#he flexes his status and money and says just take my hand is he offering to house his sons again

[mrwavellswaps]

Noticing The Difference

I never should’ve bought that fucking statue.

Two months ago I was, dare I say, an absolute hunk. I’d been working out for years on end. Always pushing my limits at every opportunity I could to grow better and stronger. I had a great diet which I made sure to always stick to and plenty of mates I could hit up the gym with. I was in the best shape of my life. Both looking and feeling bigger than ever with muscles that always managed to get me compliments from other dudes at the gym. Not to mention my genetics doing the absolute most by blessing me with a height of 6’1, a handsome face, a perfect hairline and an incredible beard. Looks that, needless to say, got me into bed with plenty of other hot dudes. Daddies, hunks, twinks. You name it. I’d been with them all.

I had everything going for me. I had a great job at my local gym. I’d been approached by multiple modelling agencies. I’d even amassed a fairly large following across my social media with my comment sections always full of thirsty people who ranged from leaving playful compliments to begging me for an onlyfans. Something I’d honestly begun to consider.

But then the statue happened. I found it at a small antique shop in town. I’m not even sure why I went in there. It was like something was drawing me in. Yet as soon as I was in the door I was greeted by an older man who wasted not time in offering his assistance. He whisked me around the shop, showing me everything he had to offer but I could tell he seemed particularly keen on selling me that one statue. I had no idea why at the time but in the end he won me over. It was fairly cheap and looked nice I supposed so before I knew it the shopkeeper was grinning as he took my money and handed me a receipt.

I found a spot for it at home on one of my bedroom shelves. But it was shortly after this that weird things began to happen. I found myself staring at it constantly. My eyes always drawn to the statue. I’d find myself thinking about it when I was at work. But things only started getting really weird when I began to get erections while looking at it. I had no idea why but my cock couldn’t help stiffening whenever my eyes met that of the statue. It very quickly got worse until soon enough I was standing in the middle of the room unable to break eye contact with the statue while jerking my fat dick. I wanted to stop but I couldn’t. It had some kind of hold over me. It wasn’t long then before I could feel my load rising up and getting ready to erupt until suddenly… I couldn’t move.

Everything around me spun and blurred in a dizzying fashion. When my vision cleared I was no longer staring at the statue, but rather I was staring at my own face! It didn’t make any sense! Somehow I was now looking at my muscular body from the outside as if I were a mere spectator. I had no idea what was going on but I couldn’t help feeling a wave of dread wash over me as my former face grinned maliciously at me. Seconds later however that grin twisted into a look of sheer pleasure as he drained my balls completely, groaning in my voice as he did.

“Fuuuuuuckk! It’s been too long since I’ve busted a nut!” He moaned while wiping some of my cum off his hand. Soon after he went on explain what just happened. Apparently the statue I’d bought was cursed. Every few years it starts to lure in a new victim. Making them want to take it home with them and soon become so entranced by it that they end up jerking off to it. In the process making their minds weak enough that the statue can steal their soul and trap them within itself. The side effect to this however is that the soul of the statue’s previous victim gets to take the newly vacant body in return. “Bro you have no idea how excited I was the second I saw you walking into the shop.”

I couldn’t believe it at first. I didn’t want to! But the reality of the situation was impossible to ignore as I watched this stranger begin to flex my muscles with a stupid smirk on what should’ve been my face. All while I was frozen in place. Unable to move or speak. Only capable of seeing and hearing. Completely powerless to stop this stranger from exploring the body he’d effectively stolen from me. And to make it even worse…

“Fuck. I’m gonna pull so many hot chicks with this body! Their pussies are gonna be dripping for this dick!”

He was straight.

Since then I’ve been unable to do anything but watch from a shelf in my bedroom as this guy took over my life completely. At first he really tried to act as much like me as possible. Shortly after taking my place, he looked through pretty much all my personal belongings much to my unheard protests. Learning every bit of information he could that he hadn’t already figured out in the time he’d been watching me from the statue. He must’ve scrolled through my phone for hours, looking through all my apps and messages. All the while playfully taunting me about it.

And after that he soon started going out. Dressing exactly as I would to meet with family and friends. And as soon as he got home he’d immediately come and tell me everything. Describing to me how hardly any of the people I knew even noticed a difference besides giving him an odd look here and there. It was both infuriating and terrifying at the same time. But I honestly couldn’t blame them. With my body’s muscle memory he already had most of my mannerisms down and could talk almost exactly like I did. And that’s how I thought things were going to stay. This imposter becoming my perfect replacement. That is until about a month in when something began to change…

He came into the bedroom one day and groaned as he threw off one of my now sweaty tank tops after what I can only assume was a jog home after a tough gym session to keep that body in shape. He finally allowed himself to catch his breath while placing his hands on those impressive hips I used to own. As he did his gaze shifted towards me; Initially with a glance before then turning to a smile which wouldn’t have seemed nearly as mocking if he didn’t follow it up with that annoying peace sign.

I rolled my metaphorical eyes at the gesture as he jumped on my bed and pulled out my laptop. Unfortunately I already knew what he was doing as he scrolled through some tabs he had saved while tugging down his shorts and unleashing that thick cock I used to own. I couldn’t help cringing like always as I watched him pull up a video and start jerking off to some girl bouncing her tits. He might’ve copied me in many ways but that definitely wasn’t one of them. It was always so unnerving to see my body and cock get horny over women. I usually just try my best to ignore it and hope he finishes quickly… but today wasn’t one of those days. It felt like hours before he finally tossed his head back and moaned with my voice as he spurted my load everywhere while a chick on the laptop was getting her pussy pounded.

“Ohhh gooddd!” He slurred his words coming off the high of orgasm. “I can’t take it anymore!” I had no idea what he meant at first but in hindsight if I’d known I would’ve wished for anything to stop him.

After cleaning himself up, that imposter trudged over towards me and looked me dead in the eyes. “Look man. I know I’ve been a bit of a dick to you this last month. Taking your body and what not. And I promise it wasn’t personal… not that I’m complaining.” A line he’d said to me many times by now as he flexed one of my biceps yet again. “I’ve tried to keep up this act of being you to be respectful I guess but I just can’t do it anymore bro! I wanna act like me!” I couldn’t help but find that last line somewhat ironic. “No offence dude but I'm not into half the stuff your friends and family expect me to be into and I'm not gay either. And I don’t wanna hide that anymore.” I could already feel my nightmare about this whole situation coming true at this point. “Sorry but I'm doing things my way now. I know you’re probably not gonna like it but I promise I’ll make it up to you bro. As soon as that statue you’re trapped in is ready to do its crazy magic shit again, I’ll make sure you get a sick new body. Maybe then we could hang out sometime as bros. No homo though.” He chuckled. And if that last joke wasn’t warning enough for what was to come, I didn’t know what was.

Immediately I could see the shift in his behaviour. Whenever he spoke he began to sound less like me and more like a douchey straight guy who can’t help saying ‘bro’ every other sentence. Things like the way he carried himself began to change and become more characteristic of the man who’d taken my identity. Next were the clothes as he quickly stopped wearing a lot of the tighter looking clothes I owned and pretty much threw out most of the clothes he considered to be ‘too gay’. Quickly replacing them with new clothes he’d bought which just made my former body look so painfully straight. But I guess that’s what he was aiming for.

But it didn’t stop there. I’d already figured out he was a football guy before now with how I could always hear him shouting and cheering at the TV whenever there was a match on. So it wasn’t long before he’d bought a bunch of football related shit as well to put up around my place. After which he told me all about how my friends thought it was so weird that he was so into football now. I wasn’t surprised considering I’d always said before how much the sport bored me.

Now he’d turned my former self into one of the straightest looking and acting guys on the planet. And this couldn’t have been more apparent as I heard him come home with what sounded like two other dudes he’d made friends with at the gym. Straight gym bros I assumed who I’d probably never spoken to before. I could hear them all getting settled on the couch with beers as they hung out. Doing weird shit like chugging their beer and seeing who could belch the loudest. Eugh. I tried to ignore it but my ears couldn’t help perking up when they started having a conversation about my former self’s sexuality…

“Yeah I dunno guys. I used to think I was gay but recently I’ve been thinking of experimenting you know? I’ve always been curious as to what fucking pussy feels like.” I heard him say. Fuck. Up until now he hadn’t actually had sex with a woman since taking my body despite how much he talked about wanting to do it. I figured at least a part of him still felt bad for stealing my body and he probably figured I’d hate it. So when I heard one of his new bros offering to call up a lady friend of his who apparently had a crush on my imposter. I’d have screamed for him not to take the offer if I could. But there was nothing I could do.

“Call her bro.”

Before I know it I have to bear witness as my own body stumbles into the bedroom with a busty chick wrapped around his waist. As they kissed their way over towards the bed, he looked up at me with a what seemed to be a somewhat guilty look. However that look was quickly wiped away as the chick grabbed his bulge, coaxing a satisfactory grunt out from my former voice. Now I found myself cringing a hundred times harder than I ever did before as she started going on about how she knew I wasn’t really gay and that I just needed the right woman.

What came after seemed like torture to me. Having to watch as my imposter got his dick sucked by a woman I didn’t know. Staring on helplessly as he reached down and grabbed at her tits, causing my old dick to buck with excitement as he squeezed them. And even worse so as he moved on to sliding my cock between her tits and fucking them! It felt so wrong to watch but I couldn’t look away as he eventually stopping fucking her tits only to start eating out her pussy instead! God… seeing my own face between a woman’s legs just looked wrong. And yet he was having the time of his life.

But eventually my worst fear came true as I watched him line my cock up with the entrance to her pussy. I could swear he looked up at me again just for a second to mouth the words ‘sorry bro’ before suddenly plunging inside her. And once he did he was like an animal. A beast even! Slamming my formerly gay cock as deep into her pussy as it would go, causing them both to wail out in pleasure. After that he must’ve pounded her for what seemed like hours to me. Stuffing that big titted bimbo full with my dick as the only sound that could be heard over all the moaning was my balls slapping against her taint. Torture didn’t even sound like a strong enough word at this point.

They switched positions a couple of times before they finally reached the climax. Across which time the chick complimented my former cock multiple times on how perfect it was for her pussy and how it made her cum faster than any other guy could. But eventually my imposter reached his limit. There were a few uneven thrusts before finally he let out a long loud groan just as I always did when I came. Immediately his cock began to spasm as it filled the pussy below him with an enormous load, much to this chick’s desire by the look of it. And he wasn’t even wearing a fucking condom…

A few minutes later I had the displeasure of watching him slowly dislodge from her pussy with a dumb grin. He wiped off his sticky cock and pulled on a pair of baggy shorts as the chick continued to bask in the afterglow of it all. I watched as he headed towards the door where his new bros were waiting for him on the other side.

“How was it man? You still think you’re gay?” One of them asked.

That body snatcher of mine grinned. “Nope. I’m as straight as an arrow bros. Tits and pussy only from now on.” He claimed, having to make it all sound somewhat believable before the other two men wrapped their arms around him in a celebratory manner before grabbing him another beer.

I can already tell these are gonna be a looooong few years before he’s finally able to keep that promise and put me in a new body. At this rate by the time I get out of this curse statue, he’ll have knocked up enough bimbo’s to have his own soccer team. Hopefully he’ll start using a condom before then…

#male body theft #male body swap #magic #curse #gay to straight #identity theft #jock #male hypno #permanent #male possession #muscle theft #male muscle growth

[akkivee]

the way rei’s verse is an answer to ichiro’s (much like how faces is a response to ore ga ichiro)

#this is vee speaking #and like #i am once again reeling from rei’s attitude lol #like he’s obviously dissing ichiro lol but it’s like #what’s the truth in those lies???? or rather the point????? #this is not a con he says but he starts off calling himself a liar???? #why not give me a chance???? for what?????? #he flexes his status and money and says just take my hand is he offering to house his sons again???? #like seriously seriously????? is he seriously serious about that?????? #and not just being the villain the bb are kinda making him out to be?????? #rei’s just one of those characters i put waaaaaaay too much thought into every word and expression lol #c: ichibro #c: rei

[the-tiniest-one]

Hello! I saw you asking for requests to be sent in. I was wondering if you could do headcanons for kakashi and gai (separately) with a plus size civilian s/o? Or one or the other? Thank you in advance ❤

MIGHT GUY

SO we all know Guy is ALL about 3 things. Youth. Passion. Protecting Precious People….and guess what? When you happen to cross paths with the Leaf Village’s Blue Beast, he trips over himself to let you know just how PRESH you are.

I don't see your status as a civilian as much of a road block for him. He needs someone grounded and with soft hands to hold.

Someone who will think he’s the strongest man in the world, a superhero.

He protects the ones he loves with his life and once you're in that circle there is no way out of this man’s giant heart.

You somehow enter Guy’s line of sight, maybe on a walk to class or work too early in the morning…. and from that moment you pass by and he catches sight of your pretty face, he is out for the count.

Now. Lets remember….Guy is CONFIDENT (sometimes more in spirit than in actual ability, he is the fake-it-till-you-make-it KING).

Also important to note: Guy is NOT the same as Rock Lee in his pursuit of women. He’s not about to blow every kiss at you from the jump or shamelessly confess everything out right. Don't get me wrong, he’s shameless….but Guy wants to be seen as someone cool, sexy, a real macho/mighty man... He wants to be slick Kakashi his eternal rival. He’s going to try to be velvety smooth….without success.

He would find any excuse to be in your eye line while flexing or saving a poor disguised student he employed for his contrived scheme, in this case... Neji or Lee in a dress from falling off a building LOL. (“They would be asking him to please explain again how this is training?”)------You might be a civilian. But Genjutsu of that level does NOT work on you LOL.

You are the one to finally introduce yourself to a slumped and defeated Guy after about a week of his adorable attempts at trying to bate you in with his goober acts.

“Hello, my name is (y/n). I was hoping maybe you would like to get a drink sometime?” you say with a half smile.

He would raise his head, teeth BEAMING….the power of youth always prevails!

Best. Decision. Ever. Guy charming and not to mention SHREDDED.

When he accepts your date offer, He would stand and grin, maybe saying something a little cocky like; “A handsome, war hardened devilish shinobi such as myself will always find time to satiate the voracious desires of such a heavenly woman so bursting with the essence springtime.”

He would be so so so respectful.

That being said, you're HIGH AF if you think you aren't making a B-line to walk by Kakashi on the way so Guy can tactfully walk by loudly so that his rival notices he’s with a cute girl.

He’s going to be the chivalrous type. The kind of man who makes sure your hands are around his giant bicep whenever he escorts you anywhere….which from this point on is almost anytime he is home from missions or not training.

Guy is perfect. He’s tall, JACKED, and such a sweet loving man.

He is obsessed with your shampoo. His nose is always in your hair.

Lets face it. Guy is 100% the most physical man that has ever walked the streets of Konoha. If you aren't big on touching, then his is not the man for you.

One hand will always be around your waist, holding your hand, arm around your neck, locked on your curves or anywhere else….respeeeectfully of course.

He will always be up on you and in your face so get ready for that LOL.

He will be proud of you. He will be boisterous to an exhausting level about your achievements.

He will be exhilarating in every way.

One of Guy’s greatest strengths is also one of his most unfortunate downfalls. He is wildly protective. Never underestimate his ferocity when it comes to you. You may have to communicate more than once where the line is when it comes to him watching over you. Even though you aren’t skilled in combat as he is, you also are not a child and he will take some time to learn what you require and what you don’t.

He always means well.

You have some faults and things to work on as well. Guy is tender as hell, an emotional, hot blooded, love sick fool who can and WILL take things you say to heart so be sure if you notice him freaking out or trying too hard to make you happy, to hold him and let me know often that he is perfect the way he his.

In the end all of the passions and butterflies that Guy provokes from your heart are entirely justified.

He will ask you to marry him after a date, probably at sunset, one knee, giant ring he spent way too much on.

He claims you deserve the world and you tell him that instead of the world “you would settle for just having his hands, his lips, and his heart.”

Do your best to return his love to the best of your ability because not everyone gets the chance to be loved by the Hidden Leafs Handsome Blue Beast.

KAKASHI

I’ve never seen Kakashi as someone who would end up with another shinobi bombshell.

Instead I think he would find himself interested in someone who is a total badass in another line of work.

Example; You first encounter him one day while advising Lady Tsunade on the information the Hidden Leaf Village (and a few others) pay’s your company large sums of money to collect, aggregate, and report.

Kakashi stands guard during the meeting, watching you speak with an eloquent grace and authority he finds captivating and maybe a little seductive.

By then end of the meeting he is curious about you...wondering what you thought of him, what you think about everything.... You never even look his way.

He falls in line with you as we escorts you out of the building, walking beside you in the otherwise empty stairwell.

You smirk and take the liberty of speaking first. “Did you enjoy the show Scarecrow?”

