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pursuitseternal · 6 months

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“Hold me…” a hurt/comfort nsfw update to Ascended Astarion x Reader fic: “The Rogue You Were”

Ascended Astarion x f!Reader |E| 3.8K Hurt/Comfort Smut

Summary: The nightmares still come, even with all that power and influence and Ascension. You are the one thing that can comfort him, to ground him and heal him. To restore him with your touch, your love.

CW: Trauma, self-hate, hurt, comfort, gentle sex, pull him out of his loathing and make that rogue feel something.

Read here if you like AO3

Throw yourself in his arms, darling…

🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸

It begins the same every time… how he shakes, hands clenching in the sheets. Breathing going ragged. His muscles spasming on their own. An arm thrown to the side, his legs kicking the luxurious comforter from your bed. He contorts, the ghosts of his pain wracking his body beside you.

You slowly come to, feeling the jolts of him knocking you awake. It hasn’t been since he’s ascended that he’s had a nightmare. You’ve seen them, on the road, in his bedroll. You did you best then to soothe gently, hard to do with others around.

But this was his palace, this was your bed.

“Astarion,” you whisper, repeating his name louder as you watch his face grimace in his sleep, moans and grunts of anguish in his throat as he tosses and flails.

You reach for his shoulder, tense and cold. That small, soft contact lurches his body in his angonized sleep. Bolting and twisting he clambers on top of you. He roars above you, body rolling as his hands claw around your wrists. Legs tangling in your bedding.

Trapping you firmly under his naked body.

Panting. Snarling. Dripping in sweat.

His eyes are open, glowing as bright and scarlet as the day he took the power meant to kill him.

He snaps his jaws in your face, feral and bloodthirsty. His fangs glisten in the dim light, shining with his spit. “No,” he roars, “no, don’t touch me!” He bellows, “You won’t win, you can’t win. I’m free!”

You tremble under his strength, his eyes unfocused, staring past you, burrowed beneath him and pinned under his shaking body. You do the one thing that pops in your racing mind, something you would do under the stars before.

“Shhh,” you breathe quietly, “it’s okay. You’re okay, Astarion… shhhhh….”

He struggles a bit. Eyes blinking. Black pupils in the center of his glowing red orbs seeming to search your face.

And then, he sees you. His face softens in recognition, the creases of his face easing, his brows lifting from their ferocious furrow. He looks down at you under him, feeling how your frame shakes as your breath races.

“Shh, it’s okay,” you repeat one more time, looking right into his eyes, watching their glow fade. Watching them grow veiled with fear.

“I… I thought I was free of these,” he murmurs, voice quaking as he eases his hands from pinning your wrists. “Free of… him.”

He doesn’t need to say another word. He couldn’t if he wanted to. Astarion shivers, sliding off you to settle heavy back in his spot in the bed. You see him shudder, rolling his back to you, arms wrapping around himself tightly.

Then you hear a wet, shaking breath.

Pain clutches your heart, souring your stomach. Eyeing his body, you know better than to touch his back. Not on those literally Infernal scars. Carefully, you slide yourself up in the bed, resting your back against the carved wood of the headboard and the pile of pillows behind you. Angling your body away from his, you lightly brush your fingers into that mess of silver curls. Ever so slightly, you run through them. So soft, just enough to let him know you are there.

He shudders again, this time it’s a sob that comes from his mouth. Your hand feels it through his scalp, putting just a bit more pressure as you stroke into his hair. He doesn’t pull away, doesn’t fight it. But he also doesn’t turn. You watch his fingers clawing around his own arm, pressing in so hard it could draw blood.

“I’ve got you,” you whisper, carefully not to touch more than just the wisps of his hair that tickle beneath your single hand. “Breathe, my love. Breathe,” you softly score your fingers into his hair, firmer. Enough to reassure him of your presence.

Slowly, he begins to still. “He’s gone,” you continue to whisper, trying to carefully breach the boundary of his pain. “He is dead, and you, you live, my love…”

Your fingers stray into the soft and short hairs that run in front of his pointed ear. You hear him hiss, your finger barely grazing the skin of his cheek.

“Two-hundred years…” he begins, so soft, you have to lean over his head just to catch his feeble words.

“I know,” you try to soothe, your hands tenderly lift his head, sliding your legs beneath his temple, his cheek, praying that the softness of your body grounds him.

If he lets it…

You feel his muscles clench, his jaw biting into itself at the contact. But you hold still, waiting, watching… until he finally eases, body relaxing almost imperceptibly as he rests on your inner thigh. His breath is ragged and cold as it flutters over your skin. But at least he is breathing.

Hesitant, you run your fingers down his wet cheek, trailing a single finger over that firm cut of his jaw. Wiping away his tears.

“You can’t let this beat you, my love,” you whisper. “And you are not alone, you have more than your power to comfort you now…”

His jaw tweaks under your touch, his swallow loud and forced.

“He’s still won,” you hear him rasp, “not even my power, not even my love for you can erase those years… all the… horrible… horrible… things he did to me.” He trails off, turning his head to stare at the ceiling, his eyes distant, wet, brimming with anguish. “He might as well have won…”

You hold your breath, heart racing as you watch that spark of his power flickering. Your bond teems with his pain, twisting your own gut and heart and soul with the share of his burden.

“Cazador… is dead,” you whisper, the name alone makes his face screw tight, eyes shut and teeth bared as he rests in your lap. “And I… am… with you, every day to remind you of that fact, Astarion.”

“You’ve chosen nothing more than a life with a monster,” his lips move slowly, eyes still shut. “I saw myself… the greatest torture… he… could inflict… making me just like him.” You watch as his teeth bite into his own lip, the thin trickle of blood seeping down his cheek and chin.

Torment, torture, it paints his face, marring those handsome features like the scars that disfigure his back.

“You are nothing like him… you are more than him,” you begin to feel… indignant. Irritated. Not at your love. At the shadow that still insists to manifest over his shining flame of a soul. A soul he fought so hard to get back. “I am proof of that…”

“You are proof of my weakness, that I can’t face a future alone after all … all Cazador did to me…”

Now, you feel a growl in your throat. “Weakness?” You snip, carefully measuring your words, your breath. “I’m your… weakness? Sharing yourself is not weakness, forgoing loneliness is not weakness…”

You feel his shoulder shrug against your leg. “I do not deserve it. What does it matter…”

“Why shouldn’t you have a consort, a queen, a… someone to care about you, whether you live or die?” You swallow hard, biting your tongue. His apathy is consuming him alive. Eating his passion up from the inside out more than any parasite could.

“What does it matter…” he repeats again. “I’m nothing more than what he made me…”

That’s it. Something snaps inside you. Indignant. Not at him. For him. You shuffle from under him, and quickly climb on top. Hovering your body above him. Hands and knees keep you carefully from touching too much. But making well and truly certain he has to look at you. “And what about what… I… made you?” you try to soften your snarl. “What about what you made me, more than spawn. Giving me your blood… don’t you think you’ve done more than seal my fate?”

He stares at you, wet crimson eyes blinking, the little muscles of his face beginning to twitch. Good. That was something more than apathy. Something you could work with. “You are not his creature anymore, Astarion,” you murmur in his face, letting your hair fall in rivulets down from your shoulders. “You are mine…. Forever…. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

A slight glow begins in his face, just a twitch of his lip in that usually insufferable corner. “I suppose…” he finally breathes.

“You are mine, and no amount of imaginary dreams can rob you from me, no matter how real they are.” Something creeps up your thighs, feather-light as hands ghost up to the curve of your ass. He is touching you, and you smile. You honey your tone, letting his fingers bring you slowly to rest on his body. “You may have been his for two-hundred years, my love… but you are mine now, for the rest of eternity.” Those hands press ever-so-slightly harder as you wiggle on his lap.

“You won’t ever let me forget it, will you, darling?” he purrs. Faintly, but it’s there.

“No, my love,” you smirk, voice soft and sultry, more than usual. Teasing the same tones you long to hear from him. “Not as long as I have been made yours… forever…” you growl the word, the way it has been forever branded in your immortal memory.

You see that corner of his mouth lift a little higher, his head lilting against the bed. “If you insist, darling…” he replies, more honeyed, more silken.

“I most certainly do, my love,” you purr, a toss of your hair, letting it fall softly down your back. Licking your lips, you give a slight roll of your hips on his lap, hoping to feel a burgeoning of hardness beneath you. It’s slight, the beginning of an erection, enough to make your core ignite, to make you swallow hard, needing to comfort your lover. “Allow me, darling…” you breath, soft and gentle.

But his brows furrow, head cocking with a spike of suspicion. “Allow you to do what, exactly?” he replies, voice edged with something sharp.

You smile, a bit confused. But undeterred. Carefully proceeding with every little step, every little touch. “Allow me to console you… to… show you I love you… Will you allow me to… pleasure you?”

The question hangs in the air longer than you thought it would. His face is unmoving, you begin to worry, to slide off his body in case it’s too much.

But his hands hold you in place, pressing faintly on your hips to resist even the slightest movement off him. “What would you like for me to do with you, Astarion?” you whisper, so softly, anxious over breaking into his thoughts.

“I…” he begins. “I’ve never been asked that…”

Your brows crease, you smile a bit, perhaps a bit darkly. “Even with me? I’m sure I have…”

“I mean, I always knew you cared deeply for me… for giving to me… giving into me, but…” he breathes, a heavy sigh that seems to ease every muscle beneath you. “To hear it in so many words…” You hear him swallow, breath and tears catching in his throat. “I want you to make love to me, my treasure. Make me feel… everything… with you.”

Something hardens between your folds, and by the growing smirk and ever increasing glow of crimson in his eyes, you know he wants this.

Wants you.

“Yes,” you sigh, “I’ll give you everything, and then some.”

He laughs, just a few times, but it melts your heart, that tear-streaked sticky chuckle.

“Will you give me a taste, darling?” he croons, that voice back with its full force to make you molten and quick between your thighs.

“My lips?” you tease gently, “my blood… my nether regions?”

“All of it,” he growls, hand almost clawing at the back of your neck, bearing you down towards his simpering mouth. His kiss is salty from tears, but just as ferocious as ever… the little nicks of his fangs inside your lip, the deep delve of his tongue into the furthest reaches of your mouth… Even as the seducer, you melt into his body, losing yourself in the workings of his kiss. Your hips lifted off of his belly, you feel the twitching of his cock against you with every lick of his tongue over the small cuts on your lips. He’s humming, low in his throat, at the taste of you. Feasting on your desire and your blood all at once.

You let him, keeping your mouth open and returning the favor, until you feel his lips beginning to stray. Beginning to catch your chin, your cheek and jaw. Until his hand knots into the strands of your hair and pulls your neck to his fangs. You cry out, his name pleading in your voice, begging for more and for him to be gentle all at once.

His bite is hungry, as ravenous as when he first pleaded for your blood… only a little of it… to feed your hungry rogue. Astarion sucks and laps, starved for your power, your love, your consolation that is balm for his soul. Little moans escape you, each time his breath rattles in your ear, heavy and hungry.

You let him drink, feeling the flow of your blood in his body tightening your bond, your desire. Your essence filling his insides… you want the same. Crave the same. Him inside you.

But you dig deep to be patient, to follow his desires, his hunger. And with a final lick, he pulls from your neck. Your well-fed vampire, eyes almost sleepy from a full belly, glassy from the pulsing desire that prods into your belly. “Darling,” he purrs, throat slick with your blood, “won’t you put that mouth of yours to use?”

You smile, feeling his hand taking his own cock in his fist, dragging it over your belly. A hint, none too subtle. Licking your lips, you place a kiss on that conceited smirk first, pulling away quickly, lest you lose yourself in that perfect kiss again. Instead, you nuzzle the cut of his jaw, a soft press, almost reverent, over the bite marks in his neck. You feel his jaw clenching, his breath catching. “I love these,” you whisper just beneath the bottom of his ear. He shudders at your voice’s tickle. “I love everything that made you who you are, that made me find you in my path….”

A loud groan sounds from the throat beneath your lips. “And?” he prods, another little noise as you trail your lips to his shoulder, to the wiry strength that could snap you in two. “What else do you love?”

“I love that stroking your vanity gets you just as hard as my touch…”

He laughs, long and low. “Choose the right words, and you might find out just how hard you can make me for you, darling…”

Your hands race down both those arms, gasping his hands in yours to place them in your hair. “I love your strength, that you can crush your enemy in a second… so powerful, none can resist you…”

“Mmm,” he moans loudly, fingers clawing in your hair, riding the rise and fall of your head as you trail caresses over the expanse of his chest. You stop at his belly, even as his hands in your hair will for you to continue that downward trek. But you pause, letting your tongue lick over those cold and hard ridges. Salty from his sweat, clenching at the agonizing pace you seem to set. You claw your nails down his sides, feeling his hips flexing as you dig in, slowly sliding to settle yourself between his thighs at last.

You softly run your hands over that panting plane of his stomach. His fingers stray from your hair, wrapping around his cock, his straining length, trying to bring your mouth to it. His breathing is hard, quick. And you give him a placating lick from base to velvety, seeping head. “Shhh,” you smile up at him, tenderly taking his hand from his own cock, giving it a slight kiss, and placing it back into your hair. “Let me take care of you,” you whisper.

Uncertainty flashes in his eyes, his belly clenching and sending his cock jerking against your face.

“Let me pleasure you, entirely. Trust me to know you, my love, to read your body for what you want. Use that silken voice of yours, if you like, but…” you lick your lips, taking his cock in one hand, cradling his balls in another, “…I need you to trust me, and you… can… trust me, lover.”

His eyes still look down at you, lidded and veiled in suspicion, but his fingers ease their grip, letting you settle your mouth to lick as you please. You linger your mouth to run the full, long length of him. That silken skin, hard and throbbing underneath, he pulses with every lick, every swirl. Slowly, gradually, you nibble your way to his head, hearing him sigh as you finally lick away that bitter seed already leaking from the tip. It twitches, dancing, responding in time to every wet attention you lavish on him.

His hands slowly sweep from your head, teasing down your neck, thumb tracing over the top of your ear. Palm lifting and stroking you over and over again. He paws you, pets you… his breathing steadier, heavier. And then you take him deep, or as much of him as you can into your mouth and down your throat. Stifling a groan, he thrusts into your mouth, but you anticipate it, carefully moving with it so as not to gag. You bob up and down, lapping your tongue in circles, attentive to each sensitive spot you have come to know and worship on his cock.

He moans as you suck, as you pop off his head loudly. Loud enough to make him laugh quietly. Relaxed and pleasured. “What else do you love about me, my sweet?” You raise a brow, waiting so as to tease him. His hips raise, his ass clenches, jerking his aching and prominent erection in your face. “Anything in particular?”

You give a dramatic sigh, meeting his eye, holding his gaze as you slide your tongue from base to tip again. “Always the rogue, Astarion, so proud of your weapon…”

“Good enough a weapon that you long for it to destroy you…” his smirk widens fiercely, “…nightly.”

You laugh, holding that sensitive head in your mouth, making him feel the vibrations of your voice.

“Well…” he prods, another clenching thrust into your mouth, “aren’t you going to woo me with that mouth as well?” You laugh again, louder, wrapping your giggling lips around the whole circumference of him. “What do you insist on adoring most about my cock, darling?”

“Hmmmm,” you give another long and sultry hum as you let him slide from your mouth, “I love how hard you get when you see me… when you taste me…” You stray your fingers to wrap one at a time around him, giving his length a few hard strokes in your grip. “I love every vein, every ridge and rise that tickles my tongue when I take you…”

He gives a moan, his cock twitching, thickening…

“I love the way your balls tighten just as your body gets ready to fill me with your cum…” You murmur, giving his balls a gentle tug, as hard and tight as they are. He is ready, prodded towards his climax, driven by your pleasure and praise.

“Mmm, what else?” he rasps, ravenous for more. Hungry for your adoration.

But you raise above him, letting go of his cock, crawling up to cage him from above. His eyes are wide, his breathing ragged as he licks his lips for more.

“There is much more, but mostly I crave the way your cum drips from me for hours, days after you fuck me…”

“How could I refuse such a need, my love?” That purr, that smirk and canting brow, all of him makes your folds just aching for that relief of him buried deep inside you.

You fall into his kiss, your tongue and lips beginning to ache from all their use, but you don’t mind. Not as you settle your hips lower, the press of his cock at your entrance makes your breath catch hard and painful in your throat. “You make me so wet, you know,” you moan, sinking onto his cock with another heavy, damp sigh. “All because you are mine,” and with that, you slam your cunt on him, making your body take him so deep, you can’t fit any more.

He groans, hands clawing at your hips, he simply lets you, swivel and ride him. Eyes sharp and watching everything about you… you can see them darting, so quick, he doesn’t want to miss anything. Not the little bites you make on your lips, the way your breasts swing with each undulating slam you make on his lap, the way he can see himself entering you sweet, dripping, honeyed cunt with the way you rise up so high.

You splay your hands on his chest, and one of his hands comes to hold yours, lacing his fingers in between yours. His grip is tight, like a drowning man clinging to the only thing that will save him.

You.

You can feel him growing thick and hard inside you again. His breathing rasping and ragged. His hips trying to buck into you, even as he lets you ride his cock at your pace.

“Say it again,” he growls, eyes closed, head straining back into the mattress. “Say it again,” he cries louder.

“You’re mine…” you moan, his hand pushing your body down, his cock pulsing and thrusting hard into you as he comes.

So wet, so thick, so loud as he groans with his orgasm, you tumble into yours even as he still writhes and thrusts beneath you. His hand fisting in your hair pulls you down, making you collapse on his chest.

Breathless. Both of you pant. Sopping in sweat. But he won’t let you catch your air, not when his lips press yours, his breath rushing into your mouth, your lungs. His arms cling to you tightly, his embrace is like iron, keeping you clutched with your mouth fastened to his.

Like he would hold you thus for eternity.

Because that’s how long you have now. Eternity. Forever with your ascended master. Your rogue until the end of time.

🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸

Read the rest of “The Rogue You Were:”

Part 1: Welcome me…

Part 2: Cleanse me…

Part 3: Surprise me…

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hylias-gremlin · 1 year

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Still down for emergency request ? My mind is rushing like a fking hurricane with ptsd and old scars hurting and I would love some love from one of the LU boys of your choice 😢

Aw, I'm so sorry you're going through a hard time :< I'm sending all the love I have over!!!

I don't really have emergency requests, but I think this is the time to squeeze them in! <3 Don’t you worry I've got chu!

I hope this can help you feel a bit better. I tried to get it done asap, I really hope what I came up with is what you wanted, Darling <3

I chose Twilight since he's one of my comfort Links. I hope that's OK with you!

Tw: mentions of scars, reader having a hard time, dark thoughts ptsd but no details

Content under the cut

Your mind was running a mile a minute, and your hands were shaking like leaves in the wind.

Today was a bad day, stress only stacking until you couldn’t take it anymore. Your anxiety and ptsd getting the better of you.

The group had settled down for the day, and you sat a ways away from everyone, trying to hold yourself together. But it was hard with your mind in a dark place and old scars aching from bad memories.

A hand on your shoulder made you flinch, eyes following up the arm that was attached to Twilight, who gave you a worried look.

He had noticed how you fell back at the very end of the party, and he watched you sneak away towards your spot far from the campfire.

"Hey. You ok?"

This was the final nail in the coffin. The last drop that started the water works as your lip wobbled, and you frantically shook your head.

This was all Twilight needed to know to wrap you up in his Fluffy wolf pelt and lifting you into his arms for a tight hug. He'd be the shoulder to cry on for as long as you needed.

"Shhhhh. It's ok. You're OK."

