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#patron of one way trips
theartofmadeline · 7 months
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laika inspired ceramic shelf
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letters-from-the-gaps · 6 months
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A poem about my favorite Russian space dog
An ode to Laika
Patron Saint of One-Way
Trips.
Journeys you can’t come 
back
from.
Glimmering little star, Canis
Major Tom
I followed you.
all the way to the sound of 
hope and
joy and
wild green growth.
I owe you my life,
and I love you
very
much.
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puppybong · 5 months
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i can only let myself think about laika maybe twice a month because she makes me cry so hard i wake up with a pounding headache
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chorus-communities · 13 days
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one day im gonna write like. a fucking essay on the personal and cultural and like. emotional importance of laika to me and why i specifically named myself after her and all of you will have to read it /silly
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zerothejackal · 11 months
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Oh querida Laika, durmiendo entre las estrellas, acaso entiendes lo mucho que te queremos? lo mucho que te honramos? lo mucho que te amamos? Desde el vasto vacío del cielo estrellado, Laika... Acaso podrás perdonarnos? Por la arrogancia de una humanidad, que no supo como amarte. Ahora vuela hacia el infinito, Laika, nuestra santa patrona de los viajes sin regreso.
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okay, it's so weird that you're talking about Laika because I was just thinking (read: weeping) about her two days ago and I feel like our minds have connected cosmically or something to love that little dog out there, and i feel like she must feel that, somehow.
I'd seen a post about Laika on my dash and it just sparked the image of a dying astronaut being visited by the spirit of Laika in my mind (which made me weep heavily). This then prompted me to look up more posts (whichmade me weep more heavily), and now I'm possibly planning to make a comic or maybe even an animatic about my astronaut idea.
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cquackity · 1 year
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c!wilbur patron saint of round trips do you understand
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antholozities · 3 months
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marblemaiden · 9 months
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crying about Laika again everyone
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astrovagrant · 1 year
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having insane character thoughts for a guy who doesnt have a name
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kirbykonka · 2 days
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Can we please give Laika a constellation. She needs a grave worthy of her
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yanderenightmare · 3 months
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TW: nsfw, noncon/dubcon, violence/abuse, threat of bodily harm
gn reader
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Thinking about poly yanderes again…
They’re both so patronizing – suffocatingly so. 
But where one is a brute, the other is sweet – or sweeter than the former, in any case...
He has a certain calm about him – gentle with you – considerate when showing his affection, and patient with you when he’s intimate. He doesn’t growl at you to shut up and lie still the way the other one does – instead, he asks you if you can be good for him – if you can let him love you – lipping at your throat without the touch of teeth as he all but begs for your consent.
The brute doesn't bother with such foreplay...
Your will doesn’t seem to interest him in any other aspect than ripping it from you and strangling it in his fist with a big grin, laughing while watching those pitiful tears start slipping down your cheeks.
He'll just shrug off the kinder one when he chides, telling him to stop being so rough with you. He just squeezes you a little tighter, sucks your neck a little harder, and kneads his cock a little deeper – saying that he can do whatever he wants with that which belongs to him.
When you struggle against him, he’s not shy of punishing you accordingly – in fact, he jumps at the opportunity – bending you over his lap with his fist riddled in your hair – landing strike after strike until you’re screaming in surrender, all cute pleas for his mercy, words he’s told you to say. 
He likes fucking you like that – when you’re a broken mess who only clings to him for comfort, crying into his neck while he pumps you full of cock and cum.
The kinder one scolds him afterward. Tells him he’s a fiend while petting your head and hair, carrying you away from the scene and into the bathroom. He draws you a tub of bubbles and holds a glass of water to your lips. But for all his niceties – he still gets in the hot water with you – cock in your sore hole while he washes your hair.
Still, he’s more reasonable.
When he’s tying your wrists to the bedpost like every night of you sleeping stuck in between them, you ask him if it’s really necessary – promising him you’re not going to run away – telling him that you’re going to stay right there, peacefully asleep.
The brute says that it isn’t something that’s up for discussion, that if you push your luck, he’s gonna tie every inch of you up like a floppy fish caught in a net ready to be gutted. But you don’t heed the warning – looking to your kinder warden with puppy eyes and a pout on your lips, saying please, it hurts your wrists – again, promising him you’ll be good and stay sound asleep between them the entire night.
