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#i remember when my dad was dying and i asked if i could pray enough to save him because he wasn't right with god and like. panicking
fruitcoops · 1 year
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Hi!! I was reading that fix you wrote where Remuz was having a panic attack in the hospital. There was a part when he was remembering when his parents would calm him down when he was in the hospital with his shoulder, and I was wondering if maybe you could write a full version of that - when Remus was in the hospital and afraid, and sad, and in pain and his parents helping him through it.
Just a thought, love your work! ❤❤
Fic O'Ween Day 6: Nightmare. Honestly this is a big ol' cathartic whumpfest, ft. my endless love for Hope Lupin. Characters belong to @lumosinlove <3
TW for description of injury, trauma, hospitals, crying
The faint sound of plastic wheels on linoleum rattled through the door. There was the squeaky, bubbling laugh that only a five-year-old could muster; the wheels rattled again, returning from the end of their path to the timbre of a gentle voice. The lights inside were dim and Hope was grateful.
Julian rolled his toy across the hall floor again and Lyall chuckled, making some comment that was lost to the thick door. Voices hummed like the wings of bees in a hive, interrupted now and then by the ping of a PA system or the tchack-tchuck of crisp cart wheels going past. Remus was doing an awfully good job of pretending to sleep.
Today was hard. They had arrived early—so early, if there was a God up there she prayed she would never have to coerce a toddler into the car before sunrise again—and waited for long enough that she began to resent the asscrack-of-dawn appointment. Jules passed the time dozing in Remus’ lap; small miracles. When the doctor finally arrived, she read an Eye Spy book with him while Lyall and Remus went in for the debrief, both too tense around the shoulders. They had all been too tense lately. It made her sick to think about shoulders for too long.
Two weeks of silence had begun clotting between them and sticking to the corners of the house. Hope didn’t like hospitals much, never had, but she was just glad to be able to breathe. Dislocation and multiple muscle tears, they had said. Get to the doctor within the month, or you’ll run the risk of severe infection. Festering. Shredded. Damaged. All those words, and none of the truth.
Hope looked down at the hand laying limp in her own. Freckled. Strong. Determined. That was her son. That was the truth. The doctors always seemed to overlook his kindness, his gentle heart, his unending courage—they never wanted to just listen for two seconds. Maybe Remus would have told them what happened, then. Maybe he would finally speak up because Hope might not be a doctor but she knew for damn sure that an injury like that didn’t come from a stray hit, and not a single person cared to look further.
She would have done it herself, if she had the time. But she didn’t. She just didn’t. There wasn’t enough Hope Howell to go around.
“Remus.” Her voice stuck in her throat and she coughed lightly, giving his hand a squeeze. “Re, baby.”
He remained quiet and motionless, save for the steady rise and fall of his chest under the blankets. They only let him have pudding in the hospital, some fakey vanilla nonsense that smelled like plastic, and the antibiotics had brutalized his appetite—he was too skinny, now. Tears welled in her eyes and she bit the inside of her lip, looking to the ceiling until she was sure they wouldn’t fall.
“Come on, trooper, let’s get some water in you.” She squeezed his hand again, tighter. “You don’t have to sit up or anything. Dad and Jules are in the hallway. Just—just have a drink and then you can go back to sleep, okay?”
No response. Something warm slid down her cheek and she wiped it away on her sleeve. It wouldn’t do any good to cry right now. She had done enough of that earlier, when Remus couldn’t regulate his breathing by himself and the nurse asked her to hold his hand while they put the anesthesia mask over him. Hope didn’t plan on dying anytime soon, but she knew she would never forget the look on his face as long as she lived. Clammy and shaky, wide-eyed until the medicine kicked in and his lids slipped down into something almost restful if his brow hadn’t been creased so deep. It was the stuff of unimaginable nightmares. They told her he slept through the whole thing, all three grueling hours.
Two pins and an immeasurable number of stitches later, he still thought he could fool her.
There was no sense in wasting her energy to push down her emotions anymore. Remus had to know it was alright to feel them, and to let them go. Hope sniffled and watched one drip onto her jeans. “I know you’re awake,” she said quietly. “I know you’re probably feeling sick and awful but I am so proud of you, sweet pea.”
The blanket hitched.
“I’m so proud of you,” she repeated, voice wobbling. “You did so good. And I promise I’m not going to grill you about anything, I just want you to drink some water, if you want me to tell Dad you’re still asleep that’s fine—”
A low, broken sound cracked her somewhere deep, beyond her heart and lungs. When she leaned over in an awkward hug, Remus didn’t try to pull away like he had since that night, didn’t do anything but grip her cardigan with his good hand while half-breathless sobs wracked his body.
“I know.” She pressed a kiss to his sweaty hair. “I know, I know, I’m so sorry.”
“I can’t.” Remus sucked in air like a fish on land; she could hear it catching somewhere too shallow for it to do any good and held him closer. “Momma you don’t ‘n’ I’m sorry but I can’t.”
“Why not?” She closed her eyes tight enough to ache. “Re, baby, you’ve gotta tell me or I can’t help you.”
“The hit—the hit—”
“Please don’t bullshit me.” She sounded frail to her own ears. “Don’t tell me it was the hit, Remus, your dad and I both know that’s not true—”
The next sob was louder and she winced in sympathy at the seizing of his chest. “It was, it was—”
“No.” She sat up just enough to see him, though Remus’ hold on her didn’t loosen by a bit. His face was blotchy and streaked with salt tracks, lips white at the edges from trying to keep it all in. He was Remus, age five, with a red mark on his forehead from a doorknob. He was Remus, age eight, split-lipped and bruised after going head over heels over his bike handlebars. He was Remus, age 14, roughed-up from his first hockey fight once the adrenaline faded and he was just scared and in pain.
Hope gently pried him off her sweater and held his hand in both of her own. A deep breath eased her headache by a degree, but nothing could stop the heartache watching Remus choke down his tears again, and again, and again. There was something darker in his eyes. Something more than fear and hurt. It was where his sobs kept catching and his breath couldn’t get through. Part of Remus had died that night, she knew that much, but this cesspool of abject terror was something he hadn’t let them see yet.
“I won’t ask for details.” Please, please tell me or I’m never going to sleep again. Remus watched her like a wary deer and somehow that hurt even more. “I won’t. I promise. You can tell Dad and ask him not to share with me if you want. But I need to ask you one thing, Remus, and I need you to be honest.”
His throat bobbed. He sniffed, though it didn’t do much. His left arm was bound tight to his body and it took a second for him to shift up on the pillows. He nodded.
“Did this happen during the hit?”
Remus’ lower lip wobbled and he shook his head, lashes clumping with fresh tears that spilled over and down toward his ears. Hope let out an unsteady exhale and bent to hug him again.
Sitting there in the plastic chair, back aching, holding her son who had done nothing to deserve anything but the best in life, Hope found that she couldn’t wish death on whoever did this. Death was too good for them. Too light of a punishment. She wanted their life razed and salted and burned until nothing could grow there again and when their time was finally up, she wanted them to pass on with nobody at their side.
In a sense, it was a good thing Lyall was still keeping Jules entertained for the millionth hour, bless his sweet soul. If he had been there for Remus’ confession, the person who did this to their son would be six feet underground before the day was up.
Remus had quieted, resigned to sniffling and the occasional tremor. Hope brushed his hair off his feverish forehead and wiped his tears with the corner of the blanket. “Thank you,” she said at last.
“I don’t think I can do this,” Remus rasped.
“Yes, you can.” She met his gaze, holding strong under the shattered thing staring back at her. “And you will. It’s alright if it takes time. You and me and your dad and Jules are going to get through this, Remus. Step by step. This is not the end of the world.”
Later, when she looked through the window while Jules finished his snack in her lap and saw Lyall holding Remus like his lanky body could shield them both from the world, it almost felt like a beginning.
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evita-shelby · 2 years
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Between the Shadow and the Soul
Taglist: @joossieisdabomb @johnathancanines @peakyblindas @kissmyquill @whitejuliana1204 @zablife
gif by @retromafia
Chapter 52
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“Is this like when you let me change my birthday?” Gabe asked as Arthur, in his father Christmas suit, handed out gifts on December 7th.
Children in the Riley family were lucky, lucky enough to have their parents let them reschedule their birthdays whenever they wanted.
Eva saw no reason to let the tradition die. Especially when Diane wanted a beach party for her seventh birthday, or Gabriel wanted it a week early so his father couldn’t miss it. Only Florence has no idea it exists or that they rescheduled her third birthday due to a thing that needed her both her parents present.
Charlie refused to move his, said he had a perfectly good date and if his dad couldn’t be there then fuck him. Charlie had ended his eleventh birthday with a scolding from everyone, but most especially, Tommy who had arrived late.
“Will Eddy be there?” Charlie asks setting up the projector signed by Charlie Chaplain that his father had given him for his birthday.
Eduardo ‘Eddy’ Riley was Francisco’s eldest boy, a clever young boy of twelve with his mother’s courage and father’s steadfast friendship.
Time was the best cure for them, now they were truly fine. Eva supposed they just needed to see that they were all fine with the choices they made and apologize for the hurts caused.
“Yes, and his sisters and baby brother. Your Auntie Ada will be tired because of the new baby, so I need you four little angels to be on your best behavior for her.” Eva explained to Charlie and Gabe who had already gotten into trouble with one of John’s boys.
“Aunt Evie, come quick. Cathy’s mum called, said it’s really urgent!” Katie, now a young woman of twenty, said rushing down the stairs.
“Am I speaking with Mrs. Eva. Shelby?” its not the headmistress, not one of the teachers or a counselor, no it’s a mother. A worried mother.
It hits her when she recognized the voice, Cathy Sander's mum. Cathy was Dia’s best friend , sat beside her in school since nursery school.
“Yes, it’s me, I hope you don’t mind the confusion, my sisters-in-law are here and both are Mrs. Shelbys too. Is something wrong, Lauren?” Eva knew she wouldn’t like the answer.
“Yes, Cathy’s just been diagnosed with TB, caught from one of their classmates. I’m afraid Dia ad Billy may have it too.”
With those words, Eva’s world goes dark.
Tuberculosis was a death sentence. She sees children’s coffins on Christmas Eve.
Eva then remembers she can’t see the deaths of family members. She didn’t see Tío Benjamín falling from his horse on a hunt, she didn’t see Feli dying, didn’t see her baby dying too and worse she did not see Tia Minga dying from consumption almost fifteen years ago. Hell, she didn’t even see her getting sick .
If Diane had TB, then all of them had it too. Gabe was inseparable from his sister, Linda’s boy was in the same classroom and just minutes ago Daisy and Katie had been with her up in her bedroom.
Can spread through a kiss. Polly whispers ominously.
“Thank you for notifying me, Lauren, if you need anything let us know.” Eva says almost monotonously.
“You look sick, Evie, what did Cathy’s mum want?” Arthur asks her.
“Cathy has tuberculosis, some kid in their class had it and now we might have it too.” She feels faint, Eva was stronger than that, but ill news makes her weak at the knees.
Arthur steadies her, but she wants Tommy. Tommy, who was waiting for them in Canada. Tommy who could let her breakdown and just hold her until it passes.
“Eva, Dedee has a fever, she said she felt cold and Katie says she was sick all over the floor.” Esme rushed to tell her.
The house descends into a controlled panic, the children are blissfully unaware of what’s happening, but each parent is aware that come New Year’s Day a child in their family could be dead. Silently everyone prays for the same thing: don’t take mine.
Eva remembers the iciness of the curse passing through her womb that night Tommy gave her the sapphire. Eva remembers the visions she had when the vendetta happened. She hears Vincenzo Changretta whisper, a son for a son.
“I need to call him, need to set up appointments with the doctor, fuck. We don’t have time, my aunt died three days after getting it.” Her hands shake and she’s no longer in control. “Ask Linda to call the institute and the doctor, if there’s a chance Billy and Diane have it, we all have it.”
Eva dials a number that appears in her mind clear as day and breathes out in relief when Tommy picks up.
“Thirteen years married to you and I still can’t get used to that.” Tommy says amused. “Second the door closed behind me, I heard the telephone ringing, love.”
Eva knows he thinks it’s one of those calls where she calls from his office and they fuck through the phone.
“Tom, I need you to get on a boat or one of the company’s planes and come home.” she says with no preamble. Eva tries to hide her worry, but her voice cracks and he hears it. She knows he did. Thirteen years together makes them know each other better than themselves.
“What’s wrong? Evie, I’ll leave now if you need me to, I just need to know why.” Tommy can’t hide the sudden panic. The thing about Tommy was that he needed to plan their next course of action, find a way to fix it. She loved that about him.
Eva takes a deep breath to steady herself and wished someone else could make the call, talk for her, but the panic has taken over Arrow House and she can hear Linda frantically calling the Institute while Esme and Deborah made sure the children were fine.
“She’s sick, Tom. Diane’s friend Cathy contracted TB, they think she might have it too.”
There’s a pause. Neither speak.
“I’ll leave first thing in the morning. I love you, Evie, we’ll get through this.
Tell the children, I love them.” He sounds fine, but Eva knows her husband. He’s being strong for her, just as she is trying to be strong for him.
“I will, don’t do anything rash, Tom.” She reminds him before adding. “I love you too.”
“In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan, Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone,” Eva hears Polly sing upstairs.
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🎢 go to an amusement park - rue & kaTE
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let's go on a date meme ( accepting ) + @chmerical // kate
Won’t you come away with me? Rue’s never been stable to begin with, parties easy to come, easy to go, but when she sits in them now, she finds that there’s a ROT THERE with which she could not abide by. The drugs only do so well, only go so long, and, Kate’s here so that means they could go on forever if they wanted to, but Rue... she kinda doesn’t want them too. Able to tell where her foot feels for the ledge and where it could lead to her plummeting down, down, down into something that she could not swim out of, something that might consume her whole and spit out nothing but bones instead of a girl, and she can’t have that. Not now when she knows herself to be cared for and loved and she anchors herself into her own desire not to get lost in something that hangs like a noose about her neck, reaching instead for Kate’s hand through the thumping base of this party, her eyes finding her own, gaze intent and loaded like a gun. 
                     “Wanna get out of here?”
Because that’s what she needs, Kate looking back at her at first like, the fuck is up, but a hand squeezes back, and she finds a temporary respite in relief, and up they get, and out they go, as if Kate isn’t dying to see what happens when an actress goes off the rails and can’t handle the pressure like she does, but... Rue likes to think that Kate’s her friend and wouldn’t do that to her, because even if she’s beautiful and soaked through the bones with the words of FOLLOWERS AND TIKTOK TRENDS, Kate is still ever so authentically Kate, and it’s why she adores her, why they’ll go running from here and spilling into Ubers as Rue impulsively makes a stab at the amusement park and says, let’s go, as molly dissolves on her tongue and she talk talk talks about girls that nobody remembers anymore, and drama so dusted over that it might as well be ancient, because 3 years ago was like, a lifetime now, and she doesn’t know where at least half of them are anymore... 
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"We used to have this carnival at my town every year. I lived in this like, tiny place. The sorta... the sorta place where everyone knows everyone. I used to hate that, you know? Like I just wanted to disappear and I never could because I was always THAT GIRL who’s dad died, or that girl who overdosed in the summer, or that girl who gave a handjob to Kenny Jenkins in 7th and that stuff never really leaves you in small towns. Anyways. There were these two girls. Everyone wanted to be them, you know? Like. They were those girls, and one of them, she dropped molly once and had an orgasm on the fucking merry go round in front of everyone. And like. She totally threw a whole fit about it when her sister put that stuff into her play at the end of the year. It’d be funnier if it wasn’t also like, sad. We all knew she only did it because she was sad. Because the guy that she liked didn’t really love her the way that he said he did. Because we were all just sad girls looking for a way out. And it was like.... like it was just never enough, you know?”
                                             Rue Bennett, on her MOTHER FUCKING soliloquies again.
But the Uber stops and out she spills ; unstable even in her flats right now, but she’s got Kate with her and she kinda prays that Kate didn’t record any of that but she’s looped their arms together and they’re marching in like they’ve got orders and she asks, shyly, if Kate would ride merry go round with her, before throwing in that, “I promise I won’t like. Fucking get gross or anything on it.” even if they’re on the SAME DRUGS, she wants to promise her that she’s not really sad. Not really. Not the way that Cassie was, because she’s got Kate here and Kate’s just kinda.. amazing. Kind and warm and lovely all at once. “I... I dunno. I haven’t in forever. But. I’d really like to with you? I guess you got the idea all stuck in my head, o-or I did, but... whatever. Fuck! You know what I mean.” nervous hands, sweating palms. “W-would you want to?”
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kiitsume · 4 years
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people don’t really talk about how being raised in a fundamentalist christian household and then growing up to be gay can make you almost crave or, like, expect punishments that will “rid you” of your gayness. like, when i first realized i was a lesbian, i actively looked up conversion camps and conversion therapies, even though i knew they were traumatic, because i felt like i deserved to be punished for accepting this as my identity and allowing myself to sin. i’m 21 and sometimes i still find myself feeling like i need to look into those avenues to “fix myself,” and the longer i’m gay the more i feel like i deserve it. it’s this ridiculous notion that righteous punishment will somehow cleanse my conscience and that i won’t have to “sin” any more, or that it’s my fault i’m nonreligious because i bought into this lie and didn’t punish myself soon enough or harsh enough or seek out the correct religious authority early enough and like. you end up carrying all this guilt and feeling like a glutton for righteous punishment where everything horrible that happens in your life is somehow justified because god-- one you may not even believe in anymore-- is punishing you for falling into sin.
#personal#vent#anti religion#anti christianity#conversion camp tw#homophobia tw#ask to tag#i've just been consuming a lot of atheist content today and my brain went 'oh well now lets go to a conversion camp and fix u up!'#like no. no i'm not gonna do that. what the fuck.#especially because in christianity suffering and punishment is glorified and like. overcoming struggles makes you admirable#so theres this part of me thats like 'it's not too late! you can suffer and fix yourself and it'll be great!'#i specificially say fundamentalist christian households because the christianity *i* practiced fits into the bite model and like.#we were the backwards christians. and by the time i got to middle and high school i was losing that a lot but.#i was homophobic well into high school even if at that point it was mostly internalized homophobia.#i was an apologist for some of the worst shit in the bible. i was raised to be.#i remember crying when i was a kid because i got grounded from church for one sunday and i was sure that god would come down during that#time and i would be sent to hell because i wasn't right with him. i remember my mom sitting me down and making me copy out all the verses#about a sin she thought i committed (something that took me days to finish) and then having a long talk with me about my eternal damnation#i remember when my dad was dying and i asked if i could pray enough to save him because he wasn't right with god and like. panicking#repeatedly about the idea that i hadn't done enough to save my father. and i remember at some point feeling like his death was punishment#for my sins and a way that god was trying to teach me not to doubt him.#i remember being raised with the idea that women were supposed to submit unquestioningly to their husbands and resist nothing#i wasnt the run of the mill christian and i wasnt even in one of the christian-based cults like mormonism or jws#and i'm glad i wasn't! but coming out of that believing that any worth my life had had in serving god was now null and void#and that without god nothing mattered and without my religion i would be destined for punishment and estrangement. was traumatic.#sorry for going off in the tags i have a lot to say
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Cult Girl: Doctorate (Hannibal x Female!Reader) pt. 11
Cult Girl goes on a little solo excursion while Hannibal works.
@wisesandwichshark @pearlstiare
Trigger warnings: (fake) blood, mentions of death overseas, anti-choice harassment, discussion of abortion
Archie and Max leaving the picture was a problem you couldn't bring yourself to deal with when you awoke the next day. You anticipated a massive downward spiral if you didn't do something for yourself and fast. You'd spent so much time worrying about your schoolwork and your baby that it was long past due.
You made a couple of phone calls and found a GameStop a little out of the way with a used copy of Pokémon Alpha Sapphire for sale. About twenty minutes drive. Hannibal had back-to-back appointments clogging up his day, so it gave you an excuse to go on a little excursion.
You climbed into your car, picked an extensive playlist of your favorite songs and set off. You plugged the directions into your phone and let the map guide you. The roads narrowed as you watched your surroundings grow less and less familiar.
Soon enough, you pulled into a parking lot. Nestled between a Planned Parenthood and a used bookstore, the GameStop beckoned you. At the end of your tunnel vision was that game and nothing could stop you from getting it.
Certainly not from lack of trying.
"Stop right there!" A voice said. It chuckled, trying to make the rude interruption seem friendly.
An obstacle appeared in your line of sight: a plain-looking middle-aged white woman with dyed blonde hair. Just your garden variety Karen.
"Can I help you?" You said, giving your voice a distinct, annoyed bite.
She smiled, though not without discomfort. "Are you going, y'know, in there?"
She gestured to the building behind you. Uncertain of what she wanted or why she was making a trip to the GameStop so weird, you answered in the affirmative.
"Yeah, why?"
She wrapped her hand around your arm, as if to restrain you. Her touch made your skin crawl.
"I really don't think you should go in there."
You finally put the pieces together. This lady was just some anti-choice maniac, waiting outside a Planned Parenthood for any random pregnant woman to approach.
"Yeah, I totally carried this baby for five months just to get rid of it within a week of the legal termination threshold." You rolled your eyes. "I just want it to feel the maximum possible amount of pain when I destroy it."
The woman's face turned into one of abject horror and you smiled, feeling proud of yourself. You yanked your arm from her hand with full intent to walk away. That should have been the end of it.
"Wait!" She shouted, snatching you by the shoulder. "Please, reconsider. God gave you that little one because he wants you to be a mommy!"
"For the love of fuck, woman." You snarled. "Can you seriously not pick up on sarcasm? I'm not even going to the clinic. I'm going to the GameStop."
She wasn't convinced. "See, I think you're lying to me. I think you're telling me one thing and then you're gonna do another thing."
"What the hell is it any of your business, Karen?" You scowled at her. "Leave me alone!"
"Just pray about it, please!" She pleaded. "What if your baby grows up to be a soldier? Protecting your freedom?"
"Oh, then I should definitely kill it now." You snarked. "Would save him the trouble of getting blown up by other Americans in a senseless war like my dad."
Adda girl, [F/N]! You thought to yourself. Nothing gets nosy strangers to go away quite like revealing even more personal information!
She put both her hands on your protruding belly. "Don't worry, angel. Mommy isn't going to kill you! Aunt Laurie won't allow it!"
You vaguely remembered your obstetrician saying something about how twenty-week fetuses could hear the outside world. You weren't planning on subjecting the kid to violence this early on, but desperate times call for desperation.
You grabbed her by the shoulders and shoved her down. She screamed, getting the attention of a few onlookers.
"Help!" She wailed, lying on the ground as if she couldn't get up. "I'm being attacked!"
You dashed as quickly as your legs could carry you into the GameStop. The lone cashier, a purple-haired girl with a nose ring, pretended that she hadn't been watching the altercation and looked back down at her sandwich.
"Welcome to GameStop." She said, hesitantly. "Are you... [F/N]?"
You nodded. "Yeah, I'm here for that copy of Alpha Sapphire."
"Tubular." She rummaged in a drawer beside her for the envelope.
A rather massive eevee plush displayed behind the counter caught your eye. "How much for her?"
The cashier placed the game on the counter and looked back at the massive eevee. "Fourty-four ninety-five."
"I'll take her too." You said.
The cashier pulled the eevee down from the shelf and scanned its tag.
"Aight, your total is sixty-nine eighty." She said.
"Nice." You snickered, reaching for your credit card.
The cashier smirked as you inserted the chip. "Hey, was that crazy lady accosting you outside?"
"I take it she does that a lot?" You asked.
She heaved a sigh. "You have no idea."
