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Violet Evergarden Ever After: Chapter 2

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The Night and the Auto-Memories Doll

Everything went around.

From past to present and from present to future. The dead bodies that decayed within the soil would dissolve into the earth, and from the earth, too, would new living creatures be born. Within a few hours’ time, curtains made of stars and nightly shades would be covered over by curtains in the colors of dawn.

People went around as well.

Children would be born, muster out their voices, start walking and, once they became aware of their own selves, their stories would begin. A cycle of discovering passion, coming to know love, stopping to be children and, upon sympathizing with other families, birthing offspring just as their parents had done. A cycle of learning about the world, spreading information, teaching their knowledge to younglings without sparing any of it away and generating more such younglings. A cycle in which someone’s story was someone else’s encouragement, and those who were encouraged would conceive stories of their own.

Everything went around.

There was one cycle here. It was the story of a meager cycle that likely could happen anywhere in the world.

A man picked up a wild beast from a small island to which he had drifted. It was a beautiful beast, but it had been stocked with skills long before coming to his hands. Skills for slaughtering people with ease and seeking submission.

Their first meeting was terrible. His underling had attempted to lay his hands on the beast’s beauty. As if it were a given, the beast had killed his many subordinates, leaving only one person. That was him. Granting him both disaster and salvation at the same time, the beast had sought subservience in regards to the man.

The man fled around the island where all but himself had been murdered, but gave in and accepted the beast. The beast was useful, but also an existence that he could not handle. Be it morning, noon or night, his head was troubled with the beast, his heart unable to calm down.

Essentially, he was a man who did not want to be shackled by anything. After all, he had a past of being forced into submission by his household and parents. He had escaped from his responsibilities and his home, jumping off into the sea. The man, who had been born in a family that bore the name of a flower, had run away and gained freedom.

He yearned for it – for a freedom that no one could steal from him – more than anything. Even if he had to cast away his little brother for it. Therefore, the man had done the same in the beast’s case. The one who mattered most to him was himself. He wanted to break free from that horror. Most likely, he had cut off from himself a child in need of salvation.

Everything went around.

——O God, I want to .

Everything.

A voice that sounded like bells echoed.

“Captain,” it whispered, as if to tickle the man’s ears. “Captain Dietfried Bougainvillea.”

It was evening. A time when people were returning to their homes.

“What would you like to do?”

An orange light shone from the window inlaid with stained glass. With the sunset reflected on the elaborately designed interior decoration, the place itself looked like a single work of art.

“Could it be that, because of the impact earlier, your hearing has...”

It was supposed to be. The place where the person who called out so insistently and the person who intentionally ignored her were in was an art gallery that just recently had its interior and exterior finished.

“As if.”

“I am relieved. Then, I would like to ask if you have a plan.”

In a place they were not supposed to be at, the two who were not supposed to be together were kneeling on the floor in resignation.

“Captain.”

“.............................”

“The civilians are in a predicament.”

“................................”

“Captain Dietfried Bougainvillea.”

“............”

“What would you like to do?”

“..................”

“I would like to ask if you have a plan, by any chance.”

“.....................”

“The civilians are in a predicament.”

“........................”

“If I may offer my opinion, firstly, I could act as a decoy—”

“Be quiet, monster. Don’t keep repeating the same thing over and over. Don’t breathe either. I’m thinking right now.”

Dietfried Bougainvillea, a naval captain of Leidenschaftlich, eldest son of the Bougainvillea – a household of patriotic national heroes – and the man who had picked up Violet Evergarden in the past and brought her to this country, was covering his eyes with his hands due to having too much on his plate. The little bit of silence and darkness had brought him relief, but someone’s sobbing, the voice of a man reproaching it and the sound of a person being brutally kicked and tumbling down dragged him back to reality.

He had a severe headache. Whether it was caused by his anxiety or his injury, he had no idea. He put a hand on the back of his head and examined it, but only a bit of blood had come out.

In order to somehow spit such awful mood out of his body, he took deep breaths. He felt that he had become a little better, but the unpleasant sensation returned once he opened his eyes and cast his gaze at the woman next to him. A spoon of discomfort, rejection and fear each was thrown into Dietfried’s emotional vessels, set on fire and boiled up. However, the most prominent feeling was something else.

The woman who had been talking to him so insistently until a moment ago was now quiet just and not letting out a single breath as he had told her. Violet Evergarden.

Dietfried looked fixatedly at his former servant. The woman, whose appearance had transfigured considerably in comparison to when they had first met, bore a radiantly shining cold beauty, which was even more conspicuous under such tense circumstances. She was almost like an ice sculpture, Dietfried thought.

——Even though you used to stink like a wild beast...

She now smelled of nothing but flowers.

——...you turned out just as I’d imagined.

“You’re a siren.”

Silence.

“My little brother destroyed a train station just to keep you alive; you’re a siren through and through. I’m not into you, but my mental stability is wrecked right now, and I’m sensing the harmfulness and influence that your existence brings about in that. You’re unmatched when it comes to breaking things and causing problems.”

Dietfried had once told his brother that the beast could become a siren. He had meant to say so including all sorts of matters. This young woman named Violet was a creature that God had created by mistake and had not been born under a good star. When one was by her side, there were many of them.

“Damn troublemaker.”

Many problems. Even though she had not wished for it, she had been born this way. Under a star that attracted disasters.

——It goes round. All of it.

He ran and ran from her, yet they would end up meeting, thus Dietfried had started to think that it might be some sort of divine revelation at this point. Telling him to face the girl that he had thrown away.

Violet was still, hand on her brooch. He someway guessed that it was given to her by his younger brother. He felt like clicking his tongue. This girl might become the worst-ever wife whose hand his most beloved little brother was going to take.

——We can leave that for later; gotta overthrow this situation first.

Determined to fight this reality, Dietfried then turned his gaze towards the sight that spread out before his eyes. Women, men, elderly people – everyone was crouching on the floor with guns pointed at them regardless of anything. Obviously, the same applied to Dietfried and Violet.

Unexpected situations – situations in which they could not make a false move even if they were on their own, let alone in the presence of so many civilians – were responsible for this. On top of it, Dietfried was also saddled with someone that he had to protect despite not wanting to. Of course he would feel like clicking his tongue at it.

Perhaps they were thought to be lovers, as no one said anything even while they stayed close to each other.

“Hey, did you really stop breathing?”

She did not seem to be in agony, but her figure as she diligently obeyed made Dietfried feel uneasy.

“I was joking; breathe.”

Violet’s blue eyes blinked with a snap.

“Yes.”

And then, she finally let out a breath. Dietfried hated himself for being remotely relieved that she had safely started breathing again, was what he thought.

“Hey, you.”

“Yes.”

“From now on, follow my orders. Don’t act on your own accord.”

“All right.”

“I’m gonna save the civilians. It’s my duty. There’s no helping it, so I’m counting you in that math too... No idea what my little brother would do if he found out I’d let you die. Even if it weren’t on purpose, if anything that could kill you happened under these circumstances, I really have no way of knowing what he’d do. He’d probably hate me.”

“No, Captain, he—”

“Have some self-awareness, Monster. My foolish younger brother blew up a train station to let you live. This fact did turn into a subject of teasing towards Gil for no matter how much time passes from now, but if you think about it on normal terms, it’s out of the ordinary. That’s the way you’ve changed him. Damn witch...”

She was the tool that he had found and that used to exist for his sake. A woman who used to be a dog with no name. An orphan whom he had picked up from a solitary island, brought back with him, attempted to get the most out of yet was unable to, and then threw away.

Asset. Girl soldier. Automatic assassination doll. Witch.

——Even if I don’t want to, for now, I gotta protect this thing and take it home.

“I’ll save you, so you save me too, Witch.”

Fate went around, adding a chance meeting as the best seasoning for a finishing touch. After all, at this very moment, Violet Evergarden and Dietfried Bougainvillea were being attacked by robbers and had weapons thrust at them.

“That’s awfully unpleasant for me, but I’ll take action by considering your life to be the top priority. Not for you. For my little brother.”

Understanding that she had received permission to talk once she had received permission to breathe, Violet gave her own opinion, “No.” She did it directly, without any restraint. “No, that is my job, Captain. Major... Lord Gilbert loves you.”

Dietfried’s eyes blinked. Those green orbs were staring fixatedly at Violet since earlier, enough to seem like they would suck her in. They were green jewels in a different shade from his younger brother’s. Those green gems, enveloped in shock, reflected Violet’s serious gaze.

“I shall guard you, no matter what happens,” Violet declared with resolution, like a knight. “I will obey your orders to the best of my abilities, but if I judge it to be dangerous, I shall take action with your safeguarding as the maximum priority.”

“Hey.”

“I will definitely protect you and bring you to Major safely. Please do not leave my side, Captain.”

“That’s my line,” Dietfried said while nonetheless wanting to kill Violet.

For the exchange between the two to reach this stage, things had first begun when morning visited Leidenschaftlich. This might be going back much too far in time for a clarification, but it all had indeed started since daybreak.

The morning weather was overflowing with sunlight on that day – typical of Leidenschaftlich in early summer. Early rising ladies formed queues in the bakeries that opened at dawn and little birds flew about the shops’ surroundings to receive breadcrumbs. There was a café three stores away from one of the popular bakeries, famous for serving floral teas, its signboard girl preparing to open it. If one went further ahead, there was a bank, and round said bank, there was a main street lined with large-scale shops.

An art gallery arranged to open the next day had been erected on the main street. Its name was Artemisia. It bore the name of its owner, who was an artist.

The gallery Artemisia displayed the works of its proprietor, of course, but it also had works of artists from within and abroad Leidenschaftlich. There were rows of works from unknown young artists that the owner had taken interest in as well, devoted as she was to the cultivation of new talents.

The Artemisia Gallery, which was to become a place where novel forms of Leidenschaftlich’s art would be born, was scheduled to hold a pre-opening party today, attended only by the people concerned. The gallery’s staff had started cleaning its interior and the sidewalk in front of it from morning.

Around noon, a restaurant employee hired for the sake of that day had visited, bringing in wine, snacks and table sets. As for the dishes, there were two types: the ones that had already been prepared and the ones that would be made by borrowing the kitchen of the owner’s residence, which had been built on the gallery’s top floor. Since eating was not the main focus, the preparations were merely enough for the upcoming guests not to feel hungry.

As evening came, the inside of Artemisia began to speed up with haste. If there were anyone in command of such a scenery, they would likely be asserting with a baton: “hurry”, “faster”, “elegantly”.

An envelope closed with a wax seal bearing the establishment’s crest. Customers arrived one after another with the invitation taken from inside of it at hand. For a pre-opening party with a limited number of invitees, there was a large amount of people. The elect few of Artemisia’s employees were in a flurry of activity.

“Bring me a coat” here, “not enough drinks” there, a plate breaking somewhere. “Where’s the owner?”, “Got caught by the guests”. “There’s no one to give us instructions”, “Oh, well” – just like this, things descended into chaos behind the scenes.

Normally, their job was to calmly recommend artistic goods. Therefore, they were unable to hide their bewilderment at handling so many visitors at first. Nevertheless, if one looked at the guests being entertained, how were they? Appreciating the artworks, looking like they were having a blast. Upon seeing this, the employees were able to understand deep down. That “what, so things are the same as usual”. By the time that the customers were completely familiar with the gallery’s interior, the employees were able to show smiles with a little bit of ease.

Among the guests invited to Artemisia, a foreign body completely unrelated to this world was mixed in.

It was a woman. A beautiful one at that. From an appreciative viewpoint, there would be nothing to complain about if she were one of the artworks. She was clad in a ribbon-tie one-piece dress, snow-white as a flower in full bloom on a summer day. Her long, softly curved golden hair extended to her waist. Perhaps she had come straight from work, as she held a heavy-looking trolley bag on one hand. “Click, click,” knocked her cocoa-brown boots against the marble flooring each time she took a step.

She walked while observing every artwork one by one. Idyllic landscape paintings, abstract paintings that looked like silver ink spilled on pure-white paper, oil paintings in which the people seemed as if they would move at any moment. Glassworks and ceramics that one would be very afraid even to look at from nearby. At first, the exhibition was of works from artists renowned within the country, but the small hall of its latter half integrated displays from artists who were still nameless. The woman stopped in front of one such work.

A painting of whimsical fantasy. Was it a winter sea? It depicted various things falling and sinking into dark and cold water. A pocket watch, a feather, a bed, a knife, a white flower and a chair. All were worn-out and had damaged parts. At first glance, one would not know what it was expressing. Only the boy painted in the center seemed to pierce through the viewer.

He was still a teenager and his appearance could also be considered that of a girl. After staring at him for a while, the feeling that he was supposed to be saved would surface. Because the boy had a facial expression that almost looked like he was making eye contact with the viewer as he fell. But this could not come true. He was sinking in the picture. No one on this side could do anything. One would not know what to do with themselves after looking at it – it was that kind of picture.

“Excuse me; I was the one who painted this. Is there anything wrong with this painti...”

Suddenly, a voice called to the woman from behind. A rock thrown into the quiet atmosphere. A low tone that cut through the dimness of the room.

People were mostly heading towards the famous artists, so the woman had been all by herself on that spot until just now. The man who had showed up a bit late was coincidentally the creator of that fantastical painting, and found himself talking to the woman who had stopped in front of his art. That was an extremely natural encounter for a pair. If their positions, circumstances and everything else were different, something might have been born between them. It did not have to be romantic love, just something – something else that “the two of them originally had”.

“Captain Dietfried Bougainvillea.”

The moment the woman turned around, the space resounded with a loud squeak. It actually had not resounded, but at the very least, Dietfried heard the thump of his own heartbeat, which gave his whole body goosebumps. He was enveloped in a strange sensation, as if the blood inside him were flowing backwards. One of the things he had once evaded in his life was standing there.

“What’re you doing, Monster?”

Violet Evergarden.

Before the emerald eyes that Dietfried possessed, of a hue different from his younger brother’s, there was a young female Auto-Memories Doll. The reason why he had not recognized her from the back was likely that her golden hair was slovenly loose.

He had not had a chance to see her after she had become a grown-up ever since the incident during the Flying Letters. Only people who had great amount of interaction with each other would be able to tell such a thing just by looking at someone’s back.

“I was looking at the paintings, Captain.”

Violet was expressionless. However, her hand alone promptly searched for her emerald brooch and squeezed it.

“You, paintings? Can you understand them?”

First, a scornful laugh, and then a head start with a verbal attack. She needed to put up a defense line. After all, this girl was formerly a weapon. An automatic assassination doll.

“I cannot. It is just that... my eyes and legs stopped.”

She was the one and only woman that Dietfried feared. If he had run into anyone else, his emotions would not be so disrupted.

Dietfried was scared. This girl was terrifying.

“I caused you trouble last time.”

He knew the things she had done. He knew whom she had killed. And he also recalled how he used to treat her, telling himself that it was all right.

“By asking about Major.”

Because she was a monster.

——O God, I want to .

These words wandered about in his head. They were words that he had prayed in his childhood to the one that he would meet at some point – probably in his dying moments. Thinking back on it now, it had been a foolish, immature and helpless wish, but he was serious about it at the time.

Looking at this girl made him remember his embarrassing past self.

“I shall see myself out. Captain, please take your time.”

“Hey.”

Violet had decided to retreat from the place, putting it to action. She concluded that this would be a peaceful solution for both sides and that it would secure each other’s survival.

“Hey, wait.”

However, Dietfried still had something that he wanted to say.

At the call of restraint, Violet’s feet halted mid-step. She then gazed at Dietfried. “Why?” her eyes were asking.

Choosing to leave must have been her own way of showing respect. Considering the current and the previous relationship between two of them, it was a sound judgement. Hence, she stared at him presumptuous and mutely.

Even now, it pierced Dietfried. That quiet “why” perforated him.

Despite being the one who had told her to wait, Dietfried lost sight of his next words. He had tons of complaints. Rather, complaints were the only thing that ever came out of his mouth. Most likely, he had never presented any warm words or attitude to her. No, he had at least patted her head when they parted. But what about it? That was all he had done. Which perhaps was the reason why.

——What did you think of that painting?

Just a question like this was exceptionally challenging for him. If it were anyone else, he would surely be able to ask as easily as breathing. He could also boast that he was the one who had painted it. However, only with this woman was it so difficult.

A long silence drifted between the two. A truly long, long silence.

The mood was almost like two beasts had come across each other in the wilderness and were estimating which would attack first. Both were underdeveloped and, not matching their insides, only their appearances were actually full-fledged. Seen from the sidelines, they were a beautiful adult man and woman looking at each other, but the air flowing between them was that of a battlefield.

Dietfried was starting to sweat. As for Violet, even her breathing was becoming shallower.

Violet seemed to be thinking about something. She opened and closed her mouth, repeating it several times. What should she do in that situation? What was best? She was probably unable to decide. This was something that not just Violet but also Dietfried was thinking about, yet the degree of seriousness in behavior was surprisingly higher on Violet’s side.

She would normally not be like this.

He was the person that even Violet Evergarden, who had written so many letters, was at loss as to how to act around. That was the man called Dietfried.

Perhaps her thinking had eventually arrived to a conclusion, Violet left her baggage on the floor and put her hands behind her back. “Feel free to.”

At first, Dietfried had no idea what she was doing. Violet looked like she was offering her body.

“Ha...?”

Without hesitation, almost as if she were a tool.

“I am still. Feel free to.”

“Feel free to feast on my life,” she seemed to say. Her current self overlapped with the beast of the past.

“To do what, is what I’m asking...” Dietfried’s mouth felt sticky, giving him a hard time mustering words out. His head had been occupied mostly with how to mend the blunder that he had exposed to her, so he could not respond to Violet’s surprise attack immediately.

“Do you not remember? I used to do this whenever I had to receive reprimand or punishment.”

He could not. All of the information that had been fluttering about in Dietfried’s head until now disappeared. It vanished.

“You, what the...”

The owner of the blue eyes that stared at Dietfried as if to shoot through him always did unexpected things, tossing him about.

“I did not know how to speak back then, so in order to show that I had no intention to attack you, Captain, I would do this.”

Those eyes.

“No matter what I say, surely... there is no atonement for me. With time, I have come to understand the things I... did. And how much terror I made you go through. Nevertheless, I am grateful for the kindliness of placing me under Lord Gilbert. I wish to pay you back somehow. If you say that it is unnecessary, at the very least, do as you please.”

For whatever reason, when those eyes asked him “why”...

“Be it with fists or with reproach, as much as you want.”

...his chest ached as if it had been stabbed.

“Feel free to.”

If that place were not a quiet art gallery, Dietfried would have yelled furiously at her, without caring about shame or his reputation. He managed to ball his fists hard enough for it to hurt and swallow down his angry voice due to his high level of self-respect.

“I hate that about you...”

This girl always made him aware that she would never act as he expected.

“...to death.”

At the words spoken by Dietfried’s quivering tone, Violet took a step back. Her stance of offering herself did not change, but her instincts were on-guard, wondering if she was not going to be killed by this man. Seeing that, Dietfried sneered at her figure.

“You’re the one who could choke the life out of me anytime,” he seemed to say.

Dietfried suddenly felt the heat that had gone up his head cooling down. Violet had taken a step back. That became the trigger for him to regain his composure. Because he was able to reconfirm that she was but a child in the end. This innocent aspect and action that were much like what a child would show to an adult exerted a great influence on the other party. Dietfried loathed that.

For he, who despised interventions from anyone, had so much aversion to it that it make him want to vomit.

Those who were accustomed to oppression from others would very easily choose to hurt people. She was inwardly frightened of that tendency. Yet albeit frightened, she prioritized others over herself. That creature was like a mass of contradictions.

——Disgusting. Stop. Die. Don’t look at me.

He did not want to get involved with her. But he had a mountain of things to say. However, when it came to whether or not he could properly do it, even if he managed to squeeze them out, they would turn into nothing but abusive language.

There was a large lake between the two of them and all they could do was gaze at the opposite shore, unable to tell how deep it was. Their first meeting was to blame for that. It was the cause of everything.

His underlings had attacked her and she had killed all of them. She then chased and chased after him, making him into her master. Despite there being a hierarchy, Violet was the one who had a grip over his life.

One would understand, after spending time with the girl, that this was a necessity for her. She was always like that, ever since the island only the two of them knew. Whenever anything happened, she would prioritize Dietfried. After all, even as he handed her over to Gilbert, she had not resisted.

If anything could be changed, that was the moment.

The two who never mingled with each other met again countless times in a parallel line. On such occasions, they would become unable to make a move due to shouldering the truth of rejection and of the things they had done, thus running away.

——Gilbert.

What did the person who brought the two together, whom they loved most, thought of that?

“You... I...”

——If I could change for Gilbert...

“Captain...?”

——If I could change, right here and now, for your sake...

Would it be easier for him to breathe?

Just as Dietfried was about to make a bitter decision...

“GYAAAAAAAAAH—AAAAAAH—AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!”

...an incident occurred.

It was clearly not a hasty crime. The scream of Artemisia, the owner, echoed, and by the time that Dietfried and Violet had bolted from the quiet hall where there was just the two of them, robbers were already thrusting their weapons mostly at vulnerable women and children, having them on their knees. The course of action was far too swift.

Wide-eyed, Violet swung back her trolley bag and was about to throw it at them, yet Dietfried stopped her.

“Are you stupid?! Those aren’t all adults that can run...!”

Among the hostages, there was also a little girl held under someone’s arms, looking like she did not understand the situation.

“I will save them as fast as possible and take control of the rest.”

“They’ve got guns; what’re you gonna do if they hit someone else with a warning shot?! There’s the other artworks too... This ain’t a stage for a tactless bastard like you to brawl! Just stay put for now!”

“But, Captain—”

“Stay put!”

While the two were trying to push past each other, the robbers took notice of them.

In the main hall, perhaps in order to bind people up through fear, the men were being beaten without exception, being put on their knees over the floor. Seeing that, the women naturally sat down, trembling, and began to cry.

While screams were resounding like music, one of the robbers headed towards the duo. “So there were still weeds growing here?” was the look in his eyes as he swung his firearm emotionlessly.

Dietfried would have managed to avoid it. He had done it several times until now. He could do it as easily as floating on water. If he could catch the man’s gun with one hand and pulled it just like that, he was able to picture the opponent falling over as a reaction. Once he stole the gun, he could shoot each member of the robber gang one by one in the head. And then, there would be a gunfight. He would have done that if he were alone. Yes, if he were alone.

——Why now of all times?

There was nothing more humiliating than a punch that one had to resign oneself into receiving. But he had things he had to protect above his own dignity. Thus, he accepted the attack without dodging. If he were to start a scuffle amidst the current situation, he did not think that all of the people who had become hostages would remain unharmed. He would aim for a chance. That was what he should do. He made such decision not only for his own welfare but also for that of other people.

However, the automatic assassination doll made a completely different one. When her eyes glinted like that, she quite literally moved on automatic. She came forward to take his place. In that instant, the face of Dietfried’s younger brother was the only thing crossing his mind.

——Gil.

It was almost as if he had readied himself to do it. That was how quickly his arm reached out. He forcefully embraced Violet and turned his back towards the robber. A violent hit struck him from head to back. He could hear Violet’s breath quietly catching while holding her in his arms.

And such was how they had arrived to the present.

Dietfried did not think that his decision to suppress Violet was a mistake. He was aware that she was the woman who had fought by herself against terrorists inside an exploding train, but it would be a problem if she did something of the sort in the Artemisia Gallery.

Right now, he felt like a pet owner containing the rampage of his mad dog.

As for the mad dog herself, she had grown quiet ever since Dietfried had been hit, as if her functions were gone. Dietfried had pushed away the hands that had attempted to give him first aid. Any false moves and the robbers might beat him again.

She, who always took upon herself to protect, wound up being protected. On top of that, she had let the other be injured. This must have caused her to fall into despondency, enough to result in service outage. However, with time, she had rebooted and was rousing herself up once more to get through this situation.

“I understand that I should refrain from the use of force in an art gallery. But should we not place human lives above the artworks?”

——Whose fault do you think it is that I got hit on the back of my head?

Because she was saying the most obvious thing with the most serious face, Dietfried grabbed the collar where her brooch resided, taking the brooch along, without thinking. The thread that fastened the ribbon-tie dress’s button let out a screech. It was not the kind of deed that a gentleman would do to a lady. But Dietfried did not loosen the strength that he put into his grip.

“You... Do you still need disciplining from me?” he said, voice filled with rage, close enough for their faces to touch. “Think of this as a place that can hardly compare to any other... This thing’s pretty important for you, isn’t it?”

After blinking with a snap, she opened her mouth once, then closed it.

Once Dietfried’s hand let go of her, she grasped the brooch as if to protect it. She was more concerned about the brooch than the crumpled bust of her dress. She stroked it over and over, making sure that it had not been damaged.

Finally, she whispered in a dazed state, “I understand.”

“As if an idiot could,” Dietfried said with a snort, yet the other was a poker-faced Auto-Memories Doll. No matter how much he hurt her, it would have no effect. That was what Dietfried had thought.

“I understood completely. I will avoid combat here as much as possible.” Alas, her voice sounded a little faint.

Dietfried stared at Violet from the corners of his eyes. The brooch was indeed important to her. She was holding it down with both hands. She did not want anyone to touch it – that was what she was indicating. The two of them were speaking in an awfully low tone, but her timbre just now was as thin as the cry of a mosquito.

Dietfried said with a somewhat softer voice, “Good that you get it. I’m indebted to the owner of this gallery. I’m gonna choose the best I can for her sake too.”

“All right.”

“Human lives are the priority, of course. But we’re not gonna fight in a stupid way.”

Like a child, Violet nodded repeatedly.

“You’ve only ever been doing body guarding, murders and military action, and that’s why you don’t understand. In the sea... In fleet battles, we fight to protect. Our way of thinking is different from those who fight to conquer.”

“To protect...”

“If you can’t put brakes on them at sea, the enemies go to land. The reason why Leidenschaftlich is called a military nation ain’t just the army’s achievement. I’ve... never taught you how to fight at sea, huh... For now, forget the method of destroying and taking control of everything. Learn from my ways.”

“Understood.”

Dietfried was inwardly surprised at the obedient reply. Rather, even more than this, he was surprised that he and the “beast” were able to have mutual comprehension.

When she was in his hands, this beautiful Auto-Memories Doll was a “wild beast” that did not know how to speak, as well as a tool. An incontrollable beast, to boot.

“Still, if that is how it is, please do not forget that your wellbeing is my top priority all the more. I shall fight to protect you, Captain. Please do not think of protecting me for Lord Gilbert’s sake. If necessity arises, I will not might if you use me as a shield. I can be replaced, but there is no substitute for you.”

If, at that time...

“This is also linked to protecting Lord Gilbert.”

...in that place...

“Bye, Monster. This guy’s your next master.”

...he had educated and guided her instead of letting her go, would she have grown up the same way?

“Shut up.”

Would she have thought like that?

“Shut up, Monster.”

He had never even thought about it.

Another side of him immediately answered “no” to the self-questioning. Surely, a Violet Evergarden raised by Dietfried Bougainvillea would not have turned out like this. He might have at least taught her how to talk. They would have trouble communicating otherwise. He would have probably given her clothes and personal belongings for daily life. Bringing her along when walking around would look bad for him.

