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#i dont expect anyone to actually read all this but i had to put my current thoughts into words somewhere
romanomomano · 25 days
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hades 2 thoughts as someone who only has 18 hours
The game is incredible, but i have some things that i have complaints about that i dont think just get chalked up to early access woes.
VA and Music and Environment design are top notch as always. However, there isn't (as yet) a song that grips me the same way that Good Riddance did. Scylla's themes are banger for sure, catchy earworms, fun to listen to, etc; but they dont make me stop and listen like Good Riddance did the first time i heard it. to an extent the level theme of Oceanus made me stop and listen more than Coral Crown or I'm Going to Claw. I love that Supergiant games always have one or two songs that just make you Feel Things: Build That Wall, In Circles or Paper Boats, Never to Return, In The Blood. Granted, we only got In The Blood with the full release of Hades 1 so there's still time for the ending theme of Hades 2 to punch me in the heart.
Gameplay is a solid evolution of the first game, but I think the weapons are... odd? The staff and the knives seem the most well thought out to me, with a nice fusion of range and melee, speed and deliberation, they feel good. I've had a couple good runs with the torches but they're slow and don't feel particularly good. The Axe is Big and Slow, and in a game that requires as much speed as the late game does, once again it feels a little bad. The Skull is NOT the Rail no matter how much I wish it was. I haven't played around with too many of the Alt Aspects, but they don't seem to change the gameplay nearly as much as the H1 Aspects did.
Boons. I expect a lot of balance and changes to boons in the coming months, but theres like, half of them that are just Bad. H1 had some boons that you didn't want to take, and that were bad, but I feel like there's just so many more right now that are just... eugh.
The Artstyle. It's clear to tell where things are placeholder art, and where things are early drafts of art, and where things are 'finished' art. Flatter shading and less dynamic poses compared to the first game in some instances like on the Gods, but also some portraits that are very similar to the first game like Moros and Hecate. So who knows. Chaos' glow up is mindblowing. Bathtime portraits are wild. Heracles.
Too Many Resources. I appreciate the fact that you don't have to do Heat runs to get more boss mats, but comparing h1's resources to h2's is insane. Darkness, Gems, 3 Boss Mats (Blood, Diamond, Ambrosia), Nectar :: Bones, Ash, Psyche, (currently) 6 different Plants, Seeds, and Minerals, Nectar, Ambrosia, Fishing Lures, Shadow, Moon Dust, (currently) 6 Boss Mats (Cinder, Pearl, Tear, Sand, Wool, Apple), Star Dust, Nightmare... I think thats it? who knows. That, paired with that half of the resources can only be gained by an underworld run and the other half can only be gained by a surface run, As well as the fact that you have to pick the Shovel OR the Pickaxe means that sometimes you go on a run more to get to a certain point than to actually clear the run, and sometimes you're doing upwards of 4 runs for one upgrade. I get that the game is meant to be played again and again, but like, i wanna play the game to play the game and not to grind for the stuff for upgrades. I guess the retort is that if you play enough you'll get all the upgrades eventually, so it's whatever.
It's still a fantastic game. Incredibly fun. 10/10. I am eager to see what changes throughout the early access period. it just falls into one of those things where its so good that all the minor annoyances are blown out of proportion.
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coriphallus · 8 months
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The Dark Urge thoughts (and prayers)
anyone whos been following me knows im absolutely not normal about durge and i wanna share some tidbits that are implied, but not necessarily canonised, from their story;
I already made a post about it but it seems like bhaal has a degree of control over whether they live or die. he can deny them death, if they fail the duel with orin.
bhaal can command the slayer. he forces orin to transform if you talk to her about sarevok and the scene makes it clear that its against her will.
bhaal manipulates his kin in a subtler way. in the colony you can find a letter from old durge thats apologising to his father for 'liking' gortash. you can interpret their relationship as something deeper but even if it wasnt, this reads to me as terrified and desperate.
the reason being, if you have a LI in act 2 you get the famous bondage scene. coupled up with the letter above makes me think this is a pattern. bhaal can use their feelings against them. he did it with sarevok and orin's mother, orin's mother and orin, etc... it's not as straightforward as 'if you disobey ill kill the one you love'. you will. durge will.
bhaal is testing them in act 2, he revels in chaos, sure, but in the grand scheme of things he doesn't care about isobel. even if you tell scel that you'll kill her you're told that youre too late, you ignored your urges. from durge, bhaal doesn't expect calm calculated murder, he expects blind obedience. failing to receive that his first punishment is to take away something they cherish. there are no half measures, theres no bargaining with a god.
we get so many snippets of information that this has happened before, their foster family being their first victims. theyre made to kill their support system with their own hands, with no one to blame but themselves. they are actually apologising to their father for being fond of gortash because (in my humble opinion) theyre genuinely afraid.
how many times could this have happened, how many nights durge couldve woken up covered in the blood of someone they love until they gave in, became daddys obedient puppet?
durge is groomed for murder. scel says 'you always failed to conduct yourself without me' and given who he is i dont think hes talking about table manners when he says 'conduct'. durge needs 24/7 oversight to set themselves right lest they get tempted by softer things. lest they dare to step away from bhaals grand plan.
durge do have a choice. just as shadowheart had a choice, just as wyll or astarion had a choice. its a choice only in name.
theres no ending besides refusing bhaal that their friends and LI wont die by their hands. the entire lore of bhaalspawn is that theyre meant to conquer the world in his name and slit their own throat a top the mountain of corpses. as cazador aptly put, 'theyre made to be consumed.'
you can pray to bhaal and the narrator says he won't accept [any offering] but the entire world.
durge (and bhaalspawn) do get some sort of euphoria from murder. they crave it like an addict, but bhaalspawn (on prev games) don't constantly have to grapple with these urges as durge does.
now durge is a slightly special case but not in a good way. its implied that theyre not like a regular bhaalspawn, that theyre made by bhaal directly -so to speak-. which is to say, if youre playing a drow, they are bhaals closest approximation of a drow rather than a drow flesh and blood.
thats why theyre fighting tooth and nail against these urges every step of the way, they are literally bhaal himself(in essence). the personality they develop, the person who calls themselves 'tainted' and 'wretched', the character thats making choices throughout the game, theyre the tumour.
theirs is the story of cycle of abuse cranked up to 1000 and it is in parallel to all other origin companions.
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theresawtf · 1 month
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❀᭢᜴꤬ jakey poo
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summary: only after jake had left for a three year australian program for college, he had come back as the intimidating bad boy everyone wants, but when it came to relationships he can never settle for anyone but you. he didnt know it but he always treated you differently than the other random girls he would hook up with. but the only thing keeping you guys apart was the fact that you were jungwoo’s younger sister…
pairing: stoner jake x artmajor reader
warning(s)- SMUT (MINORS DO NOT INTERACT), (sorta kinda proof read), childhood friends to lovers, brothers best friend troupe, jake is slut coded, reader doesn't give af, mentions of drugs, use of drugs (its stoner jake wtf were you expecting?), facesitting, reader&jake almost gets caught by jungwoo, p in v, unprotected sex (WEAR A FUCKING CONDOM PLEASE), JAKE IS A SLUUUUTT!! thats about it 🥸 angst if you squint with a happy ending
featuring- jungwoo as readers brother, sakura from le sserafim.
song suggestions: burnin’ for you by blue oyster cult, circles by ptv, please please please let me get what i want by deftones (the cover), dramamine by modest mouse
word count: 6k+
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after a long three lonely years, your brother and his best friend are finally returning, you could remember all the precious memories that you and the boys always hanging out, but one thing you would never forget was jungwoo’s words before introducing you to jake.
“your not allowed to date any of my friends ever, so dont even think about it.” it’s seems like he knew exactly what would happen because as soon as you saw the tall nerdy boy next to your brother you practically had hearts in your eyes every time you saw him at your house, in the yard, at the table for breakfast. anywhere your brother was— so was jake.
as you and jake grew up he had always treated you differently than most people, he’d always pick tiny flowers for you and let you put them in his hair or he would stall jungwoo from leaving you at school if you had extra circular activities so he could walk you home. he always made sure you were okay if jungwoo was being mean and would always help you cheer up. he didnt realize it till he left that he always had some feelings towards you but he would never say them out loud. as for jake also heard familiar words from jungwoo..
“listen if you ever try dating my sister or anything of that sort, i’ll actually kill you bro” of course jake didn’t take those feeling to heart until he saw you on a facetime call with jungwoo while they were both in australia for an exchange program. he saw how mature and confident you got, not to mention the fact that you’d never judge him even if jungwoo was literally talking shit about him to you, you never said anything bad about him. he knew his behavior wasnt the best once he left high school and started college somewhere far away from his home town, of course people change but how did you not?? he was completely infatuated with the fact that you were just the same as he remembered, you had become one if his genuine best friends.
it was the night before he was supposed to see you since he’s come home, of course he wanted to visit his family and layla but there was a tugging at his heart where he knew he needed to see you, or even just to speak to you. who knows maybe you would actually hate him once you finally saw him after all these years but he couldn’t imagine you being any different then how you always have been. he gathered his gift for you from australia, he got a simple necklace with a j engraved on the back, he knew what it looked like but he also knew you. you knew that he wasnt allowed to date you and you werent allowed to date your brothers friends but things can always change and with that he went and grabbed paper to roll you a fresh joint, if he could some how convince jungwoo that youve changed all on your own he wouldnt mind the thought of jake being closer to you in anyway possible.
now in reality jake didnt take into consideration that maybe youve been trying to push your feelings of him away, he was your childhood crush there was always going to be some lingering feelings but you knew deep down if he wanted to try something with you he would. he simply could not have any feelings whatsoever but you knew if you didnt tell him now, you wouldnt be able to get these feelings out for good. and if you release them they wouldnt have to both you for your first year at college. what you didnt know was that jake had enrolled into the same college which was the same one you were going to. and for one of your final projects for your portfolio you had written letters to all of those whom you felt strong feelings towards and leave it at what you feel in that moment, not thinking of the future just that moment. the feelings for that person show show how you feel about them if you think about it in the present.
that being said you knew there was several people you could write to but you knew there was truly one person that you didnt quite know exactly how you feel about them and that was jake so for your gift you prepared your letter assignment, after prepping the final copy and wrapping up the other goodies you had gotten for jungwoo and jake and set them out for when they arrive.
❀᭢᜴꤬⠀
“hey kid” jungwoo said while going in for a hug, it had been too long since you’d seen him. it seems like they were still the same annoying smelly boys you remembered from middle school, for them being gone for three years we always manage to get along with each other. while your parents caught up with jungwoo, you manage to catch jake looking you up and down. he was seeing how much you’ve grown since he left, he always knew you had a crush on him but part of him knew he wouldn’t know how to define these feelings he had for you.
“nice seeing you y/n, you get shorter or something?” he said messing up your hair just the tiniest bit. he knew it made you mad but of course it was jake, how could you get mad at him. you finally got him back, but to focus on your assignments you wanted to detach any lingering feelings you could have from the past.
they had talked to your parents for a bit before going up to bed to catch up on sleep, you couldnt hide the fact that you were a bit bummed out but you knew that jet lag can be gnarly, you left it to them. if anything it gave you more time to finish your portfolio assignments.
❀᭢᜴꤬⠀
you had been preparing for bed since you’d been putting the work in for your preparation for classes, even though you had the whole summer to prepare you wanted to make sure it was perfect and still have time for your friends. breaking you from your thoughts you heard a knock, it shocked you because jungwoo never bothered with knocking. you went to open the door but you turned and saw the outline of jake in your window, it was a little to convenient for him to get to your room so easily. it also didnt help that jungwoos room was down the hall and the roof connected so it was always a secret place for the both of you. it doesn’t phase you anymore but also why did everything pick up the same after he came back, the privilege of being able to connect with him the same way as children you can as adults as well. it makes things so much harder to push everything out, especially your feelings for him.
“aren’t you cold out here? what are you doing out here??” you began questioning him before he could say anything. he once again checked you out without jungwoo’s protective eyes watching.
“just come join me, i have a present for you. grab a blanket for me if your so worried about me.” he had said while smirking motioning for you to come sit outside for a bit; try to catch up as much as you guys could before jungwoo assumedly wakes up.
“fine bossy.” you quickly grabbed a blanket and your presents to the boys but only leaving jungwoos close to your window so you wouldnt forget about it. you sat next to him giving a bit of space but once you stilled he had scoot closer to you and covered the both of you. but to you it was just for the warmth, but to him he just wanted to be as close as he could to you; he missed you more than you could imagine.
there was nothing that could prepare you for what was coming next but now that you were here with him you feel like you get the closure you had been searching for with him.
“here i got you this, open it” jake handed you a drawstring bag and what seemed to be a JOINT. being new to the fact that they are stoner and have developed a reputation for smoking back in aussie now its just so natural for them to pull this type of behavior and it be normal for them, its still unfamiliar to you for them to be doing such things. but despite being surprised with the joint you began to pull the bag apart while watching the strings sink back into the baggie, the bag had been way heavier than you had anticipated, it was a necklace that had a beautiful design and on the back there was a j engraved on the back.
“jake i can't accept this, how much was it i can pay you back after i get paid.” you tried to reason with him but he shook his head and laughed thinking the reaction was just so you and absolutely adored the way you looked.
“very funny, but i'm pretty sure that's not how gifts work, unless you use that on all of your brothers friends. no wonder you have so much nice shit.” he teased you causing you to lightly hit his arm. you had admired the necklace for a second before responding. he knew you didn’t know many of jungwoos friends the way you know him and of course he liked it that way, in all honesty he wouldn’t want it any other way.
“jake seriously, thank you so much i really do love it. its beautiful.” you smiled at him and he reached towards the necklace to put on you. “here let me help darling.” he said quickly as if he was hiding what he was saying from himself and you. you almost didnt catch it, it was so fast. jake’s hands graze your neck and move your hair for you you barley even had to turn that how close you guys were together. he finished and let his hand linger on your neck before glancing from your eyes to your lips back to your eyes.
you weren’t oblivious to what jake was wanting but you didn’t know to what extent, you’ve always had a crush on him but if you did anything with him there was always the strong possibility that jake wouldn’t reciprocate any of the feelings. and thats something you weren’t entirely sure you wanted to risk that and yet here you were mere centimeters away from your brothers best friend, something in jake had him shake back into reality and tuck your hair behind your ear. you couldn’t say you were disappointed because that would mean you wanted something more even thought jungwoo would never allow it.
“so pretty girl did you want to try smoking if not its okay, its up to you pretty.” he pulled out a lighter and held it the same hand with the joint. waiting for your response, he never pushed you to do something you didn’t want, jungwoo would constantly tease you for being scared of things but once jake heard about it he would explain everything logically so you wouldn’t have to worry. there were so many things that you could say made you fall for him but there was never a way to exactly pinpoint that moment but that was in the past, your not that little girl anymore. you nodded “sure it couldn’t hurt.” you said with a smile as you snuggled into the blanket due to the wind picking up.
jake began to light the joint with ease even with the wind, the lighter illuminated his features while he scoot impossibly closer to you and put his arm around you to keep you warm. he went and took a couple of hits before handing it to you, you inspect the joint before hesitating to take a hit. “just suck it lightly or else you’ll start coughing.” he explained while you nodded and begin to take a hit, and immediately after you had a coughing fit which made jake giggle but he rubbed your back as you recovered, god how was he so hot just taking care of you while you both smoke.
you couldnt even begin to guess whats going on with jake but you knew he was fighting with himself on the inside, but to jakes understanding it was you. nothing else really matter to him, school was always easy for him, girls were always easy to get and he was set for life in terms of funds for his smoking (issue) but none of that filled that part of him that he desperately was trying to find once he left for college. now that he’s back home there is nothing but overfill, you mights not have known it but he could never point it out to jungwoo, but you know what jungwoo isnt here. you were both legal adults with lives of your own, jungwoo will have to deal with the decision jake is about to make. with the drugs in both your systems it had you both talking about anything and everything.
“doll listen-“ “jake you can not keep up these nicknames someone can hear you, you know that the walls are thinner than paper unfortunately..” you began to ramble as he takes your cheek into his palm, his thumb caressing your cheek slowly, he gains your attention and continues.
“you know i used to really like you growing up right?” he keeps his hand on you slowly beginning to moving them in between your neck and jawline, just from that you get tingles all over and you take a hit successfully without coughing. you shook your head turning towards him to get some more clarification passing the joint to him but he declines.
“i've liked you since the first day i met you. then jungwoo told me if i ever dated you, he would actually chop my nuts off…” he trails off while you giggle at him, there was something so he was searching for in his head, to which he grabbed the joint from you and put it out on the roof.
“i also never had the courage to actually tell you before but-“ you cut him off before he could say anything else by crashing your lips on his, he felt like he was starved practically devouring your lips with his own. the taste of you was enough to send him to cloud 9 for a permanent vacation. it took everything in him to not to press forward right here on the roof top letting the whole neighborhood who you truly belonged to let alone the your family finding out that there was anything going on between you guys in the first place.
jake pulled away from the kiss but before he fully pulled away he places a chaste kiss on the corner of your lips and one more gently on your lips, it was sweet not harsh and fast as the other but more passion in the one kiss small kiss than he has during this confession.
“jake if you read the letter you’ll understand how i feel about you- how ive always felt about you” you say pulling yourself away from his grasp putting some distance between each other, not wanting to confuse each other any further.
“i think you should read it before we continue any of this” you gesture your hands towards the both of you. once again jake had that pretty boy smile nodding his head letting you think you have any control of this because he wants you that badly. and in all honesty jake would wait forever for you to let him have his way with you. but only if you wanted it back in return, and little did you know he already knew.
“go inside pretty girl, its getting cold and i have someones letter to reread.” he assisted you to your window and said his goodnights to you as you closed the window and made sure it was locked. you had no idea about this effect you had on him, and he was going to let anyone or anything get in the way of you guys.
you began to head to bed trying to process all of the things that happened in the short span of the day. you were glad that your brother was home but what you didn’t expect was his best friend to confess he’s been in love with you since even before you’ve had a crush on him.
oh god you were never finishing this project if this was the outcome for confessing your more heartfelt feelings you couldn’t imagine how the rest of the school year would go and its only the middle of summer break…
❀᭢᜴꤬⠀
if anything this summer has been a breeze up until its jake being less and less secretive about this little thing you guys have going on. you’ll be out hanging out with jungwoo as normal jake will tag along too, but this time he’s leaving lingering touches on your waist and slipping out sweet nicknames in front of jungwoo, practically telling him that something was up between you two. but also its been more than easy to hide it from him as well, ever since jungwoo reconnected with sakura he’s been head over heels with this women, finding more and more ways to sneak into her sorority house without the other members getting mad (how can they be mad if they dont know?)
while only means that the house is more than likely empty and with jungwoo gone your parents felt more comfortable if jake would stay in the guest bedroom at the house while you were home alone, which actually turned into you waking with jakes head in between your legs.
he wouldn’t let any of this disturb you from your work though, he was always willing to leave you be while you have to work hard to finish all your projects. but from time to time he would start reciting certain sentences from your letter to get you all stirred up. he loved knowing everything about you and he wanted to learn everything else, anything he possibly could learn about you.
he found himself yearning to be around you while you were finishing your final project, wanting to keep you near him as much as possible. he’s never found himself attached to anyone like this before, there has never been a girl he’s hooked up with that has had him in such much pure infatuation before he really doesn’t know what he wants other than to make sure youre happy and taken care of. of course he was smart he had all a’s and he rarely needed help for assignments but he couldn’t quite figure out what spell it is that you had put on him in order to be this in love with him.
the sun just began to peak out from the windows and your parents always were out the door super late at night till the early morning so they can be there for you during the day. which mean jake was heading into your room to join you for the morning, meaning he was ready to start your morning right.
“babyyy its cold cmere” you began to whine as jakes warm hand began to wrap around you till you were warm enough for him to start scooting down towards your hips leaving firm wet kisses all the way down just before the hem of your underwear, fiddling with it waiting for you to urge him to continue further. not wanting to waste anymore time you lifted your hips to where his palms is placed over your entrance earning a respective moan from your mouth. he quickly leaned up and kissed your lips as he pushes your underwear down to your ankles before heading down to pleasure you in any way he can, these early mornings were practice for him, learning everything that you liked, it was always for your own pleasure never his own. why would he care when he can fuck you as much as he wanted all night long, just as long as jungwoo never finds out.
jake begins to rub your thighs as he hooks his hands around your thighs to keep them spread as wide as he can get you, he places open mouth kisses all along your where your thighs and hole meet. he changes from kitten licks to longs strides against your clit just barely working you up, he added a couple of fingers in to the mix to keep you going, but he couldn’t get enough of your taste at this point he felt like there was so much he wanted and all of it was you, he wanted to be entirely suffocated into you. his hands begin to grip your hips trying to keep them down as he pushes his face further into your hole to where his soft nose was bumping against your clit, but to your surprise it wasn’t doing it for you, something needed to be different no matter how much you grind into his face, it wasn’t enough.
“mhmf ja-ake please i-“ jake begins to lift his head his lips leave a pop from your wetness, he tries to read your body and what it wants. “want more baby, m’ want to top please.” was all you could manage to get out, how could you when his hands kept on your clit as he spit into your hole wanting more access to finger you even more before flipping you so you could finish your high.
“okay baby just a little bit more for me okay- mmf you taste to fucking good.” he says lifting his head up and down not getting enough from eating you out, he cant wait to see whats its like to eat you out entirely. he pulls away from you entirely and begins to strip you entirely and you do the same for him, not wanting the moment to stop, he starts to lay down and pull you down towards him and you kinda just hover over his lips, you can feel his breath as he blows against your wetness causing you to stifle a moan before he speaks.
“baby you gotta sit down baby, i cant taste you at all.” he tries to lick any part of your hole but nothing gets touched. “mmh but-“ he already knew you were always so shy about things like this being so intimidating, he was always there to give a little a little push. he wouldn’t mind suffocating by your pussy, he wrapped his hands around your thighs and pulled you all the way down so there was no room for breathing, all he wanted was you and now he was naked on the bed eating you out as the sun came up, what more can this man want. the answer wasn’t so simple but as long as you were with him, he wouldn’t care what would happen to him.
just as you were about to finish you heard a door slam and from the sounds of it, it was jungwoo and sakura. but you didn’t want to risk anything happening, jungwoo would kill us if he found us wether sakura was there or not. but for fucks sakes the one time jungwoo magically decides to come home is when you were pussy deep on jakes face and you weren’t stoping any time soon, you grab on to jakes hair and continue to roll your hips as jakes tongue continues to prod at your clenching hole.
