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samwisethewitch · 3 years

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The Little Gods: Spirits of Place in Modern Paganism

In a previous post, we talked about gods, goddesses, and the many ways they can be worshiped in a modern pagan practice. However, the gods are not the only group of spiritual beings honored by modern pagans. While building relationships with deities makes up the bulk of practice for many people, a lot of pagans work with other groups of spirits as well, or may even work more closely with these “smaller” spirits than with the gods. One of these groups is the ancestors, the spirits of deceased humans who are part of our lineage — we’ll talk about them in a future post.

The other group of minor spirits commonly honored by modern pagans, and the topic of today’s post, are what I like to call the Spirits of Place. This is a broad category that includes land spirits, spirits of natural objects like trees and rivers, and spirits of man-made locations like a house or office building. Depending on your personal beliefs, it may also include animal guides, spirits of inanimate objects, and/or spirits honored in specific cultures like the fairies or the elves.

The idea that the world around us is spiritually alive and aware is present in some form in almost every culture and religion, and the worship of these Spirits of Place is well-documented in most historic pagan religions. For example, much of Irish folk spirituality revolves around appeasing the fairies, which we can understand as a special type of land spirit — this continued long after the conversion period, even after the worship of the Irish gods had faded into obscurity. Many Norse pagans honor the landvaettir (land spirits) and husvaettir (house spirits), which have survived in more recent Nordic folklore in the form of spirits like the Danish nisse or Swedish tomte, who are still honored at Christmas in some parts of Scandinavia. In Roman paganism, the lares, who are both land spirits and the guardians of man-made homes and are closely connected to the ancestors, are given a place of honor. Eclectic pagans may pull from one or more of these practices, or may honor their local spirits in their own unique way.

Honoring the Spirits of Place is not exclusive to pagan faiths. Practitioners of New Orleans Voodoo honor the ashe, the sacred energy, of the Mississipi River, one of their most prominent local landmarks. In Shinto, places and objects are said to have their own kami, which can be understood as gods or as spirits. Even in Christianity’s strictly monotheist system, God is often understood to be physically present in the world around us, a philosophy known as panentheism. I offer these non-pagan examples not because I think pagans should copy these other religions, but because I want to make a point about how pervasive the belief in Spirits of Place really is.

Connecting with the Spirits of Place can help us to engage more mindfully and in more meaningful ways with the world around us. When we accept that every plant, animal, rock, and building has its own spirit or soul, we interact with those objects in a more intentional way. We learn to think about our home not just as a place where we live, but as a spiritual entity that we have an active relationship with. We learn to think of our gardens not as a plot of dirt filled with plants, but as a community of land spirits and plant spirits all working together to provide us with nourishment. We learn to think of our cities not as concrete jungles, but as huge collections of spirits as diverse and fascinating as their human inhabitants. When we open our eyes to the spiritual world that exists alongside our own, we begin to see how the spiritual permeates every aspect of human life.

Connecting with Spirits of Place also offers a way for us to personalize and localize our practice. The Spirits of Place in Los Angeles will be very different from those of Brooklyn, Berlin, or Mexico City. Your local Spirits of Place are closely related to your local biome, as well as to the cultural groups that have influenced your community.

Because of this, the best way to connect with your own Spirits of Place is to learn about where you live. Research your local flora, fauna, and weather patterns — how is your ecosystem unique? Learn about local history and about the cultures who have influenced your area. All of these influences will give you some ideas for how to honor the spirits in your practice.

For example, I live in a temperate climate with four true seasons, clay-based soil, and lots of rain and humidity. Some of the local plant spirits that I feel closest to are the black locust tree, the magnolia tree, poke weed, and the birch tree. Some of the local animal spirits I feel closest to are the crow, the red-tailed hawk, the coyote, and the white-tailed deer. My local land spirits are as steadfast and strong as the nearby Appalachian mountains.

I live in the South, so our local spirits are also shaped by a history of racial oppression and persecution. They have witnessed the displacement of the Cherokee people, whose stolen land I live on today. They have witnessed the transatlantic slave trade and the continued oppression of Black people with Jim Crow and the rise of the Ku Klux Klan. They have witnessed devastating poverty in rural communities, including those of my ancestors. These scars run deep, creating a reverberations that I and other Southern folks still feel today. However, with the trauma of the South comes a rich diversity of influences, creating a unique culture unlike any other in the world. My Irish and Scottish ancestors brought their culture with them when they came to these mountains, where it mingled with the cultural influences of our Black and Latino neighbors, the Cherokee influences of our land, a deeply held Protestant Christian faith, and a special brand of magic that is unique to the South. All of this influences my local Spirits of Place, and I try to keep all of it in mind when interacting with them.

I honor my Spirits of Place by learning to identify local plants, respectfully and ethically foraging from those plants, and using them in my spiritual practice. I honor them by feeding the crows, and by greeting the deer when I encounter them on walks. I honor them by remembering the original inhabitants of this land, by supporting Native rights activists, and by donating to nonprofits that support the Eastern Band of the Cherokee, who originally lived in my area. I honor them by actively working to address the issue of racism in the South, up to and including attending Black Lives Matter protests and campaigning for an end to racialized police violence. I honor them by listening to my Cherokee, Black, and Latino neighbors and following their lead on Cherokee, Black, and Latino issues. I also honor them by practicing sustainable gardening techniques, working to lower my environmental impact, and by giving back to the land whenever I can.

If you don’t live in the same geographic area as me, the way you honor your Spirits of Place may look totally different. Don’t be afraid to make this practice your own — once you connect with your local spirits, they will be your guides.

Types of Spirits of Place

There are many, many types of spirits that fall into this category, and the list in this post is not meant to be exhaustive. My goal here is to give you an idea of some of the forms these spirits can take, so that you can begin to recognize the Spirits of Place that surround you in your own life.

Land spirits: These are spirits of specific geographical locations or features of the land. They may be as big as the Mississippi River or as small as the rosebush in your backyard. As you might imagine, these spirits don’t move around much, as they usually don’t venture far from the location they are tied to. In my experience, land spirits have a very stable, steady, and earthy presence.

Our relationship with the land spirits is a direct reflection of our relationship with the land itself. If we live our lives in a way that hurts the land by polluting it or stripping it of resources, it will be much harder to build a healthy relationship with the spirits of that land. The best way to live in right relationship with the land spirits is to treat the land you are living on with honor and respect.

In my personal practice, I call on the land spirits for help in my garden. I make offerings of food that is safe for local wildlife if they decide to help themselves, such as unsalted peanuts, birdseed, bread, or fresh fruit. When I make offerings, I make sure to thank the land spirits for sharing their home with me and for providing me with abundance. You might honor your local land spirits in a similar way, or you may find that another approach works better for you.

House spirits: It is not only natural places that have spirits — man-made buildings also have a spirit of their own. If you’ve ever stayed in a very old house, you probably felt its unique character while you were there. Every building has its own soul of sorts, which embodies the place, the way it is used, and the different people who have lived there. In my experience, these spirits tend to take on the energy of the people who live in or frequently use their building — the spirits of a happy home may have a kind, friendly presence, while the spirits of a dysfunctional business where employees are mistreated may have a mean streak.

Many of us overlook the spiritual importance of our homes. Our home is where we can be most vulnerable, and in most cases it’s probably where most of our daily spiritual practices take place. Our home is the base of operations we come back to at the end of each day. A home that feels safe, comfortable, and welcoming is important to our mental, emotional, and spiritual health. To maintain a healthy home, we need to maintain good relationships with the other people living there — but we can take this even further by striving to have a good relationship with our home itself.

Spirits of objects: Objects also have their on spirits. This applies not only to naturally occurring objects, but to man-made things as well.

Most people with even a passing interest in witchcraft or New Age spirituality are aware that crystals have unique energies and personalities and can act as spiritual allies. What many people don’t realize is that this is not something that is unique to crystals — all objects have a unique spiritual presence, and all of them can be powerful spiritual allies if you take the time to connect with them. A rock from your backyard can be just a powerful as an expensive crystal. So can a favorite sweater, your grandmother’s antique dishes, and even your cell phone.

The best way to connect with the spirits of objects is to talk to them. Tell them that you appreciate the role they serve in your life, and verbally thank them for their help. I find that these spirits don’t typically require offerings in the traditional sense — instead, you can practice reciprocity by keeping their homes in good condition. For example, if you want to connect with the spirit of a favorite stuffed animal, make sure the toy itself stays clean and in good repair.

Plant and animal spirits: Plant and animal spirits are different from spirits of objects because they are physically alive. Plants and animals live and breathe just as we do, which can make them a little easier to befriend and understand than the spirits of inanimate objects. If you’re not quite ready to start talking to your hairbrush, plant and animal spirits can be a good place to start.

Animal spirits are the easiest by far to connect with. Any pet owner will tell you that animals have souls that often seem just as complex as those of humans. Dogs and cats, for example, clearly feel love, joy, sadness, and pain just as humans do. Pets are an excellent way to begin connecting with animal spirits, because you already have a relationship with them in the physical world.

Next time you have a few minutes alone with your pet, try meditating on their spiritual presence. Can you feel their energy? Can you sense the wisdom they carry in their soul?

If you had a pet that died, you might try reaching out to them to see if they want to be involved in your spiritual practice. Dogs especially are very loyal to their owners, and can be called on for protection even after death. If you have ashes or bones from your pet, or if you have items like a collar or a favorite toy, you can include them on an altar or some other special place and make regular offerings of treats or pet food in exchange for their protection.

Some pagans, especially Wiccans and other neopagans, choose to work with familiars, which are a special kind of animal ally. There is a common misconception that a familiar is any animal you feel especially close to, but that isn’t quite how it works. A familiar is an animal that serves as a spiritual ally — traditionally, by helping witches with their magic. The familiar can be a living animal, but it is more often a purely spiritual being.

These animal spirit allies exist in other forms in other pagan religions. In Norse paganism, the fylgja is a spiritual guide that often appears in the form of an animal. The animal form the fylgja takes is closely related to the personality of the person it is attached to, and they are often tied to that person’s fate. In Irish folklore, the fetch is a spiritual double of a human that often appears as an animal. In Kemetic polytheism, one of the parts of the soul is the ba, which often appears as a bird with a human head and which represents a person’s personality. In all of these cases, the animal guide can be understood as an extension of the practitioner, rather than as a separate being like the familiar.

Plant spirits are a little bit different. In my experience, these spirits are quieter and more reserved than most animal spirits, and they tend to work in more subtle ways. Plant spirits are still, steadfast allies that tend to work behind the scenes, so you may not have as many face-to-face interactions with them as you do with animals or land spirits.

The best way to begin connecting with plant spirits is to start keeping a houseplant. As you care for your plant, talk to it! Tell it how much you appreciate it, and thank it for its contribution to keeping your space beautiful and safe. Appropriate offerings for plant spirits are exactly what you would expect: water, fertilizer, and plant food.

Cryptids and folkloric creatures: In the modern era, folklore has given way to urban legends and created a new kind of mythology. Like traditional folklore, urban legends are spread by word of mouth and change organically as they are told and retold. Many urban legends are tied to specific locations, and many of them feature strange and mysterious creatures who can be understood as modern land spirits.

For example, the Loch Ness Monster can be seen as the spirit of Loch Ness. The Jersey Devil is tied to the Pine Barrens in New Jersey. Mothman is tied to Point Pleasant, West Virginia. Although these are some of the most famous modern cryptids, most towns have their own urban legends — if you ask around, you’ll likely find stories of some kind of spectral guardian tied to your area. My college campus has a handful of its own urban legends, including one of a female spirit who appears to warn students of coming disasters. Find out who your local cryptids are, and look for ways to incorporate them into your practice.

These different types of spirits are sometimes filtered through different cultural lenses, which changes the way they interact with humans. For example, an Irish fairy is very different from a Japanese kami, even though both technically fall into the larger category of land spirits. If you feel drawn to a specific tradition’s approach to working with the Spirits of Place, I advise you to do your own research into that tradition — including making sure that it isn’t part of a closed cultural practice which you are not party to. Look for sources written by members of the living culture of that tradition, rather than books written by outsiders.

Connecting with the Spirits of Place

Here are some activities you can do to strengthen your connection with the Spirits of Place:

Make offerings. As I mentioned above, you can honor the spirits with offerings. Just make sure that, if you leave offerings outside, you only offer things that are biodegradable and are safe for local wildlife. If you don’t want to leave physical offerings, you can offer acts of service like picking up litter, watering plants, or volunteering at an animal shelter.

Create an altar. Altars are an excellent way to create space in your life for the spirits. My herb garden doubles as an altar to the land spirits, with a small Green Man statue to represent the spirits and a place where I can leave offerings. I also have a table indoors where I keep most of my houseplants, which is also a sacred space of sorts. The type of altar you create and its location will depend on the spirits you want to connect with — the possibilities are limitless.

Start a compost pile. Compost piles make excellent offerings to land spirits and plant spirits. While compost isn’t quite as simple as “just throw all your leftover food in a pile,” it’s not difficult if you know what you are doing. When composting, it’s important to maintain a balance between carbon-rich “brown” material (leaves, undyed paper, cardboard, etc.) and nitrogen-rich “greens” (fruit and veggie scraps, coffee grounds, egg shells, etc.) — you want about four times as much brown as green in your compost. There are some things you shouldn’t add to your compost, like meat, dairy products, and greasy foods. Start your compost with a layer of brown material — preferably twigs or straw to allow good airflow. Alternate layers of green and brown materials as you add to the pile. Every time you add to your compost, verbally express your gratitude to the land spirits. Your compost should be moist, but not soggy — you’ll know it’s ready when it’s dark and crumbly and smells like soil. Use it on your garden and in your houseplant pots, or donate it to a local community garden.

Hold a territory acknowledgement. A territory acknowledgement is a way to insert awareness of indigenous people whose lands were stolen from them. You can acknowledge indigenous territory at the beginning of public religious events, or at the beginning of your private rituals. This practice will help you develop a deeper understanding of the history of your land, which can help deepen your connection to it as well as honoring its original inhabitants. A territory acknowledgement can be as simple as: “I acknowledge and honor this land, which is called [indigenous name of your area] and is home to the people of [indigenous nation].” Make sure you take the time to learn the correct pronunciation for these indigenous words. You can find out who originally lived in your area and what they called it by visiting native-land.ca.

Donate to conservation efforts. Instead of making physical offerings, make a donation to an environmentalist cause and dedicate it to your Spirits of Place. Look for groups that work in your local area, such as nonprofits dedicated to fighting deforestation and climate change, groups that protect rare and endangered native plants, or wildlife rehabilitation centers. Even volunteering at an animal shelter can be an appropriate offering to animal spirits.

Start a garden with native plants. Do some research into your local ecosystem — what plants are native to your area? Which of them are edible? Which of them have spiritual uses? Buy or forage seeds from these plants and start a 100% native garden. Growing and eating food that is native to your area can help deepen your connection to the land, the local plant spirits, and the cycle of the seasons.

Replace mainstream cleansing herbs with native plants. White sage, palo santo, frankincense, and sandalwood, some of the most popular cleansing herbs among modern pagans, are all endangered due to over-harvesting. Instead of buying endangered plants from far off lands, try to find a native plant you can use instead. If you’re lucky enough to live somewhere where rosemary or lavender is native, you’re in luck! If not, try researching some of the plants in your backyard — you might be surprised what you find. Most plants in the Salvia (sage) family can be burned as incense to cleanse and consecrate a space. This family includes over 1,000 species spread out over Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Many trees also have cleansing properties, especially coniferous trees like pine, cedar, and juniper. Find out what is abundant in your area and find ways to incorporate it into your rituals.

Go for a hike. While bringing the Spirits of Place into our homes can be deeply meaningful, it’s also important to get out there and meet them on their own terms. Try to make time to get out in nature, and be open to connecting with the spirits you find on these trips. You don’t have to go far — even hanging out in a backyard or city park can allow you to connect with the land.

Feed the birds. And the squirrels, and the deer, or whatever other critters you have. Now, I am not recommending approaching wild animals and trying to befriend them. I am also not recommending feeding animals people food. Nature often rests in a delicate balance, and directly feeding wild animals can make them dependent on humans, which could be dangerous for them. While feeding local animals can be an excellent offering, it’s important to do it in a way that is safe and non-instrusive. It’s best to leave food in a place you know is frequented by animals, then let them find it after you’ve gone. Bird feeders and squirrel feeders are a great way to do this.

Clean your house. One of the best ways to honor house spirits? Keep their living space clean! Try to keep your house tidy and be a good roommate to its spirits. Try not to let clutter pile up, and take time to sweep, mop, and dust every once in a while. You can even ask your house spirits to help you keep the house clean — just make sure you’re also doing your fair share of housework, or they may get upset about the unfair arrangement.

These “little gods” of places and objects are often forgotten, but they are an important part of daily pagan practice. While the gods rule over grand concepts and forces of nature, and the ancestors are tied to our family and community, the Spirits of Place make up the ground we stand on, the air we breathe, and the places we call home. Perhaps more than any other group of spirits, they are truly the gods of the everyday.

Resources:

Water Magic by Lilith Dorsey

Southern Cunning by Aaron Oberon

Simply Living Well by Julia Watkins

The Way of Fire and Ice by Ryan Smith

A Practical Heathen’s Guide to Asatru by Patricia M. Lafayllve

Where the Hawthorn Grows by Morgan Daimler

Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham

Temple of the Cosmos by Jeremy Naydler

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the-bau-quinjet · 3 years

Note

heyyy. I know you’ve been doing marvel a lot, but if you could do one with morgan and the reader? Based on amplification and it’s the reader who gets sick instead. thanks!

Finally

Warnings: some mentions of being sick (cause... you know... anthrax), angst and fluff :)

Word Count: 2735

a/n: My first Morgan fic!! I love him so much! This one took me a while because 1) I feel like I'm not that good at rewriting episodes, and 2) I wanted to get Derek's character right. Hopefully it's not too terrible! I hope you enjoy!! :)

Masterlist

"Rossi, Prentiss head to his office. Morgan, get Reid and L/N from the hospital and check out his house." Hotch instructed as soon as Dr. Nichols was deemed a reasonable suspect.

It wasn't long before you, Reid, and Morgan were pulling up outside of Dr. Nichols house.

"It's clear so far. I'll let you know when we're done checking." One of the CDC techs said through a walkie.

"We should look around a bit." Reid started down the driveway, gesturing for you and Morgan to follow.

"Ow!" You flinched away from the rose bush, shaking your hand in an attempt to lessen the pain.

"You good?" Morgan eyed you, overly concerned about a small scrape.

"I'm fine. Promise." You winked, walking past him and Reid to check for anything out of the ordinary in the backyard.

"I don't understand why you haven't asked her out yet." Reid looked between you and Morgan. Unfortunately, Morgan was saved from answering by the sound of his phone ringing.

"Hey, princess what do you have?" Morgan greeted Garcia, glaring at Reid.

You continued to explore while Derek and Reid talked to Garcia. It wasn't until after you entered the shed-like building that you thought maybe the CDC should check for anthrax out here too.

By then it was too late.

"L/N?" You could hear Morgan calling you. "Y/N!" It was clear him and Reid were approaching the door you just walked through.

You ran back to the sliding glass door, slamming it shut and locking it before either of them could stop you.

"What's wrong?" He frantically ran up to the door.

"Get back! No, don't come any closer." Your eyes flitted between the two agents, landing solely on Derek when you muttered, "I'm sorry."

"Y/N, open the door..." Derek's typically powerful voice nearly broke as he watched you shake your head.

"I can't. I- I'm already exposed." You shook your head resolutely, convincing yourself this was the right move. "I'll look for anything that could help in here. It's the best move."

"Y/N, you need to go to the hospital." Derek put more power behind his words with hopes of convincing you.

"The hospital won't do anything for me. Nichols could've made a cure, and if he did it's probably in here." You tore your eyes from Derek, hoping Spencer would help you convince him. "Reid, tell him I'm right."

He looked conflicted, eyes flitting between you and Derek.

"She's right. The cipro isn't working on anyone infected. Her best chance is to stay in there and find something useful." Reid looked reluctantly at Derek.

"Then you better find a cure in there." Derek whispered, eyes lingering on you before he finally turned away to call Hotch.

"Morgan, Reid. How's L/N?" Hotch questioned immediately, forgoing any greeting.

"White powder all over the room and the air was blasting." Morgan responded quickly. He made brief eye contact with Hotch before turning to walk back to the door.

The general barked out instructions for a decontamination team and cordoning off the area.

"Get her in the ambulance." Hotch directed Morgan and Reid.

"She won't." Morgan felt his heart rate increase at the thought of you staying in there any longer. "Said she's more helpful inside than in the hospital."

"Nichols is dead, looks to be about 2-3 days." Reid added on.

Just then Hotch's phone rang.

"L/N?" He answered on speaker.

"I really messed up this time." You let out a dry laugh.

"You need to get to the hospital." Hotch tried to argue.

"I know Morgan and Reid already told you I won't go. There could be answers in here." Your stubbornness was showing. "I need to figure out who killed Nichols."

"Y/N-" You cut Morgan off before he could try to convince you to leave.

"I think he had a partner." You decided to refocus the conversation on the case rather than yourself.

"I'll get Rossi and Prentiss to ask at his office." Hotch sighed in resignation.

"Good, I'll keep looking at everything in here."

You hung up before anyone could argue further. You shoved your phone into your pocket, immediately going back to look through papers and lab equipment around the room.

As you worked inside, you could hear the CDC team setting up outside.

Watching through the windows as people in full hazmat suits prepared to enter the room you were in made everything feel more real.

You pulled your phone swiftly out of your pocket dialling the number you knew by heart.

"Hi." Garcia's voice was quiet when she answered the phone.

"No funky greeting? I'm feeling a little jipped." You tried to joke with her, but it fell flat.

"I can't be my normal, bubbly self when you are where you are." Again, her voice was quiet.

"Garcia, can you do something for me?" Your voice was steady, masking the emotion about to pour out of you.

"What? Tell me what to do and I'll do it." She frantically moved around her desk, ready to do anything you requested.

"You know how a few weeks ago, you were joking about my crush on Morgan?" You asked slowly.

"The one you swore didn't exist? I remember." Her voice was laced with confusion at your topic change.

"Well, um, do you think you could record a message for him?" Your breaths were unsteady as you thought about saying goodbye.

"But you're gonna be fine." She spoke with authority, as if saying it made it true.

"I know, but, um... just in case. I want him to hear it at least once." Your voice broke.

"Okay. Um, whenever you're ready." She listened as you spoke to Derek.

"Hi Derek. Um, I kind of have a secret to tell you, but first I want you to know this isn't your fault. I'm the idiot who walked into the lab. It's on me. I guess I just want to make sure you hear this from me at least once." You cleared your throat, thick from emotion.

"I, uh, I think I'm maybe, just a little bit, um... in love with you." You felt the tears fall from your cheeks. "You're my best friend. You've always been there for me when cases hit a little too close to home or even if I'm just having a bad day. You never fail to make me smile, no matter how hard I'm trying not to."

You wiped at your cheeks roughly, trying to focus on the message.

"I've wanted to tell you for a while, but I never knew how. I guess I'm glad I walked in here for one reason. It finally pushed me to tell you how I feel."

You chuckled again, but there was no humor in it.

"I'm, ah, I'm really sorry if this is goodbye." You paused, unsure if you had anything left to say.

"Y/N?" Garcia questioned if you were still on the line.

"Prep the victim for transfer." You could hear Dr. Kimura entering the room, preparing to begin treating you.

"I've got to go." You hung up without another word, trying to rid your face of any evidence of the tears before facing the doctor.

"How are you feeling?" She questioned once you were in view.

"I'm actually feeling okay." You nodded, trying to convince yourself it was true. She eyed you like she didn't believe you, but nodded with you anyway.

"Alright, how can I help?"

You spent the next few minutes explaining Dr. Nichols profile. Dr. Kimura set off to look for the cure while you continued trying to figure out who killed Nichols.

"L/N, stick with me." Morgan's voice sounded through your phone, drawing your attention away from the stack of papers in your hand. "Prentiss and Rossi don't think the partner is from work."

"Okay, um..." You went back to the bigger desk. "He's got course syllabi and outlines dating back to the 80s." You glanced around the room, eyes catching on the other desk.

"A student..." You trailed off, mind moving a mile a minute.

"Talk to me." Morgan drew your attention again.

"Derek, I think it's a student. There's two desks, different organization on both. The smaller one has what looks like a dissertation that Nichols could've been grading. He wouldn't open his lab to a scientist, but he might for educational purposes." You prattled on, more and more information fitting the theory.

"I'll get Garcia to look at science students." Morgan gestured for Hotch to call Garcia. He was about to hang up when you corrected him.

"Wait! The paper, it's more about social policies surrounding an anthrax attack, not the actual science of it." You spoke quickly, trying to hold in an impending cough.

"Okay, political science and social studies majors then." Morgan trailed off, waiting for your response.

"Good. That's good." You coughed slightly, listening to the sound of his breathing.

"Garcia's got a match." Hotch nodded to Morgan before heading toward the SUVs.

"Y/N, you got everything you could in there. Now get the hell out." He practically begged.

"Sure thing, Derek. Bye." You hung up right as Dr. Kimura walked back toward you.

"His inhaler! It could have the cure, right?" She looked to you for approval.

"They're checking out Brown's house." Derek watched as they hosed you down.

"Go help them." You coughed slightly, wincing at the cool water.

"They've got plenty of help. I'm staying with you." His eyes never left yours.

"Please." You looked him in the eye. "They're about to strip me naked and hose me down. As much as I know that's something you want to see, I don't think I look my best right now." You joked, watching the way he averted his eyes slightly.

"Y/N, I-" You cut him off again.

"I know." You smiled softly, gesturing for him to go. "Now go help catch him." You kept your eyes on him until he was out of sight.

Turning back to the conversation happening in front of you, you watched as Dr. Kimura instructed another hazmat team member to get the inhaler tested for the cure.

"It makes sense for the inhaler to have the cure." Your mind felt fuzzy as you thought it over. You moved to grab your head, something catching the attention of the doctor.

"Agent L/N, did you cut your hand?" You glanced at your hand, remembering the rose bush outside. You nodded, eyes widening ever so slightly at the now blistering cut on your hand.

"Let's move." You were quickly cleaned of any lingering traces of anthrax before she directed you into the waiting ambulance. "Are you still feeling fine?" She questioned while taking your vitals.

"I'm doing great. I flea foon. I fill fon." You muttered, eyes rolling back in your head.

"Driver, faster!" She called to the front of the ambulance as you started coughing blood.

"Are you eating my jello?" You cleared your throat as you eyed Derek sitting next to your bed.

"Yes I am." He stared directly into your eyes as he ate another spoonful.

"Well, is there more?" You pouted, eyes still lingering on the cup in Derek's hands. He laughed in response.

"What happened?" You slowly moved to sit up, eyes flitting around the various machines in your room.

"The cure was in the inhaler. The other patients are in recovery, and you are going to be just fine." The way he smiled when he said 'just fine' had your heart aching. He just looked so relieved.

"Brown?" You continued your line of questioning.

