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starcrossedxwriter · 11 days

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Wicked Fantasies Part 11.1 (MBJ x OC)

A/N: Ummm so welcome backkk! This is 11.1 because there's a second part to this chapter (I know... my self control keeps getting worse lolol) But I hope you enjoy!

TW: grief

“I’m never fucking drinking again,” Raven moaned to herself as she stumbled out of the comforts of bed. She felt like hell, if hell had a truck run over its head a few dozen times.

Raven generally considered herself an early riser but nothing could pull her out of bed that morning after what was, objectively, the dumbest night of her life. Part of her wished she had had one or two more drinks so she could have officially transitioned into the ‘blackout drunk’ phase. So that she would, at least, be spared the embarrassing memories. But no, every horrible moment of the night from dancing wildly at the bar to Michael saving her was etched into the crevices of her brain with shocking clarity.

Now, it was after noon and Raven still found herself wanting to be curled under her blanket asleep so she could escape her embarrassment.

A knock at the door pulled her out of her wallowing self pity. She did not make an attempt to move, expecting Tiffany to answer. However, when the voice of their landlord rang out and her knocking persisted, she quickly slid on her robe to open the door. She decided Mrs. Winters would have to get over the fact that she looked like death reincarnated.

“Rough night, dear?”

Raven grimaced for a moment, she did indeed look as terrible as she felt.

“Something like that,” Raven offered a tight smile, her body slumping against the door. “W-what can I do for you, Mrs. Winters?”

“Oh I’m just letting everyone know that we had a pipe burst on the floor above. We’ll have folks in and out and you might hear some noise and stuff. But if you see any leaking into your unit, give me a ring?”

“Of course. Will do. Thanks, have a good one,” Raven tried her best to politely shoo the woman away. However, she lingered.

“Oh I meant to tell you, that boyfriend of yours is just such a good egg. So kind and polite. Admittedly I haven’t met many famous people,” she laughed. “But you just don’t expect them to have such good manners, you know?”

Raven stopped. “My boyfriend?? Sorry… When was he here?”

“He stopped by this morning. Gave me a check for your rent for the rest of your lease. Oh and asked where your mailbox was, said he wanted to drop something in it.”

Raven was worried her jaw might come completely unhinged as the woman spoke.

He did what??

“Are you alright, dear??”

“Y-Yea, yea. Just… a bit of a surprise. Thank you.”

And with that, Raven immediately closed the door, not listening to the elderly woman’s reply.

“This nigga… I hate him,” she muttered to herself as she slumped against her door.

Every cell in her body knew that was not true. But she also knew that everything she had told him last night was still accurate. She was too tired to forgive him and not just him… anyone ever again. The world has used up all of her second chances and she did not have it in her heart to be disappointed by him again. The narrative in her brain was so set in stone, she did not think anything he could say or do would make her believe anything else. She could not even make herself go retrieve the note that was apparently waiting for her in her mailbox.

“Such a coward,” she grumbled as she flopped back into bed.

She stared at her phone for several minutes, her text thread with Michael open. She wondered what she could even say? Thank you?

She knew any conversations demanding she pay him back or he rescind the money would be moot. Even if she had the mental fortitude to argue with him right now, she would still lose. But she could not just accept it without trying to push back.

She typed and erased and typed and erased before lamely landing on:

Raven: You can’t pay my entire rent. I can’t accept that.

Raven: I don’t want that.

Michael: Yea you can. Told you… gonna show up every day tryin’ to fix us. You just gotta let me.

Raven: Money isn’t gonna fix this, Michael.

Michael: I know. But it can fix the tangible things I fucked up for you

Michael: So let me fix that for you.

Raven paused, as a warm sensation filled her, a warmth she had not felt in over a month now. The warmth of being cared for. She had never had someone take care of her without wanting something in return, except Michael. Even when their relationship was built on transactions, he still took care of her without needing or asking for something from her. The book deal, her rent were just the tangible examples of how he had stepped up to right the wrongs he could and she could not deny that those actions meant something, softened something inside her.

He was doing exactly what he promised he would do the night before. He was fixing what could be, he was showing with his actions that she meant something to him. And yet, that blockade that stopped that belief from taking root was still there, still prohibiting her from believing these actions were anything more than a skilled manipulation.

He would draw her back in, he would not change, and when he got ready, he would hurt her again. That’s what everyone in her life did.

Raven: It doesn’t change anything

Michael: I know… didn’t expect it to.

She tossed her phone to the side and grabbed her pillow, screaming into it as her frustration got the better of her. The complex web of conflicting feelings with Michael B. Jordan trapped at its center only continued to grow. She wanted him to let her go, to stop caring and trying and going out of his way for her because that fit into the narrative nailed to the cross of her brain, it would confirm her beliefs and fears.

But instead he continued to do the things that made her fall in love with him the first time, things that only reignited the dimmed but still existent flame that was her love for him. And she knew she would never get over him if she kept letting that happen, kept letting him in.

So she did not even respond. Instead, she just closed the thread and tossed her phone to the side.

“Let him go, Rae,” she demanded to herself. “You don’t deserve him and he doesn’t love you.” She repeated that a few times before it felt real again, before all that had started to soften was once again as solid as a block of ice.

***

“You look like shit,” Alex moaned as she watched Michael’s makeup artist, Shanta, struggle to make him look less like a living zombie ahead of his Oprah interview.

They were tucked away in a suite in Oprah's sprawling LA estate. It was difficult to make Michael feel poor but Oprah was certainly one of the few people in the world who could do so.

“Thanks, appreciate that.”

“You know I don’t believe in lying to you. Make sure you get those bags under his eyes,” she instructed. “Alright, this is it. Final stretch. Movie’s out and every review is stellar so far. Do this interview, it’ll air this week, Oscars on Sunday and then you can sleep. Though I bet it’s not the schedule keeping you up? Talked to her since the premiere?”

Michael forced his body not to sag at the mention of Raven as to not disturb the hard work of the woman trying to make him look alive after days of no sleep.

“She texted me about the rent thing the next morning. But it’s been radio silence ever since.”

It had only been a few days since the fiasco after the premiere but Michael’s concern for Raven had not diminished one bit. He could not let her go as she requested but he tried his hardest to respect her desire for space. His heart was stuck in the quicksand that was Raven and he had no desire to pull himself out. He wanted to be right there. He knew eventually he would have to accept defeat, accept that she had moved on. But he could not do it while she still questioned her own deservedness. She could hate him for the rest of his life, it would be her right. But his soul could not allow her to live thinking so lowly of herself. So if he had to pay 30 years of rent or call in favors to make her life easier and make her see that she deserved care and someone to sacrifice for her, he would do it. It was high time someone in her life put her above themselves.

“Well, at least she talked to you. That’s something. You’re doing what she asked. Sis has lived a life, she needs time and space. Keep doing what you're doing. Except for the no sleep. For the love of God, by the Oscars, please get a good night’s rest. That’s your night.”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, Alex…”

She scoffed. “You’ve won the big four, Mike. It’s not just because I believe you deserve it… Statistically, Best Actor is yours. The Oscars is your night. Have a little faith in yourself.”

“I hear you. I just don’t wann-”

“Excuse me?” A young man poked his head in the door. “Apologies for interrupting. I’m a PA. Just wanted to let you know that we’re almost ready? I can take you out to the garden when you’re ready.”

“Be right out. Thank you,” Alex called.

Shanta did her last quick finishing touches before Alex gave him her customary once over.

“Shanta, my girl, you’re a miracle worker per usual.”

They both offered Shanta their thanks, Michael rolling his shoulders before heading out the door to walk out to the gardens.

He had met and interviewed with Oprah once before so he was not particularly nervous. But despite having done millions of interviews, there was always a kernel of nerves right beforehand that he could just never shake.

He was dressed in slacks and a light black sweater, thankful for a cooler day as he walked out into her expansive gardens where the Oprah Winfrey waited for him. The cameras were already rolling, capturing footage that may or may not make into the hour-long special.

“The man of the hour!” she called, her arms stretched wide to wrap Michael in a hug. “Actually I think man of the year is more appropriate. Welcome. I can’t tell you how excited I am to have you here.”

“Thank you, thank you. It’s so good to be here.”

“Have a seat,” she gestured at the very comfy chair across from hers. “And we can jump right in.”

***

Raven’s head was propped against her fist as she stared at her computer. A sentence. That was the grand total of her hard work for that Wednesday afternoon. But it was something, she supposed. Weeks of hard work had amounted to maybe two or three pages of her book. She had been offering Angelina vague answers on her progress, ducking and dodging her to avoid admitting that there was no way in hell she could have a draft by March 15 like they talked about.

“Rae? You busy?”

She turned in her chair toward the door to find Tiffany’s head poking in.

“Nope… I’ll never be busy again at this rate,” she grumbled. “What’s up?”

“I just turned on the interview… if you want to watch?”

Raven scratched her head, unsure if she could even watch him? See him happy and thriving without her? Despite everything happening between them though, she could not pretend there was not a part of her that still wanted to celebrate this moment in his career. Interviewing with Oprah the week he was poised to win his first Oscar? How could she ever forgive herself if she did not watch this? Even if it hurts?

“I’ll… be there in a sec. Thanks, Tiff.”

Raven let out a deep sigh before she grabbed the blanket off her bed and dragged herself to the living room. The interview had already started and he looked gorgeous. Tired, she could tell, in the way he constantly had to readjust his posture, in the bags under his eyes that the makeup artist could not quite fully cover. But even at his worst, he looked captivatingly good.

Raven found herself studying him so intently that she did not even comprehend the words he and Oprah were sharing. She just watched him and his mannerisms, she focused on the glimmer in his eyes that sparked every so often. She missed looking into his eyes, missed how expressive they were.

This moment only amplified how much she missed him, missed hearing the deep baritone in his voice and the spark in his eyes when he spoke about his passions. She missed his bright and uninhibited laughter, how his hands were always on her in some way. She just missed him. But she had pushed him away, had told him to let her go. And even if he had not fully let go of her yet, she felt too scared to open that door again, even if her soul ached for her to. Particularly when he continued to try to show up for her in small ways.

And despite how angry she still wanted to be at him, she had never had anyone show up for her quite like this… try for her like he did. And everyday, her brain took up far more mental space than it should have, debating whether she should follow her foolish heart and forgive him or listen to her logical brain and cast him aside. Days passed and she still did not know the answer.

“So I’ll admit,” Raven’s ears finally started to pick up the conversation between Oprah and Michael, “I watched Waves more times than appropriate. But Gayle and I saw it at Sundance and we both thought it was just the most heartbreaking and poignant look at loss and grief that we had ever seen. While still being engaging and funny and so relatable. The journey your character goes through is just… I mean I think grief is one of the few universal experiences that we all will have at some point. And you really brought that to life through this character and his struggles with addiction. And the fact that you filmed this while engaged in completely different projects with complex characters like Killmonger in Black Panther and Adonis in Creed 3… I’m curious what you pulled from to give that performance?”

Michael shifted in his seat as he chuckled, Raven had missed how passionate he got about this project, even though he had been talking about it and doing press for it since they first started dating. She knew he had not truly expected the role to blow up in the ways it did but she could tell he was grateful for it, nonetheless.

