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ckret2 · 3 years

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Alright let’s talk GVK spoilers!!!

My reactions as best I can remember them!

- love how Kong is humanized from the very first scene, like every time he shows up he’s humanized so much more than other titans are. If that was at the expense of other titans being made likable I wouldn’t enjoy it so much, but like, Godzilla is made pretty lovable over the course of Monsterverse, Mothra is too, and all the titans featured for long are given recognizable emotions that let us see them as more intelligent and feeling than “just” animals; so all of them are made understandable/likable/sympathetic. But of them all, Kong is the only one really humanized. Which makes sense, because like, big monkey! Basically our distant cousin!

- And they kept playing, like, normal songs for him, which cracked me up.

- I really appreciated how you could SEE the titans in this movie. After all the weather effects to hide the titans in KOTM, there was such a clear difference in this one from the very start. Kong in the daylight! Godzilla makes his first attack at night, and even then you can see him much more clearly than you can for most of KOTM! Nice!

- after the Iwi were portrayed as silent stoic witnesses in Skull Island, I really appreciated that they took an Iwi character, made her a main character, and gave her dialogue and a real role to play in the story while also keeping her deaf/mute. I think that was a good way to improve on the way that the Iwi got got sidelined in the last movie while still maintaining the worldbuilding!

- I didn’t appreciate so much that, y’know, they murdered the rest of her people off-screen in order to do it. Couldn’t they have gone “her parents died so she got adopted by a Monarch agent that was close to her family, but like, the rest of her tribe is fine”? Or at the very least “their island got fucked up so they had to be evacuated but like they’re settling in somewhere else”? “They’re living under this island dome with Kong and they know what’s up and Monarch’s keeping them in the loop and they decided they’re chill with their new dome home, but this one girl likes to go on adventures with Monarch”? Something? Did we have to kill them all off? Y’all make up an entire fictional indigenous culture and then murder them off-screen when you don’t need them? Just let them live.

- a few minutes in I was like “hold on, we’ve got two characters that speak sign language, we’ve got a giant gorilla, gorillas learn sign language, is there any reason they can’t teach Kong?” and then later I was like “OOOOOH!!” Humans and titans learning how to communicate with each other has been one of my favorite themes to explore in Monsterverse fanfic so I was absolutely tickled to see it getting explored in canon, too.

- That said I think it’s hilarious that the girl managed to teach Kong to sign without, like... anybody seeing. Kong’s hands are above the tree line and there are cameras everywhere, how did NOBODY with Monarch see him signing.

- Bernie’s weaponized being an annoying coworker to such a degree it can only be called an art, and I really appreciated it.

- Godzilla’s extra chonky in this movie and I dig it. Roomie noted he was extra crocodilian and I dig that too.

- “There’s been no confirmed titan sightings in three years” I don’t buy that for a minute. They’re BIG. Rodan NESTS IN VOLCANOES. They found a MOTHRA EGG. Humans have A SCARILY WELL-FUNDED ORGANIZATION DEDICATED SOLELY TO FOLLOWING TITANS AROUND. Like, most of the lore in GVK that I don’t personally like, I can be like “eh... I can tweak it just a little bit with headcanons to make it work for me...” but NO confirmed titan sightings? You expect me to believe ALL of them moved underground when we’d previously seen them all prefer to live above ground? You expect me to believe that now that they’re all AWAKE, they learned how to HIDE?? Uh-uh. And at the end of KOTM there was stuff in the credits about using titan droppings as biofuel, obviously they’re still walking around up top! Can’t take that from me. Nope.

- Who the FUCK is Ren Serizawa and how is he related to Ishiro Serizawa? IS he related? Maybe they just dropped the surname as another “yeah this is a Godzilla movie for Godzilla fans” easter egg but I have a hard time believing that he can’t be somehow related to the other character with the Very Important Last Name who was so important in the last two Godzilla movies. If he is related I’m sure it’s been explained in a tie-in comic or the novelization or something, I’ll look it up later.

- I had to look up how much weight huge battleships can carry while writing a KOTM fic where Ghidorah hitches a ride on one, and y’all, I had to pull weird gravity-negating magic to get him to ride on that boat. Godzilla and Kong woulda sunk that boat like a rock. All I could think during that scene is “this wouldn’t work and I know that because I DID THE RESEARCH and I wasn’t even getting PAID.” I’ll choose to believe that Monarch gets special heavy duty ships designed to carry titans but nobody mentioned it because it wasn’t relevant to Kong’s journey.

- The bit where they could see where Godzilla was swimming because he’d got half a ship hooked to him that was bobbing around on the surface, didn’t Jaws do something like that with a buoy? It’s been ages since I’ve seen Jaws. Anyway good reference.

- Insert “they’re gonna need a bigger boat” joke

- I LOVED the part where they shut down all the ships to get Godzilla to leave. Both because, one, it’s a spectacular callback to KOTM’s “turn off all the guns so he knows we’re not a threat” that makes it seem like now that’s just what Monarch knows what to do to get G to chill out, and two... we know that Godzilla backs off either when he’s killed his enemy or when his enemy has yielded to him. At the end of KOTM—and the end of GVK—the act of yielding is presented as very ceremonial and uniform across species: everyone lowers anything they’ve got that could be dangerous (claws, fangs, beaks, axes) and bows to show Godzilla they’re not gonna fight. Battleships, obviously, can’t bow, but even without being inducted into whatever secret titan cultural intricacies might be going on, humans have figured out their own way to “bow” to Godzilla: cut all the power, so their ships can’t move and can’t use weapons. I know the movie presented it as “playing dead,” but c’mon, if Godzilla could hear MechaG power up from halfway around the planet then he could hear that Kong’s heart was still beating, and he’s been around enough boats to know humans can turn them off and on when they want. The humans bowed to Godzilla. He accepted that they yielded and left.

- Mark Russell looked like such a dad in this movie, like he’s retired 100% from being a rugged action hero and now he’s just Pure Dad. I like him better when he’s a dad, it’s a good development for him. He got like 3 lines and I’m like “I appreciate this character development.”

- Despite all my qualms about how conspiracy theories and extremist groups are handled in Monsterverse (and WHICH conspiracy theories they decide to reference), I really love Madison and Bernie’s dynamic. The adult man who’s the excitable wide-eyed believer in every BS conspiracy you can possibly imagine; and then the serious, severe Teenage Girl On A Mission who’s hypercompetent because she was raised for five years by a friggin doomsday cult militia; and despite having wildly different personalities they’re just, in total agreement about everything. Handled just a BIT differently (like, leaving out the more gross IRL conspiracies) they would be a wildly fun comedic duo—especially with Josh the Only Sane Man coming along as the hapless sidekick. And they all play off of each other so well! Both in a comedic sense, and in more serious moments—when Bernie talked about his wife, there was a real moment of empathy between him and Madison with very little said. I’d watch an entire movie just about the three of them. I’d watch a TV show.

- On the one hand I wasn’t too much of a fan of KOTM’s “all titans... are inherently In Tune With Nature... nature has a Balance, because that’s a Real Thing and not an anthropocentric concept to describe how we like nature to act, and they automatically restore it... because they’re like, some kinda borderline divinities or something... we should probably be worshipping them...” thing; but, now that it was totally absent in GVK, I sorta miss it. Like I feel like there needs to be a balance, a few humans who are like “i lowkey worship these dudes?” and a few others who are like “they’re cool but like, that’s a lil extreme” and that neither side be presented as Right in how they regard titans’ relationship with nature.

- “All titans come from THE HOLLOW EARTH” nah I don’t buy that it’s silly. Basically, what I object to is the idea that all titans have some sort of intrinsic similarity (they all come from the same hitherto-unknown location; they all are part of the same pack that has the same alpha; they all are fueled/fed by the same energy source; etc) rather than letting them be SEPARATE species whose only unifying traits are “they’re all big enough to fuck everything up everywhere they go” and “they’re big enough that the typically-insurmountable barriers between different biomes (mountain ranges, valleys, long distances with terrible weather) aren’t insurmountable for them, so even if they’re specialized in different environments they still all have to deal with each other pretty often.” I’ll make some exceptions for convergent evolution (i.e., claiming multiple titans developed similar traits that are relatively easy to spontaneously evolve and a prerequisite for a creature to survive at such a large size). But I can’t buy “this big gorilla has more biologically in common with this big crocodile-iguana than he does with, say, gorillas,” or most of the other “all these titans have THIS IN COMMON” claims that Monsterverse makes, including “everyone’s from hollow earth.” So I’m tossing that out the window and substituting my own headcanons. Some might’ve evolved there but some evolved on the surface. Maybe a majority of them like ducking in and out of the hollow earth like some kind of titan shortcut system. Kong’s species, I can buy, IS native to hollow earth, considering that they built a whole-ass society down there with tools and architecture.

- I’m SO curious about the little underground Kong home, the Godzilla motif in the floor, and the axe that appeared to be made with a Godzilla scute. What’s the story there??? We know Godzilla’s species and Kong’s species are ancient rivals. Is it because Kong’s species hunted Godzilla’s to steal their scutes to make weapons, seeing them as a valuable resource the way, like, early humans considered woolly mammoths a valuable resource—thus making that Godzilla on the floor equivalent to cave art of mammoths made by people who hunted them—until the Godzillas got pissed and started fighting back en masse? Or were Godzillas and Kongs already enemies when Kongs decided to start making weapons out of their corpses? Did they use to be allies, fighting together, with Godzillas voluntarily offering shed scutes and/or bones of their deceased members to Kongs, and that place used to be a shared home until they started fighting?

- What about that power source, is it something that was already there that both Kongs and Godzillas started to deliberately harvest for technology/atomic breath? Or did Godzillas automatically channel that stuff and Kongs exploited/borrowed/traded with Godzillas to utilize it too? Or is the power from Godzillas who collaboratively poured a bunch of power into the place thus that Kongs were able to use it too? I doubt Godzilla’s species CREATED all that weird energy but the question remains of whether, like, they channel it FROM underground, or naturally produce the same thing in their own bodies, or what.

- Godzilla using his atomic breath to dig a hole STRAIGHT TO KONG just to KICK HIS ASS is hilarious. How lucky that Hong Kong just HAPPENS to be straight over Kong’s house! Were all the tunnels to the hollow earth made by pissed off Godzillas who wanted to kick monkey ass??

- I loved the aesthetic of the battle scene in Hong Kong, with the brightly colored neon building outlines, VERY cool look. The choreography of the battle scene was great too, especially

- we literally broke into applause when Kong shoved the axe handle in Godzilla’s mouth. Love it, perfect callback, that was the ONE thing from the original King Kong Vs Godzilla I was hoping to see referenced and there it was.

- You could really see a difference in how Kong and Godzilla fought—Kong doing a better job at using tools and the environment, Godzilla fighting more like a reptile. They seemed to emphasize Godzilla’s more animalistic behaviors in this movie to accomplish that contrast—he was down on all fours and moving like a crocodile more often, he was clawing at Kong’s chest—but even though it seemed a bit different of a combat technique it also didn’t seem out of place compared to how he fought in prior movies. And we’ve already seen that if Godzilla’s involved in a fight and one of the combatants knows how to use the environment, it’s typically not gonna be Godzilla. (See: Ghidorah using the reflection in a building’s windows to see what’s behind him, and recognizing a nearby power source and biting it to juice himself up.)

- So many of Godzilla’s enemies seem to have specialized in negating his atomic breath in order to combat him! The MUTOs directly suppress his ability to use it—and it makes sense that that’s an inborn ability they have, since they evolved to use Godzilla’s species as prey. Kong has a weapon that both acts as a shield to absorb the breath and turn it back against Godzilla’s species—they didn’t evolve to counter Godzilla, but they developed tools once a rivalry happened. Ghidorah’s the exception—which makes sense, since he came from space—but even at that we see him using tactics specifically to take into account Godzilla’s most powerful weapon (such as keeping one head on lookout for when he starts glowing so that they know when they need to dodge).

- LOVED the reveal that MechaG was based off of Ghidorah’s brain, it has vibes of both the Kiryu Saga and the way that Heisei MechaG is based off of Mecha-King Ghidorah. Not the most surprising plot twist, since we’d theorized that they might use San to make MechaG, but I wasn’t 100% sure they were gonna go with it until they finally did. Even when I was going “huh, the mecha pilot’s chamber looks weirdly organic” I didn’t make the connection to WHY until the reveal, lol.

- “Ghidorah’s necks are so long that the heads have to communicate with each other telepathically” that’s COMPLETELY WILD but I love it, it follows very well from their prior portrayal as telepathic empaths in Heisei, it lines up with their emphasis on electricity (because BRAINWAVES AND ELECTRICITY, hey ho movie monster pseudo science!), and it very much compliments my own private headcanon that they’ve got some psychic/mind control abilities.

- The movie ended with both “Godzilla won, technically” but also “since they teamed up as equals, the ending doesn’t FEEL like ‘Godzilla wins, Kong loses’ but rather ‘they both won against a common foe’” and since I’m on both Team Godzilla and Team They Should Be Friends, I’m happy with this outcome. Plus since the last time they fought, the Japanese movie company graciously let the American monster win, so it’s only polite that the American movie company graciously let the Japanese monster win.

- There were just a few too many humans in this movie. I was intrigued by Ren but we didn’t get much out of him, but like I guess somebody had to be in the pilot’s seat other than the Apex CEO. Didn’t care for the author of the hollow earth book, I feel like his role was superfluous. Didn’t need the Apex CEO’s daughter there at all, coulda done without her. How about this, combine all three roles. Instead of having a whole-ass author who knows about the hollow earth, just casually reference that Rick from KOTM wrote a book about it since he was the expert, and (since he wasn’t in this movie) say that he tragically died going to explore the hollow earth himself, and that way we’ve got the book with the “titans are from there” theory AND an excuse to share the “humans die when they go underground” info. Now, have Ren be working for Apex as a pilot for Mechagodzilla, but have him be MechaG’s pilot because he’s also a good pilot in general, and can fly those HEAV things. Have Apex send him to Monarch to be like “hey, you guys trust me right, since I’m Ishiro Serizawa’s relative? We at Apex have heard all about your failed hollow earth expedition, and due to Ishiro I’ve got some past ties to Monarch so I’ve got high clearance with y’all, so I could bring over this useful Apex tech that’d let you go underground and use what I know about hollow earth from my past time at Monarch to help guide things.” Once they’ve got the little chunk of energy stuff and go topside, he hustles it straight to Apex and straps into his seat to run MechaG. Bam, you’ve combined “person who knows enough about hollow earth to help the expedition,” “person who represents Apex’s interests and gets the energy,” and “person who pilots MechaG” into one character, in a way that takes three flat/underdeveloped characters and turns them into a single interesting character with a lot going on and some intriguing ties to the rest of the cast.

I think that’s everything?? Hoo.

#gvk #godzilla vs kong #gvk spoilers #godzilla vs kong spoilers #godzilla #meta

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krreader · 3 years

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earned it.

pairing: jung hoseok x idol!reader fandom: bts warnings: sex ; oral sex ; daddy!kink ; spanking ; dirty talk ; language genre: smut word count: 1.6k+

summary: what was hoseok supposed to do when you looked like a snack on that red carpet?

a/n: coming back with a piece of pure smut, that’s me lol. enjoy it hun!

When Hoseok had found out that your group had been invited to one of the American award shows that he and the boys were attending as well, he had been over the mood.

Naturally, nobody outside of your companies knew you two were dating, but it was wildly known that your groups were friends, so seeing you both out in public together wouldn't cause a scandal. He might have to drag others along so that it wouldn't look suspicious, but he could still take you out on dates in LA like he had always wanted to.

And at first that was going fine. When you had time, you would spend it together, even managed to have a date on your own twice.

But then the day of the award show came and Hoseok was once again reminded of how shitty it was that he couldn't let the world know that you were his... at least not in public.

“They look amazing,” Jimin breathed out as he watched your group take photos on the red carpet.

If he had to guess what concept your stylists were going for, it'd simply be: goddess. All of you. You looked stunning and everyone was going crazy over you.

The boys, the paparazzi, the fans, the other artists.

You owned this red carpet and you knew it.

If this was his dream scenario, your boyfriend would have walked over, would have wrapped an arm around you – proudly so – and would smirk from ear to ear. Let the world know that this, you, were a thing.

Not an option, unfortunately.

And so when the paparazzi called BTS to take photos with your group, he managed to squeeze himself in between you and your other member, pulling you a little closer than necessary.

“Stop being obvious,” you said through gritted teeth, that red carpet smile still on your face.

“You leave me no choice,” is what he replied.

From there on, it was only becoming worse and worse.

Other American artists, especially the men, were all over you, hugging you, kissing your cheek, taking pictures with you. During your performance, you were a lot sexier than on the stages in Korea and he was beginning to become antsy, already thinking about all the things he would do to you when you got back to the hotel.

It was simply a matter of him being very... possessive.

Suddenly he was glad that they all decided not to go to the after party and rather do a VLIVE.

And so in the elevator, about three hours later when the award show was already over, he pulled you towards him, your back against his chest, completely relaxed since you were in the company of your members and his only.

“Do you guys want to make separate VLIVE's?”

“Yeah, would probably be better,” Namjoon nodded at your leader, “But we should all eat first. Properly.”

“Sounds good. You'll do yours first, then we do ours?”

“Perfect.”

But when you arrived at the floor and everyone went to their separate rooms, Hoseok wrapped his hand around your wrist, “You're going nowhere.”

“Huh?”

You narrowed your eyes at him, but Hoseok's eyes were on his members, waiting until one after the other disappeared into their rooms. Only once they were all out of sight did he walk out of the elevator, pulling you with him.

“You know, baby girl, I hate it that these men all look at you and think they have a chance with you because you're single, when in reality, you call me daddy every night,” he said in a low voice, pushing open the door to his hotel room and pulling you inside, instantly pinning you against the nearest wall and shoving the door closed with his foot.

“You want to do this now?!” you let out a laugh when he already began to kiss your neck, “Your members are all waiting on you to start the broadcast.”

“You heard it yourself... it's dinner time first, love,” he grinned and then kissed you softly, “And I'm about to dig in.”

You inhaled in a sharp breath of air when he got down on his knees and pulled your string with him. From the way he was grinning to himself, you assumed that he was very happy about your dress in that moment, because he could easily push aside the fabric hanging in the front and begin to eat you out without a second thought.

It was really not what you had expected, your back instantly arching and your fingers pulling on his hair.

Oh, how glad you were that he was this possessive right now. Hoseok was always good when he gave you oral, but he made you feel that tiny bit better today, wanting you to know that he was this good.

And shit... you really did feel it when he sucked on your clit, gently bit down on it and moaned against it, so that the vibration shook you to the core.

He knew he was good, he knew he was pushing you over the edge in mere seconds, because at this point, he knew what you loved.

But you wouldn't get off this easily today.

“No,” you said shakily as he got up from the floor, so close to orgasming within a minute, “Don't stop, please...”

“That's right, baby girl. Keep on begging tonight,” he grabbed you by your waist and turned you around, guiding you towards the bed and then pushing you onto it, but instantly pulling your butt back up so that it was on full display in front of him.

He leaned down and let his tongue glide through your folds one more time, letting out a big sigh when he stood up straight again.

“I wonder if these people know just how wet I get you.”

“Please, Hoseok.”

“Please, what, princess?” you heard him unbuckle his belt, “I need to hear it... what do you want me to do?”

“Anything.. anything, really,” he could eat you out, he could fuck you from behind, you just needed to find your release when it was still so close.

But again, he wouldn't make this easy tonight.

“Anything, huh?” his hand came down hard on your ass, you letting out a yelp, “Like marking you as mine?”

“Yeah.. spank me,” you bit down on your lip.

“Spank me...-” his hand was rubbing over the spot, waiting for you to finish that sentence.

“...daddy,” when you pushed your ass back to give him another incentive of what you really wanted, your boyfriend let out a dark chuckle.

“Cute,” he patted your ass check and a moment later, you could feel his tip pushing against your entrance, coating it with your wetness, “I kinda feel bad for you now. You really want me, huh?”

You knew that, even though this was also about possessiveness and control, it was Hoseok asking for confirmation that you still wanted him and only him. And if it weren't for you being so fucking horny in that moment, you would have also replied with 'Cute'. Instead, you went for: “I want you so badly, daddy.”

Almost the same.

It was what Hoseok wanted to hear, though.

He pushed inside you with ease, both of you letting out a loud moan, so loud that Hoseok knew one of the members from next door would hear.

Let them, he thought.

He stayed still for a moment, enjoying the feeling of warmth around his hard dick, before he gathered your hair and pulled your head back a little.

“How hard do you want me to go, baby?”

“Hard.”

Well, technically, you wanted this feeling to last forever, but you knew it wouldn't. And so you chose the alternative that made you find your release quickly.

And well, after two years of dating and a sex life that you would call a successful journey, Hoseok could blindly find your G-Spot within seconds.

And this time was no different.

He only had to push into you a few times before you let out the first scream that made him laugh.

“That's right, beautiful... let the entire hotel know that I'm the one that's fucking you.”

You tried to hide it, bit down on your lip and wanted to grab a pillow to scream into it, but Hoseok quickly got a hold of your arms and pulled them back, holding both your wrists behind your back, while the other came down hard on your ass cheek, again and again.

From the speed he was fucking you, you knew that he couldn't last long either, he was as ready to find release as you were.

There was no change in angle, no creativity. It was only sex, good, hard and fast.

And that was perfect for the both of you today.

Hoseok would have continued on with the praising, with the dirty talk and everything in between, but his thrusts were becoming sloppy, his hand let go of your wrists and he held your waist to keep his balance.

You were glad for it, because when you finally came, you screamed so loud that you were sure it would have woken the entire floor. Thankfully, though, you were able to grab a pillow just before that and scream into it.

Hoseok managed to conceal his moans, but they were loud enough – maybe even louder than necessary – for his members next door to hear.

And when he walked into Namjoon's room after a hot shower, he earned angry looks from both Yoongi and Jimin, so that answered who heard you two.

He just grinned from ear to ear and looked completely satisfied... you both earned that after a succesful award show.

#bts imagine #bts x reader #jung hoseok x reader #jung hoseok imagine #hoseok imagine #hoseok x reader #j-hope x reader #j-hope imagine #bts #bangtan boys #bangtan #bangtan sonyeondan #jung hoseok #j-hope #reader #requests

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crackinwise · 3 years

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My pet AU is Kiyotaka and Mondo somehow out in the post-Tragedy Japan, surviving and saving people. Like either they didn't agree to stay locked in Hope's Peak for safety, or they survived the game and left with the others but didn't join Future Foundation. Major points up front, details divided into sections under the cut:

Mondo's objective would be to find his gang, and Taka's goal, besides finding his dad, would be repairing society while punishing those responsible for its destruction. But their direct task is keeping each other safe & helping victims along the way.

Mondo even stresses calling Taka "Ishimaru" instead of "bro" or his given name in front of others, so they might KNOW who's saving them. Taka caught on quick & is very grateful.

Taka would have kind of a breakdown reconciling who he is with what he has to do in a lawless world where every public moral is ignored. He keeps a small ledger of places they loot from, to compensate in the future.

At the start, Taka can only sleep burrowed against Mondo's chest or back, blocking out their damaged surroundings & pretending everything is as it was.

He cries in Mondo's arms one night after he couldn't avoid killing someone to save Mondo's life, and that's the tipping point. He thinks if he was better, stronger like his bro, he'd have noticed sooner & found a better option. Mondo is being so brave; he's Taka's rock and Taka wants to be as steady for him too. Their souls are already connected so obviously he just has to borrow more of Mondo's spirit, right?

That's how Ishida is created.

(In reality, Mondo just compartmentalizes and shoves down unhelpful feelings. You thought he needed therapy BEFORE all this, oh man-)

Ishida:

Taka ends up slipping into the Ishida facade for fight and flight; any time adrenaline kicks in and he feels he needs that boost. Sadly, that's most of their waking time. He guards Mondo and anyone they're saving like a fierce watchdog, and won't hesitate to bite.

He'll only come out of the role when he personally verifies it's safe and if Mondo can confirm it. Survivors are confused by the dual-sided Ishimaru switching right in front of them, but they're so grateful (and so much weird crap has happened) that it never phases them long.

Too many times, Ishida will go all day without a break. This means when their hideout for the night is absolutely safe, that it's okay to let go, Taka just collapses in exhaustion. But Mondo is there to catch him.

Mondo feels conflicted over the Ishida role because Taka is just a beast in it--it's very flattering and a little hot--but it also makes him worry more than before about Taka's health. He comforts Taka with a lot of praise and reassurances, and Taka sleeps lightly but otherwise fine.

Relationship: (slight mature warning)

When they touch, Taka swears he can feel the link between them flare to fuel them. Twin fires ignited. Mondo doesn't know about all that, but when their eyes meet it definitely makes him feel invincible, so, he can believe.

If they weren't already new boyfriends when The Tragedy hit, all this closeness makes sure of that soon after. Being together is their happiness and, for a while, their only link to pre-Tragedy lives. Vows not unlike marriage were exchanged one night. Where one goes, the other will follow. Anywhere. Always.

When they kiss, safe and alone, Mondo will ask what Taka wants; what he can handle that night. Sometimes it's just the kisses before passing out, sometimes it's more intimate touches to please them both after another hellish day.

Sometimes Taka will ask to be made love to, for obvious couple reasons, but also because Mondo inside him makes their tether feel stronger, more complete. Like going over the invisible line in bold marker. Taka believes any marks they can create with their mouths, any traces of themselves they can leave on or in each other, the easier they can find their bond and tap into it. (He had started a nervous habit of pressing in on lovebites to keep Ishida going when tired.)

Mondo tells him he doesn't need to find a poetic excuse for fetishes and Taka lovingly answers with a stomach punch.

Crazy Diamonds:

Mondo's gang members, the ones not dead or overcome with Despair, are slowly found and joined back up.