You looked behind at the large windows and saw the woman standing outside the door, waiting for you. You felt like a caged animal. Your eyes scanned the room and landed on a couple ketchup packets. A sick idea formed in your head.
"Are you gonna use those?" You asked, pointing to them.
The cashier glanced at the woman and raised her eyebrow. "Not if you have a better use for them."
The bell jangled as you walked out of the store with a shopping bag around your wrist and a ketchup packet in each hand. Just as suspected, the woman grabbed your arm.
"Oh, honey!" She exclaimed. "Before you leave, god put it on my mind to say a little prayer for the unborn soldier he's gifted you in your womb."
"I'd rather you not." You said, trying to yank your arm out of her surprisingly strong grip.
"You're brave, but foolish, girl." She barked, positioning herself in front of you. You fidgeted with the ketchup packets behind your back, opening them just enough.
The woman put both her hands on your belly. The second you felt her touch, you threw yourself backwards. You landed, not without pain, squarely on your ass.
"Oh my?" The woman covered her mouth with her fingertips. "Are you--"
You leaned forward and moaned in pain, clutching your baby bump with one hand while drenching your shorts in ketchup with the other. You pretended to cave around the pain, then threw yourself back, revealing a bloody stain leaking from between your legs. The woman shrieked.
"Oh my fucking god!" The cashier from the store said, rushing to your side. She put her hand on your shoulder and glared at the woman. "What did you do?!?"
"She pushed me and I think it hurt my baby!" You wailed.
"Holy shit, why would you hurt her baby?!" The cashier shouted, allowing you to slink your arm around her shoulder for support. She then snatched your shopping bag from the ground.
"I didn't mean to, honest!" She said, on the verge of tears. "I was just trying to spread god's love and joy-"
"By assaulting a pregnant woman?!" The cashier yelled. You were clutching your stomach in fake pain. She helped you to your feet. "Come on, let's get you to the clinic."
You conjured up some fake tears. "You killed my baby!"
"You wicked woman!" She cried out. Her voice faded out as you approached the clinic. "You don’t deserve a baby!"
You kept up the crying and wailing until you arrived at the Planned Parenthood. More interested in covering her own ass than begging for forgiveness, the crazy woman made herself scarce. Entering the clinic with an incriminating bloodstain on your pants was awkward, for a moment. But it was easy enough to explain and even earned a laugh or two from the doctors on staff.
Once you were completely certain the crazy lady had left, you scooped up your shopping bag, said goodbye to the cashier and climbed into the car.
Before you put the key in the ignition, you took a moment. You took a moment to do something you knew you shouldn't have.
You placed your hand on your belly and stroked it. "We make a pretty good team, huh?"
You didn't know why you paused. It wasn't like the fetus was going to answer.
"Sorry you had to see that." You said. "Or, I guess, hear that. I wish I could tell you that people aren't really like that in real life, but I can't. Either that or I'm just a magnet for insane people. Hope that it's not genetic."
It just occurred to you that, if your obstetrician was right, the fetus heard everything that you said about killing it. Logically speaking, you knew it wasn't developed enough to comprehend what you were saying, but you still felt like you owed it an apology.
"Hey, scamp." You said, appropriating a nickname your grandfather gave you. "I'm sorry that I talked all that shit back there. About killing you and whatnot. I don't want to kill you. I actually want you to live an amazing life."
Just then, you felt a kick. The doctor war right: there was no mistaking it. The baby kicked.
Your mouth hung dumbly open, delight and fear chasing each other around in your mind. "Holy crap!"
You drove home as fast as legally possible. You needed to get home. As you pulled into the driveway, you noticed that Hannibal's car wasn't there.
He'll be home any minute, you thought. Might as well stay out here to catch him when he arrives.
That was an hour ago. Not that you'd noticed. You would have sat in that car, talking to your baby for an eternity. It wasn't until you heard a tapping on the window did you exit your trance.
Hannibal examined the scene. The ketchup, the massive eevee and his suddenly very chatty fiancée shooting the breeze with her fetus. He smirked.
"Did we have a fun afternoon?"
83 notes · View notes
rose7420 · 3 years
Text
Art Games
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Request from @laurenandloki
When Y/n is an admirer of Loki's and falls ill. It's up to him to save her.
Y/n was dying. She was used to it.
Living with an incurable disease and standing at two and a half inches tall meant that you were practically screwed in healthcare. Her life wasn’t miserable though as you might think. Her momma was her best friend and took care of her to the best of her ability. She was there on the good days where they could scavenge the walls and explore to their heart’s content. But she was also there for the bad days where her heart couldn’t pump enough blood leaving her weak and stranded in her bed.
Today was a good day for Y/n as she crept through the pathways of her walls to reach a hole. She climbed out of the wall and walked silently onto the desk. Sitting there was none other than Loki. His black hair hung down from his face, blue-green eyes scrunched in focus as he stared down at the game he played.
Y/n had found the activity odd as she had watched him time and time again. Now, she was intrigued. Each little piece connected to the others to form a masterpiece of art. Each time he finished one of these ‘art games’ he would hang them on his wall using magic. Her eyes had bugged out of her head the first time she’d watched him. Green enveloped the finished piece of art and kept itself together as it plastered itself to the wall. She always loved to see the accomplished look on Loki’s face, like he was proud of himself.
He tucked a strand of dark hair behind his ear as he fiddled with a piece of the art game between his fingertips. Y/n sat quietly down behind the cup of pencils, effectively blocking herself from Loki’s view. She squinted to see what piece Loki held and then tried to figure out where it went on his board. Her eyes roamed the already set pieces before finding the correct spot. She had to stop herself from standing and going to help Loki out.
Momma forbid her from ever revealing herself to him. She knew of her whereabouts when she ventured off these nights; only allowing her to go as long as she promised to keep hidden. And Y/n did just that. Loki rubbed his eyes wearily before she watched him rise to his great, intimidating height. Just the sight of him standing so tall reminded Y/n of why borrowers kept to themselves and never approached humans.
After stretching his long arms and legs he walked away and settled himself into his bed. A click turned the lights out and left Y/n in darkness. Y/n stood and made to climb back into her hole but a sudden urge stopped her. A burst of courage surged through her and she turned and sprinted to the piece Loki had given up on. She gathered the unique shape in her arms and walked to the spot she knew it went. Kneeling, she set the place to the right spot and relished the satisfying feeling as it slid into place. Her heart was bursting with accomplishment and happiness as she walked away.
However, when she got home and pulled back the curtain they used as a door her body began to feel weak. Her heart felt fast and slow all at the same time. Her lungs demanded more oxygen that she couldn't supply and blood that her heart couldn't deliver. She didn’t make it another step as she crumpled to her knees.
“Honey?” She faintly heard Momma call. Footsteps rushed towards her and her vision blurred as she tried to peer up at Momma's knelt figure and worried face. The last thing she felt was the shaking hand upon her clammy forehead.
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Loki looked down at his puzzle in confusion. He swore that piece wasn’t there yesterday. He could only chuckle as he realized his little admirer had helped him out. He plucked another piece up and set to work. Minutes later his sensitive hearing picked up on hurried footsteps and rapid breathing. One set of footsteps and two sets of breathing. One fast and the other slow. His eyes slid to the hole he knew was in his wall and stared in confusion and awe as a positively tiny lady emerged breathless carrying an even smaller unmoving girl.
He squinted to see them better. He didn’t recognize the woman but the girl…
It was his little friend.
The mother; he presumed, took tired and cautious steps towards him. He straightened in his seat, unintentionally making his shadow swallow both little forms whole.
“Please… you must help me. She’s sick… and dying.” The woman sobbed.
Loki nodded and held out a hand. The mom approached and laid her daughter down on the row of fingers. Before the mother could step on he raised the tiny girl to his eyes.
Her complexion was pale with sickness, and he felt the clamminess of her skin upon his own. And her breathing… it was so shallow and infrequent that he prayed the little one wasn’t too far gone.
“W-wait! What are you doing to my baby girl?” The mother cried from below. Loki broke from his trance to offer her a comforting look, he lowered his face so that it was somewhat level to the mother. He could see the dark circles of her eyes, and the paleness of her own face.
“I assure you, miss, that I only want to help. Can you tell me what’s wrong with her?” She did, making sure that Loki knew she had a heart condition.
“She will die? Even if I can save her now?” He said with a shaky voice looking down at her in his palm. How small and fragile she looked there. `
Her mother nodded.
“She admires you, you know?” The mother says.
Loki looks up confused. “Why on earth would she admire someone like me?” He asks.
“She’s interested in those puzzles you do… see’s that you’re smart. Her dad left us when she was only a babe. I’m glad she has a male figure to look up to in her life.”
Loki couldn't accept that this little one had just barely started her life and soon it was about to end. He thought hard, back to the spells his mother had taught him as a child. She was an achieved healer and knew much about the properties of mending wounds and fixing illnesses. Perhaps he could do the same for the dying life in his palm. His mother’s magic had always been a buttery yellow, kind and generous to anyone who needed it.
Loki’s was cunning and sharp. Meant to inflict harm rather than stop it. He gathered all those lessons in healing he could remember and set to fixing her heart.
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Y/n awoke slowly. Her eyes blinked open trying to clear the blurriness away. And when they did she screamed.
She found two blue-green eyes staring right down at her.
“Momma!” She cried frantically looking for her mother. She had been caught by Loki, a giant. The gigantic fingers around her curled in effectively trapping her. Her heart was rapid and she feared she’d pass out from the exertion. But before she started freaking out too much the giant had laid his hand down onto the table and flattened his palm.
Without thinking she scrambled off, tripping from the height. She fell into a pair of sturdy, soft arms.
“Momma!” She said relieved.
Momma wrapped her arms around her and kissed the top of her head, then her cheeks. She hugged her so tightly that Y/n couldn't breathe anymore.
A gust of air tossed her hair.
Y/n turned around to face the giant...Loki again. His chin rested on the desk, closer than ever before. She buried herself into Momma’s side.
“It’s okay...He’s a nice giant. He helped you feel better. He saved you.”
Y/n looked at the giant man again, questioning.
“You saved me?” She asked.
He nodded and offered a warm smile.
“Tell him thank you Y/n,” Momma said firmly and gently at the same time. A tone only mothers could master. Since Momma trusted Loki, it made Y/n a little less nervous.
“Thank you, mister.” She said shyly and walked to his face watching him go cross-eyed to see her better. She giggled and hugged his nose.
“It was my pleasure Little Miss,” Loki said softly.
Loki grinned from the sudden embrace. He kept his voice low, afraid of hurting these tiny people’s ears. After learning that Y/n admired him and didn’t have a father he had unwittingly adapted to being sort of a father figure to her. Perhaps he could show her there was good in this world. He watched as Y/n retreated and latched herself to her mother’s side again.
“You can come out you know,” Loki said with a grin on his face. He had spied Y/n lurking in her usual spot behind the pencil container. He had always kept it filled for her, making sure she felt comfortable enough even if she didn’t want to reveal herself.
He watched as she stepped out and looked up at him, a red tinge on her cheeks.
“I’m having trouble figuring out where this piece goes… I need your help.” He held out the tiny puzzle piece to her. She hesitantly approached his fingers and he nodded to encourage her. She took it in both arms, heaving it up. In a matter of seconds, she had ambled over to where the piece belonged and set to place it properly.
“It seems having a different perspective helps.” Loki admired it out loud. He imagined that up here, the puzzle was just well… a puzzle. But to her, it must’ve been an entire landscape, a world of its own. No wonder why she was so skilled.
“So you like puzzles?” Loki asked.
She looked up at him confused.
“Whats a puzzle?”
Loki quirked an eyebrow and leaned in closer.
“What we’re doing… what do you call it?”
“An art game.” She said crossing her small arms.
He laughed and threw his hands in the air, surrendering before they could get into an argument.
“So you like art-games?” He corrected.
She smiled and nodded.
“Good. Because I have plenty more. Perhaps you would like to help me?”
And he swore that in his many years, he had never seen the sun shine brighter than that giddy, joyful smile he received.
70 notes · View notes
dreamiesdotcom · 3 years
Text
february spring | h.rj
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genre: hanahaki!au, angst, fluff
trigger warning: character death
summary: You wonder what he'll do when he realizes you no longer cough petals, but flowers in full bloom — that inside you is a full blown spring, within a body that exists in winter.
word count: 2.7k
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The thing about flowers is that they suck.
Today again you wake up coughing petals and blood, feeling like wanting to burn the world and then your damned feelings — but no, you think, you'd rather not have life at all if you're not in love with him. You'd choose him again and again if asked.
That's the stupid thing about it. You're so willing to hurt and to be hurt for love that made flowers grow inside you.
Your mom is crying at the foot of your bed, praying for it all to be gone; the petals, the blood, the disease you have to fight because you fell for the wrong person. Your dad turned around to face the wall, tears in his eyes. He wants you to be better. He needs you to be better, and he needs to be strong so you could fight.
It's useless, anyway.
"This could end in three ways," you remember your doctor saying. "Either he loves you back, you take the surgery, or you die."
And you know what that means? That no amount of strength, of happiness, will keep you alive. It's impossible for him to love you back. You're dying. There's flowers growing inside you and you're dying — dying in the most beautiful way; dying of love.
Of stupid love, but you disregard that.
"Mom," you call. "I don't want the surgery."
"You want to die?" She asks with a laugh, "You want to die for a boy who doesn't even know of your love?"
"Y/N," your dad calls, a warning.
"Please don't make me go through it," you close your eyes. "I don't want to forget him. I don't want to forget love."
Because it's all I have, you wanted to say. Love is the one thing worth having, and you can't imagine yourself after the surgery; you'll get your emotions removed alongside the flowers in both your lungs and heart. You can't imagine that.
It's not even about him anymore. It's—
"Mom, please," you beg, "I don't... I don't want to live in a world where I wouldn't be able to live and love. I don't want to live not loving you and dad."
Because what is a human without love, emotions? An empty vessel. A withering rose. Something to stare at emptily as slowly, they begin to die.
Tears well in your mother's eyes, shaking her head, repeating the same words again and again — "I hate him, I hate him, I hate him" — but you made up your mind. You're dying, but before that you're gonna live —
you're gonna live, and this time not for him anymore; for yourself. For yourself too.
Even though life with this disease is limited to this hospital, the window and the rooftop, it is life still — this sickness made you cherish all the little things you'll lose when your body loses warmth. On some days you play with the kids, young hearts running around not really understanding their situations.
You put a smile on your face after everytime you throw up — you hide away somewhere no one would see, you hide yourself. You want to live. If you want to live, there's no need to be pitied.
At night, before you need to go to your room, you go to the rooftop and meet with a friend; Huang Renjun, same case. His heart longs for the stars, the moon, and a boy who is and will always be happier with someone else.
Tonight again, you stargaze.
"Imagine what we'll be if we weren't like this," he wonders out loud, "You'd still be annoying."
You kick his foot lightly, making him laugh, "See? You're sick and annoying. If you weren't sick, you'd be even more annoying!"
You turn to face him, and a fond smile is on his face, "You'd be beautiful still, even more without the tiredness in your eyes."
"And you'd still be handsome, Renjun," you find yourself saying, "You'd still love books and poetry, and stars..."
"But your smile wouldn't be so sad," he continues, pointing to Sirius, tracing the entire constellation as if the stars are right before his fingertips. "Your smile would be open and honest, not just something to comfort me."
You smile wistfully. He rolls around to pin you down, his hands on your wrists, a smile of his own on his face. It's something silly, kind of cheeky — typical Renjun.
"You're my only friend, Y/N," he confesses. "And I hate him. I hate the boy who made you sick."
Tears start to fall from his eyes, leaving him shaking. His arms still pin you to the ground, his tears falling on your face. He sobs. He sobs and sobs and my god, he still looks beautiful — Sirius rests on the space where his neck and shoulders meet. Galaxies are in his eyes.
He looked beautiful, so beautiful that you didn't have the heart to tell him that it's him. There's no other boy but him.
###
I wonder when he'll notice...
February cold engulfs you in its hold, making you shiver. Renjun walks beside you. It's a silent trip to the rooftop, snow falling in beautiful flakes. He takes notice in your silence.
I wonder when he'll ask if I love him...
"Are you okay?" Renjun asks, shoulder brushing against yours.
You smile at him, "I'm fine. I'm just a little cold."
Time is running out...
"Renjun," you call out his name, "Do you think you could ever fall in love with me?"
He looks at you as if you said something absurd. He laughed, he laughed until he coughed blood and petals — you stop in panic, rubbing his back.
"I think the cold is doing us no good," you say. "Let's head inside."
Was it really that impossible for you to fall in love with me?
"No, no, I'm fine." He wipes the blood off his lips, "See?"
Scary as it seems, the petals have become usual visitors for patient with Hanahaki. It doesn't even bother Renjun anymore at this point.
He'll have the surgery and get better — just a little more, he said, let me feel this love for a little more, because after the surgery I know I never will love again.
The petals don't shake him anymore. There's a cure, after all. A cure you keep denying yourself.
"Alright, let's go."
You resume walking, looking straight ahead. The sun is setting as a white sunset.
You wonder what he'll do when he realizes you no longer cough petals, but flowers in full bloom — that inside you is a full blown spring, within a body that exists in winter.
###
"Happy Birthday to you~ happy birthday to you! Happy birthday, happy birthday..."
You look at Renjun's room, meeting gazes with Lee Jeno. You smile and look away.
Renjun has told you the story of three best friends.
Jaemin and Jeno are his regular visitors. Whenever they come, there's a spark in Renjun's eyes — the glint of sadness, the look of yearning for love like theirs. You know. You pass by his door everytime.
You know, too, that he's still in love with Na Jaemin.
Whenever they come by, they bring him flowers — you laugh, because Renjun has enough of those blooming inside him. They bring him food to eat, bring him gifts, but there's no love for him in that space. Jaemin and Jeno's love are solely for each other, and Renjun wants that selfishness too; he wants Jaemin's love all to himself. It's what planted those seeds.
Whenever they come, Renjun wallows in envy and self pity and sadness, sadness because it breaks his heart that seeing them both so happy hurts him. Whenever they come, you battle yourself to not yell at them and make them leave and tell them they're not of any help, not helping him feel better — Renjun's life is just as limited as yours. He has counted seconds and all they do is make him realize what a fool he was to fall for someone he'll never have.
Whenever they leave, they leave a hole in his heart — it only grows bigger and bigger with every visit, with every goodbye. Renjun must be a fool.
But he'll have it, the surgery. He wants to live that much, that even though it will be impossible for him to feel love, he'll still search for happiness.
And that's how you know it.
You're dying.
In silence, you break down and whisper your greetings: Happy birthday, Renjun.
###
Renjun sits across you, holding the flowers Na Jaemin has given him. He plucks them once — he loves me. The sun is hidden away by the clouds, and his gaze that once were on you flutters across the room, back to where Jaemin stands. He plucks another petal — he loves me not.
Jaemin looks back to your direction, and waves. You're sure it made Renjun's heart flutter.
"You're the infamous Y/N," Jaemin grins. "I hope we can be good friends."
"Before I die, that is," you joke, earning a smack from Renjun. The stem of the flower hits the back of your head.
He loves me.
"Jaemin, where's Jeno?" Renjun asks, curious. There's no sight of honey haired boy and it's a strange sight, but you know deep inside he is pleased.
He loves me not.
"He's busy today."
"As he is every day?"
"C'mon, Renjun," Jaemin laughs. "It's not like he never gives me time."
Renjun shakes his head anyway. He releases a big sigh, calming himself down — deep inside he knows he can love Jaemin better. A pained look flashes in your eyes.
Renjun taps your thigh in concern.
He loves me.
"I need to go, 'jun," Jaemin says, taking his belongings with him. He runs straight to the door, but before that he turns around and waves.
When Jaemin leaves the room, Renjun looks like he just fell in love. Again.
A bitter smile draws on your face.
He loves me not.
###
The day of Renjun's surgery came quicker than expected. The explanation was simple; he can never feel love again, but he will survive. He will be alive and that's what matters.
It's a sad thought, living without love. But Renjun would rather not love than not live at all.
"It's tomorrow," he said. "You should take care."
You don't meet his gaze.
"I'm tired, Renjun," you whisper, clutching his shirt to pull him impossibly closer.
A smile draws on his face, a beautiful sight to look at.
He asks, "Tired of what?"
And you've been tired of a lot of things. You tried not being so, but you can't help but fail miserably — lately everything's just been too much. Most of them, though; thoughts like this, like the truth that spills from your mouth.
"Of the flowers growing inside me," you say wistfully, "I'm tired of it and I hate it. I hate it so much."
"Y/N..."
"And I'm tired of you too, of you looking at me with those eyes," you turn to face Renjun who sits with his head hung low. You let a chuckle escape your lips, "Those eyes that look at me as if you could love me had you not met Jaemin."
Renjun couldn't say a word.
You feel yourself withering away as more flowers bloom inside you.
###
Renjun left right after he recovered from the surgery, the nurses said. You stay in your bed all those time, not bidding him goodbye at all. You throw up more flowers than usual, more blood.
All the promises you made about living life before you die is gone. All you can think about is how difficult it is to breathe, how hard it is to live.
"Mom," you call, hoping for ease, "I want to give up."
But she smiles with tears in her eyes, she smiles. You see, she had the most beautiful smile in the world. Her eyes are brimming with unshed tears and her lips stretched in a pitiful expression, "No, darling," she begs. "Stay awake. Stay awake for me."
You smile back.
"It hurts to breathe."
"It will be okay," at least she prays. "It's gonna be okay. Go through with the surgery."
You shake your head, declining still. Time is running out. Your father hugs you tight, the first time in years, a kiss pressed on your temple. Your mother holds your hand.
I don't want to, you repeat again and again.
Your father holds your hand — "We'll do what you want."
And there's a protest at the tip of your mother's tongue, but it melts away at the sight of tears falling from your eyes.
"Okay, sweetie," she says. "We'll do what you want."
Your doctor comes in a hurry minutes after. He's panting, a red flush on his face — he seems mad. "How long has it been?"
"Doctor..."
"You didn't tell us you were coughing out whole flowers."
Your mother's cries start to get louder. Full flowers meant the last stage: the closest to death. At this point it's a game between life and death and the dangers in between. You smile.
"I'm sorry," you whisper, "But I'm not going through the surgery, doctor."
They look at you with eyes of pity, saddened that it has come to this. Your doctor nods. Your mother shakes in your father's hold. You laugh, "Why are you all crying?"
"Stupid child," your mother says. "Stupid Y/N."
You laugh harder, tears falling from your eyes. "I love you, mom," you say. "Can you hold my hand tighter? I'm scared."
From outside your door, Renjun clamps his hand over his mouth; he feels like throwing up. He originally planned to say one last goodbye, but instead, he gets this... this. Whatever the hell this mess is.
You're dying, all because you're in love with him.
All because he couldn't love you back.
###
The time comes quicker than expected.
You look at your body, watching from your soul — this must be what it is like to be have your soul wandering. You breathe in sharply, breathe out. You look at all the tubes connected to your body.
You go through the wall, moving to hug your parents. Your mother must've felt you, for her sobs grew louder and she called your name.
Suddenly, someone storms in.
"Doctor, it seems like you have an emergency patient," the nurse intervenes.
"Who's the patient?"
"Huang Renjun."
Your feel your heart drop — who knew you could still feel such things? But Renjun, didn't he...
"Renjun? Didn't he have a successful surgery?"
"Yes," the nurse looks down in shame, "But it seems there's remains of flowers in his lungs. He's now coughing out flowers in full-bloom."
The doctor rushes out of the room, saying excuses to your parents. You watch your own body breathe its last breath.
