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bratshaws · 1 year

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through the hourglass 61. brb x oc

this man is a danger to my health

THIS FIC IS 18+ ONLY! MINORS PLS DNI!

a/n: YOU'VE BEEN HIT BY, YOU'VE BEEN STRUCK BY A SUDDEN SMUT CHAPTER!

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: rooster. that's it that's the warning....and bathtub sex

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14/15/16/17/18/19/20/21/22/23/24/25/26/27/28/29/30/31/32/33/34/35/36/37/38/39/40/41/42/43/44/45/46/47/48/49/50/51/52/53/54/55/56/57/58/59/60

(pls let me know if you want to be added to the taglist!! )

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@lizzie-rdj @fanboyluvr @atarmychick007 @comebacktoearthpls

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That was the hottest thing he had seen her do and he didn’t know how to act now that they were away from them. In fact his eyes kept moving to Beatrice, she seemed like a new woman, there was this incredible aura surrounding her like a shield, she was so happy by what happened.

She not only shut her cousins up but she did it beautifully.

And there was nothing sexier than confidence in his already beautiful wife. So, when she hands over Nicole to her mother so she could carry her for a little bit, all of the cousins inside and talking to their aunt since she was ignored by her own daughters, her hand slid to his under the table they were all sitting at, rubbing the back of his fingers gently before turning to look at him, “Everything okay?”

“Everything is more than okay,gorgeous.” he smirks, “You did so great out there.”

Her cheeks flushed a soft pink at his compliment, but he knew she was elated by what happened as well, “Thank you,I really liked it.”

He looked over his shoulder to where the triplets still were seated with their ‘boyfriends’ in the most awkward atmosphere that he could feel through the glass doors that separated them from the inside, “Are they going to act up?”

Beatrice flicks her gaze at them for a brief second, smiling a bit wider, “Nah.” she grins, “Honestly they might accept defeat now. If they try to do anything they know they are outnumbered, everyone will be against them and we are here for my aunt after all.” and her aunt didn’t seem to mind that her daughters weren’t there, maybe she was just as tired of their shenanigans as everyone else was.

“And you think they are going to stay outside?”

“Honestly? Yeah.” she smirks with her eyes glinting with amusement, “They know they won’t win if they get in here, so they might just keep it to themselves. There’s food and drinks outside, so.”

But Rooster was admiring something else in Beatrice, besides her beauty: he loved how confident she got, he loved how much she did without ever having to physically fight with someone, without having to raise her voice was so incredibly sexy…add that to that dress and he couldn’t really think straight.

Beatrice noticed how his eyes dropped the length of her body, mentally glad everyone was too busy talking amongst themselves to notice the hungry looks he was giving his wife.

And was he to blame?

She grew so much since he met her, he knew she always had that fire within her, he knew it was there hidden and ready to come out all she needed was to have enough confidence to do so. And for her to do that after her cousins were so cruel to her was the icing on the cake, she looked lighter, she seemed brighter than normal and she looked good while doing it.

“...what?” she asks with her brow raised, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Can’t I admire my wife?”

“I know you,Roos.” she says as she sips the sangria mocktail slowly,licking her lips as she puts the glass down, “And I know you way too well to notice how you look at me in certain ways.”

He chuckles darkly, still sliding his gaze down her body as if it was his hand instead, following every curve and crease of fabric with the utmost interest, “Not my fault.”

“No, it isn’t.” she agrees with a sweet smile, tossing her ponytail with a flick of her hand and leaning forward to support her folded arms on the table and doing that she only made her breasts appear fuller. And he knew she was doing it on purpose because of the little smile she tried so hard to hide by turning her head away from him.

Bradley felt like the day was better than expected after all they dealt with the Three Headed Bitch Dragon and were now enjoying an actual celebration with Beatrice’s aunt and her siblings. It was very nice and Nicole was also having a good time because she was fast asleep in her grandmother’s arms.

He almost wanted to keep that image in his head before he left tomorrow, which was hard to think about. He was going to leave tomorrow, that was undoubtedly going to happen but he…he wanted to do something. It was always Beatrice who wanted to give him a goodbye gift, she was always the one making him happy,making him smile, making him have the best memories before he had to leave for months.

With his hand supporting his chin and the other slowly swirling a glass of scotch, he moved his eyes to Beatrice as he thought about it. Maybe he just wanted to repay her, maybe he wanted to have it this time because he still had a lot of doubts in his mind, a lot of fear he had to work on.

He taps his index finger against the glass as he keeps his eyes on Bea, following the tiny tattoos she had on her arms up her neck until he reached her lips that curled into a laugh because of a joke her father told everyone.

And also, he thought, she deserved a treat.

“Oh my God, today was so fun!”

Bradley closed the door behind them after they greeted the dogs, following Beatrice inside as she held Nicole’s carrier with one hand, “They’ll never do shit like that again,ugh! I’m so happy,I am…relieved, I feel lighter!”

“With reason to.” he adds, following her up the stairs - picking up her shoes as she toes them out in a force of habit, almost automatically - “They were humiliated.”

“I know.” she smiles, then her smile drops, “I shouldn’t be so happy about this.”

“I think you should, it’s petty but it’s great.”

Beatrice’s smile returns as she walks with Nicole to her changing table, gently cooing the sleepy infant who just covered her face with her tiny fists as if she didn’t want to change into her pajamas, she was too comfortable like that, “It’s okay, sweetie. it’ll only take a minute.” she reassures the baby, looking back at Rooster who was leaning his shoulder against the threshold with a smile, “Did you have fun today,Nikki?”