Any smaller and sturdier motorcycles are kept when found. If Mondo was able to keep his own in this version, it's a bit heavier than would be good for any off-roading--and much too loud for any stealth--but he refuses to part with it.

Every gang member respected Taka/Ishida the second they saw him fight beside their leader. Before Mondo says a word about him. They readily take orders from him in either form. The change in appearance was a surprise, but they're already used to some members wildly changing demeanor in or away from the gang, so it's easily accepted.

With the gang as backup to keep watch during downtime--after Ishida sized each one up and watched them for loyalty--the pair can feel a lot more relaxed. They joke about having a date in a blown-out restaurant they find, and they can finally enjoy a deep sleep.

When the group finds safehouses with more than one room, Mondo & Taka are given their privacy. Taka tries to insist everyone deserves a chance at privacy and they should rotate, but changing a gang's long-established hierarchy is a losing battle. And Mondo's not on his side because when they're alone he can be as sappy or touchy as he likes.

Legends:

Taka and Mondo save a lot of people over their journey and kinda become a legend that gets spread around and gives people Hope.

This area still needs work from me. Probably some research into Japanese myths and supernatural symbolism. A placeholder right now is something corny like "Two Men with burning eyes and thunderous voices will answer your cries for help. But if you're evil, the two will appear to you as One Demon and drag you down to the land of the dead."

There's also probably a need for costume changes since their color scheme is the same black & white of the Despair Remnants and monokumas killing people. Legend or not, it'd be easy for traumatized survivors to not know they're good guys at first.

Darker Moments: (blood, violence and vague attempted sexual assault)

After he killed a man to save Mondo, Taka luckily (he wouldn't use that word) doesn't have to again. Hurt? Yes. Beat unconscious? Yes. Maim? Yes, but some of the vile dregs of humanity are caught doing things that deserve worse--

--That deserve Mondo. Once when they were still traveling alone, a group of Remnants jumped them, managing to separate the two, and one knocked Taka out with a bad blow to the head. Mondo dispatched the others attacking him and got to Taka right as the Remnant was about to do something unforgivable.

Mondo snapped. He still doesn't remember what he did, he just remembers coming to in all the blood and dazedly picking Taka up to take him to a place he knew was safe.

Taka never finds out. He woke up a day later with a bandaged head and Mondo crying and kissing his hands. Mondo just told him he beat some and scared away the others.

Minor Details:

They try to always fight back-to-back and, to observers, seem to read each other's mind for where to move.

Taka/Ishida would use a sword or hand-to-hand. The pickaxe might just be a random pickaxe they find, if he uses it at all. Kinda hard to carry both a sword and a railroad pickaxe on your back, and I can't imagine it balances very well. (The size in official pics would be a 5lb head w/2-3lb handle.)

Mondo seems like he would use anything lying in debris to fight. Poles, pipes, chains. Aaaand maybe the knives he mentions in School Mode.

For any costume changes, Mondo would keep his jacket at least. A beacon for the Diamonds. Maybe a purple tank top, and different pants better for knife holsters. Unless the holster should wrap around his waist or hip instead?

Any changes to Taka's outfit would keep his armband. It's a reminder of his Talent and his goal to make Japan even better than before. Also wanna keep his boots or change to more rugged ones.

End Goal:

Obviously they'd end up in Towa, after the events of Ultra Despair Girls. They're reunited with Takaaki and Takemichi. Maybe they help set things right there a bit, or Makoto would get word to them about his plans vs Future Foundation's. Look at me, do I look like someone that knows how to end things?

There is no way you read all that. (I love you if you did.) But feel free to use all or any bits of it in your own works. Almost positive I'll never get to compose all this into a coherent fic format. I might update in short scenario posts under a 'Tragedy-survivor au' tag if I think of anything.

If you have a question or want something expanded upon, ask away.

#ishimondo #kiyotaka ishimaru #kiyondo ishida #mondo oowada #danganronpa #Tragedy-survivor au #i've only read like 2 fics that had this concept but it was ensemble so the boys weren't the focus which hurt me

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thejewitchelf · 3 years

Text

TIPS FOR BEGINNER WITCHES

🖤🌈🧹🐱🌠🌌🪐

These are just a few things I've learned along the way, and still have to remind myself of. I hope these are useful to anyone out there just starting out!

1. Remember that you do not just practice witchcraft. You are a witch. Take accountability for you practice, and fully embody all that you do in both the mundane and spiritual realm. Your magic does not control you, you are in control of it. The energies around you/in a room do not control you, do control the energy. Your practice is not something that is separate from you, it is your very essence. Focus on the mantra "as within so without", and remember that just as you are a reflection of the natural world and it is a reflection of you, your magic is as well.

2. This is a common one, but try not to rely so much on books or the opinion of others. While yes, practicing your craft in a highly particular and ritualistic manner can be very productive for some, it is important to connect to this ritual space in your own way and unique understanding/point of view. There is an innate understanding of magic that everyone has, and while it is important to learn as much as you can, try to maintain a balance between an intuitive practice and the information you collect.

3. Similar to number 2, if you are just starting out and getting steady on your feet within the realm of spellwork, a great way to begin is by altering spells that you find from others or in books! This could be a small change at first, but as you get more comfortable doing this, you might find that suddenly those spells you've been practicing could be completely unrecognizable from the original, and 100× more effective for you.

4. If you have a safe place to do so, go into nature. Become acquainted with your local plants and animals. Bring your phone for safety, of course, but don't bring field books or encyclopedias. I recommend bringing a journal, however, and meditating on different plants or wildlife. How do these beings make you feel? Are they saying something to you? What means of communication are they using? Words, smells, images, or feelings? Write down anything that comes to your mind, even if it feels silly at first.

5. Try not to become too fixated on defining yourself as a witch, or trying to figure out what niche you fit into right away. Learn and practice all different forms of the craft (assuming it is culturally appropriate for you to do so/not engaging in appropriation) and maybe one will happen to be the perfect fit! Or maybe not, and that's okay too. Like I said previously, your craft is a reflection of you, and you are a reflection of it. If your practice ends up being completely different from how you began or what you expected, take this as a positive sign if nothing else! You are on your journey of discovering what unique qualities you have to offer the world, and embracing your own inner power.

6. Always. Be. Curious. Part of witchcraft is the ability of observation. From the tiniest bug to the tallest tree, try looking at the world in wonder,, and as if no knowledge is not worth knowing. Pretend that you have been transported to an alien planet, and are viewing this earth for the very first time. What are you understanding about what you see Honor? How is it making you feel? Release all expectations and previous experiences or knowledge you came into this space with. Having a sense of childlike wonder and maintaining this will aid you on your quest to developing your intuition. Honor the connections that you find between things, and any information you receive from the earth. On the other hand, also begin to treat your inner world with this same sense of wonder and curiosity too.

7. There is no linear or "correct" path. If you are just starting out, you may be feeling lost, and looking for some sense of a direct path. There is, however, no direct path! This goes for both witchcraft and life. Your craft will change, evolve, and adapt over time, just as you will. Try not to be resistant to these changes both within your craft or yourself, and practice being uncomfortable with the unknown.

8. Make witchy friends! This could be either in person or online, but having a community of like minded people who equally share a love and belonging to such a personal path can be wildly inspiring. Sharing experiences can also help you to shape your craft and learn, but never feel obligated to share experiences if it doesn't feel right. This can also help bring your practice into something that you see in the physical world, through the external confirmation of others. While it is important to not let the validation of others be what legitimizes your practice for you, we are physical and social beings. When you are first starting out, it is easy to feel uncertain, or sometimes feel like you are even questioning if what you are doing is real. Having others who support you in what can at times be somewhat of a lonely journey can be of enormous benefit to some, both in the mundane and spiritual world.

9. Do your shadow work. Shadow work is a life long journey, but understanding the darker aspects of the self and transforming these inner narratives/structures consciously when you begin your craft will enable you to get to the root of certain blockages you have, as well as help you discern what kind of spells are coming from different places. For instance, if you are doing a money spell, try and ask yourself what your beliefs are around money. Do you have an unconscious fear of financial success? Do you have learned fears around failure, which you associate with financial gain? If anything comes up for you, whatever it may be, work on doing your meditations and spellwork around that core issue before focusing on the material aspect.

10. Protect yourself. Those of us who are drawn to witchcraft might already be prone to a heightened sense of empathy, and posses a certain level of psychic acuity. Beginning your practice will only strengthen this. Some of the first things I recommend focusing on in your learning is how to make wards, psychic shields, and energetic shields (such as casting a circle). Not only will this be beneficial for your overall well being in the long run, but it will help make your intent clear and your craft as effective as possible in manifesting the goals you want to achieve. Having said this, there is a balance between allowing certain energies to enter your space, and blocking out all energies altogether. The thing to learn here is that it is about being discerning, and you may have to learn over time which energies you would like to invite towards you, and for what purposes.

That's all I have to say about this topic for now, but please feel free to send me asks, or elaborate on/add to anything listed above!!

Have a wonderful day and blessed be~

Winter Foxflame 🦊🌛🌕🌜

#mine #witchcraft #witchy #witchblr #nature #beginner witch #practitioner #practice #spellcraft #psychics #witches #intuitive #intuition

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alolanrain · 3 years

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how old is ash on yours au’s?

It really really depends and I’m finding out that I’m absolutely horrible at actually giving out somewhat concrete ages, barring a few Au’s.

Unspokenly Ash is usually around late 20 to very early 22, unless I did write down and post an age for him in what ever Au has it, but thats also more drabble and fillet based. That is… basically my standard and I really need to vocalize that more from the content that I do write him as younger.

Basically how it goes is that with each region he ages up a year. Spending his birthday at home with his mom and the Oak’s that are present at the time before going off on another adventure. This gets kind of tricky around Sinnoh because Ash stay’s there to take on The Brain. I have that written down that it takes 3 month’s to even half a year. Which then put’s off the ‘sharing the birthday with mom and oak’ thing. This lands his birthday in the middle of his current journey at the time or a bit later like right before the league or a month before, if that makes sense. So in the end he comes home obviously older. Though I have been messing around and making the time in Orange Isles shorter to around 9 months instead of a full year.

Like here’s a time table and I’ll keep both set’s of ages if I do mess around with Orange Isles time line and add it as concrete. It gets really complicated so if you want a little more explanation please don’t be afraid to ask. I am also keeping the Brain Arc to half a year.

Starting age to finishing age *0/12 means how many months he is instead of a full year.

Kanto: 10 to 11

Orange Isles: 11 to 12 or 11 to 11 + 9/12

Johto: 12 to 13 or 11 + 9/12 to 12 + 9/12

Hoenn: 13 to 14 or 12 + 9/12 to 13 + 9/12

Sinnoh: 14 to 15 or 13 + 9/12 to 14 + 9/12

+ battling the Brain: 15 to 15 + 6/12 or 14 + 9/12 to 15 + 3/12

Unova: 15 + 6/12 to 16 + 6/12 or 15 + 3/12 to 16 + 3/12

Kalos: 16 + 6/12 to 17 + 6/12 or 16 + 3/12 to 17 + 3/12

Alola: 17 + 6/12 to 18 + 6/12 or 17 + 3/12 to 18 + 3/12

Galar: 18 + 6/12 to 19 + 6/12 or 18 + 3/12 to 19 + 3/12

I just want to say that typing all this out looks like one hell of a long ass math equation, kinda hate it and might change it later. But this is my completely basic format of what I use. Of course there’s a lot of wiggle room as I write Ash starting around 20 to 21 in Alola and Galar. He’s obviously going to probably spend more the one complete year in a region and less then another. The end of the league doesn’t dictate when he stays and leaves. Theres also the months that build up between each “arc”, another word I use to refer to his journeys, and to account the HC that some leagues start off at wildly different times then others.

It’s literally just a pick-and-pull basket and just a large general target where Ash would be ages wise. As you see in the end the two different age lists end up being only 3 months part from each other. It really doesn’t matter and I’m mostly just playing around with it. Another note thats… vital isn’t the correct word but I’m use it is that I don’t take Cerise Laboratory and the research assistant job into account. This is based off if Ash travels Galar to his normal standard with every other arc but Alola but I did keep the characters.

You didn’t ask for this but I want to add in other traveling buddies and side rivals ages and how they are compared to Ash as well. Usually Ash is the youngest if not one of them up until Hoenn. With the exception of being exactly 24 hours older then Ritchie. And all of this have way to much detail but its making my ADHD brain go brrrr happily.

He’s older than May, surprisingly, by like a month and a half but he doesn’t realize that and mentally clocks that he’s younger than her because of how responsible and adult like she acts a good chunk of the time. Max is obviously the youngest while Brock is the oldest. The same thing kinda happens in Sinnoh. He’s older then Dawn by a good year and a half to maybe even two years. Though Ash is younger then Paul and Barry by a varying few months between each boy.

Unova is where it changes a lot. Going from one of the youngest to one of the oldest out of his group of friends. Iris is drastically 3 years younger then Ash, making her around 12 at the start of the arc and somewhere around 13 at the end, and around 3 and a half with Cilan. This causes her to constantly pick against Ash because to her he’s older. Ash should be acting more like a seasonal trainer with known responsibilities and shouldn’t be so excited about everything. That’s also an expectation that was subconsciously taught to her by Drayden when she was still in School in the Dragon Village. Virgil is actually the oldest being freshly turned 18 years old while Cameron is the youngest at 11 and 5 months. Stephan is like the closest to Ash’s actually age but also acts a lot more older and more adult like then he really is just by his laid back attitude. Bianca actually just turned 18 before starting her journey.

Age Note: the reason why Cilan is weird and awkward around Burgundy is not because of her short temper and brash attitude but because Burgundy just turned 13 years old. She is a legitimate child just like Iris, compared to Cilan’s 16 years and 6 months when the meet on the road for the first time and not at a connoisseur event. Her deep infatuation and how young she is really puts Cilan in a active land mine field. Unlike Iris who listens to him and actually talks, he has no clue how to interact with her. Burgundy isn’t a normal gym challenger coming to his and his brother gym for a badge or even a normal crazed simple fan. As a gentleman at heart as well he raised to talk between certain age limits close to his own and this ends up making Cilan see Burgundy actually younger then she really is. Kind of like how Iris clocked Ash as a ‘kid’ when he’s obviously older then her and more experienced.

Kalos then thrusts Ash or being the oldest out of the main group but not as a whole. Bonnies around 8 while Clemont is 2 months and a half younger then Ash. This is where I struggle a lot in placing peoples based age in Kalos is actually because of Serena. I don’t want to make her too young to which the point it’s weird and also I based the other contest girls age’s around hers. But I also don’t want to make her too old to the point that Miette, the oldest out of the contest girls no matter what, is older then Ash. The general consensus is that Miette is right in with Clemont and Ash age wise while Nini is the youngest out of the trio. So that places Serena around 13 to 14 while Nini is like 12 and 7 months. Sawyer is obviously just turned 10 while Trevor, Tierno, and Shauna are between 12 and a half to 13 and a half years old. Giving that easy bonding connection with Serena and Shauna while giving Miette a older more experienced vibe and the childlike wonder to Nini. You’d think with Alain and all Ash would be the second oldest but your wrong. Ash is exactly 1 whole week older then Alain but, much like May, he doesn’t know that and mentally clocks Alain older then he really is.

In comes Alola and this is again where I usually bump Ash up to 20 to 21 but for the sake of everything I’m going off the basic target. Ash is obviously the oldest of the class by a good year on them alone though the classes collective smarts pushed them up different grades in school so thats how their together. Kiawe was the oldest at 16 and 9 months while Sophocles is still the youngest at 12 and 3 months, again bringing in the fact that the class is super smart and its based off intelligence instead of age like with every other class. Mallow is the third oldest at 16 and 2 months with Lana following on by at 16 and 1 month. Lillie is specifically around 15 years to 13 years and 4 months based off if I want her to suffer more as a older teen or as a child, literally her age is based off if I want to traumatize her more or not. Hapu is around 12 to 13 years old despite her obvious size and squeaky-ish voice. Acerola despite being very very mature for her age is only 17 years and 4 months old. Horacio is about Ash’s age at an even 17 years old when he and his lackies first meet Ash, Sophocles, and Kiawe.

Age Note: Horacio absolutely used his age as a card against Sophocles as many times as he could to the point it was so overused. This made Ash especially angry because he hated it when people used their age against much younger kids. Just because you’re older doesn’t mean you’re right.

Then we reach Galar as our final stop. Ash is once more the oldest out of him, Chloe, and Goh but not everyone else. That would be Hodge at a straight 19 years old when he first meets Ash and Goh at the Battle Frontier Flute Cup. Chloe comes at 14 and a half years old with Goh just freshly turning 14. This makes Ash’s relationship more of a mentor type distant older brother thing. Those two actually don’t find out about Ash’s age up until he and Goh get their letter so of recommendation and have to fill out the normal personal stuff. If you think Hop is close by in age with Ash then you’re wrong again. He’s actually two days younger then Chloe making Hop around 14 and a half years old as well. Marine is 13 years and 9 months old. Bede is much more closer to Ash then the others at 16 years 8 months. For Leon, Raihan, and Sonia their still very much the same in a way. Leon is still the youngest at 20 years while Raihan is the oldest at 23, leaving Sonia in the middle at 21 and a half years old.

Age note… once more: this fits perfectly for the Kanto and Galar Trios as they basically get opposite of themselves in a way. Goh who’s very oriented, loud, and on the go gets paired with marine who’s very quite and shy for the most part and their going to subconsciously teach each other that its okay to come out of your shell or its okay to take a moment and relax. Hop is very much like Ash and Goh combined with the strategies and the none stop puppy own straight crack like energy and he declares himself as Chloe’s, who’s silent and very critical and almost broody like it’s not quite there but it’s close enough, rival and is trying to teach her that battling is fun and okay and a lot of Pokemon like battling for those reason. Ash and Bede are the obvious choice for each other because once again Ash is very bright, happy-go-lucky, just sweet in general to everyone while Bede is completely broody, extremely sour, and just utterly rolling in his own image and being way to cocky.

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marvelobsessedteenager · 3 years

Text

All The Hurt - Chapter 2

Pairing: Peter Parker x fem!reader

Warnings: ANGST, Peter was an ass, reader is a hurt and petty bitch, fluff to make up for the angst, curse words, lots of “coincidences”

Word Count: 4.1k

A/n: The amount of love I've gotten is absolutely incredible. Thank you guys for the support! Enjoy :3 -----------------------------------------

Flash had suggested driving both him and yourself to Liz’s house, and you agreed, simply because car rides with him were more fun. You got there earlier than anyone else, giving Flash time to set up his DJ equipment and speakers while you helped Liz and Betty set up the lights, food, and drinks.

Not an hour later and the house was full of people that you knew and didn’t know, but welcomed anyway. Everybody walking around was having a good time, drinking soda out of a red solo cup and dancing to Flash’s party music. You would be lying if you told yourself your eyes weren’t examining the dance floor for a particular bed of curls.

In your mind, you knew there was no way Peter knew Spider-Man. You saw it in the way he told everyone he did today at the gym. His left hand was wildly shaking — a clear telltale of nerves you’d figured out long ago.

Something else was bothering you, though, even if you didn’t want to admit it.

That bruise. You knew for a fact Peter wasn’t a fighter, mainly when it came to bullies - words or actions. He never retaliated, which is why people considered him an easy target. You wouldn’t put it past him to allow himself to get beaten up, but you would have known if that’d happened. Flash was definitely his number one bully, but he wouldn’t dare lay a finger on Peter, and neither would any of his friends, especially since they all knew your history with Peter.

They were all bark and no bite, which meant that there was another explanation for it, but for the love of God, you couldn’t figure out what it was.

And speak of the devil.

You smirked as you caught sight of him, worried thoughts vanishing as you weaved your way through the crowd to Flash, whispering in his ear about your discovery. He flashed you a wicked smile, turned down the music, and grabbed the mic.

“Penis Parker! What’s up?” Flash yelled into the mic, causing Peter to freeze and turn to look at Flash, who was pointing right at him.

“Hey, Y/n,” Flash pretended to search the crowd then turned to you, “Where do you think his pal Spider-Man is?” He placed the mic below your lips and waited for your preplanned answer.

“Hm, let me a guess.” You sweetly said, tapping your chin like you were thinking, “in Canada with his imaginary girlfriend?” You raised your eyebrows, eyes boring into Peter’s with fire burning behind your pupils, your brain ignoring your heart that was begging you to stop upsetting him as you caught the flash of hurt that crossed his features.

The crowd laughed and “ooh” ed as Flash played a “burn” sound effect, “That’s not Spider-Man,” He jutted his chin towards Ned, “that’s just Ned in a red shirt.”

You watched him walk away from the giggling crowd, fuming, and you bumped your fist with Flash's in victory. He turned up the music, and you made your way to the dance floor with your friends, as you swayed your hips to the loud tune. Your group sang loudly to the songs, and though it was deafening and off-tune, you never felt freer than when you screamed the lyrics with them.

At some point, your voice started sounding raspy, and your throat was begging you for some sort of liquid to heal the ache. You excused yourself from the group, walked to the kitchen and grabbed a solo cup, filling it with cool water and chugging it down.

But, of fucking course, someone had to ruin your night and your favorite white dress by bumping into you and spilling coke on your outfit. That someone was a girl with piercing blue eyes and brown hair — someone you didn't recognize. It was clear she didn’t go to Midtown considering she squeaked an apology and ran to her friends, who glanced back at you and immediately dashed out of the house.

Great.

You would ask Liz for another dress, but you weren’t exactly tight with her. You’d also ask your friends to take you home to change, but as you looked at them jumping around and bobbing their heads to the music, you figured they were having too much fun, and you didn’t want to ruin it.

You would normally call your driver, but you hadn’t had the chance to set up your new phone just yet.

Sighing, you grabbed your denim jacket you hid below the counter earlier, put it on, and began your journey home on foot. Your house was located about thirty minutes away from Liz’s, which wasn’t really a big deal for you.

About fifteen minutes of strolling in silence and kicking any rock that caught your eye, you passed by a playground that looked familiar. It was the very same playground you and Peter would play in when you were children. You’d take turns pushing each other on the swing, and when you were old enough to do it yourself, you would both compete to see who’d go higher and who could jump off the swing the farthest. It always resulted in an injury, but you two always laughed it off, especially when Jane would run over worriedly with a first-aid kit.

As you went into your early teenage years, you’d meet at the playground alone and climb to the top of the dome climber with different (and disgusting) flavored milkshakes, exchanging it with each other every now and again, and watch the river flow peacefully.

The same river in which Iron-Man is flying out of with Spider-Man in his arms.

Wait, what?

You snapped out of your reverie and did a double take before you quickly dove into one of the many bushes, the quick rate of your heartbeat becoming a distraction from the fresh cut on your exposed neck from the sharp branches.

You could see everything that was happening in front of you, but not necessarily hear everything. Your wide eyes curiously peeked over the bushes, watching as Iron-Man placed Spider-Man on the dome. And maybe it was your hearing, but you swore you knew the high pitched voice that was exaggeratedly saying something.

You saw Spider-Man tug his mask off and wring it out, which made the back of his head incredibly visible. Brown hair. Or maybe black. It was too dark to see the difference. You debated moving a little closer to hear the conversation.

Deep down, you knew it wasn’t right. Spider-Man was entitled to protect his identity. But you could keep a secret. Besides, maybe this could be the moment you’d thank him for saving you. You doubted he’d remember what he did, but you’d never forget.

So, you crept a little closer to make out the words, despite your gut telling you you shouldn’t.

“What were you thinking?” Iron-Man asked in a way that made you believe Spider-Man was in trouble.

“The guy with the wings is obviously the source of the weapons, I gotta take him down!”

Wait. That sounds like-

“Take him down now, huh? Steady, Crockett, there are people who handle this sort of thing.” Iron-Man said, waving his arm around.

“The Avengers?”

“No, no, no, just a little below their…pay grade.”

“Anyway, Mr. Stark, you didn’t have to come all the way out here, I-I had that. I was fine.”

But that was all you could hear. Because as the conversation went on, the gears in your head begun turning, the dots seemed to connect faster than you could comprehend.

The strange bruise on his jaw after it was shown on the news that a certain superhero fought robbers at the bank across Delmar’s. Him running out of school once it was over. The fact that he left school for two weeks and mysteriously came back. Him ‘allegedly’ saying your name when he saved you. All the times he ditched you in the past were the same times Spider-Man was on the news for a heroic saving. You remembered because you’d send the news to Peter. The “Stark Internship” excuse wasn’t real.

But this was.

Peter Parker is Spider-Man.

Peter Parker saved your life.

The amount of information was loud. So, so, loud. You couldn’t hear the bickering that went on. A rush of emotions went through you. The first was rage. Is this it? Is this is his reason for letting you go? He couldn’t have just been honest and told you? You bet he told Ned. But he couldn’t tell you, could he?

But just as quickly as it came, your anger left you, instead being replaced with worry. You hated to admit it, but you were worried about him. How could he go out there every day and put his life on the line like that? What about his wounds and injuries? Did he suffer through those alone? Or did May help him heal?

Does May even know? Does anybody know?

Lastly, panic, and that was the strongest of them all. Holy shit, you thought, I just found out that my ex best friend and former crush is a superhero. He shoots webs out of his hands or something and sticks to walls and saves strangers and fights criminals and-

And Iron-Man is flying away.

And Spider-Man is walking in your direction.

I need to go.

As soon as you turned around, still crouched but ready to fucking bolt, you accidentally stepped on something hard, and you had to bite your tongue to keep your hissing inside. Once the pain slightly subsided, you looked downwards and moved your head closer to the object. A loud purring sound was emitting from it, and if there was anything in this world that screamed danger, it was this.

You were careful to pick it up and examine it. In the middle of this..machine was a bright purple stone and it was fucking glowing. You looked around you and caught Spider-Man muttering something to himself right before an obnoxious ringing made its way into your ears, prompting you to cringe and put your hands over them as you crouched.

