Y/N and Jeongguk about Tyler’s recent fascination with men’s fashion. Y/N was even more floored that Jeongguk seemed to not only endure the conversation, but even interjected a comment about his own style a few times. Perhaps the gin cocktail he was nursing was loosening him up a bit. Taking a sip of her own drink, Y/N sighed happily, enjoying the warm sun on her face.

Within minutes, Tony was ferrying back and forth from the kitchen with foil tray after foil tray of food; her father’s buttery mac and cheese, a rather large casserole dish filled with Yoongi’s chili, the mashed potatoes, chilled salads and fixings for the cheeseburgers and hot dogs. Taehyung had begun to rise from his seat, but as Tony came out with an armful of condiment bottles, he used his free hand to push the Kodiak hybrid back down on the bench with a shake of his head.

“Ah, you’ve done enough, Tae. I owe you from earlier, when I almost burned my hand off on that cast-iron skillet with the baked beans and you smacked me out of the way,” Tony exclaimed, setting down the numerous bottles in his arms on the table.

Taehyung’s ears fluttered shyly, his fingertips tracing the condensation on his half-empty beer bottle. Already, people were swarming around the table to fill up their paper plates with food, not even waiting for Yoongi to tiptoe his way through the masses of ravenous tipsy guests with two cookie sheets full of his labors on the grill. When he finally reached the table, Yoongi placed the sheets down at the end of the table, his shoulders relaxing a few inches once he realized he was relieved from grill duty.

Once a few of her neighbors crowded Yoongi at the table trying to stack cheeseburgers onto their overflowing plates, the leopard hybrid managed to elegantly slink away, and like a magnet, found himself behind Y/N. Humming as she tilted her head upwards to greet him, Y/N watched Yoongi’s hand slide onto her bare shoulder, squeezing the tingling flesh softly with a fond smile as she said hello. Under the table, Y/N felt Laura kick her shin lightly, but Y/N didn’t want to give her the satisfaction of meeting her likely scandalized gaze.

With people scattered all over the backyard with food, many of them supplying their own picnic blankets to sit on, Y/N started loading up her own plate with as many of the food options that she could, eager to not only try everything Yoongi had made, but to sober up a bit. As she stood, she felt the alcohol in her bloodstream bathe everything in the backyard in a hazy filter. Laura and Tyler had left the table to sit on a rather large blanket Ben had rolled out, catching up with Roy and keeping an eye on the children splashing around in the kiddie pool.

As she plopped back down on her spot next to Jeongguk, who was very clearly enjoying the baked ziti Sal brought, Y/N surreptitiously eyed Taehyung across from her over the lip of her drink cup– which she found was mystically refilled with vodka and seltzer– as he was plucking another beer from the ice bucket beside him.

“Oof, that looks good. I should make a plate,” Y/N jumped when the bench rocked as Hoseok landed sharply on her free side, whistling as he ogled her plate hungrily. The mystery of her refilled drink was solved; it must have been Hoseok while she was busy stuffing her plate full of mashed potatoes.

“You should! Hey, was that you refilling my drink? I thought you said I was a lightweight, are you trying to see what I’m like blacked out?” Y/N elbowed Hoseok in the ribs, watching him swipe a strawberry slice off of her plate with his eyebrow cocked at her words.

“If you eat everything on that plate, you should be fine,” Hoseok chuckled, his ears twitching as the song on the speakers changed. “You seemed a little tense, so I topped you off.”

Stilling, Y/N cursed her inability to perfect a constant state of neutrality with her body language. Even though she hadn’t known her hybrids for very long, it seemed that they were pretty attuned to the way she moved through the world and the subtle shifts in her moods. There were even instances where the hybrids anticipated her needs without her either realizing them or acting upon them herself, such as Yoongi reminding her to take it easy on the booze or Taehyung fixing her drafty window unprompted.

Munching on her food thoughtfully, Y/N listened to Hoseok chat with Yoongi from the leopard hybrid’s spot beside Taehyung, the conversation mostly consisting of complimenting Yoongi up and down on his cooking skills. Truly, every dish he made was absolutely sinful on the taste buds, Y/N unwillingly admitting to herself that all of his food blew the items Sal brought out of the water, and even her father’s mac and cheese. After she plowed through about a third of her plate, and honestly feeling quite full already, Seokjin ambled over to the table to get himself a cheeseburger, settling down beside Yoongi with his cheeks stuffed full of macaroni. Despite everything, Seokjin still maintained his devilishly handsome looks, even if he did look like a goofball as he tried to join the conversation while still chewing his food.

All things considered, the cookout was going remarkably well. The only hiccup, of course, was her mother dropping the Taehyung bombshell on her, and as she thought about it more, perhaps Alice and Hoseok’s clear flirtatious connection. Even now, as Hoseok was beside her, Y/N unfortunately caught the wink he sent Alice’s way as she sat beside Jimin a little ways away on Ben’s picnic blanket. Before she could get too perturbed over it, her eyes narrowed in on Jimin, who was pretty tipsily squeezing an obscene amount of mustard on his hotdog. Snorting, she made sure to keep one eye on Namjoon, still in deep discussion with her mother by the bonfire, the flames casting an amber glow over his silvery hair– he seemed to be doing just fine, even with her parents and grandparents surrounding him.

Tossing back the rest of her drink, Y/N was toeing the line of pretty thorough intoxication, pushing away her half-eaten plate of food in favor of swiping Jeongguk’s gin and seltzer while he wasn’t looking. Or, if he did notice, he didn’t say anything, once he returned to his spot beside her with more baked ziti. Yoongi, however, shot her a warning look, staring pointedly at the red solo cup wrapped in her hands, to which she stuck her tongue out at him childishly. The leopard hybrid scoffed at her, eyebrows lifting into his hairline, though refrained from scolding her. Once she downed the rest of Jeongguk’s drink, Y/N excitedly left the picnic table in pursuit of playing corn hole with a very wobbly Jimin.

The night was coming to a near-close; several of her neighbors and friends had long since left and all that remained were her family and the hybrids. It was the time in the evening where things quieted down almost completely, and Y/N brought out her large basket worth of s’mores ingredients and stakes to dish out. She was still tipsy, though less so after cutting herself off to avoid more evil-eyes from Yoongi, but mostly she felt happy. Though Laura had left with Tyler and Kai to meet the child’s early bedtime, followed by Ben and Roy with Daisy for a similar reason, Y/N wasn’t bummed out that she had to say her goodbyes so early. The cookout was tons of fun, but she was aching to just chat with all of her hybrids rather than watch them from afar scattered across the backyard. After giving Alice a swift kiss on the cheek in farewell as she ordered her Uber back to her apartment, Y/N waited for her family to bid goodbye to the hybrids, all of which were sitting comfortably on two big blankets she had spread out by the bonfire.

Her mother wrapped both Namjoon and Seokjin in a tight hug, the former’s expression torn between distaste that he was so close to Seokjin and fondness of her mother’s affection for him. Jimin, of course, was being fought over by her father and grandfather, both of them trying to see who could give him a firmer handshake. Stifling a giggle with a hand pressed to her mouth, Y/N remained by the gate until her family broke free from the hybrids so she could see them off herself.

“Goodnight, sweetheart. Everything was so wonderful, I mean the food! That leopard hybrid of yours is a fantastic chef,” her grandmother gave Y/N a soft hug, her small face sleepy and warm with joy. “You take good care until the next time you come to visit.”

“I will, I’m so glad you came,” Y/N returned, feeling both her father and grandfather squeeze either of her sides, the scent of campfire and whiskey coming off of both of them powerfully. “Mom, let me know when you make it home safe.”

Her mother, who wasn’t a big drinker, was the designated driver. She held back for a few moments as she and Y/N watched her father help her grandparents to the car, Y/N bracing herself for another warning. With resignation, Y/N wrapped her arms around her mother the best she could with the basket full of marshmallows swinging from the crook of her elbow, breathing in her spicy perfume.

“Thank you for hosting such a wonderful evening, honey,” her mother murmured, rubbing her hands soothingly up and down Y/N’s back. “Remember what I told you.”

With the last reminder, whispered into her ear with urgency, her mother hurried to her car, probably to avoid Y/N cussing her out in front of the hybrids only about twenty yards away. Grinding the heel of her sandal into the dirt by the gate with agitation, Y/N latched it shut and adjusted the thin cardigan she had thrown on to combat the night chill before shaking the comment off and heading towards the hybrids around the bonfire.

Crickets had begun to chirp loudly in the long grasses, along with the odd croak of summer’s last bullfrogs lingering by the pond further in the backyard, the sounds of nature replacing the playlist from the speakers; in consideration of the neighbors likely heading to bed shortly after being so liquored up at her get-together. The moon was full, bathing the backyard in a blue-silver glow, offset by the blazing bonfire casting a warm orange hue over the silhouettes of the seven hybrids. As she got closer, she watched several pairs of ears perk up in her direction, and Y/N supposed that was her own window into reading their body languages and how she affected them. A slow ear twitch was interest or alertness, rapid flickers of the ears and tail were agitation, ears turned backwards were sadness, confusion, or embarrassment. With time, Y/N predicted, it would become even easier for her to decipher their moods based on the way their tails and ears moved in various situations.

Seokjin and Hoseok were sitting together on a corner of the same blanket Yoongi and Jimin were on, of course, both catching up after being apart for most of the day while Yoongi tried his best to get Jimin to drink a bottle of water. On the other blanket was Jeongguk, Namjoon, and Taehyung, the former two seemingly tolerating each other by mutually sitting as far as they could from the Kodiak hybrid. Humming, Y/N approached the blankets, aware of seven pairs of expectant eyes on her and the mysterious basket she was holding.

“My boys, hope you had a nice day,” Y/N began, the sentence falling out so naturally she didn’t know whether to blame it on the booze or how affectionate she felt towards them all already. Trying not to enjoy the range of emotions playing across each individual face, differing between shock, fluster, and tipsy bashfulness, Y/N began to hand out the sticks for the s’mores. “One last treat, just for us though!”

Setting the basket down between the blankets so everyone could reach the ingredients, Y/N used her teeth to rip open the pack of jumbo marshmallows while she lowered herself to the free spot on the blanket next to Taehyung, in front of Namjoon. Stabbing two marshmallows onto her stake, she considered for a moment, before handing it over to Taehyung beside her in exchange for his empty one, figuring it to be rude to just go ahead and start making a dessert for herself. Taehyung grinned softly, extending the stake dangerously far into the dwindling bonfire.

“I’m so full. I don’t think I have room for that, Miss Y/N,” Jimin announced while fumbling with his stake, his voice a tad on the whiny side as Yoongi snickered from beside him.

“Oh, come on, Jiminie, there’s always room for one more dessert,” Hoseok encouraged, leaning lazily on Seokjin’s arm as he began to roast his own marshmallows. “It’ll soak up all that whiskey you drank. You should know better than trying to keep up with an elderly man who has been drinking since he was twelve.”

Choking on her spit, Y/N reached out to whack Hoseok on his arm lightly, trying not to patronize Jimin further while he was grumbling and burning his marshmallows in the fire. Everyone had their stakes in the bonfire already, though Y/N noticed that Seokjin’s marshmallows were being roasted for him by Hoseok, the jaguar hybrid keeping a good distance from the flames in a fidgety manner. The only one without a marshmallow was Namjoon, who was distractedly fiddling with blades of grass while everyone else tore into the graham cracker boxes and king-sized chocolate bars. Turning slightly, but not before smirking at the bit of melted marshmallow on Taehyung’s cheek, Y/N cocked her head at the wolf hybrid curiously while waving her stake with roasted marshmallows sliding off to get his attention.

“Don’t you want one, Namjoon?” Y/N pouted, the sounds of everyone else munching making the wolf hybrid’s ears flutter. Namjoon’s mouth opened, amber eyes narrowing in on the melting gelatin on her stake with suspicion. Rolling her eyes, Y/N retrieved a graham cracker from the box and snapped it in half, breaking off a chunk of chocolate and sandwiching everything together with the hot marshmallow. Gingerly, she offered Namjoon the treat with a soft smile, the wolf hybrid's eyes widening a fraction. “Here, take this one!”

Slowly, Namjoon accepted the s’more from her, Y/N holding back an impatient huff as he moved at a glacial speed. Eventually, he took it, a dimple appearing on his cheek as a reluctant half-smile bloomed across his face. Satisfied, Y/N leaned back on her hands, tilting her head back towards the star-studded sky, basking in the brightness of the moonlight and the warmth of the fire.

“Shit, Jimin. You’re going to burn yourself,” Yoongi scolded from several feet away, begrudgingly supporting the coyote hybrid’s head on his shoulder while munching on a very sloppy s’more, an exaggerated grimace painted across Yoongi’s delicate face.

“No ‘m not,” Jimin grumbled with his ears drooping, his thick lower lip jutting out into a pout, Y/N giggling alongside Seokjin and Hoseok at the little spectacle.

Though the night was coming to quite a pleasant close, with all of her hybrids seemingly content and getting along well, anxiety began to creep its way into her body. Likely sensing the subtle shift in her mood, Taehyung moved from beside her, trying to angle his face downwards to catch her gaze. Poor Taehyung had no idea that her anxieties were mostly surrounding him, even as he distractedly twirled a loose thread on the wrist of her sweater, the featherlight, barely-there contact wracking shivers from her body. Distracted by her thoughts, Y/N absently moved her hand to link two digits around Taehyung’s slender pointer finger, maybe in an attempt to ground herself, she’d never know.

Sitting mostly in silence, save for the odd slightly disgruntled murmur from Jimin or Yoongi who was still supporting the coyote hybrid upright, Y/N felt the small tether from Taehyung’s finger help her float back down to earth. Distantly, she knew she’d have to talk to Taehyung eventually; considering it would be impossible to mask her anxiety and questions for long without raising suspicion.

For now though, with the evening cool with the last of August slipping away with the stifling summer heat, Y/N was more at peace than she had been in years. Admitting this to herself was at first, a bit foolish, but something about the way that she was surrounded by quiet companionship, knowing that she wouldn’t have to retire back into the big old house by herself at the end of the night, filled her with warmth and comfort. Truly, she didn’t imagine that she’d grow this attached to each and every hybrid that she had adopted so rashly, but every single one of them had already wormed his way into her heart. Each had their charms, unique traits, and ways of expressing a softness that was pretty incredible to witness considering the handful of facts Y/N had about each of their rocky pasts.

Taehyung, who had adjusted his hand to loosely grasp onto Y/N’s whole hand while she looked up at the stars, pressed his thumb lightly into the spot Yoongi had scented her that morning, the sensation painless but still sending a jolt through her. Tossing an involuntary look behind her shoulder towards the leopard hybrid still comforting a sleepy Jimin, Y/N immediately locked eyes with Yoongi, the corner of his mouth lifting into a lazy smirk as she gawked at him with alarm. Taehyung, either oblivious or deliberately pressing into the mark with his thumb, kept his chin skywards, eyes glued to the moon with a reverent expression. A light tap on her shoulder had Y/N tearing her gaze from Taehyung’s side profile, turning her face to the side with her eyebrows furrowed.

“Have the rest of this? I don’t want it,” Jeongguk presented a half-eaten s’more in front of her face, Y/N able to make out various ancient looking glyphs inked into his wiry fingers.

“Sure. Thanks, Jeongguk,” Y/N smiled in thanks, carefully taking the treat with her free hand as he averted his eyes downwards. Cute.

She liked this softened version of the elk hybrid, wondering if his ‘brattiness’ had dissolved since he had rid herself and the house of the malevolent entity. Taking a bite of his haphazardly made s’more, Y/N sunk further into her seat on the thick blanket, listening to the sounds of the moonlit summer evening and the hybrid’s quiet voices as they conversed between themselves.

The slow pulse of an impending hangover was already eagerly presenting itself in one of the veins of Y/N’s forehead, making her grit her teeth as she brushed them sloppily in the mirror. It was late, almost half past two in the morning, and she had finally managed to tear herself from the hybrids and usher them all inside for some sleep. After changing into a well-worn oversized tee shirt and boyshort panties, Y/N was ready to rest her aching bones until at least 9 AM, anxious to shut out the obnoxious nagging thoughts bouncing around in her skull.

Tiredly, Y/N scrolled through a few messages from her friends on her phone while she curled up into a ball in bed, quilt pulled tight around her body as she listened to Jeongguk stomping around above her. From the noise, it sounded like he was attempting to yank open the door to the balcony for a smoke, treading back and forth from the spot where his wardrobe was.

Ben Alpin: so much fun today!! I guess I approve of your hybrids. The ones I could corner, at least

Laura Santos: They’re pretty sweet, Y/N! Not so bad on the eyes, either~

Ben Alpin: Laura!

Laura Santos: I’m married Ben, not dead

Y/N: Fair… they’re all handsome, aren’t they

Ben Alpin: Just how much did you have to drink, exactly, Y/N?

Alice Santos: Come on Ben, it’s like what Laura said, you’re MARRIED not DEAD

Ben Alpin: I’m engaged, smartass! They are cute, though, I’ll admit it

Alice Santos: Hoseok’s my favorite. Might see a bit more of me at your house in the future, Y/N

Y/N: Whatever gets you here for a sleepover, my love!

Huffing, Y/N set her phone down on the nightstand beside her to charge, not wanting to drift off to sleep mulling over images of Hoseok and Alice growing close in her mind’s eye. Gathering up a fistful of her quilt under her chin, Y/N caught sight of the moon outside her window, knowing that sleep would evade her for a bit even though her body was sagging with exhaustion into the mattress.

Now that the cookout was behind her, Y/N could spend the rest of the weekend making sure the hybrids were truly settling into their new home before she headed off to her first shift at Judy’s on Monday morning. Her plan was to keep things pretty low-key during the weekend, maybe go for a few nature walks around the property, take a trip to town for anything they may need to pick up from the stores, maybe get some restoration work out of the way. She wanted to monitor all of the hybrids physically, as well, hoping that all of them would end up scenting her by Sunday so she wouldn’t return home from work with one of them in the same state Seokjin was in when she left them alone the last time.

As she curled into a tighter ball on her side, Y/N froze for a moment, as she swore she heard a faint knocking on her door. Straining her ears, she relaxed back into the sheets seconds later after chalking it up to some wind from outside, or perhaps from Jeongguk upstairs who was still clomping around. Though, after several seconds passed, Y/N definitely heard a knock on her bedroom door, the wooden sound a bit more confident than the previous pass. Sitting upright, Y/N rubbed her eyes with the backs of her hands, switching on her old stained-glass nightstand lamp so she could stumble out of bed. She had deja-vu, recalling how Namjoon had knocked on her door late at night only a few days ago. Like that time, she could only guess who was on the other side of the door as she gingerly cracked it open.

“Sorry. Were you sleeping already?” It was Taehyung, Y/N knew even when she couldn’t see his form much at all from the darkened hallway, due to the low and impossibly quiet register of his voice.

“Hmm, no, not yet. What’s going on, Tae, you need something?” Y/N tugged on the hem of her tee shirt, suddenly very aware that she wasn’t wearing any pants. With no response from the darkened figure in the hallway, Y/N cocked her head and pressed on. “Here, come in. I don’t want to wake the others.”

Stepping aside and peeling the door open a bit further, Y/N watched Taehyung shuffle into the room, donning blue plaid pajama pants and a white undershirt. His hair was a bit ruffled, like he had rolled around on his pillow for a bit, but Y/N was relieved to see that he didn’t have any telltale signs of discomfort from not scenting her yet. Shutting the door behind him softly, Y/N motioned for him to sit at the foot of her bed upon his continued pensive silence.

“So, what’s up? Can’t sleep?” Y/N pressed after a few moments, crossing her arms over her chest in front of Taehyung to combat some of the chill in the room now that she had left the warmth of her quilt.

Taehyung shook his head, garnet eyes finding hers after a couple of seconds of twiddling his thumbs on her bed. Biting her lip, Y/N didn’t really know where to go from there if Taehyung wasn’t going to speak– was she supposed to just let him hang out in her room so they could stare at each other? Now that she was alone with him, the hair on the back of her neck stood on end, much to her surprise and very much against her will. Fuck, her mother’s vision was getting to her.

“No, that’s not it,” Taehyung narrowed his eyes as his nostrils almost imperceptibly flared, Y/N wondering if she was beginning to anxiously perspire. “I’m worried.”

Swallowing thickly, Y/N frowned as the wheels began to turn in her head, moving slowly to sit beside Taehyung on the edge of the bed.

“Want to talk about it?” Y/N murmured, trying her hardest to keep her breathing measured to avoid attracting more attention to her frazzled nerves, Taehyung nodding in the slightest in response to her question. “What are you worried about?”

“You,” Taehyung pulled his brows together, giving Y/N a purposeful once-over as her entire body locked up. “I’m worried about you.”

It was as if a bucket of icy water was dumped over her, several alarm bells going off in her head as she stared at Taehyung with widened eyes. Was she really that transparent? Did he actually overhear her conversation with her mother? With her bad habit of overthinking, was this the time she actually predicted a disaster before it happened?

“M-me? Why, Tae? I’m fine!” Y/N spluttered, her fingernails digging into the soft skin of the tops of her thighs. The corners of Taehyung’s mouth turned downwards, definitely not taking her reply seriously as he shifted his weight closer to her.

Carefully, Taehyung leveled his face closer to her’s, inspecting every angle of her face. He took her breath away, able to give him the same amount of examination from inches away; and by the gods, he was beautiful. The brush of his thick, straight lashes, his soul-penetrating carmine gaze, the odd freckle dusted across his smooth skin.

“You’re anxious. Nervous. Something is bothering you, it’s concerning to me,” Taehyung uttered, barely over a whisper, his words creating puffs of air ghosting across her lips. The way he articulated with emphasis had shivers rolling through her body, fumbling to formulate a decent excuse for him. She came up with nothing.

“Um… please don’t worry, Tae. Really, it’s nothing, I’m okay. Today and this past week have just been hectic, you know?” Y/N whispered, scared that if she raised her voice, she’d completely break down and spill her guts to him. When he continued to stare at her imploringly Y/N dropped her gaze.

“I don’t believe you. What’s wrong?” Taehyung urged, hooking a finger under her chin gently to tilt her face back up to meet his eyes again.

As a result, she felt tears begin to well up at the corner of her eyes, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to get out of this situation without telling the Kodiak hybrid the truth. She wouldn’t know what to do if Taehyung reacted poorly to her telling that truth, what he’d even say, and if it would have him lapsing back into being mute like he was at the shelter. He had come so far out of his shell that afternoon, really making an effort to talk to her friends and family, and she was worried that breaching the subject of hey, did you murder someone would render all of that progress useless.

Y/N pulled away a degree, Taehyung’s hand falling back into his lap while Y/N furiously scrubbed at her eyes with fists to keep her tears at bay. Chuckling weakly, Y/N decided to relent and not overthink his reaction before he even had it, figuring if anything the two of them could have a good laugh about her mother’s crazy vision together.

“Ugh. Sorry, I��m not always so emotional, I swear,” Y/N croaked, Taehyung blinking placidly as he waited for her to continue speaking. “I don’t know. It’s just something my mother said this afternoon, she had a ‘vision’ while she was here. It was so outrageous, though, I pretty much wrote it off, even if she is usually rarely wrong when she gets these specific kinds of visions. I guess I’m still a little bothered by the absurdity of it all.”

Taehyung took a deep breath, scooching closer to her with a curious flicker to his ears. Sighing, Y/N took up one of his hands, squeezing it to reassure him, or perhaps herself– either way, she’d have to bite the bullet to prevent lying to him.

“A vision,” Taehyung tasted the word on his tongue, narrowing his eyes at the way Y/N cradled his wide palm in between their bodies. “It obviously scared you, so it must not have been a good one. What was it about?”

“Strangely enough,” Y/N scratched the back of her neck with her free hand, the air in the room suffocating her all of a sudden. “It was about you, Tae.”

Taehyung flinched as if he was shocked by a live wire, his hand still resting in hers, tightening its hold a fraction before releasing it altogether. Abruptly, Taehyung stood, pacing in front of her bed with a stormy look in his eyes. The reaction did nothing to encourage divulging any more information, Y/N grasping the material of her quilt with alarm. After several moments of watching Taehyung make laps around her bedroom, yanking anxiously at his inky curls, the Kodiak hybrid found his way back in front of Y/N, bending to a crouch in front of her with an expression of distress she had never seen on his usually composed face. A sick feeling was curling in her gut, and she knew there was a possibility that what her mother had seen was real, after all.

“Me? Y/N, listen to me– what did she say about me?” Taehyung’s voice was scratchy, strained, gripping his knees with whitened knuckles when Y/N didn’t answer promptly. “Please, talk to me!”

“T-tae, I’m not sure tha–”

Shaking his head quickly, Taehyung cut her off by placing both of his hands on her shoulders somewhat roughly, making Y/N go rigid in his grip. Things were spiraling a bit out of her control, and the room felt charged.

“Tell me. It’s okay, I can handle it,” Taehyung insisted, fingertips digging into her shoulders imploringly. Thighs beginning to shake from nerves, Y/N tried her best to find comfort in the way Taehyung’s features softened once the fear began to roll off of her in waves.

“Her vision was a jumbled mess, I watched her have it– well, she claims you’ve killed someone,” Y/N blurted, nervously laughing at recalling just how ridiculous the whole conversation truly was.

Taehyung’s face cleared of all emotion, like a chalkboard wiped clean, his hands sliding from her body as he unceremoniously rocked back on his feet and sat on the floor with a thump, which made Y/N continue babbling while he stared at the floor. “Which, of course, I told her was totally ridiculous, I mean come on. I’ve been anxious since then, especially because I promised not to lie to any of you again, but I didn’t exactly know how to bring up something like this to you.”

The silence in the room was deafening. Y/N swore even the crickets chirping outside had silenced, the sound not coming through her cracked-open window anymore, making her hold her breath in suspense. Taehyung’s face remained as stony as it was when she first laid eyes on his human form back at the shelter, sitting so still he looked like a marble statue. Figuring him to be stunned out of a response, Y/N began to force out a few choppy giggles as she stood, motioning for Taehyung to get up and trying her best to snap him out of it so they could finally move on from the tense conversation.