He started rocking back and forth, one of his hands rubbing soothing circles on your back while the other gently combed through your hair.

By now, the others had noticed that something was wrong, but the rancher shooed them away with a wave of his hand. The last thing you needed right now was unwanted spectators.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He left a small kiss on your forehead, waiting patiently for your answer.

You shook your head again, hiding your face in the crook of his neck. "No..."

Twilight squeezed your shoulders a little. "That’s fine. You don't need to talk if you don't want to."

His hands found the sides of your head as he gently made you look at him. His thumb gently wiping away the flow of tears that made their way down your cheeks. "I'm here for you, ok? I know you’re going through a hard time right now, but you're not alone, Darlin. I'll stay by your side until you feel better."

His hand pushed your head back onto his chest, where you nuzzled back into his shoulder. "Thank you, Twi."

He hummed calmly, a gentle smile on his lips. His hands still rubbing circles across your skin, soothing your aching scars. "No need to thank me. Your feelings are valid, YOU are valid and we're all only human."

He adjusted your position, leaning back against one of the trees. Placing another kiss, this time on your temple. "It’s ok not to be ok. You're not alone. We all feel this way every now and then."

You hugged him tighter, letting all the feelings out you had to hide for so long. Sniffing loudly, you mumbled. "I feel so weak... and my mind just won't shut up with these bad thoughts. I'm so tired, Link."

"Don't be ashamed for crying." Twilight whispered next to your ear. "It’s not a sign of being weak." He hugged you tighter. "It just shows that you've been strong for a little too long."

His blue eyes met yours, filled with adoration. "Do you want to eat something?"

"I'm not hungry..." You frowned, but by now, the endless flow of tears had ceased. "I just want to cuddle..."

Twilight grabbed a water bottle from his bag and gently placed it in your hands. "Okay. Cuddle time then. But please, drink something first. You cried a lot, and I don't want you to dehydrate, Love."

You gave a small nod and emptied the whole bottle in one go.

"Atta girl."

Twilight lifted you in between his legs and laid you down on his chest. His strong heartbeat soothing the ringing in your ears, calming the raging thoughts that endlessly swirled through your mind.

"Wanna take a nap? You must be exhausted. It's been a long day today."

You gave a weak nod as his hands wrapped themselves around you yet again. One around your waist, pulling you closer, the other one gently playing with your hair.

"Rest now. Everything's going to be ok. I'll still be here when you wake up. I'm not going anywhere."

With Twilight whispering words of encouragement and comfort, paired with his gentle fingers playing with your hair.

His warmth and calm heartbeat gently lulled you to sleep. Blue eyes never leaving your, now, relaxed expression.

"Sleep well. I promise I'll chase the bad thoughts away anytime you need me to."

#emergency request #i hope this made you feel a little better!#you're not alone sweetheart #I'm sending many hugs your way #hang in there!#where's a sunset there's always a sunrise!#better times are just around the corner #💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖

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j-graysonlibrary · 8 months

Text

Fort Heaven Chapter 15

Title: Fort Heaven

Author: Jay Grayson

Word Count: 69K

Genres: Suspense, investigative, drama, LGBT+

Available on: Kobo and my website

Synopsis: Some call it a hoax. Others claim it’s a cult. But, to Evon and his friend Yasmine, two online journalists, Fort Heaven is the subject of their latest story. Along for the assignment is cameraman and not-so-secret crush of Evon’s: Russet. With a drunken, murky night in their recent history, things are especially tense between them but, of course, personal matters take a backseat when the interviews start. The trio speaks to ex-members of Fort Heaven and, while some of the accounts are shocking, the job remains just that: A job. That is until one of the women they interviewed, along with her daughter, goes missing. It soon becomes clear that not only is Fort Heaven a real threat but Evon and his friends are being watched. And what started as a simple cash-grab article is now a matter of life and death.

Full Chapter 15 under the cut

Chapter 15

In a slightly more illuminated living room, the small group sat around in awkward bouts of silence while clumsily trying to get to the point. It wasn’t as though they could dive right into asking about Jackson’s experiences with Fort Heaven. He probably wouldn’t tell them anything unless they earned his trust.

Yasmine kept him occupied by small talk as much as she could. Where he was born, what his parents were like, and what he did for a living.

Jackson had been born halfway across the country, his parents were neglectful, and he didn’t do anything for a living.

“If you don’t have income then…how do you have this house?” Yasmine asked curiously. It was by no means an impressive house but she was sure it still cost money to live there.

“It’s paid off,” the man muttered. “No bills…”

“Is that the reason you keep the power off…?” Russet asked, still on edge. He mostly looked around through the night vision on his camera since he couldn’t see much without it.

He shook his head vigorously. “They’re watching. They can’t see me when the lights are out though.”

Evon decided to take a bolder step into the conversation out of fear of running around in circles. “The Fort Heaven people?”

Jackson immediately flinched. “Shhhhh they might hear.”

“They can’t. I promise,” Yasmine assured him and, somehow, she actually managed to calm him. It hadn’t even been twenty minutes but it was clear that the man had a certain degree of trust in her in particular. “We won’t let them. We’re going to expose them. For who they really are.”

“You—I don’t know if it’s possible,” he said and held onto his elbows and started to run his hands forcefully up and down his arms. It seemed to the trio that he was intentionally feeling his scars.

“We can do it.” Evon added, “Yasmine and I work for a popular news site. If we publish a story on there then a lot of people will see it. Fort Heaven won’t be able to do anything about it.”

“Yes they can,” Jackson rebutted immediately. “They can take everything away from you. Family…friends…dignity…”

“Jackson,” Russet spoke in a much softer tone than normal. He set his camera down to the side and leaned forward. “What happened to you there?”

The man looked down and he shook but it was just barely visible. Yasmine defended him, “Russ, he doesn’t have to tell us if he doesn’t want to.”

“That was the intention, if you remember,” the man’s normal tone returned as he spoke to her. “We need to know what these people are capable of. That’s the only way we can proceed without hurting anyone else.”

The room went silent for a moment.

“…else?” Jackson asked, breaking that silence.

They looked between each other. If they wanted him to tell them all of the awful things he’d been through than it was naïve to think they wouldn’t need to do the same.

“A mother and daughter,” Evon began to explain, “We interviewed the mother about her experience in Fort Heaven and, the next day, they were gone.”

“It was them…” Jackson put his hands up to cover his mouth. “They got ‘em.”

“We think so,” Russet continued on, “but nothing has happened to the other people we spoke to. So it can’t be just about them talking about the church. Something has to be different with Cindy…”

“She must have been high up,” Jackson said, “Or knew too much.”

“My question is how they found her so quickly after we were there,” Yasmine mentioned. It had been bothering her for a while and she had just come to the (loose) conclusion that Fort Heaven had also checked the same forums that she had. But, in that case, the other interviewees were on there as well.

“They’re always watching.”

Evon tilted his head to the side and asked, “Who is watching you, Jackson?”

“Everyone—anyone. I don’t know who is and who isn’t a member. They send people out all the time to blend in with society and catch deserters. It’s like they have an unending amount of spies…”

The other three fell silent, each wondering whether the man was so scared that he believed that spies were everywhere or if there was a bit of truth behind his words—maybe Fort Heaven did have more people beneath the surface than anyone truly realized. Both options were possible and even both just as likely.

“We’ll get the story out there,” Evon promised and tried to hold eye contact with the man. At first, Jackson glanced away but after several more attempts, he held Evon’s eyes for a few seconds.

“Okay,” the man caved and nodded. “I…I guess I’ll tell you what happened…”

“Take your time,” Yasmine said and scooted closer to him.

After a deep breath, Jackson started his story.

“I was young when I joined…and I joined on my own. I’d dropped out of high school and was kicked out of my house. It felt like my life was over and I was desperate for help. The people at Fort Heaven promoted more heavily back then and I was hooked after talking to a recruiter for only a couple of minutes. It seemed like a Godsend—they would give me a place to stay and help me finish my education all while giving my life purpose. I couldn’t refuse.

Then, I got really into it. Everything I was taught made my life feel like it had been strung together by a skillful architect—by God. I was a part of Him and he was me and…if I worked hard, was true to Simon’s words, then I would eventually reach Godhood. A piece of trash like me…becoming God…it was the ultimate rags to riches story.

I made it to the level of Magistrate in a few years--”

“Isn’t that really high up?” Evon interrupted. He recalled the talk with Bob and Darcy where he believed the magistrates were the second to highest rank one could go without being Simon himself.

“Kind of, yeah,” Jackson said with a small laugh. It was a relief to hear that he wasn’t so paranoid with them anymore and was maybe even relaxing. “I advised a lot of actions within the church—official meetings, recruitment programs, a portion of Simon’s schedule. It was basically glorified secretary work but I was a secretary for the man I believed to be the closest to God.”

“You must have been completely dedicated to that life,” Yasmine said in a whisper. “What changed?”

Jackson shrunk back into himself again and frowned. “It happened just a year ago. I think. Maybe longer or maybe shorter. I was still in love with my job and my colleagues looked up to me. Um…then there were these accusations that came out.”

“Accusations?” Russet egged him on when he paused for too long.

He gulped. “A young girl said that Simon’s son…Seth…raped her. She reported it to the teacher of her current course and the teacher told a Defender thinking that it could be solved within the lower ranks. But…the defender started to gossip…he settled on the idea that the girl was lying and made an example of her by sending her to one of the offsite camps.”

“After hearing what we’ve heard so far, that doesn’t surprise me,” Evon remarked, “I really wish it did.”

Jackson smiled but it was full of pain. “I was surprised. I guess I was so blinded by how perfect I thought Fort Heaven was that I didn’t see any of the signs that bad things were happening. I didn’t even think it was possible for bad things to happen. We were all trying to achieve Godliness so…why would anyone do anything wrong?

So when I heard word of what happened, I found what camp the girl was sent to. I hadn’t decided what I believed yet but I felt Seth couldn’t possibly be responsible yet I didn’t feel the girl should be punished—that there must have been a reason she’d said what she said.

When I got there, I was given immediate access to her since I outranked everyone at the camp. I sat and talked with her for a while—sweet girl—and she told me what happened.”

Evon, Yasmine, and Russet looked at each other, each sharing a similar face of dread and uneasiness.

Jackson continued, “She said that she met Seth when he visited the beginners course and she liked him a lot. He was nice and told her that she could come and see him anytime. When she did take him up on that offer, after her parents were fighting one night, she was brought into his room. It was hard to listen to but she described the assault to me and then said how guilty she felt about saying anything because she knew that Seth was just trying to be nice.

I assured her that it wasn’t right. That I would seek an audience with Seth and Simon to discuss the details. Even if I was afraid that she was telling the absolute truth, I wanted to hear what Seth had to say. And…if he was guilty, I wasn’t sure I could remain in a faith where those at the top were exempt from the rules we all followed.

So I met with them. It took a while to clear the time but I was determined. I said my piece and Simon and Seth denied that there was any truth to the account. Simon wasn’t as adamant about it as Seth but he still defended his son. And when I realized that I was getting nowhere and nothing I did could help the situation…I quit.”

“In front of them?!” Yasmine asked with a dropped jaw.

“Yes,” he answered and closed his eyes. His fingers twitched, almost in a rhythmic pattern. “I did. I thought they’d let me go.”

The trio watched him build the courage to move onto the next part of his story.

“I was taken to a camp…a different kind than the one that girl was sent to. Hers was a correctional camp and mine was…something a little different. They still said it was for reformation but no one that went to those camps ended up ever retuning. I saw some people that I hadn’t seen in months at the camp when I arrived and I could hardly recognize them.

They were skin and bones…their stomachs were swollen and they were dead in the eyes. Scars—horrible scars—were all over their bodies and their clothes were all but falling off of them. I couldn’t believe it. How could people from my church be treating their own members this way?

And then I realized that they’d dropped me off here and that I was bound to meet the same fate. I completely froze and blacked out. The next thing I knew, I was on a table and strapped down. My clothes had been changed to these dirty rags and there were a couple of men I’d never seen before standing around me. They both had goggles on and one of them had this…brand.”

“A cattle brand…?” Evon asked quietly.

Jackson nodded. “I couldn’t see exactly what it was at first but I saw that it was red hot. I put two and two together and struggled to get away but there was nothing I could to. On the right side of my chest, they branded me…with the letter T for traitor. Most people there had the T as well…some had an H for heretic or an S for sinner. I can still feel the burn of it sometimes.

I…I went in and out of a dissociated state after that and pieces have been coming back bit by bit. There were every day rituals that everyone went through. We did labor, had a single meal a day which would sometimes just be a bowl of broth. If we said anything, we would be punished. Usually whipped in the middle of the camp with everyone watching. But there were more private practices as well and I don’t know if everyone got them or just the people that had information that the church wanted.”

“But what would they want from you?” Russet brought up what was on all of their minds. “It seems like you were an open book there.”

“I…yes…” Jackson took a deep breath. “They figured that if I was leaving then I was planning on telling the world everything that had happened. They spun this fantasy of me conspiring against them and they always demanded names of people and what my ‘plans’ were.

Of course, I never had an answer for them so I…I endured their wrath.”

“You don’t have to tell us what happened,” Yasmine insisted. “That information alone is incredibly helpful.”

“Bleak though,” Russet added.

Evon nudged him in the dark, letting him know that while he may have been right that he needed to keep those kinds of comments to himself. “I’m sure we have time to do something. You said you saw someone in the camp who you hadn’t seen in months, right?”

Jackson nodded.

“Well it’s only been a few days since the Oswells have gone missing. I think between us and Willow, we can find them and bust them out.”

“So you think they’re in a camp?” Yasmine asked.

“Seems likely,” Evon responded. “Cindy knew a bit about the church as well and she’d been hiding for a long time. I’m sure they have a lot they want to ask her.”

“At the least…” Jackson started, getting everyone’s full attention, “You have two weeks. That is if she doesn’t talk…if she talks then she could be killed immediately.”

“Well shit.” Russet crossed his arms.

“Cindy seemed strong. I think she can hang in there…” Yasmine spoke softly and glanced to Jackson. The weight of their new mission rested heavily on her shoulders but now—knowing what they did—she knew they would have to do something.

Anything.

#fort heaven #my novel #writeblr #lgbt writers

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astradrifting · 3 years

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GRRM really created so many parallels and foreshadow using the DoD characters that honestly we could just figure the asoiaf ending by analyzing it. My favorite is the Aegon III-D@ny parallels, the fact that one of his closest allies was a face-scarred Master of coin Lannister who ended as Hand to Bran' parallel character just make it so obvious its funny.

Oh my god I didn’t even realise Tyland Lannister was initially on the greens’ side! I’m not super fond of Tyrion ending up as Hand, but you’re right that it’s so obviously meant to reference him. There’s so many parallels that it’s a little crazy. I don’t want to say that the second Dance will end exactly as the first did, it’d be a little too neat if history repeated entirely, but you can see so many echoes of it even in the show’s bastardised ending.

“The broken, shattered realm suffered for a while yet, but the Dance of the Dragons was done. Now what awaited the realm was the False Dawn, the Hour of the Wolf, the rule of the regents, and the Broken King.”

(TWOIAF, Aegon II)

I’m not sure what the False Dawn is going to parallel to, it refers to the period of time after Aegon II’s death but before Lord Stark got to King’s Landing, when people thought that peace had finally come. It kind of brings to mind the War for the Dawn, though personally I think that the threat of the Others will be resolved before the Dance is over. The Hour of the Wolf is obviously about House Stark’s rise back to power, and the Broken King is Bran - though if he actually becomes known as Bran the Broken I might end up committing violence ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.

The parts about Lord Corlys Velaryon are why I’m so hopeful that Jon’s book ending will be completely different from the show’s. He’s arrested for Aegon II’s death by Cregan Stark, even though Cregan had previously declared for Rhaenyra, because as TWOIAF puts it, “to kill a cruel and unjust king in lawful battle was one thing. But foul murder, and the use of poison, was a betrayal against the very gods who had anointed him.”

Corlys didn’t deny his guilt, and expressed no regret. “What I did, I did for the good of the realm. I would do the same again. The madness had to end.”

Cregan Stark declared him to be guilty of murder, regicide, and high treason, and he was sentenced to execution. But many spoke in his defence, even people who had fought against him in the Dance. Baela and Rhaena Targaryen, Corlys’ granddaughters and Aegon III’s half-sisters, convinced Aegon to issue an edict pardoning Lord Velaryon, which Alysanne Blackwood then convinced Cregan to let stand. Lord Velaryon was pardoned and even restored to his offices and honours, made one of the king’s regents and given a place on the small council.

Corlys’ words definitely could be Jon’s as well, a much more in-character declaration post-D@ny’s death than the drivel GoT tried to feed us. I was worried for a bit that this would be how Tyrion is let off scot-free, but Baela and Rhaena, who were vital to his release, are such obvious Arya and Sansa stand-ins, and they’re certainly not going to expend any effort in helping Tyrion. So Corlys’ circumstances more likely lays the groundwork for how Jon will be freed and remain in political power, while Tyland frankly inexplicably becoming Aegon III’s Hand after he was in favour of brutally killing him parallels Tyrion managing to fail up, as a way of reconciling the old regime with the new one.

This makes Tyrion becoming Hand more palatable IMO. Either Jon and Tyrion both should have been punished or neither should have been punished, not the travesty where Tyrion gets everything he’s ever wanted while Jon is exiled to a Watch with no purpose and a Wall that’s already half-collapsed, so what exactly can it protect against? I suppose they were afraid of seemingly rewarding Jon for killing d@ny, especially if pol!Jon had been revealed, but most people noticed how nonsensical his ending was, and it just led to ‘Bloodraven/Bran is the real villain’ takes anyway.

(Side note: Asha/Yara basically still being loyal to D at the end annoys me so much, and made no sense. Jon did more to help save her by giving Theon that pep talk than D@ny did. Maybe it was a leftover from her taking Victarion’s role in the story, but in no reasonable world is anyone going to listen to the Ironborn who brought the Fire threat over in the first place.)

Of course Tyland Lannister isn’t actually Hand for long, given that he dies barely two years later from Winter Fever, feared and hated, alone except for a maester and King Aegon. It might be an indication that Tyrion will face a similar fate, that he’ll die after he’s seemingly won, exactly what he threatened Cersei with:

“A day will come when you think yourself safe and happy, and suddenly your joy will turn to ashes in your mouth, and you'll know the debt is paid."

(ACOK, Tyrion XII)

So that I can stop talking about Tyrion, here’s some facts about Rhaena and Baela that are obviously meant to reference Sansa and Arya, so much so that it feels a little bit like GRRM is winking and going “See what I did there? Huh? Huh? Did you see??”:

- their descriptions: “Rhaena was slender and graceful; Baela was lean and quick; Rhaena loved to dance; Baela lived to ride...” + “Baela was wild and willful”, “more boyish than ladylike”, and kept her hair cropped short as a boy’s

- Rhaena spent most of the Dance in the Vale, where she lived in relative comfort as the ward of Lady Jeyne Arryn. Baela was a dragonrider and so moved between Dragonstone and Driftmark, but was captured on Dragonstone when Aegon II descended upon it

- Rhaena was favoured to be queen after her brother, considered more qualified than her wild sister

- Baela liked to spend time with “unsuitable companions” she would bring to the Red Keep - including a comely juggler, a blacksmith’s apprentice whose muscles she admired (!!!), a legless beggar, a pair of twin girls from a brothel, an entire troupe of mummers once

- After her brother’s regents tried to marry her to a lord 40 years older than her, Baela escaped the Red Keep by climbing out of a window, trading clothes with a washerwoman, then walking right out of the front gate. She ran away to Driftmark and married her supposed cousin (though more likely he was her half-uncle), the legitimised bastard Alyn Velaryon, which might have had me worried about j0nrya if Alyn weren’t best known for being a daring sailor who went on many voyages, including sailing the Sunset Sea, until he was finally lost at sea during Aegon IV’s reign. Alyn’s mother was also called Mouse, for being “small, quick, and always underfoot.”