"We got him. It's over." Derek's soft smile remained, eyes flitting around your body as if he were making sure you were actually okay.

"Well, that's a relief." You took a deep breath. "There's actually something I want to tell you."

He raised a brow, a small smirk playing at the edges of his mouth.

"Oh, yeah? Does Garcia know anything about this?"

You felt the blood rush to your cheeks, eyes widening in horror that he had already heard the message. "Oh, um, I mean, technically yes. I didn't- I wouldn't have told her before you if I didn't think I might die!" Your voice was rising in pitch, panic surging through your body.

"Woah, babygirl, slow down." His previous smirk shifted into another look of concern, although he still let out a small chuckle. "She just told me to ask you about a message. That's all."

"Oh." Your mouth stayed in the 'o' shape for longer than necessary, your body's way of stalling what you were about to say. "You haven't heard the message?"

"Nope." He said with a pop. "Care to enlighten me?"

"Well, I guess I have to since you brought it up." You rolled your eyes, messing with him.

"Hey, now! You started it." He clearly had you beat, so you just blurted it out.

"I think I love you!" You threw your hands over your mouth, eyes wide now that you'd confessed to your best friend that you're in love with him.

"That's what the message said. I thought- I mean there was a strong possibility that I was going to die. I didn't want that to happen without me having told you how I actually feel."

Your eyes were focused on the edges of the hospital blanket where your fingers were twisting a loose thread.

"Can I hear it?" His question confused you, causing you to look at him with a furrowed brow. "The message I mean?"

You nodded slowly, texting Garcia to see if she could send it to you. The chime of a text coming in happened almost instantly. You didn't hesitate to hit play on the recording.

I, uh, I think I'm maybe, just a little bit, um... in love with you. You're my best friend. You've always been there for me when cases hit a little too close to home or even if I'm just having a bad day. You never fail to make me smile, no matter how hard I'm trying not to.

I've wanted to tell you for a while, but I never knew how. I guess I'm glad I walked in here for one reason. It finally pushed me to tell you how I feel.

I'm, ah, I'm really sorry if this is goodbye."

The message cut off abruptly at that point.

You could feel your heart pounding as if it were trying to escape your chest.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize it sounded so sad." You smiled, though your eyes were watery. "I mean, I guess it makes sense since I thought you would only hear it if I died." You continued rambling, eyes looking anywhere but at Derek.

"Y/N?" He prevented you from muttering any other embarrassing words.

"Yeah?" You winced, trying to prepare yourself for his rejection.

"I love you too."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said any-" You abruptly stopped, the words you heard finally catching up with your brain.

"You- you love me too?" You whispered, eyes finally meeting his.

"I do." His smile was wider than you've ever seen, and so, so pure.

"Oh." Your mind was having a hard time comprehending the gravity of what just happened. Luckily for you, Derek knew exactly what was going on when he leaned in to kiss you.

It took a second for your body to respond, but as soon as it did you could feel the butterflies swarming in your stomach.

Despite how new it was, everything felt right in the world when you were kissing Derek Morgan.

He only pulled back when you gently pushed him away, a wide smile on your face as you sucked in deep breaths of air. The two of you stared at each other lovingly, just enjoying the presence of one another.

The sound of a throat clearing coming from the doorway shocked you out of your trance. Reid stood leaning against the doorframe, a smirk on his face. He uttered one word, perfectly encapsulating your own feelings on the situation.

"Finally."

permanent taglist:

@averyhotchner @jesuswasnotawhiteman @madewithsebstan @sebastnstn

Criminal Minds tag list:

@mac99martin @goldeng1rl8 @measure-in-pain

#derek morgan x reader #derek morgan x you #derek morgan x y/n #derek morgan #derek morgan fic #criminal minds fic #derek morgan fluff #derek morgan one shot #derek morgan angst

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star-lemonade · 3 years

Text

Summer Rain

Astro Jinjin x f!Reader

Genre: smut, a bit of angst

CW: smut

Rating: R

Word count: 3 k

A/N: Not beta-ed. Little bit more angsty than my usual stuff but with a happy end ;)

Written for @whipped-kpop-creators event

“Let’s go to the beach.”

Jinwoo’s voice cut the deafening silence between you. The tone of his voice told you that he was insecure. Of course he was. You were still surprised that he had the audacity to ask you on a date after what he did, and now he asked to take you on a vacation? In the moment where you did not say anything the silence returned, amplified by the distant traffic and the conversations other people were having around you. The plastic table in front of the convenience store was really not the best date you had had.

“The beach?”

He nodded and stabbed at his noodles. The mostly full paper bowl was his excuse to not meet your eyes.

“My uncle has a small vacation home by the sea. Let’s go there next weekend.”

The last week had been the hottest week of this year. You had barely slept at night and you felt even more pissed at Jinwoo because of it. Jumping into the cold, salty water sounded like a dream. It had been ages since you had even seen the sea. Why not get something good out of a bad situation? You could just ignore him while you were at the beach. You sighed.

“Okay.”

A small smile followed the initial shock on Jinwoo’s face. You ate the last bites of your ramen.

“Awesome!”

Jinwoo beamed at you. His barely contained delight would have been cute at any other time. You stood up. Well tried to. The shorts you were wearing did not play well with the plastic chair and you stuck uncomfortably to it. You pushed it off and it felt back to the ground clattering.

“See you then. I will leave first.”

You did not care that much about anniversaries, but this was the first one. One year. Who would have thought you and Jinwoo would still be together? He was the friend of a former school classmate. The two had met at the company that they both worked at. Jinwoo smiled a lot. That is what had pulled you in in the first place.

When you had gone out for dates he always paid. It was so consistent that it was almost annoying.

“I have money too, you know?” You had half-jokingly said one occasion outside the restaurant. No need to have a scene inside with all people watching.

“I know and you can spend that on whatever you want. I want to spend mine on buying you the food you like.”

One time you actually managed to pay before he did. At the end of a meal he went to the bathroom and you seized the opportunity. You felt very accomplished afterwards. Jinwoo was surprised, but laughed at your mischievous grin.

“Jinwoo, it's our anniversary soon. You wanna go out?”

The message stayed on your phone unanswered for a day. Usually he texted back in a few hours. You began to wonder. Had something happened? Was he okay? You tried to go about your day as usual but you found your eyes wandering to your phone. No new messages.

“Everything okay?”

Maybe it was not the best thing you could do, but you just texted him again. This time you got an answer.

“Sorry, I was really busy at work and fell into bed afterwards. Yes, we can do something for our anniversary”

For the next few weeks you did not see or hear much from him. Your friend had told you that Jinwoo had been roped into a project by one of the high ups.

“I'm worried about you. You work too much :((”

You knew that the message would not get through to him. He was obsessed.

“I could get the promotion. Just a little longer.”

You did not believe that it would be done soon but it was not worth fighting over. After all you would see him in person soon. It would be easier to talk some sense into him when you were face to face.

On your anniversary you waited in front of the restaurant. The agreed upon time came and went. You called Jinwoo, but his phone was off. He had stood you up.

Friday afternoon had arrived and you had gotten off work early to pack. The weather forecast said warm temperatures were to be expected. So you packed shorts, a swimming suit and other light clothes. Sunscreen would also be important. A sunburn was the last thing you wanted to have right now. You suspected that Jinwoo would try to make it up to you with this vacation. After your anniversary he had apologized constantly, but you still felt hurt. Indeed it seemed more like this vacation would be a crossroads. Would you stay with Jinwoo or break up. Yes, you liked him a lot but he was so absent these days.

At 6 pm the door rang and you almost dropped the sun cream. You opened the door to shorts wearing Jinwoo. His smile greeted you from the hallway.

You took your bag and followed him to the car. Jinwoo had borrowed his brother’s car. In the trunk were some white plastic bags from the supermarket.

“I bought something to eat.”

Jinwoo smiled shyly. This trip was him trying to make it up to you for sure. You knew that, but you were not sure if you could forgive him. The day of fast paced working, trying to do as much as possible in the given time had left you exhausted. The sun warmed the car and with the sunglasses covering your eyes you fell asleep in the passenger seat. It felt as if only a minute had passed, when Jinwoo gently shook you awake.

“We are here. You can sleep in the house.”

It took you a moment to really arrive in the land of consciousness. The car was parked in a dirt driveway. Green grass covered the ground in front of the house. Jinwoo had already unloaded your bags and locked the car once you got out. The sun was still up and it was warm. You had expected to be able to smell the sea, but the air only carried the scent of freshly cut grass. The car was parked in the backyard of the house that was surrounded by other houses and gardens.

The house was smaller and bigger than you had imagined. It was a two story building but the floor area was not very big. On the inside the air was cool and you had the impression that the windows had not been opened in some time. Jinwoo gave you a tour of the house. The ground floor was the kitchen, the living room and a small bathroom. A door led into the garden that was basically a terrace with a narrow strip of grass in front of it. A fence separates the garden from the neighbors property. Upstairs were two bedrooms. The room Jinwoo had chosen as your room answered the question you had had about where the sea was. You could see the blue band on the ocean behind two rows of houses.

“It’s not exactly a beach house.”

“The beach is three minutes away on foot,” Jinwoo protested. He looked out the window at the sea over your shoulder.

“Do you want to go there?”

You looked at him, then at the water in the distance. It was getting late and the sun would set soon. You were a bit hungry already but the urge to see the big puddle was stronger.

“Yes, let’s go.”

The blue sky was obscured by clouds, when you left the house. A path lead between the houses down to the beach. You saw some people in the water and lying on the beach. As you got closer the smell of deep fried food caught your nose. A few restaurants and shops lined the promenade that separated the beach from the city. You turned right and walked along the cobbled promenade. Jinwoo walked beside you, not saying anything. In the distance you could see a few boats gliding on the sparkling water. Further towards the direction you were walking in was the harbor. A lot of smaller boats and yachts waited for their owners.

“I got the promotion.”

You tensed. As a good girlfriend you should be happy for him but you only managed a forced smile. Great, now he will be gone even more. I don’t want your money Jinwoo, I want you to spend time with me.

“But I got it under a condition.”

When you did not ask what the condition was, he just continued: “I asked for reduced hours.”

You stopped in the middle of the promenade and looked at him. He stopped too. The person who walked behind you almost crashed into you and cursed.

“Look, I’m sorry.”

Jinwoo took your hands. You met his eyes for the first time today. They were still the warm brown that you remembered. It reminded you of the good times you and Jinwoo had had together. He pressed his lips into a thin line before speaking again.

“I know, I wasn’t there for you enough. Forgive me. Please”

You did not know what you should say. If it was true that he had taken steps to spend more time outside work.. Your heart skipped a beat. His thumbs ran over the back of your hands. A gesture so soft, it made your anger melt away.

“I love you.”

The words hit you like a truck. He said it like he meant it. Indeed there was no doubt in your head that he meant it.

“Jinwoo…”

You wiggled your hands free and wrapped your arms around his neck. Your lips met in a desperate kiss. All your frustration with him and loneliness was released through it. Warm rain began to fall. The drops hit the dry ground, the tiled roofs and your head. You pulled back. A drop hit your neck and you started to move. Covering your head, you took off in the direction of the nearest restaurant and Jinwoo followed behind you.

The cozy restaurant was perfect for this evening. You laughed more than you had had in some time. The weight of your unresolved problems had been lifted off you and it felt like you had your Jinwoo back.

After you ate and drank it was time to return to the house. You said goodbye to the waiter and went to the door. Jinwoo froze in the doorway.

“We should have brought an umbrella.”

He said it in a matter of fact way. You looked out into the night where rain was still going strong. The air had cooled down, but it was still warm. The sun had completely disappeared behind the horizont and the only light came from a few streetlamps. You looked at Jinwoo and said:

“It's not far, we can run home and take a warm shower.”

Jinwoo smiled at you. You took his hand and began running. Your laughter and curses were swallowed by the white noise of the rain.

At the house you saw an umbrella standing next to the door as you took off your soaked shoes. Your clothes clung to your body, making it harder to move. You wanted nothing more than to take them off. You showered first in the small bathroom. The hot water warmed you up again and you were reluctant to leave. It just felt too good. Eventually you had mercy with Jinwoo who was still waiting for his turn.

You put on your light pjs and went to the bedroom. You found blankets and pillows in the closet and changed the sheets on the bed. The fresh sheets too smelled a bit like they had been in the closet for some time, but they would have to do. You lay down under the thin blanket. With the rain the house had cooled down and you felt the need to cover yourself for the night.

Jinwoo came back from the shower wearing only his underwear. He looked fantastic. You wanted to rest your head on his sculpted chest. It had been some time since you had seen him shirtless and he looked buffer than you remembered. He had always been one who liked going to the gym, so he had always looked fit, but now his arms and chest were bigger than before. If he saw you staring, he did not comment on it.

Jinwoo slipped under the blanket next to you, but he kept his distance. Lying on his side he rested his head on his arm. He studied your face and you stared back. His lips were full and soft looking. It had been a while since you had noticed how handsome Jinwoo was. You leaned closer.

“Do you need anything right now?”

His voice was soft and so were his eyes. You could not stop thinking about his chest and arms and abs. The desire was clouding your mind.

“Can I touch you?”

An amused smile appeared on his face, but he pushed the blanket down to expose his upper body. You ran your hands over his chest and your eyes followed. The curves and planes of his muscles were slowly driving you mad. How could anyone look this good?

You looked up and met Jinwoo’s warm eyes. He smirked, not even trying to appear modest. The effect he had on you was very obvious and Jinwoo loved it.

“I missed you.”

He said it like he meant it. His hand covered your hand on his chest. You thought you could feel his heart beating under it. Yes, you had missed your Jinwoo too. You nodded and whispered: “I missed you too.”

You leaned in and he met you halfway. The kiss made your insides churn. He had always been a good kisser, that had not changed. Imagining what his tongue could do between your legs, was getting you riled up. He pulled you closer until your bellies touched and you were flush against him. You swung a leg over his hips and his hand wandered from your waist to your thigh. He was getting hard under the thin fabric of his underwear. You rocked your hips against his and Jinwoo sighed into the kiss. Looks like he missed this too.

He broke the kiss and you almost whined. With an apologetic look on his face he untangled himself from you.

“Let me get the condoms. I’ll be right back, promise.”

The good thing was you got a good look at him again. But you also had a moment to think. He came back with a bunch of packages and slipped under the blanket again.

“I was worried about you.”

He froze and looked at you. It must have startled him.

“About me?”

You nodded and pouted a little.

“Yes. You worked way too much and I was worried and sad about that. Please take care of yourself.”

Your pent up frustration made your tone almost whiny. With sincerity you added: “I love you.”

Jinwoo reached up and caressed your cheek.

“I love you too. I’m sorry.”

You kissed and he pulled you closer. Being pressed against his hard body was exactly what you needed right now. It was the assurance that he was here and with you.

Your leg was draped over his hips and he reached between your bodies to align himself with your entrance. He gently pushed in, stretching you nicely. You moaned into the kiss. Him in you was just as good as you remembered. He did not move and you savored the intimacy of the moment.

“How do you want me today?”

Jinwoo whispered in your ear and sucked on your neck for emphasis.

“I ate too much for what i want.”

He chuckled and his breath tickled your skin.

“You ate a lot. Have you been starving?”

You lightly slapped him and pouted. It wasn’t even that much.

“It tasted good.”

He nodded in agreement. You thought about what would be nice right now. Some position that was intimate but did not require much moving.

“How about like this?”

You moved away until he slipped out and turned around. With his arm around you and his front pressed against your back it felt like the perfect position for the night. Jinwoo pushed in and it was just as good as you had hoped.

He kissed your shoulders and neck as he set a slow pace. The thrusts grazed your g spot from time to time, making you moan. You held his hand to your chest with fingers intertwined. His hot breath tickled your neck. It was heartbreakingly intimate to be with him like this. You kissed his fingers and he gasped without making a sound. His trusts came faster now, it was not the slow fuck from before. But you were ready for your release.

Jinwoo untangled his hand from your grip and reached between your legs. He circled your clit in time with his thrusts. By instinct you clenched around him, wanting to shut your legs close. It limited his motion on your clit, but he did all he could. Rubbing you faster as his thrusts speed up too. You gasped and moaned, moving your hips for more. Your whole body tensed in anticipation. The steady rhythm of Jinwoo’s thrusts faltered, but they were harder now, hitting inside you just right.

“A little more, please!”

It was more a whine than understandable words, but Jinwoo groaned and struggled for more controlled movements. You did not have to worry about anyone hearing you and a moment later you also did not care, if anyone did. Jinwoo let you ride out your orgasm with his fingers still pressed against your sensitive clit. You turned your head so you could see him over your shoulder. His hair stuck to his forehead, but he looked pleased. You planted a sloppy kiss on his lips.

“I think I need another shower.”

#AWhippedSummer #ksmutclub #wkcnet #noonasinnetwork #Astro smut #Astro Jinjin smut # jinjin x reader #Astro x reader #kpop x reader #Astro fanfic #Astro fics #kpop fanfic #kpop smut #star writing #request #queue for the lemonade stand

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everybodyscupoftea · 4 years

Text

expanding the drunkenness scale

frat jj x reader

words: 2690

warnings: the norms (alcohol, cursing)

synopsis: you finally get to see past six drink jj

a/n: requested by an anon; once again i must warn to drink responsibly!!! also i just passed 100 followers, thank you all so much for the support, i only started this up a few weeks ago, so this is crazy to me!

So, you’ve seen the ramifications of six drink JJ, barely standing, barely speaking coherently. Nothing could’ve prepared you for more than six drink JJ. It was almost like he caught a second wind, and it kind of felt like chasing a child around, he was so unpredictable.

One afternoon, after you got off of work, you saw you had about 15 texts from JJ about attending a baseball game. It had already started, but you confirmed with him that he was still there and started to drive toward the field.

You showed your student ID to get in and then walked to the bottom of the reserved student section to look for JJ and whatever friends he was there with. Before you could find him, you heard a loud, “Baby!” and looked up to see him all the way across the section, standing and waving at you. People looked between the two of you, amused, and you blushed at the sudden attention, quickly making your way to him.

“You’re drunk already?” you asked incredulously as he wrapped you up in a hug, hand reaching down to your ass.

“We pre-gamed!” he told you excitedly as you tried to get him to sit down.

He leaned into you, arm wrapped loosely around your shoulder and you sighed, “Yes, I see that. Do you even know the score, bud?”

JJ shrugged, eyes not leaving your face, “It’s tied.”

You looked around him at the scoreboard to see your school winning 5-2. Snorting out a laugh, you patted his shoulder, “Not quite, but good try.”

JJ waved your words off before brightening up, “Oh hey, we’re having a party tonight, you should come.”

“I know you are, you told me last week.”

“Oh,” he looked confused as he took a swig of a beer you didn’t even realize he had before continuing, “well are you coming?”

“Wouldn’t miss it, J.”

“Good, I need my forever date with me,” he tapped your nose, almost missing and nailing you eye instead.

From behind you, one of the guys with JJ that you didn’t recognized made a whipping noise at JJ’s response and JJ flipped him off, not looking away from you.

“You’re being cheesy today,” you told him, slight blush on your cheeks.

“Only for you.”

He finished his beer, and you sighed internally as he started to slump into you, “Did you drive?”

JJ lifted his head from your neck and shook his head, mumbling something incoherently.

“What?”

“Bryce drove,” he told you, slurring a little.

“Right, well I drove, you wanna leave and go take a nap?”

He perked up at the word nap and nodded enthusiastically. JJ’s knees buckled when he stood and you tucked yourself under his arm to keep him upright.

“Whoops,” he slurred out, giggling while you struggled to get him to your car.

“Fucking frat boys,” you mumbled under your breath as he tripped again, almost dragging both of you to the ground. After his third stumble in two minutes, you snapped, “Pick your feet up.”

“I’m frat man, baby, not boy.”

“Frat child,” you corrected as you helped him into the passenger seat of your car. You queued up a bunch of songs he likes as you drove to the frat house because if he fell asleep in the car you definitely wouldn’t be able to get him inside. It worked, and you had to repeat the half carry, half drag process all the way to his room to deposit him on his bed.

You started to leave his room and he whined, “Where are you going?”

“I have to go get dressed and pick us up some alcohol before the party in like four hours.”

“Nooo, sleep with me, you have clothes here.”

“I have workout clothes here,” you corrected.

“They look hot,” he shrugged, holding his hands out as if to pull you back.

A nap did sound really enticing. You were tired from your early morning shift, so you gave in, “Fine, but you can’t chirp me for my outfit later.”

JJ held his pinky out to you, “Promise.”

You linked pinkies and laid down next to him. He held his arm out and you put your head on his bicep. JJ curled his arm around your shoulders and both of you fell asleep quickly.

Not setting an alarm was a mistake because you were woken up by music signaling that the party had started already. You checked your phone to see a text from JJ that he had gone with Pope to buy you guys some alcohol and wanted to let you sleep since you seemed so tired.

You sighed and walked over to his closet to find something decent to wear. There was at least one pair of blue jean shorts which made you feel a bit better, and you brushed your teeth before walking downstairs to find your boyfriend and join the party.

JJ was in the kitchen mixing himself a drink when you found him, and he jumped when you wrapped your arms around his waist from behind. He quickly realized it was you and smiled, handing you the cup, “For you, milady.”

“Is it actually for me?”

“It is now.”

You took a sip, not knowing what to expect, and almost gagged when you tasted mostly vodka. He laughed at your betrayed face and held out the pitcher of lemonade to add some to your cup.

“Fuck, JJ, how drunk are you to already be drinking shit this strong?”

He furrowed his eyebrows while trying to come up with an answer, and shrugged, holding up three fingers, “I’ve had two drinks.”

You reached over to push one of his fingers back down, “There you go, two.”

“You’re so smart, babe,” he told you before yelling out, “I’m dating a genius!”

“Jesus, J,” you hissed, blushing as people in the kitchen stared at the two of you.

“The people need to know how elite you are.”

“They most definitely do not.”

JJ grinned mischievously before yelling out, “This girl is the greatest person in the world and I love her and no one can-“

You slapped a hand over his mouth, abruptly cutting him off and he licked your palm. With a grimace, you pinched his arm with your other hand, “That’s gross, J. Can I trust you to stop, now?”

He gently pushed your hand away before answering, “Probably not.”

And with that, JJ turned away to fix himself a drink. He grabbed your hand and pulled you into the living room where the beer pong tables were set up. There was an open end at the pairs table, so you and JJ took it to play against some two of the other guys who lived in the house.

“Hold my jacket, sweetheart, I don’t know how big this is gonna get,” he told you, stripping off his hoodie.

“I regret making you watch Footloose with me. I know that’s what you were going for there, but I hated it,” you told him seriously, and he just laughed loudly in response.

To say you were carrying the team was an understatement. JJ thought it would be fun to try out an arsenal of trick shots he’d been apparently hiding. The best one was when he attempted a softball pitch and pegged one of the other guys in the forehead. It landed in the cup and JJ cheered, throwing his arms around you in his excitement.

The other guys tried to argue that it didn’t count, but you glared at them until they glumly moved the cup to the side and re-racked the four remaining cups upon your request. They landed one of their shots and you knocked out three of the four, missing the last one.

“Dude,” JJ told them when he lined up to take his after they missed both of theirs, “we kicked your asses.”

“No thanks to you,” you threw in as JJ way overshot in his drunken state.

He grinned dopily at you and threw the last one, not even looking. Of course, it went in, and he leaned down to kiss you firmly.

They missed both of their redemption shots and you dragged JJ away before they could challenge you to a rematch. He finished his drink and you wordlessly handed him yours, still tasting too strongly of vodka for your liking.

JJ chugged the rest of it before setting your empty cups down. He dragged you to the backyard where the music was blasting and a crowd of drunk college students was dancing.

“Care to dance?” he asked, offering a hand.

You figured it was probably the best way to keep an eye on him, so you reluctantly followed him out into the crowd. What JJ meant by dance was holding your hands and jumping around, forcing you to jump with him, until he felt sick. He mumbled something about his tummy and bathroom and you let him go immediately, gently shoving him in the direction of the house.

JJ stumbled inside and you turned around to see Pope dancing nearby. You slid over to him and the two of you danced together for a few songs before you realized how long JJ had been gone and decided you should probably go check on him.

Pope slung an arm over your shoulder and walked with you inside, toward the bathroom. What you saw when you got there almost gave you an aneurism. JJ was sitting on the ground and John B was poised over him, electric razor in hand, clearly about to buzz JJ’s hair.

“Oh fuck,” Pope managed to get out between laughs at your facial expression. He hunched over, arms wrapped around his stomach, as JJ tried to scramble up.

“Maybank, I know you are not about to get your head shaved,” you told him, deadly serious voice, “I know I’m seeing this wrong.”

“No, babe, think about it. My head will feel so nice in the summer when it’s hot. It’s a win-win,” he explained earnestly.

You crossed your arms, “What’s the second win?”

He had no answer for that and instead tried to hug you. John B was slowly trying to get by you two without catching your attention and you poked his chest, “You know better, JB.”

John B shrugged, “To be fair, it was JJ’s idea.”

“When do we ever listen to drunk JJ?” you retorted, ignoring JJ’s defensive “hey!” in the background.

Pressing a kiss to your cheek, John B fully left the bathroom, dragging Pope with him. You looked at JJ and he grinned down at you, “So you’re saying I wouldn’t look good with no hair?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying. You are wild past six drinks, bud.”

It didn’t even seem that your words registered with him because immediately after you stopped talking, he snapped his fingers, “Hey, we should go get Whataburger.”

The thought of Whataburger fries was really tempting, so you told JJ, “Stay here, I need to go get my keys and wallet and I’ll drive.”

JJ nodded, seriously, and you jogged off, not actually trusting him to stay in place. You were pretty quick, but by the time you got back to the bathroom, JJ was gone. With a sigh, you tucked your wallet in your back pocket and resigned yourself to having to look for your boyfriend again.

Just like the first time you walked downstairs, he was in the kitchen fixing himself a drink. This time he saw you and loped over to you, drink spilling a little bit. He threw his hands up, even more sloshing out, and cheered, “Honey butter chicken biscuit time!”

“Yes it is, let’s go.”

When you cranked your car up, you were a little surprised to see it was 3 a.m. and JJ immediately plugged his phone up, pulling up a One Direction playlist which he shamelessly listened to pretty regularly.

He rolled his window down and leaned out as you drove down the street, screaming the lyrics to Drag Me Down. You knew he liked feeling the wind in his hair, so you sped a little bit, just for him. When you pulled into the Whataburger drive-thru, he got all the way back in and smiled over at you and said, “Baby, I feel so alive,” just as the song Alive started playing.

You gave him a blank look and ordered his food and a medium fry for yourself. JJ tore into the food almost immediately as you pulled back into the street to drive to the house. He seemed uninterested in joining the party again as he sat in the passenger seat, alternating between bites of the biscuit and sips of his probably mostly vodka drink.

After you parked, JJ stayed sitting as he slowly finished his food and drained the rest of his drink. You nudged him a few times with your elbow to get his attention, “You wanna go upstairs or you wanna rejoin the party.”

