me after attempting to get back into sims and realizing i had a lot more to do than play the game

morality abandoned.

(Themes of verbal abuse and neglect) 

(please informing me if I need to correct the tags, thank you.)

Patton used to be taken care of. Roman and Virgil would take turns watching him but now…

Patton was little hugging his stuffed cat that he got from Roman and knocked on Roman’s door only to be ignored again. “Ro?” He called softly, clearly little. Still Roman refused him enterary.

So he left to go check if Virgil would talk to him again. It was unlikely but still he would hope before going back to bed to cry for the remainder of his time little then pick himself back up, move on and try to fix things.

Even if it never worked.

He was halfway there when he ran into Remus. “What’s a little thing like you running around alone for?” He asked seeing that Patton was regressed.

Patton sniffed and pointed at Virgil’s door.

“Mm Cg.” He muttered.

Remus nodded and let him past to the door. Patton knocked. “Vee? Can see ou now?”

“FUCK OFF!” Virgil growled from inside.

Patton jumped at the yell before his shoulders slumped and tears fell. He sat down on the floor outside Virgil’s door and hid his face in his plushie to cry. Remus stood there staring for a solid minute not moving until he got the urge to crack Virgil’s skull open down.

He went over and picked up Patton who looked at him surprised. “Wat doin?”

“You need someone to take care of you and if THAT ASSFACE is going to ignore you even if you’re little looks like I’ll pick up the slack.” Remus said yelling at Virgil’s door. He got a few steps away before Virgil opened the door.

Patton lit up seeing his caregiver. Virgil glared at him. “Who cares if he needs someone to watch him!” Virgil snapped.

“I hate to be responsible but you don’t blame a little for their big mistakes.” Remus said shifting so Patton was further away from Virgil as Patton peeked up scared of his caregiver.

Virgil snorted before looking at Patton again who burst out crying and hid his face. Hid from him. Virgil’s anger died but before he could step forward or say anything Remus took off with Patton.

---

Remus kicked open the door to Janus’ room and plopped Patton down on the bed. Janus looked up from where he was reading in the corner. “Oh..you brought a guest.”

Patton waved with one hand and dried his tears with his cat plush in the other. “Hi.”

“Guess fucking what?” Remus said pissed. Janus sighed and closed his book.

“Please don’t tell me that you-”

“They are IGNORING LITTLE HIM.” Remus said without letting Janus speak.

Janus stood up. “What?”

“He was knocking on their doors, Roman didn’t even answer and V-douche-”

“Child.” Janus reminded him before Remus could go further. Remus looked at Patton who was confusion and more than a little upset.

“Sorry Patty cake I’m not mad at you.” Remus said softly he and Janus sat down on either side of him on the bed.

“Yous not?” Patton whispered.

Janus offered him a hug, Patton crawled into his lap. “Of course not. We would never be mad at little you.” Janus promised.

Patton looked down the the stuffed cat. “Mm caregives are. They ate me now.”

“They don’t hate you.” Janus lied.

“Jan..” Remus said looking at him. Janus sighed.

“They hate you a little bit. BUT they will get over it.” Janus said.

“Hope so.” Patton hugged the cat so tightly it’s head would have popped off if it had been real.

Remus wanted to go smack the heck out of them for this. Janus put a hand on Remus’ shoulder and gave him a look.

Remus nodded. Later.

For now it was time to take care of Patton.

---

Roman and Virgil were waiting for Patton when Remus was taking him back to his room for bedtime. Patton lit up when he saw them before slumping and half hiding behind Remus.

Roman took a breath. “Patton...It’s been unfair of us to treat little you so harshly while big you was the one to cause the problems.” Patton looked hopeful.

“But we can’t handle being around you right now.” Virgil said. “So until things get resolved….we aren’t your caregivers anymore.”

Patton had tears pooling in his eyes. “Ok.” He whispered sniffling. Remus held onto Patton, and watched as Roman and Virgil left.

“Let’s get you to bed.” Remus said taking Patton into his bedroom.

Patton crawled in bed and curled up still silently crying. Remus laid down next to him and pulled him against his side. “When Virgil left I felt awful. I kept hoping that he would come back and things would be normal again.”

Patton looked at him. Remus sighed, “Sometimes people leave and we can’t change that. I’m sorry.”

Patton patted Remus’ cheek. “It k.” He paused. “Ous leave too?”

Remus hugged him tightly. “No...No I won’t leave too.” Remus promised. “I’ll stick around, can’t get rid of me. And Janus’ be here too.”

“Tank you.” Patton said. “Ous can leave thou. I a bother.”

Remus hugged Patton tighter. “Never a bother. You deserve to be little and have care while being little.” Then Remus groaned. “I’ve spent too much time with Dee.”

Patton giggled. He hugged Remus tightly as he fell asleep. Remus stared at the ceiling for hours afterwards before drifting to sleep as well. As long as he was around, Patton wasn’t going to be abandoned again.

---

Patton was waiting. He was being cared for by Remus and Janus until Ro.an and Virgil wanted him back. He never told them what he was doing but had a feeling everyone knew. Roman and Virgil did let him come back. Only, they were still mad. They didn’t say it out right but would be overly mad at him for being loud or as they said ‘annoying’.

Roman yells at him for being too loud, he runs crying silently to Janus and Remus.

Virgil yells at him for bothering him too much, he stops asking for help, making it harder for Janus and Remus to make him feel better.

They decided to ‘take breaks’ from being his caregiver again. Each break lasts longer and longer until Patton isn’t acting normal ever. Always worried and quiet. He doesn’t make jokes anymore. To check up on people not wanting to be a bother. He doesn’t show up for movie nights anymore, or eat with everyone else in the kitchen.

Remus and Janus are furious.

Janus was rocking Patton to sleep as he was little. He was in the middle of the common room and Hissed as Virgil walked passed without even acknowledging that his little needed help. That he caused him so much stress he was having nightmares. Janus sent a seathing comment, one that Virgil sent him back a glare at but didn't reply.

That morning Patton was regressed and hanging on Roman's arm as Roman walked around barely noticing him. Just speaking to him when he wanted too and Patton beaming excited at being seen. Remus was disgusted by his brother's behavior and that was saying something.

Later he found Patton curled up in his bed staring off silently as he cried. Remus pulled him into his lap and let himself cry himself out before Patton snapped out of his Regression and excused himself with an extremely fake smile. Patton made breakfast the next morning without eating himself. Roman and Virgil didn't say a word about it.

---

Logan was regressing alone. He had wanted to try and get Roman and Virgil watch after him but… Well… after seeing what happened to Patton he couldn't. So he was by himself, timing himself to build lego sets faster when Remus come in looking for Patton.

"You're little?" Remus asked.

"Yeah. Patton is too, he was by earlier. Was crying so I played a little bit too but…" Logan scowled and angrily clicked two pieces together.

"But?" Remus asked.

"Roman yelled at him. Told him to not bug me. We were having fun too!" Logan snapped as he finished the castle set and clicking the timer. He barely beat his time.

Remus hummed. Half a mind to go hunt Roman down, half a need to take care of a lonely little and probably upset one. So he picked up Logan and went in search of patton. He had two littles to cheer up and take care.

He found Patton in his room and Dropped Logan on the bed next to him. Judging from Patton’s gasp and giggle he was still little. Remus tickled him a little before putting his hands on his hips. “Sooo guess I have two little Allll to myself this afternoon!”

“Yeah!” Logan said, almost vibrating with excitement of having two playmates. Patton hugged both of them and broke down crying, startling Remus and causing Remus to gently hug him back.

“It’s ok, We’re here.” Remus soothed and pulled both of them into his lap with a little wiggling. Logan patted Patton’s back, “We can sleep together if you want. This way cuddles!” Logan really wanted cuddles and despite Patton being upset wanted the contact. Besides it would cheer both of them. And that would be for the best he thought Logically, or as logically as anyone in little space could.

“So cookies too?” Logan asked knowing that would excite Patton and cheer him up, Or at least it should.

Patton deflated more and shook his head. “Too gross.”

Remus stared at him. “Cookies aren’t gross.”

“I is. Too fat.” Patton said wiping at his tears. “Vee and Ro says so.”

Logan and Remus froze. Logan hugged Patton tightly before dragging him wordless off the bed and out of the room to go get him so many cookies. (just enough that he didn’t get sick cu that was no fun.) He was climbing up onto the counter before Remus got into the room and rushed over picking him and up ans setting him onto the ground.

“Hey!” Logan protested. Remus ignored him and got the cookies down.

“There you can each have three.” He said opening the lid. They each grabbed three Logan sneaking and Forth for Patton, Remus caught it but Let him do so. Patton needed cheering up and a little crime was good for the brain and spirit, especially cookie crimes.

They nibbled on their cookies in front of the t.v watching Blue’s clues and Dora. Remus kept his comments to the shows to himself. At least the non child friendly ones, yelling out the wrong answers to see the little’s correct him, was too cute to resist.

At bedtime Logan led them through their routine and drug Patton to Bed with him and cuddled him so tightly that he made and small squeak. Remus chuckled at that, and tucked him in. “Stay?” Patton asked, it was the first thing he asked for the whole time. Like Remus was going to turn him down.

“Scoot over.” Was the only warning they got before Remus flopped onto them.

---

Roman went to check on Patton in the morning and found him cuddling with Remus. REMUS! He managed to pull Patton aside and started yelling at him. “He’s the bad guy!” He hissed at him.

“But he helps me.” Patton stood up for Remus feeling sick but not sure why. Maybe it was just because He was being yelled at.

“He’s evil! Do you want Thomas to be evil?” That was a really low blow but Roman’s Pride had been hurt too many times by Patton going to HIS BROTHER instead of him. If Patton could just behave none of this would be a problem.

“I’m not...he’s not evil...I’m not.” Patton said, his voice dropping to a whisper. He hugged himself unsure and dropping onto his little space fast.

Roman crossed his arms and scowled. “You need to stop going to them. Thomas is going to turn out evil if you don’t. I beg you want that.”

“What? No I doesn’t!” Patton teared up. “You’re being mean.”

Roman raised his eyebrows in mock offence. “Are you BLAMING ME? I’m trying to do the right thing! That’s all it is with you isn’t it? Just blame someone else for your mistakes!” Roman pushed Patton’s shoulder none too gently.

Patton burst out crying and ran off, getting half way to Janus before freezing. He..He didn’t want Thomas to be evil. He needed to ask someone about this.

So he went to Virgil.

Virgil was pissed to be woken up and even more so that Roman was pissed off too. Not that he was standing up for Patton just that Roman didn’t seem to stand up for his fellow caregiver. “He’s right you’ve been running off to the wrong people this whole time. Who are your caregivers?”

“You and Ro.” Patton whispered confused and scared that he was getting yelled at.

Virgil nodded and smiled, “That’s right. Good job bud.” Patton smiled happy that Virgil seemed happy.

He would be better, he had to be. He nodded and left to think. He would be better.

---

He started avoid everyone, Scared of Ro and Vee, worried that he was messing up with Re and Jan. Both sides of sides blaming the others for Patton’s behavior turning Patton into a weapon to hurt the others.

Every day seems to be endless arguing between the two sets of caregivers, they argue back and forth. Patton hasn't went back to Janus or Remus at all ever sense his caregivers told him that he could make Thomas evil, and the guilt of avoiding him has been eating him up tremendusly. He wanted to desperatly run off to Remus and Janus, but he knew that his caregivers would yell at him.

Todays fight ended up being the worst one out of the whole week, Janus ending up shouting something that triggered Virgil badly. Roman rebuted loudly shouting stuff like, "This is why you aren't accepted" and "This is why YOU are a bad guy!"

Over the past week, Patton has just been silently breaking down, trying not to get in the way, the last time he tried, Roman shoved him and told him to back off and Virgil snarled at him. Patton didn't know what to do.

Remus was finally over it and finally shouted, "IF YOU ARE SUCH GOOD CAREGIVERS THEN WHY DOESN'T LOGAN EVER COME TO YOU HUH?? YOU MESSED UP WITH PATTON SO HE DOESN'T WANT TO BE THERE EITHER, SUCH GOOOOOOOOD CAREGIVERS"

Patton melts down, he didn't want this, he didn't want everyone to be upset, he ruined everything, now Logi can't even regress around anyone because of him.

Logan noticed the loud noise and went to investigate, finding Patton curled up crying in the corner, hands over his ears as the other four screamed at each other. He was quick to get a shaking Patton out of there and safely to his room dropping as he went. He was in a bit of an older headspace so he was able to get Patton into his bed and rock him until the younger little wasn’t shaking anymore.

“I’m sorry!” They both cried. Patton for feeling like he messed everything up and Logan for not stepping up before in or out of Littlespace. Even if neither of them were to blame the guilt ate at them and apologizing for it make them feel a tiny bit better. Enough that Patton could fall and asleep and Logan remained awake to watch over him.

Meanwhile Remus and Janus noticed that the Little was gone and all four of the Caregivers where in a race to find him before Remus thought to check Logan’s room, Remus and Janus burst in first followed quickly by Roman and Virgil.

Logan held up a finger in his lips glare at him. “He’s asleep.” He whispered fiercely.

Remus and Janus silently went over to the bed while Roman and Virgil left feeling...guilty Thoughts a mess.

Maybe Remus and Janus were right.

What did that make them?

---

Patton woke up to breakfast, one that everyone insisted he eat with them. Logan was still little and much to Patton’s delight was being cared for by Remus and Janus, as well was he was. Remus and Janus took up being His permanent caregiver, Roman and Virgil giving up the role much to Patton’s dismay yet relief.

Things went to a new normal. Patton slowly became more used to being with Remus and Janus. Even with Logan.

He still saw Roman and Virgil around, It was hard but getting easier the more time they were nicer to him. They still had work to do on themselves. Some days they were bitter and ignored him still, those days were hard. But, they would come back later and apologize and that helped some what.

Patton was sitting on Janus’ lap, Logan on Remus’ both with cookies as they watched cartoons.

He felt safe and most importantly, loved.

Desire and Will

This is the most popular fic in my "Aang/Katara Missing Moments" series on AO3. This is the first time I'm posting it to tumblr.

Summary: With Aang still having trouble letting loose with his firebending, Zuko asks an alarming question:

"Have you ever kissed a girl?"

Words: 3,944

Read on AO3

FF.net

*******

Katara was awoken by what was, to her, the scariest sound in the world: the sound of Aang in pain.

"OW!" she heard him cry out, and she wrenched her eyelids open and rolled to face where his voice was coming from. There, she saw Aang still laying on the ground where he had been sleeping, rubbing his backside like it had been kicked. Towering over him, fists clenched and face scowling...was Zuko.

A jolt a fear cut through Katara's still half-asleep mind as she reached over for her bending skin and flicked it open with her thumb. She was ready to fight, ready to—

"You're burning daylight!" Zuko barked at Aang, "Get up! Twenty hot squats, now!"

Katara's sleep fog finally cleared and she remembered why Zuko was here in their camp. She remembered their whole reluctant arrangement to have Zuko teach Aang firebending, and the nerve-wracking few days they had disappeared together and apparently danced with dragons.

Katara groggily collapsed back onto her pillow, too tired to even growl at Zuko that the rest of them didn't have to train to defeat his evil dad, thankyouverymuch, so maybe bark his orders more quietly at absurd hours in the morning.

Aang seemed to be feeling the same way, because he just moaned in response. Zuko squatted down next to Aang and pointed out into the canyon that contained the Western Air Temple, where the sky was already turning blood red.

"You see that? That's sunrise, Avatar. That's the sign of a firebender's inner strength coming to life with a new day." He grabbed Aang by the shoulder and started shaking him, "Can you feel it, Aang? Can you feel your inner fire starting to reignite?"

"No," grunted Aang plainly.

Katara was remembering more now, and becoming more annoyed. Right, what had Zuko said to her at the north pole? "You rise with the moon, I rise with the sun?" of course it made perfect sense that on top of being cruel, bloodthirsty monsters, firebenders were also something far worse: morning people. Ugh, did this mean that Aang was also going to be a morning person from now on?

"Well we've got to fix that," said Zuko, and he practically dragged Aang to his feet and started pushing him off towards the courtyard that they used to train, that jutted out from underneath the rock overhang so they were actually in the sun. With their sleeping area quiet again, Katara tried to go back to sleep, but now the knowledge that Aang was off with Zuko, alone, at the other end of the temple was nagging at her brain. It wasn't like she thought Zuko would suddenly attack him or something; she had accepted by now that this wasn't some kind of absurdly elaborate plot against them—mainly because she didn't think Zuko was clever enough to pull off something like that. But still, whenever she thought about Aang with no one around him but Zuko, she found that she...didn't like it.

After a few minutes, she accepted that she wasn't getting any more sleep, so she got herself up and started making her way in the same direction Zuko and Aang had gone. As she was rounding the last corner before the courtyard, she started to hear their voices.

"So if my firebending wakes me up with the sun, and my waterbending keeps me up with the moon, when exactly am I supposed to sleep?"

"You slept for a hundred years, isn't that enough?"

Aang laughed, but Katara recognized it as his uncomfortable laugh. Aang never liked being reminded of all that time he wasn't there for the world, which Zuko would know if he wasn't such a heartless jerk and a terrible teacher. The fact that he barely knew Aang and had no way of knowing what he was uncomfortable with was entirely beside the point.

Katara decided to not announce her presence and instead leaned against one of the stone pillars within the shade of the overhang, while they were out in the increasingly bright morning sun. She was far enough away and in enough shade that they were unlikely to notice her, but if they did happen to look her way then she could plausibly deny she was snooping. She didn't like the idea of leaving Aang alone with Zuko, but she still realized hovering would interfere with them. Aang was always trying to impress her and Zuko was still visibly terrified of her ever since she threatened to kill him the day he joined their team (which she definitely didn't take any pride in).

Aang and Zuko finished their warm-ups and faced a target at the far end of the courtyard, a few wooden logs they had haphazardly nailed together in the vague shape of a human.

"Okay, let's see if that trip to almost get eaten by dragons was worth it," said Zuko, "set your stance..."

Aang positioned himself in a sideways battle stance in opposition to the dummy.

"Now, control your breathing…"

Aang drew in a deep breath and slowly released it.

"Now…STRIKE!"

Aang punched his right first towards the dummy, and a single fireball erupted from his knuckles, traveling about 10 yards to the dummy, briefly engulfing it in flames before dissipating. After the fire and smoke had quickly cleared, Katara saw that the dummy was slightly singed, with a few spots glowing orange for a few seconds before cooling down. Katara could feel the heat of the blast from where she was standing.

Zuko, however, didn't look impressed, "Well that was...certainly better, I guess."

"You guess!?" Aang incredulously asked out loud, and Katara incredulously asked in her head at the same time, "Come on, that was the biggest blast I've ever made!"

"Yeah, and if you were any other novice, we'd call that a really promising start. Heck, you might even be called a prodigy. People would be saying you could become a master in just a few years."

Aang's shoulders slumped in disappointment.

"But we don't have a few years, obviously, so sorry, but we need to find a way to fast-track this."

Aang threw his hands in the air, "Well what more can I possibly do!"

Zuko frowned and rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "Well to be honest, I think you're still being too timid and restrained. You're certainly doing a lot better than before our trip, but I still sense a lot of energy in you that you're not letting out."

Aang looked confused and started to get defensive, "Well of course I'm holding a little back, I'm trying to stay in control! Jong Jong said that firebending requires constant discipline or fire will destroy you. He didn't even let me shoot fire, he had me try to stop a bit of fire from growing, and when I didn't listen to him—" Aang managed to cut off his own rambling and managed to take a deep breath and closed his eyes, "that was when I burned Katara."

Zuko's face cycled through several different expressions as a lot of things suddenly started making sense.

"...Oh," was the only thing he could say.

Aang continued, "I hated that version of myself, even more than when I've gone into the Avatar State. After that, I promised myself I would never firebend at all!"

Katara tried to keep track of all the different emotions she was feeling. She was touched by the fact that Aang cared about her so much that the memory of hurting her still got him to be this upset, annoyed at him for being this worked up over something that happened months ago, she had long since forgiven, and was really not important in the context of their mission, and guilty that her getting hurt and the way she reacted had caused him this much heartache, even while she knew that she hadn't really done anything wrong.

Zuko sighed, raised his hand, and after a few seconds of hesitation, lightly patted Aang's shoulder in the most awkward, panicked "there-there" gesture Katara had ever seen.

"Look Aang," said Zuko, "I can't speak to what this 'Jong Jong' guy taught you. Maybe his way is better, I don't know, but it sounds like it takes a lot longer, and we don't have the luxury of being patient and deliberate about this."

He pulled on Aang's shoulder and turned him around so he would stop looking at his feet in self-pity and look his teacher in the face again, "The people of the world don't need their Avatar to be a wizened sage right now, they need a stick of dynamite."

Zuko took a few steps away and tried his best to pretend to be a wizened sage himself, "I can only teach you how I was taught, and I was taught that even when it's not fuelled by anger and rage, all firebending is still fuelled by strong emotion. When teaching me about the elements, my uncle said—let's see if I can get this right…"

He started rubbing his hand on an invisible large belly, stroking an invisible beard, and speaking in an old man's raspy voice in his best impersonation of his uncle.

"Fire is the element of Power. The people of the Fire Nation have Desire and Will, and the energy and drive to achieve what they want."

Aang chuckled at the impression, his mood clearly improving, while Zuko looked really impressed with himself. Katara wouldn't have been surprised to learn that this was the first time in his life the dour prince had made someone laugh.

"See what I mean? Remember what we learned with the dragons. Fire is Life. And passion for life is what fuels firebending. You need to stop thinking like a monk and use your passion."

Aang didn't look frustrated or dejected anymore, but he did look puzzled.

"Um...okay," Aang said, thoughtfully scratching his head, "How am I supposed to do that?"

Now it was Zuko's turn to get frustrated. He hadn't anticipated one of his jobs as a teacher being having to explain how to feel things to this guy. That was something he was not qualified for.

"I don't know," said Zuko, not hiding the annoyance in his voice, "just think about it. Try to recreate those emotions when you're channeling your energy for your bending, and it might make your firebending more powerful. Hasn't there ever been something you...desired? Coveted, even? Something that you needed to have or to win more than anything?"

Katara almost laughed out loud, boy are you barking up the wrong tree.

Aang spent a few seconds earnestly considering Zuko's question, "I don't think so. My people believed that worldly material possessions were meaningless, and attachment to them was the source of suffering. We didn't really have anything beyond what we needed and a few toys that we shared. I played games with all my friends, but I didn't really care much if I won, I just tried to make sure everybody had fun."

Katara was grinning at what an unbelievable dork the mighty savior of the world was.

Zuko, however, groaned and dragged both hands down his face, "Yeah, of course you did." It seemed to Katara that this was the first time Zuko was having to relate to someone who was actually a good person.

Aang just shrugged at Zuko's exasperation, "Sorry, hotman."

"Stop calling me that!" Zuko thought for several more seconds before his eyes lit up and he snapped his fingers with an idea, but then immediately looked like he regretted having the idea, and started looking deeply uncomfortable.

"Hey...can I ask you a personal question? It's going to sound weird and unrelated, but just trust me, okay?"

Aang raised an eyebrow, "Uh….sure?"

"Have you ever kissed a girl?"

Aang's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, his face turning bright pink, and Katara's heart seemed to stop in its tracks.

After what seemed like an eternity, Aang finally found his voice again, but all he could manage was a weak, "Uh...what?"

"Just bear with me for a second," pressed Zuko.

"Um," Aang squeaked, "Yes. Yes I have." and his face moved past pink into deep scarlet.

"Okay," breathed Zuko, "Now, I know I'm sounding like a gossiping school girl, but I promise I'm going somewhere with this. Ugh."

He squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose, like this conversation was physically painful. "Tell me about your first kiss," he finished in a too-deep voice, very transparently overcompensating.

Katara was positively screaming inside her own head, No Aang, do not, under ANY circumstances, tell him about your first kiss.

She felt like her heart and stomach had completely removed from her body. She refused to believe that these were the circumstances where The Incident between she and Aang was finally getting verbalized. Aang hadn't even bothered to talk to her about it yet, there was no way he was going to spill it all to Zuko. The fact that the main reason Aang hadn't talked to her about it was the fact that she had been avoiding him non-stop was entirely beside the point.

Katara started running through a hundred scenarios to try to find some way to stop this conversation. Should she rush in and pretend to be sick? Say that they're under attack? Just stay hidden and bloodbend them both unconscious? But before she could decide on one, to her horror, Aang started talking.

"Well," Aang began, his cheeks still red, "it was back at the Southern Air Temple—"

All of Katara's panic seemed to instantly vanish and be replaced with confusion.

Wait, what? Why is he telling him that? Katara thought, We barely knew each other at the Southern Temple….Does he THINK we kissed at the Southern Temple? I guess that would explain a lot. Did he hallucinate or something while in the Avatar State—

"—and she was part of a visiting caravan."

….Oh.

Oh.

"We got along really well while she was there, she was really good at all of my favorite games, and while we were saying goodbye she just kissed me."

OH.

"By the time I realized what was going on, she just giggled and jumped up on her bison."

Katara was simultaneously feeling unbelievable relief that her big secret wasn't being talked about and unbelievable white-hot fury at Aang. She had just spent several weeks believing that her first kiss had also been Aang's, and now she finds out that she's just the latest? Latest of how many? Exactly how friendly had he gotten with those fangirls on Kyoshi Island? She was two years older than him, by all rights she should be on at least equal footing with him in this mess between them, who gave him permission to have more experience with kissing than her? The fact that he had never once told her that he had never kissed a girl before was entirely beside the point.

But Katara cycled through all these thoughts in just a split second before calming herself down and realizing that she had no reason to care about this. What did it matter if Aang had kissed some girl a hundred years ago? It's not like she thought of Aang that way. Aang had clearly just misunderstood her platonic affections. It's not like she had ever seriously thought about kissing him (especially not during some of the more recent times she had kissed him on the cheek). In fact, she doubted that even he had given any serious thought to kissing. He just had a little crush and the intensity of the moment got to his head. So this is fine.

It's fine.

Seriously, it's fine.

It's completely fine. Whatever she was feeling certainly wasn't jeal—

"Wait, she kissed you?" Zuko interrupted Aang's rambling and yanked Katara back to reality, "I asked you if you had ever kissed a girl."