“So yeah, uh… pretty stupid, huh? Like I said, the reason why I was a nervous wreck was because I knew I’d have to bring it up eventually and I didn’t want to upset you. Sorry to worry you, Tae… I’m going to talk to my mom this week, insist that her vision was just some kind of fluke–”

“How did she even see… I didn’t even know you then,” Taehyung interrupted her monologue, the blood draining from her face as the Kodiak hybrid squeezed his eyes shut, pinching the bridge of his nose. “This is unbelievable.”

“W-what?” Y/N squeaked, dread flooding through her as she watched Taehyung get to his feet heavily, his face suddenly appearing years older. “Taehyung?”

Running a tired hand over his face, he finally looked at her, Y/N knowing she appeared scared out of her wits. Her mother’s vision actually true? Judging by Taehyung’s cryptic reaction, there was a huge possibility the vision wasn’t just a bunch of nonsense, and it was sobering as she stared at Taehyung with wide eyes. There was a great sadness to his expression, growing more pronounced by the second as Y/N realized she was slowly backing away from him, until her spine hit the glass window to the backyard. He got closer, stopping a couple of feet away once he noticed how tense she had become.

“Y/N, I’m not going to hurt you, please don’t be scared of me,” Taehyung began, his throat sounding strained. Swallowing hard, Y/N tugged on the hem of her tee shirt, feeling the room start to spin a bit. She didn’t want to be afraid of Taehyung, who had been nothing but an angel since she met him, but she wasn’t expecting him to react like she caught him red-handed.

“Okay,” Y/N breathed, doing her best not to lock up even more when he took another step closer to her. “I’m not scared, just confused… Can you–”

“I told you I was from Alaska, right?” Taehyung inched even closer to her, seeming to sense that Y/N needed a bit of clarification from him. Taking her silence as a cue to continue, Taehyung breathed in deeply.

“I was working at a sawmill under the table with other Kodiak hybrids. I mean, they didn’t even pay us, we had to live in these run-down cabins, the owners were horrible people… we worked all day, into the night, cutting down the trees and hauling them to the trucks to be processed. It was what it was, I was created and grew up there, so I was used to the mundane… was somewhat comfortable with it. That changed in the past few years, with more humans interested in hybrid hunting, my friends and I started to worry about what might happen to us one day, if we didn’t keep working hard or got injured. Last month, when I came back late one night from one of the trucks, I overheard one of the owners on the phone. It sounded like they were making some kind of deal.”

Y/N furrowed her eyebrows, simultaneously wondering what this information had to do with the vision and distantly intrigued she was learning new information about Taehyung. Clearing his throat, Taehyung continued.

“I didn’t think much of it, that night. I was exhausted, and had to get up early for my next shift, so I crashed. The next thing I know, my cabin mates and I are woken up in the middle of the night by burlap sacks being shoved over our heads and zip ties around our wrists, a syringe in our necks, and we were thrown into the back of a box truck.”

With a sharp intake of breath, Y/N bit her lip, noticing Taehyung’s voice begin to get throaty with emotion. Taehyung was trafficked, kidnapped, and the thought of it had her heart breaking.

“That’s horrifying,” Y/N whispered, wanting to reach out to him but finding her hands were glued to the material of her shirt. “Do you know who took you away?”

“They were traffickers, the owners of the sawmill picked out a few of my buddies and I to sell. We were going to be sold to a group of CEOs for a hunting tournament in Seattle. We could hear the driver of the truck talking about it in the front seat over the phone once whatever they injected us with wore off. One of my friends was able to snap off his restraints, and helped us all out of our own. We didn’t dare try and speak to each other, but we knew that eventually, the driver would have to stop for gas and check on us. So we waited, and when the back door opened up when he pulled off the highway, we…”

Each new detail was more dreadful than the last, Y/N feeling bile rise up in her throat as Taehyung trailed off. His breath became labored, Y/N able to sense the panic rising in him due to the pained and confused look on his face while he seemingly relived the memory. Without a second thought, Y/N softly grabbed one of Taehyung’s wrists, urging him on.

“We?” Y/N murmured, hoping that the physical touch and the fact that most of the fear she felt earlier had left her body completely. She had the feeling whatever she was going to hear next was all in the name of self defense. Taehyung practically melted into her loose grip, seemingly helping him muster up the courage to open his mouth once more.

“It’s hard to remember. Most of my friends split off as soon as we jumped out of the back. It was just me and this guy Caleb who ended up getting cornered by the truck driver before we could get away, and Caleb wasn’t exactly a friend of mine. Caleb was trying to pin the driver down and push him towards me, but the guy pulled a knife and tossed Caleb to the ground and then he turned on me. I couldn’t even think, all that was running through my head was the fact that I needed to get away, I needed to survive this,” Taehyung’s chest heaved, his eyes far away as he recalled the memory. Y/N tried her best to smooth her thumb over the skin of his wrist for comfort, waiting for him to catch his breath so he could finish.

“I managed to knock him to the ground and get the knife from him at some point… I didn’t even know what I was doing by that point, instincts kicked in or something, I don’t know. I couldn’t run away, the guy was thrashing around beneath me, screaming, I swore my head was going to explode. At the time, I felt I had no other option, everyone else had run away and I knew that the driver would chase after me because I attacked him. I just– Caleb was already escaping into the woods, taunting me, as the knife went down, and the driver was… I k-killed him in the street before I even registered that I was holding the knife, with a witness promising to turn me in if we were found out.”

When he finished his story, Y/N’s ears were ringing, gaping at Taehyung with a loose hanging jaw. He looked incredibly vulnerable and was visibly shaking; torn between strong regret and deep discomfort after admitting the truth. With her fingers still wrapped around his wrist, she weakly squeezed it, any remaining wariness she felt towards him had disappeared following his confession. Clearly, this was something that was weighing heavily on him for quite a bit, and Y/N couldn’t even comprehend how difficult it was for him to confess all of this to her.

“Say something, please,” Taehyung pleaded quietly, after a few moments of somber silence. Y/N didn’t know if there was anything she could say in response.

“Come here, Tae,” Y/N murmured, tugging him closer, looping her arms around his shoulders tightly, pressing her face into the thin material of his tee-shirt covering his chest. Flush with him, Y/N could hear the impossibly fast pace of Taehyung’s heartbeat as he sagged against her, his arms immediately snaking around her waist to clutch at her back, his face dropping down into her neck.

“You were just trying to get away– you would have died, if you didn’t…” Y/N pressed her ear to Taehyung’s chest, listening to it slow a few beats with each passing second. “I can’t believe the owners of the sawmill just let you and your friends get taken like that, I can’t even imagine how afraid you all must have been.”

Taehyung pulled away a fraction to angle his face inches from hers, a peculiar expression on his features as he regarded her carefully. Tightening her grip around his shoulders, Y/N feared that if she let him go, he’d disappear forever. Giving him a shaky half-smile, she pushed a curl of inky hair out of his eye, hoping she was no longer worrying him with her previous anxiety.

“But I killed that man, Y/N. Technically, I’m a fugitive– just telling you all of this puts you in danger, puts you in a position where you would have to choose to lie or turn me in,” Taehyung breathed, a decibel above a whisper.

Y/N had already thought of this. If Taehyung was a human that was being trafficked, a lawyer could argue that he had acted in self-defense. However, since he was a hybrid, Y/N wasn’t sure if he’d be afforded the same kinds of rights, which honestly made her sick to her stomach. She couldn’t fathom turning Taehyung in, truthfully alarmed that he would even think so, considering she had adopted all the hybrids to prevent the very fate Taehyung almost suffered from twice.

“I’m not turning you in, Tae. When I adopted you, it was to prevent all of you getting taken away by someone who had the same intentions as those CEOs when you were thrown into the back of a box truck. I wanted you all to be safe, here,” Y/N insisted, feeling the Kodiak hybrid wind his fingertips into her tee shirt over her shoulder blades.

“You’re not afraid anymore,” Taehyung mumbled, a blush forming across his cheeks and nose with her words. Nodding, she agreed, feeling more protective than ever over the Kodiak hybrid. “I figured you’d be terrified of me once I told you.”

“No, no,” Y/N shook her head quickly, nose skimming Taehyung’s chest with the movement. “I think anyone would have defended themselves like that if put in the same situation, myself included. I’m glad you told me. I know a bit more about you now, and you said you weren’t going to hurt me… I trust you.”

Straightening up a bit, Y/N watched Taehyung’s ears twitch slightly in reaction to her confession, his hands moving from her shoulder blades to her upper arms, pushing her lightly away from his proximity so he could look at her more clearly. The mood shifted immediately with the expression on his face, a different, more sensual tension filling the room and making her breath catch in her throat. It was as if she had uttered some magic words to cast a spell over him, his tongue catching over his lower lip as he drank in her appearance with lidded eyes.

“You trust me?” Taehyung repeated, eyes flickering from her own to the loose collar of her large tee shirt, using a pointer finger to press at a fluttering pulse point by one of her clavicles. Oh. Shuddering from the chilly temperature of his fingertip, Y/N shut her eyes and tilted her head back onto the glass pane behind her, humming in response. “If you trust me, then… I trust you.”

Taehyung must have bent down, Y/N’s eyes shooting open at the sensation of his silky hair tickling the skin of her neck as he pressed his face into the dip of her collarbones. Trying her best to relax her posture, as she had a suspicion as to what he was about to do, Y/N used a free hand to thread her fingers through the curls on the back of his head.

She felt Taehyung take a sharp inhale against her sensitive skin, the tips of her ears burning with embarrassment due to the turn of events. Y/N supposed that if Taehyung was going to scent her now, it was much preferred over him waiting to feel sick like Namjoon, Seokjin, and Yoongi had. She tilted her chin up to give the Kodiak hybrid better access to the spot below her throat he was mapping out with traces of the tip of his nose and brushes of his eyelashes. Still, with the light touches, Y/N could immediately sense lingering hesitancy in the way Taehyung held back from sinking his teeth into her.

“Tae? It’s alright, you can–”

Whimpering, her words died on her tongue with the sting of razor-sharp incisors piercing into the base of her throat. Notes of desperation in the bite were absent compared to the last three she received, one of Taehyung’s hands wrapped loosely around her bicep, the other using two fingers poised under her chin to keep her neck craned back. Hissing with pain, the location he had chosen to scent her extremely tender and thin-skinned, Y/N involuntarily tugged on a fistful of Taehyung’s curls. The knee-jerk reaction caused a deep rumble to roll through Taehyung’s chest darkly.

Crowding Y/N against the chilled window, Taehyung pushed one of his legs between her thighs to press his body closer into her proximity. Reeling with his teeth still in her neck, Y/N began to tremble, squeaking when Taehyung reached behind his head to remove her hand from his hair, intertwining their fingers together before pinning her hand to the wall beside her. Overwhelmed, Y/N’s eyes fluttered shut, beginning to feel lightheaded as the enzymes coating Taehyung’s teeth entered her bloodstream.

Weakened, she dug her fingernails into Taehyung’s shoulder, her other hand immobilized in his grasp. The pain of the bite had vanished, a sharp sigh of bliss falling from Y/N’s lips as Taehyung pulled his teeth out from the puncture wounds. With a heavy lave of his tongue over the bite, Y/N shivered with delight, the room around her coming in and out of focus as the majority of her weight became supported on Taehyung’s thigh wedged between her own two. Still, she could hear the low rumbling from within Taehyung’s chest as he graphically swiped his tongue over her collarbone, Y/N’s ears beginning to ring from the haziness brought on by the enzymes in the hybrid’s saliva.

“Mmph– ugh,” Y/N slurred groggily as her limp hand slid from Taehyung’s shoulder, having difficulty keeping her head tilted back as he continued to map out patterns on her clavicle with his tongue. She was caught in a daze, foggy brain trying its best to process not only everything Taehyung had told her about his past and what he had done, but the very unexpected turn of events of him pressing her up against a window to scent her afterwards.

While she was trapped in her daze, she felt Taehyung carefully pull away from her, threading an arm around her waist to guide her away from the window, Y/N leaning her entire body weight against his side as he gracefully lead her to the closest seat– the stool by her vanity. Locking eyes with Taehyung in the mirror as he lowered her down, she smiled at him dopily, his expression once again becoming stoic and hard to read. His lower lip was stained with her blood; it was pretty.

“Feel better?” Y/N heard herself ask, Taehyung cracking a slight smile at her garbled speech, nodding almost imperceptibly as his tongue peaked out to catch the blood on his lip. Resting her chin in her palm, she eyed the fresh bite by her throat, a slight glisten of saliva still visible in the lamplight. The site tingled.

Interrupting her post-bite buzz, a rather large crash came from the wall in front of her, the mirror rattling against the wall as Y/N widened her eyes at Taehyung’s reflection in fright. She had forgotten that the other hybrids could have been listening in on her and Taehyung’s interaction, and whose room was just several feet away from her own. Namjoon.

Immediately, the Kodiak hybrid’s jaw became tense and his ears flattened against his head, eyebrows knitting together as his fists clenched. Flinching, Y/N heard the slider door from above her slam shut, and more chaos from behind the wall in front of her. It sounded like Namjoon was knocking things over, and pretty quickly the angry sounds snapped her right out of her clouded haze. Taehyung remained frozen, eyes narrowing with each thud coming from the room over.

“Shit,” Y/N hissed upon hearing a particularly thunderous sound of something clattering to the floor, fumbling her way to her feet frantically. Heart racing, she winced as her foot collided with the vanity sharply, blindly making her way to the door out to the hall.

“Wait, where are you going?” Taehyung stopped her at the door after finally unfreezing from his spot, his hand placed over hers on the doorknob and his voice laced with urgency.

Furrowing her eyebrows, Y/N nodded towards the hall as if to say what do you mean, don’t you hear that, yanking the door open to find the hallway flooded with light, Namjoon’s door open.

“Y/N, stop. Let me handle this,” Taehyung pleaded quietly, gripping her wrist as she closed in on the short distance between her bedroom and the wolf hybrid’s.

“No, Tae. Something could be wrong, he could have hurt himself– fuck, everybody else is going to wake up, at this point,” Y/N replied when the harsh scrape of Namjoon’s desk chair undoubtedly marked up the floorboards. Reluctantly, Taehyung followed her to the threshold peering into the wolf hybrid’s room.

The bedroom was a mess. Namjoon had torn his sheets and comforter off of his bed, a few of his articles of clothing were strewn about. A tee shirt was hanging precariously off of the lamp by his desk, the wooden workspace cleared of all items as if he had swiped his hand across the surface and knocked everything to the ground. Several books were thrown from the large bookcase on the wall and landed in heaps on the floor, and the bench by the window had been overturned. The wolf hybrid, however, was nowhere to be seen. Blood drained from her face at the state of his room, Y/N felt unease creep into her gut once again, Taehyung stepping around her with his shoulders squared.

With purpose, Taehyung marched towards Namjoon’s shut bathroom door, light peeking out from beneath it indicating that the wolf hybrid was within. All at once, Taehyung began pounding at the door, teeth gritted, as Y/N sprung into motion to try and pull the Kodiak hybrid away. Guilt festered within her, knowing that everyone in the house was definitely awake by now with all the noise, and all at once she felt like she wasn’t doing a very good job of taking care of the hybrids so far.

“Tae, stop! The others might be sleep–” Y/N let go of his arm as soon as the door was wrenched open, an absolutely livid looking Namjoon appeared in the doorway, hair and shirt dripping wet as if he stepped into the shower still clothed. He was still wearing the outfit he had to the cookout; Y/N realized Namjoon likely never even went to bed in the first place.

“Sleeping?” Namjoon spit, Y/N’s mouth slamming shut at the malice dripping from his tone, the wolf hybrid’s dangerously narrowed amber eyes focused on Taehyung as he seemed to tower over the latter, taking several steps forward while her and Taehyung backed up a few inches in response.

“Nam–” Y/N squeaked, blinking as Namjoon put a hand up to cut her off, not even sparing her a glance as he continued to stalk into Taehyung’s personal space.

“Quiet,” he barked, Taehyung going stiff with the wolf hybrid’s command, which was obviously directed at her. With his nearest hand and without breaking eye contact with Namjoon, Taehyung pushed Y/N back and behind him protectively, away from the direct line of fire.

“What are you doing in here?” Taehyung growled, free hand gesturing around the wreckage of Namjoon’s bedroom. Shivering, Y/N felt a breeze roll in from one of Namjoon’s open windows, her bare legs beginning to shake.

Flashing his sharpened canines, Namjoon took a big step forward, getting right in Taehyung’s face dangerously. The tension in the room became unbearable, and Y/N had no idea how to diffuse it– part of her wanted to seek out help from the others, but didn’t know if that would make things worse, and she didn’t want to leave the two at each other’s throats alone in the room.

“I knew there was something fucking wrong with you,” Namjoon began savagely, Y/N’s panic settling in more quickly as both hybrids chests began to rumble with barely-contained growling. “How long, exactly, were you planning on keeping everyone in the dark?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, wolf,” Taehyung scoffed, Y/N grimacing– wrong answer. Judging by Taehyung’s locked up posture, he knew exactly what Namjoon was talking about. The fur on Namjoon’s silvery tail was standing on end, his eyes flashing in anger.

“Fuck off, don’t act ignorant,” Namjoon accused, using the flat of his palm to shove Taehyung back a few inches, the strike landing sharply on the Kodiak hybrid’s shoulder and making him stumble backwards from the impact. “You’re a murderer, you fucking killed a human. Just by being here, you’ve put every single one of us in this house at risk!”

Heart plummeting to her toes, Y/N stumbled backwards onto Namjoon’s bare mattress, unable to keep her weakened knees steady any longer. So, Namjoon had heard her and Taehyung’s entire exchange, which led her to the conclusion that Jeongguk, separated only by thin sheets of drywall and hardwood above her bedroom, had as well. She could only imagine who else was listening in, praying that no one else had quite the reaction Namjoon was experiencing.

Taehyung was apparently stunned into silence, though Y/N had a suspicion that Taehyung knew better than she did about just how sensitive hybrid sense of hearing was, and the likely event that many of the others in the home had heard what he had confessed to Y/N earlier. Recovering from Namjoon’s shove, Taehyung straightened up, preventing himself from being pinned against the desk.

“Nothing to say now, huh? Easy to spill your guts to someone who would forgive her own executioner, you coward. Ridiculous… we all smelled that human blood on your jacket in the shelter, even when it was confiscated by that piece of shit shelter worker. I was the last to get dumped there, and I still knew you were fucked up. You still have the jacket, reeking of filth upstairs in a closet!”

With each statement, the volume of Namjoon’s voice grew to the point where he was shouting. Horrified, Y/N pulled herself off of his bed, trying her best to muster up the courage to intervene. In the distance, she could hear the ancient creaking of the old floorboards responding to several pairs of footsteps rushing to the scene of the commotion. Taehyung appeared to take a breath, attempting to distance himself from the hostile wolf hybrid.

“If you heard everything, then–” Taehyung countered, swiftly cut off by a dark chuckle coming from Namjoon.

“No shit, I heard everything, I’m about 200 feet from her bedroom,” Namjoon spat condescendingly. “What exactly is your plan, here? If authorities end up tracking you down, or one of your buddies rat you out, what does that mean for the rest of us? Are we supposed to act like we don’t know anything?”

Taehyung blinked, a shadow crossing over his face. Nails digging into her palms as she squeezed her hands into fists, Y/N caught a glimpse of movement in the hallway; the swish of a spotted tail and hushed whispering. Yoongi and Seokjin were lingering in the hall, from the looks and sounds of it.

“You know, it’s one thing to kill another hybrid, but a human? Don’t you know what would happen to you if you’re caught? And to drag her into this…” Namjoon stabbed a finger into Taehyung’s chest, the latter gritting his teeth and batting Namjoon’s hand away.

“I’m not letting anything happen to her,” Taehyung snapped, voice thick with anger. “If they find me, I’ll tell them she knew nothing about my past.”

“Until they torture it out of you, or you let it slip,” Namjoon retorted matter-of-factly, Taehyung’s expression growing even more furious. “By the way… how do we know that you won’t attempt to kill us all in our sleep so you can get away now that we know your secret?”

By now, the tips of Namjoon’s human set of ears were red with rage, lost within the spiral of his thoughts. Tearing a hole in the skin of her lower lip, Y/N reacted impulsively, approaching the two cautiously with her hands up.

“H-hey, Namjoon, I think we should all take a breath–”

As if suddenly remembering Y/N was in the room, Namjoon snapped his head down to look at her scathingly, the muscles in his jaw twitching with agitation.

“And you. You’re okay with all of this, harboring a murderous fugitive? I’ve seriously overestimated your judgment capabilities. Then again, you actually adopted seven hybrids labeled as dangerous in the databases, so I’m wondering why I’m so shocked by your lack of self preservation,” Namjoon crossed his arms over his chest, tail swishing furiously behind him. Insulted, Y/N ignored Taehyung’s growling growing in volume, as well as the stunned silence from the hallway.

“I don’t think you’re being fair right now, Namjoon. I understand you’re angry, but you can’t just lash out at the people around you like this,” Y/N pointed out with a wag of her finger, an incredulous look blooming across Namjoon’s face. Turning his body to face her more fully, Namjoon bent down to get closer to her face.

“So now you’re telling me how to react in response to your foolishness? Is that it? I can’t make an assessment of you? Is it because of your massive savior complex, or that your spoiled rich girl lifestyle protected you from criticism all this time?” Namjoon coldly inquired, his sharp eyes dropping from her face to the fresh bite along her collarbone, extending a digit to prod at the wound. “You even allowed him to fucking scent you after finding out who he is. Stupid girl.”

As soon as Namjoon spat out his insults, Y/N felt his words sting like a slap across the face. With the acidity at which he uttered each word, Y/N realized he truly felt that way about her; that she was in over her head, naive, spoiled and stupid. The realization had her heart shattering in her chest, tears immediately gathering in her eyes as she stared at the floor with her throat beginning to close up. When Jeongguk had made her cry the night she brought him home, she tried her best to get away from the hybrids before they could see the tears, but Y/N was so stunned by the hurtful words that she was rooted to her spot.

Before the first tear could roll down her cheek, Taehyung sprung into action, roughly tearing Namjoon’s hand away from Y/N’s clavicle and shoving the wolf hybrid by his shoulders so strongly Namjoon stumbled back into his bed frame. Blood pounded loudly in her ears, distantly hearing Namjoon’s cursing as he grabbed Taehyung by the collar of his tee shirt.

Barely registering the events around her, Y/N sunk into a crouch, wrapping her arms around her knees as she let her tears flow freely, not even caring that she was whimpering pathetically. With everything that had transpired in the past week, between the adoptions, the paranormal situation in the house, and trying to remain as upbeat as possible in the face of each hiccup, Y/N was truly exhausted and she finally let herself feel the strain of it all. She realized she was way out of her depth, clearly unable to handle taking care of the hybrids considering two of them were about to tear each other apart, the thought making her so miserable she began to gasp with the beginnings of a panic attack.

“You fucking. Bastard,” Taehyung roared, using an elbow to jab Namjoon in the ribs in an attempt to get the wolf hybrid to let go of his shirt collar. “Talking to her like that, laying a finger on her! You take it out on me, not on her!”

“Gladly, you prick,” Namjoon grunted, taking a swing at Taehyung’s face, Y/N unable to see if his fist collided with his cheek as her vision began to spot. Taehyung staggered backwards from the impact, Y/N stiffening as the Kodiak hybrid spat a mouthful of blood onto the floor by her feet. The half-open door to Namjoon’s bedroom swung open with a smack against the wall, thunderous footsteps cutting through the noise of the brawl.

“The fuck!” Came a new voice, Y/N distantly recognizing it as Jeongguk’s smoky tone as his quickened heavy tread pounded into the room. Dread washing over her as she expected an escalation of the violence, Y/N lifted her head from her knees. “Are you two morons going to keep going until you destroy the place, or until you kill each other?”

“Stay out of th–” Namjoon began, Jeongguk cutting him off with a humorless snort.

“Shut the fuck up. This ends now, you’ve both done enough to ruin tonight for everybody. You have that girl on the floor shaking like a goddamn leaf and the whole house reeks of her doom and gloom, you fucking assholes.”

Taehyung’s shoulders deflated, looking down and behind at Y/N’s crumpled form on the floor, and Y/N could see how ashamed he became as soon as his eyes swept over the carnage of his and Namjoon’s fight. Y/N was more taken aback by Jeongguk’s intervention, not expecting him to break apart the fight so willingly, staring at his confident posture in a new light.

The elk hybrid was still dressed in his outfit from earlier, a deep scowl on his face as he got between the other two. Disgust was written all over the placement of his mouth with the way he was biting down on his lip ring harshly, both Namjoon and Taehyung bloodied and chests heaving– Jeongguk’s sentiments and interruption temporarily sobering them.

Jeongguk snapped his fingers and nodded towards the hall, turning his back on Taehyung and beginning to haul Namjoon out of the room by swiftly and expertly binding his arms together in the blink of an eye. Thrashing in the elk hybrid’s clearly ironlike grip, Namjoon had no choice but to begin to be dragged out of the room, too busy trying to wrench himself free to spare Y/N on the floor a glance. Jeongguk, however, with his lips pressed together, offered her the slightest sympathetic expression, his midnight eyes ever so pitiful as he glanced her way. Her body still quaking, Y/N doubted if Jeongguk would be able to handle calming Namjoon down on his own, fearing the worst. Hearing Namjoon’s loud protests as Jeongguk dragged him away, she felt herself go numb, her brain at capacity for processing anything else that evening.

After several beats, she sensed another presence behind her and flinched as she felt a tentative hand land on her shoulder, looking up and wondering when Yoongi had snuck into the room. His face was slightly puffy from likely being woken from sleep and his pajamas were wrinkled, slowly lowering to Y/N’s level. He said nothing, his eyes soft as he cupped her face, using his thumbs to tenderly wipe away the tears tracking down her cheeks. The action had more moisture falling from her lash line, melting into the affectionate gesture, Yoongi cooing quietly.

“It’s gonna be alright, sweetheart,” Yoongi murmured, his spiced vanilla scent enveloping Y/N due to his intimate proximity. Swiping his thumbs across her skin once more before pulling away all too soon, he stood upright again. “Come on, you– let’s get some air,” Yoongi stalked over to Taehyung, who was using the hem of his shirt to dab blood away from his mouth robotically.

