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broadwaytheanimatedseries · 6 months

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Okay but hear me out!

Dead On Main Revolutionary Ghost Utena AU:

Canonically, Jason focuses his rage to summon the All Blade

Ghost Prince Danny would have the Ring of Rage, but not the Crown of Fire yet

I hypothesize to you that the two are connected, and not only that, but that wearing the ring allows one to draw the All Blade out of the other. Like, literally.

Because of this, summoning the All Blade of their own accord is the mark of a ghost powerful enough to be the ghost king's betrothed, and whatever other ghosts were in the running are pushed back in line as the All Blade wielder is now at the front.

It is part of ancient ceremony that predates Pariah as Ghost King and dates all the way back to the first Royal of the infinite realms, King Lazarus.

The connection itself is no more than a pull towards each other, a fascination at most to make an easier base to build a genuine and in this case, human connection.

To become actually engaged Jason would have to willingly appear before the Ghost Prince and allow him to draw the All Blade out of him, something he is not very excited for and might actually have other lasting impact besides the engagement.

Y'see Jason isn't a halfa the way Danny is, he came back twice in a short amount of time between those two instances, and while the second time was Lazarus induced, no one really knows how he woke up in his grave and broke himself out. There are theories but Clockwork was watching and even he doesn't seem to know for sure, so it's really anyone's guess.

So what the engagement ceremony could do, potentially, is either solidify his halfa status by sheer amount of ectoplasm transfered by the act, or alternatively it could just kill him on the spot and then he'd probably become a full ghost.

Now, neither of these sound great to Jason, but he also doesn't like that a bunch of ghosts have been trying to fight him for their Prince's hand in marriage, something they can only do while the Prince is still not engaged to anyone.

Meanwhile, Danny doesn't appreciate that as soon as he came of age all these marriage proposals started being thrown at him, he's known some of these ghosts since he was a teenager so that's really weird for one, and he gets that most of them are just trying to secure their happiness and not to mention their future safety as the mortal world seems to be moving on with the anti ecto act, which had lead many a specter to retreat back to the realms, causing a lot of unrest as the realms become more crowded and politically tense between factions who have not needed to interact for a while now.

It would seem the Amity portal and even Danny fighting the ghosts and sending them back through it was the break many of the realms' denizens desperately needed, but now with that option no longer being safe, as even their king can't protect them from the GIW when they're gaining so much support from governments across the world, tensions are running high in the realms and it seems that it's every ghost for themselves.

Danny doesn't really resent any of the ghosts for doing what they feel they must to make sure they aren't destroyed in what is shaping out to be a realms wide war at this point, even as he works overtime with his council to prevent that from happening, and he understands they obviously don't expect any actual marital kind of relationship from him, which is at least a little reassuring even if the idea of being married to any of them is still very weird, but he can't help but think there could be a better solution here that he's missing.

And then he feels it, a pull telling him he's overlooked something, someone important.

It's like a fire engulfing his ice core but not burning it somehow, just as it does not cool the fire around it.

Two opposite forces meant to cancel each other out, somehow instead keeping perfect equilibrium with one another.

He talks to Frostbite and Clockwork and finds out what that pull is and takes their advice to follow it.

Jason doesn't realize he just altered the source of all his recent problems to his location as he draws the All Blade to fend off yet another "challenger to the Prince's hand" whatever the hell that means, as finally one of them was dumb enough to try to use actual magic against him.

However, he soon feels the answering pull back from Danny as the latter decides to use the power in his ring to open the portal, feeling that this candidate should at least know he's coming to talk to him.

It's almost the opposite, he feels the fire of the pit madness flaring a bit, but instead of immediately trying to spread, to threaten to consume him unless he tempers it himself, it is still burning just as strong and wild, but kept in one place by an icy chill, an aura of cold, clear fury and calm in equal measure, it doesn't thaw from the fire anymore than his fire dies from the lack of heat around it.

They sustain each other, impossibly.

So Jason and Danny finally meet and give each other the rundown of their side of things and agree that maybe the best bet to not only stop ghosts from attacking Jason and proposing to Danny, but perhaps the key to overthrowing the GIW so the realms' denizens don't have to afterlive in fear and portals can be reinstated to allow travel through the realms and back, not to mention keeping the GIW from going after Jason himself who by their definition is certainly considered an ecto entity, is in fact to go through with the Ring and Blade ceremony.

Jason, at this point, is more of Earth than Danny, who has unfortunately had to step back from his normal mortal life when he turned 18 to take care of realms business, despite still only being Prince.

He was meant to have more time but with the GIW advancing like they had been it was in the realms' best interest as well as his own that he decree the realms going no contact with humans for the foreseeable future.

It's been nearly 3 years since then and they are still getting ghosts back from parts of the world who have been avoiding humans as much as they can.

As soon as he turned 21 all this ghost marriage nonsense has has been making his job of protecting the ghosts in all the realms a lot more difficult, so when ghosts realized he didn't want to be challenged every day for his hand, they went to the next best thing, the top candidate.

Now, Phantom was saying that he's gonna marry the guy they've all been trying to defeat (and failing, to his credit, so at least he was worthy of being top pick)

A lot of them were upset or disappointed, but he explained how this arrangement could potentially help out everyone in the long run and most got on board when they heard the new plan.