“Well first, thank you. Yea aside from Oscar Grant, Andre was the hardest character I’ve ever played and he stretched me as an actor in ways, you know, I didn’t really expect? And I learned so much from him in his sort of journey through grief. You know, when I read the first script, the line ‘grief is the final stage in love’s evolution,’ really stuck out to me. When you lose someone, grief, this enduring pain you feel, is that love shifting and changing because it has nowhere to go, there’s no outlet for it anymore. And so, Andre really reframed my own thoughts on grief and loss and how I process that and allowed me to pull from personal experiences with loss to pour into that character.”

“Yea I will say, that line was one of my favorites. I sat with that long after the credits rolled.”

“Yea same. I remember sitting a-and thinking about that one for a while after reading it. And I loved that even in the more comedic moments of this movie, we still had those lines that made you wanna stop and really sit with what the characters were going through.”

“Definitely, I was dissecting this movie for weeks after. It’s just amazing. So I do want to shift gears to talk about this moment you're experiencing because of this movie. This really is the biggest moment of your career. You’re nominated for your first Oscar and a favorite to win, so far in 2023, you’ve won a SAG Award, Golden Globe, and BAFTA. And you, as of two days ago, just had your directorial debut in Creed 3. First question, how are you still awake?” Both of them shared a laugh. “But serious question, how has this moment felt? How does it feel to be having this moment at this stage of your career?”

“Oh wow, when you list it like that, I don’t know how I’m awake either,” he chuckled. “But seriously, you know… it’s been a ride. I know you’ve felt this too but you know, you don’t often take a moment to just pause and soak it in. You finish one interview or award show and your mind automatically just jumps to the next one. And I think what I’ve been trying to force myself to do in the later weeks of this insane time is just to slow down and enjoy it. Not rush through it and really enjoy the fruits of… really years of hard work and sacrifice. But that also means sitting with… you know, the challenges of this time too, which isn’t as rewarding,” he admitted with a sad smile. “But I’m growing and learning alot so it’s worth it.”

Oprah nodded. “You know I always appreciate when people don’t let the 24 hour news cycle and gossip sort of steal their thunder and moment from them. And I applaud you for sort of moving through the more gossipy side of the last few months with grace and maturity. But you haven’t really talked much publicly about those stories and the effect they have had on you. And you don’t have to get into it if you don’t want but I am curious on how you navigated that and really came out on the other side, from what I can see, stronger for it?”

Michael bowed his head and chuckled. “Um… you know a good friend of mine told me that she thought this was the most vulnerable and most genuine I had ever been publicly on this press tour and I think it’s because I’ve had to navigate some really personal stuff during this great but hectic public moment? And that’s new territory for me.”

“And I think that friend is right. I don’t think we have seen or learned this much about you ever.”

“Yea and I wish I could take some credit for it but… it was all one person: Raven Turner. And the way we met, now as the world knows, was extremely unconventional and I can admit that our relationship started as a complete lie. A lie I thought would help me be seen as this serious, mature man my team was worried I wasn’t. And I wasn’t,” he admitted. “I was cold and guarded and not at all the best version of myself. And while I regret how we started and trying to fool the world into thinking I’m something I’m not, there isn’t a bone in my body that regrets falling in love with her.”

He leaned forward a bit as he spoke. “Because all those walls and barriers we build around ourselves to survive in this world of Hollywood? To endure the criticisms and insanity we deal with? She's the first woman to see me. Not the actor and the money and the fame but just me. And in that, she saved me… without trying or intending to. She just loved me and loving her, choosing her is the single greatest decision I ever made. And I hate how this moment has fallen on her, how my terrible decisions led to these pretty disgusting misogynistic attacks on her. And I think my biggest regret is putting someone as pure as her in the line of fire like that and not doing enough to protect her. And you know, I have to live with that, which is tough.”

“You know I’ve interviewed thousands of people in my career and while I believe you have to change for yourself and on your own, I also have found that the ones who love us, really love us, are often the most powerful catalysts for change in our lives. I’ve certainly seen and experienced that in my own life and it’s important to spotlight those who were that catalyst.”

“Oh 100%. Especially when, I think this version of me was always there? I was just too hurt to trust anyone with it, so no one saw it. I buried me under this facade I thought was better? But I fell in love with a woman who taught me that you can’t be guarded, you can’t shut down just because you’re hurt. Life is about getting up every day, being authentically you, and reaching out and loving and risking your heart every time. And sometimes you’ll get swatted away and sometimes you’ll get an embrace. But you just deny yourself love when you don’t show up at all. So I’ve been trying to live by that more lately. Because she showed me what real strength and courage looks like. And I want to have that, I want to lead with that.”

“Wow… you know people are going to watch this and I think, applaud that vulnerability. It’s refreshing to me because I don’t think our world incentivizes or encourages people to admit when they aren’t being their best selves. So I think for you to do that, at a moment when you’re at the top of your game, is commendable.”

“She deserves to know the positive effect she’s had on my life. To be celebrated for how she supported me. And you know it’s not just me? When we first started dating, I remember her one stipulation was that we couldn’t go out on Wednesday evenings because she hosted a book club for kids at the library she worked at. And that was the most important thing to her, being there for them. The day of our first date, she spent an hour delivering books and SAT prep books to those same kids she worked just because. There’s just a selflessness to her that is truly admirable. And I think while people are attacking her and calling her these vile names because she made a certain choice during a hard time, they should know who she really is. A woman that would drop everything to help you even when you don’t really deserve it. A woman who I’ve seen give others all she had because they needed it more even when she did not have a backup plan for herself. I could honestly talk about her for the rest of this interview because she deserves celebration far more than I ever could. Genuinely good people don’t always get the shine they deserve, they don’t always get the love and care they deserve because we can often take them for granted. But no one deserves to be celebrated more than her, to be celebrated loudly more than she does.”

“I love that… she seems like quite the woman.”

“She is… and I hope she knows that.”

“So tell me about…”

The words faded away as his words tumbled through Raven’s head. They clashed jarringly against every belief she had internalized about herself, like metal against metal. But she found herself wanting to believe him. Believe the words a section of the world just heard. She wanted to believe that what he saw in her, even over the course of six months, was who she truly was. Not this broken, damaged scapegoat life had fashioned her into.

There has to be more than this, right?

Tiffany nudged her with a box of tissues in her hand. Raven had not even realized she was crying but she accepted them gratefully.

“Don’t know how I still have tears over this man left,” she whispered as she wiped her eyes.

“I don’t think those tears are because of him, sis.”

Raven sniffled and grabbed another tissue. “You m-might be onto something. I can’t watch anymore. Night, Tiffany.”

However, before she reached her bedroom, she heard Tiffany call her name.

“I know what he did… sucks. And hurts. But that’s a man who loves you, Rae. More than anything. After that? The only person in the world who still won’t believe it is you.”

She turned around to face her, the back of her hand wiping away a few more stray tears. “You know he said the same thing?”

“Well, I generally don’t think actors are that smart,” Tiffany admitted with a laugh. “But he’s right about that. You deserve to believe good things about yourself, we all do.”

“Nothing good has ever lasted… I always ruin it somehow. I tried to believe I deserved him and life proved that I didn’t,” she answered, her voice small. “D-Don’t have it in me to try again.”

“Raven… I know we aren’t best friends or anything. But how many times have I watched you forgiven your dad and sister? Let them back in, try to make things right with them? Try to build the family you want?”

“Too many…”

“Right… So why does Michael only get one shot when you found the strength to give them 100? When he’s the one actually showing up for you? He’s the one who actually is trying to earn another chance?”

“It’s not that simple and you know it.”

“I know that the only person denying you happiness right now… is you. You push away the good people and things in your life because you feel like you don’t deserve it but no one would be here if you didn’t. Michael, the kids in your book club… me. I don’t keep signing leases with you because you’re a terrible person who ruins everything, no one has a gun to our heads, Rae. We’re here because you do deserve it.”

“Tiff…”

“Nope, shut up. This pity party is getting old and tired. It doesn’t matter what I think of you… or what Michael thinks or anyone out there.” She gestured toward the window. “All that matters is the narrative you’ve created and until you decide to believe something else, all you’re going to do is push people away and fuck up and self sabotage because it’s all you think you deserve. You gotta wake up and do some fucking work, girl. Cause until you figure out how to erase this narrative from your brain, you’ll never be happy. And you’ll never fall in love with anyone except for someone who treats you like crap. You’ll never build your own family. You’ll never finish your book or have another fulfilling career. You’ll just be stuck in this broken version of yourself alone… forever. And I’ve seen a few different versions of you over the last two years but this is by far the most pitiful.”

Raven had never heard Tiffany be so blunt. The words were biting but she could not deny that some of them rang true in her ears. And that was always the hardest information to hear.

“Damn… tell me how you really feel.”

“The soft gentle love wasn’t resonating clearly so had to go with a different tactic…. Just think about it. And once you fix all this shit and move to a mansion in the hills, don’t forget about me.” She winked at her, causing Raven’s jaw to drop slightly.

“How do you even know that’s gonna happen?”

She shrugged and grabbed the remote to press play, Raven not even noticing that she paused it.

“Just got a good feeling about the two of you. Now go so I can lust after him in peace while he's still single. Kidding! Kinda..."

Raven let out a small laugh as she shook her head. "I know you're not kidding. Night, Tiff.”

She slid into her bed, her only refuge of late, and stared at the ceiling. She was surprised she was not tired of looking at it by now. Michael and Tiffany’s words wrestled with her own thoughts for hours

What was her problem, really? It was not that what Michael did was unforgivable because it wasn’t. Some distant part of her, too quiet to break through the noise of her anger, always wondered if there was more to the story, believed that he had to have had some reason. But she was too angry to allow him to explain. It just became vicious ammunition that no one could ever love her or care about her… that she was the problem.

Well, that’s true… no one’s ever loved you. And everyone who does leaves.

She supposed her mother must have loved her, but she would never know. She would never feel it. And her grandmother’s love was so distant, so long ago, that it no longer felt tangible, was no longer a tether to anchor her self worth to something positive.

Instead, the only thing that tethered her sense of self worth to anything was her family’s disdain. Disdain that made her question what Michael could’ve seen in her, how he could ever love someone like her? That disdain which made it far easier to believe that what he did was proof that he did not love her than that he possibly did do it to protect her in some weird way. No other thought could live long enough in her brain to take hold.

And she did not know if doing what Tiffany suggested would fix that. There was not enough time in the world for her muster the courage to interrogate and confront the source of these feelings. She had hoped she would never have to see her family again. Some days, never felt like too soon.

But she knew she could not avoid it. They were the root cause, the narrative in her head was fueled and sustained by them. And screaming at them across the Thanksgiving table and never speaking to them again was not the closure she needed. She thought she had dropped the weight that was her family when she cut them off. But she was still dragging all the luggage they gave her around and it was time to give it back.

She knew her family did not want to see her either, knew it would be difficult to get them to even speak to her after everything. But she knew she had to try… because she knew there had to be more to life than this. That she had not been born to only suffer through life instead of live it. So she needed to confront her demons for herself, even if her relationship with them did not change one bit.

She grabbed her computer and her wallet. It was time to go home.