As Yoongi hooked a hand around Taehyung’s elbow to lead him out without protest from the latter, Y/N heard additional footsteps enter the room rapidly as she dropped her head back down to her knees. Too drained to see who it was, Y/N waited for whoever it was to speak, praying it wouldn’t be someone else angry with her.

“Miss Y/N, let me help you stand. We need to get you something warm to drink, you’re trembling,” Jimin’s devastatingly gentle voice met her ears, Y/N finally managing to stop crying after several moments of taking deep breaths.

“Okay,” Y/N croaked, knowing that she would have a hard time facing everybody the next day. She had no idea how she’d be able to do damage control between Taehyung and Namjoon, let alone look at the wolf hybrid without breaking down.

Gingerly, Jimin bent down from behind her, his minty breath washing over her as he wrapped an arm around her waist to lift her to her feet while bearing most of her weight in his arms. She let Jimin keep his arm around her waist, her body practically curling into his warmth as the coyote hybrid made sure she was supported against him, using his free hand to rub up and down one of her forearms to try and rid her skin of goosebumps. Carefully, Jimin started walking her out into the hall in the direction of the lowly lit kitchen, the rest of the house so quiet it was as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred at all.

“Sorry that woke you, Jimin. There are probably a thousand ways I could have handled that better,” Y/N mumbled, unable to look him in the eye as she stared down at his pajama pants.

As they crossed into the foyer, Y/N noticed the door to the basement was shut, biting her lip when she remembered Hoseok’s fear of wolves. The fight couldn’t have made his aversion to Namjoon any better, and she prayed he was okay in the basement by himself. She’d definitely have to check on him early in the morning.

“Nothing to apologize for, Miss Y/N. Those two were out of line, and they know it,” Jimin assured her urgently with a roughened edge to his voice, the arm around her waist tightening with emphasis.

The porch light was on outside of the front door, Y/N catching a glimpse of Yoongi’s long hair in the door’s window as he appeared to be talking to Taehyung, presumably. If anyone could swallow their pride enough to talk things through calmly with the Kodiak hybrid, it was Yoongi.

“No, Jimin… I should have just kept my mouth shut about my mother’s vision. I mean, I don’t regret learning more about Taehyung’s past. But maybe I should have talked to him about it elsewhere, let him tell the rest of you when he was ready,” Y/N lamented, dropping her cheek to Jimin’s shoulder as he inched her into the kitchen. “Now look at the mess I’ve made. Everyone’s involved now.”

Jimin hummed low in his throat, maneuvering Y/N onto a cushiony barstool by nimbly hoisting her up by her hips, his grip delicate as he lifted her with his thumbs resting on her hip bones. With the angle, she was face-to-face with the coyote hybrid, who was examining her with unreadable citrine eyes. Ears turning backwards against his head, Y/N observed it was the first time Jimin looked truly canine, his pointed incisors prodding against his thick lower lip in thought.

“Despite how Taehyung revealed his past to you, what happened in Namjoon’s room was unwarranted. Namjoon was cruel, and the both of them resorting to physical violence in front of you was nothing short of unacceptable. Don’t apologize– how could you have prepared for something like that, Miss Y/N?”

Jimin brushed some of Y/N’s hair from her forehead, making sure she was supported well enough on the barstool by placing a hand on her shoulder to ease her against the backrest. Once confident that she wasn’t going to collapse on the floor, Jimin got to work readying a mug and a tea bag while keeping an eye on her across the island. She turned his words over in her mind as his back was to her placing the mug into the microwave, eyes on his full, sandy colored tail pulled through the hole sewn into his pajama pants.

“Namjoon hates me,” Y/N whispered, feeling so dejected even Jimin’s carefully-chosen words of comfort couldn’t pull her out of it.

Pulling the steaming mug from the microwave, Jimin sighed, using a spoon to stir a bit of honey into the tea. Rounding the island, he slid the mug in front of Y/N, rubbing soothing circles into her back as he sought out her eyes that were trained on the dark granite of the countertop.

“No, he doesn’t. I have a feeling Namjoon hasn’t had much experience dealing with people and their emotions, let alone his own. That’s not an excuse, of course… but he doesn’t hate you, I promise,” Jimin assured, the cadence of his voice calming as he nudged the mug closer to her, encouraging her to take a sip.

“You think?” Y/N uttered, voice small. She took a sip of the sweetened chamomile, the scent alone making her feel an increment better.

“I know it. He’s a wolf hybrid, he wouldn’t have scented you if he hated you, Miss Y/N,” Jimin confirmed, a tiny pleased smile stretching across his face as he watched her sip her tea obediently. Y/N was too tired to read into the implications behind what Namjoon’s species of hybrid had to do with anything, but she was sure to tuck away the hint for when she was less emotionally raw.

“Jimin, thank you,” Y/N wrapped one of her arms around his wiry shoulders, pulling him in for a somewhat weak side-hug, enjoying his warmth and kindness. “You know, you don’t have to keep calling me ‘Miss’... my name is just fine. Makes me feel closer to you.”

Jimin chuckled with this, his nose in her hair as she hugged him into her side. Putting down her drained mug of tea, Y/N released the coyote hybrid, giving him an earnest smile amidst all of the uncertainty she was feeling. His expression was fond, and Y/N couldn’t believe how lovely he was.

“That’s just how I was raised, a hard habit to shake. If it makes you happy, I’ll call you just Y/N,” Jimin granted, taking her mug away and moving away to place it into the dishwasher, a sparkle in his eyes. “Are you feeling a little better? You should get some rest, now.”

“Mm, I feel better. I should get some sleep… got some damage control to do tomorrow,” Y/N confirmed, desperately feeling like she needed a hug. She felt weird about pulling Jimin in for another embrace, however, even as he took her hand to help her down from the barstool. “You should head to bed, too, Jimin. It’s been a long day, I’m sure you’re exhausted as well.”

Just then, Y/N heard a faint buzzing sound, Jimin furrowing his brows as he fumbled for his phone in the pocket of his pajama pants. Equally confused, Y/N watched as Jimin distractedly led her out into the hallway, one hand gripping hers loosely and the other flicking through the notification.

“Oh, it's Jeongguk…” Jimin murmured, eyes roaming over an apparent text message. Tensing, Y/N squeezed his palm, hoping he’d relay anything of importance to her.

“Jimin, I think he wants to speak with you out back,” Y/N tore her eyes from the phone grasped in Jimin’s hand, registering Seokjin standing by the staircase in front of her.

Y/N had forgotten he was one of the voices in the hallway when the fight broke out, his face tired as Y/N got a closer look at him. The woodsy scent of the outdoors was clinging to him as he approached her and Jimin, the dew-damp slides on his feet telling her that he had likely just come in from outside. Jimin nodded, reluctantly withdrawing his hand from Y/N’s grip, shooting her an apologetic half smile.

“Yeah, that’s what his message said. I’ll go see what he needs,” Jimin straightened up with purpose, turning on his heels to head back into the kitchen and out the back door. “Seokjin, make sure she gets to bed? Goodnight, Y/N,” Jimin called lowly, disappearing into the dim kitchen with the swish of his tail.

Y/N’s bare legs were beginning to feel numb from both standing and the chilly temperature blowing in from the open window in Namjoon’s bedroom she and Seokjin were lingering in front of. Her heart sank, assessing the mess that was made in his room. She'd definitely have to spend some time cleaning it up the next day– mopping blood off the floor, making sure nothing was broken.

“Y/N? Come on, let’s go,” Seokjin stepped in front of her, blocking the view of Namjoon’s bedroom and extending a palm forward. Easily, Y/N grasped onto Seokjin’s warm hand, his fingers closing gently around her own digits. “There won’t be any more fighting tonight, we’ll all make sure of it, so you can rest easy.”

Casting one more look towards the front door as she allowed Seokjin to tow her along, she noticed the bulb on the front porch flickering on and off, muffled voices from the other side of the door paying the light no mind. Shivering, Y/N shook her head, shuffling closer to Seokjin and tucking into his side, the nagging feeling of needing some physical contact and comfort returning. In response, Seokjin’s tail wound around the back of her thigh, the silky fur warming up the flesh that it touched, and she fleetingly wondered if the action was mindless or purposeful.

Her room was as she had left it prior to the commotion coming from Namjoon’s room, her quilt messy on her bed, stained glass lamp on her nightstand casting a whimsical pattern on the walls of the mulberry room. Pulling her to the side of her bed, Y/N could make out Seokjin’s dark eyelashes, his rounded blue-black ears, and the curve of his lips in the lamplight that illuminated his side profile.

“Do you need to use the bathroom, or are you okay?” Seokjin asked in a low voice, letting go of her hand to straighten out her quilt for her. He definitely seemed disturbed, creases around his mouth alluding to a bit of a frown.

“No I’m fine, just a little cold,” Y/N replied, sitting on her bed where Seokjin had folded the quilt back. Seokjin chuckled lightly, pulling the thick material of the quilt up over her legs while she scooted down on her mattress.

“That’s because you’re not wearing any pants,” Seokjin teased, using one hand to tuck the quilt under her body and the other to boop her nose. The action triggered a small giggle, the first tingle of amusement she had in hours. “You’re not a hybrid, either. Your blood doesn’t run as hot as ours.”

“Hmm, so that’s why you’re always so warm,” Y/N mused, smirking as Seokjin slipped the quilt up under her chin, his frown lines disappearing as she spoke. Even in the slight darkness, Y/N could see how vibrant his eye color was, fiery like the sunrise reflecting off of a tranquil lake.

“Try to get some sleep, alright?” Seokjin whispered, fingers grasping the chain attached to her lamp to shut it off, Y/N tearing her arm from beneath the blanket and frantically grasping for his wrist to halt his movements. He looked back at her with surprise, eyebrows pulled together. “What’s the matter? Do you want the light on?”

Squirming beneath the covers, Y/N didn’t know how to put what she needed into words. She didn’t want Seokjin to leave. Being alone was the last thing she wanted at that moment, the thought of it making her so uncomfortable she could hardly stand it.

“Uh… I don’t know how to, um…” Y/N floundered, still holding onto the jaguar hybrid’s wrist like a lifeline.

“Do you–”

“Can you stay with me, please? I don’t want to be alone right now,” Y/N confessed quickly, squeezing her eyes shut and preparing for rejection. Seokjin was probably bone tired, and judging from his earlier look of perturbation, she had the feeling he wasn’t exactly pleased with the events that had unfolded that night. “You can say no. I just feel like I need a hug, or something… it’s childish, I know.”

A low rumble came from Seokjin’s chest, one of Y/N’s eyes cracking open at the gravelly sound. He seemed to be conflicted, eyes darting from her form to her sliding glass door that led out into the backyard, one of his feline ears twitching. She planned on simply letting it go, rolling over and allowing Seokjin to slip from the room after his declination, eyes slipping shut once more. Under her eyelids, the warm glow of the lamp cut off with the tinny yanking sound of the chain, Y/N accepting that he’d likely take his leave at any moment.

“I’ll stay,” Seokjin agreed as soon as the light was off, Y/N’s eyes snapping open in surprise, only able to register a kaleidoscope of reds and blues as her sight struggled to adjust to the darkness. After a short series of what sounded like scuffling around her bed to the other unoccupied side, he spoke again. “You want me to lie down?”

Logic so far from penetrating her thoughts, Y/N immediately turned onto her opposite side to fold back the quilt for Seokjin, promptly fluffing the empty pillow laying beside her for him.

“Please?” Y/N squeaked, weakly patting the empty spot on her mattress to encourage the jaguar hybrid. Though she could hardly see him, the only source of light coming from faint moonlight filtering in through her windows, the outline of his form was still visible.

A sound between a chuckle and a purr came from Seokjin, the vacant side of her mattress dipping with his weight as he situated himself beside her, arranging her quilt around himself as Y/N could already feel his comforting warmth soothing her. He was close enough for Y/N to smell the eucalyptus shampoo he’d been using. Silence enveloped them, Y/N able to count his measured breaths as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, finally able to make Seokjin’s face out from beside her. Rolling over onto his side to face her, Seokjin gave her a small smile, Y/N surprised to see a feline eyeshine blinking back at her. He glowed, and she realized that there were so many interesting things about hybrids she learned about every second she spent time with them.

“Right… You wanted a hug? Come closer, then,” Seokjin broke the silence, lifting his arm a few degrees, apparently expecting Y/N to scooch into his embrace.

“U-uh, really? You sure?” Y/N stuttered, hoping she hadn’t backed him into a corner as he inched closer to her curled-up frame.

“I’m sure, yeah. Come here, you’re still shivering,” Seokjin insisted with the velvety feeling of his tail brushing over the side of her thigh; the warm weight of it making her eyelids flutter. “It’s okay.”

After his firm assurance, Y/N wiggled her body closer to Seokjin’s warmth, shuddering once she was near enough for him to wrap his heavy arm around her waist and drag her flush to his body. Purring lowly as he adjusted, Y/N was still as he smoothly positioned her against his broad chest, the delicious waves of heat coming from his skin killing the chill that had been plaguing her.

“Mmm. Thank you, Jin,” Y/N yawned, tucking her nose into the crook of his collarbone as he seemed to freeze at the mention of his nickname. His tail wound more tightly around her thigh in response, her legs nearly tangling with his own due to proximity. “M’ sorry about tonight.”

Seokjin’s hand inched around her waist and traveled up to her mid-back, holding her more securely as his free arm snaked beneath Y/N’s pillow so he could rest his palm in her hair. The embrace was intimate, Y/N pretty much melting into a puddle as her nose skimmed the column of his throat, eyelashes fluttering tiredly against his skin. She could feel his chest rumbling with purrs due to the way her upper body was pressed against him. Settling her hands over his pectorals to better feel the comforting vibrations, Y/N was already steadily slipping into unconsciousness.

“You didn’t do anything wrong,” Seokjin murmured suddenly, stroking the back of her head softly. Angling her face away from his neck, Y/N sought out his glowing eyes in response.

“I just want you all to be happy, to feel safe. I’m not doing such a bang-up job so far in accomplishing that,” Y/N lamented, drumming her fingers lightly against Seokjin’s chest. She could feel his steady heartbeat through his shirt. His chest deflated a bit as he let out a gentle sigh.

“Well, I’m happy. And we’re all safe. Thinking like that will send you spiraling, Y/N… you need to get some sleep. Things will be better in the morning, I promise.”

“You’re happy?” Y/N whispered insecurely, the corner of Seokjin’s mouth quirking upwards.

“Mm-hm. I am,” Seokjin confirmed, leaning forward, his wavy hair falling into his face. To her great surprise, Seokjin planted a firm kiss on her forehead, the cushiony feeling of his lips on her skin making her toes curl. As he pulled away, he used the hand on the back of her head to angle her face back into the crook of his neck. “Close your eyes, try to sleep for a bit.”

Stunned by the kiss, her face flushing violently, Y/N nuzzled her face as far as she could into his collarbones, taking it as her cue to quiet down and attempt to drift off to sleep. Seokjin’s purring resumed, his tail slackening around her thigh and resting there heavily.

After her heart calmed down from Seokjin’s affectionate gesture, Y/N felt the heavy curtain of exhaustion drape over her, and paired with the warmth of another body curled around her, she was out in a matter of minutes.

In the morning, it was difficult to open her swollen eyes, likely from how hard she had cried during the fight between Namjoon and Taehyung. As soon as she came to consciousness, she remembered the previous night's events so vividly, she didn’t even have a chance to start the day in a good mood. To add to her glumness, it seemed that Seokjin had snuck out of her room at some point, the space he occupied beside her cold with the quilt neatly made up. Truthfully, she was grateful that he had stayed with her long enough for her to fall asleep, but she wished that his face could have been the first thing she saw when she woke up.

After dragging herself out of bed and taking a full shower, Y/N stared at herself in the bathroom mirror distractedly as she blow-dried her hair. She couldn’t hear much going on in the house outside of her bedroom, but she wasn’t really paying attention anyhow. She was absolutely dreading damage control. Checking up on Hoseok was definitely her first priority, then cleaning up Namjoon’s bedroom– but there was also the matter of examining and treating Namjoon and Taehyung’s injuries, and she was not looking forward to interacting with either of them, truthfully.

Grumbling, Y/N slipped on a pair of denim shorts and a ribbed cocoa tank top, the weather app telling her it was an oppressively humid and sweltering day, the plastic soles of her slides slapping against her hardwood floors as she prepared herself to metaphorically rip the band-aid off. Pausing by the door, she pressed an ear to the wood, trying to make out any sounds out in the hallway before she exited the room. All that she could hear was the occasional clanging of a wooden spoon against the side of a skillet.

“Alright, let’s do this,” Y/N muttered to herself, surprised that she was past the hurt she felt last night– now, she mostly felt peeved. Jimin was right, a physical altercation was totally uncalled for, and she intended on making that clear to both Namjoon and Taehyung, even if the Kodiak hybrid was attempting to defend her in that way.

Pushing her door open, Y/N completely avoided even looking towards Namjoon’s door, passing by swiftly and marching straight to the entrance of the basement. As she thudded down the stairs with purpose, Y/N was confident Hoseok would be able to tell it was her by her scent, the gym area darkened and all of the lights in the bathroom off as well. The sliding pocket door to Hoseok’s bedroom was shut, Y/N assuming he was still in there as she heard him shuffling around from within.

“Hey, Hoseok. Can we talk? Are you alright in there?” Y/N called gently, waiting patiently for him to pad towards his door and open up.

A well-oiled metal sliding sound rang out through the basement as the fox hybrid appeared in the doorway, purplish shadows under his clever mocha eyes and his ears drooping downwards and sideways. He was dressed in fresh clothes, at least, in a white tee shirt and his light linen pants, and seemed to have showered judging by how clean he smelled and his slightly-damp auburn hair.

“Good morning,” Hoseok offered weakly, gesturing for her to come into his room. He kept things neat, a couple of comic books he must have found in the upstairs library littering the top of his desk and the round chair in the corner of the room. The bedroom smelled like him, like fresh air, woody, clean. “I should be asking you if you’re alright. You were in the thick of it, last night. I should have intervened…”

Hoseok rambled, a frown settling over his features, shifting from one foot to another. Y/N shook her head, reaching for his hand and squeezing his palm.

“Seokjin told me not too long ago about your phobia of wolves,” Y/N confessed, watching Hoseok’s tail start to wag back and forth anxiously. “I was concerned about you down here by yourself last night… that must have been frightening for you to listen to, I’m really sorry, Hoseok.”

Hoseok’s frown deepened, letting go of her hand to run it through his hair with stress. Cocking her head curiously, she opened her mouth once more to try and comfort him further, but he spoke first.

“Even if I do have an aversion to wolves, I still should have gone up there to help break it up. I can’t believe Namjoon said all of that shit to you, who does he think he is?” Hoseok snapped, though his frustration clearly wasn’t directed towards her.

“I don’t know, Hoseok. He’s entitled to his… opinions, even about me. But I’m not tolerating any more violence in our home, that’s for damn sure. And I’ll be making that clear to him and Taehyung when I go up to face the music,” Y/N pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to avoid bringing up the elephant in the room– the crime Taehyung admitted to committing.

“The elk broke up the fight, huh? With Yoongi, no less. Guess they buried the hatchet in the nick of time,” Hoseok changed the subject, Y/N getting the feeling he was trying to avoid talking about both Taehyung and his phobia. She felt like one of the two needed to be addressed, sooner rather than later.

“Hoseok, can I ask you something about your phobia? Is there something that happened to cause it?” Y/N tried to catch his eyes, noting that his ears pressed down even harder against his head with her words. “I’m only asking because I think I’d be able to help you work on it. I’d hate for you to be uncomfortable all the time due to Namjoon’s presence. I care about both of you.”

Hoseok’s ears perked up a bit after she uttered the last sentence, sighing deeply as he sank down on the edge of his bed with his head hanging low.

“He doesn’t seem to deserve that care, at the moment,” Hoseok muttered, Y/N biting her lip as she waited for him to answer her question. “When I was a kid, maybe seven or eight years old, there was a shelter in Berlin I was at for longer than the rest– I think I was there for ten months? I could be wrong, they moved me around so much. Anyways, there was an older kid there too, really a teenager. He was a wolf hybrid, and he made sure to make my life a living hell. Shifting, chasing me around, pretending that he was going to kill me. You know, he broke three of my fingers, slamming them in a door.”

Dropping onto his bed beside him as a gasp left her mouth, Y/N collected Hoseok’s hand again with both of hers and squeezed, the fox hybrid glancing at her out of the corner of his eyes with his mouth pressed into a grim line.

“Now that I’m older, I recognize that he was just angry with his situation, lashing out at anyone around him. But I’ve never really trusted another wolf hybrid. He’d tell all the other hybrid kids I was a deceitful, conniving fox and that I’d steal their things and throw them under the bus the first chance I’d get. I didn’t have any friends because of it. Worst of all, he ruined one of my first chances to finally get adopted and escape the system by cornering my potential adoptive owners, repeating the rumors that I wasn’t to be trusted, I’m a nasty fox. Of course, they ended up adopting him over me.”

“Oh, Hoseok, honey… I’m so sorry. You didn’t deserve any of that, he was a horrible bully, and you were just a little boy,” Y/N whispered, the mental image of a tiny Hoseok, alone and without friends, scared and hurt, breaking her heart to pieces. “For what it’s worth, I think you’re lovely… I’m glad that I was able to adopt you, and have the chance to get to know you. My mom wasn’t lying, foxes have always been my favorite animal,” Y/N nudged Hoseok in the ribs softly, hoping she could cheer him up and possibly get him to smile. She missed his infectious sunny laughter.

Hoseok’s frame sagged with each word she spoke, his grip on her hand tightening as he peeked at her sideways. She gave him a small smile, somehow hoping that it conveyed just how grateful she was that he actually revealed all of this to her, trusting her enough to talk about a clearly sore subject for him.

“It’s about time I work through this, anyways. It was a long time ago, and I don’t want anything holding me back anymore. I don’t have to worry about trying to make potential owners like me now, right?” Hoseok spoke after several beats, a hint of his pretty smile making an appearance on his face.

“That’s right. You’re with me now, Hoseok! Anything you want to do; a place you want to visit, a hobby to try out– we’ll make it happen. I have no intention of letting any of you go, now that you’re here,” Y/N agreed, wondering if she was being a little too sappy.

She was speaking nothing but the truth, even if things got rough and they didn’t always get along. When she made the adoptions, she never even thought about abandoning them. Unfortunately, far too many hybrids were returned back to shelters at the first sign of ‘bad behavior’, or left out on the streets. With the current state of the world where hunting down hybrids was gaining popularity amongst the uber wealthy, Y/N couldn’t stand the idea that if she hadn’t ended up in that shelter with Ben and Roy, the possibility of Hoseok being gone from the world just like that would have been very real. It made her sick; it triggered an almost primal need to protect each hybrid she had adopted with her life. The words Namjoon had spat at her seemed meaningless, now that she thought about it more seriously. There were so many things she didn’t know about each and every one of them– all of the horrors they had been through.

“Y/N, come on…” Hoseok groaned playfully, his arm hooking around her shoulders and pulling her into his side. “I don’t want you crying again. Jin and Yoongi will be down here in a heartbeat ready to knock my lights out.”

“Okay, alright. I wasn’t going to cry,” Y/N mumbled, relief finally washing over her as Hoseok chuckled, his bright smile finally making an appearance on his handsome face. “Let’s go get some breakfast, hm? I’m sure Yoongi made something delicious, and it’s a beautiful day. We should spend some of it in the sunshine, No?”

Hoseok nodded with amusement, looking like a significant weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. She’d keep her promise in helping him get over his fear of wolves, knowing that it would help him not only feel more at ease, but would help heal some of his childhood anxieties and fears. He stood, his russet ears finally returning to their natural upwards position once more, motioning her to follow him out into the hall and up the basement stairs.

Trudging up the stairs behind the fox hybrid, she couldn’t help but think about all of the places Hoseok must have been over the course of his short life. Imagining the constant confusion of being brought from shelter to shelter internationally as a child and teenager was mind boggling enough, not to mention with the added prejudice that fox hybrids seemed to be not so well liked in the hybrid world.

In the brightness of the foyer, Y/N could smell a sweet-spiced pastry perfuming the air, paired with something else that was more savory and grilled. After sending her an encouraging look, Hoseok headed into the kitchen, Y/N knowing that he had some semblance of an idea that she was preparing herself for a tense situation. She made a pit stop, retrieving her first-aid kit from the broom closet under the stairs, mourning the fact that she seemed to be using it so frequently these days.

Braving herself, Y/N hurried after Hoseok, trying her best to seem composed and confident. The sunny kitchen was full of hybrids, tinkering sounds of silver cutlery against ceramic plates ringing in the air but the lack of conversation hung heavy over the atmosphere.

Yoongi was over by one of the ovens, pulling out a tray of what appeared to be cinnamon apple rolls, his long hair pulled back with the red scrunchie Y/N gave him the previous day. One of his spotted ears turned to her direction as soon as she entered the kitchen, but his eyes remained on the pastries he was taking out of the oven. Besides him, Jimin and Seokjin were present, sipping coffee from mugs at the island and pushing around some kind of hash on a plate with their forks.

Hoseok began making himself a cup of coffee by the coffee bar, apparently waiting for Y/N to break the silence upon their arrival. She sought out Seokjin’s gaze, which she met instantly, his eyes immediately softening once they locked eyes. Clearing her throat, she glanced at Jimin, who was also staring at her with a minor sense of pity, which made her straighten up with purpose.

“Morning, guys… did you get enough rest?” She began, making her way to Yoongi’s side as if her feet moved on their own accord, setting the first-aid kit down on the island as nonchalantly as she could.

“Yeah, I did, at least,” Yoongi promptly responded, using a spatula to scoop a scalding hot pastry onto a plate, offering it to Y/N with a thin grin stretched across his face. It was strange, the way he was behaving as if nothing had happened, Y/N hesitantly accepting the plate, the scent of the pastry far too tempting to pass up.

Taking much too large of a bite, Y/N migrated over to the side of the island where Jimin was sitting, hearing similar responses from both him and Seokjin. It was hard to stand shooting the breeze while she had no idea where Taehyung, Namjoon, and Jeongguk were, none of the hybrids in the room offering up any sort of insight as to where they’d be. Shoveling down the rest of the pastry Yoongi had given her with haste, Y/N waited for Hoseok to take a seat on a barstool with a plate full of breakfast food before inquiring about the missing hybrids' whereabouts.

