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dndfuckhouse · 2 years

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Session 41 - A Walk Through The Forest

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> 🎵 Glutton’s Kitchen (Working) / Pikmin 2 OST

Our view pulls back into Figstup, in the town of Duskridge, on a little storefront in the business square. The party slowly shuffle their way under Spriggan’s stoop at Finn’s call (Plum’s actually) in the interim Vinny asks the elven man about ingredients for dye potions, quietly haggling over prices with a keen eye as he pockets a few things. Finn explains his quest from Vorde in the meantime until they all shuffle inside.

As Spriggan notices the rest of the group all finally in front of him, he gives them a lazy once over, still grinding away idly with his mortar.

Spriggan: “this alla’ you?” he eyes the ever impatient finn Finn: finn rolls his eyes and sighs "yes" Rokka: rokka starts counting heads, mumbling "1...2...3...4...7....oh no we're missing someone--oh wait its me HAHA" Spriggan: he nods his head once “hmmm…… right then….. directions it was?" Finn: he nods... an air of impatience to his demeanor Spriggan: he fails to notice the impatience and drawls on "mmm.... ya wanna to get on to greepea you need to take the west exit into the outskirts….. ‘s got the blue mushrooms like all the paths, can't miss it….” he moves to rub his cheek in thought as he continues “mmm… keep heading west and remember to stay on the path…. you’ll eventually come across a…….. ruddy old red tree, should have a little sign on it….. make sure its pointing right, ‘en head that way……. If it isn’t…. then keep going left, always go left if you’re lost…… and if you walk past a couple of shacks afterwards then ya know’ you're going the right way……. get a bit tricky after though ‘cause the path isn’t as clear……… eventually the tree’s will get less thick though and the forest’ll break into some plains…… you’ll see another sign and the town in the distance from er’.... should be easy after ‘at” Han: han gets progressively more n more tired as spriggan keeps talking, how hard can a trek in the woods be Finn: finn keeps wanting to take off, but every time he turns on his heel and takes a step spriggan continues talking. eventually he learns to stand still and listen to the whole speech, crossing his arms and pulling at his own clothes as he endures the slow pace, zoning out half the time. "............. thanks" he grits out after hes processed everything. hes clearly ungrateful and prays to god someone understood all that slightly better than him. Rokka: rokka nods to each direction given "right mhm yeah got it yep yeah uh huh" Spriggan: he hides his amusement at your fidgeting "... yer welcome, patience is a virtue" he nods at rokka’s attentiveness Han: "what do you mean, always go left? isnt it better to orient yourself with stars or sun? i know its night but." Finn: finn clicks his tongue at that and mumbles something incomprehensible, but clearly derogatory. he does, however, eye han curiously, interested in her point. Spriggan: he scratches his chin "you'd be right if this...... were a normal forest...." he pauses as if to consider how to explain "lots of things like to play tricks.... 's hard to trust anything to orient yerself... 's why you stick to the path.... the left thing..... 's just something i picked up on my own...... nothing funny's happened to me when i stuck to it...." Psalm: "Well that's reassuring.. /s" Keva: "are those things the same ones hiding in the canopy?" Spriggan: he looks up idly at that "...mmm could be....?"

Han: at the group "i cant say its good idea to travel thru dark forest, and keeping in mind what spriggan said, but if we only got tomorrow night to get back, we could risk it" Rokka: "as long as we follow directions!" Cimmorro: cimm just shrugs "i got nothing better to do" Han: "also, what do you mean, make sure sign is pointing right? is there multiple red trees?" Spriggan: "mmm... well there's only one real one... but if 's not pointing right its fake.... so dont follow it..." Han: "... couldnt whatevers living in forest just make a tree with a sign pointing right though..." Spriggan: he considers this point "yeah..... never do though.... might just want to mess with strangers...." Han: apollo jutsice forehead poke in concentration gif "i guuuuesssss... now i hope we come across whoever pulls pranks around here" :3 Spriggan: "......hmm........." he wonders if those warnings he gave earlier will actually be heeded Psalm: “🤨 ...” Finn: finn gives you an exasperated look "you cannot be for real" Han: ^_^ "what?" Finn: "why would you wish such a thing upon us when this forest sounds annoying as is!" Ghester: you all hear a familiar voice in your heads pipe up "it could be an interesting experience~" Psalm: “or an incredibly dangerous one," Psalm shrugs. Rokka: rokka yelps Han: "annoying? it sounds fun! dont you like adventure? risk and whatever??" Finn: finn gives psalm a weird look, since hes got no one else to physically address for ghester "id rather get to the core of our quest than get sidetracked, quite frankly" he also looks at han after finishing speaking Psalm: Psalm just looks at Finn and shrugs too. Ghester: "nothing out of the ordinary for us i think" he says to you and finn Psalm: * looking at Han * "I think we can at least try to stay on track." Finn: shaking his head in solidarity Han: han rn 😇 Spriggan: spriggan staring at you all snap your necks at each other weirdly

Finn: finn clears his throat and addresses the whole party "well then, shall we be off? we've learned all there is to learn about the journey ahead" Psalm: "By all means lead the way." Han: han stands at the ready Rokka: "LET'S GO!" rokka takes the lead but then remembers the # ghosts and stops midway to look back waiting for someone else to walk first Finn: finn snorts and takes the lead instead...

The group begin to trot off as plum and keva make a few hasty last transactions, as they do Spriggan gives them all a last friendly wave

Spriggan: "....hope to see ya'll again...."

Before they leave the town Cimmorro quickly squats down to cast Augury before leaving the business square. He does so by arranging twigs and sticks on the ground. Vinny stares at the arrangement curiously as he goes. As he casts the spell and reads the results the omen comes to him as both Weal and Woe.

Cimmorro: cimm just looks up to vinny after that and grins vaguely "we better brace ourselves" Vinny: he makes a strained face "...well that doesn't sound good" Cimmorro: ":D" but he's holding jasper close now as they leave

The party all leave the business square and begin to head down the path labelled for the outskirts, stepping down the dirt way. The trees bracketing them slowly become less and less filled with lantern light as they leave the precipice of Duskridge, standing gargantuan above them in the misty darkness. The mushrooms bracketing the path still line themselves up carefully however, perhaps to keep those who use it from losing it in the dark and the mist.

The trek through the forest begins, its a little more disorienting than they’d expected, it truly is pitch out here, though the mushrooms provide a way to follow the path still at the very least. All around them are sounds of nature and water bubbling in the dark, Finn takes the head while Plum stumbles around in the back.

Han: helps u up "you 'kay?" Plum: "i rolled a nat 1" [coughs up blood Han: pats ur back "happens to the best of us"

As they go Han takes note of all she can around them, as they head into the forest her sense of where things SHOULD be in the sky seems.... off... like these constellations are not where they should be, a mixed up puzzlebox, at least where she can see the sky through the canopy anyway. She didn't have this feeling when she was at port looking at the sky though.

Han: han -> forced smile and sweating as she realizes the sky has gone fucked

Keva: keva tucks in her arms close to her body as she follows along with everyone and keeps an eye on the tops of the trees

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> 🎵 The Library / Kentucky Route Zero OST

They all continue down the path for a time, the ambience begins to feel ever so eerie, the forest is colder than the town at the very least. As they go, Finn notes a great and partially collapsed tree alongside the path ahead of them. As he stares at it he notes that the trunk of it almost seems to resemble a frowning face in the dark glow of the forest.

Finn: he’s contemplating sharing this with the group although it does seem like a rather trivial find. he stops briefly and eyes han and plum "do trees resembling faces bear any particular meaning.......?" Han: "umm... usually that youre going coocoo?" Finn: "thats enough from you" he hisses Han: rolls her eyes at you

Plum thinks at the question, when they think of trees with faces the first thing that comes to mind are Treant's, creatures that are essentially animated trees. Sanding still they look like any other tree, aside from the strange face formations in the wood.

Plum: "uhh...oh, yeah. you know what a treant is?" plum frowns Finn: finn gives you a pained smile like he does know what youre talking about but he really doesnt want you to mean it Plum: "why, you see one or something?" Finn: "perhaps......." he clears his throat "han was suggesting i suffer from a deteriorating mind, but surely you will also recognize that this tree in particular stands out.." he points at The One

As they both point their attention at the trunk they faintly hear a low muttering of words “...ungry and will die…. but what of its touch..?” the voice sounds strangely perplexed to their ears.

Finn: he stares at you plum and whispers "do you think we. ought to approach it?..." [said while the rest of the party is still walking towards it] Plum: "what the fuck was that, did you hear that?" Finn: "well, yes............." Han: han is like @_@ "hear what, haha..."

As the rest of the party walk closer to the trunk they also notice the shape of a face in the wood, it’s only about a foot or so off of the path.

Han: "OH .. okay, point to u, that freaky" Plum: "yeah and i think it just fucking talked to me, unless you guys heard that too" Han: :( Finn: "tch... your insolence shall be the end of you, one of these days" he rolls his eyes again Han: han ignores this, too freaked by the tree Rokka: rokka quickly shuffles closer to whomever is closest to him

Psalm: what's vinny's take on this treant Cimmorro: i hope vinnys passed out from stress Psalm: same nothing else will suffice Cimmorro: then we can mug him for real and leave him out here Psalm: shat's wrong ith you you're crazy? Han: weird foreplay but ok Cimmorro: i want to trigger his revenge arc Han: weird foreplay but ok x2 Chip: HELLO???

Keva: keva eyes it curiously but also warily "what did it say?" Plum: "it said 'hungry and will die, but what of it's touch?' and finn heard it too" Finn: "although i couldn't make out more than you, admittedly" Keva: keva twists her mouth in confusion. Psalm: "You'd think 'tree with face' would've been part of the shopkeeper's long-winded directions and yet." Han: "you can find one of us if we go missing, right" Cimmorro: "wha-" he seems perplexed by the sudden question "well, usually, yes. i can contact you or try to find your things... the latter would have to wait until the next day however." Han: she just nods, satisfied, han has been talking quietly before but is whispering now "think its asleep...?" Cimmorro: "why are you asking..." 🤨 but less pissed off but more worried Han: "bad feeling, good back up" Cimmorro: his face squints a little but nods once anyhow Plum: "only now you're feeling bad" plum says as a joke Han: 😳 "only little bad" stops crouching behind you n finn and stands full height Plum: plum just rolls their eyes with a small smile, "well good then" Finn: he snorts

As the group chatter they note that the tree seems to still be mumbling, and strain their ears to hear. Plum looks around idly, not hearing anything anymore. Psalm thinks he hears the word ‘red?’ whereas Keva manages to catch the actual sentence being uttered.

??: you strain your ears and hear this time a low grumbly voice "i am always hungry and will die if not fed, but whatever I touch will soon turn red. what is it....?

Keva: she repeats this to the group Plum: "is this what that shopkeeper meant by red tree or" Psalm: "There's no sign though." Keva: "fire?" ??: as you say this aloud you hear a loud "AHA!" from the direction of the trunk with a face as it twists ever so slightly in your direction "thats it thats it.....very smart" Keva: efkjgrwjlkbr keva visibly jumps as she startles Cimmorro: cimm's kinda just like :O amused "oh it's playing games"

??: you see now the voice is coming from the face in the trunk, it twists to cimmorro "that one has been itching at me for ages..." it lets out a low groan as it wilts a little turning back to keva "sharp sharp...." Han: han looks like 😬 at the convo btwn keva and talking tree Finn: finns also glad the trees not addressing him Keva: keva is speechless for the moment before very hesitantly saying, "....hello...?" Cimmorro: "you have more??" ??: it shakes a little as if to imitate laughter "hello hello..." it twists back to cimmorro "i do..... my thoughts aren't as collected as they used to be.... would you like to hear them? you seem a thoughtful bunch, not like the last few that walked by" Psalm: "And what happened to the last few that walked by?" Han: han like damn me n psalms psychi connection rn.. augh ??: it shifts a little "they didn't even notice me" he makes another low groaning sound Psalm: he crosses his arms."... that's a shame. Just went on their merry way then?" ??: the trunk creaks "most dont like to dawdle in these woods..." Plum: plum just nods like that makes sense Psalm: "Yes, that seems to be the case." Han: han feels bad now for feeling freaked out "damn that's pretty rude" ??: "if they dont notice me i ignore them.... not everyones smart enough anyway" Finn: "what was the riddle for though?" ??: "its how i spend my time... you can ponder riddles for an age and come to no answer..." Finn: finn tilts his head and ponders that answer... he thinks its sort of a waste of time but something prevents him from blurting that out Cimmorro: "my guy is just as bored out here.... hey, you got a name?" Greenbeard: "hmmm.... no i do not, someone once called me greenbeard, though ive no beard to speak of" Cimmorro: "maybe cuz of your.... leaves" [staring at the tree half collapsed so where it would have branches it's just a broken trunk] cimm backpedals "or well, whenever you used to have them i suppose" Greenbeard: the face warps into a grin as if amused

Han: under her breath "fuck thats cool name......" Rokka: "how....how long have you been here?" rokka easing up as he listens to the tree speak more Greenbeard: the tree thinks "ive always been here, this is home" Han: noticing the half collapsed nature of it, at the tree han goes "damn, you alright actually? that looks like it hurts... (probably...?)"

Glancing around Han notes that though not right next to it, there are plenty of other trees surrounding them, a few near Greenbeard also look a little damaged, though not to this extent.

Greenbeard: the tree lets out a hearty hmm, shaking again "worry not it doesn't hurt, with enough time i will grow again" Han: "shit, thats cool...... wish i could grow back limbs" Greenbeard: the tree goes on "it is....helpful, cool i agree" Cimmorro: :D "got any fine grapevine gossip for us?" Greenbeard: the tree shakes again "mmmm i keep to myself... the riddles are enough for me. if you have any of your own do share before you leave" Psalm: "As much as I like riddles, we don't have an age to ponder them... 😥 " psalm says to ghester in infernal "I hope this is interesting enough for you." Ghester: as you speak to ghester he pipes up "ive never met a talking tree, or one that loves riddles, so im having quite the enjoyable time" Greenbeard: "a sad existence you are permitted.. i dont know what id do" Psalm: he just shrugs (which he feels like he is doing a lot of today) at the tree.

Cimmorro: "what if i give you a riddle then :D" Greenbeard: the tree remarks "give me a riddle and answer one of mine, and i'll give you a gift of my own"

As he speaks Cimmorro spares a glance at Vinny curious at his reaction to the ree, who seems to be staring at the trees roots thinking to himself. As he does Han examines the area around the tree, glancing around at what could have snapped him in half.

Her best guess it looks like something big barreled through here, she'd assume a small stampede of something but the indents and scratches don't look animal, more like something pretty big scraped through here (and right through this guy from the looks of it) closer to a natural disaster but she cant name one that would have this kind of impact.

Psalm: @ the tree "What five letter* word is pronounced the same after you remove all but the first letter? Greenbeard: the tree shakes happily "ooooh.... this one is going to stump me....what a good gift" Psalm: he smiles ^_^ Greenbeard: "i will give you another in the interim that has been troubling me... what has 13 hearts, but no other organs?" Psalm: "A deck of cards?" Greenbeard: the tree bellows again "AHHH! thats it thats it! you're so sharp...." the tree shakes from side to side Plum: plum like that mf psalm so smart Psalm: "Haha, not at all. Just a good guess really ^_^ " Finn: finn feels like it wasnt a guess at all and studies psalms face intently Psalm: Psalm's looking at the tree but he's like hmm why i feel like someone looking at me rn

Keva: "we've answered two of your riddles now. do we get smth extra?" Greenbeard: "those who answer my riddles will get a treat, not to worry i haven't forgotten you" the tree contorts into another smile "i have one more that's been ailing me if anyone would like a guess" Keva: "sure" Greenbeard: the tree shakes with delight once more "I speak without a mouth and hear without ears. I have no body but come alive with wind. What am I?" Psalm: "Oh I know this one- " Psalm says but he cuts himself off. Greenbeard: the tree contorts its face interested Psalm: "I'll let someone else have a turn." psalm turns to the rest Greenbeard: "ohh you tease me..." Psalm: psalm flirting with this tree

Keva: keva lifts her thumb to chew on but a thought strikes her before her hand reaches her mouth. "is it a cave? or tunnel?" Greenbeard: "mmmmm..." the tree wilts slightly "no.... i dont think either of those are it..." Psalm: "It's an echo." Plum: you blowing plum's mind right now Greenbeard: "AHHH!" the tree bellows for a third time "so smart...." Psalm: "I try." Keva: "well, that's what i meant. caves and tunnels echo." Plum: "uh huh" Psalm: "Good guess." Keva: keva bristles a bit but ignores them Greenbeard: "you were on the right track, so close too" Han: han has gotten none of these and oohs quietly at keva n psalm guessing

Greenbeard: "i thank you for the awnsers.... they please me to no end..." the tree shifts slightly its roots flexing a little, in the background vinny yelps a little as if knocked from a thinking stupor "treats for you both yes, i've no use for these..." you see two roots pop out from under the dirt, reaching upwards, small items clutched within, to keva he says "for you... some ink" a small inkwell is dropped into your hands. then to psalm "and for you..." a small green journal with a thick hide, and short dagger are dropped into your palms "a book and pen, use them to your liking" Keva: keva makes the briefest face of displeasure at the ink she has no use for lmao Psalm: he is visibly excited by these gifts "Thank you!" Keva: lol pslam reminds her to be polite and keva thanks the tree as well, tho with less enthusiasm

Greenbeard: "i thank you both as well, may your path ahead be easy wanderers" the trunk bends slightly forward as if mimicking a bow Keva: "you wouldn't happen to know about a red tree with a sign pointing right, would you?" Greenbeard: "mmmm" the tree lets out another low groan "they are further in, you are on the right path if you are heading towards it, be careful though some like to mimic its visage" Keva: "okay, thanks again" and keva starts to go as she tucks the inkwell away Greenbeard: as you head off it begins to speak "farewell, farewell" the trunk shifts slightly from side to side Rokka: "what a nice tree 😄 " Han: han keeps looking at the state of the tree, feeling kinda bad about it "are you sure you're okay? what even got you like this?" Greenbeard: "i am okay, i will grow back. your kindess is as warm as a fire. it was quite fast, but something giant ran through... i think it was being carried by smaller things... quite rude to go without a word" Cimmorro: "smaller things???" Han: "i thought local force, maybe" han hmms thoughtfully "well, good to hear that, i guess.. we'll be on lookout for whatever got you then" :) Greenbeard: the tree warps its face into a grin Han: GRINS BACK Finn: "did that happen recently?" Greenbeard: "yes, about a day or two ago i think, though the change of the hours is hard for me to notice" Plum: "a day ago? what the fuck" Finn: finn closes his eyes and sighs, having a feeling they might have to deal with it Han: "lets keep going then. thanks greenbeard!" 👋 Rokka: 👋 "IT WAS NICE MEETING YA" Finn: "farewell" Greenbeard: the tree lets out a low rumble amused at the use of the name "farewell farewell!"

The group all continue their trek and head down the path again, deeper into the woods, bidding greenbeard goodbye.

Psalm: "Well that went better than I was expecting all things considered." Keva: keva hms and eyes his journal briefly before dismissing it from her mind Han: "that tree was so nice actually.. hope we run into them coming back" :) Psalm: "Given our track record I was expecting a fight honestly." Han: "haha, me too" 😄

As they head off Cimmorro and Han keep an eye out for odd footprints along the way from the Treant. They see there were a few left in the mud, though rain washed them over. Nothing they could pin down to a specific creature at this point, they appeared smeared and very hurried though. The footprints seemed to be the slightly larger than the average humans, and there were alot of them in a straight albeit wobbly line.

The group all continue ambling down the path, along the way Psalm pesters Plum to examine they items he recieved from Greenbeard.

Psalm: "Hey Plum, mind analysing these for me?" Psalm holds up the journal &dagger. Plum: "yeah sure, if you don't mind pushing me along while i focus on it [laugh]" Psalm: Psalm snorts and hands the dagger over &* moves to stand behind Plum so he can direct them.

Plum recieves the following information about the Dagger’s qualities.

Shard Pen - Rare / this pen looks and is perceived as a dagger to anyone not attuned to it, but it is a pen all the same

Plum: thusly i reveal to psalm "it's a pen but it looks like a dagger if you're unattuned to it. and it's rare" Psalm: "That explains it. How interesting, thanks. Mind doing this next?" re: the journal Plum: "nah, gimme"

As they walk on, the group happen upon a clearing that seems to run alongside the forest path. As they glance over, in the bit of moonlight peeking through the trees, they see what appears to be a group of wild horses. Perturbed Cimmorro briefly casts Detect Undead but only feels the blaring light of Finn next to him.

As Rokka stares closer at the horses he notes that some of them seem to actually be saddled, though there is no one around to seemingly take ownership of the creatures.

Rokka: rokka points at the horses "Hey! they got saddles! you think we can ride them? 😆 " Keva: "spriggan said to stay on the path" Rokka: his ears perk "oh! right!" he changes his expression to a more serious one "The Path." Han: "saddled horses? theres gotta be owners around then, right" Psalm: "If they're saddled that means they belong to someone else doesn't it? Didn't take you for a horse thief Rokka." Rokka: "I AM NOT A THIEF!" he points Finn: "....do you think you could talk to them, actually?" Rokka: "no...I can only talk to felines and canines" Finn: "ah... my apologies u__u i assumed perhaps..." he trails off and limps his wrist Rokka: "no worries! if ya ever need a translator for those 2 i'm your man!" he gives a double thumbs up Finn: "ill commit that to memory, you have my thanks" (genuine)

Han squints down in the dark to examine the mud but her lack of darkvision makes the effort somewhat futile.

Han: "do you guys think we could light torch here? im practically blind. i could put it out after, just wanted to see tracks around here" Vinny: vinny inches over to you staring at the mud "i could cast a spell if you'd like?" Han: :O "just briefly, sure" Vinny: he nods his head and flicks his wrist mumbling something before a group of four little lights begin dancing around the space above your head, pink and yellow

Han: nat 1 <3 Chip: omg Keva: i wish you could have heard the sound i made Psalm: han like oh these large human shaped footprints are probs just the horses Han: STOPPOSDOFJGLWEAKFSD

As she stares at the mud Han gets distracted by the robustness of the worms she spots wriggling around... Cimmorro and Rokka grow curious and also start examining the ground beside her.

Rokka spies the footprints of the horses, it seems they came off the path and went right to the clearing, though he doesnt spot any other near him. Cimmorro squints over near the horses and spies a few streaks in the mud at their feet.... signs of a struggle? hard to describe exactly what from a distance.

Cimmorro: "tracks may pretty well be related to the horses but i cant be too sure, have to get closer" Han: han shakes off her worm stupor "thought so... dont wanna get off path for them, but i dont like riderless horses..." Cimmorro: "it is... odd, i agree"

Cimmorro notes that the horses look calm, a few of them are grazing or moving every now and again, though they dont stray far from each other.

Cimmorro: cimm hums for a bit "i rather we stay on track as well, as odd as the horses may be... they don't look perplexed so maybe imminent threat shouldn't be around...? t'least for now" he kinda just keeps staring at the horses rly Han: han does too "im more concerned where their riders went" han shrugs "if we're sticking to spriggans rules, we should just keep going" Cimmorro: "i agree but we don't really know where we could be heading if we stray too far from the directions given... we might be able to stumble on something on the way anyhow." cimm just kinda rubs his eyes wanting a map Finn: finn comes up next to cimm like it isnt out of character for him to do "i, for one, agree with cimmorro. wherever their riders ended up, it is certainly not here. we have better chances of finding out if we press on, if we must find out at all, that is" he gestures vaguely with his wrist Han: han sighs "yeah....... probably. lets go then" Cimmorro: cimm makes a face when finn gets near but doesnt rly look at him or say anything Finn: finn on the other hand stares at cimm expectantly, like he did something great that should strengthen their bond right here and now.

The party press on past the clearing, bidding the lonely horses farewell. Vinny dispels his dancing lights as they leave the area, bringing a darkness over them all again as they traverse the mists on the path.

Plum’s concentration continues, and they identify the second of Psalm’s items receiving the following information.

Zorilskin - Rare / a book bound in thick green hide, words written in here can be read and understood by tiny creatures

Plum: "you can use this book to talk to animals" jk i explain it more Psalm: "I feel like that's a bit of a waste as a gift to me but maybe it'll come in handy one day?"

As the party continue down the path, they find its slopes downwards slightly at a point, causing the trees next to it to curve over them. As they walk it almost feels as if they’re all walking through a wooden tunnel, though it's wide enough around them all to not feel claustrophobic.

As they slope back upwards, reaching what should be the end, Cimmorro spots in the distance, what seems to be a group of red butterflies, crowded over its exit. They appear to be regular red butterflies, though somewhat large, he’s never seen them before. He notes alot of them are fluttering over the exit, if they wanted to leaver the tunnel they’d have to walk through them.

He inches closer to get a better look warily, they seem a little agitated, very quickly flitting around each other. They dont seem to be crowding anything, just occupying the air, he doesn’t get the sense they could attack him though. Han quickly smells the air, noting its dry, the dirt protected from rain by the trees. As she continues she doesnt pick up the smell of corpses or the like... but she gets a whiff of something in a similar vein, dry and dusty... smells like bones.

Han: han scrunchies her face upon that "cimm, can you check undead?" Cinmmorro: wha-huh? why??" he does it anyway lol "don't sense anything of the sort aside from [pointing at finn]” Finn: he makes this face >:( Han: han sniffs over finns head "no.. something else"

Cimmorro: cimm turns around to the group "i dont suppose anyone knows how to talk to butterflies...?" Rokka: "unfortunately 😥 " Plum: "well ain't that a fucking coincidence" nudges psalm Psalm: "I'm kind of disturbed by the coincidence, but anyways... Anything you'd like to say?" Cimmorro: he just blinks between psalm and plum like ? bc he doesnt rly know abt the journal im assuming "uhhhh... they look pissed, but not at me i think... maybe ask them why they're pissed.....? is this a ghester thing?" Ghester: he chuckles at the implication Keva: keva's brows go up "wait, actually?" Psalm: "This book I got from the treant lets me communicate with small creatures somewhat," he explains. Keva: "oh gods i thought you could actually talk to bugs" Psalm: "I can't reveal all my tricks at once."| Rokka: oh oh! and tell them i said hi!" he taps psalm's shoulder repeatedly as he speaks Cimmorro: "wtf how useful" Psalm: "Weirdly so..." to cimm, anyways Psalm writes out, "Hello, pardon the intrusion but my friend in the robes wanted to know if there was something upsetting you? And the lupin says hello." Rokka: "yesss"

Psalm attempts to write this with his new dagger pen, but as he is not attuned it feels as if he’s writing with a regular dagger on the paper. He wiggles out a line before tearing the page in half.

Cimmorro: cimm watching u hold a dagger's blade like 😐 cimm seriously looks so fucking confused rn "are you well? did you perhaps eat one of those mushrooms on the way.." Psalm: "It's a pen that looks like a dagger." Cimmorro: there seems to be like a moment of clarity in his eyes before it turns into smth scrutinizing and goes like "..... i have no clue why anyone would find a need for such a thing"

Cimmorro hands him his own quill to write with, psalm writes his message on the bottom half of the now torn page of the journal.

