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#thinking about how i saw adults around me loose their temper and see them as likr not perfect was so hard and being spoken to as an outlet
luminnara · 3 years
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Nesting | alpha!kiribaku x omega!reader fluff
Something soft and fluffy w a/b/o dynamics w kiribaku? Or just one of them if you don’t do poly things
Oh ho ho, don’t you worry I LOVE poly things! I especially love kiribaku x reader because like, how can you NOT lol
I made this super sweet and nice because I crave that feel good fluff! This is SFW but there’s a little mention of some adult stuff. Nothing past that though!
Requests are open!
Warnings: none
Gender neutral reader
Having two alphas wasn’t typical, at least not as far as you knew. Yeah, you were sure that there were all kinds of people and arrangements out there, but you had never really heard of alphas being willing to share an omega. Most of the time, they just got too possessive; when alphas went into ruts or omegas into heats, the pheromones being pumped into the air were sometimes strong enough to ruin entire friendships.
Not for you, though.
When the three of you became a thing, there was no drama. There was no fighting between the two boys, no conflict. You hadn’t really set out to date both of them, but, well...one thing led to another, and next thing you knew, you were all living in an apartment together, and you had two big mating marks on your neck.
It all happened so naturally. It was almost as if the three of you were fated to be together, or something. Yeah, you had your disagreements—Katsuki’s temper was infamous, and Eijiro could almost be too nice sometimes—but what relationship didn’t have a few spats here and there? Your fights never lasted long, and all in all, you were happier than you ever thought possible.
“I’m home!” Eijiro’s voice called, followed by the sound of the door closing.
But of course you already knew. You could smell him the second he walked in, and you were already up and running towards him.
“Whoa, hey!” He laughed as you launched yourself at him, catching you easily and grinning that shark grin of his. “Miss me or somethin’?”
“I always do,” you smiled, hooking your arms around his neck.
His hands settled on your butt as he held you, and he nuzzled into your neck. Both alphas always wanted to be covered in your scent, but Kirishima especially loved it, constantly shoving his nose against the glands and sometimes rubbing his entire head over them. He once told you that he liked being able to smell you on him even when you weren’t around, and the thought of him strutting around at the agency, absolutely reeking of you, made you blush whenever it crossed your mind.
“Is Katsuki home yet?” He asked, walking you down the entry hall and into the living room.
“No,” you sighed. “I think he’s working late tonight...”
You tried not to let your disappointment sound in your voice, but it was impossible to hide anything from Eijiro. He knew how stressful it could be, with both him and Katsuki working as some of the top pro heroes in the city. There were plenty of days where they both came home late, too tired to do anything other than drag themselves into bed and curl up around you. It had a tendency to leave you feeling dejected and alone, and lately, you had taken up a new hobby to try to distract yourself.
Well...hobby was a loose word. It was more just...something you had found yourself with the sudden urge to do, and tonight, the fruits of your labor were finally ready to be revealed.
When Kirishima stepped into the living room, he stopped, and you knew he had seen it.
“Hey, is that...?” He asked, voice trailing off as he stared.
You wiggled out of his arms, beaming up at him as soon as you were standing on your own. “A nest? Sure is!”
The look on your boyfriend’s face was priceless. His eyes were wide, like he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. The living room floor was covered in blankets and pillows, all strategically piled up to form the best, coziest nest you could make. As Kirishima took a step closer, he spotted a few of his shirts and hoodies mixed in, a grin finding its way onto his face.
“Babe,” he finally spoke up, his voice soft, “are you really nesting?”
A small blush crept to your cheeks as you nodded, suddenly feeling shy. “Yeah, I guess so...I dunno where it came from really, I just started getting the urge to make it...”
Suddenly, he swept you up into his arms again, a loud, humming purr vibrating in his chest as he gave you a squeeze with those strong arms of his. “It looks amazing, baby.”
You sighed happily, relaxing against him. “Do...do you wanna come try it out with me?”
He almost dropped you again in shock. “H-huh?”
“Yeah!” you freed yourself from his grip once more and grabbed his hand, giving him a tug. 
“Y-you trust me enough...?” his face was adorably surprised, eyes wide as he let you pull him towards your nest.
“Well yeah, duh!” you plopped down in the center of all the blankets and clothes, smiling up at him as he stood over you. “Of course I trust you...you and Katsuki are the best alphas anyone could ask for. Why do you think I felt safe enough to even make a nest?”
You could swear you saw some tears welling up in his eyes, but he quickly wiped them away. “Fuck, I love you so much...”
“Then c’mere, silly,” you laughed lightly, patting the space next to you. 
He finally obliged, hunkering down and sighing happily as he surrounded himself with your scent. The nest was cozy, but big enough for three, and as you waited for Katsuki to get home, you found yourself chattering to Eijiro about exactly how it was made, what shirts you had snagged from his and Katsuki’s drawers, why you had piled up those pillows over there and those way over there, why every single plush in the apartment was strategically placed on top of everything else, and why he kept finding more and more of his belongings buried amongst the blankets. 
“Babe, this is mine,” he said, holding up an old, fraying wallet. 
“Yes, and?” you snatched it out of his hand, tucking it back in its spot. “You never use it. And it smells just like you.”
He chuckled, putting an arm around you and pulling you up against his chest while he continued to explore the nest. “Still can’t believe you went and did all this so quickly. You must have been working nonstop all day.”
You puffed up proudly, but before you had the chance to reply, you heard the door slam open and the sound of heavy boots stomping in. A warm, smoky-cinnamon smell wafted in, and you trilled happily. Katsuki was finally back home, and as you stood up on your knees, you saw him kicking his shoes off and hanging his coat up by the door. 
“Oy, I’m home,” he called tiredly, too busy putting on his house slippers to glance over at you yet. “Shitty hair, where are you? You make it back alive today?”
“Still in one piece, Katsuki,” Kirishima laughed, leaning back on his hand as you shot out of your nest to greet your other alpha.
“That’s something, I guess.” Bakugou grunted, turning towards the kitchen. He was moving slowly, like all of his muscles ached and he just wanted to go to bed. 
You weren’t about to let him, though. Not yet.
“Katsukiiiiiii,” you called, scrambling up onto the couch to get a better look at him. 
“Hey there, kitten.” he tossed his bag down in its usual place at the table, finally looking up at you. 
You saw his usually harsh gaze soften as his red eyes met yours, something close to the beginning of a smile tugging at the edges of his lips. Katsuki was a rough guy, always grumpy even while he was out there being one of the best heroes in the city, but at home, he was quieter. Home was a safe place for him, and even though he was still a handful, he was your handful, and you wouldn’t trade him for the world...although right now, you were starting to get irritated by the fact that he had yet to see the nest you worked so hard on.
“What’re you two losers doin’ down there?” he asked, walking towards you lazily. “Fuckin’ on the living room floor, without me?”
“Katsuki, come on.” you rolled your eyes. 
“What? It’s a valid question.” he said as he finally reached you, placing his hands over yours where they rested on the back of the couch. He closed his eyes, tilting his head up for you in an open invitation. “Miss me today?”
You nuzzled up against his chin, feeling him relax around you as you pumped out a happy, pheromone-filled scent for him. “Why don’t you take a look at what I spent all day doing, and then you tell me?”
He sighed, grumbling something under his breath as he cracked his eyes open. Then, he fell absolutely still, and when you pulled back and looked up at him, you saw that he was staring, eyes wide in disbelief. He had frozen completely, as if he had absolutely no idea how to process what he was seeing.
“Like it?” you asked, following his gaze back to your nest. 
Kirishima was still sitting in the center of it, resting one arm on his knee while he supported his weight on the other. There was a gentle, lazy smile on his face, and as he saw that Bakugou wasn’t moving, he tossed his head. “Katsuki, come see what our little omega worked so hard on.”
“Yeah, Katsuki.” you hopped off the couch, walking around the end of it to take his hand and drag him towards your nest. “Come join us.”
He let you pull him down, and for a moment, all he could do was take a deep breath and inhale the scents of his two mates. Ever so slowly, his face relaxed, and as the three of you snuggled in, he pulled you close and pressed a kiss against your forehead.
“What do you think?” you asked, getting cozy between your two boys.
“It’s fucking perfect, baby.” he said. “You’re fucking perfect.”
“Guess we’re not too bad at this whole alpha thing after all, huh?” Kirishima asked, leaning forward to greet Bakugou with a light kiss. 
“Never said we were.” Katsuki huffed, bristling for a moment before he calmed down. “Still...there are some alphas who never get to see their omega’s nest, let alone be invited in. I guess...you must feel pretty safe with us.”
“I do!” you chirped, grabbing a blanket and pulling it over yourself. “I’m happy. Well...I made this nest because I was getting so lonely during the day, and I wanted to be able to smell you guys while you were gone...”
The boys frowned at each other. 
“...but just making it made me feel better.”
You heard Katsuki sigh in relief as Eijiro gently headbutted you. 
“We have been working a lot lately...” he said quietly. 
“So we’ll change that,” Katsuki said roughly. “Our omega comes before anything. If you aren’t happy, what’s the point?”
You couldn’t help the wide smile on your face as you tugged them both down for a kiss, one by one. You spent the rest of the evening cuddled up in your nest, falling asleep on top of your boys, happy to finally, finally be getting the quality time you had been missing so much lately.
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authornina · 3 years
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Dalonte “DALY” Dennis: (TEK)
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***THIS HAS NOT BEEN THROUGH A TYPICAL EDITING PROCESS; ALL SHORTS ARE ROUGH DRAFTS***
Daly shook his head listening to his sisters go back and forth about dumb shit. It seemed like they always waited until he came around to bring up niggas. He never intruded on their personal lives because he’d instilled enough in them to know what to do and what not to do. He had been on his own with them since he could remember. Daly was only ten years old roaming the streets looking for food to feed them. Life didn’t give him much of a choice to live another way. His mother left everything up to him, so he had to do anything to survive. At first it was just he and TJ, then two more girls came, and his mother literally dropped them off home to him. Daly cared for infants alone being just a baby himself.
They were on their way to the airport to pick up the baby of the three, Erie. She went away to college four years ago and this would be her first time back in Philly since graduating. They visited her a lot, but they were all happy to have her in the same state as them again. He was so proud of Erie for sticking it out and finishing college. At first, she would beg to come home. She even threatened to drop out several times. Daly spoiled Erie the most so during each one of her breakdowns he flew to Atlanta where she attended Spelman to talk her down.
All three of his sisters even being raised by him like straight niggas turned out to be great women despite their foul ass mouths and no-nonsense ass attitudes. People always said how pretty they were until witnessing one of them in action. Daly was a cool brother to have but he sometimes was too hard on himself thinking he could’ve done better with them and their emotions. He didn’t know how to raise children let alone girls but over the years he learned so much about women, more than he actually wanted to know. 
TJ was the oldest and she owned a popular hair salon. She was the wildest and most outspoken. Daly had to bail her out of jail several times, primarily for domestic disputes with her lovers. She was openly bisexual and came out to him when she was sixteen, saying if Daly didn’t accept her for who she was, he could kiss her ass. Of course, no matter what he loved his sister. TJ was five-eight, with tan skin covered by tattoos. She had them everywhere. None of them knew their fathers and Daly assumed she was biracial off her features and TJ didn’t like that. So, the long curly black hair she once had as a girl which made her ambiguity more apparent was shaved off and she chose to wear all types of colorful wigs. She was beautiful either way with her natural hunter green eyes and freckled rosy cheeks. Despite her lifestyle and appearance, TJ went to church a lot. She’d been that way since she was just a child. Always telling Daly she had them all covered on the prayer tip, so they were good. She believed the Lord protected her big brother the many nights he had to go out and do what needed to be done for them. TJ had a huge and loving heart she just didn’t have the patience for bullshit.
Ta’Kia, whom everyone simply called Kia was the calmest when considering the three of them. She didn’t bother anyone unless they bothered her. It was a different story if she knew you though, you wouldn’t be able to shut her ass up. She went to college in state at West Chester where she met her white boyfriend that she stressed out regularly. Kia was also fair skin and four-eleven of feistiness. Daly knew whoever her father was had to be black. She had 4C hair and to him that meant straight nigga. He learned all about the different types of hair black women had over the years. He didn’t assume they couldn’t have loose coils in general, but his sister came from nigga nuts with the shit that sat on top of her head. Kia kept it in all types of natural styles. She was the earthy vegan type. No man-made chemicals could touch her person and she only ate what she grew. She wore very little clothing often, even when it was cold with beads around her waist, lots of rings on her fingers and she had two nose rings and a septum. Daly didn’t know where the hell that aesthetic came from but again, he supported his sisters through whatever.  
Then there was Erieon, Erie for short, Daly’s baby. TJ and Kia didn’t give into her spoiled ass the way he did. If you asked them, their little sister was selfish, stubborn and plain old evil. Erie had a bad attitude, worse than all of three put together and never liked to admit when she was wrong. The only person she didn’t get out the way with was Daly. Erie was the surprise baby and the most beautiful little dark doll he’d ever seen when his mother first dropped her off. He fell in love with her the moment he had to take her on. By then he’d become an expert at caring for infants. Erie stood out because amongst her sisters she shined like chocolate satin. While her sisters rocked baldies and bushes, Erie loved box braids, and any other type of style that hung pass her butt in individuals. Everything about her was gorgeous. She was the most regular physically but personality wise, Daly had a time with that one. Sometimes he thought she had some mental health issues but seeing Lake go through so much and learning what he could, he swore his sister wasn’t that damaged. Couldn’t be. He simply gave her whatever she wanted and hoped it never went further than having temper tantrums.
When Daly was just a child, if it weren’t for Hassan, he and his sisters would be separated and spread out through the system. It was one of the reasons Daly was so loyal to Lake. Hassan made sure they never had to worry about being taken from one another. The house they lived in, he bought it and fixed it up. They had food and clean clothes every day. When his mother would try to come and interrupt the peace they finally had, Hassan made sure she didn’t any longer. Whatever bad shit people had to say about the late Hassan Porter, he and his sisters were blinded by the fact that he was the only adult to give a fuck about them. Even his mother’s sister didn’t offer a helping hand when she knew how they were living. Hassan didn’t ask any questions or want any answers. He saw a problem and fixed it. Never made Daly feel ashamed or embarrassed either.  
Once at the busy airport, they didn’t even have to park to meet Erie inside. She was sitting outside on her luggage with an obvious attitude.
“Here her ass go with the bullshit,” Kia said getting out the car. She hugged her resistant baby sister while Daly kissed her cheek before getting her stuff. TJ didn’t even get out the car because she was the least interested in what had her mean ass mad already. 
“What’s wrong, Erieon?” Daly asked once they were all back in the car. 
“Nothing.” 
“Erie! Stop bein’ a fuckin’ brat!” TJ turned around to her sister who was in the back seat now with her arms crossed and face balled up. “You always do that like somebody supposed to know what you thinkin’.” 
“Leave me alone.” 
“Erie, what’s wrong?” Daly asked her in a gentle tone making TJ and Kia roll their eyes.
“The flight was just annoying. I don’t like being around people.” 
“I’m sure people don’t like being around your evil ass either,” TJ said. “I’ma pray for you on Sunday demon.” She held the cross around her neck then pulled out a little bottle and splashed Erie. 
“Don’t put that saltwater on me!” 
“You need Jesus!” 
“TJ, stop,” Kia laughed. “Stay sprinkling people with your lil holy water.” 
“She think cause she got baptized that she still not going to hell,” Erie said, wiping her face. “Newsflash, you eat pussy, that’s a sin!” 
“Yo!” Daly yelled. “I don’t wanna hear that shit. All y’all shut the fuck up!” 
Why did he say that? All hell broke loose. They started shouting obscenities his way and he blew his breath wishing he went alone to begin with. Daly loved his sisters to absolute death, but they were a damn handful. How anybody dated one was beyond him. Man or woman. 
“Wit your big head ass!” TJ mushed him. “Don’t be talkin’ to us like that!” 
“I’m stayin’ with you TJ,” Erie said. They were the two who got along the least, but her sister was the most freeing to be around and let her do anything. Even though she was going on twenty-three, Kia and Daly treated her like a baby.
“Then you better act like you know, I ain’t for the walkin’ around my shit with no attitude! And I don’t clean up after grown muhfuckas.” 
“Why you don’t want your own shit?” Daly asked.
“Because I don’t wanna be alone,” Erie said low. “TJ lays with me when I need her.” 
“I can lay with you,” Daly said.
“You never be home.”
Erie saying that made Daly feel bad. If he wasn’t there often it’s because he couldn’t be and when he wasn’t, they had to take care of each other. They didn’t intentionally make him feel bad about it, they simply were dealt a shitty hand. No mother and their brother couldn’t be around due to the fact that he was the provider. It all affected each of them in different ways. 
“I lay with you too.” 
“Kia, your bed bout as big as this back seat. Then you like to sleep on the floor,” Erie said, and they all started laughing. 
Daly gave his sisters the range to live much more extravagant, but Kia didn’t want to. She liked her open space loft, mattress on the floor, no curtains, plants from wall to windows, three pairs of shoes and garden full of natural foods. TJ wanted to work for her own money, so she started a business. Erie was the only one who happily ran through his pockets like no tomorrow. He was okay with him being their backup plan if they ever needed or wanted it.
“Says the homeless one,” Kia rolled her eyes.
“By choice,” Erie retorted. 
After Daly took his sisters out then dropped them all off, he stopped at his old apartment. His phone was ringing off the hook and the only calls he returned were Lake, Wreck and Roddy. Mansion called him about fifty times. When those went unanswered, the texts started. 
Mansion: I know you with another bitch, since you wanna ignore me for her. Stay there, and don’t call me ever again with your hoe ass! 
Mansion: Bitch ass nigga! You really wanna cheat on me? And I bet she don’t look like shit! 
Mansion: I was fuckin’ somebody else anyway!
Mansion: I’m gettin’ a abortion!
Daly ignored each one. Mansion would say anything to get him to argue with her. At first it was funny, but now, he was a little tired of the constant back and forth. It was childish but that’s what he got for messing with a twenty-one-year-old. 
“What?” he asked, finally answering for her.
“Put your bitch on the phone.” 
“I ain’t wit no bitch.” 
“Right, you a hoe ass liar! Come get me right now.” 
“Fuck no! Go tell the nigga you was fuckin’ to get your crazy ass.” 
“I was just sayin’ that,” Mansion whined. “I love you.”
“Obviously,” Daly responded sarcastically and they both started laughing. “You gotta chill bro.” 
“My anger just get the best of me, you know I would never step out on you.” 
“I’m not comin’ tonight, I got shit to do.” 
“Like what?” 
“Shit.” 
“You lyin’.” 
“When the fuck do I ever have to lie? If I’ma be with another bitch, I would tell you.” 
“See that’s what I’m talkin’ bout, the disrespect! I’m not about to let you play in my face with no ugly ass hoe!” 
“Who ugly, Mansion?” 
“SHADIA!” she screamed, and Daly hollered. His on again off again girlfriend for years grinded Mansion’s gears. “You need to tell that dog face bitch you love me and it’s over.” 
“I told her that.” 
“Then why she still feel comfortable to go around talkin’ about my nigga? Why THE FUCK is she postin’ you on her Instagram?” 
“I don’t know.” 
“You know because you keep givin’ that hoe hope!” 
“Ion give nobody shit,” Daly looked at his phone beeping. “Hold on, I’ma call you right back.” He didn’t wait for a response to click over for his sister. “Yea TJ?” 
“Come get Erie before I fuck her up!” 
“What she do that damn fast?” 
“I comes the fuck in my room and her ass changin’ shit around in MY HOUSE!”
“You got it ugly in here!” he heard Erie yell in the back. “Everything don’t gotta be green!” 
“DALONTE!” TJ shouted. “Come get your sister! NOW! Jesus be a high ass fence for Erieon…” she started her prayer for forgiveness then Daly heard a bunch of ruckus. He hung up on everybody tired of dealing with women for one day. It wasn’t even five o’clock yet. He got all the bags out of his trunk and went inside the apartment building. 
When he put his key in the door Tracy was standing right there with an attitude. Out of all the bitch fits, he was least interested in hers. He didn’t tell his sisters about their mother staying there and that’s why he moved because it would upset them. TJ mostly. She hated Tracy to no ending. 
“The fuck you standing there for waitin’ like you caught me cheatin’ or something?” 
“Because you leave me in this place, alone! I ain’t got no phone, no communication to the outside world—” 
“Man, fuck outta here,” Daly said, closing the door. “You lucky you got this.”
“I want to see my children, Dalonte!” 
“They don’t wanna see you.” 
Daly’s mother was a rehabilitated crackhead and ex-prostitute. He wouldn’t have offered her a place to stay but she was currently pregnant and had the nerve to tell him she wanted to do right for her baby. 
“Well it ain’t they choice, y’all is muthafuckin’ kids to me! I don’t care what we been through! I am your mother!” 
“You ain’t shit, Tracy.” Daly took all the bags in the kitchen. “Here, all the shit you wanted. Fuckin’ prenatal vitamins,” he threw them at her. “I know your ass ain’t do none of this shit with us! You want my sisters to see this shit?” He started pouring all the stuff out. “You got it in you to finally care about one of your kids.” 
“He is y’all little brother,” Tracy said, palming her stomach with tears in her eyes. Her oldest child hated her so she knew it couldn’t have been any better with the other three but not seeing them for so long hurt her heart. When she came to him, he didn’t even care at first. They owed her nothing and as a mother Tracy wished she could take every ounce of pain she caused them back. 
“I almost said fuck him too,” Daly laughed, and Tracy smiled. Her son loved her; she knew this because he could be really cold when he wanted to be. There had been times she’d been on the other end of it. 
“I’m sorry for putting all of this on you, if I had another option, I would’ve chosen it. I know it’s not easy seeing me like this,” Tracy expressed to her son sincerely. 
“Whatever, I’m out, I gotta go break up a fight between your kids.” 
“Can you at least tell them I miss them?” 
“I’ll think about it.” Daly closed the door in her face. He stood with his back against the door feeling the way he did when he was younger. So many times, she would even watch him struggle with his sisters. Tracy would be home while he was trying to figure out a way to provide for them. Here she was pregnant again with another baby and needed her son all over again. Déjà vu.
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realizashuns · 4 years
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henqtic · 3 years
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��𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘔𝘦 𝘈 𝘋𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦
pairing: draco malfoy x fem!reader 
word count: 2.3k
summary: Draco Malfoy. His name was registered in your mind as your enemy, plain and simple. A platinum blonde idiot who you’d find much more likable if he’s just shut up everyone in a while. But what would happen if your parents arranged for you both to attend the yule ball together- would some hidden feeling shine their way out? 
warnings: mentions of arranged marriages, mentions of feeling anxious, feelings of self doubt, kissing, angry love confession, crying, a little angst, please contact me if theres more !
a/n: Also this is an au where the yuleball is in seventh year and no Voldemort <3
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masterlist.  // gif creds // taglist form.