From that moment on he’s hooked.

Now I also don’t find the idea of him falling for someone with some FULL curves to be all that outlandish….He has never given .00000001% of a shit what other people think.

He also shares the famous Pervy Sage’s taste in “women he describes from research” and romantic books about women shaped like gourds so with that logic in mind….dude likes thicc, full, curvaceous women for sure. It's basically cannon at this point ;)

Kakashi is someone who has learned emotional detachment through pain. You are the first person who shows promise in tearing down those defenses.

Your relationship not necessarily a slow burn. Kashi isn’t a kid, just because he hasn’t fallen head over heals with anyone before, doesn’t mean he is a mystery to himself or oblivious to his feelings.

That being said, I do think he will protect you by keeping a relationship with you under wraps for the first year or so.

If anything EVER happened to you….he wont let that happen.

The secrecy could be hard on you at first.

Watching more than a few women flirt shamelessly with your Kashi is beyond ROUGH.

Especially considering most of them are tough as nails ninja women with perfect bodies. You aren't used to feeling threatened by other people men or women, so you have a hard time learning how to deal with it.

Kakashi is always quick to remind you that he is serious about your relationship though.

He looks at you with a ferocity only seen by people who are no longer alive. His voice is low and serious when he gets close and tells you, “(Y/N) You are my entire life. I will never leave you. I promise I am yours until the day I die.”

After a few times of him promising you that he really is in love with you, you believe him and can be secure in his word.

As his girlfriend, you take his breath away.

The way you speak, move, sleep….

Even the way you casually conduct yourself at home and in public makes him more than proud to know who you are. Let alone get to go home to you.

Guy is the first one to catch on believe it or not. He notices Kakashi peaking over the top of his book at you as you walk down the opposite side of the street. He’s known Kakashi since they were kids, he puts a reassuring hand on your boyfriends shoulder and vows without spoken words to protect you when Kakashi can’t be there….and Kakashi understands. It helps him sleep just a little better knowing he has help.

Stargazing on a rooftop one chilly autumn night, Kakashi grabs your hand and proposes to you with a small silver ring, slightly ashamed for it’s lack of a stone.

“I want you to be my wife.” is all he says and you wrap your arms around him whispering in his ear “You have had my heart since the first day I met you…. And you always will.”

His heart melts into a puddle at the sound of you telling him he will have a wife. Finally have family that loves him this much.

#might guy x reader #might gai fanfiction #might guy #maito gai #might gai imagine #might guy relationship #might guy fanfiction #might guy x you #might gai #might guy headcanons #naruto imagines #naruto #naruto headcanons #kakashi hatake #kakashi sensei #kakashi x reader #kakashi x female reader #kakashi #kakashi fanfiction #kakashi headcanons #kakashi imagine #kakashi x you #kakashi x y/n #kakashi x reader jealous #kakashi imagines #might guy fluff #kakashi hakate

[ladybugout-au]

Marinette placed the final box of baked goods on the stack, pulling up the strings she'd set underneath them so she could tie everything together. "Alright! That should do it!" She put her hands on her hips, looking proud of herself, though faltered as she realized, "Oh, but what if there aren't enough options? What if they have an allergy?"

"That was everything your parents could part with," Tikki reminded her.

Marinette whined. "I know. They're kind of leftovers too, but I didn't want to just swoop in as Ladybug and go hey, I have some new heroes I'm meeting, do you mind if I buy some of your baked goods for them because I know they would've insisted that I take a bunch of the fresh stuff for free." Rubbing the back of her head, she gave a one-armed shrug. "It was just easier to ask for anything that was still good but they didn't want to sell exactly."

"I guess so," Tikki hummed, though it was obvious that she didn't really get it. Marinette supposed that a kwami couldn't really understand the value of money and briefly imagined Tikki with a tiny purse of coins.

Shaking her head of any amusement that brought, she walked over to her mirror, feeling her face and checking the tightness of her pigtails holders. "Tikki, how's my hair look?"

"Won't your hair just go back to perfectly-brushed pigtails when you transform anyway?" Tikki asked.

Marinette supposed she was right. Thanks to her transformation, many a Parisian had been saved from seeing their hero sporting a bedhead during early morning akuma battles.

"...Alright," she decided, carefully undoing her hair ties and fluffing up her hair. "In that case, hair down it is."

Tikki blinked, flying over to ask, "What do you mean?"

Marinette glanced at her in the mirror. "Because then I can at least feel like I'm doing my hair up for it! I have to look nice!"

A tilt of the head was her response. "It's not that I'm not happy that you're taking this so seriously, but why the fuss?"

Gasping, almost in offense, Marinette replied, "I have to make a good first impression! I'm Ladybug, and they need to know that I appreciate them being here!"

"Marinette," Tikki said steadily, waving her arms out to gesture at her. "They already know Ladybug. I'm sure—"

"But not like this!" Marinette retorted, standing straight and raising a finger as she made her point. "I want them to feel welcome and like they can come to me for advice on fighting or keeping their identities a secret!" She hesitated, then dropped her gaze to the ground and added nervously, "I-I mean, I know I might not the best at those, but I can still try, right?"

Tikki moved immediately in front of Marinette's face, using her tiny paws to raise her chin up. Flying a small distance away, she assured, "You're a great Ladybug! I'm sure they'll appreciate you no matter what happens!"

Marinette smiled at that, at least feeling a little more mentally prepared to face the new heroes now. "Thanks, Tikki." She turned, facing the boxes of baked goods again and readying herself. She stepped towards them, paused, then scratched her cheek sheepishly as she asked, "But seriously though, do you think these will be enough?"

"Marinette!"

"Okay, okay, I'm going! Let's go!"

——-

Ladybug could feel Chat Noir following her only five minutes after she'd left the house, though was aware that it wouldn't exactly be hard to see her - despite the extra black she'd added to her bodysuit at the start of her blog - with all the boxes she was carrying. That was fine with her, as she'd needed him to be nearby anyway; they were still partners, after all.

As she landed on the rooftop she'd agreed to meet everyone at, she heard Chat Noir landing behind her. He announced his presence with an amused, "Setting up a picnic, m'lady?"

She raised a brow at him. "You could say that. The new heroes should be arriving in—" She pulled out her yoyo to check the time, realizing just how long she'd spent fretting over her first impression. "—uh, soon. Very, very soon."

At least she still got there first, she figured.

"New heroes?" Chat inquired, his flirtatious tone disappearing. "I didn't know they'd be here tonight."

"I messaged you before I left," she pointed out, purposefully leaving out the detail of the kwami group chat. She idly wondered if Plagg could be bribed into sending her flirty messages from Chat.

"I saw," he insisted with a bow, "which is why I hurried to you so you could tell me what it was about in person!"

She had no comment on that, too busy setting the boxes out and checking to make sure the baked goods hadn't been jostled on her way there. Chat Noir sat down next to her, helping himself to one of the sweets and not making any comment about the bakery logo on the box, probably as they'd saved said bakery quite a few times, so it wouldn't be weird to know it enough to buy from there.

The moment her yoyo confirmed that it was time for the other heroes to show up, Ladybug heard the sound of someone landing on the rooftop. She glanced up, seeing the bee hero standing there with an air of professionalism hovering around her.

"Ladybug. Chat Noir," she greeted formally, giving them each a nod.

Ladybug stood up with a start when she realized that she was still sitting near the boxes. "Hello!" She walked over, extending a hand out to her. "Glad you could make it."

The bee hero gave her a nod, accepting the offer for a handshake. "Of course. This is my job after all. It would have reflected poorly on me if I hadn't shown up on time."

Ladybug beamed. She was far different from the "original" bee hero, but that wasn't a bad thing, and she was looking forward to seeing what it'd be like to have another serious person on the team.

The turtle hero then landed nearby, though Chat Noir was too preoccupied with approaching the bee heroine, even taking her hand in his despite her flat expression. She tried to shake his hand like she did with Ladybug, only to realize that apparently wasn't his intent.

"I guess we'll beekeeping you on the team for a while now?" Chat asked. "It'll be a pleasure working with you."

He bent down, placing a kiss on the back of her hand. She pulled away from it, raising a brow at him while Chat stilled and looked confused.

"Uh—" the turtle hero cut in, finally earning Chat's attention. Ladybug watched as the turtle hero seem to fidget in place before pointing at the hand kiss display that had just occurred. Tentatively, he asked, "He's not going to do that with everyone, right? I'm—I'm dating someone."

Chat's face turned red with embarrassment, his body immediately recoiling from the bee heroine. Ladybug covered her mouth with both hands in an attempt to hide her chuckle, though it was difficult.

She waited until she was calm to approach the turtle hero, offering her hand for her second handshake of the day. "Glad you could make it."

He smiled, happily shaking her hand with a simple reply of, "Thanks." Then, glancing over her head, he asked, "Are you a new hero too?"

She presumed he was talking to the bee until she turned around, jumping in surprise as she noticed the fox hero standing nearby. She hadn't even heard him land, but supposed it made sense for a fox.

"Hey," he greeted casually. "Sorry, I didn't want to interrupt when you were talking to everyone else."

"O-oh, it's okay!" she assured, hoping it wasn't too embarrassing that she'd been caught off guard. She approached, sharing her last handshake with him. "And now that everyone's here, we can get introductions out of the way! You're...?"

"Cadmeancio," he replied with a calm smile. "I hope I'll be able to help you, Ladybug."

She smiled back, then glanced to the turtle hero. "And you?"

He stood proud, both arms up like he was flexing despite his sheepish expression. "Heavy Matal."

Ladybug turned to the bee heroine, who understandably predicted the question and answered before she could get it out, "Fukiya."

"Alright, so Fukiya—" Ladybug pointed at her, then the other two heroes as she continued, "—Heavy Matal, and Cadmeancio."

The three nodded at her. She couldn't help feeling a tinge of excitement; she had new team members now, and they were permanent holders that she wouldn't have to go out of her way to give miraculouses to.

Sitting down on the rooftop, she gestured to all of the boxes and exclaimed, "I brought these, so help yourselves! I can give you the rundown while we eat."

Cadmeancio and Heavy Matal happily sat nearby, letting out a harmonious, "thank you," as they peered into the individual boxes to look for a treat. Fukiya was the only one who remained rigidly in place, hands resting at her sides even as she looked around at the assorted boxes.

"Fukiya?" Ladybug called, earning her attention. "Everything okay?"

"Ah—" Fukiya let out a neutral hum. "I'm not really... allowed to indulge in..."

Chat waved a croissant from his seat besides Ladybug. "You've got superhero status now! You don't have to worry about anyone else or what they'll—"

Ladybug cut him off by clearing her throat, facing Fukiya to clarify, "What Chat means is... obviously we have to maintain our secret identities, but you can still be yourself around us, and you don't have to worry about anything you've been forced to do or not do when you're not transformed."

She offered what she hoped was a welcoming smile. She was worried at first, given how Fukiya looked at her like they were in a staring contest, but she relented quickly enough, sitting down and searching for the perfect treat amongst her options.

Ladybug breathed a sigh of relief, then slid herself back just enough that all of the new teammates were in view. Clapping her hands together to earn everyone's attention, she began, "I imagine your kwami filled you in on most of the details, but just to make sure everyone's on the same page..."

Cadmeancio and Heavy Matal shifted to face her, Fukiya already having been in the right position.

Ladybug continued, "With LadyBugOut in place and Hawk Moth seeing us as even more of a threat, you three are here to be new, permanent heroes to help cover any weak points we might have." She gestured vaguely at them. "That said, you don't have to show up to ever single battle; if you can show up, show up, but don't worry if you're in the middle of something. I want all of you to warm up to having miraculouses instead of being forced to get used to them right away."

"Isn't it serious?" Fukiya asked, arms crossed. "We should be prepared for anything."

"We have time," Ladybug assured confidently, "and forcing anything to happen won't get us the results we want." She would know. "So just... take it slow, okay?"

Fukiya looked like she wanted to argue, but closed her eyes and let out a breath, apparently thinking better of it.

"Should we come anyway if you need us?" Heavy Matal questioned with a tilt of his head, though his voice was hesitant as if he wasn't sure if he should suggest such a thing.

Ladybug, however, was happy for the question and gave him a grin. "Oh, if you can? Definitely, and as long as you're on the blog, you'll get notified of any akuma!"

He nodded his head, understanding the exception, then went back to munching on one of the sweets he'd picked up. Given that his and Fukiya's curiosity was satiated, Ladybug glanced at Cadmeancio, almost expecting him to have questions as well.

When he seemed more interested in the box the sweets were in, staring strangely fondly at the logo, she called out with interest, "Cadmeancio?"

He looked up at her, waving a hand dismissively. "Sorry. I've—" He paused, and she appreciated his attempt to choose his words carefully. "—I've been to this bakery a few times. It's really good."

"Oh." She eyed the box again, her gaze locking to the three little wrapped-up containers she'd placed in the middle of one box in particular. She perked up, internally thanking Cadmeancio for the transition. "That reminds me—well, sort of..."

She pulled each container out by the ribbon she'd wrapped around them, each with a distinct color that matched the new heroes. Once she had all three held against her chest, she began passing them out to each hero, each of them taking them with care and setting them on their lap.

"These—" Ladybug gestured at the boxes. "—are power-ups, and they—"

Suddenly, Chat choked off to the side, covering his mouth as he forced himself to swallow. Ladybug looked over at him blinked, concerned, but he was recovered quickly enough, standing up and taking her arm.

"Bugaboo, can we have an original-heroes-only meeting?" he asked quickly, though the nickname didn't make it sound any nicer.

"Uh, sure?" She let him take her as far away from the three heroes as possible, waiting until they were out of earshot to whisper, "What is it?"

"Those—" He still seemed stunned by something. "—those are the power-ups? They're getting them?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I don't see the—" She paused, remembering the day that they'd first gotten their powers. "���wait, you're not jealous, are you?"

"Why are they getting them right away?" he asked, completely evading the question. "Master Fu—"

Ladybug held a hand up to silence him. "They don't know about Master Fu, for the record, and it was Master Fu's idea to give it to them. I don't know, it's just..." She shrugged for lack of an answer. "He must trust them?"

"That—that doesn't make sense," he said. "Aren't you curious?"

"No," she replied bluntly. When Chat looked struck by it, she continued, "It's none of my business. I trust Master Fu and I trust who he chose."

"But—!"

"Besides, those power-ups aren't just about when we need them for fighting akuma." She hesitated, needing to take a breath before getting into any serious topics. "Chat, we can't do everything ourselves, and five is better than two in this case. Those power-ups could do a lot of good and we might not be around where they could be good. I've had a lot of close calls since I started helping outside of akuma, and stopping that helicopter from crashing into a building would've been a lot less stressful with the power of flight. We don't even know if another Frozer could show up again, and then the others would be out of luck. Then, there's the possibility of another Syren, or an akuma fleeing into the sewers, and we got Frozer and Syren the day we learned that Hawk Moth had the peacock working for him!"

"So you're worried about Hawk Moth striking back, but you still want them to take it easy?" Chat argued.

"Yes, because I want to give them the warm-up time that we never got. That led to a lot of mistakes, and I—" She stopped, noting that she wasn't comfortable divulging so much information to Chat about how her experience went. "...I just want time for the new teammates to ease into battle and get to know us naturally."

He looked put off by that. "Isn't our relationship natural?"

She forced her mouth shut for a few seconds, not wanting to say anything she'd regret. The fact that he was asking in the first place said a lot about their differences.

Then, finally, she sighed and gave a shrug. "Not completely, no."

He gaped.

"Chat, we got forced together by every single akuma that came our way. We didn't choose to work together, we just had to, and I don't want our new teammates to see us the same way! Superheroing is a job, but teamwork means that we have to care about each other as partners, and I want to ease into that."

She only just refrained from mentioning that her relationship with him had been strained for a while now because of the requirement of working together, knowing it would only cause more arguing. The fact that she and Chat had needed to work together from the beginning made everything go too fast, and she couldn't believe it took so long for her to realize it.

"...Look," she said before Chat could cut in, her voice lower at the realization that she might've been too loud earlier, "I know you were upset that I knew Master Fu when you didn't, but that wasn't my choice. He didn't want to tell anyone about his existence in the first place. We got blindsided by Mayura and we've almost lost our miraculouses multiple times, so it'd be nice to have more heroes who have the power to help if we need them—"

"We don't need anyone else," Chat insists, holding her hands in her. "Remember, m'lady? You and me against the world."

She didn't indulge him this time, pulling her hands away to raise them in defense. "I'm sorry, Chat. That's—that's not how it works. I don't want to be in a situation like that again."

"Where we have dozens of akuma against us, or where it's just down to you and me?" he challenged.

She took a breath, giving him a once-over as she gauged his body language. Shaking her head, she took a step back, not meeting his eyes as she replied, "Both."