***

Raven’s eyes remained trained on her dad’s house across the street as she sat in her rental car. She was almost shocked that none of her family’s nosy neighbors had not called the police yet as she sat there for nearly an hour, summoning the courage to actually go inside.

She had felt so sure this was what she needed when she bought her plane ticket. And that confidence did not waver when she stepped onto the plane or during the long journey from LAX to Charlotte, NC. However, once she was in her rental car, she found herself waffling, aimlessly driving around for hours. Her brain seemed unable to direct her to the place she knew she needed to go. Home.

She just could not make herself do it… not yet anyway. So she did not. Instead, she finally went to her hotel to try to get some rest and her night’s rest turned into the entire Friday holed up in her hotel. She had not booked a return ticket, prayerful and hopeful that there would be a reason to stick around for a few days. But that also meant she did not have the incentive of time to make her move faster.

But she could not even make herself do this. Because she did not know how to be brave like this. Her life had been nothing but running from pain and confrontation. This was so contrary to that. She did not know how to do any of this. She tossed and turned all night, unable to get any sleep particularly when there was only one person who she wanted to talk to, wanted to seek courage and strength from. Because when she felt scared, when she did not feel strong, he was the only person she wanted to reach for. But she was not sure he would even answer. She had pushed him away, told him she needed space.

But she had not felt like she could do this alone. So last night, she called him.

“Rae! Everything ok?” he asked immediately, his question met with silence.

Raven did not know what to say and regret filled her like ice water in her veins. But she knew it was too late to hang up, she had to see it through. She paid for that moment of weakness when she hit the call button as her throat closed at the sound of her voice. She found it impossible to speak, even if she knew what words to say.

“I’ll wait until you’re ready, Rae. Got all night for you.”

And she knew he was not just talking about waiting for her to speak.

“Why?” she whispered, the simple word coming out in a strangled sound as she tried to push past the tightness in her throat.

“Why what?”

“Why even answer after everything I said to you? W-why do you keep trying?”

“Because I love you,” he answered simply. “And you’re worth it. I’ll keep reaching out, baby girl. Even when you swat me away.”

“You might be the only person who thinks that,” she whispered back as a tear fell.

“I don’t think that’s true. But even if it was, knowing one person is in your corner is all you need sometimes.”

She laughed lightly. “That press tour got you only speaking in motivational boxing terms or something?”

His deep laughter filled her ears and filled her soul with such joy that she had forgotten. She had forgotten what these moments felt like, the two of them on the phone or curled up together in bed, just talking. She missed it… she missed him. But she could not say it, could not bring herself to pull her body out of the water to make that long trek back up the cliff to where he waited for her. Everything in her brain screamed at her that she couldn’t do it, that she did not have it in her. And she hated herself for it. Hated how she clung to the ice barriers around her heart, even though they were utterly fractured and ready to fall. She just was not ready yet.

She let out a shuddering breath as she hastily wiped away her falling tears. “I… don’t know why I called. I s-shouldn’t have called.”

“Call me anytime, Rae. I’ll always answer. I’ll always show up for you. I hope you know that… at least.”

“Y-Yea… I think I do… or at least, it’s getting harder to deny it,” she revealed. “Your interview with Oprah… it was really good,” she offered lamely.

“You watched??” she could hear the surprise in his voice.

“Yea… I almost didn’t,” she admitted. “But I caught most of it. Did you mean it? Everything you said?”

“Every single word.” There was no arguing with the definitive tone in his voice. “I get that you don’t trust me anymore. I lied and kept secrets. But one thing I never lied about is how much I love you.”

Her eyes clenched shut for a moment. That was one thing he had always been consistent about, her ears had just been perpetually shut to it.

“I… um… I gotta go. Early day tomorrow,” she lied as she sniffled. “I’m sorry for bothering you. Bye, Michael.”

She was not sure what she had expected to get from that call and, at first, it felt as if she only got a firm kick in the heart for it. But for the first time since she landed, Raven had enough strength to finally drive to her family’s house. She had rolled her eyes at his boxing motivational quotes but hearing someone say they were in her corner, that had given her courage. To just feel like someone was behind her, even if she was alone, that meant something to her.

She took a deep breath and got out of her car, forcing her legs to carry her to the front door.

Her rounds of knocks went unanswered, Raven getting slightly frustrated but determined not to leave the porch. If she turned around and walked away, she’d never come back.

After an extremely brief internal debate, she decided to simply let herself in, deciding that since she contributed to the mortgage, she had a right to come in as she pleased. And her father still, foolishly, kept a spare key underneath the welcome mat.

Though she had not been to her family’s home in two years or so, it still looked the same. Her father’s favorite work boots were thrown haphazardly at the door, several pairs of her sister’s shoes lined up next to them. She was an utter mess but she was, at least, somewhat neat. And it still felt… cold. And it had nothing to do with the cold winter east coast weather. The house had always felt like that, void of warmth and love that made a home a home.

“Kiara?” she called out. “Dad?” However, she was met with utter silence.

Part of her supposed she was thankful they were not home and that they had not just ignored her or something. She stood in the living room, staring around the room at the pictures that lined the walls and shelves. So many of her mom, her dad, and Kiara but there were none of her. That was not a surprise, it had always been that way. But that did not make it sting any less. All they had ever wanted was to erase her from their lives and if a stranger walked into this house, it would be as if she never existed.

She started up the stairs, her eyes refusing to linger long on any of the photos there. They were all lies anyway, a picture perfect family that did not exist because she had been born. She decided to ascend to the attic once she made it upstairs. Because that was where all her grandmother’s and some of her own things now lived. She had never really gone through her grandmother’s things after she passed, no one aside from her dad to pack them up. But she knew there was so much of their lives, so many memories she had forgotten of the one person who loved her, forgotten in those boxes that she now desperately needed to remember.

She ignored how narrow the opening to the attic was, realizing that it had been easier to maneuver up here when she was a young teenager. Everything was still neatly packed away as if her grandmother would be back one day to pick it up.

She started to open each box, pulling out and examining her grandmother’s things, so many beautiful things forgotten in this attic no one went into. For the first time in nearly two decades, she felt close to the only maternal figure she had ever had, felt like her grandmother’s hand was on her shoulder as she reminisced on their short but well-lived time together.

She found the old costume jewelry her grandmother used to let her play with, laughing to herself as she thought back to dressing up in front of her vanity mirror pretending to be a model or whatever silly idea the pair had thought up. She almost cried as she found a very crumpled piece of paper with the last story she gave her grandmother to read before she died, a random short story that she had written for class. She had not realized, as she found a folder, just how many of her stories her grandmother had kept.

A gold glint caught her attention, Raven reaching into a giant box to find a shoe box. Raven had seen that box 100 times but her grandmother had never let her touch it, claiming that it held priceless family heirlooms that she did not want Raven or Kiara to mess up. Raven rolled her eyes that something her grandmother had valued so much had been discarded and forgotten haphazardly at the bottom of this box.

Finally giving into her childhood curiosity, she opened it. It was still filled with things, part of her thankful that Kiara had never found it. The jewelry and pieces in it were gorgeous and indeed priceless. She took her time as she examined each one, wondering if they had belonged to her mother or her grandmother or some other relative she never met. However, it was what existed underneath the jewelry that caught her eye: piles of tied up envelopes, one with her name on it and one with Kiara’s.

The handwriting was not her grandmother’s, which made Raven even more curious.

She pulled out the stack with her name on it and undid the thin ribbon that tied them together. There were ten letters there in total, each one with a different note scribbled on the envelope.

To Raven on your 18th birthday

To Raven on high school graduation

To Raven after your first love

To Raven after your first heartbreak

To Raven on college graduation

To Raven on your wedding day

She only had to flip through a few of them to realize who they were from. Her mom.

“You’re killing me,” she muttered to the sky, unsure if she was speaking to God, her grandmother, her mother or all three.

Her hands trembled slightly as she ripped open the one on top, addressed to her on her 18th birthday. These were some of the only words her mother would get to say to her, she did not care how long ago she should have read it. She would savor each one.

To my sweet darling girl,

If you are reading this, it means that I am not physically there with you on your birthday. It means that I’ve missed 18 birthdays and too many milestones to write a letter for and for that, I am sorry. You might be wondering why there is not a letter for all those milestones and birthdays that have taken place but this felt like the best place to start and the appropriate age for reading the musings of a dying woman. If there’s even such a thing.

We learned your gender today. Another sweet girl. If the doctor somehow got it wrong, these letters will be incredibly awkward. But I know they are right. Because you, my darling girl, are the manifestation of my wildest dreams. I dreamed of you almost a year ago, this beautiful girl with half my face but all of my spirit and personality. And every night since then, I prayed, begged God to make that dream a reality… no matter the cost. And he did.

I know my body is not strong enough to be your mother, to be around to be the mother someone as brilliant as you will deserve. But I hope you know that deciding to have you and keep you, regardless of the risks, is the single greatest decision I ever made. You were not an accident or a misfortune given to me. You are my dreams. And if my last moments on this earth are spent looking at you, it will have been worth it.

I waited until 18 to start these letters because I worried a child could never understand the choice I made. And you may still not. And if you resent me for leaving you before you could know me, I understand that too. But I hope that through these letters, you will get to know me. And you will feel some semblance of the immense love I have for you.

I don’t have much advice because you’ve likely heard it all at this point. But the two most important things I can tell you, that I wish someone had told 18 year old me, is to know that failure is part of the journey. Your grandmother used to always tell me to keep reaching out your hand even if it doesn’t work. I didn’t really understand it soon enough but I hope you do. Life is about risks and if you don’t reach out your hand out of fear, you’ll protect yourself from pain but you will also miss out on the gifts God is trying to hand you. As a daughter, I hated to admit it, but mama was right about that… and so many other things.

And finally, more importantly than anything else I could offer you in these letters, please remember every day that you are so, so loved.

Know that regardless of what happened to me, I loved you with every fiber of my being until my last breath. Know that you were a gift from God. And every day you venture out into this world, know that you are worthy of so much because you were so loved from the moment you were dreamed up. Do not let anyone or whatever will happen to you in what I pray is a long, rich, happy life diminish that light, diminish your worth. I know how special you are and I don’t even know your name yet. And while I hope that your father and grandmother will affirm you daily, you don’t need other people to tell you that you are special. You have to know it for yourself. That’s the most important advice I can give you. Know who you are and your worth and take up as much space in this world as you want. And as long as you never forget how special you are… how deserving you are, you’ll move through this world shining bright. And the world will be forced to know it too and move to give you what you deserve. It’s not much and a bit cliche perhaps but I’ve been torn down enough to know that sometimes we all need the reminder. But those are stories for another letter.

By the time I write my next letter, I promise I will have picked out a name for you. I read a book the other day where the main character was named Raven… I had not thought of it before but I like it.

Happy Birthday.

Love,

Mom

The river of tears streaming down Raven’s face splashed against the slanted handwriting on the page, Raven quickly whisking them away so the words would remain legible. Raven did not even know how long she sat there staring at the words on the page, her heart bursting with the knowledge that her mother’s hand had touched this very paper, that she had poured her heart and soul into every word etched into it.

