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#and these two beautiful children showing up at the door with their dying mother
alicuntismswrites · 2 years
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i’ll slither from eden back home to her a mr. & mrs. malcolm neil foxworth story
rating: E word count: 5,184
after burying mrs. steiner, malcolm foxworth leans forward and presses a dry kiss to olivia's mouth.
an au ending for that night.
read on ao3!
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literaila · 22 days
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omg i’m not sure if you have a fic on this yet but what about the very first time megumi calls reader mom? does he freak out? does reader try to keep it cool but is actually dying inside? is there angst? what do you think??
it’s well known that megumi does call you mom… just not to your face (and then he freaks out).
but then, even after that, it takes him a while to feel comfortable referring to you with a title that he doesn’t fully understand. megumi doesn’t know what a mom is, what he’s supposed to feel for his so called mother…
unlike tsumiki, of course, who, almost exactly two years into living with you and satoru, was fully on board with the title.
you’d been tucking her in one night, smiling at her nonsensical ramblings about school and some girl she met at the store earlier in the day, when she’d just asked.
“can i call you mom?”
you paused your fluffing of her pillows. “what?”
“it’s okay if you don’t want me to,” tsumiki had answered back, hurriedly, her sweet voice true. “i just wanted to ask.”
and… it took a moment to regain any composure after that.
i mean, sure. you knew—truly—that the little girl and boy you would protect with your life were yours. they might’ve been someone else’s—a lifetime ago, when the world was better and reality was more genuine.
but in your world, they were yours.
(and satoru’s sometimes. but very rarely).
you’d been referring to them in kind for… almost two years. it only took a week of knowing the two of them—tsumiki with her genuine heart and show stopping smiles, and megumi with his brooding and paying far too much attention—for you to think as such. they were your children a month in.
but still, you knew that to them, you weren’t… the ideal. you weren’t a nurturer, not a babysitter or an aunt, not a friend but never anything less.
you were just there.
and really, that’s all you wanted to be for them. you didn’t need a title, didn’t need some overrated birthright. you just wanted to see the two of them at the dinner table, laughing at each other and picking at their food.
you weren’t going to ask for anything more.
but being their mom?
you looked down to tsumiki, unable to keep the ache out of your heart, the twinge out of your eyes. “miki,” you answered softly. “are you sure?”
the two of you had talked at length about moms. yours, who took the time you had together for granted, and tsumiki’s mom, who had their time stolen from her.
and you knew how much a mother meant to tsumiki. megumi had no recollection of their parents, but tsumiki couldn’t manage to forget.
“only if it’s okay with you,” the girl whispered, large, beautiful brown eyes looking into yours.
and, honestly, how are you supposed to say no to that?
“of course,” you’d answered back, a magical grin growing on your face. “you can call me whatever you want.”
“okay,” tsumiki met your grin with one of her own.
and when you closed the door that night, it was to the sound of a soft “goodnight, mom,” and the never ending glowing of your heart—just for your little girl.
when you left her room, wandering aimlessly through the house, falling face first on the couch and laying there until your bones ached, satoru couldn’t get anything out of you.
he’d tried rolling you over, irritating you with some bland remark, pulling on your hair… all to no avail.
but when you finally sat up, after about a half an hour, your grin was still so blinding that satoru was concerned for your health. waving a hand in front of your face just to see if you would still react.
you kept your conversation to yourself, knowing you’d probably only be able to hoard it for the night. but that was enough.
but megumi… he’s never been as easy as tsumiki. never as trusting.
so there isn’t a ground breaking conversation. he doesn’t tell you that he’s grateful for you, or that he feels lucky to have you in his life, or that your family is the best thing the little boy could imagine.
no, he’d never say any of that.
when megumi calls you mom for the first time (to your face) it’s in some boring, nonchalant moment.
you’re sitting on the couch, attempting to braid satoru’s stupid hair, when his little voice comes in from down the hallway, almost whining.
“hey mom?” he calls, head peeking around the corner.
“yeah?”
“did i give you my library book?”
“nope,” you pop, meeting his eyes. “did you lose it?”
megumi looks away, back towards his room. “no…” he says, suspiciously, walking back down the hall.
oh, well. at least if it’s gone satoru will be the one paying for it. really, you need to set a limit on the number of books he checks out at once.
you shake your head but focus back in on the object at hand. why is his hair all different lengths? it doesn’t even make any sense.
but satoru’s got his head tilted back, already smiling at you like he knows something you don’t.
“what?” you ask, frowning. you nudge his head but he doesn’t move. you sigh. “did you hide his book?”
satoru doesn’t answer that—probably because he did—he only blinks at you, eyes alight with something you’ll probably never understand.
“what?” you repeat, bothered.
satoru’s grin grows wider. “nothing.”
“then look forward. im busy.”
he chooses, in that moment, to let you deal with it yourself. so he only tucks back his smile, looking towards the mantle once again.
and when you’ve got his hair back in your hands, parting it on the side, he just says, “you’re really terrible at this, you know?”
you gasp. “is that a grey hair, satoru?” you pull at a strand. “you must be working too hard.”
he pulls away, trying aimlessly to look up at his own head. “where!?” he demands, and you only laugh at him.
it’s not until later that night, when satoru’s hands are in your hair this time, brushing through it, and all of the lights are off that you realize it.
“did megumi call me mom?” you ask, into the dark. your voice is mindless, dazed.
“i was wondering when you’d notice.”
and if there’s a slight prick to your eyes, it’s got nothing to do with that, okay? it’s just a title.
if you shed a tear it’s only because satoru accidentally pulls on a knot in your hair and he’s a bastard. really.
(when megumi does it again the next day you have to lean against the counter and try not to tackle the boy where he stands).
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mmgwritings · 6 months
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I'M GONNA TAKE MINE OF YOU WITH ME
Character: Kaz Brekker / Wife! Reader
Prompts: There is a word for children who lose their parents, but there is none for parents who lose a child.
Warnings: Canon divergence; Angst; Character death; Grief; Kaz suffering; i'm sorry :(
Never trust the Saints; they give and take away.
Initially, a curfew was imposed. Without prior warning, patrol officers closed all clubs, brothels and merchant mansions, causing a commotion among the population that was soon violently suppressed. Later, when the disease spread from the interior of Kesh to the suburbs of Ketterdam, the healers' homes became crowded, and before long even the healers needed the assistance of the Grisha in the merchants' hospital.
Thus, Ketterdam remembered how to act. They had faced an epidemic before and would face this one with the same practicality. The funeral bells echoed incessantly throughout the day, while the bay south of the city was used to transport the bodies, piled on fishing vessels confiscated by the Council of the Tides. The former party town, Ketterdam, has transformed into a highly efficient funeral operation.
Burials were strictly prohibited. Thus, when the boats failed to remove bodies from the city quickly enough, in less favored neighborhoods, residents were forced to dispose of their loved ones on improvised pyres in the middle of the street.
This was the first scene we saw upon arriving in Ketterdam through the northwest gate, when the carriage had to make an abrupt stop in front of a pile of twisted ashes, which at first glance appeared to be the remains of slaughtered animals. However, horror soon hit us when the coachman, in a state of shock, vomited and exclaimed: “They are people, Saints, they are people!”
From the windows of the houses along the street, I could briefly see thin faces peering through the cracks in the windows. They were, without a doubt, the relatives of those poor burned creatures. Their looks were blank, as if they had already resigned themselves to the idea that the remains of their loved ones would end up on the street. I hastily closed the windows to hide the cruelty, but it remained etched in my eyes even when I closed them.
The trip was quick and extremely stressful, from Lij to the capital it was just two days of march that lasted the longest a lifetime. The exhausted horses showed visible signs of fatigue when the coachman left us at the hospital doors. However, as quick as it was, it apparently wasn't enough. The little girl was remarkably pale, her lips were dyed purple and her eyes were trembling under the weight of nightmares caused by the fever. My dear girl, a gift bestowed by the saints, the reward for any act of benevolence I have done in this world.
My mother used to say that the saints' mercy was unfair to mortals, because, as divine beings, they no longer understood the pain of any sacrifice, they no longer understood what it was like to lose someone. They were above everything and everyone. But I was a stupid young woman, I ignored my poor mother's advice because I thought it was the condescending words of a woman with pagan customs.
“Mommy,” she whispered, her voice hoarse with exhaustion, her eyes barely opening.
"I'm here my love. It’s going to be okay,” I whispered as I took her small, feverish body into my arms. At the beginning of the year, I could barely hold her on my lap for long, she was growing fast and turning into a beautiful, healthy five year old. Now, feeling how light her body was in my arms, my heart squeezed with pain.
Despite it being the early hours of the morning, a small crowd was sitting on the steps. They were probably sick people, but not sick enough to get a bed inside the hospital. I was trying to carefully pass between them, when, at the door, Nina appeared.
She was dressed in the black clothes of the doctors, with the distinctive blue apron of the merchants' wing, stained with small drops of blood.
“Y/N, come this way, sweetheart. I’ve already prepared everything for her,” said Nina, her kind face and caring voice leading me down a corridor to the east of the main hall. She was different since the last time I saw her, during the holidays. She looked sterner than ever.
“Any news from him? Did Kaz send any letters? Do you think he will arrive today?” I asked as I followed Nina through a corridor packed with doctors, heartrenders, healers and all sorts of people. I must admit that, little by little, the composure I had managed to maintain during the last two days of the journey from Lij to Ketterdam was starting to crumble. Felt like I was on the edge of an abyss, spiraling into darkness.
Nina looked at me with sadness as she led me into a small, but well-lit room with a comfortable bed, where I rested my daughter. She was in a restless sleep and quietly muttering nonsense words, the fever must be getting worse.
“Kaz didn't send any letters, none of them. Y/N, they must be on the way,” Nina reassured me. “Now, I need you to stay calm for her, please. We will examine her immediately, but you also need to undergo tests. You could be as sick as she is.”
“No, you don’t need to. I'm not going to leave her alone here” I said, freeing myself from Nina's hands the moment when a tall, tired-looking man entered the room, he seemed to be middle-aged, even though he was visibly a Grisha.
Nina walked over to him and they started talking in whispers, probably discussing the situation. It was not uncommon for merchants and their families to seek privileges in cases of calamity, but being Kaz Brekker's family, these privileges often extended to any kind of perk. Obviously, by now, the entire hospital knows that the wife and daughter of Ketterdam's biggest criminal are looking for help.
I sat next to my daughter, holding her soft hand and massaging her temple with my fingertips. Just like she is my joy, she is Kaz’s world. The gravity, the humanity, the warmth that keeps him alive. She looks much more like him: her light eyes, her dark hair and even her pert nose. At times, they seemed to share the same thoughts, to the point where I felt like I was somehow invading their space. She was his world.
Kaz would be able to destroy cities to protect her from her enemies, but that would not be enough to protect her from death.
Death came. It invaded my life so abruptly that I didn't even have time to cry for mercy. One moment, my daughter was in a restless sleep, and the next, she was convulsing, with blood pouring from her eyes and nose... The harrowing sounds were the most terrifying, they seemed to echo endlessly in my mind; it was the sound of her choking as she tried to breathe through vomit.
When it was all over, as my daughter lay on the bed with her head at an awkward angle, a horrible sound filled the room, resembling a wounded animal. I couldn't take my eyes off her to find the source of that sound. Only then did I realize that I was the one issuing it.
Once, when I was a child and still enjoying my hunting adventures with my brothers, we witnessed a fox with its cub in a trap set by my father. The cub was trapped, one of its paws shattered between the iron teeth of the trap, it was still too small to understand human antics, and its mother, whether out of compassion or instinct, killed it before we could get closer.
In those minutes when I was afflicted with acute pain, I reflected on that fox mother facing the suffering of her cub. I thought about how I didn't have the same courage as her, about how I would rather rip my own legs off with my teeth and offer myself to the hunters in exchange for freeing my cub from his torment.
Later, when Nina released me from her embrace with a pale, tearful face, speaking words I could barely understand, I considered how naive both I and the hypothetical fox were being in placing our faith in the benevolence of a superior, divine being. Tearing out my legs, my heart, begging, crawling – would that make any difference? Probably not. Yet even so, I would be willing to sacrifice myself for centuries on end in exchange for my daughter's life.
When I got up from the ground, with shaky legs and still immersed in a painful lethargy, I walked over to my daughter. The heartrender had cleaned her face, but there were still bloodstains on the collar of her blue dress, the same one she had received as a birthday present from her father and which she loved because it made her feel like a fairy.
When I held her little face between my hands she was still warm, it seemed like at any moment she would wake up and smile and tell me it was just a trick. But it wasn't, I spent a long time holding her face waiting for this trick to end and it didn't happen.
When I placed a kiss on her forehead, my tears fell on her face. It was an eternal kiss, I didn't want it to end, I didn't want it to be the last. However, when I pulled away, Nina wrapped me in a comforting hug. Finally, she retreated to a corner of the room, leaving me alone to watch over my pain.
I held my daughter in my arms, I ran my fingers through her hair, her face, memorizing every little detail of her. Finally, when she was starting to feel cold and heavy, I moved closer to give her another kiss, and this time, it was Kaz's goodbye kiss.
It was outside the hospital that Kaz found me. Nina took me outside when a team of healers told us they needed the room. In Ketterdam, the city of death, they are very practical about sorting things out. I was sitting on one of the steps, trying to catch my breath and looking at nothing, when Kaz, Inej, Wylan and Jesper arrived in a grain truck.
I didn't understand what emptiness was, nor how distressing it could be. I had no idea that it could be deafening, that the blood would rush through my veins and that everything around me would feel cold to the touch. Emptiness was the absence of all emotions, and at the same time, it contained them all. And the pain of emptiness made it extraordinarily difficult to notice anything around me other than the image of Kaz.
He was disheveled, his black coat was dirty with dust, and his hair was messy, as if he had spent the last few hours pulling out the strands. His usually restrained blue eyes were showing all of his emotions. A shadow hovered over them, something I had never seen before: fear. And I didn't know how to act other than getting up, walking a few steps, and finally succumbing at Kaz's feet in the hope that the ground would swallow me.
My breathing is heavy and shallow, sobs tear from my throat. There were no more tears, it seems that I was no longer able to produce them, however, a rain began to fall on us, as if it could cry what I was unable to. Above me, Kaz was standing still. He was like a wall that refused to fall under a storm, under the weight of reality. He refuses to vocalize whatever he's thinking, I think he's also feeling empty. It's as if any trace of humanity has been drained from him.
Would he become Dirtyhands, being all practical while he waits for the poor creature I've become at his feet to pull herself together? Or would he become the fox cub caught in the trap, hoping I could rip his throat out when he, for the first time in his life, didn't have a plan to get around the situation?
“Y/N, darling,” whispered Inej, as if calling my name could tie me to the ropes of the earth again. Besides, what else could she say?
Is this the moment when I would hear the lamentations, the pity, that would follow me for the rest of my life when they found out about the daughter I lost?
“She's gone,” I said, lifting my head and looking at Kaz. “We were waiting for you... but she got worse, so I came to Ketterdam. I really thought she would get better, but she's gone, Kaz” my voice broke completely.
I think whatever strength had kept Kaz up until that moment was gone. He turned his back on us, walking toward the side of the building, his steps swaying as if he were drunk, until finally he collapsed. A scream tore through his chest, a scream of rage, of frustration and sadness. But above all pain.
There is a definition for children who lose their parents, but there is none for parents who lose their children.
What are we now? A mother without a child? What would I do now? Just go home and put all her things together in a box like party decorations?
I got up and walked over to Kaz, hugging him from behind. We lay huddled in the rain, me holding Kaz's body as he thrashed about in a horrible cry. I offered whatever comfort I had: I kissed his head, whispered empty words, held him close to me. If I wasn't a mom, then Kaz wasn't a dad.
He would never hold her in his arms again, he wouldn't smile when she played with his gloves, which were too big, and he wouldn't stand by her bed on sleepless nights, watching her sleep.
“Kaz, she loves you more than anything” I said. Loved, whispered my treacherous brain. Then, fighting the lump in my throat, I said, “They've already put her with the dead people.”
Kaz shuddered, the crying became silent. The vision no parent, least of all Kaz, wants to imagine. Like any other death in Ketterdem, whether of the poor or the rich, our daughter's would be treated with little ceremony. No mourning, no funeral.
She, who was always warm, was now alone in the cold of the Harbor.
On the days when Kaz couldn't bear any touch, she was the one who defied him by clasping her little hands around his neck. Or on the worst days, when he came from the Barrel with someone's blood on his sleeve, she covered him with kisses and smiles. Kaz loved her the moment he saw her, covered in blood, wet, crying... and warm. When she was a baby he treated her like porcelain, if he could he wouldn't even let me touch her.
My hands met Kaz's, he was clutching his chest as if he wanted to rip out his own heart. I held him, afraid that he would somehow disappear under the weight of his own grief. If he leaves too...
“On the trip, when she was awake, I told her that you love her. That you love her so, so much,” I whispered in his ear. Then, the worst. “I gave her your kiss goodbye”
How can we survive this?
“No, Y/N,” Kaz said in a pleading tone, “I’m sorry, please. I'm so sorry"
When we lack words, guilt appears. It's our fault? Were we really that horrible?
The Saints. They give and they take.
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zafirosreverie · 6 months
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Change the future part 3
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part 1
a/n: Still on hiatus, just wanted to post something on the triplets' birthday
a/n2: I don’t even know what ship is this about anymore
__________________________
"At some point you're going to have to talk to her about this"
"But that won’t be today, Pepa"
Julieta said as she continued to cook, deliberately ignoring the way her pulse raced and her nerves stood on edge. She didn't even need to turn around to know that her sister was rolling her eyes as she leaned against the door frame. She knew the redhead was right, but she didn't have the will or the courage to face this thing she had been running from for weeks and only one thought lived rent free in her mind. 