It’s the same annoying fucking ringtone as Peter’s.

You waited for him to move a little farther, and when he did, you peeked from behind the bush. He had just closed the phone and continued his walk. You didn’t know if this thing was a bomb or something explosive, so throwing it in his direction was already ruled out. Besides, he was already beyond throw distance. You knew the safest way to get it to him.

You knew what to do. You hated that you did, but you had to do it.

Maybe hearing him talk to you would confirm or deny your hypothesis. Anybody could have brown hair, a high-pitched voice and the same ringtone as your ex-best friend and be a superhero that saved you two weeks ago.

You took a deep breath to calm your hammering heart from ripping through your ribcage and escaping. “I hate my life,” you mumbled as you rose and followed him with your heart still beating out of your chest, almost sure it was louder than your barely audible footsteps.

Don’t trip, don’t trip.

When you got close to him, close enough to tap him on the shoulder, he quickly turned around and got into a fighting position with his fists ready to punch. You were so shocked that you dropped the object and backed away with your hands up, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, easy. ”

Upon seeing a citizen (that he knew too well) he dropped his stance, “S-uh..sorry. I-I thought you..uh..” He cleared his throat, “Sorry, ma’am. How can I help you?” He said, very clearly thickening his voice and awkwardly placing his hands on his hips.

But you knew that sound anywhere.

Fuck, fuck, fuck. It is him.

You attempted to swallow the lump in your throat as you felt it clogging your ability to breathe.

“Uh, hi. I’m Y/n.” You mentally smacked yourself. He already knows you, dumbass.

Should you tell him he knows you, though? Should you tell him you know him? No, what? You vehemently shook your head.

“A-anyway I, um, found this-” You picked up the object and turned it around in your hands, “-on my way home and I think it’ll help you? I don’t know, it’s definitely not man-made, I suppose. I’m not exactly an expert but I thought you’d be and you just so happened to be in my neighborhood and I am, too, and this thing is glowing and-”

His spider..eye..thingies were as wide as saucers, and it was only now that you noticed you were rambling. Your cheeks flushed, and you immediately cursed at your body for betraying you.

This is worse than tripping.

“Sorry,” you looked down at your shoes, "I babble when I’m-“ Nope. Not letting him know you’re nervous. Not that he doesn’t already know. You found yourself regretting telling him all your triggers and quirks in the past, because right now, you couldn’t tell whether he could figure you out or not.

He probably could, though.

This night just kept getting worse. Pack it up already.

You cleared your throat and straightened your shoulders in the most confident way you could, “Here,” you outstretched your arm to him, waiting for him to grab the foreign object, but all he did was stare, and stare, and stare. You didn't really know where to look, and you didn't know if he was gazing at you or not, but before you could say anything, he snapped out of whatever he was in and took a hold of the object. You tried not to think about his masked fingers that grazed yours.

“Thanks, uh, Y/n.” He said, not as intrigued by the object as you thought he’d be. Instead, he seemed to be looking at you. Or behind you. You still couldn't tell. You were too caught up in the way he said your name. It felt strangely familiar, and comforted you for a moment. It made you feel safe and wanted. Loved.

Before the memories reminded you of what he’d done.

“Sure,” you nodded, slowly backing away, “um, see you...around.”

“Yeah.”

As you turned on your heel to continue your trip home, he pipped up, “Oh, um, would- do you want me to walk you home? It’s really dark out here.”

You entertained the thought in your head for a second. "What could possibly happen if he walked you home, besides guaranteeing you safety?” Your heart spoke.

"Oh, I don’t know, you could accidentally blurt out that you know him, and then things will get even more awkward than they already are.” Your brain fought back, stubborn as ever.

Yeah, you’re definitely just going to pass up his offer.

“I’m, uh, I’m good. Need a little time to myself.” You nervously chuckled, wrapping your arms around yourself, “Thanks, though, I appreciate it.”

“Yeah.” He repeated, shifting his weight from one foot to another as he watched you walk away from him.

Like he’d done to you.

The rest of the fifteen minutes passed by faster than you anticipated, but maybe it was because you were too preoccupied considering you just confirmed your ex-best friend was a fucking superhero with fucking superpowers. As the confirmation made its way into your brain, you noticed that the signs were right beneath your nose, but you weren’t observant enough to figure it out. They started before he left you.

How did it start to begin with? Has he always had these powers?

Wait, no. Because Spider-Man wasn’t always around. And even if he really did have them for a long time, why leave you now? It must’ve been recent, you concluded.

But how? How does one go from an ordinary, lanky teenager to a robust superhero who can stop a speeding bus with his bare hands?

As one question was answered, another one took its place. The list just kept going and going, without a clear sign of it stopping.

In all honesty, you thought the videos that popped up on your YouTube recommended page of a web-slinging human were staged. In your defense, he seemed quite small to be a hero, and it wouldn’t be the first time some kid tried to fool the world with “a new superhero". You remember sending it to Peter and asking him if he thought it was real.

He never answered.

You hadn’t realized you were standing on your porch, staring at the overly large mahogany door in front of you. You sighed and took out your keys, placing them in the lock and twisting it.

You were lucky today was the beginning of the weekend. You wouldn’t be able to face him after seeing what you just saw. You didn’t know how to feel. You didn’t know what to do. Should you let him know that you know?

Should you let anyone know that you know?

That was the worst part about this whole thing. You had no one to turn to. No one to talk to about this, and there definitely wouldn’t be a wikiHow page on how to deal with something like this.

So, you ruled it out. One of the choices was obviously keeping the secret to yourself and not telling Peter you knew his identity. It would keep things from getting too awkward to handle and would keep him safe.

The other choice, the really horrible one, was to let everyone know. A part of you was still mad at what he’d done. You mean, he didn’t even try to apologize as he should’ve. That evil part of you, the hurt part, wanted revenge — wanted you to ruin Peter like he did you.

You knew people would believe you if you told them. You knew they’d find their ways to figure out if it’s true or not. But for some reason, you were hesitant. Yes, Peter ruined your life. Yes, Peter broke you in ways you believed were beyond mendable.

But Peter was also the boy who gave you his last Iron-Man bandaid when you scraped your elbow the first time you met. He’s the boy who pushed your bully and got punched in the face for it when you were ten. He’s the boy who saved your life the other day - the boy who saves dozens of strangers every week.

It was clear which option was better.

Keeping his secret didn’t mean you forgave him, though.

After everything, you didn’t know if you allowed yourself to forgive him. Part of you wanted you to, pleaded you to for the sake of moving on, but the more stubborn part of you remembered the pain you went through; the nights you spent crying yourself to sleep, the newfound insecurities of not being enough for anybody, the fear that others will leave you behind like he did.

Hell, you had a locked note in your notes app that contained a long speech about how you felt — about how he made you feel. The one you were to send him — but ended up deleting.

You groaned and rubbed your head, feeling an oncoming headache from the questions. You stayed in your house that weekend, trapped with a racing mind and no answers to slow it down.

------------------------------------------------------

You started noticing Peter act differently towards you when your freshman year of high school was close to ending. It started off with him rescheduling long-awaited plans and then showing up late, but you didn’t mind. He had told you he scored an internship at Stark Industries, and you swore you’d never felt prouder in your entire life.

He informed you that he could be called in at any given moment, which was his reason for leaving in the middle of your hangouts. You understood, and so, you encouraged him to do so.

But then, as time went by, you noticed a change. Instead of postponing the plans, he’d cancel them all together and wouldn’t make up for them. And sometimes, in the rare occasion in which he did postpone them, he’d stand you up, keeping you awake until you were on the brink of sleep.

He apologized multiple times for doing so, blaming it on the time the internship took for him, and you let it go, even when it became a pattern to leave you stranded.

You were okay with it.

Until it became too much.

During lunch, you could never find him, which ended up with you eating alone. During the only class you shared with him, he’d zone out while you were talking and completely ignore you. You’d normally come out of your last period ready to see him standing by your locker to begin your journey home, but he stopped being there, and you would walk home alone.

Texts and calls went unnoticed, and you felt the barrier he had placed between the two of you grow higher and higher as the time passed by.

What bothered you is that it was just with you. He acted completely normal around Ned. You often saw them chatting and laughing while you watched from afar, heart breaking into two as you wondered where you went wrong. You inspected every text message you sent and every conversation you had, often staying up late re-reading it until you reached the top. You just didn’t understand what happened.

One day, you approached him after school, running after him as he bolted through the school’s gates into the outside.

“Hey!” You called as you caught up to him and grabbed his arm, which flexed beneath your grip. You sighed and slightly loosened your grasp, “Can, um, can we talk?”

Peter visibly gulped, hesitantly nodding as his eyes bounced around your figure, never looking at you.

“Peter.” You ran a hand through your hair, carefully choosing your next words as to approach this topic cautiously, “What’s going on with you? You..you’ve been acting weird and distant. D-did do something?”

“I’m not acting weird,” Peter said, almost offendedly, quick to defend himself.

“Peter we haven’t hung out in weeks because you’ve been canceling them.” You retaliated.

“I told you, I-it’s the internship.”

You frowned, heart clenching at the tiredness that seeped into his voice, “I know.” You gave him a small smile, hoping for one in return, “I’m your best friend. I’m always here for you, you know.”

“I-“ He sharply inhaled, scratching the back of his head with his shaking left hand. “I don’t want you to be.”

Your smile instantly dropped, feeling a painful nudge in your stomach, “What?”

“I don’t..this isn’t working, Y/n. We can’t be friends anymore. I’m done.” He said. And so easily, too.

I’m done, he’d said.

Your heart stopped for a moment, taken aback by his bluntness and the harshness that came with his words, “What? Why? N-no.” You denied, "You’re just gonna leave? You can’t do that, I..What did I do?”

“Nothing. It’s just..it’s just better this way.” Peter visibly gulped, looking around the streets like he wasn’t standing there, breaking your fragile heart into pieces while you were trying your hardest to not fall apart right in front of him.

Dignity was still a thing. But so was your friendship.

“I can’t fix this if you won’t let me, Pete.” You pleaded, hoping he’d admit that something was wrong - that it wasn’t you that he was pushing away, that there was a reason for him doing so. You could fix this. You could.

“There’s nothing to fix. I don’t want to be friends, that’s it.” He shrugged, shuffling backward, getting ready to make a run from it.

“No,” you stopped him, grabbing his hand softly, despite the tears that already ran down your face, “There has to be a reason! Y-you can’t just leave like that! Give me a reason! WHAT DID I DO?!”

When he didn’t respond, you gave his loose hand a squeeze and wiped your tears with your sleeve, already feeling stupid for the amount of vulnerability you were displaying, especially when you weren’t getting any sort of reaction out of him besides coldness.

“Peter. Peter, please, just l-let me fix this.” You said, voice cracking, "You’re all I have left. Please don’t do this.”

You were begging. You knew you were, but you couldn’t let him leave without putting up a fight. You were a step away from begging on your knees, but you didn’t. You were able to stop yourself from doing so, but you still believed you could get through whatever this is - you were so sure of it.

But you never did.

And you swore he had ripped your heart from your chest, stepped on it, and nonchalantly walked away, leaving you to deal with the pain of the heartbreak on the sidewalk.

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#peter parker #peter parker x reader #peter parker fluff #peter parker angst #peter parker x y/n #tom holland #tom holland fanfiction #tom holland fanfic #tom holland x reader #tom holland angst #spiderman #spiderman x reader #marvel

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halfway-happyyy · 3 years

Text

This piece was inspired by this lovely ask that I received an inexplicably long time ago: Seeing an intense and loving sex scene Alex just shot and it lowkey breaks your heart but you don’t show anything bc you don’t want him to get the wrong idea and think you don’t support him but he can tell you’re upset and now /his/ heart breaks bc he can tell you try SO hard not to break down in front of him all day long so he confronts you about it and you tell him everything and that you’re not angry just very sad and you can’t help it and you’re sorry and he shushes you and sweet sex ensues

fluffy smut ensues- enjoy, friends.

“Hi love,” A crewman on Alexander’s latest film, and the first friendly face she had come across since arriving on set, wrapped a free arm around her shoulder and kissed her cheek lovingly. “Alright?” He asked.

“Alright,” She smiled and set her purse down by her feet. “How’ve you been Pete? Busy, I bet.”

Peter shrugged and removed the headset from his ears. “Absolutely. Always. You uh… chose an interesting day to visit us,” He remarked with a quirk of a wildly unkempt eyebrow.

“Oh?” She asked and craned above the heads of the scant crew in search of Alexander. “I was hoping to surprise him…”

Peter cleared his throat and cocked his head to the side, his expression uneasy. “They are about to film their second and final love scene of the shoot.”

She swallowed hard and settled back onto the balls of her feet, her heart thrumming wildly in her chest. Two options suddenly become apparent to her: she could cut and run; blame it on a forgotten zoom meeting, or a lunch date with an old friend in the same city. Alternatively, she could swallow back the nausea rising steadily in her throat and remain rooted to the spot. Both options left little room for pride and her cheeks flamed under that realization, and the burning set lights around her. “Oh, that’s alright.” She smiled, shyly.

“You sure?” Peter asked. “Georgia’s camp have asked for a closed set to maximize privacy, and the entire thing was choreographed this morning, so we’re hoping to squash it in as few takes a possible.”

She appreciated his honesty and the soft, protective tone of his voice immensely, but it did little to quell the nervousness that prickled at her unpleasantly. “Sounds great,” She muttered under her breath.

Someone called out to Peter and he rubbed a hand over the rounded curve of her shoulder, offered her up a reassuring smile. “In any regard, he has been waiting weeks to see you. Cannot stop talking about it. He’ll be over the moon that you’re here.” He offered her one last knowing look before wandering off in the direction of the disembodied voice.

She had known exactly what the script entailed before production on the film had even begun, so this could hardly have been a surprise, and yet inexplicably, she still felt blindsided by it.

She watched Alexander and his co-star enter the set, designed to look like a minimalist bedroom. Laughing and talking easily about something, as if they weren't just about to film a painfully intimate scene. Without warning, the lights around them dimmed almost to nil, and the film’s head spoke into a megaphone.

“Alright guys, here we go. We know what we’re about to be doing, we want total silence, let’s try and get this thing smashed in as few takes as possible, shall we?” A dismal murmur of agreement resounded throughout the crowd as the director counted down and shouted action.

She couldn’t make out what was being said between the two actors, but she watched them approach each other with a familiarity reserved only for two people who had grown to know each other in ways solely attributed to unforgiving hours on a movie set. She watched him approach her, watched a large, sure hand entwine itself into her golden tresses, watched him bend toward her, two pairs of lips locked in a dance only they knew. It was difficult to watch and not imagine the effect it was having on him, but a past conversation swam into her mind's eye, and aided in easing her trepidation the slightest bit.

“It's never how you think it's going to be kid,” He had assured over warming amber beers, in a quiet corner of their favourite pub a year ago. “It’s quite possibly the least sexy aspect of the job. And yes, it is intimate. How could it not be? But there are so many people watching you and- so many of them have differing opinions on how it should be performed…” He sighed, frustrated. “Once I know I'm doing one, I like to try and get it out of the way as soon as possible.” He read the uneasy look on her face like an open book and reached for her hand, squeezing it thrice across the marred wooden tabletop. “It's always been you, kid.”

As his co-star began to undress him, working deft fingers down the front buttons of his shirt, she pulled it away from his shoulders with an unreadable expression etched on her face. Towered above her, Alexander stood motionless as she worked the belt from his jeans, and shimmied the pants from his thighs until he was clad before her in only a pair of boxers. Unexpected laughter between the two of them. Light and airy and utterly unfamiliar, caused waves of nausea to swell in her belly and she forced herself a deep, steadying breath. A brief moment where the two kissed each other again, before he pulled away to begin removing her clothing. Anxiety getting the better of her, she dropped her gaze to the floor and bit down on the hollow of her cheek until she could taste the metallic brine of blood on her tongue. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply again, counting down from eight in her head and trying desperately not to spiral on the spot. When she opened them, it was to the realization that they had fallen into bed together, her slight form tucked in between Alexander's open legs like it was meant to be there since the beginning of everything. Though the actress appeared nude in every sense of the word, she knew better. A thin, flower-shaped piece of beige tape covered each nipple, and she sported a flimsy pair of nude-coloured underwear. Alexander had been no better- a simple, nude tube sock was the only thing shielding his manhood from her and everyone else in the room and the notion of it made her dizzy.

It was obvious now that they had choreographed this scene beforehand. Every kiss, every touch, every moan or groan was exactly how it was supposed to be. And the further she watched, the further her heart edged towards the precipice of shattering. So many emotions. She was surprised the most to feel anger; and not at all at him, but at herself. This was his job. His passion. Something that was as easy and instinctive to him as breathing. It was something that though he denied it staunchly, coursed through his blood and exited his body in waves of raw talent.

But watching him touch the undeniably beautiful woman beneath him in ways similar to how he touched her? And always in the privacy of their own home, shielded from view of anyone and everything else? Unimaginably difficult.

“Alright Georgia, I want you to kind of pepper Alex's chest with kisses as he thrusts once more against you, and as he does that, you are going to orgasm and then he is going to follow suit.”

They did exactly as they were told, and she watched in unbridled agony as the two of them tumbled over the proverbial edge, one right after the other. Sounds of their feigned lovemaking filled every square inch of room and very nearly caused her to leave right then and there. But then, mercifully, someone called cut, and the actress extricated herself from him and the torture ceased.

“Alright, that’s a wrap on today friends. Take care, we'll see you all in a couple of days.”

Releasing a lungful of pent-up air that felt like it had taken years to come to fruition, she watched Alexander wander off the set in search of clothing. Reaching down, she retrieved her purse and stole herself for her big reveal. He had asked her to visit him a couple of weeks ago, but their schedules had hardly meshed and it turned out that this was the only time until the end of the year that she could take her leave from work.

The weighty realization that she had never before needed to work up the courage to speak to him was not lost on her. But somehow, after the wildly pseudo-intimate event in which she had just been privy to- even surrounded by the skeleton crew, a knot of unease wound itself tight in the pit of her belly. It hindered her from approaching him directly, so she stood back while he finished speaking with a crew member, her gaze downcast, thoughts spiraling.

“Kid?”

Her nickname- one that had been bestowed upon her the night they first crossed paths, roused her from her anxious reverie and she offered him a meager smile. “Hi, Alex…”

He rushed toward her without hesitation, throwing his long arms around her in an embrace that her body had been craving for weeks. He smelled exactly how she had remembered leaving him, only with a subtle hint of something else- some other foreign flowery scent and instinctively, she reeled back from him, gaze weary.

“God, it's good to hold you again.” He pulled away from her to hold her at arm’s length; could sense the apprehension rolling from her in waves and he frowned. “Did you just get here?”

She swallowed the sizeable lump rising in her throat. “Uh, about an hour ago.”

Realization sunk in behind his eyes; she could see it in the way that the glitter in his blue orbs dulled, and he sighed heavily. “Kid- I had no idea you were coming-

“It was a surprise, Alex.”

He reached another arm around her, pressed his lips to the top of her head in a gentle kiss. “I'm over the moon about it, honestly.” He pulled back from her to caress a hand to her cheek. “I'm just going to grab a few things and then we can head out, okay?”

She could feel the biting sting of looming tears behind her eyes, the words too heavy in the hollow of her throat, so she offered him a nod instead.

Their journey home- a beautiful, rented apartment in West London had been quiet save for the cacophony of masses of passerby. Random pieces of conversations in a myriad of accents, music from someone’s portable sound system, all helped to distract her from the thoughts swirling in her brain. Sitting next to him on the tube, she could feel the familiar warmth radiating from him in waves, and that seemed to abate the anxiety somewhat. Large fingers clasped together on his lap; he was staring at something unseen on the subway floor. The urge to say anything had been palpable minutes ago, but when she went to open her mouth, the precise words eluded her.

“Our stop’s next, kid.”

He rose from the seat ahead of her, offering his hand which she accepted gratefully. As the train trundled to a halt, a voice boomed loud on the speaker above them, but she could not make out what was relayed and then the doors opened for them, fresh air greeting the pair of them like old friends. She had visited England enough times now to know the feeling of an imminent rainfall; the dense moisture that pervaded every square inch of space around them and made her long for a cozy sweater, or blanket.

They walked in silence for about five minutes before the wrought-iron railing of their apartment became visible, and another heap of invisible weight dissipated from her at the notion that she would be in the comfort and warmth of their own space soon. Alexander fit the key into the lock, and opened the door for them, allowed her to wander inside first. Arriving earlier that morning, she had tried to make the space as cozy as she could before she left for the film studio, knowing that he would be spending at least another two months there during post-production. Alexander tossed the keys onto the wooden shelf in the front foyer, kicking his beloved desert boots off with a dull thud. Peeling the blue and grey plaid coat from his body, he hung that up in the front closet and reached for the coat that she had just shed, doing the same. Eyeing her in the fragmented light filtering in through the stained-glass window at the top of the front door, his expression was unreadable.

“I think we should talk about earlier this afternoon, kid.”

Instinctively, she rubbed a hand over her bare arm to ward off the chill that had finally settled itself into her bones and shook her head. “It’s not necessary, Alex.”

He clicked his tongue, gave his head a slight shake. “Don’t do that, kid. It obviously upset you, and I don’t blame you for that at all, but we should talk about it.”

“What is there to talk about, Alex?” She asked, her tone regrettably biting. “What you do in the confines of a film studio- on set, that’s your job. None of it concerns me.”

He sighed heavily. “If I had known you were coming, I could have asked to postpone the scene for a few days…”

“You weren’t supposed to know I was coming. That was the whole point...” Sensing that she was treading treacherous waters, she tried to switch tactics. “I’m fried from the flight in, I haven’t eaten much at all today- all of which resulted in a grotesque culmination of emotions, and I’m over it now.”

She viewed his 6’4” figure stood in the front hallway before her, large hands tucked into the front pockets of his blue jeans. He was sporting socks that she had purchased him for Christmas last year and the mere sight of them caused the lump that had dissipated a while ago to resurface in the hollow of her throat.

“Please, just talk to me.”

Anger evaded his tone- it brimmed instead with a gentle desperation, the resonance of it caused her heart to splinter a little deeper than it already was.

Words thick at the back of her throat, she leveled her gaze with his. “It hurt, Alex.”

There it was.

“It hurt to watch you be so intimate with someone else- to watch her touch you in ways reserved only for my hands, and my fingers, and my lips…” Flames fanned from anger and shame licked at her throat, and god damnit, she could feel the impending threat of tears again. Swallowing hard, she shrugged her shoulders. “And it sounds so much like jealousy but it’s not. It goes deeper than that,” She trailed off, voice breaking, as she lifted her gaze to Alexander’s. “I need you to know that I love you, and that I’ll support you in every single endeavor. But it just gets difficult sometimes…”

His cerulean gaze downcast, he chewed anxiously at the edge of his bottom lip as he mulled over what to say. When he finally glanced up at her, saltwater glittered in the depths of his own eyes and he allowed himself a deep breath before continuing. “I’m sorry, kid.”

She could hear the fragility in his voice now, how close it was to shattering completely and, in that moment, she launched herself into his arms. The urge to feel him on her, raw and utterly overwhelming. A secure arm around her waist, an impossibly warm hand at the back of her head, he held her to him like it was the last time he would ever have the opportunity. They stood embraced like that for an unknowable amount of time, and when he pulled away, it was to take hold of her hand and lead her down the hallway to the washroom. Once there, he flicked on the light which bathed the room in a pale-yellow glow and turned to her.

“Arms up,” He murmured, softly.

Doing as she was told, she raised her arms for him and held her breath as he pulled the t shirt from her body, tossing it into the wicker hamper next to the sink. He placed warm kisses over the delicate line of her collarbone, as he undid the zipper on her jeans and shimmied the useless material from her legs. She held onto his shoulders for support as he reached around her to unclasp her bra, letting the flimsy material fall to the glossy, tiled loor beneath them. Gentle lips kissed the soft skin of her shoulder blade as he hooked two fingers into the waistband of her panties and pulled them down her legs, which she kicked off to the side. Standing back, she watched him rid himself of his own clothing in unconcealed awe, her hungry gaze raking over the definition in his chest, and at the taut, sun-kissed skin that rippled over chiseled muscles. He never failed to take her breath away.

They entered the shower together; a violent shiver wracked her body as she waited for the water to turn hot. Watching him from the far wall, she suddenly wanted him. She could feel a strong desire in the pit of her belly- where anger recently burned red-hot there, it had been replaced with a sheer need to have every inch of him make up for the hollow emptiness she had felt hours earlier.

He dipped his head beneath the steaming stream of water and beckoned her toward him. “Come here, kid.”

She walked into his open arms, wrapped her own around his frame and nestled her head against the part of his chest where she could feel the rhythmic beating of his heart against her cheek. His embrace, and the blissfully warm water rolling down her back was a healing salve for her soul and she could feel her anxiety dissipate with each passing minute they stood there. He gathered the wet hair from her shoulder in his hand and dropped it behind her back to press a series of scorching kisses up the side of her neck to her earlobe. Reaching for the shampoo bottle on the ledge, he poured a heap of the opaque liquid into the palm of his hand and began to massage it into her hair with skilled fingers. He worked it into a lather and pulled her back under the water to rinse it out, the subtly perfumed suds cascading freely down her back. Next, he worked the conditioner into her hair, and while that sat, he poured bodywash onto a sponge and began to wash her with a delicacy she was rarely privy to. She held onto him for support as he passed the soft sponge over the sensitive parts of her body, beneath her arms, the hollow crooks in the back of her knees, the soles of her feet. When he was satisfied with his work, he pulled her back under the the warm water to rinse the soap from her body and the conditioner from her hair. She was contentedly sleepy under the steady warmth; her eyelids heavy as she watched him cleanse himself of the day in which they had both endured. When he was finished, he held her in his arms again. She could feel the familiar pressure of his erection against her thigh, how it swelled harder the longer they remained embraced.