When Dumbledore announced the yule ball to the school in the middle of the dinner, you were a bit excited. Excited at the idea that you’d have the chance to be asked to the dance by some nice boy and that could potentially lead to a relationship.
But being born into a family like yours, you couldn’t hope for much. Not even a week after they got the news, your mother and father made an arrangement with the Malfoy’s that you would have to attend the ball with their son Draco.
You could've sworn they had been trying to set you both up for some kind of arranged marriage. Maybe them pushing you together was a way to soften a blow when it finally happened? But still, out of any one they just had to choose him.
You had grown up with him, Draco, and if you hadn't already known— he was what you called a... bitch boy. He’d tattle about small things, throw a few temper tantrums, and cry to get his way. This is why even though your families had been so closely connected for years, centuries even— he was your enemy and nothing could change that.
That fact wasn’t hidden from your parents, not in the slightest. They saw the numerous dirty looks you’d throw at each other when you thought no one looking, not to mention the childish pulling of hairs and elbowing with shoulders.
But they also saw the good things about your relationship, how'd you do little things for each other that made a bigger impact than you thought, like it was second nature.
Like whenever another dinner party would come up where there were random families of investors, business owners or, just more snooty rich people— Draco would always make sure you were seated right next to him in the case that both of you had to show up.
It honestly wasn’t that much of a big deal from his view point. Only an idiot couldn’t tell that you found yourself uncomfortable around new people and him saving you a seat was just common decency.
And there was always little moments where they’d find you both curled into each other after one of the tense meetings you had to attend seeing as you’d be graduating soon and still had the responsibility of up keeping your family names once you were adults.
Draco would be there tenderly playing with your hands and venting. Because while he did come off as confident about everything in his life, how he had both the Malfoy and Black fortuned to fall back onto, you could tell he was still scared of the future— of growing up.
That fear is also what led to the very rushed apology he had offered to the golden trio for his past behavior. You did have to physically push him into them and he did choke up on the words of kindness that were supposed to make the apology sincere but he still did it.
They hadn't forgiven him of course, they just sort of stared like some one had cast an unforgivable curse on the boy seconds before, but at least they were now, they were civil towards each other.
And even though you did do those things for him, that didn’t stop you from not wanting to do this and neither did it stop you from impatiently waiting outside of the great hall doors.
Your dress was made out of nothing less of the finest fabrics and silks you could get your hands onto. You knew it wouldn't make a single dent into your families Gringotts account but you felt that the purchase would make some sort of statement.
“You’re five minutes late,” you seethed, watching as a head of white-blonde hair finally round the corner. His hands brushed his jacket in a smug manor, getting rid of the invisible dust particles.
It really wasn’t that much time, many other students could still be found wither waiting for their dates or just standing around to show up ‘fashionably late’.
But you knew Draco had spent those minutes staring at himself in the mirror and fixing his oh so perfect hair.
“Some of us like to look good when showing up to these things,” he sneered before eyeing you in disgust.
“Oh please, this dress cost more than the gel you have piled in your hair.” His eyes narrowed at you along with a scrunch of his nose as he offered you the junction between his folded arm to lead you down the steps.  
The night had gone pretty well so far, both of you somehow never finding the right time to leave the others side as you had planned. It seemed as if your friends had all decided to hide themselves away from you both— like they were planning something. Of course, they were.
Blaise fucking Zabini
That idiot talked Professor Flitwick into playing a slow song, one that every couple had to join in on. And while that did sound good at eye view, you had to sign a paper at the begging saying if you coming as a couple or single. And the only people who had signed single to not face embarrassment were the staff—not counting Filch and Mrs. Norris.
Was this real, you being the living cliche of dancing with your enemy?
“If you step on my shoes one more time, I’ll leave you,” he growled into your, tightening his grip on your waist. Yeah, it was.
“What do you think I’ll do? Cry?” You asked in a mocking tone, sticking out your stuck your bottom lip out in a pout to taunt him even further.
Suddenly your front was pressed up against his back— your attention had been else where. Else where being reaching the goal of getting on his last nerve so when a husky voice whispered in your ear, you were shocked.
“Oh don’t act like I haven’t made you cry before.” He turned you back around swiftly, the only thing indicating what had just happened being the proud smirk on his face.
“Says you. Weren’t you the one who cried over a guy asking me out in fifth year?” You challenged, bringing up the incident that happened two years ago.
He hadn’t cried but he might as well have and you just needed something to tick him off for the moment. Whatever he had just did caused something to happened within you, and you weren’t sure if you liked it or not yet.
It was a situation that the blonde deeply wanted to regret—George Weasley asking you out. You and Draco had been finishing up on your work in the courtyard when he had invited himself to sit in between you and Draco and then proceeded to ask you out on a date.
Draco hadn't given you the chance to answer, a new found jealously fueling him to gather both of your things and drag you away from the scene.
He knew the chances were slim that you would reject the boy, and deep down tucked inside of him, Draco knew that the Weasleys were better than him— in some aspects.
Over the years Draco had found himself growing into a separate person from his parents, a person who had could think on their own and didn’t have to rely solely on his parents' truths.
And through that process, he realized that maybe his ideals were not the best out there. Including the way he treated many of his pears even if he was too proud to say it out loud.
That being said, he always stayed up wondering while you stayed. Why’d you even stick with him in the first place. And that’s what Brough him to find out his second greatest fear, loosing you.
Yes, you were insufferable at times, but you were still you. Someone that he liked having around and talking too. And someone that listened to him even if it was something as stupid as why gingers exist and why they shouldn't.
Yes that was an actual conversation that you had. In conclusion, you were a person he loved. But he never did think to tell you that because, why risk losing you over something that was most likely unrequited.
“I was protecting your future y/n. Would you like for your children to come out as gingers,” he spat as if what he had just made complete sense.
“Draco I was fifteen and he was sixteen at the time and we barely ever talked before that because you were always bad-mouthing his family.”
Now that you think of it, he had always been this way about you and boys. It was an ongoing thing where it didn't matter what blood type, what house, which people they associated themselves with, they were always ‘below you and you could find better’.
“Why do you always meddle in my relationships?” You were irritated. Maybe it was the close proximity of your bodies or maybe it was how oblivious he was.
“Meddle? You’ve never even been in a relationship,” he snorted making your point clearer than day.
“Exactly. Why are you so jealous of me wanting to break out of whatever shell we have enclosed over each other? What if I want to branch out and you know, talk to new people?”
Ouch.
It didn’t hurt that you considered him to be somewhat of an enemy, it was your thing—but you didn’t even consider him to be a friend?
“Alright then when about Pansy? I tried to break out of our ‘shell’ as you call it when I started talking to her.”
“Parkinson was not good for you then and now even more. We both know that.”
You weren’t a person who used the word hate. In most times it was used out of anger and would be regretted later on. But Pansy Parkinson? She was very deserving of the title of someone that you hated.
Commenting on someone else’s hair when she had been walking around with a bowl cut for the last last five years? It didn’t make sense to you how she always found a way to put her input in places where it truly wasn’t needed.
“Yeah alright. Then who is good enough for me y/n?”
“Oh I don’t know me,” you mumbled under your breath not expecting him to hear it— but he did.
That’s how you found yourself once again getting dragged away. But this time it was form the great hall to a more private place where none of the ears of Hogwarts could hear you both.
“What do you mean you’re good enough for me?” He asked with more disgust in his tone than wanted, and it crushed you.
You scoffed before going on, “Well I’ve known you since we were in diapers. Would it be so horrible to consider me good enough for you?” You asked watching as some emotion flickered past his eyes.
“I mean I know so many dumb things about you like how you hate the feeling of those sweaters that your mother always buys you and you turn them inside out. And then when she ask if you're wearing them you aren't lying to her face. Do you know how cute that is, that you don’t even harbor the ability to lie to your mum about something as small as that?”
Cute?
“And don’t get me started on how your favorite food is not that ridiculously priced stake that you try convincing people- even me. I know that it’s that tomato soup that your mum makes when you’re sick because it reminds you of being a kid. And guess what? I don’t even let the house elves make it for you when I say that they do—”
“Then who does y/n?” He asked softly while slowly bringing you to be trapped between his arms by one of the thick walls. He always had the suspicion be never thought you’d actually—
“Well I uh- I do it myself because I want it to have the same feeling of home as it always does and I sort of asked your mum the exact details on how to cook it like she does,” you explained peering up to look into his eyes.
“You hate the smell of tomatoes,” he said with a light laugh, it wasn’t out of amusement but pure adoration. Never did he think that you’d actually do that for him— of course, you were there when he was sick but it was more of making fun of his ‘weak immune system’ and throwing tissues at him.
“Well I love you more and don’t pretend like you don’t slip those house elves thank you letter—” You were once again cut off but instead it was by his hand reaching the side of your jaw to look up at him fully.
“Repeat that,” he whispered with a small smirk.
oh no
Tears started to cloud your vision, the realization hitting that you had may just ruin your relationship with your childhood- enemy- friend- frenemy?
“Don’t cry I’m not- I’m not mad at you. I’m happy, unbelievably so. I just need you to repeat exactly what you just said to me,” he said moving both hands to cup your face giving his thumbs access to wipe the liquid from under your eyes.
“I love you Draco and I’m sorry that I ruined this. We could honestly just forget it if you’d like.”
“I don’t want to forget anything. Would it be a surprise if I told you that I loved you back and that I have for a long time?”
Your eyebrows raised in surprise. Was he serious, or was this some sort of sick joke?
Noticing the worries floating around in your head, he gave you a look, one that wordlessly asked that if the next move he was going to make was the right one and that you would both be fine after.
And it was
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canary3d-obsessed · 4 years
Text
Restless Rewatch: The Untamed - Episode 02
Warning: Spoilers for all 50 episodes!
(Masterpost ) (Previous Episode) (Next Episode)
Donkey Riding
way ho and away we go, donkey riding donkey riding way ho and away we go, riding on a donkey
Wei Wuxian and Apple are doing their best for the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. 
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Xiao Zhan had trouble riding the donkey sitting side-saddle, so the Department of Questionable Practical Effects made him a fake leg to wear while riding regular style. 
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Can you spot it? It’s very hard to spot. It is very convincing.
Simple Pleasures
Wei Wuxian takes his time wandering up the nearest mountain, and half of the cultivators in the land also wander up this mountain because...Night Hunting! The cultivators are hot and thirsty from walking because they forgot that they all know how to fly. 
Wei Wuxian relaxes by a well and listens to people stanning him. 
Also
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I’m going to say it: Wei Wuxian never met a drinking vessel he couldn’t blow.
Everything is Beautiful at the Ballet
The actress who plays A-Yan is named Zhang Linran. She probably has studied dance since she was 4 and now she gets her big break which turns out to be feeding an apple to a donkey. So let’s pause for a second to look at how beautifully she moves.  
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Reunions are Awkward, Part 1
Wei Wuxian meets up with one of his family members and it goes super well. 
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I...like Jin Ling? He’s much less of a douchebag than his dad, his uncles Jin, Jiang, and Mo (the three stooges), and every damn one of his Jin cousins. He’s genuinely brave (his Dad’s primary good quality) and his hair is on fleek. He’s still a whiny diaper baby, but I like him. 
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(much more after the cut!)
Then Jiang Cheng shows up, looking fine as hell and radiating peak arrogant-prick energy.
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When he discovers that ‘Mo Xuanyu” stuck a piece of paper to Jin Ling, he tells the child to literally murder him. Excellent uncleing! A+++++ would recommend.  
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“In fact, literally murder anyone who uses Yiling Laozu’s tools, like talismans, lure flags, or spirit compasses - basically murder everyone in the Lan Clan plus those other fanboys we saw coming up the hill. Then get out there and make some friends, goddamn it!”
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These nets full of cultivators on this daytime night hunt are the only time we ever see anything in a net during a night hunt.  In fact dudes constantly go night hunting and the only prey we ever see is rock lady, murder turtle, and a couple of rag mops in the lake. 
You Are Not Qualified to Speak to Me
Also radiating arrogant-prick energy on this occasion is Lan Wangji. He has been using pettiness as a weapon since long before he met this Jiang Cheng turkey, and he *brings it* when Jiang Cheng tries to have a conversation with him.
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Letting your eyes wander everywhere except to his punchable face while you ignore his passive-aggressive questions? Quality work. 
Dropping a silence spell on his child and then letting your own child explain it to him? Golden. 
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Lan Wangji is never ever going to forgive Jiang Cheng for what he did on cliff day, and his silence here is as pointed as an ice pick. I suspect the last words Lan Wangji actually spoke to him were “Jiang Wanyin, stop it,” sixteen years ago. 
Jiang Cheng is actually the bigger person in this particular interaction, visibly mastering his temper and telling Jin Ling to take his medicine. 
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Reflecting
Wei Wuxian hangs out by a beautiful river and hallucinates for a while. River Jiang Yanli is nurturing and River Jiang Cheng is pissed off, so there are no surprises there.  River Jiang Cheng thinks that Wei Wuxian is a promise-breaking douchebag. He’s not exactly wrong. 
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Courtesy of convenient gossiping cultivators, Wei Wuxian discovers that the 16 year old arrogant kid from the Jin clan who his brother from the Jiang clan has custody of is actually and quite obviously Jin Rulan.
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Well fuck I guess now I care about something, that’s inconvenient. 
Needing to help parent the child of the sister who parented him is what draws Wei Wuxian fully into his new life. 
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As soon as he has this realization, Apple comes back from roaming around, and never gives him any trouble after this for the rest of the story. Which...probably doesn’t mean anything. 
Wen Gravesite
Does Wen Ning hang out here because it’s where he and his (dead) people came from? Oh great, now I am sad. 
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Judging by all the leaves on this grave thingy I’m going to say that this grave tender dude is, ah, not very good at his job. 
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Get him, Jingyi!
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I feel like maybe we all focus too much on how Lan Jingyi is so hilarious and sardonic and not enough on how he is a such a biscuit. 
Soul Grass
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As mentioned in the previous post, Chinese spiritual concepts don’t always translate well into English. Soul grass? Sure, why not. 
This is where Wei Wuxian’s Sherlock Holmes brain starts to work, although he still doesn’t remember really basic stuff about Dafan Mountain. Dying and changing bodies is rough on the old neurochemistry. This creates more opportunities for flashbacks, however, and if there’s one thing The Untamed deffo needs more of, it’s kissing flashbacks.
Temple Statue
Presumably grave-tender dude is also in charge of clearing away spiderwebs at the temple, because it’s not getting done. 
Jin Ling walks into the temple blaspheming at full volume. 
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Since this isn’t a Greek story, he isn’t immediately struck blind for this. Then when he wishes for the statue to come alive, it obligingly does.  Everything’s coming up Rulan!
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Wei Wuxian shows up to rescue all the kids by throwing talismans at the monster which does not tip anyone off to who he is. 
Baby Cultivator Babysitting
Lan Wangji chills out in the cultivators’ pavilion with Jiang Cheng and their mutual hate boners.
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Meanwhile, Wei Wuxian forgets all about his nephew and turns into cool professor guy, explaining the basics of soul-eating to the baby cultivators and gleefully encouraging their fear of Hanguang-Jun’s punishments. 
Because the Lan babies are good filial children they are super respectful and engaged with this random adult who is lecturing them. They also - like their own Hanguang-Jun at their age - see and admire Wei Wuxian’s intellect. It’s easy to forget how extremely smart Wei Wuxian is, because of how extremely dumb Wei Wuxian is.
Lan Jingyi suddenly figures out Wei Wuxian is not crazy. 
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Bis. Kit. 
Then Rock Lady shows up and Jin Ling sticks 6 arrows into her while Lans Jingyi and Sizhui stand around not bothering to draw their swords.
I see a lot of comments about the bad effects in the statue sequences but I think Rock Lady is all right. The figure animation is decent and the lighting is no worse on her than on everything else in the scene. Her hair is nice, for a rock person.
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Admittedly I just finished watching Guardian which has CGI monsters so bad they may have injured my retinas and possibly also my DNA, so the bar, for me, is pretty low. Rock lady clears it with room to spare.   
Note: Wei Wuxian’s flute playing does zippity towards controlling the statue. Not sure what his plan was here.
Wen Ning Kicks Ass
Now we get to meet Wen Ning, who appears to be a stone-cold badass. Later we will discover how hilariously inaccurate that assessment is. 
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While all versions of Wen Ning are delightful, this version of Wen Ning is also...strangely attractive? He’s got a Patti-Smith-Horses-Era vibe here, instead of his more usual lost-baby-dork vibe. And his dreamy “I have nails in my head” expression is intriguing. 
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I mean, he’s not a total snack like zombie Song Lan or pre-zombie Song Lan or blind Song Lan or post-zombie Song Lan, but this look is a good one for Wen Ning, is what I’m saying.
Reunions are Awkward, Part 2
Lan Wangji, who has 99% already recognized Wei Wuxian because of the haunted sword and the fierce jawline and beautiful neck and tiny tiny waist, is summoned by his flute playing as inexorably as the Ghost General was. 
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Jiang Cheng also recognizes Wei Wuxian and goes into full beatdown mode, thwarted (silently) by Lan Wangji. Wei Wuxian attempts to preserve his incognito by sassing Jiang Cheng in as sibling-like a manner as possible. 
Hanguang-Jun’s Pro-Ghost Agenda Has Been Clear for Some Time
This Jiang/Lan fight is hilarious when you consider the implications.
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Macroexpression vs. Microexpression
Mo Xuanyu brought Wei Wuxian back using sacrifice summons, a dark ritual invented by Wei Wuxian that he, most likely, did NOT show to Lan Wangji back in the day. So it’s a pretty safe bet that Lan Wangji doesn’t know that Wei Wuxian was gifted a body, rather than stealing one.
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when your brother turns around, you must whip him you will never live it down unless you whip him
When Jiang Cheng lets loose with Zidian, it’s not just because he’s angry. He’s using purple power to force Wei Wuxian’s ghost out of the body he’s apparently possessed. And Lan Wangji instantly STOPS him from doing that.
Clan Leader Jiang: this person has been possessed, against their will, by an evil ghost
Future Chief Cultivator Lan: Counterpoint: I am banging the ghost
Flashback Time
Welcome to your 30-episode flashback!
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Once I used to join in Every boy and girl was my friend Now there's revolution, but they don't know What they're fighting
Let us close our eyes Outside their lives go on much faster Oh, we won't give in We'll keep living in the past
Road Tripping to Summer School
Gosh I’m looking forward to younger, kinder, more relatable Jiang Cheng.
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...prick. 
Incidentally, until now this episode didn’t know that Jiang Cheng has smile muscles, and neither did the person who glued his wig on for him.
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I Like Rabbits
Here we have our first rabbit in a large collection of rabbit iconography that appears in The Untamed. 
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Instead of sending everyone to the Wikipedia page for Tu'er Shen I’m going to take this opportunity to rec the short film Kiss of the Rabbit God by Andrew Thomas Huang (tw: blood, tw:body-mod cutting) which you can read about and watch over at  Nowness.com 
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Particularly if you are a queer person of Chinese heritage, check it out. 
So. What the fuck are these? Are they food? 
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Are they made from wax? Or corn starch? or pig intestines? 
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Wei Wuxian runs off to get laid drunk and Jiang Cheng grumps about it. Jiang Yanli reminds him that being free is a Jiang Clan Rule, so really Wei Wuxian is following the rules by not following the rules. Does that mean he’s not free? My head hurts. 
Jiang Cheng: yes but grump grump grump
Jiang Yanli: Nothing bad will ever happen because of A-Xian’s choices, trust me
Outro
Wei Wuxian faint tally: one  Caught by: the cold hard ground
Soundtrack: 1. Donkey Riding by Great Big Sea 2. Living in the Past by Jethro Tull 3. Whip It by Devo
Fic prompt:  Lan Wangji’s internal monologue while he sits in the pavilion with Jiang Cheng 
If you write a fic from this prompt and want to share, please post a link in comments!
Bonus: Wang Zuocheng, macro-expression king
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Episode 03 Restless Rewatch coming soon!
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fific7 · 3 years
Text
Dangerous and Divine - Part 9
Billy Russo x Reader
Summary: Billy Russo is an itch you don’t want to scratch. But he’s all over you like a rash.
A/N: This does not follow canon, it’s mainly fluff & lemon zest 🍋 The GIF is from Exposed, unreleased pilot show in case you’re wondering 😌... Billy vibes.
Warnings: 18+ NSFW due to sexual content including oral and unprotected* sex between consenting adults. Someone loses the plot and makes a bad decision. Some drinking & swearing.
*Irl, please don’t go wild in the country without protection.
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(My GIF)
You FaceTimed him, but it rang out unanswered. Shrugging, you sent him a text, just asking him to call you as soon as he could. Then you shoved your phone onto the coffee table, turned your attention to the TV and continued sipping your wine.
Billy could hear his phone buzzing, and then the ting of a text arriving. But he wasn’t anywhere near his desk right at that moment.
He was currently pinned up against the glass wall in his office by Dinah Madani, who seemed to have shape-shifted into an octopus, complete with all the tentacles. She’d almost managed to wrap herself around him, pushing her body against his. He was trying to grab her hands but she kept managing to pull them out of his grip. He was starting to get angry, yelling her name and “What the fuck!” in her face, but she was totally ignoring him - it was like she’d gone feral. He was trying his best not to use his full strength against her, but he was about two seconds away from completely losing his temper.
She managed to get her mouth onto his at one point while he was busy trying to grab her hands, but he twisted his head away. His shirt was hanging half-open, mostly untucked from his trousers, tie loose and pulled askew round his neck, then he felt her hand against his stomach, fumbling for his trouser button. A moment later, she’d managed to get it undone and began pulling his zip down, trying to slip her fingers inside the top of his boxer briefs. That was it for Billy, he was seriously not into this. He bared his teeth in a snarl and grabbed her wrist, twisting it up and around quite viciously into an armlock.
Grasping her other hand, which had been inside his shirt stroking his chest, he shoved her away from him and she lost her balance, tumbling onto her ass on the floor. Billy still stood against the window, getting his breath back and his temper in check, then he walked round her and into his en-suite.
He stripped off his wrecked shirt and dumped it on the floor, grabbing an Anvil hoodie from a drawer in the unit next to the sink and pulling it on over his head. He exchanged his trousers and shoes for tracksuit bottoms and trainers, took a deep breath and walked back out into the main office.
Madani was sitting on one of the chairs, head in hands, her fingers carding through her hair. She looked up and glared at him as she heard him walk through, but didn’t say anything. Billy had something to say though.
“I can’t believe what you just did, Dinah!!! What the fuck is wrong with you? If it was the other way round, you’d slap me with a sexual harassment charge so fast I’d get a nosebleed!”
Her eyes teared up, but she blinked them back fiercely. “What is wrong with me? Ask yourself the same question! You lead me on, make me think it was going somewhere, then drop me like a hot potato the minute you meet your little coffee queen? And now you’ve humiliated me. You’re such a bastard, Russo!”