Y/N’s back.
Her head was spinning just remembering the moment she saw you again. You were thinner, you had more gray hair, and a couple of new wrinkles around your eyes, but you were still her Y/N, warm, simple, and unbelievably beautiful.
She didn't like to admit that she probably would have thrown herself into your arms without thinking if it weren't for Isabela, who had been faster than her. Things hadn’t been easy for her and her two remaining daughters, so the moment they saw you appear over the hill, the three of them had run out of the house not caring that the rest of the family looked at them in confusion.
Isabela didn't even bother to slow her run before she crashed into the open arms you offered her and your joyous laughter made her stomach feel weird, as if thousands of butterflies woke up inside her. You had shared many things in your letters during all those years, and for that time, Julieta allowed herself to think that it was enough, but the universe showed her how wrong she was when, having you in front of her once more, her heart seemed to cry happy tears, as if a piece of her had finally come back to complete her puzzle.
She didn't have time to think about it though, not when her precious Mirabel, now so big and beautiful, lunged at her, hiding her face in her neck, crying and telling her how much she had missed her. It took her brain a moment to recognize that the young woman in her arms was, in fact, her youngest daughter, her baby, but once that settled in her mind, it was like all the weight of the world was finally lifted from her shoulders.
"You're so beautiful, mija" she whispered, not even bothering to stop the tears that ran down her cheeks.
Mirabel had smiled waterily at her, whispering a soft thank you and saying again how much she had missed her. The girl dulled in her mother’s scent for a while, just trying to find the comfort she needed when she left so many years ago, and sighed happily before gasping and pulling away from her to run to the person behind her.
"Tía Pepa!!"
The brunette barely had a few seconds to laugh at the way her daughter was scooped up by the redhead before she herself was tackled by two familiarly strange and warm bodies.
"Tía Juli, look! I'm almost as tall as you!"
"Tía, tía, tía, I already know how to cook! And look! I cut my hair!"
"We brought you presents!"
"But mine are better because I love you more"
"Not true! I love her more!"
"No, I love her more!"
Julieta only managed to laugh softly while Joaquín and María clung to each of her arms and fought for her attention; they had five years of conversations to catch up with her after all. It really felt like time hadn't passed, even though your children were no longer the little babies she saw leaving that night. And then there was you.
You, who had smiled at her with complicity from your own tangle of hugs with Luisa and Isabela, you, who had been her rock, her pillar, and her cane even when you were so far away. You, who were stirring her entire being with your mere presence. You, who had approached her, hugged her when your children still held her arms hostage. You, who had whispered in her ear that little confession that haunted her dreams.
"I was dying to see you again, Eta...I missed you so much"
At that time, she had simply wriggled out of your children's grasp and returned the gesture, trying not to get lost on your warmth (even if she really wanted to cry), having you there was a huge relief, and all the stress and anxiety that had been eating at her insides for years was finally beginning to dissipate, her usually tormented mind was quickly being filled with a single thought: you were here.
"I missed you too" she managed to say, looking into your eyes with a small smile
"Yes, yes, will you get out of here please? There are people who also want to greet Y/N”
Julieta blinked a bit as her sister pulled her away from you and she didn't miss the way you looked at her half amused and half confused before returning Pepa's tight hug. She couldn't blame you, her sister had never been as close to you as she was, but she supposed that after everything that had happened since you left, the redhead's conception of you had changed. Well, at least you knew you had both of your sisters-in-law on your side.
“It's good to see you again, Pepa” you said as you separated “You haven't aged a bit…you don't even have gray hair! I need to know your secret"
"Oh, Y/N" she laughed "it's good to have you back"
"Her secret is to annoy me so that I’m the one getting gray hair and not her'' Julieta joked, crossing her arms.
You looked between the sisters while Pepa rolled her eyes and stuck out her tongue at the brunette, a gesture that the older triplet returned. Your mind struggled to catch up on it all, because you really couldn't remember the last time you'd seen them tease each other so openly, it was pretty cute.
The rest of the meeting was pretty adorable too. Joaquín and María used Félix as a climbing pole, while the man just laughed, Luisa and Isabela told you as much as they could, asking you questions while you tried to pay attention to both of them. Julieta thought that her daughter would ask about Agustín, or that she would be upset with her for their divorce, but Mirabel was quick to give her a hug and assure her that she didn't blame her or cared about him.
The brunette didn't have to wonder much where her youngest daughter was learning to handle the situation, because at that moment you intervened, gently squeezing the girl's shoulder.
"He couldn't bear to lose a daughter so he abandoned the other two? Math ain mathin" you said.
Julieta had just smiled gratefully at you as you winked at her, and for a moment everything felt good, like things were really starting to go back to normal, the way they should be. And then…then you saw Bruno. 
The moment your eyes locked on the man hiding behind his mother would never leave her mind. Your eyes, which had been filled with warmth and kindness to everyone, turned cold and filled with a deep sadness that you desperately tried to disguise as disgust. And yet, she couldn't even pretend that she felt bad for her brother.
"Y/N" the man greeted awkwardly, forcing a guilty smile "...you look good."
"Bruno" you answered dryly
The air was charged with an intense tension that everyone could feel in their bones, as if it could be cut with a knife, or as if one wrong move could shatter such a surreal scene into a thousand pieces.
"It's good to see you again"
"I wish I could say the same"
Julieta felt in her own chest the dagger that you were burying on Bruno, who at least had the decency to look at the ground with remorse, but she knew you better.
It wasn't that you wanted to be cruel to the man you had loved more than life, but precisely that love you had for him had hurt you too much, it had destroyed you and it had hurt your children too. You were only trying to protect the hearts you had worked so hard to repair.
"What are you doing here?" Alma asked, looking at you with hate
"I came to see my family" you answered with the most neutral voice you could, but your hands were shaking
"This is no longer your family"
"Mom-" the older triplet tried to intervene.
"You shut up!" The older woman yelled, making everyone jump "Wasn't it enough for you to help this damn woman break the family?! Now you welcome her back with open arms?! After she stole my grandchildren?! Your own daughter?!"
"I didn't steal anyone! They are my children" you defended yourself.
You really didn't want to cause a scene, especially with all the children present, and because more than once you had to comfort Mirabel after waking up to the recurring nightmare involving her grandmother yelling at her. But that woman drove you mad with extreme ease.
"They would have been better here!" Alma replied "Away from your wicked hands. They belonged here, they wanted to stay here!"
"That's not true! My children wanted to go with me!"
"You had no right! They are Bruno's children!"
"He abandoned them!" Julieta yelled, making everyone look at her.
She could feel her heart racing, blood pooling in her cheeks, and a single look at her brother told her that she had finished erasing the faint ghost of what had once been her relationship with him, but she didn't care.
She couldn't care, not when she could see out of the corner of her eye how Mirabel was hiding behind you, how Isabela tried her best to appear calm but her hands moved as if she could still command an army of plants to defend her sisters.
Not when she could see Pepa and Felix trying to create a weak barrier with their bodies between their children and Alma, when Dolores hugged Camilo as if he was a little child in the hope that no one would hurt her brother again.
And especially not when she could feel your own fear, sadness, and despair as Joaquín and María clung to her own sides, suddenly terrified of who had once been a loving grandmother to them. Everything was wrong, everything was damaged beyond repair, there was nothing left for her to break, but she still had a family, a broken one, but a family nonetheless and she had to protect them, no matter from whom.
"How dare you talk about your brother like that?" Alma whispered dangerously "how dare you when you allowed your daughter to be kidnapped?!" that seemed to wake you up.
"Bruno left without saying anything, without caring about us, Julieta just protected us, all of us" you said, placing a hand on your sister-in-law's shoulder.
You didn't know if it was a bad choice of words or action, perhaps both, but you could see the moment when your mother-in-law's eyes flashed with an intense fire fueled by hatred and resentment. You barely managed to see her hand in the air and by intuition you closed your eyes, waiting for the blow.
"Don't you ever dare-"
 But it never came.
"IT'S ENOUGH!" 
You opened your eyes to see Julieta holding Alma's hand firmly, preventing it from getting to you. Julieta, the golden daughter of the Madrigal family, the sweetest and most loving woman you'd ever meet, defying the woman who once commanded respect with her mere presence. Although, was it really respect? Or was it fear? You thought that, deep down, it was the latter.
It really was a surreal scene, as if everything was frozen around you. But a voice in the back of your mind told you that it shouldn't surprise you so much, after all, this was also the woman who had made one of the most difficult decisions of her life in order to protect her daughter, the one who had broken blood ties in order to keep the rest of her family safe, the one who, no matter how much it hurt her to be separated from her brother and mother, still got up every day for the others’ sake.
No, it definitely shouldn't surprise you that if anyone had the strength to face Alma and everything that entailed, it was precisely the one who was once the brightest star in the family constellation.
Julieta Madrigal was many things, beautiful, brave, strong, maternal, affectionate and loyal, but she also hid a wolf inside her, one that was already fed up with seeing how her pack was threatened. She was ready to get the fangs out, and you were beginning to see why the rest had trusted her to be the head of the family.
"You insolent-"
"I SAID THAT’S ENOUGH!" the brunette growled, still holding her mother's hand "I've been patient with you, mother, but not anymore."
You could hear a couple of gasps behind you, and you weren't too surprised when Pepa approached you like a scared little girl while Mirabel hugged her. If you didn't know that the miracle was gone, you would think that the icy wind that enveloped you was your sister-in-law’s fault.
"Let go, Julieta-"
"I'm not going to let you talk like that to Y/N" she replied, you could see that she was squeezing the older woman's hand tightly, and from Alma's expression, it was obvious that it hurt, but it seemed like no one could move as you witnessed "the next time you raise your hand to her, me, or anyone in this family, it will be the last time you have a family"
That was a sentence that you yourself could feel in your bones. There was absolutely no trace of compassion or kindness in the older triplet's voice, nor did it leave any doubt that she would keep her word. It was a perfect ultimatum, one that even Alma seemed to understand, because she didn't utter a word as her daughter released her and walked back to the house.
The rest of you looked at each other for a few seconds before Pepa, with Mirabel still in her arms, went after her sister, causing the rest to follow her, including your children, who passed by Bruno without even looking at him, and ran to reach the hands of their favorite aunt. Your mother-in-law just muttered something about going with the Guzmáns and she walked away, disappearing into the night.
Only you and Bruno were left, both looking at each other with surprise, doubt and a little fear. Your eyes seemed to ask a thousand questions but neither of you understood what they were. In the end, you simply sighed and lightly hugged the man who, you must have reminded yourself, was still your husband.
"This wasn't how I expected tonight to go" you confessed lightly.
"It was something that was destined to happen" he whispered "if this didn't explode before it was only because Juli always had the patience of a saint... but I guess everything has a limit"
"I'm so sorry" you said to yourself, guilt beginning to rise in you "if I hadn't-"
"Don't, it wasn't because of you" he smiled a little "...things have been tense between them since before I even met you."
"Really?" you frowned "but...it seemed like she was the favorite daughter"
"She was the closest to the perfect doll mom had in mind" he corrected you "And it only got worse when we turned 5"
"When you got the gifts?"
"Yes" he sighed and looked at his hands "Pepa and I suffered a lot for our gifts, but we always knew that Julieta had it worse"
"Why?"
"Because she's the one who looks the most like dad" he answered, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world "If she hadn't been born a woman, I assure you, she would be his living portrait"
You thought about it for a moment. You had seen Pedro Madrigal's portrait many times, and although you had never paid much attention to physical details, you had always believed that he radiated a warmth that you only knew from his eldest daughter. It made sense that Alma would have seen the ghost of her late husband in her, and at that moment, something clicked on you.
"And Julieta's gift allowed her to help the community like no one else could" you looked him in the eye "Despite the exhaustion and fatigue, she was always ready to help others... like your father"
"That's right" he agreed.
"But...her gift made her absorb others’ pain" you continued, with the pieces falling into place in your mind quickly "she was in constant suffering...Alma made her reenact Pedro's sacrifice every day"
"And Pepa and I couldn't do anything"
You looked at Bruno for a moment. Despite being the youngest, he looked terribly tired, his eyes swam in deep sadness, his hands trembled and he looked incredibly fragile. Your heart forgot all about anger and disappointment, and was quickly filled with the same affection you had felt for him the first time you met him, a tender and childish love, pure and sincere. He was a brother who felt guilty for not protecting his sister.
"You love her" you said, it wasn't a question.
"As you don't have an idea" he answered anyway "when I came back, it was her arms that I wanted to feel, not mom's" he admitted "but she was furious with me, and with good reason. I shouldn't have left, I shouldn't have left you or the children, I shouldn't have allowed mom to treat Mirabel like that...I should have done things differently...but that doesn't matter now"
You looked at him sympathetically and put a hand on his shoulder so that he looked at you. He seemed so lost, like a kid who has broken something and didn't know how to apologize to mom. Yes, there were too many things that maybe he could have done differently, you too. But that no longer mattered, time was not going to come back and all you could do was start walking towards the best option you had now, and you both knew that that option had a name.
"Have you tried talking to her?" you asked softly
"Mom is always by my side" he said "And I n-never have the courage to talk to her when we're alone, I…I just don't want her to hate me more"
"She doesn't hate you" you said immediately "she could never hate you... you're her baby brother, and we both know that deep down, there will always be a place in her heart for you, no matter how hard Alma tries to keep you from getting back on good terms with her."
"I feel like I've failed her too much" he murmured, looking at the ground "It doesn't matter what I do anymore, our relationship is broken beyond repair...B-but I love her, that's why I try to keep mom busy with me and leave the rest of us alone. I love her and Pepa, and-and I love our family, my nephews, my nieces, my children...and you"
Your cheeks warmed at the last words, and by the way his eyes looked everywhere but at you, you knew he hadn't expected that confession to slip out of him either, at least not at the moment. You smiled and hugged him again, trying not to let the discomfort touch you.
"Talk to her, Bruno" you said "I'm sure you can fix things...so can we" you smiled
He looked at you hopefully and slowly smiled back, walking silently beside you as you went back to the house. You both knew this wasn't a mend, that there was still too much going on between you, but at least you were headed in the right direction. After all, you'd already fallen in love with him once, who said it couldn't happen twice?
______________________
Except that the first time you hadn't had your sister-in-law's face on your mind, nor had you had a little five-year-old nephew rock your entire world with a simple question.
You really couldn't blame the little guy. Antonio was just a child trying to catch up with the changing situation of his family, he was learning to live with some cousins and an aunt he never knew and you knew you had to be patient with his questions.
You had to admit that he was adorable, and despite Pepa's teasing, it was nice to have him behind you all day. Joaquín and María had become his best friends immediately and it was obvious that he was replacing your son as Mirabel's favorite cousin.
Speaking of your children, both of them were making a titanic effort to stay away from their grandmother, but they were spending more and more time with their father, which seemed to be the first steps towards Bruno becoming part of the "good side" of the family again, as the children liked to call it.
Your relationship with him was still in the mending process, but at least you could say you were friends again, which seemed to relieve Pepa, one less battle to fight between her siblings, you guessed.
The problem was Julieta.
She was still your favorite sister-in-law and your best friend, without a doubt, but things were starting to get weird for you when you realized that she was slowly becoming your favorite person too. You seemed unable to stop your smile every time you saw her and your heart raced when you heard her laugh.
It was a terribly familiar and terrifying feeling, because you knew that she shouldn't have that effect on you, that you shouldn't feel with her what you once felt with Bruno. And yet you couldn't stop.
As much as you tried to lie to yourself, it was obvious that you were always trying to be with her, whether it was helping her cook or just chatting with her over coffee, it didn't matter, you just wanted to be close to her. You felt bad for a while, but then you started noticing the way she would blush every time you smiled at her or how she would look at you when she thought you weren't paying attention.
You were both playing a dangerous game, but it somehow felt so…natural, like that was the only logical path for you. You didn't expect that to be confirmed by the miracle itself.
It was one afternoon when, a few days after finishing the reconstruction of Casita, you and Julieta were sitting in the kitchen, just talking, you were telling her about the first dress that Mirabel made when Camilo ran in, his eyes full of emotion and fear in equal measure.
"Tías, you have to come quickly" he told you
"What's going on?" Julieta asked, even as you both were already getting up
"You have to see it for yourself"
You and the brunette looked at each other curiously for a second before hurrying after your older nephew. The rest of the family was already there and you only had to look in the same direction to understand the commotion. The candle was back.
Well, not exactly. The candle itself was there, but it was out. Still, you knew what that could mean for your family, you knew what they could get back if they managed to make it shine again. The question was, how?
"Mom, you have to take it" Mirabel said excitedly
"What?"
"Think about it Juli" Pepa agreed "you're the new head of the family, you should be the one to protect the candle now... right?"
"I… I guess"
Julieta looked at you for a moment, and you could see the doubt and anxiety in her eyes, so you just smiled and nodded, hoping that was enough comfort for her. The brunette returned your smile before approaching the candle. Her hands trembled and you did not doubt that memories of when she received her gift, more than 45 years ago, passed through her mind.
You all held your breath as the older triplet's hands carefully took hold of the candle and a current passed through you. It was soft and warm, just like a tickle. You waited a moment, but nothing else happened. You could see the disappointment in the rest of the family, especially the brunette, but they all faked supportive smiles.
"Maybe we need to call-"
"No Juli, we don't need her"
You were a bit surprised by Pepa's tone, but you could understand. Alma hadn't been back since the night you returned to Encanto, taking refuge with the Guzmans ever since. It hurt a little that this distanced Dolores from Mariano, but no one could deny that everyone breathed more peace since she was gone. It didn't seem strange to you that they refused to call her now.
