syllvane

[syllvane]

netflix i am in your walls

#🫠

[syllvane]

you can hear it in the silence- roy kent x reader

a/n: roy kent x tartt!reader. no pronouns specified iirc. content warnings for alcohol and growing up with a shitty father. ask to tag. yes this is 3.2k words no i dont want to talk about it

You’re outside the bar at your brothers birthday- the night is cool against your skin, a welcome relief from the crowded nosiness of the bar.

You loved Jamie, probably more than anything, and Keeley was always a sweetheart, but that didn’t change the fact that you weren’t AFC Richmond.

You don’t get the inside looks, the intricacies of everyone’s friendships with one another.

“Oi,” A gruff voice said from behind you and you nearly jumped out of your skin before whipping around and seeing none other than Roy Kent. “Did I scare you?”

“No, that’s how I react to everyone.” You deadpanned. “You’re Roy, right? Jamie talks about you a lot.”

He nodded.

“You his girlfriend?” He asked and your face scrunched up.

“Ew, fuck no. I’m his sibling.” You snorted and his lips turned upwards slightly.

“Right, he’s mentioned you. Usually calls you ‘Pip’.”

You cringed.

“Of course he does.” You said, shaking you head as you looked back towards the bar fondly. “Thank you for training him. It means a lot of him, more than he’ll admit.”

“He’s a good kid. Not bad company.” He said thoughtfully. “I’ll flat out deny it if you repeat it though.”

“Oi! I asked you to go find Pip, not chat them up!” Jamie said, walking out and looking between the two. “Is he boring you to death? He has a tendency to do that.”

“He thought I was your girlfriend.” You said, smile on your lips. Jamie groaned and put a hand on Roy’s shoulder.

“Ew,” He said, tone of voice the exact same as yours a moment before. “How did you not know that Pip’s my sister?”

“I know Pip is your sibling. You didn’t call them that.” Roy said, only slightly annoyed.

“Oh, whatever. Come back in, I missed you.” Jamie said to you.

“You know I’ve been gone maybe five minutes. I didn’t even expect you to notice I was gone.”

He looked at Rot incredulously, as if saying ‘can you believe that?’ before turning back towards you.

“Of course I noticed, now come on.” He started towards the bar and you rolled your eyes.

“It was nice formally meeting you, Roy.” You said, smiling slightly as you turned and walked with Jamie.

He smiled back- not that either of you could see- before following you both back into the bar.

The Richmond players cheered at Jamie’s reappearance- you laughed, turning to look at Roy, your smile warm and eyes curious, meeting his. Your eyes lingered until you tore them away, Keeley speaking to you.

“It’s no longer my birthday, so go on then.” Jamie said, looking at you as you both walked through the streets of Richmond.

“What are you talking about?” You asked and he scoffed slightly.

“It’s past midnight.”

“Not what I meant.”

“You like Roy.” He said and you groaned.

“I do not.

“Do too.”

“Do n- we aren’t doing this.”

Jamie pouted slightly, but didn’t argue.

“Y’know, obviously I don’t like the idea of you with anyone from Richmond, just because I’d learn more about you than I ever want to know-”

“Thank you for that, Jamie.”

“- but Roy is a good man. Better than most. You’d have my blessing.” He finished, taking a deep breathe and you smiled, stopping and hugging him.

“You’re very sweet, Jamie. I don’t even know Roy, though. Is he attractive? Yeah.”

“We.” Jamie commented, voice muffled from the hug.

“I’m ignoring that. But I don’t know him.”

Jamie pulled away, looking at you.

“You could.”

For a second, her heart thrummed with the possibility. You thought of the way his gaze fell on you- what would it be like to kiss him, to-

You simply smiled, not trusting your voice, and squeezed Jamie’s shoulder.

“You’re sweet, the best brother, y’know?”

“I do,” He said cheekily. “Nice to hear it though.”

You rolled your eyes and scoffed, willing yourself to enjoy the moment instead of thinking about Roy Kent,

Well, at least for a little bit.

When you arrive home to a dark, empty apartment, your mind wanders.

You hate it- hate that you keep thinking about him, hate that you don’t want to stop.

What if they dated and broke up? It would ruin Jamie and Roy’s friendship.

And even that assumes that Roy even noticed you in the first place. You were no model and he was gorgeous and-

“Fuck!” You cursed to the empty apartment, breaking the train of thought.

You were too tired for this, for thinking in circles about things that would never happen.

It’s not a week later when Jamie’s car won’t start and he asks you to pick him up from practice.

Hence your waiting in the Richmond parking lot, waiting for Jamie to hop in the car.

A knock on your window made you jump in your seat, only to look up and see one Roy Kent.

Ah, fuck.

You rolled your window down, looking at him.

“Fucking hell, you’ve got to stop that.” You said, heart still racing.

“And here I thought you reacted to everyone that way.” He said dryly and a small laugh escaped your lips.

“Only you, apparently.”

“Are you waiting for Jamie?” He asked, head cocked slightly.

“What? Oh. Yeah. Did practice run late?”

“He’s doing PR stuff. He’ll likely take a while.”

“Oh. Huh.” You did your best to keep your expression neutral.

“He didn’t tell you.” Roy said, realization dawning on his face.

“Yeah, he may have neglected to mention it.”

“Fuck. I was gonna… do you want a tour?” He asked, causing your brain to fully stop for a second.

“A tour?”

Roy blinked.

“Of the clubhouse.”

Out of instinct, maybe, you open your mouth to say that Higgins took you on a tour of the clubhouse one of the first times you were inside the clubhouse.

Then, you closed it and nodded.

“I would love one.”

More interesting than the clubhouse itself is the way Roy talks about it, the affection that lies in every word he says.

And then, he took you out onto the pitch, the one place Higgins didn’t cover.

“It feels much bigger when you’re actually on it.” You said softly, taking your eyes off Roy.

He looked at you, gaze uncharacteristically soft before forcing himself to look anywhere else.

“You wanna take a shot at the goal?” He asked and you whipped around to look at him.

“I don’t think I’m… am I even allowed?” You asked and Roy let out the smallest laugh, startling you.

“Sorry, I was just trying to picture your brother saying that. Yes, you’re allowed.” He said, passing a ball fo you that had been sitting by his feet.

You- to your great surprised- received the pass and then looked back at the pitch before shaking your head slightly.

“Jamie’s the one with all the football talent. I feel like I gotta work my way up to this.” You said and he grunted. “What does that mean?”

He shrugged.

“You’re selling yourself short.”

“You’re right. I’m actually the one with all the football talent.” You deadpanned. “I’m- hey!”

With a surprising swift move, Roy took off and stole the ball from you, walking casually towards the goal.

You followed him further onto the field until you were about twelve meters from the goal.

“Roy, what are we doing?”

“You are taking a penalty.”

“Are you going to be goalie?”

“Fuck no. I’m retired.”

You smiled, looked at him.

“You’re selling yourself short.” You said, trying to imitate his voice. He rolled his eyes.

“Penalties, it’s just you and the goalie.”

“There’s no goalie.”

Roy ignored this.

“You want to always look at the goalie when you’re shooting, to see which way they’re leaning towards.”

“Looks like this goalie is on vacation?” Someone- Jamie- said, emerging from the clubhouse. “Aren’t you supposed to be gone? Bingo or something, granddad?”

Roy grunted, staring daggers at Jamie.

“You had plans? I’m sorry, I didn’t-”

“I wanted to. And it wasn’t bingo. It was yoga.” He said, the end of the sentence pointed towards Jamie.

Jamie held his hands up in defense and you smiled slightly.

“Thank you.” You said sincerely and Roy offered you a small nod before walking away.

Once he was out of earshot, Jamie looked over and started laughing slightly.

”What?” She asked. “You could have told me that you had a PR thing.”

“That’s not nearly as fun, is it?” He said, before smiling. “It’s all on your face, you know.”

“What?” You repeated and he looked at you, same strange smile on his lips.

“You like him. It’s written all over your face.”

“Jamie-”

“I know, I know. You don’t like him, or whatever.” He said with disbelief.

“Yeah,” You said. Or whatever. “Are you ready?”

“Mhm.” He said, walking back towards the parking lot.

When Roy Kent shows up at your ex’s mom’s house, you’re almost positive that you’re dreaming.

When he looks at you and says “Fucking hell”, you snap back to reality.

“Roy, this is Sam’s ex- the super sweet one I was telling you about.” She said before turning to you. “This is Roy. He has the mouth of a sailor, but he’s a good boy.”

There’s a look of panic on Roy’s face for a moment, fading completely as you outstretched your hand.

“It’s nice to meet you.” You smiled. “How do you know Tabitha?”

“We uh… we do yoga on Tuesdays and Thursdays.” He admitted.

“And shows on Fridays.” Tabitha helpfully supplied before handing a glass of red to Roy.

Roy nodded slightly, taking a sip.

“Of course, can’t forget the shows.” Roy said with no particular emotion.

“Right. Why don’t you two grab a spot on the couch?” Janice and Gertie will be here in five- you know how they are.”

In the noisy living room, one of the older ladies in the room motioned for Roy to sit next to her, to which he happily obliged, looking at you as he sat down- an invitation.

You walked over cautiously before sitting next to him gingerly.

“Oh, Roy! Is this your-” The woman started.

“No, I’m Sam’s ex.” You said, saving yourself the embarrassment of Roy saying ‘fuck no.’

Curiosity turned to pity and the woman leaned over Roy, putting a hand on your knee.

You smiled, the pity still feeling better than whatever you were expecting from Roy.

“It was a year or two ago, ancient history really.” You said, half to Roy, half to a woman you didn’t know the name of.

Before you could speak again, Tabitha walked back into the living room, accompanied by two older women- presumably Janice and Gertie.

It takes an episode for you and Roy to get comfortable with each other’s presence- an episode for you to relax enough to the point where your leg brushed alongside his, another half episode for Roy to start catching you up on the plotlines you’ve missed.

When Tabitha pauses the telly and calls it a night, it feels like no time has passed at all and if you didn’t know better, you’d say that Roy almost looked… disappointed when your leg was no longer touching his.

“Did you drive here?” Roy asked and she shook her head. “Do you want company on the walk back?”

You smiled.

“I wouldn’t mind yours.”

He nodded, holding your eye contact before looking away and making for the door.

“Thank you Tabitha, always a pleasure.” He said gruffly.

“Always a pleasure,” She smiled. “Oh, dear?”

You turned and looked at Tabitha.

“Yes?”

“He’s a good one.” She said, voice quiet.

You turned to look out the doorway to see Roy.

“He is, isn’t he.”