“hmf fuck jake please more please m’ almost there.” the thought of you getting caught was no where in sight, you couldn’t care any longer if anyone could hear anything pertaining you or jake. at this point there is nothing else you cared about all you could think about the way his mouth was moving on you right now. you were in heaven every ache in your body was washing way, the grip jake had on your hips was like he wanted to be permanently attached to your other set of lips. your hips begin to stutter and your orgasm spasms all over jakes face as he tries to lick up all he can before it spreads down to your sheets. you finally manage to tear away from jakes lips to finally let him breathe before doing anything further.
“mh baby are you okay?” you wiped up jakes face as he continued to catch his breath. his chest rises and lowers as you sat down on his waist not noticing the rock hard cock that kept tapping your ass. “did you hear the door too?” was all he managed to let out before sitting up slightly, putting his weight on this elbows behind him and admiring you sitting pretty on him.
“yea, it sounded like jungwoo and possibly sakura..” you began to pause not knowing how to word what you wanted to say but the words came out anyways “..but i couldn’t care who hears us at this point, im done hiding this.” you start lifting your hips to line up with his twitching cock, jake released a sigh as you continue to slide down his thickness, letting your plum ass sink all the way down taking him in perfectly. you guys could hear foot steps around the house as you kept going raising your hips and dropping them hard trying to get some noises out of jake, he would never let you get caught but he was really losing this little game you decided to play. but jake was not one for games, except when it came to you. while you go to raise your hips once more he lift his hips into yours as soon as you sank down and you couldn’t help but to let out a vocal moan “mmf-fuck jake”
as soon as the words left your mouth, you stilled your hips and your eyes widened, and there he was with that stupid smile as he flipped the two of you as he continued to ram his hips into you as he kissed your lips making sure to shut you up, he didn’t care if jungwoo walked into the room at least then the relationship wasn’t a secret— then he could truly fuck you whenever he wanted.
“baby you better watch your words or else we will have an audience soon.” he leaned in licking your ear going down kiss you once more on the lips. his thrust became sloppier as time went on and your walls began to flutter, you both with more than ready to release when you heard a knock on your door that didn’t stop jake from keeping his pace while he signaled you to answer the door.
“f-fucking go away” was all you could think of as you continue to chase your high.
“jeez” you could hear sakura on the other side of the door, followed by the closing of the door across the hall— that being jungwoo’s room meant he was more than likely going to put two and two together. there was more of a possibility of you both getting caught if sakura tells him.
with jake never stopping you both began to unravel and jake collapses on you and begins to kiss your face and all over your neck down your shoulders to your tummy and hips, wanting you to relax as best as you can not letting you over work yourself.
“dont worry about them alright. they’ll never figure it out.” jake began to say as you shake your head.
“are you crazy, who else would hear skin slapping and moaning YOUR name and not assume we were having sex, let alone whatever this is between us” you gesture to the two of you, not wanting jungwoo to break up whatever you had with jake, because as much as you wanted to have faith in your relationship with jake, you knew he was always going to think its a game.
“oh doll its fine, you act like he hasn’t done stupid shit at your age too, i mean us being together shouldn’t bother him anymore.” you couldn’t just let jake keep getting away with this anymore than you guys already have, if he wasn’t going to finally make things official then why bother in the first place. you were breaking this off before it could crush your heart anymore than it already did.
“well if you think us is also stupid then we should stop this now, im not doing this any more— i just cant jake.” you began to sit up and put clothes on leaving jake on the bed naked looking a little confused. but before he said anything he gathered his thoughts not wanting you to over think this any longer.
he sat up, tugging you towards him before speaking, his full attention on you as you sat with him. “baby i didn’t mean it like that, i want you more than anything i’ve wanted in a while..” he paused before continuing.
“.. and from now on im not letting anything or anyone get in the way of having you by my side, not even jungwoo.” that last part came out more like a promise.
he reached for your hands pulling them close to his hands placing kisses along your knuckles. “will you be my girlfriend? i can’t imagine my life without you baby, please don’t think i don’t want to be with you. i would do anything for us to stay together, even if jungwoo wants to beat my ass.”
you chuckled at him and nodded, feeling like this has been something some magical wish that has been finally granted, you reached out and wrapped your arms around jakes neck and kisses him as he began to lay back down with your lips on his. he can finally die a happy man with his dream girl.
“alright baby, lets clean you up and go see what those two want, yeah?” jake insisted as he began kissing you and walking into the bathroom, the only possible think you had over your brother was your own bathroom (that and his best friend is wrapped around your finger)
❀᭢᜴꤬⠀
after your close encounter with sakura and jungwoo you insisted jake leave only for him to chase you out of your room to go hang out with jungwoo, the whole way down there was a pit building in your stomach, what if jungwoo knew what sakura had potentially heard, that meant anything you could have had with jake would be gone, but nonetheless you had to face him some how after this.
with jake leading the way, you hung back slowly trailing behind, but before you could process anything you could smell a familiar scent— you found jake taking a lit blunt from jungwoo, as jungwoo was exhaling he locked eyes with you can nearly choked on the smoke.
“i swear if you tell mom-“ jake was quick to cut jungwoo off at your defence.
“you act like we weren’t doing the same shit at her age, she’s fine” he said passing the blunt to offer to you, but you shake your head about to speak.
“mom can barely recognize the fact that you bring sakura over practically every night, why would i start snitching now?” you explained while sakura shrugged in agreement offering you the blunt before passing it in the circle again— to which you accepted taking in the smoke a tiny bit before almost coughing. which had jungwoo wide eye looking at you and sakura, shaking his head before you could pass the blunt to jake as he left lingering touches on your hand as you pulled away, as jungwoo and sakura began making small talk with you and jake, but in all honesty it seemed like nothing was wrong which made you feel ten times better.
“so are you two together?” sakuras words could silence a room faster than your thoughts could keep up with. immediately you shake your head and jake looked at you for a split second and nods. jungwoo immediately turns to jake then to you and starts putting two and two together before handing the blunt to you, expecting a response to what jake means.”
“ive had a crush on y/n since middle school to be honest…” jake turn towards you before continuing. “...but she wont admit it till she knows it okay with her brother.” thats it, you AND jake were done for— there was no way that jungwoo; the brother who as always protected you for any reason you needed, he was always going to be there for you, but would he really be okay with the fact that you have been messing around with his best friend.
“jungwoo has more shit to deal with rather than who his sister and friends are dating..” sakura turned to jungwoo reading his already upset facial expression, “its that right baby?” she questioned him, making sure you get an immediate answer. she already liked the two of you together, if she could get you two together than you guys wouldn’t have to hide it anymore to which jake was eternally grateful for.
“not that i want to control your life but.. at least i know you are safe with this little shit.” jungwoo left it at that as he put the blunt out, as he wrapped his hands around sakura’s waist and began to walk inside shutting the sliding glass door afterwards.
you turn to jake smacking his arm before he could say anything, “what the hell was that?? how did you get him to just let us be??” you began to question him, thoughts running a million miles an hour but jake takes your cheek into his hand caressing it ever so gently, as if he could loose you at any moment. but now he really had nothing to worry about.
“i didn’t know anything, but i know i was more nervous than you were; i thought jungwoo was gonna kill me just with his glare.” he explained pulling you in closer. “but i needed to tell him, i didnt want anything keeping me from my girl.”
for the first time it feels like you could finally be free with your feelings, not wondering what jungwoo was thinking. you began to wrapping your arms around your boyfriends neck pulling him impossibly closer.
“oh jakey poo your so dumb” pulling him into a hug as he rubbed the small of your back with one hand then going to mess up your hair with the other.
“oh now it’s jakey poo.” he points out as you roll your eyes and pull him into a kiss before guiding you inside.
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masterlist
tag list- @jakeshotpocket @soobinsnumber1
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nataliesfirefly · 3 months
Text
You and I Walk a Fragile Line - Farleigh Start x F!Reader - Part 4
a/n: hey everyone! i know it's been a while but the next part is finally here! not sure how many parts i want this to be bc i dont want to fill up the tag, still waiting to make an ao3 account haha- but anyways im getting a taglist started just of people who have shown interest in this series, if i put you on it and you don't want to be on it just let me know. and ofc if u want to be on it lmk! i also made a playlist if anyone wants to check that out :))
playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/60Kll9HCoQru14J18bT21C
series masterlist
word count: 3.9k
warnings: language, suggestive stuff?, alcohol, smoking, emetophobia
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Things are extremely awkward with Felix. He’s too nice to kick you out of Saltburn, yet he’s too prideful to apologize, so you two are stuck dancing around each other with small talk and short interactions.
Things with Farleigh, on the other hand, are surprisingly good. You never would have expected how close you two became in the past few days. In fact, you can’t remember the last time he insulted you, at least not in a playful way. You must have bonded over your shared dislike for Felix at the moment.
But for some reason, you worry if you get too close, he might push you away.
Tonight was dinner with all of Sir James’s friends, and as the Cattons tend to call them, the Henry’s. The actual dinner was full of awkward conversations with people much older than you about the future of your life and what you were going to do after graduating college. You actually had no idea what your plan was or what you wanted to do with your life. You used to push all the questions away and blamed it on the fact that graduation was pretty far away. It only recently dawned on you that you would be graduating in about two years. 
After dinner, you sit in the dimly lit living room with Farleigh on the couch as everyone else participates in karaoke. You and Farleigh snicker at some of the guests’ performances, whispering things to each other as if you are judges of some competition.
Eventually, Farleigh sighs and stands to his feet. “I’m going to go smoke,” He tells you, putting his hands in his pockets. He turns and looks at you expectantly. You take it as his way of asking you to come with him, so you stand up and snatch the bottle of wine you were drinking off the coffee table.
You follow him up the stairs, down the long, dark hall and eventually into his bedroom. He shuts the door behind you and draws out the pack of cigarettes from his pocket and lights one. “At least open the window,” You walk over to the window and open it to let the smoke out.
“Oh, right. Cause you hate the smell so much.” He rolls his eyes at you as he exhales some smoke. “Weren’t you the one that asked me for one of these the other day?” He points the cigarette at you and you glance down shamefully.
“Yeah. I wasn’t at my best, okay?” You shake your head and slump down to the floor, leaning against the wall and stretching your legs out.
“Okay, sure, miss goody two shoes.” He chuckles and sits down next to you. You take a swig from the wine bottle and sigh, leaning your head back.
“So, Felix…” Farleigh trails off and looks over to you. You continue staring up at the ceiling. “Can we not talk about Felix right now,” You reply, closing your eyes. “We need to,” He says, nudging you.
“What is there to talk about?” You ask, turning to meet Farleigh’s gaze. He presses the cigarette to his lips and inhales. “You said it yourself, that he only hangs out with me out of pity.” 
As he breathes out, the smoke passes over your face but you don’t care. “And what’s your problem with him? It seems like you’ve been waiting for someone to turn on him so you could join in,” You continue, and his eyes tell you that you’ve just read him like a book.
He quickly recovers and remains expressionless. “You’re projecting,” Farleigh responds. “Then why have you been so nice to me?” You ask.
The room goes silent and you are stuck in a moment where time doesn’t pass, it’s just you and Farleigh. His usual cold and dark gaze is replaced by something softer, warmer. Something in the air shifts and you can feel some kind of tension rising.
But then he looks away, breaking eye contact. “Because Felix is just stupid sometimes,” He finally replies, nodding toward the bottle of wine you are holding. You hand it to him and your fingers brush against his.
He takes a drink. “I don’t think he ever had bad intentions. He’s just an idiot,” You consider this. Maybe he’s just extremely out of touch with reality like the rest of the Cattons.
There’s a pause as you think of something to change the subject to.
“So… How about that Sadie girl?” You ask, turning to him with a grin. He gives the wine back to you and you take a quick swig.
Elspeth is, for some reason, attempting to set Farleigh up with a daughter of one of James’s friends. Her name is Sadie, and she is very pretentious and fake, from what you can tell. You hadn’t spoken to her, but you watched from afar as she and Farleigh engaged in a conversation.
“She’s alright,” He shrugs and stands up to press the cigarette out on his ashtray. He sits back down next to you and sighs.
“She was like, hardcore flirting with you,” You chuckle and observe his exasperated expression. “Oh, I know.” He smirks smugly and you roll your eyes.
“That’s weird, usually you hook up with someone the moment they show interest in you,” You smile at the way he frowns slightly. “That’s not true,” He furrows his eyebrows and glances at you. “Okayyy,” You say sarcastically.
A while later, you are still upstairs with Farleigh, but you are now feeling the effects of all the alcohol you’ve consumed. You both had gone downstairs to steal more booze, and you ended up drinking almost all of it. Your whole body feels tingly and warm, and your brain is fuzzy.
You run a hand through your tousled hair and sigh, turning to check if Farleigh is as wasted as you. He seems slightly better off than you, but his dark eyes are half lidded and glossy.
“Do you ever miss Sasha?” He glances at you, seeming surprised at your random question. Sasha is Farleigh’s ex from Oxford, who he had endured a tumultuous and rollercoaster ride of a relationship with. You had met her once or twice, she seemed kind, but slightly possessive.
“Sasha?” Farleigh repeats her name and takes a moment to process it. It seems like memories are returning to him and replaying in his head.
“Sometimes. But not really. She was crazy,” He raised his eyebrows and stared straight ahead. “You guys broke up and got back together, like, ten times,” You giggle foolishly and he turns to look at you, slightly offended by your amusement.
“It was too hard to keep up with,” You sigh after your laughter subsides. 
“I didn’t know you were keeping up,” You make eye contact once again with Farleigh, and this time his gaze is more intense. You can’t tell if it’s one of his usual sarcastic comments or if there was an underlying meaning behind his tone. Your face burns red with the realization that you had been studying his relationship so closely. But, really, everyone in your friend group knew about Sasha and Farleigh’s dumpsterfire of a romance. Break up, random hook ups, they said they love each other, then they argued again.
“It’s just.. what friends do,” You reply, your speech slurred. “Friends keep up with each other’s relationships.” You shrug and wave your hand as if to dismiss the seriousness of it.
“You consider me a friend?” Farleigh chuckles, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Well, what if I do?” Your voice comes out softer than you intended. 
There’s another long moment of silence and prolonged eye contact between you two. The tension is so thick, you can feel it in the air and your heart pounds. It’s almost like you are waiting for who will make the next move. Your brain is all muddled and you can’t seem to think clearly.
Your eyes flicker down to his plush lips and you can’t tell if it’s the alcohol or not, but your instinct is to kiss him. You grab him by the face, a hand on either cheek, and pull him in, smashing your lips together sloppily. You pull away, shocked at yourself, dropping your hands into your lap as your lips hover over his.
You expect him to be disgusted and stand up and walk away, but there’s a slight pause before he is grabbing you and pulling you back in, kissing you almost aggressively. Like he’s been starved, like there’s not enough of you.
You squeak with surprise before you melt into him, softening as one of his hands travels down to your neck and the other settles on your waist. You both have to gasp for air in between sloppy kisses, but you don’t mind. Your heart races and your hands travel up into his hair, running your hands through his unruly dark curls. You find that you’ve been waiting so long to do that, to feel his hair in your hands.
He bites your lower lip and your eyebrows pinch together. “Sorry,” He mumbles, although his voice disappears into your mouth. You feel yourself losing balance and beginning to fall back onto the floor.
Before you know it, he’s on top of you, refusing to stop kissing you. It’s messy and you know you’re both drunk, but damn does it feel good. The tension feels like it’s being lifted off of you, and it’s relieving. You don’t know how long it will last but hell, you’re enjoying it. Both of his hands have moved to your hips and his fingers are pressing into you.
You feel his lips move from yours, moving down from your jaw to your neck. He’s kissing and sucking on your skin so passionately that you know you will have bruises tomorrow. You moan quietly and you hear him groan in response, his low voice vibrating against your neck.
You attempt to catch your breath as you suddenly feel something in your stomach, something unpleasant. Saliva begins to build in your mouth and it’s like you have an internal clock telling you how much time you have left before you absolutely hurl.
“Far-Farleigh,” You place your hands on his shoulders. You whimper and slightly push up on him. He glances up from your neck, staring up at you in confusion. You can’t deny that you enjoy viewing him from this angle, but you have other concerns at the moment.
“Gonna throw up,” You manage to get out before he’s rolling off of you, allowing you to get up. You clamber to your feet and scramble into the connecting bathroom, barely making it to your knees in front of the toilet before you throw up. 
You grip both sides of the toilet for support as you practically spill your guts, coughing loudly. You would have liked some help or something from Farleigh, but it seems like he has just left you here to deal with it yourself.
You groan and wipe your mouth, sitting up and staring straight ahead in some sort of daze. You eventually come to your senses and stand up, flushing the toilet. You feel dizzy so you grab onto the counter of the sink to not lose balance, catching your reflection in the mirror.
Your hair is very messy, and your mascara is slightly smudged around your eyes. Your cheeks are warm and rosy, but in an unflattering way. You look like a wreck. 
When you walk back into his room, he’s gone. You sigh in frustration and press a hand to your aching and pounding forehead. Somehow, you stumble back to your room and flop onto your bed. You managed to avoid the small number of guests left in the house, along with Venetia and Felix. You just want to get some sleep after the shitshow that just happened. And you know you’ll be paying for it in the morning. 
2 YEARS EARLIER
You, Felix, and some of your other friends were gathered at the pub on a Friday night. There was chatter and the smell of cigarette smoke all around you. Felix returned from the bar and handed you a tall glass of beer.
You were focused on Farleigh and the girl who sat on his lap. Her hands were all over him, and he seemed totally enamored with her. She had a short skirt on and her wrists were covered in bracelets. She was pretty, you had to admit.
“Who’s that?” You asked, glancing up at Felix and pointing to the two. “Oh, that’s Sasha.” He replied. “She’s obsessed with Farleigh. And from what I can tell,” Felix sat down, pulling his chair closer to yours, “He’s liking it.”
You chuckled and took a sip of your beer. “Good for him,” You said, shrugging. “Bet they’ve already fucked,” Felix remarked and you snapped your head towards him. “Ew, Felix. That’s none of your business.” You made a disgusted expression.
“What? Everybody shags around here, it’s no surprise,” He shrugged nonchalantly. “Except you,” He added, grinning and nudging you. You rolled your eyes and looked back towards Sasha and Farleigh.
You didn’t want to imagine them… doing that. But for some reason, your mind kept trying to paint a picture of it. You shook your head to clear your thoughts. 
You didn’t know why, but for some reason, you felt jealousy bubbling up inside of you. Why was it so easy for her to get what she wanted? You had liked a few men at Oxford, but you didn’t really even want a boyfriend or a commitment like that.
But as you watched Farleigh and Sasha’s hands intertwine, you felt envious.
“Hey, Felix, who was that guy you were going to introduce me to?” You asked, tapping your fingers against the table. “What? Oh, Joshua? I thought you said you didn’t want to meet him,” He replied. Felix was trying to set you up with one of his friends who seemed like a player. At this point, you didn’t care. It was like you were trying to prove that you could actually get a guy. Prove to who, though?
“I know. I changed my mind,” You said decidedly. “Well, he’s actually here tonight. Would you like me to go grab him?” Felix stood up and pointed towards the other side of the pub. You nodded. “Sure,”
You waited patiently and took a few swigs of beer for confidence. A minute later, Felix returned with a man who was a few inches shorter than him, with fluffy blonde hair and hazel eyes. Freckles were dusted across his nose and his skin was nicely tanned due to the warmer weather of spring. He looked sweet and innocent, but the rumors you had heard about him told you otherwise.
“Hello,” He greeted you, holding out his hand. You stood up to shake his hand, smiling as you introduced yourself. “Nice to meet you, I’m Joshua.” He grinned brightly and Felix seemed amused by the interaction.
“Hi, Joshua.” You tried to make a good first impression, although you weren’t good at this stuff. But it seemed like he was already interested, looking you up and down.
You both sat back down and began small talk about classes and life and friends. Felix left you two alone, but you’re not sure where he went. It was good, talking to someone new, but still a bit uncomfortable since you were so introverted. The conversation flowed nicely between the both of you.
You couldn’t help but feel like someone was watching you. You glanced up, seeing Farleigh’s cold gaze drilling into yours, flicking back and forth between you and Joshua. It was like he was waiting to see who would break eye contact first, and of course, it was you. Your gaze faltered down to the table and then back up to Joshua.
“You alright, love?” He asked, placing a hand on your thigh. You nodded and your face turned a shade of pink with embarrassment. “Sorry. Just thinking,”
“Hey, what do you say when we go back to my dorm? To just chill, relax, you know.” He tilted his head and you could already tell what he was implying. “Uh- Sure, yeah. Let’s go,” You smiled and stood up, grabbing your bag and walking past him toward the doors. He placed a hand on your lower back as you stepped by him.
You woke up the next morning unsure of where you were before memories of the night before came back to you. You were in Joshua’s bed, tangled up in the sheets, with your clothes off and scattered on the floor.
Your eyes widened as you realized you had lost your virginity to Joshua Brown. You sat up and scratched your head, not sure what to do next.
“Oh my God…” You whispered, looking down at Joshua, who was sleeping on his stomach, his face pressed against the pillow. It didn’t look like he was waking up anytime soon.
You stood up and winced as you realized you were a bit sore. You tried to be as quiet as possible as you picked your clothes up off the floor, hurriedly putting them back on.
Joshua stirred in his sleep and groaned, rolling over. You grimaced as you took your bag off of his desk chair, tip toeing to the door and opening it slowly.
You sighed with relief once you had closed his door behind you and you were safely out in the hallway. You know you probably looked like a wreck, but your main goal at the moment was to get back to your own dorm going unnoticed.
You heard your name being called, fairly close to you. You froze before turning to identify where it came from, and you swear your heart dropped to your ass. Farleigh was standing in the doorway of his room, which was conveniently right next door to Joshua’s, smirking at your frazzled state.
“You should work on keeping it down. I couldn’t sleep last night because I kept hearing you and Joshua.” He chuckled and you could feel your face heating up.