"It's because tía Y/N isn’t close" Antonio said suddenly, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world
"Excuse me?" you blinked
"Abuela's candle was lit because Abuelo loved her" the boy explained.
You all looked at him like he was growing another head, but deep down, you all wanted to know the reasoning behind that little head. After all, the little ones always have the most creative solutions.
"What does that have to do with tía Y/N, Antonio?" Mirabel asked softly
"Tía Y/N loves tía Julieta" he said "the candle has to light if she's around her girlfriend, right?"
You didn't even need Dolores' gift to hear a pin drop, not when the room was deathly silent. You looked at Julieta out of the corner of your eye and you could see that her face was redder than a tomato, and you doubted that you were better. Your heart was racing like crazy, your hands were sweating and you could feel the anxiety building up in you.
How could a five-year-old boy understand better than you the forbidden feelings that had been blooming in you for your sister-in-law? Had you been too obvious? Did the others notice it too? God, you didn't even want to look at Bruno.
"Mami! mami!"
María's voice brought you out of your thoughts and you looked at her worriedly. Your daughter just looked at you in amazement and pointed with her little hand to the place where your attention should be. You hadn't even realized that you had approached Julieta, but now you were facing each other, with the candle between you and a small flame sprouting. 
“It can’t be” you heard Isabela whispering while Pepa gasped
The moment you took a step back, the small flame went out. The brunette looked at you for a second before slowly approaching you again, causing the candle to relight. It wasn't a strong, magical glow like the one it had before the whole disaster, but it was a promise that you’d get the miracle back.
Except that neither you nor Julieta wanted to think about what the miracle was asking of you, or what that meant for both of you and your respective families.
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cherryxcadbury · 1 year
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Mbappe loving the relationship his girlfriend has with his family. His mom loves her, his brother coming to her for girl advice, his niece and nephew always wanting come over by Aunty Y/N
this is so so so cuteee
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y/n: your name 
"I've been dying to see them again." You spoke to your boyfriend, Kylian on your way to his parents house.
"All those two ever talk about is seeing Auntie Y/N." Kylian chuckled, referring to his niece and nephew. 
“Now that I think about it, I think they like you more than me.” Kylian pondered.
You chuckled, “Can you blame them? You’re not exactly the most likable person in the world.” 
“Cherie everyone loves me.” Kylian scoffed, turning onto his parents’ street.
You mused at his response. 
“God the paparazzi again. Keep your head down Cherie.” Kylian advised you, as you both became blinded by the camera flashes. 
“What are they doing all the way out here in Bondy.” You muttered.
“They found out where my parents house was at the beginning of January. Been here ever since.” Kylian explained.
The flashes continued to blind the both of you. Kylian rested a hand on your thigh as a meaning of comfort. 
“Ease off the gas pedal slowly Kiks. Their driveway’s coming up.” You directed him as you both managed to pull into the gated home unscathed.
“I feel like one of these days you’re going to eventually go blind.” You sighed.
“That would be a true tragedy. Wouldn’t be able to see your beautiful face anymore.” Kylian winked at you, to which you just rolled your eyes despite a blush forming on your cheeks. 
Before you could respond, noise outside the car caught both of your attention. At the doorstep was Kylian’s mother, waiting with her grandkids, Kylian’s older brother’s children. 
The two were frantically jumping up and down, awaiting your arrival. 
You turned to share a knowing look with Kylian but he was already outside opening your door for you. 
“You go greet them while I get the bags from the back.” He whispered, pressing a kiss to your cheek.
You smiled gratefully, walking to the door where the two little ones ran into your arms, covering you in hugs and kisses.
“Auntie Y/N! Bonjour!” They squealed.
The two of them were only fluent in French, but were rapidly learning English as they started school. You yourself didn’t speak French but you knew enough to communicate with them. 
“Bonjour [insert French word for children]! Are you being good for Mama and Papa?” You asked them, bright smiles on their faces.
They enthusiastically nodded, “Oui Oui! Of course!” 
“So you do love Auntie Y/N more than me!” Kylian feigned hurt. 
“You two best go show Uncle Kiks some love else he’ll start crying.” You whispered to them, to which they quickly complied, running to his arms.
“Y/N!” Kylian’s mom welcomed you with a warm hug.
She also did not speak much English and you didn’t speak French but you always found someway to communicate. 
“Comment allez-vous?” You asked, hoping your accent wasn’t too horrible.
You saw her eyes gleam with pride.
“Speaking French just for me! How sweet!” She exclaimed.
“Now come, come! They all want to see you!” His mom beckoned you into the house.
“Uh Mama!” Kylian complained, trying to make his mom remember he too was there.
His mom rolled her eyes muttering something sarcastically in French before hugging and kissing him on the cheeks. He was a huge Mama’s boy. They always jokingly fought with each other. 
You all went to the sitting room where the two little ones had magically teleported from Kylian’s arms back to their parents laps. 
Kylian’s father was the first to stand. He hugged Kylian first, who was physically closer to him before coming over to you.
“Y/N, cherie! Come over here!” He beamed with delight.
You and Wilfried Mbappe got along splendidly. He spoke a bit more English than the rest of his family and was someone you enjoyed talking with. You both loved facing each other in a game of cards and discussing your latest reads with each other. You’d even managed to get him to read cheesy rom coms, your guilty pleasures.
“Did you read the latest book I sent you?” He questioned, hugging you.
You nodded, “I did! It was a very quick read.”
“And?”
“It was really good! The historical setting was enthralling. But you and I both know you preferred reading The Cheat Sheet.” You replied knowingly, resulting in a laugh from Wilfried.
“Okay okay enough! I want, no need to talk to Y/N now!” Ethan plowed his dad out of the way. 
Ethan smiled at you cheekily before bring you to the kitchen.
“Someone seems excited.” You mused at Kylian’s younger brother.
He was only a few years younger than you, so you got on quite well.
“Do you remember the girl I was telling you about?” 
You furrowed your brows in remembrance. Of course you remembered. Ethan would not stop talking about her.
“Celine?” 
“Oui, oui. Her!” Ethan exclaimed, sharing the same bright smile Kylian did. 
“Her family supports Marseille.” He grimaced. 
“Yuck. That makes a messy Le Classique.” You responded. 
“Exactly! And we’re playing Marseille’s youth team next week and she’s going to be there because her brother plays for them. So what do I do on the pitch?” 
“Ethan, you do know not everything can be settled with football right?” You glanced at him with amusement.
“But if it had to be…” He tried to steer you in the direction he was headed in.
You rolled your eyes, “The maybe score and dedicate the goal to her. Or look at her during a celebration.” 
Ethan stroked his non existent beard. 
“That’s good! I like it! Maybe I’ll do one of Kylian’s celebrations. Because she’s in love with Kylian! Honestly I think she might even be into him.” Ethan rambled.
You laughed at his lovestruck expression, “How old is she again?” 
“19.” Ethan responded simply.
Your eyes bulged out. She was somewhat similar in age to you. Not at all suitable for 16 year old Ethan. 
You playfully nudged him.
“Do not try and get with her.” You warned.
“Why?” 
“Dummy! She’s 19 and you’re 16! So gross on so many levels. Also illegal. Also, not many 19 year olds are into 16 year olds. And if they are, they need to get their heads checked.” You explained.
“You have a point. She seemed kind of bossy anyways, not how I roll. Pretend this never happened!” Ethan exclaimed. 
“I promise.” You smiled, pinky swearing with him.
“Do you wanna know a secret?” He asked. 
“Always!” 
“I heard Mama and Kylian talking earlier. She was giving him a family ring she’d saved when she thought he’d found the one.” He whispered before running off. 
What? There was no way. 
You walked back into the sitting room only to see Kylian bent down on one knee, rose petals scattered everywhere, with a book bouquet behind him. 
It didn’t take you more than a second to say yes and find yourself wrapped in his arms. 
Kylian had always known that when he believed he’d found the one, his family would adore her too, unconditionally. And for him, you were exactly that. 
For Kylian, you were the sun, the moon, the stars, and the sky. You were his whole world. He couldn’t imagine living life without you. And luckily for him, you felt the exact same way. 
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I will put this gif on every single post because I cannot with this man 🤩
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orlissa · 2 years
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Grishaverse - Liudmila Antipova, if you please!
It was strange being back in Ravka, hearing the voices of her childhood, sounding so familiar, and yet so foreign.
Liudmila was only seven when her parents decided to flee their homeland. “This country is doomed,” her father used to say. “If the Fjerdans don’t invade us and the Shu don’t annihilate us, then the Fold will eat as alive. Or we’ll just all starve.” So flee they did, taking the long route through Fjerda—she still remembered the cold that seemed to linger in her bones for weeks afterwards—, risking running into northern troops rather than daring the Fold, then not stopping until they reached Ketterdam.
Her first thought about the city was that it is a miserable place. It was crowded and noisy and damp. Her family, her father, mother, brother, and sister, all lived in a dark, one-room flat with a communal latrine at the end of the hall, and her parents would smack her if they heard her speak her mother tongue. “You are Kerch now,” her mother would tell her in her own, heavily accented Kerch, “so you speak the language too. Forget Ravka, so your new countrymen might forget that you were born there.”
Eventually, she learned to love her new life. She grew up in the textile district, watching her mother work the looms and her father working by the dying vats, learning about silks and brocades like other children learned nursery rhymes. She eventually apprenticed by a seamstress, showing a great eye for style and design. By the age of twenty, she was treated as a partner. By twenty-five, she had her own boutique. By thirty, she dressed the richest and most elegant women of Ketterdam, never believing that she would ever return to the place of her birth.
Then the change of regime happened.
At first she listened to the news with a morbid fascination: a citizens’ revolt ignited by their feared Grisha general and his newfound Sun-Saint, the royal family imprisoned—the men executed, the former Tsaritsa sent to a convent—, then a path through the Unsea, Fjerda and Shu Han on their knees, fearing retribution. A coronation. The atmosphere was tense in Ketterdam for months, because the people feared that Ravka’s ambitions would not stop at the sea—quietly, the people started hoarding supplies and buying arms, ready to flee or fight, while chaos reigned over the stock market. But it soon became apparent that the new monarchs only wanted one thing: peace. New contracts were signed, commerce resumed between the two countries, money flowed freely again, and the people of Ketterdam let out a collective sigh of relief.
Then the summons came.
A letter from Os Alta, asking for—no, requesting—Liudmila’s presence at the Grand Palace, with the vague prospect of dressing the new tsaritsa hidden between the lines. Even if the thought of returning to Ravke, to the place which she left without ever looking back, frightened her, it was an opportunity—to dress royalty!—too great to miss.
And so two weeks later she found herself standing awkwardly in one of Grand Palace’s opulent receiving rooms, in her best dress, a folder full of her finest designs—some of them drawn on the ship—clutched to her chest.
When the door finally opened, putting an end to her waiting, she almost jumped, then, half-expecting it to be the tsaritsa herself with her full entourage, ladies-in-waiting and courtiers and servants, she dropped into a curtsy. However, it was only a sole person, a beautiful, redheaded woman slightly younger than herself. She wore an embroidered red overcoat, a kefta, Liudmila heard it being called, similar to the ones the Grisha soldiers milling around the grounds wore. Only hers was more ornately decorated, longer, and rested on a fuller skirt, giving her a more fashionable silhouette, which Liudmila supposed marked her as a person of importance.
“Mistress Antipova?” the woman addressed her with a haughty, yet intrigued look on her face. Liudmila simply nodded, then, just to be sure, curtsied again. “I am Genya Safin, and I run her majesty’s household.” Her lip curled into a small, amused smile as she said that, as if she found something funny in the title. “That includes her wardrobe.”
Liudmila gripped her folder, but did not tremble or avert her eyes. “Then I presume you’ll be the judge of my designs?”
The woman, Madame Safin, smiled again, wider and more eager this time. “Oh, yes.” Light dancing in her eyes, she motioned towards the plush chairs standing by the window. “And it won’t be short, so we shall sit. First of all, tell me, what’s your opinion on tassels?”
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horsesarecreatures · 2 years
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Book review: The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende
This book was recommended to me by an Italian exchange student at my school whose name is coincidentally also Isabel, and I’m glad I read it because because I’ve heard of Isabel Allende so many times but just never got around to reading one of her books before. It’s a semi-autobiographical novel, but also historical fiction with elements of magical realism. It takes place in Chile, and starts by introducing two daughters of the liberal De Valle family, Rosa the Beautiful and Clara the Clairvoyant. Rosa is the older one who is engaged to a boy named Esteban Trueba. She only met him once, and he has been working at a mine for the past 2 years to save money for their marriage. Rosa has copper green hair & an ethereal mermaid-like quality. She doesn’t do much, and her mother doesn’t push her because she has always suspected that she wouldn’t live long, for no particular reason. Clara is the younger sister of ordinary appearance. She is very bold and does and says whatever she wants. She’s a not a bad child, but she is very strange, as she converses with spirits and practices telekinesis. Her parents are not particularly bothered by this. One day she predicts that a member of the family will die, and the next day Rosa drinks wine that was poisoned by one of her father’s political enemies and passes away. Clara thinks that this is her fault because if she hadn’t predicted the death and said it out loud it might not have happened, and she stops speaking for 10 years.
 Esteban Trueba is devastated upon finding out about Rosa’s death. His devastation soon turns to fury and he burns all his letters from Rosa and quits working at the mine, no longer seeing a purpose for it even though he’d just discovered a vein of gold. He misses the main part of Rosa’s funeral, but sees her buried. He briefly meets Clara, whom he finds endearing and feels sympathetic for. Esteban then decides to go to Tres Marias, a hacienda he’s inherited that his father ran to the ground before he died. It had been abandoned for years and was in a dilapidated state. Esteban, with extreme brutality, turns it around and it becomes very profitable. We see his true nature, as he rapes everybody and works the residents almost to death, justifying his actions in his head by teaching them about nutrition and building a school house. Then, he receives word from his sister Ferula that their mother is dying, and he returns to the city. His mother tells him that she wants him to get married. Even though he’d had no desire for marriage since Rosa died, overcome with guilt for essentially abandoning her, he decides to honor his mother’s wish.
The same day, Clara speaks for the first time in 10 years, announcing at dinner that she is going to marry the fiancé of Rosa. Sure enough, Esteban shows up at their door, asking the De Valles if they had any daughters left to marry. They reply that Clara is the only one left & that she is too strange and no good at domestic tasks, but Esteban takes a liking to her. He thinks that while Rosa was the more beautiful, Clara is the more enchanting.
Their marriage starts off on a good note and they have three children, a daughter named Blanca and twin sons named Jaime and Nicolas. As the years pass, Clara either sees or predicts Esteban’s true nature, and they become more distant. The more distant Clara becomes, the more obsessed with her Esteban gets. Blanca grows up a happy child, and spends summers alongside Pedro Tercero, the son of the foreman of Tres Marias. Their deep childhood friendship eventually turns to love. One day Esteban catches them together. He whips Blanca and tries to kill Pedro. Clara later points out the hypocrisy of his actions since he used to go around raping peasants before his marriage, and he knocks her teeth out. He’s sorry, but she never talks to him again.
Meanwhile Blanca is pregnant. Esteban quickly arranges a cover-up marriage, but it doesn’t work out and Blanca eventually moves back to their house in the city with her daughter Alba. Esteban despises all of his children at this point, but loves Alba, who has green hair like Rosa. Clara eventually dies, and the story shifts focus to Alba. Unlike her grandfather who is a powerful member of the conservative party, she is a communist and gets involved in various political activities, to her grandfather’s horror. Eventually, a communist is democratically elected as president. Workers around the country rejoice. Land is given back to them under agrarian reform, and they kidnap Esteban when he tries to visit Tres Marias. Blanca rescues him with the help of Pedro Tercero, who has become a famous singer of the left and convinced the workers to let him go. Esteban becomes more enraged than he ever has before, and decides that this is the end of democracy in the country, even though the new president was elected fairly. With his political power and influence, he helps arrange a military coup, thinking that once the president is ousted the right will return to power.
The coup becomes a military dictatorship, however. After the president is killed, Esteban gets snubbed by the new leadership. It still takes him forever to realize what has happened, though. It is only when he learns that his son Jaime, also a member of the left, was tortured to death that he faces reality. Alba, much more grounded in reality, from the beginning helps to get people in danger out of the country. Eventually the police come and kidnap her, and Esteban has to figure out how to save her.
The book is narrated by Alba retelling her story, with Esteban chiming in occasionally. Esteban is the constant, but the beginning, middle, and end of the book shifts focus from Clara to Blanca to Alba and the ever evolving political situation of the country.
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A Light in the Darkness: Chapter Two
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Trigger warnings: Death, chanting (please notify for correction of necessary)
Looking up with wide, veiled, lavender eyes, Arachne saw her mother, the greatest Matron Mother of Abburth giving service to the Chapel that Olath-Tangi (A/N: otherwise known as Sunday), preaching the Spider Queen's teachings with an intimidating amount of dignity that made even her, just merely seven years of age, envious of her power and status.
But not in a way that someone like her younger sister would, but in a sense of pure and unshakeable admiration. Looking at her mother, she saw the epitome of beauty and status, while also maintaining it with fierce power and strength. Understanding that one day she would be that powerful and beautiful made her feel not too short of assured and self-satisfied.