He perched on the edge of his desk, looking over at her, “I humiliated you? How? - cos I wouldn’t fuck you when you just threw yourself at me?” He folded his arms over his chest.
“And I already apologised for maybe sending mixed messages. But you also carry some of the blame, Dinah, you assumed things based on a couple of lunches and a drink one night in a bar.” “And a kiss after that drink!” she bit back at him. He scoffed, “Fuck! Are you in junior high or somethin’?” Putting on a high-pitched voice, “He kissed me, mommy, so now we’re gettin’ married!”
He continued, back to his normal voice, “You’re being ridiculous and you know it. Listen, I’ll forget this whole thing ever happened if you get your damn head back on straight and focus your attention back onto the fucking case, instead of what I got inside my trousers!”
She stood up, “Fuck you, Russo! You know what, yes! Let’s get this case closed, then I won’t have to see your sorry ass ever again!” Looking around for her bag, she grabbed it off the floor and headed to the door. Billy, meanwhile, chuckled, “Now, Dinah... you’ve never seen my ass.”
She flipped him the finger with real feeling, and left.
»»————————————-———- ⚜ ———————————-————-««
Billy was driving over to her place, and he dropped her a text saying he was nearly there. He hadn’t called her back, because he wanted to tell her face-to-face about what happened earlier with Dinah. It wasn’t something you talked about on the phone. He still couldn’t quite get his head round how desperate Madani had been, clawing at his clothes and her hands and mouth all over him. Now he guessed he knew what it felt like to be treated like a piece of meat, and at least had the decency to feel some personal guilt.
It was pretty much how he’d treated women all his life, if he was being honest. He wondered if not having a mother around, someone who would’ve loved and nurtured and cared for him, had contributed to his “fuck ‘em and leave ‘em” attitude to women. Who knew?
He sighed, knowing his girl was going to be really fucked off when he told her about it, and he only hoped that - coming so soon after the lunch date thing - she believed him when he said he’d shut her down as quickly as he could. Should he stop and buy her some flowers or something? Nah. That might just make him look guilty.
As he drove, the thought came unbidden into his mind that the Dinah thing was something that Previous Billy Russo would’ve just sat back and let happen. And enjoyed it. He started quietly laughing at himself, shit... he was screwed.
»»————————————-———- ⚜ ———————————-————-««
You’d just poured yourself another glass of wine when your phone chimed.
Picking it up, you saw it was a text from Billy... “Nearly at your place, angel. Any food going? ;) 😘”
You laughed, he really was a cheeky big devil. But, nah, no home cooking tonight Russo, you thought, I’m too frazzled after today. So you grabbed a menu from your local Thai and called them with an order of two portions of green curry, fragrant rice and some sides to be delivered in about twenty minutes.
Opening the door to Billy a few minutes later, you grabbed him into a bear hug and just rested your head on his chest. Not that he wasn’t enjoying it, but Billy knew this wasn’t ‘you’. You’d told him you didn’t ever want to be seen as ‘too clingy’ with your men. He’d told you at the time that you could cling to any part of his body you wanted to, for as long as you wanted to.
Taking hold of your arms, he gently moved you back so he could see you properly, “Hey, hey... you OK, angel?” You gulped a bit and nodded, then headed away to get a wine glass for him. Now he was here, you actually felt quite weepy, but you weren’t about to start blubbering like a big adult baby in front of him.
Billy closed your apartment door behind him, and followed you to the kitchen area. You saw him looking past you at the cooker and you laughed, instantly cheered up. “Sorry, Billy. No food, couldn’t be bothered.” His ‘disappointed puppy’ face was something to see. You poured him some wine, “Don’t worry darling, some Thai is on its way to us, should be here in about 15.” “Thank fuck for that, sweetheart, I’m absolutely starvin’!” he smiled down at you. Handing him the glass, you moved back to the sofa, collapsing onto it with a sigh.
Billy joined you, putting his glass on the coffee table and reaching down to take his trainers and socks off. He swung his legs up and his bare feet landed in your lap. You started tugging at his toes a little, and he picked his wine glass back up and took a sip. “Mmhm, that is a good red wine. And that,” he wiggled his toes against your fingers as you stroked them, “...is heavenly.” “It’s all the nerve endings. There’s so many of them in your feet.” He nodded, smirking, “But not as many as in another part of me.”
You laughed, untangling your fingers from his toes and reaching over to run them through his hair, “Food first, tiger.” He laid his hand over yours as you rested it on the back of his neck, sighing, “Yeah, okayyy... I won’t argue with you about it this time.”
Your buzzer sounded just then, and you collected the food from the delivery guy, then took it all over to the coffee table. Picking up cutlery and napkins from the kitchen, you and Billy proceeded to demolish the delicious Thai meal and then both collapsed back against the sofa. “That was...” Billy groaned and stretched, “...wonderful.” He reached for you, pulling you against him, kissing you lazily, softly. “Mmm. You know you didn’t kiss me when I got here? But I’ll let you off,” he smiled at you, but the smile faded almost immediately . He suddenly sat up, as if he was going to make a break for the door.
You felt a bit spooked by this - you’d just decided that second you were going to tell him about your ‘stalker’ - and it was almost as if he’d guessed you had something uncomfortable to say.
Looking across at him, you cleared your throat, feeling nervous for some reason. You noticed Billy had the same nervous look on his face you were sure you had on yours.
“Billy...” he was staring at you, “Madani came to the café today. Twice in fact.” His mouth dropped. You carried on quickly, “The first time she just had a coffee and left. In fact I wasn’t even 100% sure it was her. It was though, she came back later under the pretence of interviewing me to find out how us knowing each other would ‘impact’ her case.” You reached over and took his hand, he was still staring at you, amazed look on his face. “Then she just couldn’t help herself, she told me you two were seeing each other - dating, she said!”
He was shaking his head, “Nuh-uh, no! We were never....” You interrupted him, “I know. Look, Billy, I set her straight. Told her that was before you met me, and... and all that stuff with her was in the past.” A small grin appeared on his face, and you continued, “I hope I wasn’t out of line saying that.” He stroked your hand, “You definitely weren’t.” “But I didn’t tell her why you’d been... so friendly... with her. She wasn’t happy, Billy, like really not happy. Stormed off without saying another word.”
Billy was nodding to himself, “All makes sense now.” He looked over at you, eyes wide, “Got a visit from her too, must’ve been after she’d been to see you.” He took a deep breath, “Look, you’re not gonna like this, but please just hear me out.”
Your stomach dropped, you really didn’t like where this was heading. What had that crazy woman got up to with Billy?
“She came to Anvil, and... and, well she basically jumped me. Just walked in, didn’t say a word, tryin’ to get my clothes off, hands everywhere. I tried to grab her hands but didn’t wanna go over the top.” You were still holding hands, and he intertwined his fingers with yours, gazing deep into your eyes. “She went for my zip and that was it, got her in an armlock and threw her off me. She fell over on her ass.”
He was surprised when you burst out laughing. That was a much better reaction than he’d been expecting. “Oh I’d’ve paid good money to see that,” you said, trying to catch your breath, “Billy, I think she’s lost it. Gone a bit nuts with jealousy over you. Your male ego must be totally preening right now.” He smirked, but then got serious again. “No, actually it’s not... it’s just made me feel guilty. About how I had a “one and done” approach with women up till now. Got a dose of my own medicine, angel.”
“Treating people like sex objects, you mean? I’m sure most of us have done that at some point. Maybe you more than most,” you shrugged. “But have you turned over a new leaf, Billy Russo?” you asked, hand going to his bristly cheek. He nodded slowly, “ Yes I have, ma’am. Ever since I met you,” leaning in and kissing you. Your arms went round his neck, and you kissed him back hard. He whispered, “I was really afraid to tell you about it. Thought you wouldn’t believe me.”
You whispered back, “I don’t really know why, but I trust you, Billy. Don’t make me regret it.” “I promise you I won’t.”
You slid your hands under the hem of his hoodie, “Moving right along, Russo... I hope you don’t mind if I treat you like a sex object for the rest of the night.” His eyes twinkled at you as he said, “Oh, well, gee I might need to get my union rep involved.”
You slid your hands further up his chest, and reached up to kiss that sensual mouth of his. Then you sat up and took your bra off from under your t-shirt, dropping it on the floor before climbing onto him. You shimmied your leggings down your thighs slightly, and rubbed your body along his. Bill’s eyes were as wide as the moon, watching to see what you were going to do to him.
One of your hands went to the waistband of his tracksuit but then you paused, “D’you want me to stop, Billy?” Despite your earlier joke, you were aware that Madani had just invaded his personal space and not in a good way. His dark chocolate eyes were gazing into yours, and shaking his head he stuttered, “N-no.”
So your hand continued its journey southward underneath his boxer briefs, and soon it was happily wrapped around his velvety length. He gave a deep groan, one hand going to your hip, the other to your clit. You really weren’t in the mood for foreplay. After the events of the day you just wanted to feel Billy inside you, making you feel good and driving away any remaining thoughts or insecurities you might have about Madani.
The fact that you both still had your clothes on was exciting you as it made it seem like you two were having an illicit encounter. You pushed Billy’s tracksuit and briefs down to mid-thigh, revealing him in all his glory. Knowing you were more than ready for him, you gave him a couple of firm strokes and then guided his cock between your legs and put his tip straight inside you.
Billy gave a surprised gasp, but then thrust up into you as you rode him. “Uhh...” he groaned, then managed to say, “...no condom.” “Fuck it,” you whispered back, “...it’s fine, don’t worry.” You loved the view you had of him, hair in disarray where you’d been running one hand through it and those dark eyes of his on you, always on you. You felt him deep inside you and clenched around him, making his eyes close in pleasure and a long low groan escape his lips. His hand gripped your hip, his other hand massaging your breast and palming your nipple, making you gasp.
You stepped up your pace, riding him like you were about to ride off into the sunset. He was making a lot of noise you noticed, crying out and groaning, almost whimpering, so you leant over and whispered “Puppy” into his ear. As expected he laughed but then smacked your behind, quite hard, making you yell “Ow!!!” You gripped him extra firmly in retaliation and he howled, “Okay, okay, I surrender! I can’t last much longer anyhow....” and he did come shortly after that, huffing out a big breath, fingers digging into your hips and his own thrusting up to meet yours. He then made sure you climaxed, staying inside you, stroking your pussy before moving his thumb to your clit and pleasuring you until you came.
You lay in each other’s arms, in that post-sex blissful state. Billy’s nose was buried in your hair as it lay against your shoulder, and you could feel him rubbing it back and forward, tangling up in your hair and gliding across your skin too.
You heard a massive sigh, his chest rising and falling. “Billy?” you murmured, “You OK?” He sat up a bit and propped his head up on his elbow, gazing at you. He gave a quiet laugh, “No, I’m not. In fact, I’m really fucked.” You sat up too. “Well, yes so am I, if you recall!” you laughed. Reaching out, you stroked the hair on his chest, between his pecs.
“But, seriously, what d’you mean, Billy?”
His eyes looked huge as he gazed at you, “I, uh... think I’ve fallen in love with you.” He stroked your cheek, “And it scares the shit out of me.”
»»————————————-———- ⚜ ———————————-————-««
Additional A/N: In case you hadn’t guessed, this my imaginary ‘Real Love for Russo’ AU ☺️
»»————————————-———- ⚜ ———————————-————-««
@blackbirddaredevil23 @galaxyjane
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WKM Role Swap: The Séance
Prologue, Previous Chapter
-
The roles have changed, but the séance still has to go on.
Mind you... Is this the first time we've ever witnessed Celine and William have a private conversation?
-
"What do you think you’re playing at?” Celine's presence blazed before him like an inferno the moment the door was closed. “Do you think this will help you gain my favour after everything that happened?” William lifted his hat and brushed out his hair with a hollow laugh.
“You’re still the same as always, Celine. Not everything revolves around you, did you know that? Sure, I missed you as much as everyone else, but this isn’t about you. It’s not about whatever we shared long ago. There’s a likely case of homeo sapio zombifus or some 'ghost' that we need to sort out. I’m the only one with a reputable sharpshooting reputation, and also the ability to not believe whatever horseshit you want to feed everyone with -”
“William!”
“- which is why I’m the only one who can help you here. How can any of those ghosts possess someone who doesn’t believe in this? If you want to work on a plan, you need a man with years of military experience on your side.” William pulled the empty chair out, only to stop as he spotted Celine’s bag laying there. She was empty-handed when she arrived, yet here it was. It was passed to her so he could sit down. He slumped into the chair, arms loosely crossed and legs spread as Celine began setting the table. There was no ignoring the anger simmering under the surface as she lit the white candles.
“You haven’t changed at all. Mark was killed, and here you are acting like you two had another petty spat.”
“Huh, funny that. You ultimately took my side in that ‘petty spat’, didn’t you?” The empty bag was flung at William, who was quick to catch it and drop it on the ground beside his hat. “But if you really must know, I came to this party to try and make amends with Mark and try and find some sort of peace with that madman. Just because I’m used to being surrounded by death does not make me immature and dismissive to what happened. So why don’t we act like adults and get to the bottom of this?” Celine’s temper rose, only to slowly fade with a deep breath.
“You’re right. There are more important matters to deal with right now.” Calmer now, she cleansed and shuffled the tarot deck. “I just can't shake the feeling that Mark's death is the start of something much bigger. I've never been fully comfortable in this house - and I understand why, now that I'm here with my eyes fully open to the world beyond. There's an energy that made me so eager to escape the house if I was stuck here for too long...” She trailed off as the pair locked eyes. Their dates mostly consisted of trips outside the manor. How much of it was genuine romantic feelings, and how much was actually the actions of something hidden inside the walls influencing the minds of two who lived and worked there? Celine’s eyes widened in realisation. Was their entire relationship something staged by whatever lurked in the house to advance its sick plot? William pulled himself up, sitting properly on the chair as he finally gave Celine his full attention.
“Something dark, far beyond our control, is going on right under our noses. It has acted out and used us as pawns before. If we don’t reach Mark, it will happen again. Please, Colonel… Don’t joke around.”
“I won’t.”
Celine drew three cards and set them on the table. William didn’t understand the significance of them, and Celine’s explanation of their symbolism shot over his head, but he could understand that they confirmed ‘the path was clear’ (whatever that meant). William followed Celine’s breathing instructions as his thoughts slipped away. His vision grew blurry and then… Everything went black.
-
William stood in one of the empty bedrooms, his back against the closed door as he gathered his bearings after promising to hunt the 'old bag of bones'. He could hear footsteps and a voice pass by, “- we were celebrating something, but he never specified what". Frowning, William opened the door -
  Mark was standing on the stairs, addressing the group in a hollow, dramatic performance. "It's not all about the poker. It's not about me… it's about you." William glanced to the right. Mark had pointed to the stranger William met outside. The rest of Mark's speech faded out as the location morphed to the cellar.
  "A fully loaded gun? It wouldn't be you if you weren't armed to the teeth, would it?" Mark had the pistol, casually dumping the bullets onto the counter. William tried to snatch his gun back, but hesitated as he felt the bullets rattle in his pocket - the bullets he had taken out of his gun before the party ever began...
He looked up. There was a closed door in front of him. "This place is cursed!” William hesitated. He recognised the voice. But when he turned his head -
  He was looking out an upstairs window. An older man with fair hair and brown overalls stood in the garden. He was surrounded by Chef, the Detective, and the Attorney as he leaned on the handle of his shovel. “However, there is one reason. One incident. One manifestation - that will get me into that madhouse… And you had better pray to God that reason never comes to pass.”
---
William pulled himself back to his body with a heavy gasp as he lurched forward.
"Colonel? What happened? What did you see?" Celine called out. William didn't answer at first. He heaved as he gathered his bearings. Both hands tightly squeezed his knees to make sure he wasn't still dreaming. It was only when he lifted his head that Celine could see how shaken he was.
"This place is cursed." 
"I know. That's why I'm trying to-"
"No, you don't understand. This place is cursed. If we stay here, any of us, the curse will get us too. It's like you said - we're on the verge of being used as pawns." For someone who was such a firm sceptic minutes earlier, William was very set on this change of heart. "Tidy your things. We need to go. All of us."
"I'm not going anywhere. That's why I came back! There's an unseen force that needs to be dealt with."
"Whatever it is, it got Mark. Do you want to be next? Pack up. We can continue this outside."
"We are NOT going anywhere! We are NOT done! Tell me what you saw!"
"I saw people talking about how no one knows what's going on around here. George has the answers, but we need to go out to him."
"... I told you not to play around."
"I'm not. That's exactly what I saw."
"How does that give any indication of the truth? You need to go back and take this seriously! This is a matter of life and death!"
"That's what I'm TRYING to do! Why don't you BELIEVE me?!"
“What in the shit are you two yelling about?!” Abe charged in, taking in the scene before him. The Attorney trailed just behind him with worry on their face. “What is -”
“Get out! We aren’t done - Colonel!” William took advantage of the distraction to snatch his hat and put it back on. “Where do you think you’re going?!”
“Get her to pack up. We all need to get outside. Someone find Damien. I need to talk to George." William shouldered past the Attorney and stormed off.
“George? Who the hell is George?” Abe noticed the change in demeanour in both Benjamin and the Chef and quickly cornered them. “What do you two know?”
“Well…” Benjamin looked aside as he scratched his cheek. “George is the manor’s groundskeeper. But he only works weekdays. I don’t know where the Colonel would be going since he wouldn’t be here...”
“It looks like your friend here may disagree with that notion!” 
“Me?” The Chef pointed to himself with feigned innocence.
“Yeah, you.”
“I don’t know shit. I plead the fifth, man!” Chef folded his arms, intending that to be the end of that. Instead, Benjamin turned and sharply poked Chef’s arm.
“Chef, if you know something, for God’s sake spit it out!”
“Okay, alright! You’re twisting my arm.” Chef took a half-step back to give himself room away from the others. “Alright… George has been living on the grounds for years-”
“WHAT?!” Benjamin’s reaction perfectly encapsulated what everyone else was thinking.
“And you just now thought to share that information with us? How the hell did the Colonel know that if no one else did?” Abe lifted a hand in frustration at this revelation.
“Private lived in the manor when he used to work here. The two were friends, and the only one that fuckin’ hermit would talk to while working in the gardens.”
“Oh great! Wonderful! Now we might have a case of an accomplice of a murderer being right here!” Abe’s outcry was drowned out by a clap of thunder.
“For the last time, stop saying that word!” Celine snapped, storming out of the séance room.
“Look, George… He’s just a guy who tends to the grounds -”
“I don’t have time for fucking excuses! The Colonel has just run out there to find this man, and we’d best find him before anything else -"
"Can you all stop bickering and leave?" Celine interrupted sharply.
"You're not coming?"
"I'm not finished. I need more answers." Abe pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a heavy sigh.
"I can't keep an eye on all of you if you all insist on being so immature… Partner," the Attorney looked surprised as Abe called them over, "I need you to stay here and be my eyes. 
“Excuse me? I don’t need to be kept under surveillance, least of all under your order!” Celine’s eyes narrowed as she took in the numbers around them. “Shouldn't they be with Damien, if you're so stressed about everyone splitting up?”
“I just checked in on him, madam. He's asleep in his room with his leg propped up." While Celine was relieved her brother was resting, it also eliminated her scapegoat. She turned to the Attorney.
"Fine. You can stay. But I need to do my work first." The Attorney was doubtful, but Celine's mind was set. Why were they staying if the Colonel ordered everyone to go outside?
“C’mon. We’re wasting time.” Abe gestured for Chef to lead the way out. Celine returned to the room with the Attorney in tow. They glanced over their shoulder and caught the gaze of Abe. “We’ll be back in a few minutes, Partner. We're going to get to the bottom of this mess.”
All the Attorney could do was give a small smile as they closed the door. What else could they do? Their hands were tied.
-
Next Chapter
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mytanuki-kun · 2 years
Note
Your stuff is honestly motivating me to write some of my own drabbles. Kisame is definitely on my list, I love daddy shark. (Though to be honest Kakashi is king as far as my Naruto simping goes). Do you have any Naruto OC's by any chance? It would certainly be interesting to see.
AHHH yesss!!! pls do!! more kisame love is defo needed in the world and anyone else tbh!!!
awww no one has ever asked 🥺 i keep them close cause my naruto oc's have been around since i was a kid and they grew up with me yknow??
my main one is called Shizuka and she's basically Orochimaru's daughter. Basically, he got hella infatuated with a pretty lady he saw one time (I'm wrote this when i was 14 y'all 😭 don't judge me! i think i have the notebooks tucked away somewhere) so he kidnaps the woman to keep around cause Orochi is convinced he's in love with her (thank god my child brain was like nah this man will never put his penis inside a vagina─ he will concoct this child in a tube) so he cooks up a baby with his DNA and his lovely (captive) bride with some extra bits he includes to make them strong but he's not satisfied with how she comes out.
Shizuka is born with a slight deformity, her left arm is scaly and white like a snake which is a stark contrast compared to her brown skin. Her arm is hella sensitive so for the longest time it goes unused/untrained because she can barely carry a bag before her muscles start to ache. Until she goes through her first adult moult (kinda like puberty/her first period) and she discovers that she can excrete venom from her palm. She can paralyse someone with one touch so she usually wears long gloves. Her hair has streaks of white, her eyes are sort of reptilian with two sets of eyelids. Orochimaru unknowingly gave her a kekkei genkai and she can change her eyes like to night vision or x-ray. It's sort of unsettling when she's a child but soon she learns how to control it and make her eyes look normal during the day to day shit.
there's so much i could say about Shizuka haha but eventually she finds herself as an excellent lil spy for hire. She's playful, a little sadistic but in a i love it when you cry sort of way, short temper when she doesn't get her way but mostly likes to have a little fun and make friends ;)
she's my main oc and i change her relationship with her dad depending if I'm in a Gaara mood or Akatsuki mood. Like if her s/o is Gaara (which is the reason why i created her so it usually is) then Orochimaru raised her n set her loose in the chunin exams and the two lil demons met haha but if the s/o isn't Gaara then Orochi dumped Shizuka and her mother as soon as he saw her deformity cause he deemed it ugly/imperfect unknowing of her abilities so she sets out to find/kill him and eventually sides with the Akatsuki when she bumps into the zombie boys during a mission and they offer her a position.
I have a civilian oc named Kiko who is a huge slut and i basically just imagine her getting ran through by my faves lmaoooo shes a cute baker with a pretty smile and a fat ass and she has no thoughts in that pretty lil head only ;)
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In Love and Death Part 2
Harry Potter 
Link to Chapter 1
Pairings: Regulus Black x Reader 
Rating: M- light�� smut
_____
Hot water washed over your sore joints. The heat was a welcome change from the chill of the hotel room. You rubbed a hand through your soaking hair. Regulus hadn’t joined you yet. You frowned. Normally it would take him all of three seconds to hop into the shower with you. Heat plus your naked bodies being pressed together was enough to entice the man into anything that you wanted.
