#here are five different books in fifteen seconds | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hellavile · 6 days

Text

━━━ 𝑝𝑟𝑎𝑦 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑐ℎ 𝑚𝑒. a.h

warnings 𑄽𑄺 6.4k. fem reader, lowercase intended, she/her pronouns, murder mystery, aki is a chef, oral [ f + m.], sneaking away, marijuana use, praise, fingering + finger sucking, aki's tongue is pierced, sexual acts happen quick, mentions of depression, brief mention of emotional/physical abuse, reader is desperate for help/attention, parental neglect, grooming, minors aren’t allowed.

━━━ ꒰ 𝑚𝑜𝑐ℎ𝑎'𝑠 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑠 .ᐟ ꒱ ; another old piece of mine i never fully finished and now posting yrs later!

“okay, i'm out!" aki is shouting as he tosses his white chef coat over his shoulder, book bag on the other, the cool breeze of spring blowing through his raven hair the minute he opened the tall glass door that led to the front of the restaurant. his friend, also a coworker, is busy, in the mix of gathering dirty dishes and clearing trash bins but still sends him a farewell, a quick, 'see ya tomorrow. good job today!' till he's off to his bus stop. he was thankful he got out early, just before five in the afternoon meaning the sun hadn't set yet.

he sighs, extremely worn out, in dire need of a steamy hot shower and a greasy pizza while laying in the comfort of, finally, his own apartment he worked entirely too hard to gain. the commute to his place in brooklyn, new york became rather annoying due to rush hour traffic at this time. having to take the bus then switch to the 'n' train, hopping off and walking fifteen minutes until he finally reaches his destination. his second goal was to afford a vehicle to save him money instead of wasting it on expensive monthly metro cards.

aki's lived here his entire life, growing up in the bronx, not much different. he loved new york, but not their uppity expenses. the fact that he's paying nearly two grand for a 600 square-foot apartment with no in-unit laundry nor a gym at that, was nonsensical. did he want to reside here forever? yes. he'd feel homesick if he ever were to leave. having the opportunity to travel seemed like a much better alternative, that way he'd still have his home but be anywhere in the world doing what he loved, and that was cooking. aki hayakawa was twenty-six years old, earning his master's in culinary arts at the culinary institute of america, also known as the C.I.A.

his ultimate dream was to open his restaurant, which he would name after his tragically deceased mother. a terrible accident in which he dreads the memory of. falling endlessly into a black hole, hearing nothing but the sound of his own fear, the breaking of his bones when it interacted with brick interior, the feeling of his heart thumping excessively against his chest as he continued to drop deeper like a rock that was chucked down an empty well. this emotion he knew all too well; failure. when he lost his mother, it felt as if the world crumbled beneath him, malicious dark vines slithering up to grab him by his ankles and pull him down a bottomless pit of nothingness.

he tasted the agony, the anger, the sadness, and even the hate from the fact that she was gone and never coming back. countless tantrums, anxiety attacks, and depression summed up the apathy of it all. it took him six years to realize that drowning in pain would never help him gain the strength that he knew she wanted him to have. by letting her witness the pain he was going through from above, he was hurting not only her . . but himself. so to overcome the tragedy, he kept himself busy with cooking. going to school, earning his degree, and the current job he had with his best friend since middle school.

school was probably the greatest thing he'd ever done to reinvent who he was as a person. cooking is a delicate yet challenging obstacle to undertake, yet, it's so therapeutic to him. the nature of it all, being able to witness what he can do for many people, bring laughter and happiness—it's a beautiful thing. when aki was small, he and his mother would give back to people all the time. whether they were donating clothes to the homeless, or feeding small pigeons pieces of bread on a sunny day as they flew to the gray pavement, awaiting a feast. they always cared about others. they would experiment a lot, going to food markets just to come home and whip up a good meal which they would then donate to the less fortunate. that's when he learned how humble he felt to give back to those in need.

he wanted to show his mother his achievements, to push himself and become a world-renowned chef, just like gordon ramsey—without the aggression. he wanted his name plastered on articles for his extraordinary talent, talked about on tv, in fact, given his own cooking show on foodnetwork. aki grew up watching that channel, an obsessive enticement his mother could never break the young boy from. he was making recipes at the age of twelve, and learned how to cook at eight. eggs were the first thing, usually everyone's first, then as time progressed, he grew from simple pasta dishes to revitalizing gourmet meats, and anything french. just recently he schooled himself on how to create wine. every day he learned something new, and that was the beauty of culinary.

"hayakawa! come here!" star yells as soon as she sees the tall man emerge through the front door, ready to start his morning shift, raspy voice laced with slight panic, instantly making the man run to her out of worry.

"what's wrong?" he furrows his brows.

"look who just fucking walked in," she grabs his bicep, pulling him closer to the front counter. aki curiously follows where her finger points, seeing a slim man with black curly hair dressed properly in a white and black suit. silver and sapphire rolex on his wrist, his pale green eyes scanning through the lens of his glasses at the menu while he sips his water. expensive.

"i have no idea who that is," aki blinks, making star gasp.

"he's alexander bodari, one of my favorite authors of all time. remember the novel i told you i was reading, about this girl who was kept in this lunatics basement and almost murdered?"

aki's eyebrows raise. "the book dylan bought you for your birthday, right?"

"yeah! that's him. oh my fucking god, i'm so nervous, whew," star begins to fan herself, nearly having a breakdown. aki grabs her shoulder and chuckles.

"chill out, star. you don't have to serve him if you don't want to."

"of course i do! i just. . . can't," she frowns.

"you can, you've done it many times before. this isn't the first celebrity we've come across."

star sighs, nodding. "you're right, i can do it."

"good girl," aki smiles, patting the top of her head. star catches his wrist and scowls.

"fuck off."

"aki," another voice calls to him, this time it's the head chef, also known as his boss. aki greets him with a small, 'good morning, chef' before waiting for his response.

"i'm guessing you know that alexander bodari is here," lane says, arms crossed over his broad chest. aki nods. "i want you to cook for him."

aki and star share a glance of shock.

"uh, why me. where's dylan?"

"he's not feeling well so i gave him the day off. you're the only one here that's near his level, and he's a higher-up man, so i want you to cook for him. star will cater to his needs. we're kinda short-staffed today, and i trust you two will handle it properly."

"yes, chef," they say in unison.

star was only a waiter, working here for four years while aki earned his position two years into her time. the last thing the woman could do was cook, ironic since she worked in a restaurant with very talented people. lane would've asked her in a heartbeat if she was as skilled as aki. aki was known for making dishes at the top of his head, so if anyone asked for a special, he was the one to ask. before they began to serve anyone inside, aki gave star a small prep talk before sending her out. eventually, she got through with taking his order without stuttering or sweating. when she walked back into the kitchen, actually shoved the doors open with a joker smile on her face, aki cocks his head at her.

"you—"

"he wants your special!" she screams, doing a goofy dance, and skipping in her spot.

aki's face drops. "are you deadass?"

"yes! when he was looking at the menu, he saw your four courses on the back and chose your mom's stew! fucking a, man!"

aki is still frozen, weakly giving star their signature handshake, smile slowly easing onto his face. "my mom's stew? seriously?"

"yeah. chop chop, get to it."

aki was persistent. no one's ever ordered his mother's stew, which made this day very special for him. even if the dish was only on the menu for a month, it still meant a lot to him. he made sure there were no distractions, taking a tender chuck roast and cutting them into cubes, seasoning them well while throwing in worcester sauce, balsamic vinegar, garlic cloves, bay leaves, and beef broth. making a slurry with flour and water to thicken the stew. adding onions and potatoes. it was a simple yet fulfilling dish he looked forward to every sunday.

"deep breaths," star whispered as she carried the steaming tray of stew plated professionally on a porcelain oval-shaped bowl. in a way, it felt like she was telling not only herself but him. it's a rarity that people order his courses, and serving this to an author, a bestseller, a man worth millions, made him giddy. he was cheesing like an idiot, pushing star out the double doors to the dining area.

although as soon as she walked out, that's when doubt clouded his gut. did he put too many seasonings? is the meat tender enough? what if he doesn't like it? will he write about it on his author blog? god, he hoped the potatoes weren't hard. he had only tasted the broth, it tasted just like his mother's. what if. . .

"aki," star walks back in, an even wider grin on her a-symmetrical face this time. he blinks, realizing that he's been standing here for three minutes now. "he wants to see the chef."

he's dumbfounded. "me?"

"no, lane. yes, you!" she's squealing like a girl, and sometimes he forgets she is one, even underneath her blunt features and boyish sense of style.

he's clearing his throat now, strolling mindlessly towards alexander bodari's table, greeting himself and waiting for his constructive criticism.

"you're aki hayakawa?" the man questioned, lifting his glasses back onto his face.

"yes, sir."

"i just have to say," alexander chuckles, softly clapping his hands. "this may be one of the best stews i've ever had."

the tenseness in aki's shoulders relaxes, and he's sighing with relief, alexander noticing and laughing. "i'm really glad to hear that, sir."

"did you create this on your own?"

"it's actually my mother's recipe. it's my favorite. every time i make it, it reminds me of her."

"that's really ironic because this reminds me of the stew my mother used to make," he grins. "yours is the first that i haven't seen carrots in."

aki laughs. "my mom hated cooked carrots."

"mine did too," he fixes his collar. "is this your restaurant?"

"no, no. i'm just a cook here. i plan on opening my own soon. i already have my master's."

his brows raise. "wow, that's amazing. wow old are you?"

"twenty-six, sir."

"well, you're definitely going places," he compliments and aki feels even more satisfied. "say what, i'm having this pre-book release, about a hundred guests. i was wondering if you would like to cater the party. i'll pay you however much you want."

it's like the whole world collapsed on his chest. he'd never gotten an opportunity like this, especially this big. to cook for so many famous people at once was a blessing. he could really show off his skills if he took this offer . . . and did. after thanking him, exchanging contacts, and then handshakes, aki lets the man finish his meal before jogging back into the kitchen to scream about it to aki, lane, and the rest of the crew. alexander offered star to come along to serve, but unfortunately she couldn't, seeming as she'd be out of town for family matters that day.

alexander, of course, knowing she was a big fan signed a copy of his book she already had in her bag and letting her know she could help the next time he had an event. that made her happy enough. the two of them couldn't wait to finish their shifts today, taking the train to star's place and planning dishes all night, even cooking them to get them just right. alexander was hosting the party at his penthouse down soho. and aki had a week to prepare himself.

୨♡୧

cashmere sweaters, silk gowns, and jewelry that most likely cost more than his savings account roamed the lovely terrace of alexander bodari's home. every inch of it screamed filthy rich. rows of tables were set outside, the dark night sky making the moon shun brightly amongst the glass centerpieces filled with calla lilies and moss. white cloths, sterling silverware, and porcelain dinnerware. the terrace itself was elegant; freshly cut bushes trimmed as squares, a marble three-tiered italian water fountain placed in the middle. roses, dandelions, tall plants ranging from bamboo, snake plants, and pothos. alexander was very in touch with nature and his spirit. it's crazy he writes about the things he does.

speaking of, the book he was presenting that would be released in august was titled, 'to riven a magnolia.' he wouldn't quite reveal what it was about yet, wanting it to be a surprise, but did read an excerpt from the novel. aki only paid half attention, big words throwing him off plus he wanted to set the food table properly so guests could take what they wanted after his reading. aki didn't go all out since only seventy-two people were available to make it, and he didn't want any meals that would make anyone too full to converse, so he kept it simple yet exquisite. each guest received a slice of japanese fluffy cheesecake with a side of strawberry and mandarin orange tanghulu. beef wellington, and a six-sided cream garlic bread.

he received praise all night long. people gasping and thanking him for the food, giving him all sorts of compliments making the man blush like a child. at one point he held both sides of his face in his palms when a woman and her husband approached him to talk, way too shy, and the woman flirting with him didn't make it go away. eventually, her husband dragged her out of his sight. the night went on, classical music played as people sipped their champagne and talked about their wealth, their yoga classes, their thousand dollar dogs, golf, marketing . . . aki hopes he never becomes this way.

as he's pouring an elderly lady a glass as she rambles about baking, he notices a woman he's barely seen all night. he's disoriented, eyeing this girl leaning up against a vintage roman painting reaching the ceiling once the lady departs. brown eyes; the first captivating part of her body he captured. they appeared lonely, bored perhaps as they scanned through the crowd of people, soon landing on another pair, his own. the godly woman stared at him longingly. aki had no business nearly losing his shit under her gaze. wow. she was truly stunning.

one feature that stood out the most were the freckles scattered from the bridge of her nose to the swell of her cheekbones. pretty. her black hair styled protectively in butterfly locs that grazed her collarbones, seeing the industrial piercing hiding behind a piece. her lashes were long, naturally extended. heart-shaped lips were full and pouty, the upper lip brown while the lower, salmon pigmented. an emerald satin mini dress loosely clung to her alluring brown skin. cowl neckline, ruched waist, and an open back partially revealing the red dragon tattoo painted on the side of her hip. black suede gucci heels strapped prettily around her ankles, showcasing her white painted toenails. a three layered gold necklace on her chest. this woman, you, were the rationale of celestial.

it was the moment you smiled at him, tilting your head slightly to the side while tapping your ombré acrylic nail amongst the glass of your champagne, calling to him while he thoughtlessly followed, that aki would realize he had made one of the worst mistakes in his life.

"you're pretty."

it's the first thing you say when he walks towards you, offering a piece of cheesecake with a cheeky smile. aki is taken aback, chuckling nervously, palms already clammy the minute he approached you.

"pretty?" he's perplexed.

"that's what i said," you say, taking the gold fork from his palm and cutting a slice to taste, widening your mouth while maintaining eye contact. the man swallows.

"uh, i've never gotten that before. thank you."

you're too busy eyeing him to say a thing. even if he dressed in simple black skinny jeans and same color tee, a silver necklace tucked beneath his shirt, sable combat boots, and a white apron around his waist . . he looked damn good. his eyes were blue, somewhat smoke gray, dark hair long and straight, the top half tucked into a small messy bun on the back of his head. a few loose strands swaying around his cheekbones. he was tall, shoulders broad, forearms and hands slightly veiny. you gazed at his hands holding the plate for you, wide and rough, fingers long.

"you don't seem to be enjoying the party," he says, knocking you out of your daydream.

you hum with displeasure. "he's a fake."

aki furrows his brows. "sorry?"

"alex, he's unoriginal. most of his novels are stolen by people he pays to keep quiet," you side-eye him while downing the last drop of your champagne, slowly licking your lips. his eyes flicker there for a split moment.

"how do you know?"

the question makes you quiet, tapping your glass. "think of it like this; everyone starts off as a cocoon. eventually as time goes by, we evolve into butterflies. the cocoon represents our innocence; the purity and unawareness of what's to come in life. once we sprout into butterflies, we become tarnished, facing the real world and learning to adapt to its cruelty. life can be beautiful, but it's always painful no matter how happy or dismal we are. it's our choice to fly in the direction we want for ourselves even when the harshness of life beats us down. butterflies only live for so long. we disintegrate after inhumane amounts of stress, loneliness, or tragic events that take a toll on us, removing the power of staying beautiful. we show beauty to the public but don't feel it when everything around us is falling apart. but we can't make life harder on ourselves by dwelling on what we can't have rather than pushing for what we can have."

aki is speechless, half-understanding what you meant. "are you saying alexander is a butterfly that can't fly?"

"he's more like a mosquito, latching onto those who want to sprout into a butterfly but sucks the nutrients from them for his pleasure. he's a fraud. he'll never be a butterfly because he simply can't."

"did he steal from you? is that why you resent him?"

"no," you bluntly state, although aki doesn't believe you.

he takes the fork from you, cutting you another slice before holding it towards your lips, waiting for you to bite. you looked like you needed it. the drowsiness in your eyes may have indicated that you were tipsy. you giggle, shaking your head before he feeds you, your big eyes captivating him more. "is there something you want?"

"you."

aki nearly chokes and he's not even the one eating, your bluntness throwing him in a spiral of emotions.

"am i beautiful to you?" you lean closer, aki swallowing, scanning his surroundings. most of everyone remained in the living area, the two of you far behind a wall near the glass door of the terrace. he could smell your scent better, a sweet smell of caramel. soft skin shimmering with glitter.