Now the only problem is that getting engaged, as mentioned previously, is a ceremony that could prove dangerous to Jason and "not to be insensitive about it, but if you die and become a ghost that sorta defeats one of the main purposes of us even doing this." Danny points out.

"So what's our plan, Your Majesty?" "It's Royal Highness, I'm not king yet, thank the ancients for that." "Yeah yeah, so what are we doing, Your Royal Whinyness?" "Rude. Anyway, there's a chance you might become a full halfa during the process, that means getting a second form and a fully developed core and powers besides the All Blade, which would be better than you dying. So the best way to ensure that outcome, as much as any outcome can be guaranteed anyway, is to start the process of making you a halfa before the ceremony."

"Okay? How do we do that?" "Well, we gotta get some ecto in you - " "aren't you made of that? This better not be a pickup line" "no, not like that! I told you, this marriage doesn't have to be anything more than a contract, I'm about as thrilled about having to get married to save my people as you are about doing this to stop ghost from kicking your ass on a weekly basis." "Excuse me? I won all those fights!" "Yeah, after getting tossed into brick walls 5 times per ghost" "not every ghost tossed me into walls. Box Bitch did throw crates at me tho, that hurt." "Holyshit, Boxy is not messing around anymore huh? Well, makes sense, he's a father now. He doesn't wanna raise his little girl in these conditions. Still glad he lost, but I'm surprised Lunch Lady even agreed to him trying."

So they start Jason on his ecto diet and in the meantime the batfam is brought up to date about everything that's happening and they get to work, Batman gathers the JL to push back on the GIW's fuckery and all of Jason's siblings have an engagement party and a bachelor bash to plan. The girls decide to plan a Bachelorette party for Danny because he deserves to have a break as well.

Jason hates his stupid family, but Danny seems happy to be part of one again after so long, so he sucks it up and plays along.

It's possible that maybe while preparing and planning and helping each other and working together, Jason has gotten to know and developed a fondness for Danny.

Okay so maybe he's a sappy fuck who fell head over heels in love with him in the span of like a month, but this is still just a contract to Danny, and Jason isn't going to push for or expect anything more. Danny doesn't need that kind of stress in his life rn.

Danny has been freaking out since he met his soon to be husband because holyshit that's Red Hood, that is THE Red Hood! No wonder he passed the trial of the All Blade, and the way that fire burned around Danny's core, a fire he now recognized as the warmth answering from Jason's own, made him realize that this is way more than just a contract to him. Still, he'd been part of the realms for a lot longer than Jason ans he was their future king. Jason as part of this contract would be his equal but until the marriage was sealed, he was still technically Jason’s superior. And it didn't feel right to take adventage of that and suddenly change the terms of this deal, to make Jason in any way feel pressured by Danny's own feelings. No, this was just a contract, like Jason wanted it to be. He would keep that promise to him.

Jazz and Babs get together to help their idiot baby brothers figure out their unrequited love is actually very much mutual pining and they're just being stupid.

Anyway the marriage ceremony is a different ritual from the engagement ceremony, the All Blade wielder summons it and presents it to the wearer of the ring, who sheaths it back into the summoner's core, symbolizing that they both have power over the Blade but it belongs to its wielder, and even the king himself may not keep it without permission. The Blade as a manifestation of Jason's will.

(And as a bonus, we know Jason is a literary nerd so he recognizes and appreciates the romance novel tropes happening to him, especially in the high king's court, but he is not a weeb. So I don't think he'd recognize the Utena references happening to him. But you know who I think would? You know who is a weeb who loves swords and is soooo jealous of Todd and his husband right now? It's Damian. Damian's fucking seething that he doesn't get a magic sword. He's so pissed and it's very funny.)

#dee's aus #dee writes #dc x dp #dead on main #ghost king danny #ghost bride Jason #rgu inspired au #mostly just the imagery #very loosley based on Prince Utena and Rose Bride Anthy #this was supposed to be just a silly goofy haha idea but now its got so much lore

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ramblingoak · 10 months

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The Cardinal's Bride, Chapter 7: The Ministry

Previous Chapters: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 ~~ Pinterest Board ~~ Spotify Playlist

Thank you to @tasty-ribz for the wanted poster! Lots of other amazing people have done fanart of Cowboy Copia so please go check it out: @meowsaidmissy (1 / 2), @snail-shell2335 here, @vahvco here, @ghulehgwen here, @rabidghoul here, @nocterish here, @enjoy-my-swearing here, @blacktie-whitenoise (1 /2), z-xmyers (1/2/3), _simpera_ on instagram and valkyrieinpink on twitter. Also a huge thank you to @kissingghouls for aggressively holding my hand and letting me scream at her about cowboys.

~ Cardinal Copia x Female Reader: western au, slow burn, romance, NSFW, 18+ only MDNI, 7,100 words ~

(This chapter includes the interlude that was posted previously, but please read through again so you don't miss sheriff Terzo)

“Copia did what?”

Secondo watched as Alpha nervously shifted from foot to foot. The Ghoul cleared their throat before continuing.

“He, uh, kidnapped Saltarian’s fiancé. Sir.”

Of all the fucking stupid things his brother could have done. He clenched his fists on top of his desk and resisted the urge to flip the damn thing over. When would Copia learn to let shit go?

“How did you find this out?”

“There was a courier that rode through about an hour ago. Dropped off some updated fugitive info and some new wanted posters from around the area.” Alpha pulled a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and nervously set it in front of him. “This was in there too.”