Psalm: and then once that's done "How do I get their attention..." Cimmorro: "hold it out towards them is my best bet" he starts to wave a hand around near them to point at the journal too Psalm: he holds the page up in their general direction continuing the dagger convo "You could pull all sorts of tricks with it in my opinion." Cimmorro: "yes that whole tearing the page was very impressive it left me in quite a shock-"

As the two get close the butterflies seem to flit about more agitated, almost bulging in size before they seem to zip around the book, landing and flitting about Psalm’s hands. They quickly fly off and swarm again, shifting into shapes, spelling out words in the air.

'PROTECTING' 'SPOT' 'SHOO'

Psalm: "Haha..." Plum: "protecting it from what..." plum does not like that Cimmorro: "protecting spot.... does that mean they wont let us through?" Plum: "ask them what they're protecting the spot from 🤨 " Cimmorro: "good idea" Psalm: Psalm writes "What are you protecting it from?" and turns the journal back around. Keva: keva doesn't know what the fuck is going on but those sure are letters

they flit about again spelling 'EVERYTHING' 'ELSE'

Plum: "i guess they're just...doing their usual thing?" plum says Psalm: Psalm writes, "I'm guessing that includes us?", turns it back around

dancing through the air they speak 'YES' 'SHOO'

Cimmorro: "ahhh... maybe tell them we aren't really here to destroy anything, just passing by" Psalm: @ the butterflies "We just want to pass by, we're not anyone to be concerned about."

they flitter about again 'TRUTH' '?'

Psalm: "It's the truth, promise."

they idle in the air for a few moments before flitting about once more 'OKAY' 'SHOO'

The butterflies then scatter, perching on the edges of the exit flittering about, still seemingly agitated looking, but the way out is now free.

Cimmorro: "yay! thank you!" he chirps at them then gestures to everyone else to follow "no destroying of property now" Psalm: he writes "Thank you, we'll be on our way then." and holds it out “Maybe the strangest thing I've ever done, and we literally just exchanged riddles with a tree." Cimmorro: "was it really that strange? i thought that was pretty cool actually" he opens a hand out to psalm expecting his quill back Psalm: "Oh definitely, but no less strange." He hands the quill back Cimmorro: cimm replies with an amused smile thats also one of gratitude

Vinny: he rubs his chin as he eyes the butterflies walking past "strange they could use words back..." Cimmorro: "i was curious how they'd be able to communicate but that was not what i was expecting at all" Psalm: "Neither me."

The group all begin to shuffle on the trail back out into the open air of the misty and muggy path, continuing on through the darkness and the mist.

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> 🎵 White Pearlwort / Clock Tower 3 OST

After a time of walking Han begins to hear the faint sounds of a woman singing, it seems to come from all around, softly following them throughout the trees. Soon after she begins to hear the dulcet tones of a guitar join her too, though she still cant tell where its coming from.

Han: han slows down, and at the group goes "you guys hear that?" Psalm: "It's just one thing after another with this place huh" Han: "honestly... have you heard of sirens? ferrie would tell me about them.. maybe its something similar?" Psalm: "That inspires no confidence about this situation 😀 Although if it was a siren we'd already be in trouble having heard the singing." Han: 🤔

After she draws the groups attention they all begin to hear the tune as well, a few of them strain their ears wondering if they recognise the tune.

Plum recognises the humming as something parents would hum to their children in their home town, though not just theirs, alot of the green glades towns were fond of this particular tune. Though the woman isnt singing the lyrics, they know they're about sending good luck on a travellor heading home.

Plum: "my parents used to sing this to me and my sis when we were younger, it's kinda common around the towns near where i'm from" Han: :O "thats kinda cute.... i guess someones singing to some kids around here...?" Plum: "here though???" Han: she shrugs Psalm: "I don't think a reputably dangerous forest is the best place to be singing to children." Han: 🤔 "some people gotta live in reputably dangerous forest, and raise their kids, man.." Rokka: Rokka nods Psalm: "We've somehow arrived back at the conversation we were having earlier about forests I've realised." Han: "we did, yes" Psalm: "I think we should ignore it."

Finn: "I agree, let us not stray from our path" Han: i guess we just keep going and enjoy the music ? sorry milf not today

As they continue heading down the path the song eventually fades out the longer they walk, until they can no longer hear the tones of the woman or the guitar. The sounds that surround them are once again the creatures of the forest and the squelching of the mud under their feet. The mist keeps the group company alongside the cold.

As they continue down the path they finally come across a large ruddy red tree, this must be the one Spriggan had mentioned to them all earlier. They all gaze up at it and notice that there is in fact a sign hung upon it, luckily enough it seems to be pointing right, though there is no writing upon it.

As the group observe, out of the corner of his eye Psalm sees a dark figure amongst the trees and foliage. Though as quickly as he notices it, he blinks and it disappears, as if it were never there.

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> 🎵 Emergence Cave (Enemy Near) / Pikmin 2 OST

Han: "well.. guess we head right" 🤨 Rokka: “YES!” Psalm: going to say, "Wait, I just saw something...like a large beast in the trees over there." He points in the direction he saw the silhouette Han: han strains her eyes trying to see shit in the dark Cimmorro: he looks over too Finn: "how large exactly?.. did you get a good look?" Psalm: "Sadly no, but probably large enough that we should be concerned about it."

The group all peer over in the direction Psalm points out to see if they also see the creature in question, squinting over each others shoulders in the dark.

The party stare but none of them see any such creature or beast in sight, just the darkness of the forest around them.

Cimmorro: cimm just thinking psalm is unwell Psalm: CMON MAN FIRST THE PEN. Rokka: "hey....don't joke like that..." his ears points downwards Psalm: "I won't because I'm not joking." ^_^ Rokka: "now i wish u were joking" Keva: "i didn't see anything either" Psalm: "Well at least one of us did I suppose..." Han: han looks like 🤨 but goes "well... be on your guard. big creatures usually leave you alone, unless they are real desperate..." Finn: "perhaps we ought to......simply press on? theres not much we can accomplish by standing here...and we've no other feasible options, at least not any i could fathom. if we must, we will fight" Han: “could you guess what kinda beast it was? could be pack hunters... we should keep moving either way" Psalm: "Hmm 🤔 four-legged, kind of looked as if there were mushrooms growing out of its back." Han: han blinks "well, that sounds weird" Psalm: "Weird, but hopefully vegetarian”

The group all trudge on past the ruddy tree, following the sign and continuing down the path, undisturbed for the time being. The thought of a beast now sitting uncomfortably in the back of their minds.

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> 🎵 The Library / Kentucky Route Zero OST

As they head through the path, amongst the thick trees alongside this section of the road they spy a small wooden house, carved and built into the bottom of one of the large trees, similar looking to the ones in Duskridge. Glancing at it they note that its windows seem shut tight, and a big sign on the front door reads “- gone walking”

As Keva glances at it she notes a small dirt path branching off of the main one they’re walking down, leading behind the tree to a small clearing, she feels her feet aching a little. Squinting in the dark, she peers down the path and the clearing beyond, though its mostly behind the tree she thinks it looks like a small garden of sorts. She can see what look like crops, though strangely large to her eyes from here.

Han: "seems like we're going right way, spriggan did say we should see shacks" Keva: "this is just one house though. is it really what he was talking about?" keva points out the garden as well Han: 🤔 "thats good point.." Psalm: "We can probably just continue then? It's just a random house anyways." Han: "thats fair enough. okay, but...... we should keep going BUT... what if one of them witches live here" Psalm: "If they do, they've gone walking." He points at the sign Finn: "it is none of our business. let us stay on track " Han: 😥 "youre right.. we should just keep going" sad hannie Psalm: "I'm sure you'll meet one eventually...probably" Cimmorro: "we kinda promised those butterflies we wont be wrecking anything and i assume it includes breaking into houses... as much as i am interested in seeing a potential witch house" Han: "i dont wanna break in !!" Cimmorro: "how are u gonna get in 😭 " Rokka: "you shouldn't!!!" Han: "no how.. i just thought it would be cool to meet witch but theyre gone walking" points to the sign near tears "who cares... " oTL Cimmorro: "maybe they'll be back by the time we make our way back?" Han: instantly rejuvenated "maybe" Psalm: "I have no idea what I promised to those butterflies besides that we're harmless to be honest. "Which may not even really be true" shrugs Ghester: "i ought to start remembering these things for you" a familiar voice wisps in your head Cimmorro: "well..... you have a point..... still, let's not do anything rash.. we've seen enough weird shit already" Psalm: [speaking in infernal] "Well harmless is not the word I'd use to describe us...despite being well intentioned most of the time " Ghester: he chuckles "a sharpened weapon in the hands of someone ambiguous" Psalm: thinking about han and rokka climbing the masts of the airship like "yeah ambiguous..sure" Ghester: "i can think of worse words for it" Psalm: "Yeah so can I ☠" Ghester: [he laughs] Psalm: what's cimm thinking listening to half this convo in infernal which is just psalms habit atp Cimmorro: he just thinks ur trying to shittalk behind everyone and u somehow forget he can understand you, cimm at psalm rn

Psalm: HHRHTJDA the highs abd lows of cimms impression of psalm, he doesn't even lower his voice anymore btw there's no point Chip: only person who'd give him weird looks still is vinny

Cimmorro: just want to say at this point cimm has been cracking up lame jokes every now and then to whoever is nearest to him at the time Finn: even to me? Cimmorro: well............... hmm i have to th ink about that (yea actually he would too) Rokka: rokka cracking up @ them 100% fear meter lowered thx Keva: keva has to will herself not to laugh at how lame they are since their last convo ended on a weird note Psalm: he will just dry laugh Han: han would try to keep quiet in here so u would just here really loud snorts as she tries to keep it down or go "i dont get it"

Cimmorro: "why did the cat go to medical school? to become a first aid kit" Rokka: obnoxiously loud laughter from rokka "AHAHAHA GOOD ONE!" lightly smacks ur back

Sparing a few glances at the curious abode the party all continue onwards down the path, greeting the familair mist and trees. As they go Finn takes this as his opportunity to chat Cimmorro up thinking this walk an amazing opportunity to bond, especially after he stood up for Cimmorro and agreed with him in front of everyone to hear earlier on.

Finn: surely he must be aware of finns benevolence and good intentions now. he walks within respectful distance to the cleric, but close nevertheless, clearing his throat before striking up a conversation "hem hem. i do not recall if youre used to such terrain, how are you finding these woods pray tell? in fact, i wish to know about your homeland!" a straightforward demand... Cimmorro: cimm can't really put a name to the feeling that starts to bubble in his stomach whenever finn decides to amuse himself with his presence. he'll come to an idea sooner or later, but for now his eyes shoot up to the sky as he sucks in a breath. girl help. after a long exhale he replies "i think of it as quite pleasant. the mud getting in my boots is annoying but i'll live." he gives finn a look before he continues "also, we'll get there in a few days, i'm debating with myself if i should spoil the surprise..." he almost sounds unmotivated to do so Finn: "aha!" he exclaims and places a hand on his chest "my life in vargonia has me well immune to such annoyances by this point, believe it or not" he scans cimms face for a reaction, but is for now pleased to get anything out of the man at all. "hm.... i do not ask of you to tell me all there is... give me a little something to build anticipation up with. i do love a surprise that lives up to claims." it almost sounds like hes challenging him... almost. Cimmorro: "really?" for a split second he sounds genuinely surprised before the realization hits him. "ah, i guess fancy carriages have difficulty through swamps after all... you're gonna have to use your legs at some point." his mouth twists as he wonders if he should bite into whatever finn is trying to goad him in, unsure what the goal of it in general. "if you like the sea then that's something to look forward to. hmm and heights, i suppose." Finn: finns eyebrows rise up at the mention of carriages but he laughs in good nature "it is a problem, yes, but i was more referring to my time as a boy venturing the locale over and over" he checks his own legs out for a second though, for good measure, or perhaps just to ascertain his own ego "my proficiency for combat has had its roots somewhere after all..." he trails off at the mention of the sea. " the sea......... heights, yes... that is something i was imagining! i would very much like to see to what extend my imaginations hold true!" hes satisfied with the hints hes gotten, at least for this moment in time Cimmorro: cimm's interest seems to have been piqued and his head tilts a bit curious. "venturing the locale huh... do you just like traveling like that or is that because you plan to take over your uncle's trade? i'm surprised you seem you've yet to visit krenic when our homeplaces are rather close" Finn: finn is a bit stumped by the assumption and thinks for a moment before responding, the light mood from earlier noticably dissipated "there is a chance my uncle has been to your home, but certainly not during a time where i wouldve been permitted to travel. i do not recall my family having a particular interest in krenic" he takes on a thinking pose "although it is a bit ironic how 'close' we have been all our lives, if you will. to answer your question though, traveling is something i certainly appreciate.... but ive no plans to take after my dear uncle" he sounds like he would become lost deep in thought if you wanted to back out of the conversation now Cimmorro: the tilt in the mood makes cimm a little wary now that it seems like he struck a chord for sure... but finn would've let him know by now if he was offended at all by the conversation. perhaps it wouldn't hurt to dribble the ball a little longer. (a/n: he's about to shoot himself on the the foot) with a soft hum he goes, "permitted, you say? strict family?" Finn: finn gives him a bit of a tired but honest look before looking around them again with renewed awareness that theyre not conversing in private. he puts as much normalcy in his voice as he can manage, lest he'll sound weary. "yes, certainly. but that is simply par for the course for a noble such as myself. i wonder if youve similar experiences at all, if memory serves you dont seem to hold as low of a station within your group as i first assumed" (<- genuine)

Cimmorro gives Finn a glance to determine his true feelings for his family, disgust isnt the right word but with his intuition he infers that he must have a rocky relationship with at least some of his family. Certainly enough to bring his mood down to a slump.

Cimmorro: "hm... i suppose that makes sense." he refers to the noble strictness, gotta keep their prince at bay etc etc. a snort comes out of him at the last statement, but it's not in illwill. "would it amuse you to know that my parents practically wanted to drag me out of the temple? cause that's how it was. and i do hold a place in the hierarchy but that doesn't really bar me from leaving. it'd be beneficial to the temple, in fact, to be travelling since there is a lot of work to be done on the field..." he scratches his head a bit "i just didn't want to." Finn: now finns interest is piqued and that tired, melancholic look in his eyes seems to be overwritten by it. he tilts his head "i assure you in any other situation i would be amused, yes, but i cannot fathom that currently... how come you were so reluctant to leave? with what ive witnessed until now, i certainly wouldve not thought you a hermit" Cimmorro: he kinda just like, furrows his brows not in an angry way but in a suspicious-and-thinking way as he looks at finn and going "what's that supposed to mean?" at the last part Finn: finn briefly holds his hands up "do not take this the wrong way, but you strike me as the type that is miserable when foregoing social interaction for too long... at least it sounded to me like you were holed up in that temple of yours, just now" he proceeds to gesture vaguely "or did you mean to simply express your reluctance to leave krenic in general?" Cimmorro: cimm blinks and scrunches his face briefly as he figures out how to word this. "being holed up is my choice. after my mom left, willow was left to take care of the temple. i know they do it all with grace and our convent houses very capable people, but i see all the gaps my mother has left in her absence... the least i could do is try to fill them." he looks like he wants to say something else but purses his mouth shut and it's noticeable how he holds jasper a little closer to him. after another moment he shakes his head from the thought and continues. "additionally, i don't like not knowing what's happening back at home while i'm out here... i hardly get letters from them thanks to the nature of moving about so much." Finn: finn did not expect to get so much insight into cimms life at all and is at first taken aback by the amount of information revealed to him. he blinks a couple times and averts his gaze "that is... understanda- reasonable. i shouldve known you feel that way, i do apologize if ive offended you with my assumptions" a couple moments pass as he thinks, comparing their ways of living and views "i hope that you will be able to get the most out of our stop in krenic, then. after what youve told me i cannot imagine you being able to spare time for me, but if you do by some miracle..." he looks at you intently "...show me around your temple, will you?" Cimmorro: "you didn't offend me," he says this softly but he doesn't make eye contact as he mulls about something to himself. his attention returns at finn's request, making him a little surprised but not any less amused. "i will certainly have to make sure you and the others won't be making a mess in my tower, yes," said as a friendly jab with a snort. Finn: finn exhales some air in amusement, but its brief. "well, yes..." he trails off and looks at you still before gently laying a hand on your arm "may i confide in you with less... listeners?" Cimmorro: cimm stares at finn and his hand there feeling a little perplexed thinking, 'what could he possibly wanna tell me now????' if he wasn't holding jasper he would've moved finn's hand away already. cimm thinks he normally would like to know what stories finn might regale him... but after all the odd advances he's made before, he's not entirely sure if he should take up the request. "that... depends... this is like, actual talk, right? and not... [shakes his head ambiguously]"

Cimmorro: cimm emitting signals of wanting to be saved from this rn Keva: TFW THIS SEEMS LIKE A SITUAITON WHERE POEPLE WOULD OVERHEAR ABD BE LIKE I SHOULD GIVE THEM SPACE Han: EVERYONE STARTS WALKING LIKE 10 FEET AWAY FROM THEM Cimmorro: tapping his finger on his thigh for morse code of "help me" Celebrity Guest Aqua: ⚠ this is a cry for help Keva: i'm laughign at the image of eveyrone seeing finn put his hand on cimm's arm and eveyrone just visibly slowing down to give them a wide berth Chip: just awkwardly averting eyes Keva: the side eye monkey, side eye chrom even Chip:

Finn: finn simply nods and removes his hand "i suppose 'confide' might be the wrong word... i simply would like to speak with you in private... that is all" he seems pretty neutral about all this Cimmorro: ".... this is something other than sending a message to your uncle?" Finn: he nods again Cimmorro: he seems a little conflicted with his lips shut and twisting at the ends. "i don't know how private you intend to be given the fact that we are travelling on a ship" Finn: finn nearly chokes, if it hadnt been for cimmorros uncomfortable expression he wouldve thought he was being hit on! he coughs instead and shakes his head clear "it is not so urgent that i must talk to you on the ship, although i do not doubt that plum would kindly leave me be for 10 minutes if i ask them to" he laughs, wondering if cimm hates him so much he cant even fathom making space for him at all Cimmorro: cimm only stares at finn for a moment, weighing the pros and cons to this and what might possibly happen: he has no fucking clue. then he turns to look at the group quickly before he huffs and looks at finn again. "fine. but she," he points at jasper "is coming with. at least if i go missing i'll have a witness" it was an exaggerated example said half-humorously, but he does want some extra pair of eyes and ears. at least the rest of the party is aware. Keva: 🤨 Cimmorro: :y 🇸 🇴 🇸 Vinny: 😐 Han: 😒

Finn: finn gives a dry, tired laugh and says somewhat sharply "if i had planned such things i would not be so stupid to announce that to our group now, would i? but nevertheless cimmorro" he composes himself "your cat is free to join us of course" Cimmorro: "yes, of course, my liege. you are the smartest around. /s" his head faces forward again. "in any case, you know where to find me whenever your whimsy calls for it. i'm bored enough on the ship to humor you a little." Finn: finn is sure he can feel his eye twitching. what exactly did he talk to cimmorro again for? what was it that vorde wanted him to learn? hes not sure, there cant have been a reason. that he knows. "on second thought, perhaps i ought to leave you to rot in that boredom!" he turns his head away and crosses his arms, clearly done with this. Cimmorro: cimm listerally just goes like this

Cimmorro: he's like unfazed by finn's little eruption just now. perhaps he's being too prideful in thinking so, but can he be blamed for being a little wary? it's all just so sus. "that's not really a loss for me. maybe it is for vinny though, his one chance of having me out of his hair for a while." he laughs loudly Vinny: 😐❓ Cimmorro: 😉 Vinny: at the funny look he shakes his head to himself, embarassed

Finn: finn briefly thinks about shouting that he knows better than vinny and will not engage this folly any longer, but the act of responding at all would betray his intention. so he makes a little "tch" sound and completely ignores cimmorro from here on Cimmorro: cimm merely smiles to himself amused. after beat or two passes, he goes "ah," and turns his head to the back of the group wherever han is "by the way, han, you can't see well in the dark can you?" Han: well since u got darkvision u see han frown at u childlishly "no. maybe. whats it to you" Cimmorro: he pouts at her as if to say 'i'm an innocent puppy why are you being so distant...i can help you, i can give you a torch that never runs out. you just need to help me get some ruby dust" he continues his pouting and teases "but if you don't waaaaant it......." Han: :O "how does it work?? could i turn it off?" Cimmorro: he grins now that he got han's attention proper. "it's a spell! i can make an object emit light like a flame but it doesn't burn. and you can cover it, so i would suggest something small and easy to hide." Han: han goes 🤔 "that could be useful, yeah... it last long?" Cimmorro: "last as long as until it's dispelled 😗 " Han: think thonk think thonk.. "what about on sheep charm you gave me?" :O Cimmorro: "ohhh!" he beams, "that could work well! if you change your mind on it we can always do it again on something else. though i'd need the ruby dust again" Han: han makes another thinking face but its closer to 🙄 almost "if i come across some ruby dust.. ill think about it..." Cimmorro: "alright, you just let me know then. we could also inquire spriggan and perhaps vinny can help haggle ^o^....🎶 " Han: han just wiwis at the idea

As the party continue down the path for a time chatting amongst one another, they soon begin to pick up tinkling, high pitched laughter and whispers following them, glancing around though they don't seem to see anything.

Rokka, Psalm and Cimmorro feel their clothes tugged very lightly, as if pinched, in funny directions as they walk, it is ever so slightly distracting. Vinny also yelps as he nearly stumbles over something, as they peer back at him they see him glancing around at the ground confused, steadying himself.

Psalm: 0__0) imagine psalm's just making that face, literally just pretending it's not happening Rokka: "wuh?-WAOH WHAT THE" rokka looks around hm Cimmorro: cimm is looking around too like ? also reaching a hand out to wherever is the thing that's tugging at him

As Cimmorro glances at Jasper he sees her perched on his shoulder moving her head around as if watching something move around him in the air.

Chip:

Han: "we have visitors" han is like, hand on arrows lol Psalm: "Yeah I can tell." Cimmorro: i turn to rokka a little alarmed and asks "what is she seeing?" Rokka: rokka nods at cimm and turns to jasper "jasper what's going on!?" Jasper: she meows her eyes still roving around "little bugs in mushroom hats..." she looks like she's got the urge to start pawing at the air Rokka: "bugs in mushroom hat?" he looks confused though still alarmed and turns to cimm "BUGS IN MUSHROOM HATS" half yelping as he talks Cimmorro: [insert cartoon character being blown away as they get yelled at animation] Finn: finn just looking between them like ó__ò this for a sec before clearing his throat "if the worst theyll do is tug at your clothes we've nothing to fear im sure" ??: as you say that you feel something pull and pinch your cheek before letting go again, sparkly giggles filling the air Finn: finn rubs his cheek and makes a tsk sound before grumbling "annoying, sure, but nothing worth making a fuss over" ??: at your comment you hear a high pitched voice go 'awwww he's not scared...’ Rokka: "theyre gonna pants me if this keeps up!" Psalm: "I would be genuinely impressed if they managed that." Cimmorro: "they seem harmless, err.. though ahh.." he speaks up a little louder aimlessly hoping the creatures hear him "can you lot move to the side where we can avoid stepping on youuuu?" assuming that's what vinny tripped over ??: as you speak at the air you hear more tinkling giggles as they play with your earrings Vinny: you hear vinny sigh to himself behind you "i didnt step on them, they tried to trip me...." he eyes the air around him "they're pixies... dont grab my hat please..." he holds it tight while glancing carefully at the ground as he walks Han: "can you see them?" :O Vinny: he whips his eyes up at han then back down at his feet again "no ah- i've just encountered them before, it would be almost nostalgic if i didn't fear falling over on myself or losing something" Psalm: "Yall hear something...?" 🤔 Cimmorro: cimm shudders and shakes his head at the contact. "should we just ignore them then?" Plum: "probably" Psalm: "Ignore what?" VERY OBVIOUS SARCASM ??: you feel something tug on your earrings and then more laughter 'his ears broke~!' 'should i shout?' Psalm: he says, "Wow, I can't hear a thing " ^_^ ??: you hear more amused giggling 'should we siiing?' 'what's your favourite song?' Keva: keva's just like 🤨 but smiling a little bc she's kinda amused watching them swat about at nothing Han: ^ han same Rokka: rokka just gripping his pants 4 his life "please stop pulling on my pants ☹ " Psalm: "You gave them that idea I'm afraid," Psalm snorts. Rokka: "ah...." ??: you hear more giggling around you 'why~?' 'could we really pull them off?'

As they walk Keva subtly tugs her hand on Rokka’s pants to pull them down a little harder, though careful to pass it off as the pixies.

Rokka: "PLEEEASEEEHEEEHEEEEEE" ??: you hear a group of them burst out laughing at your shout Keva: keva presses her lips together for a second to keep a smile from showing ??: one of them starts to play with your hair and giggle 'she's funny!' 'funny!' Keva: keva flinches a bit at the suddenly touch but recovers soon after and just lets it play, laughing a bit and greeting the pixie with a small “hello” ??: you hear a group of them go 'hi!' 'hello!' hiii!' they seem very taken with you and your prank Keva: keva subtly starts walking in a way that makes her ponytail swing back and forth for the pixie playing with her hair

Vinny: vinny hmms "its better to entertain them a little, theyre kind of like...fussy kids" he says the last part a little quieter but you hear him ack as something on him his pinched Han: han drops her hand from her arrows and seems content to keep walking "what was your last time with them like?" Vinny: he rubs his nose with one hand as he looks over at you "oh yeesh.... when i was a kid i think, i found them scary.... but my father taught me i ought to play with them....." his sentence peeters out a little after that Cimmorro: @ vinny "please, by all means, demonstrate" Vinny: at the suggestion vinny makes a somewhat childish face as if he doesnt want to before realising hes making it then shaking his head again speaking up "err...who here likes to carry a tune?" you hear a small chorus of cheering near him agree before he starts whistling something softly to the air, you hear a few of the sparkly voices join him Psalm: @ Ghester "Why don't you join Vinny? I'm sure you'd give the pixies a scare if you suddenly spoke to them." Ghester: "hmmm a ghost in the crowd? maybe they'll find me too interesting and steal me away?" Psalm: "If it gets them to leave me alone that's two birds with one stone." Ghester: "so cruel... 😭 " Psalm: Psalm just laughs but he continues to ignore the pixies ??: you hear a few of them start singing a tune near your ear, enraptured with your swaying earing

Han: "ought to? they seem like mosquitos" beat passes "no offense, pixies" ??: you hear one hmph near you and another speak shrilly 'were stronger than bugs~!' 'sooo strong!' Han: han snorts at the we're so strong comment then goes "youre stronger you say? you should prove it then" 😏 ??: you hear some high pitched giggling as they chitter around you, you feel them start pulling at your ponytail and your cloak as if searching you for something Han: han just poses hands on hips "checking out my sick muscles are we" ??: you hear some bemoaning you 'soooo biggggg' 'toooo biggg' 'you dont need to be so tall!' Han: "are you kidding? i could be even taller!!" ??: you dont notice anything as they chitter around you at the comment you hear one go ‘auuugh! dont!' 'way too lame...' Han: "are you calling me lame?? what this? YOURE lame" sticks out tongue at the air ??: you feel something pinch your tongue before letting go as you stick it out, a chorus of giggling follows Han: han squaks "you lil brats!!" ??: the giggling you only gets higher in pitch as you react Han: han just humphs at them n keeps walking until they decide to interact w her again

As Finn glances at Han’s silly conversation with the pixies he notices that the back of her ponytail is....slowly becoming braided.... in an amusingly weird way.