Nicole, obviously, didn’t reply but she scrunched her face while kicking her legs as her mother unbuttoned the light pink colored pants as if she wanted to get rid of them faster, “I think she did.”

“We all did and she gave your cousins the stinky eye.” He tells her, following Beatrice with his eyes as she walks around after changing Nicole. There wasn’t much to do now that she was sleeping soundly, Beatrice only gave him a soft smile while carrying Nikki to her crib, gently setting her down, “Good night,Nikki.” her daughter whines in her sleep, turning her head the opposite way with her small chest rising and falling.

Rooster walks up to stand besides Beatrice,kissing the top of her head, “Come on,” he looks back at the door seeing Eleanor and Jack waiting to be allowed inside, “The double trouble twins are eager to get in here.” he just taps his thigh twice making the two dogs rush inside with their whole bodies shaking with excitement, Jack lying under Nicole’s crib while Eleanor lied between the crib and the door.

“Oh,I’m exhausted.” she says as they walk into the hallway, “And sticky,I might need a bath.” she whispers as she pulls a few strands of hair that stuck on the back of her neck because of the perspiration.

“Me too.” he is already unbuttoning his shirt, walking past her on purpose so she could see both sides open exposing his chest, “How about I draw the bath for us?”

“Oh…us?”

“Hey, I love saving the environment.” he winks at her, shrugging off his shirt - not missing her green eyes dropping to the valleys of muscle on his back - “Maybe we can use some of those salts your aunt gave us.”

Beatrice blinks out her admiration to follow him into the room, pushing her wedges further under the bed so there wasn’t anything on the way when they returned, “Salts? Oh wow, you are feeling fancy huh?”

“Maybe I just want us to get pampered, together.” he says from the bathroom and she hears the water slowly filling the tub, “And naked.”

“Ah, of course.” she laughs, walking barefoot to the bathroom to see him sitting on the edge of the tub with his eyes already on her, more specifically on the flare of her hips that the dress’ fabric only made her body appear even more voluptuous, “You are doing it again.”

“What?”

“Looking at me.” his eyes rise to meet hers as she gets closer, stopping between his open legs so her hands land on his broad shoulders and his on her waist,going down to where the slit on the fabric ended and the skin began, the subtle touch of his fingertips against her thigh was enough to form goosebumps. He sneaks his hands under the fabric so he could cup the back of her legs.

“I sure am.” he whispers, his chin nestled between her breasts as he pushes his face up to her cleavage just to he could keep looking at her, “My wife is fucking beautiful.” her cheeks turned red again, bashfully, but she smiled at him, “And she’s so hot.”

“Roos.”

“She’s hot and everything she wears drives me insane.” he kisses the top of her breasts, one peck on each mound earning a soft sigh from her, “And even more when she wears nothing. Then I go fucking crazy.” he smirks up at her, loving how the blush flowed down her neck like a wave and only added to her whole sexily precious persona, “And when we shower or bathe together?” he whistles low, “Damn, I love when she gets wet. It's great.”

Beatrice balks at him with a disbelieved smile, playfully swatting his shoulder but giggling amusedly at him, “Well, you do have the talent of…making me wet,so.”

“Remember when you said I was the one who teased the most?”

“I do, yes.”

“Well,I still disagree.” he smiles and she laughs in response, cupping the sides of his face and brushing her thumbs under his eyes, the same eyes that turned to the tub that was now filled enough, “Why don’t you go first?” he asks as he stands to his feet, towering over her and leaning down to kiss her forehead, “I’ll join you in a few.”

“Hm…are you planning something?”

“Yes,I absolutely am.” he taps her asscheek playfully, kissing her lips in a quick peck, “But do get inside first, then I’ll jump in and then…”

“Then…?”

“Then we are going to have a wonderful night to celebrate what happened earlier today.” he says, letting go of her body to step around her but he didn’t leave the bathroom. He just leaned his lower body against the sink to watch her slowly undress herself.

The dress was easy to remove and he followed the red fabric up her body until she was just wearing the black cheeky panties with lace on the sides, looking back at him while hooking her thumbs on the elastic, “Still looking,I see.”

“Oh yes,” he purrs, following the piece of fabric sliding down her legs until it landed on her feet and she was now completely bare for him, “Still looking,gorgeous.”

Beatrice rolled her eyes playfully even if her cheeks were scarlet red and her body still had the goosebumps from his touch, gently nudging her clothes away as she slowly climbed inside the bathtub, the water covering her bust and part of her arm, letting her hair tumble down her back when she removed the elastic. She tried hard to keep her eyes open but couldn’t help but slide a little bit more into the tub so she could partially lie inside. Even without the bath salts yet, the warm water was doing wonders to her body.

Bradley’s undressing was unfortunately missed by Beatrice since her eyes were closed because of the warmth surrounding her body, “Gorgeous.” she hums in question,eyes still shut, “Scoot over a bit?” she smiles following his request, giving him enough space to sit behind her - the subtle cursing from him as some of the water splashed on the orange colored rug they had in front of the bathtub meaning he might’ve added too much - and as Beatrice was leaning back to rest against his chest, she stops.

“Brad.”

“Mm?”

