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agent-jones · 3 years

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Why Gwen Hate Is Rooted In Misogyny And How The Premise Of Torchwood Is Often Ignored In Order To Hate On Her

Hello, hi. Jacklynn here again to talk your head off about something I feel is important to address when it comes to Torchwood and its fandom. Now, you’ve seen me post my defence of her and her actions [ not condoning, always remember this ] but, this is more on why the hate she receives is absolutely rooted in misogyny whether you want to believe it is or not, especially when talking about the portrayal and reception of women over the years in media [ and, frankly, in society ] as well as the fact that Torchwood’s very premise explains why Gwen should not be so vitriolically hated by the fans.

First, let’s talk about one reason she’s hated: her personality. Oh. This one is just blatant. I’ve seen her called both boring AND bitchy. The first one is obvious to address and that’s the bitchy one. Women who are seen as strong and independent are often labelled as bitchy, while men who act in the same manner are respected and good leaders. This is just simply based on the patriarchy we live in, a woman must be docile and and quiet and if she’s stands for something she believes in, suddenly she’s considered loud and angry and a bitch. How many times have we heard those words thrown at feminists for standing up for women? And boring? If a woman isn’t shown to be fun all the time and up for anything [ see the movie Yes, Man and Zooey’s character ] she’s considered boring. This isn’t just Gwen, this has always been the world women are forced to live in: either you’re a slut or you’re a prude, you’re a bitch or you’re just boring. Comments like that about Gwen’s personality are just downright rooted in the everyday sexism women face in society.

Second, the double standard within the Torchwood fandom when it comes to Gwen’s affair. Cheating on Rhys is the number one reason I always see for Gwen hate. And you know what? It’s absolutely valid to criticise her on how she treated Rhys. It was selfish and she made bad decisions. But, you know what’s never addressed? The fact that Owen knew exactly what he was doing when he was tempting Gwen away from Rhys, purposefully trying to get her to cheat on him. He was very open about the fact that he “tortures people in happy relationships” because he wants to. But, he’s given a free pass for his actions. Why? Had the roles been reversed and Owen’s character was a woman, and Gwen’s a man, Owen’s character would have been considered a ‘homewrecking slut’ who didn’t care about the fact that the man she went after was in a relationship and would have been labelled as such and would have been crucified by the fandom as Gwen was for cheating.

Why? Why is Owen excused for his actions? He was far from innocent. Yes, it is ultimately Gwen’s relationahip, but it takes two to tango. Owen should be disliked just as much for purposefully intending to cause harm to Rhys and not caring for a single moment about the consequences of his actions.

Jack is also given a free pass when it comes to the Gwack stuff. I never understood why people claim that Gwen ‘threw herself at Jack’ when almost every scene which implied Gwack, Jack is the one making moves. He’s the one who does the sexy gun lesson, he’s the one who corners her in the cells and does version two of ‘I came back for you,’ he’s the one sending longing glances at her as she’s kissing Rhys. And yes, these things are returned. But, once again Jack is given a free pass when he knows Gwen is in a relationship and yet does not have the decency to honour that either.

So are we seeing the pattern when it comes to the biggest reason Gwen is hated? The men are given free passes and loved while the woman is given all the blame. Each one made their choices and none of them were good. So why does the fandom only punish the woman?

Also, I would like to quickly address that she also gets hate for ‘getting in the way of Jack and Ianto’ which A. Is absolutely untrue, she never once tries to get Jack to choose her over Ianto, never acts like it’s a competition, is never once anything but sweet to Ianto. She is supportive of them and is never canonically attempting to get between them. B. Is pretty damn close to fetishism and blaming women for ‘getting in the way of your m/m ship’ needs to be re-examined.

Now, as I mentioned above, the premise of the show is often ignored in order to hate on Gwen. RTD has stated that Torchwood is about flawed and real human beings trying to save the world. They are not outright heroes, and they never claim to be. They are doing their best but they are all still human.

Human beings make mistakes. Human beings have emotional reactions that are irrational. Human beings do bad things for selfish reasons. Human beings can be inherently good people who made bad decisions and they can also be inherently bad people who do good things some times. Human beings are flawed and that’s the point of the show.

Gwen was not written to be the antithesis to this. She was written as an outsider coming into this new world and quickly learning how it changes you and affects you and can even bring our your more human traits. She was simply brought in to bring a new perspective for the team, not because she’s better than them.

But, so often this premise of real human beings trying to save the world and do what they can is ignored in order to hate Gwen. She’s just as flawed as everyone else, she’s not more flawed or any worse than anyone else on the team. But, their flaws are either ignored or brushed off in order to love them.