It was like proof she had been real and not this entity Raven had conjured up in her head. Raven could not stop herself from ripping open all the ones that she should have gotten along the way. The one for her first love and the separate one on heartbreak were four pages each, and Raven did not pay attention to the clock as she absorbed each and every word.

Everything she had learned about her mother had been through her grandmother and she had always wondered if her grandmother told her things just to make her feel better. But she realized that her grandmother had been telling the truth, she and her mother were so much alike. She found herself nodding and laughing along to her mother’s stories and wisdom embedded in all those pages. She was a prolific storyteller too and an amazing writer, another trait Raven realized she must have inherited from her.

For the first time in 30 years, Raven did not feel weighed down by this unbearable guilt. She felt lighter than she had ever been in her entire life. Perhaps this was what God wanted her to find here, not a confrontation with her family, but these words. This tangible proof that her mother had chosen her, wanted her… loved her and that she had not ruined anything at all.

Her mother would not have wanted her to carry such guilt around for so long because there was nothing to be guilty about.

The letters were scattered across the attic floor when she heard the faint sound of their garage opening. She quickly folded up all of her letters and stuffed them back into the box, tucking it under her arm as she climbed out of the attic. She did not make much noise as she closed up the attic, just as she heard her father and sister close the garage door and enter the kitchen.

Their voices drifted up to her ears as she started to climb down the stairs, deciding that she might as well get the pure unpleasantness of this moment over with.

“Wait… you hear that? Is someone in the house??” she heard her sister ask, knowing that they both could hear her footsteps against the old floorboards.

“Don’t get your gun,” she called out as she started down the stairs. “It’s just me.”

She was greeted with less-than-welcoming expressions from her family, such disdain that it made her want to scurry away. But she did not. She had done enough of that in her life.

“Adding breaking and entering to your criminal activity, now?”

Raven scoffed as she placed the box on the kitchen counter that stood between her and her family.

“Don’t think you can break into a house you helped pay for?” she answered coolly. “And I’m not the one with a mug shot here if I remember correctly.”

“No you’re just the one who sold her cheap ass for a quick buck.”

Raven shook her head, opening and closing her mouth for a few moments as she tried to find the words.

“Yea I did… And I’m not proud of it,” Raven admitted. “But I won’t let you or anyone shame me for doing what I needed to do to survive. What helped the two of you survive too.” Raven scratched her head, realizing that trying to get closure from her family was unnecessary. Her mother’s words had given her all the closure she had ever needed. That’s what she had come home for.

“You know, I got a plane ready to rip you both a new one for 30 years of abuse and torture. To try to force you to admit that I’m not the villain you made me to be. But… I don’t need that anymore. Because the cross of guilt and shame you two forced onto my back for all these years isn’t one I should have to carry. But I did because I thought it was the only way to keep you two around. And even without you two in my life, I still drag that cross around because I thought I deserved it. But I realized today, way too late, that I don’t need a damn thing from either of you to put it down.”

“So you came here to what? To chastise us and steal?” her father asked, gesturing toward the box on the counter.

“You can’t steal things that belong to you. These are letters mom wrote to me,” she lifted the open letters out before sliding the unopened pile to her sister. “And to you.”

“Your mother wrote these?” he asked, his jaw tensing as he looked down at the stack.

“Yeah, she did. You’ll enjoy yours… she was a really good storyteller,” she glanced at Kiara. “These letters just told me something I should’ve realized long before Thanksgiving. That cross? That guilt? It isn’t mine. And I am done wasting my life trying to rectify the mistake of being born. Because it wasn’t a mistake. She chose me… prayed for a second daughter knowing the cost and she decided it was worth it. And hearing her say that? That’s all I need to know that I deserve so much more than this… so much more than you.” She took a deep breath. “Being a grieving husband isn’t an excuse to be a terrible father and I’ll just be grateful I found some way to survive you and this. And jealousy doesn’t give you the right to be a shitty sister.”

“What the fuck do I have to be jealous of??”

“I always wondered that. But reading those letters… I finally got it. Because even as a failed author and prostitute, I’m everything she was. Grandma used to always say I had her personality… her talent. I always thought she was lying to make me feel better. But you knew she wasn’t and you could never stand it. Couldn’t stand that I was more like her than you.” For the first time, her sister was speechless. A good look on her in Raven’s opinion. “Mom wanted so much better for me than this and I’m gonna go and find it. Because I’ve wasted too much energy trying to earn the love of people who don’t deserve it. So if you want to go to your graves hating me, making me the scapegoat for every problem in your miserable lives, have at it. But know that I don’t hate you even after all this. I won’t be weighed down anymore by any feelings toward either of you ever again. You aren’t worth it.”

Raven pulled herself to full height and rolled her shoulder back as she scooped up the box and folder she had taken from her grandmother’s stuff.

“Now I’m gonna go and have that long… rich and happy life mom wanted for me. And I hope you two do the same.”

She did not look behind her as she walked away, a soft smile on her face as she walked out of her family’s house for the last time.

She let out a long laugh as she sat in her car, so much of the weight she had been carrying around gone. It did not feel sad like when she cut off her family at Thanksgiving. She finally felt as if she had cut the anchor away and she could float away, she could move forward and heal all the broken pieces of herself that they had gleefully chipped away at.

When she got back to her hotel room, she just kept rereading her mom’s words. She would memorize each letter at this point. A part of her desperately wanted to open the other ones but she had not reached those milestones just yet so she left them where they were. For some reason, she worried her mother would disapprove of her breaking into them early.

One line of five letters she read and reread stuck to her bones above all else. And of course, as if her mother had known, it was embedded in the letter for her first love. Love… the thing that had cracked her wide open and brought her to this moment in the first place.

You’d be surprised to know that this was the hardest of the letters to write. Because everyone has some prolific idea of what love is and feels like. And I realized I don’t… because I don’t think I’ve ever experienced the love I pray you are as you read this. That’s not to say I don’t love your father, I do. But I want something different than convenience for you. I hope that the love you feel is safe, allows you to feel the full spectrum of what it means to be human - strong and vulnerable, insecure and confident, boisterous and timid. I hope it feels like stepping out of the cold air and into a warm embrace. I hope it is loud and unapologetic because you deserve nothing less. And I hope it makes you feel so enraptured that everything else in the world goes quiet. And lastly, I hope, more than anything, that it feels like home. That when you’re in this person’s embrace, you feel as if your soul finally landed right where it is supposed to be.

Her eyes scanned that passage over and over again, realizing that she had found the exact love her mother described. She had come back here thinking she was coming home. But this wasn’t home at all. Home was where he was. And he was back in LA, about to prepare for the biggest night of his life in 24 hours. And regardless of whatever trust needed to be rebuilt and conversations needed to be had, she could not allow herself to miss it. She could not allow herself to not show up for him.

Raven scrambled to find her phone as it was hidden beneath sheets of paper. She scrolled through, praying she had not deleted a long forgotten group thread that housed one number she had once thought she would never need but now was the most important phone number in the world.

She almost shouted praises to God when she found it, clicking the call button on the unsaved number. She paced up and down beside her bed as every agonizing ring dragged on.

“Didn’t think I’d see your name pop up on my phone ever again.”

Raven let out a sigh of relief as her voice filled her ears. “I know… me either. But I need a favor.”

“Does it involve a certain award show tomorrow night?”

“Yes. Is it too late?”

“Yea it is.” she knew Alex could hear the tiny sigh of sadness she let out. “For anyone but me. I’ve earned enough favors around here to create a miracle or two.”

“Really?? Cause I need like more than one or two miracles… a dress, hair, makeup… hell a flight from Charlotte to make it back in time. Without him knowing?”

“Consider all of it done. Hope you don’t mind getting up at the ass crack of dawn though.” Alex asked, Raven hearing the smile in her tone.

“For him… I’ll get up anytime.”

“Good. Then I'll take care of everything... I'll have to tell his mom but she'll love this. And probably be happy as hell that she doesn't have to go anymore. I'll text you details in an hour."

"An hour?? That's all you need??"

"You're new here so I'm gonna choose to not be offended by that."

"Noted." She was about to hang up when she stopped herself. “Hey… Alex? Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it. Seriously. Just make sure your ass is on that plane and in LAX tomorrow when Allen picks you up, got it?”

Raven chuckled. “Yea I got it. See you tomorrow.”

Tag List: @readinghere2023 @blackerthings @prettyisasprettydoes1306 @physicxal @purplehairgawdess @miyuhpapayuh @rueruesclues @geemamii @certifiedlesbianbaddie @pipsqueak-98 @nyifly22 @destinio1 @twocentaur @gopaperless @musicisme333 @roguekiki @majesticbrownjawn @taurusqueen83 @mysteryuz @miamormilan @itsknor-thedeep @naj-ay444 @mads-grace4 @nayaesworld @kholdkill @msniaimani @nccu-rnc @apenasumlug4r @dezzy154

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A/N: So now will y'all stop yelling at me LOLOL our good sis is going back to her man! We love to see it! How surprised do we think Michael's going to be? Part 11.2 will be the Oscars! Drop a comment and let me know what you thought! And as always, thanks for reading!

#black writers #michael b jordan #michael b jordan x oc #mbjordanedit #black panther #michael b jordan fanfic #michael b jordan x reader #creed 3 #adonis creed #creed iii

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stealingyourbones · 1 year

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So, I got this idea a while ago but I'm generally a slow writer so while I plan to do something with it, I thought I'd share it to see if anyone else liked the idea and wanted to play with it, too.

What if Fright Knight isn't the name of a specific ghost, but rather the position of body guard/General for the Ghost King? The one we meet in the show is who Pariah Dark chose.

I don't see Danny being ok with using the same Fright Knight as Pariah Dark. At all. So, in typical teen fashion, he ignores it and hopes he just won't have to deal with it. (He's also ignoring Clockwork's increasingly persistent demands he gets crowned.)

Flash forward and he's in Gotham. This could be part of a standard he gets adopted by Bruce Wayne fic. Maybe he and the bats know each other's secrets, maybe they don't. But Danny meets Jason for the first time and is all: "What the fuck brought you back to life?" This can be in front of the others for comedy or maybe he chases Jason down after the first meeting and does it in private for angst. Dealers choice.

Well, he drags Jason to the Far Frozen with half-baked explanations so Frostbite can fix his corrupted ectoplasm issue. And while there Jason gets a crash course in ghost biology.

With Danny in the Ghost Zone, Clockwork comes up and tries to force the coronation to happen. Takes one look at Jason and offers him the position of Fright Knight. Bribes him with the cool sword it comes with.

Jason accepts.

When they return to Gotham, Jason is super over protective of Danny. Mostly because he cured his pit rage, but also because it's his literal job now. He starts referring to Danny as King Brat or My Liege at all times.

If you like, he can also be all "Hey, dad" (some of his father issues went away with the pit rage) "So, I'm the general of an inter-dimensional army of beings that the US government has declared war on. I'm gonna have to fight on their side. So if we don't want an all out war waged on US soil, can we get the Justice League in on this to straighten things out?"

And Danny's like "No! No wars! I don't support this!"

And Jason is all "Sorry, My Liege, but my job is to keep you safe. And the US government attacked first. I don't need your permission to defend you and your people."

And everyone's just super confused until they all sit down with the League to go over the Anti-ecto laws.