You just needed to get to the door. 
You just needed to get to the door – through the door – out into the street, screaming while at it, and surely someone, anyone, would come to your rescue. 
Why wouldn't your feet move quicker? Why weren’t you faster? Why were you clumsier now? Tripping over rugs, missing steps when scrambling down the stairs, slipping when turning corners – trying to navigate the house when you’d barely ever seen anything but the bedroom.
You just needed to get to the door – but you could hear one of them coming after you – just behind you – big monstrous thundering steps shaking you to the core, strangling your heart, shattering your bones – and it’s getting hard to breathe, hard to see, hard to feel anything other than the numbing fear and the awful way it cripples you – throwing your mind into a tailspin while choking your lungs free of all air, clawing up your throat into a scream. 
You just needed to get to the fucking door –
You hadn't known you could make a sound like that – like something out of a horror movie – high-pitched and desperate – ripped from somewhere raw and primal.
There’s a hand in your hair, yanking you backward where you’re received by a hard chest and an arm snaking around your waist, hoisting you off the ground, kicking and yelling.
It’s the brute. He looks almost happy you’d tried running away – a manic look of delight on his face when he finally drops you down on the floor – pinning you beneath him – shadowing you with teeth seemingly dripping with venom and all the ugly punishments he’s no doubt cooking up inside his sick mind.
“Your ass is gettin’ it extra fuckin’ hard tonight – my handprint won’t heal for a month – won’t even be able to sit down without cryin’.” He growls, his teeth on your cheek as he grips your jaw tight – starting off your punishment with a harsh lovebite.
You look at the more merciful of the two. 
He’s standing off to the side, looking down at the two of you. 
You expect he’d come to the rescue like he’d done all those other times.
But to your utter horror… he isn’t lifting a single finger to stop it. 
His face is blank – cold – as cold as the words that roll dryly off his tongue, “I think we’ve established that spanking isn’t enough…” 
The one holding you down halts in his advances and seems to get just as frigid as you by the cold-blooded tone of his partner – who takes slow steps toward the two of you, so close he’s got your hair pinned beneath his toes before crouching down until he as well looms over you like a darkening storm.
He reaches a stiff hand to soothe the ring of teeth left on your cheek by the other – seemingly kindly, but his eyes are so jaded your breath catches in your throat – soulless as they stare into your teary ones.
“Maybe we ought to get ahead of the issue and break your legs.” He suggests nonchalantly, making both your and your other captor’s faces bleach.
Then he smiles – that kind smile, only now you can’t help but flinch at the sight of it. 
“That way, everyone’s happy,” He states, explaining, “You won't have to be tied up, and we can trust you to keep your word and stay put when you promise us you will.”
Then he stands up and straightens himself, looking at his partner with that same eerie smile.
“Where’d you put the bat again?”
The brute stiffens. His crazed expression had melted in light of the other into a look you’d never seen on him before. He swallows thickly as though he’s just as worried as you are. His voice is hesitant, “I think rope is enough…” 
The other throws his brows up. “Oh?” Then he snaps his focus back to you. “What do you think, baby? You think that’s enough?” He walks back to the two of you, and you feel the intense urge to hide behind the one you’d initially been caught running from.
He looks down at you expectantly, watching your lip quiver as you struggle to form an answer without choking on it.
“Hm? What was that? Rope or bat, what do you prefer?” His voice is sharp, licking at you like a knife.
You stutter, “Ro-rope.”
“Yeah? Okay, then – that’s settled.” He confirms, then looks back at the other. “Go get the rope.”
It doesn’t seem like he wants to leave – almost like he’s afraid of what might happen if he does. “Now?” He asks.
“Yes, now.” The smile tightens – sharpens into something truly lethal if you were to test it. “Our pet thinks they can run wild, so we’ll have to reintroduce them to the leash.”
Then he sets his sights back on you, robbing you of all air.
“Unless you’d prefer the bat after all?”
You whimper, shaking your head with a sniffle, “No-no – rope…”
He looks back to the other. “You heard 'em. Get going.”
He’s reluctant about it – looking from you to him, then back to you again, almost apologetically – before he gets up off you, leaving you on the floor – alone.
