hereforthesmutbaby - Tumblr blog

hereforthesmutbaby · 29 days

Text

You don't understand how much I'm in love with this.

Slow burn 🤌🏻✨

Anger issues🤌🏻✨

The flying lesson part 🤌🏻✨✨✨

Bonded: Chapter Six

A/N: Hello everyone! My absence has ended and I am back writing once more. I've missed you all and I hope this makes up for it. Please remember, this is a hobby and sometimes life overtakes hobby time. Luckily, things have seemed to even out for the time being. As always, enjoy and let me know what you think!

Word count: 5.2k+

Chapter Five

Weather holds more power than most people will ever realize. A planet’s atmosphere has wondrous effects on the life below which is why with each planet you travel to, you will experience a climate you never have before. It was one of the first things you noticed on this galaxy trek.

How one day you can look up and see the crystal skies beaming back down at you, offering immaculate views of the horizon far off in the distance. Yet, landing on another planet just the following cycle, storms wreak havoc over the innocent civilians down below unleashing a fury that blows eyes wide open in surprise and fear.

Demolishing anything that stands in its way, altering life as you knew it right before your very eyes. Watching as lives are ruined, some spared, others continue as before with little to no change.

Packing for such weather was difficult to do. Hence why nearly your entire wardrobe had been brought with you on this trip. As your cruiser descended on a tiny spec in the sector, the humidity pummeled you immediately. The condensation formed on the windows as a repulsive greeting and then dripped downwards towards the forever soggy ground.

A small sigh escaped your mouth as you knew how uncomfortable this short day was about to become. This wasn’t even a planet on your list. A courtesy stop if you will. An unplanned detour that you knew would only last the afternoon and early evening before continuing on with your actual planned route.

“I can only imagine what sort of creatures thrive in this type of environment,” Calista murmured with her nose almost pressed flush to the glass. Briefly looking up from your notepad you watched as Tamsyn began preparing for landing.

Only humming in response, there wasn’t much enthusiasm in your reply. You were exhausted. Having been traveling for nearly two entire months, your journey was finally nearing the end. Another week and you would be back home.

Home.

It was odd to think of the ship in that way, but that was what it was. Home. A sense of longing to go back to it, sleep in your bed, see Kylo. You couldn’t believe that you missed him.

Your eyes drifted to the string on your wrist. A gift before your original departure. A safety measure. A token of thought. That you were occupying his thoughts just as much as he was yours. As your thoughts descend into him, the rough landing of the ship jolted you out of your little world.

Tucking the bracelet under your thin gauzy sleeve, you stood as the ships door opened, allowing you to step into the jungle terrain. This was their opportunity to sell themselves to the Order. Explain how they could be of use. With what you could see, it wasn’t much.

Yet as you walked down towards the small gathered crowd to greet you, they were all beaming with enthusiasm to see you, the Empress, actually here visiting. Tamsyn and Calista were hot on your heels, your personal guard so close the armor he adorned nearly pressed into your side.

A precaution courtesy of Kylo and General Waylan. One you didn’t believe was necessary, but your own thoughts fell onto deaf ears. You weren’t even offered his name. No indication about who he really was.

He was just…there. All of the time. A shadow stapled to your own. When you moved, so did he. He was in charge of all the safety measures in regards to this trip. And he was certainly displeased to discover you made a decision to stop on this desolate crater without informing him earlier.

The leader stepped forward enthusiastically, his robes trailing on the moss ridden steps he descended to reach you. “Empress, we are beyond honored to welcome you here. Thank you for taking the time to join us.” As your eyes settled on the thin man, you nearly fell backwards. The striking resemblance had you hesitating to utter your own greeting.

An immediate cold sweat erupted over your body. The man looked eerily similar to the one who had lost his head at the gala. The gruesome memory flashed in your mind as you watched the lifeless eyes stare at you. Courtesy of your husband, but almost as fast as it hit you, the feeling faded. Almost as if he disguised himself when he saw your discomfort with his appearance. Those fully black eyes now had irises, the color still coal, but some ivory peeked out.

Perhaps your mind was playing tricks on you, you thought to yourself.

As he spoke, he clasped your hand within his own and brought it to his grayed forehead. There was something different about them as you took in the odd faces of the civilians. All looked different than each other, but it was as if they weren’t entirely real. A mask over their true selves. You weren’t entirely sure. But your guard was immediately up.

For being in such a bright and warm environment you couldn’t help but fight the chill that shot up your spine from the ice cold grasp he had. Their eyes almost one solid color, bordering on black, but not quite fully gone. They all appeared grey, no hint of color anywhere on their forms. The palace behind them appeared desolate.

The stark green vines enclosed around the sandstone brick that was almost completely gone beneath the never ending greenery. The varying creatures and animals chirped through the forest, cocooning the group in a symphony of songs. Not one of comfort, but one of warning.

A warning you ignored to heed.

Your hackles were raised without so much as a second thought. “It is our pleasure, Monton. I hope you don’t mind the short visit. We don’t have much time together, but I am looking forward to getting to know you and your people more intimately.” His smile stretched across his taut skin, making him appear less human as he did. Your pleasantries second nature to you despite the overwhelming sense of dread filling each of your senses.

A few hours was all you needed to muster through. Then back to the scheduled trip. You echoed that lifeline in your mind over and over to keep your nerves rested.

Stepping to the side, he gestured towards the ancient building. “Shall we?” Nodding in reply, you turned toward your guard. “We won’t be long, if we need assistance I will call.” His helmeted head only bowed before turning on his heel and ascending the stairs back aboard the ship.

You prayed you wouldn’t need his assistance. A few hours.

Tamsyn and Calista trailed behind you, not interested in any of the information this man was offering. Yet, they did not seem the least bit put off by their odd appearances or behaviors. It ran through your mind that you were being overly cautious. His similarities to the man from the gala had knocked you off your game, but no one seemed to pay that any mind.

You were hardly listening either. The entire time he spoke your thoughts were occupied with what rubbed into your wrist. The bracelet so delicately clasped around your skin felt as though it was burning an indentation, leaving its permanent trace behind in its remembrance.

“Your presence has been requested by the Supreme Leader, Empress.” You were sat in your living quarter, the final details of your galaxy journey had been finalized that afternoon and you were beyond spent. Pulling yourself up from the comfortable cushion, you followed the Order official to wherever they were leading you.

When you arrived at a section of the ship you didn’t recognize, you spoke. “Where is the Supreme Leader?” He stopped walking as he approached to extremely large doors that were monitored by three different entry systems. “Supreme Leader Ren's quarters, Empress.” He turned towards you with a subtle bow before turning and leaving you standing alone in the darkened corner.

You could recall the doors from your private tour with Kylo, but you had been brought an entirely different way and didn’t recognize where you were.

Not sure what you were supposed to do, you walked towards the different identification panels and attempted to solve how to enter. You weren’t entirely certain how long you were stood there, but when the door receded into the walls with a loud whoosh accompanying, you jumped up.

There he stood, helmet removed, gaze immediately pinned to you. “What are you doing?” He spoke, not a crack of emotion on his face, voice the standard deep monotone you were accustomed to. “Um, they said you requested me. I couldn’t figure out the door,” you nervously responded.

A slight tilt to the corner of his mouth was all you received as he returned inside. “Come with me.” You followed a few steps behind him. Eyes darting around to the new sights, the smell of him wafting over you entirely. It was incredibly neat, like no one had ever resided there.

The dark furniture was exactly what you expected. Everything drenched in reds and blacks, his signature colors of course. Almost cliche, you giggled to yourself. The sound alerted him, causing him to turn and face you to see what had you laughing. “What?”

Only shrugging you were still smiling. “Nothing. Just that your quarters are exactly what I expected. The blacks and reds, you know?” Your fit of giggles continued as he eyed you, eyes narrowing in your direction, a slight tilt to his head. Faded remnants of a smile graces his plush lips for only a mere second.