Secondo unfolded it and groaned. There was the familiar picture of Copia that was posted everywhere with a damned window but next to it was a picture of a young woman. He got progressively angrier as he skimmed over the text. The Cardinal and his Ghouls kidnapped the generous Mr. Saltarian’s fiance. The poor woman was being held for ransom less than a month away from her wedding. It ended with a quote from the banking magnate that a generous award would be given to anyone with info on the whereabouts of the devil worshiping outlaws.

Unholy fuck.

“Should I wake up the sheriff?”

“What do you think?” He crumbled up the paper and set it on his plate from dinner. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a cigar and his matches. “Wake Omega up instead. I need to know where the fuck mio fratellino is.”

“On it. I’ll have him come here right away.”

Secondo ran a gloved hand through his hair and took a few puffs on the cigar to get it going. After it was lit he flicked the match onto his plate, watching as the paper turned black. His eyes flicked back to Alpha and he called out to him before he left his office.

“Deputy…don’t tell anyone about this, do you understand?”

“Got it, Papa.”

Secondo nodded towards the door but it burst open before Alpha had even turned around.

“What now?”

Mist narrowed her eyes at Secondo’s tone as she shoved past Alpha.

“Got a problem on the floor. Some asshole thinks Cirrus is cheating him at poker.”

He pushed his chair away from his desk and ripped open a drawer. His gun belt rested inside, something he rarely wore anymore. Mostly because he’d be too tempted to shoot anyone that pissed him off.

“She’s supposed to be playing the piano.” Secondo settled the belt around his hips and then grabbed his jacket off the back of his chair. “Who the fuck is on stage right now?”

“Cowbell.”

Fucking Cowbell. He straightened his jacket and stalked around his desk, glaring at Alpha when the deputy still hadn’t left.

“Shouldn’t you be doing something?”

Secondo narrowed his eyes when Alpha hesitated.

“Uh, are you going to shoot someone? I could stick aro—“

“You’ll do what I fucking tell you.”

Alpha held his hands up and quickly turned, heading out of Secondo’s office. He could hear the Ghoul’s boots thunking down the hall as he went.

“You ready? Cirrus might’ve killed him by now.”

“I’m not that lucky.”

Mist snorted and turned on her heel, Secondo trailing behind her as she headed out and down to the casino floor. Secondo used the walk to check things over. He could hear the piano playing and Cumulus’s voice accompanying it. The sounds of glasses clinking and dice hitting tables got louder as the pair started down the stairs. The place wasn’t particularly busy tonight, but there was still a low hum of chatter from the patrons. Secondo easily picked up the sound of an angry customer as they started weaving through the tables.

“I know you fucking cheated so just admit it!”

“You can say it as many times as you want, asshole. It ain’t gonna make it true.”

“I know what I saw, you had cards up your sleeve! I didn’t come to this shithole to be cheated on.” The man took a step towards where Cirrus was still seated and spit at her feet. “Especially not by a woman.”

“I don’t know sweetheart, you look like the kind of guy that gets cheated on by women a lot.”

“You fuc—“

Secondo had reached them right as the man advanced on the Ghoulette. He reached a hand out and stopped the man’s progress, splaying his fingers wide on his chest and shoving him back away from the table.

“What’s the problem here?”

“The problem is this stupid bitch has been cheating and costing me money!”

Cirrus slammed her fist into the table and jumped to her feet.

“If you say I cheated one more fucking time I’m going to slice your damn throat.”

“You’re a fucking che—“

“That’s enough.” Secondo once again had his hand on the man’s chest but this time he grabbed his shirt in his fist. He yanked him closer, blowing smoke down into his face. “My games are fair. My employees don’t cheat. I think you’re just having a bad night friend.”

“I ain’t your friend.” He shoved away from Secondo, stumbling back and falling onto his ass. “Should’ve known a bunch of Satan worshippers would cheat.”

Secondo narrowed his eyes and took a step toward him. He pushed the right side of his jacket back and tucked his thumb into his belt so his palm was close to the handle of his revolver.

“Care to repeat that?”

“You heard me. Everyone knows about you guys. Fucking sacrificing people and animals and shit.”

“Well if you believe the rumors why did you come here? For someone with such a strong moral code you seem willing to revel in sin.” Secondo smirked when Mist stepped close and lifted up on her tiptoes to whisper in his ear. “You even spent the night with one of my fallen angels.”

“That’s a lie.”

“Liars. Devil worshippers. Cheaters.” He shook his head as he stared the man down. “Serious accusations from a drunk that can’t back them up.”

Secondo smirked when the man growled and clumsily got to his feet. He was itching for the man to try something. Despite how pissed off he was at Copia, he wasn’t planning on shooting him.

Maybe he’d get to shoot this stronzo instead.

“Oh I can back them up.” The man clumsily got to his feet and reached for his belt. “But first I’m gonna shoot you in your smug fucking face.”

“Are you?” Secondo clicked his tongue and let his palm rest on the handle of his revolver. “What a pity. I had plans for later.”

“Yeah well fuck your pl—“

The man had finally gotten a grip on his gun and pulled on it. He barely had it out of the holster before a gunshot rang out and echoed through the now quiet casino. Secondo watched as his body jerked and collapsed in on itself. The bullet had lodged between his eyes, blood quickly pouring from the wound and dripping onto the floor. Secondo grimaced for a moment before he turned to look at Mist.

“Take care of this please.”