He put some serious thought into it before deciding, “Bed time.”

You grabbed your booksack out of the backseat and the two of you went straight upstairs to the bathroom. Locking the door, you made him brush his teeth and get ready for bed. He started to strip out of his clothes and you quickly batted his hands away from where he was tugging his shirt, “Stop it, babe, wait until we get back to your room.”

JJ winked, “Why wait? The door is locked.”

“We’re going to bed, not having sex,” you told him bluntly and swung the door open.

He sighed, grabbing your hand, and followed you down the hall to his room. Dramatically flopping onto the bed, JJ held his arms out to you, “Let’s sleep, I guess, since you don’t love me anymore.”

You rolled your eyes, “I still love you, but you can’t speak without slurring and I’m pretty sure you won’t even remember this conversation in the morning.”

“Probably not,” he admitted, burying his face into your chest. It only took about 45 seconds until he was snoring and you pressed a kiss to the top of his head fondly.

The next morning, you woke up around 10 and decided to sit at the desk he had shoved in the corner to work on a paper for your Child Psychology class. After about 45 minutes, you went downstairs to make some coffee for yourself and the rest of the house, and brought a steaming mug back upstairs to drink while finishing the last two pages of your paper.

You’d just finished editing and submitting it when JJ finally woke up around 1 p.m. He shuffled around a few times, pressing his face into a pillow with a groan.

Laughing softly, you walked over to the bed and sat down next to his head, running your hand through his hair a few times. He pushed his head into it with a slight whine, “My head hurts.”

“I bet it does, sweetheart,” you soothed.

He pouted up at you and you grabbed the medicine and water bottle you’d set up on his bedside table. Clumsily kissing your cheek, he took the medicine and slowly sipped at the water. After clearing his throat a few times, he broke the silence, “How much did I drink yesterday?”

“Well from what I know, you started pre-gaming at 9 a.m. so I imagine your blood is mostly alcohol today.”

“Brain is a little fuzzy,” he admitted.

“You want some coffee?” you asked, starting to stand.

He whined again and wrapped his arms around your waist before you could leave, “Stay.”

Sitting back down, you started stroking his hair again, “You sure, J? I can get you some food while I’m down there.”

“Later,” he mumbled, moving his head to your lap. After about five minutes of you playing with his hair, he was out like a light again, face smushed into the lower part of your stomach, drooling a little bit. You moved to lean back against the headboard and settled in, pulling up Netflix on your phone. Food could wait.

***

tagging: @girlsru1eboysdroo1 @katiaw2

if anyone else is interested in being tagged in frat jj stuff, let me know!

#jj maybank #jj maybank x reader #jj maybank x you #jj maybank fic #jj maybank headcanon #jj maybank fluff #frat!jj #outer banks fic #outer banks #obx #sigma chi!jj

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1oserjk · 4 years

Text

— at least i look cool

you’re prone to self destruction, it’s all what being with jungkook has deduced you to.

at first, you didn’t mind — but now? you want out.

x masterlist

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You don’t know where you are, whose house this is, or how you even landed an invitation, but you’re definitely here.

For the past three hours, in fact. The only reason your mind could wrap around the time was only because of the fact that you have been sitting outside the backyard porch, phone in one hand and cigarette in the other, observing many splashes and subtle groping in the pool presented in front of you. Not many people are outside alongside you, at least not as much as the people inside, too unsure to take a dip in the chilly night. It still surprises you with the handful of girls proudly wearing flimsy bikinis and goosebumps raised all over their skin, curiously wondering how many would come back with a cold and a few regrets.

You figured it would have been less suffocating here rather than in there, and where you’ve sat numbingly for awhile. A small corner of the stairs were an alright spot, a few legs would bump into you when figures would pass by, but other than that, it’s been okay enough to stay.

Until a bulky boot nudges you in the shoulder. It’s harsh enough to push back on it, most likely leaving a mark on your grey pullover. You don’t even bother to turn around and check, already knowing exactly who was trying to bug you. The boots take a step down, a level below the one you’re sat on, taking the leftover space next to you for a seat. His warm chest presses against your side, hand resting behind the both of you to lean back easier. Jungkook has always been like that, running like a furnace, having it be on most days being consumed whole by him when he would lay next to you.

“Hey,” he flatly greets. “I’ve been looking for you.”

Still, you don’t look at him. “You found me.”

He slightly scoffs, childish smile seeping into his expression - easygoing almost. He doesn’t reply, instead reaching out for your dimly lit cigarette that was, what, your fifth of the night, already halfway through.

His lips wrap around it and your nose scrunches before asking, “Did you fuck anybody before this?” Your head tilts towards the inside of the house, hinting towards the second level of the house.

He doesn’t nod, avoiding eyes, but the bruises on his neck peek through past the collar of his thin shirt. Your finger goes to prod at them, but he swats them away.

“I told her no marks,” he briefly explains, as if it was an excuse and that even if she had followed his orders, you’d be stupid enough to overpass it.

You only give him a weak attempt to joke about it, “She obviously didn’t listen.”

He only shrugs before you tug down the collar slightly when he’s unguarded, and end up finding an unsightly image of scratch mars along his back. Your eyebrows raise, and he still doesn’t have the guts to look you in the eye.

“Fucked her in missionary too,” you note. “What? Looked her in the eyes and told her you loved her?” You taunt sarcastically, eyes passing over heads by the poolside. A few of the girls have climbed out of the freezing waters to take pictures for their social media to post later. Giggles and screams are the only thing heard. He probably has his eye on some of them at this very moment.

“Jealous?” He asks, smoke blowing straight at you.

You shake your head with a few silent beats in between. “You do it every other night,” you only say right after. “Got used to it.”

You can feel his stare, only because of how it burns at your side. He has the nerve to pass the burning stick back to you.

You deny him. “Keep it.”

It stays quiet for a few more minutes, save for some of the useless dialogue and shitty music played through the speakers inside of the house that has unfortunately reached both of your ears outside. You feel him shift closer, hand landing right between your hip and thigh. It used to feel pleasant - comforting, but feeling it now, it only leaves a bitter taste in your mouth. Your elbow prods at his middle to back off, but being that he was obviously stronger than you, it barely fazes him, maybe just a flash of hurt, but only that being it. He pulls you closer protectively, but close to suffocating, the side of his face only a few inches away from your lips.

He then asks, “Are you happy?” A question he asks every single night when he finds you at each houseparty, after shortly abandoning you for a few drinks and a quick fuck. He asks you, and you had always given him the same exact answer.

This time, you look at your surroundings, shallow people all around you who barely knew your name and only as the girlfriend of Jungkook, almost glaring at him when they land back on his jaw.

This wasn’t a place to be sought as happiness, or exactly where you wanted to be, no, this place was just a filler to feel as if it was something, when really, it was absolutely nothing. To some people, this place, this lifestyle, is counted as home, but to you, you had no idea what that was or how it felt like. All you really knew was that it definitely wasn’t this shitty place with beer bottles and cans scattered all over the yard and even some floating in the pool.

To Jungkook, maybe. But to you, it was and will never be this.

This time, you answer with something completely different, something that he is not immune to hearing, not used to either, something that throws Jungkook completely off.

“No.” Time ticks, and he stiffens, you sense it at the look of his jaw. You continue to stare straight at it with tired but widened eyes. “I’m not happy, Jungkook. I don’t even think I know what that is anymore.”

He covers his furrowed brows quickly, clearing his throat and easing a chuckle out. “You’re drunk,” he excuses.

You shake your head. “I’ve been sober for the past five days,” you admit to him. “I’m tired, but I’m not drunk.”

He locks eyes with you, searching for any type of bullshit you were pulling, but in fact, they hold more form than his own.

He can’t believe it. “You - You’re not happy?”

Shaking your head slowly, you confirm.

“I.. Why?” He attempts weakly, holding you tighter to secure that you were actually here and telling him these things. “Everything is here. I thought you.. I thought you wanted this?”

Your own brows draw together. “Jungkook, why would anybody want this? I’m constantly exhausted - and for a lot of things actually,” you unsurely admit with chapped lips. “I-I’m tired of my parents hating me, I’m tired of having two-faced friends that my own boyfriend fucks on the weekends, I’m tired of just being here for no reason,” you confess carefully, eyes shuddering when they close tightly. “Why would I be happy in this situation?”

He calls your name and draws it out slowly.

“I almost got fired last week for barely even having half a mind to do such mundane things-”

“Is this what this is all about? Baby,” he starts, pushing at being more affectionate, like he wasn’t being distant a few minutes before this conversation. “I make enough for both of us, you don’t have to keep working if that’s what’s really making you upset.”

You shake your head. “I’m not going to depend on you.. I-I won’t.” It’d be a complete nightmare having to, and you wouldn't be able to live with yourself properly if you could barely even handle what he’s putting you through now.

“Look at me,” he tries again, fingers softly at the space of your jaw and throat, directing you towards him. “Your parents?” He spits the words out with distaste. “They don’t care for you, they don’t love you,” he staples to your head, like every other time he had to tell you. “It’s been me and you for the past two years and you have been doing just fine without them.”

Your eyes bawl and your head shakes repeatedly, both hands clutching his wrist tightly, “You’re barely home and the only way I can see you is through these stupid fucking parties, always right after you fuck someone else. How is that fair to me, Jungkook?”

“I’ll stop,” he suddenly declares, eyes turned promising.

“No,” you quickly say. “I-I can’t anymore.”

“Baby,” he begs, both hands cupping your jaw, “Please.”

“I want to go home, Jungkook,” you whisper brokenly.

He nods with eager eyes. “O-Okay. We can go back-”

“Not there,” you interrupt. “Not with you.”

He swallows and bitterly reminds, “_____, our apartment has been your home for two years - with me, ever since you got kicked out by them.”

Tears fall and you choke on your words, “The only reason they kicked me out was because I was with you.”

His face falls flat, eyes wavering back and forth unsightly.

Your throat clears, palms rubbing at your knees, long and oversized sleeves tucked and curled into your hands. You announce, “I’m going to stay with someone else for awhile. H-He’s nice and a little bit older, but he takes care of me-”

“Who?” He searches, eyes beginning to mix with fear beneath the hardness of his expression, but you can see it - clearly. The only thing that has paid off from being with Jungkook these past few years, was to know and see when he was scared of something. Primarily when it wasn’t something he wasn’t used to, something that he wouldn’t be able to fall back on. “You—You’re seeing someone else?” He then asks, voice breaking at the very end. The surface of his eyes shine over, and your own heart tugs.

Your head pulls away stubbornly, searching for anything else to look at. “No, don’t play that card, Jungkook,” you say, stripping his hands away from your face completely. “You can’t just do that, act like your the fucking posterboy of all things good!”

“Just answer,” he says, luring you softly. You falter at his eyes that drag heavy. “Please?”

Swallowing, you bask in the silence being gifted to you between the seconds, not sure if he would grant it to you at all after this. “Yoongi,” you inform. “He—He’s a good friend-“

“Friend?” he repeats back harshly.

“Friend,” you affirm with vigour equalling the same as his in your own tone. It surprises both of you. “For now. Maybe more, later. I don’t know, but I want to try at least.”

His arms retract away, forearms resting on his knees, now being hunched over. His face hides away in the shadows, the dim porch light failing at acknowledging his ticking jaw and dark demeanor he holds high up at times when he does not get what he wants.

You’re obviously confused, not understanding a bit on why he was suddenly so distressed about you leaving him. You’ve caused him so much more weight ever since staying with him, clearly showing several times how much it sucked that you were there, holding him back from whatever the fuck it was. It didn’t make sense how it had clicked for him that you had feelings that counted and that you were expected to disobey at times when things were unfair.

Why did it matter now?

In all honesty, you were doing him a favor. Your presence was finally heading somewhere else. More room for him, for other girls, and whatever fucked-up shit he puts himself through these days. He’d finally be able to properly live without anything to tie him down.

Looking down at your palms, they grow shaky and like all the other days, you’ve grown used to it, but now, it’s different. Especially when you announce, “I’m going home tonight, Jungkook.”

He stays silent, knowing that for the years that you had been with him, you’ve always grouped him along with it. It was questionable now.

You feel it — an unsureness that is held so close, almost like it’s strangling you, asking if you were even making the right choice, and honestly, you weren’t sure. You were put on such an unstable routine - nothing felt right anymore, but you would do anything to get away from this and everything else.

You’d do absolutely anything to get away from Jungkook who has broken you from the beginning, creating and building a faulty imagination that everything was completely alright when it never was.

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hi, this is literally so different than what i usually venture out to in terms of writing but like, i’ve been reading a lot of dark n more mature concepts which has fortunately broken this block i’ve had for the past month(?) so im happy that it has.

the setting n some of the plot is definitely inspired by sasha sloan’s song n also a little bit (n take this with a grain of salt bc i didnt really see it until i read it ovr again) of millenium mambo’s layers mixed somewhere in the tone, especially with yoongi plopped in the middle of it

promise i’ll write smthg happier these days :]

seeulater

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#bts #bts fanfic #bts angst #bts fluff #bts smut #jeon jungkook #jeon jeongguk #jungkook #jungkook scenarios #jungkook angst #jungkook smut #jungkook fluff #jungkook drabble #mine #at least i look cool

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morphituu · 4 years

Text

Milagro

Chapter 22: Rehearsals

Ch: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 12 - 13 - 14 - 15 - 16 - 17 - 18 - 19 - 20 - 21

“Maaaama, mi amore- say mama,” Callie encouraged, her shirt clasped in Leo’s hold and a wide smile clamped around a melting teething chewy. The round, golden eyes locked on Callie still glimmered with unshed tears after waking from a nap following a sharp tooth breaking through his gums, but now his short legs kicked excitedly when she squealed like he after some numbing gel was lathered across his swollen pads.

“Oh my osito,” she sang, giggling when his staticky voice spiked into an excited shriek after she laid him across her chest. With any luck he'd catch the last of his afternoon nap and not completely derail his schedule the night before they left him. With one hand rhythmically patting his bottom in tune with a gentle song she hummed, the nails of her other dragged down his thick stripe of sandy colored locks, thick and tangled as hers always was.

Leo’s sleepy growls wound down to soft grunts, his little mouth pursing when he sucked on his tongue.

Her bottom lip quivered. To think she'd go four days without kissing this face or hearing his voice almost made her call off their already brief honeymoon despite desperately needing the break, not to mention the alone time she so craved from her husband to be. Quickies were fun in the moment, but when she'd have to walk right back out and balance Leo on her hip and a stack of laundry and dishes in the other arm, the yearn for a quiet, post-sex cuddle session resounded loudly in her bones.

“You know we’ll be back, right Leonardo? You won't even notice us you'll have so much fun with abuela y abuelo,” she smiled, recalling all of the toys Oleg had gone out to purchase in preparation for his grandson's extended visit, excitedly sending pictures to Nick every time he found something new.

Callie giggled, her eyes drifting up. She gasped softly, looking down at Leo. “Guess who's back?”

Her door swung open and Leo’s head craned back to find Nick placing their contribution to the dinner at her feet, a smile spreading across his gummy face immediately.

“What's with those sad eyes?” Nick pouted, reaching for Leo.

“His tooth broke through,” she handed him over, their son rubbing his tired eyes against Nick’s chest after being leaned into the crook of his beefy arm. Nick groaned, rubbing Leo’s back.

“I feel bad we're taking off right when this starts,”

“Me too,” Callie sighed, pushing her messy hair back from her face. “I keep rethinking it,”

Nick’s head lifted with a pout. “You don't wanna go anymore then?”

She exhaled loudly, shaking her head. “I really wanna go but I don't think the guilt will go away so I just gotta suck it up and deal with it,”

“We’ll only be a few hours away,” he reassured, a comforting squeeze left on her knee before he carried Leo to the backseat. Nick wiggled his face between Leo’s round cheek and shoulder to elicit bubbly giggles, his affections unyielding even after his son was safely strapped in his seat again, not until Callie reminded him that they were needed elsewhere.

A final squish of his cheeks, and Nick was off to the drivers seat again.

“Let’s do this,” he chimed, the dark clubmasters hiding the excited glint in his yellow eyes.

The weather was ideal for the windows to stay down, a soft breeze drifting through the cab that neither worried about overwhelming Leo as long as the traffic stayed this slow, but neither minded that, either. Nothing- not even that Callie’s dress had been delivered with a rip in the seam, could dampen their moods that day.

For weeks, more notably the sleepless nights they'd planned this and endless trial and error from music to food to seating, keeping enough excitement alive until their day came, and through rejections from churches that deemed their union unholy to now having a backyard wedding at his parents that a shocking number of family wasn't arriving to, they were here, the day before their wedding, and Callie couldn't shake the warmth that had held in her cheeks all day.

The butterflies fluttered about her stomach, bubbling in her throat when she tried to speak. As usual he held her hand while they drove, but now more than ever he toyed with her singular ring that would soon have it’s pair. When they stood in line to pick up Leo’s fitted outfit, he brought her decorated hand up to his lips to kiss shamelessly before the humans that rolled their eyes in disgust, further stirring the churning excitement before she leaned into his side to hide her blush.

Callie’s head landed against his arm rested over the center console, his big hand landing on her leg. Nick kissed her head while he drove, his thumb tracing the supple skin of her freckled thigh.

Callie grinned then. “I hope this song plays tomorrow,” she noted the raunchy beat bumping softly through the speakers.

Nick snorted. “Someone's uncle is gonna grind on someone's aunt,”

She giggled harmoniously, her face rotating in to hide against his bicep. Nick egged her on, the dirty comments flushing her cheeks and leaving her breathless as they drove leisurely along the backroads. At red lights he made it a point to steal kisses, his hand leaving the steering wheel to hold her jaw when a taste of her tongue became too tempting to refuse. They were honked at a few times, but Nick blew them off, telling his pretty fiancée “this is why we should've put the cans on the truck today”.

Their bantering settled enough to let silence pass between them, listening to Leo babble against his crinkly blanket or exclaim when he caught sight of himself in the mirror.

“Did Ward tell you what you guys are doing tonight?” she asked, pulling her hair over her shoulder when it whipped before her face.

“He won’t even give me a hint,” Nick huffed, endlessly worried they’d end up at a strip bar. “What about Rosie?”

“Just a girls night at her house,” she shrugged, hiding her excitement. A night to kick back with her feet up and gossip? With unproblematic people? It’s fucking paradise, she’d clarified to Nick when he was confused as to why bachelorette parties weren’t rambunctious like the mens. “I’m not drinking until the reception though,”

“Is it the Orkish champagne?”

She moaned, her eyes closing as saliva pooled in her mouth. “Forget the food, just hand me another glass of it when mine is empty,”

“One glass will have you on your ass, mama,” he reminded, peeking at her from over his clubmasters.

“Good thing my husband will be there to carry me away from the judging eyes of the public,” she said, her chin balancing on his shoulder as he pulled into his parents' driveway. The street was lined with their guests, the chatter from the backyard heard over their engine.

“Only because my wife is the fairest in all of LA,”

She pouted. “Just LA?”

“Who even matters outside of LA?” he asked.

“You’re right.” She leaned in for a quick kiss.

The pair went about gathering Leo from his seat and his numerous bags they’d store tonight in preparation for the following day, including a bouncer and swing. He was excited as ever when Callie lifted him from behind the buckles, the teething toy in his grasp. It took only three months for Leo to reach a girth that Callie could carry on her hip like a six month old, his head unwaveringly steady and held upright as he learned the world around him. Their pediatrician warned he’d fly through milestones faster than they could record, so when Leo started angrily gnawing on their hands and crying through the night, it took them some time to figure out he was simply teething when they’d normally not expect it until later. Moments were cherished with greater excitement after they realized how quickly Leo was growing, and how brief this baby stage would be.

It wasn’t until they’d at last received the results of his genetics test were they able to find some peace of mind knowing when he’d hit a year, this rapid aging would slow drastically.

Being seventy-six percent Orc meant doctors felt confident leaning towards the likelihood that Leo’s growth would match that of a full-blooded one, but the moments remained bittersweet for the parents. In the blink of an eye Leo went from being a wiggling newborn to a hefty calf able to sit up on his own and mimic their mouths when they spoke to him.

His yellow eyes tracked and narrow in on objects he wanted, his colored hands able to pick items, and Nick’s ear was always on the menu of items he loved to gnaw on.

At the call of his name he’d turn his head, and a smile would grace his lips when it was either of his parents. Callie would walk from corner to corner with him between her feet, his grasp tight around her fingers and his feet dragging less everyday he built up the muscles of his strong legs. When he’d be done from such an exerting exercise, a frown up at Callie would signal his reluctance to waddle any farther.

The pouts and angry chuffs were Nick’s favorite. He’d gnaw Leo’s thighs and roll him side to side just to see his little face snarl, a sharp cry rattling in his throat before he’d clamp onto Nick’s arm. Now that the sharp fangs were coming in, he found instigating a fight with his vicious little boy wasn’t in his best interest. It had only taken a few times for Leo to learn if he laid over his dad’s head, he was further defenseless, including those ears.

“Ah!” Leo exclaimed, reaching over Callie’s shoulder towards Nick. “Ahh!” he cracked again, looking at Callie.

“He’s comin’, don’t worry,” she assured, his chuff tickling her ear.

The door was cracked open upon walking up to it, and inside the furniture was already being moved around to create more space to linger around in.

“Late to her own rehearsal!” came Oleg’s booming voice, strutting in false intimidation from the hallway, but his angry scowl melted into a wide smile once Leo recognized him and reached.

“Is everyone here?”

“The booze went quickly,” he teased, walking toward the back of the house with Leo excitedly squealing in his grandpa’s arms.

“That’s what happens when you get Orcs and Mexicans together,” Nick commented, grunting his way in with all the bags slung across his arms and shoulders.

“They didn’t drink the champagne, did they?” Callie frantically asked, following Oleg and leaving Nick to topple over with Leo’s luggage.

Nick and Ward both sipped their beers alongside Matuk and Sergey, the summer sun having been unbearable until Dinara silenced the mens whining and dished out the cold drinks. But the sun still kept glaring down at them even as it drew near sunset, their shirts sticking to their skin and hunger growing. Dura had been the only one to be blessed with a chair at the front, her belly near bursting as her due date approached.

“Pay attention,” Dura hissed at Sergey, fanning her face with her sun hat.

“All I do is stand here-” he hissed back, silencing when Ward elbowed him.

“Can you shut the fuck up she’s about to come down,” Ward growled, jabbing his hand in the direction of the house.

“We’ve done this eight times, why do we need to be quiet?”

“He’s right, there’s no point,” Nick answered loudly, sipping his beer.

Ward glared at him in disbelief. “At your own rehearsal?”

“Look, they’re talking,” he pointed to Callie’s mom who sat beside Dyani and Joaquin, Leo and his mother coming to join them once she’d finished walking down the mock isle.

“Okay music, yada yada everyone stands, then Callie,” Dinara called, tip-toeing around the line of bridesmaids to stand beside Nick at the front.

It was just the rehearsal, and there was nothing to match how spectacular and dreamy it would be the following day, but Nick still smiled watching her walk down like that, a glowing smile on her face and hanging onto her father's arm. Nick tossed a kiss to her before she was even there, tipping his bottle back over his lips to hide a nervous smile when she winked at him.

For the eighth time, Nick shook Diego’s hand and accompanied Callie back to their spot at the front, his actions growing clumsier with every round.

“Pre-gaming?” she asked, smiling at Nick’s loose nod. She was sure his eyes were half-lidded behind his sunglasses.

“Okay dearly beloved and all that, they exchange vows, beads, rings and kiss,” Dinara recited from the front with Leo still in her arms, wiggling towards Nick when he made faces at him. He stopped only to peck Callie sweetly, snatching his son from his mother's arms. “And we’re done,”

There was a collective sigh of approval from everyone placed about in the wide yard, all of which were starved for the cool drinks and savory dinner laid out under the shade of the patio.

Sergey stumbled to Dura’s side and only laughed when she scolded him for already drinking himself into a cloud, but Callie was there to loop her arm around the expectant mother’s and assist in her waddle across the yard. Nick and Ward picked Sergey back up, leaving hard slaps on his back while they teased him over being a lightweight.

“I hope Morn feels better by tomorrow,” Callie pouted, feeling her friend's absence.

“She kicks shit fast, she’ll be good,” Ward answered. It was useless denying they’d become quite cozy with one another, especially when Nick had stopped by unexpectedly to find her wandering around Daryl’s house in his shirt. It was a sensitive topic, but Callie thought it sweet how lovingly he spoke of Morn when she wasn’t around. There was always the hint of a longing sigh somewhere in his words, a hardened pout pushing his mustache up.

“Was it a stomach bug? Daryl wasn’t feeling too good either,” Rosie noted, following her ear into their conversation.

“Was Dejza sick too?”

“Yeah I think that’s where she got the bug from. Grandparents wanted to see her,” Ward explained, finding a spot beside Nick once they all came up to the table. Leo perched on Nick’s thigh, reaching over to tap Callie’s arm so she’d talk to him as the others found their seats. The chatter of Callie and Nick’s chosen family was lively among their friends, the last minute preparations or concerns rising into question and then settling quickly. Food was passed through mouths as fast as the words, the plates filling just to empty minutes later for seconds and thirds. The men of Nick’s bachelor party were ordered to lay off the beer and instead fill up on food before their night of celebration and farewell, waving off their disapproving groans and wails.

By the time they were all dug into their meals, Leo was drifting in Nick’s arms with a bottle balanced on his chest, at last catching a nap to soothe away the throbbing in his gums they’d managed to mostly keep at bay all day with the chaos swarming around them.

When Leo spat out the bottle and rubbed his face, Nick took a final bite of the crispy pork ribs to lean back in his chair and cradle his son closer to his chest, a wide palm patting his bottom. Soft chuffs were the last of Leo’s attempts at consciousness before Nick’s purring did him in, his big eyes finally sliding shut.

Nick was lost staring at his son when Ward suddenly came into view, his ear almost close enough to press against his shoulder.

Ward snapped up, mild disbelief coloring his expressions. “Are you… vibrating?”

Callie laughed out loud, covering her mouth filled with food.

“Does Morn not purr?” Nick asked, Ward leaning away from him.

“P-purring? Y’all… purr?” he looked up hesitantly at the other Orcs around him who were unphased by his discovery.

“Does Morn really not?”

“No! I think I’d know if I heard somethin’ like that!” Ward exclaimed, returning to his meal with a shudder.

“I bet she does n’ it just puts you to sleep,” Sergey added, talking around a corn on the cob.

Daryl looked back to Nick. “Sophia always told me she reminded her of a cat and I thought it was cuz of the ears n’ shit,”

The table chuckled at that, their laughter heightening when Daryl again leaned into Nick’s chest to listen to the rumbles, even placing a hand flat on him to make sure it wasn’t some elaborate prank. The fervent manner in which everyone devoured the food calmed into small pickings here and there and the low rumble of chatter filling the backyard, everyone in their separate conversations or stories until Dinara pulled Nick's attention away from Callie and Rosie who spoke so fast, it only sounded like clicking.

“Ukmall, you’ll need to be here before eight to get Leo,” she informed, and his brows furrowed.