She turned away before she could see any hint of his reaction. As far as she was concerned, the situation wasn't about her and Chat; it was about Paris and doing whatever they could to protect it.

She'd been initially apprehensive to return to the new heroes, fearing that the obvious hushed argument made her look bad, but her new teammates were simply waiting where they were before, their looks non-judgmental and the containers in their laps open to the contents, as if they'd all synchronized the motion while she'd been preoccupied.

She smiled, hope replacing nervousness as she went to sit down with them. She was tempted to eat a treat or too, but resisted, opting to pull out her yoyo so she could reach inside and retrieve her box of potion-infused macarons for the sake of instructing them on the powers.

Before she could, she felt a warmth near her shoulder and turned her head to see Cadmeancio, offering her a concerned look while his hand hovered over her shoulder. Though she wondered how obvious her feelings really were, she wordlessly gave him permission and he let his hand drop, giving her shoulder a small squeeze.

She felt good about this. This team could really work.

Chat Noir was thankfully too busy inhaling a slice of cake to notice the gesture. Ladybug didn't know if seeing such things made him antsy, but she preferred not to find out.

Focusing on the little box in her hands, she pulled out a green macaron and began, "Okay, so green is for water..."

#collab: LadyBugOut AU #canonicity: all #canonicity: canon #writing: all #writing: canon #writing: salt #writing: team miraculous #writing: ladybugout #salt: all #salt: chat noir #group: team miraculous #character: marinette dupain cheng #character: tikki #((In which Marinette overthinks literally everything.)) #((Anyway Fu trusts Marinette very much.)) #topic: potions

[sapphirelycoris]

𝑨 𝑩𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝑩𝒆𝒕𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝑨𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒈𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 & 𝑨𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒕: 𝑰

Rating: Teen

Warnings: Suggestive lines, pining (like a lot because Enji's a simp), enemies to lovers style writing, weird 19th century type dialogue but I think it's still readable. Please tell me if I missed any.

Ship: Enji Todoroki x female reader (she/her)

Word count:  2,707

Music: Pride & Prejudice Music & Ambiance

Author's note: I know some of the character's relationships with others are kind of weird but I casted them according to personality. For example, Ryuko reminds me of Charlotte Lucas and Nejire reminds me of her little sister, Maria. I just kind of threw names around haha... A NSFW and continuation soon to come. God, it's been a while since I posted anything on this blog.

Written/created for: @pleasantanathema's Through Ink and Quill | A Classics Collab

Summary: A Pride and Prejudice inspired piece, featuring Enji Todoroki as the male love interest. Loosely following the plot of the actual novel with a few twists on the actual story's dialogue, characters, & events. When you meet Mr. Enji Todoroki, he was the last man in the world you'd ever want to be around. However, as your paths cross more and more, you see that your first impression of him was inaccurate.

"The world works in mysterious ways. He doesn’t know what happened and when it began. Suddenly, Enji cannot stop longing to be in the same room with you. To go one more moment without you seemed like a sin or some unbearable divine punishment for his greatest flaw: pride."

𝑉𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑝𝑟𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝘩𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠, 𝑡𝘩𝑜𝑢𝑔𝘩 𝑡𝘩𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑠 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑛 𝑢𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑠𝑦𝑛𝑜𝑛𝑦𝑚𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑙𝑦. 𝐴 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑜𝑛 𝑚𝑎𝑦 𝑏𝑒 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑑 𝑤𝑖𝑡𝘩𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑏𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑣𝑎𝑖𝑛. 𝑃𝑟𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑠 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑜𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑣𝑒𝑠; 𝑣𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑦, 𝑡𝑜 𝑤𝘩𝑎𝑡 𝑤𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝘩𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑜𝑡𝘩𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑡𝘩𝑖𝑛𝑘 𝑜𝑓 𝑢𝑠. -𝐽𝑎𝑛𝑒 𝐴𝑢𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑛

The world works in mysterious ways. He doesn’t know what happened and when it began. Suddenly, Enji cannot stop longing to be in the same room with you. He dreamed about the sight of your eyes, glancing at him with mild contempt. You occupied his thoughts, both innocent and indecent… He was going to go mad if you didn’t share the same affections that he did. He didn’t want you. Not at all. He needed you by his side. To go one more moment without you seemed like a sin or some unbearable divine punishment for his greatest flaw: pride.

When he blatantly insulted you at the first gathering he attended and saw you laugh about it with Ryuko, for once, he felt uneasy. The same woman he had slighted was now the one who controlled him. He noticed the way you looked embarrassed at your family’s antics. It disgusted him that he was obsessing over someone with that kind of background.

It certainly shocked Enji when you stood him up at Sir Yorio’s gathering. How dare you! For him to stoop down and offer to dance with you, only for you to reject him, was truly offensive. A woman far below his social status, refusing to stand up with him. The nerve. 

Every single snarky quip that left your lips swam around in his mind. Your sharp tongue was attractive. The moment he saw you with mud on your dress, walking from your home to Toshinori’s country estate, he was taken aback. For some reason, he couldn’t get rid of that image. The sun hit your face perfectly, creating an enchanting glow that accompanied your delightful countenance. 

“Ms. (L/N).” Your name rolled off his lips so naturally. 

The regrettable moment you had to leave Toshinori’s estate, he helped you into the carriage which would take you home. Something transpired, far beyond his comprehension. Your hand fit so perfectly in his, he couldn’t help but want it to stay there forever. The missing piece to a puzzling man such as himself finally found its way to its rightful spot. It seemed you wished for the same thing. His grip was secure, he felt safe, and you were trapped, staring into the most beautiful cerulean eyes. At the same time, Enji could drown in your eyes forever. The confused look you gave him was endearing when he refused to let go. 

His actions also startled him. Why was he so stuck on you? He flexed his hand, imagining that yours never left as he watched the carriage shrink, moving further from the manor and into the distance. When was the next time he would be allowed to see you? What was it going to take to cure this infatuation?

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

The next time he saw you, was under more unfortunate circumstances. He was riding downtown with Toshinori when he spotted your little party. Unlike his friend, Enji looked unhappy when he saw who you were talking with. You briefly exchanged eye contact with him before he had a clear look of disdain displayed on his face. 

Keigo’s eyes followed yours. He tipped his hat, but Enji made no attempt to return the friendly gesture. He hurried away on his horse without saying a word. The encounter was certainly unusual. Keigo looked discomforted by the interaction. You wondered what could have transpired between the two men that caused such tension. 

That night, at your aunt’s home, you sat down and heard what Keigo had to say about his reunion with Enji. He told his side of the story. He painted Enji as the villain in his narrative. Seeing as how you already found the man so disagreeable, you couldn’t help but believe Keigo’s words. He was much more forthcoming than his old friend; he didn’t seem capable of telling a lie. This new story caused you to see Enji in a new light, only deepening your dislike for the man. 

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

Toshinori was a man of his word and held the ball that he promised your sisters. Enji was less unenthusiastic than he usually was. Knowing that he’d get to see you there was the night’s one redeeming feature. He was excited at the thought of getting to lay his eyes on you once more, and it sickened him.

Many of the officers were attending the ball. While linking arms with Toshinori and walking around the ballroom, you searched for Keigo among the redcoats the officers wore. Instead of finding him, you found a pair of familiar blue eyes that looked at you with well-hidden passion and yearning. Enji wanted to tear you away from Toshinori’s arms and have you all to himself. He had many selfish desires, and he usually got what he wanted, but you were the exception. 

Women fawned over him, trying to get a taste of his money. Even Rei tried being overly friendly with him. He cared little for them; he wasn’t looking to fall in love. He was not in search of a wife. Enji was quite content with the life he had. Everything he wanted was in his grasp. But you? You were so close yet so far. There was an uncomfortable amount of emotional space between you and he wanted to close it. Being in the same room wasn’t enough anymore. He wanted to touch you, feel your skin, claim those alluring lips for himself. He wanted to see your whole being without any pesky fabric in the way. If only he could rip that dress off of your body after forcefully pulling you into a vacant bedroom. 

He made his way over to you, but an officer blocked his view. He informed you that Keigo would not be in attendance. Part of it was because of an assignment he had to do, but he also wanted to avoid a certain man… Your younger sisters drug the officer away, leaving you alone in the middle of a crowded room. 

Fortunately, you spotted Ryuko, who was standing alone in the corner. You went to inform her of everything that had happened lately. An unwelcome guest interrupted you. 

“Ryuko, may I introduce you to my cousin, Mr. Tobita?” While remaining civil, you introduced them to each other. He took your hand and led you to dance. As it turns out, the man can’t dance. He went the wrong way, bumping into another lady. It was embarrassing, to say the least. 

Enji watched in amusement as he saw you struggle to keep a smile. You made eye contact with him again, almost sending him a look of desperation. Dancing with him would be better than your current situation. He simply smirked and waltzed around the room, observing everyone. 

While you were busy venting to Ryuko, the very man you were talking about came up to you. The two of you exchanged glances and bowed. “If you are not otherwise engaged, would you do me the honor of dancing the next with me?” Enji’s odd invitation made your eyes widen slightly.

There was no way out of it. You tried coming up with an excuse, but nothing came to mind. He smiled slyly as you fumbled over your words. “I- well I hadn’t... yes. Thank you…” With no escape, you were trapped. He walked off, and you lingered behind for a minute.

“You’d be a fool if you didn’t take him up on his offer. It’s a great compliment that he singled you out.” Ryuko commented. 

“The last time he singled me out was to slander me. Hateful man…” you hissed before going to follow him. 

As the music started to play, you studied Enji’s face. It was the first time you’d ever really taken the time to analyze all of his features. You hated to admit it, but he was handsome. Unusually handsome. 

Finally, your hand had made its way back into his. Even if it was only for a brief moment, that feeling would stick with him until the end of the night. The two of you danced around with your words, conversing back and forth when the time was appropriate. You simply couldn’t bear the silence. 

Couples pranced around the dance floor elegantly, stepping where they needed to. You two moved in sync, never letting your eyes wander. There was a burning passion for the man that you couldn’t get rid of. Whether it was burning hatred, lust, or love, you couldn’t tell. Hostility and tension seemed to be all that came out of your encounters with him. The sexual tension was the one thing that kept you from completely despising Enji and you hated it. 

In an attempt to rile him up, you remarked on Keigo and the last time Enji saw you. “The last time I was in town, I was forming a new acquaintance.” A sly grin spread across your face as the words came out. 

“Mr. Takami’s friendly personality is what allows him to make friends so easily. Though his ability to keep them is debatable.” 

“How unfortunate he must be, to lose your friendship, a loss I am sure he will regret for the rest of his life.” You mocked in an airy and hushed tone. Before Enji could snap back, Mr. Toyomitsu came over to hint at a marriage between your sister and Toshinori. The two of you glanced at the smiling pair before dancing again. “Didn’t you say that you rarely ever forgave? That your hatred, once set in stone, was set indefinitely? Surely a man such as yourself is careful when breeding such hatred.” 

“Of course I am.” Enji scoffed. 

“And I presume you do not let prejudice blind you?” 

“No. What is the purpose of these questions, if I may ask?” He grumbled, disliking your inquiries. 

“Simply a means to figure out your constitution.” You laughed, “Trying to get a good idea of your character.”

“And your findings?” 

“None. I have heard of you on different accounts by different people with different views of you. You shall remain a mystery until I comprehend you.” 

With the dance ending, Enji remained silent. Once the music faded, he supported your hand as you lightly held it over his. “I request that you do not attempt to perceive my character right now. It would do us no favors if you judged wrong.” He claimed as you left the dance floor.

“I may not get another opportunity, so I might as well try while I have the chance.” 

Enji placed himself right next to you and leaned to whisper in your ear. He lowered his voice, making sure only you could hear. “I would by no means suspend any pleasure of yours.” His finger brushed against your arm as he walked away. All the heat in your body rushed to that spot. You wanted his warmth against your skin, you didn’t want him to go. 

And yet, you were standing alone in the corner of a crowded room, fixated on the man who you swore to never like. 

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

Much had happened over a short amount of time. You had rejected Mr. Tobita’s marriage proposal and got an earful from your mother. Keigo got engaged to a rich young lady, and Ryuko had gotten engaged to Mr. Tobita. Enji and Toshinori’s party had left his estate, and your sister was disheartened. Everyone had such high expectations for her and Toshinori, only for him to up and leave. 

Now, you were on your own adventure. You, Sir Yorio, and Nejire were going to visit her and Mr. Tobita. They lived in a small house on Lady Chiyo’s property. Greenery grew on the stone, adding to the natural feel of the house. It was a quaint little grey structure with a clear blue sky in the background.

As soon as the carriage stopped, Ryuko and her husband rushed out the door to greet you. They showed you to your rooms while Mr. Tobita kept on about Lady Chiyo’s house and how grand it was. It seemed he was more in love with Chiyo than his own wife.

“Are you happy here?” You asked Ryuko as you watched the other three walk around the garden.

“I am quite content with my situation. I barely see him during the day. He sits in his book room, walks to Lady Chiyo’s every day, and-”

“And you prefer to sit in your own wing of the house.” You finished. Whether it was what she was going to say or not, you stated your mind. Ryuko smiled wistfully, “Yes.” 

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

While you and Ryuko were walking through the woods, along with Nejire, Mr. Tobita came running after you. He was clearly out of breath but told you his news, anyway. Enji and his cousin, Kugo, had arrived. He urged you to make your way back to the house, since they wanted to visit with them.

“Pleasure to finally meet you Ms. (L/N).” Kugo smiled.

“Oh? ‘Finally’, sir?” 

“My cousin speaks of you often.” He informed.

“Ah…” You sighed, looking over at Enji who met your gaze, only hungrier. 

Enji’s eyes never left you, though. There was a protective aura emitting from him. Just in case Kugo spoke or acted out of line, he was ready to come to your aid at any moment. He rested his knuckles against his mouth. Instead of addressing anyone else in the room, he was intently watching and listening to your conversation. 

“Pray tell, why is Mr. Todoroki staring at me?” You asked Kugo, having enough of being watched over like you were some kind of prey, “Have I done or said something he finds offensive?” 

The man stood up from the sofa and meandered over to the table you were seated at. He had no control of his own actions. It was quite an impulsive move, and now he didn’t know what to say. “How is your family?” He choked out. 

“Well.” You replied, “My sister has been in town for quite some time. Have you happened to see her?” 

“No.” Enji lied, “Unfortunately not.” 

“As you can tell, Mr. Todoroki and I are not very close.” 

“Really? I find that hard to believe.” Kugo exclaimed.

“Truly? I believe in first impressions, however, Mr. Todoroki’s good opinion, once lost, is lost forever.” Your words caused him to turn around, and he saw your smiling face, making a joke of him. 

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

The grounds of Lady Chiyo’s property were breathtaking. When the weather allowed, you took advantage of the sprawling greenery and went out for as many walks as you could. Without a cloud in the sky, an endless sea of blue, and shining sun, you wasted no time in getting outside. It was much more productive and enjoyable than sitting in the house.

A beautiful little trail, hidden by the estate’s magnificent trees, was the path you found yourself walking along. You looked up to admire how tall the trees had grown. They stood proud and provided you with shade. The birds sang a lovely little tune, supplying you with a unique sound that rivaled that of the best musicians. 

Enji came trotting through the path from the side. He halted his horse once he saw you. No painting could do you justice, even one made by the best painter in the world could compare to your beauty in person. The sight of you admiring the picture in front of you made his heart pound. Though you said nothing, he believed that you, taking the time to simply look at him, was the greatest compliment he would ever receive. 

And for those few precious minutes, he drank in your appearance. He was hopelessly in love with you. Being in your presence was the best part of his day. He found himself looking forward to seeing you. He always prayed for you to cross paths with him. Even if he simply caught a glimpse of you, suddenly it brightened his entire day. 

Unfortunately, he had other things to do. Enji spurred his horse forward and trotted away. Your presence in his life was much bigger than he expected when he first met you. And somehow… he didn’t mind it. He hated yet loved the feeling of being in love.

#endeavor x reader #bnha endeavour #endeavor #todoroki enji #enji todoroki x reader #todoroki endeavor #enji x reader #enji x you #19th century #shitty writing but it's something #I kind of hate this but I hate everything I write #my hero academia enji #endeavor x y/n #I am disgusted at myself for being so late to submit this for the collab #Pleasantanathema forgive me. #What's up with the shitty title #not proof read forgive the shitty grammar and punctuation

[deniigi]

I WOULD LOVE A DAVE FIC !!!

Excellent. Here’s for you and  @dudewhereismy-tardis

I am putting most of it under the cut because it is LONG

Dave (Daredevil copycat from Inimitable Verse) POV. Reminder that Dave is not his real name, but one given to him disdainfully by Wade in this verse.

Title: rises in the east

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

“Dad.”

What?

“Dad.”

What time was it?

“Your phone’s ringing,” Charlie said. “It’s the boss.”

Oh, for fuck’s sake.