"Well you also asked me to tell you about my first kiss!" Aang yelled with his hands in the air, frustrated again, "Which one is it!" He was clearly angry that in his panic he had revealed an embarrassing story for no reason.

Zuko put his palms up defensively, "Okay, okay, sorry, bad wording on my part. So, to clarify: have you ever kissed someone else? Have you ever been the one to take the initiative?"

Katara's heart started racing again. Why couldn't Zuko get distracted and drop this?

"Um…" Aang's face had been red before, but now all the color seemed to drain from it and he looked like a ghost, "...yes. But I don't think dwelling on that will help fix my problem. In fact, it's kind of a downer, actually."

"Why, was she an airbender too?" Zuko asked. He supposed dwelling on a girl he had feelings for that had been killed a hundred years ago would be counterproductive in fueling Aang's inner fire.

Despite how angry she had gotten at Aang's kissing experience, Katara now found herself hoping this girl was another airbender.

"No," Aang responded, rubbing the back of his neck, "this was after I came out of the ice. Pretty recent, in fact…"

No such luck.

"Okay, so what's the problem?" asked Zuko.

"Well...it didn't exactly work out well for me. She didn't really kiss me back."

Katara scowled, well that's not fair, she thought with more than a little bitterness. It's not like she had a chance to. You're not allowed to act upset if someone doesn't kiss you back when you spring a kiss on them with no warning and then fly away before they even know what's going on. If he hadn't been so dramatic and used his actual words then she would have—

Katara let out a gasp of fear at where her train of thought was leading her. She would have….what, exactly? If she had known the kiss was coming ahead of time, what would she have done? Let him down easy? Told him to focus on the mission? Thrown him into the ocean?...or would she have kissed him back?

No.

Well…

Certainly not.

Maybe?

Perhaps if they tried again wow where did THAT thought come from?

Meanwhile, back in reality, Zuko was waving away Aang's concerns, "That doesn't matter. Don't think about anything that happened afterward. Just bring yourself back to that one moment, where you overcame caution and went after what you wanted. Set your stance."

Aang faced the dummy and resumed his fighting stance.

Katara couldn't help but inch a little closer away from her "hiding" spot. Now that Zuko had stopped pressing Aang for details and was doing his job, she felt like she could observe with a nervous curiosity instead of outright panic.

"Now," instructed Zuko, "take a deep breath, close your eyes, and picture this girl, how she looked in that moment."

Aang's eyes closed and drew in a breath.

Katara swallowed hard. At this moment, there was no more uncertainty about Aang. He was thinking about her, in that way, right now. And that knowledge made her hold her breath and made her face get a little warm.

"Try to remember how you felt immediately beforehand. How she made you feel. Try to recreate how your heartbeat was affected. It's starting to get faster and harder. How your breathing changed—remember, it's your breath that creates energy in the body for firebending. Yours is getting shallower and more intense. Remember how your stomach muscles reacted. They're tensing in anticipation. Now, in your mind's eye, make your move and kiss her, and at the same time….STRIKE!"

Aang punched his right fist towards the dummy, and his hand exploded.

There was no whoosh like with the previous fireball, but a roar as a conical wave of fire erupted from Aang's knuckles, completely enveloping the dummy 10 yards away and continuing onward to blast past the outer railing of the stone courtyard into the vast expanse of the canyon. And to Katara's alarm, it kept going. It wasn't a single blast but a continuous, monstrous stream of fire easily 15 feet wide at its biggest and so hot that Katara had to turn away and shield her eyes.

Several seconds later, the flames finally died down and Aang blinked his eyes open, looking equal parts proud and terrified of himself. The wooden dummy….did not exist anymore. There was no way to tell if Aang had burned it to ashes or simply blasted it backwards into the canyon. The previously white stones that made up the part of the courtyard that had been in front of Aang were now blackened and cracked.

Zuko had reflexively thrown up his arms to shield his face, stumbling backward. He was still sitting on the ground, eyes widened to the size of Appa's, and his mouth hanging open in shock. He sat there for several more silent seconds until Aang gave an awkward cough, then his face split into the biggest grin Katara had ever seen on him and he started cackling with delirious relief and excitement.

"All right!" Zuko exclaimed, jumping to his feet, "Now that's what I'm talking about!" he loudly clapped his hand on Aang's back, who had returned to looking embarrassed.

"No, don't you clam up again," warned Zuko, "hold onto that feeling. Come on, I'll show you how to make a flame whip."

Katara slinked backward away from her pillar and began a very undignified scurry back to their sleeping area. The fire had long since dissipated, but her face still felt hot and flustered, and her stomach felt like it was doing somersaults. Her mind was filled up by the same three words, repeating over and over again:

I did that.

Thinking about her made Aang able to do that. She could no longer simplify things by telling herself that this was just a confusing crush he had let get to his head. For most of the time she had known Aang, the thought that he would have any….desires like that for anyone simply didn't compute for her. He was too selfless, too kind, too pure. He was a monk for crying out loud.

But what she just saw Zuko coax out of her sweet, innocent friend was….not pure. Had he had this inside of him the entire time? And what brought this out of him was thinking about her. Thinking about kissing her. As much as she tried to deny it, when she thought about this power she had over him….she liked it. She was now able to see Aang in a new light, and at least consider the possibility of being more than friends with him.

But she still fought against it, because that realization was absolutely terrifying.

Katara shook her head and splashed some of her bending water on her face. She resolved to keep doing what she had been doing: focusing on their mission. She could sort out all this confusion when the war was over.

Although….

If the goal was to help Aang defeat the Fire Lord and end the war, then naturally they all had an obligation to assist Aang with his bending in any way they could, right? So she supposed it couldn't hurt to give Aang the occasional extra-tight hug now and then. Purely for training purposes, of course.

After all, she thought with a slight smirk as she arrived back at camp, everyone else still sound asleep, what kind of teacher would I be if I didn't give my student the attention he needed?

Warm

Tianshan fanfiction, as requested

This is my first fanfiction, I mostly wrote it to satisfy my own desire for intimacy and closeness. Watching these two interact strangely fills a hole in my heart. I probably shouldn't depend on it too much

Anyway, ENJOY💓

BEWARE OF TYPOS

“Stay with me”

Mo guan shans' heart flutters, he feels heat rising to his cheeks and feels the warmth of he tians face in his hands,  he notices how his body is shaking, shivering . As if he were to break down in any moment.

This happens from time to time. He tian being open, stepping down from his cold, condescending demeanor into a more softer one. A frail person, with deseperate needs to be met and a strong desire to be loved. Mo guanshan wants nothing more than to embrace the guy, to be the shoulder he cries on. But Guan Shan was too scared, too much of a coward. Scared of closeness, just as Much as He tian wanted it. He didn’t know what to do, they were too different of people.

And so he just waited, for the silence to be filled, for He tians moment of vulnerability to pass. He didn’t know what else to do, he was awkward, and feeling uncomfortable with He tian trusting him. He felt like there was little he can do to make him feel better. 

So he settled for the bare minimum

“Alright.” he said, reluctantly

He tians eyes widened and he looked up to meet the gingers avoidant gaze. He noted the pink flush spread across Guan Shan's cheeks. The adorable way he's shifting nervously in his place.

“I'll stay, but just for a little bit okay…?” Mo's voice was small and gentle, as if he was speaking to a baby. It was soft, whispery. He tian wanted nothing but to embrace him, to place his head on Mo guan shans shoulders. He was being met half way

He tian smiled and his eyes were warm.

“Thank you.”

There was a moment of stillness, where neither was hiding anything from anyone, trusting within the presence of each other's eyes,open.

But one of them had to break the spell eventually, or esle this would turn into another therapy session.

So He tian let go of his arms and began to walk towards the living room.

“So what do you wanna do? I have uh.. Magazines?”

Mo guanshan scoffed

“What the hell? You mean you have nothing else to do in this place? Not even a tv?!”

He tian laughed sheepishly rubbing his neck

“Eh I never really found the point in buying one, I mostly just.. Read and.. Sit around.”

Guanshans face contorted into a look of confusion, he made his way over to the couch of the dramatically spacious apartment and took out his phone. 

"You’re ridiculous, you don’t cook, you don’t clean, you have no hobbies. I’m beginning to believe your only hobby is to annoy me.’ he says, while typing out a message for his Ma.

He tian laughed wholeheartedly and walked over to the couch, sitting next to Mo guan shan “That’s definitely one of my hobbies” then leans into Mo guan shan and heatingly whispers into his ear “and my favorite too.”

Mo guan shan shivers and jumps up

“FUCK” he falls from the couch and He tian rolls his head back laughing. Mo stands up immediately and retreats away from the couch in caution, He tian sees this and pats the seat next to him. 

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding, come back.”

Mo guan shan shoots daggers at his direction

“So what? So you can be a pervert and molest me ? No thanks!” Mo creates more space between him and He tian, despite his prior moment of vulnerability he still doesnt trust him enough to relax.

“Alright, Alright” He tian begins, then softens his gaze and extends his hand out to him.

“I’ll stop teasing you okay? It’s just so entertaining, but I’ll keep my hands to myself.” He tian says

“Y-you promise? No more funny business?” Mo guan shan asks , hesitantly  making his way back over to He tian

“Yeah, pinky promise” He tian raises his pinky to Guan Shan,  waiting with a innocent smile on his face. Mo guan shan sighs, tired and still a bit mistrusting, he gives up and interlocks his pinky with his. He tians expression relaxes  and he begins to wave their hands back and forth while fondly looking at Moguanshan. He tians gaze bored into his skin, why is he always looking at him like that? What is he thinking? What does he want?

Moguan shan doesn’t understand. He breaks his hand away and looks down, shuffling his feet.

“Why are you always looking at me like that? “ he asks with a breathy tone, timid and unsure.

“Like what?” He tian asks, perking his head to the side in confusion

“Like I dont know, like you see something or..”

He tian shifts closer to mo guan shan, but not too much to invade his boundaries

“I do see something little mo, I see a person who is very important to me.”

At that Mo guan shans eyes widen and he flinches back again, his cheeks glowing a bright red. He looks at he tian with questions in his eyes

“W-WHO? ME? THATS-” Mo guans shan stutters at his words and struggles  to understand the fluttering sensation In his stomach and the feeling of warmth arising in his heart.

He tian laughs again freely

“Yes idiot, you’re precious to me.”

Mo guan shan looks confused “B-but why? What the heck have I done for you?”

He tian sits back and looks introspective, his gaze wanders far away and a soft smile perched on his features. 

“You make me feel.. I don’t know. Alive. I’ve never felt this way with anyone before. You make me feel safe and happy."

He continues

“Your the type of person that has a kind heart, even if you try to hid it, it makes me feel loved. ” He tians expression then turns sad, as if he’s remember something. Mo guan shan again, did not know how to deal with this level of sincerity. 

‘Me? Make him feel loved? But I just push him away. I don’t get it’

So mo guan shan sits down on the seat next to him, after a couple beats of reflective silence

“You don’t.. Feel loved?” Mo begins awkwardly, looking at everything but he tians expression. 

He tian sighs and sits into the question “I don’t know. How is it supposed to feel like?”

“I dont know..” mo guan shan continued, rubbing the back off his neck

“Warm.. i guess. I feel that way with my ma, when she takes care of me. Other than that, I don’t really know.” They both sit back and watch the sky above the city from He tians pent house. The stars were gleaming in the night and the city life was loud under the darkness.

He tian sighs. “Warm. ” he breathes out, relaxing his gaze

 “I guess, i’m feeling it right now then.” 

He tian looks to the left and watches as Mo guan shans eyes widen again, he can never get tired of those cute, shy expressions.

Mo, to his mistake, turns to the right and catches he tians gaze on him. The same way he was looking at him before, but it was more intense this time.

His heartbeat speeds up, he feels hot from the inside, flustered, embarrassed and… he doesn't know what else, something tingling.

“I guess…” He tian continues, while looking into Mo's auburn eyes “that means I love you.”

Both their eyes widen and they lean back from eachother in shock. Confusion, fear arising. Mo guan shan for one, did not know how to feel. Disgust, confusion, judgement, all these emotions were spiraling within his body,  he froze there paralyzed, unknowing of how to react or respond, 

“I..” He tian started, trying to cover, to fix what he just said “I mean uhh..” After desperate attempts to reorganize his mind, he just sighed and dropped his shoulders down in defeat.

“I’m sorry” He whispers “that was probably too much, I dont even know what I’m doing.” he says exasperately, running his hands through his hair. He’s shaking. “You probably want to go home now.” He tian has made things worse, He wanted Mo guans shan to stay, but didn’t know how to calmly deal with his presence if it’s not getting overly emotional and attached all the time. He knows he has to learn to give him space, to breathe and relax, but He tian likes being around him too much. He has no self control.

“I’ll call you a cab. ” He tian begins to stand up from the couch when he feels something pull at his jacket, mo guan shans hand tugging at his sleeve. Both remain still, so much calculation, overanalyzing in the air, they dont know how to stop

Mo guan shan then retreat his hand hurriedly and coughs awakwardly,

“It’s fine.. It’s fine okay? Let’s just watch a movie.

He tians shoulders slump in relief. Thank god, he didn’t mess up his chance to be with him. Okay.. he can handle a movie. He can control himself.

“Okay,” He tian whispers and sits back on the couch, tentative seconds pass and he asks “uh.. What movie?” Mo guan shan seems flustered too, overly conscious of his presence.

“I dont know. I’m assuming you dont watch movies. let’s just scroll through netflix and see whats good.”

Netlfix and chill? He tian almost says but he stops himself, he know it’s too soon to be making jokes like that.

Guan Shan takes out his phone and begins scrolling

“Uh.. fast and the furious?” He asks. He tian shrugs “Sure.” He doesnt really care for it, but if Guan Shan wants it, he’s alright with that.

They begin to watch the movie and He tian notices something. Mo keeps casting looks at him throughout the movie. He hastedly flicks his gaze back onto the movie before he is caught, but it still evokes his curiosity

“What?” he tian laughs at his shyness

“Uh.. arent you cold? It’s like 30 degrees in here.”

He tian shrugs “Nah, I’m used to it.” he replies and he watches as Guan shans face contorts, his eyebrows strewn together

“What the fuck? You’re shaking.” He tian notices how he actually is cold, and is happy that guan shan took awareness of this

“Warm me up then, little Mo” He tian wiggles his eyebrows and to his surprise Mo guan shan, stands up and walks towards his bed. 

“Where are you going”

“Shutup  ” he was responded with

Moguan shan then came back with a big cover blanket and He tian insides swirl in excitement, awe and fondness.

Shan sits back on the couch, with an indignant expression in his face, cheeks flushed and to his surprise, places the blanket gently on He tians body. He tian was frozen, in shock, overwhelmed with happiness.

“What about you?” He tian asks, more like a statement than a question

“Im fine.” Shan replies still feeling really embarrassed and was about to pick up his phone to continue watching when he feels two warm hands cover him under the blanket. Mo stiffens, his shoulders tense, but then he relaxes into it, his body  welcoming the warmth. It was almost, as if he was overthinking the whole thing. As if this is what he wanted all along. He feels protected almost. Safe. 

Mo guan shan then feels two hands touch at his face and he looks to the left to see he tian smiling happily.

 “Now we’re both warm. ”

The implication of his words sent another shiver down his spine. Did he feel warm? I guess he did, he was just too busy fighting to feel it. 

“Y-yeah. I… feel warm” He tians smile.. If even possible, widened some more and insexplanably, surprisingly, tears starting welling up at the corner of his eyes until He tian began to cry. Quiet snuffles, he turned his head away slightly, snuggling deeper into the blanket, shaking. He felt loved, so so loved

“H-hey.. What- what happened? Dont cry.” Mo guan shan shifts closer to he tian and takes his wet face in his hands, he feels the tears running down his cheeks, “It’s okay” Mo whispered quietly and he tian leans into his touch, then leans into mo guan shans body and tucks his face under the crook of his neck. Mo stiffens up, feels the wetness at his skin. Without thinking, He reaches his hands up and softly strokes he tians hair. 

“I’m here” he says which made he tian cry even more.

Mo guan shan wasnt sure what was going on, all he knew is that he felt a deep fondness for He tian, and he wanted to shield him from all his fears. He wanted to stay. With him. 

After a few minutes, he tian calms down and guan shan feels fingers attempting to interlock with his, beneath the blanket,. Hesitant, shy, he interlocks them. It feels like home

“Stay with me, forever” he tian whispers, guttural, rough and gentle

Mo guan shan settles further into the warmth of of the blanket and rubs his thumb over He tians hand. Warm.

“Alright” he says

He feels warm

Locker Talk, or: How A Succubus Earns Hazard Pay

“You look like shit, Bell.” Lil said as she glanced at Bell, before going back to digging through her locker. Various odds and ends appeared and vanished in short order while she continued speaking. “Haven’t seen you in a week, either. Bad summon? Or,” she paused to leer at Bell, “a really good one?”

Bell sighed and slumped into a chair. “Bad-” she said, taking a moment to breathe before leaning forward and resting her arms and head on the table, “does not even begin to describe it.”

“Aha! Found it!” Lil pocketed a card of some sort from her locker before slamming the door shut, doing an about-face, and leaning back against it. “Sounds like a nasty one, then.” She pushed off, then walked over and sat next to Bell. “Gonna take a trip down to Restoration and Resurrection? Sounds like your last summon might warrant a free treatment.”

“Hah! I wish it was that good of a summon. No.” she wiggled a bit so she could see Lil without lifting her head from the table. “No. I’m headed straight to Demon Resources and putting in for some hazard pay and a bit of leave.”

Lil’s eyes widened, and flicked up and down as she inspected Bell’s form. “Doesn’t look like it could’ve been that bad.”

“Of course not!” Bell slapped the table. “Fucker didn’t touch me at all, you know.” She looked up and met Lil’s gaze, and the bags under Bell’s eyes stood in stark contrast to her otherwise immaculate beauty. “Didn’t touch me at all. If DR has any sense at all, they’ll blacklist him too.”

“As it stands,” Bell continued, shifting a bit and resting her chin in her hands, “I’m going to go visit mom and have her treat me to a good round of fast food. I’m absolutely starving.” Her stomach growled, the accompaniment to her statement almost reminiscent of a dissatisfied hellhound. “And she has a good standing contract in Vegas that should work just fine.”

“Okay, now I have to know.” Lil leaned forward, eyes glowing slightly in the dim light. “The heck happened?”

Bell grumbled incoherently a bit before sitting up straight. “Mrgh. It was a really bad one. You sure?” Seeing Lil nodding vigorously, she continued. “Okay, so. I get a summon with a week-long timeframe, right? Not that uncommon, especially when someone’s really pent up.” She reached up and twiddled with a lock of her hair, before shoving it behind a cheap hairclip.

“But, this one started off with red flags. The first thing he did after summoning me was, and don’t laugh” Bell rolled her eyes as she said this, “he handed me some clothes and told me to cover up.”

Lil shrugged. “Role-play isn’t all that uncomm-”

“No. These were just. Normal clothes.” Bell sighed again, her shoulders slumped. “I thought the same at first too, but then he told me to make myself at home for now and walked out.” She disentangled one of her hands and began tapping the table. “To go to work.”

“He just left you? Alone?”

Bell stood up and began pacing, her hands and arms moving as she spoke. “Just left me. I figured, hey. Maybe he’s setting up some kind of housewife play. I’ve seen it a few times before.” She stopped for a moment and turned to face Lil, hands on her hips. “So I did the normal for that. Cleaned the place a bit, cooked up a nice meal, the works. He gets home, we start eating, and he starts making small talk.”

“No way.” Lil shuddered. “A human. Making small talk with a demon?”

Bell resumed her pacing, back and forth as she talked. “Yeah. And then, after dinner? He sat down to watch some TV. I, of course, joined him” She giggled a bit, the sound unnerving in how it echoed through the room. “Tried to rile him up, maybe get him interested. Somehow,” she stopped pacing again, foot tapping angrily as she spat out the rest. “Somehow, nothing phased him. Not even when I sat in his lap towards the end.” She stomped a foot as her tapping stopped. “He just sat there, didn’t even react.”

“Wow. Tough case. That was the first day of a week-long summon, though.” Lil thought for a moment, then snapped her fingers. “Might have just been tired. What happened next?”

“He led me to a bed, then fucking-” she stopped, her teeth audibly grinding together as her jaw clenched. “He walked out. Apparently that was his guest room. Of course, I was having none of that.” Her eyes flashed, fully illuminating the break room for a moment. “I snuck into his room after he fell asleep and tried to use his dreams. It,” she said, biting the words, “Was a. Waste. Of. Time. Didn’t even have any dreams. At all.”

Lil winced.

“So of course, I figured like you did. Assumed he was tired and I’d get some the next day.” She giggled again, and the cheap table rattled a bit as the room shifted and rumbled in time to the sound. “You know what they say about assuming. Same deal, all. Fucking. Week.”

Lil’s eyes went wide. “How? No way the weekend went the same way.”

Bell slammed her fist against the wall as she paced, an audible crack accentuating the dent her hand left behind. She glanced at it and made a quick gesture, smiling wryly as it faded away. “I wish. No, the weekend was worse.”

“How could he possibly” Lil began, staring at Bell, “make it worse than that?”

“The weekend is why I’m heading to DR.” Bell sat down on the counter. “So, he hands me a nice dress, tells me to put it on. Somehow I manage to convince myself that we’re finally going to do something.” She laughed. “I know. Naive of me, at this point. No, instead, we leave his house.”

“Oh. Oh no, don’t tell me...”

“Yes, Lil.” Bell shuddered, hugging herself as she did. “He was taking me on a date.”

Lil shivered, seeming to shrink into herself as she did. “That pervert.”

“Right? He took me out for dinner, and, even worse,” she stood back up and began pacing faster than before, back and forth. “Even worse, he did things. Like, he held my hands. And-and. He complimented me!”

Lil shrieked, her form going almost incoherent as massive black wings suddenly seemed to cover her. “That absolute pervert! Who compliments a girl before he fucks her?”

“It still gets worse.” Bell reached up and grabbed the clip from her hair. “We went shopping together, and he bought me this, this-” she brandished it towards Lil, before throwing it against the wall. “This accessory! As a gift!”

“No way.” Lil’s eyes followed the clip’s short flight and shorter fall. “That’s...what kind of-”

“And” Bell interrupted, stopping her pacing to slump against the wall, “when we got home he took me to bed, but still didn’t do anything to me. Because how could a pervert like him do something normal? No, he just. Just. Hugged me. And fell asleep like that. And then the contract ended and I was back here.”

Lil shuddered, getting up from the table and moving over to embrace Bell. “You poor thing,” she said, massaging her. “That sounds horrible.”

“It was.” Bell leaned into Lil’s ministrations. “But the worst thing he did?” She blushed, lighting the whole room with a lambent glow. “What kind of pervert calls a girl cute? In public?”

Male vampire x male character - Part Four (final) (nsfw)

Wow. This part is 10,904 words, people. And in total this story now reaches 23,704 words in length!!

I hope you enjoy this part! Obviously, mlm exo(ish in this case) stories always flop on here no matter what, but some folks at least seemed to like it once it got going, and my Patrons seemed to enjoy it too. I really enjoyed getting to know these two boys, and their personalities, so at the end of the day I guess that’s what matters.

Last time, Alec learned that a few members of his immediate family are in fact vampire hunters, and he found out the truth about Sebastien too.

Heads up in this part for continued, but easing, tense familial relations, some angst/heartache (not heartbreak though), and some (consensual) blood drinking.

Thanks to those of you who have engaged with this story! And for being so supportive in general. You've been an absolute pleasure to write for.

Tumblr links to previous parts: Part One (sfw), Part Two (nsfw), Part Three (nsfw)

Alec let out a shaky breath and crossed to the sofa, sinking down onto it as his legs finally gave out. “Vampires,” he said, hardly daring to believe the word he was uttering.

“Yes.”

“And you’re one?”

“… Yes.”

“And my family…?”

Sebastien’s voice was tight on the other end of the line as he said, “Hunts my kind. Well, those of us who aren’t registered with the ‘Guild of Hunters’ —” his tone turned acrid as he spat the words out, though he kept his voice low and quiet.

“What does that even mean? I don’t know what any of this means… And did you know about my family? I mean, before? When you started dating me?”

Sebastien took another deep breath. “Yes. I knew. And it was a long time before I fully convinced myself that you did not.”

If Sebastien had thought it was some kind of trap, that would explain his reticence at the beginning for sure.

“And were you planning on telling me any of this?” Alec snarled. God, his chest hurt so much. The deception was like Jeremy cheating on him all over again, only this time the betrayal was coming from two fronts at once: from his love life and from his family. Not that he’d had all that solid a relationship with the latter to start with. Perhaps this explained why.

“I hadn’t planned on becoming your boyfriend at all,” Sebastien snapped.

“So, what, I was just a quick diversion? A casual fuck you kept coming back for because I’m such a fucking chump? Is that it?”

“No,” Sebastien sighed. “Not at all. I fell for you. Like the horrid cliche I am, the vampire fell for the hunter, and by then I had no idea how to tell you. I’ve not been with a human before, so this is all very new to me.”

Alec ran his fingers through his dark hair to buy himself a moment. “You… You haven’t?”

“No.”

“How… How old are you?”

“Do you really want the answer to that?”

“Yes!” His phone was slippery in his fingers now from the sweat on his palm but he couldn’t bring it away from his ear long enough to put it on speaker. He needed answers.

With another cavernous sigh, Sebastien said hurriedly, “Very well. I was born in 1897 and turned on the battlefields of the Great War — World War I, that is. I was dying, and a vampire named Felicity who had been working as a field nurse turned me. My first run-in with your family was not long after I moved from France to America. They were working with the American Hunters’ Guild on a case which had nothing to do with me.” He let out a shaky breath and said, “I got in the way and I nearly died. Those were the days before the treaty, of course, and before I moved to England.”

Despite his still-spinning mind, Alec managed to croak, “What treaty?”

“Those of us who get our blood from sanctioned blood banks and do not live-feed are exempt from being hunted like animals.” He spoke like he was quoting from a law code; cold and clinical; detached.

God, the way he said it made Alec’s skin crawl. It was as if he were being permitted to exist on the grounds of good behaviour and, he supposed, that was exactly the case. Even so, Alec couldn’t help the next words that just fell out of his mouth. “So you weren’t planning on feeding from me?”