The nurse looks down, "Y/L/N Y/N, time of death, 10:48 a.m."
You wander around the hospital, going to where your feet take you. You soon find yourself in the emergency room, watching Renjun almost pass out from coughing flowers.
"Renjun," you call — the ghost of you, your soul. The one Renjun sees.
He looks in panic, knowing why he's seeing you; he's ready to die. What he's not ready for is to see you as a soul, dead and eternally young.
He blinks once, twice, hoping you don't disappear. It's not all truthful words, but he says it — "I love you."
Outside the room, Renjun's parents wonder to themselves — who is he talking to? What is he mumbling? His parents can't help but cry, worried at every flutter of his eyes.
"They say... when people are almost dying, their closest family visit them to take them to paradise." Jaemin says with a bitter smile, "I heard... Y/N passed. He might be seeing her."
A slap sounds in the room.
"My son is not dying!" Renjun's mother says. Jaemin nods, tears falling from his eyes.
"Are you scared?" you ask, head tilted, hands brushing strands of his hair away from his face.
"Yes," Renjun confesses.
"I'll hold your hand."
"Until it's over?"
You smile, "You're one of my greatest friend, after all."
Renjun never expected to die. Then, at the same time, he never expected the tiny sliver of love he feels for you — love for a friend, for a dear one. Renjun found a real best friend within you.
So, he holds your hands and comes with you.
"Doctor? Doctor, what's happening— my son!" His mother calls as he watches his eyelids close, "Renjun... My little boy..."
One last smile, one last cough of his favorite flower — Renjun is at peace. He closes his eyes and remains his age forever.
"Huang Renjun, time of death, 10:52 a.m."
176 notes · View notes
ezgithechaotic · 3 years
Text
The Parent Trap | Chapter Six; to love someone else
pairing: Harry Styles x Reader
AU: The Parent Trap,  dad!harry
series summary:  Identical twins Benjamin and Edward, separated at birth and each raised by one of their biological parents, later discover each other for the first time at summer camp and make a plan to bring their wayward parents back together.
chapter summary; There are so many thing to say, but so little time for Harry and Y\N. 
author note; well hello there, ı’m back. It’s been really long and I’m so soryy about it. But I guess you guys are used to it. I will try to write the next chapter soon! Don’t be shy to send me a message if you would like to talk and be friends. I don’t bite, I promise! 
I’m sorry in advance if I have any fault. English is not my first language. My askbox is always open if you want to talk. Please leave a comment about what you think, love you.  
Taglist is open. Please send me an ask or comment if you want to be tagged! (22\30)
The Parent Trap Masterlist,  main masterlist 
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Life had a funny way of bringing people together, and it had no interest in their desires. Sitting on one of the blue couches, a coffee in her hand, the only thing Y\N wanted to do was run away and never look back. But she wasn't eighteen anymore; she had learned that running from your problems only circled you back to them. So, she did what every reasonable person would do, stayed put. But now, seeing her hand shaking while holding the silver spoon, Y\N was questioning every decision she ever made that brought her to this point. 
So much for getting over him Y\N, well done. 
"You look good." 
The moment words left his mouth Harry cursed himself silently. You look good. Of course, she did. Is that what he all had? After almost nine years, Y\N still made him tongue-tied. He wasn't the Harry who stood in front of thousands of people to perform; he was a boy again, and he hated it. He was eighteen again, seeing his producer's sister and thinking, maybe he is capable of love. Despite feeling like it was yesterday, Harry wasn't eighteen anymore. He didn't have the opportunities to be stupid and in love. It had been a long time since Harry had lost that chance. Wishing he could say sorry and explain anything wasn't going to solve anything, and it surely wasn't going to bring him his old Y\N, who was naive enough to fall in love with a worldwide star. She knew better now. So, maybe the only thing he could come up with was you look good. 
Even though a moment of sadness passed her face, Y\N was quick to pull herself together. She put a kind smile on her face, the way she did when one of her customers made her feel tired, but she still had to keep going. Harry had seen that smile before when he told her he had to cancel one of their dates, again or when he told her that they couldn't be seen together in public.
"You look good too." 
There it was again, her velvet-like voice. Y\N had always amazed Harry; she could be kind to everyone no matter what, even when the person across her was the reason for her broken heart. Neither of them dared to ask about their sons and each other. How would you ask about someone you chose to leave behind? 
"Can I..." Y\N could feel her anxiety riling up. She took a deep breath and tried sitting more straight. "How is he?" 
Harry's heart almost skipped a beat. He couldn't decide if he was stupid to send him away. Would it be less awkward if Benjamin was there, or would it be a dread to explain to him why his mother was standing in the middle of their guest room? 
"Look, I know we had an agreement." Y\N sighed. Harry didn't realize how much time it took him to come up with an answer until she spoke. "I only want to know how he is."
"He's... Well, he's good." 
Harry apparently lost his ability to form any good sentences that day, but it looked like he was talking to a brick wall. Y\N left her cup on the coffee table, now leaning and resting her elbows on her knees. 
"I feel like I'm doing a terrible job." Eyes fixed on the ground and watery, head between her hands, Harry couldn't remember the last time he had seen Y\N so vulnerable. "Edward is the sweetest boy, I swear. He's the perfect kid any parent could ask for. And I feel like I'm the worst mother for tearing him apart from his brother, for not giving him the life he deserves. And the only thing I can think of is would he be happier if he were with you." She was up suddenly, pacing around the room. 
"And how much I missed from Benjamin's life. Will, he ever know me, or Edward ever know you? Will they ever know each other? Will they ever forgive us for what we did?" She stopped, looking at Harry.  She couldn't remember how long it had been since she looked into his green eyes. She wanted to keep going. Scream, shout, cry. But she stood there, looking at him, waiting like he could give her an answer. 
Will I ever forgive myself for letting you go?
Y\N wanted to keep asking, but there was no point. She stopped a tear before it could reach her jaw, quickly. "God, I don't know how long I've been holding that in." 
Harry was dying to apologize, to ask if she was missing him as much as he was missing her. He was dying to fall at her feet and beg for forgiveness. Instead, he sat there, like an idiot.
"We were young, Y\N. We did what we thought was best. Wrong or right, there is no undoing it right now." 
Hearing her name roll off his sweet mouth woke something inside Y\N. She had so many things she wanted to say but didn't know where to begin. Her mouth was frantically opening and closing back again, but nothing came out. 
-
Sarah and Mitch were just outside the room, trying to listen to the conversation. "I swear he's so stupid," Mitch whispered. "Just say something!" 
"Hey, be quiet. I'm trying to listen." 
Before Mitch could say anything, he heard key sounds coming from the front door. He quickly turned to Sarah. "Camille wasn't visiting today, right?" He was praying that it wasn't Camille, but there wasn't anyone outside them who had keys to Harry's house. 
"Shit." 
-
"I know you're a great mother, Y\N; I know that. And I know we did wrong things, but that doesn't mean you're failing."
"I feel like I am." Y\N was still standing there, her fingers fidgeting with her white shirt. She wanted to yell, how could he possibly know what kind of mother she was? He was never there. Harry stood up with a purpose to walk to Y\N and maybe to hold her. But his actions stopped when the door to the guest room opened.  
And there she was, Camille Rowe with all her glory. Blonde hair sitting on her shoulders, red-colored lips, and long lashes, she looked like she came straight from a runway. And Y\N tried with all her might, but she couldn't hate her. Even though her pants were horrible, even though she always used her beauty to get away with her cruelty. And, true, the diamond ring sitting on her finger was no help, but still, she had no hate for her. It wasn't Camille's fault that she was at his feet, basically asking Harry to fix everything because she was too vulnerable.
How Y\N wished she could love somebody else that wasn't Harry. She wished she could move on as he did. But it was stuck, her whole life was stuck since he left her without any explanation. Sometimes she would feel so ready to love someone else, to find anybody willing to take her this broken. She tried so hard, lying to herself, making everyone believe she got over him. She didn't listen to any of his songs, watch anything that could be related to him.  She was running away for the last nine years, not once stopping and looking back. Well, look where it brought her to now, sitting in the same room with him and his fiancee, who had no idea how much history they had. 
"I honestly love everything piece you do." Did she? Y\N couldn't tell if Camille knew everything or not. But if she did, she was a damn good actress. And Y\N was terrified of what could come after this if she didn't leave that house right now. "I would love it if you worked on my wedding dress." 
Y\N's whole world was upside down at that moment. Her hair on her neck stood on end. Her whole body was shivering; she didn't know if it was rage or hurt. Still, the smile came up again. 
"I'm afraid I'm too busy with my new collection." 
"Well, I will have to find someone else, I guess." Camille laughed, her hand sneaking up Harry's leg. Y\N was burning, her blood felt like it was boiling inside her veins. She needed to get out of there, quick. "But I'm so glad Harry could reach somebody. He had been looking for that cardigan for days, now. I thought he was going crazy." She laughed again, unlike everyone else in the room but, apparently she didn't care. 
"It was no problem, honestly. Jonathan is a dear friend of mine; I was just doing a favor." Y\N couldn't believe how calm she sounded. Maybe she should have chosen to be an actress. 
"I'm sure you're very busy, but we would love to see you at the wedding. Right, honey?" Camille turned to Harry, waiting for his approval. Harry quickly nodded as if he was waiting to agree to everything she was saying. "Of course." 
"I'll have to see, I guess." Y\N didn't know how much longer she could pretend like everything bathed in sunlight. So, she got up, ignoring the shaking in her legs. "I should go, my team is probably waiting for me."
"It was lovely to meet you." Camille held her hand out. Her grasp was hard like she was telling Y\N to start running and never look back again. Still, Y\N stood her ground, firmly taking her handshake and smiling. Her eyes meet Harry's for a second. There were so many things she wanted to say, but she didn't think anything that she could say would turn this around. So, she lied instead. 
"Congratulation on the engagement. You two make a lovely couple." 
Y\N couldn't believe she could lie so effortlessly, without any trembling in her voice. Still, shaking Camille's warm hand and seeing her next to Harry with a diamond on her hand made her want to get in her car and run away to somewhere very far away that she could throw up. So, she did that. 
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lovetendencies · 3 years
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GEORGE WEASLEY in WITH OR WITHOUT YOU.
TW / DEATH, MISCARRIAGE!
you’ve hopped out of bed, grabbing a nearby fuzzy cardigan that helped you get warm on most summer days when it was breezy and cold.
george, once again, wasn’t at your side when you woke up. it’s been two years since the war and this has been going on far too long yet you couldn’t confront him, you weren’t going to. he was grieving and mourning and making up the time the day he found out he lost his twin, his other half.
you wish you could do something, anything, but what you did was never enough. your efforts were in vain, he stood where he was looking down at the earth as if it swallowed his other self hole, when in reality — it didn’t. fred, your brother in law, you sensed as he was here with george.
not once leaving his side as you both remembered clearly they promised when you had overheard them one night at the gryffindor common room, when you had first met them, the same two first years that no one would know would become one.
you’ve called in molly, his family, and ask for what you could do. but yet, even they didn’t know what to do either as they lost one of their own twins as well. you didn’t know what to do as well when you had remembered clearly that fred was just as brother to you, nothing more and nothing less, he’s always been behind your back whenever you were upset and felt weak when george wasn’t there to take your place.
to add, he was right beside you once you’ve learned you were pregnant, and had miscarried the baby. he was running to each sides of you and george, patting your back, rubbing up and down in circular motions, kissing your forehead as that’s how close you two were. he’d tend to your needs and george’s as nobody did his. you felt guilty of taking advantage of the kindness and goofiness that he radiated — similar to george, only too much.
george sat on the cherry red sofa, his knees tucked in his chest as he had stood still there for a good minute. the more as time went on, the less tears he shed. you couldn’t do anything about it. even on your wedding day with george, he had kept a spot open, fred’s wand on the ground behind him as his best man, he was still in a large period of depression.
then, as you stood there, you felt and smelled fred’s scent on your shoulder. the way he’d squeeze your shoulder for a second, leaning his chin against his hand, and you heard him whisper in a soft tone. go comfort my brother, please, for he needs you most. and that was last of what you heard of him, his scent washing away into the air of cinnamon from last nights baking molly and the others came over for, a family outing.
he’s vulnerable as we all are. we’re still not over the greatest loss and tragedy and happiness we’ve all experienced. please, take care of my last twin, he loves and needs you the most. you remembered molly speaking to you last night, eyeing down george as he was out in the yard with bill, charlie, ron, percy, ginny, and his in laws as they were setting up the tables as tradition.
for the first time in a long one, you’ve seen george cry in the arms of his parents, brothers and youngest sister, rubbing the back of his nieces and nephews. and, it has been so long, since you’ve seen him smile. the things you’d give up to see him smile again with you, his family.
you fidgeted with the end of your maroon cardigan, slowly inching towards the sofa as you caught his hand, he had attempted to inch away but in time you’ve caught him. you’ve heard, not just that, you’ve felt that your marriage was dying. “you can leave if you really want to, my love,” george whispered, gripping onto your hand, his nails digging as if what he said didn’t mean anything.
“because i’ve felt that i’m dead already, without him by my side, who am i?” he whispered yet he still remained a cold exterior. “am i just the inferior twin that everyone sees as fred now? am i nothing when i’ve already lost what was my entire world?” it ached your heart as you’ve heard him say his entire world but you should’ve known better, his world didn’t evolve around you, it was his twin who was beside him all throughout his life.
now, he had just disappeared; truly, you didn’t know what to say, and slowly you’ve noticed george pulling away from you the more you hadn’t. he was your brother too. you were the only one who had noticed who when you were at hogwarts with them, sharing almost the same classes. it ached your heart.
“tell me, do you think i’m still worthy when i’m just one person? two people we once were.” he had grilled onto your hand longer and harder, hinting that you didn’t have to say anything, as if the silence was the one thing that said everything. “i pray to merlin everyday that i don’t wake up and i’m with him,” he had burst out crying. “but i feel that he doesn’t want me with him. as if he wants me to finish our lives together as one, to continue on without him,”
“even when he’s gone, i still feel him. he’s not. he’s truly not! he’s still here!” he had yelled out. “i’m not going to leave you. i never will. yet i want to leave to be with fred, he must be scared alone in an unknown place, and i want to go,” he finally had the courage to look up from his legs, looking at you with the most swollen and teary eyed george you’ve ever seen since your miscarriage with his baby.
“i’m not going to leave, i promise that. i’ll finish what me and him had always bet against each other, and for once, i think i’d be a better twin than he was,” he chuckled under his shaking and trembling free right hand, a ring he had taken off and put on the nearest coffee table. “i’m just terrified. i don’t want to live without him as long as i’m still alive. i feel like something has been torn out of my chest, that i shouldn’t be here anymore, that i’m nothing more than just trash!”
at that, you’ve forced george into an embrace, whether he wanted it or not. you caressed his red bed hair, kissing his forehead, imitating fred’s actions in hopes he’d notice. you pressed him against your breasts, he had fiddled with his fingers with pure anxiety, no hate had radiated from him even in your guys’ darkest arguments of all.
he was always sad all the time. that’s what he was most of his life — you’ve known he felt like he was a shadow in his very own brother and he had risked all the unhappiness just so fred could be happy, as you’ve felt with your oldest brother by two years but this wasn’t about him or your story, it was all about george who had your attention. all of it. he wasn’t alone.
“i’m sorry, my darling,” you whispered, tears staining through your cardigan and your white classic tshirt george had bought you as a goofy present one christmas day at hogwarts. “i can’t fill that place fred left, i never can and i never will. i’m sorry i’ve been tearing at your heart each time we’ve tried for a child when you hadn’t wanted to,” george, at this time, had wrapped his arms around you. you were on his lap, his head still against your breasts as he had continued to cry on and on as it felt like for hours.
“i really am trying,” he whispered, sniffles and hiccups starting to arise in his chest as a result from crying too much. “i did want a child even if we weren’t old enough. i was hoping, god, i fucking was!” he had held onto you tighter and tighter by the second, feeling a burning sensation in your ribs as if he was about to break them.
it was then until you’ve smelt him again, fred, he stood on his knees at the end of george, his head on his hands. i’m sorry i’ve put too much pain on you. as if his actions were words, george had seemed to felt, heard, and smell him. the same old firework smell, the squeaking in the soles of his shoes each time he walked, and the way he would give a small pinch. i’m doing better now, you can move on.
it still felt as though the past haunted you and george the most since that night.
it took him a year with difficult anxiety, anger and such to finally find himself once again, he wore a happy face that molly, arthur and his family was delighted to see, and you knew too that she was picturing fred and george side by side. as if they never really left each other, you’ve believed as she did, that fred was still here. he hadn’t left. all this time, he stayed to see until his family was happy.
you’ve rubbed your stomach in circular motions, swollen with a baby, that had made your back hurt constantly but you didn’t care. that child, george’s, was going to be so loved as everyone celebrated that gender reveal party. the confetti and cake being split at the same time, the colour pink, his smile had widened into an even bigger one. “nothing is gray anymore, mom, dad!” you’ve heard him fall into the arms of his parents, his hair in their faces as they rubbed his back.
lastly he had allowed you to fall in his hysterically, the large baby bump you’ve carried to the last term. you believed, as well, that your first child with george was with fred all this time. hand in hand, growing older with his uncle, and not knowing whether or not he had parents. that it was up to fred to say every untold story that weren’t from you and george.
“i still miss him, i do, i do, i do, i do!” he buried his face in your neck, turning you around to wrap his hands around your belly, you’ve seen harry with ginny and his children playing along the grass, bill and fleur with their own as well as ron and hermione children playing with their cousins. it made your heart beat and beat faster as george planted a kiss on your neck. “i still can’t live without him. and yet, i’ve got another reason to live on, to continue, that’s you — the woman who i thought would give up on me if i kept mourning and grieving. and lastly, the baby girl, that i’ve hoped would’ve been a boy so i could name him fred but i love either way, born or not,”
ginny and hermione had smiled over to you and george. it was that kind of smile saying i’m proud of you, you’re doing such a good job. and it made you happier in the moment.
you wanted to stay in the moment longer but everyone had gotten ready to leave, fleur had kissed your cheek and wished you, george, and the baby well. as bill, he gave you a smile, that same stupid smile george would flash in his happiest moments and without a hug the weasleys and their children had left (without bills children waving and picking daisies to put behind your ear).
hermione had given you and george a baby present when it was well over-due, and you had realized, it was the same baby sweater you half knitted and thrown away when you two were in the gryffindor common room, relaxing, chatting along with ginny who had shared her own laughs. all along, she had kept it and continued it for you, it had made you want to cry. ron had given you a kiss on the cheek, embracing you tightly as they too with children, had left to their own homes. another set of weasleys gone but never permanently.
it was lastly that ginny had cried into your shoulder, george and harry had inched away as you two could have the moment together. “thank you for taking care of my brother,” she whispered, her embrace hard and firm but it softened a second later once she remembered you were pregnant. “i’ve doubted you before in taking care of him. but i’ve seen what you do to him, you got him completely around your finger, the way he looks at you makes me envious as harry doesn’t do the same,” you two had laughed. “he looks at you with such admiration, tenderness, and as if what was lost hadn’t left after all,” for the last time since your birthing, she had given you a kiss on the forehead, whispering an i love you.
it was now, harry’s turn, after everyone had done you and george. he had tightly hugged george, it felt like cement being crushed on him as he would say. but a hug spoke more than words. i love you, thank you for not giving up. as if it was meant for you and it did the moment he added the extra minute unlike george. the potters had left, their children waving you and george good-bye with their tiny hands, and your heart ached further more for your baby girl to already be born.
“i love you, my daughter,” molly whispered, arthur and george joining in the hug with an expression. one that said that everyone was finally in peace. and for a split second, you’ve thought you seen fred bending down against a tree, and a girl who had red hair playing with a flower. your first baby, you and george’s, was a beautiful girl with long hair. after that, you’ve felt more at peace and happier, that he was with the child you miscarried taking care of one and another, healing. “don’t have that baby just yet, okay?” arthur rubbed your back with a joking smile.
and at that, they all had left.
“what should we do now, my love?” he asked, hovering over you while planting a kiss on your forehead. “interested in going down to the dock to see the sunset more clearly?” you suggested with a smile and he, happier than ever, had agreed.
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youarejesting · 3 years
Text
Hope in the sheets.9
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[Masterlist]
Beta: N/A Pairing: Hoseok x Reader Genre: Friendship, Comedy, Soft boy, Fluff, SMUT, Friends2Lovers, Words: 4.2k
Summary: You held many titles: his neighbor, colleague, wing-man… well, more likely a wing-woman, yet most importantly, you were his best friend. You had been friends since you were born. Between the two of you, you were younger; barely, but he never let you forget it. He always seemed to ruffle your hair and tease you, which could get rather annoying but he made up for it by treating you to things.
What if a drunken one night stand between you and your best friend Hoseok leads to more complicated situations? Your reckless twenties are cut short as you find yourself suddenly responsible for something a little more.
Warning: Implied sex, pregnancy, implied reader has baby.
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Waking up every morning beside his childhood friend, his most trusted confidant, former neighbor, and the woman he was utterly in love with, was always the most amazing thing. When the two of you had confessed your feelings to one another in the darkness, solidifying the moment with the best sex Hoseok had ever had. Well, that was even better.
Brushing a few strands of hair out of your face he admired just how beautiful you were. Memories of the two of you flooding back; at your school prom when Hoseok had been too nervous to tell you how he felt. Whilst the two of you were in college and you kissed him during a drinking game. When you both applied for jobs at the amusement park and the two of you swore that if neither of you got accepted then neither of you wanted to work there.  The times you would knock on his door when your shower stopped working, or the time you both spent tickets to go to Yoongi’s performance across the country and spent the rest of the month without any electricity. He thought you looked so beautiful in candlelight.
There were so many moments he told himself that he should tell you how he felt but he repressed it, unsure how or if your relationship would change. What you had going was good and he would rather spend his life by your side watching you smile than a second away.
It had been hell without you in his life. You had been slowly pulling away from him since you found out about the pregnancy. He felt it the day you moved out, he had knocked on your door and almost had a breakdown. Even that wasn’t as bad as your fight, when he found out you had lied it was like the ultimate rejection. 
It was like you didn’t want him to be a part of any of this, that you would rather erase him from your life and pretend the baby wasn’t his. He felt rejected and he reacted badly, he drove and cried, he drank and waited for any excuse to bring you back. He said some nasty things in an effort to remove the hurt from him, to target it somewhere else but seeing you cry only made him hurt worse.
It was after all this that he grew even more depressed, the thought that it was over, your friendship, the bond you shared that spanned over years shattered into pieces. All he could think about was apologizing and begging for you to let him stay, as a friend, as a father, even as a servant, he was desperate.
You were his oxytocin and he was addicted. He never felt love or happiness when you were gone. Stirring he leaned over to pepper kisses over your cheeks the fear in his chest that last night's actions might be classified as a late-night compulsive activity. Like dying your hair and cutting bangs, something you know you shouldn’t but you do because you can’t help it.
“Good morning, Lil darling,” he said, taking a slow breath as you stretched as if preparing for the worst. He prayed that your eyes would fall on him with love and not disgust. 
“Hi,” your face split into a wide grin and you buried your face in your little hands.
“Hey, what are you shy for?” he said, picking up on your playful and giddy mood.
“We had sex.” You snickered into your palms and he tried to pry your arms free. “Wait no, I am not ready to look at you.”
“Was it bad, love?” Hoseok whispered quietly hoping that you didn’t regret it. If you did, he would play it cool, take it like a gentleman, and move on as just your friend.
“No, it was nice…” you said peeking through your fingers, “and you were really good”
“I was good?” He grinned, “I didn’t hurt you did I?”