“Sorry,” You muttered, casting your glance downwards to the floor. 
“You finally got some after all,” He teased. “Can you shut up?” You groaned, facepalming and shaking your head. “Oh, I will if you can figure out how to,” He raised his eyebrows. “Was it really that good?” He questioned.
You considered the question. You didn’t really know if it was or not, you were just trying to be loud because you thought guys liked that. Were you satisfied by the end? No. But Joshua certainly was.
He seemed to notice your puzzled expression and he nodded. “Oh. So the rumors are true about him.” You tilted your head with curiosity. “What rumors?” You asked.
“Oh, you poor thing.” He cooed sarcastically. You narrowed your eyes at him and crossed your arms. “Well, you’d better get back to your place so you can study,” Farleigh mocked. “Make up for that time you lost last night, huh?”
“Can you just not tell anyone? Please?” You knew it was useless asking him not to tell. He had the biggest mouth in the whole class. He just snickered at your pleading and stepped back into his room and shut his door.
That night you hung out with Joshua in his dorm once more, but you told him you didn’t want to have sex again. He respected your decision, so you were just drinking some alcohol with him and making out occasionally.
“Yeah, I don’t really know what I’m going to do with an English degree. I just had to pick something.” He shrugged. You were talking about your futures after Oxford and what you were both majoring in.
“Hm. Well, there’s a lot you could do,” You replied, trying to reassure him, although you weren’t too sure yourself. “You could be-” Your sentence is cut short by a loud moan coming from the room next to you.
“Ah, shit. It’s Farleigh and Sasha again,” Joshua shook his head like it was a regular occurence. “They’re usually at it for a while,” He informed you. “Do you want to go somewhere else?”
Some odd, depraved part of you wanted to stay and listen. “No, that’s alright.” You shrugged. “Surely it can’t be that bad.”
The walls seemed paper thin. You swear you could hear every little noise, like the bed springs squeaking and the wanton sounds that came from Sasha. But then you heard something different. It was Farleigh, whimpering and moaning in a way that you couldn’t even believe what you were hearing. You didn’t know men could make sounds other than grunting during sex, let alone sounds like that.
“Oh fuck,” You heard him breathe heavily and Sasha was practically screaming at this point. 
“Damn. They’re really getting into it,” You whistled and raised your eyebrows. Joshua nodded. “I wish I was as good as people say he is,” Joshua looked down. “What?” You asked as you tried to ignore the continuous noises. He was really telling you to be quieter earlier today?
“Farleigh. People say he’s really good in bed,” Joshua explained. You were surprised that he was okay with discussing this with you. “Oh.” You chuckled nervously. You didn’t expect that, but for some reason it made sense. “Was I bad?” Joshua asked suddenly.
You froze at his question and wondered if you should tell him the truth. “I mean… I don’t really… know the difference, you know? It was my first time, remember?” You told him. He nodded but you could tell he seemed hurt and defeated.
“Right,” He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck and you leaned back in your chair. You could say this was one of the most embarrassing moments of your life, having to listen to Farleigh fuck some girl while having an awkward conversation with the man you had a one night stand with.
The next day around noon, you were walking to a café near campus when you saw Farleigh walking ahead of you on the sidewalk of the cobblestone streets.
An idea popped into your head and you smiled mischievously, jogging to catch up with him. When you appeared at his side, he glanced down and made a face.
“Are you following me?” He asked, glaring at you as you fell into step next to him. “No. I just had a complaint,” You tried to hide the smile threatening your face. “What’s that?” He quirked an eyebrow.
“Me and Joshua were trying to have a nice conversation last night,” You started, and his playful expression immediately dropped. “Maybe try to keep it down next time, right?” You grinned and he stopped in his tracks.
“You were there last night?” He seemed annoyed and a little bit shocked. “Yeah.” You nodded and stopped next to him. “I mean, I couldn’t even hear my own thoughts,” You laughed to yourself and he narrowed his dark eyes at you.
“And it wasn’t even Sasha as much as it was you–” “Keep your mouth shut,” He ordered, and you knew you got a rise out of him. “Practice what you preach, that’s all I’m saying,” You waved and skipped along the sidewalk, leaving him standing there in shock.
taglist: @isla-finke-blog @ibimbogrl @drunkmysticsquirrel @alonia-olivia @novemilady @saltburnsworld
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sloshr · 3 months
Text
After watching through Side Order... I have a Few Thoughts.
[Spoilers ahead]
My Review of the Side Order DLC - Its little more than Gameplay.
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Initial Opinion
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Overall; I like the gameplay mechanics initially, but the story absolutely feels lacking to me, imo. It feels like they were really banking on Side Order being Hard but... multiple of my friends finished it on their 2nd or 3rd run through the Spire.
That in itself isnt a problem! But... everyone felt sort of unsatisfied? There were no developments in the story, as we, Agent 8, were just assigned the task to Get to The Top of the Spire -> The Player Does That -> You beat a Boss -> Credits Roll (?)
On my watchthrough I literally said Please Say Sike 😭 because, dont take this poorly, but they were advertising Side Order as;
• Difficult (stated Multiple Times in basically every Trailer)
• Story Driven (You Uncover things as You Climb)
• Character and Lore Intensive (as shown by the trailers with all the concept art as well as promo art)
I dont feel like it was wrong to expect more based on how it was advertised.
But... if you complete the DLC in 1-2 runs, which is Very Much Possible, no buildup happens at all. The story was banking on the player struggling, and putting all the content behind repeat runs, which falls through and Doesnt really work/feel satisfying if the main goal is achieved in such a short time. I Feel like anyone who regularly plays Salmon Run will likely have a similar experience. And I feel kind of cheated? Because what we got was something that was Tell Not Show rather than the Show, Not Tell formula. And in my opinion, it really doesn't work as well at all. It puts all the major lore that the game has set up behind repetetive climbs (which never change btw, despite each climb being generated differently, its the same after a while) and you get about 1 Sentence of Exposition, with a Modlog from Marina if you are Lucky.
Side Order was (to me), after watching it all;
• Not Difficult, But Repetetive Gameplay (This easily runs people down, which would be fine if the tower had more than 1 setup or phase)
• Inital Story Setup with no complexities or stages. You climb the first Tower, Save Marina, Climb the Second Tower, Beat Order, and the credits Roll. In its most complex, you could fit what Side Order's Story is in 2-3 Sentences. Rather than Lore being revealed During the story, it feels Pushed to the Side as all of it is either in Text the player may never see (different climbs) or care to read (Marina's Mod Log)
• Use of Character Drops with no explaination / mention (The Agent 4 Boss, Anyone?) (This felt very Bait-y, with No Payoff)
Rating
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If I had to give Side Order a Rating
4/10. At Best.
I am a bit disappointed with this as I feel like I was promised more, Storywise, and honestly a bit gameplay wise. I think it fails where other DLC has succeeded Due to being Built in such a way where anything engaging is stuck behind barely changing gameplay. It is not built in a way where the experience cant fail to show you whats important to the characters and the worldbuilding. It relies too much on telling you whats happening rather than the world showing you. Its too Simple, and It Doesnt Work, personally, in a series that contains Octo Expansion.
Which is Sad to me!! It had so much wasted potential and I really hope this isn't the last we're going to see of the concept, we get to see ideas actually built into the story, and... maybe find Agent 4.
Conclusion
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Tldr; Side Order had a good concept, but failed in execution for being simple and gameplay dependent, which was ultimately disappointing due to it being advertised as something more for all involved.
It was an alright attempt. The experience will just be known to me as... well. Baby's First Rouge-like. Nothing worldbreaking.
(PS, this isnt meant to be mean spirited or overly critical, I just love the Splatoon Series so I give it Tough Love. This is just my personal view on the DLC)
Thank you for Reading! Feel free to share or add any thoughts!
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cheri-2047 · 24 days
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Could you maybe try high school Fem!Scaramouche hc with a huge crush on us but being super reluctant and shy about it?? :3
OKAY. I HAVE NEVER WRITTEN FOR SCARA OKAY PLEASE BEAR WITH ME 😭 also dude ure my first request thank u so much <3
so I didn’t know how to write this but THERE WAS AN ATTEMPT. Anyways basically I’m gonna write a bunch of headcanons then some scenarios under that
Please I’m so sorry if I mischaracterized him I really tried I SWEAE 😭😭😭
This is not proofread btw
WARNINGS: none, it’s all fluff :3
Fem!Scaramouche Headcanons:
HEADCANONS:
Fem!Scara would seem like extremely pissed off to everyone, but she would do small tasks for you that she never does with anyone else
Fem!Scara would do her best to not make it obvious that she likes you. (Even if that means accidentally hurting you with her snarky remarks)
Fem!Scara would be more quiet around you. She doesn’t become as arrogant or stubborn around you, well she would be but just not as much since she cares for you
Fem!Scara ime personally, I don’t think she would be much on physical touch, but if you hugged her she would pay your back and put her chin on your shoulder
Fem!Scara enjoys seeing you be passionate about things. She would listen all day to you and keep eye contact.
Fem!Scara would be very well at hiding when she’s flustered. Like if you’re play flirting with her, she would just end it like “…? What do you expect me to say to that?” When in reality, she’s really giddy inside
Fem!Scara would choose to sit beside you during field trips, or if you go to school via school bus. She says it’s just a coincidence (for field trips) but in reality, she really made it so you Teo sat together
Confession time:
Fem!Scara would be really pleased if you confessed to her first. She wouldn’t say yes immediately, (like instead of going “yes yes!!” She would be in disbelief)
Fem!Scara if she were to confess, she would spend a lot of time thinking how she would do it. She would worry if you said no and I feel like she would spend a week bringing herself down saying you’d never say yes and it’s a waste of time (no it’s not)
Scara enters the school earlier than usual to look for your locker. She had decided to just send a letter. Scara finds it and rereads his letter (for the 100th time today…)
“Dear y/n,
Before I say anything, if you were to say no that’s completely fine. I understand I am not the best, but the truth is, these past few months, I’ve started to develop feelings for you. I just didn’t say or do anything about it well..since I didn’t really want you to know or anyone really. I really really like you, but understand if you would just want to stay friends. Thank you for hearing me out.
-Scara”
SHe hesitantly folds it up again, leaving a candy you really like taped to it as he slips it in the gap of your locker. SHe can barely calm himself down but he goes back to the classroom.
As she sees you, she stiffens up, but tries to remain the same.
“Did she read it?”
“Has she even seen it?”
“Maybe I didn’t write long enough?”
“Ah damn it I barely wrote anything!”
She stares at her lap, not daring to look up. As suddenly when you tap hee table, you mention the letter.
“I saw what you left..”
She immediately PANICS clutching her skirt getting ready for a no. She just laughs it off as if it were nothing to hide that she’s actually a mess inside.
“Haha, well what d’you think?”
She tries to act cocky and stuff. But as you come to terms and conditions (when u say yes) she looks at you in disbelief.
“….is this a joke? Are you lying?”
As you say no it’s not a joke, she then stands up and taps your hand.
“Thank you…”
WOWWOWOWOOWOWOW THIS WAS NOT PROOFREAD AT ALL AHHAHAHAH. Anyways uhhh if anyone else wants to request smth, go ahead. School just ended so I have nothing to do for the next few months. Once again, my bad if I accidentally mischaracterized her. I really tried ok. ANYWAYS THANK U, U DONT KNOW HOW HAPPY I AM THAT SOMEONE ACTUALLY REQUESTES SMTH FROM ME LIKE I KID U NOT I GOT REALLT HAPPY AT LIKE 6 AM😭😭😭 anyways thank u again omg I hope this was ok 😭😭
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chrissturnsgirlll222 · 2 months
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comfort
highschool!chris x fem!reader
summary: comforting chris when he comes to you in a time of need and melancholy
warnings: fluff, crying, kissing, established relationship, use of pet names??
a/n: chris’ parents arent actually mary lou and jimmy in this!!!! enjoy <33
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my bathroom was freezing as i got out of my shower, blasting music throughout my house since my parents werent home, wrapping my hair in a towel and applying lotion to my body. i shivered while i slipped on my underwear pulling on one of chris’ crewnecks and began my skincare. i was in the middle of applying moisturizer when i got a text from my boyfriend that read, “im coming over”. i smiled at my phone and replied, “ok baby my parents arent home so just go to the front door ill leave it open.”.
i finish applying my products and slipped on some pyjama shorts. taking my hair out of the towel, brushing it out and turning off my music before running downstairs to unlock the door.
knock, knock
i heard two loud knocks as i walked away from the door and ran to it, finding chris outside with bloodshot red eyes, tears streaming down his face and messy hair.
“chris what happened.” i exclaimed putting my hands on either side of his face. he just shook his head and closed his eyes bowing his head down. “talk to me baby, whats wrong” i whisper. he just keeps his eyes shut and silent sobs escape his mouth. worry grows within me as he stays silent and i pull him in to a hug. he continues to cry in to my shoulder and i hold his body to mine. “i cant take it anymore.” he cries. “take what chris.”
“them, my parents.” he sobs. chris had a long history with his parents being controlling and inconsiderate of his feelings. they always pushed him and pushed him and he always took it. i guess they pushed too far. they had expectations for him and a forceful way of showing it. “the noise, its- its too much.”
“come inside baby its cold” i say pulling him inside and shutting the door. he sniffles and we walk upstairs. ending up on my bed and he sighs taking a seat. “can you explain what happened chris.” i sit next to him as he stares directly in front of him.
“they just always push too hard and i broke.” he breathes. “what did they say.” i put my hand on his shoulder. “that i am going nowhere if i keep up with what im doing, that i need to stop being inconsiderate, i need to leave my room and that im going to end up being a dead beat if i dont start doing better in school.”
i frown at his words, “their fucking right-“ i cut him off, “chris no, their wrong. your going to be better than them. dont ever say that.” i console, “the more they say it i just keep believing it, i do terrible in school, i dont have a job i mean look at me im going nowhere in life.”
“chris were in highschool you dont need to be successful now, we are children being forced into a world we basically know nothing about. your parents have no idea what their talking about.” i say getting up and kneeling infront of him. he turns away from my face and shuts his eyes as more tears fall from his eyes. “baby look at me” i put my hands on his knees. he turns to me and the look in his eyes causes mine to pool with tears. “chris listen to me. you are not what your parents say to you. you are more than that.”
“but what if their right, ill end up just like that and continue disappointing the people around me like always.” his eyes are burning red and spilling with tears as he continues. “i always let people down no matter what i do. how do they expect me to do better when all they tell me is that i never do enough.”
my chest tightens at his words. he rarely cries especially not when its about his parents. he has a tendency to hold everything in and when doing that he holds it until he breaks. i cant stand to see him to distraught over words his own parents said to him. “chris you are not disappointing anyone. i love you and im here to tell you that you are doing enough. you never need to feel that way around me you know that.”
“i just feel so lost- and i-“ he chokes.
i enveloped my arms around his shoulders holding him close as he cries into my chest. “shh its ok, im here” i say squeezing him into me. he clutches on to the fabric of his sweater on me and wraps his arms around my torso.
“im sorry i ruined your night.” he sighs slowly calming down. “no, no, no, baby you didnt. you always can come to me when things get rough dont ever hold back around me.” i say pressing a kiss to his head.
he pulls away and pulls me on to his lap, moving us towards the top of my bed. i wipe the tears away from his eyes before pressing gentle kisses all around his face as his hands rest on my hips. “i love you” i mumble against his skin before pressing a kiss to his mouth. he sniffles and presses a kiss to my collarbone. “i love you too my girl.” he mumbles pulling me to lay down against him.
i noticed that he always felt comfort around laying down and enjoying eachothers company. i guess it was comfort in knowing he wasnt alone, or that someone cared about him. “i will always be there for you no matter what, you know that right.” he says. “arent i supposed to be saying that to you chris.” i smile fiddling with his shirt. “im just reminding you.” he chuckles placing a hand against my back . “yes babe, i know you will.” i look up at him, leaning up to kiss him again and my hands find home in his hair. he sighs contentedly as i lay my head on his chest. falling asleep with the dim lights in my room in complete silence as i continued my relaxing gesture against his head.
-
thanks for reading xx
taglist: @sleepysturnss @blahbel668 @alorsxsturn @w4nnabeurs @junnniiieee07 @waydasims @matthewloverr @bitchydragonparadise @matthewsturnioloswifey @iloveneilperry @stunza @realuvrrr @sturnsjtop @tubl-mc @lilsstvrn @sturniololol @sturnssmuts @emlovesthesturniolos
a/n for those who are waiting on snf i deeply apologize ive been on speing break and just enjoying my time away from school but i will be posting the new part very soon!!!!
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Note
feel free to imagine a sexy interpretation. Also, I'm going to add a loss of virginity here just for fun. In this scenario, Dream is finally willing to admit to himself that he loves the reader, but he's still not willing to confess (and he's also still a possessive/obsessive jerk), so instead he chases after the woman's dreams, especially until even your wet dreams. And 2 possible catalysts here, either Dream sees that the reader is dreaming about having sex with someone else and becomes insanely jealous or he sees someone flirting with the reader in the waking world and becomes insanely jealous XD. This is so Dream, like a king, he feels entitled to the reader and his time, and while he's trying to work up the courage to confess, he makes sure the reader can't hook up with anyone else.
Petty And Yours
Dream of the Endless x Demon Hunter!Reader
Summary: Somnium Regem, the Dream King, felt a certain kinship to the bondservants of his sister Domina, the Lady, or in the words of the king, older sister, Death. This was because of how closely the family of demon hunters has interacted with the Endless throughout generations. There was a particular member of this family he had a soft spot for, not that he'd ever admit it out loud, unless coaxed.
Word Count: 9k+💀 (why cant i ever just make them fuck and be done with it?)
Warnings: Fem!reader, smut (virgin!reader, biting marking, fingering, oral [f receiving], hair pulling, vaginal penetration, unprotected sex, praise kink), Set in the Roman middle ages, dream being stupid, reader being stupid, jealous/possessive!dream, reader, fluff, angst, typos, etc.
A/N: OMG YES. MINORS DNI (the smut is at the end) Let go nonnie we love petty, possessive and pathetic dream UGH <3 also I really enjoyed this universe I made with demon hunter!reader, and i usually don't make p2s for my work, but im giving her at least this because she deserves it and i love her. ok isnt actually a p2, its more of a prequel in fact, so you dont have to read the other demon hunter fic i made, but if you do youre gonna be like OMG SLAY that makes more sense now. also, smut after smut for this reader, get it bestie HAHHA HELP THIS REACHED 8k WTF And just in case its not clear, theyre speaking latin in this but like i only put a few latin passages cos i have no idea if its even right lol HAHAHH this gif of him T_T he's so emo sir calm yourself T_T Tagging: @pinksirensong @aralezinspace @deniixlovezelda @shadow-pancake9 @sloanexx @julesandro @farintonorth Previous demon hunter!reader fic: "Caged"
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With my thick skirt and cloak gathered in my hands, I stop at the edge of the street, waiting for the donkey cart to pass me.
I release a huff, impatiently, though I end up finding myself smiling at the old man who greets me while he urges his ride to quicken its pace. Once he has passed, I finally move to cross.
I hiss when a bunch of children carelessly run past me. I eye them and call out, "vigilate quo itis!"
Watch where you're going!
"Children," I mutter in Latin under my breath, as I quickly make my down the townsquare.
I run up a flight of marble stairs and huff when I reach the temple at the top. I push one of the massive doors open, and the sound of it echoes in the grand room.
I close the door and call out, "mater?"
I wait. Nothing. I call out again.
When I finally hear my name, I turn and see it was my mother but my brother calling for me. Grin in excitement, not expecting his prescience. I run over to the man who was three years my senior, smiling from ear to ear, arms out stretched.
I jump into his arms. We seal each other in a tight embrace.
"Cassian," I chuckle airily, "it's been nearly two decades."
He hums, "yes, little sister. I've missed you dearly."
I pull away from him and cups his cheeks. I smile at the sight of his face, looking no older than the age of 25, like the rest of us siblings, though we were all on this earth for more that 50 years.
"Where is mother?" I ask.
Cassian grabs my hands, "Domina est ad loquentes."
She is talking with The Lady.
"The Lady is here?" I tilt my head and perk at the idea.
"Apud Somnium Regem."
"With the Dream King!?" I gasp, "oh come on brother, we must meet them at once!"
Cassian laughs as I tug at his arm in excitement.
He and I rush off to where Domina and Somnia were, recounting random stories that we could think of along the way. The moment I spot the two, conversing with my grey haired mother, I release my grip on Cassian and run towards them.
My mother catches me and chuckles, calling out my name in greeting as she opens her arms out to me from the windowsill she was sat upon.
Once upon her, I envelope her in my arms, kissing her cheeks repeatedly.
"Ah, my sweet girl," my mother coos in my mother tongue, "you act as though you did not see me a month ago."
I pull away from her, shaking my head, "I would react the same way even if I saw you yesterday, mater."
She smiles, placing a kiss on my forehead before I turn to the two Endless siblings.
"Domina," I smile, leaning in for an embrace, kissing both cheeks of the dark skinned woman. She chuckles and reciprocates.
"Somnia," I bow my head at the pale man. He smiles and mimics me, and he extends his palm out for me to take. When I do, he kisses the back of my hand.
I chew on the inside of my lower lip, holding back a smile as I pull my hand away.
"Praise to the Lady, Praise to the Dream Lord," Cassian calls when he finally reaches us. My brother takes his time showing his respects to the siblings, then after, kisses our mother's cheeks in regard.
"You finally thought to visit your mother, boy," she says, narrowing her eyes at her second child, "your older sister, Aurelia, might be travelling Constantinople but she oft sends me letters, as do your younger brothers, Amias and Lucius."
I nudge Cassian to further egg him on, and he quickly eyes me in response, though only addresses our mother, "pardon your son, mater. I am here this day, however, to bring you glad tidings."
I perk and raise my brows at his words, "did you capture the archdemon you were tracking?"
Cassian turns to me, brows tensing before relaxing, "no."
"Did you find the Shadow Master?" my mother asks.
"No, mater," he replies, shaking his head, "I..."
My eyes widen at Cassian's hesitation. He was not one to trail off with his worlds or fall flat with them.