His head dropped, a small box sitting on the corner of a table. “Come here.” You immediately followed his orders, walking towards him and closing the distance. Knowing better than to try and battle him, you were nearly flush against him.

Grasping your wrist with his bare hand, electricity jolted through you. You despised when that would happen. Unable to hide the effect his simple touch had on you. This had been happening more and more. The more time you two spent together, which was occurring much more frequently, it only riled you up more.

His touch was incredibly delicate, the long and nimble fingers worked quickly and effortlessly. It was gone as fast as it had appeared. A slight twinge of sadness nestled in your stomach at the loss of contact. Your eyes never left the new addition on your arm.

It was simple, just a black string with a fabric you were not sure of, a small gemstone sitting squarely in the middle. A glow cast out around the unidentified stone, sitting on your skin. Eyes finally peeling away, you cast your gaze upwards to see his features already studying your own.

He never faltered despite the close quarters you two were currently in. “Specially made by request of myself.” Your brow furrowed in question, looking back down at it. “It’s a beautiful bracelet, Kylo. Thank you.” Offering a genuine smile, you felt warm.

Kylo had specifically gotten something made for you. Gifted to you by Kylo himself. You couldn’t help but feel a tiny bit more…special. That he was going out of his way to please you, bring a small sense of joy. Even if it was a stretch to anything more than him trying to appease you.

“This is for…my piece of mind while you’re gone, dove. If you are in danger, I can only use the Force to communicate with you when I feel the need to. I cannot always sense if something is wrong. I’m still attempting to sort out what this bond means and how to use it. For now, this will do.” His hand cupped your wrist once more, his thumb hovering over the gem.

Clearing his throat he continued. “You press this gem down and to the right. It will immediately track your location and notify me that you are not well. Promise me you’ll wear this the entire time you’re gone, dove?” The gentle tone in his voice had butterflies erupting in your stomach as he spoke so plainly with you.

A knot formed in your throat, but you nodded eagerly. “Of course. Thank you for this. So, just down,” he nodded, his hair lightly falling forward at his motion. “Down and to the right.” You smiled at the demonstration and peered back up at him.

Holding eye contact for the following few seconds was the most intense interaction you two had yet. Peering into one another, it was almost like you were able to communicate with him through look alone. A silent heartfelt thank you for caring about my safety. A glimmer of an unknown emotion first registered in his eyes, then his entire face, before fading.

Admiration? Joy? Something you didn’t quite know how to label because, well, it was Kylo. He only ever showed two emotions. Rage and annoyance. Nothing more, nothing less. A side to him that no one else ever got to see. Reserved solely for you. In these private moments.

Pride bubbled in you at the knowledge that no one else in the entire galaxy saw Kylo in states like this. His hardened facade broken. Not without great effort on your end. In fact, it had been painstaking work for months on end.

After Kylo request to attempt a new beginning with you, you decided to agree to his offer. Whatever that meant for him. After the first couple of days and no changes, no sightings of him, you reached out.

An invitation to accompany you at dinner that evening in your quarters. No response had been given and you were quickly losing hope that anything was going to change, an empty guarantee from him. Then, just as the table had finished being set and you were notified that dinner would be served as soon as you were ready, he entered your quarters.

Not able to fight against the smile that took shape on your face, Kylo looked extremely awkward. Unsure what he was supposed to be doing. Yet, attempting to make the effort. Even though it was almost pitiful to see his obvious discomfort.

Deciding to take the lead for the night, you welcomed him in. You weren’t quite sure of yourself enough to try anything physical like a hug, but you lead him into the dining room. Sitting at opposite ends of the table, you mainly ate in silence.

But he was there and that was a victory all in itself.

You didn’t ask him back the following evening, but he came back anyways. And nearly every night since then. Unless he was gone on a mission, it was almost a grantee that Kylo would be at your dining room table, enjoying a dinner with you.

As these meals happened more frequently so did the conversation. At first, extremely basic and generic, testing the waters to see how well you two could communicate. It didn’t take much time for you to warm up to him enough that you were constantly sharing stories of your childhood, upbringing as a royal, funny experiences you had since joining the Order as their Empress.

Kylo pitched in with conversation despite choosing to let you fill the void of his lack of words a majority of the time. Even cracking smiles, his eyes and features more life like and softened with happiness. You know you had made great progress when you got a laugh out of him for the very first time.

It had been like striking gold. A melody of tone you had never heard and weren’t sure you would ever again. Such a beautiful sound you never wanted to forget it, never wanted it to end.

The following night he had arrived at your quarters for dinner, you eyed the table set up. Grabbing your plates and utensils, you ushered yourself down to his end of the table, sitting on his left side just like at the meeting tables. His eyes watched your movements daringly, unsure of what exactly you were doing.

But when you seated yourself and gave him a large smile, he felt an almost sense of…relief. Having you choose to be so close to him. Something no one had ever done. Dinner carried on like nothing had changed.

The new behaviors of the infamous Kylo Ren had started to bleed out into other aspects of your relationship as well, including professional. One afternoon, you two walked the corridors of the ship together, chatting about your upcoming travel plans, when his hand landed on your hip, pulling you away from a wall of storm troopers rounding the same corner. His hand firmly pulled you into his side, his helmeted demeanor seething at the group. “Watch your movements.”

Instant apologies to Kylo and you were spoken. Your heart rate never went back to normal after that. At one supper, Kylo had asked you if you had ever flown a ship. He was instantly taken aback at your response of no. “When I return from this mission I will be teaching you how to pilot a ship.” You were giddy for his return, counting down the cycles until we was due back home. Unable to contain your excitement when Kylo had entered your quarters for dinner, you crossed the room and embraced him. A warm smile greeted him in accompaniment despite his entire body stiffening the way it did.

It didn’t phase you in the least. Speaking about how you had missed his presence at dinner. His cheeks warmed to a pink hue at the terms of endearment. He spoke, clearing the waver in his voice as he did. “I’m taking you flying tomorrow.”

The following day had been the best you two had ever spent together. That morning, Kylo appeared at your door and you followed him. What was supposed to be just a flying lesson turned into an entire formal tour of his section of the ship. He showed you where his training facilities were, where the Knights of Ren were located, the entry to his residence. You didn’t enter, but at least you now knew where he was located at.

The tour wrapped at the massive bay of ships in the hanger. You were nearly jumping for joy when you knew what was next. Wandering eyes monitored the two of you as Kylo led you towards the ships. A duo that was unanticipated. The Kylo Ren watching as the Empress of the First Order looked like an excited school girl.

You truly didn’t care. As you approached one of the ships on the fleet, you turned and beamed at Kylo. “This one, right?” He shook his head, motioning for you to follow him. Stopping in your tracks, your jaw hung ajar.

“You’re going to let me fly your ship?” The smirk that danced across his mouth had your heart doing somersaults. A squeal escaped your lips, rushing towards the tall man and crushing him to you in a hug. Your arms wrapped around his neck, feeling the soft locks of his raven black hair tickle you, your cheek pressed against his neck. It ended as quickly as it had happened. You didn’t look at his reaction before quickly climbing aboard the Supreme Leaders personal ship.

With only one seat in the cockpit, you weren’t sure how this was going to work for you to learn. Kylo followed you in and within a minute was situated in the pilots seat securely. Standing off to the side, you were about to ask where you were supposed to sit when his arm wrapped around your waist.

Grabbing you from behind, he dragged you effortlessly to his lap. You were in a fit of giggles at the fast motion. Adjusting yourself to sit comfortably for however long you two were about to fly, you were ecstatic to get on with your lesson.

Both of Kylo's arms came from the sides, caging you in as he grasped the controls and swiftly left the hangar. Despite thinking you were going to be taking up too much of his space and view, he flew the ship like it was nothing.

He was silent behind you despite your constant chatter and observations of the planets that flew by. As you two settled on a desolate planet, you were ready to begin. His warm breath fanned across your cheek and neck as he spoke, goosebumps erupting over your entire body.