"very."

"so what's stopping you? you got a girlfriend or somethin'?"

"n-no, it's just. i barely know you."

"that's part of the thrill," he watches as your small wrist turns and your palm is flat outward. "come upstairs with me."

like any man would, his feet walked on their own, stupidly following behind you up the black marble staircase, hand in yours as his eyes watched your hips switch.

"what's your name?" that should've been the first thing you asked, idiot.

"[♡]."

"i'm aki."

"i know who you are."

that's right, alexander introduced him to everyone after his reading right before supper. things felt like they went too quickly. aki didn't know who he was at this moment, completely floating out of his body and letting you take over like a spell. he was entranced. one thing leads to another, you're locking the door to one of the four bedrooms here. aki's sitting on the bed while you walk around, talking to him more about anything. his age, his aspirations in life. nonsense, basically. until he notices something.

a room with an open bay window revealing the late-night city of new york, stars in the sky, skyscrapers high. the breeze is warm, the air making the fabric of your dress rise just enough for him to catch a glimpse of the pink thong you wore. he's gulping, your legs shifting and a grin coming on your face as you see the tint of red blush across his cheeks. you're leaned against the window, toes pressing into your other foot, a gold anklet with the first letter of your name clasped on your skin. your shoes were off, and in between your two fingers sat a blunt, maybe about three inches now since you were too busy talking, letting it burn away.

once you flick it out the window, you fully turn to face him, sharp nails skidding up your thighs teasingly slow until the hem of your dress rises fully, and he's staring at the belly button piercing you have. your thick thighs, your curves, and your nipple when you moan and lift your arms to stretch and one of the straps falls down your shoulders.

"oops," you're pouting, and aki's had enough. he got it now. he understood why you wanted him to come up here. the liquor buzzing in your veins, and going straight to your clit like a drug. you wanted him the moment you saw him. you needed him, for more reasons than one.

aki was always one to put a woman's pleasure before his own. so when he saw you drop to your knees to crawl towards him, dainty hands trailing up his clothed thighs until you're undoing his belt and he's biting his lip. . . he was drawn in further. pulling him out of the confinement of his jeans, holding his pulsating dick in your hand, darting your tongue out, and pressing it flat to the aching head. he's squeezing his eyes shut when he's deep in your throat after a while, moaning around him and twisting your hand along as your mouth glides. his hand is in your hair, gathering some of it in his large fist while leaning back a bit to see those gorgeous eyes of yours stare into his, slightly watery. he liked that. he liked you.

"nnn, baby. like that," he's throwing his head back, jaw slacked as he tried to keep his voice down, not daring to let too much slip out regarding the guests below them. eyes back on you, he's watching as your hips gyrate in the air, desperately needing to be touched.

it's so foreign, this level of intimacy. it's been so long since he's had his dick buried deep in anything. sure, he masturbates like any other human being, but it's a rarity. he's so consumed in work that by the time he goes home he's knocked out in slumber, not even thinking about grabbing his fleshlight to fulfill his pleasure. the last time he had sex was at the beginning of his freshman year of college. it was some girl in his cutlery class who invited him over for late-night drinks, leading to more than just that. it was frequent until he realized he was failing courses because of the distraction and had to get back on track, so, he called it quits.

now he's pulling you up, feverishly pressing his lips to yours in a messy kiss, lips smacking, tongues bumping. you're keening when his thick fingers clasp around your throat as you straddle his waist, clinging to his shirt you eventually pull over his head. it's as if the both of you forgot that people were here and might hear you, but neither of you cared. aki's not even scolding you when you're moaning too loud the second he has you beneath him, your clothing still on, barely, and his jeans and briefs clinging to his ankles, your knees to your chest as his hot mouth latches around your puffy clit, back arching off the plush mattress.

the metal from his pierced tongue rushing against you as he holds the back of one of your thighs to keep them up, grunting and swallowing your arousal. you're whining so much it has his dick twitching, pulling on his hair not helping either. you're rocking your hips with urgency, legs twitching after he lifts his head to spit, collecting his saliva with two fingers before curling them into you, holding your stomach down while he shakes his fingers. that alone has you convulsing around him, tears in your eyes as you whimper his name and squirm helplessly, his lips kissing your inner thighs.

coming down from your high, aki's already propping himself behind you, turning you on your side while he laid on his, leveraging your head with his forearm underneath your neck, fingers in your mouth you suck while glaring at him. he curses, monotoned voice rasping, "don't do that."

"do what?" you hum, wrapping your lips around them again and moaning.

aki clenches his jaw, lifting your right leg to open you up before slipping inside, hearing you gasp as you adjust to the stretch. both of you groan in unison, turning your face to the side to kiss him while your nails clawed at his hip, then his ass as he rolls into you, too horny to be gentle and snapping his hips hard against your ass, grunting, "i heard you, girl," and drilling faster. your eyes scroll to the back of your head, aki swallowing the breath out of you as he sucks on your bottom lip and chokes you, the two of you whining in each other's mouth, muffling the noise although the skin interaction didn't cease.

he's brutal, a different person when in this form of bond. dropping your leg and reaching between to rub at your clit, heavy breaths on your neck as he hides his face there. you can easily smell the citrus scent of his shampoo, his scent overall a main attraction when he stepped toward you. . . like lavender. when he's nearing his climax, he gropes your chest, slurring, "be a good girl and cum all over me, baby. can i feel it this time?" and you nod, doing just as he says, his taunts and praises making your gut swim with butterflies.

you try not to scream as he licks and bites your neck sloppily, dazed. instead, you grab a pillow nearby and stuff part of it in your mouth, aki's face hovering over you as tears leak from your eyes and you cum hard, harder than you ever had. aki holds you close by your waist, taking a few more pumps before he furrows his brows and slowly pulls out, cumming on your flush skin with a hiss. by this time, his hair had fallen down his face completely, and even in your fucked out state, you reach up to rake through it with a lazy smile. aki chuckles, kissing your forehead before building the strength to find a cloth to clean you up. luckily, there's an en-suite bathroom, giving him access to warm water and toiletries.

fixing his posture in the mirror, he's rubbing his face and adjusting his clothes to appear as he did when he arrived; neat and professional. although what he just did wasn't so classy of him. he fucked some woman he barely knew at a millionaires home. work, he was working. not here for personal pleasure. he wanted to slap himself for being so easily enraptured. no one had to know about it. he only hoped not a soul downstairs heard what went on.

he's good to go, done scolding himself and turning off the bathroom light before stepping out. he finds you perched up, sipping a miniature bottle of crown royal you found in the bedside mini-fridge, sniffling your nose and blankly staring out the window. aki comes forward, gently grasping your thigh and gliding the wet cloth over your skin, the silence awkward.

"dandelions.”

aki's eyes slowly drift to your face, staring in confusion. "what?"

he notices how eerily slow tears built up in your eyes, gripping the bottle harder before exhaling. "dandelions," now you're finally looking at him, the coldness on your face making him anxious. "that's where his body is."

your voice is like vanilla. it's one thing about you that he grew infatuated with. it's one of the many reasons he was captured by you, brought to where he was now. standing at the bedside as he watched tears pool down your broken face. body? what body? he grew cold, nervously eyeing you as you sniffled, standing to fix your hair, dress, and walking around the bed to slip back into your heels.

“wait," he goes to grab your arm when you try to walk out the door. "what the fuck are you talking about?"

the deadness in your eyes scares him even more, and he's panicking when you say, "alex."

“alexander?!" he shouts, dragging you away from the exit, hands on either side of your shoulders as he eyes you, his own wide. heart pumping drastically. "what did you do? where is he?"

"by the dandelions on the terrace," blunt, again. as if you aren't phased at all by his reaction. "follow me."

he's stunned, unable to fully process what you were telling him. he already assumed the worst when the term 'body' came to light. though his heart raced heavily in his chest, his feet blindly dragged in your direction. cautiously watching your every move in case he had to protect himself. fuck, he didn't have any weapon. then again, he's sure he could easily handle you, knock you out if he needed to. lock you in a closet and alert the hundreds of guest just below their feet. that's right, there are still people here. and if you mentioned alexander, how the fuck and when the fuck did you have the time to . . . kill him?

"[♡]," he began to speak your name, but your head was in the clouds, ignoring anything that came out of his mouth as you cut into a passageway that led to a grand master bedroom, then facing the terrace you spoke of. he was nervous, your neck turning to eye him as you step onto the gravel, blankly staring down at something. he couldn't see from where he stood, matter of fact, he didn't want to see.

"he's here," you say. "he's here."

aki has no choice but to advance forward, wanting to squeeze his eyes shut from the upcoming scare of a human’s body. and not just any human, the alexander bodari. a flaccid arm sticks out from beside a bush, palm facing the sky, details of a struggle bruised into his hand as the skin in the area seemed peeled. aki’s heart drops the closer he gets, hand covering his mouth as he stares down at the lifeless body laying in a pool of blood. the aluminum wire draped around his neck stained with blood gave aki the answer he needed when it came to the cause. you strangled him to death. the question remains; who are you and how were you affiliated with alexander? most importantly, why’d you kill him?

“i don’t understand,” is all he can get out.

“the proof is in his first novel,” you utter, and he’s still confused. “the story about the woman who’s trapped in the psychopaths basement? it was about me.”

aki couldn’t grasp the thought of you being the woman from the novel star always talked about. that you had been the victim of his story. that it was a real life phenomena. that he met you, slept with you, and now you want him to, what . . . cover up a murder in a house filled with two hundred guests?

“he painted this image as if he was the most prestigious man on the planet. he made money off of real events. events that played out by torturing me, and using me to get his ‘creative juices flowing.’ he needed a test subject. he was a sick man who deserved to die,” tears pour down your face, the anger in your tone thick and pent up from years of pain and sorrow. “he was my father’s partner. my father despised me simply because of my resemblance of my mother and my rebellion against him. when he died from heart failure, in his will, he married me to alex.”

“that’s fucking. . . sick. i didn’t think that was possible in this day and age.”

you scoff with agreement. “yeah. he watched me grow from a preteen to making me his wife. sick bastard for sure.”

aki wants to vomit from this information. still unable to wrap his head around any of it. his hands sit on his hips as he stares up at the sky and blows a raspberry, try to keep his nerves together. you watch him with sadness, and maybe regret. you weren’t intentionally planning for this to happen. though part of you wanted someone to save you. to see the real you and rescue you from this torment.

“i know this is probably the last thing you expected to happen. i apologize for dragging you into this. i just didn’t know what else to do. i felt hopeless. and i refused to let his popularity run by making another fortune of a sick novel.”

“did he attack you?” he asks.

“he didn’t,” you clarify. “i think i just finally snapped. granted, tonight of all nights wasn’t the correct setting.”

aki makes a face that reads ‘fucking clearly’ as he rubs both palms down his face. he doesn’t know whether to run and call you insane or feel sympathy for a victim. but, murder is murder. and now, standing here with you, that’d make him an accomplice. as scary as that was, he couldn’t risk his future career. but he was stuck in a pickle. he wanted to help you.

“there are clear signs of struggle, so we have to make it look like an accident,” aki suggests, but immediately, you shake your head in disagreement.

“they won’t believe that. he’s one of the wealthiest men in new york. it’ll be a huge investigation.”

“then the only answer would be to tell the truth,” he finalized.

“the . . truth?”

aki nods, pulling you toward him and stepping away from the body, chills still going up his spin and goosebumps on his arms. “listen to me, you can tell the world exactly who you are and what he’s done to you. you have proof. transactions, marriage certificate, i’m sure there’s documents for days in his computer that can prove what he’s put you through. there’s evidence somewhere.”

“and if i tell the world, who’s to say they’ll believe me?”

“i believe you,” aki says. your eyes fill with hope, and thankfulness. “people will have their opinions, but we know the truth. do you have anyone else that can be your alibi?”

you think long and hard, until it hits you. “the maid. she’s been working for him ever since i moved in after my father died. she’s fed me, helped me heal wounds . . even get rid of his unborn child i lost after too much stress.”

“jesus christ,” he bows his head in disbelief. “where is she now?”

“luckily, the kitchen. the woman with the braided red hair. she promised me she’d always protect me. after his book succeeded he became nicer to me, gave me a ‘real’ marriage. she was like his mother, always scolding him when he raised his voice at me or wouldn’t let me live my life. it’s all so depressing.”

“okay. it’s okay, you’re going to be okay,” aki comforts you as you begin to sob once again, cradling your head in his chest.

the night ends in the blink of an eye. aki takes you into another room and wraps a blanket around you as you sit on the edge of the bed and wait for the police. he finds the woman you spoke of, pulls her to the side and informs her of the tragedy above. she herself looks relieved. not at all shocked by what played out, as if she knew you’d go through with it. aki guesses he truly was a horrible man. and to think he would’ve worked for him in the future. the police arrive shortly after the woman goes to check on you, insuring that everything would be okay, and that she’d stick to the full story. the police instructs everyone the leave the premises, aki being questioned for a full hour, this home becoming a crime scene, and all of their faces full of black ink on the daily news the next morning.

aki will never forget the chilling smirk on your face as they removed alexander’s body from the terrace. it was . . haunting.

#𑄽𑄺 ━━ ꒰ 𝑝𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑚𝑜𝑐ℎ𝑎'𝑠 𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑟𝑦 .ᐟ ꒱#aki hayakawa smut #aki smut #aki x reader #aki hayakawa #aki x you #aki x y/n #aki hayakawa x reader #aki hayakawa x you #aki hayakawa x y/n #csm smut #csm #chainsaw man #aki csm

93 notes · View notes

daphnefisherofficial · 8 months

Text

bugna: TAKIPSILIM | destiny's twilight

defy your destiny | rewrite your fate.

Pairing: MCU Moon Knight System (Marc Spector/Steven Grant/Jake Lockley) x Avatar Fem!Reader/OC

Update Schedule: Semi-daily (schedule depends on my work, most of the chapters are already written and I'm writing buffers coz I can't stop, help--)

Summary: Under the luminous full moon of the pre colonial Philippine archipelago in the year 900, Mira Batala's fate to serve their patron moon goddess, Mayari, as an avatar was sealed from the moment a divine kiss was bestowed on her forehead from her infancy. Gifted with a second chance at life, her extraordinary birth marks the onset of a divine oath to be honored and fulfilled as immortality soon became a curse rather than a gift. As she outlived her family and becomes the last of her olden lineage, Mira embarks on a millennia-long journey of protecting her people and guiding the travelers of the night through its darkest.

bugna: takipsilim (destiny's twilight) is a thrilling saga of ancient gods, boundless love, and a woman's timeless odyssey. As Mira confronts her past and embraces her role as Mayari's Avatar, she discovers the essence of her bugna (true destiny) and the interconnectedness of all strings of fate tied to her own: namely her intertwined destinies with Marc Spector, Steven Grant and Jake Lockley as the reincarnated fragments of her greatest love's past life.

TW/CW: Abuse, Age Difference, Alcohol, Alternate Universe, Angst, Comfort, Drama, Dreams and Nightmares, Falling In Love, Fluff, Historical, Hurt/Comfort, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping I'm Sorry, Idiots in Love, Not Beta Read, Mutual Pining, Polyamory, Reader-Insert Relationship(s), Romance, Slow Build, Smut, Soulmates, Trauma.

MINORS DO NOT INTERACT: I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONTENT YOU CONSUME.

MASTERLIST BELOW

Prologue | A Kiss Of Intertwined Destinies

Chapter One | Shadows Of The Past

Chapter Two | Dreams Of Fate, Farewell & New Beginnings

Chapter Three | A Chance Encounter Above The Clouds

Chapter Four | The Homecoming

Chapter Five | Ties & Strings That Bind

Chapter Six | Coffees, Paninis & Museum Dreams

Chapter Seven | A Night of Discovery, History and Connection

Chapter Eight | Avatar Of Mayari, Protector Of The Night

Chapter Nine | Forgotten Memories & Inevitable Truth

Chapter Ten | A Taste of Camaraderie & New Adventures

Chapter Eleven | When The Sparks Fly

Chapter Twelve | Between Awakening Desires & Celebratory Nights

Chapter Thirteen | Companionship & Late Night Confessions

Chapter Fourteen | The Hidden Protector

Chapter Fifteen | Bound By The Crescent Moon

Chapter Sixteen | All Has Been Revealed

Chapter Seventeen | Moon Magic & Mysteries Of The Night We Met

Chapter Eighteen | Shared Burdens & Unexpected Alliances

Chapter Nineteen | Choices and Commitments

Chapter Twenty | coming soon (11/13/2023)

Chapter Twenty One | coming soon (11/14/2023)

Chapter Twenty Two | coming soon (11/15/2023)

Chapter Twenty Three | coming soon (11/16/2023)

Chapter Twenty Four | coming soon (11/17/2023)

Chapter Twenty Five | coming soon (11/18/2023)

MORE CHAPTERS COMING SOON.