“Yes, Papa.”

Mist pointed at some nearby Ghouls and snapped her fingers. While Earth and Water lifted the body up Secondo uncocked his gun and spun it back into its holster. He turned and took a few steps towards the bar before glancing back at the Ghoulette that was still sitting calmly at the table.

“Cirrus, a moment por favore.”

As he walked towards the bar he shot a look towards Cowbell. The Ghoul took the hint and started playing again, Cumulus’s voice joining not long after. At the bar he leaned against the front of it and nodded towards Air who quickly poured him a whisky. The liquid burned down his throat, but he held it out for a refill. Before he could tip that back Cirrus stepped up to his side and slipped the glass out of his hand, coughing after she tipped the contents into her mouth.

“Lucifer, how do you drink this?”

“You get used to it.” Secondo held his hand out for his glass and nodded towards Air again. As the Ghoul filled it once more he met the Ghoulette’s eyes. “Are you that bored?”

“Can you blame me? There’s nothing to do.”

He raised an eyebrow at her statement, downing his drink in one gulp. When Air filled it once more he handed it to Cirrus.

“Let me guess, you’d rather be riding around with my brother.”

“Well yeah, those shitheads need my help.”

“Do they?�� Secondo watched her throat move as she gulped the drink down. “Help with what exactly?”

The only answer he got was Cirrus coughing as the liquid burned her throat again. The fact that she wouldn’t meet his eyes was answer enough though. Copia’s Ghouls were loyal to a fault. When she finally spoke, Secondo froze.

“Don’t you want revenge? For what Saltarian did to your family?”

“What I want is to live my life without looking over my back waiting for the next Saltarian.” He also wanted more whiskey and another cigar. Cirrus sighed and set the glass down at the bar before turning to head back to the poker tables. Secondo shot a hand out and grabbed her wrist tugging it towards him. “I also would like you to take over for Cowbell please.”

Cirrus nodded her head, but when Secondo didn’t let go she turned back to him. He brought his other hand around and slipped his fingers into the sleeves of her top. When he dragged out the two aces he smirked at her and flicked them behind the bar.

“Oh no, how did those get there!”

Secondo snorted and let go of her before pointing towards the stage.

“Piano, please.” He winced as Cowbell hit a few wrong notes. “Before I shoot him too.”

He watched as she made her way to the stage and unceremoniously shoved Cowbell off the piano bench. When Cowbell looked his way he jerked his head towards the bar. Secondo sighed as he watched Cowbell wander over, reaching out for his glass that Air had thankfully refilled again. Before his fingers could close around it another hand intercepted it and Secondo gritted his teeth when he turned to look at the hand’s owner.

He really hated his little brothers.

“Was that a gunshot I heard? In my good Christian town?” Terzo drank the whiskey and then slid the glass back across the bar towards his older brother. Secondo glanced up towards the door when it banged open, an out of breath Alpha stumbling in. He froze when he caught Secondo’s glare, his eyes glancing towards Terzo before he quickly turned on his heel and left. “Oh don’t be mad at Alpha fratello.”

“I needed Omega, not you.”

Terzo smirked and lazily leaned back against the bar.

“Well, I was in Omega’s bed so…” His smirk grew at the look of annoyance on Secondo’s face. “You have become surprisingly uptight for someone in your line of work.”

“I just wish you’d stop sleeping with your deputies.”

“You know me fratello,” Terzo grabbed Secondo’s glass again and held it out for Cowbell who had settled behind the bar. “I sleep with everybody. Right, Cowbell?”

Secondo turned his glare to Cowbell when the Ghoul fumbled the bottle of whiskey in his hands, thankfully catching it before it hit the floor. He turned back to his brother and leaned in to stare him down.

“Did you know what Copia was up to?”

“You mean did I know our little brother planned on kidnapping Mr. Saltarian’s fiancé and ransoming her for a shit ton of money?”

“Si.”

“I did, actually. Thought it sounded like a good time.” Terzo ignored Secondo’s clenched fist slamming onto the top of the bar and turned his eyes toward the casino floor. “Didn’t know he planned on attacking the wedding though.”

“The what?!” He ignored the glances their way and grabbed onto Terzo’s ridiculous velvet vest. “He’s going to do what?”

Terzo’s demeanor changed immediately, his hand shooting up and gripping Secondo’s wrist.

“You’re not as observant as you think you are, fratello. If you were, you would have noticed that Copia has been planning this for a long time.” He dug his fingers into Secondo’s flesh causing the older man to wince and let go. “You also would’ve noticed that you had some of Saltarian’s men here.”

Secondo yanked his arm away and looked out over the crowd. Most had gone back to whatever card or dice games they had been playing. The only face he saw looking his way was Mist’s. She was leaning against a pillar by the roulette table, her steely gaze watching the brothers with interest. He took a deep breath and looked back at Terzo. The shorter man was smoothing his hands down his vest and straightening the sheriff star pinned there.

“I take it Copia is heading back here?”

Terzo snorted and shook his head before looking back at his brother.

“Where else would he go? Should be back tomorrow if everything went well.”

Secondo pinched the bridge of his nose, squeezing his eyes shut at the impending headache. That fucking idiot, of course he would come back here. Copia wouldn’t give a second thought to dragging that girl to The Ministry. Probably where he expected to exchange her for the ransom money as well. Willing to endanger everything in order to get his revenge.