“I want you, Alex.” She murmured, earnestly.

A deep inhalation, she could feel him nod against her. Guiding her out of the stream of water, he positioned her up against the heated stones of the shower wall. She braced her arms above her, could feel him line himself up at her soaking entrance. Placing tender kisses down the ridges of her spine, he paid special attention to certain spots on her back that nearly made her sing out for him. One final kiss, and he pushed himself inside of her, reveling in her all-consuming heat. Dropping his forehead to the middle of her back, he stayed where he was for a moment to give her time to adjust to his size.

This was what she had been after from the very beginning; the sensation of him buried to the hilt inside of her, the delicious fullness of him, nearly brought a fresh batch of tears to her eyes. “So good, Alex…” She gasped.

He nodded against her; all forms of speech eluded him as he pulled back from her all-encompassing heat only to re-enter at an agonizingly slow pace. He grasped onto her hips as he found a steady tempo for himself, his fingernails digging miniscule crescent moons in her soft flesh.

“God, I’ve missed this.” He groaned, breathlessly.

Freeing a hand from her hip to snake it down to her sex, he pressed a skilled fingertip into her swollen clit, rubbing tantalizing circles into it. She raked her bottom lip between her teeth and bit down on it to keep from crying out, causing Alexander to nip at the nape of her neck in mild disapproval.

“None of that, kid. I can tell how good I’m making you feel- but I want to hear it, and I certainly don’t want you to be quiet about it.” Always in constant awe of the sheer, physical affect that his words had on her body, she could feel the familiar unravelling of pressure in the pit of her belly and she arched her back against him to glean more pleasure. “Fuck, you feel amazing…”

A telltale sign of a man nearing the edge, his thrusts had started to grow sloppy, and she clenched around him to help spur his orgasm on.

“Fuck, Alex,” She warned in a hushed tone.

He groaned against her and applied harder pressure to her clit as she stilled against him, mouth parted and slack as a pleasure-induced white-hot lightning bolt coursed through her entire body. She imagined that she could feel it from the tips of her toes to the hair follicles on her head, and she trembled violently against him as her orgasm loomed tantalizingly out of reach.

“That’s it, baby…” He coaxed, gently. “Come all over this cock, hm?”

She froze against him, a single sound worked its way up her throat and exited her mouth in the form of a broken scream, as she tumbled over the edge, her orgasm immediate and intense. Clenching around his cock unintentionally as she unwound from her high, her muscle contractions caused him to drop his head to her back as he too began to unravel above her.

Fingernails marring the soft flesh of her hips and ribs, he stilled against her and with a strangled cry, came into her in thick, warm spurts. She had been after this sensation as well if she were honest. The satisfying feeling of being filled with every ounce of come he had to give her, could never be replicated. Peppering a couple more kisses to her damp back, he reluctantly pulled from away her to marvel at his come as it dripped from her core and slid down her inner thigh.

“Beautiful,” He murmured more to himself than to anyone else.

She stood where she was, braced against the wall for support while she tried to regulate her laboured breathing. Exiting the shower, she relieved herself, and wrapped a towel around her frame to dry off. Padding over to the expansive window adjacent to the made bed, she peered out over a darkening London. Raindrops raced each other in misshapen lines down the glass panes, and she found that she was grateful for the current weather. Alexander approached her from behind, wrapping her in his arms around her waist, chin resting easily in the crook of her shoulder blade.

“London is a lot more breathtaking with you in it.”

His stubble tickled her neck and she smiled to herself. “I bet you say that to all the pretty girls.”

A subtle grumble, he turned her around so that she was facing him. Still entirely naked, he held her chin gently between his thumb and forefinger. Her gaze traversed the cutting line of his jaw, his lips, his defined nose, his sparkling cerulean orbs which glittered brilliantly as he stared at her. No smile was offered up, but the delicate creases next to his eyes deepened as he spoke. “Just you, kid.”

He brushed the calloused pad of his thumb over her flushed cheek.

“Yesterday, today, tomorrow.”

#alexander skarsgard #alexander skarsgard x reader #alexander skarsgard imagines #alexander skarsgard oneshot #alexander skarsgard fanfic #alex sstuff #writing #drabble #smut #alexander skarsgård

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whatifxwereyou · 3 years

Text

Ashes Chapter 4: Stars

Pairing: Liu Kang x Reader

Is this progress? You two talk and you don't want to murder each other. Probably progress. Probably. Something fishy is definitely going on.

A/N: Hope you are all doing well! This is more fluffy angst than it is angry angst. But I mean, just wait until the next chapter. I'll make up for it! Hahaha.

First Chapter << Previous Chapter Next Chapter >> Chapter Index

“You forgot your tea.” The woman called to you, and you turned and offered a forced smile that fell quickly. You were handed your teacup and turned to look through the trees. Liu Kang had disappeared within them.

“Thank you. You didn’t have to do that.”

“I know, dear.” The woman sipped her tea next to you. You had to get to work but your heart was heavy. “Trouble in paradise?”

You choked on your tea.

“Oh?” You cleared your throat and tilted your head inquisitively. The woman gestured to where Liu Kang had disappeared but had a knowing smile on her face. “Oh, no. No, no, no we aren’t… I… just no. He’s having a hard day is all. A hard week.” The woman seemed genuinely surprised.

“I’m sorry for assuming but I sensed that your spirits were intertwined. It was a natural assumption to guess that the two of you were together.”

Oh, good.

“We used to be close.” You felt suddenly exhausted and as if you could cry. The bag on your back was heavy with the weight of Kung Lao and your heart was heavy with the pain of Liu Kang. “I’m sorry for this. He just lost his brother and it’s been difficult. He’s not usually like this. I promise. He’s a good man.”

“Grief is one of the most difficult hardships we deal with. I understand. And I sense that the journey ahead of him will not be an easy one.”

“Yeah. He’s not alone though. I’ll make sure he’s okay.” You would. Even if he did nothing but yell and push, you would at least make sure he was okay. Attraction or not, it was the least you could do. Kung Lao would have wanted you to.

“You must be careful too. I sense great loss around you and great conflict ahead of you.”

“Yeah, I’m not surprised.”

“Oh?”

“I was dating his brother.”

“Ah, that explains at least part of it.” The woman placed a comforting hand on your shoulder. You stood there for a time. You blinked back tears and hoped they went unnoticed but this woman seemed wise and observant. She reminded you of a nicer and less godly Raiden. “It’s a difficult three-day hike through the mountains to reach Nightwolf.” The woman walked before you and offered you a folded-up map and a small coin-sized wolf charm. She cupped her hands around yours. “You will need this to prove that you are worthy to see him.”

“Are you sure? I… I’m happy to explain to you what we’re doing here.” You were surprised. You didn’t know what unspoken trial you’d passed but you were grateful to have passed it. At least one thing was going right.

“No need. I can sense a great many things, dear, and you, without question, are worthy to seek out Nightwolf. Your soul burns radiantly despite the shadow hanging over it.”

You stuttered because you didn’t know what that meant. “Thank you. I’m… we’re grateful.”

“We will provide you both with anything you might need for your trip. When you find Nightwolf then show him this charm. He will know that you are worthy of being seen. I hope that whatever it is you are seeking from him he can provide.”

“Thank you. I really can’t express how grateful I am.”

“You don’t have to, dear. I can tell.” The woman’s voice was soft. “Follow me.” You did as you were asked and followed the woman through the village. A small cabin had been setup for you and Liu. It was quaint but there were two beds and enough space for you to rest for the night out of the elements. That was all you needed and more than you deserved, you thought. You stayed in the cabin after the woman bid you farewell and good luck. You hadn’t even introduced yourselves but your meeting had still been profound.

For some time after, you sat on the bed and held your bag, wondering what to do. Your heart was heavy and so you meditated and prayed for Liu Kang to find peace and for Kung Lao to forgive you. The last one was selfish, but you felt incredibly guilty and there was no easing it. He would have eased your guilt.

Sleep wasn’t coming. You were too worried about Liu getting himself lost in the woods in his anger.

You had no right to worry about him. He’d gotten by plenty fine without you his whole life. You shouldn’t have worried so much but you couldn’t help it. It was natural to fixate on the few things you had control of when the rest of it was so wildly out of your hands.

You left the cabin. Night had fallen and there were only a handful of other people outside. You wrapped the blanket you’d bought around your shoulders and walked around the village until you found a clearing in the trees where you could sit and watch the stars. The sky was beautiful. So many of the lights in the sky reminded you of home but they were also so different. It took you awhile to find your favorite constellations which distracted you for a time.

You felt him before you heard him. The fiery spirit of Liu Kang. He sat next to you. You’d always been able to sense him. Earlier, he’d been bright with rage and now he was a dull roar but by no means at peace. He said nothing but sat watching the stars next to you. You’d done this before years in the past. Sat on dangerous ledges and watched the sky in silence.

It had been comforting then. It was less so now. He put you on edge. Between nerves and attraction, your brain had no idea how to process him anymore.

“I’m sorry.” He broke the silence, and you turned your eyes away from the stars but not toward him. “I apologized to everyone I was rude to, but I figured that I would save the most important apology I had to make for last.” You could hear a smile on his face but also felt how weary he was. Carrying that kind of anger and guilt took a toll. You would know.

“It’s okay.” You had forgiven him hours ago. Honestly, you’d mostly been worried for him. “Believe it or not, I get it.”

“Do you?”

You locked eyes with him and then turned away as you felt the nerves rise in your throat again. He hadn’t made you this nervous in years and there were a thousand reasons why. “Yeah. I go through moments where the world is too much noise and things seem impossibly frustrating. Moments where I can’t avoid being angry no matter how much I don’t want to be.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” You turned your eyes back to the stars, but it was hard to think about him losing control like that. It hurt to think about yourself like that too. He scooted a little closer to you and his knee touched just against yours. There had been nights where you’d sat with him after fighting with Kung Lao and he’d held your hand. And briefly, you felt that comfort and that spark that he always ignited, but you stomped it out quickly.

“I miss my brother. And I miss you.” He sighed as if it annoyed him to say. “But being around you makes it more real.” You had a feeling. He had the same effect on you.

“I’m sorry.” You managed to whisper but you thought your voice sounded rather pathetic, broken and as though you were desperate to get the words out without tears.

“It’s not your fault. I need to stop acting like it is. You don’t seem to blame me.”

“I miss him too. And I miss you. I miss a lot of things.” You sniffled away the upset that had come with realizing just how much harder you made it on Liu Kang. Sleeping with him had certainly not helped either. Maybe it had provided temporary relief, but it had definitely worked a lot of old hurt feelings into the mix that you hadn’t needed. “It doesn’t feel real sometimes. I brought his little jade thing with me as a reminder. So I won’t keep expecting to find him waiting for me when we get back.”

“Y/N?” Liu turned to face you. “If he were alive then it wouldn’t be me on this journey with you. It would be him.”

“Yeah. You’re probably right.” He was and you knew it. You hadn’t been on a trip with Liu Kang alone since before you’d started dating Kung Lao. “He’d never liked the idea of me going on trips with you alone. Always insisted on coming with us or replacing you when Raiden suggested it.”

“Oh?” Liu seemed genuinely surprised and you turned to face him.

“Yeah. I asked him why once and he never gave me a straight answer. You know how he was with that kind of stuff. It was like pulling teeth.” You missed your bag. It had become a security blanket in Liu Kang’s presence. “Now I’ll never know the reason. There’s so many things that I’ll never know.” You pulled the blanket a little tighter. Liu Kang was deep in thought and just staring at you and so you let him and avoided his eyes.

“Did you ever tell him?” He was hesitant to ask. Probably afraid you’d flee again. You snapped your gaze up to his in surprise. “About before you two were together.”

“What? No! No, god no.” You laughed awkwardly. “I didn’t want to cause any trouble between the two of you. He could be kind of jealous sometimes.” You liked those memories. It had never been a bad kind of jealousy. It had been cute and he’d always denied until after you’d fought about it and wound up rolling around together in bed. “Did you tell him?”

“I almost did once, but no. We’d been arguing and I almost let it out just to spite him.”

You inhaled sharply. That would have been a mess. “Yikes. Do you remember what you’d been fighting about?”

“It was something stupid. I don’t remember.” Liu averted his eyes. Was it something stupid? Or did he not remember? He was lying but you wouldn’t argue with him. You were in no place to push each other’s boundaries right now. This was the first real civil conversation you’d had while sober since Kung Lao died. “I just remember thinking about the trouble it would have caused you, so I held my tongue.”

“I appreciate that.”

“I knew you would.”

“Liu?” You wanted to apologize, and your gaze caught the scrape on his arm, left untended.

“Don’t worry about it, Y/N.” He inhaled sharply as you touched the scrape, far more than he should have for such a small wound, as if your touch burned him.

“I’m worried about you.”

“Not ready to talk about that. Still… processing.” At least he hadn’t snapped at you. You lifted his arm and he scooted closer as if eager for your touch. “It’s fine. Didn’t even break the skin really.”

“Thank you for helping me back there.”

“I promised him that I would keep you safe.” He assured you and you rolled your eyes at him. He laughed which was short lived but also a wonderful sound. You had never needed him or Kung Lao to keep you safe. It had never stopped them from wanting to do just that. You would let him. If it made him feel better, then that was what mattered.

“That woman gave me directions and a charm to present to Nightwolf. We can leave in the morning but it’s a long hike. Three days, she said. We should rest.”

“I don’t think I can. I’m going to stay outside a bit longer.” Liu gestured to the stars. You’d both found peace in the sky in the past, both separately and together. Some things never changed, you guessed. You stood up and made to leave him on his own. He didn’t want you there and you knew that. So you would go back to the bed and to what little you had left of Kung Lao.

“Goodnight, Liu Kang.” You bowed politely but were surprised when he grabbed your hand. His thumb carefully brushed over the back of your knuckles. Your throat suddenly felt too full to talk. This was familiar. More familiar than it should have been. He’d stopped you that night too. He’d asked you to stay a bit longer with him. You had been drunk but had melted just the same and you were melting now.

“Don’t go just yet, Y/N.” He didn’t look up at you but he held your hand firmly. You considered that it was maybe a bad idea but sat down with him again anyway. He let go of your hand and then you sat side by side and watched the stars in silence. It wasn’t awkward, finally. It wasn’t long before you couldn’t keep your eyes open and had fallen asleep sitting up.

Next Chapter >>

#liu kang x reader #self insert #reader insert #liu kang #mk liu kang #mortal kombat movie #mortal kombat 2021 #ludi lin #liu kang/reader #liu kang x you #liu kang/you #fanfic #fanfiction #angst #romance #death #tension #grief #beauty through ash

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blinder-secrets · 4 years

Text

Settling Debts - Tommy

‘Can’t we just say goodnight?’ & ‘I don’t trust anybody. Don’t take it personally.’

prompt list

wordcount: 4624

ao3 link

You were twenty-six when you broke Tommy Shelby’s heart. He’d just turned thirty-two, the business in London had settled, and everything was going right again. That is, until you’d told him you couldn’t do it, you wouldn’t, not anymore. Not when he slipped further and further from you each day. Not when the Tommy you’d fallen for had changed in the process, had gotten lost between the canals and the city.

He’d tried to offer you a ring, but you’d said no. Marriage won’t fix it, Tom. You couldn’t be a wife to a man that forgot you existed sometimes. You wouldn’t sit alone in a house, waiting for him to come home, wondering if he was even alive, while you spun the gold on your finger. It wasn’t what you wanted. So, you’d told him that and left before he could change your mind.

It was the only time you’d been grateful of his pride. He didn’t come after you, he didn’t chase you down, his own ego wouldn’t allow him to. You’d broken his heart, and he’d let you. It was better that way.

To say that was the end of your relations, though, would be a lie. You may have ended your relationship, but you couldn’t shift the stain Shelby business had left on your life. No-one would hire you, so you worked in their London offices. No-one would befriend you, so you drank with John, and Isaiah, when they were in town. You saw Tommy at every event, family party, and business meeting. You bumped into him when you were visiting your parents. In fact, the bitter irony of it all, was that you saw him more once you’d left him, than you ever did when you were together. But after a while it became the norm; it stopped hurting once it had.

Then, he had gotten married. You were invited, you’d smiled as they kissed. Clapped at the speeches. Honestly, it was a good night, you were happy for them. Both of them. He’d found someone who could keep him whole, and she did so without compromising on herself — it was what he needed. That should have been cherished, it should have lasted. When she died you mourned with him. For him. You picked up the phone when he rang, but you never went to him, he never asked you to. He grieved alone.

He did the same when John went. Though, that was hard for all of you. His funeral was the one family event where you’d felt you belonged, like you’d be there even without your history with Tommy. John was your friend first.

When the trouble with Changretta was over, Tommy decided to throw a party, though it felt more like an arrangement for us to breathe. A message to the family that it was done and they could finally come up for air. It was only a small guest list, those closest to him, but somehow you made the cut. You almost didn’t believe him when he asked you to come. Me? Why? You’re family, he said, you’re one of us. After the time he’d had, the stress, the loss, you’d told him you’d be there. You’d said it with a smile like it meant something to you, like it felt nice to be included.

The reality is that it doesn’t feel nice anymore, it feels like an obligation. A debt you didn’t know you had been paying since you’d left him. You could end things with Tommy but you could never move past him, not really, not on your own accord.

‘You’re here,’ is how Tommy greets you on the night, his hands limp by his sides as he stands before you in the doorway. He’d come to meet you there once he’d heard the car. No hello, no smile, just a quiet acknowledgement of your arrival.

‘Yes, Tommy,’ you answer, ‘I said I’d come.’ You look over your shoulder, gesturing to Isaiah with a jut of your chin. ‘I got a lift with your youngest and brightest Blinder. He drives well.’

Tommy nods, looking into your eyes for something you aren’t prepared to give him.

‘Are you going to let us in?’ you ask. If he wants to stare, he can do it from the warmth of the inside, and without the company of your oblivious friend.

‘I hope there’s food,’ Isaiah says, rubbing his hands together. He looks between you and Tommy with a grin, unaware of any difference in your behaviours.

His statement works to reanimate your host though, and he steps aside, extending an arm into the house. ‘There’s food,’ he says, nodding again. ‘Come on, come in.’

Despite the circumstances, you are glad you came. There’s alcohol and laughing, conversations you’d never expect to hear from Shelby lips. The food’s good, the atmosphere is easy, the guests are relaxed. Everyone is grateful to be free, to feel free, to have each other still. You’ve never heard Tommy crack so many jokes, dry as they are. You’ve not seen him smile this much since he married Grace.

When Arthur stands, announcing that he has something to say, you can’t help but snort and roll your eyes along with the rest of them. Maybe you are one of them. Maybe once you’re in, you’re never out again. Not while there’s still breath in your lungs.

‘I’d like to make a proposal,’ Arthur booms, ‘to insist that Tommy here, takes some time off.’

You laugh and you aren’t the only one to do so.

‘Time you took a holiday, Tom. Put your feet up. War’s over.’

This one was, but all Tommy knows is war. You can see in his expression, the one beneath the smile he’s giving to his family, to Arthur, that he knows it too. It isn’t in him to rest.

‘Alright,’ he says, 'thank-you, Arthur.’ He raises his glass and the group follows. ‘To peace.’

‘Peace,’ you repeat, catching his eye. He tips his whiskey toward you and then you drink in unison, holding each other’s gaze until the line is disrupted by another figure.

It’s Polly. Her cheeks are rouged from the celebrations, her movement lagging as she sits on the arm of the chair opposite. ‘You never told me what happened to that Irishman,’ she says, ‘the one with the eyes.’

You laugh, letting your focus settle on her rather than the man she’s blocking. ‘I don’t have to tell you things for you to know, Pol.’

After that, the night slips away from you. It’s near twelve when you decide you’ve had enough. You say your goodbyes to everyone, working through the dwindling group, until you’re left with just Tommy and Isaiah to speak to. From the way Isaiah’s behaving, sitting loud and boisterous with Finn, it’s obvious that your driver has forgotten all about his duties. You’re already in your coat, already clutching your bag with your mind set on leaving, but seeing him laugh so happily makes you stop. It’s not too long of a journey, but enough to make you hesitate — if he’s ready to leave is one thing, if he’s in any fit state to man a car, is another entirely.

You’re too caught up in your indecision to acknowledge Tommy arriving beside you.

‘You’re leaving?’ he asks, standing parallel, his gaze on the boys also.

‘Trying to.’ You sigh. ‘I’m at the Midland, though I don’t think we’d make it that far.’

He clears his throat once and says, ‘Leave him be, I’ll take you back.’

‘Really?’ Your eyebrows raise, neck craning to look at him. ‘Aren’t you drunk?’

Tommy shrugs, still staring ahead. ‘Either that, or you go with him in the morning.’

After spending the night, he implies, after staying in the guest room of the house he once shared with his wife. Doors down from the nursery his son sleeps in.

‘No,’ you decide, ‘no, I think I’ll take your first offer.’

‘Suit yourself.’

You explain to Isaiah, who looks very happy with the idea. Not that he didn’t want to take you, of course, not that you were ever a bother to him. You watch him scramble to backtrack with an amused smile.

‘I love driving you places, really,’ he stresses. ‘I just meant it’s great to—‘

‘Siah, it’s fine. Honestly.’ You laugh, letting him cling to your hand still. ‘Just have a good night, yeah? Don’t over-do it.’

He agrees, nodding wildly, then goes back to Finn with a fresh set of bottles under his arm.

After waving goodbye, again, to the room, you follow Tommy down the hall to the door. He takes his coat from the hook, pulling it on as you hurry to catch up to him. For someone so keen to have you there in the first place, he was certainly in a rush to show you out now.

It’s only once you’ve both stepped out into the cold, that you realise it isn’t the case at all. He isn’t keen to leave, just keen to have you alone, to have you by himself with nothing but the quiet and the night.

You’re behind him at first, but when you step down onto the gravel, he turns so quickly that you’re toe-to-toe before you can move out of the way.

‘Tom—‘

Your surprise is cut off by his lips. He has your face in his hands, his thumbs holding you steady by the curve of your cheeks. He’s kissing you. He’s kissing you and it takes you so long to realise, that he pulls back before you can respond to it. You can feel him watching you, waiting for a hint, but your eyes fall to the floor. Your fingertips ghost over your mouth.

Dropping his chin, he steps away and reaches into his pocket for a cigarette. There’s a quiet between you now that neither wants to break. You don’t think either of you know how to, or what to say. You’re still trying to work out if you should have kissed him back.

After what feels like a lifetime, but is really only long enough for half of the cigarette to burn away between his lips, Tommy clears his throat and speaks again. ‘Right, shall we go?’

It’s forgotten to him, then. He’s already buried the kiss under the list of things that happened, and then didn’t happen, and now will never be spoken of. You aren’t sure you can afford him the luxury this time.

‘Is that why you asked me here, Tommy?’ you ask, quietly, like you’re embarrassed by it. You aren’t, of course, you’re just more worried that you’re being assumptive. That he won’t react well to it.

He directs his smoke upwards, turning in the last minute to shrug his eyebrows at you. ‘Forget it, right? Didn’t happen.’

Except that it did, and the more you think about it, the more you wish it had continued. Or hadn’t begun at all. The conflict bites at your throat. One second, you find yourself wanting him for the nostalgia of it, but then in the next, reason corrects you. You know what he’s like. He’s just looking for comfort, something to take the edge off. Something that’ll last longer than booze and drugs.

‘You kissed me, Tom.’

He sighs, his face is pointed to dark sky. ‘Yes, I did.’

‘I can’t be that person,’ you say. You’re reminding him as much as yourself. ‘I know it’s been hard but I can’t, that hasn’t changed.’

‘Have I asked anything of you?’ he replies dryly, then his head straightens and he redirects his gaze to yours. ‘Tell me, who have I asked you to be, eh? Hm?’

You chew the inside of your lip. He’s getting irritated, and once he does the conversation will go nowhere. He’s too stubborn. Too full of pride, and ego, and denial. Too Tommy to make progress.

‘It’s just a kiss, [y/n].’ He can insist all he likes, but you know he’s lying. He wouldn’t kiss you just for the sake of it. At least, not like that.

‘Fine.’ You lift your bag from where it was dangling and set the strap back onto your shoulder. ‘So take me home.’

He doesn’t move, he just looks away again and takes another drag from his cigarette.

Sighing, you rub at your forehead, closing your eyes to save them from staring at him any longer. This was exactly what you feared. Every time you saw him, every time you ended up alone together, you were worried he’d do something like that. Worried he’d undo all the work you’d put in, take down the walls with one stupid, boyish, action. It was always a likelihood — now it was reality. You don’t want to go back to how you were, you’re happy separate from him. But, fuck, he doesn’t half make it difficult. You never question your resolve quite as much as you do when he’s close by.

‘I’m sorry, alright?’ He breaks your train of thought, grumbling the words into the dark. ‘I shouldn’t have done that.’

‘What?’ You scoff before you’ve even opened your eyes. When you do look at him, you almost expect him to be smiling, but he’s serious. His expression’s hard. ‘Are you apologising, Tommy?’

His jaw sets. Then, he nods.

‘Wow.’ You smile accidentally. ‘That’s new.’

Shaking his head, he laughs to himself, though there’s no humour in it. It’s one of those disbelieving laughs that’s always grated you the wrong way. ‘Always fuckin’ fighting me,’ he says.

‘I don’t,’ you reply sharply. ‘I’m not.’

‘You don’t trust me anymore, do you?’ he asks, half-smiling, like he’s finally solved the riddle that’s been plaguing him. ‘That’s what it is. After all this, after everything, you don’t trust me.’