“So early?” he groaned, having fully expected a few hours to sleep off a hangover.

“Callie needs to get her hair done. The fumes are bad for him,” she scolded, and he looked back to his bride.

“You’re changing your hair?” he questioned with big eyes.

“Just a little bit,” she smiled, internally screaming. She’d come to this decision to alter her hair after talking herself out of going entirely blonde despite her curiosity for years pulling her the other direction, but now she wondered if he’d even notice.

“I guess I can get him,” he griped, leaning down to kiss Leo when Callie and his mother sucked their teeth in discontent.

“What time are people arriving?” Callie asked around Nick.

“Three, so we have a lot to do and a lot of cooking before people start showing up. That being said,” she grunted, standing at the head of the table with her glass of sweet tea raised. “I’d like to propose a toast and a thanks,”

Everyone hushed, reaching for their variety of drinks to hold up.

“We want to extend our thanks to Callie’s family who have graciously accepted us in, not to mention our son who came with a reputation,” she gestured at Nick, the table chuckling. “To everyone who’s helped and put up with my screaming,” she admitted to bashfully. “To my son, who I knew would be the father his own raised him to be, and now the husband I always knew he could be,” she smiled lovingly at Nick, his own grin goofy and adoring. Callie rubbed his arm, squeezing his wrist affectionately.

“And to Callie,” she cleared her throat, raising her glass. Callie’s smile dropped when she looked up, her anxiousness kicking into high gear. “It’s because of you my son smiled again, and it’s with your help he’s shown that beautiful baby in his arms such love. You weren’t only a gift in his life, but ours too, and no matter the paths you both might take from here on out, you’ll always have a place in our family. Cheeruk, mausan daughavas. Lat've bleukukun avhiuk famipak.” She finalized, her glass raised and Oleg following suit.

“I’d like to also say something,” Diego stood creakily, his age at last catching up to him after decades of back breaking work. He smoothed his hand down his church shirt, lifting his glass. “Mija, you haven’t always had the best of luck when it came to men, and to be honest I would’ve pulled my hair out if you had brought home another white boy,” he chuckled, the table following suit as Callie hid her face in despair. “But now I can rest easier at night knowing you have a man I would’ve hand-picked for you specially,” he tipped his head at Nick, the orc nodding once in return even though he was inwardly elated.

“I’m sorry the ones you were told growing up were your family didn’t make it here, but it’s their loss, cariña. If they can’t grow as much as you, let them leave. You’ve always been better than them. Nick,” he turned, startling his daughter’s groom.

“Thank you. You’re the standard I raised my daughters to expect, so thank you for taking care of her and Leonardo. I only want forever for you two.” He finished, his free hand resting on Luciana’s shoulder as she looked on at her daughter with watery eyes.

“I second that!” Rosie declared, Santi’s glass following his sister only to spill across the table's surface and onto her plate.

Her cheeks were hidden in her palms when they toasted, Dinara’s words whispered in translation into her ear by Nick after drinking to their parents speeches. He kissed her flushed cheek, promising the sincerity of her words. Her eyes wandered while Nick adored her secretly, watching their parents take turns hugging and speaking with smiles plastered across their faces. It helped ease some of the burns she’d been dealt when her family started RSVPing just to say they wouldn’t attend, and she wondered how much of it was because of Leo and how much was because of their choice to marry. Either way, she knew now who to keep up with.

The couple was dragged from their steamy bubble of secret kisses and whispers when Ward elbowed Nick insistently until he turned, motioning his head toward the door, but his hairless brows drew together.

“Are you okay?” he whispered, noting Ward’s lighter complexion.

He shook his head, waving his hand. “Drank too much,”

“They took our drinks-”

“Man let’s go!”

Nick turned back to Callie, a loose smile curling her lips.

“Is it time?” she asked, and he nodded, leaning in for another lengthy kiss. “If I get a call from Jake that one of his girls is shaking their asses in your face I’m gonna make sure you can’t make anymore babies,” she warned quietly, trying not to laugh when he gagged.

“I hid a nanny cam in the house so if I see a male stripper shoving his junk in your face I’m gonna throw you in the ocean,” Nick cracked back.

“I can’t swim!” she giggled, trying to frown.

“Yeah, you’ve been warned,” he kissed her before she could respond. “I love you, have a good night and be safe,”

“You be good,” she reminded, pursing her lips for another kiss before he lowered Leo into her arms and smooched him goodbye. “No tequila,”

He sucked air through his teeth, pointing at her. “I can’t promise that,” and he was off, following the others into the house after kissing his mom on the head. They grew rowdy once separated from their lovers except Matuk who was as stoic as ever, and they could be heard causing a commotion all the way to the cars until they were off.

“Ten bucks says they don’t make it past midnight,” Rosie announced.

“Make it twenty,” Oleg raised his beer, his bright smile tightening when Dinara elbowed him in the side before making her way over to Callie as the rest of their guests found separate conversations to delve into.

“Callie, I’d like to show you something we picked up today,” she said under her breath, tugging on her elbow.

“Oh?” she piped, tapping Rosie’s shoulder so she could deposit her hefty son into her arms. Rosie doted over him lovingly, endless kisses pressed into his cheeks as he was roused from his nap, but that would be her problem, now. By the time Leo was awake and gnawing angrily into his tia’s cheeks in retaliation, Dinara had led Callie into her room where the bed was lined with pressed and covered clothing, some decorations and linens hung over the small bench at the end. Callie wandered, her hands gravitating towards the colorful flowers protected in plastic boxes.

“Here, look,” Dinara called from the desk at the corner of the room.

The small lamp was flipped on when Callie was at her side, watching as she lifted the lid from a silver box carefully, but upon removing the satin material protecting whatever was underneath, her hands moved even more gingerly than before until a shining, silver plate looked up at them. Orkish letters were carved deep into its face, but the polished grooves were clean, elegant.

“Marriage Armor, it’s called. The bride wears the plate with her new name upon her back and the groom wears the bride's zodiac on his shoulders and chest,” she explained, a smaller pouch that she had in the top drawer of the desk emptying into Callie’s palm. The charms were attached to thin, dainty chains, and carved from a deep, grey metal shaped into bull heads.

Callie smiled, studying their details. “Nick will wear these?”

“Mhm. You’ll both wear the bracelets that are exchanged, but those are kept for the day of. Right now we need to get this on you to make sure it fits,” she explained, opening the pouch so Callie could deposit the charms back inside.

The ‘armor’ had length to it she at first couldn’t see between the satin covers. Her own sparkling chains braided across the shoulders as one long, jeweled piece ran the length of her back, stretching from the plate that spelled Jakoby. When Dinara had it balanced on her shoulders so she could clasp it at her front, she saw where the chains came together into the shape of the Taurus symbol. With delicacy she touched the pieces on her shoulders and at the center of her chest while it was adjusted at her back, her smile beaming. It was heavy- this was definitely some special mineral, for she’d never seen one of such weight be polished finely enough to catch even the smallest glimmer of these dim lights.

“Tomorrow you’ll glow during that sunset,” Dinara smiled, tugging the chains at either side of her shoulders. “Poor Nick will be so blindsided we might have to give his men a heads up,”

They giggled, Callie’s smile wavering when Dinara held her hands tightly, staring at her with glossy eyes. “These plates are traditional. A male’s mother hands them down to his bride if she approves, so these should have come from my own mother in law, but they didn’t,”

Callie’s smile fell. “What?”

“Oleg’s mother hates me. She wanted her boy to have the smiling, waxy wife who pops babies out like rats. So I had these made the day before we were married, and I wore them in front of her,” she grinned.

“Reclaimed the name?” Callie smirked.

Dinara nodded. “It’s a good name despite the reputation that came with it when you met my son,”

Callie only hugged her, their arms tightly wound one another in that moment. “Thank you,” she said, giving her a last squeeze before they both wiped their cheeks of any stray tears.

“Well it fits,” she giggled before the two got her out of the intricate chains and back into the sleek box.

“Come on then,” the orc sniffled, turning the light off. “Let’s finish the night.”

↠

Nick’s hand still hadn’t come down from shielding his eyes, but as long as Ward was emptying his dinner and three beers onto Sergey’s lawn, he wasn’t going to even bother glancing at him. His excitement had drained the entire two hours it took to get here, it’s gradual drip starting as soon as they’d left his parents.

“I’m fine, I just drank too fast,” were the kind of things Ward kept saying to excuse his deteriorating, sweating form, but Nick knew he’d heard him heaving into the toilet after calling Morn to ask exactly what she’d come down with. Still, he insisted he was fine the entire duration it took him to shower and change before they headed to Sergey’s next, but by the time they’d gotten in the car, Sergey was starting to look worse for wear, too.

As soon as the car had come to a stop, both of them were falling out, one running into the house and the other making it to the lawn before he lost his composure. Now, Nick was alone in this filthy mess after Matuk had ditched them, but Nick hadn’t expected him to go, really. Bachelor parties didn’t seem like his thing even though there was nothing to celebrate anymore.

“Juh- just gimme a min-” Ward choked, retching loudly.

“For three months I’ve dealt with puke almost daily,” Nick explained calmly, his eyes still hidden.

Daryl coughed.

“You’ve been hyping me up for this for weeks,”

Ward nodded, spit hanging off his bottom lip. “I’no,”

Nick dropped his hand and sighed when thirty seconds had passed- the longest yet- without him heaving, and he couldn't help laugh a little. Ward wasn’t the kind of person to ever show vulnerability even when he was hurt, so seeing him hunched over and whimpering meant taking a few photos should’ve been his top priority, but Nick showed mercy on his friend while the other was lost somewhere in his house likely calling Dura to cry.

“C’mon,” Nick groaned, lifting Ward’s limp body off the ground.

“I need t’go to Morn's,” he grunted, walking unsteadily beside him.

“She can come get you after I drop you off,” Nick used his lighter voice, clearing his throat when he realized what he was doing. “Sit down,”

Ward instead flopped into the backseat, exclaiming when his head smacked the door panel. He continued to wail when Nick used his foot to push his feet in, flinching at how loudly he protested.

“Jesus now I know why Sherri was such a bitch,” Nick mumbled, closing the door before Ward could scream at him. “Stay there,” he knocked against the window, turning towards the house. “Let me go check the other child…”

What started as Nick’s bachelor party he had looked forward to for weeks, had turned into a mini-pandemic between the parties involved- thank god they left his parents house when they did- and had resulted in Nick getting one giant man baby into bed with clean clothes after he was found on his bathroom floor, and cleaning the puke out of Ward’s car when he voided even more of himself while waiting. It hadn’t come without a cold scolding from Nick, demanding to know why he couldn’t have opened the door beside his head if he had enough power to sit up and spray everywhere, but Ward stopped listening when the words became languages he didn’t know.

He hollered and gagged the entire way back to driving Daryl home, bursting from the car as soon as he was parked, but that only meant helping clean this one up too.

After nearly three hours of scrubbing, and gagging, and screaming, Nick sat on Ward’s porch waiting for his Uber, a cold beer in hand. No amount of air freshener or borrowed cologne would mask the raw stench of vomit under his nails and on his clothes. He’d likely throw these away- his nose was too keen to allow back into his closet. Too bad; he really liked this shirt.

Night had at last crept over LA, leaving only a soft orange glow where the sun had slipped from. The night was humid, but cool, and the woven chair he sat in wasn’t half bad.

He looked at his phone, tracking the driver who was coming down the street.

He’d made the move multiple times to message Callie, but he couldn’t bring himself to halt her night, either. If she hadn’t messaged him about anything, that meant no sickness had befallen them either, right? Maybe they’d been lucky to avoid catching it from Daryl. He texted his mom at least, warning of a stomach bug floating around and to keep a closer eye on Leo.

A compact little sedan rolled up, and Nick groaned. Now he had to squeeze into that.

What am I even gonna do all night… he pondered, walking towards the car. He chuckled. Sleep.

Nick slipped in the open door, closing it noisily behind himself before spinning the bolt shut. His palm popped up just as he smacked his inner arm, his keys flying onto the counter and sliding noisily across its surface.

Never, not even after his most grueling days at the academy or after an even more grueling workout did he ever desire a shower and sleep like this moment, kicking his shoes off excitedly.

“Nick?”

He froze, his head half in the cabinets looking for something to take with him. Nick leaned out of the kitchen entry, his ears twitching. Was that…?

“Cal?” he called back warily.

“Maybe,” she called back, and he was off towards the bedroom he hadn’t even noticed had been shut.

The TV was mumbling lowly with her favorite show, but she wasn’t on the bed like he expected. Instead, sitting on the carpet on a folded blanket surrounded by her phone and wires that made up her headphones and charger with a pre-roll between her fingers, he found her sitting beside the cracked sliding glass door so the smoke could wisp out into the night.

Her eyes were just as wide as his, the pair speechless.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, almost afraid to move. Where’s Leo?

“What are you doing here?” she returned, knowing he’d seen the joint in her hold.

“Ward and Sergey-”

“Got sick?” she interrupted, her mouth tightening. He nodded, snorting.

“The girls too?”

She nodded, relaxing a little bit. “I thought you were off already doing the bachelor party thing so I just came home… and left Leo with your parents,”

“Yeah I didn’t call them either,” he confided softly, licking his bottom lip.

“So…” she looked around. Why was this so awkward!?

Nick watched her, leaned back on his hands after pulling a fresh shirt over his scrubbed skin. His head lolled to the side, watching her at last let out the insane breath she’d pulled in. The smoke from this one smelled foul compared to the scented trails from a cartridge, but he wouldn’t speak out against it.

By the time he’d come out of the shower, she had gone through half its length and her eyes were already falling shut. Eight months of sobriety brought her tolerances way down, but this was also the first time in months he hadn’t seen her chewing her inner lips or bouncing her knee. What a wonderful remedy this was, but the stigma attached to it would always leave Nick hesitant.

“That wine is gonna knock you out tomorrow,” he mumbled, grinning when she swatted sleepily at his foot.

“I thought we already agreed you’d catch me,” she reminded, twisting the butt in the ashtray before looking at him.

“Only if I can get really shit faced in San Diego,” he whined, and she laughed.

“Duh, me too,”

He smiled, watching her fidget around on the blanket and fix her hair hanging around her shoulders. She looked down at the ring on her hand, smiling adoringly at its face then clutching her palm to her chest. Soft humming came from her, a soft sway back and forth starting.

“What’re you doing?” he asked, knowing she’d fallen into her dreamy haze.

Callie shrugged, looking up at him. Those balmy eyes were glowing, her cheeks flushing. “I can’t believe we’re getting married tomorrow. It feels like it’s taken decades to get here but it’s only been… pfft three years? And now we have our baby?” she pouted, holding her own face.

“Wow,” Nick mumbled, smiling at her in amusement.

“I shouldn’t have left him there, I need to call your parents-”

“Cal,” he called, catching her frantic eyes. “He’s fine. Take a breath,”

She paused before nodding, sighing instead of taking an appropriate breath.

“I wanna be on whatever planet you’re on,” his words nudged her away from that guilt, a little smile lifting his spirits when he worried about her mental state. Sometimes the break-through anxiety was sneaky.

Her brow perked up, her smile growing devious.

“I can’t,” he reiterated.

“You can,”

“I can’t,”

“It would be out of your system in two days. We’ll be back way after that,” she too reminded him of the miraculous gift that was an Orcs metabolism, but Nick was a faithful worker and had his own, brittling views on the earth-made herb she relied on. “You didn’t get enough that first time,”

“It tastes like ass,” he defended, growing weary when Callie sashayed towards him with the ashtray and lighter pinned under her palm. “It makes my lips dry,”

“I’m not stopping until I hear ‘no’,” she clarified, sitting between his spread legs stretched across the floor and lighting the end of the blunt.

Still, Nick remained silent, watching her suck in her own small hit until the embers were crackling at the end. “I won’t make you do it if you don’t want to,” she told him, sensing his hesitation. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to. If he liked the buzz from drinking, he was sure he’d like the buzz from smoking, but his encounters in the past not to mention the particular one that had left him in a room full of laughing people during a bad trip left bitter emotions.

But he trusted Callie when reminding him she’d never do such a thing, and she trusted her when she said, “You’ll like it,”

“And I’ve seen how jittery you’ve been,” she noted, patting the hand that had moved to rest on her thigh when he sat forward.

“Who wouldn’t be?” he asked, pinching the shrinking joint between his fingers when she passed it. Then she sat back on her bottom, crossing her legs.

“It’s your decision, baby. I want you to have a good time but not if you’re uncomfortable,” she told him, knowing even in her bombed state that despite Nick accepting this more over the years and his own curiosity growing, pressuring someone wasn’t how you did it.

He rolled it a little bit between his fingers, glancing at her with his critical, yellow eyes.

Ugh, he’s so yummy-

“How long do I hold my breath?” his voice disrupted her thoughts.

“As long as you can,”

Nick sighed, looking at it one last time. “Fuck it, why not,”

Callie’s eyes widened every second he kept inhaling, caught between warning him and possibly making him panic or letting him get one huge drag in instead of coughing through a bunch of little ones, but by the time she decided, he was done. Silent, holding his breath, his eyes already watering when he handed it back.

Without looking she snuffed it out, waiting. “Nick?”

He exhaled loudly, a cloud of smoke blowing around her that she swatted towards the cracked door. The coughing started before he even finished his breath, the next one bubbling up his throat before the previous one finished. His throat and nose burned, and he could’ve sworn he felt his trachea vibrating with every ragged cough.

“Cough as hard as you can, it helps,” she coached, rubbing his back when he rolled onto his stomach to smother his teary eyed face in the carpet.

The ferocity of the coughing rang down his arms, his head throbbing when he managed to sit back up, but with the calming of his body came… warmth.

Nick cleared his throat over and over, wiping the back of his hands across his eyes, but the warmth surrounding his head was making it hard to keep his eyes open. They felt like they could fall into a slumber at any moment, but his mind was as wakeful as ever. He glanced down at his body; why did he feel so… floaty? He cleared his throat again of its scratch while rocking side to side, tensing his arms. Upon lifting his hand, he found he still had full coordination.

He snorted, coughing a little.

“Are you okay?” His head snapped around, finding Callie staring at him in suspense. “How do you feel?”

He inhaled. “I feel like there’s cotton in m’head,” he mumbled, an eye closing. “Like fuzzy cotton,”

She repressed giggles. “But are you okay?”

He nodded loosely, looking around their cluttered room. “It’s like being drunk but sober,”

“I’ve never been able to explain it that well,” Callie grieved, her arms throwing up into the air. “Are you gonna be one of those insightful people when you’re stoned?”

Nick blinked, his eyes reflecting when Callie snapped a photo of him. “Who?” he asked.

“Oh my god.” Callie mumbled.

“Damn,” Nick exclaimed under his breath, his face twisted in horror.

“I know,” Callie nodded, her knee draped over his thigh.

“Could you imagine…?

“No. It’s bad enough we have dragons,” she said against his chest. Every blink felt like eternity.

“Imagine if they did that,” Nick pictured, his body shuddering under hers. “What’s this movie called?”

“Princess Mononoke,”

He scoffed; no way he was remembering that. Nick took a final bite of their ordered dinner, chewing slowly as he stretched to rest the bowl on his nightstand. Maybe this would finally calm his voracious appetite, but as long as Callie kept opening that bag of Doritos, he was hopeless.

“I’m gonna gain thirty pounds by tomorrow,” he mumbled into her hair, the both of them chuckling.

“I never lost my thirty,” she pouted comically, stuffing another chip into her mouth.

“Damn, what that mouth do?” he teased around a yawn.

“Yo mama,” she mumbled, giggling when he snorted.

Silence lulled between the two snuggled and surrounded by snacks in the bed, both of their minds lost somewhere in the clouds as they re-watched various Netflix series.

He thought he’d heard her slip in and out of sleep earlier, but truth be told, he could’ve been listening to himself breathe. There had been a few times his reddened eyes snapped open to be in the middle of a completely different episode, but mentioning it would be admitting he was falling asleep which he continued to adamantly deny. With a blind reach, he retrieved his phone from the nightstand.

Just a little past midnight, but way too late. He was enjoying this too much, though. Nick was only selfish in the sense that sometimes he just wanted to snuggle right up to Callie and feel her body against his. The last time they’d had a moment like this without Leo in the way was at the beginning of her pregnancy, and laying like this only made him realize how long ago that was.

“We should be in bed,” Nick mumbled, rubbing his eye.

“We are in bed,” she laughed, sliding her cheek up to look at him.

“You know what I mean. Big day tomorrow,” he looked down at her, reaching to move some of her hair from her cheek so he could better see those big eyes that always sparkled.

“Everytime I think about it I get so nervous,” she whispered.

“Why?”

She shrugged. “I dunno. It feels like that first time I met you at Santa Monica. I stress ate like seven funnel cakes. I was so anxious,” she admitted shyly.

“I changed a bunch of times. Couldn’t decide on anything,”

“Oh you did good, sir,” she winced, biting her bottom lip. “You could’ve drowned in my panties,”

“I would’ve if your sister hadn’t’ve interrupted,” he grumbled, forever bitter.

“Oh hush, it was a sign we would be together forever,”

“How so?” he questioned, twisting in her direction a little.

“I would’ve never called a guy back if that happened with anyone else, but you were so perfect that I swallowed the embarrassment and saved my horniness for another day,”

Nick smiled, a big goofy one. “Shut up,”

“Shut me up then,” she came back with, fast as a whip.

His eyes dropped to her lips, lingering before coming back to her eyes. “Isn’t that bad luck?”

“It was bad luck when we both ended up home,” she whispered, the weight of her hand once on his chest now coming to stretch across his meat.

That was enough convincing for Nick.

Callie was a little slower getting over him, but her heated kisses kept him concentrated on what they both wanted. When she was in her spot sitting in his lap, he could better taste her tongue after pulling her chest flush against his, his strong hands quickly continuing to her round ass he pulled back and forth over his growing dick. A steadying hand against his chest meant he could leave her skin that was marked red where he grabbed, her hips resuming the motions.

With his bottom lip pinched between his teeth, he easily pulled her loose sleeping shorts aside, revealing her plump pussy lips.

He could already feel how warm she was through his sweats, shortening his breaths in anticipation.

“You’re so hot,” he admired, looking up in time for her hair to fan around them when leaning down to kiss him. Strong, sinewy arms wrapped tightly around her waist, grounding himself to the angel that squirmed in his hold deliciously. Silently, inwardly, he thanked those who had blessed him with such a girl, promising to worship more as soon as he was done with this.

A firm tug on the ends of her shirt had it flying past her fingertips, thrown to the floor.

Callie gripped the railing to the headboard when he pulled her chest into his open mouth, a long lick gliding over a hardened nipple that had goosebumps fire up her arms. She snickered when he smacked his lips a few times, moving onto the other side. An old technique had her limp in his hold, her thighs tightening at his sides. He encouraged her hips to keep moving, his cock desperate for attention, but her mind was only a pool of melted pleasure at that point.

A hard gasp fell from her wet lips when he graced her clit with tight circles, hanging off of his neck to look down at his hand flat against her lower stomach as his thumb massaged her into a trance. Gradually her eyes fell shut, hair sticking to her cheeks while she panted softly.

His loose smile made her rock into his touch. “You want it already, don’t you?” he asked quietly, his voice vibrating with growls; Callie could only nod. He pecked her sloppily. “Get naked,”

Callie stumbled off into the center of the bed to kick off her shorts and socks, moving onto the food and remotes and phones that were now being swept onto the floor without a care.

Nick’s shirt and sweats had already been tossed off, but now as he rummaged through the drawer of his bedside table, his excitement was plummeting. Here was the box, but…

“We’re out of condoms,” he announced, looking back at her sat naked at the center of the bed on her knees with her dishevelled hair a mess around her shoulders. It only added to the tragedy of the situation.

“So?” she asked, her fingers drumming against her thighs.

Nick stood straight, his head cocking.

Since she’d been cleared for sex there hadn’t been a session they forgot to use protection, no matter how it dampened the sensation. He’d done it for her, for he wasn’t the one who’d be carrying anymore surprise babies, although it was the memory of her sweet, bare pussy around his unsheathed cock that helped bring him to an end, now. He’d wanted to ask her, even just for one quick slide in, but Nick had always assumed this was the new norm until either of them were snipped.

“Are you- really?” he asked.

“I hate them, Nick. I’m so over using them,” she exhaled, her shoulders drooping. “I’ve been trying to be good but if I have to ride your dick one more time with a balloon over it-”

She yelped, her legs pulled from under her ass and Nick finding his spot between her flailed knees when she realized what happened.

The mood shifted again, and suddenly they were in perfect sync.

Her knees drew upwards when the top of his thighs pressed under her bottom, his hand finding its place at the bend of her leg that was closest to her chest.

She made it up onto an elbow when he spit at his tip pressed against her entrance, her hand hovering against his belly.

“I’ll go slow,” he soothed, meeting her eyes. The first time they’d reunited in bed, his excitement resulted in hurting her, and from that came the need to remind him to be gentle, even this far down the road. A guilt he’d always carry, but he’d work on fixing it.

It didn’t burn this time his head popped in, his thick shaft following until she was filled to his base. Her shoulders fell back with a loud sigh while his eyes slammed shut, pressing to her as tightly as he could. He’d dived into a pool of ecstasy, sending strong shivers up and down his spine as he basked in her heat.

The stinging tug of a condom was at last absent, and there was only Nick’s velvet skin gliding against hers, creating the friction she so wildly desired.

“Baby,” she called, holding the hand at her leg when he stared down at where they were joined. His dilated eyes landed on hers, a low snarl curling his lips when he withdrew only to slip back in.

Her head rolled back in time with her eyes, a loud moan rumbling under the hand that slid up his chest when he rested forward on his hands, her knee hooked around his chiseled arm. He’d draw out until her heat was kissing his head, just so he could feel that delicious pressure before pushing back in. Nick leaned into one hand so he could touch her, dragging his rough hands up and down her body that gravitated towards his caresses. When her pussy bucked into his thrust, a surprised moan came from him, an eager thrust bouncing her.

A low, rumbling growl moved into her when he yanked her hips up in line with his, his nostrils flaring as he scented them together like this.

“Do it,” she smiled, her feet planted into the sheets behind him.

Their eyes locked during the time he adjusted his feet beneath himself, his breaths deep and loud. A few leisure bucks were her warmup, and then came that smirk. She bowed until she balanced on her shoulder blades, his grunts and chuffs nothing compared to the singing made in his name during his fucking. He was a force driven purely by instinct; the need to fill his girl again, to lay claim to what would officially be his that day.

The slapping of their bodies coming together drowned out the TV beside them, Callie’s resounding cries piled atop his raucous moans as he shoved his way into her body again and again, her juices covering them as he pounded that spot hidden deep between her tightening walls.

Her ass was dropped from his hold so he could lean forward for a kiss, her mind spinning when he rolled her on top of him.

With a flip of her head to move her hair off her sticky back, Callie sat straight, her fingertips guiding him back in as her knees slid out until she was sitting flat on him, flinching when his tip found the back of her pussy.

God, she was so small in his hands when he held her cinched waist; if he stuck his thumbs out, they could touch.