Fighting the chill that shot up your spine, the slight tremble in your hands you were able to play off. “I’m nervous,” you chuckled, rubbing your hands across your pants. “It’s simple. Here,” he lifted your hands to grab the controls, his sitting over your own.

Given the nature of his sheer size in comparison to your own, you could hardly see your own flesh beneath his own. “Alright dove, you always want to make sure that these lights are on,” Kylo fell into his detailed explanation of the control panel and what each thing meant.

You weren’t sure you could place the exact moment he called you dove for the first time, the term of endearment awarded to you by friends and family, but it was almost second nature to him now. Mainly using it instead of your name or your titles.

It sounded different coming from him. Felt different. Like you only wanted him to use it. Holding a different meaning than everyone elses uses. You adored it. Waited for it to fall from his lips with baited breath each time. Knocking the wind out of you with each muttered dove.

It was safe to say that the flying lesson had not gone well. Apparently it was more of a natural talent activity than you realized. After nearly driving it straight into the ground, you erupted in laughter.

Kylo held onto the controls as you lost control of your laughter. He chuckled smally to himself. “Alright, we’re done for today. I don’t need you destroying the best ship in the fleet.” As your chuckles faded, still seated firmly in his lap, you smiled widely at him.

“Thank you for today. It was a lot of fun,” without so much as a second thought, you leaned in, hand cupping his jaw and turning his head towards you. It nearly happened in slow motion, that first kiss. Feeling the soft, tender flesh of his lips meld to your own. The shock waves that exploded over your body was unlike anything you had ever experienced. You never wanted to stop. But you did and when you pulled back and opened your eyes, you watched as his grip tightened on the controls, you smiled to yourself.

He cleared his throat, refusing to look at you. “You’re welcome.” Kylo left the next day for a mission that he desperately needed. Some space from you so he could catch his breath, readjust his bearings, figure out what was happening between you two. Why he wanted to be sitting at a dining room table with you instead of making progress that he needed to make.

Why he was dreading your trip. That he wouldn’t be near you for so long, unable to do anything to protect you while you were so far. He had his own copy of your schedule, but that wasn’t enough.

Instead, he assigned one of the highest regarded troopers to be your personal guard through the duration of the trip. One he knew you wouldn’t accept unless it came from someone other than himself. Waylan quickly agreed and you accepted with little word otherwise.

Perhaps he was slightly obsessed. Which is why he constructed the bracelet on his own. Something that would allow him direct access to you should you need him. Not that he wanted to bother you, but he still didn’t know the limit of the bond you two shared. Wanting nothing more than your protection covered while away from him.

Seeing your reaction to it as he placed it on you was a relief. Seeing that you seemed more sure of yourself wearing it. Knowing that you could contact Kylo as quickly as possible. A slight weight off your shoulders.

If only you knew what was in store for you.

The tour had dragged for so long and was so dull, you had sent Tamsyn back to the ship to prepare for your departure. The stories shared with you were sending alarm bells tolling your head. Far too similar to the mans from the gala to be purely coincidental. You knew at that moment why they had wanted you to come here.

When you had returned back to the palace you began to take note of some alarming things. Guards blocking each doorway and nearly every window, being led further and further through the maze of doorways and twisting hallways, the men that were directly behind you and Calista were seemingly moving closer and closer.

You knew something was seriously wrong when you entered what appeared to be a drawing room with no furniture present in it. Offering as polite of a smile and interruption you could, you spoke. “Would you mind allowing myself and my lady speak privately for a moment?”

The king nodded, ushering his men out with him, one last eye locking glance in your direction before shutting a door. You wasted no time, whipping around to face her, fumbling to unclasp the bracelet.

“I need you to listen to me very carefully, Calista. I need you to remember every thing I’m about to tell you.” She looked bewildered as you began to speak quickly. “You are going to leave this room as soon as I am done talking,” as the bracelet fell off, you cupped it. “You are going to board the transport and tell the pilot to not, I repeat, not go to the next destination.”

Calista had no idea what was happening. “What are you talking-” you cut her off. “Calista, please we don’t have a lot of time. They are going to be back any minute. These are the same people from the gala just with some sort of disguise on. They are going to attempt to track the transport which is why you are not to go to the next destination.” Her eyes quickly began welling with tears.

Stuffing the bracelet into her palm, you forcibly closed her hand around it. “You are going to get as far away from here as possible. An unknown world or moon or something, okay? As soon as you get there the Order will have already been notified that we have not arrived at our scheduled destination.”

She sighed, going to speak. “But Kylo-” You shook your head. “They won’t tell Kylo because they know he will not be happy and they will want to solve it themselves. When you get to wherever you go, you will activate this.” Calista opened her hand to look at it.

“Push down and twist to the right. It will immediately send a signal to Kylo with your exact location. He will get there very fast and when he does, he will be furious. Kylo will read your mind after you tell him about the events that have happened. You must tell him this was my plan, do you understand?”

She sniffled as you continued on. “I’ll be fine. I want you all to get to safety.” Calista pulled you into an embrace, whispering in your ear as she did. “I’ll-I’ll tell him everything,” you offered a relaxed smile to try and qualm her nerves. “Kylo will find me. Now, go. You need to go.” Pushing her towards the doors, she glanced once more at you before rushing away.

A shaky exhale escaped your lips, fear pummeling you at what was about to happen. The leader returned mere seconds later, a large inhuman smile on his features. “Ah, where did the beautiful Calista go?”

Smiling politely you spoke. “To ready the ship for us. I want to thank you for your generosity and enthusiasm today, but we do have a schedule to keep to.” As you took a step back, the leader and his men made one towards you.

“So soon, Empress? We were hoping to enjoy supper and share more tales of our people. Our traditions.” Sweat dripped down the back of your neck. “Unfortunately, it was a fast trip. Perhaps next time we can extend it.”

His smile fell immediately. All warmth snapped from him in an instant. “No. I think you don’t understand.” In the blink of an eye, both of your arms were restrained by the guards he had brought back with him.

The king crossed the room leisurely. “You need to let me go. You know they will look for me.” He smirked as he approached you. Twirling a strand of your hair around his straggly finger, he inhaled deeply. “No, I don’t think they will, Empress. None of you will be leaving here today.”

As soon as he finished, the roar of the transports engines flooded the palace. Barking out an order in an unfamiliar tongue, you let a devilish smirk cross your face. A snarl emulated from him as he whipped his hand back before making contact with your cheek, drawing a surprised gasp.

It was just the start.

Nearly two full days later, their transport ship collided with the rocky terrain of whatever desolate planet they had found. Calista activated the gem as soon as they landed and just as you had said, Kylo ship touched down not long after.

The burnt landscape around them displayed his anger that he had unleashed with his saber upon discovering you hadn’t gone with them. Almost the entire area around them had been decimated.

What you didn’t realize was that Kylo had been unable to connect with you. Despite all of his efforts, the moment he had been notified of your missing status, he couldn’t find you. Connect with you. Speak with you.

Perhaps too far from him. Given you weren’t Force sensitive, this was uncharted territory. One he didn’t realize had a location cap. When you had sent him the ping of your location, it was lie salvation had washed over him.

Upon discovering you were not onboard that ship and had sent them off without you, it only ignited his rage. Far beyond the point of anger, he couldn’t believe you had put yourself in this situation. One he didn’t know how to solve. Fix. Get you back to him where you would be safe and protected.

Kylo's robes whipped around him as he turned and stalked towards the group who had watched the entire scene unfold before them. “Notify all of the Order that my Empress has been taken and is missing.”

He climbed back into his ship, beginning the search for you. His Empress. His dove.