You fold your arms over yourself. ‘I don’t trust anyone,’ you quip. ‘Don’t take it personally.’ His swerve in topic has caught you off-guard, and the response that you’d intended to reassure him, had come out so quickly that it looked more like a lie than anything else would’ve. ‘Surely you know what that’s like, Tom?’

‘We’re not talking ‘bout me.’ He finishes his smoke and flicks the butt away from him. ‘You don’t trust me,’ he says, pointing at you, ‘and that’s why I can’t kiss you, at me own party, without a fuckin’ inquisition about it.’

‘That’s not true.’

‘No?’

His smugness is starting to get to you. Everything you’ve ever said, years ago and now, has gone right over his head. It’s barely even grazed the surface. ‘God,’ you sneer, letting your irritation take the reins, ‘you really are insufferable.’

‘Yeah.’ He scoffs, nodding. ‘Yeah, but you still came.’

The tension in your chest snaps. Any grip you had on civility is lost, tossed aside into the stones of the driveway.

‘Because I feel guilty, Tommy, because I left and your life has gone to shit ever since.’ Your voice is straining in your throat, but you aren’t shouting. Not yet. ‘Do you think I’d even be here,’ you continue, 'if I didn’t feel like I had to be? Like I owed it to you to say yes?’

‘Owed it to me?’

‘Yes, fucking owed, Tommy. We broke up years ago and I’m still here.’ You hadn’t gotten away yet because he hadn’t let you, he pulled you back every time the distance grew.

Opposite, he’s unmoving. His face is blank to your outburst. He just stands there and takes it, like you haven’t dowsed him in undeserving pity. Like you haven’t just taken his hospitality, his loyalty, and thrown it back in his face like you hated him for it. His lack of response is enough to send you tumbling into self-reflection.

‘Fuck!’ You turn away from him, then back again before the regret can sink any deeper. ‘Fuck, sorry. Sorry, Tom, I shouldn’t have said any of that.’

At that moment, at that exact, horrible, moment, your solitude is disturbed. In a clutter of noise, Arthur comes tumbling out of the house, gun raised and pointed vaguely in the direction of the both of you. If it were any one else, you’d be scared, but it’s just him; just Arthur and his habits.

‘Who the fuck’s this?’ he spits, his words bleeding into one another.

‘Arthur?’ Tommy is first to respond, lifting his hands. ‘Christ, put the fucking gun down.’

‘Oh.’ Realisation stops him dead. ‘I thought you’d gone, Tom,’ he says, quieter but no clearer. His arm lowers sheepishly. He’s so drunk he can’t even stand straight, he sways as he talks. ‘I heard shouting,’ he explains.

’S’alright, brother,’ Tommy says, voice tight. He’s using that tone that he so often does with Arthur. It’s somewhere between condescension and thin, waining patience. ‘Go back inside, eh?’

‘We were just talking,’ you add, hoping it’ll help to usher him away. ‘Everything’s fine.’

‘Right, right, yeah, course.’ He’s nodding, and waving the gun at you like it’s no different from his hand. ‘Shouldn’t have assumed.’

‘It’s okay.’ You smile at him though you doubt he can even see it through the dark and the blur of the alcohol. Out the corner of your eye, you notice Tommy turning away from him, sighing with his hands pressed to his face.

Arthur just stands there, rambling. ‘Beautiful night, though, beautiful,’ he says.

‘It is,’ you agree, looking between him and Tommy. ‘Sorry, Arthur, we were—‘

‘Yep,’ he barks, interrupting you suddenly. ‘I know, I know, hm, as you were.’ With that he’s away, holding his hands above his head in surrender, keeping them there even once his back’s turned.

You watch him until you cant see him anymore, until the door shuts and you’re alone again, in the silence with Tommy. The previous tension has dissipated, dropped and sunken into the ground beneath. In the quiet, it seems stupid to attempt to carry on with the conversation, you can hardly remember how it had gotten to that point in the first place.

‘I don’t think we’ll ever get anywhere like this, Tommy,’ you say, finally turning back to him. He nods, while his hands push his hair into place, smoothing it over more times than necessary. ‘I am sorry for what I said,’ you add, still feeling the guilt twinge in your stomach.

‘No.’ He shakes his head, pouting slightly. ‘No, you’ve nothing to say sorry for, it’s not your fault.’ His hands tuck into his pockets, his eyelids droop. He looks tired. Whether it’s from you, or the night, you can’t tell. ‘I’m the one who’s cursed,’ he says.

‘I don’t believe that.’

‘You’re the only one.’

‘Tom.’ You find yourself stepping toward him, your hand reaching for his arm. When it settles on his bicep, just above the elbow, his gaze follows it. ‘You aren’t cursed,’ you tell him, ‘you’re just…’ Unlucky? Destructive? There isn’t really a word for it, at least not one that will make him feel any better.

He huffs a breath through his nose. ‘It’s alright,’ he says. ‘You don’t have to.’

You nod. You pull your hand back and hold yourself instead. The empty silence that seems to linger around the two of you is back, though this time it’s sad. Bleak. If there was ever a moment where you felt truly alienated from him, it was now, you were living it. Or, at least, that’s what you suppose it is. You’ve never felt anything like it. He’s looking at you as if he understands at last what was lost between you, like he’s only now realised that you’ve gone. The ache you felt that day has finally been passed onto him.

Maybe it’s relief, then, not alienation. He understands and he isn’t bitter, he’s sad. You can finally agree on that.

‘Do you regret it?’ he asks. ‘Leaving?’

‘No, I don’t think so,’ you answer quietly. ‘It was the right thing at the time.’

He wets his lips, nodding. ‘And now?’

‘Don’t ask me that.’ Your voice cracks slightly. You shake your head like it’ll stop the thought from latching. If you shut it down fast enough, it won’t do any damage, it won’t make you consider.

‘Already have,’ he says. He’s looking for that something again, that hint of desire in your eyes. He stares in wait of it.

You can’t find an answer — your tongue has swallowed itself whole. There’s nothing to push him back, nothing to stop the hope he’s starting to build. He needs telling no, but you can’t find it within yourself to do so, you can’t blink the idea of it back.

‘I’m taking time off,’ he starts as he steps toward you, palms open and reaching. ‘Spend it with me,’ he says. ‘We can go on the road, eh? You and me, travelling. We can see your cousins in Wales.’

‘Tommy…’

‘Or London, we can go back to London.’

‘Tommy.’ You stop him before he picks up anymore momentum, your hand pushing flat against his chest. ‘You’re going too fast.’

‘It’s nothing we haven’t done before,’ he counters.

‘We haven’t even, I mean, we can barely keep a conversation, Tom. I don’t know.’

‘Well, let’s start with that,’ he says, ‘let’s talk.’ He’s stepping closer still, his hands have taken your waist, and he’s looking at your lips. Just your lips.

‘Talk?’ you mirror, feeling the air catch in your throat afterwards. You’re chest-to-chest now and his eyes still haven’t lifted. If he were any closer you’d feel his heart beat with your own.

‘Just talk,’ he insists. His voice is low, dragging. ‘We never talk.’

He’s saying things he doesn’t mean. He’s moved a hand to your face, his fingertips trace the line of your cheekbone, just below your eye. He’s close and he’s soft, and he’s Tommy. He’s always Tommy, your Tommy.

‘I can’t think like this,’ you say quickly, softly, too nervous to add any force to the words. ‘I can’t go away with you, Tom.’

‘I know,’ he murmurs, eyes flitting across every inch of your face. He’s drinking you in. He’s missed you, you can see it, you can feel it in how he’s holding you. He’s cherishing it all over again, taking stock of what he lost. Once he’s satisfied, he closes the gap between you and pushes his mouth on yours.

He kisses you and this time you kiss him back.

You melt into it, letting him part your lips with the edge of his tongue. Your arms go around his neck, your fingers to the back of his head. You kiss him like it’s the easiest thing in the world, like you’d never stopped doing it. It’s wrong. It can only ever be bad, for you, for him, but you’re doing it. You want it. It fills you with a warmth you’d long forgotten. The taste of him slips down your throat like liquor, burning the sides. Stifling the chatter in your head.

All too soon, he pulls back, dragging your bottom lip with him before letting go. His head tilts, forehead resting against yours, breath shaky and fogging between your two mouths. ‘Don’t go to the hotel,’ he says. His voice breaks from his throat in a coarse whisper. ‘Stay here, with me.’

‘You don’t mean that,’ you tell him. ‘You’re drunk.’ You feel drunk yourself, you lean on him like you’d fall without the support.

‘I’m not.’ He kisses you again and you meet him there, your tongue daring to taste his this time, your lead the one that’s followed.

You let him walk you back, let him put you between him and the wall of the house. His hands are on your face, and then your neck, and then down your sides like he can’t settle. Like he’s desperate to touch every part of you before you disappear again. The kiss breaks and then he’s covering you in them, leaving them wherever he can think to.

‘Tom,’ you whine, ‘we can’t.’

‘Stay,’ he breathes, hiding the word behind your ear. Trailing it down your neck. ‘Stay for now. Stay.’

You sigh his name. ‘Can’t we just say goodnight?’

‘Do you want that?’ His nose brushes your jaw, his lips settle beneath. You sink against the wall.

‘We shouldn’t—’ the sentence is stolen from you, staccato from the feeling of his teeth against your skin. It’s getting harder to let reason win, the more he touches you, the less you care. The more you want. Groaning, you force your eyes open. ‘Tommy.’

He responds quickly, lifting his head to meet you. His palm sits at the base of your throat, not holding, just touching. ‘I’ll stop,’ he says, ‘do you want me to stop?’

The answer should be yes. Any other day it would be, it would be Goodnight, Tommy. Take me home, Tommy. But you can’t say it. You can’t lie to yourself, or to him. You want him to carry on. You want him to kiss you like he loves you, like he’s desperate. You want him to take you into his big house, to adore you, to fuck you like you never broke his heart. Or maybe like you did. It’s weakness, it’s a failure to yourself and your dignity, but, God, you don’t care. You can’t force yourself to.

‘[Y/n]?’ Tommy’s still waiting for his answer, still holding his breath as he watches you think.

You start to shake your head, but desire interrupts. You kiss him and then he knows. Then his hands go back to your waist, pulling you in, pulling you to the side, pulling you around the wall and backwards toward the steps. It’s clumsy, you stumble with him. Your teeth knock together as you move.

‘A bed,’ you say, panting in the breaks apart. ‘Not downstairs, not like a whore.’

He nods against your lips, his arm reaching behind to push the door open. The warmth folds over you, drowning you. You hadn’t realised how cold it was until you're in the house again.

You pull away from each other to get upstairs; he walks in front of you with his hand trailing behind, fingers interlocked with yours. You don’t know where everyone else is, but you don’t care, you’re so trained on Tommy that the stairs could be on fire and you wouldn’t even know. From the heat that creeps down your legs, they very well could be.

On the landing, you’re reunited again. Kissing, grabbing, chasing each other toward the bedroom like you’re newlyweds. He takes your coat off, leaves it by the door. You push his back from his shoulders and let gravity do the rest.

There’s no time to talk, not properly; no space between you is kept long enough to allow words to fall. You devour each other, peel back the layers of clothing, shed the years of discomfort. You let him kiss you, invite him to taste what he’s missed. When he lays you down, you open yourself up to him, you hold him close like you would’ve when you were twenty-five.

‘I should’ve stopped you,’ he says against your stomach. His hair is messy, like it never is, the dark twists brush your skin. ‘When you went, I should’ve gone with you.’

‘No,’ you tell him, ‘you shouldn’t.’

Everything that happened, still led to this. If it wasn’t broken you’d have nothing to put back together. You’d kiss and it would be empty.

‘Stop thinking, Tom.’

You cup his cheek and pull him upwards until he’s above you. His skin sticks to yours, his heartbeat thumps against you like its your own. He kisses you and he doesn’t stop. You don’t let him.

#tommy shelby x reader #tommy x reader #Tommy Shelby #tommy shelby imagines #peaky blinders fanfic #had this thought in my head all week and i think it came from that episode in sopranos where tony and carmela fuck in the pool KSJFGHKJSHFG #anyway hope you enjoy hope it was worth the wait love you #please let me know what you think!#this really possesed me

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cloudninetonine · 3 years

Text

Follow the light

Chapter 1

Synopsis: A Genshin impact/Avatar x fem!reader

A/N: INSTANT SECOND CHAPTER. Also, some stuff from my previous post about this crossover is probs gonna change

I do not own the Genshin Impact or Avatar franchise

Warnings

“Let’s try it again”

Nodding, you took a deep breath, focusing yourself on your actions as you began to move.

Light on your feet, just like the leaf, if you meet resistance, you must be able to spiral away at a moment’s notice, move like the wind, move like you’re free.

Tsering had practically drilled that into you when you began to learn airbending. ‘It was a must’, she had told you, sending a blast of wind into the the spinning death trap- I mean, into the spinning gates, ‘if you are to be the Avatar you must know how to air bend, even if your power is just that of an average bender as of now’

She was right, of course, but the thought of helping restore Raava’s power and find your brother itched at your mind constantly, kept you awake at night as you practiced your moves, occupied your thoughts when you ate, never had you been so desperate to leave the temple.

Despite that, the thought of leaving these people caused your chest to burn, like you had been stabbed right in the heart with the intent to kill. These people had become family to you, on level with your brother, they cared for you and you cared for them, so you knew when it finally came time to leave, which if you were correct, would be a few days from now, you would shed tears.

You would be alone and it scared you.

“Much better” Tsering clapped, as did the other four nuns, the leading nuns, when you finally ceased, bright smile on your face “You’re improving every day, I’d say you could become a master in just a few more years”

You placed your hands behind you back, rocking on your heels “Would I be able to get my tattoos if I did?”

She smiled back “Of course, you’re considered a nomad after all”

A familiar squeaky voice piped up from your left “Paimon thinks you could improve in your stance”

You sent Paimon the stink eye “You can’t even bend, elf”

“Excuse you! Paimon doesn’t need to bend to know you’re stance stinks-”

“Alright you two, no need to fight” Another nun, Nun Palmo laughed, “(Name), you are dismissed, remember to keep training and if you need help, you only need to ask”

With a ‘thank you!’ and quick bow, you headed off with Paimon for your daily walk around the temple.

“Paimon was only joking earlier, you’ve really improved, your bending was pretty flawless! Though, Paimon noticed that you looked a bit distracted, is everything okay?”

Paimon, the ever so observant, when food wasn’t involved, or when she wasn’t talking, or when she was just...herself. The spirit seemed to know you well enough to notice the shift in your attitude as you bent, mind fogged up over other matters that you didn’t need to think about at that moment.

“Yes, Pai, I’m fine, it’s just…” You searched for the words “I’m starting my journey in a few days and I know Raava is here with me but...I’m going to be alone when I travel so I’m nervous. I’ve never travelled by myself before, my brother’s always been with me so….”

A sigh fell from your lips. “It’s stupid-”

“No it isn’t!” Paimon leaned in close, shaking her fists in exaggeration “Being alone is a big deal! Paimon knows from experience that it sucks being by yourself, so, Paimon’s decided to accompany you on your journey! She am a spirit of guidance after all!”

Your head snapped towards her “Wait...seriously?”

“Seriously!”

The grin that spread across your face was contagious, the spirit mirroring your expression as you hugged her tightly, both of you laughing. “Thank you, Paimon, thank you!”

“No need for thanks!....Actually, keep it coming”

Your heart filled with warmth.

You wouldn’t be alone.

The day came faster than you had expected. As cheesy as it sounded, it had only felt like yesterday when Raava had first spoken with you and the two of you had merged, but it had been just over four months with air bending training being a subject for every single day. A mix of grueling and fun, because learning how to fly using a glider brought you back to earlier days with your wings, but getting your arse kicked by spinning gates, falling from far heights when you mess up your bending- not as fun.

A sort of leaving party had been held the night before, a great buffet for you hard work and just fun games to play with your newly aquired airbending skills. (Tsering had beaten you 5 against 1 in Airball and even then, you were sure she had given you the last one out of pity)

You were changed in your older clothes this time, pulling on your gloves and boots, looking yourself in the mirror in your room the last time. It was weird, seeing yourself in your travelling attire when for the past few years you had been dressed in the familiar orange, yellow and reds of air culture, it only further settled as a reminder that you were leaving today.

You had successfully held back the tears till this point.

“(Name)” Glancing towards your door, Tsering stood with her hands clasped together, a small smile on her beautiful features “Are you ready?”

“Uh, yes!” Fumbling for your bag, you made your way over “I’m- I’m ready”

“Good, but before that” Pulling something from behind her back, she presented it to you “You earned this”

Sat within her palms was an airbending staff, accompanied by your familiar red sash that you supported on your clothes previous. You stood in awe as the elder airbender tied the sash around you, tightening it gently before grasping your cheek, stroking it softly with her thumb. “I will miss you, (Name)”

Tears finally pushed through, eyes glazing over as you engulfed the woman in a tight hug, face shoved into her chest. “I’ll miss you too, Tsering”

Ten minutes later, you were heading towards the bison, specifically your bison, one you had befriended by accident and now considered one of your lifelong pals. You hadn’t meant to bond with him, only airbenders received bison, but you had stumbled upon the ordeal when exploring and he just didn’t seem to care about anyone else. Tsering had let you have him without much argument and smiled when you named him Viator, something she didn’t quite understand back then but now was a completely different story.

“Food has been packed for you, along with water, spare clothes and other necessities” Paimon was already sitting upon Viator’s back, munching on what you guessed was something from breakfast, when you jumped onto the bison’s head, stroking through his fur with love. “Be safe, (Name) and please know, you may return whenever you wish”

“Thank you, Tsering. Thank you everyone, you showed me kindness for all these years and treated me as one of your own. I’ll miss you all so much but I promise I will come back” With a commanding ‘Yip, yip’ Viator had pushed himself off the ground “Farewell everyone!”

The younger airbender girls screamed their goodbyes, waving their hands wildly while the older nuns bowed, sending waves once you began to disappear West, towards the mainland of Teyvat.

Finally, your journey began.

-----

“Look, there it is!”

It had taken an entire day, much faster than you had originally expected and you couldn’t have been more grateful for the existence of sky bison.

From your point, you could see giant cliffs, a small, sandy bay sat beneath them with a path that led deeper into the mainland, your bison following it when you finally hit the shoreline.

“Did Raava say anything about the statues, like, how to even get the power in the first place?”

You shook your head “No, so I’ll just have to see once we find one- woah”

It had taken only five minute to reach a clearing and boy, was it a sight to behold. Cliffs surrounded the area in a crescent shape, the valley holding a plethora of beautiful trees ranging from the famous forest green to autumn time orange. Beyond it stood a city of stone, laid within a sparkling blue lake, Mondstadt you believed. Dead center sat a small isle within the valley, containing just the thing you were looking for.

“That was quick”

Viator grew closer, groaning when you called ‘Yip, yip!’ to drop the lot of you onto the tiny piece of land, Paimon clapping her hands excitedly.

“Oh!” She cried in delight “That’s the statue of the Anemo Archon, Barbatos! He’s the spirit of Air!”

Floating down, you jogged up the statue with your companion following behind, eyeing the tall structure with intrigued eyes when you finally stood before it, glancing around it briefly before Paimon spoke up.

“What now?”

You shrugged “I...touch it?”

“Paimon..agrees?”

Delicate hands reached out, brushing against the golden plaque molded into the botton of the monument when a beautiful glow was produced from the carved diamond patterns, both you and Paimon gasping in surprise as a heavenly sounded resonated through the area, the glow winding up the statue and forming into a beautiful light orb within the hands of the figure head. Slowly, the ball floated down towards you, like a leaf in the wind, then flew into your chest, a feeling of weightlessness flowing through your entire being.

You glanced over yourself.

“Was...that it?”

Paimon huffed “You know, that’s kind of rude to say about the power the Archon just gave you!”

“I didn’t mean it like that-”

A brilliant light flashed before your eyes, blinding you, the whole surrounding scene blurring away. You threw your hands over your face, protecting yourself from the harsh brightness when it faded as soon as it came, the sound of nature that once encircled you now replaced with a deafening silence.

“(Name)”

You turned towards the voice, smiling “Raava”

The spirit flew towards you, you once again lending your hand out only to notice the slight difference within the being.

“You’re bigger” You noted in excitement, watching her wind up your arm “Have I already restored some of your power that fast? If so, this’ll be easy-peasy”

“You mustn't underestimate this journey, (Name)” She spoke with a wisdom that you hadn’t experienced for what felt like lifetimes, your body straightening up in response to her tone “We have only just begun and the road will only grow more treacherous as we push forward. Not everyone will be so supporting in our quest”

A sigh escaped you “Yeah, you’re right, nothing is ever that easy. I wish we had more help though”

“You are not alone in this, (Name)”

“I know, I’ve got you, Pai, Viator-”

“That is not what I meant”

The noise of confusion you made was cut short at the sound of….wind? It grew louder with it second, until the whisper because a magnificent howl, collecting around the two of you before bursting outwards, forms of multiple figures appearing from the darkness.

“Air nomads?” You glanced around at them all “Wait, not just air nomads”

“No, each is an air nomad in their own right” The multiple air nomads eyes snapped opening, revealing a familiar white glow “Not every nomad is in touch with their culture, some fade away, whether that be from their own choice or anothers, while others stick with air custom”

It hit you.

“Past air nation Avatars….” There were so many, you couldn’t keep count! They even faded into the far distance of this mind space! You had known there had been plenty of Avatars but seeing this much was just...wow “But, I don’t get it, the Avatar cycle was destroyed. Wouldn’t the Avatars have vanished? Like in that Water tribe….Korra, like in Korra’s era”

But then again, Tsering had told you that the following Avatar, an Earth Kingdom boy named Genji you believed, had somehow restored the previous Avatars despite the new cycle. No one ever found out how, but no one really cared, they were just grateful for the Avatar.

“I, as well, am not sure why they are returning” The spirit glanced around before facing you once again, sliding further up to reach eye level “Perhaps it is our connection? Your own spirit? Or maybe it is just luck that they return, but they will help you in your journey, they will be your guides alongside me”

You grinned “Good to know I have more backup”

“(Name)!!!!”

The voice of Paimon echoed around you, concern evident in her voice and you glanced around, trying to find her.

“It is time for you to return, but you can always find us again”

The world around you began to fade, the past avatars disappearing within the darkness along with the spirit.

Paimon sighed in relief when the glow finally dissipated from your eyes, you blinking a few times then glanced towards her with an apologetic smile.

“You can’t just go all Avatar on Paimon like that!” She chided like a mother, waggling her finger at you “Paimon wasn’t sure if what happened was worrying or not!”

“Sorry, Pai, didn’t mean to worry you”

She huffed, floating back to Viator “Let’s just continue on, Paimon thinks we should head over into Mondstadt!”

You hopped onto your bison, patting his head “Why, Mondstadt?”

“It’s the city of Wind of course! Poetry and language flow like the wind, so there must be someone who knows about your brother! At least that what’s Paimon thinks”

“Sounds like a good start, yip- huh?!”

A large shadow cast over you, a bellious roar sounding through the valley, deep, thunderous and strong. Glancing upwards, you both watched as a giant creature, with beautiful blue fathers flew overhead, aimed towards the heart of the forest that laid ahead.

“What was that?!” You cried as Viator groaned in alarm, Paimon looking as spooked as you felt “Paimon!?”

“A dragon! We’ve gotta be careful!”

Dragon? What a weird dragon indeed. You had seen quite a few in your lifetime, exploring different worlds with your brother meant you got to experience a whole lot of different things, dragons were no exception. They differed in different worlds, some violent, some passive, some young and naive some old and wise, but one thing that tended to stay the same was that their appetite was a meaty one and when you glanced down at Viator, you decided to take a cautious step for your furry companion.

“Paimon, stay here with Viator” Opening up your staff, you hopped off your animal and flew in the direction of the forest. Your friend called after you, voice high with panic as she begged you to come back, but you weren’t listening, no, you were focused on keeping the people close to you safe, even if that meant fighting a dragon, which you knew for certain you weren’t ready for.

The forest was practically silent compared to the valley. The sound of life that played within the sun had dimmed with the looming trees of oak, muffling the wind that blew through the perfect path that had been carved through the nature with perfect precision, it��s goal on leading to Mondstadt clear with each tentative step you took that lead to where you had seen the great beast land.

‘I wish I had my sword’ Such words shouldn’t come to a nomad, you knew that to be true, but you had lived through battle after battle with your brother for so long, the weight of the blade, the leather of it’s handle, it had been burned into the skin of your hand many times ago. Guilt boiled within you during your years with the nuns, how could you think of fighting while surrounded by such peaceful people? But then again, you could take a warrior from war, but not war from a warrior.

“Don’t be afraid. It’s alright now, I’m back”

You pushed your back against the nearest tree, glancing around it’s wide trunk at the scene.

The dragon was great, indeed. Coloured in an array of blues, from aquatic to deep ocean, feathers and furs adorned it’s body, tipping the tail, decorating it’s wings, lining it’s belly but ended at it’s claws, replaced with silvery scales that reflected the light of the day. From it’s back, however, protruded two tainted purple crystals, that you could sense, all the way from your hidden spot, held nothing but a dark energy that made your skin crawl. The creature’s sheer size was intimidating enough, especially compared to the boy who stood before it, but those crystals- wait.

Only then did you finally notice, too focused on the dragon to see the small male who held his hands out towards it. Sure, you had heard the voice earlier, but the blue beast’s appearance had overshadowed it, though now, you saw him, clear as day and your thoughts screamed about how such a small, fragile looking human could stand tall before such an intimidating animal-

A shout echoed through the forest, a familiar high shout that made you groan inwardly when the dragon let out an ear piercing shriek, swiping towards the boy only for him to jump back to your relief, snapping his head towards you direction, then disappear in a flashing light, the dragon leaving along with him into the sky with a final roar for extra effect.

You glared back at Paimon, panicked stricken face frozen in terror atop Viator’s head, who had tucked into himself at the appearance of the other animal.