Also, I will be cross posting this on Wattpad and AO3 soon, so I have commissioned an artist to create a book cover. Here's a sneak peak.

I'm super excited to show you the rest once she's done. In the meantime, please follow her on Instagram @lindsaynid_arts if you wanna see more of her artwork.

190 notes · View notes

capricornlevi · 1 year

Note

SHAWTY I HEARD AKI HAYAKAWA AND CAME RUNNING-...Aki as a dad mayhaps? tysm!

aki as a dad!!!!!!!!! yes!!!!!!!!! (wc ~1.5k)

Aki has always been the responsible one.

Ever since he joined the Public Safety Division - even before then, truth be told, since he’s always had an air of seriousness about him, even as a child - he’s been deemed reliable by everyone he encounters.

Trustworthy. The backbone of the force, someone you can depend on. He’s prepared for almost every eventuality, and carries out his work with diligence and stoic dignity.

It’s a point of pride for him. He gets attached too easily, he’s well aware of that, but the fact that other people consider him to be responsible … gives him some small amount of reassurance. Almost as if he’s exuding a little bit of comfort just by being around. It feels nice.

But now, for the first time in his twenty-something years, he feels completely and utterly irresponsible.

Clueless, some could say.

Panicked, too.

Out of his depth.

As he stares down into the bassinet, gazing helplessly at the tiny baby who’s been wailing non-stop for fifteen minutes now, he feels lost.

How can someone so tiny cry for such a long time?

He knew babies were loud in spite of their size - he learned as much from the many parenting books that he read during your pregnancy - but he hadn’t prepared for just how much stamina they have when it comes to screaming. This kid will just not let up. How strong are his lungs?

Aki has tried every trick in the book to get your son to stop crying. The baby has been fed, changed, burped, rocked gently back and forth in the bassinet, has had his temperature checked for a fever at least three times …

Nothing has worked. Not even for a moment. The longest pause was about five seconds long, and it was just so he could catch his breath. The crying resumed immediately afterwards.

Taking a step back to reassess the situation, fixing his posture and rolling his shoulder to try and ease the stress-induced ache, Aki can’t help but notice that he feels a peculiar mix of distress, panic, and shame.

Distress, because the sound of his son crying upsets him greatly. He doesn’t like to think of his baby in a state of discomfort, even though the cause is still completely unknown to him.

Panic, because the cries are only getting louder, and he’s scared that his efforts are only making things worse.

And shame, because he had assured you that he could absolutely handle this by himself.

You had only needed to step outside for an hour or so to go to a dentist appointment, but still tried to bring the baby with you - you spent most of the morning trying to gather your son’s things in preparation for the trip. Outings with a six-week-old are more exhausting than either of you had anticipated, and sometimes you feel as though you should bring suitcases with you, not just a pram.

“No need to go to all the trouble of packing his stuff,” Aki had pointed out, watching you scramble around the apartment to find a clean pair of mittens. As always, his voice was calm and confident. “Since it’s just for an hour - it’s too much effort. I’ll stay here and watch him.”

You paused, a single mitten in one hand and an empty baby bottle in the other.

“You sure?”

“Absolutely. It’ll save you the trouble, plus it’s freezing outside.”

“Certain?” you ask again, trying to keep any concern from leaching into your voice. “Because it’s not that I don’t think you can handle him solo … it’s just neither of us have had to watch him alone before. I haven’t had to do it either, since you’ve always been there to help.”

Aki nods. He’s responsible - he has read all the books, and at this point, he’s spent weeks with his son, learning all about his behaviour and micro-expressions and what babies need to feel safe and comforted. Aki’s as prepared for this task as he is for any other. He’s responsible.

“How different can it be?”

As it turns out, very.

Now, Aki reaches a hand out to give the bassinet another gentle rock - futile, since the last five attempts hadn’t worked, but he tries anyway.

His brows pull together, concern weighing heavily on him. He hasn’t admitted this to anyone - least of all to himself - but deep down, this was always a worry of his.

Because he knows that on some level, the reason why he always acts as the responsible one is that he has to be in order to keep going. He’s spent most of his life feeling the crushing survivor’s guilt from losing his family. That feeling has informed every decision, every choice he’s made in the field, even the way he interacts with the people in his life.

Aki is responsible because he needs to protect. He knows he cannot shoulder the burden of losing another person close to him. He can’t afford to be any less than perfect.

When you first told him that you were pregnant, he had felt surprised, happy, hopeful - the pregnancy wasn’t planned, but his heart still warmed when he saw the barely-contained delight written all over your face.

However, he couldn’t ignore the spark of deep and profound insecurity that ignited in his chest. As the months passed and your due date grew closer, the thoughts started to nag at him.

You’re gonna fuck this up, Aki.

You can’t be a father. You can barely take care of yourself.

How are you ever going to keep this child safe?

He worked for months to overcome those feelings; for all of your sake, not just his own. For the most part, it worked - the first few weeks of your son’s life had been exhausting but rewarding, filled with moments of happiness that helped drown out his worried thoughts.

And recently, Aki had started to think that, yeah, maybe he could do this, maybe you could both do this together, since you make such a good team …

But that confidence seems to evaporate now that he’s by himself.

When he hears the front door push open a few minutes later, Aki’s heart sinks. You’re back home early and you’re about to see his utter failure.

He couldn’t even look after the kid for an hour … how is he going to handle the rest of his life?

“Everything okay?” you ask softly, approaching the two of them once you’ve set your bag and keys down on the counter. You could hear the sounds of crying from down the hall; the sound is never easy to hear, but it’s made all the more difficult when you see the expression on Aki’s face. “What’s wrong?”

“He won’t stop crying,” Aki admits, each syllable laced with shame. “The whole time you were gone. I don’t have a clue what to do, I tried everything.”

“It’s probably nothing,” you answer, and you mean it, too. You’re protective, of course, but you approach these situations a bit more practically than Aki does - as long as the baby is safe, fed, and taken care of, then it’s probably nothing to worry about. “Have you tried talking to him?”

He looks up at you, baffled.

“I - talking?”

You smile, warm as you can. “Talking. Letting him hear your voice, you know? Obviously he won’t know what you’re saying, but it’s worth a shot.”

And well … even though he’s still confused, Aki feels he may as well give it a shot. He’s tried everything else to no avail, and so even though having a conversation with a newborn seems ridiculous, he’s willing to try anything at this stage. He looks back down at his son, trying not to feel discouraged by the sounds of high-pitched crying, and starts to talk.

“Ah … h-hi, there,” he begins, sounding just a little awkward and stilted. It’s strangely endearing. Aki glances at you out of the corner of his eye, and you nod, prompting him to keep going. “You’re … okay. You’re okay, you’re gonna be okay.”

He rocks the bassinet along with the rhythm of his words, his tone now more soft and soothing as he reassures the baby.

“You’re okay. It’s all okay, don’t worry. It’s all fine. I’m here.”

The volume of the cries starts to lower - the baby is still stirring, but is no longer wailing at the top of his tiny lungs. There are even a few moments of complete silence.

Encouraged, Aki keeps going.

“That helps, huh?” he whispers, leaning down a little closer - he knows that babies can’t see too far away, and wants to let his son know that he’s there. The little face that peers back up at him is an almost exact mix of the two of you both, and Aki’s eyes soften even further. “Did you just want to have a little talk? A little talk with your dad?”

At that, the baby lets out a little delighted-sounding gurgle.

You laugh, reaching to take Aki’s free hand in your own.

“See?” you point out when your son’s eyes start to droop shut, ready to sleep, his cries having ceased completely at this point. “He just likes knowing you’re here.”

Aki likes knowing that, too. He knows that he’s going to be here whenever he’s needed, for both of you.

#aki x reader #aki hayakawa x reader #soft aki hours!#lets go!#thank u for the ask!!

523 notes · View notes

sizzleissues · 8 months

Text

Continued Speak my Language just a slight bit if anyone’s interested.

Edit : Got an Ao3 link now <- Both one-shots up

Again, base idea by @nervousbelieverstarfish

Hold On (1407 words)

She was always quiet at first. They’d find their spot at the back of the school library; the classics section that no one was ever in unless they wanted privacy and set up there. After the first day when they had found the main area too bright and too echoey to bear, they’d (well he’d) dragged a couple chairs into the more shaded section and staked their permanent claim. They’d sit in the seats they always sat in, Marinette facing him and the bookshelf and Adrien facing the pathway down. It would take five minutes of gentle prodding to get her to speak more than a couple words. Then there was no silencing her.

That trait of hers made it so often they'd end up sitting on a bench outside the school after being kicked out for disturbing the quiet. Depending on the day she'd be mortified into silence or dedicated to getting even louder.

Adrien didn't mind one bit.

After two weeks of finding themselves stranded outside, Marinette surprised him.

“So, I was wondering if you wanted to come over to mine instead, to tutor me? We can be as loud as we want in my bedroom and it's not too far from your house.”

Adrien shut the French book he'd been showing her and placed it between them. Going to her house was definitely closer to being friend friends then school friends. (Which was already a step up from tutor and student but he'd allowed the change because it would be awkward otherwise.) The voice inside him told him to make something up about not being allowed but that didn’t really make any sense. He wanted to say yes and he was already allowed to stay late at school to tutor her, why not at her house?

“Sure,” Adrien said. He felt a lot lighter all of a sudden. Had his self-imposed isolation really weighed on him that badly? “That sounds perfect.”

“Great! We can walk there after school tomorrow.”

Marinette stood with a grin on her face, picking up her school bag and books.

“Say that in French,” Adrien said. Her smile dropped from her mouth but her eyes still remained lit. She pursed her lips in thought and then produced after a few seconds of thinking;

“Good. We will walk there after school… tomorrow!”

“You’re getting better!”

“Because of my excellent mentor.”

“You live over a bakery!”

Marinette looked behind her shoulder at him to where he’d stopped in his tracks. She laughed and went back to unlocking the door.

“My parents own the bakery.” She pushed the door open and stepped for Adrien to walk into a small stairwell, his mouth hanging open. They’d walked right past the customer entrance to their private one but from a brief glance he could tell it was popular. How had she not mentioned this? If it were him that would be the first thing he’d say.

“That’s so cool.”

She led him up the staircase into the apartment above the bakery and then quickly through it up to her attic bedroom. The smell of baked goods chased them up the entire way and he realised why Marinette always smelt so good, it was the scent of fresh bread and cinnamon.

Her bedroom was far enough away to allow for its own aroma, something floral and sweet to match the pink decor. It made perfect sense that a room like this belonged to Marinette, it was everything she was and more. A little chaotic with clutter but with a purpose to its madness, soft with cushions and plush furniture that invited him to relax. There were magazine cut outs along the walls from different fashion lines as well as what appeared to be her own designs pinned beside them. She walked past it all, clearing off the love seat at the back of the room for them to sit on.

“We can sit here. Ignore the mess,” Marinette said.

Adrien sat down, placing his bag at his feet. He was in awe of how much personality she’d crammed into her one room when all he’d managed to have done to his room of fifteen years was stick up a Ladybug poster a week ago and call it a day.

“Your room is amazing.”

Her cheeks turned a light pink as she turned away. Perhaps he’d sounded a little too amazed.

“I tried to make it feel like my room in China but it feels like it's missing something.” She crossed to the other side of her room and pulled her desk chair back with her to sit on.

“Why’d you never mention that your parents owned a bakery before?”

“It didn’t really come up. Before my parents met my Papa ran a bakery here but he closed it to move to China with my Maman.”

He couldn’t imagine how that might have felt. He didn’t have much to close up and leave behind. Not anything that would care if he left anyway.

“Marinette?” Someone called, followed by the trapdoor swinging open. A large man with an impressive mustache stuck his head through it, a tray filled with treats carried in his hand. This must be her father. Her father’s eyes landed on Adrien, seated politely on his daughter’s love seat, widening slightly. Had she not told her parents?

“Papa! Out!” Marinette dove across the room. She grabbed the tray from his hands as a teasing smile started to spread across her father’s lips.

“Is this your boyf—.”

Marinette slammed the trapdoor shut, forcing her grinning father out. She lay on top of it and looked back to Adrien with an embarrassed expression.

“Sorry about him.”

“Boyfriend?” He said it without meaning, mulling over the logical conclusion to M Dupain’s words. Boyfriend was definitely a bigger step up than friends. He couldn’t tell how that word felt in his mouth but it wasn’t a terrible taste. He could see it suiting him one day.

Marinette turned pink, scrambling up to her feet before falling down again.

“I don’t think you’re my boyfriend! I was just talking about our lessons to my Mom and he misunderstood. Mandarin's his second language so sometimes we speak too fast for him and he made a completely incorrect assumption. I corrected him but you know how dads are, they’ll take any chance to tease you. Please don’t be freaked out.”

But he didn’t know how dads were. Gabriel was only his in name. Marinette kept talking but Adrien stayed with that thought for another while.

He became aware of how quiet it had gotten when Marinette whispered his name.

“Adrien?”

“Eh-. Sorry. Y-your fine, I wasn’t bothered by it.”

Marinette frowned. He must have missed more than he’d thought. She sat across from him, kneeled down and looking up with her brow lightly pinched. Her hands flexed against the material of her jeans, a habit of her’s he’d grown to notice.

“You look really zoned out. Was I speaking too fast again?”

“No, no. I could keep up. I’m just-.”

“What?”

Adrien bit down on his lip using the moment of pain to ground himself again. He wouldn’t shut her out too, she didn’t deserve it like Gabriel did.

“I don’t know what ‘dads’ are like.”

“Oh? I thought-.”

“I have a dad.” He interrupted. “It’s my mom that’s gone but her death sort of took him with her. He’s different now.”

“Do you miss him?”

Adrien didn’t answer because he didn’t have one. No one had ever asked if he missed his dad. Only his mom and only with their eyes downcast and their voices lined with pity. Marinette didn’t hide like that, there wasn’t a trace of pity to be found in her voice. Only a question.

“Yeah. I do.”

Something hot rolled down his cheek.

“Oh, Adrien.”

She reached toward him, locking him into her arms. Her head slotted perfectly onto his shoulder, the scent of her hair filling his senses. Of course she used blueberry scented shampoo, the obviousness of it nearly made him laugh. Then he cried some more as he realised he hadn’t been close enough to someone to smell their shampoo in a while. He tightened his arms around her back.

Marinette pulled back for a moment and he saw a thought flit past her eyes. A slight shake in her watery smile that he nearly wanted to chase. But it wasn’t the right time and she wasn’t the right person.

“You can have my dad if you want. While you wait for yours.”

“I think I will.”

I said i was busy but this had already been partially written weeks ago so forgive me! This is just another kinda fleshing things out thing. Again playing a bit more into the movie canon but show stuff does apply.

Little reference to their alter egos (well just Ladybug) so I’m going to explain it a bit and I want to write another one shot delving into how their dynamic works in this AU.

I imagine the miraculous act as universal translators. Marinette is hearing everyone in Mandarin and they’re hearing her in French but she doesn’t know that. Opposite for Adrien. So it gives a bit more a reason for Marinette to like being Ladybug because as Ladybug she’s accepted and understood by everyone.

Most of the movie stuff happens with Adrien using Chat Noir to be the person he suppresses and Marinette to be the person she is without difficulty. They both find freedom in it now while they face the pressures of being heroes.

Ladynoir is still Ladynoir-ing in ways I’ll hopefully get to write about.

Also as you see I’m trying to flesh out Adrien daddy issue angst. I imagine that he grieves his father in much the same way as he grieved his mother but Gabriel is someone who still haunts him. So while talking about his mother makes him slightly annoyed because it’s such a done topic to him now, his father is an ongoing issue.