Tabitha patted your shoulder affectionately and you turned back to look at her.

“Thank you.”

“Of course, dear.” She smiled, before you turned and walked back towards Roy.

“This is the last place I expected to see you.” You said and Roy shrugged.

“I told you I do yoga.”

“Yes, well, when you said yoga, I thought you meant with a bunch of other fit guys.”

“Oh fuck off.” He said, no actual malice in his voice, before he stopped walking completely. “You think I’m fit?”

She stopped, turning and looking at him, ready to tell him go fuck off.

Your voice catches in your throat at his raised eyebrows and the small smile in his face, and a smile of her own formed, features softening.

“I said what I said.”

“You shouldn’t stay stuff you don’t mean.”

“Who says I didn’t mean it?”

He let out a small grunt, a noise of disbelief, which would’ve offended you if you didn’t see the almost bashful expression in his face.

“We should continue walking.” He said, clearing his throat.

“Right.” You said, and the pair continued forwards. “Tabitha invited me to the get together next week, by the way, but I can always cancel if you don’t want me there.”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“I don’t know, it was your thing first. Just wanted to give you the option.”

“Fuck that, it’s… nice, having you there.” He said, voice full of indignation that you could believe for a second that your presence wasn’t wanted somewhere.

When you’re alone in your kitchen later, the feeling hits you like a brick.

It’s not your plan to go out drinking when your father reaches out to you for the first time in many, many years.

You know he’s in recovery, knows that Jamie has seen him, and none of that prepared her for the absolute vitriol you feel when you hear his voice.

The conversation lasts no more than a minute, your father gracefully taking a hint for the first time in his life.

You ignore the call from Jamie that comes a couple moments later and mindlessly drives to a bar near your apartment.

And you drink until anger turns into a full buzz in the background, which turns in hollowness.

Your phone rings- Jamie again. You looked at the photo of him that popped up. He couldn’t be more than three years old, crooked smile on his face, sitting in the grass next to a football.

Even as a kid, you tried your best to protect him from your dad. You’re still not sure how much you actually helped.

Your phone stopped ringing. You ordered another drink.

It’s not a half hour later when someone takes the seat next to you.

You glanced at them before glowing back to staring at your drink before doing a double take, because what the fuck is Roy Kent doing here?

“Jamie sent you.” You said, little emotion in your voice.

Roy looked at you and gave a single nod.

“He’s worried about you.”

“Okay. Well, if you’ve come here to say that I need to give my father a chance or some bullshit, you can leave.” You said, fully expecting him to stand up and walk out.

“What? Fuck no. I’m here because I care about you.”

“Oh,” You said, energy draining from your posture. “Oh.”

Silence sat in the middle of them for a couple of moments. You eyed the half-finished drink and was suddenly positive that you’d throw up if you took another sip.

All at once, it’s all too much. You, the entire bar, smells too much like your dad.

“Can we…”

“Are you okay?” He asked, standing up and you shook your head.

“I need to get out of here, I need to…”

“Okay, let’s go.” He said, throwing some notes on the bar top and guiding her to the exit.

The fresh air helps, but the smell of alcohol clings to you and it’s all too much, at least until Roy takes off his jacket and offers it to you.

You don’t put it on, just hold it against you and focus on the notes of his cologne instead of the scent of alcohol.

This and the sound of voice reassuring you that you’re okay is enough to ground you.

“I’m sorry. Fuck.” You said, voice breaking and eyes closed.

He pulled you into a hug.

“You have nothing to apologize about.” He told you. “Let me take you home.”

You pulled away from him, still sniffling, and nodded.

The ride home is silent.

You don’t have to ask him to come in- you simply give him a look and he follows.

“I’m going to shower.” You said and Roy nodded.

When you emerged, alcohol no longer clinging to your skin, you were surprised to see him standing in your kitchen, eyebrows scrunched together as he cooked.

“Thank you.”

He turned and looked at you, giving you a nod.

“It’s nothing.”

“It’s not.”

He held your gaze for a moment before turning back to the stove, pulling the pan off of the heat.

“How do you feel?” He asked, doing his best to disguise any concern in his voice.

“Better. I’m sorry. You probably had better plans than babysitting.”

“You have nothing to apologize for. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to be.”

He set a plate of food in the counter for you and you took it, grabbing a fork from the utensils drawer and digging in.

You feel the need to apologize again, as if your mere existence is something worth apologizing for.

A bad habit leftover from when you were your father‘s kid.

You help him clean up despite his protests, and pretend not to notice his concern.

“I should go to sleep.” You said and he straightened up.

“Right, I’ll… go, then.” He turned away and you grabbed his wrist, your skin electric against his.

“Stay. I mean, you don’t have to, but-”

“Okay. I’ll stay.”

You want to miss him, want to close the distance between the two of you. You don’t, remembering that you’re a bit of a mess right now, but it’s not for lack of wanting.

You let go of his wrist and gave him a small nod.

“I’ll take the couch. I don’t want you to guck up your back because of me.”

“Now-”

“Roy, please. Let me do this one thing for you.”

He looked at you, narrowed eyebrows, before he sighed.

“This is fucking stupid.”

“You’re a pro-footballer, I won’t be responsible for breaking you.”

“Was,” He corrected you. “Was a pro-footballer.”

“You’re selling yourself short.” You said gently and his expression softened. “Please.”

Without further protest, he listened.

When you wake up, the embarrassment weighs on you almost as heavily as the hangover.

Almost.

On the coffee table next to you, there is a glass of water and some painkillers, which you gladly accept.

Roy is in the kitchen, disheveled and cooking breakfast.

“Twice in twenty four hours, I feel lucky.” You said, cringing as soon as the words left your mouth.

He looked at you, eyebrow raised and lips turned upwards.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” You smiled before the look faded into something softer. “Thank you for staying.”

He looked at you again, expression somewhere between adoration and frustration, because don’t you get it?

Of course he stayed. All you ever had to do was ask.

He gave you a simple nod instead.

“Roy?”

“Hm?”

You don’t say anything, but you don’t need to. It’s written all over your face and for the first time, Roy can see it:

He looked at you for a couple moments before turning his attention back to the stove.

“Me too,” He said quietly, offering you a plate.

You took it, fingers brushing against his, smile blossoming on your face.

“Yeah?” You asked and he rolled his eyes.

“Yeah.”

[syllvane]

you can hear it in the silence- roy kent x reader

a/n: roy kent x tartt!reader. no pronouns specified iirc. content warnings for alcohol and growing up with a shitty father. ask to tag. yes this is 3.2k words no i dont want to talk about it

You’re outside the bar at your brothers birthday- the night is cool against your skin, a welcome relief from the crowded nosiness of the bar.

You loved Jamie, probably more than anything, and Keeley was always a sweetheart, but that didn’t change the fact that you weren’t AFC Richmond.

You don’t get the inside looks, the intricacies of everyone’s friendships with one another.

“Oi,” A gruff voice said from behind you and you nearly jumped out of your skin before whipping around and seeing none other than Roy Kent. “Did I scare you?”

“No, that’s how I react to everyone.” You deadpanned. “You’re Roy, right? Jamie talks about you a lot.”

He nodded.

“You his girlfriend?” He asked and your face scrunched up.

“Ew, fuck no. I’m his sibling.” You snorted and his lips turned upwards slightly.

“Right, he’s mentioned you. Usually calls you ‘Pip’.”

You cringed.

“Of course he does.” You said, shaking you head as you looked back towards the bar fondly. “Thank you for training him. It means a lot of him, more than he’ll admit.”

“He’s a good kid. Not bad company.” He said thoughtfully. “I’ll flat out deny it if you repeat it though.”

“Oi! I asked you to go find Pip, not chat them up!” Jamie said, walking out and looking between the two. “Is he boring you to death? He has a tendency to do that.”

“He thought I was your girlfriend.” You said, smile on your lips. Jamie groaned and put a hand on Roy’s shoulder.

“Ew,” He said, tone of voice the exact same as yours a moment before. “How did you not know that Pip’s my sister?”

“I know Pip is your sibling. You didn’t call them that.” Roy said, only slightly annoyed.

“Oh, whatever. Come back in, I missed you.” Jamie said to you.

“You know I’ve been gone maybe five minutes. I didn’t even expect you to notice I was gone.”

He looked at Rot incredulously, as if saying ‘can you believe that?’ before turning back towards you.

“Of course I noticed, now come on.” He started towards the bar and you rolled your eyes.

“It was nice formally meeting you, Roy.” You said, smiling slightly as you turned and walked with Jamie.

He smiled back- not that either of you could see- before following you both back into the bar.

The Richmond players cheered at Jamie’s reappearance- you laughed, turning to look at Roy, your smile warm and eyes curious, meeting his. Your eyes lingered until you tore them away, Keeley speaking to you.

“It’s no longer my birthday, so go on then.” Jamie said, looking at you as you both walked through the streets of Richmond.

“What are you talking about?” You asked and he scoffed slightly.

“It’s past midnight.”

“Not what I meant.”

“You like Roy.” He said and you groaned.

“I do not.

“Do too.”

“Do n- we aren’t doing this.”

Jamie pouted slightly, but didn’t argue.

“Y’know, obviously I don’t like the idea of you with anyone from Richmond, just because I’d learn more about you than I ever want to know-”

“Thank you for that, Jamie.”

“- but Roy is a good man. Better than most. You’d have my blessing.” He finished, taking a deep breathe and you smiled, stopping and hugging him.

“You’re very sweet, Jamie. I don’t even know Roy, though. Is he attractive? Yeah.”

“We.” Jamie commented, voice muffled from the hug.

“I’m ignoring that. But I don’t know him.”

Jamie pulled away, looking at you.

“You could.”

For a second, her heart thrummed with the possibility. You thought of the way his gaze fell on you- what would it be like to kiss him, to-

You simply smiled, not trusting your voice, and squeezed Jamie’s shoulder.

“You’re sweet, the best brother, y’know?”

“I do,” He said cheekily. “Nice to hear it though.”

You rolled your eyes and scoffed, willing yourself to enjoy the moment instead of thinking about Roy Kent,

Well, at least for a little bit.

When you arrive home to a dark, empty apartment, your mind wanders.

You hate it- hate that you keep thinking about him, hate that you don’t want to stop.

What if they dated and broke up? It would ruin Jamie and Roy’s friendship.

And even that assumes that Roy even noticed you in the first place. You were no model and he was gorgeous and-

“Fuck!” You cursed to the empty apartment, breaking the train of thought.

You were too tired for this, for thinking in circles about things that would never happen.