Ianto is the fandom golden child. I get it. I adore him with my whole heart. But, he manipulated everyone on the team, emotionally manipulated Jack, used the team in order to do what he had to to save Lisa. He got innocent people killed. He’s been shown to resort to killing when it felt needed. He has a dark side and he is not without his own flaws. He betrayed Jack twice and then went behind his back again in Adrift. He is not perfect. He is good, but he is human and makes mistakes.

Owen is a self-proclaimed twat who spends the entirety of series one purposefully trying to get Gwen to cheat on her boyfriend, being an absolute dick to Tosh. Not to mention he full on date r**** two people in the first episode. He also betrays Jack and nearly ends the world trying to do what he thought was right. Owen makes mistakes. He does really fucked up shit, but that’s what Torchwood is isn’t it? He’s fucked up but he does what he can to save the world. We love him for his growth and don’t let his mistakes make him hated by the fandom.

Tosh isn’t perfect either. She invaded her teammates’ inner most private thoughts and brought an alien into Torchwood. Yes, she was manipulated into it, but she listened in on Gwen and Owen because she was jealous. Jealousy and pettiness are very much shown within Tosh’s character. From the comments she makes to Gwen about getting her feet under the table, to invading their privacy to her tension about Martha. Tosh made mistakes and she has some not very nice qualities to her personality. But, we love her because she’s Torchwood and she’s good and we can forgive her mistakes because she’s human.

Jack lived a conman’s life. He’s resorted to killing before asking questions, he’s physically tortured peopl. Jack refused to let his team know a single thing about him and kept them in the dark when the truth could have helped everyone. He abandoned them and for a long time was only using Torchwood as a way to wait for the Doctor to come back and he would leave. He makes decisions that other people wouldn’t, he tells Gwen to keep a hold of her life with Rhys but would have been the first in line to sleep with her had she asked him to. But, we love Jack because he is Jack Harkness and he cares and he does so much to save the world and takes so much weight on his shoulders. He is a flawed human being doing what he can to do good and we forgive him because we know he’s trying.

The other team members get the forgiveness of the premise of the show, and yet Gwen doesn’t. Why? She’s just as much part of the team and while she was written to be the protagonist and main character, the premise of the show still extends to her. So, why is she hated for falling under that same flawed human being saving the world umbrella that the rest of the team is protected by?

Anyway, I’m sure there’s more I could say on the matter. But, honestly what this boils down to is that I understand the other characters deserved more storylines and air time, what they gave Gwen wasn’t used well because the writers didn’t treat her well either.

But the constant need to tear Gwen down in order to love the other characters is absolutely unnecessary.

#Gwen Cooper #Torchwood #ianto jones #jack harkness #owen harper #toshiko sato #; I haven’t much left to say in the tags but there’s that

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1990jeevas · 3 years

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I know you posted it days ago but you said something about wanting to rant about either karl or his fanbase and its been itching at my brain. Ive no clue whats happening or what is happening at all cause no one seems to be making clear points?? Or explaining anything?

Obviously you do NOT have to talk about it im sure it might be a sore point to rant because people can get SO needlessly rude to others over it. But if you want to idk explain? Just rant? Im definetly curious what it was over or about.

The "you dont need to talk about this" is amplified by the fact i am DAYS late and you are probably over it by now.

okay hi yes im happy to talk about this but i think i should preface with two things:

1) even tho it may seem like im biased towards him or being very defensive of him im actually a super casual karl viewer and the only reason i am super defensive of him sometimes is bc we act a lot alike irl and that is mainly because of our neurodivegency. when i say a lot i mean we share traits like "annoying" stimming (jumping around, making loud noises, repeating the same phrases until everyone is sick of hearing them), the difficulty reading situations, the very obvious issues with volume control and not just bouncing from subject to subject to subject as we fucking please. basically anything you've seen karl do on stream that is Very Neurodivergent ive done the same in my own way which is why i get defensive when i see people calling him annoying or saying they dont like him, usually for these types of reasons. that being said, when i say im a very casual karl viewer, i fucking mean it. i usually only watch him when he's streaming with other ccs i like or when he's doing chill alt streams bc even with the annoying donos, he's pretty relaxing and comforting when he's just fucking around by himself and he isnt trying to get as hype as he would on a main channel stream. so yeah, it may seem like im biased and sure, i guess i am on some level, but it's not coming from a place of me hyperfixating on him or me even loving him as a cc, it's coming from me being a neurodivergent who likes him just enough to get upset when i see people basically being casually ableist towards him.