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous #ml fanfic #ml fic #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #adrinette #miraculous movie #speak my language

79 notes · View notes

keylovesstuff · 2 days

Text

I give you guys this :)

AO3

FFN

Little Events Chapter 4: Proposals

"So when are we going to get married?" Bowser asked her five minutes into silence after everyone left the meeting room.

Water mixed with spit flew an impressive fifteen inches across the table hitting him directly in his face. The Koopa King blew the little water from his nostrils while the rest dripped down his face. It took a good ten seconds for Peach to finally catch her breath and another five to compose herself while repositioning her crown upon her head.

"Excuse me, but one you never proposed, two I never said yes, and three are there not specific courting customs you have to follow?" Peach asked while listing off each statement one gloved finger at a time.

"Fine." Bowser huffed standing and making his way over to her seat. Peach turned her body to face him once he was in front of her. Taking her hand in his giant one bending down on one knee. "Peaches, from the moment we first met, I knew you were the one that I wanted to spend my entire life beside. You're already such an amazing leader and together we would be the best rulers in the world. With that accept my hand in marriage." He finished giving her his best dreamy eyes.

Peach was certain she was blushing out of embarrassment as she quickly pulled away and straightened up the papers on the table.

"I wasn't being serious and what kind of proposal was that? It wasn't even romantic." She pouted gathering up today's materials and started towards her office. The Koopa King followed behind.

"We both have a different view of what a 'romantic' proposal entails." Bowser grumbled under his breath looking at all the free space along the walls. "I've been saying you should add more portraits or at least some mirrors. How's a guy supposed to admire their own handsomeness or their leader when I'm here?" He commented for the umpteenth time.

Other than a slight chuckle, Peach carried on towards her office. Another thing both Bowser and her Advisor Toadsworth shared similar opinions on. It wasn't so much as she didn't think she was pretty- far from it actually but, that doesn't mean she wants a portrait or her own reflection 'staring' as she went about her day. Lone stone statues and having his entire face sculpted into his castle may work for him but not for her. The thought of having to sit perfectly still for almost eight hours dissuaded her from wanting any portraits done. While the glass stained portrait displayed outside was nice, she did not miss that numb feeling in her butt just for them to get the perfect reference. Peach was thinking that if any pictures were to go on the walls, landscapes of the world's natural beauty would be nice.

Peach supposed that once she starts traveling to other kingdoms she'd find some lovely sights that she'd want to look at again even if she could only visit once. She entered her office to place the papers on the desk to look over at a later time while Bowser waited outside.

"I got some other things to attend to so I'm going to be leaving here in a bit. Is there anything else in that pile I need to sign or something" Bowser asked from outside the room.

Peach hummed and quickly skimmed through the paperwork she just placed down and hummed softly.

"No you're all good. Thanks for fitting this meeting into your schedule. I know you hate how early they are." She told him, while closing the door "I'll accompany you to the pipe if you'd like" she offered and he just nodded.

"Least you can do after you rejected my proposal earlier." Bowser finally said after they walked in silence for a few minutes.

Peach continued but was at a loss of words. Was he really that hurt by her rejection? Was he really that serious with his proposal? Maybe that was the most 'romantic' he could be and her expectations were either too high or unrealistic given that the most she knows about romance comes from books. Bowser was from the darklands and similar to her, didn't have anyone to look to on how being in love looked. She has her doubts that Kamek had little time for a personal life of his own with being at his lord's beck and call, much less giving him advice about it. Toadsworth himself never went into much about his romantic life only going as far as to say at one point he was involved with some ambassador in training but they broke up mutually.

To her memory Toadsworth never actually pursued anyone else in their community either. When Peach was young she did question him every now and then about wanting a partner, only for him to brush it off and sweetly tell her that he'd wish to put all his energy into raising her. Younger Peach enjoyed hearing those words then but now she wished he took time to focus on himself outside of her but, he doesn't seem all that bothered she guessed. The princess had to stifle a chuckle once she realized she hadn't responded to Bowser's comment. Even after knowing him for all these years, Peach still viewed him as her very much self-absorbed friend that would occasionally offer some good advice when it comes to being in power. While she didn't take all his advice to heart, she couldn't argue with the fact that it worked for him when she visited his Kingdom. That didn't mean she could see herself being by his side for the rest of her life.

They made it to the pipe before she finally found something to say.

"So um, exactly when and how did you know that you loved me to the point that you were thinking about marrying me?" Peach turned red again in embarrassment after structuring the question in the best way. Bowser stared at her silent for what seemed like the longest two minutes. She found an interesting spot on the ground and was about to tell him to forget about it till he finally spoke up.

"Guess I just see you as a worthy leader to be with considering how far this place has come in just half a year into you taking power. Already better than other kingdoms that've been operating for years. That and I can never have too much territory and this place is huge and of course having you as my Queen would grant me access to that. What are you thinking about saying yes?" He finished with a wiggle of his bushy eyebrows.

Peach gave a sigh of relief inwardly. There was no sort of love confession in what he had said which would make what she had to say next a little more easier.

"Not exactly. I feel like I still have so much to do as a leader on my own. I really do appreciate all you've done to help me get this far but, I think I want to see more of what other places have to offer before I even think about marriage I guess" she finished with a bow.

"Hmm on your own...I see" Bowser regarded her words with claws on his chin.

The way he repeated her own words sent a sort of strange feeling down her spine but Peach shook it off. Maybe due to nerves of having to admit that out loud and not having a clue on where to start to make it happen. Again the silence lingered on for far longer than she was comfortable with as he stepped onto the pipe.

"No choice but to sit back and see what you do Princess Peach," Bowser finally concluded. "When you feel like you're in that position make sure to consider what I've said. I do trust you'll make the right decision as it's much better to have me as an ally than an enemy" he added, smiling proudly to himself as he saw her gulp.

"Of course Lord Bowser. Please take care and I look forward to our next visit, where you'll hopefully start accompanying me to other kingdoms?" Peach reminded him of his promise to hopefully end this conversation on a positive note.

"Sure. I'll write or come visit you when I can so we can set up some days. I'm pretty sure that old man and that excuse you call a council would insist on being in attendance" mouth frowned in disdain when he mentioned her people. She chose not to acknowledge it.

"I'll look forward to it," Peach said, waving him off as he disappeared down the pipe.

As she was heading back to the castle to carry out the rest of her appointments and for the remainder of the day, Bowser's words and the idea of marriage played throughout her mind. For the first time since her coronation, she was thinking about all the other responsibilities that came with being a leader.

The sun had already set for the day and Peach found herself in her office chair reviewing notes written by both herself and council along with documents from today. She could feel her eyelids getting heavy and brain turning into mush as she tried to process the words enough to know where to properly sort them in the drawers behind her. A long yawn filled the otherwise silent room and in that moment she looked up at the clock and it was about a half an hour till 12am. The first obligation scheduled for the day was set for seven. With a groan she contemplated on just leaving everything sprawled out on the desk and just calling it a night. A small laugh found its way out of her mouth as she could practically hear Toadsworth saying that he taught her to make sure all her areas were left spotless when she leaves. Gathering up the last little bit of her energy, Peach willed herself into finally sorting the papers and the thoughts from earlier bought her Advisor outside of her door with a knock.

At her words of 'come in' the door opened and in walked Toadsworth dressed in lavender striped nightshirt, matching night hat atop his cap, and white slippers instead of his usual attire with his signature bowtie.

"Time management needs to get better my dear Princess. This is the fifth time this month I've found you in here at an unruly hour" He tsked and set to work organizing the writing materials on the desk and then her papers.

Peach watched as with just a five to ten second glance he knew the correct place to file it for later, Truly earning his place as being her most trusted advisor. He's always been there to listen to her concerns and give her good advice whenever she found herself too much in her head.

"I guess I was just a little distracted by something today and it's taking me a while to get this stuff done" she told him, moving to help with the other stuff.

"Oh? Perhaps you'd like to discuss? It may help to ease your mind." He offered before gasping suddenly at the sight the untouched tray of food. "Before we get to that you need to eat your dinner" confirming his suspicions he lifted up the lid.

With a quick promise of returning he grabbed the tray and left the office. Peach finished sorting the remaining papers. By the time she placed the last piece away, Toadsworth returned with the now warmed meal. She was a few bites into her grilled cheep fish sandwich before the toad seated across urged her to share what was on her mind.

"What do you think about the idea of me getting married to someone someday?" she asked him finding the right way to phrase it.

Immediately Toadsworth eyes glanced to both her hands for an extravagant ring on her finger. He put his hand over his chest to ease slow down his heartbeat when he realized she hadn't rushed into a commitment like that without talking to him first.

"Well of course I want you to find someone that you're so infatuated with to want to spend the rest of your life with." He told her and took a sip of tea he bought up earlier. "As a matter of fact...I should probably apologize for not allowing you to interact with people more like you despite them being a pipe away" he added, setting the cup down and looking at nothing on her desk.

To an extent she understood where he was coming from but, on the other hand she couldn't remember a time growing up where she wanted to be around other humans. Then again from the time she turned nine after a normal school day she was immediately thrusted into formal leadership teachings so where did she have time to really think about it. In conclusion, Peach thought that she couldn't quite miss or be bitter about something she never had an association with in the first place.

"There's no need to apologize about that Toadsworth" she started and reached out for his hand. Toadsworth grabbed it, giving it a squeeze. "I don't think it matters how a person looks so much as their personality and how they are when it comes to ruling." Peach finished with a smile.

"If you say so my dear" Toadsworth patted her hand with his other hand and returned her smile with his own best.

Hearing that made him feel a bit better but, he'd be lying to himself if he didn't think he could've done better as her guardian. Sure Peach has turned out to be an amazing young lady and while she still had a lot more growing to do, he was proud at just how good of a leader she is now. Toadsworth did wonder just how much if any of her mental has been affected by not being around humans and wasn't sure if he was ready to face it should the time come.

"You must be in love if you're asking questions about marriage. Am I right?" He asked to get them back to the topic at hand. Now thinking and hoping that it's not about the Koopa King after what she said earlier. Saying she fell for one of the toad guards would've been better if he was honest.

"Not exactly" she started not acknowledging the look of relief on his face. 'What was he thinking she was going to say?' It was probably better she didn't know so she just carried on. "I was looking up other reasons that people, well mostly royalty get married and it's not always about love" she shared this most recent discovery with him but if she thought about it he probably already knew that fact.

"I guess I understand that. What pushed you to look into all that Princess" he urged her to continue. Peach gathered her thoughts for some moments and took a deep breath before speaking.

"Well why I don't think I like Bowser in that way, his influence as an ally has proven to be good. Mmm I guess if there's a permanent engagement in place especially when it comes to the safety of everyone. If that's taken care of well then I guess I could learn to love him or anyone for that matter later" Peach told him and then felt unconfident about it seconds later "I'm sorry does that make any sense? I fear it doesn't." She said turning away to focus on the wall.

"I see where you might have come to that conclusion. I do want to assure you that as you will never have to make a decision like that alone and if you feel you need to I would hope you address that with the council or me first." He told her sternly and only continued when she gave him a nod. "Furthermore, as the people who have cared for you from the time you were little, your happiness means the most to us and while other kingdoms have their own rules set in place, here you will marry who you love ok." Again she nodded to show that she was still listening to him. "Finally if it's the peoples safety that really pushes you to go forward with something like that, then we'll give us time to show you that we can adapt and find ways to be strong ourselves." He finished but felt it necessary to add the next point. "We trust you so you have to trust us."

While Toadsworth wanted to follow that up with he'd be fine with her marrying anyone that wasn't Bowser, he didn't want to sound like an immediate hypocrite should she genuinely fall for him in the future. Though he'd have to see a serious change in that reptile to even consider him someone worthy of respect other than having the obvious title.

Peach could feel a burning sting prick the corners of her eyes while processing his words. In some part of her mind she knew that but it hit so much harder hearing come out of his mouth. It probably was because it came from Toadsworth but she also knew everyone would also say the same thing. With that she gathered the strength to get up from her seat, walk around the desk, and wrap her arms around his neck. Only feeling him return with the same gesture did she speak.

"Thank you Toadsworth" she said as a happy tear streaked down her cheek.

_______

Three weeks later Peach found herself in the throne room and felt another headache coming along as one of the Toad gave the same report since the first day. Part of her alliance with Bowser included sending some of his minions to do border control once dark rolls around, while other Toads patrolled during the day. There hasn't exactly been anything seen to warrant having such a thing in place but it was better to be safe than sorry. However as of late, Koopa Troops and Goombas haven't been showing up to their posts to alleviate them leaving the toads to pull all-nighters to ensure the safety of the citizens. After the third night, Peach ordered them to return home to rest and just return by the time night falls since that's more important. The Princess has written several letters to the Koopa King about this but hasn't heard anything back yet. She even checked her document from the last meeting with him to make sure everything was still the same and sure enough his signature was there at the end of the paper.

Rubbing the temples of her head she told the reporter Toad to once again tell the others along the borders to return home to rest and return to their post by the time the moon enters the sky. Before he left to do exactly that, the toad left her with one more thing to know about. Power-ups only exclusive to the darklands she found really helped toads with certain tasks and vice versa when it came to the mushroom kingdom. Well the toads who normally handle all the imports and exports hadn't heard from the Koopa's King's people and their scheduled date was closing in. Peach assured him that she'll take care of everything with a smile as he took his exit. She concluded that if she couldn't get a hold of Bowser via letters, she'd just have to pay him a visit in person to see what was going on. If the darklands was dealing with problems of its own, she'd hate to selfishly make it about her own Kingdom's needs and would provide support if she could.

All she gathered from her visit was that 1. The Darklands was doing just fine as the inhabitants went about their daily happy lives, at least by the kingdom's standards. 2. All the guards that normally took the border work at night were also in good shape. That didn't mean they were these past weeks she had to tell herself but also had some doubts. Finally 3. Bowser was doing just fine and reading her letters as well. Rather he really was there or not, Peach wasn't gonna keep bombarding Kamek with questions. The magikoopa did tell her that it was under Bowser's direct order that the citizens weren't allowed to leave the darklands under any circumstance until he said otherwise. At least she got an answer for their lack of attendance the past three weeks. She just told him to tell the Koopa King to get back at her when he could, to which the wizard assured her he'd pass the message.

Another three weeks went by and she still hadn't heard from Bowser in any form be it letters or in person. What she was expecting to see on her daily strolls through the town was her people barely managing to get through the day. Instead what she saw was the toads going on as normal, chatting about the usual topics, and smiling. The toads on border control took it amongst themselves to get back on a similar schedule where some would take the daytime and others would take the night, switching it up every now and then. Even though she saw it with her own eyes her mind just couldn't accept that everything was just fine. One day after everything was taken care of she found herself in Toadsworth office silently sitting there as the advisor did some calculations. It was silent for just a few more minutes before she finally decided to speak.

"Am I being tricked by everyone?" She asked him. Earning a questioning look from the mustached Toad. "It's just that everyone seems okay but are they really okay? Or are they just acting like they are when I come around?" She tried to get him to see what she was getting at. He was still very much confused.

"I don't believe your people would try to deceive you in that way Princess. More or less how would they be able to hide their suffering from you with a snap of the finger." Toadsworth said, trying to get her to logically think about the first question.

"Well I have developed a routine of visiting the town. Perhaps they've caught on to it and spend those hours in good spirits when I come around?" Peach reasoned with him and even she could admit to herself that that didn't make any sense.

"Or perhaps everyone really is just doing good. My dear we've always had a knack for finding ways to manage things on our own together. So even if we don't have what we're used to, guarantee we've found a way to do it ourselves." He finished that last part with a chuckle though that didn't reach Peach.

"If you say so. I'm going to pay another visit and see how it goes. Maybe I'll get somewhere this time." Peach told him, getting up and heading towards the door.

"Of course Princess. Be sure to return at a decent time. I'll be waiting" Toadsworth promised her, returning to his calculations.

Who was he to stop her or be the one to say her visits would be futile. Part of being a leader meant she had to face some things head on and see people's true colors. Even after all these years.