She looks over her shoulder and right to where his crotch was connected to the curve of her ass, her hand on the edge of the bathtub as she smiled with her brows furrowed, “Is there something you want to tell me about?” he didn’t answer, he just leaned back against the bathtub with his arms spread on either side, his legs caging her hips. He looked like the cat about to eat the canary…which was her in this scenario.

“I don’t know what you mean.” he mutters,then flicks his eyes down to his chest, “Aren’t you going to get comfortable?”

“Well, I am…you surely are already,huh?”

“Oh,baby you have no idea.” he taps his chest twice,”Come on.” Beatrice moves back enough for her backside to brush against him and he has to bite back a groan, choosing that his mouth would do a much better job against her neck when she was close enough to him, lips and teeth already nibbling her skin. His arms drop from the edges of the tub to wrap below her bust, the water rippling with the movement and making Beatrice sigh softly, “Much better,hm?”

“It is.” she smiles, leaning her head to the side to give him more space while wriggling her hips at the same time, the movement pressing his member between her ass and his navel and he had to swallow back the groan that dared to sneak up in his throat, “Something wrong?”

“No.” he gasps out, one of his hands cupping her breast under the water, fondling the flesh for a few seconds before he pinches her nipple and that makes a squeak break out of her, “Something wrong,gorgeous?”

“N-No.”

He smirks against her skin, the one hand still touching her ribcage slowly goes down until he reaches her pubic mound, index and middle finger on each side of her outer lips as he kept the pulling and twisting on her chest, Beatrice’s back arching with a soft moan escaping her lips. Beatrice’s hand touched his wrist, almost pulling his hand closer to her core and begging him without words to touch her, “You know,” he begins as his middle finger is rubbing the little bundle of nerves right above her entrance in slow swipes, “You looked so fucking hot today.”

She only gasped, her legs clenching around his hand as he kept the gentle touch, “I love when you get overprotective and confident like that,” he whispers, “If there weren’t so many people there, you know what I would’ve done?” she shakes her head weakly, whining out in pleasure when his middle and index finger slide inside of her, her channel immediately clamping down around them “Fucked you, right there.” another clench, tighter this time “Pulled that dress up, pushed your panties aside and fucked you so hard you’d be shaking all the way home.”

Beatrice moans again, tilting her head back to her nape, touching his shoulder and her eyes are directed to the ceiling, “But maybe some other day,” he smirks, moving his fingers back and forth inside of her, “Keep that in mind, you know?” Beatrice couldn’t speak,only moaning, whispering his nape like it was a prayer, begging for him to keep going.

His fingers were so big and Beatrice always loved that no matter how many times he did this she always felt herself react so much because of them. Her hips moved slowly against his hand, water sloshing around them, more falling on the mat and a bit on the floor, “Brad,oh God…” she whispers, whining out with her nails digging into his wrist as she tries to reach that high that was just nearing the corner.

And he just watched her reaction, keeping it to memory before he whispered against her ear, “Maybe…maybe I’ll even film it-” and she immediately stilled with her channel fluttering around his fingers as she moaned brokenly with her legs shaking in the water.

“Ffffuck!” she whimpers, canting her hips as the orgasm came over her like a freight train, gasping for air with her eyes fluttering closed, ‘...oh…God…”

“You like the idea then,” he smirks, pulling her nipple one more time and kissing her neck, “Good to know.”

“You…you are so dangerous.” She laughs breathlessly, body going soft because of her orgasm, “But…I wouldn’t…mind it…at all…”

“Good.” he says, “I’ll set everything up next time.”

“N-Next time?”

He slowly pulls his fingers out of her, waving them a bit to get rid of the water that washed her juices away, ‘Yes,I gotta prepare.” he explains and Beatrice’s face, that was red because of the orgasm suddenly gets darker and she avoids his eyes, “...Gorgeous, were you- oh aren’t you just so naughty.”

“Well, you suggested it!”

“And you wanted us to do it now? Oh, pretty girl I’d love to…but I have other plans for you.” he whispers in her ear, gently biting her lobe and dragging his lips to the curve of her jawline, “First we need to finish bathing,”

“But-” her body turns halfway and her eyes drop to the obvious thing between them, “Well…what about you?” and his eyes twinkled with something akin of a ‘gotcha’ moment. “...oh.” Beatrice bites her lower lip, scooting away from him now that her legs no longer felt like jelly and she sits on her knees between his parted legs.

She chews her lower lip again, meeting his low lidded gaze. He just leans back against the bathtub, the same way as before and tilts his head at her, “Well, what is the plan now,gorgeous? How are we going to do this?”

Beatrice knew the amount of water would be too much for her to suck him off without coming up for air every now and again…so she decided to reciprocate the favor. She gets closer to him again, a wet hand trailing from his neck to his chest, then disappearing below the water until she reaches him. Rooster’s eyes flutter closed as his head tilts back, hands clenched into fists on each side of the tub, “How’s this?”

“S’ great.” he slurs out, “Oh fuck.”

She smiles while moving her hand under the water, not as quickly as he did her, but keeping her eyes on him just because she wanted to. There was something so powerful about having a guy like Rooster -who was bigger than her, stronger than her - in her grasp, eyes closed and flushed, lips parted and wet because of saliva and sweat. She hovers above him a bit, her breasts millimeters away from his mouth, the warmth of her skin opens Rooster’s eyes even if they aren’t touching.

