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lobster-tales · 1 year

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Beat the Daylight

Sequel to Face the Noise, an Arcane Rock Band AU

Rating: M

Chapter 20: The Jam Sesh

Summary: All is well. 3 months later || Springtime

This work is available here on AO3. Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19

Powder had missed her bed. Sure, the one at the hotel had been comfortable, with its satin pillows and heavy comforter. But there was nothing like her bed, the mish mash of blankets from her childhood that were layered on top of each other in artful chaos, arranged to allow the best combination of weight and airflow.

And particularly this morning, with Lux sleeping beside her, she didn’t want to leave.

She heard heavy footsteps in the hallway, the scent of coffee a few minutes later. Careful not to disturb Lux, Powder slipped out of the sheets and tugged a Hextech hoodie over her shoulders. She’d been surprised at how comfortable it was, way more than any of Shimmer’s merch–no wonder Vi and Mel wore theirs all the time.

Vi was pouring a cup when she walked in. “Morning.” Even after a few months, her eyes still had that shine whenever she saw Powder, that awed relief. Powder pretended not to like it. Vi asked, “Lux here? What time did she get in last night?”

“Late.” Powder pulled out her favorite mug and her second favorite for Lux.

“She likes one splash of vanilla creamer and a splash of hazelnut,” Vi advised. “I picked up both last night. She also likes a little sprinkle of cinnamon on top but not too much because it’ll sink to the bottom.”

Still so weird. Powder wondered if she would ever get past it. “Thanks.”

“What are you two doing today?”

“I’m gonna show her the town,” Powder said, sipping from her own coffee. “We’ll pick up Ekko once he’s done with his meeting. You want to come with us?”

“Nah, I got work.” Vi stretched her fingers skyward. “New hire’s settling in, though. He’s been closing the last couple nights on his own.”

“Good. Give you more time to train for your tournaments.” Powder smirked at her. “Cause you’re gonna need it.”

“Oh, I need it, huh?” Vi scoffed playfully, rising from the table. “Come say that to my face, I’ll whoop you right here and now.”

“No thanks,” Powder said, taking Lux’s cup. “I’m not paying your hospital bill.”

Vi shook her head, grinning. “See you tonight, Pow-pow.”

“Later.” When Powder returned to her bedroom, Lux was just stirring. “Good morning, Starlight,” Powder purred. “Want some coffee?”

Lux blinked at her, and gasped. “Yes!” She accepted the cup, murmuring, “Did I ever tell you that you’re my favorite person ever?”

“Mmm I wouldn’t mind hearing it a little more,” she said, kissing the tip of Lux’s nose.

They took their time getting ready for the day. Of course, Powder wasn’t very helpful, since every time Lux put a piece of clothing on, Powder eventually worked it back off of her again, distracting her with kisses.

“Powder,” Lux giggled. “Come on, I have to do something with my day.”

“I’m something.” And she bit her neck.

They spent a few hours tangled in each other’s arms, enjoying each other in lazy bliss, until Lux glanced at her phone and gasped. “Oh, we gotta go! Ekko finished his meeting a while ago.”

As they arrived at Ekko’s place, he bounded up to the car. “Yo, Crownguard!” Ekko reached in through the window to clasp Lux’s hand and draw her in for a half hug. “What is up, girl, how you been!”

“Good,” Lux said with a grin.

Powder cut in. “You better watch those hands, Boy Savior.”

“Only if you can catch them.” He slid into the back, propping his forearms on the back of their seats. “What’s our first stop?”

“The school,” Lux sighed. “Have to convince my parents this was a productive trip.”

They cruised through campus: the weekend left the area empty, with only a few students trailing through. Powder had familiarized herself with the buildings, and pointed them out as they went. “There’s the chemistry building, environmental science. That’s where Viktor and Jayce’s lab used to be when they were grad students.”

Lux asked, “Which one are you going to be in?”

“All of them,” Powder huffed. “The boys said I can’t start my Hextech internship until I get my basics out of the way.”

Ekko reassured her, “You’ll knock it out in no time. As long as you don’t get distracted by Starlight over here,” and he pinched Lux’s shoulder.

“Hey, what’d I say about hands, bitch?” Powder reached back to swat at him.

They stopped at the top of the parking garage, leaning over the concrete wall to survey the city. The trees were full and lush, cars passing by lazily in the mid-spring day. Ekko and Powder switched off their tour notes, pointing out different landmarks.

“There’s the square,” Powder said. “You can’t really see the pub from here, but you can see the top of the courthouse.”

“And that office building?” said Ekko. “When that place was still being built, we snuck in one night and tried cigarettes for the first time.”

“Oh yeah,” Powder laughed. “Vander was pissed. Vi was grounded for two weeks.”

Lux just beamed at them both, enjoying the stories, only interrupting occasionally to ask questions.

The pub was the next stop. The lunch rush had just ended, giving Vi and Vander a long enough break to greet Lux. Vander in particular was excited to meet her, curious about her style of playing guitar. Lux was nervous at first, but settled into one of her rambles, and Powder gave Vi a knowing look as they all listened.

Eventually Vi and Vander had to get back to work, at which point, Powder, Ekko, and Lux went to Shepherd’s Bridge. After handing Lux some spray paint, they cheered her on while she left her own tag, a bright blue star symbol sandwiched between Caitlyn’s cupcake and a fresh pink “Jinx”.

The trio picked up a few supplies for the evening, stocking up on sodas and chips. Powder dropped off Ekko at his car so he could go pick up Zeri, leaving her and Lux to their own devices for the afternoon.

They lay entwined on the living room couch, half-paying attention to the horror movie. Lux ran her fingers through Powder’s hair, gently massaging her scalp.

“Do you think they’d like me?” Powder asked. “Your parents. And Garen.”

“Maybe. I mean, you are rich and famous now.”

“Jinx is famous,” Powder clarified. “Powder’s just rich.” Because she was over eighteen, all of the money Silco set aside for her had become hers, even after his arrest. The problem was she didn’t know what to do with it, other than pay for school. Now, she had everything she wanted.

Lux smiled to herself. “Well, Jinx is the one in all those scandalous pictures of us, so they’ll probably prefer Powder.”

“Scandalous, huh?” Powder buried her nose in Lux’s ribs.

“They’re going to be weird,” Lux said honestly. “They always have been. Hell, I could be dating Caitlyn and they’d still complain because the Kirammans are new money. You can’t worry about what they think. Just worry about what I think.”

Powder propped her chin on her stomach, gazing adoringly up at her. “And what do you think?”

“I think…” Lux said, tapping her nose with a finger. “That you’re adorable.”

Powder scrunched up her nose, pretending she was offended. “I’m not adorable. I’m a menace.” She gently bit Lux’s skin.

“Fine. You’re an adorable menace.”

The doorknob jingled, and Caitlyn followed the sound, arms overflowing with paperwork. “Hi Lux!” she said with a smile. “How was your trip here?”

“Good.”

Powder nodded towards the papers. “How’s hunting?”

“Ugh.” Caitlyn dropped everything on the already cluttered kitchen table. “I’d rather hunt a hawk in the rain. But, we’re making progress. There’s a lot of new housing between here and Piltover. Lux, I forgot to ask, do you have any home preferences?”

“Nope!” Lux said brightly. “Just my own room and a roof.”

“That’s exactly what Vi and Ekko said.”

Powder gave Lux the side eye. “You know, you could always take Vi’s room and live here with meeee.”

“My parents barely agreed to let me live with Caitlyn,” said Lux. “That being said, I might have some early classes, so it would make more sense for me to spend a few nights a week over here.”

“Or every night.”

“Powder,” Lux chuckled. “I can’t.”

Powder huffed, pretending to be annoyed. “You’d really rather live with my sister and my ex-boyfriend?”

Caitlyn chimed in, “It was that or fourth wheel with Jayce, Mel, and Viktor.” The kettle whined and she entered a few seconds later with a steaming cup of tea in hand. “Speaking of which, Jayce said they’re on their way. Viktor wanted plenty of time to set up his equipment.”

“Perfect.” Powder stretched, rising from the couch and offering her hand to Lux. “I should also start getting set up. Wanna help me?”

“Sure!” As they entered the garage, Lux admired the string lights weaving back and forth over the ceiling, the variety of band posters on the walls. “Not sure how helpful I’ll be, though.”

“Well, you have the most important job.” Powder indicated the brown couch against the wall. “I need you to sit there, and look pretty.”

☆ ☆ ☆

Viktor and Jayce brought Sky with them, as she was visiting from Noxus. While they set up, she regaled them with stories of her new job and coworkers, her love life and friendships. Lux asked constant questions, fascinated. The two had only met over Caitlyn’s video calls, and were fast friends.

Just as dusk approached, Ekko and Zeri arrived with Vi. Ekko prepped his keyboard presets while Vi and Lux tuned their guitars, Zeri warming up her vocals. Caitlyn and Sky were more than happy to plant themselves on the couch, splitting a bottle of rosé.

Vi asked Jayce, “Who’s drumming first?” but Powder answered for her, plopping down into the drumset chair and twirling her sticks.

“You ready to see a real drummer, Talis?” Powder sneered playfully.

He smiled, joining Caitlyn and Sky on the couch, inviting Viktor into his lap. “Took you long enough.”

Ekko played a single chord, considering his bandmates. “Alright. What song are we-”

Zeri interrupted him by seizing the mic and singing,

Shot through the heart And you're to blame

They all joined in.

Darlin', you give love a bad name

Vi, Powder, Lux, and Ekko launched into the instrumental, the noise rattling the walls of the garage. Zeri nodded her head to the beat, her pigtails bouncing with the movement.

An angel's smile is what you sell You promise me Heaven, then put me through hell Chains of love got a hold on me When passion's a prison, you can't break free

Oh, you're a loaded gun, yeah Oh, there's nowhere to run No one can save me The damage is done

The couch crowd sang along to the chorus,

Shot through the heart And you're to blame You give love a bad name (bad name) I play my part and you play your game You give love a bad name (bad name) Hey, you give love, a bad name

For the final chorus, the instruments fell away, leaving the band to sing acapella,

Shot through the heart And you're to blame

Zeri aimed the mic at the couch, and the small audience sang the last,

You give love a bad name

The friends whooped and cheered. Powder whispered to the other band members and they all grinned. She clicked her sticks together, “1, 2, 3, 4!” and they began an upbeat song. There was no part on the keys, so Ekko grabbed his mic and sang with Zeri.

All the small things True care, truth brings I'll take one lift Your ride, best trip

They harmonized, Zeri singing the higher part as Ekko took the lead,

Always, I know You'll be at my show Watching, waiting Commiserating

Say it ain't so, I will not go Turn the lights off, carry me home

Zeri pulled Ekko away from the microphone, dancing together in the center of the room while the rest of the band sang,

Na-na, na-na, na-na, na-na, na, na Na-na, na-na, na-na, na-na, na, na

As the song ended, Mel entered from the garage’s side door, grinning. “I can hear you down the street,” she chuckled. “Excuse my tardiness: meeting ran late.”

“You’re excused,” Zeri and Powder said at the same time.

Mel considered the couch. “And this must be the lovely Sky I’ve heard so much about.”

Sky’s eyes widened at the sight of her. “H-hi,” she stammered, rising. “Senator Medarda, it’s so nice to meet you.”

She took her hands and said warmly, “Call me Mel. I’ve heard you’ve been working in Noxus. Quite the culture shock?”

Sky smiled shyly. “Yeah, they’re a little intense over there.”

“Some things never change,” Mel said wistfully. “Here, I have something for you in the car: Caitlyn mentioned you like rosé so I brought my top six brands for you to sample. Jayce, darling, can you help me bring them in?”

Sky just stared after them, jaw dropped. “Is she-”

“Always like that?” Caitlyn asked wryly.

“Always,” Viktor confirmed, resting an arm around Sky’s shoulders.

When Jayce returned, Vi nodded towards Powder. “Alright, Pow-Pow, it’s Jayce’s turn.”

“No!” She crushed the sticks to her chest, but her possession was more playful than sincere.

Ekko smirked and said, “You’re gonna make her sing this next one alone?” And he played the opening synth riff.

Powder practically threw the sticks at Jayce, taking the microphone in hand as he scrambled to get behind the drumset before the beat dropped.

The sisters sang the first verse together.

Here we stand Worlds apart, hearts broken in two, two, two Sleepless nights Losing ground, I'm reaching for you, you, you

They harmonized together on the pre-chorus.

Feeling that it's gone Can't change your mind If we can't go on To survive the tide Love divides

On the chorus, Ekko and Lux joined the vocals, but paled in comparison to the passion that Vi and Powder shared.

Someday love will find you Break those chains that bind you One night will remind you How we touched and went our separate ways

Vi sang,

If he ever hurts you

Then Powder,

True love won't desert you

And together again, grasping each other’s hands as they belted,

You know I still love you Though we touched and went our separate ways

Lux shredded through the guitar solo, a cocky smirk resting on her lips. Then it was just Ekko, running the synth hook, the song ending with the final two notes of the bass drum.

When the applause and cheers died down, Powder pointed at Viktor. “Alright, Vik, you’ve had it too good for too long. It’s your turn, DJ.”

“Eh, good things never last.” He took his spot behind his equipment, playing a few warm up beats and house music. The couch was too small to fit all of them, so Powder, Jayce, Ekko and Zeri grabbed some lawn chairs.

After his series of beats and tracks, Viktor nodded decisively towards Lux. “You ready?”

“I was born ready,” Lux said. She left the mic in the stand to free her hands.

Viktor started with a snapping, electropop beat. Lux raised her hands, grinning slyly at Powder as she sang. The notes were simple, but she added vibrato to the notes, made the sound her own.

We are the crowd, we're c-comin' out Got my flash on, it's true Need that picture of you, it's so magical We'd be so fantastical

Leather and jeans,

She spread her arms wide, indicating the space.

Garage glamorous Not sure what it means But this photo of us, it don't have a price Ready for those flashing lights 'Cause you know that, baby, I

Lux took the mic in hand, stalking towards Powder in time to the music.

I'm your biggest fan, I'll follow you until you love me Papa-paparazzi Baby, there's no other superstar, you know that I'll be Your papa-paparazzi

Standing directly in front of her, legs between Powder’s knees, Lux’s free hand toyed with her braids. Powder lifted her hands and claimed the back of Lux’s thighs, holding her there. She gazed up at Lux with adoring, hungry eyes.

Promise I'll be kind But I won't stop until that girl is mine Baby, you'll be famous, chase you down until you love me Papa-paparazzi

Lux’s voice was playful as she went through the verses, gliding around Powder, brushing her fingers over her shoulders, never quite close enough. But as the bridge ended, Lux fell to her knees in front of her, crawling towards Powder as she sang the chorus once more, her voice fiercely possessive.

I'm your biggest fan, I'll follow you until you love me Papa-paparazzi Baby, there's no other superstar, you know that I'll be Your papa-paparazzi

Powder held her breath. She was spellbound by Lux’s intensity, fixed in place by those bright eyes and the carnal rawness of her voice. Lux added in her own high notes to the final chorus, belting the song as she climbed into Powder’s lap.

Promise I'll be kind But I won't stop until that girl is mine Baby, you'll be famous, chase you down until you love me Papa-paparazzi

The mic dropped to the floor as Lux took her mouth in a rough kiss. Everyone cheered except for Vi and Caitlyn, who averted their eyes and clapped politely, charmed but embarrassed at the fiery display.

The jam session went well into the night, with each of the band members switching off instruments whenever they got too tired. Even Caitlyn at one point felt the rosé enough to show everyone her under-practiced, jerky rendition of Moonlight Sonata, to which Zeri chose to do an entirely inappropriate dance to, making everyone laugh. They went through a variety of genres, and the original Firelights even played a few of the songs from their past performances. Eventually, the group decided to call it, with Powder taking the mic to lead them into one final song.

Acapella, Powder sang the lead, with Vi and Ekko backing her up with harmonies,

Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? Caught in a landside, No escape from reality Open your eyes, Look up to the skies and see,

Powder belted out,

I'm just a poor boy, I need no sympathy, Because I'm easy come, easy go, Little high, little low, Any way the wind blows doesn't really matter to Me, to me

Ekko played a gentle, modified scale on the keyboard. The rest of the group joined in, all singing together for the first verse.

Mamaaa, Just killed a man, Put a gun against his head, pulled my trigger, Now he's dead Mamaaa, life had just begun, But now I've gone and thrown it all away

Powder took the lead again on the second half of the verse,

Too late, my time has come, Sends shivers down my spine, body's aching all The time Goodbye, everybody, I've got to go, Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth

During the instrumental break, Vi tore up a guitar solo. Her fingers pulsed against the fret with each note, creating a vibrato sound. When the solo ended, Ekko’s piano took over again. Powder sang,

I see a little silhouetto of a man,

The rest of the band sang,

Scaramouch, Scaramouch, will you do the Fandango!

They all broke out into smiles during the operatic third verse. Powder alone,

I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me

Zeri and Lux both grabbed her, dramatically fawning as they sang,

He's just a poor boy from a poor family Spare him his life from this monstrosity

As the verse built towards it’s climactic end, they all sang,

Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me, for me,

“Go Starlight!” Powder yelled, and Lux belted the high note,

For me!

Vi shredded out another guitar instrumental, screaming into the microphone with the rest of the band,

So you think you can stone me and spit in my eye? So you think you can love me and leave me to die? Oh, baby, can't do this to me, baby! Just gotta get out, just gotta get right outta here

She kept up the pace, the energy building until finally the music collapsed back into a slower tempo. The couch audience held up their phone flashlights, swaying back and forth to the muted end of the song.

Powder took a moment to look at them, her family. It had grown so much in such a short time. She smiled at each of their shining faces, ending with Vi, who returned the joyful grin. Powder sang,

Nothing really matters,

Lux took her hand, drawing her attention, and sang,

Anyone can see

Powder pressed her sweaty forehead against Lux’s, singing,

Nothing really matters

Lux echoed,

Nothing really matters

Then they harmonized,

To me

Ekko played the gentle piano outro, Vi joining quietly on the electric guitar. And here, surrounded by the music and her family, Powder felt completely and totally at peace.

Any way the wind blows

#arcane #lightcannon #vicait #jinx #vi #rock band au #battle of the bands au #my fic #face the noise #beat the daylight #fluff #final chapter #completely 100% wholesome and happy family vibes #the happy ending our babies deserve :')

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draganwhorror · 4 months

Note

1)Do you know if your parents were contemplating naming you something else? What was the name?

2)Do you like your name?

3)If you could change your name, would you? And what would you change it to?

12) Do you have any pets? What kind and what are their names?

14) What time of day is your favorite?

18) Would you rather travel by plane or ferry/cruise?

25)Name a song that makes you happy and wanna dance.

26)Name a song that reminds you of someone.

31)Name a fictional character you’ve had a crush on.

32)What do you like to snack on at the movie theater?

33)If you could switch places with a character from a show or movie for a week, who would you choose? Why?

35)Favorite TV series?

36)What’s a TV series you wasted your time watching because it was so terrible?

55) What’s your biggest regret?

62)If you could say one thing to your past self, what would you tell them?

63)What’s something you want to tell your followers who might be going through a rough time?

64)Do you believe everything happens for a reason?

65)What’s your favorite ice cream flavor?

Yeah, my dad wanted to name my sister Jennifer when he found out my mom was having twins. He also wanted to name me Jessica. But my mom hated the name, and she insisted on getting to name me. She also refused to tell anyone what she was choosing until it was already on the birth certificate. So my name was almost Jessica.

As a kid, I didn't really like my name. I grew up in a small town where I was the only person with my name, and after Aladdin came out, the Princess nickname was constant and annoying. Especially as I got older (I was 7 when the movie came out). Now, though, I'm okay with my name. I've had more celebrities tell me it's a pretty name than anyone else. haha

I wouldn't change it now. Back in the day, though, I contemplated going by my middle name, and I had thoughts of changing it to something more basic. But, ultimately, I'm glad I didn't.

12. I have 3 cats. My oldest is Mistress Stormageddon, Dark Lord(ess) of All. She's turning 10 this year. Then I have two 3-year old siblings. Luthair, the tuxedo, and Traces, the gray floofy one. They were named after characters in a fantasy series I'm obsessed with.