However, when it came to whether or not he would have bestowed this girl with something that would be enveloped in her hands with utmost zeal...

——I see; so it’s the same color as Gilbert’s eyes. That brooch.

...he would undeniably have not.

——Come to think of it, she was always following me around from behind ‘cause she hated being alone.

If there was anything he could have done for her, it was to at least fill up a coffin with flowers and leave it available for her. He did not intend for anything to happen, but he might have done that much. After all, if Violet had stayed beside Dietfried Bougainvillea, she would have surely died before him, for his sake.

“We’re gonna do an act.”

——Aah, Gilbert.

“An act?”

——I’m always late to realize how great you are.

“That’s right. You’re the one who suggested it, so I’m gonna make you into a decoy.”

——You’ve made that filthy beast into this.

“Understood.”

——You were able to change her like this.

“First, take this... It’s late for that, but... you got any questions about a joint struggle with me?”

As Dietfried asked, Violet responded with her neck tilted, “Why...? I do not.”

For whatever reason, his former weapon would show scraps of emotion only at times like these. Just innocently, unaware that it was merciless of her.

“Please use me correctly, Captain.” She smiled.

Why had robbers attacked the Artemisia Gallery?

There was a certain amount of history that led to such violence unfolding amidst everyday life. Firstly, it would be preferable to start with the time when a turning point happened in the life of the robbery’s main offender, but that would be rewinding too far. On to a brief explanation.

This case was a crime committed by a habitual criminal.

There were various reasons for people to rob, yet the advantage was but one. Earning compensation within a short period. Good citizens would be paid for their work, but thieves did not share this mentality. People received rewards through serving others. In order to gather a large sum, a long time and effort were necessary. Thieves abdicated from this. To achieve success, no matter in what land, a person had to be equipped with skills as a rule of thumb.

If one could stop after doing it once, why did they do it countless times? There were people here and there who thought this about criminals. It was because, if they had succeeded once, they could do it again. They were instantly able to attain things that they would have to spend a long time out of their lives to earn. This was the arrival of an opportunity to do that.

Once one got used to it, identifying opportunities was surprisingly easy.

Supposing that there was someone who excelled at predicting people’s thoughts. The other person’s personality would be determined by the movements of their eyes, the way they breathed, their voice tone, the relationships of power in their background, their social position and other such things, so one would be able to deduce what kind of conduct should be taken in order to derive the “correct answer”. It seemed like magic at first glance, but it was no more than the result of someone continuously keeping watch on another person for many years.

Since this was a strategy against individual matches, the robbers needed a slightly better ability to grasp the environment. As they were walking around the city, they incidentally found out that a new gallery was going to open. The opening date was also announced. It appeared that there would be an event only for those concerned on the day before.

No matter the establishment, dealing flawlessly with the inauguration of a new shop was difficult. Even if there were people in it who already had experience working in a gallery, but the use of their abilities to have control over such a situation and proceed with it smoothly was different. Employees would be in quite a panic on the day. If it was a members-only celebration day, there was no mistaking that the original state of the security that should be guarding the gallery would be insufficient.

And so, the robbers had thought, “Aah, if you poke this place, it’ll surely crumble down.”

They did not have any grudges in particular. They had simply judged that they could do it, thus undergoing the assault. The truth was merely that the Artemisia Gallery had been unlucky.

How many hardships the owner had gone through until she was able to open the gallery, had she lived her life bowing her head to other people? How many artists were looking forward to seeing their work exhibited in the gallery? The feelings of such people could be trampled miserably at times.

Not that many people paid any mind to weeds when walking. That was all. Except, this time, the Artemisia Gallery had been lucky about just one thing.

“No good... Hum, excuse me...! She suddenly...!”

A naval captain who loved art...

“Ugh...”

...and the woman who used to be called Leidenschaftlich’s War Maiden were amongst the hostages.

The man who had caused a commotion and pleaded to one of the robbers in a panic raised both of his hands as a display of no resistance. He was a long-haired a man. His slightly curvy dark hair went past his shoulders. Right next to him was a woman holding her stomach and trembling.

“What?”

A few armed men gathered around them.

“It seems her stomach hurts.”

“Just a stomach ache? Leave it alone.”

“You’re telling us to let her go to the bathroom? We still gotta watch these people. Besides, she’s a woman. If someone takes her to the toilet... Well, how much stuff did we get?”

“We’ve piled most of the paintings in the carrier, but there’s still the ornaments. It’s still gonna take a while.”

The robbers had a choice. The option to either silently let her suffer or kindly take her to the restroom. Beating only the men was likely one of their policies. They did not hesitate to make use of violence when needed, but when it was not, it was best to have as least animosity as possible in order to get through with things unobtrusively and quickly take the treasure. It seemed gentlemanly but was a self-righteous thinking.

“What do we do? The Head is...”

“The Head got in the car first. As if we can ask him stuff like this every single time it happens.”

“Head” probably referred to the member worthy of being their chief.

As the quiet exchanges continued in front of the agonizing woman, she finally lay down on the floor while still holding onto her stomach. The man who had appealed about her bad condition shook her shoulders, telling her to “hang in there”.

As if she had received a signal, the woman raised her face slowly. Her gemstone-like blue eyes were visible through the gaps between her disheveled golden hair. She was covering her mouth, perhaps trying not to vomit. Even so, it was easy to tell that the woman’s looks were remarkably good.

“It’s gonna take a while, huh. Besides, we’re gonna need the women later.”

Her eyes locked with one of robber’s as though sucking him in. One would not understand the destructive power that having this woman look up at them from their feet with her eyes wet had, unless they witnessed it themselves.

“Then, I guess it’s okay.”

From the vulgar smile of the man who had said so, one could presume what his intentions were. As the woman was covering her mouth, the robber instructed her to stand up, pointing his gun at her, and then took her to the restroom.

After that, the woman and the robber did not return for a while. Since there were no other people who mustered out the courage to say that they wanted to use the toilet, the period of their absence passed as if it were natural. In the meantime, the gallery’s exhibits were being carried one after another to cars with roof racks parked outside the establishment. The robbers were dressed as employees who worked with the transportation of goods, so even those walking down the street did not think there was anything strange about that work scene.

Once they had finished relocating most of the merchandises, one of the cars left the gallery. The other one that remained parked was meant for the getaway of those who were keeping watch. With the artworks that had been collected for the sake of this day snatched away down to the last one, the gallery was bare. The owner, Artemisia, had all the while been suppressing her cries and shedding tears.

Apparently, those thieves were quite the habitual criminals. They had threatened everyone with armed force upon entering the establishment, robbing people of any resistance, but after that, as long as everyone stayed still, they would do nothing but coldly keep control of the hostages, not even raising their voices. If people did as told, they would not lose their lives. That hope made the hostages obedient. Even though they were robbers, this seamless way of dealing with people was like that of artisans. They did not think of humans as humans.

“Excuse me; I just... want to lend her a handkerchief. That’s all. The sleeves of her clothes are already soaked with tears. Can’t you allow just this much?”

Hearing a voice from the back, Artemisia turned around. It came from one of the artists that she had invited over for today, whom she had known for quite some time. She was shaken by a sense of guilt that she had done something terrible to him as well.

Their first meeting had started at a certain recreational facility, when she peeked from behind while he was painting a landscape. She did not know his occupation, but they kept in touch and she had him show her his art. It seemed he had always been drawing as a hobby. He told her that even most of the people who were close to him did not know he painted, and that he had truly only been doing it for himself.

The busy man had weaved his way through spare time and the work he brought had swayed Artemisia’s senses. At first, he had hesitated at her request to put it on display, but then smiled like a boy and gave her his ready consent, looking happy.

——Aah, God. Please give it back. Please give that fun time back to everyone.

Artemisia was upset and vexed at the fact that the artworks were being stolen, but more than anything, it felt like the regret towards everyone who had been looking forward to this day would split her chest open.

“Hey, he told you to use this.”

He had lent a handkerchief to Artemisia through one of the robbers. Artemisia wiped her tears and managed to lock eyes with him somehow. She then mouthed a “thank you” to him without letting out her voice.

The man smiled. But it was not the smile that Artemisia knew. He was different when he talked about art. She had shivers before she could think. His eyes were not smiling.

“ .”

The man said something to Artemisia. As he had only moved his lips, Artemisia could not tell whether she had been able to read what he tried to convey. She could not, but most likely, he had said:

“It’ll be over soon.”

Eventually, the robbers started to create an atmosphere of evacuation at last.

“Let’s take one person with us until we leave the harbor. Can be a woman or kid. Which do we choose?”

“Woman it is.”

“That guy was playing around with the woman we were planning to use for that, wasn’t he? What happened to him?”

Assuming that they would finally be freed, the hostages started fidgeting. They had faced a disaster and the artworks that they had dedicated their lives to making had been stolen. This joyful day had been repainted into despair. But they were alive. That was the one and only bright side of today. They would not be able to maintain their rationality unless they comforted themselves with that. At any rate, they wanted to hurry and be liberated.

Amongst them, there was a man who merely observed the robbers’ movements in silence all the while. It was the man who had been caring for a woman that had a stomachache, looking worried. Once the woman had been taken to the restroom, he became expressionless, as if he had lost interest in everything. Occasionally, there were moments when he even yawned in secret, as if he had grown sleepy.

“Go call him. We could use that woman as hostage. She’s young, so she can come back walking if we throw her away on the street.”

Hearing these words, the man let out his voice and laughed. By the looks of it, he had not intended to laugh, but wound up doing so. He put a hand to his mouth, but then shrugged and let the robbers see it. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to make fun of you. But trying to rape that thing, huh? No matter how many lives you have, it wouldn’t be enough.”

“Hey, what’s with you...? Got a complaint or something...?”

The man kept laughing, as though to say that the robbers’ threatening figures were even more comical. With her eyes, the owner, Artemisia, begged the man provoking the robbers to restrain himself, for she could not afford to lose not only the artworks that she had collected but also a guest that she had invited, yet the man closed one eye at that and replied, “Artemisia, it’s okay.”

No one in this place knew his social status. Or his history.

In the past, Dietfried Bougainvillea used to wield a weapon that could become the world’s best. It was now away from his grasp, but it was not as if their master-servant connection had been completely severed. The beast had a high level of loyalty, so although they had met by chance after a long time, her heart recognized it. That he was the one she had been following in the past – someone worth being served by her. Therefore, the beast would attend him to exhaustion.

Only a limited number of people could handle the beast. The feeling that she had returned to his hands for now was somewhat strange.

“She runs quick.”

“Ha?”

“That’s why it’s the end for you guys. My bad.”

“Hey, shut this dude up.”

As Dietfried had suddenly started talking, the robbers naturally had a doubtful reaction.

“She’s as fast as a deer. And this is the city’s main street, so there are hotels nearby.”

“So, what’re you saying?”

“I left my bodyguards behind to come here today. They’re probably drinking at their room’s bar. There’re also guys among them who know that thing from the time when she was still by my side. I left my hair tie with her, so she should be able to convince them with that. I could predict that you’d take the things you stole to the port. It’s pretty difficult to get away from pursuers on land when you make such a mess in the center of this city. It’s harder to be tracked using the sea route than the land route, right? But the sea route doesn’t work against me. It looks like one vehicle left a while ago, but it’s over by the point they reach the port. You’ll probably go outside now, but if you’re thinking about taking someone along as a hostage, you’d better drop it. Many of my subordinates are hot-blooded. If you rouse them up like that, they’ll probably get too excited. If that happens, you’re the ones who’ll be getting the short end of the stick. No matter how many dead bodies fall down, we can deal with it all we want in the aftermath. We’ll need to get the stories straight, but today’s hostages will surely choose to cooperate with me. Having people trample on the proof of a life that you’ve lived with all your might is painful for anyone.”

The eloquent man did not run out of breath even when speaking nonstop in such a situation. However, this majestic aspect of him was reflected in others’ eyes as dreadful and similar to madness.

The robbers abruptly realized that all the hostages were looking far behind them. They felt that there was something behind them. It was like a ghost, hiding even its flame of life, simply waiting for the orders of its lord.

Outside the windows of the gallery, they could hear the sounds of someone fighting from around the area where the car was parked. Simultaneously, they could hear a faint breathing just behind them.

The respiration of a woman who was out of breath from running loomed over their ears.

“Do it, Violet.” Dietfried raised his thumb and made a swift throat-cutting gesture.

While watching his doll render the robbers unconscious with a strength as overwhelming as a monster eating people, Dietfried reminisced to the past.

——Everything goes around.

He recalled the time when the two of them were stuck in that isolated island.

The beast had been scared when the rescue fleet arrived. So had Dietfried. He would not be able to bear it if more of his comrades were murdered. Hence, he had taken the beast’s hand and guided her to the outside world. In his perception, it was the same as taking the reins.

There were no reins anymore now. No need for him to pull her by the hand when walking, either. There was nothing between them.

Not love, passion, attachment, desire, anything.

“Captain.”

There was nothing, but one thing was for certain.

“Captain Bougainvillea.”

If he called for her, this Auto-Memories Doll would most likely go to the ends of the world to save him. That was her nature.

“I have just returned. Are you unharmed?”

At that moment, the beast was well aware that he had called her name for the very first time. Her eyes were crinkling.

“Yeah.”

Just this much compensation was enough to make the beast smile.

After a little while passed, Leidenschaftlich was embraced by the gentleness of the night.

Summer constellations were decorating the jet-black sky. Just as sunny as it was during daytime, the night sky was twinkling so brightly this evening that it could be called a banquet of stars. The day was about to end in Leidenschaftlich. Today was filled with chaos ever since morning.

While being observed by gathered-up onlookers, the arrest drama that had unfolded in front of the Artemisia Gallery was already coming to a conclusion, its many procedures and processing passed over to the military police. Seeing the stolen artworks safely re-delivered to Artemisia, Dietfried took a breather. His gaze then fleetingly drifted to the side. A dirtied ceramic doll was standing there. A woman beautiful enough to look like such, who shone amidst the night, was standing there. He had to say something to her. As one would expect, he should do that at least now. But he could not think of anything.

——“You did well”. “That wasn’t too bad”. “Good work”. “I commend you”... Which one?

Inside his head, words were being conceived and then disappearing. Just like the dreams that the sleeping children all around Leidenschaftlich were surely seeing right now. They were born and then vanished.

At last, he attempted to open his mouth, “Aren’t you cold?”

“It is summer, after all.”

And ended up talking to her like a man who was unused to inviting women out.

Violet Evergarden, who had been fighting reasonably and in order to protect, was still by Dietfried’s side. It was fitting to say that she had been today’s most meritorious person. The one who had come up with the idea of the arrest operation was Dietfried, but the one who had done all the work for it was Violet.

First, she had put up the woman-with-a-stomachache act and gone with one of the robbers to the restroom. She had then quietly strangled the neck of the man who had reached a hand to her shoulder with her mechanical prosthetic arms, making him pass out.

She had broken out and escaped through the restroom’s window. Rather than going to the military police, she had gone to the hotel that Dietfried instructed her to and notified the naval soldiers, who were enjoying cigarettes and drinks in a room on the top floor, of the circumstances. One of the soldiers, who happened to know her, had been frightened at first, but upon seeing that she had been entrusted with Dietfried’s ribbon, his facial expression changed and he contacted the military police, then informed the port’s security to reinforce their inspections.

Without waiting for them to get ready, she had immediately run back to the Artemisia Gallery and infiltrated it through the same route. A few of the robbers, who had the bad luck of spotting her, fell to the ground with one kick or punch to the abdomen, and so, she had finally returned. As Violet stood behind the remaining robbers while catching her breath, the hostages stared as if she were their safety, but Dietfried was sneering as he looked at her.

Just as ordered, she had saved Dietfried without damaging a single artwork.

“About what happened...”

“It will probably be best not to tell Lord Gilbert. He would worry.”

Upon seeing the last artwork be brought in, Violet took the trolley bag that lay by her feet. She likely intended to go home by herself.

After making her do so much, something similar to guilt was now sprouting within Dietfried. He wound up acknowledging that she, too, was important to someone. That was what he thought after the battle, when he saw Violet stroking her emerald brooch as if to confirm that it was there.

Even though she used to be a wild beast whom no one would mourn if she died.

——Aah, that’s an excuse. It’ll be nothing but an excuse. If so, then I don’t wanna say it.

Back then, when she was by Dietfried’s side, every single day was filled with madness on all accounts. They used to roam around battlefields, fighting from dawn to dusk, growing too accustomed to violence. The war then ended, peace had returned, and he realized that an era in which he could even make art was arriving. That those times were abnormal and the way he felt now was the default.

“I’ll take you home.”

“No need. Your escorts must be waiting, so please, feel free to take your leave, Captain.”

“It’s fine; just this time. I’ll take you home.”

“No need.”

“I’ll take you. Listen up, this is an order.”

“I cannot accept your command.”

“You little... You were taking action like I instructed you to just a while ago.”

“Because it was a state of emergency... Besides, Captain Dietfried, it would be reasonable if I were to take you home, but the opposite is illogical.”

“What’re you talking about? You’re a woman, aren’t you?”

“A woman”. Finding himself asserting this with his own mouth, Dietfried regretted it even more.

The corner of Violet’s lips had a cut and blood was coming out of it. Her ribbon-tie dress was drenched in sweat. Even those who did not sweat much would be like this after such a huge scuffle during summertime.

“I’m calling a carriage. It’s all right; just wait right there. I’ll see you off until you get inside the Evergarden house. And then it’s goodbye. We’ll never see each other again. No matter what you and Gil become, we’ll never see each other again.”

What he had done today to this woman, who had become fully able to accept someone’s love, was not something that a son of the Bougainvillea should ever do to a lady.

After they had hopped into the carriage, a moment of silence went on for a while.

——Is it okay for her to keep such an open secret even though those two are a couple?

Dietfried found himself accidentally concerned about his younger brother’s love life. After all, this situation might be a betrayal to his dearest brother. Gilbert had completely forgiven Dietfried. For pushing the headship succession onto him. For not having any consideration for their family. For forcing an indescribable wild beast onto him. He had forgiven everything.

Thinking back, the only time that he attempted to push Dietfried away, saying he would not forgive him, had been when Dietfried offered Violet to him. He had called it “human trafficking”. Told Dietfried not to be violent with a child.

Most likely, those two were each other’s only exception from the very beginning. There was probably no pardoning what Dietfried had done to Violet today. Gilbert would forgive most things. Save for matters related to the one and only thing that was most important to him. Being hated by a loved one. This could cast a shadow over anyone’s heart, regardless of how old they were.

“It is all right.” The voice that cut through the silence was thrown at him as if to soothe him down. The words sounded almost as if she had perceived Dietfried’s uneasiness. “If, by any chance... word ends up reaching him through someone else about this case, I will definitely defend you, Captain Dietfried.”

“‘Defend’, you say?”

“To tell the truth, I often get involved in large-scale incidents without Major knowing. But I return without fail. To Leidenschaftlich. I will return today as well. Therefore, we are all right.”

“What do you do out there?”

“We were separated for much too long. Therefore, we have many moments that the other does not know about in the first place. Perhaps even now, too. I have work to do and so does he. We have limited time to see each other. However, I will definitely always return to Major. He knows this as well. Even when we are apart, that person is the only one who occupies my mind. I am not sure if I convey it to him properly, but that is how it is.”

Her statements were something that would normally make him burst into laughter, but Dietfried was unable to do so.

——When did you become like that?

Dietfried hated Violet. Several factors had induced his emotions to it.

——Now you can correspond to someone’s love.

He saw himself overlap with her. Her subservience to adults and the way that she herself wanted it disgusted him. He despised the wild beast that did not yearn for freedom. Despised the fact that she had been trained by someone to be this way. Despised everything. To begin with, Dietfried did not have many things that he liked.

Even the number of people who could become kind had a limit.

The truth was that, even if he wanted to be kind, it was no longer possible. He had prayed to God for it countless times in the past. However, unable to achieve this, a man named Dietfried Bougainvillea existed.

——O God, I want to, he begged a certain Someone in his mind for the first in a long time. Perhaps since his childhood.

Still, this sort of being did not give any reply to calls. Even now, he had no idea if his plea had reached Him. It was certainly impossible. His and Violet’s stars were in a position that would not radically change.

Nevertheless, for some reason, he had the overwhelming desire to ask someone for forgiveness today.

——I wanna go back.

Not even he knew where to.

——Hurry and be over, this day, today and the time I have to spend with her.

He was not annoyed.

——O God, I want to...

But painfully miserable.

“Captain.”

The carriage ran amongst trees dyed in the darkness of the night. A cool voice echoed amidst them.

Violet was looking at the scenery outside. She was observing the moon, which chased after them, no matter how far, far apart they were.

The moon was something that would continue to exist forever. Unlike stories. Regardless of whether Dietfried concerned himself with it, everything about his story would come to a closing one day as well. Demise would arrive even to the things that he did not wish to ever be over. Even the feelings he had now would end.

“How was I today?”

“What?”

“Did my work earn your satisfaction today?”

Dietfried could not read the intentions behind Violet’s question at all. She was someone whose emotions he could not read in the first place, but it was even harder to understand the meaning of that sentence.

“What do you want to say?”

Silence.

“Hey, just say it straight. Don’t be dodgy with me.”

“All right,” the cool voice entered his ears once more. Such coldness resembled the night, but it never left his ears, easy as it was to catch.

Violet turned her neck and cast her gaze at him. Slowly, blue and green eyes blended with each other.

“I...”

Bathed in moonlight, she was simply, purely beautiful, enough to take Dietfried’s breath away.

“When I was with you, Lord Dietfried, my work was never satisfactory. Now that I became an adult, have I finally been able to repay my debt... with my work?”

“What d’you mean by ‘debt’?”

His voice was hoarse. He suddenly felt as if this icy woman had robbed his entire body of its heat. The inside of his mouth was extremely dry.

“I mean everything. It all started when you brought me from that island. I am the way I am now because you entrusted me to Ma... to Lord Gilbert.”

“If you’d stayed with me, probably nothing good would’ve happened.”

“How would I be if I had continued to serve you?”

These words became a bullet and pierced Dietfried’s heart. He felt as if his breathing would stop at the unexpected question. Things had been like that since the distant past. Dietfried would reconfirm time and time again that she was a woman who could have become a lethal weapon for him.

“So you also imagine a hypothesis... of ‘what if’,” her exquisitely cold voice rang within the darkness. Upon being asked, “You too?”, Violet nodded.

That was his line, Dietfried thought, but Violet then sent his gemstone eyes a dream-like gaze. His existence might be devoid of realism to her.

Violet began to whisper. If only she had disobeyed that order back then. If only she had rushed to him a step faster at that time.

“Back then, if”. “Back then, if”. “Back then, if”.

She could not bring myself not to think that, if only she had had this extra step, he would not have lost that emerald eye.

“Besides, I wonder... if I had managed to protect him back then...”

She had to let go of her most beloved lord’s hand and was entrusted to someone else as if she had been thrown away.

“...I would not have had to spend that time away from Major.”

Thinking back, she had always been abandoned and then picked up by somebody. She should have been used to it. That was the star she had been born under.

She was originally a foreign body to this world and was supposed to have been eliminated. Her destiny had also flowed in this way. The reason why Violet had rebelled against her sectioned path, despite having been tamely submitting herself to it, was that the other was special.

——I also threw her away.

He had thrown his home away. Thrown away his little brother, who cried in protest. And thrown away this beast.

“I also wonder what would have happened if you had not left me with Major.”

This woman.

“But all of these are akin to dreams, crossing my mind and fading away. After passing through countless ‘if’s, I...”

He had pushed this woman onto his brother and forsaken her. Looking at her made him sick. He was also scared of her. Most importantly, he would have stopped being himself. This terrified him.

“And now, I have become an Auto-Memories Doll and am spending a night with you.”

This woman possessed an element that transmuted people.

“Y’know, you’ll be alone one day. You’re the one who’s got the longer lifespan, aren’t you?”

Violet closed her eyes at those words. If she had pictured numerous “if”s, this would obviously come to mind as well.

“I do not know.”

“If that happens, what’re you gonna do?”

“I do not know. But are you not the same as me when it comes to this? You love him, right?”

“I’m... I’m the older one. I’ll be gone sooner.”

“No one knows about that. But... if, one day... I do become alone... if I am left living by myself... my order will still be valid. I will probably live on.”

If she ended up living by herself, this supposition was the cruelest of things to the beast. Just what did he want to do by making her say this now?

Thinking back, ever since they had first met, he had not known how to deal with her. Should he have protected her? Killed her? Protected? Killed? Or perhaps...

“That is why I write letters every day. Even if they do not reach him, I write letters to Major every single day.”

Silence.

“Captain, what will you do?”

“Me, huh? I... let’s see. Paint, I guess.”

“A painting or Major?”

“That’s right.”

“May I go see it?”

To Dietfried Bougainvillea, this wild beast was both a woman and a monster from the very beginning. She was now as far-off as a dream.

“You’re the only one of my relatives who knows I paint. Do whatever you want.”

——O God, I want to be a good person.

#violet evergarden #fyeahvioletevergarden #veedit #dietfried bougainvillea #kyoani #kyoto animation #akatsuki kana #takase akiko #my translation

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butwhyduh · 3 years

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I've just finished reading your Christmas bat boys series and I love them all 🥺🥺! I don't want to be greedy but could you write morning/boxing day breakfast scene for the boys(TM)? I'd love that! If not then that's fine too. You've already provided us with quality content 👌

💕💕

So I’m from the US and we usually don’t celebrate Boxing Day. So I’ll probably do something wrong but that’s okay. That’s how Americans do holidays anyways. But I refuse to believe Alfred Pennyworth wouldn’t celebrate for one second. So I firmly believe this was the day that most of the kids and even Bruce would indulge Alfred and do what he wanted.

When they were kids it was enough to simply put the sweets down and take a proper post Christmas shower. Jason Todd had been incredibly excited to learn about Boxing Day because he thought it was a family fight day. Uh, yeah, good food and watching some boxing was nice too, he had guessed. Not a lot was certain, but sausage rolls and some kind of sports game on Boxing Day was one of them in the Wayne’s household.

Damian

You woke up to the familiar scent of Damian. But he wasn’t within arms reach. Where was he? How did you get up in his room anyways? You sat up to see him sleeping on the floor. Poor guy. It couldn’t be comfortable, could it? You tried to climb out of bed but the soft rustle of the sheets woke Damian. He sat up quickly only to relax.

“Morning,” you said.

“Good morning. How did you sleep last night?”

“Good. You didn’t have to sleep on the floor. That looks uncomfortable,” you said feeling guilty.

“It’s alright. I’ve slept in worse places,” Damian said and you were reminded of his child soldier past. You frowned. “It’s truly fine, beloved. Let’s get down to breakfast.”

“Yeah,” you said softly. You threw on one of his sweaters and went down. Alfred was in the kitchen this morning and had a platter piled high with some sort of pastry that he was bringing to the breakfast nook. You and Damian slid into the seats and you looked at the beautiful white grounds of Wayne Manor through the large viewing window.

“Would you like coffee, tea, juice, hot cocoa,” Alfred asked you both before bringing your drink. It was nice to be the first up. Alfred brought Damian curried tofu scramble and fried mushrooms and tomatoes. (You too if you are vegan/vegetarian).