As the congregation spoke with Matron Aunerae, in prayer to Lolth and asking for Her love, Arachne felt a sense of safety she knew was uncommon among those who lived in the Underdark. Even the Other Races, those that were not dark elves, still found themselves enveloped by the danger that they had to suffer through day by day, struggling to survive through all the hardships that were thrown their way. Some said it was because they turned away Lolth's love in Her children's lands, but some even said that the Houseless who lived in Abburth, who still loved and revered Lolth, were committing the ultimate sin by not dying with their families, instead cursing themselves to a remaining life of misfortune.
It had always been that way, as far as Arachne was aware. She, living in the House of the highest status, would be protected and, in time, would learn to protect herself. (Her father had already begun teaching her how to shoot from a hand crossbow, and how to properly use rapiers and shortswords, and now kept weapons hidden within her well-made robes, and wore chainmail underneath the thick fabric.) While the others, being either Houseless or living in lower ranked Houses, were subjected to more danger, and thus had to watch their backs even while they slept. Although it was all the same for her, as well, seeing as she had found spies lingering outside her window sills and door, keeping her safe as she slept, as she had not learned the art of the trance yet, and was too young to fend for herself.
As they all sat down once again, Matron Aunerae called for another prayer, this time requiring the congregation to kneel upon small kneeling pads offered attached to the stands themselves. Obliging to the Matron's wishes, they knelt, intertwining their fingers together.
Looking next to her, Arachne saw her crimson eyed twin gazing upwards sternly at their mother, her eyes carrying a harshness Arachne could not yet fathom. She was told that the veil was meant to conceal her eyes, to show that she had no emotion, as her eyes, wide and lavender, showed every feeling that she could ever feel. Mother had said that if she didn't cover her eyes for any public event, it may be the end of the House's already shaking reputation; for the reason Arachne had yet to learn.
At the end of the prayer, all looked up to the Matron Mother once more, deep respect glimmering in all their unveiled eyes. As the dusky-skinned woman prepared to speak once more, one of Arachne's older brothers, Dro, seemed to fiddle with his softened hands, only just hardened from his long beginning years at Gloufmarth, the wizard school.
"This day, we shall sacrifice one of my own sons, in prayer that his life will fuel the House's power." She rose her hand, turning her head towards the Coborial family's stands, dark red eyes staring straight at Dro, who, standing up straight and feigning bravery, began walking towards the circle that was being quickly created by the lesser priestesses, and candles being lit that had already been placed in small holders on the ground.
A public sacrifice weekly. That's how it always was. There were many private sacrifices, but public ones were meant to boost the high morale that the House's forces already possessed. It was one of the many reasons why they could hold themselves through everything, and had survived the hard years in which Matron Aunerae had not been able to bear any daughters.
As her brother walked passed, he gave a small pat on her back, that no one appeared to notice, as they were too focused on Matron Aunae's words as she began to chant.
Arachne stood at her Mother's behest, forcing herself to watch this time. Every other sacrifice, especially the last public one in which a newborn had been sacrificed, she could not bring herself to watch. Instead, closing her unseen eyes instead of bearing through the horrible ways in which every single person was killed for Lolth's web and grace.
She figured that it was a waste of life, as in Dro's case, he was rather intelligent and had already gone through a quarter of his time at Gloufmarth, and in what magic he had shown to her, he was quite good at it. Not as skilled as Xarann, the Secondboy of the House, who had just grazed his third-and-a-half century, and had already spent his fifty years in Gloufmarth, including the extra ten that he thought to be required of him to earn the title of High Wizard of Gloufmarth, meaning that he was put in full charge of the school itself. Arachne theorized he had killed the previous High Wizard instead of him, "dying from his crazed state" as some said.
And as Dro began to walk inside the circle, fully accepting his death, Matron Aunerae began chanting the final sermon for the day as her brother screamed and screeched in agony. Her voice, clear and loud despite her screaming offspring, Arachne decided to focus on her instead of the horror that was taking place.
Screams echoed through the chapel as one by one, Dro's limbs were ripped from his body, absorbed by the gaping hole in the ground in which spindling, black and red, spider's legs held him down and bind him to the ground as pain weighed down his voice.
As the chant was spoken, the familiar word the congregation spoke was "kin." The word kin was, as it always had been, harsh and fast, but it hurt especially more as Dro himself was Arachne's kin, even as he began to be disemboweled by the spider's legs by the behest of the priestesses.
Another rigid reminder of the Original Sin they all held was thrown bitterly into the complex chant. Illustrating that, until they were doused in the blood of their first kill (Arachne had yet to receive such religious honor) they were still held accountable for such sin. This such sin was the time in their history in which they had originally turned away the Spider Queen's love and instead turned to the elf god, Corellon, before they had embraced life underneath the sunlight, and into Her clutches.
That prayer was known simply to the drow people as, as "Lolth's Appeal," as all sacrifices heard it before they fell into the Spider Queen's maw. It was as complex as the tunnels that ran deep in the Underdark, and as violet and morbid as the sight before her very eyes.
There lay her brother, dismembered and disemboweled, no long breathing and gasping for the life he was never destined to have. And as the final word of the prayer had been spoken, he had sunk deep into the Demonweb Pits, to be eaten by their Queen whenever she so desired.
Stunned by the sacrifice itself, all the rest of the prayers and speaking became obsolete, as the routine had been with her since she could remember. And as they left the Chapel and descended into the quarters to change their wear to begin standard education, Arachne was left wondering if another of her family would be next.
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sarahpetersonruiz · 1 year
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SARAH RUIZ
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BIRTH NAME :  Sarah Sofía Ruíz
ALIAS  /  NICKNAME :  Mariposa (Butterfly in Spanish). Used by her mom when she was little.
AGE : 36
DATE  OF  BIRTH : 4th October 1987 
PLACE OF BIRTH : East Haven, VT
HOMETOWN : East Haven, VT
TIME IN EAST HAVEN : 36 years. Born and raised, baby.
RESIDENCE : Sutherland Park
TW : teen pregnancy, alcohol
EDUCATION : BA (Hons) in American Literature & Creative Writing
OCCUPATION : Manager at Book Haven
GENDER : Female
PRONOUNS : She/Her
SEXUALITY : Questioning
FACECLAIM : Aubrey Plaza
HAIR COLOR : Brunette
EYE  COLOR : Brown
HEIGHT : 5'7
LANGUAGES : English, Spanish
TATTOOS : A quote from her favourite poet, Dorothy Parker, inside her wrist - "To hell, my love, with you"
PIERCINGS : Ears
POSITIVE  TRAITS : Intelligent, fiercely loyal, honest
NEGATIVE TRAITS : Reclusive, intimidating, sarcastic
PHOBIAS : Water, spiders
FEARS : Losing her siblings, dying in East Haven
HOBBIES : Reading, writing poetry, drinking
HABITS : Drumming her fingers, smoking, rolling her eyes
FATHER : Mateo Ruiz
MOTHER : Lucía Lopez
SIBLINGS : Three (two sisters and a brother - all younger)
PARTNERS : None
CHILDREN : None
PETS : A ginger cat called Simon
BIOGRAPHY
Early Life
When Sarah was a child, her teachers used to call her Matilda. She wasn't magical, and she didn't have a principal who would throw her around by her pigtails, but she had a love for education that even the adults thought was peculiar. Instead of grazing her knees playing tag like the rest of the kids her age, Sarah sat at the side with a book in her hand, creating a new world for herself.
Her home life could, at times, be compared to Matilda's. Her father left when Sarah was four. She remembered it vividly, because he had taken her to the park and hesitated to make conversation over a melting ice cream cone. It was the first time they had properly spent time together - she just didn't realise it would be the last. Sarah's mother, Lucía, didn't deal with it well. She drank, cried, and drank some more. At first, Sarah tried to help her, but she knew when she wasn't wanted. Instead, she just fell back into the books. At least the words would never leave her.
Sarah's mom eventually got over her father the way most women do - by getting under another man. And another. And another. It was like a revolving door of men with loose ties, reddening cheeks and tousled hair leaving their small apartment. Occasionally, Sarah would end up eating breakfast with one, staring blankly at them across a plate of eggs.
It wasn't a complete loss, however. Sarah eventually gained three siblings. They all had different fathers, but it didn't matter to her. Sarah was fiercely protective over her siblings, and she felt it was her duty to protect them from harm.
Teenage Years
It was strange how someone could go from being a Matilda in elementary school to being "uncooperative and unkind" in high school, according to her teachers. As Sarah got older, she became more and more disillusioned with the world of East Haven. The people were fake, and her high school was filled with people who would either be waitresses or bank tellers in ten years. But her? She knew she was bigger than East Haven. She imagined writing beautiful books of poetry which would sell millions of copies and make her well-known around the world. She didn't care much about fame, but the idea of making enough money so her family could live comfortably was exciting to her. The cracks were beginning to show in her home. Her mother went on benders which sometimes lasted up to a week or longer. When she did return, she was so hungover she wasn't seen for another couple of days. This left looking after her younger siblings to Sarah. She bathed them, fed them, did their homework with them and dropped them off at school. When her mother was there, she and Sarah often got into explosive fights which usually ended up with one of them leaving with only a slammed door behind them.
It didn't help that Sarah was known as a freak in school. It turned out that being naturally quiet and keeping your nose in a book wasn't as normal as she once thought. Kids would pick on her, often tripping her up in the corridor or stealing her books and ripping pages out. She didn't let it bother her - she just went back to her fantasies about finally getting out of East Haven and leaving the shit-for-brains in high school.
Him.
Despite trying her best not to care about the people around her, Sarah fell hard for one of the people she should hate the most - the captain of the football team. It was like a sad teen movie from the early-2000s. He was called Caleb, and Sarah was head over heels from the moment she laid eyes on him. Maybe it was because he was the only one who didn't pick on her. Maybe it was because he smiled at her in the hallway when everyone else looked through her. Maybe it was because they had been secretly hooking up ever since she had been paired to tutor him. Who knows? He dominated all of her thoughts, and she couldn't wait for the day that he told his friends and they could finally be open about their relationship. Only, of course, that day never came. Instead, he got with Samantha, a cheerleader who Sarah was almost certain was the first human being to possess no human thought. Caleb never smiled at her in the hallway again.
College Days
Sarah had been accepted at a variety of colleges which included Brown and NYU. She had been anxiously debating which to go with, when she got the news. Her youngest sister, who was only sixteen, had gotten pregnant. Instead of fulfilling her wishes of moving to a different state and finally becoming the person she knew she was supposed to become, Sarah stayed in East Haven and went to the local college so she could help her sister. What was three more years, anyway?
Present Day
Sarah never ended up leaving East Haven. She helped her sister raise her nephew with no help from their AWOL mother. She worked her way up to manager at Book Haven despite graduating summa cum laude. Inside, she is itching to get out of East Haven and truly start her life, but at 36 years old and a crippling college debt, the dream seems to be getting further and further away.
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Chapter Two
Looking up with wide, veiled, lavender eyes, Arachne saw her mother, the greatest Matron Mother of Abburth giving service to the Chapel that Olath-Tangi (A/N: otherwise known as Sunday), preaching the Spider Queen's teachings with an intimidating amount of dignity that made even her, just merely seven years of age, envious of her power and status.
But not in a way that someone like her younger sister would, but in a sense of pure and unshakeable admiration. Looking at her mother, she saw the epitome of beauty and status, while also maintaining it with fierce power and strength. Understanding that one day she would be that powerful and beautiful made her feel not too short of assured and self-satisfied.
As the congregation spoke with Matron Aunerae, in prayer to Lolth and asking for Her love, Arachne felt a sense of safety she knew was uncommon among those who lived in the Underdark. Even the Other Races, those that were not dark elves, still found themselves enveloped by the danger that they had to suffer through day by day, struggling to survive through all the hardships that were thrown their way. Some said it was because they turned away Lolth's love in Her children's lands, but some even said that the Houseless who lived in Abburth, who still loved and revered Lolth, were committing the ultimate sin by not dying with their families, instead cursing themselves to a remaining life of misfortune.
It had always been that way, as far as Arachne was aware. She, living in the House of the highest status, would be protected and, in time, would learn to protect herself. (Her father had already begun teaching her how to shoot from a hand crossbow, and how to properly use rapiers and shortswords, and now kept weapons hidden within her well-made robes, and wore chainmail underneath the thick fabric.) While the others, being either Houseless or living in lower ranked Houses, were subjected to more danger, and thus had to watch their backs even while they slept. Although it was all the same for her, as well, seeing as she had found spies lingering outside her window sills and door, keeping her safe as she slept, as she had not achieved the art of the Reverie yet due to her age, and therefore was too young to fend for herself.
As they all sat down once again, Matron Aunerae called for another prayer, this time requiring the congregation to kneel upon small kneeling pads offered attached to the stands themselves. Obliging to the Matron's wishes, they knelt, intertwining their fingers together.
Looking next to her, Arachne saw her crimson eyed twin gazing upwards sternly at their mother, her eyes carrying a harshness Arachne could not yet fathom. She was told that the veil was meant to conceal her eyes, to show that she had no emotion, as her eyes, wide and lavender, showed every feeling that she could ever feel. Mother had said that if she didn't cover her eyes for any public event, it may be the end of the House's already shaking reputation; for the reason Arachne had yet to learn.
At the end of the prayer, all looked up to the Matron Mother once more, deep respect glimmering in all their unveiled eyes. As the dusky-skinned woman prepared to speak once more, one of Arachne's older brothers, Dro, seemed to fiddle with his softened hands, only just hardened from his long beginning years at Gloufmarth, the wizard school.
"This day, we shall sacrifice one of my own sons, in prayer that his life will fuel the House's power." She rose her hand, turning her head towards the Coborial family's stands, dark red eyes staring straight at Dro, who, standing up straight and feigning bravery, began walking towards the circle that was being quickly created by the lesser priestesses, and candles being lit that had already been placed in small holders on the ground.
A public sacrifice weekly. That's how it always was. There were many private sacrifices, but public ones were meant to boost the high morale that the House's forces already possessed. It was one of the many reasons why they could hold themselves through everything, and had survived the hard years in which Matron Aunerae had not been able to bear any daughters.
As her brother walked passed, he gave a small pat on her back, that no one appeared to notice, as they were too focused on Matron Aunae's words as she began to chant.
Arachne stood at her Mother's behest, forcing herself to watch this time. Every other sacrifice, especially the last public one in which a newborn had been sacrificed, she could not bring herself to watch. Instead, closing her unseen eyes instead of bearing through the horrible ways in which every single person was killed for Lolth's web and grace.
She figured that it was a waste of life, as in Dro's case, he was rather intelligent and had already gone through a quarter of his time at Gloufmarth, and in what magic he had shown to her, he was quite good at it. Not as skilled as Xarann, the Secondboy of the House, who had just grazed his third-and-a-half century, and had already spent his fifty years in Gloufmarth, including the extra ten that he thought to be required of him to earn the title of High Wizard of Gloufmarth, meaning that he was put in full charge of the school itself. Arachne theorized he had killed the previous High Wizard instead of him, "dying from his crazed state" as some said.
And as Dro began to walk inside the circle, fully accepting his death, Matron Aunerae began chanting the final sermon for the day as her brother screamed and screeched in agony. Her voice, clear and loud despite her screaming offspring, Arachne decided to focus on her instead of the horror that was taking place.
Screams echoed through the chapel as one by one, Dro's limbs were ripped from his body, absorbed by the gaping hole in the ground in which spindling, black and red, spider's legs held him down and bind him to the ground as pain weighed down his voice.
As the chant was spoken, the familiar word the congregation spoke was "kin." The word kin was, as it always had been, harsh and fast, but it hurt especially more as Dro himself was Arachne's kin, even as he began to be disemboweled by the spider's legs by the behest of the priestesses.
Another rigid reminder of the Original Sin they all held was thrown bitterly into the complex chant. Illustrating that, until they were doused in the blood of their first kill (Arachne had yet to receive such religious honor) they were still held accountable for such sin. This such sin was the time in their history in which they had originally turned away the Spider Queen's love and instead turned to the elf god, Corellon, before they had embraced life underneath the sunlight, and into Her clutches.
That prayer was known simply to the drow people as, as "Lolth's Appeal," as all sacrifices heard it before they fell into the Spider Queen's maw. It was as complex as the tunnels that ran deep in the Underdark, and as violet and morbid as the sight before her very eyes.
There lay her brother, dismembered and disemboweled, no long breathing and gasping for the life he was never destined to have. And as the final word of the prayer had been spoken, he had sunk deep into the Demonweb Pits, to be eaten by their Queen whenever she so desired.
Stunned by the sacrifice itself, all the rest of the prayers and speaking became obsolete, as the routine had been with her since she could remember. And as they left the Chapel and descended into the quarters to change their wear to begin standard education, Arachne was left wondering if another of her family would be next.
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ragingbookdragon · 3 years
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A Heart That's Been Broken Is A Heart That's Been Loved
Bruce Wayne x Reader One-Shot
Word Count: 1.1K Warnings: Angst
Author's Note: I saw a video of a young man at his wedding listening to the heart of his deceased brother still beating in the woman's chest who received it. This idea sprung from it. -Thorne
**********************************************************************
She paced nervously on the front steps of Wayne Manor, heart leaping up and down her throat as she mentally repeated the conversation in her head. The documents in her purse felt like bricks and she hefted the bag higher onto her shoulder, swallowing her anxiety as the lock flicked and the door opened, revealing an older man, probably late fifties early sixties.
Smiling anxiously, she greeted, “Good morning, sir. How are you doing today?”
He returned her smile with a polite one of his own. “I am doing well this morning, thank you. And you?”
“I’ve seen birds more calm than I am,” she laughed, probably a little too hard, and stuck out her hand. “My name is (Y/N) (L/N). I was wondering if I could speak to Mister Wayne? If he’s in?”