“Of course not,” Sebastien retorted but then appeared to rein himself in with yet another steadying inhale. “No. It’s been decades since I’ve fed from a human directly. I didn’t plan on starting with you.”

Alec slumped back into the sofa cushions and stared up at the ceiling of his tiny apartment. “Fuck.”

After a long silence, Sebastien’s gentle tenor sounded in his ear. “Are you alright?”

“No,” he said. “I’ve never been close to my family - my dad was always an arsehole, but… I can’t believe Theo’s involved in all this. He was such a sweet kid, and we were really close until…” he swallowed thickly around the rising lump in his throat.

“Until?” Sebastien prompted when he stalled again.

“I can’t believe this is all real,” he muttered. “Until he turned sixteen and started to ‘work out’ with dad. I was at uni by then, getting my fine art degree, but whenever I came home he was just… different. Harder. Sharper. More focused. Guess it makes sense now… Well, as much as… you know…” he gestured vaguely to the empty apartment with his hands, “… as much as all this can make sense. Fucking… vampires…”

After a heartbeat, Sebastien added softly, “Quite literally.”

Despite himself, Alec snorted. “So… where does this leave us?”

Now it was Sebastien’s turn to feel clearly uncomfortable. Eventually he said, “Alec, I don’t think it’s wise for me to see you currently. Not with your family being what they are.”

His heart twisted, even though he’d been half expecting it. “You still think they’d… what, stake you, or whatever it is that vampire hunters actually do to you lot?”

“There are many ways to kill a vampire,” he said flatly. “And your family knows all of them, probably more. You need to work this out with them first as well. Talk to your brother. He seems the more reasonable…”

“I can’t believe Ellie’s in on it as well. And my mother? Fuck…”

“Talk to them.”

“Will I still see you at work at least?”

The awkward silence told him all he needed to know, even before Sebastien said, “I just sent in my letter of resignation.”

“That was quick,” he hissed, stomach dropping. “You only just left.”

“Supernatural speed,” he replied bitterly. “Comes in useful for typing papers and getting out of awkward situations…”

That sparked another question in him. “Supernatural powers, huh? Can you turn into a bat too?”

“No.”

Then he thought of Sebastien’s Halloween outfit. “Wolf?”

He thought he detected a faint smirk in Sebastien’s response. “No, sadly. No shape-shifting for me. Felicity is not of any extraordinary bloodline, and thus, neither am I.”

“Right,” he grunted. “Of course. Is she… is she still around?”

“Felicity? Yes. We meet every now and again. She and her wife spend most of their time in Venice these days.”

“Her wife? She a vampire too?”

Sebastien swallowed audibly. “Yes.”

“Did Felicity turn her too? Would that make her wife your sister?”

“No.”

He frowned. “Did she know her as a human though?”

“Yes.”

After a moment of spinning thoughts, Alec asked, “Did… you turn her?”

“One doesn’t tend to turn one’s own intended. Between a sire and their turned, there can grow… tension. Not always, but it can be enough to ruin a relationship that was seemingly solid before. Something about exchanging blood changes the soul… or so we think, anyway. It was an honour to be asked to sire her.”

“Right.” Alec felt slightly sick. “Will I at least see you before you leave?”

“I think it best if we don’t. Not while your family is still… ‘investigating’ me.”

“Are you really in danger from them?”

“Quite possibly. My name is on the treaty, but…”

Something twanged painfully again in his chest, swiftly followed by the fizzle of fear through his veins. “But what?”

“But vampires and hunters are not supposed to sleep together, Alec…”

“Don’t bang the enemy? How very Romeo and Juliet,” he snorted. “Fuck. Why does every good relationship I have turn to shit?” he asked, not of Sebastien but of the universe itself. “What did I do?”

“Alec —”

“—Don’t. Don’t make it worse by apologising or something. It’s fine. We were only together a month. I’ll get over it. You’ll move on. Heck, you’ll fucking live forever, right? What’s a month to you anyway? Nothing, right?”

The bitterness in his own voice nearly choked him, and without thinking, or even saying goodbye, he just hung up and let his phone lie in his limp fingers on the sofa cushions. It lit up and rang a moment later, but he didn’t answer it. Six more times Sebastien tried before finally giving up.

Kay was an absolute blessing in the next few days.

He didn’t tell her immediately about the whole vampire thing, but after he’d calmed down enough to be able to look at Theo without immediately busting a vein in his forehead, he hashed the basics out with him, and then told her everything. Alec told her about his newly-discovered, secret family occupation which, apparently, stretched back centuries. He told her about the fact that his eldest sister and younger brother were monster hunters in their spare time, and he told her the real reason Sebastien why had vanished overnight without a trace — yes, Alec had gone to his apartment building, only to be politely informed by the doorman that Dr. Dulac was no longer in residence and did not leave so much as a forwarding address.

That, above almost everything else, shattered Alec’s hopes of seeing him again. Like thistledown in the wind, Sebastien had simply flitted away somewhere else.

She took it about as well as he had to start with, but when she saw the seriousness in his eyes, and when, three weekends later, she came to his apartment for a definitely-not-awkward dinner with Theo, she saw video footage that Theo and his father had captured from various hunts of supernatural creatures beyond only beautiful vampires. Then she believed him. Ghouls, ghosts, reanimated corpses, demons… you name it and Theo could tell you about it.

Alec spent Christmas with Kay’s family, and Theo met him for New Year drinks in the city, joined by Ellie. It wasn’t anything like the family dynamic he’d always longed for, but the new degree of openness between them went some way to mending his still bruised heart. Slowly. Gradually. Piece by tentative, honest piece. He never joined in, but Theo started to tell him a bit about what they did. It still sounded barbaric to him, but at least it was true.

He had no word from Sebastien, and the number he had saved in his phone had been disconnected.

With the arrival of spring, Alec found himself more than usually dissatisfied with his job. He was a good teacher, and he enjoyed seeing his students’ talents evolve and grow, but the ever-increasing admin ground him down, and the politics of the faculty and the university as a whole wore on him.

“Have you seen this?” Kay asked one afternoon as they shared a takeaway coffee beneath the drifting cherry blossoms. Petals spiralled down like pastel pink and white wedding confetti, and he watched with an absent smile as a terrier snapped and sprung around on his hind legs trying to catch them while his owner stood and talked with her friend nearby. “Oi!” Kay asked, digging him in the ribs.

“Hmm?”

“Have you seen this?” she asked, shoving her phone under his nose.

He blinked, refocusing his eyes, and read the article’s headline aloud. “Council offers artists the chance to win a sponsored exhibition in the town hall with this unique competition.” He blinked. “So?”

“So?” she gawped. “You can’t be serious?”

“Send me the link. I’ll forward it to my students. They might like that.” That earned him a smack upside the head, and he scowled. “What was that for?”

“Alec, you might be the dumbest smart guy I know,” she said. “I showed it to you so that you could enter it, you giant idiot.”

He blinked. “Me?”

“I saw those charcoals you did the other week of the cathedral! They were amazing!! And the abstracts too… I still want one, by the way.”

“It’s already wrapped up for your birthday,” he groused. “You really think I should do it?”

She rolled her eyes and drained the last of her coffee without gracing him with an answer. Of course she thought he should.

“When’s the deadline?”

“Next Thursday,” she said without looking at him.

Alec licked his lips and swallowed. “Will you help me pick some images to submit?”

Her answering grin was feral.

In all honesty, Alec forgot about having even entered the competition until the letter dropped through his door six weeks later announcing that, to his utter astonishment, he had been selected as the winner. Tears blurred his eyes and he sat down heavily at the tiny kitchen table. He’d never entered any of his own art into anything like this in his whole life, and the first time he does, he gets a whole fucking public exhibition out of it?

“Maybe this year won’t be so bad after all,” he murmured. “New year, new start…” His chest still ached when he thought about Sebastien, and he hoped he was doing alright, wherever he was.

Theo had been searching for him, probably by way of apology for lying to his big brother for all these years, but he’d turned up very little. Sebastien had gone to Venice first, it seemed, presumably to spend time with Felicity and her wife, but had disappeared completely after that, with only rumours flickering here and there that he was in Paris, St. Petersburg, Prague, and then potentially Florence. Maybe.

“Venice seems like a pretty sunny place for a pair of vampires to live,” Alec commented, but Theo shrugged.

“They don’t burn up immediately in sunlight, or your professor would never have been able to take a day-job at the university. They’re sensitive to it, some more than others, but it takes a full day of constant sunlight beating down for them to burn properly.” The callousness of his brother’s response shook him, even after all these months, and Theo must have seen it on his face because he sighed. “I’m sorry,” he said, and then added, “You really loved him, didn’t you?”

Alec shrugged. Yes, he wanted to say. I thought so. “I only knew him for a month or so,” was what he said carefully instead. “And even then… turned out I didn’t know him anyway.”

Theo, who had been lounging on Alec’s sofa with his legs spread and his head tipped back into the cushions while Alec made supper, asked quietly, “Did he seem… normal to you?”

“Normal?” Alec asked, not sure he’d heard his brother correctly.

“Yeah… like… did you ever suspect he wasn’t… you know…?”

“Human?”

Theo grunted and nodded his head. “Yeah. I guess.”

“No. Obviously not. Never crossed my mind. Why would it have?”

Theo scowled and turned his eyes to regard him. Alec knew that Theo looked like a younger version of himself, if maybe in better shape, and he wondered if he’d have the same steely look in his eyes if he’d been deemed ‘man enough’ to become a hunter, or whatever bullshit criteria their arsehole father had used to select which members of his family were to become soldiers and which would live normal lives.

“What?” Alec demanded.

“But you slept with him, right?”

“I’m not talking about that with you,” he said, briefly brandishing the wooden spoon at him.

Theo pulled a face. “I’m not asking about your sex life. Gross. No, I mean…”

In that moment, Alec spotted a flash of something in his brother’s blue eyes that softened him to the kid. He turned off the gas and went over to where Theo was now sitting hunched over with his elbows on his knees, running his hands through his hair. When he looked up at Alec’s approach, his face showed open vulnerability in a way he’d not seen since they were young children and Theo had got himself into trouble at school.

“What’s going on?” Alec asked, seating himself next to his little brother.

Theo bobbed his knee like a deprived caffeine addict and bit his lip. With glassy eyes, he croaked, “I keep asking myself if we did the right thing…”

“What do you mean?”

The bravado of Theo’s early twenties melted away to become a worried, frightened, guilty little boy again and he said, “I mean… if what we do is right…”

“You mean… hunting?”

“Yeah,” he croaked.

“What set this off?”

His brother quirked him a humourless smirk and said, “You always did know when something was bothering me.”

Alec remained quiet, just watching him.

“We teamed up with some hunters from Edinburgh for a ‘vamp gone rogue’ case and we finally found her yesterday. She… She’d been turning people; trying to amass some kind of small army to take over from another vampire further up north. She was insane… like, completely, sociopathically insane, but… the people she turned… they were just…” he blinked, and Alec saw with a jolt that his eyes were full of unshed tears. “They were still just people.”

He feared he already knew where this was going. Still, he asked, “What happened?”

“Father wanted to put them down. They were terrified, chained up… still on the point of lashing out…”

Bile rose in his throat. “Oh god…”

“One of the hunters said she knew of a vampire who could help rehabilitate them; help them adjust to their new lives. One of them didn’t want to live as a vampire though, so father just…”

Theo didn’t need to finish that for Alec to know that father had ended the newly-turned vampire’s life in a heartbeat. “And the rest?”

“The other three went with the hunter. I don’t know what happened, but… I trust her. It’s just… father taught me and Ellie that vampires are mindless killers when they feed… that you can’t get close to them, that all they want at the end of the day is blood no matter what they tell you…  but…” he looked up at Alec. “You’ve been fucking miserable since the whole Sebastien shit-fest. I know you’ve been trying to hide it, and you’ve got the exhibition coming up next weekend, and that’s great, but… I know you’ve stopped putting yourself out there. And we did that. We fucked it all up for you. I just…” he ran his hands through his hair and sent it into wild disarray. “I just wonder if you could really have been happy with him after all.”

Alec pulled his brother close and hugged him. “I’m not going to lie,” he murmured into his brother’s dark hair. “I’m furious with father for keeping everything from me, and for making you and mum and Ellie lie to me and Angie about it as well, but… if I hadn’t seen Sebastien’s eyes go red — yeah, I thought it was just a reflection or something — and if I hadn’t seen the way he sleeps literally like the dead… I’m not sure I would have believed you anyway. I don’t forgive him for it either, but…” he sighed deeply. “I forgive you, Theo. And Ellie.”

“And mum?”

“I’m still working on that.”

Theo went slack beneath him and snaked his arms around his brother’s waist for a moment. “Thanks,” he mumbled into Alec’s shirt.

“You’re still coming to the exhibition?” Alec asked as he pulled back and went back to the stove, giving Theo a moment of privacy to pull himself together.

In truth, Alec was a little shaken too. Their relationship had been slowly patched over the intervening months, but it still wasn’t particularly close, and the matter of Sebastien had been a permanent, proverbial elephant in the room. That Theo was questioning their father’s teaching came as an immense relief to Alec though. He poured them each a glass of wine, and the two spent the rest of the evening in a quieter kind of closeness than they’d yet shared.

When the evening of the exhibition drew round, Alec was quite frankly, a bit of a mess.

“C’mon,” Theo grinned, patting the lapels of his jacket down for him and grinning up at him. “Where’s that Twayblade hunter courage, huh?”

“Must have skipped me and all gone to you,” he quipped back. “Fuck. I’m so nervous. Why am I so nervous?”

“No fucking clue,” Theo chuckled. “You’re awesome and they’re gonna fucking love you.”

“Language,” Alec said instinctively and Theo’s laughter redoubled.

“You’re a big fucking hypocrite, you know that?” Theo laughed just as Kay sidled up with three glasses of champagne awkwardly held between her hands.

“Help a girl out here, would you, boys?” she asked, proffering the glasses to them.

Alec resisted the urge to down it in one — he’d probably only choke on the bubbles anyway — and filled his lungs instead with a big gulp of air. He tried to send all his nerves into the air and then blow it out of his body in one heaving sigh to leave him calmer, but it just gave him a head rush, so he sipped the wine and turned to look around the gallery from the corner where he’d been lurking.

“What if no one shows up?” he blurted, earning him a scowl from Theo and a pout-and-eyebrow-raise combo from Kay.

He needn't have worried in the end. The marketing team had done their work, and within an hour the place was heaving and all but three of his pieces had been reserved. Scratch that. Two.

The fact that almost all of his students had turned up as well to cheer him on and trade high fives, and scrounge free alcohol and food from the canape trays, warmed him in ways he didn’t know were possible.

Overwhelmed and a little bit tearful, he stepped out of the town hall’s main exhibition space and into the small corridor that led to a fire exit and a grotty back car park beyond, letting the flush die down from his cheeks. This was what he’d really wanted right from the moment he’d graduated all those years ago; to be an artist in his own right, with people buying his work at exhibitions… It almost made him giddy to think that he had a chance to do this full time now. It seemed that Sebastien had been right when he’d said he could really make something of himself.

Ah, there was the crash in his mood that he’d been waiting for. Nothing good lasts forever, right?

Would Sebastien have been proud of him if he knew about this? Would he have been there that night, by his side? Would they even have lasted that long anyway, even without his family’s interference?

The noise in the room was gradually dying down when he gathered enough courage to step back into the echoing hall. The pale wooden floors gleamed in the low light, the white of the temporary exhibition walls almost glowing, in stark contrast to the black and grey of his charcoals. He’d chosen mostly charcoals for the show, with a few acrylic abstracts for flavour, and apparently people loved them. Every single one had a red ‘sold’ dot beneath the label now, he noted as he cast his eyes around the room.

Then his gaze snagged on someone standing with their back to him, hands clasped loosely behind them, a long, silver-blond ponytail hanging down their back. And Alec’ vision slipped sideways.

Sebastien.

It had to be him.

No one else stood with posture like that. No one else was so tall and lean and elegant and god-damned graceful, even when just standing still. And no one else stood quite as still as that.

He let out a ragged breath and swayed slightly, glancing around. There was no sign of Theo or Kay just then, and only one or two couples meandered admiringly around the room. And there, fixated by one piece in particular, stood Sebastien.

Inhaling for courage, Alec approached and came to an unsteady halt a few feet away from him. He didn’t look real, somehow. His beauty had always been striking, but now in the low light he seemed like a mirage, with his warm olive skin and contrastingly pale hair, that cut-glass jawline and —

— He turned and met Alec’s gaze with dark brown eyes alight and glassy.

“You’re here,” Alec breathed, at a loss for anything else.

“I hope you don’t mind,” Sebastien said, and the sound of his voice sent a wild tingling through Alec’s whole nervous system. The man — vampire — looked uncharacteristically shy, uncertain, as he half turned to face him.

“Gotta say,” Alec said, scratching the back of his head, “I wasn’t expecting to see you again.”

“Should I leave?”

He chewed his lower lip for a second and Sebastien’s eyes tracked the movement before he blinked and looked back at the charcoal in front of him. It was of the Lady Chapel of the cathedral; one of the most tranquil places Alec had ever been. A shaft of light lanced down from a Gothic window high on the right, scattering fractured shards of light onto the stone floor, and behind it, just barely visible as a grey, misty outline, sat the small altar.

“You’re religious?” Alec asked.

“Mm,” Sebastien nodded. “Surprising, I know, given my ‘condition’, but there you have it.”

All the smalltalk then suddenly boiled up into thick irritation inside Alec and he scowled. “Where have you been? And why now? Why come back now? What do you want?”

He must have raised his voice fractionally because the couple admiring the seascape to their left shot them slightly scandalised looks, as if he’d started swearing in a sanctuary, and he bit back the wave of anger, halting it in its tracks.

“Shall we step outside for a moment?” Sebastien asked and Alec nodded tersely.

Passing Kay and Theo who were sitting in the chairs near the drinks table, Alec cast his eyes at them and watched Theo tense visibly. Kay laid her hand on his thigh and shook her head, at which Theo nodded and sat back, eyes hard, mouth set, but at least he didn’t appear to be on the point of leaping out and staking Sebastien on the spot.

Alec mouthed a silent ‘thank you’ at them both, and followed Sebastien out on to the street.

“You’ve patched things up with your family then?” Sebastien began, standing perfectly still beside the brick wall of the Victorian building while Alec paced.

“Mostly just with Theo, but yeah. Why are you here?” he asked again.

“Honestly? I missed you. Couldn't get you out of my head. I went all over Europe, and even to Asia briefly, and nothing I did distracted me from you, from leaving you. I had to come back.”

“You could have called,” he said, instantly regretting the way it came out like a petulant teenager’s sulking.

“And what would that have achieved?” Sebastien asked evenly. “I was hundreds of miles away.”

“You could have come back sooner? Talked to me in person?”

Sebastien sighed. “I was afraid that your family would come after me. I needed to disappear.”

“Theo convinced father to let you go. As you said yourself, your name was on the treaty, and you didn’t hurt me or hypnotise me, or whatever… did you?”

“No,” he said, pale brows pinching with evident distaste.

“Could you have?”

Sebastien levelled him with a dark look. “Yes, but… that’s not something I enjoy doing. It’s a survival mechanism — to make people forget what they’ve seen — it’s not something to be used lightly.”

“Ok, but you could have, and you didn’t, so that was another reason to let you go,” he said. God he wanted to kiss him. The realisation hit him like a gut punch and he turned away. Alec ached inside and out for those lips, those hands, those eyes… “Fuck,” he whispered, barely audible. “Are you staying?”

“Do you want me to stay?”

Alec rounded on him, frustration pouring out of him again. “Don’t answer my question with one of your own. Are you staying or not?”

Sebastien remained eerily calm, but a heartbeat later Alec saw that it wasn’t serenity in his eyes but sadness. “If you want me to, I’ll stay. I want to try again, Alec. I want… I want to be with you. I’ve never felt for anyone what I feel for you.”

“Feel? As in… present tense?”

“Yes. It hasn’t faded. Not with all the days and distance between us.”

“God, you sound like a shitty romance novel hero…” he scoffed. “I almost believe it.”

Sebastien spread his hands and said, “I am who — and what — I am. You know me, Alec, in a way that no one else ever has. I was utterly myself with you, except for the fact that I kept my nature from you. I hope you can at least understand why, if not forgive me. Everything else was genuine. I have never done that — been that open, that vulnerable — with anyone.”

“Even knowing what my family are?”

“Even then.”

Alec looked up at him and saw his own reflection in those dark, rich brown eyes. “Show me.”

Sebastien’s angelic face soured into a confused frown. “Show you what?”

“Your eyes. Your fangs. Show me what you are.”

“Now?”

He looked around. The street was empty on either side, with the only people around gathered outside a bar further up the street.

When he turned back to say yes to Sebastien, he found blood red eyes glowing in the man’s face. “Holy fuck,” he hissed. Every already-chiselled line on Sebastien’s face had sharpened somehow, his cheeks hollowing a little, perhaps to account for the additional hardware he now sported in his mouth, and his eyes seemed a touch more sunken. And they glowed as if lit from within.

Heartbeat thrumming out a wild tattoo, he stepped closer and Sebastien went utterly still. His chest ceased to rise and fall, and he didn’t even blink as Alec raised his fingers to his left cheek. “Show me.”

Sebastien swallowed and parted his lips. Angling his jaw a little to one side, he showed Alec the elongated canines, three quarters of an inch long. “Careful,” he murmured as Alec made to touch them. “Vampire venom is potent, even in small doses.”

“Does it really do what the hunters say it does?”

Sebastien’s red eyes glittered almost playfully. “I don’t know,” he smiled, seeming to relax a fraction. “What do they say it does?”

“Drives your victims wild, acts like a date rape drug, makes humans lose their will and their inhibitions…”

At that, a hardness returned to his features and his lip twitched in a lopsided snarl, like a wolf backed into a corner. “That’s certainly one take on it,” he said. “It creates a rush of euphoria. It’s supposed to make feeding a pleasant experience for all concerned. Endorphins in the blood make the taste sweeter, and the human feels no pain or fear.”

“Right. Gotta say I like that one better,” Alec said with a shaky smile. “But I’m not gonna risk it right here… And fuck me, your eyes are incredible.”

“They’re still red, hmm?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

Closing his eyes and tilting his face upwards a little more towards the cloudy night sky, he inhaled deeply. His features softened again, and Alec watched, fascinated, as the slight bumps behind his closed upper lip slid away into nothing, presumably as his canines retracted into his gums. When he opened his eyes, they were their usual, endlessly dark brown once more.

“Better?” Sebastien asked, oddly self-conscious.

“No,” he said. “Just different.”

Something prickled on the back of his neck and he turned to find a woman silhouetted against the light of street lamp halfway up the road. “Friend of yours?” he asked, tense.

“Felicity. She came with me.”

“Why? Surely you don’t need a wingman… or, you know, woman.”

With a tiny smile, Sebastien said, “You make me more vulnerable than you realise, in more ways than one. And we weren’t sure if your family would be here.”

“Or whether they’d want to flambé you…”

“Precisely.” He inclined his head and the woman did the same, turning and vanishing even as Alec blinked.

“Can you do that too?” he asked, still gawping after her.

When he turned back, he found that Sebastien had stepped in close to him - close enough that his faint, woody cologne wafted gently around them and he felt his knees wobble slightly. He’d missed this. Oh god, he’d missed this. “Mmhmm,” Sebastien hummed. “I can.”

“Kiss me,” Alec whispered. “Please…”

Sebastien didn’t need telling twice. He took Alec’s face in both his hands and crushed a passionate kiss to his lips so hard that Alec’s mind went perfectly blank for a few beautiful seconds. When he came to, he grabbed Sebastien’s narrow hips and tugged him close, making the vampire grunt as their bodies connected.

This time, he took Sebastien’s ponytail in one hand and began to pull on it gently. Sebastien yielded at the pressure and tipped his face back, exposing the entire column of his throat to Alec without resistance. The gesture left Alec stunned and breathless. In his research with Theo over the past months, he had learned that for a vampire to expose their throat to another implied absolute trust. Overwhelmed, he pressed his lips to the bare skin and felt Sebastien gasp, grabbing at his shoulders suddenly to keep himself upright.

Over and over, the vampire shuddered tangibly beneath his touch and gasped sharply again, panting. As he shifted his hips against him, Alec felt Sebastien’s growing hardness, and at the same time, Sebastien drew back, eyes screwed shut. “Stop,” he laughed. “Not here.”

“I want you,” Alec moaned, one hand on Sebastien’s chest. “Fuck, I’ve missed you so much.”

“I want you too,” Sebastien smiled, opening his eyes. They glowed scarlet again. “And because of that, this —” he said, gesturing to his red eyes, “— isn’t going to go away quickly this time.”

“This too?” Alec said, boldly cupping the obvious bulge in Sebastien’s smart black trousers gently with his hand and making the vampire groan.

“Yeah, that too.”

“Your place or mine?” Alec asked with a dizzy grin.

“You decide. I’m booked into a hotel one street over for the next two days,” he said. “If that affects your decision in any way.”

“Yours,” he said. “I… I’ll just…” he looked over his shoulder and caught sight of the exhibition banner dangling by the door. “I should…”

Sebastien nodded slowly. “I’ll be here.”

“You’d better be,” he snarled as he adjusted himself and prayed no one would notice. He took a few steadying breaths on the threshold of the town hall and then disappeared inside.

Kay raised her eyebrows at him when he reappeared.

“Not a word,” he said through gritted teeth.

“Your hair’s a mess,” she said conversationally. “Is it windy outside?”

“Fuck off,” he grimaced and she laughed. “Where’s Theo?”

“He left out the back way,” she said. “But he told me to tell you to enjoy yourself tonight, and that he’ll stand by whatever makes you happy.”

Unexpected tears prickled his eyes and he tugged her into a hug that was probably meant for his brother.

“You can thank us later,” she said, shoving him off her. “Go be with your Prince of Darkness…”

“I’m not sure how much he’d like you calling him that,” he said as he stepped back. “I’ll have to wrap things up here first…”

It seemed to take forever, but he finally found the events coordinator and after an interminable conversation full of congratulations, agreed to stop by the next day to take down the exhibition and sort the sales out. His heart was thudding when he stepped back outside, but he let out a huge sigh when he saw Sebastien leaning against the brick building, face tilted towards the moon that was just peeking out from behind a bank of cloud.