Extra, extra bonus points. Jason helps create a study plan for Danny to learn the politics and history of the Ghost Zone along with finishing his normal schooling.

Ooooooo I enjoy your funky little mind thoughts sm.

Jason becoming Danny’s Fright Knight is something I dont think I’ve ever seen explored before. This is super cool.

It’d be neat to see the Fright Knight title slightly change Jason.

He’s now stronger, faster, able to think quicker, higher endurance, anything that could benefit him in martial or long range combat to protect his king? He gets a slight buff of said abilities. The title is something granted to one chosen person by the Ghost King, that position has a bit of ghost magic bullshittery tacked onto it.

Jason is much more alert and aware of Danny at all times, almost like a second sense. He’s extra protective because the title requires him to be but he also is extra protective because the Fright Knight title MAKES him protective. It’s an ingrained sense info his entire being now. Its his sworn duty to protect the King.

#danny phantom #dp x dc #dc comics #writing prompts #dp x dc prompt #dpxdc #bones replies #wolfjackle

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honey-minded-hivemind · 1 month

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Hello! I was taking pictures of my cat and it got me thinking about the fallen snow au and the giant cat room you mentioned. I was wondering if you could make a little post of everyone reacting to reader sleeping in the cat room like this

No rush of course! Keep up the great writing ❤️

Oooooooh my heavens, look at that lil' bby!!!😍 They are so precious!!! And I can try to make a reaction headcanons list to how the different platonic yans act if they see Creed!Reader sleeping like this!!! Let's try it:

• Sabretooth would be purring, seeing his cub curled up like that. The guy would likely curl up with Reader, hissing if anyone who wasn't the other kids or his brother came close

• Wolverine would likely be having a cuteness meltdown on the inside (He does whenever he sees any of his cubs or pups doing something cute, he just shortcircuits on the outside for a second or two)

• Laura and Kyle (X-23 and Wild Child) would immediately be lying diwn next to Reader and hugging them like they were a stuffed animal. They woukd look like a pile of kittens or puppies sleeping together, not gonna lie

• If Scott or Jean saw them, they'd be taking pictures/mentally telling the Professor about it. They'd be trading the photos like trading cards, too

• Pietro and Wanda would be blushing, then asking if they can join the cuddle pile. Would find a way to steal Reader into their room if they knew they wouldn't face the wrath of the feral kids

• Rogue and Evan would just lay down without asking or taking no for for answer, and making themselves comfortable. They don't care what anyone says, for once Reader isn't aware enough enough run or hide, so they're hugging them, no ifs, ands, or buts

• The Professor would have pictures taken. He'd He'd also have Hank/Beast working on a new drug/medicine for the ferals, to help them fall into their instincts and to feel happy and calm. Is also able to read Reader's mind for once, since their mental walls are down, so he looks through everything that has happened to them, from their past to the after their escape to the present time

• Magneto would try to move Reader to his and his kids special room, then finds that he has to fight every feral and sleepy kid who joined them (even if they weren't allowed in the special feral room)

• Hank/Beast is working on a new set of drugs, sedatives, and medicines for the Reader and other ferals, to help them fall into their instincts easier, to help them feel calm, even to make them a little loopy/to lower their shields a bit. He asks if he can join, and when he promises to make an extra tracking device for Reader, is let into the snuggle pile

• Storm is let in, no questions asked, as Wolverine and Laura and Evan like her and view her as family. And because she could drop a snowstorm on Wolverine and Sabretooth and make it so she was the only adult allowed to be with the kids. So no one stops her if she joins them

• Mystique would try and sneak in. She wouod be caught, and depending on who catches her, woukd either be allowed to stay or (politely) thrown out

• The innocent teens (Kurt, Kitty, Toad, Fred, and Lance) would want to join, despite not knowing Reader well. They would be asked to wait a bit, and let the adults see if Reader will be up to it later (they want to make sure the drug/sedative still works well enough, and make sure Reader doesn't feel freaked out over having new packmates)

• Gambit, Colossus, Pyro, and Tabby are told they can join the other teens while waiting, and that in a few days they'll try and see if Reader is still up for it

• The ferals eventually say "scr*w it!" and kick everyone out, since they want time with THEIR cub/littermate, and everyone else can have their turn once they've had their's. They want to enjoy being with Reader, especially since they feel extra guilt at being related to Reader yet never helping them when they needed it most. So if they can offer comfort and warmth (and the adults can nurse them), then they'll take that chance

• The photos of sleeping Reader become trading cards, and soon, everyone tries to get photos of Reader when they're relaxed or just unaware. What can they say? They're cute, even if they are rather skittish and act like a (literal) feral kitten who's never been hugged. Of course, they now need to hide the cards from Reader, so as not to seem weird or even more avoided than they already are...

(Whoops! I, um... maaaybe did this for the ❄Milky Snow🍼 AU)... But it CAN be read for ❄Fallen Snow🩸 AU, too... Whichever one you prefer!!)

#honeycomb thoughts #platonic yandere marvel #yandere platonic marvel #platonic yandere xmen #yandere x-men #yandere platonic xmen #yandere platonic xmen evolution #platonic yandere xmen evolution #platonic yandere xmen evolution au #❄fallen snow🩸 au #❄milky snow🍼 au #platonic yandere #platonic yandere x reader #platonic yandere marvel x reader #creed!reader

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gabessquishytum · 8 months

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Okay, hear me out I don’t know if anyone is gonna be into this except me but all the shy warprize Hob got me thinking…

Confident slutty warprize Hob and shy king Dream.

Hob’s kingdom offers him up after being told that the Dream King has never been seen with a concubine or consort or anything like that so they’re like “perfect! He obviously will be happy to have one!” Hob is fucking stoked because the Dream King is gorgeous and he gets to live in a palace and have sex with him as a living now? Sign him up.

So they show up and show Dream his pretty little present and Dream is… still gorgeous but also so painfully awkward. He’s clearly trying so hard to be polite and gracious but he also clearly doesn’t know what to do with his hands (he’s doing that famous Dream pose: 🧍‍♂️). Hob gets passed off, and sent to Dream’s chambers, and Hob is waiting, vibrating with excitement because hell yeah, he gets to fuck a king, and everyone knows the quiet ones are always wild in bed, right?

So he waits.

And waits.

And eventually falls asleep and then wakes up, absolutely appalled at how un-fucked he is and, with a confidence no warprize should ever possess, stalks out of the room and starts harassing the nearest guard about where the FUCK the king and his kingly dick is. The guard is too surprised to be tough or authoritative and tells him that the King requested to sleep in a separate room last night.

Now at first, Hob is very sad. Like “oh :((( he doesn’t like me :(( I’m not his type :(((((“ but eventually, he snaps out of it like “no! I’m EVERYONE’S type!!” and becomes determined to live out his slutty dreams.

He spends a day or two getting pampered, made up and pretty with silks and jewels and perfumes, and then he tracks down the Dream King because Hob hasn’t been fucked in like a week and he’s about to lose his damn mind.

In direct contrast to Hob’s slinky, revealing robes, Dream’s outfit is buttoned all the way up his neck to his chin, and his sleeves reveal only the very tips of his fingers. He’s confident in kingly things, but every time Hob takes a step towards him he is taking three elegant steps back. The one time Hob managed to come up behind him and brush a hand across his shoulder the King jumped so high he nearly hit the ceiling. Despite the horny haze, Hob is starting to piece together that there is maybe something else going on here.

So he pauses his seduction attempts and they start talking, and it’s slow going, but he eventually manages to gather (through Dream, castle gossip, trusted advisors, etc) that Dream has capital T trauma from before he became king- he hates being undressed, and he’s clearly touch-starved but he’s too skittish and scared to let anyone touch him long enough to do anything about it (which of course only makes it worse and it turns into a vicious cycle). And Hob really wants to have sex with this guy but he’s also come to care for him so he figures he doesn’t mind just masturbating excessively while taking a few extra steps for his King/friend/someday lover.

He starts slow and simple, at first mostly trying to get Dream to touch him- inviting him to feel the smooth fabric of Hob’s newest robe, or asking him to help with the clasp of a necklace or the back of a dress. Then he offers to help brush Dream’s hair, and at the end he places a gentle kiss to the back of his neck and Dream practically falls out of his seat jumping away from him, and Hob thinks he’s ruined everything, but Dream comes back the next day, shyly requesting that he do his hair again, and this time when Hob kisses his neck he shudders and tenses but doesn’t jump away.

I think their sexual relationship would start with Hob inviting Dream to watch him masturbate and then asking to watch Dream touch himself too when he notices how hard he’s gotten just watching Hob. And he’s very clear that he absolutely doesn’t have to undress if he doesn’t want to, he can even just rub himself through his clothes, Hob doesn’t care as long as Dream is comfortable and he gets to see what he looks like when he comes. Dream’s never had anyone be so patient and understanding with him and that alone is honestly such a turn on.

It still takes a long time, but eventually Dream is able to lay back, fully covered except for his dick so that Hob can ride him. It’s the most satisfying sex either of them have ever had and honestly, Hob kind of loves the way his cum looks splattered all over Dream’s dark, royal clothing.

-🦇

Literally yelling about this!!! You've filled this out with so many wonderful details and I just love it. I feel like I can really get into Hob’s mindset here, thanks to the way you've described him. I especially adore Hob being so confident and the "I'm everyone's type" part akansndnen. Love him <33333

Also!!! King Dream having trauma!!! This is a great angle and it works so well!! He's been through terrible shit and now he's king so he has to be strong, and he doesn't have time to unpack everything :((( but Hob really genuinely wants to help him and give him the intimate relationship that he really deserves!!

Hob somewhat ironically becomes Dream’s greatest protector. He may be a warprize and he may dress as slutty as he can, but hes still as feisty as ever. Whenever anyone upsets Dream or makes some nasty implication about him, Hob seems to appear out of nowhere. He'll put his body between Dream and whoever has been upsetting him, and bare his teeth in the most unfriendly smile. No, nasty ambassador from rival kingdom, he is not happy to see you. That is a dagger strapped under his lacey, revealing robe.

After hes finished threatening whoever dared to upset his King, Hob slips back into place to tenderly massage Dream’s hands, or stroke his hair. Dream is still getting used to these gentle touches, but he finds it much easier to cope now. Hob never pressures him, never pushes at his boundaries. He's happy as long as Dream is comfortable. Besides, Dream doesn't even need to get undressed to be a wonderful and attentive lover. He's the best that Hob has ever had, and the fact that he's slowly recovering and blooming into a happier version of himself is the sexiest thing of all.

#🦇 anon #the sandman #dreamling #nsft #warprize hob

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ninjaneonleon · 3 months

Text

Arrival

Here's my little bit of propaganda for the @tmntaucompetition before we really get underway!

--------

Leo took a breath before looking around. The last thing he remembered was hanging out in Japan with his bros and everyone else, now he was… somewhere else. At least his brothers were here, and so was Yuichi, Casey, CJ, Mona, April and Juan. They seemed to be in some sort of arena that looked vaguely familiar. Had Leo been here before?