His hands fall from the edges of the tub to her waist, latching onto it for dear life while trying to keep his eyes open just so she’s within his sights. “...fuck you are so fucking beautiful.” she smiles down at him, hair tumbling over her shoulder, creating a curtain around them that hid the bathroom light from touching their bodies, “Fuck,Bea…”

Her hand kept moving under the water and while that was amazing he knew what he wanted more than anything, “Baby.” he begins, “C’mere.” and so did Beatrice, who stopped her movements - but not before giving him another long stroke and finally letting him go - to climb over his lap, “No.”

“Huh?”

“I got an idea.” he is breathing hard, his brain a bit foggy as he turns her around on top of him, her ass being the first thing he sees and he doesn’t stop himself when his hand swoops down to slap it. The flesh jiggles under the impact, making Beatrice moan out in pain and pleasure, looking behind her towards him, “Now, get comfy.”

Beatrice’s back moved as she breathed quietly, laughing quietly as she lifted her lower body, feeling one of his hands touching her ass and the other brushing against her inner thigh as he aligned himself. She shuddered, the orgasm from before made her extra sensitive but she couldn’t help the pleased laugh that comes out of her lips when he slowly slides inside until his navel is touching the curve of her asscheeks.

She moans quietly, clenching the edges of the bathtub for support as she moves her hips slowly, gasping breaths and his deep quiet groans adding to the subtle sloshing of water that while it wasn’t as intense was before was enough to splash up on the tiles that were close by. The ends of Beatrice’s hair touched the water and she followed the wave like patterns with her barely open eyes, hips still moving on top of him, his hands on either side of her hips, rubbing from hip to ass repeatedly, “Fuck, I love your ass so much.” he groans, swatting the plump flesh one more time when her hips lean back against his.

“I-I know…”

“I love all of you,Bea.” he laughs a bit out of breath, “Not only your ass.”

“I-I k-know.” she whimpers, “R-Roos.”

Her hips ground against his before she lifts them up again, the gentle tapping of skin and water as she moved was going to stay in her mind for a long time when he was gone, “Fuck…” she breathes, her grip on the edge slipping a bit when she started to move faster, “R-Roos…I-I can-can’t.”

“That’s okay gorgeous,” his own voice sounds strained, “C’mere, lean back.” she did without having to be told twice, the change in angle made a sharp moan come out of her mouth, one that she quickly slapped her hand on top to keep it in before she was too loud. The last time they did a position like this was before she was pregnant, she avoided it mainly because she didn’t like how she could see her stomach back then.

But now,with his hand moving back towards her clit and the other cupping her breast, she really didn’t care. Beatrice groans with her mouth closed, clasping his wrists with her hips moving up and down, brows furrowed, “Oh,God,Roos…”

He doesn’t say anything but he adjusts his legs to have something to support when his hips move a bit faster, his mouth open and breathing hot air against the shell of her ear. The ends of her wet hair glued against his chest and her back, her soft buttocks pressing up against his hips as he kept thrusting up at her, “Baby, oh fuck.” he growls, dropping his head on the curve of her neck, “Fuck, you feel so good. Fuck I miss this so much when I’m gone.”

Her channel clenched around him before she spoke, “M-Maybe I c-can send- oh God - you a video…so you won’t m-miss it too much.”

Did he hear it right? Did his wife, whose new kink was just discovered, suggested she’d make a solo video just for him? “...are you serious?” she nods quickly with her eyes clenched shut and mouth tightly closed as he speeds his thrusts, “You’d fuck yourself and record it for me? When I’m gone?” again another nod, “Fuck,Bea that’s so fuckin’ hot, fuck.”

And there was nothing else to say after that, because his hips and hers moved together to reach the peak they desired. Beatrice’s chopped moans were gasps of air behind her hand, breasts bouncing over her husband’s quick thrusts until her back arched against him. A muffled scream vibrated into her hand as her opposite hand shook violently while holding his wrist.

His hips hit her ass repeatedly, the sudden sting only adding to the aftershocks of her orgasm until he stilled just as she did and his deep, delicious, groan reverberated into her ear as his own orgasm hit. His hips jolted a few more seconds until he stopped, the hand on her breast still fondled the globe of flesh before he dropped it to the water with a loud splash, “Every time we fuck I feel we just lose more and more air.”

Beatrice laughs breathlessly, shoulders shaking as she rests on his chest, “I know what you mean.” they slowly come down from their high, the water gently swaying against them as they enjoy the silence together,”...we might need to refill the tub.”

He chuckles with his eyes closed, hand gently brushing up and down her thigh while he’s still inside of her, “Yeah. The water is cold.”

“And we never used the bath salts.”

“True.” he blinks his eyes open to see Beatrice already looking at him, her pupils slightly dilated and pink lips curled into a smile, lips that he wasted no time kissing, tongue gently brushing against them so she could open her mouth. Beatrice hummed against his lips, then started to laugh as she felt his hand nearing down her crotch one more time, “A five minute break?” he questions as his lips drop to her neck.

“Five minutes?” she isn’t complaining, “Hmmmm…what about the bath?”

“I heard cold baths are good for sore muscles.” he chuckles against her skin, middle finger brushing over her clit briefly, enough to make her clench him, “Which might be welcome in a few seconds.”

Beatrice smiles while biting her lower lip, “I’m okay with that.”