“It’s like one of your charcoals,” Sebastien said without tearing his eyes from the sky.

Alec crossed to him and smiled when Sebastien met his gaze, red meeting blue. Alec slid his fingers into Sebastien’s where his hand hung quietly by his side.

“Ready?” the vampire asked.

Alec nodded, and let Sebastien lead him back to his hotel.

They barely made it into the lift before Alec was kissing him, backing him into the mirrored sides of the lift with a thud before the doors had even closed. He stopped suddenly, drew back and laughed, and Sebastien — who looked like he’d just got whiplash — asked, “What?”

“Vampires do have reflections after all…”

Sebastien rolled his eyes and gave an indecorous snort-laugh. The sound was rich and warm and it filled Alec’s whole consciousness for a moment. “It’s only the antique ones with genuine silver backing that don’t show our reflections. Technology has evolved, thank goodness. Now, if you don’t mind, you were kissing me senseless…”

“Sorry,” he laughed, grabbing Sebastien’s white shirt collar and tugging him down again. They nearly didn’t get out of the lift at Sebastien’s floor, but as the doors began to close again, Sebastien slid his foot into the path of the doors and dragged Alec out.

Clothes landed in a steady line on the carpet between the door of his hotel room and Sebastien’s bed, ending with them both in only their boxer-briefs on the pristine white surface of the bed. Alec was tipped back onto the duvet and lay there staring up at Sebastien who was now no longer hiding his nature from him at all. Red eyes blazed in his face and as he opened his mouth to breath heavily, the tips of his fangs were just visible. There was no denying that he was a vampire.

“Was it like this before?” Alec asked hoarsely. “I mean… did I just not see it?”

“I had to work very hard to rein all this in,” he said, kneeling on the bed and crawling a little way up it. His own boxer briefs strained at the crotch where his erection tented the fabric, and Alec’s own black ones were stained with a little spot of wetness where his cock twitched with eager interest. “I only let it slip once or twice, but you were distracted at the time.”

Alec smirked and then moaned as Sebastien’s palm skimmed up over his groin and over his stomach. He’d always been a bit self-conscious about the softer parts of him, but Sebastien worshipped him like he was some kind of immortal god, lavishing attention on him over and over until he was shaking and gasping and sweating. “Please!” he begged after what felt like hours. “Oh god, please…”

Sebastien slid off the bed and deftly removed his own underwear before encouraging Alec to lift his hips for him and drawing his boxer-briefs down too. Before Alec could think or process what was happening, Sebastien was between his legs again and had swallowed the entire length of his cock to the back of his throat in one.

“Oh fuck,” he hissed, mind whiting out.

Sparks of pleasure shot up his spine as Sebastien worked him alternately with his mouth and his hand.

He teased him, licking the slit at the tip where pre-come beaded profusely now, teasing the delicate folds of skin until Alec thought he was going to shatter apart with want. Just before it got too much to bear, Sebastien would take him back into the wet heat of his mouth and work the underside of his cock with his tongue, swallowing occasionally and making Alec’s head spin all over again.

His balls tightened and he spread his legs wider, instinctively opening himself to Sebastien.

The vampire moaned against his cock and Alec whimpered. Pulling off him, an obscenely inviting thread of saliva and pre-come connecting them briefly, Sebastien sat up and reached for the top drawer of the bedside table. “Vampires neither catch nor transmit diseases,” he said, “But if you still wish to use protection —”

“— I haven’t been with anyone since you,” he rasped. “And I’m clean anyway…”

“As you wish,” Sebastien smiled, withdrawing an almost-new bottle of lube and sitting back down between his legs. Alec eyed it and Sebastien laughed shyly. “I opened it last night…” he admitted and Alec grinned.

That smirk shattered into an open-mouthed groan as Sebastien’s finger slid inside him and he began to prepare him. There was nothing perfunctory about it either. Sebastien took his time to work him open, his fingers fucking into him slowly, almost reverently, until he crooked them and Alec yelled as white-hot pleasure shot through him.

“Still so sensitive,” Sebastien crooned and Alec just shivered in response. His thighs were quivering too now from the effort of not bucking upwards into the empty air, his cock drooling freely over his slightly soft stomach with each futile twitch. He knew he was a wanton mess, and he couldn’t quite find it within himself to care. It seem to drive Sebastien wild anyway.

When Sebastien added a third finger, still stroking up and down his thigh with his other hand, Alec broke.

“Please, please, please,” he whimpered, out of breath and desperate. He cracked his eyes open and looked down at Sebastien to find that his red eyes had been almost eclipsed by his blown pupils. He gave a weak buck of his hips to try and encourage Sebastien to get on with it, but the vampire seemed utterly transfixed by him. He worked his fingers over Alec’s prostate gently but with absolute precision, and it was going to make Alec lose his mind altogether.

“Pleasepleaseplease, I need you, please…” he wailed as Sebastien’s mercifully short and blunt fingernail caught him just so and sent another jolt through him.

Finally the vampire moved, but as he withdrew completely, the loss almost shattered him. “Shh,” he smiled, stroking a soothing circle at Alec’s hipbone. “I’m still here…”

Alec whimpered like a wounded animal but his foggy brain accepted that the loss was only temporary, and he watched as Sebastien took his own flushed cock in his hands and slicked lube up the length of it in a couple of efficient strokes, head bowing under the attention it was receiving at last. He’d focused solely, completely, on Alec’s pleasure for all that time, and the realisation sent a fresh wave of lust rolling through Alec’s entire body.

He spread his legs, but Sebastien caught Alec under his left thigh and raised his leg easily, exposing Alec completely. Before Alec could process anything, his tip was nudging at Alec’s entrance, and then he had sunk all the way in to the hilt.

Sebastien froze then, bowed forwards over Alec like a supplicant, canines openly bared, eyes screwed shut, not even breathing.

“Sebastien… please…” Alec grunted. He’d never felt as full and whole as he had with Sebastien inside him, and yet this wasn’t enough. He’d ached for this. For months, he’d ached for it, and still it wasn’t enough. “Bast, please…”

Finally, the vampire opened his searing red eyes and began to move.

Slowly at first, he picked up his pace until Alec’s back was arching and his fingers clawed great furrows in the sheet beneath him. With each thrust, Alec saw stars at let out little fractured, broken gasps. Sebastien was quiet, almost silent, while Alec himself was unable to stop the sounds from tumbling out of him. He moaned and whimpered, gasped and cursed and begged until Sebastien yanked him further down the bed and lifted his hips a little way off the mattress entirely.

From this new angle, it was so blindingly good that Alec went alternately taut and limp with ecstasy. “I’m close,” he gasped over the slap of Sebastien’s hips meeting his skin.

The vampire snarled then; an inhuman sound that sent the hairs prickling all down Alec’s body.

“Come for me,” Alec begged in a whisper, opening his eyes and watching as Sebastien chased his release with a ferocity he’d never shown before. He wasn’t careless with his strength, but he was certainly forceful. Had Alec wanted to grunt ‘stop’, he knew the vampire would halt, but that was the furthest thing from his mind as he watched the flawless perfection of this man above him. “God you’re so beautiful,” he whispered. “Come for me, Bast…”

And at the sound of his name, uttered in little more than an abbreviated wheeze, Sebastien went still, hips spasming as his spine arched back like a bow at full draw, mouth open, head thrown back, fangs bared, eyes rammed shut, a sheen of sweat covering his perfect, bronze chest, his silver hair falling around him like a veil.

The sight of him like that wrenched Alec’s orgasm from him with such sudden force that he almost blacked out, and he clenched around Sebastien’s still-twitching cock as he spilled all over himself. Vaguely, he felt Sebastien trying to withdraw, but he grunted, “Don't… not yet… please… I… unngghh…” Unable to finish the sentence as the last shock waves fluttered through him, Alec went limp against the bed, breathing hard, his blood roaring in his ears.

He wasn’t sure how much time passed before Sebastien did finally move, but eventually he slid his softening cock out of him and Alec grunted at the cool slide of the vampire’s release down his thigh. He was too spent and exhausted to care about the mess though, and as Sebastien collapsed onto the bed beside him, he cracked one eye open.

Sebastien lay on his left side with his cheek pillowed on his bicep, facing Alec with his eyes closed, and he didn’t seem to be breathing. Tentatively, clumsily in the daze of his recent, mind-blowing orgasm, Alec reached out and touched the delicate skin on the inside of his arm. Sebastien jolted like he’d received an electric shock, and opened his eyes. They still burned bright red, but the rest of his face seemed a little softer somehow.

“You alright?” Alec asked.

Sebastien nodded.

“Been a while too, huh?” Alec grinned, flopping back down to stare at the ceiling where little points of light still sparkled across his vision every now and again.

“Not since that last night with you,” he said, words slurred with exhaustion. “Unless you count my rather pathetic climax alone last night, which I certainly don’t.”

“Not at all?”

He shook his head but didn’t speak again. The vampire lay perfectly still — perfectly undead — and perfectly vulnerable beside him without even a sheet to cover him. His cock now lay soft across the top of his right thigh, still drooling a little and making a mess on his olive skin. Not half as much mess as Alec was currently sporting over his torso, he mused with another smile.

With Sebastien showing no sign of stirring, Alec rolled carefully off the bed and headed on shaky legs to the shower. When he returned, Sebastien hadn’t moved, and he slid in beside him, drawing the sheets up around them and lying there to stare at him in the dimness of the unlit room, processing everything. Sebastien was back, and apparently wanted to stay. He could hardly believe how well that day had gone.

Waking the next morning with a cool, lean body pressed against him, Alec sighed, relieved that it hadn’t all been some kind of fever dream brought on by the stress of the exhibition.

The fact that the man next to him was an undead vampire who didn’t breathe in his sleep was a bit unnerving, and the way he had his cheek now resting on Alec’s collarbone and his nose pressed against his neck should also probably have been a bit of a warning, but Alec couldn’t bring himself to move, except to place a soft kiss on his forehead.

Suddenly, as if surfacing from boundless depths, Sebastien’s body heaved and he drew in a great, sucking, rasping inhale through his mouth. His lips brushed against Alec’s pulse and Sebastien began breathing heavily there for a moment.

“That will never not be weird,” Alec murmured.

“Apologies,” Sebastien muttered, trying to roll away. He paused, freezing, and then whispered, “I fell asleep…” as if that was something miraculous.

“Yeah, you passed out almost as soon as we both finished,” he snickered.

Sebastien turned his big, dark, doe eyes on Alec and said, “No, you don’t understand. Vampires don’t just shut down like that the way humans do. We only sleep somewhere we know is secure and safe…”

“Oh,” Alec said significantly as the realisation plunged through him. He tucked his arm under Sebastien’s head and tugged him closer so that their bodies were once again flush with one another. “I’m glad you felt safe…”

Sebastien sighed, trailing his fingertips across Alec’s chest in absent circles. His cock twitched too, and Alec shot him a look.

With a bashful smile, Sebastien said, “I can’t help that I find you attractive, Alec…”

“Wasn't complaining,” he grinned.

It was a long time before they rolled off each other that morning, with the sun well up and the sheets damp with sweat and tangled around their ankles. Vampires, it seemed, had a longer refractory period than humans, but Sebastien also came so big when he did that Alec wasn’t surprised. He gave everything to Alec when he came that Alec could quite happily lie there all day just staring at him as he came down afterwards.

The room was chilly, however, and when Sebastien seemed to have dozed off again around ten o’clock, he headed to clean up. Again.

As the steam billowed around him, he tipped his head back into the stream of searing water and nearly yelped as the shower door opened and let in a rush of cold air as Sebastien stepped into the stall as well. Cool hands found his waist and then strong fingers kneaded his arse appreciatively before Sebastien kissed and nibbled up his shoulder and traps to his neck. Instinctively, Alec tilted his head to one side and Sebastien moaned, pressing open-mouthed kisses there over and over as the hot water coursed around his lips.

The sensation must have been too much for him because he pulled back sharply with a hiss and Alec turned to face him, water still streaming down around them. Sebastien stood frozen, eyes red, staring at Alec’s neck. “I shouldn’t…” he began. “That was stupid of me… I…”

“What happens to the treaty if the human is willing?” Alec found himself asking. He’d thought about it a lot before drifting off the previous night. If Sebastien had wanted to drink from him, to feed on him, what would happen to the tenuous peace between hunters and vampires like him.

“Don’t,” Sebastien said through gritted teeth. His canines were elongated, Alec noted.

“What happens?”

“The only way it’s permitted is if the human agrees by written contract to become the vampire’s source.”

“‘Source’?” he asked. “That sounds like an official title.”

“It is,” Sebastien said, relaxing a fraction and putting his hands back on Alec’s hips. His cock stirred with interest and Sebastien smiled. He leaned back in, as if proving to both of them that he could do this, and kissed down Alec’s neck again from the junction of his jaw all the way to his collarbones. He ground his hips against Alec and they both began to harden again.

Alec’s hand went to Sebastien’s cock and he started to stroke him gently, knowing he was still sensitive from their last round. Sebastien let out a ragged exhale, the cool breath making Alec shiver slightly in the heat of the water.

“So…” Alec pressed gently, thumbing across the top of Sebastien’s flushed cock.

“Hmm?” he asked, a little stunned.

“What is a source?”

“A human becoming a vampire’s source means that the vampire drinks only from that human. It’s… an ancient - ah - custom,” he said, gripping Alec’s shoulders as Alec upped the speed and adjusted his grip to tighten just a little around his now fully hard cock. “Rarely used today, but still… nngh…”

“Mmm?” Alec grinned, loving that the vampire’s thoughts were unravelling under his touch. “Go on.”

“You’re a menace,” he laughed breathily, nipping playfully at his neck and then kissing him hard. Alec’s back suddenly hit the icy tiles behind him and he yelped, rearing into Sebastien who wasn’t all that much warmer, though the heat of the water was raising his body temperature from the ambient temperature of the room.

“So if…” Alec began, somewhat distracted as Sebastien’s kisses continued and the vampire raked his fingers through Alec’s wet hair, scraping luxuriantly across his scalp hard enough to make him break off and groan. “If… if I wanted to become your…”

“Don’t,” Sebastien whispered. “Not yet. Not so soon after… all this time.”

The subtext was clear. Let’s see if this is going to last before I risk my life with the hunters guild and your family, shall we?

“Fair enough. Nothing to say I can’t suck you off now though, right?”

“Nothing at all,” he whispered and then immediately cursed as Alec sank to his knees and did just that.

It was only as he was handing in his own letter of resignation that the truth really sank in for Alec. He’d gone from post-grad assistant in the department to a full lecturer, where he’d stayed for six years, and now he was moving a little way out of the city, and moving in with his boyfriend of a year. A vampire, nonetheless. His life had gone from miserable to wonderful in that relatively short time.

Sebastien met him at the edge of campus after he’d handed the letter personally to the head of department. Standing under the verdant cherry trees, Sebastien looked like a vision. He wore tight, dark jeans and a loose shirt, half untucked, with his long hair tied back in a loose plait, fly-aways wisping around his head like mist. Alec walked straight up to him as the vampire opened his arms, flung his own arms around Sebastien’s neck, and hugged him.

“All done?” Sebastien asked without pulling back.

He nodded and popped back down from his toes. They were both tall men, but Sebastien had a few inches on him still. With a slightly doe-eyed expression, Sebastien smiled and kissed him gently. “I love you,” he said softly between kisses.

“Come on, you big sap,” Alec said. “I’ve got to be out of my apartment at four.”

“Such a romantic,” Sebastien sighed melodramatically.

With Sebastien’s supernatural strength, loading up the little van they’d hired for his stuff didn’t take long, and after giving his keys back to the landlord and signing the final bits and bobs, they were on the road.

The old farmhouse had been a find of Sebastien’s, and it needed some work. “Well, what else am I going to do on long, impossibly sunny summer days while you’re running your own business from the little art studio at the bottom of the garden?” Sebastien had laughed when they’d first viewed it, the back of his hand pressed to his forehead in a terribly ‘put upon’ gesture. “I might as well spruce the place up.”

“It needs more than a light ‘sprucing up’,” Alec had said, brows raised at the rotten wooden beam and the tired 1950’s kitchen. “And don’t tell me you made your wealth flipping houses back in the day.”

“Would you rather I told you I robbed the Bank of England and they still haven’t noticed?” he replied archly before planting a kiss squarely on Alec’s scratchy, stubble-darkened cheek.

With a scowl, Alec had shot him a look. “I honestly don’t know whether that’s a lie or not…”

“It’s a lie,” Sebastien snorted. “I can’t believe you think I’m a criminal.”

“You’re a vampire,” he’d retorted. “You could probably have just walked in there and demanded a small fortune in gold ingots and they wouldn’t have objected…”

“Please. I do have some scruples. And besides, I only use my charms on poor, miserable artists to get into their pants…”

“And their hearts too, apparently,” he’d scoffed as they’d left the dilapidated house with Sebastien’s hand in Alec’s back pocket, fingers firmly cupped around his arse.

It took another six months for the work to be completed, and even with Sebastien’s not inconsiderable talents in the DIY and home improvement departments, they still had to call in a team of builders to fix the pointing in one wall and to sort out a few other structural issues. But by the end of the work, the farmhouse was quite frankly the most stunning place Alec could ever have dreamed of living. Exposed oak beams and a fireplace big enough to park a tractor in were only half of the best features of the place.

One clear, frosty evening in late October, the pair sat outside on the recently finished patio, a small cast iron fire-pit crackling away and sending sparks and heat twisting up into the night sky, a glass of wine each in one hand and their free hand clasped around the other’s.

“Bastien…?” Alec said, not taking his eyes from the mother-of-pearl points of light in the sky above.

“Mmm?”

“I’ve been thinking a lot lately about… about becoming your source.” He didn’t miss the sharp inhale from his partner, nor the way Sebastien went completely still in the wooden chair beside him. He also didn’t say anything. “I’d… I’d like to ask how often you’d need to feed from me, and… what the repercussions would be for me as the human…”

Still Sebastien didn’t speak for a long time, and Alec worried he’d spoilt the serenity of their evening with the sensitive question. Finally, the vampire cleared his throat and Alec realised with a jolt that he was near tears.

“Bast?”

At the sound of the pet-name, Sebastien blinked rapidly and two mirroring tears tracked down his cheeks in perfect synchrony. “I thought you’d forgotten all about it,” he said in a hoarse croak. “I didn’t want to bring it up again.”

“You should have done, silly,” Alec groused, and he was met with a watery smile that didn’t meet his eyes at all.

“Well, to answer your questions,” he said, trying to sound unaffected even if he clearly was. “Every three months is safe enough, so long as you take an iron supplement. If you don’t, you might feel a little more tired right afterwards. We generally take slightly less than a person would give at a blood donation, if that helps put it into context.”

Alec turned and frowned at him.

“What?”

“You’ve gone all clinical,” he said, shuffling a little and setting his wine glass down on the edge of the stone fire pit. “Do you not want this anymore?”

Sebastien swallowed thickly and looked away. In the ochre and copper flicker of the flames before them, his suddenly red eyes seemed to glow like coals. “More than you know…” he rasped.

“Then what’s the problem?”

He chewed the inside of his cheek for a moment before turning back to face Alec with glassy eyes. “I’m frightened.”

Alec’s scowl deepened and he rose from his chair to straddle and sink down into Sebastien’s lap. Settled in his new position, he kissed Bast’s lips and stroked his loose, white-blond hair out of his eyes. “Of what?”

“Losing control. It’s been… decades since… If I hurt you, Alec… it would break me.”

“How about we start small? Just a taste?”

Sebastien looked so young then in the firelight. He suddenly looked like the twenty year old man he had been when he’d been conscripted into the army and sent out to battle to die, only to be turned at the eleventh hour by a nurse in a field hospital who’d seen something special in him. Thank god she had, Alec mused.

Alec leaned back a little and brought his index finger slowly to Sebastien’s lips. The vampire swallowed, red gaze drifting down to watch its approach before looking back at Alec’s face, searching, questioning, doubting.

Alec nodded and slid his fingertip a few millimetres into Sebastien’s mouth. The vampire inhaled, closed his eyes, and then opened his mouth properly. Alec brought the pad of his fingertip to the underside of his right canine, and pressed.

After a moment, the pressure gave way and a prick of pain like a needle pierced his skin. A bead of blood welled there instantly and he withdrew to let it swell. Sebastien clearly smelled the blood because his pupils dilated and he sucked in a sharp breath.

“Easy,” Alec said. “It’s only a drop.” And with that, he turned his finger over and held it above the tip of Sebastien’s tongue.

Paralysed in a heartbeat of terror, Sebastien sat rigid, frozen, wide eyed, but Alec lowered his finger to meet the slight roughness of his tongue, and Sebastien’s eyes rolled. He moaned and let his tongue play across the tiny pinprick wound, fingers digging into Alec’s hips. The tiny wound had already stopped bleeding, but he sucked gently, drawing a little taste more. Then he released Alec and stared at him, a look of stunned awe on his beautiful face.

“How was that?” Alec asked, briefly thumbing a fond arc across Sebastien’s cheekbone before dropping his hand.

“Manageable,” Sebastien murmured.

“Ok, I have to ask, do I taste good?”

The tense spell that encapsulated both of them broke and Sebastien cracked a smile, fangs and all. “Yes,” he rasped.

“So… I can become your source?”

“If you wish it, yes. You can withdraw the honour at any time. I won’t hold you to it.”

“Good to know,” he said, only half laughing. A moment later, he said, “When… When do you want to start… you know… properly. Formally?”

Sebastien’s eyes had drifted to the rabbiting pulse in his neck.

“Now?” he asked. “It’s only been a few weeks since you went to the blood bank though…”

“That’s…” he said, hands finding Alec’s waist and holding him gently. “That probably works in my favour this time. Are you sure you want this?”

“To be ‘yours’ on your terms as well as mine? Of course,” he smiled, and watched as another tear rolled down his perfect olive cheek. He tilted his head to one side, feeling a little sheepish, and said in barely a whisper, “Whenever you like.”

“Really? Now?” Sebastien hissed, chest suddenly heaving. “Just like that?”

Alec laughed quietly. “It’s not as if we’ve just met. I know you, Bast. I trust you. I wouldn’t offer this to just any old vampire, you know?”

Unable to stop the smile from twisting his lips, Sebastien finally relented with a nod. “Alright. But not here. You’re going to want to be more comfortable.”

“But I’m already comfortable here,” he whined playfully, wiggling his hips in Sebastien’s lap, eliciting a deep, rumbling groan.

With a roll of his red eyes, Sebastien sighed. “Stubborn arse,” he grumbled without sting.

“You love my arse.”

“Yes, you’re right. I do,” he said.

Tenderly he ran his thumb down the line of Alec’s carotid and inhaled deeply. “I love you,” he whispered. And then he leaned close. He took his time kissing Alec’s neck until he was gasping and rocking his hips against Sebastien.

“Please…”

“Last chance,” Sebastien said against the skin of his throat.

Alec shook his head. “I want this. I’m yours.”

So the vampire sank his fangs into the artery. After the initial surprise and sting, Alec’s whole body lit up as the venom hit his bloodstream, and he bucked into Sebastien who held him still with what should have been frightening ease. There was no fear behind the gesture, only longing and love and sweet, aching, rolling, unending pleasure.

“Oh fuck,” Alec moaned, going limp in his arms as Sebastien began to feed, withdrawing his fangs to draw more deeply on him while he held him easily in his arms. The vampire moaned, lips locked against his skin so as not to spill anything. The motion of his throat suddenly fascinated Alec as he swallowed down his own life-force, but before he could raise his hand to touch fingertips to his Adam’s apple, pleasure exploded in his mind and he forgot everything.

When he came back to himself, he was inside, lying on their bed, with a small, soft dressing over his neck, and Sebastien sitting quietly on the bed beside him, staring down at him and holding his hand. As he blinked his eyes, he frowned. “What…?”

“It’s intense the first time,” Sebastien murmured fondly. “I did say you’d want to be somewhere more comfortable.”

“ S’perfect,” he slurred. “Fuck me…” he added, more curse than command.

“Maybe later, hmm?” Sebastien smiled. There was a flush to his cheeks that Alec had never seen before, and a brightness to his eyes.

“C’mere,” Alec said, patting the bed beside him. With Sebastien lying silently next to him, Alec rolled over and hooked one leg over Bast’s thigh. “Love you,” he mumbled, sinking into a deep and exhausted sleep, even as Sebastien’s hand came up to cradle his head.

The vampire smiled, kissing his forehead. “I love you too.”

___

Hope you've enjoyed this 23,700k story! Looking forward to your comments as always.  Don’t forget to let me  know if you did enjoy it by leaving a like and/or reblogging it!