14. My favorite time of day is probably late at night. I've always been a night owl and am usually up until 2-3 AM.

18. Plane. I have a serious fear of the water/ocean and don't think I could handle a ferry or a cruise.

25. A song that makes me happy and wanna dance... I'd have to say, honestly, it's probably Footloose. haha

26. A song that reminds me of someone... I'd have to go with Meet You There by Simple Plan. Reminds me of my grandma who has been gone for 17 years now. :(

31. I've had a crush on Fox Mulder since I was 9 years old. So pretty!

32. I always get nachos when I go to the movies. I have a slight obsession with nachos.

33. If I could switch places with someone from a TV show or movie, I'd have to say I'd want to be Willow from Buffy. I adore Alyson Hannigan. And Willow was my favorite character.

35. My favorite TV series is 100% The X-Files. Started watching when I was 9. Been a fan ever since. 30 years now.

36. I have to go with Lost, which is one of my favorites. It started off so strong and was so good, but as it went on, it got more and more convoluted, and that ending just frustrated me to no end. I felt let down, like I had wasted all that time watching and getting invested, only for it to end badly.

55. My biggest regret is probably being stupid and staying with someone who was abusive for 9 years. Mostly verbal, but occasionally physical. Definitely the biggest regret I have.

62. If I could tell my past self anything, it would probably be...don't let your mom control your entire life and try to make you do what she wants. Your desires and hopes and dreams matter too, and you shouldn't be made to feel guilty for what you wanna do.

63. I'd tell them not to give up. Trust me, I know how hard it can be when you hit a rough patch. Just...keep going. Seriously. Don't give up.

64. I'd like to think so, but at the same time, I don't know. I feel like sometimes bad things will happen to try and make you persevere and work through the challenge to come out a better version of yourself. Or something like that.

65. I'm a sucker for Moose Tracks. Best flavor of ice cream, hands down.

#answered #ask meme #courier-jackalope

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riverdamien · 2 years

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Hope in the Midst of Tragedy!

A Hope Beyond Tragedy!

Reading 1

Jb 3:1-3, 11-17, 20-23

Job opened his mouth and cursed his day.

Job spoke out and said:

Perish the day on which I was born,

the night when they said, “The child is a boy!”

Why did I not perish at birth,

come forth from the womb and expire?

Or why was I not buried away like an untimely birth,

like babes that have never seen the light?

Wherefore did the knees receive me?

or why did I suck at the breasts?

For then I should have lain down and been tranquil;

had I slept, I should then have been at rest

With kings and counselors of the earth

who built where now there are ruins

Or with princes who had gold

and filled their houses with silver.

There the wicked cease from troubling,

there the weary are at rest.

Why is light given to the toilers,

and life to the bitter in spirit?

They wait for death and it comes not;

they search for it rather than for hidden treasures,

Rejoice in it exultingly,

and are glad when they reach the grave:

Those whose path is hidden from them,

and whom God has hemmed in!================================Suffering is not a subject we want to think of, even bring up, let alone talk about, when all of us suffer in one manner or another.

Job was suffering over the death of his kids, and he went back and forth in his questioning and doubts about God.

The actions of humanity result in our suffering. Climate change, violence, and abuse are a result of human action, yet we want God to deliver us.

My young friend Damien was raised in a loving and caring home, with a conservative faith experience. At twelve years old he was "saved" in his words. He told me that from the age of nine, he knew he was gay. In adolescence, he would sneak around gay bars, and parks where men cruised, and had sex.

Damien began to have symptoms of HIV at sixteen and went to a doctor who diagnosed him and told Damien's parents.

Telling his parents, refusing to repent he was kicked out of his home and found himself hustling on the street. He was free, cute, and he lived wild.

He converted to AIDS at twenty and experienced severe depression, had no faith in anything, and became suicidal. But in his struggle, found faith in a God of love, and he moved into being present to others. He was safe in his sex life, and with hustling clients; Damien worked with others suffering from AIDS, and volunteered in a hospice; he died in peace at San Francisco General Hospital at the age of 23.

Through his struggles with doubt, rejection, and in despair without hope, the resurrection of the Crucified One, turned defeat into triumph, ugliness into beauty, despair into hope, and the cross into faith in the resurrection. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!-----------Fr. River Damien Sims, sfw, D.Min., D.S.T.P.O. Box 642656San Francisco, CA 94164www.temenos.org415-305-2124

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pascalina · 3 years

Text

The brothers' movie

11/07/2015

They don't use the same last name, but they are siblings. Pedro Pascal (40) the Chilean actor who starred in Game of Thrones and now has a starring role in the Netflix series Narcos, uses his mother's surname because it is easier to pronounce in English. 17 years younger, Lucas Balmaceda Pascal (23), also an actor, debuted in Los 80 and today stars in the TVN series Juana Brava. Here, both talk for the first time about their relationship, their love for cinema and their mutual admiration.

José Pedro Balmaceda Pascal was born in Chile, but a few months later he had to go into exile with his parents and his older sister, Javiera, to Denmark. It was the end of 1975. Thanks to the Rockefeller scholarship granted for his father, the doctor José Balmaceda Riera, a year later they moved to the United States: first they lived in San Antonio, Texas. Life there was just beginning and it was not easy.

Seventeen years later, in 1992, Lucas Balmaceda was born in Orange County, California, into the comfort of a family that was financially in its prime. His dad was at the peak of his career: as a fertility specialist and director of one of the University of California's reproductive health centers. But suddenly they moved back to Chile when Lucas was three years old and his brother Nicolas was eight. The two older ones stayed there. Pedro was already studying drama at Orange County High School of the Arts. Then he went to New York to study theater at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University.

After a couple of small appearances in TV series, in 2014 he took the big leap in his career: he played Prince Oberyn in Game of Thrones, which made him world famous. Today, he has a starring role in the series Narcos. He is also filming a movie with Matt Damon and Willem Dafoe.

Fame came early for Lucas. After leaving Saint George High School in 2010, he studied theater at the Universidad Católica, and he began to shine: in year fourth, he starred in the theater play "La noche obstinada", by choreographer Pablo Rotemberg, and got a role in the successful television series Los 80 and today, in his last year, he is the co-star of Juana Brava, the new TVN nighttime series.

Scene one:

Lucas appears in Pedro's life

P: "I was 17 when Lucas was born. He was a baby when I left to go to university. I remember my first visit back and Lucas, who was not even two years old, was already the owner of the house. I remember those looks, wanting to tell me: 'I don't know who you are, but this is my house, mate.

To this day I have never seen that personality in another child. It was fascinating to see that wit in someone so small. Since he was a kid he had that fierce intelligence... The four siblings, Javiera, the eldest and the queen of the family; Nicolas, the doctor; Lucas and I are like a compact and consistent unit. I can't imagine life without them".

L: "Pedro was studying at the university in New York when I was born. When he went home for vacations to see the family, as I didn't know him, I thought: 'who is this guest, who is this weirdo who kisses my mother? She's mine!'. Back in Chile, every year Pedro came to visit us. It was the most entertaining thing in the world for me. He was much older and he would come with all the coolness, with all the culture of cinema, with horror movies that were not available here. Then we would watch them and play them out, we would do sketches. We would play that Pedro was a murderous monster and we would escape from him. We were each a character. He was very funny, he did voices, he impersonated people. He gets mad when I tell him, but I've always found that he has a Jim Carrey thing about him, he manages to make some impressive faces. When he came on, I couldn't stop watching him, he was too entertaining. We are all big movie buffs thanks to my dad. When I was three years old, he took my brothers and me to see Batman. I remember crying hysterically. I was very young, sensitive, and being in the cinema was like entering to another reality: loud noises, giant screen. I didn't understand anything.

Scene two

Transplanted

P: "What's Chilean about me and what's gringo about me is a very interesting question, because I don't think even at 40 years old I've been able to figure it out. I was raised and educated in the United States and socialized a lot with American pop culture, but Chilean pride has always been unwavering. My parents were exiled for eight years. So our visits to Chile were regular. My whole life I have lived in the United States and my whole life I have visited my relatives in Chile. However, since my siblings were raised in Chile, my connection to the country is much stronger today and it is something I am grateful for. Something that happens to me a lot is that when I say I've been in the U.S. my whole life, they say, "Well, you're a gringo then! And after a conversation in my fluent Spanish with a clear Chilean accent that same person turns around and says: I've been listening to you, you're Chilean!

L: "I am Chilean because I lived and grew up here since I was three years old, but at the same time I have a cultural disconnection: my parents lived 25 years in the United States, my brothers are gringos. My visual culture is super gringo, the TV shows I watched when I was a kid or the movies I watch to this day I understand them from that place: as an American. More than being born in the United States, I feel it's because of my family's background".

SCENE THREE:

The performance

P: "There were good years and bad years (when I started my acting career in the United States). Many years I was a waiter to supplement my income. But from a very young age I was auditioning for professional jobs. In my late twenties my career in the theater was relatively consistent. Then, when opportunities in television arose, I was consolidating and it became much easier to pay my expenses. I think that struggle, going through those situations, empowers you a lot and it's one of the things I'm enormously grateful for. And Game of Thrones was an incredible gift. It's the best role I've ever played and they're the best people I've ever worked with."

L: "It's Pedro's fault that I wanted to be an actor. But when I told him I wanted to study theater it was hard for him, more than anything, because he cares about me and studying theater is hard. You have to be very wise and have a super high self-esteem to take care of yourself. Pedro went through many things. If there is an actor who doesn't have contacts in the United States, it's him. Everything he has achieved is because of his work. That's why when people ask me why I don't go to the U.S., it's a resounding no. Being Pedro Pascal's little brother is not going to get me around the corner; I would have to be Tom Cruise's twin to achieve anything. Even so, Pedro had many failed career starts. In 2011, for example, he was offered a starring role in a series called Wonder Woman and it was eventually canceled. That's why, when Games of Thrones came up, I was like, wow! We were all freaking out, because Games of Thrones is like a worldwide trending topic. All the episodes he was in, we were all watching them together at my house, eating pizza or sushi."

SCENE FOUR:

Mutual lessons

P: "I try not to get too involved in anything Lucas does or how he does it. He has single-handedly created each of his experiences and is one of the most inspiring things I've ever seen. He loves his work and is continually developing his skills for television and theater, and eventually film. He executes like a real artist and, to be honest, it is more common for me to learn something from him than for him to learn something from me. I mean that very sincerely. Lucas reminds me to work hard and keeps me inspired. When I saw him in Los 80 I was incredibly proud, but not surprised. I was seeing something I had always known. The only advice I've given him is to not be such a workaholic, to take care of himself and to be proud of what he's accomplished and what he still has yet to accomplish. Deep down, I'm always going to be the protective big brother."

L: "Pedro is an object of admiration for me. What he says is law for me. Sometimes I ask him: 'Pedro, did you see that movie?' and he says: 'Yes, I didn't like it'. I tell him: 'Oh, I didn't like it either'. The nice thing about our relationship is that it happens so sporadically, once or twice a year, that the moments when we see each other are very intense. We either fight a lot or we love each other too much, but it's always like a story, like a movie. While he's there and I'm here, we talk a lot on WhatsApp and Facebook".

P: "With Lucas we always keep each other up to date on what movies to watch, what TV shows are good. I bug him all the time asking him about what's going on in his life and I'm always asking him about his perspective on things. Despite being away from each other for a long time, Lucas and I are very close and always have been. I see Lucas at the beginning of an amazing career, with an unwavering curiosity and passion. I love it when he confides in me about things he is enjoying or situations he is dealing with."

L: "I've never seen Pedro in theater, but I've been told he's tremendous. On camera, I find that he has a very intense look. He also has, and in that we are very similar, a very strong visual culture, the fact that we have always liked horror movies. He plays characters that hide something, dark characters. A great strength is that he is very sensual, he knows how to handle himself well from seduction".

P: "Lucas is brave, he's fearless. There's nothing he's not willing to try, he's never going to give up on a challenge, he's never going to leave something halfway, no matter what that means to him. Lucas is unstoppable.

Link interview

#pedro pascal #lux pascal #siblings

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sofiaaaaaaaa03 · 3 years

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My Heart Is With You Two

Request: Do you think you could do one with an older reader, like 17 or 16, where they have a nightmare and Din comforts them afterwards? maybe like a hunt gone wrong? Like Din dies in the nightmare or something bad happens to him and Grogu?

Summary: Din comforts the reader after they have a nightmare about a hunt going wrong.

Pairing: Dad! Din Djarin x teen! Gender neutral reader

Warnings: non descriptive mention of wounds and picking of skin. Nothing too descriptive, but still in there :)

Word Count: 1,692

Rating: G

A/N: I had a really fun time writing this, I wanted to try and write this in more of Din’s point of view and explore his thoughts as he navigated through parenting. I hope that was okay! And I really hope you like it!! Sorry if the dialogue is kinda meh, I don’t know how adults talk lmao. Din let alone rarely says a word unless you talk to him lmao. Hopefully I did ok. Please let me know what you guys think <3

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Din sat across from Y/N. The pair sat on the walking ramp of the Razor Crest, taking a brief moment to enjoy the natural habitat of the planet they were currently on. It had been a long day for Din. Bounty hunting was dangerous, sure, but as he played with the bandages wrapped around his knee Din couldn’t help but reminisce the particularly difficult parts of his day. It seemed that other bounty hunters caught of the valuable bounty he was pursuing, so while he was trying to get a hold of the Geonosian he also had to fight off more than he could chew. Y/N threw a fit when he stumbled to the ship bloodied, in need of medicinals and rest. It took him promising that he’d take a day off for them to feel better about his condition.

Din sighed and lifted his helmet a little to take another sip of broth. Hm, it was starting to get cold.

“Suns are going down.”

Din hummed. “Seems like it. We’ll need to head inside in a moment.”

Y/N nodded, standing up and dusting their pants. They let her hand out toward Din and collected the bowl from his hand before heading inside.

Din watched them leave before turning back to take one last look of the view. The forest was a plethora of greens and little critters running about. On his way into the nearest town Din considered taking the next day off so that his foundlings could go out to enjoy the scenery, maybe even swim in a lake he’d passed not too far away. Grogu would have had a field day, terrorizing small critters by chasing them around the grass.

The Mandalorian frowned at the involuntary wince his body experienced. He placed a hand on his knee and tenderly touched the muscle that ached. This was why he knew the kids can’t have a day off tomorrow. Not on this planet, at least. It was too risky. If Din learned anything today it was that the planet was crawling with dangerous beings. Some who may want to seek revenge for the people he’d killed today while on the job.

He was too deep in thought to realize that Y/N had been watching him. They stood silently against the wall, focusing on the way he held himself. Injured leg raised a little, hands gentle to the touch, rigid movements. He was in pain and didn’t want to show it. But this was all a part of the job. They shuffled in their spot, floorboard creaking underneath them.

“Y/N, you should go to bed.”

They shifted their weight, “Are you not coming in?”

“In a moment... I’d like to enjoy the view a little more.”

A lie. He needed another moment to rest, to avoid putting any strain on his leg. One could argue that this behavior of defiance toward his injury was out of pride, but in reality Din didn’t want to worry Y/N. They were 17, sure, they could handle seeing their guardian like this. But he’d rather not let them know about the reality of his state. Besides, another’s day’s rest and he’ll be fine.

He waited, and didn’t hear Y/N move.

“You should go to bed.” His voice made this sound more like an order rather than a statement.

Y/N said a quite goodnight and left. Din turned back to the view. He waited until the sky began to turn purple to stand up and launch the ship. The Crest was set to autopilot after reaching a suitable cruising altitude. The clan should be at their destination by the time they wake up. Din stumbled out of the cockpit and made his way to the hull, wordlessly removing the heavy beskar and grabbing new bandages. Replacing bandages were harder to do when the wound is still relatively fresh. Hopefully the next time they’ll need changing the task will be easier. Finished, Din stood up from the box he was perched on and made his way to the cot he and Grogu shared.

Something soft squished underneath his foot. What was that? Din lifted his foot and chuckled softly. He leaned over to pick up a little frog plush. A smile spread across his lips. The plush was a favorite of Grogu’s, as his sibling made it special after their meeting with the frog lady. Now he carries it around everywhere he can. It even went to the school with the children when they were left there during their time in Nevarro.

Din walked over to where his son was snoring in his hammock. Maybe he was dreaming of frogs. Din liked to think so, smiling and perched the plush next to Grogu for him to find in the morning.

A small sniffle made its way to the hull of the ship.

The Mandalorian turned to the closed cot that sat parallel to theirs, tilting his head curiously. He took a step forward and knocked on the metal surface.

“Y/N? I thought you’d gone to bed.”

“I uh... got woken up when we took off.” Din didn’t miss the way their voice hitched. He waited a couple seconds.

“Would you open the door please?”

A pause. Then a beep before the cot’s door opened up and Din came to be face to face with a teary-faced foundling. He froze, taken aback by the sight of the tears that raised questions. Are you hurt? What’s bothering you? You’re not alone, I’m here. But he didn’t say any of that. For once he found himself without words as he took in Y/N’s expression. Their skin was paler than normal. Eyes that were swollen and stained red avoided his gaze, downcast as they picked at the skin on their knee.

Din tilted his head ever so slightly. Were they… anxious?

“Do you want to talk about what’s bothering you?”

The teenager in front of him didn’t make a move, beginning to shut down.

“Y/N.” He said once more, catching their attention.

Din slowly knelt down in front of them and placed a hand on their knee

“You’re going to have to communicate with me, Y/N. I can’t read minds.” He patted their knee reassuringly. “But...take your time. There’s no rush.”

Y/N blinked several times, rubbing their eyes and making Din realize that they were still crying. The sleeping quarters were slowly filling with quiet, ragged breaths of a foundling trying to control their breathing before it got worse. A hand rubbed slowly against their back, belonging to a patient Mandalorian who’d sat next to them and pulled them close, quietly reassuring them that they were in the ship with their clan and that they were safe, that everything was okay. Din found himself mimicking the way that his guardians had comforted him during his childhood. They were the ones who’d watched over him when his parents were no longer able to. Now, he was relying on their hospitality to care for his own foundling. He’d hoped he was doing it right. Y/N deserved a guardian that would provide for them in all aspects.

When the hull was quiet again Din dared to speak once more, softly so as to not startle the teen in his arms. “Are you ready to talk now?”

“...yeah.” Y/N sighed, pulling their blanket further around them.

“I had this… dream. It didn’t feel like a dream. It just, you- something happened when you left for a hunt. Something terrible.” Their breath hitched slightly, making Din frown as they continued. “Grogu and I were at the Crest like we always are when you leave when someone comes to the ship… with you.”

Y/N quickly looked at Din through their peripheral vision, averting their eyes when the two’s gaze locked.

“Did something happen to me?” Y/N nodded, gulping. They sniffed as they quickly rubbed at their eyes again. Din gently pulled their hand away. “Don’t do that. It’s not good for your eyes.”

“S-sorry. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bother you with this.”

Din took a moment to think of his next words and placed a gentle hand on their chin, making them look at him. “You’re not bothering me, Y/N. I don’t want you to have to feel like you need to bottle this up. It’s my job as your guardian to be there for you-- you can come to me for anything. Do you understand?”

“Mhm,” They sniffed.

The Mandalorian took a moment to think once more. It became clear to him that Y/N was more than just worried when he returned home bloodied and worn from battle. They were scared. Scared that one day he would never return. It was hard for him to remember that Y/N knew underneath all of that beskar, he wasn’t invincible.

“Ever since I’ve come of age I’ve never had anyone worry for my death,” he started, catching their attention. “It’s comforting to know that I have two very important people who do, and they wait for me everyday. Right here.”

“Is that supposed to make me feel better?” Y/N chuckled sarcastically. “What if-”

“Let me finish,” Din ruffled their hair, “What I’m saying is that I’ll do everything to go back home to the two of you, my little womp rats. You two motivate me in more ways than you think, little one.”

“Really?”

“Really. Though I’m not as strong as my beskar, I would fight my way through Chaos if it means coming back to the two of you. Okay?”

“Okay Din. Man, I didn’t know you had such a heart under that armor.” Y/N shoved Din’s shoulder playfully, earning a hearty laugh from the Mandalorian.

“No, no I don’t.” He shook his head and patted Y/N’s shoulder, beaming proudly at his foundling before averting his eyes to where Grogu was sleeping. Y/N followed his gaze. “It’s out here, with you two.”

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chronicbatfictioner · 3 years

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Exchanges and Compromises - Chapter 17

Jason was having the time of his life.