#bradley rooster bradshaw #rooster bradshaw #bradley bradshaw x oc #top gun maverick #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley bradshaw x female reader #bradley bradshaw x named reader

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grumpygreenwitch · 2 years

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The Fairy and the Prince #6 +#7 + #8

Part 1 - Part 2 - Parts 3 & 4 - Part 5 - Part 6, 7 & 8 - Part 9 & 10 - Part 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 & 16 - Part 17, 18, & 19 - Part 20, 21 & 22 - Part 23, 24, 25 & 26 - Part 27, 28, 29 & 30 - Part 31, 32, 33 & 34 - Part 35, 36 & 37 - Part 38, 39, 40 & 41 - Part 42 & 43 - Part 44 & 45 - Part 46 & 47 - Part 48, 49, 50 & 51 - Part, 52, 53 & 54 - Part 55 & 56 - Part 57, 58, 59 & 60 - Part 61, 62, 63, 64 & 65 - Part 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71 & 72

Alright, I managed to sort out the queue, and realized there are a lot of updates. Like. A LOT. Which makes me fret, because I want the story to be read, you know? I want to know people enjoy it. And waiting until March of next year for it to be anywhere near done (it isn’t), seems far too long a time. So the updates are going to get a little bigger where possible.

Spring was sweet and summer was golden, and fall rolled in rich and blustery and full of bright colors. Three princes, the oldest, went into the woods; one of them came back. The next day, when he went to saddle his charger in the stables, the horse trampled him quite dead.

The palace staff had to acknowledge that, perhaps and possibly, there was something to the rumors of a fairy curse. Master Leminy requested more guards, and got them. New teachers arrived from a distant land, and new classes were offered to the older boys. All of this passed Adam by unnoticed; he was far more focused on wringing as much fun as he could from his time with Linden, well knowing it would come to an end with the first snow. He didn't ask why. The what and the how and the why of Linden were things that Adam knew were dangerous topics of conversation, and he didn't want them to cost him his friend. Instead he simply accepted Linden as they were, which was easy enough when their days were too filled with adventures and mischief.

He did ask one thing, as they perched on a long-forgotten dock over a deep, ice-cold pond in the middle of the hunting woods. "Are you sorry I don't have more friends?"

"No," Linden replied without missing a beat, watching as fish nibbled mud from between both their toes. "You'd be with them, instead of with me."

"No, I mean, are you sorry it's just the two of us?"

"Are you?" The shattered, many-colored eyes came up sharply to meet his.

"No, but." Adam looked away, kicking idly at the water. He'd been thinking on it for a long while, and had decided that being taught to be a king was far too big a job for him. It put ideas in his head that did nothing but hurt. "I feel selfish, is all," he muttered.

"Selfish!" Linden exclaimed. "Selfish, you!"

"Because you don't get to do anything else. You're stuck with me."

"Stuck with you!" Linden shoved him and laughed. "We're both the youngest, Adam. It's not being stuck with one another, is being together against everyone else!"

"I still feel bad about it!" Adam couldn't help but smile. "Maybe your family wouldn't think you're silly if you had more friends."

"Ugh, who cares what they think," Linden flopped back on the worn planks of the dock. "And where would we even find friends? With all those Princes in the palace? How confusing would that get, all those faces and they're all called Prince."

"They're not called that, Linden, it's their title. They've got their own names too."

"Pfft." Linden flapped a hand in dismissal. "They wouldn't like me."

"What!"

"They wouldn't!" Linded persisted. "They're afraid of the woods and the fog."

"Shouldn't they be?"

"Well, fine, sure, alright, maybe a little. But I don't fancy trying to make friends with people who are afraid of me before I've even done anything."

Adam had to be silent, simply because Linden was right. It was one thing for the palace staff to gossip and whisper and consider the possibility that there might be fairies in the woods, that they might have a compact with the Dowager, that there might be a terrible price to pay for any prince that wanted to be king. But for the princes themselves it was awfully personal to know they might get yanked into the woods one day, and they might never come back out. Adam wasn't afraid because, in his child's heart, he believed Linden would protect him. He believed Linden would always be there to catch him when his fingers slipped from the ledge. And he was wise enough to realize his was a unique protection, afforded to no one else.

He didn't bring it up again. The conversation, apparently, had a much greater impact on Linden than he'd expected, because three days later, on a very blustery day, he was dragged into a goat shed, empty at the moment with the flock out to pasture. There, in the dim and warm straw-scented shelter, there was a boulder.

"Absolute!" Adam exclaimed. The boulder was three times as large as the two of them combined. "How'd you even get it in here?!"

Linden blew a rude sound at him. "You're so blind, Adam." They jabbed a finger sharply into the boulder.

It groaned and whined in protest, and Adam took a startled step back. "Did you just hurt the boulder?"

"It's not a boulder," Linden replied archly. "You can sleep later!" they yelled at the boulder-that-wasn't. "You've been bugging me two years running, now come on!"

The boulder unfolded itself, very slowly, and Adam blinked, trying to figure out how he could have ever thought it was a boulder at all. The creature before him - a boy, it was a boy, his mind told him very certainly, was tall and lanky, with immensely broad shoulders and astonishingly long arms, the rest of its body narrow. His face was rough and uneven, with a very long and sharp nose, tiny and soulful brown eyes under bushy brows, a mop of dark, clay-colored hair.

"Well, go on," Linden urged impatiently.

"Don't be mean, he's scared. I would be too, if I kept getting poked," Adam shot back.

"Ugh, fine, I'm sorry I poked him. I'm sorry I poked you."

The immense, strange boy looked between Adam and Linden, and then offered a big hand.

"Gently," Linden warned.