“Wait, I remember this place!” Mikey cried suddenly. “Remember when we met all those alternate dimension versions of ourselves? It’s like that!” It took a moment for Leo to remember. That’s right, he had met a lot of other versions of him, a lot of them very traumatised. He hadn’t known about the Kraang back then, hadn’t known why the older versions of himself had lost arms or looked so haunted. He didn’t get why a lot of them had cried and clung to his brothers like they were the most important people on earth. Well, that part he understood, but not the crying part. He understood now. He wished he didn’t. Idly he wondered what had happened to that older Leo and Mikey he had hung out with, Angelo and Leon they had called themselves. He hoped things were going well for them, they were cool. “Raph remembers now! How are we here again?” Raph asked, looking around. “Isn’t it obvious?” Donnie asked with a grin. He posed and sparkled. “Clearly we’re some of the more popular versions of our counterparts. We’re in some sort of competition because we’re clearly the best. And with our more complicated designs and fashionable accessories–” he flipped the edge of his shawl for emphasis. “We’re perfectly marketable and easily recognisable.” “You guys have been here before?” Yuichi asked, looking around in awe. “Wait, do you think there are other versions of me here? What about Momo and CJ? April? Juan?” “I know we’ve seen other versions of April,” Mikey said thoughtfully. “And there were older Leo’s so there has to be other CJs here too, and Caseys are a given. I dunno about Momos and Juans though, they seem pretty unique to our universe so far.” “Of course I’m a given, I’m Casey Jones!” Casey cried, posing with the hockey stick she somehow brought out of nowhere. “And naturally, I'm gonna be the coolest of all other Caseys!” “Well we won’t know that for sure until we talk to some people! You guys wait here, I’m gonna see if I can find our friends from before–” Leo cut himself off as he glanced around. “Wait, I see some! Hey! Gemini! It’s good to see you again!” The two turtle twins looked over in unison. They glanced around before walking over, with the alternate Leo giving a friendly wave and the alternate Donnie giving a polite nod. “It’s great to see you guys again too. Didn’t think we’d be back here again, things have gotten a little… restrictive recently,” Leo Gemini said. Leo flinched, remembering that these two had been raised by Big Mama in their universe. That was something Leo could relate to now. He wondered if that meant they’d have more in common now. “I can imagine. Anyway, it’s great to see you again Gemini. Gemini. Hopefully we don’t get our asses handed to us too badly by you guys again.” He gave the twins both a nod and a bright grin before they wandered off. Juan stayed plastered to Donnie’s side, but his eyes did follow after Gemini Donnie appreciatively. Leo suspected that his Donnie was about to get a little more hostile to the witchy soft shell. “They seemed nice,” Mona said, peering after them. She hadn’t let go of Raph or CJ’s hands since getting her bearings. “But they seemed strong. Hopefully we’re not against them in the first round…”

“Well, since we’re here, let’s look around. See if we can find any familiar faces and maybe make some new friends while we wait for everything to start,” Raph offered with a grin. He squeezed Mona’s hand. “After all, we dunno who we’re gonna be up against and what we’re doing. Let’s get comfy before we get too caught up in the contests.” “Sounds like a good idea, big guy,” April agreed with a nod. “Okay, listen up! We’ll make this corner our home base, we meet back here in one hour or when the next announcement comes out. Got it?” Everyone nodded. “Great, now go have fun, make some friends and let’s make sure to win this!”

-----------

Angelo and Leon are from our friend @newellthedragon

The lovely Gemini twins are from the always remarkable @tangledinink

#rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #surp-rise!au #tmntaucompetition #propaganda

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boopshoops · 20 days

Note

🥣

🥰

🏘️

For Jojo, Shishi, and Ezzie (The Twst OCs ;w;) for the OC Ask meme)

Similarly to the last post!! This is color coded: me/narrator as default, blue as Jocia, and green as Ezra

🥣what's your favorite food?

"So this is some sort of interview? Alright then," Jocia gruffly responded, slouching over in her seat upon realizing the question was actually rather simple. She grinned, "Bulgogi's a fav. It's something my sister showed me when we were kids. Apparently she was trying to learn more about our family history or somethin', did a damn lot of research too."

"It's not something I looked much into myself, but I'm a complete sucker for anything barbecued or grilled. I think... Oh yeah, we tried it out on a camping trip. I stole some of hers off her plate," Jocia chuckled, scratching at the back of her head as she reminisced, "I gave her hell during that trip. Wouldn't be surprised if that's why we never did something like that again. Made it up to her later, though."

"Ooh! How fun!" The professor exclaimed with a sharp-toothed grin, "Let's see, should I go into detail? I don't see why not. You're supposedly looking into learning more about me after all, little sprout," He cheerfully pondered aloud, politely folding his hands in his lap.

"My favorite dish is Pasta Alla Gricia. It's absolutely divine. With most of the foods I like, they've unfortunately been changing and shifting in ways I'm simply not a fan of with the passage of time. BUT! With this? It's only gotten better since the first time I tried it one hundred years ago! I'll gladly buy you some sometime, little sapling. Oh! Perhaps I can get some for the whole class... Like a day of celebration after one of our competitions! It's important for student's to destress, after all!~" Ezra hummed to himself with a firm nod.

🥰do you think you're attractive?

"Uh..." The woman droned on, crossing her arms over her chest. She offered a casual nod after perusing her own thoughts, "Like, physically? Sure, yeah," She bluntly answered.

"It's not really something I've thought too much of before. I guess looking in the mirror and seeing how far I've come gives me something to be proud of. Especially since I'm... not the best at styling. Everyone else in the family got all that."

"But, hell, I've worked hard on myself. Even if working out and such is more of a chill hobby of mine, I'm still confident in how I'm built. Not to mention I can see little parts of the people around me in myself too, yeah? Like- an old friend of mine regularly helps me dye my hair, and I got my piercings at the same time as my brother. If I didn't like those parts of myself, it feels kinda like a dig on them too. No matter whatcha think anyway, there are gonna be people out there who think you're pretty sick."

"...Eh, I'm not good at getting all sappy."

Ezra blinked, his drawing his lips into a line. His brows furrowed, "This is a difficult question to be modest about, isn't it?" He awkwardly chuckled, bringing a hand up to massage his temple.

"Oh, I don't know. I have a lot of things I have to work on, truly. It's quite an ordeal. Not that I'm not proud of my appearance! After all, a lot of it was greatly inspired by my late father."

"...Ah! I forgot to mention- I'm a changeling fae, of course. I'm not the biggest fan of shapeshifting, however, so I try my best to correlate my appearance to my adoptive human family. In that way, I suppose topics such as 'attractiveness' are a bit more complicated to someone like me, dear," He finished, dodging and weaving around the actual question through his rambles.

🏘️where's your happy place?

Jocia brightened up a bit at this, smirking as the answer came easily, "With my siblings," she replied briefly.

"They're fun as hell to be around. We got each other's backs. They're a bunch of little shits sometimes, but we know each other better than anyone else," She paused, "At least... most of us. More of a reason for me to get home, as if I didn't need any more of one already."

"My classroom, of course! Oh, it's so fun!" The teacher excitedly replied, eccentrically taking the time to pop up out of his seat and lean over the table, "It's where I spend most of my time! Working with students in bloom, watching their talents grow, listening to my favorite stars sing broadway, tending to my adorable potted plants..." He babbled on endlessly, happily explaining to no end.

"...I haven't been here for very long, that is true, but it has very quickly become my favorite place to be. So much so I often get caught up in things and forget to attend meetings. I suppose me and the other fae individuals here have that in common... I'm working on that, however! Got to make sure my memory is in top condition!"

"Is that it? 'Kay. Be seeing ya."

"This was very pleasant! Thank you kindly for inviting me."

Ask Game!

Yuu Shi's responses are here

#boopshoopsramblings #twisted wonderland #boopshoopsoc #twst #twst oc #disney twst #oc #twst wonderland #original character #oc art #jocia gains #ezra goldspire #tcoav #boopshoopswriting

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cummin-n-cryin · 2 years

Note

Second part of the bride ask but with Riddle, Azul and Vil pls? Thank

~Thank you for your request!

Together Forever! -- part 2!

Riddle Rosehearts + Azul Ashengrotto + Vil Schoenheit x gn!reader (all separate)

Tw: Yandere, obsession, forced marriage, a lil bit of stalking?

Side Note: My requests are open! I'm out of requests after this fic gets posted so feel free to send me requests and stuff! I literally can't write without requests lmao. I just wanna say thank you to everyone who has reblogged/liked/commented on my posts, it means the world to me and it encourages me to keep writing! Seeing Together Forever! get over 150 notes blew my mind and I'm just super happy you all enjoyed it so much! Thank you again and i hope you enjoy part 2!

~Riddle Rosehearts~

Riddle is conflicted about you. As he watches you from a distance, he can't help but to contemplate his emotions for you. There was this specific feeling that he would get when he looked at you and over time it felt like it was almost... slowly devouring him. What was this feeling?

Riddle had requested you to help Deuce and Ace paint the roses. You were meticulous. You rarely messed up anything he asked of you and almost always did everything perfectly. Not only that, but you were so kind, polite, and most notably, you were not afraid of him like the others.

Whenever you were there for tea parties he would always reserve you a chair right next to his. That way he can hear you better, of course!

He would ask you about your life; how you were doing at Ramshackle, how your studying was going, and other things about yourself. However, you would also ask him questions. It made him excited to think that you cared about him.

There were times where Trey or Cater made teasing comments about his attitude towards you, saying how he seemed to have a "soft spot for you" and how "red in the face" he would get whenever you complimented him. Cater had asked him if he was in love with you. Riddle immediately denied being in love with you and that if Cater wanted to be treated as nice as you then maybe he should do his job correctly. How absurd, him in love with you?

Riddle would also offer to help you with your studies. He has one of the best grades in NRC, so it was only natural that he should help you. He always tried to help you with anything else he could as well. He wanted to be near you all the time, but he also had to follow the Queen of Hearts rules.

He wants you so bad and he doesn't know why. Riddle's feelings kept growing bigger and stronger, and yet he still couldn't name what it was that he felt for you.

At least until today...

Here he was, dressed in a crimson colored suit watching you as you laugh at the antics of Ace, Deuce, and Grim. To say Riddle was irritated would be an understatement. He was about ready to burst a blood vessel watching you hang out with those three. He doesn't know how, why, or even when he got so possessive over you, but honestly right now he was too blinded by his own barely suppressed anger to question these feelings.

He knew he just needed to get you away from them.

Riddle being as open and honest with you as he was, it was inevitable that you would ask about his family life, and of course he told you all about his parents and more specifically his mother. He didn't like to talk about his parents but the way you put your hand on his arm, looking deep into his eyes with sympathy and kindness, telling him how he could always vent to you if he needed to, that you would always be there if he needed someone to talk to, made him feel listened to for the first time.

Yes, he was gonna make sure that you would always be here with him, and he knew that this "marriage event" being hosted at the school was a perfect opportunity.

Riddle didn't have to wait too long to make a move as you had left the trio on your own. You left into one of the hallways of the school and Riddle quickly followed you.

"Y/n! There's something we need to discuss."

Riddle never imagined himself lying to you, but how else was he supposed to convince you to marry him? He told you that his mother had been bothering him about finding a partner lately, and that if you could help him make her leave him alone even just for a couple of weeks, he would be extremely grateful. He made you believe that the marriage wasn't real and it was purely just for getting his mother to leave him alone. You fell for it easily, being the sympathetic and kind person you were.