Dick was sure of it. He might grump and sulk a lot more than before, but Dick was sure that he was having fun. Sure, guarding Damian might be a little more than tasking, after a while - especially since Damian was so certain that he could face Bane alone if it comes down to it, conveniently ignoring the fact that: a. he's ten and practically one-tenth of Bane's size; b. the Waynes most likely would detest having to clear intestines off the marble floor if Damian were to be let near a katana and/or Bane, and c. Alfred definitely would detest cleaning intestines or parts of Damian off the floor or walls.

And d. Bruce Wayne seemed to actually enjoy having Damian around and has no qualm in talking to Damian as if he was twice his age. Bruce's age, that is. Not Damian's. Dick suspected that Bruce has spent a lot of time talking to 60-year-olds.

But there were numerous forms of excitement that were offered by the Wayne Manor. First and foremost were the cars. Dick has never learned to drive - being a Talon kind of impeded the learning process of 'common human things'. Jason, however, was an excellent driver. He had mentioned something about being a getaway driver in warzones, and Dick couldn't be sure if he was telling the truth or joking. Either way, he rather enjoyed it whenever he and Jason had to take Damian somewhere in town.

Except for today, as somebody seemed to have tampered with the car.

It wouldn't brake, and they were cruising really, really fast.

Hence Dick's belief that Jason was having fun. He did not look perturbed at the slightest as he controlled the car, swerving crazily over the backroads, making sharp u-turns instead of going into the city roads and went back where they came from. Within a mile from the Drake House's gate, Jason finally managed to cut down the speed to the point where the car's engines died and it rolled to a stop. On the Drake House's gate.

"Seriously, people," Tim remarked dryly as they walked in - leaving the car at the gate and settling their respective adrenaline back down. "I've heard of visiting the neighbors, but must you be like, dying and/or damaging people's property before you come here to say hi?"

"The car was tampered with," Damian reported. "Must be the brute. And I shall replace your gate, Drake."

"I think I'm down to like, eight lives. No-- seven." Dick admitted, "my heart's still beating a hundred miles per minute. Good thing, though, at least that way I know I'm quite alive."

"Dick, you're a bird. Not a cat." Tim deadpanned. His eyes never leaving Jason, who had lit up a cigarette as he walked through the house. "Since when do you smoke?"

"Since I was eleven," Jason replied. "And since I walked into a house that has laser triggers that were set up by a lunatic. Smoke worked to reveal them all."

"I'm... partially scowling because smoking kills. But I suppose laser triggers would kill faster..." Tim replied.

"The lasers are used to trigger booby traps just about Damian's height. If he were to be a common kid and run around the house, he'd be decapitated within the first few days." Jason continued bitterly. "What the fuck is wrong with that giant lump of steroids, anyway? He was ready to kill a child!"

"The nutshell version is that the child would prevent his usurping the Waynes' wealth." Tim pointed out. "The long version is that I don't think he's really the child of Dr Wayne, the Waynes know of it, and they're literally being held hostage in their own home. Also, you people are being watched, too, by drones. I've asked Harper to kill those drones for entering my property."

Tim then explained Bruce's visit and the USB. "Oracle has contacted him and told him we... the Birds, that is - are investigating the evidence."

"How long until we can punch the asshole out of the house for good?" Jason demanded, accepting a bottle of water Tim handed him. Slowly and gently. Making sure his fingers brushed Tim's. And Dick had to swallow a grin.

"That, unfortunately, would be up to the GCPD. Did you guys saw the news? Vicky Vale's article on Damian?" Tim... preened a little, waving his hair as he walked away from Jason. Dick's lips itched, he wondered if Barbara or the other girls -- if Selina or Dinah have noticed this. The two were definitely flirting.

"I have seen it. It had good pictures of my mother and grandfather, and quite... adequate descriptions of both of them." Damian replied. "Evidently father has made a comment to the writer about me looking like him when he was my age."

"Well, you kind of do look like him, except for the green eyes." Dick pointed out. Bruce's eyes were blue - like both his parents. But from the photos of little Brucie around the house, Dick could see a little of Martha Wayne in Damian's still-round face. "When did Bruce make the comment?"

"Oh, Vale called him." Tim snickered. "She still has his personal number, and she commented something about hearing a - quote: 'constipated buffalo sounds in the background' - unquote. She was also wondering if Bruce was in a bullfighting ring somewhere."

"Seriously?" Dick laughed.

"Seriously. Even Barbara couldn't stop laughing hearing that." Tim assured him. Jason rolled his eyes but looking amused, anyway.

"Sooo... a possible off-road accident for the apparent heir is in the books?" Jason suggested.

"I won't put it past Bane. Damian...?" Tim started. But Damian already nodded in acknowledgment.

"I shan't eat anything that is not presented by Todd or Grayson, nor will I frolic the manor on my own. This shall be more to bear witness to your insinuation of my 'child-like' behavior than to take care of me, Drake, as I am quite capable of sustaining my own life." Damian scoffed.

Tim paused visibly for a good two seconds, before nodding, "of course. Furthermore, I can assure you that Alfred is safe, mainly because as a butler, his focal interest would be the actual Waynes. That's in his training - unless an offspring is publicly announced, they are not to be cared for by the Butler. In Wayne Manor, the proverbial child would solely be Bruce - for obvious reasons, and Damian, whom Bruce has publicly acknowledged." Tim explained.

"He was in MI6," Jason remarked. "Alfred, that is. Not Bane. It would be safe to say he's loyal. He told me of the booby traps and that Bane has a daily dose of injection of the steroid-like substance. But I-- we shall prepare you emergency rations - just in case, anyway."

"You guys can always drop by here. And don't think that Damian would be Bane's only target." Tim reminded. "If I was him, I'd take out the big guns - that is you two - first; and then Bruce, because he'll want to be protective of his son; and then Dr and Mrs Wayne last."

"Then I'm afraid you are forgetting one of the members of the household that is most dangerous, Master Tim," a voice spoke; Jason pulled out his gun, Damian automatically hid behind him while pulling out a small dagger.

Dick wanted to lunge right toward the source of the voice until he realized that it was Alfred Pennyworth, both hands raised up to show that he was unarmed.

"How...?" Jason growled, "I didn't hear the front door open."

"Apologies, gentlemen. I should have informed you that there is an underground passageway between the two houses that were once used frequently, but now has all been forgotten." Alfred explained. "You were right that I was in MI6, Jason; as you were right that my focus will and forever shall remain the true Wayne blood, Master Tim. Not ones who claimed as such and refused to provide irrefutable evidence."

"Does Bane know of this passageway?" Tim asked.

"It is located in the staff's wing, and as he is not permitted to be there, I sincerely doubt it," Alfred replied. "I have my own... booby traps and surveillance that should tell me if anyone has been there." he smiled. "I am aware that both of you have prowled the entire house at one point or the other in the past few weeks." he nodded toward Jason and Dick. "You were stealthy, indeed."

"But not stealthy enough?" Dick quipped. "I gotta go back to training... Anyway, why are you here?"

"I saw your vehicle's mishap and its stop here. If anything, Bane is not... stealthy enough." Alfred pulled out a small memory card. "To get to the garage, one must pass the servants' hall. And the garage is my province."

Tim accepted the memory card, plugged it into his cellphone; and then projected its content to a wall. "Huh... this should be enough evidence of tampering..." Tim commented. The memory card showed a clear date stamp - that morning, a few hours before Bane and the Waynes left the house. It also showed Bane himself, jacking the car that was now resting with a dented bumper at Tim's gate, while holding a plier.

"Anyone watching our car now?" Dick commented. "Won't be cool to have it suddenly fixed, will it?"

"Harper should be. Plus, y'all are on my property. If he trespasses, I'll have his ass arrested." Tim huffed. "So... if anyone has ideas--" Jason and Damian's eyes lit up; Tim glared at them and continued "--that do not include sharp and/or exploding objects of how to remove Bane from the Manor..."

"I'm fresh out," Jason replied mournfully. "No sharp objects, no exploding objects... what do you expect me to do? Poison him?"

"But Todd, did my mother not teach you the arts of food as medicine?" Damian piped up.

The sudden silence as all eyes landed on Alfred was quite ominous.

"I will not conduct a crime, young masters," Alfred remarked dryly.

"Oh nooo... not a crime," Jason grinned mischievously. "It's just... you know that Damian was born in the Middle East, yeah?"

"I may have quite a culinary skill, but I fear that my Middle Eastern cuisine knowledge is rather limited," Alfred said demurely.

"Well, mine isn't." Jason grinned. "Besides, what else should one do to celebrate one's entrance into such a distinguished family; but hold a family dinner?"

"You're going to poison him." Dick groaned.

"Not to death!" Jason protested. Dick gave him an unimpressed glare. "Just... to the point where he would realize that he and I have opposing objectives."

"Do let me know of the ingredients you require, Jason." Alfred intoned. "Or perhaps you prefer to shop on your own? I shall fetch a new, un-tampered-with vehicle."

"Oh, please do, Alfred. I doubt we can make a single trip. But they will be fun." Jason replied, grinning.

Dick knew that the sense of foreboding was not in him only. Tim looked like he was contemplating moving away to Alaska.

"For the records, I don't know anything about cooking," Dick said defensively.

"I'm... truly and fully reconsidering my life choices," Tim admitted.

"Oh, don't worry, Drake. Todd was trained by the best," Damian grinned mischievously. "I pity the fools who think him as a brute. I pity the brute who think that small equals weak."

#Batless!AU #JayTim #Dick Grayson #Tim Drake #Jason Todd #Damian Wayne #Alfred Pennyworth #stray!tim #RedGhost!Jason #Talon!Dick

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adezahnae · 3 years

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Family Affair (Part 4)

A/N: Hi! I have to say that this is the last part for Family Affair🥺 I know it’s sad knowing that he is in the military now and I’m ending this series😭 there will be another one of him soon💕💕 enjoyyy!!

Warnings: None, betrayal, secrets are revealed, cursing, angst, etc..

Tagged People: @ahgasearmyfan @whoreforshuaaa @wooya1224

Wedding Day...

Your POV

I breathed out as I was in my hotel room and fixing my dress. I put the flower pin in my hair and grabbed the bouquet of flowers I have to hold. I looked in the mirror at my outfit and lightly smiled. I ran my hand over my stomach and giggled a little.

I heard a knock at the door and I went to see who it was. I opened the door and seen that it was Baekhyun. I opened the door and pulled him inside. He smiled and kissed me on the lips. “Good Morning my love.” He said. I smiled. “Good Morning.” I said back.

He kneeled down to my stomach and placed a kiss on it. “Good Morning my baby..” He mumbled. I giggled. He stood back up. “How do you feel?” He asked. “I’m fine! I’m just hungry..” I said. He laughed. “It’s only the baby. You barely like to eat in the mornings.” He said. “Can I get McDonalds? I want some nuggets..” I pouted.

He shook his head with a smile. “Sure. We got about 30 minutes until the wedding starts.” He said pulling out his keys. We walked downstairs from the hotel and went to his car. When I got in, I seen all of his stuff in suit cases and in boxes. “Wow.. you’re serious about this aren’t you?” I asked. “Yeah, I can’t live with our parents forever.” He laughed. I lightly laughed and looked out the window.

He placed a hand on my thigh in a comforting manner and kissed me. “Like I said..I got us..” He whispered. I nodded. “Okay.” I said. He smiled and started the car, pulling off. We drove down to McDonalds and went in the drive through for my nuggets. We drove out the line and made our way to the wedding set which was at a church near a river so when they leave, they are got on a cruise for their honeymoon. There was slow drivers and Baekhyun was getting impatient.

“Jesus fucking Christ, Could you all hurry the fuck up!?” He exclaimed beeping the horn. I giggled and stuffed a nugget in his mouth. “Calm down baby..” I said. He smiled and ate the nugget. “Okay. I’m sorry.” He said. We finally made it there with five minutes left to spare. We got out of the car and went inside. “Give me these.” He said taking the box of nuggets from me. I pouted. “But there’s only three left.” I said stomping my feet. “You can ear them later..” He said. “No, NOW!” I said. “Okay okay! Fine...” He said. I grabbed the last three nuggets and ate them. I took my lip gloss and mirror out of my purse and put it on.

As I was fixing the rest of my makeup, I felt something go around my neck and a gold shine. I looked in the reflection of the mirror and seen Baekhyun behind me, putting my necklace on. I gasped and turned around. “It complements the white dress.” He mumbled. I smiled and kissed him on his lips. “Thank you, Baek.” I said. He smiled and took my hand and gave me the bouquet of flowers I had to hold. “Let’s go.” He said as we walked into the church.

The wedding music began to play as my grandfather and my mom walked down the aisle. She had the brightest smile on her face and returned when she looked at me. I shed a tear of happiness and looked over at Baekhyun. He smiled as well.

My mom was now at the altar and Mr. Byun helped her up the stairs. He pulled the veil away from her face and smiled. The priest began. “Friends and family, we are all gathered here today to welcome these two beautiful creatures as one. Today Byun and Kim with come together as one. We all want to say a prayer over these two people here. Everyone please bow your heads.” The priest began to prey over the family and my mom and Mr. Byun.

Afterwards the preyer was done and they began to say their wedding vows. After the long wedding vows, it was time for the ‘I Do’ part. Me and Baekhyun walked up to our parents with the rings and waited. “Now, Carrie Kim, do you take this man to be your lovely wedded husband?” The priest asked. She shed a tear. “I do..” She said. “And do you take her as your lovely wedded wife?” He asked Mr. Byun. “I do..” he replied.

They took the rings and put them on one another’s fingers. “I pronounced you man and wife. You may kiss the bride.” The Priest said. Just when they were about to lean in and kiss, everyone in church gasped and exclaimed. “WHAT IS THIS?!” A lady yelled. Just then I heard moans..my moans... “Baekhyun, fuck!” I heard myself say. I heard him groan. I looked up at the projector to see me and Baekhyun having sex in the bathroom at the engagement party. I gasped and covered my mouth.

“ITS THEM TWO!! THE DAUGHTER AND THE SON!!” A lady yelled. Our parents turned to us in shock and looked at the projector as well. “WHAT THE HELL?!” My mom yelled. I looked at her with tear stained eyes. “Mom, please..” I said. “WHAT IS GOING ON BETWEEN YOU TWO HUH?! ARE YOU BOTH SICK?!” She yelled. I began to cry. “MOM IM SORRY!!” I said.

She came up to be a landed a smack to my face. I gasped and everyone stopped. “You dare to do this to me?! How dare you sleep around with your brother?! You are terrible! A whore!” She yelled at me. “THIS BOY IS TWENTY YEARS OLD! YOU ARE SEVENTEEN!! HOW DARE YOU SLEEP WITH A MAN LIKE THIS HUH?! YOU KNOW HE’S GOING TO PRISON RIGHT?!” She yelled. I gasped and grabbed onto her dress. “Mom please! Don’t send him away! I-I need him!” I cried harshly. “FOR WHAT?! SEX?! TRY AND GET THAT WHEN I SEND HIM AWAY!” She yelled turning away from me.

“NO MOM!! IM PREGNANT!!” I yelled. “WHAT?!” She yelled. I nodded. “I’m sorry mommy please!!” She scoffed and began to cry. “Why would you do this to me huh? Why would you go and get pregnant by a 20 year old man?!” She asked. “You put a baby in this girl, Baek?!” Mr. Byun asked. “Yes I did.” He admitted. His dad turned away from him. “SHAMEFUL!! BOTH OF YOU ARE SHAMFUL!” He yelled. I cried on the floor, shaking of fear.

Baekhyun came up behind me. “Come here baby..” He said. “DON’T TOUCH MY DAUGHTER!” My mom yelled. Baekhyun ignored her and helped me up anyways. “Who could have done such a thing? Who put this in the photo arrangements?!” The wedding planner exclaimed. “Shut the hell up Mary. I’m sick of your shit.” Baekhyun said. Everyone gasped. “WATCH YOUR MOUTH!” Mr. Byun said. “What?! How dare you talk back to me?!” Mary exclaimed walking up to Baekhyun. “You and your whore must’ve did this..” She gritted.

“As in whore, you mean yourself?” He asked. “What?!” She exclaimed. “I put a little video in there myself if you pay attention..” Baekhyun smirked. Everyone looked up at the projector again and seen Mary and my mom. “I need to go...” I heard my mom say, drugged. “Shh..let me do all the work..” Mary said as she leaned my mom back. My mom tried to push Mary off of her but she passed out and Mary smirked. She undressed my mom and began to kiss on her body. She took my mom’s shorts and shirt off and began to have her way with her, pulling down her underwear and her bra straps.

I gasped and looked at Mary. She was astonished and frozen. “And another about our little video, Y/n is 18, not 17.” Baekhyun said. Mary looked at him. “The time was 12:14 at midnight when we went inside the bathroom. The day after the engagement party was her birthday. So technically she wasn’t underaged when he had sex. So I CAN’T go to prison if she allowed it and was of age.” Baekhyun explained while he turned my mom. “You on the other hand can go because you drugged Ms. Kim and forced yourself on her.” Baekhyun smirked.

“Why did you do this?” My mom asked. “Because she wanted my dad to call off the wedding and you could go to her. Poor and terrible move Mary.” Baekhyun shrugged. My mom walked up to Mary and punched her in the face. “Rot in hell you evil bitch..” She growled. The police picked up Mary to take her out. She grabbed a gun from the officer and began to shoot. Baekhyun pulled me down and covered over me. The police dragged her out as she screamed. I began to cry of fear. “Shhh it’s okay..” He whispered. I turned back to see my mom and Mr. Byun just fine.

We stood up and was rushed out of the church. We got outside and watched the police put Mary in the police car. I hugged Baekhyun and cried. “It’s all over..It’s over.” He mumbled as he held me close. I looked up at him and he smiled. “It’s all over..” He repeated to me. “I got you..” He said. I nodded and hugged him again.

“Let’s go back home and we can get your things..” He said. “Okay.” I said. As we were walking off, I heard my mom call me. “Y/N! DON’T YOU LEAVE WITH THIS MAN!!” She said. I shook my head and got in the car slamming the door behind me. He started the car and pulled off. The care ride was silent. “How did you know that?” “What?” He replied. “That she..drugged my mom..” I said. He smirked.

“She’s not the only one who’s sneaky. I put a secret camera in her living room when we visited her that one time.” He said. I laughed. “What a smart boy...But what about the company? Since your dad knows about us, won’t he keep it?” I asked. He grabbed my hand and kissed it. “He already signed it away to me. It belongs to me now. He can’t get it back unless I give it back.” He said. I nodded.

We made it to our house and I began to pack the rest of my clothes. He helped me with the things in the car and we left. “Where are we going now?” I asked putting on my seatbelt. He smiled. “Home.” I smiled and leaned over and kissed him. The drive there was 30 minutes and I fell asleep. He woke me when we arrived. “We’re here..” He said. I smiled and jumped out the car. He laughed and helped me with my bags. We went inside the complex and made it to an elevator. He hit the top floor. I gasped. “The sixth floor?!” I exclaimed. He hummed. I squealed and kissed him.

He walked me down the halls and pulled out the keys. He opened the door and I gasped. “Baekhyun...this is beautiful..” I said. I seen that it already had furniture in the living room and everywhere else. I walked down the hall to our bedroom to see a king sized bed. He sat our bags down and smiled as I ran to the bed and snuggled into it. “Is it great?” He asked. I got up and hugged him. “Perfect..” I whispered.

🎀9 months later...12:35pm🎀

Our babies cooed in our arms. “They both look like you..” I said. Baekhyun smiled. “My beautiful girls...” He hummed as he kissed their forehead. They began to open their eyes and smile a little. “Hi Bella! Hi Belen!” Baekhyun gasped while smiling at them. He picked up Belen and held her close along with Bella. “Daddy loves you girls.” He whispered softly. “And I love you too Y/N, don’t forget that.” He said. He laid them back down on my chest and watched them sleep again. “Is it great?” I asked Baekhyun. He smiled and kissed my forehead. “Perfect..” He whispered.

#baekhyun x reader #baekhyun ff #baekhyun smut #exo x reader #exo ff #exo smut #super m x reader #superm fic #superm smut #baekhyun #baekhyun exo #baekhyun superm

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scripts4dreamers · 4 years

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I literally JUST sat down, pt. 5

Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, Part Six, Part Seven

AN: The case stalls, but no one’s willing to give up on you just yet. Characters: Spencer Reid, Penelope Garcia, Derek Morgan, Aaron Hotchner, Jennifer Jareau, David Rossi. Pairings: Spencer Reid x reader Spoilers: None Warnings: Mentions of crime and violence, alcohol

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Saturday morning dawned cold and bright but you hardly felt rested. You’d spent the better part of the night trying to squash your panic, curled up under your duvet with your phone in your hand, convinced that the second you closed your eyes something terrible would happen. The facts of the case bounced around in your mind like wasps, angry and frantic, trying their best to get out, but it was no use. You simply had to accept it, someone you worked with was stalking you. They were stalking you and murdering innocent people in some sick attempt to fulfil the fantasy in their mind, and that put everyone in your life at risk.