Adam took the offered hand and shook it, feeling the strength in that grip, carefully controlled. It was like shaking hands with... well, not a mountain, but certainly a small hill. The skin was cool and pebbled. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Are you Linden's friend?"

"He's my younger brother," Linden replied solemnly.

Adam cocked his head and pressed his lips tightly shut. He looked at the boy, who was taller than the both of them together, who outmassed them like a horse outmasses a chicken. He rubbed his hair and said nothing for a long moment, trying to think of anything he'd been taught about being princely and kingly that would not sound mean. "... Younger?"

"Ugh!" Linden cried out all the same and kicked straw at him. "You are so judgy, Adam! Never mind that." They turned their attention back to the newcomer. "Go on, then, like we practiced. Tell him what you want him to call you."

Adam drew himself up very straight. He even laced his hands behind his back, like he'd seen the Dowager do at court. "What may I call you?" he asked in his most polite, most princely voice.

Linden's 'younger brother' drew himself up just as straight, fingers wriggling nervously before him. A mouth Adam had never seen, a gap in that narrow face, puckered. "Booooouuuuuuulllllll...."

There the youngling's breath ran out. They waited in the blustery, rich autumn silence, Linden rocking on their feet, Adam trying to be patient. They waited, and waited, and waited some more.

A thin snore came out of the young boy's mouth.

"You did it again!" Linden shoved their 'younger brother', who staggered awake and moaned in wordless embarrassment.

"No, wait, it's fine. Really, it's fine, Linden!" Adam stepped between the two. "Don't be so mean to him! Little kids sleep all the time when they're young!"

"Well, yes, but we'd practiced! And he's been begging me forever to bring him with me, and since you were talking about friends, I thought -"

"And I'm very glad to meet him!" Adam assured them hastily. "It doesn't have to be perfect, Linden. It's not like we're at court or I'm a king or something." He beamed into those shattered eyes, and then turned to offer his hand to the boy once again. "It's very nice to meet you, Boul."

"'s Boulder," Linden muttered. "For Boulders-for-brains."

"I think Boul might be easier for you, right, Boul? At least until you get a little older?" The boy nodded eagerly. "I'm Prince Adam Lestrelle, but it's fine to just call me Adam."

"Adam," the boy croaked. He had a bullfrog's voice, coarse and abrupt.

Adam turned to look at Linden. "You didn't have to," he said quietly.

Linden shrugged, looking down. "I know. But I didn't want you to feel selfish. And maybe I've been a little selfish myself. And anyways, he can't come all the time, light's hard on him. And they keep being horrible to him -"

"Horrible?"

"On account of he's so small."

"Small?!"

"For his age, I mean."

Adam stared at Boul, who looked woebegone and ashamed. "Well, that's stupid. I think he's just fine the way he is. And I'd be glad to be his friend."

Linden hugged him abruptly. "Thank you." And then shoved him. "Well, he can't climb so I figured we could go see the mushroom caves."

"There's caves?!" Adam was beginning to reel from far too many surprises.

"Honestly, Adam, don't these people teach you anything useful. Come on!"

***

The caves were not particularly large or extraordinary, but to three younglings left to their own wild devices they were everything. They had the rest of autumn to explore them, to fight dragons made of stalactites and find great hoards of priceless beetle shells and broken bits of quartz, to learn the language of bats, of blind, pale lizards and of trundling mushroom folk. They found the aquifer, far beyond the surface, and met the pale, beautiful, singing creatures there, that sometimes might grant a wish if it were small, in exchange for a token thrown into one of many wells on the surface. In the dim glow of the mushrooms it was hard to see one's way for anyone but Boul. Adam fell once, when the path under his feet went straight down a cliff-face where he could neither hear nor see the bottom, and for once it wasn't Linden's hand around his wrist that saved him; it was the young troll catching the scruff of his shirt and pulling him back up. Adam clapped one of his shoulders and ran on, shaking his stinging hand. Boul puffed up like a freshly knighted squire.

Winter came and winter went, and once again Adam put the time to use catching up on his studies. Master Leminy had to sit with gritted teeth and a frozen, atrocious smile on his face while the teachers gushed that the youngest prince was the equal in his studies of many of those that counted fifteen or sixteen years. Adam learned to ride with a couched lance, which seemed to him the height of stupidity. If someone came at him on horseback with a big old giant piece of wood, the first thing to do would be to take the horse out from under them, not come at them with another big old giant piece of wood. But he was to learn, and learn he did; he was the youngest still, and small enough he could practically disappear behind his shield. If he braced it just right on his jousting saddle, no one could move him, lance or not.

He kept bringing Dane to his pugilism classes. The teacher couldn't complain, it gave Adam someone his age to spar with, even if the young boy was shooting up in every direction. The students couldn't complain, it spared them having to spar with Adam, who had developed a habit of going kicky and bitey like a feral squirrel when they didn't pull their punches, which was often. And Dane certainly wasn't complaining; he loved the learning almost as much as books bored him to sleep. Master Leminy tried to complain, but Adam wisely pointed out that Dane had been *his* choice of companion, and if he were to someday become a king's man-at-arms, he would need to know how to fight side-by-side and back-to-back with his liege. Unless, of course, the Master of Scions had chosen Dane for another reason?

He had tea with the Dowager on his twelfth birthday, squirming. The silver-haired Queen examined him far too keenly with his mother's eyes, and her bland questions about the progress of his studies didn't seem harmless anymore.