"I have a bride," Cassian huffs, lowering his gaze before turning back to our mother with a soft smile.
My jaw drops, my blood stills.
Cassian straightens himself up, "she is Veronica. Her face is brighter than the morning light, and is as temperate and kind as the Lady," he turns to Death when he says this.
I shake my head in disbelief. I turn to my mother who does not look nearly as shocked as I do.
"She carries my child."
A shiver runs down my spine. I recoil at the sight of my brother.
I watch in horror as my mother stands and pouts at her second born, exclaiming, "lauda dominae! My son has come home to me with a family of his own."
I turn to The Lady, who my mother just exclaimed praise to. My face contorts at the happiness written on her face. It was the sight of her brother, Dream's, face that makes me realize this was all really happening. I then watch as my mother stands and walks towards Cassian, sealing him in a tight embrace.
I shake my head at the misplaced affection, "mater, how can this news please you? He is only halfway through a hundred!"
Mater turns to me, eyes taking in my worried and hurt expression.
Cassian sighs, reaching his hand out to me. I evade him, swatting his hand away, "proditor."
Traitor.
My mother calls out my name. I look at her expression and find tears lacing my eyes. She was looking like this at me?
"Sister, please, I-"
"We all promised each other we'd have our own families after a century!" I exclaim, walking away, "and you! You!" I point, "you've betrayed all of us!"
My name is called again, this time both by my older brother and my mother.
"Mater fuit per se propter hoc!" I whine, "and you dare tell her this in the name of glad tidings?"
I am glad I did not choke when I spoke, 'mother lived by herself because of this.' I normally could not bare to recall the stories my mother had after evoking the Right of the Lonely, the right in which the a person from our line would not die because it would kill off the last remaining demon hunters in existence. I could not even stomach the idea of living out a hundred years without companionship.
When Domina calls out to me, I freeze. I watch as she walks closer, reaching out to me to offer me comfort only she was every capable of. But then Cassian calls my name and I'm betrayed all over again.
And so I run. I run out of the temple and lose myself in the city.
If it was so easy for Cassian to betray the promise we swore as siblings not to partake in the world only until after completing our generational burden, then I would do it too!
After all, I laugh to myself as I weave through shady crowds of people in the market place, servicing the earth as a demon hunter for one century was easy, right?!
If the previous generations could do it, I could do it!
If Cassian, who used to be so slow at picking up demon trails, could be so sure he could have a child while continuing service, then by The Lady, I could do it too.
I gasp when I ram into a solid object. When I recoil after collision and do not fall back, I realize it was because my form was being hoisted up by a dark clothed being.
He speaks out my name and the sound finally pushes me into tears.
"Somnia," I whine, gripping his arms tightly.
My lips quiver in despair. I throw my arms over his shoulders, breaking into a sob.
The next thing I know, I am being pushed back and my calves hit something behind me.
I do not wonder what or do not wonder why I am all of a sudden out of the streets. I know it was the Dream Lord's power that brought us here, here in my bedroom. I sit on the end of my cott, beside the King of Dreams, clutching his hands tightly.
"Where were you to go?" he asks, retrieving his one hand from me to wipe off the tears on my cheeks.
I shake my head as I turn to my hands, my hands that were squeezing his large one as though my life depended on it, "nowhere... any where..." I sigh, "somewhere to spite my brother."
He does not retort.
I release him and sling myself back. I crash against my semi-soft cushion, "I curse his existence."
He speaks my name softly.
I close my eyes and feel tears roll down my temples.
Dream of the Endless does not speak to me, does not offer advice, does not analyse the situation for me, and for that, I am always grateful.
I sniffle, reaching out to him without looking, "lie with me?"
Silently, aside from the sound of him shuffling, he takes my hand and lies beside me. My bed is not that large, and so it was a bit cramp. I don't mind though, I know he doesn't either.
I roll on my side, stretching my arm under my head as I turn to him. I blink as he turns to me, body still rigid on his back.
"I do not want to forgive him."
Dream is silent.
I sigh, moving to press my body against his, check pressing onto his chest. The thump of his heart is slow and steady. His arm comes over my back. I feel another wave of tears threaten to crash down on me as I think, "does that make me a bad person?"
He rubs my shoulder, "no."
I sob into his top, trying to hold back my tears, "what does it make me then?"
"Human."
I take a moment to reply as I calm myself from crying. I turn my head to face him, blinking away salt water, "is it easy for an Endless to forgive?"
I see him close his eyes, "no."
"What does that make you?"
"Petty."
I snort at his words.
He opens his eyes and cranes his neck up. He brushes my hair back and hushes me, "I am here. You needn't ever fear living through the same loneliness your mother did."
I smile softly at his words, pushing myself off him so I could sit by his side. I look down on the man, the man who wasn't, but was sweeter and more thoughtful than any man I had ever met.
I trace the curve of his nose, "would you wait five decades for me?"
He takes my hand in his before I could fully pull away from his face. He proceeds to sit up and press my palm on his chest, "I would wait eons for you."
I chuckle under my breath, shaking my head as I did so, "I don't think I'll live that long."
He does not respond to this, and instead helps me slide to his lap when I shift in my place.
I sigh and rest my head on his shoulder, allowing myself to relax against him.
I brush my nose against his neck and close my eyes, lulling myself into comfort. He wraps his arms around me, pulling me closer.
Dream smells like a field of flowers, like a warm fire, like perhaps what the stars did.
I shift on him, slowly opening my eyes. I take his cheeks in my hands and lick my lips. I feel my heart thundering in my chest when I lean into him. And then-
I tilt my head up bringing my lips to his, but I don't.
I start when he pushes me away.
He looks at me, somehow bewildered by my actions.
I knit my brows, feeling a bit caught off guard and confused, "what's wrong?"
He speaks my name slowly, arms loosening around me, "I... will always be here for you... but not like this. I cannot give you my heart."
My face contorts at his words. I shake my head, "you cannot give your heart?" I repeat incredulously, "but, my king... you already have."
He pulls his arms away from me. He all, of a sudden, cannot meet my gaze.
I stiffen against him, clenching my jaw as I roughly push myself off him. My nostrils flare in anger and my eyes begin to water. I heave, "why are you here then?"
Somnia keeps his eyes down.
I cannot believe this, "do you not know why you constantly come to me, my lord?"
He, still says nothing.
"Why do you constantly comfort me then?!" I seethe, pointing an accusing finger at him, "why are you even here, if you-" I choke on my words, almost as though my own mouth was not willing to admit this, "-cannot give me your heart? If you think you have not given it to me at all?"
He stands from the bed.
I walk back in response.
"Dilectus-"
"Don't call me that," I quip waving him off, "don't call me your beloved! Not when you claim you don't love me."
He speaks my name.
"What? Have you been leading me on? Have you been passing your time with me because I have not yet aged?!"
"That is not-"
"THEN WHY!" I cry out as my cheeks grow cold and hot all over again because of my tears. I shake my head as I walk all the way back until I could reach my door, "why can't you admit that you love me when I so clearly bleed out my love for you?"
He freezes at my words.
Was he only now realizing this? After everything?
I open the door slowly from behind me.
Somnium Regem is unable to say a word.
I roughly wipe my face, "behold," I scoff, "now I see you are just like any other man."
I turn on my heels and rip the door open, thinking of a place far, far, away as I did. When I hear him call out to me, I slam the door on my way out.
I am gone. I have transported myself away.
I find myself in an army hotspot, where dozens upon dozens of eager, hotblooded men where thirsting at the very idea of companionship, no matter how shallow it posed.
I walked like a regular though it was my first time here. I brazenly sit myself in a table of eight soldiers, looking between them with a bored look, "salvete, milites," I grab the cup of the man beside me, downing the wine in one go. My throat burns at the sour taste and I grunt as I slam the wooden object on the table. I push the cup forward, looking at no one in particular, pulling my lips into a lopsided grin, "et quis ex vobis effundam mihi potum?"
Greetings, soldiers. Will any of you pour me a drink?
The next moment, each man on the table fights to get the ewer of wine.
The moment after that is spent debating my prospects with each Roman militant. One by one, I flirt with them, tease them with my touches and my giggles, taking each one to dance to the muses of a bard and his company.
In the end, the winner, if I could even call him that, was the eldest in the bunch, Fabius. He was still only 27 but the fact he went from Africa and back with the scars to prove it was enough reason for me to choose him.
The perfect criminal to commit a perfect crime with.
Fabius smile as he dances with me, expertly on beat with the lute and the drums.
I'll show them all. I'll show them how I could go against them and break my oaths to everyone, to my family, to the one my heart called for, to myself.
Fabius would do. I would take him and make him mine for the night, or how many nights it would take for my body to bare his seed of mine of vindication.
This soldier was not nice, he was not smart, in fact, he was only rugged. I could tell that all the kindness he extended to me now was only out of his desire to share my bed. It was good enough, considering it was all I wanted or expected from him. And yet he was redeemed by how strong, shrewd, and, most of all, easy on the eyes he was. If he could not give my child compassion and wit, he would at least give his strong nose, soft lips and a warriors stamina.
I pull him near me just when the song ends. He captures me against him and leans down. I whisper on his ear, "would you like to take me home, Fabius?"
Fabius pulls back in disbelief. It is fleeting. He growls and grabs me by the waist, "I'd like to keep you home for the rest of my life."
I feel blood rise up my face at his proposal. I chew on my lower lip and release it from my teeth when he leans in to kiss me.
He is eager and hungry against me. He kisses me with fervor because he wants too, because his body burns in desire for me. He tastes sour, yet again is redeemed by how good he was at kissing.
I could see it now, our disaster. For every wrong he'd do me, he'd have one good thing to show for. It would be an endless cycle of tribulation, and in this moment, the idea of it shined like the stars.
I release a whine when I feel his hands move down to my bottom. This was about as far as I had gone with everyone, and in the next few hours, that would all change.
But suddenly, my head is spinning, utterly confused as to why he pulled away so harshly from me right when I thought he'd whisper the words in my ear.
I only realize what had happened when I see a dark figure faced back away from, sputtering Latin tightly against Fabius.
"Somnia!" I hiss, grabbing his arm, "what do you think you're doing?!"
I tense when he turns to me. I see both the Roman shoulder, toppled on his arse, crawling back in fear, and the blazing eyes of the Dream Lord. His face was truly a fearsome sight to those caught his gaze.
He takes advantage of my stunned state and grabs my arms, pushing me back.
All at once, I find I am pressed against a something, something soft. Dream's ferocious face softens as I am trapped against him, or I then realized, I was trapped beneath him.
No longer did the sour smell of wine tingle my nostrils. In fact, it now smelt like a morning breeze, like a flowery meadow, it smelt like him.
I was now in the Dreaming.
"You are more foolishly impulsive than I could have ever thought," the Dream Lord growls.
I grit my teeth, screwing my eyes shut, not giving him the satisfaction of a response.
"You think you can ignore me?" he quips, "you are in my house, my domain, my Dreaming, pinned under the palms of my hands."
I mask the way my body begins to react to his words, how my throat tightens, how my breath grows taxed, how my belly swirls, and how my thighs press against each other.
"Face me, demon hunter."
"Let me go," I weakly demand.
"I will not set you free after seeing what you meant to do to yourself."
I begin to fume, "Let me go!"
I open my eyes and wrangle beneath him, kicking and pushing him. I then dictate a long spiel of Latin cusses. My whole body burns in fury.
I am powerless against him though. He does not strain where I struggle. He pushes his weight onto me, hands trapping my wrists by the sides of my head, legs clamping mine between his. My face was now also turned to the side as he leaned into me, his hot breath practically searing the skin on my cheek.
Somnia mumbles, "you would give yourself away to a mere mortal on the street? A man who ogles your form, who could not possibly understand the honor you would so willingly bequeath him. His thoughts run wild with ideas of desecrating your being in a vile form taking his claim on you."
"Oh, and suddenly you care?!" I snarl, knocking my head into his, making him pull back in contact, "what does it matter if I chose to be with him? Or even if I chose the devil? The master of demons?! You do not love me."
He calls my name.
"YOU SAID IT YOURSE-"
"I WAS WRONG!" he bursts. His outburst leaves him breathless and stiffens me into marble.
I choke on nothing and feel my eyes water at the sight of him. His hair is messy, eyes are desperate, lips are quivering. He breaks when my tears begin to fall. He pulls away from me, sitting himself at the edge of his bed in defeat, in retreat.
I breathe in heavily, trying to calm myself down, "it took seeing me with another man to own up to your feelings."
He does not respond.
"Do you think I find that flattering?" I voice, "do you?!"
Again nothing.
"I find it petulant and slow-witted." I release a breath, "I find it offensively aggravating."
I push myself up from where I laid. I turn to the window, lips parting at the beauty of the meadows I knew he called Fiddler's Green. Never had I witnessed his domain like this, never before this moment had I ever even been here with him, flesh and bone.
And yet I tell myself not to enjoy the moment so much. I suck in a breath and scratch my tears away, turning to Dream's wide and hunched over back.
"Bring be back, Somnia," I mutter.
He straightens upon hearing this, head barely turning as he speaks, "what?"
I scoff, in utter disbelief that he is in shock of my words, "I do not want to be around you." I move to the foot of the bed then stand, "take me back home."
Dream looks at me, eyes reddish and glimmering with tears. He opens his mouth and speaks something but I do not hear it.
I huff through my nose, "take me back now, Dream. Or- or I'll never speak to you again!"
I recoil when he crawls over to me on the bed. He sit as the edge, reaching out to me, grabbing on to clothes. He whispers my name as his face hardens in desperation, "I do not wish for you to leave while this is unresolved."
"So," I tighten my hands into balls, "if I leave you now, what does that make me?"
He looks up at me, jaw clenching then relaxing as he opens his mouth to speak, "cruel."
I scoff.
A tear rushes down his face.
"And if you keep me here?!" I coaxed.
He releases me, dropping his head as he leans onto his knees. He voices firmly, "an Endless."
My whole body tenses at his words, grows rigid in anger over his sentiment. I was seconds away from lunging at him, but suddenly, a flurry of sand began to twist around me and before I could think, I was back in my bedroom.
It became painfully clear to me that if either of us wanted to resolve our quarrel, we'd have to first resolve our pride.
It had been seven days since the fact, and neither did I call out to him, and neither did he make attempts to come to me.
That was that then. Good riddance. Good, hard, and cold riddance.
All that's left, of course, was the issue with my brother, and her... brimming with life bride.
The image I had of her was starkly contrast to what she actually was. I thought she would have been one or two months in her pregnancy. I really dropped dead when I spied my brother talking to a woman with such a large rounded belly that she looked like she was about to pop any moment now.
The audacity. The sheer and utter disrespect.
Today, I was going to finally face her because my two younger brothers, Amias and Lucius, were now here to do the same. Aurelia had arrived two days before, and as much as we both confided in each other our ill feeling towards the whole predicament, she was as tender as ever, and laced every complaint with an eagerness to make peace with the matter.
My older sister was wholly compassionate, as always, but my younger brothers were not, and I was excited to meet this Veronica, solely because of the knowledge I would finally not be the only one restless about the situation.
And yet, as excited I was to see Amias and Lucius, bickering at each other the moment they arrived, I was betrayed by how it seemed neither of them were fazed by the gravity of the predicament, in fact, they were-
"happy for you brother!" Amias laughs, "I'm so happy for you! Lauda dominae!" He slaps Cassian twice on the shoulder before sealing him into a tight hug, "I understand that your bride is carrying two babes."
I nearly choke on the bile in my throat upon hearing that. My jaw hangs low. That's why her belly was so big. I hiss under my breath, "two?"
Amias pulls away and raises his hands, "clearly it is a sign from Domina to have at least one of them named after," he slaps a hand on his chest, "Amias the Gallant."
Cassian makes a half amused face at second youngest.
The final born smacks Amias' face and takes his turn to embrace Cassian, "malediceres ipsum esse huius infantis."
Lucius pulls away from Cassian, who laughed at his words, to repeat them with pinched fingers, eyeing Amias as he did so, "you would be cursing the very existence of this child."
"Your face is a curse to the world," Amias rebuts in our mother tongue.
When the boys begin to bicker all over again, I finally snap, "so am I truly the only one that cannot stomach this?"
The three turn to me. I am the odd one out.
I hear someone call my name from behind. It's Aurelia with that woman, that Veronica that she was now treating more of a sister than I. Aurelia pulls away from her to walk over to me, "let us speak about this out-"
"No!" I dodge her advances. My senses begin to flare at the feel of my siblings staring at me. I heave heavily as I back away from them, "you've all confided in each other about this, haven't you? You and Cassian," I hiss at Aurelia, "and Amias and Lucius."
Cassian calls my name.
"NO!" I shriek, "it's always been like this. It's always you," I suck in a deep breath, "and then there's me. The spare."
"Sister, that is not true." Lucius calls.
I shake my head, chuckling bitterly, "you're right. It's only ever always in my head, is it not?"
Without another word, I storm out of the room, hating myself for the way I was breaking.
I hide myself in the garden, in a secret corner where I basked in my loneliness, except this time, I would truly be lonely all by myself.
Tinges of betrayal flare up in me when Veronica appears out of nowhere.
She starts at the sight of me. I scoff at her pretending to be shocked by my presence. She speaks, "sister, I-"
"I am not your sister," I quip, "did your beloved tell you to look for me here?! To make peace with me?!"
She tenses at the severity of my tone, hand instinctively going on her belly, "I swear it on my mother, I did not know this was your place. I happened to wander here while I was clearing my own mind and found great solitude in the flowers," she says, turning to the said blossoms coloring the otherwise colorless place.
"They remind me of home," she says, "we had plenty of gladioli in our neighborhood."
Veronica turns to me offering as soft smile that makes me want to scream, "I understand they were a gift form your pat-"
"If you want to see these flowers so badly, why not go back home where there are plenty?" I snip, "and take your traitor with you, why won't you?!"
She presses her lips together. Her lightly tanned skin turns a shade scarlet after my cry. She covers her face and nods, "apologies sis-" she cuts herself off, smacking her lips in the process, "I- I'll leave you to your own devices."
My eyes watch her walk off. And very suddenly, as if I am possessed, my voice calls out to her.
Veronica freezes, turning back to me.
What have I done? Why did I do that. I do not want to speak with her.
I turn away, unable to face her, unable to face myself, unable to admit I called her name because I was not enjoying the harshness I was emitting, the harshness I was sputtering to this poor woman who was not even to blame for my emotions.
I'm spiraling, clearly.
I lick my lips, feeling my chest tighten. I huff and shake my head, "I'm not angry at you."
I make the mistake of turning to her. She's just as distraught as I am. I see myself in her in this moment. I sigh helplessly, "I'm not angry-" I curse then sniffle, wiping my philtrum, "I'm not angry at your children."
I wipe my hand on my face, "I'm not even sure if I'm angry at Cassian. I-" I shake my head rapidly, "I'm frustrated that this marks the start of his final years with us. That's he's going to have to... pay... for not completing his hundred years of service."
Veronica visibly reacts to my words. She sighs deeply, rubbing her swollen belly, "I think of that as well. There has not been a day that I have not thought of that."
I deflate. Here and now, it was clear she understood, even if just a fraction, the severity this choice my brother made. If he does not complete a century of demon hunting, then his captives would drag him by his heels into the pits and battle them for a hundred years there.
I look at her as we both begin to cry. I pat the surface I was sat upon, "do you want to sit down?"
She is taken aback by my words. She nods slowly and walks over to sit down next to me.
For a moment, we sit in silence.
"When he told me he would risk his life for me, I did not realize he meant it," Veronica mutters, "not like this."
I am further dejected. I turn to her, feeling my insides get chewed up by the sight of her wailing.
"I at least find comfort in knowing that the love," she places he hands on her belly, "this love we share, here and now is the purest and realest thing I have every felt."
"But how do you know?" I quip on the defensive, "how could you say that so surely?"
It wasn't because I didn't believe her, it was more of the fact I was projecting my own disbelief of love onto her.
I feel a sliver of guilt bite at me for the way in which I spoke, but Veronica was wholly unfazed. In fact, she chuckles under her breath, "because I know him," she smiles, turning to her belly, "and he knows me." She smiles, "it makes no sense, and it's hard to understand, but-" she turns to my side, lips curved in a smile, "I suppose that is what love is like between a mortal and a demon hunter."
I give her a look. She's insane.
Veronica laughs, clutching her stomach, "perhaps I am."
My eyes widen. I said that out loud? "Veronica, I-"
"But is that not how you and your lover feel?"
"What?"
"Somnium Regem," she mutters, "he sits outside your bedroom every night." She places a hand on her chest, "when I managed to overcome my fear, I asked him what he was doing."
I straighten at her words.
"He told me he was waiting for you to notice him."
I scoff.
"That his pride could not allow him to open your door."
I roll my eyes and shake my head at the thought.
"Yet the same pride could not bear the idea of ever letting you go."
I clench my jaw. Damn him.
"Perhaps that is was the love between a demon hunter and a god is like," Veronica speaks, taking my hand in hers.
"He's not a god," I tell her through an airy whisper, "he is a fool."
And so later that night, when darkness cloaked the sky, I brushed my sleepiness away and rose from my bed.
I tiptoed to my door and slowly creaked it open, soundless. Behold.
I sigh at the sight of the dark figure sitting alone in the lightless hall.
"Do you plan to sit there for half a century?" I speak, actually making him jolt from his place.
Somnia turns to me, eyes wide, lips parted. He takes a moment before responding, drawing out a deep breath, "if that is how long it takes."
I roll my eyes at him, walking out of my bedroom all together.
Dream watches me near him. When I reach out my hand to him, he immediately takes it and stands.
"Is your pride so mighty that you would never risk calling to me?"
He sighs, "I punish myself with my pride. If you could not bare turn to me again, then I did not deserve you."
"Oh, you half-wit. What if," I take his both his palms in my, "I actually make you wait that long for me to forgive you."
He presses near me, releasing a breath, "then I would say it is deserved."
I snort, rolling my eyes for the second time, "alright then," I move away from him, "better start counting-"
"No, wait," he tightens his hold on me, "please don't."
I purse my lips, nodding my head, "hmm. That's what I thought."
The being releases a sigh and hangs his head low, "I apologize for how I acted. It is a struggle for me to accept such emotions, considering how they have served me in the end."