You’d realized it the night before and the thought alone made you feel sick. Stalkers were, by nature, unpredictable so there was no way for you to know which of your friends would be a target. The stalker could see any of them as a threat and decide to take matters into his own hands. Your only comfort came in knowing that your parents were on a cruise near New Zealand, and all your friends were safe under Rossi’s roof. For now.

You sighed and forced yourself out of bed, pulling on the most comfortable set of clothing you had and shuffling downstairs. As you made your way into the kitchen you were met by a sea of friendly faces and your spirits lifted slightly.

“Morning, Sunshine,” JJ greeted sympathetically, “we were wondering when you’d be up.”

“What time is it?” You asked, accepting a cup of coffee from her gratefully.

“8:17,” Spencer answered, giving you a small smile.

You smiled back and looked around, doing a mental headcount of all the faces at Rossi’s kitchen island, “Where are Morgan and Prentiss?”

“Morgan went to meet the M.E.,” JJ answered, slinging a protective arm over your shoulder, “and Em-“

“She’s still in her room,” Garcia cut in, pushing a cupcake on a plate towards you, “she’s awake but she won’t come down.”

You frowned and looked at JJ for clarification. JJ sighed and gave you a gentle squeeze.

“She’s-uh-she’s taking this whole thing pretty hard,” she admitted softly, “she doesn’t want to admit it, but you know how she is.”

You nodded, “I’ll talk to her,” you said, pushing yourself away from the kitchen island and pouring a second cup of coffee.

You trudged up the stairs, exhaustion tugging at your eyelids with every step. Emily’s room was next to Morgan’s and, before knocking, you just took a minute to watch. Emily was sitting on her bed with her back towards the door, staring intensely at something in her lap that you couldn’t see and your heart dropped.

———————————

Your stomach hurt from laughing so much as you watched the man Emily had brought over scamper off with his tail between his legs. Some real life FBI agent he’d turned out to be.

“That. Was. Brilliant,” you laughed, jostling her with your shoulder, “you, Emily Prentiss, are brilliant.”

“Why thank you,” she smiled, “god sometimes it’s too easy. It’s just too easy with these guys. What, do they think we’re stupid or something?”

It was girl’s night. The first you’d had in months and, quite frankly, you needed it. Your workload was killing you, and the weight of all the death you saw on the regular was making it difficult to find joy in anything anymore. Which was why you had your girls. Emily had dragged you all out to a local bar and plied you with alcohol until you were laughing and giggling like a bunch of preteens at a sleepover. It was wonderful, and you could feel yourself getting lighter and lighter with each passing minute.

“Almost definitely,” you agreed, taking another deep swig from whatever drink Emily had forced on you.

“Or they at least think we’re stupider than them,” JJ clarified.

Emily made a noise of agreement and rolled her eyes, “Which is why I personally have no interest in dating them.”

“Not that we could even if we wanted to,” Garcia pointed out, “I mean, who has time to date with this job?”

“Not me,” you said, “I haven’t been on an actual date in ages.”

“Well I’m sure we can find someone who’d be willing to take you out, Y/N,” Emily teased with faux innocence, “let’s think, ladies; who do we know who’s smart and funny, with a similar work schedule, who Y/N might be attracted to and who already thinks she’s wonderful?”

“Hmm,” JJ played along, “ooo that’s a tough one.”

“I’m stumped,” Garcia agreed, “oh wait! Here’s a crazy idea, what about Reid?”

JJ and Emily gasped, clutching their chests with looks of surprise so melodramatic that you couldn’t help but laugh, despite your embarrassment.

“Oh my god, Reid!” Emily agreed, “It’s perfect, Penelope Garcia you are a genius.”

“But wait, Y/N swears she’s not into him like that, guys, remember?” JJ joked.

“Ooohhh,” Emily and Garcia chorused.

“Well, I guess it’s hopeless then,” Emily joked, slinging an arm around your shoulder and pressing a kiss to your cheek, “you’re stuck with me, Y/L/N.”

You smiled and kissed her back, leaving a lipstick smudge on her pale cheek, “Nowhere else I’d rather be, Prentiss. Nowhere else I’d rather be.”

Garcia clapped her hands together in excitement and pulled out a camera, “Everybody say BAU!”

“BAU!” You all cheered in unison, collapsing into laughter the moment the flash went off.

—————————————

“Hey, you,” you greeted, “you not coming down for breakfast?”

Emily’s head snapped up and you caught a glimpse of the photograph in her hands. It was the one from that girls night, one of the last you’d ever had at the BAU. Not that anyone had known that at the time. You could see the resentment in her eyes, and the pain and you felt a sharp stab of guilt for everything you were putting your friends through.

“Garcia’s bought those cupcakes last night, they’re really tasty.” You continued, stepping hesitantly inside, “I could fetch you one if you’d like.”

“I’m not hungry,” she replied simply, “but I’ll take the coffee if you’re giving.”

You smiled and handed Emily the cup, taking a seat beside her on the bed. For a moment you just sat in silence, drinking your coffee together and thinking, but eventually the silence had to break.

“Em I know you’re mad-“ you started.

“Mad?” She interrupted with an incredulous laugh, “Y/N I’m not mad.”

“Yes. You are,” you insisted, “you have been ever since I came back to the unit. I mean, come on, you made me share a desk with Reid so that your purse had its own spot.”

Emily sighed and stared down into her cup, tapping her manicured nails against the ceramic, “Okay maybe I was a little bit mad,” she agreed, “but can you blame me? You left without saying goodbye!”

“I said goodbye!”

Emily rolled her eyes, “Not properly. You never really explained why. One day everything was fine and the next you’d handed in your resignation. It sucked, and I was mad,” she sighed, shaking her head, “and then I blinked and suddenly it’s a year later.”

“Time flies.” You agreed.

“Yeah! Yeah and a year later you still couldn’t tell me you hadn’t actually resigned?” She probed, “How’s that supposed to make me feel? I’ve been walking around like some sort of idiot thinking that you’re gone for good.”

You nodded and nudged her shoulder with yours, deciding to ignore the ‘gone for good’ comment and focus on everything else, “Well, hey, let’s make a deal. After all this is over, we’ll meet up at your tombstone and you can yell at me all you like for keeping you in the dark, deal?”

Emily snorted and you felt the tension lift, “Okay, point taken.” she chuckled. You hummed your agreement and you lapsed back into comfortable silence before Emily continued, “But hey, the desk thing worked out great. You and Spencer seem to be getting along again.”

You felt yourself flush with embarrassment, giving Emily the ammunition she needed to start teasing you mercilessly. It was nice, and familiar and it made you feel grounded in a way you didn’t realize you were missing before.

“You’re so predictable,” she laughed, “making sad puppy dog eyes at each other from across the room all day.”

You shoved her over, which she responded to with an indignant yelp.

“Yeah well, unfortunately we’ve got more to worry about than my abysmal love life,” you reminded Emily, “so will you please come back downstairs with me?”

You stood and extended your hand, which Emily took with a soft smile, letting you pull her to her feet.

“Okay, agent Y/L/N, but only because I’m hungry and I don’t want JJ to eat my cupcake.”

“Mmhmm,” you agreed sarcastically, threading your fingers together as Emily tucked the well worn photo back into her pants pocket.

She must’ve brought it with her from home, you realized with a start. She’d dragged that photo with her all this time.

It made your heart swell and you couldn’t stop yourself from saying, “Hey, Prentiss?”

“Yeah, Y/L/N?”

“It’s still you and me, you know? You’re still stuck with me.”

She stopped, a soft smile creeping onto her face as her dark eyes softened. For a moment you just looked at one another, really seeing the person in front of you for the first time in a year. Then she squeezed your hand and you kept moving.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know that, you sap.”

��——————————

The rest of the weekend was as close to bliss as Spencer could imagine while working a potentially catastrophic stalker case. He didn’t know what had happened while you were upstairs talking to Emily, it wasn’t his place, but he knew that you looked happy when you came back down. Emily looked happy too and, when she took a seat beside him, she shot him a knowing wink, which made him blush.

After that, the team was back. Morgan had confirmed with the M.E that the newest victim hadn’t been drugged, and he had indeed been tortured before he was killed. He’d also confirmed that the contents of the victim’s stomach was another grizzly message from the killer; tandoori chicken and sparkling wine, the exact meal you always ordered at the little restaurant you went to after a long case. Everyone had gotten eerily quiet when that came out. But you moved on, going through case files and reports together in the hopes of coming across some common name. It was a fairly thankless task. The only plus side was how much time Spencer got to spend with you, reading files, pouring coffee, just talking in the garden during lunch. Spencer was giddy with it, and Emily noticed.

“Real subtle, Lover Boy,” she teased on Sunday night, as Spencer watched you disappear back into the house for a drink.

He flushed and looked away, “What-uh-I don’t know what you mean.”

Emily rolled her eyes but smiled fondly, collapsing into the outdoor couch next to Spencer, “Sure.”

Just then you’d walked back out, and Emily let the matter drop for the time being. By the time Monday morning rolled in, Spencer finally felt like they had a handle on things. The picture was still murky and undefined, but now they could at least grasp its edges and make out its overall shape. The team had a long way to go, but it was something, and they’d managed to get by with less in the past. Coming in separately had been Hotch’s idea. It was likely that the UnSub was watching the team and coming in together would tip him off to the fact that work was being done outside of the office. Secrecy was their biggest weapon right now, Hotch had reminded them, secrecy and surprise. The UnSub couldn’t know what they knew. Not now, not ever. It was essential to the investigation.

Spencer remembered looking over at you when Hotch said that. He remembered the way you’d looked, the nerves and anger bubbling underneath your calm demeanor, and the way that his resolve had hardened.

“So what have we got?” Morgan had asked, “Officially, I mean.”

Hotch pressed his lips together, “White male, late twenties to mid thirties,” he’d explained, “try and float the idea that we’re looking into an ex boyfriend from high school or college. Anything we can do to throw him off.”

Spencer repeated it to himself like a mantra as he walked through the FBI building and stepped onto the elevator, bound for the sixth floor. As more agents piled in, the hairs on the back of Spencer’s neck stood up and his anxiety spiked. Is it you? A voice in his head whispered as he glanced at the dark haired man from Sex Crimes. Or you? He wondered, as a sandy haired agent with a long scar met his eye. Is it any of you? The doors finally opened on his floor and Spencer practically leapt out, forcing himself not to look back and keep his pace as normal as possible as he pushed open the doors to the BAU.

Spencer was the last to arrive, just as planned and, because of that, you’d already taken your space at his desk. The sight of you looking totally at home surrounded by his books and files made Spencer unreasonably happy and his nerves settled. Or at least, they did until he noticed the particularly devilish look in Emily’s eye, and the lack of a second chair at his desk.

“Emily, where’s my chair?” He asked.

She shrugged, “How should I know?”

You looked up at the noise and smiled at Spencer, making his heart leap into his throat.

“Sorry, Spence, there was only one when I arrived. I looked all over the office but the other one seems to have just vanished,” you explained, pushing yourself away from the desk, “you take this one, I’ll stand.”

Spencer sighed, “Don’t be ridiculous, Y/N, sit down. I’m fine with standing.”

“No, Spencer. I’m already taking up half your desk space. I’m not stealing your chair as well. Sit down.” You frowned.

“Y/N-“

“Spencer.”

“Or,” Emily interjected, with faux innocence, “you could just share the chair.”

You both froze, staring at Emily like she’d just grown a second head.

“Come again?” You asked.

“The chair,” she repeated, resting her chin on her hand, “you could just share it. Instead of arguing and wasting valuable time.” She shrugged, a smile tugging at the corner of her lips, “Just a thought.”

If looks could kill, Emily Prentiss would be dead. Spencer was considering pouring a bottle of water over her head when he caught your eye and blushed bright red. He hated how easy it was for you to undo him, how quickly he became completely obvious about his feelings towards you.

“We-we can’t share,” you stuttered.

“Why not?” Emily asked.

“Because!” You protested, “Spence is a germaphobe. He’d be uncomfortable sharing with me.”

“I wouldn’t feel uncomfortable,” he said without thinking, “not with you.”

You paused, surveilling him with a kind of softness in your eye that made his stomach all fluttery and weak. Emily watched the exchange with amusement, but didn’t interrupt, just waiting to see what happened as you and Spencer sized one another up.

“Okay then,” you agreed, “let’s...share. Somehow.”

Spencer fiddled with the strap of his satchel, but breathed an inward sigh of relief as the tension passed. The office chair Emily had left you with was a big one, and Spencer didn’t exactly take up a lot of space, but it was still tight. There was no getting away from casual touches, the pressure of your leg against his, the smell of your perfume clinging to your hair when it brushed by him, the low roll of your voice as you hummed along with the song in your head. Almost all of his senses were suddenly filled with you instead of empty space. The whole thing made his brain short-circuit. Maybe he hadn’t thought this completely through. As you read through a case file, Spencer caught Emily’s eye across the desk and mouthed ‘I hate you’ at her while you weren’t looking.

“You’re welcome,” she mouthed back, shooting him a wink as she turned back to her laptop.

You shifted in your seat, sending another rush of scent through Spencer’s nose.

“Is that-” he started, “are you wearing a different perfume than normal?”

You met his eye, a little confused, but played along, “It’s new, yeah. I bought it just over a week ago but it hasn’t been warm enough to wear it, why?”

“I’ve smelled it somewhere before,” he explained, riffling through the evidence box he kept on his desk until he found the right bag. He was acutely aware of your eyes on him as he sliced through the seal, reached in with a glove between his fingers and pulled out the letter that had been left at your apartment. He inhaled, filling his nose with the familiar scent, and his stomach dropped, “I knew it. Here, smell.”

You followed his lead and Spencer watched your eyes widen with horror when you confirmed his theory, “Oh my god, he scented the paper.”

“With a perfume you hadn’t even worn yet.” he continued.

“Which means he had to have known that I’d bought it, and that I’d intended to start wearing it soon,” you followed, “which means he must have been following me that day.”

“And if he was, there’s a chance one of the stores has him on camera. Do you remember when and where you bought it?”

“I do.”

“Get that information to Garcia, we’ll have to talk to the store owners before they erase the tapes, and then she can track your movements and see if anyone’s a little too close for comfort.” he said.

Your eyes lit up with that intelligent sparkle that Spencer had always loved, the one you got in the moments when a case finally started to seem solvable.

“Spencer Reid, you are the key to everything, aren’t you?” you teased.

He opened his mouth to respond, his cheeks already flushing bright red, when Hotch’s door opened and their team leader stepped out, a stony expression on his face.

“Alright everybody,” Hotch’s voice boomed through the bullpen, “briefing room now please. We’ve got a case.”

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gabriellamon · 3 years

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GABRIELA MONTES (SHE/HER) is a CIS-FEMALE, TWENTY-EIGHT year old ACTRESS who has been living in Moorbrooke for MOST OF HER LIFE. They were born on AUGUST 24TH and right now, they are currently residing in MAPLE COURT. It has been said that they look suspiciously like CAMILA MENDES and if they had to choose a song to describe themselves, they would choose ME, MYSELF AND I by BEBE REXHA X G-EAZY

Hello, everybody! My name is Rose and I am really excited to be part of this group. Under read more you could read little about my babe Gabriela (it's going to be updated soon) I made a list with some wanted connections here. Anyway if anybody wants to plot, just like this post and i'll come to you.

Tw: Alochol, Drugs, Health Issues, Pregnancy, Death

- Gabriela was born in Moorbrooke. With her father having been a police officer, and her mother having worked as a court reporter, her family had gotten by reasonably well. They certainly hadn’t been wealthy but they was able to gave their daughter everything she needed. - When she was 4, a friend of her invited her on a birthday party at the Ice and Sport Complex . She didn’t want to go but her mother made her go. She was pretty mad because of it until the moment she went out on that ice and her body just knew what to do. It was love from the first sight . - Unfortunately when she was 10, her mother died and it was the time Gabriela stopped ice skatiing because she associate Ice Complex with her mother. - Looking how his daughter suffered, her father begun to building her acting career when she was 11, a year after Gaby’s mother death. He’d accompanied her to every cattle call, orchestred her first television commercials, and forced her to take the singing and dancing lessons. Unlike so many other parents of child stars, her father had made sure her money was wisely invested. - At age of 17, Gaby and her father moved to Ohaio, because her father’s new assignment. There she met her first real love - Presley Newport. - Gabriela and Presley’s ship - to be added…. - When she was 19 she had been casting for a lead role in a new tv series called “Rose and Damon”. No one expected the show to last more than a season, and even if it was not as popular as everone wanted, the cast had exceptional chemisty, and the show’s writing staff had come up with inventive plots. - On the set Gabriela met her co-star Nathan Williams (wc). His beauty had left her dumbtruck , but he’d dismissed her with bored grunt. Nathan ignored her during those first two seasons unless they were actually filming. She tried everythng to get his attention. Once of Nathan’s loser friends mentioned that Nathan was chartering a yacht for a Saturday-night drinking cruise. Since her boyfriend was out for the weekend, Gabriela decided to crash the party where after a lot of alcohol she spent the night with Nathan but in the morning he acted like it was never happened and this was the day she started to hate him. This also lead to her break up with her boyfriend who she really loved. - During the first two years of “Rose and Damon”, Nathan’d only occasionally misbehaved, but as the years passed, he’d grown more uncontrollable.He cared about nothing but having a good time. The cast didn’t know from one day to the next whether he’d show up on the set drunk or sober, whether he’d show up at all. He totaled cars, trashed dance clubs, and shrugged off any attempts to curb his recklessness. Soon after the sixth season the show was canceled. - Gaby met Lance (wc), a movie director, during the last season of “Rose and Damon”. They had been the fairy-tale couple. She was the adoring wife who’d given him the steadfast love he needed. During their one-year courtship and one-year marriage and even after their struggles to have a child, followed by an unsuccessful in vitro procedure, they seemed to be happy so she hadn’t been prepared when Lance had left her for Eleanor Gentry (wc), the star of his new movie. In private, she lay in bed, barely able to move. In public, Gaby kept a smile plastered on her face. But no matter how high she held her head, the pity stories only grew worse. Even though Lance had a much more successful film career, she was still Rose Brown, America’s sweetheart, and the tide of public sentiment turned against him for abandoning such a beloved television icon. Lance launched his own counterattack. “Unnamed sources say that Lance desperately wanted children, but Gabriela was too busy with her career to take time out for a family.” She’d never forgave him for that lie. - Just few months after the divorce, Gabriela married Ledger Collins - an a-listed film star, she had opportunity to film with and the luck to be her friend. The press went wild about their marriage, but the truth behind closed doors was, she and Ledger was just friends and their marriage

was just for publicity purposes and after almost 2 years they said it quit and announced their divorce. - Things seemed good for Gabriela but when she found out Eleanor was pregnant, a big knockdown came. Eleanor and Lance were going to have a baby. The baby that should have been hers. Trying to get her together, she left the town and went to Vegas for a crazy weekend. After a long night with a lot of alcohol and drugs, she woke up in the morning to find out she next to the person she hated most and who hated her even more - Nathan Williams. Not knowing what to do, Gabriela packed her belongings and left for her hometown trying to stay under the radar.

#mbintro #tw alochol #tw drugs #tw pregnancy #Tw health issues #Tw death

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sailing-elitsha · 3 years

Text

Carrebeean, Here we are!!!

As I said before: 5783 nautical miles we sailed towards this little paradise where we are still on quarantine anchorage. Waiting on the PCR result is always making me a bit nervous, especially this time. If we are tested negative, we have the chance here in Grenada to get the AstraZeneca vaccines and we will travel much freer than we do now.

But no boredom: a little leak in the hand wash basin, try to clean the mud off ELITSHA, friends and family to speak to, small other repairs, taking the lead in UBUNTU again since we have full and unlimited internet on board, planning and booking Zora’s and Su’s tickets towards us, baking bread again and of course swimming and snorkelling.