She wanted to know if he'd gone into the woods. He shrugged. Everyone went into the woods.

She asked him if he'd made any unusual friends. He nodded. Beli could read numbers like some people read letters. Who even did that?!

She instructed master Leminy to start his deportment lessons. Adam could have died of shame on the spot, but as the news spread they bought him, at last, an ounce of pity from his peers; none of them wanted to sit for two endless hours listening to some young lady-in-waiting or another droning on about spoons and forks and napkins and tea and how many sugar cubes were too many. Fortunately Arditty knew as well as Adam that he would never be king and, much to his surprise, offered him the same deal he'd once offered Beli and Dane. The only caveat was that he had to hide where she bid him while she went necking and kissing with whatever boy currently held her interest; that usually meant the drawing rooms overlooking a snow-choked garden or a tiny inner courtyard, reading and doing homework two years ahead of his age while Arditty's maid did the mending. She snuck pastries and cheese to the boys, and they would have done anything for her.

Rickard ambushed Adam in the closed jousting courtyard two days after his birthday. He would be fifteen soon, he informed Adam as the older prince's buddies pinned the youngest of their number down, and too old to be picking fights with babies.

In the ensuing brawl, Dane broke Rickard's nose. Everyone was dragged off to punishment detail looking sorry and bedraggled, and neither Alexander nor Ulster would be seen in Rickard's company again. Dane looked flustered and guiltily pleased under Adam's praise.

Spring came once again, and as snow dripped and plopped off the roofs and ledges, Adam took his courage in his hands and asked his winter-friends a dangerous question. "Would you like to know where I go during the year?"

Dane instantly threw his hands up, shook his head and walked away. Beli seemed to think on it very hard. "I'm curious," he admitted, as careful with his words as he was with his reading. "I'm not going to say I'm not. I've always been. But I think..." He glanced at Dane. "If it's what I think it is, I think it's best if we don't, highness."

"You know what it is," Adam guessed.

"I think I do," the boy corrected. "And it doesn't bode well for anyone."

"But why? It's not like I'm going to be king. I'm barely a prince as it is."

Beli chewed restlessly on his upper lip. "I think you need to talk to the Culli-maid about it, highness. This is a courtly matter, like."

Adam did. With Arditty ignoring his education completely, her maid had stepped in to fill in the gap, sort of. She'd begun life as a scullery maid, back when she'd been quite as young as Adam, if not more so. 'Culli-maid', she'd called herself, and it had stuck. Her real name was Sophronia, which no one back then had cared to learn to pronounce, and which she loathed it anyways. The young prince caught her on a bright and sunny afternoon after a heavy snowfall, while Arditty and a new suitor played outside like young and awkward fawns.

"Culli, you know it was my birthday not so long ago."

She nodded. In her meek and low voice, she offered. "Happy Birthday, highness."

"Thank you," Adam flushed as he hadn't before anyone else's good wishes. "The Dowager was asking me questions during tea."

Culli set her mending down and examined him with shrewd brown eyes. "About the woods?" When he nodded, she stared out the window. "Do you want me to tell you what is said or what is known?"

Adam hesitated. "Can't you tell me both?"

She bit down a smile. "I could. It's the wise thing to do. I forget you're wiser than most." When he wriggled under the praise, she reached out to tuck his cravat back in place. "They say that a fairy prince fell in love with the Queen, back when she was a princess."

"But she's not married."

"Oh, she's been married. She's been married thrice, that's known to all. But back then, they say that she laughed at him, dismissed him, disdained his promises of wealth and power and love."

Adam, having seen Arditty do the same to a boy every week like clockwork, and having lived through the unavoidable consequences of it, grimaced, his gaze turning towards the glass-paned windows. Culli, catching sight of what the prince was looking at, nodded. "Aye. Like that, but a hundred times, a thousand times worse. They're wild and alien, the Folk In The Woods, highness. They don't think as we do, they aren't as we are. When one of them steps forward to meet us halfway, it's wise to at least make an effort to meet them back. The Queen did none of it, that anyone knows of. They say the Folk In The Woods killed two of her husbands. The last one came back, but didn't. You know what I mean, don't you?"

Adam nodded, horrified.

"She was Queen then already, and that's not the sort of thing a Queen can abide. It's bad for the people, it's bad for the land, and it's bad for keeping the crown steady on her head. So, this we know, she went looking for them. She went looking for her prince. They say she found him, his love turned to poison. But she was Queen and he was just a prince, and she forced a peace out of him. Of sorts."

"I wouldn't want anything I force out of a fairy. It's sure to be a trap."

She tapped his nose with a work-roughened finger. "You're wiser than most, I already did say. She was not to be wed anymore. If he couldn't have her, no one could. I suppose he doesn't know what a favor he did her. They say the Folk In The Woods wanted her to put one of their own on the throne, and she wouldn't let them. They say she had to agree to let them at least help in the choosing of the heir, or they would let there be no heir at all, and the crown would go to ruin."

"Help." Adam felt terribly cold. His clothes, so warm and comfortable a moment before, chafed him like burrs. He could hardly breathe around a lump in his throat. "Help in the choosing."

"You should never take anything you force out of a fairy," Culli repeated his words to him. "Particularly if it looks like it's a gift."

"Haven't they met anyone they like?"

"I don't think it's the meeting a prince they like, highness." Culli shrugged, picking up her needle. "I think it's meeting someone they like more than the prince hates. And he's had a lot of time to build up his hating."