A deep moan rang in his chest when she snapped her hips back and forth, her sweet cunt massaging his entire length. When a dip of her center was particularly low, she’d gasp, holding her stomach where it felt he was poking, but a wide smile always followed those overpowering shocks of spine curling bliss.

Nick held steadfast to her hips, guilty in keeping her flat against himself so there was the added friction on his head.

“Oh fuck,” he drawled, his hand landing back into the sheets.

“Nick-” she gasped, her hand flying to his chest. “I’m-”

His last burst of energy was used flipping them again so she was spread below him, his hands hooking under her knees to push back into the bedding beside her ribs.

There was no more words as he poked his way back in, pistoning into her with such power her toes curled, her arms falling limp above her head when her climax came crashing around her. In an instant, she was stiff as a board, her legs strong enough to fight past his hold and stretch straight in tight trembles at his sides as he continued. When she could catch her breath, she shouted, a deep flush blooming across her cheeks and chest. Nick watched with a proud smile as she convulsed under him, her silent mumbles barely words as she came down from her high.

Her limp thighs shook mightily in his hold when he pushed them apart, their bodies touching in a paused moment so he could adore her with soft kisses.

She was still breathless as he brushed his lips across her jaw, her soft throat pulsing with the blood racing through her. Her pussy throbbed dully around him compared to the fist like hold he barely made it through moments ago.

A soft whisper in his ear brought the tempo back up, but Nick wanted to stay like this.

A beauty such as her was only admired best this close, and even though she’d found her climax, she whimpered below him, holding his face as he fucked her sweetly. Her ankles locked behind him, a heady groan to follow before he dropped his face beside hers.

“Should I cum on your stomach?” he panted, his thrusts weakening as the pleasure peaked.

“Inside me,” she kissed into his cheek, tightening the hold with her legs. “Cum inside me baby,”

The hand lost in her hair gripped her roots, a loud hiss coming from between her teeth when his entire body tightened and jerked against her flushed cunt. The screaming engine of Nick’s orgasm overtook him like a wave would at the beach, ringing from every end of his body and back to his center that spilled into his ecstatically beautiful bride to be. He grunted with every thick stream of semen forced into the space they both snuggly occupied, slowly stilling until they were both a heaving pile of sweaty parts and cloudy minds.

He worried he’d crush her the longer he laid over her, but the soft gliding of her hands up and down his back were too good to pass up. He exhaled, his face buried between the mattress and her head. “Fuck,”

Callie giggled, her cheek leaning into his so he’d force himself up to look at her. The urgency was gone in their kisses, but now he could feel how sleepy she was.

“Ready?” he asked against her mouth, only moving when she nodded. Her thighs trembled when he dragged out of her, bringing a thick stream of the nectar he’d left behind.

“Oh I can feel that,” she grimaced, sitting up on her elbows warily. It wasn’t clear at that point if it was the weed or sex that had left her feeling like her head was vacant.

“You should see it,” he smirked, his cocky pride coming through. “How many siblings did you want Leo to have?”

“Ha,” she shouted. “Good luck getting me pregnant ever again. My body said one and done,” she grunted sitting up, scurrying off to the bathroom after Nick had hoisted her up. He didn’t answer, and wouldn’t. Callie adored the idea of having a big family, but the night the topic came up when Leo was two months old, it only ended in her confiding in Nick that she felt she’d never be so lucky again. She wasn’t wrong in saying her body would likely fight off pregnancy for years, maybe endlessly if they ever tried again. Where it once happened so effortlessly, the time following to get where they were now had left them both a little… doubtful.

Nick yanked the blanket off their bed, tossing it beside the door so he could flop into the cool sheets of the mattress after turning off the lights and TV. His arms were already open when she came wobbling back in, her naked body collapsing into his. They rolled and wiggled until they found their spots, her head tucked under his chin and their legs tangled.

“We broke like four traditions,” she mumbled through a closed jaw.

“Thinking about it, I don’t think it applies to us,” he yawned; the sleepiness was at last getting to him. She looked up at him curiously.

“Our whole relationship is taboo. Curses don’t apply to morally incorrect choices,” he explained, laughing when she did.

“Yeah I guess you’re right,” she settled, her soft smile lingering when he rubbed her arm. The soft breeze from their ceiling fan moved her loose hair around his arm, tickling his skin, but the gentle strokes across his chest from her was lulling him into sleep.

“You’re not gonna bail on me tomorrow, right?” she asked suddenly, and his eyes opened.

He leaned away from her so he could better see her face when she looked up. “Why would you ask that?”

“I had to ask, my mind wouldn’t let me put it to rest,” she sighed. “I’m sorry,”

“Hey,” he pulled her chin up, holding her face. “I’ve been trying to get you to marry me for years, remember?”

She giggled, nodding. “What if right when I said yes you were like ‘fuck, she said yes, what do I do now?’”

“Oh my god that brain of yours,” he sighed, laying back down to pull her tight against his chest. “I’ll prove it to you when I’m waiting at the altar,”

“Promise?” she asked, her big eyes already closed. He pushed some hair aside, her lids fluttering a moment.

“Always.”

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did i plant a seed in this chapter? are those church bells in the distance? honeymoon in san diego where they have the best tacos HWHAT?

only 3 chapters left! ;_; thanks for reading, my loves! ❤

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cryptidvoidwritings · 3 years

Text

10. July | hurt/comfort

*nudges part two (2) into the void because ho boi did this one get away from me and also I can't leave things unfinished and there's totally a part three (3) heeeeeeeeeeelp*

(PS: Descriptions of cats fighting below. Not, like, super gory but probably not pleasant, either.)

(PPS: Part one here should you wish to read it)

The silver tabby looked uncertain. “If you’re sure... I don’t like you being on your own, either. Macavity knows your scent. I’ll take your patrol. Stay until he’s ready to come back.”

Alonzo blinked. “You think he’ll let me?”

“I think he’ll be more interested than you imagine,” Munkustrap smiled crookedly. For just that instant he looked almost exactly like the Rum Tum Tugger. “Thank you, ‘Lonz.”

Alonzo nodded and bounded out of the yard so he didn’t have time to think himself out of his decision. He caught Tugger’s scent just outside the gate. He kept low to the ground and stayed in the shadows as he followed it. The city streets were different than he remembered now that he had a clan and territory to come home to, but there was a reason he kept to the junkyard as much as possible.

Thankfully, he caught sight of the large cat in only a few minutes.

“Tugger!”

The Maine Coon paused, looking over his shoulder. A series of quick expressions flitted over his face; surprise, mild amusement... pleased? He waved his tail in greeting and Alonzo picked up the pace to close the distance.

“Well, well,” Tugger chuckled languidly. He examined his claws. “So Straps found someone to babysit me after all. He couldn’t bribe Skimble enough, eh?”

“I volunteered,” Alonzo said.

“I’m surprised he let you. Shouldn’t you be getting off to nap?”

“What?”

“You were on watch when I left,” Tugger said around a huge yawn. He started to groom his ears. “Shouldn’t you be napping before patrol?”

“He’s taking my pat-” Alonzo started. Paused. Tilted his head in consideration. Tugger often claimed to eschew doing work, so for him to have an idea of how Munkustrap ran the junkyard was unexpected- pleasantly so. “You have the patrols memorized?”

“I know how Straps likes to organize,” Tugger shrugged. “Particularly when he’s being paranoid. Anyway, I’ve got places to be. Keep up if you’re coming.”

The Maine Coon took off; his stride was so long that Alonzo had to trot to catch up. He walked in silence with Tugger down the remainder of the block, down the next one over, around the corner to the left, up another block, and around another corner. This side street was quiet, but there was something about the low garden walls of chipped brick and rusting iron gates that Alonzo didn’t like. The houses here were separated by narrow alleys leading to backyards and the shadows between them made Alonzo anxious.

Munkustrap is rubbing off on me. “You live here?”

“Primarily. No need to look so put out.”

“I’m not. I’m just getting familiarized,” Alonzo said absently. His eyes swept back and forth. Something was making his fur stand on end but he couldn’t say what. “Are you not looking me in the eye on purpose?”

The larger cat hesitated mid-step so abruptly that he nearly tripped. “Huh?”

Alonzo indulged the satisfaction of catching the Rum Tum Tugger on the back foot for once. “You’ve done a lot to make sure you haven’t had to look me in the eye since I caught up with you. It’s kinda rude. Just wondering if it’s on purpose.”

“What if it is?” Tugger asked. He turned down the alley at the end of the street. “I’m through here.”

“Are you sulking? Or is my face too ugly? It’s unfortunate that we can’t all look like you but-”

“Do you think his face is pretty?”

Alonzo stopped in his tracks, ears pinned back. The voice echoed. He immediately cataloged: gravelly voice, unfamiliar. A whiff of scorched earth and ash reached Alonzo. Macavity.

“I think it’s a bit bland, myself. Very conventional.”

The shadows grew dense behind them, becoming like another wall. Trapping them in the narrow alley.

“You have terrible taste, Macavity,” Tugger said, almost pleasantly.

Macavity oozed into the light, his red coat like blood spilling from the shadows. His head swayed as he surveyed the Maine Coon with an unblinking gaze (Alonzo remembered bright yellow from the night of the ball; now he saw a strip of blue- so much like Munkustrap’s coloring- surrounding Macavity’s pupils).

The ginger cat clicked his tongue sardonically. “I’d heard that Munkustrap was keeping everyone at home but I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised to find you out and about. He always did like you best.”

Tugger shrugged broadly. “I’m special like that.”

“And bringing friends into your trouble, too.” Macavity hummed, unblinking gaze moving to Alonzo. He breathed deeply, mouth opening to taste the air. Thin lips turned up into a deceptively lazy smile of recognition. “Ah. Yes. The second.”

Tugger’s 20-pound body moved smoothly between them- a barrier of vibrating muscle between Alonzo and Macavity- dragging the ginger cat’s attention back to himself. “What did you need, Mac?”

“Am I not allowed to see my family?”

Family? Alonzo blinked.

Tugger growled low in his throat; a long, primal sound that was sound so far out of the realm of his usual easy-going demeanor that it took Alonzo a second to realize it was him at all.

“I don’t see any family here,” he spat.

His rage shivered over Alonzo’s back. Alonzo thought he knew what the Rum Tum Tugger was like when angry because of what he’d seen during the ball. That anger of that night held not a candle to this. Macavity’s apathy in the face of it was almost impressive.

“Oh. Oh dear. Is my baby brother trying to impress the little cow?” Macavity asked, yawning.

Alonzo frowned. Baby broth- wait, what?

Tugger held himself stiffly, turning further away from Alonzo. “He’d be a poor guardian if this was all it took.”

“Now, now. Let’s not play stupid. You might not have been blessed with as many brains as father might have wished but I know that you are aware of my meaning. And you should remember that I don’t appreciate purposeful obtuseness.”

“You been studying to win Scrabble again?”

Macavity narrowed his eyes. Alonzo eyed the back of Tugger’s head warily. It couldn’t be a good idea to goad the ginger cat. He darted a glance at the shadows behind them; no other cats or rats. They might stand a chance if it really was just the three of them. He turned back just as Macavity swayed another step forward. Their eyes locked and too late Alonzo realized his mistake. Everything went fuzzy at the edges of his vision. The air felt thick. He wanted to stand at Tugger’s side. He told his body to do it, but his limbs didn’t respond.

It felt different than when he’d been frozen at the ball, though.

“Just us, now, Rums,” Macavity purred, moving his unblinking gaze to Tugger.

Tugger hissed at him. The ginger cat snapped his tail angrily- the first sign of any real emotion.

“You used to have manners, pretty kitty. I’ll teach you again.”

As if they’d practiced, the two cats leaped at each other simultaneously. Macavity aimed for the Maine Coon’s belly. Tugger brought his claws down on the Hidden Paw’s back. Quick as a flash Macavity turned to bite at the joint of Tugger’s arm and his claws raked down Tugger’s right side. Tugger swiped at the ginger cat’s cheek and tore it open. Their blood mingled in droplets on the alley pavers.

Alonzo tried to run forward. In the time it might have taken him to join the fray he made it two steps. It felt like running through molasses. He growled in frustration. Macavity’s paws lit with sparks like embers in a dying fire. Concentrating on attempting to land another blow, Tugger didn’t notice them.

“Tug... ger!” Alonzo tried. Too late.

Macavity wrapped his paws around Tugger’s neck and the smell of burning fur permeated the space. Tugger howled. Grinning maniacally, Macavity snap-kicked Tugger’s out legs from under him. Tugger fell. His head bounced on the concrete. Alonzo winced and stumbled an instinctive step forward as he tried to get to Tugger’s side. It felt like he was moving through water.

Not for the first time Alonzo wished he knew more about how magic worked.

Macavity’s back was still to Alonzo as he jumped onto Tugger’s chest and punctured it with his claws, so he didn’t notice Alonzo forcing himself closer. Tugger did. He punched Macavity in the temple. The ginger cat yelped and had to jam a paw to the ground to keep his balance. Tugger struck at his elbow and rolled Macavity under him as he fell. He clamped his jaws around all of the ginger cat’s neck he could reach.

Macavity laughed, a guttural sound. “You always did think you could play with the bigger boys.”

Tugger ignored him in favor of grinding his teeth into Macavity’s flesh. Macavity got an arm free and stabbed his long, jagged claws into the wounds he’d made in the Maine Coon’s side. The air shifted, growing heavy. Tugger’s body seized into a long line, tensed so tight Alonzo feared he would snap.

“Tugger!” Alonzo cried. Normal voice.

Macavity threw Tugger aside; he rolled until the wall of the house stopped his momentum and he crumpled with a soft whine. His body jerked as he gulped in shuddering breaths, eyes squeezed shut in pain. Macavity sauntered towards Tugger, head swaying. His paws cracked with flames.

Get up! Getupgetupgetup! Alonzo thought furiously.

As though he could hear, Tugger slowly got onto his knees and tried to stand. His right arm was nearly useless; his shoulder fur had been seared off and the skin bubbled where it had been burnt. Blood dripped from his side. He dug the claws of his left paw into the worn wooden slats of the wall and pulled himself unsteadily to his feet.

“Oh, do sit back down,” Macavity sighed, “You’re getting tiresome.”

Tugger grinned tremulously. “S’my specialty.”

Alonzo leaped onto Macavity’s back.

The ginger cat howled in pain. “How- ”

Alonzo slashed and bit at every millimeter of Macavity he could reach. His teeth tore through an ear. His claws caught the edge of the cheek wound and opened it further. Macavity’s blood splashed over his cheek as the ginger cat bucked. Alonzo held firm. Macavity’s fire flared and licked at his paws. Alonzo growled through the pain, hooking his front claws into the ginger cat’s neck and thrashing as hard as he could with his back feet.

“You dog,” Macavity snarled.

The air, smelling of blood and smoldering flesh, grew hotter and heavier around them. Magic again. Alonzo allowed a moment to hope that Tugger hadn’t been wrong about Macavity’s magic working better at night. He didn’t know what they were going to do if he had been.

“‘Lonz! Tug!”

Quaxo.

Relief washed through him, though Alonzo didn’t dare look to see where his brother was.

“Release, ‘Lonz!”

Alonzo vaulted from Macavity’s back. He tumbled to the other end of the alley, pain screaming up his arms as he pushed back to his feet. His paw pads flaked off burnt skin. Only after the lightning shot past him did Alonzo’s brain acknowledge Tugger had issued the familiar command. Petrichor covered the sharp scent of Macavity’s fire. Macavity scrambled back just before another flare struck the ground. It blinded Alonzo briefly.

When he could see again, Macavity was gone.

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k-corner · 4 years

Text

Ashes of Love: The Problem with the ‘Protagonists’ Actions and Characterization, and an In-Depth Look at their Concerning ‘Romance’

Now, as anyone would be led to think about my opinion of Ashes of Love based on previous things I’ve written is that I didn’t like it. Nothing could be further from the truth. I adore Ashes of Love and the imperfect world that it’s created and most of the stories that unfolded from there. Unfortunately, the odd thing that has to be addressed is my absolute loathing for the supposed ‘protagonists’ of the story Jin Mi and Xu Feng, and that’s long before I get into the idea of their absolutely creepy romance. Now I’ve watched Ashes of Love about four times now before this post idea hit me, only wholly through once and the others were more picking the episodes I liked and skipping around, but I was curious why I hated what was arguably the backbone of the entire show. If there was no Jin Mi and Xu Feng and their ill-fated romance then wasn’t there no show? Isn’t their love supposed to be the thing that drives the plot forward and fleshes out all of the characters around them?

I’d actually argue that they’re not, and I do think that’s one of the biggest problems that Ashes of Love has.

That’s not to mean that I despise all of the time spent on secondary characters and their motivations. I actually think that so much time on the secondary characters saved the show. I think it was necessary to know why Run Yu became the token ‘bad guy’ in order to try avoiding the ‘second male lead is evil just because’ trope. I think it was necessary to have other characters for the audience to root for or like outside of the main characters. Unfortunately Ashes of Love even with all of this extra backstory never manages to accomplish the Run Yu task and gives up near the end to just make Run Yu Evil Incarnate™ just because. I’ll touch on the problems with Run Yu and his storyline/characterization in Ashes of Love in another post. This one is focused on my impressions and read on Jin Mi and Xu Feng.

Now in order for me to truly understand why I despised these characters so, I decided to rewatch their scenes without the distraction of other characters storylines and really try to wrap my mind around why I just couldn’t get behind these characters. Unfortunately these days we have to add this, but these are my personal opinions. Respond accordingly.

Here were the results:

Part One: Plot Problems and Character Actions -

Right away, jumping into the story we have the inciting incident that starts us on our journey through this world. Zi Fen, the Flower Immortal and Jin Mi’s mother, has experienced a series of horrifying events and fears that her daughter will go through something similar and attempts to circumvent that problem in the strangest way possible: she decides to take away Jin Mi’s ability to understand love. This is a simple enough start, however already the narrative fails to deliver on what this actually means and what this little anti-love pill does. Jin Mi is portrayed as someone who can feel love but cannot understand love. And not all love, just romantic love. She loves her friends plenty but does not understand the subtle nuances of her feelings for Xu Feng.

Xu Feng and Jin Mi have a chance meeting when Xu Feng’s assassination attempt lands him right in Jin Mi’s backyard. The two strike up a quick friendship and Jin Mi runs away from home to go off with Xu Feng. Upon getting to the troubled Heaven Realm she meets the secondary male lead Run Yu and strikes up a bond with him. Through a series of quirky events we find out that Jin Mi is no ordinary grape fairy but instead the daughter of the Water Immortal and the Flower Immortal! What? Who knew? Just kidding, we all did, or at least the second parent. After this the narrative comes up with an obstacle for these star-crossed lovers – Jin Mi is engaged to Run Yu! She’s the bride he’s waited thousands of years for! Oh the drama!

Here's where the plot really starts to fall apart though. I’d argue that they should have scrapped the majority of the demon realm arc and give more time to the before period of Jin Mi and Xu Feng prior to finding out that she’s the Water Immortal’s daughter and bringing in The Engagement. Why? Because Jin Mi’s naïve personality and Xu Feng’s constant hounding starts to lose momentum once this piece of information is revealed. At that point I still found myself asking ‘Why are they together? Why are they so determined to be together? Why is their love so intense and eternal?’. We needed more scenes of just the two of them building a serious relationship instead of just short comedic and cutesy scenes between them. I truly don’t feel that the narrative gives us an answer for any of those questions other than a ‘because it’s their love story duh!’ response. As much as these are immortals going through thousands of years, the narrative never really does a good job showing that a good chunk of time is passing and it feels like all of this nonsense is taking place right after the other. It gives a feeling of weakness to the main characters love and their trials. It feels too new, it feels untested and like the roots it has are unearned and just exist just because it says they do. [Understand this is the show and not the novel which I have heard is better at handling this problem and is nothing like the show not that I’ve read it]

This leads into the problem that really started to drag on me. The Engagement.

For how flippantly Xu Feng seems to believe that anyone can end this engagement at any time: see him tell Jin Mi she doesn’t have to, see him ask Run Yu several times to break it and so on and so forth; it doesn’t make any sense to the rules of this engagement. The Water Immortal and Run Yu express that it is an absolute, and that breaking it in terms of the Night Immortal equals demoting to the human world and stripping of their immortal title. That seems like a heavy price to pay to break this engagement and yet several times this heaviness is undersold by the narrative as a ‘Water Immortal almost ends it but Run Yu manages to say tricky words because he’s a tricky little schemer watch him scheme’. Later Jin Mi decides not to tell Run Yu that she wants to end the engagement in order to spare his feelings. The strength of the engagement and the consequences of it never really settle and it’s confusing up until the end. Not to mention, just the politics of it all.

Ashes of Love is a heavily politics driven show but not in a completely BAM in your face sort of way but more as the setting/backdrop/reasons why people are stupid sort of way. It never fully addresses the issue of Xu Feng’s constant chasing of Jin Mi considering that the eldest royal brother is already in a pre-contract engagement with her that has been there for at least several thousand years. Xu Feng seems unchallenged by the rules and continues blatantly chasing Jin Mi throughout it all.

The secondary characters need to push Jin Mi and Xu Feng together doesn’t truly make rational sense either. Jin Mi is engaged to Run Yu so why is the Moon Immortal and Immortal Yuan Ji going to Xu Feng to discuss acceptable choices in Jin Mi’s human redemption? Why does no one intervene in the Moon Immortal using his strings to tie the two together in the mortal realm? Why doesn’t anyone point out how out of line Xu Feng’s reactions are and how much he’s insulting and shaming Run Yu?

The return from the mortal realm is where things really fall apart long before the demon world arc. In fact, I’m not even going to mention the demon world arc because at this point is where my feelings on the main characters were solidified and I could no longer find it in myself to care about them in the slightest. A big thing in the show is the Engagement and the problems that it causes for Jin Mi and Xu Feng to come together. During the mortal realm we as the audience were able to see how much danger Jin Mi was in and how much extra effort Run Yu went through to protect her while Xu Feng was off playing mortal with her. Jin Mi returns and acknowledges that she loves Xu Feng. She wants to be with Xu Feng, but her father basically tells her no. That ‘human Jin Mi’ and ‘Immortal Jin Mi’ have different responsibilities and requirements to fulfil. Jin Mi then goes and does two things: one she does not break off the engagement accepting Run Yu’s request for time during his mourning; and two she has sex with Xu Feng.

…While still engaged – to Xu Feng’s brother. While Xu Feng’s brother is in a fragile state so she didn’t want to hurt him by breaking off the engagement, she goes off and starts a sexual relationship with Xu Feng which is so much worse than just telling him no to the marriage.

Then the next problem occurs – the Water Immortal and the Wind Immortal are murdered! There’s evidence that Xu Feng did it! Not just that - Run Yu finds out about Jin Mi’s affair and infidelity and restores the no love pill inside of her to put a stop to it! Drama!

This leads Jin Mi to accepting her responsibility and duty to the contract and goes to marry Run Yu, but wait! There’s more! Xu Feng arrives at the wedding to stop a coup from Run Yu [sorely needed coup] and Jin Mi kills him! Shook! Shock! Only then does the pill break fully and Jin Mi is released from the spell but it’s too late! She’s killed her love! Commence with the convenient restoring him to life plan and Jin Mi’s inability to let go of Xu Feng and her guilt about what she did – although she will eventually throw all of the blame onto Run Yu in order to clear herself of wrongdoing because ‘she was deceived’ and the narrative will side with her on this in order to clear up the problem of Jin Mi acting of her own accord to enact revenge and cannot handle what she did after she realizes that she didn’t have all of the proper facts. So she can’t be guilty even though she did it – the Evil Incarnate Run Yu™ was solely responsible [cue eyeroll].

This all accumulates in the major part of the plotline wherein we’ve followed the meeting of these two, the falling in love, the obstacles and the separation and return. Unfortunately the narrative never fully manages to give these lovers a weight to their story making their struggle seem pointless, self-created and exhausting. The problems they’re having are by their own hands and it never gives me, in my opinion, a reason to believe why they can’t let go of each other.

Xu Feng has no true hardships to overcome. He’s the spoiled prince who everyone loves despite being an arrogant bird. He’s loved by the beautiful Sui He but he’s so put upon because he doesn’t want her. He chases after his brother’s fiancé and gets annoyed that his brother won’t relent and give her to him. He goes down to the mortal realm to protect her but becomes useless in that endeavor and just plays king, because his mother refuses for him to have true hardships, and goes after the girl that he has no reason why he should be going after her and why no one is stepping in to prevent this. He’s unchallenged by any character. Overpowered and adored. Everyone prefers him. Everyone loves him. He has no real growth or reason to grow because everyone becomes ‘yes men’ in his presence and lets him do what he wants with no consequence. He’s blind to his parents true natures and cruelty to the worlds at large, coming across as sheltered and self-righteous in the worst ways. He’s not a hero, he’s a spoiled prince being denied a toy for the first time and he doesn’t like it.

Jin Mi goes from hopelessly sheltered and naïve to cheating fiancé. Neither character are very likeable or able to be stood behind despite everyone doing it for reasons unknown.

Side Note Expansion of the OP- Rant Ahead: If you can’t tell, I can’t get over the affair. Honestly at that point they became absolutely irredeemable which is why I didn’t need to go into the demon realm arc. There was no reason for it at all. Don’t care if you ‘love him’, you had the option to break the engagement or at least mention it. You are a piece of shit character and Xu Feng is worse sleeping with his brother’s fiancé after pawing at her for who knows how long. Run Yu could have been the evilest of evil and yet he still wouldn’t deserve that to be done to him because NO ONE DESERVES THAT! Having witnessed it before I know how much something like that fucks you up; and regardless of it being an ‘arranged marriage’ and ‘oh but Jin Mi truly loves Xu Feng’ – to Jin Mi it references that Run Yu and her were supposedly friends and that she cared about him as a friend and just not as a lover, and Jin Mi and everyone in the Heaven Realm knew how Run Yu cared for her. You don’t do that to your friends. You don’t do that to your enemies. You don’t do that to your future spouse and certainly not with their brother.

Part Two: Issues with Characterization Coming Next

#Ashes Of Love #Heavy Sweetness Ash-like Frost #xu feng #ashes of love xu feng #jin mi #ashes of love jin mi #my problems with the protagonists #for some reason this post was deleted?#reposted #good thing it was saved somewhere else

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bxcketbarnes · 5 years

Text

All To Myself

Pairing: Steve Harrington x Reader

Words: 1800+

Author’s Note: Who wouldn’t love a whole day by themselves with Steve Harrington? In his backyard? With a pool?

"Y/N! Your boyfriend's on the phone!" I heard my mom yelled at me and I let out a groan, shifting in my bed to face the nightstand.

I pick up the corded phone, pressing it against my ear. "Hey, Steve," I say tiredly as I drop my head to the pillow.

"Hey, baby. What are you doing today?" His voice asks through the phone.

"I don't know. Nothing probably. Why are you calling me so early?" I question him with a chuckle, moving so I'm laying on my back.

Steve laughs as well and I already know he's shaking his head. "I miss you. It's been like a week and a half since I've seen you," he tells me and I snort.