Your mind went back to the previous conversation. Regulus’ aversion to going back to the order and coming out as a couple made sense. You knew that your friends, Moody, in particular, wouldn't take it well. Hell, your own father probably wouldn’t take it well (had he been alive). You didn’t remember much about his temper but from what your mother said Evan could go off over the smallest thing. His best friend dating his daughter would be a sure way to set Evan off.
Thinking back to Evan Rosier, you couldn’t help feeling a little sad. You were four when he was killed by none other than Moody himself. The world didn’t know the same Evan that you knew. They didn’t know the man who gave up most of his own dreams in order to be a dad at 16 or the man that would sit on the floor of the Rosier family manor to play dolls with you (he wouldn’t admit the latter part but you knew it happened.) The world only saw the death eater that thought it was smart to come up against Mad-eye Moody and didn’t live to see the next day.
You closed your eyes trying to remember what you could about Evan. As you got older you were beginning to forget the little things like his voice, the way he held you as a child, and the way that you would sit on his foot in some pathetic hope to keep him home. Pictures only went so far.
After you grew up and got away from your family’s ignorant ideals, you began to realize how crazy your father really was. He never should have been out running around with Voldemort. Evan should have been at home being a good father. Your grandmother was kind enough to raise you for the first year while Evan and your mother finished school. Running around with a maniac and getting killed was a pretty shitty way to repay her.
Regulus was another source of confusion for you. You could only remember bits and pieces of him. You were two when he technically “died.” The most you could really remember about him was pulling his hair when he would come to visit your parents.
Grandmother would die if she knew…
You could already see the horrified expression on her face when you would bring Regulus in for the first time. The old woman would probably think that she was losing her mind.
That would be slightly desirable
You thought with a smirk. Your grandmother was just like the rest of your family. Snarky purebloods who thought that they were better than everyone else. Maybe it would do her some good to come back down to planet earth.
Regulus’ arms wrapping around your waist pulled you from your thoughts.
“Took you long enough.”
You said as Regulus shoved his head under the water. Flipping his hair over his shoulder, he shoved you back against the wall. He wrapped both of your wrists in one of his hands and held them over your head.
“Sorry.”
Regulus said before trailing his nose down your neck to your shoulder.
“Is it bad that I don’t want to go back?”
He asked, softly. You lifted a leg over his hip trying to pull Regulus closer.
“We don’t have to.”
You replied. Regulus stood back up straight. He stroked a finger down your cheek.
“And we will be hunted down like dogs.”
“They’ll have to get used to it...you and I. I’m not giving you up to appease anyone.”
Regulus let your hands go so he could cup your face.
“I think that I’ve been a bad influence on you. Before you and I got together you were this sweet little girl that wouldn’t say the word fuck now you are talking about sassing Mad-eye Moody. I have to say that I’m impressed.”
You smiled as Regulus peppered kisses down your cheek.
“You’re the first guy that I have ever given a damn about.”
Regulus lifted you enough to align himself to your entrance. You didn’t wait for him to tug him down instead you sunk down onto his length. Regulus groaned, holding his head back. He was going to miss being able to have you whenever the hell he wanted. Since Regulus started sleeping with you, he began to see why his brother was such a manwhore. Sex was actually very nice!
Maybe if he played his cards right, the two of you could get away from Grimmauld Place soon enough. Being back home was the last place that Regulus wanted to be. Between Mad- eye watching his every move, his mother’s portrait profeessing her undying love for him, and Kreacher holding onto his leg sobbing like an emotional toddler; being home was exhausting.
“What a coincidence, you are the first girl that I have ever given a damn about. Now pay attention to what I am doing to you.”
Regulus said with a grin before leaning in for another kiss.
(The next morning)
Both Regulus and yourself stood outside of Grimmauld Place staring at the door handle with matching frowns.
“So, we are on the same footing here?”
You asked. Regulus nodded.
“Yes, if they give you a hard time. I’m coming in and cleaning things up. They won’t want that.”
“Then we apparate the fuck out of there…”
Regulus nodded.
“Sounds nifty.”
Before you could say anything else, Tonks opened the door and pulled you into a fierce hug that left the two of you on the floor. She wrapped herself around you like an oversized cat. You ignored Moody who was muttering about “did they forget how to open doors?”
“Y/n, I have missed you! I missed your face! I missed everything about you!”
Tonks held your face in her hands as she looked down at you from your place beneath her. It took all that you had not to laugh at your best friend's over the top dramatic greeting. You couldn’t have expected anything less from Tonks.
“I missed you too.”
You said with a smirk as Tonks started stroking your hair. The moment that her eyes landed on the love bit that Regulus left on your neck, her mouth dropped. She glanced over her shoulder at Regulus. He didn’t make any facial expression upon realizing that Tonks had put the “secret” together.
“It was then that they realized that neither one of them needed a man.”
Both Tonks and yourself jumped up the moment that Sirius spoke. You have Sirius a scowl.
“In your wildest fantasies.”
Sirius grinned. He enjoyed the fun back and forth banter that the two of you had when it came to sex.
“Let me go get a drink and I will gladly sit here and watch. Neither of you has to touch me.”
Both Remus and Regulus were glaring at Sirius now.
“Shut up, Sirius.”
Regulus snapped. Sirius grinned even wider before his vision stopped on the love bite too. You watched as his mouth dropped before he glanced between Regulus and yourself. He leaned over to Remus and held out his hand.
“You owe me a ton of chocolate.”
“It's not what you think.”
You said, assuming that Sirius figured that Regulus and yourself were just sleeping together. What you didn’t know was Sirius and Remus had made a bet that the two of you would end up in a relationship. Knowing Sirius the way that you did, you assumed the bet was just sex-related.
“It's exactly what he thinks.”
Regulus replied. Tonks had her hand over her mouth and you went to stand beside Regulus. You wrapped your hand around his as Moody walked in.
The older man automatically frowned. Your goal was to tell your friends in a “soft” calm manner but now you weren’t surprised. Nothing in your life ever went according to plan.
“Both of you in the living room. NOW!”
Moody snapped. He stormed in the room fighting the urge to wipe that sneer off of Regulus Black’s smug little face. Moody waited until the both of you sat down before speaking.
“How long?”
You were the first to speak. It was probably a good idea that you did the talking. If it were Regulus doing the talking, hexes would start flying in seconds.
“Right after we got to Greece.”
Moody growled. His attention locked on Regulus.
“I told you to leave her alone.”
Regulus rolled his eyes. He wasn’t about to back down from Moody.
“Let me tell you something about Y/n. She doesn’t do a damn thing that she doesn’t want to. Besides, it's not your decision upon how she lives her life.”
“Did she do you too?”
Tonks asked. Both Regulus and yourself turned to stare at Tonks. Had the situation not been so serious, you would have laughed at the expression on her face. You were thankful for Sirius who was giggling so hard that Remus had to reach out and pinch him.
“Sure. Tonks. I have sex with every guy that I go out with!”
You snapped. Tonks frowned.
“And Regulus is okay with this?”
Remus put a hand on his girlfriend’s back.
“You aren’t helping, love.”
You quickly stood up.
“I am going to say this once. It isn’t anyone in this room’s decision on who I am going to be with. I’m an adult.”
“He was there when you were born. That is messed up.”
Moody snapped. Regulus’ scowl intensified.
“Remus is older than Tonks and I don’t see you bitching about that. Apparently, you are forgetting the fact that I was 18 when I died and look at that...still 18.”
“Fine, it's because you are a death eater. You should have stayed dead.”
“Alastor!”
You snapped his name as Moody turned to face you.
“I’m not watching you throw your life away on some death eater because you have unresolved daddy issues from your father's death.”
Everyone in the room became instantly silent. You blinked a few times before Regulus reached out for your hand.
“Love…”
You shook yourself loose and stared at Moody with heartbroken eyes. This was by far the cruelest thing that he had ever said to you. That comment was worse than how he treated you when you became an auror. He didn’t trust you then because of whose daughter you were and it took you forever to gain his trust. Once you did, however, he adored you and treated both Tonks and yourself like his own daughters. Now you felt as though you had been slapped in the face.
“I don’t have daddy issues. My father made his decisions. You were the one that blew him away. He made bad decisions in his life but that isn’t Regulus’ mess to clean up. That was Evan’s fault not Regulus’.”
Moody frowned.
“Let me make this simple for you, Y/n. You are an auror and a brilliant one at that. You have potential...a spark. Don’t throw your life away for some death eater with a bad attitude.”
You stood in silence for a moment not looking at anyone but Moody.
“That's enough.”
Regulus said, in a warning tone. He had no issues with hexing Moody. Whether the two men were on the same side of not, Regulus was not going to let him upset you anymore. The comments about Evan were below the belt. You didn’t ask your father to make poor decisions.
You recovered after a few moments of trying to keep your Rosier temper under control.
“Fine. I quit. I’m done. You can take this auror job and shove it.”
“Y/n…”
Tonks said, gently. You shook your head brushing off your best friend and partner’s attempt of trying to “smooth the situation over.”
“I’m done.”
You turned and walked from the room leaving everyone in silence. Regulus smirked at the shocked expression on Moody’s face. That was one way to shut the man up.
“You’ve been most helpful.”
Regulus said coldly before standing up and going in the direction that you had gone in.
You stood in his bedroom angrily staring at the wall when Regulus finally caught up to you. Kreacher was busy whispering to you in some hope of cheering you up.
“Kreacher, that will do.”
Regulus said as the elf looked up at him with those teary eyes. At the moment, the last thing that Regulus wanted to do was deal with a pissed off girlfriend and a sobbing elf.
“Yes, master Regulus.”
Kreacher muttered before popping out of the room. Regulus was a bit surprised that Kreacher didn’t beg to stay. Since Regulus had come back, Kreacher was finding any excuse to be in the same room. Regulus figured it was because he was the one person (except you) that was remotely nice to the elf.
Regulus closed the door behind him and cast a quick silencing charm. The last thing that he wanted was for anyone downstairs to be listening at the door.
“You sure showed them.”
Regulus commented before kneeling down in front of you. Your blue eyes met his and Regulus had to fight the urge to stomp back down the stairs and chew everyone out individually. He wasn’t for sure why he was so mad at Sirius and Remus. They had been mostly quiet through that whole fiasco but Regulus could find something.
“What was said when I left?”
Regulus shrugged before gently pushing your backward on the bed and planting himself on top of you.
“I really don’t know. I made a snarky comment and left too. I’m sure they are tearing us apart right now. You know, I really didn’t expect you to go and quit your job. Watching Moody look so stunned was rather amusing though. I wish that I had one of those muggle cameras.”
You smirked.
“Your cell phone has one.”
It took all that you had not to giggle at the unamused expression on your boyfriend’s face.
“I hate that thing.”
“You’ve gone through 4 in two months so I kind of got the idea. Was I wrong down there?”
Regulus shook his head.
“No. It took all that I had not to open my mouth. Look, I don’t need any of those idiots downstairs to make my life happy.”
“I make you happy?”
You questioned. Regulus raised an eyebrow before leaning down and kissing you. The sugary sweetness of the moment would have made him gag years ago now it was welcomed. Now Regulus was ready to soak up any bit of love that you had to offer him.
“Of course. All I need is these blue eyes, these full lips, and this smart mouth.”
You laughed.
“I’ve never heard anyone say that they enjoyed my smart mouth.”
Regulus took your hand and placed it on his crotch. Giving you a small smile, his fingers started on the buttons of your dress.
“That should answer your question, silly girl.”
“I would rather do this than be downstairs.’
Regulus nodded and tugged his shirt over his head.
“For the record, I have never had a girl in this bed.”
You quickly started unbuttoning your dress.
“Maybe you should take that silencing charm off of this room so we can make everyone very uncomfortable?”
____
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thewayshedreamed · 4 years
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This Time— Part 7
Fic Masterlist
As promised, here’s Part 7– complete with max Nessian. I haven’t decided if there will be one more long chapter, or if there will be one more + an epilogue, but we’re nearing the end for these two dumb dumbs 😂 I’ll warn you that there’s definitely some angst, but I hope that I make up for it.
Warnings for language.
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She loosed a breath, puffing her cheeks with air and exhaling slowly. Just before she peeled her head from the headrest to get out, his front door opened. He opened it most of the way, then leaned against the door jamb on his shoulder. He had his hands in the pockets of his sweats and one of his ankles crossed casually over the other. For a moment, she only looked at him, unable to move or offer any type of acknowledgement. She took in the charcoal Henley he was wearing, unbuttoned save for the last one. The small flap of the opening leaned to the side, revealing the base of his neck and the beginning of his tattoos. He looked so very Cassian, casual and laid-back, that she struggled to keep her emotions level at the mere sight of him. His hair was down, looking like he had just run his fingers through it with its deep part and how it fell haphazardly around his face. He was wearing his reading glasses, she noticed, the thick frames highlighting the sharp angle of his cheekbones and the wide set of his jaw. He gave her a soft smile, and cocked his head to the side and back in invitation. She could almost here him tell her to “get in here”.
Too late to turn back now.
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She got out of the car and travelled up the short walkway to his door. He moved to stand to the side, ushering her into the entryway without a word. He shut the door behind him and leaned against it. His voice was soft when he spoke.
“I saw you from the window when you pulled up. Hope I didn’t rush you.”
“Hmm. No. I wasn’t 100% sure I was going to knock anyway, so it’s probably best that you went out.” He tensed at her words. She offered a small smile, feeling oddly compelled to comfort him.
The whole reason you’re here is because you’re mad, Nesta. Focus.
”Can I get you anything? Water? Tea? Whiskey?” He huffed a small laugh at his last suggestion.
”Tea would be great, actually. I’ll come sit at the island,” she replied.
He walked past her, hands still firmly in his pockets. She followed him to the kitchen, situated herself on a barstool, and watched him prepare the things he needed. They sat in silence for a couple of minutes, until the tension became a little too much.
“Have you decided if you’re going to tell me why you’re here?” His eyes were focused on what he was doing; never looking up at her as he spoke.
“Yeah. I think we have some things to talk about.” She watched his shoulders raise slightly before he put the kettle on the stove and turned around.
“Like?” He leaned back on the counter, crossing his arms across his chest.
”Us. Whatever we are, anymore. And boundaries.” She couldn’t look at him, so she opted to look down at her hands as she picked her cuticles.
He was quiet for a moment, and when she finally looked at him, the look on his face gave her pause. His expression was severe, his jaw tense and eyes narrowed.
“I think you made it perfectly clear what we are not, Nesta. If you came here to twist the knife, I’d like to opt out of this conversation.” He turned his back to her, busying himself by looking for the right mugs to pull from the cabinet.
“That’s not why I came!” she snapped. She lowered her face into her hands, willing herself to take deep breaths and stay calm. “I just... I know what we’re not. I do. But it’s hard to reconcile with how you act sometimes.”
”Which is?” His voice was strained, his patience waning.
“Like nothing has changed. Elain’s birthday— by the bathroom. The parking lot. Texting me today, and on top of th—“ He cut her off, much to her frustration, but she restrained her temper. This conversation was delicate enough, but she couldn’t keep from narrowing her gaze in his direction.
”I didn’t want this. You did,” he sneered. “Have you considered that it’ll take time for me to figure this shit out?” He pulled his chosen mugs out roughly, held them to his chest, and used his other hand to shut the cabinet door firmly. His voice was rough and slightly raised. Since it seemed he was determined to escalate anyway, she decided to jump ahead.
“So how is Alis then? Does she know how much time you need to ‘figure shit out’ with me?” she taunted coldly.
Apparently, the timing of her question couldn’t have been worse. Cassian’s entire body went taut as he was shifting the mugs to set them both down on the counter. He put them down with such force that it startled her, even though she was staring directly at him.
“What the fuck does it matter to you, Nesta? Huh?!” The mug in his right hand had broken on impact, but he didn’t seem to noticed as he whirled around. “She has nothing to do with our little shit show, so leave her the fuck out of it,“ he spat. His infamous temper was flaring now, and she knew he wouldn’t be backing down. He turned to see the broken mug, muttering a low “Fuck” and proceeded to sweep the broken pieces into his hands to throw away.
She blinked a couple of times, caught off guard by him immediately jumping to Alis’ defense. It’s not that she didn’t expect any loyalty at all, but the pain that followed is what threw her.
“Clearly, talking to you was a bad idea. I was hoping we could have an adult conversation!” she yelled.
He lowered his voice a fraction, but the venom in his tone remained. “Let me ask you something. How many godsdamned times do I have to take your bullshit on the chin before my reactions are justified? Why do you get to cling to your anger, make me the bad guy, and keep coming back for more? Your hands aren’t as clean as you’d like to think, sweetheart. Don’t fucking do this with me.”
She stood at that, grabbed her keys, and walked toward the door. She heard him laugh sarcastically from where he stood, and she was fully prepared to ignore him until he opened his mouth.
“There she is, walking away again. At least your predictability is comforting.”
She stilled, her entire body tensing. She turned around so quickly, launching herself toward him before she ever gave herself a chance to think better of it.
“You arrogant, self-righteous, son of a bitch!” She was pushing at his chest, and the fact that he barely moved at all had her seeing red. She started slapping at his chest between pushes and even went as far as to brace her hands on his chest, lunge, and use all of her force to move him backward. Her feet only slid back on the floor, while he lost no ground. “You giant, pretentious, pain in the—“
He gripped her wrists against his chest, transferred them to one hand, and used his other hand to cup her jaw. His grip was surprisingly gentle compared to the anger that flared in his eyes. She blew a breath through her bottom lip to get the stray hair out of her face and glared right back at him.
“Enough of all that.” He paused, studying her face before he continued. “Do you have any idea how crazy you make me?” His voice was low, and although she knew he was being quite literal, she couldn’t fight the warmth that pooled within her at his words.
She swallowed heavily and closed her eyes before saying, “I have an idea.”
He squeezed her wrists gently then, almost as if he was considering if it was safe to let them go. She opened her eyes at that and was surprised to find that she had leaned into him while her eyes were closed. Their noses were almost brushing, and as much as she longed to close the distance between them, she remembered her reasons for being here. She fixed her gaze on his eyes, remarking how much more prominent the gold flecks became when he was mad. When he met her stare, they softened slightly before flicking down to her mouth. He didn’t try to conceal it and instead opted to pull his hand back just enough to run his thumb over her bottom lip. He repeated the action across her Cupid’s bow before moving to cup her cheek.
The kettle’s whistle caused both of them to jump back slightly, disoriented by the fact that the world had indeed continued during those moments. He dropped her wrists from his chest, and a pained expression passed across her features.
“You’re the one that asked for tea, sweetheart,” he said, as he lowered his hand and smirked at her. “Plus, we have some talking to do, remember?” He touched her palm with his index finger to prompt her to follow him back into the kitchen. She followed and sat back in her previous spot at the island, as he passed the mug to her. He decided against getting another mug out for himself and leaned his hip on the corner of the island.
Nesta didn’t even know where to start. There were so many ways she could approach this, all leading to the same point, but she felt like that point needed context. Nothing about the time passed seemed linear to her, and she was struggling with how to best present herself. She stared down into her mug, bobbing her tea bag through the water to busy her hands.
“So, what is all this about Alis? How do you know about her?” he asked, tone matter of fact. She wasn’t sure if he’d opted to speak first out of impatience or if he was bailing her out as usual, but either way, she was grateful for a starting point.
A crease formed between her brows as she placed her tea bag on a napkin, her eyes never leaving the mug as she spoke. “The night of Elain’s birthday, at Rita’s. I sent you a text, and somehow you pocket dialed me a little while later. I heard your conversation. Maybe I should have hung the phone up sooner, because it obviously wasn’t intended for me, but it all happened really fast. I heard you making plans to meet up later that week, and then I hung up.”
”Ah. I see.”
”Not that it should matter how I know. The fact remains that you seemed awfully interested in talking to me that night, and not even a couple hours later, asking her out. It’s insulting. To both of us.”
He smirked at that, and she had to resist the urge to throttle him for it. “Is that jealousy, Nes? It’s not becoming.” Her eyes snapped up to his at his comment; boldly throwing her own words at her from that night at Rita’s. Just like that, she was seeing red all over again.
“You’re such a bastard, Cassian. Even if it was, it doesn’t change the point. You can’t date her and send sentimental texts to me on my mother’s death anniversary, it’s not fair! How do you think that makes me feel?!” She felt tears pooling in the corners of her eyes, and she quickly looked away, hoping he wouldn’t notice.
He leaned forward onto his forearms, meeting her at eye level. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “I won’t pretend I’m an expert at reading your emotions because I’ve been very wrong before. How do you feel?”
”It really doesn’t matter. It was never right for me to come here and try to force a conversation with someone else’s... whatever you two are. It’s inappropriate.” Just like that, her mind was changed. She didn’t have it in her to do this, and she wanted to hold it together long enough to leave with a little dignity. Her tears betrayed her by streaming down her face, and she whisked them away quickly with her hands.
He grasped one of her hands with both of his, wiping the tears from it and holding it between his palms. His fingers skimmed over her wrist, and she couldn’t help but look at him. He looked pained, an earnesty in his eyes that she couldn’t ignore.
“Nesta, I’m not dating Alis. I’m not dating anyone, for that matter. Alis is a friend of mine who helps me out from time to time. She’s a florist at Spring Floral Cart, and we’ve worked together over the years for different things.”
It took her a moment to process his words before realization dawned on her. A florist. She was a florist, and he had flowers sent to her mother’s grave. Then what had she overheard? Thinking back on it, they never mentioned dinner, drinks, anything. Had she invented this whole thing?
“She did my mother’s flowers.” Not a question.
His eyes widened at her words. “How do you know about Christine’s flowers?” His voice was so quiet that it was almost a whisper.
“Rhys. He mentioned it at dinner—“
”Fuck, Rhys.” He dropped his head forward in frustration.
”Let me finish. He wasn’t trying to out you specifically, he just assumed at least one of us knew. Once he realized we didn’t, he couldn’t exactly lie or pretend he didn’t know either. It was obvious that he did.” She paused, but once she realized he wasn’t going to respond, she used her free hand to raise his face back up to look at her. “Why wouldn’t you tell me that? Why hide it? I can’t tell you how much it means to me that you would do that for her.” Her voice was just as quiet now, the air thick with emotion all around them.
Here she was, doing another 180 and deciding she needed to stay. She was getting whiplash from the extremes she was experiencing, all rapid fire. She stood, taking her hand from him, and circled the island to stand next to him. She pulled his bicep to encourage him to stand to his full height and look at her. He stood, but he kept his eyes locked on the countertop as he answered her.