“No, I really had a good time.”
“But?”
“No buts, I was just going to ask if perhaps you might want to do it again sometime.”
Hoseok’s smile was so wide his lips pulled up until they were shaped like a heart, “Whenever you would like.” He kissed your palms and slid the blankets down making you grab for them.
“Hey Woah, I am naked!” You scolded him.
“I know silly, I want to say good morning to my baby.” He gave you a face as if he was trying to challenge you to a fight, not a real one, the silly kind with tickles. “Plus I saw this beautiful body last night.”
He pulled the blanket down and your hands covered your bare chest, he giggled and exposed your rounded tummy and leaned down whispering something you couldn’t hear and he planted multiple kisses to the fullness until the baby kicked back against his lips. He looked offended, his face down turning as if he was about to cry and he held his chin turning to you.
“Hobi got kicked! Baby doesn’t like Hobi!” You were cackling. Hoseok knew how much you loved his aegyo and how much it made you laugh. Your laugh made his heart flutter and you shot out of bed, all thoughts of nudity out the window.
“I have to go pee. You can’t make me laugh like that Hobi, I am pregnant!” you accused and shut the bathroom door behind you.
The two of you ended up showering together, hands wandering each other's bodies some more. “I wish I wasn’t huge, it would be easier to have sex and I would feel a lot sexier.”
“I am sorry you feel that you aren’t sexy but I disagree, Lil darling, I think you are the most captivating being in my life before you were pregnant, while you are pregnant, and when you have the baby too.”
~
“Come on Hobi, the class is going to start,” you arrived and took a seat on a bright yellow mat and Hoseok sat behind you pulling you back into his chest. He peppered your jawline with kisses making you laugh.
“Welcome back, Mummies and Daddies.” The woman walked in, her light green polo with a stalk on the front and the company logo. She looked happy to see you two again. Smiling at how affectionate you two had become. “How are we all today, let’s go around the room and talk about what's been happening?”
Hoseok was diligently learning how to bathe and dress and hold the baby, he was doing really well and you felt the tears fall before you knew it. “What is wrong mummy?” The woman knelt beside me.
“I just, I was doing this on my own and I was so scared, but seeing Hobi doing so well, I just felt like this weight had been lifted and I am so proud and I love him so much.” Your voice was distorted by the strain of trying to hold back your sobs.
“Do you hear that, Mummy Hope says she was scared about having to do everything on her own but when she saw Daddy Hope doing well it lifted a weight off her shoulders. Let's all take a moment to understand that every mummy gets scared. Do you get scared Mummies? Do any daddies feel out of place?”
“I felt kind of out of place at the beginning but knowing that I could provide some sort of comfort and relief to my partner, I will try my best.” The young man spoke honestly for a moment and smiled at his partner.
“Thank you so much, Daddy Mogi,” The woman said. “It is nice to let each other know how much you appreciate their contribution. I am sure Mummy Mogi and Daddy Hope feel really happy to have such wonderful partners.”
Hoseok nodded, crawling over and kissing you softly. “You don’t have to do everything alone. I am going to be there. We got this.”
The night ended with a weak juice and cheesecake slice, you watched Hoseok talking with the other dads happily. “He really adores you, it’s cute,” the woman from the blue mat smiled. She and her partner chose the name kimchi.
“I think I remember you saying you were both friends when you first came here.” You blushed, filling them in on the story. They loved the gossip and were so happy you two had found each other. 
“Not long now.” the instructor smiled looking at your belly. “I have a few little activity sheets here, just fun things you and your partner might enjoy.”
~
Friday came around and the two of you arrived at ‘Jin and Tonic’ for pizza night and stayed for some dancing. You ordered a cold lemonade at the bar, in a baby doll dress that did nothing to hide your voluptuous figure. You didn’t notice all the men staring but Hoseok sure did. He was excited that the gang was all back together. He loved this little family all of you had made and the new additions were well welcomed.
“Who is this Yummy mummy at the bar?” Hoseok slid up to the bar beside you, “I will have what she's having.”
“One lemonade coming right up,” Jimin said, disengaging from his longing gaze at Taehyung, who sat across the bar trying to appear nonchalant, but the guy couldn’t even drink alcohol without cringing and gagging. He was currently nursing a Fanta, watching Jimin from behind his bangs.
“How are you and Taehyung going?” You asked Jimin. “Did he come over for the photoshoot?”
“He did and we didn’t do anything, he took pictures and I was naked but he kept telling me he didn’t want me to do anything for free as he respected my business and wanted to support me.” Jimin sighed, “I work two jobs and I don’t want him to pay. Do I look like I need support?”
You could practically see Jimin stomp his foot along with the pout on his lips, “I think your ass needs some support, and Taehyung’s hands are big enough to do the job.”
Jimin giggled, “doesn’t he just.”
“Perhaps you need to ask Taehyung on a date?” You suggested. “He might be nervous because he is showing interest but you aren’t. He might think you only see him as a sugar daddy.”
“As in I, Park Jimin, go up to that god of a man and ask him if he would go on a date with me?” He said shocked.
“I am saying you, Jimin Eubegene Wolfgang Park the Third, go ask him to go on a date.”
“Oooh… she used your full name, be scared. She is a mum now!” Seokjin laughed, the high pitch sound filling the bar area.
“That’s not my name.” Jimin pouted again
“Mum has spoken, go ask the poor boy out, he is desperate,” Yoongi muttered wiping his face on a cool towel handed to him by Jin, who also gave him an ice-cold lemonade. “I have to get back soon but I will let this remix finish.”
The group watched intrigued by the confident sugar baby, becoming timid and nervous as he walked over to his admirer. You couldn’t hear anything but you saw Taehyung smile making a gesture like he was taking photos and describing something with an animated expression and a grin.
Jimin walked back a pout on his lips and once back he let out a sigh and you felt bad for the poor boy, but you could understand Taehyung's hesitance. “Give it some time, there will be a moment where he can no longer refuse. His feelings will grow too strong and he will come for you.”
“I am ready to give everything up for him, I am ride or die, right now.” Jimin whined, “have you just looked at someone and thought, this is the one, they are my soulmate.”
“Everyday,” Hoseok smiled at you and you blushed but nodded.
“I am going to go to the bathroom.” You slid off the barstool rubbing your back and slowly shuffled along the edge of the room escorted by Hoseok who kept a keen eye out for any trouble, not wanting you to get bumped too hard on your journey. He also helped your travel by stopping any unsolicited hands from rubbing your belly.
“You good?” Hoseok asked outside the bathrooms, concern in his eyes because he couldn’t accompany you inside.
“I can take care of this part myself, trust me I have done this a thousand times.” You kissed him and went to take care of your lemonade strained bladder. It seemed the sugar and cool temperature had your baby kicking a little stronger and if you didn’t go now one wrong move and you would not make it. Ah, the joys of pregnancy.
Sitting down you felt your stomach tense. It was mild, nothing excruciating, perhaps you had sat down wrong, you didn’t want a repeat of the Braxton hicks situation. Taking note of the time you marked it in your app and went to wash your hands. You smiled, feeling a small sense of pride at the feeling of being more mature.
It wasn’t uncommon before you were pregnant to be in these bathrooms and unable to see, the feeling of being out of control scary, exhilarating, and a little addictive. You were much happier now, you felt physically stronger, you felt like you had started organizing your life prioritizing your health.
It was funny. You were out of your mind scared at the idea of having a baby, petrified of what was to come, but you were feeling like somehow it was your turning point to do something with your life to get everything on track. You had goals that you had not only worked towards but had accomplished and that feeling lasted longer and gave more gratification than one night of alcohol-induced numbness and two days of recovery.
Waddling out to Hoseok you grinned shyly at him, something about the way he was standing under the soft glowing lights looking at his phone with a soft smile. Walking closer you looked at the screen seeing your sleeping face. He was kissing your nose, you would have scolded him for taking an embarrassing picture but you both looked so cute.
“Lil darling,” He smiled down at you, “I care about you more than anything in this world.”
“I love you Hobi, kiss me.” He tilted your head up delicately by the chin and kissed you slowly. You were mid-kiss when you pulled back, struck with an extreme craving. “Can we sit in Seokjin’s office and order a fried chicken? I’m hungry.”
The two of you giggled before running behind the counter to Seokjin’s office as he scolded, “YA! You two keep it clean, I know how you got pregnant and I don’t want any repeats in my office.”
Your laughter rang through the hall past the storage rooms and into the small office where you two both sat on the couch sighing in relief. Needing a seat with proper back support, you were aching so badly. “Lay down love.” 
Hoseok let you lay your head on his lap and he slowly combed his fingers through the soft strands they had grown a lot since being pregnant. You had been considering a cut to keep it more manageable with a newborn.
You felt your stomach tighten, logging it into your app, you noticed it was thirty minutes from the first which wasn’t cause for alarm just yet. The conversation was slow as Hoseok began ordering a half and half of fried chicken, he was just talking about random things at work. 
“Move in with me.” Your voice was definite and Hoseok stopped ordering and grinned. “I want you to live with me.”
“Really, you want me to live with you?” He seemed surprised and you wondered if there was something you didn’t take into account, had you jumped in too quickly.
“You already stay over every night.” You reasoned, “saves bus fares back and forth and my place is closer to your work than yours.”
“I work from home at the moment because I wasn’t quite sure when to take paternity leave.” He whispered gently, his smile made him look so soft. “You want me to move in Lil darling?”
“Of course, I love you Hobi.”
“Am I moving in?” He giggled excitedly and you sat up equally excited by his contagious laughter, “I am going to wake up to your pretty face every day.”
The food arrived and you used Jin's toilet quickly, stepping out confused. You were excited for Chicken but you were wondering if you might actually be going into early labor. You made sure to pay more attention to your body and when another cramp took over your stomach you marked it on your app. This one felt as mild as the last but it had come a few minutes quicker than the last.
Your instructor told you to relax and keep calm in this stage to conserve your energy and you were going to follow her guidance. The contractions were pretty consistent in the pattern but didn’t quite grow intense or come any quicker.
The two of you cleaned up the food mess, you would have already headed home but Yoongi was going to drop you home that night with some meals he and Jin had made for you. Hoseok pulled you to his chest and the two of you slept to the muffled bass from the dance floor. It was quite peaceful. You fell asleep stirring only slightly to the tightening of your stomach. It was one particular contraction that made you gasp and sit up. You checked the time and marked it on the app.
You had slept and failed to record all your contractions. You were trying to breathe through the tight feeling rubbing the circumference of your stomach and pacing slowly.
“Is something wrong?” Hoseok mumbled sitting up and looking at you, “do you have a pain in the tummy, is the baby okay?”
“I have been having contractions for a while, but you know the lady said to relax and eat to preserve energy and so I wasn’t worried but this one was a little stronger, I just have to wait and see the timing between the contractions to see if we do anything yet.” He stepped behind you, holding your belly in his hands and taking the weight relieving the stress on your back. 
“She said when the contractions last for 45-60 seconds and they are 3-5 minutes apart that is active labor.” Hoseok had been paying attention in class and it warmed your heart. “They said if you go too early you will be sent back home to wait for the labor to progress.”
Hoseok swayed you both gently and you laid your head back on his shoulder, he could tell you were nervous and he began singing low in his ear the vibrations of his chest were enough to make you relax. It was as you relaxed than another contraction occurred. Looking at the app they were about ten minutes apart and you were sure this was it.
“Would you like to go now?” Hoseok said worriedly, kissing your neck and hugging you a little tighter.
“No, but we should probably get the hospital bag.” You mumbled, “I don’t want you to leave though.”
“Text Taehyung and get him in here.” You nodded, texting the young man and smiling as he cautiously entered. “Hey Taehyung, can you do us a favor?”
“Uh, I don’t make adult films, but you could probably get Jungkook if you were persuasive. He has some good quality video cameras.” Taehyung said nervously, the two of you laughed as you swayed gently.
“No, we were wondering if you were interested in going to my house and picking up my hospital bag. You have a license don’t you?”
“Yeah, I do.” He spoke, eyeing you up and down for signs you were going to pop out a baby. “What does it look like?”
“It is one bag just inside the front door that looks like this,” Hoseok said as you showed him a picture on your phone and he nodded, commenting on the cute star pattern on the bag. “You might have to ask Jimin about stealing his keys.”
“Oh and Taehyung about Jimin, he really likes you, really likes you and well he wants to try dating without the sugar baby business. He wants to date you without money.” You were stepping in hoping to help Taehyung realize how much he loved Jimin and how much Jimin loved him. The two were both too scared to admit it, reminding you of how things were with Hoseok before you both confessed. “He has been upset that you have been refusing to see him. Have a think about your feelings and when you are sure you know what you want, then let him know.”
It was a whole lot of waiting and feeling uncomfortable, there wasn’t really anything you could do but wait. Taehyung returned with your bag and you waited, chatting together for half an hour before deciding to use Seokjin’s laptop to watch movies in hopes of passing the time.
The music stopped and you realized it was one in the morning and time for lockout. “You looked at the app that was tracking your contractions and as you logged the next contraction you saw the words at the top change from early labor to active labor. The three of you abandoned ‘Meet the Robinsons’ and headed down the hall back to the bar area.
The place cleared out pretty quick, designated drivers carrying away their drunk friends. Namjoon and Jungkook helped lead out any reluctant frequenters and gave them a friendly good night.
“Hey Yoongi, I was wondering instead of dropping me off at home, you could drop me off at the hospital. I have been in labor for about seven hours now and well I think it is time I go as things seem to be picking up.” Yoongi and Jungkook, who had both been packing up the sound system, looked shocked. Jin threw down the cloth and raced over, 
“Pack the van we are going,” he called and began gathering everyone and locking up. There was a shout from the bathrooms that made you jump for a second. “JIMIN EGGPLANT HUBERT WHAT IN GOD’S NAME ARE YOU DOING?”
“I am cleaning up vomit and I told you that isn’t my name.” You could hear the pout in his tone before a shout, Jin walked out with Jimin over his shoulder. “Hyung put me down. Don’t you damage these goods!”
Hoseok playfully smacked Jimin’s behind as he passed by receiving a growl, “Hey! The exchange rate for a butt slap is a pair of Chanel earrings Hoseokie. Hands off what you can’t afford.”
“We haven’t got time, the baby is coming!” Jin screeched.
~
“I thought you said the baby was coming, it’s been 3 hours?” Jimin sighed, flipping through his third trashy magazine from four April’s ago. “I am not working tomorrow if the bar smells like vomit.”
Jungkook was asleep leaning against Namjoon with Namjoon’s coat wrapped around him. Everyone was bored and Jin and Yoongi went for coffee. Taehyung was trying to stay awake and talk to Jimin, but he kept falling asleep. He grew restless in his half woke state and took Jimin's hand in his before promptly falling asleep.
Throwing the magazine aside, Jimin crossed one leg over the other resting his head on his hand and elbow on his knee turning slightly to gaze at the sleeping Taehyung.
“Why didn't she want me to go in?” Hoseok said, worried about hearing your small cry of pain “I want to help her, I want to be there”
“You have to respect her decision. I watched my niece come into the world in the back of my brother's car and I cannot look my sister-in-law in the face again. I think that's when I started dating guys for a while,” Yoongi laughed, “It will scar you. You would be so worried to touch y/n if you saw her give birth and you would beat yourself up over her being in pain. You would be a sobbing mess. We know you Hobi, it’s best you stay out here.”
There was a lot of noise from the birthing suite and Jungkook woke up looking nervously around, before the piercing cry of a newborn filling the halls, and the boys stood up hugging Hoseok who had broken down into tears. They slapped his back cheering and the nurse came out shushing them.
“It’s four in the morning, try to keep it down.”
“How is she? How is Y/n?” Jin asked as Hoseok was unable to articulate anything clinging to him and sobbing.
“She is very good, a very strong young woman. She had a little baby girl, if you give her a moment to clean up and settle the baby you can all go in for a quick visit, and then you will all have to go home as visiting hours have long since been over.” she smiled at them all before patting Hoseok’s back “Congratulations.”
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redhoodieone · 3 years
Text
Welcome Home
A/N: Hi everyone! This is an old fic that I’m re-posting for those who want to read it. Enjoy!
WARNINGS: Language and Smut.
  I knew my family was different the moment I found out my adoptive father was Batman. I was just a ten-year-old girl when I snuck down the stairs at midnight for a drink of water and spotted Batman leaving a trail of blood from his study and calling out for Alfred for help. The moment our eyes locked, Bruce instantly knew that I was clearly aware of his secret. He had also confessed it was him who saved me from a shootout that my parents were involved in and that it was him, as Batman. I felt I owed Bruce my own life for saving me, and I vowed to keep my father’s secret and pray that he would return home safely every night back to me.
It didn’t help that I soon discovered my adoptive older brother Dick Grayson was Robin. Not only did I have to keep his secret as well, but it made it more impossible to not have a crush on him. I mean, Dick has such a charming personality, beautiful baby blue eyes, and a devilish smile that can make any girl crawl on her hands and knees. And that ass…
I later found myself becoming the second Robin once Dick left to assume his own identity, Nightwing. Bruce trusted me, and he saw potential in me the second I told him I couldn’t see myself being a hero forever. Perhaps he never really wanted me to be his sidekick and figured if I got it out of my system that I could resume my life as a sixteen-year-old and do normal teenager activities. As if my life was normal anyways.
But things changed as soon as I was finally embracing myself as a hero. Bruce had taken in a new kid, Jason Todd. He was a troublemaker, a rebel, and a mysterious kid, who had never even spoken to me unless he had to. I don’t think my age helped the situation either; I was a couple of years older than him and he may not have seen me as an equal. But of course, the dark haired, icy blue eyed, bad attitude boy was given the Robin title, and I was removed because of a patrol-gone-wrong situation.
Stupid Harley Quinn and her baseball bat. Who knew one hit to my knee could bench me for two months (Alfred added an additional five months of rest).
Then the unthinkable happened. The second Robin was killed by the Joker. Jason Todd’s death put Bruce into a depression, and he swore he would never put another kid’s life in danger. Our father and daughter relationship broke apart before my very eyes. I spent my remaining teenage years in the mansion isolated, except for Alfred’s loving company.
I had graduated high school on time and I quickly decided to go to Gotham University to escape the Bat family. Before I moved out, I discovered Bruce had taken in another kid, Tim Drake, who was currently the new Robin. Was I hurt? Of course, I felt I was somehow replaced. Would I miss the Bat family? Maybe. Maybe not.
I did in fact wish the new younger Robin good luck. When Tim looked up at me, his light blue eyes were so innocent and frightened about me leaving him behind. I didn’t know why he would be so upset about me leaving; wouldn’t he want all of Bruce’s attention without me hanging around the mansion?
Now I’m twenty-one-years-old, and I’m still a student at Gotham University. Alfred had just called and informed me Bruce wants me back home.
As I sit in a taxi while anxiously waiting to pull up to Wayne Manor, I honestly don’t know why Bruce wants me back at home. Alfred has kept me up to date about the Bat family incidents and activities I have missed out those few years such as:
Dick Grayson becoming a womanizer (I saw it coming) and how he’s juggling working as a police officer and Nightwing. He’s still the favorite and golden child in Bruce’s eyes.
Jason Todd is back from the dead, and he’s currently operating his own team: Red Hood and the Outlaws (who knew he was leadership material underneath that thick skull of his?).
Tim Drake is Red Robin (does the fast food chain restaurant know about his superhero name?), and he’s currently assisting the Teen Titans when necessary while simultaneously aiding Bruce with detective work.
Damian Wayne is Bruce Wayne’s unknown biological child. I think he’s about fifteen-years-old now; from what I remember the last time I spoke to Alfred. I met Damian once, when Bruce asked me to meet him once Talia al Ghul practically dropped him off at Bruce’s doorstep. The boy was a little shit: bratty, stuck up, and insensitive. Even though he is the spitting image of Bruce, minus the different colored eyes (Bruce has blue and Damian’s are green), Damian claims he is set to take over the cowl when Bruce is either dead or done. God help us all…
But I still can’t figure out why I am needed back home. Is Alfred sick? Is Bruce dying after fighting all these years? Is it one of my brothers?
I jump in surprise once the taxi comes to a hard stop. After paying the man, I grab my duffel bag and I climb the front steps that I suddenly remember jumping off them as a kid. Alfred scolded me many times, and I still did it because being bad was fun.
I scoff loudly, and I jump down the five steps that would have given Alfred a heart attack. Maybe I haven’t changed as much as I thought.
I find the wooden front door unlocked, which is odd considering Alfred always makes sure to lock it. As a matter of fact, Alfred hasn’t greeted me like he always does when I come home. Where is Alfred?
After I unwrap my scarf, I pull my hoodie over my head to be more comfortable in the warm house. Sadly, I forgot to do laundry yesterday, so I came home in just my black yoga pants and red tank top. What would Alfred say?
I kick off my shoes and walk to the kitchen barefoot. Pulling my long hair into a ponytail, I notice a note on the counter that’s written for me. I unfold the note and stare at the nicest, well done cursive handwriting only one man can do here.
 Dear Lady Y/N,
I sincerely apologize for not being there to greet you properly. Master Bruce had wanted me to take my holiday to London early, and Lord knows I can use a week to myself after stitching up countless wounds, tidying up bedrooms and Bat caves, and playing messenger between you and your father. I have a cooked roast with garlic mash potatoes in the refrigerator if you are hungry. Do heat it up and perhaps show your father and brothers how to use the microwave.
I dearly love you and the boys,
 Love Alfred Pennyworth
P.S.
Look into the highest cabinet above the refrigerator, and you will discover a jar of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies just for you.
 I grin widely, and before I can turn around and find the cookies, I’m stuck between the counter and a tall, hard body behind me. I freeze.
“Welcome home, Y/N. I missed you so much,” Bruce whispers in my ear. I can feel his hot breath above my shoulder and neck. The familiar smell of his expensive cologne fills my nostrils. His large hands rub my legs and grip onto my hips very hard. “Did you miss me?”
“H-hi dad. W-what are you doing?” I ask softly, but I know it came out like a whisper. One of his hands is holding my waist, while the other caresses my abdomen. It feels strange considering Bruce is supposed to be my father, and we shouldn’t be this close or even touching each other. But a part of me wants to keep feeling his hands on me and see what he does next.
“Holding you. Smelling you. Touching you,” he answers, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world. He breathes harder when I press my backside against his front by accident. “It appears you want this too. Am I correct, Y/N?”
His hand pulls down my yoga pants enough, so he can reach into my underwear. Bruce continues to breathe hard from his nose when his fingers find my core. His thumb rubs fast circles on my clit, while he pushes two fingers inside me. I bite my bottom lip to stop a loud moan from coming out of me, but he appears he’ll have none of that. He stops fingering me.
“You better be loud, or I won’t let you cum, Y/N.”
Before I can beg him to keep going, he turns my face, so I can look him in those cold, pale blue eyes. “Please tell me you’re…not a virgin.” Bruce’s face is twisted in pleasure from just fingering me, but I can tell his lips are trembling and there’s a soft but pleading look in his eyes. This must hurt him as much as it’s hurting me.
“I-I’m not,” I confess, and wonder if he would change his mind if I said I was.
“Who was it with?” Bruce demands. He kisses along my shoulder to my neck before he bites on my soft spot. I hiss in pain and I grind into him again.
“Josh Mitchell. I was sixteen,” I answer harshly.
“Was he any good?”
Before I can answer, Bruce shoves the front of my body onto the counter, while he pulls down my yoga pants. My adrenaline is rushing, and I can feel myself wetting the counter from just his roughness. I can feel him unzip his pants and I can already imagine this thick, hard cock fucking me into oblivion.
“No, no he wasn’t good at all!” I cry out.