Bruce came in the room and sat across from Damian. It was almost funny to see the billionaire in sleep pajamas. A large cup of coffee was placed before him and he had a steaming plate of everything Damian ate plus sausage rolls and a protein shake. It was quiet for a few minutes.

“You slept on the floor last night,” Bruce said quietly as he read the news on a tablet. He rolled his eyes at the article “Local Reporter Clark Kent gets Pictures of Superman in action.”

“Yes. All night, father. You knew that,” Damian said with a bored hint of annoyance as he ate.

“Good. If either of you needs to speak to an adult in the matter of love or relationships, I am well acquainted with several child psychologists as well as a number of medical doctors,” He said casually. You almost choked on your food before taking a large gulp of your drink.

“Father. Not at breakfast,” Damian chided. His ears had a soft redness and he pointedly looked out the window instead of at either you or Bruce. You stared at your plate.

“I think I hear Jason awake. I’d better catch him before he leaves. Excuse me,” Bruce said before leaving.

“Sorry. He’s.... awkward. He thinks he needs to teach us about sexual education. A little late,” Damian said with a laugh.

“A little late? Oh,” you said. Damian quickly looked at you.

“Not that way. We’ve just, we learned in school. Not that I’ve- I think someone’s coming in here,” Damian said grateful for the distraction.

Dick and his fiancé walked in. He had his hand around her waist and the pair seemed glued together. They sat down at the same time with a giggle. They probably hadn’t even noticed you both there.

“Are you done?” Damian asked and you nodded. You couldn’t handle watching them.

You both went upstairs to his room again. Damian awkwardly sat on the bed.

“You know,” you started. Your face felt flush. “If you did want to talk about it, I’d be here.”

“Oh. Do you mean,” he started to ask.

“Sex. Yeah. It’s fine if you don’t. Seriously. Just saying...” you trailed off. He looked at you intensely. When Damian Wayne was thinking hard on something, his face became completely imperceivable.

“Maybe. Soon?” He said hopefully. You nodded. “Wanna watch a movie? You’ve got to go home in a few hours.”

“Yeah sounds great.”

Dick

You woke up feeling like a puzzle piece. An arm was thrown across your back and legs wrapped in yours as you laid on Dick’s chest. His heartbeat was steady in your ears. You couldn’t get much closer to him if you tried. You moved to get up because the bathroom was calling your name.

“Baby,” he groaned and wrapped his other arm tightly around you. You tried to pull out while shushing him back to sleep. There was no way you could pry yourself from his grasp unless he wanted you to with his incredible grip strength. “Stay with me,” Dick begged. “Just a little more.”

“I’ve got to use the bathroom,” you protested and he finally let you go with a big pout.

When you came back, his rough fingers pulled you by your bare thighs back in bed. His dress shirt and panties weren’t exactly the warmest clothing. You landed on him with a giggle. Dick quickly wrapped you both back in the blanket.

“Good morning, fiancé,” he said softly. His fingers traced soft circles on your back.

“Fiancée,” you said back with a smile. Dick kiss you softly. Morning breath and all. He finally pulled away.

“It’s Boxing Day. Alfred’s sausage rolls. Are you hungry,” he said finally releasing you.

“Yeah. A little. Especially after last night,” you said getting up and finding some clothing.

“I know, right,” Dick said and his face was basically this emoji 😏. You rolled you eyes and slipped on his sweater and a pair of sweatpants.

Dick couldn’t keep his hands off of you. He held your hip while walking downstairs and laced his fingers in yours as you ate breakfast. His plate was piled high with the pastry and he drank a green protein shake with it. Was there anyone else in the room with you? Maybe? Who knows? Who cares?

After breakfast you both said goodbye to his family before leaving back to Bludhaven. You and Dick stayed in bed for a good portion of the afternoon and when he went on patrol, he looked at you wistfully before leaving.

Tim

Tim could sleep through a hurricane in a canoe. He missed a lot of sleep and when he finally laid on his pillows, lights out. He didn’t move. He didn’t snore. And God hisself couldn’t wake this man before at least 5 hours had passed.

And when he woke up on the day after Christmas, he was incredibly disoriented after getting 9 hours of sleep. He vaguely felt someone laying in his chest and he looked down. Oh yeah, you. He slept so hard, he forgot he had a girlfriend for 2 minutes. He would never tell you that.

“Sunshine,” he said running his fingers on your arm. “Wake up.”

You slowly stirred to look at him. You laughed instantly. His hair stuck up everywhere. Probably a side effect of having his face between your legs last night. He looked at you confused.

“You need a shower before you do anything, Timbo,” you said with a smile.

“Back at you. Wanna join me,” he asked with a eyebrow wag.

“I think I’ll pass with all your family awake. Last night was pushing it,” you said, giving him a kiss. He leaned towards your face to continue the kiss as you pulled back. His hands held your hips but released them easily when you pulled away. He had a pout on his lips but got up to shower anyways. You both got ready before going downstairs.

Alfred slid a cup of coffee in Tim’s hand before you even made it to the breakfast nook. You poured a large one for yourself after seeing the scene. Dick and his fiancé were half an inch from making out at the table. It was too early for this madness.

Tim gave you a knowing look. He certainly wasn’t the only one getting play in his childhood room last night. You rolled your eyes.

Tim grabbed a few pastries and a protein shake. It was funny the first time you learned he drank them religiously. He didn’t look the type. Dick on the other hand... But Tim was naturally thin and couldn’t hold weight on his body to save his life. A protein shake at every meal helped replace the calories he lost through work, lack of sleep, and his insanely fast metabolism.

Tim’s phone rang. No surprise there. You were honestly surprised that Tim’s phone hadn’t rung earlier or last night. He sighed and answered it. His breakfast was probably going to be interrupted. He talked for a few minutes before hanging up.

“Sunshine,” he started.

“You’re busy, Wayne Enterprise. Have to leave soon,” you guessed. He looked regretful.

“Yeah. I’ll make it up to you tonight. I’ll call you a car when you’re ready to leave. I’m sorry, sweetheart,” Tim said. He quickly shoved food in his mouth and gulped down his coffee. “I’ve got to go.”

Jason

You woke up frozen. You were not under any blankets and tbh your tits were like icy. Your stomach was really warm tho. You looked down to see Jason’s head between your bare breasts and his body slotted between your legs. He clung on you like a monkey and gently snored. The blankets were on the floor. The activities of the night before had you flushing. Yeah that had been fun.

You ran your fingers through his hair to wake him gently. You didn’t want to jerk him awake but you were frozen. Jason slowly stirred and rubbed his face into your bare skin before groaning.

“Fuck it’s cold,” he grumbled, wrapping himself tighter around your body.

“Get up. I’m cold,” you said and he begrudgingly released you. He stood up and you realized that you both were completely naked. He grabbed some sweatpants and threw them on before throwing the blanket on you. You snuggled in the warm fabric. You were lulled back to sleep for a few more minutes.

You woke up alone. There was a note on the dresser.

Get dressed and come downstairs to the breakfast nook Princess- Jay

You grabbed one of his black sweaters and threw it on with your pants you wore the night before. You saw Bruce slide Jason the keys and he confirmed it with you afterwards. Your mind couldn’t process that.

Jason pulled you to the breakfast nook. Dick and his new fiancé were leaving and Tim was rushing out with business. His girlfriend left shortly after. Bruce, of course, had already started working on business or whatever mysterious stuff he always did.

Jason ate every single sausage roll and the rest of the vegetables that you didn’t eat. Alfred came and sat at the table with you both. Usually not what he would do but Jason always insisted. The older man nursed a cup of coffee and you all looked out the large viewing window. You couldn’t get over how huge the place was.

“Alfred, can you tell me stories about Jason when he was a kid?” You asked and Alfred smiled.

“I have many of Master Jason’s childhood. He was always a boisterous lad. Still is I suppose,” Alfred said taking a sip of his drink. Jason smiled. He had an arm thrown over your shoulder.

“When he was 14, Jason tried to climb the chandeliers in the front entry, as Master Richard had many times. Well, Jason was probably 20 lbs heavier than Richard even at that age. The chandelier came down with a resounding bang. Jason had broken a toe. This was the morning before a gala at the Manor. Master Bruce was far from pleased,” Alfred said. You laughed.

“The chandelier got reenforced and now Dick can swing on it to his heart content. I’ll leave the acrobats to him though,” Jason said with a laugh.

“I wish I could have seen it,” you laughed.

Alfred sat with you both for the better part of an hour, just telling funny stories about the boys and Bruce. Alfred stood up.

“I really do have work to do if I hope to catch the game this afternoon. I hope you both understand. But one last thing before you go, Master Jason. Bruce has been talking about leaving you the penthouse for years. He just needed a push to finally give it to you. I hope you both enjoy it,” Alfred said before leaving the room.

“Let’s, uh, let’s get going,” Jason said abruptly. He was feeling uncomfortable emotions. It wasn’t the first time and you indulged him without asking any questions before leaving.

Bruce

He had a pounding headache when he woke up. He was hung over. He had impeccable hearing and the noises from 3 of his 4 sons rooms (as Duke and Cass had patrolled after the party) had him finding a bottle of whiskey. Was Jason purposefully being loud? At least Damian’s room was quiet. Bruce couldn’t handle that. Of course that didn’t guarantee anything. But he was willing to put up with it so that his boys could be home. But yeah, sound proofing on their bedrooms was a priority. Jesus Jason, wtf?

Giving Jason the penthouse was not a plan. But Bruce was grateful because the Jason’s Christmas list had been “gun.”

Dick’s list was “a break.” Bruce got him a pair of jet skis. That would be a good distraction.

Tim had asked for “a day off.” Bruce gave him tickets for 2 to Hvar, Croatia in January for 2 full weeks in a snowy cabin.

Damian had asked for a certain set of Wakizashi swords. He got the swords.

Alfred asked for a pasta maker and Bruce bought him a ticket to Italy for a week to pick one up.

Also: 3 days after Christmas, Tim recieved a camouflage gun themed snack gift basket with the card reading “duck next time-Jay”

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craziest-in-the-guild · 3 years

Text

Resolute

Chapter 2 of the Long Night series

Content Warnings: 18+ for some adult themes (still not to the smut, but were headed there) Nightmares/post traumatic stress

Word Count: 2.5k

A/N: Although this is reader x rex, I couldn't help but make reader a red head. Hope that's ok. Is it dyed? Natural? You decide!

I said goodbye to Kix and handed over his care to my coworker. His ankle was broken in two places, and while it wasn’t bad enough for surgery, it would be soaking in bacta for several hours. I had given him some pain meds and told him to enjoy his rest.

I hated to leave him, but I needed to go home and get ready to ship out in the morning. I needed rest myself, but I knew there was no way I was going to sleep. How could I sleep? I was never meant to be on the battlefield.

_____________________________

Rex headed back to the barracks to tell his men about Kix and their new medic. Kix had assured him that he thought she would be able to handle the stress of a war zone. He hoped for her sake that he had made the right decision.

“Where’s Kix?” Jesse asked as soon as Rex came through the door.

“Kix broke his kriffing ankle and won’t be shipping out with us.”

“Who’s going to be our medic?” Fives asked, “Surely not one of those kriffing med droids!”

“I found a replacement. You know the medic from medbay that patches you all up when you are too drunk from 79’s or hurt from a fight? She is coming with us.”

“HER?” They all asked, surprised.

“Yes, her,” a weary Rex responded. “Kix said he wanted her to be his replacement, and I want you all to make her feel welcome. Afterall, she may save your hide out there.”

______________________

Maker, I had just closed my eyes when my alarm started blaring. The room was cold and my covers were nice and toasty, killing any will I might have had to get up. Why is a bed the most comfortable right when you have to leave?

I grumbled, threw back the covers, and headed to the fresher. I indulged myself, heating the water until it was steaming. I didn’t know how the showers were aboard light cruisers, but I was betting they weren’t this good. My self indulgence couldn’t last too long, or else I’d be running late. Begrudgingly, I turned the water off.

I heard a knock at my apartment door and wondered who it could be at this early hour. I slid on my robe and went to investigate.

“Captain, what are you doing here so early? Am I late?” I crossed my arms to ensure my robe stayed closed, feeling slightly awkward in front of the captain. It didn’t help that he was so handsome. I could feel my cheeks flushing.

“No, I just wanted to come get you so we could go to the quartermaster’s and make sure you have everything you need.”

He handed me a pair of blacks to put on. I was a little confused as blacks were what the troopers wore under their armor.

“Oh, ok, um, do you want to come in while I finish getting dressed?”

The captain seemed surprised that I invited him in. We both stood still in the awkward silence for a moment, both presumably exhausted and not firing on all cylinders. I could see the dark circles under his eyes that indicated he hadn’t slept either. I wondered if he ever really slept.

“I have fresh caf brewing,” I offered.

Fresh caf was enough to lure him in. I brought him a steaming hot cup and then headed to the fresher to get dressed.

“We’re going to outfit you with clone armor for this mission, that’s part of why I’m here early. I wanted to have enough time to get you fitted and dressed. We aren’t used to fitting armor to a woman” Rex said.

“I’d say not. Do you think there will be enough room in the chest?” I quipped. With that, I heard Captain Rex choke on his caf and go into a coughing fit.

“Sorry!” I yelled from the fresher. I could only imagine the look I was getting.

I came out of the fresher to find the Captain as composed as ever. You would have never known that he nearly suffered death by witty comment and hot caf five minutes earlier.

Captain Rex stood and moved to the door, “Ready?”

I grabbed my bag, stepped into the hallway, and paused to look at my small apartment, wondering if I’d ever see it again.

_______________________________________________

We arrived at the quartermaster’s to find a shiny new set of armor sitting on the counter. I immediately grabbed the helmet to try it on, only to find it to be too big. As I turned my head, it shifted from side to side. I couldn’t help but giggle a little, feeling like a child stealing their dad’s helmet. The captain cracked a smile.

“I think you need some extra padding,” he said as he took the helmet off my head. He added a few more pads to help tailor the fit. There hadn’t been time to get me a custom helmet.

“Oh, that’s much better”

“Are you ready to quit playing and try the rest on?” Rex asked with a small smile.

“Go ahead and put on the bottom half, then I’ll help you with the top half”.

The boots fit much better than the helmet. The codpiece was a little awkward, but I figured I’d get used to it, or at least use it to make obscene jokes.

“Here, let me help you with the back plate and breast plate, they’re a bit difficult until you get used to them.”

He snapped on the abdominal plate and then the breast and back plates. He stood behind me, adjusting everything. I could feel his breath on the back of my neck, and it was sending small shivers down my spine. The Captain was quiet and I yearned to break the silence, but didn’t know what to say.

“Captain-“

“Please call me Rex.” It was nearly a whisper. This sent even more shivers down my spine. Did he know what he was doing to me?

The moment- was it a “moment”?- was shattered.

“Hey! Red on the head, fire in the bed!” Fives hollered from across the room.

I laughed and rolled my eyes back as far as they would go.

He had called me that one night in med bay when he had been brought in, half passed out from a night at 79’s. One look at my red hair, and he’d uttered the phrase that had basically become my nickname. He said it to me every time I saw him in med bay, which was often.

“Fives! How are you? It’s been more than a couple weeks since I’ve seen your drunk carcass in med bay,” I jeered.

“Captain’s been keeping us out in the field a lot lately, he doesn’t believe in fun,” he said with a goofy grin on his face. Rex punched him in the shoulder.

Rex finished adjusting the breast plate and attaching my pauldrons. The left pauldron bore the red and white mark of a clone medic.

Fives had disappeared into the storage room and came back with a medic bag. He blew the dust off of it and handed it to me.

“Here, put this and your helmet on. Let’s see the whole thing,” he said.

I put them on and looked out of the helmet to see Rex and Fives beaming.

“You look great, doc,” Fives said.

“Fives, report to the launch bay, we’ll be along shortly,” Rex ordered.

“Yes, sir.”

Fives gave me a salute and a wink as he walked off. I gave him an audible huff and eye roll he couldn’t see through my helmet.

Rex chuckled.

“You’re going to fit in well here, you know.”

—————————

The hangar was a sight to behold with all of the clones in formation.

Rex gave a short motivational speech and ordered everyone into the transports.

“You stay with me, Fives, Jesse, Tup, Echo, Dogma, or Hardcase, and you’ll be fine,” Rex instructed.

I nodded and put my helmet on. I loaded into the crowded transport with them and we headed for the Jedi cruiser Resolute.

Coruscant faded away as we climbed higher.

________________________

The Resolute was bigger than I could have imagined. I had seen holo images of cruisers, but it doesn’t compare to seeing one for real. There were so many ships in the hangars. I walked past an AT-TE and stopped to marvel at the size.

“Wanna see the inside?” Hardcase asked.

“Hell yes I do!”

Hardcase beamed at my enthusiasm. His first loves were weapons and heavy equipment.

“This pretty girl can climb just about anything she encounters. She’s even got magnetized feet so she can climb metal,” he explained as I looked around the cockpit at all the buttons.

“She can even withstand being in space for a bit, since she can be pressurized. Sometime you’ll have to ask Rex about that adventure. Here, I’ll give you a boost up into the gunner’s seat.”

The gunner sat exposed, but I could easily see how it would be fun to mow down droids with the cannon. I looked down to see Rex looking up at us.

“Hardcase, it’s time to get everything ready for tomorrow, there’s lots to be done. Our medic there needs to get to her briefing, too,” he instructed.

“Thanks, Hardcase, this was fun, can you show me more another time?”

“Yep, anytime. It’s always my pleasure to show off my toys,” he had a cheesy grin stretching from ear to ear.

I hopped down and followed Rex to my first briefing.

________________________

Dinner followed the briefing. The boys were rowdy and there was a sense of excitement buzzing in the air. I ate my meal in near silence, being plenty entertained by the crass and ridiculous things the men of the 501st were discussing. It was clear that it helped keep their minds off of the coming battle.

It was late when I retired to my quarters, hoping to get a few hours of rest.

______________

Geonosis was barren, except for various rock formations. The night was eerily dark and Rex was alone. He walked the desert landscape, looking for any signs of life. He tried his comm again, only to be answered with broken static.

The Captain finally saw something in the distance, although he could not make it out. As he approached the shapes, Rex found Fives, Jesse, and her, laying on the ground. He removed their helmets, only to see dark voids where their eyes had been. Blood started pouring out of the chasms. Their lifeless bodies suddenly sat up, repeating “It’s your fault we’re dead.”

Rex’s eyes shot open and he awoke to find he was still in his bunk. He was covered in sweat and his heart was nearly beating out of his chest.

It was just a nightmare.

The nightmares never stopped.

Being a soldier was hard, but being a leader was harder. He never stopped wondering if he made the wrong decisions. He never stopped worrying about his vod. So many had died, and he still carried each one with him.

He decided to go to the mess hall for some caf. Might as well since he couldn’t sleep anyway. Rex walked past his men to the door. He was relieved to see Fives, Jesse, Tup, Echo, Hardcase, and Dogma, all asleep, snoring, in their bunks. He looked around and wondered which men he would lose tomorrow. A tear escaped and he let it fall, knowing that no one would see. He wiped the tears away and continued towards the mess.

The door slid open. The mess was empty except for her. She had her head down on a table, red hair splayed over her arms. He wondered how long she’d been here. Rex walked to her, gently calling her name. She didn’t even flinch. A cup of caf was beside her, ice cold, indicating she had been there for some time.

Rex laid a hand on her shoulder.

“Wake up, cyar'ika, you’ll be much more comfortable in your bed.”

She drowsily raised her head and brushed her hair back.

“Rex?” she asked as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

“Yeah, it’s me. C’mon, I’ll walk you back to your quarters.”

She stood up and stretched. There were lines across her face from where it had rested on her arm. Rex couldn’t help but smile.

They walked back to her quarters, making small talk along the way.

“I’m nervous, that’s why I couldn’t sleep,” she said spontaneously.

“I would expect you to be nervous,” he assured, “I won’t sugar coat it and say that it will be easy. It will likely be a bloodbath. But, we’ll be there to help you. We will get through this together.”

They stopped in front of her door and she turned to Rex, laying a hand on his arm.

“Thank you, Rex,” she said and then disappeared into her room.

He stood at the closed door for a minute, her touch still lingering.

“Sleep well, mesh’la.”

_________________________________________

I woke up early so I could check my medic bag and have a cup of caf before deploying.

The mess hall wasn’t busy, but there were a few clones up and about. I grabbed my caf and scanned the room. Jesse saw me and waved me to a table with him, Dogma, Echo, and Tup.

“ ‘Mornin, boys.”

“ ‘’Mornin, Doc,” they replied in near unison. It wasn’t uncommon for soldiers to call their medics “doc”. Field medics did it all.

“Where’s Fives and Hardcase?” I inquired.

“Those two will sleep til the last second,” Dogma said as he rolled his eyes. I’d been told Dogma was a stickler for rules. I expected he was early for everything.

I sat down next to Jesse, started sipping my caf, and inventorying my bag.

Bacta? Check.

IV supplies? Check.

Normal saline? Check.

Lasted ringers? Check.

Bandages? Check.

Tourniquets? Check.

The bag didn’t hold much, but it was enough to get the men back to the field hospital. I sat the bag on the floor and joined the conversation.

“You ready, Doc?” Tup asked.

“Ready as I’ll ever be, I guess. You boys just try to keep from getting blown to bits and I’ll be fine,” I jeered. They laughed in agreement.

“Seriously? I’m scared shitless, but I know you guys have my back and that makes it better,” I admitted.

“It’s ok, I think everyone but Hardcase was scared on their first mission,” Jesse said.

I’d met Hardcase a few times in med bay. He never backed down from a fight, in fact, he usually went looking for it.

Our comms lit up and a voice announced that we needed to report to our gunships. We cleared the table and headed down to the hangar. As we entered the elevator, Fives and .

Hardcase came running down the hall,

“Hold the door, wait for us!” Fives shouted.

I held the door for them. Both were still finishing putting on their armor. I smiled and shook my head.

“Whhhaaattt?” Fives asked with a smile. “Better late than never, right?”captain

#captain rex #clone trooper rex #rex x reader #star wars #the clone wars #clone trooper jesse #clone trooper fives #clone trooper kix #clone trooper echo #clone trooper tup #arc trooper fives #clone trooper hardcase #clone x reader

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oddsnendsfanfics · 3 years

Text

Love, Uncle Sy

Genre: Fan Fiction (Sand Castle) Pairing: N/A Warnings: It’s so fluffy! Rating: G Length: Drabble Disclaimer: a strict work of fiction, I own nothing except the original characters and the plot line. In no way am I affiliated to any of it.

A/N: I had fun with Sy and Willow, making Christmas cookies, so I brought them back for some adorable birthday fluff.

Henry Cavill Master List

Saturday morning, sun barely above the horizon and Sy was wide awake. As usual, his morning began in the kitchen, a pot of coffee perfuming the room while accompanied by the humid scent of dishwasher and frying bacon. He'd woke this morning, tossing and turning, a cold sweat cresting his brow. Nothing a shower and a soothing meditation tape wouldn't temporarily fix. Had he not been woke by the nightmares, Sy would have planned to sleep in – or his version of sleeping in, at least.

Waking from a nightmare on your birthday, should be criminal. Never the less, he had work to do once breakfast was over. In a few hours, he had to pack his truck with a few party favours and drive over to the local horse farm where his niece took lessons every Saturday morning. While Sy was turning older than he cared to remember, today was his niece's seventh birthday.

The grizzled Army vet loved all of his nieces and nephews, but Willow was certainly his favourite. She was his mini-me. His tiny partner in crime. His shadow, and the light of his life. From the moment Sy had held his birthday twin, he'd been in love. His heart was melting and there was nothing that he wouldn't do for that child.

Calling the dog back inside, he gave a scratch behind the ears. Plating his bacon and a piece of toast, saving a few pieces to cool as a treat for the faithful canine. Checking his watch, Sy frowned, 6AM was a little too early to call his birthday girl. He'd have to wait until he saw her later this morning, when he would also be presenting her with the most perfect present in the world.

Around 10AM Sy's truck was packed with a few birthday banners, balloons, cupcakes, and a giant pink sparkly bow. Willow's lesson ended at 11:30, if he wanted to get there and allow his sister time to set up then he had to hurry. Sy couldn't wait to see his niece's face, when he presented her with the present that he'd bought her. He could picture it now, her eyes shining and that adorable smile, ear to ear, squealing in pure delight.

Arriving while Willow was busy cleaning her tack, Sy managed to get somewhat set up. A kind parent helping to set up made it easier on Sy. One last thing to get from the truck and they were set. Sy shut the door, the case of cupcakes in his arm. Walking back to the surprise location, the last thing he'd expected when he stepped inside the barn was Willow running towards him, tears streaming down her face, sniffling and trying to contain the sobs of anguish. Stopping in his tracks, Sy removed his sunglasses, intercepting the little girl rushing towards him at the speed of light.

“Uncle Sy,” Willow rushed her uncle, tears in her eyes. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she sniffled.

“Hey Wispy, what's wrong Bub?” Sy stroked the back of her head, the braided pig tails messed from their time under her helmet.

“Oh Uncle Sy.” She wailed, bottom lip trembling. A child crying on their birthday was never a good sign. Squatting down to be the same height as his niece, Sy wiped her eyes. “Checkers.”

“What about him?”

“He's,” hiccup, “he...” she sobbed. “He's sold.”

Biting his bottom lip, Sy felt for the little girl. He wished they could have told her before now, but that would have ruined the entire birthday surprise. Of course her favourite pony had sold, the second Sy had heard that the striking spotted pony had a price tag, he called and negotiated the sale. Checkers had sold nearly two weeks ago, his new owner none the wiser that the pony even belonged to her – at her Uncle's request.

Aimee and Mike had been discussing buying their daughter her own pony, though funds and the right pony were never aligned. When Sy heard that the favourite lesson pony was going to be sold, he discussed it with his sister and knew what he had to do.

Seeing Willow sobbing uncontrollably was going to make the reveal that much sweeter. Even so, knowing something his niece did not, seeing her in such a state broke Sy's heart.

“Oh Wispy,” Sy soothed her, bringing her in for a tight hug. “I know it hurts now, but just think, Checkers is going to have a little girl of his very own. Don't ponies deserve a good home and all the love?”

“Yeah, but I'm going to miss him. I wish I could have him. I would love him forever, Uncle Sy.”

“I know bub, I know.” Gently giving her a squeeze, Sy let her go rubbing the tears away from her cheeks. “How 'bout you go finish putting your things away, then come find me and we can give Checkers some treats and tell him what a good pony he is?”

“Okay.” Willow nodded, hiccupping through a new batch of silent tears.

Close one. Sy stood, blowing out a heavy breath.

He had to hurry, if he wanted to be set up by the time Willow came back. He picked up the case of cupcakes. Delicately arranged in the shape of a pony, of course. Sy had worked hard baking, decorating, and creating the perfect birthday treat. Walking through the aisle of the small riding facility, Sy smiled seeing his sister and nephew waiting at the party site.

They had arranged to meet up after Willow's lesson, catching a few of her horsey friends before they left. Parents happy to wait for an extra hour to help the little girl celebrate her birthday. Sending Willow to the car to put her things away had been the only way Sy could get her far enough away to make their plan work.