"You're so needy," I tease and I can hear the scoff come from his lips. "Don't worry, though. I love it."

"So, you up to coming over for a pool day?" Steve asks and I hum softly. "My parents are gone, as usual, so it'll just be us."

I grin, needing some alone time with Steve, who I've been dating ever since the night he got his ass kicked by Billy. "I would like that. When do you want me to come over?"

"Whenever you're ready. Bring an overnight bag, I want you all to myself today," he says and my heart flutters at his words.

"Alright, baby. I'll see you soon, okay?" I mumble into the phone.

"See you soon. I love you."

"I love you too, Steve," I full-on grin before biting my lip softly. After hanging up the phone I throw my blanket off of my body, getting up from my bed before stretching slightly. I grab my bag from my closet, setting it down on the mattress.

A knock on my door snaps me from my thoughts of what to pack, glancing towards the sound as my mother stands in my doorway. "What'd Steve want?" She asks, her arms crossed over her chest.

"He wants me to go over for the night," I tell her and she gives me a look. "Ma, don't give me that look. We'll be safe, I promise."

My mother just sighs, nodding her head. "Alright. I trust you to be safe and I know he wouldn't ever force you. He's too in love for that," she says and my cheeks heat up.

Steve's in love with me? And too in love?

After I finish grabbing everything, I sling my bag over my shoulder. I press a kiss to my mother's cheek as I walk past her. "I'll see you tomorrow! Love you!"

I pull into Steve's driveway, parking beside his maroon BMW. I unbuckle myself before turning the vehicle off, grabbing my bag from the passenger seat and getting out.

"Stevie!" I call out with a giggle as I step up to his door, knocking a bunch of times. I heard running on the other side of the door, halting my knocks as I take a step back, waiting for the older teen to open the door.

The front door opens and Steve stands on the other side, looking fine as ever. "Hey, beautiful," he greets and I stepped up to him, leaning on my toes to press a kiss to his cheek.

"Hey, handsome. Did you start the party without me?" I ask while noticing him already in his swim trunks, paired with a black tank top.

"No, never," he chuckles and moves out of the way, allowing me into the house. I walk inside, hearing Steve shut the door behind me before I feel his arms wrap around my waist. Steve presses his lips against the curvature of my neck as I giggle, resting my hands over his. “How are you doing?”

I turn around in his arms, wrapping mine around his neck as my fingers find their way into his gorgeous hair. “I’m doing well considering what happened several weeks ago. I see your bruise has finally gone away,” I mention and bring one of my hands to his face, gently stroking my thumb under his eye. “How are you holding up?”

“I’m doing good as well. My first couple of weeks at Family Video have been hectic, especially when working with Keith,” he tells me and I give him a soft smile. I lean on my toes, connecting our lips together. A hum leaves his lips as his hands slide around my waist, resting on my lower back. He pulls away from me a few moments later, a smile coming to his lips as I softly bite mine. “I’ve missed that, though.”

“So have I,” I giggle and press a quick kiss to his lips once more. “I’m gonna put my stuff in your room and change real quick. Meet you out there?” I motion my head towards his backyard.

Steve licks his lips, watching his honey brown eyes roam down my figure. “You sure I can’t watch you get dressed?” He asks cheekily with a wink.

“Steve!” I laugh and smack his chest. He feigns hurt, pouting cutely as I shake my head. “No, you can’t. But maybe, just maybe, I’ll let you shower with me later?”

A smirk comes to his lips as he nods. I make my way towards his stairs when a loud smack is heard in the empty house. The stinging on my asscheek follows and a gasp leaves my lips, having them parted slightly while looking back at Steve. “Love you,” he says and a chuckle leaves my lips, rubbing the spot he just slapped.

“Love you too, weirdo,” I tell him and walk up the stairs to his bedroom.

I open the sliding door that leads to his backyard, seeing Steve fumbling with the radio. I adjust the navy blue bikini bottoms, tying the little ties that are on the sides of it. The brunette hears me close the back door, his head turning towards me and they light up.

“Holy shi-,” he cuts himself off as he stands up straight. His eyes roam over my body again while walking towards me. “So, this is the new bathing suit you got?”

“Yeah. You like it?” I ask and glance down at the simple navy blue two-piece.

He nods his head as we stood near the edge of his pool, a sneaky idea coming to mind. “I absolutely, do. You look amazing, fuck,” he mutters as he admires my curves.

“You know you look amazing as well, but you know what would be better?” I ask in a hushed whisper and he hums in response, waiting for an answer. I smirk before suddenly pushing on his chest. Steve lets out a scream as he falls back into the pool.

He comes up from underwater quickly, letting out a gasp of air as giggles leave my lips. “Oh, you’re going to get it, sweetheart,” the older teen smirks as he swims to the edge of the pool. I watch as he lifts himself out of the water, admiring how nice his arms look.

A squeal leaves my lips as he dashes towards me. I manage to run around him, feeling his cold hands touch my hips. “Steve!” I yell while laughing, running around his pool as he chases after me. He manages to catch up to me pretty easily, his arms wrapping around me before he lifts me into the air. “Baby! I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist,” I try to reason with him.

“Are you really sorry though? The shit-eating grin on your lips doesn’t say you are,” he chuckles and I try to pry his hands off my stomach. Steve sets me on the ground, flipping me around so I face him. Before I could move around him he stripped himself of his shirt, my eyes trailing down his chest. Steve’s arms wrap around me once again before throwing both of us into the pool, a scream leaving my lips before we hit the water.

I swim up to the surface, coughing slightly as I got some water up my nose. Steve comes up afterward, his face going from joy to worry as my coughing continued. “Oh, god. Are you okay?” He asks while swimming close to me, laying a hand on my back.

“Y-Yeah,” I mutter and cough a few more times before calming down. “Just got water up my nose,” I giggle before wrapping my arms around him.

The two of us swim towards the shallow side, Steve’s hands grabbing the back of my thighs under the water before wrapping my legs around his waist. “Sorry, I didn’t mean for that to happen,” he mumbles and I smile at him, patting his wet cheek.

“It’s okay, babe. It happens,” I tell him before pressing a sloppy kiss to his lips. “I still love you.” My hands move to his wet hair, combing my fingers through it as I thought about what my mom said earlier. “Hey, Steve?”

“Yeah?” He answers and looks up at me, his fingers stroking the back of my thighs as he crouches a bit, the water coming up past my chest.

“I… Do-Wou-,” I stutter, not exactly knowing how to ask him this question. “You love me, right?”

Steve tilts his head, confusion in his eyes as he nods his head. “Of course I do. I have for a while now, why what’s wrong?”

“It’s just… my mom had said something earlier and it made me think because I know you’ve only felt that way once an-”

“Babe, babe,” Steve cuts me off, one of his hands land on my face, moving some wet strands of hair out of my face, “you gotta elaborate a bit more for me to understand.”

I quietly sigh, feeling my heart pound against my ribcage. “Are you in love with me?” I ask him, not making eye contact with him as nerves fill every part of my body.

Steve lifts my chin, making me look at him as he had a soft smile on his lips. “Honestly, I am,” he confesses and my breath hitches in my throat. He is?!

“Really?” A smile comes to my lips as he nods his head, the smile on his lips widening.

“Of course. It didn’t take me a while too. You have an incredible personality and the way you interact with the kids is absolutely breathtaking. You’re so kind to everyone, including the people you even hated and I found it incredible. You’re amazing and I’m so lucky to call you mine,” he tells me and a quiet aw leaves my lips.

“I’m in love with you, too, Steve. I have since we started high school,” I mumble to him and feel the blush cover my cheeks. He licks his lips, his eyes staring into mine and he stands back up, bringing us towards the edge of the pool.

He sets me down on the edge, his hands moving to the concrete as mine rest on his shoulders. Steve’s gaze moves to my lips for a quick second before he leans forward, capturing my lips in a kiss. My hand moves to his jaw, my thumb stroking his cheekbone as I kiss him back, tilting my head slightly. I pull away with a smile on my lips, our foreheads resting against one another.

“You are the best thing that’s happened to me.”

Stranger Things Taglist: @lovefilledtragedy @daisyxbuckley @morningfears @writingsbychlo @whiitee--sxxl @adumbledoreable @vanitysfairr @kaelyn-lobrutto24 @fangirlinganditswonders @ria132love @rissa067 @omgdani17 @sadgirlhours247 @radicalbilly @lizziejean13 @thecurlsofgod @makeupbychio @apuzzlepieceheart @laurmillen

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daybreak-delusion · 4 years

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Chapter 2

Introduction: Whitney Goodwinson was planning on inheriting one of her deceased grandmother's properties, but not a little house off the coast of North Carolina. As she struggles to meet new people, fix up her new property, deal with troublemaker JJ Maybank, and perfect her grandmother's infamous lemonade she might just find that the Outer Banks has more to offer than it seems.

Series Masterlist

L.A.X. was packed per usual. I let George, my family's chauffeur, know what gate to let me out at. My flight was leaving at 9:00 P.M. which sucked but at least I could sleep on the plane right? Wrong. I swear, why do people travel with children? After the 8-hour flight landed I looked for my driver and my luggage. Because of the late notice, I flew into an airport in Virginia and had to drive another hour to the dreaded Outer Banks. After packing up my bags and carry-on we were finally on the road. I absolutely cannot sleep in cars so I was awake the whole time fiddling with the keys to the house. Finally, after nine hours of traveling, we finally arrived at a cool 3 o’clock in the morning.

My mind was a little hazy, but what I first noticed was the blanked of humidity and the buzzing of mosquitoes. Also, the “shack” was more like a cottage which was a pleasant surprise. There stood the yellow house in the moonlight waiting for me to open up its doors. Did I mention it was yellow? Not like a vibrant highlighter yellow, but a pale yellow. The cottage was in a wide-open grassy space with tall trees surrounding the property. I could hear the sound of waves crashing on a shore which was a bonus, I’d have to check it out once I could keep my eyes open for more than 20 seconds.

The front of the house was symmetrical with a door in the middle and two shutter windows on either side. There were dead flowers in the plant boxes underneath the window and cobwebs on the door handle. The driver, Paul, helped me bring my luggage into the cottage. I unlocked the door and it led into the living room, on the right, there was a mud closet and the left opened into a large living room. Wow for an older woman the home had a very modern look. The living room had sleek, black wooden floors, with a white U-shaped couch facing a flat-screen TV that hung above a fireplace. The walls were decorated with paintings of various landscapes and oceans. To the left of the TV, a doorway led to the kitchen and dining room with a door to the backyard separating the two areas. The place was decorated with lemons like lemon themed everything. Lemons decorated tablecloths, cups, and there was even a lemon shaped teapot. The kitchen table was set as if Grandmother was expecting company, placemats, plates, utensils and wine glasses were set in place with a thin layer of dust on them. Decorated with you guessed it; lemons. The other side of the living room led to another doorway and a hallway. To the right end of the hallway was the master bedroom, Grandmother's bedroom. Yeah, I was sleeping in the guest bedroom that was towards the left. On my way there I passed the laundry room and bathroom. The bedroom was similar to the living room, mostly white with lavender colored accents. A queen-sized bed with a white-colored comforter and about twenty lavender and white pillows sat in the middle of the room with a dresser on each side. Across from the bed sat a vanity desk with a lavender trimmed mirror. A big closet was on the right side of the room and the left had two big windows. Thank goodness, I thought it was hot outside? Inside it was 10X worse. I opened the windows, changed into some pajamas, and dived into the bed ready for a long, long sleep.

At least that’s what I thought. I woke up to the most annoying noise in the world, a lawnmower. With the windows open the noise was almost deafening. I practically fell out of bed and rushed to the window to see a boy with golden blond hair in a grey wife beater and some tacky kaki shorts pushing a lawnmower. I threw on my silk robe over my sleepwear and rushed out to the yard. Going through the back door of the kitchen I found the door led to a wrap-around porch that had an outside sitting area, decorated with Grandmother's favorite citrus, lemons. Never mind that though I was beyond furious. It must have been like 6 o’clock in the morning. Outside the sun was already blazing making the stone path extremely hot on my bare feet. I noticed the path led to a boating dock with chairs, a fire pit, and a boat tied to it? It looked like it was in good condition just a little dusty, just like everything around here. Anyways back to the matter at hand, the boy had his back to me so he didn’t see me.

“Hey, Heyyy!!! Golden boy!” Geez was this guy def? I was right behind him screaming, but he didn’t even flinch. Then suddenly my life flashed before my eyes as he turned the lawnmower of death towards me. The blades were close to cutting off my toes as I jumped back with a scream. The boy looked just as startled as I did stumbling back.

“What is wrong with you!” I screamed.

“What!?”

“I said what is wrong with you!?”

“Sorry I can’t hear you,” he replied, taking out his earphones, I could hear the hard rock music from here, “what did you say?” He replied with a stupid cheesy smile while looking me up and down. I then realized I was wearing my skimpiest pajamas and wrapped my robe closer around me.

“I said what is wrong with you? Who mows a lawn this early in the morning?”

“Early in the morning-“

“And who are you!?”

“Well if-“

“And what are you doing here!?”

“Geeze sunshine if you’d just let me talk.”

“Fine speak”

“Well thanks for the permission, first of all, it’s noon so I don’t know what morning is to you but the normal world sees this as the afternoon and I’m mowing the law.”

“Obviously, but why are you here?”

“Cuz’ I’m getting paid”

“How? The person who lived here is… is dead,” I replied, stammering a bit.

“Yeah, I know Mrs. Goodwinson passed away. She paid me in advance for the whole summer,” he said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“Oh okay, then why- wait did you say it was noon?” I said, panic rising in my voice.

“Yeah, 12:23 to be exact,” he said looking at his phone.

“Oh shit,” my mom's friends were coming by at 12:30 to look at the house and I still had airport hair. “Whatever just when you’re done I’d like to discuss your job in the house please.”

“Sure thing your highness”

I ran back to the cottage and into my room and quickly stripped off my pajamas. Suddenly I heard a low whistle from outside the window.

“Aye I didn’t know the view from here could be so good,” chuckled Golden Boy from outside the window.

Screaming I dropped to the floor and army-crawled to the window. I gave the boy a rude gesture which resulted in his annoying laugh. I closed the window curtains and got up to get dressed. Just a second later I heard a knock on the door.

“Just a second,” I hollered from my room. I pulled on the first dress from the top of my suitcase, which was a simple green sundress with white flowers, and quickly brushed my hair into a ponytail. Thank goodness I was dressed decently because when I opened the door the family in front of me looked like they could be on the cover of some high living magazine.

“Hi you must be Whitney it is so nice to meet you, we are the Camerons!” said a shrill voice.

Oh boy.

a/n: Thank you so much fo reading it really means a lot to me! This chapter was a little spicer and I actually got the interaction from a dream I had which is kinda embarrassing to admit, but oh well. Next two chapters should be up on Thursday! Also if you literally have any questions and care enough to message me pls do so. I’m willing to explain anything! Thanks again!

#jj maybank x oc #jj maybank x original character #jj maybank fanfiction #jj maybank fandom #jj maybank #outer banks #outer banks fanfiction #outer banks fandom #obx #obx fandom #obx fanfiction #jj outer banks

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percywinchester27 · 5 years

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About a boy (Part-2)

Word count: 2.8K

Warning: Suspense, feels, physical abuse, bullying

Characters: Dean, Cas, Gabriel, Benny, Michael, OCs and… Sam?

Summary: Dean Winchester has a secret. A secret that could really land him in trouble. He never expected to connect with anyone when he walked into the ‘Blue Stone Orphanage for Boys,’ but even then, the walls he has put up are slowly coming down. Now, a series of strange events are threatening to expose him. When everything starts falling apart around him, will he still be able to save the one person that matters the most?

A/N: Many thanks to @thing-you-do-with-that-thing and @deanssweetheart23 for beta reading this story. I love you guys <3

Part 1

The orphanage wasn't quite as gloomy in the daylight, Dean concluded, but still gloomy enough. Cas showed him around the place in the morning. The shower rooms, the mess, the grounds. Everyone looked at him as they passed. The new kid. As if he hadn't had that before.

The building was I- shaped, and a good chunk of the T-shape was occupied. No one really knew what happened in the left-wing. It was boarded and the only way to go there was from the ground and up the other staircase. The ground floor had the office, the library, store room, record room, the kitchen and the mess hall, which overlooked the huge, unkempt backyard.

The first floor was mostly storages and a creepy meeting room for when interested couples visited the orphanage to look at a kid up for adoption. Looked like a jail cell to Dean. The second floor had a Rec room with one old TV set. A couple of computers that looked like they were about to give up any second now. A table tennis board and a few other random board games. It was longish room, like several walls had been knocked down to make space for it, with an assortment of mismatching sofas. The place was about as lively as an almost abandoned old age home. The second floor housed kids from 3 to 6, third floor from 7 to 10, then the floor above had 11 to 14 and the fifth floor, the one where Dean was to live was 15 to 17.

He kept his head down all through breakfast, carefully watching kids file in and file out. There must have been at least 600 to 700 of them in the whole building. It was a big facility and that just made it all the more difficult for him. Afterwards, he stood by the widow, seeing all the little kids scramble on to one bus after another and head to school. Dean started the day after, so today was all he would get.

Cas clapped him on his back on his way out. "Stay quiet, alright?" his blue eyes twinkled.

"Okay."

As soon as all of them were in the bus, Dean slipped out of the mess quietly. His cleaning duties weren't going to be assigned till later today which is why he had to make the most of his time. He passed Andy in the hall, who was headed towards his office.

Dean nodded to him, all the while cursing under his breath. The record room was just down the corridor from Andy's office. How was he going to break into it with Andy just around the corner? He had to try though.

He looked around once Andy had passed, then doubled back to the record room. It was locked.

Great!

He pulled out the lock pick he kept with him from his pocket and picked it open, cursing once more because this would leave evidence, and he was, at no cost, supposed to draw attention. Once inside, he shut the door behind him and turned to face the room. His breath caught. The room was full of racks stacked with files. There must have been thousands and thousands of those. Till there was only enough room to walk around.

"Shit!"

There was no way he was going to find one single record in this sea of files. He went along the first row anyway, maybe they were categorized alphabetically, though being organized seemed highly out of character for the whole place.

Still, Dean went around, looking for 'W.' That wasn't the most common letter for surnames, now was it?

All of a sudden the door barged open.

"Who's there?" A voice called. Dean jumped, startled. "It's me…" he said, as meekly as he could manage. I'm new here… I got lost."

"Come out, now."

Dean walked back carefully till he was at the start of the rack. A lanky boy of about 19 was standing at the door. He wore a janitor's uniform, and looked slightly punch drunk.

"You shouldn't be here, kid!"

"I-I got lost…" he stammered.

The janitor dude, walked closer,eyeing Dean. The nameplate on his chest read "Garth F."

"Alright, but don't have Andy catch you snooping around next time," Garth scolded good-naturedly. "Now off you go."

Dean didn't need to be told twice. He made a beeline straight for the 5th floor. Not stopping till he was on his bed, heart pounding out of his chest.

What had he been thinking? Getting caught on the first damn day?

He could barely swallow the lunch and then hit the sack at 5, before Cas could get back from school. Dean was starting to like him, and at this point he couldn't really afford to do that. The sleepless night and an afternoon of over thinking, at least, aided in passing out cold.

Dean was awoken by a rag thrown over his face, suffocating him. He tried to flail, to yell but rough hands grabbed his legs, his arms, pinning him to the mattress.

"Don't make a sound, or you'll pay for it," someone hissed in his ear.

So, this was the initiation. Deliberately, Dean stopped moving. If he didn't know who he was watching his back from, none of this would ever work.

He was roughly shoved into a huge gurney bag and then dragged across the hall. Fortunately, not down the stairs. He guessed that whoever the captors were, at least they were scared of making too much noise, so he wasn't obviously staying on the same floor. 24 steps down, flat stretch then a pause then a left turn, another 24 steps. Dean tried to memorize every step, but what with all the juggling around, it was hard to make sense of the direction.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the gurney carrying him was thrown on the ground. The fall hit his head hard. Then it began, the ceaseless thrashing. Hands and feet, mostly feet found each part of his body, hands, head, leg, just everything. He curled up into a ball, head in hands to avoid getting hit in the eye or getting his nose broken. That thing was permanent and he didn't want to live his life with a crooked nose.

At long last he was dumped on to the ground unceremoniously. At first, he didn't remove his hands from over his face, but when nothing happened immediately, he blinked into the darkness, barely seeing anything.

"What's your name, kid?" A harsh voice asked.

"You want it tattooed on your chest?" Dean asked. It earned him a swift kick to the gut.

"Smartass."

The comment was a throwaway, but Dean could hear a hint of grudging admiration.

"Your name?" Another voice asked, this one was harsher, and also older.

Dean wanted to throw another comment, but he figured he needed to get up first to have at least some advantage. If answering was going to buy him time, might as well.

"Winchester."

"Think I've heard that name somewhere," the first voice muttered. Dean inhaled sharply.

"Winchester what?" Second voice.

"Dean Winchester," he replied, hoping that the first voice had something more to add to. Sneakily, he got on his knees, his body killing him as he ambled.

"We have an initiation system here, Winchester," a third voice added.

How many were there? In the bare light coming from the far away lamp near the side building, Dean could make out at least 5 silhouettes. There could be a couple more.

There was no way he could fight his way through all of those.

"Strip!" The harsh voice said.

"What's the fun in that?" Dean said, careful, calculative. If he had the disadvantage of the darkness, so did they. Maybe, just maybe he could run away.

Another shove. Dean almost fell back this time. When the second shove came, he was ready to block it and throw it back. His one hand collided with the assailants and the other landed on his back, pushing him down. There was a muted yell and whoever the boy was, took another one down with it.

"Think you're smart, huh?" The harsh voice asked, and three figures crowded in.

"Wait!"

The huffing thin frame of Castiel threw himself before Dean. "Let him go, Michael."

So that was the bully's name.

"Castiel?" Michael backtracked. "What're you doing here?"

"Dean's my friend. I can't let you guys do that to him."

Michael seemed to regard Cas. "This happens to every kid."

There were jeers in the background.

"Yeah but he's not a kid anymore" Cas said, hurriedly. "C'mon, man! Let it go."

Even in the darkness, Dean could see Michael's shoulders go taut. "Why are you trying to save the newbie's ass, Castiel? What's in it for you?"

Cas said nothing, and Dean wondered the same. What did he get out of saving Dean?

"I've had enough of this soap opera," Michael said impatiently. "Gary, pull Castiel away. Let's get this show on the road."

There was a sudden whelp, and then Cas grunted, as if he had been hurt.

"No," Dean shouted, losing his calm now. Whatever Cas' deal was, he had still tried to help Dean. He didn't deserve to get punched for it. "Let him go. If you got guts, come at me, asshat."

No one answered. There was just a flurry of movement and Dean was down on the ground once more, the dust making him cough. They could thrash him for all they wanted. He knew they would succeed because they had the advantage of numbers, and they knew the place well while he was plunged in this darkness. But, like hell he was giving up without putting up a fight. His only concern was Cas. He had to be okay.

"Gentlemen!" A silky voice suddenly interrupted. The thrashing stopped.

"I see you're showering our lovely new inmate with all the love."

"Gabriel?" Michael asked, perplexed.

"Yo, Mikey!! You back to abusing little kids in the alley?"

"What?" Michael's tone quickly changed from surprise to anger. Dean noticed that this Gabriel was making no effort to keep his voice down like the others.

"Too dark here, don't you think?" Gabriel wondered out loud. Then, there was the distinct sound of a matchstick being struck and the view was flooded with light.

Holding the match was a boy of about Dean's age, or maybe a little older. It was hard to tell. He was blonde with light eyes. Maybe brown, maybe hazel, it was hard to tell. The most distinct thing in his eyes wasn't the reflection of the dancing flames. It was the dancing mischief.

"You'll wake everyone up, you idiot," a boy said, he looked scared. From the voice, Dean pegged him as Gary.

"Oh, you're worried about this little thing?" Gabriel smiled, looking at the matchstick that was on the verge of extinguishing. "I wonder what you'll make of the lights that are about to flood the hallways because I left one such matchstick burning in your room. Give it… uhhh ten more minutes before the smoke sets up the fire alarm and then boom! Red lights everywhere."

"Fuck!" Another boy cursed.

In the fading light, Dean had seen it all. The cold, calculating look in Dark haired Michael's eyes, his three goons lurking in the background. One more was holding Cas, then there was Gary who looked ready to piss his pants.

"This isn't over, Winchester!" Michael growled, then took off running towards the building, his goons all following him. The guy holding Cas, abandoned him, pushing him into the dirt, too.

"Are you okay?" Dean said, pulling him to his feet. "Why-"

"Well, surely he isn't!" Gabriel said speaking over Dean, leaving all his oily pretense behind. He was irritated. "Cassy, are you out of your mind? Why did you do that?"

Cas just dusted the grime of his shirt.

"Dean was in trouble."

"Yeah, he's new!" Gabriel shrugged. "Why did you put your ass on the line for him?"

"Why did you put your ass in line for me?" Cas asked. "Look, Gabe, let it go."

"It's your head," Gabriel said. "Just don't lose it over some newbie idiot."

The sound of footsteps walking away was much too loud now.

"C'mon, we need to get moving," Cas said. They hadn't really hurt him, but he was still roughed up. Despite that, his voice was pleasant and kind.

"Thanks, man," Dean said, looking down as they quickly walked up the path. "You didn't have to do that. They could have hurt you."

"Nah, they wouldn't," Cas brushed it off. There was a confidence there, and Dean wondered what the story was.

They walked in silence for a while, before Cas mumbled.

"Don't mind Gabe. He isn't all that cocky. He means well."

Dean got cocky alright. What he didn't get was how Gabriel could pull a stunt like that without getting in trouble. Michael's gang would totally get him now, but he didn't seem bothered at all.

When Dean wondered out loud, Cas laughed. "Don't worry about Gabe. He's a sneaky piece of work. He has something over each one of them. Even Michael. I don't know what, but everyone just generally stays away from Gabe, ya know."

Survival of the fittest. Gabe sure knew how to be the dominant species.

"He seems to care about you."

Cas' eyes glinted in the darkness. "We've been together for a long time, now, sharing the same room. Well, he's your roommate, too, now."

They had reached the back porch now. "We can't go in from the left wing. Those idiots probably locked that back up."

"What do we do then?" The question was more panicky than Dean wanted it to be. The place was affecting him more than it should.

"Don't worry," Cas reassured him. "We can stake out in the store room till the morning and then slip out when they unlock the floors."

The plan worked without a glitch, and soon they found themselves bunking against the musty furniture at the very end. Cas stretched out on the floor and Dean took up the side against the wall. This way, they couldn't see each other, but from the sound of his breathing, Dean knew Cas was still up.

"Can I ask you something?" Dean finally said.

"Yeah?"

"Why did you bust me out?"