“Good, I’m actually relieved to hear that,” Bruce says, as he starts to stroke himself. “Do you want me to fuck you, Y/N?”
I want to turn around and watch him jack off. Hearing him pleasure himself isn’t enough. Bruce then jams two fingers back into my pussy and I whimper loudly. It has been too long since I’ve been intimate with a man. I need his cock now!
“I asked you a question, Y/N. Do I need to remind you who you are supposed to answer to?” he says seriously before adding a third finger inside me. I grip the counter and I breathe harder. I find myself rubbing my pussy on the edge of the smooth countertop for more friction, but he grabs my hips and stops me. “Now, do you want me to fuck you, Y/N, or should I leave you here, so you can dry hump the countertop alone?”
I growl louder, while my nails scratch the counter top. “YES! Yes, I want you to fuck me, Dad!”
As soon as those words left my mouth, I immediately wonder if I killed the mood. Why would I call him ‘dad’ when we’re about to have hot, rough sex in the kitchen? I need to apologize. I push myself up on my elbows and I shift my head to the side to apologize. I open my mouth to speak but stop when Bruce’s eyes darkened, and he growls as he slams his thick cock inside me.
I moan louder than I have in my entire life. His cock fills me up so much that I fear I won’t be able to walk straight for the next week or two. Bruce lifts my legs up and continues to shove me against the counter with every hard thrust. He wasn’t kidding when he said he was going to fuck me. The man is practically drilling into me with no kindness at all.
“Oh fuck! You’re so fucking tight. So wet and so hot,” Bruce groans out. With each thrust, I can feel he wants to let go and fuck me like he owns me.
“Go ahead, Dad. Fuck me. Fuck me like I’m yours and only yours,” I tempt him playfully.
Bruce growls and rams his cock faster into me. He keeps knocking the air out from my lungs, and I can feel my body pulsating against his. I grip the countertop harder each time, and I know my knuckles are turning white and becoming numb every second. With one hand on my hips, Bruce moves his other hand up my tank top to hold my tits.
“No bra? You’re a bad girl,” Bruce says in between panting.
“I forgot to do laundry,” I choke out.
“Excuses,” he manages to say, as he holds me up more, so he can penetrate me deeper. His cock is hitting a deeper spot in me. It must be my g-spot, because I have read about it but never actually felt it to know. I can feel myself clenching his dick tightly, and I know I’m getting closer to release. “You wanted me and your brothers to see your tits, huh?”
“Maybe,” I cry out louder than what I intended to. Fuck, what if one of my brothers hears me? They’ll really think I’m insane for fucking our father and for loving it every second. Bruce readjusts our position once more, so he can hit that spot continuously. “I-I think I’m going to cum!”
“Not yet, you better not!” Bruce growls, and drills into me harder and faster. With his powerful thrusts and the constant friction from the countertop on my clit, I know for a fact that I can’t last longer. His hands hold onto my hips while he fucks me harder than before.
I become a moaning mess. I can feel my mouth drop open because I feel liquid coming out from my core. Did I just squirt? What the hell is happening to me?
The sounds of skin on skin is louder because of my mess. I drop my head onto the counter while Bruce continues to fuck me. Before I can catch my breath, Bruce chuckles and lifts me up. “I just made you squirt. That has never happened before, has it?”
“No, that was my first time,” I answer breathlessly. He kisses my neck.
“You’re so wet,” Bruce grunts into my ear. Breathing heavily, he lifts my hips again, so he can rub my clit with his fingers. “You’re making a mess all over my cock. You’re such a bad girl.”
“I’m your bad girl,” I moan out, as I can feel another orgasm threatening to take over my body.
“Fuck yes, you are!” Bruce groans, and continues to shove his cock into my soaking wet pussy.
With every rough thrust, I know Bruce won’t last. I whimper once more when my pussy clenches his dick as he fucks me through my orgasm. A few more hard thrusts, Bruce pulls out and turns me over onto my back. He jacks himself off as I watch his cum spurt out all over my stomach.
Just seeing his hard, veiny thick cock before me turns me on once more. I lick my lips at how the tip of his dick glistens with his cum.
Bruce sighs heavily, and just when I think I should try to get up and clean myself, he pulls me up and kisses me. He shoves his tongue into my mouth, and we explore each other’s mouths as if this was our last chance to. He pulls away from me and rests his forehead against mine.
“You’re mine, Y/N. You belong to me, and the Batfamily. I don’t care who wants you, because you will never give them what you have given me. Do you understand?” Bruce asks, before giving me his famous bat glare.
“I understand, and I promise,” I swear before he kisses me once more.
“Good, now go wash up,” Bruce instructs before he helps me off the counter.
I grab a paper towel and wipe Bruce’s cum off my stomach before I pull up my yoga pants. As soon as I toss the damped paper towel into the trash, I immediately notice Dick Grayson is standing there at the entrance of the kitchen staring at me with fire in his eyes.
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headinthestaticsky · 3 years
Text
The Dusk Calls for me: Jasper Hale x Fleur Swan, Chapter 14
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AUTHOR’S NOTE: ALL the characters in Twilight DO NOT belong to me. ALL RIGHTS GO TO STEPHENIE MEYER
“I can see you clear as yesterday Top down, fingers in the breeze Weavin' through the lights in the sky You said, "Baby close your eyes" And I prayed we would all always Hold on to this feeling, stronger, faster Faster.”
Kwamie Liv, Angel Haze: Pleasure This Pain.
I couldn’t remember much of the ride to the airport, nor did I remember much of the plane ride. I was in shock, paralyzed with worry and fear. Not for me per-say but, My dad, the Cullens, they were all at risk. I couldn’t stand the fact that any of them would be killed because of me. I wished my dreams could’ve predicted this, that I had somehow acquired the ability to see the future like Alice did. I could only predict death it seems... I hadn’t dreamed of anyone getting killed. Maybe it was a good sign, we would be fine. Yes, I would convince myself that... I hadn’t dreamed of anyone dying, we would be fine. 
The only thing I could remember was Bella constantly calling mom, she wouldn’t talk to me or look at me. I felt the same tension I always felt when I was around her a few months ago. I was livid with her, not one call to dad... not one. She clearly didn’t give a damn about his safety either, she was ready to abandon him. Throw him into the wolves to save herself... that selfish side to her had never left it seems. I pulled out my phone again, texting dad.
“Made it to phoenix, we’re safe... getting a ride to a hotel now. I haven’t changed her mind yet. I love you and miss you.” 
I read the text again, wishing the contents of it were true. I wanted to be safe, I wanted to be back home. I wish I was sitting across from dad in the diner talking amongst ourselves. I wish I was driving down the forest going to see the Cullens. I wanted to attempt to beat Alice at chess, to joke around with Emmett and Dean. To have heart to hearts with Esme who was more of a mother to me than Renee had ever been. I wanted to be with Jasper, wrapped in each others arms doing random things together. But, I had to come back to reality... I might not be able to do those things... ever again. 
The hotel looked nice and comfortable but I couldn’t stand the heat of Arizona. It was sickening, the hot air struggled to get into my lungs. The rainy weather of Forks sounded wonderful right now. Dean and Alice got us a hotel room and eagerly brought us up to it. I had a feeling they thought we would be fully safe in there. I put my bag down at the side of my bed and clasped on it, my exhaustion was setting in. Bella had sat on the one next to me and signed. She sounded annoyed to me.
“I didn’t want to come here, I wanted to be with Edward.”
I lifted my head and stared at her... I wasn’t going to snap... maybe she was just scared and was lashing out at people... yeah that was it. 
“I’m really sorry this is happening Bella, It must be really hard to be away from Edward.”
“Yeah it is! If you hadn’t said anything...”
“Look this isn’t either of our faults. If we’re going to get pissed at anyone, it’s James.”
Bella looked at, she knew I was right... I could see it in her face. But, she couldn’t admit it right now and just scoffed and went into the lounge area of the hotel room. She was making this more difficult, I wanted to snap at her just as much as she was angry with me. We’re falling back into the dark hole of resentment, it was suffocating. 
“Fleur? Could you come in here for a second?” Alice asked
I groaned slowly raising myself up from the bed, I went into the lounge room, Alice and Dean looked at me sympathetically. 
“How ya holding up?” Dean asked.
“I’ve been better.”
“Look, you’re going to be okay.” Alice said.
“It’s not about me guys, It’s everyone back at home... They could get hurt, and I can’t do a thing about it.”
“They can handle themselves Fleur, I’ve lived with them for decades... the know what they’re doing.” Dean said.
“But what about dad, I know he’s hurting right now.” 
“He’s going to be fine Fleur, I promise besides, Esme and Rosalie will be down there with him as soon as they leads the tracker away.” Alice said
“You guys are right... could we get something to eat, I am absolutely starving.”
“Sure, I’ll order room service.” Alice replied.
Room service had come, the food was devoured quickly. The nerves were still lingering in the back of my mind but I knew I would just have to have faith in everyone back at Forks. We were all sitting in silence, Bella was facing away from all of us, she looked tense. I heard Alice gasp and my heart sunk to my stomach... she had a vision and I knew it wouldn’t be good.
“What’s wrong?” I said.
“What do you see, Alice?” Dean asked.
“The tracker... he just changed course.”
“Oh on.” I said.
Bella’s head whipped around coming to sit next to Alice.
Dean grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil. He put it in Alice’s hand, she then started drawing where the tracker was going.
“So the tracker is going to be at a... Ballet studio?” Bella inquired.
“You’ve been here?” Alice asked.
“Yeah, I took lesson as a kid, the school had an archway just like that.” Bella added.
“Is the school here in Phoenix?”
“Yeah..” Bella’s phone began to ring, she went to the balcony and closed the door, clearly wanting privacy.
“If the school is here in Phoenix... he probably going to use the place as a trap in some way.” I said.
“Are you sure?” Alice asked.
“Yeah I mean... why the hell would he go to a ballet studio other than the fact that he was trying to find Bella and I.”
“We better leave then, get Bella when she is done and meet us down in the lobby.” Dean ordered.
“Yeah... I will.” 
The pair then left quickly, going to check out. I had just grabbed my back when my phone had rang.
“Hello?”
“Fleur, the tracker... he changed course.” Jasper said, he voice was dripping with worry.
“I know Alice just saw, we plan on leaving soon.”
“I’ll be coming down to find you as soon as I can. Your dad is safe still. We can go anywhere you want as long as it’s safe.”
“My phone’s about to die... I have to go. Love you, please, stay safe.”
“I will, love you too.”
I sat in the room, my body stuck in it’s place. He was coming here... we didn’t have much time to get out. Bella had burst through the balcony door, worry etched all over her face.
“Fleur we need to go, we need to go right now. James has mom, in the ballet studio.”
“Bella, calm down... I think it’s a trap.”
“Like hell it is I heard her over the phone. She kept saying my name she sounds terrified.”
“Think about this Bella... Alice just saw James change his course to that studio... it’s a lure Bella he’s going to kill you.”
“How selfish can you be Fleur!?”
“Excuse me!?”
“Yeah you heard me, this entire time all of this has gone down you’ve been trying to convince everyone you’re right.”
“I said two things Bella, I’m not trying to get people to follow me blindly... I use context clues... It’s been working for me these past 17 years!”
“I mean you just had to butt in that we had to go back to Charlie, you made Edward change his mind about taking me to Vancouver, and now you’re trying to convince me that mom isn’t in any danger at all! How selfish can you be?”
“YOU...” My hands had begun to shake, I pointed a finger at her hitting her in the chest.
“YOU, ARE OFFICIALLY THE BIGGEST HYPOCRITE I HAVE EVER MET IN MY LIFE. YOU WERE GOING TO LEAVE DAD ALL ALONE WHILE A VAMPIRE WAS CHASING US... DO YOU REALIZE THAT IF HE DIDN’T SEE YOU LEAVE THAT HOUSE DAD WOULD BE DEAD?! AND DON’T YOU DARE TELL ME I MADE EDWARD DO A DAMN THING, HE IS A GROWN ASS MAN... A 108 YEARS OLD TO BE EXACT... HE CAN DO ANYTHING HE WANTS TO DO. AND IT’S NOT “CHARLIE” IT’S DAD!”
“I am going down to that studio whether you like it or not.”  
Before I could get another word in she stormed off. Not matter how pissed I was at her... I couldn’t leave her alone in that studio. I would have to find a way to get there without Alice or Dean noticing me. I snuck my way down to the hotel lobby, I looked around for Bella, she was no where in sight. 
“She moves quick... I’ll give her that.”
Alice and Dean had just made it to the front of the line to check out. That was when I made a run for it. I made out, the sun already blistering my skin even if it was 8:49 PM. I ran to the nearest taxi.
“Hello, where can I take you today?”
“Mimi's School of Dance, please.”
“Of course ma’am.”
I remember the name of that school by heart. I had begged my mother to go when I was younger but, she never let me.
FLASHBACK...
“Oh c’mon mommy please?”
“NO, that is my final answer!”
“Why, Bella gets to go?”
“Because you’re way too lanky, you’d look like a dying deer out there!”
I had looked up at here, tears were spilling down my face.
“Daddy says I look beautiful.”
“Well there’s a reason why I left him... he has no sense to him what so ever.”
“I asked why I couldn’t go... not to get insults hurled at me.”
“Maybe if you’d just keep your mouth shut you wouldn’t have to worry about now would’t you? You’re just like your father... you never know when to shut up!”
“I hate you.” I said. I turned and ran back upstairs, Bella was looking over the corner of the room. A smirk was plastered on her face.
“She’s right you know... you would look like a dying deer out there.”
I didn’t even engage in her conversation, I just slammed my door shut. I didn’t come out for the rest of the day.
END OF FLASHBACK.
I stared out the window, the same mantra going through my mind.
“Just let me get there quick enough, please.”
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morelike-bi-light · 4 years
Text
unplanned unexpected unwarranted vampire charlie au
au where bella decides she cant leave her dad behind like her mom did and convinces edward and carlisle to protect him too. carlisle ushers him out of the house and explains things to him, providing proof as needed - as much as he can. they go to arizona to hide out, charlie stumbling over his words to convince renee that he and bella were threatened and are in enough danger to need to hide out in a different state.
bella still gets the phone call, and renee doesn't answer when either of them call. when the others are distracted, she still gets away to meet james, but when the cullens go to save her, charlie's waiting outside with esme and rosalie (who are guarding him on the road instead). victoria is there too - and she gives them more trouble than they anticipated. emmett and jasper are distracted by the redhead and the noises from inside the studio getting louder and more concerning by the second.
when a scream rings out — he's never heard bella sound like this, not even when she was a mousy little girl buried under his seahawks baseball cap far too big for her head — charlie can't help but wrench open the door and run inside. his baby is cowering away from a bloodthirsty monster and there's not even a pause in his step as he sprints over to shield her form with his own, squeezing her against his chest and praying for the first time since he heard she wanted to come up to forks for the rest of school
his prayer's interrupted by a loud shattering sound and a malicious laugh. "aw, look at that! daddy's trying to save you. what a noble, pointless sacrifice!" a smack like stone hitting stone. "well far be it from me to deny a man his dying wish."
he doesn't hear what he says next - he doesn't hear anything, or see anything, because everything is white and sharp and pain, burning like a star, blooming in the crevice where his shoulder meets his collarbone. nothing exists right then but the cold fire in his skin, burrowing in his bone. it feels like hours before anything changes. the first thing to slip through is wet on his cheek and cool hands scrabbling to clutch at his.
"dad! dad!" bella? "edward! carlisle! anybody, any of you, please, I need help! my dad — needs help!" a hand on his cheek, trembling and frantic. "dad just hang in there! somebody help us!"
his fingers twitch, stretching towards her. "bella —you okay — bells — "
"im okay! im okay, im so sorry, dad, im so sorry! im sorry, it shouldnt have been you — this is all my fault — edward! edward please, you have to help him!"
hers is still the only voice he can discern but there are more emerging, blending together but getting closer. he catches snatches of words like 'bit', and 'spread', and 'minutes', and 'sorry', and 'safety'. a pale shape stands at the edge of his vision, and at once he's lifted from the floor. he convulses, eliciting another audible choke from his sweet daughter, and he recognizes a familiar, soothing voice from above.
"we can't stay here..."
"what? what do you mean?"
"we'll bring him back with us..."
"what are you going to do?"
"let him take him, bella, please"
"we'll watch over him, i promise."
"Im not leaving him, i can't just let him go!"
"i promise," softer. "jasper — will he sleep?"
the world softens and fully crumbles away. there's nothing left. nothing but fire.
time doesn't exist here, but then the fire, it doesn't go out. yet it stops hurting. it stops eating. it starts feeding. a single thought pops into his head that will make no sense to him when he recalls it later — a weary 'oh. i see.'
three days after the ballet studio, he wakes up to a brown popcorn ceiling. he blinks. he can see every crack and cranny in the plaster.
"mr. swan?" a tinkling voice says, and he sits up. "good, I thought you'd be up." the little black haired cullen girl beams up at him, chipper but sorry. her hand is curled around his wrist. "bella will be back any moment, and carlisle soon after. they're just across the hall, actually. he says we'll need to look after you for a while, just in case, —"
she pauses, just soon enough to avoid being interrupted by the sound of beeping and pressing keys and the door swinging open. bella is whole and wonderful — he can see every inch of her and she's really actually fine, not even a scratch — and she freezes seeing him but then she's flinging herself forward, pale face contorting
"dad—!"
"b-bells," he stands up, quickly, too quickly, to meet her, tugging alice along with him, but edward catches his girlfriend's hand and holds her back as he voices her objections to her entering at all. charlie scowls at first, when a scent reaches his nose — a smell that might've made his stomach growl if it could. his eyes cast up in open question.
edward is stiff, eyes looking conflicted but legs poised to pounce. "it's her."
"oh." charlie shifts uncomfortably on his feet, properly spooked, willing the despairing thirst away. as moments pass since making the connection, the scent of blood — of food — fades, to the point he can hardly detect it at all. it's a sharp relief.
"you — how do you feel," bella forces out, eyes locked with his with an uncomfortable intensity that makes him squirm and anxiously rake a hand through his hair. carlisle and the others filter in behind her and he's grateful for something else to look at, now he knows she's safe.
"better," he settles on. "than before, I mean. was that — did —" he waits for someone to interrupt him and fill him in, but it's quiet. "are you okay?"
a bark of laughter bursts from her chest and she assures him she's fine, eyes wide and brows furrowed like she can't believe he's a real person, the way she gets sometimes when he says something so awkward and sincere it makes her want to groan. but she doesn't want to groan anymore. instead she's torn between crying and singing.
"what do you remember?" carlisle asks, gently stepping forward, his gaze a mix of clinical fascination, wary confusion, and personal concern. charlie would flush beneath it... but the heat never comes to his cheeks.
"exactly how much are you looking for," he grumbles. "last thing i recall..." no need to go into the pain. "finding bella with that... guy at the studio."
"just finding her?"
"trying to protect her," he amends, focused on avoiding everyone's gaze. "and... it was..." then he notices how much there is to see, even when hes trying not to look at anything. he frowns. absorbing this much — it feels like a headache, minus the pain itself. overload. "it was him wasnt it. he bit me"
esme and jasper nod, but carlisle and bella just look away, the brunette visibly cringing. edward's jaw tightens, and for some inexplicable reason, the sight of that is what makes it all click for him.
"so," he fumbles for a second, but the word comes out so clean and sure when he says it, not at all like he feels. his mouth is physically incapable of tripping over itself like hes used to, no stammer, no stumbling. he grimaces and all the muscles pull exactly like he intends them too. he shakes his head. "he bit me. and? can i assume that's what's got me feeling so weird? the... some sort of effect of the bite?"
bella doesnt answer. neither does carlisle. surprisingly, it's that blonde girl that replies, though not to him.
"show him," she says, and after a moment, esme creeps forward, gesturing for his hand. he hesitates, but takes it. edward shifts to place bella behind him, as if she needs to be protected from him the way charlie protected her from james, a move that breaks his heart. gently, esme maneuvers him over to the bathroom. she turns on the lights, though she didn't really need to. he blinks. red. in the middle of a face with skin more suited to a shelf at a morgue than the tasteful backsplash of the bathroom, framed with dark, curling, concerningly long lashes, his irises were red. that wasn't it, either.
"am i..." he huffed. "am i seeing things, or am i way better looking than usual?"
a ripple of good humor disturbs the room, from esme's warm giggle, to a watery chuckle from bella, to a great, booming crow from emmett.
"way to focus on what's important, chief," alice nods, at the man's back in an instant. she doesn't sound nearly as sarcastic as those words should warrant. "finally, a man after my own heart."
"wait till you try running for the first time," emmett interjects, joining her behind him. "mind, blown."
some of the other family members sigh and shake their heads. charlie runs his eyes along his sharper jaw, still sprinkled with the stubble he'd acquired in the preceding chaos, now even and almost roguish where before hes pretty sure it made him look old and unkempt. he looks younger, he thinks, not young exactly, but good. better than his age.
he pulls away from his reflection, eyes flickering from face to face around him. he might even have said that he fit in with the mythically beautiful family. hes struck by how silly he was to dismiss the strangeness of the gorgeous, antisocial group out of hand, now that he sees how strange he's become himself, before his eyes fall to his daughter.
"im sorry dad" she mumbles, humor evaporating, and a pain resounds like a crack in his chest.
slowly, carefully, he moves forward, and the rest of the vampires stand on high alert as they realize what he's about to do. bella's eyes are bloodshot and he presses his lips together in a bittersweet line as he wraps her in his arms and tucks her close, just under his chin. a shudder runs down his spine as a phantom pain ghosts over his shoulder, but he brushes it aside and it evaporates like water. when he breathes in, she smells the way she always has, and he is not hungry.
"it's okay, kiddo. we'll get through this. im just glad you're okay."
and they do. charlie's vampiric powers are related to shielding, like his daughter, but his are more like putting things on mute, if that makes sense. small things, obviously, and usually physical. he's got a great deal more resistance to thirst than most newborns, for example, because it's muted by his powers, particularly for those he cares about. unfortunately this makes it likelier for him to, uh, die of thirst, as it's possible for him to forget to feed. and he can't block edward from hearing his thoughts completely, but they're muffled naturally by his powers (and always will be. hes not helping anyone into his head any time soon, especially not his daughter's boyfriend). he can also mute his own scent to the shapeshifters — which means he and billy, after things are all sorted, will still be able to hang out and be best friends!! he can also mute his own footsteps,
anyways this started as a meme post intending to go into how comedic it would be if charlie got changed and bella spent the rest of the series complaining that edward wanted to spend the rest of eternity with her father but not with her but then i got struck with some mad charlie feels and this happened so anyways vampire!charlie everyone @charlieswanismyrealdad @effervescent-emmett @cullen-trash @emmettmccartycullen @jaspell @leahclearwaterdefensesquad is this anything
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quokkacore · 3 years
Text
son of wolves IV [park chanyeol and byun baekhyun]
summary: your entire life, you’ve fought bravely to defend the walls of your home from the evil forest spirits of the spearwood trying to destroy it, alongside your family, friends, and your betrothed, baekhyun. until you’re infected by the evil that resides in one of these spirits, and you run away from home, before it can spread to those around you. it’s in your exile, wandering through the spearwood that you meet the wolf prince, a tall man of hardened eyes, few words, and a fiery temperament, raised by these spirits you’ve so grown to resent. it’s here that you begin to question everything you’ve ever known, and wonder whether the evil was out here, in the forest, or inside the walls of a place you once called home.
pairings: hunter!baekhyun x reader, wolfprince!chanyeol x reader
genre: reverse princessmononoke!au, ANGST, fluff, slow burn, enemies to lovers, fantasy epic, war au, wolf!au
warnings: reader was drugged, language, MAJOR violence tw (gun violence and stabbing to be specific), animal death, threats of violence, loss of consciousness due to head trauma, body horror, horrible writing!!!
song recs: leave a trace - chvrches // lost it to trying - son lux // i will never die - delta rae // the legend of ashitaka - joe hisaishi // victory song - stray kids // pray for me // the weeknd & kendrick lamar // garden song - phoebe bridgers 
word count: 10.0k
a/n: im srry this is so late pls dnt hate me
this is the final chapter of sow!! i’m so glad i finally finished it. i love this fic, i really do. but this is SOO overdue.