- another fun fact about Alyn: he’s a bad haggler, and had to agree to a high ransom and many concessions in order to get Prince Viserys returned to Westeros. This automatically disqualifies him as a Jon stand-in, because as we all know, Jon Snow can haggle like the best of fishwives.

- My absolutely favourite detail that has my jonsa heart singing - Rhaena was more dutiful than her sister and would have married a man that the king and council chose, saying that as long as he was “kind and gentle and noble, I know that I shall love him.” She was able to marry her first choice, whom the regents didn’t immediately approve of but that they ultimately accepted - Ser Corwyn Corbray, the brother of the Lord Protector of the Realm, a second son (!) whose late father had gifted him the Valyrian steel sword Lady Forlorn (!!!)

And as a treat for @istumpysk, some similarities between Rickon and Viserys II!

- the youngest child of their family

- separated from their older brother after they were forced to flee their home, trying to get to safety while their other brothers and mother were at war

- worshipped their oldest (half-)brothers, but were closer to the brother nearest their age

- spends the war stuck on an island, populated by people closely linked to their family’s origins - Skagosi are descended mostly from the First Men, while Viserys was on Lys, where the blood of Old Valyria still runs strong

- sought by/held hostage by a powerful and wealthy family, who will treat them well but whose intentions are dubious

- will be brought back from exile by an upjumped bastard/commoner from a port town who was raised to lordship and became their monarch’s chief admiral

- after they are returned, long after the wars and crises, is happily welcomed as the heir to their older brother’s throne (shhhhh just let me have this, let the baby live)

Thanks for the ask!

#astra rambles #asks #its not quite 5000 words but i got it in under the deadline stumpy :P #half speculation half 'my wildest dreams and hopes'#anti tyrion lannister #kind of #rickon stark #jon snow #sansa stark #arya stark #anti got #speculation #meta #dod 2.0 #dod parallels

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silver-the-pendejo · 2 years

Text

Chapter Five

It had been a day and half since Shaunti almost die, the tension in the group was high, especially since Twilight only let Raijin and Hyrule near her, if one of the other try to approach and speak with either of them, he snapped and tried to bite them, succeeding with biting Fruit, Li and Time. Time tried to scold him for it, but he just got more aggressive, so the others decided to leave him alone, waiting for the medic pair to come and tell them if Shaunti was going to be okay.

“So we were lucky that your Granny decided to build an extra room behind your house Wind, because if she didn’t I don’t think that Twilight would even let us enter in the house” Warriors says, while cleaning his sword for the fifth time after the fight.

“I know, he will probably only let Granny and Aryll, not fair” Wind was sitting at Nilo’s side, eating some of the soup that Wild had made some minutes ago.

“Probably, and we all should go to sleep, it is already late, I took the first night watch.” Some of the others tried to refuse his order and took the night watch, but it didn't work. Time still sent them to sleep and he took the night watch.

For Twilight, the time passed to slow, making him feel that it had been years since the last time he had seen Shaunti awake, laughing and talking with the others, and now, he wasn’t sure if he will listen or speak with her again, even after Hyrule and Raijin told him she was going to be fine, with some scars and it will take sometime for her to walk straight again, and she will wake up when her body were ready for it, but for Twilight, it was taking to long.

“I'm going to have a long talk about fighting without looking around and almost dying with you when you wake up Shaunti” Twilight accommodate his wolf pet as a pillow and dropped his head at the side of Shaunti’s head, letting it rest on it, while taking Shauntis left hand on his own, and giving it a squeeze, before closing his eyes and pleading to Farone to let Shaunti live, and getting distracted some minutes later by the sound of voices coming from the other side of the bed.

“Shhhhh, if he sees us or hears us we are dead” Twilight hears a murmur, coming from Li probably, the bite he had given them hadn't been enough to keep them out?

“I know, but you are the one making too much noise, just finish putting your sleeping bag on the floor and we can sleep in here and go out before he wakes up, unless Shaunti wakes up first and scolds him for getting angry at us because we care for her” One of the other three intruders spoke, Puddle he takes note, leaving only one person without a very know identity, because even when he can smell them, being around to much sea water, makes him smelling salt most of the time.

“If he wakes up, don’t speact me to stay here I will do a con permisito dijo monchito and let you two alone in here with the half werewolf” So the last one was Silver, Twilight didn’t don’t what to except about this it wasn’t rare to find the three of them together, but Li was the type of person that goes around different persons on the group and then goes alone, Puddle was most of the time with Fruit, being their big brother and taking care of them, and Silver being with First and Chill a lot, but also going around Candy, Rosie and Fruit, staying with them and with however they were, so why would they come in here to sleep knowing he was probably going to kick them out.

“This will be a vc sleepover but without the vc and with cuddles'' Puddle forces Li and Silver to lay down once they finish accommodating their sleeping bags, making Li lay in the center, while he and Silver lay down on each side of them, making a Li sandwich and trying to fall asleep, succeeding after some minutes.

So they just came to sleep?

Twilight decides to let them sleep , they aren't doing anything and in the morning he can quick them out and continue watching over Shaunti alone and asking Raijin and Hyrule more questions about her state.

—-------------------------------------

It had been already 3 days since Shaunti got hurt, she still hasn’t wake up, and Twilight was still very aggressive with most of the group about it, except with the trio Li, Puddle and Silver, mostly because they only came in the night to sleep and left in the morning, and in the end the aggressivity with the others escalate into a discussion with Twilight, well, most like Twilight getting

“Friendly reminder that you're not the only person who cares about Shaunti in the group" Fruit was looking angry at Twilight, aside from not letting them see their sister, they were still angry about him biting them.

“And besides, how are you planning on helping Shaunti when they wake up in the state you're in? you're so sleep deprived you're barely even standing, i'm surprised you've made it this far without collapsing out of exhaustion" Li continued with the scolding, looking at Twilight.

“Exactly, do that again and we will not hesitate to use a spray bottle on you” Bean says, with Silver, Chill, Rosie and Fruit behind them, each one of them with a bottle of spray, including themselves.

“They are right pup, you need to rest and take care of yourself, someone else can take care of Shaunti while you do that” Time says while taking hold on Twilight and guiding him out of the room and into Wind’s house so he could eat, all of the members of the Chain and most of the Hivemind follow them, probably to also go to eat or explore around Outset Island, the only ones that stayed with Shaunti where Raijin, Bestie, Rosie, Candy and Chill.

Raijin starts checking on Shauntis vitals, while telling Rosie to take out some things to make a medicine to help Shaunti with her fever, because it looks like it had risen again instead of stopping, making Shaunti sick again. Meanwhile Candy, Chill and Bestie start trying to make the room presentable, or at least to make it look like a person could live in there without catching a mortal disease that could kill you.

—-------------------------------------

It had been 7 days since the attack by now, Shaunti could keep herself awake for 6 hours and a little more, most of that time was used to make her eat something and make her wash herself, but they had to keep Twilight at bay during the time she was awake, the first time time she woke up, Twilight almost got into a fight with Ko for not letting him see Shaunti, Time and Warriors had to separate them, sending Ko to look for the others and letting Twilight see Shaunti, for the ones that had seem them, Twilight become in a matter of seconds in a human puppy.

“Can I spray him?” Bean was outside where Shaunti and Twilight where staying, playing with a spray bottle and speaking with Chill, because they were assigned to watch over the door, because a day ago Twilight tried to kidnapped Shaunti and took her to the woods on the Island, the reason was still unknown for the group.

“No, remember that the others say that we can only spray him if he tries to run away again, or if he tries to attack us and you know it Bean” Chill was playing with Ramen, a snake that Bean had found 2 days ago.

“I know, but I'm getting bored, can’t we ask some of the others to change places with us?”

“No, and shut up that Raijin, Candy and Hyrule are coming, and if Candy hear us, she will find some way to ground us, more probably about not looking around and guarding this door enough” Chill say while putting Ramen around their neck, waiting for the other three to be close enough to speak with them.

“Please tell me he didn’t try to run away with Shaunti again” Candy says, adjusting her hammer in her back, waiting for a reason to take it out.

“No, he didn’t even try to look out of the window to see if we were here”

Hyrule nodded and passed between the two of them, with Candy and Raijin following him inside, finding Shaunti awake and eating grilling cheese, even after some hours before Raijin and Hyrule scolded her about the cheese being bad with her being in a recovery state.

“Really?” Candy looks at her with a dead glare, about to scold her for her alimentary habits.

“In my defense, I didn’t want to eat the soup, but Twi promised to find a way to cook Grilled cheese for me if I eat the soup so I did it” Shaunti says back, looking a little to happy for this while Hyrule lecture Twilight for giving Shaunti food that will be damaging for her.

“We will have a conversation later about your bad habit of not eating enough food even when your body has the necessity to do it and don’t try to lecture me back about that half of the other members of the Hivemind also do that, Im working to helping them get more healthy habits” Raijin continue to lecture Shaunti for some more minutes.

Meanwhile Hyrule stopped lecturing Twilight, to start checking on him to confirm that he had stopped pulling all nighters to take care of Shaunti, and to also see that he had eaten his food.

“You all are to exaggerate, at this point you should be accustomed to me dying or almost dying is not anormal for the Hivemind” Hyrule didn’t pay much attention to it, being more concentrated on checking Twilight, but Twilight sure did, turning a little to the side to look over Shaunti, that was starting to get a lecture again from Candy an Raijin, for the tho of them was normal that Shaunti make that type of jokes, but not for him, so he could only tough about one thing.

From now on, you will never leave my side. A part of his head knew this was wrong, but he had already lost her two times, the first of them as enemies, he couldn’t let it happen again.

#cloud's hivemind #chained hivemind #au's #linked universe au #linked universe fic #lu twilight #The Yan Timeline #lu hyrule #linkeduniverse #Yan Twi is starting to show up #linked universe #The VC sleepovers are real and very funny #Some day Bean will spray Twi

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pressedinthepages · 3 years

Text

Crave

next fill for @witcher-rarepair-summer-bingo

also big thanks to @major-trouble for beta-ing and @sometimesiwrite and @lookoutrogue for pointing me in the right direction and helping me along <3

(shhhhh @continentcakeshop i know its like the second one in as many days but its fineeeeeeee)

Prompt: Incubus/Succubus

Relationship: Eskel/Jaskier

Rating: Explicit

Content Warnings: modern au, bookshop au, Jaskier is an incubus, magical genitalia, intersex Jaskier, masturbation, oral sex (f receiving), m/m penetrative sex

Summary: Eskel runs into Jaskier and helps him with his 'research,' leading them closer and closer together.

The little bell over the door tinkled and Eskel peeked up from where he was emptying his stock cart. He couldn’t see who walked in, only the faintest glimpse of a lavender shirt disappearing around a corner, down into an aisle. Eskel shelved the last few novels before returning to the counter, sneaking his book out from its hiding spot and flipping to his bookmark. He didn’t even hear the approaching footsteps, engrossed as he was. But a soft clearing of the throat caught his attention and he startled up, his breath catching at the sight of the man before him.

The young man had on a soft-looking lavender jumper and his hair fell in chestnut waves over his forehead. His eyes were the clearest cornflower blue, and he sported just the barest beginnings of smiley wrinkles. His mouth moved in pretty pink words that tasted like spice drops on Eskel’s tongue, and-

Oh shit.

He asked me a question.

Eskel cleared his throat and blinked, shaking the blush off his cheeks. “S-sorry, what did you say?”

The man smiled, blinding white and cheeky. “No worries, I do talk a bit fast. I asked if you had any books on mythology, specifically succubi?”

Oh, and if that didn’t conjure up some ideas in the dark edges of Eskel’s brain. He prided himself on being a gentleman, but he’d be lying if he said that the very basest part of his mind didn’t imagine the young man laid out beneath him, his honey-laced voice crying his name while lust poured from their very pores.

Eskel glanced around the empty storefront as he walked around the counter, crooking his finger to the man to follow him. “Don’t have much, at least here in the store. But I’ve got one or two.”

“Lovely,” the man said with a smirk, and Eskel could’ve sworn he felt the tracks of his eyes down the line of his back and over the swell of his ass as they went to the last aisle of fiction. He bent down and pulled out two books.

“Here, this one’s not too dense, and is good for the basics. But…” he trailed off and looked over his shoulder, catching the man’s eyes glance back up to him, “this one is good for more in-depth research, without gettin’ too murky.”

Eskel watched the bob of the man’s throat as he swallowed thickly, taking the books from his hands. “Sold. Thank you, Eskel.”

Eskel blinked and racked his brain. I swear I don’t know him, I’d remember his face, his eyes, his voice, his bum-

The man chuckled lightly, “Your nametag. Must say, I was cheating a bit. Call me Jaskier.”

Eskel’s cheeks pulled up into an easy smile. The next words fell from his lips almost too easily, forgetting himself and his scars on and under his skin and who he even was under Jaskier’s intense gaze. “Well, just when might I call you, Jaskier?”

Jaskier (thank fuck) blushed and bit his bottom lip with a grin that set Eskel’s already pounding heart alight. They walked slowly back towards the front of the bookstore to the register. “Well, I should think I’ll come back ‘round soon to see if you...get anything new in stock?”

Eskel nodded as he stepped behind the counter, taking the two books back and scanning their black and white barcodes. He discreetly threw on his brother’s phone number for a discount and slid the books across to Jaskier. “I’m sure we’ll find something.”

“Oh,” said Jaskier as he handed over his cash and his fingers just barely glanced over Eskel’s, sending sparks beneath his skin, “I think we already have.”

---

“Back already?” It was the next day, just shy of when Eskel was going to lock up for a quick lunch. Jaskier had blown in through the door with a bright smile on his face, and Eskel would’ve been lying if he said that his heart hadn’t skipped a beat when he recognized him.

Jaskier nodded and leaned his elbows on the edge of the counter. “Mhm. I read both of those books last night, they were fantastic. But I was wondering if you could maybe help me order one or two more? If you have time, that is?”

“Of course,” Eskel said, gesturing to Jaskier to walk around the edge of the counter and join him at the monitor. “Here, we can look through what we carry and can order.”

They scrolled through the website for what was available, narrowing and adjusting their search parameters for a while before finding some interesting titles. “Oooh,” murmured Jaskier, bumping lightly into Eskel’s arm and pointing at one of the books on the screen, “that one looks helpful.”

It was a leather bound tome entitled ‘Succubi and Incubi in the Modern World,’ by one J. A. Pankratz. It seemed almost a little too perfect for what Jaskier had been looking for, and Eskel hoped that by ordering this one book, he wouldn’t have been driving Jaskier from coming back into his store. He added two copies to the cart and placed the order. He’d save one for Jaskier, and he would take one home for himself. Looks pretty interesting.

---

The books had arrived early in the morning, and Eskel called Jaskier to let him know that he could pop in and pick it up at his convenience. Jaskier had stopped by in the evening, thanking him endlessly before swooping away as Eskel locked up.

Eskel briskly walked home with the leather-bound book weighing heavily in his pack, tempting him to just break it open with every step down the sidewalk. As soon as he got into his flat, he tossed the keys to the side and toed off his boots, making a beeline for his dresser. He changed out of his smart button-down and jeans and into a comfy jumper and a pair of dark sweatpants.

He put on the kettle and unpacked his bag, throwing the empty tupperware from his lunch into the sink and setting the book onto the side table by his armchair. Yes, the bookseller had a reading nook. Don’t judge. He pulled the kettle off just before it started to whistle and made his cup of tea, leaving it to steep for a moment while he washed the few dishes that had found their way into the sink.

Puttering over to his cushy chair with tea in hand, Eskel sighed. He sat down and nestled himself into a comfortable spot, one foot tucked under him and his elbow resting on the velvety arm of the chair. Air whistled through the notch in his lip when he lightly blew the curls of steam away from his mug before taking a sip, letting the warm tea drag down his throat and settle in his stomach.

He set his mug down atop a coaster and ran his hand slowly along the strikingly plain cover of the novel. It was a deep mahogany leather bound tome with golden embossed lettering, and it even boasted a little light blue ribbon to keep his page. The spine crackled as he tipped open the cover, revealing thick ivory paper with deckled edges. Eskel took his time in feeling the book in his hands, running his thumbs down the rough edges of the paper and along the lettering of the title page.

J. A. Pankratz. The name jumped out at him, almost as if it were peering up at him from the page. Waiting. For what? Eskel shook his head with a heavy sigh. It had been a long day, and now his imagination was running rampant before even starting the book. He smiled to himself as he pictured Jaskier, tucked away and cozy, cracking open his own copy of the book and seeking the knowledge that he had been chasing.

There was no introduction, no prelude into the lore that lurked in the supple pages. Only a simple table of contents, and publication information. Nothing odd that caught Eskel’s eyes, but his fingers felt beckoned to the page of chapter one. Myths and Reality.

Eskel felt submerged in the writing, enveloped in the dense weave of storytelling that swam into the forefront of his mind. Contrary to the myths of old, creatures of lust no longer require feeding from the unquenchable arousal of others. They live and breathe as humans, though you will find several marked differences. Their magic, though subtle, is a powerful compulsion, breaking through inhibitions to access the cravings that lay beneath the surface…

Now, Eskel boasted an ability to read and retain at breakneck speeds. He could finish a full-length novel in a night and be able to explain the plot and key details with surprising clarity. But his eyes glazed over as he darted around words and theories, letting them almost bleed into his brain as his fingers flipped the pages by. His tea sat forgotten: he read as though searching to sate a deep thirst in his belly.

The air around him grew warm as the moon rose higher and higher, and Eskel felt a welcome flush crawl its way up his chest and around his throat. His cock stirred between his legs, filling slowly while his mind swam in a hazy bliss. The words on the pages blurred together, though Eskel tried valiantly to bring his focus back to the book in his hand.

Though not for much longer. With a gentle sigh he slipped the light blue ribbon (almost exactly that odd shade of blue that was locked away in Jaskier’s eyes…) in between the pages and set the book back down on the table. Eskel dropped the heel of his palm down to drag up the base of his cock. His breath hitched and he dropped his head back, squeezing himself lightly through the soft cotton of his pants. Fuck, when did he get so hard?

The elastic band was pushed out of the way, only halfway down his thighs, just enough to let Eskel wrap his hand around his cock. He was already dripping precome, slicking his hand with every swirl around the head. His mind filled in hazy edges and wandering bubbles of arousal with Jaskier, that soft smirk and wavy brown hair and broad shoulders and a tongue that seemed like it could cut glass.

Eskel adjusted his legs, planting his feet down on the floor and spreading his thighs open, swallowing thickly as another bead of arousal dripped down the length of him. His other hand wandered up to his chest where he almost absentmindedly ran his fingers over his tender nipple just as he had thumbed along the rough edges of the pages in the book, scratching through the rough pull of the fabric of his jumper. His back arched and his hips chased a building pace, his climax building from the base of his spine.

His mind helpfully supplied an image of Jaskier, kneeling on the floor between his knees, his lips open and waiting for him. Eskel tensed as he felt himself draw closer and closer to the edge of the euphoric cliff, almost feeling the pressure of Jaskier’s hands drag up his legs. Piercing cornflower blue eyes looked up at him with burning intensity and shoved Eskel into the most intense orgasm he had given himself in a long time.