“Really, Paimon?!” Running over, you soothed your bison softly “I told you to stay put! What if that dragon attacked?!”

“Paimon- uh- Paimon….” The spirit stumbled over her words for a few moments, when she noticed something within the short distance of where the dragon had been perched “What’s that?”

On closer inspection, it appeared to be a floating crystal, shaped eerily similar to a teardrop which glowed a crimson red, screaming an aura of negativity and…

“Sorrow” You hesitated when you reached out, but ultimately grasped it between your fingers gently “You can feel it right? That sorrow from it?”

“Yeah, almost like spiritual energy but just...sad, really sad” Frowning, Paimon turned towards you “Paimon feels kinda sad now too”

“Yeah, me too”

A cloth emerged from your pocket with a tug, the crimson glow disappearing under the raggedy brown of the material as you wrapped it carefully before stuffing it a bag on Viator’s back.

“Take care of this, will you bud?”

The animal groaned.

“Thanks”

Hopping down, you grasped Viator’s reins and continued down the dirt path.

“So, Mondstadt?”

It didn’t take long to reach the end of the woodland’s winding path. The once dense forestry parting way to a clear road to that great city that stood proud a few acres away, towering cliffs decorating your left for quite a way while to your right laid the beautiful crystal blue waves of what Paimon called Lake Cider.

A strange name, you had to admit, but your spirit friend’s explanation of the city’s famous winery industry only seemed to make it fit.

“-If we ask around, we’ll find some information! Oh, this city is famous for bards! So we can definitely-”

“Hey, you! Stop right there!”

Another threat?

Caution was thrown into the wind and you raced into action, pulling forth your staff in a defensive stance and ready to protect your companions with every last inch of you. Viator seemed to feel the same, as his large frame grew closer to you, towering in size with a guttural growl that even shook you slightly, bearing giant teeth.

Paimon merely fell behind, cowering away nervously.

‘Wow, thanks a lot Pai-’

A figure flew overhead, leaping off one of the shorter cliff sides and descending down to the dirt before you, rolling for safety then bouncing back up on their feet.

Long, dark brown hair, lively golden eyes, fair skin and covered head to toe in red.

Fire nation perhaps? Nun Tsering did say that descendants were fond of the colour.

“May the Anemo archon protect your stanger-...” She started, face kind but guarded until she fell upon your sash and bison “Ah! You’re an Air nomad! I am so sorry!”

Then she bowed, deep and apologetic and you sent Paimon a side eyed glance when she floated back to your side.

“Mondstadt is the city of wind and considered air nation territory” She whispered, “Monks and Nuns are highly respected, well, everywhere, but much higher here. You’re basically considered royalty”

You nodded in understanding before approaching the girl “Hey, it’s okay! It was an honest mistake! What’s your name? Mine’s (Name). This is my spirit guide, Paimon and my bison, Viator”

The younger woman bounced back up, narrowingly missing your head with her own while she stumbled over herself, finally findinger her words as she saluted (?) towards you all, forming a fist on her chest then being thrown outside, hand flattening by her side “Yes, of course! I am Amber, Outrider for the Knights of Favonius. I would like to personally welcome you to Mondstadt, dear Nun and once again apologise for my rude approach”

“Like I said, it was just a mistake!” Laughing, you bowed “It’s nice to meet you, Amber”

Amber paused for a moment, eyes wide then bowed in return “Likewise, Nun (Name)”

“You don’t need to call me that! I’m only a...nun-in-training, really, so, (Name) is just fine”

“Are you sure? It seems impolite to call you that, even if you’re only in training!”

From the sidelines, Paimon smiled.

The spirit had been informed by Nun Tsering of your inner conflict when you had first stumbled into this world. How hard it had been to open up, how you had struggled to interact with the others nuns, always so closed off and scared, the festering feeling of abandonment brewing a deep rooted fear of interaction, lest any person you may come across would be the next to leave you in the dust, by their own will or not.

When Paimon had first arrived, you had still struggled with that fear, even now if was still visible, if you looked close enough, but she knew she didn’t have to worry as much now, you were doing so much better and seeing you grow more confident made pride bloom in her chest, where her heart would be if she were human.

“Please-” Amber gestured over to Mondstadt, “Allow me to escort you to our city”

“Are you sure? If you’re a knight, you’re probably out here for a reason and I don’t want to get in the way of that”

“Not to worry, my duties have been fulfilled for today, so taking you to Mondstadt wouldn’t be much trouble”

With a smile, you nodded and off your little group ventured.

The walk to the city wasn’t long, no, only 5 minutes at least, filled with friendly chit chatter between you, Amber and Paimon, your bison huffing for your attention like he usually loved to do when your focus shifted. The knight looked ecstatic when you offered her a ride some time, bouncing up and down excitedly then engulfing the beast in a hug.

You liked her attitude, her excitement. It reminded you of simpler times and on a more somber note, of Aether. He always was kinda like the sun, even when you two bickered like normal siblings did, he kept on that lightened aura that just kept you from staying mad at him, a smile surfacing on your face while he cheered in accomplishment, a small tease of ‘You know you love me!’ before you smacked him right around the head and your famous fist fights ensued, the ones you always won.

You missed your squabbles, you his light, you missed him, but you had to remind yourself that this was the start of your journey to finding your brother and you would be reunited one day.

The guards bowed when you finally entered the city, as did the seemingly grumpy blacksmith you passed, the flower girl, the adventure guild receptionist, the jeweller- everyone and you did the polite thing of bowing back.

“You’re attracting quite the crowd already!” Amber laughed, the many citizens watching your group with wide gazes “It’s only natural though, I’m sure Paimon’s already told you that Nun and Monks are regarded highly in the city of wind!”

“Yup! Paimon made sure it was the first thing she knew!” You were positive the spirit ignored your stink eye, “So, who do we speak with about missing person posters?”

“Well, it’s best to speak with Master Jean, if you come with me I’ll show you the way! Here, I’ll give you a little tour around too!”

“That sounds great!” You glanced back to Viator, who stood patiently beyond the gates and watched you with soft eyes. “Stay here, bud! I’ll come back soon- and with some hay!”

The great beast groaned, waddling off somewhere beyond the gate and leaving the three of you to wander deeper into the city.

With each step you took, you felt as though you were being watched with the familiar sensation of eyes pinpointed onto you, though, it seemed... unwelcoming, their stare burning holes into your form. For a moment you glanced around, Amber and Paimon too distracted with talking to notice your focus shift. It didn’t take long to find the perpetrator, a man with long red locks, a few yards away, glaring at you with arms crossed.

You noted to yourself to look for the man later.

“Hey, isn’t that Barbatos?” Gaze shifting once again, your look upon the grande statue before Mondstadt’s church, a figure akin to an angel with long robes, wings and hands out, cupped towards the sky “You know, Paimon remembers him wearing less clothes”

The knight shared a disturbed look with you.

You didn’t really need that mental image.

“The headquarters is right over here-”

There was an instant shift in the air.

The sky darkened with malicious grey clouds, hiding away the bright summer’s sun and replacing it with only a layer of doom, the wind picking up harsher undertones.

“The sky…”

There it was again.

The dragon from the Whispering Woods.

It raced towards the city, circling it’s borders ominously while growling a thunderous and threatening growl before erupting into a blood curdling screech, the noise bringing forth a miniature cyclone along with powerful tornadoes.

The people of the city screamed in fear, rushing around to escape the attack, parents crying for children, knights ordering for citizens to take cover, animals yowling out their own grievances, utter chaos reigned and you felt panic at the thought of Viator alone, waiting for you patiently where you left him.

“I have to go get Viator!” You were already sprinting back to the gates “I can’t leave him alone like this!”

Amber raced after you.

How had this happened so fast? And why when you had just arrived? What was going!? Only moments ago you were touring the city towards the Knights of Favonius headquarters and now this!

“Paimon thinks that the tornado is getting too close!” She was right, it was practically on your heels! “Hurry! Or we’ll get caught up!”

If only it had been that easy.

Amber had tried, you had seen her panic as you felt the pull of the powerful wind current begin to drag you closer, she had reached out, grabbing your staff with strength only adrenaline could cause, trying hard to keep you grounded but you could see it was for naught, as her feet slipped against the stone and the fear she would also get sucked in plagued you.

You made a rash, last minute decision.

“Get Viator!” Her eyes met yours “And take care of my staff!”

You let go and watched her horrified face as you were sucked into the winding wind.

It was terrifying, you had no idea what way was up and what way was down, left was right and right was left. Paimon was screaming, something you couldn’t hear in your throat crushing fear, curled into a ball and eyes shut tightly, hoping for it to end soon. If only you had your wings, if only Aether was here, if only...

“Ravaa” Your own whimpering could not be heard beyond the screaming of the wind, but you begged that the spirit still heard you. “Please, I’m scared”

A beat passed.

The wind still roared.

Another beat passed.

The screams of citizens still echoed through Mondstadt.

Then another.

And your eyes snapped open, glowing a brilliant white.

#genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #genshin impact imagines #genshin impact imagine #genshin impact paimon #genshin impact amber #traveler!reader

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the-magnificent-otaku-draws · 3 years

Text

On Our Own - The Hey Ho Whoa Car

Summary: Grace decides to finally come clean and let go

A/N: Might make a whole ask blog/AU out of this. What do you think?

Chapter: 1/?

Word Count: 2.8k

Warning: Slight gore (Accidental scratches/cuts via rocks)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That scream

She had only heard it once yet it was enough to make her blood run cold.

The girl quickly turned,eyes growing wide. All that time she spent trying to hide the truth,all the lies she had let slip to her dear friend,all the questions that bubbled in her mind the longer she spent protecting her,it was all for nothing.

On the rocky floor was a six year old girl,a shell on her back and beak on her face. Tears fell down her scaly cheeks,soft whimpers escaping her as she looked to the one person who had known all along with a fearful gaze.

Grace caught a glance of her friend,his jaw close to dropping to the floor. He quickly turned to her,his expression begging for some sort of answer. She could only guess what he was thinking,a rare panic written on every feature of his face.

"I...I can't believe it"

That was what she instinctively thought of the second she met his eyes. Lie again,just as she had been doing this whole trip. She could keep up the charade a bit longer,right?

....

Neither of them deserved that. They never did.

She let out a deep breath before walking to the child and crouching down to meet her terrified gaze. "Hey, Hazel, its okay"

"I-I'm sorry" Hazel sobbed,chest heaving with each shaky breath. "I-I didn't m-mean to"

"It's okay Hazel" Grace repeated for her sake. "Don't worry about it"

"But I promised to control it" She forced herself to say through sniffles.

"You couldn't help it," The woman said softly. "Its my fault for making you hold it for so long"

"Are...Are you mad at me?" Hazel asked,each possibly answer concocted by her mind scarier than the last.

"No,I'm not"

"You…You aren’t leaving me,are you?"

"Of course not" She opened her arms,a kind smile on her face. "You're still Hazel and that’s all that matters"

Tears turned to waterfalls,the girl throwing herself into the other's embrace. Grace held her close,a hand running through her messy blonde hair. The only remnant of her past form,still just as tangled and fluffy as before. A finger landed on the hard shell that rest on her back,smile falling.

"We just won't tell Simon”

Why did she ever think she could get away with this? It was only a matter of time before everything fell apart. Still,the possibility of what could have been was enough to keep her lips shut. The image of the baby faced girl hanging off the train's edge,fingers slipping off one by one until she vanished into the darkness below the bridge and into the deadly wheels...it was far more horrifying than any death she could have imagined for herself.

"Grace,what is this?"

She cringed at the familiar mix of confusion and anger. Hearing his tone she would normally play into their once shared fantasy,but this time was different. She couldn't afford to fall back now just for his sake.

She looked back to the boy,voice stern. "Simon,we...I've been hiding something"

"Obviously!" He motioned towards the child,a sneer on his face. "What the Hell is this?!"

The eldest woman grew wide eyed at the realization. “Of course,the turtles!” She ran a hand through her hair,memories flooding back to her like a broken dam. "It was just a stupid hankerchief"

She turned her attention back towards the child,Hazel quick to bury her face in Grace’s chest. Her eyebrows furrowed before she got to her knees to examine closer. In every other car her attempts led to nothing but failure,a turtle that could hold a conversation while on a long stroll at the most. It was no easy feat but it was all child's play compared to this,an almost entirely human being. “I’ve gotten closer than I could ever imagine”

“What are you talking about?!” Simon asked yet again,frustration dripping through his words.

“The child,she’s not a passenger. She's one of my failed attempts at making Alrick" Amelia explained,surprised by her own words. “She’s the anomaly I’ve been tracking”

“So...Hazel is a clone of your dead boyfriend?” In all her eighteen years Grace had seen many strange things but this...this was something even she couldn't imagine.

“No,not a clone” The woman clarified,arms crossed. “Something...Something else…”

"I'm Hazel!" The child cried through a cracked voice.

"Debatable" She thought for a moment,mind buzzing with a million thoughts and questions. There had to be some reason this little experiment took such a wildly different detour,so close to a want she had attempted to smother long ago. This time it wouldn't be for her own self interest,this time it would be for science or whatever justification she could come up with that didn't send her back to step one.

"I’ll take things from here on" She finally decided. "The girl will need to be quarantined before the pulse returns"

She reached out to grab a frail arm,Grace immediately turning to shield the trembling child. "I don't know why you think Hazel will make your boyfriend come back but I’m not letting you take her"

"I don't have time to argue with you" Amelia reached once more,the other jumping to her feet with Hazel in her arms.

"You are not taking her with you"

"If the pulse passes through any car with her inside it will be ejected" The woman said,agitated by her defiance. “If you take her every car you go through will have to be dismantled from the ground up!”

"I'm not letting you take her," Grace repeated, stepping back. “Make new cars or just-just ignore her like you did before!”

“I wasn’t ignoring her” Amelia snapped “ I didn’t even know she existed”

“Then keep ignoring her!” The girl yelled out,her hold on the child tight. “You’ve done it for six years and you only want her now when you think she’s useful?”

“I don’t need her for anything! She is a danger to this train and everyone on it!” Amelia shouted,hands curled into fists.

The feeling of tears on her shirt returned,Grace looking back down to Hazel. “Don’t listen to her Hazel”

"Grace,let her go"

The girl looked to Simon,eyebrows furrowed. "What?"

“Just leave her with the old woman,we’ll go around the outside and get home” He said,as if they weren't in the middle of a heated spat.

Her shoulders slumped,heart dropping to her stomach. “Simon…”

"It’s just a null," He said bluntly. "Why do you care about it so much?”

“Because…” What answer could she come up with to satisfy him? Nothing she could think of made sense,even to her.

A sudden realization hit,the boy pointing to Hazel. “That's why your number's going down "

She raised an eyebrow at the idea. "What are you talking about?"

"Think about it,your number has been going down ever since we met it" His tone grew more bitter with each word. "You've been changing ever since this whole mess started!"

"You know what..." She hesitated for a moment,mind clearing once she heard a soft whimper from her side. "Maybe I should change"

He tensed,anger morphing to confusion. "W...What?"

"Simon,she's still a kid," Grace said firmly. "She's just like any of the Apex. You would never wheel one of our kids because they did something you didn't like"

"She isn't one of our kids!" Simon shouted. "She's just some mistake made by the train,we don't need her and she doesn't need us!"

"We said she was part of the Apex,just like any of the other kids we rescued" She could still remember the excited smile that graced her face when the red,now meaningless, squiggle was drawn across the bridge of her nose. She had done it a thousand times before with pride yet now the memory left a sour taste in her mouth.

"That was before I found out she was like this!"

"So you lied to her"

The boy froze,breathing coming to a halt. No...N-No,he wasn't a liar. He told Hazel - no - the null, everything when they first met. She was going to be part of the Apex as long as she was brave and the human Hazel was brave in her own way. That was the one reason he kept pushing and pushing for them to hurry up this seemingly never ending journey,to get them all to the Apex. But they wheeled nulls and Hazel was a null but he promised she would join their little group. No,no,none of this made any sense. His mind kept running in endless circles,looking for something that proved her wrong. He would take something, ANYTHING, just please don't make everything he lived through in all his ten years on this stupid train mean nothing.

An annoyed sigh finally broke the silence. "I'm tired of this,I'm taking the child and that is final"

"I...I'm not going with you"

Amelia looked to Hazel with disdain. "Don't be difficult,this is for the good of the passengers"

"I'm not going with you!" Hazel cried,tears now frustrated as she clung to Grace.

"Simon,do something!" The girl begged,the other trying to catch his breath. Imagined claws tore at his lungs and through his insides,mind clouded with so many questions he was too terrified to answer.

"You have until I count to three"

Grace looked to Amelia,her expression enough to send a shiver down her spine.

"One..."

Hazel attempted to calm herself,breathing harshly into Grace's shoulder. Relax,Grace would protect her,she promised and she wouldn't break her promises anymore...right?

"Two..."

Grace's eyes darted back to Simon,the boy's stance unstable as his fingers dug into his arms. The straps of his grappling pack hung off his shoulders, only his elbows keeping them from hitting the ground. Did she truly have to do this? After so long and so many past promises...

"Three"

She bit her lip,eyes shut tight as she dashed towards the woman. She ducked under her arm,hair barely missing the grip of her callused hands. A field of green pushed her forwards,the girl bouncing off and onto a heavy weight as they both skid across the ground.

The thump of his bag echoed through the car, Simon taking the full force as the cloth of his hoodie ripped at the shoulder.

Heavy pants escaped her,a tight grip on her sleeve keeping her conscious. "Y...You okay?"

Hazel nodded,catching a glimpse of the bag. She attempted to stand,a rough hand grabbing her arm as she let out a shriek.

"Simon!" Grace grabbed his own arm,free hand attempting to pry his fingers off the other's wrist.

"Just let her go!" He demanded between grunts.

"You don't have to do this!" She shouted over him. "I-I'll tell you everything!"

"LIAR!"

A sharp beak clamped around his wrist,the boy letting out a scream. With contempt he reached for her face,Grace quick to knee his stomach. All air was knocked from his lungs,the boy folding over to clutch the soon to be torso sized bruise.

The girl scrambled to her feet,grabbing Hazel before making a mad dash to the bag. Its straps were hastily thrown over her shoulder,hands fumbling to find a good grasp on the dirtied rod.

"GET BACK HERE!"

Shit,no time to overcomplicate something like this. She looked over to Hazel,grip on her near deathly. "Hang on tight"

With no thought she took her finger off the small button,watching nervously as the hook flew towards the other side of the cavern.

The elder grew closer by the second,Grace giving her one last fearful glance before running off of the cliff's edge and into the pit below.

The first thing she felt was the wind in her face,body pushing past the whooping stones that fell from the car's roof. The occasional rock scratched her skin,the girl only able to wince as each edge dug deeper and deeper into her arms. Yet the entire time she heard the screams of the two she had left behind,one of anger and another close to a sob. No,forget Simon,he made his choice. Still,that cry...she had only heard it once before yet it still managed to drown her in guilt.

"Grace!"

A panicked voice yanked her from her thoughts,a gasp escaping her as she roughly landed onto the cavern's side. Knees aching she climbed up the hook's rope,finally collapsing onto the ground.

"Grace...are you...?"

"I...I'm okay" She said through tired pants. She looked back to the girl,fighting back the urge to give into the fatigue that wracked her body. "W...What about you?"

"I'm okay," Hazel answered.

"Good..."

"Um..." She pulled her knees to her chest,looking away in shame. "I'm sorry I bit Simon"

Grace let out a soft chuckle. "I can't believe you actually did that"

"I'm sorry..."

"It's fine Hazel" She reassured her. "You were pretty brave"

"But Tuba said we don't bite"

Grace froze,slowly turning her attention back to her hand. Her gaze trailed from her palm,down her number ridden knuckles and dressing her arm until it finally stopped at her elbow. Two numbers had disappeared. It wasn't much yet looking at it,she couldn't help the melancholy that creeped upon her back. "You're right...but...this is an exception"

Hazel reluctantly looked up,the other two barely visible from a distance. All she could see were their blurring silhouettes,one pacing as obscenities were spit from her mouth while another lay limp by the edge. "Is he dead?"

"No..." The Simon she knew could and had taken much worse.

"So...what now?"

The girl thought for a moment,trying to process all that had happened in just a few short seconds. It seemed almost like a dream,the only thing disproving that being the still bleeding wounds on her limbs. Not enough to kill her but enough to leave behind a slight sting. "I don't know"

Hazel looked to her own hand,number barely visible under her green scales. She couldn’t help the growing guilt that clung to her back. Did Tuba know? If so,why didn’t she tell her? If not...if they were somehow ever meet again,would Tuba still want her?

The sound of a far off clunk caught her attention,prying her away from her old thoughts and to the two on the other side. Her eyes grew wide,immediately jumping to shake the other awake. "Grace! Wake up!"

She let out a sigh,sitting up on her elbows. "What is it?"

The noise grew louder before she could answer,Grace turning to find its source. Her pulse quickened,fatigue quickly turning to horror.

A few feet away were the two,Amelia and Simon,some sort of contraption now being used as a makeshift bridge.

"No..." She sat up,body shaking violently. "No,no,no,no,no!"

A small hand grasped at her arm,struggling to pull her up. Grace took hold of the other's hand,coming to her feet. Or at least attempting to. An agonizing pain rocked through her body,each wound feeling as if it was being split open. She let out a pained hiss,falling back onto the red wood.

Heavy pants escaped her,the girl struggling to look up. Though blurry vision she could see the child having pulled away. Hazel took a defensive stance,rocks in her arms as she aimed for the two. With frustrated grunts she threw them as far as her tiny body could,each hit barely making a dent.

"H-Hazel,stop"

"They're gonna get us!" She reached into her pile,hoping that at least one rock could leave a dent or buy the other some time to heal.

A dizzy gaze drifted past the door frame and into the small space between them and the next car over. From the crack she could see the rail rumble,a strip of white light inching across the other car's roof. It looked like...

'A pulse'

An idea came to mind,one that seemed crazy even to her. Still,it was either that or be forever torn from the child she swore to protect.

Grace pressed a hand on her last open wound,hoping the pressure was enough to stop the bleeding. "Hazel,can you give me a hand?"

Hazel gave her a nod before setting down her remaining ammunition. With a hard shove she opened the door,the elder stumbling through the exit. She could do this,just think of what could happen if she messed this all up.

With a deep breath she pulled the child up and into her arms,the sound of footprints growing close making her brow sweat. The bridge began to shake,the girl stepping back and watching it split down the middle. This was insane,even for the leader of the Apex. One wrong move,just one slip up and they would both be dead. Still,the single glimmer of hope was enough to push her no matter how foolish it all seemed.

She began to run,adrenaline drowning out the shocks of pain in her arms and leg. Dirtied tiles of the bridge began to flip towards them,the car disconnecting from the other and rolling itself into the air. Holding the child close she jumped,hand keeping the other's head pressed against her shoulder. Time seemed to slow,the only sound she could hear being her racing heart. The grip on her body tightened,tiny fingers digging into her sides for dear life.

"I'll leave when I want null!"

If the Grace that could say something so cruel with only minor regrets saw this she would be outraged. Disgusted at how weak she was,angry at how easily she had destroyed the life she had made of this train and enraged that she had abandoned her one true friend. But if that was the Grace she could have become just to keep people by her side,a Grace that put others down for her own satisfaction,that was the Grace she wanted dead.

It was then she felt something unexpected. Something that made her finally open her eyes. The dark green floors that lead into one of the train's many cars. She was here. She made it. She was alive. No,they were alive.

She wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry,the excited rush running through her every bone. She did know one thing,the realization bringing a smile to her face.

"Are...Are we okay?"

Grace let out a happy sigh,holding her close. "We're okay Hazel,we're okay"

"GRACE!"

Well...almost okay.

She turned to see the train car thousands of feet above her. A body rushed to the edge meeting her gaze for a split second. It slowly stepped back before running towards the edge,attempting to copy her daring escape. Only a tight grip kept him from the leap of faith,a hand grabbing his already scuffed up hood. A woman yanked him to her side,surely scolding him for even thinking someone could succeed at something so dangerous twice.

The boy pulled away,falling to his knees as he leaned over the edge. Even from far away she could see his face bright red,never ending globby tears falling from his down his cheeks until they landed on his fists. His eyes were filled with so many emotions,pain,anger,sadness,yet only one seemed to smother them all under its cloak. Agony. Pure,unfiltered agony.

He reached out for her,thousands of feet apart as he held back sobs through grit teeth. Guilt tugged at her heart,a part of her wanting to use the janky pack one last time. She instead raised her arm,giving him a weak wave.

Brown eyes grew wide,the clanging of the gears below meaning only one thing. He let out one last strangled scream,words barely breaking through his cries it faded off with the car.

"GRAAAAAAAAAACE!"

In a flash they were gone,the train still chugging on without them.

The girl slowly turned,opening the door in silence. Tired eyes looked around,catching sight of dotted paper folded into what resembled a tree. She made her way to it before setting down the child in her arms. She let herself collapse against the trunk,purple slips of paper falling off and to the ground. A heavy sigh escaped her,eyes focused on the sky. It was a mix of warm reds and oranges,the gold of the origami sun peaking through the swirls of dawn. If she squinted hard enough she could pretend it was yet another comforting sunset from her old home off the train. Few things in the train made her want to return to such an awful place,yet she couldn't help but wonder if the sunsets that now only her family could see looked the same. 'Simon would have liked this'

She turned,expecting to find her friend staring off into the distance with a rare calm smile on his face. Instead she was greeted by Hazel looking to her with a nervous expression.

"Grace?"

"Yeah?"

"Your sleeve ripped off"

She looked to her shoulder,the orange sleeve ripped off leaving only thin strings behind. "Oh...I didn't notice"

"And your arms..."