“Sy, Happy birthday.” Aimee hugged her brother tightly. Careful not to squish the container of cupcakes that he held.

“Thank ya.” He kissed her cheek, smiling wide. Nodding to Ben, who would rather be anywhere else right now. “Wispy was pretty upset,” he commented glancing over at the pony who was standing in a holding paddock near by. “I nearly broke, Aim.”

“Oh god,” Aimee rolled her eyes, “who knew all it took to break the soldier was a crying child.”

“She's gutted,” He frowned, setting the cupcakes down on a small table decorated with a pink birthday sign, matching plates, and cups.

“Won't be for long,” Ben shrugged.

“Sure you and Mike are okay with this?” Eyeing his sister, Sy smirked adjusting his cap.

“Well, we kind of need to be. It's not like we've a choice.”

“Course you do, if you don't want the pony, I am sure Checkers and I would get on fine.” laughing, Sy took a good look at the pony who was content to eat the hay he'd been given. The big sparkly pink bow around his neck didn't seem to hinder him any. “He's a good looking boy.”

“I'd like to see you on that pony.” Her laughing intensified, Aimee snorted slapping Sy in the arm.

Her giant of a brother would look insane on the pony, even if Checkers was on the bigger end of being a pony. Hell, the last time she'd seen Sy ride he was maybe twelve, before girls and other interests had taken over his attention. Back then he would have loved to have his own pony. Their parents had allowed Aimee to begin taking lessons, when Sy had tagged along, insisting that he be allowed to ride too. Fearless, the six year old climbed onto the horse assigned to him and didn't bother to look back. For a few years everyone had began to assume that he'd eventually end up in high school rodeo, after that he'd find a woman and settle down on a farm somewhere.

Heh. What a life that would have been. A wife and kids were evidently not in the cards for this Syverson. He loved his nieces and nephews, but the scars his life bore, it would be unfair to condemn a child to a father who was broken and haunted by war. Clouds settling in his mind, Sy cleared his throat bringing himself back to the present matter at hand. Tormenting his sister.

“I happen to be a fine rider.” Winking at Ben; Sy nudged his sister. “I remember being a much better rider than some others that I know.”

“Shut up, I was a good rider.” Defending herself, Aimee stuck her tongue out at him.

“I know you were, but I was better that's all.” grinning from ear to ear, Sy ruffled his sister's hair, checking his watch. Willow was still missing, unlike her. “Should I go find Wispy? Bring her over?”

“Uh, yeah. If you don't mind.” Aimee nodded, checking her watch. The car had been unlocked, there was no obvious reason for her daughter to be held up.

Walking to the parking area, Sy laid his sights on the suv belonging to his sister. The doors were all shut and no sign of Willow. His truck, parked beside it was also vacant. In the back of the suv, Willow's stuff was tossed in. It looked like she had thrown it and ran.

“Wispy?” his heart began to thump when the car was clear. Logically, Sy knew that she couldn't have gone far. The soldier in him told Sy that there was no need to panic. The uncle side tried to take over his wildest imagination. No, sir he was not allowing those thoughts in. Listening for a moment, he took a deep breath steadying his heart and calming the pounding in his veins. “Willow?”

Behind him, he could hear a rustling in the grass. All the dogs were around the back and this was too big to be a barn cat. Following the noise around the corner of the shed, Sy's heartbeat returned to normal finding Willow sitting in the grass. Knees to her chin, her face stained with tears, her jeans dirty, boots covered in dust.

“You coming, birthday girl?”

“Uncle Sy?” Willow sighed, rubbing her hands against her eyes.

“Yeah?”

“My heart hurts. Is this what it's like when you have a broken heart?”

“Wispy, bub.” Sinking down to sit beside her on the grass, Sy felt his chest tighten. Wishing that Aimee had never mentioned the sale.

“I miss him already.”

“I know, but for now he's still here and he wants those carrots that I brought.” Trying his best to encourage his tiny shadow, Sy smiled. “If we go see him now, it means we get to spend more time enjoying Checkers than worrying. We can't predict tomorrow.”

Leaning into her uncle, Willow sighed. “But why did he have to sell? I love him, I don't want him going to a new home and on my birthday.”

“Oh Wispy,” Sy kissed the top of her head. He wanted to tell her, reassure her that Checkers wasn't going anywhere, but he didn't want to ruin the surprise just yet. “Honestly, bub, I don't know what to tell you. What I can tell you is that it won't always hurt.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive. Now, your ma is waiting for us. Some of your friends have stayed, too. There are cupcakes.”

“Really? But I thought we were going to feed Checkers.”

“We are, after. I wasn't supposed to tell you about the cupcakes, but I even made them myself for you. Come on, let's go enjoy the day. It's our birthday! No tears on our birthday.” Standing, Sy held his hand out to Willow.

Grasping her Uncle's hand, she squeaked when he grabbed her and tossed her over his shoulder. Laughing hysterically, Willow flopped around on his back, bracing herself with her elbows as he walked through the yard.

Seeing Sy with Willow over his shoulder, Aimee instructed Ben to grab Checkers and have him ready for his sister. Whatever. Ben crawled through the wooden fence, clipping a pink lead line onto the pony and coaxing him away from he hay. His sister was about to lose her mind. Straightening the bow, Ben smiled fondly at the thought of how happy his little sister would be.

“Happy Birthday, Wispy!” Sy announced setting her down, back to Checkers.

“Is this all mine?” Willow's eyes were wide as she stared up at her uncle.

“Sure is.” Nodding, Sy smiled with pride.

A few of the kids who had stayed were giddy with anticipation. Wishing their friend a happy birthday, waiting for the big moment. Turning to look at her mom, Willow spotted her brother with the pony. More tears in her eyes, she began to loudly sob. Her body shaking, words escaping her. Kneeling down beside his niece, Sy sniffed back his own tears.

“Happy birthday, Willow. He's all yours.”

“M-mine?”

“Yeah sweetheart, Checkers is all yours. If you want him.”

“I do. I really do, I love him so much.” Willow rushed the gate, fumbling to undo the latch. Frustrated she darted under the fence, throwing her arms around the pony's neck, hugging him tightly. “My own pony,” She whispered, causing Ben to smile. Handing his sister the lead line, Ben took a step back allowing his mom to take photo of the moment.

“Send me a copy, will ya Aims.” Sy wiped his hand across his eyes, putting his sunglasses on to hide the tears.

“You big softie.” Aimee nudged him. “Go on, get in the photo with them.” She urged her brother.

Stepping into the small paddock, unlatching the gate – unlike his niece and nephew there was no way in hell Sy was darting through the fence boards. He stood next to Willow for a moment, stroking the spotted neck of the content pony. Whispering softly to Checkers about what a good sport he'd been.

“I can't believe it.” whispering, Willow looked up at her uncle. “He's all mine.”

“He sure is, bub.” Holding out his arms Sy smiled when Willow rushed into them. Hugging her uncle tightly. Scooping her up, Sy took the lead line from her, holding Checkers beside them while Aimee took some photos. “Happy birthday, Wispy.” Sy smiled kissing her cheek.

“Happy birthday, Uncle Sy. Sorry that I didn't get you a pony.” Willow kissed his cheek, hugging her arms around his neck.

#captain syverson #captain syverson fanfic #henry cavill #captain syverson imagine

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eugenesmorphine · 3 years

Note

Hiii, can I request something of Ronald Speirs and maybe a German girl that was found in the eagle’s nest or some abandoned buildings just like that?😊 it just come through my mind haha

Happy holiday💕💕

Seeking Refuge // Ronald Speirs Imagine

Taglist: @alienoresimagines @ricksmorty @punkgeekcryptid @hellitwasyoufirstsergeant @valterras @adamantiumdragonfly

Word Count: 3,036

Ronald walked the edge of the destroyed practically destroyed Nazi base. The crunching of the snow beneath his Army Issued boots. His firearm held tight;y within his beaten and calloused fingers. The face paint slicked onto his cheeks as he kept a stern eye. Nazi prisoners walking past them in a long line, their hands up above their heads. Stripped of any weapons and any valuables. A cigarette balanced between his lips. The nicotine slipped down his throat. It was calming things for him.

Peering in rooms, searching around for any Intel. Any prisoners. Really anything to be honest. It was a large base. Multiple large buildings with bunches of small buildings here and there. Soldiers searched all the buildings. Shuffling with papers needed to be translated, snagging things of value of course. Flags, medals, maybe even some pieces of clothing from the prisoners taken and or from the dead that lay around.

Ronald had sat within a building, his feet propped up on the desk in front of him, picking his teeth with a toothpick. His weapon lay on his lap, and his helmet rested on the same old, and beaten wooden desk. Humming to himself, enjoying the small moment of somewhat relaxation. Watching the paratroopers of all types of ranks bustled in and out of the building. The commanding officers stayed within the building, making it their headquarters.

Papers began to pile up, Soldiers coming in to report what the new POWs had told them. Everything was going rather smoothly. It made Ronald a little uneasy. Nothing for these paratroopers ever went easy for them it seemed. And of course, that uneasy feeling seemed to be true when Liebgott, Martin, Perconte and Randleman all came in to stand in front of the officers. The Captain stood and looked to the men. Raising an eyebrow.

“Sir, there is only one last building that has yet to be searched. But we believe there could be some Krauts in there, sir. Men have reported some banging around, some footsteps. We were in need of an officer to be present, sir,” Martin spoke up. Standing at attention of course, along with the rest of the men. Speirs crossed his arms over his chest, as much as he didn’t want to get up, he was going to. It was his job after all.

“All right, let’s head over there then to get it done and over with. We need to get on the move soon anyways,” he responded, Already beginning to make his way past the men. The small group already followed his lead.

///

The old German home the small squad approached was just as worn down and partially destroyed as the others. It was quiet, just like the rest of the town. That was merely a ghost town without the American Military within it.

Speirs took a few steps forward, approaching the front door. “Have you men even been within this home yet?” he asked. Turning to look back over his shoulder at the four paratroopers. All of them shaking their heads. Making the officer scoff slightly and carrying on walking within the building, stepping through the doorway. The old house smelled of mildew and was damp all around the inside. The rainstorms had definitely gotten to this home over it’s time of use. The old furniture matched the disarray of the home. Chairs knocked over. A small table broken to pieces. Shattered plates and cups spreading across the floor and crunching beneath their boots. It wasn’t like they hadn’t seen something like this. The German’s had no care in the world what they did to people’s belongings. Especially within the smaller German cities. They took what they wanted. Valuables, women, lives. Anything. And if they didn’t want it, they merely destroyed it.

Ronald picked up a few silver spoons and forks that spread across the creaky, wooden floorboards of the home. Stuffing them in his bag. He never could turn down some more silver to send back home. Sticky fingers of course. Continuing to search the one floor home. It wasn’t too big, and it wasn’t too small either. It was a good family home, and Ronald imagined what it would look like if it was still normal. No broken furniture, or shattered plates and cups. A happy family merely walking around and enjoying a nice meal at the table. It was something Ronald secretly always did. Imagine what life within these towns and cities would be like if there was no war. What he would do if there was no war. Where would he be?

Ronald and the men were all pulled out of their thoughts and searching when a crash of a pot shattering rang from the basement below. All of their heads snapping to the worn, wooden door that was the only thing that could possibly lead to the basement below. Ronald’s eyes narrowed at the door as he motioned for the men to move up. Liebgott took point and made his way towards the door. Pointing his firearm down at the door. Reaching for the doorknob slowly. His hand only centimetres away.

Leibgott didn’t even get a chance to grab the doorknob, the door flew open and a woman came out screaming. A knife within her grasp. “Fahr zur Hölle, ihr Nazis!” (Go to hell, you Nazis.) She screamed. Knocking Joe right off his feet and slashing his bicep with the knife. Randleman jumped to action and grabbed onto her. Wrapping her arms around her stomach and hoisting her up and yanking her back. Bull fell back against a small table causing the rest of whatever else was on it to fall and crash onto the ground. The woman kicked and screamed while Joe stood and pressed a hand on the new gash on his arm. Ronald went and snatched the knife from her hand and threw it to the side.

“What is she saying, Leib? Gah! Calm down, woman!” Martin yelled, while Ronald went to help Joe stand and grab a random cloth and pressing it against his arm.

“She thinks we are the Germans,” Joe grunted. Looking towards the H/C woman. Approaching her and watching her heave within the arms of Randleman. “Wir sind Amerikaner, keine Nazis,” (We are Americans, not Nazis). Showing the American flag patch on his arm.

Ronald watched as her emotions changed greatly. Staring through the mess of her hair as she panted. “Put me down. I have no more weapons, I will comply now,” the German woman spoke through a heavy accent. Everyone fell silent for a moment. The junior enlisted and NCOs turned towards their Captain for an answer. Ronald thought for a moment and stared at the woman who seemingly relaxed. His eyes meeting hers. He could almost read her with just the look on her face and her eyes.

Her skin was pale, skinnier than she should’ve been. Bruised littered her arms and legs. Her dress was torn and worn down greatly. “Let her go, she needs to go to Doc Roe. Maybe she could give us some information,” he stated. Watching as Bull placed her down gently. She wobbled slightly.

“I’m sorry I cut you, I thought you were the Gestapo. I will give you the little food and medical supplies I have left,” she offered. Her hands folding in front of her. Joe looked down at her and shook his head. He was frustrated, he always had a short temper. But he cooled down.

“It is fine,” he trailed off. He noticed a familiar symbol that rested on a necklace around her neck. A silver Star of David. “You are Jewish? I am too,” he told her. The woman just nodded as they began to walk out.

“How long have you been hiding there?” asked Ronald. He was amazed she held up that long. How the Germans never looked into that basement. The flats she wore were practically worn away.

“I stopped counting after about a month, they never saw me there. And when they searched the basement when they first showed up, I hid in a crawl space my father had made for me when the entirety of the Gestapo began to go around Germany. And when they raided my town, my parents sent me down there. I heard them be taken away, and I hid and stayed quiet. They never found me,” she spoke very quietly. It made her voice harder to understand in a way due to her accent. They all merely listened as they walked. “And when you soldiers came into this home again, I heard all the gunfire, and I thought you guys lost against them. So when I heard footsteps, I knocked that pot over. I thought I was done for. The only weapon I had was that old knife my father gave me,” she paused for a moment. “I would rather die fighting then to be sent where the rest of the Jews in this area went,” the young woman finished.

///

Ronald and the men brought her to Doc who got the small wounds she had and treated them carefully. Along with Leib’s arm wound. Ronald turned and his heart nearly softened at the sight of her. It was clear she knew what really happened to her parents. And now she was alone in this big world. “Martin, run and get her some food. Try to get some warm grub,” he told the NCO that stood besides him. Martin merely nodded with a quick ‘Yes, sir’ and ran off to get her some food. Going to stand in front of the woman while Roe still wrapped up one of her ankles.

“So, what is your name?” he asked. No matter what Ronald Speirs said, or how he said it, he just seemed too intimidating. To anyone really. But the young woman didn’t seem fazed by it at all. He understood it though. She had probably been through, and seen things, more than anyone could ever understand, or even think of in that matter.

“Y/N. My name is Y/N L/N,” she answered tiredly. A steaming cup of coffee within her hand. He watched as she slowly brought it to her lips and tilted it back. It was freezing this time of year, and all she wore was a torn dress and some flats. “You know, I never did like coffee all that much. I usually tea, but this American coffee is just so warm, it is perfect,” Y/N spoke with a chuckle. And without even thinking, the Paratrooper officer began to pull off his field jacket.

“Here, take this for now. I can probably get you some warmer clothes,” Ronald said as he gently draped the jacket around her shoulders. It seemed rather bigger on her no doubt. The young woman was frail, not dangerously skinny, but clear to the eyes that she was definitely underweight.

Y/N hugged the jacket around her body. Looking back up at Spiers. “Thank you. You Americans are so kind to me. I am still very sorry for attacking one of your men,” She stood and walked in front of Ronald. “I am at service to you men, I might be able to help you on where the Germans are and are going to. I believe they have a base just a few miles from here,” Y/N offered. Ronald merely just nodded.

“That sounds good, but why don’t we find you a place to rest first. We are going to be stationed in this town for a little while. I can get you situated where the rest of the officers are staying,” Ronald responded, tossing a thumb over his shoulder. “You can talk to our officer in charge, Major Winter,” he told her.

Y/N just nodded. “That will be fine, should we head over now?” she asked quietly. Her eyes batted at Ronald, her face was tired and you could almost see the sadness she hid just sitting within her eyes. It made Ronald feel something he thought he would never feel for a long time. Remorse.

Ronald nodded and turned on his heels quickly to face away from her. He couldn’t let emotions end up getting in the way of the mission. But, this was different. Was it? Or was he actually feeling for the young female he had just met. Something about her, even though meeting her just a few hours ago, made her stick to him almost. He just tried to push away the feelings all together, or the thoughts.

///

Speirs had gotten Y/N within the officer’s HQ, finding an empty room. It wasn’t much. An old, rickety bed with a thin mattress. It wasn’t much, but with a few extra blankets he had found for her, it would make a halfway decent room until they could find Y/N a way to get into a new city to start over.

Y/N entered the room and looked around. “This was the Rabbi’s home,” she spoke up. Sitting on the bed. “It is a shame I’ll never see them again.” it shocked Ronald at how calm she was saying those words. Her eyes were still soft and sad as she smoothed out her skirt. A sigh escaping her dry and cracked lips.

“How do you know you won’t ever see him again, or the rest of your family?” Ronald asked. Everyone had heard about the work camps. But nothing really solid. But Y/N seemed to understand at least one thing that came out of them. Evil.

“We weren’t the first ones to be deported from here. First they took the foreign Jews. Some were excited to go, but then we realized that they weren’t coming back after seven months. There were rumors that the Hitler had ordered his soldiers to kill them all. And some rumors that they were just working within factories. But when they came to gather the rest of us, it was different. Forcing us out of our homes, pushing and shoving men and women. I watched a woman be hit by the butt of some soldier’s gun. And then a few boys I knew, they were only about nineteen. Making them just four years younger than me, they fought back against a few of the Nazi soldiers. Merely just shoving them. And they shot them. Without hesitation,” taking a shaking breath, she looked back up to Ronald. “We know now that whenever a Jew goes with the Nazis. They aren’t coming back,” she whispered.

Ronald, a man of harshness and lacking the ability to show emotions in a time like this for a civilian. He didn’t exactly know how to respond. He just watched her facial expressions change as she told him the truths of what she saw. And after a few minutes of just silence, Ronald slowly placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“We had prayed you Americans would come. And at least you did now. I think I would freeze to death if I stayed in that basement another week,” she commented. Ronald just nodded and still didn’t have anything to say to her. “Thank you, Captain Speirs. Thank you for your men’s services,” her eyes were soft, and a smile soon appeared on her lips. It was the first time he saw her smile, and Ronald would never forget it. She was pretty. More than pretty, but Ronald just couldn’t find the right word to call it. Even covered in dirt and sweat.

“It.. don’t worry about it,” he said with a nod. “Why don’t you get some rest, we can get you some chow- I mean some hot food in a little while,” he offered. And Y/N merely just nodded. Picking up the blankets and getting beneath it all and rolling onto her side. Hearing one final yawn come from the woman before finally falling asleep.

Ronald stood there in the doorway for a few minutes. Making sure she had actually fallen asleep. That was until Major Winters came and placed a hand on Speirs’ shoulder. Making the Captain turn to look at him.

“Sir,” he said with a nod. Winters returned the nod then went back to the sleeping female.

“So what is the deal with this civilian?” Winters asked. Ronald turned back to the sleeping female. A part of him didn’t want to see her go, and he was kicking himself for it. A small shrug he gave as he took a moment to think.

“She seems to have a lot of information. About the camps, the German forces, even about a base nearby. She is fluent in German and English. In my personal opinion, sir, I think she could be a good help to us,” pausing for a minute to collect himself and place himself in check for a moment. “Then bring her to a refuge center, hospital, or something. There isn’t anything left of this town. And she says her family is most definitely dead,” he added.

Winters just nodded slightly, and a quiet chuckle fell from his lips. Causing a confused look from the officer that stood besides him. “If you believe that is what we must do, we will do it. Just never see you to be soft,” he said with a pat on his shoulder. Ronald’s eyes widened slightly and his mouth opened, wanting to defend himself. To which Major Winters just shook his head slightly, and Ronald closed his mouth. Turning his head away in slight embarrassment. “I won’t say anything, but we’ll take good care of her. You can’t be all tough all the time. I knew you would feel soft for someone eventually,” he snickered. Turning on his heels to walk away from the room.

While shaking his head, Ronald turned back to the woman sleeping in front him. Waiting for Winter’s boots to fade completely. A sigh he made while watching Y/N breathe within her sleep. “Damn,” was all he said. Staring down at the floor then rubbing his face quickly. Looking at the woman once more before turning around and just walking off. Letting her sleep and wanting to figure out how to get himself out of the rut he had placed himself in.

One that made his heart skip a beat.

#ronald speirs x reader #ronald speirs imagine #ronald speirs #hbo #HBO Series #hbo imagine #hbo war #hbo war imagines #band of brothers meme #band of brothers #band of brothers headcanon #band of brothers imagine #band of brothers x reader

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spasmsofthought · 3 years

Text

15 years, 15 million tears (i gave it my all, he gave me nothing at all) [thor x reader]

hiiii I’ve been in my feels lately so here you go. maybe more parts to come?????

please forgive any typos or grammar mistakes!

enjoy! xoxo

+++

The pageantry never seems to end, apparently, as Asgardians partake in another feast, overflowing with food and drink, for the third time this week alone. The room is glowing and decadent, reflecting the riches of the people gathered together among the tables and around the pillars in a small area of this magnificent castle. There is laughter and smiles and an overall atmosphere that would be hard to resist if it were your first time at such an event.

It is not.

The merry faces hold sway over you no longer and it is easy to fade into the background while picking at the food that has been placed in front of you by a servant half-captivated by the scene in front of her and smiling politely at those who glance your way.

A boom of laughter comes from the other side of the chamber and it is not hard to guess who it belongs to. Thor Odinson has never been known for silence and his open mouth and wide grin portray his delight as he lifts his mug of ale and drinks yet again. The Warriors Three and other varying courtiers surround him, laughing along heartily. Lady Sif gives a quirk of her lips, playing along for a moment, but otherwise remains more stoic than the rest of the group.

It can be easy to be swept away in the revelry but tonight it just leaves a bitter taste in your mouth. There is no one near you that cares enough to notice when you get up from your seat, leaving your plate half-finished, and wander slowly towards the shadowed corridors hoping for quick exit.

“My dear,” Frigga calls in her soothing voice.

Curse Frigga and her warm heart, for she knows you cannot dismiss her and you have no desire to. She is the Queen of Asgard and your guardian while you remain here in Asgard, and the wisest of all.

“My Queen,” you turn and curtsy as she walks towards you. You can only offer her a slight smile hoping she will let you go soon and dare not ask for you to stay.

“Why do you leave so early into the night? Is something the matter?” There is a concern, as always, in her voice, but something else that you cannot detect hides behind it.

“I simply weary of the night, my lady, and seek rest in my own chamber, ‘tis all.” She comes closer and captures your hands with her own warm ones. Her gaze is loving and for a moment you imagine it would be like your own mother’s if she still lived.

“Is that all?” She reads you like the palm of her hand but you give no answer. “I will have Thor escort you back, it will be no trouble.”

You peer over her shoulder seeing Thor cast a quick glance over to his mother, for it is not often enough he sees you together in public spaces in the presence of so many people. It is the only glance he has spared you in months. You wrench your hands out of hers and hold them up to her in a pleading gesture, “No, please, my lady. He is enjoying his company and I wish to disturb no one. I know the way back to my own room.”

Her eyes pierce yours but she chooses to relent this time, “Very well. May rest come to you tonight.”

Her arms come to smooth over your hair and down to your shoulders, gentle and firm at the same time.

“Good night, my Queen.” You nod and she lets go, allowing you to escape down the corridor into a darkened hallway. You continue to your room as you always have: alone.

+ + +

“I request an audience with my lord Odin Allfather and King of Asgard.” You try to keep your voice from trembling and you think you do well enough. This is not going to be easy, and you think your pacing wore through your bedroom’s carpet this morning.

The throne room has always been grand, gold glinting from Odin’s seat and the weapon in his hand. When you came here years ago, it took everything in you to not cower in sheer fear of speaking to him. Now, the weight of the situation is no less heavy, but Odin is not as intimidating as he once was.

“Speak, child,” his voice says to you after you curtsy in front of the dais.

It is not warm like Frigga’s or boisterous like Thor’s. What little you have heard of Loki’s hold no comparison either. It holds the weight and authority of a king who has reigned longer than you have lived.

“I wish to depart Asgard and return home,” Frigga’s eyes catch yours for a moment and there is something in them that makes you dread this conversation even more than you already do.

“For how long? We will organize guards to accompany you on your journey and set a feast date for when you are to return.”

“My lord, I do not wish to return at all.” The statement hangs in the air and the words echo around the chamber. It is now that you enter into truly dangerous territory.

“And why with so little words do you wish to leave all that has been provided for you here? Foolish child, you do not know of what you wish.” Odin has always been rough around the edges, so you expected such a reaction to your proposal. He spent much time getting exactly what he wanted.

“I know, my lord,” You beg your voice to stay even. It is not a time to test the King of Asgard anymore than you have, “that I can no longer sit idly by, gorging at feasts and drinking to my content, as my father grows old and my older sister fades away to time--”

“You are shortsighted in your vision,” He interrupts adamantly, dismissing your words as if they are from the mouth of a child. But you are not a child and you have not been for a very long time.

“I would continue to be patient,” It is like a spark lights inside of you, “if the Allfather would fulfill what he promised to me and my people decades ago. We gave you our best soldiers and our smiths and you still have yet to betroth me to a prince I came here decades ago to marry.”

“I will tell you the same words I told you when you arrived here and became our ward--”

“If my lord will forgive me,” For all the kindness and grace that has been instilled in you, your time here has taught you to never allow yourself to be spoken over, not even by the King of Asgard, “I have no time to entertain the same empty promises and fanciful notions that brought me here to you. I am the heir to my own throne and I am of no use to my kingdom if I wait endlessly for something that you, King of Asgard, have no intention of actually granting me nor my people. If it means I leave here declaring war, so be it.”

Frigga is wary next to her husband, as she is Queen of Asgard and no longer just someone who cares for you as a mother would. She cannot defy her husband in public, especially when the Court will hear of all of this before the end of day. Odin’s lips are pressed together and it is easy to tell that he is quickly losing what patience he holds with you. But you think your threats have worked well enough for the moment.

“I will grant consideration of this request but I make no promises. My decision will be known to you in the coming days.” He waves his hand at you, a quick and effortless motion.

“My King,” You say begrudgingly though you glare at him as you give a final curtsy. The walk to exit out of the throne room is the longest of your life.

+++

There is a loud knock at your chamber door two days later. The servants have pitied you with sad eyes and hidden frowns meant only for you, but otherwise you wait for news that still does not come. By the weight of the knock, you know it is Thor. There only has been one other time he has come to your door and it was for the feast thrown in your honor as you were welcomed into Asgard 15 years ago. It is funny how little the prince who was promised to marry you has seen you in the span of those years.