The man frowned. “Master Bruce is in the breakfast room with his family at the moment. May I ask your business with him?”
(Y/N) reached into her bag and pulled out the documents, handing them to him. “It involves his mother, Martha Wayne. More importantly the organ transplant she gave some three and a half decades ago.”
He met her gaze and handed the documents back. “Please follow me.”
She nodded and entered the manor, the scent of cinnamon and fresh linen wafting up her nose. Shutting the door behind her, she let the man escort her through the foyer and through the hall into the kitchen where she was met with the sight of Bruce Wayne and all six of his children.
Their forks stopped when the man entered with her and he said, “Master Bruce, this young woman is here to speak with you. Her name is (Y/N) (L/N).”
Bruce wiped his mouth on his napkin and rose to his feet, shaking her hand. “Good morning, Miss (L/N).”
“Oh, please, call me (Y/N),” she smiled.
“(Y/N),” he corrected, matching her expression. “Alfred doesn’t usually let people into the manor, so I’m assuming you’ve something important to speak to me about?”
She nodded, clearing her throat when she felt the weight of the children’s stares. “Um, yes, Mister Wayne.” Reaching back into her purse, she pulled out the documents once more, but held them in her hands. “I don’t know how to say this lightly and I wish I did, but I felt like you should know.”
She handed them over, watching as he took them with a confused look and started reading. “Thirty-six years ago, your mother Martha Wayne donated her organs after she perished.” (Y/N) reached up, unbuttoning the first few buttons of her shirt, a healed scar peaking through the top of her bra. “Thirty-six years ago, I was severely wounded in a home robbery at nine. I received your mother’s heart.”
Bruce’s hands started to shake around the paper, and she murmured, “I’ve spent a long time trying to get the documentation, so I could come here and show you.” (Y/N) stuck her hand into her purse and pulled out a stethoscope. “Would you like to listen?”
He nodded, swallowing thickly, not trusting his words to accept for him and she handed it over, watching as he put it in his ears then lifted the chest-piece to the center of her chest; she didn’t dare make a sound as she breathed and his eyes suddenly went wide, filling with tears, then snapped shut and he brought a hand up to his face, covering his eyes.
(Y/N) felt tears of her own grow in her vision and she grasped his shoulders, squeezing them as tightly as she could, whispering, “I know your parents dying was traumatic, but your mother gave me life again. I’m alive because of Martha Wayne.”
“I never thought I’d hear mother’s heartbeat again,” he cried softly and wiped his eyes, though the tears kept coming; he sniffed harshly as he looked at her, a wobbly smile coming over his lips. “Thank you,” he breathed, a choked laugh escaping him, and he couldn’t help but shift the chest-piece, placing his palm right beside it.
She felt her heart rate pick up, thumping strongly against his hand and the two of them smiled at one another, tears running down their cheeks. “Of course,” she replied. “You have every right to hear her heart again.”
Bruce’s jaw clenched slightly as he tried to keep more tears at bay, and he shook his head. “It’s your heart. It’s both your hearts.” His thumb brushed tentatively over the scar. “I never knew mother’s organs had been donated…I’m glad they were. It’s what she would’ve wanted.”
“She and your father saved many lives with their donations,” (Y/N) replied. “I’m sure you could find out who, but I know they were the saviors of many.”
She watched Bruce remove his hand and the stethoscope, pulling out the earpieces; he wrapped it up and handed it back to her, along with the documents and she returned them to her purse, finally wiping her face.
“Thank you for letting me come here, Mister Wayne,” she said. “Thank you for giving me your time.”
He shook his head. “I’m the one who should be thanking you. You’ve given me a great gift.” When she looked at him curiously, he murmured, “My mother lives on. Her heart beats strongly in another woman just as beautiful and wonderful as she was.”
(Y/N) felt her cheeks warm and she replied, “I hope I do her justice like you’ve said.” She reached out, intent to shake his hand, but Bruce pulled her into a strong hug; a smile crossed her lips, and she wrapped her arms around his middle, squeezing him tightly, whispering, “If you ever want to listen again. You can find me at Gotham University English Department. You’re welcome anytime.”
Bruce pulled away, hands still on her shoulders. “I might take you up on that offer.”
She smiled, eyes still a bit damp, and glanced at his children, some of whom had shed tears, and some had unshed tears in their eyes; she nodded at them, waving at a particular one. “Good morning, Timothy.”
He weakly waved, cheeks tear-stained. “Morning Professor (L/N).”
Smiling at them, she hugged Bruce once more and turned, heading for the door, though she briefly paused and faced the family once more. “There is no love like that of a mother’s. Whose love is everlasting, even after she has long been reclaimed by the earth. She exists in all she created, in all she touched. We are never without her, for she is ever with us.”
(Y/N) tipped her head, “Have a wonderful day,” and left.
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marwritesgood · 3 years
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Just Me | S. Basset
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Pairing: Simon x WOC!Reader
Timeframe: Early Season One
Summary: Simon and Y/n had a long history together. So why did it take reading Lady Whistledown’s latest column for her to learn about his blooming relationship with Daphne Bridgerton?
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A/N: This fic is over 6K words. 
The mere thought of a BIPOC love story set in the 18th Century is enough to make me swoon. So I decided to give it a go and write one myself. There’ll be two more parts after this :)
I also wanted to keep the reader description applicable to any and all women of colour, so it’s a bit vague just to ensure all of us (women of colour) can feel included. Please let me know if there any parts of this fic that don’t do this and I’ll fix it asap! 
If you’re white, this fic is not for you to identify with x
Also, if at any point you find my attempt at mimicking the language used in Bridgerton laughable... you are not the only one lmao. This has been super fun to write and also very challenging, but I am well aware it is farrrr from perfect :)
Nonetheless, I hope it’s a nice read for my WOC readers <3
Simon and Y/n first met when they were children. Her mother was very closely acquainted with Lady Danbury, so naturally, a friendship grew between the two of them- and a strong one at that. 
For years, their interactions had remained within confinements of what was socially acceptable. They bickered. They laughed. They shared inside jokes about the people within their social circle. Their feelings for each other never extended beyond what was befitting of a friendship. 
That was until they grew older.
When marriage and love became more and more ingrained into casual conversations, Simon and Y/n explored their feelings for one another. Questioned the extent to which they cared for each other and whether there was something more beneath the surface.
However, just as Y/n came to realise her love for Simon, he left for London. After a few short weeks, he returned with a new title. A new vow that the Hastings bloodline would end with him. Subsequently, with it, any hope Y/n had of her relationship with him becoming anything more than all it had always been: a friendship.
A year had passed since the sorrowful conversation resulting in Simon and Y/n agreeing to not indulge in the affections they shared. Since then, Y/n struggled to focus on securing a marriage proposal from one of the suitors in her town.
“This is your second season,” Y/n’s mother cried as she paced across the sitting room. Y/n sat in silence, having been interrupted from playing the piano by another one of her panicked outbursts. “Your second season and yet you continue to reject every marriage proposal you receive.”
She couldn’t blame her mother for being frustrated with her. As her only daughter, she needed to find a good match and be married off as soon as possible. Her father was of old age, but even he remained restless that Y/n be married. He much preferred the prospect of dying knowing that the estate would be inherited by Y/n’s husband instead of his nephew.
“I did not reject Mr Graham’s proposal, mama,” Y/n responded, unnervingly calmly considering how distraught her mother was. Mr Graham’s proposal was the latest one she had received that season. “I... simply asked for more time to consider my answer.”
“What on earth is there to consider?” Mrs Y/l/n shrieked. Her frustration only grew when her daughter was unable to answer her question. Y/n turned away from her mother. “He is a good man. He comes from a good, honourable family and will give you a good future- something you will not have if you continue to turn away suitors.”
“Mama, please.” Y/n could not say anything more, for fear that her mother’s anger toward her would only grow if she were to find out the truth. The real reason she could not yet bring herself to accept a marriage proposal.
“Why do you need time to consider, Y/n?” Her daughter had stood up from behind the piano and had her back turned to her mother. That did not stop her from continuing to pry. After so many rejected proposals, she felt she had a right to know why her daughter refused to marry. “I beg of you, tell me- what is there to consider?... What could possibly be keeping you from marrying Mr Graham.”
They stood in silence for a moment before Y/n sighed exasperatedly and turned back to face her mother.
“I do not love him,” Y/n replied in a hushed cry, only just loud enough for Mrs Y/l/n to hear from across the room. “He may be a good man, mama, but I... I do not love him, and I do not believe I ever could.”
She knew from their first encounter that she could never love him. Perhaps it was how he mispronounced her grandmother’s name or the way he possessed the same arrogance as every other suitor Y/n encountered. 
“My dear,” Mrs Y/l/n said, her voice and expression softening entirely. She reached out for her daughter’s hand and took hold of it gently. She knew precisely how Y/n felt, which meant that, unfortunately, she knew there was nothing to be done. “We have talked about this. Women like you and I... we do not have the luxury to make decisions based on our own feelings.”
Y/n was surrounded by women who did not share the same experiences she did. Women who could not empathise with the challenges she faced and being a woman in the 18th Century. Not even if they tried.
Therefore, whenever Y/n found herself hoping for the same things as the white women around her, she had to bring herself back to reality. She had to remember that if life was unkind to white women, it would always be hell for women like her, no matter who married into the royal family.
“I know,” Y/n answered. 
She did. She knew it was incredibly reckless of her to reject all of the proposals she had received. She knew she was naïve for basing her decision based on love. Yet, even so, she could not keep herself from holding out on the hope that she would not end up in a loveless marriage.
“I do not mean to upset you, Y/n,” Mrs Y/l/n said sincerely, as she guided her daughter to the nearest seat. “But I fear that if you continue on, you will have no more proposals to reject, and I... I simply cannot bear the thought... Please, dear, you must-”
Y/n began to close her eyes ready to brace herself for what she feared would inevitably happen- her mother insisting she accepts a proposal. However, just as she did, a maid knocked on the door and promptly brought in the newspaper. When Simon left for London, Y/n requested that any newspaper copy or mail sent to her from London be immediately handed to her. She looked forward to any kind of update on him.
“Thank you,” Y/n said to the maid as she handed her the newspaper. Without hesitation, she immediately turned to Lady Whistledown’s column.
“What does it say?” Her mother asked, giving up on her attempts at convincing Y/n to accept a marriage proposal, at least for the time being. 
Y/n’s blood ran cold as she read the column. She had expected to hear more about the bitter impression Simon was leaving in London. She was going to comment on how typical arrogant white elitists villainising anyone who did not approach them in a way that appeases their ego.
But that was not what she read.
Instead, she read about Simon showing a particular interest in the woman named the ‘Diamond of the Season’ by the Queen herself- Miss Daphne Bridgerton. She read about him courting her and spending a significant amount of time with her. She read about flowers, the expensive kind, and walks through Hyde park, and she was unsure whether to feel betrayed or feel furious.
It was one thing for Simon to begin courting another woman, after explaining to Y/n that he would never marry. It was another for her to have to learn all of this from reading the Lady Whistledown column. 
Without providing her mother with an answer as to what the column wrote, Y/n slammed the newspaper against the table beside her and stood up abruptly. 
Her mother went to reprimand Y/n for slamming the paper so violently against her favourite table. However, Y/n walked hastily into her bedroom. She began to plan what she was to pack when she would leave for London in the morning.
She was adamant on learning the truth in its entirety. And, this time, not from an anonymous publisher but from Simon himself.
***
Y/n had an aunt who lived in London with her husband and their three kids- all much younger than Y/n was. She knew that if she could get away with arriving in London unannounced with intent to stay for longer than a week, her only luck was with her aunt.
After she was escorted inside by one of the workers, Y/n stood and marvelled at her aunt’s husband’s estate. It looked nothing like the sitting room at her home. It looked fancier with much nicer things, leading her to think back to why her mother pushed so hard for her to marry. Mrs Y/l/n had helped her younger sister find a match, and now she lived in a beautiful home in London. 
Perhaps all she wanted was to ensure the same future for her only child.
“Y/n, my dear!” Her aunt came bursting through the doors with arms stretched out. She pulled Y/n into a tight embrace as she always did whenever greeting her niece. Before her three children, she had Y/n. “Oh, how I have missed you!”
“I have missed you too, Aunt Philippa,” Y/n smiled, gently clutching her aunt’s hand as she held her cheek. “Please forgive me for arriving here unannounced. I would have written to you in advanced, but I have an urgent matter to attend to.”
“Do not be silly, my dear,” Philippa laughed, before guiding her niece out of the sitting room and towards the staircase. “You are welcome to stay here for as long as you may need. Though I imagine your mother will be impatiently anticipating your return... how is my dear sister?”
“As restless as ever,” Y/n mumbled. Philippa’s laughter echoed across the halls. Just as she expected, her older sister had not changed. Not one bit. “She is adamant that I am engaged by the end of the season, which is part of the reason I needed to leave home so quickly.”
“I do not blame you, dear,” Philippa murmured. She knew from first-hand experience how relentless Y/n’s mother could be. Even so, she knew it was out of love. Y/n knew as well. “Now... what is the urgent matter you need to attend? I imagine you will need a chaperone... and perhaps a carriage?”
Y/n smiled in relief. Everything she had done leading up to her arrival in London was purely impulsive. She hadn’t even thought of how she would get to Simon or who she would have to escort and chaperone her. 
“You wouldn’t happen to know the whereabouts of... the Duke of Hastings?”
Philippa’s eyes grew twice in size. Whether it was shock or excitement, Y/n could not figure out. It wasn’t until her aunt pulled her into the nearest empty room, checked to see if anyone was listening in, and grinned at her that Y/n concluded it was the latter.
“When I read about the Duke and Miss Bridgerton, all I could think of was you,” Philippa began, speaking in a hushed tone, though unable to contain her excitement. She did not typically indulge in gossip, but she was entirely invested in staying updated to her niece and Simon. “You never did tell me what happened when he returned. Did you confess your feelings?”
Philippa had generously volunteered her afternoons so that her niece could practise what she would say to Simon. She hoped those afternoons had not been spent in vain.
“I did... And then he did too... Before telling me, he would never marry,” Y/n explained, trying to conceal the way her breath hitched and the way tears welled up in her eyes. “Though, after reading Lady Whistledown’s column, it is clear that perhaps he meant that he would never marry me.”
Philippa frowned and lifted her hand up again, holding the side of Y/n’s face and swiping the few tears she couldn’t stop from escaping. As she did so, Y/n inhaled sharply- trying desperately to keep herself from indulging in her sorrow.
“I am sure that is not the case, dearest,” Philippa insisted. 
She refused to believe Simon would do that to her niece. Not after the stories she had heard from Y/n as they grew up. Not to mention all the times she caught one staring at the other across ballrooms and dining tables. 
“We must hurry,” she chirped, dropping her hand so she could grasp her niece’s arm. “I believe the Duke will be in Hyde Park with Lady Danbury. ‘Tis best we leave now if we wish to catch them.”
Y/n smiled. Being with her aunt was a nice change of pace to being with her mother. She would have scolded Y/n had she caught wind of what had happened. 
***
Upon their arrival at Hyde Park, Philippa approached Lady Danbury. Her plan was to make conversation with her, find out more about Simon and Daphne’s relationship. Then, she would ultimately create a segue for Y/n to have a somewhat private conversation with Simon.
However, Y/n had other plans.
When they arrived, she scanned the park in search of Simon. Once she spotted him walking alone on the pavement, she threw caution and decorum to the wind. Before her Aunt Philippa could stop her, Y/n sprinted. 
Once she reached him, she grabbed his shoulder roughly, prompting him to turn around.
“Peach,” Simon whispered, dumbfounded by Y/n’s sudden appearance.
He stopped calling Y/n by her name when they were five. Instead, he called her Peach, for reasons that remained a mystery to Y/n. Despite not knowing the reasoning behind it, she always adored it. She was the only person he had a unique designated name for.
More recently, she wondered if Miss Bridgerton would soon become an exception.
“You owe me an explanation,” Y/n said harshly, not having the patience to beat around the bush. This was primarily because she wanted to know the truth and because she was out of breath from sprinting to Simon.  “Do I really mean so little to you, Simon?”
“Please lower your voice,” Simon begged, subtly grabbing Y/n’s arm and quickening their pace to avoid the crowded area of the park. 
“Do not speak to me as though I am a child,” Y/n growled, yanking her arm away from him and stepping back. 
“Then do not act like one,” Simon retorted.
Y/n scoffed, before dusting off her dress. Simon rolled his eyes to cover his nervousness. He had a habit of concealing it with aggression. Y/n was often able to see through it, but she was guilty of doing the same.
“What changed?” Y/n asked as she looked back at Simon. “You seemed so certain when you told me you would never marry. Now you have extended your stay in London to court Miss Bridgerton?”
“I wish I could give you an answer,” Simon responded honestly. It was perhaps the most honest statement he had made all month. 
His courtship of Daphne was a mere ruse to attract more suitors for her. Truth be told, Simon was incredibly stressed by it, but he was too deep into the lie to give up any time soon. He hadn’t anticipated Y/n would be caught in the middle of it.
“Well, what could be hindering you from doing so?” Y/n cried, confused by how vague and cryptic Simon was acting.
He struggles to find the right words. The last thing he wanted was to hurt Y/n any more than he already had, but he could not give her the answer she wanted. Although he was not actually courting Daphne, he still would not marry. Thus, he could not do what would make her happy, which was the main reason he kept his distance from her in the first place.
“Things are different now,” Simon said apologetically, hoping to deter Y/n from prying. Though he desperately wanted to say more, he knew that doing so was incredibly risky. “We... we are not children anymore.”