This visit was already off to a better start than the last as she caught Bowser returning to the castle. The King insisted that he wasn't in the mood for a visit but she explained that it wouldn't take long. Much to his annoyance he agreed and she waited alone in his throne room for a good ten minutes till he came in and sat down. No more than five seconds of silence Bowser snapped.

"Well...you said this would be quick...start talking" he snarled. A brief smirk of satisfaction crossed his face when Peach flinched in place and she stuttered a few words.

"Well to start I just wanted to know if our alliance still holds any weight? As of lately I haven't seen you hold your end and I've been wondering if somethings wrong." Peach told him once she remembered how to form words.

"I don't know...Depends Princess. What have you learned about doing it all on your own?" Head in hand he looked down at her from his spot on the throne.

At that moment everything seemed to come together and to say she was angry was an understatement. She was outright furious to find out the reason for him acting like this for the past two months was because of a small thing she said. It took everything she had in that moment not to blow up on him. Instead she took a deep breath and told herself that to some degree she had to placate the King if she wanted to see some semblance of normalcy return to her kingdom.

"While for certain I don't want to get married anytime soon...I'll still keep you in mind as a potential suitor." She gauged his reaction to see him looking quite impressed. "I do know that having your help makes it easier on my people's lives. So at your earliest convenience could we get everything back in place. It would be appreciated." She finished with a bow of her head.

With how long it took him to finally speak up, she was starting to feel like he'd just dismiss on the spot. Peach wasn't sure what she would've done if that happened. Would she have begged on the spot or even say she'd marry him the next day. Luckily neither of those options happened.

"I hear you. Tell your people to expect my minion's to contact them and be at their place by tomorrow." He waved a hand. Peach looked up at him and smiled finally hearing what she wanted. Already picturing everything returning to normal. "One more thing I still have some things to take care of but in about two months at most I'll start taking you to other Kingdoms so be prepared" He added.

"I will. Thank you" with one more bow she turned to take her exit.

Bowser stayed true to his word and only for the first time in weeks did she feel more at peace seeing the toads resume their daily routines. To the best of her abilities, Peach tried to tune out the voice in her mind along with Toadsworth's verbal and knowing look saying 'Everyone was fine all along'. While ignoring her was mostly intentional on his part, he really did have other obligations that came with his title. He reached the age and maturity where it was time to produce an heir and there was responsibility that came with keeping the bloodline as pure as possible. That intrigued Peach if only for the mere fact that she would one day be able to see a baby Koopa. Nothing could ever compare to baby toads though in her own biased opinion but it could come close. There was also the bonus of seeing papa Bowser in which she could barely contain a giggle every time she thought about it much to his annoyance.

Within the next year she was introduced to a variety of rulers who were mostly older than them. Peach found that leaders whose kingdom's were closer to her own home, were easier to make connections with. The leaders whose kingdoms were more shrouded in darkness and mystery, gave her a more unsettling feeling if she was honest. From the domain full of Ghosts who's tragic stories she'd rather not know about to a literal bomb that would probably explode over anything, she thought it'd be best to prevent any problems before they present themselves. There was no amount of asking to convince Bowser to take her to the jungle kingdom. Something about reptiles not mixing well with apes and he also couldn't stand the crocodile king that resided there. She'd just have to visit herself one day to see just how advanced it was.

Sarasland was another kingdom she wanted to see if only for the chance to meet someone around her age. Name and reputation alone wasn't enough to get an audience. The leaders had to get together and send a personal invitation and the qualifications for that weren't so straightforward. Peach would keep her fingers crossed that she would one day receive a summon. Bowser ended up taking her to the neighboring flower kingdom and while he didn't have many good things to say about it or their people, she did. That was made possible by interacting with their Prince by the name Haru. The moment she first sputtered out how pretty she thought his cerulean hair was, sparked the first of their conversations.

While the council and surprisingly Toadsworth left to tour a separate part of the kingdom, Haru took her on a quiet walk in their castle garden. There was the back and forth that comes with meeting with someone for the first time but, Peach was really surprised with how comfortable and natural they fell into conversation. Together they sat on one of the benches as he handed her a flower and complimenting her appearance for the second time, whatever was going to happen next was interrupted by Bowser showing up finally finding where she disappeared off to. That caused an almost comical misunderstanding of Haru assuming the two were engaged and he was overstepping in some way. Until Peach explained that was far from the truth, much to the anger on Bowser's face. They all said their goodbyes and just as they were about to depart Haru stopped her with a piece of paper. Said paper contained his castle address and insignia.

The added comment of hoping to hear from her soon started the two months of communicating with each other via letters. There were many days after completing her daily tasks where she'd spent time writing just to make sure it was ready for the deliverer by morning. Two days ago he had invited her to the flower kingdom to show her how to drive a motorbike, as enthusiastically as possible through words she accepted the offer. Toadsworth and a few members of the council escorted her to the kingdom and while they carried on with the scheduled meeting, Haru took her to the location of his bike. Now she stood there in traditional toad clothing she hadn't worn in forever since her dress wasn't appropriate attire for this activity, while Haru did a final once over on the bike.

"Ready to go Princess? Feel free to climb on" He told her after getting on the vehicle himself.

There's only one seat she rationalized with one look. Was she just supposed to sit behind him? Would it be more appropriate or safe if she just sat sideways on the bike and held on to him that way? Wait, could she just wrap her arms around him? In the midst of her asking those questions to herself, a hand was guiding her to sit down on the back behind him. Haru assured her that he didn't mind her holding onto him as a matter of fact he'd prefer it cause he has a habit of going fast. That didn't stop his ears from turning red and stiffening a little under her touch.

Before taking off he passed her a gray helmet with the promise of getting her a pink one for next time. It was her turn to blush as she slid it on to hide her cheeks at just the very comment of him wanting to do this again with her. They took off and through the face shield, Peach watched as the scenery sped by. Of course she enjoyed calm and slow walks but, there was something more freeing that came from riding. They made it to a more open area and that's when they both got off the bike and he started explaining how everything worked. The Prince told her to try it for herself and maybe it was due to beginners' luck, but she caught on pretty easily for it to be her first time. By herself she remained cool and collected but, as soon as he hopped back on and held onto her waist it was a different story.

Peach was braking the bike excessively, swaying side to side, or going too fast one moment and too slow the next. The most embarrassing thing had also happened when she suddenly popped a wheelie. She was certain Haru had lost his hand but not sure why but one moment he was right behind her and the next he was on the ground. Of course she stopped immediately turning off the bike, rushing to his side, and apologizing profusely while helping him up and checking for any injuries. After that he proposed that they take a break and just admire the clouds, it was a beautiful day afterall. They laid on the soft grass together shoulder to shoulder, the smallest distance together they've been today. They made small talk pointing out the shapes of the clouds first to other random stuff before they somehow got on to the topic of families.

"Does it ever bother you that you don't know where you're from? Or that you don't know who your parents are?" He asked her hoping it wasn't a touchy subject. She hummed thoughtfully.

"Not really. I mean I've lived with the toads for so long that I can't say for certain I'd feel any different from knowing anything if that makes sense." She truthfully answered.

Peach knew for as long as she lived, she would always regard the toads as her true family seeing as they've always been there. She couldn't imagine how different her life would be now if she had ended up somewhere else or even stayed with her original family.

"I'm just really happy where I am now in life where I've come across many people now and am just looking forward to what the future has in store" Peach finished sitting up. Haru followed the motion.

"That's a nice way to think about it. I guess we wouldn't be sitting here together now if you never ended up here." He said putting his arms on his knees. "I hope that I can be more a part of your future," he added, facing away to hide the blood rising to his cheeks.

"Hmm well you're an ally of ours now. Of course you're going to be a part of that future." Peach told him as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. When he snorted covering his mouth she couldn't help but think that something in what he just said went over her head. "What are you laughing about?" She pouted and it took him a minute to gather himself.

"True but, that wasn't entirely what I meant about being in your future" this time putting more emphasis on the word 'your' hoping it would come across differently this time around. Peach still had a slight look of confusion on her face. "Here um, if you would allow me..." He turned, repositioning his body to face her prompting her to do the same with her head.

As quickly as it all started it was over. One moment he had a hand on her cheek pulling her to him. Soft lips pressed against hers for several seconds. Before she had time to process returning the action, he was pulling away standing up and offering his hand. Haru apologized and told her they should probably head back as the meeting was probably done by now. Peach was speechless during the entire exchange unsure what had gotten into him. The ride back was just as quiet and slow as if he still wanted to prolong the time to the destination. He bid her farewell after taking her to the castle's meeting room, not waiting around to do the same with the others.

They went two weeks after that going about their daily routines minus writing letters. Well Peach herself didn't entirely stop writing them. After finishing them, she couldn't find the confidence to actually pass it along to the messenger. By day sixteen her drawer was almost filled to the brim of unsent papers. Toadsworth noticed the change and had asked her about it, but she convinced him that it was nothing. When deliveries came around the next day, there was a letter from Haru and just as she got her hopes up, it depleted upon seeing it was addressed to Toadsworth. Apparently Haru had matters that he could only talk to her advisor about, is all Toadsworth said.

Peach couldn't help but feel a little anger towards Haru. From kissing her, to ignoring her, and now requesting to meet with her advisor of all people, could he not talk to his own people. For once she actually envied Toadsworth's age and life experience that made people want to seek him out for advice. She had half the mind to order him to write a letter declining cause if he can't talk to her, why should he be able to talk to Toadsworth. Curiosity got the best of her though and even she said not to, Toadsworth probably wouldn't listen without a valid reason. So as planned, Haru arrived to meet with Toadsworth and had the audacity to smile and wave in her direction. Having other places to be, she said her farewells to Toadsworth and went on her way before he had a chance to lecture her about the rude behavior.

A couple hours went by and she had almost forgot he was here till she stepped outside her office to see him standing there. Part of her was happy that he decided to stick around for a while. Then she remembered why he initially visited and did an entire mood change.

"I suppose now that your business with Toadsworth is taken care of you'll be taking your leave?" Peach asked him, keeping a formal tone.

"Well I should, but I have no other obligations and I really wanted to talk to you." He said walking up to her. "That is if you want to," he added.

"Sure I guess" she said, not bothering to fight back the smile on her own face as he gave his own. She fell in line beside him as they made their way outside the castle.

"I want to say that while I don't apologize for kissing you, I do want to apologize for not following the procedures in order to do that in the first place." He started turning to look at her. "It's actually why I wanted to talk to Toadsworth and your council to see if I could fix things if you will." He stopped there to allow her time to process what he was saying.

"Fix things cause you kissed me? I'm sorry but I'm a little confused." She said inviting him to elaborate.

"Well I guess what I want to do is enter a courting arrangement with you." He said finally getting to the point "I figured it'd be best if I got Toadsworth's permission and I also wanted to ensure that there weren't any other plans for you in that regard" That last part made her remember their first encounter when Bowser had shown up.

"Oh well what did he say?" She was curious now. It had been awhile since they had discussed that aspect of her life and wasn't sure if anything had changed.

"He said that he had no problems with it but, in the end the choice is up to you" he repeated her stewards words "said your happiness is what's most important...so would that be something you want to do be in with me?" and with that he stopped in place as they made it outside the town reaching his bike.

"Sounds like him" she smiled in relief before noticing how he'd become a bit fidgety as she hadn't answered the question. "Oh yes sure let's try it" Peach made a move to hold his hands in her own.

"Really? Okay then gosh, we'll then I'm going to try and see you more often if that's alright with you." Haru stammered over his own words in excitement moving in to close the distance. "Would it be alright if I kiss you now? as official partners" He asked leaning in when she nodded yes.

"It sounds like the discussion didn't take long. I know Toadsworth can talk a lot though but still two hours? I hope I didn't keep you waiting that long outside" she said after they had pulled apart and he started to get settled on his bike.

"I want to say we talked for a good hour about the relationship thing with you. There was so much he had to say." Haru was remembering every last word from the conversation. "I wanted to come to you right away after that but, he said I should allow you to focus on work and so for the remainder of the time we spent it playing a few rounds of mahjong. In the end it was 0-5 in his favor. " He feigned annoyance at having to admit that and smiled when that got a laugh out of Peach.

"You'll get him one day I believe. If it makes you feel better, I'm 109-10 and those were pity wins because it was my birthday" she said, waving him off as he drove off.

For the next few months when either had downtime they would visit the other's kingdom. More often than not Haru, would be at the mushroom kingdom or either picking her up to take her to the flower kingdom to spend time there. They returned to writing letters to each other everyday and while it was mostly about stuff they talked about before, some of the letters took on different turns on both their parts. The content that some of the letters contained had Peach double checking the seals of letters before sending them off, doubling up the original with extra empty papers, or choosing to read them late at night in her own room. They also talked about future plans when the topic of marriage came up. Even though he hadn't asked the question yet, talking about it had her thinking it was only a matter of time. She briefly considered how all that would work being that they were from different kingdoms in all, but that could wait she concluded.

The next time Peach met up with Bowser, she updated him on everything that had happened. To say he wasn't pleased was definitely an understatement. The Koopa King went on about what Haru could possibly do for her Kingdom that he hasn't been doing for years and how she's only infatuated with him cause he's just like her. Dealing with Bowser for years, Peach knew it was best to just let him say whatever lest it lead to something bigger. It was in the middle of his tangent that Haru decided to appear having been waiting for a little longer than normal. Bowser decided at that moment it was time to leave, giving Haru the meanest glare as he walked past. Uncharacteristically Haru returned the gesture and Peach was glad Bowser's back was turned. As they were on the way to the flower kingdom Haru would ask her how she's put up with him all these years.

Peach had quickly learned not to bring either man up to the other regardless of what it was about. If it didn't have nothing to do with making sure everything remained functional in her kingdom it wasn't discussed. If it didn't have anything to do with the two of them specifically it wasn't discussed. In her excitement one day she did slip up and tell Bowser that Haru had officially proposed with a ring and everything. After the conversation it left her viewing a few of her most recent encounters and relationship as a whole a bit differently. Just as she was starting to feel a bit better about things, one night after having dinner with the King, Queen, and Haru's council left both of them in a weird mood by the time they went up to his room. Haru in particular seemed to be lost deep in his own thoughts, having not said a single word as they laid together on bed before he suddenly got up and sat down at his own desk and started writing down stuff on paper.

"So tell me again while it would be more preferable to have a boy first." Peach asked, staring up at the ceiling breaking the silence.

"It's more so about the title. See here in the flower kingdom the next in line for the crown goes to the oldest male once the current King passes. So while my dad was born after my aunt, the throne automatically went to him once my grandfather passed because of that." He explained while writing. "It was quite the conflict between everyone around that time but it's what the will stated and one of the last laws he passed. My dad's been assuming that we're going to be adapting laws from here since it's more 'set in stone' and 'proven to work' none of that making it up as it happens." Haru said only dropping his pen to do air quotes with his hands. "I'm sorry if he made you think that he or even myself would be disappointed in having a firstborn daughter. It's quite annoying since we haven't even gotten married yet and they're going on about kids now." He apologized, returning to the task at hand.

"I see. On the topic of kids I guess, how do you think I'd do as a mother? I mean I also started training a little later in life to become a princess and with this child I would have to start them earlier right" Peach asked more questions rushing to her brain than she could voice. He hummed before answering.

"Well I've seen you with both babies here and in your own Kingdom. I think you'd be a great mom. You grew up surrounded by toads so you know what it's like to be really involved so to speak. It's me you'll probably have to reign in every now and then, even up to four years ago I very rarely saw my own parents around and spent most of my days with mentors." He recounted, pen going to his cheek briefly before returning it to the paper "As far as training goes well like me we can have a few mentors if you want and you have me, I'll tell them what I experienced. We can also decide the best age to start it if that helps. But, again I just say we focus on getting through this wedding first before all that stuff" He finished.

Peach thought it'd be best to take his advice for now and worry about that topic for later and she also sensed that would be how he'd end everything else regarding the matter. She sat up covering her legs with the t-shirt and then pulling them to her chest.

"Is that why you're over there writing down some hypothetical laws of your own" Peach guessed and did a little cheer in her head when he stiffened in place.

"They're hypothetical laws for us" he corrected and faced the opposite direction in the chair. "I figured since you were thinking about things having it written down where you could see it would help and maybe for me too" he concluded and matched the frown that appeared on her face.

"How is it for us when I'm not giving any input?" She asked him.