“I never wanted it to seem like I had certain motives. I don’t know. I did it for her; not any recognition, not for praise. I knew how much she loved having fresh flowers around the house, and I didn’t want her to never have them again.” He was playing with the corner of her napkin, and she grasped his hand as he had done with hers just minutes ago. She had tears in her eyes yet again, but she did nothing to keep them hidden now. It seemed so stupid and pointless. “I think I knew deep down how I felt about you, and I never wanted you to think I was trying to win your favor in some cheap way; like I was using your mom as a way to get you to fall for me. It makes me sick to even say that out loud. I felt like if you knew, you would question my motives once you learned how I felt. And I think to some degree, I was scared I would discount your feelings for me even if they were returned... like they were just the product of some grand gesture during a rough time. Chalk it up to my daddy issues, I guess.” He chuckled softly before lifting his eyes to hers. He noted her tears, and his brows immediately came together in concern.
“Hey, hey, hey. No need for tears, Archie. I’m okay. We’re okay.” He held her face in his hands, brushing her tears away with his thumbs. She crumpled into his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her cheek to his sternum. He brought his arms around her and rested his hands on her lower back. She was quiet for several minutes before she mastered herself enough to speak.
”Gods, you couldn’t be more wrong, Cass.”
She leaned back to look at him. He cocked his head in confusion, willing her to continue. “I’m not okay. We’re not okay. Not like this. But knowing this doesn’t discount anything I feel for you. It doesn’t make me question your intentions. You forget that I know your heart and your character, and I know this is just who you are. And I was in love with you before I knew any of this, anyway. I was in love with you weeks ago when I was too scared to admit it to myself.”
She gripped his shirt at his shoulders as she forced herself to voice all these terrifying things she’d felt. After all they had been through together, he deserved to hear all of it from her. She needed him to know he was loved, even if she’d exhausted his good favor. She needed him to know he hadn’t misread her; that he hadn’t thrown his love into some void all these years.
“I loved you before she passed; loved you years before, even. I’ve loved you as far back as I can remember.”
Cassian closed his eyes and inhaled deeply as she spoke. He removed his glasses as he lowered his brow to hers and brought one of his hands up to cup the side of her neck. His thumb rubbed her jawbone gently.
”Nesta, I—“
”Wait. If I don’t finish, I’ll lose my nerve. Shit, I’m so terrible at this.” She huffed a small laugh, and he joined her, still with his eyes closed. “I think I was so afraid to need you. Because before, I always dated someone who ‘completed’ me in some way or ‘balanced me out.’ And when that wasn’t true anymore, everything fell to shit.” She paused for a few seconds to catch her breath. He waited patiently, rubbing soothing circles on her lower back with his thumbs.
“Something I realized over the last couple of weeks, is that I don’t need you. It’s never been that— wait. That came out wrong,” she said, shaking her head slightly but never breaking contact with his. She expected him to pull away from her or to see his anger flare once more.
She wasn’t expecting the small laugh that bubbled out of him, his eyes fluttering open to look at her. “Wow. You really are bad at this.” She swatted him playfully on the chest before she continued.
“What I mean is... it’s not like I’ve kept close to you because you served a specific purpose or kept me comfortable by never pushing me to grow. Don’t get me wrong, you’ve always been supportive, but...” She trailed off, trying to find the right words. “It’s just different with you, because no matter what phase of life I’ve been in, I’ve wanted you there. And as someone who struggles to see past her own nose sometimes, wanting all of you means so much more than merely needing a certain something from you, whatever that may be.” She felt tears roll down her face again and fought to keep her voice steady enough to finish. “It means that I love you, and it’s not seasonal. It’s not contingent on this phase of life. I love you, and I want you. I want you with me so much that I haven’t been able to think about much else.” She took a deep breath, terrified of how he would respond. His breathing was a little labored, and she could feel the tension radiating off of him.
“You love me,” he rasped. All she could do was nod. He moved his hands to each of her cheeks, cradling her face as he spoke.
“And you want me.” She nodded again. She couldn’t decipher much of anything from his tone, and that scared the shit out of her considering he was usually the open book. She realized the magnitude of how he had bared himself to her all those weeks ago, only to be met with her rejection. The pain he must have felt after being so raw and open.
”I understand if you don’t have it in you to give that to me anymore. The gods know that I’ve hardly given you a reason to. I just need you to know, but I’ll unders—“
”Shut up, Nesta,” he said, through a grin, before his lips crashed into hers.
The kiss was firm and passionate, yet with a gentleness she hadn’t experienced between them before. He angled his head to slant his mouth over hers, running his tongue over the tight seam of her lips in permission. She gasped quietly as she opened up for him, sliding her hand to the nape of his neck. She wove her fingers into his long hair, as if anything less may let him slip away from her. He let out a low growl once her fingers ran over the base of his scalp and nipped gently at her bottom lip. She whimpered at that, causing him to pull back a little to look at her. Her heart clenched at the adoration she saw in his face, and she moved her other hand from its place on his chest. She looped it under his arm, around his ribs, and grasped his shoulder blade. She wanted him closer, using him to ground her in the moment.
He moved one of his hands to grip her around the waist, his long arm resting across her back. He used the thumb of his other hand to lightly stroke her cheekbone.
“I wouldn’t have it in me to keep away from you,” he murmured. He bent his knees slightly so that he could lift her around the waist and gripped her thigh with his other hand, sliding her up onto the kitchen island. He brushed his nose softly against hers, gripping her hips as he spoke, “I love you.”
She ran her hands over his forearms, up his biceps, and rested them atop each of his strong shoulders. She felt shy all a sudden, a soft smile gracing her lips as her eyes flicked up to his. His gaze darkened when she looked at him, and she mustered as much bravado as she could to ask, “And do you want me?”
He pulled her hips forward at her question, bringing her to the edge of the countertop and as close to him as possible. “Always. In every way,” he purred, bringing his mouth to the soft skin beneath her jaw.
She tilted her head to the side to allow him better access. Her eyes fluttered shut as she whispered, “Show me.”
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A/N: I couldn’t help but include a LITTLE more angst in their reunion— it’s just that Nessian is prime angst real estate 😂 As I said at the beginning of this post, I’m not sure how many more chapters (1 or 1 + epilogue), but I can tell you that I’ve already started writing the next chapter’s smut. 😳 Stay tuned for that!
Your comments/ feedback are always welcome. It makes my day to read through all of your reactions and commentary! If you’d like to be tagged in future chapters, shoot me an ask, comment, or reblog. The same applies if your tag isn’t working for some reason. I’ll be happy to look into fixing it!
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Thin Ice Pt2 || Peter Parker x Reader
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Summary: Y/N and Peter’s slippery interaction on the ice leads to the beginning of a friendship.
Word Count: 2.6k
Author’s note: Sorry this part took so long I’ve been studying for my midterms! Also, this is one of the last times Y/N nerds out over snowboarding so I promise, I won’t have as many confusing references or anything like that! Also also, thank you to everyone who requested more parts and wanted to be added to the tag list! I’m super glad yall are enjoying this series! 
Warning: Swearing!! But ughhhh that’s it
part one || part two || part three || part four || part five || part six || to be continued 
You grabbed your skates from the counter and sat down on a wooden bench next to Cindy who was already done lacing up. The snow had stopped falling and left complete fluffy powder in its place and the air wasn’t as harsh or crisp as yesterday was. 
This was Cindy’s big moment to shine; she was never seen as an athlete but boy did she love to show off when it came to her ice skating skills. You, on the other hand, weren’t the best at ice skating which didn’t really make sense to your friends since it’s kinda like snowboarding in terms of balancing. Nonetheless, you weren’t going to be the only person sitting out while the rest of your classmates had fun so you did your best to participate gracefully. 
After getting your skates on (with much help from Cindy and Betty), you slowly got onto the ice and hung onto the wooden fencing. 
You were all out there for almost two hours and you wondered when Mr. Harrington would call it quits for today but he was nowhere to be seen which worried you. This was your first-time ice skating outside on an actual lake and you were terrified you would fall through but the girls convinced you that you were just being paranoid. 
“ Uhm, where is the trusted adult chaperone? I didn’t spend my savings trying just to slip through the ice and die,” You said in a jocking tone but the girls knew you were somewhat serious. 
“ I don’t blame you, you’re probably still traumatized after Peter practically ran you over yesterday,” Cindy replied as she skated backwards so she could face you and Betty. 
You held on to Betty’s hand tighter as some kids who couldn’t be older than eight whizzed by you. You felt your subconscious say to stick your leg out and trip them but you pushed those dark thoughts aside and tried to keep your cool.
 You kept looking at the ground just in case you saw any cracks in the ice but you still rolled your eyes at Cindy. 
“ For the last time, it was an accident. Besides, I think I look badass,” You pushed out your bottom lip and revealed the small gash from yesterday that was still healing,” I just hope Peter isn’t beating himself up about it.”
While the girls conversed with one another, Peter and Ned skated several feet away as Peter listened in on the conversation with his ‘spidey hearing’. He couldn’t help himself but when he started to feel guilty, he turned to Ned. 
“ Maybe I should go talk to her. I don’t want her to think I forgot about what happened cause I feel-”
“ Insanely guilty yes, you’ve said it almost a hundred times within the last hour,” Ned interrupted as he shook his head,” but of course she didn’t forget. She has a huge cut on her lip to remind her what happened.” 
Once again, Peter felt another wave of guilt before MJ skated beside him. He watched as your group skated further away and he felt his legs slow down. Say what you will about MJ, but she wasn’t the type to thrive off of people’s pain and suffering especially when her close friend was whining about a girl. 
“ Don’t let this get to your head Peter, but she couldn’t stop talking about you last night in the hotel room. It’s safe to say that she forgives you indefinitely,” MJ said plainly as if that wasn’t the best news Peter could’ve heard. 
Peter stopped in his tracks completely,” Are you serious? What did she say about me? Please please please tell me-”
“ Parker!” Cindy shouted as she bumped into him harshly which caused you and Betty to fall over towards Cindy.
You and Betty both fell onto your hands and knees as you thanked the universe that you didn’t smash your face in once again. 
You ignored the gasps from your friends as you tried to push yourself up with your hands. Your legs wobbled and you gave up, sinking to your knees to avoid further embarrassment.  As MJ and Cindy helped Betty up, Peter rushed over on his skates and slid over to you with his hands out. 
“ Y/N, I am the worst person in the world I’m sorry,” Peter apologized and you felt like you were having major deja vu. 
You reached up towards Peter as he lifted you back onto your feet but since he pulled you up so fast, you fell forward again, leaning up against his chest. Peter stabilized his feet and held onto your waist, making sure you didn’t take both of you down. 
You hung onto his shoulders as you pressed up against him more, your feet shifting nervously. While you could hide your blush against his chest, your friends could all see that the cold wasn’t the only thing making his face looked flushed. 
Peter’s mind was buzzing as you squeezed him tighter; oh my fucking god this is really happening right now. 
“ Y/N, um, you can open your eyes. You’re not going to fall,” Peter consoled you softly as you nodded, opening your eyes. 
You looked up at Peter and you pulled away when you realized how you were mere centimeters from his face. You let go of his shoulders and instinctively grabbed his hand instead so you didn’t fall over again. Peter looked down at you hands and gave you a reassuring squeeze. 
“ Thanks, Pete. I guess you redeemed yourself from yesterday,” You gushed as you looked down at your interlocked fingers. Even though you were both wearing gloves, you still felt weird holding his hand in front of everyone to see. 
You pulled away and awkwardly dropped your arms to the side as Mr. Harrington called out that it was time to explore the shops in the snow village. You gave one last look at Peter and smiled softly before shuffling over to the exit with Betty and Cindy. 
“ Ooooo Y/N and Peter sitting-”
You turned to Cindy and you weren’t sure if it was the soreness of your feet or how little sleep you got last night but your playful push turned into a hard one as you pushed Cindy into the snow with a soft thud. Cindy whined as you and Betty rushed to help her up to her feet. 
“ What were you saying?” Betty teased as Cindy let out a mocked laugh. 
“ Ha ha way to treat your friends.” 
After lunch, Mr. Harrington set all the students loose to look around the shops. Each had their own little gimmick like On the Edge Snowwear or Snowbunnies R Us.
You bent down to be eye level with one of the shelves that had a colorful array of snow goggles and studied the snow goggles as if it was the Mona Lisa. As you picked one up, you watched Brad come over to you from the corner of your eye but you kept your attention to the shelf. 
“ Really? Another pair of goggles? You have almost a dozen at home,” Brad said as he clicked his tongue and took the one you were holding out of your hand,” oh my god Y/N these cost more than the plane ticket!”
You grabbed the goggles back from him and shook your head,” They’re not just any goggles, they’re limited edition from the 2018 winter Olympics, see?” 
You pointed at the band on the side of the goggles and showed him the rings with the flag of South Korea beside it. 
Every student at Midtown had their own obsession; Flash was into expensive cars and was always at car shows during the weekends, Betty’s skin was always glowing because she’s completely obsessed with  Korean facemasks and feels the need to have collections of the same one, and Peter was strangely in love with Spiderman because he would always talk about how cool he was and asking everyone around him if they felt the same way. 
Your weird obsession was snowboarding and watching food ASMR videos but you decided to keep one of those things a secret. 
“ It was the year for snowboarding I mean come on, Shaun White won the most snowboarding medals at one Winter Olympics and Chloe Kim brought home the gold she’s our age!” 
You pulled out your phone and took a picture of the goggles before putting them back on the shelf. You could tell how disinterested Brad was but that didn’t stop you from taking a picture of the whole shelf altogether. 
When you stood back up, you looked across the shop and watched Peter and Ned laughing over one of the corny t-shirts on the rack. Peter felt your gaze on him but when he looked up at you, you moved your gaze to a random shelf. 
Brad looked at Peter and then back at you,” Is there something going on between you and Parker?” 
“ What makes you say that?” You asked as you walked over to the window where you watched MJ slam a pile of snow into Flash’s face. 
You knew exactly what he was asking but you had already put that embarrassment behind you and you didn’t want to relive it. 
“ You two were pretty cuddly on the ice this morning. Just be careful, I don’t want him to hurt you again.”
There was something a little harsh in Brad’s voice and you already knew something was up with him. Brad’s temper was always like rolling a pair of dice; some days nothing annoyed him while other days would set him over the edge. 
Whenever he used that voice, that meant you got the luxury of deciding how he would be handled in that place and time. 
“ Careful now, you sound a bit jealous,” You said, almost studying his face as he clenched his jaw,” what’s going on inside that head of yours Davis?” 
“ Why would I be jealous of him?” He asked bitterly as you put your hands up in defense,” I’m telling you to be careful or you’re going to end up in the medic station again.”
There was something definitely wrong but you were already so tired from this morning and decided not to fight this battle. 
“ Hey look, I’m just playing around. Is something wrong?” 
Brad ignored you, turned around, and pushed through the doors as he left you standing there in the middle of the store. You didn’t bother chasing after him because you knew how he was when he was annoyed. Besides, you were on this trip to have fun, not babysit. 
 You looked around the store and when you made eye contact with Peter again, you decided to put your embarrassment aside and walk over to him. 
“ I couldn’t help but notice your burning gaze from across the room,” You teased as Peter laughed,” tell me, do you come here often?” 
He was glad that there was nothing awkward between the two of you, especially considering what had happened this morning with how close the two of you were. He set down the snowglobe he picked up and stuffed his hands in his pocket, trying to get the image out of his head before his whole face turned red. 
“ Oh sure. I love spending my free time at a store called Tis the Ski-son boutique.”
He followed you as you both walked out of the store side by side, leaving with no other purchases. Peter wrapped his scarf around him tighter, even though he was slightly embarrassed for being cold (which of course didn’t make any sense) while you breathed in the cool air. 
You watched your feet as you listened to the snow crunch from underneath you, almost getting lost in an icy trance. 
Time always felt slower when it snowed outside and yet, this trip was going by so fast. You only had a few more days left before the trip would be over and you knew you would miss it already. 
You watched Peter who looked so uncomfortable out in the cold and tried to find a store to settle in for a bit. 
“ Edgewater Cafe has really good hot chocolate if you want to check it out?” You offered as Peter nodded his head, almost too eagerly. 
You and Peter had quickly shuffled over to the cafe and once you got inside, you could feel Peter melt beside you, feeling at peace in the warm coco shop. When you ordered for the both of you, Peter insisted that he paid and even slapped your hand away while you tried to give the cashier your card. 
He claimed it was his treat but you both knew it was a way to apologize for both yesterday and today’s events. 
Peter found a quiet area in the corner and sat on one side of the couch as you took the other. You both brought the cup to your lips at the same time but you watched him as he took a small sip with his eyes closed. 
“ So, what do you think?” You asked as you took a sip, savoring the rich chocolate. 
Peter nodded and took another sip before putting resting the cup back onto his thigh,” Okay, it’s not bad but I wouldn’t say it’s the best.” 
“ Oh come on! Where else can you get hot chocolate this gourmet?” 
“ If by gourmet you mean a cocoa mix with boiling water then yeah, I guess it is gourmet.”
You shook your head at him as you took another sip, not caring what he thought. You watched Peter as he rubbed his finger up and down against the cup as if he was deep in thought.
Out of nowhere, Peter’s heart started to race and he was glad that you couldn’t tell the difference. It finally hit him that you two were hanging out alone, which rarely ever happened unless you two were doing a school project or shared the same subway home. 
You felt this too and decided to break the tension,” This isn’t weird, right? Like us hanging out? Alone?” 
Yes. 
“ No, why would it be weird?” Peter asked as his voice cracked slightly. 
You shrugged and took another sip before putting the cup down on the table. This was definitely weird but for some reason, you didn’t mind. You had a pretty good radar on people and Peter never seemed like a creep so you felt at ease. 
“ I don’t know to be honest. We’re classmates but I never really knew if we were friends or not,” You admitted as you watched Peter’s smile fall,” I mean, do you want to be friends with me?”
You shook your head and laughed, your mind processing what you had just offered,” I know that sounds childish like we’re in kindergarten or something but yeah, I guess what I’m saying is that I think we should be friends. Does that sound childish?” 
Peter didn’t know what to think. He felt like he had just gotten friend-zoned but on the other hand, being friends was a step up from what you two originally were. 
Of course, Peter wanted to just spill everything about his not so small crush on you but relationships take time. If he had to wait and be friends with you, he would gladly take that. 
“ It does sound childish..but yeah. I want to be friends with you,” Peter said as you both shared a sweet smile,” does this mean we have to make friendship bracelets or something?”
“ I’m two steps ahead of you Pete,” You picked up your cup which was almost empty by now and lifted it up towards Peter,” how about a toast...to new friendships.” 
Peter lifted his cup and pressed it against yours as his heart slammed against his ribcage,” To new friendships.” 
@yeahimcrying @greatpizzascissorstaco @mysticalbanshee @weyheyavengers @infinityflamesworld @peterparkoure @fandom-fangirl22​ @holland-in-disguise
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the-13th-rose · 2 years
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Nago & the Demon - Chapter 4 ~ Nyago & the Snake Part 1
After accidentally bumping into a very irritable wizard, Nago and Demongo are transformed into animals. In trying to regain their normal forms, they are captured, and must fight in an underground Creature Combat ring...
I’ve opted to only include disclaimers for obvious triggers (unless otherwise requested), so just be aware that this fic is for an adult or *mature* teen audience, because of occasional scenes of heavy violence and, I dunno, language? There’s more animal death in this one.
(this is a reupload because tumblr appears to have eaten the original posts. or maybe I deleted them, it’s been so long I can’t remember)
Word count: 3,219
The pair coughed as the red smoke cleared.
The dust stung at Nago's eyes. She sneezed, and rubbed at her eyes with one hand. Yet, something gave her pause. Did her hand feel...softer than usual?
No, not just softer...hairier.
The dust in her eyes forgotten, Nago's eyes snapped open. She must have been much lower to the ground, because everything suddenly looked much taller. Dreading what she would see, Nago turned her head towards her feet.
She was met with the sight of white fur covering her entire body. Her hands weren't hands at all anymore, but rather paws. Her hackles raised as she realized what had happened.
A startled, sharp hiss sounded from right behind her. She turned to see...a black snake? It only took one look at the serpent's electric blue eyes for everything to click into place in Nago's mind.
"Demongo?"
He blinked twice, and seemed to recognize her as well. "Nago?!" His tail moved somewhat, and startled, his head snapped around to stare at it. "What's going on?! Where are my limbs?!" His head snapped back again to face her. "And why are you a cat?!"
Nago's ears folded back. "So that's what I am. I had a feeling." She muttered, before shaking her head. "Calm down. This isn't going to solve anything." She said this with a paw pressed against his forehead to hush him. "That man you bumped into was the danger I was trying to warn you about when we first entered the city. He's got a hair-trigger temper, and turns anyone who upsets him even slightly into an animal."
She paused, thinking. "Though...last time I was here, I could've sworn he only did chickens." She shrugged. "Guess he's branching out."
Again, he blinked at her in disbelief. "You certainly could have told me about him!" He hissed, enraged. Nago noted the sudden appearance of a red flap of skin that stretched out from both sides of his neck. He wasn't just a snake, he was a cobra.
"I told you," She hissed in reply. "that you needed to stay close to me! That was all you needed to know! Besides, I was worried that talking about him too much would bring bad luck...Not that avoiding talking about him did much good, either."
"Fine." He spat. "If you're the expert, here, how do we undo this?!"
"We have to get zapped by that wizard a second time." Nago took his face in her paws and roughly turned him around. "If you'll shut up and follow me, we might still catch him."
Yet before they could make a move to follow the wizard, something slams down on them from above. Looking around rapidly, startled, Nago saw that they'd been caged. Thin bars of iron surrounded them on all sides. She arched her back and pressed her ears back against her skull out of a newfound instinctual response. "This...isn't good." She hissed, as her partner panicked beside her.
"Such fabulous beasts, loose on the streets of this old city? It must be my lucky day." A voice said to them suddenly. It sounded as though it belonged to a prim and proper–likely wealthy as well–young adult woman. After looking upward through the bars of the cage, Nago was able to confirm this theory with her own eye. The newly-turned cat backed away from the bars when the woman knelt down to their level and eyed them closely. "I can just tell...you two are going to make me a star."
...
The strange, well-dressed woman had placed the caged pair into the back of a limousine. She'd said nothing to her chauffeur, whom neither of the newly-turned animals had gotten a good look at. And without another word, they were off, transported against their will to some unknown destination.
There was a sort of smooth jazz song playing quietly over the radio inside the limo, which was suddenly interrupted by a hissing cry of alarm from Demongo. Nago turned to face him, her furry brow arched.
"I tried to squeeze through the bars." He explained, his voice still tinged with irritation. "There's some sort of electric field between them."
Nago felt her ears lie flat against her skull again. "Great. So escape in the usual way is out of the question." She remarked, her irritated tone matching his quite well. "We'll have to think of something else."
"Have you any idea where she might be taking us?" He asked her. His face bore a worried expression, which was rather uncharacteristic for a snake, the likes of which rarely if ever emoted in such a way. Nago began to wonder if such actions might be enough to convince their captor that they weren't really animals...and if she'd even let them go if she knew. "She's not...planning on eating us, is she?"