He avoids you and everyone knows it.

“What do you seek Thor?” You sigh as you see his face when the door opens. You are tired. His mouth is set in a grim line, which is unusual for him. He barges in with no care to how he may jostle you, which is usual for him.

“I hear you are planning to leave us,” You want to roll your eyes, and behind his back you do. If he is coming here to simply confirm information he has already heard, you have better things to do with your time. “Permanently.”

You stay stationed by your door, leaving it open. He will not be here for long. Your silence has him turning towards you.

“You run as a coward?” He does not understand you in his foolishness, the kind that he seems to refuse to grow out of; he never has.

“I cannot serve my people in a gilded cage waiting for you to grow up, Thor Odinson.” His facial expression startles for a second, as if he does not expect you to have a spine.

“These promises,” He steps closer, confusion furrowing his eyebrows, “they mean so much to you that you would abandon the life that has been made for you here?”

“I have no life here if your father does not keep his word. I leave with his permission or I leave without it. But I am not staying here sheltered like an innocent and dependent little girl.” There is some silence and you still wait by the door.

“I do admire you,” He says. You want to scoff. This is longest conversation you two have ever had, so these words are meaningless.

“Admiration does nothing for my people. And it helps me even less.”

“Would you have even wanted to marry me?” He asks all the wrong questions at all the wrong times.

“Perhaps, Thor,” you shrug as he comes again past you, barely stepping past the threshold, “if things were different and you were more willing to look beyond yourself.”

He looks a little as if you have struck him, but you cannot find it in your heart to ask for any sort of forgiveness. He barely manages a nod to your words.

“I think I would have liked to know you better--”

“But you haven’t, Thor,” And you cannot help but be honest. The words are bitter as acid but they bring a relief. Too long have you bottled everything in. And it’s not like either of you are going to see each other any time soon. “And that is partly why everything is the way that it is. And it is why I must leave.”

“I bid you good fortune, then, my lady,” He says as a farewell before he is briskly making his way down the hallway, as if he cannot get away fast enough.

And you are alone, again, like maybe you were always meant to be.

#avengers #The Avengers #thor #thor x reader #thor x oc #thor x you #thor x y/n #thor x ofc #marvel imagine #thor imagine #thor oneshot #thor marvel #thor odinson #thor odinson x y/n #thor odinson imagine #thor odinson x reader #thor one shot

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tanyawritesstories · 4 years

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Indecent Distraction | Commander Cody x Reader

A Cody piece all about riling up the stoic Creamsicle and teasing him till he breaks. 😉 Enjoy! @kote-ko for your consideration.

Word count: 2,943

Warnings: NSFW, smut, teasing, oral (m & f receiving, overstimulation, spanking, unprotected sex, Cody is a satisfying dom

•••

You had lost track of how long you'd been sitting in this restaurant. Just waiting for him to show up. It was unlike Cody to be late and he almost never forgot anything. You held out hope and waited longer. Something had probably come up and he hadn't any time to tell you that he would miss dinner. It had been two whole hours and you'd downed three glasses of wine in that time, currently working on your fourth.

A waitressing droid stopped by your table again. "I think you might've been stood up, honey," It hummed. "Probably," you sighed, "Oh well. Can I get my food to go plus an extra order of the same thing." The droid delivered your food to you in boxes and you chugged the rest of your wine before paying and getting a speeder back to your apartment.

You got home and set about reheating the food. While that was going, you walked to the office. Yep, sure enough, there he was. Your boyfriend was sitting at your desk in only his blacks, on your computer, he also had two datapads out with reports and military nonsense on their screens. He was clearly deep in his work, so much so that he didn't even notice you walk in.

“Really?” He looked up long enough to take in your appearance and then went back to his work. “What is it?” He asked, not looking up. “I waited for you at the restaurant for two and a half hours!” You complained. Cody looked at you, regret and sorrow written all over his face. “Oh cyare, I’m so sorry. I got overloaded with work at the last minute and was going to comm you and tell you I couldn’t make it but I got caught up and forgot.” You raised an eyebrow at him, you hoped you looked pissed off because you were. Cody went back to his work which made you even more annoyed. “That’s all you have to say?” You jabbed. “You look nice,” he said, still not looking up.

You threw your hands up and let them fall at your sides. “Whatever, I brought dinner home, I’ll bring it to you.” He said nothing in response and you rolled your eyes as you walked to the bedroom. You changed into a comfy tank top and shorts and went to get the food. You made sure it was hot and added everything you knew he liked onto a plate and took a glass of wine with you.

Sure you were annoyed that he forgot about your date, but he was your boyfriend and you loved him. He was also a very high ranking soldier in the galaxy's best army, he had a lot of people counting on him and that meant he was always busy. You understood, you knew the risk when you two had agreed to be together. You just wished he would take a short break every now and then.

“I brought you dinner, love.” You set the plate and glass down on his desk, picking up one of the datapads and putting the plate in its place. “Thank you, cyar’ika,” Cody stopped his work to kiss you on the cheek before diving right back into the computer. You sighed and leaned on the edge of the desk, swiping through the reports and details on the datapad you had snatched. “(Y/n), what are you doing?” You ignored his question for a moment. “Would you mind if I smashed this?”

Cody’s eyes went wide and the expression on his face was a mixture of shock and horror. You giggled, “I’m joking, eat your food.” You crossed the room and slumped into one of the chairs, still messing with the datapad. You could see your boyfriend glaring at you through the transparent screen. You lowered the device and met his glare with a lighthearted smile.

“You had better not mess up anything on there, for your sake and mine,” he said. “Just eat your food and then I’ll give it back,” you laughed. Perhaps it was a little mean but it got Cody to stop his work and finally eat.

“Thank you again, (Y/n). It was delicious.” You got up from your chair and walked to the other side of the desk, datapad in hand. Cody held out a hand, “May I have that back now?” You held the device against your stomach shielding it from him. “(Y/n), you promised you’d give it back,” He was trying to persuade you and you weren’t going to be mean. “Don’t make me take it from you the hard way,” a suggestive smirk forming on his lips.

“I wish you would,” you admitted, handing him the piece of technology, “We haven’t been together in months.” You walked over to stand behind him in the swivel chair he was sitting in. “We don’t have time for that right now,” he said, scrolling through a datapad and clicking away at the computer.

You sighed. You put your hands on his shoulders and began to massage them. “But I’m sexually frustrated,” you whined. “I know, as am I, but duty comes first,” Cody added. “Can’t you just take a little break, baby?” You ran your hands down his chest, feeling his muscles under his shirt. Cody caught your wandering hands before they reached their destination, “Maybe later, when I’m done with this.” You held back the groan of frustration and retracted your hands. You did your best not to stomp out of the room as you went to go eat dinner by yourself.

You checked up on Cody 30 minutes later, he was still hard at work. You had removed your shorts and bra and was now wearing only a thong and a mostly see through tank top. You hoped to the maker it would get his attention, you wanted him so badly. He had been gone for two months, only sending you short messages and notes whenever he found the time. Two whole months withholding your desires and how the object of your dirty dreams was sitting across the room, oblivious.

You walked in and set about dusting the shelves and cleaning the viewports. You hadn’t cleaned them in forever and this was the perfect excuse. As you dusted off one of the bookshelves you felt Cody’s eyes running up and down your body, settling on your ass which was on full display for him. You made sure to dust the bottom shelves, bending over when you knew he was looking. It was his turn to say: “Really?”

You looked over your shoulder at him, “What, I’m just cleaning.” He gave you a suspicious look. “This room hasn’t been done in forever, I don’t have the motivation to do much of anything while you’re gone.” You heard him huff in disbelief, or annoyance, you couldn’t really tell. “And you had to come in here dressed like that to clean, hmm?” You moved to one of the viewports, wiping it down with a cloth. “It’s not my fault I have nothing else to do.”

When you were done cleaning you put your supplies away and returned to the office, deciding to do some reading. You grabbed a book and sat down in a comfy lounge chair. You would read a few paragraphs and then look up at Cody, then go back to your book. He had apparently not noticed that you came in again. You were determined to get him to take a break from his work, or fuck you, either one would be nice. You set the book in your lap and whisked off your tank top, leaving your breasts exposed to the warm air. You balled up the tank top and threw it at Cody, picking your book back up and looking innocent and normal as ever. The shirt had landed directly on top of the datapad Cody was looking at. He sighed and looked up at you.

"(Y/n)?”

You lowered the book, bringing your body into his view. “Yes, dear?” You looked innocent and kept a straight face. You saw the seriousness in his expression fall as he took in your topless form. It only lasted a few seconds and he was back to Commander mode. He held up the shirt for you to see, “Care to explain what you’re getting at?” You shrugged, “I’m allowed to walk around topless in my own apartment,” you said, “Just ignore me, go back to your work.” He glared at you as you continued reading. He knew what game you were playing and if you continued he didn’t think he could hold back for much longer.

You finished the chapter of your book and gently closed it. You had been keeping an eye on your Commander, hence why it took you half an hour to read one chapter. He was doing surprisingly well staying focused on his work, only glancing at you from time to time. You slowly and quietly got up to put your book away. You slid it back into its place on the shelf, on the wall in front of the desk. You looked at Cody, balls deep in his work instead of you.

You got an idea and quietly dropped to your hands and knees in front of the desk. You crawled to sit underneath it, right in front of your boyfriend’s parted legs. Damn his blacks for getting in the way! Luckily, they were stretchy and easy to remove. You didn’t want him to catch you. You quickly slipped off your thong and set it next to you, careful not to hit your head. You got on your knees and in one swift movement shoved your hand into his blacks and brought his cock out, he was semi hard and warm in your hand. You felt his body jolt and tense up and you brought your mouth to his base and licked. Cody rolled the chair away from the desk just enough so he could see you. Your mouth was torn away from him but your hand stayed on his cock.

“Now what do you think you’re doing?” He wasn’t angry but was definitely pissed. “If you’re not willing to give me anything can I at least have this while you work,” You snapped, moving the hand that was on his dick to get your point across. Cody bit his lip and sighed, “Fine, but be subtle and don’t distract me too much.”

He graciously pulled his blacks down to his knees to allow you better access. “Thank you, dear,” You chirped. Cody rolled the chair back under the desk and you got to work. Stroking him until he was fully hard. You would honor his request for now, it would go out the window soon. You kissed from the base up to his tip and circled it with your tongue, planting a kiss at the very end.

“What did I say about being subtle!” He growled from above you. “Sorry,” you replied.

You put your mouth around him completely and bobbed your head on his length, going slow and doing nothing extreme. You licked his slit for a second and tasted the salty precum that was seeping from him. You engulfed him again and pumped what you couldn’t fit in your mouth. You wanted to make sure he didn’t expect anything more from you before you took action. You could hear his breathing speeding up. You took him to the back of your throat for a second and made sure to coat his cock in as much saliva as you could. You were ready. You pumped him a few more times before taking his cock into your throat, shoving yourself down so your nose touched his abdomen. You heard him moan above you, he made such a pretty sound.

Cody had had it with you, now you were going to pay for distracting him. He slammed his fist on the desk and rolled the chair away, you moved with him and was able to keep his tip in your mouth. You looked up and made eye contact with him. He looked mad, real mad. The sight of you naked on your knees with his cock in your mouth looking up at him with innocent eyes just deepened his lust.

“Alright, that’s it. Get up,” He growled. You let him slip out of your mouth and scrambled to your feet. Cody stood up, grabbed your arm, spun you around, and bent you over the desk. He pressed himself into your back and you could feel his hard length against your thigh.

"You just had to distract me, didn't you?" Cody growled in your ear, shivers going down your back. "I told you to wait till I was finished with my work, and I was almost done," Cody spanked your ass and you whimpered, the sting only adding to your arousal. "You couldn't have waited 15 minutes could you?" Another spank. "No, you had to vie for my attention while I was busy," he spanked you again. "You've been naughty, (Y/n). And you know what happens to naughty girls don't you?" You nodded. "Say it," he snarled. "Naughty girls get punished," you answered, "Cody, please touch me, please!"

"It's Commander to you, sweetheart. Hold onto the desk and don't move," he ordered. "Yes, Commander," you breathed.

Cody got off of you and pulled off the top of his blacks before kneeling behind you, he spread your legs and attached his mouth to your pussy. You moaned out and tried not to move as Cody licked over your hole. He prodded your entrance with his tongue before changing and sliding it over your clit. You held onto the desk for dear life. His tongue felt like paradise as it massaged your folds, so warm and wet. You squeaked when he sucked on your clit and you couldn't help but grind your hips on his face. Cody immediately removed his mouth and spanked you hard.

"I said no moving!" You whined out a sorry and Cody went back to work. His tongue pushed into you and he wiggled it around to taste every delicious inch he could find. He added his fingers into the mix, finding your clit and rubbing circles on it. You were in bliss, the sensations he was causing going through your entire body. "Oh, Commander, I'm getting close," you voiced. Cody hummed against you at hearing his rank fall from your lips. He could feel the precum seeping out and running down his dick. He switched his mouth and his fingers, plunging two of them into you up to his knuckles. You squealed, "I'm going to cum, Commander. Can I cum, please?"

"Cum for me, darling," he ordered, at the same time attaching his mouth to your clit and sucking hard. Your mouth opened in a silent scream and you grabbed the desk so hard your knuckles turned white. Pure ecstasy flooded your whole being.

Cody licked up your juices and got to his feet, he needed you, badly. He was so pent up he knew he wouldn’t last long. He pumped himself a few times, coating his cock in your juices from his fingers. He lined himself up and thrusted all the way inside you. "Cody!" You yelled, "I'm, I'm sensitive still.."

"That's the point," he grunted, "Kriff, you feel so good, so nice and tight."

He picked up his pace right away, not giving you any time to recover from your orgasm. Your cunt was aching from overstimulation but the pain was quickly turned into pleasure. You lifted yourself onto your elbows and began to move back against him. Your moans were loud and frequent as Cody pounded into you, his hands on your hips keeping you still. Your moans were music to his ears and encouraged him to hold off his orgasm that was rapidly approaching. He groaned from behind you and laid himself over your back, your sweaty bodies sticking together. He put one hand on the desk and with the other reached around and fondled your breast. Your mind felt hazy and the only thing you could focus on was the pleasure at your core and his mouth that had started sucking and biting on your neck.

"I'm gonna cum soon," Cody groaned. He hammered into you as fast as he could, your hips repeatedly banging into the edge of the desk. You would undoubtedly have bruises there later. The knot in your stomach was getting ready to snap and you could tell Cody was seconds away. He hit that spot inside you at just the right angle and you were gone, shouting his name as you came undone around him. You clamped down on him and Cody thrust into you as far as he could go, moaning loud and releasing his cum all over the walls of your slick heat. You collapsed on top of the desk and Cody on top of you, panting trying to regain your breath.

“I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“Absolutely not, that was amazing,” you turned your head and kissed him on the cheek. “We should get cleaned up.” Cody cleaned you up as well as himself and put his blacks back on while you put on some comfy sleep clothes. “I suppose you should finish your work now,” you suggested. “There’s not that much left, I can do it in the morning,” Cody enveloped you in a hug, “Right now I want to relax and watch a holovid with you.” You squealed in excitement and beamed up at your boyfriend.

#star wars the clone wars #commander cody x reader #commander cody

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amiramorozova · 3 years

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Dual Summoner x The Darkling pt. 36

Pairing: Dual Summoner x The Darkling/Aleksander Morozova/General Kirigan

Word count: 1926

Glossary: Sol Koroleva - Sun Queen, Moye Serdtse - My heart

When morning came I was still very comfortable laying here in Aleksander's bed where it was just us. We laid there like that for just a bit longer but then we heard the sound of the door opening. I opened my eyes not moving as I felt Aleksander adjust on his side looking towards the door seeing Zoya there with two plates. The smile that was on her face was soon replaced with a frown as if she'd been set up to see us like this in his bed. Then I remembered that Aleksander had talked with Ivan last night before we'd left.

Did he intentionally set her up to see this? I thought

I sat up as I watched her, Aleksander walked, overseeing her shock as he took the plates before she could drop them. Zoya looked like she was going to attack me or something and I couldn't figure out at first why. My hand moved on the black silk sheets and then it dawned on me that he might have kept most women out of his bed. I stood up as I looked at her while I fixed my hair from where I was asleep.

"You can go Zoya." Aleksander said in a dismissive tone, that caught her attention as she looked at him his back to her as she looked hurt. Most girls knew he was never committed to them but that was different with me. I looked at her wrists out of curiosity seeing both were blank that she hadn't found her soulmate yet. Aleksander might have been hope for those he'd convinced with time to give in to him. "So this is really how it is?" Zoya asked

Aleksander sighed as he walked over to me and he took my right hand before showing my wrist. I knew she would never understand that his initials were AM but she looked at it. "Those are not your initials." Zoya said, he was without his shirt and he showed his wrist by mine revealing AS. "I don't need to remind you that there are things I don't share with everyone." Aleksander said to her

The hurt among her eyes was pretty clear and I knew that there was just so much I could do. I wanted to just disappear for a few moments but she didn't seem to be wanting to give up. "So when is the wedding?" Zoya asked, "we haven't decided." I said as I wasn't going to rush soon, "Possibly in a few weeks." Aleksander said

I looked at him knowing that I just said we hadn't decided but then he seemed to be set to send a message to Zoya. "Well the youngest tsarevich is going to be returning." Zoya said as she left. I remember Genya talking about the royals. Prince Vasily was here and the other one that I didn't know his name she referred to as the sobachka which I thought was pretty rude. Looking up at Aleksander he didn't seem bothered by this but he wasn't calm either that I could tell. I got close putting a hand on his cheek which made him look at me as I leaned up kissing him as I felt him kiss me back along with calming down.

"It will all work out." I assured him, he leaned his forehead against mine for a moment. "Moye Serdtse, you seem so confident of this and you haven't even met the sobachka." Aleksander said and I didn't see why everyone referred to this Prince as a puppy. Walking over to the table we sat there just as Ivan came in, setting down drinks and I felt like royalty, not a Grisha engaged to the General but this was normal for him.

"Ivan, have the fabrikators make something presentable for Amira to meet the sobachka when he arrives." Aleksander said to Ivan, "Of course General." Ivan said as he left.

I ate without saying much after all what was there to say when everything was being decided for me except the wedding details. I hadn't noticed if they had the dress done yet or not. Maybe that was what held me back was my uncertainty of what it would be like. Maybe I wanted to make sure Aleksander was truly what I wanted even though we were connected through the stag's bones. Even when I thought about the stag I couldn't shake that feeling of failing to save it but it was with me.

"Amira, you control the amplifier a little more than I thought you would. How is that possible?" Aleksander asked, "I am the one who killed it so I should have most of the control." I ate a bit while thinking before I smiled with a slight tilt of my head "I could have killed it, but I chose to spare it. I'm not a killer, I have never killed anything innocent in my life but it chose me. I already had part of its power before you had the necklace." I said as I saw his surprise but I just continued eating my breakfast.

"You have a good heart, something I am trying hard not to corrupt." Aleksander said as he ate from his plate, "You can ease your way into places the royals would never let me go being the Dual Summoner. Also since people call you Sol Koroleva, it allows more places where you are welcomed. " I finished my breakfast but I could pick up He was threatened by that, that there were other options. "Are you threatened that the youngest Prince is heading to Os Alta and knowing what we know people look at me as the solution." I asked

Aleksander didn't say anything right away as he finished his breakfast and his drink. "I won't allow the tsarevich or the sobachka to interfere with us." Aleksander said, I finished my breakfast but I knew that Zoya wasn't going to give up yet. '' Once I was done I walked over and kissed his cheek "I need to go but I will see you soon." I assured him

Going back to my room, I sat there looking at myself in the chair knowing Genya would show up. As if on queue she walked in and started to do her work as I was glad to get back here. Genya seemed to notice I was in a rather good mood and she smiled.

"You look good, what has put you in such a good mood?" Genya asked, I shrugged a bit "I guess it's seeing Zoya's expression when she found out General Kirigan is my soulmate. It was rather amusing but I saw a hint of disbelief that it isn't my initials but someone else's around here." I said to Genya. Genya watched my expression as she had me close my eyes for her to do what she needed with her kit.

"You seem to be enjoying this time with the General, but then you seem very close like there are things only the two of you can talk about." Genya said, "You're no longer a soldier in the army but more than what we could expect. A symbol of the future."

I questioned those words a bit knowing there was a lot to still do. Then there was a knock on my door when Genya went to open it. There were three boxes brought in as they left. Walking over we opened them, seeing everything inside them, noticing that one was my wedding dress. I blushed a bit. The other is my new kefta for my promotion status once General Kirigan's wife and a new outfit to wear today.

"Well one way or the other they wanted a new Kefta on me." I said

We got me dressed for the way things were going today and I just went about my day as I would. When I walked out to be with the others Botkin looked at me seeing I was dressed in a little better clothes. "Dual summoner, you have the time to grace us with your presence. I heard you were in a fight with Fjerdans and lived. Good for you." Botkin said, I nod as I knew there were so many people I didn't know.

I almost felt normal for once but then I saw Adrian was struggling and without a Kefta since he wasn't even part of this. "Why is he out here?" I asked, "they saw him using Grisha power, so they brought him out to train." Botkin said as I knew I could say otherwise. "No." I said as I looked over "Adrian over here." I said

Adrian's fight was stopped as he came over as I put my arm around my cousin "Botkin, he went up against a Fjerdan with me. I don't need him to work so hard when I am going to work to get Grisha back where it needs to be." I said, "Everyone needs to know how to fight, what is he to you?" Botkin asked as I knew Adrian came with me. "My cousin." I said

Botkin backed up as it was known that Aleksander proposed to me, all of the summoners knew so they were able to tell. I walked away with Adrian knowing that this was not going to be the end. More was coming and I just needed to get us through but I still wanted to wait. My authority would always be questioned until I was Aleksander’s wife.

"Did you need to do that?" Adrian asked, I smiled "yeah, we're going to Baghra, she can help you out a bit more than they can. I'll work with you on Physical fighting and when you're ready we'll get you your own Grisha Steel weapon." I said leading him down the path

When we reached Baghra's home I was going to walk in with him as we stopped listening to her talking. "She knows how to use the stag, she really is the future." Aleksander said as he was pacing. "You must remember she can change her mind about this whole arrangement if she wants to." Baghra said but it was only him pacing. "I am well aware of everything, mother, but she wants you at the wedding. Look at it like a mercy that I don't do something more." Aleksander said

Baghra was calm from what I could tell "She's more powerful than you if she chose to be. She doesn't want all this and you can't push her into it. If she walks down that aisle I will watch knowing that I prepared her for all your manipulation tactics." Baghra said, I couldn't see but I could just tell from the voice. "Yes, she is perfect because she keeps me from going too far. I wanted to send the fold into West Ravka and she stopped me." Aleksander said as I smiled, even I heard Baghra chuckle "Good for her, maybe she is your redemption." Baghra said

I opened the door, making our presence aware, surprising him as we walked in "Amira, I had no idea you were coming here." Aleksander said, "Yes, I thought Baghra could train my cousin. Don't you think Aleksander?" I asked with a smile. He didn't say anything, just composed himself and he nodded. "Of course, I couldn't ask for a better teacher." Aleksander said as he started to leave but not before kissing him. "See you later." he said before leaving

he used my words right back at me. I thought

Taglist: @lifeisingrey, @anonymous-storyteller

#aleksander morovoza #general kirigan #shadow and bone fanfiction #grishaverse #shadow and bone #team darkling #darkling x reader #darkling #the darkling #ben barnes #fanfic

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humanitysstrongestmidget · 3 years

Text

Come back to me! Part 2

Requested by @naturakaashi ; so sorry it took so long to post it, work and school had been a hell the past month. But thank you for liking the story and I hope part 2 lives up to your expectations. Please feel free to give some feedback, would love it a lot. Well I hope you have a good day/night.

Summary - After 3 years of being kidnapped, you were finally back home with your son. You were overjoyed to finally being back to safety, but how would you talk with Levi? How could you tell him that your son was his, without knowing if he loved you back or not? So you did the one thing that you believed was best, avoiding the man for as long as it was possible. Yet you would never have expected this outcome nor do you ever want to trade it with anything else.

Paring - Levi Ackerman x F! Reader

Warnings - mentioned murders (not in details!), tiny bit of angst, once mentioned death

Written by: Admin Accalia 🐺

REQUEST IS OPEN :-)

PARTS: 1 / 2

Sons name: Hiroto

o Meaning: Fly Far, Big Flight

________________________________________________________________

FLASHBACK:

There you were walking towards him safe and alive after 3 years of missing, holding hands with a little boy who looked just like him.

PRESENT:

You had been home for two weeks now. All your friends wanted to know what had happened that faithful night you disappeared and how you had survived for the past 3 years, also where the little boy came from. Yet you explained to them that you were not fully ready to tell them about your kidnapping and you also had to make sure that your son Hiroto got well-adjusted to his new home. Even though they had many questions and wanted answers, they all were respectful of your decision and waited till the time you would be ready to tell them. They also were very kind and gentle towards Hiroto, helping you with him whenever you needed rest or had to do something else. Though there was one person you still have not talked with yet or introduced Hiroto to, Levi. Despite knowing you had to do it sooner or later, you chose later because you did not know how to start that conversation with him. How could you explain to a man, who you did not even know if he loved you back, that the little boy was his son and was the big reason why you left with kidnappers willingly. You did not even know how Levi had reacted to you being gone, although you could see on his form that he had lost some weight but that could be explained with hard training and missions.

It was a little past dinner time and all the soldiers had already eaten and left when you and Hiroto came to the cafeteria. You laid out some toys on the ground for Hiroto to play with while you ate your dinner, Hiroto had already eaten his dinner. You sat down at the table and started to eat your dinner, while watching your son play, minding your own business till the sound of a cup being placed on the table brought you out of your thoughts. You looked to the side to see Hange sitting down beside you with a cup of coffee, you smiled at her, her smiling back at you. “It is so good to have you back Y/N, even with this new addition to the crew,” she nodded towards Hiroto, you glanced at your son happily playing on the ground before looking back at the woman, “May I ask you a personal question?”. You sighed, placing your fork down on the plate, and nodded, you knew it was about time for you to answer some of your friend’s questions. You also thought it was best to talk to Hange first. She could help you when it was time to answer the rest of the crew’s many questions, in case it got too overwhelming for you then she would be able to step in and answer for you. She quietly asked, “Is it his?”, you knew she was referring to Levi, and to that you nodded, Hange sighed softly, “Of course it is, he looks a lot like Levi, especially the expressions he makes yet he has your eyes”. You smiled at the comparison; you loved your son’s eyes the most mainly because they reminded you of Levi despite Hiroto having your eye color. You slowly turned to Hange and frowned, “Hange, could you tell me how Levi reacted to me being gone?”, the woman took a big sip from the cup before placing it down onto the table and took a deep shaky breath, bracing herself to tell you about the hardships her poor friend had been through since you disappeared.