38 notes · View notes

hereforthesmutbaby · 7 months

Text

Just hear me out ✨🤌🏻

“Aftermath” BRAHMS FANART

This took way longer than the others, but it is finally finished!✨ let me know if it was worth the effort! 🪄

1K notes · View notes

hereforthesmutbaby · 7 months

Text

*heavy breathing*

The slow burn 🤌🏻✨

The tension 🤌🏻✨

The anger issues 🤌🏻✨

Bonded: Chapter Five

A/N: Well hello everyone! I know it has been a hot minute since I've posted. Life gets hectic every once in awhile and I apologize for my absence. The slow burn is getting better! As always let me know what you guys think and enjoy!

Word Count: 6.5K+

Chapter Four

There was no sound explanation to what had happened the night before. It wracked your brain for days, producing a horribly eerie sense of paranoia. Constantly looking over your shoulder to see if someone, that man in particular, was lurking in a corner, memorizing your movements from afar.

You were careful to not mention the occurrence to either your ladies-in-waiting or an Order official like General Waylan. It was consuming you whole, the hair on the nape of your neck permanently standing at attention. You ended up trying to see if that drink of choice from dinner that evening all those nights ago was known for being a hallucinogen. Nothing. Perhaps after consuming it in large portions like you had? No. You had ended up reaching a dead end in your research.

It was proving difficult to sleep. Staying up at night, trying to see if there was a secret entrance to your room that perhaps only the Supreme Leader had access to. You had torn your room upside down the morning after the vision. Calista and Tamsyn were shocked when they entered your quarters and saw the state your room was in.

There were no clues, no hidden hatches, nothing to give way to an answer. Trying to plan the final open house of the season had been placed on the back burner for you. In fact, it wasn’t on your mind at all. Handing things over to Kenzoto manage for you while you tried to get to the bottom of this. To ease yourself back to a place of normalcy.

The worried whispers and gazes did not fall on deaf ears with you. You had heard them, listened to their explanations, and then went back on your own hunt. Another restless night was ahead of you, eyes wide open, staring at the darkened ceiling, mindlessly counting the tiles once again, when the familiar sensation from before washed over you.

Like being transported somewhere else while not moving an inch. The echoes of another voice and their thoughts bounced in your head. Your hands began trembling, sweat beading on your forehead and upper lip. Fear wracked your body, squeezing your eyes shut, trying to will this to stop.

“Dove? Are you awake?” You knew that voice, recognized it immediately. Refusing to open your eyes and see if he was the one standing at the foot of your bed, you lay completely still. Your heart was racing, the blood rushing in your ears still couldn’t drown out the voice that lingered behind.

After laying in silence for a fleeting moment, you thought he might have left or stopped whatever this was. Peeking your eyes open, your breath caught in your throat in a choked sob as you witnessed the towering figure looming over you.

Hand clamping down over your mouth, your eyes darted to the securely closed door, the servants entrance also still locked from the inside. How did he get into your room? Again?

Your weak and meager voice broke through the barrier, but it too registered just like his. A distant voice being carried through an open space that you could not recognize. “Wha-what do you want? How are you doing this?” Willing your voice to remain even and steady, you questioned him.

His eyes squinted, looking around before settling back on you. “Can you see my surroundings? I can’t see yours.” Shaking your head, you pulled your covers up slightly higher on your frame. “You-you’re in my room, Kylo. What do you mean you can’t see my surroundings?”

Irritation started to lick and seep into your words. He was the one who entered your space, frightening you in the dead of night, and now he was teasing and harassing you? Yet, he only hummed in contemplation as a response.

When you blinked again, your eyes darted to your door, hearing footsteps approaching on the other side. As you looked to where the shadow of him once was, he was gone, vanished entirely before your eyes. An entity of your imagination.

Your bedroom door flew open, a worried Layana standing in the doorway. “Em-empress, are you alright? Who were you speaking to?” She looked around at the room, seeing that you were entirely by yourself.

Shaking your head, you laid back down in utter disbelief. You didn’t respond to her, letting her leave on her own. You had turned and faced away from where she stood, staring out at the vast space before you.

You counted the ships leaving and entering the hangar to lull yourself to sleep that night. It didn’t work.

Pushing the food around on your plate, General Waylan spoke excitedly about something you had stopped listening to the moment he sat at your dining table. All you could think about was Kylo. How he had disappeared right before your eyes.

It reminded you of your fifth birthday party. Of course, growing up as a royal meant having more extravagant events, not silly childish birthday parties, but after too much begging your parents finally caved.

Entertainers from all over the galaxy were hired to put shows on for you and your friends in the palace gardens. The one that had drawn your attention most was someone who claimed to be a wielder of magic.

His silly tricks had done little to impress the princess, but he assured you he had saved the best for last. Putting a small creature into his bag, you couldn’t recall the words he used or the story he told, but your eyes blew wide when he turned the bag upside down and there was nothing in there.

A magician.

Perhaps that was what Kylo was. An odd hobby for the Supreme Leader, but maybe that’s what it was. A hobby of some sort? Yet, what did he mean he couldn’t see your surroundings? You knew that the Supreme Leader was odd. Secrets and rumors littered the Order and speaking honestly, the entire galaxy, about special abilities he possessed. You weren’t aware of what these powers were, but they were being used to seemingly stalk you at night.

It began to fill your thoughts. The idea that maybe magic was real. That there were in fact people around us that were able to wield the magic and bend it to their whim. All of those fairy tales could be true from your childhood bedtime tales.

Would Kylo be in a fairy tale though?

Dropping your fork to your plate, it left your mouth hurriedly. “General, what can you tell me about Kylo Red?” You had cut him off mid-sentence, startling him. His eyes fell down to his nearly empty plate, wiping his mouth with the cloth napkin before setting it back on the tabletop.

“What would you like to know, Empress?” Leaning back in the wooden chair, you shrugged. “What is that thing that sits on his hip?” He followed your lead, resting back in his chair casually. A small sigh escaped his lips before speaking. “A light saber.”

The word was foreign on your tongue. “Light saber? Is that a weapon?” It was one of the things you had noticed last night when he somehow visited you once more. It was bulky, but as you thought more of it, the more you realized it was always in his possession.

Waylan nodded. “Yes. It is a special type of weapon that only a select few individuals get to adorn.” Browns furrowing, you leaned forward on the table, eyeing the General. You didn’t mean to speak so bluntly, but you did. “Because of his powers, right?”

The General laughed, but agreed. “His powers, yes. They are not what you would describe as powers though. Do you know of the Force?” It rang a bell in the deep crevices of your memory, perhaps having learned about it in education long ago.

“I’ve heard of it, yes. He has the Force?” You weren’t even sure you were using the term correctly. General Waylaninterlinked his fingers, resting his hands on the cool wood of the table top, pushing his plate back. “The Supreme Leader is a Force user. Has been since he was just a child, but he uses the Force to aid him in his missions as the Supreme Leader.”

Gnawing on the inside of your cheek, you narrowed your eyes. “What can the Force do?” His head cocked at your question, obviously wondering where the sudden interest in the Force, let alone Kylo, was perplexing to him.

“Why? Do you have something in particular in mind?” Battling within yourself and wondering if you should just tell him, you ultimately decided to be as vague as possible. “Would it allow someone to be in a place where they are not?”

His aging hand rubbed at his graying beard, thinking it over in his head. “I’ve never heard of that. Why do you bring up that example?” Trying to mask your curious mind, you plastered a large smile on your face. “No, this is just fascinating to me and I am not well versed about the ways of the Force.”

General Waylan immediately bought your excuse. “Ah, well a curious mind you do indeed have, Empress.” The General departed only minutes prior, letting your thoughts consume you as you rushed off to your office.

You spent the next two days straight going through every book and file you could get your hands on. Yet, it all led to not. There was little to no information about the Force or the users at all. Only an occasional sentence here and there, buried deep within the contents of whatever you were perusing.

What did that leave you with then? What answers or rational conclusion could you come to with what little you had to go on?

Sleep deprivation.