“That selfish prick, when is he going to move the fuck on from this?”

“Never, you know this fratello. Copia isn’t going to be happy until Saltarian is dead.”

“Yes well, more then Saltarian is going to die if he continues this idiotic plan of his.” Secondo nodded towards Mist and watched as she slowly made her way over. “I need to buy some time before he gets back here.”

“To do what?”

“To let Saltarian know we aren’t involved in Copia’s bullshit.”

“Who gives a fuck what Saltarian thinks?”

Secondo resisted the urge to grab Terzo again, his wrist still aching from the man’s grip.

“I do and if you could bring yourself to give a shit about anything but getting your dick wet you should too.” He waited for Mist to get to his side before speaking again, “We need to keep Copia away a little longer. Do you know where he is?”

“Somewhere west of the Missouri River.”

Lucifer, please save him from these two. Secondo looked out towards his customers when the majority of them started whistling and clapping. Cirrus and Cumulus were bowing and waving at the crowd before they started another song. His eyes lingered on Cirrus for a moment, an idea forming in his head. She of all people would know where Copia might be. He could send her out to stop him and keep him away while he tried to sort this mess out.

“Cowbell, go switch with Cirrus.”

“But I ju–”

“Now.”

Secondo turned back to his brother and placed a hand on Mist’s shoulder. He could feel how tense she was and knew she had picked up on the seriousness of what was happening.

“Fratello, what are you going to do?”

He ignored his brother and looked back out at the crowd. Secondo could see them now, a few men scattered about that were paying more attention to him and his brother than the games they were supposedly playing. Too involved in whatever game Saltarian and Copia were playing with each other. A game that could easily destroy everything Secondo had worked to build after they settled here all those years ago. He couldn’t let that happen again.

He wouldn’t let that happen again.

~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~

Ethel had to come back and get you both.

With Copia’s lips on yours it felt like you were the only two people in the world. You really had no idea that kissing could be so…involved. There had been a few quick pecks from would-be suitors back home. “City boys” that kissed like it was expected and something to get out of the way rather than something to enjoy. Both kept their hands to themselves and stayed a respectable distance away from you as they leaned in for a brief pressing of their lips against yours.

Kissing The Cardinal was a completely different experience.

Copia kissed with his whole body. As it continued he had kept one hand tangled in your hair and his other arm curved around your back. He didn’t seem to want any space between you, something that you had zero complaints about. Your own hands wandered wherever you could reach and you kept track of where he seemed to enjoy being touched the most. So far he had reacted the strongest to your nails running across his scalp, a deep rumble vibrated in his chest whenever you did it.

Even in the midst of your wildest fantasies you had never felt like this before. It felt so good to kiss him, to feel his hands on you. You whimpered into his mouth when his arm moved from behind your back, but he quickly placed his hand on your waist before sliding it down your leg to your knee. He squeezed there and your leg jumped causing him to pull his mouth away and laugh a bit. Copia leaned his forehead against yours, both of you looking into each other’s eyes and panting trying to catch your breath.

“Principessa…” His fingers started to move against your knee and you waited for him to squeeze it again, but instead you felt the cool air of the room hit the skin of your leg. Copia was slowly pulling the hem of the nightgown up. Your skin began to break out in goosebumps all the way from your ankle to your thigh. Copia let his other hand leave your hair and he cupped your cheek instead, his eyes not leaving yours. “Is this alright?”

You had been trying to get the word ‘yes’ out of your mouth, but the sudden feeling of his bare hand on your knee turned the word into a gasp. He had your nightgown bunched up and his thumb began to trace circles against your skin. Your legs had begun to tremble in anticipation and maybe in another life you would feel embarrassed for being so needy, but all you felt right now was want and what you wanted was Copia. He was right here, right in front of you and he wanted you too.

Unfortunately that was the moment Ethel decided she had waited long enough and after a series of sharp knocks she had told Copia to leave you alone so you could get dressed. He had called out an apology and then pressed a kiss to your forehead before dropping the hem of your nightgown and letting it settle back at your ankles.

“We’ll pick this up later, eh Principessa?”

He grabbed his clothes from yesterday and then he had turned and left the room with a smirk, telling Ethel good morning again before going to track down Harold and the Ghouls. Ethel had turned her own smirk on you and you could only imagine what you looked like right now. Hair messed up from Copia’s fingers, your lips swollen, not to mention how your cheeks were burning from the scrape of his beard. At least he had fixed your nightgown before he had left.

“Let’s take a look at those clothes, alright dear?”

The rest of the morning was spent with Ethel as she sorted through piles of clothes to find a few things for you to take. You had tried to convince her there really wasn’t room to pack anything extra, but she had her mind made on setting you up with some more practical traveling clothes. Hopefully Copia would be ok with it because it would be nice to have some things that fit you better than someone’s spare pants. At the very least Copia would probably be happy you wouldn’t be wearing Swiss’s shirt anymore.

Ethel spent the time talking about random subjects. You learned about where she grew up and what originally brought her across the country. She shared a few funny stories about her two boys, both of which she and Harold had adopted rather than have any of their own. Ethel’s life had been so different from yours and it was amazing to hear her talk about it all. She had lived a full life even before she met her husband.

“How did you and Harold meet?” When Ethel didn’t say anything at first you thought maybe it was a story she didn’t want to tell. However when you looked at her face the older woman had a small smile and her cheeks had pinked up a bit. “If you don’t want to share that’s ok.”