"In a way you are by talking about your worries. I'm just adjusting and making things accordingly so you don't think about when the time comes. I was gonna show you later once it was a bit more polished." He promised.

"Would you be ok if we were to hypothetically still have an alliance in place with Bowser?" Peach asked out of the blue.

"What does he have to do with anything Princess?" He was genuinely confused at the sudden change of subject in the span of twenty minutes. She gave him a look that told him to answer the question. He groaned "If I'm honest I'm not 100% on board with it. I mean I was always taught to be wary when it comes to Koopa's. I'm willing to go along with it if that's what you want but I'm not going to be as kind as you are and allow him to do and talk as he pleases" He told her honetime.

“I guess I understand where you're coming from but, there's a certain way you have to deal with him or he could get vindictive. " Peach advised.

"That doesn't mean anything to me, especially since I've been without his assistance for years and been ok. I would like to think that by being your husband you'd have faith that I know what's best for the people." He said feeling offended.

Peach was silent, not sure what could be said to make Haru not think that way. Making decisions alone was easy but doing it as a team seemed like it took way more work. In her own head she didn't process the bed shift under the added weight and arms wrapping around her shoulders until he spoke.

"I really do mean what I said. Look I know I haven't been there as long as Bowser and I know I'm nothing to compare to him physically but, I'd do anything I can against him for the people and you. So put some trust in me that I'll know the best choice" he begged.

Peach let the nodding of her head do the speaking instead of using her own voice not trusting it to sound sincere. Haru took it for now and hoped that one day he'd be able to prove it to her in the future. They ended up dozing off for a while before Peach woke up and asked if he could take her home. Despite the late hour, he slipped on some clothes and had her home in record time.

_____

It was three days to the wedding and aside from a few little things that could be handled on the day of, The preparations were complete. For the first time in a while she had actually finished all her work early. Not that she had much stuff with everything going on, just similar stuff for her coronation minus a speech. Peach laid on top of covers in the dark room, engagement ring on the stand instead of her finger. Deep down she had already admitted that she wasn't ready for this. There were just too many unknown possibilities that for some reason she could only envision poor outcomes. When she had told some of the Toads this, they had completely brushed her off saying it was just the pre-wedding jitters and once she's walking down the aisle it would fade away instantly..

At that moment she just agreed and laughed it off with them but she couldn't shake the thought that they were just telling her that because they had put so much energy into the preparations for her to change her mind. Something a couple of Toads in particular said was really sticking in her head and made her just want to suck it up and go through with it regardless of feelings.

"If you change your mind now, you might end up regretting it later" one of them said as they were twisting her hair.

"Who knows if you'll ever find someone else that loves you the same way or even more than he does" The other one said while painting her nails.

"Oh but think of your reputation amongst the lands my dear. If you back out now any potential suitor looking your way will see you as a flake." The former one finished her hair and held a mirror up. "Do you like it?" Peach nodded.

"Don't say that! anyone would be lucky to take our Princess as their bride. Pay her no mind dear." The latter one held her hand up at a better angle "ooh I smudged it a little," she frowned and got to work fixing it.

Peach had tuned out for the remainder of the time she was there only replying with single words and nonverbal movements with her head. She grabbed the pillow and covered her face in a lousy attempt to drown out the words. The knock at the door caught her attention and like many times before she knew exactly who it was. Upon her approval, he walked Toadsworth and he stood right at the head of the bed.

"I would assume you'd be in much higher spirits given that you're getting married soon. Yet you're in here alone and looking upset" he said his observations out loud. "Any reason for that?" He asked.

"Just because I'm laying down doesn't mean I'm upset." She told him. "I'm just a little exhausted with everything so I'm trying to catch up on sleep" she lied and turned to face the other direction.

Even in the dark she could feel his gaze burning a hole in the back of her head.

"I'm not convinced that's the truth at all Princess. However, if you wish not to discuss what's bothering you now, know that I'll be here to listen to you later. You know where I'll be" he assured her, making his way to the door.

The mustached toad didn't even make it five steps away from the bed before she sat in the bed reaching an arm out at him and in a panic told him to wait. Halting in his steps as he waited for her next instruction. The word came out of her mouth faster than her brain processed as she slowly lowered her arm thinking about the best way to talk about it.

"Could you just...you know what, wait a second'' Peach started but then decided to get up off the bed, turn the light on, and grab the chair from her work desk bringing it over to her bed. "Sit please" He did as he was asked and held her hand when she reached for it. "I, well, gosh I'm sorry" she choked then took a deep breath and then apologized, failing to find the right words.

"Peach, It's okay, take your time." He rubbed her hand once he got her attention at the sound of her name. "I'm not going anywhere" He promised, giving her hand a soft squeeze.

The Princess took his advice. Closing her eyes she took a few deep breaths and just focused on the feeling of Toadsworth rubbing her hand in gentle circular motions. It was a good five minutes of that as she collected her thoughts before she felt ready to speak. With one last deep breath, she started.

"I don't think I'm ready for all of this. I mean it's not that I don't love him" she said looking at the ring from the corner of her eye. "It's just... I guess I don't want him or anyone else to hate me for not putting the kingdom's best interest first you know?" She expressed it in the best way she could.

"I see your predicament my dear" Toadsworth said, taking time to process her concerns. "But, I want to remind you that when it comes to love, the kingdom should have nothing to do with it."

"Toadsworth, the relationships I have with people regardless if it's romantic or not has everything to do with my Kingdom and even others" she tried to get him to understand. "I already hear some people say you could get away with anything and I'd turn a blind eye" she gave a better example and couldn't help the little smile as he chuckled no doubt having heard the same thing.

There was nothing he could really think to say to convince her otherwise. He had a good feeling that her relationship with one particular person was the main cause of all these worries. Toadsworth had decided a long time ago that Peach would have to figure that one out on her own since no amount of talking would get her to see right.

"Never matter, if you're feeling all these doubts, perhaps you should talk to the Prince about waiting longer or if you really feel that it's not a good idea, just call it off all together. I'm sure he'd be more than understanding" Toadsworth offered.

"Do you really think that would work out well with him?" She asked him. The second question of what if he does the same thing as Bowser did? Went unasked because she couldn't even think about grouping those two together in that way.

"I don't see why it wouldn't but you won't know if you don't have the conversation" he said, letting go of her hand and standing up in the chair and widening his arms. Peach did the same and they embraced each other. "You should probably have it sooner rather than later unless you've changed your mind" He combed his fingers through her blonde locks.

"Yeah you're right" she nodded "sorry just a little longer" she held onto him tighter.

"Of course," he whispered, doing the same.

In the end no matter how many times she rehearsed the conversation with an imaginary Haru, nothing felt right and time was running out. Peach decided it would just be easier to communicate with him the way they always did. At least she didn't have to see the look on his face telling him she couldn't go through with it. Better yet she didn't have to worry about him trying to convince her to otherwise change her mind. After sending the letter and the ring off she got a response 24 hours before the wedding was set to start.

"I understand. I'll always be here for you"

That's all his letter said and she gave a sigh of relief that it was over. Later on that night, the feeling of relief turned into sadness that it was over. Peach once again laid awake in bed staring at the ceiling hoping her heart would heal quickly. There was no time to grieve she had a Kingdom to run and was more than happy to do it alone forever if she had too. All she needed was to know her toads were happy and safe. That's the mantra she kept telling herself to fall asleep. When that didn't work, she could only hope that things would be much easier should another person come along.

#Super Mario #Ayo Key be posting #This was almost 10k words lol idk how I wrote so much #I started this back in the beginning of March but man did a bunch of stuff happen then and I only had 3-4 lines for the longest 🫠#like March went on forever but April's already done how?!?!#Anyways made it through and finished this chapter last night actually but I was like y'know what I'm gonna play fortnite instead of posting #something about rushing to get these posted before I leave for work is fun lol 👌🏾#an attempt was made at writing some romance but Its not my specialty 🤭🤭#hehe maybe my Toadsworth stuff will carry as usual you guys love that stuff 🤣#Anyways no time to say anything else but have a good day everyone...enjoy reading

13 notes · View notes

wolfiemcwolferson · 1 year

Text

begin again

2.4k of a Piarles spiral that I might revisit in the future under the read more

Charles moves home after the divorce.

It’s George that suggests it. Well, he insists that he didn’t suggest it at all. He suggested that Charles do something for himself that he had always wanted to do but didn’t because of Peter and the…well, the crappy marriage thing.

“I meant for you to…go to Argentina to see that big waterfall or drive Route 66 or eat your way through Atlanta. I did not mean for you to sell this big house that you got in your divorce settlement and buy a house that is falling down in the middle of nowhere Alabama.”

But, that was what Charles wanted to do. After 10 years of playing the perfect spouse, he wanted to live in a little house and have a garden and be on his own.

And that’s what he intends on doing.

He buys a two bedroom house that looks like it’s in danger of blowing away, but it sits on five acres of land and the realtor tells him it’s got good soil for tomatoes.

Charles has too much money from his prenup and a college degree that he’s never used and so he decides to use both - slowly making this little house livable and presentable and also sitting for the teacher’s exam.

George and Alex come to visit over Thanksgiving, the only two who are still speaking to him from their life in Connecticut. The only two people Charles really cares about, and it’s good to see them. He shows them around the little town square and they have breakfast in the diner and Charles laughs himself silly when he gives George a big pour of the blackberry wine that Mrs. Fitzgerald - the biology teacher - makes and George sputters it all over his white shirt.

It’s good to see them and it’s good to see them go because Charles doesn’t feel sad about them leaving at all. He doesn’t miss a single second of that life and it’s like…the first time in the seven months since he moved here that he knows he did the right thing by selling that too big house with no happy memories.

Charles considers taking a trip over Christmas break. For the first Christmas in his adult life, he doesn’t have any place to be - both of his parents gone, Lorenzo is somewhere in the middle of the pacific ocean and Arthur is filming some new documentary in Colorado - but then he drives into Birmingham and spends 400 dollars on books and he spends the entire break eating cheese and cranberry sauce out of a can (a delight) and reading.

He has to YouTube how to start a fire in the fireplace because he’s never used it and then he has to pay triple to have an actual chimney sweep come and clean it out so he can use it.

Because sure, he had called Alabama home for the first 20 years of his life, but he had grown up in a house in Huntsville with a swimming pool and a gas fireplace.

And then when a year of life in Alabama rolls around, Charles looks in the mirror and smooths the wrinkles beside his eyes away with his fingertips and laughs because two years ago, he would have been obsessively checking them or Pieter would have pointed them out and the only reason he’s noticed them now is because he had dirt on his cheek.

It’s different than anything he ever imagined for his life, but it’s the best thing he’s ever experienced and it was absolutely the right choice. To move here. To begin again.

There are fifteen houses on the county road that Charles lives on. He knows them all by name and he knows their kids by name. He was a bit concerned when he moved that the gay divorcee would be a bit too much for them all to stomach, but they had embraced him with love and acceptance and help when he killed his tomato plants on accident last summer and when it froze and he wasn’t prepared for the whole county to shut down and when he realized he was going to have to buy some kind of lawn mower.

The point is that when the Harrison’s come by on a Tuesday night and tell him that they’re going to retire and move to Arizona where their oldest daughter lives, Charles is pretty upset about it - sad that they’re leaving, but also a bit worried about the new family that will move in. Until they tell him their nephew is going to be taking over the family place.

“Good boy,” Mrs. Harrison assures him, patting his cheek. “Handsome and single.”

Many things slide into place for Charles all at once and he laughs, brushing it off and telling them he’ll miss them and that he’ll stay in touch, and then he puts it out of his mind.

Until it’s mid-August and he’s carrying a box of books out to his car that he’s collected over the summer for his classroom and he sees a shiny black pick-up truck pull into his driveway and Charles knows that this is the nephew.

“Pierre,” he introduces himself and then he’s got to bend down to catch the two small children around their middles as they come barreling up to Charles. “And these are my hellions.”

But he smiles when he says it and Charles shakes both of their hands making them laugh and giggle, waiting on them to introduce themselves.

“Arabella, but Daddy calls me Ari.” who is six.

And then, “Jessop, but you can call me Jessie because I hate Jessop,” who is five.

The exchange lasts ten minutes and it only happened because Pierre promised his aunt he would stop by and say hello and then he has to go because the kids need dinner and Charles tells him that he’ll have to invite them over for dinner some night, but it seems a bit like a nicety because they don’t exchange numbers or say anything else before Pierre is helping the kids up into the backseat and driving off with a wave and a megawatt smile.

Charles asks no questions, but he’s curious enough that when Abby starts talking about Pierre two weeks later during lunch period, he ignores the grades he’s supposed to be entering into his computer and he sits down at the table with the math teachers and listens to the story.

A messy divorce with his ex-husband who is still in Iowa and two kids who they had through surrogacy that the ex apparently didn’t want and Charles goes home that night and makes a pie - or an attempt at a pie so he hauls himself out of bed the next morning before the sun and he makes another one, which turns out better so he takes it to Pierre and his kids and he invites them over for dinner on Wednesday night.

It’s silly, but he has a kinship with Pierre that Pierre doesn’t know exists.

It’s extra silly because there’s no way for Charles to come out and say: I married an older man after I finished school because I was scared and I don’t think he really loved me. I never had children even though I desperately wanted them and I’m starting over and it sounds like you are too, so maybe we could be friends?

No, he just makes sure that he picks up his living room and he roasts a chicken and when the three of them show up on Charles doorstep at 6:30 sharp, he wonders if he miscalculated with Pierre.

By the end of the night, he doesn’t have to wonder. He knows he did.

Pierre listens to his children when they talk and he asks Charles questions about the school and he smiles with his nose scrunched up and when Jessie falls asleep on Charles’ couch while a movie plays, Pierre apologizes for having to get them back home and Charles’ apologizes for keeping them up so late on a school night and he leaves with a sleeping child on his shoulder and a promise to see Charles at the football game on Friday night.

Which turns out to be a joy. The two of them sit together and Charles buys the kids gigantic lollipops Ari tells him about how she’s going to play football when she grows up because girls can do anything and Charles' heart is stuck between breaking and falling.

“I don’t want to pry,” Pierre says a month later while the two of them are sitting on the bottom step of Charles' porch while Ari and Jessie run around in the yard and try and catch lightning bugs, “but sometimes you look at them like it pains you to do so.”

And that’s when the whole nasty business comes out about Charles’ finding his husband of ten years having an affair with his paralegal and how Charles feels like he just started living his life even if maybe he’s missed his chance at having a life with another person, Pierre takes his hand in his and kisses the back of it and asks him if he wants to go into town with him and the kids this weekend and see a movie.

“Don’t ask me on a date because you pity me,” Charles warns and Pierre kisses his knuckles again.

“I’ve been thinking about asking you out since you brought us that horrendous pie.”

And then…Charles spends six months waiting for the other shoe to drop - so to say.

Arthur comes in for Thanksgiving and he spend four days in the floor with the kids during the day and trying to get all the dirty details from Charles at night, but Pierre doesn’t get spooked by having a family Thanksgiving with Arthur - instead the two of them get a little too tipsy on Friday afternoon and Charles has to tuck them into the couch so they’ll take a nap, and Pierre kisses him about it when he wakes up two hours later.

Charles wakes up on Christmas morning and gets dressed before it’s even 5 AM so he can drive over to Pierre’s and spend the morning with them before they load up and go over to Pierre’s parents house two hours north.

Pierre kisses him on New Year’s Eve and then he fucks Charles slow and deep and asks him to stay over - let him wake up with him and the kids. Because they hadn’t done that yet - had been careful in front of the kids.

Pierre’s birthday is spent in Charles’ house where he makes another atrocious pie and Pierre takes his face in his hands and whispers what Charles has known for months now.

“I love you,” he whispers into Charles’ mouth and Charles puts his face in his hands and cries and cries until Pierre pries them away and kisses him again. “I love you,” he says, “I love you.”

It goes like that until the next fall - when Ari turns eight and says matter of factly while they’re sitting on the front porch and Charles cranks an old ice cream maker he found in town, “I think you should be our new dad.”

There isn’t enough oxygen on the planet for the next minute of Charles’ life, and the only reason he manages to keep it together is because Pierre is there squeezing his shoulder and it’s grounding him to earth.