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main masterlist // story masterlist
A fog hung over your head. You could barely see three feet in front of you, and everything was hazy. What you knew was that you were in the inner circle—it wasn't as cold. The sound of paws and feet crunching against the snow wasn't that far away from you. It stopped a few seconds later.
"Hello?" You called, slowly walking towards the sound. "Chanyeol?"
Again, the sound of paws and feet, but this time in the opposite direction. You reeled, now unsure of which way to go. A sense of dread was beginning to pool in your stomach. 
"Sehun? Junmyeon?" Your voice was small and shaky, taking one step forward. "Chanyeol?"
You stood still, waiting for a sign, a sound. The forest was dead silent. When you tried to take a step forward, your body turned rigid. Every single hair on your body stood straight up. 
And then, you began to shake. Just as the fog cleared, and two figures appeared in front of you. Both of them beaten bloody, chests heaving, eyes burning with rage. Chanyeol's shirt was torn, and there was a cut running across his chest, staining the ruined fabric. Tears were streaking his dirt stained face. 
Baekhyun's left cheek was swollen, quickly turning purple. His right cheek was bleeding. But he seemed more steady. His sword was drenched in drying blood. 
And then you noticed the wolves. 
All four of Chanyeol's brothers lay dying all around them, warm crimson melting the snow as they bled out. You could hear them whining in pain as they did, legs twitching in pain. 
You tried to call out to them, but you choked on black tendrils, bursting through your throat. Your jawbone cracked as they did, tremors wracking your body as you gagged on your cries of pain. All you could do was watch in horror as they charged at each other, hurling curses and obscenities at each other. 
The tremors in your body intensified, your injured arm cracking as the black, oily coils shot forward, wrapping around your throat.
Spots danced across your vision, your head beginning to pound as you couldn't breathe. Your vision lost focus, eyes blurring with tears. 
The last thing you saw was Baekhyun's sword impaling Chanyeol's chest, the iron bursting through his back. As his younger brother's blood splattered across his face and neck, Baekhyun's face broke into a sadistic grin. 
A horrible laugh rang throughout the forest, and you awoke with a start, hands grabbing at your neck to unwrap inky coils that weren't there. You were sweating and your chest was heaving.
Slowly, you sat up, blinking furiously to allow your eyes to adjust to the sunlight. You could tell that it was still relatively early, maybe before nine.  When you caught your breath, you wiped the sweat off of your brow. Your throat felt itchy and your head was pounding. Getting up was one thing, walking to the door was another. You were disoriented and dizzy, nauseous, even. You jiggled the door, and sighed when it wouldn’t budge. 
You glanced towards the window, even though you knew it was too small for you to jump out of. Rubbing your temples and letting out a deep sigh, you tried to push all of the events of last night to the back of your mind, Baekhyun’s betrayal refusing to fade to the back of your head. You lay down on the bed again, processing everything you knew now.
You loved Baekhyun, you really did. Yesterday morning, when he had kissed you, you felt relieved that you were in his arms again. 
But Baekhyun’s kisses, contrary to what you had originally thought, no longer felt as comforting or as safe. Even before he had thrown you to the wolves, metaphorically speaking. Chanyeol’s lips on yours permeated your mind, the memory stuck in your head. 
You found that the more you tried to pull away from the thought of that tall, mysterious man, the tighter his grip became—deep down, you knew that only in coming closer would you be released. Vaguely, it reminded you of the toy your father had brought you once when you were a child, woven out of thin strips of bamboo. Sticking your index fingers in, and then trying to pull them out was impossible, as the toy stretched and its hold got tighter. However, when you pushed them together, the toy expanded, and your fingers were released.
Were three weeks even long enough to fall in love? Two, considering the fact that the first week he basically wanted to kill you? You weren’t sure. All you knew was that right now, Chanyeol’s safety, as well as that of his brothers and of Selyne, was all you wanted.
Your thoughts were interrupted with the sound of the front door. You turned to face the door, waiting with bated breath. Had they returned so soon?
You were disappointed when the bedroom door swung open, Yixing standing awkwardly in the doorway. He stared at you, emotionlessly, before he sighed and stepped inside. Your eyes watched his every move like a hawk, and scowled at him when he sat down on the chair where your clothes were. 
“I’m here to do a check-up,” He told you, “You’re still recovering.”
“What, from my cold induced madness or the huge stab wound in my back?” You spat. He looked down, face not changing. He almost looked ashamed.
“I’m sorry you see it that way.” His voice was quiet. “I brought you some food and some water. You can eat that and then we can get started. I know you must be hungry.”
He pulled out a bowl wrapped in fabric, as well as a canteen from his bag. When he showed you what was inside—rice and some beef—you lifted your gaze to meet his eyes. After last night, you weren't sure you ever wanted to eat anything again. Yixing shook his head once he realized. Which meant he knew.
"There's nothing in it," He said, sounding earnest. "I promise, Y/N." 
You would have refused, but the pounding in your head seemed to be unending. It didn’t take long for your resolve to crack. You drank almost all of the water in the canteen, and you practically inhaled the meal. 
“The troops left three hours ago. About a hundred and twenty soldiers total. Baekhyun, Minseok and Jongdae are leading them,” He informed you, fiddling with his clothes and staring at the walls. 
You didn’t reply, too angry to do so.
When you finished, you allowed him to do his check up. He asked you about how you were feeling, how certain parts of your body felt, like your legs and your chest, if you’d been feeling dizzy or nauseous. He was done fairly quickly, and as he packed away the now empty bowl, spoke up again.
“Remember the time Jongdae dared me to sneak out into the Spearwood when we were younger?”
“When Minseok misfired and shot you?” You asked, raising an eyebrow. “Yeah. How could I forget after the way your dad almost punched Min?”
He let out a soft chuckle, but there was no joy behind it. “I spent about three hours out there. I never told you guys, but I got lost pretty quickly. I panicked once I realized I didn’t know where I was. I thought I was gonna get killed by some animal in the name of the gods or something. You know how I panic.”
You nodded, humming, unsure of where he was going. “It was summertime,” He continued, “So it wasn’t as quiet as it is now. And about halfway through those three hours, I heard branches snapping behind me, and… this thing sounded big, Y/N. I-I just about shit my pants when I turned. Because I had never seen a bear so close to me before, and it was huge, and it was headed towards me.”
He looked up at you, eyes full of awe. “I was so freaked out, it didn’t occur to me to try and shoot it or to play dead or anything. All I could do was stand there, trying not to scream or provoke it. It walked right past me, and kept walking straight. I thought I should run or hide, until it turned back to look at me and… she spoke to me. Well, not speak, it was more like—”
“Like an echo in your mind,” You said, sitting up straight, “That… that was Mirren.”
He nodded, a ghost of a smile gracing his face. “She wasn’t anything like they told us she would be. She was so… kind, and gentle. She knew I was afraid, and she promised she wouldn’t hurt me if I didn’t hurt her. And I was a 19 year old idiot who had a sword. I wasn’t going to try and kill a goddess. So I followed her, and she took me as far as she could without being seen. We barely spoke. But when she told me to keep going, because that was as far as she could go safely, I was so grateful. I… I never would have expected that kind of mercy and kindness from one of the gods, not after everything we were taught. And then twenty minutes later I got back to the wall and Minseok misfired.”
Yixing furrowed his eyebrows, staring at his hands in his lap. “That Chanyeol guy. He’s pretty much the only link between the human world and the forest, right?”
You nodded.
“So if he died or if Selyne died… the forest would lose its only possible bridge between the two. And that would make it harder for them to understand us, or to communicate easily.”
Again, you nodded. Yixing shrugged. “For us, that’s a good thing. The gods would have to communicate directly with us, and we could take them down when they’re vulnerable.”
You nodded, looking to the side and gnawing on the inside of your cheek. Why he felt the need to rub it in made no sense to you, why would he—
“Which is why it would be a shame if you were to escape.”
Your head snapped forward to look at him, eyes widening. He sighed, obviously nervous. When he spoke, his voice was quiet. “It would be a shame if you were to overpower me and lock me in this room. An even bigger shame if you were to know that your bow and quiver are in the stables, and that the guards patrolling the east gate change shifts in about… fifteen minutes. A huge shame, really.” 
You just about stopped breathing, staring at him wordlessly. Yixing raised an eyebrow. 
“Are you going to do anything or do I have to knock myself out?”
“Why can’t you just say that I locked you in here?”
“What, you really think they’ll believe that?”
You stood up, shaking your head. He was right, but that didn’t make you feel any better about knocking Yixing’s lights out. “Thank you, Xing. I can never repay you.”
Yixing waved his hand. “You don’t owe me anything, Y/N. If anything, this is me repaying my own debt.”
You sighed shakily, and Yixing stood up. “Please don’t hit me too hard,” He said. You smiled, and shook your head, before throwing up your fists. Before you could do anything, he held up his hands. “W-wait, wait.”
“What?”
“Kick Baekhyun’s ass,” He ordered, “His head’s been getting too big for his shoulders, anyway.”
You smiled sadly, before nodding. “I’ll try,” You answered, and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry.” 
Yixing shut his eyes, grimacing. “Do it.”
With one final deep breath, you swung at his temple, and Yixing fell to the floor. You checked to make sure he was knocked out cold, tapping his face slightly, and setting off when he didn’t come to. 
You changed into more suitable clothes to wear in combat, and slung on your snow boots and a dark blue cloak.
Before you left, you walked into the dining room, and looked towards the floor, before something glinting in the low sunlight caught your eye. Heart splintering, you picked up the necklace, and tucked it into your pocket.
This would have been so much easier if you’d been let out before the sun came up. You placed the hood of your cloak up, hiding your face and keeping your head down, hoping to not draw too much attention as you walked towards the stables. Thankfully, the path leading there was still relatively empty given that it was before ten. 
When you got to the stables, you found your bow and arrow hung on the wall, right next to Ivan’s stall. For a moment, you considered taking him with you, but decided against it. It would be too hard to sneak a reindeer out in broad daylight. You would simply have to run as fast as you could and hope that luck was on your side.
So you hid the weapons under your cloak, and made your way to the east gate, where, just as Yixing had said, the parapet atop it was empty. And once you had broken the lock, and were outside, you were gone. 
Immediately, you realized that the energy in the Spearwood was different. The air was crisper, seemingly even colder. If the forest had been quiet the first time you stepped into it, you could practically hear the sound of your blood rushing throughout your body. A few minutes into your walk, it began to snow, and you found yourself shivering already.
Once you were out of sight of the parapets, you removed your cloak briefly, placing the quiver and bow over it rather than under it for better access.
Being alone in the snow, with everything you knew now, filled you with an odd sense of nostalgia. If a month ago, someone had told you you would willingly march into the Spearwood to try and end the war, you definitely wouldn’t have expected this to be your course of actions, and you certainly would have expected to have different motives. 
You did your best to retrace your old steps, but the past 24 hours, the fact that it had been three weeks since you came this way, and the difference in lighting made it significantly harder. You walked for about forty minutes, cautious enough to listen for the footsteps of anyone who might have followed you from Ironbend.
And while eventually you did hear footsteps, they definitely weren’t from anyone you were expecting. The fast sound of paws thumping against the snow, racing at you from behind barely gave you time to turn and spot the giant mass of white fur bounding towards you. With a soft, “oomph!” you were tackled to the ground, tumbling a few times before finally landing on your back in the snow. You opened your eyes to meet a familiar gaze. 
We really have to stop meeting like this, y’know, Sehun declared as he stepped back, it’s weird.
“You’re the one that tackled me,” You argued, sitting up and brushing off the snow that was on your cloak. “What are you doing so far out of the inner circle?”
Sehun shook himself off, before staring at you seriously. Emergency patrol. Mama sensed danger. 
 “She was right,” You said with a nod, “Is she safe?”
Why would she be keeping herself safe? He sounded kind of exasperated. 
“Because she’s the target, Sehun. The three troops they brought out are looking for her.”
All of the playfulness in Sehun’s demeanor seemed to evaporate. Shit. Junmyeon knows where she is. Get on. I’m taking you to him.
You got on his back, and he huffed slightly at the new sensation of having to carry you. Sorry if it gets bumpy. I’m not really used to having people ride on my back... That’s usually Junmyeon’s job.
“Shut up, you overgrown spoiled baby,” You answered warmly, “It’s okay. As long as we get there in one piece.”
Did you get there in one piece? Kind of. You had to cling onto him and lower yourself to basically lie on his back. Otherwise you bounced too much and you risked falling off of him. The wind ripped your hood off, whipping your hair in the process and drying your eyes. 
He slowed down once he approached a clearing, where you could easily see the brown wolf standing in the white snow. He turned once he heard Sehun’s paws. When he noticed you, he seemed rather taken aback. 
Y/N? What are you doing here? Why did you even leave? He asked when you got off of Sehun.
“I needed to warn you. All of you. Selyne is in danger.”
She’s the warden of the forest, he pointed out, I think it’s an occupational hazard.
You sighed, annoyed at how willing the both of them had been to brush off your warnings so easily. “This is different. More than a hundred men are in the forest right now—all of them armed with guns, I might add—trying to find her, because they know that if she dies, Chanyeol loses his link to the forest and any hope for negotiation and bridging the spirit world and the human world is gone. You need to warn her, now.”
Junmyeon, evidently stunned speechless, looked between you and Sehun for a few seconds, before his gaze settled on you finally. We knew about the troops. We didn’t know about their plan. How did you find out? 
You pursed your lips. “My… I used to be close to their leader. He’s… the swordsman.”
Shit, Sehun swore. 
Fuck, Junmyeon agreed.
“Y/N?” 
Your eyes widened at the distant sound of the deep voice, turning your head to see Chanyeol, trudging through the snow. His eyes were wide, and when he recognized your face, he began walking faster. 
Of their own accord, your feet started moving in his direction. You ignored the voices of Sehun and Junmyeon trying to catch your attention. He sped up again, now making his best attempt to run to you, even though the snow passed his ankles. Your heart pounding in your chest, blood roaring in your ears, you sped up as well. As the distance lessened, you took in the familiar features. The pelt that kept him warm, the mask held back atop his dark hair, his cheeks streaked with blood he’d painted on, the round earrings dangling from his prominent ears.
Finally, he was within arms reach, and he reached out his arms the same way you did. His gaze was desperate, almost unbelieving that it was really you. The two of you collided, lips smashing against each other as his hands gripped you in several different places, like he was trying to make sure you were tangible. First at your waist, then your back, until finally, they gripped your face tenderly, calloused hands holding your face. Your hands wrapped around his neck, standing up straight to reach his lips. 
The state of catharsis his desperate kisses gave you confirmed it. You knew in your heart who you wanted. 
 When Chanyeol pulled away, you wiped away the snowflakes that had fallen on his cheeks and nose. “Y/N,” He murmured, “You came back.”
You nodded, pressing a kiss to his cheek.
”I had to,” You said softly, nuzzling your nose against his cheek, “I needed to warn you about what’s coming.”
His face fell slightly when he heard your reasoning, but he didn’t step away. “Y/N, I… I shouldn’t have let you leave. A-and I shouldn’t have said those things I said. I was… scared. I’m sorry.”
You shook your head, breaking away. “Right now, we can’t focus on that. I need you all to listen to me. I know what the troops are trying to do.” 
He nodded, eyes turning serious. “Come on,” He said, turning you to face the clearing. The two of you paused when you noticed the two other wolves sitting in the clearing, watching you bemusedly. 
I told you something happened, Jongin said to Kyungsoo, Now you owe me your next part of the hunt. 
Chanyeol scowled, and had this not been such a serious moment, you would have laughed. The two of you walked back over to the quartet, where you greeted them all properly. Not wasting any time, you went over the basics. How you’d been found by Baekhyun and taken back to Ironbend, what you told the Council in an attempt to get them to consider a truce, how you managed to escape. Baekhyun and his plan. The danger that Selyne was in, and by extension, the danger that Chanyeol was in. 
“She needs to hide, now,” You told them once you finished, “Chanyeol, you might need to hide, too.”
“I’m not going to hide,” He fired back. “This is my home. They’re threatening my mother. I’m not about to stand back and let them do it.” 
You stared at him, gripping his forearm. “Chanyeol, Baekhyun knows. He told me he would kill you.”
“And I’m telling you I’ll kill him.” Chanyeol’s eyes were wide, serious. “Y/N, I’m more expendable than Selyne is. If I die, it’s a major setback. If Selyne dies…”
It’s the beginning of the end for us, Kyungsoo completed, The magic of the forest will become unbalanced if it loses one of its Pillars. 
And if the magic of the forest becomes unbalanced, we lose our strongest wall of defense, Junmyeon agreed. It’s our job as our mother’s sons to lead in her place in moments when she can’t. One of those moments is now. Chanyeol has to fight.
You clenched your jaw. “Fine,” You bit out, “But someone needs to go warn Selyne, right now.” 
Chanyeol and I can go. Jongin, Kyungsoo, you both need to gather the other wolf packs. Call the bears as well, any other animals that can defend the forest. Foxes, coyotes, birds of prey, lynxes. Call the raccoons if you have to. This is life or death. Junmyeon straightened his posture. Sehun, you show Y/N how far the troops have gone. Stay hidden. Let’s rendezvous in an hour and wait for Kyungsoo and Jongin with the reinforcements.
  We’ll go as fast as we can, Jongin said, before turning to Kyungsoo. Let’s go. 
Sehun lifted his head to gaze at you. You heard him. Get on.
You nodded, turning to Chanyeol, who was about to get onto Junmyeon. “Wait.”
Chanyeol’s eyes softened as you approached him, reaching into your pocket. You tucked the necklace into the palm of his hand, closing his fist around it. “Be careful,” You begged him, “I didn’t betray an entire village just for you to get yourself killed.”
He gave a soft smile, his other hand grasping yours. “I’ll come back to you,” He promised. You peered into his eyes, wanting to say so many things.
Gross, Sehun interrupted, and Chanyeol’s smile disappeared immediately. “Don’t be a dick.”
He’s Sehun, Junmyeon mumbled, giving something akin to an eyeroll, Kind of impossible for him not to be. Now come on, we need to go now.
Chanyeol offered you one small, final smile, before he and Junmyeon sped off. 
You turned to Sehun, getting on his back. “Is it that hard for you to not be an asshole?” You asked, tone warm and teasing.
You all love me anyway, he replied. His cheekiness was not missed. The two of you took off immediately afterwards. You remembered to lower yourself and stay close to his back. Sehun explained that the magic of the forest was affecting the troops, leading them on the wrong path.
They’ve been going in circles for about two hours now, Sehun snickered, But we can’t just let them trample through the forest without teaching them a lesson. 
“Be careful once we get closer to their location,” You said into his ear, “They’ll probably have scouts patrolling within a few hundred meters of their formation on all sides.”
I’ll keep that in mind. 
The pair of you slowed to a walk, and you got off of him, pulling out your bow and nocking an arrow out of caution. Silence reigned over the forest, making the sounds of your boots crunching in the snow cringeworthy and deafening. The two of you were nearing the top of a hill, approaching its steep summit. As you approached it, the sound of stomping and snow crunching became louder and louder. You swallowed the lump in your throat, slowing significantly.
You stopped at the sound of a familiar shout. The boom of the voice actually made Sehun’s ears lower, the wolf flinching at the noise.
“Regroup!” Jongdae yelled, “We’ll stop for ten minutes.” 
You stared at Sehun, who in turn gazed at you before cocking his head at a large boulder that should give you both some cover. Slowly, as quietly as possible, you both approached the snow cap rock, before Sehun peeked over the edge of the rock. 
They’re at the base of the hill. If you’re gonna come over here, be careful. 
You leaned over the side of the rock, releasing the tension in the string of your bow. 
120 sounded like a lot of men, you realized, but the visual was somewhat underwhelming. They easily fit in the large clearing at the base of the hill. Seeing them all huddled together in the cold brought you an odd sense of comfort. 
Seeing Byun Baekhyun and his two lackeys had the opposite effect.
Baekhyun, Minseok and Jongdae were excellent military strategists. They were better than you, that was for sure, and you came from a long line of military leaders. They worked even better when the three of them worked together. In previous campaigns in other places, they’d done great damage with even smaller troops. You knew damn well that they would turn this relatively small group into a well oiled killing machine, and use each man to the best of their ability.
Still, you knew they had some weaknesses in their formations. Every formation did. They were very susceptible to being attacked from the back. It would catch them off guard very easily. 
What are you thinking? Sehun asked.
“They can be very vulnerable from the back,” You whispered, “This is their standard formation. I doubt they’ll change it now that they’re this deep—takes too much time, lowers their guard. See the back line? Those are the reserves. They’re generally the strongest men, but they’re more spread out. That’s where Baekhyun, Jongdae and Minseok are, also—their leaders. The ones meant to be fodder are generally put on the front line.”
That’s… interesting. But an attack from the back would mean taking out a small group of strong opponents, and then fighting a larger group. That’s… not ideal. We would tire ourselves out.
“There are bound to be more than 120 animals in the forest willing to defend it,” You pointed out. “They’re used to combat at a distance, especially with the shoulder guns. If we can approach them and overwhelm them, we might just be able to get them to retreat.” 
You watched as Baekhyun, Jongdae and Minseok had a quiet discussion between the three of them, Jongdae’s hands gesturing wildly. 
“Jackasses,” You grumbled, before stepping back safely behind the boulder. “Have we seen enough?” 
I think so. It looks like they’re going to keep heading west. Which is good. Mama’s den is east. Let’s get back to the rendezvous point. 
You nodded, exhaling softly. You stole one last glance at Baekhyun before you and Sehun trudged down the hill, putting some distance between the troops and you both before you mounted the wolf and broke out into a run. You kept your eyes open as he ran, hoping the winds would dry the tears in your eyes.
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You were the first ones back in the clearing. 
“You’re sure we’re in the right place, right?” You asked, just to be sure. Sehun sat, shaking some snowflakes off of his snout. This is where the pack scent is strongest, and I can still see the tracks from where we all split up, so yes. And look, that’s where you and Chanyeol… swapped spit.
“And you say Chanyeol and I are the gross ones.”
Sehun laughed. Well, that’s what it looked like! Human displays of affection are so odd. At first I thought you were trying to eat each other.
You shook your head. “No. Not at all,” You answered with a laugh, “It’s actually—”
Sehun’s head turned, ears perking up. Your speech died in your mouth, watching as a few seconds later, Chanyeol and Junmyeon came into view. They made their way into the clearing, and stopped right in front of you. Chanyeol slid off of Junmyeon’s back, stretching his legs when he did.
It took her some convincing, but Mother is safe. She’s in one of her secret dens, just in case. 
You sighed in relief. “Good.”
We also found Beval and Emyr on our way there. We made sure to warn them.
Well, what did they say? Sehun asked.
Beval is rounding up the birds of prey as we speak. He’s also sending them some heavy snowfall and winds—he called it a welcome gift.
You smiled as the remark before Junmyeon continued. Emyr is rounding up the deer, and he’s sent out a message to any smaller animals to stay in their dens. The deer will be joining us, but they’ll stay at a distance so they can treat the injured.  