“So, where are they? I think it’s better if I address everything now, rather than later,” Y/N spoke after a few moments of listening to quiet chewing and Yoongi fiddling with the dials on the dishwasher.

Both Jimin and Seokjin exchanged uneasy looks, Y/N staring at them expectantly when neither of them would cough up any information. Grumbling, Yoongi took her empty plate, Y/N shooting him a pleading look as he locked eyes with her. He melted as soon as his eyes met hers.

“Jeongguk wants to talk to you before you see the other two. He’s upstairs; Namjoon and Taehyung are cleaning up the bedroom they trashed,” Yoongi disclosed, speaking slowly in his gravelly tone as if he was trying to choose his words carefully.

Blanching, Y/N tried to wrap her brain around how the hell Namjoon and Taehyung had gone from trying to tear each other apart to tidying up together, her body totally locked up as she processed what Yoongi relayed to her. Clutching the granite for support Y/N barked out a strained laugh in disbelief.

“What? You mean, they’re together right now?” Y/N breathed, her eyes bugging out of her skull as she stared at Yoongi with alarm. He shrugged, placing silverware into the dishwasher like he was detailing a weather forecast to her.

“They’ve calmed down, Y/N… we’ve managed to deescalate the fight over the course of the night,” Jimin volunteered from beside her, Y/N blinking when she realized he had finally dropped the ‘miss’ title he had been using to address her. “Once you talk to Jeongguk, I think you’ll feel a little bit better about confronting them.”

Nothing seemed to make any sense, judging by the way everyone was behaving so normally considering how disastrous last night had been. Taking in Jimin’s and Seokjin’s perfectly calm expressions, Y/N furrowed her eyebrows, realizing her carefully constructed plan to handle the day was mostly useless. Apparently, many things had been taken care of for her.

“I don’t– huh? Uh, this is all so weird… have I been sleeping for a week?” Y/N stuttered, mainly speaking to herself as she distractedly headed back to the foyer, hoping Jeongguk could give her less cryptic information.

“Please, you guys… hang out outside, chill out, whatever you want to do, go ahead. Thank you for all your help last night, too. I’m going to talk to Jeongguk,” Y/N added once met with no response to her hurrying away, calling over her shoulder as she simultaneously sped up the grand staircase, Yoongi’s cinnamon roll spiking her blood sugar enough to give her the zap she needed.

Her footsteps making loud creaking sounds as she rushed down the hall towards Jeongguk’s room, she was eager for the elk hybrid to fill her in with all she had missed once she passed out in Seokjin’s arms. Not bothering to knock on his door, knowing he could hear both her pounding heartbeat and her clumsy tread, Y/N pushed his door open, immediately spotting him standing out on the little balcony. He still hadn’t changed from his outfit he wore at the cookout, and Y/N doubted he had gotten any sleep.

“Jeongguk,” Y/N gasped, chest heaving from the effort of scrambling her way to his room, one of his tapered ears flickering in response as he idly smoked leaning over the balcony.

Trudging over to his side, Y/N got a good look at him, the sleeves of his band tee shirt pushed up over his shoulders as perspiration clung to the skin of his arms, neck, and face like morning dew. It was already insufferably hot outside, Y/N too beginning to sweat as soon as she stepped onto the balcony beside him.

“I know you wanted to speak to me, but I should thank you first. If you hadn’t broken those two up last night when you did, things would have gotten a lot worse. Thank you,” Y/N hesitantly used three fingers to pat the tattooed hand wrapped around the iron banister of the balcony, his skin hot like a furnace. He took a long drag from his cigarette, eyes distant as he listened.

“They were being fucking idiots. We all knew something was up with the bear, but he’s no threat to us. I’m sure we’d all be in the same boat, if forced into the same situation as he was,” Jeongguk hoarsely replied, coughing in between every few words.

“H-hey. Do you need some water? Why don’t you come inside, it’s way too hot out here. I’m afraid you’re going to overheat,” Y/N grew concerned when she saw a bead of sweat track down from his temple to the edge of his sharp jawline, the elk hybrid definitely showing some signs of heat exhaustion.

Swearing, Jeongguk stubbed out his cigarette, tossing it into a plastic cup on the balcony railing he was using as an ashtray. He surprisingly took her advice, heaving the french doors to the outside shut and sighing a breath of relief once enclosed in his air conditioned bedroom. Lingering awkwardly by the velvet bench in front of his bed, Y/N was unsure of what to say next– hoping he would disclose whatever he needed to without too much prodding.

“So someone downstairs had enough brain cells to tell you they haven’t killed each other yet?” Jeongguk rasped, bracing himself against one of his bed posts close to where Y/N was standing. “I was able to calm the wolf down when I brought him out into the backyard, with the help of the jaguar and coyote. For what it’s worth, as soon as his rage subsided, I could smell enough guilt coming off of him to make me gag.”

Y/N swallowed thickly, Jeongguk’s revelation not really doing much to make her feel better. While she was still somewhat hurt by Namjoon’s words, his apparent instant remorse didn’t bring her petty satisfaction at all. She was much more concerned with his well-being, recalling that he had blood running down his cheeks after a blow to his brow bone from Taehyung. Further, she was more ticked at the two than anything.

“I’m surprised he listened to you. I think you two are more alike than you’d care to admit,” Y/N chuckled lightly, a lightness taking over her mood despite the subject matter of the conversation. In her mind, there was no use in dwelling in soured emotions for too long, even if she still had to have a stern talking-to between the two straightening up the scene of the crime downstairs.

“He didn’t have a– shit, choice, but to listen to me,” Jeongguk insisted, inelegantly landing on his bed as his knees gave out halfway through responding. Growing alert, Y/N realized Jeongguk was more affected by the heat than she originally assessed on the balcony. “Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. Motherfucker doesn’t know how to control himself.”

Rounding the corner of his bed, Y/N squeaked as the elk hybrid dropped down to weakly support himself on his elbows, his complexion turning ashy as he appeared to fight back whatever was making him feel poorly.

“Judas fucking priest. Not now,” Jeongguk complained loudly, his voice mingling between a pained moan and an exasperated cry, using one of his inked forearms to drape across his slick forehead. Without a thought, Y/N used the back of her hand to check the temperature against the elk hybrid’s clammy cheek, nearly recoiling at the boiling temperature.

“Jeongguk, are you with me? Christ, I gotta get you a cool cloth, it’s way too goddamn hot outside, and you’ve had no sleep… it might be a heat stroke,” Y/N panicked, turning on her heel to hightail it to his bathroom for a damp face cloth.

Before she could get too far, Jeongguk caught her by the elbow, forcibly yanking her back within his proximity with a grunt. From there, while she was lax in shock, Jeongguk managed to manhandle her by tugging on her arms in a way that had her straddling his hips on his bed, her face hovering less than inches away from his. Her heart was slamming against her ribcage, unfocused eyes only registering the shiny jewelry threaded through his eyebrow and lower lip, Y/N got the clearest look of Jeongguk’s handsome face she ever had. The darkness of his pitch-black eyes, sharpness of his nose, the uneven and crooked proportions of his mouth.

“You know what’s happening. It’s not a fucking heat stroke,” Jeongguk ground out meaningfully, using one hand to powerfully pull her hips down to settle her weight on top of him, the other frantically tugging the thick strap of her tank top down to loosely sit around her bicep.

“W-wait, Jeonggu-uk,” Y/N wheezed, head spinning.

She had forgotten that there were still several of the hybrids who had yet to scent her, the elk hybrid included, a distant hypothesis that stressful situations may trigger the need to do so floating around in the back of her head. She’d pick that thought apart later, when she wasn’t straddling Jeongguk, who had a sort of crazed look in his eyes. While he wasn’t a predator hybrid, he certainly seemed that way.

To her surprise, Jeongguk froze, his fingertips stilling against the bare skin of her shoulder. Hazily gazing into her eyes, Jeongguk swallowed slowly, his Adam’s apple bobbing with the motion. Not expecting his obedience, Y/N felt immediate regret for making him prolong his clear suffering.

“S-sorry. Go ahead, you just caught me off guard,” Y/N coaxed, detecting a minute amount of vulnerability in the blown-out darkness of his pupils. Maintaining eye contact for a few seconds longer, perhaps trying to give her a chance to pull away, Jeongguk groaned gutterally, eyelids squeezing shut painfully as his fingers dragged her shoulder closer to his face.

At the feeling of the tip of Jeongguk’s nose teasing the skin of her shoulder, more questions flooded through her, bracing herself by placing both hands on Jeongguk’s quilt by either side of his head.

“Jeongguk… is it the s-same? As the others? You’re not a predator,” Y/N asked as confidently as she could, never noticing if Jeongguk had the same sharpened incisors as the rest of her hybrids.

From beneath her, Jeongguk snickered distractedly, Y/N jolting as she felt the smooth coolness of the metal hoop on his lip drag over her heated flesh.

“It’s the same. Isn’t that what you want, though? I think you like the pain,” Jeongguk uttered against her skin, the words making her stomach flip and heating her body from head to toe. He didn’t know what he was saying, Y/N convinced herself, coming to the conclusion that the hybrids became delirious when they waited too long to scent.

Unable to help the whimper escaping from her throat, Y/N felt Jeongguk’s lips stretch into a mischievous smile against her shoulder, apparently knowing that he had her right where he wanted her. She hardly had the words at that point to counter his accusation.

With no further protest, Y/N closed her eyes as she felt Jeongguk trace his incisors along her shoulder. Without being able to see them, Y/N could tell the shape of his teeth were more blunt than the other’s, the sensation tickling her a bit as he searched for the best spot to sink them into. He was moving at a tortuously slow pace, Y/N squirming over his lap impatiently.

“P-please,” Y/N whined thinly, pressing her shoulder more firmly into Jeongguk’s face. In response, he chuckled humorlessly.

“Since you asked so nicely,” he gruffly responded, his teeth sinking into a fleshy part beside her the ball-and-socket joint of her shoulder, the euphoric pain making her wail in response.

The pain of his bite was unlike any of the others, due to the site he chose or the shape of his teeth, but either way it had her sagging against his frame while his teeth were still embedded into her skin. The throbbing pain ebbed, Y/N’s head swimming as she let her weight be supported on top of Jeongguk’s muscular frame, her vision cutting out as her brain frantically tried to retain a semblance of consciousness. It was a feeble attempt, Y/N vaguely registering Jeongguk’s teeth withdrawing from her and the tip of his tongue swirling around his mark teasingly.

Arms turning weak trying to hold herself up, Y/N shifted more of her weight into her hips, pressing them down more firmly on top of Jeongguk’s. A deep grunt tore from his chest, one of his hands that was gripping his quilt shooting up to dig his fingernails into the bare flesh of her thighs, the sting making a groan bubble in her throat. Hearing the noise, Jeongguk chuckled against her shoulder condescendingly, finally using the flat of his tongue to swipe over the bite marks. Y/N’s eyes rolled to the back of her head, a foreign, rounded barbell dragging over her skin. Y/N didn’t even realize Jeongguk had his tongue pierced prior to that moment, the sensation of the barbell paired with the wet warmth of his tongue making her body shudder against his.

Heavily, her head dropped to the junction where his neck met his shoulder, biting down on her lip to prevent any more noises escaping, when she felt the elk hybrid seal his lips around his mark, having the audacity to purse his lips and lightly suck. Even in her loopy head fog, Y/N knew that he was teasing her, definitely sensing how much his ministrations were affecting her. She could smell the saltiness of the sweat still coating his neck from inches away, mingling with his inherently natural muskiness. She felt herself become completely boneless against the elk hybrid, who was apparently satisfied with his work on her shoulder, his mouth finally retreating from her skin and lessening the intensity with which his fingernails were cutting into the fleshy part of her thigh.

Air whooshing from her lungs, Y/N felt the world spin as Jeongguk flipped her over, her back meeting his plush mattress with a thump as they exchanged positions and he hovered over her, drawing away several inches to analyze her stupefied expression with a lazy smirk. Tongue peaking out to wet his lips, Y/N was transfixed by the flash of the barbell threaded through the appendage.

“Now that that’s out of the way… where were we?” Jeongguk cocked his head while his onyx eyes roamed around her face and neck, Y/N struggling to entertain a coherent thought. “Oh… the wolf and the bear. There’s a few things you should know, before you go down there to confront them.”

Able to struggle up onto her elbows, Y/N stared up at Jeongguk through the thick of her lashes eagerly, his muscular thighs flexing and straining against his leather pants as he sat back on his haunches, preparing to ease off of the bed.

“Okay, enlighten me then.”

Taglist; @blancflms @grazysf @sbromp @jaxavance @sunderlight @ot7nem @mageprincess7 @wittyreader @drenix004 @mayla548 @skyys-universe @ddaeng-angmoh @trtlthts @exfolitae @kalala22 @xiusmarshmallow @bangtans-momma @zae007live @paigetj @singukieee @serendididy @lilacdreams-00 @dreamerwasfound @ninjacups @osakis-gf @itwillbealways-d @xthefuckerysquaredx @momowantscats @molshole @gooooomz @uarmyhore @lopprhe @oopscoop @xicanacorpse @i-like-anime13 @hemziii @demarie04 @im-sinking-in-mud @talkyoongitome

Please do not repost or translate my work. Thank you!

#bts fanfiction #bts fanfic #bts ot7 x reader #hybrid au #bts ot7 x y/n #bts hybrid au #bts fic #bts au #bts hybrid x reader #bts hybrid fanfic #namjoon fanfic #seokjin fanfic #yoongi fanfic #hoseok fanfic #jimin fanfic #taehyung fanfic #jungkook fanfic

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hxzbinwrites · 2 months

Note

Yayyy! Vox was who I wanted to make a request for so I was thinking what if female reader is an overlord who deals with weapons that can kill sinners and hellborn. Maybe she is also an owner of a nightclub? maybe she died in the 1920s and she knew Alastor as well and maybe she’s had a crush on him but he’s not interested in her so then she goes and she dates Vox but then she catches him positioned with Val and she doesn’t know the extent how Valentino is abusing Vox so then fast forward 7 years later and they meet again because she’s helping Alastor and of course that makes Vox jealous and angry and Vox just wants her back and he’ll do anything to show her that he changed and he just wants her back. And maybe he explains how Val treated him and then a happy ending heheh. 🤭 I love your stories. Also maybe reader is badass and is like doesn’t need a man because she got herself but she also loves when Vox protects her? Kinda like that song on TikTok from Olivia Rodrigo that goes “I’m a feminist obviously but I wouldn’t really mind him saving me”

Vox x Fem! Overlord! Weapons Dealer! Reader | Stayed Gone

(A/n): IM BACCKKKK!!! Sorry this is kind rushed, but it was a really fun write!!! I’m promise I’ll get working on more requests but i’m gonna take it easy to slide back into writing after my little break! Thank you to all of those who supported me through this!! ❤️❤️

Warnings ⚠️: Cussing, Vox is OOC, Cheating, Violence, Short (sorry :( )

“YOU SON OF A BITCH!” (Y/n) said, throwing a wine glass across the room, particularly aiming at the TV who was caught in the act with a certain moth.

“(Y/n), babe, ‘ts not what it looks like I swear-“

“Oh really?” She said, a venomous lilt in her voice,”cause right now it looks like you’re getting screwed by your little business partner? Huh? Am I not right on the money sugar? Oh, but where’s that little sarcastic buzzer now?!”

Vox slipped his pants on, zipping up his fly while trying to walk towards (Y/n)

“I swear, you’ve got it all wrong. I’m..this isn’t…we’re not…”

“Save it.” She said,”This, us, is over. Our business deal is over. And if you even try to negotiate or give me some shitty excuse, this little turf you have will belong to my empire and become my next factory.”

Vox was left, standing here, shirt off and wrinkled pants on, watching as the love of his life took the bare necessities and walked out of his life, all while Valentino watched and smirked at the sight.

—————

7 Years Later

“THAT FUCKER IS BACK!!” Vox screamed, his fists slamming down on the table. A month before (Y/n) walked out, the infamous Radio Demon went MIA, and has now returned to the scene, alongside the Princess of Hell, Charlie Morningstar.

“Yeah” Valentino said, in a sultry voice,”I thought he was gone for good too”

“It’s been seven years!” Vox huffed, turning away from the screen, missing a very crucial person who just walked outside to scope the situation of the attack on the hotel.

“You still pissed he almost beat you that time, right before your little angel walked out~?” Valentino teased, rubbing Vox’s digital cheek on his screen, causing a squeegee noise to be emitted

“Uh, fuck you!”

“Just saying!”

“Things have changed a lot since they both left town!”

“That’s for sure”

“I gotta send a message to who’s, really in charge of things now!!”

“Welcome home, I’m gonna make you wish that you’d stayed gone! Say hello, to a new status quo. Everyone knows that there’s a brand new dawn, turn the TV ON!!!”

“Top of the hour, and we’re discussing a certain ‘has-been’ who has been spotted cavorting around town after a seven year absence! Did anybody miss him? Did anybody notice? More on tonight’s program!”

“So the Radio Demon is back in town! Why’s he hanging around? What does that mean for your family? Well handily I’ve got good news, he’s a loser, a fossil, and I don’t mean to sound hostile, but the demon is a coward!”

“You can take that as gospel! Pulling my viewers? Impossible. I’m visual, he’s barely audible! Stop giving him the time of day, don’t listen to a word he’d say! I hope he had a nice vacay, but he should’ve STAYED AWAY!”

“While he rid in radio, we’ve pivoted to video! Now his medium is getting bloody rare!! Hell’s been better since he split! Where’s he been? Who gives a shit!”

“Salutations! Good to be back on the air~!” A familiar, static filled voice responded.

“Yes I know it’s been a while, since someone with style, treated Hell to a proper broadcast. Sinners rejoice!-“

“What a dated voice!-“

“Instead of a clout-chasing, mediocre video podcast-“

“C’mon!”

“Is Vox insecure? Perusing allure? Flitting between this fad and that, is nothing working?”

“Ignore his chirping!”

“Everyday he’s got a new format!”

“You’re looking at the future, he’s the shit that comes before that!”

“Is Vox as strong as he purports? Or is it based on his support? He’d be powerless without the other Vees!”

“Oh please!”

“And here’s the sugar on the cream, he asked me to join his team! I said no, stole his girl, and now he’s pissy, that’s the tea!”

“WHAT?! YOU OLD-TIMEY P-PRICK, ILL SHOW YOU SUF-UF-FFERING!!!!”

“Uh oh, looks like the TV is buffering” A new voice said, mocking Vox’s breakdown. Except it wasn’t a “new” voice, it was (Y/n). (Y/n), with Alastor, at the Hazbin Hotel.”

“ILL DESTROY-Y YOUUUUUU”

“I’m afraid you’ve lost your signal” Alastor said, taking the mic back before finishing his number.

“Let’s begin~”

“I’m gonna make you wish that I’d stayed gone! Tune on in! When I’m done, your status quo will know it’s race is run! Oh this will be fun!”

Vox could hear Alastor laughing alongside (Y/n) in the background, as his monitors start to flash “no signal”

“FUCK!” He whines

————

The gang was all downstairs, Charlie explaining what tomorrows fun activity would be when a loud banging was heard on the door.

“A NEW GUEST!!” Charlie squealed, stars in her pupils, as she ran to go open the door, only to be met with a very tall TV Overlord.

Alastor’s antlers shot out of his head while (Y/n)‘s weapons were at the ready.

“I come with no harm!” Vox said, raising his hands, before locking eyes with (Y/n). His digital eyes made little heart pupils before blinking them away, embarrassed.

“(Y/n)…” he breathlessly said,”I-I know you hate me…but please, I-“

“Save it Vox.”

“I wish I could explain to you that night, or even today, but I can’t! This….deal has my lips sealed shut my love-I mean (Y/n). I-I just…I cannot explain myself with this contract I have.”

“Wait” Angel Dust said,”You’re Valentino’s little situationship, right?”

“If that’s what you wanna call it….”

“Wait….oh shit” Angel said, walking over to him,”I…I know what it’s like…”

“I know…I see you around his studio…I’m not above owning souls, I have my own, but to work with him…? I’d…..I’d free you all in a heartbeat….”

“Vox?” (Y/n) said,”are you in some sort of deal with Val over your…body.”

Vox could only look at her, not able to give her any conformation.

“Oh Vox…I…I didn’t know…I-“

“I know dear…” Vox said, smiling sadly,”but you have a erm….partner, of sorts, not your finest option but whatever, now and I wouldn’t want to intervene-“

“Oh Alastor? Me and him aren’t in a relationship” (Y/n) replied,”You know him, Mr. Ace in the Hole!”

“A what now?-“

“Ohhhhh, that…that explains so much.” Vox said, looking at the Radio Demon.

“Vox…I-I think we need to go home, talk about this in private….after I squish a bug.”

“Okay…” Vox said, holding (Y/n)‘s hand,”but what about this hotel?”

“I’ll still work here, with everyone, I believe in the cause. I just didn’t think you’d want to.”

“Maybe I can….put some ads on if you’d like-“

“YES YES YES PLEASE THANK YOU MR. VOX SIR ID REALLY APPRECIATE IT!!!” Charlie said, shaking Vox’s other hand,”IM CHARLIE!!”

Vox smiled, a genuine smile for the first time in a while,”Yeah, yeah I think I need to hang here a little more often…detox a little…”

“Good, I can’t have you stressed out too much, I just got you back.” (Y/n) said, rubbing his digital cheek affectionately,”my little trophy husband”

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sluttywoozi · 1 year

Text

'bout you | ksy x reader

Rating: M (18+ minors dni) | WC: ~1k

Soonyoung's busy studying so you get busy doing... something else. His headphones die at a most inopportune moment.

Warnings: reader has a vagina, soonyoung catches reader masturbating and he likes it, mention of overstim., fingering, just a blurb truly, barely proofread

Soonyoung’s headphones give one last quartet of beeps before the music flowing through them ends abruptly, the battery dead at last. He knows he should’ve charged them earlier, but he was eager to get over to your place. He always looks forward to spending time with you, even when it’s just him doing some studying at your desk while you take a nap.

You’ve been together for a couple months now - three next week, if he’s remembering correctly - and something about your presence just puts him at ease. He’s been so stressed about his upcoming Trig exam that he could barely sleep and now he’s relaxed enough he’s contemplating joining you in bed. He turns to check if you’re still asleep, registering a low humming noise coming from behind him, barely audible now that his music has stopped.

His eyes widen in shock, the knowledge that he should turn back around warring with the indomitable desire to keep watching you.

You’re cumming, he can tell by the arch of your back and the sharpness of your gasps. Your thighs clench together under the sheets as you hold the vibrator in place, extending your pleasure longer than he usually does.

He can feel his dick start to harden in his sweats, feels it twitch when your eyes blink open and lock with his, feels it get thicker when shyness clouds the heat in them. He knows you masturbate, knows you’re good at making yourself cum, but that’s different than him watching it happen, for both of you.

You’re probably feeling a bit embarrassed and exposed and Soonyoung almost feels bad for catching you, aware that if his headphones had died only a few minutes later, he might have had no clue what exactly you were doing right behind his back.

On his end, however, it feels like you’ve changed his life. He needs to see that again. And then make it happen himself, again and again and again. He’s never overstimulated you before but suddenly his mind is reeling with visions of you crying, begging, of you so fucked out you don’t have a single thought in your perfect, pretty head.

You’re still frozen, vibrator buzzing against your thigh, when he rasps, “Keep going.”

You don’t seem to comprehend what he says, rushing to explain that you didn’t want to bother him but you just couldn’t sleep and he looks so good in those sweatpants, and you thought you could just be quick and quiet and he’d never know.

You seem to think he’s upset or disgusted or something, but, truthfully, he’s never been more turned on in his life. So he repeats himself, “Keep going. Please.”

“But I already-,”

“I know.”

You blink at him and swallow, growing smaller before his very eyes, and he swivels fully around to face you, gently wrapping his fingers around your ankles to ground you. “Only if you want to, baby. You know you never have to do anything when you’re with me,” he assures you, his voice soft and sincere.

Sending him a wobbly smile, you start to shift your thighs apart before flicking the vibe back on and bringing it between your thighs. Your hips jump, your pussy still sensitive from earlier, and just the thought of what he’s about to watch you do has his dick throbbing. You don’t tease yourself as much as he teases you, keeping the pulsing vibrations concentrated on your clit and rolling your hips into the sensation. They shy away every so often, always accompanied by a gasp or little whimper, as if you want to cum again but you’re scared.

You’re already getting close, your breaths coming faster and your body starting to writhe under the sheets. He wishes he could see you, wishes he could taste and feel and touch, but he wants you to be comfortable more than he wants any of those things. Although, he’s pretty sure you are, given the fact that it’s almost like you’ve forgotten he’s there.

He’s proven wrong when your lashes flutter open and your free hand reaches out for his. “Can I borrow your fingers, Soonyoung?”

He scrambles off the chair to kneel by the bed, his eyes tracking the skin revealed as you kick away the blankets. There are moans echoing in his head and probably also coming out of his mouth, but he doesn’t care, can’t care about anything but how you look right now. Your panties bite into the flesh of your hips, soaked and almost translucent at the center, and when you push them aside to bare yourself to him, he’s grateful he's already on his knees.

He’s seen you before, of course he has, but there’s something different about this time. It’s how bashful but desperate you are, how boldly you asked for what you wanted even as you clung tight to your sheets and the last bit of your modesty. He forgot to give you his hand but that’s okay, you take it in your own and fold down his ring and pinky fingers yourself, glancing at him to get the okay before pulling his hand between your thighs.

He groans at the first touch, your cunt fever hot and your wetness coating his fingertips as they delve deeper. They sink inside you easily, instantly quirking to find your g-spot before spreading apart to get you ready for a third. You always want three, always like to feel full before he fills you with his cock, always like to squeeze your muscles down on them just to torture him, like you’re doing right now. He knows it’s on purpose because of the cute little smirk on your face but he can’t ever find it in himself to get upset with you. Whether you’re stealing his tiger plushies one by one or forgetting to put the cap back on his toothpaste, he never gets mad because everything you do is evidence that you’re here with him.