“Give it here,” Dave rasped, throwing an arm over his eyes.

“Mom said you’re gonna hurt your back sleepin’ on the couch,” Charlie reported as she shoved his phone into his palm.

“My couch, my rules,” Dave said. He crammed the phone to his ear. “Ansel here,” he said.

Charlie wanted to stay home and if she was a year older, Dave would have let her. But alas. The last time he’d let her stay home, she’d texted her friend Jesse who had become unspeakably jealous and had appealed to her own parents for such freedoms, and now the whole block thought that Dave recklessly abandoned his daughter when he went to the goddamn grocery store.

All that for a can of Sprite, man.

This neighborhood was off the fuckin’ charts sometimes.

Case in point: Dani standing in front of him in the lobby with her hands on her hips, telling him that he needed to wear a tighter t-shirt or to start flexing because they were losing business.

“Dani, I’m an instructor,” he reminded her. “I’m hired to do classes.”

“It’s two hours,” Dani said. “Take the damn fliers.”

But he didn’t want to?

Dani blinked at him slowly from under her headband.

 --

 Charlie was having a great time and Dave was glad for that because he was not. He was being stared at by every person in the street as if they’d never seen a dude with muscles before.

It was the shirt.

He knew it was the shirt.

And possibly his nipples. Smashing the brochures high enough against his chest to cover them wasn’t going well and the highlighter teal underarmor Dani had forced upon him left very little to the imagination here.

There wasn’t anything else to do but let the poor things live their best lives.

“Dad, gimme more,” Charlie said.

She tugged at the brochures covering what was left of his dignity.

Blessed child, who hurt you?

“Where did the others go?” he asked her.

Charlie pointed across the road to a gaggle of ladies leaning out from their stoop, smiling.

Ah.

Yes.

Them.

“Let’s try for someone who looks more like a bro,” he told his offspring.

Charlie blinked up at him.

“Why?” she asked.

Oh, baby.

“Because they’re an easy mark,” he said. “Go up and say ‘my dad can take you’ and send ‘em my way, okay?”

Charlie’s face went from confused to ready to kill instantly.

This was her game face. This was her ‘I’m gonna wreck this goalee’s teeth’ face.

Dave shouldn’t have been proud of her, really; her teachers said that she was becoming argumentative and obstinate in the classroom. But there was just something there in the fact that his kid sure as shit wasn’t no sheep that made his chest feel big, wide, and full of hot air.

“I’m on it,” Charlie said.

He gave her three brochures and let her scramble off to the other side of the sidewalk and then turned to meet the eye of a family with a father with neat hair and the beginnings of triceps peeking out from under his sleeves.

“You lookin’ for a gym, sir?” he asked.

The guy looked his way and eyed him up.

He took a flier on his way past.

 --

 “Excuse me?”

“One second, man,” Dave said, doing the rock-shuffle to keep all the fliers on the table from blowing away.

“Excuse me.”

“Hey, I said just a sec,” Dave snapped.

He turned back and found himself staring into the dark eyes of a bald man with olive skin and deep wrinkles in his forehead.

And Dave knew him.

Holy shit.

Dave knew him.

Fuck.

God.

Jesus, Lord.

“I am so sorry,” he started.

“DAD.”

Ch—Charlie?

He looked down and sure enough, holding Rudolph ‘Diamond’ De Luca’s massive bearpaw was his very own daughter. De Luca made her wiry, suntanned limbs seem like unbaked pretzels.

He was so much bigger than he’d seemed on TV all those years ago.

“This your kid?” De Luca asked.

Jesus.

“She is. I’m so sorry,” Dave said, “Did she—she didn’t bite you or anything, did she?”

“Dad,” Charlie whined. “Don’t tell ‘im that.”

“I’ll pay for whatever damage—” Dave continued.

De Luca blinked at him impossibly slowly with long dark eye lashes. He turned his face slowly back down towards Charlie.

“You sure this is your old man?” he asked.

Wh—

Wait.

What the hell did that mean?

“That’s him,” Charlie moaned. “He’s just bein’ dumb. Dad. Stop bein’ dumb. This dude’s the real deal. He’ll fight you in a heartbeat.”

Dave grabbed his child before she could cause any more damage. She made a fuss, but let go of De Luca’s mitt. Dave shoved her behind him, just in case this situation got any more tense than it needed to be.

De Luca lifted an eyebrow at that and then brought his face back up to Dave’s.

“Who’s gym?” he asked.

What?

Oh.

“Spitfire,” Dave said. “We’re, uh, just about there, on the—”

“I know where you’re about,” De Luca said.

Dave didn’t know what to say. De Luca held his eye.

Oh, god.

This wasn’t going well.

“How old are you, son?” De Luca asked.

FFFFFFFFFFFffffffffffffuck.

“38,” Dave said.

“And your baby girl?” De Luca asked, gesturing with his chin down at Charlie.

“I’m 12,” Charlie told him brightly.

“Hm,” De Luca said.

He shifted his weight back and wrapped a few fingers around his chin, surveying Dave’s whole body like he was the statue of David with a knee injury.

Dave became intimately aware of his nipples again.

“Not bad,” De Luca said.

Oh, thank god.

“Thank you, sir,” Dave said. “Is there, uh, somethin’ I could help you with?”

“You got an accent,” De Luca noted.

Uh?

“A good accent,” De Luca said. “Whereabouts did you grow up?”

Oh.

Well.

Dave could actually just point to it from here. The condo was still standing, despite all building codes and actual alien invasions. At this point, the only thing that was gonna take it down were the rampant, rapidly mutating, borderline feral gangs of chickens that roamed its halls.

Not that anyone spoke about them.

No, that was inviting trouble to your doorstep.

“The chicken coop?” De Luca said.

The one and only.

“Bless you, you poor fuck.”

Yeah, that tended to be the usual reaction.

De Luca laughed.

“You’re a funny guy, uh,” he squinted at Dave’s nametag, “Ansel?”

How could a word sound so wrong in someone’s mouth?

Where had Dave’s life gone wrong that his own name sounded so foreign and distant to his ears?

“Actually,” he said, swallowing, “My uh, my friends call me ‘Dave.’”

De Luca’s head snapped right up and slowly, a grin spread across his face.

“Oh, now, that’s a good name for ya,” he said. “You look like a Davy.”

Hng.

Diamond De Luca thought he looked like a ‘Davy.’

Diamond De Luca thought he looked like a ‘Davy.’

Welp.

Time to get that birth certificate changed.

“Listen, Davy,” De Luca said casually, “Your baby girl there was tellin’ me that your boss has you out here like dancin’ monkey; is that true?”

Fffffffffff.

Technically yes?

“It’s even his day off,” Charlie whispered.

Dave wrapped a hand over her face.

“It’s fine,” he said. “It happens. Folks’ve been sick lately. I don’t normally do this kinda thing.”

De Luca’s face said that that was real cute. Real, real cute, honey.

“Well,” he said, “Let’s just say it like this. Where you work don’t gotta be where you train.”

Oh.

Was he offering--?

“If you decide to drop by, tell the guy at the desk Rudy sent you,” De Luca said. “Your kid’s real sweet, Davy. She can come too, lord knows the damn place is a daycare at this point.”

“Thank? You?” Dave stuttered.

“Don’t mention it,” De Luca said.

He left. Dave watched him waltz down the block and wave at the gals collected on the stoop at the end of it and felt a little lightheaded.

“Dad?”

Not right now, champ.

“Dad? Is he famous or somethin’?”

HHHHHHHHHHNG.

 --

 Back when Dave had been 14 and scraping the tips of his fingers into callouses on the old guitar he’d found tossed into a dumpster in the Upper West Side, he’d had to compete with the sound of the couple fighting in the apartment next door and with the radio the old man downstairs always had playing on his fire-escape window.

The old man downstairs was a real hard-ass. Always slammed a broom into the ceiling, scaring the shit out of Mom and Dad and sister and auntie. Dave had never seen him not smoking, nor had he ever seen him without suspenders.

The man was a retired plumber, apparently. And while Jim Beam was his main vice, his passion was boxing.

To the tune of chords picked out of an out-of-tune guitar, Dave had listened to tinny commentators oohing and awing over match after match, until finally, when sleep wouldn’t come one night, Dave had snuck out of the room he’d shared with Flora. He’d settled down on the living room couch, next to his old man splayed out in the recliner.

Dad had lifted his eyes slowly his way and told him that he should have been in bed.

Dave had told him that he couldn’t sleep because the couple next door was makin’ up from their daily afternoon argument and Dad had just sighed.

He’d let Dave stay up with him and the TV in the living room had fuzzed and rattled away, making sounds really familiar to Dave at that point.

Boxing was a sport that he had, up until that night, left to his father. But for the lack of anything else to talk about that wouldn’t make his dad look at him with disappointment in his eyes for all that damn music-playin’ and eyeliner, he’d asked who the guy on the screen was.

And that was how he’d learned about Diamond De Luca.

About Kenny Varga. Bert ‘The Albatross’ Kleinfeld.

But there was one guy who Dad had mentioned was his favorite rookie and, now it felt both kind of silly and surreal that the name had been spoken so casually in Dave’s home growing up.

Dad had been puttin’ money on Battlin’ Jack Murdock back when Dave had been a little kid.

He told Dave, disappointedly, after a few weeks of Dave getting up at 12:30 to come out and watch boxing with him that he’d really thought that Murdock was gonna be the next big thing.

Guy was a wolf in sheep’s clothing, Dad had said, shaking his head. But wolves that got too wily got put down and Battlin’ Jack had been found in an alley, bled out in the arms of his reason for fighting.

Dad said it was a fuckin’ shame that Murdock had gone out with a slug in his head.

A fuckin’ shame, he said.

Dave didn’t remember him every saying that Murdock’s reason for fighting was a blind ten-year-old, but the thought was now merged with that memory.

That, in itself, was merged with the memory of Dave’s phone ringing one night was Addie’s name on the Caller ID. Her voice was shaking when she told Dave that the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen had just called her from an unknown number.

He had their baby.

He’d snatched her and Jesse out of the arms of two men looking for girls to be used in businesses Dave didn’t want to think about.

He’d saved them.

The devil had heard their screams when no one else had and he’d come flying out of the dark.

He’d held the girls in the light of a bodega and he’d coached Charlie through typing Addie’s number into his phone and then he’d taken it from there.

Addie was too scared to go meet the devil on her own. Mason hadn’t been around yet and so Dave had thrown on his shoes and had meet her on 46th.

The devil was on 48th, swinging his boots with both girls in his lap.

They were all singing. The devil had pretended like he didn’t know the words to Britney Spears’s ‘Toxic.’

Matt Murdock was under that mask.

Knowing that this whole time, he’d been the one dragging a stick against the fences and bricks of Hell’s Kitchen was almost impossible to digest.

And Dave had worked with him now.

He’d seen that smirk and that notorious jaw unwrapped from its red armor and that didn’t make reconciling the murdered boxer’s son with the man who’d saved his daughter any easier.

Charlie hadn’t remembered him.

She thought that Matt Murdock was a weird fuckin’ dude, and granted, he was a weird fuckin’ dude, but Dave had to say: he was grateful.

Matt Murdock not only brought home his baby, but he’d given Dave purpose in a life that had become consumed by the daily grind.

Matt Murdock had smiled in his direction, never quite into his eyes, and he’d passed along the baton with next to no fight.

Dave wasn’t him.

Dave would never be him.

Matt Murdock wasn’t just some poor murdered boxer’s blind son. He was the product of some serious poverty. Some serious violence. A whole fuckin’ cult induction, if he was to be believed. And Dave wasn’t so sure if he was always to be believed.

But he still appreciated Matt Murdock for what he’d done and what he’d made for this part of the city.

He’d made Daredevil.

And he shared that with Dave.

Dave’s own dad’s approval hadn’t felt like the honor that had come with Matt Murdock’s covered eyes and curled lip slowly relaxing as he’d lifted his face up from Dave’s knees.

He hadn’t been inspecting.

He’d been listening. Dipping his fingers into the blood in Dave’s heart and deciding if he was worth his salt.

Matt Murdock, son of Battlin’ Jack Murdock, was a product of Fogwell’s Gym in the Kitchen.

Diamond De Luca, retired heavyweight, was a product of Fogwell’s Gym.

The stars had aligned. And Dave had stood in their path.

And he wasn’t wasting the chance that they offered him.

--

Charlie was stoked to be allowed to come to the gym with him. She usually went to Jesse’s house, where Rubes would look after both girls for a few hours.

But De Luca had said that it was okay for her to come along, and so he figured, why not?

Fogwell’s was an institution in the Kitchen. All kids deserved to know their own history.

“I’m gonna fight Fogwell himself,” Charlie announced halfway down the block.

“You will not,” Dave told her. “Because I’m not tryin’ to get thrown out before we even get started here, alright?”

Charlie whined.

He ignored it.

 --

 This wasn’t the first time he’d been to the gym. Matt Murdock slipped in and out of it when he was in the city and he’d taken the whole team there once or twice. But it was different to be there in the presence of the daytime crew.

Dave felt very small in their presence.

The whole place was full of people pounding bags and swearing and shouting at kids who were tumbling all over the rows of benches set off to the side of the bags.

It was not what Dave had been expecting.

He told the guy at the front that ‘Rudy’ had recommended that he stop by and got a nod and a wave.

“He’s probably upstairs,” the receptionist said. “Go pick a bag, I’ll give him a buzz.”

 --

 Charlie refused to join the kids on the benches because apparently that was ‘only for babies, Dad.’ She wanted to hold the bag.

She was not, in one thousand years, holding the bag.

Dave wrapped her hands and let her go at it first to ‘soften it up’ for him.

De Luca caught him adjusting the demon-child’s thumbs before they ended up at the hospital again and laughed.

“Davy-boy, you made it,” he said.

Dave snapped up straight to attention.

“I did,” he said.

De Luca laughed again.

“Relax, kid,” he said. “Damn, you’re tight wound. Don’t worry, we won’t tell no one you’re sleepin’ with the enemy.”

Ahahahaha.

Please don’t.

These people were jacked. Dave was but a kickboxing instructor.

“Here, bub, lemme see what your pops has got,” De Luca said, shooing Charlie out of the way.

And this was the moment of truth.

 --

 De Luca seemed surprised when Dave finally laid off the bag. And Dave couldn’t read his expression for a million bucks.

“Uh?” he tried. “Not good?”

De Luca blinked himself back to earth.

“Oh, no,” he said. “It’s just uh, you fight a little like someone I know.”

Please don’t say a mobster.

Please don’t say a mobster.

“Kid used to live around here; name’s Matt Murdock,” De Luca said. “You know him?”

Did—

Did he know him?

QUICK. Answer the question.

You’re takin’ too long.

He’s gonna—

“S’alright if you don’t,” De Luca said. “I was just sayin’. Kid was like one of my own.”

He—

What?

“Yeah, boy fought like the devil like his daddy before ‘im,” De Luca said. “He’s the only one Fogwell lets call him ‘Grandpa.’ He’s about your age, actually. God, I’m old.”

AHAHAHAHAHA.

Please change the subject.

“You’re not that old,” Dave said. “I think I might have heard the name.”

Charlie looked up at him, baffled at the hedging.

He pleaded with her with his eyes not to say a damn word.

“Yeah, he’s somethin’, left here for San Francisco. Didn’t even say good-bye, the little shit,” De Luca sniffed. “Came back last year all ‘I’m gettin’ married’ and I swear to god, he’s picked up some kid. Just between you and me, pal, the old guard here have been talkin’, and we think that someone missed out on the sex ed talk, if you know what I’m sayin’.”

Oh.

Poor Sam.

He wasn’t even there to scream from the mountaintops that Red was a last resort for him at best.

“I’m just sayin’,” De Luca said with a shrug that spoke far more of supreme irritation than nonchalance, “He coulda just told us. I’m just sayin’.”

Any more ‘just sayin’s’ and Diamond De Luca was gonna go find a wall to bury them in.

“Did you, uh, have any feedback?” Dave blurted out as the guy started mumbling.

“Hm?”

“Feedback,” Dave repeated, waving a gloved hand at the bag.

“Oh. Yeah, loads, kid. You got all the muscles and not a damn lick of memory, here, lemme show you.”

Crisis averted.

Thank god.

 --

 D2: hey uh, DD?

SM: DAVE

S2: DAVEEEE

S3: DAVE

SM: what’s up man?

D2: nothing I was just trying to get ahold of DD?

BT: He’s trying to get Kirsten to give up her dreams of an indoor office pond rn. Can I help?

SM: I want an indoor office pond

S3: omg same

D2: uh yeah actually could you just tell him I met a guy named De Luca the other day and he might want to give him a call?

BT: de Luca?

D2: yeah

BT: okay sure thing

D2: thanks

BT: I’ll go see if I can get a word in edgewise.