2) i dont have all the facts or even a great understanding on what the fuck has been happening recently with his "drama"...mostly bc he talked about it on his priv, which im not on, and people are gatekeeping the tweets, as they always do, and basically making you "dm to see them" (which is already a problem in and of itself bc apparently in these tweets he said he didnt want them being ss and shared, yet they are being shared thru dms over and over and over again like. at that point just stop withholding the information and post the fucking shit, you clearly dont care that he said "dont share"). additionally, most of the threads ive seen on this situation havent actually explained the initial issue, just talked about his apology (a lot of people have said "it's bad" but havent said why and with no screenshots ((i havent asked for someone to dm me them and i still havent seen them posted, which is mildly surprising, but incredibly frustrating at this point)), i only have a few basic details i can actually assess it on) or they talked about the initial issue in very vague details so um. excuse me trying to explain this now, but ill try and make it make sense with how little ive actually pieced together.

(oh, also, here's my first rant about the ableism in this fandom which is way more broad. this is a pretty different rant from that one, but they're both pretty big reasons why i hate this fandoms treatment of karl)

so basically the problems started with mr beast being apart of a charity stream that donated either to autism speaks or to a similar company, im unsure on that part. im also unsure on if the people participating in the stream actually knew of this or not bc, from what i remember, the money was being donated to a separate organization that was like. under the bad company or some shit like that, idk how stuff like that works and also i read about this shit months ago bc this originally happened months ago and just sorta came to a head recently.

anyways, i think karl was supposed to be apart of this stream but pulled out of it right before (that or these were two separate streams and karl was supposed to participate in the first but pulled out while mr beast did both?? idk. regardless karl did not actually participate, just mr beast). from there people started doing the guilt from association bullshit they always do, this was also doubled by the fact that the chris being racist stuff came out sometime around then and basically he got dragged all over twitter for "being ableist" and "supporting racists" and i cant remember if he actually apologized when this originally happened or not. i vaguely remember him apologizing about something back then but i genuinely dont know if it was this or something else.

basically that died down eventually, a good chunk of people unstanned him but him and honktwt didnt end up getting the lovely lil technotwt treatment and they still havent yet, surprisingly. good for them honestly ajsksk

but now we get to the past few weeks and apparently something happened with him "laughing at someone saying the r slur" (it was mizkif, i believe), specifically when it was directed at other people, which is a big yikes, obviously, but when karl was called out for this a lot of people kind of. made this into a situation that it wasnt bc um. basically karl didnt laugh at it, he gave a few nervous giggles, as people often do when in a situation like that (and karl specifically said he does this in the one part of his apology tweet which i did stumble upon, although it wasnt the important part of the apology thread bc why would it be) and people fucking crucified him for it. they quite literally dragged a neurodivergent man for supposedly "laughing at the r slur" when he can literally reclaim it and also he was just nervous laughing.

and this is where the situation just gets really bad because they. basically forced him to admit that he was autistic on his priv to apologize for this. i havent seen the screenshots of him saying this, but i saw people discussing it and i am frankly so fucking pissed about this because sure, it was a bad situation, and i understand people wanting an explanation, but an apology? for a neurodivergent man nervous laughing at a slur he can reclaim? and then forcing the man to admit something he literally said in that tweet he didnt want people to know which is why people were being so gatekeepy about it while also LOUDLY discussing the situation, as if that wouldnt drive MORE PEOPLE to look for screenshots and ways to get ahold of this information? and then people had the audacity to call it a "bad apology" when they had quite literally just violated his privacy by forcing him to admit something that he shouldnt have needed to share in the first place if he didnt want to, which he didnt.

and this is why im so pissed off. karl is already constantly picked at and made fun of and called annoying for his neurodivergent traits, things which he literally cant help, things which are generally harmless, and now he was forced into a situation where he can now be further picked at and made fun of and called annoying bc they forced him to admit something private instead of just understanding and accepting that he had been nervous laughing at someone using a slur he has definetly been called for his neurodivergency.

tldr of my thoughts: yes i think karl needed to address this situation, it definetly looked bad, but twitter stans have this sense of entitlement with their ccs and because of that, they consistently take it way too far and harm the people they claim to care about so dearly. we've seen it happen time and time again with dream, but this is the first time ive seen them basically force someone to out themselves to make their apology "valid" and most of them still seem to not want to accept it anyways, which just makes me feel bad for him bc now that info is out their and people are just disregarding it to continue "holding him accountable".

anyways, i think that's all i can really say on this topic rn tbh, if anyone else knows this situation better please feel free to lmk clarifications and ill add them in since, like i said, i know fuck all thanks to twitter being so goddamn hush hush about the important details while simultaneously being the loudest mfers about how much they hate karl now instead of just fucking unfollowing and moving on.

thanks for the ask and im sorry if this is confusing!! i just think this is one of those weird situations where like. i think karl deserved some criticism for what happened and how he handled it or at least he shouldve been asked to address it but that just. isnt what happened, at all. he was harrassed. karl got harrassed and because of that he handled this situation even more sloppily than he probably wouldve and exposed private info about himself that he didnt feel comfortable doing and it just. fucking sucks tbh.