You were so focused on Hange’s story that none of you noticed Hiroto leaving the cafeteria and had decided to explore the hallways out of boredom. The little boy walked slowly down the hallways until he saw a butterfly, he started chasing the butterfly down the hallways not looking where he was going. Suddenly he bumped into a person’s legs and fell onto the ground with a soft thud and a little scream. A hand came into the little boy’s sight and he grabbed it, the person helping him to stand up again. When Hiroto finally looked at the person, he found himself looking into eyes that resembled a lot like his own, he gasped rather loudly at the man who was crouching down in front of him, “Hey you look a lot like me!”.

You were running down the hallways towards the sound of your son’s scream, your conversation with Hange cut short when you both noticed that Hiroto was no longer in the cafeteria with you. You rounded a corner and saw your son talking to a person, you did not even check who it was before pulling your son into your embrace. Your hands then rested on Hiroto’s cheeks making him look at you, before scolding him softly, “Yah you little brat! What did mommy tell you about you leaving without asking for permission or telling her where you would go?”, you heard a soft chuckle at the word ‘brat’, yet you still didn’t look at the person. Hiroto looked at you a little sad before answering quietly “Not to run or leave without telling mommy because there is a lot of dangerous people in this world or I could get lost, I’m sorry mommy, I got bored!” you smiled softly at the boy and hugged him, his arms circling your neck, “ I know baby, mommy is sorry too, I should have played with you earlier but one of mommy’s friends had to talk to her”. Hiroto suddenly pushed you off him and smiled brightly at you, pointing his little finger at the person whom you have not even addressed, “Look mommy, I found daddy for you!” Hiroto was so proud of himself for finding his daddy, a man you had described and told a lot of bedtime stories of the man to him, you turned your head to the person not even masking your shock when you saw who the person in front of you was. Of course, it was no other than the man himself, Levi.

An hour later you were in Levi’s office. You had put Hiroto to bed after telling him you would explain everything to him in the morning and had asked Hange to watch him as you will talk to Levi. Hange was more than happy to help and that the two of you would finally talk, she told you she had some paperwork that she would finish while watching your son. Now here you were, in Levi’s office, alone with the man. You stood at the entrance too nervous to make any movements, Levi kept himself busy by making some tea for the two of you, as he was gathering his thoughts. He placed the two cups on the table and sat down in one of the chairs, looking at you with a rather soft expression, one only you had seen and one he had not used for the past 3 years. “Come, sit down and have some tea,” he gestured towards the chair, you sat down and took a sip of the tea he made, you were surprised, he remembered how you liked your tea sweet and not bitter like his. He placed down the cup before looking at you with a serious expression, “Care to explain to me what happened that night 3 years ago and how you have managed to survive, not only you but your son too,” softly placing the cup down, you sighed. You then started to explain to him how you had willingly left with your kidnappers, how they had made you do some of their dirty work which involved killing people who were far worse than them, how they had made you act like a housewife by cooking and cleaning and some other stuff too for them. Surprisingly by you doing all of that, they never put a hand on you nor your son and did not show any gruesome stuff to him, they were nice to you, only if you dismissed the fact of them being your kidnappers and murders. The only main effect they wanted from you being kidnapped was to break down Levi, as they had some unfinished business with him, the business you still did not what was and did not know if you ever wanted to know. As you were explaining it all for Levi, your hands had started shaking, flashbacks of the murders you had to commit resurfacing. Levi had noticed your hands shaking and placed his own on the top of yours, rubbing his thumb softly against your skin, an act that would usually calm you down, as it did now. When you were done, the man handed you your cup, making you drink something before gently taking the cup from you and placing his hands back on top of yours again.

The atmosphere in the room changed, and the roles were reversed, instead of you being the nervous one Levi was it now. He took a shaky breath before looking at you, his face stoic but his eyes were soft, “Is… Is he mine?” you looked down at your entwined hands, and couldn’t help but laugh softly, “Captain – Levi, he looks so much like you, what do you self-think?”. The man shook his head, “Why did you not tell me? Why did you leave that morning? I – I thought we had something?” you let go of Levi’s hands before standing up, laughing dryly, “We had something? Levi, all we would do was get drunk and sleep together, then the next few days you would be ice cold to me, acting as if you did not even know me, as if I meant nothing. So, explain to me how I could tell someone, who treated me like a ragdoll, that I was pregnant with his son!?” Levi avoided looking at you, ashamed of his treatment towards you. “ I am so sorry of how I have treated you… you must understand that I mean it. I guess I was confused about my feelings and was scared…” confused you asked “Scared? Scared of what?” he took a deep breath, “I was scared that if I confessed to you, we would end up together and I would for once have some happiness in my life, only for it to get taken away from me, once again. What if a titan attacked you and I could not be there to protect you! What if you died! I would not know what to do with myself if I lost you, so I decided to act cold to push you away, yet I kept going back to you… but I cannot lose you, not again!”.

You crouched down in front of the man and took his hands in yours, “Levi, look at me,” he shook his head, he could not show you his teary eyes, he did not deserve to cry in front of you, not after the way he had treated you and the fact that it was his enemies that took you away was clouding his mind. You sighed, after talking with Hange and knowing how Levi had been for the past 3 years, you knew he would feel guilty, you just did not expect it to be this much. Softly placing your hands on his cheeks, you raised his head, making his teary eyes meet yours, “Levi I want you to listen carefully to what I’m about to say, can you do that for me?” you were being careful with your words and tone, you did not want to scare him off, not now when he was showing his vulnerable side to you, which was rare. He nodded, your thumbs rubbing his cheeks making him relax, “None of this is your fault, okay! You did not know what would happen, no one did. You’re not going to lose me, not again, I am not going anywhere”. Closing your eyes, you rested your forehead against his forehead, your breaths mixing, you waited for a few seconds in peaceful silence before whispering, “Both Hiroto and I are not going anywhere, not without you, never again”. By now tears were falling freely down on both of your faces. Levi grabbed your arms, pulling your body onto his lap, and held so tightly, scared if he let go you would disappear again.

The moment was cut short when the door burst open, and in came a crying Hiroto, followed by a panicked Hange. You quickly bent down to pick Hiroto up, rubbing up and down on his back, trying to calm him down, Levi stood up too and looked at Hange, his eyes fierce by seeing his son cry, “Oi four eyes, what happened? Why the hell is he crying? What exactly did you do!?”. You placed a hand on Levi’s shoulder, as a sign to calm down and not yell when Hiroto was already crying, “I do not know what happened, I was doing paperwork and I glanced at him seeing him sleeping peacefully. So I continued doing work when he suddenly shot up screaming and crying for his mum, I couldn’t calm him down so I thought it was best to take him to you” Hange looked at you, sad that she could not calm the little boy down. You smiled at her softly, “It is okay Hange, this happens sometimes, you did the right thing by bringing him to me. Thank you for watching him even though you had work to do,” She finally smiled and nodded, waving goodbye as she left the room, closing the door behind her.

After some minutes of pacing around the room, Hiroto finally calmed down, so you sat down on one of the chairs making Hiroto sit in your lap, Levi pulling his chair beside you also sitting down. You could see worry all over Levi’s face, so you explained quietly how Hiroto sometimes would get nightmares about the screams he would hear at the kidnapper’s house. Despite them never making Hiroto watch the gruesome stuff, the little boy unfortunately sometimes heard the stuff. Slowly and carefully, you lifted Hiroto’s head, making him look at both you and Levi, “Hey bud, you’re feeling better?” he nodded wiping his face with the sleeve of his pajama, “That’s good, do you remember this man? Do you know who he is,” You pointed towards Levi, wanting to see if Hiroto still remembered the dots he connected last time you bumped into Levi. The little boy nodded, looking at you with big shining eyes, “He is my daddy, right mommy? I remember the bedtime stories and he looks a lot like me” you smiled, of course, he remembered the bedtime stories, he would not go to sleep without you telling him one about his brave father. “That is right bud, this is your daddy,” Hiroto’s face light up, the biggest smile you had ever seen covering his face and his eyes got brighter if that was even possible, he turned his body and reached out his small arms to Levi, exclaiming, “DADDY, I’M BACK” you laughed at his outburst. You handed Hiroto over to Levi and laughed once again, the little boy was hugging his dad so tightly with his arms around Levi’s neck, that you were scared he would end up choking his dad with the grip he had, while Levi looked at you with wide eyes before relaxing, hugging back his son.

By Hiroto’s request, all three of you were now laying together in Levi’s bed, with the boy sleeping peacefully between his parents, something he had dreamt of. Levi could not sleep, not yet, his eyes taking in the sight before him, his arm over the two of you. His love and his son, sound asleep beside him. After years of different kinds of pain, mentally and physically, loss of friends who were family, he felt joy and peace at last. This was his, his own little family, and hopefully with the years to come it would grow bigger. He leaned over Hiroto placing a kiss softly on your forehead, “Thank you, thank you so much for loving me and bringing me this happiness. I will forever be thankful for you and treat you with the love you deserve, the love you are bringing me,” he then kissed Hiroto’s forehead, “I will always protect you and mommy, my little brave boy,” Levi whispered before laying down, sleep and peace filling his body.

#attack on titan levi #Attack on Titan reactions #attack on titan imagines #Attack on Titan Imagine #attack on titan #attack on titan levi imagine #attack on titan levi angst #attack on titan levi reactions #attack on titan levi imagines #attack on titan angst

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malecsecretsanta · 3 years

Text

Merry Christmas, art-in-the-sunlight!

For @art-in-the-sunlight. I hope you enjoy! Happy holidays :)

*****

Home For Christmas

“Help! Thief!”

Alec and Magnus turn in a synchronized movement at the outburst from a nearby vendor’s stall, finding a seelie pointing after a small figure bolting away from the booth. With barely a glance at his husband, Alec takes off after the figure, trusting Magnus to be at his side. He hadn’t thought to activate his speed rune, hadn’t seen the need for it during a leisurely trip to the Shadow Markets to stock up on Magnus’ potion supplies, but years of training and staying in peak physical shape enables him to quickly gain ground in pursuit of the thief, Magnus’ footsteps ringing out beside his own. Downworlders leap out of their way, recognizing them, and it isn’t long before they’re right on the heels of someone either very short- or very young.

They turn down an alleyway and, as the thief makes to turn the corner, Magnus throws up a shield of blue magic. The figure hits it head on, stumbling back and landing on their butt in a thump, a loaf of bread flying out of their hands, onto the dirty alley.

The person- a kid- Alec realizes with a twist in his heart, recovers quickly, but Alec and Magnus are already in front of them by the time they get back to their feet.

Alec glances over the kid, his stomach aching at what he finds. He can’t tell if the child is a boy or a girl, dressed in baggy clothes, skin smeared with dirt, dark hair in tangles. What he can see is the fear that’s apparent in the wide blue eyes staring back at him. They can’t be older than twelve.

“Hey, it’s alright, you’re alright,” Alec breathes, dropping down into a crouch to appear less intimidating, while still blocking the kid’s path. He’s more worried about the clearly neglected child now than the seelie who’d had one loaf of bread stolen. It takes him back to finding Rafael in a similar state in Brazil and he shudders to think of either of his children- currently safe and warm at Aunt Izzy’s- in this kind of desperation ever again.

The kid wraps dirty hands around themself, looking quickly between Magnus and Alec, likely on the verge of running.

Magnus offers them a soft smile. “You’re not in trouble. Were you hungry?”

The kid nods, glancing at the bread like they might try to pick it up and make off with it again. Before they can, Magnus snaps his fingers and the bread vanishes. “It’s no good now,” the warlock explains. “But we’ll get you some food, whatever you want.”

“Magic,” the child whispers, fingers twitching with red sparks. A warlock- of course.

“That’s right, I’ve got magic like you.”

The kid stares at him until Alec gently clears his throat. “I’m Alec and this is Magnus. We didn’t mean to scare you and we’re going to make sure you get some food, alright?” When there’s no response, Alec continues, “What’s your name?”

“Abigail,” comes a whispered response, fingers still sparking with magic.

“That’s a beautiful name,” Magnus says lightly. “Are you here alone?”

The girl nods, magic vanishing as she tugs at the torn scarf hanging from her shoulders.

“How did you find the Shadow Market?” Alec asks, wondering if she’s escaped from somewhere like Iris’ or if she’d stumbled in from the mundane world.

“The magic,” Abigail answers. “It brought me here. Am I in trouble?”

“No, sweet pea, you’re not in trouble, we just want to help you. Why don’t we go get you some food and maybe a warm drink.”

Abigail’s eyes are still wide and frightened, but she nods. Alec rises to his feet. “What’s your favorite food?”

There’s a moment of pause as the three of them head back towards the stalls. They’re almost back when Abigail speaks again. “Pizza.”

“Delicious,” Magnus agrees. “What kind?”

“Um… cheese?” She sounds uncertain and Alec exchanges a look with his husband.

Magnus smiles sadly. “Why don’t you apologize to Shelly and then we’ll sit down and eat some pizza, okay?”

“Shelly?”

Magnus nods towards the stall where the seelie is watching them with arms crossed over her chest. Alec wants to step between her and Abigail, wants to block the child from the seelie’s harsh gaze. Abigail shrinks back. “Do I have to?”

“I already paid her back for the bread, she isn’t going to hurt you.”

Abigail nods, brushes back a tangle of hair from her face and squares her shoulders with a seriousness no child should know, before marching like a soldier going to war. Magnus and Alec follow her back to the booth where she looks up at the seelie. “I’m sorry.”

Shelly goes to open her mouth and Alec can feel the seething response before it comes so he hurries to glare, letting a hand hover protectively over the child’s shoulder. “You’ve been compensated and we’ll make sure she doesn’t take anything else.”

The seelie huffs. “Fine, go away, you’re scaring my customers.”

Alec resists the urge to roll his eyes as they turn and follow Magnus down the road to where it spills into a park-like space, complete with several wooden picnic tables. Magnus finds an empty one and slides onto the bench on one side. Alec sits beside him, letting Abigail take the bench on the other side, watching the way her magic begins to cut grooves in the surface of the wooden tabletop.

Magnus waves a hand and a cheese pizza on a paper plate appears in front of the girl. A steaming mug appears next to it a moment later. “Hot cocoa?”

She blinks at him. “What?”

“Hot chocolate,” Magnus clarifies, nodding to the drink.

Abigail eyes it with distrust, but slides it closer to sip from it. Her eyes go wide with something other than fear and Alec’s heart clenches in his chest. “I love it!” She takes a few more sips before turning to devour her pizza.

Alec presses his shoulder to Magnus’, keeping his voice low, “Catarina?”

“Already texted her,” Magnus assures him. Alec feels sufficiently calmer, knowing they’ll figure out what had led Abigail to this state and that they would, quite quickly, fix it. “She’ll come over as soon as she can.”

Alec nods, relieved, before refocusing on Abigail who’s shoveling down the pizza with a ferocity that would be adorable if it weren’t for the severity of the situation. “Abigail, do your parents know where you are?”

She stops eating, sets the pizza down, and rubs her hands together, eyes going to the table. She doesn’t answer.

“It’s okay, if they don’t. Or if you don’t have any,” Alec says gently. “We’re just trying to figure out how to help you.”

“I… I have a mom,” she says quietly. “She doesn’t care what I do as long as I don’t get in trouble or use my magic.”

It’s better than it could be, Alec supposes, but negligent parenting is far from ideal. “Well you can use your magic here, no one will be upset if you do.”

“Quite the opposite,” Magnus assures, snapping his fingers and adding a large helping of whipped cream to her hot chocolate. Alec gives him a look, but Magnus shrugs it off. “There are a lot of people here that can help you learn to control it.”

“Like you do?” Abigail asks as she finishes the pizza, wiping her greasy hands on her jacket.

“Exactly. Now that you’ve been fed, what do you say to getting cleaned up? If you’re okay with it, we can show you where we live and get you some clean clothes. You can meet our sons, one of them has magic like us,” Magnus tells her.

Abigail nods eagerly. “Okay!”

Alec feels a little sick, knowing that the girl’s mother had clearly never cared to warn her of strangers, but it helps them now so he forces the emotion down. “Do you want to see what a portal is like? Magnus helped invent them.”

“A portal?” There’s clear awe in her voice as she finishes the hot chocolate and sets the empty cup on the picnic table. “Yes please!”

“To the loft it is!” Magnus announces, moving his hands with exaggerated motions to swirl a portal into existence. “You’ll want to hold my sleeve or Alec’s, so you don’t get lost, alright?”

Abigail glances between them and Alec is about to suggest they walk instead, but then she nods and reaches to curl a small hand into the sleeve of Alec’s jacket, and they’re stepping through the portal.

When they get back to the loft, Magnus summons up some clean clothes for Abigail and while she showers, they discuss what to do. It makes sense to contact her mother, but neither of them is comfortable returning Abigail to the woman’s custody. This leaves them with two options - letting Abigail go with Catarina or letting her stay at the loft.

“I think it should be the boys’ decision,” Magnus says carefully. “To suddenly introduce a new child when they might not get along could be… incisive”

Alec is quick to agree, putting the comfort of their sons first, knowing Abigail will get good care with Catarina even if Alec would prefer to have her stay with them.

“Izzy’s bringing them home soon. We’ll see what they think.”

Alec nods, closing the space between them to rest his head against his husband’s shoulder, murmuring an “I love you” into the warlock’s hair. Magnus’ arms come up to wrap around him and they stay like that in the peaceful quiet of their kitchen until the pitter patter of small feet draws them apart.

Alec turns to find Abigail standing in the doorway, looking sufficiently less despairing. Her skin has been scrubbed clean, still slightly pink from warmth, and she looks adequately bundled in the cozy sweater and jeans Magnus had summoned. Her hair, however, is another matter, still in dark tangles. A brush dangles from her hand. “I couldn’t clean my hair. I tried with magic too, but it just made it worse.” Abigail says quietly, picking at the brush. “So I tried to brush it, but it was too knotted.”

“That’s alright,” Alec says quickly. “I have a younger sister, I used to do her hair all the time, do you want me to wash yours?”

Abigail nods, holding out the brush. Alec herds her back towards the bathroom which Magnus quickly snaps to resemble a salon, allowing Abigail to sit in a comfy chair, hair falling into a basin behind her. Alec works efficiently, careful not to tug at her scalp as he rinses her hair. It’s a long process, but he’d gotten ichor out of Izzy’s hair enough times to be familiar with it. He’s surprised to see Abigail’s hair turning blonde as he cleans it, what he’d thought were dark strands had apparently just been blonde hair so dirty they’d looked brown.

It’s after he’s washed her hair and is putting it up in a braid that Isabelle shows up. Magnus goes to answer the door while Alec finishes the braid. “Rafael and Max are home now, they’re mine and Magnus’ kids and younger than you. They can be a little hyper sometimes, but no one here is going to hurt you, alright?”

Abigail nods as she stands up, fiddling with her braid, but looking measures less afraid than when they’d cornered her. Alec leads her out to the living room where Rafael and Max are sitting cross-legged on the floor, pulling things out of their backpacks. Magnus is watching over them with a fond smile. All of them turn to look when Alec and Abigail step into the room.

“Daddy!” Max trills, leaping to his feet before freezing, expression turning guilty as his eyes go to Magnus. “Sorry.”

“We talked about trying to be a bit calmer tonight,” Magnus informs him quickly. Alec nods, going to pick up his son because, after the day he’s had, he needs the reminder that his own children are okay.

“Max, Rafe, this is Abigail.”

Both boys peek around Alec at the small warlock as she curls in on herself. The adults wait with bated breath.

“A sister?” Max asks, clapping his little blue hands together in excitement. He’d taken to having a brother like a fish took to water and, in the last year, had begun asking for another sibling as if one was as easily as obtained as adopting a puppy. Alec supposes that, for them, that did often appear to be the case.

Alec suppresses a smile at Max’s enthusiasm. “Not yet, Maxie. Is it okay with you and Rafe if she stays with us for a little while though?”

Rafe nods, still quiet, fiddling with the bottom of his shirt. Despite his quietness, he doesn’t seem opposed to the idea. Max, on the other hand, looks ecstatic. “She can stay forever,” he says with utter seriousness before walking, extra slowly, to stand in front of Abigail. “I’m Max!”

“You’re blue,” she murmurs, eyes wide.

“I’m a warlock!”

Abigail’s eyes narrow. “What’s a warlock?”

“Magic users,” Magnus quickly steps in. “Max has magic like you and I.”

Max claps and butterflies made of magic explode from his hands, fluttering around him before fading away. Alec barely resists the urge to roll his eyes at Max’s obvious showing off, but Abigail looks intrigued. “Can you show me how to do that?”

“Yeah!” Max nods excitedly. “It’s easy!”

Before Max can launch into a full magic lesson, Magnus intercedes, ruffling the young boy’s hair. “Why don’t you show her your room first?”

“Do you like swords?” Rafe asks, finally speaking up, approaching the other two children. “We have lots of play swords.”

Abigail nods. “I used to play swords with pool noodles.”

“A pool noodle?” Max’s face scrunches in confusion as he leads his older brother and their guest down the hallway to the room he and Rafe share. While Abigail attempts to explain whatever a pool noodle is, their voices drifting off down the hall, Alec turns to his husband and finds the warlock already smiling at him.

“I think they adore her,” Magnus states, stepping closer to wrap his arms around Alec’s waist. Alec returns the hug easily, pressing his face into his husband’s hair.

“They’re never going to let her leave,” Alec agrees, silently adding that he feels the same way. He’s already protective of the young girl and he’s terrified to let her back into whatever situation had led her to this.

Magnus hums in agreement. “I guess this is a good time to ask how you feel about adding another child to our household.”

Alec grins, hearing his own longing echoed in Magnus’ tone, despite the other man’s casual words. “Of course I want her to stay.”

Magnus nuzzles into Alec’s shoulder. “Good. Me too.”

When Catarina comes by, she determines that Abigail is perfectly healthy aside from being a bit undernourished. After a rough conversation, they learn that Abigail had been living with her neglectful mother- a woman who had stopped caring for Abigail less and less as she grew.

Unfortunately, because Abigail’s mother- a woman she said was named Alice- was alive, adopting her without talking to her legal guardian would technically be kidnapping and neither Alec nor Magnus wanted to explain that to Luke.

So, while Catarina watches over the kids, they take a trip upstate to a crumbling house with an overgrown yard and a broken windowpane. Alec thinks, right away, that this is not the kind of place a child could get a good upbringing.

“Maybe you should let me do the talking,” Magnus says as they approach the door.

Alec raises an eyebrow at him. “Why?

“You’re angry and the last thing we want to do is scare her.” Alec disagrees. He thinks scaring her wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. His thoughts must show on his face because Magnus shakes his head. “I understand, Alexander, I’m upset too. But this woman went through a traumatic experience and raising a warlock as a mundane can’t be easy. Most women don’t even try.”

Alec shrugs. “She failed, Magnus.”

“I know.” Magnus’ voice is pained. “But we need to have a conversation with Alice, not an argument. We can’t go in there just throwing around not just accusations.”

Alec forces himself to pause, to breathe in and out. Of course Magnus knows the pain of being neglected by mundane parents because of his parentage. He fishes out his stele and glamours his runes. “Fine, you can do the talking.”

“Thank you.”

The woman who answers the door a moment later looks to be in almost as poor a state as Abigail had been when they’d found her. Alice has bags under her eyes, her hair tied in a messy bun, clothing stained and torn. She glances between them with fear evident in her eyes and Alec is struck by how young she looks.

“Are you Alice?” Magnus asks, making her look over at him, glancing between his makeup and shiny jacket.

“Yes, who are you?”

“I’m Magnus, this is Alec. We wanted to talk to you about Abigail.”

Alice’s eyes widen, hands curling into her shirt, picking at the fabric. “Abby? Is she okay? What happened?” At least she seems to care.

“She’s fine,” Magnus assures her. “She’s with our own children and a nurse friend of mine. However, the state that we found her in was troubling.”

Alice casts her eyes down. “She gets into trouble sometimes.”

Alec bites back a harsh response, letting Magnus answer instead. “We’re worried about her and the care she’s getting. She told us you let her do as she likes as long as she doesn’t use her magic.”

“Magic? She-she’s very imaginative-”

“Not to worry, I know all about warlocks,” Magnus interrupts, letting his magic twist between his fingers. “Considering I am one.”

Alice stumbles backwards, hands flying up as if to defend herself. “Why are you here?”

“We just want to talk so we can figure out the best way to help Abigail,” Magnus says calmly, letting his magic fade.

It takes a bit more convincing, but once they get Alice to realize she’s not in any harm, she hesitantly invites them in and, sitting on opposite couches in the living room, she tells them her story. The demon that had found her when she was sixteen. The unexpected pregnancy. Being cast out by her parents. “I tried,” Alice stresses, picking at the pillow she’s holding in her lap. “I tried to give her a good home, a good life. Even with the- the claws and the skin thing. I tried.”

Alec exchanges a glance with Magnus. Warlock marks. Warlock marks that Abigail had learned to glamor despite her clear inexperience and lack of knowledge about magic.

“I couldn’t do it anymore,” Alice continues, on the verge of tears. “Every time I look at her, I remember it and the- the magic and the claws and the skin thing. I love her, I do, she’s my daughter, but it’s too hard.”

“Alright,” Magnus says, gently as possible, hand finding Alec’s, fingers threading together. “Like I said, we want to help. Abigail is welcome to stay with us as long as she likes. We don’t want her to lose you, but this clearly isn’t an environment that’s conducive to the best future for either of you.”

Alice nods, tears streaming down her face now. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

“Hey,” Alec finally speaks, his voice raw. Magnus gives him a warning look, but Alec’s anger has been momentarily subdued. “You clearly love her. And you can change and be good for her, but you need to put in the work.”

Alice sniffles, wiping at her face. “I want to do that.”

“Then we’ll be here to help,” Magnus assures her with a soft, sad smile.

Abigail moves in with them, officially, that day. They bring what little she owns from Alice’s house and make plans to meet with the woman weekly, with Abigail- if she agrees.

She settles into their lives so quickly it’s as if she’s always been there. The boys adore her and she seems to love them just as much and Magnus begins giving her the magic lessons he’d long since been giving Max.

Alice slowly begins to get her life together, but there’s a clear distance between her and Abigail. The younger girl walks on eggshells around her mother and Alice seems reluctant to so much as touch her daughter.

It’s several months before Alice tells them, crying, that she can’t take care of Abigail the way they have been; she can’t foster the growth that’s become apparent as she lived with them.

It’s Christmas Day when they sign the adoption papers, Alice takes the photo and spends the day with them and Alec thinks they’ve gained two new family members, in an odd way.

#art-in-the-sunlight #malecsanta20 #*fic20 #*gifts20

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sxveme-2 · 3 years

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blueberry pancakes // bucky barnes

MASTERLIST

Description: A single mother. Juggling being a mom, a full time pediatrician, and a difficult ex who believed now would be the best time to finally be a father. A soldier ripped out of time. Ex-assassin turned superhero. Learning how to balance a new domestic life with handling demons of his past, while facing the trials of the future. a love story began over something as simple as chocolate chip pancakes with hidden blueberries.

Disclaimer: I do not own any original Marvel characters! All canon plots and canon characters belong to Marvel Comics and Marvel Studios. This is an original work. You may not publish it anywhere else

Status: Unedited

Note: Takes place after endgame. I have elected to ignore Tony's death and Steve's leaving. Did not happen. Quick Reminder! My works are only published here, AO3 and on Wattpad, thank you.