I release his hands to take his cheeks into my palms. I bring my face near, lips ghosting over his, "then how do you plan to make it up to me?"
He brushes his nose against mine, hands coming to my sides, "how would you like for me to make it up to you?"
"A kiss," I whisper, lips curving into a mischievous smile, "on your knees."
I don't have the opportunity to laugh at my childish remark, for his lips finally catch mine, stealing my giggles, my breath, and my remaining thoughts away. I ignite against him. A haze forms in my mind. My body pushes against him, wanting to be closer than I am now.
He is nothing but soft and sweet against me. His mouth is a tender oasis that makes my heart pound and my mind melt. He pushes me back against the walls and my body pulls him into me along the way.
I gasp when he breaks away. I watch as he drops down. I knit my brows at him when his hands grab my hips. I call out his name with caution. He smiles up at me as his one hand scratches its way up from my ankles to my thighs.
I jolt, attempting to pull away, finding I am trapped with the wall behind me.
Somnia coos my name out, "hush. I am only making it up to my beloved."
"What are-" I whine when he lifts my skirt up and throws it over him. I catch his head when he kisses my thigh, "Dream, please, I was mocking you. I-" I let out an unholy sound when he pushes me back and makes an attempt to bite the inside of my leg.
"I assure you," he hotly breathes against my skin, making my entire body tingle with goosebumps, "I will not stand for the mockery of a demon hunter."
I rip at his hair from underneath my skirts. I tense against him when he shifts me onto one leg. The other, where his lips were busy nipping at my skin, its hooks over his shoulder.
"Somnia," I lean into him, gasping for air. My stomach rolls at this obscene image of him beneath me, "someone could see."
The King of Nightmares scoffs. "They would sooner be haunted with nightmares for fifty years before they could even think of beholding your form like this," he hisses against my skin as his one hand squeezes my thigh.
I slap a hand onto my mouth when I feel his nose rub against my sensitive bud. I dig into his hair and garble up the sounds from my throat as his lips connect with my core. My toes curl and my body leans into him involuntarily.
"Dream," I breathlessly speak, moving my palm slightly off my mouth, "please, I-" the harsh sound that leaves me when he nibbles then blows against my heat would have been enough to make anyone who hears it look for the sound in concern.
"I will please you, my dear," he speaks, suddenly pulling away. When his face is revealed to me after my skirt finally drops down, I choke on my breath as the sight of his glistening face.
His tongue swirls around his lips while he stands.
I helplessly watch him as he takes my cheeks and raises a brow at me, "unless you would like for me to stop."
The very thought of asking him to do anything is mortifying to me, yet I managed to shake my head in response.
And normally, I would have been offended by how he chuckles at me like that, but when he drops down again, or rather, I find, crawls down, I only look at him in anticipation. I push myself up elbows and realize I was now lying on a bed, facing a window, beholding the view Fiddler's Green. I was also naked, exposed to him, looking down at an equally disrobed Dream.
My whole body burns.
I do nothing but watch as he takes both my legs and props them on his shoulders before sinking down the middle.
I grunt and tense in my place, averting my gaze when he kisses my center. One of my hands reach out to Dream's dark hair. I whine before ripping at my lower lip. I look down on him as he looks up at me.
"All is well," he affirms, lifting his head up slightly, making me pull my hand away from his hair. He kisses my hand on its way then smiles, "let me make it up to you, beloved." He rubs his cheeks against my inner thighs, placing a kiss there, "calm yourself," he mutters, "I assure you, I will make you very much enjoy this."
"My king," I breathlessly call.
He hums, lips curving upward, pleased by the sound, "let your king do his work."
I bite my lips and close my eyes as I nod. I allow myself to relax against the cushions, though my hands were gripping onto the sheets.
"Valde bona," very good, he says.
My fists tighten and my toes curl all over again when his lips kiss into my heat. This time around, I am painfully aware of the wetness that is pooling and beginning to drip down my flesh. The feeling conflicts me.
Almost as if he was aware of my realization, he laps at me and moans, "so honeyed and sweet. So eager and ready for me."
I huff at the feel of him.
"Do not needlessly worry yourself, your body is exactly how I want it."
With this, I find myself fulling relaxing. I arch my back, as his mouth presses more eagerly into me. I attempt to suppress my squeals when his tongue pushes into me. My hands immediately reach to him and my fingers curl into his hair.
He moans then chuckles. He makes it a point to do this against me as he parts my legs further when I begin to press them close. He calls out my name, making me turn to him slowly. Half of me regrets it, half of me goes wild at the sight of him.
The Dream Lord states, "I find offence in your attempts to suppress your noises. Do not conceal them."
I choke out a whine then his thumb rubs against my nub. I screw my eyes shut again as he continues, "perhaps you need more encouragement."
When he dips a finger into me, a guttural sound rips past my lips. I pull one hand away from him to clamp it on my mouth, but the growl I get in reaction makes me drop my it and turn back to Dream.
"You mock me further by disobeying me?" he huffs squeezing the flesh of by my buttocks tightly, "I should make sure the entire Dreaming hears you scream for its King."
He sinks into me again, only this time, there is a grit from his teeth. I rip at both his roots and mine when he does so, unable to conceal the noises that leave my mouth.
He slowly pumps in and out of me, "louder."
I whine and catch my breath, calling out his name in some sort of plea.
"Louder, I said," he commands as he sinks another digit into me and hastens his pace.
There was no way I could keep silent even if I wanted to at this point.
With his fingers, poking and curling, and his mouth, licking and sucking, it doesn't take long for a strong tension to coil up in my belly. My lips could barely make sense of the words it wanted to say. I fundamentally begin to sputter out nonsense.
"A little bit more," he moans, "give me a little bit- there."
I come undone on him with a cry. My legs force themselves against him as my body spasms. He does not make an effort to push me open, and in fact, he brings his hands on my hips, kneading at them, as if encouraging my actions.
In those tender, body curling moments, I feel warmth and pleasure spread around me. My breath escapes me as I eventually turn into putty.
When he finally pulls away, I turn down to him as he slowly trails wet and hot kisses from my core all the way up my jaw. I take his cheeks in my hands when he kisses my lips. My own cheeks tingle when I see the sheen of my pleasures on his nose and chin. I bashfully swipe at it with my thumb, eager to retreat. And yet, he catches my hand, taking my thumb into his mouth, licking at my finger then pulling it away with a soft pop.
"Well done, my love," he says, smiling at me as he rolls on his side.
I knit my brows as he lies beside me, pulling me near him as he does so that we could face each other.
Dream notices my demeanor. He pushes my hair back, raising a brow, "did I not make you enjoy it?"
My lips part. My face begins to burn at the thought, "no. No I mean yes- I mean- I- I enjoyed it."
He nods, "I know."
I snort at his words, brows slightly tensing, lips pursing.
He smiles, shifting in his place so that he could lie on his chest. When he does so, he pushes me on my back and brings his mouth near one of my breasts. I gasp when he laps at it like a snack, while he massages the other with his hand. My hands dig into his hair, messing it up more than ever.
"Dream," I call.
He does not respond like I want him to and only closes his eyes.
I let out a soft grunt when he sucks at my flesh. I sigh, "Dream, wait."
He immediately halts, lifting his head up, releasing my breast from his mouth.
I lick my lips as I look down at him.
"What is it? Do you not like this?"
"No... I... what about you?"
He takes a moment to respond. He chuckles, pulling me closer to him, "sweet dear," he kisses my rib, "you need not worry about me."
"No, but-"
"I will claim your maidenhood in a moment."
... w... w- he said what?
He raises his brows along with the corners of his lips. A velvety chuckle escapes him, "is that not what you want?"
"..."
"Is it not I that you wish to lay claim to this tenderness within you, this tenderness that your humanity puts so much emphasis on?"
I suck in a deep breath and bite my lip tightly.
"Do you want me to have you now?"
"... yes."
He grins, tongue darting across his lips, "then I say, do not worry about me," he kisses my skin, "I know well enough what I want to do with you."
So for a few minutes, the Dream King keeps his attentions on my breasts. He pulls me closer to reciprocate the same treatment to the other after a while.
At one point, he brings his hands to my core again, making my body quiver against him.
When I begin to call out his name in the same dazed manner from a while ago, he lifts his head from by chest and kisses my lips, pulling away again to smile down at me, "you feel ready for me now, beloved."
I bite my lips in anticipation.
"Are you ready?" he asks with genuinity.
I nod, "yes."
He pushes himself up and begins to crawl on top of me. His hands parts my legs to make room for himself and I graciously open myself up for him.
I sigh when he presses against me, hands rearing me by my waist. Dream kisses my check, "yes. You're more than ready, aren't you?"
Our eyes lock. He looks at me in expectation. I nod my head again.
He wraps my legs around him as he slowly rocks into me, making me breathlessly moan beneath him.
He sighs, kissing my jaw, all the way down to my neck, sucking on my skin before iterating, "my soft lover, so ready for me."
"Somnia," I whisper, fingers digging into his shoulders.
He hisses when I meet the rolling of his hips with my own. He nips at my neck, "alright, my love. I would not dare deprive you any longer."
A chill runs down my spine when he lifts up and sinks down into me. The action draws out a prolonged cry from my lips. In response, he peppers my neck with kisses while adjusting atop my body.
"So good," I mumble, "so good inside me."
He groans at my words, hands gripping my hips as he slowly begins to push and pull himself into me, "yes, my precious. I'll make you feel good, even more than a while ago, even more than now."
I sigh as Dream kisses my neck, and gently grinds into me.
After a few moments, I tighten my legs around him and whine, "more please. I want to feel you more."
He moans, immediately heeding my cries, hips bucking into me with more fervor, "in imperio tuo."
On your command.
He kisses my lips, repeating, "on your command, beloved, a slave to your command."
My voice hikes up and loudens when his pace grows quicker. I heave in an attempt to even my breathing. My fingers tangling back into his hair for the nth time.
"My sweetness," he says in between thrusts, "such sweet sounds," he moans, "and all for me."
I moan, calling out his name on instinct.
He hums, kissing my cheek, "better now? Isn't it better?"
"Yes, yes, oh, my lord, yes," I whine, "so much better."
He goes wild with the praise. He drinks it up like cool water on a scorching day. He growls as he finds a delicious tempo, quick and full, snapping in and out of me like it was his purpose.
I begin to recite all the Latin praises I could think of.
When I slowly spiral in my pleasure, I call out his name, and when I hardly find it in myself to speak, I bite into him, gnawing at his flesh like it was my deliverance, not thinking about its consequences, not thinking about how it would feel for anyone but me.
He hisses, pushing deeper into me, poking a nerve in my being that breaks my mind, that renders me boneless beneath him.
All at once, my sweet words are morphed into obscenities. All of the praises in my body are burned into oohs and aahs and throaty cries that I never thought myself of producing.
Dream eats it up like candy, taking in my lips with his, making our pants mix into further lascivious noises.
At one point, I am numb to everything but him. At one point, I was at the fullness of his mercy. He could crush me and spit on my bones and I'd thank him. But he does not do this, he does not desecrate my form, he does not disregard my being. Instead he dives into me with adoration, he treats me with divine regard, he stretches me out with care.
I make no other sound than ones of pure enjoyment as the king begins to shift my legs.
I submit to him, to whatever he wants to do with me, and soon, he pushes my knees to my chest and brings my legs to his shoulders.
Now, I was lost to everything save the tension in my core. After adjusting himself against me, breaking into my being as if intent on binding our forms together, I scream out and thrash my hands helplessly at anything, everything I could get my hands on.
When he calls out my name and praises my body, I'm a goner. The Lady be damned. In this moment there was only one, there was only him, the Dream King. Just him, him, him.
And so I scream it out, I scream out his name as my body crumbles against him. I flutter and crash. I tense and release. I was delivered.
He calls out my name in response. He calls out my name and does not dare relent his motions. Next thing I know, I'm shaking all over again with a vengeance as he spills into me, hot, sharp, and blinding.
Somnia pushes my legs apart, though his movements do not at all slow. He digs into me with his heels and pushes his chest flush into mine, cradling me against him, as if he was scared I'd disappear.
Then slowly, slowly, slowly, he allows his pace to relent. Gently, gently, gently, he kisses me and finally gives me a chance to catch my breath, to feel myself on him, to savor this utter bliss between us.
I mumble nothings as I trap him with my limbs. I pull him into me tightly, not wanting him to leave, only wishing that he'd keep me here like this forever.
And then the wildness fades.
In the aftermath of it all, the sounds of strangled breathing persists. Grunts and mewls catch up with us as well, as we both eventually soften against each other's beings.
I let out taut panting sounds against his ear before I nip at his lobe.
I squeal when he laughs, my body was oversensitive to the vibrating of his chuckle.
He stops himself and offers a kiss on my cheek, "my sweet darling."
I close my eyes, allowing myself to savor his scent, his feel, his taste.
Dream continues my neck again, lathering me with more affection, "have I made it up to you yet?"
I nibble at my lip as I nod. He smiles in return.
"I think... you may have ruined every other man for me."
He tenses. I feel him tense above me real time. He pulls his head back, looking down at me so suddenly with a fury, "you dare mean to say you expected to have another besides me after all of this?"
"Well, I-" I wail, body jolting sharply when he ruts into me in offence over my words.
"This," he hisses, "this is more than mockery. This is treachery, this is treason!"
I let out shaky sounds and piercing shrieks when he does not relent.
He only halts when tears begin to lace the corners of my eyes, after I practically call out his name in a plea for my life.
He ends his retaliations with a huff, nostrils flaring, hand grabbing my jaw, "look at me, little one."
I screw my eyes shut. There is a dread that builds in my belly.
"Must I repeat my punishment to have you look?"
I blink back the tears from my eyes as I turn to him. I let out a weak sigh at the sight of him.
"You shall have to make it up to me for that."
I pant at the rigidness of his expression.
"Do you understand me?"
I huff, nodding my head.
"I asked-"
I squeak again when he thrusts.
"-if I am understood."
"Yes, my king."
He hums, or rather, he bellows, "very good then."
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tachibubu · 2 years
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Never Good Enough (2/3)
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∆ PAIRING ; Yandere!Aemond Targaryen x Velaryon!Reader/OC/Self-Insert x Slight!Jacaerys Velaryon
∆ SUMMARY ; Your wedding with your betrothed Jacaerys is nearing, while your secret pursuiter is growing ever more eager. Entering Kingslanding once again to prepare for your wedding and the succession of Driftmark, a supposedly family gathering became something much more than mingling.
∆ WARNINGS ; Incest obvs, spoilers of Episode 8, a bit actions of sexual sht? But did not continue, s3xu4l h4rassment, possessive sht obvs, no comfort, stalking, enemies to enemies, dont even fuckin do this in real life, just fuckin torture. Also OOC except for Jace cause I truly believe hes perfect i want to marry him. Also sorry Ewan if you're reading this.
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CAN BE READ AS ONE SHOT
It was a beautiful day. To clear your head before starting on your lesson plan and schedule for the day, you made the decision to compose an essay about the history of the current time. A letter from someone you knew too well was brought out by your sworn handmaiden after she had collected your daily mail.
To put it mildly, your daily life was comfortable, and you actually loved it that way. You spent the week studying with the maesters and (as proposed by your stepmother Rhaenyra, which you eagerly accepted) tutoring your brother-in-law Lucerys about economics, while on the weekends you became closer to your betrothed Jacaerys.
Lucerys and you had a lovely connection. Rhaenyra didn't trust the Maesters enough when he didn't enthusiastically express what he had learned, so you were his teacher for the remainder of your time as a fiancée. His ears perked up, and he nodded keenly to his mother when you said you could assist. 
Rhaena joined the class while you were educating Lucerys in order to support her fiancé, but after she saw how much she loved it, she began coming back frequently to take lessons from you. Baela would visit your small class when she crossed paths between you three, and you would gladly accept her insights on the topics.
Although you were disappointed in what happened to your one-eyed first crush, Jacaerys made up for it by showing up earlier than expected on your dates with multiple gifts and going on numerous dragon-riding escapades with his dragon throughout Driftmark. You’d admit it, you had fallen quite in love with the prince.
So you’d admit your shock when someone else hadn't moved on.
You asked the maid, "Who is it from?" without batting an eye, fearing that the note's sender and contents were the same person who had been constantly sending you letters ever since you left Kingslanding.
Your handmaiden Olea was hesitant to respond to your inquiry. Before responding, "It's from Prince Aemond Targaryen, my lady," she chewed her lower lip. 
You extended your hand as Olea placed the letter on it, and a sigh escaped your mouth. You scrunched your nose at the contents in disgust.
The letter stated, 'My beloved (Y/N), after several letters of my pursuing, you have yet to respond to any of my proceedings. I have received the news of the bethrotal of my dear nephew—I forgot his name, but I am sure you know it all too well. Was I divulging the news incorrectly? Was my hearing giving up on me as I was unable to comprehend the news easily? What I mean by this is that you are to be bethroted to my nephew. Is this genuine? I refuse to acknowledge it. You may be aware that rumors spread too quickly. My family, who are obviously too trusting these days, believed it immediately too. I also took note of the fact that your family will be coming within the next few weeks. I have to admit that I couldn't hold back my excitement. Earlier today, a servant told me that she had seen that I had been smiling while deep in thought. I made sure she wouldn't tell anyone the embarrassing news. I hope you experience today's enthusiasm in the same way that I do. See you soon, my dear bird. Signed, Aemond Targaryen.’
Yes, you tore that piece of paper.
Olea attempted to adhere the pieces of the letter together out of panic at your unexpected behavior, but you reprimanded her and instructed her to stop.
After a couple of nights, your family finished dining, and you made the decision to unwind by taking a stroll in the garden. The time until you leave for Kingslanding is rapidly approaching. You'll admit that you're a little nervous about going there, but tradition dictates that you should go there even if you are not specifically looking to meet someone there.
Truth be told, you were aware that Aemond would never forget you. You informed Jacaerys about the spies who had been dispatched to observe your everyday activities, and he took care of it. You were also aware of the several letters Aemond had sent to you that had gone unanswered, ranging from once a month to now every five days after the news of your betrothal. You wish to never come across his romantic delusions once again as they are both devastating and disturbing.
Perhaps it was God's gift, but Jacaerys seemed to have discovered you in the wide-open flower field. He accompanied you on your leisurely stroll as you shared your worries about the impending occasion. He made you a promise that he would always look out for you and do everything in his power to keep you safe as your husband. He then gave you a kiss on the forehead, and you two returned hand in hand back to your private quarters.
The time has come, and you and your step-sisters have arrived in a separate carriage. You didn't like the bumpy ride, so you nearly puked while Rhaena comforted you and Baela made fun of you.
You noticed that no one greeted your family and you when they announced your family's entering the castle. No green can be pin-pointed. Even though Aemond wasn't there to welcome you, you scowled at the lack of respect they displayed in public.
The elders stepped aside so that the younger ones could explore the castle. While Jacaerys and Lucerys extended their hands for you to join them, you declined and said that you'd prefer to be alone for the time being. Baela and Rhaena then took the children and introduced them to the new environment.
Your legs carry you to the library, where you run into Helaena Targaryen, your favorite from the Hightower family.
Before you and Aemond met, you were close friends with his sister. You were both interested in different types of literature; she was more interested in entomology, the study of insects, while you were more interested in botany and floriculture. It was due to her that you and Aemond were linked as playmates back then, because he was worried that somebody would harm his sister because of her unique interests and cryptic wording.
Helaena threw her arms around you and burst into sobs and giggles, "Thank the sevens, I have missed you so much, my dear friend!" You returned the embrace.
"I have missed you so much (Y/N), I was so alone, no one ever dared to talk to me normally."
"So am I, my lady."
She brought you to the tea table while beaming. The plump girl offered you some of her remaining dried apple pieces and poured you a cup of nettle tea.
You couldn't help but laugh as she clasped her hands together and said, "There are so many things I wish to tell you!" as you sipped the pleasant beverage.
"And what is it, my lady, you wish to say so eagerly?" you questioned.
She murmured softly as you cocked your head, "Blood would be on your lips, and you'd come in the light of a brute." You've been hearing that message since you were a youngling. You didn't comment because you knew Heleana's communication style was extremely peculiar.
"Oh, that is indeed great, my princess," you said rather nonchalantly, stirring the tea and adding additional sugar to it, not wanting to hurt the poor girl's heart if you told her to stop repeating the same words all over again.
"Don’t mention it," she smiled solemnly, before both of you continued your talk.
After quite some time, you two began to leave the nest at the library and continued to go towards the training grounds, where you knew the two Targaryen princes would be. Heleana wanted to meet them once again and learn more about the relationship between both of you and your betrothed, so you agreed gingerly.
You were unaware that the other prince was present alongside them too.
You smiled at your fiancé and enthusiastically called out, "Jace!" You and Helaena were linking arms, laughing girlishly as you both peered at the confused brown-haired man in the middle of the crowd. 
"My dear wife!" Jacaerys unintentionally made a quip and Lucerys playfully hit his sibling for the unexpected nickname. Jacaerys smiled princely as he acknowledged Helaena's presence, "My princess."
"You flatter me with your words, my Lord," you replied with a knowing grin as both of you halted your steps in front of the two princes.
"My beautiful, dear sister and niece." An all-too familiar voice boomed.
Your breath hitched before you sharply inhaled and slowly gazed at where the voice came from. The figure from your dreams, Aemond fucking Targaryen, was standing there. The searing gaze he had centered on you made you tremble, but you swiftly collected yourself. With a slight mouth twitch, he made a note of it.
"It's been so long, my prince," you bowed, taking your gaze away from the person you were speaking to.
He left Ser Criston Cole's side and strutted in your direction while throwing the blade to the dirt, "Ah yes, you have grown wonderfully, my lady."
Jacaerys left his position next to his younger sibling and moved to your side, weaving his hands through yours before the man could even get close to you. The Targaryen prince gazed at the conjoined hand with his one remaining good eye before sneering.
Jacaerys responded to Aemond's comment instead with a mocking smile, "I thank the Gods for delivering her to me. Certainly, my beloved wife has grown up to be a stunning beauty."
"And so I have heard that beauties are easily swayed too," Rather than considering the strong brown-haired male existence, Aemond returned his gaze to you, hinting at your actions with a smirk, "I would take note of that if I were you, nephew."