Cas was quiet for a while. "I think you're different, Dean. There's something up with you. I've been in an orphanage all my life, I've seen countless kids come and go. They all look scared, look lonely. You- You on the other hand look like you've been sent into an enemy territory, you aren't judging this place, you're scoping it. Like you're up to something. Now, I also know you're not bad, because I saw you help out the kids out front today with the lawn when you didn't have to. So, I keep thinking to myself why you're here."

Holy shit! Cas was smart.

Dean knew if he lied now, he'd suck at it, but also he'd royally insult both the favor and the trust that Cas had put on him.

"I- " he started, feeling dangerously nervous. "I came here with a purpose."

Cas seemed to hear with baited breath.

"You see, my parents both died in a house fire." Dean waited for it, because now was where the "I'm sorry" came in. Cas didn't offer one. Probably because he had heard way too many sob stories by this point, or maybe because he knew all too well that those same 'I'm sorrys' didn't mean a damn thing."

"Well, I wasn't their only kid. I had a little brother- Sam. They… they took him away and put him in some orphanage. It has been 11 years since I last saw him. Turns out the some orphanage is this orphanage."

"Holy heavens!" Cas sat up straight, tumbling a bucket behind him. The clang of the metal it banged against, echoed through the whole room and maybe outside.

The two of them went deathly still.

There were footsteps outside, and both Dean and Cas, slipped further inside. He under the stashed away bed, and Cas under an abandoned table.

Dean pursed his lips, not daring to breathe too loudly even after the footsteps had receded. He stayed silent, watching the minutes go by. Just when he was sure that Cas had probably fallen asleep, the quietest whispers sounded in the dark.

"We're going to find your brother, Dean. We're going to turn this place upside down and find your brother."

Dean did not reply. His throat was too thick.

Now that he had let his guard down, the fear, anxiety and worse, the hope came flooding into his heart, making him defenseless. He stayed up long after Cas' hushed snores washed over him, feeling the gratefulness and camaraderie he hadn't expected at all.

******************************

A/N 2: I really really hope y’all like this story!! Please let me know what you think… the feedback is what keeps me going :)

If you wanna be tagged, please send me an ask

About a Boy taglist:

@sdavid09 @deanssweetheart23 @blacktithe7 @thing-you-do-with-that-thing @cosicas-cuquis @chalicia @anathewierdo @mrswhozeewhatsis @protectteamfreewill @firefly124-writing @spnbaby-67 @hoboal87 @rizlow1 @donnaintx @starmission @gh0stgurl @tftumblin @emily-a-c11 @ericaprice2008 @jotink78 @charliebradbury1104 @ohgodwhybloggg @i-dont-get-cold

#dean winchester #dean winchester fanfiction #spn fanfiction #supernatural fanfiction #dean winchester imagine #anawrites #ana writes Dean #ana writes aab #aab 2 #aab part 2 #q

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mimiplaysgames · 4 years

Text

Beloved Memories, in Notes (Vol. VII)

Pairing: Aqua/Terra Rating: T (for horror elements) Word Count: 11,074

Summary: His mission was to be her friend, but she didn’t want any. Terra and Aqua meet. Terra is 9, Aqua is 8.

Read on AO3

A/N: This chapter was always going to be the angsty one of this collection (kind of, it ends well). This specific story is honestly my favorite in this collection, and I’m so excited to move on with it. I’m very proud of the ending to this tale, and I just want to be able to cover it lmao.

****

A Tale of Stars, Pt. 2

It was hot, and it sucked.

There was still hay sticking to Terra's arms after he brushed them all off, his sweat just as sticky as the humidity that clinched him. The Master was in just as much of a grumpy mood.

Cows always made Terra laugh though, and Abigail's moos were a welcome cheer for a morning that could either go really well or really badly. Terra needed to be on his best behavior, for this was his very first mission - and he barely even started real Keyblade training.

He already had a to-do list to make him successful. The first step (and the most important): to be Aqua's friend.

But this was also the hardest.

Aqua was in the backyard, pumping water into a pail out of an iron press, before dragging it back to the Widow Tweed's quaint farmhouse, with Tod the fox tailing her feet closely. He noticed that she barely gave either of them the courtesy of a glance when they strolled out of Abigail's barn.

An owl stood at a tree watching them, and Terra didn't know which was weirder: that an owl was out at dawn, or that it enjoyed the company of a sparrow and a woodpecker.

Mrs. Tweed handed them their breakfast (plain old sausage with a sprinkle of salt), and Terra only finished half when Aqua appeared again, hair in classic long pigtails as usual, with Tod following her like he was her best friend. She straggled toward the woods in a daze that made her seem more like a zombie than anything, as if this was the most basic routine for the most basic day and she didn't know what else there was to do.

"You should join her," he heard the Master say.

Terra chewed on his meat with spite. "She doesn't like me."

"She does not know you as a person."

"Still hates me."

"Then she'd be the fool," Eraqus said with confidence. "To pass judgment on mere glance would say much about her and nothing of you… You still have your responsibilities, however, so you must try."

Terra stopped a piece from reaching his mouth, his fingers grasped tightly around his fork. "What if she says no?"

"Then you respect her decision."

A more frightening possibility crept into his mind. "What if she says yes?"

"Then you join her." Like it was the easiest thing in the world.

Terra stuffed as much sausage into his mouth until his cheeks almost burst because he hated all the answers and pouted at his Master. It didn't work.

"Continue with that and your cheeks will sag," the Master grinned.

The image of long flabby cheeks terrified him, so brave Terra faced his fears, swallowed all the sausage at once (which hurt), and raced over before she disappeared into the trees. This was still a mission, and he was still being tested.

"Aqua," he panted, and she at least treated him with the decency of acknowledging his presence. "Are you going out to play?"

"Yeah," she said lowly. Honestly, she looked super-exhausted, despite that it was morning.

"Can I join you?"

She turned and left him behind. "Sure."

Now what was Terra supposed to do? Follow, he supposed.

Aqua walked with the grace of someone who memorized where all the uplifted tree roots would snag her, barely putting any thought of where to step her feet while Terra took an extra second or two just to make sure he wouldn't trip. Tod led the way, excitedly rushing onward only to have to come back because they were going too slow for him.

They walked in silence - Terra didn't know what to talk about.

Toys - does she still have any? Pets - I don't know a thing about them, much less foxes. School - well, we obviously don't take the same classes, and I don't study math, so we can't even talk about something we hate.

Her silence sucked just as much as the heat, and why, oh why did Terra have to deal with this?

They reached a pond, where a creek ran the end of its trail into its reservoir, and willow trees overlooking the surface and dragonflies dancing on longrass.

"Do you want to skip rocks?" Terra asked. "It's really fun."

She sat on a log, bringing her knees to her chin and saying nothing in return.

Tod went ahead and buried his nose in the crooks of pebbles that littered the ground, sometimes yipping at something he found, which were mostly uninteresting - frogs, maybe.

"It's really hot," Terra said, and he didn't know if she agreed - she said nothing.

"Maybe we can swim?" he asked, and immediately blushed. Normally he'd strip to his shorts but he probably shouldn't be asking girls to take off their clothes to go swimming with him.

Again, she said nothing, her eyes drifting off into some made-up land. Terra had never seen a child, even at the orphanage, who looked this horrible.

The adults running the orphanage always said that having parents was the best thing that could ever happen, and that each child could have a pair as long as they behaved well. Terra never really wondered if having them (or losing them) would hurt just as much, too.

It was suddenly too quiet. Tod stopped his hustling of innocent forest insects, and slumped his shoulders while he waited.

He and Aqua looked the same: abandoned.

Finally, she spoke. "Copper is late."

"The hounddog?"

"He always comes," she said with a tighter grip around her knees, like she was remembering a punishment.

Copper was late and Tod was sad about it, too. That was what hurt them: missing someone.

Aqua huffed, willing whatever cloudy thoughts that haunted her to go away and stood up with her head held high, marching deeper into the forest. If Terra didn't know any better, he'd say that she was ready to punch somebody.

He and Tod followed, and it turned out that they hiked somewhere uphill, where they eventually reached a rundown farm within several acres of empty land, half-neglected and half-loved.

She gasped - Copper was there, a rope tied around his neck for a leash, where the weight of an empty barrel kept him grounded. Nearby, a much, much bigger gray dog snuggled in his own barrel and snored.

The children sneaked up to the wooden fence that marked the beginning of the forest and the end of this farm's territory. Aqua held Tod closely, quieting his fidgeting and stopping him from racing across to the dogs.

"Mr. Slade is so mean," she whispered with disdain. "He's always trying to keep Copper and Tod apart. Who would do such a thing?"

It was still Terra's opinion that a fox and a hound were strange friends indeed considering their nature.

Maybe he expected Aqua to know better, and yet here she was on the verge of going back to hiding in her mind.

Well, his mission was to be her friend, and he read in books in that friends made each other happy. If she wanted Tod and Copper to play together, as weird as that was, then he was going to do just that.

"What are you doing?" she hissed, Tod squirming more in her arms.

Terra had lifted one leg in between the logs barring up the fence, and ducked under to get to the other side. "I'm getting Copper, what does it look like?"

"Chief will hear you."

If she was talking about the snoring dog, then he didn't know what she was so worried about. Terra was training to be a Keyblade Master, after all, what was a mangey old mutt going to do?

"I can sneak."

"You're going to get in trouble," she barked like a mean teacher.

"No, I won't."

"Yes, you will."

He liked her less when she talked.

"Calm down." He dismissed her with a wave and crept, keeping his body close to the ground as he waddled over, the grass patches taller than him. This farm really needed a lawnmower.

Aqua huddled behind a bush, watching him closely and mumbling small prayers to herself as she kept a firm hand around Tod's snout. She worried too much.

Terra, on the other hand, crawled confidently - he was more afraid of Mr. Slade catching him in the act than of an old, tired dog sniffing him out.

He chose to do this for her, and was going to see it through.

Copper was very smart and perceptive, understanding the consequences of being caught by a large quadruped such as Chief, so he shied away from Terra at first.

Of course, Copper was still a young puppy, and the moment Terra followed through on some unspoken promise of releasing him from his prison, he yipped.

"Shhh," Terra said, ever so gently holding Copper's snout. He held his breath for a few seconds, Chief wiggling and kicking his feet from the sudden noise -

Only to go back to sleep.

Terra was more relieved than he wanted to admit. "Don't you wanna play with your friend?" he whispered, and started to head back to Aqua and Tod with the puppy riding in his arms.

But then Chief finally got a whiff, and finally started barking.

Chief spit, Chief noticed exactly who was in Terra's arms, and when he did, Chief lunged with a loud growl. Terra's heart jumped straight up into his throat at the sight of such carnivores, and he swallowed it back into place.

Luck smiled on him though, since Terra only managed to escape because Chief, too, was leashed.

Aqua immediately bolted back into the thicket, with Terra and a pup in his arms following closely, the bark of an angry, old man inching closer, throwing a gunshot for a warning but even then, that faded into the background, too.

*****

Tod and Copper reuniting turned Aqua into a different person - though she was still stuffy, ungrateful at worst, as she yapped about how they were teaching these little innocent animals terrible lessons that could get them into trouble later on, and wasn't this considered dognapping, blah blah blah.

(Honestly, it wasn't dognapping if they were going to return Copper, right?)

But - and that was a huge but - Aqua was at least more willing to talk, more brave to look him in the eye when she did (he realized she had very large, bright eyes, making it hard not to stare).

Who knew that all he had to do was steal someone's pet to open her up?

He could have snarked back by saying that she wasn't a perfect princess either since she was now happy that Tod and Copper were together, but he kept his mouth shut.

She did make some good points, after all. If the Master ever found out what he did, he'd fail the mission.

But... if he didn't do this for her, then she would definitely refuse to be his friend, and that meant he failed, too.

Ugh, Mr. Slade shouldn't have been a jerk in the first place because he made Terra's life miserable (and everyone else's included).

As Tod and Copper rolled in the dirt, Terra kicked a rock and said, "No one should know."

She fiddled with her apron, her dress sprawled over the log they sat on. "Okay. I won't tell a soul."

The worst feeling was keeping this from the Master, and Terra never expected this would ever happen in his entire life.

Was it worth it?

He didn't know. He knew he felt content when Copper approached him with a wagging tail, when the pup crawled onto his lap for a short snooze, alongside his best friend Tod, who helped himself to Aqua's lap.

They looked peaceful, like they had been given a second chance at something important to them. Terra felt like he was a hero, which was always what he wanted to be… and the Master did always say to do what was his heart told him was right.

So would he really get into that much trouble if Terra argued that this was the right thing to do?

Maybe.

That uncertainty was too much of a risk, and Terra didn't know how to feel.

It suddenly dawned on him - this was his first secret that he shared with someone else. Anyone else in his entire nine-year-life!

Wait, it wasn't like they actually promised to keep it to themselves - they merely agreed to never speak about it. She gave him a simple nod when she complied, afraid of the consequences that would chase her if it ever got out. It was not a pinky-squeeze, not a handspit, or a blood oath.

He understood perfectly. This was about survival, not friendship.

*****

By evening, Mr. Slade blamed Tod for the dognapping - he didn't actually see the fox though, and therefore had no basis for his arguments.

The Master's presence was imposing enough to shut it all down. Eraqus was so much taller than Amos Slade that a shotgun to the chest didn't really diminish how intimidating he was, and since everyone thought of him as an investigator, his dismissal of the Case of the Missing Puppy was final.

By morning, it was time for Aqua to go back to school, and Eraqus offered to take her (for protection protocol).

The three of them traversed twisted, muddy backroads to the town square, since the main road would take her right by her destroyed house and it was best to avoid all of that for now. It would have been a pretty stroll, tucked away in the forest trees with the sun shining through the canopies, if it wasn't for the heat. Terra couldn't wait to leave this world and never come back.

It didn't help that Aqua wasn't very receptive to Eraqus trying to open conversations with her, and it left Terra feeling like he had to start back at square one all over again. It was a wonder how the Master didn't feel so personally attacked by her silence.

Being such a small world where everyone knew everything, the people in town cast looks on Aqua as they walked by, whispering gossip and identifiers as they pointed to the girl whose parents were brutally murdered in a town where such things never happened.

When they approached the schoolhouse, children gathered in the windows to look down on her as she crept closer to the entrance, and while Terra couldn't hear what they were saying, they were absolutely riled up like she was a spectacle at a zoo. It was rude.

Since Terra couldn't join her because he wasn't a student, Eraqus took him to the public library - a small wooden thing that was pathetic in comparison to the castle's massive archive.

Eraqus left him behind so Terra wouldn't be in danger, since he was going straight to the outskirts of the town to investigate the last sightings of the demon wrecking this town apart, appearing as a man seemingly named Ardyn.

The Master had only one request: "Let us not kidnap any more puppies today, shall we?"

Terra feigned innocence. "Sir?" When that didn't work, he continued, "Yes, sir."

Equipped with only one ceiling fan for reprieve (it barely worked to keep him cool), Terra busied himself to a number of random books; a good Keyblade wielder spent his time studying about the world he was investigating, as it helped him fit in better.

He tried really hard to be quiet - really, he did. He was the only one there aside from the librarian, a young woman wearing a bun and glasses that made her look older. But he did a spectacular job at being noisy even though it wasn't his fault; the wooden floorboards under him just wouldn't stop squeaking with every step he took.

It turned out that Terra didn't have to be so respectful with keeping up the integrity of the library - a young guy marched into the library, his muddy boots stomping like crackling whips onto the wood beneath.

Immediately, he and the librarian hit it off like they were flirting, and Terra wondered why he ever tried so hard being quiet.

Much of the talk was boring - news of someone's married cousin, and whether she had time Saturday night to go look at some horses… Hopefully she realized that this guy chatting her up was the lamest of the lame and she wouldn't agree to it.

She dodged his question entirely by changing the subject, acting like she didn't hear him. This was where it got interesting - she brought up the subject of the murderer, and asked the guy if he heard anything new.

"Yer tellin' me you didn' hear?" he gargled. His teeth were yellow. "They found the preacher's daughter."

The librarian hesitated. "Is she…?"

He shook his head. "All mangled up by the river. Funny thing is the fog's still rollin' when it shouldn'." He wasn't creeped out about the death, but acted like he was important enough to deliver such news. "Word is she was covered in oil when they found her."

The librarian at least had the decency to be upset. "The poor thing. Who found her?"

"That investigator comin' from the city." They were talking about the Master. Terra pretended to read, with one stack of finished books to his left, and a dwindling shorter stack of unread ones to his right, but he inched a little closer to listen more. The man continued, "If he hadn' found her, she'd continue ter sit there and rot."

Images of the Master finding a dead body burned in Terra's mind. Eraqus was strong, always had been - a hero had adopted Terra the day they met. But suddenly it scared him to think about the Master following Ardyn's trail.

"Makes me wonder," the man continued, his finger lifted in the air as if to make a point, "if Jim Bob'll get his fair share."

"Jim Bob, was that the one who beat his horses?"

"Is that what you 'eard?" He pulled on his suspenders. "Ha! I 'eard he poisoned 'em."

"Well, I don't believe any of it. Jim Bob loves his horses, I figured that nastiness was the work of that creeper."

"Did ya hear? Jim Bob claims the creeper doin' all of this lives in his paintings. Crazy loon. And 'pparently the creeper fancies hisself a fedora. Can you believe that?"

The librarian leaned forward, making sure she heard correctly. "You don't say?"

At this, Terra stood up, and the two adults suddenly quieted, as if their conversation was too inappropriate for a kid.

Not like Terra cared, waltzing up to the front desk with a very specific task in mind.

"Ma'am," he began, giving her a smile. "May I ask for a book about fedoras?"

She blushed at the proof that he heard their every word. "W-what are you needing, exactly?"

"I want to know what one looks like." Terra smiled wider, ignoring the way the man cleaned his own teeth with his tongue.

The librarian nodded quickly, like she had just been given orders by someone very important, and rushed off to find a book from a nearby shelf. She did Terra the favor of flipping through it for him, handing it over with pages showing off hats: fedoras, some with large rims, others short, all of them with similar dips at the top.

"You're a very smart boy," he heard her say, making him look up.

"Thank you, ma'am."

She squealed with glee. "And so very polite, too, they don't make kids like you these days no more." She leaned on her hands, looking down on him from her desk. "I've never seen you 'round here before."

Terra cleared his throat. He was instructed to tell very specific stories should anyone ask. "I'm from the city, miss."

She leaned further at the sound of his answer, like he was just as much of a specimen - it reminded him of the way people gawked at Aqua. "You don't happen to be the investigator's son now, are you?"

My dad?

That was right, if anyone asked, he was supposed to agree. Eraqus was so focused on proper obedience that the most proper way to address him was always "Master," and Terra wondered if it meant he was doing something bad if he lied about their relationship.

Was he, really, if he was lying for a mission?

Either way, it made him feel good to say yes.

*****

When school was over, Terra had instructions to find her.

He'd spent so long being the only kid at the Land of Departure that seeing a mass of children rummaging through the school grounds was like a punch to his heart, reminding him of the orphanage. It made him wonder how the ones he left behind were doing… did they find parents? Did they still hope for some or did they give up? What about Miss Quistis, the lady who ran the orphanage - was she still there? She always smiled.

Terra spotted Aqua, surrounded by other girls and one boy, who asked her incessant questions and ate all of her answers. Aqua was either uncomfortable or shy - he couldn't tell.

This was where Terra was completely useless, making new friends. He was going to be a Keyblade Master, a hero and savior to anyone who needed help, so sure, he'd be brave in the face of danger, or in the game between life and death.

But he remembered the lesson he kept facing again and again at the orphanage: other kids didn't want him around.

So he did what he thought he'd never do again: sit on a bench by himself and watch the others talk and play ball.

He was already so good at staring at rocks that he didn't notice that another child approached him -

Aqua, with her hand extended. He almost thought she wanted him to save her from her nosy friends, but he wasn't going to be fooled that he was necessary in a predicament like this.

"Come play with us," she said.

What was that about being a savior when she was the one to save him?

He was shaking when he took her hand, and didn't know if he was shaking harder as she led him through groups of wandering kids that broke off into their own cliques. Mostly he just stood there when she introduced him to her friends, and needed verbal permission to play skip rope with them.

Terra was smart and got the hang of it, and let himself enjoy some of the games - that is, until the other kids gaped with eyes wide open at someone behind him. The yard surrounding the school dulled into silence - and it wasn't because the kids went home.

Some pudgy kid with a round face, a mean look, a swollen eye, and oily hair approached their group, and with such vigor that everyone else made space for him, like he was king and they were terrified of him, and he knew he terrified them and he took pride in that.

"Looks like the cursed girl is back," he chipped in, and no one had anything to retort.

"Shut up, Pap," Aqua snarked, and the other kids stared in shock.

"Best be on the lookout or else being 'round her will curse your parents, too," he said with cackle, searching for nods of agreement from the other children nearby. He was a giant of a child, definitely a head taller than Terra.

What was most surprising was how literally no one mentioned how cruel that was to say - it nearly made Terra want to punch this Pap in the face… but adults always punished him for getting into fights.

Aqua's lip quivered for a moment before she went cold. "The only reason why no one went after your dad was because his breath stinks. Who'd go near him?"

Pap's face twitched at the sound of giggles from the other kids. "You know," he said with a crunch of his knuckles, "Preacher said your parents must have sinned an awful lot to get what was coming to 'em."

Terra searched for any adults who might be watching. There was no one.

Pap continued his crap. "So yer one to talk. I normally don't hit girls."

"Try me!" Aqua shrieked, pushing him like she didn't care in the world what could happen to her.

That pissed Pap off.

He went ahead, fist in the air for a clean strike.

Despite urging him on, Aqua scrunched her fists into her skirt, like she didn't know what she got herself into.

Terra had no choice.

Grabbing the fist, twisting the arm over, and tripping Pap by the ankle came so fluidly, so naturally, that all the children blinked once just to realize that his huge butt landed on the ground before he even got close to Aqua.

"That was easy," Terra smirked, now standing in between an idiot covered in dirt and Aqua.

It was easy. No one compared to Master Eraqus.

There were some loud gasps and name-calling from the crowd, followed by silence.

"Y-you don't belong here, ain't got no reason to-" Pap's surprised stutters and the drool coming out of his mouth was the first sign of him turning his heel and leaving them alone, yelling something like "I'mma tell my pa!" before he disappeared.

The crowd dissipated slowly, giving Terra and Aqua stares like they were the next most dangerous thing. Like they were freaks, even though Terra had just stood up to the one bully terrorizing them. Why? Not even her friends wanted to be near her, acting like she wasn't even there.

Aqua sniffled behind him, but she just left him alone when he asked if she was okay, taking a place on a bench near the road.

Maybe Terra was used to that by now, but he followed her, paying no mind how she refused to look at him. "Don't think about Pap, he's stupid," he said.

"He is stupid," she croaked, before raising her voice to a yell. "And school is stupid and everything is stupid."

She glared at her lap and Terra didn't know what to say. The other children eventually left the school in droves, some walking together to wherever they've decided to go, while others had their parents pick them up.

"Who usually picks you up?" Terra asked after a while, hating the silence.

Aqua raised her head to meet him in the eye. She didn't cry, but she looked like a pet anxiously waiting at a windowsill for its owner. She looked like Tod.

"My daddy."

Terra didn't have a good reply to that. Eraqus wasn't around - Eraqus wasn't around, and a horrid thought lurked in his stomach. What if they were both now left alone here for good?

It lasted for merely a second. Thankfully.

"I apologize for my late arrival," the Master said, which didn't matter. He still came and Terra found his breath again. "Would any of you like treats? Maybe some flavored ice for this dastardly weather?" He wiped his brow with a handkerchief.

Aqua didn't reply, but reached out to hold his hand with both of hers, and hid her face in his robe. Terra was still processing whatever it was that made him nauseous.

Eraqus smiled but acted like nothing out of the ordinary happened. "I am quite fond of lemon flavor myself."

******

The walk back to Mrs. Tweed's farm seemed longer, and the Master filled it with random stories of the games he used to play as a child. Terra had heard some stories about the past before, but Eraqus left out certain key details that would have marked him as a foreigner to this world, and one day Terra would have to do the same.

Aqua didn't say much, just gripped the Master's hand tightly as she followed him, her eyes lazy and missing, like the road she was staring at didn't exist.

It didn't matter that she never spoke back, the Master kept looking over his shoulder to see if she was listening, smiling at her like she gave him acknowledgement of his words.

Then, she stopped on her feet, and the Master complied. By now, the sun was halfway down to setting.

"I told them," she whimpered.

"Told who what?" the Master asked.

"I told my parents about the bad man."

What dropped first was the Master's smile, then he knelt before her. "The bad man?"

"Mm-hmm," she nodded. "We met him at the summer fair. At night. He sat at a table drinking ale and we passed by him. He asked about me, and my parents answered some questions like I went to school and I danced."

"Was that all?"

She shook her head. "I told them he was bad."

Eraqus cocked his head, more attentive than ever. "How did you know this?"

Her face contorted, her brows scrunching into wrinkles and her lips bending at the center. "I just knew he was bad. I pulled on mama and told daddy to stay away, but they said I was rude."

Then the first tears Terra saw on her face fell, and she struggled to breathe. "They didn't believe me," she said.

She wailed, the most horrid sound Terra had ever heard, and it was so loud that it filled his ears and invaded his chest, and he nearly cried from it, too. It hurt to hear it and it hurt to think about why.

Eraqus picked her up, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and her legs around his waist, with words that said, There, there, you are safe and sound, safe, safe, safe, as they trudged down the road, leaving Terra to carry her bookbag.

She was limp, all her energy seeping into sobs on the Master's shoulder, and all the noise she made frightened the rabbits and the birds nearby.

******

Since they got back, Abigail fussed hard like the air was suffocating her.

"She's doing a little better," the Master observed when he found Terra alone in the barn, brushing the cow, which really helped her calm down.

But now it was Terra willed into silence, Abigail's chewing of hay filling the room.

"Are you alright?"

Terra nodded. "Is it true you found the preacher's daughter?"

Eraqus' nostrils flared and he inhaled. "Word surely spreads far in this world. Yes, Terra, I did."

The Master took his place on a short stool normally setup for milking, but instead of fetching a pail, he rubbed on the hairs of his mustache with his thumb and forefinger.

"This man, if he could still be called one, is very predatory… I saw him today."

Terra nearly dropped the brush. "What?"

"Ardyn, I came into contact with him at the horse farmer's home. It's become a dreary place. Even with the sunshine, the halls of that house stay dark." Eraqus cleared his throat and took the milking pail, though he did nothing with it. "A terrible thing, the darkness. Being near it for too long will compel anyone to commit atrocities they otherwise would not do with a sane mind." He raised a finger at Terra, ready to lecture. "This is why you must never tread on that path, lest you want regrets, Terra."

"Yes, sir."

"Ardyn had found refuge within the oil paintings across the farmer's house, and I've chased him. He would appear and disappear at a whim, taking occupancy in frames he didn't belong… until he stepped out of one."

"And then what happened?" Terra asked quietly. "Did you fight?"

Eraqus nodded, and Terra's stomach dropped. "Unfortunately, he melted into his own shadows, escaping." He took a side glance. "I do not believe this beast is blind like it describes in my records."