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On behalf of this blog (robbieereyes) and @itsdanidee​ I would like to use this space here to shoutout some of the people that have made the year 2020 a whole lot better than it would have been. People have been doing those posts so I wanted to add my 2 cents as well. So, here goes *hides*

Most of you might not even know who I am with this tumblr blog because all of my content is posted over at my art blog ( @itsdanidee​ ) but I have been listening to kpop for a couple years now but only became a Stray Kids fan in January 2020 but even then I only just touched on the fandom. I was also in an art slump for pretty much 2 years or more, I don’t even remember. So, for the first half of 2020 I was just getting really into kpop and listened to a lot of music and I was trying many times to get into art and draw but whatever I started I dismissed again pretty quickly. It wasn’t until summer where I finally picked up a pencil again and tried to draw again because I was inspired by SKZ and especially Felix. Felix was the one who brought me into this fandom and with that I finally finished my first art piece again after what feels like a billion years. After that I finally found my muse again and I would like to say, that thanks to Stray Kids I’m back into art again which also made the start of me being a content creator in the fandom. So, first and foremost I wanna say thank you to Stray Kids for making 2020 a whole lot more bearable than it would have been. Kpop in general has been a big influence on my mood in this year and I was able to make myself busy while staying home all year. Literally.  Then of course with me getting more and more into the fandom I also started to follow more and more people on here who all are amazing and make amazing gifs and fanart and edits and my tumblr turned to a 90% kpop blog and with this I wanna say thank you to all of those amazing people, spending hours doing said gifs and edits or write awesome fanfic (which I’ve also read a ton in 2020). So, I would like to say thank you to the following people for making my dash awesome as heck and I hope all of those people will continue to make my dash awesome :) @cozychannie​ ¦ @hyunjinz​ ¦ @jjsungie​ ¦ @qwilt​ ¦ @realstraykids​ the networks I follow: @bystay ¦ @3rachanet ¦ @stayracha-net ¦ @hjsnetwork @seochangbinet ¦ @cb97net ¦ @danceracha-network ¦ @leeknownet ¦ @yongboknet ¦ @hyunjinnet ¦ @vocalrachanet ¦ @foryjn  then I wanna give a special shout-out to @ji-sungs and @maxsix because they don’t only create awesome content but also talk to me on a regular basis which is just really cool and fun and I hope that continues in 2021 <3 And of course, I didn’t forget you, I want to give an extra special shout-out to @moonlit-han. The one who doesn’t only talk to me but also talks really nice about my art in the tags and also looks over my wip’s and to whom I can go cry to if I don’t feel my art piece or just generally can cry to over SKZ. Who also writes awesome fanfic and is just generally an awesome person. Thanks for commenting on my Changbin drawing and for writing the Mixtape fanfic because without that I would have never written you that long ask haha <3 Last but not least I wanna give a shoutout to Monsta X who I’ve had an eye on before I even knew who SKZ were and who have been a constant part of my 2020 and even more since their recent comeback. (Yes I’m a full on Monbebe now) I need to dedicate more time to them in 2021 and follow more content creators but so far I wanna say thanks to the ones I already follow. Thank you as well for making my dash awesome! @psychemixtape ¦ @shownueats ¦ @monxgifs ¦ @hyungwon ¦ @monstaxrey ¦ @thekihyun ¦ @moistyshownu ¦ @aiems ¦ @wenees That’s it. Thanks again for creating awesome gifs and edits and art and write stuff. Y’all seem like really awesome people :) <3 Also, thanks to all my followers, especially on my art tumblr for reblogging my art and saying nice things in the tags. I read them all and they always make me happy :) <3 Stay safe and Happy New Year :)

🎶 please!!

Thank you dear!! <3

Song For Zula / Remus Lupin Drabble

Line: I will not open myself up this way again

This is one of my favourite songs of all time so let me tell you I screamed when it came up!

The floor of the Shrieking Shack was always an uncomfortable place, but tonight everything just felt a million times worse.

It could have been the splintered bed frame that was digging into your back; the room was scratched and clawed in every corner, something obviously begging to break free from its constraints in agonising pain. Or, it could have been the snow that drifted through the shattered window, and melted on your thigh, sending another chill up your already aching spine.

It probably was, however, due to the battered and bruised boy who sat with his legs on either side of your waist in front of you, refusing to meet your eye. The moonlight fell through the billowing, torn curtains, allowing you just enough light to dab some disinfectant you stashed here onto the cut above his eye. It was also just enough to see his wince, and the way he his eyes began to gloss over with unshed tears.

‘You don’t have to stay here, Y/n. I’m alright now, really. I’m just tired.’ He let his head fall with a dejected sigh, glad the fringes of his hair fell down and covered the latest scar slashed across his nose.

‘Don’t you get it by now, Remus? I want to be here. Plus, that was the worst I’ve seen you in months - just look at your face.’

‘Hey!’

He brightened up a little then, if only for a second. He looked like Remus again, the glowing smile lifting up his face as he glanced at you, the awe evident in his eyes. But then he realised where he was, and who he was, and his shoulders slumped down against the wall again. He wished you wouldn’t stay. He knew he didn’t deserve you - that you were some strange angel the universe was taunting him with, mocking and tantalising him with something perfect, something his heart ached for, and they would take you away from him. Because he was a monster.

He knew he didn’t deserve you. Yet he couldn’t help but nuzzle his forehead into your hand, dragging your fingers away from the cut on his cheek.

‘I’m scared, Y/n.’

‘Why?’

He finally found the courage to look at you then, properly. He moved his head away from your hand, choosing instead to intertwine his larger, slender fingers within your own, and allow them to rest comfortably together on his bare abdomen.

‘I’ll never love anyone again. I’ll never love anyone as much as I love you. So, if I end up hurting you, or something bad happens because of me, I couldn’t live with myself Y/n.’

‘Remus-’

‘I’m a monster.’

He sounded so dejected, so completely and utterly broken as he closed his eyes and whispered out those horrendous words, that you couldn’t help the tears that dripped down the bridge of your nose and fell onto his thigh.

No, you thought. No.

‘You fold your socks Remus. You keep a hundred bars of chocolates in the pockets of your robes just in case another student is having a rough time. Heck, last week, I saw you sit down and help that crying first year with his transfiguration essay in the Great Hall. You’re not a monster, Remus. You’re the kindest person I know, so let me help you-’

Before you had even the chance to finish your rant, your words themselves rasping and heaving with the amount of sobs that kept on rising up from your chest, a pair of shaking arms came and wrapped themselves around your neck. His face was wet, either from the exertion of the night or from his own tears he was too tired to hide anymore, but you didn’t care, and neither did he. All he cared about was pressing quick, warm, fervent little kisses against the dip of your neck, and hoping the tightness of his arms, the beating of his heart against yours would be enough to save him.

Brian Quinn Mini Series “I Found a Boy” Part 3 of 3

Part 1   Part 2 

Content Warning: Implied Smut, Swearing

Word Count: 2100ish

The warm sunshine peeking through the curtains was a welcome contrast to the chilly weather that lay on the streets of Staten Island below you. You kept your eyes closed to savor the moment for just a short while more, but soon the serene beauty was interrupted by the sound of a beeping alarm clock altering it was now eight in the morning. You felt the bed shift next to you and knew Brian was turning to shut off the noise coming from your bedside table. The cats began to shift as well and leap down from their respective resting spots. As Q did so he leaned his face down and placed a gentle kiss on your cheek, instantly a warmth began to rise to your cheeks. “Good morning sweetheart” he muttered out in a half asleep and still raspy voice with an adorable grin and messy hair strewn about his head. As he began to turn back over to get out of bed and begin prepping for the morning ahead of him, you wrapped both your arms around one of his and held on tight. “No. Five more minutes” you grumbled out. You glanced over to see him giggling to himself. He did his best to shimmy out of your arms but it was to no avail. Slowly you climbed on top of him, the satin of your pajama set grazing against his bare chest and boxers. You were not letting the love of your life and personal space heater get up this morning. You raised your head so that your eyes would meet his deep shining orbs lovingly gazing back at you. “Baby, I gotta go! Trust me the sooner I get to the production meeting, the sooner I get to come home and hang out with you.” You let out an overly dramatic sigh and slight chuckle escaped too.

“But Bri, why did they have to schedule a meeting on a weekend! I went to spend my day off with you.” With that you sat up with crisscrossed legs and crossed your arms across your chest. With the last word you let your lips pop out into a pout. He could tell you were joking around with him and sat up to make your eyes meet again. “Well… who knows Mrs. Quinn? Maybe once I get back we can reenact what happened late into the night.” He wiggled his eyebrows at you. “Of course Mr. Quinn.” With that he planted a deep and passionate kiss on your lips before he rose from the bed and started to get ready for his meeting. As you cozied back into bed to escape the cold you silently watched him in awe, how did you get so lucky? You looked down to the engagement ring he had placed on your hand three years ago, and the wedding band that had resided with it for just under two years. You didn’t realize just how lost you had been in your thoughts until he was facing you again, dressed and his signature iced tea with lemon in a travel cup in tow with his car keys. But the smell of the tea today sent your stomach on a tilt-a-whirl. “Well my love, I’m off. I’ll be back before ya know it!” You pecked his lips and he made his way back downstairs and out the door. As soon as you were sure he wouldn’t hear you, you jumped up and sprinted to the bedroom’s ensuite bathroom to release the contents of your stomach. After you had finished, you kept wondering why all of the sudden the smell of iced tea and lemon made you puke? Then it hit you. You started rummaging through the cabinets in the bathroom until you found the hot pink boxes you were looking for. You pulled out the pregnancy tests that the rest of the guys got you as a one-year anniversary present. After making sure they hadn’t expired and how to use them, you go to business, using both just to be sure. You finished up and set the timer on your phone. As you waited you brushed your teeth to get the rancid taste out of your mouth from the unfortunate wake up call you had a few minutes prior. Once the timer chimed letting you know it was time to check, you slowly grabbed both tests and flipped them over to see the results. Both of them were the same. You were pregnant. An immense wave of joy and excitement washed over you. Now you were even more excited for Brian to get home so you could tell him the news. You knew he would be in the meeting until around eleven-thirty so you decided to take a quick shower and find other ways to occupy the time. After the warm droplets of water relaxed your muscles, you put your hair up in a messy bun and decided to throw on an oversized sweater and leggings. You then grabbed some papers you had to look over and grade that were sitting on your desk as well as your favorite bottle of nail polish. As you made your way downstairs to the living room you stopped at the framed photo of you and Brian from your wedding reception. It was a photo from your first dance. There you stood in your spaghetti strap ball gown, and hair done is a style reminiscent of Brigette Bardot with Bri looking very dapper in a tuxedo, he had just told you some silly joke so you were both looking at each other laughing. You could still feel the emotions and see the love in your eyes and his, you remember how happy you both felt them, and know you had the joys of parenthood to look forward to. Since grading elementary school papers was a total breeze you were now sitting with the tv on quietly for some background noise with a freshly dry mani and pedi while curled up and reading a book. Suddenly, loud knocking echoed abruptly throughout the house. You put your book down puzzled and followed the cats to the door. You were expecting anyone, but you opened the door anyway thinking maybe it was Amazon. As the door opened you soon met a familiar pair of eyes, those belonging to a certain ex boyfriend named Dean. “Dean? What are you doing here? Wait. How do you even know where I live?” He shoved his hands into his pant pockets and looked at you with a sheepish smile. “Hey Y/N. Can I come in? I’ve wanted to talk to you for quite some time, and I finally convinced Natasha to tell me your address.” You let out an exasperated sigh, and motioned for him to come in. You made a mental note to call your friend Nat and chew her out later. You knew that she was still friends with Dean after your breakup, but heck she was one of your best friends and bridesmaids! Why would she tell him! You led Dean to the small table in the kitchen, he took a seat while you leaned against the counter. You brewed yourself a mug of hot cocoa to calm the fury and nerves coursing through you. “Do you want anything?” “Um yeah, can I have water?” You went into the fridge, pulled out a bottle, handed it to him and took your place across the table. “What do you want Dean?” the annoyance was evident in your voice. “I just wanted to catch up, see how you were doing.” “I’m doing just fine. How’s Andi?” When you brought up your ex best friend and the girl he cheated on you with, he slightly flinched. “I’m okay. We ended things years ago.” “Aw. I hate to say I’m not surprised. So no other conquests or flings?” He just shook his head. You had no idea where all of this sudden confidence was coming from, but you weren’t complaining. Throughout your relationship Brian had helped you grow even more and get even more brave and strong, if only he could see this now. “Are you still with that guy from TV? Nat told me it was pretty serious.” “Yeah I am still with Brian, in fact he should be back here soon.” You looked at him dumbfounded, did he honestly not know you and Brian had been married for almost two years now? You looked to see that the sleeve of your sweater was covering the rings on your finger. You went to slide the sleeve down to show him the rings, when he suddenly started speaking again while rising up from the table. “Look Y/N, the real reason I’m here is that… I know I messed up. But I’m here now, please leave this Brian guy and we can start over! I love you.” Now you shot up from the table too. “Are you kidding me! You think that after all this time you could just show up and expect me to take you back! I spent so much time crying over you and you didn’t care. Now that I am not only the best version of myself, but I am now happily with the love of my life you think you can show up, ask me to leave him and I’ll go with you? No! You can take all those crocodile tears and go cry me a river like I did over you a long time ago.” In all the commotion, you didn’t hear the front door open or close and the cats going to greet Q. Nor did you hear the footsteps making their way to the kitchen to hear what all the yelling was about. “Brian is the most amazing man in the world, and you will never be a tenth of the man he is! How dare you come here acting like you want me, now that I don’t need you or want anything to do with you.” Then a voice cut of your angry rant. “Aww baby! You really think I’m the most amazing man in the world?” You turned around to see your husband with a bag of Chinese takeout in one hand and a bouquet of flowers in the other. You ran over and jumped into his arms, while he spun you around in a hug. “Honey you’re home! How was your day? I-” You were soon cut off again by Dean. “Wait, you two live together?” You turned your head back to Dean. “Umm yeah. Married couples usually do.” “Wait, you’re married!” Brian then chimed in. “Yup, going on two years. Wait are you Dean?” Dean shook his head, and Brain placed you down gently. “Dude I gotta shake your hand man, cause if it wasn’t for you being a total asshole and idiot I may have never met Y/N. And she’s the best thing that ever happened to me.” He shook his hand vigorously. “Now if you’ll excuse us, I believe I have some lunch waiting for me and my beautiful wife. You can feel free to see yourself out.” With that Dean slumped his shoulders and began to make his way to the front door and you both heard the door open and close. You turned back to Brian and peppered kisses all over his face. “What’s all this for?” you motioned to the takeout and flowers. “Well, I felt so bad about you being here while I was in a meeting so one the way home I went to Chang’s and got our favorites, then I went by the flower stand and got these.” “Bri this is amazing! And I have a surprise for you too.” “Really? Well what is it?” You went back upstairs and grabbed one of the pregnancy tests and hid it behind your back. “Are you ready?” “Oh honey I was born ready!” “Okay, close your eyes, and stick out your hands.” Brian did as he was told and you placed the test gently into his hands. “Okay open ‘em!” Brian sprung his eyes open and looked down. He started at the test for a moment and then the gears started turning. Soon he was trying to get words out but couldn’t. “Y/N, are you?” “Pregnant? Uh-huh!” He grabbed you and picked you up again. ‘We’re gonna have a baby!” He kissed you yet again and set you down gently. The minute you were back on solid ground, his hands went straight to your tummy, and kisses soon followed. You both spent that evening cuddled up on your bed talking about the future until you fell asleep still intertwined and cats all around you both.

A Tailors Ambition

After a long week of exams, you were exhausted and ready to lay back for the weekend, especially since you would be going over to visit Tsathoggua, you had found yourself increasingly visiting Tsathoggua to retreat from the stress and relax. You make sure to tell Shiro where you’ll be before waving off to your friends and heading to Roppongi. Once there you manage to sneak into the casino without being spotted by the usual trio lest they try to foil your weekend relaxation, since they were all busy in a meeting except for Tsathoggua. Since the roppongi executives had made explicitly clear to  all workers that you were to be allowed access to the casino, you were able to quickly make it down the levels of the casino to Tsath’s room. As you walk up to the door you can hear what sounds like yelling coming from inside causing you to hesitate before you open the door, hoping that Hakumen didn’t decide to skip the meeting. Upon opening the door you instead see Tsath cowering in fear as Agyo waves a broom over his head menacingly  yelling about how Tsathoggua should keep his room tidy, which causes you to let out a rather loud laugh you were trying to suppress. At the noise Tsathoggua’s ears perk up and he turns to look in your direction before giving off a wide grin and practically jumping up and rushing over to you, “Oh my goodness!” is all you get to say before Tsath has lifted you up in his embrace and you are face to face with him. “I’m so glad you’re heeere” he says, peering over his shoulder you look down to see his little puffball tail wiggling with excitement, “Yep, definitely a happy sloth”. “Come, you can sit wherever you waaaant, I’ve got plenty of snaaaacks!” he says, upon mentioning snacks however Agyo points his broom directly at Tsathoggua  causing him to pull you in close like a lifeline as he pulls down his ears and cowers again, “There had better not be any crumbs left around after I just cleaned this place!” Agyo shouts. You smile and sigh as you pet Tsathoggua’s head to comfort him before Agyo resumes his cleaning spree, to which Tsathoggua carries you over to his gaming setup and sets you down. A few hours pass of nothing but games and relaxation, apart from one incident where Tsathoggua had ignored Agyo’s warning of leaving behind crumbs, earning him an overhead slam from behind with a broom causing him to bite down on his tongue that was sticking out like a cash register drawer. After just finishing an online battle royale with Tsathoggua the two of you cheer your victory before one of Tsathoggua’s minions taps his leg to get his attention and holds up an alarm clock causing Tsathoggua to sigh. “Oh yeah, I almooost forgot.” he says, you ask what he means and he explains that he had promised to help Arachne with something today and he was supposed to be meeting her soon. “Would you mind coming with meeeeee?” he asks, considering you didn’t want to get involved with anything this weekend you contemplated turning him down but any objections fell short when you turned to see him giving you three big puppy eyes “pleeeease?”. You were unable to resist and agreed to follow him as he led you to another level of the casino that Arachne was using as a workshop for her fashion projects with the door being pretty obvious as it had a large sign on it saying “Fashion in Progress”. Upon entering you find Arachne busy at work doing some stitching on some large clothes before she directs her attention at you two “Ah there you are Tsathoggua I’ve been needing you, and greetings to you as well MC” You and Tsathoggua say hello back before Arachne quickly starts back up. “Thank you for volunteering and don’t worry this hopefully won’t take too long and I have plenty of honey snacks for you while you wait.”, Tsathoggua opens his mouth to speak before silk threads suddenly shoot out and incircle his legs, tying them together and pulling them straight, “WAIT WHAAA-!!”, more threads shootout and wrap around his wrists and arms, pulling them outwards until Tsathoggua was pulled into a T-pose position looking like an insect caught in a spider’s web. Tsathoggua tugs at the silk ropes but they hold firm as more silk glues his feet in place, “What the heck!” you exclaim turning to Arachne, before she puts her hands up in defense “Don’t worry this way he won’t have to stand up on his own and will be able to relax while I do my work.”. You give her a puzzled look before she explains that she had planned to expand her fashion selection by including transients of different sizes considering the variety of sizes of transients that were present in Tokyo. In order to create new fashion designs for larger than average transients she had asked Tsathoggua to be a model for her, “Ok, but do these threads have to be so tiiiiight” Tsathoggua whines behind you, “Sorry I’ll loosen the the threads a bit to make this more comfortable but a model must be able to maintain their posture.” says Arachne. As the time passes you watch as Arachne weaves outfit after outfit to fit Tsathoggua’s frame while a column of Tsathoggua’s minions form a chain up to Tsathoggua’s level to feed him honey pudding, while you yourself sit back and enjoy some honey pudding. Everything is going smoothly until you hear a familiar voice shout “TSATHOGGUA, WHERE ARE YOU!”Tsathoggua's eyes blow wide open as he begins to struggle desperately to free himself but between the sticky silk holding his feet in place and tough silk ropes, he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. “He must have opened the clooooset!” Tsathoggua exclaims, “What's wrong with the closet?” you ask, Tsathoggua explains to you that he had been hiding his garbage when Agyo shows up by stuffing it all into his closet, to which you shake your head “yeah, that would definitely send Agyo on a rampage”. Suddenly the door swings open and Agyo steps inside, “There you are! I’ve got some serious complai- W-WHY ARE YOU LOOKING AT ME LIKE THAT!?” you turn to look at Arachne who is eyeballing Agyo up and down while her back legs begin to twitch, a look you were all too familiar with. Suddenly she snaps from her daze and exclaims “Yes, you will make a perfect model for smaller transient sizes!” Agyo takes off in fear but doesn’t get far before a loop of thread flies out and lassos Agyo’s legs together causing him to fall over. Arachne then begins to pull in the thread with her back legs like a fisher reeling in their line, causing Agyo to scream in terror as he tries to free his legs “WAAAAHHH, STOP- MC PLEASE HEEEEELP!”, before he reaches Arachne you sever the thread with your sword and scoop up Agyo in your arms who clings to you while whimpering. “Maybe we can try a less aggressive approach!?”, “I apologize, it seems I lost control of myself again” she exclaims, offering some pudding to Agyo and asking if he may reconsider being a model some other day. Arachne continues on with her work as Agyo sits in your lap enjoying his pudding until Arachne is finished and unwinds the threads around Tsathoggua. Once released he stretched himself out before slumping over in his usual posture “I’m tiiiiired, let’s go back to my room, yeah?”. Being tired yourself, you're quick to agree, “come on you big fluffy sloth” you say as you boop his nose causing it to wiggle before a slight blush fills his cheeks. You then head out back to Tsath’s room with Agyo and Tsathoggua in tow, ready to get some rest.

Our Life: Cast my home aside, lead me into the skies....

(A/N: Still working on if I’m going to have Eve have a custom backstory different from the background given in game, buuut, this can be a AU thing if I go with base game MC for Eve’s background! Our Life and all characters besides Eve belong to @gb-patch​ !)

(P.S. Since I am able to insert myself so much into the MC of OL, for this Eve has... Part of my own background, not fully cause I’ve not done what she did here, but still. Be warned Eve’s not coming from a nice household prior to being adopted by Pamela and Noelani. Also, this is sort of my take on the first scene in OL with Eve having a custom background, also to help me figure out how to write Eve with that context.)

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

Aching, the little eight year old felt every limb and bone of hers aching as she trekked further into the town she found.

Her backpack was lighter than when she started her journey, snacks, drink and food she packed having been long since eaten or drank by her, that didn’t mean she didn’t get more as she....

Ran, she supposed.

Much to her growing guilt she had taken water bottles and any food she could find from any table or picnic blanket she came across, either packing it away in her backpack or outright eating or drinking it due to how hungry she was.

She was certain she was dirty as heck(even if she washed herself in ponds or the rain as best she could) and she could feel her ribs at this point if she pushed her fingers against her skin enough, hair much longer than she liked, but she still refused to turn back.

She still remembered that night that made her pack her backpack and run. Shouting, screaming, a BAM, another hole in the walls, nothing she did could ever-

And no one cared she was all alone-

She sniffled, forcing the thought out of her mind. She honestly didn’t know where she was at this point, she just picked a direction and ran that way.

All she really knew was it had been winter when she set out, or near it, then it became spring and now was summer, the heat in the air told her that much.

Anything else other than that she didn’t know.

Huffing a puff of air, she pulled her brush out of her pocket and brushed her hair, a habit she still had and when she looked in the reflection of a puddle, she was a bit proud she looked really decent despite not having had a proper home for what was likely months. 

Sure she was a touch messy, but no one would take a look at her and immediately think she had run away from her old home.

She continued walking, looking for an alcove or awning or something to rest under for the night, only to pause as she saw a person sitting on the curb in front of a house. He was sitting with his head in his hands, his whole body slumped over.

She tilted her head, confused a bit as why was an adult was sitting on the curb, did someone kick him out of his house?

She noted a… Tattoo, she thinks that was the term, on the arm that was facing her, pitch black against his tan skin, it looked like a sea creature, but she didn’t know what it was. His pale blond hair was pulled into a ponytail it seemed, like she tended to have her hair now that it grew out so much.

Though he wasn’t really in her way, she could walk around him if needed, she felt…. Nervous. Yeah, that was the term she was pretty sure, so she wanted to sneak around him unseen, but how….

She felt her gut lurch when he suddenly shifted and there was a brief moment where their eyes met before she quickly averted her gaze to look at a bird that was hovering nearby.

“Hey!” Drat, he noticed her and there was no mistaking her startled jump showed she heard him.

The bird landed on a nearby gatepost, its black feathers ruffling gently in the breeze. She couldn’t keep her gaze on it when the man got up and began making his way to her, making her eye him warily.

She had run from more than a few police people who tried to approach her, fearing they were going to make her go back and was more than ready to run if needed, he didn’t look like a policeman though.

Since he didn't seem to be like any of those sternfaced police people, she offered a polite smile and he grinned back at her.

“Do you live around here?” He asked once he was in front of her, kneeling to be on even eyelevel with her. “What’s your name?”

She felt a spike of panic shoot through her system at his questions. The first one was easy to answer, as from what she could tell unless she turned around she’d meet the ocean like she did earlier(and found a fair amount of shells and sea stuff she couldn’t help but put in one of her backpacks pockets), and frankly she was done walking so much, so, she could stay here.

As for her name…. That damned name….. She had heard more than once that with a name as unique as her birth name, it would never be hard finding her, same went for her last name.

She didn’t WANT to be found though. She didn’t want to go back.

She looked the mystery man up and down as she tried to think of an answer to give him, taking in his tanned skin and relaxed appearance. Well, only partially relaxed. At least his clothes were relaxed; the way he was acting certainly wasn’t.

He had sharks on his shorts and that sea creature tattoo, and she wondered if he was obsessed with the ocean or something.

While she made her assessment, he looked at her expectantly, waiting for an answer to his questions.

“...Yeah, I live around here.” She answered after a moment, trying to think of any name to give him other than her birthname, running through the very few stories she heard growing up.

Hermione? No, she didn’t know how to spell that. Alice? No…. Belle? Not that one either.

“And my name is, Eve.” She decided to go with the name she remembered from that book her birth parents got from the religion they were a part of. It was three letters, and simple enough she knew how to spell it and there was no difficulty like with her birthname in how it was said or spelled.

“Great! Nice to meet you, Eve.” He gave her a broad smile, relief settling on his features. He then reached into a pocket and pulled out a twenty dollar bill, it crinkled in his hand as he held it up to her.

She furrowed her brow at him in confusion, looking between him and the money with the pure confusion only a child could have.

“Well… Could you do me a favor?” He asked, but then realized he should probably explain better than that and rushed to add. “Nothing bad! Sorry, I should have…. Let me start over.”

He cleared his throat, straightening his back a bit before explaining. “I have a son-his name is Cove-who’s just about your age.”

She tilted her head, Cove…. That was not a name she heard before, it sounded… Nice. She never met anyone with that name.

“We moved in across the street. See?” He pointed across the street to the house opposite the one they were standing in front of.

She nodded, looking back to him with confusion as he continued.

“I don’t know where your parents are, I don’t think I’ve met them, but you look around his age, so…” He shook the twenty dollar bill to bring it back to her attention, a hopeful smile tilting his lips at the corners. “Can you try to be friends with the boy? Just give it a chance and you can keep this! He’s a good kid. You’ll like him.”

He… Was wanting to pay her to be friends with his son?

“But you’ve gotta keep it a secret, too, okay?” He winced. “It wouldn’t be friendly to say his dad sent you.”

She blinked, feeling a bit sorry for the boy she hadn’t even met yet. This was not the normal way kids made friends, her limited exposure to anyone outside of the Hall didn’t stop her from knowing that.

“What’d’ya say? Want to make a deal?” He asked, watching her as she thought about it.