Finn: finn snorts but decides to leave han uninformed, instead opting to watch.... he does speak a bit quieter lest han hears him "i shall offer my hair as well.." he flips it like an anime girl to entice the pixies ??: as you speak a few begin pinching your face again seemingly amused, you can feel one starting to rummage around back there though giggling to themselves Finn: finn yelps a bit, as he didnt expect to get his face pinched again and rubs the spots when theyre let go of "ah come on! this wasnt part of the plan!" (<- not genuinely irritated more like.. a bit whiny) Psalm: "Youre letting them get to you ☠☠ (lol)" ??: you hear more giggling as they prod your face 'oooh sharp teeth~!' 'so soft~' you cannot see the work of the great pixie behind you but assume some god like shits going on back there, han's is becoming very silly looking though Psalm: now this is more flattering... finn proudly shows off his fangs and grins "beautiful, arent i? id wager not many as appealing as i trudge through these woods every day.." he has high hopes for the pixie in the back... ??: you hear them giggle at your words 'like an actor' 'in a play!' they start laughing even harder Finn: finn laughs a bit and replies to them in sylvan from here on "how very flattering of you. wont you let me catch a glimpse of my fellow performers?" ??: you hear surprised ooohs from the crowd 'sylvan!' 'funny accent!' 'hello cousin!' you feel them squeeze your cheeks now like theyre hugging your face instead, the request forgotten Finn: "hello hello..." he laughs warmly and leans into their touch "is my accent really so noticable? ive always thought myself quite good at slyvan" ??: "it is!' 'we talk quick, but you talk fancy' 'like a drawl' 'funny!' Finn: "hmm... sounds like its not a problem, then. although i suppose i could attempt to speak in the manner you do" he thinks for a moment about how to best boil his questions down "are you bored? lonely?" ??: you hear a fit of giggling at the question 'noooo' 'nope!' 'we like to play with people' 'were playing right now!' you hear a group of cheers Finn: finn converses in a friendly manner with them, entertaining for while they walk.

Rokka: rokka fighting for his life Plum: "you need some help?" Rokka: "how do i get them to stop? I almost lost my pants just now!" Plum: "try playing a game with them i guess, like what vinny said" plum jerks a thumb over at him whistling Rokka: he glances over at vinny before looking down around him "uh....do you guy want to play a game?" ??: you hear more giggling 'will it be more fun than this?' Rokka: "Give it a try to find out! Please" ??: you hear a group go 'hmmmmmm~' before saying 'okay!' 'what will we play...' Rokka: "Up to u?" A little preoccupied w the pants ??: 'oooooh' 'he's silly isnt he?' you hear more giggling 'okaaay how about you guesssss... how many of us there are! Rokka: He thinks, tapping his chin, " 25!" ??: you hear a stunned chorus of fairies shout out 'whoa!!!!!' 'he got it right!' ' did you cheaaat?' Rokka: He perks up smiling a little "I GOT IT RIGHT? I WON!?" he shakes his head "no cheating here!" Psalm: he just looks genuinely confused how rokka was able to guess that Plum: for real plum thought rokka had fucked up not suggesting his own game but he won that ??: you hear more surprised oooooh's 'smart and funny!' 'is he psychic?' 'maybe he can see us!' 'so powerful...' they seem excited by this and start playing with your ears Rokka: Rokka's ears start twitching as he squirms trying to shoo them away and giggles " hey that tickles!" ??: like children captivated with a new toy your pants are now free from their clutches as they perch in your fur excitedly Rokka: after hearing finn speak in sylvan, rokka decides to put some use to his broken sylvan skills "hello! rokka me, you name?" relaxing now that they've stopped messing with his clothes ??: you hear excited shouts 'rokka!' 'cousin rokka!' 'another funny accent' you hear a spilling of names, fig, toadstool, dust and twine as they hug your fur Rokka: rokka smiles at them calling him cousin

Cimmorro: cimm's now amused at all the events happening, not even sure what to focus at anymore. "they seem like the audience that would've appreciated my jokes earlier </3" ??: you hear some ooooh?'s near your face 'tell us your best joke and maybe we'll leave you alone~!' 'if its bad we'll steal something' followed by a fit of giggling Cimmorro: "heh, i say nothing but good jokes. listen to this, what did the fish say when it swam into a wall?" ??: you hear a gaggle of what? what? what? Cimmorro: "dam" he makes a face that's like ehhh? ehhh?? cmahnn Plum: plum makes a face Chip: performance check Cimmorro: I KNEW YOUD DO THAT FICUK YOU

??: you hear a pause as your audience considers the landing before a great erupture of high pitched giggling 'it was good' 'it was!' 'lucky you!' Cimmorro: cimm tries to play it cool but he's sweating a little

Keva: as keva keeps walkin she asks out of curiously "why can't we see you? ??: you hear one go hmmmm? and another speak up 'its more fun to hide~!' 'easier to prank' 'you get it!' Keva: "can't argue with that... will you let me see what you look like?" addressing the one playing with her ??: you hear a very thoughtful 'hmmmmmm...' before you feel the one in your hair release it. you blink and you see something floating in the air in front of your face 'hiii~!' you spy a little humanoid creature with stocky arms and legs wave at you, fluttering wings shimmering on its back, on its head sits the top of a mushroom only letting you see its cheeky grin

Keva: keva gives a small amused smile and chuckle and waves some fingers back "you're rather cute" ??: you see the pixie comically blush and fold their arms behind themselves as their scuff their foot in the air 'awwwww... what a charmer!' Keva: "do pixies have names?" Limerick and friends: the reach their arms out excitedly 'yeeeep! im limerick!' as they give their name a few other nearby start shouting theirs to not be left out 'fern!' 'berry!' 'swansong!' 'cherub!' Keva: "limerick? like the funny poems? how fun" keva starts trying to remember ones she heard as a kid trying to pass time Limerick: 'just like that yep! they're my favourite' you watch the little pixie twirl in the air before it goes to settle in your hair again Keva: keva quietly recites a few she knows to the best of her memory to limerick

The pixies continue to accompany the party for a time on their walk, though after a bit they hear a few of them yawn.

??: 'getting tired...' 'cant wander too far...!'

They feel the ones messing about with them suddenly flitter away, all at once they blink and the group of them giggling together make themselves visible.

??: one of them floats up to the front and speaks in its sparkling voice ‘thanks for playing, funny looking friends~!’ they make a motion with their hands and in a puff of sparkles, drop something into your hands before they all disappear in a group of hushed laughter, flittering off into the dark. Han: han sticks out her tongue again as bye Finn: when its time to part he bids them farewell in their shared tongue and bows like an actor... inspecting the parting gift curiously now Keva: she says bye softly as they leave Rokka: waving good bye to them "bye cousin fig, cousin dust, cousin twine and everyone else!!" his grin widens hearing them call him their friend "hehe cousin friends.." he mumbles to himself

Peering down at their hands, they all spy a small red berry the size of their respective thumbs, it seems to glow with a magical sparkle.

Finn: "is anyone familiar with these berries?" he looks through the party Plum: "i can try"

As they trot on Plum takes their time to examine the berries, making their way further into the forest. Feeling they're surely reaching the end of the path soon, they ponder what strange things await them just up ahead, their pockets bulging with new gifts.....

Notes

—

🔮 Psalm recieved a「 Shard Pen✨ 」and a「 Zorilskin✨ 」

🗡Keva recieved 「 Unidentified Ink✨ 」

-👨‍👩‍👦‍👦👨‍👨‍👧‍👦 The Party recieved「 Red Berries✨ 」

#recaps #yaaaay

0 notes

fific7 · 3 years

Text

Ticket to Ride - Part 5

Billy Russo x Reader

A/N: Inspired by The Beatles song of the same name. This takes place in my S1 Punisher AU with Arrogant!Billy in attendance, in which he gets a taste of his own medicine.

Warnings: 18+ NSFW due to sexual content, including oral and unprotected, between consenting adults* in some chapters. Drinking and swearing.

*Irl, please don’t go wild in the country without protection.

(My photo edit)

𝕄𝕪 𝕓𝕒𝕓𝕪 𝕕𝕠𝕟'𝕥 𝕔𝕒𝕣𝕖

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Billy had begun to doze off in the warmth of the gathering dusk, so when he heard her voice saying his name, he was startled. He swung round to where she was standing behind him then leapt up and went to her, folding her into his arms and just hugging her, saying nothing.

After a few short moments, she pushed back from him and stepped away, began walking towards the hotel. “I’m going to take a shower, Billy. Then I think we should go somewhere and eat. And talk,” she said over her shoulder.

“Okay, sweetheart, I’ll be here waitin’ on you.”

At least she let me hug her, he thought.

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Walking out of the hotel and across the courtyard after your shower, you saw Billy lying flat out across the park bench, boots on the ground and long legs bent at the knees where the seat ended. His eyes were closed and you realised he’d dozed off.

“Billy.” No response. “Billy!” slightly louder. Still no movement. You reached out a hand, shook his shoulder and jumped slightly when his hand shot out and grabbed your wrist. His dark brown eyes were wide open now and staring up at you, and he immediately let go of you. “Ahhh… sorry sweetheart, didn’t realise it was you.” “Spidey senses not working any longer, Marine?” He grinned up at you, before moving and standing up next to you. “You’re to blame, kitten. I’m losing sleep over you.”

You scoffed, “Uhuh. Sure you are. Well, let’s get this show on the road. I’ve got a rec from the reception guy for dinner.” You turned and started walking quickly towards the alleyway, Billy taking only two long strides to catch up with you. “Where we headed?” “Just a little way along the waterfront, past that big church - Il Redentore. There’s a restaurant with tables right next to the water, called ‘I Figli delle Stelle’. Means ‘Children of the Stars’.” You’d turned your head towards him as you spoke and he smirked at you, “Sounds romantic, angel.” Eye roll from you, “That wasn’t my intention, believe me. The reception guy said it would still be pretty quiet at this time of the evening, later on it’ll get busy as the locals eat dinner around 9.30 or 10 pm.”

“Oh, okay,” he said, sounding a little despondent, “I hear ya.” The two of you walked in single file as you made your way through the alleyway, and Billy hurried to get back next to you as you turned right at the waterfront. There was a tense silence as you walked, and you surely weren’t going to be the one to break it. You could tell that Billy was antsy as hell and you were glad… he should be, the big douchebag. After a few moments, he asked, “How much further is this place?” like a kid on a day trip. “I think it’s that group of tables along there,” you answered, “so only a couple of minutes.” Billy wasn’t the most patient of men. “Okay,” he mumbled.

Lordy, he was getting more tense by the minute, you could feel negative energy coming off him in waves. You knew Billy, knew he’d be dreading talking about what he’d done, his feelings, having to (no doubt) apologise over and over. Serves you right, you big bastard, you thought.

Arriving beside the restaurant tables, you noted that only two tables were occupied so you should be able to have a certain amount of privacy in which to hear Billy’s confession. Checking for ‘reserved’ signs, you chose a table in the row right next to the water, well away from the other patrons. The maitre d’ appeared next to you holding two menus, and you asked in Italian if it was okay to sit at the table you’d chosen. Assured that it was fine, he asked if you wanted to order drinks and you asked for a large glass of rosé Prosecco and a Peroni for Billy. As he nodded and walked away, Billy asked, “Whaddya order for me?” You started laughing and he stared at you, puzzled. “Billy… with a last name like Russo I cannot believe you don’t know that Peroni is an Italian beer!”

He looked shamefaced, “Yeah, yeah, okay! So I’m a terrible Italian-American. Thanks for orderin’ a beer for me, not in the mood for wine.” You and Billy began reading through the menu, suitably impressed by the delicious-sounding dishes on offer. The drinks appeared shortly afterwards, and you made your choices - Billy had decided on a steak, and you’d chosen seafood linguine. You clinked your glass to Billy’s beer bottle, “Salut.” Billy grinned, “Yeah, so here’s me - the Italian-American - and there’s you, the all-American girl, Italian rollin’ off your tongue. I didn’t know you spoke it, sweetheart.” You smirked at him as you sipped your chilled Prosecco, “Seems like there’s a lot of things you don’t know about me, Billy. Like… how I will not tolerate cheating in any way, shape or form.”

A pained look crossed his face. Yeah, Billy… time to spill.

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Billy took a long swig of his beer and cleared his throat. Here goes nothing, he thought. She was studying his face like it was a painting hanging in a gallery.

“I’ve been an asshole.”

She nodded, “I know you have, Billy. Cheating 1.01 - don’t lie about working late and then come home smelling of booze and another woman’s perfume. Oh… and a big smear of her lipstick on the inside collar of one of your shirts.” He winced, looking away, not able to meet her eyes. He twirled the beer bottle round a few times on the table top and finally met her gaze again. “Yeah, not smart, I agree. But… angel, I didn’t actually cheat on you. Not as such.”

She laughed, but it was not a happy sound. “Not as such?! What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” He reached across and put his hand over hers, but she pulled hers away. “Frankie and I got into some shit with Homeland - to do with Afghanistan back when we were servin’.” He saw her eyebrows rise, and hurried on, “We sorted alla-that out with them, but had to agree to carry out a joint operation with them on somethin’ related to it. We found out that our liaison agent - Dinah Madani - was holdin’ back some critical information from us and we needed to know what and why, and make sure she didn’t do it in future.”

Taking a sip of her Prosecco she laughed, again without humour. “Don’t tell me, she wears Eternity.” He looked at her, confused, “What?” “Her perfume, Billy, her perfume.” He shrugged, “I really dunno.” “That’s not good, Billy. She’ll be expecting you to buy her some for her birthday.” He’d been drinking his beer and he brought the bottle back down with a bang. “No! I won’t be buyin’ anything for her anytime, okay?” he hissed at her, aware that the other diners’ heads had turned towards them at the loud noise his beer bottle had made on the table top. He leant in further towards her but then spotted the waiter heading their way with their plates, and moved back in his seat.

Silence fell again, even after the waiter had gone. Napkins unfolded and placed on laps, cutlery picked up, sips of drinks taken, first forkfuls of food eaten, gazing at Venice across the canal.

Billy cut another piece of his fillet steak, looking down at his plate while saying in a low voice, “I knew Madani had the hots for me. An’ I… I used that to my advantage.”

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You were thoughtfully chewing your mouthful of linguine, swallowing it before picking up your flute of Prosecco and sipping from it. He was silent, also chewing, still not meeting your eye. Let him pick this back up, you thought and sat back slightly, silent.

His eyes slowly raised to yours, apprehension apparent in them. Another throat clearing, another swig of beer…. a big one. Oh ho, you thought, whatever was about to come out must be really bad. You were mad at him but at the same time couldn’t deny you were dreading what you were about to hear.

“I… uh.. took her out a few times for drinks after work. Made out with her a couple times after we left the bar…” he gulped visibly, “Uh… felt her up, let her feel me up.” He broke eye contact, grabbed the beer bottle again and took a huge drink, muttering “Sorry, I’m really sorry,” before looking fearfully at you once more. You stared back at him and hoped your face was expressionless. You actually wanted to smack him in the face and stalk off back to your hotel, but that masochistic streak goaded you to say, “Oh yeah? ….And?” He narrowed his eyes, “And what?” “Exactly, Billy - and what? You’re seriously telling me that was it? It stopped right there?” He nodded vigorously, “Yeah! Yes, sweetheart - it did, I swear!”

Picking up your glass once more, you said in a low voice, “Sorry, Billy, I don’t believe you. I think you took her to some shitty motel and the two of you fucked. Maybe more than once.” His face flushed but then you realised he was angry, not caught out in a lie.

“No,” he said between gritted teeth, “I. Did. Not!” emphasising each word with a thump of his hand on the table. He leant across the table until his face was very close to yours, “It was my stupid fucked-up version of a honey trap, okay! I hated lyin’ to you, angel, and I’m so, so sorry I did that, but I was between a rock and a hard place. I had to find out what her game was. I don’t trust her an inch and I think she’s still after me an’ Frankie for somethin’ else that went down in Kandahar.”

You watched his eyes become distant, and you knew in his head he was back in that hellhole. “Seems like a helluva lot went down in Kandahar,” you said quietly, and his eyes refocused on yours. “Oh, sweetheart, you have no idea,’ he said softly, and chanced placing his hand on yours again. This time you didn’t draw away. “I don’t want you to have to hear all about that shitshow, but I’ll tell you another time… if you want me to.” He laced his fingers through yours, and squeezed your hand, “I promise you, on my life, that I’ll never lie to you again. Total honesty, I swear.”

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You sighed, “Billy… I appreciate the sentiment, I do… but it doesn’t matter because we’re not together any more.” Billy rocked backwards as if you’d slapped him, and he stuttered, “But.. but we.. I… no! We are! We are still together!” You shook your head, “Maybe you don’t think that what you did with - what was her name again, Madani?” (you absolutely knew what her name was) “yeah, Madani - was cheating but Billy, you kissed her, you got up close and personal with her. You let her think you were interested in her, that she had a shot of getting with you. Okay you say you didn’t sleep with her, maybe you didn’t - but you still went behind my back and acted like you wanted to be with her. How can you expect me to be with you after you betrayed me like that? I don’t share, Billy - even if it’s fake.”

His eyes were wide, filling with tears. “No…please. Don’t say that, please. I… I can’t be without you, you’re the only one who makes me feel safe and… loved.” He placed his other hand on top of your joined hands, and his voice was so low you almost couldn’t hear it, “I love you, angel. So much.”

Now it was your turn to sit back abruptly in your seat. You and Billy had never had that conversation. You loved him but you’d made sure never to tell him that, as you didn’t believe he’d ever reciprocate the feeling. And now he’d said it. First. Before you had.

But did he mean it? Or just saying it to try and stop you breaking up with him?

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

He saw her taking in what he’d just said. He’d known that he loved her for some time but couldn’t get the words past his lips, he’d been shit-scared to say it out loud. Just let the status quo prevail, until she’d left him.

He was not going to let her break up with him. He just wouldn’t allow it, he needed her. She still had not said anything so he laid a finger on her bottom lip and gently ran it back and forward. He sensed he needed to say something more.

“I’m not just sayin’ it for effect, angel. I’ve been in love with you for a while but I’ve been too scared to say anything, I… I wasn’t sure you felt the same way.” She was still gazing at him, her eyes wide and looking a little teary. He felt a tear running down his own cheek and wiped it away abruptly. “Please don’t break up with me, just…. don’t, please. Give me another chance, I promise I won’t screw up this time.”

He heard her draw in a big breath and his stomach knotted. What was she going to say?

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

“Oh Billy….” you raised a hand and wiped away another tear from his cheek, “I… need a little time to take all this in, okay? I thought it was quite straightforward - you’d cheated on me, end of story. And don’t think that because you tell me you love me I’m gonna forget about what you did, because I can’t. Not just like that.” You snapped your fingers in the air. “But you’ve really muddied the waters for me now.”

Billy grinned tearfully at you, “Well, I’m glad I’ve managed to do that at the very least. Means I might still have a chance.” You must’ve looked sceptical or something because he rushed to say, “A very slim chance, I know.”

Sighing, you extricated your hands from his and picked up your fork. “Let’s finish our dinner before it gets totally cold and inedible and we can talk more later.”

He nodded, “Okay, sweetheart. Must admit, I’m starvin’.” You couldn’t stop yourself smiling at him, “When they say that an army marches on its stomach, they weren’t kidding, were they?” “Hell no they weren’t,” he grinned back at you.

You moved on to small talk and once dinner was finished and paid for a short while later, the two of you strolled back to the hotel. Billy had tucked your hand into the crook of his elbow, and you’d let him. Your brain wasn’t really functioning at normal speed at that point and you were looking forward to getting back to your room; you wanted to think very carefully about what you were going to do about Billy.

Back at the hotel, you made your way past Reception and headed for the stairs, Billy following close behind you. Reaching your door, you didn’t unlock it but turned to face him. You could see the hopeful look on his face but he was going to be disappointed. You weren’t going to take that step tonight, no matter how much you missed Billy, his arms around you, his body next to yours, legs tangled together. You gave him a small smile, and you saw the hope fading out of his eyes.

You put a hand on his arm, “Let’s spend some time together tomorrow. I want to visit the Lagoon islands.”

»»————————————-———-　⚜　———————————-————-««

The Lagoon islands? He had no idea what or where those were, but he’d go to the moon if she wanted to because she’d said they could spend some time together. “So, no more running out on me, angel?” She smiled more widely at him, “No, not for now, Billy.”

He took a chance and pulled her into his arms, his mouth finding hers in a heated kiss. She didn’t stop him, so one hand made its way to the back of her neck and the other down onto her waist. He pushed his hips into hers - he knew she felt his arousal - and he was still holding out a tiny bit of hope that she’d invite him into her bed.

But now she did pull away, laughing up at him and giving him a quick soft kiss on the cheek, “G’night, Billy, sleep well.” He shook his head, smiling back at her, “You know I won’t… not in this state,” gesturing at his zip area and the tightened fabric of his jeans. She waggled her right hand at him, “Isn’t that what this is for?” He grabbed it, guiding it immediately to his zip, “If you’re offerin’, sweetheart, I’d be more than happy to take you up on that.” “Your hand! Not mine, you cheeky devil!” she laughed, pulling her hand away from him, “Now, goodnight! I’ll see you in the morning, downstairs for breakfast at about 8 or half past, okay?” He nodded, pushing his luck again and stroking her cheek, kissing her once more but more reserved this time, “G’night, angel, have sweet dreams…of me.” Rolling her eyes, she unlocked her door and disappeared into her room.

Billy walked jauntily along the corridor, throwing in a couple of dance moves as he went, feeling elated. He was feeling really optimistic for the first time since the day he’d seen her ‘Goodbye’ note and the torn photo.

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(My photos - June 2012)

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@blackbirddaredevil23 @omgrachwrites @behindmyeyes-insidemyhead @ourloveisforthelovely @swthxrry @odetostep @supernaturalcat7 @obscurilicious @strawb3rrydr3ss @bruxa0007 @aleksanderwh0r3 @theshadowkingsqueen @bat-luna-cat @carlywhomever

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#billy russo #ben barnes #billy russo x reader #billy russo fanfiction #billy russo imagine #billy russo fanfic

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khunfounded · 3 years

Text

Penne alla Vodka

[My first Ehwaryun fic! It’s a little not sfw (they make out) but basically it’s just my gals cookin up some romance]

Ehwa was furiously reading through the recipe Viole had given her to see what had gone wrong with her stew to have it looking so grey when there was a knock on the door. She shoved the paper onto the counter and stormed over to the door, throwing it open.

“What is i-? Oh, It’s you”.

Standing at the door was Hwaryun, piercing crimson eye crinkled up in amusement. She wore a deep grey sweater dress and black tights that on anyone else would be at most comfy, but on her was criminally unfair. Ehwa really couldn’t stand these FUG guys, walking around like they owned the place and looking better than you doing it.

“Yes, I suppose it is,” Hwaryun smirked, folding her arms together leisurely, like she had all the time in the world.

Ehwa put her hands on her hips and tapped her foot, “What are you doing here? Can’t you tell Viole’s out with your,” she gestured around her head, “Guide sense stuff?”

Hwaryun chuckled and Ehwa felt a shiver run down her spine. FUG people sure were creepy like that. Yes, that was it. Ehwa was creeped out, nothing else.

“Maybe my ‘Guide sense stuff' led me to exactly where I needed to be”.

“Well that’s not purposefully vague at all,” Ehwa said sarcastically, but her words were overtaken by the beeping of the oven.

“Oh shit! I totally forgot,” She said, rushing over and pulling out rolls that could politely be deemed as being ‘incinerated’. She growled angrily and slammed the plate down onto the counter, sending the rolls that weren’t stuck down flying.

Fuck. Why was this so hard? She was supposed to be a shining beacon of her family but she couldn’t even fucking cook right, let alone control her own powers. She had tried taking over cooking duties from Viole again, to prove herself, but she just kept failing time and time again. It had gotten to the point where some of the others would go and get take-out while she was still cooking.

Ehwa blinked back tears of frustration as she gripped the edge of the counter, looking around at the disaster area she’d turned the kitchen into. Behind her, there was a thoughtful hum.

“Yes, I can see that I’m exactly where I need to be,” Ehwa turned around and came almost nose to nose with Hwaryun, who was graciously not wrinkling up her nose at the burnt smell of the kitchen. They were so close, Ehwa could smell whatever citrus perfume Hwaryun had put on and her beautiful crimson eye took up most of Ehwa’s vision. She was overwhelming all of Ehwa’s senses, taking up all of her thoughts.

Ehwa backed up abruptly, which meant backing herself into the counter, face burning, “Wh-what do you mean?”

“It seems like you’re still just a girl who can’t even cook,” Hwaryun said, a teasing glimmer in her eye.

“Hey!” Ehwa protested, despite how right she was. She felt like she was exactly where she had been when she had first discovered what her family did to the Zygaenas. She huffed at that thought, crossing her arms.

“But,” Hwaryun said, “I think I can help you with that”.

Ehwa’s arms fell down in her confusion, “What do you mean by that?”

“I know how to cook”.

Ehwa’s mouth went agape as she thought through the implications of that sentence, “You think I’m gonna let a FUG criminal cook for me?!”

Hwaryun took a step closer, until they were back in the same space again, “I think you should let your friend’s Guide guide you through how to cook something edible”.

There were so many things wrong with that sentence. First of all, Viole was not her friend. Second of all, she could cook edible food alright? She’d only ever set a sandwich on fire once and that wasn’t even her fault. And thirdly-

“You want to teach me how to cook?”

“I think someone needs to before you set the whole building on fire”.

Which, fair.

“And that someone has to be you?” Ehwa asked.

Hwaryun made a point of looking around the living area, “Do you see anyone else here?”

Ehwa hated that she was boxed in by the other’s logic. It would be nice for her cooking to not be a complete failure, and Viole had tried to teach her before to no avail, so maybe this could possibly be a viable option.

She huffed, sighed, and said, “Fine, teach me how to cook”.

“Teach me how to cook---” Hwaryun led, a hand on her hip.

“Teach me how to cook, please, okay? What, do you want me to get on my knees and beg?”

Hwaryun smirked, like she would have loved for that to happen, but simply said, “Alright, I’ll teach you. Now let’s see what you have that we have to work with, because we’re not going to be able to fix this”.

She gestured over at the grey stew and black rolls and Ehwa could see her point. There really was no fixing that.

Ehwa then watched with only a few quips and comments as Hwaryun rummaged through the pantry and refrigerator, pulling out what she said she could work with. Finally, she pulled the half-full bottle of vodka out of the freezer.

“What are you gonna do with that?” Ehwa asked, from where she was sitting on the kitchen counter.

“We’re making penne alla vodka. What were you doing with it?”

“Wangnan found out Viole’d never gotten drunk before,” Ehwa sheepishly admitted, “There used to be five more bottles. Apparently Goseng knows how to make cocktails and Viole liked them so much he didn’t notice he was drunk till he was wayyyy past wasted”.

Hwaryun laughed at that, a real laugh that moved her chest and curled her cheeks. Ehwa stood there in awe, she didn’t know that the Guide could laugh like that, that she could laugh at all. A rosy tinge was brought to both their cheeks, for two very different reasons. Ehwa found herself wanting to trace the laugh lines of her face, the crinkles by her eyes, and she was shocked off of her seat at that realisation.

“So…” She segued awkwardly, “How do we do this?”