But let me talk first a little bit about Suriname and our short sail to Grenada. Suriname was for a long time a Dutch colony. Since 1975, this country is the smallest independent state in South America. The previous president unfortunately abused his power and all the resources the beautiful country has, for example gold, aluminium, oil, bananas got exported unwisely and the profit went into the presidents and his friend’s pockets. That is what Surinamers were telling us. In the meantime, there is a new president, but there is Corona as well. The ECO tourism, Suriname was good and well known for, stands still and the country is in a bad state and shape. At the banks of the Suriname river, entering Suriname, you see big and then I mean really big villas. According to the locals they belong to friends of the former president and to drug lords. A very familiar story to us South Africans. The Netherlands is still involved and helps where they can, but a few days after we left Suriname they closed the country: total lockdown. Just above 500 000 people live in Suriname and most of them in and close to Paramaribo. People are currently getting infected and dying in huge numbers from Corona: not enough hospital beds, not enough vaccinations, not enough oxygen……… not enough doctors and nurses. Their rainy season is terrible this year due to the ELNino effect and its really tuff for the poor population. After a good week in the Marina and a road trip through the rural part of the country to a big dam where people are searching for gold, visiting banana plantations, visiting Paramaribo with a lot of rain we said goodbye to the populated part of Suriname together with Elitsha and we sailed into the Commewijne river. This was so romantic and special. The jaguars, caiman and anacondas were too scared of us, hahahahha. We did not see them, but we heard and enjoyed the voices of the jungle, saw and heard millions of birds, parrots and all kind of other noises. It was magical. Three days we were totally one with nature, did not see any human being, together with Elitsha.

Coming back from Commewijne river was coming back to happy reggae life. Looking for a spot ashore to get our dingy on board for the trip to Grenada, a fisher of New Amsterdam waved us to come next to his fisher boat. Loud reggae music and a very friendly crew invited us for coffee, tea and biscuits……….and dagga and rum………..Unfortunately, we had to say thank you no (dagga and rum out of question, of course). The threat of getting infected just before we go back to sea again for a couple of days made us kindly refusing the offer. Even though we chatted a while with them and they helped us to get the dingy motor on board. And that’s how Surinamers are, chatty, always happy to assist and help, curious and interested about who you are. As I mentioned before people told us in advanced, that coming to South or Central America or the Caribbean with a South African flag would ask for problems. That was one of the reasons why we registered Elitsha in Germany. But we always say that we are from Cape Town, we don’t hide that and up to now we had no bad experiences. People are impressed that we come from that far to visit their small country and want to know if we like it. They loved the fact that we speak Dutch, because Dutch is still the first language in Suriname. Anyway, after chatting to the fishermen, we tied everything nicely, slept a short night and left New Amsterdam and Suriname at 6 am on the 25th of May.

Aware of the thread of Venezuelan pirates (Surinamers and NOON site (cruiser website) informed us about it), we sailed at a safe distance from the coast. Even though we choose to pass trough the Galleon’s passage between Trinidad and Tobago, but we choose to pass it close to the Tobago side, away of the Venezuelan coast. On our way we saw a fair number of oil platforms, huge ones, with huge flames, we could see from far. This was also a bit spooky. We had 35 to 40 knots of wind and a good speed to leave the oil area and the Galleon’s passage behind us. I think, pirates do not like rain. We had tons of rain and no pirates though……..although: Dick told me later, that 40 miles out of both coasts, the Grenadian and the Tobagonian, a fast open boat with 3 men in it sped past us. We think they were checking us out, how rich we are. The stretch between Tobago and Grenada apparently is also declared as an unsafe area. That is what we heard later when we arrived in Grenada. Our neigor, Steve, always has a gun with him. Happily, with enough wind and a strong currant we passed Tobago at 4:30 in the morning and arrived safely in Grenada at 17:00 on the 28th of May.

Close to the harbour at the quarantine anchorage we spoke to our South African friends of the Aventura, a young couple with 2 dogs and his parents on their way to emigrate to Panama. We saw them in every harbour we visited up to now. They left Suriname a few days earlier then we did. They craved for blue water and thought jaguar, caiman and anaconda would perhaps love their dogs too much. In any way, nice to see them again. They explained the Grenadian procedures to us and on Saturday we went ashore to register with the health department. We inhaled the positive and relaxed Grenadian vibe immediately: steel drum music from the taverns, people on the streets, Corona is almost dealt with.

And in the meantime, 1 week in St George, we are declared negative and are allowed to explore the island. Paul, a registered tour guide grabbed his chance. Slandering around the harbour he almost forced us to have a tour with him. The cruise ships are missed by restaurants, tour guides…not by us. Paul told us, that they on “good” days had 6000 tourists from cruise ships ashore. Dick and I were quite happy to escape these “good“ days. Pity for Paul, that’s why we went with him on a long trip through St. George at noon and let him earn some ECDs. Hot and up and down, I was exhausted at the end. We didn’t walk much for the last 2 months at least..

Grenada is the spice island: nutmeg, gloves, cinnamon, and other spices grow here. They have a golden waterfall and many more attractions. We will explore them all and share with you. For now, we experienced the spicy side of the island by drinking shandies with nutmeg, eating ice cream with nutmeg and gloves and some other weird things you would think its really ugg, but in reality it’s absolutely amazing.

We are registered for Astra Zeneca vaccination and yes, we are in a marina with a nice club house and WIFI and not on anchorage or at a mooring buoy. For the first time in almost 3 months, I am able to go and stay where I want on my own. For somebody like me, who likes her independence, its heaven. Opposite of our little paradise, there is another marina, posh and expensive and not really our style. Elitsha, would feel a bit lonely between all the posh-million dollar-yachts. I don’t know, if I mentioned before, that a lot of other cruisers, have fancy and well-equipped boats with freezers, bread baking automates, washing machine, water cooker……. you name it. Our only luxury is a fridge, a BBQ and a good stove with oven, cosy and exactly what we need no more and no less. Anyway, Elitsha got a good clean-up. Sticky, a local guy, Dick and I made her looking pretty again. The water of the Suriname river was dirty through mud and chemicals, they use for the gold extraction industry, we learned. And this was very difficult to get off the hull-0987654Qasdfuiop[.

My home office is in the marina’s clubhouse, with more than brilliant views! Unfortunately, UBUNTU for Africa’s operations manager, who took over financials and admin of the NGO from me, resigned a few days ago. That’s why I am back on the job and working every day for an hour or 3. Alene Edson Smith, local social worker, who was already involved in the family program and took over my job at Kronendal Primary, is doing the hands-on jobs, where you have to be involved personally onsite, like team meetings, meetings with principals etc. For now, we won’t have stretches which will take more than 3 days and we have internet and WIFI. No problem to work though. I love my work as much as I love cruising. To combine both is absolutely great.

For the rest the NGO is in good hands, with our after-care team, Barbara Heye, who is mentor to a single mother with 3 kids. And as I mentioned before Alene Edson Smith, well known in the valley through her involvement through her own NGO, Serenity, took over the reins at Kronendal Primary from me and is mentor to 5 families in our NGO. We share the lead of UBUNTU for Africa. What I can do, I will do, where personal presence is needed, Alene will be hands on. She will lead the sound and music studio, which will release their first CD soon. Lelo managed to get 2 new volunteers into this project, for marimba and music production. Ricardo will remain taking the lead on Silikamva side and Alene will have a firm look and hand on the project.

After care is just running. Andiswa and her team also get support from Alene. But this team of 5 is just doing what they can do best: love our children and supervise, support, teach them and make sure that they are safe.

Questions for the kids:

1. How many kilometres did we sail from Cape Town to Grenada?

2. Which language do the people speak in Suriname?

3. What kind of currency do we used in Suriname and which one in Grenada?

4. Please explain, what the modern pirates of the Caribbean are up to.

5. What is the name of the small entrance to the Caribbean between Trinidad and Tobago?

Sponsor sail:

For the ones who want to take part in our sponsor sail: We have sailed 1812 nautical miles. You can donate a cent, a Rand, a Euro or whatever per nautical mile. We are sailing for these amazing schools: every nautical mile and each Rand counts. To UBUNTU for Africa,German NGO.

The money will go to the UBUNTU for Africa projects: after care at Hout Bay Primary School and the music project at Silikamva High School. This organisation I started 12 years ago (www.ubuntuforafrica.com) Of course, you will receive a tax certificate.

Ubuntu for Africa-Kinder-, Jugend und Familienhilfe in Südafrika

Volksbank Boenen e G

IBAN: DE91 4106 2215 0054 5799 01

For South Africans and others, who want to donate directly to South Africa (also with tax certificate): please donate to Kronendal Primary School (www.kronendalprimary.com). I worked for 10 years at Kronendal Primary as a school counsellor. This school struggles financially due to the consequences of the Covid Pandemic and deserves our support.

KRONENDAL PRIMARY SCHOOL trading as CUIM (“the account holder”) holds the following account with

First National Bank, a division of FirstRand Bank Limited (“FNB”): Account Type BUSINESS ACCOUNT

Account Number 53452884035

Branch Code 204009

Branch Name HOUT BAY 345

Swift Code FIRNZAJJ

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eclecticstarlightconnoisseur · 4 years

Text

EDINBURGH TO BOSTON - CHAPTER 17 - WITH YOU, I AM BORN AGAIN.

Good evening all. I am re-posting the last two chapters of E-to-B so you can either catch up if you didn’t get a chance to read it or it is new to you. I will post Chapter 18 tomorrow night. The newest chapter will be posted most likely this Thursday. At the very latest Friday. Thank you for your patience in waiting for each chapter.

AND HAPPY WORLD OUTLANDER DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is a very, very long chapter. in fact it comes in at over 9300 words. I had considered breaking it up, but in the end, I felt it would lose some of the continuity if I did.

Also, when you think about this chapter this is a “making up” chapter. So at the end of the chapter, there is an NSFW scene. Please take this as an advisement if this is not your thing.

For the sake of the story, J&C are in business class on the plane. BUT, in order to make certain things happen, we must pretend that that darned console is not there.

Again the title of the chapter relates to a Motown song. The song to me represents coming together. There is a link at the end and I wound hope that you will listen to it. To me, it just says Jamie and Claire. I thought it very apropos considering what they went through in Boston and having almost lost each other. That is the reason for the choice of title and song. I hope it makes sense to you like it does to me. There are still some unresolved feelings, but we will get to that a little later.

As always I am deeply indebted to @scubalass who keeps me honest with the story, finds my mistakes, and keeps me on the straight and narrow. Thank you, thank you, thank you.🧡🧡🧡🧡

I am always open to questions about this chapter or any other chapter. Any thoughts comments or suggestions are always welcome.

Thanks for reading my ramble. So without further delay, I give you the newest chapter of Edinburgh to Boston. Here goes nothing. I hope you enjoy.

Edinburgh to Boston

Chapter 17

With You, I Am Born Again

The slumbering beast droned awake. The engines hummed as the jet slowly taxied into position for takeoff. Having received clearance from the tower, th e Captain released the deceptive power held in check. Roaring to life, the air shook around its massive body. Gathering speed, the lumbering giant began its climb toward its skyward goal. Thundering it thrust forward shearing the air mass surrounding it. The flaps moved into place and the brakes groaned as the landing gear retracted with a loud thud. Continuing its ascent, the silver leviathan increased its speed causing air molecules to strike the fuselage mercilessly. It finally reached cruising altitude leveling off. And it became blessedly quiet. Claire Beauchamp raised her head up from its hiding place within the crook of Jamie Fraser’s neck. She looked like a snail peeking out of its shell after a rainstorm. “‘Tis alright lass. We’re in the air. ‘Tis safe tae come out now,” he coaxed her. “Easy for you to say, Fraser. You’ve never been in a plane crash.” Childhood memories of the plane crash that took the lives of her parents still haunt her. Claire survived the accident because her mother sacrificed herself using her body to shield her precious daughter from injury.

“Aye, yer right, Sassenach. And I hope I never find out what that’s like.” Smiling at her, he placed a gentle kiss to the tip of her nose.

Claire leaned her head against his shoulder and sighed. “Another seven hours and we’ll be in Scotland. I can’t wait to go home and leave the memories of this miserable trip behind us.”

“Ye ken it was no’ a total disaster Sassenach,” he suggested trying to lighten her mood. “We made the acquaintance of Harry and Maizie and we had fun in the park, did we no?” He looked at her with a sidelong glance, “Then we umm,” he cleared his throat. The beginnings of a spectacularly vibrant red blush colored his cheeks, “then we became better acquainted, several times. I hope I was no’ a disappointment tae ye Claire,” he said shyly.

“A disappointment? Were you a disappointment? Fraser, I have never been so thoroughly shagged in my life. A disappointment, forsooth!”

The redness on Jamie’s cheek deepened. A self-satisfied smile splayed across his face.

“Ye ken we still have three days left before we have tae return tae work. Do ye have any idea of what ye would like tae do?”

She tilted her head back as she stared upward contemplating his question.

“For one thing, a nice long soaking bath,” she exhaled with pleasure. “Wearing my softest pyjamas, curling up in bed and sleeping. Oh! And order take away so I don’t have to go grocery shopping and cook. It just sounds like heaven.” She smiled contentedly as she stretched languorously.

“Ye ken Sassenach I hoped that we could spend the time together.” Sagging into his seat he radiated a sense of disappointment at the prospect of not spending the time together.

Running her fingers over his cheek, “I didn’t say I wanted to do those things alone, did I? Is your bathtub big enough for two?”

“Yes. No. Yes!”

Is a bathtub big enough for two what it would take tae get Beauchamp into his home? He wondered? I may be looking at a bathroom renovation if it doesna fit the two of us. Ah weel a small price to pay, he thought.

“‘Tis big enough for me so a wee lassie like you should have nay trouble fitting in it.” Thinking about the last time they shared a bath together made the tips of his ears turn pink. What is about Beauchamp that could reduce him to an awkward blushing schoolboy?

“I guess we will have to find out together, won’t we Fraser?” Claire licked her lips as if she was going to sample a tasty morsel. “I also seem to remember you promised to do things to me that would make me scream once we arrive home. You are a man of your word, are you not?” Claire responded in a seductive voice.

It was his turn to make her squirm. “Claire, I am a man of my word. I intend to make ye scream with the wanting. I will have ye riding waves of pleasure till ye can bear it nay more,” his smile both reckless and savage made no mistake as to what his intentions were.

Her eyes opened wide, and her jaw dropped. She tried to swallow but her mouth had gone dry, arid like the deserts of her youth. She knew he meant it. It almost sounded more like a threat than a promise. A threat she couldn’t wait for him to make good on.

“Ye should get some rest, Claire. Ye’ll need it,” his whispered with a provocative voice weighty with a primitive want and need.

His eyes closed as a small smile curved on his lips.

Claire reclined her seat, but could not sleep. She was restless wriggling around trying to find a comfortable position to nap in.

“Ye canna sleep, Sassenach? Yer wiggling like a wee lad with a toad in his pocket.”

“No, I can’t sleep. Just couldn’t get comfortable.”

“What is it? Is there anything on yer mind?” Jamie didn’t trust that she still wasn’t keeping secrets from him.

She looked at him shyly, “Now that you mention it, I do have one more confession to make.”

He sat up straight, bracing himself for the worst. “And that is…what?”

“I really can bake you know. I just never made a cake with a saw in it.”

Laughing, she completely reclined her seat and moments later her body relaxed into sleep.

Jamie watched her fall asleep, just as easy as you please, “Christ, Claire, ye will be the death of me yet,” he muttered shaking his head. With one hand, Jamie took a blanket twirling it open with the dexterity of a matador swirling his Capote de Brega covering his Sassenach.

The cabin was dark for some time and all around him, the sounds of passengers settling in for the night time passage had little effect on Jamie. The pull of sleep would not come. His mind jumped through the events over the past several days. With her startling revelation of abuse and rape at the hands’ of her ex-husband, he feared she might compare him to Frank. Not that he would ever hurt her. God, no. But there was something about Beauchamp that drove him to extremes of emotion. He wanted to protect her like a wee kitten that he could keep safe in his shirt and cradle tenderly. And then. And then there were times he wanted to take her, spread her thighs wide and plow into her like a crazed rutting bull. That’s what worried him. What if he could not be gentle? Would he frighten her? He did not want to be compared to him. Over and over again, he told himself his fears were baseless, senseless. After all, they had been intimate several times without the slightest hint or suggestion that she was afraid of him. He would need to find a way to reassure her. And perhaps, himself. Coming to a decision, he closed his eyes and fell into a restless sleep.

Several hours later, Jamie woke only to find Claire awake as well. She was reading a book on her tablet, one of those bodice-rippers that she was so fond of.

Claire turned her head toward Jamie’s movement. “Can’t sleep?” she inquired.

“Nah. Uncomfortable. I see ye canna either.”

“No, I usually don’t sleep well, if at all, on planes,” she shrugged as this was an accepted fact of life.

They sat quietly for a while until Jamie broke the silence. “Would ye like tae hear a story, Sassenach?”

“That would be wonderful.”

“Weel, did I ever tell ye the story of Mary McNab?”

“No, I don’t believe you have.”

“Then, I shall,” he smiled brightly. “Mary McNab lived with her husband and son in a small croft on the Lallybroch lands. Her husband Ronald worked with my Da on the farm. Now Ronald was a very good worker. He had one flaw. He turned mean when he drank. Whenever he got paid or came into some extra money, he would make his way to a local pub. After staggering home, he would take out his frustration and anger on his wife and his poor wee laddie. If his son made too much noise while playing or his supper was not to his liking, they suffered for it.

One hot summer day Jenny and some of her friends made plans to go swimming at the loch. As they approached it, Jenny spotted wee Rabbie McNab with his fishing pole sitting shirtless on a log, hook dangling in the water. On hearing the laughter of the approaching girls, he jumped up tae get his shirt that hung over a tree branch but dinna get himself covered before the girls saw him. The lad was covered in bruises in various colors, purple, yellow, and brown.

Jenny reached him and spun him around to face her while he struggled into his shirt.

“Rabbie, who did this tae ye?” Jenny demanded her face white with shock and anger.

“No one. I…I fell down the stairs,” the scared lad told her. He knew what would happen if he told.

“I dinna think sae. I ask ye again, Rabbie McNab, who did this tae ye?” Jenny had heard rumors about his father’s drunkenness and the abuse he heaped on his family.

The boy went silent. His head hanging down low.

“Sae that’s how ‘tis? Come on then,” Jenny grabbed him by the hand pulling and dragging the boy along with her.

“Miss, where are we goin’?”

“Tae see my Da. He’ll get tae the bottom of this.”

“No, Miss, no! Ye canna! Please!” The bairn clearly panicked at this possibility.

“Why no’, Rabbie?”

“Because if my Da finds out…” His free hand went tae his mouth as he realized what he had said.

“Mmphm. Rabbie dinna be afraid my Da willna let nay harm come tae ye.”

Da and I were mending the sheep’s pen, again. It seemed that Huey, the fifth in his line, managed to create a hole large enough allowing him and his harem to escape.

Holding Rabbie’s hand so he would not run off, Jenny explained to her Da what prompted her concern for the wee lad showing him the bruises on Rabbie’s back.

Rabbie finally and tearfully told the truth.

You could see how angry my Da became as he listened tae the story. His eyebrows drew in and his lips formed a tight line.

“Alright, Master Rabbie get ye inside. Tell Mrs. Crook tae feed ye up, aye? I need tae speak with my daughter and son.”

Rabbie hesitated.

“Get ye gone, lad. Miss Jenny will come tae keep ye company directly.”

The boy took halting steps toward the door, fear and worry emanated from his small form.

“Oh, and Rabbie, dinna be afraid for yerself or yer Mam, aye? Nay harm shall come tae either of ye.”

The boy nodded his head. A glimmer of hope and trust brightened the sad hazel eyes.

I looked at my Da wondering what he would do. How do you interfere in another man’s family? But, then this was no ordinary problem. Wife beating. Child beating. This was different.

“What are ye going tae do Da?”

Da paced back and forth, running his hands through his thick black hair contemplating the question. “I dinna ken laddie, but by Christ, I will do something. I canna sit by and let the pur lad and his mam be beaten every time the man is gone with drink. Let’s go talk with Mistress McNab,”

So I went with my Da tae the McNab croft. Mrs. McNab, of course, denied everything saying her bruises were the result of accidental injuries. She claimed to be a clumsy person, always tripping and falling. She said her laddie took after her, bumping into things, falling, tripping.