It’s still surreal sometimes that you’re his and he’s yours, that you let him see you and feel you and touch you, that you share yourself with him like this. It’s dizzying, but that might just be the pressure and heat of your pussy wrapped around his fingers.

Soonyoung can never tell.

(Not that he minds.)

Seventeen Masterlist

Main Masterlist

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starsandhughes · 11 months

Note

I beg you to write just a crumb about protective Quinn or Trevor

a month after your breakup with quinn, you decided it was time to stop moping around and put yourself back out there. you ended on good terms, you two just weren’t in the same place in life right now. it wasn’t bad, and you two still occasionally talked, but you were taking some time to adjust how to be friends again before hanging out again. you were stupid about putting yourself back out there, however, because you decided to go out alone.

“hey, gorgeous,” you heard a man say before you felt him slide his hand around your waist and plop himself in the chair next to you at the bar. “what are you doing here all by yourself?

he was clearly drunk, and his grip on you was tight. you were immediately put off and wanted him to leave.

“i’m actually waiting for someone,” you said.

“really? because i’ve seen you sitting here by yourself for twenty minutes. what do you say you ditch this guy you’re waiting for and come home with me? i promise i’ll be a lot more fun,” he said, scooting closer to you and gripped your thigh with his other hand.

“i’m good,” you said as you tried to pull yourself away.

“i don’t think so,” the man said darkly.

“then how about you order me another drink while i go to the bathroom?” you said shaking.

“and let you get away? no. i’ll come with you to the bathroom.”

you gulped and nodded your head. you could call someone in the bathroom. you could stay there until they came. his hand gripped your side as he walked you to the bathroom and practically threw you through the door.

you went into the last stall and took out your phone and dialed the number of the only person that would make you feel safe right now.

“hello?” quinn answered.

“qu- quinn?”

you heard quinn shuffle around, “what’s wrong? are you hurt?”

“i’m- i’m at a bar. by myself. a guy came up to me and started touching me and he walked me to the bathroom because he doesn’t trust me and wants to take me to his place and i think he’s going to-“ you choked up at the end and started to full on sob. “fuck, i’m so sorry!”

“no, hey, hey, hey, just breathe. are you at the normal bar?”

“yes,” you said shakily.

“stay in the bathroom. i’m five minutes out. i’ll be right there, okay? i’ll stay on the line,” quinn told you inna calming voice. you heard him grab his keys and the door slamming shut, “okay.”

quinn kept talking to you as he sped to the bar. you weren’t responding, just listening to his calming voice. you heard his car door slam shut as he told you that he was there.

“there’s a few guys near the bathroom, can you come out so i know which one he is and i can take you home?” quinn asked.

you came out as asked and were immediately grabbed by the man that chose you as his prey for the night.

“what took you so long?!” he asked through gritted teeth.

you didn’t even get a chance to come up with a stupid excuse before quinn’s fist connected with the man that had a hold on you. the guy was well over six foot and towered over quinn, but quinn was the athlete. he was a drunk.

the guy tried to fight back, but quinn quickly had a hold on him and took him to the ground. you ran over to him and wrapped your arms around his waist and began to sob again. his arms went around you, one on your back, the other cradling your head to his chest.

“it’s okay,” he cooed. “i got you.”

security came around as the guy was getting off the ground and tried to charge towards you and quinn, but the bouncers grabbed him first and dragged him out screaming out of the bar.

you finally pulled away from quinn and smoothed out your hair, “thank you. i’m sorry, quinn. i didn’t know who else to call and i-“

quinn cut you off by pulling you in for another hug. he kissed the top of your head, “don’t be sorry. i’m sorry this guy came after you and i am so glad that you called. it was a smart move to get him to take you to the bathroom. it was a smart move to call me. none of this is your fault, okay?”

you nodded against his chest, “okay.”

he hugged you even tighter and brought his hand back to your head, “fuck you scared me. i was so worried the entire drive here. if anything happened to you, i don’t know what i would do with myself. i could’ve lost you tonight! i-“

it was your turn to cut him off, but this time, you kissed him.

“i’m okay,” you whispered when you parted lips.

“i still love you,” quinn blurted out.

“i still love you, too,” you said.

“can i… take you back to my place? we can talk and try to figure us out.”

“i’d like that,” you smiled.

#quinn hughes #quinn hughes x reader #quinn hughes imagine #quinn hughes blurb #hockey blurb #hockey imagine #nhl imagine

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w1ldthoughts · 4 months

Text

An Ice Cream Cake?

A/n: Anon requested dad to be Justin!

Disclaimer: this is a work of FICTION, the characters are fictionalized versions of real life situations and real people. It’s all based on my imagination.

Masterlist

“Well, as much as it hurt me to do this…I got your cheeseburger and fries. And the pink lemonade you wanted.” He sighs, setting down the bag.

You wrap your arms around him as much as your new bump allows, having ‘popped’ a few weeks ago. Baby Herbert was definitely making their presence known and you both have been trying to get used to it. “Thank you for putting aside your disdain for In N’ Out for me. I know it must’ve been really hard.” You soothingly ran a hand along his back as he smiled at your joke.

“Only because I love our baby and that’s what the two of you were craving. Doesn’t mean I have to enjoy it.” You laugh as he shakes his head in disappointment.

The offseason has always been more special. You get to see Justin more and actually spend time together instead of seeing glimpses of him either on his way to the facility or on his way to the home office to watch film. But this offseason was even more special because it would be the last one before the two of you became parents. There was so much uncertainty though. What kind of mother were you going to be? The good cop or bad cop? What about your privacy? It was nice now because you were back in Oregon and no one bothered you here, but would that change when training camp rolled around in two months? And what if—

“Babe? Did you hear what I said?” Justin asks, pulling you out of your trance. You shook your head no and took a bite of your food, waiting for him to repeat himself. “Where’d you go just now? What are you thinking about?”

You offer him a fry that he happily accepts as he sits down next to you, placing a hand on your leg. “I’m thinking about how we’re going to be in charge of an entire human being for the rest of our lives. We’re gonna have to protect them and guide them through life and…potty train them. Justin, how are we supposed to teach a child to use the bathroom and—don’t laugh,” you tell him, even though you’re holding yours in. “How are you so calm about this?”

He takes ahold of one of your hands. “You know why I’m not worried? Because I know that you’re going to be an amazing mom. This baby and all future Herbabies are so unbelievably lucky to have you.”

You snort. “Did you really just say Herbabies?”

“Yeah, that was bad,” he sighs, “I knew it was terrible the second it came out of my mouth. But you get what I mean.” He shrugs nonchalantly, secretly proud of himself because he knows he just got you out of your head.

“I do,” you giggle, shaking your head at him. “Terrible dad joke aside, I needed that. I think the cake I picked up today just made it feel more real.”

Earlier in the day you’d picked up the little gender reveal cake for you and Justin to cut into. The idea of having an entire gathering with phones and a potential invasion of privacy did not sound like the best idea. So you and your husband decided to make it a moment just between the two of you.

Not to say you’d been thinking about it all day but…you’d been thinking about it all day.

Silence washed over you as you were about to get up to throw away your trash, but Justin stopped you and did it himself. You were starting to wonder if you’d ever lift a finger again.

Not that you were complaining.

He stood across from you at the kitchen counter, tapping his fingers on the marble. “Can we please cut this cake? The suspense is killing me.”

Rolling your eyes, you stood up to grab the cake out of the freezer, Justin’s eyes going wide.

“You bought an ice cream cake?” He sounded like a little kid, his smile reaching his ears with the dimple in all of its glory. You hoped your baby would have one too.

“It’s mint chocolate chip too.”

He lets out a deep breath and lets out a hum…looking right at the cake.

You clear your throat with a laugh, “should I give you two a minute?”

“No, we're good. Let’s do this.”

With his shaky hand enclasped in yours, you sliced into the cake together.

After you set down the knife Justin delicately tilts your chin up to pull you in for a kiss. His lips touch yours with so much love and tenderness that you almost feel weak in the knees. You return the gesture with as much intensity as you can muster up, all of the emotions wrapped up in this moment were hitting you both at once. The nerves you had earlier, to the joy that is now filling the entire room take your breath away and you pull back from the kiss, staring into his glossy eyes.

He wipes at his eyes with a wet laugh, still in disbelief—until he remembers the ice cream cake.

“We should probably have some of this before it completely melts. Do you and baby girl want a little slice or a big slice?”

“A little slice please.”

“One little slice, coming right up.”

He was going to be a girl dad and he couldn’t wait.

#Justin Herbert #justin herbert imagine #justin herbert x reader #justin herbert fanfic #justin herbert fluff

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kel-lance · 2 months

Text

Team Bonding: JJK students x reader x sukuna Part 1

- TW: Dead dove dont read (DDDR) Minors do not interact (MDNI): SA, Physical Assault, DubCon, NonCon, Mindbreak, Public Humiliation, Multiple manipulation, RWORD, PTSD, a lot more.

- Premise: Characters are (18+) (Reader is 21) Jujutsu College au where things are the same but they found yuuji/He ate the finger at 18/+ the start of college.

- Yuuji “came back” after two months of “being dead” and you’re in charge of the training for today for the kyoto sister event.

- Sukuna switches with yuuji in this and chaos ensues :/

Edit: I reread this a month later and guys oh my god. i wrote these time patches of time, right after hitting the rig, and then blacking out after a few paragraphs im sorry ill actually write this time.

You were coming back from a mission that took about 2 weeks due to traveling and tracking down a spirit as the higher ups were testing your Light Manipulation. You know it was hard for everyone the death of one of the freshmen, now you look after Nobara with Megumi.

You’re the only 3rd year and they all knew you loved your pride. Something about being the “oldest” (since the seniors are all granted weekly missions.), the authority that just made looking up at them, was just an excuse to point your nose up high, and only got depressed for a /day/ when you found out Kamo was 5 days older than you.

You’re like an older sister or mom to them, with a few exceptions. The days were leading up to the Kyoto sisterhood school match, while everyone was meeting up to train, Gojo introduces Yuuji back to everyone.

You’re all shocked to say the least. Gojo was acting normally the whole time, that bastard. “(Y/n)’s in charge of sparring today. I’ll come back later with Shoko in case Yuta’s too tired.” He teased at his baby cousin before he left. He was probably referencing to take it easy pn yuta, he probably beat his ass showing him a new technique.

You ignored him yet again and started to pair everyone up. “Nobara and Yuta, Panda and Maki, Toge and Megumi,” leaving you with Yuuji. “We’ll take it slow zombie.”

- Into the match you cursed, “Shit- he’s so durable.” But you loved that. You threw yourself back and used your fingers to catch and push yourself away from Yuuji’s next punch. “He’s a close range fighter, too.” You feel like you found your match in terms of adaptability.

You fix your stance, both legs balances one in front of the other, knees bend, your body lowers and fingers and knees bent, ready at any time to change from offense to defense. You find his eyes again and don’t dare break contact as he’s fast. Faster than you, a blink could be worse than a misstep.

This was new as you always held yourself back from seriously harming your classmates. That pride doesn’t come from nowhere. Your favorite sparring partner is Todo, because he can get close and handle/not hold back punches.

It felt like you were getting beaten with respect, not like what I want to do to my underclassmen. What good would they learn from losing a time from sitting in the infirmary so often? But this was different.

You felt like you were fighting Maki on drugs, or with cursed energy, and was face to face to Yuuji, as he pinned you down. He was almost like Todo, but you couldn’t read him since you just met.

“Where’s your pride now?” He had enough of your poking and prodding. No warm welcome, not even a nice reaction from his friends. But he knew it was serious to you, so out of respect, he’ll follow suite. He’ll show off what he learned in his training with Gojo.

“Shut up Cannibal Corpse.” You teased back, smashing your forehead into the T of his face, hoping he’d be able to take it.

He backs and stands up, hand covering his face. He stopped in a way to let you know he needed a second. Blood coming from his nose? Or his mouth?

“Oh shit, are you okay?” You stand up too, turning to yell for your medic. “Yuu-“ You’re thrown back by the scruff of your collar landing on your shoulder, butt and hands, scratching them.

“Woah, dude, look I’m sorry,” You huff, rubbing your scraped skin as you slowly stood again. “I thought you could handle it.” You tried to ease the tension, coming close to him to see if he was alright.

He doesn’t look at you, but you feel an energy forming around him. You didn’t know what this could be, his cursed energy? Why does it feel so suffocating?

“(Y/N)!” Megumi tries to get his shikigami to get you out of his proximity but they were slaughtered in a a blink of an eye.

“What the hell was going on, where is the enemy?” You quickly looked up and down, about to grab Yuuji and run.

But your face was cupped so hard your chin could’ve snapped. Pinkie was looking down at you with cold eyes. Why were you letting this happen? You were in charge, you’re the oldest. You don’t resist but give a look of what the fuck back to him.

“Sukuna! Let her Go!” Megumi screamed. The other students semi surrounding you both.

“She’s so fun, though.” Yuuji cocks a smile, your brain still trying to make sense of what’s happening and who was really in danger here. You glare harder at him, knowing if you struggled, he would like it, and that it was cause you more pain. You couldn’t freak them out anymore, you’ve gotta get this under control.

“Tell you what, since /I’m/ the oldest,” He gave your cheeks a squeeze. “I’ll take over this bonding sparring whatever ur stupid sensei said. Putting a woman in charge… ha! I’ll show you a type of bond you all can share.”

He tears off the front of your shirt, holding your body closer, but you still say nothing but feel hate for him. Trying to humiliate you in front of your classmates, like you’re not in your sports bra most of the time. It didn’t bother you that you were semi exposed, you knew you looked good, but what was the reason?

Everyone started to yell and tell him to stop, ignoring the embarrassing sight Sukuna tried to use. Of course they didn’t care about your body, they had to figure out a way to separate you both carefully. You turn to face your classmates.

“It’s okay guys, if he wanted me dead he would’ve killed me by now.” You shoot your eyes back and look glare into Sukuna’s eyes, not the same bright, round eyes you first saw before anything else. You look harder.

“Yuuji’s still in there somewhere.”

Sukuna laughs. “You guys misunderstand. I said I’m in charge,” His other arm that was holding your torso back starts to move down the curve of your body, stopping at your outer thigh and squeezing roughly. “Todays lesson is, endurance. This one here,” He holds you up by your neck, as you’re trying to use your upper body strength up get higher, to get some air but his wrists alone are strong enough for him to pick u up easily. “will stomach all I will give her.”

He brings you back down, coughing for air as licks a tear from your cheek. He reverts his eyes back to your helpless friends. “Your part now is to endure, all the way til the end, then my game can start.”

You honestly couldn’t care what he was talking about, you could take whatever ridiculous match he has set up but to involve your mates? it wasn’t a sense of pride anymore but of respect of your friends. You just met this prick, the only thing stopping you from beating his ass to hell is that you saw their reaction about his supposed death. You didn’t want to be the real reason this time, well could you?

If worse comes to worst, you should be fine. You could take a beating, you had no problem being fought by a special grade curses and even showing off before Gojo gets here. Once you get out of his grip you can get everyone to attack. You’re the only thing in the way though you wouldn’t mind being taken with him if it comes to it. how heroic would that date be.

“Interrupt at all, even think about it, and I will end them, you, then anyone else I can find after.” He says to no-one. The parasite everyone was so on edge about needed a moment to breathe?

He huffs for a second, you thought there was a light in his eyes as he tried to let you go. You soften your look when- “Ah ah ah.” Sukuna takes over again, pinning you back to him, his other hand clapping around your neck. “I said I’d end them, and then you all.” He repeats to Yuuji. “Just shut up, watch, and then I’ll go away. It’s so boring being cooped up in this brat all day.” In all this, Yuuji’s trying to fight back? He can see this? Was anyone going to tell you what the fuck was going on. “Id rather be in this one instead.”

You felt the energies around you shrink down, though, agitated. It seems they knew about what was happening to Yuuji and seeing them scared like this wasn’t really a good sign for you. They can get scared of course, but all of them? Together like this? This was not how you wanted to traumatize them, what would they learn other than powerlessness?

“Let go already, you’ll leave a mark on my neck.” You choked out.

“You don’t have the brains to worry about that after I’m done with you.”

You roll your eyes at him earning a slap. You fell the ground shake and your friends winced at the sound. “Fuck-“ You shot up from the ground holding your steering hot cheek, right before he kicks you back down, leaving you sprawled and confused at the assault.

You haven’t been hit like that in years. Tears weld up in your eyes and you choke on a memory that’s created this boastful monster.

Sukuna frowned, “I thought you were tougher than that. Maybe this won’t be as fun as I thought. I knew I should’ve started with the short girl over there.”

You spit at him. “Don’t touch her, I’ll fucking kill you.” You blink to clear your vision and suppress the overwhelming memory. You glare at him before finding Nobara’s eyes. If they were 2+ years younger than you, you’d joke that they’re just a kid, but Nobi, your new baby sister,Like hell you’d let anyone make her feel how you felt. She was tough like you, even tougher you thought, because of how different you were, but still ended up similar.

“Tell me have any of you tried her out yet?”

You could only look out to see your friends gritting their teeth and weapons. Panda speaks up, “She’s our best fighter.” Hoping to lead away from this devious situation. You’ve already fought them all, and won. Is kuna trying to piss you off more? You ignore his assaults, the unfamiliar hands now controlling you.

“That’s just perfect.” He pulls your hips to connect to his, and your heart stops. You can feel it.

You actually freeze this time. Is he actually going to do it? You’d rather be beaten half to death or even to death, but how hard he was behind you, it birthed a black hole in your stomach.

Your body goes limp, unconsciously submitting to him, your eyes fall, not being able to look at anyone else. Will he be quick, will they fight for me? Is this what he really wants? Or is this just the start?

He picks you up and drops you to your knees painfully, still holding onto your collar. “Don’t try to run unless u want all their heads stringed together.” He says to you.

Everyone else watches, clutching each other or their weapons tighter, trying to think of a way, when they can go in, or if they even see when Gojo was coming back .

Grabbing your chin and lifting it up, he looks down at you and smacks you again. Your ear is on fire. The strike of his finger felt like a whip onto the side of your face. He hits you again, then again, and again.

You huff, picking yourself up slowly each time. If you didn’t, he’d step on your fingers, almost trying to grind the bones inside.

Sukuna raises his hand as you stare down and with this one, he sends you to the feet of Toge, Yuta, and Panda.

They look down at you, mixed feelings of guilt, anger, sorrow,. You speak to them through swelling cheeks, “Don’t worry you guys, I’ll be even stronger after this. Get ready cause next tim-”

Sukuna comes by and grabs you by the hair, dragging you to back to your original spot, tears and blood now messing up your face.

“You look so stupid right now.” He sneers. “You should see yourself.” At this point you were exhausted from holding yourself back from beating the shit out of him.

“Everyone,” He raises his voice for an announcement. “take your phones out and take a picture from your favorite parts of the lesson, okay?”

He tilts your head towards his, takes out Yuuji’’s phone from his pocket and snaps a picture of you both. *click*

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peachesofteal · 7 months

Note

Hello peach hope you're doing well!!

I want to say that I love your writing, i grow too attached to it especially dead disco, you have no idea how it represents my deepest weaknesses and things in me that i never seen written in details that hit the right way, the way that darling is loved and wanted and even cherished by them yet she's so drown in her "what ifs" and worst case scenarios... i don't know if you do requests but my birthday is coming by, and well my birthday aren't the happiest days so every year i act like a workaholic in grieve, so i thought what of darling is like this and both her lovers notice how gloomy and on edge she gets when her birthday approach, how she may fake her birthday dates and never really talk about it when it's one week away...i think it'll hurt good, thanks again! 🩷🤎

⛈️

Hi love! Sorry this is a bit late, if your birthday has already passed, I hope it was okay for you. I usually feel like there’s a raincloud following me around on my own birthday, so I can relate to not enjoying it so much. I hope you like this! 🖤

18+ MDNI brief mention of spanking and praise kink, angst, comfort, emotional issues, Simon is in charge, darling is her own tag-warning / no au / dead disco canon - early relationship

It started with a lie.

A lie you had told months ago, on the patio, glass of wine in your hand. You had been enjoying the summer sun, curled up in your underwear on Johnny's lap, Simon's fingers working circles into the balls of your feet.

"My birthday just passed, actually." Johnny startled underneath you.

"What? How come ye never told us?"

"I don't know..." you swallowed, hard. "We had just started hanging out, I didn't want to make a big deal." The lie is incredible. So many half truths, twisted into something so false.

The reality was, your birthday wasn't for another few months. And you usually didn't make it a big deal, had stopped celebrating it years ago. Once everything started to feel hollow. Once you started to feel like maybe, your birthday really wasn't something to be happy about. Maybe, if you just pretended it didn't exist, it would sting less. Hurt less, when others did too.

"I wish we had known, darling." Simon interrupts your thoughts, and you shrug.

"Next year."

"Is everything alright?” Simon’s hand squeezes yours, drawing your attention from where you’re staring at a book, but not really reading. He can tell. He always can tell. “You’ve been quiet today.”

Your jaw tenses and relaxes with one breath. “Yeah, I’m just tired.” In reality, you were fine. Everything was fine. Johnny was in the kitchen, you were half sprawled across Simon with your paperback. You had a full belly and two doting, loving, warm partners, home, together, in the flat. What more could you want?

It’s hard to explain, the feeling of your impending birthday. The doom spiral that it begins in your heart, the sucker punch that it will deliver the morning of.

The guys don’t even know it’s your birthday, they think it’s not for however long ahead the made up date was.

You can’t decide if it’s worse, or better that you lied. Probably worse.

Will they remember? You never gave them a definite date. Will they push you on it?

You sneak a glance at Simon and realize he’s watching you, studying your micro expressions and picking them apart.

Definitely worse.

You feel awful when you think about how disappointed they’ll be if they find out, how Johnny’s face with twist with sadness, confusion.

You mentally cross your fingers, and hope it never comes up.

Your hopes are drastically dashed the next day, when you come home to a silent flat, Simon sitting at the kitchen table with his hands folded.

“Hi?”

“How was your day?” He asks and you shrug.

“Fine.” You peer into the fridge, feigning interest to avoid whatever the fuck is happening at the kitchen table right now. “Where’s Johnny?”

“Out.” Out?

“Out where?”

“On an errand. Come here.” It’s a command, something you recognize now, and your mind goes on red alert, chest rattling with a shaky breath.

Your feet deliver you to him on auto pilot.

“You got something delivered today.” There’s a shiny piece of postcard barely peeking out from his palms, glinting in the kitchen light. “It’s from your dentist.”

“Oh.” You laugh, nervously, scratching your neck because you don’t know what else to do with your hands.

“They wanted to wish you a happy birthday. Since it’s on the fifteenth.”

Fuck.

Your brain splits in two. One half of you wants to double down and assure him it must be a mistake. The other half wants to say you’re sorry, burst into tears and crawl into his lap.

“Darling?”

“Yeah… I uh… it’s uh.” He raises an eyebrow and you trail off, eyes finding the floor, hot shame crawling up your spine to your cheeks.

“Why did you lie?” You open your mouth to answer, but nothing comes out. No words, no lies, no rebuttals… just- a void. Nothing.

The walls feel like they’re ten feet closer to you, squeezing in on all sides, bearing down.

“Hey, hey.” His fingers wrap around your wrist, tugging you closer into his body while you suck in a hurried breath.

You can’t do this. You can’t tell him. You don’t want them to know.

“I can’t.” You whisper to your feet, and he strokes a thumb across your pulse point.

“You can’t?” He pushes, like you knew he would. It doesn’t take much for you to fold, and when he squeezes you wrist encouragingly, you break.

“I… don’t like my birthday. So, I lied. I said it was a while ago so you guys didn’t know.”

“Why do you not like it?” You shrug.

“I don’t know. It just always seems so, empty. It makes me sad. When you’re a kid, birthdays are special you know? And then as you get older they just get… worse. It’s supposed to be a day to celebrate but I only ever feel alone. I feel like, I don’t know. Like it’s just sad. And not special.” Your lower lip trembles, but you swallow down the lump in your throat, unable to let yourself fall apart, unable to fall beneath the weight. “I can’t explain it but there’s always a pit in my stomach, the morning of, and I can never shake it. It’s not like my previous relationships even really went out of their way to do something, so I… I don’t know.” You cut yourself off from your ramble by biting the inside of your cheek, trying to ward off a tidal wave of emotion.

“I see.” He pauses, and then wraps an arm around your waist, pulling you impossibly close. “And you were worried you’d feel the same, with us?” You shrug again. “Did you think we’d disappoint you?”

“No!” You blurt. “No, I just- I didn’t want the expectation. I didn’t want-“

“To be let down.” You shake your head with a denial, but Simon only nods, face grave and serious. “You always feel alone on your birthday. Why should it be any different now?”

“Because-“

“Because you don’t trust this yet.”

“That’s not true.”

“You trust us, darling. I know that. Johnny knows that. But trauma is muscle memory. It takes more than a few months with a new relationship to heal the build up of the pain and experiences you’ve been carrying.”

You can feel yourself twisting on the hook of his words. It’s so hard… to believe. To know. To trust but… this. Him and Johnny- you know it’s real. You’re terrified it’s real. It gives you the sweetest dreams and the scariest nightmares.

“I’m sorry I lied.”

“That’s alright, love. I’m not angry.” He watching you closely, cradling your jaw when your lip picks back up with it’s quivering. “But I think you need to feel better. I think you’ve been bottling this up for weeks now, haven’t you?” You suck in a deep breath, ragged and raw. You’re buzzing now, feeling too big for your skin, your clothes, your nerve endings rattling inside your body. “Should we sort it out?”

You nod.

“Words, darling.”

“Yes, Simon.”

When Johnny waltzes through the front door an hour later with a cake and a dozen balloons, he’s half curious, half elated to see you over Simon’s knee with your pants around your ankles, wide palm smoothing the raw skin of your ass as he hums sweetly to you.

“Shhh, good girl. I know, I know. It’s alright. You did so good for me.” Simon calls over your sniffling. “Johnny, c’mere. I think our girl is ready for her first gift.”