It’s a month of frantic whispers between Charles and Pierre and tears on both ends and Ari and Jessie giving Charles a wide circle when he’s with them until Pierre sets a plate down on the counter with more force than necessary and hisses, “No one in this house is your ex and these kids deserve someone who loves them and wants them just as much as I do and you’re a fucking fool if you think there’s anyone else on this planet that I want to marry as much as I want to marry you because not only do I think you’re the other half of me, I think you were meant to be their dad all along.”

It shocks Charles enough that he stops crying silent, hot tears and then he says, “I want to take your last name.”

And Pierre knocks the plate off the counter in an effort to get Charles into his arms.

They get married in the courthouse and then they take the kids on vacation over winter break to Disneyworld and Jessie calls Charles Papa for the first time while they’re eating a breakfast of Mickey shaped waffles and later that night after Charles and Pierre have tucked them into their beds, they stand on the balcony of their overpriced family suite and Pierre soothes the hair away from Charles face over and over and says a hundred times i love you, Charles, I am so thankful to you.

Alex texts Charles on the five year anniversary of when the divorce became final and Charles laughs at the ridiculous picture George took of him holding up the divorce decree for the camera to see and Charles looks across the room to where Pierre is stitching Ari’s dance costume back together and he texts back, best thing that could have ever happened.

Charles and Pierre work out a system for dinner and activities and making sure everything is done and the kids are thriving and Charles has never wanted for anything else.

Pierre teaches him not to kill tomato plants and Ari teaches him the true meaning of forgiveness. Jessie makes him believe that he can do anything and so when Pierre looks at him while the two of them are driving home from another football game and says, “You ever thought about having a third?” Charles doesn’t hesitate to say yes.

“We’ll be ancient when they graduate.”

Pierre laughs and kisses the back of Charles hand like he always does and Charles could burst with love and affection and the feeling of it was all worth it.

So when they bring home their second daughter 14 months later, Charles sits on the couch with Jessie and Ari and Pierre and George stands across the room to take a series of pictures while tears stream down his face, Charles has to laugh when George says:

“This is definitely what I meant when I said you should do something for yourself.”

#piarles #maybe a future fic idk I just can't stop thinking about them #I love them #soulmates

104 notes · View notes

bibbityboppitybillyharvgrove · 5 months

Text

25 Days of Fics Masterlist

Welcome to 25 days of fics! I made my masterlist later than I should have but at least its here now. Not all of the fics have titles just yet but as they get written I will post the title on here. I hope you enjoy and don't be shy to reach out about any suggestions or questions!

I am trying to get all of my posts scheduled ahead of time, all scheduled posts will be uploaded at noon eastern standard time on their respective day. If something is not posted at noon that means I am manually posting it so please be patient with me!

Feedback is welcomed and encouraged! Help me be a better writer!

Enjoy!

not my gif

Day One - Fred Weasley - No Matter What

Day Two - Steve Harrington - The Second I Met You

Day Three - Theodore Nott - Personal Heater

Day Four - Bucky Barnes - A Dance in the Snow

Day Five - Eddie Munson - Rambles

Day Six - Draco Malfoy - Stubborn Sickness

Day Seven - George Weasley - The Muggle Way

Day Eight - Steve Rogers - Holiday Blues

Day Nine - Remus Lupin - A Happy Christmas

Day Ten - Sirius Black - Admiration

Day Eleven - Steve Harrington - Unconventional Traditions

Day Twelve - Severus Snape - The Holidays Are Better With You

Day Thirteen - Eddie Munson - Stream-Mas

Day Fourteen - Bucky Barnes - Age of Machine

Day Fifteen - Fred Weasley - Long Days and Quiet Nights

Day Sixteen - Steve Rogers - The New Day

Day Seventeen - Sirius Black - The First Christmas

Day Eighteen - Theodore Nott - Embarrassment

Day Nineteen - Steve Harrington - Unlikely Friends

Day Twenty - Draco Malfoy - Last Minute

Day Twenty-One - Eddie Munson - A Family Trip

Day Twenty-Two - Remus Lupin - A Good Book

Day Twenty-Three - Severus Snape - Different

Day Twenty-Four - George Weasley - ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas

Day Twenty-Five - Bucky Barnes - NOT WRITTEN!!

49 notes · View notes

bbygirl-aemond · 1 year

Text

Vermithor is Vhagar's Son

Hi all! Given the most recent chapter of Stormbreak, I think it's finally time to get on my soapbox and give you all one of my favorite HotD theories. There's actually a surprising amount of evidence to support this theory! These two dragons are noted to share very rare physical traits, and are also set up narratively to be related in a few different places of Fire and Blood. So let's get into it :)

First, let's look at the appearances of the two dragons, as they've been described by GRRM. Vermithor is described as being "bronze" with "great tan wings." Vhagar isn't described in the books, but GRRM told official illustrators that she is "bronze with greenish blue highlights and bright green eyes." It is also explicitly noted that Vermithor is an abnormally large dragon, already humongous by 48 AC even though he would have only been fourteen years old at the time. In this aspect, even a young Vermithor is explicitly compared to Vhagar and Balerion. We know that dragons vary widely in traits such as color and size, and it's not unreasonable to think this would be reflected from parent to offspring. So I think it's significant that Vermithor and Vhagar are the only two dragons described as bronze, and that they are two of only five members of this large species ever described (the others being Balerion, Meraxes, and possibly the Cannibal).

But the physical appearance is just the tip of the iceberg. Let's remember that Vermithor hatched from the egg placed in King Jaehaerys I's cradle by his eleven-year-old sister, Rhaena. This is the same badass Rhaena who fed her husband to her dragon, Dreamfyre, and who is also a suspected dragon dreamer (she is explicitly referred to as "dreamy"). What's the significance of this?

Well, the current king at the time Jaehaerys is born, King Aenys I, is a very sickly king, and there have been pushes by the Dowager Queen Visenya (yes, that Visenya) to make Aenys's younger brother, Maegor (yes, that Maegor) king in his stead. Aenys's heir, Aegon, is Jaehaerys and Rhaena's older brother, and upon Aenys's death by law Jaehaerys will be second-in-line for the throne (he has one older brother, Viserys, who is later tortured to death by Maegor at the age of fifteen) Rhaena is old enough here that she very well might have understood that Jaehaerys might have to go up against Maegor--against Balerion--one day, if not as king himself, at least as Aegon's supporter.

Also, as a dragon dreamer, it's likely Rhaena was aware of part or all of what was to come. That Maegor would usurp the throne after King Aenys I died suspiciously. That Rhaena's brother-husband, Aegon, would die on dragonback against him, no match for the huge Balerion. That her other older brother, Viserys, would die in agony, tortured by Maegor for over nine days until he succumbed to his wounds. That Jaehaerys would become the last hope of his family, one that Rhaena would cling to as Maegor forcibly wedded and assaulted her. That Jaehaerys would have to fight for every inch of his rightful power.

What would you do, if you knew, or even suspected, that your baby brother would one day be going up against Balerion the Black Dread? Against the man who might have killed your father, who burned your brother-husband alive, and who tortured and murdered another of your brothers? Wouldn't you arm your baby brother as best as you could? Wouldn't you choose an egg that you knew would grow as quickly as possible? Remember that dragons come in all different shapes and sizes, but are known to take after their parents.

Wouldn't you, too, choose an egg from a dragon like Vhagar's clutch? One that was sure to grow as quickly as possible, and as big as possible? One that would serve as a sign of legitimacy and as protection against the fate that would one day befall your own father?

Again, Rhaena is a badass, and she wouldn't have hesitated to take one of Vhagar's eggs in order to protect her baby brother and the entire rest of her family. It makes a ton of narrative sense, especially because GRRM coded her as a dreamer for a reason. Also, I lean more towards Vhagar being Vermithor's parent instead of Balerion, if only because in that case Vermithor should have surpassed Vhagar in size by the time of the Dance, which he had not.

Finally, it's interesting if you think of Vhagar and Vermithor as parent and child during the Dance. I don't think it's a coincidence that one of the two dragons GRRM chose to defect to the Greens and fight alongside Vhagar was the one coded in various ways to be her son.

93 notes · View notes

4townie · 5 months

Text

Road to 4☆TOWN

part 11 | part 12 | part 13 | part 14 | part 15

Jihun and Taeyoung were mostly quiet while they ate dinner. Taeyoung fiddled with his chopsticks to fill the void.

“So the dress shopping went well.” He finally spoke up. “I think Catalina tried on like five different dresses just to end up getting the second one.”

“Mmhmm.” Jihun nodded, keeping his eyes on the book he was reading. “Very nice.”

“It was kinda hard. She looks good in everything.” Taeyoung shrugged. “But she didn’t want anything that made her look too young. Strange considering she still is young.”

“Yeah.” Jihun said as he took another sip of soju.

“I wish I had taken a picture of her face when Aaron and I told her we were paying for her dress. Especially since she was already concerned about the price.” Taeyoung smiled at the memory. “She deserves everything she wants. She’s such a great mom…”

“Of course.” Jihun answered absentmindedly.

Taeyoung hesitated. “Gee, this fried chicken is really good. Can I have some soju to go with it?”

“Mmhmm.”

Taeyoung frowned. He set his chopsticks down. “I’m spending the night with Aaron.” He said as he got up. “And I’m walking over there by myself.”

“Okay, have fun.” Jihun looked up briefly.

“So that’s it? You’re just gonna let me walk out?” Taeyoung stared at his dad. “Do you even care if I come back?”

Jihun was quiet as he continued reading. Finally, he turned to Taeyoung. “I’m sorry, Taeyoung, did you say something?”

Taeyoung stared at him silently, fighting back the lump in his throat. “Nope. Didn’t say a word.” He grabbed his phone and headed towards the stairs. “I’m getting my things. I’ll be out of your way as soon as possible.”

“Just let me know when you’re leaving.” Jihun called as he looked back at his book.

Upstairs, Taeyoung shut his bedroom door and paused as he attempted to control his emotions.

“Don’t cry, don’t cry, don’t cry.” He whispered to himself. “You can’t cry in front of him. You already lean on him for everything else. You can’t be that burden again.” He took a few deep breaths before making a phone call. “Aaron, I know it’s kinda late but can I sleep over tonight?”

“Oh, c’mon, Tae-Tae. You know you can always come over here.” T said with a smile. “But you sound a little…distant. Is there something on your mind? Do you need to talk when you get here?”

Taeyoung was quiet for a moment. “No. I’m okay. I just had so much fun with you today that I started to miss you when I got home. Silly, right?”

“Of course not. I had fun, too.” T assured him. “Are you sure everything’s alright? I can make some hot chocolate or something so—”

“I’m fine, Aaron.” Taeyoung cut him off. “Start the hot chocolate. I’ll be there in fifteen.”

———

Check out the art of Catalina’s perfect dress and her awestruck boys right here

#4town headcanons #4town fanfic #4town taeyoung #4town aaron t #4town z #4town robaire #4town jesse #turning red #turning red 4town #4town #4townie

13 notes · View notes

doctornolonger · 8 months

Text

The Library at the End of the Universe: A Comprehensive History

In mid-2017 a friend asked me if I could submit a story to a fan anthology he was putting together. I was busy with "Cobweb and Ivory" and "A Farewell to Arms", so I just sent him a drabble from my notes. It's an interquel set between an unproduced story and an unwritten one, and it features the Thirteenth Doctor when her intro video was all I had to go off of. It might still be relevant one day…

Beyond the end of this universe and before the start of the next, there lies a gigantic bubble, and between this universe and that bubble, there lies a much smaller bubble. This is the Library, and its collections have been cultivated by the Bookkeepers since before the beginning of time.

“… no, that’s not quite right.”

“Well, that’s a bit closer, I suppose.”

Beyond the end of this univerSe and before the start of the neXT; THERE L1ES A GIGAN71C 8U8873 3ND 3OKVSTMBCXKW0S8SKCC0K8 O0GGOC KOKKKG4G8K8G WGOWG88SG8GSWCKS4KCW 84G0O44 S8K

“A fun interpretation, though the spacing is a bit strange. Next!”

On top of the universe there lie many realms where time flows differently and the laws of physics slide parallel to ours. One of these realms is the Library, and its collections have been cultivated by the Bookkeepers since they discovered it fifteen years ago.

“Ooh, now that’s very interesting.”

… its infinite collections have existed without change since its interminably-ancient creation. However, upon being discovered by the Plume Coteries twenty-five seconds ago, the Library was introduced to the concepts of change and entropy. Since then, trillions of books have been uploaded to a …

… upon being discovered and colonized by the former Plume Coteries fifteen years ago, the Library was introduced to the concepts of change and entropy. Since then, trillions of books have been organized into categories, with the Coteries, now called the Bookkeepers, fueling their civilization by combusting the volumes of untranslatable gibberish.

“Finally!”

Callum looked down from the ladder, excited. “We found it?”

“Oh, no, of course not,” the Doctor said from the floor, dropping the book into an increasingly mountainous discard pile. “Something still doesn’t feel quite right. But at least it has a more interesting beginning!”

Callum sighed and handed down a new volume from the shelf. “Well, what specifically was wrong about it?”

The Doctor grabbed the book from Callum’s hand. “I don’t know. Blame Eldritch. I just know I’ll recognize the true history when I see it.”

“Look, Doctor, I think this is a waste of my time. I don’t have your magic truth-guessing superpowers, and I’m sure you’d be able to handle the ladder by yourself. I’m going to find my way back to my people.”

“Nonsense,” the Doctor said while absentmindedly skimming the book. “You’re my companion, Callum; you have to stick around. I need your fresh perspective on the universe.”

“What universe?!?” Callum threw his arms in the air; a few books fell off the lower rungs of the teetering ladder. “You promised me all of space and time, and all we’ve done for the last month is coop ourselves up on the world I grew up in!”

“It’s not a world, Callum. It’s something much, much stranger.” The Doctor picked up one of the scattered books and shook it pointedly at the boy. “Besides, it’s true: I need you here. The Library is in your biodata. You were born and raised here, outside of your ancestors’ native time.”

“But why? I don’t see what this has anything to do with the ‘lost Earth’ situation.”

The Doctor stared up at Callum with unexpected intensity, her eyes bugging out at him. “It has everything to do with the lost Earth situation. History has been broken. The most important person in all of time and space was killed before their time, and they’ll be coming through here any day.” She dropped the book into the discard pile. “I need to make sure you’re ready.”

“That I’m ready?” Callum stepped down a rung. “Where will you be?!”

“Oh, I’ll be around,” the Doctor said, plucking another book from the floor. “But there are other things I need to be doing.”

“What – What could possibly be more important than the most important person in time and space? And what do you honestly expect –”

The Doctor made a frantic shushing noise. She had become completely still, and Callum similarly froze into a ready crouch, listening hard for any disturbance. There was nothing except the whispering of the shelves.

“What did you hear?” he eventually whispered.

“Nothing,” admitted the Doctor at full volume, slamming her book down onto the pile. “But somewhere out in the universe, there’s a soul crying for help in an empty room. I need to be that help.”

“Hullo,” Callum said, “calling for help right here, thank you.”

“Oh, I have faith in you! You’re a smart lad; you can figure it out. Whereas I strongly doubt that the universe will be able to beat off mammoths or mind viruses by themselves, hmm?”

Callum scowled and pulled another book from the shelf. “Well let’s get on with it, then, so you can go battle your bloody mammoths.”

“Wooly mammoths,” the Doctor corrected gently.

On top of the universe there lie many realms where time flows differently and the laws of physics slide parallel to ours. One of these realms is the Library, and its infinite collections have existed without change since its interminably-ancient creation. However, upon being discovered and colonized by the former Plume Coteries fifteen years ago, the Library was introduced to the concepts of change and entropy. Since then, trillions of books have been organized into categories, with the Coteries, now called the Bookkeepers, fueling their civilization by burning any volumes they deem too difficult to understand or too inconsistent with their beliefs. To verify unreliable records, they use time ladle technology in their extraction chambers to interview notable lifeforms from the universe at the moment of their death …

#archival #library labyrinthique #coloth #the book of the world #do these tags give too much away?#mammoths

23 notes · View notes

billygoat26 · 2 months

Text

I've been seeing a lot about KOSA on here

Don't get me wrong, I don't support it.