Heavy gasps tore into drawn-out sighs, his jaw clenched as his muscles tensed and rippled beneath his skin. His vision whited out and his ears rang with deafening silence, drowning him in oblivion that he couldn’t have torn himself out of if he had tried. Instead, the world came back to him slowly, waves of a tide depositing the whir of his ceiling fan, the ethereal echo of the moon’s light on the hardwood floors.

Eskel slowly blinked open his eyes, taking long, heavy breaths and smiling headily. He glanced down, finding long white ropes of his spend draping down the collar of his jumper to where he still held his cock gently in his palm. He stroked himself once more, slowly, dragging the last beads of his spend off of himself. He didn’t think twice before bringing his fingers to his lips, tasting the salty bitterness of his climax on his tongue.

Eskel sighed once more as he felt the world push in on the comfortable quiet of his mind, prodding his eyelids to grow heavy and his bed to beckon him from behind the cracked door of his room. He tucked himself away and pushed himself out of the cushy chair, dragging his feet towards his washing machine. He shucked his soiled jumper off into the empty drum and set it to do an extra pre-rinse.

He flipped the lights off and toed open the door to his room, gracelessly flopping onto the bed and shuffling under the blankets. Eskel curled up around himself, feeling warm and fuzzy, though maybe...maybe a little empty? He sighed and hugged his arms against his chest, wishing to all hopes that he wasn’t actually alone as the sweet embrace of sleep overtook him.

---

An entire week passed before Eskel saw Jaskier again. Which he couldn’t say was odd; they had only been in the same place a handful of times, and there hadn’t been any sort of routine to it.

At least, that’s what Eskel told himself.

Another long day of needy customers and screaming children left Eskel drained, and he didn’t hesitate to close the bookstore early. He flipped the sign around to say ‘Closed’ and counted down his money, leaving it in the safe in the back for the morning.

He pushed the glass door open and spun around as it fell shut, slipping his key in and letting the cylinder fall into place. Eskel glanced around, spying a familiar cock-sure smirk on the face of a man as he strode over to him from the coffee shop across the street with a quite attractive swagger. Jaskier stopped at a careful distance, though Eskel tried to keep his face as open and friendly as possible. “Hey, Eskel.”

“Oh, Jaskier,” Eskel peeked behind him towards the shop, “did you need something from in there? I was just locking up, I’m sorry-”

“Oh, no. Well, maybe. We’ll see. But uh. That’s not why I’m here.”

Eskel crooked his head, “Okay…”

“Listen, I didn’t want to do this while you were on the clock, cause that’s icky, but uh…would you be interested in going out sometime? Grab some coffee, or lunch maybe?”

Eskel had completely blue screened. He didn’t think he’d actually get this far. Shit, how long had it been since he actually went on a date? What was he gonna wear? Where were they going?

Fuck.

Didn’t even give him an answer yet.

---

The coffee across the street was fine, but Eskel really just found himself more and more enamored with the striking young man who kept gently bumping their knees together beneath the table.

It was the easiest date that Eskel had ever found himself on. Jaskier was kind, funny, intelligent. Caring. It was the simplest thing in the world for him to invite Jaskier on a quiet walk, meandering through the city streets until they found themselves at Eskel’s stoop.

Eskel glanced down at the prettiest ethereal blue eyes he’d ever seen and smirked. “Wanna come in?”

Jaskier grinned toothily, “I thought you’d never ask.”

The keys clattered to the floor as Eskel led the way over the threshold, grabbing Jaskier by the waist and kissing him deeply. Their lips danced and Eskel could almost taste the lust that poured from his very being. They pushed and tore at hemlines and buttons, craving the release of skin hidden away. Eskel finally got Jaskier’s shirt open and threw it to the floor, running his fingers through the thick hair that was so generously dusted over his broad chest.

Eskel’s own shirt fell open by Jaskier’s fingers and he let his hands drop down to the button on Jaskier’s trousers. But a soft hand stopped him, and Eskel watched his throat bob in anticipation.

“Before we go on,” Jaskier smirked, though his eyes shone with a tinge of worry, “I…have a bit of a…situation to inform you of.”

Eskel’s mind started spinning in circles, covering different scenarios and how best to respond to them. Does he have an STD? Is he a fugitive on the run from the law? Hung up on an ex? Maybe he’s ace? Poly? Enby? Trans? Is it his first time? The list went on and on, greased gears turning rapidly in Eskel’s head. However, what Jaskier actually said hadn’t even made its way into Eskel’s mind.

“I wrote that book. About the incubi.”

Eskel blinked and glanced between Jaskier’s eyes, searching for more answers, rubbing his thumbs gently along Jaskier’s hips. “O-okay…”

“How far did you get?”

Eskel thought back to the night that he had brought the book home, and the fantasy that his mind had woven for him. “Uh...not far. I...I got distracted.”

Jaskier nodded, just the barest hint of a blush spreading like watercolors over his cheeks. “Well...when I say that I wrote the book...I wrote it from personal experience. I am actually an incubus.”

At that point, Eskel’s brain completely stopped computing. He was confused beyond belief and undeniably still horny, and the only thing that he could let slip from his lips was an eloquent, “Huh?”

Jaskier offered a none-too-sheepish smile, his eyes shimmering with unbridled attraction. But he let Eskel process, the two of them standing just inside of Eskel’s doorway, naked from the waist up.

Eskel swallowed and willed his brain cells to work, dammit. "You're a-an incubus? I thought they were-I mean, forgive my ignorance I just haven't, ah, met one... or heard of anyone else... meeting one. Recently."

Jaskier chuckled, the sound like music to Eskel’s ears. “Oh gods, you’re adorable. There’s only a handful of us left, and we don’t generally tend to advertise. Of course you thought it was just a myth. Kind of the point, love.”

Jaskier gently ran his hands up Eskel’s arms, smoothing his fingers into the generous muscle. “I want you to know, though, that I…we don’t feed off of lust. Never did. It...it was a lie, a myth. Our magic is...it’s indulgence, an amplification of lust that’s already there. So I didn’t like...hunt you down, or anything creepy. You just caught my eye, and I thought I’d see if you were interested.”

Eskel nodded, resting his forehead down onto Jaskier’s. “Gotta say, this isn’t quite how I imagined this evening goin’. But...weirder shit happens. And...I’d be lyin’ if I said that I wasn’t still ridiculously attracted to you.”

He brought his lips down and kissed Jaskier sweetly, sliding their lips together slowly and languidly, relishing in the balance of wills that they had found themselves in. Jaskier broke away first, brushing the tip of his nose over Eskel’s. “A-and one more thing-”

“Whatever it is, it’s fine.” Eskel couldn’t really help the way that his brows scrunched in disbelief, even the tiniest bit, but he didn’t want to put Jaskier off by not buying into whatever he was trying to convince him of.

“Well…” Jaskier blinked, biting his lip, “I...one of the things with my magic. I can...I can change the...parts that I have. I can kinda switch? Between a-a...you know?” He gestured vaguely to the region between his legs, and Eskel nodded, somewhat getting the picture. “And I don’t really have a preference, everything’s enjoyable...so if you do, I can just kinda…*poof*,” he smiled.

Now, Eskel really wasn’t sure if anything weirder had happened, at least that he was aware of. Did I eat something off today? Not that he could remember, but this all felt...well. Like an odd fever dream. But Jaskier felt so real in his arms, and he was looking up at him with such sincerity that he figured, ah, what the hell. I’ll humor him...or, them? Ah shite, I should ask-

“Right...so, d-do you want me to call you something else? I don’t want you to be uncomfortable, or use the wrong pronouns or-”

Jaskier smiled and reached up, ruffling Eskel’s hair and sliding the tips of his fingers down the line of his jaw. “You’re sweet. No, Jaskier is perfect, and I use he/him always. Sometimes I change the parts that I have for pleasure, but I am always Jaskier.”

Eskel squinted, still feeling like he was maybe having the wool pulled over his eyes. “Mhm. And uh-”

“Would you like a demonstration?” Jaskier smiled sweetly, still running his fingers along Eskel’s shoulders in lazy swirls. Eskel nodded and led them further into the apartment, giving Jaskier some space to strip himself of the remainder of his clothes. Eskel wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but this seemed like a lot of effort for someone to create a falsity that intricate. He stood bare before Eskel, broad chest tapering down to a soft waist and thick thighs, with a pretty cock nestled in a bed of dark hair.

Eskel sighed and ran his hand through his hair. “Y-you’re gorgeous…”

“Oh, stop it you. You’re making me blush,” Jaskier smirked, popping his hip. “Now, don’t watch too closely, or else you’ll never look at a human quite in the same way again.”

But Eskel couldn’t tear his eyes away as Jaskier’s hips lit up in a burst of buttercup-yellow sparks that dissipated with a blink of his eyes, and then there was a little slit that was just barely visible beneath the nest of dark hair, rather than what had been there only a moment prior. Eskel’s jaw fell agape, now fully in awe of the apparently magical creature that was standing naked in his living room.

“Believe me now?” Jaskier shrugged, spinning himself around to show off his pert buttocks and legs with muscles that delicately danced just beneath the surface.

Eskel swallowed, and he felt his cock throb in the tight confines of his jeans, an impatient reminder that he was, in fact, still very into Jaskier. “Uh... yeah. Yeah, I-fuck, that's incredible. I certainly don't need more convincing and I...well, um..." Eskel got a wolfish look in his eyes, "Which would you like me to start with?"

Jaskier bit his lip and nodded, stepping backwards until the backs of his knees hit the edge of Eskel’s armchair. Eskel quickly wrestled with the buttons and zipper of his pants before tearing them down his legs, shucking them off to the side before following Jaskier to his reading corner.

Jaskier sat down, sprawled bare with his cunt shining and dripping with his arousal onto the soft red cushion of the same chair that Eskel fuckin jerked himself off in. Eskel really really couldn’t decide just where he wanted to look, so he just...dropped to his knees and leveled his face with the blushed pink lips between Jaskier’s legs.

Jaskier gasped and his fingers flexed on the arms of the chair. “Usually, we’re the ones giving pleasure, but yeah sure, I’m not gonna say no…”

“C’mon,” Eskel rumbled as he rested his chin on Jaskier’s thigh, his breath fanning gently over the glistening lips between Jaskier’s legs. “You can’t expect me to see this whole package and not want to bury my face in you?”

And sure, maybe it had been a while since Eskel had found himself with his lips between someone’s thighs like that, but fuck he hadn’t realized how much he missed it. Eskel finally dragged his tongue through his slit and around the sensitive bud at the apex of his thighs, shooting pleasure up through Jaskier’s stomach and into his neck with a soft pink blush. Eskel even had a bit of stubble sprouting over his chin, and he could almost see the sweet burn that it left on the insides of his thighs. A dark moan crawled up out of Jaskier’s chest as he threaded his fingers into the soft strands of Eskel’s hair.

Eskel leaned into his touch and wrapped his lips around Jaskier’s clit and sucked lightly, running a finger down through Jaskier’s slit before slowly pushing inside. Jaskier arched into him, his head hitting the back of the chair and his legs wrapping around Eskel’s head. But there was suddenly one very demanding problem: Eskel, while he normally sported an unending well of patience, was running out. He wanted to feel Jaskier fall apart around him, to feel him everywhere. So he slid his hands up beneath Jaskier’s thighs and around his bum and pulled, resettling him on the very edge of the seat, basically sitting him on Eskel’s chin as he drank anew.

The glide of Jaskier’s hips up and down Eskel’s chin was enough to have him dripping slick onto the hardwood floor beneath him, and he felt more than heard the wet squelch of Jaskier’s tender spot inside of him as he slipped in a second finger. Jaskier keened high and started fucking himself on Eskel’s fingers in earnest, and Eskel crooked his elbow so that he could hit that angle over and over and over again.

Eskel could feel how close Jaskier was, with the fluttering and tightening of his walls around his fingers and the near constant drip of slick down his arm. He lapped and sucked at his clit with fervor, pushing him relentlessly towards the climax that loomed over them both with each wet slap up and down of his fingers.

And oh, when Jaskier finally plummeted over that cliff of euphoria? Eskel was drenched in a wave of slick that dripped down his chin and into the dark coarse hairs on his chest. Jaskier’s fingers tightened in his hair and he cried out Eskel’s name, even sweeter than anything he would’ve dared imagine. Eskel slowed his fingers and lapped gently at the tender flesh between Jaskier’s thighs, coaxing him down through the blinding pleasure that overtook him.

“Oh,” Eskel murmured, resting his forehead on the mound of soft hair over Jaskier’s still fluttering arousal, “th-that was…fuck that was amazing.”

Jaskier chuckled and loosened his grip on Eskel’s hair, gently scratching and running his fingers down Eskel’s cheek. “I wish I could’ve warned you that was coming, but uh…my brain was definitively not keeping up.”

Eskel rose to his feet, pulling Jaskier up onto shaky legs. “C’mon, little bird. Let’s get to the bed.”

Jaskier followed Eskel through an open doorway into his bedroom, and Eskel could once again feel the intense gaze of his eyes roving over his ass. “So Eskel, do you want to fuck me?” Jaskier smiled, pressing his lips softly to the rough valleys of Eskel’s scarred cheek.

Eskel blushed, running his hand back through his hair, the muscles of his arm swelling and running Jaskier’s mouth dry. “I-well. I was actually wonderin’ i-if you’d-well. If you’d fuck me.”

Jaskier‘s eyes alighted with a fire that sent a sounded thread straight through Eskel’s core. “Oh, you have no idea just how much that would be my pleasure.”

Jaskier set his hands on Eskel’s hips and pushed him gently towards the bed, tapping him lightly on the ass. “Mind if I have a snack?”

Eskel shuddered and chuckled, climbing onto his hands and knees on the bed with his bum pointed to Jaskier. “Help yourself.”

Eskel braced himself to be licked and brought to pleasure with a fervor that had matched his own, but what he got instead was a soft hand that smoothed up the back of his thigh, gently palming his cheek and spreading him before a sweet kiss was placed on the globe of his ass.

“Y-you dont have to be gentle with me-“

“I want to be gentle with you, you mountain of a man. Now, let me make you feel good.”

A warm ghost of breath slid over the small of Eskel’s back as Jaskier knelt on the bed behind him, settling his hands on Eskel’s hips and squeezing lightly.

“Oohhhh,” Eskel groaned as Jaskier flattened his tongue over his entrance, mouthing around the tight ring of muscle and kneading his fingers into the meat of his bum.

He felt himself relax into Jaskier’s touch, letting his mind drift into a pleasant haze. Jaskier’s hand snaked around his leg and wrapped around his weeping cock, slowly stroking in time with his tongue pushing into his entrance. His hips rocked back and forth into Jaskier, riding the comfortable waves of arousal as they washed over him.

“Fuck me dead, you’re delicious,” Jaskier’s voice was thick and husky, dripping like syrup. “I’m assuming you’ve got lube hidden away in here?”

Eskel laughed breathily, adjusting his shoulder to point to his bedside drawer. “Right up top.”

Jaskier patted Eskel’s behind and pushed himself up, reaching into the drawer and rummaging around. Eskel heard a cute little ‘aha!’ and the click of a plastic cap being opened.

A slick pair of fingers circled his entrance and he keened, gasping back into Jaskier’s touch. “I-in, please-“

“Alright, Eskel. You’ll tell me if it’s too much?”

Eskel nodded and Jaskier slowly pushed his finger in, thrusting lightly until he was buried to the knuckle. He poured some more lube onto his finger and let Eskel set his preferred pace, following the rocks of his hips and the heavy flexing of his cock between his legs.

Before long, Jaskier slipped in another finger, and then another, stretching Eskel open. Eskel growled and moaned and pushed hard back into Jaskier’s fingers, only just barely brushing against that sweet spot that was nestled so deep.

Eskel was sweating, his hands tangled in the sheets as pleasure built to crescendo behind his eyes, and he felt the stirrings of the point of no return hanging just out of sight. “W-wait, Jaskier. Fuck, I’m ready.”

Jaskier hummed and slipped his fingers from inside of him, leaving him gaping and empty as he patted his hip. “Flip over, Eskel. I wanna watch you fall apart.”

Eskel flipped onto his back and looked up at Jaskier, his soft skin dusted with a generous coating of dark hair, his tummy soft and leading down to-

Hnnnggggg

Instead of the pretty cunt that Eskel had buried himself in, that same equally pretty cock from earlier now jutted out from Jaskier’s hips, flushed and dripping with slick. He spoke without thinking, “Fuck I want you in my mouth.”

Jaskier giggled and ran the bottle of lube up the line of his cock, spreading it around with his hand and dropping the bottle to the side. He clambered back onto the bed between Eskel’s thighs and ran his hands up either side of his stomach reverently. “Maybe later. For now, though, I’d very much like to fuck you.”

Eskel reached up and ran his fingers into Jaskier’s hair as he felt the blunt head of his cock press against his entrance. He breathed deeply, tasting the arousal in the room on his tongue as Jaskier pushed in slowly, slotting their hips together and leaning down atop him.

“I’m not sure,” Jaskier gasped, resting his forehead on Eskel’s, “that I’ve ever felt anyone so sweet. I could die here, and would do so happily.”

“I’d rather if you didn’t,” Eskel smirked, clenching around Jaskier in an effort to get him to move.

“Gah, ca-can I m-“

“Please. Please move. Fuck me. Ruin me.”

Jaskier grinned like the cat who caught the canary, rubbing his thumbs back and forth over Eskel’s flanks as he oh so slowly slid back out of Eskel, and just as slowly slid back in. Eskel felt every slick inch of him in stark relief, his head swimming with how beautifully he was filled.

“F-faster...go on, Jask- y-you won’t break me…”

Jaskier gasped a hitched breath as his hips snapped forward accidentally, sending a shockwave of pleasure up Eskel’s spine. “Ah, fuck. O-okay. D-don’t wanna push too f...far-”

Eskel slid his hand up to cup the delicate jaw of the incubus atop him. “I’ll tell you. I promise. But I trust you. Take me.”

Jaskier’s eyes fluttered shut and he slammed his cock into Eskel, rocking back and forth with a fervor unlike anything Eskel had ever had the great pleasure to have been a part of before. Eskel could feel the crown of his head hitting the wall behind his bed with every sharp thrust of Jaskier’s hips, but he really couldn’t find it in himself to care. He just took it, not even able to form a coherent string of words together, only offering soft grunts and drawn-out moans that were swallowed by Jaskier’s lips.

Eskel’s mind swam in an impossible oblivion, every thrust of Jaskier inside of him pushing him closer and closer to an unstoppable climax. He felt Jaskier’s hands drag down beneath his thighs and lift, settling his ass on the tops of his thighs and oh holy shit right fucking there-

And then. Eskel thought that he was about to pass out when Jaskier adjusted himself to prop one of his elbows next to Eskel’s head and grabbed his cock with the other, stroking in quick jolts that matched every time he hit his prostate and-

Oh fuck he was coming. Eskel shouted in high breaths that escaped from his lungs as his body shook with wave after wave after wave of pleasure. He spent thick white ropes of seed between them, dripping through both of their chest’s hair, his fingers clenching onto any inch of Jaskier that he could reach.

And oh sweet gods above, Jaskier didn’t miss a beat, just slipped his hand off of Eskel’s oversensitive cock and fisted his hands in the sheets on either side of Eskel’s head. Eskel lazily opened his eyes as his blinding orgasm faded away and gently ran his finger down the soft, just barely stubbled line of Jaskier’s jaw. “Go on, Jask,” Eskel rumbled, watching the shudder that ran through Jaskier’s taxed nerves, “Come for me.”