It’s not a week later when Jamie’s car won’t start and he asks you to pick him up from practice.

Hence your waiting in the Richmond parking lot, waiting for Jamie to hop in the car.

A knock on your window made you jump in your seat, only to look up and see one Roy Kent.

Ah, fuck.

You rolled your window down, looking at him.

“Fucking hell, you’ve got to stop that.” You said, heart still racing.

“And here I thought you reacted to everyone that way.” He said dryly and a small laugh escaped your lips.

“Only you, apparently.”

“Are you waiting for Jamie?” He asked, head cocked slightly.

“What? Oh. Yeah. Did practice run late?”

“He’s doing PR stuff. He’ll likely take a while.”

“Oh. Huh.” You did your best to keep your expression neutral.

“He didn’t tell you.” Roy said, realization dawning on his face.

“Yeah, he may have neglected to mention it.”

“Fuck. I was gonna… do you want a tour?” He asked, causing your brain to fully stop for a second.

“A tour?”

Roy blinked.

“Of the clubhouse.”

Out of instinct, maybe, you open your mouth to say that Higgins took you on a tour of the clubhouse one of the first times you were inside the clubhouse.

Then, you closed it and nodded.

“I would love one.”

More interesting than the clubhouse itself is the way Roy talks about it, the affection that lies in every word he says.

And then, he took you out onto the pitch, the one place Higgins didn’t cover.

“It feels much bigger when you’re actually on it.” You said softly, taking your eyes off Roy.

He looked at you, gaze uncharacteristically soft before forcing himself to look anywhere else.

“You wanna take a shot at the goal?” He asked and you whipped around to look at him.

“I don’t think I’m… am I even allowed?” You asked and Roy let out the smallest laugh, startling you.

“Sorry, I was just trying to picture your brother saying that. Yes, you’re allowed.” He said, passing a ball fo you that had been sitting by his feet.

You- to your great surprised- received the pass and then looked back at the pitch before shaking your head slightly.

“Jamie’s the one with all the football talent. I feel like I gotta work my way up to this.” You said and he grunted. “What does that mean?”

He shrugged.

“You’re selling yourself short.”

“You’re right. I’m actually the one with all the football talent.” You deadpanned. “I’m- hey!”

With a surprising swift move, Roy took off and stole the ball from you, walking casually towards the goal.

You followed him further onto the field until you were about twelve meters from the goal.

“Roy, what are we doing?”

“You are taking a penalty.”

“Are you going to be goalie?”

“Fuck no. I’m retired.”

You smiled, looked at him.

“You’re selling yourself short.” You said, trying to imitate his voice. He rolled his eyes.

“Penalties, it’s just you and the goalie.”

“There’s no goalie.”

Roy ignored this.

“You want to always look at the goalie when you’re shooting, to see which way they’re leaning towards.”

“Looks like this goalie is on vacation?” Someone- Jamie- said, emerging from the clubhouse. “Aren’t you supposed to be gone? Bingo or something, granddad?”

Roy grunted, staring daggers at Jamie.

“You had plans? I’m sorry, I didn’t-”

“I wanted to. And it wasn’t bingo. It was yoga.” He said, the end of the sentence pointed towards Jamie.

Jamie held his hands up in defense and you smiled slightly.

“Thank you.” You said sincerely and Roy offered you a small nod before walking away.

Once he was out of earshot, Jamie looked over and started laughing slightly.

”What?” She asked. “You could have told me that you had a PR thing.”

“That’s not nearly as fun, is it?” He said, before smiling. “It’s all on your face, you know.”

“What?” You repeated and he looked at you, same strange smile on his lips.

“You like him. It’s written all over your face.”

“Jamie-”

“I know, I know. You don’t like him, or whatever.” He said with disbelief.

“Yeah,” You said. Or whatever. “Are you ready?”

“Mhm.” He said, walking back towards the parking lot.

When Roy Kent shows up at your ex’s mom’s house, you’re almost positive that you’re dreaming.

When he looks at you and says “Fucking hell”, you snap back to reality.

“Roy, this is Sam’s ex- the super sweet one I was telling you about.” She said before turning to you. “This is Roy. He has the mouth of a sailor, but he’s a good boy.”

There’s a look of panic on Roy’s face for a moment, fading completely as you outstretched your hand.

“It’s nice to meet you.” You smiled. “How do you know Tabitha?”

“We uh… we do yoga on Tuesdays and Thursdays.” He admitted.

“And shows on Fridays.” Tabitha helpfully supplied before handing a glass of red to Roy.

Roy nodded slightly, taking a sip.

“Of course, can’t forget the shows.” Roy said with no particular emotion.

“Right. Why don’t you two grab a spot on the couch?” Janice and Gertie will be here in five- you know how they are.”

In the noisy living room, one of the older ladies in the room motioned for Roy to sit next to her, to which he happily obliged, looking at you as he sat down- an invitation.

You walked over cautiously before sitting next to him gingerly.

“Oh, Roy! Is this your-” The woman started.

“No, I’m Sam’s ex.” You said, saving yourself the embarrassment of Roy saying ‘fuck no.’

Curiosity turned to pity and the woman leaned over Roy, putting a hand on your knee.

You smiled, the pity still feeling better than whatever you were expecting from Roy.

“It was a year or two ago, ancient history really.” You said, half to Roy, half to a woman you didn’t know the name of.

Before you could speak again, Tabitha walked back into the living room, accompanied by two older women- presumably Janice and Gertie.

It takes an episode for you and Roy to get comfortable with each other’s presence- an episode for you to relax enough to the point where your leg brushed alongside his, another half episode for Roy to start catching you up on the plotlines you’ve missed.

When Tabitha pauses the telly and calls it a night, it feels like no time has passed at all and if you didn’t know better, you’d say that Roy almost looked… disappointed when your leg was no longer touching his.

“Did you drive here?” Roy asked and she shook her head. “Do you want company on the walk back?”

You smiled.

“I wouldn’t mind yours.”

He nodded, holding your eye contact before looking away and making for the door.

“Thank you Tabitha, always a pleasure.” He said gruffly.

“Always a pleasure,” She smiled. “Oh, dear?”

You turned and looked at Tabitha.

“Yes?”

“He’s a good one.” She said, voice quiet.

You turned to look out the doorway to see Roy.

“He is, isn’t he.”

Tabitha patted your shoulder affectionately and you turned back to look at her.

“Thank you.”

“Of course, dear.” She smiled, before you turned and walked back towards Roy.

“This is the last place I expected to see you.” You said and Roy shrugged.

“I told you I do yoga.”

“Yes, well, when you said yoga, I thought you meant with a bunch of other fit guys.”

“Oh fuck off.” He said, no actual malice in his voice, before he stopped walking completely. “You think I’m fit?”

She stopped, turning and looking at him, ready to tell him go fuck off.

Your voice catches in your throat at his raised eyebrows and the small smile in his face, and a smile of her own formed, features softening.

“I said what I said.”

“You shouldn’t stay stuff you don’t mean.”

“Who says I didn’t mean it?”

He let out a small grunt, a noise of disbelief, which would’ve offended you if you didn’t see the almost bashful expression in his face.

“We should continue walking.” He said, clearing his throat.

“Right.” You said, and the pair continued forwards. “Tabitha invited me to the get together next week, by the way, but I can always cancel if you don’t want me there.”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“I don’t know, it was your thing first. Just wanted to give you the option.”

“Fuck that, it’s… nice, having you there.” He said, voice full of indignation that you could believe for a second that your presence wasn’t wanted somewhere.

When you’re alone in your kitchen later, the feeling hits you like a brick.

It’s not your plan to go out drinking when your father reaches out to you for the first time in many, many years.

You know he’s in recovery, knows that Jamie has seen him, and none of that prepared her for the absolute vitriol you feel when you hear his voice.

The conversation lasts no more than a minute, your father gracefully taking a hint for the first time in his life.

You ignore the call from Jamie that comes a couple moments later and mindlessly drives to a bar near your apartment.

And you drink until anger turns into a full buzz in the background, which turns in hollowness.

Your phone rings- Jamie again. You looked at the photo of him that popped up. He couldn’t be more than three years old, crooked smile on his face, sitting in the grass next to a football.

Even as a kid, you tried your best to protect him from your dad. You’re still not sure how much you actually helped.

Your phone stopped ringing. You ordered another drink.

It’s not a half hour later when someone takes the seat next to you.

You glanced at them before glowing back to staring at your drink before doing a double take, because what the fuck is Roy Kent doing here?

“Jamie sent you.” You said, little emotion in your voice.

Roy looked at you and gave a single nod.

“He’s worried about you.”

“Okay. Well, if you’ve come here to say that I need to give my father a chance or some bullshit, you can leave.” You said, fully expecting him to stand up and walk out.

“What? Fuck no. I’m here because I care about you.”

“Oh,” You said, energy draining from your posture. “Oh.”

Silence sat in the middle of them for a couple of moments. You eyed the half-finished drink and was suddenly positive that you’d throw up if you took another sip.

All at once, it’s all too much. You, the entire bar, smells too much like your dad.

“Can we…”

“Are you okay?” He asked, standing up and you shook your head.

“I need to get out of here, I need to…”

“Okay, let’s go.” He said, throwing some notes on the bar top and guiding her to the exit.

The fresh air helps, but the smell of alcohol clings to you and it’s all too much, at least until Roy takes off his jacket and offers it to you.

You don’t put it on, just hold it against you and focus on the notes of his cologne instead of the scent of alcohol.

This and the sound of voice reassuring you that you’re okay is enough to ground you.

“I’m sorry. Fuck.” You said, voice breaking and eyes closed.

He pulled you into a hug.

“You have nothing to apologize about.” He told you. “Let me take you home.”

You pulled away from him, still sniffling, and nodded.

The ride home is silent.

You don’t have to ask him to come in- you simply give him a look and he follows.

“I’m going to shower.” You said and Roy nodded.

When you emerged, alcohol no longer clinging to your skin, you were surprised to see him standing in your kitchen, eyebrows scrunched together as he cooked.

“Thank you.”

He turned and looked at you, giving you a nod.

“It’s nothing.”

“It’s not.”

He held your gaze for a moment before turning back to the stove, pulling the pan off of the heat.

“How do you feel?” He asked, doing his best to disguise any concern in his voice.

“Better. I’m sorry. You probably had better plans than babysitting.”

“You have nothing to apologize for. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to be.”

He set a plate of food in the counter for you and you took it, grabbing a fork from the utensils drawer and digging in.

You feel the need to apologize again, as if your mere existence is something worth apologizing for.

A bad habit leftover from when you were your father‘s kid.