So I'll just say this; if any of you have read Fahrenheit 451 then you know what I'm gonna be talking about. (Censorship. It's- it's censorship.)

Basically, if you haven't read it, the book is about a time somewhere in the future where all books get burned, the only "stories" are little comics but it's just images... no words at all, and television has become the new "family." If you get caught with books, your house gets burnt down, the books burned as well.

BUT. Instead of trying to summarize the entire story, let me just show you parts of Beatty's speech.

"The fact is we didn't get along well until photography came into its own. Then--motion pictures in the early twentieth century. Radio. Television. Things began to have mass."

"And because they had mass, they became simpler," said Beatty. "Once, books appealed to a few people, here, there, everywhere. They could afford to be different. The world was roomy. But then the world got full of eyes and elbows and mouths. Double, triple, quadruple population. Films and radios, magazines, books levelled down to a sort of paste pudding norm, do you follow me?"

"Picture it. Nineteenth-century man with his horses, dogs, carts, slow motion. Then, in the twentieth century, speed up your camera. Books cut shorter. Condensations, Digests. Tabloids. Everything boils down to the gag, the snap ending."

"Classics cut to fit fifteen-minute radio shows, then cut again to fill a two-minute book column, winding up at last as a ten- or twelve-line dictionary resume. I exaggerate, of course. The dictionaries were for reference."

"Out of the nursery into the college and back to the nursery; there's your intellectual pattern for the past five centuries or more."

"Politics? One column, two sentences, a headline! Then, in mid-air, all vanishes! Whirl man's mind around about so fast under the pumping hands of publishers, exploiters, broadcasters, that the centrifuge flings off all unnecessary, time-wasting thought!"

"School is shortened, discipline relaxed, philosophies, histories, languages dropped, English and spelling gradually neglected, finally almost completely ignored. Life is immediate, the job counts, pleasure lies all about after work. Why learn anything save pressing buttons, pulling switches, fitting nuts and bolts?"

"The zipper displaces the button and a man lacks just that much time to think while dressing at dawn, a philosophical hour, and thus a melancholy hour."

"More sports for everyone, group spirit, fun, and you don't have to think, eh? Organize and organize and super organize super-super sports. More cartoons in books. More pictures. The mind drinks less and less."

"Now let's take up the minorities in our civilization, shall we? Bigger the population, the more minorities. Don't step on the toes of the dog-lovers, the cat-lovers, doctors, lawyers, merchants, chiefs, Mormons, Baptists, Unitarians, second-generation Chinese, Swedes, Italians, Germans, Texans, Brooklynites, Irishmen, people from Oregon or Mexico."

"Authors, full of evil thoughts, lock up your typewriters. They did. Magazines became a nice blend of vanilla tapioca. Books, so the damned snobbish critics said, were dishwater."

"We must all be alike. Not everyone born free and equal, as the Constitution says, but everyone made equal. Each man the image of every other; then all are happy, for there are no mountains to make them cower, to judge themselves against."

"A book is a loaded gun in the house next door. Burn it."

"...there was no longer need of firemen for the old purposes. They were given the new job, as custodians of our peace of mind, the focus of our understandable and rightful dread of being inferior; official censors, judges, and executors."

"Colored people don't like Little Black Sambo. Burn it. White people don't feel good about Uncle Tom's Cabin. Burn it. Someone's written a book on tobacco and cancer of the lungs? The cigarette people are weeping? Burn the book."

"You can't build a house without nails and wood. If you don't want a house built, hide the nails and wood. If you don't want a man unhappy politically, don't give him two sides to a question to worry him; give him one. Better yet, give him none. Let him forget there is such a thing as war."

(Source of the quotes: beatty-speech-to-montag-excerpt.pdf (wordpress.com))

(Page numbers for physical copy: 51 - 60)

I hope you get the point- we're heading down a daaaangerous path and chances are, this is- or at least is very damn close to- our future. If you want to have a good education (or your kids to have a good education), then take into consideration the things you either vote for or support, etc.

#important #stop kosa #bad internet bills #fahrenheit 451 #beatty's speech #billygoat talks #politics #<- sort of

9 notes · View notes

insomniacwriter17 · 8 months

Text

Saved from the Flames - Chapter Twelve

“When you’re born in a burning house, you think the whole world is on fire. But it’s not.” –Richard Kadrey

Billy Hargrove is 9 years old. He tries his best to be the son his father wants him to be - quiet, respectful, and obedient. But Neil just pushes harder and harder, all in the name of raising a “strong man”. When Billy is removed from his father’s custody and placed in foster care, it takes some time for him to realize his world is no longer burning around him. New experiences, new people, new opportunities all make Billy realize there’s a whole lot more to life than respect and responsibility.

AKA: The story of how Bob Newby became a real life superhero for one little boy who needed saving.

Inspired by this post I saw from @connordax

read on ao3

Billy was stretched out on the grass of the backyard with the Hardy Boys book he’d found in the toy box, reading quietly in the sunshine. Bob watched in amusement as the boy settled himself on his stomach with the teddy bear propping his head up so he could see his book pages.

Bob had come back inside to finish up some paperwork for the store, sitting in his office where he could look out the window to keep an eye on him. Billy had looked up at him and asked, “Will you tell me when fifteen minutes is up?” as Bob had headed inside, so now Bob had a timer set on his watch.

The time passed fairly quickly, and once the timer was beeping, Bob went back to the patio. “Time’s up, Billy,” he called. Billy looked up from his book with a grin, closing it quickly.

“Can I stay out here and play?” the blonde boy asked hopefully.

“Sure you can!” Bob nodded. “Let’s make a rule though: no jumping off the swings unless I’m out here with you. Deal?”

Billy thought about that a moment before he gave Bob a thumbs up. It seemed like a fair enough rule! He stood up to take the book back to his room, but Bob held his hand out. “I’ll go put that in your room for you,” he offered. “And remember, Ms. Gabby’s coming to see you tonight. We’re going to have pizza for dinner with her.”

“Pizza?” Billy gasped, letting Bob take the book without a second thought. “What kind of pizza?”

“Well, what kind do you like?” Bob asked. Billy was busy pulling himself to his feet, so he was quiet for a moment before answering, hugging his teddy bear to his chest.

“I like cheese pizza,” Billy explained. “But grown-ups don’t like it, so I can just eat whatever you and Ms. Gabby get!” The second part of his statement was rushed, like he was trying to get it out before Bob could argue with him.

Bob’s brow furrowed as he listened to Billy. “Billy,” he chuckled. “We can order you cheese pizza, I promise.”

“But I can’t eat a whole pizza,” Billy replied quickly. “It’d be a waste.” His words sounded like he was repeating something he’d been told before – and Bob figured he was.

“We can put what you don’t eat in the fridge, bud,” Bob explained. “Then you can eat some more tomorrow or Wednesday. It’s not a big deal,” he promised. Billy stared at Bob with wide eyes.

“I get to have pizza twice?!” he grinned. “This is the best day ever!” With that, he turned on his heel and headed for the swings again, leaving Bob on the porch by himself. With an amused shake of his head, Bob headed back inside to put Billy’s book away and order their dinner.

Billy was still playing outside when Gabby arrived, so she and Bob sat in the living room so that Gabby could give him the update from court. “Well, first of all, I don’t think Billy’s going home any time soon,” Gabby started. “They’re looking at a couple different charges that’ll put Neil in jail for almost a year, and that doesn’t include any of the child abuse or neglect allegations.”

Bob frowned. “There’s more than that?”

With a small sigh, Gabby nodded. “Apparently our friend had some warrants from another county that we weren’t aware of until he was brought in last week. He had outstanding charges for breaking and entering as well as assault on his ex-wife Mary.”

“Billy’s mom?” Bob confirmed. He’d read through Billy’s file – he knew that Billy’s mom had ducked out of the picture about two years ago, but nothing had been said as to why or where she went. And now we know why.

“So given that the process on those charges will take a minute, the judge has requested that we do supervised visitation at the courthouse for now. Once a week, whatever works best for your schedule. In the meantime, they want Billy to start therapy with a counselor specializing in cases like his.”

Bob nodded immediately. “I’m all for that, let’s make that happen.”

“Neil will also be doing parenting classes and anger management classes, as well as therapy of his own. The judge and Neil’s caseworker will be keeping track of that to see how that’s going. Right now, the plan is still reunification, but you and I both know that can change at any time.” Gabby leaned back in her chair and sighed. “The judge did tell Neil today that he would drop the pending child abuse charges if Neil relinquished his parental rights.”

Bob frowned deeply, leaning forward so that his elbows rested on his knees. “He what?!” That was almost unheard of, especially in a small county like Roane. The court systems always pushed for reunification. “What did Neil say?”

“He fought back, said that wasn’t what he wanted,” Gabby replied. Bob felt his fear settle a bit, nodding.

“Good, okay. Alright.” He ran a hand down his face before looking toward the back door. “What should we tell Billy?”

“The less he knows the better, I think. At least until he’s seeing the counselor. I think for now we tell him that he’s going to keep staying with you, but that he’ll get to see his dad once a week. And I think he needs to know about the counseling before it starts, too,” she added. “But for tonight? I think the visit news will be more than enough for him to try and work through.”

Before Bob could answer, there was a knock on the door. “That’ll be the pizza,” he sighed, standing up. “Do you want to bring Billy in while I get this?”

Billy had abandoned the swings just a few minutes earlier, and was now sitting beneath the tree in the yard with his teddy bear in his lap and the G.I. Joe action figure in his hands. He was in the middle of helping G.I. Joe fly to his next battle when he heard his name being called. He looked up and gasped when he saw Gabby on the porch.

“Hi Ms. Gabby!” he grinned, scrambling to his feet. With his toys in his hands, he ran across the yard to where his caseworker stood, throwing his arms around her waist in a hug. “Mr. Bob says we’re having pizza for dinner!”

“I know!” Gabby answered just as excitedly, patting his back in greeting. When the smaller finally pulled away, she smiled down at him. “It’s here if you’re hungry!”

“Yes!” Billy insisted, bouncing on his toes. “Come on, let’s go!” He ran right past Gabby into the house, and the woman couldn’t do anything but shake her head in amusement and follow. Bob had absolutely been right in saying that Billy appeared to be coming out of his shell.

The first part of dinner was filled with Billy’s seemingly endless chatter about his day at school. Gabby nodded encouragingly as Billy filled her in on that fact that yes, Eddie’s his friend, that they had music today, and that he had done his homework as soon as he’d come home from school.

When there was finally a lull in the conversation as Billy took a bite of his cheese pizza, Gabby shared a look with Bob. The man nodded, so Gabby cleared her throat and leaned forward. “So, Billy,” she started. “I got to talk to your dad today. Do you want to hear what we talked about?”

Billy perked up immediately, nodding. “Did he say he missed me?” the boy asked through his mouthful of pizza. Bob didn’t have it in his heart to correct the boy’s behavior, letting it slide for the time being.

Gabby smiled but didn’t answer him outright. Bob noticed; Billy didn’t. “He asked if you were doing okay, and I told him how brave you’ve been,” she told Billy. Now, she and Neil hadn’t spoken face-to-face that day, but Gabby had given the court an update on Billy’s new placement with Bob since Neil’s arrest, and Neil had been in the room for that so…it counted.

“Do I get to go home soon?” Billy asked shyly, and Bob cleared his throat.

“Buddy, why don’t we let Ms. Gabby tell us everything she knows, and then if you have more questions, we’ll answer them?” He smiled reassuringly at Billy, who nodded quickly. His attention was solely on the social worker, who continued after a moment.

“Do you remember that I told you that your daddy was going to have a caseworker like me?” She waited for Billy to nod, and then she added, “Well, his caseworker has some things that they want to work on together. Classes and such that are going to help him be a better daddy.” Billy was nodding slowly, then his eyes widened.

“Are they the same classes that you took?” Billy asked suddenly, looking at Bob. Bob looked confused, and definitely didn’t know how to answer that, so he looked to Gabby. “The night I came here, Ms. Gabby said that the reason you were taking care of me was because you had taken classes. Remember, Ms. Gabby?” he looked at the caseworker, who nodded after a second.

“Sure, yeah! I’m so happy you remembered that,” she chuckled. “Yes, his classes are a lot like Mr. Bob’s were.” Billy’s grin only grew – if his dad could be like Mr. Bob, that would be so awesome!

Maybe his dad wouldn’t yell anymore. Bob hadn’t yelled at him once.

Bob hadn’t hit him. Bob hadn’t closed his bedroom door, let alone lock it. Maybe these classes would teach his daddy that Billy was fun to be around, and that keeping him in his room made Billy sad.

“So while he does those classes,” Gabby continued, interrupting Billy’s train of thought, “You’ll stay here with Mr. Bob. How does that sound?”

Billy smiled and nodded quickly, looking over at Bob. “That’s okay!” he agreed. “I like it here.” That melted Bob’s heart into a puddle in his chest, and Bob couldn’t help but let himself grin.

“Well, lucky for you, I like having you here,” he commented, before looking back at Gabby. She was looking between the two males with a soft look Bob couldn’t quite place. “What else do we need to know, Gabby?”

Gabby cleared her throat. “Right, yes. Okay. So, Billy, even though you can’t go home to your dad, we’re going to set up a time that you guys can visit and see each other.” Billy lit up and sat straight up in his chair, pizza forgotten. “You and Mr. Bob are going to decide what day of the week works best with your schedules, and then he’ll let me know so that we can make sure your dad is available. You can bring toys and games or whatever you want to the visit, or you can just go and talk to him. It’s whatever you want to do.”

Billy nodded quickly, looking at Bob. “What day are we gonna do it?!”

The man paused, thinking through a few things in his head. “We could do Wednesdays after school?” he offered. Billy was nodding immediately, loose blonde curls bouncing on his forehead.

“Can we please, Ms. Gabby? Please?!”

Gabby smiled, reaching out to pat Billy’s cheek. “Wednesday afternoons are great. I’ll call your dad’s caseworker first thing in the morning to make sure your dad can be there.”

Billy flopped back into his chair, looking around the room. “I’m going to bring my G.I. Joe toy so my dad can see it,” he mused.

Billy and Gabby were back to sharing a look across the table, both of them hoping with everything they had that Billy wouldn’t be disappointed Wednesday.

“Oh, I’ll bring the Legos from the toybox! Maybe we can build something!” Billy gasped. “Do you think my daddy would want to build something with me during the visit, Ms. Gabby?!”

Her smile softened as she took in the excited boy next to her. “I’m sure he’d love to, hon,” she told him. She really, really hoped she wasn’t wrong. And she could tell from the look on Bob’s face that he was thinking the exact same thing.

That night, as Billy climbed into bed, he looked at Bob. “Wednesday’s in two days, right?” he asked.

Bob nodded. “Two days,” he confirmed, standing by the door. “You ready to go to sleep?”

Billy nodded, snuggling beneath the covers. “Two more sleeps and I’ll go see my dad.” His teddy bear was tucked under his chin, the toy sticking out from underneath the blankets.

Bob smiled before he flipped off the light. “Alright, Billy, if you –”

“Need something, I can get up and get it or find you,” Billy recited sleepily. “I know, Mr. Bob!” Now he was giggling. “You say that every night!”

“Because it’s important,” Bob explained. “And I want you to remember it. But if you think you’ve got it in your brain now and want me to stop saying it, I will.”

There was silence in the room for a moment before Billy hummed his disagreement. “I like it,” he admitted softly. “It makes me feel safe,” he whispered.

Bob felt tears spring to his eyes, suddenly grateful that it was dark in the room. “Then I’ll keep saying it,” he promised. With that, he stepped back into the lit hallway and made his way into his office in search of something.

When Billy woke up in the morning, he found a calendar on the bathroom counter, with all the days until today marked off. In the box for Wednesday, there was a note: “VISIT WITH DAD AFTER SCHOOL.”

Before they left for school, Bob helped Billy tape it to the bathroom mirror. Billy had asked for the tape so nicely, telling Bob, “I wanna hang it so I can see it every day!” And Bob had happily obliged, because as long as Billy was happy, so was he.

#stranger things #billy hargrove #bob newby #cw: abuse #foster care au #sftf #bob newby deserved better #billy hargrove deserved better #insomniacwriter17 #ao3 #fanfiction #fanfic writer

14 notes · View notes