She was conflicted, sure she could likely use that money to get better clothes, food even than what she was now used to dealing with, but……

….She wanted to meet this Cove without the lure of money, and she knew she’d get looks if she wandered into a store with a twenty dollar bill without any parent with her.

So, she shook her head no. “No, I don’t want to be paid for that.” She then raised her hands in a placating way as she saw him deflate a bit. “But…. I do want to meet Cove, he sounds nice.”

He nodded, seeing his initial strategy wasn’t going to fly and tucked the bill back in his pocket as he stood up. “Would you be more comfortable with he and I coming by for a normal visit? No money involved.”

She nodded, then paused and added. “And I can come over as well.”

She didn’t want to mention that she currently did not have a home, or parents, no, that’d… no. Just no. No risking them sending her back, no.

His smile got bigger again. His eyes crinkled at the sides. “I’ll bring him by tomorrow or you can come over. I wanted him to meet and greet with the neighbors today, but…” He hesitated before admitting. “Well, I don’t know where he’s gotten off to!”

Well, that’s… Concerning. Cove’s dad had laughed when he said that, but with the way his face looked Eve thought he actually wanted to cry instead.

“I’ll help find him.” She said without hesitation, puffing up a bit with a grin. 

He seemed a bit relieved at her words. “If-If you see him, can you tell him to come on home? He’s got a pink cast and glasses, you can’t miss it.”

She nodded, this definitely was not the normal way kids made friends, but she was still going to help.

He smiled and reached over to pat her on the head, paused before doing so, then pulled his hand away instead.

“I’ve already got the neighbors in the house besides us checking around, such a thoughtful group, they are.” He gestured to the house they were in front of before smiling. “Now I better go look, too! Can’t put everyone else to work while I keep sitting here. I thought he might come back, and…” he shook his head. “That’s not what’s important. I have to go.” he gave her another grin. “Thanks again, Eve! So much.”

He jogged off down the street without another word, leaving Eve to think to herself on where Cove could have gone.

If he was anything like her, he likely would have gone somewhere adults wouldn’t think to look first, and while she doubted he ran away like she did, that same logic she used could help her find him.

She decided to go behind the house she was in front of, finding a series of hills with flowers stretching out before her as the sun fully descended into the horizon.

She couldn’t recognize the type of flower, especially now at this time without the sun to provide the majority of the light, though she thought they looked nice from what the moon could illuminate. 

The chirping of crickets in the tall grass greeted her, a familiar sound from her traveling that eased her nerves a touch as she wandered to the top of a hill. 

From the top of the hill she could see the ocean. As she walked, she listened to the crash of the waves on the shore, and the seagulls squawking as they settled down for the night as she peered around.

Idly, she remembered loving hearing stories about the merfolk and sea serpents and anything else she could imagine living far beneath the waves. Maybe now that she was near the ocean she’d get lucky enough to see one at some point.

She sighed as she came to a stop. She wasn't sure what, but something told her that she wasn't alone, so she glanced around warily, only to nearly jump when she turned to her right.

There was a boy sitting at the top of the hill she was standing on, almost completely hidden within the long grass and white flowers surrounding him.

He didn’t seem to notice her, probably just that he wasn't paying attention, his head was buried in his knees, staring ahead by himself.

She watched him for a few moments, feeling as if she found a deer in the wild, although….

‘Deer don’t have sad frowns, or green hair...’ She thought to herself, expression furrowing at the thought, She wondered what upset him to cause him to look like that….

After a few more seconds, she took a step forward, then another. And then he glanced her way, making her freeze.

His aquamarine eyes reflected the light of the moon. Eve stopped, raising a hand to acknowledge him and show him that she wasn’t scary.

Even if she likely didn’t look like a normal kid with her backpack on and likely mussed up hair.

“Heyo.” She greeted him.

With a start, he jumped to his feet, his hands balling into fists at his sides. He didn't say anything, just stared at her in a strange way.

He'd been crying. There were traces of tears on his cheeks and his knees, soaking the hem of his shorts, and his eyes were still shining with a few more.

She restrained wincing, or hugging him on reflex to sooth him. She had obviously caught him off guard.

His pink cast seemed to glow in the twilight, though when he caught her staring at it, he hid his arm behind his back.

Hmm. could this be….

“Cove?” She said his name cautiously, watching his reaction to see if she was correct. 

“Ah-” She was, as his eyes widened and he studied her. “How'd you know that?”

Well, no use hiding it. She shrugged. “I met your dad.”

“Oh.” He frowned. ”So... is this your hill?” He gestured with his uninjured arm to the patch of grass surrounding them both, his face falling at the prospect. “I can leave if it is.”

She shook her head, she didn’t own it, especially since she just arrived in town today.

“Oh.” He sat back down with a thump, resting his chin on his knees again.

Curious about the strange boy with the odd dad, and not having anything else to do or wanting to leave him, she sat down on the patch of grass next to him.

The pure white flowers that covered this hill rocked back and forth gently as the stars twinkled above. The way they dotted the sky made them seem like the flowers around them too.

The silence didn’t last long, as she then asked softly. “Why are you hiding here?”

A quiet hiccup escaped Cove as soon as she asked the question. Almost like they'd never stopped, his tears started up again with a vengeance.

She almost immediately retracted her question, but Cove spoke up before she could. ”My parents… They don't want to live together with me anymore.” The tears kept coming as he continued. “My mom made my dad leave and he took me with him and now we have a house here and I want to go home!”

The outburst took her off-guard. By the time he was done, Cove's chest was heaving with exhaustion.

He sniffled and removed his glasses, wiping at his eyes with the back of his hand before he put them back on again. “...I hate this place. I want my real life back. I want my mom.”

Eve frowned, unsure how to calm him down and chewed on her cheek in thought. To an extent, she did understand where he was coming from, but….

She also wouldn’t go back if she could help it, she didn’t want to go back to that…. Hell.

“I’m sorry….” Was all she could say, and hoped it helped somewhat. He slipped his hands underneath his glasses and pressed his fingers against his eyelids. Cove wound himself up again for another long crying fit.

She felt bad for him, being forced to come here with no choice at all. She could and had lived without both of her parents for months now, but to have no choice but to be with one or the other…

The mere idea made her crumple internally and she immediately decided she hated that very thought.

She jolted when, from way off in the distance, came the shouts of several adults.

”Cove!” That was Cove’s dad, she recognized the voice.

“Kid, where did you go?” That was a woman’s voice, Eve didn’t recognize it.

Cove looked at her, tears still clinging to his cheeks. ”Don't tell them we're here!”

He sniffled. “I don't want to go back to that house. I wanna go home.”

"....It will be okay!" She found herself saying, struck by a sudden need to reassure Cove. Her expression twisted as she continued. “It... It's not gonna all be fun. But, he- isn't he your family too?”

“Yeah... I guess.” Cove nodded and she felt emboldened to continue.

“Then you can count on him when you really, really need him!” She shot him a grin, and pushed herself to her feet.

...Even if Eve could never count on her own family anymore, it didn’t mean he couldn’t count on his dad.

Slowly, Cove stood up with her, still looking a little reluctant. His dad's voice rang out again.

“Cove! Can you hear me?”

He looked toward the sound of his dad's voice, silent, then turned away while rubbing his not bandaged arm. “...Sorry. I still don't want to go.”

She frowned before whispering to him quietly so the adults didn’t hear her. “It’s alright, I get that.”

He turned back to her, regarding her with a shocked expression. ”You do?”

Before she could explain, she heard Cove's dad, even closer than before. “There you are, bud!”

The trio of adults appeared over the curve of the hill. Instantly all their eyes landed on the two of them and they rushed over.

She noted Cove’s dad immediately scooped him up in a hug, and gave a sympathetic smile as Cove immediately began to squirm and wiggle in his hold.

“Thank god Cove’s alright…” one of the two women sighed, her skin was a dark color but her gold eyes were warm as she looked at Eve. “Are you the little girl Cliff asked to help find Cove, Eve, was it?”

Eve nodded, adjusting her backpack straps and ignoring how it bit into her collar, the pad it had in it was worn down and no longer prevented it from biting into her skin.

“Your parents must be so worried with you out this late.” The other woman said, skin pale but she had brown eyes and hair like….

Eve put the image of her own mother out of her mind as she shook her head. “No, they aren’t.”

They wouldn’t be, they more often than not were more concerned with yelling at each other.

That earned her a concerned glance between the two women as the brown eyed one then asked. “Did you take a tumble down one of these hills? You’re dirty.”

Again, Eve shook her head, frowning as she muttered to herself. “I scrubbed off in a river yesterday though….”

Another concerned look was shared between the two women, then the one with gold eyes knelt down and gently asked. “Where are your parents? What street do they live on?”

Eve frowned and shook her head, speaking bluntly as only a child could. “Not here, elsewhere.” She crossed her arms in an attempt to look…. Well, like she wasn’t a runaway very far from where she started. And she was at least smart enough to not say where she came from, can’t send her back if they don’t know where to send her.

That made the women frown, another shared glance that Eve thought must be them telepathically communicating, before the other woman knelt down as well.

“Sweetie, your parents must be worried sick,” She began, brown eyes looking over Eve worriedly. “You should probably go home-”

“No!” Eve’s sudden outburst had her clamping her hands over her own mouth, eyes wide in fear as she realized how loud she was, trembling faintly and tears springing to her eyes as she took in the shocked expressions on the two women.

Shaking her head, she stepped back, only lowering her tiny hands from her mouth to say much quieter. “I’m not going back, loud, loud, yelling, holes in the, the walls, screaming-” She shut her eyes and pressed her hands against the sides of her head as she tried to force the memories out of her mind.

She flinched when one of the women placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, making her open her eyes and shake a little, only for the gold eyed woman to give her a gentle smile.

“Okay, how about you come with me, my name is Noelani, and Pamela for the time being?” She offered gently. “You can take a proper bath, we have food and a bed you can use.”

Eve blinked, rubbing the tears that accumulated in her eyes before nodding, then pausing and adding. “C...Can I see Cove if I do?”

The women blinked before giggling, Pamela nodding. “Of course you can.” She then winked. “We also have a daughter you might get along with.”

Eve nodded, then looked back over to Cove, who was still wiggling against his dad's tight hug and pushing at his arms.

She noticed Cove was looking in her direction despite the hold his father had on him and gave him a reassuring smile.

That seemed to appease Cove, though it wasn’t until his father finally let go of his squirming, scowling son and turned to the three that she was able to give Cove a thumbs up.

“Thanks very much for finding him. I really don't know this neighborhood.” He said to both Eve and the two women, looking between the women and child.

“Good thing we know this whole area so well.” Noelani nodded. 

“Absolutely. We should be getting home now. It's been a long day for us all.” Cove’s dad said, resting a hand on Cove’s shoulder. “You two are gonna get her home to her parents?”

“Well….” Pamela frowned, looking to the side. “How about we explain once we put the kids to bed? I’m sure Eve and Cove are exhausted, I’ll call.”

“Huh?” Cove’s dad tilted his head before realization dawned on him. “Oh. Right then, say goodbye, Cove!”

“Bye.” Cove said, looking more towards Eve than the two women beside her, and Eve smiled, waving bye.

The two of them walked off into the darkness, heading toward the neighborhood. She watched Cove’s back until he disappeared.

“Hm, tell you what - we'll have a proper playdate tomorrow, okay?” Pamela suggested, and Eve grinned, nodding.

“Your new friend's dad wanted to bring him by to see Lizzie, but if you’re with us he can see you too.” Pamela added, watching how Eve nodded before yawning into a hand. “C’mon buckaroo, let's get you washed and then into bed.”

Eve nodded, letting the two women lead her to their house, the next events were a blur, mainly due to how tired Eve was, but she was washed(hair included and that was not as hard as she thought it would be considering she kept her hair tidy for the most part) and then put to bed in a cozy and soft bed with soft sheets.

A far cry from the ground she had been sleeping on for months prior even if it was a bit big for her, so she quickly fell asleep when she got comfortable.

…….

“Pam, I think she’s a runaway.”

“I think so too, though, it seems she’s not from here, and you saw how thin she was….”

“We should get her into a doctor, check and see if she’s had any blood work done and hopefully find her parents…..”

“But, what she said about her family…. It doesn’t sound like she ran away for no reason….”

“....If nothing comes up, if she’s somehow avoided any documentation in any system, we can….Adopt her.”

“Yeah, she seems like a sweet girl, Lizzie may like her.”

“And Cove, it seems like they got along well. And we probably couldn’t send her back without either of them arguing against it.”

“Hehe…. …..Do you think ‘Eve’ is her actual name, though, ‘Lani?”

“....Hard to tell….”

Padawan pt 2: (platonic) Anakin & Reader

Tags:

-pt. 2

-read pt. 1 here

-please like and reblog and comment

-if you have any ideas for my next works then please give me some

Summary:

Anakin begins to warm up to you after weeks of indifference and the cold shoulder.

(Y/n) could have been deaf for all she knew. The shouting, the explosions, and the crying were practically nonexistent to her. Limp bodies and scraps of metal landed by her side, but it could have been as if they hadn’t even moved. Her head pounded, her clammy hands shook, and her knees wobbled under her. Her fingers went limp and her saber fell to her feet. It was then that (Y/n) realised her only desire: to sleep.

"Commander!"

Commander, she thought. I'm a commander in the battlefield. 

(Y/n) staggered into a fighting stance, but her body felt so, so heavy that she collapsed to her knees. Stars, why couldn’t she stand?

“Man down! We need a medic!”

(Y/n) didn't quite process what that meant. Man down? Medic? What was that? Was the guy even speaking Basic? Someone knelt by her side and hastily lifted her shirt. (Y/n) would have protested, but her limbs refused to move. 

“Stay awake!”

Who was that? Through the haze her vision provided, (Y/n) made out the blurry face of Anakin Skywalker, her Master. He may have wrapped something around her torso or slapped her--whichever, (Y/n) couldn't tell. All feeling disappeared, and whatever logic she could conjure faded into questions. Her eyes fluttered closed. 

That didn't sit well with Anakin, because he gave her cheeks a light tap.

"Would you listen to me and stay awake?!" His yodelling and yapping made (Y/n)'s head spin. "Dammit, where the kriff is Kix?" (Y/n) lazily blinked. She wanted to sleep, but she couldn’t. What if Anakin got angry with her? What would he do then? 

"Kix!" he shouted. "Kix...ill...e...ight?"

(Y/n) closed her eyes.

"I...ure...gen..."

She couldn't fight the darkness. It reeled her in, coaxed her into its comforting arms.

"No! Wa...up!"

(Y/n) fell asleep.

Running. That was the first thing she started with. Her legs moved at incredible speeds, pushing her deeper and deeper into the dark, misty forest. Dried leaves crunched under her as she trampled over patches of grass and over tree roots. She knew running would be in vain, but she was scared. Scared of seeing her again, scared of facing what she’s seen and experienced. 

"Dear, why do you keep running?"

(Y/n) couldn't breathe. The forest closed in on her. It came loser and closer until it boxed her in a thick layer of vegetation. There was nowhere to run and nowhere to hide as she trembled like the leaves above her. "L-leave me alone!" The leaves to her left began to sway on the tree branches. (Y/n) pulled her guard up and kept a trained eye on the vegetation.

"Are you not Mandalorian?" the voice teased. "Where is that will to fight? All you are is a coward!" (Y/n)'s hand slid to her belt. Her fingers closed around the area where her lightsaber should have been, only to be met with air.

"You’re useless without your lightsaber." The voice let out a high-pitched cackle. "At times like this, one begins to realise that physical pain can only hurt so much." (Y/n) wildly spun in a circle. Her heart slammed against her chest at an irrational rhythm as she blindly squinted at nothing but green brush. “Show--show yourself!” she shouted.

A sudden movement caught her eye and (Y/n) sharply turned to the left. Instead of a tree, a tall, shadow-like woman leapt out from the brush.

"Leave me alone!"

The woman let out another cackle as if she were enjoying the galaxy's greatest joke. Her long figure loomed over (Y/n) as she laughed. And laughed, and laughed, and laughed. The darkness suddenly swept over her.

"NO!”

(Y/n) heaved in heavy breaths. She couldn’t breathe. 

"Hey, hey." 

(Y/n) wouldn’t have believed Anakin had talked to her if he weren’t sitting at her bedside right now. “You’re safe.” he said. “It’s okay.” (Y/n) didn’t know if she wanted to scream, yell, or cry. Why was he being so nice? Why was he the first person she woke up to? Why was he pretending like this?

It was clear Anakin sensed her confusion because he tried for one of his classic smiles. (Y/n) blinked. It was the first time his smile was directed at her. Usually, it would be towards his men, or Obi-wan when he commed him--but never her. She was a side-character. A nobody. A replacement for Ahsoka.

“You almost died you know.” Anakin started. “I don’t know how, but you were bleeding.” (Y/n) fiddled with her hands silently. Maybe it would have been better if I died.

“What are you talking about?” (Y/n) flinched. “I-I didn’t say anything...” Anakin frowned. “Yes you did. You said that it would have been ‘better’ if you died.” He released a long sigh and an uncomfortable quiet settled in the muted room. Anakin folded his arms across his chest in thought. 

All (Y/n) wanted to do was crawl under the blankets and hide. She didn’t know what her master was thinking--heck, she didn’t even know what kind of person he was--and that scared her the most. Would he punish her? Yell at her? Hate her forever?

“Look.” 

(Y/n) seemed to curl in on herself. 

“I’m...”

She prepared to make a break for the doors. 

“...sorry.”

What?

Her eyes were wide as she stared at Anakin’s apologetic expression. (Y/n) couldn’t remember the last time someone apologised to her face like that. “I’m a terrible master. All I’ve done is ignore you. I’m supposed to teach you, but I’m so caught up in...” He sighed. “You almost died. I don’t think I could live with myself knowing that you thought I hated you.” 

(Y/n)’s shoulders slumped. She went completely limp in shock. Sorry. He was sorry. Anakin knitted his brows together. He wondered if he said something wrong to upset his padawan. “Why are you crying?” (Y/n) shook her head dismissively in an attempt to suppress her tears. “I’m fine.” 

“How is crying fine?” Anakin inquired. “What’s wrong my little padawan?”

She bawled right then and there. “No one’s ever apologised to me in years.” she cried. “My masters were terrifying, and I thought you’d be exactly like them.” Anakin thought back to what the council said to him all those weeks ago.

She was chosen at eleven.

He had noted that that was too young.

He was not kind.

Anakin's gaze landed on (Y/n), who sat in a heap of sheets. Her shoulders heaved as she tried with all her might to ground herself.

When we found out about the mistreatment, we transferred (Y/n) to yet another master.

“I’m sorry.” he said. “I promise I'll be a better master.” Anakin held out a hand as a sign of peace. (Y/n) eyed his hand for ten painful seconds before firmly shaking it with a sniffle.

Bonus:

Six months later

Anakin couldn't have been prouder. After nearly being wiped out by a battalion of droids, he was absolutely whipped, but that didn't stop him from walking over to his padawan and ruffling her hair with a grin.

This wasn't the quiet girl he met all those months ago. She was a different person now. Better, confident, and most importantly, happy. "See? Jumping out of ships isn't that scary." he said. (Y/n) huffed. "Well, I could have crashed into that cliff over there."

"But you didn't."

"And that doesn't change the fact that that was dangerous." a voice piped up. Master and padawan whipped around to face Obi-wan, who placed a hand on his hip and raised a brow. "Obi-wan! I didn't know you were here." Anakin said. He rolled his eyes in reply and motioned for the duo to follow him into battle.

"That's because you didn't get my comm. Now come along, this battle won't win itself."

Anakin and (Y/n) exchanged glances. In that moment, not even a Separatist ambush could ruin their day. "Most kill count has to buy lunch at Dexter's." Anakin said. He broke into a sprint, dodging and skillfully deflecting blaster fire. (Y/n) shook her head.

"That's not fair Master! You got a head-start!"

Hiki & Howl

Original work by yours truly I’m working on this fic for 4 or 5 years now. This is the 3rd reboot, which some might find annoying or stupid, but since I’ve developed a lot as a “writer”, I want to make my existing works better (well, hopefully ^^) If you’ve read this before, please consider reading it again, because it’s very different from the last version! I hope you’ll enjoy this story and like the characters, they mean the world to me. :) You can also find me on Wattpad and AO3.  Summary: Hiki grew up in a strict Yakuza family with a harsh father and an abusive mother. After a traumatizing event, he lost all hope to ever find true happiness. Until, one day, a stranger came into his life and turned everything upside down.