"...She's definitely rich, so it's possible she might be planning on eating us. Cobra's probably a rare delicacy somewhere on this planet, but cat?" She shook her head. "Eating them is considered low-class in a lot of places. So I doubt she's planning on eating us. Besides...she said something about us making her a star..." Nago's eyes grew wide suddenly as realization struck her. "...I think I know where she's taking us."
"Where?!" His new hood flared outward somewhat.
"This city houses a huge underground animal fighting ring." Nago began. "I didn't mention it earlier because I didn't think it would be relevant to our trip here, but alas..." She trailed off for a moment, before continuing. "Not much is known about it to outsiders, but from what I've heard, few animals ever escape from it. Still...rumor has it that Samurai Jack was once forced to fight there, as a chicken, of all things. If he survived it, we can, too."
"The Samurai is an unstoppable fighting machine! Of course he survived!" Demongo hissed. "But the two of us...!"
"Are you calling yourself weak?" Nago interjected.
He grimaced somewhat, and cast his gaze to the ground. "I see no reason to lie in a time like this..."
Nago shook her head. "No." She flexed her claws, her attempt at getting perhaps a bit of practice in at fighting as a cat before they would be forced to fight for their lives against other trained creatures. "We are not weak. We'll survive this. I always have before, and I won't accept having come this far just to die in a dirty hole like a rat." She glared at him. "And you're not going to die, either. Not if I can help it."
The former demon swallowed hard.
"Follow my lead, Demongo. We'll survive this. I promise."
...
After some time, the limo came to a stop, and Nago gave her demonic ally a determined look and a single nod, as the woman took their cage from the back of the vehicle.
While she carried them into the building ahead, Nago began speaking to Demongo, calling his attention away from the environment of the building itself and the audience gathered within. "Demongo. Commit everything I say now to your memory." She waited for him to meet her gaze before continuing. "Your current form isn't any ordinary snake, it's a cobra. If I know anything about them at all, it's that their fangs contain a deadly venom. But it'll need time to work. If you can get in close and bite our opponents, I can distract them long enough for your venom to run its course. If we do this together, we can win."
"...You're afraid. I can tell." Nago said to him then, stepping a little bit closer. "You've never fought anyone with just your own skills before, have you? Used to relying on the power of others, right?" She tried to show him a reassuring smile, but it probably didn't quite look like one, with her being a cat and all. "Like I said, do as I say, and we'll survive this together."
Their cage was slowly lowered into the arena below. She stood up, every sense suddenly alert. "I'll protect you as much as I can, but you have to help me." At last, she saw him nod.
And then the door to the cage opened, allowing them to leave its confines and step out onto the metal floor of the arena. Above them, the woman who'd brought them there stood in front of the rest of the audience, flanked by a pair of burly bodyguards. She had black hair in a sort of bob cut, and she wore a gold headband with a single white feather that stood up from the center. All in all, she was dressed like a flapper, with a white feather and fur coat draped over her. She was smiling widely, and judging by the way she was dressed compared to the rest of the audience, it was clear she was showing off. Her bodyguards were plain in appearance aside from their impressive bulk, and their pinstripe suits.
The audience was placing stacks of money into a basket. Bets, Nago realized. Though she couldn't tell of course which were betting against them and which were betting in their favor.
On the other side of the arena, another cage was lowered down to their level. The door opened, and out stepped...some manner of canine, yet alien, creature. It was blue in color, and its green eyes were positioned on snail-like eyestalks. Its tail curled upward, with a cluster of three spikes at the tip. It was snarling at them, drool dripping from its maw.
"Remember the plan." Nago said yet again. "I distract it, and you sneak up behind and bite it."
"I hadn't thought of you as a killer." The demon mused, perhaps trying to hide his nerves. "Aren't you too good for that?"
She shot him a glare. "I'm not a killer when I can afford not to be. But right now, I don't think we have much of a choice."
"Then perhaps you are wiser than I thought."
"Shut it." She hissed back. She was starting to prefer his earlier cowardly persona.
The dog-creature snapped its jaws, and started to approach. Nago took this as her cue to start distracting the creature. She puffed out her fur and yowled, making herself a larger target and one seemingly more of a threat to the creature.
And it worked. The creature barked at her and lunged towards her, its jaws snapping shut. She leapt over it and perched on a narrow ledge upon the nearest wall. She yowled at the creature again, and brought out her claws, swiping at the creature's eyes when it got close enough to snap at her again. The creature reeled back with a whine, pawing at its eyes.
Nago took this moment to look for her partner, and spotted him behind the creature, following its movements with his head. He didn't appear to know where to strike. "Go for a leg!" Nago called to him. She saw him rear back, poised to strike, and then...
The creature's tail smacked him aside. "Crap!" Nago impulsively remarked, watching as the creature's tail stretched far past its original length. The creature blindly swung it around the arena, and Nago managed to leap over it just in time. She landed on the floor of the arena again, ducking as the tail swung back again. She stayed pressed to the floor, and called out. "Demongo! Stay low to the ground when you try again!"
"Way ahead of you, mortal!" The demon called back, and Nago saw that he was slithering back to the creature with his body pressed to the ground. He didn't rear back this time, instead lunging for the nearest leg and sinking his fangs in.
The creature yelped, shaking its leg and dislodging its attacker, who fell back onto the floor rather gracelessly. Responding to the attack, the creature turned around and blindly snapped its jaws, just narrowly missing its target.
Demongo made a sort of startled hiss, and scrambled to get away from the creature—well, about as quickly as he could manage without limbs. He retreated back to Nago's side, and the two remained pressed flat against the floor until the creature finally succumbed to the venom and fell over, dead.
The pair slowly stood back up, as the audience cheered. Nago scowled up at them. "Vultures." She hissed.
Demongo, on the other hand, seemed far less bothered by the situation now. In fact, Nago would swear he was basking in the praise from the audience. She glared at him, but decided not to say anything. She still needed his cooperation, she couldn't afford to start a fight with him now.
Above the pit, the woman who'd captured them seemed to be basking in it as well. Her smile took up nearly half her face, or so Nago would swear. She reached for the basket, but one voice interrupted her.
"Not so fast, Blanche. That wasn't the only challenger here today." The audience parted to reveal a grizzled man, dressed in leather and wearing a necklace of snake's teeth. He was carrying a cage of his own.
The woman, now known as Blanche, scowled. "Fine. Anyone else?" She called. No one else stepped forward. "Good." She said. "Let's get this over with, hm? Remember, no one's allowed to take back their bets!"
"Great." Nago muttered. "From the looks of him, this guy either trains snakes, or kills them. I don't exactly want to fight another venomous snake like you," She said to Demongo, trying to call his attention back to the coming battle. "and if he's the other thing, then we'll have to deal with something that's been trained to kill snakes like you."
They didn't have long to wonder. The door to the cage opened, and out stepped their opponent...a long-bodied, brown-furred creature, with gray stripes decorating its back. Its eyes were yellow, and glimmered with intelligence. These eyes were fixed on Demongo.
Nago swore under her breath. "It just had to be a mongoose. And one who's probably been trained to fight venomous snakes its whole life, if its trainer is any indication."
"...So what is your plan?" The demon asked her, having slunk behind her somewhat already.
"You need to protect your neck." Nago told him. "It's the first thing it'll go for. That's the killing blow, if it hits you."
"Is that it?!" He responded in disbelief. "That's your plan?!"
"It's a work in progress." Nago replied. "Watch me and listen. Do as I do, and as I say. Otherwise, I don't think you'll come out of this arena in one piece." She could have sworn he whimpered a little.
The mongoose leapt forward with a hiss. Nago stood firm, and waited for it to get within inches of her, before she swiped at its face with her claws outstretched. The mongoose still wound up barreling into her, but at least its head was turned away. Nago moved quickly to avoid being within biting range when it got up, and she nonverbally signaled for Demongo to do the same.
In the next instant, the mongoose got up and lunged at its preferred target–-the snake–-but Nago managed to hold it back by clamping her teeth shut on its tail. The creature turned and swiped at her, snarling, hissing, and spitting. She was forced to release it just to get to safety. Nago scrambled backward, swiping at the creature as she fled. It took the bait, and followed after her, ignoring her partner for the moment. Nago smiled despite the terror of the moment. "That's right, follow me." She taunted between swipes.
She baited the mongoose for some time, waiting for her partner to play his part. Just as she was beginning to worry, and the mongoose began to get a little too close for comfort between swipes, she saw the cobra sneaking up on it from behind, just out of the corner of her eye. And in the next moment, he struck.
She smiled again, and gave the mongoose one last full-effort smack with the back of her paw. Yet she soon came to regret her impulsive act, because such motion had knocked the mongoose's head back to within eye level of Demongo.
Its eyes snapped open in an instant, and before Nago could call out a warning to her partner, it turned on him in retaliation just as the alien canine had before. This time, however, Demongo didn't manage to squirm away from its snapping jaws. The mongoose sank its needle-like teeth into the cobra's neck, and tore him from its hide. His mouth hung open in a breathless scream.
"No!" Nago cried, something she hadn't exactly planned or expected to say. She leapt onto the mongoose's body and tried to reach its head before it could slam her partner against the floor in the aim of breaking his neck. She managed to reach its head just before it swung him downward, and pressed her claws into its face until it released him by manner of reflex. The demon's limp body fell only a short distance to the floor.
The mongoose snapped furiously, snarling, and trying to buck Nago off of its back. She held on tight, determined not to let go until it succumbed. It managed to throw her off, sending her tumbling to the floor beside it. Within moments it was upon her, and she was forced onto her back, her legs pressed against it to keep it from tearing her belly open.
At last, the animal's movements slowed, and finally stopped entirely. The creature switched from hissing and spitting to gasping for breath and choking. Nago took this as her signal to kick the stiff animal off of her, and she scrambled to her feet, panting and with her new fur standing on end. She paid the cheering crowd no mind. In fact, she hardly even heard them.
The trainer of the snake swore loudly above her, and the newly-turned cat turned sharply to face the noise.
"Hey, weren't the bets over whether both of her creatures won or lost?" One person in the audience spoke up.
"Shut up!" Another snapped back.
"No, he's got a point. Only one of them's still standing, so what does that mean? Which side gets the cash?"
"Maybe we split it?"
"Why would we ever do that?"
Nago tore over to the spot on the floor where the mongoose had left her ally. He was still motionless, a small puddle of blue spreading out from the bite wound on his neck.
She pawed at him gently, trying to wake him. "Please get up..." She found herself saying. "Get up..."
The demon's tail squirmed a bit, and he groaned as he came to. He seemed perhaps startled by the sight of his own blood.
"Hey, you're not dead, so it can't be too bad, right?" Nago offered a bit of reassurance, though she wasn't too confident herself, either. She put one of her legs under his chin and lifted him. "Lean on me if you need to."
She was paying no mind to the noise from the audience. Above them, Nago saw Blanche's scowl turn into a smile. She doubted the woman would notice, but Nago shot her a glare anyway, out of pure spite.
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Whumptober: Sticks And Stones May Break My Bones But...
When their friends had questions, it was usually a normal question; “How are you?” “What’s going on?” “Do you guys need anything?” But sometimes, it was something more touchy, and definitely something harder to talk about. Such as the scar on Raph’s face, reaching from the edge of his jawline down to right above his plastron.
None of them wanted to talk about it, obviously, but when Casey or April set their mind to something, they were determined to succeed.
Michelangelo, when asked, smirked, started to tell the story, then dodged the question with some kind of prank or a distraction, brushing it off with light-hearted jokes and fun times.
Donatello got flustered, stammering and trying to find something to say before mumbling about a project he needed to get done and locking himself away in his lab.
Leonardo reacted far more calmly, meeting their gaze and saying that he was supposed to be doing something, he needed to train, needed to sharpen his swords, he was really overwhelmed and wanted to meditate, had to help one of his brothers with something, and for the most part, he was telling the truth. For the most part, they left him alone afterwards.
Of course, for obvious reasons, they never went to Raphael himself to ask him about it, most likely believing it to be something sensitive to him.
And, sure, he was thankful, but sometimes it got frustrating. Seriously, why couldn’t they just ask? It wasn’t like he’d be sad about it, he thought the scar was cool.
See, it went something like this-
%%%
They were thirteen, a reasonable age to be getting into trouble. At that age, the lair was never quiet, somebody always up to something.
This time, Michelangelo was being an idiot. He pulled a prank on Raphael, and, even though it was just meant to be fun, had accidentally brought the wrath of the hot-head upon him.
Per usual, that prank ended with Michelangelo getting chased down by the second oldest and screaming at the top of his lungs while trying to gather up pillows as he went by the couch to defend himself. Raphael, being bigger and faster than the proclaimed youngest, tackled him down to the floor in a decking that would’ve made any hockey player proud.
Also per usual, it was up to Leonardo to interfere, getting a hold of Raphael and, quite literally, dragging him off of Michelangelo while he screeched about something unintelligible.
But, Raphael did not need Leonardo trying to soothe his frayed nerves right then, he was an inferno at the moment, and only wanted violence.
“Oh my God!” Raphael exclaimed, elbowing Leonardo in the shin to the best of his ability, “Do you mind? You’re not better than us, Golden Boy! Stop acting like you are!”
“Wh-” Leonardo blinked a couple times, clearly astonished by this outburst, then yelled back, “I am not! I don’t act like that, I’m just trying to keep you from beating the living crap out of Mikey!”
“Then why don’t you fight me? You’re acting pretty confident right now.”
Splinter, in the background, watched on, silent, to see how they would react to the fight within the team, even as Leonardo looked to him for help with Raphael’s temper.
There was a long-suffering sigh as Raphael’s struggles died down and Leonardo’s grip loosened before he nodded in agreement.
"Fine, Bonehead.”
Raphael let out a victorious laugh and wiggled up to his feet, marching off to the dojo while Leonardo rubbed his temples to ward off the rapidly approaching headache before following shortly after.
When Leonardo got there, Raphael already had his sai out, twirling them and wearing a crooked grin as he waited for Leonardo to draw his swords.
“Raph, you frickin' idiot.”
Raphael only smiled wider and crouched, delighted when Leonardo mirrored his movements with an exasperated sigh.
As soon as the elder was ready, he lurched forward, slamming into Leonardo full-force. The blue-clad grunted from the weight of the other, then pushed back with his katanas to shove Raphael off of him.
Chasing after the younger brother, Leonardo brought the katanas down in a long slice to force Raphael to raise up his own weapons so that he could catch the attack, trying to force him into a corner and keep him on his toes, moving faster so that the hothead wouldn’t even have the time to strike back.
Raphael struggled, trying to dart in and get a good hit at Leonardo, but he definitely hadn’t expected Leonardo to be so serious about this fight. Then- He saw his opening, Leonardo made the mistake of leaving his right side open for an attack, and he took the chance.
Raphael darted forward, slamming the hilt of one of his sais into the other’s side, and grinning when Leonardo staggered, a short gasp leaving him. Now the tables had turned, and Leonardo was getting forced up against a wall by the hothead. Back, back, back and-!
The hothead froze and hopped back as a katana went flying by his head. He watched as it embedded itself into the wall, almost up to the hilt, and forgot all about the spar until he was going down, the other blade still held by his brother, and pressed to his throat.
Leo had the audacity to smirk after that unfair win, before he pulled the sword away.
“Really, Raph, if you were so intent on winning, you would’ve kept your eyes on me, and not the loose katana-”
The mentioned brother grit his teeth as Leonardo taunted him, then stood up and glared like he wished he could kill the other with his eyes.
“This is what I’m talking about! You’re acting like you’re better than me right now, like you wouldn’t have done the same! I just-” Raphael cut off in a wordless scream, grabbing the sides of his head before turning on his heel and storming out. He didn’t care where, he just had to be out of the lair.
There was a certain area they couldn’t go past without explicit permission from Splinter, but it was far from home, so he went there, looking for somewhere far, far away that would allow him to calm down.
And. There was a ladder. They weren’t supposed to go up to the surface, but it was even farther and-
No, no. He was not supposed to go up, so he wouldn't. Raphael looked away and started pacing, hands curled into tight fists, but, his gaze drifted back to that ladder, then up to the manhole.
What the- He grit his teeth and silently scolded himself for considering it again. He really needed to move away from that thing if it was going to be a temptation-
He looked back, one more time, and sighed. It would just be a short trip to the surface, nothing quick or serious. Once he had calmed down, he would come back into the sewers, go home, and everything would be alright.
Raphael grabbed one of the rungs of the ladder and glanced up before slowly beginning to climb, testing how sturdy it was before moving up higher.
After an experimental push at the manhole cover, he was pleased to see that it went up without a problem. And, as he slowly crawled out, he paused to gape. The sky was almost black, lit up by a dim orange, but the city itself was brighter than the moon, lights sparkling like stars.
He was taken aback, mouth half open before he realized that he shouldn't just linger there. So, he crawled out, slowly set the manhole cover back in its place, and stood straight up. But once he was done gawking at the surface, his anger came back full force. What a way to ruin his moment of peace.
He tested the fire escape to his right first to make sure it wouldn't fall apart as soon as he tried to pull himself up, then went racing up it to get to the top. Raphael breathed in deep, enjoying the cool breeze from the rooftop before beginning to pace, muttering about his insufferable brother.
And then, there were some dudes cackling. That shouldn't have been so alarming, but something in Raphael screamed that it was wrong, he needed to go see it. 
As Raphael approached the edge of the building, he squinted at the people below, and immediately felt the rage boil up in him. It was four grown men harassing one girl. From the looks of it, they were mugging her.
His lip curled up in a snarl as he felt around his belt, looking for a kunai or throwing star or something like that. Once he had it, he tossed it down and heard it clatter. The men turned to look, giving the girl a chance to run, and after they had realized it was a weapon, they glanced up to where he was hiding, although they couldn't see him yet.
"Who's there?" One of them growled, one with a big, winding tattoo over his neck and right shoulder.
Raphael dropped down, not thinking clearly about the odds of the battle. After all, he had been training all his life, what could they do?
One or two of them paused, eyes widening at the sight of him before shaking the initial shock off, getting ready. The others were already stanced up, ready for a fight.
...Needless to say, it went badly. They were many, he was alone. They were adults and he was barely even a teenager. He was way in over his head, and ended up held down by a pair of them while one looked him over, and the other examined his sai. 
"Jesus..." The one to his left muttered, looking him over while he kicked and writhed.
"This thing," The dude in front of him, Tattoo Guy, crouched and reached his hand out, "Is ugly as-"
He yelled and pulled his hand back as Raph reached forward and snapped at his hand.
"Stupid-" he growled, rubbing his hand. Then, he turned to the dude still holding Raph's sai and held his hand out, "Hey, hand me one of those, aight? I'm gonna teach it a lesson for bothering us."
Raphael's stomach dropped, a chill running down his spine. He thrashed harder as the weapons were exchanged, trying to get away, they were gonna hurt him-
"Hold it still, don't wanna kill it."
Somebody grabbed his head, restraining him and forcing him to look up. He squeezed his eyes shut as the weapon was raised, and-!
A scream tore its way from his throat as they carved it through his skin, leaving a burning cut from his jawline to the tip of his plastron. Raphael began to writhe, pushing against them as they stood up and kept their grip on him. Somebody kicked him and then he was getting dragged along the concrete and shoved into the back of a truck.
He could hear them laughing while he shrunk into a corner, shivering and afraid.
Were they- Were they gonna take him? He should have just stayed home, then he could've avoided this whole mess-
They cackled in the front of the truck, he could hear them through the wall, and the engine started up before they started driving. He wasn't entirely sure how long it had been, but eventually, they stopped and the doors to the back opened.
Raphael got grabbed roughly by the arm, their grip tightening almost to a crushing point as they dragged him out, into the back alley, and then kicked him down.
Those sadists were definitely having fun with it, throwing him down and kicking him around while he was injured and unarmed. When they got bored and finished up, they opened up a manhole (his gateway to home, yes!) and threw him down inside before closing the cover after him and leaving.
He hit the ground hard, his shell contacting the concrete with a sickening thud, and knocking the air right from his lungs.
Raphael blinked, chest heaving even though nothing would enter his lungs. He laid there for a long moment, stunned from the fall, bruises throbbing and blood running down his face.
He. He didn’t want to go home, he realized after air started entering his body again.
Sure, there was help there, and it was definitely safe, but he didn’t want to have to face the others injured. Besides, they weren’t supposed to be going up to the surface, he knew that rule as well as any of his brothers.
Instead, he slowly propped himself up on his arms, taking deep breaths to try and get rid of the last of the shock from falling before standing shakily. Raphael teetered for a moment, and he had to brace himself on the wall to avoid falling back down. Once steady, he wandered over to the part of the sewers that he knew he had been supposed to stay in.
When he was safe, and somewhere that he supposed people wouldn’t find him, he raised a hand to touch the injury, wincing and pulling his hand away immediately after. Jeez- That was a lot of blood. Hadn’t Donatello said something about how much heads bleed? Maybe the nerd had actually said something useful for once.
Then he realized that there were footsteps and froze before pressing himself up against the wall, looking for a hiding place, somewhere he wouldn’t get caught-
“Raph?”
Oh. It was- It was just Leonardo. Of course it was just Leonardo, because he was always the one who found them first.
“What are you doing here?” he asked, voice impossibly soft, because it was Leonardo.
“Go away,” Raphael rasped, still holding the bleeding side of his face, “I don’t wanna see you right now.”
“Raph, look at me.”
“No.”
“I said look at me-!”
Leonardo grabbed Raphael, and before the younger of the two could even react, he had been turned around to face the oldest, and he knew that Leonardo could see the blood now, he could see the bruises and scrapes, and shoot, he looked concerned. Raphael could only feel bad, because now his brother went looking for him, already worried, just to find him hurt.
“Oh,” Leonardo said dumbly, probably at a loss for words, “I see.”
“It’s really nothin’ to be worried ‘bout, Leo. It’s not deep-”
Leonardo tightened his grip on Raphael’s shoulder to shut him up, meeting his gaze clearly. “You realize how long you’ve been gone? You left an hour ago, Raph. We all went looking for you, and we couldn’t find you, because there’s not much to be seen in this little space of sewer. Mikey got cold, Donnie had to check on something, and I stayed, I kept looking for you and even asked for permission to go further in the sewers, just in case.
And then? I found blood, Raph, I found your blood, leading here. You freaking scared me, I thought you were really hurt, or worse!”
And of course, Leonardo found his blood, that hyper-aware son of a gun- The nicknamed “Fearless” was afraid, for him- And his brother was still going, now bombarding him with questions about it.
“Who did this to you? Where are they? How’d this happen? You need to see Sensei or Don, are you alright? You look pale, we really need to get back, everybody is worried and-”  Leonardo cut off as Raphael sniffled, looking down and not at him anymore.