Your hair is then grabbed harshly, and you’re pulled up to your feet before you’re dragged off them – pulled along until you’re tugged from the floor up onto his lap as he plopped down, comfortably seated on the couch.
He sighs, letting go of your hair and placing both hands on the fat of your haunches, making you straddle him – mirroring your breathless, tear-streaked face with an expressionless one.
A hand ascends, and you’re convinced he’s going to slap you – but as you squeeze your eyes tightly shut in wait for it, his hand finds your cheek, only to ever-so-gently pet the wet away.
Cupping your face, he places a light peck on the corner of your mouth, followed by his voice, “Apologize, and I’ll forgive you.”
Your eyes peel open, looking back into his. You regret it instantly. Still eclipsed, it’s a cold and blank stare that seems to seize you by the throat.
“I’m sorry, I’ll never- never ever do it again.” You whisper pitifully – as if you’re afraid to be too loud.
“Hm…” He hums, looking unimpressed. “I don’t think that’s good enough…” 
His hand slips from your face down your neck, circling it lightly before squeezing it firmly with whitening knuckles. “You hurt my feelings, y’know? I trusted you, and you lied to me – right to my fucking face.”
You cack, wrapping your smaller hands around his wrist as he strangles the words out of you. “I’m sorry- I’m really- really sorry-”
His breathing is thick, as though something’s bubbling underneath the surface – a beast within whose bloodthirst hasn’t yet been sated. “I want more than empty words.” He states flatly, unforgivingly.
Still, he lets go of your throat, letting you drop to his chest, panting sore breaths with his words ringing hot in your head. You start kissing between sipping for air – desperately, up his neck and jaw, then his lips, even though he doesn’t kiss back – pleading, “Please forgive me- I’m sorry, I-”
“Yeah? You’re sorry?” He mocks, stroking the back of your head, down your back as though soothing you – voice dripping with fake empathy. “Sorry for what exactly? Hm? For being a dumb little bitch, thinking you could run when you haven’t even so much as walked on your own two feet for months.”
A laugh inches into his words like a sickness. The eerie smile returns, small and curling in the corner of his mouth.
“You were fuckin’ hilarious, you know that?” He breathes lightly – eyes wide, staring at you like cornered prey. “Trippin’ over yer own two feet, barely even making it to the door.”
The grip around your throat returns, and you squeak out a whimper.
“Say it.” He seethes, “Say you’re a dumb little bitch who didn’t know what you were doing.” His lips ghost yours with the command, forcing you to echo the words back into his mouth.
“I’m- I’m a dumb little bitch- I’m- I didn’t know what I was doing-” 
He hums at your shivering but doesn’t ease his grip – molding his lips against yours, he kisses you deeply until parting with your lips between his teeth – letting go slowly.
“I- I’ll be good from now on, I promise-” You add – in the hope it would thaw the ice of his stare.
It doesn’t. He keeps them just as jaded – half-masted now as he runs his fingers up and down your spine, brushing your chin and cheek with his lips until blowing on your ear. “You better be.”
You shudder, wincing.
“‘Cause if you ever try anything like that again, I’m gonna go get that bat – and nothing and no one is gonna keep me from bashing away at you until I’ve made certain you can’t lift a single fucking finger without my help.”
You’re a broken mess of sniveling apologies and prayers on his lap by the time the brute comes back with the rope. 
But the one who’d reduced you to it doesn’t seem bothered in the slightest. 
“There you are!” He beams with a bright smile.
Acting as though you weren’t falling apart in his arms, gripping his shirt for purchase while sobbing hard and ugly into his chest. 
“Let’s tie every square inch of 'em up like you suggested.” He muses while picking your tear-stained face up in both hands, nose-kissing you with his words dripping fondly off his tongue. “Just like a floppy fish ready to be gutted.”
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BNHA – BakuDeku, DabiHawks, EndMight, ShinKami, TodoDeku, KiriBaku, Shiggy x villain!Deku
JJK – SatoSugu, YujiKuna, YujiGumi
HQ – Miya twins, IwaOi,
BLLK – NagiReo, KuniGiri
AOT - EreMin
DS - InoTan, DouAka
HxH – HisoIllu
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samagrant · 1 year
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Thinkin about Laika again
Thinkin I want a tattoo of her
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reticent-writer · 3 months
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Spiral p1
warnings: a bit violent, shitty parents
(it doesn't go into details)
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✿✼:*゚:.。..。.:*・゚゚・**・゚゚・*:.。..。.:*゚:*:✼✿ 
"You killed your parents?" He was genuinely shocked as he watched you nod. He lived for tea like this but coming from you he couldn't help but be confused.