“Selyne sends her blessing,” Chanyeol added, looking at you.  “She also wanted me to return this to you.”
Chanyeol stretched out his hand, holding out a familiar black sheath with a leather band. The silver guards and the pommel of the sword seemed to glow in the daylight.
 “So that’s where that went,” You mumbled, more to yourself. You looked up at Chanyeol after you had grabbed the sword. “Thank you.”
He waved his hand. “This is important.”
So, what now? Sehun asked, Wait for the reinforcements?
I suppose so, Junmyeon answered, before eyeing you and Chanyeol. He turned to face Sehun. Mother actually wanted me to talk to you about something. Come on, let’s go. 
What on earth could she want you to nag me for at a time like this? I—
Junmyeon bared his teeth, growling in a move that surprised the three of you Sehun’s words died abruptly. Sehun, he hissed, eyes darting between the youngest wolf, and you and Chanyeol, Come on. 
...Oh. Oh! Okay. Yeah. It’s probably that… thing I was talking about with her yesterday. Okay, yeah, let’s go.
The two wolves stalked off, Junmyeon nagging the entire time.
You looked up at Chanyeol, before tying the leather band securely around your waist. “Alright, we have some time to kill. Do… do you wanna talk about that night?”
Chanyeol slumped forward, looking downwards. When he looked back up, he nodded. You leaned against a tree, crossing your arms.
“I was an ass,” Chanyeol admitted. “I was unfair to you. But… I don’t know, Y/N. I’m just… I was terrified. I’ve never felt so vulnerable with someone else, before.”
“Chanyeol…”
“I love you. I don’t—I don’t know when or how it happened. And I was so angry when I didn’t go after you. And then when I finally did, it was too late. We didn’t find you. I just… lost it kind of.”
He showed you his right hand, where the knuckles were bruised and cut.
“What did you even do, punch a tree?” You asked, furrowing your eyebrows.  
He pursed his lips, ears turning red. “Well…”
You bit back a laugh, and tried hard to hold back the smile trying to break onto your face. 
“Oh, gods.”
“Shut up,” He huffed, trying to hold back his own smile now.
“You’re… you’re really something,” You said. Chanyeol shrugged and his face fell again.
“I fucked up. I shouldn’t have—”
“No, I shouldn’t have pushed you away,” You countered, “I was scared, too. Terrified. But after everything that’s happened since then, I know what I want. I want to stay here, with you, and I want to protect this place.”
“Y-you’re gonna stay?”
You looked down, shutting your eyes. You thought over the life you’d had in Ironbend, all of the friends and family you’d ever known. All of them united under one cause, and here you were, about to throw it all away. Guilt swam in your chest at the idea of having to consider them enemies.
“I want to be with you,” You hummed, grabbing his hand, “And if they knew about us, they would kill me.”
His hand squeezed yours. “I’m not going to let them.”
You smiled sadly. “I’m not going to let them hurt you, either.”
He opened his mouth to say something, when the sound of rustling in the distance caused him to turn his head. Instantly, the two of you reached for your weapons.
It’s them, Sehun called, running back into the clearing. It’s time.
You looked at Chanyeol, who squeezed your hand again. “Let’s do this.”
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This would have been a lot faster had it been summer. So many animals were hibernating, and while there were still more animals than there were humans, you still wondered whether or not it would be enough. These animals didn’t have the types of weapons that the humans did, save for your sword, bow and arrow, and Chanyeol’s dagger. 
A total of 361 animals showed up. Chanyeol’s four brothers, and a total of 97 wolves from different packs scattered throughout the Spearwood, for a total of 101 wolves. It made sense to you that the majority of animals would be wolves, given that Selyne was the one that was threatened the most. Other troops included 51 birds of prey, 46 foxes, 29 coyotes, 32 bears, 55 deer, 19 raccoons, 11 lynxes and surprisingly enough, 17 squirrels. 
You weren’t sure whether to be surprised by the fact that squirrels had decided to show up or that the vast majority of them—along with the raccoons—came armed with relatively large jagged rocks to throw at the small army. 
At first, the animals were skeptical of your plan. You didn’t blame them. A human, a foreigner, trying to lead them into battle? It didn’t sound safe.
The plan was simple enough. Wait until the troops reached one of the streams, so that it would be difficult for them to cross. Start an aerial attack with the birds of prey, the squirrels and the raccoons, then the front line of animals would attack the back line. The second, third and fourth lines would attack all around, and eventually the lines would open up towards the north, in an effort to push them back. The deer would be waiting past the stream, out of sight, waiting to work on the injured with their magic. You made sure to explain to them how the guns worked, and what needed to be done to heal the wounds. 
The troops would be given a wide berth on all sides. The signals to attack would be given via howls, or in the case of the birds of prey, a screech.
Each wolf would be leading from a different direction. Junmyeon would be leading the front line with Chanyeol. Jongin would lead the second line, Kyungsoo the third, and Sehun the fourth lines. 
You would be on the front line as well. As the groups separated, the forest seemed to fill with fog. You followed Junmyeon and Chanyeol, who were following the scent of the human troops as they led your group of about 50 or so animals. The only sound you could hear was the sound of snow crunching beneath you. You could barely see anything as the fog hanging overhead seemed to seep into the forest the closer and closer you got. You tried desperately not to think of your dream. 
The wind blew harder as well, whipping your hair every which way, drying your eyes. Snow fell even heavier. It became slightly harder to trudge through it.
As your group came to its waiting point, one of the birds—a hawk, you saw—flew overhead before flying back up into the fog overhead. That was the signal to stop and wait.
Junmyeon stopped, turning back to the group. Chanyeol held his hand up, signalling for everyone to stop and wait. 
You couldn’t see the troops yet, but you knew that they weren’t too far away. The dense treeline simply made it difficult to see anything that wasn’t a hundred meters away. All you could do now was wait. Your eyes met Chanyeol’s for a second, and he flashed you a soft smile. You looked him once over, your heart doing a backflip when it saw the opal necklace resting against his shirt.
“Be safe,” He mouthed at you, and you nodded as he pulled down his mask. 
“You, too.”
The silence of the forest was shattered by a gunshot. You both turned to face the direction the sound was coming from, which was straight ahead. You forced yourself to take deep breaths, flexing your fingers. Your fingertips were numb from the cold. A second gunshot echoed through the forest, your stomach began to sink.
Gripping your bow, you tried to recall how many bows you had in your quiver. 35, 36? No more than 37, that was for sure.
Y/N, You heard Junmyeon say, flinching when a third gunshot came. You nodded once in his direction. Get on. Chanyeol will get off once we’re close enough. Your bow won’t work up close. 
“Okay,” you mumbled, approaching them slowly. “We’re not too heavy?”
It’ll be fine, the wolf huffed, Just don’t take too much time with those arrows.
“Got it,” You answered, getting on, right behind Chanyeol. You made a mental note to suggest a saddle for them—if they knew what a saddle was, anyway. 
“Hold on to me,” Chanyeol murmured, “Don’t pull out your bow until I say so.”
You nodded. “Be careful. Both of you.” 
A fourth gunshot sounded, and you wrapped your arms around his torso.
“I’m gonna kiss you so hard when this is over,” Chanyeol whispered.
Gods, Sehun’s right, Junmyeon grumbled, You two are disgus—
A shrieking noise rang across the forest, and all of the hairs stood up on your body as you registered as the sound of a hawk’s screeching.
Now! Junmyeon yelled, beginning to charge forward, all of the other animals running behind you.
“Wait for my signal,” Chanyeol told you, “Stay alert.”
You didn’t reply, too focused on thinking about what was about to happen. As Junmyeon and the other animals weaved through the trees, you began to see something in the distance, barely outlined in the fog. Two more gunshots sounded, sparks glowing for a split second in the mist, perfectly giving away their location. 
They were closer now. You could hear murmuring, shouting. The sound of running water, albeit a bit softer than the voices. Any second now, they would hear you.
“Now!” Chanyeol told you, as a large, dark mass came into view, slightly blurred by the fog. You pulled away from Chanyeol, pulling off your bow and nocking an arrow quickly.
“What is that noise!?” You heard a voice yell. You couldn’t recognize who it was.
“STAND FIRM!” A loud voice ordered. Jongdae. 
A single figure burst into view, and you knew it had to be a scout. The young man turned, and his eyes widened when he spotted you, grimacing as you aimed your arrow at him. 
His mouth opened wide, and he began to screech, “From the nor—!”
Your arrow pierced his chest, and you forced yourself to look away as he fell to the ground.
“The north!” You heard Baekhyun say, “FACE NORTH! NOW!”
You pulled out another arrow and nocked it as well, just as the troops appeared in your line of vision. You spotted Baekhyun almost immediately, but couldn’t bring yourself to aim directly at him. Instead, as the animals charged, you let it fly into someone right behind him, hitting the man straight in the eye. The arrow whizzed past Baekhyun’s head. His eyes widened momentarily when he saw you on top of the wolf, sitting behind Chanyeol’s familiar face, before it twisted into a hateful sneer. 
“Attack!” He cried, “Fire, NOW!”
The first gunshots were fired, thick rocks still raining down on the men, hawks and eagles swooping down to claw at their faces. 
As Junmyeon turned, he slowed down enough for Chanyeol to jump off. The man pulled out his dagger, charging straight for a soldier of similar stature. 
Your turn, Y/N, Junmyeon said, You run out of arrows and I’ll call in the second line. 
“On it!” You answered, aiming another arrow. 
The two of you made an unlikely duo, working surprisingly well. Junmyeon knew to run slightly away from the fighting, because up close your arrows wouldn’t be much help. Running parallel to the front line, you fired arrow after arrow into the crowd. You even managed to get him to dodge a few bullets. One grazed his side, causing him to yelp, and you countered by sending your arrow into the neck of the man who shot at him. 
Truthfully, you tried not to aim at the people you knew. It was too difficult, seeing their shock and the look of betrayal cross their faces for a split second before you fired your arrow. But that was difficult, because everyone knew you, the same way they knew their father. 
You couldn’t imagine what they must have been thinking, to see someone who they thought would become their leader in the future fighting alongside their supposed enemies. 
All around you, chaos reigned. The rock flinging had slowed down, but birds were still diving down to attack men at random. The men at the other side of the troops were trying to spread out, to extend the front line, but it didn’t seem to be working very well. In the distance you watched two men try to fend off a grizzly bear. You had to turn your attention elsewhere, but from the looks of it, they weren’t winning.
Soon enough, you were down to your last arrow. Which, in a way, was good, because you could tell Junmyeon was beginning to slow down. The sooner he had less weight to carry, the better.
Do you see Chanyeol? Junmyeon asked, and your eyes scanned the front line, stopping when they landed on Chanyeol fighting hand to hand with a soldier. He was on the other side of the battlefield. “I see him,” You answered, “Junmyeon, let me off now and call in the second line!”
What about you? He asked as you slid off his back, firing your final arrow into a man aiming at a bar, cringing when you recognized him as the baker’s son. “I’ll be fine,” You insisted, slinging your bow across your chest, before pulling out your sword, “Just call them, now!”
Taking off before he could answer, your legs set off. As you ran, you assessed the damage. Some animals lay injured or dying, others running off as they got injured, probably to circle around to the deer.
Your breath puffed out as you made your way towards Chanyeol. You heard people call your name, some even calling out for help, but you refused to spare them any glances. You wondered if they had seen you charging in… they probably hadn’t.
When you were about fifty meters from Chanyeol, someone stepped in front of you. Looking up to meet their eyes, you saw Minseok, holding his spear up and eyeing you defensively. 
“Get out of here and they might just let you live,” He grunted. You held your sword out, eyeing the movements of his right arm. 
“As if you would let the gods live,” You quipped, “In the grand scheme of things, I’m no one.”
“Y/N, I don’t want to have to do this.” His voice was shaky, glancing to the side to avoid your eyes. “We’ve been friends for years, I would never forgive myself if I had to—”
Thwap! You turned the blade so that when you hit him with it, the flat end hit the side of his head. The edge still drew some blood, though, and Minseok stumbled back, giving you just enough time to lift your leg, kicking him square in the chest. He stumbled back even further before falling to the ground, breathless. You hopped closer, hoping to knock him unconscious without hurting him too much.
Looking at him, your heart ached. As you lumbered over him, grabbing the collar of his shirt, you frowned. “I’m sorry,” You murmured, before knocking his head into the ground once, twice, three times, until his eyes rolled back into his head and his body went limp.
You had no time to check whether or not he was still breathing, instead standing straight up and taking a deep breath before starting to run again. As you did, you heard Junmyeon’s howl echo across the forest. Weaving through the trees, you knew more help would be here soon. 
And it did, the second line appearing towards the south within a matter of seconds, sandwiching the troops between two groups of animals. As you got closer to Chanyeol, you felt something pull you back by the cloak, letting out a yelp as you fell to the ground. You fell on your butt, pain traveling up your back. Looking back to see what had snagged your cloak, you watched as Baekhyun ran past you in an attempt to get to Chanyeol, who had his back turned as he fought off another man. Baekhyun didn’t so much as spare you a glance.
You stumbled to your feet, eyes widening as you watched Baekhyun pull out his sword. Your feet somehow seemed to fly across the snow, your body going into overdrive. You’d seen this strategy before. Someone would distract the target, only for Baekhyun to come in and strike them down from behind.
You knew what would happen if you didn’t stop it. Slowing down for only a moment, you picked up a large rock that had to have hit some poor man in the head. Not even hesitating, you chucked the bloody rock at Baekhyun’s feet, causing him to stumble. 
That gave you the advantage, making a beeline in front of him, practically back to back to Chanyeol. Your smaller sword met Baekhyun’s with a loud clang, the look on his face turning incredulous when he saw that it was you. 
Baekhyun had always been a better swordsman. Every time you had asked him to help you train, it always ended with him pinning you down. But right now, you couldn’t afford to lose. You simply couldn’t.
“You just had to come and ruin everything,” He grunted, countering with a parry. You blocked it, your swords sliding against each other. You pushed him back, breathing heavily. 
“I’m not gonna let you destroy this place,” You answered. He let out a scoff.
“What are you gonna do, huh? You never miss a shot,” Baekhyun growled, “And yet you missed me. What is it, honey, still got a soft spot for me?” 
Your swords met again, your arms buckling with the strain. You couldn’t meet his eyes, you realized as your eyes filled with tears.
“We have you outnumbered. Call off the attack now,” You pleaded, sounding too desperate for your own good, “It’s not too late, Baek—”
“Oh, darling, I’m not stopping, not until I destroy all of it. Not if I have to burn—” His sword slashed forward, barely missing you as he roared, “—The entire Spearwood to the ground, not if I have to burn down all of Ironbend to get rid of every piece of fucking vermin in this place.”
You stepped forward, tears burning your dry eyes, and that was your mistake. In your attempt to parry, he sidestepped you, knocking you to the ground with a harsh shove. Your blade fell out of your hand, landing in the snow.
As you fell to the ground, you met Baekhyun’s gaze for the first time since your swords clashed. You were surprised to find tears streaking down his face, as well. His eyes looked like that of a wild animal, bewildered and desperate as he lifted his sword, ready to come down at you.
“And if I have to kill you too, my love?” He let out a single humorless laugh, a sad, cold smile gracing his beautifully twisted features, “So be it.” 
Your eyes squeezed shut as his sword began to fall, curling into yourself as you did. You didn’t want your last sight of the man you once loved to be this distorted image of him, drunk on the pursuit of power. All you wanted was the end.
Only, the end never came. Not in the way you expected it to, at least. Because a split second later, you heard Baekhyun gasp, and a deep, guttural groan came from above you. 
Your eyes snapped open, face contorting into an expression of horror as you saw the tip of Baekhyun’s sword peeking out of Chanyeol’s back, dripping blood. You watched as Chanyeol lurched forward, Baekhyun pulling off the mask, glaring up at his long lost brother with what you could only describe as bitter rage.
“You look just like the old man,” He muttered spitefully, “Go figure.”
Chanyeol didn’t answer, groaning out before coughing. Blood spilled from his lips. 
Your heart began to pound, and all of the noise around you seemed to fade into nothingness. All you could focus on was the blood staining Chanyeol’s tattered shirt a dark red, dripping onto your pants and his white pelt. The only noise you could hear was your own labored breathing and your blood roaring in your ears, not feeling the trembling in your necrotic arm.
You barely even registered the ear shattering wail that echoed across the battlefield, inky black tearing at your skin as they branched out everywhere. Your eyes rolled up back into your head, your body convulsing. 
You didn’t see the way they wrapped around every being within a thirty meter radius, squeezing with a vengeance. You didn’t see the way the wolves, who were on the other side of the battlefield stopped in awe to watch as you attempted to destroy everything in your path. You didn’t see Baekhyun get ripped away from Chanyeol, getting lifted some ten feet into the air as his eyes widened in terror, because he had only ever seen you hold back one of these fits. You didn’t see the few men who weren’t in your grip freeze, only able to watch as men and animals alike struggled to free themselves from you. 
You didn’t see. But Chanyeol did. He watched as all of this happened in less than ten seconds, before one tendril pulled out the sword, causing him to tumble to the ground right next to you. He fell to his hands and knees, wheezing and spitting out more blood that fell from his mouth.
When he managed to register what was going on, he crawled over to you, one hand pressing down on a rapidly bleeding stab wound he couldn’t even feel due to the adrenaline rushing through his body. He watched as your hand bent back and forth, contorting impossibly. Cringing at the sound of the cracking bones and your incessant screaming, he leaned over you and reached out his free hand. 
If this didn’t stop, you would kill everyone and everything in your grip and get yourself killed in the process. He grabbed your free hand with all the strength he could muster, trying to ignore the stiffness in your joints. His fingers tried to get your own fingers to grip the opal on your necklace, but nothing happened. 
“Please,” He wheezed, “Please, Y/N.”
With your cries ringing in his ears, he ripped his hand from the stab wound and touched your necklace, staining your neck red as he did, before bringing your hand to his neck, from where a second opal was dangling. His necklace, the one you had returned to him only an hour or so prior.
He coughed, cringing again as blood splattered across your face. “I’ve got you,” He croaked, “That—that night, when you asked me to make it stop, Y/N, I’m—I’m here, I’m trying. Please.”
Your screaming began to quiet, and his voice dropped to a panicked whisper. “Pl—please, Y/N. Please.”
He knew it must have taken less than a few seconds, but it truly did seem like an eternity to him. The tendrils recoiled back into your arm, letting go of all of the creatures you’d had in your grip. Baekhyun fell into the snow a few feet away from you, the wind knocked out of him. Your screaming stopped, and your bones snapped into place, but your sobs didn’t stop, not as your body wracked with pain as the aftershocks kicked in. 
The shock wore off on the remaining men within a minute or so, most of them beginning to flee north, dropping their weapons as they went. Jongdae came forward, already having guided an unconscious Minseok onto his reindeer. “Baekhyun, we have to go now.”
Baekhyun looked up, breathing unevenly. “No, not before I kill h—”
“There’s no time!” Jongdae barked hurriedly. “He’s gonna die anyway, look at what you did to him. And the more you stay, especially after everyone heard what you said about burning Ironbend to the ground, the worse it’s gonna be for you. So get on the damn reindeer, now.” 
Baekhyun faltered, sneering before hurrying onto the reindeer. Your eyes cracked open as Jongdae got on the third reindeer, and they rode off north, presumably to lick their wounds and try and explain everything to the council.
You looked up, just as Chanyeol toppled over on top of you. You ignored the screaming in your arms and the tension in your jaw as you rolled the pair of you over, eyes brimming with tears again when the smell of blood hit your nose. 
He looked so pale, beneath you. Your hands pulled his head gently onto your lap, before one of them began cradling his head. The other tried desperately to press down on the wound, but the stiffness in your arms didn’t help much.
“You can’t die like this,” You whispered hoarsely, “I just came back.”
He managed to quip a smile. “You’ll be alright,” He crooned, one hand limply. “It’s—it’s your turn now, to ride with my br—my brothers.”
“No,” You begged.
Chanyeol! You both turned your heads as the four brothers in question ran up to the both of you.
“Hey,” Chanyeol murmured, as if he wasn’t bleeding out beneath you, “That wasn’t... very fun. I… I don’t wanna do that again.”
You idiot, Junmyeon said, voice trembling, the usual chastising tone he had now empty. What’s mother gonna say when she finds out you went and got yourself killed?
You can’t die, you ass, Sehun added. You can’t.
He’s not going to. 
Your head snapped up, just in time to watch two figures leap into view, a third lumbering behind them, a fourth flying overhead. Quickly, just as everyone else registered that it was the gods, your head bowed in respect.
Beval landed on a branch overhead, the fog clearing. Selyne and Emyr stopped before you, as Mirren began to round up the remaining animals, directing them across the stream.
Chanyeol, Selyne murmured, tone anxious. You never would have expected that from her. What have you done?
“What I had to do to keep you all safe,” He answered, meeting the she-wolf’s gaze. His eyes moved to look at Emyr. 
“My king. I’m sorry for all the loss the forest has felt today.”
Emyr shook his head.  It will mourn, but it will forever be grateful for the sacrifice you all made to keep it safe. We will honor you. Heroes, all of you.
You were trembling as you kept your head down, trying to memorize each corner of his face. Every mole, every blemish, every eyelash.
Even you, Y/N.
Your head snapped up, meeting the gaze of the deer god with your tearful eyes. “Th-thank you, great king,” You replied, “But we only did what was right.”
Indeed. But I do believe you deserve more than honor. You’ve sacrificed much. Daresay, I think you’ve proved yourself to me and to the forest.
You didn’t know why your heart sank. Despite this being what you set out to do, you didn’t feel victorious. “Oh,” You murmured, unsure what to say as Chanyeol shifted his head below you.
Oh? Selyne quipped, You’re being bestowed a gift by a god and that’s all you can say?
“I don’t want it,” You blurted, more tears running down your face. You couldn’t control your mouth even if you wanted to, shaking your head. All you could do was weep and stare down at Chanyeol. The light in his eyes seemed to be getting dimmer. “Give it to him, please. He’s done more for this forest than I ever could. Please heal him, my king, please.”
Fascinating. You would allow yourself to die if it meant that Chanyeol would live?
“Y/N, don’t do this,” Chanyeol whispered. You shook your head at him, before nodding at Emyr. 
“Yes, absolutely, yes. Without a doubt. Please don’t let him die.”
What would happen to us if I, as the king of this forest, simply allowed all of my subjects to live in their time of dying? Maybe this is for the best, child. This is his fate.
“No, I can’t let that happen!”
Why not?
“Because I love him. Please, please don’t let him die.”
Emyr stared at you for a long time. Until finally, he gave you the closest thing a deer could give to a smile. Very well, he agreed. You’ve learned, girl. You’ve let go of your pride and you have sacrificed everything you previously had for our home. I will heal him… and I will heal you, as well. You’ve earned it. Both of you.
You sighed in relief, slumping over Chanyeol. The deer god approached you both, before pressing something akin to a kiss on your forehead, and then doing the same thing to Chanyeol’s hand. 
 For a moment, nothing happened. But then, your body seemed to sing as it jumped into the air of its own accord, Chanyeol right next to you. You watched as the wound began to close, before you felt the sensation of a weight being lifted off of your shoulders. Your eyes moved to your arm, watching as it returned to its natural color, the scars of the bite Sehun had given you fading. 
You landed on your feet, managing to catch Chanyeol before he fell to the ground. He groaned, slinging his arm around your shoulder. 
“How do you feel?”
“Like shit,” He admitted, “But I’ll live.” 
He faced Emyr. “Thank you, my king. I can never fully repay you for what you’ve done.”