Gasps of hot breath ghosted over Eskel’s face as Jaskier drove his hips deep, his eyes rolling back in his head as he spent inside of Eskel. His entire body shuddered and rippled as he came under Eskel’s hands, something shimmering just beneath the surface of his skin. Jaskier dropped his head into the crook of Eskel’s shoulder, pressing his lips softly to the tender flesh as his spend leaked past the tight seal of his cock.

They both ran their hands slowly over each other, soothing overexerted muscles and lust-hazy minds. Jaskier hummed quietly, still nestled against Eskel’s neck and laying atop him, though Eskel really couldn’t find it in himself to complain. He swallowed thickly and rolled them over, holding Jaskier tightly to him and pressing his lips to his shoulder.

“That was...really nice,” Eskel’s voice was husky and cock-drunk, and he could feel the gentle blanket of sleep falling over his eyes.

Jaskier hummed and squeezed Eskel tighter against him as his softening cock slipped from the tight embrace of Eskel’s entrance. “Truly. You’ve rendered me near speechless.”

Eskel hummed with a sleepy smile, nestling his nose into the soft brown locks of Jaskier’s hair that just barely tickled his throat. “Stay tonight?”

He felt the muscles shift beneath his hands as Jaskier twisted around and pulled the lamp cord, bathing the room in darkness before tugging his throw blanket around them. “Sleep, darling. I’ll be here when you wake.”

As he drifted into the comfortable embrace of a well-earned rest, Eskel knew that he had somehow stumbled into one of the most exceptional people that had ever walked the Earth, and that he wasn’t letting him go any time soon.

#wrsb #witcher rarepair summer bingo #eskel #jaskier #jaskel #eskel/jaskier #smut #incubus #modern au #intersex jaskier #magical genitalia

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sulphuryasecretcloset · 3 years

Text

The Scar

Requested by the awesome @gothicsprinkles who wanted funny and soft and only got... embarrassment instead xD Forgive me!

It’s really warm so Corin doesn’t bother wearing his shirt to bed. He knows he will have a human Mandalorian heater attaching himself to Corin the second they settle for the night and if he’s going to get any sleep with Din doing that in this kind of temperature, Corin has to wear as few layers as possible.

After a quick check on the little bean, sound asleep in his crib, Corin crawls into bed and settles next to where Din is propped up by pillows and is waiting to attack.

He’s not wearing his armor, only his helmet and the layers of regular clothing, feeling secure in the bosom of the Covert, and it’s nice to see him somewhat relaxed for a change. It would be even nicer to see him entirely relaxed in just a t-shirt and sweatpants like Corin usually wears to bed, but Corin knows not to press his good luck. This is good. It’s more than enough.

To Corin’s surprise, Din doesn’t just attach himself to him like a shady rumor, but lies on his side, removes his right glove and reaches out to draw light fingertips over the scar left by a blaster shot that should have claimed Corin’s life but ended up saving it in countless ways instead.

Corin sucks in his stomach a little, despite knowing he’s never been in better shape in his life. He just can’t help it.

“You were a Trooper for so many years,” Din mumbles, his touch light on the scar and soon trailing over his abs, “how is it that you have so few scars?”

Looking down at his own torso, Corin knows the answer but he’s not proud of it. “At first, I had good luck and… friends on my side. That kept me safe most of the time.” He holds out his arm and shows a barely visible scar, a really faint line across his upper arm. “I did take a shot to the arm once, though.” Corin lowers his arm and places his hand on Din’s back instead. “After they… After that, I just made sure not to be at the front wherever we were sent. There were plenty of young idiots like me looking to make a name for themselves and play the hero, I just let them. They were the ones who got the scars. Or got killed. I just focused on getting my ass transferred to the Blizzard Force.”

Din’s helmet nods thoughtfully.

“What’s the scar on your back from?” Corin asks, having seen and noticed it earlier when they… well, he’d noticed it.

“Oh, that.” Din gives a quiet, amused laugh. “Well, it was my third bounty job and-”

His life as a Mandalorian has left Din with a whole bunch of scars and one crazy story after another to go with them. Corin goes from smothering laughter behind a hand to staring with horrified wonder at how this man is still alive.

“What about that one?” Corin eventually asks, reaching out and pulling Din’s sleeve up a little to reveal a thin, modest scar on his underarm.

“That? That’s nothing. Nothing at all. Ignore that one.” Din tugs his sleeve down and covers it back up. He turns to trail fingertips over Corin’s scar in silence.

At first, Corin’s gut instinct is to apologize, thinking he’d overstepped and accidentally uncovered some painful memory, but then his brain points out how there had been no hurt or defensiveness to Din’s voice. No, it has sounded more like… embarrassment?

Corin’s curiosity sits up and pays attention.

“Din…” Corin drawls, sliding his hand up from Din’s back to gently squeeze the man’s neck and has him arching into the touch with a faint sound of approval. “Din, tell me about the scar on your arm…”

“It’s nothing.” Din mumbles. Definitely embarrassed!

“Come on…” Corin whines playfully, shaking Din a little by the scruff. “Tell meeeeeee…”

Din answers by manhandling Corin over on his side so Din can curl up behind him and hold him tight, too tight to squirm away. “I told you, it was nothing. Sleep now. You’re tired.”

“I’m not tired. Tell me about the scar on your arm, Din Djarin.”

“Shhhhh.” Din shushes him and when Corin lifts his head to glare back at him, Din shoves it back down against the pillow. “Shhhhhh.”

Fine. Din wins the battle, but he has not won the war.

Paz has picked his laser cannon apart and is cleaning each piece with as much affection as he shows Raga. He glances up with mild surprise when Corin sits down next to him in the common area. “What do you want?”

Corin glances over and sees Din is busy talking to aforementioned Raga by the door and decides to go for it. “Din has a scar on his right arm. His underarm. Do you know how he got it?”

Several things happen at once. Paz sits up straight, Din makes a startled sound and bolts towards them, and Raga trips Din.

Corin hears Din’s impact with the ground, his furious shout when Raga holds him down with a painful knee to his lower back and the frankly scary strength of her arms, but his focus is on Paz who draws a long and deep breath like a man about to tell a story worth hearing.

“He hasn’t told you about that, has he?” Paz says, reaching out and placing an oil-covered and heavy hand on Corin’s shoulder. “Allow me.”

“Paz, I will shoot you in the face!” Din shouts.

“Is that any way to talk to your brother?” Raga tuts and shoves his helmet down, visor first, to smack against the floor.

“I was fifteen when I got my first jetpack and my father started training me.” Paz sounds nostalgic, before giving a faint shake of his helmet and sighing as he gestures towards Din. “Back then, Din was a little twig who had yet to take the Creed and he was ‘not’ happy about that.”

Din tries to buck Raga off but can only bite back a pained, but mostly angry, sound when she digs her knee in deeper and wrings one of his arms.

“So, one night,” Paz continues, sliding his arm around Corin’s shoulders and maneuvering him over to sit next to him so they both can look at Din, “the little womp rat decided he was going to grab my jetpack and show everyone how he was a natural talent at flying. That he was as good as the older children.”

Corin struggles against a smile. “Is that so?”

Even Raga cackles as she has to grab Din’s other arm as well to keep him pinned down when he struggles even harder to free himself.

“Indeed.” Paz says. “The brat wormed his way into my room, grabbed my jetpack, went into the hallway and put it on. That pack was designed for me, not his baby-ass, which meant that when he activated it at full throttle, it went as well as you can probably imagine.”

Corin is losing the fight against not laughing.

“I woke up to his scream growing fainter as he zoomed down the hallway.” Paz says. “I ran out and saw jetfire and his tiny feet as they blew around a corner and I ‘knew’ what had just happened. I chased after him. If he had been keeping a steady course, I would never have been able to catch up, but lucky for both of us; Din managed to bump into every door, both walls and occasionally the ceiling as he raced down the hallway. Screaming his head off. Eventually I caught up with him in one of the training rooms that had been left open and he decided to end his journey by flying smack up into the corner of the room and get stuck in one of the climbing ropes up there.”

“By now the grown ups are gearing up and preparing for battle because they think we’re under attack.” Raga supplies with glee.

Din gives up fighting and just drops his helmet, visor first yet again, to the floor with a thump.

“Din was bawling, the adults were freaking out, so it was up to me to save the day.” Paz’ voice is brimming with obnoxious delight. “I climbed up there, managed to untangle the little idiot and got him ‘and’ my jetpack down. Luckily his thick head hadn’t suffered too much during his rodeo, but he had busted up his arm pretty good. He was wailing so loud it took about two minutes before Davarax found us and he wasn’t happy.” A fond laughter. “He had to explain to the rest of the Tribe it had only been an illegal jetpack joyride, not an actual invasion by outsiders, while I had to bring the troublemaker to the bone-setter and wipe snot and tears off that face of his.”

Din is thumping his helmet regularly against the floor before he suddenly lifts his t-visor to glare at Paz. “I hate you.”

Paz stares at Din for a heartbeat and a half, then turns his t-visor to Corin. “Has he told you about his first dancing lesson?”

“PAZ!” Din’s bellow echoes through the entire building.

#the mandalorian his son and the storm trooper #Poor Din #Curious Corin #the one-shots start coming and they don't stop coming

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clonewarslover55 · 4 years

Note

Rex x Jedi reader where they found she is pregnant around the time of order 66.As I love Daddy Rex and some good angst

Sure!!

The Fugitive couple

Captain Rex X Jedi!Pregnant!Reader

Warnings: Angst, Order 66,

The Clone Wars had been going on for over two years now, and your boyfriend Rex was extremely stressed. Even more so now than ever, because you were pregnant. You had learned you were pregnant just a few weeks after Fives death, which brightened Rex’s mood temporarily.

Lately he had been extremely busy, so he wasn’t able to see you as often. You were beyond worried for Rex. You were luckily just around the Temple lately, trying to hide your growing baby bump from your fellow Jedi. So you weren’t on the front lines like others.

*Coruscant. Two days after Order 66*

Chaos. Everything was in chaos. You pressed a hand against your baby bump, nervously watching the smoke rise from the Jedi temple. There were signs everywhere, faces of Jedi who were still living that needed to be hunted down and killed. Among the faces of the Jedi there were some clones that had gone AWOL. Including Rex. Your face was plastered everywhere as well, especially since you had escaped the Temple.

Only a few clone soldiers knew you were pregnant with Rex’s child, and now that he was a fugitive you would be in even more danger. You needed to get off Coruscant immediately. You walked swiftly down the streets of upper Coruscant, trying to avoid the many clone soldiers that were checking citizens identifications. If they saw you they would probably kill you on sight.

Your mind was racing with fear and concern. The baby shifted and kicked, letting you know that you were stressing them out as well. You quickly walked down an alleyway, narrowly avoiding two Assassin Troopers that were approaching. Luckily they jogged by, obviously in a hurry.

As soon as you turned into the dark alleyway, someone quickly pinned you against a wall. They muffled your screams with their gloved hand. “Shhhhh it’s me.” A familiar voice whispered. You looked at your attacker and let out a sob of joy. It was Rex.

“You’re alive.” You whispered, hugging his armored body close. He kissed your forehead, hugging you like you were his life line. “We need to move.” A gruff voice said from behind you. You looked at the clone that stood behind him, a large scar over his white eye.

Rex rubbed your baby bump and pressed his forehead against yours, “They’re growing fast.” You nodded, watching the tears fall from his eyes. “Now. We have to leave now Rex!” The scarred clone whisper yelled. You felt the fear and stress from both clones in the force, but the slight feeling of relief from Rex relaxed your nerves slightly.

Rex nodded and pecked your lips, “We need to hurry. Wolffe has a plan to get us out of here.” You nodded, the fear evident in your teary eyes. He gently grasped your hand, pulling you along with him. The rude clone, who you now knew was named Wolffe, leading the way.

*Mandalore, a month later.*

Wolffe heard from some Commandos about a place on Mandalore, where clones and Jedi would be safe. The place was called Kyrimount, which was run by a group of Mnadalorians, some other clone survivors, and even a few Jedi. Mandalorians were known to hate Jedi, but Kal Skirata was different.

Once things settled down some, you and Rex would move away to find a place of your own to raise your child. Wolffe would come along because he would be extra protection, and soon a babysitter. You would stay close to Kyrimount of course, but you didn’t want to live there. You felt unsafe around some of the Mandalorians, especially because the child you carried would be force sensitive like you.

Rex stood beside you, watching the beautiful Mandalore sunset. “We will make it through this. I promise.” He muttered, kissing your forehead. You nodded and leaned against his side, his hand resting on your baby bump.

“I promise.” He whispered as the baby kicked gently against his palm.

#captain rex #captain rex x reader #captain rex x y/n #captain rex x you #commander wolffe #order 66 #Jedi reader #jedi #Mandalore #Mandalorian #kyrimount #kal skirata #mandalorians #pregnant reader

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amethysttribble · 3 years

Text

Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, A Love So Blue

Yeah, I’ve decided everything I write for this Feanorian Week is all going to be nice stuff, even if this one is a tad more bitter sweet. Maglor reconnects with his wife over the children they didn’t raise together!

@feanorianweek Entry 2: Elrond & Elros (kinda. Only barely. It’s more like ‘children’ but shhhhh)

No kids, he and Ravennië had promised each other.

At least, not for several hundred, several thousand years, if ever. They’d both grown up with plenty of siblings- more than enough siblings- and trusted that there would be nieces and nephews down the line to scratch the baby itch if it came. Children took time, children required effort, and they yelled and caused trouble.

“I think between the two of us we have more than enough volume and trouble,” Maglor had told Ravennië, making her laugh.

They’d been busy, and exhausted with children, and had very grand dreams, and Maglor and Ravennië had grown more and more adamant every time they met eyes when someone told them, “You’ve surely been married long enough.”

No kids.

And yet- ages and so much more later- here they were.

A baby swaddled in green rested in a basket upon Ravennië’s table. The child had been left there by her parents, but what Elladan had been thinking with this stunt, Maglor could not say. For you two to bond, he’d said, I trust you. Which warmed the cockles of Maglor’s wind chilled heart, but perhaps Elladan should have distrusted Maglor for different reasons than the obvious. And leaving him and the baby with Ravennië?

She would not be any more able to mitigate damage, despite what was likely hoped.

“I don’t actually know how to handle infants. I don’t think I’ve held one since my niece was born, which was-“ Ravennië whistled. “A while ago.”

Maglor cracked a smile, and it still felt like he was actually cracking apart. The skin around his eyes folding as it had not in ages… the gesture alone was enough to make him want to cry. His eyes were watering. Ravennië was kind enough not to mention it.

“I do believe it was Celebrimbor for me.”

She laughed.

“Which was so long ago that he didn’t even bear that name yet. By Irmo, we are old, when did we get so old?”

Ravennië reached forward and pinched the sweet girl’s foot, waving it from side to side. Maglor bit the inside of his cheek to keep from saying anything, but he feared that would wake her up. And he really didn’t want the baby to wake up.

“What do you think?” Ravennië cooed at the child. “Do you think we’re old? Gonna call us granny and gramps? Oh Valar, great granny and gramps.”

Ravennië turned to look at him, her eyes widened in exaggerated horror.

He laughed, and the motion didn’t make him have to cough anymore, like it did just a few months ago.

“Perhaps great, great. You’re the one who all but adopted Lady Elwing.”

“Yes, well, what are you supposed to do when a princess comes to your house screaming about how your estranged husband kidnapped her children? Close the door?”

“Get thee gone…” Maglor drawled at Ravennië, who threw her head back with the force of her laughter. How could she be more beautiful than when he left? Ravennië was now even… brighter. Louder, larger, steady. In full bloom.

It made his eyes tighter but his throat looser to look at her. He’d almost forgotten this notion, this almost childish romantic desire. Ravennië made Maglor want to sing happy songs again.

Her melodious joy was high and bouncing, though, meant for grand halls with high ceilings, and the baby’s piercing wail broke in to join her.

They’d woken the baby, and Maglor and Ravennië both looked down at her in shock before turning to each other in panic. Maglor took a hasty step back, holding up his palms. His bright red, scarred hand was on full display, a silent beg for reprieve.

While others might have shown pity, Ravennië scowled.

“I know your tricks, you bastard,” she groused, while still picking up the baby, gently rocking the child in her arms.

The baby kept crying, drowning out Maglor’s answering huff of amusement.

“I feel like it was you who originally taught me how to skive off my responsibilities,” he said, and like with everything else he said, there were many horrible and deserved possible replies.

The baby was quieting, and Maglor would happily take all of his sins.

Ravennië didn’t go for any of them, though, simply snorting and saying, “It wasn’t my fault nobody had taught His Royal Highness how to skip class. I honestly thought you knew! If I realized I was corrupting you, I would have cried right there on the beach, so ashamed. I still can’t believe you told that story when you met my parents, I thought my mother was going to have a fit.”

“My father did have a fit when you told him about when I smashed my harp over Alchon’s head, so we are more than even.”

“I thought they knew! I thought it was romantic! You were defending my honor,” she said, a softer smile slipping on her face.

Maglor knew not to let her distract him. Ravennië was the finest actress of a generation and she knew how to make harp strings swell. If he let her get the better of him every time she set a scene… Quite a bit might not have happened quite so badly.

But Ravennië also never would have given him her time and that child and her arms possibly might not have existed. No use dwelling on the past or upon her smiles now.

Maglor shook his head.

“You thought I’d willingly told my parents I destroyed a piece of craft?”

Ravennië opened then shut her mouth. Considered that for a moment. When she finally went to speak again she said, “Well, no. I guess I thought the school had told them. And he got over it pretty easily, once your brothers started up again.”

“Oh, yes, the anger based soon enough, but the hurt?” Maglor pushed to give a dramatic sigh. “Father never forgave me for using one of the school’s harps instead of writing home so he could make one, never mind wood-work was not his field. Why, I think the knowledge wounded him so much, it was what drove him over the edge.”

Ravennië laughed again- Maglor was so selfishly glad to still be able to make her laugh- and that made the baby start crying again.

“Oh, fu-”

“Ravennië!”

“Who's the mother hen now?” she teased as she started bouncing the baby more aggressively. “No cursing, no wonder Elrond’s so damnably polite. You know I taught all of my children at the school to curse. Vulgarity makes art richer.”

“Yes, but at court it gets you put in time-”

A bell chimed, a pleasant but forceful gong that came from Ravennië’s front porch. The baby cried louder.

“Shit,” Ravennië cursed, “That’s one of the children now, Iowen said she would come over for new tuning instruments.”

“Is your house ever empty?” Maglor asked, raising an eyebrow.

“No, and that is by design. Okay, darling, you’re just going to have to lie down for a minute while granny-“

“I’ll take her,” Maglor said, and he felt as shocked at himself as Ravennië looked. Neither of them dared cross his moment of courage, though, didn’t want to make it waver with words. Ravennië simply placed the child in his arms, and ran for the door.

Which left Maglor looking down at a crying infant.

“Oh my,” he muttered, licking his dry lips in hesitation.

No kids, no babies. Elrond and Elros… as much or as little as they had been his, they’d been well and truly out of diapers by then.

They had cried, though, cried irrationally and fully like children did, but crying from hurts that even adults wouldn’t be able to understand. Words couldn’t help such things. Maglor could only hold them when they wanted it, and sing.

He grimaced.

“I’m not quite as good anymore, forgive me,” he muttered.

His voice was raspy and cracked, broken from years of wailing out his songs and woes- one and the same- in harsh sea airs, above roaring winds and waves, day and night.

Now he sang like an old Man, edge lost and voice low and rumbling. It was not up to any Elven standard, but the baby seemed to like it.