“Well first, we have to cook the penne, which means boiling a pot of water. I think you can handle that much at least”.

“I totally can!”

She totally couldn’t. She’d burnt the pot so many times they had to get a new one, but she had to save face in front of the Guide. She poured water into the pot and set it at the burner, before turning up the dial.

A shock went through her system when a hand went over her own, turning the dial down, “You don’t want it up all the way, that’ll burn the pot before it boils the water”.

Ehwa was stuck, face bright red, until Hwaryun moved her hand away.

“Oh, thanks,” She said shakily, “I didn’t know that”.

Hwaryun smirked, still so, so close, “Well now you do, and I’m sure I just saved many more pots in the future”.

“Y-Yeah…” Ehwa said, not paying attention to Hwaryun’s words, but rather her lips, glossy with some kind of subtle makeup that Ehwa was not even pretending she didn’t want to know the taste of.

“So now we just wait until the water comes to a boil”.

“Yeah” Their breaths were mixing, and Ehwa had never felt so intimate with another person before, despite being in much more illicit situations. Though, her kidnapping was as far from her mind as possible right now.

“Can I kiss you?”

“Yeah-” Ehwa stuttered to a stop, processing what Hwaryun had asked, “No. I mean, uh, yes. I mean, yes plea-”

Hwaryun swooped down and brought their lips together, and the last thing Ehwa saw before closing her eyes was her expression. Like a cat that got the canary.

Hwaryun licked at the seam of Ehwa’s mouth, nudging it open, and Ehwa finally got a taste of her. Freshly peeled oranges, just like her perfume. It was overwhelming, it was addicting. Ehwa grabbed Hwaryun’s dress and tugged her in closer between her legs, deepening the kiss.

Hwaryun had one hand curled up firmly in Ehwa’s hair, and the other slowly moving down her back. Ehwa let out a yelp when it landed on her ass, but Hwaryun swallowed the noise and used her grasp to bring her even closer.

Ehwa wrapped both her arms around Hwaryun’s neck as the other woman nipped and sucked her way down her neck, leaving her breathless. Hwaryun nipped at the center of her throat and sucked, tearing a moan out of Ehwa that made Hwaryun chuckle. In response, Ehwa marked up the space behind Hwaryun’s ear.

They met back in the middle and Ehwa sighed into the kiss. It sapped all the air out of her lungs and made everything around them fuzzier. Only Hwaryun was in bright, sharp technicolor, gorgeous from every angle.

They separated for air, and Hwaryun purred into her ear, “Darling you’re so pretty it hurts”.

Ehwa blushed, but took it as the challenge it was. She nipped on Hwaryun’s earlobe, a sensitive spot from her shivers, and whispered, “If you’re hurting then I must be in agony, because you’re gorgeous”.

Hwaryun obviously wasn’t anticipating a comeback, so the blush on her face that appeared was all the more beautiful. Ehwa kissed it, going from one cheek, across the bridge of her nose, to the other cheek. Hwaryun caught her mouth in a heated kiss at the end of it, bringing the hand that was in Ehwa’s hair beneath her shirt, playing with the clasp of her bra.

“Oh shit,” Ehwa looked over at the stove, “The water’s boiling”.

“Can’t we ignore it?” Hwaryun whined. Whined. Ehwa patted herself on the back for her superior kissing skills.

“No,” She said, taking the chance that this wasn’t just an isolated incident and pecking Hwaryun on the lips before she got out the pasta, “Now how long do I boil this?”

“15 minutes, now come back here,” She commanded, a goddess in messed up makeup.

Ehwa took her time pouring in the pasta, licking her lips, tasting citrus. She’d never be able to eat an orange again, probably. She turned around to see Hwaryun sitting on the kitchen counter, foot tapping impatiently. She took the time to relish in this control she had, that she could get Hwaryun pent up and out of character, before she gave in and walked into her embrace.

This time, they were slower, perhaps even a little sweeter with each other. There were questions, so many questions, Ehwa wanted to ask. But those could wait until after the food was cooked. This time was theirs, and only theirs.

Hwaryun sucked down on the junction between Ehwa’s shoulder and neck, and Ehwa gave into the desire to drag her fingers through crimson hair. Her choice was awarded with a soft moan from Hwaryun, so she did it again, combing her fingers over her scalp.

Ehwa felt hands on each side of her face, and she looked up to see Hwaryun smiling gently at her. Before she could say a word, Hwaryun began kissing all over her face, muttering indulgences in between.

Ehwa had been called ‘beautiful’ before, but she’d never been called ‘lovely’ or ‘angel’ or ‘sweetheart’ and the names left her a blushing, blustering mess. It was completely unfair, but Hwaryun wouldn’t recede until she had kissed every part of her face. By the time she was done, smiling down at her work, the pasta was done as well.

They worked in tandem to make the sauce, Hwaryun giving instructions and ingredients, and Ehwa cutting them up and putting them together. This was the calmest she had felt in a kitchen in her whole life. Everything felt like it had stakes, that failure was death, even the kitchen, but now, with Hwaryun brushing a hand against her hip when she went to grab the garlic, Ehwa felt safe.

After the sauce was cooked, they combined it with the pasta. Ehwa bit her lip nervously as Hwaryun took a bite. When she got the thumbs up, Ehwa cheered and brought Hwaryun into a hug.

“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

Hwaryun pulled away slightly, before leaving a lingering kiss on Ehwa’s lips, “You’re welcome, sweetheart”.

Then, the front door opened and Prince’s voice called out, “What smells so good?”

#my writing #tog #tower of god #kami no tou #ehwaryun #Yeon Ehwa #yeon yihwa #hwaryun #hwa ryun

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seamistan · 4 years

Note

for a prompt, how about sea hawk puts mermista to bed after a long day of work?

Okay I love this so much 🥺

This uh. got angstier than i expected but there’s hurt/comfort so. I hope that’s okay! It’s also way, way longer than I expected it to be skjssdn

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The fire in her office had begun to smolder, leaving behind nothing but smoke and ash.

The princess of Salineas was hard at work at her desk, determined to finish her first set of tasks to begin to rebuild Salineas. The day's work had largely consisted of paperwork to review- blueprints, citizen requests, permits, all part of the exciting life of ruling a kingdom that had to be completely restored from the ground up.

The clock in the corner continued to tick menacingly, warning her that every second spent not doing her duty was a second she was failing her kingdom. The words in front of her had begun to blur, and her memory of her purpose reading the document had become fuzzy. Her brain was very quickly becoming a slippery mass of information that not even she could untangle or understand. The day had been among Mermista's first in working from Bright Moon to preplan for all the reconstruction and every single detail had to be correct. She considered for a moment if it would be too unreasonable to get a third cup of coffee from the Bright Moon kitchen. She decided it wasn't.

Strolling outside of the office that Glimmer had been so kind to offer her that was only a short walk from her suite and to the kitchen, Mermista heard the sounds of too-eager footsteps around the corner. Silently cursing him, she attempted to hide around the corner of the marble column. Sea Hawk had been insistent for the past few days that Mermista get a proper amount of sleep if she were to continue to be the most capable ruler that she could possibly be. However, He had been unsuccessful in his campaign to get his dearest to go to bed at a reasonable time, resulting in his current sleep protest, in which he had refused to go to sleep until she did. It seemed, though, even loving pirates needed snacks in the middle of the night.

Mermista tried to tell if he would go the other way, or simply disappear, but it seemed he wouldn’t. So, she resigned herself to her fate, stepping out of her hiding spot, running face to ‘stache into her sleepy captain.

Sea Hawk fumbled with the bowl of kombu pesto he was currently mixing in his hands, closing and opening his eyes in a fit of drowsiness. “Mermista! You’re still awake!” He says, a glint is his tired eyes reminding her that he had already been fully aware of that. “Was it the smell of my famous Sea Tangle alla Sea Hawk that drew you to the kitchen?” his confident air suppressing the previous exhaustion she had run into.

She rolls her eyes at him. “No, you goof. I came out here to get some coffee but was rudely interfered with before I could.” She looks behind him and sees that he, was in fact making his signature dish. Her stomach rumbles at the smell of it, reminding her she had not had a full meal all day outside of the various cups of double shots of coffee. “...Buuut I guess I could stick around for a plate of your dumb pasta or whatever.” She said, feigning nonchalance.

Sea Hawk’s face lit up at this and gestured toward the kitchen.

Spiritedly, he leads her to where a pot of kelp noodles was threatening to boil over, the pan on the burner next to it sizzling with some chicken and that was smelling heavenly. Sea Hawk strides over to her and pulls out a chair in the little table in the corner of the kitchen, his face shining with the glee of a child. The Kitchen is not small by any means, but the way it’s decorated, presumably by Glimmer, gives the room that would otherwise be foreboding or sterile a homey feel, the pink walls and bright colors managing to also give it an edge of dollhouse chic Which is, like, somehow Glimmer’s entire personality.

Sea Hawk is at the stove now, pouring in the bowl of pesto he was holding older onto the chicken, whistling some silly shanty to himself. His stance relaxed and carefree, as if ready to start dancing at any moment, flitting through the spice rack looking for water mint of all things. Mermista’s tired mind takes a second to admire the way his fingers moved expectantly through the shelf, and, when he finally found it, the way his entire form seemed to sparkle with joy at this simple finding. Watching him in this little adventure almost threatened to make her smile. Almost.

Mermista’s idle brain suddenly returned to a state where she could remember finally, what caused her to leave her office in the first place. Leisurely getting up, she makes her way to the pot of coffee that she had made earlier in the day, ready to pour herself a cup when Sea Hawk stops her, and the look he gives her threatens to shatter her heart. “Please, Dearest. Don’t.” His pleading gaze boring into her very soul. He’s silent as he returns to the stove, resuming his quest to finish his pasta. His steady hands pouring the sauce onto the mountain of pasta he had set onto the serving plate.

She realizes she still hasn’t poured her cup of coffee.

She kind of doesn’t want to, anymore.

Sea Hawk pads over to the cabinet where the plates are held and set down two plates on the little table. His solemn look continuing to make her heart seize. “Please, just sit with me. Have some pasta. Then.. you can go back and keep working while I try to keep your side of the bed warm.” His steady gaze faltered at the mention of her retreating back into the office.

They both knew that she had been working overtime to prove to herself and to everybody else that she was a functioning ruler, unencumbered by her time as a slave to a space fascist. It had been weeks since Mermista had a functioning sleep schedule, with the end of the war inhibiting sleep up until a week or two ago when her new tactic of fighting the nightmares that threatened her every night was hours and hours of work.

Mermista leaned against the counter, hand still ghosting over the coffee pot, deciding if she should go sit down when Sea Hawk produced two water lilies and lovingly set them on top of each plate of Kelp noodles.

Then the tears started.

She walked hesitantly over to the table, wordlessly picking up a plate and staring at the blue flower he had placed on top of the pile of Kelp noodles and sauce.

She choked out a small sob, glassy eyes alight and the very ghost of a smile on her face. “You remembered.”

He gave her a slight chuckle, getting a faraway look in his eye. “I just thought that.. maybe if I reminded you of her, you’d remember to take care of yourself”

She let herself retreat back into her head for a moment, memories of her mother making her lunch before attending her Princess training, reminding her to be strong and brave for her and her kingdom. Long talks discussing her role in Salineas, her future,her fears. The last time her mother had made this for her she was getting ready to begin to take full control of the runestone. Before she passed. Before The Horde got to her. She was just a kid then, thinking she was on top of the world. She and Sea Hawk had been in one of their “in-between” stages where she wouldn’t admit she liked him despite his constant saying he liked her. So she’d invite him over to meals with her family as a sort of compromise. Let him into her life bit by bit. He had gotten along so well with her mother, laughter filling the room. It made her heartache now, remembering it.

Her eyes were misty with tears now, throat caught in a sob. Sea Hawk set down the plate that was still being held in her trembling hands, and held her in his arms, his embrace pulling her back to reality. “Mermista, My dearest. I need you to take care of yourself. Please.” he pleaded, his eyes meeting hers, then down to her lips, then returning to her gaze. “For Salineas. For your people, For your Mother.” His gaze returned to her lips. Her stomach fluttered, and she was suddenly aware of his body holding hers, his scent surrounding her- the sesame oil he had been using to cook, the tingling smell of the citrus soap he always used, and the lingering smell of saltwater and ash that just made him hers. He was staring at her now. His concern etched into every feature. He pressed his lips to hers, holding her close, calming the waves that threatened to overtake her. “And for me.”

Okay, now she was absolutely sobbing. Tears flowing down her face in rivulets, no longer being able to refuse the onslaught of emotions she had been keeping locked inside her for weeks. “I- I don’t.” the words were not letting themselves out. “Look. I just. I. I really have no idea what to do. These nightmares won’t stop keeping me awake. And the citizens I don’t think they trust me and I just-” She broke down in sobs.

Her pirate, ever the Savior, held her face in his hand and simply said “You don’t have to do anything.” His words rang through her ears. “I mean at least. Not right now. We can just enjoy a late meal together. And then, you can go to sleep. I’ll watch over you.”

She sniffled in his arms. “You would do that for me? Stay up all night? Just so I could sleep?” Her voice cracked, threatening to send a new wave of tears down her face. Geez, if she could just stop crying for a minute she could get some of her dignity back. She cleared her throat. “Because I mean, that would be, like, super lame of you. I mean. You need to sleep too, I guess.”

He laughed his big, airy, laugh and shook his head. “Misty, I would fight 500 horde prime soldiers so you could rest well for a single second. I would sail all over Etheria three times for you slumber in peace I would-”

Mermista felt heat rush to her cheeks. She pats him on the chest, releasing herself from his tight embrace. “Okay, knock it off, I have noodles to eat!” Mermista

She sat herself down at the cozy table, and he in front of her. He delicately lifted his Water lily sitting atop his mountain of clear kelp noodles and carefully reached over and placed it behind her ear. She rolled her eyes. “There was sauce on that, you know. You got sauce in my hair now. Thanks!” But the look that she gave him, the glint in her eyes told him she didn't really mind

They sat together for a while after both of them had polished off what was left of the tremendous meal (Sea Hawk’s words) he had made. They quickly did the dishes as to not receive another stern word from Bright Moon’s chef about Sea Hawk’s late night cooking misadventures and then headed off to their room.

As he was curling up in front of her, in a voice that only he could ever hear, she murmured “Thank you.”

Smirking to himself, he let out a sigh of relief and said, full of certainty “All in a day’s work, milady, all in a day’s work.”

She groaned. “How many times do I have to tell you to not call me that?!”

He silently chuckled, and off to sleep she went.

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Okay this was going to go in a much, much different, shorter direction but then @nepptoon and I started talking about what kind of late night snacks Sea Hawk would get and then. Well, it just spiraled from there.

so take this as my first ever published fic?? I Guess?? sdjnsdkdns

anyway leave me prompts and you, too might get a very long winded fic featuring keke and I’s convoluted conversations

#seamista #myfics #uh i mean #should I tag this as an ask????#im gonna #asks #cocoisanickname

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uzumaki-rebellion · 4 years

Text

“Wet Sugar” [Part 22 of 30]

Summary: Erik and Yani face serious troubles...

Mature Audience. NSFW. Smut.

youtube

"Behind my pride there lives a me, that knows humility Inside my voice there is a soul, and in my soul there is a voice But I've been, too afraid to make a choice Cause I'm scared of the things that I might be missing

Running too fast to stop and listen It's time to step out on faith, I've gotta show my faith It's been illusive for so long but freedom is mine today I've gotta step out on faith it's time to show my faith…"

– "Strength Courage & Wisdom" - India.Arie

Erik was late arriving for breakfast in the front house. He jogged around the compound trying to offset tension in his body. Lack of sleep made him cranky. He felt like he was losing focus of the big picture.

The other mercs went through plates of bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, biscuits, and grits. Erik put together a plate of lighter fare, some fruit, wheat toast, and a glass of orange juice. He glanced at Leona who replaced a platter of bacon with fresh sausage links and was surprised to see Yani's cousin Cee Cee in the kitchen pulling out hot biscuits from the oven.

When breakfast was over and the crew wandered down to the gun range to discuss departure dates and future rendezvous points, Erik straggled behind in the kitchen.

His eyes peeped Cee Cee again as he placed his orange juice glass in the sink. Leona wiped down the kitchen counter with a soft blue cloth.

"She won't work here anymore," Leona said with a soft voice.

Cee Cee leaned against the dining table in the other room watching him and Leona.

There was no need to ask why.

"I'm sorry," he said.

Leona nodded.

"Me too."

"How is Sweet Pea?"

Leona smiled big and wide.

"She good. Spending more time with her father…and sister…"

Erik went to the fridge and grabbed a bottled water.

"That's good," he said.

"She still ask about her Baba—"

"It's okay, Miss Leona—"

"Him don't need no explanation. Don't even talk to him about nothin', Auntie."

Cee Cee brought in empty bowls and brushed past Erik, shoving him a little.

"Cee Cee—"

"Fuck him. I told Yani he was just using her—"

"Quiet your foul mouth, gyal!"

Cee Cee looked startled by Leona's voice.

"Auntie—"

"We can still be cordial. Kind."

Leona's eyes took in Erik's dower expression.

"They are both doing well, Mr. Killmonger."

Erik left the kitchen, his legs moving so swift he could still hear his name on Leona's lips.

It hurt.

Like hell.

A physical pain that lodged in his throat and wouldn't leave his belly any peace.

He hated being at the compound. And now that she was gone for good, all he saw were dreary days ahead until he left that tiny rock.

During the meeting with Klaue and the other mercs, Erik once again found himself compartmentalizing his thoughts to keep sane. He also found himself looking forward to London. He needed to be around family, people who loved him, and to be in a new environment. What was once a warm paradise had now become a cold underworld.

Yani had turned all of her social media private. He had no more access to her or glimpses of Sydette. She cut off all contact. Blocked his number.

It hardened his heart. But it was for the best he kept telling himself. His bags were packed.

He was ready to vanish.

###

Linda was always hovering around Killmonger.

It drove Yani crazy.

Not because she cared about them being together, but because it was intentional on Linda's part.

The bulk of Erik and Linda's time together was spent with Klaue of course, but there were those times that Yani thought Linda was purposely being dramatic in front of her to get a reaction.

Touching Erik and grabbing on his arm after meals. Laughing a little too loud with him when Yani passed by with dirty laundry or cleaning supplies. Even when Yani used different routes to move around the compound, Linda found a way to be there.

"What's wrong with you?" Leona asked.

Yani stacked glasses and dishes in the cupboards then rinsed her hands in the sink.

"Nothing."

"Not with that face."

"Got a lot on my mind."

"Want to talk about it?"

"Just school stuff. Figuring out my schedule for next term."

Her Aunt watched her but didn't question her further.

"They still at the gun range?" Yani asked.

Leona glanced at the small viewscreens near the fridge.

"Yes."

"I'll be back—"

"Yani."

"Yes?"

Leona put her arms around Yani.

"I know it's not easy."

"I'm fine, Auntie. For real."

"I hear you say that, gyal, but mi know the truth."

"See you in a few."

Yani looked around her surroundings before she snuck a towel from the pool area and made herself blend into the foliage as she slipped down the hidden path. She hummed a little bit to herself as she pulled off her t-shirt. Adjusting her bikini top, she was glad that she opted to wear her swimsuit under her clothes. After a quick dip, she could throw her shirt and dark sweats back on with no one even knowing she had been in the water.

Reaching the final curve that opened up to the cove, Yani stopped and clenched her fist inside her bundled shirt.

Linda was sprawled out on a towel in a pink one piece. Erik was right next to her on his own towel, shades covering his eyes. A pounding pressure struck her left temple and a dark heat rose in her chest. The cove felt polluted with their presence. Nothing was sacred anymore and Yani wanted to cry. Why would he bring her down there? He knew that was her water…

"Taking a break?"

Linda stared at her as she smoothed out her beach towel.

Yani kept quiet. Erik didn't even budge. She wanted to kick sand on him.

"The water is actually a decent temperature," Linda said.

She stood up and walked into the water, allowing the water to reach her chest.

Yani pulled her shirt back on and turned around to head back to the kitchen with her Aunt.

"You down here too?"

Neal's predatory smile made Yani feel worse. Unger was behind him wearing trunks. She backed up from the two of them.

"The water is great!" Linda called.

Yani walked past the two men and when she glanced back, Erik was still sunbathing. He hadn't moved an inch.

Yani acted unbothered for a long time, but the last straw was watching Linda walk out of Killmonger's room giving her orders to bring him soup. Slinking around in a gauzy house dress and telling her not to disturb him. They probably fucked all night, using up another box of condoms, and expected her to clean their messy sheets.

That man had the damn nerve to make her bring him food to that bed. Just an excuse to rub her nose in his new sex life.

She wasn't hurting for dick though.

Zachary turned out to be a capable replacement.

The sex was…different. Calm. But satisfying.

They started hanging out together. Lunch dates. Occasional dinner dates. She brought him to social events with her friends and then finally brought him around family again. She kept Sydette out of the equation this time around. She didn't want to put her daughter through the attachment of another man who might not be a long-term partner. It was better that way. Sydette still asked about her Baba, but Yani kept her busy with daycare, play dates, and time with Chez.

Chez.

Who knew he could get his shit together to act as a father for once? Maybe Killmonger had knocked some damn sense into the man. Sped up his maturity. Being forced to give him Sydette was heart-wrenching, but in the end, it gave Yani the freedom to do things for herself on the weekends.

When Killmonger tried to tell her that he missed her, Yani became enraged. After screaming at him in Klaue's house, she was done. There was no way to be at the compound with him there. She went back to her apartment and blocked Killmonger from any access to her.

Zachary helped her forget. Especially that night when she saw Killmonger at the Bacchanal. He had the damn nerve to ask her to dance as if they were chummy like that anymore. When he walked up on her she wanted to spit in his face, tried her best to keep her hands to herself when she felt him standing behind her, all that body heat of his fanning out onto her. Thank God her homegirls kept him in check. They prevented her from clawing his face. Him standing there with short hair, almost clean-shaven, like he was pretending to be some new dude for her. Fuck him.

The lap dance she gave in front of the crowd was a declaration to him that alla her thickness was off limits to him for good. Once she was back in her apartment, she called Zachary over and finally gave him her sticky sweetness.

Strange though.

She gave Zachary everything on her couch, but not in her bed.

The bed that Killmonger bought her.

Each time she had sex with Zachary they did it in his bed at his place, or on her couch. Never her bed.

Different hands on her body, different energy around her, different conversations in her house made it easier to loosen Killmonger from her thoughts.

It wasn't full-proof though.

She caught herself having lucid dreams of Killmonger fucking her. She'd wake up with her pussy throbbing like she could feel him inside of her. Her slippery wet dreams felt so real. Swollen wet folds greeted her fingers when she woke up from those erotic imaginings. Bitterness slept in her mouth with his name still trapped there. Zachary would have his sheathed average length sink into her, and sometimes she would catch herself daydreaming of Killmonger in the middle of the act. Zachary could get quite worked up, but it wasn't the ferocity she was accustomed to. She wondered how long it would take to shake the ghost of that nigga's dick from her pussy. She wanted to hate that man to help her forget him. How could she when he still haunted her in her sleep and in another man's arms? It was crazy. But she knew it would pass. It always did eventually and then she was over it.

Erik seemed to be over it. He didn't bother to stay out of her way anymore, and when he passed her by it was like she was a non-entity.

She treated him the same and eventually, she became numb to his presence.

Almost.

Her last day working came once Leona received permission from Klaue to have Cee Cee trade jobs with Yani from now on.

Taking one last walk around the property searching for Jerome, she encountered a sobering sight. All the men and Linda hovered around Erik and Neal as they fought one another in an open circle. Hand to hand tussling. Shirts off. Both wearing loose joggers. Neal was using boxing moves that Yani was familiar with, but Killmonger was making moves that frustrated Neal. It was that capoeira he knew and some other fighting style.

Her heart thudded as she watched the two men give one another bruising punches. Neal lost his cool completely when Erik used his bare feet to strike his face with a series of tight cartwheels and backflips.

"Get him, Killmonger!" Linda shrieked as she tossed water from a bottle at both of them. Neal was able to get in some hard hits and when his fist made contact with Killmonger's cheek, something ignited in that man and his hands became swift weapons against Neal's chest and stomach.

The others urged them on and Yani felt herself getting queasy watching blood spurt from Neal's mouth and cuts from Killmonger's face from bare knuckles. Neal gave Killmonger a powerful uppercut that made him stagger back clutching his jaw. He flexed his neck and lunged for the man, placing him in a tight headlock. Killmonger punched the man and more blood flowed.

Neal twisted his waist and Killmonger shoved him onto the ground.

They traded more blows until Neal charged Killmonger knocking him onto his back. Yani gritted her teeth knowing the hard cement would break skin. Killmonger reached up and grabbed Neal's throat, his powerful hands choking tight. Neal thrust his hands up and broke Killmonger's hold on him. Rolling away from the leaner man's weak punches, Killmonger swayed his body in a dance-like rhythm around Neal causing the other man's frustration to bubble over. Neal reached for a thick broken tree branch lying on the ground and beat Killmonger with it. The abuse didn't last long once the branch was snatched from Neal's hand and tossed aside. Yani's Ex lost it.

Killmonger beat the man so bad that Unger and Shipley had to drag him away.

"Jesus…Killmonger…!" Linda shouted.

"Thought you were gonna back that shit up homie…said you could show me some things. Whatchu show me, huh? Nothin' nigga. You ain't want this—"

Huntsman helped Neal to his feet and away from Killmonger.

"Lemme go! I'm not done yet!"

Neal thrashed against Huntsman.

"Trust me, you're done. Go clean yourself up," Linda blurted, her fingers touching the wounds on Killmonger's face.

"Anyone else want a taste? All that talk…"

Killmonger spit on the ground. What splattered there was dark against the cement. He wiped his chin and his heated eyes darted around, challenging the others.

Linda's eyes were riveted to Killmonger's. She handed him a beer and he took a deep swig. Grabbing it away from him, she drank down the rest spilling it on her shirt.

"Making a mess," he said.

"You wish," she said.

Linda reared back and kicked Killmonger in the chest. Surprised, he dropped down and swept his legs against hers knocking her off balance. Linda recovered and threw up her fists to box him.

What was wrong with them? Was this their entertainment?

Yani couldn't take it anymore and left them to their violent play.

###

A sheet and pillowcase were tangled in the dryer as Yani pulled them out. She couldn't get the images of Killmonger fighting out of her head. Folding the linens, she wondered how he could be so brutal and willing to harm his own body when it wasn't necessary—

Killmonger barged in carrying a knit bag of dirty clothes. His left cheek looked slightly swollen, and he had a small bandage over his right cheekbone. He halted near the doorway for a second when he saw her, then went about his business of checking the washing machine. He tossed his clothes in, reached up for laundry detergent, and ignored her completely. He wore a tight t-shirt and camouflage pants. A Glock was tucked in the back of his waistband.

Yani continued folding sheets over on the wide folding table next to the dryer.

"There any more fabric softener?" he asked looking up at the shelf above the machines.

Yani reached under the folding table and lifted up a new bottle of softener. She slammed it on the washing machine and continued folding.

Killmonger took the bottle and opened it. He glanced at her for a moment and stuck the softener on the shelf above him. Lingering after his clothing load started, Yani felt irritated.

"You need somethin' else?"

"Nah. You?"

She rolled her eyes at him.

He sauntered over to the door.