***

Adam, unable to sleep that night, sat on a windowsill and thought on what Culli had said. He weighted it all, Dane's reaction and Beli's caution and the maid's story, against his friendship with Linden, his head full of worries too great for a twelve-year-old boy, except that he was a prince that might be a king and such worries were his to carry. Even if he didn't want to.

He was afraid, of course. He was worried. But, and this was an important difference that he couldn't quite figure out, he wasn't afraid of Linden, or Boul. At all. Not in the way he should be. Boul could be clumsy with his strength, but he was trying so hard, you could always see it. And he was terribly young, you could see that too.

And Linden, well. Linden was Linden. His friend, forever and always.

Did they know of the Queen's bargain?

Adam perked up as the answer came to him at last. Yes, Linden probably knew, of the prince and his hatred and the agreement and everything else. But the thing was, to Linden there was always a very clear, absolute difference. Whenever they spoke of the Court it was always "them", not "us". Not "we". Linden though of the Court as a separate, alien, unwelcome thing that they wanted nothing to do with. It was such a foundation of their person, their character, such a vast part of their heart, that Adam couldn't imagine his white-haired wild friend abiding with them, even a little bit.

On the other hand, the Court thought Linden silly for spending time with Adam, and in a very cruel way the young prince understood why at last. Why waste your time with someone you know is going to die?

Was he going to die?

"No," he muttered to the cradle of his arms.

He didn't want to be king. And he suspected that, when it came to the choosing, to the 'helping', that fact would matter more than anything else the Queen Dowager or the Folk In The Woods could come up with.

#the fairy and the prince #linden and Adam #linden the fairy #adam the prince #original writing #boul the troll #boulders-for-brains #fantasy #fantasy writing

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arizonaconservativegal · 2 years

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Wasn’t John McCain considered more of a middle ground politician rather than typical Republican?

John McCain was... well. It's complicated.

He wasn't a bad guy. Not really. He was a trigger happy war hawk but I get that, considering his history. He was a son of a bitch, no question. If you crossed him, he'd tear you to pieces. But he was also a very generous kingmaker in Arizona, and not just with an endorsement or occasional stump speech. His say-so would bring your campaign a metric fuckton of cash and behind the scenes support. He was a powerhouse. When I say the McCain machine ran Arizona, I don't mean that lightly. He wasn't part of the establishment - he was the establishment.

He wasn't especially conservative - he certainly wasn't Goldwater - but to call him a RINO isn't fair either. If I were going to call him anything, I'd call him a neocon. He wasn't always the most reliable vote on big controversial bills, as you probably recall, but most of the time he was right there with the rest of the party. And he was a good vote on national bills that had a specific local impact on Arizona.

Hardline activists hated him. The thing with that, though, is that they hate everyone. The bulk of the party was fine with him. Was he anyone's perfect first choice candidate? Probably not. But we'd take him over a Democrat any day of the week. Even if there had ever been a primary challenger who could have beaten McCain, they wouldn't have won the general. McCain always could. He was popular among moderates and independents because he didn't do anything crazy and that support was more than enough to offset the 10% of Republicans who hated him.

And what even people in Arizona don't understand about Arizona is that although we usually vote red, we've never been an ultra conservative state. McCain was pretty mainstream for us. If he hadn't passed away, he'd be up for re-election right now and he'd win it easily. And if for those who haven't made the connection yet, that would have given us a 51-49 majority in the US Senate the last couple years. Even if we lost him on a couple votes, we'd have him for most and his sheer existence would have been enough to stop a lot of the Democrats' agenda. I wish he was still there.

He just didn't get along with Trump. And like I said, if you crossed him, McCain would tear you to pieces. Trump is the same kind of guy. Neither one was ever willing to back down, which is a shame. If it weren't for that fight, I think McCain would be remembered quite fondly by Arizona Republicans, even the ones who didn't love him before. Unfortunately, the McCain family seems determined to keep that feud alive and I think that is really tarnishing the senator's memory unfairly. It seems to me that they're using his memory to try to cling to power. If they were smart, they'd be trying to work with people like Kari Lake to usher in this new era of Republicans in his name. Their machine could still be quite powerful with a few adjustments. I think John McCain would have been willing to do that.

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sylvieeee5 · 2 years

Text

IT. IS. MBS TIME

AAAAAAAAA

HI!!! Don’t know if you know me, but I’m Sylv! I do liveblogs of MBS (I’ve been a fan since fifth grade haha) that are QUESTIONABLY readable and cat-picture heavy!! Speaking of… a little kitty update!!

If you’ve been reading my LBs for a while, you may remember this adorable bean:

Well, I’m delighted to announce that Sonic has found his forever home- with my grandparents! Congrats on winning them over, little man- can’t wait to see how much you’ve grown when they come to visit next week!

okay i actually have to watch it now hhhhh

fear. and excitement

alright.

MBS Season 2, Episode 1: A Perilous Journey.

Let’s go.

!Warning!! Book/show spoilers ahead!

0:32

Welp, she said it! Roll credits on the whole production, boys. (actually no don’t habsgshdhssh)

0:44

SQ SIGHTING SQ SIGHTINF

ahem.

1:53

DR GARRISON SIGHTING

GIRLBOSSSS

okay we haven’t even made it past the RECAP yet, come on sylv-

2:39

OH NO

MADGE HOW COULD YOU

rip mouse 😭😭😭