You help him clean up despite his protests, and pretend not to notice his concern.

“I should go to sleep.” You said and he straightened up.

“Right, I’ll… go, then.” He turned away and you grabbed his wrist, your skin electric against his.

“Stay. I mean, you don’t have to, but-”

“Okay. I’ll stay.”

You want to miss him, want to close the distance between the two of you. You don’t, remembering that you’re a bit of a mess right now, but it’s not for lack of wanting.

You let go of his wrist and gave him a small nod.

“I’ll take the couch. I don’t want you to guck up your back because of me.”

“Now-”

“Roy, please. Let me do this one thing for you.”

He looked at you, narrowed eyebrows, before he sighed.

“This is fucking stupid.”

“You’re a pro-footballer, I won’t be responsible for breaking you.”

“Was,” He corrected you. “Was a pro-footballer.”

“You’re selling yourself short.” You said gently and his expression softened. “Please.”

Without further protest, he listened.

When you wake up, the embarrassment weighs on you almost as heavily as the hangover.

Almost.

On the coffee table next to you, there is a glass of water and some painkillers, which you gladly accept.

Roy is in the kitchen, disheveled and cooking breakfast.

“Twice in twenty four hours, I feel lucky.” You said, cringing as soon as the words left your mouth.

He looked at you, eyebrow raised and lips turned upwards.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” You smiled before the look faded into something softer. “Thank you for staying.”

He looked at you again, expression somewhere between adoration and frustration, because don’t you get it?

Of course he stayed. All you ever had to do was ask.

He gave you a simple nod instead.

“Roy?”

“Hm?”

You don’t say anything, but you don’t need to. It’s written all over your face and for the first time, Roy can see it:

He looked at you for a couple moments before turning his attention back to the stove.

“Me too,” He said quietly, offering you a plate.

You took it, fingers brushing against his, smile blossoming on your face.

“Yeah?” You asked and he rolled his eyes.

“Yeah.”

#jamie tartt #roy kent #roy kent x reader #roy kent x you #ted lasso x reader #ted lasso imagine #ted lasso imagines #alcohol tw

[syllvane]

beautiful as the view from a sinking ship- jesper fahey x reader

a/n: people will watch la la land (2016) instead of go to therapy. it’s me i’m people.

“I’m surprised you’re here.” Inej said, appearing out of thin air.

You scoffed slightly, grabbing your drink before turning to look at Inej.

“I’m still a Crow, am I not? Just because me and Jes broke up, doesn’t mean I forfeit my place here.”

The nickname sat in the silence between the two of you and you looked away from her.

Inej didn’t say anything for a couple of seconds, watching you down the shot of hard liquor.

“I know, I just… you’ve been keeping odd hours. You’ve stopped coming around the Slat.”

You signaled the bartender for another round.

You looked at her and, despite the copious amount of alcohol you had consumed, your eyes were clear and bright.

“I’ve been trying to avoid him, if that wasn’t obvious.”

“I know. But by avoiding him, you’ve been avoiding everyone else.”

“Then tell him he needs to take a shift or two of the odd hours so that I can come around.” You snapped, though any anger faded from your voice immediately. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have snapped.”

“What happened between the two of you?”

You sighed.

“It’s not worth talking about.”

“But it was worth breaking up over?”

You looked at her again. This time she could see it more clearly, how tired you were.

Inej took a seat next to you, taking the glass of alcohol that was on the counter in front of you.

“This city will kill anyone who stays here long enough. Every day is another fight, and I just want to rest.” You said softly. “Jesper will stay here until Kaz tells him otherwise.”

“Why haven’t you left then?” She asked, the answer written all over your face.

You looked at the alcohol before looking back at her and shaking your head.

“I don’t know. It’s be easier if I could.”

You left some kruge on the bar top before standing up, stumbling slightly before catching yourself and walking home.

Inej followed you in the shadows, making sure that you got home safely before heading back to the Slat, your words ringing in her ears.

“We need your help.” 

Bitterness rose up out of nowhere at the sound of Kaz’s voice- it hadn’t always been this way. You once cared about him almost as much as Jesper and Inej.

“There are other Inferni in this city, you know.”

“Yes. Probably ones who don’t smell like alcohol as well, but none that I trust as much as you.”

“Ha.” You deadpanned, turning around to face him.

He took one quick glance at you before looking around the warehouse you had been squatting in.

“This is the last thing I’ll ever ask of you, since you no longer seem interested in being a Crow.”

“I never said that.”

“You didn’t have to.” He shot back quickly, tapping his cane absentmindedly. “We’re meeting tonight. You know where to find us.”

“I’ll come with you. Just give me a couple minutes to get ready.”

“Fine.” He said, turning away and looking towards the entrance that he had came through. “You broke his heart, you know. Breaking up with him.”

You gathered your gun and your knives, his words cutting into your skin.

“It broke my heart as well, if that makes you feel any better.”

“It doesn’t, believe it or not.” He said, getting awfully close to expressing a human emotion. “Remind me to never fall in love with anyone.”

You scoffed, involuntarily thinking of Inej.

“What?” He asked and even without looking at him, you could tell that his eyes had narrowed.

You shook your head.

“Nothing. From my experience, you didn’t get to choose that kind of thing.”

The rest of the way, the two of you walked in silence. 

Your heart thumped in your chest as you stood in front of the Slat, dreading the prospect of seeing Jesper again.

He did his best not to look at you as you walked into the Slat, the other Crows giving you a warm, if not slightly awkward, welcome.

It’s a straightforward enough plan- infiltrate the party to gain access to the safe, use your powers to get into the safe, leave with the documents.

It’s simple enough, except it all goes to shit, because of course it does.

The actual safe-breaking is the easiest part of the gig- you’re all outside when the guards show up and start shooting without asking questions, leading to a gunfight, with pairs of Crows isolated from another.

It all feels like it happens in slow motion: someone fires a gun, Jesper is facing the other way, oblivious that a bullet is about to find purchase in his chest.

Your feet move faster than your mind does and you bodied him, the two of you falling onto the ground.

You looked at him.

His eyes, his beautiful eyes were wide with surprise and confusion, his eyebrows scrunched together, bracing the impact of the tackle.

“What do you think you’re-” He started, his tone indignant before his eyes were drawn to the red stain blossoming on your chest. “What did… what did you do? Nina!”

His voice came out as more of a scream and he maneuvered you gently so that you were laying on the cobblestone ground.

Your training in the Second Army, a distant memory from your childhood, might have prepared you for what getting shot feels like if you had stayed longer.

Or maybe not- maybe it would have always hurt this much.

Jesper put his hand on your cheek, forcing you to look at him, his skin cool against yours.

“Hey, hey. Look at me. Don’t close your eyes. Just keep looking at me.”

He’s pretty when he’s fawning over you and you listen to him, look at him, your eyes locking on his.

In his eyes, you see a future.

You see yourself recovering from this, the two of you getting back together, any distance that was in between the two of you made small in the shadow of death.

You see the two of you taking trips out to the countryside, the two of you holding hands, every second the two of you spend together a promise.

It’s all so distant now, tomorrow creeping farther and farther away from your grasp

You lifted your arm, your strength fading from you fast. Your hand settled on his face, cupping his cheek and wiping away a tear that had formed.

You have so much to say still- so many apologies and I love you’s and conversations- you don’t have enough time.

“I’d do it again.” You settle for, trying to assuage the notions of guilt already forming in his head. 

His face crumples and Nina rushes over, finally, but there is nothing to be done. 

She is not a healer and you are dying.

“Nina, you have to do something. Nina, you have to fix it, please.”

Your hand falls from his face and he grabs it, holding it tightly. 

Your hands are cold.

“I love you, Jes.” You say, his name an exhalation of air.

“I love you too. Don’t go.” He begs.

Only Nina hears.

[syllvane]

beautiful as the view from a sinking ship- jesper fahey x reader

a/n: people will watch la la land (2016) instead of go to therapy. it’s me i’m people. angst

“I’m surprised you’re here.” Inej said, appearing out of thin air.

You scoffed slightly, grabbing your drink before turning to look at Inej.

“I’m still a Crow, am I not? Just because me and Jes broke up, doesn’t mean I forfeit my place here.”

The nickname sat in the silence between the two of you and you looked away from her.

Inej didn’t say anything for a couple of seconds, watching you down the shot of hard liquor.

“I know, I just… you’ve been keeping odd hours. You’ve stopped coming around the Slat.”

You signaled the bartender for another round.

You looked at her and, despite the copious amount of alcohol you had consumed, your eyes were clear and bright.

“I’ve been trying to avoid him, if that wasn’t obvious.”

“I know. But by avoiding him, you’ve been avoiding everyone else.”

“Then tell him he needs to take a shift or two of the odd hours so that I can come around.” You snapped, though any anger faded from your voice immediately. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have snapped.”

“What happened between the two of you?”

You sighed.

“It’s not worth talking about.”

“But it was worth breaking up over?”

You looked at her again. This time she could see it more clearly, how tired you were.

Inej took a seat next to you, taking the glass of alcohol that was on the counter in front of you.

“This city will kill anyone who stays here long enough. Every day is another fight, and I just want to rest.” You said softly. “Jesper will stay here until Kaz tells him otherwise.”

“Why haven’t you left then?” She asked, the answer written all over your face.

You looked at the alcohol before looking back at her and shaking your head.

“I don’t know. It’s be easier if I could.”

You left some kruge on the bar top before standing up, stumbling slightly before catching yourself and walking home.

Inej followed you in the shadows, making sure that you got home safely before heading back to the Slat, your words ringing in her ears.

“We need your help.” 

Bitterness rose up out of nowhere at the sound of Kaz’s voice- it hadn’t always been this way. You once cared about him almost as much as Jesper and Inej.

“There are other Inferni in this city, you know.”

“Yes. Probably ones who don’t smell like alcohol as well, but none that I trust as much as you.”

“Ha.” You deadpanned, turning around to face him.

He took one quick glance at you before looking around the warehouse you had been squatting in.

“This is the last thing I’ll ever ask of you, since you no longer seem interested in being a Crow.”

“I never said that.”

“You didn’t have to.” He shot back quickly, tapping his cane absentmindedly. “We’re meeting tonight. You know where to find us.”

“I’ll come with you. Just give me a couple minutes to get ready.”

“Fine.” He said, turning away and looking towards the entrance that he had came through. “You broke his heart, you know. Breaking up with him.”

You gathered your gun and your knives, his words cutting into your skin.

“It broke my heart as well, if that makes you feel any better.”

“It doesn’t, believe it or not.” He said, getting awfully close to expressing a human emotion. “Remind me to never fall in love with anyone.”