Da took her by the hand leading her to a chair to sit. “Mary, ye ken that I know. I have seen Ron at the pub o’er taken with drink. I’ve seen him get into fights.” Brian’s hazel eyes went soft with compassion. “I will see ye and yer lad safe. I can give you the protection of my home and my family’s good name. But, Mary ye must tell me true. Is he hurting ye and yer son?”

Mary McNab searched the depths of Brian Fraser’s warm hazel eyes finding the kindness in his soul. She opened up in a great flood of emotions telling us everything.

Listening intently, Da drummed his fingers on the table considering what she had tae say. He came tae a decision as Mrs. McNab finished her story.

“Mary pack what ye think ye and yer son will need. Ye will come tae stay at Lallybroch until we straighten this out. I will call my lawyer tae see what can be done legally tae protect ye. Then you can decide what you wish tae do. Jamie, go help Mrs. McNab.”

So Mary McNab came home with us. Da called Ned Gowan our lawyer and Mary decided it was in her and her son’s best interest tae get a divorce, which she did. Da hired her tae help Mrs. Crook with the running of the house.

“Jamie, what about her husband? Didn’t he create a fuss? I can’t believe that he agreed to a divorce so easily.”

“He dinna. Ron marched up tae our house and began tae bang on the door calling out my Da. He told my Da that he had no right tae interfere with another man’s family. And as head of his household, he would do as he saw fit.”

“So, my Da asked him where he lived.”

“Have ye gone daft man? Ye ken fine well I live here at Lallybroch.”

“So ye admit ye live on Lallybroch land, do ye? Which is my land, of which I am the Laird? So as the Laird ‘tis my duty tae see tae the welfare of all who live on it. I am responsible for the welfare of every soul here including yer family. So, I say tae ye now Ronald McNab get yer things and get ye gone from my property. Yer services are no longer required.”

With that my Da turned around and went into the house, leaving Ronnie standing there agog.

“Your father used his authority as the Laird to keep her safe and make her husband leave the property, then. I thought you told me that the title of Laird was only honorary.”

“That’s right ‘tis. But in the Highlands memories are long and traditions die slowly ye ken?”

“I’m glad everything worked out for Mary and her son, but why did you tell me this story?”

He took her very small hand in his large warm one, holding it tenderly.

“My Dad asked me if I knew why he brought me along with him. I foolishly told him because he needed another man along with him, to protect his right.” Jamie smiled remembering his youthful faux pas. “My Da looked at me with a benevolent smile and I could see him thinking. I think that day my Da realized that I was becoming a man and no’ just the wee red-heided bairn that chased after him.”

“Aye, Jamie lad I did need a man with me,” Brian Fraser remarked solemnly giving his beloved son his due. “And since ye are near becoming a man grown there are some lessons ye need tae learn that will govern yer behavior yer whole life.”

“Sassenach, ye should have seen me! I puffed myself up like a proud peacock ready tae receive the sage words of wisdom that my Da would impart tae me. I think my Da almost damn near collapsed trying no’ tae laugh at me.” Jamie shook his head recalling his younger self.

Looking at Jamie, Claire could see the love and respect he had for his father. Something she had always wished she had known with her father.

“Da said he took me along with him tae see Mrs. McNab because someday I would hold the title of Laird. As such it was necessary for me to become a fear an urram. Part of being a duine urramach was the need tae have respect for the land and the beasts in my care. And men of honor have a call tae duty toward the people in his care and those he would meet in life. Most of all, a true man had tae respect women and hold them in high esteem. For women are our strength, our hearts, and the hope for the future. Above all else, a true man respects and cares for those he loves. As they are the reason men rise in the dark of the morning and return home with the setting of the sun laboring so that they can be safe and secure. My Da had a wistful look on his face, staring at something only he could see. He looked at me then told me something I dinna understand at the time, but I do now.”

“Mo mac,” Brian Fraser said, “one day ye will find a lady who will be yer anchor in life. Ye will tether yerself tae her for she will be yer safe harbor. She will stand by yer side through the good and the lean. Yer bairns will be sheltered in her body then brought forth in great pain which she will willingly suffer. Her heart and body will comfort ye when ye are sore with fatigue and worry. She will take ye tae her and ye will find peace. She will be yer home. When ye find her ye must treasure her, Jamie, for she is a rare jewel. Dinna abuse her ever.”

Jamie grew quiet recalling the day the Fraser men discussed what would become the guiding principles in his life.

“I asked my Da if this was how it was between him and my Mam.”

“Da gazed out over the land he loved, the land my Mam loved. When he turned tae look at me, his eyes gleamed full of emotion, love, and joy for his land, his bairns, and his wife.”

“Aye Jaime ‘tis. ‘Tis.”

His hand moved to cup her face. “Ye mo chridhe are the love of my heart and my soul. I tell ye this as I dinna want ye ever tae be scairt of me. I would never hurt ye, or…” he choked on the words, “force ye. I couldna bear it if ye were afraid of me,” he said with a hitch in his voice.“

Jamie turned in his seat allowing him to drop his forehead to Claire’s touching, breathing in their shared space.

“I never thought you would, Jamie.” Her hand reached to cup his cheek.

They shared the silence and stillness of their own thoughts as the jet whisked them homeward.

*****************

Traffic back into Edinburgh was light at that hour of the morning. The Uber silently pulled up to the curb in front of Jamie’s flat. Gallantly, Jamie opened the door for Claire offering her his hand for her to step out of the car. Fishing around in his pocket he found his keys. Handing them to Claire, he told her to go inside and get comfortable. He would be along with the luggage shortly. The driver opened the boot and placed the luggage on the pavement.

“Oi mate, what does yer wife have in the bag, eh? Rocks?”

“My wife, he thinks she’s my wife. Do we look like a couple already?” The thought pleased him that they did and a wide grin spread across his face. “One day she will be my wife. One day she will wear my ring.”

Jamie cleared his throat, “She likes to be prepared.”

“Fer what? An apocalypse? Christ man feels like she packed the entire flat in here!”

Jamie just shrugged giving the man a generous tip for his help.

“She is a bonny lass, though. Weel, luck tae ye man,” and sped off to his next call.

He managed to get all the baggage into the foyer and kicked the door closed.

There she was walking around his sitting room picking things up and putting them down. Seeing her there made his heart speed up. She looked so natural there like she belonged there, with him.

Claire turned around after hearing the door slam shut. She flushed worried that he might think she was snooping about. Which she was.

“Jamie, I hope you don’t mind my looking around. You have a lovely home.”

“Thank ye. ‘Tis no much, but ‘tis comfortable.”

His flat reflected him, masculine and functional. Although the room was devoid of a feminine touch it was tastefully decorated. The room was spacious with a large butter-soft gray leather settee, a bold geometric white and black patterned carpet over the hardwood floor, several comfortable armchairs, and a bookcase filled with assorted books dominated the room. An antique wooden trunk place in front of the sette served as a coffee table. On a far wall, a fireplace with a large flat-screen television above it made quite the statement. Most likely for Jamie to watch his beloved rugby games. Another wall displayed various photographs and portraits of his family as well as small paintings of what looked like pastoral scenes. Here and there there were small splashes of color to break up the greys, blacks, and whites of the room. A tartan gracefully draped over the settee.

“Yer welcome to look about, Sassenach. ‘Tis no much tae see. Just a bachelor’s home. I’ll be putting the luggage in the bedroom.” He looked at her to see if she reacted to his statement. Claire only nodded then asked if she could help.

“Nah, I’ll manage. Why don’t ye make us some tea? Are ye hungry? I could make us something to eat if ye like.”

“Hmm, I could stand to eat a bit. I’ll start on making the food while you take care of the bags.”

“Ye can cook!? I dinna think ye had the opportunity to learn.”

“Oh, I can. I just don’t cook much since it’s only just for me.”

Jamie took their bags into his bedroom. A king-size bed big enough to accommodate his large frame stood as the centerpiece of the room. The palette of the room was neutral colors soft beige, cream, and taupe. The room spoke of a man for whom the room became a respite from the stress of his professional life. The en-suite could only be described as luxurious. One wall is covered in multicolor gray stone tiles, the others were painted white, a black marble countertop with a clear glass bowl basin sink completed the esthetic. He looked at the tub and felt delighted that it would accommodate the two of them. Should he get some scented candles, he wondered? What about some bubbly stuff that smells good? Is that what lasses liked? He thought of asking his sister but damn the wee besom. She would be all into his business and he would have no peace. He would need to figure it out himself. Moving back to the bedroom, Jamie opened his chest of drawers. Would she want to leave some of her things here, he wondered? Ought he to make room for her? He worried that he was pushing things too fast. Better safe than sorry he reasoned. He picked up a pile of old workout clothes from a drawer and stuffed them into the back of a closet. He should have gotten rid of those clothes a long time ago. Having Claire in his life will mean changes, good changes. One that he wanted to make permanent.

He lifted his head and smelled an enticing aroma. She can cook. In the kitchen, he found her busy at work. She listened to some jazzy music as she cooked and was shaking that glorious arse of hers in time to the beat. He didn’t know which he was more hungry for the food or her.

“Something smells good Sassenach. What are ye making?”

Claire turned to face him beaming with happiness and pride. She had a towel draped over one shoulder and her hand one hip.

“Well, Fraser you didn’t have much in the way of food in the refrigerator so we’ll have to make do with this. It’s just a small snack, really. Just about two bites each.” The table was set and the food plated with the panache of a food stylist. There were crispy baguette slices toasted to perfection and fragrant with olive oil. She placed dollops of goat cheese on the bread and covered it with beautifully grilled peach slices. A chiffonade of sauteed basil garnishes the top. And to pull the flavors together a drizzle of honey making it sparkle. Mugs of earthy coffee sent tendrils of fragrant steam into the surrounding dining area whetting their appetite.

Jamie stood there with his mouth open in disbelief.

“Sassenach, you did this? By yerself?” His mouth hung open in surprise. He only had expected tea and buttered toast, but this was an amazing treat. It looked good enough to have been plated for a fine restaurant.

Claire squinted her eyes at him, her foot tapping showing her annoyance at the implication.

“I told you I can cook and quite well for that matter. I just don’t. Now, why don’t you sit down and put some food into that gaping hole of your mouth before you begin to catch flies with it.”

He quickly sat rather than catch the wrong end of her pique. “I dinna mean tae offend ye, Sassenach. I just dinna think ye had much time tae learn with all the traveling ye did with yer Uncle ‘tis all.” Jamie decided the safest thing to do would be to just eat and not say anything else that could get him into trouble.

Claire somewhat mollified by his explanation simply nodded. “Uncle Lamb made sure I became exposed to what he called ‘womanly arts’. So I learned to cook, keep house, manage budgets amongst other things women should know,” she said with a devilish grin on her face. “It has come in handy.”

“I must thank ye, mo leannan. ‘Twas delicious. And I would like tae repay ye by being in charge of dinner. Would ye mind going shopping with me to fill up my empty refrigerator?”

They meandered along the High Street keeping well away from places where friends could easily spot them. Neither wanted to be found by colleagues or acquaintances just yet. At least not until tomorrow. Holding hands, fingers linked together, they peered into store windows, carried on conversations about things of no great consequence. With the afternoon chill descending on them Jamie and Claire stopped for tea at his favorite tea room. The tearoom evoked the feeling of being in a grannie’s sitting room. It was a bit cluttered with an assortment of antique nick-nacks on display, lace tablecloths covering the tables, and a small bouquet of flowers on the table. In truth, it was cozy and utterly charming. The tea warm and fragrant was served in delicate rose-patterned china cups and a variety of sweets and pastries graced the table. They found a table by the window where they could observe the passers-by. Heads bent in whispered conversation, soft giggles uttered, they sipped and nibbled as hands connected unable to bear lack of contact.

The afternoon sky began to lower threatening a change in the weather. Jamie brought Claire’s hand to his lips leaving a tender kiss on her palm. “We need to leave Sassenach before we get caught in the snow.

Claire hummed in agreement. “Yes, you’re right. Let’s go buy something for dinner and go home.”

He was startled by her answer. Was she considering his place as her home already? He rather hoped that she would.

They went to the nearest market to stock up for a while. Claire regaled Jamie about the different cuisines she tried while traveling with Lamb.

“Did you know that guinea pig is considered a delicacy in parts of South America? I never tried it myself but Lamb did. He had to or risk offending the Headman of the village.”

He marveled at the things she told him. Her life experiences were so different from his own.

“Ye mean the wee animals that live in cages and run on a wheel?” He grimaced at the thought.

“That’s a hamster. Guinea pigs shouldn’t use a wheel. Bad for the back, you know.”

He made what Claire referred to as a Scottish noise in the back of his throat. “I dinna ken ye knew sae much about the wee beasties.”

“As a child, I was like a sponge sucking up knowledge from my experiences with Lamb. It was an unorthodox lifestyle for a child but I wouldn’t have changed it for the world.”

He watched her as she stood amongst the display of produce, her index finger tapping her lower lip as she concentrated on what to choose. She examined everything for freshness, ripeness, color, texture before choosing. He was enchanted by her. She truly was a Sassenach, an Outlander. Claire did not belong to England nor Scotland nor America nor anywhere in particular. Having had such a unique upbringing, she was a woman belonging to the world. She belonged to nothing and yet to everything. It was this otherness about her that intrigued him, made him desperately want her to belong only to him.

Making short work of gathering their staples and perishables, they made it back to Jamie’s flat before the storm broke. The wind whipped up around them blowing Claire’s hair into wild disarray. Laughing they stumbled through the door almost collapsing on each other. The door slammed shut from the force of the wind.

They placed their bundles on the kitchen island unpacking their delectables. Jamie gave Claire a sidelong look. Clearing his throat and keeping his eyes averted he said in a nonchalant voice, “Sassenach I, er, um, I made some room for ye this morning in the bathroom for yer personal things. I, ah, also made room for ye in the chest of drawers and in the closet should ye wish tae put your things in there. Maybe ye might want tae leave some of yer things here. But only if ye wish tae.” The tips of his ears turned pink, he worried that this might be too fast, too soon to suggest such a thing.

Claire looked up at him her bottom lip quivering. “You did that for me? I…” She placed both her hands on his cheeks bringing him closer to her. She leaned in kissing him soundly on the lips. Turning away quickly from him before the tears could escape the dam, she ran toward the bedroom to see what he had done for her.

Jamie smiled contentedly as he watched her scurry away. While she was occupied with unpacking her things, Jamie made a phone call he hoped would also please her. He continued to put away their purchases and set the table for their dinner. Hopefully, Aldo would not disappoint.

Claire busied herself with putting away some of her things. Jamie making room for her spoke volumes to her. He was trying to make her comfortable in his home. He wanted her there. As she placed her hairbrush, shampoo, and other toiletries in the en-suite she developed a warm feeling of belonging that she had never before experienced, not even in her own home with Frank. She wondered if this is what home felt like.

Having completed arranging her things, Claire came out to find the dining area glowing with the soft light from dinner candles, the table set, and dinner served. Jamie escorted her to the table, giving her a slight bow, “My lady,” seating her then taking his place opposite her.

“How did you, when did you…”

“I did promise you dinner. I dinna say I would make it myself,” as he waved his injured hand about. “I have a friend Aldo who owns an Italian restaurant close by. He sometimes sends dinner if I have a long day.”

“This is excellent, Jamie. How do you know Aldo?”

“He is a footie mate and a damn good goalie too.”

After finishing dinner and wine, Claire offered to clean up. “You went through all this trouble it’s the least I can do,” she smirked.

“Nay, Sassenach. ‘‘Twas my treat. Why dinna you get comfortable? It’s been a long couple of days.”

Standing she stretched until she heard little popping sounds between her vertebrae, “Perhaps you’re right. I think a shower is in order. Will you be coming soon?”

“Aye, I will. Just as soon as I put the dishes in the dishwasher and the leftovers away.”

Claire undressed taking her robe with her into the bathroom. She decided to ask Jaime for his tee-shirt again to wear to sleep. Having something of his next to her skin was a balm to her soul. She shampooed her hair then washed with her favorite body wash. Looking in the mirror she thought her hair resembled a wet poodle. With a towel wrapped around her head, she walked into the bedroom to find Jamie shirtless and shoeless only his jeans remained.

He smiled broadly at her, “A quick shower, then tae bed.” The heat of the water felt comforting. But he had no time to linger as his thoughts gravitated toward his lass. He wanted to, well he knew what he wanted to do, but would she? They were both jet-lagged, but just maybe.” He dried off and wrapped a low hanging towel about his hips. Opening the bathroom door, he stood there watching her as she tried to brush out several recalcitrant knots out of her curly hair. He could hear her mutterings and swearing. “Bloody-minded hair.” A particular mutinous snag gave rise to a blasphemous “Jesus H. Roosevelt Christ!”

“Here Sassenach, let me,” Jamie coaxed the brush from her hand. “When I was a young lad, I would brush my Mam’s hair for her when she felt troubled. She said it helped her tae relax.”

He sectioned her hair gently then began brushing it, working the tangles out. He worked slowly, carefully working each snarl out all while whispering softly in Gaidhlig.

There was something supremely peaceful in Jamie’s touch. Claire slipped into an almost hypnotic state. She relaxed under his skilled hand and the susurrous of the brush skimming through her hair. Her eyes closed enjoying his surgeon-like expertise. Methodical, proficient, and meticulous. Just like he approached everything. No wonder his mother liked him to brush her hair.

He was totally focused on the task at hand making the unruly mass of curls into soft waves and tender ringlets. One would have thought that her hair would feel coarse and rough. But no, her hair was soft and lush. He brought a lock of her hair to his nose. It smelled of herbs and flowers soft and fragrant. It smelled of her. Jamie paid great attention to the colors of her tresses. Predominantly it was brunette with wisps of caramel, cinnamon, and auburn scattered throughout. Jamie let the strands slip over his fingers like silken threads to once again cascade over her shoulders. “Mo nighean donn,” he whispered.

Claire turned her head to him. “You have called me that before but I never asked what it means.”

He smiled, “It means my brown-haired lass.”

“I have always thought brown to be a rather dull color.”

Jamie placed an errant curl behind her ear, “No, no’ dull at all. It’s like the water in a burn, where it ruffles over the stones. Dark in the wavy spots with bits of silver and auburn where the sun catches it.”

He put the brush down on the bedside table, turned to face her. He lifted her chin up and gazed into her eyes. Her eyes were pools of liquid honey warm and sweet.

Claire fell into the depth of his eyes, so impossibly blue that it seemed that part of the sky fell into them.

“Jamie…”

“Dance with me, Claire.”

She looked at him in surprise and question.

“You mean here, now, like this?” Her eyes took in their mutual state of undress.

“Besides, there is no music and truthfully I can’t dance.

“‘Tis nay bother. Music ye shall have. I’ll tell ye a secret, I canna dance too. I’m tae big and clumsy. Dinna be afraid ‘tis no’ but a bit of swaying. I think we can manage that without damaging each other.” Jamie extended his hand for her to take with a smile so brilliant it rivaled the summer sun.

She knew she should have resisted and said no. But Claire found herself powerless, mesmerized by him. She reached out her hands clasping theirs together. He pulled her toward him. Their bodies touching.

“First, ye need to take this off.” He began tugging at the ties of her robe. “I need tae feel ye next tae me.”

Her hands entwined with his as they worked to release the tie allowing the satiny fabric to slip off her body. Standing there naked she felt just a bit foolish.

“Now your turn.”

Giving the towel a quick tug, it fell away landing on the floor. He kicked the towel and robe out of the way, widening their area to move.

They were bare to each other. His arousal full and complete.

Once again he drew her into him, his large hands settling on her hips, while Claire’s hands rested around his neck.

“Alexa,” Jamie called out, “Play With You I’m Born Again on repeat.”

The room filled with sultry vocals and seductive notes from the piano.

Jamie pulled her deeper into his embrace feeling the fullness of her breasts against him, her nipples hardening from contact with his chest. His rigid cock pressed firmly upon her belly.

Their bodies moved in sync to the music swaying together like flowers in the wind. His sound hand floated over her back holding her close, reducing whatever little space still separated them.

Tucking her head neatly under his chin, Claire’s eyes drifted shut, sighing in contentment. He was warm and had a masculine smell rather spicy she thought. Pepper, ginger, lemon, and coriander. Overlaying that was his own unique scent which could not be masked. She nuzzled into his chest breathing him in making small wuffling sounds.

“Are ye smelling me, Sassenach?”

She looked up at him with a dreamy look on her face, “Why yes. Yes, I am,” and returned to resting her head against him.

Jamie gave a soft chuckle and placed his head atop hers.