SM: good fucking luck

S2: I hate fish

S3: leave this place and never return

S2: I HATE FISH

DD: WHAT

SM: oh shit that was quick

D2: oh. I was just saying that I met Diamond De Luca the other day?

SM: ?? Who’s that?

DD: oh no

S2: ??????????????

DP (´｡✪ω✪｡´): who the fuck is that?

DD: are you still with him?

D2: no?

D2: he caught me out fliering and invited me to Fogwell’s

D2: and when I got there he mentioned my stance was like yours and he uh

D2: got a little distracted

DD: what kind of distracted?

D2: He thinks Sam’s your bastard kid

BT: GODDAMNIT

DD: FOR FUCKS SAKE

BT: First Mrs. Jones, now this guy?? TEACH.

DD: These people have zero faith in me I swear to god.

DD: like come ON man. I did sex ed in the same class as Angie he knows I’m too catholic for that shit

DP (´｡✪ω✪｡´): I looked this man up and he looks like an Italian nate with less hair

SM: wh

DP (´｡✪ω✪｡´): okay you’re right he looks nothing like nate

SM: that

SM: that’s not even slightly helpful, wade, thanks not at all. Hey who’s angie?

DD: long story. Rudy’s daughter

S2: RED YOU FUCKED A BOXERS DAUGHTER?? That’s a million dollar baby man

DD: I

DD: what?

DD: no? Why would I fuck angie she’s like my sister?

S2: oh nvm

SM: 😬😬😬

S3: I am confused ❤

D2: you should probably call him, friend

DD: on it. thanks for the notice

DD: hey what’s your fuckin name again?

S2: f

S3: f

SM: f

D2: It’s Ansel

DD: Adams?

D2: not the photographer. Ansel West.

SM: WEST

S2: OMG

S3: guys don’t

SM: I BET YOURE A SUNSET DAVE

S2: YOU EVER FEEL CALLED TO THE PRAIRIE DAVE???

SM: YOU’RE A&W, DAVE!!

S2: ROOT BEER ROOT BEER

D2: ah yes. Middle school. I remember this feeling.

--

Dave laid his phone on his chest and stared back up at the ceiling.

It was never dull, this new life he’d settled into.

He said a prayer for Murdock and rolled onto his side.

It was still his goddamn couch.

 --

#fic #inimitable verse #ficlet #team red

[love-and-monsters]

Wyvern Prince 23

M wyvern X F reader, 2949 words.

It was several hours before Davrakoss returned to you. He looked worn, hair mussed and he was yawning a little. “Did it go well?” you asked.

“Well enough.” He sat down next to you and yawned again. “We should probably return to the kingdom tomorrow. It will be a little while before I’ll be able to leave, but I’m going to need to start preparing regardless.”

“I’ll help you,” you said. “If there’s anything you need me to do, I’ll do it for you.”

Davrakoss smiled, eyes glittering softly. “Of course. But you won’t need to do anything for a while. Just continue advising me.” He wound a few strands of hair around his finger. “I’ll still be an ambassador once my sibling becomes the proper heir, so I’ll be able to stay at the castle with you. The world won’t change too much. I just won’t be king.” You started to speak, but he held up a hand. “And yes, I’m still all right with that.”

“I wasn’t going to ask that,” you said. Davrakoss lowered a hand, looking at you curiously.

“Then what?”

“How are you planning on telling people you’re stepping down?”

He considered. “The egg will be here within a month or so. Once that occurs, my parents will officially change the heir status. They’ll likely make up some story about the new child having a sign of some sort that told them to change it. That story sounds better than their elder child abdicating because he fell in love.”

“I think people would think it’s sweet,” you said. “I’ve heard stories with the same idea before.”

“Unfortunately, being sweet doesn’t work well in politics. It’s better that my parents present like they made the decision to change heirs rather than presenting it like I’m the one being uncooperative. It makes them look a little weak.”

You were familiar enough with politics to see the wisdom of that decision. Davrakoss yawned again and stood. “We should go to bed early so we can rise early and fly back tomorrow.”

“Mmhm,” you agreed. You and Davrakoss changed into your sleep clothes and settled down to sleep together. He nestled close to you, tail secured around your waist.

“Goodnight,” he said. His lips pressed to the top of your head, then to your temple. He seemed to relish your closeness in a way that made your chest tighten with joy. You fell asleep locked in his arms.

When you woke in the morning, Davrakoss was still drowsing, arms settled around you. He stirred a little, blinking as you awoke. “Morning,” he said, smothering a yawn. “Are you ready to head back home?”

It was oddly comforting to hear him refer to the castle as home. The two of you ate breakfast together, then packed up your items and began to head out.

His parents were waiting for you at the entrance of the cave. Davrakoss transformed and they touched their heads together, weaving their necks in a complicated pattern. After a few moments of contact, his mother lowered his head and looked steadily at you.

“I am glad you have given my son something to truly love,” she said. “You give him a great deal of strength.”

“Thank you,” you said, trying not to let your voice tremble with fear. She nodded and lifted her head back to Davrakoss.

“I am glad to see you happy, even if you will not become king,” he said in a tone that suggested they’d discussed it before. “Now go and be with your chosen mate. You belong to her now.”

Davrakoss dipped his head in deference and lowered himself so you could climb up onto him. His wings opened and he gave one look back at his parents before he leapt off the mountain and soared away.

You pressed yourself close to his scales, feeling the rocking motion of his flight. It was peaceful in the sky, the only noise the whistling of the wind.

The trip back seemed longer and lazier than the trip to the mountain. Every now and then, Davrakoss would slow down until he was almost hovering. You would look over the edge of his back to see the ground beneath you. It was distant and tiny, like the map in the Queen’s chamber. It felt like the entire world had shrunken away, leaving only the two of you. You traced your fingers gently along the scales of Davrakoss’ back. He rumbled contentedly underneath you.

It seemed far too soon that Davrakoss folded in his wings and went into a low swoop into a clearing. He landed and you slid off his back, feet crunching in the undergrowth. Davrakoss transformed into his human form, stretching and rubbing his arms.

The carriage wasn’t there, so you sat together and waited. Davrakoss seemed more relaxed than you thought you had ever seen him. He stretched languidly, gazing at you with warm eyes. “You’re in a good mood,” you said.

“Mmhm,” he said. “I am.” He lifted one of his hands and played with the pin at your neck. You’d never stopped wearing it since he’d given it to you. “I’ve been having some thoughts.”

“About?” you prompted.

He undid the pin and examined it. “I don’t want you to be my servant anymore,” he said. “I don’t think it’s a good idea anymore.”

A little quiver of worry worked through your chest. You shoved it away. He wasn’t dismissing you. He loved you. “No?”

“It’s not fair for you to be servile to me,” Davrakoss said. “And you have already done so much more for me than I think any servant should be required to do. So, if you like, I want to give you something of a promotion.”

“Mmhm,” you said. “What kind of promotion?”

“I would like you to become my advisor,” he said. “I’m still going to need to do work as an ambassador, and while I have a better understanding of humanity, I think it would be good to have you there with me. Just to make sure I’m understanding everything correctly.” He paused, trying to read your face. “It’s not necessary that you take on the position, though. It’s only a suggestion.”

“If I don’t take the promotion, will I remain your servant?” you asked.

Davrakoss hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. “I was going to suggest you come live in my quarters. You can occupy your time however you wish. I just thought that you would prefer to work with me.”        

There was a crunching, clattering noise and Davrakoss and you stood as the carriage rattled into the clearing. You moved to open the carriage door, but Davrakoss put a hand on your arm and nodded to the driver. He hopped down and, with a low bow, pulled open the door for the two of you.

“You’re not serving me anymore,” Davrakoss said. “We’re partners.” He squeezed your hand.

You smiled at him and stepped into the carriage.

The ride back was slow and generally uneventful. You ended up dozing on and off while Davrakoss stared out the window, watching the land roll by. When the carriage came to a stop, he reached out, offering you a hand.

“Come to my room with me,” he said. You nodded, taking his hand.

He held your hand all the way up to his room, which you appreciated, even if it made carrying the bags a little more difficult. Back in his room, you dropped the bags and started to put them away, but Davrakoss waved his hand at you. “Not your job anymore,” he said.

You straightened up. “It’s my job as long as there’s no one else to do it.”

“Yes, I suppose I’ll have to request a different servant. Kind of a shame considering I was used to you already,” he said. “In the meantime, I’ll help you.” You started to protest, but he waved you off again. “It won’t feel right if I don’t help out.”

Together, you unpacked your bags. You hesitate when you removed some of your clothes from your bag, but Davrakoss took them and hung them up without complaint. “If you’re not a servant anymore, you won’t be staying in their quarters,” he said. “Might as well start moving things up here.”

He had a point. You moved your clothes into his closet, straightening everything out. Davrakoss sat down on the bed, stretching with a luxurious sigh. “I have to admit, the beds were strange when I first came here, but I think I quite appreciate them now. After flying and riding in that carriage, I like being able to lie on something soft.”

“Maybe you can introduce wyverns to beds,” you suggested.

“I think a lot of them take pride in being uncomfortable,” he said. “I think that’s a bit ridiculous.” He stretched out, tail curling and flexing against the bedsheets. “Come lie down with me.”

You started over toward the bed, but the sight of a letter on Davrakoss’ desk caught your attention. You stopped and went to pick it up.

“What is it?” Davrakoss asked, sitting up.

The letter was stamped with the Queen’s seal. “A letter from her majesty,” you said.

Davrakoss stood up and walked to your side. “Really? What does it say?”

You undid the seal and unfurled the letter. “It says that she wants to meet you to discuss possible engagements,” you said. Your voice came out a little hollow.

Davrakoss took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Did she not understand when I said no the last time?”

“I’m sure she understood. She probably didn’t like it and decided she hadn’t heard it. If she wants you to get married, she’ll keep pushing for it no matter what.”

“We’ll have to have another meeting with her, then,” Davrakoss said. “I’m certainly not marrying.” He paused and gave you a look. “Unless, of course, you’re keen on the idea?”

You felt your face grow warm at his question. “I- um. Would you want to get married?”

He shrugged. “In all honesty, I don’t see much of a point of the ceremony? I don’t understand the point. For wyverns, a partnership is formed because the two partners say it’s been formed and is dissolved when the partners wish it to be dissolved. I don’t really see why anyone else’s opinions are brought into it.”

“It’s useful for childcare and money management and those sorts of things,” you said. “I think it’s more beneficial when you live in a social society than in a wyvern society.”

Davrakoss nodded. “I recognize that it’s not important to me, but it may be important to you. So, if you would like to get married, I’m not opposed.”

“Usually people don’t get married so quickly. It is supposed to be kind of permanent,” you said. Davrakoss tilted his head at you a little, but didn’t protest. “I don’t know. I don’t think it’s something we need to do.”

“All right. If you’re all right with it,” he said. “Although, it occurs to me that marrying you might be a good way to get the queen off my back about marrying someone else. You can only marry one person, right?”

“Probably won’t work. One of the laws is that the Queen technically has to approve marriages for them to become official. It’s a technical law because there are registered officiants who can approve them in the place of the Queen, but if she were to find out that you married someone and she didn’t approve of it, she could nullify your marriage.”

Davrakoss’ frowned. “She couldn’t force me to marry with that, could she?”

“No, you have to give consent in order to be married.” You returned the letter to the desk and sighed, rubbing your hand over your forehead.

“Well, that’s something. I suppose we’ll have to talk this over with her. Perhaps the second time, she’ll be a little more amenable.”

“Can you tell her that you might be having a sibling? If she thinks you’re not the only heir to the kingdom, she might reconsider.”

“I’m not really supposed to say until the egg arrives. But if that is the only way to get her to drop the wedding bit, then I suppose I’ll do it.” He fiddled with the collar of his shirt, fingers twitching with nervousness.

You reached up and took his hands into yours. His fingers stilled as you held them and he gave a small smile. “Right. I should stay calm. Hopefully we can sort all of this easily enough.” He lifted your hands to hips lips and gave them a quick kiss. “I assure you, there is nothing she can do to take me away from you.”

Your lips curled up involuntarily and you gave a small laugh. “What will you do if she pushes you on it?”

Davrakoss gave a mischievous smile. “Then she will find out exactly how hard it is to force a wyvern to do something he doesn’t want to.” He pursed his lips and breathed out a small spout of fire before succumbing to a small coughing fit. “Ugh. I always forget how that stings.”

“You’re very intimidating,” you told him. He rolled his eyes, but they were still glittering with amusement.

Your stomach chose that moment to growl loudly enough to Davrakoss to hear and quirk an eyebrow at it. “You’re hungry?”

“We haven’t eaten much today,” you said a little defensively. Davrakoss smiled and bent down to give you a quick kiss.

“And what we have been eating probably hasn’t been the best diet for humans,” he added in a sympathetic tone. “You’re not really made to eat nothing but meat.” He looked thoughtful. “I suppose that if we were to end up living away from humans together, we would have to find something other than meat for you.”

“It’s probably a good thing we live in the palace for now, then,” you said. Davrakoss nodded.

“For now, anyway,” he said. “We should get something to eat. Come on.” He took hold of your hand and pulled you toward the door. You hurried after him.

Walking through the halls of the palace at Davrakoss’ arm was different than what you were used to. People most commonly ignored servants. Now people looked at you- well, mostly at Davrakoss, but you were of interest by just being near him. The looks depended on the class of the person giving them. Servants looked at you with intrigue and jealousy. Upper class nobles stared at you with open disdain or, occasionally, fear. You wondered what sort of reputation you had, being with Davrakoss. If he was openly considered to be a fearsome wyvern, then what would you be considered for being in a relationship with him?

Hm. Maybe you didn’t want to think about it. You had a feeling those rumors wouldn’t be favorable.

Davrakoss was as impervious to the stares as ever. You arrived in the kitchen and, with only a few words from Davrakoss, you had a meal for each of you. It was a noble meal, one you assumed they had put together at Davrakoss’ request. There was even a small sweet-cake which you picked up and nibbled delicately.

“I’ll have to find a way to get you more of those,” he said. “You really seem to like them.”

“Servants don’t get sugar a lot.”

“Well, I don’t think you’re technically a servant anymore,” Davrakoss said. “So, you can have all the sugar you want now.”

“It’s probably not good to have too much. I think if you eat a lot, it makes you sick. Even the nobles tend to avoid eating too much of it.”

“Maybe I’ll just make sure you have it on special occasions,” he said.

You returned to his room and ate together. Once he was finished eating, Davrakoss went over and picked up the letter on his desk. He skimmed through it again and let out a long, soft sigh.

“We should probably take care of this sooner rather than later,” he said. “Tomorrow, we’ll have to have a talk with the Queen.”

“We?” you repeated. Davrakoss gave a small nod.

“This concerns you too. And, considering the recent promotion you’ve gotten, I think it’s only fair that you accompany me.” His voice was light with the amusement of someone deliberately flouting a system.

The idea of being in a direct meeting with the Queen made your stomach turn over. Davrakoss caught the look on your face and moved back over to your side. “Are you all right?”

“It’s the idea of being in a meeting with the Queen,” you admitted. “It’s a bit nerve wracking.”

“You fell in love with a wyvern, but you find meeting with a human to be nerve wracking,” Davrakoss said. His eyes glimmered with amusement.

“You’re not scary,” you told him. “The Queen is terrifying.”

“I don’t know whether it’s a good thing or not that you consider me less scary than a middle-aged human woman,” he said. “I think I’ll take that as a compliment, though.” He gave you a quick kiss on the cheek and when he leaned back, his teeth were long and sharp. “I assure you, there is nothing the Queen could do to separate us.”

He straightened up, lips covering his teeth again. “Now, why don’t you get ready for bed? If we have a meeting with the Queen tomorrow, we should both be well rested.” His fingers brushed delicately through your hair, touch soft. “I promise, I will never leave you.”

They were just words, but hearing them warmed your heart considerably.

#exophilia #wyvern prince #wyvern #monster boyfriend #monster lover #monster romance #wyvern boyfriend

[orange-plum]

So I’m not really in SK8 anymore, so I doubt I’ll ever finish this. But I dabbled in some Renga post car accident episode. It’s going to collect dust in my folders, but y’all can have it if you want it. It is, I must emphasize, incomplete, though.

Either way, here you go:

Fandom: SK8 Pairing: Renga Status: Incomplete/discontinued

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

The off-white shell cradling his fractured appendage was as much of an eyesore as it was a nuisance. As if to prove his point, Reki gingerly raised his leg, ultimately forced to lower it a moment later with a bitter grimace. 

“I can’t believe this . . . ,” he quietly groaned into his hands. Bowing his head, Reki closed his eyes to will away the miserable reality he found himself in. And here he’d thought his current situation couldn’t have possibly gotten worse.