He rubbed his eyes, sniffled again, and then sobbed, crumpling down and taking Leonardo with him as he cried.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry-! I just-” he gasped for air between the sobs, a low whine leaving him before he kept going, “I got so angry, and I didn’t want to stay down here, I felt trapped and I went up to the surface,” Leonardo's eyes widened, but he didn't say anything, thankfully, letting the younger tell his story, “I- I got up to a roof and I heard these dudes laughing, they were mugging this girl, Leo! They were gonna hurt her so- So I interfered, and I know you’re gonna say that was risky but I couldn’t just do nothing! They ganged up and took me down, and kicked me around some to rub it in,” he doesn’t mention that they were hurtful verbally, too. That part wasn’t important, “Then- Then they dumped me back in the sewers about a mile or two back, and I came here.”
He realized that Leonardo was digging his fingers into his own thigh, eye ridges furrowed as his jaw tensed. He was angry, and Raphael couldn't help but wonder-
“Are you mad at me..?”
Leonardo paused, and his facial expression relaxed. In fact, he almost looked hurt by the question, gaze softening as he looked Raphael over.
After a long moment of silence, he answered, his conviction clear in his answer, “...Not at you, I’m not angry at you, I’m the one who made you go up in the first place. I’m angry at them. They’re stupid and cruel, and you’re one of the coolest people I know.”
“...Leo, you only know four people.”
“Shut up and take the compliment before I take it back.”
Raphael sniffled again and then laughed softly, shoulders shaking from it. “Alright, fine, fine. I know I’m cool, anyway.”
Leonardo grinned, wide and happy, and Raphael was a little relieved that the other was feeling better. He was, too, he realized. Somehow, that dork had managed to cheer him up (and he’d have to thank him for it later, but not verbally. He’d find something nice or Space Heroes-related and leave it in his room for him).
“I’ll be right back,” Leonardo said suddenly, standing up and racing off.
Raphael paused, confused at the sudden disappearance of his brother. What the..? But he didn’t leave, he just leaned back and waited, picking at the bandages on his hands while he waited. When Leonardo returned, it was with some bandages, water, and disinfectant, and he was beaming, proud of what he had done.
Without speaking, he crouched back down, cleaning up the injury to keep it from infecting. Raphael hissed and winced from the sting as it fizzed, but he made sure to be nice and still while Leonardo worked on bandaging him up.
But, as he was finishing up- “I’m gonna kill those people..” Leonardo had muttered it, just barely loud enough for Raphael to hear, but it was definitely concerning to hear.
“Wait- What?” he had to double-check to make sure that he had heard the other correctly.
“What ‘what’? I didn’t say anything, we need to get home anyway. I’m sure if you’re honest, Splinter won’t be too harsh with the punishment for going up,” Leonardo brushed that off way too casually, standing up.
“No wait-” Raphael stammered, hopping up after him.
“I said, let’s go home, Raph.”
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hermadnessmacwrites · 3 years
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A Game of Puzzles (Making the Pieces Fit) Chapter 4
Summary: With the war over and Sasuke home again, Sakura is more hopeful for Team 7’s future than she has been in a long time. She’s quickly disappointed to find that nothing in the Village fits quite like it used to—not her old bedroom, not her clothes, and definitely not Team 7. Join Sakura as she scrambles to understand her place in this new team dynamic.
If she has a place there at all.
-OR-
It takes three dorks a painfully long time after moving in together to realize that they all belong together.
It’s the first time Sakura remembers October 10th ever being this...jovial.
The streets are always crowded this time of year, but the laughter seems oddly out of place. Gone are the mournful monochromatic clothes she’s used to. Everything she looks at—the clothes, the storefronts, the people—is so bright she has to work to avoid squinting.
“Oooh, Sakura, look, there’s a dango stand!”
Brightest of all is Naruto. He’s actually wearing less orange than usual, having been convinced into a pair of dark tan pants, but his expression more than makes up for the loss. Each street vendor and colored lantern is taken in with equal amounts of awe. He looks like a kid at his first birthday party, which…
...it’s a painfully accurate description. Sakura tries not to think about it.
“Didn’t you just eat like five bowls of ramen?” she teases. Naruto opens his mouth and closes it, looking for an excuse, but Sakura elbows him lightly in the side. “Just kidding, let’s go grab some. I heard they were going to add a new flavor today, too.”
Naruto’s eyes widen comically. “For me? Really?”
“Of course it’s for you,” Sasuke cuts in from behind them. Walking three across really isn’t possible in these crowds, but, like most genin teams, Team 7 feels most comfortable navigating public spaces in a loose triangle formation. “It’s not like Konoha has anything else to celebrate today, right?”
The pointed question isn’t lost on Naruto, who visibly deflates. Sakura spins to glare at Sasuke and catches a flash of a frown as his gaze drops to the pavement. It’s not Naruto that Sasuke is annoyed with, but that’s exactly who he’s hurting with his bitterness. It doesn’t take much for Naruto to swing to extreme sadness when he’s this happy, which Sasuke knows. She had hoped he would mind his temper today.
“Hey.” Sakura draws Naruto’s hand into hers and gives him her best smile. “Why don’t you take Mr. Killjoy and find a spot to sit for a bit. I’ll bring the dango over, okay?”
Naruto’s smile starts small, but quickly grows as she holds his hand.
“Yeah, I’ll keep him out of trouble,” he agrees, “Could you grab a couple different flavors?”
“As many as I can carry,” she assures him. Sakura sends one last pleading look at Sasuke before they disappear. She’s pretty sure he rolls his eyes at her, which isn’t exactly a promise to behave, but it does mean that he got the message. Probably. Hopefully.
Once Naruto is out of view, Sakura takes a quick second to get her emotions back in check. Sasuke’s right. The Village’s abrupt one eighty in its treatment of Naruto grates her nerves if she lets herself think about it for too long. They’d gone from disdain to reverence in the span of six months. Technically this is a festival celebrating the end of the war, but there’s been a fair amount of Uzumaki branded treats and well-wishes from strangers as well.
At least she had apologized.
A couple deep breaths later, Sakura’s pushing through the crowds towards the stand. There’s a line forming, but the vendor calls Sakura forward as soon as he sees her. Embarrassed, Sakura ducks her head in a small apology to the people in line as she moves past them. She doesn’t want to make more of a scene than she already is, and she really wants to get back to her team as soon as she can.
“Could I get two Hanami dango, a mitarashi dango, and a”—she cranes her neck to get a better look at the name of the new flavor from the poster on the side of the cart—“and one Uzumaki dango, please?”
“Absolutely! Would you like a Team 7 dango as well?”
“Oh!” There’s nothing about a Team 7 dango on the sign. Is that actually a thing? Did he make that up when he saw her? “Um, yes, please. Thank you.”
By the time Sakura’s done counting out her coins, the dango are being shoved towards her. She scrambles to put her money pouch away and grab her sweets without holding up the line any longer. Four of the dango end up in one hand while a white, pink, and orange dango ends up in the other. It takes her a second to realize that this is supposed to be the Team 7 dango. The anger kicks in a second later.
To be fair to the vendor, she’s never actually seen blue dango before. Then again, she’s never seen a red habanero dango before today, and that’s definitely one of the flavors on the Uzumaki stick. Choosing the white dango for Kakashi feels like a dig at Sasuke. Sakura bites the orange dumpling off the stick and chews furiously. There. Now it just looks like a partially eaten Hanami dumpling.
That “Team 7” roll better not be on the actual menu. For the vendor’s sake.
Sakura finds Naruto and Sasuke sitting on top of one of the tables in an eating area, of all places. She has no idea who’s idea that was. It’s an extremely rude thing to do with so many people looking for seats, but Sakura doesn’t really want to be joined by the type of people who are deterred by her teammates’ antics right now.
Naruto spots her first and starts waving wildly—as if she could have missed the pair of them. Sasuke turns to see who has caught Naruto’s attention. When he recognizes her, he pulls one of his legs off the bench and onto the table so she’ll have a place to sit. Naruto follows his lead, pulling both his feet off the bench and into a criss-cross position. So they were trying to deter people from sitting with them.
She’s not even mad.
“One mitarashi dango, one hanami dango, and one Uzumaki dango,” she declares, handing over her loot. Naruto cheers, promptly digging into the hanami stick as soon as it’s in his hand. He’s two dumplings deep before Sakura’s even fully seated.
Sasuke’s eyebrow raises as she nibbles on her own dango. “You got two hanami dango for yourself?”
Busted.
“Uh, one of them is for you?” she tries. At Sasuke’s unimpressed expression, she relents, “Fine. Yes, I got two hanami for myself.” He still looks skeptical for some reason, so she tries for classic misdirection, “You might actually want to try the red dumpling from the Uzumaki dango, though, I’m pretty sure it’s spicy.”
“It is?” Naruto pauses his munching on the mitarashi stick to take a bite of the red dumpling before recoiling immediately. “Ack—it is! Why is it spicy?”
Sakura laughs. “I think the colors represent your family. The orange and yellow are pretty self-explanatory, so the red is probably for your mom. For the Uzumaki hair, I’m guessing. I don’t know why they didn’t choose cherry or something, though—that would have gone better with the rest of the flavors.”
“Her nickname was the ‘Red-hot Habanero,’ so that’s probably it,” Naruto explains, his smile dimming. It’s Sasuke’s turn to glare at her, and she winces, appropriately abashed. She always manages to stick her foot in her mouth when the conversation turns to parents. “Anyway, you should try it, Sasuke. It’s not sweet, like, at all, so I bet you’ll like it.”
Sakura figures the odds are skewed sixty/fourty in favor of Sasuke rejecting the offer, but Sasuke doesn’t actually say anything at all. Instead he bends down and bites the rest of the dumpling right off the stick that Naruto’s holding. Some of the drizzling sauce clings to his lower lip, and his tongue darts out quickly to wipe it clean.
She’s not even the one holding the stick, but Sakura is absolutely certain her heart fucking stutters to a stop at the sight. Poor Naruto looks appropriately shocked. His lips are parted in a gentle “o” of surprise, and his eyes are, dare she say it, looking a little glazed over. He rallies quickly, though, shoving the rest of the Uzumaki stick right under Sasuke’s nose.
“Try the orange one next!”
“Ugh, no.” It’s Sasuke’s turn to recoil. “That one probably is sweet, dumbass.”
"Come on," Naruto wheedles,"Just take a little—wait. Wait, are you saying my mom tastes better than I do?"
"Why do you have to phrase it like that!"
The words are different, but the cadence of her teammates bickering is familiar enough that it quickly fades to the background of her attention. She works through the rest of her "hanami" roll at a leisurely pace, scanning the crowds as she does. There's so much laughter. Even actual festivals haven't been this boisterous for years.
Most of these people weren't on the war front. It's easy to resent them for that—for celebrating the anniversary of such a trying day. Victory is not a reward granted, but a luxury paid for in blood and flesh by the pound. She understands the relief, but is this much pomp and circumstance acceptable? Does a life saved by a black market kidney still deserve celebration?
Sakura doesn't know.
A child screams, high and piercing, shattering through the joyful murmur of the crowd. Her teammates' argument grinds to a halt. Sakura swivels to locate the source, and, in her periphery, she notices the majority of the adults around her do the same. Chakra flares around her as ninja spread their senses in search of a threat.
"Kenta!" a petite woman scolds, bending down, "What did I say about screaming?"
"Not to," the child mumbles. He's small enough that a picnic table nearby obscures him from Sakura's view.
"Unless?" the woman prompts. If Kenta answers, it's too quiet for her to hear.
Everyone in the vicinity, ninja and civilians alike, visibly relaxes. It's sobering to realize how on-edge they all are despite the upbeat atmosphere. Life has not been kind to Konoha's residents.
How self-absorbed of her.
No, the civilians around her didn't watch Neji die. They didn't despair as the Ten-tailed beast appeared in the battle-ground. To say they didn't know fear—didn't know suffering—is terribly short-sighted.
Konoha is a thriving militaristic society. Has been for decades. But having the pointiest sick doesn't ensure safety. Often the wielder becomes a target of others struggling to create their own rags to riches stories.
Or revenge. Pointy sticks are great at poking avengers into action.
Point is, Konoha has been leveled three times in Sakura's short time on this earth. If the civilians don't get to celebrate the peace she fought for, maybe she doesn't get to celebrate the Village they rebuilt.
Food for thought.
Sakura lays her finished dango stick on the table. The untouched dango stick sags in her hand with her increasing disinterest. Her recent train of thought is more than enough to derail her appetite entirely despite the fact that dango is one of her favorite treats.
"You okay?" Naruto asks immediately. He glances at the dango dangling in her grasp pointedly.
Sakura doesn't even have to force the smile. His concern forces its way through the heavy stormcloud of her thoughts like the sunbeam he is. Sweet. Naruto's just so sweet.
"I'm fine.” She fans herself with her free hand. "Just kinda hot, yeah? It's killing my appetite."
Naruto's expression clears immediately. "In that case, let's go get some shaved ice soon! I think I saw a vendor on our way in."
"I did not sign up to wrangle the two of you on a sugar high," Sasuke interjects sourly. Sweet sauce is smeared across his cheekbone, and there might be a crumb of fried dough occluding one nostril. Sakura chokes on a giggle which clearly earns no points from Sasuke. "No more sweets."
Sakura raises her hands in surrender, but Naruto isn't as quick to acquiesce. They start bickering, again, and as Sakura watches a dango skewer slides dangerously close to Sasuke's eye. Idiots. That does explain the out-of-place dough and sticky sauce, though.
The reprimand on her tongue withers at the enthusiastic sparkle in Naruto’s eyes as he advances further and further into Sasuke’s personal space. And Sasuke—brooding, angsty Sasuke—has a smile playing at his lips as he avoids the sticky dessert. He’s making a good show of being annoyed by his teammate’s antics, but if he was really done he’d be slapping the blond away. Angry Sasuke wouldn’t lean back unconcernedly on his only hand like that, and he certainly wouldn’t let Naruto rest his stump on his shoulder as he pesters him.
Bright. It’s so, so bright out today—ridiculously sunny for October—but no amount of sunblock would protect her from their megawatt smiles.
If the fight gets enthusiastic enough to disturb the table, she'll step in, Sakura decides, turning her head to give them a little privacy.
Or the illusion of it, anyway.
Sakura’s not sure how her teammates are able to ignore all the attention they’re attracting. The picnic table they have selected is on the outskirts of the eating area, but they might as well be on center stage. Her skin prickles under the weight of the public’s stares.
Logically, she knows the curious civilians don’t mean any harm. It’s rare that Team 7 is out in the public eye for such an extended period of time. That doesn���t stop the shinobi buried deep beneath her medic persona from sharpening her kunai warily. Sakura doesn't resent the instinct exactly—that's what keeps her alive—but she does try to shake it. The eyes on her aren't dangerous.
Just oppressive.
It’s in pretending to look out across the crowd—and ignoring the alarming number of heads that whip away from her that she does—that she notices them.
A trio of girls sit at two tables away from them at a diagonal. Four older women share the table, but there's enough space between the two to make it clear that they're separate parties. And anyway, the women are laughing, with clenched eyes and wide smiles. The younger ones, though, they're tittering. The sound is sharper than the murmuring of the crowd around them, which is probably why they stood out to her in the first place.
In their mirth, they haven’t noticed Sakura’s attention. One of the girls has a blush dark enough to match the hair of the girl digging an elbow playfully into her side. She can’t see the face of the final member of the trio, but her shoulders shake in obvious laughter under long, black hair. Suddenly the girl’s arms come up in an exaggerated stretch before dropping to her hips so she can make a show of twisting and stretching her back. Not bad for a civilian. Sakura would have almost believed her if not for how quickly she turned back to her friends after a less than sneaky peek at Team 7’s table.
Any amusement she might have held for the girls’ antics slip away immediately. Clearly the trio isn’t looking at Sakura, or they would have noticed her attention. The number of times they’ve all slid glances her direction is too high to be a coincidence, however, which only leaves one option.
The boys.
Now it’s abundantly clear what the brunette is being teased about. It’s been a while since the Academy, but Sakura has sent her share of moonstruck looks a certain Uchiha’s way. She knows what it feels like—what it looks like—to laugh and tease over crushes. Her eyebrows narrow fiercely for all that she tries to keep her expression neutral. The only real question left is: which boy are they looking at?
Four years ago, the answer would have been Sasuke hands down. His sharp features and aloof personality are easily misread as the mysterious persona of at least fifty percent of the love interests in romance novels. Barely dodged war crimes have tamped down the general enthusiasm for Sasuke, though there is always the chance the girl thinks she has a thing for “bad boys.”
Sakura hopes not, for her sake. Sasuke’s particular brand of “rebel with a cause” needs at least three years of serious training and an instruction manual the size of one of her medical textbooks to have any chance of walking away unscathed. Even then nightmares and traumatic events are pretty much a given.
Naruto laughs, loudly, and throws his head back enough to give a clear view of the syrup that drips down his chin. The brunette’s expression softens, and Sakura can hear the lovesick sigh she heaves from twenty feet away. So Naruto is the object of her affection. The realization makes her stomach twist.
There’s a sharp crack, and Sakura’s dango drops to the grass beneath them. She blinks, confused. The bottom half of the stick is still clenched tightly in her fist. It takes longer than it should to notice the splintered edge of the stick and piece together what happened.
“Are you alright?” It’s Sasuke that asks this time.
“Yeah, I’m—I’m fine.” Sakura bends down to grab her dango from the ground. She hadn’t planned on eating it anyway, but the grass coating the dumplings means that’s not an option for later anymore. “I just, ah—”
Before Sakura can come up with an excuse for her ill-timed use of super strength, the tittering behind them grows in volume enough to catch Sasuke’s attention this time. Sakura’s eyes flit to the trio of girls automatically, and they are looking at her now. Great. Even the blushing brunette has joined in the action, so Sakura knows that the laughs are meant for her. She grinds her teeth together. They’re civilians. Sakura can’t go around just laying civilians out because she feels like it.
“That’s enough time in the sun,” Sasuke declares, sliding off of the table top. He shoots a viscous glare over his shoulder. Sakura shouldn’t find so much satisfaction in how rapidly the giggles grind to a halt, but she does. The knots her intestines have tied themselves into loosen enough that she can take aim with a sharp smile of her own.
“Guys…?” Naruto asks. He can tell that something is going on, but doesn’t have enough information to piece the story together as Sasuke did. Blonde eyebrows furrow lightly as he glances from his teammates to the girls’ table.
The brunette has the audacity to sigh again. Every muscle in Sakura’s body tenses for a fight, and she doesn’t even pause to think about how ridiculous her reaction is. It’s not like she has any sort of claim over Naruto. Sasuke is the one who has been messily sharing finger food with him this whole afternoon. If anyone has any right to feel the sudden rage coursing through their body, it’s him. How dare that girl assume she has a chance when Naruto is clearly taken?
Sure enough, Sasuke’s expression has doubled in intensity. Disgust and possessiveness mix in equal measure on his face as his lip curls up and over his teeth. He probably doesn’t even realize what an overprotective boyfriend he looks like, and Sakura can only watch smugly as the girls wilt under his glare. Serves them right.
“We’re getting out of here,” Sasuke declares, firmly. He turns away from the trio before hefting Naruto off the table and over his shoulder in one fluid motion. Naruto squawks in surprise, understandably, but Sasuke’s malice is clearly not directed at him, so he allows himself to be carted away with only token protests. “Let’s go, Sakura.”
The urge to gloat is irresistible. Sakura tosses a taunting wink that the girls are too shell-shocked to react to before falling into her place at her boys’ backs. The rage and, okay, she’ll admit it, jealousy that bubbled up so unexpectedly earlier washes away in the face of her contentment. Maybe neither Sasuke or Naruto are hers in the romantic sense, but they’re hers in all the other ways that matter.
Sakura will guard their backs for as long as they let her with a smile in her heart.
Read the rest of the chapter on ao3
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i-like-plan-m · 4 years
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shades of grey, pt 3
[part 1] [part 2] [Ao3]
Wei Wuxian and Nie Huaisang crept along the wall in the luminous moonlight, keeping carefully to the shadows. They had yet to see Nie Mingjue, too busy wrestling with whatever the hell they had tucked inside their robes. 
Nie Mingjue crossed his arms and wondered what heinous act he’d committed in a past life to deserve this. At his side, Nie Zonghui chuckled as the boys whispered back and forth to each other, Nie Huaisang trotting desperately after Wei Wuxian on his short legs. 
“Wait for meee!” Nie Huaisang whined, stumbling over his robes.
“Shh!” Wei Wuxian hissed. He waved Nie Huaisang on, skirting the edges of the training grounds. 
“It’s always some scheme or another,” Nie Mingjue said, shaking his head. “If I’d known the havoc Wei Wuxian would bring…” 
“You still would have brought him back,” his friend said with amusement and a knowing look. “He has a good heart. His mischief is never cruel or harmful.” 
“Except when he flings himself off of things and breaks all his bones.” 
“Just the two, so far,” Nie Zonghui said mildly. “Besides, Nie Huaisang enjoys his company.” 
Of course he did, Nie Mingjue thought, rolling his eyes. Wei Wuxian enabled all his brother’s half-brained plots to avoid training and paint all day and chase birds all across the mountain. If it sounded like fun and something the adults wouldn’t approve of, Wei Wuxian was bound to be an enthusiastic participant. 
But-- he had to admit, Wei Wuxian’s arrival had brought some of the light back into Nie Huaisang’s eyes, light that had faded upon their father’s violent accident and slow, agonizing death. His mother’s death not months later had turned Nie Huaisang into a shell, a feeble little waif who cried constantly and spent entire days curled up in his bed. 
Now, Nie Mingjue had to chase them both around at all hours of the day so the little idiots didn’t get themselves killed. But his brother was smiling again, laughing even, so Nie Mingjue could hold no real grudge against either of them. 
He watched as the boys darted past a disciple on watch, around the corner, up the stairs- only to skid to a halt, triumphant faces falling at the sight of Nie Mingjue’s unimpressed stare. 
“What are you doing?” Nie Mingjue asked suspiciously. 
“Nothing, da-ge!” Nie Huaisang chirped, inching sideways like he was planning to make a run for it. Nie Mingjue narrowed his eyes.
“Just playing!” Wei Wuxian agreed. The lump under his robes squirmed, and he clamped his arms over it with an innocent expression that only ever meant trouble. 
“Do you want to run laps all night?” Nie Mingjue asked severely. 
They wilted. “No,” they chorused. 
“Hand it over, then,” Nie Mingjue ordered, holding out a hand. Nie Huaisang and Wei Wuxian traded looks, hesitant, before Nie Huaisang reluctantly pulled the lump out of his robes and placed it in Nie Mingjue’s palm. 
The tiny rabbit blinked up at him. Nie Mingjue blinked back, equally surprised. 
The bunny trembled, presumably in shock from being unceremoniously kidnapped and smuggled into the Unclean Realm. 
“Not this again,” he sighed. How many times were they going to try this? 
“I told you he was still mad about the snake!” Nie Huaisang hissed, elbowing Wei Wuxian. Nie Mingjue took a slow breath, temper rising at the reminder, and felt Nie Zonghui’s shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter beside him, the bastard. 