Chapter 1 - Fate

"Hello, I'm here to meet Ueda-san. I have an appointment." A blond man in a black Audi Q7 sat waiting in front of a big iron gate. It took a moment after he had answered the intercom before the gate began to slowly open. "Follow the road until you reach the main building," a deep voice told him. The man did as he was told, following a graveled path for about five minutes until he arrived at a plaza stationed in front of a grand mansion. The mansion's architecture displayed a distinguished amalgamation of traditional Japanese charm and modern flair. He parked his car, got out, and adjusted his suit and tie before pushing up his glasses and walking to the entrance door. Giving no thought to hesitation, he rang the doorbell to which a buff, bald, gorilla of a man in a black designer suit answered. "Follow me," the man ordered, so he entered the house. They walked through the entrance hall and followed a long hallway, passing several doors before they finally reached their destination. The gorilla opened the door and gestured for him to walk inside. "Wait here," he growled. Doing as he was told he sat down on a black leather sofa, where he soon found himself alone. The room was bright and big, but the interior was quite spartan. Next to the sofa was a chair and a coffee table. On the wall to the right was a cupboard with an expensive-looking vase and a framed picture on it. Through the large glass door right across from him, he had a good view of the big, well-kept garden, which looked more like a park sizewise. Driven by curiosity, Howl got up to take a closer look at the picture on the cupboard. “Oh, a family portrait,” he mumbled to himself. The parents were sitting on two wooden chairs in the middle surrounded by five kids. The mother looked completely indifferent, and the father had a threatening aura. He knew that man’s face from the newspapers. It was the person he had an appointment with, and he wondered if the rumors were true. Are they really yakuza? Well, they sure look like it , Howl thought as he looked at the family in their expensive-looking, traditional yukata. Out of their five children, only two were smiling. One of them a teenage boy. He stood behind two smaller boys that looked close in age, his hands placed on their shoulders. He guessed the smaller boys, who were holding hands, were around ten. The bigger of the two was smiling as well, while the other looked shy, almost intimidated, but very cute. There was also a teenage girl that looked like she was pouting, and another boy that looked slightly older than her, with the same earnest expression as his father. Such a big family, but aside from those three boys in the corner, there was no feeling of happiness or wholesomeness whatsoever. Suddenly the door opened. Someone entered the room and Howl turned around. "Oh, there's someone in here, I'm sorry for disturbing!" A young man with long, rose blonde hair tied up in a ponytail, bowed. "I-I wanted to take a shortcut to the garden." He pointed at the glass door. "I assume you're waiting for my father…" "Yes, I am. My name is Harada Howl, nice to meet you," Howl answered. "N-Nice to meet you, I'm Ueda Hikaru," the boy replied politely but shy. Woah, he's cute , Howl thought instantly and suddenly realized… "You look like one of the boys in this portrait. Is this you?" He pointed at the smallest boy who looked intimidated. "Oh, yeah. That's me. Um, your name… It's quite unusual..." He changed the subject, but then he suddenly bowed. “I’m sorry, that was rude of me. I didn’t mean to be so intrusive.” "It’s fine, don’t worry. My mother was a big fan of the book 'Howl's Moving Castle' by Diana Wynne Jones, and she was a little extravagant, so she named me and my sister after the main characters." Howl replied as he was used to this kind of conversation. People often asked him about his name, which usually made him feel annoyed at his mother for not giving him a more common one. But weirdly, he wasn’t annoyed by that boy. "That's awesome, I immediately thought of that book! That’s why I asked. I love it too, it's one of my favorite stories,” Hikaru exclaimed. "You like reading?" Howl asked and pointed at the book the boy was holding. Hikaru nodded eagerly. "Yes, I love books. It's like living another life… Good books take you away from reality and let you forget where you are, who you are, and even that you're reading at all..." he replied with glowing cheeks and a spark in his eyes. "Your excitement is very refreshing, Ueda-kun," Howl said and smirked. "Oh, umm…" Hikaru blushed and looked down, obviously flustered. "C-Can I offer you some tea while you’re waiting? My father's men aren't very hospitable." "But weren't you on your way to the garden? I don't want to trouble you," Howl replied. "Oh no, I just wanted to go for a walk… I can do that later." "Well, in that case, I would love to have a cup of tea, thank you. But only if you join me." "Sure! Do you like green tea?" Hikaru asked eagerly. "I love green tea," Howl smiled warmly, which made the boy freeze with a surprised expression. Then he blushed and rushed out. Howl slumped back down on the sofa. "What the heck… My heart is beating like crazy…" he mumbled to himself. Is it because of my appointment? No... I’m not the type who gets nervous before meeting a potential client. Then… Is it because of him? I mean… He is really cute, Howl thought. This is a first. Thinking of a guy as cute? Strange... Dammit, I should focus on my appointment, but... After a few minutes, Hikaru came back, carrying a black tray with a teapot, a cup, and a plate of cookies on it. He placed it on the coffee table and sat down next to Howl. "Here you go, Harada-san," he said as he poured him a cup of the healthy brew. "I made the cookies myself, I hope they’re to your liking," Hikaru added nervously. Howl took one of the cookies from the plate and tried it. "Ueda-kun, they're delicious! Hands-down the best chocolate chip cookies I've ever had," he praised him. "Ha-Harada-san, are you making fun of me?" The boy asked skeptically. "Not at all! My father's family runs a chain of sweets shops, so you can trust my verdict," Howl winked. "Maybe you've heard of Harada Sweets before?" "Y-Yeah... Um, well, I'll take the compliment then, thank you. I'm very happy that you like them." He looked down shyly and blushed. Howl's heart was throbbing wildly as he was completely bedazzled by this boy's brisk cuteness. He noticed that Hikaru seemed very insecure, but Howl didn't know at the time that it wasn't like him to talk to others so uncoerced. That he usually didn’t speak much at all, but that there was something about Howl that made Hikaru feel comfortable enough to almost forget about his shyness. "Ueda-kun, may I ask how old you were in that picture?" Again, Howl pointed at the photograph on the cupboard. "You're the youngest one of the bunch, right?" "Oh… I was ten when it was taken. I'm the smallest one, but my brother Hajime, who's standing right next to me, is one year younger than me," he explained. He looked sad and Howl wondered why that was the case. “Sorry if my questions make you feel uncomfortable. I’m too nosy.” “No, you’re not, it’s fine, really! I just don’t like looking at that picture. It was taken a year before my brother Satoshi passed away. The one who’s standing behind me.” Howl looked at the broadly smiling boy in the picture. “I’m sorry, my deepest condolences. That was very insensitive of me...” “You couldn’t have known, it’s fine,” the boy replied. “I shouldn’t have mentioned it…” He brushed a strand of hair behind his ear insecurely. "So you're 17 now?" Howl changed the topic to hopefully ease up the boy’s tension again. "I turned 18 on the twenty-second of April." "Oh, that was only three weeks ago… Happy belated birthday!" "Th-Thank you." Hikaru blushed. "Are you attending University yet?" "I'm going to attend T-Uni starting September. Since my birthday is after the start of the spring semester, I decided to begin in September." "T-Uni? That's funny, because…" Howl started, but suddenly the door opened and the gorilla entered the room. "Ueda-dono wants to see you now. Follow me," he said. “Hikaru-sama, you shouldn’t be here,” he added growling after he noticed the boy. “I’m sorry, Kitamura-san. I’ll clean up and leave.” The gorilla nodded and left. Hikaru got up and bowed to Howl. “It was nice talking to you. Um… Sorry, if I bothered you, though.” Howl started panicking internally, he wanted to talk to that boy more! He got up and frantically rummaged around in his pocket, pulled out a flat silver box, opened it, and took out one of the business cards that were inside. "Ueda-kun, I would like to meet you again to continue our conversation. I really enjoyed talking to you. Please call me or send me an email, okay?" The stern expression on Howl’s face as he formally offered him the card with both hands startled Hikaru. He hesitated for a moment and looked at the card without saying anything. It read: 'Harada Howl - Founder and CEO of Castle Tech - IT and Smart Home Security'.   The people that usually came to their house weren't exactly of the upright kind, and it could have been a dummy company, but Hikaru didn't want to be rude to the man, since he had been kind to him. So he took the card and Howl’s earnest expression turned into a relieved smile. “Hey, what’re you waiting for, follow me,” Kitamura barked at him as he reentered the room. They quickly said their goodbyes and Howl left. Hikaru sighed and put the card into his jeans pocket. What a strange guy , he thought as he cleaned up. But he liked my cookies… He smiled, took the tray, and brought it back to the kitchen before he finally went on his walk.Hikaru liked the big garden behind the house, especially the part that was the furthest away from the main building. No one ever walked that far, so he had it all to himself and no one who would disturb him. Hikaru preferred sitting underneath his favorite tree over being inside the house. The atmosphere there was always kind of dark and cold and his father often had 'business partners' over, most of whom were unpleasant people. He didn't feel at home there… Or welcomed even. As he had reached his little hideout, Hikaru made himself comfortable on the ground between the roots of a big cherry tree and took a deep breath of the warm spring air. Then, he suddenly realized something. "Crap, I forgot my book in the room because of that guy…" He sighed, annoyed at himself. "That guy…" Hikaru leaned back against the tree and looked into the cloudy sky while thinking about that stranger. He looked like a foreigner with his blond hair and blue eyes. He was also abnormally tall, at least for Japanese standards. Hiki estimated his size to be around 1,90m. The man’s appearance was quite impressive, not only because of his size. He wore a dark blue suit with a white shirt and a dark blue vest that flattered his blue eyes and the cut underlined his broad shoulders. His expression was stern, which was emphasized by his black, square-shaped glasses. Yet, he was surprisingly friendly. His smile and his deep voice felt comforting. “He liked my cookies,” Hikaru grinned, but then shook his head. "What am I thinking about…?" He clicked his tongue. It had been the first time that one of his father's associates was nice to him in a non-creepy way. The clientele normally consisted of other Yakuza Clan leaders or members. Growing up as the son of the head of one of the biggest clans wasn't easy, especially because Hikaru despised violence and weapons. His siblings were better at accepting their lifestyle, but he just wanted to get out of that house as soon as possible. “Oh right, he gave me his card…” The boy reached into his jeans pocket and pulled it out. "Harada Howl, huh…" He stared at the card for a moment and wanted to put it back, but then he hesitated. "He was very kind and polite, I should at least thank him for that, right? Yup, definitely. Manners are important," he told himself, took out his phone, and started typing a message. [Thank you very much for praising my cookies earlier. Best regards, Ueda Hikaru.] He tapped the send button, but then jolted. "Wait! No, that sounds stupid, how do I delete this?!” He panicked, and as he tried to find out how to delete a message on the app he was using, his phone suddenly started buzzing. "Wah!" Startled by that, Hikaru dropped it on the ground and looked at the upwards directed display. “It’s his number! Why is he calling?!" Hikaru's heart was pounding so hard, it felt like it was about to burst through his chest. He reached for the device, but the moment he picked it up, it went silent. "I missed it…" He wasn't sure why, but he felt sad. He sighed in frustration when his phone started buzzing again. "Y-YES?!" He answered so eagerly that he cringed over his own behavior. What the hell is wrong with me , he asked himself. "Ueda-kun...? Are you there?" "Yes, it's me! I’m here!" "Can you talk or are you busy?" "It's fine…" "What are you doing right now?" "I'm still in the garden…" Hikaru leaned back against the tree, happy to hear the man's voice. "Isn’t it lonely out there?" "I don’t like people, they’re troublesome. Being alone outside in nature is much better." Did I just say that I don’t like people?! He’ll think I’m a freak , Hikaru thought, panicking. “Yeah, I don’t like people either, but I have to be social due to my job…” Hikaru’s heart throbbed with happiness. “Really...?” “To be honest, I’d rather spend my days writing code alone in my office than socialize. Talking to people is straining, but not talking to clients would be kind of bad for my business.” “Yeah, probably…” Hikaru smiled broadly as he felt understood in that regard for the first time. “Where are you right now?” “I'm in my car on my way home to Tokyo, that’s why I thought I'd call since I can't type and I didn’t want to wait for an hour before answering. Luckily the meeting with your father was over quickly. He knows exactly what he wants, which makes it easy to work with him.” "So it went well?" "Let’s say, your father is quite a character, but yes, it went well and we’re gonna work for him in the future... Honestly, I've never met someone like him before, and to be blunt, I’m not sure if that’s a bad thing." "It sure isn't. So… That means you're not one of them?" "T hem ? Oh, you mean Yakuza?” Howl asked bluntly. “Yeah…” So it is true , he thought. “No, I’m not and that's not my usual clientele, but having him as a client will actually be great for our growth, he has a lot of influence... As long as they don't want me to do anything shady, I don’t care what my clients do in private." Hikaru felt relieved. "What does your company do?" "It's just boring IT stuff, mostly. Among other things, we develop Smart Home Security Systems and such. We're going to set up new IT systems at your father's offices and install a new Home Security system..." Howl kept rambling about his line of work for a while and, though Hikaru didn't understand most of the technical terms, he wasn't bored for a single second. He enjoyed hearing Howl talk so passionately about his profession, and couldn't help but smile the whole time. "Jeez, I’m babbling, sorry,” Howl interrupted himself at one point. “To continue where we left off earlier, you said you’re going to attend T-Uni in September, right? What faculty?" "Education, I want to become a teacher," Hikaru replied. "Is that so?" "Yeah, my Brother-in-law is a professor and he always talked so passionately about his job, it inspired me." "I see. Well, good luck and work hard, Ueda-kun." "Th-Thank you, I'll do my best. My grades are quite good and I'm really looking forward to my University life." "Are you going to move to Tokyo? It would probably be more convenient than to travel by train every day, right?" "I want to, but I wasn't able to find a job there yet, and there are no free dorms currently.” "Can't your father pay for your rent?" Howl asked bluntly. "Well, he could and he even offered it, but I don't want to rely on his money. It’d make me indebted to him, that’s why I worked hard for my scholarship. I should explain why being independent of him is important… You know, in our world, you’re supposed to take the path your family chooses for you. Basically, you have to work in the family business… My father decides what exactly you’re going to do and his will is our law. But I didn’t want to waste my life doing something I hate, so I made a deal with him that allowed me to take my own path.” “A deal?” “I had to fulfill certain criteria like getting straight A’s in school, present him a life plan and such, which was fine and somewhat reasonable. But if I depended on his money and did anything he’d be displeased with, he could just go and cut me off financially. I'd be forced to come back here and work for him after all. With a job, I would be able to stay in Tokyo and live my own life no matter what.” “So you’re creating your own safety net, huh…” “Yup, that’s the plan. Even if it’s a shitty job and I’ll have a tiny, run-down apartment, anything is better than this house. I really have to find a job, I wanna move out as soon as possible. And the commute would be horrible. By train, it’s one and a half hours each way every day..." “I’m impressed, Ueda-kun. Your determination to stand on your own two feet at such a young age amazes me.” “R-Really?” Hikaru blushed and was glad Howl wasn’t able to see it. “Absolutely! You could live a comfortable life, but you’re choosing the hard way. That’s honorable in my opinion.” “Th...Thanks…” Hikaru replied flustered. “Wait, wasn’t there something you wanted to say when Kitamura-san interrupted us? I just remembered… You said it’s funny that I’m attending T-Uni, because… And then Kitamura-san came in.” “Right, I wanted to say that my sister is a T-Uni alumnus.” “Oh really? Right, you mentioned a sister when we talked about your name. You said you’re both named after the main characters in the book, so her name must be Sophie…?” "Correct. She's my twin and moved to Hokkaido after graduating. She works as a dojo instructor. She’s incredibly talented when it comes to martial arts." " That sounds impressive! But isn’t it tough to live so far apart when you’re twins?" “I do miss her, but she’s working for a prestigious dojo and a famous sensei who’s won many awards, she couldn’t say no to that. We talk on the phone often, though. We’re still very close.” “Do you have any more siblings?” “No, we’re the only family that’s left. Our parents passed away and we only have an aunt who partially raised us. But she lives in the UK… We don’t have a big family like you, unfortunately.” “Well, I might have a big family, but I’m not close with all of them. I’m closest with my brother Hacchan.” “I’m trying to recall the family portrait… He was…” “The one next to me who was holding my hand. He’s very protective over me, even though I’m the older one,” Hikaru smiled lovingly. “We also have a childhood friend, Kaito, who’s my age, and like a brother to me also.” “It’s important to have someone you’re close to.” “Yeah… Especially if you don’t like people,” Hikaru chuckled, and Howl did as well. “That’s true…” They continued to have a very long conversation and both didn't realize how much time had passed. Howl had gotten home, had had dinner, but they were still on the phone together. "Ah-choo!" Hiki suddenly sneezed, interrupting a heated conversation where they were discussing the latest episode of a drama both of them were watching. "Oh, bless you! Wait... Ueda-kun, are you still outside?!" "Yeah, I haven’t moved an inch…" "Jeez, go inside, it's dark already and the nights are still cold! I hope you won’t get sick..." Hikaru smiled, happy that Howl cared about his well being. "I will, sorry." He got up and walked back to the house. When he had reached his room, someone suddenly grabbed his shoulder from behind. Hikaru jolted and almost dropped his phone again. "Wah, what the…? Oh, it’s you… Jeez, you scared me!" His younger brother Hajime was standing behind him. He was the complete opposite of Hikaru. Hajime was tall, strong, and had a toned body due to the martial arts he did. Hiki on the other hand was very slender and looked rather frail. Not unhealthily skinny, but also not muscular at all. So naturally, everyone mistook Hajime for the older one. "Niichan, there you are! Kai came over to play video games, wanna join us?" "Umm no, not today, sorry." Hikaru tried to hide his phone. "What're you up to," Hajime asked curiously as he noticed his brother’s weird behavior. "Noth-... AH-CHOO!" "Eh, are you getting sick again? You should take a hot bath. Want me to-" "No, no, it's fine, really! I'll just go to bed, I'm sleepy, goodnight! And say hi to Kai for me." He turned around and hurried to his room, leaving a startled Hajime behind. Hikaru sighed loudly after he shut the door. "Are you still there Harada-san?" "I am, are you okay? What happened?" "Nothing, just my brother. Where were we?" Hikaru slumped down on his bed and they continued talking for a while longer until the boy started nodding off.On the next morning, Hikaru woke up with a throbbing head and moaned as he got up. He felt horrible. In addition to his throbbing head, his nose was stuffed, his body hurt and his throat felt sore. “Guess I caught a cold after all,” he said to himself with a husky voice. "Jeez, and I fell asleep with my clothes on… Wait! Did we even hang up last night? Oh no..." Hikaru realized that he must have fallen asleep while Howl was still on the phone. His feverish cheeks became even redder. "How embarrassing!" He coughed and took his phone. “A message!” He opened it and read: [Ueda-kun, I hope you're okay. I'm sorry, but I hung up the phone after you fell asleep. Well, I listened to your breathing for a while, which sounds creepy, but it felt so relaxing… Can I call you again tonight? I haven't had that much fun in a long time...] Hikaru's heart skipped a beat. It's fun for him to talk with me , he thought excitedly and typed in an answer. [I feel the same! Sorry for falling asleep (⌒_⌒;) Call me whenever you have time.] Unexpectedly, he received a reply right away. [Can't wait. I’ll call you in the evening after work, around 8.] Hikaru was so happy, he almost forgot how sick he felt. “Niichan?” His younger brother suddenly knocked on the door and opened it. “Are you ready for breakfa- Woah, you look awful!” “Thanks, Hacchan. Good morning to you, too,” Hikaru replied sarcastically. “I knew it! I knew you caught a cold! You were hanging out in the garden for way too long again. How often do I have to tell you to at least take a blanket with you? You know how easily you get sick,” Hajime scolded him. “Anyway, stay here, I’ll go and ask the chef to make some rice porridge and tea, no objections! Do you still have cooling pads? If not, I’ll ask Kai to bring some from the konbini, he’s coming over after work as usual...” “I have a whole box left in my drawer...” Hikaru mumbled. “Alright. Rest now, I’ll be back in a bit.” The boy slumped back down into his pillows as his brother rushed out. “Not gonna put up a fight, too tired…” he huffed to himself. But he appreciated Hajime’s mothering a lot since their actual mother wasn’t exactly the loving type. Hikaru made sure to thank him when he brought the steaming hot meal and freshly brewed tea. Despite his bad health, he was excitedly looking forward to his new friend’s call, but his condition only got worse over time and he slept most of the day. In the end, Hikaru missed the call.He was devastated when he woke up the next morning and saw the missed call on his phone. “I bet he’s mad now…” Hikaru muttered, struggling while trying to sit up, weakened by his cold. He couldn't help but tear up as he gave in and just laid there. “I hate this… I hate myself…” he whispered frustrated and disappointed in himself. He hadn't even noticed that his brother and his childhood friend Kaito had entered his room to look after him. "Niichan, are you crying? What happened, are you feeling worse? Want me to tell Sasara to drive you to the hospital?" Hikaru shook his head. "I’m sad… I really like him, you know… I wanted to talk to him more and maybe even see him again, but now he's probably super mad at me because I didn't pick up the phone last night… Or he thinks I hate him , which I don’t," he sobbed. Hikaru didn’t want to tell them about Howl, but the words just slipped out while Hajime and Kaito looked at each other in confusion. “Finally someone I got along with who isn't my brother or my best friend and I screw it up just because I have to get sick again. Great timing, Hikaru! Well done, you weakling! Dammit…” Hikaru cursed, talking more to himself than to Hajime and Kaito. "What’re you babbling about?" "Maybe he’s hallucinating because of the fever. I mean, he’s done that before... Or he’s just going crazy," Kaito said in his typical nonchalant manner. "I’m so sad," Hikaru sniffled. "The day before yesterday, I met someone and he liked my cookies and accepted me, didn’t judge me… But he probably hates me now and I deserve it!" "Niichan, who the heck is he?" Hajime asked concernedly. Hikaru sat up, moaning. "Ugh, I’m dizzy…” He took a deep breath. “His name is Harada-san. He totally gets me, and he’s just so cool, and it’s sooo much fun talking to him," Hikaru swooned with a runny nose. "Ew, gross…" Kaito remarked at that sight and threw a tissue at his friend. Hiki blew his nose weakly and continued: "He had an appointment with father because something, something, computer stuff.” Hiki nodded knowingly. ”He likes computers more than people. Just how I like… Anything more than people. Okay, I like some people. Like him ... He was waiting for father and I offered him tea and cookies... He really liked my cookies, did I mention that…?" Hiki grinned dreamily. “Wait, he’s one of father’s business partners? Niichan, those people are dangerous, what the hell’s gotten into you?!” “He’s not like that, Hacchan. No, no. He’s a good guy. Very good. A good cookie...” Hiki giggled. "What’s with the damn cookies all the time? You're such a weirdo..." “See, even you think that I’m a weirdo. But he doesn’t!” Hajime stepped closer and placed his hand on his brother's forehead. "Jeez, you're burning up, Niichan! Come on, lay back down." Hiki diligently did so and Hajime tucked him in. "I'll go and get you breakfast, you need to eat something, you’re completely delusional. Kai, can you stay with him?" Kaito nodded and sat down at Hiki's desk which was covered in books and notepads. "Hacchan, please don't tell mother that I got sick again, she’d kill me..." Hiki mumbled drowsily. "As if I would do that," Hajime replied, clicked his tongue and left the room. “Hey Hiki, I didn’t want to say anything in front of your brother, but you sound like you have a crush on that guy,” Kaito said, but all he got in reply was snoring. “...Rude. Well, maybe it’s all just nonsense because of the fever… Last time you were down with a cold, you talked about a purple elephant with green wings and antennas that was taking you for a ride over Mount Fuji...” Kairo dismissed his assumption. But then his eyes fell on one of his childhood friend’s notebooks on the floor next to his bed, which had the name ‘Howl’ written all over it, with notes added such as: ‘likes chocolate chip cookies and chips’, ‘has a twin sister named Sophie’, ‘born on February 7th’, ‘likes the color blue’... “Jeez, Hiki... Let’s hope this is going to end well…” Kaito mumbled, frowning. "Crap, he didn't even eat or drink anything," Hajime cursed when he reentered the room a few minutes later and saw that his brother was sound asleep. "Just put it on his nightstand, he’ll eat it later.” “You know that he won’t, I’ll have to remind him. He’s so negligent when it comes to taking care of himself.” “True… Hey, that was some weird stuff he said, huh? Will you keep an eye on that?" "Definitely. If what he said wasn't a fever dream, then there's someone who obviously has some sort of interest in him. And a guy at that... Older than him too," Hajime clicked his tongue disapprovingly. "But it didn't sound like it was another Yakuza, so he should be safe, right?" "I don't know. It's weird that Niichan is so into someone he just met. It's not like him at all, you know how shy and reserved he normally is towards anyone, even other family members. This is concerning..." "Or maybe you're just overprotective? Maybe you're overthinking and they just get along well…? He doesn't have any friends besides us, so maybe he finally decided to open up a little more…" "Kai, you’ve known him since you were four… Do you really believe that he all of a sudden decided to become sociable? Niichan, who barely even opens up to us?!" "Okay, not really. But what are we going to do? He's not a kid, we can't tell him not to talk to strangers…" "Yeah, but…" Hiki's buzzing phone next to his pillow interrupted their discussion. Hajime leaned over and looked at the screen to see who was calling. "It says Cookie-san… So it wasn’t a fever dream..." "Are you gonna pick it up?" The second Kaito had finished his question, Hajime had grabbed the phone and answered the call. "Listen, whoever you are! I don't know what kind of game you're playing with my brother, but you better not have any shady intentions, or I'll find you and tear you a new one!" "Ah, you must be his little brother... Hacchan, right? My name is Harada Howl, nice to talk to you." "My name is Hajime! What do you want from him? I swear, if you’re from a rival group and hurt him in any way… You know what my family is capable of, right? You’re gonna regret the day you were born!" "Growing up in certain social circles probably makes you raise suspicion against others easily, but I'm a decent guy,” Howl replied calmly. “I’m not in that line of work. I run my own successful IT company. I'm not a crook, and I have no bad intentions regarding your brother. I respect that you want to protect him, that's what family does, and your brother speaks very highly of you. The two of you seem very close, but he’s eighteen, he can make his own decisions..." Hajime was surprised and even impressed by that man's straightforwardness and calm manner even after being threatened. "What exactly are your intentions?" "I don't have any. I just enjoy talking to him. It’s fun, interesting, and invigorating… He has a great personality and I would like to get to know him better." "Tch. You sound like you have a crush on him," Hajime said provocatively. "My brother isn't gay, so don't get your hopes up. You should just leave him alone." "Can't do that, sorry. Like I said, your brother is old enough to make his own decisions. If he tells me to leave him alone, then I will respect that. But brother or not, you don't have the right to tell me that in his place. Though you can rest assured that even if I had a crush on him, I would never force myself onto him. Anyhow, is this interrogation over? Because I would like to talk to him now." "He… He's sleeping off a cold,” Hajime replied honestly, startled by the stranger’s words. "I see, so that's why he didn't pick up my call last night. I will let him recover then. It was nice talking to you, Hacchan-kun. Maybe I'll have the pleasure again. Goodbye." "Hacchan-k…? I told you, my name is-... He hung up…!" Hajime looked at Kaito dumbfounded. "What happened? What did he say?" Hajime needed a moment to process their conversation. "...I hate to admit it, but I guess he's cool. Very blunt, but he seemed honest. I don't think he's a threat to Niichan... I'll still keep an eye on this whole situation though. Come on now, let's leave so he can get some rest." “He is resting… He didn’t even flinch. Once this guy’s asleep, it’s like he’s in a coma…” “I know, but do you wanna stay and watch my brother sleep, or do you wanna go to my room and make out?” “Hmm… Not sure what's more fun...” Kaito replied teasingly. "I'll show you what's more fun," Hajime growled, grabbed Kai's hand, and dragged him out of the room. For the next few days, Hiki was down with his cold. Due to his weak immune system, he was used to getting sick easily, but this time it hit him really hard. He had a very high fever and was out cold most of the time. Thankfully, Hajime and Kaito took good care of him. They wanted to call a doctor, but Hiki declined because he didn’t want their mother to get wind of it. They had a very strained relationship, and she hated when he became a bother to her. Hiki desperately wanted to avoid one of her tantrums, so he assured them that he’d be fine. After three days of mostly sleeping, he had finally recovered. Though, even his illness couldn’t keep him from constantly checking his phone to see if Howl had at least sent a message. But there was nothing. Hiki figured that this new friendship was over before it had even really started, and it made him incredibly sad. He thought about sending Howl a message to apologize but didn't dare to. "Jeez Niichan, stop sulking over some stranger…" Hajime rolled his eyes after he had entered his brother's room to check up on him. But all he saw was a blanket ball on the bed. “How are you feeling today?” "I'm not sulking. My fever is gone, I feel much better. Thank you for taking care of me, Hacchan, you're the best,” the blanket ball replied with a muffled voice. "I know, I know." Hajime smiled, happy about his big brother's praise. Hiki sat up and uncovered himself. "Where's Kaito? Don't you have karate practice today? He usually watches you…" "We had a fight…" Hajime sighed and slumped down on Hiki's bed. "Oh really? What happened?" "I wanted to make out earlier, but he didn't... And then I… kinda told him to stop bitching - OW!" Hiki had reached out and smacked his brother on the back of his head. "You're an idiot! Apologize, now!" He glared at Hajime. "I know, it was extremely shitty of me, and I feel really bad about it, but he won't pick up his phone…" "So what? Go to his house, it's just down the road! Hacchan, you need to understand that now that you guys are more than just friends, you have to be a little more careful with your words and actions. You’re so perfect for each other, please don't ruin it. I wish I had what you guys have…" "...Really?" "Of course! I mean, just because I never had a love interest doesn't mean I want to be alone for the rest of my life. I want someone who I can love and who loves me back…" "I really love him, that's why I can't help wanting to touch him all the time- OW! Niichaaaan, stop that!" "Hacchan, seriously, I know you’re only 16, but get your teenage hormones in check! If you love him that much, and I know you do, treat him with the respect he deserves. I can't believe that I really have to tell you that!" "Hey, I’m turning 17 next month! But you're right. I'll go over and apologize in person. Maybe I should pick some flowers on my way there..." "Now that's more like you, Hacchan!" Hiki patted his brother's head. "Niichan, my hair~" Hajime got up and walked over to the door. "What are you going to do today? Are you gonna stay in bed again?" "Hm… No, I think I'll sneak out and head over to Ramen Jiji." “I’ll go with you!” “No. You go and apologize. You don't have much time anyway, your practice will start soon, so hurry up.” “But you shouldn’t go to town all by yourself. Ask Sasara-san to drive you…” “I don’t want a guard, it’s awkward.” Hajime sighed. “So stubborn... But you barely ate anything in the past few days, so a big bowl of Jiji’s stamina ramen would do you good… Just be careful, okay?" "Yup." Hiki scooted over to the edge of his bed. "But first, I'll take a shower…" "And… You should call him," Hajime mumbled. "Huh?" Hiki's heart skipped a beat. "Call whom? What are you talking about?" Hajime rolled his eyes. "That guy you were swooning over when you were running a fever. If you like him, call him. Anyway, talk to you later.” He turned around and quickly left the room. Hiki blushed. He had absolutely no recollection of talking about Howl. ‘If you like him, call him’ , he thought. “As if that’s so easy…” Hiki sighed, got up, and went to the bathroom to get ready. Afterwards, he snuck out of the big, fenced property through his usual secret exit to go on the thirty-minute bike ride away to his favorite restaurant. Hikaru cursed the remoteness of their home every time he went there. Riding the bike for that long was exhausting to him, especially after lying in bed for days. Though the scenery of the countryside and the great air kind of made up for it. It was one of the rare moments when he felt free. At least a little bit. After Hiki arrived at his destination, huffing and sweaty, he sat down at the counter and placed his favorite book, that he had brought along, on it. The shop was quite busy, so he decided to start reading until the waitress had time to take his order. He loved going to that small and cozy shop. It was a little run down, but that just added to its charm, and the staff was always very kind to him. Plus, to Hiki, Jiji made the best Ramen in the world. "I'll be right there, Hiki-kun," the waitress shouted over when she noticed him. "No hurry, Kida-san," Hiki replied. "Ueda-kun?!" A deep voice behind him startled Hiki and he jolted around. His heart stopped when he saw the person standing there. "H-Harada-san? What are you doing here?" "I had an appointment at one of your father's offices nearby and got hungry… Since you're here, I assume you're feeling better?" "Huh?" "You were sick, weren't you? Are you okay yet? You look pale…" he frowned concernedly. "I-I'm okay… But how do you know?" "May I?" Howl asked before sitting down on a chair next to him after Hiki had nodded. "I called the other day, and your brother picked up your phone." "Hacchan? He didn't mention anything…" "He told me that you were sick, so I wanted to give you time to recover before contacting you again. But… I couldn't stand to wait anymore and wanted to call you yesterday. Unfortunately, something came up at work, and in the end, it had gotten very late. I was planning to call you this evening, but now that I met you here, would you like to have lunch with me?" Howl smiled and Hiki’s heart skipped a beat. "I-I would love to," he sparkled, happy and relieved. Howl's chest tightened. He's way too cute for his own good , he thought. Howl didn't plan on making any advances towards Hiki, but seeing him again in person, he was now 100% sure that he had fallen for that boy. "Alright, Hiki-kun. What can I bring you today," the waitress asked smiling as she approached him. "Um, I'd like a bowl of stamina ramen, please," he replied. "And for your friend?" "Can you recommend anything, Ueda-kun?" Howl asked. "Hmm… Everything tastes great here, to be honest. But maybe… Jiji’s special Tonkotsu Ramen? I mean, if Tonkotsu is something you like, you should try it, Jiji’s is the best!" "Sounds great, I'll have that," Howl told the waitress, who nodded and walked over to the kitchen. In the meantime, Hiki and Howl switched to one of the tables in the back for more privacy. "I'm really happy to have met you here, Ueda-kun. I wanted to talk to you more and I would like to have more of your delicious cookies… Jeez, I sound like a creep again…" "N-No, not at all! If I would've known that I'd meet you here, I would've brought you some. Next time, I promise," Hiki smiled broadly. "Next time? Love to hear that," Howl said and returned the smile, which made Hiki's heart throb, and he swallowed hard. What the heck was that, he thought, startled by his own reaction. "Oh, by the way… I stopped at one of my family's branches and got you this." Howl rummaged around in his dark brown leather briefcase and handed Hiki a black box with a golden peony emblem, and the writing 'Harada Sweets" on it. "Good thing I forgot to take it out after I bought it." "W-What is this?" Hiki asked dumbfounded. "Open it… I didn't know if you like them, but I decided to give it a shot." Hiki opened the shiny box and inside was a mix of colorful Japanese sweets that were shaped like flowers. "Uwah~ Namagashi! I love Namagashi, and these are especially pretty, thank you Harada-san!" Hiki sparkled. Howl cleared his throat, touched by the boy’s blitheness over such a simple gift. "I'm glad you like them. And thank you for having lunch with me, food always tastes better with company." "I agree! And… Well... I enjoy talking to you too,” he stuttered blushing. "Here you go..." The waitress suddenly showed up and placed their ramen on the table. They thanked her and Howl took a bite. “Oh wow, it’s really good! I haven’t had Tonkotsu this good in Tokyo!" “I know, right?” Hiki grinned and slurped in some noodles. “Oh, hold on… There's something on your cheek…" Howl reached out, wiped a little soup smudge off of Hiki's cheek, and licked it off his thumb. "W-What are you doing?" Hiki asked with a shocked expression. "It was a reflex," Howl replied, realizing that he might have gone too far, while Hiki's heart was beating like crazy and his face was glowing red. "Sorry for crossing a line,” he added and quickly changed the subject. "What was that book you were reading earlier, by the way?" "Book...? Oh, it's called Midair, Deep Sea by Usami Akihiko. He's my favorite author! It's one of his older works, they're a bit sad and gloomy. His more recent publications give off a lighter feeling, but I really like this one. He's a great author, he was the youngest person ever to win the Aomori Award," Hiki babbled. "I see," Howl smiled. "Ah, I'm sorry. I got carried away again..." "It's good to have something you're passionate about. Nothing to apologize for," Howl encouraged him. "Passionate… Like you and your computer things?" "Yeah… I've talked about that a lot, huh… I know it's boring, I get carried away too, I guess," Howl smiled apologetically. "It wasn't boring at all… It's good to have something you're passionate about. Nothing to apologize for," Hiki quoted him grinning. “Okay, you got me there,” Howl chuckled, glad that his action from before hadn’t ruined the mood. They continued talking about everything and anything and enjoyed their time together. There wasn't a single moment of awkward silence or anything alike, and they didn't even notice how time passed, just like during their call the other day. But then, all of a sudden, Hiki's phone started ringing. "Oh… Please excuse me, that's probably Hacchan checking up on me…" Hiki said, but then his soft expression hardened as he looked at the display. Howl was a bit startled by that since the boy almost looked like a different person. "Yes, Harumi? Oh... Okay. As you wish, I'll be there in half an hour… I’m sorry, I can’t be there sooner, I… Yes. Okay... Understood." He hung up and looked down on the table. Howl thought he seemed daunted, which made his heart throb heavily. "I'm sorry Harada-san, but I have to leave now.” Hiki got up. “Right now? Why so sudden? I hope nothing bad happened…” “That was my sister, she needs me to take care of her daughter. Something came up, and it's their Nanny's day off." Hiki sighed, he was devastated. He would've loved to spend more time with Howl but it couldn’t be helped. He knew that if he'd refused to follow his sister's orders, she would make his life a living hell. She was just like their mother. "I see... What a shame, I would've loved to spend more time with you. But I guess it can’t be helped," Howl said, and again, the boy’s heart skipped a beat. It was as if he read Hiki’s mind. "I’m so sorry, I have to hurry. They don't know that I'm here, I'm actually not allowed to leave the property without a guard. The bike ride back will take half an hour, so..." Hiki wanted to take out his wallet to pay for his meal, but Howl stopped him. "Please… That's on me." "B-But…" "Let me handle it as compensation for the tea and your delicious cookies the other day," Howl smiled. "Um… Okay. Thank you very much." Hiki blushed again and bowed. "I really, really enjoyed talking to you, Howl-san." "How about I drive you back home? Your bike would fit in the trunk…" "Huh? No, I don't want to trouble you," Hiki replied politely, but secretly hoped Howl would insist on it, just so they could spend 15 more minutes together. “No objections. I probably kept you here for longer than you would’ve originally stayed, so let me make up for it. Now let’s hurry so you won’t get into trouble." “Thank you,” Hiki smiled, happy that he would actually get those 15 extra minutes with Howl. They carefully placed Hiki’s bike in the Audi’s trunk and got into the car. Weirdly, they didn’t talk much on their way to the Ueda estate. Howl mentioned the beautiful scenery, but Hiki frantically thought about what he could use as a reason to meet with Howl again as soon as possible. “Ah, please stop here,” Hiki suddenly said. “If you drive me up to the main entrance…” “Yeah, they’d know you snuck out. But isn’t this too far from the house?” “There’s a hole in the fence over there. I’ll have to run, but this is the only way in.” “What about your bike?” Howl asked as they got out of the car, and he took it out of the trunk. “I always hide it over there in the bushes. Thank you so much, Harada-san. For everything…” Hiki said and turned around to leave, wanting to ask him when they could meet again, but his shyness was too overpowering. “Ah, Ueda-kun!" Howl stopped him and he jolted around. "Y-Yes!?" “I would like to meet you again soon… There's a festival in Machida this weekend, I saw a poster somewhere this morning. Would you like to go?” “I would love to,” Hiki gleamed. “Great! How about 7 pm? I could pick you up here...” “Let's meet at Machida station instead. There are guards patrolling the area around the property at night, they'd see the car... The train station is safer.” “Alright. Saturday, 7 pm at Machida station. Can't wait,” Howl smiled. Hiki smiled back broadly and nodded enthusiastically in agreement before he turned around and left in a hurry. While he was watching his niece, Hiki thought about Howl and their conversation. That man’s face always had this earnest expression, but when he smiled, he looked so kind and even cute. Though to him, he also looked cute while wearing that earnest expression. Is it even appropriate to think of someone as cute who’s seven years my senior , Hiki wondered. He also thought about how he smelled really nice, how big his hands were, and that his deep voice had such an interesting sound, which was even more intense and mesmerizing when he wasn't talking through a phone… Hiki suddenly shook his head to clear his thoughts as he built a lego tower with his niece. Why did he feel so drawn to this stranger? He had never experienced feelings like that before… “Hikaru-oji, stop daydreaming or I’ll tell mom that you did a bad job,” his seven-year-old niece complained, and for the rest of the time, he focused on the spoiled little girl. After he was done complying with his uncle-duties, Hiki went to his room and dropped on his bed. Normally, he was exhausted after watching that kid, but this time, he felt ecstatic. "Ugh, why am I so happy…?" he whispered as he touched his cheek where Howl had wiped off the soup. "Please let Saturday come quickly."