"Why on earth would you do that. You told me that you loved them."
"I mean I did but they were- wait my death led to yours?" You changed the subject.
"Yes, I simply cannot function without you, my dear. I was hiding a body in the woods when I was shot in the head." He said it as if it was a fond memory. It was creepy but as he talked a red X appeared on his forhead. the moment he saw you staring it vanished.
"You can't change the subject, Y/n. When and Why did you kill your parents?"
You sighed as you went to tell your story, "They were an odd pair, in my opinion, they should have been divorced. My mother was drunk, always talking about how she never liked my father but had 6 kids with him, I was the eldest. My father always talked about the life he could've had if he didn't settle for my mother. When my father lost his job he became a drunk and often got violent with us. After a while, I got tired of it and told my siblings to go to a friend's house for the night. The next day they were found dead by the neighbor's, No one was caught."
"That must've been quite a night." He joked.
"It was, it was also the night I met you."
"Really? You seemed so.... happy."
"Because I was."
From then on the two of you talked daily
You had learned that he had been missing from the public eye for 7 years
He started calling you pet names he used when he was alive
He told you things he would never tell anyone else
You met husk and niffty
You started to like him again but you could never forgive him for killing you
nut you considered it when he started working for the hazbin hotel
You were a patron
Although you didn't believe that sinners can change you decided to give it a shot
"Well good morning, My love. It's such a nice day today, would you care to join me for a trip to the tailor? A nobody took a bit off me." He grinned from ear to ear while offering his arm of you to take. You accepted.
At the tailor the two of you while the two of you were waiting for his jacket you suggested he try on more suits for a variety of clothes.
"How does with one look?" He came out in a blue suit with a black button-up. (his colors in reverse)
"You look amazing." You beamed as his posed.
"So this is a yes?"
"Of course-"
"Sir your jacket is ready."
Alastor paid for the new suit and his old one. Outside of the shop was a crowd surround a tv broadcasting Vox.
Alastor told you practically nothing about the other overlords but you could tell he did not like Vox and the way he looked at the TV confirmed it.
"Come along, dear. There's nothing to see over there."
✿✼:*゚:.。..。.:*・゚゚・**・゚゚・*:.。..。.:*゚:*:✼✿ 
Alastor beefing with Lucifer and cursing is so funny to me💀
Taglist: @berryghostbunny, @lorkai, @mygoldtears, @kawaiiskeletoneggsnerd, @secretkoalapersona-blog, @koji-akeme, @lofasofabread , @msyolocat-blog, @elementress44, @luujjvi, @justmare
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dredgesnails · 15 days
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stardew valley au where joel and skizz are new residents to pelican town (hermit town?). joel just inherited a large farm from his late grandfather and skizz is moving in with his old friend after reconnecting with him and wanting a fresh start. and the townspeople are like, kinda weird.
bdubs is fine enough - he’s a sweet man with a fun personality and he’s the local builder, but it’s almost frightening how fast he constructs new buildings when joel needs them. pearl, their resident postmaster, is also pretty normal other than the fact that skizz never seems to be awake early enough to catch her delivering mail. scar is lovely but he’s never available when joel wants another chicken. the mayor, xisuma, is pleasant too, if a little eccentric at times, but he doesn’t really seem to do much in town.
for the most part, skizz is settling in well. he’s moved in with impulse, who runs the local blacksmith in town, and he gets along well with most of the local townspeople. he’s started spending his evenings at the local saloon listening to ren regale the patrons with fantastical tales while he and stress serve up food and drinks, and he finds himself growing close with cleo, the local sculptor. he even gets a new wardrobe from hypno free of charge, and sometimes helps cub out with his totally scientific studies and creations.
skizz also joins forces with beef (who helps to supply the local general store that xb and keralis run) in terrorising the local manager of the corporate chain grocery store that no one likes. doc is a terrible manager but would make a fun supervillain (according to joe hills, the bookseller who appears once in a blue moon but seems to know doc more than anyone in town).