#peaches asks #dead disco #ghost x soap x reader #john mactavish #simon riley

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sixlane · 2 months

Text

Give it up

Jegulus microfic | 1.1k words | Mr & Mrs Smith au pt. 3 | pt. 1, pt. 2

“You fucked the whole thing up, James!” Regulus yells, angrily putting plates in the dishwasher.

“Love, they were five seconds from sticking that gun in your mouth and pulling the trigger. What would you have me do?”

These screaming matches aren’t out of the ordinary for them recently. They usually make a good team, but sometimes their methods of handling missions are a little too different. Regulus will say James doesn’t take enough risks, James will say Regulus is reckless with his life, they’ll fight but agree to leave it behind them by morning. James doesn’t want to leave it behind them anymore.

“Nothing! I had it under control!” Regulus is gesticulating dramatically, too lost in himself to bother controlling his arms.

“That did not look like having it under control. You were blindfolded and bound to a fucking chair!”

“I had them right where I wanted them. Stupid men will tell you all their secrets if they think you’re dead anyway.” Regulus turns the sink on its hottest level and begins furiously scrubbing at a pot from the stove.

“He wasn’t ever going to talk, Regulus, you have to realize that. He was just playing with his fucking food!”

James doesn’t think he’s ever been more angry. The mission had been going well. They were playing off each other perfectly, so in sync it was exhilarating, until Regulus went and got himself kidnapped, telling James “trust me” and “I can get more out of this guy just give me an hour.” It had only taken James 15 minutes to find his location and kill everyone who had even looked at Regulus wrong.

“Don’t fucking condescend me like that. I knew what I was doing. Why can’t you ever do as you’re fucking told?” Regulus drops the pot into the sink and turns around, staring at James with a wild look. God he’s beautiful when he’s angry.

“Because you’re not in charge! We’re supposed to be a team, Regulus. The mission was over, we got we needed and you still wanted to risk your life for more. There was no point!”

“It’s called being good at your job, James. Maybe you should try it sometime.”

James rolls his eyes. “Oh don’t give me that shit, you do remember I have more kills than you, right? Says it right there on the fridge.” James points to the alphabet magnets they stuck up there a few months ago. It’s a game they’ve been playing. Keeping track of who has more so at the end of each month the loser has to take the winner out on a date. Well, James has been calling them dates. Regulus prefers to call them “work dinners.”

“How could I forget? You’ve been rubbing it in for the last three months in a row you arrogant fucking asshole!”

“Aw love don’t get jealous. I’ll let you win next month if you want. Take you someplace real nice.” The sarcasm is heavy in James’ voice as he leans on the island with both hands. Regulus’ eyes briefly focus on his forearms before he turns back to the sink, taking his anger out on the pot again.

“You’re fucking impossible,” he says. “I’m done with this conversation.”

“No you’re not.” James says, coming around the island to stand next to Regulus. “No more ignoring this, Regulus, we have a problem, let's fix it like adults.”

Regulus drops the pot again and turns off the water, taking a deep breath. “Fine.”

James takes that as his cue to speak. “You hate not having control. You hate to admit you’re wrong and you hate when I have to save you.” He can see Regulus’ face getting hotter with each word.

“Okay, we’re doing this. How about you?” Regulus shoves a finger into James’ chest. “You can’t stand it when I’m right. You hate when I take risks and they pan out and you hate that the agency values me more because of it.”

James swats his hand away, starts closing in. “Fuck the angency, they don’t matter.”

“They do matter, James. They’re everything!” Regulus is yelling again.

“Not to me!”

“Then why are you even here?”

“For you!” Regulus stops, mouth hanging open. “If it weren’t for you I would’ve packed it up a long time ago, but you matter to me, Regulus. You matter to me more than the missions or the money. I am here for you!”

“James—”

“No, don't tell me this is strictly professional or that we’re just partners because it’s been more than that for a long time and you know it.”

“I—” He’s staring at James with giant gray eyes, mouth opening and closing around words that won’t come.

“Just have me, Regulus. I’m already yours, anyway.”

“You fucking asshole,” Regulus whispers around what could be a sob. James can’t tell because Regulus’ fingers are in his hair, pulling him down until their lips clash.

It’s chaste, but intense. Their mouths stay closed but they press into each other like there’s nowhere else they could possibly be.

After a minute, Regulus pulls back slightly, breathing in short bursts. He is crying, James realizes as he feels the wetness on his own face.

“Regulus,” James tries, bringing his hands to cradle the other man’s face.

“Shut up,” He returns, kissing James again, but with something new. Something hungry. He kisses James like a man starved and James doesn’t let a second of it go to waste.

He lifts Regulus off the ground and deposits him on the island, standing in between his legs and urging Regulus to wrap them around him. He slots his hands under Regulus’ shirt and traces his spine, like Regulus did to him all those months before.

Regulus gasps, needy as James moves down his neck, alternating between sharp teeth and soothing tongue. Savoring the places Regulus has kept hidden from him all this time.

Regulus detaches James briefly to take off his shirt, dropping it to the floor, before moving James’ head down to his chest, where James realizes for the first time that he has a small tattoo of a star on his left pectoral. He kisses it gently, then runs his tongue around a peaked nipple, earning a whine from Regulus, who has his bottom lip between his teeth as he watches intently, like he’ll forget if he doesn’t record every second.

James makes a mess of his chest, covering it in bruises and spit. When he’s happy with his work and Regulus is a wordless mess, he lifts him off the counter, opting to finish him off in the bedroom.

On soft sheets, Regulus lets James show him all the ways he matters. By the end of the night, James makes sure he believes in them.

#jegulus #jegulus microfic #regulus x james #james x regulus #james potter #regulus black #starchaser #sunseeker #marauders fanfic #marauders au #marauders #lane writes #microfic tag #mr & mrs smith au

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weirdthinkingdragon · 11 months

Text

A Permanent Cuddle Buddy

Yandere x touch starved chubby reader

prob rather self-indulgent but IDC

warnings: slight crying, some self deprecation, drugging, manipulation?, kidnapping

Something I’m thinking about is a cuddle buddy that’s rather rich from creating a company but still likes to keep it strongly on the downlow. No, he doesn’t have absurdly high prices for the service, they’re the exact same as any others. No, he doesn’t get stuck up with the poorer people. He knows what the empty loneliness is like. Sure, he could pay for the service, but that might be more open to giving away his status. Plus, he actually really likes the physical contact.

Off to you, someone who just gets by and has never been given next to any physical contact from non-family or a little contact with friends. Relationships and dating just never got anywhere so you just gave up and accepted you’ll probably just have the lonely life.

Your friends decided to “prank”? you by buying a cuddle buddy for you for a few hours.

Here he ends up at your place because your friends have a spare key you gave to one, and waited inside for him.

You arrive back to your home not much later after they’ve been informing him of what they’ve one.

He’ll admit it’s one of the weirder requests he’s gotten, but hey, it beats the last one where they wanted something that required a different service. And that was the one supposed to be later today so this would be his last for the day.

As soon as you get back to your home, your friends leave you with said stranger after informing they bought him for you.

It was extremely awkward at first, but he manages to get things rolling from doing this for months. At least, until touch was involved. You felt so disgusted in yourself compared to him.

“you... uh, you don’t have to do this, you know?”

Him hearing you say that makes him raise a brow in questioning. He doesn’t say anything though, giving you the ability to continue your reasoning.

You glare at your stomach. “I’m obviously not thin, so it’s probably really uncomfortable. And since I didn’t pay for it, you could just say we did and leave, or hang out or whatever you want.”

He’ll be honest, just looking at you is making it really hard not to just yank you down to lay on top of him. He wants so badly to deny everything you’re thinking vocally, but he knows that doesn’t always work right.

He stands up and extends a hand to you, who’s still sitting on the couch. “You’re saying as if you’re the only one with your type of body. Honestly, I prefer it. And I’m more than willing if you’re okay with giving the chance to try. But the bed is a better place for a first time.”

Your stomach tightens greatly with anticipation when grabbing his hand.

Upon entering your room, the nerves come back again. “So... how exactly should-”

“You can lay on my chest. Don’t worry about crushing me, you won’t. Again, you’re not the first with your body type.”

You still rathe cautiously do, until he yanks you down full force onto him. Just the mere full contact makes a few tears slip as you both get more situated.

fuck he loves how you feel and your smell. the deadly mix of both is more intoxicating than any other he’s had. He knows already that it’s going to have to become a normal thing. He can’t let this be a one time thing only, free of charge too.

And somehow he does manage to soothe you into the idea.

It becomes from a monthly to weekly, to almost daily. From either your house or going to his, it’s never long before you and him cuddle again.

You eventually decide to stop though because your friends are right. recently you spend more time cuddling with him that hanging out with them.

He nuzzles his face deeply into the side of your neck. You tried to tell him at his house. He asked you to at least have a goodbye meal with him to celebrate it going on for about a year already.

That leads to now, your body being drugged and barely responsive to moving while he sits behind you, caging you in on his bed.

“I don’t think so. You’re never leaving me now. I refuse to be without your touch ever again.

----------------------------------------------

maybe I’ll add or do more to the idea later. I really like the idea. A human cuddle buddy sounds so damn good too lol.

#yandere x you #yandere x chubby reader #yandere x reader #yandere ideas #yandere cuddle buddy #yandere cuddle buddy x reader #yandere x chubbyreader #yandere x chubby you #yandere oneshot

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v3nusxsky · 9 months

Note

OMG YES PLEASE! Beauty Bar chapter 2! 🥺❤️

Pretty please? I don’t want to make a specific request, bc I really wanna see what you planned for it!

Beautiful| nsfw

*Authors note~ a long awaited part two for Bar Beauty, I love this so much and I hope you guys love it just as much as I do*

Triggers warnings~ KNIFE KINK (don't read If it isn't your thing) mistress kink, dom Leo sub r sex slave? R is a stripper sorry not sorry Humiliation degrading praise strap on, oral, sex toys, semi public sex blindfold kink biting kink? Breeding kink safe words

Prompt~ see ask^^^^

✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~previously~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You were left to rock slightly until you naturally stopped. Then she lowered you to the sofa before scooping up your body and taking you into a private room. There she cleaned you up and got you food and water before sitting down to give you whatever physical attention you needed. The start of a beautiful relationship, bloomed from that one night at Happy Hours.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From that night on, you became her submissive. She explained how she wasn't truly looking for anything but a way to blow off steam and that was fine for you. A recent rough break up meant you weren't ready to give your heart to another when you were still trying to undo what hurt you. With Leonora being in charge of one of the houses at her boarding school, she had long work hours, which is mainly where she'd call you too. The staff in charge of the houses had their own apartment next to the school but far enough away to provide them with privacy. They were staff not slaves. The contact she had you sign meant you'd be at her beck and call no matter what you were doing. Even your job would be put on hold if she desired you to. In fact your job was something Leo wasn't truly thrilled about but you had every right to strip as you weren't taken. You weren't hers.

At first she was content like that, simple encounters in her apartment and into her office, where you'd be knelt under her desk eating all her stress away or perhaps she would have you spread on her desk as she absolutely ruined your cunt with her cum filled strap on. Taunting you about how vocal you are, "god your such a whore, bet you want everyone out their to hear how good your mistress fucks you huh? I know you do. Nothing more than my little slutty slave." Truly, you look so innocent until she gets you in her office and your nothing more than a desperate whore. It's one of the many things she loves, no she likes, about you.

She let this whole song and dance go on for months, you'd be called to see her excited but anxious for what lay in store, and you'd leave covered in marks and bruises by her. She reminded you often, she did it to mark what was hers. You are hers even if you don't know it yet. Marking you before you would head to the club and strip for money. Again only adding to her point, you like to whore yourself out so you would need constant reminders of who you belong to. Little did she know, you would hide a few with makeup to appease your boss. And the ones that could be hidden by the little clothing that you wore was for your eyes and hers only.

The night it happened you were truly were having an awful night, your last client had gotten pretty handsy. Immediately making you uncomfortable resulting in him being thrown out spewing hateful words. It wasn't hidden that you were a lesbian who didn't mind stripping for males to look but touching was a no go. Practically a tease, apart from the women you'd allow back for a private session which would end up leaving you rather satisfied. Well before you met Leonora at happy hours. In fact you hadn't heard from your domains in a few days and you desperately wanted to get the fell of his hands off you. You had one last set to do before you could leave for the night, which meant you could find the best way to get rid of the feeling. Perhaps she'd call you tonight.

Half way through your set you noticed the fiery curls. The beat dropped allowing you to lean forward exposing more of your cleavage to the prying eyes, when you saw her piercing stormy eyes and you knew, that was how you'd be getting out of her safely. Shooting her a wink you continued and collect your tips before sauntering off the stage where she was waiting to drag you with her. Which she did and you truly had no complaints about it.

It's all hazy how she took you to one of the private back rooms, but you do remember the feeling of her slamming your back to the wall roughly as her lips made their home on your slender neck. A kind of animalistic growl sounded against your neck when she realised you'd covered her big purple mark that resided over your pulse point. Her pearly white teeth nipped at the sensitive skin just enough to give the pleasure mixed with pain that she knew you craved so much. "What a fucking whore, covering mistresses mark on you so those men out there think your a free agent" she growled, "you aren't. You're my slave, my fuck toy, my whore to use and abuse. And you'll remember that by the time I'm done with you."

"I'm sorry mistress, I'm yours please, whatever you need" you whimpered causing the red head to lash out and grab a fistful of your hair and drag you to the sofa in the room before she took her tie and wrapped it round your head to cover your eyes. "Oh I will, and you'll take everything I give you, no complaints. All I wanna hear is those slutty moans you do as I ruin you again and again" she murmured into your ear before nipping the lobe and shoving you away from her body so you lay flat on your back now.

You could hear every article of clothing she took off, drop to the floor with a thud. An innate whine left your being as you realised she'd be on full display now, however all it got you was a smack t the face, "quit your whining you little bitch, that's all you are is a dumb bitch in head that Mistress can use" tears pricked lay your covered eyes at her words, but the waterfall between your legs showed a different story. "Dirty girl, enjoying when I put you down, practically leaking out of that pathetic hole." She whispered before lightly tapping your clit just enough to drive you insane and clambered onto your face.

There is no better smell than her. Instantly you began to eat her out in the way she loves, not too soft but not too rough either. You made sure to give attention to her clit and when she was ready you plunged your tongue into her cunt to scoop out all the juices she made for you only. "God yes! Right there slut! Yes yes yes, don't stop! Don't fucking stop. I don't care if you can't breathe make me cum now!" Her demands faltering slightly due to her hips bucking at just the right angle to cause your nose to bump her clit. Her legs quivered with how hard she came all over your face, yet you still greedily drank everything she offered you and cleaned her up as good as you could possibly do. Only then when she was sure her legs wouldn't give out did she reach into her pocket.

"What the fuck?" You yelped out in surprise and fear of the unknown, all you knew was the sensation of cold metal pressed against your bare thigh. A quick slap to your thigh with the knife had you gasping in shock once more. "Shut up slut, you want to hide my bruises, even when they look so pretty on your skin, then I'll give you something you can't hide." You knew by her tone she wasn't joking but you also knew you could safe word out of this. It was something you wanted to try yes, but never did you think she would do this to you now and here. She teasingly trailed the point of the knife along your skin for a little while, loving the little gasps you were so poorly trying to hide from her now.

Only when your tears were flowing nicely, did she throw the knife away, "oh don't cry doll, you look so beautiful all smeared im crimson and crying for me love." Light overwhelmed you for a second as she ripped the tie from your head, rapidly blinking you could see your own blood smeared over your thighs causing you to drop your head back a little dizzily. "Now you fucking stay there or else I will not be responsible for what happens to this slutty body of mine."

A simple nod of understanding had your thong being torn from your absolutely soaked cunt and stuffed into your mouth. "Non verbal cue whore" was all she offered before reaching into her pocket to pull a litre vibrating toy out to attach it to your poor clit. Despite everything you had some fight still left in you, causing you to spit the thong out and bite back, "is that how you give detentions Leonora?" You knew it was risky but you didn't know just how badly

That one comment would affect the red headed woman.

Calmly she picked up the discarded underwear and shoved it back into your mouth, adding more pressure than before causing you to gag around them. "Don't you ever fucking try that stunt again, dumb girl, now I'm gonna have to fuck you with that little friend over there" she nodded to her discarded knife causing your eyes to go wide in fear. That was gonna hurt you. It was an empty threat, you knew that. Yet it was still effective and you immediately stilled your body as you tried to remind yourself of your position, gagging prettily round the make shift gag, "I'll be good! I'm msorry please" over and over until she took pitty on you inserting two of her slender fingers into your eager cunt.

From there she brought you over the edge time and time again until suddenly it was all too much causing you to make a fist and shove it in her line of sight. The older woman recognising it instantly and immediately stopping what she was doing and gently removing her fingers from you and your gag. There you lay on the sofa, eyes rolled back your head and blood poured from some gashed Leonora didn't even remember making. Water poured over her inferno of jealousy allowed her to see the marks from her but also the man earlier in the evening. "Oh I'm sorry y/n, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to go to far. Wake up my darling, wake up" she pleaded with your unconscious body. Guilt now eating her up as she instantly looked around the room for items to tend to your wounds. Thankfully there was just that, and she patched you up murmuring words of praise and reassurance.

When you groggily came back around from the blackness you immediately called out for the red head. "Shh I'm here sweetheart, I've got you. I'm sorry my darling." Her gaze once again finding the new marks that aren't hers, "who did that?" You explained how it wasn't your fault, you didn't want him touching you and that you got him thrown out, but still Leo's heart clenched. "Quit" was all she offered you, "but I- I can't just quit I have bills to play and-" she shook her head taking her hands in yours, "quit y/n and come be with me?" A silence fell over you both before you said no, "not as a sex slave y/n as my partner" she clarified for you. "Like together? A relationship?"

"Yes, with me, I don't want to share you, I don't want you being hurt, when I saw you in Happy Hours I knew I wanted you to be mine. I just wasn't ready to admit it until now, I do really love you darling, and you're all I want." She allowed you moments to collect your thoughts. "A date first?, if all goes well I quit and we give it a go" you concluded causing the redhead to nod and shuffle to cuddle behind you. "Rest here, when your ready I'll drop you home, be ready 7 pm tomorrow for our date my dove." Happy Hours really was the start of something beautiful here, even if it took her too long to realise it.

Word count~ 2186

#anon answered #v3nusxsky answers #fanfic #anon requested #lady lesso #sfgae #leonora lesso #lady lesso x reader #lesso x reader #lady leonora lesso #leonora lesso x reader #lady leonora lesso x reader #lesso x reader smut #lady lesso x you #lesso smutt #dean of evil smut #dean of evil x reader #Tsfgae au #bar beauty part 2

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vodika-vibes · 7 months

Text

The ARC and the Monster

Summary: Three months after the events that left him with prosthetic legs and a prosthetic arm, ARC Knight Echo is on a journey to relearn himself. And while on this journey, he discovers a village that doesn't exist.

Pairing: ARC Knight Echo x Reader

Word Count: 5810

Warnings: Mentions of death

Mando'a Used: sen'ika - little bird (according to the website I saw, lol)

A/N: I am very bad at writing fight scenes, I should work on that, lol. This is a twist on Beauty and the Beast, and I'm actually happy with it, which is surprising.

Divider by saradika

“Morning again, darlin’,” You smile tiredly at the merchant, “Bacon and a fresh loaf of bread?”

“I don’t suppose you have anything new?” You ask as you lean against the counter.

The Merchant laughed, “You know I don’t, darlin’. One loaf of bread, and one rack of bacon. As normal.”

You sigh and rest your head on your palm, “I am so tired of bacon.” You say with a sigh.

“Ah, I know darlin’.” He reaches out and lightly pats your hand, “How are things at the palace?”

“Same as ever. As per normal.” You smile at him as you take the bag of food, “How’s the wife?”

“Exhausted. We both are. We never expected our son to be an infant for almost 30 years.” He sighs, he accepts the credits and you wave as you head towards the door.

“Maybe someday the curse will be broken,” You call from the door.

“You won’t find many people who still have hope, darlin’. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

You wave and step out of the shop, allowing the door to swing shut behind you. You neatly side-step several other people, and start walking the meandering path headed back towards the manor.

At this point, you can walk the path while wearing a blind-fold, you’re so familiar with the path between the village and the old mansion you call home.

You are, or were, the head chef for the Duke of these lands. In charge of all of the cooking and all of the food shopping. At the time it was a good job, high paying with incredible job security, and a chance to move up in the world.

Of course…that’s not what actually happened.

Thirty years ago a stranger appeared at the palace doors on the night of the young Baron’s 15th birthday. The Baron himself answered the door, though it wasn’t his duty, and he sent the guest away with a harsh word and a violent hand.

The Stranger was a Sorceress, and she was so put out by the Baron’s actions that she cursed the entire land. The Duke and Duchess vanished, trapped in a painting to your best guess, the young Baron twisted and changed, until his looks matched his personality…and everyone unfortunate enough to live in this Duchy ended up trapped in a time loop.

This day, the day of the Baron’s 15th birthday, repeats over and over and over again. And the only way for the Curse to break is if the Baron show’s any true remorse.

But…

Well…

He doesn’t.

You stop in front of the manor, and then turn to walk around the building to enter through the rear. No need to draw attention to yourself, if at all possible.

There are some good sides to being trapped in a time loop, you suppose as you push the door open. For example, anything that happens today will be reset when the clock strikes midnight. Any dishes that get broken will be repaired, any injuries will be healed, and any money spent will end up right back in your account.

Also, no one can die.

But no one can be born either.

You kind of feel bad for one of the Housekeepers, she was 7 months pregnant when this whole fiasco began, and now, thirty years later, she’s still 7 months pregnant.

But that not dying has been a boon. Especially those first few years when the Baron was so angry at everything that he lashed out at everyone.

It was incredibly…strange. Getting ripped to shreds and then waking up in bed the next morning like nothing happened.

Luckily, the Baron has since learned that his temper tantrums have no lasting effect, and has since locked himself away. You don’t know what he eats…and to be honest, you don’t care. You have more important things to do than deal with a self important brat.

You step around one of the butlers, who is dutifully dusting a vase, “Good morning, Chaz,” You greet.

“Good morning, Miss.” He replies, “Did you have a nice walk?”

Your smile is wry, “Well, it’s warm and sunny, right now, and not a cloud in the sky. So, I was miserable.”

He chuckles, “I sent the young ones to the kitchen for a baking lesson, they seemed thrilled.”

“Well, if I had the choice between cookies and math, I would choose cookies too, Chaz.” You joke as you lightly pat him on the shoulder, and then step around him.

“Quite right, Miss.” He says with a laugh, “Also, the Young Master is in a foul mood today, I would avoid the southern gardens.”

“When isn’t the Young Master in a foul mood.” You reply, “But I’ll tell people to stay clear.” You toss him one last smile, and walk the short distance from the side entrance to the kitchen, and you set your bag on the counter, “I have bread…and bacon.” you call out to your staff.

The room erupts into groans of dismay. “If I have to have bacon one more time,” One of the maids says dramatically as she drapes herself across the prep table, “I’m going to throw myself off a bridge.”

“That would be impressive since there are no bridges in the Loop.” You counter dryly, “Also. I’m making soup with bacon and chicken.” The moaning slows to a stop, “Great. Also, Chaz says stay out of the Southern Garden. Also, who’s doing baking lessons?”

“Granny’s got the kids,” One of the other maids calls from near the window, “And I saw the young Baron head into the Garden, he looked mad enough to spit fire.”

“Alright everyone, let’s get to work. We have a manor to feed.” You call, and the room devolves into organized chaos, and you smile. Running a kitchen is a dance, and it’s a dance you’ve performed over ten thousand times. Everyone is in their positions, and though the room looks chaotic…well, they’re performing a masterpiece.

You smile and slide yourself into your position, and begin your part of the dance.

***************

It has been three months since the events that saw ARC Knight Echo losing his arm, and both of his legs in a magical explosion. And while he has prosthetics, and they work well, and he’s comfortable with them, he’s still not comfortable with his new body.

It’s why he went to Rex and asked for time. Time to heal on his own, without people hovering around him. Time to get used to the prosthetics and the way that his body moves now.

And after two weeks of camping, he’s starting to feel more like himself. Still, he’s not quite ready to return home just yet. For all that he claims that he hates camping…he’s actually enjoying himself. Enjoying the hunting and the fishing, and navigating the land with nothing more than a map and a compass.

Still, Echo is beginning to think it’s time to return home. There’s only so much time he can spend on his own before he starts missing his brothers, and starts talking to the trees around him.

He glances at his map, and then at the bridge several feet away, “Well…I’ll get to the top of the hill, and then I’ll turn around and head home.” He says to himself. He looks over the map one more time, and then folds it and slides it into his jacket pocket. He then hefts his bag over his shoulder, and he crosses the bridge.

He walks up the shallow hill, crests the top, and then he stops. Slowly, without moving his eyes, he pulls the map out of his jacket and he looks down at it, and then back in front of him.

There is not supposed to be a village here. And yet there is.

A well settled village, at that. The houses look old, like they’ve been there for a while, and the road is cobbled, rather than dirt. Echo pockets his map, and carefully adjusts his jacket so he’s able to rest his hand on the pommel of his blade.

And then he starts walking down the cobbled road.

This is strange, and he loves solving strange.

******************

Once more, you walk the distance between the manor and the village. You go to the grocers, you buy bacon and bread while making jokes about having literally anything else, and you leave the shop.

Normally you don’t pay any attention to your surroundings, you’ve done this thousands of times now, but for some reason, today you do. Maybe you’re just feeling wistful, remembering the days when you could crest the hill and cross the bridge and head into the forest.

You flicker your gaze towards the village exit, and your breath catches in your throat.

There, standing next to the welcome sign, is a man. A strange man.

And, after thirty years, there are no strange men in this village.

You turn and walk towards him. He’s tall, though not the tallest man you’ve met, with dark skin and dark hair. As you get closer, you notice that his hair is curly, and that he’s got a prosthetic arm.

By the time you’re close enough to talk to him, you’re sure. “You’re from outside,” You breathe out.

He pins you in place with a curious stare, “If you mean that I’m not from this village, then yes, you’re right.” He looks away from you, his dark eyes scanning the village properly, “This village isn’t on any map.”

A pained look crosses your face, “We used to be,” You say quietly, “But…not anymore, I suppose.”