“Oh, no dear. I don’t mind sharing.” Her smile grew a bit and she held up a blouse before continuing. “I stole his horse.”

“You stole…are you serious?”

“I was a handful when I was younger, driving my father crazy with all the things I’d get up to. But my mother had passed away many years before and he was mostly focused on the general store he ran. I was angry over losing my mother and angry over him ignoring me to work there so I caused a bit of trouble around town.”

You had a feeling that when she said ‘a bit’ she meant a lot.

“Did Harold live there too?”

“No, he was just traveling through one day looking for work. I was minding the store while my father ran an errand and Harold refused to talk to me, saying he would only talk to the owner.” Ethel sniffed and shook her head. You could tell the memory of that still irritated her. “So as soon as my father got back I stormed out of there, jumped on his horse and rode the hell out of town.”

She was quiet for a moment, lost in her thoughts before she continued.

“Well, long story short, the sheriff caught me not long after. He tried to get my father to bail me out of jail but that old bastard refused! Said I should finally face the consequences of my behavior.” Ethel turned and smiled at you, bumping her shoulder against yours. “So Harold bailed me out.”

“Really?”

“He did, he bailed me out and I haven’t been able to get rid of him ever since.” You laughed with her, imagining a young Ethel moving around town with a lovesick Harold on her heels. She quieted down, still smiling at you as she reached over and tucked some of your hair back behind your ear. “Now, how about you tell me how you and Mr. Emeritus met.”

You couldn’t help but freeze for a brief moment. This wasn’t something you and Copia had talked about. You weren’t sure what he would want you to say. Obviously not the truth, you were sure Ethel wouldn’t take kindly to finding out that Copia and the Ghouls had kidnapped you, despite how much the…situation had evolved since then. You would need to get creative, come up with something that would be easy to believe. Your lips began to pull up in a smirk when you thought of how worried Copia was for you to be able to think on your feet.

Time to show him what a city girl could do.

~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~

After spinning what you felt was a grandiose, but still believable tale of how you and Copia met and fell in love you helped Ethel wash some sheets and blankets. She had looked at you like you had two heads when you told her you had never washed anything before. Thankfully her look of disbelief was quickly replaced with the familiar kind look she had been giving you. Once again you felt an ache in your chest, wondering how different your life might have been with someone like Ethel as a mother.

It wasn’t that you didn’t love your own, but it was more just a feeling of indifference. The home you grew up in was cold and empty despite the numerous fireplaces and furniture. You had always felt alone there. The maids and cooks were instructed to converse with your family as little as possible. There had been a few people you had befriended when you were younger, but it always seemed like as soon as you got close to someone they’d be replaced. Your parents were so strict when it came to you, so cruel. You had always known it wasn’t fair or even normal, but the more time you spent away from them, from that environment, the more you realized how wrong it had all been.

The farmhouse just felt so right.

Ethel had given you a basket of things to hang outside while she took some lunch out to everyone else. She had a few rope lines hanging behind the house and walking out to them gave you a chance to see the farm in daylight. It was so beautiful you kept finding yourself stopping to take everything in. The house itself had a large porch in the front with a few benches and seats scattered about. There was even a swing and you were tempted to take a moment to sit down and enjoy the scenery, but you didn’t want to be caught not working.

As you walked around the front of the house you took in the large pasture that stretched out from the porch up a hill in the distance. There was the barn not too far away, with a few other smaller buildings nearby. You thought you heard shouting and laughing so that had to be where they were doing the repairs from the storm. The house and barn definitely looked like some work could be done, but nothing that really stuck out to you as dangerous.

Behind the house was where more fields stretched out. It looked like at some point there might have been crops there, but at the moment everything looked like random plants and weeds had taken over. Large patches of dandelions had cropped up and you took a moment when you set your basket down by the laundry lines to pick one. The bright yellow flowers were always your favorite, despite many thinking of them as weeds. Your father would always make someone go out and pick them from the yard around your home, but you tried to sneak a few into your room whenever you could.

You twirled the dandelion stem between your fingers as you watched the grasses and tree limbs move in the breeze. It seemed silly but you let yourself have a moment imagining what it would be like to live here. Maybe you could start growing crops again, harvesting things to take to a market somewhere. Growing things to use for your own cooking. Your eyes fell closed as you let your mind wander even further…thinking of who you wanted to share this dream with. The question you were afraid to ask yourself was at the edge of your thoughts, ready to ruin your daydream any moment.

Would a man like Copia be happy in a place like this? With you?

You tucked the flower into one of the button holes of your blouse and then threw a blanket over the line, smoothing it out before a growing noise behind you made you pause. Hoofbeats were getting closer and you quickly turned your head, the momentary fear instantly leaving when you saw Copia approaching on Brizio. He had an easy smile on his face, looking more relaxed than you had ever seen him. His black hat was perched on his head like always, but otherwise he was only in pants and his red button up. The shirt was barely done up, probably unbuttoned as the air got warmer. Your eyes couldn’t help but drift to the exposed portion of his chest, lingering there too long and risking him noticing. When you quickly looked up to his face you sighed at the smug grin on his face.

Of course he noticed.

He chuckled when you turned and started clipping the blanket in place. You knew ignoring him wouldn’t actually work but at least you could hide your own smile. Fueling his ego would just make him even more insufferable, not that it bothered you so much anymore. Especially when it made you feel butterflies in your stomach or when it led to him being close to you. Brizio stepped close enough you could feel his snout bump against your shoulder so you spun around again to glare up at his master.