“Give me the rest,” he said once he’d shoved away the memory of walking into his brother’s rooms one night and accidentally picking up a snake that he’d thought was a pile of ribbons thrown haphazardly on the floor. He’d nearly qi deviated on the spot.
“A-all of them?” Nie Huaisang asked, squirming guiltily. Wei Wuxian was looking carefully away from everyone, still clutching his own unknown number of bunnies.
“Yes, all of them, why would I only want-- Wait. Huaisang,” Nie Mingjue said with dawning dread. “How many rabbits have you already brought back?” 
“Um,” Nie Huaisang hedged. “Maybe… maybe three?” 
“Maybe three?” 
“Or four!” Nie Huaisang cried. “I don’t know!” 
Nie Mingjue closed his eyes and resigned himself to chasing stupid rabbits around for the rest of the night. Heavens only knew the chaos if they were left free to roam and reproduce.
“A hawk ate their mom! We saw!” Wei Wuxian piped up, eyes wide and earnest. “It was so gross! Huaisang cried.” 
“So did you!” Nie Huaisang accused. He looked up at Nie Mingjue, lower lip wobbling. “Da-ge, it tried to eat the babies, too.” 
“We couldn’t leave the rest, so we brought them here,” Wei Wuxian said. His rabbit was steadily making its way towards his sleeve, seeking escape from the boy’s black robes. He did not appear to notice. 
“Do I look like I’m running a menagerie here?” Nie Mingjue demanded, sweeping a hand out at the stark ground of the Unclean Realm. Too late, he realized he’d gestured with the hand holding the baby rabbit, which did not contribute to the severity of his appearance. Nie Zonghui was valiantly choking back laughter.
“Da-ge!” Nie Huaisang stamped his foot. “We saved them! They were gonna die!” 
Nie Huaisang scowled up at him. Nie Mingjue copied it instinctively, though he was quietly relieved to see his brother’s spark return. Even if he was being a brat. 
“If you set them loose in the Unclean Realm, the rabbits will outnumber the humans within a month,” Nie Mingjue growled. “Go get the rest.” 
He followed them to ensure they obeyed and didn’t try to stuff any stray rabbits somewhere in their rooms, looming over them while they slid open the door to Wei Wuxian’s room and looked around uncertainly. 
“Well?” He demanded. Nie Zonghui leaned against the wall and petted the rabbit he’d liberated from Wei Wuxian’s robes, clearly enjoying himself. 
Wei Wuxian scratched at his head. “I don’t know where they went, Chifeng-Zun.” 
“Uh oh,” Nie Huaisang said before Nie Mingjue could speak. Everyone turned to where Huaisang crouched in the corner of the room. He stuck his little fingers through a hole in the delicate divider between the boys’ rooms and wiggled them. “Da-ge, I think they’re in my room now.” 
Nie Zonghui cleared his throat. “Nie Huaisang, did you leave your door open again?” 
A beat of silence, and then- “Oops.” 
Nie Mingjue briefly fantasized throttling them both. “Tell the servants to look for them. They can hand them off to the kitchen once they’re caught.” 
There was an immediate barrage of noise, so loud the bunny in his hand squeaked and cowered behind the cage of his fingers. 
“What! Chifeng-Zun, you can’t!”
“But da-ge, we saved them!” Huaisang wailed. 
“Huaisang and I will catch them, I promise!” Wei Wuxian said anxiously. 
“I can’t believe you,” Huaisang howled, flinging himself bodily into Nie Mingjue’s side.
His family used to be butchers, Nie Mingjue thought despondently, faced with the threat of tears over the fate of a handful of bunnies. They were respected and feared, both then and now. Where did he go wrong?
“Fine, just go catch them!” He snapped, swatting half-heartedly at the hands tugging on his robes. They brightened so fast that he suspected he’d been played, but they were out the door before he could say anything else. 
Nie Zonghui continued to stroke his bunny, now tucked in the crook of his arm and dozing peacefully. “So,” he said, positively brimming with laughter. 
“Not a word,” Nie Mingjue warned, shoving his own rabbit into his hands and stalking out the door. 
Much later that night, closer to dawn than dusk and only two more rabbits captured, Nie Mingjue dropped into his bed with an exhausted sigh. 
Seconds later, a soft noise in his room had him jerking up, Baxia rattling in response as he propped himself up on an elbow and squinted warily into the darkness- 
And stared in disbelief at the bunny in the center of his room, twitching its nose at him. They watched each other for a long moment, neither moving, and then Nie Mingjue rolled over with a sound of disgust and went to sleep.
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moccahobi · 3 years
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It’s Raining Sharks Part 1 [TaeGi]
Summary: A sharknado! They’re real! Follow surfer Tae, badboy Yoongi, drunk Jimin, and intelligent Namjoon as they try to survive!
Genre: Sharknado AU, Horror (if you count sharknado as a horror movie), action, angst, 
Warnings: Gore, Excess alcohol use, grossly incorrect use of sharks, smoking, cussing, blood, a few sharks eat people, sharknado, guns, major character death
WC: 3.7k
A/N: This is for @thebtswritersclub​‘s monthly prompt! This month is monsters! And... @aroseforyoongi​ wanted a sharknado au! So... BOOM! And I am activly working on a part 2! And is also my submission for the Taegi square for @btsholidaybingo​!
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Happy screams filled the cloudy skies as adults and children alike were running and playing along the soft sand. Frothing white waves crashed in the surf, people riding on top of them with concentrated faces. Despite the cloudy skies, it was a clear day and the lifeguards on duty were spread out on their perches, relaxing and taking the job easy. 
One of them, a caramel skinned man with deep purple hair and classic red lifeguard swim trunks on was even reading instead of doing his job. A slender finger pushed his round (and very dirty) spectacles back to a secure spot on his nose, the pair seeming to slide down endlessly in the heat of summer. Every once in a while, he raised his eyes and looked around the beach slowly to make sure that everything was ok and when everything was ok (as it always was), he went back to reading. 
Next to the reading lifeguard was a good looking brunette with sharp eyes and strong brows sprawled out on a rainbow beach towel, his other supplies sitting in the sand next to him. He’d been training for the past hour, his small speedo gently cupping and accentuating his body while allowing him to tan almost every part of him. Once he felt like he had been tanning for long enough, he got up and started to apply more low spf sunscreen. Through thick brows, the brunette checked out the lifeguard, his pink tongue momentarily peeking out and running across his lips, a small mustache and goatee framing them. The lifeguard didn’t notice or didnt care. 
Once the sunscreen had dried, the brunette took out a wetsuit from his duffle bag and got suited up, his board resting just a little ways away. Once suited, he picked up his board and ran off to the water. Silently, he looked back at the lifeguard to see if he was watching. His eyes were glued to whatever book he brought with him. 
In reality though, the water wasn’t nearly as safe as everyone thought it was. Rough skinned, mangled fanged sharks on their migration path south were passing by the beach. Blood thirsty and hungry, they could easily mistake a swimmer or surfer for a tasty snack. Yet as long as they didn’t breach, no one seemed to pay notice of the stalking swimmers as they leisurely patrolled from below, looking for a quick meal. One of the sharks wasn’t too stealthy though. It breached the surface of the water and its fin caught the attention of one of the working lifeguards. Very quickly after the fin was spotted, lifeguards were blowing their whistles, putting up a red danger flag and helping to get people out of the water. None of the sharks even had a nibble before the waters were cleared of people.  
Shortly after that, the purple haired lifeguard was back to reading his book and counting down the minutes until he could clock out and drink at the nearest bar. He had forty five minutes left. At the parking lot was the brunette, now in an unbuttoned hawaiian shirt (his chest was on display for all to see) and blue board shorts. He’d begrudgingly trekked back to his car after the red flags were raised, upset at only catching one good wave. The only thing that could have made his day worse was if it rained. That would completely ruin his plans of drinking a smoothie and relaxing in the sun. 
The sour stench of cigarette smoke drew his eyes up to a somber looking man in dark blue skinny jeans and a black leather jacket, his lips loosely puckered around a cigarette. He took one last drawl before throwing it on the ground and snuffing it out under chunky black boots, a wink shot at the surfer as he did so. 
Slowly he licked his lips and gave the brunette a once over, “I’m Yoongi.”
“I’m Taehyung.”
“Would you want to have a drink with me?”
“Sure.”
“Now?”
“Sure.”
“Well then… sure.”
Yoongi started to walk towards the closest bar as Taehyung quickly locked his car and ran to catch up with the gloomy man that he felt an attraction to. The two of them walked to the bar in silence, Yoongi focused on getting a drink in him and Taehyung struggled to find something to talk about. Once seated at the bar, Yoongi ordered two scotches.
“Oh. I don’t drink. I’ll have a sprite though!” Taehyung told the bartender.
Yoongi grunted, “How come?”
“I don’t like feeling drunk. Plus I don’t find most alcohol tasty.” 
“Makes sense. Alcohol is an acquired taste. I remember not liking it when I first had it.”
“And you like it now?” 
Yoongi snorted, “Yeah. Otherwise I wouldn’t drink it. Getting drunk is fun and all but I want to enjoy what I drink as well.”
While the two continued to talk (after finally finding something to talk about), the purple haired lifeguard came in, finally done with his shift, the man making a b-line to one of the bars regulars and a long time friend: Jimin. He had pastel pink hair that made him stick out like a sore thumb in the bar and always reeked of vodka… even when he wasn’t at the bar.
“They say a hoard of sharks are coming this way. Should we be scared, Doc Namjoon?” His words were slurred and he looked over at Namjoon with hooded eyes as he downed another shot of vodka. 
Namjoon snorted and rolled his eyes, “Of course not, Jimin. What the hell kind of conspiracy theories do you watch? Most sharks are completely harmless to humans. Some even really enjoy human interaction.”
“I watch really really…” Jimin smacked his lips, “Good things. Like three am documentaries on the… science channel.” 
“Wow. You must be so smart!” 
“I am! Like… I read one about… WOAHHH! You wouldn’t believe it,” Jimin giggled and grew animated, “A fucking tornado that… it… it sucked up sea life and took it allllll on land! It was… insane!”
“Sounds like a conspiracy theory. Or someone who doesn’t understand how nature works.”
“It’s true though! I promise!”
Namjoon snorted and gently patted Jimin’s shoulder, “Sure, buddy, and the movie The Meg is written about a real live event. Megalodons are totally real.”
“Well now you’re just being mean. Who's to say that sharks can’t be sucked into a tornado and survive?”
“Logic.” 
The two of them settled into a comfortable quiet, Jimin watching the nearest tv and Namjoon reading his book. The bar animated and alive as people celebrated a good day and relaxed after a hard day. Occasionally one could hear the loud laughs of a good conversation from Taehuyng and Yoongi, the two seeming to have hit it off well. The life in the bar suddenly stopped when the walls around them started to creak and groan, high winds pushing against them angrily. The only noise that one could hear was the newscaster on the tv talking about a tornado warning in the area.
Namjoon sighed and shook his head, turning to Jimin and speaking, “Whelp, you can’t drive and we should get somewhere safer than the beach so… come on up, Jimin.”
“What?! Namjoon, we have had so many tornadoes, why would this one possibly be different?” Jimin complained, grabbing the bar stool he sat on nonetheless and following behind Namjoon. 
“The fact that you haven’t been hunkering down is alarming.” Namjoon sighed and shook his head, not even paying mind to Jimin trying to steal the bar stool.
Before they even made it halfway across the bar, something heavy hit against one of the bar walls and shook the whole establishment. Everyone stilled as Yoongi slowly got up and looked out the window but aside from the grey skies of an approaching tornado, there wasn’t anything they could see.
WHAM!
Yoongi ducked down quickly, narrowly avoiding a whole shark as it came flying through the window, its tempered glass shattering into millions of small cubes. The thing flopped around angrily biting at anything and everything it possibly could. People anxiously jumped out of the way and ran towards the exit, even the bartender abandoned his post to leave the building. Yoongi was the first of the four left in the bar to reach, him grabbing one of the stools and jabbing it furiously at the shark with an angry yell. One of the dull legs of the seat punctured the sharks rough skin as blood spurted out from around it. 
Yoongi stabbed the shark a few more times, a grunt leaving him as he did so before the shark eventually stopped snapping at its surroundings. 
“WHAT THE FUCK! THAT WAS A FUCKING GREAT WHITE THAT-” Namjoon couldn’t believe what he just saw. 
A great white shark was flung through the bar’s window by a tornado.
“A SHARKNADO! I TOLD YOU IT COULD HAPPEN!” Jimin yelled happily, climbing over the bar to grab the entire bottle of tequila.
“Wha… what the hell?” Taehyung muttered, anxiously looking at the shark as if it was about to come alive again and kill him.
“It’s ok Taehyung. I will protect you. You have a big car right? I don’t think it would be safe for me to ride my motorcycle home.” Yoongi asked, turning his attention to Taehyung and trying to comfort the shocked man.
Taehyung could only focus on the blood splatter on Yoongi’s face as he silently nodded, opening and closing his mouth anxiously as he tried to formulate more words. 
“E-excuse me?” Namjoon spoke up suddenly, interrupting the tender moment between Yoongi and Taehyung and blushing as he did so, “Y-y-you probably don’t know me but I see you around a lot and I drank too much to be able to drive right now and,” He looked over at Jimin who was cuddling his chair as he nursed the bottle of tequila, “My friend is not in a state to drive… could you drive us to a safe place too? I promise we aren’t bad people!”
Yoongi coughed and gave Namjoon a once over, clearly not liking the idea.
“Namjoon, right? We’ve talked a few times. You’re the lifeguard who never actually works.”
Namjoon nodded.
“Sure… you can… just please make sure your friend doesn’t vomit in my car.” 
At that the four of them cautiously exited the bar before making a run (well as fast of a run as possible with Jimin) as people around them panicked and sharks were crashing into various objects. Namjoon even watched in horror as a large goblin shark crashed into his beloved lifeguard tower and started to eat the wood! Goblin sharks never got this close to shore, let alone on it! What type of craziness was this?!
By the time that the four of them had managed to get into Taehyung’s car, a fucking megamouth shark plowed through the bar. A gnarled brick and wood pile laying where the bar once was. 
“WHAT THE FUCK! WHAT THE FUCK! THIS CAN’T BE HAPPENING! THIS ISN’T LOGICALLY POSSIBLE! TWO DEEP FUCKING SEA SHARKS JUST… WHAT THE FUCK!” Namjoon was yelling, tightly holding onto Jimin in fear as he looked out as flying sharked swallowed people whole.
 “WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING, DUDE?! DON’T LEAVE- HE’S LEAVING THE CAR WHY IS HE LEAVING THE CAR?!” Namjoon continued to yell as Yoongi ran to his motorcycle and grabbed his concealed gun. 
“Woah. Yoongi, I don’t know about having a gun in here.” Taehyung said quietly as he cautiously eyed the gun that Yoongi clasped tightly. 
“Taehyung, how else are we going to fight these sharks? We don’t have another stool… other than… What’s your name?” Yoongi leaned back and looked at Jimin who scoffed and said his name. 
Taehyung sighed and shook his head before he started driving, quickly trying to drive away and avoid the flying sharks. Before their car could even get a mile, a large wave crashed over them and pushed Taehyung’s car almost half a mile away from where they had started. It shook the car violently and they could hear some sort of things hitting his car with loud THUMPS and THWAKS as water rushed by them. For the four of them, it felt like the moment was going to last a lifetime (and possibly be their last), but it only lasted half a minute before they had stopped moving, maybe an inch of water coating the ground now. 
When the waves finally did stop, the car was dead silent, Yoongi having instinctively grabbed Taehyung’s hand and Namjoon fearfully holding onto Jimin as he looked anxiously out at the car. 
Taehyung looked down at Yoongi’s hand and blushed, gently intertwining their hands before he looked around. He couldn’t be sure from the sharks squirming around the land and biting at everything in their path, but he was fairly positive that at least one of the things that hit their car was not a shark. Carefully he surveyed the road now in front of him. There didn’t seem to be any real dangerous things in the road that could pop one of their tires and with that in mind he once again started to drive, the car silent and tense. 
Of course none of them were prepared for what was to come. No one in the entire city would ever be prepared for the monster that the tornados had seemed to conjure up. The tornado seemed to suck up a beast that was more ferocious and scary than any of the other ones combined. And it was angry. Very angry.
Above the water, a water filled tornado had already made its way on land, spewing sharks every which direction that were causing mass destruction. From the tornado itself consuming whole buildings and leaving rubble behind to sharks flying angrily through the air and consuming anything that got in their paths before eventually dying from a lack of air, nothing and no one seemed to be safe. 
“All I am saying is that you often see these waves come in bouts of three… the last of which is always the strongest. If you really want us to get to safety, you need to put the pedal to the medal, Taehyung. I don’t want to be around water by the time the third wave comes.”
“I get that, I really do, Namjoon… but the cops here are ruthless. I don’t want a ticket. Natural disaster or not, I don’t want my record being tainted.”
Namjoon scoffed as Yoongi shook his head with a light smile, “Don’t worry, Namjoon. I’ll protect us.” 
“With your gun?! Are you crazy dude!? There are literal fucking sharks eating people whole and the water tornados! You really think a gun will do shit?”
“Totally. Plus, we can always stop somewhere and get extra stuff. I am pretty handy. I’ve dealt with sharks a ton in the past.” A distant look crossed Yoongi’s face, his mind clearly off in a distant land.
“Hey Namjoon?” Jimin mumbled from Namjoon’s embrace (who was still using the poor drunk like a stress ball), “Do you think that we’re going to die?”
“What? No, no. We won’t die, Jimin. Don’t worry. I’ll protect you. We’re going to survive.”  Namjoon punctuated what he said with another squeeze of Jimin before he finally let go and seemed to grow his composure.
“We probably want to actually think about where we are going… instead of just generally going inland.”
“Hmm… I was thinking that we could go to the inland. Like the part of town.” Taehyung said, anxiously tapping his steering wheel as he maneuvered around sharks.
“Taehyung.”
“Yes?” 
“The inland isn’t actually inland… you know that, right? It’s literally half a mile from the beach! Just slightly north!” Namjoon started shouting angrily.
He opened his mouth to keep yelling at Taehyung, another harsh wave crashed into the side of the car. From the force alone, the windows shattered and from Taehyung’s reflexes with driving, the car suddenly stopped. Jimin, who forgot to put his seatbelt on, went flying forwards and roughly hit his head against Yoongi’s seat before falling limply in his own lap. Namjoon on the other hand, was once again screaming, salty water filling his open mouth as he looked into the mouth of a large bull shark excitedly swimming into the now broken passenger window. In the rush of the wave continuing to pass through the car, a new, redder liquid started to merge. By the time the car passed, everything (and everyone) was coated in a faint pink color. 
Once the wave had passed the car, Taehyung and Yoongi were left staring back in horror at the bloody and half eaten body of Namjoon, their minds rushing to process what had happened. When Taehyung’s mind finally caught up, he immediately rushed to leave the car, his fingers stumbling to unbuckle himself and unlock the door before leaving the car with a strangled cry and budding tears. By the time Yoongi had left the car and reached Taehyung, the man was hyperventilating and crying. He hadn’t known Namjoon well but the two of them talked every once in a while and he never wanted him to die. Hell before he met Yoongi (and if things with Yoongi didn’t work out), Taehyung was still playing with the idea of asking Namjoon out. 
Yoongi shushed Taehyung quietly and gently wrapped Taehyung in a hug, the soft gesture seemingly uncommon for the stiff man. The two stayed there for an unknown amount of time before a scream from the car changed their attention. Jimin was clambering out of the broken car window, his eyes wide with fear before they landed on Taehyung and Yoongi.
“Were you fuckers going to just leave me in there?!” Jimin yelled angrily, walking over to them and wiping the fresh tears off his face. 
“Sorry, Jimin.” Taehyung looked down sadly, “I was shocked too… I… Fuck. This is such a scary time. I don’t know what to do.” 
“We need to go to a gun store. That is what we need to do.” Yoongi said calmly.
“What?”
“A gun store. We need to go get more guns. The wave ruined the only gun I had.” 
“We need to get to safety! That is what we need to do.” Jimin yelled again, “Namjoon said so!”
“And how can we get to safety without a gun?! We can’t use your fucking barstool to keep sharks at bay.”
“You used a stool before.”
“Guys…” Taehyung’s weak voice interrupted them with an uncertain wobble, “Can we please get a move on and not fight? We can find a store that sells guns and some other things… I don’t want to be here here or without something somewhat protecting us from any more waves.”
Yoongi looked over at Jimin as if to ask if that was ok before the three of them started walking along the road, neither of their electronics working. They were forced to walk along the road and take the first exit. At one point the three of them climbed up a tree at the edge of the road and waited for another wave to pass as wind dangerously whipped at their faces, hoards of sharks rushing past. They didn’t risk climbing down until all the sharks that were left in the area by the wave had passed. In the sky, they could see a tornado angrily throwing sharks left and right almost 100 miles ahead of them. None of them smart enough to notice that they couldn’t see its position change… which meant that it was on a path right to them… none of them observant enough to notice one specific, ancient looking shark that was angrily twisting and turning in the tornado. Somehow they managed to make it to an almost completely abandoned parking lot in front of a run down Hilton Hotel, one large, lone truck. 
Yoongi stopped and eyed it, Jimin distractedly meandering ahead and Taehyung waiting for Yoongi to say something, “We should steal it.”
“The… the car?”
“Yeah. We won’t make good headway on foot and we can’t easily guess when another wave will come. It would be safer.” 
“It’s illegal, Yoongi.”
“It would save us time and protect us from another wave, Jimin.”
“The last car didn’t protect Namjoon.”
“This one has larger wheels though. And it protected us during the first wave.” 
Before Jimin had any chance of arguing more, Yoongi tried opening one of the doors before grabbing a rock nearby and smashing one of the rear windows open to unlock one of the doors. 
“Well now that one of the windows is broken how will it protect us!” Jimin yelled angrily before going off on a rant as Yoongi worked on hot wiring the car and Taehyung floundered between the two. 
He had no idea what to do or what was better but as he anxiously looked at the still tornado, he knew he didn’t want to be outside for much longer and quickly climbed into the shotgun of the car. With a breath of relief from Yoongi, the car reved to life and Yoongi buckled in. 
“Well?” Yoongi looked over at Jimin who was angrily standing a solid ten feet away and gripping his barstool tightly, “Are you going to get in or is this where we part ways?” 
“I will not take part in illegal activities. A natural disaster or not. If you’re smart, Taehyung, you’d join me.”
Taehyung anxiously looked between Jimin and Yoongi, both of which were looking at him and waiting for his decision. What was he supposed to do? This was a matter of life and death… surely it wouldn’t be the end of the world if he did a few illegal things to stay alive… but did he want that hanging on his conscious? 
With one anxious look back at the tornado… which… somehow… seemed to look a little close, he resolutely closed the door and buckled in a small “Sorry.” leaving his mouth before Yoongi drove off, leaving Jimin in the dust, his frame getting smaller the farther they went. 
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