Chapter Twenty Four: The One Where He Snaps

Warnings: N/A

Word Count: 3174

Lily knew that Bucky had an unpredictable job. It wasn't a standard 9-5 with a set schedule for the rest of his time in the position like Lily. He didn't necessarily have 'vacation days', or time off. He was technically always on the clock or always on call. But she also knew that he was aware of how important promises were to her. And he had made one to her, and swore that there would be no interruptions. Lily was proud of him, and the job that he did, but the selfish part of her wished that just for one weekend, he wasn't a superhero. That he wasn't The Winter Soldier, and that he was just Bucky. Bucky Barnes, boyfriend to Lily Osborne. Male role model to Hunter Osborne. Even just someone who had a standard job, one that was like hers, 9-5, same work day everyday.

But she knew he loved what he did. And how it helped him satisfy that need for redemption because of his past. She respected that, but that selfish side of her just would not quiet as she stared at the man in front of her.

"Yeah...He's in the living room," she swallowed, shooting a glance over to the supersoldier, "Come on in Sam."

Lily did a sidestep and extended her arm to greet the other Avenger into the cabin. Her breathing had picked up slightly and her throat felt dry. If it were a simple mission, she was sure Sam would have just called. Even texted. Instead, he showed up in person, with a serious look. Something Lily wasn't used to seeing on him. Shutting the door, Lily spared another look at Bucky before walking into the kitchen, filling the kettle once again. Her movements weren't as flowy and graceful as usual, and followed a more so aggressive and clearly annoyed pattern. Anytime she placed something down, it held more of a strength. It didn't go unnoticed by Bucky either. He kept sending her apologetic eyes as him and Sam talked in hushed breaths.

After pouring Sam his tea, Lily placed a few of the cookies Bucky had picked up at the grocery store the night prior on a plate and walked back into the living room where they spoke. Handing Sam the mug, Lily avoided eye contact with the man she was meant to be spending a romantic weekend alone with. After placing the cookies on the table, Lily grabbed her coat and hat, slipped on her boots, and walked out the back door. She didn't intend to close the door as aggressively as she did, but her instincts took over.

Lily watched the sun dip briefly below the treeline as her breath danced in front of her. She cupped her hands around her own mug that she had grabbed before leaving the cabin, and processed what was happening. Bucky had sat before her the day before they left, and took her hands into his own, and swore that nothing would interrupt them. That he had made sure of it. That there were no missions that would require him or have anything to do with him for that matter. The blonde scoffed as she recalled the words, shaking her head and dipping it down lower, staring at her feet against the white of the snow on the deck.

The sound of the door opening behind her caused Lily to lift her head, turning it to glance at who was joining her. It was the opposite of what she expected. Sam stood there with a sorry look on his face, walking forward and leaning on the porch bannister next to the blonde. Neither spoke for a moment, and just stared out at the lowering sun. Her heart fell slightly when she realized Bucky didn't even come out to talk to her himself, and probably sent Sam instead.

"You know he doesn't want to go," Sam began, glancing over at her, "he just spent the entire time we talked begging me to take someone else."

"And why does he have to go?" Lily questioned, eyes not faltering.

"Sometimes some things won't rest easy. And have a habit of returning." Sam replied, folding his fingers together,

This caught Lily's attention. She turned her head to the superhero and placed her mug down on a clear part of the banister. Her blonde eyebrow cocked up as she studied the solemn and far off look in Sam's face. His eyebrows were furrowed and mind seemed to be racing, as if he was struggling to find the words. She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the wooden banister, trying to silently coax the real reason with proper details from the typically blunt man. She had a way of doing it. It was something Bucky had coined 'the mother stare'. Anytime she gave it to Hunter, or even Bucky for that matter, whatever either may have been hiding came out within seconds. But Sam seemed to have more composure.

"I wish I could tell you, Lily," Sam continued, "I do. But with this...the less you know the better."

"Oh yeah, quite the way to comfort the girlfriend," Lily scoffed, turning her attention back to the treeline, "so what. I go back home and worry like the dotting girlfriend. What do I tell Rose? Gen? What am I supposed to tell my son." She snapped, voice coming out harsher than she expected it to.

"No." He stated simply.

Rolling her eyes, Lily turned to him once again, "No? What do you mean 'no', Sam?"

"You're not going home."

-----

She wasn't a violent or angry person. Farthest thing from it. Lily was docile, timid, and had a good control over her outward emotions. Especially that of anger or frustration. But lord did she want to absolutely lose it on both of the men that stood in the bedroom. Bucky hadn't spoken a word to Lily ever since Sam had arrived. Instead, he merely had a stone cold look on his face with eyebrows knitted together. Lily could barely look at him as she finished putting her duffel bag back together with the clothing she had packed for what she expected to be a romantic getaway for her and her boyfriend.

But even the most timid have a breaking point.

Throwing a shirt into her bag, Lily turned to Bucky, "So this is how it'll be hm? You just aren't going to tell me anything? Great. Now I have to pack up my son and everything and move into an Avengers Compound because of something I don't even know!" The blonde exclaimed.

Bucky nodded at Sam, and the latter left the room and shut the door behind him. Tears welled up in Lily's eyes as Bucky walked forward. He reached out to take her hands in his but she pulled them away, putting the last of her clothing into the bag and zipping it closed. The air in the room was heavy and thick, neither knowing what exactly to do or say. Lily was furious with the entire situation that was playing out, no even per say at Bucky as much anymore, just...everything. It had started perfectly, the weekend. They laughed and talked and learned even more about one another, only to have it end with her learning that she wasn't safe to be at her own house.

"I don't know what you want me to say, Buck," Lily sighed, dropping onto the quilt covered bed, "You promised me- "

"I know I promised you a work free weekend- "

"No!" She exclaimed, looking up at him, "You promised me we would always be safe. Always. That you wouldn't put us in danger in any way."

"Doll..."

"And why can't you tell me what is happening!?" She continued, "If this is putting my son in danger I have the right to know what's going on!"

Bucky moved the woman's duffle bag and took a seat on the bed next to her. She avoided his gaze, but his fingers tugged her chin to look at him. Tears fell down her cheeks, plump and swollen as she stared at him. Her nostrils flared and her eyes continued to water. There was so much going on in her mind that she could barely put into words. She had a suspicious hunch as to why they weren't telling her what was going on, but everything inside of her rejected the thought of it. She feared her parents had done something again, caused wreckage or hurt more people. The only thing that brought her slight comfort was the feeling of Bucky's rough fingers gripping her chin gingerly, staring into her glossy eyes.

"I think you know." Bucky whispered, wiping a tear from her cheekbone with his thumb.

She swallowed the lump that formed in her throat, and her eyes fluttered closed. Lily wished sometimes she wasn't as intuitive. The moment Sam told her that somethings don't rest easy, it had clicked in her head. They were trying to make sure that they didn't go for Lily or Hunter. From the previous run in, she figured it was more so for Hunter's safety and Lily's sanity. But that didn't stop the raging fire that burned deep within Lily's stomach. She wanted to help, because she knew her parents. She knew their personalities inside and out, and she knew that if anything, she could get through to her dad.

"What'd they do?" She choked out, opening her wet eyes.

"They escaped. And are partnered with an engineering firm that has been rumoured to be looking into genetic engineering and mutations using natural resources...something your parents are known for. The natural resources part." He added in the end, a weak smile forming on his lips.

"...how long will you be gone?"

"Not long."

-----

Lily stood outfront of the Avengers compound with a heavy heart. Two suitcases were gripped in her hands as she bit down on her bottom lip. Hunter and Rose apparently had already arrived, leaving Lily to be the last. Sam and Bucky stood behind her, the latter's arm wrapped around her waist. Lily hadn't said a word the entire way down from the cabin, mostly because she was mostly at a loss for words. Her chest was tight and throat felt ten times smaller, and her stomach had been in knots. Everything about the situation made Lily feel queasy, both with fear for Bucky, and anxiety about her family. She didn't know the extent of her parents' mercy, mostly because she hadn't even been aware of the devious things they had been engrossed in. But she felt that most of her worry about her family wasn't necessarily surrounding her parents, but Cedar. She knew her brother. She had helped raise him. Lily knew he wasn't truly capable of these things.

She wanted to help him most of all.

"Let me come with you." She blurted out, looking up at Bucky.

"What?" Bucky questioned, eyebrows furrowing.

"I know my parents. I can help. There won't be a need for violence, I can talk to them." She rambled, letting go of the suitcases and taking Bucky's hands into her own.

"No," he stated simply, shaking his head, "No you're not coming. Lily this isn't as easy as you think. You're staying here, you'll be safe here."

"They're my parents Buck!" Lily exclaimed, "I know them best. I lived with them for eighteen years of my life! I know how they think."

"She may have a point." Sam muttered, earning a deadly glare from the man in front of the blonde.

She knew it was a longshot, and it was most likely just the adrenaline talking. But Lily wanted to do something, instead of sitting at the compound like a sitting duck. Hiding away from her own family. She knew these people better than Bucky, or Sam, or anyone they're working with. Whether she admitted the slight neglectful nature they had, she knew who Alicia and Abel Osborne were, inside out. She knew her mothers ticks and her fathers nervous habits. She knew for a fact she could be an asset for the mission. Because she was an Osborne, the eldest one at that. The one who had been around her parents the longest, and coherently saw them at their lowest.

"No. No I'm not debating this, you're staying here," Bucky said once more, voice firm, "It's not safe. I won't let you be in harm's way. I promised you that."

"You also promised her a romantic weekend away." Sam chimed in.

Both Lily and Bucky turned to look at Sam with an expression of 'really?' printed on their faces. Sam simply shrugged and raised his hands innocently. Though the fact was true, it was not the right time for the comment. Lily raised her hand and whacked the man on the arm, shaking her head and turning her attention back to Bucky.

"You can't deny it's true. I know them, Buck. Better than anyone that will be on this mission."

"No, Lily. You're not coming. End of discussion." He concluded, turning and walking towards the compound, leaving Sam and Lily in the parking lot.

"And you sleep with him." Sam scoffed, a small chuckle leaving his lips.

Turning her head, Lily stared at him with the same expression she had given him earlier. Earning the exact same reaction. Shaking her head, Lily gripped her suitcases and followed Bucky towards the compound.

-----

"Why're we here?" Hunter asked as Lily finished unpacking her clothing. She knew he would ask, but honestly, Lily didn't really have an answer. What was she to tell a twelve year old who had already been through as much as he had? That his moms boyfriend was off to handle his grandparents evil and misguided antics?

Sighing, the blonde beckoned the boy over to her bed, taking a seat and opening her arms for him. Hunter sat beside her and curled into his mother's embrace. She figured he somewhat knew what was going on, and was simply looking for reassurance from his mother. But Lily could barely understand the situation herself. Bucky and the others were across the compound, discussing the mission, leaving Lily with the condensed amount of information she had managed out of her boyfriend. She looked down at her son and smiled with her lips pursed, running her hand through his hair.

"There's just some stuff going on right now buddy, and Bucky thinks it's safer if you and I stay here with Auntie Rose and Joey for a bit. Just to make sure no one gets hurt." Lily nodded, watching as his face fell once again.

"Why aren't you telling me?" He asked flatly, eyebrows furrowed.

She shook her head, "Hunter that's not fair. I'm trying to do what's best here. Just trust me, okay?"

"No!" He exclaimed, jumping to his feet, "Mom tell me! I deserve to know!"

"Do not raise your voice at me, Hunter," she replied, voice calm and collected, "Have I ever done wrong by you?"

"I don't know. You never really told me what happened between you and Dad. And I never asked. You never told me what's going on with Uncle Cedar. You didn't tell me what was happening with Grandma and Grandpa! Bucky has told me more about himself these last few months than you have in the past years!" He exclaimed.

An arrow shot itself into Lily's heart. Hunter was fairly open about what he was feeling, and not once had Lily realized these things plagued his mind. She felt that he wasn't old enough to know what was really going on with the things he had listed, but he was observant. He knew something was wrong. The tears that welled in his eyes made everything disappear around Lily. She had done that. It was her fault he was crying. Because she couldn't face the reality, therefore she couldn't tell her own son.

Standing, Lily reached for the boy, only to have him run out of the room towards his own across the hall. Lily stood in shock with her mouth open and jaw slacked. Tears brimmed her eyes as she stared at the door that had just been slammed, knowing what she had caused was standing behind it. Her heart violently shook along with her hands, mind going blank of all happiness and filling those voids with nothing but pain and regret. Why didn't she tell him? Was it because she was protecting him? Was it because she didn't think he could handle it? Or because she couldn't? Her knees feel weak and met with the hardwood of the floor beneath her. She grabbed at her chest and scratched the porcelain skin, attempting to halt her heart from the rapid beats that sounded like drums in her ears.

Lily really thought she had been a good mother. That her and Hunter had a good and open communication line. That there weren't any major issues beneath the seemingly perfect relationship. She hadn't seen just how much everything was hurting him. A part of her resented the fact that Bucky had been brought up, and the claims Hunter made. It broke her heart. She just wanted him to be okay, to not have to see the true evil in the world. But he saw anyways, sometimes more than she did. And Lily couldn't protect him from it, or hide it away.

She didn't even notice Joey enter her room and curl into her side, pawing at her thigh gently as a way to gain her attention. She instinctively dropped her hand to rest on his paw, the feeling of his fur soothing her slightly. But the heaving continued, and her throat felt tight and dry. Tears streaked her cheeks as she relived the words her son spat at her just moments before. She only snapped out of it when the cool feeling of metal rested on her cheek, snapping her out of the continuous loop.

"Doll, love what's wrong?" He whispered. But she couldn't speak. Words wouldn't form in her throat and her mind could barely function enough to even begin to think what she would say, "Baby I can't help if you don't talk to me."

Lily stared at his cool blue eyes, eyebrows furrowed and chest heaving. Small, inaudible noises escaped her mouth as she continued to dry heave. Bucky pursed his lips and stood, picking her up carefully and laying her on the bed. He knew not to push, and to simply sit there with her for a few minutes. He had shut the door behind him when he entered, and curled the blonde into his chest. His flesh hand stroked her hair as she buried her face deep into the crook of his shoulder, breathing in the woody and musky scent he had. Finally, she violently shook her head and sat up with a new mission in her head.

"I have to tell Hunter everything. He needs to know."

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ahsoka-lives · 4 years

Text

Apprentice pt. 3 (REWRITE)

A/n: Yikes, I didn’t like the original one too much so I edited it and added a bit more perspective and changed the over all plot structure a bit. The beginning is largely the same, it’s the end and the dialogue that changed the most. I appreciate the kind words given from the original but I am critical of myself and will always find ways to pick apart what I wrote, whether it was good or not. I promise this one is staying up! Thank you all for almost 150 followers!! And thank you for being so patient with me as I repost work and take so long to update. I hope you’re all taking care of yourselves and that you enjoy this chapter!! Gif is by @wiccangoddes

Warnings: Descriptions of death, threats, Soulmate AU

Word count: 3199

The past month alone on this ship was tiresome, the only consistency was a dull ache in the base of your skull, a side effect of not being with Cal. Luckily, yesterday was the final portion of tests aboard the training vessel.

There wasn’t much about the final test you remembered, only going into the sensory deprivation chamber and succumbing to the sedative. When you woke up you were cleared to return to “Cal’s supervision”, a phrase you were growing tired of.

Secretly, you’d grown bitter the past few weeks, you were treated far worse when not around Cal. The technicians weren’t exactly pleasant and while you may have worn their uniform, they knew who you were and where you came from. They treated you like the Bracca trash they saw you as. Now, when looking at you there were no remnants of your upbringing in your appearance. Long gone was the poncho that served you comfort all those years. No one could tell that the Empire tore you away from the only place you could call home and attempted to brainwash you. You couldn’t help but feel like you let this happen, mesmerized by the idea of a happily ever after with Cal, you willingly walked aboard the transport. Then not even a day later, you watched him walk away from you and onto his ship with only a few kind words and the promise of his return.

All personnel walked the halls with their heads high and shoulders back. Their uniforms blurred them together, erasing any personality within them. They were only of the Empire, nothing else. The fluorescent lighting reflected off the white tile, giving the ship a sense of sterility. Now, you stood in the mirror of your small, cramped room aboard the training vessel. The brandishing of the Inquisition was displayed on your shoulder, this was their training armor. It was similar to Cal’s chest plate, only yours lacked his sense of authority. You knew that was something you’d have to make for yourself starting today.

Today was your first time back into the real world since being taken into the Empire and because of how fresh your training is, Cal was going to keep you under a microscope.

- Cal’s POV

Cal Kestis stood inside the small bay of his ship in front of the holotable, his eyes fixated on the projection in front of him. It was the case file containing every ounce of data the Empire could procure on you. Every test, every simulation, every behavioral pattern that could be used to predict your future actions in the field. On your last test, you performed abnormally well with the exception of one minor infringement that resulted in the test ending sooner than expected, written off as a technical difficulty. Nevertheless, they sent the recording to him, just as he requested for every test.

Cal looked fondly at the intake photo that was shown next to your name one last time. He knew all too well what was to come, how could he not? The Empire was exceptionally skilled in controlling its subjects and as such, they had a knack for identifying those who would give them trouble. He wondered what you would think of the name they’d given you and if you would soon prove them right.

Y/f/n Kestis, FLIGHT RISK.

-Reader’s POV

The walk to the hangar was a short one, within minutes you were walking on the bridge that hung over it. You looked down onto the ship that had just docked. Standing beside it talking to a small group of troopers was Cal, instantly upon seeing him your muscles relaxed, the ache in your neck and shoulders lessened. The closer you got the more the tense feeling of anticipation in both of you slipped away. That’s not to say the bitterness you felt was gone, only lessened with the feeling of normalcy returning to your body

.“Apprentice.” He nodded to you in acknowledgment. You stayed silent as he dismissed the troopers and let them walk for a moment before pulling you in for an unexpected hug. The headache left you almost instantly and you melted into his arms. The energy around him fought to suffocate you further against him, you weren’t sure if this was a conscious effort or just a reflex for him. He took a deep breath in, balance returning to him after a long few weeks without having you around. Was he happy to see you or happy to feel his power returning?

While on your way to the new living arrangements that the Empire set up for Cal and you, a distress signal was intercepted by the ship. A small outpost on a nearby moon had a small squabble with the locals, nothing out of the ordinary according to Cal.

Across from you in the bay, Cal’s helmet sat in the chair next to him as he meditated, there was something peaceful about this. His face was relaxed with the exception of his brows furrowed in concentration. Seeing him like this humanized him, it made a hopefulness bloom inside of you, maybe his intimidating manner was all a facade.

But as soon as the ship landed, the helmet returned, with it your memory of what he’s done while wearing that uniform. The uniform reminded you of the time you spent in the labs on the training vessel. They showed you what the Empire had in store for you. The Empire wanted to turn you into a weapon just like they had Cal. The simulations were designed to warp your view on reality, to plant the false narrative of the Empire’s savior complex, and to tempt you into accepting its enemies on as your own. Perhaps their biggest mistake was showing you what the Empire does to force sensitives. They showed you that if it weren’t for your ties to Cal, you would be lying dead in the scrapyards at this very moment.

The Force-sensitives in the simulations were painted as burdens, as insignificant evils that needed to be removed from the galaxy with a swift and heavy hand. But, if that were true, what did that make you? How could you in good conscience kill someone like you? Someone who may not even understand their role in the universe yet or what it even means to be Force-sensitive. It’s thoughts like these that made the idea of running more tempting.

You desperately tried to smother these thoughts, you’d hate for Cal to catch on. You’d learned that those skilled with the Force could tap into the thoughts and feelings of those around them and slight paranoia followed you ever since. For all you knew, he could be trying to see inside your head right this moment.

“Apprentice, let’s get going.” Cal snapped you out of the mental spiral you’d gone down. The fresh air washed over you and with it a fleeting moment of happiness.

“Let’s see if any of that training paid off.” He spoke as he held a saber out in his hand for you. It was cold and heavy in your hands, heavier than the training saber you used with the droids. Side by side, you walked with Cal, a squadron of troopers trailing behind you. The grass was near your knees and the trees towered over you providing shelter from the sun.

This wouldn’t be a bad place to disappear.

The group walked for miles in near silence until a column of smoke emerged from beyond the trees.

“Eyes up, that’s coming from the outpost, this might be bigger than we thought.” Cal’s modulated voice called out. The troopers fanned out from behind you and raised their blasters. The air felt tense and the hairs on your neck stood, every sound suddenly more clear.

Cal raised his fist to halt the troopers and looked down at the scanner on his forearm. Your eyes remained on the trees in front of you. They looked to Cal for direction who only pointed two fingers ahead of the group at the thick wall of trees and shrubbery. In unison, you and Cal reached for your sabers.

Suddenly, high pitch blaster shots whizzed past you in a red flash, you braced and brought your saber up to block as many as you could. One by one the troopers were shot down, leaving only you and Cal standing. You gave a nervous glance up to his helmet and dug your feet further into the ground to solidify your position. He felt oddly calm.

“Cal Kestis, we meet again.” A woman emerged from the trees, her voice was steady and smooth. Her cream-colored robes flowed gently in the wind, her dark hair was tied back out of her face that adorned a small smile. Behind her were a few soldiers dressed in similar green and beige clothes, not quite a uniform but close to it.

“Trilla, how disappointing.” Cal mocked the woman. “How’s the leg doing since I last cut it off?”

“Well, the prosthesis business is booming, apparently a lot of sword-wielding maniacs have been running around” She joked and raised an eyebrow at the Inquisitor. “Aren’t you interested as to why I lured you here?”

“Not really, no. I’d rather skip to the part where I finish you and your little band of men off for good this time.” He sassed and flipped his saber up in his hands absentmindedly.

“We got word of another Jedi being abducted by you and your sisters, am I right to assume this is her?” She sneered, gone was the playful banter between them.

“She’s no Jedi, and she’s none of your concern.” He growled and put an arm in front of you protectively.

“On the contrary, innocent life in the hands of the Empire is and will always be my first priority.” She paused and looked at you this time. “I’m here to help you, what’s your name?”

“I’m Y/n, and I don’t need your help.” You bit back and grabbed hold of his arm to lower it, allowing you to step forward. He was more than hesitant to allow this and you could feel his distaste for the situation arising.

“Y/n, a little early for blind allegiance to them, isn’t it?” She urged and took a small step forward making Cal tense visibly.

“At least she knows where she belongs.” He bit from behind the mask.

“With the enemy? With the government who hunts down people like us?”

“There is no us, Trilla.” He chuckled darkly as he continued to berate her. “The order is gone, only the ashes of its failure remain along with insolent, naive padawans like yourself.”

“You forget that you were once a padawan, that you once wore the symbol of the Jedi with pride.” Her voice was saturated in emotion and she seemed to be choking back tears.

“For a Jedi, you sure cry a lot.” He rolled his eyes under the helmet, the sarcasm dripping from his voice. “How about I really give you something to cry about?”

His gloved hand raised in front of him and one of the soldiers rose from the ground and flew toward him. He swiftly impaled the soldier with his saber before letting the body fall to the ground at his feet. Without hesitation, he moved forward and lifted another off the ground only this time his fist curled tightly, and with a subtle movement of his head, he snapped the man’s neck.

The woman named Trilla cried out, sprung forward and clashed her saber against his, their duel ensuing. You were torn from your state of shock by a blaster shot grazing past your shoulder. Your eyes flew to the source and you reflexively brought your saber up to block the next one.

“Apprentice, you’re going to have to be more offensive than that,” Cal called out, his tone playful as he kicked Trilla in the chest sending her flying back.

His hand stretched out and lifted the soldier who fired at you up and with a flick of his wrist the soldier was flown into the ground in front of you. The man was visibly shaken but his intent to finish his mission seemed to take precedence over what just happened. You screwed your eyes shut and swung your saber forward, slashing the rifle in half.

The soldier, seemingly unfazed, swept your ankle with his foot making you fall to the ground, your saber falling a few feet away now lifeless. A knife was pulled from his boot and he lurched forward in an attempt to impale you with it. You shuffled backward away from him, your back near the dirt, panic flooding your chest.

Your eyes looked to Cal who was preoccupied with a fight of his own and you realized that you were alone in this. You scrambled to your feet and took cautious steps back as the man in front of you seemed to be calculating his next attack. The saber, your only chance of survival, was at his feet. The soldier grunted and leaped toward you, you barely managed to avoid it. Your hand reached out desperately for your saber and every ounce of effort was forced into calling it to you, but the saber barely shifted on the ground.

You groaned in frustration, why wasn’t it working?

“Y/n, behind you!” Cal yelled but it was too late, you were tackled to the ground, your head slamming into the firm grass.

“Commander, I have her!” The man yelled to Trilla.

The trees around you seemed to spin and you struggled to move as he had you pinned down, your saber was resting on the ground just a few feet in front of you and just beyond it was the fierce duel between the Jedi and the Inquisitor. You had to admit, Trilla was skilled but she lacked something that you saw in Cal. He was downright violent, while Trilla fought to defend herself, he fought for the sake of fighting. She fought toward an end but he relished in seeing the frustration on his opponent’s face as he evaded their attacks and inflicted pain onto them.

You let your eyes shut and you tried to recall what you felt all those weeks ago on Bracca. Your hand flexed open and you let your mind feel the air around you, imagining that the world around you was still. You gave up on trying to physically will the saber to you and allowed your mind to do the work for you. You just had to get out of this, you weren’t going to let someone else take you away to stars knows where.

You sighed in relief when the cool metal of the hilt was in your hands. When your eyes reopened, the deep red of the saber was alive in front of you. You caught it in reverse and the blade had opened directly into the man’s chest, his limp body falling off of you. You stood up panting and looked to Cal who had single-handedly taken on the four other men and Trilla.

“Your men are dead, Trilla, are you ready to join them?” Cal taunted, his arms gesturing around to the dead bodies that lay around the three of you. The pain on her face was evident as was her exhaustion. She looked to you with an earnest glint in her eyes, a silent plea but you didn’t know what for.

“Can’t you see what he is? What he wants you to become?” She begged and gestured to Cal, his face still hidden by his armor. “A monster in a mask who spends every waking moment in darkness.”

“You don’t seem to understand, Trilla, she knows.” He chuckled and lazily twirled his saber in his hand. “Besides, she couldn’t leave me if she wanted to, we are bonded by the Force, inseparable.”

“You? The Force gave you a soulmate?” She spit, sheer disbelief written over her face as she shook her head. “That doesn’t matter, you’ve known her for what? Four weeks? The bond isn’t complete, there’s still time for her.”

“None of this matters, but, I’ll tell you the best part.” He laughed, he was thoroughly entertained by all of this, the pain she felt included. “She knows no family, no past worth holding onto. There’s nothing for you to tempt her with. Only I can give her what she wants.”

He was right, you had nothing pulling you back, no family for you to return to. But if what Trilla said was true, you had nothing keeping you here either.

Maybe you didn’t have to become another pawn.

You took another look at the man in front of you, the memory of his comfortable arms still fresh in your memory. Cal promised you a lot, a soulmate...stability, but at what cost? Your eyes moved to the woman that was now kneeling on the ground, wounded and exhausted from fighting your partner. She offered a way out of the Empire’s schemes but that was it. Surely you could find that for yourself. In a moment of pure thoughtlessness you raised your palm up toward Cal, gaining his attention.