That was all you could assume it was. Trying to reason and rationalize with yourself, you remembered watching him leave your residence just a bit prior to seeing him in the corner. It was a dream or a nightmare. More likely a hallucination than anything, but given it had happened two nights where you could admit being more than tired, your brain had given you this strange vision.

You had spent too much time dwelling on it. Even missing your mother’s departure just the day after the first hallucination. Kenzo’s plate had become loaded down with tasks that you had been all but neglecting during your obsessive rampage.

When you finally walked into your office, seeing Kenzo worriedly sorting through papers, electronic files, and you could see his data pad lighting up with various event tasks, you felt horrible for leaving this all to him for as long as you had. How long had it even been? A week? Two weeks? You didn’t have the slightest clue, but it didn’t matter.

Walking towards him, you grabbed a catalog sitting on the edge of the desk, you quickly flipped through it. “Ah, Empress, that is for-” you cut him off, pointing at the centerpiece. “We need forty of these ordered and expedited here. Is the guest list finalized? What have we decided in regards to catering?”

A breath of relief exhaled from Kenzo, standing from your seat and filling you in on all of the details you had missed. You sat in that chair for countless hours that night, making finalized plans and executing your decisions as quickly as possible.

The final event of the season was fastly approaching which meant hours, days, and weeks passed in a blur or lists, meetings, and trips. Not being able to recall the last night you had been able to sleep soundly in your own bed, enjoyed your own bath, or ate the food you so desperately craved.

Having missed the amount of time you had, it meant you were continuously playing catch up. Tasks that should have been handled weeks ago were still sitting at the top of your lists. Invitations sent late, but more confirmed attendees then the last meant hosting an event so large it was near record breaking for the Order.

A small blessing in disguise honestly. With you being as busy as you were meant that Kylo and you were not interacting. You simply weren’t around enough to bump into him, cross paths with him, anything of the like.

This was the event that was going to catapult you into the next phase of your work. A massive party, as many Order officials as possible to fill the halls of the magnificent venue you had chosen. Nearly every planet you could think of was sent an invitation to attend.

Nearly all had agreed.

Following this open house, you were going to be embarking on a galaxy tour. One that would take you to the farthest corners of the galaxy to observe where these individuals called home. Your list was growing so fast and so long you were worried you would never be able to finish.

The endless possibilities of these new and old alliances excited Order officials in away that you had never seen. Sharing your plans in your meetings, as you updated the ever growing list, eyebrows raised in surprise. Shock evident that you were capable of performing any duties at all to this magnitude.

When they day of had finally arrived, you were eager to get to the venue as quickly as possible and being placing orders on those who needed them most. There was no room for any mishaps or errors tonight. No, this was far too important for even the wrong serving utensils to be placed out.

Heading to the room designated as your getting ready spot, you would let one member do a section of your hair before removing yourself once again to double and triple check on every minute detail. You could easily tell that your ladies-in-waiting were growing frustrated with your antsy tendencies.

Finally, Tamsyn was able to glue you to your seat to begin finishing your touches for the evening before guests were due to arrive shortly. One final walk through before getting dressed, you were pleased to see the decorations almost completely put up around the ballroom. Finishing touches here and there were being completed right before your eyes and the breath of relief that escaped from your lungs was palpable in the room.

It was gorgeous. The dome that covered the dance floor was entirely made of glass, showcasing the wondrous lights of the skyscrapers that surrounded this ancient building. The suns beginning to set had wondrous colourscapes dancing through the glass ceiling setting the room in a warm glow.

While the building itself was large enough to house everyone, it would be tight fit, but the various hallways and gardens would be of great help. Large groups of workers ran around the building, putting final touches on what you pointed out to them. A slurry of specialized suits for the servers dashed around you when your head snapped to the side.

It was there again. The feeling that crawled under your skin and sat deep within your bones. Kylo was in your head again. You had no idea how he was able to do this, knowing he was somewhere else in the galaxy after declining to attend this event as well.

But he was there. Echoing into the blank corners of your mind. Your hands began to fidget, the color entirely draining from your features, unable to peel your eyes away from where they had instinctively gone to.

Calista appeared from behind, drawing you back to the present, and informed you that with the first guests set to arrive shortly, it was of utmost importance to get you dressed. You have no idea how you were able to walk away from where you had been standing, the connection that had been there gone just as it had appeared. Yet, it always left that feeling lingering behind.

There sat the breathtaking gray tulle gown, one shouldered, embellished with dazzling stars over the pillowy skirt. The gold of the stars left dazzling dust behind, trickling down the bodice and onto the top of the skirt. Layana had ensured your hair would be partially up, away from the shoulder of the gown, letting the features be showcased how they were meant to be. It had been custom made for you tonight to put your best foot forward as you encountered many a people who needed the best impression of you possible.

As the final touches were done to your hair, your dress placed on you perfectly, you couldn’t bring yourself to smile at the reflection in the mirror. Feeling as though he was there, standing directly behind you and watching your every move. No one else could see him, but you could. Eyes locked in the mirror. Your hand caught the shine of your simple band that had sat on your ring finger for months now.

Brow slightly furrowing, you moved your hand back and forth as it caught the light, his eyes followed yours as well. When you looked back up, he was gone. The girl quick chatter was mumbled in your ear canals. Your attention only able to feel the slim band as it weighed your hand down. A false facade to put on for the people of the galaxy. Although the marriage itself was in fact quite legal and true, the emotion and feelings were not.

No one knew that you had personally invited the Supreme Leader to the event the week before it was set to occur. You caught him after a committee meeting as he was leaving the room. All others had long since left, but you had stayed back, a small glimmer of hope in you. After announcing how many had planned to be in attendance, you were feeling proud and as though perhaps he too was impressed and would want to be present to see what this was going to entail.

A branch of some sort that you were placing between you both. Asking him to be there, thinking that all of these meetings and random visits over the several months you had been around meant something. What could they mean? That you did not know, but you were willing to find out. Had to find out. For your own sanity and childish hopefulness that still sat deep within.

He looked at you behind the black visor, unmoving before finally responding. “I leave for a mission the day before.” And with that, he left. Not another word muttered or thought. Crushing disappointment you had set yourself up for.

You tried not to think about the reality of your situation too often. The reality of your life. How you were married to a stranger of a person. A person you had seen without his helmet less than a handful of times. Who never showcased a flicker of emotion in the cold case of himself. Someone who hardly spoke to you, just nods as you passed in the halls of the Supremacy. A man who would never be by your side for these public nights. Important events that you had planned, but those details meant nothing to him. A monster that is your husband.

Jumping in your spot, you startled as Tam peeked her head in the door of your room. “Dove, we’re ready for you. Are you alright?” The shift in your demeanor was slim, but because of how long you had known one another, if you breathed the wrong way, she would know. Seeing you were off kilter, had been for weeks, she didn’t understand what was causing it. At times worse than others.

Nodding in response, you turned on your heel, making your way to the large staircase that would lead you to the heart of the party. The music was already loud, hearing the thunderous chatter of party goers, you smiled to yourself at the sound.

General Waylan offered to escort you that night which you gladly agreed to. Your matching gold headpiece was thin but stood at attention on your scalp. A small headband with a halo of stars to match the embellishments of your gown. Waylan offered sincere compliments, but as you began walking down the stairs, the music halted and cheers and clapping erupted below.

Your shocked expression turned to one of surprise as General Waylan began addressing the crowds after it had began dying down to listen to one of the most important men of the Order. One you were proud to call a friend.

“On behalf of the First Order we want to welcome you all to our open house, the final of the season!” More cheers, your own clapping being audible as you stood next to him. “However, I believe the greatest thanks and praise belong to you, Empress.” Turning his attention towards you, he continued on.

“For planning these wonderful events, where we can catch up with old friends, make many new ones, and build relationships that span the galaxy. Becoming one of the most adored faces of the Order, to you Empress, we owe many thanks.” As he finished his small speech, you gave a gracious grin to your friend.