Y/n blinked, astonished by Simon’s reaction. It was far from what she had expected. She expected an explanation. She expected assurance. Instead, she has pushed aside as though she and her feelings were disposable. 
This was a familiar feeling to Y/n.
“Is that all you think of me?” She asked angrily. Simon, of all the people in her life, had the most power to hurt her. And he often did so without realising. “A child?... And our relationship? You think it is something as easy to put behind you as your childhood? Is that all this is to you, Simon?”
She went to speak again. To demand what she felt she had a right to. However, before she could get a word out, a woman appeared from behind her. She was fair-skinned and wore a dress that resembled her complexion. 
“Miss Bridgerton,” Simon gasped. He did not know whether to be grateful for her arrival or concerned about how it would affect Y/n. He eventually became both. “May I introduce you to Miss Y/l/n. She is a... very close family friend.”
Y/n had to keep herself from scoffing. She was more to him than just a friend. Y/n knew that well, despite Simon’s denial.
“I am terribly sorry,” Miss Bridgerton cried, averting her attention to Y/n. “I did not mean to intrude.”
“Not at all,” Y/n assured, smiling sincerely at Daphne. Her anger was entirely directed towards Simon. Unlike him, Daphne had no pre-existing history with Y/n to remain considerate of. “I actually must return to my aunt. It was lovely to finally meet you, Miss Bridgerton.”
Before Y/n turned to walk back to her Aunt Philippa, she glanced back at Simon, who was very clearly terrified of how calm Y/n was. He could only imagine the amount of anger she was harbouring. Deterring her would prove to be much more complicated than he expected.
“Your grace,” Y/n snarled through gritted teeth, before forcing a smile as she turned away.
***
It had been a week since Y/n and Simon’s interaction at Hyde Park.
Y/n sat beside her aunt Philippa in a carriage as she read through her mother’s letter. She had made vividly clear, through an eight-paged rant, that she was absolutely livid with her daughter. Y/n’s hands were trembling. 
“I assume she is quite upset?” Philippa asked, though she already knew the answer. 
Y/n had extended her stay to a week just so she could attend a gala at Lady Danbury’s estate. It was her last hope of catching a moment alone with Simon and gaining, at the very least, some form of closure. She hoped it would not come to that, but from their last interaction, Y/n was losing confidence.
“She is furious,” Y/n answered shortly, before folding the letter abruptly and placing it aside. Her mother wrote one demand that sent chills through her bones. “If I am not home within a week, she will come to London and take me back herself. Then, I will have to accept Mr Graham’s proposal.”
Philippa’s stomach dropped. She placed her hand atop her niece’s. Y/n looked down to conceal the tears that began to gather in her eyes. Philippa noticed and wrapped her arm around Y/n, gently squeezing her shoulder. 
“I am sure it will not come to that,” she whispered soothingly, though she struggled to sound sincere. Y/n nodded. She didn’t quite believe her aunt, but she knew there was no point in losing hope entirely. At least not yet.
Once they arrived at the gala, Philippa made conversation with a friend, whileY/n made way to Lady Danbury. The event was held in her courtyard. While others marvelled at her estate, Y/n felt a warm sense of nostalgia. When Lady Danbury brought Simon to her London estate during summers, she would often invite Y/n and her parents. While her parents and the Danburys made conversation in the house, Simon and Y/n would run about freely outside.
“Welcome back, Miss Y/l/n,” Lady Danbury smiled warmly, as Y/n and her aunt approached her.
“It is a pleasure to be here, my lady,” Y/n responded curtly, before laughing out loud as Lady Danbury pulled her into her arms for a tight hug. 
Once she let go, they made small talk. Lady Danbury asked Y/n how her parents were. Y/n asked Lady Danbury how she was and how her fruit orchards were. After they ran out of things to discuss, Y/n could not help but scan the room searching for Simon, who was nowhere to be found.
“I am not completely sure where he is,” Lady Danbury said, startling Y/n who had not realised how far from natural she was acting. “Though, he did complain about how suffocated he was by the throng here... I imagine he has gone to a place where it will be difficult for most to find him.”
Y/n thought for a moment. Lady Danbury was cryptic by nature, and after years of knowing her, she had a knack for figuring out what she meant. Once Y/n knew, she smiled at Lady Danbury, before excusing herself from the gala.
Y/n headed away from the gala and towards the maze area. It was well-lit, which she was grateful for as it meant she could navigate her way around swiftly. It felt like second-nature to her; running about in the Danbury’s London Estate. She forgot how much she enjoyed the thrill of running through and past the hedges.
Once she reached the maze’s centre, she saw Simon standing idle, his back towards where she stood. That was the place they spent most of their time. When they were younger, they would sit there and play games. As they got older, they would sit there and talk. Sometimes he would read while she drew. Sometimes vice versa. But most of the time, they spoke—about everything worth talking about, and then some.
“I remember the first time we played here together,” Y/n began, causing Simon to jump. Once he turned around and saw Y/n his tense posture softened, and a small smile appeared across his face. She felt relieved by it, though she didn’t want to let her guard down entirely. “I got lost, almost immediately, and you found me sitting here, cross-legged, in a puddle of tears. Do you remember?”
Simon chuckled. Of course, he thought. 
“You were inconsolable when I found you,” he mocked, prompting Y/n to reach out and lightly punch his shoulder. His laughter only grew.
“We were five,” Y/n reasoned. She would never admit that she was dramatic. Not even as a child. “I genuinely thought no one would ever find me... and then you did, within a matter of minutes.”
She joined him in laughing. It made for a very entertaining story that they retold relentlessly. While others were sick of hearing it, neither of them were sick of recounting it, for their own reasons.
“I told you I would never leave you behind,” he added, smiling as he thought back to that day. His smile faded quickly when he realised the irony. He frowned and took a step towards Y/n. “Peach, I must apologise-”
“-No... I am the one who must apologise,” she intervened. Simon stood back in confusion. Y/n sighed before clarifying herself. “I did not mean to blindside you so aggressively before. I did not come here to argue with you, Simon, I... I came to ask you if it is true... Are you courting Miss Bridgerton... with the intent of marrying?”
Simon winced. 
He felt conflicted by both his love for Y/n and the promise he made to Daphne to uphold their ruse. He could not in good faith outright admit that he was merely pretending to court Miss Bridgerton. However, he couldn’t bear the thought of breaking Y/n’s heart a second time.
His lips parted, but his mouth ran dry. Before Simon could keep himself from blurting out the wrong thing, he was overcome by a habit he developed over the last month of playing along.
“I am,” he answered.
Just as he did, he lifted his hand to his temple and scrunched his eyebrows. He couldn’t bring himself to look at Y/n. He was still haunted by the look on her face when he told her he would never marry.
“Right,” she sniffled, unsure how to react. Y/n had convinced herself that there was more to the story than what she had read from Lady Whistledown. She regretted how in-denial she allowed herself to become. 
One thing Y/n knew for sure, though, was that she did not want to be near Simon. Although she was on the verge of sobbing, she still turned around and intended to leave him, but Simon grabbed her arm and kept her from doing so.
“Please let me explain,” he begged.
Y/n’s tears halted as she glared at Simon, shocked. She shook her arm out of his grasp and took a step back from him. She had always despised the way men often treated women as though they were disposable and replaceable. She never expected Simon to be one.
“There is no explanation necessary,” she scoffed.
“Y/n, please, you do not understand,” Simon cried. It was rare for him to call her by her name, but Y/n dubbed it as him trying to manipulate her emotions. She would not let that happen. 
“No, of course, you would deceive me,” Y/n spat, unwilling to let Simon get a word in. She was tired of waiting around just to hear from him. This time, she would be the talking. He would be the one listening. “-about not wanting to marry or have children, and of course, I believed your ridiculous lie, like the fool I have always been for you.”
“Ridiculous?” Simon hissed. Y/n’s dismissal of his vow sparked a fit of anger that overcame him before he could realise it had done so. No one had ever called to question or criticised his decision to remain a bachelor for life. No one until Y/n.
“Perhaps not a ridiculous lie,” Y/n sneered. “No, it was more-so childish and nonsensical.”
“And yet, you believed it... What is that to say about you, Miss Y/l/n?” Simon scorned. Y/n flinched. Simon had only ever addressed her in such a way to either tease her or to emphasise his anger. It had been a long while since he had done so for the latter. “It was not a lie, Y/n, I... You could never understand the immense pressure I have been placed under my entire life-”
“- Pressure that significantly decreased with the death of your father,” Y/n argued. Simon acted as though he had a monopoly over her when it came to challenges in life. He could not have been more wrong. “I, on the other hand, am placed under severe pressure and will continue to be, long after my parents pass... That is one of the many things you will never understand.”
“That is not true,” Simon fired back, only for Y/n to continue speaking- this time, with a louder voice.
“We may be the same in one sense, but we are significantly different in another, because you, Simon, are still a man with a title.” Y/n and Simon both shared similar challenges as neither of them were white. However, where Simon inherited certain advantages for being a man, and a Duke, Y/n was only disparaged more. He often forgot that. “You, at the very least, still have the luxury of choice. To choose how you wish to fulfil your future, and whether or not that may include a wife or children.”
Simon lowered his eyes defeatedly. Though he was still angry, there was no denying the shame he felt. 
“I do not. Those choices were made for me the moment I was born a daughter and not a son. So do not act as though you are in a position to empathise with me,” Y/n said. “Especially when you have been the least bit empathetic after I came all the way here, just to confirm the truth about you and Miss Bridgerton.”
“I never told you to come to London,” Simon snapped.
“No, you did not,” Y/n retorted, with just as much, if not more, annoyance in her voice. “You did not tell me anything. I had to find out at the same moment as everyone else in England, as though we are strangers.”
Simon flinched as Y/n progressed from speaking loudly to outright shouting. He had always relied on having her sympathy and her support, even when he was in the wrong. Thankfully, they were far from the gala. However, Simon still feared someone had heard her reprimanding him.
“You claim you are different, now that you are a Duke, but you are the same as you have always been,” Y/n continued. She knew how he had always been. Better than anyone, let alone Miss Bridgerton, that was for sure. “You are still rigid and arrogant. You are still a coward who will never allow himself to feel any kind of joy. And you are still revolving your every decision in life around a man you claim to despise.”
“You do not know a thing,” he whispered, which only confirmed to Y/n that he was scared. He was intimidated. For as long as they had known one another, Y/n rarely confronted his relationship with his father.
“I have watched you go from living only to please him to living only to spite him, even if it means hurting the people who actually care for you,” she cried. She had no more anger within her. Not any more. She had only sadness. “Did it ever occur to you how much it hurt when you rejected me?”
“That was never my intention,” Simon said regretfully. 
It was the truth, though Simon had begun to realise that his wrath against his father blinded him from what he cared about more: her happiness. 
“Peach,” he whispered, inching towards Y/n as he lifted his hand and held the left side of her face. “Please, believe me, I never meant to hurt you.”
Their eyes locked for what felt like an eternity. It had been so long since they had shared a moment like that. An intimate moment shared between no one but them. Where Simon was not the stoic and emotionally detached Duke of Hastings. He was Simon. Dare she say, her Simon.
Despite that, Y/n was the first to turn away. She wanted to indulge. To take advantage of the opportunity to reconcile with him. To enjoy how vulnerable he was, after months of distance. 
But she couldn’t. 
Not when there were still questions burning in her mind. She could not rest until they were dealt with. After all, she was her mother’s child.
“Then what about Miss Bridgerton?” Y/n’s expression remained stagnant, but she could not keep hands from trembling. Simon winced at the mention of Daphne. “You... courting her after rejecting me... You cannot possibly tell me you did not intend to hurt me when you did that.”
Simon opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. He had no response to what she had said because there was no justification for what he had done. All he could do was curse quietly to himself for taking so long to realise how foolish he had been.
“I had always expected this to happen,” Y/n began, sniffling as she tried to compose herself enough to explain herself. Simon remained quiet and decided he would until she finished. He figured he owed her as much. “I always knew I would be turned away for someone like Daphne Bridgerton.”
It had been the subject of many of her mother’s lessons. Before she was introduced to society, her mother made it a point to prepare her for rejection. To not hold out hope for any man, until a marriage proposal was made. 
Simon had been Y/n’s only exception to that rule. 
“It’s happened to me my whole life,” Y/n laughed bitterly, as she recalled all the times she had lost to a woman of fairer skin than her. All the times she wept to her Aunt Philippa and to Simon. “I always expected this would happen. But I never expected this would happen with you.”
Simon’s eyebrows furrowed as he watched Y/n struggle to stifle her cries in between her sentences. He had watched her sit in this sorrow many times, just as she had done for him, for this was a pain she shared. But this time was different. This time he was the one responsible. 
He didn’t know pain, so heart-wrenching, was possible. But watching her cry and knowing he could do nothing to fix it. That pain had never felt more real.
“I do not blame you, Simon,” Y/n whimpered, which only made him hurt more. He wanted her to be angry. To berate him some more. It was the least of what he deserved for causing her such sorrow. “She is the ‘Diamond of the Season’ after all, and... I am just me.”
Y/n hated the pity party she was throwing for herself, but she could not help what she felt. After a life of being classed second to white women, who could blame her for internalising this? 
He was dying to say something. To tell Y/n that she had it all wrong. He wanted to reveal that his courtship of Daphne was all a ruse. That he could never bring himself to entertain the idea of marrying anyone but her. But his fear of only making things worse left him paralysed. 
“You have made it abundantly clear that I was a fool forever waiting around for you,” she said to Simon. Unfortunately for him, she had taken his lack of response as confirmation that what she had concluded of the situation was accurate. “I will not make that mistake again.”
“Peach-”
“Goodbye, Simon,” Y/n blurted as she turned away hastily. 
Left in too much shock to reach out and stop her, Simon stood, dumbfounded, and watched as the woman he loved walked away from him and back to the gala. Looking back, he wished he had called out to her. Simon wished he had run after her. But he did not.
When Y/n reached the courtyard where the gala was being held, she couldn’t help the wave of disappointment that rushed over when she realised Simon let her go. This assured her that she was right to leave him, but it did not alleviate the pain in doing so. 
She made her way through the crowd and searched for her aunt. As she did, she felt her cheeks burn and her pace of breath quicken. She had gone through all the effort of coming to London just for what she feared most to be the reality. 
“There you are, my dear!”
Y/n turned around and saw her Aunt approaching her. Philippa smiled brightly as she walked towards her niece. However, when she realised that Y/n’s enthusiasm fell short of matching hers by a significant margin, her smile began to fade.
“Where is Simon?” She inquired, her voice lowered to not draw attention to their conversation. From Y/n expression, Philippa inferred that was the last thing she wanted.
Y/n’s lip quivered as she tried desperately to answer her aunt’s question. When she failed to do so, she hung her head- too embarrassed to face her aunt. Philippa frowned. A line appeared between her brows as she reached out to her distraught niece.
Though she was dying to know, the details of Simon and Y/n’s conversation were the least of her concerns. All she cared for was her niece and helping her in any way she needed. 
“I will call for our carriage,” she whispered, before guiding Y/n out of the courtyard. 
Once their carriage arrived, Philippa sat opposite her niece and watched worriedly as she refused to make eye contact, let alone speak.
“Is there anything I can do?”
Y/n took a long moment to respond. She stared at her gloved hands as she thought about what to do next. She regretted all the proposals she had turned down, and all the ways she put her life on hold for Simon. She felt ashamed that she had allowed herself to be in the situation she was in. 
Then she realised the only thing she could do to fix it.
“May you organise a carriage to take me home tomorrow?” Y/n asked. Her aunt’s eyes widened. Returning home to face her mother was the last thing Philippa expected Y/n to want to do. 
She watched her niece closely, trying to figure out what her plan moving forward was. Y/n finally looked up and met her aunt’s gaze. To Philippa’s surprise, her niece had a prominent sense of confidence in her expression. 
“Why, my dear?” Philippa quizzed, her eyebrows still knitted in confusion as well as fear. The way her niece was suddenly overcome with confidence after being on the verge of tears was concerning. She couldn’t imagine it would lead to anything good.
Y/n inhaled sharply, pursing her lips as she did so. She knew her aunt would disagree with what she planned to do. But she also knew that, given the circumstance, Philippa would reluctantly do as she asked. Before she answered, Y/n momentarily glanced down at her hands and turned back to her aunt.
“I have a proposal to accept.”
NEXT PART
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buckystevelove · 3 years
Text
My Brightest Star
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Pairing: Bucky x Reader
Word count: 2708
Warning: ANGST and fluff
A/N: This is my longest work. Please leave comments. Ask, submissions and requests are open.
A week, that’s how long has passed since Bucky’s world felt apart. He should have known, his whole life has been full of tragedy, one after the other. He had 7 years of happiness and peace, he will have to come to terms with the fact that maybe those years would be the only ones in his long and sad life that he would known what real and complete happiness really is.
He met you 7 years ago in a coffee shop, you accidentally tripped and spilled all your coffee in him. You apologized over and over again, Bucky couldn’t care less about the hot drink splatted all over his body, he was so enthralled over the beautiful woman standing in front of him, for years he thought that he would never get love, but you managed to prove him wrong. He claims that it was love at first sight, he simply knew that you were his soul mate.  
After the incident, you bought his coffee as a symbol of forgiveness, though he really didn’t care. You exchanged names and phone numbers. Just a few hours later you received a massage from Bucky, inviting you to go for dinner the next day. Soon, one date turn to seeing each other every time you could. You felt for him, and hard. Eventually you met all of his friends, you became a great friend with Wanda and Nat. They would invite you to all the girl nights they had. You got along with Sam, always joking around and making pranks, same with Tony. You also became best friend with Steve, you had a strong relationship with him besides yours with Bucky. You too were like siblings, he always claimed that you were his little sister, and warned Bucky never harm you, or he would have to face the consequences.