He was overjoyed. The marriage went exactly as he wanted it to. When Riddle first saw you in your new outfit he was completely enthralled. He couldn't take his eyes away from you. When you caught him staring was when he reluctantly tore his eyes away, quickly saying how you looked very lovely.

He did expect you to be upset knowing he lied, and as your tears flowed down your face, he kissed them away one by one before he finally placed his lips upon yours. This was the moment he finally realized that Cater was right, he loved you. Everyday he will prove to you that he was the best choice. There is no way back now.

And to all those who may try to take you from him, it will be off with their heads!

"I love you my King of Hearts. Now, promise to never leave me."

~Azul Ashengrotto~

Azul has been watching you for awhile now. He sees potential in you, your ability to solve other people's problems, and your ability to tolerate the antics of Ace, Deuce, and Grim is truly phenomenal. Also, being on the good side of so many people in NRC surely has it's benefits. He wants to get you to sign one of his contracts as your abilities could be... useful.

Unfortunately for Azul, he didn't actually know that much about you. So he sent his two "companions" Jade and Floyd to gather information about you, as he is a very busy man and doesn't have all day to watch you himself.

After seeing you in multiple classes of his, and having gathered as much information as he could about you, he made his move. In potions class was the first time he approached you. Even though you told Azul you didn't need help, he made himself your partner and went on to help you with the class anyway, and in every class you two ended up in he would try to help you there as well, saying it was out of the "kindness of his heart".

(obviously that's a lie...)

Over time as he tried to interact with you more and more. He grew much closer to you and eventually, you started to have full conversations with him. He was ecstatic! With you finally starting to talk to him he was one step closer to using you for his own plan- I mean using your excellent communication skills to better his relationship with everyone else at the school. He just had such a hard time getting people to trust him... sigh, how unfortunate...

However over time he grew more and more curious about you. He was starting to genuinely care about your opinions, and was curious to hear what you had to say about different topics (especially if it was about him). He also realized you were intelligent, kind, and surprisingly, weren't as foolish as he first thought. Not only that but you were quite witty and amusing. He had started to take a special interest in you.

As you two talked more and became what one could consider friends, Azul realized he started to think of you constantly. He was always wondering where you were, what you were doing, and how you were doing. He was becoming frustrated, you were always on his mind and he hated it. Even at night he tossed and turned in his sleep thinking about you. He wanted you, and he wanted you badly. He needed to have you, to keep you.

Azul had tried to convince you to make a deal with him for a long time now, but you always refused to sign any contract he offered to you. You always rejected him politely saying how you didn't need his help or some other pitiful excuse. He needed you to sign his contract, he needed to make you his. He was running out of ideas at this point, he just couldn't figure out how to make you sign his contract.

Luckily, he didn't need to keep thinking about it for too much longer.

A "marriage event", being hosted at NRC? This was just spectacular!

Azul watched you from the sidelines as you talked to a couple of students. The students however were getting very... handsy with you. They kept trying to lean closer to you. You looked like you were getting more and more uncomfortable by the minute. He watched on as his anger bubbled in the back of his throat. He wanted to tell them off, but knowing better he held his tongue and continued to watch. Finally, you turned and quickly left the group. This was his chance, it's now or never!

Azul silently followed you out into the empty hallway you had escaped to, he approached from behind and tapped you on the shoulder.

"I saw you run from your group of "friends", did something bad happen? Go on, you can tell me all about what's troubling you."

Azul listens intently to you as you tell him what happened. He feels his anger boil once again as you describe how they were making you feel so uncomfortable. After you're done speaking, Azul tells you how terrible those people are for trying to hurt a kind soul like you.

But Azul can fix this for you... he offers you a deal, if you "marry him" at the end of this night he will give you anything you could possibly wish for, and he will make sure to send Jade and Floyd to go teach those fools a lesson.

Of course he expects you to be hesitant, but he reminds you that this whole event is fake, remember? So you're not going to be actually married, and it's just for one night so, it's not that bad of a deal, right?

Seeing how desperate you were to get those people away from you, you ended up signing the contract. Thank the Sea Witch, as Azul was starting to doubt himself there!

The wedding itself was kept short and simple. He placed the ring on your finger, and you both said your vows. Finally at the end of it all he takes you to Mostro Lounge to serve you dinner for putting up with everything. He had to admit he didn't think he would get this far, but he wasn't going to complain.

When you finally started to sway in your seat was when he decided to tell you that he had lied to you. Your shocked face amused him greatly, and when you started to cry and yell about how cruel Azul was for tricking you, he gently grabbed you and greedily placed his lips upon yours. He wanted more... He wasn't going to be satisfied with just this.

You fell to the ground not too long after he kissed you. Being the cunning octopus he was, he predicted how you'd react to the news and had drugged your food. Putting you to sleep so that he could carry you to his bedroom for the time being, and once you wake up he's sure you'll have a lot of questions to ask him.

It was for the best. You'll learn to love him eventually.

"Oh you poor, unfortunate soul. Everything you have is mine to take, including your love."

~Vil Schoenheit~

Vil really didn't think much of you at first, you were just another student to him.

But there was something about you that captured his attention. There was this... confidence about you, this hidden beauty perhaps? As much as Vil wanted to observe this hidden beauty himself he was too busy to do so, so he requested Rook to "watch you" for him.

From what Rook has told him, you were usually hanging out with Ace, Deuce, and Grim. Those three were troublemakers, noisy and disruptive, causing problems wherever they went. And here you were fixing every mistake they made. Why? He knew you could do better than them. A beauty like you shouldn't be around such potatoes.

Those three weren't worth your time, and he was gonna make you see that.

He had invited you to the Pomefiore dorm, offering to help you with your clothes and makeup, and to give you a break from those three nuisances. His main intention however was to talk to you and to get closer to you, so that maybe with you so close to him he will finally understand what this strange beauty of yours was.

You always seemed to enjoy the pampering he gave you and your talks were always pleasant. Over time, as he invited you to the dorm more, you two grew closer and closer.

He couldn't lie after you spent so much time with him, your confidence and beauty just seemed to grow. Of course this was expected. His skills in fashion, makeup, and everything else beautiful was simply remarkable, as Rook would often tell him.

However, Vil's plans of getting even closer to you were crumbled, when a certain event at NRC took place.

A "marriage event" was what it was, and apparently you were the main focus of this event. Oh, how interesting...

Vil offered to help you with your clothing and makeup as soon as he heard about it, and being so close together now, you accepted his help graciously.

He had to admit this had to be one of his finest works yet. You were god-like in your beauty, you easily outshined all the other people here, besides him of course. Graceful like a swan and head held high, he watched on in awe of his work. He suddenly came to a realization, your beauty was unmatched, you were the most gorgeous person he has ever met, and would probably ever meet in his lifetime.

He had to keep you. Only he knows how to make you shine like this, only he knows how to make you even more beautiful than this. He knew the perfect way to keep you by his side... forever.

Vil saw you chatting with a group of boys and walked up to you. He whispered for you to follow him out into the empty hallway, saying that your makeup had been smudged and he needed to fix it. He would settle for nothing less that absolute perfection.

As Vil "fixed" your makeup he gently proposed an idea. He told you how you looked stressed talking to those boys, and how you honestly just looked stressed about this whole event in general. But, he can make the night go by a little bit faster, instead of wasting your time looking for a boy, why don't you just "marry" him instead, hmm?

Of course you're surprised by his offer but considering this whole event is fake and that no one is actually getting married, his offer doesn't seem so bad. Besides Vil is a good friend of yours now, isn't he?

He wasn't too surprised by how easily you agreed, after all with how much information Rook was able to gather about your personality and interests, it was mere child's play to get you to trust him.

The wedding went smoothly as planned. Of course, Rook was there singing praises and yelling something or other about beauty. (as he typically does...)

And when you came crying to Vil the next day, shoving your phone in his face, he saw your marriage was trending on Magicam! Now the whole world knows who you belong to. And before you could ask anymore ridiculous questions, he leaned in and hushed you with a kiss.

He was doing what was best for you, you just couldn't see that yet.

"Together we will show those potatoes what true beauty is. We will be the fairest of them all."

#yandere twst x reader #yandere twst #yandere twisted wonderland #riddle rosehearts #azul ashengrotto #vil schoenheit #tw yandere

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enchxanting · 11 months

Text

our love is god [ethan landry] pt. 7

read part 6 here || all parts

pairing: ethan landry x fem!reader

warnings: strong language, reckless driving, family angst

a/n: heyyyy. sorry this took so long i wrote and unwrote it like four times. the action is going to pick up soon, but for now, have some family angst and crazy ethan. dm me to be added to the taglist

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Are you going to Tara’s funeral tomorrow?” Ethan asks me.

It’s been six days since her death. Since my freak-out in the locker room, I’ve been ghosting my friends and skipping in-school therapy sessions. Instead, Ethan and I have taken to spending our afternoons at his house, mostly watching shitty TV and making out, to be completely honest.

I untangle myself from under his arm, leaning back into the couch. “Yeah. My parents are coming, too. Why?”

“I don’t know. I thought we could skip together, or something.”

“Are you kidding?.”

“No, I’m dead serious. Should we even be there?”

My throat feels dry. “She was my best friend, Ethan. It doesn’t matter what happened in the end.”

He sighs. “It’s a great example of dramatic irony, I’ll give you that, but doesn’t it feel a little fucked up? We could stay here, rent a movie or something.”

He grins reassuringly as he says this, and it makes me nauseous. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Besides, everyone’s expecting me to be there.”

Ethan seems upset by my rejection, but before he can say anything else we’re interrupted by the sound of the front door opening. I turn to see a gray-haired man coming through the entryway.

I assume this is Ethan’s dad (they have the same dark eyes), but he walks past the couch without an introduction.

Ethan sighs. “Hey, son. Didn’t know you were home yet”

“Hey, Dad. Didn’t hear you come in,” he replies, settling into the nearby armchair.

Ethan clears his throat. “So, how was work, then?”

“It was miserable,” Detective Bailey sighs. “Some psycho put a bomb threat on the welcome center today. Said they put a bomb in the boiler room that was gonna set off thermals on the upper floors. It was all talk, of course– these idiots never have the guts to follow through. But it was a pain in my ass, of course.”

Something about the way he talks about these bombs unnerves me. Still, I smile politely, not wanting to make a bad impression.

“Gee, Dad,” he continues, “I nearly forgot to introduce you to my girlfriend.” Ethan goes red, but I can’t pretend like I don’t like that label.

“Hi, Detective Bailey,” I say. “I’m Y/N, I’m Ethan’s classmate.”

“Nice to meet you,” he says, eyeing me up and down. He’s very methodical in the way he looks me over, clearly experienced from years in the force.

We all sit in awkward silence for a minute, until Ethan turns back to me. “Hey, what if you stay for dinner?”

As much as I want to say yes, the thought of spending any more time around Detective Bailey dissuades me from accepting his offer. “Sorry, I can’t. I have to get ready for tomorrow, and my mom’s making my favorite for dinner.” Detective Bailey scoffs at this. “How nice. The last time I saw your mom, Ethan, she was waving out of the back of a car as she drove off into the sunset. Where was that? Nevada? Sacramento?”