Her eyes drifted towards her arm,a scar running from her shoulder,down the limb and leaking through the last row of numbers. The last digit was left flickering like a broken light,the girl pressing a thumb on it as if to keep it still. She let out a pained hiss,holding her arm out to avoid any more injuries.

The sound of ripping caught her attention,Grace finding Hazel tugging at a stray strip that hung from the paper tree's branch. Before she could question her the strip snapped,the child then handing it to her. "Here,it's so you don't bleed to death and die"

"Right" She took the strip from her tiny hands,starting from her elbow with a tired grin. "What would I do without you?"

"You'd be with Simon"

Grace stopped,eyes full of worry as she looked to the child. She clutched the hem of her sweater vest,shifting from heel to heel. "You...You can go back if you want to"

"Hazel..."

"It's okay" She lied. "I-I can take care of myself. You can look for him and I'll go to the Apex. I promise I'll be safe and find it fast"

The Apex. In this whole mess she had nearly forgotten about the rag tag group of children no older than sixteen at most. She glanced to her number,then to the child. In her eyes she was the same Hazel she had known since the jungle car,but to Simon with just one word she became an enemy. All it took was one moment to change everything. "Hazel...we can't go back to the Apex now"

"But what about the other kids?"

"Simon...Me and Simon taught them a lot of bad things" She finally admitted. "If we go there now..." In all truth she didn't know what would happen,children were unpredictable after all. What she did know was that if they went now,their second leader gone with a denizen in his place,it would end badly for both of them.

Hazel thought for a moment,returning to her seat by her side. She looked back to Grace,eyes focused on the few numbers she could see peeking out from her makeshift bandage. She did the same,her own number a dull grey. Permanent and unchanging. Even in the few similarities they had there was always something keeping her miles away from being one as close to her as she was before. Back when she thought she was human. "Do you miss Simon?"

The girl traced the top row of her numbers with a thumb,imaging the other's sure to have grown exponentially by the time they met again. Was there even a chance of them meeting again on a train that seemed to go on for infinity? "I don't know yet"

"Its okay if you want to cry"

She looked to the child,eyebrows furrowed. "What?"

Hazel pulled her knees to her chest,chin rested on them. "Simon was bad...really bad"

"That's a nice way to put it" In all honesty she expected a lot more animosity on her end. If she had to describe someone that killed her mother and hated her very existence something as simple as 'bad' would be the farthest word from her mind.

"But he was still your friend," Hazel reminded her. "Even when he was bad you wanted him to come with you"

"I..."

She could still feel her feet planted to the rocky ground,close to frustrated tears as he stood what felt like miles away. 'JUST ANSWER ME!' Was what she wanted to scream or better yet just grab him by the hood and swing across the pit and onto the other side. They probably could have settled the whole denizen issue if they just had a moment to talk,right? Surely he could understand what she did if he just took the time to listen. But then again,if it wasn't what he wanted to hear,would he listen at all? "I guess I did..."

"Simon was like your Tuba"

Grace froze at the sentiment. Tuba was someone so kind,so motherly,so generous, and Simon was so...well,he was a lot of things. Stubborn,clueless at times and yet far too blunt at others but at the same time he wasn't all bad. He wrote fantasy novels that were nothing short of comedic in their sincerity but she dare not ruin his dreams. He spent his heart and soul on miniatures and creating worlds he could never see out of junk collected from their many raids and he always found some excuse to be by her side at every other free moment. He was a dork plain and simple but a dork she had spent her most of her life on this train with.

Her eyes widened at the realization. Ten years. Ten years of spending cold nights on the train together,ten years of doing the dumbest things to get a laugh out of the other,ten years of being each other's shoulder to cry on each time they thought of their life before the train,and ten years sure that they would spend the rest of their lives on this stupid train together.

Tears pricked at the corner of their eyes,the girl quick to wipe them away. No,don't think about the past. It'll hurt less if you just ignore it and move on. Just move on from their mess and onto the next car as they had done before.

A pair of small arms wrapped around her waist,a now beakless face pressed against her side. Tears slowly fell down her cheeks,soaking the paper leaves that had collected around the two. For the first time in what felt like years she sobbed,cries loud and pained. She could already imagine her mother hovering over her,scolding her for grieving with no grace. "You're embarrassing yourself" 'You're embarrassing me' is what she truly meant,at least that's what she assumed for so long. Yet this time she didn't feel the shame that had once been forced upon her. Instead a new feeling slowly began to fill her.

Relief

Relieved to have escaped what was sure to be Hell if she hadn't taken Hazel in her arms and away from the remaining two passengers,relieved to be free from the shackles of holding so many secrets,and relieved that she could finally start over. No more Grace Monroe,leader of the Apex who tormented denizens for their own amusement. Now she was a new Grace,not one entirely figured out but one she was willing to find. She would figure out how to rescue the remaining children later,for now she lay in the origami car watching the sky turn to a gorgeous dark blue with sparkling paper stars.

"Grace?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you okay?"

A soft smile returned to her face,a gentle hand resting on the other's head. "Yeah,I'm okay"

"You're being honest,right?"

She let out a weak chuckle. "Yeah,no more lying"

"Okay...but what are we gonna do now?"

Grace thought for a moment,looking to the sky. "I don't know...but we'll find out together"

Hazel nodded in agreement before letting out a yawn.

"You tired?"

Another nod from the young girl.

"You can take a nap,you deserve a break" She released her from her hold,Hazel immediately flopping onto her lap. She couldn't help but let out a soft chuckle.

Hazel hesitated for a moment before looking to her. "Are you gonna be gone when I wake up?"

"Of course not" Grace assured her. "I'm not leaving you,ever"

Hazel hummed before turning back to rest on her thigh. Eyes shut tight she slowly drifted off until she was fast asleep.

Grace let out a sigh,her own eyes close to drooping shut. Where to next? The question lingered in her mind,not an answer in sight. Maybe they could focus on her number,try to get it to glow and drop to zero so they could both escape this nightmare. Or maybe she could reform the Apex,make it better and tell each and every child the truth or maybe...maybe she just needed to get some sleep.

Head leaning back against the trunk she finally shut her eyes,each muscle slowly relaxing until she placed a protective arm over the sleeping child. Before she could fall asleep a soft song fell past her lips,ease settling over the two once they both sat fast asleep under the origami tree.

"Don't be a worry baby

No need to hurry, baby

When you're with me"

#infinity train #infinity train au #it #infinity train grace #grace infinity train #grace monroe #grace it #infinity train hazel #hazel infinity train #it hazel #simon infinity train #simon laurent #simon it #infinity train simon #fanfic

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samshogwarts · 3 years

Text

The Reunion

Ok guys ... I do. I publish a fan fiction of myself. And it's even a shipping story between Samantha and Charlie.

To be honest, I thought for a long, really long time whether I should do that. On the one hand because I think that I am not particularly talented when it comes to writing and on the other hand because I want to be careful with the subject itself.

I know Charlie's sexuality is sometimes a sensitive issue and there are also a lot of people who ship their MC with Charlie. Therefore, I would like to make it clear again that I do not see my shipping as the ultimate and, for example, like to read stories from other shippers myself. This is also how I understand when people say that Charlie is Asexual or Aromantic. Everyone can decide for themselves.

Well, since it's my first fanfiction, I'm really looking forward to your opinion and I hope you like it! So here we go.

(oh and before I forget: thank you @annabelle-tanaka-official and @mollydarling-hphm to encourage me to post it!!! 💙❤️💚💛 You are great)

The reunion light

Almost 7 years have passed since the Khana Circle graduated and went their own way. It's been that long since Charlie Weasley and Samantha O’Connell split up. At this time they promised to remain best friends. But the reality was different. The two never spoke a word to each other again. Since then, Samantha has never visited the Weasley family again too. It reminded her too much of the man she actually loves. And now the wizarding world was about to throw itself into another wizarding war. Two Years ago the Ministry finally realized that the Dark Lord Voldemort had returned. Harry Potter, his friends and members of the Order of the Phoenix fought against him. And last year Death Eaters broke into Hogwarts and killed Albus Dumbledore. And despite the difficult time, or rather because of it, Samantha was all the more surprised when she got the invitation from Bill Weasley. Bill is getting married! Samantha heard that Bill found someone and that made her very happy for him. He deserves it.

Arthur Weasley spoke to Samantha at the Ministry and Samantha promised to show up a few days in advance at the Burrow to help with the preparations. And so it was. Samantha arrived at the Burrow and met Ron Weasley's friends. Samantha had known the entire Weasley family for years and Ron was like a little brother to her. He proudly introduced his friends Hermione Granger and the legendary Harry Potter. Samantha liked them both, and it wasn't even a day before she noticed that Hermione was making certain preparations that had nothing to do with the wedding. Samantha only knew fragments of what was going on, as Tonks had told her a lot. Maybe it would have been her job to prevent the three of them from doing whatever they were up to, but Samantha felt she had to do the opposite. So she gave Hermione hints during the days that she would help her. Indeed, Hermione took advantage of her help.

Now it was only one day before the wedding. Meanwhile, Samantha got along well with Fleur Delacour, Bill's fiancé. She and Tonks even talked Samantha into going out and buying a beautiful dress with the wedding. Samantha was standing in the kitchen with Molly helping her prepare food for the wedding. Bill stood in the doorway and watched the two of them: "Does it just seem like that to me, or have you learned to cook better?" "Haha very funny. But yeah you are right. Dad found some old cookbooks from Mum. " “Samantha, darling. Bill is right. You really learned something. " Samantha smiled wryly. "There is nothing that she cannot learn." Samantha stopped instantly in position. It wasn't the voice of Bill or Molly or anyone from the Burrow. While Samantha turned around, she heard Molly: “CHARLIE! Sweetheart, you're finally here! " Molly hugged her second oldest son and he returned the greeting with a hug. There he was - Charlie Weasley. Samantha had completely forgotten that he was going to be Bill's best man. The last time she had seen him 7 years ago. His skin was tanned from the sun in Romania. Working with the dragons made his arms and body more muscular, his long hair was tied in a ponytail and he wore a three-day beard. Samantha swallowed imperceptibly. God he looked good!

Charlie and Samantha's eyes met briefly and immediately both looked in a different direction. Bill greeted his younger brother right after Molly and then patted him on the shoulder: “I'll bring your things to the room. After all, you've had a long journey behind you! " With one look at Samantha, Bill walked out of the kitchen: "Damn Bill." Samantha thought to herself and turned back to deal with the cake batter. “Charlie, darling. If you want you can rest in the living room. " “Thank you, but actually I would really like to move. I had to sit the whole trip. Where are the others? Maybe I can help build it up? " “Oh, they left some time ago and will probably be finished soon. Wash your hands and help me and Samantha help with meal preparation. " Damn Molly! Samantha began to knead the dough faster than she heard footsteps beside her.

Charlie stood next to Samantha without saying anything. What an absurd situation! But Samantha tried to concentrate on the dough: "Will you give me the spoon, please?" After 7 years of silence and so their first conversation began. "Yes of course." The eyes of the two met and this time they don't look away immediately. Samantha looked into Charlie's eyes and she immediately felt like she was sinking. Charlie looked at her too. What was going on in his head at that moment? Samantha had no idea. And so they set about preparing the meal. Molly asked Charlie about his work in Romania and Samantha listened in silence. Occasionally she couldn't help but also asked questions: "And you really tried to solder horn from the Romanian longhorn on?" "But the wing of the Norwegian spiked hump has healed again, right?" That was something Samantha had so much in common with Charlie. Their mutual love for dragons. After a while the two were even able to talk to each other normally and so the day passed.

The next day the time had come. The day of the wedding had come and if nothing has always been chaotic in the Burrow, that was definitely the case today! The whole family and all friends and guests whirled around and Samantha couldn't escape it either. Ultimately, however, she fell into the clutches of Tonks and Elaiza. The two had set it in their heads to fix Samantha's look for the Day. Charlie seemed to feel the same way with his mother. He's always wanted his hair to grow as long as Bill's, but Molly decided to cut it radically short. In the late afternoon the time had come and the celebrations began in the Weasley's garden. Everything was festively decorated and music could be heard through the whole tent. Everyone laughed and danced and it was almost as if the horror in the world did not exist for a while.

Samantha sat at a table and watched the people while she sipped a glass of wine. She had just danced with Fred and George. She was lucky that the two jokers finally gave her a break. Charlie sat down next to her: "Do you have a Glass for me too?" With a smile, Samantha pushed her glass over to Charlie's. Imperceptibly, she bit her lip lightly. God, that man in the suit looked so good! Samantha quickly tried to think of something else: “Nice party, right? It seems almost surreal when you consider what is currently happening. " Charlie leaned forward and leaned against the table: "You're right. Bill said that's why they should be celebrated. By the way ... do you want ... to dance? " Charlie looked back and forth between Samantha and the dance floor: “You? And dance? Voluntary?" Samantha crossed her arms and smiled wryly. Charlie was really what you would call a dance grouch: ”Well. I don't know when the last time my head was so light. Maybe I just want to take advantage of that. " Charlie turned his head back and forth to show his head of hair: “And with you I at least know that you can do it. So you will have to take the lead. But don't expect me to do this turn-around thing! " Samantha had to laugh: “Haha. OK. You got me. Fine Let us dance." Charlie and Samantha smiled at each other, got up and went to the dance floor. What they didn't know was that their friends were watching them.

Arriving on the dance floor, the two stood there and looked shyly at each other. There was one thing the two of them hadn't considered. Samantha put her hand on his shoulder and Charlie put his hand on her waist. Samantha held her breath and her heart was beating so wildly that she thought Charlie must hear it. But then the two began to move and dance to the music. It was a strange feeling. Suddenly everything around them seemed to disappear and Samantha looked Charlie in the eye and he looked into hers. He too seemed to be holding his breath too: "It was 7 years ago, wasn't it?" "Yes ..." "Time goes by really fast." "Yes…." Charlie didn't know what he was talking about at this point: “Listen, Sam ... If you don't want to talk, that's okay. I mean .. ” “I know what you want to say. But that's not it. It's complicated and, to be honest, I don't know what to think myself. " Charlie lifted his head briefly and looked into the distance with a crooked smile: "Yeah, it's definitely not easy to dance with the guy you dumped years ago." Samantha paused. What is that bitter undertone in his voice? And even if he did, what did he say? “I dumped you? Charlie, you were the one who went to Romania without asking. You didn't hesitate for a second." Now Charlie stopped and looked at Samantha confused: “Sam. I got an offer for my dream job. I thought if someone understands then you… ”

Samantha shook her head:“ Of course I understood. Do you really think that's what this was about? Never, really never could I stand between you and your dream. But do you think I would have followed you and sat at home all day? Do you think I would let you carry the burden alone? I wanted to do an apprenticeship here in England and then I would have followed you to the end of the world!" Now Charlie seemed to lose all color in his face and Samantha could hear his heart beating. Hers too seemed to be pounding wildly on her chest. What was it that made her bring up all of this now? Even if so, Charlie must have been over their relationship for years. But why did it seem to excite him? He took a deep breath and put his hand on Samantha's shoulder: "Does that mean ...that you never wanted to break up?" The words struck Samantha like a knife in her heart. He thought she wanted to end the relationship then? But instead of an answer, Samantha managed just a slow shake of her head. All these years she thought he didn't want a relationship with her anymore. Charlie seemed to shake inwardly and his hand on Samantha's shoulder was trembling: "And what about ..." But before Charlie could finish the sentence, a white and blue ball of light shot through the tent roof and turned into a lux. It was the Patronus of Kingsley Shacklebolt. The whole tent fell silent and Kingsley's voice rang out:" The minister is dead. The ministry has fallen ... they're coming!" And with a soft hiss the Patronus disappeared. Instantly panic broke out among the guests. The first disappeared or ran wild. But there wasn't much time. Samantha and Charlie looked at each other briefly and in the next moment black clouds of smoke appeared in the tent and red flares flew through the area. The Death Eaters were there!

Samantha and Charlie just managed to avoid a curse by jumping backwards. Well, then it might be time to stress out a bit. Samantha's face turned rock hard and her eyes red as fire. Over the years she had learned to use and control her vampire skills. Immediately she heard the heartbeat and the flowing blood of everyone in the tent. She counted 18, no 20 opponents. But all just ordinary magicians. One was standing right behind her, raising his wand. But before he could even begin to cast a curse, Samantha turned and gave her opponent a targeted kick in the head. The Death Eater fell to the ground, unconscious. Very few wizards expected the enemy to attack physically in combat. And that's what Samantha had gotten really good at over the years. Still, she wanted to get her wand. It was lying in her handbag on the table where she was drinking wine with Charlie a few moments ago. Arrived at the table, Samantha could barely avoid an explosion spell and returned the attack by hitting the opponent with a chair. Using the table as cover, Samantha tried to get an overview of the situation. For a brief moment she saw Ron standing with Hermione and Harry Potter in disguise. Hermione and Samantha's eyes met briefly and Samantha nodded to her. With a fixed look Hermione returned the look and in the next moment all 3 had disappeared. There was no time to breathe, because Samantha had to avoid the next curses and Samantha saw Charlie running towards her. She ran towards him out of instinct, even if she didn't know what he was up to: "HOLD ON!" he just called and Samantha understood: "Charlie no wait!" Too late, Charlie had already wrapped his arms around her and disappeared with her to another place. The many lights blurred and it got darker, colder ... and wetter.

The two appeared on a street. By now it was getting late and dark and where Charlie had brought them it was pouring rain. Samantha didn't have to look around. She recognized the counter immediately. They were 2 blocks from her home in Ireland. “What are you doing there Charlie? We have to go back and help the others!" Still with red vampire eyes she gave Charlie an angry look. But without saying a word, Charlie took Samantha's hand and pulled her down the streets, "Charlie!" But he just stopped in front of Samantha's front door, turned around and took her handbag to look for the key while he said: “Listen. I think you are now so strong that you could have taken on the enemies alone. But if what Kingsley said is true, then you-know-who will hear of that and will send more. And if they don't defeat you, they will look for ways to weaken you. " Samantha exhaled heavily: "And then they will start to attack my friends and everyone close to me." Samantha looked at the floor with sagging shoulders. Her eyes returned to the color of the emerald green. She felt stupid because she couldn't think of it immediately. But when it came to her loved ones, Samantha quickly lost her strategic thinking.

Charlie finally found the key and opened the door. Both entered and were already soaking wet from the rain. Charlie locked the door behind him and turned to Samantha: “Believe me ... I feel the same way. It ... it's my family after all. " Samantha looked into Charlie's eyes and could see his struggle inside. Then why did he stay here with her when he would rather be with his family? "Charlie ... if you'd rather go ... I mean, I'm safe here .." "No. I don't think either of us should be alone now. And I don't think they're hurting my family ... I mean, I think Ron and the others escaped. I ... at least I haven't seen her anymore and ... ” “Charlie. Ron and his friends escaped. I saw them disappear. And this Hermione ... I know she was prepared. She asked me to give her some books and potions." Samantha gently put her hand on Charlie's face: “And I gave it to her. And taught her a few protection spells. " Charlie's face seemed to relax a bit and he looked directly at Samantha: "Thank you." And so the two stopped. Charlie put his hand on Samantha's and began to stroke it lightly with his thumb. How good his skin felt on hers. Like an animal blinded by the light, Samantha could not escape it and seemed to forget everything around her. But a raindrop that ran down her neck brought her back and she also withdrew her hand: “I'll go get us towels. It’s enough that a war might break out soon. We don't have to catch a cold then. Charlie agreed with a smile and Samantha went to the guest bathroom.

No! She was not allowed to. She mustn't give in to her feelings. Secretly she was a ghost agent and she was forbidden to have feelings for a wizard! It was only putting Charlie in danger. Samantha came back with two towels in her arms. Charlie had now taken off his shoes and socks and Samantha threw the towel at him: “As soon as we're halfway dry, I'll get something else to wear. I should have some of Jack's clothes upstairs. " “Was your brother here? Your father allows him to enter the house? " Surprised and with a smile, Charlie looked at Samantha while he dried his head: "Gritting his teeth, yes. Jack was even allowed to stay a couple of times. We have been working on our relationship for the past few years. I think you can say that we made up again."

After the two of them dried themselves off and Samantha looked for new clothes for them, both changed (Samantha in her bedroom and Charlie in the bathroom). In the living room, Charlie made a fire in the fireplace and Samantha brought tea. They sat down next to each other on the sofa, but avoided eye contact. There they were now. Two grown people who acted like teenagers and didn't know what to say. Samantha sipped her tea nervously. Charlie was the first to find the courage to speak: “Listen, Sam. Because of the thing from before ... You mean you never wanted to end our relationship. And ... I didn't want that either. Then why did we do that?" With this question Charlie turned to Samantha and seemed to fix her with his gaze. "Honestly, I do not know. All these years I thought you didn't want me with you in Romania. That it would be too much for you." “And I thought all these years that it was getting too much for you. That you didn't want to be with me anymore But that wasn't true." Without realizing it, both turned to each other and looked directly at each other. Samantha's heart seemed to almost explode, almost aching in her chest. She hoped Charlie wouldn't complete his question from before, but it was as if he could read her mind:"How do you feel about me today?" Samantha took a deep breath and held it. That seemed like enough of an answer to Charlie. With his fingertips he first gently stroked her cheek, over her neck and finally he ran his fingers into her hair. God how good that felt. Their faces got closer and closer and when Charlie's fingers started to play with her hair, Samantha closed her eyes.

The next thing she felt Charlie's lips on her own. His warm and soft lips hugged hers tightly and Samantha kissed him back. She put her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to her. Charlie accepted this invitation immediately, put his free hand around her waist and pulled Samantha even closer. While Samantha ran her fingers through his hair and stroked his neck, Charlie briefly broke away from the kiss by a few millimeters. Samantha could feel his breath on her lips. Both opened their eyes briefly and all Samantha could see were Charlie's beautiful eyes. Eyes in which a fire burned as she had never seen it in any other person. Eyes so full of passion for life. Eyes that belonged to the man Samantha loved dearly. She could never stop loving him. Quietly, barely audible, Charlie breathed: "Sam ..." Then he kissed her again. More passionate, stronger and also wilder. However, as Charlie pronounced her name, it set off 1,000 fireworks in Samantha. Her whole body shook and tingled like she had never seen it before. Slowly her tongue penetrated his mouth and Charlie returned the game with his. With his left hand he held her head and buried his fingers more and more in her hair, which slowly opened further, with his right hand he ran along her back. She, however, continued to stroke his hair and with the other hand she stroked his chest. She could feel his muscles and his heartbeat under his shirt and she cursed every inch that was between them.

Through the movement Samantha's shirt had slipped a little and when Charlie ran his hand along her back, he ran it over her shirt and his hand now touched her bare skin. Now Samantha's mind is completely lost and this must also have triggered something for Charlie. They both paused for a moment and loosened their tongues. They both looked at each other again, but this time it was harder to breathe. Samantha lightly brushed Charlie's lips and cheek with one finger. The fireworks in her body just didn't stop. Charlie pulled his hand out of her hair. Her hairstyle was now completely messed up and her hair was hanging loose. Charlie took hers with his free hand and kissed first the fingers and then the inside. Samantha caught her breath. Then he ran his hand down the other side of her body until he was under her shirt with both hands. Again both paused briefly in their movement and looked at each other. There would be no step back now.

Shortly afterwards both of them gave themselves up completely and seemed to forget everything around them. For a brief moment there was no return of the Dark Lord, no wedding that was blown up, no 7 years of solitude. No matter what was happening in the world, it was only important for them that they still loved each other and that they had finally realized their mistake from back then. They would never repeat this mistake. From now on the two belonged together. And they prove it to themselves. In the end, both of them were still wrapped in a blanket on the sofa. Charlie was lying on top of Samantha and playing with her hair.

After a few seconds Samantha began to scratch Charlie's back until he finally lifted his head slightly to look at her. His cheeks were fiery red, and Samantha must have looked the same. It was even cute to see him with those cheeks, his eyes bright with joy. "I never stopped ..." Samantha finally said. "Never stopped what?" Charlie asked curiously with a slight smile. "Loving You. Charlie Weasley, I never stopped loving you. And I don't think I will either…” Charlie stiffened for a moment and seemed to be holding his breath. So many emotions flickered briefly in his eyes that Samantha couldn't see them all. Did Charlie suddenly have tears in his eyes? With watery eyes he kissed Samantha gently but intensely and then said: “And I never stopped loving you. And I never will stop. From now on, we will never part again." A single tear landed on Samantha's cheek and mingled with her own. All the years of their separation have been pointless. No one had ever ceased to love the other. Neither of them ever wanted to part. It was all because of a misunderstanding! If only they had said earlier what they felt! But what has been seen is seen and Samantha's chest overflowed with happiness because she was finally reunited with Charlie. She had never felt more happiness in her life until then. Charlie gently ran his finger over Samantha's face.

"Hey, are you hungry?" “Mmh .. food sounds good. Come on, I'll do something in the kitchen. " They both got up, dressed and went into the kitchen. It was as if the two were in another world where there was no evil. Samantha made a couple of sandwiches for the two of them in the kitchen and while they ate they told each other what they'd been up to for the past few years. Charlie mainly talked about his work and the dragons. And the Quidditch championship from 3 years ago of course. He wasn't surprised to hear that Samantha was there too. After all, Ireland played. But they did not run into each other. As Samantha started talking it got more serious. She didn't want any secrets from Charlie, so she decided to tell him about the ghost agents. For a moment, Samantha thought Charlie was going to break into the Ministry and blow up her superiors, but he managed to calm himself down. They decided it was a long day and they should go to bed. However, Charlie insisted on wrapping and holding Samantha in bed like a burrito. Which Samantha found very cute.