You scoffed, involuntarily thinking of Inej.

“What?” He asked and even without looking at him, you could tell that his eyes had narrowed.

You shook your head.

“Nothing. From my experience, you didn’t get to choose that kind of thing.”

The rest of the way, the two of you walked in silence. 

Your heart thumped in your chest as you stood in front of the Slat, dreading the prospect of seeing Jesper again.

He did his best not to look at you as you walked into the Slat, the other Crows giving you a warm, if not slightly awkward, welcome.

It’s a straightforward enough plan- infiltrate the party to gain access to the safe, use your powers to get into the safe, leave with the documents.

It’s simple enough, except it all goes to shit, because of course it does.

The actual safe-breaking is the easiest part of the gig- you’re all outside when the guards show up and start shooting without asking questions, leading to a gunfight, with pairs of Crows isolated from another.

It all feels like it happens in slow motion: someone fires a gun, Jesper is facing the other way, oblivious that a bullet is about to find purchase in his chest.

Your feet move faster than your mind does and you bodied him, the two of you falling onto the ground.

You looked at him.

His eyes, his beautiful eyes were wide with surprise and confusion, his eyebrows scrunched together, bracing the impact of the tackle.

“What do you think you’re-” He started, his tone indignant before his eyes were drawn to the red stain blossoming on your chest. “What did… what did you do? Nina!”

His voice came out as more of a scream and he maneuvered you gently so that you were laying on the cobblestone ground.

Your training in the Second Army, a distant memory from your childhood, might have prepared you for what getting shot feels like if you had stayed longer.

Or maybe not- maybe it would have always hurt this much.

Jesper put his hand on your cheek, forcing you to look at him, his skin cool against yours.

“Hey, hey. Look at me. Don’t close your eyes. Just keep looking at me.”

He’s pretty when he’s fawning over you and you listen to him, look at him, your eyes locking on his.

In his eyes, you see a future.

You see yourself recovering from this, the two of you getting back together, any distance that was in between the two of you made small in the shadow of death.

You see the two of you taking trips out to the countryside, the two of you holding hands, every second the two of you spend together a promise.

It’s all so distant now, tomorrow creeping farther and farther away from your grasp

You lifted your arm, your strength fading from you fast. Your hand settled on his face, cupping his cheek and wiping away a tear that had formed.

You have so much to say still- so many apologies and I love you’s and conversations- you don’t have enough time.

“I’d do it again.” You settle for, trying to assuage the notions of guilt already forming in his head. 

His face crumples and Nina rushes over, finally, but there is nothing to be done. 

She is not a healer and you are dying.

“Nina, you have to do something. Nina, you have to fix it, please.”

Your hand falls from his face and he grabs it, holding it tightly. 

Your hands are cold.

“I love you, Jes.” You say, his name an exhalation of air.

“I love you too. Don’t go.” He begs.

Only Nina hears.

#shadow and bone #shadow and bone imagine #shadow and bone x reader #six of crows imagines #six of crows imagine #six of crows #jesper fahey #jesper fahey x reader #jesper fahey imagine #jesper fahey x you #six of crows x reader #grishaverse #grishaverse x reader

[syllvane]

beginnings pt 4- nikolai lantsov x reader

“I’m sorry about your crew members. They seemed like good people.”

Your voice interrupted Nikolai’s thoughts and he turned around to look at you, his expression solemn.

“They were. The only reassurance is that their sacrifice will not have been in vain- that Alina will tear the Fold down.”

You had never believed in much of anything, living in Ketterdam your whole life.

The only thing you were certain about was the cruelty and insatiable greed that plagued merchants and thieves alike.

For his sake and for him alone, you wanted to believe in Alina as well.

“She will.”

He offered you a small smile, doing his best to dust off the sorrow that had rested on his face moments before.

“It’s a shame that you won’t be here to see it- you’ll be halfway back to Ketterdam.” He said lightly, any emotions he may have felt about this fact masked and unreadable.

“I could stay,” You said and his expression contorted, his eyebrows drawn together. “You only get one chance to see a miracle, right?”

His face changed back into something easy, a dashing smile.

He walked around the desk, standing a couple feet away from you.

“And here I was hoping that you enjoyed my company.”

You rolled your eyes and on your tongue, a million lies about how you couldn’t stand him.

It’s what Kaz would have done, it’s what you knew how to do best.

And yet, in your chest, a delicate, fluttering thing wanted you to take a step closer to him.

“Can’t two things be true?”

The dashing smile faltered, replaced with a genuine one- softer, less showy, gentle like summer rain.

For the first time since you met him, he seemed to be at a loss for words.

A part of you knows it won’t end well.

He is beholden to a country and you are beholden to nothing but your gun.

You both lives to go back to after this- the Crows, your precious Crows.

And you love the Crows and you miss them, and an ocean away it all feels small when you look into Nikolai’s eyes.

“I knew you liked me.” He said and you rolled your eyes, reaching out to shove him and forgetting every intention of pushing him away when your hand landed on his chest.

Your voice comes out a whisper.

“What gave it away?”

He took your hand gently, looking at it as if it- as if you- were priceless treasure.

Any other moment, any other person, he would’ve made some snarky comment.

“Can I kiss you?” He asked, slightly breathless and your eyes flickered down to his lips before meeting his eyes again.

“I don’t know, can you?” You asked, teasing.

He kissed you gently, pulling you closer until your body was flush against his.

A knock on the door brought both of you back to reality and Nikolai pulled away hesitantly, walking towards the door though his attention was still focused on you.

You took a couple steps back, trying to sit as casually as possible on the desk.

“Tolya. Can I help you?” Nikolai asked, his cheery demeanor forced.

“We’re almost at… are you okay? You seem… flustered.” Tolya said before peering behind Nikolai and meeting your eyes for a split second. “Ah. I can see you’re… occupied at the moment.”

A grin erupted on his face and Nikolai sighed.

“I’m… it’s okay. We’re almost at Ravka?” Nikolai asked and Tolya nodded, grin never leaving his face.

“Correct. I’ll uh, tell the rest of the crew that you’ll be a little bit. Hi, Right-Hook.” Tolya waved to you and you waved back. Nikolai looked back at you, mouthing the nickname in confusion before turning back to Tolya.

“We’re not… we’ll be right after you.”

“Alright. See you guys soon.” Tolya said before walking away. Nikolai closed the door behind him.

“Right hook?”

“Punched him as soon as I woke up.” You said and Nikolai remembered, smile tugging at his lips.

“Right. I don’t know if we have time to talk about-”

“It’s okay. We’ll find time later.” You promised and he smiled, wanting to walk forward but unsure of how to bridge the space between the two of you. “We should go up.”

“Lest Tolya think that we are making out.” He said, opening the door and holding it for you. “After you.”

You smiled, your eyes twinkling.

“How chivalrous, especially for a privateer.”

He laughed and you relished in the music of the sound.

(It won’t end well, but you don’t think it matters at this point.)

tag list: @a-disturbing-self-reflection @mischiefmanaged71 @lunamadhatter99 @feyredarling92 @reverse-iak @zanmorgan @criesinlies @ducks118 @home-of-disaster @96jnie @inluvkai @maddieg1025 @stickyfictioninwriting @pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy @sapphireonline @lareinaa007 @alinasmcu @bcon24 @the-massive-simp @catslovetoreadtoo

[syllvane]

beginnings pt 4- nikolai lantsov x reader

“I’m sorry about your crew members. They seemed like good people.”

Your voice interrupted Nikolai’s thoughts and he turned around to look at you, his expression solemn.

“They were. The only reassurance is that their sacrifice will not have been in vain- that Alina will tear the Fold down.”

You had never believed in much of anything, living in Ketterdam your whole life.

The only thing you were certain about was the cruelty and insatiable greed that plagued merchants and thieves alike.

For his sake and for him alone, you wanted to believe in Alina as well.

“She will.”

He offered you a small smile, doing his best to dust off the sorrow that had rested on his face moments before.

“It’s a shame that you won’t be here to see it- you’ll be halfway back to Ketterdam.” He said lightly, any emotions he may have felt about this fact masked and unreadable.

“I could stay,” You said and his expression contorted, his eyebrows drawn together. “You only get one chance to see a miracle, right?”

His face changed back into something easy, a dashing smile.

He walked around the desk, standing a couple feet away from you.

“And here I was hoping that you enjoyed my company.”

You rolled your eyes and on your tongue, a million lies about how you couldn’t stand him.

It’s what Kaz would have done, it’s what you knew how to do best.

And yet, in your chest, a delicate, fluttering thing wanted you to take a step closer to him.

“Can’t two things be true?”

The dashing smile faltered, replaced with a genuine one- softer, less showy, gentle like summer rain.

For the first time since you met him, he seemed to be at a loss for words.

A part of you knows it won’t end well.

He is beholden to a country and you are beholden to nothing but your gun.

You both lives to go back to after this- the Crows, your precious Crows.

And you love the Crows and you miss them, and an ocean away it all feels small when you look into Nikolai’s eyes.

“I knew you liked me.” He said and you rolled your eyes, reaching out to shove him and forgetting every intention of pushing him away when your hand landed on his chest.

Your voice comes out a whisper.

“What gave it away?”

He took your hand gently, looking at it as if it- as if you- were priceless treasure.

Any other moment, any other person, he would’ve made some snarky comment.

“Can I kiss you?” He asked, slightly breathless and your eyes flickered down to his lips before meeting his eyes again.

“I don’t know, can you?” You asked, teasing.

He kissed you gently, pulling you closer until your body was flush against his.

A knock on the door brought both of you back to reality and Nikolai pulled away hesitantly, walking towards the door though his attention was still focused on you.

You took a couple steps back, trying to sit as casually as possible on the desk.

“Tolya. Can I help you?” Nikolai asked, his cheery demeanor forced.

“We’re almost at… are you okay? You seem… flustered.” Tolya said before peering behind Nikolai and meeting your eyes for a split second. “Ah. I can see you’re… occupied at the moment.”

A grin erupted on his face and Nikolai sighed.

“I’m… it’s okay. We’re almost at Ravka?” Nikolai asked and Tolya nodded, grin never leaving his face.

“Correct. I’ll uh, tell the rest of the crew that you’ll be a little bit. Hi, Right-Hook.” Tolya waved to you and you waved back. Nikolai looked back at you, mouthing the nickname in confusion before turning back to Tolya.

“We’re not… we’ll be right after you.”

“Alright. See you guys soon.” Tolya said before walking away. Nikolai closed the door behind him.

“Right hook?”