Reki had too much pride to accept that man’s money after being struck by his vehicle, but a broken leg was a broken leg. He wasn’t going to be able to hide it from his family, even if the futile idea had briefly crossed his mind while he had been manhandled out of the street in a daze. 

He wouldn’t ask for compensation. All he’d wanted was fast treatment and for the bill not to be sent to his mother.

Her worried face and flurried hands as he’d shown up after sunset, wobbling on crutches with less than no explanation wasn’t exactly something Reki wanted to dwell on, either. There was no changing what happened. But what did he really expect after running out of the hospital in a panic? 

In the end, it wasn’t too surprising a car had hit him. The mortification still heated his cheeks like hotplates.

Fingering the edge of a stiff piece of stationary, Reki frowned and flicked it back into his backpack. The man had paid for his casting and scrapes, giving him a blank card with a phone number scrawled hastily across.

Call me if there are any further complications and I will take care of it right away, he’d said.

“Fat chance,” Reki snorted, laboriously shifting his leg into the aisle to get more comfortable. 

Students had asked him about his sudden injury as they’d filtered into the classroom that morning, seeming to hone in on the hulking distraction that was so very out of place.

Finding the energy to muster a smile about a clumsy skating mishap had been one hindrance. Seeing Langa’s face when he stepped into the room, zeroing in on Reki’s leg, was another thing entirely. Reki didn’t know what to make of that expression, suddenly feeling very self-conscious, yet unable to hide the evidence of the fateful car accident.

“Reki . . . , ” Langa breathed, drifting forward like a ghostly wraith. Up close, Reki could see the slight tremble of his jaw as he searched for the proper words to illustrate his surprise. Langa’s gaze flickered away from the cast to the bandages on Reki’s chin, his lips soundlessly flapping.

Reki averted his eyes, unable to bear the concern bleeding onto Langa’s face. Under the loose sleeves of his sweatshirt, he felt the irritated sting of road rash on his forearms.

“What happened to you?” Langa asked in a rush. He ignored his seat in favor of hovering. Reki ducked his head and chewed at his lip, hating the sudden attention. As awful as it was, he’d gotten used to the quiet between them. This encounter was uncomfortable. “When did this - Are you alright?”

The alarm in Langa’s voice was somehow worse than the worry on his face. Damn.

“It’s nothing,” Reki muttered, hoping if he feigned nonchalance that Langa would dutifully follow suit. He careened away from the frantic static prickling his side, Langa’s concern a physical entity. It smothered him. If Reki had any luck left at all, Langa would catch on and drop it.

“It’s not nothing,” Langa countered. When he spoke again, his voice was lowered an octave, aware of the few eyes that curiously drew towards the two. “When did you break your leg?”

Running his tongue over his teeth, Reki managed to glance at him. There was an anxious energy about Langa. His hand reached forward, halting as Reki jerked his arm away. He regretted it instantly at the brief flash of hurt that flitted across Langa’s features.

“Last night.”

Pursing his lips, Langa reluctantly retreated the foot back into his desk. Thankfully, he sat down, but his torso shifted precariously close. Langa paused, as if to properly consider what he was about to say, not quite confident in his delivery. Reki wilted at the small torrent of hope in his words.

“At S . . . ?”

The instant flare of annoyance rekindled before Reki managed to suppress it. Chin in palm, Reki turned his attention to the window, muttering to himself before he could help it. “Of course not at S.”

“What?”

“I’m fine.”

Langa looked like he wanted to protest. His reflection in the glass drew their brows together, his mouth opening to fling more unwanted questions Reki’s way. 

The bell chimed for class, cutting Langa’s interrogation short. A small mercy.

Reki drew in a breath of relief, letting it go only when he saw Langa reluctantly retreat into his seat. 

He didn’t want to talk about this with Langa. He didn’t want to talk to him period. It was already awkward as it was.  He wasn’t properly equipped to put his feelings into words just yet. Adding this new shame to the mountain of contempt Reki already felt was far too daunting to tackle.

But if the continuous side glances Langa kept bestowing upon him throughout class were anything to go by, Reki knew he couldn’t run from him forever.

X x X

Avoiding someone was a lot more difficult on crutches.

With their friendship so out of sync as of late, Langa catapulted between seeking Reki out and giving him his space. It didn’t matter if they were sitting side-by-side in class together, or if Langa ran around the city to locate him. Reki and his words always evaded Langa’s advances.

The shock of spotting that bulky cast, however, might have turned the tides in Langa’s favor.

Giving Reki space to manage their fallout was one thing, but Langa couldn’t bring himself to ignore the dismal state of his body as he hobbled around their school on crutches.

How did I not know this had happened? Have I really not been paying attention? Langa thought to himself. His stomach twisted anxiously, sending his lunch riding on a nauseating wave. He trailed behind Reki towards the school gates, unsure how to approach him.

Reki hadn’t exactly been the most chatty as of late, but the short conversation this morning had somehow been worse than the silence. If Langa had thought he’d been sufficiently shut out before, he now knew he was gravely mistaken.

Reki clearly didn’t want to tell him about this. 

That hurt.

“Careful!” Langa warned, darting forward in time to steady Reki’s arm as he stumbled over a crack in the sidewalk. Reki jerked in his hold, despite taking care to be gentle. Langa immediately pulled his hand away, his heart pounding in his chest at the sight of wide eyes and a wrinkled nose. 

“Sorry,” he apologized just as swiftly, taking a step away as Reki took a few steady breaths. “You just . . . I thought you might fall.”

It’s not just his leg? Langa silently realized, swallowing the building knot in his throat. How bad is it? Was this really not from skating, then?

Though Reki had gotten hurt before, even racing Adam hadn’t put him in such a brittle condition. Reki looked like shit boiled over. And now that Langa had a proper view, he could see the bandages peeking out from the hem of a sweatshirt sleeve.

“I’m fine,” Reki assured, turning away and staggering forward. He looked so strange, barely balancing on crutches when Langa was so accustomed to the vibrant flurry of motion that was Reki on a skateboard.

Langa was probably never going to grow used to the quiet, defeated way in which Reki seemed to speak nowadays. It felt like an eternity since he’d spoken any louder than a murmur.

“I can carry your bag if you want?” Langa offered, trotting beside Reki, his fingers flexing over the board in his hand. He hated this distance between them, but didn’t have a clue how to fix it. Reki’s rain-soaked words, how he no longer saw them as an adequate match for friendship, took that inopportune moment to play on a loop in Langa’s mind.

The palms of his hands turned clammy.

“I don’t need it,” Reki said, refusing to take his eyes off the street in front of him. As an afterthought, he mumbled a quick, “Thanks.”

It did little to abate the nervousness in Langa’s belly.

How could he get Reki to talk to him? How could he get Reki to tell him? Langa wanted to help, but he couldn’t manage to muster up the courage to fully pry.

Even so, there was never a more pitiful sight that he’d witnessed than watching Reki struggling to self-sufficiently make his way home, perspiration on his temples and frustration splintering that dismal mask of his.

“You don’t have to follow me. I can go myself.”

Langa hesitated. “I know. But I want to.”

“Well, I don’t want you to.”

“Oh.”

Langa shifted his feet, halting in his tracks. What was he supposed to say to that? While it was certainly painful, Langa knew Reki was making it clear where his boundaries were now set. He wasn’t exactly being subtle about wanting to sever their friendship.

Even so, Langa couldn’t bring himself to let go. That empty chasm growing in his chest by the day was already so overwhelming. If he fully gave into Reki’s wishes and let go of him for real . .  .

I don't know how to come back from that, Langa thought. Desperation flared and forced his feet forward. Reki flinched as he came by his side once more. He paused when seeing Langa, a curious expression fitting onto his face.

Langa wasn’t sure what he was thinking when seeing him persist, but he wasn’t going to let Reki brush him off this time. Not with something potentially this serious.

“Please let me take your bag,” he insisted. Langa wanted to kick himself at the small crack in his voice. He pressed forward, regardless. “Your house is so far, Reki. I won’t ask if you don’t want to tell me, so . . . ,” he faltered.

Langa averted his eyes as the silence loomed between them. He drew an arm up, then feebly dropped it to his side, unsure of himself. “I just want to help.”

#sk8 #fanfiction #my fanfiction #inomplete and i dont intend to pursue it further #renga

[noocturnalchild]

SEALED IN MARBLE  Chapter II  The First Sins

The church bells chimed, announcing Lauds, the dawn prayers. Father Garupe woke up drowning in his sweat .

He reached down his mattress to find the package, still in the same place where he had put it last night.

***

Last morning he was incautious enough to go to the sculptor’s atelier in his clerical robes. What he did was like an act of bravery, as if he wanted to know if his legs could lead him there. And there he went, without any plan in mind, and just stood for minutes, gazing at the surroundings before turning on his heels and hoping that no one saw a black robe prowl in the corner.

Francisco had to think.  

If he wanted to present himself to the sculptor, he had to do it under a false name and in secular clothes. He had to invent a past and a family and a profession and maybe speak in another tone that wouldn’t give him away as a man of God. In short, he had to lie.

- “Francisco!”

Father Rodrigues had to rise his tone a bit louder than necessary, and as it earned him disproval stares from his superiors, his friend was all but ready to listen.

Garupe was fumbling with his spoon and staring at his untouched supper when he deigned to answer.

- “What?”

- “Parchment, Garupe, I was asking you for extra parchment!” an irritated Rodrigues hissed.

- “You can have mine for tonight, I think I am feeling sick today…” Garupe muttered and he excused himself. It was his second lie that day.

But instead of returning to his cell, he slipped in the kitchen through a back door, then into the dorms of the manservants. There, he made quick business of “borrowing” the clothes of one that was about his height and size, following which he almost ran to his room and closed the door behind him, like a thief.

***

Garupe proceeded to his ablutions and fell into step behind the other priests for the prayers of dawn. He prayed with the same devotion and sincerity as always, trying to ignore what he did and what he was about to do. It was something he should be ashamed of, but once he had the money in his hands, he would confess all his sins. He had time and he should help a powerless widow and three little angels that had no sins but to be born women. Weren’t the Jesuit ideals all about linking faith with justice and having special concern for the poor and the oppressed? And wasn’t he following these very values by acting like he did? Garupe felt suddenly thrilled and stayed on his knees till Prime prayers, reinvigorated by a hope so big it made him fly to meet his superior just after the last psalms were recited.

- Father Garupe, I see you overjoyed this morning, I might attribute your elation to the prayer, I wish.  

Garupe retorted in a tone he wished composed.

- “Always, your excellence.” Garupe smiled before adding “Pardon me, your excellence, I came to you for a request… Yesterday, I went for a walk after prayers… on my way, I saw a poor family …a deplorable sight… I took pity on them, for as your excellence knows, that’s what Christ would do … and I promised to return today, and to visit them regularly with some … food to meet their needs for a few days … after your permission, of course.”

- “Good my son, good…” the brows of the bishop knotted for a second and he flexed his jaw, as if to comment something, but then he relaxed as he continued “You might go now, may the holy spirit accompany you in your endeavour.”

Garupe held his breath for many seconds after his encounter with his superior. He couldn’t believe that he could lie so blatantly and repeatedly in a span of a few hours… But he pushed his guilt away for now, as his legs performed lengthy strides and stilled behind a dilapidated wall.  He hopped over a barrier and sank into a small but luxuriant wood. There, he quickly changed into secular clothes, kissed his rosary and hid it in a deep pocket of his priest robe before folding it in a sack.

The sun was high in the sky when the priest knocked on the master sculptor’s door. He waited for seconds that felt like hours, mentally prepared to greet an old man, august and condescending, but instead he saw a boy, running through the yard to swiftly open the door, big crooked smile and wide eyes meeting his.

- “Excellent day milord! please come in”, the boy shouted, bowing and scraping.

Garupe nodded and followed the boy through the yard. The place revealed more of its secrets as he progressed in its depths. The garden, whilst vaster that he thought, wasn’t maintained and looked more like a messy bush, wild flowers and vines that grew past its borders and invaded parts of the yard, climbed the marbles statues, the fountain’s borders, the walls and the roof of an elegant albeit old building,  which first floor was framed with tall windows that reflected the sunlight. Garupe was lost in the enchanting beauty of the place as he was pushed inside a fresh gallery that led to a big empty room, solely lit by two windows on the ceiling that scattered liquid squares of light on the floor and illuminated a block of raw marble and a table displaying a variety of sculpting tools, rags and bottles.

The boy extracted him from his bewilderment when he finally spoke.

- “ I’m Miguel, Master De Luna’s apprentice, milord, to whom do I have the honor to speak?”

Garupe gasped as the sense of reality caught him again, he swallowed a lump in his throat and spoke as calmly as he could:

- “Vicente Santos. Servant.“

Garupe couldn’t lie further, as he was indeed in the simple clothes of a low ranked man.

As the boy stayed silent, Garupe added:

- “I heard you are in search of models…” he lied carefully and was relieved when he saw the boy relax, another wide smile appearing on his juvenile face:

- “You come in time milord” - the boy continued to address him using the same epithet even after revealing his low rank - “usually we choose them, but my master is about to start a new …particular work, we have one job available milord, if you…” – the boy gave Garupe a prolonged look, up and down, which made him nervous- “… oh but my master should see you first! please wait for me here? milord?“

And the boy slipped away before Garupe could utter a word.

An eternity seemed to pass before the boy appeared again, an eternity where Father Francisco Garupe regretted a thousand times his acts and decisions, but just as he was thinking about running away and abandoning his impossible adventure, the boy reappeared, followed closely by a small frame in …a cloak. A large dark cloak that hid the shape of the master’s body and face …

Garupe narrowed his eyes but, and as to make the task even harder, the master stood in the shadow, where the squares of light couldn’t reach his face. The master stood still, not speaking, not budging, but Garupe felt him staring at him and taking him in with invisible eyes, covered by veils of darkness. Garupe felt a chill run down his spine, and a spontaneous prayer played on his lips as he tried to focus and say something to alleviate the dread that began to take hold on him.

- “Vicente Santos, master, at your service.” Garupe offered a small bow, "I believe your apprentice informed you of the reasons of my visit."

The Master returned the bow and simply hummed, what Garuped believed was a hum of appreciation.

The boy then spoke again:

- “My master can’t speak, but with him present here, I can explain to you the details of the job.”

The master nodded as to encourage the boy to continue.

- “I hope milord here wouldn’t be bothered to pose without clothes on…” the boy coughed, “as my master is about to make a big work of art, a representation of the original man, no less, biblical Adam, milord.” And the boy opened his arms with emphasis as to demonstrate the importance of the work.

Garupe felt the world spin around him as he tried to make sense of what he had just heard. Did he miss something? Clearly not. They were telling him that the only work available was nude modelling!

- “I beg your pardon, Master” Garupe tried to adjust nervously the sleeves of his shirt. “As it is my first time in the business … I … I’m afraid I’m not comfortable enough…with such ideas.”

- “Models posing nude are doble paid, milord” the boy cut him off, yelling with enthusiasm, before the master stretched a cloaked hand and led him violently off the room.

The brisk reaction of the master sculptor made Garupe gasp in shock. But as he pulled himself together, he thought God was giving him a second chance to run away. He should, now, or never. He should say no, no matter how much they offered, no matter how strong the temptation would be.

Yes, leave now.

But just as he was about to turn away and disappear, the sculptor and his apprentice showed up again, like evil spirits from the depths of hell. Miguel ran to him and whispered something in his ear, something that made Garupe’s eyes almost roll out of their orbits. And that’s how he knew that he was really being tested.

- “All… all that, just to strip?”

The master sculptor nodded from his spot in the dusty darkness, and Garupe swallowed thick.

Shall he? Should he? Could he?

Lord, have mercy.

- “My master thinks that you are the man for the job.” Miguel re-entered the fray again, “I assure you milord, you’ll be a perfect Adam. Just think of your body as a tool, and it is, as you will see, as important for the art as the ones you see on that table. Just look at this block of dead marble. Do you think it’s worth a Real if not polished and worked to imitate life? And do you think it can stand in the most prestigious palaces of this town and arouse admiration and wonder in the eyes of kings and prelates if the very life that inspires it is mediocre?”

- “Excuse me”, Garupe replied, confused and a bit taken aback by the boy’s words, that seemed all but his. “How… how do you know that I … I would be what you are looking for if you’ve not seen … me yet.” Garupe couldn’t bring himself to mention his body, as tension grew tighter in his stomach. He had never imagined that a day would come when he would have a conversation about the worth of his body with anyone, ever, not even his confessor.

- “My master here is a connoisseur, and he has seen your face, milord.” The boy smiled, radiant. Garupe couldn’t help but notice the troubling contrast between his words, that were those of a grown adult man, and his facial expressions, that belonged to a no more than twelve year old boy.