He glances at you, and then at some of the other people in the village, some have stopped what they’re doing to stare at him, while others blatantly ignore him, “Why are they looking at me like that?”

“People don’t come here,” You explain, “I…I’m sorry, what’s your name?”

“I’m Echo. Echo Fett. I’m an ARC Knight of Mandalore.”

You introduce yourself with a smile, “I work at the manor, as the head chef.” You explain as you motion, vaguely, to the manor, “Um, so you asked what people are looking at you-”

“Yeah. They’re staring at me. I know prosthetics aren’t normal-”

“What? No! That doesn’t have anything to do with it.” You hasten to say, as you reach out and touch his arm lightly, “Just…please, will you listen to our story?”

He turns his attention back on you, “Yeah, alright.”

You tug him off the main road, and to a small park. Families used to picnic there, but not anymore.

You sit on one of the benches, and wait until he’s sitting next to you. “So…what’s the story with this place?” Echo asks.

“Um…okay. So this story begins thirty years ago, on the night of the Baron’s 15th birthday.” You explain, your voice quiet, “You have to understand, the Baron was never a good child. He was always harsh, always cold, always mean…no one ever had anything good to say about him. I can’t even describe just how awful of a boy the Baron is.”

“Okay. So he’s a brat, the son of a Duke?”

“That’s right,” You nod, “Well, there was a surprise visitor. And for some reason the Baron answered the door himself. He turned the stranger away with violence…and it turned out that the stranger was actually a sorceress.”

“Oh no.”

“The entire Duchy was cursed as well.” You say quietly, “The Duke and Duchess were trapped in paintings. The Baron has become a monster. And the rest of us…well, we’re trapped.”

“In what way?” Echo asks.

“We have to live the same day, over and over and over again. We can do different things, within reason, but time never moves on for us.” Your voice is soft, “You’re the first new person we’ve met in years.”

He leans back against the bench, and he doesn’t say anything for a really long time, “So…what happens when time resets with me still here?”

You bite your lower lip, “I don’t know.” You hesitate, “I would suggest staying away from the manor, though. Until we know if the loop affects you…you need to stay away from the baron.”

“Why?” Echo asks.

“Because he’ll kill you.”

Echo stills, and something flinty enters his eyes, “Does he kill people often?”

“Oh, he hasn’t killed any of his employees in five years now.” You try to soothe, “And, well, it resets at midnight anyway, so…”

“Does that make it better?” Echo asks, his voice very gentle.

Your hands shake slightly as you remember razor sharp claws and teeth dripping with saliva, “...no.” You admit. You clench your hands tightly in your lap, to try and stop the trembling.

Echo glances at your hands, and reaches to place one of his hands over yours, “It’s okay. You’re safe here.”

“For now.” You answer softly, your hands moving slightly to lightly grip his hand, the metal is cool under your hands, but is also soothing somehow, “It’s why you need to leave.” You say as you look from his hand to his face, “If you stay here-”

“No.” He interrupts, he smiles at you to soften the harshness of his word, “Look, you said that the curse is based around the Baron, right?”

“Yeah. He changed, and then his parents were trapped in the painting, and then the duchy was trapped in the loop. In that order.” You reply.

“Okay, so with the curse centered on the Baron, then to kill the curse we need to kill the Baron,”

You’re already shaking your head, “He’s too violent. If we get too close to him he’ll kill us.”

Echo frowns thoughtfully, “Then I’ll do it.”

You start and stare at him with wide eyes.

“I’m an ARC Knight, this is what we do.” Echo explains, his voice very kind.

“Free people from decade long curses?” You ask doubtfully.

He laughs softly, “Fight things that other people can’t.” He squeezes your hand, very gently, “Trust me.”

You hesitate for a long moment, and then you slowly nod. “Okay Echo.”

He smiles at you and gently releases your hands, “I’m going to need your help. Can you get me into the manor?”

Your gaze lingers on his clothing for a moment, and anxiety twists your stomach, “What if he claws you?” You ask, “His claws are…they ripped through me in one…”

Echo reaches into his backpack and pulls out a small metal orb, it’s glowing faintly, “This is an armor sphere. This is where I store my ARC armor when I’m not actively using it. Don’t worry, sen’ika, I’ll be wearing armor when I fight the Baron.”

“...okay.” You stand and gather your shopping bag in your arms, “Then you should probably follow me.”

“Yes ma’am,”

Echo follows you through the streets, and down the path that leads to the manor, and he follows you around the building to the side entrance. You hold the door to the manor open for him, and he steps into the worn down hallway that leads to the servants quarters.

Chaz is waiting for you. His severe gaze looks from Echo, to you, and then back to Echo. “The Young Master is in the library,” He says in a clipped tone, “I have instructed everyone to remain in their rooms for the time being.” He exhales slowly, and then lightly touches Echo on the shoulder, “Good luck, young man.”

“Thank you,” Echo replies, growing slightly startled when Chaz bows deeply, and then turns and vanishes into a side room. “Sen’ika, I need someplace to put my armor on.” He says to you.

“We can use the kitchen, it’s the one place in the manor the Baron never comes to.” You say, “Plus it’ll be empty right now.”

“Great, lead the way.” He follows you down a side hallway and into the kitchen, where you help him clear one of the prep tables, and he activates the little sphere, and lays all of his armor out on the table, and he quickly starts strapping the pieces to his body, “Where’s the library?” He asks.

“It’s part of the main building, on the third floor.” You explain, “You’ll never find it unless I show you…it’s not like there are any maps of the manor.”

He cuts his gaze towards you, “I don’t want you anywhere near the fighting.”

“I’ll be careful,” You reply, “But you’ll never find it without me.”

He sighs quietly, “Fine, but you will listen when I tell you to do something.”

“Yes sir,”

He finishes pulling his armor on, and he hooks his blade to his hip and then grabs his helmet, “Alright. How big is the library?”

“Massive. The Duchess was all for education.” You answer as you head out of the kitchen and into the hall, “She purchased several copies of every book ever printed and all of them are kept in the library.”

“So it’s cramped?”

“Less so than you might assume…it’s just very big.” You guide him through the twisting halls, until you reach the main living quarters. Unlike the servants quarters, which are clean and well maintained, the main house is dimly lit.

The wallpaper is ripped and torn, and there are some places where the wooden floorboards have been ripped up and flung into the wall. Pictures have been torn to shreds, and none of the furniture is usable. “The Baron did all of this?”

You nod, “He destroys the house every morning…at this point it doesn’t even take him an hour to destroy the house.” You carefully step around one of the floorboards, “Follow me, we need to go upstairs.”

You move silently through the house, and Echo is just as quiet, in spite of the armor he’s wearing. Finally you stop in front of an ornate door, “Is this the library?” Echo asks, his voice hushed.

“It is,” You hesitate, “You can still leave, Echo.”

“I’m not doing that.” Echo replies.

You sigh softly, and then you push the door open just enough that the pair of you can enter. Just like every other room in the main house, the library is destroyed, but you lightly touch Echo’s arm and you point at the ceiling, “There.”

Echo’s gaze follows your finger and he inhales sharply, “That used to be a man?” He asks.

The creature is shrouded in shadow, with claws long enough to rip a man to shreds without trying, and teeth that barely remain in his jaw. He clings to the ceiling, as though gravity has no effect on him.

“Yes,” You whisper, “That used to be the Baron.”

Echo motions for you to get back, and draws his blade, “How do I get him down?” He hisses.

You glance at him nervously, and then you lift your fingers to your mouth, and you release a loud whistle that echoes through the chamber. And then you immediately duck under a fallen bookcase.

The Baron’s eyes snap open, revealing blood red eyes, and he releases a noise that sounds like a million angry snakes hissing at the same time. And you watch as the Baron moves, lunging at Echo with his terrifying speed.

But Echo is just as fast, and his blade is just as sharp as the Baron’s claws.

You watch, terrified, as Echo proves just how good the average ARC Knight is, and you gasp when, in a smooth motion, Echo severs the Baron’s head from his body.

You slide out from your hiding space, and take several steps towards Echo, when the pressure in the room changes suddenly. You clamp your hands over your ears as the pressure increases and becomes painful.

You feel Echo’s hand lightly against your shoulder, and just barely hear him calling your name. And then there’s the sensation of a baseball bat slamming against your chest and the world goes dark.

**********

You wake with a painful groan. Your entire body hurts, and your head is throbbing. You let out a noise of discontent as your bedroom door bursts open and Chaz hurries in, “Good you’re awake. Get up, get dressed.”

You groan and roll out of bed, landing on the floor with a painful thump, “Why does everything hurt?” You rasp out.

“You were standing right there when the curse reset,” Chaz replies as he pulls you to your feet, “You took the brunt of the reset.” He explains.

“Oh…it sucks.”

“It does.” He agrees as he shoves an outfit into your hands, “Get dressed, you need to get out of the manor.”

You clumsily take the clothes and start peeling off your sleepwear, replacing them with the loose tunic Chaz gave you, “Why?”

“Echo killed the Baron yesterday, didn’t he?” Chaz asks in return.

“Yeah. He did. But if the world reset-”

“I broke a plate yesterday, it’s still broken.”

Your fingers pause on the ties of your shirt, “That’s impossible.”

“It’s improbable, but killing the Baron caused a change. You need to go back to the village and see if you can find Echo. He’s not in the manor.” Chaz pauses and leans in, “I think he was flung outside of the loop, since he’s not a part of it.” He motions to the blue and black backpack sitting in the corner of your room.

You pull your trousers on, and then pull on your boots, “That makes sense,” you say quietly, “What if he doesn’t come back?”

“He’ll come back. I have a good feeling.” Chaz replies, and then he grips your shoulders tightly, “Listen. I’ve been thinking about it for a while, but I think if we kill the Baron once for every year that we’ve been cursed, the curse will break.”

“30 deaths? There’s no way. We already know that the Baron remembers things that happen in previous resets.” You remind him, “There’s only so many times that Echo will be able to kill him with a sword.”

“Agreed. Don’t worry, we’ll handle it.” Chaz pushes you out the door, “Now go!”

“I’m going, I’m going.” You allow him to propel you out of your room, and down the hall, and then out the side door, and he slams the door behind you.

You huff out a heavy breath, and groan as pain shoots through you. You slowly walk the familiar path to the village, where you’re greeted by enthusiastic shouts. The grocer is missing a loaf of bread he sold the day before. The baker’s flour level is down just a little bit.

There’s change for the first time in years.

You walk to the Village sign, and lean heavily against it, your arm folded protectively against your ribs. You had forgotten how pain lingered. You don’t like it.

Your head snaps up when you see movement from in front of you, and a relieved smile crosses your face when Echo, still clad in armor, walks over to you. “Are you okay?” You ask.

He pulls his helmet off, “Are you? I found myself on the other side of the bridge when I woke up. Why are you holding your ribs?”

“They’re bruised, I think.” You reply, “I woke up in bed because of the reset.”

“So it didn’t work.” Echo says with a frown.

“Well, it is. But the curse is just…cracked. At least, that’s what we think.” You step closer to him, “Chaz broke a plate yesterday, and it’s still broken.”

Echo frowns, “You have a theory?”

“We think that if the Baron dies once for every year that we’ve been trapped here, the curse will break.”

“Thirty deaths?”

“Yeah. Sorry.”

Echo exhales sharply, “How many more times can I use my sword before he learns how to avoid it?”

“Better to not risk trying it again,” You reply as you reach out and take Echo’s hand, “But, we have lots of weapons…assuming you know how to use them.”

“I haven’t encountered a weapon I can’t use,” Echo replies dryly, “Come on, back to the manor.”

“Yeah.” This time Echo guides you to the manor, and through the side door.

Chaz is sitting in the kitchen with one of every weapon from the armory, “He’s in the west garden today,” He says as soon as he sees Echo, “Which one of these do you want?”

Echo presses his blade into your hands, “Keep this safe for me,” He says, and you nod, curling your arms around it, while he picks through the weapons, eventually grabbing a pair of axes which he spins expertly, “How do I get to the west garden?”

“I’ll show you,” You say.

“You’re already hurt,” Chaz says, “I’ll show you,” He says to Echo.

“But-”

Echo smiles at you as he pulls his helmet on, “Don’t worry, sen’ika. I’ll be fine.”

You watch him walk out the room, led by Chaz, and you tighten your grip around Echo’s blade.

***********

You wake up in your bed, dressed in the tunic and pants from the day before, with your arms wrapped securely around Echo’s blade.

You lay in bed for ten minutes. Whatever Echo did to the Baron clearly worked, since the day reset less than three hours after it began.

You roll out of your bed, and hurry out of the manor. And by the time you reach the village sign, Echo is waiting for you, his arms folded. “You’re okay?” You ask as soon as you’re close enough.

“A few bruises,” Echo replies as he takes his blade back, “I don’t want to get close to him again, I don’t think.”

“We’ll figure something out.” You say as you hug him quickly.

“I’m sure we will.”

The third death involves a massive amount of crossbows, which pin the Baron to the wall of the ballroom.

The eighth death involves a truly terrifying amount of fire.

The fifteenth death involves an explosive made from flour and gunpowder.

“Halfway there,” Echo says as he leans back on the bench in the garden, “Only fifteen more deaths.”

“Are you okay?” You ask as you reach out and touch a bruise on his cheek.

“Just exhausted, sen’ika.” He smiles at you, “The people sure seem happy with all of the changes,” He notes.

“Change is good, Echo. Being trapped is…it’s a kind of hell. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.” You say quietly.

“Well, with any luck, you’ll soon be free from this curse.” Echo says with a grin, “What’ll you do first?”

“Leave. I’m going to go literally anywhere else, and I’m never going to eat bacon again.”

Echo laughs, “Maybe I’ll take you back to Mandalore with me,” he says lightly, “It’s very different from this little village.”

“Oh, I’d like that-” You start to say, only to pause when something hits your face. The bustle of the village, just one street over, descends into silence, as the sky opens and rain starts falling.

You scramble to your feet, holding your hands out as the cool water splashes against your hands. And then you laugh, “Rain,” You whisper, “It’s raining!” You laugh again and spin in the rain, turning to grin at Echo, “Echo! You brought the rain back!”

From the next street over you can hear triumphant shouting, cheers of delight, and laughter.

You spin away from Echo, giggles of sheer delight falling from your lips as you stand in the pouring rain.

And Echo…well, he leans his elbows on his knees and he watches you with a fond smile on his lips. And when loud music starts playing the next street over, he gets to his feet, and he lightly takes your hand in his, an impish look crossing his face, “May I have this dance?”

You grin at him, and spin into his arms, “You may,” You agree as you look up into his eyes.

The seventeenth death involves an intricate trap with ropes, pulleys, and the heaviest bookshelf in the manor.

The twenty-first death involves a pit filled with lances.

The twenty-ninth death is much more straightforward, with Echo using a truly amazing number of potions to kill the Baron.

“This is the last one,” You whisper as you apply a healing ointment to Echo’s arm, and then reach up to patch up the bruise on his cheek.

“I think you’re more worried about this than I am.” Echo teases as he gently grabs your wrist, and lowers them away from his face, “Everything is going to be fine, I promise.”

“This is the closest we’ve been to freedom in years, Echo. I’m just…I’m nervous, that’s all.”

He smiles at you, warm and soft, and he leans in and lightly presses his forehead against yours, “There’s no need to be nervous.” He murmurs, “I’m going to take care of you.”

You release a shaky breath, “Okay. Are you sure you want to use your sword?” You ask one more time, just to make sure.

He laughs softly, “Yes. I’m sure. He won’t be expecting it.”

“But-”

Echo presses a light kiss to the inside of your wrist, “Trust me, cyar’ika. This is for the best.”

“I do trust you, but I’m still nervous.” You murmur, even as heat floods your face at his gentle kiss.

He smiles reassuringly at you, and gently releases you, “Go and take your position.”

You nod once, and take half a step back. Then you hesitate, and step back towards him and stand on your toes to press a kiss against his cheek, “Good luck, Echo.” And then you turn and hurry away.

Echo lets out a quiet chuckle, and then he pulls his helmet on. He walks the familiar path to the main room of the house, and he glances up at the second floor, where all of the employees of the Manor are standing, watching.

There’s the sound of angry hissing, and then the Baron is there. Twenty-nine deaths have left the creature angry and paranoid. Angry enough that his gaze was locked on Echo, and not any of the innocent people in the room.

Echo spins his blade with the ease of someone who knows what he’s doing and he takes a step towards the creature, “It’s time for this to end.” Echo says flatly.

The creature snarls and throws himself at Echo.

But Echo has already killed this creature twenty-nine times. He knows how he moves, how he acts in a given situation, and he’s clever enough to be able to make educated guesses on how he’ll react in unknown situations.

The whole encounter has already played out, hundreds of different times, in Echo’s mind. He already knows how it’s going to end. And so do the people watching the last fight.

Echo moves, just enough out of the way to not get hurt. He activates the runes on the blade, and he strikes. The Baron releases an inhuman scream, and spins to try and flee, but Echo strikes two more times.

And the creature falls still.

Nothing happens for a long moment. And then the shadows that cover the creature disperse in every direction, washing over all of the people, then across everything in the Duchy, and then the shadows vanish as if they never existed to begin with.

You look at the massive clock on the wall and you watch as the calendar and time speed up to match the current day and year, and then you hurry down the stairs, “Echo!”

He pulls his helmet off and grunts as you crash into his side, “I’m okay, he didn’t even touch me.” His arm slides around your shoulder as you hug him tightly.

“No!” You both turn at the wail coming from the young man kneeling on the ground, “No! How could you? I was strong! I had power!” The Baron, a teenager again, gets to his feet, his teeth bared. “I’ll kill you!”

Echo lightly pushes you behind him as the teenager lunges at him. He draws his fist back, and then slams his fist into the boys face, sending him reeling back to the ground, “On the authority given to me by the Royal Family of Mandalore, you’re under arrest.”

“I was cursed!” The boy spat, “You can’t arrest me for being cursed!”

“No, but I can arrest you for the repeated murders of your employees. Just because it didn’t stick doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.” Echo says flatly, and then he presses the tip of his blade against the teenager’s throat, “Unless you think that none of them will testify against you.”

The boy hesitates and then looks away.

“That’s what I thought.” Echo effortlessly cuffs him, and then tosses him against a wall.

“So…what happens next?” Chaz asks.

“I have to make a phone call to Mandalore, we’ll get people out here to help you all get resettled. Thirty years is a long time, my friend.” Echo says as he clasps Chaz’s shoulder, “Although, unless anyone wants to stay here, we’ll probably reach out to different nations to help you get settled somewhere else.” He smiles at the group of people, “A new start…for all of you.”

He steps away from Chaz as the older man begins giving orders for information to get passed onto the village proper, and he leaves the manor. You chase after him, “So, what happens with me, then?”

“A new start,” Echo says, stopping as you hurry to his side, “Doing whatever you want, wherever you want.”

“What if I want to stay near you?” You ask.

He pauses and looks at you, “Well, I might be able to help with that.” Echo says with a slow smile. “If that’s what you really want.”

You hum thoughtfully, “You brought the rain back, Echo. And you fought for our freedom. There’s nothing I want more than to stay with you.”

He laughs softly, “Come here, sen’ika.”

You step closer to him and he lightly hooks an arm around your waist, pulling you even closer, and then he lightly bumps his forehead against yours.

“I have an idea,” Echo says lazily, “How about, once I make this call, we go down to the village and buy sandwiches from the cafe, and we have a picnic while we wait for help to arrive?”

You rest your hands on his chest plate, “Like a date?” You ask softly.

“Exactly like a date,” He confirms.

You smile at him brightly, and you raise up on your toes to brush your lips against his, “I like that idea.”

He smiles against your lips, “Glad to hear it, cyar’ika. Now, I really do need to make this call, but you don’t have to move if you don’t want to. Actually, they’re probably going to have some questions for you, so it’s best that you don’t move-”

You grin and lay your cheek against his shoulder, it’s not a happily ever after, not yet at least, but it’s a start and that’s all you can ask for.

#star wars #tcw #Star Wars AU #Knights and Magic AU #ARC Trooper Echo x Reader #TBB Echo x Reader #star wars fanfiction #x reader fanfiction

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chaoticspeedrun · 1 year

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Donnie x fem! Reader The little merturtle 4

Summary: Prince Donatello was the third of four brothers, the prince of an underwater yokai city, but he has always been searching for something else far more interesting than the mystic arts he is used to, he wants to know everything about the human world, their traditions, their creations... But when he finds himself entranced by a human princess it might just be the last push he needs to make his dream of exploring the land a reality.

“Do you hear that?” You wondered looking around curiously and Donnie just shrugged at you nervously, thank Poseidon he couldn’t speak, he was a terrible liar.

The change of ambiance seemed to be exactly what he had needed because when your gazes met again this time there was some charged energy in the air, very different from before.

Warnings: Angst with a happy ending, tooth-rotting fluff

PREV • MASTERLIST • NEXT

A month in writing

Donnie was on one of the castle’s towers, surrounded by huge windows with a beautiful view of the clouds and blue sky from where he sat inside a huge and luxurious bathtub; Sunita, your lady in waiting, whom you had introduced to him once reaching the castle, had taken him up there and sprinkled some sort of potion inside to make the bubbles appear.

“Washed up from a shipwreck,” Sunita said while making a signal to him, asking soundlessly if she could pour water on his head, Donnie was grateful for the warning and nodded, the water flowed and while it felt nice it also bothered him that his hair seemed to get in the way a lot, he tried to push it out of his face while Sunita continued talking.

“How horrible! But don’t worry, we’ll have you feeling better in no time, It might take a while for your long thick hair to dry but it will feel so much better!” She said; Donnie was mostly lost in his mind, excited to find out how the tub had been filled in the first place.

Leo was still somewhere on the sail that had covered Donnie, bored, he tried to get out when Sunita suddenly took hold of it, Leo was still tangled up there.

“I’ll send this to get washed! But we’ll get you some new clothes!”

As soon as Sunita said that Leo was suddenly pushed into some water, he scrambled up trying to get away from the cloth, but he was pulled roughly onto a metallic surface by the hands of a woman, he felt his carapace hitting pieces of metal repeatedly as he went up and down that thing over and over again, oh he felt like throwing up.

“Well, you must have at least heard about this boy” One of the ladies cleaning the clothes said.

“No!” Another answered, Leo was suddenly inside the water again, it tasted weird like someone had removed the salt and added something…sickly sweet?

“Gertrude says—”

The first woman scoffed interrupting “When has Gertrude ever gotten anything right?” Finally, Leo was pulled out of the water, he was hanging from the cloth and burped out…bubbles?!

He was thrown onto something firm “I mean really, he shows up in rags and doesn’t speak, not my idea of a prince.”

That tough thing started moving and Leo hid inside his carapace fast as he felt he was getting squished, he came out the other side and fell onto the rags, Leo moved wildly from one side to the other before the rags got hung from somewhere with him still in there.

The ignorant woman was still talking “If Y/N is looking for a boy I know a couple of highly available ones” While she said that, the rope holding Leo up started moving and then he fell on the floor somewhere else.

His legs felt wobbly, and he muttered angrily while standing on all fours “I have never been treated like this in my life, just wait until I’m back to my form, ugh”

His mumbling was stopped by what he saw next, Leo blanched at the sight, he could already hear his father’s voice telling him something among the lines of ‘I told you so’ and Leo felt his stomach that had been already unsettled enough twist again.

He saw the tail of a fish, cut in pieces by a sharp knife laying on the table, he could see an octopus’ legs pouring out of a boiling pot, and another fish was directly over the fire of the stove, was that a sailfish? He hoped it wasn’t a sailfish. Having seen enough, Leo wanted to get out of there immediately.

Yeah, he ate fish, it was the diet of most creatures down there in the hidden city, but the scene was grotesque, and he didn’t want to find a massacred turtle there somewhere, if he did THEN he would empty his stomach.

Somewhere else in the castle you were overlooking the sea from the dining room with a tall ceiling and windows just as large, Casey was trying to talk to you despite knowing that your mind was elsewhere.

“Your highness, be reasonable,” She said, she only called you that when speaking of royal duty, duty was of utmost importance to Cassandra who had been raised as your aid from a young age, and now she was repeating most of what she had already said for the past couple of days “Nice young men just don’t swim around rescuing people in the middle of the ocean and then flitter off into oblivion like some—”

You rolled your eyes finally looking back at her “I’m telling you, Casey, he was real, I couldn’t have made that up and I’m not going to stop looking for him” You concluded.

“And when you find him? Will you finally settle down?” she asked, almost hoping you were in fact right.

You just crossed your arms “That’d be too rushed, I may be infatuated with him but I’m not crazy” You said with a huff “Once I find him, I’ll get to know him, confirm what I felt is real, we can go from there, slowly” you emphasized the last word.

At that moment you heard Sunita close to the entrance of the room “Come on now, don’t be shy! You look great!”

It had taken a while for Donnie to be dressed, familiar with the human need to wear a cloth over themselves but uncomfortable with the texture of some of the ones he had received at first, he was silently thankful for Sunita who had seemed to catch onto that and got him something more comfortable.

And yet, showing up like that in front of you made him nervous now, but finally, Sunita got him to stand stiffly under the arch of the entrance, for a moment, he forgot he was meeting you as he examined the room like he had all the others, walking in completely in awe of the furniture and decorations inside.

As he got closer and was finally illuminated by the setting sun your eyes widened, you had found him handsome, of course, but still weren’t expecting him to clean up as well as he did.

You didn’t realize Casey had stepped close behind you, a smug grin on her face as she whispered in your ear, “Oh Y/N, what were you saying about your hero?” You turned to glare at her quickly before making your way over to your guest whose attention was back on you, he smiled tensely without knowing the proper etiquette.

“You look great, how are you feeling?” You asked, not one to forget your manners just because the sight of someone had made your traitorous heart glance away for a moment.

Donnie made a gesture to show he was better now and Casey guided him over to the table, speaking as firmly as ever “Come! It is important to get sustenance into your body after a horrible experience!”

You made your way to the table sitting next to your guest at the head of it, your mind wandered to the moment you found him at the beach, and you fought down the resurfacing disappointment from when you found out it wasn’t him you had been looking for.