Nobody was surprise nor bother when you moved to the compound with Bucky. Everyone was super exited to have you closer, that made Bucky a bit jealous.
You and Bucky were attached to the hip. One year into your relationship, he knew that he was going to marry you, you were going to be the mother of his children. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with you. You were the one, so he asked you to marry him.
It was so beautiful, he took you on a trip to the museum, your favorite place to spend the time. When you were in the sculptures room the kneeled and said; “YN, since the moment I saw you I knew that you were the one, I knew that I was going to marry you, and all you have done is prove me right. You are the love of my life, my partner, my best friend I can no longer imagine a future in which you are not in it, because YOU are my FUTURE. You have been the light at the end of the tunnel, you have brought me happiness, love I thought I no longer deserved after all the awful things I had done, you helped name realized who the real James Buchanan Barnes is, and who I want him to be. I want to be your husband because I love you so much. You are my entire world YN. So, would you marry me?”
At the end of his speech both of you had tears in your checks, you throw yourself over him and said yes over and over again, you were beaming.
6 months after that, many hours of planning and cake tasting, you and Bucky had the most beautiful fall wedding. It was perfect. Your family and the team was there, everyone was so happy for the two of you.
When the time to say the vowels came you couldn’t be more thrilled, you have been writing them for so long.
“James Buchanan Barnes, you are the love of my life. You have been the one who has taught me what love really is, what it is like to love someone with every single atom in my body. You have taught me what is like to be completely and uoughterly happy, that is how I feel when ever I am with you. James, when we met you told me that you only saw yourself as a monster, as the vilan of many people’s lives, but baby, you are my knight in shining armor, you are absolutely everything to me. You are the brightest star in my universe, the one and only. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, I want to tell you and show you how much I love you every day, I want you to feel how much I love you even after we are death. I want to keep loving you and choosing you a hundred of lives after this. Because Bucky, MY LOVE FOR YOU WILL NEVER END.”
At the end both of you were crying, among many other of your guests.
Your honeymoon was perfect. Tony paid the two of you a 3 weeks trip around Europe. Nine months later, you had your gorgeous daughter, Rebecca. She looked exactly like you, but her eyes, she had the most beautiful blue eyes just like her father. The three of you were the definition of a perfect family, you and Bucky did ocationaly fight like all healthy couples do, but your life was great. Your house was so full of love and happiness.
Bucky was so thankful to you, you had given him all he could ever dreamed for in life and more.
The three of you spent all the time you could together, you went to the park and had movie nights, went of family trips and spent lazy Sunday mornings in bed together. You wanted Becca to feel and understand what a loving home was, since you didn’t had one. You wanted her to feel the love you and Bucky had for her.
“Becca, Bucky, you two know you are the most important people in my life right. I love the two of you so so much. You are the ones that make me happy. You are my greatest treasures.” You said to your husband and 5 year old daughter one afternoon, while cuddling in the couch together.
“I love you too mommy, you too daddy. You are the best parents in the world, thank you.” She said kissing yours and Bucky’s face, making you giggle.
“You dolls are my everything. I love you.” He said before attacking the two of you with tickles, and whispering to your ear. “Thanks doll, for all this.”
The day had started like any other Tuesday would, you woke up after your alarm. Waking up Bucky with kisses and loving touches, after he woke up he heads to shower while you got Becca ready. Once the two of them were dressed, Bucky went to the kitchen to make breakfast wihle you got ready. The three of you ate together, you heard how Becca´s best friend was going to have a party next Saturday and you needed to buy her a present. You decided to go to the mall with her after classes and maybe have a girl’s day and do you nails. That made her smile so bright, which was what you loved the most about your life, that it was full of happiness.
After eating, you said goodbye to Bucky and Rebecca, he was going to take her to school and then go to the Avengers compound to train some new recruits, while you went to your office.
Bucky’s day went normal, as any other day would go, he did some training and hanged out with Sam and Steve. When 4pm came around the received a call from Becca´s school, her teacher told him that she was still there. You never came pick her up, he didn´t know why you were late. You always told him if your meeting was going to be longer so someone would pick your daughter from school.
“Sorry man.” He told Steve at the middle of the meeting. “Apparently YN never went to pick Rebecca from school she is there by herself, I really need to go. I also need to see what happened to YN. She is not picking up her phone.” Bucky said standing up from his chair.
“Sure pal, everything good with her?” Steve said a bit worry, he didn´t want his best friend to be in panic.
“I hope so.” He said walking to the door, but before he could reach it his phone rang again.
Steve just stood there, and watched how the color of his best friends face went completely white, then Bucky’s knees failed and he felt to the floor. Tears running down his cheeks, his face was shaking. He was wordless. Sentences couldn´t form in his mouth. Steve was next to him in second, he took the phone from his hand.
That when he heard him scream, he screamed as if he was dying, painful and horrible screams.
“Excuse me.” Steve said through the phone. “This is Steve Rogers. What happened?” He asked, though he already had an idea of what had happened.
“I am so sorry Sir, but I regret to inform you that Mrs. Barnes had a car accident today. She arrived to the New York Presbyterian Hospital at 2:36pm, she immediately went to surgery. She didn´t make it, she was called at 3:49pm. I am so sorry, but we need her husband to come.”
Steve hanged up the phone, he had tears in his eyes, he was about to cry. He had lost his best friend, but he needed to be strong for the man that was like a brother to him, to his nice.
Bucky was in the floor, sobbing and screaming. He went and called for Nat. She enter and saw the state in which Bucky was, then she saw the tears in Steve´s eyes.
“What happened?” She asked in panic.
“I… he…N-Nat” he mumbled between sobs. “Can you please look for Rebecca at school? Please.”
Nat realized, she immediately shook her head in disbelieve, “no, no, no,”
“Nat, please. Someone needs to be with her.” Steve managed to say. She wiped her tears and left the room.
Steve was in the floor hugging his best friend while he cried his eyes out, he was no longer screaming.
“I am sorry buddy, I am so sorry.” He said to his friend. “I know how you feel, just let it all out. But later you need to be strong for your daughter. She just lost her mother, she will need her dad. She needs you to be there for her, but now. I am here for you.”
“Not her, please not her. She is perfect Steve, I can’t, I love her, we can’t lose her.” He sobbed and screamed. “We were supposed to spend the rest of our lives together, the two of us.”
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When he calmed down, they went to the hospital. A drunk driver had crashed against your car in a traffic light. He died immediately.
Becca slept in Nat´s room. Bucky slept in his old room in the compound, he couldn’t go to your home. Too many memories. He couldn’t face his daughter, he would broke in front of her, he needed to be strong. He cried himself to sleep that day.
He next day was awful, he needed to explain to her 5 year old baby, that her mother would never hug her again. He couldn’t even began to comprehend that.
“Becca, baby. I need to talk to you.” He said the next morning the compounds living room, all  the other Avengers were in the hospital helping Bucky prepare every detail for the funeral, Steve was the only one there, next to Bucky and Becca. In case either of them needed him.
“Daddy, why did we slept here?” She asked frowning her eyebrows, just like her dad. “Where is mommy? We were supposed to have a girl´s day yesterday.”
That made Bucky tear a few tears which he rapidly cleaned.
“Babydoll, its because…” Bucky mad a pause and looked through the windows. “Mommy had an accident, and she will never come again.”
Becca made a confused face.
“Why? Can´t you just put her a bad-aid like you do to me when I have accident?” She asked in all her innocence, which made Bucky’s strength fall. He quickly enveloped her in his arms.
“That is the thing baby, she had a big accident, she is gone.” He started to sob again, so did Steve.
Becca began to stroke her father’s hair. “We will see her daddy, someday, but I am really going to miss her.” She started to cry and hug her dad.
“I want my mommy, dad.”
“So do I honey.”
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The funeral was beautiful, full with YN´s family and friends. They all told beautiful stories and tried to remember the amazing person YN was. Bucky couldn’t talk, he had so many things to say, none of them were for this people to hear, they were for his love.
A week had passed since you awful dead, Bucky stayed at the compound, he couldn’t go home, he also needed help with Becca. He could barely managed to take care of himself.
He was in his bed, looking at the celling, numb. He know the needed to stand up and shower, he needed to get up and care of his baby, but she was the carbon copy of you. It was like looking at you, it hurt, it really hurt. Lying there he heard some knocking at his door. Then Steve came..
“Hey pal, the lawyer came today, he left the will and this letter. She wrote it you when you guys had Rebecca.”
“Thanks, just leave it there.” He said gesturing to his night stand.
When Steve left he got up and grabbed the letter, it had his name in your beautiful calligraphy.
Bucky,
My love, I hope that you never have to open this letter, but if you do, I want you to know that you made me the happiest woman alive. In all the galaxies we know that exist, in all the universe that may. I was the happiest, all thanks to you. You teached me what the meaning for being alive really meant, you showed me so many incredible and beautiful things, and you gave me our most amazing gift, our daughter Rebecca, she is the tangible evidence of our love.
If the time in which you have to open this letter comes, know that you did everything you could. Under any circumstances think that this was your fault, it wasn´t.
I love you so much Bucky, you have really no idea, and I know you loved me just as much, that is why I am asking you one last favor.
Please don´t close yourself, don´t let yourself return to the man you were before be met, not that he was any less amazing, but he was lonely. I want you to continue living your life to the fullest. I know I can´t ask you to not miss me or forget me, I don’t want that. I want you to remember my memory and cherish it. I want you to show all then wonders of the world to sweet Becca. Please never let her forget that she was the most important person in my life besides you.
I want the two of you to continue to love, and let yourselves be love. I love you with all my heart, and every single atom in my body.
          Don’t forget me my brightest star, YN.
After reading that Bucky cleaned his cheeks.
“I will always love you.” He kissed the letter and placed it in his nightstand. He got up and went to find his daughter.
“I love you baby, and so did you mother. You are our greatest creations.” He no longer had you here, so he was going to spend all his breathing moments showing her how much he loved her, he was the only part left in this world of YN, and she was that greatest gift she could have left him.
He would continue to love you long after you are gone. For ever, til the end of times.
——————————————————————————
A/N: I cried so hard writing this. I am so sorry, but I hope you like it. I really appreciate feedback.
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tennessoui · 3 years
Note
would you ever do a hunger games au? like anakin and obi-wan in the arena and doing a katniss and peeta thing where they both survive? anakin maybe killing the competitors so obi-wan wouldn't have to? (just thinking that child killing is in character for him) anyway no pressure or anything I just haven't stopped thinking about a hunger games au of obikin and. I thought maybe you could do something with it!
i need you to know i shamefully snorted at the child murder thing i'm sorry and i'm also sorry this took so long and it's a bit all over the place and doesn't actually get into the Games at all (+ it's been years since I read the books so all inaccuracies should be tastefully ignored pls) this may not be what you asked for tbh but here you go!!
(content warnings: hunger games typical discussion of child murder, but nothing graphic)
(1.7k)
Anakin’s first emotion after his name is called is a strange sense of relief.
Good, he thinks. I’ll get to go with Obi-Wan. He won’t be alone.
He dutifully steps forward out of the crowd towards the stage, where the announcer is waiting next to Obi-Wan.
Obi-Wan who is looking at him with an expression of naked devastation.
Anakin tries to convey that it’ll be alright, that it’s fine, that they knew this was a possibility. Sure, it’s Anakin’s last year eligible to be in the Games. Sure his nineteenth birthday is in two weeks, at which point he would become too old to qualify as a child to the Capitol, but what’s done is done.
Obi-Wan will be his mentor, because Obi-Wan has been the mentor for District Four ever since he won his own Games seven years ago when he was sixteen and Anakin was twelve.
That year’s known unofficially as the most boring Games in Panem history, but the Capitol loves how handsome Obi-Wan’s grown to be. So what if he didn’t kill his competitors messily or with a bloodthirsty joy? He’s so polite in his interviews all these years later, and look at those dimples!
It makes Anakin sick, every time Obi-Wan has to leave District Four and travel to the Capitol to be fawned over and stroked and used. His nightmares are always worse the weeks after he gets back, and he never lets Anakin hold him during them.
And it’s even worse during the actual Games, when Obi-Wan is put in charge of two children’s lives only to see them brutally murdered on screen a week later. The cameras always show his reaction when the competitors from District Four die. They must think he cries pretty or something.
Anakin hates the Capitol. He hates them for what they’ve done to Obi-Wan. What they’ve made him into
As he gets close enough to the stage, he notices that Obi-Wan’s hands are shaking slightly.
He doesn’t even listen to the name of the girl being called. She’s not important. She’ll be dead in a few days time. What’s important is Obi-Wan. What’s important is comforting him, is reassuring him. Is coming back to him.
This is the moment when Anakin resolves that these Games will become known as the quickest in history.
---
The girl is understandably sullen and upset on the train. “I should get a different mentor!” she demands. “It’s obvious you’re going to play favorites with him.”
Anakin doesn’t snap back because she’ll be dead in a few days. Though she really shouldn’t use that tone with Obi-Wan.
“I’m not playing favorites,” Obi-Wan insists. “I don’t have favorites.”
“You literally just wiped sauce off his mouth with your finger,” the girl points out. “And then he licked it!”
Anakin smirks at her. Of course Obi-Wan has favorites. Of course Anakin is Obi-Wan’s favorite. It took him years to wear down Obi-Wan until he allowed him this close, and years after that until he finally got to kiss him for the first time, just a few months ago.
If she thinks he’s going to give up any of his Obi-Wan time so she can get her hopes up about not dying in a few days, she’s got another thing coming.
But Obi-Wan shifts away from him and he looks guilty.
If Anakin could get away with killing the other person from his district, he would. But it’d probably make Obi-Wan sad.
“Is whining part of your strategy?” he asks waspishly instead. “I don’t think it’ll make you many allies.”
She has the nerve to look offended.
“Anakin,” Obi-Wan chides. Underneath the table, he squeezes his knee.
“Everyone in the district knows about you two,” she glares at him. “You haven’t exactly kept it a secret.”
Anakin hasn’t exactly tried to keep it a secret. The first night Obi-Wan had kissed him, he went straight home and told his mother, his neighbor, his schoolmates, his cat, and his ex-girlfriend.
(No one had been surprised, except maybe the cat.)
“It’s not fair,” she cries. “Who can I talk to to get a different mentor for me?”
“The ethics board,” Anakin smiles, all teeth, settling back into his seat and slinging an arm around Obi-Wan’s shoulders.
“Anakin,” Obi-Wan says again, this time more exasperatedly. “Robin, I promise I will be the best mentor you can ask for. It is my wish to see you survive as long as possible in the next few weeks.”
The girl jumps to her feet in outrage. “You can’t even say you want me to win!” she yells. There are tears at the corners of her eyes. If she were a little less annoying, Anakin would feel quite bad for her. Obviously Obi-Wan doesn’t want her to win. Anakin’s right here.
She storms out of the train compartment, her face in her hands. Anakin barely waits for the door to close before he’s slipping into Obi-Wan’s lap and throwing his arms around his neck with a groan. “God, I thought she’d never leave.”
He isn’t pushed away. Obi-Wan must realize they only have a handful of days left to be together before he goes into the arena.
“Anakin,” Obi-Wan says wearily, even as his arms encircle his waist.
Anakin presses a kiss to his nose and then another to his cheek. “It’s alright to have favorites, Obi-Wan,” he murmurs. “And she should know there’s no way she’s winning anything. Don’t waste your time.”
“I will do everything I can to make sure she survives as long as possible,” Obi-Wan repeats. “I don’t think I can survive anything else.”
Obi-Wan’s voice sounds shaky, so Anakin presses their lips together. Best not to talk for awhile.
------
“We should discuss strategy,” Obi-Wan says later that night through frantic kisses. “Sponsors, story, training--”
“I have a strategy,” Anakin murmurs back as he moves further down the bed, rucking up his partner’s shirt. “Win.”
----
“You look absolutely radiant,” Anakin tells the girl in an undertone while they’re in line for their interviews. She turns around to glare at him. The designer for their district has gone for the typical fish designs that people always associate with District Four, and they’ve dressed her up in a shimmering iridescent gown that flares at the ends like a fish’s tail.
Anakin’s own outfit is mostly a fishing net draped over one shoulder and a pair of tight pants. The designer, much to Obi-Wan’s embarrassment and Anakin’s satisfaction, had taken one look at his shirtless chest and decided to dress him in as little clothes as possible.
“Weird braid,” is all she says.
Obi-Wan had done it late last night when both of them had tired each other out and Anakin had curled up on his chest. After his Games, Obi-Wan’s hands like to do something. The repetitive motion of braiding and unbraiding Anakin’s hair soothes his demons.
It’s one of the reasons Anakin’s grown it out to his shoulders, much longer than is practical for his district.
Obi-Wan had gone to unbraid it, and Anakin had stopped him. He wanted to keep it. To wear it into the Games.
“Thank you,” he says generously. “I saw your score. 7’s not too bad.”
She sneers at him. “Did you celebrate your 11 with your boyfriend?”
“Oh sorry,” he winces. “Did you hear us? I’m just so bad at biting my tongue when he does this thing with his.”
She scoffs in disgust and turns back around. “I hope he has to watch you die.”
Anakin glares at her back. He knows he can’t kill her himself. But there has to be a way to hurt her and her chances and still have plausible deniability.
When it’s her turn for an interview, she’s vapid and pretty. She laughs and touches the interviewer’s arm.