The next morning they both woke up arm in arm and it was one of the few times that Samantha wasn't in a bad mood in the morning. They were having breakfast together when Samantha started to get back to reality. They couldn't hide forever in their dream world: “When the ministry has been taken over by you-know-who, they will start enforcing their regime. That means all non-purebloods will be persecuted ... and those ... like me. " Charlie's eyes hardened. Even if Samantha's mother's family was pure blood, there w as still her vampiric family:“ Ok. And where do we hide best? Here and with my family they will look first." “Not us Charlie. I." Immediately Charlie understood what Samantha was saying and he got angry: “Oh no Sam. It is out of the question. After 7 years I finally have you back. I won't let you disappear in the underground the next day and who knows how long won't see you again!"

“Charlie, now think about it. If we both go it will only be suspicious! Then they will know that you have something to do with me after last night. And in the worst case, it falls back on Bill and the others. We can't risk that." Samantha was absolutely right about what she said. And Charlie knew that. Still, he clenched a fist on the table and looked anything but satisfied. But to his surprise Samantha smiled: “Do you think something I have no plan? Did you know that there are a lot of crows in Romania?" “What does that have to do with it now? Oooohhhh…” Suddenly a light came on Charlie and he understood:“ But Sam, you are a registered Animagus. They will know that you can turn into a crow."

Samantha looked over her toast and raised her eyebrows:“ And you really think the dark lord and his arms will hunt all crows and ravens all over Europe? Just because of a runaway half-vampire?" “Who could potentially defeat half of all Death Eaters after what you told me yesterday. But well, point for you. And how does it continue?" Samantha and Charlie both folded their arms and Samantha took a deep breath:" I'm going to have to make preparations with my colleagues. I assume they will have similar plans. But I still have connections with witches and wizards which could be dangerous for them. I have to make the Death Eaters think I have no connection with the wizarding world. That's why it's so important to be seen in public without me for you. You have to tell people that I ran away yesterday evening." Charlie nodded briefly:“ That makes sense to me. And then? I will have to go back to Romania as soon as I know that my family is fine." "Yeah! That makes sense. Well and when you are back in Romania ... "

Samantha leaned forward slightly and smiled playfully at her boyfriend: "Then keep one of your windows open. They say that when a crow flies through a window, it brings good luck." Charlie leaned forward with a smile too and kissed Samantha. When it came off he bit her lip lightly: "I can hardly wait."

THE END!

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glacecakes · 3 years

Text

Alchemy Lullaby (17/17)

Of all the changes that came with living in the castle, becoming a father was not one he anticipated. When Eugene encounters a small child suffering like he did, he gives them the opportunity to grow up the way he never did… helping them both heal. (AU where Varian is 4 and gets adopted by Eugene)

Varian reunites with his real family. Fred gets dunked on. Eugene and Rapunzel surprise each other.

WE ARE AT THE END OH MY GOD ;-; sorry this took so long I have not been vibing but yknow. It be like that. First off, a big thanks to everyone who has helped me on this crazy journey. The scar and 7K server being my serotonin machine (if you wanna join dm me), AJ and Gues for helping me with ideas, and of course Finn, my partner in crime, the platonic love of my life, without who this crazy mess would probably not have been completed. And of course, all of you who have commented and kudos'd and bookmarked. This fic just passed Only as Strong in hits and that totally blows my mind.

I have so many lil baby ideas that were either too short to go here, or happen after AL, or didn't go with the story flow that I want to write! I'm debating whether to do it like VVO where they're all in one fic or just spam the varian tag. As always please leave a comment if you enjoyed this, thank you so much! If you have any specific requests for baby oneshots I'm always open!

Ok ok enough rambling

The moonstone clattered to the ground, dull and quiet like any other rock.

For a few moments, no one spoke. The only sound was Quirin’s heavy breathing, exhausted, as he slumped over Ulla’s slowly cooling body.

“Well…” Eugene finally breathed. “That was… something.” The adrenaline finally began to wear off, replacing a feral desire to protect with burns and shaky hands. In his arms Varian doesn’t stir, the soft breath against his arm the only sign he’s still alive.

“Understatement of the fucking century,” Cassandra groans. The decay incantation settled deep into their bones, making every movement painful. The only one unaffected was Rapunzel, protected by the golden pulse in her chest. She moves her hand to reveal a golden stone, similar to the moonstone.

“Millennium ago, a phenomenal event had divided an ancient power in two. The Sundrop and Moondrop fell to Earth; two elements waiting to be reunited…” She glanced up at Quirin, confusion written all over her face.

Slowly, shakily, she stood up and stumbled over. This was the one time she wanted shoes, what with the blood pooling at her toes. The man at her feet said nothing, simply staring down at the body with empty eyes. She heard whispers of soft footsteps behind her, indicating Eugene had followed with Varian in tow.

Quirin’s mind was a whirlwind, chattering faster than he’d ever spoken. What ifs, curses, screams, but despite all that…

He didn’t feel guilty. Not in the slightest.

Was that wrong of him? He just killed the mother of his child, the only woman he ever loved, and he felt nothing. Well, he felt relief. But regret, guilt, sorrow? None. Was this fatherly protection? His devotion to his king? Did he fall out of love? Maybe it was a mix of three. But then again, the woman he fell in love with and the woman he just killed were two wildly different people. Had she always been crazy and he’d just been blind, or did the moonstone corrupt her from its place in her womb?

It seems parenthood can change you for better or worse.

The princess kneeled down next to him and laid a hand on his shoulder. When he glanced up she smiled briefly, before glancing down at her breast. “Is this…?”

“The sundrop,” Quirin breathed, awe-stricken. “But how?” He glanced down at the woman (corpse) at his feet, and then over to Eugene and Varian.

With a grunt, Rapunzel ripped it free from her body. It hummed faintly, bathing her in a golden glow that illuminated her hair back to blonde. How magnificent and haunting all at once; the source of her power that caused so much pain to her family, that caused her kidnapping… that caused her to meet the love of her life.

It would be so easy to simply… reclaim it. To reabsorb its magic and regain the power to heal. But when she glanced around, at the destruction caused by its counterpart…

“The only way to destroy the moonstone.” She said with an air of finality, clutching it tightly in her fist. “Is to reunite it with its equal.” Quirin nodded in agreement. It was kind of amusing, that the destruction of a cosmic entity was merely an afterthought in this scenario.

Just tying up loose ends.

In another reality, maybe Rapunzel and Eugene and Varian would have sought the moonstone out. Maybe they would have debated whether or not to reunite the stones, unsure of the damage it would cause to Rapunzel.

But maybe someone else would have stolen it, harnessed it, and caused even more suffering untold. To her, to her friends, to her family…

A moan came from Eugene’s arms as Varian squirmed. His eyes remained shut, but he reached out a tiny hand for his dad to grasp. Internally, Eugene gave a massive sigh of relief. He’d been so worried that his son was gone, that he wouldn’t wake up without the moonstone. If that had been the case… god, he didn’t know what he’d do. Well, actually, Eugene knew exactly what he’d do (that being to reinsert the moonstone), but whether or not Quirin would let him is a whole other story.

“Bluebird? Can you hear me?” He whispered, gently shaking the boy. It was weird to see him without his signature hair stripe, almost as weird as long-haired-brunette Rapunzel.

“Daddy… m’ tired,” Varian whined, curling into a warm chest and breathing in familiar cologne. He sighed, content. He would’ve fallen back asleep if not for Eugene gently rustling him.

“Sorry bud, I need you to wake up for a little bit,” he whispered, biting back a smile. With an overdramatic groan, Varian opened his eyes. It was a familiar routine. Almost as if they were back home and he was just waking Varian up for the day. “How do you feel? Does anything hurt?”

“My throat...” he was cut off by a weak cough.

“Aw bud, I’m sorry, we’ll get you checked out at home, ok?” At Varian’s nod Eugene let out a massive sigh of relief. “I think Rapunzel needs you for a second.” He raised his eyes up to his girlfriend, who was now trailing a finger down Varian’s cheek.

With a small smile, she helped Varian out of his dad’s arms and placed him onto the ground by her side. “Would you like to help me get rid of the rocks?” She asked, and he bit his thumb while nodding shyly. His eyes had trailed over to Quirin and… Rapunzel was quick to move her hair in the way. He didn’t need to see that.

With a heavy, shaking hand, Quirin’s gloved hand reached out for the moonstone. He hesitated briefly, anxiously. What if it was absorbed by him? No, he couldn’t falter. He’d waited this long, salvation was within reach!

He grasped it tight. It didn’t react. Perhaps it knew the sundrop was close? Or maybe it knew Quirin didn’t want to use it? Regardless, he didn’t question it. Shaking, he stood up to his full height and ambled over to mother and son. He and Varian locked eyes for a moment. The boy’s eyes were troubled, clouded with hazy fear, confusion, but also… acceptance?

Quirin smiled. He held the stone out. “Would you like to do the honors, young man?” He whispered.

“Um. Yea, ok.” Varian said and took it into his tiny hands. He was so small, what was dwarfed in Quirin’s hands required both of Varian’s to hold. He looked up at Rapunzel, who’s own stone began to flare with power as it sensed its other half.

Eugene placed a hand on each of their shoulders. “Are we sure this is a good idea?”

“Nope!” Cassandra snorted at the kid’s candor.

“But whatever happens…” Rapunzel said, “We’ll face it together, as a family.” She looked pointedly over at Cassandra, who rolled her eyes.

“Alright alright, I’m coming,” She said.

“Yes, Auntie Cassie, join us!” Eugene chimed, earning an elbow in the arm.

She stood on Rapunzel’s side, supporting her best friend as she held out the sundrop. Eugene readjusted so he was holding onto Varian from behind.

Quirin stood aside, finally content.

The stones touched.

Varian skipped down the hallway with Ruddiger and cart in tow. The raccoon reached his tiny hands out, determined to swipe an apple from a nearby display. Just a little closer…!

The raccoon blinked as the apple vanished. He could’ve sworn it was there just a second ago… confused beady eyes glanced up at his best friend, only to chitter in delight when he saw Varian had stolen it. The child took a bite before handing it to Ruddiger to finish.

“Excuse me!” Varian said to one of the maids (Faith? Felicity? Names are hard) “Have you seen mommy and Auntie Cassie?”

The maid giggled. “In her highness’s room, I believe.”

“Thank you miss!” He called. Faith shook her head, smiling. That boy was awful at sleight of hand, considering his father, but no one would care about a single apple.

Things had been pretty quiet since coming home, in all honesty. In Varian’s opinion, a bit boring even.

Well, the first few days home weren’t so quiet. Upon arriving at the palace all had been rushed to the infirmary, only to be let go with minor injuries. The only exception was Varian, who was confined to bed rest for a week. Getting poisoned half to death will do that to you.

He’d spent the week constantly in the presence of his family who rotated out. He’d wake up to Rapunzel’s soft voice with breakfast handmade by Lance, light exercise with Cassandra (that usually involved learning how to use a wooden sword). Then Arianna would come teach him something, either basic Coronian history or math. He’d nap with Ruddiger, and finally Eugene would spend the rest of the day with him, from dinner to bedtime. It was paradise to the little boy.

At some point during the week, Hugo came by with a get well soon gift. He’d gushed to Varian nonstop about all they’d done in school, how cool the castle was, and hey is that a raccoon?

Hugo’s mom (who apparently knew Ulla, judging by her crestfallen face upon hearing her fate) watched over the boys while the king and Quirin got chewed out. Less so Quirin, since he already made up for it by, y’know, killing his ex.

“Let me get this straight, you changed the law after my kidnapping so birth parents always have primary custody?” Rapunzel rubbed her temples, frustrated. Frederick, for his part, at least looked guilty.

“I wasn’t sure if you would’ve wanted to stay with whoever was raising you…!”

“I feel like any little girl who finds out they’re a long lost princess would rather live with her birth parents,” Eugene muttered.

“I was so worried about getting found out, that once it happened, I didn’t bother to actually look into it, I just… UGH! You should’ve at LEAST repealed it the second I came home!”

“I… forgot?”

“SERIOUSLY?”

In the end, it was agreed that the law not only hurt Varian, but dozens of other abandoned kids who could never be adopted now. Suffice to say, it did not survive the day. In fact, Rapunzel immediately got to work creating a service for saving abused kids, and appointed Eugene in charge.

“There’s no one here who could do better than you,” She said. “You suffered under our systems, and then saved our boy from the same fate. Twice. I trust that you’ll figure it out.”

Eugene smiled wetly, pressing his forehead to Rapunzel’s. “Sunshine, you’re going to be an amazing Queen, you know that?” He brushed a lock of hair out of her face. Now that her hair was breakable, she’d debated whether or not to cut it. Long hair was a part of her identity, after all, but without it’s magic she wasn’t sure it was worth the upkeep. In the end, she decided to cut it back, not as short as before, but rather a comfortable bob.

“And you’ll be amazing by my side.” She said, placing a kiss.

Eugene wasn’t the only one to get an upgrade. Apparently Cassandra and her dad working together on the breakout plan meant he got to see her in action, as well as her dedication to protecting the royal family. Now, she was officially a royal guard, training to replace her father someday.

Which meant Lance, as instructor, was her boss.

Eugene feared for his life.

Varian turned a corner before lifting Ruddiger out of the cart. He was getting heavy, and the cart couldn’t do stairs well on its own. Together they bounded up the steps into his mom’s room.

“Hi Mama!” he cheered, running into her embrace. She easily scooped him up and twirled him around, prompting delighted squeals. Ruddiger curled around Rapunzel’s neck, joining Pascal.

“How’s my baby boy today?” She chimed.

“I’m good! Miss grandma said to come here,” He had no clue what to call Arianna; between the queen insisted she be grandma, the king wanted her to be addressed by title, and Eugene calling her ma’am, it all jumbled up in his head.

“Yes, we need your help!” She said.

Cassandra grimaced. “You need his help, I want no part in this.”

“Aw, don’t be like that!”

“Listen, Raps, I adore you, but your taste in men is atrocious. And coming from me that’s a low blow.” She stuck her tongue out at the little one who let out a squawk of protest. With a wave, she left the room.

“What’s wrong with daddy!?” He cried after her, raising a fist. “Fight me!”

“Let’s not fight family, ok? Remember how well the last time turned out?” Rapunzel hissed between her teeth. Varian cocked his head, confused.

“But I won last time.”

Can’t argue with that.

“Speaking of that…” Rapunzel hummed, carrying Varian over to her walls. From floor to ceiling paint covered nearly every surface, detailing her life and all the people in it. Front and center was a portrait of their family. Varian was nestled in between his mom and dad, with a beaming smile. “I know you won our fight for Eugene’s love but, I still love him. You know that, yea?”

“Mhm.”

“Well…” Her eyes trailed over to another drawing, this one much smaller; that of her coronation, when she’d turned down his proposal.

It’d been about six months since that fateful day, six months that Varian has been with them. In that time Varian turned five. While they didn’t know his exact birthday, Quirin had been helpful in estimating around when Varian had been born, and they picked a random date around late March. It had been a pretty small party, what with everyone still reeling a bit. But it was nonetheless momentous for two reasons: one, Eugene’s gift to Varian had been his official adoption papers, and two, Rapunzel had decided she was ready to marry Eugene. Seeing her son so happy in the man’s arms… she wanted that. She wanted it forever.

Hence why she asked Varian to come see her.

“You know what marriage is, right bud?” At his confirmation, she continued. “Well, me and your dad aren’t married… but I want to change that. If we got married, I’d become your mom officially, like how Eugene adopted you. Do you… would you like that?”

Varian blinked a few times. The gears in his head whirred to life, slowly cranking out a response. Finally, his sky blue eyes lit up in understanding and happiness. Mama wanted to stay with him forever! He nodded so fast it hurt, and he had to stop after a few seconds.

“Thanks, baby,” Rapunzel said, overcome with joy. “Now, you can’t tell anyone about this, ok? I want it to be a surprise for daddy.”

“Can I tell Ruddiger…?”

“Yes, you can tell him.”

“What about Hugo?”

“I mean if you want…”

“Uncle Lance?”

“No, he’s terrible with secrets.”

Eugene hummed under his breath as he helped Varian get ready for the day. Both mother and son had been all giggly and whispery the day before; clearly they had a secret between them. “You gonna tell me what you and mom were talking about?”

Varian cocked his head in confusion. Oh gosh, it never got old, still just as cute as the first time!

“Last night,” Eugene clarified.

Varian gasped, covering his mouth. He shook his head in despair. Daddy didn’t like keeping secrets from him, he said it was good to tell the truth… but mommy asked him to keep it to himself! Would she be mad if he told him?

“Don’t wanna spill?” Eugene teased, chuckling. He helped Varian into his new shirt. He never did find out what happened to Varian’s sailor outfit, the one he wore when he was with Ulla, but when the house blew up there was no way it survived. Now Varian wore a dark purple school uniform, with white buttons and ascot. His shoes were shiny and black, the pristine boarding school kind. There was a hat that went with it but Varian never wore it for more than a few minutes.

Varian shook his head.

Eugene smirked. “Alright, how about I share a secret with you, hm? Maybe then you’ll tell me?” He took the silence as an invitation. “I’m gonna ask Rapunzel to marry me.” He almost said again, but Varian wasn’t there the first time, and he still wanted the kid to think positively of him. It felt nice to tell someone; he’d tell Lance but he was terrible with secrets.

Varian looked like he was gonna explode.

His dad burst out laughing. The kid’s cheeks were so puffed up you’d mistake him for a blowfish, and his face burned red. He opened his mouth, but bit down on his hand to muffle his words, and stomped his feet in frustration. Frustrated tears bubbled up and, had it not been for his dad’s calloused hands, would’ve fallen down.

“Oh, bud,” Eugene wheezed. “It’s ok, you don’t have to tell me, alright? But I wanted to tell you that. I was going to propose tonight.”

Tonight!? Rapunzel and he were planning for tonight too! He was gonna sing a song! At his distraught face, Eugene quickly backpedaled.

“Bluebird I still love you! I know you technically won that fight but I’m still gonna love her, but you’re still my little boy! Are you mad?”

“No!” Varian whined. He hated that he couldn’t tell him why he was upset! Daddy was so good at cheering him up.

“No?”

“No.”

Exasperated, Eugene picked his son up and left his bedroom for the day. “Well when you’re ready to tell me, you come get me, hm? No pouting.”

He pouted the rest of the day.

It sucked.

Eugene could tell it was stressing Varian just as much as it was stressing him, but because Varian refused to talk, it made the whole situation that much worse. He thought maybe he was just mad at him, but apparently he wouldn’t even talk to Lance! And he loved Lance!

Varian hated being quiet! He was the biggest chatterbox when he wanted to be! The last time he was this quiet towards his family was back when he first moved in. But still the boy held his tongue. If he didn’t, he might accidentally tell someone! And he couldn’t even tell Rapunzel or Cassie, since they were busy all day!

Maybe today’s just an off day, Eugene thought as Varian pushed his food around at dinner. He looked so miserable, like he was near tears, and it pulled at his heartstrings. Eventually Varian gave up on trying to eat, and that was Eugene’s cue for an early bedtime.

For his part, Varian didn’t really complain all that much. But then again, if he complained, he might slip up!

“Just double checking, bud.” Eugene said after he tucked the boy in. Varian’s little onesie was so precious, covered in clouds and a sun on his chest. “You’re not upset about me proposing to Rapunzel?”

In all honesty, he was more worried about nightmares. All of their hard work building up Varian’s confidence had crumbled like a stack of cards thanks to Ulla. He was wary of guards and staff, unsure if any of them would turn them back over for experiments.

Even though Eugene had explained to Varian that his momma could never hurt him again, that he was safe and no one would ever take him away from him, that really wasn’t true. For one, Rapunzel was living proof of that. But more importantly, Ulla’s claws dug deep into the boy’s mind, haunting his dreams. At least once a week, even now, Varian would wake with horrible screams and visions of electric chairs and amber formulas and rocks. He was bouncing back a lot faster than the first time around, but there was a reason he’d started looking around Corona for a child psychiatrist.

“No…” Varian sighed. He may be bummed about their plans, but if the end result was the same, he couldn’t really be too upset. Right? He picked at his sheets. “Just wanted to see mama…”

Eugene smiled sadly. “I’ll have her come see you after our date, ok?” With a kiss to the forehead, the father left the room.

Varian waited a few moments.

Then he slipped out of bed.

Regardless of whether or not his and Rapunzel’s plans were ruined, he’s not missing this proposal! Honestly he was a little offended Eugene didn’t ask him to help. He could’ve been like, “Will you be my mommy?”. But then again, Rapunzel already was his mommy. So maybe not those exact words.

Whatever! The point remained!

He peeked down the corner, where Eugene and Rapunzel were talking. Ruddiger’s tail swished in Varian’s face, making it impossible for him to make out what they were saying. But judging by the box Eugene hid behind his back, and the chest Rapunzel hid behind hers, it was something about a surprise on their date tonight.

Man, adults were weird. Why all the secrets and cryptic speech?

They walked side by side, neither looking at the gifts hidden away, nor at Varian trailing behind them like a lost puppy.

“I heard Varian was cranky today,” Rapunzel snickered at the face her boyfriend made in response. He looked like he’d swallowed a lemon. Which, to be fair, wasn’t too far off from his “smolder”. And he wondered why she didn’t fall for it.

“Yea, a bit,” he said. “He didn’t want to tell me what you two have been up to.” At this, she raised an eyebrow. In all honesty, she expected him to cave. Her sweet little boy kept it together! Well, maybe not emotionally. She’ll grab a cupcake for him later.

“Well, I think he’ll be in a much better mood tomorrow,” she hummed. “I was surprised you wanted to go on a boat ride instead of our other plan.”

“Yea well, I had an idea.”

“A good one?” She shrieked when he jokingly poked her stomach.

Varian followed them quietly, his padded footsies keeping him undetected. The night chill nipped at his cheeks, turning them red as an apple. But he didn’t care. He kept following until his parents approached a boat and rowed out a small ways. It was far enough that Varian probably couldn’t swim it, but he could still see them. The soft sound of waves filled his ears, the moon’s lullaby trying to soothe its kin. But Varian’s focus was solely on his family.

“To think, about a year ago we were out here…” the princess glanced up at the starry sky. “And now…” She glanced over to see Eugene’s warm, loving smile.

“So, are we going to share gifts now or later?” Eugene joked. “It’s kinda funny, since today’s not really anything special, but we still got each other gifts.”

Rapunzel hummed, smiling. “This one isn’t just for you.” She glanced down at the box, an ornate, mahogany chest her mom gave her for the occasion. “It was supposed to be ready at Varian’s birthday but I figured I’d just give both of them to you.” Eugene’s smile turned even softer, if that was even possible. His heart was so warm, he half expected to burn from the inside out. The chest creaked open, and he gasped.

“Oh, blondie…”

There were two crowns sitting on plush blue velvet. Eugene’s was a dark silver, almost black under the moon’s shine. It had three prongs, not unlike Rapunzel’s tiara, though these were much pointier. Embedded on the middle prong was a gleaming violet stone, reflecting the color of Corona. Varian’s was relatively simple, more of a circlet. Also silver, it had the same loops as Rapunzel’s, with a myriad of blue stones instead of her red.

Eugene let out a shaky breath, almost nervous to touch them. “Rapunzel, these are…!” It felt almost wrong to have them. A year ago he’d tried to steal hers, and now he’s getting one of his own? But he couldn’t deny how much he wanted this. Not the crowns per say (well, that’s a lie; he may not be a thief anymore but he still loved the finer things in life) but to belong, to match with the loves of his life.

There was one nagging question though. “How’d you get your dad to agree?”

Rapunzel snorted. Around the same time she’d blown up at her dad, she’d found out about the nobility’s haggling in regards to him and Varian. “I told him we’d give him another grandkid.” Eugene choked on his own spit. “Uh, can we, um, raincheck on that? Varian’s already enough,” He wheezed. With his anxieties soothed, he reached out, fingers brushing against the cool metal. “I gotta say, these are pretty nice. Just big enough to not mess up my hair! Aw, blondie, you think of everything.” He struck a pose. “How do I look?”

“Like a king,” Rapunzel beamed. She reached into her pocket, ready to give him the other gift. “Speaking of king-”

“Hold that thought, it’s my turn!” Eugene said, holding up a finger. He missed his girlfriend’s pout.

Across the bay, Varian pouted as well. “This is boring,” he whined to Ruddiger.

“So, speaking of kings,” Eugene said, and Rapunzel rolled her eyes fondly, but softened when Eugene’s face turned more serious. “I know the last time I asked was… less than perfect. And in the time since that… so much has happened,” that was an understatement, and they both knew it. “You asked me to wait, and I just want you to know that I am fully willing to wait still. But… I just wanted to… check in?” He opened the box to reveal a cupcake. But before Rapunzel could question it, Pascal grabbed the cherry, revealing a ring on top of the frosting. She gasped.

“Rapunzel… will you marry me?”

Her eyes brimmed with tears of joy. She sniffled, reaching into her pocket. “Only if you marry me,” she laughed, revealing the golden band she had. Eugene’s face lit up, and smiled harder than he ever had. The night was full of silence, just the two of them as they swapped bands.

“HEY! DID YOU DO IT YET?”

Eugene burst into silent laughter, burrowing his face onto Rapunzel’s shoulder as his own shook with mirth. Honestly, he didn’t know why he expected any less. Of course Varian would try and follow them. His fiance (!!) grabbed the oars, rowing back to shore where their son bounced up and down with impatience.

The moment they stepped out onto the dock, they got an armful of child. “Oof!” Eugene wheezed. “I thought you went to bed, young man?”

“Nope!”

Rapunzel hummed. “But didn’t your daddy put you to bed?”

“Uhuh. I just got up again.”

Eugene barked out a laugh, sweeping Varian up into his arms, much to the boy’s delight. He shrieked with joy, clutching his dad’s neck tight. Rapunzel couldn’t help but join in, wrapping both of them into a bear hug.

The small family’s laughter rang out into the night air, up towards the moon.

It shined just a bit brighter.

#varian #tangled the series #tts #tts varian #tangled #tts eugene #eugene fitzherbert #tangled eugene #team awesome

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