So long as you continue to protect us as you have all your life, consider your debt repaid. 
You bowed your own head in respect. “Thank you. I promise to protect the forest until the day I die.” 
I never would have expected it to end this way, Selyne said. I never thought I would thank you for saving my son and protecting me.
You looked at Chanyeol, who smiled weakly at you.
Um, I hate to ruin the mood, Kyungsoo mumbled, But they didn’t actually surrender. They retreated. They’ll be back. What’ll we do then?
Your smile faded, heaving a deep sigh. Baekhyun was still out there, currently on his way back to Ironbend—but he wouldn’t get off easily for essentially leading 120 men on what as basically a suicide mission and getting more than half of them killed. And he would definitely get in trouble for what he told you about being willing to burn Ironbend to the ground. 
With luck, this would mean severe consequences for him. His reputation would likely suffer, and he might even get booted from the council. But now that you were gone, who was left to govern after your father passed away? You could only hope someone like Yixing would pass on to lead. 
Truthfully, you weren’t sure how to answer. But in your silence, Chanyeol spoke up, reaching for one of your hands and squeezing it tightly.
“We’ll be alright,” He said, “Come what may—we’ll be alright.” 
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taglist: @delightpcy​ @chanyeolscoon​ @xxbluestrifexx​ @imsoba​ @chogiwhy127​ @always-wishing-for-rain @riajae​
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scorsoneamelia · 3 years
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oh my god ok so i decided to write a little smth about my girl amelia because i love writing and i used to do it all the time but i stopped and i rlly rlly wanna get back into it
so i wrote smth that takes place at the end of s17 after the amelink proposal 
TW: mention of drugs/addiction/death
                Sometimes --- more often that usual, it feels like the world is ending, like life will never slow down, no matter how many times she wishes and she prays that she'll be able to wake up and it will feel like a breath of fresh air; to be able to wake up and have the rays of the morning sunshine creeping it's way through the dark curtains, hitting her boyfriend's face at an angle that made him look absolutely breathtaking, an angel sent from God himself, so beautiful that it'd take her breath away, and maybe even her heart would skip a beat-- literally. And then his eyes would flutter open so delicately and the rays would make his blue eyes sparkle, looking even more blue than she ever remembered.
             But instead, she woke up with the alternative.Alone--oh, ever so lonely. He had sprung up the big question, getting down on one knee and pouring his absolute heart out, even giving her four rings because the boy was worried and conflicted on exactly what he wanted the ring to look like. It wasn't like she didn't want to, or that she didn't love him because oh my god, she loved him. Loved him so much that sometimes it made her chest feel tight and it made her want to understand what she did to deserve someone like him, someone as amazing as him.
             You challenge me... you-you.. thrill me. You.. impress the hell out of me.
              On top of the world-wide pandemic, Scout-- Meredith's kids, her mind is going a million miles a minute and for once she wants to take a step back-- out of her own mind, her own life and just breathe.
           And there's definitely nobody on Earth like you.
            She can't get the image out of her head, the heartbreak that spread across his face, the absolute sadness and pain that washed away the big big smile he had previously been giving her. She didn't mean to just blank and stare at him with no words, no expression-- she just froze.
            So now, she woke up alone, her boyfriend not beside her. She felt like she couldn't catch her breath and maybe it was because life sucked or maybe it was because of the nightmare that kept flashing through her head, in bits of pieces like a flash on a camera. Appearing back into her mind for a second before she completely forgets what the dream was even about. It was about her father-- it's always about her father. But this time, it was about her father-- Ryan, Derek and even Christopher. Four of the most important people to her; gone. The curtains were closed, the rays couldn't peak their way inside, or maybe it was because it was ten o'clock at night-- the room so so dark, almost as dark as her mind as been lately.
        Meetings had been harder to attend, the pandemic had only been allowing them to do meetings over a computer screen, in the same atmosphere that is making her feel like she's going crazy. Scout takes all of her free time away-- actually all of her time. She loves him, more than she loves herself but for months now she hasn't been able to breathe, especially with her nieces and nephew also needing all of hers and Link's full attention. She's doing this because they're her family and Meredith is on a vent, the world trying to take even more away from her.
        A day or two at work is what she needed this week to feel like she was alive again, cutting into someone's brain to give her some kind of feeling, even if it was just adrenaline. Sometimes, Amelia wishes that the adrenaline was enough. Was enough feeling for her to keep going-- god, she wants to give up so badly.  
        So, that night instead of waking to her boyfriend's beautiful blue eyes, she woke up to an empty room and an empty house because her sister was nice enough to take the kids for a day, the day after her wedding because hell-- she was that nice. She broke down, tears staining her cheeks and she was worried she wasn't going to stop.
         You're loud and fearless and it scares the crap out of me. How am I supposed to call you up and tell you that I've been shot? I can't tell you about my pain-- I don't want you to know that pain exists.
          Derek--- she missed her big brother more than she has ever missed anyone. Her father being an exception but Derek, her favourite person in the entire world was taken from her too soon and once again it felt like her world was crashing down around her. His voice was repeating in her head like a broken record and it was loud--- so loud, was she crazy? 
         You're my favourite sister.
         She couldn't breathe, it was like she was reliving the news all over again. Her chest felt like it was caving in and Derek's voice was still ringing in her head, like he was haunting her. 
          "We did that." Amelia nodded, standing next to her older brother after a successful brain surgery that saved the mother of her friend's son. 
           "We did that." He agreed. "We gotta publish." She joked, Derek looking over at her and replying with, "Oh hell yeah we do... You ever think about doing drugs again-"
           "Remember this?" Amelia interrupted.
           "I was gonna say call me and I'll fly down to Los Angeles to knock some sense into you." He joked, causing them both to laugh. "But okay... remember this. But that doesn't work,"
         "Yeah, you can totally kick my ass." She joked, extending her arm to shove him in the arm gently, both of them laughing while he pulled her into a tight hug. "Done. I love you." Derek said softly while he tightly held onto his little sister, and she was hugging him back as if she never wanted to let him go.
        Her favourite person in the entire world was gone and she didn't know what to do anymore, grief comes in waves and it never goes away. It's true what they say about grief-- it gets better with time...  because it does and she knows that better than anyone else. But what they don't say is that when it does come back, it's like a wave hitting you when you least expect it and then you're drowning, trying to catch your last breath before you're suffocating.
       "You didn't kill Ryan," the girl with the dyed red hair had stated, someone that had became her friend after her first night at the treatment centre.
       "Excuse me?" Amelia asked, mostly taken by surprise because it was in front of a group of people, a literal group of people.
        "You didn't kill him. You might've wrote the prescriptions but he took the drugs himself." Everyone was listening now, her secrets now out in the open. Secrets she never shared with the group.
          "Shut up, Hayley." Amelia snapped. 
           "And that guilt-- that's gonna kill you. That's what killed my best friend, it was guilt. Cause her mom was so freaked that she had a breakdown and her dad left-" It was like it was just the two of them, direct eye contact with each other. It was like everyone else that was in the room disappeared. 
          "Hayley... you don't know what the hell you're talking about, you're a child and you need to shut up." She cut the girl off, getting frustrated that she was even sharing her own personal secrets with everyone else. She could feel the pain rising in her chest, a tight feeling stuck at the bottom of her throat. She didn't believe that.. she did kill him. 
         "You didn't.. kill him!" Hayley tried again, the girl clearly wanting to get her point across. "Okay? He took the drugs himself, you didn't make him take them. He took them himself! You gotta get that, before I left here.. you have to get that. Because if you don't-- you're not gonna make it," Amelia's vision was blurry now, the tears drowning her sad blue eyes. "And I need you to make it. I know you loved him, and I know he loved you. But he took... the drugs... himself."
         Amelia finally broke down, sobs taking over her body. They were loud cries, cries of pain, cries for help. There was pain all over her body, rushing throughout her body like waves crashing against the shore. Burying her head into her hands, pulling her legs onto the chair and pulling them against her chest, trying to make herself feel small because that's how she felt--- small.
         It was cold in the room, and she was numb. Memories were flooding in, Derek, Ryan, Christopher-- her father. The room was cold, almost as cold as the hotel room was when Ryan died. He died-- right beside her. Her boyfriend died right before they were going to get sober, be happy together.. he died. He didn't make it. And no matter how many times she thinks back to that day in rehab when Hayley reminded her that it was not her fault, it was her fault and not a day goes by where she doesn't blame herself. 
         She wasn't crying anymore, she was just sitting in her bed with her legs pressed against her chest, no emotion and no thoughts other than the faces of everyone she has ever lost. The short moments she spent with Christopher, her dad getting shot and Derek holding her so tight that she couldn't move, Owen telling her the news about Derek dying. Link hadn't checked in, he hadn't called, he hadn't texted and she didn't blame him. He was hurt, like he deserved to be and she couldn't be mad at him for not showing up at the house to see her. But she did need him, she needed someone, but her one sister was in a hospital bed with machines breathing for her, and her other sister was with her husband and the kids--- her kid. 
          After she ended up forcing herself out of bed, her mind still loud and her entire body numb, a lump constantly sitting at the bottom of her throat--- she was walking through the front doors of a quiet, dark and small bar. Not many people were there, just a few people eating some food with their friends, some had a beer in front of them. Amelia doesn't know how she got here but she was sitting down at the bar, blue eyes heavy and sad, old makeup from earlier in the day staining her cheeks. 
         "You look like you need a drink," The bartender spoke as he made his way over to her. He was tall, sandy blonde hair with green eyes, he definitely didn't hurt the eyes to look at. "What can I get ya?"
         Her sad eyes slowly glanced up at him and she didn't answer. She didn't know what she was doing-- a drink? She hasn't a drink in a few years, the last time being when Meredith was in the hospital for being attacked. It's been a while and she thought she was doing good-- better. She thought about Link, and Scout, who needed him. Scout needed her, more than he needed anyone. It was almost enough for her to stand up and leave the bar until her mouth opened and she was ordering a drink. "Vodka tonic."
         "Coming right up." The boy winked, moving to the opposite side of the bar to mix her drink. Amelia thought she'd feel some kind of regret, but instead she continued to sit there; numb.
           The glass was placed in front of her and her hands were reaching for it, as she lifted it to her lips and took a sip, the feeling of the Vodka burning her throat. Memories continuing to flood her mind, only causing her to drink back the drink faster, which only caused the bartender to place another drink in front of her. 
-----
             Five drinks; she already drank five drinks and at this point she could feel the alcohol in her bloodstream, already making her feel much more calm and more relaxed. The feeling of being drunk again was a good feeling; scary good. Scary to the point where she was worried about slipping again, which is what she already did. She's at a bar, five drinks in, almost onto her sixth with a young male; attractive male sitting beside her making small talk. She already slipped.
            She had eight missed calls from Maggie, none from her boyfriend. Her state of mind was making her more and more angry, angry that he hasn't checked in. Sober Amelia would be telling herself, it's not his fault, you said nothing to his proposal. Give him space. But drunk Amelia, is angry, pissed, hurt--- angry that he stopped checking in. He told her he'd check in, he promised her he'd check in but instead he went to his best friend, Jo's house and she hasn't heard from him. 
          "Where are you headed to after this?" The green eyed boy was moving closer, his eyes trailing down her body as she sat there, body feeling like she was floating. 
           "Nowhere with you," she answered. "I have a boyfriend." Would Link be still considered her boyfriend even though she never responded to his proposal? 
           "That's unfortunate," he sighed, pulling his drink up to his lips. "Where's your so-called boyfriend?"
           Jo's, is what she wanted to reply but it's not like the boy would know what she was talking about, nor did he even care, he was just wanting her to come home with him. "Just at home." 
           Her phone was buzzing on the table again, and she was already six drinks in. The memories that had previously filled her head were now gone and all she felt was dizzy. Dizzy, numb--- great. She felt great, amazing. Maggie was calling again and she was about to decline the call before she remembered why she might be calling. Scout.
          "Maggie, hey," Amelia answered, trying her best to sound sober. "So sorry, I was asleep." She was hoping that Maggie would believe her, despite her words slurring together.
          "Amelia, where are you actually? I just came by the house to drop the kids off and you're not home and I don't know where Link is, are you with him?" Fuck fuck fuck. She's so stupid, stupid for showing up to a bar knowing damn well that she'd have to take care of 4 kids by the end of the night. She had a debate with herself, debating on whether or not she should tell Maggie the truth or lie.
            "I was asleep, I had to run to the hospital for a consult," she lied. "I'm on way back." Amelia thought the lie was good, even though she was slurring. But Maggie didn't sound too convinced but she agreed that she'd see Amelia at the house before they both hung up the phone. 
            One more drink she told herself before she was dialling a cab so that she could get home safely because even though she slipped she can't be responsible for someone else dying.
-----
           It was late. Almost one in the morning when Amelia walked through the front door, stumbling is the right word to describe it. She assumed Maggie and the kids would be asleep but she was greeted with Maggie, her arms crossed in front of her chest as she stood up from the couch. 
           "It has been a long day," Amelia started, so obvious she was drunk. "My bedroom is calling my name."
           "Amelia," Maggie said, with so much sadness in her voice. Maggie was far from stupid, she was brilliant, a genius, she could see right through Amelia.
           "No questions, just bed." Amelia headed towards the stairs, swinging her bag over her shoulder before Maggie walked up to her, stepping in front of her to stop her from going up the staircase. Maggie made a face, a you smell like vodka face and then she was putting her hands on Amelia's shoulders and pulling her into a hug, a tight hug, so tight that the hug itself almost made Amelia break down into a puddle of tears. A hug is exactly what she needed, especially right now. "I'm sorry..." Were the only words Maggie could form and she just held her. One hand was pressed against the back of Amelia's head while the other was wrapped around her, it never seemed like she was going to let go. 
          Amelia was dizzy, and she was sad and she could barely stand so she used Maggie to hold herself up. "No," Amelia cried out, a single tear dripping off of her soft eyelashes. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, I did it again. I'm a mess, I did it again." 
          "No, no, no," Maggie said, pulling away from Amelia before brushing a single strand of hair out of her face and pushing it behind her ear. "You're not a mess."
           Amelia just stared at Maggie, her eyes heavy, her blue eyes drowning in a puddle of tears and Maggie could see the pain in her eyes and it made Maggie sad, she cared about Amelia so much. Before the two could exchange any other words, Scout was crying from his crib upstairs.
         "I'll get it," Amelia slurred, dropping her bag to the floor and stumbling backwards as she grabbed onto the railing of the staircase.
          "No," Maggie said sternly. "I'll do it, just go lay down, I'll join you after." Maggie helped Amelia up the stairs because honestly--- she thought she was going to fall down, the girl could barely walk. 
          Amelia was already laying in her bed, the room spinning around her and before she had even a minute to rest, she was running to the bathroom to empty out her stomach into the toilet. Six drinks didn't seem like very many but maybe it is for someone who hadn't had anything to eat because she forgot to and she hasn't had a sip of alcohol in a long time. She was doing so well, dammit.
          She wasn't alone for long because while Amelia was gripping onto the toilet bowl, knuckles turning white her hair was being pulled up and out of the way. Maggie was rubbing her back in a comforting way, trying anything that she could to help the girl.
         After puking, she stayed sat on the floor, sitting with her back against the wall and the room was still spinning. Maggie slid down the wall to sit beside her, pulling Amelia into her side. 
         "You're going to be okay," Maggie said, pulling Amelia closer to her and since the room was spinning so fast, she had to rest her head on Maggie's shoulder because she needed to sleep. "We'll start fresh tomorrow."
         She closed her eyes, taking deep breaths and even though the alcohol made her feel good, she also felt regret and shame. So much shame. She hated herself, she hated that she did this to herself again. 
          She did this to Scout.
          And to Link. And to everyone she cares about.
          Everyone she's ever lost would be so disappointed in her, she knew they would be because that's what she was. Disappointed in herself.
          But maybe she was right, one day at a time and even though she got to this point again, she'll try again tomorrow and hope and pray that she doesn't start spiralling.
          The last image in her head before she started to doze off was Derek and her dad, the most important people in her life. 
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redloftwingfeathers · 3 years
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I feel like talking about the shit Zelda not only had to put up with but also what she subconsciously summoned herself and you're going to sit and listen and maybe cry with me okay? Okay.
While I don't think that was very cash-money of 'Hylia' to make Zelda wait until she's reached true, unrelenting despair to finally find her light, it made me wonder how everything came into play that made her journey so painstakingly hard, and not just Hylia pulling fast ones from the clouds. (Trust me I wanted to blame the goddess so bad after that moving performance at the spring of power but wait!! there's more!)
Things I'm looking at are specifically Zelda's anxieties of wanting to be a scholar but having to throw herself to the dogs of religion to keep Rhoam happy, the HEAVY depression she carries with not just from the loss of her mother but also just constantly being berated by her father and feeling like she's not good enough for Hylia, the jealousy and anger she harbors towards Link in their beginnings and how it effects her growth.
All of these are things (coming from someone who is very mentally ill) are ingredients that distract Zelda from her goals, intentional or not.
Zelda has a classic case of "I wanna do This Thing (studying, traveling) but I have to do That Thing (religion, strict orders) instead and now the fun is sucked out of it and my mind is buzzing and now I don't know what to do girl (hylia) HELP"
What's even worse is despite her hand-picked maturity, she KNOWS what is right and what she needs to do (her level of self awareness is impeccable sometimes) but she is still just a child in the end, wanting to live her life without dictation, which causes frustration and anger and can lead to self-doubts.
Starting with the loss of her mother, Rhoam claims that Zelda did not cry at all during the ceremony, and that it proved to him he could still be a strong king with how unwavering his daughter was. And although that's shown as an "awe inspiring" moment, it shows Rhoam does not understand how the processing of grief registers differently amongst people, especially children. She may have not showed it when she was, what, 6? (Not every normal 6 year old understands the fragility of mortality) but you can definitely see it affects her later on as Zelda grows older. It may not be entirely visible at first, but the way they portray it in HWAoC (I know its not entirely canon but bare with me on this) she longs for her mother's advice and comfort when her pleas and ideas fall deaf on the king's ears. Her mother seemed to be a very wise and compassionate queen, where Rhoam is a wise and a very bite-the-bullet king.
When stakes are high he trusts what he thinks needs to be done, and he enforces Zelda to finish her training Because she is part of his plan to push back the calamity. He knows protocol, and there's no room for creative thinking when the land of Hyrule is in danger. (Disclaimer: I hate Rhoam but I can also try to see what Nintendo was doing. He's not intentionally mean, he's an assertive dad that wants to see his daughter succeed (and also hella depressed) but he's really fucking bad at it and comes off as a dickhead. He is the embodiment of a boomer that does things the old fashioned way to get things done).
But all of this pressure he is putting on her, taking away things that make her happy so they don't distract her from her duty, shooting down her ideas because he wouldn't know how to even approach it from his standpoint, it really does a number on Zelda and really births her insecurities.
No matter how hard she prays and dedicates herself to Hylia, it doesn't work. Her mind is distracted, filled with fear and very little hope that the magic isn't Working. What even kicks me in the jaw more is that she's putting all of her effort into these prayers, and it's not even her wish she's making. It's Rhoam's wish. Her Ancestral Family's wish. That's why it hasn't sparked. She's praying on the behalf of her father and ancestors and not herself because she firmly believes there's other ways to settle the score. Zelda knows the importance of her role but its just not clicking when someone else is forcing you to do it. It just doesn't work like that.
Moving onto her liaison with Link, she is, well, in the beginning very irritated with him. Even a little bit after being chosen by Fi. But I don't think she MEANS to be angry at Link, he didn't do anything wrong in all honesty. She shouldn't take out her anger on him, but she's jealous, and he exists...so like ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
When Link is suddenly chosen by the sword at a drop of a hat?? Yeah she's relieved, but there's also undertones of resentment. All of her Champions are here at the ready and she's still trying to figure out what shoe goes on first. She is the goddamn Princess of Hyrule, one who carries the blood of Hylia in her veins, and this random tiny knight who, mind you, fought tooth and nail to be her escort ends up finding his role before her? She is riding the struggle mule up Mount Lanayru (and I don't really blame her). And when she's exploring the shrines?? She makes it very clear to him she can work independently and does not need an escort, which although understood (freedom is a peace everyone strives for) she is careless regardless of her careful planning and efforts. She's a Princess, wandering Hyrule unarmed (and without her powers) with a horse as her only mode of transportation. You won't see yourself as a target even if they're pinned on your back, and with her determination to utilize these mysterious shrines as more Sheikah tech is being discovered is making her blind in remembering where she's placed in social status. It's dangerous, and I'm glad Link is there to see what she fails to see.
That's another thing too. As they progress and strengthen their friendship, Zelda sees Link as a mirror to question what her role really means. She uses him as guidance to help understand her situation, asking him "If you were told your whole life This is what you're meant to do, to take up your family's legacy...but one day realize this isn't what you want, would you still take the path you've been told to take?" In this case I think it's safe to say this is what Link knew he wanted. He loves being an aid to those in need, and becoming a knight despite following his father's path, this felt like his true calling. The spirit of the hero is VERY strong in his soul, and when he sees someone in need of help [Zelda] he's going to aid them whether they want it or not.
But Zelda still feels so lost, she feels so disconnected from her ancestors, as the previous daughters in the royal families were Given their powers at birth and meant to be awakened when the time has come. They were all given the gift of premonition, to be a medium for Hylia and a messenger of the gods, and overall able to keep Ganon away from the world no matter how many times he crawls back from the depths of hell. Being told your whole life you're meant to be like your ancestors, but not being able to fulfill any of those roles? It makes the past seem like one giant fairy tale when in you're in BotW Zelda's shoes.
No voices, no premonitions, no secret awakenings...Nothing.
At this moment, I finally understood why Urbosa said to Revali about Link. She said he is a constant reminder of Zelda's own failures. Link found his calling by following his instinct. Zelda has yet to figure out what she really wants, and is clouded by judgements not only from her father and people, but from herself too. With every passing day she is undergoing a meltdown, questioning if she is even meant to be apart of this whole plan anymore, probably something among the lines of "Was it meant to be someone else? I'm the only daughter, and yet I can't even do my one job." She lost everyone and everything, she's frightened, it feels like she's lost her faith in the gods, or even dare say, the gods lost faith in her.
But through absolute despair when Link just about gives his life for her protection, that's when it all clicked. She found her power and strength through Link, who was the one that, all this time, taught her about what she needed to do to awaken her powers without even directly telling her. Every conversation she had with him, she saw herself in Link. She saw all the effort he gave into becoming a royal knight, the unwavering determination in his eyes with every Lynel he slew, a never ending supply of optimism and hope no matter how high the stakes were. And yet he was also Free. He followed his path blindly, not even knowing where he'd end up, as long as he knew he was
able to protect those in need. And she wanted that.
He was her mirror, and Zelda managed to awaken herself when that mirror cracked.
Living the burden of being part of a prophecy and saying you're ready for anything, is very reckless. Understanding the heaviness that comes with sacrifice is not truly understood until it starts happening to you.
Zelda found her wish, her independence through Link. Her mind is finally clear and she understands what her role means in all of this.
She is meant to protect, to save, to understand more than just personal loss.
Zelda couldn't stand by idly anymore after everyone told her to do something else and let others handle the job. That was the last straw when Link stood in front of her, shield weak but at the ready when that guardian approached. She saw the desperation and said NO, which finally broke her seal. She chose to sacrifice herself, igniting her powers just as Hylia did for her people. She chose to save her last, literally dying hope, because Ganon cannot be fought alone.
He was the connection, the literal link, she needed to awaken her powers. And I just find that so fucking great.
Anyways thanks for coming to my TED talk I've been typing this for like 4 hours now
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