"Why did you take her down there?"

"What are you grumbling about now?"

"That was my place…my private spot to swim and be alone—"

"You gonna stand there and whine about people swimming? You don't own nothing here—"

"But you know how I feel about that place!"

Yani's shrill scream shocked her own self, her fists clenched and pressed against her thighs.

"I didn't take her down there. She said she followed you and discovered it. You didn't do a good job of protecting your playground. She told the others about it. That's on you."

Yani reached out and struck him in his chest. She was shaking so hard as her nails raked across his keloids.

"What is wrong with you?! Bitch—"

He pushed her back against the folding table and Yani reached up and grabbed onto the silver chain he wore around his neck that had an onyx and silver ring on it.

"What you not about to do is have me come up out myself!" he yelled.

Grabbing her arms, he held them against her, his face hard and close to her face. His gold teeth gleamed in the laundry room light. Her hands shook furiously at her sides and she tried her best to keep tears from pressing out of her lids, but he saw it.

"Fuck, Yani…calm down…it's not that serious," he said placing his hands on her shoulders.

"It is for me."

"You right girl…you right…forget what I said."

She pulled back from him and started folding the sheets again. He didn't move from where he was and when she looked back at him, all she could focus on was the bruises on his face. It was like she was staring at a stranger. How did it come to this so fast?

She couldn't breathe. The room felt like it was closing in on her.

He reached out and cradled her neck, pulling her in close. His other hand stroked her arm and when she shuddered, he lifted her up and made her sit on the laundry table, her ass warmed up by a clean bed sheet.

"Hmmm…"

The groan in his throat was swallowed by her mouth when his lips sought hers out. His tongue pushed her lips apart and he leaned into her so her breasts pressed into his chest. The ring on his chain poked her.

She had forgotten what his mouth and lips felt like. No, that was a lie. She missed how his mouth and lips felt like. His tongue snaked around hers and her legs automatically opened wider for him. She gasped when he yanked up her shirt and unfastened her bra. Reaching behind himself he pulled his gun out of his pants and sat it next to her hand on the table. She watched him raise up his shirt and pull half of it over his neck, showing a chest and abs that were worked out more from when she last saw it naked.

Plunging his tongue down her throat again he stayed on her mouth until she felt her insides squeeze with anticipation. Hot breath in her ear, and hotter lips on her neck, Yani leaned back giving in more by the minute. He licked around her neck and she bent her head forward so he could lick her tattoos and give tiny kisses there.

His fingers hooked into the band of her loose cotton sweats and her hands jerked back to hold them in place.

His tongue slipped into her ear and the wet warmth made her stomach drop and her hands grabbed onto his shoulders.

"Baby…" he sighed, tugging on her pants again.

She let him drag them down, rocked her hips forward and lifted her ass to help him get them down to her ankles. He pulled down his pants and fisted his erection. His eyes sought hers and she felt all tension leave her body with a rising desire to join their bodies together again. She placed her fingers around his fat wet glans and squeezed. His eyes slammed shut and his mouth parted, the gleam from those gold slugs taunting her. Her skin tingled wanting him to bite her flesh. She placed his tip against her opening and when she enveloped his length, she didn't exhale until he was firmly rooted.

"Daddy gotchu all upset," he said digging in her pussy hard.

She gripped his length tight and his eyes stayed on her face.

"Taking it like a good girl…Daddy's good girl. All this dick…yeah…stretching this fat pussy out right. Don't be mad. Daddy's sorry…ohhh shit…you putting it on me girl. You still mad at me? Huh, that why you gripping me so fucking tight? You squeezin' Daddy's dick…ah fuck…keep squeezin' on this pipe….do that shit girl…punish me, Baby…teach Daddy a lesson…."

Yani's head tilted back, her mouth alternating between staying parted and becoming a tight pout. She felt so full. Zachary could never hit her walls like that. He was unable to hit the bottom of her pussy like Killmonger's extra inches. Her facial expressions must've excited him because Killmonger never looked away as he stroked her deep.

"Been keepin' this pussy tight for me…" he grunted.

He lifted up and pulled her pants all the way off so he could push her legs back on the table. The angle tugged on her clit and he rode that position while he continued watching her face. It was hard to keep her eyes on him as she closed them occasionally because she couldn't stand the intense pressure on her walls. He was moving in a way that prevented her from getting full contact stimulation on her clit. The tugging of her hood had her moaning under her breath. She wanted to scream but there was no telling who was around to hear her cries if she truly let go of what she suppressed.

"Look at me, girl. Keep them eyes on me. I like watching your face handle this dick-"

"Nigga it don't take this long to throw some clothes in the…oh, shit, my bad nigga—"

Shipley's flustered voice took in Yani's pussy being plowed righteously. Killmonger got in four more good strokes before he even stopped. Yani grabbed her shirt and pulled it down. She pushed off of Killmonger's dick and pulled on her pants.

Shipley's eyes stayed on her the entire time and Yani felt so much shame. The man held the door wide open.

"Yani!" Erik called.

She left, half walking, half running past Shipley and down to the cove barefoot.

Out of breath, she stepped into the water just to feel the coolness revive her feet. She would never come back there again. Not to the healing waters that caressed her toes, or the compound that had taken care of her since she was fourteen. She couldn't face any of the people. Especially Shipley. He would confirm that what they all whispered about was true.

The sun did a slow crawl to a blood-red sunset. Her body felt hot and sickened and embarrassed by the day.

She stripped and walked further into the water.

She wasn't shocked to hear a splash behind her as she swam further out. She heard his arms stroke through the placid water.

"Yani. You okay?"

He swam around her naked until he could see her face. They both tread in deep waters staring at one another. Killmonger tried reaching out to her, but Yani swam back to shore and pulled her clothes back on. She felt empty. Cold.

It hurt to walk away from her once special place.

And him.

###

On a lazy Sunday when Chez had Sydette, Klaue summoned her to the compound. Her Aunt texted her and said Klaue wanted to see her right away.

Yani was hesitant, worried that she would run into Killmonger or worse…Linda.

But the compound was quiet.

Klaue sat by his pool drinking a whiskey sour, and when she stood before him, he waved a hand for her to sit in the lounger next to him. She felt nervous, her eyes flitting around expecting Killmonger to show up and throw off her emotions.

"Sad to not have you here anymore, Yani."

Klaue's eyes were runny and pink. He had been drinking for quite some time. Salmon board shorts and a white polo shirt adorned his body. He offered Yani a drink but she declined.

"Here," he said, handing her an envelope.

A check.

Her eyes popped out at the amount.

"Mr. Klaue…"

"That should cover the cost of your schooling, lab fees, etc…"

Yani's heart sped up.

"Your family has taken care of this property for many years. I want to repay that…we want to repay that."

"We?"

"The bulk of that comes from Killmonger. He suggested some sort of severance package for you before he left."

"He's gone?"

Her eyes couldn't hide what she felt.

"It's always all work and barely any play. Family business. He didn't want me to tell you that he gave you part of that. But I wanted you to know. It's obvious that he cares about you and your Aunt. You got very close, didn't you?"

Yani turned her head away from him and focused on the check.

"Killmonger. Complicated. Volatile. Loyal. Easily my best…also one of the meanest men in the trade…and yet…"

Klaue stared at her.

She kept her eyes steady, but her fingers trembled. There was enough money in her hand to take care of herself and Sydette for the next few years. At least until she found a nursing position somewhere. It was beyond school tuition. It was a chance at a real life on her own.

"Thank you—"

"Thank him. He was the most generous. I'm taking care of school. He's taking care of the rest."

"Incoming call. Limbano, Robert."

"Duty calls. Excuse me."

Klaue lumbered up from his seat spilling a bit of whiskey. He shuffled down toward his main house and Yani ran to the front house apartment.

"Auntie!"

Leona sat in front of her tv with Cee Cee watching a nighttime soap.

"What is it?"

Yani shoved the check in her face.

"What is this?"

Leona's eyes widened and her mouth fell open.

Cee Cee grabbed the check.

"Shit!" Cee Cee yelped.

"Who gave you this? Klaue?" Leona asked.

"Klaue…but mostly Killmonger."

"Why him do this?" Cee Cee asked.

Leona's eyes stayed with Yani's. Auntie knew, Yani was sure of that.

"Quick, go put it in the bank!" Leona said shoving Yani out of the apartment.

Yani grabbed her Aunt's arm.

"Why didn't you tell me he left?"

"I didn't know."

"I gotta go!"

Yani ran all the way to her car and drove straight to the bank.

Once the deposit had been made, and she waited to make sure the full amount showed up on her deposit slip, she sat in her car and felt the full weight of regret. Pulling out her cell she typed him a message. Erased it. Typed it again.

She swiped his number and felt her chest and stomach get tight waiting for him to answer.

But he didn't.

###

"My God, Addae! Look at my nephew!"

Erik stared at his Aunt Serah as she held her face with her hands staring at him in her front door. He had surprised his play Aunt by arriving a day early. But the bigger surprise was waiting for him in his Aunt's visiting room.

"Fuck outta here! Watchu doin' here, girl!"

Erik ran up and picked up his play cousin Marisol and twirled her around. He dropped her back on her feet and took a good long look at her. Marisol was breathtaking. Skin so rich with unblemished dark skin. Onyx eyes. Perfectly symmetrical features that could be cute and loveable one moment, but fiery and capable of trouble in the next. It was hard to believe sometimes that his play cousin who had been an ashy-legged crybaby tagging after him through the streets of Sao Paolo, and annoying him to no end, grew up to be the raven-haired beauty before him.

"Auntie sent me a ticket since you were skipping us this holiday."

Marisol's voice was a balm to his ears, her Portuguese accent bringing him back to Brazil and her mother's beef dumplings and rice.

"Looking good, cuz," he said.

"And you're looking big. I see you are eating well."

She bent her body low to the ground, her ginga smooth, her hands rocking toward her chest.

"Ready to play already, cuz?" he said.

Erik countered her moves in a mirror-like fashion.

"Oh no, not in my living room with my expensive artwork in the way! Take that outside!"

"We'll stay tight Auntie," Erik said kicking up his foot and tangling it with Marisol's hands. His cousin did a front walkover and twisted her legs around.

"My God, you two can't be together for five minutes without testing one another!"

"Oi quem mandou levar! Essa carta pra sinhá! Oi quem mandou levar! Oia la Besóuro preto. Oi quem mandou levar…!

Marisol's singing voice stirred Erik's movement, his hands and feet flew faster and Marisol held him off.

Erik joined her in the singing and Serah picked up one of her standing statues of a Cameroonian warrior and moved it from their dangerous leg kicks.

"I see nothing has changed, you are both still hard-headed," Serah sighed, standing back from them. She began clapping her hands, keeping the song rhythm going.

Erik did a slow backflip and he swayed in front of his Aunt and sang to her another capoeira song.

"A capoeira meu amor…a capoeira me chamou…a capoeira meu amor…a capoeira me chamou…"

His voice was choppy but true, and Marisol joined him as he serenaded Serah.

"Such a charmer!" Serah said.

She grabbed Erik's chin and kissed his forehead.

"Go wash up. Dinner is ready and you are lucky I made a lot since we weren't expecting you until tomorrow night."

The moment Erik smelled Serah's cooking in the kitchen he had forgotten all about St. Thomas and Klaue and Linda and—

His cell phone chirped up missed calls that finally caught up to him in London and he scrolled and erased many that were unimportant. But a certain number popped up on his screen and he stared at it. No text, but a voicemail.

Yani.

"Thank you."

Damn.

She had the money and Klaue opened his big mouth.

"Yani? Who is that?"

Marisol stared at his fingers and he swiped the phone off.

"I swear, every time I see you, it's someone new."

"Shut up."

"It's true."

Serah headed to the kitchen as his Uncle carried his bags to a guest room.

Erik unpacked, and once dinner was served and eating commenced, he put away thoughts about Yani and focused on his family.

His Uncle Addae caught him up on the political happenings in London and other parts of the U.K. Serah gave him a couple of books covering ancient sculptures from Central and East Africa to help him pinpoint pieces he had to look out for. They spent two days going through her archives online and she used 3D imaging to give him a feel for shapes and sizes. He already knew the vibram tattoo on his gums would verify any authentic Wakandan pieces with vibranium in them. They took a family trip to visit a few museums, and Erik took discreet pictures of the layouts of each, prepping himself for future trips if the need arrived.

The rest of his time was used playing chess with Marisol, catching up on friends, family and old girlfriends back in Brazil, going out dancing with her and taking long naps together on the couch like they used to as kids after binging bad horror movies all day.

When his Aunt and Uncle went out to do last-minute Christmas shopping, Marisol made him take off his shirt so she could look at his scars.

Her face took on a pinched intensity.

"JaJa," she whispered using his family nickname as she touched the new lesions that had finally healed after his Angola trip.

"I did it myself. Didn't want to bother you with it."

"How many more must you take?" she said.

"As many as I need to get me what I want…hey…don't make that face. You know what it is—"

"JaJa…"

"I'm done talking about it."

He picked up his laptop and turned on some soft music, setting the computer down on the coffee table in front of them. He pulled his shirt back on.

"I'm not putting any more on your body."

"I do it myself now. No need to bother you with it."

His lips felt tight. Her eyes looked away from his.

"Who is that?"

Erik tried to change the screen images that played with the music on his laptop, but Marisol was too fast. Her thin dark fingers swiped his screen and pulled back the last three images that flashed past.

"JaJa…did you…did you have a child?"

Erik closed his eyes for a moment and sat back on the couch. Sydette's big smiling face filled up the computer screen with his face right next to her. It was one of the last pictures he had with her that Twyla took when he said goodbye to his little girl. They were all dimples in that photo.

"She's mine, but she's not really mine—"

"Don't talk semantics. Is that your baby? Who is the mother? Wait…did Disa and you?"

"No. This baby belongs to someone else—"

"But is she yours?"

Marisol's dark coal eyes looked hopeful.

"No. Her mother is someone I was seeing."

"Show me."

"Not right now, Marisol…please…I'm not-"

"No worries. No pressure then."

She touched his face.

"JaJa…"

Yani still lived in his throat and deep in his chest. Shit. His own cousin could see her on his face.

Marisol patted his chest.

"She's a beautiful child. You both look very happy together."

"I was happy."

"You can't stay that way?"

"Nah…it's too complicated…"

"Hmmm, I've heard that before. This must've been serious. Complicated is in some Disǎ territory. This baby's mother have you wound up like that again?"

Erik's eyes cut away from Marisol's. She was so much like his mother in many ways. Able to read his emotions inside his silence. His fingers reached out and held Marisol's hand. Squeezed it. He leaned forward and scrolled through a photo folder and swiped open a picture of Yani and Sydette inside Klaue's car. The night he left her for Angola.

Marisol stared at the photo and he was met with bright white teeth from her lips.

"They are beautiful. Were you with them before you came here?"

"We didn't part in the best way."

"Do you ever?"

The smirk on her mouth was playful but understanding.

How many times had Marisol witnessed all his messy entanglements? Played referee when he was being sloppy with his dick? Jumped in front of women in her own home town throwing hands over him in public when he was being young and dumb and uncaring? Marisol knew so many of his darkest secrets and shared in two of them. Truth was, if she ever changed from being a teacher, she could be the most brazen killer.

She had a reason to be.

Years ago, they both experienced the trauma of their Aunt Lia's death at the hands of assassins, and that bloody history stained and bound them both. When he was nineteen and she was barely eighteen, they had done the unthinkable together. For revenge. For their Aunt and for his mother.

Erik touched Marisol's black shining hair. It looked like wet ink and smelled like the coconut oil he used to dress his locs in when he was younger. It was a calm smell. Familiar. Soothing. She smelled like coconut oil when she seared a sterile knife into his flesh giving him his first keloid scar on his collar bone. For the cop who captured his mother in Oakland and paved the way for her to be extradited and die a lonely death. Erik was fifteen then.

Marisol gave him three more when they both took out men in Sao Paulo, and he gave her the one and only marking on her body. Under her left breast. She had mixed an ancient concoction she found from an elder in Candomblé who had ties to some ancient maroon scarification rites. It was the start of the map on his body. The story carved into his flesh over the years.

Marisol was there from day one. She was the only one who knew the truth when his family questioned the strange rite. His Uncle Bakari may have suspected some things, but no one else was bold enough to ask for the truth. His past piercings on his face were just youthful experimentation before the Naval Academy. But the scars…

He leaned his head on Marisol's shoulder and she stroked his hair.

"Can you go back to them? Is it a done deal?"

He shrugged.

"You love them?"

He nodded and Marisol sighed.

"Maybe…maybe you shouldn't go through with your plan. This could be a sign for you…"

Erik pulled himself away from her and closed up the picture on his computer. The music still filled the room with hollow sounds.

"Does she love you?"

"She once did…now, I dunno. Like I said…complicated."

"You should fight for this then…wait…listen to me…sit down, JaJa. Hear me out. Perhaps what you really need is there. In that woman. In that little girl."

"I owe them, my parents—"

"Your parents would want you to be happy and free of this. Auntie Lia would want you to have your own life…I want you to have that."

"I'll have it after…"

Marisol leaned forward, pulling her soft shiny curls into a top knot as she moved away from him.

"You'd throw away a guaranteed happy life for an uncertain future? Uncle N'Jobu and Auntie Cali would feel hurt if they saw you now—"

"I feel them in here all the time!"

Erik clutched at his chest. The anger in his voice flew out and Marisol flinched and stepped away from him. He slammed his fist into his chest.

"I carry Baba and Mom in here everywhere I go and that woman…that baby…they pushed themselves in there too and I can't carry them all."

"Hey…hey…JaJa…listen—"

"No you listen! I owe them. My Baba. My Mom. I won't be able to fully rest until I have finished this for them."

They heard the front door open and Serah's excited voice calling to them. Erik jumped up and wiped his face. Marisol reached for his arm and squeezed it.

"We can finish this later—"

"Nah, I'm done talkin' 'bout it."

"I feel sorry for you."

"Don't."

"Fuckin' stubborn—"

"Like you ain't either."

Marisol pursed her lips and went to greet their Aunt and Uncle.

It was time for tree decorating and baking cookies and Erik was happy to see his Aunt feeling like a kid again wrapping gifts for all of them, and making constant face chat calls to Erik's Grandfather and Marisol's mothers. The energy was festive and light even though Marisol's words weighed on Erik's mind. She just didn't understand. He couldn't change his plans midstream.

He was satisfied knowing Yani had funds to build a foundation for herself and Sydette. That was enough for him. He could move on knowing she was good and the baby was good. That was all he could give them. Nothing else.

###

It came from one of the cruise ships that docked at the port a week before Christmas. Tourists came and went with the seasons for it was the ebb and flow of island life. No one thought to quarantine the sick little white boy from Wales when he first showed signs of the sickness, and when his parents trotted him out to a burger stand, the sickness spread among a few island adults and children. It wasn't until the boy died a week later from respiratory failure that health officials were able to trace where it came from.

When it hit St Thomas, it was like a firestorm and spread among the old and young children alike. Most adults were able to pull through, but several babies and toddlers did not. Five had died in two different hospitals already before Yani even knew her own baby was in danger.

"Hey Sweet Pea," she said watching her daughter climb up the stairs with her father. It was Sunday evening the time of handing over Sydette back to Yani so they could spend a few days together with her family before New Year's.

Chez held his other daughter Star in his arms, and Yani noticed right away that something was wrong with Sydette's sister.

"Is she alright?" Yani asked.

Chez held the little girl against his chest as he watched Yani pick up Sydette. Star's coloring was paler than usual and her sweaty brow concerned Yani.

"She hasn't been feeling too well the last two days."

"Take her to the doctor."

Yani stared at her own child. Sydette looked fine.

"Ursula is taking her tomorrow. We've been giving her liquid Tylenol—"

"Chez, I don't think you should wait. Take her now."

Yani reached out and touched the child's forehead. It was clammy and hot. Star had rapid breathing and her lips looked milky blue.

"She's sweating out a fever—"

Star's head lulled back.

"Oh God, Chez!"

"Star!"

Chez ran down to his car with the baby dangling nearly lifeless in his arms.

"I'm calling Ursula!" Yani yelled down to him.

She held Sydette tight as she spoke to Ursula letting her know the condition Star was in. Afterward, Yani jumped online to check for symptoms, and when she read of the children already dead, her stomach lurched. It was contagious.

Sydette looked fine and her temperature was normal. Pacing her living room, Yani called her roommate Nanette who went to Puerto Rico to visit her baby's father with Azriel.

"Don't come back to St. Thomas. At least not until after the New Year—"

"How is Sydette?"

"Alright. I'll keep you updated with news."

"Thanks, Yani. Do you think it was one of those unvaccinated kids?"

"The news doesn't say that here. It spread from China to Europe. Now it's here because of that little boy."

Yani watched over Sydette, feeding her liquids and bathing her carefully.

Later that evening Chez called her back.

Star had what the dead white boy from Wales had.

Yani was on winter break from school and she didn't have to take Sydette into daycare. Staying in their apartment, Yani looked after her daughter and prayed that she was one of the lucky ones. Star's condition worsened, and when she was placed in critical care, Sydette came down with the same exact symptoms.

Yani vacillated between anger at Chez and Ursula and anger at herself for her daughter's poor health. They should've taken Star in the moment she fell ill. Instead, the virus incubated and it was passed onto Sydette.

In the hospital, Yani sat near her daughter's bed as she was pumped with fluids and medicine that hadn't worked for any of the children that died.

Her Aunt Leona and mother stayed by her side as Sydette's condition became more fragile. A new drug was administered and for a few days, it looked like Sydette and Star were improving. Yani was able to get some rest then on an uncomfortable chair.

"Go get some sleep, your mother and I are here," Leona said as she passed her niece a paper cup filled with chamomile tea.

"I don't want her to not see me," Yani said. She was exhausted and scared.

"At least go stretch out in your mother's van."

"No. I want to be here."

All the ill children received round the clock care, and Yani's nurse training allowed her to be calmer than most of the parents on the same floor as her. Staying clinical and remaining alert in the room helped her a little bit.

Watching her baby girl shit on herself and sweat profusely with constant shivers was horrible to witness. Sydette had a fever so high that the doctors worried about her having seizures. Whatever this new virus was, it had the medical staff in a chokehold.

"A baby died on another floor," Yani's mother said walking in with two coffees in her hand.

"Why would you come tell her that?" Leona scolded.

Yani's mother tried to comfort her with a hug, but Yani's pressure was up. Her temples throbbed. She was losing her clinical edge. Sydette wasn't getting better. Star wasn't either. In fact, Star was declining rapidly.

Chez was in and out of their room, comforting one baby mother after the other. He looked distraught and heavily disheveled. His clumsy attempts at trying to keep humor among them to lighten things backfired and Yani found herself stressed even more with his presence. Ursula was constantly texting him to return to Star's room. All the waiting and doctors not knowing what to do wore them all down to gristle. Chez was pulled into two different directions. They would rip him in half.

"Just go be with them," Yani said with deep frustration in her voice. Star was the sicker of the two children and needed Chez the most.

She held Sydette's small hand and couldn't believe the weak little body withering away on the hospital bed was her child.

Twyla and her other cousins came to visit and hold vigil so Yani could eat and relieve herself in the restroom. The more people came parading into the room, the more frightened Yani became. Four days in, Star was put on a breathing machine, and Sydette was trailing behind her.

All she could do was cry.

###

Erik walked into his Aunt's flat full of good cheer and good lager. He went on a pub crawl with his Uncle Addae and they were both lucky that they were clear-headed enough to hail a cab and give comprehensible directions.

He was ready to crawl into a warm bed and sleep off a good buzz, but Marisol greeted him with his cell phone in her hand.

"It's been buzzing non-stop," she said.

"Why I left it to begin with," he said. His words were slurred and he kissed her cheek heading to his room.

"There are a ton of texts, JaJa. Someone talking about your Yani—"

Erik snatched his phone from her hand.

Fifteen messages in an hour. But it wasn't from Yani's number. It was her cousin. Twyla.

Erik swiped her number quickly. It was still early on the island.

"Big Man…"

Twyla's voice sounded all wrong.

"Twyla—"

"Yuh have to come here. Sydette is dying…she nuh 'gon make it. She sister Star passed away this morning. Please come back here. Fast. She's on a respirator and the doctor wants to remove it…"

Erik sobered up instantly.

"Dying?"

"That virus. It spread here. Sweet Pea got it and her sister had it too…and—"

The phone gave muffled sounds and Erik could hear Yani bawling in the background with her mother yelling in heavy patois.

"I have to go. Get here. Anyway you can…please. It's bad."

Erik held his phone for a long time to his ear, even after Twyla hung up.

"JaJa?"

Marisol touched his shoulder.

Erik bolted up from the couch.

"I gotta leave. I gotta get outta here—"

"Where are you going?"

Serah stood in the middle of the room watching him and Marisol.

It was the dawn of a new year, and his baby girl was going to leave the world. That had to be a mistake.

"I gotta go!"

Marisol followed him to the guest room and helped him pack his duffle bag.

"JaJa, what is happening?" Serah asked.

"I'll call you when I get there."

His eyes felt wild in their sockets and he could barely focus on his belongings being tossed into place.

"Marisol? Do you know-?

"He just has to get back—"

"My little girl—"

"Little girl?" Serah's face looked puzzled at his words.

He prayed that he would make it back in time.

Rushing out of the flat, he flagged down a cab that shuttled him over to the airport. He lucked out on a red-eye that could get him to St. Thomas. It was leaving within the hour. His body shook with fear. He was always too late.

When the vibram tattoo in his lip itched as he played basketball with his little homies at the age of 10, he ignored it until the sky above him glowed with streaks of blue clouds above his father's apartment complex. He ran so fast to get to that top floor…but he was too late.

When his grandfather placed him on a plane at eleven with his Aunt Shavonne and Uncle Junie to get to a Sao Paulo prison to see his Mom…it was too late.

Fate always fucked with him, held him back from going forward to get to the ones he loved in time.

All he had on his phone was the address of the hospital and a room number.

His anxiety crippled him on the plane and by the time he dropped down from the sky back onto that tiny rock, Erik was full of fatigue, sorrow, and anger at himself. The last time he saw Sydette in person, she was comforting him, lifting his spirits, and making him grateful to know her tiny soul.

Why did he give her a check instead of himself? What could money do for her now?

The dread in his chest carried him along with the cab ride to the hospital.

God please…don't let me be too late again.

Let me say goodbye properly this time…

###

Chp 23 Here

Tag List:

@fd-writes @soufcakmistress @cherrystainedlipsbaby @tclaybon @thadelightfulone

@allhailqueennel @bartierbakarimobisson @cpwtwot @shookmcgookqueen @yoyolovesbucky

@raysunshine78 @the-illllest @terrablaze514 @l-auteuse @amirra88 @jimizwidow @janelledarling

@chaneajoyyy @sweetestdream92 @purple-apricots @blackpinup22 @hennessystevens-udaku

@scrumptiouslytenaciouscrusade @bugngiz @stariamrry @honeytoffee @meilintheempressofdreams

@tyees @eye-raq @writerbee-ffs @chocolatedream30

#wet sugar #erik killmonger #killmonger fanfiction #erik stevens #n'jadaka #klaue #black panther fanfiction #mbj

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autty0314 · 4 years

Text

If it’s meant to be - Bucky x Reader Ch.5

Summary: You and Bucky are at the restaurant; things get a little heated when you get back to your apartment to say goodbye; Steve and Sam found some more evidence on Rumlow with Natasha’s help.