When Jacaerys started to march forward, you restrained him by seizing his outstretched hand. When you did so, the male's stare softened toward you, and he steadied himself before asking, more like demanding in his case, "And what does that mean?"
Jacaerys was the target of Aemond's mocking gaze, which then turned back to the clasped hands between you two. There was a pregnant pause. The white-haired man appeared to be gathering his thoughts before speaking. After a brief pause, he jeered, "It's merely a fable, my beloved nephew."
"Don't take it as truth," he emphasized, "but rather as a counsel from your dear uncle."
You didn't see Aemond prior to the disturbance, save from the feast and what occurred to your great-uncle Vaemond. You were shocked by what transpired. Although you never developed a tight relationship with the man, he was generally polite and friendly to you when you visited Driftmark. Yes, you were worried about the Driftmark succession because it would damage your husband's and his family's reputation, but you were also aware that someone was keeping an eye on your every thought and move while the succession happened. Aemond's mere stare disturbs your brain from focusing on what is happening.
The tall man only responded with an amused raised eyebrow when he recognized that you were monitoring eyes placed on him. The corners of his lips began to rise.
You did not miss Aemond's smirk when the infamous bastard remark was made, which was spoken by your uncle Vaemond. Not only did Aemond disrespect your future spouse, but he also knew you were a bastard, which did not leave you with a positive impression.
Soon after your grandfather's passing at the hands of your father, the succession was reconfirmed, and soon after that, a feast was held. Olea, your handmaiden, led you to the dressing table in your chamber. She starts to polish up your makeup and style your hair until you are content.
"I can't help but notice, my lady, if you wish me to say it," Olea started, while you were calmly entertained by how her fingers moved so delicately and beautifully.
"Go on."
"Is the man who has been stalking you for a while, my lady, the one with the one missing eye?"
You would have immediately spit out the tea if you were drinking tea right now, but you choked on your own spit instead. Barely looking back, you scowled at your handmaiden, who gave you a guilty look, "He would chop off your tongue if he heard you say that, Olea." 
She gasped, terrified at the idea, "Oh, I'm, I'm deeply sorry, my lady!"
"Do not worry," you said, gathering yourself so your maid could continue braiding your hair. There was an expectant delay before you finally murmured, "But yeah, that is him," with your eyes closed.
She suddenly returned to her bouncy self, who knew no bounds, commenting, "Now that I get to see him clearly, he is very attractive, isn't he?"
You chuckled and complimented her confidence, stressing, "You joke too much. You'd be grateful for how much I let you off the hook rather than torture you for your babbly mouth."
"But I'm not, my lady," she chuckled as she pinned your hair and then threaded it with a ribbon. She continued to babble in her fantasies, "I do admit, if I were in your position and Prince Jacaerys hadn't first shown me favor, I probably would have been persuaded by Prince Aemond, with his angular features and great stature."
You gave her arm a lighthearted slap, surprised by her candor, "Olea!"
"Was I wrong, my lady?" She inquired as she steadied your shoulders and drew close to you while you peered at one another in the mirror. "Prince Jacaerys is definitely quite masculine, but you can't pretend that Prince Aemond isn't as well."
"I would have you exiled if I were a different lady," you sighed and looked back at what had unfolded before. Jacaerys and Aegon, who used to tower above the once-young prince, are now shorter than him. You noted that his neck had acquired veins as he aged and that his calves were protruding depending on what he was wearing for the day. As soon as you imagined his attractive form beneath the bulky clothing he was wearing, you nearly smacked yourself for having such naughty ideas.
"But..." you waited before answering. "Yes, he grew up to be quite charming if it weren't for his personality."
When Olea flung open the door, Aemond appeared in front of you as if he waited for you for so long.
He said, rolling his tongue, "I must say, I am rather charmed to see you, my dearest (Y/N)." You silently berated yourself for sharing your private thoughts in the enemy's territory, but you straightened yourself and did not fall for his transparent claim of 'I have eavesdropped'.
You muttered honestly, your eyes honeyed, feigning innocence, "Aemond, I do not recall you supposedly helping me for the remainder of the day," then added something he'd be annoyed to hear. "Where is my husband?"
"Fiance," he corrected too quickly, thus it was succesful. "You are too eager, my dear. Let time pass naturally."
"And what is the difference? Referring to the title, a little early wouldn't conflict with anything," you hurriedly spoke, almost passing him when he took a step back and created some distance between you two. Before leaning in on you, he glanced across at your maid as Olea hurried off and whispered an apology.
With a deep voice that was distinct from before, he cooed, "If you want something to last, then don't go too fast. Some advice I received from my maester."
You cocked a brow at him, holding your pose, your head high, "Lovely, it seems you are quite fond of your maester's counsels, but that doesn't answer my question," you made a point of saying. How could he insult your marriage and its strength? You gave out a 'tsk' before you asked, "Why are you here?"
His face perked at your question. "I am here to assist you to dinner."
"That is what my husband is supposed to be doing. Until then, I'll wait here."
"My father, King Viserys, desired it," he concluded, his voice heavy and set to foot, the final response you could get from him. "It's in the goal of re-igniting friendship," he said, with a blank expression on his face.
You almost laughed at his face, "ah yes, how it reignited indeed."
"Do not be concerned, my dear niece," he said again in a suggestive tone, but this time his eyes were in a different expression. It almost seems as if you were both looking at the same person when you were younger and there wasn't any prejudice towards either side. "I'll treat you well," he said, holding out his arm.
After giving him a long, curious look, you reluctantly held his arm in yours as you two continued.
"Prince Aemond Targaryen, second son of King Viserys and Lady (Y/N) of House Velaryon." The knight announced it, as the door opened to the feast.
You would flee right now if you could, but as soon as you notice the joy in King Viserys' eyes, your brain immediately switches off. As your family and other members of the private audience watched you and Aemond arrive together, you could feel the uneasiness. How risqué this would have been in public.
Though you were concerned about how Jacaerys would react, you cast your gaze over him. You anticipated him being livid at your appearance with the enemy. You didn't anticipate that he would give you a sorrowful, knowing look.
If it weren't for Aemond's mother, Queen Alicent, gesturing you towards the seat next to Jacaerys, Aemond would have almost led you towards an empty seat next to him. Once seated, you whispered to your fiancé, "I am sorry."
He stroked your hand and held it while saying, "No need to, my lady," gazing lovingly into your eyes and concluded, "I trust you."
You continued, worried, "He told me the King asked it."
He smiled, and you could feel the love you carried for this guy anew, your eyes affectionately staring at him as you returned the smile. "He wasn't lying at least, though I made sure that he wouldn't touch you anywhere when his grace ordered it."
You could hear a tongue click at the other end of the table.
Even though there were a few side comments here and there, the dinner went nearly as smoothly and was actually enjoyable. After Helaena spoke about her relationship with her husband-brother, your bethroted, Jacaerys, requested your permission to dance with her. You enthusiastically agreed at his sweet idea, watching both of them dance cutely with one another. After a few minutes, King Viserys begged to be put to bed after experiencing excruciating agony, which caused you to get a little concerned. The roasted pig was shortly set on the table. You did not give it any thought until you heard your cousin Lucerys snort. He covered his mouth as he briefly giggled when you slapped his thigh in an effort to stop him.
A loud and unmistakable bang at the table halted every action that each member were performing. Aemond stood there, his gaze divided between the two brown-haired princes. "Final tribute, to the bethrotal of my two favorite nephew and niece. Both of them loving to one another; even when we were kids, they were kind to each other. "
He remarked, "They make a wonderful couple knowing they came from the same roots." However, since you knew what he was aiming at, the subtle jab didn't escape your notice. In fact, you were sober enough to see the true implications of what he was saying. Your hand held your glass of wine rather tightly.
"I'd also like to make a toast to the health of my nephews, Jace, Luke, and Joffrey." You gripped the hand of Lucerys in an effort to calm him down without reverting your eyes away from the eye contact you and Aemond had.
"Each of them handsome, wise, strong."
"Aemond," Alicent made an effort to stop her son, but it was already too late.
He carried on instead of heeding his mother's advice, raising his cup even higher. "Come, let us drain our cups of these three strong boys."
Jacaerys gritted his teeth, "I dare you say that again!" and flounced over to the man. You called to him, "Jace!" but to no avail.
Aemond grinned and said, "Why, it was just a compliment. Do you not think yourself strong?" When the man realized that something had been stirred up inside of Jacaerys, he loved the way the strong man looked. Though it did not last when he felt a force land on his face, he couldn't even utter another word before it happened. With a horrible snarl on his ordinarily serene face, Jacaerys struck Aemond violently. "I know what you are doing! You can call me whatever you may, but you may not call my wife a--"
"Jace no!" You cried out, running towards his side.
He towered over the younger man, one dagger-eyed stare locked on him, hissing, "Be careful with your words, my strong prince. You might say something you'll regret." Before Jacaerys could even punch him again, Aemond shoved him with a snicker, and his mother chastised him firmly and quietly in his ear. With concern written over your face, you hurried to assist your fiancé while he was on the ground. You repeatedly questioned him about whether he had been wounded, but he would not respond because he was too embarrassed to look at you. As you stormed at Aemond, you gazed at him with pure fury displayed on your face.
"Here comes the dear bride." He jested once he saw you coming, his body welcoming you before you slapped him very hard.
Your face was crimson, visibly shaken as you sneered at the prince, "You disgrace me."
You're positive his expression softened when you spoke.
Before the conflict intensified into a far bloodier clash, Daemon put an end to it. Your father brought himself in front of you as Aemond assessed him before conceding defeat and withdrawing. When your uncle left the room, you were still fuming with rage as the Daemon only giggled before being silenced by Rhaenyra with a scowl.
Because of your uncle Vaemond's death and the recent ruckus, your family has had enough and has requested a week's leave to recoup before proceeding with your and Jacaerys' wedding at Kingslanding. Despite the impediment, Princess Helaena asked you to tutor her after learning about your tutoring sessions with her nephew and niece from Aemond. You were puzzled on how she was aware of it given how covert it was, but it was soon mellowed into small irritation to learn the full truth that Aemond was responsible for the additional knowledge. Since it appeared like both families were hostile towards one another, Rhaenyra believed it was a wonderful idea, so you stayed, believing that it would soon end as you were to only stat for a week.
The following day, as you were speaking with Helaena in her chambers, Queen Alicent unexpectedly walked in. She was about to presume something, but she paused herself when she discovered you standing next to her daughter. Though the Queen thanked the Gods when Aemond entered, both of them shared a knowing look as the Queen proceeded towards you, "My love, I need to discuss something with Helaena. Aemond will assist you to your quarters if it's perfectly fine."
You almost scoffed, but decided against it and nodded defeatedly before saying farewell to your companion and walking along the back of your former friend toward your room.
"Are you fairing well, m'lady?" He started a conversation out of nowhere, which drew you back.
"My prince, I am fairing better than your other eye, if you ask me," you barked back.
"Do not test my waters today, (Y/N)."
"You inquired, and as a loyal friend, I responded."
You felt your back land hard and before you knew what was going to happen next, you gasped for air as the anguish overwhelmed you. You suddenly realized that Aemond had forced you up against the ice-cold wall, encasing you and leaving you with no choice but to look at his cunning grin. He turned his head innocently and remarked, "You could have said you hated me yesterday at the dinner, my lady, but you didn't."
"Did you know how happy I felt when, instead of being hateful towards me, you stated embarass? I was beyond happy, even ecstatic," the man continued before he trailed his eyes from your eyes to your parted lips.
"I'd rather you be ashamed of me than despise me." He hushed quietly before giving you a surprising, delicate kiss. His face was gentle as he pressed his lips to yours. His lower half grinded against yours eagerly while his other hand traced your back slowly.
Though the harmony was short-lived as you bit his lips harshly, causing him to grumble and leave the tenderness of your lips with blood trailing down his lips, "His Grace would not permit such deeds! Even though you are one of his children, he does not condone mistreatment of women!"
You believed you had made your point, but the man slowly emerged into fits of laughter as he threw his head back. His voice was charming if it weren't for the given circumstances.
"You're such a fucking idiot," he sniggered, his good eye piercing yours as you fixed your gaze on him; he displayed lust while you displayed hatred. He shook his head before nearing your ear to the point you could feel his hot breath, whispering, "The King's dead."
Your entire face became white with only a slight confirmation. The person who had kept the family together had passed away. "T-That's not possible."
He groaned as you attempted to wriggle free of his grip and confessed, "It's damn well possible, my love. Just as much as the potential that you're finally mine to claim." He half-laughed before kissing you more passionately and aggressively than before.
"I am bethroted!" You screamed and tried to make your voice as loud as you could, hoping someone would walk through the halls and help you.
He replied by clutching your neck so firmly that you gasped for air in your throat, "My patience is wearing thin," his annoyance grew. "I held myself for so long and I forbid you to be his as you have forbid yourself to be mine so many times."
He let go of your neck and you spat in his face, "My family will hear about this! Father will have your head severed, as he did with Vaemond, and Jacaerys will have your other eye amputated so you can glimpse our future, which is already nonexistent."
He held your chin in place with his fingers as he gazed at your eyes with a stone-like intensity.
"I'll let in you in a secret of mine, mother will set my buffoon of a brother on top of that iron throne and during his reign I will kill him and set Helaena faraway with her children," your eyes widened like saucers at the thought of the innocent princess being killed, Aemond loved the fear in your eyes before he let on the truth, "Of course I wouldn't kill her, I am not that evil. I love her as much as you do for her."
He grabbed your hand harshly and drew you towards him as he hurried across the corridor with keen resolve. "Until then, rumors would spread of their murder, and I would not allow myself be hidden if they intent to call me. I will name you queen, for a king's will would never be disregarded. Then, as we had promised when we were young, we would live happily, have a lots of babes, and have a good life."
As you realized how near you actually were to the boudoir, he dragged you a few more times before pushing you to the ground, crashing hard. He continued, "'Till then, you will do as I wish, so sit lovely as you were and do not tell anybody if you wish your Prince Jacaerys to become Vhagar's dinner."
There he left you wailing on the floor of your quarters, trembling from the adrenaline as your eyes and nose inflamed from sobbing. As they prepared to usurp the throne, you heard him close the door, the same door you keep banging hoping that help would reach soon.
Wellp, I thought my draft said 2k turns out I need new glasses as this is 5 fuckin k. Though Im thankful of the amount of people who liked the first part. This was supposed to be a one shot turned into two shots but I noticed how long it gets. I wouldve splitted this part into two but idk where to end so yeah have this. Next part would be the final one, i hope y'all psychopaths enjoyed this story.
Tags: @crazylokonugget ; @discowizard88 ; @sheetalkalkhandey ; @dangerousbluebirdpoetry ; @mysingularitybts ; @regulusblackismycomfortcharacter ; @felfei
486 notes · View notes
crushedsweets · 5 months
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OK I NEED TO CLEAR MY ASKBOX
IM JUST GONNA ANSWER A TON OF THEM HERE SO I DONT CLOG UP MY FEED....
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hi >.<
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this is so fucking sweet i remembered how happy i was when i first got my car. i cried everyday for a week straight because i was so happy. very glad yall got to watch me get my first car. i spend over an hour in her every day commuting now. LMFAOOO (i named her lindsay btw) ((after tdi lsinday)). im so sorry im late but thank you so much this meant sm !!! <3
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you asked me this in august im evil oh my god. anyway i aagree. but i am always inclined to forever think he's a midwest emo guy. twin sized mattress forever
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SHE NEEDS AND DESERVES SO MANY.
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im immediately inclined to say clocky or toby the second i see time and fire mentions. so ticciwork. my clocky is often a bit messy so she'd be pissed and angry and upset over the sort of war she's found herself in, especially as she sees toby just falling deeper into it. 'my god, was i oblivious?' when she finally realizes toby will always, always put Slenderman before her. frustrating. 'hell stays hungry for a world so weak' natalie is hungry for a good world, but she thinks everyone is too weak for goodness, meanwhile toby is hungry for power so he can make everyone else seem weak. etc. 'they only want you to bleed' they being slendy, operator, zalgo, etc etc etc... power, being a pawn, fighting, using humans as toys in a battlefield, etc etc.. yeah
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RELEASE ME JOEY
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i genuinely think nina is a really good influence on so many of the creeps. like theyre all assholes, traumatized, refuse to believe in the good in the world, etc etc. but nina is traumatized and still kickin. she comes in like ^_^ hello chat. and i think that, while its still important to feel the shitty feelings, it's really grounding to see someone whos just so .. able to be happy. idk. someone who SEEKS joy, rather than expects it to fall into their lap, and blames the world when it doesnt
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this si perfect idk why i forgot about bats for him. gotta get back into this idea
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AHHH OK I WILL DO MORE EVENTUALLY i just wanna say thank yewww i think theyre such a good sibling dynamic. like little brothers and big sisters and both being little assholes to eachother but would die for the other. idk. ugh. important to me.
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actually this sounds really sweet..... thats funny cuz i was JUST talking to a friend about who i would have EJ go endgame with if i had to, but i couldnt settle on anyone. but liu seems like a good fit for ej. i think they'd be super sweet
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ANON ME TOO AHHHH ITS LITERALLY MY FAVORITE FUCKING THING EVER. I DONT GAF ABOUT EVIL MEAN 'CANON' SLENDER I LOVE WHEN HE'S A DAD AND WORRIES AND STRESSES. IEPFB AND KASTOWAYS SLENDY>
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AH THANK YOU!!! he reminds me of my little cousins HAHA theyre like 10-14 right now and theyre all cuties.... just playing roblox and being mischievous...
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THIS IS ABOUT THE BLUSHING NAT DRAWING ISNT IT AHAH OMG THANK YOU!!! i think shes so cute. i know she cant handle compliments. she's either deadpanned 'thanks' or just covers her face and says 'shut up' cuz she doesnt know what to do.
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I LOVE HER TOO!!!
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GOOD NEWS THEN ive drawn her a handful of times since u sent this HAHA TYSM
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you sent like... natobina i think... ok tbh kinda slaps
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OK REAL but also when i read it i keep reading it as 'cochina' and i cannot bring myself to name the throuple that </3 HAHA
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TBH AHAHA I SEE IT. TOBYS AMETHYST GARNETS NATALIE AND NINA IS STEVEN.
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i want jeff to ache in his loneliness
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i need to draw connie asap but also THANK YOU SO MUCH AGAIN FOR THE CAR CONGRATS I REALLY APPRECIATE IT IM SO HAPPY I LOVE MY CAR SO MUCH i gotta go vaccuum her..
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shes such a cat to me. feline. of sorts, if you will
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also good news for you anon, i have also drawn her an ungodly amount of times since youve sent this. LOL
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THEYRE MY ANGELS I HAVE MORE OF THEM !!! I LOVE THEM!! AHHHGGG
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literally the second that people tell me i made them start to like clocky i am overwhelmed with joy. i feel so much ache when people aren't fond of her bc shes so fucking cool and such a good character and so much fun. so sad that 2015 era creepypasta fandom destroyed her. but im here to fix it...
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IM SORRY ANON I BARELY DRAW HIM HES JUST SO BOYISH I LAUGH EVERYTIME I SEE HIM FKAHAHAAH OK OKOK ILL CHANGE ILL DRAW HIM I SWEAR
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I REMEMBER WHEN I FIRST STARTED DOING EMOJI ANONS BAHAHA u guys r funny
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incredibly. happy. to do this to u.
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nope! im not too interested in the 2021 nina just cuz i feel like i've seen that character concept many times (not just in jane), BUT if i had to do my own intepretation of her, 2021 nina would be INCREDIBLY immature in like. not a childish way, but an entitled, angry-fueled adult who cannot comprehend anyone else's thoughts/feelings. and thus, would despise OG nina (although within reason, OG nina idolizes the person who killed her family) . but even if there wasnt a good reason to dislike OG nina, she'd be mean. and OG nina would be mad and bitch. and theyd theyd fight. HAHA
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I-IF...???????? ANON?
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HELD TO THE FUCKING BRIM
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hdra77 · 4 months
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Ok since this blog is kinda getting alot of attention i'll just make a pinned post about a little bit of myself
Heyy! i'm Soren!
He/Him
You can call me zarou or dra
I am bilingual but im more comfortable speaking in english (still bad at it actually)
i really like cybercore,webcore,warcore aesthetic it may not look like it right now but expect a whole bunch of techcore designs soon
Oh and i am also a huge fan of astronomy,space and all of that sort. Along with post apocalyptic settings,body horror elements and eldritch beings.
Using my art as PFPs/Banners is okay! As long as you give proper credit! But reuploading my works without my permission or claiming them as your own is NOT okay. I will find you and i will hunt you down and turn you into a helpless flopping fish gasping for air.
Inspirations is ok too!! But please do not directly copy from the original work.
!! DISCLAIMER !! Btw please read this before following my blog!! There would be gore,body horror,dark themes and even some suggestive themes Sometimes but overall i do not post any explicit nsfw here !! (they can be filtered through tags but just putting this here as a heads up)
my DNI are basically the general DNI: proshippers,homophobes,etc. you know, the general
my interest varies but i currently hyperfixtate on these fandoms so far:
Rainworld
Marikinonline4
Animator vs Animation/Animation vs Minecraft
Warrior cats
My dms here are also open so feel free to send me a message! (No weird dms or you get instant block)
Im busy and i dont check discord as frequently but i would be happy to talk to you! I would also be glad to make friends im not intimidating i promise i dont bite totally-
My ask box are always open! Ask me anything basically, my aus, ocs, pretty much anything. You can also send some requests but they will take a gajillion years to finish but i promise ill get them done soon!
My socials:
Twitter - HINDRANCE77 (!! page contains some suggestive themes !!) Youtube - HINDRANCE77 Tumblr - hdra77 (you are literally here right now)
My tags:
#hdra7shitposts - yes, shitposts
#fishdoesart - all my art comes here
#fishdoesdoodles - random doodles and some occasional shitposting, mostly on ms paint
#fishdoesrequests - all my art requests comes here, so far this is where you find my ship requests (still open for now btw)
#wips - wips
#fishbites.txt - ramblings
#othersart - gifts/fanarts! Sometimes some reblogs
#asks - all of my responses comes here
My other blogs:
@nyaworld-askblog - for the nyaworld au! this blog is story driven but asks for specific characters are always welcome!