“I’ve never spent much time in District Four,” the interviewer says jovially. “But tell me, really. Is everyone there as beautiful as the people you keep sending us? I mean. Obi-Wan Kenobi, ladies and gentlemen, am I right?” The audience laughs and hollers. Anakin hates them all. “And now you, Robin, and Anakin Skywalker. Damn!”
Robin--Anakin needs to stop forgetting her name--giggles high in her throat. “It was a very, very enjoyable train ride up,” she says with a stupid wiggle of her eyebrows. “Just this side of too long.”
The audience loses it.
Anakin loses it.
He can’t believe she’s sitting there publicly suggesting that Anakin shares Obi-Wan with anyone. With her. The nerve.
The camera pans to Obi-Wan in the crowd, who looks shocked, embarrassed, and deeply troubled.
Anakin won’t let this stand. He just hopes Obi-Wan forgives him.
The interviewer greets him excitedly when he walks out, and Anakin gives him a sheepish sort of smile.
“Lady killer Skywalker!” the interviewer says. Anakin laughs along with him. “All the girls back home must have been heartbroken to see you leave.”
“But I’ve heard they love watching me go,” he jokes with a charming smile. If that girl--Robin--can do it, he can do it much better. “There’s really only one person for me though,” he murmurs, letting his smile die.
“Oh?” The interviewer asks, leaning forward with interest.
“But sometimes I wonder if they’re only using me for my body,” he says, casting his eyes down. “I love them. Heart and soul, everything I am. But when I told them, they just laughed.”
This is technically true. The first time Anakin had told Obi-Wan that he was in love with him, the older boy had laughed his confession off, saying he was too young to know what he wanted.
“Oh, to be young and in love,” the interviewer sighs theatrically. “So your plan is to win the Games and then win her heart when you get back home?”
Anakin makes himself look sad. Tragically sad. Like he can’t bear to go on.
“They came with me,” he says.
If the audience’s reaction to Robin’s fake confession was huge, its reaction to Anakin’s words is even bigger. Of course they think he’s talking about the girl. That’s exactly what Anakin had wanted. Now he’s the broken-hearted boy and she’s the vapid, self-absorbed bitch. She'll have a hard time finding sponsors now.
It’s very, very hard to hide his smile, a task made exponentially more hard when he sees Obi-Wan bury his face in his hands.
“It’s alright,” Anakin tells the interviewer, without taking his eyes off of Obi-Wan. “I’ll survive.”
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mythiccheroacademia · 4 years
Note
The whole time traveling children has me feelin some type of way tbh. Imagine Mirio, Kaminari, and Tamaki walking into their respective rooms and there are just small children vibing. Mirio with his daughter, Kaminari with a daughter and Tamaki with a son. 😭
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as i said, parent!bnha is SUPERIOR
A/N: So, instead of making these separate asks, I’m just going to make it one giant post. I thought it would be easier that way. Probably the only post that’ll have more than three characters lol
Warnings: none
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Kaminari Denki:
when kaminari walked into his room, he didn't expect to see two children on his bed fighting like wild animals
the younger girl was totally beating the boy’s ass tho
kinda embarrassing bc she’s gotta be like, seven, at most
as if it’s not the weirdest thing he’s seen (bc it’s not) he rushes in to break them apart
he manages to separate them with his arms 
the boy with yellow hair snaps his jaws at his sister’s fingers
“hey! bad! no biting!” he scolds
the little girl blows a raspberry and taunts “yeah! papa says no biting!”
the older sibling just rolls his eyes “rat”
meanwhile, denki is literally malfunctioning
papa?
PAPA? HUH???
the only person’s pants (and heart) he’s been trying to get in to for the past three months was y/n’s and he sure as hell would remember if he did
he didn't have kids
especially one that was his age
“sorry! you two are cute, but i’m not your pops”
thus, they begin to tell denki about how they mayhaps followed him and their mother into a dangerous mission and got hit with a time travel quirk
denki just nods his head
tbh, he’s not that weirded out
weirder things have happened
but, he does have one question
“who’s the lucky woman?”
coincidentally, you bust into his dorm room, wet from a recent prank and head steaming with anger
“Kaminari Denki!”
his son juts a thumb over to you
“the woman that’s about to murder you”
“oh say less”
his life literally couldn't get any better
before you get the chance to throttle him, the little girl jumps in your arms and your anger is immediately quelled 
“hey mommy! i just wanna let you know that it was [son’s name]’s fault that we followed you when you told us not to”
“WHAT!?”
you’re to busy trying to get them from killing each other to comprehend anything that’s going on
kaminari is in a love-struck gaze bc hot damn, he won the jackpot, huh?
if he wasn't in love with you before, he’s in love with you now
you and your feral children
it was nice being God’s favorite
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Kirishima Eijirou: 
funny thing was
kirishima woke up from his afternoon nap with his mini-me in his arms!
at first, he was really confused as to why there was an 8 yr old boy with spiky teeth and (your hair texture) black hair on his bed
he thought he was dreaming
then the little boy bit his nose and grinned like he had done the funniest thing in the world 
“WAKE UP DADDY! WE GOTTA GET SWOL TODAY”
did he get hit with some duplication quirk?
and what was that he said...daddy?
as in, father?
kirishima is wide awake now, but before he can ask the kid what’s going on, the boy is up and making use of his punching bag
he decides it wouldn't hurt to get a morning work out in, so he decides to humor the kid
after a mini workout, kirishima is in near tears as the boy tries to flex the little muscles he has 
eventually, he gets the kid to tell him what happened and finds out he was hit with a time travel quirk of some sort
instead of being weirded out, kirishima is ESCTATIC 
he has a family in the future 
he’s so excited and proud that he just has to show his son off to his friends!
the first thing he does is go and bother bakusquad in the common room
he’s bragging like shit to them and his ego swells as they all swoon over how cute and handsome the kid is 
you and bakugo come out of the kitchen to see what all the commotion is about and the little boy excitedly runs to you and jumps into your arms 
“momma! you’re here! you’re so pretty! why’d you marry daddy when he looks so unswol?”
it’s silent before bakugo fucking dies of laughter 
“y-you finally let shitty hair hit it? and got knocked up?? LMAO”
everyone’s dying and kirishima wants to die
he can’t believe this was how his long-term crush on you was getting outted
by an 8 yr old boy
so not manly
you look confused before you put the pieces together
the kid did look like you and kirishima
you want to console kirishima about the crush that you lowkey knew he had on you, but your son was one step ahead of you
with a gracious smile, he hits bakugo’s head
hard
“what the fuck kid!?”
“don’t make fun of daddy, uncle bakugo! at least daddy didn’t faint at his wedding″
Bakugo’s contemplating murder and everyone’s rolling on the floor
“WE BEEN KNEW YOU WERE THE BIGGEST SIMP”
even ten years later, bakugo still holds a grudge against your son
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Togata Mirio:
i’m about to kill y’all w this one
since year one, mirio has been feigning over you 
but 1) you were too dumb to notice 2) you both were really busy with, y’know, school and 3) he lowkey gave up bc he thought you deserved better
so imagine his surprise when he sees this four year old girl on his bed
and she looks like you with his features
mirio might not be the brightest crayon in the crayon box
but he’s got eyes
and it wasn't like he’s memorized your features to the T
the tiny girl is swinging her legs absent-mindedly before exploding with happiness when he sees him
she runs to mirio and he catches her with open arms 
“daddy! daddy! i got hit with the coolest quirk at school today!”
proceeds to tell him about her best friend discovered her quirk and it was a teleportation quirk 
mirio can’t help but giggle along with her even tho he knew it was a scary situation for the parents
speaking of which...
he innocently asks her who’s the mom
“mommy is the prettiest mommy in the world! she has e/c eyes, hair like me, and the most beautiful s/c skin! her name is togata y/n!”
if he wasn't geeking before, he’s geeking now
not only did he manage to marry you, but you let him be your baby daddy?
him?
big bet
mirio doesn't even care at this point
he’s parading around UA with the fattest smile as he introduces his daughter to damn near everyone 
everyone’s freaking out bc wtf when did mirio get someone pregnant??
maybe he should've explained himself, but he sees you at your locker and makes a b-line for you
“good morning, y/n!”
he doesn't notice that you slam your locker close and hide the confession letter you wrote to him behind your back
you’re a stuttering mess and he’s too busy basking in the fact that he’s holding y’alls child 
y’all look like a mess
but he’s ready to lay it on thick when the little girl kisses your nose and cheers,
“mommy, i missed you”
he explains the situation 
you cant help but smile, “you know this could potentially ruin the timeline?”
and you feel like melting as he gives you the softest smile 
“there’s no way I’m letting that happen. not when i end up with the woman i’m in love with. we’ll just have to twist fate together”
and twist it you did
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Tamaki Amajiki:
tamaki wasn't the bravest person ever 
and he knew his crippling anxiety got in the way of a lot
but he had never been more proud of himself for managing to invite you to his room
it was supposed to be a study date
despite how bold you normally were, he took comfort in how nervous you seemed 
now, you two were leaning in, about to kiss
and then a voice from behind interrupts 
“uh, am i interrupting something?”
you two let out the ugliest squeal and jump 50 feet away from each other 
you’re all over the place, trying to explain the situation
tamaki’s heart is barely beating at this point
it takes the kid, who looks about 16, about thirty minutes to calm you down and revive tamaki
explains that he’s from the future and a descendant of tamaki’s family
decides to leave out that you two are his parents so he doesn't risk possibly erasing himself from the space continuum 
that would be bad
despite how surprised you two were, you two take it rather well 
you three spend the day together bc you and tamaki feel this weird sense of responsibility for the guy even though he’s only two years younger
the boy is trying his hardest not to expose himself, but it’s so hard
you two are asking him everything from his favorite food to if he has any siblings
he’s good at pretending that he’s cool, calm, and collected, but he wants nothing more than to jump into his parents’ arms and cry about how scared he is of messing up
but he won’t 
bc he’s a strong boy
but he slips up
“how far are you down the future?” tamaki asks
“uh, about like 100 years or so--”
“you’re lying”
the kid nearly chokes on his food as his father blinks at him
you try and scold tamaki but he continues
“i don’t mean to be mean, but your nose twitches when you lie. y/n does the same thing”
that’s when the jazz record stops and everyone is staring at one another
“....wait”
this time, you nearly pass out
y’all had a kid together???
THE HELL??
the boy, coincidentally, starts fading and he thinks he fucked up
now he’s full out sobbing into the both of your chests, scared that he’s disappearing
despite the news, you and tamaki calm down, look at each other, and hold your son
“don’t you worry, baby” you coo, kissing his fading hair
“i have a feeling we’ll see you quite soon” tamaki comforts, closing his eyes
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Bakugo Katsuki:
bakugo finally understood when his mom said
“the meaner you are to your parents, the nastier your kids will be to you”
he regretted being such a demon bc his kid was literally the spawn of satan
katsuki didn’t need an explanation to know that that...thing was his kid
he looked damn near identical to him with features that he couldn't quite place
but anyways, that wasn't the focus rn
rn, he was trying to figure out a way to keep that animal caged
as soon as katsuki took his eyes off him, the six yr old ran out the door as fast as his little legs could carry him
“catch me if you can, you old bastard!”
yup, it was his kid
“GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE FUCKER”
his son is blasting his way through the halls, skillfully evading Katsuki’s grabbing hands 
he’s wildly laughing as he flips and turns through the doors, watching with glee as his father falls on his face
multiple times
the small boy latches on to a cupboard and smirks
“no wonder mom always beats your ass! you weak!”
katsuki nearly looks like the devil, eyes white, and face red with fury
his pride suffering by the second
he’s about to cuss the kids to hell when you come out of the kitchen, confused
you were about to ask why katsuki looked like a rat with rabies before you caught sight of a basket of fruit teetering on the edge of the cabinet, above the little boy’s head
“look out--”
the basket falls on the kid’s head and he’s on the floor, reeling from the hit
katsuki would've normally laughed his ass off, but he felt kind of...concerned?
he watches you run towards the child who’s trying his hardest not to cry
the boy holds his head, fat tears in his eyes as you pick him up and coddle over him 
“i’m sorry, baby. I'm sorry i didnt get there in time” 
cue the waterworks 
the boy is full-on sobbing into your chest about how his head hurts
you bounce him and kiss his forehead as katsuki checks over the red bump 
“you’ll be okay, brat” he comforts, voice softer than usual
in that moment, katsuki can’t help but notice how much a family y’all look like rn
then the dots start connecting and he goes 
oh shit 
so, maybe, he’s had a tiny crush on you
and it didn’t help that you two were friends with benefits bc yall were horny teenagers
but who knew he’d get the balls to ask you out on a proper date one day
he was such a simp for you gosh it was ugly
“you have to be more careful from now on,”  you say to the boy 
the brat suddenly looks innocent and katsuki wants to throw him
“sorry, mommy. i’ll be gooder”
the look on your face is priceless 
bakugo uses it as a chance to kiss you 
“huh?”
“i guess now’s a good time to tell you that i want to be your dick on demand but with feelings and shit, dumbass”
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puppypeter · 3 years
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✨ All fics are complete! ✨
Home Is Wherever I’m With You | 88570 words | Part 1 of Flowers In Our Eyes 🏡
This is what happens when you buy a house to flip having only seen the online images: you get more than you bargained for. Bucky Barnes brings all the tools to handle a dilapidated home, but he's hardly prepared for a smart-mouthed child (with poor aim), a crying baby, and the hottest dad he's ever seen in his life living right next door.
That House-Flipper!AU.
My Boyfriend Calls Me Daddy, Too | 5203 words | Part 2 of Flowers In Our Eyes
As a father, you get used to being called Daddy. Just not by your boyfriend.
Post-Home Is Wherever I'm With You.
Maybe Baby (I’ll Have You) | 6497 words ☕️
It’s Monday morning, and Bucky is just preparing a large mocha, extra whip for one of the many exchange students that have been finding their way into his shop lately, when the little bell above the door rings and a large man carrying a tiny baby in a papoose walks in.
One Of Your Hugs Would Be Nice Right Now | 1603 words 🤒
Steve comes home from work to a pair of crying children, an angry cat and a husband who may or may not be dying of the plague.
The Pull Of You | 27969 words 🌵
When Bucky Barnes moves into his Brooklyn apartment, he does three things: puts his chair on the fire escape, buys a cactus, and avoids talking to the neighbors.
But he can't seem to avoid Steve Rogers from next door and his adorable three-year-old daughter, Sarah—and as Bucky gets to know them, and begins to let them know him, too, he starts to think that he might not want to.
They've all been alone for so long. Maybe they don't have to be anymore.
Charged | 47677 words 👭
Steve Rogers has more money than he knows what to do with, a gorgeous penthouse apartment, and two beautiful girls who have terrorised every previous nanny into resignation. Bucky Barnes is an accomplished sex worker with a mountain of ill-advised debt, who just so happens to have helped raise his four sisters alongside his mother.
It's a common mistake to make, thinking the beautiful man at your door is the new nanny for your twin girls and not an escort hired by your friend to keep you company for the night.
Right?
Sinking Our Teeth In The Heart Of The Sun | 102861 words 👶
Bucky Barnes never intended to become a single father at 25. But life has always enjoyed kicking him while he's down and it's showing no signs of stopping. A chance meeting with a brick wall of a guy named Steve in the formula aisle of the grocery store leads to a friendship it seems like both of them need. If only Bucky could remember that's all they are- friends. If only Steve didn't slot into their lives so perfectly and look so good spoiling Bucky's daughter (and Bucky, despite his protests).
Oh, if only Steve didn't turn out to be Captain America.
Steve Rogers is wandering around a world that he doesn't fit into, fighting for a government that he doesn't trust, just because he doesn't know what to do with himself if he ever relaxes long enough to actually think about anything other than the next mission.
And then came Bucky Barnes and his newborn baby.
Waking Up Slow | 44638 words ❄️
In 1945 Steve Rogers crashed the Valkyrie into the Arctic Ocean and was never recovered.
In 2019 Bucky Barnes is walking along the beach below the decommissioned lighthouse where he lives with his sixteen month old daughter when he finds the body of a man washed up in the surf, half frozen but miraculously alive.
Bucky manages to revive him, but finds that the stranger has no memory of who he is or how he got here aside from a name: Steve. Snowed in by a blizzard soon after and unable to get Steve a medevac, Bucky discovers that the funny, good-hearted man slips into the fabric of his and Alice’s life faster than he would have thought possible. The two are undeniably drawn to each other, but as their feelings grow so does the looming possibility that the answer to the question “who is Steve?” might be much more complicated than either of them realized.
Oh Meet Me, My Darling, Where The Sun Sets Over The Barley | 54551 words 🐶
The man lifts his head which means the cap brim is no longer hiding his face and the friendly smile that was growing on Steve’s lips suddenly freezes, as do his legs mid-step when his eyes lock with the man’s startling blue ones.
He knows those eyes. Hell, he knows that face.
“Bucky?”
OR Steve’s friendship with his childhood best friend ended suddenly after one night of mistakes and misunderstandings and he has spend the last eighteen years trying to forget about it and move on. But when he runs into him again, after so much time and so much life lived, everything gets brought back to the surface. Including feelings he never wanted to acknowledge.
Setting: In A Honeymoon | 51850 words 👨🏻‍⚕️
Steve Rogers is a pediatrician. Bucky Barnes is a single dad. A very, very attractive single dad whose adorable nearly eleven month old is not his patient and therefore makes him fair game.
My Arms Were Made To Hold You | 55101 words 🍼
Tired of being kept awake at night by a screaming baby, Bucky decides to take matters into his own hands. Mostly he wants a good night's sleep, but what he gets is a beautiful baby boy with big blue eyes, a lonely father trying to move on from tragedy, and a chance at a family he never expected to have.
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