Warnings: Swearing, implied smut, kissing, mention of an assassin

Word Count: 2033

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We finally get to the restaurant, I forgot how stupid crazy the traffic is in New York, Bucky opens the door for me.

“Thanks Bucky.” I said smiling as we walk into the restaurant, he smiles and goes up to inform the waitress about our reservations.

“Right this way.” She said walking us to a table excluded by the wall. We thank her while we start to sit, Bucky pulls out my seat and then sits me down.

“I heard this place as the best food. Get what you want love.” Bucky said smiling at me. I look over the menu and find INSALATA Invernale, which is Winter Harvest Salad of Sunchoke, Sweet Potato, Caramelized Pear & Spiced Nuts. Very good, it’s three course meal. So that will be my first course of the three. My second course would have to be LASAGNE all'Amatriciana, which is Baked Pasta Layers with Guanciale, Tomato & Peperoncino, and my three courses would have to be TORTINO alla Gianduja con Gelato al Latte di Nocciola Piemontese, which is Chocolate Hazelnut Cake with Piemonte Hazelnut Milk Gelato.

“Good evening Mr. Barnes, what can I get for you started with.?” The waiter asked looking at Bucky,

“Let the miss first, I’m still decided.” Bucky said while smiling at me, I look up at the and smile

“I’d like to do Insalata Invernale, then the second would be Lasagne all’Amatriciana, and lastly Tortino alla Gianduja con Gelato al latte di Nocciola Piemontese.” I put my menu down and look over at Bucky, his face and the waiters face are so surprised that I have said all of that in one breathe without messing up any of the words. Bucky tells the waiter to make it the same, the waiter grabs the menus and walks away.

“When did you learn to speak Italian?” Bucky asked looking at me

“I took a few classes in my college years, I’m getting my masters right now in Literature. I just love the language in other counties and Italian always stuck out to me. I love the culture and the language.” I smile back. We talked for a good hour or so over our dinner, Bucky seems to be really interested in everything we were talking about, when I brought up my family history he seemed to be a bit sad since I never had a good role model since my parents worked all the time.

“So, are you ready to head back?” Bucky asked paying the bill. I smile and nod, we grab our coats from our chairs and start to head out. We get back to my apartment and we are talking outside before we part ways.

“Thank you so much for tonight, I am glad I know a little bit more about you. Your mother and sister sound like a delight. I hope to see you more, I know it’ll be hard before of your job.” I said putting some hair behind my ear. He smiles at me,

“Pleasure was all mine doll, hopefully you can some more of my friends and my family when the time comes.” Bucky says bring my hand up to kiss my hand, I blush at his gesture.

“Well, thank you. I must get ready for bed I have an AM class tomorrow. Good night Bucky.” I said smiling while unlocking my apartment door. I look back one more time to see him smiling at me and walking away after I closed my door.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bucky gets back to his house to see Sam leaning against his door frame.

“Hey man, Steve and I got more entail about Rumlow. He’s a regular at The Rum House. We got to get to the safehouse, we have more planning to do.” Sam says leaning up to stand up straight looking forward toward Bucky. Bucky nods and unlocks his apartment to grab a few items for the meeting, the poison they bought off on of their allies, a Glock 19, and his black leather gloves.

“Let’s go, I got everything I need.” Bucky says locking his apartment back up. Sam and Bucky get into their tinted black SUV. They started on their way there when Sam sparks up a conversation.

“So, how was your date with Y/N. Is she anything like Natasha?” Sam asked looking at the road still.

“No, she is way different, in a good way. She does have a feisty attitude like Nat, but god damn her personality is so innocent and sweet. I am definity going to corrupt her, she going to be mine for good.” Bucky says with a slight smirk on his face. He can see it now, that he’ll have her on knee begging for him to face fuck her. Her begging him to show her what a mod hitman can do to make her feel good.

“Damn, hopefully she doesn’t run away from you like Dot did. The bitch was terrified when you brought her home and she found out what you do for a living.” Sam says parking the car in the driveway.

“Sam, she knows what I am doing for a living. She said if I don’t bring her into the line of fire to get her involved then she doesn’t care. I found my soul mate and she doesn’t care about how I make my money. She also supports me for what I do.” Bucky says looking at Sam while they exit the car. Same snorts at the reply.

“It’s funny, because you are bring her in the line of work. Remember plan A dumbass.” Sam said snickering as they enter the house. Bucky was soon to see how far he can stretch her trust with this one. He doesn’t want to lose her right away because of this incident. He needs to tell her asap and make sure he can do it. He won’t let anyone touch his girl.

---

“Alright, do we know what we are doing?” Tony says looking at his people.

“Yes sir.” All his man agreed, Tony smirks looking at all them with a nod.

“Okay, we attack tomorrow. Barnes, make sure your girlfriend is working so we can assignat him that way, or you’ll be the one killing him later, on your own.” Tony says looking in his direction. Bucky nods and Tony dismisses everyone to get prepared for tomorrow events.

“So, when do you plan on telling Y/N about needing her assistant in this.” Sam said while walking about to SUV with Bucky.

“I’ll have to send her a text, she’s asleep right now. She has class tomorrow morning.” Bucky says pulling out his phone.

‘Hey doll, I am going to pick you up tomorrow after school. I need to discuss a few things with you. Had fun tonight, sleep well love.’ Bucky sends and puts his phone on his pocket getting into SUV. A few minutes later he feels his phone vibrating rapidly in hid jean pocket. He gets his phone out and looks at the caller ID.

Y/N

“Hello?” Bucky answered.

“Hey sweetie, is everything okay? I just woke up to potty.” Y/N answered with a yawn.

“Oh, well yes everything is okay. I just have a huge yet tiny favor to ask you.”

“Okay, what is it? “

“I’d rather ask you in person, instead of over the phone doll.”

“Okay, if you want, you can come over now. My AM class got canceled so I am free until I have to go to work at 5 tomorrow.”

“You want me to. . . Stay the night?”

“If you want, we can watch Netflix or Hulu and hangout. I have some food here if you’re still hungry after we dinner that we have 5 hours ago.”

“Sure, I’ll come. Let me go home first and grab a few things.”

“Alrighty handsome, I’ll see you when you get here.” Y/N said as she hung up the phone. Bucky smiles lightly at his phone, his smiled fades when he hears Sam chuckle beside him.

“What are you laughing at punk?” Bucky asked

“You, dumbass, you are so pussy whipped it’s funny. But hey, I am glad you found your soulmate.” Sam said nonchalantly. Bucky grumbles and looks out the window till they get to his apartment.

“Alright bub, we are here. Stay sharp tomorrow and you may have to convince Y/N a little. If you know what I am.” Sam said wiggling his eyebrows. Bucky rolls his eyes and gets out of the SUV

“Be safe Sam, I’ll see you tomorrow.” Bucky said walking inside the apartment complex he lives in. He gets into his apartment and packs a bag to stay the night and his Glock. He wants to be safe then sorry if something happens.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I start getting everything set up for my little sleep over with Bucky. I decide to get a little dressed up for him. I slip on my silky shorts and a loose silky tank top to match, I put my hair in a nice top knot bun. I slipped on my troll pink socks. I try to look halfway decent before he came.

Knock. . . knock. . . knock. . .

I smile and walk to my door and open to see Bucky smiling back, I just met the guy and he is giving hella butterflies. I gesture him to walk in my apartment, I lock it behind him and grab his hand lead him back into my room, he looked surprised to see popcorn, and Hulu on the screen.

“If this is too much, I can do something else.” I said looking up at him. He smiles down at me,

“Doll, this is fine. It’s perfect, what are we watching?” Bucky asked taking in my outfit I was wearing,

“Safe Heaven, my favorite chick flick. It reminds me of my past relationship I had with a guy.” I said going over to my bed and patting a spot for him to sit next to her. They start the movie, and getting comfortable cuddling when it starts, Bucky noticed in 30 minutes after the movie started that I start get sleepy.

“Hey love, can I ask you that favor for tomorrow?” Bucky asked

“Whatcha need handsome?” I asked brushing some hair out of Bucky’s face.

“It will help me out in the long run. . . I have been ordered to assassinate Brock Rumlow. He is Hydra, one of the leaders. I was wondering since he comes to your bar every Friday and Saturday if I come sneak a poison into his drink to kill him. It’ll be slow kill him, he will on the streets when it fully kills him. Can you do that for me, I’ll be at your bar with you. I can sneak it to you, I won’t be asking if I didn’t have any other way doll.” Bucky asked boring into my eyes. I stare at him a moment, not sure if he’s serious or kidding.

“Wait. . . Are you serious Buck? What if I get caught with it? I don’t want to be fired or put in jail. . . How would you do it.” I asked Bucky takes my hand and kisses my knuckles.

“You won’t get hurt or go to jail. I’ll be in a small bottle that can be hidden easily. You just pour it in and stir it in. it’ll be flavorless, so he won’t taste it. Please Y/N, I hate to ask but there is no other way.” Bucky says looking deeply in my eyes about it. I thought for a minute.

“Fine.”

Fine? You’ll do it?”

“Yes, just one condition.”

“Anything doll.”

“I want you to take out someone for me. Simple, and your reward can be me.” I said seductively in his ear. He smirks and kisses me gently.

“Anything for you babe.” Bucky says smiling looking back on the TV.

#Bucky Barnes #steve x bucky #bucky barns imagine #bucky barnes smut #bucky barns x reader #Sebastian Stan #sebastian stan smut #steve rodgers imagine #tony stark #natasha x reader #natasha romanoff #wanda x reader #wanda #peter parker #peter x reader

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bucciarati-pizza · 4 years

Text

[ Fic ] - Jumpin’ Jack Flash: Chapter 2

second chapter of my be gay do crimes fic

You can also read this story here on my AO3! kind of a short chapter, but enjoy :)

The ride to the restaurant took but 5 minutes. As soon as Abbacchio stepped out of the police car, he stretched. Already, he felt completely exhausted. It wasn’t even 9:00 yet.

All night, he was kept awake with his thoughts. The haunting screams. The scare of his partner’s near death. Where the criminal and their victims could be. What he could have done better to stop it. A mixture of guilt, anger, and sadness was tearing Abbacchio apart from the inside and he was trying harder than anything not to let it show again.

After a moment, Abbacchio let out a heavy sigh. He was here to relax and clear his mind, not dwell on those things.

“Ey, Michele, you comin?,” he asked, poking his head back in the car to see his partner still in the seatbelt. The other shook his head.

“You go on in, I’ll be there in a few. I have to make a quick call.”

“Alright,” Leone replied, waving before he started walking towards the restaurant door.

Immediately he was hit with a wave of comforting familiarity. Light chatter, the smell of delicious pizza margherita, and the clinks of various dishes made him feel at home.

It was a small place, but especially packed this morning. The waiting line stretched all the way to the table nearest to him. The comforting feeling went away when Abbacchio gained a few dirty stares as he weaved his way into the line. He tried to avoid eye contact.

It was to be expected, wasn’t it? When you were a cop, you can’t expect the world to treat you nice. Even after all you do for it.

This is what Abbacchio thought as he folded his hands in front of him, disappointment evident on what was visible of his face. He’d shamefully pulled the rim of his hat down as far as possible. There was no sign of Michele yet and he wondered if he should order for him too.

Leone rested a hand on the chair next to him, seeing as the table was empty, absentmindedly tracing little patterns on it with his finger. A minute or so passed, no hope of the line moving up yet.

“Excuse me, officer..,” a voice shook him from his thoughts and he looked down to his left.

Possibly the prettiest guy he’d ever seen was standing there. He was simply dressed, in a white blouse that donned black heart patterns all over, lazily buttoned so that a toned and slightly tanned chest was exposed. He wore dark jeans, completely faded at the knees. His black chin length hair had a pair of gold clips holding straight bangs in place.

A pair of gentle blue eyes was curiously staring into his own.

Shit, was I staring that whole time?! I was staring!

The thought must have been mutual because they both looked away for a moment, faces feeling hot.

“I’m.. sorry to disturb you, but this is my seat,” the young man finally spoke.

Abbacchio’s eyes widened with realization. He’d probably just left it for a minute or so and came back.

“O-oh, My apologies, Signore,” he sputtered, quickly removing his hand and politely stepping aside.

“Bruno,” the man replied with a smile. “Thank you,” he added once the other stepped aside and he was able to sit again.

Bruno looked back up at the starstruck cop. “And you must be...” he tilted his head to the side, to read the name on his badge. “Abbacchio.”

Leone forgot he even had his name there and had to compose himself. He managed a smile, the first real smile he’d ever given in a long time. “That’s right,” he nodded. “Pleasure’s mine, Bruno.”

When was the last time.. someone was interested in talking with him?

“It’s a beautiful morning. Though, it’s almost never this busy, you know. Come here often?,” Bruno asked causally. His voice was so calm and soothing.

Abbacchio’s hands were no longer folded anxiously in front of him.

“I haven’t been here in ages. This is a favorite of mine though. The spaghetti alla bottarga is to die for,” he mused.

Bruno chuckled, a wonderful sound.

“Well, you’re a man of good taste then. That’s exactly what I ordered.”

The officer’s attention fell on a waiter walking towards the table with the same dish in hand. He stepped back in surprise.

“Your dish, Signor Buccellati.”

Buccellati... like the sweet cookies his mother used to leave on the windowsill to cool? He looked back down at Bruno, an elegant image of black and white. What a fitting name.

“Grazie,” Bruno, no, sweet Buccellati told the waiter before he walked away. Buccellati was staring at Abbacchio with intense eyes as he unraveled his silverware from fancy gold ties.

“Abbacchio...” the officer’s name echoed in his own head before he finally realized Bruno was the one that said it.

“Care to join me?,” Bruno looked down right away, as if he didn’t mean or even expect to say those words. “I- I mean when you’re off duty. If! .. uhh you’re probably very busy, protecting the city and all.” He looked even more flustered now, unable to bring his eyes back up.

Adorable.

‘I’m trying to at least,’ Abbacchio thought before adjusting his hat.

“I’m waiting for my partner to arrive.”

Slight disappointment. “Oh, I see.”

Abbacchio noticed this and tried to hide a smirk. Did he think...

Just then, Michele walked through the door, saw Abbacchio and raised a brow before getting in line. Bruno noticed this and silent realization came across him. Police partner.

The line was almost completely gone by now, but of course Leone hadn’t noticed. He was scribbling something down on a ticket, feeling pathetic because it was the only piece of paper he had on him. Bruno was watching with wide, shocked eyes.

“It was great to meet you, Signor Buccellati. Until next time,” he said as professionally as he could muster, handing him the ticket with slightly shaking hands.

‘ Take it please take it, I don’t know what possessed me to do this, but take it before I cripple over with embarrassment ,’ he was thinking, violet-blue eyes averted.

The other was simply speechless for a few seconds before he took the paper and it fumbled in his hands. “Y-yes, likewise, officer Abbacchio. Have a good day.” A bashful smile was exchanged.

Neither could really believe their luck.

Abbacchio’s day seemed a little bit brighter now.

When he finally reached Michele, after a few glances back, the other was already standing at the register, two coffees in hand, smiling like an idiot. “Were... were you just.. chatting that guy up?!”

“Not so loud!,” Abbacchio hushed, as a few heads near them turned. His face was hidden by the hat again as he took the coffee Michele got for him. “Thanks..”

Michele had known Leone was bisexual since high school. He’d been there for him when he came out, gave advice on asking out his crushes... and comforted him through breakups or when he doubted himself. But that had been long ago. Since joining the police force, Michele was certain his partner had given up on relationships as a whole. It was easy to see why, but in his two years of serving, Abbacchio lost more and more trust for people every day.

“Well,” he pressured in a gentler tone, “what was that about then?”

Abbacchio’s eyes were still wide.

“I-I have no idea..”

His heart was racing so fast, he actually didn’t have any idea. What was this feeling?

‘Shit, does this mean I potentially have a date? I have a date I have a date I have a date,’ alarms went off in his head.

Michele looked at him with those big eyes, pressuring for more like they were in school again.

“I’m.. interested in another human being. There! I said it,” he eventually admitted.

Michele’s mouth hung open. “Leone,” he gaped, “Dio mio... It’s about time,” he said, sounding a bit too much like a nonna scolding her child.

Abbacchio shrugged, still blushing.

“Sure, I guess.”

Michele then let out a sigh.

“Well.. I’m glad you’re feeling better,” he replied patting him on the back. “Because we’re going investigating.”

Abbacchio blinked.

“But I thought—“

“Don’t worry about Polpo right now. Someone is going to help us.”

So that call he made in the car was of importance...

They both knew it was risky, but Abbacchio said nothing in return. He had a migraine all of a sudden. Nothing like returning to the crushing reality of what was going on.

“Let’s get it over with.”

After hurriedly finishing the coffee, they started out of the restaurant. With a slight frown, Leone noticed his newfound ‘interest’ was already gone as he was about to pass the table they met at.

Oh well. Maybe I’m just too hopeful. I’m an idiotta for-

He was wrong. Right where he had been sitting was part of a receipt with the words, “for abbacchio” scribbled across the front. Leone paused and looked both ways. Did... did he actually...

He grabbed the tiny paper, heart fluttering.

“I’m usually here everyday before and after work. do you want to eat pizza with me?”

Underneath were some times he was available, and lastly a phone number with the name “Bruno.”

Leone chuckled to himself.

Do I want to eat pizza?

“Hey Abbacchio, are you- ooh what’s that?,” asked Michele, who hadn’t noticed the other stop to hover at a table. He leaned over to try to get a peek at the paper.

“Nothing.” Abbacchio promptly folded it in his hand.

“You’d better fill me in on all the details of your little date when you go,” Michele replied, strutting past him. “Bruno, huh,” he teased, waiting for his flustered reaction.

“Wha!-“

Michele tried not to laugh as he held the door open. Abbacchio tucked Bruno’s note away in his jacket pocket before getting into the driver’s seat.

Maybe, just maybe... this would actually work out. He even smiled to himself at the thought. But first...

“Alright, where are we meeting this so called ‘help’ and who is it?,” Abbacchio asked his partner as he buckled his seatbelt.

“To the coast. He’s meeting us at the site of the orphanage.”

A chill ran down Leone’s spine and he couldn’t help the suspicion tugging at the back of his mind. Something seemed off.

“Michele, I want a name. Who is it,” he asked again.

The other shook his head grimly.

“I can’t tell you until we get there, alright? Trust me.”

A few moments of silence and then the sound of a key turning on the ignition. He couldn’t not trust Michele, and knew he had good intentions, but god, he hoped this wouldn’t turn into anything bad.

And then, they were off and headed back for the outskirts of Napoli to solve the seemingly forbidden case.

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bensakindofmagic · 5 years

Text

Chapter Six

Warnings: none?

A/N: I know jack about wine, go with me on it babes

w/c: 3.1k+

Chapter Six

The sight of him threw your whole world off-kilter. Matteo was standing with a small group, chatting animatedly with a Martini in hand — his drink of choice. It had been so long since you’d seen him, and you’d spent so long thinking about him, moving on from him. One glimpse of his face and you were plunged right back into that time. You were 22 again, falling fiercely in love with the handsome Italian stranger who sat down beside you when you were eating dinner at a restaurant alone one night, the man who made love to you like you were an ancient goddess, whom you had spent months crying over when you moved back to London. Nausea rumbled in your stomach. All that pain, all that growth from the last few years was wiped away in a moment. One look, one smile from him and you’d be putty in his hands again. The room felt like it was spinning, and you grabbed onto whatever was in your hands to steady yourself. It was firm but comfortable, and you looked up to meet Ben’s eyes. Ben.

His face was full of concern at your sudden reaction, your stiffness, the confusion and anxiety that was undoubtedly plastered all over your features. Maybe seeing Matteo again was some kind of sign, something to tempt you away from Ben. Maybe it was the universe telling you to steer clear of the blonde that felt so right in your arms.

“Y/N? Are you okay?”

You nodded tentatively, and offered an evasive mumble, hoping that would suffice. You detached your limbs from his, inhaling sharply at the loss of contact. Without him, you suddenly felt vulnerable, exposed. You began to make your way off the dance floor towards your table, when Matteo glanced around the room and caught sight of you. You locked eyes and the breath flew from your chest, leaving you hollow. He began to take steady steps towards you and without your knowledge or permission your feet were leading you to meet him. Finally, seeing him up close, you felt limp. His features were as warm as you remembered; light brown eyes with flecks of bright gold that always seemed to be smiling, thick curly hair, just a shade lighter than black that you had always loved getting your fingers lost in, the scruff he used to sport on his chin had grown into a full beard. His smile was honey sweet and so nostalgic.

“Y/N,” he said, his voice like velvet. You always loved the way he said your name in his Italian accent, the way he used to moan it from between your thighs. He settled his hands softly on your arms and placed a kiss on each cheek. He was still using the same aftershave; the familiar scent whisking you back to warm Italian evenings, tangled naked in the sheets and in him, the balmy air and the glow of the dying sun and the melodic singing coming from the apartment across the street drifting in through the open window. Bliss.

“Hi Matty.” He smiled at the nickname and tucked a strand of hair behind your ear, never shy about physical intimacy. The butterflies inside your stomach started flapping wildly.

“You look more beautiful than ever. Are you well, my love?”

You told him you were, and he replied that he was in London for work, just for a few weeks. He conducted conversation with causal ease, leading you along with him like a lost puppy. You couldn’t have walked away from him if you wanted to. The whole exchange was light and dreamy, and you got entirely lost in him, just like the first time you met. He had approached your table-for-two, occupied by one, and motioned to the chair, raising an eyebrow. You assumed he was asking to take the chair to another table, but instead he sat down and started talking with you. By the end of the evening you’d shared two bottles of wine, your life story, and your bed with him. Everything was effortless with Matteo, you’d fallen in love with him without ever realising it, like slipping into a deep sleep. It felt like you’d never been apart, like you hadn’t spent weeks vacating the contents of your heart through your eyes. The rug of five years’ worth of personal growth was pulled out from under you. After what could have been seconds or hours, one of his party came to tell him they were leaving. He nodded, and flashed you another one of those make-you-weak-at-the-knees smiles. You nearly collapsed.

“Well, my darling, I have to leave. But I must see you again, we have so much still to share. Come for dinner with me tomorrow?”

You agreed that you would, without even considering if it was a good idea, and arranged a time and place. He took your hand, his skin soft, and planted a kiss on the back of it.

“Alla prossima, angelo mio.”

With that he was gone, vanishing from your presence as quickly as he had appeared. You stumbled back to your table, to which Ben, Rami, and Joe had returned, and sat down in a daze. The guys looked between each other in silent conversation, waiting for you to say something. Ben was staring at you, wishing, praying, that you’d tell him the handsome stranger, who had absorbed you so completely for the last half an hour, was no one. If you didn’t his heart was liable to shatter.

“Um, Y/N,” Rami ventured, “Who was that?”

His words snapped you out of your reverie, and your eyes met Ben’s. Their pleading was clear, but for what you didn’t know. All you were certain of was your confusion. You had been convinced, very much against your will, that you were falling for Ben, then with one look at Matteo you could believe you were in love with him. But it had taken you years to move on from him, to repair the damage the heartbreak had unwittingly caused, to learn to love yourself without him, without anyone. You had learnt not to define yourself against a man, but against yourself. Against your hopes and dreams and desires; you were living for yourself. You had worked so damn hard for this life you were building, and your instinct was to push both men out of it for fear that they would destroy it like a bull in a china shop. But your heart longed to let one of them in — which one it wanted was uncertain.

“That was Matteo.”

“Your ex?” Joe confirmed.

“My first love.” You laughed half-heartedly to alleviate the tension, with limited success. You tried to ignore Ben’s burning stare.

“How do you feel?” Gwil asked, noticing your reticence and the flush creeping up your neck.

When the words came out they were barely a whisper: “I don’t know.” Tears pricked at your eyes, but you desperately held them back, digging your fingernails into your palms.

Don’t you dare cry. You were furious with your tear ducts for betraying you, your anger of course only making things worse. One conversation with Matteo and you wanted to collapse into a tear-stained mess. That should have been a warning to you, really, but you couldn’t see past the cacophony of conflicting emotions and doubts screaming in your head for attention. It was too much; you longed to hide yourself away in the safety of your bed and forget everything. The pain in your palms brought you back to yourself. You looked down at them to see eight deep, crescent-shaped marks, angry and purple. “I need to go home,” you rasped, and swallowed harshly.

“I’ll go with you,” Gwil said, moving to get his coat.

You shook your head, “No, it’s fine Gwil. Honestly, I’ll be okay, you stay.” As kind as his offer was, as much as you saw it came from a good place, you couldn’t bear the thought of having to sit with someone on the tube ride home. Having to make small talk, or worse answer questions, trying not to cry.

“At least let me call you an Uber.” You felt guilty letting him pay for it, but it was dark and you were vulnerable. You also sensed he wouldn’t take no for an answer.

You nodded, and wrapped yourself in your coat. You tried a feeble wave to the others, but couldn’t bring yourself to look at Ben. You were well aware of his stares, causing the skin on your neck to prickle.

“Thank you, Gwil,” you whimpered as you got outside, sucking the cool air in gratefully.

“No problem,” he smiled fraternally, and gave you a hug. You shivered a little in his embrace, so he rubbed your arms to create some warmth. The taxi arrived not long after, and you said goodbye, asking Gwil to give the guys your apologies and your love.

The drive went in a haze of streetlights, blurred by the tears that finally fell leaving track marks down your cheeks. You clambered up the steps to your apparent in a trance and climbed into your bed that had only sporadically been slept in over the past few weeks, The second your head hit the pillow your body pulled you into sleep, rescuing you from your thoughts.

Gwil had gone back to the guys after seeing you safely off. “She’s okay, she said she’s sorry for taking off,” he said as he sat back down.

“It should have been me,” Ben seethed, “I should have taken her home.”

“She wouldn’t have wanted you to mate, I think she just wanted to be alone.”

He ran his hand roughly through his hair, “I just fucking sat here. She was clearly in pain and I sat here! I should have been there for her, like she was there for me.”

“There’ll be a time for that, buddy,” Joe said, putting a comforting hand on his shoulder. He mused, “It really affected her though, seeing that guy. I wonder what happened between them.”

“I don’t know, but I have a feeling it wasn’t just that,” Rami intoned insightfully. “Did anyone else notice that she never looked at Ben?”

“What’s that supposed to mean,” he retorted, a little hurt.

“Well, I think you had something to do with why she was so upset,” Rami continued, raising an eyebrow to insinuate the words he left unsaid. Ben, however, did not get the hint.

“Me? What did I do?”

Rami sighed exasperatedly, “She has feelings for you! She’s confused, she doesn’t know what she wants, or what she can have.”

“You two do flirt constantly,” Gwil inclined.

“That’s just banter. She’s like that with everyone,” Ben argued.

“Are you kidding?” Joe exclaimed, “What was it she said the other day? ‘Your face it so pretty it hurts’? She has banter with us, she flirts with you.”

“But what about this other guy?”

“Exactly,” Rami reasoned, “She’s already confused about you, and then he shows up to throw a spanner in the works.”

Ben wanted so desperately to believe them, to believe you had feelings for him, “You really think so?”

Joe shrugged, “There’s only one way to find out. You gotta talk to her.”