Ethan tenses. “I’m going to drive her home, Dad.”

“Be my guest,” he mumbles, and Ethan all but pushes me through the doorway and into his car.

“Right,” I say when we’re on the road. “I’m, uh, sorry about your dad.”

“Don’t be,” Ethan says through gritted teeth. “He’s been all sorts of weird since we lost our brother.”

“Jesus, Ethan. You didn’t tell me about that.”

“Well, if we’re airing our family business, I might as well. That’s why my mom left, too. Couldn’t deal with the memory of him.”

“I’m sorry.”

Ethan laughs without humor. “Well, it’s not like you were the one who killed him, huh?”

This strikes me as a strange thing to say, but I’m probably not in a position to judge. Instead, I reach over and place a hand on his thigh.

“Thank you, then. For being here for me right now. I would be locked up without you.”

He softens again, back to the Ethan I’m familiar with. “Always.”

I see him looking at me in his peripheral vision, so I give him a soft smile. He stares at me for a moment, and maybe everything is going to be alright.

Then he floors the gas, and we’re barrelling down the street.

“Ethan, what the fuck?” I say. “Slow down!”

But he doesn’t slow down. He keeps going. We whiz down the center of town, where, luckily, very few people are out.

I see my street fly by, and I look at him in mixed confusion and desperation. His eyes are wild in a way I haven’t seen before.

I try one more time. “For the love of God, Ethan, stop the fucking car!”

Surprisingly, he listens. We come to a sudden stop, and I’m thrown forward in my seat. He’s breathing heavily, chest heaving.

“What the fuck was that?” I scream.

He doesn’t reply. Instead, he grabs my face and kisses me, hard. I’m so surprised that I don’t push him off.

Ethan pulls back. “Without me, you’d be in prison, Y/N. Do you know that?”

My hands are shaking. I don’t know what to say— I just nod.

He smiles, satisfied, and rests his hand on my thigh. “Good. Let’s go home.”

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a-small-batch-of-dragons · 1 year

Text

For Appearance's Sake: The Salon

Prompt: May I have Janus hurt/comfort? - anon

Read on Ao3

Warnings: self-doubt, insecurities about looks

Pairings: roceit, can be platonic or romantic you decide

Word Count: 1695

For some people, getting their hair done professionally or their clothes personally tailored is a commonplace occurrence. It is something they are used to, something they expect, and some, what they feel they are entitled to. And so there is a conception amongst people who do not view this sort of thing as ordinary to be wary of it, and of the people who it frequents.

And so for some, when offered this seemingly untouchable world with high expectations and higher horses, it can be frightening.

But it doesn't have to stay that way.

Janus twists his hands together, politely keeping his gaze down on his knees as the door shuts behind him. The mirror lights flicker to life and he takes a deep breath.

Everything would be fine. This is fine.

The door opens again a second later and the hairstylist walks in, not giving him a glance as he walks to the mirror and begins to set things up.

It’s gonna be fine. It’s gonna be fine.

That’s what Logan had said; that Roman was the best. That he didn’t trust anyone else enough, not like he trusted Roman. And that Roman was nice.

God, Janus really hopes he’s nice.

Just walking into the salon has been a lot. It was all polished walls and sophisticated furniture and everyone was dressed better than, well, about half the people on the street. Actually, better than almost all the people on the street. The receptionist had been nice enough, indicating him to sit on a too-nice couch while he waited, but then he’d been placed in a chair and just…left.

As everyone around him talked about expensive things that went way over his head and wore clothes he shouldn’t even be allowed to look at, let alone touch.

Then Roman had walked in.

And just…down the line.

This one’s cheeks were getting fat.

This one’s clothes were last season.

This one’s hair looked like it’d been run through a weed whacker.

Each of the other customers had laughed or shot something back, only to be put in their place with another seemingly effortless quip. Each one had made Janus shrink smaller and smaller in his chair, trying not to let it show how much that hurt.

Because if all of these people were failing to meet Roman’s standards, he was about to get eviscerated.

He’d had to fight the urge to bolt when the receptionist told Roman that his customer was waiting in chair five.

Roman had sighed, rolled his eyes, and said something about rescuing another hopeless cause. He hadn’t so much as glanced at Janus before he’d started fiddling with something at the station.

Then he’d called one of the other attendants over.

“Take them to room two,” he’d instructed, “and get the cart from the back and bring it here.”

And that was that. Janus had been led to the back, into a private room, and the door had shut like a thunderclap, leaving him alone.

Well, not anymore.

He can’t stop himself from glancing at Roman’s back. He seems to be focused, bent over an assortment of bottles and tools Janus couldn’t hope to recognize, and not paying any attention to him.

This is fine, he can deal with that.

Of course, as soon as he thinks that, Roman finishes, turning and leaning against the counter with his arms crossed. Janus instinctively turns to hide the left side of his face. Before he can so much as scramble to get a ‘good morning’ across, Roman sighs.

“You okay?”

Janus’s script answers before he fully registers the question. “Yes, I’m fine, thank you, how are you?”

“A little worried.”

“…sorry?” About me? Did I do something wrong?

Roman sighs again—that’s probably not good—and takes one of the stools, bringing it over to sit next to him. He tries not to flinch at how close he is and turns his head a bit more.

“You look like you’re about to freak out, sweetheart,” Roman says in a quieter voice, “are you just overwhelmed?”

“Overwhelmed is a good way to put it, yeah.”

Roman’s mouth quirks up. “First time?”

“I’d ask if it were obvious but I don’t think you’d dignify that with a response.”

That manages to get a small huff of laughter out of him. But then he notices how hard Janus is trying to keep still and shakes his head. “I don’t bite, you know.”

He tries to relax. Roman hums in what Janus hopes is approval as his shoulders drop.

“What’s got you so worked up?”

“Aside from the fact that everyone looks like they’re wearing my rent?”

As soon as it leaves his mouth, he winces. The barb flew without them noticing, again, he should apologize—

“I know for a fact that about half of them are knockoffs.” Roman shakes his head. “And all the money in the world can’t buy a decent personality.”

Janus should laugh at that. Right? That sounds like something he should laugh at as he lets out a huff.

But then Roman looks at him and his gaze turns knowing.

“Is it me, sweetheart?”

“…please don’t take it personally, I’ll get scared if a car drives past me too loudly, I am not a good standard for what’s scary.”

“I know.”

“So—wait, what?”

Roman chuckles. “You’re the tailor’s darling, aren’t you?”

Janus freezes. “I’m the what?”

“The one Logan’s always talking about.”

Logan does what? “He…he told you about me?”

“Oh, yes. He did more than that.” He leans forward. “We’ve met before.”

We what? When? Oh, god, why do I not remember? Shit, apologize, do something, say something—

“Oh, bless you, sweetheart,” Roman murmurs, shaking him out of the spiral, “it was across the room and we didn’t even say hello. I”m not surprised you don’t remember, it’s alright.”

He manages to let out the breath he’s holding, shaking his head. “Sorry. Apparently I’m…squishy today.”

“Nothing wrong with that,” he says, “Logan told me something similar.”

“That I’d be squishy?”

“That you’d be nervous,” comes the gentle correction, “and that I should be on my best behavior.”

“Oh.”

Roman lets out another sigh, but this one seems more self-directed. “I’m doing this wrong,” he mutters before he looks back up and offers a softer smile. “Hi, sweetheart. I’m Roman. We’re friends with the same tailor.”

“I’m Janus.”

“Nice to meet you, Janus. Can I play with your hair?”

“Sure.”

Roman’s grin widens and he stands, moving behind the chair and turning him to face the mirror. Janus takes a deep breath and steels himself as Roman runs his fingers over the brim of his hat.

“Can I take this off?”

“Yeah.”

Roman does, lifting it off. Janus braces himself for the pause or stutter or some kind of reaction—but then Roman’s apparently heard about him from Logan and they’ve been in the same room before, maybe he already knows?

Roman doesn’t seem to pay attention to his face, though, hanging the hat up on a hook near the mirror and coming back. He lets out a low whistle as he runs his fingers through the soft curls piled atop Janus’s hard.

“Did you put anything in it this morning?”

“No, just brushed it out.”

He shakes his head, running his fingers through it to shake the roots, adding more volume. “Sweetheart, you’re gorgeous.”

Oh. Oh, god. Oh, dear.

Roman chuckles when he catches sight of his reddening face. “And easily flustered, okay.”

Tell me about it.

“When’s the last time you had it cut,” he asks, “was it recently?”

“Last summer, I think. Right before.”

“So long? What for?”

“It, um, did not go spectacularly?”

“What happened?”

He chews on his lip as Roman keeps playing with his hair. “Give me a second, I’m trying to find an explanation that’s suitable for polite company.”

“This is neither, go ahead.”

…if you insist. “I had a panic attack that lasted the whole appointment and couldn’t speak for most of it.”

Roman looks up sharply, mouth falling open as he moves to grip Janus’s shoulders. “Are you serious?”

“Yep.”

“Where was this?”

“Uh…pass.”

“Wait, what happened, why did you freak out?”

“Have you ever walked into a store and the music feels like they’re trying to jackhammer into your skull?”

“Oh, god, yes.”

“It was both that and the fact that it—god, I don’t know what they were using but it smelled so strong.”

“Did you at least get a decent haircut?” He runs his hands through Janus’s hair again. “It looks alright now, but it could’ve grown out.”

“I mean, as good as you’re gonna get when you can’t talk and you’ve only kind of described what you want.”

“Oh, you poor thing…” His hands come to rest on top of his shoulders again. “Well, I suppose that’s a good enough segue. Do you know what you want today?”

“Uh…”

He manages to coax another laugh from Roman. “Do you want to tell me what you like or don’t like about what you have currently?”

“I like having it short enough that it doesn’t get all over my neck when I’m working, but I…” He ducks his head. “I like having it long enough to…y’know.”

“I don’t,” Roman says softly, “tell me?”

“…covers my face a bit.”

Roman’s quiet for a moment. “Look up for me, sweetheart.”

Janus does, meeting Roman’s gaze in the mirror. Roman smiles gently and reaches out to take his head in his hands. Slowly, he raises it a little bit more so the left side of Janus’s face is visible in the light.

“It’s okay to be insecure,” he says as he turns Janus’s face a little to the right, “everyone is insecure about something. I’m not gonna tell you that you can’t. Just try not to let it be the only thing you focus on, okay, sweetheart?”

To his utter shame, he feels himself sniffle.

“Oh, sweetheart, it’s okay. Hey, hey,” Roman says, turning the chair around and opening his arms. “C’mere.”

Getting a hug was not anywhere remotely on Janus’s list of expectations when he came in here today, but he’s not going to complain. Roman doesn’t seem to mind, running his fingers through Janus’s hair and holding him until he pulls away.

“You feeling better?”

“Mhm.”

“Good.” He goes to stand back up, only to frown and wrap a finger through the front pieces right around Janus’s face. “Did you bleach these bits?”

“My face wash did.”

Roman chuckles. “Oh, Logan was right about you, you are an absolute doll. Don’t you worry, sweetheart, I’ll take good care of you."

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