"Sir?"

"Terra, do you remember your lessons about the nature of light and darkness?"

Of course he did, he was a good student. He recited, "Light attracts darkness, and darkness will hunt down the light. They are designed to recognize each other."

"Yes. Yes, indeed." Eraqus stared at nothing, gathering thoughts before he put them to words. "Aqua's intuition in recognizing the darkness only asserts my suspicions - I believe he hunted her down for the immensely bright light within her."

"... Why did he go after her parents?"

"Hmmm… the more I ponder over it, the more I see why the records have him labeled as blind. As a hunter, he is barely decent. When I fought him, nothing about his movements and his aversions to my presence gave me the impression that he couldn't see. It was more of… he can sense light when it is near. It alarms him but it deceives him. What I have noticed is his breath, it is so deep when he fights it as though he is drowning."

"So he sniffs the light when it's around?"

"In a way. He approached Aqua's house in daylight, when she was in school, so it would be sensible that her presence would be smeared all over her home, where her parents resided unaware."

"Then why doesn't he find her now?"

Eraqus, pensive and tense this entire time, sighed, like he just remembered that he was talking about human beings. "She is grieving. We all have light and darkness within us, Terra. Grief and rage will cloak our very best selves, and while she is under that state, it hides her from him.

"This is why," Eraqus continued, needing Terra's attention, "it is important that she understands there are others who care about her. To give her inner light a chance to shine again, and remember what it feels like to be happy. A dark mind lends to a dark heart and too much of that will warp her. Do you understand what I am saying, Terra?"

"Yes, sir. I've been trying to make her smile."

"Good. I know I can count on you." Eraqus' smile was brief as if he didn't have the time for it. "As for the preacher's daughter, unfortunately I believe she was mere collateral. A source of light that he found confusing, and he attacked her as such. There is so much darkness to be found in many worlds, Terra, and they wear many faces but this is the most gruesome that I've seen in my lifetime."

So Ardyn could find anyone with enough light, and just… end it all.

"Why?" Terra choked. "Why would anyone do that?"

Eraqus rubbed his student's head. "The reason will differ for each, but it is all senseless and primitive."

The tears were hot and Terra wasn't strong enough to stop them.

Eraqus reached to hold him, alarmed at the sight. "What has gotten into you? Are you frightened?"

Terra sniffed quietly and nodded, using his forearm to wipe his face.

"What if you die?" he squeaked.

"Terra, look at me." He was gentle, but firm. "I will not die."

"Aqua's parents died. And the preacher's daughter."

His Master sighed, rubbing Terra's arms before brushing his hair out of his tear-stained face. "Terra… they had no means of defending themselves, but I am very different. You have no reason to fear. Dry those tears."

He swallowed. "Y-yes, sir."

"If this is too much for you, I can send you home where you'll feel safe."

"No, sir." He stared at his Master's shoes. Under no circumstances did Terra want to go home, abandoning the mission, wondering for days if everyone was okay. And Aqua was so sad, today. "If I leave, then Aqua will be all alone, and I want to be brave."

"You possess an extraordinary amount of courage, capable and necessary for any true Keyblade wielder." Eraqus leaned over to make sure that Terra understood correctly. "The amulet I gave you, Terra, do you still mind it?"

"Y-yes, sir." Terra hurried to pull the knotted, looped cross from under his shirt. "I don't even take it off for a bath."

"Very good. You remember what I told you?"

"If anything-" He swallowed. He didn't want anything to happen. Now he wanted to go home and have Eraqus all to himself. "If anything happened, I need to stay calm and find you."

"And it will protect you. Be mindful of the fickleness of protection spells, Terra. They are powerful but they expire."

"Yes, sir."

The Master wiped Terra's face with his robe, and brushed through his hair with his fingers. Then he took the pail near him, ready to take on Abigail. "You are dismissed, Terra. Take some fresh air outside." He gave a smirk. "Let us hope the next time we speak of such evils, you would be a stronger, braver Keybearer ready to take on the challenge."

"Yes, sir."

******

Dragging his feet on the ground as he welcomed the cool breeze that hit his face, the vastness of the stars above him made this world seem bigger than it truly was. The forests beyond faded into darkness, the shadows mean under the moonlight.

At least Aqua was there, settled in the grass where Tod curled on her lap, his bright red fur the only spec of color to be seen in a night like this one. She was watching the forest but she was not really on her guard, like she didn't consider that something dangerous could be hiding where she couldn't see.

She wasn't crying anymore but her face was still puffy, and Terra took a spot next to her. She nudged over to give him more space, lending him a half-smile as a greeting. The grass was soft but itchy, too tall and in need of grooming.

"Everyone at school now knows me as the girl with no parents," Aqua said, eyes downcast with her hand sunk in Tod's vibrant red fur, and a tone that said she'd rather be known as literally anything else. She sounded tired, too - sick of being sad.

"I don't have any parents either."

She gaped at him with a pity he didn't comprehend. "Mr. Eraqus…?"

For once, Terra shook his head. "He's my teacher."

"Oh…" And there she was again, sad, and he got the notion that it was for him even though he didn't need it. "What happened to them?"

"They gave me up when I was a baby," he said simply. He lived with this knowledge all his life; it wasn't a big deal. Well… it kind of was. All the children went through a phase at some point that maybe they didn't deserve to have a family. But it really wasn't that big of a deal. It wasn't. "I grew up in an orphanage… but I have Master Eraqus now. Everything's great."

"But you live with your teacher."

"The best teacher ever."

She quieted. "...Do you even go to school?"

Terra didn't know what to say. He was supposed to talk about Eraqus being his father this entire time that he didn't have backup answers. "Sorta. I'm his only apprentice. We live in a special academy up in the mountains."

"Really?" She eyed the West, toward the direction of what these townspeople called mountains in this world. "Where?"

"Uh, very far away."

"Hm. So is it a lie that you're from the city?"

"No!" He said too quickly. "I come from a city - a really big one. All the buildings there are taller than your mountains here."

She gave him a… snooty look. "There's no such thing as a city like that."

"Yes, there is."

"No, there isn't."

"It's true," he pleaded. She was such a hard nut to crack. "Okay fine, there's more to it but... can you keep a secret?"

She lit up. "Yeah."

"You have to promise not to tell anyone, or I'll get in trouble."

"Cross my heart."

If she put her heart on the line, then she was serious. "The Master and I aren't from around here."

"Well," she scoffed, "duh."

"No, I mean…" He waved to the sky above them, stars twinkling like they wanted to be noticed. "We're from very, very far away."

It took her a second to think about what he was saying, then she rolled her eyes. "Are you saying you're aliens? That's ridiculous."

He laughed – it wasn't the response he expected, but it wasn't exactly the wrong interpretation either. "Kind of? We are from a distant star, and we flew from there."

"Pfft."

"I'm not lying."

"Sure, you're an alien."

Why she had to be such a snob at all times, he didn't know. Still, Terra felt like a complete idiot – here was someone finally willing to listen to him, to share a secret with and be his friend, and he blew it. He hated the silence penetrating between them now.

Aqua suddenly threw her hands in the air, as if she had enough exasperation to last her the day. "Aliens are supposed to have green skin, okay? They look like bugs, with antennas, and they're bald-"

Like she was the expert.

She said it in a way as if asking him to prove her wrong, and he swayed right back into smiling. Maybe he didn't blow it after all.

"There's more to the stars than you think," he said smugly.

Aqua crossed her arms and studied him for a bit.

What she said next surprised him - not because she believed him, or because she had her own secret to tell, but because he never really experienced someone who missed him before.

"Does that mean you'll have to leave soon?"

Those brief moments where she was smiling were so short.

"Maybe…" And Terra found himself sad, too. "Yeah. When the Master catches Ardyn, we'll have to go back home."

He didn't know if she was going to cry, but she didn't. She turned her nose up at him.

"You can't leave."

"Why not?"

"Because you're my friend now, and I won't let you."

Terra laughed because he had no other reaction. He didn't want to leave either, but he didn't say that out loud. What he realized instead was why she was so attached to Tod and Copper staying together: friendship meant a lot to her, maybe even as much as him, even though he didn't have any.

"We should find Copper tomorrow," he said. "It's wrong that they're separated."

She lit up. "Tod is lonely without him."

And Terra didn't want Tod to be lonely. "We could think of ways to get him back so we aren't caught."

"Promise?" She leaned near him, scanning his eyes for his oath.

Terra traced over his heart with one finger, and swore his first promise to someone who wasn't Eraqus. "Cross my heart."

******

After school the next day, Aqua minded her chores with such focus and speed that she finished earlier than expected and sought out Master Eraqus in the barn.

When she asked, "Mr. Eraqus, can Terra come out to play?" it was proof that yes, Terra did have a new friend. She was ready for the woods, replacing her dress with overalls and an excitable Tod by her feet.

Eraqus of course was pleased to hear that and sent Terra a smug grin before agreeing, which was probably the first time that Terra could remember being let go from his chores early.

Finding Copper was easy, and getting him out wasn't as hard as anticipated. Amos Slade relied too much on his intimidations, apparently, because Copper was there just the same. It took stealing a dog muzzle to contain Chief's barking so no one would be alerted.

Terra felt bad. He promised Chief that they'd all come back, even though Aqua told him that Chief hated Tod and wasn't nice either to anyone either.

Little Copper though was delighted.

And it turned out, babysitting small animals was tiring, and the two of them still went at it with their games while Terra and Aqua took turns lazily guessing the shapes of clouds.

They even talked some more about what he did as Eraqus' apprentice: what kind of classes he took, how far into defense training he had progressed so far, and whether he ever had to tolerate something dumb like math.

His answers were pretty honest except he never once mentioned the word Keyblade. It was a Keybearer's most important clause to keep that secret.

Watching dog and fox toss and tumble, practicing their survival skills on each other, gave Aqua a peculiar idea.

"Can you teach me how to fight?"

"That'd be fun. You're gonna show Pap's who's boss?"

"It's something I've always wanted to do, but Mama said it wasn't ladylike. It's too ferocious."

Terra stood up, at the ready. "It's not hard."

She hopped to a stance, her hands already in lifted. "Then show me."

"Well first…" He grabbed her wrists and brought them closer to her face. "You need to always protect yourself, and this will make it easier."

Then he lifted one open palm. "Try hitting me."

She threw her fist, and it smacked enough to sting.

"Ow," he whined.

Aqua's knuckles were already red from one punch, and she winced.

Terra shook his hand to relieve the pressure. "You hit hard, which isn't bad, but you're also hurting yourself." He lifted his other palm to spare the first. He remembered the way Eraqus spoke to him when he taught, going back to his earliest lessons. "Try thinking about your strength coming from your back, and use that to direct the punch."

It took several times, and Terra often switched palms for her to strike (it helped ease his pain). But Aqua took his lessons much faster than he expected, honestly, finally getting the proper amount of force in her punches without expecting her fingers to break.

"We use the same advice in ballet," she said.

"Really?"

"It's to make sure you're in alignment and you're moving properly."

"Oh!" He dropped a hand after she finished another throw straight into the center of it, now leveled off so that it didn't sting him anymore. "The Master and I talk about that stuff all the time. I didn't think it'd be useful in dance."

"Pfft." Suddenly she leaned off her focus on slugging and stood as straight as a rod. "Observe."

With feet turned out and a curve at her elbows, Aqua started to… well, bend her knees repeatedly.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"It's called a plié," she said as though he should know better. "Try it with me."

Turning out his feet was more uncomfortable than it looked, and he copied her movements, even when she brought one arm out to her side and swept the other across and over her head.

It looked easy to copy and honestly he got bored, but she started laughing -

He realized he never really heard her laugh before. It sounded like small bells, with a sparkle to her eyes. She looked different, alive almost.

"What's so funny?"

She mimicked what he was doing: hunched over, with his arms so curved that it looked like he was about to scratch his side and his head. "You look like a monkey."

"I do not."

He gave up, stomped his foot on the ground and swore to himself that he'd never dance again.

"Aww," she breathed, swallowing the rest of her loose laughs to regain some composure. "I didn't mean it that way. We can try something different."

"How about this," he interrupted, with a finger to command her attention. "We do a little competition and whoever wins gets to decide what game we should play."

Terra already had an idea in mind where he was sure he'd win.

"That sounds fun! What should we do?"

"Whoever does a handstand the longest wins."

Initially, he expected her to be intimidated, but she replied with, "That sounds easy. Let's do it."

It sunk his stomach, but he knew that he was good with this, so he should still be fine.

They bent over, and on his count of three, they lifted their legs into the air and balanced on their hands.

The blood rushed to his head, but he'd done this so many times that he breathed through it.

"Should we count it out?" he heard her say, his gaze somewhere off to the forest where Tod and Copper took a break from their roughhousing.

"What?"

"Count it out, like how many seconds it takes to do this?"

What was harder than breathing was talking in this position. "Nah."

"Okay." She sounded like she had no struggle in the world. "I used to take lots of gymnastics. I really miss it."

He really wished she would stop talking so he could concentrate on staying still.

"Cool," he muttered.

"I had a teacher who thought I would do well in competing," she continued, "but Papa wanted me to stay in school."

"Okay," he huffed.

"I've always wondered-"

He groaned, falling over onto his stomach into the thick grass underneath him, his head light. She glanced behind her, and with a smirk, gracefully went back on her feet and looked over him.

"I win!"

"Obviously."

"And I choose the game of…" She took a finger to her chin, very proud and very dismissive of his utter disappointment. "Hide and seek."

"Seriously?" He was going to refuse because he had pride and hurting it made him fume.

"I won, so we have to play. But Tod and Copper stay with you."

"Why?"

She waved her arm at him, already on her way, like he asked her a silly question. "They'd give my location away, and I'm not gonna let you cheat."

"Fine." He buried his face in arms against a tree and started to count out loud, listening closely to the direction of her steps so he had as many clues as possible; he was going to find her so quickly, she'd know immediately that he was worthy of respect, and she shouldn't ever laugh at him again.

"... Eight, nine, ten. Ready or not, here I come!" he yelled, the branches and bushes that surround him lightly swaying to a song he couldn't hear. The wind was just as gentle, leaving him alone to hear his own breath.

Copper sniffed the air, and Terra had the sinister thought of asking him to track her down - but that would be cheating, and Terra was better than that.

When he started his trek, the animals took notice. Tod's ears perked a little too much, like trying to decipher a sound that was garbled.

Terra went down the trail he believed she took. "Aqua?" he called - this never worked in hide and seek, but maybe it would trick her into giggling.

Tod and Copper followed closely at his ankles, never running ahead, never falling behind - which was weird, wouldn't they immediately react if she was nearby?

"Aqua," he called again, listening in for any ruffling.

It was quiet, like the forest was dead despite its lush green vitality, despite that it was daylight.

At this point, Tod's fluffy tail curled underneath him, and Copper dagged himself too close to the ground, chasing a scent in the dirt that took him in circles.

At this point, Terra spotted an owl - an owl - up at this hour, watching him like he was prey.

Getting into a staring contest with an owl was useless, and the longer Terra looked at her, the more he realized that she was waiting for something to happen.

The owl hooted, and against such quiet, it was thundered in his ears. Tod and Copper perked up at the warning -

And split from him, sprinting so quickly it was like they had to win a race to be allowed to live.

"Wait a min-"

They were gone, the owl leaving with them.

Aqua probably would yell at him for losing them.

If he'd ever talk to her again, that is.

"Aqua?" he called again, desperate for an answer. Praying that he'd find her fast, tripping over loose tree branches, hearing nothing but the noise of his own footsteps.

"Looking for someone?"

The voice came from behind.

A tall, tall man watched him with a diabolic smile. Wavy hair to his shoulders the same color as wine like it begged to be touched, thickly dressed in messy layers like he was homeless, like he was cold (it was way too hot for that).

Terra's heart beat and it went cold the moment he noticed the large-brimmed fedora.

"I-" Terra swallowed. A Keybearer was supposed to be brave. "I'm not, mister."

"Hmm," the man named Ardyn rubbed his chin. "I was wondering if you could point me in the correct direction," he said, words clearly pronounced and laced with an amusement that'd never die even if threatened. "I seem to have lost my way."

Terra nearly asked to please not hurt him, he didn't do anything wrong. "Town's over that way, mister." He pointed north, away from the Widow Tweed's farm.

Another voice rushed to his side. "Terra, don't!"

It was Aqua, breathless when she grabbed his hand. Her pupils shrunk to the size of flies, and she whispered to his ear, "It's the bad man."

"Aha!" Ardyn exclaimed like greeting an old friend he forgot about. "How long it has been to see you, Aqua." Ardyn slipped off his hat and bowed his head to give her a more respectful greeting.

Aqua shuddered, her grip on Terra's hand cutting off circulation to his fingers.

Terra didn't know what to do. This man looked bigger than his Master, and Terra never defeated his teacher in hand-to-hand combat before.

So he froze.

Worse - the moment Ardyn straightened out, his face was different: glowing yellow eyes, black oil seeping from them and from his scalp and from his mouth. He was already a dead man who spoke.

"It's been a pleasure," he said as he wore his hat again. "Good night, sweet child. Sleep will certainly hurt less."

Terra gripped her hand back.

Aqua hid behind his shoulder.

Ardyn raised a palm, the glow of magenta and black puffs of smoke electrifying at his fingertips.

Terra looked away, shut his eyes, got closer to her.

It hurt. It was sore like a dull hit to his chest and it banged loudly -

But he flew, with Aqua grabbing him by the waist and flying with him, as the blast threw them background and they used the momentum to float away, past the trees, past Tod and Copper who were still running, until they were dropped to the ground, rolling in a mess of fallen leaves.

Terra was alive, and finally he breathed. They were near Mrs. Tweed's house, her chimney sticking up above the trees.

He scurried to his knees and fiddled with his necklace, pulling out the knotted symbol. It disintegrated into dust after carrying them here.

The plan! Stay calm. Find the Master. Immediately he stood on his feet, and slipped on leaves.

The mission! He still had to protect the mission. He turned heel and went back to Aqua.

"What was that?" he heard Aqua mumble. She was still picking herself up, removing leaves from her hair.

"Magic. C'mon." He grabbed her by the wrist and dragged her, running as fast as he could.

"Master!" he cried when they got near the farmhouse, Tod and Copper yipping from their fright.

Abigail fussed and she was loud enough that they heard her from the barn. In the distance, Chief wouldn't stop barking. The wind howled, and the clouds darkened. A gunshot ruptured in the distance.

Eraqus stepped off the front porch, telling the widow to stay indoors. "Step inside," he instructed Terra and Aqua. "And stay inside."

"Master-"

"Now."

Another gunshot, closer this time.

Copper and Tod followed them inside the house, rushing under furniture. Mrs. Tweed locked the door behind them as Eraqus continued his way into the field. Terra climbed the kitchen counter to take a look.

"Stay away from the windows!" she commanded, and Terra jumped off to head upstairs.

"Wait for me," he heard Aqua squeak but he paid no attention to her.

He rushed through the upstairs hallway, into the master bedroom, right to the windows where he threw the curtains open.

Moments ago it was broad daylight but now it threatened to storm.

Eraqus summoned his Keyblade in a crackle of light, Ardyn now creeping close.

The demon hunched over, the oil dripping out of his coat-sleeve. Sparks of purple light surrounding him, and the ghosts of swords and axes and cleavers swirled in the air in a cycle, a record of ages that passed by for how long this thing had been living.

He used them to strike the Master, slicing and dicing and scratching metal with metal.

Deflected, far enough to strike a tree nearby the second-floor window and Terra and Aqua had to duck.

"Your Master is a sorcerer?" she asked.

It wasn't incorrect. "Eh?"

"I read about them in books," she said as they peeked over the windowsill.

"Shh."

Eraqus summoned chains, gold and blinding and huge, to whip Ardyn - it was the coolest thing Terra had ever seen him do.

Ardyn said something indecipherable, and with a yell, Eraqus summoned something larger: a giant warp that swallowed the demon away before reshaping into a giant keyhole in the sky.

One that the Master promptly locked, the sound of the turnkey snapping everything into silence.

The sun fought through the clouds, and the wind calmed slowly.

Eraqus trudged back to the house, holding his arm as he dismissed his Keyblade, and he limped enough for Terra to bolt back downstairs, leaving Aqua to follow him once again.

The house was messier, like it survived a small earthquake with books toppled over and desks in the wrong position.

He found the Master settled on a loveseat while Mrs. Tweed rushed to get him water.

"I was unable to vanquish him," Eraqus said through large breaths. "But he has been barred from ever coming back to this world."

"Miracles do exist!" Mrs. Tweed exclaimed as she handed him a mug. "Bless you, good sir. I never in my life expected such a spectacle when you showed up around here."

"Miracles," the Master repeated. That was going to be the story for the rest of time to these people, of a man who came from nowhere to perform miracles that saved the town, Mrs. Tweed being the only witness to a harsh storm that raged and died in a matter of minutes.

Terra sat closely to his Master, not to take his hand or to hug him, but to listen to him calm down.

In the chaos, Terra didn't realize that it made him scared to watch Eraqus march his way to battle. Knowing now that everything was alright, it took all his strength to look like he wasn't overwhelmed.

Now the people of this world were safe, and Eraqus was the hero. The thing about his Master was that he showed no fear in the heat of battle, when Terra nearly wet his pants earlier. If he was ever going to get better, he had a long way to go.

Mainly, Terra was just happy that he still had family at the end of it all.

"I want to do what you do," he heard a small voice pipe up.

Aqua stared hard at Eraqus, determination on fire in her eyes, awed and fierce and hopeful.

The Master wasn't surprised by her admission. "You want to save people?"

"Yes," she said simply.

Mrs. Tweed threw her hand to her chest. "In all my life-"

"I want to banish demons," Aqua continued.

"That sounds perfectly unsafe," Mrs. Tweed said.

Eraqus chuckled. Terra thought that he may have succeeded his first mission because it gave the Master what he wanted - a new, promising student. "It can be a dangerous life, but I assure you that she would be safe with me."

Mrs. Tweed eyed Terra, suspicions mounting in her mind. "The young boy, he is…?"

"Yes, ma'am," Terra said. "I'm his apprentice, and I'm training to do the very same thing."

"Aqua," Mrs. Tweed implored, "you are certain?"

A sad cloud hovered over Aqua's eyes before dissipating in an instant. "Thank you so much for taking care of me, Mrs. Tweed… but I've been called a hippie all my life for my name. I don't belong here. I never did."

Eraqus stood straighter, interlacing his fingers and addressing the widow. "I only take children who have no families nor a place to go, children who I am certain will perform spectacularly."

Aqua leaned forward with a hand to her heart. "Please take me. I'll be a good student. I can do ballet and gymnastics, I'll make perfect grades and-"

"You have a strong heart," Eraqus said to her with a warm smile.

She blinked, not understanding what he really meant but she nodded anyway.

And Terra saw it - or felt it, he wasn't sure. It was like a tug to his own heart, a flash and a tickle before it faded. This was what Eraqus was talking about.

He saw the light within Aqua, a warm, strong embrace, like he was meant to feel safe with her and meant to keep it protected.

It was pretty even though he couldn't really see it.

And Terra wondered if he emanated the same. He thought that one night when he tried to bring it out of himself and he couldn't, and how he went to sleep wondering if he had it at all.

He wondered if his was as strong as hers, and if he was doomed to fail because it wasn't.

******

Aqua said she cried more than she expected when she said goodbye to Mrs. Tweed, even though Terra never saw anything.

She was stronger when she said goodbye to Tod, rubbing the fur on his chest a little while longer because she never wanted to forget the way it felt.

"Do you think they'll stay friends forever?" she asked Terra.

If she was talking about Copper… "Of course they will." A fox and a hound were opposites by nature, in a violent cycle that would never end but friendship was supposed to be strong and indestructible, and Tod and Copper were the very best of friends. Nothing would tear them apart.

"Always stay together, okay Tod?" she whispered to the fox, before giving him a quiet farewell.

This was a few days after the battle with Ardyn. By this time, people started visiting the farmhouse to ask Eraqus all sorts of questions: if he was a magician, if he was sent from the heavens, if he was the devil, if all the demonic stuff was nonsense, if the murderer was killed…

Either way, Eraqus respected the laws of the world and they all had to wait until papers were written, agreed upon, and signed for his protection over Aqua as one of his own.

Today was the day to finally take her to the Land of Departure. She didn't have much: one pack of luggage, and one hard, gray folder.

When Terra asked what was inside, she said it was the only picture of her parents that survived the fire.

The three of them hiked into the woods. She started asking the basic need-to-know: what a Keyblade was, the eternal fight between light and darkness, where the Land of Departure was located -

"We're going to fly there, right?" Aqua asked.

Eraqus shot Terra a look, now that she admitted that she knew information she wasn't supposed to know.

"We are indeed." Eraqus stopped the hike, halting the other two behind him, and bent to his knees. "I have one question left for you, Aqua."

By the sound of his voice, Terra knew he was testing her.

"In the deepest part of your heart, why is it that you want to wield the Keyblade?" he asked.

She took a moment, the folder with her parent's photo wrapped in her arms. "I want to make my parents proud. I want to make sure nothing like this ever happens again to someone else."

By the way the Master nodded, she passed. "The Keyblade is a powerful weapon, Aqua. You are still young, and you won't be able to conjure your own for a few years, but you must always know that your strength is bright and strong. It is not to be used for purposes of vengeance."

Aqua nodded. "Revenge feels yucky to me."

With that, the Master was relieved. He patted her head. "Admirable. When we arrive at the castle, you will spend the rest of the day for leisure, but tomorrow we will start your first formal class."

She beamed, and Terra remembered similar excitement at the thought of starting classes with Eraqus, too. He used to be called a nerd for liking school.

"We're going to be students in the same class," she said to Terra, like she was looking forward to it.

Terra didn't know how to respond. Class was class, students were students. Friends were… they acted like they cared. "Uh, yeah."

"I can't wait, Mr. Eraqus," she said. "I'm going to make the best grades."

"W-wha?" Terra stuttered.

"First I must start your bequeathing, Aqua. Come." He gestured to her over by the nearby creek.

"This is going to be fun," she said to Terra before hopping over.

He watched the bequeathing, similar to how he went through it for the first time years ago, when the Master summoned a giant key and spoke a few fancy words. The energy from the magic passed from the weapon through his fingertips, up to his heart to ignite something that Terra later realized was probably always there.

The Keyblade was picky about who it chose and it chose Aqua today.

What it'd be like to wake up to a new person in his home, Terra had no idea what to expect. They would play and swap stories, he'd have a new fighting partner. Maybe he'd be allowed to go into the woods without supervision.

Something about it bugged him, though. Was it possible that he could be kicked out of the academy if he didn't measure up? What if Eraqus liked her better and liquified his adoption?

What would happen once Eraqus found out that her light was brighter than Terra's?

Suddenly, having a friend sounded like more trouble than it's worth.

To be continued...

This chapter makes references to the Fox and the Hound (1981).

#terraqua #terra #aqua #eraqus #ardyn izunia #the fox and the hound #kingdom hearts fanfic #kh fanfic #LOOK WHAT CAME BACK FROM THE DEAD #my fic

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