You were grateful for a day off the next day — you had been given one day’s grace before the next stage of shooting started. You’d woken with the weight of what had happened the previous night sitting heavily on your chest. Catching up on the mindless housework that had fallen by the wayside whilst on set, your thoughts wondered to your dilemma. You liked Ben, that much was certain; he was a valued friend and you enjoyed his company. Sure, he was maybe the hottest man you’d ever seen, he made you smile like no one else, and he made you feel more comfortable in yourself than anyone you’d ever met, but you’d decided that that was exactly why you couldn’t be together. Your friendship with him was too important to risk, and in the end your career had to come first. It had been a tough lesson, learning to put yourself first, but one you weren’t liable to forget in a hurry. You would have to deal with your feelings for him and move on. Part of you felt like the universe had dropped Matteo into your path to help you do that. He was a distraction at the very least. At the most? You supposed you’d find out at dinner.

By the time the evening started creeping up on you, a knot of nervous energy had formed in your stomach. You weren’t sure how the evening would play out, or what you wanted from it. You didn’t have a clue whether it was a date or not, which made picking an outfit particularly difficult. You stood in front of your wardrobe, wrapped in a towel with another one in a turban on your head, fully shaved and moisturised just in case. The gentle tones of Fleetwood Mac on vinyl filled your apartment. Jeans and a nice top? But the restaurant he had picked was fancier than that. You pulled out a red dress you’d bought for a party and only worn once. You’d been looking for another occasion to wear it, but it was a little too fancy (not to mention skimpy), and seemed inappropriate if it wasn’t a date. Nothing in your wardrobe was singing to you, until you eventually settled on a pair of pink culottes with a white blouse French tucked, a leather jacket, and heeled boots. Stylish, elegant, classy. With your hair styled and makeup done — natural glow and a red lip — you gave yourself a wink in the mirror, feeling confident for the first time in days, and headed out the door.

You’d agreed to meet Matteo at the restaurant, contributing to your unease as to whether it was a platonic meal or not, and arrived a few minutes after the specified time. It an Italian place (shocker), with artisan decor and Renaissance paintings on the walls — all together a lot more nudity than usually accompanied your dining experiences.

“Ciao, bellissima,” you heard his supple tones from across the room. The table was in a corner where the light was dim, below a copy of Titian’s Venus of Urbino, and you wondered if he chose the table specifically.

“Ciao,” you responded, kissing his cheeks, and said with a giggle, “I take it you picked this place on purpose?”

His laugh was like velvet, “I thought it would remind us of sweeter days.”

“Sweeter days? Are they not sweet now?”

He took your hand and kissed it, “They were always sweeter when you were in them.”

You blushed a little and occupied your fingers by toying with your hair.

“I took the liberty of ordering wine, I hope you don’t mind,” he said as he poured you a glass.

You took a sip; it was crips against your tongue. He raised an eyebrow to you, indicating for you to guess the wine. He had been teaching about wine when you were together, and he always made you try and guess the vintage.

“I’d say it’s Tuscan,” and he nodded with glee. The year was always the tricky bit, and you never got it right no matter how many times he tried to teach you, “2011?” you guessed.

He let out a rumbling laugh, “2007. You never learnt.”

The rest of the evening went in much the same fashion, reminiscing, catching up on your lives, gentle teasing. Physical contact was almost constant, whether he was feeding you from his plate, tucking your hair behind your ear, resting his hand atop yours. Had you been out with anyone else you would have been certain he was flirting, but this was Matty. He was affectionate, extroverted, Italian. By the time you were eating biscotti with dessert wine, you still didn’t know where the evening was going, but your belly was as full as your heart, and jaw ached from smiling. Despite your protests Matty footed the bill, and when you went back out into the crisp autumn evening he offered you his arm and crooned, “Walk with me.” So you did, through the still bustling streets of London along the Thames. You stopped to watch the lights bounce off the water, dancing arrhythmically. You felt peaceful, a welcome change from the emotional turmoil of the last few days.

“I've missed you, amore,” he purred, settling your body close to his. You looked up into his eyes and saw passion in them, his warmth pulling you in like a moth to a flame. He cupped your jaw gently and dipped his head towards your lips. You faltered, frozen in anticipation, suddenly unsure if you wanted him to kiss you. From nowhere Ben’s face flickered to your mind. You thought about the way you had danced together the previous night, about his hand on the small of your back, so gentle, as if he wasn’t sure it belonged there. But nothing had ever belonged more. You thought about how you had heard his heartbeat when you lay your head on his chest, how you had wondered if that heart could beat for you. You thought about how desperate you had been for him to kiss you, until you had seen Matteo. And now it was Matty’s lips approaching yours. They met, and he locked you in his embrace. The simple contact set off sparks in your body, a chain reaction that reminded every nerve in your body of how he made you feel. His tongue entered your mouth assuredly, and you dissolved into him. You disappeared, leaving only the vibrations of his touch. He detached from you, and you sucked in an unsteady breath of cold air.

“Come back with me, bella,” he said, stroking your cheek with light fingers, “Let us remember how our love used to feel.”

Despite the pulsing in your chest and between your thighs, you whispered, “I can’t. I have to work in the morning.” You knew full well that you could get from his hotel to set in the morning, but a slight unease sat on your shoulder and muttered in your ear to go home, alone.

“That is then, this is now,” he hummed.

You shook your head, “Not tonight, caro.”

Placing a chaste kiss on his cheek, you turned on your heel and walked away, smiling slightly to yourself as you felt his eyes on you, watching you leave. But a racing heartbeat and hurricane of emotions hid behind your self-possessed exterior, and once again you were plunged into a whirlpool of confused desire.

tags: @anikatcmh @queen-turtle-boiii @orchideax @rogerspoison @my5secondsofneverland @mrsmazzello @ixchel-9275 @radiob-l-a-hblah @devin-marie @luvborhap @mercurycrowley @spaghetittiesbcimgay @valeriecarolinaw @saint-hardy @caborhapch @stephanie-everlasting @coldmuffinpartycloud

#kind of magic series #ben hardy #ben hardy x reader #ben hardy fanfic #ben hardy fanfiction #bohemian rhapsody #joe mazzello #gwilym lee #rami malek #queen #borhap

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hybridfanfiction · 5 years

Text

Lost In The Echo - 1

Pairing: Keith x Labrador hybrid Lance

Summary: After his brother went MIA, Keith’s life began to fall apart. He dropped out of high school and got a job, barely doing enough for himself to survive. He’s reached the point where even he is worried about how far he’s fallen into the depths of his depression. After learning about emotional support hybrids, he takes a chance and adopts a Lab hybrid named Lance.

Word Count: 2567

Requested

The apartment door banged loudly as Keith kicked it closed, not even bothering to lock it since he had nothing for anyone to steal anyway. He tossed his bike helmet onto the couch and slumped into the opposite seat with a relieved sigh.

Today had been yet another long and tedious day filled with nothingness. He’d even volunteered to work longer at the machine shop and had put in a whole twelve hours just to have something to fill his time. And now he was back in his crappy apartment that was just as empty as he was, save for the overloaded trash can filled with takeout boxes and a sink full of dishes he was never motivated enough to wash. The mess annoyed the hell out of him, sure, but the effort it would take to gather up the remnants of energy he had left to clean seemed impossible. Takashi would kick his ass if he saw this place...

Instead, he stretched out fully on the couch and put some documentary on that he barely paid attention to in order to fill the silence and ordered some dinner off of his favorite app. He figured at some point he should take a shower and get the smell of the shop off of him, but that seemed like too much work at the moment. He lounged on the couch for the full thirty minutes he had to wait for his food, moving only to kick off his shoes.

When the doorbell rang he sighed wearily, wincing as his bones cracked as he stood. He slowly hobbled to the doorway and cracked it open, intending to simply reach his hand out for the bag and scurry back inside like the antisocial raccoon he was.

“Special delivery for Gerard Way if he had a mullet and shrunk three inches?”

Keith scrunched his nose as he realized the amused voice was familiar and poked his head out, widening his eyes as he took in the grinning delivery person.

“Hunk?”

“Hey man! Long time no see, huh? I saw your name on the order form and couldn’t resist making the delivery myself. You were our last order of the night anyway.”

Keith pulled the door open all the way and peered up at him.

“Jesus, did you get even taller? And are those real muscles? Dude.”

Hunk holds up the bags that looked like they had a lot more than what he actually ordered, flexing shamelessly.

“I know, right? The last time you saw me was in high school when I was still ninety percent taco, but I’ve been working out for actual fun these days. And you! I took a chance you’d still have the mullet when I made that joke, glad it worked out.”

Keith rolled his eyes as he ruffled said hair nervously.

“It just grows that way, you know that.”

“So you’ve always said. Man, I missed you. A lot of us tried to find you these past few of years, but you seemed to just vanish and don’t even use social media. How are things? Hold up, let me get your food setup here.”

Hunk just walked right past Keith into his apartment and placed the bags on the coffee table. He muttered to himself as he set out multiple fantastic smelling containers, and Keith took a moment to glance around for anything too shameful while Hunk was distracted.

He was embarrassed by the stark emptiness of the place, as he only bought the bare essentials, but he knew Hunk was too nice to actually say anything about it. Mostly it was just the trash-filled kitchen and the fact that it was obvious he usually just slept on the couch that had him worried.

“So you work at Sal’s, huh?”

“Co-own it actually, along with being the head chef. Except on the weekends when I volunteer at Hybrid Haven with Katie.”

Keith was impressed but wasn’t all that surprised. He’d known Hunk would do well for himself even back in high school. He was just a nice guy all the way to his core and got along with everyone, unlike Keith who liked five living beings and two of them were dogs.

“So Pidgeotto is still around too, huh?”

“I forgot about that one,” Hunk snorts and sets the plastic bags off to the side. “Yeah, most of us are still around. Katie and Allura run Hybrid Haven together and Matt left the Army after...that...and is some software genius and built his own company. He tried to explain what it was for, but it went over even my head. And I studied to be an engineer!”

Keith huffed a laugh and let Hunk pull him onto the couch, accepting the utensils he was handed.

“What is all this, anyway? I just ordered a meatball sandwich.”

“I know, but dude, this is my first chance to have you try my professional skills! I’m not going to pass that up. I’ve improved so much in the three years since you last tried something of mine. So I made you a sampler platter of our Italian favorites. Spaghetti alla carbonara, Manicotti, Risotto, Fritto misto, and of course a nice big order of meatballs since that’s what you actually asked for. Oh, and there’s breadsticks. And tiramisu for dessert.”

“God, everything smells amazing,” Keith moaned as he opened the first container.

“Good. Eat up, you look like you’re skin and bones.”

Keith huffed a laugh, then practically shoved what he guessed was the carbonara into his mouth. It was so rich and the noodles perfectly al dente, even with them being delivered. It had been a long time since Keith had actually appreciated food, usually just eating what he felt he could tolerate at the moment so he’d stay alive. But a combination of wanting to please Hunk who was watching his every bite and the knowledge that Hunk’s food was always amazing led to genuine enjoyment of the meal. He eyed the number of containers and wondered if Hunk would expect him to eat it all now or if he’d be able to stretch them out for a few days.

“You know, now that I’m looking at you, you seem like you’re sick. Is that why you ordered takeout? I should have brought my soup too,” Hunk frowns and lays a massive hand on Keith’s forehead, trying to gauge his temperature.

“I’m not sick. Just tired. Long day, you know?”

Hunk didn’t look convinced, his gaze sharpening as he looked Keith up and down deliberately then moved to give his actual apartment the same treatment. Keith felt like an ant under a microscope, knowing that Hunk’s often overlooked brain was seeing everything.

Hunk sighed and pat Keith on the head like a damn dog as he stood up and headed towards the kitchen.

“Don’t move a muscle, no matter what. I want you to stay there and eat. I’m beginning to suspect that’s the first decent meal you’ve had in three years.”

Keith’s shame was almost overwhelming because Hunk was grabbing a garbage bag and collecting the overflowing trash that Keith had merely watched grow into a massive pile. He tried to protest, but a sharp look from Hunk told him it was pointless and he’d continued shoveling food down his throat instead.

He was midway through the huge foil tin of Manicotti and listening to Hunk hum to himself as he washed Keith’s dishes when the exhaustion finally caught up to him. His belly was full of delicious food and he was comfortable, laying his head back against the couch and promising he was just going to close his eyes for a second because it hurt to keep them open...

The sun was just beginning to filter through his blinds when he woke up. His apartment was silent except for the gentle hum of the dryer, meaning Hunk had even tackled Keith’s toxic pile of dirty laundry and apparently had been here all night doing so. He was ashamed that his old friend had seen what a mess he was these days, but he was touched and humbled that he’d gone out of his way like this.

Keith stretched and cracked his neck before standing, realizing his body was more rested than it had been in a while. He didn’t know if it was the food or just having another presence in the place that had helped.

He yawned and padded towards the kitchen, hoping that Hunk had stashed the leftovers in there. He swung the door open and grinned when he spotted the containers, pulling out the meatballs to make a cold sandwich. He could only imagine the shock on Hunk’s face when he’d opened the fridge and found only water and ketchup.

Keith split open a couple of rolls that Hunk had included with his order and filled them full to bursting with meatballs, suddenly ravenous. He even put them on a plate now that he had some clean dishes. He took a huge bite and chewed happily on his way back to the couch, setting his plate down and searching for the remote and clicking the TV on, pausing as he realized there was a note taped to the front of it.

He jumped back up and pulled it off, reading as he slumped back into his seat.

Keith,

I have to head home before my girlfriend worries too much (her name is Shay! I can’t wait for you to meet her). I am so happy that you ordered from my place today. I know that you are probably all kinds of embarrassed right now, but I seriously missed you. I know it’s probably been hard since Shiro went missing. We all loved him, but you worshipped him. Your brother was one of the greatest people I’ve ever met and I know he’d feel horrible if he came back and saw how much you were hurting.

I’m sorry for upsetting you if you think I overstepped today, but I’m not sorry I did it. You needed some looking after and I was happy to do it. We’ve all been worried sick about you since you left. Matt says he has nightmares sometimes of Shiro coming back and he has to explain that he lost his little brother.

I know you like to think it sometimes, but you’re really not alone. If you’d let us back into your life, we’d love to be there. You were never just another high school friend to us, Keith. You are family. Family that we’ve missed terribly.

As your family, I’m just going to say it. I think you’ve been letting your depression win, bud. The Keith I know is a fighter and right now I think you’re facing your strongest opponent and letting it take over. Please let us help you and be there for you. There’s no shame in asking for help.

I also have another friend that I’d like you to meet. You know how I said we all work with Hybrid Haven? Allura started a program a few years ago training emotional support hybrids. We mainly adopt them out to military vets dealing with PTSD, but I think it would be a good match for you too. There is one, in particular, I have in mind for you. He’s kinda your polar opposite in a lot of ways, but I think it would be good for you.

Just head to the Haven if you decide to go through with it and Katie will probably be at the counter. Tell her you’re there for Lance. She’ll probably be so happy to see you she’ll waive the adoption fee...after she says a few choice words to you. You know how she is, don’t take it to heart. She just missed you and she’s kinda like you in that emotions make her angry.

If you still want to talk to me even after I’ve butted my big head into your business, I’ll write my number under this. If you don’t, that’s fine too. Although I’ll probably cry. Don’t make me cry, Keith.

-Hunk

Keith snorted as he read the last line, then programmed the number into his phone. When he’d disappeared after Takashi went missing, he hadn’t been in a good place. He’d spent every waking moment trying to convince anyone that would listen that his brother was still alive and needing to be rescued. The Army has brushed him off, telling him they were sorry for his loss and that Takashi had been a good soldier, but there was nothing else to be done.

Their parents had died when Keith was too young to remember them well and Takashi had raised him after that. He’d been Keith’s entire world and his hero. They’d moved around from base to base until Keith had hit high school and demanded to stay in one school for the entire time. He’d gotten his wish and had stayed there with the same group of friends until he was almost eighteen and a few months away from graduating. Until the soldiers had come to their home holding a flag and a generic letter of condolence. After that, high school had seemed meaningless and he had to find a job to support himself. He’d sold the home they'd been living in, unable to keep up the payments on his own. He’d then started his monotonous life of working at the machine shop and coming home to an empty apartment.

He hadn’t really meant to ignore his friends from school, they just felt like they didn’t belong to him. They were friends with a different Keith that didn’t exist anymore, one that used to laugh and play. One that hadn’t felt like he was a waste of space just by existing.

He looked at Hunk’s letter again, raising an eyebrow as he got to the part about the hybrid. He was familiar with the creatures, of course. The military had wolf hybrids and Keith remembered a few fondly from his years as an army brat. He remembered he’d even begged Takashi to adopt one years ago, but they hadn’t been as settled at the time so he’d said no.

He glanced around his now clean apartment, taking in the clean kitchen and piles of folded clean laundry waiting in baskets. The place was still empty, but it was looking a little more homey after Hunk had his way with it. Keith sighed and let the idea churn in his head.

He supposed it would be nice to come home to someone, even a hybrid. He’d have a reason to clean up after himself and keep the fridge stocked at the very least. And it would be nice to have Hunk and Pidge around again.

But first, a shower.

#voltron #voltron fanfic #vld #klance #klance fanfic #hybrid #hybrid au #au #hybrids #hybrid!voltron #hybrid!lance #hybrid fanfiction

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collateralfiction · 5 years

Text

Bailey

My head rested against the black couches, my legs pulled underneath me and my body jittery from all sorts of emotions. This morning was nothing short of rocky. Waking up for this dreadful day had to be the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do and just to be dealt with results of something that wasn’t supposed to happen in the first place doesn’t sit too well with me. My phone vibrated from its position on my lap and I looked down to see that it was a simple message from Ryan, telling me that he stood outside of his apartment door and he happened to forget his keys. My stocking covered feet trailed down the dim hallway until I reached the door and unchained the multiple locks before pulling it back slightly so Ryan could enter. He was dressed down in an all-black sweat suit ensemble as if he didn’t have a funeral to be attending, his brothers’ at that. “We need to leave in at least an hour,” I mumbled, trailing slowly behind him.

“I know. I just need to take a quick shower and throw on my dress pants,” he said somberly. I knew for a fact this was taking a toll on him and the fact that I couldn’t do anything to lessen the blow, only made my heart break further. We might not have been in the best of space at the moment but without a doubt, my care and feelings for him were still alive and present and I would do the most to just see a smile on his face after everything he’s been experiencing these past few weeks.

“Have you eaten?” I slept the night over, his request, and although he didn’t want to talk about much, it was the comfort that mattered to him and I knew it. He didn’t have to tell me. We woke up at the same time and I had immediately got dressed so I wouldn’t feel the need to procrastinate and find any reason not to show my face. By the time I was dressed, he was dressed in sweats and had told me he had something to do. I don’t know what he was doing this early in the morning, but I didn’t question it either. What’s done in the dark must come to light one way or another. I leaned against the doorframe and crossed my arms over my chest.

“Nah. I can’t eat,”

“You should though,” I said.

He didn’t fight with me. “Can you make me something light?” he requested, taking off his jacket.

“Sure,” I complied, taking strides towards him. I grabbed his face in my hands and made sure that he was looking at me. “Look, I’m here for you and I hope you know that. You shouldn’t have to go through this alone, okay?” I said.

“Thank you,” His voice was vulnerable and nothing but sincere. He pecked my lips lightly. “I know we got shit to work out but not right now,”

“I understand,” I left him to get ready while I trailed into the kitchen and began to make him a simple Eggs and Cheese combo. The apartment was the quietest it had ever been in such a long time. This was just proof that Riley dying wasn’t supposed to happen. I sighed with exhaustion as I leaned against the counter, attempting to collect my thoughts. Ryan’s food was already made and waiting for him to eat so the only thing I found myself doing now is being consumed in my thoughts without a thing to distract myself with. I don’t know how long I was staring off into space, but it was long enough for Ryan to be completely dressed in his ensemble for the day. I handed him his plate of food and he offered a small smile before sitting opposite of me.

“My mother sends her regards,” I said, breaking the silence.

“I’ll call her on the way to thank her,” he mentioned.

“You don’t have to. She understands what you’re going through,” I mumbled. Taking a swig of his Orange Juice, he said that he would do so anyhow, out of respect. It didn’t take long for Ryan to finish his meal and by the time he was done, his anxiousness seemed to have gone up tenfold. He could barely remain still as he constantly found himself doing something out of nothing. I just believed that the reality of the situation has finally sunk into his brain and he has no choice but to come to terms with it this morning for real. “Have a seat, Ryan. You’re making me anxious now,” I frowned, watching him literally pace back and forth. “Please?”

Heaving loudly, he finally sat beside me like I told him to do in the first place. “I don’t know why but I feel like I’m the one who has blood on their hands even though I didn’t pull the trigger,” he confessed causing me to tense. That mindset had to be what was fucking with him or else he wouldn’t have been acting this way. I actually felt bad that he was carrying around this type of guilt. No one should quite honest… unless they have a legit reason for their thinking which I don’t believe Ryan has. I just think he believes that he should have done more, rightfully so in some aspects.

“I’m not going to sit here and let you feel down about yourself like this, Ryan,” I mumbled. He rested his head on my lap and my fingers immediately started to massage his scalp, careful not to fuck up his newly done braids though. “You can’t walk around like this, it isn’t healthy, and I doubt this is the last thing you need to be doing. Riley wouldn’t like it. Yes, he might be gone, gone too soon, but that doesn’t mean you stop living your life, baby. And don’t hold onto this guilt nor feel like you need to retaliate, promise me?” I said seriously. I done seen one too many times how retaliation quickly turns sour and how avenging for someone doesn’t actually work. For the sake of Ryan and being the only existing child left, I would hope he had enough sense to realize it wasn’t worth it.

“I’m done with this shit,” he grumbled, closing his eyes tightly.

“As in this illegal shit?” I questioned, rubbing his ears softly. It always seemed to soothe him and put his mind at ease for a while and it did.

“Yeah. I don’t know when but it’s a dub for alla this shit,”

“I’m glad to hear that,” I whispered.

“It still don’t take away the fact that my brother is gone,” he said softly.

“Get on your knees,” I ordered.

His eyes popped open. “What?” he questioned. “Bailey, this ain’t the time,” he snapped.

“Oh my God, I’m talking about praying,” I said, pushing him off of me. I sat in the front of the coffee table, waiting for him to follow my lead which was quite hesitantly. Although Ryan didn’t attend church religiously like most folks, I knew he had a relationship with God somewhere and regardless if Riley was killed already, Ryan needed to restore his faith that everything would be alright and pan out the way they should. I grabbed ahold of his warm hand, lightly brushing the back of his hand with my thumb. Once I saw that his eyes were closed and his body eased from its tense position, I spoke the most sincere, truthful and needed words of the moment out loud. “Dear heavenly father, we come to you for guidance and strength during this rough period of our lives. We know that nothing happens without a reason…” Although I was the one speaking, my mind was in a different place and the words seemed to have flew out of my mouth so naturally.

Ryan’s grip on my hand grew tighter and I could hear his breathing as a clear indication that his emotions were getting the best of him. I quickly finished up and at the same time we both uttered an “Amen,” I opened my eyes and his eyes were already on me and for a second, I thought that he was going to cry. But he didn’t, of course. “Thank you,” he expressed.

“Don’t mention it,” Within the next fifteen minutes or so, I was hurriedly putting on my heels to match with my attire and sliding into my black coat. I grabbed the keys off the kitchen counter before Ryan could and proceeded to lead the way out the apartment, towards and down the elevator and out front to where his car was parked. Getting in with ease, I started the car up and made my way down to the infamous church that was only a few miles away; it would only take twenty minutes to get there anyhow. When we arrived, there were a few people standing outside already and I concluded that some must have been inside as well since that’s where everyone was heading to. The ceremony didn’t start for another hour, but we were here. Ryan was being quite the gentleman today as he walked around to open my side of the door and grab my hand as I stepped down from the large truck. We were occasionally stopped as we continued our brisk strides towards the double doors.

“Hold up,” he said. “Go inside. Let me talk to the pastor,” he said, nodding in the direction of the tall, dark skin man. I nodded and pecked his cheek before entering into the grand church. Down each row were white flowers arranged in a specific manner that was probably Ms. Chalmers’ idea. My lips curled into a small smile at a portrait of Riley near the pews. I remember that photo because I was the one to take it in the first place. A hand was placed on my lower back. I quickly turned around and smiled lightly upon realizing it was Ryan. “Come on, let’s go sit,” I followed beside him and continued to look around the spacious area. Everything was done to perfection and that wasn’t a surprised at all.

“Look how many people came out,” I said softly, sitting in the first row with him by my side.

“I know. It feels good,” he said, looking down at his phone. It would constantly ring throughout the morning, but he didn’t have the energy to answer any. Now he was tackling that challenge of going through the plethora of messages he has.

“Mr. Chalmers, will you be speaking during the eulogy section?” a deep baritone voice asked causing us to look up abruptly. Ryan paused for a moment then turned to look at me.

“Are you?” I wasn’t going to talk because I knew that would lead to a floodgate of tears and I wasn’t trying to do that today.

“Y-yeah, I am,” he said hesitantly. I smiled inwardly.

“Wonderful,” the pastor smiled, walking away.

“You’ll do fine,” I said reassuringly, knowing that he needed it the most right now.

“You’re too supportive,” he said, wrapping his arm around me tightly. “I don’t deserve it,”

“Yes, you do,” I said, resting my head on him.

“I promise after this I’m going to change, for real. I’m going to quit this shit with your pops, find something else to do to make guap and be a better boyfriend to you. You deserve more and I’m sorry if I made you feel any less than what you actually are,”

“You mean that?” I questioned skeptically. I mean, this isn’t the first time I’ve heard Ryan say these words before. He said he was going to quit and hadn’t, so that obviously killed off the chance of him looking for an alternative way of making money and as far as him being a better boyfriend, he’s tried and I take great notice of his effort but when things get too tough, it’s like he reverts back to his mentality leaving us at square one. I don’t want that anymore.

“Yes,” he said confidently. “I’m going to try just for you, baby,” I smiled weakly. There were so many things I could have said in that moment but refrained because the timing was wrong and I didn’t want to upset him. “You don’t believe me?” he questioned but it was much more of a statement.

“I need to see actions, Ryan,” I grumbled.

“And you will,” he said defensively. I left him without a rebuttal to his statement, but one was so close from leaving my lips. Two hours had passed, and all guest had arrived, the ceremony had started, and my eyes were so close to shedding tears, especially seeing Ms. Chalmers break as soon as the pastor began to talk; she was so strong up until now. Ryan’s posture was rigid the whole time, but he was anxious, he couldn’t keep his knee still even if he wanted to. It was my job as the caring and supportive girlfriend to show him that even at a time like this, I had his back and I would make sure that he would be fine. I rubbed his knee softly to stop with the erratic movements. He stopped and began to crack his knuckles irritably. It was hard trying to pay attention to the funeral when Ryan’s erratic behavior seemed to overpower anything else. Maybe he was nervous to talk? That had to be it. Family members, friends and members of the church were giving their eulogies and Ryan was last in line to do so. Ms. Chalmers would talk as well but as closing sentiments.

“Calm down, baby, okay? You got this,” I said quietly, not wanting to disturb anyone. He nodded, although I doubt my words actually were acknowledged.

He stood up and trailed towards the copper colored podium that stood a few feet away from the golden encrusted casket, all expenses paid out of Ryan’s pocket. They opted to have a closed casket, only because looking at a lifeless face would be too painful to handle. I couldn’t have agreed anymore. “Bailey, come here,” Ms. Chalmers said, gaining my attention. She sat a few seats away from me, three spots away from where Ryan was. It was hard seeing them not talk even in the closest of space but at a time like this, I wish they were. I sat down beside her, and she immediately wrapped me in her arms as if I was a little kid. It was much needed though. I was the support system for Ryan during this time but who was the support system for me?