“Copia I’m busy.”

“Looked like you were daydreaming to me.”

When Brizio started snuffling into your hair you pulled away, reaching down to grab another blanket.

“Well what are you doing?” You glanced back at him with a raised eyebrow. “Shouldn’t you be helping Harold?”

“I was, but his beautiful wife brought us lunch so I decided to come see my beautiful wife.”

To hide your red cheeks you ducked around to the other side of the blanket as you clipped it to the line. You saw his and Brizio’s shadow grow as they moved closer to the blanket, the sun bright on their back. The blanket moved when Brizio pressed his muzzle into it and you pulled it away from him.

“Copia! These are clean sheets keep him away.”

“Ai, Brizio is clean.”

You rolled your eyes when he gave the horse a pat on his neck.

“Yes I’m sure he’s just as clean as his master.”

“Principessa, I can’t believe you. Here I am wanting to spend time with my wife and she chooses to mock me.”

When you walked back around the sheet he moved to block your way, smirking when you huffed and crossed your arms.

“Copia I have work to do.”

“It can wait, come on a ride with me.”

“A ride? Where?”

He shrugged and looked around, much like you had done earlier.

“Eh Harold has been talking about the farm all morning. I just want to take a little tour.” He turned and smiled down at you. “Come with me.”

You hesitated a moment, biting your lip as you peered up at him. Going on a tour was something you wanted to do, but after this morning you were a little nervous being so close to Copia again. You wondered if he would kiss you again, you hoped he would kiss you again. But you weren’t sure if you’d be able to make the first move. Even for something you desperately wanted.

“Will we be gone long?”

“Not long at all and I promise the laundry will still be sitting here safely when we return.” You took a few steps closer and reached out to rub Brizio’s neck, looking up at him when he clicked his tongue. “What if I promise to keep my hands to myself?”

You gave him a smirk of your own as you studied his face.

“What if I don’t want you to?”

Copia gaped at you a moment, but before he could speak you both turned toward the house when you heard Ethel’s voice.

“Mr. Emeritus!”

“Quickly now, Principessa.” He laid the reins on Brizio’s neck and held his hands out for yours. “Come on, before she catches us.”

Ethel shouted for him again so you quickly made up your mind and placed your hands in his. A little squeak escaped you when he started lifting you up. You placed your right foot on top of his and pushed off the ground, laughing when he spun you around so you were sitting in front of him. He kept an arm around your waist as you settled against him and adjusted your skirt. It was a large billowy thing Ethel had given you this morning, perfect for horse riding.

Copia grabbed the reins with his other hand and turned Brizio away from the laundry line to face the house. You snorted when he waved at Ethel, the woman clearly not amused at Copia’s antics. Her hands were on her hips as she stared him down.

“Don’t worry signora!” He pressed his heels into Brizio’s sides and said something in Italian to the horse. Brizio immediately took off in a trot away from the house. Copia turned in the saddle to face Ethel again before you got too far away. “I promise to bring her back!”

He wrapped his arm more firmly around you and dropped his head into the crook of your neck. You shivered when you felt his stubble tickle the sensitive skin there. His warm lips pressing kiss after kiss onto your skin. After a few moments he brought his lips to your ear, his mustache scratching along the edge. You took in a quick breath when he nibbled on your earlobe. At the same time his hand started to wander along your waist, moving up higher and higher until it was resting right below your breasts.

“Copia!”

He shushed you, leaning down to press a few more kisses on your neck before he straightened up again to whisper into your ear.

“Are you ready for a ride?”

~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~

It was dark before you made it back to the farmhouse. Copia stopped at the barn first, leaving Brizio in Aether’s care before he took your hand and led you back to the house. You were both quiet as you walked. Copia kept looking out over the fields and you found yourself stealing glances at him.

The tour had turned into more of what had occurred between you both that morning. His hand on your chest had continued to wander, his lips on your neck making you shiver. It wasn’t long before you were squirming against him, quiet whimpers leaving you. Eventually he stopped Brizio under the cover of some trees and turned you so you were sitting sideways across his lap.

“Principessa?”

You were startled out of your thoughts by his voice and you looked over at him. He had paused at the bottom of the porch steps, pulling you against him as soon as your eyes met. Your eyes fluttered shut when he pressed a gentle kiss into your forehead. When he pulled away he tucked your hair back behind your ears and gave you a small smile.

“What?”

Copia shook his head at your question and just continued to smile at you. He glanced down at your chest and gently pulled the dandelion you had tucked into it away. You were surprised it had survived his wandering hands while you had been on the ride. He twirled the stem between his fingers much like you had done before lifting it up and slipping the stem behind your ear.

“Let’s get inside before Ethel comes looking for us.”

Thankfully Ethel didn’t seem too upset by your absence for most of the afternoon. She came over and squeezed your shoulders before shooting a quick glare at Copia. You expected him to make some sort of smart comment but instead he broke out into a wide yawn. Amongst the lamps and candles lit inside the house you noticed how tired he looked. There were bags under his eyes that were normally hidden by his dark makeup. Ethel took a few steps towards him and gave him a quick pat on his shoulder.

“How about you go clean up and your wife can help me set dinner out.”