Clearing your throat you began speaking. “Thank you for such kindness and your most generous words, General Waylan, they are not taken lightly. To you all,” turning to face the crowds, your smile only grew, “thank you for taking the time to come and visit after traveling from all across the galaxy, to be here tonight. Your friendship and partnership is the most valuable thing to myself, the Order, and my husband, the Supreme Leader. Please, enjoy the evening! I look forward to chatting with you all.”

Graciously accepting the biggest bow from the crowd and Order officials you had ever seen, you made your way down the final steps and were immediately engulfed in the swarm of people. It wouldn’t be for many hours until you would be able to catch your breath.

The evening was going off without a hitch. No arguments, fights, or anything of the like had happened meaning the heightened security you had ensured would be present was all for not. Engaging in more dancing than you thought possible, it seemed as each dance finished, you were swept up into another. The only reason you had gotten away now was because you claimed to needed to briefly step away to freshen yourself up.

Even still, claims on you for following dances had already been hastily made. These men knew that it was the only way to get your ear for a few uninterrupted minutes. Many under the impression you held the greatest influence over the Supreme Leader and whatever was relayed to you would eventually make its way back to him. How little they knew.

It also meant your feet were screaming in pain and begging for a few minutes of relief. Eyes scanning the crowd as you sipped from your goblet, you weren’t sure who you were looking for, but weren’t surprised when the disappointment wormed its way into your gut anyways.

Snapping out of your thoughts, a dashing older gentleman stood to your side. “Hello Empress.” His accent was thick, one you had never heard before. “Oh! Hello there.” His smooth complexion was not quite human, but not sure what other species he could be. One you had never set eyes on before.

His blonde hair was entirely slicked back, eyes all one deep black, no irises to be seen. He was older, but not old, perhaps middle aged if he were human. When he smiled at you, his teeth were not normal, but you did not want to appear rude and stare. “May I have this next dance, Empress? It seems as though this is the only time I’ve been able to spot you alone all night.”

Immediately agreeing, you let him take your arm and lead you towards the ballroom floor. Your heels echoed on the tiled floor as you once again found your spot in the lines. Directly centered as was the rule for the Empress, you began listening to his vague explanation of his home planet, instead more focused on his people.

“We are a prideful folk, very rooted in…tradition.” He was incredibly soft spoken, even toned, not a raise in his voice even as the music occasionally drowned him out. “Our traditions are what we base our daily living around. The teachings of the elders to us begins from birth and we then assume the role of the elders. It continues this way for all eternity. Our teachings come from the ancient scrolls,” it was at this moment you knew exactly what type of people they were.

Religious groups. Extremists that have been chased away by other societies. Not comfortable with their outrageous ideologies that were harmful to outsiders, they were banished to desolate planets that did not exist on maps. Instead, they live their lives planet hopping, trying to find the answers to ancient questions posed in their texts, killing any and all species and creatures that could stand in their way.

People you knew not to get involved with. Recalling the lessons from your adolescent education as Princess, your father made sure you knew the danger that lurked with these groups. They were rarely spotted in public, let alone at massive events like this. In fact, he was the only one you had seen so far.

Why was he here?

Noting that the dance was drawing to a close within the next minute, you knew the remainder of this traditional dance was finished in close quarters. Trying to remain impartial and calm, your chest was within a hair of his.

His gaze bore into yours, long hands cupping your elbows, growing tighter with each word that left his lips. “Make no mistake, Empress. We will stop at nothing to fulfill our prophecies.” As your eyes widened, beginning to try and pull away from the bruising grip that had began to hurt moments before, it all halted as screams echoed into the air around you.

It was a blur, all that happened next.

The creature’s hands tried to pull you with him, wherever he was going, but was unable to move you. The screams only grew louder as people began rushing all around you in a haste to evacuate the building. Wind filled the once enclosed space. The once glass dome was raining down from above in the most dangerous rainstorm you had ever encountered.

Except, it was not rain that lightly kissed your flesh, but instead tiny and large shards of glass that bit as they cascaded around you. In only another breath, the room spun fast, turning upside down as you tried to understand your surroundings.

Were you upside down?

Only for a brief moment as your back was pressed firmly against anothers. The material was familiar as it brushed along your arms and bare back. The scent you knew too well filled your senses. As you opened your eyes, turning your head to try and get a look at who this was, you had no chance.

Another breath, a new location. A pair of arms wrapped securely around your torso, having flown through the air at a speed you didn’t know was possible. You hadn’t even moved your legs. Your back collided with their chest.

It allowed you the perfect view of what was happening in the ballroom.

There he stood, back to you, but clearer than ever as to who your savior was. People stood rooted to their spots in fear at the sight of him while others rushed to leave the building as hastily as possible. Realizing now that all exit points were secured by none other than the Knights of Ren. There stood Ren himself.

His light saber ignited in a flash of fury, rising far above his head before moving down towards the man that had just been dancing with you only seconds prior. Your hands held firm to the forearms that rested on your stomach. Gasping as you saw the blonde head roll to the side of the room, the dark eyes looking directly at you.

Whoever held you began moving in a hurry with you still in his grasp, acting like you weighed nothing, just another weapon in his artillery. You knew it was a Knight you were with, but which one was still a mystery to you.

Attempting to catch your breath as you enter an unfamiliar ship, you finally croaked out a response. “Vic-Vicrul?Wha-what's happening? What wa-was that?” Your thoughts were coming out faster than you could speak, trying to catch your breath.

He ignored you entirely, getting the ship out of there as fast as humanly possible. Understanding that his main priority was getting you to safety, you couldn’t help but pester him with questions. All of which went unanswered.

What happened? Who was that? Why were you all there? How long had you been there? Why won’t you answer me? Is Kylo in danger and in need of help?

That last one had a small chuckle escape under his breath at your ridiculous questioning. While you were happy he thought this was a joking matter, you did not. “Victual, as your Empress I demand an answer! Now!” Your raised voice shook with seething anger, hands trembling as you tried to piece things together.

His masked head slowly turned towards you, only giving you this response before returning to utter silence. “The Supreme Leader did his duty.” You sat immediately after, stewing in your own silence, trying to understand what the hell that meant.

When you touched down on the Supremacy, you hurried towards your residence, but were met by your ladies’ worried and fearful expressions in a hallway. They embraced you hurriedly, Tamsyn cupping your cheeks and checking you for any serious wounds.

“Goodness, how are you? Are you okay? We need to bandage your arms, but otherwise are you okay? Thank the stars you aren’t more injured. We heard about the incident when they came and searched here.” Your brows drew inward at her words. “When who searched here?”

Layana spoke next. “The Knights. They searched here first before going to the event. Orders of the Supreme Leader they said.” Your jaw set, nostrils flaring in anger. Feeling your blood boiling, you pushed through the girls and continued towards your residence. They followed on your heels closely, badgering you with questions about the events that had transpired.

As you informed them of the evening, leaving out the heroic entry of Kylo, the girls worked slowly at removing all of the bits and pieces from your intricate hairstyle, excess jewelry, and gaudy makeup. Layana stood at attention when an Order official made her way into your chambers, requesting your lady in waiting.

When she reappeared only a minute later, her wide eyes were unsure of what to tell you. “Empress?” You hummed in response as Tamsyn went to pick your night clothes, Calista still trying to find all remaining pieces in your hair. Your headpiece had fallen from the crown of your head when Kylo had flipped you. “The Supreme Leader is here and has requested a private word with you.”

Eyes locking with hers in your vanity mirror, you nodded after a brief moment of silence from all in the room, sending all three of them out of your chambers via the servers entrance and announced he was allowed into your chambers. As he stepped into your room, the doorway was seemingly dwarfed by his presence.

His all black garb made him stand out from the white furniture and decor in your quarters. “Layana said you wished to speak with me?” You posed to him as you continued removing your hair from the styling, the pins that she had missed, but you could still feel.