joel, on the other hand, seems to only be interacting with the strangest residents in town. he discovers the adventurer’s guild after only a couple weeks, and is only somewhat irritated by iskall’s refusal to pronounce his name correctly. false promises to give him prizes if he can kill enough monsters, which is not something joel had expected to be doing when he pictured farm life, but here he is. he stumbles upon a travelling cart one day, and the man inside insists he’s a knight from a faraway land, that he risked his life to make it all the way here to sell his wares. it’s all stuff joel can get cheaper elsewhere.
he’s pretty sure the local doctor has no real medical training, but then he passes out while fighting monsters and he wakes up completely fine, so zedaph probably knows what he’s doing. maybe. when joel isn’t passing out he sometimes makes trips to the library-slash-museum, which is probably almost completely empty because mumbo, who begs joel for anything to display, looks like he’s never fought a duggie in his life. eventually mumbo gives joel a key to the sewers, which are way cooler than they have any right to be, and that’s where he finds jevin’s secret sewer shop. jevin lives in town. he just also has a shop hidden underground. joel has stopped asking questions by now.
and then there are the three who live by the beach. etho spends most of his time tinkering around the fishing hut or hovering around bdubs, but sometimes he drives the bus to the desert. only sometimes. there might be something under his mask. no one knows for sure. gem runs the fish shop most days and she claims she’s a sailor, but joel has never seen a single working boat around despite all the ocean. she can also hold her breath underwater for an uncannily long amount of time, like, scarily so, and will sometimes disappear for a few days and return with an abundance of treasures. joel has never seen her leave by boat. grian fishes a lot and runs the shop when gem can’t, and he sometimes talks as though the sea can speak to him. skizz has caught him staring into space for extended periods of time. one time he waded into the water and just stood there, head down, muttering to himself.
apparently there used to be a lighthouse but “it’s gone now”. gem says if they ask bdubs nicely enough maybe they can build another one, but she and grian are banned from build requests after the last incident with their pet snails (joel has never seen the snails, but scar complains about them enough to convince him they’re real).
there also might be some kind of wizard who lives in the creepy tower in the woods. skizz has heard he’s the one who helps maintain the power in the valley, and joel’s convinced he hallucinated seeing him once until he recieves a letter from the wizard himself, and visits him only to find that the strange fire-creature he saw that one time was, in fact, tango, who is human for the most part, he just sets himself on fire sometimes.
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reve-writes · 1 year
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—the set-up; kaz brekker.
ʚ kaz brekker x reader | grishaverse | 1,8k words. ʚ from this request. | three times the crows plan to set you and kaz up + the one time they find out you're married. ʚ fluff; the crows are featured (incl. wesper & helnik ship); kaz's touch aversion isn't featured. ʚ a/n this has been sitting in the drafts for a bit. ive been suffering down the leon brainrot hole (honestly an excellent one to fall into). kaz calls reader schatje (i have a fic where he does this. i chose schatje because ketterdam is loosely inspired from 1500s-1700s amsterdam!). i wrote this in a goofy way honestly.
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one. he smiles.
Wylan fiddles with jars and tubes filled with an assortment of chemicals—some of them tend to explode, all of them horrible smelling. He's supposed to be on guard duty and he prefers it over running around guns blazing alongside Jesper—as much as he loves the sharpshooter, gunshots give him a lot of anxiety.
He peers into the room where most of the work is happening.
You are poring over stacks of documents, eyes scanning quickly top-to-bottom to find relevant information. Kaz has his ear pressed against the front of a safe, gloved hand twisting the lock. You move around him in the cramped office space with relative ease, grabbing more files to read on the desk.
It doesn't take long for the safe to swing open.
“No safe is safe from Kaz Brekker, the safe-cracker, huh?” you comment. A light, teasing smile decorates your lips.
“Please never say that sentence again.”
To Wylan's surprise, the ever-frowning Dirtyhands smiles. Not the half-hearted hospitable smile he occasionally gives out, or the scary half-sneer half-smirk that is so intimidating it scares even Wylan sometimes. No, a genuine, amused smile. It is so unnatural that he has to look away, a hand clasped over his mouth in shock.
When he tells Jesper, the taller man mirrors his reaction, dark eyes blown wide and jaw unhinged.