“My dear, that’s a bold move, even for you.” He chided and raised his hands to remove his helmet. “Are you sure you have what it takes to go against me?”

“I’ll be long gone by the time you’re moving again.” Your voice was shaky as you tested the waters against him, guilt of your betrayal arising in you.

“Oh, I’m sure. I’ve seen what you can do but you have only seen a taste of what I can do.” He promised with a chilling intensity, a wicked smile on his handsome face, his excitement growing by the second. His irises tinted yellow and his pupils were blown.

“Go ahead, I can handle it, sweetheart.” You felt the past few weeks of suppressed emotions and near torture bubbling inside of you. “Come on, gorgeous, I’ll give you a head start.”

He deactivated his saber and hooked it onto his waist, seemingly unbothered by the Jedi watching this unfold. While this meant he was going to let you run, it wasn’t nearly enough security for you. You mustered up all the strength that you could and forced Cal over the wall of bushes and away from you.

After a moment of silence, you assumed him to be unconscious and stalked over to Trilla with a determined look on your face.

“I knew you’d do the right thing, y/n.” She sighed and rose to her feet. The words made you roll your eyes, his arrogance was rubbing off on you. “I’m glad you’re joining the right cause.”

“I’m getting tired of everyone talking and thinking on my behalf, who said I was joining you?” You growled and shot your hand out to pull her saber into your hand, her unfounded trust in you left her guard down.

Now, with both sabers in hand, you pointed one across her throat, the other in a block position above your torso. “Take me to your ship.”

#inquisitor!cal #soulmate au #apprentice part 3 #cal kestis #cal kestis x reader #inquisitor cal #jfo fanfiction #jfo #star wars

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liebegott · 4 years

Note

Ya know a lil post war Lieb where you’re married but he’s flirting with you would really water my crops... bonus if he says the word titties hehe ~ twin

Bell Peppers & Balconies. | Joseph Liebgott

(click here to read on wattpad)

REQUESTS ARE ALWAYS OPEN!

pairing: liebgott x fem!reader

wc: 1.7k

tw: none except he mentions titties so idk oops!

a/n: ahh i’m so sorry, for some reason, when i wrote this, my eyes completely focused on the titties line instead of the married line! so i accidentally wrote them not married. i’m so sorry 🥺 huge thanks to @vintagelavenderskies who reminded me that stargazing existed!

this is probably my favourite oneshot i’ve ever written, so i hope you enjoy it! thank you all for reading. 💓

tagging: @floydtab @alienoresimagines @order-of-river-phoenix @julianneday1701 @hellitwasyoufirstsergeant @wexhappyxfew @rarmiitage @mavysnavy @punkgeekchic @vintagelavenderskies @georgeluzwarmhugs @ray--person @wecomrades @jussipogideonlaufeyson @happyveday @snafus-peckuh @little-babydolly @kathikon

feel free to message me if you’d like to be added to my taglist!

***

Water splashed against your foot, the contents of your watering can spilling onto the balcony under yours. You quietly cursed, stepping aside and rushing to turn off the faucet. It was like any other day, summer just around the corner, and as usual, you tended to your small garden, a couple of planter boxes fastened to the railing of your balcony.

It was 1945. The war had just ended, and though everything was normal for a while now, the difference soldiers coming home made was striking. You had moved to San Francisco right after most of the men shipped out, so their return made a difference to everyone but you.

With summer rolling in, you worried about your bell peppers that had started sprouting. It was rarely bright and sunny where you lived, but your small apartment faced south, allowing your tiny, makeshift backyard to receive as much sunlight as possible for your vegetables.

You lived in a corner apartment, and the apartment beside yours was empty, so your floor was quiet, noise coming only from the bustle of the streets below. Today was no different.

Or so you thought.

“You water them any more and they’ll drown,” a voice said to you, and for a moment, you thought you had hallucinated. On the balcony beside yours stood a skinny man, still in his military uniform, leaning on the railing. “I’m serious, that’s way too much water.”

Tilting your watering can, you placed it on a wooden stool, surveying the damage. It was one of your bad habits- getting so lost in thought, staring off into the distance. It was a surprise any of your vegetables had grown at all.

“Oops,” you said sheepishly, rubbing the back of your neck, “They’ll be fine.. I hope.” The man chuckled, the sound of his laugh so clear despite the honking of the traffic on the streets under you.

He leaned down on the railing on his elbows, taking out a cigarette from his pocket and lighting it in such swift movements. You never liked smoking, hated the smell of cigarettes, but briefly, as you watched him exhale, you loved it. The man saw you eye him from his peripherals and turned to you, throwing you a wink.

“I hope so too,” he mumbled, flicking spent ashes to the ground below, “Can’t have spaghetti without tomatoes can we? Those are tomatoes aren’t they?”

You shook your head gently. “No, bell peppers. My tomatoes didn’t grow,” a frown appeared on your face and the man clucked his tongue. He moved in his place, resting on his back on the warm metal to face you. “Did you just get back?” You cursed yourself in your head for such a stupid question, as he was in fact, still in his hat.

The man nodded absentmindedly, taking another drag from his cigarette and exhaling before speaking. “Yep, just moved in as well,” he smiled kindly, the smile-lines around his mouth deepening, “Glad my ‘ma chose this apartment.”

Turning back towards the horizon, you sighed happily. “It has the best view,” you replied, “You’re really lucky.”

“I sure am,” the man grinned, but his eyes remained trained on her, “I’ve got a pretty neighbour with bell peppers as well.” You couldn’t fight the blush appearing on your cheeks.

“Would you like to come over for dinner?” you suddenly blurted out, surprising the both of you, you a little more. He seemed pleased, flicking away his cigarette and watching it drop to the ground.

Rubbing his hands together, he walked closer to his balcony ledge, a smirk on his face. “That’s a surprise,” he said, your cheeks heating up once more, “I was just about to ask you the same thing. Except, I don’t have any furniture.”

“Ask me then,” you said, unsure where this boldness was coming from. He was a complete stranger, and you had only been speaking for a few minutes.

The man chuckled again, and you wish he wouldn’t stop this time, the sound sweet in your ears. “What’s your name?” he asked, a twinkle in his eye.

“Y/N.”

He smiled, and you curled a strand of hair behind your ear. “Well, Y/N,” he began, leaning in as close as the gap between your balconies would allow, “Would you like to have dinner with me?”

———

Fidgeting, you gently brought your knuckles to the door and knocked. You heard shuffling inside before he swung the door wide open, a large grin on his face. “You really came,” Joe breathed a sigh of relief, puzzling you.

“Of course I did,” you said matter-of-factly, “I’m literally four steps away.” He ushered you into his bare apartment and looked around, slightly embarrassed. Joe looked different out of his uniform, without a cigarette, and without any furniture.

He looked like a young man, not the confident one he had introduced himself as on his balcony. You weren’t sure which version of him you liked more.

“I made food,” you smiled at him, lifting a warm bowl of pasta, “No tomatoes. It's bell pepper and cream though, if that’s okay with you.”

He whistled. “You made something too? I swear I was joking about the spaghetti,” Joe laughed, a smile growing on your face as well, “But thank you. I really appreciate it.”

Leading you through the sparse living areas, which only had his suitcase and a mattress on the floor, Joe’s face reddened. “Haven’t gotten the chance to buy furniture,” he gave you a lopsided grin, “But I promise, the next time you come over, I’ll at least have a couch you can sit on.”

Everything he said came out so easily, and yet every word made you blush. Stepping onto the small balcony, your heart skipped yet another beat.

Joe had placed down blankets and pillows on the metal floor. You looked up at him, your eyes wide. “This is amazing, Joe,” you breathed. And it truly was, despite how simple the whole thing was.

He settled himself down on a pillow, patting the one beside him for you to sit as well. You placed the bowl down between you, taking out plates and forks. From where you were seated, you could see the whole San Francisco skyline, the sky pink as the sun slowly hid for the evening.

“Well,” he began, a wide grin on his face, “I had a beautiful girl comin’ over. I figured I’d have to impress her even without furniture.”

There he went again, with each word, crawling his way into your heart. “Good job, Sergeant Liebgott,” you winked at him, “You can consider me impressed.”

“Oh boy,” he piped, facing heavenward, “Being called Sergeant has never sounded so good.” You no longer fought back a smile, your heart feeling warm as you scooped up some pasta for him.

The two of you sat there, and once the food was finished, your stomachs both full, you and Joe peeked through the railings to see who could spot the number of cabs that passed by first. Joe eventually got tired of losing, despite you knowing his eyes were far more observant than yours-- you realised later on he was letting you win.

Leaning back down against the glass sliding door, a pillow between the two of you, you both watched the night sky, illuminated by the bright lights of Mainstreet. Joe was easy to talk to, your conversations ranging from his family to before the war. You were apprehensive, skirting around the edges of his actual time in Europe, but learned a thing or two about the men he served with.

“It's always bright here, is it?” he mumbled after a moment of comfortable silence between the two of you. You looked at him to see him gazing towards the darkened sky, his face blank. You nodded, not saying anything. “It was never really ever completely dark in Belgium either.”

You knew of the ‘Battered Bastards of Bastogne,’ almost everyone did. But you never realised the man beside you, so young and so alive, had been one of them. “What was it like?” you asked him, your voice quiet and unsure.

He turned to look at you and gave you a reassuring smile-- ask me, his eyes seemed to say. “Sometimes it’d be so dark, you wouldn’t be able to see your hands in front of you,” Joe said, extending his arms in front of him to glance at his hands, “And then a light will pierce through the sky. You’d see it through the trees, and hear a high-pitched whistle.”

You tried to imagine everything he was saying, looking up at the sky and pretending you were surrounded by a canopy of trees. Joe put a hand on your shoulder and shook his head. “Then when it’d come down, you’ll force yourself to think of a reason to stay alive,” he finished, his eyes trained on you, yet looking somewhere else, somewhere far. Belgium.

Cupping his cheek gently, you whispered, “What reasons did you give yourself?”

“My family,” he sighed, shutting his eyes, leaning into your touch, “But also the idea of driving my cab around again. Meeting a girl with soft titties and a smile to die for. All the little Liebgotts we’d make.” Joe said the last sentence with a cheeky smile, no malice, and you pat his cheek gently, pulling away. You eventually learned Joe had the capability to make everything sad happy again.

Both falling once more in a comfortable silence, the night drew nearer, and you realised you had to go. Standing at the door, your own just a few steps away, a strange feeling of sadness surrounded you. “Thank you for tonight,” you forced a smile.

Joe tapped your nose once. “Don’t frown,” he grinned, and you couldn’t help but grin as well, “We can have dinner again, this time. I’ll cook.”

“I sure hope it isn’t one of the stews you guys had in the forest you were telling me about.”

Joe feigned offence, a hand on his chest. “You’re missing out, I swear,” he scrunched his eyebrows together, “The bones give a real nice crunch.” You let out a laugh, your voice echoing through the quiet hall. You waved him goodnight, taking a few steps to your own apartment, and turning the key.

“And Y/N,” he called, and you turned to see him, his eyes soft as he leaned on the doorway, “Finally met the girl.”

You were wrong, sneaking a glance down at your chest. Today was definitely different.

#band of brothers #band of brothers oneshot #band of brothers imagine #hbo war #hbowar #joseph liebgott #joe liebgott #liebgott #liebgott x reader #joseph liebgott x reader #joe liebgott x reader #giana:parsuna #Anonymous

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courtof-storms · 3 years

Text

The Tavern, part 2

Previously: 1

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

By the time Cagliostro and Ral arrived at the table everyone in the tavern was watching them. Some watched in confusion, others in rage, with only a few watching just wanting to learn something. Alexandrea sat at the table, their expression all kinds of pissed, in contrast to Ral who despite his best efforts to hide how he felt, was scared as he sat down with Alexandrea. Cagliostro was more unnerved than anything as she approached and sat with them both, carrying a tray of three glasses full of water as she set one down in front of everyone before herself.

“Ok, you said you’d tell me your guys’ deal when we got here. We’re here, now spill.” Cagliostro said, her voice firm as she took a seat at the table. Ral folded his scarf up and put it in his pocket before taking a sip of the water Cagliostro brought as Alexandrea more or less ignored the drink as they were still angry.

“Well I am Ral and they are called Alexandrea of the Court of Storms.” Ral informed, gesturing to Alexandrea as he spoke. Everyone present in the tavern regardless of how they felt before was as quiet as the dead when they heard mention of the Court of Storms. One patron raised his hand to ask a question but it was pulled down by someone else.

“Aren’t you her brother, shouldn’t you both be of the Court of Storms?” Cagliostro asked, noticing Alexandrea’s silence but not pressing them on it. Ral sighed.

“I am not their brother in that aspect. I am their brother because we are both Risen, and both were brought back by the Demoness.” He stated. The air of the tavern turned tense as he spoke of the Demoness, causing some of the patrons to get up and leave out of fear of the same Demoness Ral spoke of. Even among the trio Alexandrea got really uncomfortable with the mention of her as they brought their legs up close to their chest and held them tight.

“Oh...the one who-”

“Can we stop talking about her?” Alexandrea asked, interrupting Cagliostro’s question. The tiefling woman looked to Ral who gave her a solemn nod as he had another drink of water.

“Ok...how about this, you said she doesn’t have her memories, what do you mean by that?” Cagliostro asked, gently reaching over and placing a hand on Alexandrea’s shoulder, letting them know that they were safe.

“Well, depending on how you rise, it’s possible you either remember everything from before you died, or have no memory of what happened before death.” Ral said, finishing off his water before getting up with his now empty glass and Alexandrea’s still full water and bringing them to the bar.

“Do you have any coffee and maybe some juice?” He asked Sly.

“Uh...yeah I do, give me like five minutes to brew it and I’ll bring it to you.” He replied, taking the glasses and putting them down behind the bar before starting to brew the coffee. Ral smiled and went back to the table.

“As it happens I kept my memories from before but that came with me being no more than a crazed beast. Alexandrea kept their sanity after rising but lost their memories." Ral told Cagliostro with Alexandrea nodding as he spoke.

"Interesting. Is it ok if I ask what you did before dying Ral?" Cagliostro asked, taking out a notebook and pen to take notes.

"I was a battlemage, taken from my parents at birth and raised by head guard of the nobles to be a soldier." He said, lightly scratching his palms as he spoke. Cagliostro sat and took notes as Sly brought coffee and juice to the table.

“Thank you.” Ral told him with a small smile before reaching into one of his pockets and bringing out a small phial of blood, stirring it into his coffee and having some. Alexandrea’s eyes lit up when they saw the juice and instantly reached for it, drinking half before putting it back down on the table with a giant smile on their face.

“May I ask what that substance you put in your coffee was?” Cagliostro asked.

“It was blood, it uh, it’s what we live on.” Ral told her.

“Oh, does Alexandrea…?”

“I do but I don’t like drinking it as much as Ral says I have to. Why should I when meat is much more tasty? Speaking of.” Alexandrea told the tiefling before getting up and walking over to the bar.

“Can I get a plate of meat as big as you’ll give me?” They asked Sly, their eyes barely above the bar counter when they were on the tips of their toes.

“Sure, uh, how do you like it?”

“Just barely cooked.” They said, Sly nodded as Alexandrea walked back to the table.

“So...you both drink blood. Where do you get it from?” Cagliostro asked.

“Before I got my sanity back I drank it from the living. I uh, I hunted people in the night, trailing them back to their homes and feeding off their families so as not to leave anyone around to speak of it…” Ral replied, feeling more and more uncomfortable as he spoke about how he was when he first rose and wishing he could just block it out.

Once he finished talking the entire tavern looked at him in fear with a few leaving, the one who tripped Ral being one of them. Sly dropped a knife as he listened to Ral speak and Cagliostro looked stunned, her quill had stopped moving and her expression was of pure shock.

“Uh...what do you do now to get blood?” Cagliostro asked, not exactly wanting to know the answer.

“I found an apothecary who understood my hunger and he collects blood from his healthy patients and sells it to me.” He took another sip of his coffee and saw that Cagliostro’s expression had gotten even more worried along with the shock she already felt. “He doesn’t kill his patients if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Cagliostro let out a sigh of relief as Sly came back to the table, carrying a large plate of meat and setting it down in front of Alexandrea. Their eyes practically sparkled at the sight of the food.

“Thank you!” They exclaimed, wanting to dig into their food at that second but Ral had placed a hand on their shoulder and stopped them. They pouted a bit but took his lead and didn’t eat the food right away.

“That’s good at least. Uh, Alexandrea, are you good enough to answer a few questions?” Cagliostro asked them.

“I think so.” They replied.

“Where did you get your armor from? That symbol it has on it is from...well centuries ago.”

“I rose wearing it and a cloak that had my name on it.” They informed. Cagliostro reeled back a little at that response.

“You rose with it? That’s...no that means you’re from the second Empiric War…” Cagliostro sputtered, looking through her notebook to try and find something that could explain how that was possible. Sly came back to the table and gently laid a hand on Cagliostro’s shoulder.

“You’re a bit freaked out right now, I don’t blame you but I know how you get. Why don’t you make those sweetcakes your mother showed you...I know it helps you calm down little girl.” He told her in a calm and reassuring voice. The tiefling woman nodded, putting their notebook and quill down on the table as she got up and made her way to the kitchen, still a bit on edge. Sly took her seat at the table and took a deep breath.

“Was it something I said?” Alexandrea asked, their voice filled with worry for their new friend. Sly shook his head.

“No, she’s just confused and unable to figure out how it’s possible you rose from the grave after 500 years and looking not like a ghoul.” He said.

“That is something I asked the apothecary.” Ral spoke up, holding his coffee mug in his hands and letting it warm them.

“What did he say, miss?” Sly asked Ral. It was now Ral’s turn to recoil a bit but...that shouldn’t bother him, at least he thinks so.

“Uh…”

“Ral is my brother, not my sister.” Alexandrea said plainly with an expression that said Sly shouldn’t make that mistake unless he wants to pay a very painful price. Somehow Alexandrea’s words calmed Ral...but he shouldn’t have felt that he was uncomfortable being referred to as a woman, at least he thought so.

“He said it most likely has to do with the Demoness. Current line of reason is she fed on us and that helped to preserve our bodies for an abnormally long time.” Ral replied, taking a long drink of his coffee. Sly nodded in response.

“Do you have an idea as to why it took you so long to come back?”

“The plane of death is a maze of pain and torturous traps...one which I wish I could forget.” Ral said as a shiver ran down his spine. Sly raised a hand to try and ask a follow up to that but thought against it as he saw Ral’s expression drop. Sly turned his attention to Alexandrea who was eyeing their plate of meat with a ravenous gaze.

“Alright, Alexandrea, I have something I’d like to show you. I think it has something to do with your past, is it ok to show you?” Sly asked Alexandrea. They nodded in response.

Sly got up and walked to a bookcase in the opposite corner of the table they were at and came back after a few seconds with a medium sized chest in hand. He set it on the table before sitting again.

Alexandrea looked at Sly with an expression asking him if they could open it, he nodded in response. They reached out and picked up the chest, noticing it had the same symbol on top that is on their breastplate as they opened it up, revealing a portrait of a squad of soldiers who stood in front of a foreboding fortress. They looked it over, noticing all of the squad had the same symbol Alexandrea wore and they noticed the plants that bordered the five warriors. It was lucious and a vibrant green and blue with ivy on each side that held black roses in full bloom, and lillies that were a deep purple looking a lot like the flowers that bloomed before the peaches did in the main city. Alongside the roses were some ashes that seemed to be falling from the sky and some blue apples on the ground. A few crows were in the sky and flying in front of the moon in the sky which caused them some confusion. They thought the trees were sacred and you weren’t supposed to cut them down, at least that’s what Ren and Kellin told them.

They shrugged their confusion off as they focused on the fortress. It had an odd look to it, much different from the normal buildings that are prominent in the realm. The fortress looked to have a gate at the main entrance that was connected by large chains at the top of the gate and one more thing that stood out to them was it looked like it was made of a dark blue, almost purple stone. Another thing that made it stand out was the windows it had were covered by a black wood that had dark green accents.

After taking in everything but the people in the picture they shifted their focus to them and they didn’t study most of the people in the picture save for one on the far left. It was a tiefling with sharp and twisting horns coming from their forehead with long purple hair tied in a braid that fell over their right shoulder. The tiefling also had piercing green eyes and they had a slightly cocky smirk with their left arm wrapped around the black handle of a scythe with a black and red blade. Alexandrea looked a bit closer before the realization of what they were looking at dawned on her, they were looking at themself from before. Sly and Ral watched them, waiting for their reaction before saying anything.

“Who are these people?” They asked in a small voice, hardly more than a whisper as they put the picture on the table and looked around in the chest, finding little more than a diary, another cloak like the one they had from before their fight with Elise, and a dagger. The dagger had a curved sheath and a straight dark blue handle with a black hand guard separating the blade and the handle. The blade was silver with serrated edges on the cut side and polished to a mirror shine even to this day.

“They are one of the squads that helped take that elven fortress. It was a battle that took five days and gave the rebels a leg up before the final battle. My grandmother was the leader of that particular squad in the center.” Sly informed, pointing at the woman in the center.

“Who’s that?” Alexandrea asked, pointing at the tiefling on the far left.

“If you were a normal patron I’d say it’s most likely your grandmother but since you rose with that armor on...I’d hazard a guess that it’s you.” Sly said, scratching the back of his neck.

Alexandrea was confused at what he said for a few seconds before their eyes widened in surprise and they freaked out, getting up from the table and looking around for something, anything reflective and big. They rushed to the door and saw a shield that was good enough, grabbing it and bringing it back to the table before picking up that picture again and holding it up to the shield next to their face. The more they looked at what the shield was showing them the more distressed they got. Sly and Ral picked up on Alexandrea’s reaction and while Sly was confused, Ral was worried about his sibling. He got up and made his way to their side, gently placing a hand on their shoulder and looking down on them with concern plastered all over his face.

“You ok?” Ral asked. Alexandrea looked up to him, their face a mix of confusion, worry, and sadness.

“Th-that’s not me...it can’t be.” They said, their voice smaller than a whisper as their eyes slowly started to water.

“What’s not you?” Asked Cagliostro as she set the treats down on the table and made her way to Alexandrea’s side. Once she saw the picture they were clutching she understood.

“How is it not you?” Ral asked, confused.

“I’m...I’m not a woman.” They said as they did their best to swallow their feelings but failed miserably. Cagliostro and Sly were confused at that reply and both of them cocked their heads to the side.

“You are though, your body is quite maidenly even under your armor.” Cagliostro said, wanting to say something else but stopping herself. That remark was what broke Alexandrea as they finally started crying. Tears flowed down their face like a rainstorm and their wails were like those of someone who just lost someone.

Cagliostro instantly realized just how much they messed up and looked worried about what all they could do to calm Alexandrea down. She looked to Ral and he just gave her a look of understanding as he got a chair from nearby and sat next to Alexandrea, looking at what he saw in the shield and noticing just how he looked.

The bandages that held his chest up were used to help make a torch and his chest was much more pronounced than he preferred. His brown hair was cut short and still looked just as messy as it did when he woke up and his purple eyes showed his worry. He shook his head and took off his scarf to actually get a look at his face. He saw his cheekbones were really pronounced and jawline made his face look more round and friendly. Was the Demoness right, was he really just a maiden imitating a man? He shook his head again and put his scarf back over his face, he’d deal with those thoughts some other time.

Cagliostro knelt down next to Alexandrea and comforted them as best she could. She ran her hand up and down their back and hummed a small lullaby she remembered from her childhood, resting her head on their arm as she did so. Ral slowly got up and gently took the shield from Alexandrea and put it back next to the door.

“Where did you get that picture?” Ral asked Sly, his voice cold and eyes narrow.

“I got it from my grandmother, she lead the squad the lady was on.” He replied.

“That’s a load of naga shit.”

“What was that?!”

“I said it was naga shit. The rebels didn’t have the kind of alchemy to make something like that. That was something hoarded by one of the noble families, so I’ll ask you again. Where. Did. You. Get. That. Picture?” Ral spat at Sly, slowly making his way towards the man, summoning some blood from the phials on his waist and forming it into a dagger before holding it up to Sly’s throat. Sly held his hands up in self defense and was nervous, his eyes wide in fear as he started sweating and breathing shallow.

“I-I got it from…” Sly started, wanting to double down on what he said before feeling the dagger lightly cut his throat with Ral meeting his gaze, almost tempting Sly to continue lying to him.

“Ok fine, it wasn’t from my grandmother! She isn’t even in that picture!” Sly shouted, finally telling the truth. Ral was satisfied with the truth and removed the dagger from his throat. Sly started breathing heavily and put a hand to his throat, feeling a bit of blood from where he was cut. Cagliostro stopped humming and looked over at Sly, still gently rubbing Alexandrea’s back as they stopped crying and sat trembling.

“What are you talking about? You told me all my life that was your grandmother?” She asked.

“”I’d like to know what you have to say, so talk before I remove your tongue.” Ral said, his voice was more level and calm now than ever today. Sly looked to his daughter, then to Ral and sighed.

“It came from my aunt. She was in charge of that noble family you were talking about…”

“Why don’t you tell us the name of that family?” Ral said, his expression cold.

“DelTacia…” Sly said quietly. Ral took a step closer to Sly.

“What was that? I didn’t quite hear what you said.”

“It’s DelTacia!” Sly yelled. Cagliostro was stunned at the knowledge as Ral smirked a bit under his scarf.

“What? You’re a noble?” Cagliostro asked.

“Not anymore, his mother was kicked from the family.” Ral informed. Sly was now pissed and made his way to the elf.

“How do you know about all of this, you elven imperialist whore?” He spat at Ral who quickly made his way to Sly and grabbed him by the throat, picking him up off the floor.

“You call me that again and I will rip your throat out here and now, you got that?” He said with the same calmness one would have while reading a good book.

“As far as how I know that, I was raised to be a battlemage for that family of scribes. I know your mother was disowned for siding with the imperialists while the rest of the family sympathized and assisted the rebels.” Ral informed before dropping Sly, letting the man crumble to the ground and coughed for a minute to try and catch his breath. Cagliostro was stunned at that, giving Sly a look that asked if what Ral said was true. Sly gave her a look that confirmed what Ral said was true. Her heart and expression sank as she got up and went behind the bar counter to get a basket and brought it to the table.

“Wait, little girl…” Sly started. Cagliostro ignored him as she went upstairs. Ral went next to his sibling and gently rubbed their shoulder. Alexandrea looked up at Ral and rubbed their eyes.

“You ok?” Ral asked them, they nodded and wiped their eyes as they looked around for Cagliostro, slowly starting to get nervous as they couldn’t find her.

A couple minutes after she left, Cagliostro came back down the stairs with a bag packed to bursting slung over her shoulder and started putting some of the food that was still on the table and putting it into the basket she had already put there.

“Little girl, what are you-”

“Stop talking Sly, you lied to me about my grandmother, about who my mother is, even about my magic. If you want me to start listening to you ever again then you have to stop lying as easily as you breathe.” Cagliostro cut him off as she finished packing up the food and made her way to the door. Alexandrea and Ral got up and followed her to the door, with the three of them leaving once they were together as Sly watched them, dejected and with tears slowly forming in his eyes.

#the tavern #original writing

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