“You are upset?” His calm and even tone hardly sounded like a question. Perhaps an observation of your motions and movements, which led him to believe you were…annoyed with him? The door was firmly shut behind him, you knew all workers in your quarters had filed out the second he stepped inside, so you went with your emotions.

Speaking through gritted teeth, your gaze never lifted to his. “Angry is more accurate.” He did not move, did not speak again, simply watching you. When your eyes finally bounced up to his, he took the chance to speak. “About?” Still no hint of emotion, seemingly staring into a droids face as your blood boiled over.

This was one of the longest conversations you had ever had with him. He was acting as though this was an entirely normal encounter between you two. As though he hadn’t cast you adrift the moment you were legally bound to him for the rest of your days.

Exploding in frustration, you decided this was your only chance to voice your complaints. Not knowing when if ever you would have another chance like this to speak privately with him where you held more control than ever before.

“About? You have got to be toying with me, Kylo! For star’s sake, I have everything to be angry about! How you knew the exact moment to be there when things went awry? The fact that for months and months I have been here and have been ignored and belittled by you and your men. Dealing with your ridiculous mood swings that border on child like behavior. The work I have been putting in here has been exhausting and you show not one ounce of appreciation or thanks. That I am your wife and have been treated as some commoner to you! We do not even reside in the same sector of the ship! We have dined together once before in our entirety of marriage. You dare ask me what I am angry about? Everything! I am angry about everything, Kylo!”

Catching your breath, you watched as his jaw clicked, knowing it took all restraint he had to not respond mid complaint. His nostrils flared in his own showing of irritation, prickling his skin as you hurled this information at him. Your anger still pummeled you, wanting to say more, but knowing it was best to keep still until he could respond. Knowing you had already signed your death warrant anyways by speaking to him in the fashion you had.

Yet, he was careful, taking his time to conjure up a response to you. Actively attempting not to anger you any more. A show of restraint he had never had to do before. One that he did not know he was even possible of exhibiting.

“Do you know about the Force?” Blinking rapidly, you were confused as to where this had come from. “The For-force? Yes, I have heard of the Force. What does this have to do with anything I just said.” He sat on the edge of the stool by your bed. Removing his gloves, he took his time before speaking again.

Setting his gloves next to him, his dark eyes watched your figure as he began speaking. “I am a Force user. Which means that I am capable of abilities that others do not have.” Your confusion was etched on your face, arms crossed over your chest, leaning on your vanity as you listened.

“It comes from my family lineage. My grandfather was the greatest Force user to ever exist. I will surpass him in that sense. That is my goal as Supreme Leader.” You didn’t have time to respond as he continued speaking. ��The Force, at times, does things that make little to no sense. I try to make sense of these things by way of meditation. It is a large sector of my training. It is a large portion of my missions.” He was explaining things to you that you never thought he actually would take the time to speak with you about. You knew to remain silent to let him speak further. More than you had ever received from him before.

“There is a part of the Force called a bond. Do you know what a Force bond is, Empress?”

Shaking your head hesitantly, you saw him slightly nod before lightly sighing, jaw clicking one more. “It can happen between two Force sensitive individuals. It is rare when two people are connected in such a way via the Force. In fact, it is exceptionally rare.” He paused, as if he was trying to word things before talking again. Eyes locking on yours from the small distance you shared in the room, his nostrils flared. “It is entirely unheard of for it to happen between one Force user and one non-user, nor even remotely sensitive.”

Your heart was racing, pounding uncontrollably in your chest as you listened to his every word. His eyes never left your own, trying to determine your reaction despite your cool demeanor still.

His next words were ones you never expected to hear from anyone, let alone KyloRen. It was like everything had stopped at that moment, forever changing your life from that moment forward. “We are bonded. In a way that I do not understand. I was unaware of it until the day I landed on Bar'leth and it was…powerful.”

As your brain began connecting dots, Kylo continued through gritted teeth. “Too much. It distracted me,” you breathed out a response, sitting in your stool. “Which is why we did the private ceremony.” He only nodded, jaw set, before releasing a shaky breath.

“It has been distracting me ever since. I have fought with my entire being to ignore it, but during training and meditation it is all that occurs and fills my mind. When we were leaving on our mission there was something screaming at me that you were in some sort of danger. It was why I connected with you before you went downstairs, to check to see if everything was okay. It didn’t go away, even after I had seen you. I sent the Knight’s and troopers to search your residence and when they found nothing, we went to the event. Which is why we got there when we did.”

The explanation you had been waiting for. Fingers nervously picking at each other, you spoke in a hardly audible way. “Why did you not tell me this, Kylo?” He shot up from his seat, crossing the room to you, encroaching on your space. Your neck craned to keep eye contact with him as he approached you.

“Because I didn’t want to. I thought I could ignore it, but it will no longer let me.” Your eyes narrowed at him, a loud, exasperated breath expelling from your lungs. “What does this all mean? You tell me this elaborate tale of why I’ve been treated so poorly, because of some thing I’ve never heard of that we apparently are tied together from. What do you want me to do with this?” You spoke hurriedly, but halted when his warm hands grabbed yours.

He swallowed thickly, taking a beat before uttering his response. “To give me an opportunity to try again. I know not to ignore the Force.” You fought the tremble that was becoming present in your body, temperature spiking at what he was about to say to you.

“Can I try again, my Empress?”

100 notes · View notes

hereforthesmutbaby · 10 months

Text

the perfumery of love - miguel o'hara

‧₊˚ summary: reader buys a pheromone perfume, only to forget just how sensitive miguel's elevated senses are to such smells. . .

‧₊˚ nsfw, mdni please!

‧₊˚ word count: 2.1k

‧₊˚ warnings: f!reader, no use of y/n, use of 'cunt' & 'slut', p in v, unprotected sex (wrap it before you tap it, folks!), degradation, roughish sex, swearing

‧₊˚ a/n: not proofread & written in an hour — forgive me.

The perfume had been an impulse purchase. You’d raised the fragrance strip to your nose, taken a deep breath, and immediately decided you were bringing the biggest bottle on the shelf home. It was the perfect scent, musky and clean with a sweetened edge. When you’d sprayed it behind your ears, on your neck and wrists, you hadn’t even paused to think about the consequences.

The first indicator: Lyla buzzed into your watch to let you know Miguel canceled your meeting for you to deliver a report on the latest anomalies. Not unusual, but shifts in plans without good reason tended to upset him. Something was either very wrong, or he was avoiding you. The second indicator suggested the latter was correct. You’d taken your seat next to him at a debrief, and as if you’d pulled a trigger, he’d immediately hopped to his feet and moved as far away from you as he could to give his long winded speech about not getting distracted while fighting anomalies. Although Hobie and Pav had started muttering in your ear about how it was obviously directed at them, all you could do was think about what you’d done wrong.

“I mean, it isn’t like he’s the nicest guy. He’s moody,” Peter B. says when you air your concerns to him over lunch. You couldn’t bring yourself to eat the empanada sitting on your plate. “You gonna eat that?” At the shake of your head, Peter begins stuffing his face with the abandoned empanada. Around ever bite, he continues, “You probably didn’t do anything wrong. He’s just throwing a temper tantrum. A tantrum that might not even be directed at you.”

You scratch at your temple. Miguel wasn’t close with you per se, but he tended to treat you with niceties that he didn’t necessarily treat the other spiders with. He softened up around you a bit, backed up with testimonies from Peter, Gwen, and Hobie. Seeing Miguel switch up so fast out of nowhere was enough to give you whiplash. “A tantrum about what? I’ve had shining reports and track records with anomalies since he recruited me.”

“You know Miguel, he always needs an excuse for a temper tantrum.” Peter finishes off the empanada, rubbing his mouth. “Maybe bring him an empanada? Cheer him up. See, what I just ate? That just cheered me up.”