She quieted slowly, soothed and snuggling against his chest, seemingly content. Maglor kept singing as she settled, though. He had missed singing.

He noticed when Ravennië came back in. She settled against the doorway, arms crossed, just watching. He met her eyes and rumbled out the words to a song in a language she didn’t know. And they were both smiling.

They were not as they had been, never would be. But they were friends, and so much love ran between them, different and tempered as it was. And they shared children.

#maglor #maglor's wife #feanorianweek #the silmarillion #silmarillion #tolkien #fanfic #Tribble Post

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broccoliboix5peepeeman · 3 years

Note

Req: Shōto is the campus' delinquent. Nobody dare to cross him. Izuku is the campus' nerd. His low social status makes him an easy target of bullying. One day, they're paired together for a project. What starts out as a school assignment blossoms a beautiful friendship as they realized that they're the same. They're both no strangers to pain. Izuku sees Shōto as his own person despite his surname. Shōto sees hurt, pain & sadness behind Izuku's smiles. And eventually, they both fall in love.

Ooooo thank you for the request! :D

'Shoji and Tokoyami for group one. Uraraka and Asui for group two.'

'Yesss!' Uraraka muttered under her breath. Izuku smirked at his friend and nudged her with his elbow.

'Get in there!' He winked, wiggling his eyebrows playfully, earning a frantic shhhhh from his friend.

'Momo and Kirishima for group four.' Aizawa called out. 'Jirou and Hagakure for group five.

'Ooo, halfway though, Dekuuu!' Uraraka sang quietly. 'Are you worried?'

'As long as it's not Kacchan, I don't mind.' He shrugged.

'Bakugou and Mineta for group seven.' Aizawa continued, tone bored, even as the blonde roared with protest.

'Thank fuck.' Izuku mumbled.

'Midoriya and Todoroki for group eight.' His teacher spoke, looking pointedly at him before focusing back on the sheet.

While Uraraka giggled next to him, Izuku froze, his posture straight and a look of shock on his face. He felt a pair of dichromatic eyes burning holes into his back, although he could just be paranoid.

Him and… Todoroki? UA's top heartthrob and bad boy, partnered with Izuku? Aizawa-Sensei had to be kidding, surely.

'Right, that's all of you.' Their teacher called out. 'Sit in your pairs and we'll go over the project in more detail.'

Immediately, the classroom broke out into excited chatter as everyone shouted across the room for their partner. Before Izuku could even say farewell to Uraraka, his friend had already jumped up from her seat to bounce towards where Tsu was sitting.

Izuku sighed and - with significantly less energy - got up to search the room for his partner. Of course, it didn't take long to spot him; even without the scar, Todoroki stood out like a sore thumb.

He sat towards the back of the room, slouched in his chair as he stared out of the window, unfazed by the chaos around him. The morning sun bathed his skin and made the crimson half of his hair shine. Izuku noticed that his classmate was wearing his signature leather jacket, covered in various badges and pins, along with a turtleneck, a pair of navy jeans that clung to his legs, and black combat boots.

It was no secret that Todoroki was the "most handsome guy in school", so it made sense that today was no different. It just didn't help Izuku in the slightest - in fact, it made it even harder for him to clear his throat and gather his attention.

'To- Todoroki-kun, hi!' He squeaked, a large smile plastered to his face that didn't quite reach his eyes. When the aforementioned turned to regard him nonchalantly, Izuku's nerves only exacerbated. 'Do you mind if I sit, seen as we're part- partners?'

When his classmate remained silent, he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and laughed. 'Sorry about that by the way… I know you probably don't want to be stuck with someone like me.'

'Why are you apologising?' Todoroki raised an eyebrow. 'It's not your fault.'

You didn't deny it though… Izuku chewed on his lip for lack of a better response, until Todoroki eventually nodded to the seat next to him.

'Your reputation precedes you, Midoriya.' He commented as Izuku fumbled into his chair. 'As does mine. I don't mind working with you as long as you pull your weight. You may think I don't give a shit about grades, but you don't know me.'

Izuku turned to regard him with wide eyes, but Todoroki had already gone back to stare out of the window. 'Library after school. We'll make a start then. Can't be arsed going home and I assume you're not too keen on walking home at the same time as Bakugou.'

Izuku furrowed his eyebrows at that. He knew Todoroki could be blunt but… Oh well, he did have a point. Kacchan would jump him the moment they were out of the school gates - clearly wanting to release all that pent-up rage on Izuku because, for some reason, his old friend had made it his own personal goal to make him his punching bag.

'Sure.' Izuku replied, turning to face the front of the room as Aizawa told them all to quiet down. Why me?

☀️🌙

Izuku twirled his pen in his hand as he read through his notes in the library. If the librarian asked, it was school work, even if the "Hero analysis #27" scribbled over the cover was a dead give-away.

Izuku wanted to be a doctor, a hero who saves lives. Ever since he had learnt to read, he was fascinated by how the body worked and how to treat various ailments. His analysis books were where he stored all the information he had absorbed from his readings.

'Last time I checked, "loss of executive functioning in patients with primary progressive multiple sclerosis" wasn't on the syllabus.' A low voice spoke.

Izuku flinched so violently his elbow slammed into the back of his chair and he almost dropped his pen. He winced at the pain and looked up to find Todoroki gazing at him, unfazed by his display.

'T- Todoroki-kun!' A bright smile appeared on Izuku's face and he gestured to the seat opposite him. When his classmate took it, he quickly put away his notebook and replaced it with his psychology workbook and textbook. 'I was starting to think you'd forgotten.'

'I just had a few things to sort out.' Todoroki shrugged, taking out his own book.

Izuku nodded along, expecting him to elaborate, but apparently that wasn't his classmate's intention. Instead, they sat in awkward silence for several moments, until Izuku shook his head to ground himself and opened his textbook.

'Right, let's get started then.' He announced, a trained smile on his face. 'Aizawa-Sensei said we have to do a presentation on the sleep-wake cycle for ours, which is actually quite interesting. I had a quick look over lunch and I was thinking we could start the intro by covering the three different cycles. So, ultradian rhythms are cycles that are less than 24 hours and can repeat throughout the day, infradian rhythms are more than 24 hours - like the menstrual cycle - then we finish on circadian rhythms, which focuses specifically on sleep-wake cycle, then go on to talk about-'

Izuku paused then, realising he had definitely started to ramble there. He knew how much his peers found his habit annoying, so he was surprised that Todoroki hadn't interrupted him and told him to shut up before now.

'Why did you stop?' His classmate asked, genuinely confused.

'You… You understood all of that?' Izuku returned.

'Yes.' Todoroki showed him his workbook, where he had started writing Izuku's ideas down.

'But I was muttering…' Heat rose to his face as he inspected the page. 'You don't find that annoying?'

Todoroki frowned at that.

'Not really. Why would I?'

'Everyone else does.' Izuku mumbled, looking away.

'I'm not everyone else.' Todoroki scratched his cheek, just below his scar. Before Izuku could ask though, he cleared his throat. 'Anyway, I agree with you. Once we focus on circadian rhythms, we can go over the stages of sleep.'

'Sounds good to me!' Izuku beamed. 'We can talk about non-REM and REM too!'

'Yes.' Todoroki nodded. 'Then maybe go into the different areas involved in sleep, so photoreceptors and the pineal gland.'

'That's a great idea!' Izuku burst out, brain going a mile a minute. This was going easier than he had expected. 'Gosh, this is going to be so fun! Right, I know it's not entirely relevant to the presentation itself, but you know dolphins?'

'Yes, I know dolphins.' Todoroki huffed, tone slightly amused.

Was that almost a smile?!

'Well, their brains have a left and right hemisphere like we do, and when they go to sleep, they turn off one hemisphere and the other one stays awake so they can come up for air and stuff! Then they switch around when the first hemisphere is fully rested! Some sharks do it too, it's so interesting!'

Izuku paused for breath. When Todoroki said nothing in response and looked at him with an expression he couldn't quite place, Izuku blushed with embarrassment. 'S- Sorry…'

'No, you…' Todoroki spoke, his voice oddly gentle. 'That's the first time today I've seen you genuinely smile.'

… What?

'I'm always smiling.' Izuku tilted his head to the side. Smiling was his thing. Everywhere he went, he always made sure to smile, even if he was having a bad day. He smiled to put others at ease.

'It never reaches your eyes though.' Todoroki regarded him with something akin to understanding, albeit Izuku didn't know why. 'It's always fake.'

He winced at the wording.

'Does that bother you?' He twirled his pen and looked away, apprehension in his voice.

'A little.' Todoroki admitted. 'I understand why you lie, but I'd rather you be honest - at least, with me, I'd like you to be honest.'

Izuku considered his words. Despite the lack of malice in his tone, he still felt like he had been called out.

'I'm sorry.' He spoke, not knowing what else to say.

'You apologise a lot.' Todoroki stated. 'You don't owe anyone an apology, Midoriya.'

Izuku didn't like this. He didn't know where this was coming from and why Todoroki was saying all this. It wasn't a bad thing, but it was overwhelming. No one had ever called him out for his smiles before.

'I have to go.' He stood abruptly and gathered his books, stuffing them into his yellow backpack. Todoroki looked at him, mildly bewildered.

'Okay. When do you want to meet up next?' He asked before Izuku could book it out of there.

'Up to you.' He shrugged. ‘I can’t do tomorrow though.’

'How about Thursday after school?' Todoroki asked. 'We can go to my place - my old man is at the station all day then so he won't bother us.'

Izuku gulped at the idea of meeting Todoroki Enji, the city's chief of police who was rumoured to be as corrupt as they came.

'He definitely won't be there?' He twirled a loose green curl around his finger.

'I wouldn't suggest it if I didn't know for sure.' Todoroki raised an eyebrow. Izuku didn't know what to make of that.

'Okay, sure. I'll meet you at the front gates after class and we'll walk together.' When Todoroki nodded once, Izuku tried not to force a smile and mirrored the action. 'Great. Right, I've got to go. Bye!'

Before his classmate could say anything else, Izuku quick-walked out of the library. Once he exited the building, he broke into a run down the street. He liked running when he was anxious, it helped calm him.

Izuku sighed and thought of blue and grey eyes, staring into his soul. He then promptly tripped over his own two feet and landed on the floor with a thud.

Resigned to his fate, Izuku made no effort to get up and sighed heavily, cheeks squished against the pavement.

It was going to be a long few weeks.

☀️🌙

[Uwawaka: 17:05] Dekuuuuu!!! Todoroki-kun just cornered me and demanded your number?!?! Erm, have a nice life I guess? I get your shoes when you die

[Me: 17:09] Waitwaitwait WHAT?!?!?! YOU SAID YES?!

[Me: 17:10] URARAKA ANSWER ME

[Me: 17:12] I will eat your pet hamster, you whore

Izuku collapsed onto his bed and smacked his forehead with his palm. Several more minutes passed without a response and he was seriously considering calling her, when his phone suddenly vibrated.

He quickly scrambled for the device. However, when he unlocked it and saw the message, he gasped and threw his phone at the wall.

'Izuku!' His mum shouted from the kitchen. 'What was that?!'

'Nothing, mum! Sorry!' He shouted, moving to pick it back up.

[Unknown: 17.16] Is this Midoriya Izuku?

[Me: 17:18] Yes? Who is this?

Izuku knew full well who it was and added the number to his contacts anyway.

[Todoroki: 17:20] It's Todoroki from Aizawa's psychology class. I got your number from a friend. Hope you don't mind

Either Todoroki was downplaying the situation or Uraraka was being overdramatic. He honestly didn't know who to believe.

[Me: 17:21] No problem, what's up?

[Todoroki: 17:23] I was going to wait till tomorrow but evidently I have the patience of a toddler.

[Todoroki: 17:24] I wanted to apologise if I made you uncomfortable earlier. I shouldn't have indirectly accused you of lying when I do it all the time.

Izuku didn't even know where to start with unpacking that.

[Me: 17:27] You don't have to apologise, you were right. I just smile a lot to make others feel at ease. I didn't realise it could be mistaken for dishonesty if I'm not being genuine.

[Me: 17:27] You lie all the time?

It was bold to ask that, but he couldn't help himself. Izuku was a meddler, through and through. Plus, Todoroki mentioned it first so it wasn’t like he didn’t want to talk about it, he reasoned.

[Todoroki: 17:30] I can understand that. I'd just rather you be honest with me. After all, if you're not happy, it could affect our project

[Todoroki: 17:32] Well, I tell everyone that it's a birthmark on my face when it's clearly a scar. I told a dude I wasn't gay because I didn't want to go out with him. I have depression but deny it when I get asked about it. Then there's a bunch of other stuff that I haven't told anyone that I won't even get into, but yeah

'Wow okay...' Izuku puffed his cheeks out. ‘I guess the reason Todoroki-kun doesn’t talk much is because he’s a over-sharer, but it’s okay. You got this, Izuku.’

[Me: 17:33] Lying and not disclosing something aren't the same thing! But with the stuff you have lied about, I can understand why you don't want people to know, especially considering the way others treat me just because I'm different. And your scar isn't anyone's business except your own!

He pressed send, then hesitated over the keyboard.

[Me: 17:34] Also! If you ever need to talk to someone, I'm here! We're friends now, aren't we? :)

Izuku stared at the screen, waiting for a response.

Several minutes passed without one and he was starting to question himself. However, just before Izuku could completely stress out over how badly he had fucked up, the screen brightened.

[Todoroki: 17:45] Thank you, Midoriya.

Izuku smiled at his phone.

That had gone better than he had expected.

☀️🌙

'Todoroki-kun!'

Shoto nodded to Midoriya, who was waiting by the gate. He was smiling again, but Shoto could tell he was nervous from the way his eyes were on high-alert, darting around the courtyard as if he were about to be attacked. Shoto didn't blame him though - in fact, he'd be more worried if his classmate wasn't on edge.

'Midoriya.' He greeted, once he reached his side. Due to the proximity though, he suddenly noticed the gravel rash that littered his new friend's jaw. 'What happened to you?'

'Er…' Midoriya blushed bright pink. Distantly, Shoto registered that it was actually quite cute, albeit he wouldn't admit it. 'I- I went for a run on Tuesday and tripped.'

'You should be more careful.' Shoto commented, eliciting a laugh from his classmate. 'I'm serious.'

'Yeah, I know but…' Midoriya cleared his throat. 'You just, you sound like my mum.'

His mum?

'Oh.'

'N- Not that that's a bad thing!' Midoriya frantically waved his hands in front of him. 'In fact, thank you… For caring, I guess. You're a kind person, Todoroki-kun!'

Shoto didn't know what to make of that. His stomach felt funny and his face was burning but he wasn't sure why. He coughed to compose himself.

'My house is this way.' He nodded in the right direction and they set off before Shoto could say or do anything he might regret.

The two of them walked in silence. Shoto noticed his classmate fiddling with the straps of his backpack as he mumbled to himself, but he said nothing. In fact, he found that he quite liked Midoriya's voice. It was quite soothing.

Suddenly, he saw a flash of blonde out of the corner of his eye and Shoto quickly looked to find Bakugou across the street. Midoriya hadn't noticed him yet, but Shoto recognised the sadistic smile plastered to Bakugou's face when he spotted the green-haired boy.

Shoto had a particular hatred of bullies, having grown up with one all his life. He knew about the general animosity between Midoriya and Bakugou, and how it had once ended up with the former out of school for almost a week when they were younger. Shoto also knew that Bakugou could be a violent fuck and, as a result, had never really bothered to talk to him.

Now though, Shoto saw the almost predatory look in his eyes as he smirked at Midoriya; he noticed how his classmate - his friend - froze at having been spotted.

'K- Kacchan…' Midoriya mumbled, a wobbly smile on his face. It made Shoto angry - not at Midoriya, but at Bakugou, and at himself for not intervening sooner, even though it wasn't really his problem.

Before he could stop himself, Shoto raised his arm and wrapped it around Midoriya's shoulder, bringing him close to his side. His classmate squeaked at the action, clearly tense.

'To- Todoroki-kun?!'

'Put your hand on my waist.' Shoto instructed, leaning in close to whisper in his ear. When Midoriya complied, snaking a trembling hand around him, Shoto hummed approvingly and looked up at Bakugou.

The blonde was watching them, mouth agape and clearly irritated. When he took a step towards them, Shoto flashed him a warning glare as if to say 'hands off', before pressing a swift kiss to Midoriya's fluffy curls to accentuate his point.

Bakugou stilled at that, his eye twitching, but Shoto knew he understood his position. On the social scale, Shoto was higher up than he was - as much as the latter wouldn't want to admit it - and so whoever Shoto said was off-limits was definitely off-limits. It didn't matter if it was an act or not.

The two of them continued forwards, watching as Bakugou eventually growled and skulked away. When he was out of sight, Midoriya audibly sighed and relaxed against him.

It was… Nice.

'Thank you.' His friend murmured. 'You didn't have to do that.'

'I wanted to.' Shoto shrugged. He knew he should relinquish his hold on Midoriya now that the threat had passed, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. The warmth that radiated from his classmate's touch was calming. Plus, Midoriya didn't seem too eager to let go either, so it wasn't like he was taking advantage of him or anything.

When they eventually reached his house, Shoto reluctantly broke away to fumble in his pocket for his keys. To his surprise though, the door was already unlocked.

Caution in his stance, he slid the door open and checked the shoe rack to see who was home. When Fuyumi's work shoes and Natsuo's trainers came into view, he sighed with relief and opened the door fully to alert his siblings of his arrival. 'It's me!'

It was only then that he registered Midoriya regarding him anxiously. 'Don't worry, it's just my brother and sister.'

'O- Okay.'

Shoto nodded and stepped inside, removing his shoes and waiting for Midoriya to do the same. He then led the way through his house, hoping there wouldn't be any interruptions, but alas, it seemed the universe hated him.

'Shotoutoooo!!!' Natsuo's voice rang out, before his older brother appeared, leaning against the door frame of his room. When he noticed Midoriya, half hidden behind Shoto, he grinned mischievously. 'You brought a friend over!'

'You- You didn't tell them I was coming?!' Midoriya squeaked so only Shoto could hear.

'Yes, I brought a friend home. What of it?' He ignored him and raised an eyebrow at his brother, unamused.

'Nee-San saw you two getting all lovey dovey down the street.'

'I don't-'

'It's true. Don't deny it!' Fuyumi's voice echoed down the hallway, eliciting a cackle from Natsuo.

'Whatever.' Shoto placed a hand on his hip, exasperated. 'Midoriya and I have a psychology assignment to get done, so I'd appreciate it if you fucked off.'

'Nawww, come on! I'm just having fun!' Natsuo winked before looking past him to address Midoriya. 'Shotouto pretends to be an aloof bad boy, but really he's a big softie who loves strawberry milk and manga. Isn't that right, Sho-?'

'NATSUO-NII!' Shoto exclaimed, completely mortified. He grabbed Midoriya's arm and dragged him down the corridor. 'We'll be leaving now!'

'Nice to meet you, Midoriya-kun!' Natsuo called, before Shoto slammed his bedroom door shut and sighed against it.

'He seems nice.' A quiet voice muttered.

Shit. Shoto's eyes widened and he took a breath, composing himself before he turned around to face Midoriya, who was fiddling with his sleeve.

'He's a pain in the arse.' He grumbled, before he strode forwards and set up the chabudai table in his room. 'He always does it. Something about wanting to make up for lost time.'

'Lost time?' Midoriya asked, removing his backpack to help.

'My old man wanted to keep me separate from my siblings when we were younger. Something about "not wanting to soil the perfect child".' Shoto shrugged, gathering two cushions and handing one to Midoriya. 'So it wasn't until about a year ago that I actually got to speak to them.'