He crooned softly into her hair,

Come bring me yer softness

Comfort me through all this madness

Woman, don’t ye know with ye I’m born again?

Looking up into the face of her love, Claire sang softly back,

Come give me your sweetness

Now there’s you, there is no weakness

Lying safe within your arms, I’m born again.

They joined together in a duet singing softly of their love for each other,

I was half not whole, in step with none

Reaching through the world, in need of one.

Come show me your kindness

In your arms I know I’ll find this.

Lying safe within your arms, I’m born again.

Jamie bent down kissing Claire tenderly on her lips,

Woman don’t ye know with ye I’m born again

A single tear ran down her face,

Lying safe within your arms I’m born again.

Jamie bade Alexa stop the music. They came to a standstill, eyes locked on each other.

“I am naught but a poor simple man. I dinna have the words of a poet. Nor can I write ye a love song. This I tell ye true mo ghràdh, I love ye. I love ye more than I have ever loved nay will ever love someone. Ye have captured my heart.” He began to tremble in her arms and stumbled over his words. “I dinna ken what a soul is other than what the priests told us in kirk. But, I kent mine was only half until I found you. When I met ye, I felt mine call out to yers for I kent we share but one soul and one heart my Sassenach. Neither of us is complete without the other.”

Claire looked up into his face seeing the truth of his words.

“I feel the same way, Jamie. I do love you so.”

A tidal wave of lust coursed through him. His pupils were blown wide open turning the placid blue eyes dark and dangerous. He dropped his face toward hers, their lips just a whisper away. Jamie kissed her with a fierceness, no perhaps it was with desperation trying to convey his feelings with actions instead of his paltry words.

Claire felt the heat rising up in her belly spreading through her like the warmth from a dram of good whisky. She parted her lips in invitation. His tongue ran over her lips then invading her mouth tasting its deep recesses as they joined in mutual caresses.

Jamie broke the kiss. His breathing became heavy with want. “I need ye lass. I canna say it plainer than that.”

Claire’s eyes of toffee gazed up at him begging him to touch her everywhere. “Then take me, now.”

“I dinna ken if I can be gentle.”

“Then don’t.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck, fingers playing with the curls at the nape of his neck.

“Come lass let me love ye. ‘Tis been too long since I last held ye in my arms.” He lifted her up and carried her to the bed, gently placing her down. Her hair spread over the pillow like a great nimbus cloud of light and dark. She opened herself to him with her arms raised up in supplication. She never looked lovelier than she did when flushed with desire. “Ye are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.”

“As you say so.”

“Do ye doubt me?”

“No, what I mean is I am beautiful because you say it is so.”

“Aye, ‘tis so.”

He came to her like a starving man hungrily seizing her mouth. It would be her body and soul that would sustain him, nourish him, make him whole again. He had feared he had lost her in Boston because of his own negligence. And yet she forgave him, still wanted him. He needed to claim her as his.

“Mine,” he growled into her mouth. “Mine now and forever.”

“Yours, only you,” she sighed.

His kisses were hard, brutal leaving her lips swollen from the attention. She kissed him back with equal fervor pulling at his bottom lip biting down on it. Her own need to join with him raged through her like wildfire. She had almost lost him through her foolish fears, her foolish secrets.

Jamie began to rain kisses down the column of her neck. Kissing, nipping at the tender skin marking her as his.

“Jamie!” she cried as she raked her nails down his back raising red welts over the old scar tissue. He felt the sting of the scratches but couldn’t have cared less.

He moved down her body placing fevered kisses as he moved. Reaching her breasts, he took a delicate nipple in his mouth tongue circling it raising it to a hardened nub. He suckled it while kneading the other. Turning his attention to its fellow, it received the same treatment.

Claire arched her back and held his head in place to her breast. “Harder,” she ordered. With a ferocity, he did not know he possessed he sucked harder and bit down on her nipple. She cried out in pleasure and pain.

“Christ, I hurt ye. I’m sorry, Claire,” he worried.

“No, you didn’t hurt me. Don’t stop, please.”

“Yer sure, Claire?”

Yes, I’m sure, damn it. Please, Jamie. Don’t stop.”

He gently kissed each breast in apology before taking his leave. Journeying down her he nipped at the delicate skin placing soothing kisses at each bruise. Reaching her hip he placed tender kisses to each one.

“Jamie…please.”

“Please what, Claire?”

She huffed in frustration, “I need you, now.”

“Ye have me lass, I’m right here am I no’? Adoring ye, loving ye,” as he placed kiss after kiss along her stately legs. When he reached her feet, he massaged each foot working the tension out.

“Do ye like this a nighean?”

“Yes,” she purred deep and throaty as she arched her back in contented pleasure.

Jamie chuckled with delight, “I see. And what would ye do if I did this?”

He slid off of the bed pulling her by her ankles until her arse rested at the edge. Hitching her legs over his shoulders, he placed his face firmly between her thighs.

“Christ, mo leannan, yer so wet.

Claire moaned her head tossing from side to side writhing in anticipation.

Delicately he ran his tongue over her apex tasting her, “Yer so sweet.” He found her nub the source of all her pleasure lightly flicking his tongue over it.

Claire moaned and whimpered, thrusting her hips toward him.

“More, mo chridhe?”

“Yes, yes Jamie. I want more,” she gasped out as she ground herself against his face.

Greedily his mouth took possession of her bud, sucking, licking in long broad stripes and gentle circles driving her to the edge of madness. Carefully he began to drag his teeth over the sensitive tissue and began to hum. Relentlessly his tongue dipped and swirled tasting her heat and her honey.

The sensations electrified her senses. Her body jerking, thrashing clutching at the linens.

“Ah, Jamie, please, please,” she gasped. Her hand grabbed at his head, fingers tangled in his curls holding him captive to her need.

He knew she was nearing her climax. Slipping one finger into her sweet heat sliding in and

“Tell me, Claire, how ye feel,” he growled wickedly.

Her eyes were sealed shut and she mumbled unintelligible words as she continued to writhe on the bed.

“Open yer eyes lass look at me. Watch as I make ye come. Know who yer master is.”

His eyes were trained on her, intently watching. Adding a second finger he curved them both finding the sensitive area inside her. His tongue resumed its onslaught as he pushed her over the precipice.

Claire’s eyes opened wide, seeing but not seeing and screamed, “JAIME!” Her world narrowed until she became pure sensation, pure pleasure.

“Aye, ‘tis right lass. Scream my name so all will ken who ye belong tae. LOUDER,” he commanded.

She keened, back arched, head falling back against the bed, “Jamie, only you Jamie.” And convulsed into her orgasm.

He picked her up cradling her against his broad chest bringing back to the bed resting her head upon the pillows. He murmured soft words in Gàidhlig into the glory of her hair. “Rest a neighan. For I will need tae take ye soon. I am filled with savage lust that I canna control. I need tae feel ye around me for I mean to use ye hard. Forgive me, my Sassenach.” He spooned into her back and pressed his nose into the crook of her neck. His manhood hardened with wanting resting on her thigh.

Claire smiled turning to face him as she cupped his face between her hands. Her voice hoarse and no more than a whisper, “I want to feel you too. I need to claim you as my own and hear you call my name in desire. And at the end, I want to hear you cry out as you find your pleasure knowing that it was I who took you there. She kissed him at his pulse point on the neck, then boldly bit and sucked the skin leaving a mark. “You are mine Jamie Fraser, now and forever. I have marked you for all to see.” Her eyes burned bright with an untamed yearning for this man. She dragged her lips across his face and down his neck leaving searing kisses along the path. Coming to his well-defined chest she bit hard again leaving the stamp of her lust on him.

“Do you want me to stop?”

“God no.”

Her tongue swept over his areola and his delicate pink nipple causing it to harden at her bidding. Again she sank her teeth into his flesh causing him to gasp from her assault on him.

“Am I too rough on you,” she whispered sensually in his ear while she rubbed her breasts across his chest making her buds become firm ready for him to suck.

“Yer a she-devil come to torture me,” he moaned raising his hand trying to grasp at her breasts.

Claire threw her head back laughing. “Aye, I am. A succubus surely and I will lead us to the fiery pits of hell where we will be consumed by our lust for each other.”

She continued to scatter kisses and bites as she moved down his magnificent body. She sucked the skin over his hip, then dragged her nails through his fiery thatch the last barrier before his cock.

Jamie jolted at the sensation. “Sassenach, please. I canna bear it nay longer.”

“Please, wot?” Claire asked innocently.

“Claire, ye ken what I want and need. Please, Claire.”

“Are you talking about this? She leaned over and took him in her mouth. She unfurled her tongue over his length. She took in his whole length working her tongue over the silkiness of his cock. Using her brazen wee hand she slid it up and down his length twisting and turning all while she worked the head with her mouth and tongue diving him to near completion.

“Lass, I’ll no last if ye keeping doing that.”

Claire ceasing her assault on his flesh giving him a sultry smile, “We can’t have that now can we.”

She sat back on her heels taking in the landscape of his body. He was beautifully formed with slanted eyes, long straight nose, high broad cheekbones, and full, sensuous lips. The terrain of his body was formed by mountains of hard muscle and bone lying above the flat plains of his abdominal muscles. The man was a work of art, one of God’s finest creations.

Claire was broken out of her reverie as she became cognizant that Jamie was speaking to her. Actually, he was threatening her.

“By all that is holy, Sassenach, ye shall pay for this, severely.”

She laughed, “I believe that I have already, my lad. You had your way with me now it’s my turn.”

She lifted her leg to straddle him, brushing her wet sex over his engorged erection. “Or perhaps this is more to your liking, hmm? Which mouth do you want my lad?”

Shuddering from the sensation, he tried to will himself into control.

“Claire…” He warned.

She leaned over, drawing herself at length atop him grinding her hips against his. “Yes, Jamie?” She asked innocently.

“Ye are a verra verra wicked woman. And ye deserve tae be punished.”

Slowly his hand found its way down her back grabbing her magnificent arse fondling it pressing her close to him.

“Oh, and just how do you plan to do that?”

His hands clutched her hips moving them in lewd movements creating friction between them.

Raising up his hand Jamie gave Claire a slight slap on her buttock causing more of a sting than pain.

She wiggled her luscious bum in delight and giggled. “Is that my punishment, Fraser? I rather liked it,” she smirked.

“Then perhaps ye will like this.” Jamie seized Claire’s hands holding them above her head and flipped them over. Quirking his eyebrow, he pressed his arousal against her. “Ye like this Sassenach?”

She opened her legs wider then flexed her hips hard against him.

“Do. It. Now,” she demanded. Her voice rough and harsh.

Jamie lined himself up at her wet entrance and slowly pushed in perhaps no more than a quarter-inch and quickly withdrew. Claire gasped at the sudden loss of him.

“Exactly what game are you playing at Fraser?” She huffed in frustration. Wiggling under him Claire tried to re-establish physical contact, needing the feel of him. But he kept his distance from her.

“Ye kent I told ye that ye needed tae be punished, did I no’? The best way is tae deprive ye of what ye want. But if ye yield tae me, ye can have it. What say ye?” He replied smugly. He inched closer, letting her feel him again at her entrance.

“You’re on some fucking power trip, Jamie,” she huffed. Her efforts to join with him were fruitless as he kept her pinned to the mattress with his body.

“Aye, I am. Ye remember I told ye I would make ye scream, did I no’? And I did. Now ye tortured me to near insanity and wouldna come to me. That was no’ nice of ye, Claire. So now Dr. Beauchamp ye get a wee taste of yer own medicine. Ye dinna like it do ye?”

“No.”

“Resign yerself tae me then, beg me, and ye shall have what ye want.” Thrusting his hips forward he was mere centimeters from home. He placed soft kisses on the corners of her lips, lightly running his tongue along the seam of her mouth.

Claire struggled a few times more, just for form’s sake.

She used her whisky orbs to do her pleading. “Jamie, please, I…I…need you. I want you now. I need to feel you inside of me.”

“That’s a good lass. But, remember, mo ghràdh I never said I dinna like yer teasing, ye ken.” And he drove home sheathing himself to the hilt in one swift thrust.

“YOU son of a…AHHH!”

His hips moved within her drawing comfort from her softness getting lost in her silken folds.

She felt herself stretch as he filled her and reveled in the power of him.

He put her hands on his chest, “Feel my heartbeat, Claire, it only beats for ye.”

His mouth sealed over hers, taking possession of her breath, her sighs, swallowing them making them part of his being.

Absorbed in the feel of him, Claire wrapped her legs around him pulling him deeper, deeper than either one thought was possible.

A burning tension built linking their hearts, souls, and bodies together. “Jamie,” she mumbled. “My lad, my sweet, sweet lad. How I need you. Oh god, Jamie.” Her body began to tremble and shake. “I…”

Jamie whispered softly in her ear, “Let it go, Claire surrender yourself tae me. Give me all of yourself as I give you everything I am. I can hold nothing back from ye lass.”

“Jaime. Oh god, Jamie.” Claire wrapped her arms around him succumbing to her all-consuming climax.

Jamie continued his relentless rhythm now that he had served her and began to seek his own pleasure.

Two, then three, then four thrusts, his hips moved wildly his cadence began to falter.

“Claire, sweet Jesus, Claire.” Shuddering, he bit down on her shoulder as his seed filled her.

Jamie collapsed on her then fell to the side avoiding crushing her. Pulling her to him he tucked her under his chin. Claire felt the thrum of his voice in his chest speaking Gàidhlig words of love to her. She did not understand the words but knew their meaning. Her arms surrounded his waist still not yet ready to release their connection.

“I love you, Jamie,” she whispered as she succumbed to the world of dreams.

“Tha gaol agam ort, mo ghràdh.”

Lying safe within our arms, we are born again.

*********************

Capote de brega — a cape used by a matador during a bull fight.

A fear an urram - A man of honor.

Duine urramach - An honorable man

With You, I Am Born Again - sung by Billy Preston and Syreeta Wright

Songwriters - Carol Connors/David Shire/David L. Shire

Released - December 1979

Motown Records

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqTq8gckf8E

#ICYMI

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paraclete0407 · 3 years

Text

That my favorite JLC novel was ‘Call for the Dead’ - a reference for the Black Death

Nora Roberts’ ‘Holding the Dream’ - ‘Project 521′

‘[Japanese word for bouquet] super-cruise

‘Afterburner’ - hands on shoulders

‘Disbelief in math’ - you [stole presence of breast]

‘Why am I so dumb’

Drinking boiling tea on empty stomach till fly, leap weightlessly

‘Mariposa 2016′ - why not be ‘wheeled out’

‘Speak while breathing in’

10.

Oxygen from outside not needed; breathing is crutch

11.

Do backflip; test of will

12.

‘Germantown Lake’

13.

Instant respect University School of Milwaukee

14.

‘UW-Milwaukee (once) respected me’

15.

‘The infliction

16.

‘H3B’ - ‘Mutt Riley’ drug-dealer w/ heart of gold (fake stock character) ‘Malaysian Camille,’ fingers intercostal, ‘Liesl,’ point to books w/ furry boot-toes, ‘I want to kick that cat.’ Some kind of gov’t agency. Girl w/ marmalade hair,

17.

‘Gangster Opera’ - ‘__-ya what _ _ _ _’ - ‘penalty life’

18.

‘Flamenco dance-hall poison gas massacre’ - ‘First Love’

19.

‘The Persian Girl’ - NYC container-ship nuclear terrorism

20.

‘Oxygen Girl and Lithium Boy’ - W. Allen ‘Jupiter Symphony’ - Green R-33 - ‘Yeppeo Harkke’ - ‘I’m not Allen; don’t want to know everything; I groom no one; I expect not to live forever; IDC abt ‘sexual awakening’ + doesn’t need to be taught. Unoriginal sinner, un-special sophistication, ‘nubile’ - well f--- you and praise God f---face

21.

Distributing the apple-baskets to the poor

22.

‘Epipen’ hostess-bar; [fake name spoken by munch-crumple-idiot].

23.

‘The Coalminer’s Wife.’ Rutgers is Pyongyang; Mason Gross School of the Arts is Pyongyang; spiral staircase, why am I so dumb. ‘Poetry-writing is like _ _ but novel-writing is like coal-mining.’ The small room, loom / weave. Sleep in uniform apron / visor. Blindness. Hairband. ‘If you wear this shirt on college 1st day will meet fut. husband.’

Sitting in subterranean culvert, bride, pink silver white, orange light. Kneeling in matte white in coal-hill. ‘The village headman’s daughter.’ Candle. Roman Catholicism implied.

24.

Legalistic, fat on health-foods. Friend is skinny always burning self down, love of pizza. ‘Sungjin.’

25.

‘Minister of the Right’ - ‘Scholar Jin and Lady Periwinkle’

26.

‘Eternal Protector YSS his face was white to blacks black to whites spoke breathing in, racist in immutable divine capacity, picking up valuables from ground even if stolen property =/- smashing store-window to steal. Terrible elephant-trumpet, sinking, PCH will burn me w/ cigarette-tip in Eternity.

27.

‘Sospira’ - mandatory euthanasia for piano-teacher after ‘genius student’ graduates

28.

‘Man is woman and woman is b _ _.’ ‘Women are floors.’

29.

The bird says ‘laoshi.’ The rabbit approaches me; my son. Little kids w/ armored lower legs will crush me.

30.

‘So tired from writing strip-club accounts by hand shoulder fatigue the RU Aryan Nation (inc. blonde Jewesses) easily bent her arm to make it look like suicide.’

31.

‘I caused WW3 due to collective hallucination and/or CCP deepfake; casus belli

32.

‘We’ll give you a five-course meal then f--- you up + also plant bomb in stomach

33.

‘I f---ig TOLD YOU

34.

Mom trusted me with absolute trust-ness as we walked; Jew ‘Take your family _____!’ ‘Carlos Park,’ ‘I HATE Jews; they think they’re the only humans.’ ‘At least we can all agree about Obergefell(?!).’

35.

Why Episcopalians sing about Socrates?

36.

Tell parents, ‘Don’t you know how easy it is to generate deepfakes and say anyone did anything?’ They drove away leaving me outside Best Buy.

37.

‘He’s like the Palestinians.’ ‘I really like you.’ Black boy in pom-pom-hat, tooth-smile, tinfoil.’ My Tibetan bracelet, Diamond Gym Maplewood

38.

‘Meta-wolf.’ Painterly resolution of cinema. Die at piano. Stab self in right thigh.

39.

Looking in to the PC screen 2003 I saw the future; at the very end of the _ _ vid the katana right through her mouth and head / brain / skull. Dads to plan Covid ultra-vengeance. YSS, ‘I killed my sons to _ _ _.’

40.

St. Peter in sky

41.

‘Delight of bread; it befits Man’s dignity... Xi Jinping likes _... delight stomach nursing school, orange sherbert, all ight getting beaten

42.

The Black PhD woman wants me to apply lip-gloss(?!), will not expand on educational philosophy of institution - ‘I blah blah blah Harvard, middle class can’t live within means - Shanghai novel ‘What We Were Not Promised’ - ‘

43.

Guidance counselor you f----- it up - incompetent reprobate self-hypermasculinizing crop-hair Jewess man up Derek Chauvin

43.

‘The neural math Yuki Katakura, mirror neurons, decoupling, cannot ride the vestibule, Matt Chai, “Correspondence and Correlation’ Berkeley CA, ‘Catherine Chai’ emerald dress, McDonalds in the days when seats were fixed outside. Michelle WAi funeral; she played guitar; commanded submarine, assassinated by RPG Arab terrorist. G-36. ‘Fantail.’

44.

‘What’s Myeong Hyeongeso up to?’ - I really love my friend Cunningham whose heartrate spikes probably b/c he knows there’s CCP Yakuza assassins somewhere al the time thinking of murdering him

45.

Daejin McDonald’s one night, I start singing ’Star Spangled Banner.’ Kim Jong Un launches missile arcing over cereal grain fields, I start singing ‘Star Spangled Banner.’

46.

Literally 2015, ‘Trinity of Happiness.’ Later ‘finally enter.’ Gold label lite cigarette, ‘I’m gonna have my day!’

47.

I gave the little kid money + he flipped out; he later tried to freeze himself to death as Texas Bill is manning up worried about magazine cliches, contributions to ROKA(?). Kid quit due to voice but he’s still better than me! Fire all these people, CDF, ‘Charles David Framingham,’ nuke Milwaukee, I don’t trust his data. ‘I had so much sex before marriage’ - just die I read your magazine 3,0000 years ago. I can’t believe anyone wants to be you; my grandfather was B-24 co-pilot, main pilot KIA, landed without landing-training, grapefruit morning, infinite wrist-strength. I smashed up his house but he didn’t get mad, just stutter. Dead-eyed f---face shooting every animal in Texas.