@fallowclans-unruly-demise - for a warrior cats clangen blog, still stuck in hiatus void
My Rainworld AU tags:
#rw voided au - simple AU about iterators called voideds who drains void fluids out of other iterators, theres also some rot infection going on too
#rw disarray au/SYSTEM FAILURE - a virus in Lttm's code had created a fatal error in her system which caused her to slowly spiral into insanity as she would slowly loosen her grip onto reality, claiming that she had found the solution to their problem..but was it really the answer all along?
#rw nyaworld au - joke au about the entire rainworld cast taking place in the 2000's this one is purely just for nostalgia purposes #into the sigverse - technically considered an au. this is just a silly little askblog about different versions of NSH interacting because for some reason they can now magically interact with different alternate universe versions of themselves. ocs being used to interact is allowed to!! anyone can use this tag however they please you don't have to send me asks to be a part of the sigverse
My Rainworld Oc tags: #Sector7c - official oc local group tag!
#7c dystopian arbitrary
#7c golden life
#rw ocs #ocs
-- still WIP --
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misskattylashes · 1 year
Text
An open letter to whoever wants to read it...
I don't expect anyone to read this, I just wanted to get my feelings off my chest. I also dont expect anyone to agree with me so don't start having a go. This is genuinely me trying to process my feelings.
I am so disappointed in Alex. And this is actually just a reflection of my own expectations. I was so proud back in May when Louise had tried to allude in her stories that they were on holidays, only for Alex to rock up in London a couple of days later with Miles in their matching jackets at the Scott Walker concert. He looked so happy and relaxed, and I suppose my inner shipper kicked in and I hoped he was finally sticking two fingers up at what I think has become a bearding narrative.
There has been no sign of Louise during the UK tour - even Sheffield which was attended by friends and family and surely after 5 years together she should be considered family. And it wasn’t as if she had any commitments. It seemed she was just wandering around Paris taking pictures and getting her hair cut.
Miles on the other hand has been behaving like someone who is loved up, sharing romantic songs and even called Alex a sexy motherf*ckr on live radio. I was living in my own stupid hope that they were slowly preparing to come out. Or at the least the whole Louise thing was over and we could draw our own assumptions. Especially seeing as yesterday Miles posted a video of him on the Eurostar saying he was going back to London and put the two turtle emojis.
Then today we get a post from Louise declaring how she was getting the star treatment on the Eurostar, and a caption saying something like baby I miss you I want to kiss you. Which brought me back down to earth with a bump. The shit charade is still on. And lucky me...I will be there in London to witness it. Alex will probably be on edge like he was when she was in Paris and fuck up. But of course everyone will think it's romantic and cute.
I disappointed in him not having the courage to put an end to this.
But maybe I am more disappointed in myself. I am usually a cynical person but the love between Miles and Alex seems so romantic, and Miles is so sweet, he deserves happiness. But maybe I really have just been shipping two men who once loved each other but are now happy just being friends.
So I don't know why I feel so miserable. They're all strangers. I like to think of myself as a feminist, but there is still part of me who like fairy tales with happy endings and I created my own Milex fairy tale.
But I still can't help but be cynical. Glastonbury is coming up and I have a strong feeling Miles will come on for 505, so of course let's make sure for this week Alex is seen out in London with the girlfriend, taking photos with fans who can go on how lovely she is blah blah to keep up the hetero narrative so when Miles comes on stage...well it's just two old friends.
Sorry for the ramble. Please just scroll on. I just wanted to get this off my chest.
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bingusbongu · 3 months
Note
Julian from the Arcana. With an academic/noble reader
Like they meet at some point in the castle and the reader is in the library or some shit
-🖋
A/N: so sorry this is short, i havent played the Arcana in SUCH a long time, but i remember Julian being my favorite. He was so goofy silly and my favorite route! But, as an fyi, im slowly burning myself out, so if i dont update everyday dont come after me for it. Also, since i havent played this game in a long while, i may have the story wrong, let me know if i do so i can fix it, thanks! Again, supper short, to tired to do a bunch
Readers lines are in pink, but they are Gender neutral!!!!
《Masterlist》
《Rules》
Julian x Noble! Reader
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• Julian HAD to have snuck into the castle if he were to meet you for the first time. After all, he is a wanted criminal, depending on when he meets your character
• maybe he was looking for more clues about what happened to the king or left something of his behind in his studies, which brought him to the library. He still had a key that Portia gave him, who he told her he lost it so he could come and go as he pleased, as long as he dosnt get caught that is.
• what he didnt expect was to actually find someone in the library. The library that has been out of use for auch a long time. That someone would actually be in it to begin with. He only thought that he and his sister had the keys... maybe Nadia, too.
• he stopped at the door to study you, just staring at you. How neat and beautiful your clothes were, and how stylish you seemed, with your jewelry and established posture. You must had been an guest at the castle, or a friend of Nadias to be looking so upper class and being allowed in the library.
"Its rude to stare, you know?"
Your voice caught him off gaurd, he must have been staring at you for you to notice. Even with your book in hand, you looked up at him with an unimpressed look as he fumbled over his words for an answer.
"Well.... i uh... didnt expect to find anyone taking of intrest of these old books" he would recover himself, trying to put on his best grin to make him not seem suspicious.
You would roll your eyes at him and continue reading as he stood there awkwardly. Until clearing his throat, picking out a completely random book and pulled up a chair to talk to you, which you responded, despite being intrested in your book, to his questions.
The two pf you chatted, and when he told you his name, you already knew who he was, which astounded him. But, instead of alerting the guards, you just sat there quietly while reading your book. Flipping through it withiut a care in the world as Julian freaked out you were going to call someone.
You just sat there reading, without a care that an alleged and wanted criminal was right next to you, but you liked your book more anyway. Just shrugging at him whem he asked
So, instead, he sat there and talked to you while you responded back to him. Him learning of your nobility abd why you were in the castle to begin with. One of the most engaging talks he ever had that wasnt with his sister that was scolding him.
You had to leave at some point to go help Nadia, leaving Julian alone with his thoughts and old desk.
• now, Julian couldnt stop thinking of you. So, now at the same time every day, he would sneak into the library in hopes to find you, and of course, there you were. Reading the same or a different book in your lap.
Julian would stride in to talk to you. Greeting you with a smile and sitting down to talk to you about lord knows what. Even occasionally throwing flirts at you just to get you to look up at him from youf book.
His visits became frequent, despite them being a secret, he still somehow managed to meet in the library at the same exact time as you
• he definitely tries to get you to laugh by using rich people humor, which hardly gets a crack out of you, unless he actually says something funny or gets flustered
• at first it was just library visits. Then when Julian could go out without hiding, youd have him show you around the town, incase if you are new or just never got out long enough to see it all.
• makes stupid jokes about how he would throw himself in a mud pile to keep you from stepping in it to get you to roll your eyes chuckle at him
• always claims to be your night in shining armor when out and about, declairing he would protect you. Only to jump at the sight of a mouse skittering along the floor
• tries to learn upper class flirting to use on you. If he dosnt flirt enough now, just wait tell he adds in royalty
• you find it stupid, but Julian is stupid enough to make kt work.
• if you buy him anything he us intrested in he would try and decline as he litterly is screaming inside
• alittle bit nervous that he was a citizen and not a royal you shoukd end up with. Makes him paranoid that he is to poor for you to love/like him
• attending jis silly little plays makes him brighten up when he sees you
• def jokes about joining the royal gaurd just so he could spend more tims with you
• he liked it, after all
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boneywones · 20 days
Note
did you like.... seriously not learn anything from the events of a few hours ago? making a public callouts account is irresponsible and will only put people in danger again.
in regard to the doxxer last night; seriously what did you guys think would happen? your friend posted a public "hitlist" and treated stalking kia's friends as a joke, and publicly made fun of them and the people saying that posting a public list is an awful idea (thus going against his own "don't harrass anyone!" disclaimer) and encouraged others to mock them too—and then you get surprised when someone takes it too far despite steadily building a hostile environment that would encourage someone to do so?
no matter how much you deny it—your friend, by treating the idea of finding out who kia's friends are (even if theyre not proshippers AND HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS) as a joke and making a list where they were all publicly mocked, created an environment that encouraged putting real people in danger.
you're children who don't understand the ramifications of your own actions. by creating yet another list you are once again only going to put people in danger. if people didn't follow the "don't harrass anyone!!!" warning (that your friend didn't even follow himself) the first time, there is no guarantee they will follow it this time. And there is no guarantee the doxxer or some other malicious person will use the list you're planning to post as a list of targets and yet again put real people (including children—one of the people on that list was a child) in danger.
making a public list in any capacity is irresponsible and dangerous and NO amount of "dont harrass anyone guyz!!!" is going to erase the legitimate danger you are putting people in. there's a reason proshippers don't make public blocklists of antis and why the anons in your friend's inbox were so fucking panicked about the fact that your friend posted a list of people—because people knew this would happen.
warn people about proshippers in private if you must. that's completely fine and okay. the issue isn't that you're warning against people, its that you made a public list. a public list that anyone can access will only ever put people in danger, regardless of whether or not it includes a "don't harrass anyone" warning. I am begging of you, for everyone's safety take the list and the account down.
first of all, i would’ve said “im not reading allat” but i did. also, im 99 percent sure you know jack shit that the “hitlist” was made by a freak, and not me or killz. please get that in your head.
“the list” wasnt made by us. so dont think that it is 🤦‍♀️
also, killz had no idea of the anons intentions behind the list of people. hell, killz didnt even fucking know that they would tag the people in it!!!
“your friend posted a list of people” ..
“treated stalking kias friends as a joke”.. first of all, they had no idea about the blog beforehand, only that the freak was an anon that said that they knew some of kias friends. if you have half a brain, you would know that killz thought that the anon didnt have ill intentions and would instead send a blocklist without actually tagging the people.
how about instead of yapping in my ask box you realise that all killz did was answer that persons ask. killz clearly had no ill intentions and they werent THE FUCKING PERSON THAT MADE THAT LIST!!!!!!!!!!
holy shit
and the post has already been long gone deleted, and the freak that made that seperate blog has deleted it. no, we were not that blog, read through my shit for once oh my god
dont just say a whole lot of nothing and use your two eyes to read
and we literally havent even posted anything yet so please get off your high horse. why is the first thing you expect us is to post about minor proshippers (which is not what were doing!!!! i feel really fucking bad about minor proshippers because they have most likely been groomed into it!!!!)
also the “warn people about proshippers”, we have been doing that. i just want people to KNOW, because i see a lot of minors that shouldn’t be interacting with other people.
im sorry if you’re mad that theres a blog dedicated to making a blocklist that talks about freaks to block?? and im sorry that you fully think that this’ll lead to more harassment? like,, huh, whatever.
also considering the fact that killz is still being harassed in their ask box says a lot.
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pastanest · 1 year
Text
if you’re wondering why I’m having to repost this, or why you were perhaps previously following me but no longer are, please refer to this post. I was able to retrieve this thanks to @iamburdened - thanks so much for finding this fic especially, one of my all time favourites to have written!! ♡
Daryl Dixon x she/her!reader
spoilers: set in seasons 2 & 3
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Trying
That night could have so easily never happened. If just one thing had been different, if you hadnt chosen to run after Daryl when he stormed off after the group finally found Sophia, if the two of you had walked in a different direction and hadnt found that bar, if either of you had decided to stay sober. But that night, the stars truly did align. When you awoke in the arms of the naked Daryl Dixon, you thought that the stars had been doing you a favour. But within a few weeks, you realised that maybe the stars had actually been playing a cruel trick on you.
The group’s place on the farm was hardly permanent, that was obvious from the get go; you didnt know how much longer you would have a safe environment, you didnt know what to do. You had to tell Daryl, of course you did. The two of you hadnt really spoken since that night, the air was different between you two, the butterflies had escaped your stomachs and fluttered around you, bringing small smiles and rosy cheeks and flirtatious glances, but no conversation. Until you speed walked over to Daryl’s tent, your fists clenched so hard your knuckles hurt, your head spinning and your heart pounding.
“Daryl-“
He turned around as soon as he heard your voice, and he barely had to look at you before he was holding your shoulders and searching your eyes. “Hey, ya alright? Ya look like ya’ve seen a damn ghost!”
You chuckled airily, feeling the weight of your words without you even having to say them, and knowing that once you did, they’d only feel heavier. “We need to talk.”
Daryl frowned at you, concerned and obviously a little awkward, not knowing where this ‘talk’ was headed. You could tell that whatever he thought you might say, it was definitely not what left your lips.
“Daryl...Im pregnant.”
His face was unreadable, but unlike every other occasion when it had been difficult to decipher, his usual storminess wasnt present. Daryl stared at you wordlessly, and you felt the weight of your words crushing you until you burst into over-explaining yourself.
“I-I know the baby’s yours, I havent slept with anyone else, b-but I dont expect you to- we dont even know how much longer we’ll be on the farm, it’s stupid to keep it, sorry, forget I even-“ You were rambling, shaking your head and running your hands through your hair, until Daryl grabbed your hands to stop you.
“If ya don’ wan’ it, tha’s up to you, it’s yer body. But, ya don’ gotta give it up, if ya don’ want to.” His words were hoarse, and you could finally read what his eyes were telling you; there were too many emotions, too much shock, he couldnt put those things into words, but he didnt need to.
“Y-You...You want to do this? Daryl, we arent even together, we had sex once and now there’s a baby in the middle of all this and I just...are you sure?” You stared up at him, searching through the waves of emotion in his eyes to try and find an answer.
“Aint nobody else I’d wanna try this with, but if ya dont want a kid now, we can jus’ wait to have one when yer ready.” Daryl was shy, his cheeks blushing beneath his stubble as he avoided your eyes, but his hands still held yours.
You smiled up at him then, the fog in your mind clearing to reveal the answer you needed. “We can try.”
Daryl’s gaze snapped up from the ground to meet your eyes, studying your face for any sign of uncertainty, and in the span of two seconds he found none. He broke out into a smile, which widened into a grin, then into a laugh as he lifted you up in his arms and spun you around, making you laugh too. When Daryl placed you back down on the ground, he held you close to his chest.
“Anythin’ ya need, anythin’ at all, jus’ tell me. Any prob’ems, anyone gives ya a hard time about anythin’, I’ll deal with ‘em.” He promised you, sniffling into your hair, his tears of bliss dampening your ponytail.
You nodded into his chest. “I know, you’ve always kept me safe.”
That statement was true from the very first moment you’d met Daryl. He’d always felt a protectiveness over you, and he couldnt hold back from acting on it. Anytime you’d encountered a walker, he’d all but sprint in front of you to act as a human shield, or he’d fire his crossbow before you’d had the chance to even lift your knife. At first, it annoyed you a little; you felt that Daryl thought you couldnt handle yourself. You confronted him about it angrily, and you’d expected him to get angry at you right back, to tell you that if you didnt get yourself in danger all the damn time - which you had to admit, you did have a bad habit of doing - he wouldnt have to save you. Instead, Daryl just sat at his tent silently, head hanging, and guilt consumed you. Immediately, you apologised for biting his head off and sat down next fo him, and you told him that he made you feel safer than anyone, you just didnt want him to risk himself for you like he always did.
“Rather go out protectin’ you than jus’ gettin’ eaten fer nothin’.” Daryl had mumbled, and although he’d tried to play off how much he cared about you, his message was crystal clear to you.
If you thought he was protective of you then, you had no idea what was awaiting you when you were pregnant with Daryl’s baby. He was at your side 24/7. You were more than happy to move in his tent on the farm, but Daryl moved it closer to the rest of the group so that there were more people to protect you if shit hit the fan. Naturally, Daryl’s sudden clinginess to you, and his ferocity towards anyone who asked him about it, got everyone in the group clued in that something was going on. It was actually Dale that figured it out first. You were hanging some washing out to dry, and he casually approached you in the way Dale did when he had something to say.
“Daryl’s a good guy.” He mused, and you nodded, beaming at him.
“Yeah, he is.” You glanced over at Daryl, who Dale had made sure was in a conversation with Rick a safe distance away from you, so that he could talk to you without your bodyguard tearing him a new one.
“I’ve never seen him so...territorial, over anyone. Closest thing was Merle, and that made sense, that was the only family he had. But you, you arent family to him. That is, unless you and him now have a new...family connection.” Dale guessed, your head whipping back around to stare at him with wide eyes. Seeing your expression, Dale laughed. “Dont worry, your secret’s safe with me. Just let me know if you need anything! Not that I suppose I’ll get the chance to help before-“
And as if by magic, Daryl appeared at your side, taking the basket of washing from your arms and giving you a nod, a silent question of if everything was alright, and you returned the nod to answer.
“Wha’s goin’ on?” Daryl verbalised his next question, directed to Dale, accompanied by a scowl, which you playfully poked Daryl’s chest for.
Dale smiled. “Oh, nothing! Just everyday conversation. (Y/N), I have to say, you are positively glowing today!” He teased, and you laughed, smiling at the old man kindly as he walked away.
“Thank you Dale!” You called after him, and when you looked to Daryl, he was frowning.
“The hell was ‘at?” He asked, his question harsh but his voice always soft when he talked to you.
“Dale guessed. He was smart about it, got my guard down by mentioning what a good guy you are.” You chuckled and shook your head, grabbing more clothes from the basket in Daryl’s arms to hang on the line.
Though Daryl was still on full alert, a small smile curled at the corner of his mouth. “Good guy, huh?”
You grinned at him. “Yup! And Im sure you’ll be more than a good dad.” You stood on your tiptoes to kiss Daryl’s cheek, making him blush furiously as he scoffed.
As a result of the mental and physical wounds that his father left, Daryl understandably had his own anxieties about the kind of father he would be. Up until you’d told him you were pregnant, Daryl honestly hadnt even thought about having kids of his own, he thought he was too broken, a lost cause. Somehow, having you at his side made him feel like he could actually do this.
When the camp found out about Lori’s pregnancy, which came as a total shock to you since you’d been so focussed on your own, you and Daryl decided to tell them about your baby, too. It seemed only fair, and it shared the weight of the burden that you knew Lori was feeling at the same time as you.
“Wait, you too?” T-Dog had asked, with eyes so wide you couldnt help laughing.
“Yeah!”
And then his eyes got wider. “Who’s the daddy?!”
All you had to do was glance at Daryl, and T-Dog’s jaw hit the floor, until he composed himself back into a smirk and a calm nod of approval to Daryl. “Ma man.”
This eased the tension substantially, everyone laughing as Rick approached Daryl to congratulate him. The group had never seen Daryl smile with such pride before.
The farm falling was up there with the worst possible things that could have happened. Daryl stuck to you like glue when the group was on the road, sleeping outside unprotected for the first time in what felt like an eternity. You were exhausted from the stress of it all that first day, and you ending up passing out with your head on Daryl’s lap. That night, he didnt sleep a single second. He stayed on full alert, his eyes and ears hyper focussed on anything that could be a danger to you, while his fingertips absentmindedly combed through your hair as you slept. Despite being on full alert, Daryl couldnt help glancing down at you periodically, and even if those glances only lasted half a second before he returned back to his protective duties, every single time he looked at you he was reminded that he could never love anything more.
Finding the prison felt like a god send, and your hope was restored in the fact your baby’s fate was safe. Sitting in front of that campfire, your head rested on Daryl’s shoulder as he wrapped an arm around you, you smiled into the flames, a few tears slipping down your cheeks. Daryl nudged you gently, his other hand quick to brush your tears away.
“Hey, wha’s wrong? Ya in pain?” He panicked, and you shook your head, beaming up at him.
“Things are turning around.” You told him, your voice so quiet, almost afraid to vocalise such a thought in case it ruined everything.
The smile Daryl gave you put all your worries to rest, and he pulled you closer to place a kiss on your forehead.
No official relationship had been established between you and Daryl, but ever since you discovered that you were having his baby, things had obviously developed. The two of you were more affectionate with each other, a natural progression considering how often you’d be by each other’s sides. But Daryl had never asked you out, you’d never asked him out, there was just a love that was acknowledged and accepted, that was being allowed to finally flourish into something beautiful. The two of you were focussed on the baby, and that was a very welcome distraction, it meant that you didnt spend time worrying about your relationship with each other, you didnt have the space in your minds to overthink about that, so it just existed, and it existed wonderfully.
Settling into the prison was utter bliss, finally having an actual room, a real bed to call your own, it was absolutely needed in your case. Since you were getting so big, it was getting very difficult for you to help out with any laborious tasks, to the extent where you couldnt even lift a mattress onto your own bed. Daryl was more than happy to do that for you, of course, and before you could protest or thank him, he kissed you and sped off, leaving you giggling, bewildered and blushing as you fell back onto the mattress. You hadnt intended to fall asleep, but when Daryl gently shook you awake to eat some dinner, you couldnt have woken up faster. He watched in amusement as you all but swallowed your meal whole, your swollen stomach and glowing smile making his heart pound in his chest. In that moment, he knew that without a doubt, he would keep that prison standing if he had to hold the ceiling up himself, just to give you a safe place to stay.
Lori’s death turned your world upside down. The two of you werent particularly close, but you had grown so much closed given your shared state. Seeing Maggie walk out clutching a bloody baby, and Carl at her side in stone cold shock, it shook your hopeful illusion of your labour going without a hitch. You dont know how you’d convinced yourself of that, or whether you just hadnt let yourself think about giving birth, but every single day after that you grieved the loss of your friend, while your anxiety grew exponentially. Daryl could see it, the closer you got to your due date (which you were glad Hershel had calculated for you, but you partly wished you’d never found out) the more frantic you got. Daryl did his best to calm you down, to reassure you, and what happened to Lori combined with your own fears made him even more determined to stick by your side, so that you definitely werent without him when the time came.
You were sitting in the prison field with Carol picking flowers to lay on Lori’s grave, when you felt a gush between your legs. It was so intense that the fluid reached Carol’s shoe, and she gasped, her head slowly lifting from the flowers in her hands to look at you as all colour drained from your face.
“DARYL!” She yelled, and he was there in an instant, he’d only been a few feet away, but Carol couldnt believe how fast he’d run.
You, on the other hand, didnt see Daryl run. You couldnt move your eyes when his hands held your face, you couldnt speak, you couldnt breathe, you were frozen. And then everything was blurry, and it took you several seconds to register that you were crying. By the time you did realise, Daryl had already swung you up in his arms and was carrying you bridal style as he sprinted for the prison, everyone in the group running behind him.