Once Bitten, Twice Stupid prt 158 prt 2

Keith was still on the fence about returning to the house. Lance wanted to go. Keith didn’t want to go. He didn’t want Lance committing that place to memory and his nightmares getting worse

“Oh? Actually, I’ve got something to tell you. Lance fell asleep before I could talk to him about it... well, two somethings... You go first”

Pidge had something to tell him? Why did he get the feel he wasn’t going to be happy? She was smiling, but he knew how sharp her teeth could be behind that smile

“You’ve known Lance longer than I have, and I don’t want to fuck this up”

“Oh my god! You’re going to ask him to get hitched?!”

Keith sighed deeply

“Have you been talking to Krolia?”

“Yes, but not about that. Oh my god! When?! Are you getting married before he pops?!”

Keith pinched the bridge of his nose as he sat himself down next to the serving tray

“No. Lance and I both... we want to be together a while before... God. If my mother’s been at you, I’m so sorry”

Fucking Krolia. Only by sheer luck had the ring box not been found by Lance. Keith meant to throw it out, but it was hard when Lance generally took the rubbish out and the big bin was emptied once a week. Cocking her head, Pidge forgot she’d been whispering

“She hasn’t been... but if you’re not proposing, then what’s going on?”

“Lance said he wants to go back to the house where Sendak held them. He said he wants to see that it’s empty and that no one there’s suffering”

Immediately Pidge’s gaze dropped to Lance

“Hasn’t he been hurt enough?”

Keith nodded, more than grateful Pidge seemed to get his fears

“I don’t know if it’s a good idea. He asked Shiro, and Shiro’s been in a bit of daze since. We didn’t see Sendak’s body, but I trust Coran when he says Lance killed Sendak. He’s freaked out from his attack, overthinking things and I... He doesn’t forget. I’m scared if he goes there, he’s always going to have the house in his head”

“Dude, he’s already got the house in his head... Maybe... maybe he’s right? If he didn’t see the body then maybe he needs to see the house? You know he has to understand everything”

And now Pidge was shifting her thoughts to things Keith had already thought about

“He said he wants to put it behind him so he can focus on the future. You’ve been by his side longer... I’m not sure if I should say yes”

Pidge snorted with laughter, adjusting her glasses as she did

“Pfffft. I didn’t even know he was a vampire and I’m a paranormal investigator. Dude, you’re his boyfriend. You can tell him no. But if he thinks it might help, then the best we can do is be there with him. I mean, someone’s gotta start the fire and then provide the alibi”

Keith found himself smiling

“Here I was blaming myself for leading Lance astray and you say the same thing we’ve been thinking. We all want to burn the house down”

“In my defence, I think the house has it coming. I would have loved to kick Sendak, even only once in the ankle, that would have been enough”

“I can see that, but you’re lucky you never had to go face to face with him. I still have nightmares about the raisin fuck”

Pidge arched an eyebrow at his “raisin fuck”. Keith blaming Lance solely for his defaulting to bread related items

“Smooth, dude. Okay, well, I’m down to go. Hunk will too. You both have to get it into your head we’re not gonna let you guys go through this alone. Now, I’ve got news and Lance is gonna be so mad so I need to you turn the boyfriend charm on”

“I don’t know if I’ve got any charm”

“You must do. Kosmo totally got up, huffed, and then laid back down. That’s the most he’s been bothered moving in this heat”

“You broke my boyfriend and my fur son?”

“Rude. Matt wore him out this morning taking him for a run. Annnnnyway... You know how I am like the most amazing tech person you know and will ever meet, and you know how we’ve been not making videos lately... I have solved both problems because I am a genius”

Keith wasn’t going to debate facts. Pidge was as amazing as she thought she was

“How?”

“I’m going to work at VOLTON! Oops... I mean, I’m going to work at VOLTRON. Before you get worried, it’s all in research and development. Meaning I’ll be tinkering with all that tech. Coran promised me like an amazing wage, as much tech as I could get my fingers on, and I get a company car!”

She was what? How? What?

“You what now?”

“I know you’re worried. I totally get it. I’d be worried about this amazing little me too. So, it’s like totally okay. I won’t see any vampires or werewolves outside of staff. Mum agreed... well, dad agreed that it’d be safer than letting me do whatever I want seeing Lance is pregnant and he really should be focusing on that. I get weekends free... and Coran said I could totally check out any equipment I want to use while hunting. Apparently he’s a total fan of our videos”

Pidge sounded so beyond excited that Keith had to almost physically cram his fist down his throat to push down the rush of fear he felt for her. Coran was only one fae. Things went wrong all the time... but for Pidge this was a once in a lifetime offer

“I want to be excited but I’m worried”

“Hunk threw up. He said he wasn’t going to, then he did. But think about it, I’m gonna be there and you’re gonna be there and when Lance gives birth I’m not going to be in the room but I’ll be in the complex. I have to have training. Basically enough training to fight a human off... I start next week full time”

What... the actual fuck... Pidge was... holy heck. He didn’t want this life for her. Lance didn’t want this life for her. Lance had busted his arse for years protecting Pidge from her overexcitable ways... and now she throwing herself into the jaws of a lion. He couldn’t... Lance was not going to be happy. He wasn’t happy. This was their Pidge and their Pidge needed to be safe at all times. He was being a bad friend not sharing her excitement. Lance kind of taught him that that was a thing and it was okay not to worry and to go with the flow

“I’m going to need... a moment. Are you sure this is what you want? I’m not trying to upset you, but you know what things can be like and they can be a whole lot worse. Lance managing to cause a commotion is what kept us from losing him”

Pidge’s shoulders slumped. Yeah. Definitely being a bad friend right now. He’d never be leaving VOLTRON’s employment once Lance learned about this

“I get that you guys are scared, but this could be a great chance to put something good on my resume. I’m not working with any magic, or with Lotor, or Acxa, Zethrid and Ezor. It’ll be things like redesigning your phone to be a bit more practical and better coordination communication, and encoding”

If Pidge could hack into the Blade network that said a lot for her skills but also did highlight that anyone might be able to. He couldn’t brain this right now

“Let me just process. What was the other thing you wanted to tell me?”

Pidge shifted her weight... Guilt coming over her face. How could things possibly get worse?! How could she not feel guilting for joining VOLTRON, but feel guilty about this

“I... Okay. I’m sorry. I started when... when I was trying to work out my feeling about Lance being a vampire and Matt being a werewolf. So... I um... started looking into your past too. I sent some emails out, and lately I’ve been asking Krolia. Umm. I know I shouldn’t have pried, but I know how much it’s a thing for you. I...”

Oh, God. This... she’d done something. Instantly his nose was put out of joint by Pidge having the audacity to poke into his past. He still had shit in there he hadn’t told Lance. What happened was his business. Not Pidge’s. When he told Lance, that was up to him. Lance knew how much it fucking hurt to go there...

“I found your dad’s grave. I know. I can see you want to yell, and I nearly gave up and no one was replying then I got email two weeks ago and I’ve like been confirming it and I’ve found his grave. I found a few articles on him too. Please, Keith. I know I invaded your privacy... I just... I don’t know what it’s like not to have my dad and I imagine it fucking sucks so I wanted to find something for you...”

She’d... found... Keith knew if he dug deep enough and manned up enough to face his past he may have found out, but... he wasn’t sure he... now she had... what the fuck was he supposed to do?

“Keith?”

“I need some air”

A Date With Destiny (Owl House fic)

Chapter 1: A Big Confession

Chapter 2: Dating Advice from the Owl Lady

Chapter 3: A Little Help From My Friends

Chapter 4: What I Really Wanted

Final Chapter: Goodnight

A feeling came over Luz as she closed the door, a feeling she remembered having before going to Grom. What was uneasiness quickly turned into panic. This kind of fear was more reserved for life-threatening situations, but it still showed itself here. She began to pace around the room.

The door opened again as Eda walked in, carrying a bag filled with loot. She brought it to the table in front of the couch, not noticing Luz pacing. She sifted through loose pieces of gold and random bits of magical gadgets.

“Alright, let's see if there's any good finds in he-” Eda stopped when she noticed Luz pacing, seeming a bit more out of her element than she usually is. “You good over there Luz?”

Luz snapped out of her trance, darting her vision in Eda’s direction. She started nervously twiddling her thumbs.

“What, no I’m fine! Everything’s great, why do you ask?”

Eda narrowed her eyes. She took a good look at her, giving off a mostly unconvinced expression.

“Don’t play dumb with me kid,” said Eda. “Don’t think I don’t know when somethings bothering you. So what is it? Need me to terrorize some bullies?”

“What?! No, it's nothing like that…”

Luz sighed as her anxiety seemed to grow. Eda realized that joking around wasn’t going to help the situation. She patted the spot next to her on the couch and Luz took a seat. As she sat down, Eda roughed up her hair a little.

“So then what's on your mind?”

Luz pouted a little as she continued to fidget, trying to find the right words.

“So… I may or may not be going on a date with someone….”

“Is it Amity?”

“Yeah, it's Ami-” a look of confusion came across Luz’s face. “Wait, how did you know that?”

Eda nonchalantly pulled out a crumpled, torn up piece of paper and handed it to Luz. The paper was pink and it read “Luz, will you go to Grom with me? -Amity”. After reading it, her mouth was agape.

“WHERE DID YOU FIND THIS!?!”

“.....On the ground.”

Luz hid her face in her hands, trying to contain her embarrassment.

“I would have said something earlier, but I felt it would be better for her to tell you how she feels rather than me. Also its hilarious to see how bad she is at dropping hints.”

Luz pouted again while giving Eda an annoyed glare.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I couldn’t help myself.”

Luz let out a long sigh as she leaned back on the couch, looking up to the ceiling.

“I can’t believe how clueless I am,” Luz whispered to herself. “I’ve never been on a date, what do people even do on them?”

“I think it's not so much as what you do but more how you do it that matters.”

A ponderous look came over Luz’s face.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Well, being a somewhat old witch I’ve been on my fair share of dates. Most of them were terrible, but one thing I found that always helps is that regardless of what you have planned for the date. Try to be considerate of the other person. I mean, you are going on a date for a reason.”

Luz nodded inquisitively, taking in Eda’s supposedly experienced advice. While it didn’t help her come up with an idea for the date, it gave her a better idea of how to approach it. She slumped her head back in exhaustion.

“But what if I mess something up, or just act weird?”

“Luz,” said Eda with a bit more comforting tone. “You like this girl right?”

Luz replied with a confident nod.

“And this girl likes you, right?”

She nodded again.

“Then you don’t need to worry. As long as she likes you for the way you are, you’ve got nothing to worry about. You’ll be fine. I promise.”

Luz composed herself, taking a deep breath. She smiled again, with a tinge of uncertainty still behind it.

“Thanks, Eda.”

She hugged her in her usual surprise hug technique. Eda smiled, patting her back.

“I know you’ll do great. Heck, with the moves you pulled on Grom Night I’m practically certain of it.”

Luz’s confidence seemed to slowly return. Her initial fear began to slowly turn into excitement. Rather than fearing what could go wrong, she started to think of how much fun tomorrow night was going to be. Now ideas started to flow through her mind, what could be a fun way to have a first date. Then she had an idea.

“I have an idea!”

Luz darted over to a pile of paper on the floor. She grabbed a nearby pencil and started sketching.

Just then, Lilith and King walked into the room. Lilith noticed Luz sketching and looked confused while King joined alongside her, sketching stick figures.

“I thought spell practice was over for today,” said Lilith with a yawn.

“It is, Luz is just making some plans for a date.”

“Wait!” yelled King as he stopped drawing. “For real!? Who is it with?  Actually no, that doesn’t matter. Whoever it is, their gonna have an awesome time. I just know it!”

Luz tilted her head to the side playfully.

“Aw shucks.”

“Tell me one thing,” said King. “Does your date involve demon summoning by any chance? If it doesn’t, it really should.”

Eda came over and poked King on the nose. He scrambled on the floor as he started to slip on the paper.

“I think that's enough questions for today,” said Eda crossing her arms.

“Well, I can definitely say I’m surprised,” said Lilith, attempting to be caring.

Eda gave her an unimpressed glare as Lilith shrugged off the whole thing. As Lilith made her way back up the stairs, Eda decided to sit with King and Luz.

“Alright kid, let's see what you’ve got.”

“Yeah, let's see it!”

Another feeling of comfort came to Luz, knowing she has friends and family who have her back. Even if it's for something small like preparing for a first date. She started to lay out her papers.

“Alright, here's my idea…..”

Okay so requests say open so ima shoot my shot with one 😊 I’ve felt so god damn lonely lately like to the point of crying myself to sleep 8/10 times so like how would Bakugo, Mirio & Kiri act if they found their crush crying and then opening up about something like this (I don’t mind HC’s or mini scenarios which ever would be easiest for you). Keep up the writing, it makes me smile. 💞

Bakugou x Reader // Mirio x Reader

warning(s): may be triggering.

a/n: ANON I FEEL TERRIBLE I DIDNT SEE THIS UNTIL NOW???? I HOPE YOU ARE GETTING AS MUCH LOVE AS YOU NEED CAUSE YOU DESERVE IT! i sometimes feel lonely too, but just know that you arent okay love! if you need someone to talk to when youre feeling empty, i am here! *que inspirational all might*. rant done, fic below. thank you anon! (kiris will be added later)

Bakugou:

Bakugou just wanted to go home. He was so damn tired, and he didn't give a fuck if he wanted to go to damn bed at 7:30 either. He grumbled as he stomped down the hall, a small whimpering and sniffling noise sounding from around the corner making him blow his casket. He wasn't haven't it today, and whatever the fuck they were doing wasn't going to touch him.

Bakugou turned the corner to the lockers, prepared to tell them off before pausing and looking down at them. Which was... You.

His shoulders slumped at the sight, frowning. Angry, shocked -- an emotion he couldn't place. How the fuck did someone so amazing, look so defeated? It wasn't fair and he was going to kick someone's ass for it too.

Before he could inappropriately ask what was your issue, your teary eyes snapped up to his as you quickly got your things together, giving him a small smile.

"Sorry Bakugou! I didn't mean to hold you up, training has me in a lot of pain you know?" You tried, getting your things as you try to pass him. His hand gripped your arm, pushing you back against the locker, making you stumble and look up at him frightened.

"The hell you crying for?" Bakugou interrogates you, shoving his hands in his pocket as he peers at you. You fumble with your words not knowing if he was going to tell you off or beat you up for being weak. "Huh?!"

"N-No reason!"

"THEN WHY ARE YOU CRYING YOUR EYES OUT?!" You sighed as let out a sigh of defeat. How the hell are you supposed to explain that you feel alone? And Bakugou out of all the people too.

"Do you... Ever feel lonely?" You inquire, not really expecting him to really agree but to help ease it in.

"...No." Bakugou responds after a few moments of silence, maintaining strong eye contact with you. You blink a few times before lightly pushing against his shoulder and guiding him to a bench and sitting beside.

"Imma need you to sit down you're very intimidating." Bakugou scoffs at your words, motioning you to continue. You take another sigh as you pause on your next words.

"Well I do, a lot. More than usual lately. And I just, I just -- I just feel so damn stuck and I don't know what to do!" You let out resting your elbows on your knees, your face in your hands. "I just want to disappear."

"Don't fucking say that." Bakugou sighs as he hesitantly places a hand your back, trying to soothe you -- at least that's what Kirishima says. "You're not fucking lonely alright? You have those idiots, the teachers, your family. Why would that damn thought even cross your mind?"

"I don't know alright? I haven't told anyone before..." You turned your head to him again, eyes beading up tears again. Bakugou catches the first tear that falls, face still hard and intimidating.

"Oh yeah? Well next time you feel like shit you tell me instead of sulking by your damn self." Bakugou gets up, holding out his hand to yours. "Now get up, I'm feeling hungry and I could buy you something to eat too."

You stared up at him with a light blush, your heavy feelings soon washing away as you grab his hand excitedly.

It was time for a new beginning between you two anyways.

Mirio:

"Ah (L/N)~! (L/N)~! (L/N)-" Mirio stops himself from calling out to you as he hears a suspicious noise come from the broom closet. He takes careful steps, swinging open the door looking around the darkness, only to see you fumbling in the darkness with only the light of the hallway shining through.

Mirio takes a deep breath, giving you a bright smile placing his hand on his chest.

"Ah, (L/N), you scared me- what's wrong?" Mirio asks, closing the door and turning on the lights as you turn away from him.

"I-It's nothing Mirio- you can leave." You mumble, wiping the tears from your face. You look down at the floor, refusing to look at him. He's quick to pace over and grab your face in his hands as he quickly wipes your tears away.

You were no stranger to the feelings Mirio held for you, heck he had a whole showcase to proclaim his love for you. Nor were you a stranger to opening up to him, but you really didn't want to burden him. You couldn't hurt him by letting him know, but keeping him in the dark was so much worse -- you didn't know what to do.

"Hey look at me, what's wrong babe?" Mirio frowns, holding you in his hands.

"I just... I just feel so useless here at the agency. I just... I can't Mirio..." You mumble, wrapping your arms around his waist covering your face from view.

Your statement left Mirio speechless. How could one of the most important people here feel so invisible? He can't allow it! Not one bit.

"(H/N), I don't know what's going on in that cooky brain of yours, but you're just as important to this agency like everyone else. I don't think I would've survived on my own without you to be honest," You giggle a bit, still holding close against him making him smile gently. "Please tell me when youre feeling like this again, I don't want you feeding into the bad part of your brain okay?"

You nod, face pulling away from his chest to smile up at him. He grins back as he picks you up making you squeal and cling onto him.

"Now surprise lunch date!"