48.

Very much fear of P2 holiness but holiness-shyness even worse than love-shyness even more blasphemous, I sincerely hope he strangles me very soon

49.

The evillest thing I ever thought, the ‘death of deaths,’ Kim Jong Il, what was he thinking? I used to toy with TW-1, say word ‘zombie’ ‘How could you do that?!’ I didn’t liquefy girls’ skeletons or sth; it’s like Schindler’s List soundtrack; I just don’t know words for it. ‘Final Gesture’ - Jesus to Judas ‘friend?’

50.

Iraq War Day trail-running, later cognizance of Noam Chomsky Hiroshima Day. Wanted to say Op. Olympic noble but in retrospect ‘Bells of Nagasaki’ + ‘swamp of Japan.’ My grandfather’s funeral, dad is, ‘We have all drunk from wells we did not dig.’ Chinese chicken eat, nap, I can run all the way up of the hill w/ African chat. I like YooA ‘Bon Voyage,’ check CNS high reps, atrial fibrillation.

51.

SHINEE fangirl ‘Stella(?)’ - noli me tangerine I know that stuff is ‘little stars.’ Awed at my gait ‘If only they had stayed in hot pursuit.’ I wanna believe in all that stuff as well; I am also a dead-ender or last-chancer or last-caller; I admire Mari Iijima, ‘’Uncompromising Innocence.’ ‘Little Heaven’ but that’s Kim Jongilism or I’m worse than Kim Jong Il for thinking about ‘Agents Running in the Field.’ Timothy Keller, ‘I don’t like broccoli.’ I felt it was an innuendo and it made me think of HJ that gave me her number but I didn’t call b/c I’m against prostitution and I felt it’s fake number b/c everything is the Shadowplay. I made stupid lewd stuff for years despite ‘Anointment’ and ‘When To Care’ - ‘toucan, macaw, demi-bra.’ Everyone thinks I’m a rapist but I’m not pressing my case; I don’t mouth-breath; I don’t spit. I read ‘Sentimental Education’ and pre-targeted; I gave up; I wish Gen. McChrystal could be President or GWB 3rd term, conscience of Moon Jaein, ‘Weary Head.’ Thought I was ‘all hard’ for reading Natsume Soseki’s ‘Meian’ with ex-girlfriend’s smile at the end but he as dying then I started seeing kisses + wife-smiles and stuff; what’s Francis Chan up to?, does Mike Pompeo know I am real? I liked 2nd Inuyasha movie, that song was about Mochida Kaori’s unborn niece or nephew, Kinokuniya Edgewater Mitsuwa. The ‘Many Pieces’ live version ended with bass-note - ‘cantus firmus’ - instead of fadeout and wail. Stone Lake NK Mountain morning. Fav. Bible book 2 Timothy - ‘grievous wolves.’ & I used to listen to ‘Arirang’ and hear the Latin, ‘Respondemus’ - my favorite person said that Latin’s ‘quaint’ but it’s the lingua franca of the Roman Empire and that’s the final empire of this world that never went away; but this is a specific era, the great wave Delta and it’s not even the last iteration If I know anything about biological war or Satan. Unironically fall on your face; ten billion jewel-souls tonight and this terrible fire rolling over. I just simply pray for mercy on Milwaukee + somebody suspend their infinity-war-dueling over all the ills of yesterday back to Original Sin nd the Fall of Lucifer. I’m unhappy that I know all this pop-culture; ‘worlds are swaying / someone is praying / please let us come home to stay’ or Kahi’s ‘One Love’ where at the end it uses the word for ‘I’ in the subjective case which is ‘arm confirmed identity’

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deiliamedlini · 4 years

Text

Small Steps: 3309 Words.

Companion oneshot to my Zelink fic Alone with You that takes place before the story and features two side characters as main characters (so if you haven’t read that, all you need to know is: Revali and Sidon are best friends, both 17, and humans--not a fish and a bird) And if you are coming from there, this is how Sidvali started before Revali went on a rampage, and before he chilled out and ended up with Sidon.

Sidvali... Is that a legit thing or did we just make that up in the comments? I’m tagging it anyway. I don’t know, I had a backstory in my head so why the hell not post it somewhere?

Brief Summary: Revali start trying to accept that Zelda isn’t the only person he has feelings for.

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

Revali hated the water.

He wouldn’t go so far as to say it was his least favorite thing, but he certainly wasn’t a fan of the open ocean. So why had he agreed to go on this trip with his family?

Oh right, because it would allow him to miss the first week of school. While he was living it up, his friends were stuck telling their teachers all the boring things they did over the summer so they can write an essay about it in two weeks, like they did every year.

He leaned out on the railing, letting his face be hit by the warm sun and the spray of the salty sea air. There were about a hundred others also overlooking the water, lined up along the rails of the cruise ship, but he barely noticed them. Closing his eyes, he could feel the wind in his hair, flapping it about wildly until strands were stuck in his eyelashes and he had to readjust to push them away.

With his eyes closed, he could imagine he was flying through the sky, an open cockpit plane, dangling off a paraglider, or freefalling with little more than a parachute to keep him from certain death. He’d rather be there, soaring, than on the water.

His parents were on the sundeck, lounging in their reclining chairs as they both got their final few tans of the summer. Something about lying still for hours during the day stressed Revali out, though he wasn’t sure why.

He was almost sure he’d regret agreeing to this trip.

The ship was large, as expected, and Revali made a show of inspecting it. He noted the distinct burgundy color that they seemed to include throughout the ship, perhaps to offset the constant surroundings of blue from the sea and sky, but to him, it simply looked to have been inspired by blood.

The cabin he and his parents were staying in was a decent size. It had been a last-minute booking, so they did have a room smaller than what they were used to. Despite walking back to it to grab his charging phone, Revali didn’t mind the size; there wasn’t much other reason to stay inside other than to sleep anyway.

He spent a fair amount of time on the aft deck, watching a rousing game of shuffleboard being played by some very competitive guests. He was rooting for the ungodly elderly woman who he thought had a stereotypical advantage over her much younger opponent.

“Having fun?” a familiar voice called out, loud, unmistakable, and far too energetic to be anyone else.

Revali nearly fell off his chair. “Sidon?”

“Well hello, hello! I didn’t think to see you here! When you said you were going on a vacation with your family, I pictured you more in the mountains than at sea!”

“I wish,” Revali muttered, looking Sidon over. He was predictably far more comfortable at sea than Revali was.

For one, Sidon had no problem strutting around a massive cruise ship filled with thousands of people in just a pair of swim trunks. Revali wondered if it was from all the years on the swim team, or simply that Sidon knew he had abs for days and didn’t mind showing off the efforts of his hard work.

Subconsciously, Revali shrank into himself a little more, uncomfortable with the thought of roaming beyond the pool area without his shirt. Doing theater made him confident, but wandering around an entire boat full of people was different than changing backstage.

He wished he had Sidon’s hard abdominal muscles, ripples that ran down his stomach that made people instinctively want to run their hands along it just to feel the unfamiliar sensation of such a toned body…

“I didn’t realize you were on this cruise,” Revali said, snapping himself out of his daze. “What are the odds?”

Sidon laughed and sat beside his friend. They’d been good friends throughout high school, and going into senior year, very little about that had changed. They’d spent many a night with their group of friends at one house or another. Before Sidon had left for his own extended family vacation, they’d all lounged in pool floats, hitting a volleyball back and forth between each other at Zelda’s house. It had been Revali, Sidon, Zelda, Darunia, Ruto, and Makeela. That was their group, strong and unbreakable.

Though, as Revali thought about it in the brief moment between words, he figured Makeela might be the only one of them who would break off. The others were strong together, theater nerds, jocks. Makeela was the biggest jock, doing every sport the school had to offer, but she was the only one who didn’t indulge in the theater group the others had so eagerly jumped into.

“The odds,” Sidon said, considering what Revali had asked. “I am unsure. I’m afraid I’m not very good at math.”

“No, I know,” Revali jested, raising his eyebrows in excitement as his old lady gained her winning point in shuffleboard. He stood up beside his massively tall friend, looking up at him with a smirk. There were few people he didn’t mind being taller than him, and Sidon was one of the few to grace that list. “Where are you staying?”

“Oh, let me show you!” Sidon said excitedly, leading Revali back into the interior of the ship and into the areas where even a fancy carpet could tell you just how much one paid for such a ticket.

So Revali wasn’t surprised when Sidon opened the door and saw one of the luxuriously posh rooms that were available. A queen bed, and a twin were in the room, yet there was still space enough for a television and a dresser. It was far bigger than the room Revali and his family were sharing.

“Rich bitch,” Revali laughed, running his hand along one of the satin pillows.

Sidon simply shrugged, heading back into the hallway. “I don’t work, so I’m not rich. But, I must say, my parents are a bit like royalty at work, so we are well off.”

“I know. You and Zelda are just… crazy rich. I wish.”

Sidon headed down the hallway, a jump in his step as he walked. Revali took the moment to notice that the way he was walking would tighten Sidon’s shoulders, flexing some of the muscles he’d developed from years of swimming. Revali let out a low sigh and shoved his hands into his pockets as he followed Sidon uncomfortably back to the pool area. And because the cruise ship was massive, Revali noted that this was not the same pool deck that his parents were at, which set him slightly more at ease.

Claiming an area near a chair, Revali pulled his shirt over his head and let it drop over his shoes, which he also slid out of. The hairs on the back of his neck were standing up, and he whipped his head around to see Sidon staring with unmistakable attraction in his eyes, so much so that Revali had to turn away.

Since the day Revali had met him, he’d known exactly where Sidon’s personal preferences lie. And Sidon was a fair bit of a flirt. And while he was never one to make anyone feel uncomfortable, he also had no problem letting every one of his friends know just how attractive he thought they were. Revali knew he ranked high on Sidon’s list, so being ogled for a moment wasn’t the most shocking thing Revali had ever experienced.

But recently, it was shocking just how much he realized he liked being ogled, specifically by Sidon.

And that thought had Revali sinking a bit lower, reaching for one of the mini vials of sunscreen that were laid out, simply so he had something to fidget with while he kept his mind in order.

He considered himself a bit...callous. There was just something about him that kept those he liked most at bay.

Zelda Harkinian, for example, one of his best friends, and the girl he had a massive crush on: she was gorgeous, smart, funny, a firecracker when she wanted to be and a nervous wreck at other times. He was damned near sure he loved her, but he knew she reciprocated none of his romantic feelings. He’d put out feelers, even used Sidon to find out if he had a remote chance in hell and had settled for unrequited pining when he learned just how abysmal his chances with her were.

And now, there was Sidon, his other best friend. He’d always felt something more, something different about Sidon, but he’d never been able to place it. Instead, he pushed it down, hoping it would go away and that he’d be able to look at Sidon the same way he looked at Darunia. But that never happened.

“Revali?” Sidon asked, coming up behind him so close that Revali jumped, flinching away at Sidon’s hand on his shoulder as he tried to slow his heart.

“Yeah?”

Sidon, ever unaffected, simply let his hand fall. “You spaced out, my friend!”

“Did I?”

“You did! Come on, let’s swim, not stand around. It’s what our parents paid for, isn’t it?” He laughed as if he’d told the best joke in the world, entirely amused by himself. Revali found himself laughing along, shielding his face when Sidon jumped in with a splash, earning a harsh whistle and warning from the lifeguard. Revali, on the other hand, simply slid in, leaning casually against the side, letting his arms bask in warm rays of the sun.

“So,” Sidon asked, emerging from beneath the water and pushing his hair back. “Have you heard from anyone yet? How’s school?”

“Yeah, Zelda sent me a picture of our chemistry class. It’s pretty full. I don’t know if you’re in it that class. Oh, and she did say the show was announced. Jekyll and Hyde.”

“Ah,” Sidon said, his eyes lighting up. “So you’ll be a shoe-in for the dark, mysterious, handsome stranger and his more lovable alter-ego?”

A mischievous smirk spread along Sidon’s face. “Well, if you go out for the roll, I’ll have competition.” Did I just say that?

Even Sidon was thrown for a moment by the subtly flirty comment. “Oh. Well thank you, Revali. Though none of us stand a chance against the power of you and Zelda. Your chemistry is just… too believable. Even I get jealous of you both, and I’m not in a relationship with either of you. And you were both sculpted by the same marble that made the gods. You’re too perfect together for any of us to even consider another in a leading pair.”

Revali flushed and shook his head, scoffing at the blatant compliment, masking it with his usual haughtiness. “Go on, tell me more about how great I am.”

Sidon laughed, but his eyes never stopped holding their flirty glint. “I can if you’d like me to.”

Revali bit his lip and turned away, a small smile on his lips. “That’s alright. I’ve got enough of an ego, Zelda says.”

Sidon’s smile faltered at her name, though only for the briefest moments. “Show me that picture she sent. I want to see what everyone looks like this year. Did anyone get a horrible haircut?”

“It’s over there,” Revali said, gesturing to their things.

“I’ve got it.”

Sidon hoisted himself out of the pool with far too much grace, and Revali couldn’t help but be impressed. Or at the very least, he was impressed with the many more muscles Sidon had than he remembered after an entire summer of swimming. When he was back, Sidon slid back into the pool carefully, avoiding getting Revali’s phone wet before handing it over.

Pulling the image up quickly, Revali slid the phone back to Sidon, who was now leaning shoulder to shoulder with him against the edge of the pool. The closeness made him both excited, and incredibly anxious all at once. He only hoped he was playing it cool. This was his best friend. One misstep and he could lose him.

“Oh,” Sidon cooed with dramatic exaggeration. “They’re all so beautiful yet so miserable. Look at Darunia! He’s going to fall asleep on his feet. Zelda is looking quite chipper though.” He turned encouragingly to Revali.

“Yeah.”

Zelda was the one taking the picture of herself, Ruto, and Darunia in chemistry class. The beakers gave it away.

Sidon zoomed the photo in, inspecting the background. “I see Groose, Medli, and…who’s that?”

Revali squinted in the glare of the sun against the screen. “That’s the criminal kid. Luke or something.”

“Link?”

“Right.”

“Hrmm,” Sidon muttered, thinking about who exactly that was. “Shame he has such a disagreeable demeanor for one so nice to look at.”

“Yeah,” Revali snorted, “You either get looks, or a winning personality. For him, it’s looks. Can’t win them all. Unless you’re me. Or you.”

Sidon was starting at his friend. Such an open comment about another man’s appearance was so unheard of from Revali. Even in the past, in jest or seriously, Revali had always managed to expertly dodge the topic.

And Revali seemed to realize his slip, too comfortable with Sidon to have kept his guard up, as he had for so long and around so many people. He immediately shook his head and groaned in annoyance with himself.

“It’s okay to feel that way, you know. He is attractive.”

Scoffing, Revali slapped his hand down into the water, a splash sprouting up. “I don’t like the asshole. He’s a murderer or something. I don’t know what he did, but I don’t like him in any way, okay?”

“Okay.”

“I like Zelda. I do like Zelda, okay?”

“That’s fine, Revali. Don’t worry about—”

“I just think I might like someone else too. Someone... who definitely isn’t Zelda.”

Revali let out a sigh of relief, glad he’d gotten the words out, though wishing he’d done so more gracefully. And wishing that it could be easier to tell Sidon that he meant him.

Sidon hesitated, unsure if he should say anything at all. But he knew how it felt to feel alone. Until high school, he’d never known another openly gay man. And just having someone who understood was far more relieving than he’d expected.

He could do that for Revali.

“There is nothing wrong with that, Revali. Trust me.”

“No one wants to date some noob. I’ve never even flirted with a guy.”

The words struck Revali strangely. Foreign, though not inherently wrong. And, he realized, it was his first time admitting his desire aloud.

But Sidon chuckled. “You flirt just fine with me. And the ones who judge you for any inexperience aren’t worthy of your attention or time. I’d date you, Revali… in a heartbeat. I’m not sure what that’s worth to you, but it’s the truth.”

“Wha--?”

Sidon stared at him, serious eyes holding Revali’s wide—admittedly nearly mortified—expression. Disbelief, confusion, wonder, excitement... it was all written so plainly over Revali’s features.

“Me?”

“No. My other friend named Revali. Yes, of course, you.”

“Why?”

Sidon sank back into the water for a moment, wetting his hair before returning to his place with a smile. “Didn’t you just say you have both the looks and the winning personality?”

Revali’s lips twitched up, but he didn’t say anything.

“Come on,” Sidon said, lightly tugging Revali’s arm towards the stairs leading out of the pool. “I keep getting splashed by some kid.”

Revali’s eyes darted around, and while there were other swimmers, there was no one near them. Still, he nodded and followed Sidon back over to their things where they grabbed their towels and dried off in silence. Revali threw his shirt back on, as did Sidon, much to Revali’s simultaneous disappointment and relief.

Sidon led them both to the side of the ship, leaning over the railing when they were far enough away from anyone else.

“Have you told anyone else?” he asked simply.

“No. You’re the only one.”

“Thank you, then.”

Revali snorted. “You’re my best friend. And… you know what this is like.”

Sidon made a face and shrugged. “I’m not attracted to women at all, so I don’t know your struggle as well as you think I do. But… that’s the journey, I suppose.”

“Mhmm. Sure.”

Sidon let out a groan. “I say this as your best friend: you’re impossibly negative. Come on then, I’ll kiss you so you can get it out of the way. You won’t be inexperienced, and then you can perk up and start enjoying your life. Besides, this will give you such a great story to tell one day: your first male kiss was with the most handsome man in the world.”

“Are you going to find me a mirror, then?” Revali asked, laughing to hide his nerves. “I don’t know how to do this.”

Sidon scoffed this time. “You’ve kissed plenty of girls. The logistics of it are identical.”

“Okay then,” he said, letting out a deep breath. “Go for it.”

Sidon made a face. “No. You do it. I’m not the one learning about myself.”

“Why do you have to make everything sound like a damn lesson from a meditation tape?”

“It’s not my fault I’m deep.”

In a hurried fit of adrenaline, Revali grabbed Sidon and pulled him down to meet his lips. Sidon made a surprised noise, but quickly relaxed, trying to keep his hands still, lest he scare Revali off.

Revali finally pulled away, breathless and panting with nerves, energy pulsing through him as he rode the high of his life. He was intoxicated, and leaned back towards Sidon, seeing if he was willing for a second go.

He was.

This time, Revali gave into the thrumming energy that was making his heart race. He let his hand grab Sidon’s shirt to pull him closer. He let his other hand indulge in one of the few times he’d ever be able to reach Sidon’s neck. He let it run up into his hair.

He let himself feel it all, unashamed and excited. Wild. Free.

But he felt too much. He thought about Zelda. How he still had feelings for her, and no amount of enjoyment kissing Sidon could make him forget that he was conflicted and confused.

He thought of his parents. What would he say to them? How would they react if he brought Sidon home one night as more than a friend? And the school. They were notorious gossips there. What if someone did something? What if someone said something? He wasn’t ready. He wasn’t ready.

“I can’t do this. I’m not... I just can’t,” he finally said aloud, pulling away from Sidon and taking a few steps backwards.

“That’s okay,” Sidon said, catching up to him. “Stop backing up; you’ll fall overboard. You don’t have to be ready yet. I’m here for you when you are, and if you ever need to talk. I’ve got your back.”

Revali was shaking, and he grabbed his wrist to steady it. “I’m so sorry. I just... I’m not there yet.”

“Don’t be. Don’t be at all.”

Trying to control his breathing took some work, but Revali nodded and rejoined Sidon on the railing, feeling the wind in his hair and looking up at the slowly setting sun, Sidon comfortably at his side, undeterred. Their friendship intact. As if nothing had happened.

Revali sighed, pushing his hair back. What he wouldn’t give to have the confidence to go homecoming with Sidon. Biting his lip, he held out his hand, still shaking. “Smaller steps?”

Sidon chuckled and nodded, grabbing Revali’s hand in his and giving it a reassuring squeeze. “Smaller steps.”

And Revali realized that maybe being on the water wasn’t so bad after all.

#my fic #LoZ AU #modern au #legend of zelda #breath of the wild #revali #sidon #human revali #human sidon #it's not canon ages #both 17 #fumbling teens #fluff #sidvali #backstory #romance #angst #he gets there eventually in the actual fic #writing

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