“Hm,” you hum to yourself. Tapping your fingers on the table, you look over to the lunch line. It’s still going strong, which means there should still be empanadas lying around. “You’re right. He might just be hangry, being such a workaholic.”

“Exactly.” Peter gets to his feet, giving you a soft pat on the back. “It’ll be fine. Just be chill about it.”

Except after obtaining another empanada from the cafeteria and being halfway to Miguel’s office, the less chill you were being about it. You roll your shoulders as you walk through the never-ending hallways. The bad thing about Miguel being such a recluse is that he intentionally put his office as far away from everything else as possible, which gave you just the right amount of time to decide to turn around. Out of spite, you would not be turning around, but you do think about it every ten or so steps as you catalog everything that could possibly go wrong.

Miguel could throw his desk at you. Lock you out. Yell at you. Start sending you on boring missions fighting an anomaly that was a jar of peanut butter in the wrong place. Stop sending you on missions altogether. Kick you out of spider society.

He wouldn’t do that, you try to tell yourself as you approach the door, rubbing the back of your neck. You inch the door open. His dais is all the way up, towering above you. You can hardly see the tops of his shoulders in the orange glow of the screens he’s bent over as you crane your head all the way up.

“Miguel?” you call up, figuring there’s no option to back down anymore. “I brought you an empanada.” You wave the small takeout box in your hand. To both your immense dread and relief, the dais begins to lower. Miguel seems as if he’s just run an entire marathon in an hour. His chest heaves up and down, and there are pearls of sweat on his forehead. “Are you okay?” you ask, brows creasing.

“Am I okay?” he practically barks out a forced laugh at you. He crosses his firm arms over his chest. His eyes are dark and narrow. “No, and it’s all thanks to you. What the hell were you thinking?”

You stand there, squeezing the takeout box so tight in your hand that you’re surprised when it doesn’t simply crack open. Thanks to you? Okay, maybe you’d goofed off with Hobie and Pav just a bit during missions, but it’d never impeded on your ability to rein one of them in and send them back to where they belonged. You doubt cracking one or two jokes is enough to get Miguel hating you. “What the hell was I thinking? More like what the hell did I do? First you cancel our meeting, then you sit as far away as you can get from me during debrief without being in another dimension.”

“I think you know what you did,” he says, voice utterly ragged as he walks up to you. In one blade-thin movement, he pins you against the wall by the waist. You’ve never been afraid of Miguel — not when you first met him, or when he’s lashing out at another recruit. But now, he’s looking at you like something to be preyed upon, his red eyes flashing, fangs bared over the edge of his lips, claws partially out and digging hard into your flesh. “Couldn’t even think today because of you,” he panted.

That’s when you notice it. Miguel O’hara, boss of spider society and the grumpiest Spiderman, has his hardened cock pressing into your thigh. You gasp as you think back to that morning, the spray of perfume on your skin. Pheromone perfume. The cashier had mentioned it as she bagged it, now that you think about it. You look back at Miguel's fangs, feel his claws pressing into your skin, think about all of the times that the lights have been too bright or the smells have been too much. “Oh,” you breathe out.

“Understand, yet?” he snaps, a scowl arcing across his lips. “You smelling like that, all I could think about was bending you over my desk and fucking you until my name was the only thing on your tongue.” With that, your stomach practically drops out of you, your body going hollow with desire. Your breaths don’t feel like enough to fill up your lungs as Miguel kisses you.

It’s a sort of kiss that bruises. It’s all teeth against teeth, tongue against tongue, and skin against skin as he starts shredding at your spidersuit. One of his fangs cuts against your lip, barely digging in, just enough to draw blood. “Fuck, Miguel,” you whine against his mouth as he lifts you up. Your legs instinctively wrap around his waist, and you can’t help but buck your hips into his. His head goes back, a low groan caught in the back of his throat. “Please,” you gasp when he latches onto your neck, sucking what’s sure to become a hickey into your skin.

“I’m not giving this to you yet. Todavía no, cariño.” He finishes tearing your suit off of you, leaving you exposed and it in tatters on the ground as he carries you onto the dais. “You’re going to be patient how I was patient for you.” He backs you up against his desk, the small of your back pressed hard into it when he tears your bra off of you. You yelp, his hands going up to squeeze your tits.

When Miguel brushes his thumb against your nipple, he says, “Necesitaba esto.” You moan, head hanging as you watch him touch you. Small brushes and tugs. He leans down, pressing kisses to your neck, chest, stomach. It’s when he takes your nipple into his mouth that your knees almost give out, your thighs burning against each other. Your moan is fragile, spotty. He spins you, slamming you into the desk. He traces small circles into your sides, each touch needling across your skin.

“Miguel,” you whine, gripping the edge of his desk. “I want you inside of me.”

“Shh, not so fast, hermosa. You take what I give you.” He slips a finger through your wet folds. You shudder as he circles your clit, drawing pathetic noises from you. “You wanted this, didn’t you? When you bought that perfume. Knew it’d drive me fucking insane.” Without warning, his middle finger slips inside you. You clench around him, and he laughs at your desperation.

“More,” you cry out, biting into your cheek to try to keep yourself quiet. For once, Miguel listens, stretching you out with a second finger. He finds the right spot, and you’re sure that he knows it from how you buckle into the desk, eyes rolling back in your head. He curls his fingers, almost striking it again, and then—

He pulls his hand away, licking it clean. He looks smug.

“Miguel!” Whining, you press your forehead flush to the desk. You’re heating up, and if he doesn’t touch you again soon, you might just burst into flames. “Please, please. Miguel, touch me. I want you — need you.”

“That’s what I like to hear. Te deseo,” he murmurs, running a hand down your back. His suit’s tech slowly vanishes, shrinking down his body into nothing. Your breath stops as you turn your head to look at him, all tan skin and sharply toned muscles. He’s just as big as you imagined, and it feels that way once he finally presses his cock inside of you.

You moan as he starts slowly sinking all of himself into you.

“Feels… feels good,” you sigh. He continues tracing those circles into your sides, hands rising up your body. He stops at your tits to flick your hardened nipples. When you clench around him, a flimsy groan leaves his lips, which only makes you tighten more. It’s a sound you never thought you’d get to hear.

Once you’re used to him, he starts fucking into you. The obscene noises of his cock sliding in and out of your cunt, his hips meeting yours, and your moans rising in the air are enough to drive you insane. “So fucking tight for me… so good for me.” He places himself on top of you, head dipped nose pressed to your neck as he inhales the perfume that started it all. “Sabías lo que estabas haciendo,” Miguel pants as his breath fans across your warm skin. You whine, raising your body to meet his own. It’s enough for you to see stars. “Wearing that shit in front of me. Could smell you from across the goddamn street. Like you were asking for someone to come and fuck you.”

Sweat stings your eyes as Miguel says, “Such a slut, bet you knew deep down I could smell you the whole time. Bet you wanted me to.” He lands a hard smack on your ass, and you yelp, squeezing around him. He rams into you, relentless with his thrusts. “Taking my cock so well, like it was made for you. So cockdrunk,” he sighs, head tilting back as he fucks you.

“Yes!” you whimper as he pulls out before slamming back into you. “‘M close, Miguel!” Your moans are getting louder, needier. You swear you hear Miguel whimper above you as your cunt tightens.

“Yeah, you gonna come for me?” Miguel’s thumb starts rubbing your clit, other hand still at your tits. He smacks them, squeezes them. It’s a combination of it all, him hitting your g-spot until your vision blurs, his hands roaming your body, heady words hanging over your head, his warm cum filling you up, dripping out of you, that makes you come. You shake from the intensity of your orgasm, cunt still desperately clenching, as if it’s trying to keep its hold on his cock. He groans, “Good girl. Feels so good.”

You keep hanging onto the desk as Miguel hangs onto you, panting, laying kisses all over your neck. You swear you feel him smile against your skin as he breathes in your perfume again.

8K notes · View notes