Daryl laid you on your bed, the blurry silhouette of him disappearing briefly to be replaced by what you deciphered to be Hershel. He pinched your ear, hard, and you slapped his hand away.
“OW!” You cried, and Daryl growled, close to beating the old man if Rick hadnt held him back.
Hershel chuckled. “You werent showing symptoms of actual shock, you were just, well, shocked, and I needed to get you out of it. We need you responsive for this!”
You sighed and let your head fall back against the pillow, rubbing your earlobe. “Fuck.”
Hershel pointed a gloved finger at you. “Careful of that language now, there’s gonna be a little one here soon!”
With that, Hershel began examining you. Daryl was allowed back at your side, and when he reached for your hand, you gripped his. He kept his eyes fixed on your face, not paying attention to what Hershel was doing, only to the reactions of discomfort on your face.
“‘s alright, we gonna get you through this, promise.” Daryl whispered, voice already hoarse with emotion.
“Any guesses on what you might be having, (Y/N)?” Hershel asked you curiously as he examined you, somewhat easing your nerves with a distracting topic.
You smiled at Hershel before your eyes gravitated back to Daryl’s. “Well, we dont know, but since the start I’ve had a feeling that it’s a girl. I dont know, though.”
Hershel smiled at you. “A mother’s instinct is rarely wrong.”
He continued the examination before determining that you had only just started dilating, so it was not yet time to start pushing, despite your contractions having already begun. Since there was no telling how long the labour would take, Hershel told everyone to go back to work for the time being, but of course, Daryl was never going to leave you. For most of your dilation period, it was just you and Daryl in the cell you shared, him thinking up any random crap of a memory he could in order to distract you every time a contraction came, his hand never letting go of yours. Hershel came in to re-examine you and check on how you were doing in general every half an hour or so, and within around four hours, it was time to start pushing. Maggie and Beth were summoned back to the room then for medical assistance, and Daryl stayed at your side as the rest of the company stood essentially staring between your legs, but that was the least daunting aspect of what was going on. Tears filled your eyes as the next contraction rolled ploughed through you.
“PUSH (Y/N), PUSH!” Hershel called out, while Daryl leaned close to your ear.
“C’mon sweet girl, ya got this, yer gonna be jus’ fine. Push for me, push for her, go on, you can do it.” He whispered, but even his whisper was raw with emotion.
You nodded and squeezed your eyes shut, pressure and immense pain building at your hips as you pushed with all your might, your tears escaping and rolling down your face, into your hair that splayed across the pillow beneath your head. You cried out, clutching Daryl’s hand so hard you were worried you were going to break it, but he thought it was the least amount of pain he could deal with considering what you were going through.
And then, there was a cry. The cell plummeted into eerie silence, a ringing in your ears like a bullet had been fired right beside your head, as Hershel lifted a bloody bundle of limbs from between your legs. You felt winded, lost for words, lost for...everything. Maggie and Beth both wiped happy tears from their cheeks as Hershel passed the tiny human over to them, so they could quickly wash the blood away. Sound returned like a crashing wave, the ringing and the deafening silence replaced by heavy breathing and the cries of your baby. When you realised you were still clutching Daryl’s hand in a death grip, you slowly released it and turned to look at him, to see his tear stained face staring at the baby just as you had been.
“Your hunch was right, (Y/N), say hello to your baby girl.” Hershel spoke softly as he held the now bundled up baby out to you, and with shaking arms you reached for her.
She fell into them as though slotting into place, her face chubby and glowing in a way that was utterly ethereal. You shuffled over in bed to make room for Daryl, and he didnt need an invitation to move and sit properly beside you, to wrap an arm around you and the little baby nestled safely in a yellow blanket Daryl had found on his last run.
It wasnt until Maggie and Beth returned with a crowd that you even realised they’d left your cell. Your friends provided you and Daryl with plenty of space, only a few of them filing in at a time before letting others take a peak at the newborn angel. You looked up at Daryl, tearful, sweaty and feeling beyond exhausted, but Daryl had never seen anything so beautiful. You grinned up at him and nodded down at the baby, asking him a silent question, and he could only nod frantically in reply. He held his arms out and you carefully placed his little girl there, cuddled up against her father’s chest. Her face scrunched up briefly as she wriggled to get comfortable, making you and Daryl chuckle as more tears rolled down both of your faces.
“Have you thought of a name for her?” Carol asked, staring at the three of you with so much adoration, beyond overjoyed for her best friend having found the love and the family he deserved.
You smiled at her. “Well, ever since we first talked about her, she gave us something, so we figured...why not name her after what she gave us?” You looked between the people gathered in your cell, and the love of your life beside you.
Daryl sniffled, but nodded along with you and managed a wobbly smile to the audience.
“Her name is Hope, Hope Dixon.” You announced, and the room erupted in quiet and considerate ‘awwh’s as you rested your head on Daryl’s shoulder, eyelids feeling suddenly heavy.
“Alright, I think it’s time we give these three some privacy.” Hershel said, kindly ushering everyone out of the room as they all sent their best wishes and smiles your way.
Daryl sniffled. “Thank you.”
You frowned up at him, too tired to even lift your head from his shoulder. “For what?”
Daryl tore his gaze from the sleeping bundle of joy in his arms, to smile down at you with more confidence and love than you had ever seen on his face.
“Fer tryin’.”
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lizard-shifter-noms · 2 months
Text
Still Subject to Change Chapter 10 (NEW)
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Hello everyone! i decided to repost arc 1 of SSTC
(the chapters were way too long and had a bunch of typos but hopefully this will make reading easier)
this Story contains Vore, Dont like dont read.
if there are still any grammatical errors i’m sorry.
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I shifted a bit so he could see it and pointed to the pale mark on the back of my shoulder blades illuminated by the red fire, giving it a strange orange glow.
“How did you get that one??? What happened?”
He was back to his blubbery old self, damaged tooth forgotten for now at the sight of the pale line on my back.
“Well one time a guard almost got me, but i was a bit faster than him, and as i turned a corner i was suddenly bleeding from my back, Then I looked over my shoulder and apparently that guy just fucking threw his sword at me”
“Wait what? that's so dumb though, why would anyone throw their weapon like this?”
I shook my head at him as i didn't know why someone would do that either, it was a bad idea really, Why risk losing an expensive weapon?
But that was in the past and didn't matter now, I was just glad that I had no other lasting damage other than the scar.
“Whatever, it's late we should sleep like Rikaad said”
I shifted a bit over to flatter ground and flicked some rocks away so I could lay there without having sharp things poke me all the time.
Shifting to lay on my side and facing the fire I settled down for sleep.
Feeling something move at my chest area I looked down to see Robin curling up next to my thorax, probably trying to steal some warmth.
He looked like a kitten next to me and curling up like this didn't help to get rid of the mental image, so I just left him lying there and put my arm as a barrier between the forest and him.
Having him die while he was lying next to me would be rather traumatizing, not to mention if something were to get this close it would probably try to kill me too.
Settling down completely on the ground I closed my eyes and fell asleep basically trying to get as much sleep as I could before I had to take my watch shift.
Having expected to be woken up in the middle of the night by Rikaad to watch the camp i was surprised to find that when i awoke it was already morning.
I looked around confusedly and the first thing i saw was Robin still curled up next to me and fast asleep, The second thing I saw was Rikaad sitting next to my shirt and fiddling with the fabric, what was he doing?
“Rikaad? Why are you messing with my shirt? I only have one you better not destroy it”
I was still a bit sleepy and with Robin half leaning half lying on me I didn't want to move.
“I am not messing with it, i'm just repairing small holes so they don't tear”
He spoke quietly and focused back on his task.
It was weird, this was one of the nicest things anyone had ever done for me, so I better never tell him that I stole it from a clothesline a few months ago.
I was still a bit befuddled at the fact that i hadn't been woken up for a watch shift but looking closer at Rikaad he had bags under his eyes but somehow still moved like a man wide awake.
“Have you slept? Nobody woke me up for my shift watching, don't tell me you were awake the entire night”
He shook his head and continued patching up my shirt.
“I couldn't, not with Arthur still back there, so i started doing this instead, but i do hope that we can come up with a plan to get Arthur back today”
Now I felt a bit guilty, I knew Arthur wasn't captive anymore and actually fine if probably quite disgusted at what had happened.
I was glad that today we would backtrack a tiny bit and meet him somewhere in the woods.
I really hoped he would never tell anyone that i ate him but i couldn't realistically expect that it would stay a secret forever.
So bringing them back to Kamerasca and then leaving would be the best option as much as being alone again pained me.
“Done, try seeing if the stitches hold when you put it on”
He held a corner of the cloth in my direction and I tried to take it without waking Robin who was still snuggled up to me.
Sadly I was unsuccessful and he woke up, blinking owlishly against the morning light and flopping onto his back.
“Ugh, morning”
While Robin complained about the sun I put my newly fixed shirt back on and was happy to find that all the tears were expertly fixed, even the ones I had tried fixing had been redone.
He really was surprisingly good at this, Robin hadn't been kidding.
Standing up I just put some dirt over the still smoldering remains of the fire, I didn't want to cause a forest fire after all.
“So what is the plan? Just backtrack and see what we can do?”
Rikaad stood up and put his sewing supplies away.
“Ideally we will know what to do before we get there, but yes for now we backtrack and try to figure it out on the way”
Robin immediately came up to me, looking at me with wide eyes, holding his arms up as a signal that he wanted to be picked up again.
Obliging, I cupped him to my chest and started to walk after Rikaad the way we came from yesterday, all the while on the lookout for Arthur.
I could hear Rikaad quietly mumbling to himself, likely trying to come up with a plan even if I knew it was unnecessary.
He didn't know that Arthur was fine after all, and I couldn't tell him, but he'd see soon enough that Arthur was fine.
I hoped.
There was the possibility that he had gotten lost in the dark or been attacked by another manticore.
Shaking such thoughts out of my head I continued to trail after the dark haired human in front of me.
It was funny, his almost black hair and well toned skin let him blend in near perfectly into his surroundings.
I was really glad that he chose not to kill me when we first met, which is also another reason why I couldn't tell him about the pouch.
I was worried he'd change his mind on letting me live, I somehow didn't doubt he'd actually find a way to end me.
Lazily walking through the underbrush after him I kept my eyes open for any sign of Arthur, or worse.
I wasn't sure that the Maringand Guard had given up yet on following us and I hoped I didn't have to find out.
Hearing something snap up ahead my muscles tensed, ready to defend myself before hearing a loud shout.
“FUCK”
That was Arthur's voice!
He was right up ahead and yelling at something.
I hoped he wasn't in trouble but before I could react Rikaad had already pelted over the ground in the direction of Arthur, hands on his sword.
“Rikaad wait! Donovan let's go!”
Robin tugged at my shirt and pointed after Rikaad and I followed a bit more cautiously, what if some of the Guards did follow us this deep into the forest?
But actually seeing Arthur was a relief, even if he had somehow managed to get seriously stuck in a thornbush and was hitting it loudly swearing with a stick.
Rikaad had already begun helping him untangle and I set Robin down who immediately tried to help too.
“ARTHUR! Are you okay? How did you get away? How did you end up in a bunch of thorns?”
Robin was babbling excitedly again while worrying for his friend.
While they tried to get him out of the thorns by shoving all of them aside I decided to pick him up, lifting him out of the thorns, and he was clinging to my fingers as he dangled over the prickly bushes.
“FUCKING- i hate plants im going to set this green hell on fire one day!”
Setting him down in front of the other two he was immediately tackled into a hug by Robin.
He looked a bit miserable, like he hadn't slept at all and being stuck in a bush didn't do him any favors whatsoever if the countless bleeding scratches were any indication.
“Im fine, im fine stop fretting about me! I just want to get as far away as possible from THAT place so can we move along now?”
He really didn't seem pleased at all and very tired, more so than Rikaad.
“How did you escape? Or did they let you go? What happened?”
Now Rikaad was the one asking questions and I nervously glanced at Arthur.
Robin however did look at me with a puzzled expression and then back at Arthur.
I twitched nervously, I hadn't taken into account that Robin could also tell about it, but when he looked back at me he winked and put a finger over his mouth.
Looking back at Arthur he was fishing some leaves out of his hair and then looked back at Rikaad.
“I escaped through sewers and no i'm not going to elaborate, it was horrible enough already lets just go”
He walked past Rikaad with his shoulders hunched over and a miserably tired expression.
Baffled Rikaad went after him and I followed, scooping Robin back into my palms and holding him against my torso.
“Arthur? You look tired, maybe you should rest? I could carry you if you want?”
At my offer he looked up at me with tired eyes seemingly taking some time to comprehend what I had said before he shook his head.
“I'm fine, I can walk by myself, let's just go as far away as possible, okay?”
He continued stubbornly walking away from Maringand and was heading towards the mountains.
Weird, I had thought we had given up on going there, well the others at least.
It was still my plan to go there after I had dropped the small humans off at Kamerasca.
The thought of being alone again hurt more and more with each passing day but I continued to ignore it, there wasn't anything I could do about it anyway.
Following him and Rikaad I made sure to not hit my head on any of the tree branches that were getting denser the closer we got to the mountains.
“Donovan? Do you think he's okay?”
Robin whispered from my hands trying to get as close to my ears as possible without falling over.
“I think so? he said he was at least, i'm sure hes just tired and grumpy, you said yourself he's a grumpy man so i think he's okay”
He didn't look entirely convinced but sat back down into my palms, lounging lazily against my fingers and watching the ground beneath him.
“So wait a second, Where do we go now exactly? I thought we would be going back home and not to the mountains?”
Robin did have a point in that, I wasn't sure what route exactly the others wanted to go but I was pretty sure that Kamerasca wasn't in that direction.
“Well since we don't really know where we are and which direction to go to it might actually be a good idea going somewhere higher up to plan a new route, lest we end up in a different part of Maringand instead of Kamerasca”
Rikaad admitting that we were kind of lost wasn't what I expected to hear, but at least he was honest about it.
“So we are going to go higher up and see if we can find the way home like that? Are you sure about that? I thought the mountains were dangerous?”
Robin was now clinging to my fingers again, he was probably a bit scared of the mountains from all the rumors there were in Kamerasca about them.
“It'll be fine if something does show up i'll just kick it as hard as i can”
I tried to reassure him while still trailing after Arthur and Rikaad.
Rikaad was trying to get Arthur to stop for a second so he could assess his wounds, which consisted of multiple scratches and a possibly broken nose.
Arthur ignored it and just kept stomping forward and I sort of expected him to collapse at any moment now.
It was weird, for him to be this tired he really must have been awake the entire night and who knew how long he had been stuck in those thorns.
Rikaad suddenly turned to me motioning for me to lean down.
“Can you help me for a second? I want to make sure all those scratches are clean, we can't risk an infection out here and he is being stubborn, so could you pick him up for a bit?”
Nodding and setting Robin next to him on the ground I went over to Arthur and Picked him up.
Immediately he began weakly cursing and tried to kick my fingers, sitting down next to Rikaad I held the angrily twitching form of Arthur in front of him.
“Calm down, I just want to make sure those cuts don't get infected, you said yourself you escaped through sewers right? I don't think a river bath is going to get rid of all of the nastiness from that so keep still and let us help”
Arthur went still at this, seemingly only now realizing that the story he had told would mean that he had crawled through some Nasty stuff.
“Ugh fine but i still want to put as many miles between myself and Maringand, at least i didn't have to swim in that stuff so just get it over with”
He went limp and I carefully set him on the ground where we apparently now made an impromptu camp in the middle of the day.
Robin somehow had found a lot of dry branches and was putting them together in a heap to make a fire while Rikaad pulled a metal cup from somewhere and instructed Robin to go fill it with water at the river.
While Robin did that Rikaad inspected Arthur's broken nose and dabbed the dirt away with a small Piece of cloth, much to the protest of Arthur who flinched every time it touched his nose.
I feel kind of useless right now. 
I was too big to properly help while Robin could go get water and Rikaad was able to take care of Arthur's wounds, and I was just sitting here next to them completely unable to do anything helpful.
It sucked, it was really dumb that I had been struck by this stupid curse, and it felt more and more tempting to just try and yank it off even if I destroyed my hand in the process.
But there was no guarantee that just ripping it off my wrist with force would actually break the curse.
I might just stay a giant, but then with only one working hand which Honestly was even worse.
Since I couldn't help the smaller men I instead went to be on the lookout for anything that would come near us.
At least i could help by making sure no uninvited beings showed up, The last we needed right now was another Manticore thinking it could snatch up a human.
Luckily the only thing that came from the forest was Robin with the water which he put on the fire Rikaad had made in the meantime.
Seeing them move as a unit like this to help Arthur I felt kind of…jealous? No that wasn't it, it wasn't jealousy more like..envy.
I envied them for the fact that they had someone to rely on when they needed it, and I envied them for not having to be alone all the time.
I envied them for being human with human friends, something I could never have as a Bastard.
I hated myself for being the son of an Elven man and Human woman.
I sort of wished that my mother had never met the pointy eared man that promised her the world, and then ditched her as soon as he could when he found out that she was pregnant.
Well, lamenting about a past I couldn't change wasn't going to help anything, and at least my mother stuck around as long as she could before dying of typhoid.
Watching the small men patch up Arthur was even a bit endearing, they did their best with whatever supplies they had while Arthur looked close to nodding off after probably spending the entire night awake.
After some time they had patched him up as god as they could and put all of their stuff away.
Leaning down again after they were finally done I put my hand down on the ground as I was sure Robin would want to be carried again.
But instead of Robin climbing on Rikaad dragged a tired looking Arthur over to me.
“Does the offer of carrying him still stand? I think he might fall asleep standing up at this point”
I nodded and very carefully let Rikaad drag the at this point half asleep Arthur into my hands.
He really must have not slept at all since i had sent him off downstream, Rikaad hadn't either but he seemed to be fine aside from some darker circles under his eyes, he really was the scariest out of the three.
Cupping the tired form of the small human closer to my chest I started walking after the other two small men again.
The mountains did look a lot closer now than before our Capture and I hoped once there we could see which way to take to get them back to Kamerasca.
Until then though I would do my best to be helpful, and for now that meant carrying a sleepy and bruised Arthur while the other two led the way.
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It was now two days after we escaped from Maringand and Arthur had almost completely healed aside from a slightly crooked nose and the obvious bruising.
He also had kept his word about not telling Rikaad about how he actually escaped, which I was glad about.
We had gotten a lot closer to the mountain in the time we had walked even if i still thought that if i carried all of them it would have been faster but so far the only one that had never actually willingly climbed into my hands was Rikaad, and he made no sign of ever wanting to do that.
It was fine that he didn’t, I just wish walking after them didn't feel so awfully slow.
It did make sense that i was able to walk a lot faster than they were seeing as my legs were taller than them, none of the humans even reached up to my knees.
At the very least we were now very close to the mountains and I could see Wyrmhurst mountain in front of me, only a few minutes walk away and I realized for the first time how steep it actually was.
I marveled at the fact that something Steeper than a barn roof didn't just collapse in itself, which also presented the question how the fuck anyone was supposed to climb this thing.
The narrow woods surrounding us weren't any help either as I got stuck more and more often in the branches as the trees got bigger the farther we traveled and Rikaad had to patch my shirt twice now.
In short, this sucked, a lot.
We probably would have to go around it a bit to see if there were any less dangerous places to climb.
But maybe we got lucky and the first place we found was at least somewhat climbable.
Expecting either more Forest or just a wall of stone, I was surprised that we suddenly emerged in a little clearing that had a big Oak Tree stump that went up to be over my head, and surprisingly an askew hut that had been directly embedded into the cliffside of the mountain.
Judging by the smoke coming out of one of the three chimneys it was even inhabited.
“Who the fuck would live out here of all things?”
Arthur had apparently seen the smoke too, and I did have to give him right on this, This was out in a Forest that was widely regarded as dangerous and deadly as proven by the fact that I had to fight off at least three more manticores in the two days we had traveled.
At least most of the Wildlife left us alone due to my size but it was still annoying, and mosquitoes did not care how big I was so they were the major annoyance anyway.
But it was still strange why someone would live out here of all places.
“No idea maybe they got banished or something, i think we should just leave it alone”
I really didn't want to mess with someone that had survived out here, human sized no less as indicated by the hut.
If someone could survive out here they probably had a lot of skill and I wanted to keep my hide intact a bit longer.
I didn't want to walk backwards in case one of the humans was right behind me so instead I turned my head around to scout the area, Rikaad doing the same, trying to figure out where to go to not intrude in this place.
Suddenly I heard an unknown voice from somewhere above me and I looked around to locate it.
“What do we have here? Humans? This far out and traveling with an Ardua no less, how strange”
I could not find where the voice was coming from, it sounded like it was above me somewhere between two big trees and I hoped that I was still the only giant here.
I didn't know if I could fend off an actual one and I'd rather not test that.
And what the hell was the voice even talking about? The human comment made sense but the rest not so much.
Feeling Robin hide behind my leg I decided to respond to the voice and see if it was hostile or not.
“Who are you? What do you mean by that? And where are you? I don't like talking to disembodied voices”
The other two humans had also shifted to stand closer to me, likely not wanting to suddenly find themselves face to face with a possibly hostile being.
“You can call me Oakley, and I'm right here, you have to look up to the tree young Ardua, i'm right in front of you on one of the branches”
Hearing the voice who introduced itself as Oakley say that they were in the tree in front of me, I tried my best to actually find them, but I couldn't make out anything.
It seemed even the others couldn't see anything either judging by Robin's reaction.
“I can't see anything? Are you sure that you are there? Or are you messing with us?”
“Look again”
This time I could actually make something out, but only because it was moving, having blended in perfectly before due to standing absolutely still.
The figure that showed itself was wearing a dark green patterned cloak that hid most of their other features.
But I could make out the Pointiest ears I had ever seen poking out from between hair that had the color of oak bark, and strangely bent legs with weird birdlike feet that had two of their toes bent backwards to grip the branch the figure was sitting on better.
After a second I could also make out a sort of tail swaying behind them that was split into two at the last part showing that their skin was the color of Stripped oak wood.
If they had not moved I would never have been able to tell that they were there.
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