“He smiled?” Jesper gives an incredulous stare as if Wylan has just told him that he is a member of the Council of Tide—which is impossible with Wylan's lack of Grisha ability, let alone tidemaking. “He smiled over that?”
Wylan nods enthusiastically.
“We are talking about the same Kaz?”
“Are there any other Kaz that we know?” Wylan sighs.
“Well, no—”
“I think we have to proceed with the plan,” Wylan ponders. Jesper blinks widely.
“The plan?”
“Nina's plan!” Wylan looks at Jesper as if he's just gotten a strike of inspiration, hand in the air, pointing at nothing in particular. “Operation Kaz and ____. Remember?”
Jesper remembers. It was so ridiculous that it remains impossible to remove from his memory to this day, even though it was mentioned in passing.
Nina, flushed red from too many drinks, suddenly shoots her hand up, flailing it limply. The founder of the idea seems to have a plan ready to set in motion.
“We are the gods of love!” She drunkenly declares, free hand moves to tap Wylan's cheeks repeatedly. “And as the benevolent gods that we are, our first mission is them.”
Nina pushes Wylan's face towards you and Kaz, sat at the bar, deep in conversation. The rest of the Crows followed suit, realising Nina's suggestion. She stumbles over drunkenly and with little-to-no care on making it look as natural or accidental as she can, "trips" over her foot and falls forward.
You take the brunt of the force, being pushed forward that you fall onto Kaz. The latter glares at Nina, hand coming to your shoulder to steady you.
“My bad.... It seems I've lost my balance,” she slurs. “Oh! Would you look at that? The two of you would make quite a pair, don't you think so, Matthias?”
Matthias raises an eyebrow, already hauling Nina with him to get back to their table.
“Poor Helvar,” says Kaz simply, nudging you to get back on the barstool.
“He doesn't seem to mind,” you retort, noting Matthias' loving gaze as he escorts Nina.
It doesn't take long before the chaos settles, leaving you and Kaz, still engaging in conversation as the last patrons leave the Crow Club.
“We would make a good pair, huh?” You tease, reaching over to brush your hand against his, leather soft under your palm. “You think so?”
Kaz looks at you pointedly, tugging your left hand towards him, fingers pressing on the small diamond adorning your ring finger. “Would I have given you this, if I didn't?”
Smooth with his words without even trying. A trait you find both annoying and endearing after all the years you've been together.
“I mean you have a lot of diamonds lying around—”
“Schatje.”
“Yes?” All train of thought immediately halts on its tracks. The petname has a hold over you that he oh-so-often uses as leverage. You pout. “Stop distracting me.”
He smiles—soft and uncharacteristic, contradictory to the harsh rasp of his voice and the rough scars on his skin. He smiles a smile he reserves only for your eyes, and you're falling for it, a hundred times over.
two. the demjin.
You don't like when Kaz gets like this—all wrung up over a waivable matter. It reminds you a lot of what he had to be before, the things he had to do and what Dirtyhands actually stood for. Not at all akin to the Kaz Brekker you know—the one who immediately comes whenever one of your crew is threatened, the one who stays up with you as you wait for the rest of your little heist crew to return, the one who goes out of his way to collect little trinkets to bring home to you.
You are hurt, shallow cuts all over your body from a little dagger scuffle with a mercenary, but you're a member of the Dregs—this, you can take. A little Heartrender magic and some bandages, you will recover in no time.
“You're back.”
Kaz stops and you look over him to find his knuckles bloodied, hair stuck out of place and clothes disheveled.
“You're alright, schatje?”
His room at the Slat isn't big contrary to popular belief. He sinks into his chair with a huge sigh. You're watching him three steps away from the edge of his bed.
“What did you do?”
He shrugs, tugging his coat off. “Business.”
“You went after them.”
“It was one part of the business.” He pulls at his gloves, shedding them into the trash—too bloodied for him to bother cleaning. “Are you sure you're alright?”
You tuck your hands into your elbows, displeasure visible across your features. “Are you?”
“Why wouldn't I be?”
“Kaz.”
“They deserved it,” he stubbornly says. “I had to make sure they know not to involve themselves with us. You understand. Besides, I'm alright.”
“I do understand,” you relent. It is business. The Barrell doesn't stop for poets or musicians or lovers, no, it thrives off of the back of violence, taking an eye for an eye. “I just wish that you were here when I woke up.”