'What happened a year ago?' Midoriya was definitely being nosy, but for some reason, Shoto didn't mind it; part of him actually wanted to tell him, even though he had no idea why. Something just told Shoto that he could trust him.

Or it's just because he's the first person your age who has ever bothered to ask. Another part of his mind supplied.

When the two of them sat down on the cushions adjacent to each other, Shoto pulled out his laptop, while Midoriya provided the textbook and workbook.

'When I was younger, my mother used to live at home too. She tried to protect us when the old bastard would come home and want to take his anger out on someone. He liked to take it out on me especially - make sure I toughened up - but she'd always turn his attention on her. One night, when I was about eight, mother had a complete breakdown. She saw the left side of my face, thought I was him and well… The closest thing was the kettle and boom.' He gestured vaguely to his scar. 'That's how this happened.'

Shoto didn't miss the look of complete horror on Izuku's face. 'He sent her away after that, which meant things got worse for me and my siblings. Aizawa-Sensei noticed my bruises last year and we've been working to get him put away, but it's difficult considering his position. It also didn't help that he's caught onto us and is now trying to pretend that everything is better now. That's why I'm allowed to see Natsuo and Fuyumi. He's been trying to manipulate things but he can't pretend forever.'

Shoto trailed off then and silence fell over them. He watched Midoriya for his reaction. He had never told anyone about that before.

He stared at his friend, but his vision became distorted. He thought of his old man, of how his mother had called him "unsightly" before burning him, of how his siblings used to look at him with apprehension and fear.

Shoto frowned. 'Sometimes I wonder if I'm just as bad as him.'

His words were spoken barely above a whisper, but the way Midoriya's head snapped to attention evidently showed that he had heard him.

'You know, Todoroki-kun…' He spoke gently, determined eyes finally meeting Shoto's own. 'I can't possibly understand everything you went through, but I do know this.'

A calloused hand landed on Shoto's shoulder and his vision re-focused to find a small smile gracing Midoriya's face. 'You're not your father. You're Todoroki Shoto, you're a kind person and you're my friend. He can't even compare to you.'

Shoto's mouth opened, but no words came out. Midoriya's words played on repeat in his head.

You're not your father. You're Todoroki Shoto.

He managed to turn his head away, hair hiding the stray tear that had fallen from his eye.

You're a kind person and you're my friend.

'Todoroki-kun, are you okay?'

So many thoughts were screaming inside his head. It was deafening, with Midoriya's words playing loudest of all.

He can't even compare to you.

'Toilet.' Shoto stood abruptly, pointedly not facing his classmate, and strode out of the room, ignoring Midoriya's bewildered shriek. He slid open the door to the bathroom opposite and shut himself away, turning the light on before he braced himself against the sink. His knuckles turned as white as the porcelain and he tried to calm his breathing.

Why was he acting like this? He was supposed to be calm, composed, aloof.

Just like father wanted. An unhelpful part of his mind taunted as tears streamed down his face. He felt a sob build up in the back of his throat. Hold it together. You're pathetic.

'Todoroki-kun.' His thoughts were interrupted by a quiet knock on the door. 'Should I get Natsuo or Fuyumi?'

'No!' Shoto exclaimed, a little harsher than he had intended. When Midoriya didn't immediately respond, he started to worry that he had scared him away.

'Okay.' His classmate eventually spoke, voice muffled due to the door. 'Can I come in?'

You don't want him to see you like this. You're supposed to be better than this-

'Yes.' He choked out, not looking up when the door slid open.

Gentle footfalls echoed on the tiles until Shoto felt a warm presence at his side. Midoriya then crouched down next to the sink to look up at Shoto.

'What's going through your mind?' He asked.

Everything.

'What you said just now, about me being kind and…' He swallowed heavily. 'You didn't mean it, did you? You were just saying it to make me feel better, right?'

'Oh, Todoroki-kun.' Midoriya gazed at him sadly. 'Of course I meant it. You told me to be honest with you, remember?'

Shoto leant his elbows on the sink to hold his face in his hands as he cried silently, only his ragged breathing exposing him.

He heard Midoriya shuffle to his feet. 'Can I… Can I hug you?'

Shoto blanked at that. Of all the things his friend could have said, he hadn't expected that. He furrowed his brow. When was the last time he had been properly hugged? With Fuyumi? His mother?

'Why?' He found himself asking instead, lowering his hands to look at Midoriya, who smiled softly at him.

'Because you look like you need it and I'm an expert hugger.'

Shoto blinked dumbly for a moment, regarding kind eyes, a genuine smile and open arms that radiated comfort, then slowly nodded.

'O- Okay…' He whispered.

Midoriya's smile brightened and he stepped forward, slowly wrapping his arms around Shoto's neck. One hand rested against his shoulder blades, while the other gently held the back of his head, guiding Shoto to the crook of Midoriya's neck. He went willingly and basked in the warmth, immediately relaxing against his friend.

Crooked fingers stroked his hair as Midoriya leant his head against him and he quickly became overwhelmed with emotion. Kind touches were so foreign to him that he usually hated the idea of physical contact. He didn't know why he had let Midoriya in, but he was glad he did.

A broken sob suddenly escaped him and he gingerly returned the hug, squeezing Midoriya's waist and clinging to his shirt. He didn't know how long they stayed like that, Midoriya's voice whispering words of encouragement until his eyes were dry, his friend's shirt was soaked and his throat was hoarse.

'I'm sorry.' He mumbled against Midoriya's neck. 'I don't know what came over me.'

'You don't owe anyone an apology.' His classmate quickly assured, echoing Shoto's words from a few days ago. 'Do you feel better?'

'I don't know.' Shoto answered honestly. Sure, letting his tears fall after years of bottling everything up was cathartic, but he had also unloaded all of his problems onto someone else just because of one comment; it made him feel disgusted at himself.

'It's okay not to be sure right now.' Midoriya pulled back to look him in the eye. 'I'll always be here to talk if you need, Todoroki-kun. We're friends and I want to help.'

Shoto must have pulled a face, because his classmate huffed, amused. 'It's an open offer. We can leave it for now.'

'Thank you, Midoriya.' Shoto didn't elaborate, but he didn't think he needed to, based on the way his friend's smile brightened.

'Shall we go work on our project for a bit?' Midoriya asked patiently. 'Then maybe we could watch a movie or something? I saw your Ghibli badges on your jacket - maybe we could watch one of them?'

Shoto wiped his eyes with his fist and nodded.

'That sounds nice.'

☀️🌙

'How could you?!' Izuku exclaimed, hand over his heart, horrified as his mum showed Todoroki his baby photos.

He had left them alone for one minute to get snacks, and now his soon-to-be-disowned mother was huddled up with his friend on the sofa, flicking through a photo album like it wasn't the most embarrassing thing in the world.

The two hardly spared him a glance, before continuing to point and giggle at baby Izuku in a hero onesie.

'Midoriya really is cute.' Todoroki smiled warmly and Izuku's cheeks suddenly felt a little hotter. 'How old was he in this one?'

It had been several weeks since their project had been assigned. Despite the emotional outbursts, they had managed to get their presentation done and performed. Their grades were still being determined, but Izuku was confident that they had done well.

That wasn't all that had happened though. Ever since that day Todoroki had opened up about his past, the two of them had grown closer, frequently texting and hanging out at Izuku's after school. They even spent their free periods together, which seemed to intrigue and confuse a lot of students. After all, Todoroki was the scary, mysterious pretty boy and Izuku was a self-identified nerd who liked to mumble to himself. Neither of them really cared about what their peers thought though.

As the days turned into weeks, however, Izuku realised that not only were people no longer tormenting him in the corridors, but Todoroki had started to smile more. Whenever Izuku would ramble about anatomy, he would listen, lips upturned and process every word with interest. Izuku loved his friend's smile and each one felt special because Izuku had caused it.

It took a single conversation with Uraraka to realise what was happening, and another one with Fuyumi to gain the courage to do what he was about to do.

'Mum, could I talk to Todoroki-kun alone for a minute?' Izuku rubbed the back of his neck and looked away. His mum knew about his crush - she had easily picked up on it due to Izuku's habit of muttering about the things he liked - so he hoped she would take the hint.

'Okay, sweetheart.' She grinned when Izuku's jaw dropped, mortified at the endearment. He also didn't miss the way Todoroki bit his bottom lip slightly with amusement.

Before Izuku could chastise her for clearly inappropriate behaviour in front of company, his mum closed the album and stood. 'I'll be in my room if you need me.'

When the door shut behind her, Izuku sighed with relief.

'I love her more than anything but I swear she gets some sort of sick satisfaction in seeing me suffer.' He groaned.

'I think she's great.' Todoroki smiled up at him. It lit up his entire face, no matter how small, and Izuku thought he looked beautiful.

Focus!

'So what did you want to talk about?' His friend asked, leaning back and crossing one leg over the other.

'You're a dear friend to me and I know we weren't close until recently, but you've become a big part of my life.' He began, fiddling with his hands to ease his nerves. 'I'm sorry, I don't really know how to say this.'

'It's okay.' Todoroki spoke, his smile vanishing. 'I understand if you feel like it's too much. Sometimes I can get a bit overwhelmed by all this - having a friend - but I treasure your friendship too, so I'll respect your decision if you want to stop-'

'Wait, what?' Izuku exclaimed. 'I'm trying to tell you that I have a crush on you, not that I don't want to be friends.'

Shoto stared at him with wide eyes.

…

Oh fuck.

Izuku slapped a hand over his mouth and let out a strangled cry as realisation set in. He wasn't even that surprised at having admitted his feelings; he was surprised at how easy it had been.

What wasn't easy was the look of uncertainty on Todoroki's face.

'Midoriya…'

'I'm so sorry for making you uncomfortable-'

'I have a crush on you too, I think.'

That was the thing he least expected his friend to say.

'You do?'

'Yeah.' Todoroki scratched at his flushed cheek, no longer looking like his usually-composed self and instead rather vulnerable. 'I've known for a while that I feel different towards you compared to others. I feel… Safe around you, like I can trust you, and while everyone calls you plain-looking, I think you're actually quite cute.'

Izuku felt like his head was going to explode. One, Todoroki had just called him cute; two, his crush just admitted to feeling safe around him; and three, Todoroki was looking at him with such sincerity that his chest ached.

'That makes me so happy, Todoroki-kun, you have no idea.' He whispered, tears spilling from his eyes. 'I feel the same about you, except you're not cute, you're… Actually quite breathtaking.'

When he was met with silence, Izuku looked up to find Todoroki looking at him with amusement.

'Well now you've made me look bad.' He huffed, standing up and walking towards him.

'You could never look bad. That was my whole point. ' Izuku quipped, before suddenly being enveloped in a hug.

That was another thing about their relationship that surprised Izuku in a good way: Todoroki, touch-starved most of his life, had become particularly fond of cuddles. Now, Izuku had no qualms with this - he encouraged his friend to smother him with hugs whenever he needed it - but this hug felt different. Several emotions were communicated in that moment.

It almost felt desperate, yet hopeful.

'I'll have to thank Aizawa for pairing us up for that project.' Todoroki murmured against his neck, eliciting a short laugh from Izuku.

'Yeah definitely.' He pulled away to take his friend's hand, interlocking their fingers. 'We can thank him together.'

Todoroki huffed with mirth.

'I like the sound of that.'

#tododeku #quirkless AU #midoriya izuku #todoroki shoto #minor tsuchako #tw: mentions of past abuse #lovely people #AgarJelly writes #and now i sleep #words don't look like words anymore

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imadisneyfan · 2 years

Text

Chapter six of my future sing story

After the news about the baby ash had sickness for a couple of days and johnny never left her side except to watch alicia when nooshy had told him that she wanted juice and a snack so johnny got that for her. Later alicia came in and asked 'is daddy coming to see me today?' ' he said he will my little one ' johnny said as he told her while he helped ash. 'Can't wait to see my daddy again ' she said smiling. Johnny was happy for her he knew they had a great relationship together. 'Daddy can I watch full house on my Netflixs please?' She asked then .' Sure princess ' said johnny and he hooked it up for her as she laughed at Stephanie's,Joey's, and Jessie's and kimmy's lines the most and johnny did to ,he told her Jessie was a great singer. 'His the best' she said while smiling. They sang the forever song even ash joined in who was getting better by then.johnny hold onto her hand when they were singing forever from full house. Shortly nooshy came into the room she watched the show to and she thought kimmy was hilarious. Then she also added 'oh before I came in here I forgot to tell you a porcupine is in the house along with a baby gorilla and another huge gorilla ' 'Mommy, daddy ' cried alicia as she ran into the other room,but nooshy looked at johnny and ash and said 'it's not johnny ' 'alicia wait!' Called out johnny as he turned off the show and he ash and nooshy followed her and found her with the porcupine and baby gorilla and the other huge gorilla. 'Son how are you my boy I can't believe I am seeing you in the present ' joked the huge gorilla who had a eye patch around his one eye and no shirt on just pants and scars. 'Dad?' Said present johnny. 'Come here you old softy and give your old man a hug' joked his dad again. As he hugged him hard. 'I can't believe this but uh what happened to your eye?' 'In a fight with stupid crystal and his gang ' he said. ' Oh ' said johnny sadly. "Hey don't worry I am fine' said big daddy. 'Mommy meet Mommy ' giggled alicia then as she should the porcupine with the baby gorilla in her hands. 'Wow this is me,got my work cut out ' she joked. 'Um am I'm famous?' Asked present ash. ' Oh yes we had a record deal then later we retired and I got together with johnny and had kids and this is my new little bundle of joy Logan ' 'I have a brother yahhhh!' Cried alicia. 'Alicia shhhhh his sleeping ' said future ash softly. 'Sorry were's daddy?' She asked then.'Yah I thought he was coming today?' Present johnny asked them.'that's what we came to tell you alicia will have to stay with you another two or three weeks because my son got badly hurt by crystal's men by saving ash and little Logan because he found out were we lived and tried to kill them about what had happened in the show at his theater and johnny tried to step in and saved wife and son but they shot him ' 'DADDY!' Cried alicia as she went near her grandfather and sobbed. Big daddy hugged her back. 'You can see your father little one' he told her qently. ' I got hurt?' Said present johnny as he had tears in his eyes for alicia. 'Yes you did son 'said big daddy. 'Wow mate we gotta keep you safe especially here 'said nooshy. 'Yes please keep a eye on him and my little princess please 'said future ash as she kissed her daughter's forehead. 'Can I see daddy?' Asked alicia. Ash looked at big daddy and he nodded and said 'yes I know my son will love that' he said. 'Can we come?' Asked present johnny. 'Well I am afraid we can only take one of you back into the future it's the rule ' said big daddy in a stern voice. 'You go johnny I will stay here' said ash as she kissed him.'Yah I will watch over her big guy and I will tell your dad were you are to' 'okay thanks guys ' said present johnny. Then they left and landed in the future. Present johnny couldn't believe what the future looked like the buildings were really different they had flying cars and and they only had green and red lights instead of yellow. 'Wow the future sure is different ' said johnny. 'Well what do you expect son' joked big daddy. 'Come on daddy I wanna show my

fav fast food place ' said alicia as she grabbed her daddy's hand. 'Wow princess were going to the hospital remember to see your real daddy 'put in ash. 'Oh right Sorry mommy ' said alicia. Later they reached the hospital and alicia asked 'mommy can I have a doughnut please?' 'Alicia ash that is....' ' Don't worry ash it's on me' came a voice from behind them it was a elephant family and it was meena, Alfonso and there daughter pansy. 'PANSY!' Cried alicia as she raced towards her friend again. 'Oh johnny are you better?' Asked meena as she saw present Johnny.'Oh meena this is present johnny remember we took alicia to stay with him when the war was going on 'said ash.'Oh right Sorry ' said meena. 'That's quite all right meena ' said present johnny with a joke. 'Mommy can we have are treat know?' Asked pansy as she was getting hungry. 'When we go upstairs to see Alicia's daddy, okay?' Said meena. 'Daddy!' Cried alicia as she raced towards the stairs. 'Alicia show down young lady' called out ash.'I caught her mate' said future nooshy as she and a wolf came around the corner with alicia. 'Alicia you know better than to run off like that ' said ash in a stern voice as she was still holding onto little Logan in her arms. 'I wanna see daddy 'whined alicia. 'I know you do honey but just take it easy okay?' Said ash quietly. 'Okay mommy 'said alicia. ' Oh hi johnny ' said future nooshy 'that's johnny from the present he is still cute ' said Porsha with a smile. Present johnny grinned. 'Hey he is also mine don't forget 'joked ash as she put her hand on his which made johnny turned even red.everyone laughed. 'Can we eat know?' Came pansy's voice just then.'pansy' said meena as she had a stern voice on her face. Everyone laughed. 'You know were gonna go up and see johnny and then you can eat' said Alfonso to his daughter as they went up and reached the 4th floor,were johnny was in. Later they saw there friend Angie who was a brown nurse dog and ash went right to her and said 'how's my husband?' 'His still a little out cold but still coming around he moved his fingers but his still unconscious ' said Angie. 'Oh my son stay with us ' said big daddy hopefully as they were outside his room. Then Angie saw present Johnny and said 'oh who do we have here?' 'This is my daddy ' said alicia as she hugged him. Angie looked at future johnny then at this johnny 'two Johnny's but....but' 'Don't worry I will explain later'said big daddy. Present johnny saw future johnny he couldn't believe how hurt he was then he hugged alicia and said 'I am here for you remember that my little one ' he told her gently and alicia hugged him,ash smiled at him and said thank you with her lips. Present johnny smiled back at her. Later Johnny's friends went to see him then his family alicia and ash were right near his bed in tears and big daddy was behind them he to had tears in his eyes. Present johnny was holding onto little Logan who was sleeping in his arms still. He looked at future johnny he saw how hurt he was and then he had a tear in his eyes for him. Then ash took present johnny to see him and johnny looked at future johnny and said 'I hope you will get better soon your family loves you especially your wife and daughter and your father. And I hope you will get better soon to. Your been a great friend I've ever had ' said present johnny as he hugged him.

More coming soon hope you like this chapter

Alicia, Logan and pansy are mine same with the future characters

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ivorytowerblr · 2 years

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NaNoWriMo 2021: Nov 31st

This is definitely a real date and not a fake one. Shhhhh...

Title: Warcraft: Invasion (Vol 1 of Reborn AU) Word Count: 43995 (of 50000) Includes: Violence, mature sexual content, strong language. Summary: It was a dark and stormy night when the rift opened. From it spilled warriors of an alien culture bent on finding and destroying the cause of a sickness that plagued their world, all unknowing that the true cause was right under their noses all along.

Five years after the birth of his son, Llane Wrynn, Crown Prince of Stormwind, would learn of a terrible threat to his people, his nation, and his very world. The only natural thing to do is send his son to the protective walls of Northshire Abbey and, all unknowing, to the protection of a great hero, the prodigy-knight Mara Fordragon.

When sickness ravages your very world, you have no choice but to do whatever it takes to cure it, even if it means traveling to another world by means of the foulest of dark sorceries. It means standing at the side of a butcher, a monster, an abuser, a warrior, a chieftain, a hero to your clan. It means putting aside what is right to do what you must.

All these threads and more weave together to bring about a war like any other; two worlds will never be the same again.

Previous: 1st . 2nd . 3rd . 4th . 5th . 6th . 7th . 8th. . 9th . 10th . 11th . 12th . 13th . 14th . 15th . 16th . 17th . 18th . 19th . 20th . 21st . 22nd . 23rd . 24th . 25th . 26th . 27th . 28th . 29th . 30th .