My eyes locked with Ryan as he took in a deep breath. “I don’t think I’ve ever lost anyone as close to me as my younger brother. We did have our rare occasions when we didn’t get along, but we soon realized the bigger picture and what was important. Riley was always someone you wanted to keep near you. He exuded happiness and positivity, and everyone needs that in their life. I remember before he died, he wanted to play a one on one basketball game with me. We had put a serious bet on this one. If I’d win, he’d have to prank mama and take full responsibility. I always joke and say mama liked him better anyhow,” He wouldn’t joke, he actually meant that. “,,,He probably wouldn’t have gotten in any serious trouble but still. And if he won, he wanted me to attend college. Nothing trivial like what I wanted but that was just the type of person Riley was. He was literally preaching for everyone to do better and I was not an exception from his words,”

Silent tears spiraled out of my ducts as I listened, and I knew mama had to be affected by his words. A little over ten minutes later, Ryan was coming to a close. “In his short twenty-two years of life, I think I will always remember him in a good light as he would anyone else and for that, I think I’ll turn over onto a new leaf and do better like he would have wanted. Rest in peace, Riley,” he expressed, taking a seat away from the podium and rubbing at his eyes. He was crying? Ms. Chalmers did the unexpected and gently stood up and went to console her last living son.

“Wow,” I mumbled, lightly brushing the tears away. There was no way anyone could have denied that, that hug was long overdue. I just wonder if that would change anything in these upcoming months.

Adrian

A good three hours of sleep is all that I received last night, well this morning. My mind was preoccupied and unlike others, I can’t sleep off my issues and deal with it at another time. I just can’t. I know one person who slept peacefully and that was Bailey. Well, at least it seemed like she did. Her body was resting comfortably on me with her legs thrown on top of mine. I know I prided myself on maintaining some sort of distance with Bailey, but it was harder done than said and I can admit when I’m in over my head, this being a perfect example. I can’t front either about having feelings for Bailey and she probably already knows that without me coming straight out about it. The only issue is that I can’t act on it either at a time like this. Leaning my head against the headboard, my mind began to wander in so many different directions and it was too early -7:04 to be exact- to be thinking this hard. But I have to. Austin is my main concern and although I can’t take him away from his mother, I don’t condone her actions at all, and my voice will be heard and she can’t pull that I’m his mother card with me because it doesn’t mean shit to me anymore.

Reaching towards my nightstand for my phone, I looked at the most recent message that harbored my lock screen and sighed. I didn’t have a problem with Caiden bringing back Austin. The problem I had resulted in why there was ever a need for him to bring Justine here. None of her shit is here, all that is left is the dusk and fire particles. So, her having a need to be here is beyond me. But maybe this is what needed to happen. When she’s here, we’ll clear the air and I’ll make myself super clear to her. Then, all ties could be chopped, and I’ll do what I feel like is necessary and she can depend on Lonnie for all I care. Speaking of Lonnie, I had half the mind to body him, but he wasn’t the one I was truly coming after at the moment. It was Ryan.

I can’t even bring myself to harm kids so what the fuck is he doing?

I could feel my blood rising just from thinking about it.

“Relax,” Bailey murmured without bothering to look up at me. I licked my lips and stared down at her beautiful face. No funny shit but she was gorgeous, even when she was nagging me. It at least showed that she genuinely cared. It was ironic though, especially since I was the one to put her in this predicament in the first place. Damn, she has a big heart. I wrapped her up in my embrace tightly and sighed.

“We’ll leave as soon as Caiden and ‘em arrive,” I said.

“That means Justine is coming here?” she asked, still keeping her eyes closed.

“Unfortunately. but her ass ‘bout to get an earful,”

“For Austin’s sake, don’t do it in front of him,” she advised. The last time Austin overheard Justine and I’s argument, it didn’t end too lightly. I had to talk to him for over an hour and explain in basic ass terms what was going on and that it doesn’t concern him nor is there really a problem. To say the least, Austin is too smart to believe it was just nothing and a senseless argument. So, I have to tread lightly when I approach Justine and I have to act as if nothing is wrong either. That’s going to be the hard part.

“I won’t,” I huffed. “What he thinks of his mother is all on him. But he will know when he gets older,”

“That’s different. Just don’t taint his image of her so young,” she said.

“She already did that shit,” I said. She finally opened her eyes to look up at me and sighed. “How’d you sleep?” I questioned.

“Fine. You know, I actually slept. Unlike you,” she scoffed.

“I slept. Three hours, that’s good and enough in my book,” I chuckled, running my fingers through her soft hair.

“You need eight hours of sleep to qualify for a good night’s rest,” she said knowingly.

“I don’t know anyone who gets that much sleep on a regular,”

“I try,” she retorted.

“Hm… you feel like fixing me something to eat though?” I eased in.

“Um, not really. But why don’t you cook for me?” she said seriously, although she held a smile on her face.

“I could try,” I said, watching as she rolled off of me and curled into the comforters like a cocoon.

“Go do that then,” she giggled.

“I should toss your ass off the bed,” I grumbled, swinging my long legs off the bed. I stood, stretched and stuffed my phone in the pocket of my sweats. “Come downstairs and keep me company,” I yanked the comforters off of her body which immediately caused her to jump and try to reach for the shit. “Nah, come on now,”

“Adrian, I’m tired!” she whined. I sucked my teeth and scooped her up, throwing her over my shoulder. “If you make me hit my head,” she fussed.

“Or what?” I retorted, carrying her down the steps carefully.

“That’s for me to know and for you to find out,” she retorted.

“Corny,” I chuckled, finally reaching the kitchen. I sat her down on the counter and she frowned instantaneously, tugging on my sweatshirt. I didn’t even have to ask what she meant by that, so I slipped the sweatshirt off my body and handed it over to her. No one told her to walk around in practically nothing, but I wasn’t complaining. “For breakfast, we gon’ eat Apple Jacks. That’s my shit,” I said, watching Bailey’s face that was filled with nothing but amusement. I wasn’t a chef nor could I cook a full course meal but cereal was invented for a reason and I was going to take advantage of it. In three minutes flat, I had made Bailey and I both a bowl with the sugary cereal and we were both eating without any complaints. That’s what I liked about Bailey, she didn’t feign for the extravagant shit, probably because she was used to it but still.

“Why are you staring at me, creep!?” Bailey chuckled, probably thinking I was thinking negatively by the way she was slurping the leftover milk or the fact that she was doing that to begin with but that wasn’t even why I was staring; I didn’t even know I was.

“On some real shit, do you think we could have worked out?” I found myself asking, pushing the bowl to the side. She looked at me funnily before a small smile played on her lips.

“I think so,” she said quietly. “Especially knowing how you treat people you care for. I think it’s a great quality any girl would admire,”

“But I’m asking you,”

“Well yes, I do. I don’t think I got that in my last one,” Her face pulled into a sulky frown before her gaze dropped down onto the empty bowl. Knowing that I have feelings for her, I couldn’t exactly act as if I was oblivious to her emotions. She fell in love with the wrong dude.

“Look, it’s alright knowing you fell for the wrong one. No one is judging you off that. The important thing is knowing that you deserve better. You know your worth so don’t allow anyone to make you believe you’re less than that,” I said, cupping her face in my hands. She smiled briefly before puckering up her lips to kiss me. Licking my lips, I pressed mine to her and slickly slid my tongue in her mouth causing a moan to slip past as she grabbed onto my torso, pulling me much closer than before. Our tongues massages against each other’s before I pulled back and bit into her bottom lip. Without moving too far away from her, I pecked her swollen lips. “I have feelings for you and even though shit is all wrong, I needed to get that off my chest,”

Her mouth opened as if she was getting ready to say something but instead, a high-pitched voice was heard in the vicinity. She sighed and hopped off the stool, pushing me back slightly. That’s not what I expected from her and it’s not like I expected something grand either but no response? “Uncle Adrian!” Austin yelled.

While Bailey went to the left, I trailed towards the right, bumping right into Austin. Plastering a smile on my face, I picked him up and threw him into the air as if he was twenty pounds. “What’s up, nephew?” I chuckled. “You gain some weight out there?” I teased, tickling him. I placed him down on his feet and ruffled his hair.

“I don’t know. I need muscles, fat man,” he teased, poking my stomach.

“You got jokes, huh?” I chuckled. “I still get girls though,”

“I do too,” he said. “Wait till I go back to school,”

Shaking my head, I told him to go upstairs to find Bailey. I knew Justine was around somewhere and she was avoiding me. She knew what she did wrong, there was no way she couldn’t have. I wasn’t going to chase after her and since I knew for certain that she was the one that fucked up, she was going to come to me and explain the bullshit she caused. After Austin grabbed something to eat and trekked up the stairs in a hurry, I traveled outside and sat down near the pool. From the view from inside, I was able to easily spot Justine. I was getting angered by her procrastinating and not facing me head on.

I didn’t care how long it took, I wasn’t leaving till she came out here and fessed up to her wrongdoings. There were many ways I can allow this to fold out. I could pretend like I don’t know shit, or I could be blunt as fuck. Either way, this shit is getting revealed today. From the screen of my phone, it was exactly an hour later when her ass decided to stroll outside. She looked like shit. I could tell she had been crying and doing all that extra shit that usually sucks me in to feeling guilty for her. But today? That’s all lost. I don’t feel shit for her. None. I decided to ease my way into this conversation rather than being blunt as possible. Only reason is that I know I have a temper problem and I’m actually trying to get somewhere with this conversation. Also, I want to see if she’ll be woman enough to admit she was in the wrong before I do.

For a split second, my mind went to Bailey and August and what their encounter must be like right now. But she could handle that on her own.

“Enjoyed your trip?” I couldn’t help the sarcastic tone I was using. One thing between Justine and I, it was easy to tell when something wasn’t right, whether that was vocalized or not. We might not know exactly what is wrong with each other, but we knew something was. Then there were times when we knew what was wrong and could come out with it automatically.

“I’m sorry, Adrian,” she wept, her eyes brimming with more tears.

“Sorry? For what? Justine doesn’t do anything wrong,” I chuckled bitterly, my jaw clenching soon after.

“Please don’t make me say it,” She sat down on the opposite chair as I and began to fiddle with the multiple rings on her fingers.

“You know, Justine, I don’t even have to make you say it because I know already,” I keep my voice low and steady, but I was sure that she heard everything that I said. She avoided my eyes, something she barely did and that said a mouthful right there. “I might not have been quick to find out or even notice such a thing but damn, sis, that’s how you do your own family?” I snapped. She opened her mouth to talk but now looking at this situation, I didn’t give a fuck what she had to say. I didn’t care for any explanation she could come up with and lie to me about. I had something to say and that’s what I seek in talking about. “But as you know, everything comes full circle somehow, someway. I’m not too sure if you know this but I received a letter from your boyfriend, Lonnie right?”

“I wasn’t trying to get back with him, Adrian. You have to believe me, it was all for Austin,”

“Just like you put Austin in harm’s way?” I questioned. “You wasn’t doing shit for Austin,”

“It was a foolish mistake! I didn’t mean any harm, I thought I was doing something good,”

“When you knew Lonnie’s intentions? Really? Justine don’t play dumb with me. I don’t feel not one ounce of sympathy for you and your actions disgust me. It’s one thing to fuck with me, out of all people too but Austin, Justine? Your own son? Type of mother are you?!” I gritted. I knew exactly what would make her tick and I used it to my advantage when the time calls for it. She always had this paranoia that she wasn’t doing well as a mother, especially being so young when she did have Austin and not being independent enough to raise him but turns out, she wasn’t. Having me question her mothering skills would obviously upset her. In a flash, her face turned red and she was jumping out of her seat and had the audacity to smack me on my face. My fists were itching to knock her out but if Austin was to ever walk out and see what was happening, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. Clenching my jaw, I waited until the slight tinge of pain to surpass before towering over her 5’5” frame.

“You get upset at my jab? Out of all fucking things!?!” I yelled, making her cringe. “It’s fucking hilarious how you clown mama at being a deadbeat and your ass is just like her! Naw, scratch that. Mama never allowed for her own flesh and blood to get abused nor did she let some sick ass nigga coin her into going against her own family, you fucking bitch!” I yelled and before I knew it, Justine was attempting to swing at me, again, but was restrained by Caiden who forcefully pulled her back.

“You’re no fucking better!” she hollered, moving wildly to escape Caiden’s grasp. I looked at her, unfazed by her theatrics.

“Listen, I don’t care what the fuck you gotta say, whether it’s the truth or some excuse. All I know is that you would have never told me and that’s fucked up. Your man is the one who told me your bullshit actually. I guess he ain’t have your back like you thought he would. But I did, not anymore though. Remember that! But what I do have to say is very clear and blunt. Just like anyone not trustworthy, I’m cutting you off. I don’t want any contact whatsoever with you. I’m not helping you unless it involves Austin and last but not least, you gotta get the fuck up outta my crib. I don’t think you no longer have the best interest for Austin, so I advised mama to watch him while you get your shit together. No money, no job, no family and you barely have a son. Good luck!” I said with rage. “I hope Lonnie can help you,” I said sarcastically. That wasn’t even the icing on the cake.

She was still squirming in Caiden’s grip. But I had one last thing to say. “Oh, I forgot. He’s dead so you have no one,” I chuckled with a smirk. The anger that exuded through her pores in only a few seconds. I saw all sorts of emotion flash through her; anger, hurt, sadness – all that draining shit. If it wasn’t for Caiden, she probably would have attacked me, but I didn’t care. In that hour time frame Justine was avoiding me, I had Justin check up on Lonnie because I had plans for him but when he arrived, there was police tape all over his brownstone and from someone, he found out that he was killed. I didn’t have a person who could possibly have done this, but we obviously had the same intentions. It would have been an honor to kill him, but someone already beat me to the punch and I’m okay with it.

“You killed him!” she shouted, not even in a questioning tone.

“Before you get upset, are you mad that Lonnie is no longer or are you disappointed that you followed behind him, allowed him to hurt Austin and lost it all?!” I questioned. The only person her mind should be worried about is Austin and I doubt that’s where her head is at. But I’m not surprised, not after what’s been revealed to me. “You don’t have any shit here so you can go,” I dismissed, walking away without answering any of her questions. Her loud screams and questions were constantly thrown at me as I kept my head held high and walked back inside. She probably thought that I killed Lonnie, but I wasn’t going to answer that for her. I wasn’t going to bother myself with the hassle of going out of my way for someone ungrateful.

Climbing up the stairs four at a time, due to my long legs, I looked in every room trying to locate Austin or Bailey. It took me a while before I spotted them downstairs in the indoor basketball court. She was doing great at distracting Austin and that was something I was happy about. I didn’t even need to tell her to make sure he was straight; she did it with no hesitation. “Pass,” I spoke. Austin’s eyes light up quickly and he threw the basketball my way in a hurry; it had been a minute since I actually played a game of basketball with my nephew. My life has been so chaotic the past three years and obviously, I missed out on a lot. Bailey caught my attention as she went to go grab the other ball that had rolled off the court. “Stay over there real quick and get the ball for me,” I yelled. She looked over her shoulder and rolled her eyes.

“Okay,” With ease, I flicked my wrist and allowed for the Spalding ball to flee from my grasp and make a swoosh sound through the white nets.

“That was soooo cool!” Austin exaggerated. “Let me try!”

“That was nothing, Austin. Look what I can do,” Bailey retorted, pushing me out of the way. When Austin wasn’t looking, I smacked her ass, which resulted in a surprised and loud yelp. She had thrown on this yoga ensembleand her shit was looking good. I couldn’t help myself. “Watch, Aussie. I’m going to put your uncle to shame!” And that she did. Standing behind me by at least four feet, she made a perfect shot and was too happy that she just had to brag about being shorter and further back than me and she still made it. For the next two hours, I was surprised no one came down to interrupt this moment or even think about bothering me. Maybe it was for the fact that the truth was finally revealed or something, but I was fine with that.

Things were changing and I had to accept that. Once Austin claimed that he was too tired, we retreated to the benches and sat down. Bailey had long been out of the game, finding solace on the bench as her vision bounced between Austin and I. “You feel safe around me, Austin?” I questioned.

“Yeah and you’re fun too,”

“Fun?” Bailey asked sarcastically.

“No one asked you, B,” I chuckled, Austin laughing along with me. “You like mama, right?” I said in reference to my mother.

“Yeah, I do,” he smiled. It was amazing how kids were so pure and clueless to what was actually happening around them. I love Austin, no doubt, but the day he finds out just half the shit I do, all hell will break loose. It’s not my job to tell him but he’s going to start having questions; hell, he has questions now.

“Would you mind staying with her for a while?” My mother was the next best choice for Austin. She might have been complete shit to Justine and I growing up, but she’s been trying to right her wrongs for a long time now with Austin and I slightly don’t blame her. But I know for a fact, she would never let anything happen to Austin. I wasn’t the one who spoke to my mother about the arrangements, G did, but I’m sure she knows everything now. There’s a chance she probably feels like she had something to do with this madness and there’s a chance that she doesn’t want to mend things any longer with Justine and if that’s true, so what? Austin is what matters, right? I just know that Justine ain’t gone be staying in my crib, Lonnie’s or my mother. She can go back to her Brownstone but with what money to pay her bills? She has no job.

I don’t think Caiden gon’ want to fuck with her either, not that I blame him.

“Uh, like a sleepover?” he questioned. I nodded. “I want to! She has the best cookies,”

“The cookies you know you aren’t supposed to be eating,” I chuckled. “So, it’s settled. You know, G? Well, he’s going to pick you up soon, alright? So, I want you to go get together a few things you want to bring along with you,”

“What about my mommy?”

“Justine has something important to do; don’t worry,” I said, ruffling his hair. He had that unconditional love for his mother and that was great for his age, but I still couldn’t help but think how that will soon be changed once he gets older.

“Okay,” he shrugged. By then, he had traveled away from Bailey and I and went upstairs. More than likely, he was going to find his mother but the chance of that happening was slim to none.

“You ready to go?” I turned my head to the left to look at Bailey.

“Ready when you are, babe,” she smiled faintly.

“Babe?” I smirked. “That’s boyfriend status words,”

“Oh, shut up!” she giggled.

Bailey

We were back into the cozy and secluded penthouse, away from all distractions. Adrian expressed clearly that we were going to ambush Ryan tonight and although he wouldn’t give me any more details other than that, that was probably all I truly wanted to know. From Adrian laying it all out on the table to Justine to him placing Austin with his mother, I believed he did what he felt was necessary at this point. Adrian had a lot on his shoulders, but he was carrying on like it was nothing and that was truly admirable under these circumstances. It was just fucked up that everything seemed to be coming apart at the seams. Not to mention August’s shenanigans when he came back. That’s a story for another day. “Adrian!” I yelled. This penthouse was entirely too big for me. You could really get lost and it would take days for someone to find you. I heard his voice, but it was really faint which meant he must have been in the back or outside. Licking my lips, I went towards one of the balconies and found him sitting down with a freshly rolled blunt in his hand. “What a surprise,” I chuckled, stepping across the threshold.

He looked up at me for a brief second and then back down at the chaotic streets of New York. There was a big elephant in the room… one that shouldn’t be here in the first place, but I failed to respond to him when he had first admitted it.

I have feelings for you and even though shit is all wrong, I needed to get that off my chest…

I was never expecting to hear him ever admit the littlest bit of feelings for me. I mean, I’m sure he knows how I feel about him, and he has for the longest but it’s always different hearing a male express the same feelings for you, and I think I would have been better off not knowing his feelings. It just makes everything more complicated. It makes leaving difficult, especially knowing there’s nothing we can do about these emotions, once again. Adrian confirming my thoughts would have been a wonderful thing under a different scenario, but I truly don’t know how to feel about them. And the lack of response I didn’t give him probably had him feeling a certain way. “You’re not mad at me, right, Adrian?” I asked sweetly, draping my arms around his neck from behind. I kissed behind his ear before trailing them down his neck.

“About what?” he stated huskily. His voice was so deep right now. That meant one thing in particular…

I came around and straddled his lap. “Earlier….when you confessed to liking me,” I mumbled, locking my hands behind his neck.

“It’s whatever, B. I just needed to say it before you left,”

“You know I like you too. Were you waiting for me to say that?” I asked.

“I was expecting a different response or something, but it never came,”

“I was too shocked to comprehend and speak,” I explained. “It wasn’t something I was expecting from you. I didn’t mean any harm in not responding quickly enough. Sorry if I hurt your feelings, baby,”

“Hurt my feelings? You got my life fucked up,” he said, taking a hit from his blunt. He soon pressed his lips to mine, opened his mouth slightly and the cloud of smoke he just had was released into my mouth. Moving back some, I exhaled the smoke and went back to pressing my lips against his. I felt his hands slide down my body until they were rested perfectly against my waist. He slipped his warm tongue inside my mouth. Our kiss was nothing short of passionate and lust filled and as he continued to dominate the kiss, I felt him pick me up and my legs instinctively wrapped around him. Coming up for air due to the lack of oxygen, Adrian continued his quick and long strides to the master bedroom. I was quickly thrown onto the bed, him following soon after.

My clothes and his were quickly discarded in a haste motion, our hands groping every inch of our body. Once I was fully unclothed, sporting my birthday suit, he leaned away from me and stared at my body intensely. It was a different type of stare that had me feeling something different in my stomach and feeling the need to look away, but I couldn’t. “What?” I found myself saying, licking my lips.

“Nothing, gorgeous,” I blushed and pulled him towards me by his neck. Our lips intertwined with one another in a hurry as I felt myself loosing up underneath him. His lips moved from mine, down my neck until reaching my chest where he fondled with my nipples. His lips were wrapped around the left one while he squeezed and pinched the right one. I bit down on my bottom lip hard, attempting to suppress the moan that so badly wanted to be let out. Trailing his kisses further down my body, he pulled my legs apart even more and just like before, they were tightly wrapped around his waist. I sucked in a harsh breath as soon as he was near my other set of lips.

Instead of going straight in for the kill like he usually does, he decided to take his time. He kisses started from the inside of my thigh on both of my legs. By the biting, sucking and kissing he was doing, I’m sure he left a reminder for me. When he was through with the teasing, his lips finally made contact with my other set. His lips trailed up my slit until reaching my clit. He aggressively sucked on my pearl as if his life depended on it, causing my back to arch involuntarily. My hands were glued to his hair that I was so happy he decided not to cut. “Oh, fuck!” I cursed as soon as his long tongue slid into me. He locked his arms around my waist to prevent me from running. His tongue moved in a repeated motion; up, down, side to side. I was able to follow his pattern until the strokes of his tongue became too much for me to handle and he decided to switch it up. I started to convulse, and my hands gripped the crème colored sheets as Adrian brought me to ecstasy and back.

I laid back on the bed in complete bliss as Adrian positioned himself at my entrance. He gripped my hands in his and with such force, he filled me up in one swift motion, a loud yell erupting from my mouth. He gave me only a few seconds to become adjusted before he slowly began to rock into me. His bottom lip was tucked into his mouth as his chest flexed with every movement he did. As he continued to swivel his hips into me, I slowly began to match his rhythm. His strokes were mean. They were long and deep, and he made sure that he was hitting my spot. My back remained arched the rougher he got, and my yells, obscenities and moans were only elevated. He knew exactly what he was doing to make me react this way and I loved it because it showed that he was actually catering to my body rather than trying to get a quick fuck.

Every word he would utter would be said so huskily and it only caused my center to drip even more. “Stop doing that shit, goddamn,” he grunted, smacking my thigh.

“No,” I said breathlessly, continuing to clench my walls around his shaft. He smirked mischievously so I automatically knew something was about to happen. He flipped me over on my stomach, while he was still inside of me, and resumed pounding into me relentlessly. My head was literally buried into the pillows with my back still managing to be arched, despite the slight pain I was feeling but I was too aroused to say anything about it.

“Throw it back, Bailey,” he demanded, smacking my ass. Sex with Adrian is always tiring. No matter how many times you cum, he’s still ready for the next go-round, new positions, rougher movements and I was thoroughly impressed by that. As soon as I began to do as said, his hands found home in my naturally curly hair and between my legs. I threw my head back, feeling my body pulse and that feeling in the pit of my stomach begin to form. With a few more strokes to my core, we were both climaxing and soon we collapsed onto the bed breathing wildly. Knowing Adrian like the back of my hand, I knew this wasn’t the end of this.

“I wanna try something,” I said lowly.

“Sexually?” he questioned. I giggled and nodded. “Shit, I’m all for it,” he said with much enthusiasm. I ordered for him to lay back as I slid down on his shaft but, facing away from him. Reverse cowgirl. I never done it before, but I figured it would be the same as facing him the other way. I wanted this to be something that he would remember forever. I leaned forward and grabbed onto his legs as I slowly bounced up and down on his dick. I twirled my hips on him and threw it back in a sync manner while looking over my shoulder. The look of pleasure that graced his face was perfect to me. I slowly turned around to face him and leaned near his ear. “You like this, daddy?” I whispered, sucking on his neck shortly after. From the corner of my eyes, his eyes popped open and he titled his head to look at me.

“Daddy, huh?” he questioned, licking his deep pink lips.

“Always have been,” I smirked.

“Well damn, lemme give you this daddy dick right here,” he chuckled, gripping my waist. “How you want it this time?”

“Rough as fuck,”

“Rough is my middle name, baby girl,”

“He’s not here, Adrian,” I muttered, sitting down at the familiar black table. Of all places I could have ever found myself being in, I was at the one place I rather steer clear of. But here I was, in Ryan’s apartment. After Adrian and I were finished, we both got cleaned up and decided to hit the pavement running. Apparently, Adrian had Justin and Brian scope out his crib for the two days we were back in New York and thought that this would be the perfect night to actually get shit done and over with it. Adrian believed having me here would shock the hell out of him and cause the perfect distraction, but I disagreed. Knowing that I haven’t seen him in a while is going to undoubtedly bring out old emotions that were supposed to be buried a long time ago, but I should expect the unexpected, however. Biting down on my bottom lip, I tried my best to muffle my laughter as he raided Ryan’s fridge.

“He’ll be back in like ten minutes. Chill,” he grumbled. “Does this nigga even eat? Where the fuck is his food?”

“He doesn’t cook so there’s no need for him to have food when he knows he can’t make nothing of it,” I said. “Oh, did we really have to wear all black as well?” I questioned. We were in matching black Timberlands, black pants and I wore a black shirt while he decided on a black sweater instead. Was it wrong that he looked so sexy right now? Or was this the wrong time to be admiring how attractive he is?

“Yeah. You thought we was about to roll up on this nigga with pink shirts and a cupcake?” he retorted, slamming the fridge and grabbing his semiautomatic.

“You’re not going to use that, right?” I asked, referring to the gun.

“Maybe, maybe not. We’ll find out soon though,” he grumbled. With a long and exhausted sigh, I leaned back into the chair as my knees bounced irritably. There was no telling what could happen as soon as Ryan walked through that door and that terrified me. “Relax, this shit will go down smoothly. You’ll be safe, that’s for sure,” was Adrian’s last words before I heard the door open, indicating someone, Ryan most likely, was entering into the apartment. I looked over at Adrian quickly and he had this wicked grin on his face; he was about to set it off.

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