- “How is my face…” Garupe stopped in the middle of his sentence. It was ridiculous, the fact alone that he wasn’t already taking leave, was ridiculous. The fact that he was here trying to discuss things that weren’t even in the realm of possibility for him was absurd. He tried to collect his courage and refuse, leave, return to his prayers and routine and forget about the letter, tuck it away, burn it, pretend he never received it… but Miguel, that little devil, was approaching him again with that big smile and the master’s eyes were so persistent on him, a burning stare he could feel but not see .

- “Milord, what had brought you here to model, is, I assume, a scarcity of money, and here my master is bidding you plenty of it just to strip of a few clothes, which, my master believes, is a very generous offer.”

- “It is, a very generous offer indeed”, Garupe found himself muttering. “But…“

- “Just a try, milord, I assure you, you will not regret it, let me help you, think of all the possibilities, do you have a family to feed, maybe a beautiful wife that you want to please? Or maybe parents that are in need?”

Garupe shook his head… Parents in need.

- “Fine! I will! I will.” He didn’t know, maybe another man shouted those words because what Father Francisco Garupe wanted now, was to be buried six feet deep, that was better than the disgrace he managed to become in such a short timeframe.

In the worst case, Garupe thought, chasing away his guilt, he could take the money that the master would give him today and never return again. But deep inside, the stubborn priest refused to accept that all he had done till now, all the risks he had been taking would come to nothing, that all the sins (and they were aggravated in his mind), would have been committed to no end at all. That would make them worse in his eyes, and he was sure, in God’s eyes too.  

- “I will.”

His voice was his that time, resolute and determined as he started to work on his vest’s buttons, carefully avoiding the two pairs of eyes that were avidly waiting, like for the doors of Heaven to open.

#father garupe #fan fic #garupe x you #adam driver #adam driver fan fic #francisco garupe #frannie is in deep shit

[starlighttaek8]

Game Over (2/?)

Author's note: This is a collab with @nothing-but-kpop-dreams​. We had a great time writing this story and working with her has been awesome. We hope that you really like this story, so please, let us know what you think. 

Genre: Angst/Fluff (Leo x reader)

Summary: Your dream of being a professional dancer was now a reality. All the more worthwhile was the fact that you are a back up dancer for your best friend's group. So everything was perfect right? Wrong! Your emotions take a hit after forming a crush on a particular someone...

All Parts

Word count: 1.5k

It was now day 10 of being an actual back-up dancer.

You loved it.

It was tiring, and it was definitely an intense schedule, but you loved it. Not only did you get to dance all day, but you also got to hang out with your best friend.

Your usual routine had gone something like this :

1. Practice with fellow back-up dancers until lunch

2. Skip lunch with fellow back-up dancers

3. Crash Vixx’s practice

4. Eat lunch with Vixx

Afterwards, the rest of the dancers would join in and everyone would do the dance together.

Even in cases where you didn’t work with Vixx, but the other artists under the company, you would always have a meal with at least Hyuk, whether it be lunch or a late night meal at a nearby restaurant.

Hyuk wasn’t your only friend though. You had befriended many of the other backup dancers, and even some of the girls in Gugudan.

More importantly though, you seemed to be winning over the rest of Vixx.

Thanks to Hyuk, you were already on their good side, and in general all the guys were pretty friendly, except for Leo.

His cold demeanor didn’t really surprise you, and you kind of figured this would be the case based on shows that they have been guests on.

He always seemed annoyed by your presence, but you held on to the idea that he was just the type that took awhile to warm up to new people.

His lack of expression around you only made you want to try harder to get him to like you.

It was a new mission, so to speak, for you.

It was 1:23 and you and Vixx just about finished your lunch together in the practice room.

“You ready for a day with US MEN Y/N?!?” Ravi grunted all “manly” as he began flexing in the mirror.

“Because of that whole -uh- whatever that was, I’m ready for this practice to be over.” you said sarcastically making N and Hongbin laugh.

“Oh did you mean this?!?” Ravi laughs as instead of flexing in the mirror, like the first disturbing show, he decides to stand in front of you.

Way.

Too.

Close.

“Bet you can’t handle all of this!” he continues, laughing more until he steps away and to a more appropriate distance.

“More like I don’t want to handle any of that.”

This only caused a roar out of everyone, even a small chuckle out of Leo.

“Oh please Y/N, I see right through you.” Ravi smirked, making his way back towards you. “I see you.” he nodded, and while his head was still up, he winked.

“I notice the way you look at me when we are all eating. You’ve fallen for me. I get it.” He said, biting his lip in what was supposed to be a sexy way as he stopped right in front of you.

“Like hell she did!” Hyuk’s voice rang throughout the room and soon Ravi’s body went flying.

The poor, unsuspecting boy let out a shrill shriek when he was grabbed from behind by the maknae, and practically thrown across the room.

Now everyone was in tears, even Ravi (don’t worry it was from laughing).

“What did I say Hyung? Five foot radius! You are not allowed within five feet of Y/N.” Hyuk only said after catching his breath. “And go back to the gym! You’re so heavy!”

“Hey, we just ate!” was Ravi’s only defense.

“And Ravi, maybe you should look into getting glasses, Y/N never stares at you, cuz she stares at me!” N winked.

“What did you say?!?” Hyuk gasped. “She does NOT!”

“She doesn’t stare at you, she stares at me!” Hongbin insisted.

“No, it’s me she likes!” Ken shouted above everyone.

You only laughed in the corner seeing how triggered Hyuk was getting over everyone’s comments. “She doesn’t like any of you!”

“Why are you saying that?!? You guys only wish she liked you!!"

You only looked over at Leo with an exasperated look on your face as you rolled your eyes. He and you were the only ones not taking part in picking on Hyuk.

But, when you looked over at him, his small smile disappeared. In all attempts to keep up with your mission, you made yourself say something to him.

“How do you handle them all?”

Leo didn’t really say anything. He only gave the smallest head shake as he looked back over at the bickering mess that was ⅚ of the Vixx members.

“But I am at least her bias! I know that! Right Y/N?” Ravi called out to bring you back into the mess.

“HEck no.” you just laughed.

“Ha!” Hyuk laughed, sticking his tongue in Ravi’s face. “I am the one that is her bias, cuz I’m her best friend.”

“No you aren’t!” you singsonged.

His head suddenly whipped towards you. He stared at you with puppy eyes. “I’m not?!?” he whimpered, looking crushed.

“Nope!”

“Cuz it’s me!” N declared

“No it’s me!” Hongbin shouted.

“No and no.” you said with a smile

“So it’s me!” Ken was already doing a happy dance.

“Not you either.” you giggled. “My bias is Leo!”

You started laughing uncontrollably. This was yet again a part of your plan to get him to be friends with you.

“WHat?!?” they all panicked. Even Leo looked at you in shock.

“Why?!?” they cried.

You made your way up to Leo “Uh- just look at him!” you explained throwing your hands near his face. “Do you not see this?”

There was a hint of red that filled his cheeks as he stood like a statue. His eyes bounced between each member and you, and he didn’t seem too comfortable with you that close to him.

“Taekwoon hyuuuuuuuuuuuuuuung!” Hyuk shouted, breaking the awkward silence as he began to charge at him. “Three feet apart! “ he reminded. (All members were to be no less than within three feet of you, except Ravi. Ravi was the least trusted and had to be farther away from you.)

Hyuk’s attempts to pounce on his hyung were thwarted when Leo’s iron fist landed on his shoulder. Hyuk was down in less than half a second, whimpering and grabbing his arm.

“Can we just start practice already?” Leo mumbled under his breath as he walked away from you without a second glance.

-

After practice you felt like a zombie. Like the aforementioned mythical undead, you felt dead… buuuuut not really.

You shuffled past your fellow dancers and made your way to your water bottle. Chugging it all down as if water was going out of style.

“Woah! Slow down there Y/N.” Ravi said from behind you. “It’s not like anyone else is trying to take it away from you.” He joked as if he was not gasping for air himself.

You were too busy drinking to give him a proper comeback. You simply squinted him down as he walked past you and grabbed his own bottle.

“Hey, we getting food?” Hyuk huffed as he came up to you.

“Only after you shower! Look at you, you’re soaked in sweat. This is why I like practicing with Gugudan, none of them sweat pools like you guys.”

“Hey, hey, hey take a look at yourself!” N sassed “You are just as sweaty as we are.”

“That’s only cuz we are in here with you guys. You all are so gross you make the rest of us gross. Right guys?” You called out to your fellow back-up dancers for support. “We are never this sweaty with Gugudan?”

A chorus of “Yeah”’s and “Sure”’s come from your fellow dancers as they exited the practice room, not really paying attention to the conversation, but also not caring. They were too tired to deal with anything.

One of the other dancers, though, decided to listen in and throw some shade as well, saying,

“Yeah with GuGudan they get it right on the first try so we don’t have to work as hard reworking the same move 30 times.”

You chuckled and gave a high five to your fellow dancer. “Love you Jieun!” You said after her as she walked away like a savage queen.

“You know what, because of that, you are paying for dinner.” Hyuk said.

“Then, you best be in the mood for McDonald’s cuz I only got money for a four piece nugget, be prepared to share, you biscuit.”

“Wow I am so looking forward to that.” he said sarcastically. “Guys did you just hear Y/N’s amazing offer? Who wants in? Leo?” he called out to the only member close by. “What about you?! You want one of my two chicken nuggets?”

“Oh if Leo is coming he is for sure getting two chicken nuggets!” you say. “Eo, how does dinner on me sound? Want to join us?” you offer in a more serious manner.

“No.” he said almost instantly with just the blankest of expression. Then he just walked out the practice room most likely to the showers.

You looked over at Hyuk just so confused at to why Leo was so closed off with you. Hyuk only gave you a simple shrug, one that said:

“He is just tired.”

A/N: @tanithrea Thank you for liking our story! If anyone else would like to be tagged just ask in the comments!

#kpop scenarios #kpop #kpop reactions #kpop texts #vixx scenarios #vixx #vixx reactions #vixx texts #hyuk #ravi #leo #n #ken #hongbin #fluff #angst #leo angst #vixx angst #vixx fluff #kpop angst #kpop fluff #fanfic #kpop fanfic #vixx fanfic #cha hakyeon #lee hongbin #jung taekwoon #lee jaehwan #han sanghyuk #kim wonshik

[silverfootstepswrites]

title I (not we) summary If we could drift so far... pairing itasaku, tobisaku, hot messes

Part i | Part ii | Part iii | Part iv | Part v | Part vi | Part vii | Part viii | Part ix | Part x | Part xi | Part xii | Part xiii | Part xiv | Part xv | Part xvi | Part xvii | Part xviii | Part xix | Part xx | Part xxi | Part xxii | Part xxiii (here) | Part xxiv | Part xxv | Part xxvi | Part xxvii | Part xxviii | Part xxix | Part xxx | Part xxxi | Part xxxii | Part xxxiii | Part xxxiv | Part xxxv | Part xxxvi | Part xxxvii| Part xxxviii | Part xxxix | Part XL (it ends here)

Sakura spotted his car as soon as he had parked outside the building. She lit another cigarette. When she tossed her lighter down, the metallic clang made their prisoner flinch.

Sai turned to give her a look.

“Sorry, sorry,” she said, waving a hand at him. 

She didn’t say anything to Sai. Just sat. Wrist turning as she swirled her wine around. Spewing smoke like she was a chimney. And when he walked into the room, she couldn’t help but crack a smile.

“Daai lou,” she greeted him.

“Jing-Mei,” Itachi answered, smirking in return.

Hong Kong was a big city. It was beautiful. But it was also the loneliest place she had ever lived in. Sakura thought about this a lot- especially when she took taxis. Her fist under her chin as she watched the blinking lights rush past. 

Orochimaru glanced at her. His colored contacts made his eyes an eerie shade of gold- something not quite human. Fingers on his cheek, he called out to her. 

“What’s wrong, Jing-Mei? Was dinner not to your liking?” 

Sakura turned her head towards him. He held out a carton of cigarettes. She wrinkled her nose. 

“Ah, I always forget,” he said, putting it back into his jacket. But then something flickered across his face. And he pulled the carton out again. He plucked out two cigarettes, pushing one into her hand.

“Hold it anyway,” Orochimaru told her. And she did. Because he was the boss. He tucked his cigarette behind his ear.

“So. Will you talk to me?” he then asked. Sakura chewed on her words for a while. Sighing and shaking her head. Until finally, she opened her mouth.

“I feel sad. Do you ever just feel sad for no reason?” she confessed. 

Orochimaru sank back in his seat. Long eyelashes settling over his cheekbone as he thought. 

“All the time, my darling,” he answered, perfect teeth glinting as he smiled.

As the car stopped in front of her apartment, Sakura felt Orochimaru’s fingers touch her wrist. They were so long and cold. He pushed money into her palm.

“You did some great work today. If you weren’t there to translate, I don’t know how pleasant things would have been,” Orochimaru said. Sakura flashed him a tight smile. Just her lips pulling up. 

“Think about what we talked about before. I’ll be waiting for your answer,” he added. And then he released her. Sakura climbed out of the car and hurried up the stairs. Not sparing the limo a backwards glance. 

She slept with the taste of whiskey burning down her throat. Because what Orochimaru called “pleasant” was still four people being murdered in front of her eyes. The smell of blood clogging the insides of her nose each time she inhaled. 

‘Things could be worse’, she reminded herself when she woke in the mornings. Curling up on her side as the halfhearted hangover washed over her. Scrolling through her messages for anything important she might have missed in the night. Deflating just a little less each day as Hashirama remained silent. 

Orochimaru never laid his hands on her. He paid her generously for her “errands”, as he called them. It had only been a few months since she had been given to him by Hashirama as a peace offering. The Chrysanthemum and Jade gangs had been clashing over borders for years. The Dragon Head had warned the two Red Poles once. Just once. To stop fighting. And that was all it had taken. 

Under Orochimaru, Sakura had been officially initiated into the 24K. She had the full status and protection that came with being a ‘brother’ of the gang. And while many still jeered at the idea of a woman in the 24K, Orochimaru’s goons made sure no one gave her too much trouble. 

So far, the Red Pole had been rather relaxed. During the day, she was free to do as she pleased. And at night, she accompanied him to meetings, occasionally translating for foreigners. But most nights, she simply sat to Orochimaru’s right, sipping from her flask and listening to the conversations through the haze of smoke. Trying to hide her boredom behind those swigs.

Sometimes, she would see Tobirama across the room. His eyes blacker than black as he watched her. She never knew what to say to him, so she ended up not saying anything at all.

To fill those empty days, she took to going to Sifu Might’s place to train. She sparred with his other students. Learning to dodge and to weave. But also how to take a punch. She came home black and blue all over. Aching. Leaning against the kitchen counter to spit up blood into the sink before she swallowed the rest down with a mouthful of whiskey. 

The weeks turned to months. And as she stood in front of the mirror, she stared at the lines of muscle forming on her arms. The random stranger she had brought home the night before stirred in the bed. She picked up his clothes and threw them at him, telling him to get out. She was already sick of looking at him. 

Training. Nights with Orochimaru. Days dyed with sweat and nights soaked in blood. Drinking wine with Orochimaru. Learning how to twist someone’s hand to cause the most agony. And learning how to shoot a gun without flinching at the loud bang it made. The cycle went on and on. The holidays blurring into each other, just like the lights that sped past when she was in that limo. 

Every day as gray and pointless as the last. Sinking down and down. Deeper into the scummy layer that drifted just under all the beauty of Hong Kong. 

She remembered the night the Dragon Head was killed. Orochimaru called to tell her that she had the night off.

“If things go well, we’ll be celebrating in the morning, Jing-Mei,” he told her.

And Sakura, who had learned to laugh like him, did just that. Hollow but sweet.

“I’m not even going to ask what shit you’re getting into, Boss,” she snorted. And she had ended the call without a second thought. 

A few hours later, her phone began blowing up with messages. But before she could answer any of that, she received a call. Tobirama panting on the other end. Voice strained.

“Don’t pick up for anyone else. Where are you?” he demanded. The rapid crack of gunshots in the background startled her. And still, he panted, waiting. 

“I’m home,” she answered, looking around that barren apartment. 

“Don’t move,” Tobirama simply said. And then he hung up. 

She didn’t quite know what to expect when he knocked. He slid into the apartment, blood smearing across the door. The smell of gunpowder clinging to his jacket. 

She cursed without cease as she dragged him across the kitchen tile. Propping him up against the cabinets. Wet hands shaking as she tried to take his pulse. And when he swatted her away, she used a dish towel to bind his forearm up. 

She threw her flask at him, listening to him gulp down the whiskey as she scrubbed his blood off her hands. 

“You should go to the hospital. You probably won’t die. But still...” Sakura finally sighed, leaning against the edge of the counter. She felt sick to her stomach.

“You still living in this shithole?” Tobirama scoffed. He got to his feet, swaying a little but not toppling. He grimaced as he flexed each finger. 