All she got was a quiet nod before he took his boots off and wandered down the hall. You followed Ethel into the kitchen and helped her put the finishing touches on dinner, stealing bites as you worked. Harold packed a few baskets and left to take the food out to the Ghouls while Ethel sent you down the hall to collect Copia. As you approached the door you didn’t hear any noises so you quietly opened it to peek inside. The only light illuminating the room was from the moon shining in from the window, but you could just make out Copia’s form on the bed.

“Copia?”

You took a few steps into the room, about to call out his name again before you noticed how still he was on top of the covers. There was a pile of clothes on the floor by the foot of the bed and you carefully stepped over them as you crept closer. He had changed into a clean shirt and pants at least before laying down. You studied his face and could see that the dirt and grime of the day had been removed. A few wet strands of hair had fallen across his forehead as well.

The urge to brush the hair away was strong, but you didn’t want to risk waking him. Copia looked so peaceful, it almost felt like a spell had been cast upon the room. You found yourself holding your breath and you had to be careful letting it out slowly to not make too much noise. The floorboards creaked when you took a few hesitant steps back and you winced. After waiting for a few moments and not seeing him stir you turned and carefully crept back out of the room.

Ethel wasn’t upset about dinner changing, she just gave you that familiar soft smile and told you to take care of him. You and Copia could join her and Harold for breakfast in the morning instead. When you got back to the room Copia had turned on his side to face the wall. You quickly removed your clothes from the day and grabbed the nightgown, pulling it over your head and immediately glancing back over to the bed to see if he had been watching. The brief pang of disappointment you felt when he continued to sleep made you nearly roll your eyes.

The cowboy was getting to you.

There wasn’t an easy or quiet way to get into the bed and under the covers, but you crawled up from the foot of the bed as carefully as you could. The only light in the room was from the moon shining through the window, just enough to illuminate the side of his face not smooshed into the pillow. He looked so peaceful, his breath quiet and his body still. More hair was hanging down and you couldn't help but hesitantly reach out to brush it back just like he did to your own hair.

“Go to sleep, Principessa.”

You jumped at the sound of his voice, jerking your arm back and shoving it under the covers. He peeked his green eye open and it sparkled when the moonlight hit it. When you saw his mouth slowly pull up in a smirk you huffed and turned so that you faced the wall. The bastard had probably been awake the whole time. A few moments passed in silence so you settled further into the bedding. It wasn’t until you felt his arm slip around and pull you closer to him that you let your eyes close to drift off to sleep.

~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~

Secondo hadn’t felt this tired in a long time.

Not since the first few years after the attack, when he still expected Saltarian to show up with more men. To see another home burned to nothing, to see more people he loved killed. It wasn’t even just the fear of Saltarian though. It was also the constant fear of if they would make it or not. If they’d be able to keep everyone safe and fed. He and his brothers had worked tirelessly to rebuild things. A new home and a new way of life for the members of the Church of Emeritus.

After those first few years things had seemingly relaxed. There had been no word or sign from Saltarian or any of his associates. The Ministry, his casino and his home, had steadily grown since then. It wasn’t just his home now, so many of the Ghouls and Ghoulettes called it home as well. Most of them worked there or around the town in some capacity, Impera was what they ended up calling it in the end. Secondo and his brothers had settled somewhat comfortably in their own roles there, with Primo eventually moving a few days ride away for some peace and quiet. Everyone seemed, if not happy, at least content with their new life.

Everyone except for Copia.

A knock on his door interrupted his brooding, but it opened before he could tell the person to go away. Terzo waltzed in, looking rumpled and like he’d spent the last hour at the bar. Not the best look for the town’s sheriff, but everyone was so used to it that if he didn’t look this way that’s when people would be concerned. Either way Secondo didn’t have the patience to deal with him at the moment.

“What do you want, Terzo?”

“Ah, I see you’re in an excellent mood like usual.” Terzo flopped down into one of the chairs across his desk with a heavy sigh. “What happened? Did you have to shoot someone today?”

“Not yet.” He glared at Terzo when he brought his legs up and set his feet on the edge of his desk. “Don’t you have someone’s bed you could be warming?”

“Always.”

“Then what the fuck do you want?” His brother’s face sobered a bit and Secondo felt a quick pang of regret for snapping at him. Terzo was getting dragged into this nonsense of Copia’s as well. He was at risk of losing his family and home too. Secondo took a calming breath before continuing. “Has there been any word from Cirrus?”

“That’s what I came to ask you.”

Secondo shook his head and turned to look out the balcony windows behind him. Cirrus would hopefully be back tonight or tomorrow morning. It was a long trip for what would hopefully just be a quick conversation with Copia. His brother might be pissed at Secondo for interfering, but he would at least listen to Cirrus. The extra time would make sure his letter had gotten to Saltarian. A letter Secondo had written in a hurry before sending Alpha and Earth off with it. Hopefully it would be enough to keep the man at bay.

“Fratello?” Secondo turned back to Terzo and his face softened a bit at the look on his younger brother’s face. He raised an eyebrow, waiting for Terzo to continue. “What do you think Saltarian will do?”

Before he could answer the door to his office burst open, Mist quickly striding in. The look on her face was one Secondo hadn’t seen for nearly 10 years.

“What is it?” He got up and moved around his desk, reaching out to place a comforting hand on the Ghoulette's shoulder. “Is Cirrus back?”

Mist shook her head and took a steadying breath before she shared her news.

“Saltarian is here.”