His shoulders loosen and he is your Kaz again. Not the one molded by Ketterdam, birthed at its harbour. He's the man so in love that he will dry the seas for you if you say the word. Kaz takes your hands. They are warm on his skin and his heart swells.
“I am sorry, schatje.”
You kneel in front of him, leaning your elbows on his thighs to press a brief kiss on his lips. “Let's stay off business for a while.”
“Kaz?” A sound outside the door, followed by three raps. “Are you in there?”
“He is, Jesper. Give us a moment,” you reply.
You hear hushed whispers—both low voices, so you assume it's Wylan. Your suspicion is confirmed when the second voice sounds from behind the door.
“No, we—no, Jes—don't have anything urgent. We simply wanted to know if he is well. Take your time. We'll be going now.”
“Good night, Wylan,” you reply, immediately hearing fading footsteps soon after.
“Fifty kruge says they're already together,” says Jesper, out of your earshot.
Wylan rolls her eyes. “Fifty on them not dating yet.”
Jesper immediately clasps Wylan's hand with a loud “Deal!”
iii. the marketplace.
“Busybodies,” Kaz complained, walking a step behind you as you're treading through the Ketterdam food market. “They are not even hiding. In broad daylight. How have they never gotten caught before?”
“Kaz, my love.” You are trying not to laugh as you're picking and choosing fruits. “They usually do a better job on actual missions.”
They refer to your five lovely friends who have decided to tail you as you're coming down to the market. Kaz is the first to take notice—blurry figures moving erratically ten steps behind you.
“I should assign them something to do instead of... whatever it is they're currently doing.”
“They're curious.” You shrug, handing over a few slips of Kruge to the seller and leaving with your bag five apples heavier. “We've been acting suspicious lately. They'll find out soon enough.”
“I'll bet Inej finds out first.” Kaz nudges your fingers with his, taking the bag from you as he matches his step with yours. “The Wraith does a better job at spying.”
“My bet is Matthias.” An unlikely one. He's probably the least nosy out of the five.
Suddenly, you're pulled into a small nook, squuezed between buildings and he presses a kiss on your lips. One turns to two and you're smiling like a lovesick fool when he pulls away.
“We're being followed and you pull this?”
“Schatje, our pursuers are horrendously bad at this.” He shrugs, pulling away. You resume your trek through the market. “Look. They've lost us.”
iv. the marriage certificate.
“Fake IDs,” Kaz says, pointing at the towering Fjerdan. “You'll be collecting them from Anika.”
Matthias doesn't mind running errands, although he does think that he'll be better suited for physical fights other than fetching papers, but he doesn't argue. It seems he is doing more than simply fetching papers though.
“That is real?” He asks Anika, pointing at a marriage certificate she has on her desk. Marriage certificates are mundane enough not to warrant this type of reaction, but it is the name that shocks even him to the core. Kaz Brekker and you, married?
“As real as can be around here.” Anika scrambles to hide it away. “Here are your IDs. Don't tell anyone about it.”
In Matthias' defense, he doesn't end up telling just anyone. He tells Nina and Nina is the one telling everyone else. Within a week, every member of the Crows have known about it.
Wylan hands Jesper slips of fifty kruge, grumbling that this is unfair. Nina looks like spring has just arrived. Inej is probably the least reactive—but that is because she's already found out long before the others. She's the Wraith after all. Matthias is anxious. For all everyone knows, he is the one responsible for the news.
You strut into the dining room, seeing everyone gathered and raise an eyebrow.
“Why are you all here?”
“We want to ask—”
Before Nina can finish her sentence, Jesper blurts out. “You're married?”
You chuckle, shrugging. “You found out.”
“How long?”
“Kaz? Really?”
“How did that happen?”
A series of questions that you don't actually answer. You stand there, leaning on the back of one of the wooden chairs situated in the room—remorseless to your very core.
“Ask him about it.”
That ends the discussion. None of them will actually ask him about it and even if any of them actually finds the courage to, the likelihood of Kaz answering anything that's not a sarcastic remark or a threat is close to none.
“How did you find out anyway?”
Everyone points towards Matthias and to the Fjerdan's horror, Nina's pointer finger finds him, too.
You only smile, silently planning to brag to your spouse that you've won your bet.
[ ].
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