“Hashirama got it for me,” muttered Sakura. His eyes narrowed. 

“The Dragon Head is dead,” he suddenly declared. Sakura snorted. Flicking water off her hands, into the sink.

“Sure he is. Are you drunk already?” Sakura retorted. She stepped over his blood to open up the fridge. But before she could get the door halfway open, Tobirama slammed it shut. He cornered her, hands pressed to the cabinets. 

“Fucking listen, Jing-Mei. Orochimaru killed him. And now my brother is going after him,” he said. And the smile slid off Sakura’s face. She whirled around, accusation already in her eyes.

“Why aren’t you with him?” demanded Sakura. 

“Because he told me to watch over you.”

She deflated.

“Oh.”

Tobirama waited for her to pick up. Fingers tapping against the armrest. 

He almost disconnected when she finally answered. Voice low and soft. 

“Wei?”

“You want to tell me why no one has heard from Fai Tsai in three days?” he demanded. 

She yawned. “Don’t know.”

“Don’t fuck with me, Jing-Mei,” he growled.

There was a pause. And then she sighed. He could hear her shifting around. Fabric moving. 

“I really don’t know where Kabuto is. I’ve been dealing with my own shit in Tokyo,” she confessed. 

There was something about her tone.

“What do you mean?” he asked. 

“I met with Uchiha Madara. He tried to drug me. And now the little rat’s nowhere to be found,” she sighed, matter-of-fact.

“What.”

“He didn’t manage to do anything. But that doesn’t mean I won’t,” she went on.

“Jing-Mei.”

"Tobirama.” She repeated back in the same tone. She was making fun of him. And it made it all worse.

“Does my brother know?” Tobirama asked. 

There was a long pause. And then: “What do you think?”

Like an afterthought, she added on, “By the way, don’t tell him. I’m worried enough about the shit going on in Hong Kong. I get the feeling that this is all some kind of trick to get us to turn our attention elsewhere.” 

Tobirama mashed his lips together. Took a deep breath before he spoke again. 

“And you’re fine?”

“Yeah. I’m fine,” she assured him. She said it like a long sigh. 

“Stay out of trouble. The last thing we need is for you to go and get yourself killed,” he told her. 

“Worry about yourself, pok gaai,” she laughed as she hung up.

Part i | Part ii | Part iii | Part iv | Part v | Part vi | Part vii | Part viii | Part ix | Part x | Part xi | Part xii | Part xiii | Part xiv | Part xv | Part xvi | Part xvii | Part xviii | Part xix | Part xx | Part xxi | Part xxii | Part xxiii (here) | Part xxiv | Part xxv | Part xxvi | Part xxvii | Part xxviii | Part xxix | Part xxx | Part xxxi | Part xxxii | Part xxxiii | Part xxxiv | Part xxxv | Part xxxvi | Part xxxvii| Part xxxviii | Part xxxix | Part XL (it ends here)

#eastern suns #writing #itasaku #triad!sakura x yakuza!itachi #tobisaku #triad!au

[apentotheheart]

Fic - Overdue Reunion

Title: Overdue Reunion Fandom: DuckTales (2017) Character(s): Matilda McDuck, Scrooge McDuck Genre: General Rating: PG Disclaimers: DuckTales © Disney Notes: Pre-series. Applies certain events from the comic The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck.

Summary: Scrooge has always been stubborn. But even he regrets what it took to get him speaking with his family again.

At first, she hadn't thought much of the chatter of the crowd quieting some, caught up in her own conversation with Elvira to really notice. It wasn't until catching a glimpse of an all too familiar top hat, approaching the porch where the two of them stood that she finally looked herself, tensing as she saw someone she had not seen in quite a while.

"What's wrong?" Elvira asked, noticing her attention was divided.

She didn't respond right away, especially as her eyes caught his in the crowd. When she finally did speak, it was with difficulty to keep her voice level, "Maybe you should check on the twins, Elvira."

Hesitating a moment, the older woman nodded. As she stepped down from the porch, though, she paused. "Will you be all right?"

She nodded, her shoulders squared as she stepped off the porch herself. "Aye. I just need a few words with my brother."

The skirt of her dress billowed around her as she quickly walked forward, and the friends and family gathered seeming to move out of her way as she went to meet him. Soon they stood in front of each other, and she folded her arms across her chest as she stared him down.

"Scrooge."

His fingers flexed a bit as he gripped his cane, but his expression was unreadable as he returned her gaze.

"Matilda."

The tension around them was heavy as silence followed their terse greetings, and the people around them drifted away to give them some semblance of privacy; as much as was possible as they stood in the middle of the farm's property.

She gave him the courtesy to explain himself, but when he said nothing after a while longer she had to check herself from snapping as she spoke, "So? What are you doing here?"

His eyes narrowed a fraction, and she didn't miss the way his free hand curled into a fist before he tucked it behind his back, trying to stand a bit straighter. "I think we both know why I'm here."

The scoff escaped her before she could stop it. "Forgive me if I'm havin' trouble believing y'actually cared for our sister, with how we last saw ye."

She knew she shouldn't have, but Matilda couldn't help feeling a bit gratified as he winced and averted his gaze. She could only hope he felt some shame with how their last meeting ended.

"…A-Aye," he finally said after another long moment, and even after all this time she could still hear how weary his tone was, though he was trying to hide it. His shoulders still sagged a bit though, and he sighed. "I-It was…wrong of me to treat you all the way I did. I was wrong, and…I'm sorry." His grip on his cane tightened as he shook his head. "I just wish I'd had the sense to realize it before it was too late."

Her own posture relaxing some, she still hesitated, the longing to forgive her brother warring with the pain of being rejected and cast out from his life. It had felt like so long ago, but it had only been a couple of years since he had returned to Duckburg, caring only about his money and status as richest man in the world above even them, his family.

They had promised then that they would not speak to him unless something changed…but he was here now, admitting that he was wrong. Surely that counted, didn't it?

If only the person who had decided that in the first place was still here.

But it was up to her now, and so she sighed. "Well…you've come around, at least," she said slowly, her tone equally as worn-out. Unlike her siblings, Matilda's temper never ran as high, and in all honesty she was just tired of being angry all the time. "I'm only sorry that it took this for it to happen."

Scrooge glanced at the people gathered at the farm, the family and friends who had come together to mourn their shared loss. "…So am I."

Movement off to the side caught their attention, and they both looked over to see Elvira leading two children towards the house. Scrooge drew up a bit, inhaling a sharp breath. "Are those – ?"

She nodded. "Hortense's children. Donald and Della."

They watched as the two sat on the steps of the porch, and Elvira slipped into the house. Scrooge shook his head. "They're such wee ones, aren't they?"

"Aye…Too young to be experiencin' a loss like this." Scrooge and she at least had been adults when their mother, and many years later their father, had passed away. But the twins were still so young, and to have both parents ripped away from them so soon…

Too soon…

She hadn't realized she had been crying until Scrooge offered her a handkerchief, and she took it with trembling hands. Even as she tried to wipe her tears, though, more kept coming as the weight of the deaths of her sister and brother-in-law returned full force. After a moment she felt Scrooge's arm around her shoulders, and as he drew her closer she could feel the slight tremor that passed through him as well.

They remained that way for what felt like hours, but only a few moments passed before she was able to compose herself. It was with some reluctance though that she drew away from him, this time able to dry her eyes.

"Thank you," she murmured, the exhaustion once again weighing down on her. "I haven't…had much of a chance to take it all in yet meself. I've been so wrapped up trying to help take care of the young'uns."

Scrooge glanced over once again to where the children sat, watching as Elvira returned to them from inside the house. "What's goin' tae happen with them now?"

"Elvira insisted on raising them herself, here on the farm." Matilda sighed softly. "I would have taken them in, but I didn't think they'd be too keen to go back to Scotland with me."

He turned back to her sharply, eyes wide with surprise. "You're leavin'?"

She nodded. "Aye." She waved off his shock with her hand. "Dinnae worry, it won't be for some time yet. I want t'make sure the children have settled right. But…eventually, yes, I'll be headin' home. Unlike you and Hortense, I never found a reason to stay State-side."

Scrooge's frown deepened at that, and for a moment it looked like he was going to say something. Instead, he looked over again to where the children sat. "So they'll be stayin' here, eh?"

His words had a tone that she recognized as one he used when he had an idea, like he was up to something, and she couldn't help the suspicious feeling that started to rise. "Just what are ye plannin' now?"

Scrooge squared his shoulders, and picking up his cane started marching towards the house. "I may not have been there for Hortense and her husband…but I can change that with her children."

She followed after him, and catching Elvira's gaze as they neared she only nodded, letting the Duck family matriarch know that Scrooge was all right…and she certainly hoped that she was right, and wouldn't regret letting her older brother talk with Hortense's children.

She hoped he wouldn't disappoint her this time around.

The children finally noticed them as they stood in front of the porch steps, but Scrooge seemed to hesitate. From where she stood, she could see his hand twitching some as it rested behind his back. Was he…nervous?

It took another moment of the twins staring him down before he cleared his throat. "Hello, children," he said, and it was already apparent how unaccustomed he was to speaking with children. "Do ye know who I am?"

Donald suddenly appeared rather nervous, and Matilda couldn't say why he seemed to try to hide behind Della. Even stranger, Scrooge chuckled, pointing the end of his cane at Donald.

"Aye, I see you remember. I still owe y'one for that shot you took." Resting the end of the cane in the ground, he folded both hands over the curve he held, and there might have been something oddly proud in his grin. "Still, it was a good shot…one I might've even deserved, lookin' back."

Matilda couldn't help but wonder what he was talking about, but didn't get a chance to ask him as Della finally spoke up, soft and unsure, "You're…our uncle…right?"

With a nod, Scrooge tilted back his hat some. "Aye, that I am. I'm your mother's brother…your uncle…Scrooge McDuck."

Donald fidgeted a bit, looking at Scrooge uncertainly. "…Mom was always mad at you."

She stiffened a bit at that. She wasn't sure how much of their first encounter with their uncle they remembered, but she and Hortense had done their best not to speak about Scrooge around the children after that. Or at least, whenever she was with Hortense. Had her younger sister talked about Scrooge a lot at home with her husband?

Scrooge, however, didn't seem all that surprised. "Aye. She had a right tae be too, all things considered. I'm sorry I never got a chance to make it up to her. But I'd like tae make it up to the two of you, if that's all right."

Della tilted her head a bit. "How?"

"Well…" He knelt down in front so he was more eye-level with them. "Since you'll be living here with your grandmother, I was thinkin' of comin' by to visit ye more often. Why, I can even take you on a few trips here and there, 'long as it's all right with your grandma. Y'think ye'd like that?"

The twins slid off the porch steps as they got to their feet, glancing at each other before looking to her, a bit uncertain. She could only manage a small smile, hoping it was more encouraging than she felt. While she was delighted that Scrooge was trying – and even showing some traces of the older brother she had once known – she couldn't help still feeling somewhat nervous over all this.

She couldn't help worrying whether Scrooge being present in their lives would really be a good thing.

Whatever worries she had, though, quickly faded when the twins suddenly hugged Scrooge, and as her brother returned the embrace, holding them both close, she realized that maybe he needed this as much as the two of them did. And whatever doubts and fears still lingered, she decided that she wouldn't let them get in the way any longer either. She wasn't about to let those reservations keep Scrooge away…not when he was trying to come back now.

They had lost so much family already, after all.

#ducktales #matilda mcduck #scrooge mcduck #ducktales 2017 #lots of influence from the Life and Times of Scrooge McdDuck comics #maybe a bit too much #oops

[ashilrak]

"Please marry me" would u write alex/laf? If not then whamilton

“Fuck,” Lafayette said, looking at his phone.

Alex looked up from his computer, taking in the growing look of panic on Lafayette’s face. “What?” he asked.

“I fucking forgot,” Lafayette said, turning to Alex with wide eyes. “How did I forget?”

Alex stood up and walked over to clasp Lafayette’s shoulders. “What’s wrong?”

Lafayette shook his head and said, “I made a deal with my grandmother when I came here - you know she didn’t want me to come to America.”

Alex nodded. “Okay.”

“You know I’m rich,” Lafayette said. “Like very, very rich.”

Alex squeezed Lafayette’s shoulders. “Yes, I know. You’ve tried to pay my tuition while drunk like eight times.”

“Right.” Lafayette took in a deep breath. “So, I’m rich and my grandmother is a little old-fashioned.”

“You’ve said.”

Lafayette pulled away, turning and starting to pace the room, his hands flexing at his sides. “So,” Lafayette started. “I made a deal with my grandmother, She’d let me to go college in America if I promised to come back and get married to a girl of her choosing.”

“So you’re getting married this summer?” Alex sat back down. “But you promised it. I hate to say it, but you did this to yourself.”

“I know, I know.” Lafayette’s hands went to his hair. “But I don’t know her, Alex. I’m sure she’d lovely, but I don’t want to marry someone who’s basically a stranger.”

Alex crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back. “Then don’t,” he said.

“I have to,” Lafayette replied. “I promised.”

“There’s gotta be a loophole or something - she’s your grandmother. Have you tried talking to her about it?”

Lafayette shook his head and continued pacing. “She won’t want to hear it,” he said “She is a firm believe in marrying young, and she doesn’t like marrying down because she thinks they’re only after our money. But, she is a romantic at heart. It’s either arranged or convincing her I have a love match.”

“Go find an actress,” Alex offered.

“She’d see right through that,” Lafayette said, “She’ll insist on interrogating whoever I claim as the love of my life. And-” Lafayette’s hands moved to accentuate his point “-I’d still have to marry that person. If I broke up with them, it’d be right back to Adrienne.”

Alex raised a brow. “Adrienne?”

Lafayette raised a hand and said, “our families have been close for generations, it’s who my grandmother wants me to marry.”

“What about Jefferson?”

“What do you mean ‘what about Jefferson’?” Lafayette asked.

Alex shrugged. “As a fake-real husband.”

“Why Jefferson?”

“Why not?” Alex leaned forward, unfolding his arms and placing his hands on his knees. “I mean, I don’t like the guy, but you do. He’s not ugly, you’re friends, and he’s bougie enough he’ll probably pass all your family’s rich people tests.”

Lafayette snorted. “I’m not marrying Thomas Jefferson - he’s too much of a romantic as heart.” He brought his hands up to his face. “I need someone who I can deal with, but also someone who would view the status boost and what not as a decent trade-off for lack of true love. I do want a happy marriage, Alex.” Lafayette sighed. “I need a friend who’s willing to sacrifice their potential happiness.”

“Good luck,” Alex said, turning back to his computer.

Moments passed, the sound of Lafayette’s footsteps a steady backdrop to Alex’s typing.

“Wait,” Lafayette said, stopping his pacing. “How do you feel about becoming a Marquis? Kind of?”

“What are you talking about?”

Lafayette stepped forward and looked to the side, sheepish. “I might have understated my status.

Alex nodded. “Just a little.”

“Anyway,” Lafayette said. “How does Alexander Lafayette sound to you?”

Alex choked on air. “What?” he asked.

Lafayette dropped to a knee at Alex’s side, and looked up at Alex with earnest eyes, “Please marry me,” he said. “I’ll buy you a  ring and everything.”

“You’re serious.”

Lafayette nodded. “Completely.”

Alex blinked. “What the fuck?”

“Please.” Lafayette grabbed for Alex’s hand. “We’ll figure out all the particulars - you can have affairs if you’re subtle enough. We’ll have to spend some time in France, but we can go back and forth. You can get a job that lets you travel - a freelance writer, maybe. You won’t need the money, but I know you’ll want to keep busy. I’ll-”

Alex raised a hand to cut Lafayette off. “Slow down,” he said. “You’re legitimately asking me to marry you right now?”

Lafayette nodded.

“Fine.”

Lafayette brightened, smile as wide as Alex had ever seen it. “Really?” he asked.

Alex nodded.

“Thank you so much!” Lafayette leaned up to and pressed a kiss to Alex’s lips,. “I love you, soon to be husband of mine. I shall lay the world at you feet if you would allow me to.”

“Right,” Alex said, still reeling from the kiss. “Of course.”

Lafayette squeezed his hand and said, “I really mean it. Anything.”

Alex nodded. “I don’t doubt it.” He looked down at Lafayette for a second, thinking. “We’re going to get married.”

“Yes, we are.”

Alex stood up and started toward the kitchen and said, “this calls for celebration.”

“Yes.” Lafayette went with him, their hands still entwined. “I think it is. You know, I’m happy it’s you.”

Alex reached up for the glasses. “Good, I’d hate to ruin your life.” He grabbed the bottle of wine. “Besides, we have a wedding to plan, and everyone knows that’s the real test of a relationship.”

Lafayette froze. “Shit.”

// super sappy prompts // ko-fi

#Ask #thalia-the-guitar #Hamilton #Drabble #Hamlaf