“Punched him as soon as I woke up.” You said and Nikolai remembered, smile tugging at his lips.

“Right. I don’t know if we have time to talk about-”

“It’s okay. We’ll find time later.” You promised and he smiled, wanting to walk forward but unsure of how to bridge the space between the two of you. “We should go up.”

“Lest Tolya think that we are making out.” He said, opening the door and holding it for you. “After you.”

You smiled, your eyes twinkling.

“How chivalrous, especially for a privateer.”

He laughed and you relished in the music of the sound.

(It won’t end well, but you don’t think it matters at this point.)

tag list: @a-disturbing-self-reflection @mischiefmanaged71 @lunamadhatter99 @feyredarling92 @reverse-iak @zanmorgan @criesinlies @ducks118 @home-of-disaster @96jnie @inluvkai @maddieg1025 @stickyfictioninwriting @pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy @sapphireonline @lareinaa007 @alinasmcu @bcon24 @the-massive-simp @catslovetoreadtoo

#beginnings #nikolai lanstov x reader #nikolai x reader #nikolai lantsov #six of crows imagines #six of crows imagine #six of crows #six of crows x reader #shadow and bone x reader #shadow and bone #shadow and bone imagine #shadow and bone imagines #nikolai lantsov x you #sturmhond x reader #sturmhond

[syllvane]

you're a really lovely writer btw. :)

ty :')

#anonymous

[syllvane]

sorry for being absent recently, been super busy with school stuff! hopefully will have something coming out this week!

[syllvane]

if wishes came true (it would’ve been you)- nikolai lantsov x reader

a/n: nikolai x the sibling of dominik. brief mentions of violence against children.

“I used to resent you. When they’d hit him for things that you had done.”

Nikolai stayed uncharacteristically silent for a couple moments before taking a sip of kvas, wincing as it hit his throat.

“I used to resent me too.” He said before he looking up at you. “And what about now?”

“You were a child. I blame your parents. I blame whoever saw how much you cared about people around you and used it against you like that. He saw it the same way, you know, except he never blamed you.”

“He was always annoyingly perfect in that way.”

“You’re thinking of yourself. Annoyingly perfect.” You said, ignoring the grin on his face. “He was a good man.”

“You know I would have died for him, right?”

“I know. I also know that he never would’ve let you.” You said, taking the opportunity to study him in a way you hadn’t in years.

More grief was on his face than you had ever seen before- despite the destruction of the Fold, despite uniting East and West Ravka, despite his date for coronation set, despite his upcoming wedding.

He did a good job hiding it with princely smiles and snarky remarks, but you knew him better than anyone- the only person who knew him better might’ve been Dominik, but he was dead.

“Stubborn bastard.”

Your lips curled up into a smile.

“You’re lucky that I’m nicer than him.”

“Prettier? Yes. Nicer? Absolutely not.” He scoffed and you laughed, taking a sip of kvas, the alcohol burning your throat.

“I expect more from an engaged man, Nikolai. What would your mother say?” You jokingly scolded and he rolled his eye.

“Saints, I forgot how much trouble I got in for flirting with you.”

“Both from my brother and your mother.”

“I wish you could’ve seen her face- she was absolutely scandalized that I was flirting with the common folk.”

You smacked his arm.

“I feel like flirting is an exaggeration, you were only ever joking. Even Dominik knew you were only messing around.”

Nikolai’s eyebrows scrunched, a rare moment of confusion on his pretty face.

“I assure you that I was being very serious.” He said and you shook your head. “Dominik got mad because he thought I was toying with your feelings at first, but I promised him that I wasn’t.”

You looked at him bewildered.

“We remember things very differently then.” You said stiffly, staring off into space, trying to process what he had just told you.

“What do you mean?”

“You… did whatever you said you did, and then you enlisted. You gave me no indication that you ever truly had feelings for me.”

“Would it have mattered?” He asked, trying to change the topic.

“Yes. I… Saints, this is so stupid. It wouldn’t have mattered because your parents would’ve never allowed it. They would’ve seen me dead before allowing you to court me.” You said, taking a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought this up.”

“You liked me?” He asked and you rolled your eyes.

“I thought I made that pretty obvious. I thought Dominik made that pretty obvious when he got mad at you.”

He shook his head, looking at you with an unfamiliar expression, like he was trying to discern something .

“What will you do? Now that he’s gone, I mean.”

You shook your head, looking over to the darkened window, candlelit illuminating your surroundings in the glass.

“The sensible answer would be to go back to the farm and settle down. That’s my what my parents want, anyways.”

“And the non-sensible answer?”

You looked at him and, not that he had ever known or would ever know, but you had once dreamed of running away with him, away from the crown and from the farm and from everything both of those things entailed.

It was impossible now, or maybe it had always been impossible, but with the coronation in a couple weeks and the wedding weeks after that, it all felt so very far away now.

“Did Dominik ever tell you about the time that I broke some boys nose, when we were like ten?” His eyes lit up and he shook his head. “He was a noble’s kid, just parroting things that his parents had said. And I just got so angry, and I marched up to him and I just swung.”

“And you didn’t get in trouble?”

“Dominik threatened to break his jaw if he ratted me out.”

Nikolai laughed.

“That explains it. What was he even saying, because I don’t think I’ve ever seen you that mad.”

That you were a bastard. That you weren’t a Lantsov.

“I don’t remember, must’ve been something stupid.”

A silence fell between the two of you, only the crackling of the fire providing any noise.

“You never answered my question. The non-sensible answer.”

I’d spend my entire life loving someone who can’t love me back.

“Throwing punches at idiots.”

He laughed, shaking his head.

“You’ve gotten better at lying since I last saw you, but that’s just a bad lie.”

“I know.”

“So that’s it, you’re not going to tell me?”

You grabbed his hand, bridging the distance between you two. You squeezed his hand once before letting go.

“It’s getting late. I’ll tell you next time.” You said with all the certainty of someone breaking a promise before it’s even been made. 

“Promise?” He asked and you smiled, nodded.

“Of course, I’ve never been able to keep anything from you.”

[syllvane]

if wishes came true (it would’ve been you)- nikolai lantsov x reader

a/n: nikolai x the sibling of dominik. brief mentions of violence against children.

“I used to resent you. When they’d hit him for things that you had done.”

Nikolai stayed uncharacteristically silent for a couple moments before taking a sip of kvas, wincing as it hit his throat.

“I used to resent me too.” He said before he looking up at you. “And what about now?”

“You were a child. I blame your parents. I blame whoever saw how much you cared about people around you and used it against you like that. He saw it the same way, you know, except he never blamed you.”

“He was always annoyingly perfect in that way.”

“You’re thinking of yourself. Annoyingly perfect.” You said, ignoring the grin on his face. “He was a good man.”

“You know I would have died for him, right?”

“I know. I also know that he never would’ve let you.” You said, taking the opportunity to study him in a way you hadn’t in years.

More grief was on his face than you had ever seen before- despite the destruction of the Fold, despite uniting East and West Ravka, despite his date for coronation set, despite his upcoming wedding.

He did a good job hiding it with princely smiles and snarky remarks, but you knew him better than anyone- the only person who knew him better might’ve been Dominik, but he was dead.

“Stubborn bastard.”

Your lips curled up into a smile.

“You’re lucky that I’m nicer than him.”

“Prettier? Yes. Nicer? Absolutely not.” He scoffed and you laughed, taking a sip of kvas, the alcohol burning your throat.

“I expect more from an engaged man, Nikolai. What would your mother say?” You jokingly scolded and he rolled his eye.

“Saints, I forgot how much trouble I got in for flirting with you.”

“Both from my brother and your mother.”

“I wish you could’ve seen her face- she was absolutely scandalized that I was flirting with the common folk.”

You smacked his arm.

“I feel like flirting is an exaggeration, you were only ever joking. Even Dominik knew you were only messing around.”

Nikolai’s eyebrows scrunched, a rare moment of confusion on his pretty face.

“I assure you that I was being very serious.” He said and you shook your head. “Dominik got mad because he thought I was toying with your feelings at first, but I promised him that I wasn’t.”

You looked at him bewildered.

“We remember things very differently then.” You said stiffly, staring off into space, trying to process what he had just told you.

“What do you mean?”

“You… did whatever you said you did, and then you enlisted. You gave me no indication that you ever truly had feelings for me.”

“Would it have mattered?” He asked, trying to change the topic.

“Yes. I… Saints, this is so stupid. It wouldn’t have mattered because your parents would’ve never allowed it. They would’ve seen me dead before allowing you to court me.” You said, taking a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought this up.”

“You liked me?” He asked and you rolled your eyes.

“I thought I made that pretty obvious. I thought Dominik made that pretty obvious when he got mad at you.”

He shook his head, looking at you with an unfamiliar expression, like he was trying to discern something .

“What will you do? Now that he’s gone, I mean.”

You shook your head, looking over to the darkened window, candlelit illuminating your surroundings in the glass.

“The sensible answer would be to go back to the farm and settle down. That’s my what my parents want, anyways.”

“And the non-sensible answer?”

You looked at him and, not that he had ever known or would ever know, but you had once dreamed of running away with him, away from the crown and from the farm and from everything both of those things entailed.

It was impossible now, or maybe it had always been impossible, but with the coronation in a couple weeks and the wedding weeks after that, it all felt so very far away now.

“Did Dominik ever tell you about the time that I broke some boys nose, when we were like ten?” His eyes lit up and he shook his head. “He was a noble’s kid, just parroting things that his parents had said. And I just got so angry, and I marched up to him and I just swung.”

“And you didn’t get in trouble?”

“Dominik threatened to break his jaw if he ratted me out.”

Nikolai laughed.

“That explains it. What was he even saying, because I don’t think I’ve ever seen you that mad.”

That you were a bastard. That you weren’t a Lantsov.

“I don’t remember, must’ve been something stupid.”

A silence fell between the two of you, only the crackling of the fire providing any noise.

“You never answered my question. The non-sensible answer.”

I’d spend my entire life loving someone who can’t love me back.

“Throwing punches at idiots.”

He laughed, shaking his head.

“You’ve gotten better at lying since I last saw you, but that’s just a bad lie.”

“I know.”

“So that’s it, you’re not going to tell me?”

You grabbed his hand, bridging the distance between you two. You squeezed his hand once before letting go.

“It’s getting late. I’ll tell you next time.” You said with all the certainty of someone breaking a promise before it’s even been made. 

“Promise?” He asked and you smiled, nodded.

“Of course, I’ve never been able to keep anything from you.”