Gone was the quiet, peaceful atmosphere of Northshire Abbey’s kitchens. Instead, Queen Adalia stood over a cauldron, stirring soup while two of the monks prepared ingredients to throw into it. Another was serving those who came in and taking dishes to be washed by another two monks.

“Hello, Uther,” Adalia called out as she gestured to one of the monks. He nodded and immediately began serving out stew and pieces of fresh bread. “You can rest in here for a little while. The one fortunate thing that’s coming from all of this is that most people are having meals brought to them.”

“Oh, thank you, Your Majesty,” Uther said, and took his food to one of the small tables that still remained within the kitchen. “Have you been working all day too?”

“We take breaks,” Adalia said. “More breaks that you’ve had, from what I understand.”

Uther made a face as Arnulf chuckled and accepted his own meal before sitting down. “The lad did quite well, do not fear. He just got carried away in the manner that many do in cases like these. One patient leads to another, and still another.”

“Will it ever end?” Uther asked quietly. “All the people coming in wounded, sick, and afraid? Will things ever go back to the way they used to be?”

“No,” Adalia said quietly. “Even when the refugees stop coming there will be people who are soul-sick and traumatized. Some may never heal. The bodies that bear wounds will never be without scars. The homes that were burnt will never be exactly as they were before this started.”

Uther stared down at his stew. “Why did this have to happen? Why did these... monsters come here in the first place?”

“We don’t know,” Adalia said. “My husband’s spies are trying to learn more but without a common language, it’s difficult. We need to find someone to teach us but all those we try to capture fight to the death. Their writing is a little like the dwarven runic language, but not much. Nothing we can make sense of.”

“Do they hate us?” Uther asked, looking up at her. “Why are they doing this?”

“That’s something else we don’t know,” Adalia said. “I was not even born during the last major conflict we had, though there have been skirmishes with the Beast Men and the trolls before this. Most of the time, the reason why fighting happens is simple: someone has something that someone else wants. In the case of the late king, he wanted the throne and fought to take it. Beast Men often want food, resources, or anything they fixate on. The trolls want land, claiming that all that is Azeroth was once theirs, though we’ve never found any troll ruins outside of Stranglethorn Vale.”

“These beasts burn farmland,” Arnulf said. “They attack farmers and soldiers alike. They are like demons from the old stories.”

“Don’t frighten the boy,” Adalia said sternly. “There must be some kind of method to their madness. Perhaps they can only eat ashes. Perhaps they are all farmers too that take up arms in times of war. We don’t know. We don’t know anything.”

“Which is the real trouble,” Mara said, and Uther looked up. “I was talking to some of the officers that escorted the wounded here. They’re expecting a division of knights to reinforce the border, keep them in Redridge. It won’t save Lakeshire or the other towns, but it will spare Elwynn for a time.”

“What about Duskwood?” asked one of the monks. “They can get there by going through Treewind as easily as through Elwynn and Redridge.”

“No sign of that, but the borders are being reinforced.” Mara looked to Uther with a pained expression on her face. “Anything on the other side, though, has been taken.”

“I know,” Uther said softly. “From the moment we heard where they’d come from, I...”

Mara crossed the room to him and put her hand on his shoulder in sympathy. Uther shuddered. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“My father,” Uther began unsteadily, eyes burning, “used to hit me. He thought I was weak. He thought... I don’t really understand it. He said some things about my mother and one of her friends.”

Mara -- and Arnulf -- nodded with understanding. “Without knowing your father, I don’t know why he would treat you in such a way, but no matter what his reason would have been, you didn’t deserve it.”

“I know,” Uther said softly, and wiped at his eyes. “That’s what my mother said, and Abbot Faol said. But she didn’t think it was good for me to stay at home, so she sent me here. I’ve always liked to read about the Light and the words of its followers, which is why my mother thought I’d be safe here. I don’t... do you think she got away?”

“If she did, we’ll look,” Mara promised. “We’ll do what we can to find her.”

#nanowrimo 2021 #fanfiction #warcraft #warcraft series: reborn au #it's been a little bit rough in real life so i wanted a couple of extra days to help fill out my 50k

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cryinonthebusdyinlittlewuss · 3 years

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I didn't honestly expect so many people to want to read this little au lol, but anyway, in accordance to my last post and subsequent want of more I wrote a snippet to illustrate my idea. No uncle First yet, for increased angst reasons later.

Izuku stared down at his hands, barley able to be seen in the darkness. He took a deep breath and ran his fingers over the ugly gnarled scars on one another. It was late, or early, the clock on his bedside reading 3:23AM. He knows, knows he should be sleeping, that staying awake is only going to punish himself tomorrow, if his father notices he might make the training worse. Izuku wanted to go upstairs and get some tea, but there was no opening the door until morning.

A crash on the other side of the large grey room startles him, hands gripping suddenly like a prayer. Then he noticed a figure, or more specifically, the soft outline of the figure, a little fuzzy, a little brighter then it should be. He let's on a hissing breath of relief. "Nana?"

The outline drifts closer, stepping over air like a solid foundation. "Shhhhh! Hey pipsqueak. Sorry to wake you." She was trying to whisper, but a naturally boisterous voice made it carry through the cavernous room. Izuku dragged a hand through his curls, snagging here and there on knots. In the dim light the display of him alarm clock provided he could see the spiky outlines of Nana's ponytail.

"No it's ok. I've been up for a bit." He could see her head tilt, reading the clock, could imagine the consered downturn to her ever present smile.

"It's kinda late kid..."

He just sighed.

Nana was probably the only ghost that could stand his guts here. The hallways tended to be swarming with them, the tortured, vengeful kind. The air was so thick with anguish Izuku was sure it stained the walls, that even the living could feel the pain. All the ghosts his father has created through the years. It was an sickening number, considering they were only a handful compared to all the deaths he caused, and considering not all of the ghosts that were created decided to follow him around. They hated him, but most were too afraid of him having the same power of his father. An irrational fear considering the only thing he could do was see them, and he'd never hurt a ghost at all. Usually when he walked down they pushed over eachother like a rolling, churning wave of fear and pain to get away from him.

It was better the further away he went, where the ghosts thought of him as less the son of the devil and more a kid that could see them, and in extension, help them.

#dfo #bhna #mha #midoriya izuku #nana shimura #ghost au #idk its a tag #thats what the good au-ers do right???#writing #my writing #do not repost #reblogs are encouraged

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tenmillionwhumperflies · 3 years

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Cloudwalker Series Part 21

Did I whump the beans? Yes, am I sorry? No. I like this one and there’s a lot of oofs.

Warnings: Descriptions of wounds, blood, blood magic/rituals, panicked characters, being restrained while a loved one gets whumped.

Masterlist Here

Approx WC: 2600

Dyan’s scream was enough to startle the horses in their stable some distance away. In that moment, he didn’t care. “Blue!” Dyan rushed towards him and dropped down beside him, not caring about his own pain that jarred his body from the sudden impact.

Avizon limped over to him and knelt down carefully. Blue was laying face down, so Avizon quickly checked his pulse. “He’s still alive. Help me with him.” He and Dyan hadn’t even been able to turn him over before Orrien arrived, panting for breath and wide eyes. Dyan guessed it was because he’d screamed. But seeing him so panicked did nothing for Dyan’s fear.

“Blue! Get back, Dyan, let me through,” Orrien ordered. Dyan could only obey, shuffling back as fast as he could until his back hit the wall and even then he tried to go back another inch. He couldn’t stop staring in shock. He whimpered. He wanted to hold Blue, to help, but there was nothing he could do. He had to hope these humans could do enough. If he lost Blue… No, no he couldn’t lose his friend.

He watched as Orrien turned Blue over with care, supporting his head. Dyan noted Blue’s sickly complexion, the way his chest barely rose and fell. Orrien swore, and Dyan soon saw why. The bite mark the other cloudwalker had left. It looked… well, he didn’t even know what could cause such a thing. It was dark and looked painful. It was like a burnt piece of wood.

“That’s dark magic,” Avizon said almost immediately. “How on Earth has he gotten dark magic in him?! The other cloudwalker? But they’re creatures of light.” Blue coughed feebly and Orrien tensed, seeing ink-black liquid escape the corner of his mouth. They quickly adjusted him, turning him on his side. Orrien gently stroked his hair before he seemed to realise it. He grimaced.

“This isn’t just dark magic, this is something else, stronger… this is evil, pure evil. An abyss compared to your magic.”

Avizon suddenly threw his head up to stare at Dyan with wide eyes for a moment. It was like he’d realised something. He rushed over to Dyan which made him squeak and cower in the corner. He couldn't help but panic. He expected master to be mad, to hit him because he’d failed to protect Blue and this was all his fault. This was all his fault and he was going to get punished- he deserved to be punished!

“I’m sorry!” he cried, bracing, which yanked Avizon back like he was on a rope. “What? Dyan, you don’t need to be sorry, please come here. We don’t have the time, I’m sorry little bird, I have to make sure you’re-”

“Take the time,” Orrien instructed. “Dyan, what are you sorry for? Do you know what happened?” Dyan whimpered. “I. I don’t know, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I couldn’t save him and keep him safe. I’m sorry p.please don’t be mad. I tried so hard, please...” Avizon sighed softly and wiped a tear out of Dyan’s eye. Dyan braced again, but Avizon simply began to remove one of his bandages, hushing him gently. “I’m not mad at you. I’m not mad, but you were bitten too, and I need to make sure you’re not hurting like that. I’m sorry for startling you. We have to act fast, that’s all. Dyan, I could never punish you for something like that.”

Dyan whimpered and Avizon mumbled reassurances in a bid to quickly calm him. The bandages came away to reveal Dyan’s bite mark, seeing darkness at the edges of the puncture wounds, but it was nothing compared to Blue’s. “It seems Dyan’s magic is protecting him enough…” “Blue also got bit first,” Orrien said. “It could be a number of things.”

Avizon grimaced, taking a moment to cup Dyan’s cheek to give him comfort. Dyan leaned into it and whimpered, craving it. He was just so scared. “We have to find that cloudwalker. I need to understand how this came about, how it happened. Until then, the best I can do is try to absorb this magic.”

“Don’t be stupid,” Orrien retorted. “That’s far too dangerous.” Dyan couldn’t believe how Orrien spoke to Avizon. It didn’t feel right seeing and hearing his master not being in charge.

Avizon simply shrugged. “I’ve done worse, and Blue needs me to take that risk. Another way is to burn it out with light magic, perhaps, but it will take a lot and could kill him. I should be able to take it without risk-”

Orrien exclaimed, “And it will make you a cruel bastard again. That magic is so strong it might not let you give it up. Avizon, I can’t let you!” “If you’d let me finish, I can store it, trap it into something. I will be able to get rid of it, my magic is strong, and darkness loves to spread. It will go to a new host. I can’t let these birds die!”

Dyan whimpered and curled up in his wings. His fear was bubbling in his chest. Master was scared, he’d panicked Dyan already and now he was saying they could die… this was too much for him to process all at once. Avizon swore, realising his mistake. “It’s going to be alright, Dyan. I’m sorry, don’t be scared. I won’t let anything happen to you. But I need your help, we have to find that cloudwalker, I won’t keep him, I won’t hurt him, but I have to understand what happened.”

Dyan nodded slowly, trying to fight all that fear back for now. He had to help Blue. His own panic wasn’t important right now. “Um… I. I don’t know how I can help.” “Call for help, see if you can get him to come here,” Avizon answered.

Dyan bit his lip, but went outside to do as his master asked. He hoped he didn’t get attacked again. His hands were shaking, and it felt wrong of him to do such a thing, to trick a cloudwalker, but for Blue, he’s do anything, and he trusted his master to not hurt him.

He called out, once, twice, three times. He was surprised to find Ihuka rushing towards him, but then he paused, seeing that Dyan wasn’t in any danger.

“We have to talk to the cloudwalker,” Dyan said quickly. “Blue is dying, we have to talk to them and find a way!" He decided to leave out the fact he could be next.

Ihuka nodded and called out, which was far louder and better than Dyan’s. Dyan eventually stopped, letting Ihuka do the work until finally, finally, the cloudwalker appeared. Dyan tensed and couldn't help but step back in fear. “What do you want?” he hissed. His black hair was still long, but the shackle scars on his wrists made it clear he had not been free all his life. His eyes carried an unnatural reddish grow which made Dyan feel uneasy.

Dyan opened his mouth to speak, but Avizon had grabbed the cloudwalker with his powers. He shrieked and tried to get away but Avizon was not letting him go. He dragged him into the barn, restrained, and forced him to kneel in front of Blue, seeing the damage he had left behind by attacking the innocent lad as Orrien would call him.

“How do you have this magic?” Avizon asked, he looked at Dyan and nodded as a prompt for him to translate. Dyan did so. “The same reason that everything we are is broken!” the cloudwalker shrieked. “Humans! Hurting us, separating us, using horrible magic on us that makes our venom black and stops us hunting and makes us starve! Humans destroy EVERYTHING!”

Dyan trembled but still translated it word for word and Avizon frowned. “Someone is corrupting you?... what is the name of this human? Please, we want to help.”

Dyan translated again and added a plea. He cared about Blue. He didn't want to lose him. These were good humans, they could help, they could protect them or maybe even stop the human. The cloudwalker snarled, but all the same, he screwed up his face.“B.Boruk?... Borg...”

Avizon didn’t need to hear anymore. He clenched his fist. “Borgurk… I should have known!” he ground out. “Keep your head,” Orrien warned.

Avizon went to the back of his cart and found a small glass vial. “Don’t be afraid, I just need to see your venom,” he said to the cloudwalker. The cloudwalker bared his teeth, but Avizon only used that as a means of getting the vial under his canine. “Shhhhh, it’s alright. I’m going to help you.” Dyan couldn't believe how fearless Avizon was being. To just walk up to the cloudwalker that had come close to killing Blue and himself.

Avizon began to gently massage a spot on the back of the cloudwalkers jaw, under his ear until it whined and several droplets of black liquid began to appear. “Orrien, see if that liquid is coming from Blue's teeth.” Orrien carefully opened Blue’s mouth to look. “No, it’s the back of his throat. Southern cloudwalkers have venom glands, but they're not actually usable. He can't make venom. This is different, it must be in his organs..."

Avizon kept working, coaxing more venom out, but he knew he was playing with time, something Blue was rapidly running out of. Dyan didn’t understand why he needed the venom when Blue was laying on the floor dying, but he trusted him. Avizon looked up at the cloudwalker and paused, seeing their eyes, seeing the redness.

"Don’t tell me… Fire fever… you're running out of light magic- it's killing you,” he exclaimed to the creature who only glared at him. “Being a cloudwalker must protect you from most of the symptoms. The dark magic is going bad, rotting, it's killing him- that's why Blue is in such a bad way. It's magic decay!"

Avizon looked over to Ihuka, “Bring me some eggs. Eggs, Ihuka.” Ihuka nodded quickly and disappeared. Dyan had taught him what eggs were during their stay. Dyan was now very glad he did.

Dyan inched over to Avizon and said "W.what's magic decay?"

Avizon spared a glance to Dyan and began to explain. "Dark magic isn't meant to be in a human- or a cloudwalker. It rots, and it can kill whoever is using it if it's not used and managed properly. When it's not used, it becomes physical; it becomes like a magic infection. It's killing this cloudwalker and he doesn't know it. It's infected his venom, so when he bit Blue, it passed on a lot of that 'infection' to him… and onto you."

Dyan gulped. He didn't like this at all, he didn't want to die, he didn't want Blue to die.

"It's going to be alright, Dyan, I swear. I'm not letting you go," Avizon promised. “I will fix this no matter what it takes.”

Once he had enough of the venom, he put the cork on it and looked at a cut Dyan had given the bird the day before. It was still bleeding. That would do. Ihuka returned with the eggs, and Avizon managed to get him to put them on the floor beside him. “Eggs… Avizon, you’ve gone mad.” “Oh, I went mad a long time before this. Orrien, make sure everyone keeps their distance. I have an idea.”

Orrien picked Blue up and carried him up to the back of the barn. Ihuka and Dyan followed.

Avizon looked down at the scared bird in front of him and hushed him before he closed his eyes and put his hand over the bleeding wound. Dyan stared with wide eyes as he mumbled and drew what looked like black smoke out of the cloudwalkers body. The cloudwalker screamed in pain but Avizon didn't stop. He kept pulling, dragging more and more smoke out of him.

Dyan wanted to turn away but he was frozen in place, staring as Avizon drew it all out. Avizon’s eyes were red, cherry red and blood slipped down his cheeks from his eyes. Dyan whimpered and watched as Avizon took the egg in one hand and wiped the blood from his cheek with one finger. He drew a symbol on the egg with the blood and then groaned in pain. The smoke that was swirling around Avizon slowly went into the egg, which caused Avizon pain.

Finally, it was done, and the egg now looked like a lump of coal. Avizon looked exhausted and the cloudwalker had fallen unconscious. Avizon released the bird from his power and set him down on a pile of straw to sleep it off.

"By the gods, Avizon…" Orrien mumbled, staring in half shock, half horror. "Blood magic now as well…"

"I know… I'm not proud of it, but if it saves him, then I'll do what I must. Eggs work temporarily, as a means of getting the power out into a container. But they don’t last. You need to destroy them anyway so it won’t be a problem."

Avizon picked up an egg and staggered over to Blue and knelt down.

"Same again." He took another egg that Ihuka had brought and put it by his side. "I need him to bleed. A small cut will do it. Here."

Orrien took his knife from his belt and with a grimace nicked at Blue's skin right by the bite mark, drawing a slightly heavier breath from Blue's sleeping body. Blood began to trickle, and then Orrien stepped back, keeping the birds back.

"Mind Dyan," Avizon warned in advance before he began to draw out the darkness.

Dyan shook as he watched Avizon cause pain to Blue. Even if it was saving him, he hated seeing it. Blue cried out, somehow dragged into consciousness. Avizon ignored how he tried to bite and scratch him out of instinct. He held firm, clenching his teeth til he thought they'd break.

Dyan's body acted before he could stop himself. He lunged forward but Orrien was quick and wrapped him in a tight hug from behind. "No, Dyan! It has to happen. I know it's awful, but it has to happen. Stay strong, lad."

Dyan tried to drown out the screams, not even realising he’d started to cry until there was suddenly silence. Avizon finally had it all. Blue dropped down motionless again. Dyan wanted to get to him, but he was surprised when Ihuka stood in front of him and opened his wings, cutting off his vision.

"Dyan… stay," he said weakly. “Rest.”

Dyan shrunk down onto his knees and cried. He hated this! He just wanted to get to Blue. He wanted to hold him and see if he was okay and offer him comfort, but Orrien still held him.

He tried to push past them again, but Orrien clamped a hand on his forehead. "Sleep."

Dyan clenched his teeth and battled against the spell. He didn't know how he did it, he just couldn't sleep right now. He found the strength in him to resist the order and he fought it with everything he had.

Orrien tried again but Dyan was determined. "Let me get to him," he ground out. "I… I have to…" "How strong is your magic?! Sleep!" Orrien strained.

This time Dyan wasn't quite able to hold off against the massive wave that took over him but he tried all the same. He slowly succumbed to sleep despite his efforts to stay awake. He reached out for Blue and whimpered before everything faded away.

Ftr if the whole magic thing didn’t make sense I’d be happy to explain it or answer any questions. I have those ask games open still too.

#Cloudwalker series #whump #tw:blood #okay so the story went NYOOM in an upwards direction in terms of drama #Dyan #Blue #Avizon #Orrien #Ihuka

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