The moment he sat on the table Donnie’s eyes drifted to the tableware, recognizing happily the instruments used for human eating traditions, he got excited, he would finally find out how a fork and spoon are used in practice! He was practically vibrating in his seat.

“Sunita, what’s for dinner?” You asked the moment your lady-in-waiting got close, hoping to divert your attention from the man at your left.

“Oh, you’ll love it, chef Swaggart is fixing his specialty, stuffed crab!”

Back in the kitchen Leo was trying to use his teleporting abilities to no avail, he huffed angrily “Really? I knew those two weren’t telling us something, why would the potion block our ninpo?” he asked himself before a singing voice interrupted him, Leo turned around to find the chef back in the kitchen.

It was his sign to run away, but his tiny turtle legs couldn’t get him far too fast, oh he hated being a regular turtle! He was so slow! His whole thing was to be fast!

So, lost in his mind as he was, the chef caught sight of him “What’s this? A red-eared slider?” The chef took Leo in his hand curiously “I didn’t ask for this, there’s just not enough meat on these tiny turtles” He hummed examining the turtle even closer “It’s also not flavorful enough…”

The chef was cut off, Leo had had enough and bit his nose the moment it was close enough, chef Swaggart yelled out in pain and Leo went out flying.

Not even Señor Hueso would treat him like this in the palace kitchen! Or well, he might have a couple of times, but at least Leo could defend himself then!

A battle began in the kitchen while Donnie was none the wiser.

Soon enough, the food was being served, and while it was, Casey was proposing that you take your guest over to see the sights of the kingdom.

You glanced up to look at her “Sorry, what was that?”

While Casey was scolding you about how you couldn’t keep moping about in the castle –Donnie wondered what you could have been moping about— a plate was served right in front of him.

Casey wasn’t looking at hers while lifting the cover, but Donnie was and he suddenly panicked at seeing his brother served next to a stuffed crab, Leo smiled sheepishly at Donnie who responded with an exasperated glare, how did he get there?!

Donnie lifted the covering of his own plate while you and Casey talked, signaling for Leo to hurry and hide in there, Leo didn’t have to be told twice, he rushed as fast as his tiny legs would take him and dove in, Donnie innocently closing the lid immediately and looking up as if he had been paying attention to the conversation.

“Well, what do you say?” You asked Donnie, smiling brightly at him and he nodded quickly, having no idea what he had agreed to.

Thankfully you explained right after he had already agreed “Great! We’ll go out tomorrow morning, is it Ok with you if we go by carriage for our tour of the kingdom?”

A tour of the kingdom, a tour of the kingdom! Donnie nodded ecstatic, not knowing how a carriage would be pulled on land and already wishing to find out, he was about to explore the human world like he had always wanted, in his immediate future! It was happening, and not only that, but you were going to be his guide, when he thought about it after saving you it had seemed like an impossible dream, and yet it was a reality now.

Casey herself seemed satisfied at your answer “Excellent, we shall start our dinner now before it gets cold, so you have energy tomorrow!” Casey looked at the crab on her plate, ignoring the empty space at the side of it.

Donnie observed your manners and use of utensils carefully throughout dinner, repeating motions the best he could and thanking April in his mind for telling him as much as she had about them, you got shy at seeing him pay attention to you so closely but continued eating and chatting like normal.

After dinner you guided Donnie over to the library, he looked curiously at the stacks of books that covered the walls when you reached a desk all by its lonesome on the far end of the library.

“I come here to read or work sometimes, when I don’t want to be cooped up in my office” you explained before pulling open a drawer on the dress and taking out something, a piece of parchment and what looked like a feather alongside a black container.

You looked shyly up at him before speaking up again “I, um, realized a moment ago that I never introduced myself, and was hoping we could do that now.”

Donnie faltered for a moment, it had started becoming infuriating not to talk, he ranted a lot, he liked doing that, and being unable to talk with you was becoming depressing.

You took him out of his thoughts by offering your hand to him with a small smile “My name’s Y/N” you said, and he smiled a bit, he grasped your hand shaking it firmly, instead of asking for his name though you offered the feather to him, he smiled, hoping really hard that the writing language was the same for humans as it was for yokai.

He leaned over the paper, and you watched attentively as the pen ran through the page.

Donatello.

You grinned while reading the name “Donatello” you said, taking him by surprise, he smiled sheepishly but was much more relieved now that you had a way to communicate even if it wasn’t ideal, with this realization he started writing again, your gaze following his hand again.

Or Donnie.

You realized he was giving you a nickname you could call him and nodded at him “It’s nice to meet you Donnie” you said smiling gently and he grinned while his heart fluttered.

Later that night Donnie was looking out the window of the room you had given him while Leo played around a table with a large mirror and jewelry that was left around.

“I hope you appreciate what I went through for you today, Donnie!” Leo exclaimed calling for his twin’s attention, Donnie just rolled his eyes, closing the window and walking over to the table, Leo kept rambling “It was humiliating, gosh, I miss Hueso, oh and just so you know the chef mentioned something about softshell turtle soup” Leo shivered and Donnie made a face of disgust.

Donnie took out a notebook you had given him to communicate and placed it on the table right next to Leo, he started writing and Leo rolled his eyes the moment he read the words.

‘No one asked you to come.’

“And leave you alone? Wandering around the human world all by yourself when your favorite brother could accompany you? Not a chance” Leo scoffed managing to hang a golden necklace over his neck.

Donnie thought for a moment before asking something he’d been wondering for a while, this could backfire on him easily and he’d never hear the end of it from Leo, but the curiosity was eating him up, so he just decided to roll with it, Leo was so tiny anyways, Donnie could just hide him in a drawer until everything was done if he bothered him, so he started writing and Leo only turned to read once he knew Donnie was done.

‘Why are you encouraging this now? Why did you go looking for her statue?’

“What? If you wanted the Leo special teasing you only had to ask, Oh I have been waiting to do this loverboy—” Leo had started with a grin but turned to look at Donnie’s serious face and faltered, Leo groaned loudly before continuing “Fine, It’s not fun if you can’t even complain about it.”

Leo removed the jewelry from his form and wandered off to the jewelry box to search for more things “At first, I just wanted you to forget it like Raph did, it was impossible and papa would have never approved, it was just a crush anyway, right? So, I thought you’d just move on.” Leo was throwing rings around, trying to find one that would fit his feet “But then I realized that you had never taken a real interest in anyone until now, it made me angry because why did you have to choose a human out of anyone? You just love making things hard for yourself don’t you Donton?”

Donnie made a face, but Leo was not looking at him yet, Donnie was about to write something else on the paper when Leo stopped his movements and continued talking “I just kept running scenarios in my mind of what would go wrong if you tried pursuing her, or the human world but…” Leo sighed with a frown “you were as insistent about her as you were about the human world and with just the tiny bit of hope that you had about meeting her, you just looked so happy.”

Donnie looked at his twin in surprise, but Leo kept ranting his tone immediately changing from the vulnerability that it held a second before to something easier “Don’t think I believe Big Mama and Draxum though, it’s just too easy, they’re definitely hiding something, but we’re here and you finally got a chance so why wouldn’t I help you?” Leo concluded by fitting a ring on his foot and looking satisfied about it.

Donnie turned his face the other way to hide his expression, Leo may not have been fully on board with him doing all of this, but it was obvious he had changed his mind for Donnie’s sake the moment he turned human.

Donnie smacked the side of Leo’s head with a finger “Hey!” Leo exclaimed but laughed while Donnie chuckled silently, he finally removed the jewelry and they both fell on the bed, Donnie jumped on it and bounced up slightly, and Leo bounced higher with a ‘Woah!’, almost falling off, Donnie looked surprised and then realized how comfortable the bed felt on his back, he could get used to that.

“Okay Casanova, tomorrow you start wooing her! I’m talking the whole nine yards Don, and with yours truly it would be impossible for you to not get your kiss before the month ends, better than that, you’ll get your kiss in a week, I guarantee.”

Leo didn’t realize Donnie had already fallen asleep, but the sea, even this late at night, was restless.

King Splinter was swimming in front of one of the castle’s windows when his messenger, the little seahorse showed up right in front of him in a hurry “Any sign of them?” King Splinter asked hopefully, but those hopes were crushed in a moment.

“No, your majesty” The seahorse reported “We’ve searched everywhere, we’ve found no trace of any of your sons, even with Shelldon’s reports.”

Splinter looked pained but continued firmly “Well, keep looking, leave no shell unturned, no coral unexplored, let no one in this kingdom sleep until they’re safe at home” he ordered before turning back towards his throne.

The seahorse sighed dejectedly “Yes, sire” they said before leaving with a bow.

Once alone, Splinter buried his face in his hands “Oh what have I done?” He lamented “What have I done?”

Night came and went, and soon in the morning, Donnie had dressed quickly with Sunita’s help, hiding Leo in his pocket without minding his brother’s grumbles and just chuckling at the poor turtle, Donnie then hurried to meet you near the doors where a carriage was waiting.

His gaze shifted into one of awe as he stared at the beasts that pulled the carriage, he neared them unconsciously before jumping a bit at the sound of your voice behind him.

“Do you like horses?” You asked, your head was tilted slightly to the side questioningly and your usual carefree smile was right there directed at him.

Horses? Like seahorses? He wondered; Donnie smiled sheepishly before nodding, you seemed to brighten up at his response “Me too! Have you ever ridden in one?”

Donnie shook his head negatively, even if you had been talking of seahorses, he had never been old enough and small enough at the same time to ride one of course, though these four-legged beasts were much bigger and different.

“Well maybe we can try that another day,” You said happily before walking over to the side of the carriage, Donnie looked at you in surprise before beaming at the realization that you were already planning the next time you both went out, he bumped the pocket where Leo was after hearing a small chuckle coming from him, receiving a small ‘ow’ he paid no attention to as he saw you opening the door of the carriage and offering him your hand.

Wait, you were offering him your hand! He stumbled to take it questioningly before realizing you were guiding him inside the carriage, he entered and sat on it, excited after the small burst of embarrassment had passed, you went in after and grinned at him “Also, good morning Donnie” You chirped before turning forwards and taking the ropes attached to the horses in your hands, thankfully fast enough to not see Donnie smile even wider at you.

You both turned to Cassandra and Sunita that were bidding you goodbye from inside the castle and waved before you pulled the reins and called out to the horses, the carriage quickly began to move on its way out of the doors being opened by guards.

Donnie looked around in awe, leaning slightly out of the vehicle to see how it moved without floating, he leaned down as much as he could and looked attentively at the wheels underneath the carriage wondering how they were attached, as he tried to figure it out he heard a light chuckle coming your way, he straightened up and turned around to look at you embarrassed when he realized the way he was acting, but halted when he noticed the soft expression on your face, and even though the expression left a dusted blush on his cheeks Donnie felt more confident after seeing it.

He got sidetracked when he saw some streetlights with intricate designs on the path you were following toward the town, when you realized what had grabbed his attention you started speaking.

“The lanterns are turned on when the sun starts setting, the design is Danish, actually most of our buildings—” You started talking about the town and the designs of most of its public services and buildings or the basic functioning of it, at some point you cringed at yourself, realizing you must be boring your guest with your rant, you turned your gaze from the road back to him to apologize but almost bit your tongue in surprise when you caught his gaze.

He had been paying you all his attention with an excited look on his face like he was truly interested in what you were saying, and though it was just basic knowledge you had about your kingdom as the princess it made you blush that he was so seemingly focused and happy to hear it.

You stuttered a bit before continuing your explanation with a bright smile on your face.

As the carriage walked over the water through a bridge, Leo, who had escaped the confines of Donnie’s pockets, leaned out after hearing some splashing, looking at the water he found Mikey swimming on the surface of the water, a spiky shell following him close behind.

“Has she kissed him yet?” Mikey asked with an excited smile and Leo rolled his eyes scoffing.

“No way, they’ve been talking about buildings or something, and he didn’t even listen to my plan to get him his kiss.” Leo knew Donnie had never flirted once in his life or been anything but curt to anyone he’d just met, his twin’s lack of experience made it so Leo could see his plans all going downhill.

“Aw,” Mikey whined still following from where he could reach in the water.

Leo looked back over to Donnie boredly, but his expression soon changed as he noticed the one on his twin’s face, Donnie was smiling more confidently at you while you explained something about the city and its architecture, holding every bit of his attention in your words, Leo was surprised at how his twin’s attitude had changed in just a moment, you both suddenly looked more comfortable around one another, like actual friends, a great contrast to yesterday when Donnie had seemed so sheepish at actually getting his wish and you both had only shared pleasantries.

Leo smiled a bit, realizing his brother might not be that much of a lost cause if the way you were smiling and speaking to him was anything to go by.

The day went by fast, with Donnie looking at everything with excitement and wonder that almost made your heart melt, everything new he found he looked back at you as if asking you what it was and you explained what the thing was or how it worked patiently, wondering more and more about the man that was hanging onto your every word like he was experiencing the whole world for the first time.

Where could someone as passionate and curious about learning as Donnie have come from? You asked yourself while seeing him grab onto a puppet happily before realizing he had taken the inanimate object from a hand, you laughed at his antics like you hadn’t laughed in a while.

Maybe his mutism had prevented him from learning about the world? You frowned at this thought, knowing there was a lot of bigoted people out there.

You realized after a moment that Donnie had stopped in front of a mural, you looked at it before humming and starting your explanations “This is one of my favorite stories, I used to love these murals as a child, they all speak of yokai and merfolk”

Donnie’s gaze never left the mural, but his eyes widened and his mouth parted in surprise at your words, you continued.

“Yokai were creatures that came from the sea many years ago, they could take many different forms, like birds, foxes, spiders, and most of all sea creatures, they all had tails when in the sea but were able to transform their tails into legs to walk alongside us and for a time they visited the land and co-existed with humans, helping them with the use of magic” you spoke while he looked at the beginning of the mural that showed various yokai coming from the sea.

You frowned again, remembering what you just had thought about how some people probably didn’t accept Donnie for his mutism, you continued your story “However there were some humans and yokai that didn’t accept each other at all, humans who feared yokai because of what they were capable of doing and yokai who thought of humans as a pest invading the seas” Donnie frowned at your words when he looked at a dark reddish figure in the mural, seemingly discussing with a human, there was something familiar about the figure, but he couldn’t pinpoint what.

“I don’t know what happened next exactly, but the tale says some humans started hunting yokai and the rest of the yokai returned to sea, furious at the humans and vowing to never return.” You finished your story before tracing the figure of a mermaid with your eyes “I’ve always loved the idea of yokai and merpeople, and never understood why the tale ended so tragically, wouldn’t it be amazing if a world like that existed?” You wondered softly, finally, Donnie’s gaze went back to you.

Just recently he had thought humans and yokai had never been able to interact and now, after what his father revealed, bits and pieces of the puzzle kept falling in place, while he was still angry at hi father, he could also understand why what Donnie could figure happened to him would make him have that attitude against humans, but watching you and this beautiful mural that had existed probably longer than the both of you, made it seem more unfair that because of a share of humans and yokai the rest had to avoid each other.

There were so many things he wished to tell you, but writing them down didn’t seem like the proper way to go about it, his heart felt calm though, realizing you longed for the same world he did.

He had an entire month and in that amount of time he was sure he’d be able to explain everything to you and how your fairytales were more real than you could think, he was the perfect proof of it, you both seemed to look at each other then, and smiled, like you had reached some sort of understanding.

The sound of music called his attention, and Donnie turned his head around to see a kiosk full of people dancing as a band played, Donnie grinned, studying the way the humans moved their legs to dance, he personally felt it was more of a show than just dancing while floating on a tail where you would depend much more on hand movement.

You, as you had been doing, noticed his gaze and smirked before walking right in front of him, Donnie looked at you curiously before his eyes widened, seeing you bow slightly and offer your hand, palm up to him.

“Would you honor me with this dance?” You asked, your eyes sparkling mischievously as you looked at him and Donnie took your hand in reflex with a confident smirk, it made your grin widen as you guided him through the crowd towards the kiosk, before Donnie’s confidence was hit by a blow.

While he had always considered himself the best dancer out of his brothers there was no way the same rules of dancing were applicable to this situation, he had barely learned how to walk, how would he go around on both feet without embarrassing himself? Donnie looked around at everyone else, studying the movement of their legs anxiously before you grabbed his attention, pulling one of his hands to your shoulder and holding the other one with yours.

“Relax, follow my lead Donnie, just one foot to the left like this…” You demonstrated and he followed “And follow with the other one like this.” You explained, and a couple of steps later you were repeating the part, you both were dancing.

Donnie relaxed into the movements as he got used to the rhythm, soon becoming second nature as he looked back up at you, his smile turned softer as he looked at you having fun with him, making his cheeks warm but the expression never leaving his face, he only got smugger the more you danced, adding his own flair to the steps much to your delight.

Feeling daring he tried to spin you and you naturally followed his lead before returning to your rightful place in front of him chuckling slightly, your bright laugh making him feel dizzy.

The day continued like that before you were back in the carriage on your way to the castle as the sun started setting.

As you reached the castle and got ready to go down you suddenly stopped, looking thoughtful “Donnie?” you called for his attention and he looked at you questioningly so you’d continue “Would you like me to get a sign language instructor for you?” You asked while he looked surprised “That way we’d be able to communicate better and you can tell me what you think about everything.”

Donnie realized you probably noticed his anxiousness when he couldn’t rant about the things he was seeing or make a tough question, he immediately agreed to your proposal, smiling happily at you and nodding, receiving a heart warming smile back “Great! I’ll see to it in the morning!” Your words were accompanied by you reaching down to step out but Donnie beat you to it, he got down before you and reached your side of the carriage, offering you his hand to step down this time and taking you by surprise, you smiled a bit more shyly before accepting his hand and stepping down the carriage, the nearby lanterns illuminating you both as the sun disappeared in the horizon “Well, you better go inside, I’ll see you in the morning Donnie” you said, finally letting go of his hand and waving goodbye to him.

He waved at you before you disappeared through the doors of the castle and he sighed, burying his smile on his hands giddily while Leo popped out of his pocket again, laughing at his brother happily, because he’d never seen Donnie smile so much in one day.

The chemistry between both of you was almost tangible, he could understand why Donnie had seemed so head over heels so fast.

The days went by like this, in the morning you would both have breakfast together, and then an instructor would teach Donnie sign language in the library for a couple of hours and tell you afterward that he was a really fast learner having already memorized most signs and started practicing them with sentences.

“Not like you were, your highness” The instructor teased, you blew a raspberry.

“I wasn’t that slow, Donnie is just kind of a genius” You stated, smiling unconsciously at your statement.

Then usually the day would go with either Donnie and you doing your own thing, exploring the library for you to answer any questions he had, or going out into town.

Leo, Raph, and Mikey however were getting a bit anxious as the days passed, and despite how much closer the two of you were getting there hadn’t been any attempts at being more physically affectionate.

“Do you want to ride a horse?” You asked during breakfast one morning, Donnie was a pro now at eating with a fork, knife, and spoon, he looked up at you with an excited grin, the one he had whenever you proposed something new for him to try, he nodded quickly and you started explaining what kind of clothes he should use or what he should be ready for.

Later, you both stood at the entrance of the castle, but the horses and carriage that were usually there when you were going out were nowhere in sight, instead there stood two horses, a white mare and a black one, with you holding the reins of both and waving at Donnie to come.

“These are Nero and Blanche, very original names, I know” You giggled as he deadpanned the moment you said their names “They’re both very docile, so you can choose which you want to ride.”

Donnie thought for a moment before reaching out carefully to Blanche, who rubbed their snout on his hand, you chuckled rolling your eyes “Of course, you would choose the white horse, like a prince” You chuckled without noticing how flustered you had just made him with your statement.

‘I’d love being your prince charming’ he thought to himself before hiding his embarrassment and walking over to Blanche’s side.

You taught him quickly how to get up on the horse and once he was up you guided them out of the castle by the reins, you kept telling him what to do to ride before getting up on your horse and guiding him from there, both horses attached to one another so one wouldn’t stray far.

After a while you were both riding through a meadow happily, Donnie still didn’t know enough sign language to hold a conversation but you had a lot of laughs trying and teasing each other with signs.

While the sun was finally setting and you reached a river close to the sea, Leo decided this was the perfect chance to finally get Donnie his kiss.

Wanting to give the horses some rest you tied them close to the river and pointed over to a canoe, both you and Donnie getting on it to explore the river, ignorant of the three brothers that had reunited in the water and watched you attentively.

“Move over, move your big shell, I can’t see anything” Leo whined behind Raph who huffed.

“Nothing is happening” He responded.

“There’s only four days left! What is Donnie waiting for?” Mikey asked worriedly, while Leo made his way on top of Raph’s shell.

“I keep telling Donnie time is running out, and at night he seems like he is listening to me and going to do something about it, but come day when her eyes are on his line of sight, and bam! He suddenly forgets we’re in a hurry in favor of getting lost in them” Leo huffed tiredly, and a bit worried, since he still couldn’t figure out what Big Mama and Draxum were planning if Donnie didn’t get that kiss.

“If Donnie doesn’t start puckering up soon, Raph is going to make his way over there and make him,” Raph said impatiently “Let’s see how he likes that.”

“If Piebald was here, she would be setting up the whole ambiance with music, it’d be so romantic” Mike gushed, and an idea came to Leo.

“Hey Mikey, how long have you been watching Piebald direct and compose for?”

“Like, my whole life, you know this” Mikey said looking curiously at his older brother before it hit him “Oh, oh yeah! I can do this baby!”

While Mikey disappeared into the waters for some animals to help him, Donnie and you were chatting calmly, you mostly spoke while Donnie shifted between writing in his notebook and showing you or trying to sign something with your help.

He was happy with just that when he started hearing music, he looked around trying to find out where the music was coming from but saw nothing, Donnie was confused until he noticed his little brother a little further away talking to some ducks and insects, imitating Piebald.

Oh gosh, his brothers were trying something, and while he was immediately embarrassed by the prospect, when he looked back at you under the light of the sunset he also realized he needed to take any chance he could, his infatuation only grew stronger every day so much so it wasn’t only a crush anymore, he was sure, and he wanted so badly for you to feel the same.

He was fascinated with the way you spoke of your kingdom, and how you were so willing to explain even the tiniest details to him and ready to wait patiently while he wrote something he was excited about sharing with you, always lighting up at his words and making his stomach flutter with your laugh.

But you were also so sarcastic and you never missed a chance to tease him with that smug look of yours, it drove him mad because despite the glare he would send your way most times he absolutely loved your attitude, you were so much more than the determined princess he had crushed on for her heroic acts, you were snarky and confident and yet would blush at the slightest hint of smoothness from him.

You were everything he’d already thought you were and so much more, so, while he was nervous about his brothers interfering, Donnie had to take the chance that you might be feeling the same way as him.

He was just glad his brothers had opted for only music and no singing; he didn’t know if he could have dealt with that embarrassment.

“Do you hear that?” You wondered looking around curiously and Donnie just shrugged at you nervously, thank Poseidon he couldn’t speak, he was a terrible liar.

The change of ambiance seemed to be exactly what he had needed because when your gazes met again this time there was some charged energy in the air, very different from before.

You cleared your throat shyly before looking away and continuing to row the boat, to Donnie’s dismay; but Raph seemed to have other plans, he’d managed to get some fireflies your way and their light grabbed your attention as they filled the late sky with their light surrounding the both of you, Donnie lit a lantern you had brought up on the boat as the sky darkened, it only served to make everything look even more beautiful and once again your attention was on him while he smiled softly at you, a warm smile that made your own heart hit your ribcage.

You returned his smile with one of your own but as his face grew closer to yours you looked away suddenly, feeling some sort of guilt in you.

You had spent so long looking for your savior, a man you might never even find again, and yet why did it feel like you were betraying him the further you fell for Donnie? It wasn’t fair, it wasn’t fair at all, the way you felt for Donnie ran much deeper than the way you felt for your savior, with Donnie you had actually talked and spent time together, laughing like you hadn’t in years.

“What would I give to know more of your world…of you.”

His words lingered in your mind, you felt like you had to give him that, you had wanted to show your savior your world.

And yet, hadn’t you done all of that for Donnie?

Your gaze lifted slowly back to your companion and your heart sank as you saw him looking far away into the water with a sad expression, you had never seen Donnie look like that and you couldn’t stand the fact that it was your fault.

Realizing this, you took a firm stance within yourself, your savior may have been a lightning bolt experience, but Donnie was here, and he was already the most incredible person you had ever met, incredibly smart, and funny in a way that allowed you to let go of all your dark humor, maybe mean at times and yet even that you found endearing.

You liked Donnie, maybe even more than that, you really did.

The thought of your savior was pushed to the far back of your mind for you to forget later, and your hand reached out towards Donnie’s face, he startled for a moment before turning to you and allowing your hand to rest on his cheek, his eyes suddenly hopeful when he saw the smile on your face directed solely at him.

Without you noticing, the boat went under a weeping willow, hiding you from the moon in its darkness, and yet the lights of the fireflies and lantern still enveloped you, coloring you with soft yellow hues under which you looked like a painting from the eyes of a lovesick artist.

Donnie reached out to your other hand with his and your fingers got intertwined together, you squeezed his fingers lightly, the hands resting on his knee while you looked at each other, there wouldn’t be any chance for him to write or sign something.

That was Ok, you didn’t feel like saying anything either, not with the way he was looking at you right now, like you were the only thing that mattered, like he wanted this just as much as you did, so you closed your eyes, feeling his breath near your face and wondering when you both had gotten so close.

The moment you were about to kiss, the boat shook underneath you and you both were thrown into the shallow water.

You sputtered out water and Donnie helped you up worriedly, you smiled at him, apologizing for having lost track of where the boat was going, it probably hit a rock or something. The moment was completely gone and you cursed your absentmindedness, but when you looked up at Donnie who was trying to help you dry and get back on the boat you smiled, looking at him dreamily, you had all the time in the world.

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We're almost at the end guys! I'm so excited for this, once the fic is finished I will start working on the Leo x reader Anastasia AU and at the same time on some of the requests that are already on my inbox, no more than the ones that were there before I closed them though!

#rise donnie x reader #rottmnt donnie x reader #rottmnt x reader #rottmnt fanfiction #rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #rise! donnie #rottmnt donatello x reader #donatello x reader #donnie x reader #The little mermaid AU #Donnie TLM AU

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