#shadow and bone x reader #shadow and bone imagine #shadow and bone #grishaverse x reader #grishaverse imagines #grishaverse #nikolai lanstov x reader #nikolai lantsov #nikolai x reader

[syllvane]

safe harbor- tolya yul-bataar x reader

You dream about losing him more than you used to.

Monsters made of shadows and dusty blue light seem to seep into the alleyways of your sleeping mind.

In the kinder dreams, he is already dead when you arrive, eyes lifeless and weapon laying in uncurled hands.

In worse ones, he is still alive, held up several feet in the air, shadows wrapped tightly around his neck. 

He has already dropped his weapon, clawing at the shadow suffocating him, trying to get it to let him go.

Before he dies, he looks at you desperately and as soon as you move to try and help, the monster crushes his throat in one sickening snap.

You snapped awake, nearly falling out of the hammock from sitting up so quickly, the stale air of the inside of the ship suffocating.

Above deck, in the early morning light, you feel yourself begin to breathe again, your fists clenched and your nails digging into your skin- he’s alive. It was a bad dream, just like the dream from the night before, and the night before that.

”You’re up early.” Inej said and you coughed in surprise, choking on air.

“Yeah, sorry, you… Saints, you're good at that.”

She offered you a kind smile before taking a place by your side, overlooking the sea.

“Is everything alright?” She asked and you remembered to unfurl your fists, marks left on your skin from your nails.

“Yeah, just… just a bad dream.” You said, shaking your head.

Even in her silence, you could tell that she wanted to pry, but that she wouldn’t if you said nothing else about it.

“I get it,” She settled for instead.

“The bad dreams or the not talking about it?”

Her head snapped towards yours and she gave you another smile- less kind, but more genuine.

“Both.” She said, your gaze lingering on her as she turned back towards the sea. “I know it means very little, but if you ever want to talk about it…”

“Thank you.”

“You’re up already?” Tolya asked and you whipped around, smiling at him as he approached the two of you. “Is everything okay?”

“Mhm, perfect now that you’re here.” You replied easily and he pulled you into a hug and you felt the anxiety you had been struggling with moments ago melt away in his arms.

(If he clocks the anxiety or the relief you feel, he doesn’t say anything. He just holds you.)

After a couple seconds, he let go, pulling a couple inches away from you.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

You offered him your most reassuring smile before nodding.

“I’m okay, I promise.”

Your heart beats steadily as you tell him this.

You don’t think you’re lying.

—

Familiar hallways greet you, saturation drained out of the walls and the air.

Your feet are already moving, carrying you to a place you’ve been a hundred times before.

When you arrive, the door is locked. You can hear the twins fighting inside.

You try the door- locked, no luck. You slam on it, fists pounding against wood.

“Tolya!” You screamed. “Tamar!”

The sounds of them fighting are bad enough, but it’s worse when they go silent.

The door cracks open- Tamar is already dead, blood blossoming from her skull.

Tolya is still alive, barely.

“This… is your fault.” He said, his voice barely above a whisper as blood spilled out of his mouth.

Tears welled in your eyes as you kneeled besides him.

“I tried to come in, I tried to help.” You said, voice faltering.

Tolya looked up at you.

“You’ve never been a very good liar.”

It’s the last thing he says before he falls limp in your arms, his blood staining your skin and in your hands, a knife driven into his heart.

You shuttered and clambered away from him, your hands shaking as you examined them.

You killed him, you killed both of them, you-

“You’re okay, I promise you’re okay, everything is okay.”

It’s Tolya’s voice and soft reassurances that pull you out of your dreams, his hands on your shoulders.

You pushed him away, struggling to catch your breath and calm yourself.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t…”

“It’s okay.” He said, no hurt in his voice. “May I?”

You looked at him and nodded.

He placed his hands over your heart and began to slow your heart down, bringing it back to a normal rhythm.

Panic and adrenaline subsided and with it, you felt yourself begin to cry.

“Let’s go above deck, get some fresh air, yeah?” He asked with infinite patience and you nodded, letting him lead you.

The sun hadn’t even appeared in the horizon yet, but the sky was turning a shade of light azure, the moon just about to set and the sun just about to rise.

“You’ve been having a lot of bad dreams lately.” Tolya said, more a matter of fact than a question. You nodded. “You know you can talk to me about them. I don’t think it’s doing you any good just keeping it bottled up.”

You sniffed.

“I know. I just… I thought they’d stop, the further from Ravka we got. But it’s all I dream about, the nichevo'ya and them hurting you.” You said, you’d voice breaking. “I’m so afraid of something happening to you. There was a time I wasn’t afraid of anything.”

He paused, considered this before he took your hands, fingers interlocking with yours, anchoring you to the world.

“I can’t promise you that nothing bad will ever happen.” He said, his eyes focused on your hands. “What I can promise, is that come what may, we will face it together. I love you.”

You nodded slightly, your hands holding onto his tightly.

“I love you too.” You said softly and even the mere whisper of the words was enough to drive away the shadows, at least for now.

[syllvane]

safe harbor- tolya yul-bataar x reader

You dream about losing him more than you used to.

Monsters made of shadows and dusty blue light seem to seep into the alleyways of your sleeping mind.

In the kinder dreams, he is already dead when you arrive, eyes lifeless and weapon laying in uncurled hands.

In worse ones, he is still alive, held up several feet in the air, shadows wrapped tightly around his neck. 

He has already dropped his weapon, clawing at the shadow suffocating him, trying to get it to let him go.

Before he dies, he looks at you desperately and as soon as you move to try and help, the monster crushes his throat in one sickening snap.

You snapped awake, nearly falling out of the hammock from sitting up so quickly, the stale air of the inside of the ship suffocating.

Above deck, in the early morning light, you feel yourself begin to breathe again, your fists clenched and your nails digging into your skin- he’s alive. It was a bad dream, just like the dream from the night before, and the night before that.

”You’re up early.” Inej said and you coughed in surprise, choking on air.

“Yeah, sorry, you… Saints, you're good at that.”

She offered you a kind smile before taking a place by your side, overlooking the sea.

“Is everything alright?” She asked and you remembered to unfurl your fists, marks left on your skin from your nails.

“Yeah, just… just a bad dream.” You said, shaking your head.

Even in her silence, you could tell that she wanted to pry, but that she wouldn’t if you said nothing else about it.

“I get it,” She settled for instead.

“The bad dreams or the not talking about it?”

Her head snapped towards yours and she gave you another smile- less kind, but more genuine.

“Both.” She said, your gaze lingering on her as she turned back towards the sea. “I know it means very little, but if you ever want to talk about it…”

“Thank you.”

“You’re up already?” Tolya asked and you whipped around, smiling at him as he approached the two of you. “Is everything okay?”

“Mhm, perfect now that you’re here.” You replied easily and he pulled you into a hug and you felt the anxiety you had been struggling with moments ago melt away in his arms.

(If he clocks the anxiety or the relief you feel, he doesn’t say anything. He just holds you.)

After a couple seconds, he let go, pulling a couple inches away from you.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

You offered him your most reassuring smile before nodding.

“I’m okay, I promise.”

Your heart beats steadily as you tell him this.

You don’t think you’re lying.

—

Familiar hallways greet you, saturation drained out of the walls and the air.

Your feet are already moving, carrying you to a place you’ve been a hundred times before.

When you arrive, the door is locked. You can hear the twins fighting inside.

You try the door- locked, no luck. You slam on it, fists pounding against wood.

“Tolya!” You screamed. “Tamar!”

The sounds of them fighting are bad enough, but it’s worse when they go silent.

The door cracks open- Tamar is already dead, blood blossoming from her skull.

Tolya is still alive, barely.

“This… is your fault.” He said, his voice barely above a whisper as blood spilled out of his mouth.

Tears welled in your eyes as you kneeled besides him.

“I tried to come in, I tried to help.” You said, voice faltering.

Tolya looked up at you.

“You’ve never been a very good liar.”

It’s the last thing he says before he falls limp in your arms, his blood staining your skin and in your hands, a knife driven into his heart.

You shuttered and clambered away from him, your hands shaking as you examined them.

You killed him, you killed both of them, you-

“You’re okay, I promise you’re okay, everything is okay.”

It’s Tolya’s voice and soft reassurances that pull you out of your dreams, his hands on your shoulders.

You pushed him away, struggling to catch your breath and calm yourself.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t…”

“It’s okay.” He said, no hurt in his voice. “May I?”

You looked at him and nodded.

He placed his hands over your heart and began to slow your heart down, bringing it back to a normal rhythm.

Panic and adrenaline subsided and with it, you felt yourself begin to cry.

“Let’s go above deck, get some fresh air, yeah?” He asked with infinite patience and you nodded, letting him lead you.

The sun hadn’t even appeared in the horizon yet, but the sky was turning a shade of light azure, the moon just about to set and the sun just about to rise.

“You’ve been having a lot of bad dreams lately.” Tolya said, more a matter of fact than a question. You nodded. “You know you can talk to me about them. I don’t think it’s doing you any good just keeping it bottled up.”

You sniffed.

“I know. I just… I thought they’d stop, the further from Ravka we got. But it’s all I dream about, the nichevo'ya and them hurting you.” You said, you’d voice breaking. “I’m so afraid of something happening to you. There was a time I wasn’t afraid of anything.”

He paused, considered this before he took your hands, fingers interlocking with yours, anchoring you to the world.

“I can’t promise you that nothing bad will ever happen.” He said, his eyes focused on your hands. “What I can promise, is that come what may, we will face it together. I love you.”

You nodded slightly, your hands holding onto his tightly.

“I love you too.” You said softly and even the mere whisper of the words was enough to drive away the shadows, at least for now.

#tolya x reader #shadow and bone x reader #shadow and bone imagine #tolya yul bataar x reader #tolya yul bataar #tolya and tamar #shadow and bone #six of crows imagines #six of crows imagine #six of crows #six of crows x reader

[syllvane]

I don’t know if my phone is bugging out since it does that a lot with tumblr but do you have an updated requests list? The link led me to one that was empty

i haven’t updated it yet, but am planning to do it whenever I have time this week! last time i checked, i had 7-8 requests in my inbox!

edit: updated!

#anonymous #asks

[syllvane]

something about strays- kaz brekker x reader

a/n: based off of a request! pre-established relationship between kaz and reader.

You find him when you’re coming home from a job - Kaz and Jesper are a couple paces behind you and Inej is on the rooftops, shadowing the three of you - when you hear a noise from the alleyway, catching your attention.

He’s all bones, his ribs visible from under his black fur, pale green eyes staring at you from within the darkness.

As soon as you lay your eyes on him, you know that you’re going to help this animal to the best of your ability.

You step into the darkness, kneeling down and offering your hand out to him.

“Everything okay?” Jesper called out and you didn’t respond, doing your best not to startle the cat any more than it already was.

You held out your hand, motioning for the others to stay a good distance away.

“There’s a cat.” You said calmly and the two sets of footsteps stopped.

“And?” Kaz said and you turned around to look at him.

“I want to bring him home.”

“No.” Kaz said without hesitation, continuing to walk past you. “We don’t need another mouth to feed.”

“You’re one of the richest men in Ketterdam, Kaz, what’s one cat?” You shot back and he didn’t say anything, not even turning around to look at you.

Jesper stopped, giving you a sympathetic look.

“I guess even dating the boss has its limits.”

Kaz looked back at Jesper, shooting him a dirty looked before continuing along.

“He just needs a chance to warm up to the cat- I mean look at him, isn’t he adorable?”

“He’s covered with fleas and is bone-thin.”

“He’s had a tough life.” You said, unable to take your eyes off of the creature. “Do you have any food on you?”

Jesper patted his pockets.

“Nope.”

“If I give you some kruge, will you go fetch me some food? Either some fish or something?”

Jesper paused.

“You really care about it this much?”

You looked away from the stray for a second, looking at the departing figure of Kaz Brekker.

“I’ve always had a fondness for strays, I suppose.” You said before turning back to the cat in front of you, who promptly hissed. “Will you do it?”

“Of course. Don’t… don’t worry about the kruge. You’ve covered me more times than I can count, I’ll get this one.”

You turned and looked at him gratefully, settling down on the damp cobblestones a couple feet away from the cat.

Whoever had once cared for the cat, if anyone had ever cared for the cat, had left him behind long ago.

He was thin and even from a couple feet away, you could tell that there was no fat on his bones, only lean muscle.

More than anything, it seemed to tolerate your presence out of mere curiosity, presumably not used to people sitting down across from it and just observing it.

Footsteps broke the relative silence of Ketterdam and you turned around slightly to see Jesper walking back towards you, brown paper bag in hand.

“Hey- here is the food, it’s a fish sandwich. It should be okay for the little guy to eat, but the vendor wasn’t completely sure.” Jesper said, taking a couple more steps before kneeling down besides you, handing the bag to you.

Any interest the cat had in Jesper or you disappeared as soon as it smelled the food inside the paper bag, nose twitching and all attention turned to figuring out how to obtain the food.

You took half of the sandwich out and carefully unwrapped it from the paper.

You stretched out closer towards the cat, causing it to backpedal and hiss at you, before you set the half down and returned to your original position.

He looked at you and Jesper unsure, as if this was some kind of trick or like you were going to reach back out and try to grab him.

“Let’s move back a little.” You said and you scooted backwards and Jesper stood up slowly and backed away, doing his best to look dignified.

The cat, more confident, took a couple of cautious steps forward before snatching the sandwich and pulling back, only green eyes visible in the darkness of the alleyway.

You set down the other half of the sandwich before standing up, offering a hand to Jesper.

“Let’s come back tomorrow, I think our friend has had enough of us tonight.”

“What are you gonna call him? I’m sure Kaz would love if you named it after him.”

You rolled your eyes, walking away from the alley with Jesper's arm slung around your shoulder.

“I was thinking Crow,”

“Mmm, I do like that.” Jesper said thoughtfully, the two of you continuing to walk back to the Slat.

You find the car in the same alleyway the next few days and eventually he stops hissing everytime you offer it food- by the fourth day, Crow eats the fish before you can even place it on the ground.

On the fifth day, it starts following you back to the Slat.

Nina takes care of the fleas, stopping their hearts in exchange for helping her convince Kaz of something, and soon the only one who hasn’t been won over by Crow is Kaz.

“He does look much better than when we first saw him, I’ll give you that at least.” He said, observing the cat with remarkable apathy. “Is it really worth it? All the time and effort you’ve put into caring for him?”

Crow hissed at Kaz, brushing against your legs. Kaz made a scary face at the cat in retaliation. You nearly choked on your laughter.

“Saints, I sure know how to pick them.” You shook your head, a smile on your face. You absentmindedly reached out for Kaz before catching yourself, remembering. “Yes, he is worth it. He’ll scratch my arms up and will break out of the Slat, but I’d still choose him.”

I’d still choose you.

He looked at you, piercing blue eyes meeting yours, searching for something.

He looked down at Crow and then back at you before nodding once.

“Okay. I’ll try. Only for you.” Your expression softened into a smile and he didn’t acknowledge it, never knew how to acknowledge it. “Now we should probably get some proper food for it, as well as a litter box and a bed.”

He started to walk away, Crow following him and you just stood there, half-shocked.

He turned back to look at you, no trace of the gentleness from moments before.

“Are you coming?”

“Yeah. Just… yeah.”

[syllvane]

Hello !! I love your writing <3 I’d like to request a Kaz x reader where the reader has a huge soft spot for cats and brings home a mean old stray that’s lazy and sort of ugly but they love the cat and insist on adopting it. Thank you ^^ - 👾

posted <3

#I changed it up a little bit but same premise! #👾 anon #asks

[syllvane]

something about strays- kaz brekker x reader

a/n: based off of a request! pre-established relationship between kaz and reader.

You find him when you’re coming home from a job - Kaz and Jesper are a couple paces behind you and Inej is on the rooftops, shadowing the three of you - when you hear a noise from the alleyway, catching your attention.

He’s all bones, his ribs visible from under his black fur, pale green eyes staring at you from within the darkness.

As soon as you lay your eyes on him, you know that you’re going to help this animal to the best of your ability.

You step into the darkness, kneeling down and offering your hand out to him.

“Everything okay?” Jesper called out and you didn’t respond, doing your best not to startle the cat any more than it already was.

You held out your hand, motioning for the others to stay a good distance away.

“There’s a cat.” You said calmly and the two sets of footsteps stopped.

“And?” Kaz said and you turned around to look at him.

“I want to bring him home.”

“No.” Kaz said without hesitation, continuing to walk past you. “We don’t need another mouth to feed.”

“You’re one of the richest men in Ketterdam, Kaz, what’s one cat?” You shot back and he didn’t say anything, not even turning around to look at you.

Jesper stopped, giving you a sympathetic look.

“I guess even dating the boss has its limits.”

Kaz looked back at Jesper, shooting him a dirty looked before continuing along.

“He just needs a chance to warm up to the cat- I mean look at him, isn’t he adorable?”

“He’s covered with fleas and is bone-thin.”

“He’s had a tough life.” You said, unable to take your eyes off of the creature. “Do you have any food on you?”

Jesper patted his pockets.

“Nope.”

“If I give you some kruge, will you go fetch me some food? Either some fish or something?”

Jesper paused.

“You really care about it this much?”

You looked away from the stray for a second, looking at the departing figure of Kaz Brekker.

“I’ve always had a fondness for strays, I suppose.” You said before turning back to the cat in front of you, who promptly hissed. “Will you do it?”

“Of course. Don’t… don’t worry about the kruge. You’ve covered me more times than I can count, I’ll get this one.”

You turned and looked at him gratefully, settling down on the damp cobblestones a couple feet away from the cat.

Whoever had once cared for the cat, if anyone had ever cared for the cat, had left him behind long ago.

He was thin and even from a couple feet away, you could tell that there was no fat on his bones, only lean muscle.

More than anything, it seemed to tolerate your presence out of mere curiosity, presumably not used to people sitting down across from it and just observing it.

Footsteps broke the relative silence of Ketterdam and you turned around slightly to see Jesper walking back towards you, brown paper bag in hand.

“Hey- here is the food, it’s a fish sandwich. It should be okay for the little guy to eat, but the vendor wasn’t completely sure.” Jesper said, taking a couple more steps before kneeling down besides you, handing the bag to you.

Any interest the cat had in Jesper or you disappeared as soon as it smelled the food inside the paper bag, nose twitching and all attention turned to figuring out how to obtain the food.

You took half of the sandwich out and carefully unwrapped it from the paper.

You stretched out closer towards the cat, causing it to backpedal and hiss at you, before you set the half down and returned to your original position.

He looked at you and Jesper unsure, as if this was some kind of trick or like you were going to reach back out and try to grab him.

“Let’s move back a little.” You said and you scooted backwards and Jesper stood up slowly and backed away, doing his best to look dignified.

The cat, more confident, took a couple of cautious steps forward before snatching the sandwich and pulling back, only green eyes visible in the darkness of the alleyway.

You set down the other half of the sandwich before standing up, offering a hand to Jesper.

“Let’s come back tomorrow, I think our friend has had enough of us tonight.”

“What are you gonna call him? I’m sure Kaz would love if you named it after him.”

You rolled your eyes, walking away from the alley with Jesper's arm slung around your shoulder.

“I was thinking Crow,”

“Mmm, I do like that.” Jesper said thoughtfully, the two of you continuing to walk back to the Slat.

You find the car in the same alleyway the next few days and eventually he stops hissing everytime you offer it food- by the fourth day, Crow eats the fish before you can even place it on the ground.

On the fifth day, it starts following you back to the Slat.

Nina takes care of the fleas, stopping their hearts in exchange for helping her convince Kaz of something, and soon the only one who hasn’t been won over by Crow is Kaz.

“He does look much better than when we first saw him, I’ll give you that at least.” He said, observing the cat with remarkable apathy. “Is it really worth it? All the time and effort you’ve put into caring for him?”

Crow hissed at Kaz, brushing against your legs. Kaz made a scary face at the cat in retaliation. You nearly choked on your laughter.

“Saints, I sure know how to pick them.” You shook your head, a smile on your face. You absentmindedly reached out for Kaz before catching yourself, remembering. “Yes, he is worth it. He’ll scratch my arms up and will break out of the Slat, but I’d still choose him.”

I’d still choose you.

He looked at you, piercing blue eyes meeting yours, searching for something.

He looked down at Crow and then back at you before nodding once.

“Okay. I’ll try. Only for you.” Your expression softened into a smile and he didn’t acknowledge it, never knew how to acknowledge it. “Now we should probably get some proper food for it, as well as a litter box and a bed.”

He started to walk away, Crow following him and you just stood there, half-shocked.

He turned back to look at you, no trace of the gentleness from moments before.

“Are you coming?”

“Yeah. Just… yeah.”

#six of crows imagines #six of crows imagine #six of crows #six of crows x reader #grishaverse x reader #grishaverse imagines #grishaverse #shadow and bone x reader #shadow and bone imagine #shadow and bone #kaz brekker imagine #kaz brekker #kaz brekker x reader