#shit self #asks #karl jacobs #discourse #fandom critical #mcyt fandom critical #dsmp fandom critical #ask to tag #ableism #only reason im even saying what he said in those tweets is bc this situation literally makes no sense otherwise and basically everyone on #twt already fucking exposed this shit to people in and outside the fandom by bitching #long post #bangerz

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petri808 · 4 years

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Do You Believe Me Now?

The original post & Reblogs. Since I added more to the original post including smut and it’s at 4k words, I cleaned it up and posted the story to AO3. @bmarvels enjoy lol.

Hakyona, modern AU setting. NSFW

“Psst, Yona?”

I sit up, shielding my eyes to the sunlight. “What is it Lili?”

“You’re missing out on all the hot studs walking around, that’s what!”

“Lili, I told you I came to the beach to relax before finals, not gawk.”

I lie back down on my towel and close my eyes again. It didn’t matter to me what kind of eye candy I was missing out on. Books, studying are all I have time to focus on and besides, there already was one person who’d stolen my heart. Too bad he didn’t seem to notice it. Or at least I wasn’t sure. It was so damn hard to tell with him! He was such a sarcastic ass that I couldn’t tell if he was flirting or just being a punk to me. A groan fires off in my head, and yet through all that, I still fell in love.

But I couldn’t help it! I swear! We’ve known each other since we were kids and once I’d realized I cared more for him then as a friend, I fear that’s all he sees me as. Like a little sister. He is two years older than me after all, and both his guardian and my parents told him to always protect me. Pfft. A frown shadows my expression. Well I’m not that little girl anymore!

“Yona get up, get up, get up!”

“Lili, for the last time...”

“Isn’t that Hak over there?”

Quickly, I sit up and look over to where she’s pointing. My heart skips or more like takes a dive. Heaven help me that is Hak! He stood out in the throng of beach goers not just in height but presence.

“I think he’s gotten even cuter,” she snickers. “Damn, all his friends are hot too! Why didn’t you tell me he’s got such cute friends?!”

“I-I never noticed.”

“Are you blind? Oh, wait, I get it.” She pokes my side, “just blind to him, right?”

“Ugh!” I cover my face as I feel it heating up. “Lili stop trying to embarrass me, please?!”

“Oh look, he’s heading this way. Hey Hak?!”

I grab her waving hands. “Lili!!”

“Oh hey,” Hak waves back.

I see him grin and his group starts walking in our direction. Can I die, like right now? It was hard enough seeing him normally, but since he’s at the beach, his attire consists of board shorts and no shirt. I don’t know how he keeps his body in such condition, but I swear it’s like it was sculpted by a master artist.

He runs a hand through his wet hair as he chats with the other males, laughing, and smiling. His blue eyes twinkling against the sunlight. I squeeze my thighs together at the sight. All the girls they pass by ogle him, and I don’t blame them. The man was just too handsome for his own good. Before he reaches us, the group shake hands or fist bumps and the rest take off towards the snack stand.

“Hey Lili, Yona,” he grins, “didn’t know you two would be here today.”

“Well, neither did we, unless Yona was hiding that information from me.”

“I was not! I just came to relax.”

“So, relax,” he teases. “What’s stopping you?”

A six-foot hottie, I mumble in my head. “Shouldn’t you go hang out with your friends?”

“Nah.” He stands his surfboard up and sits down right beside me. “We’re finished surfing and was about to leave, but I’d rather hang out with a pretty girl.”

I feel the blush blooming on my face, but I try not to react. Not exactly easy with Lili grinning like a crazy person egging me on. I narrow my eyes at her. If they could shoot daggers, they would.

“You should stop teasing me like that,” I cross my arms, “it’s not funny.”

“But I’m not teasing you, I’m serious.”

Right... “Hak, you always say stuff like that, but I know you just see me as a friend. It’s getting old.”

“Or maybe it’s you who doesn’t want to believe it.” He forces my face to look at him. “What am I supposed to do make you believe me?”

My throat seizes up into a sputter. “I-I don’t know!”

He rolls his eyes. “Lili what do you think I should do to prove it?”

“I think you should just kiss her,” the girl smirks.

“Now that’s a good idea!”

“Don’t you dare Hak!”

“Oh, but I dare.”

He grabs me before I can scramble away. I squeal, but he quickly cuts off my defenses and plants his lips against mine. My eyes widen. Oh my god he did it! He actually kissed me?!

In a blink it was over and as my brain comes back into focus, all I see is a cocky grin and a softened smile. “Do you believe me now?”

Oof! I cross my arms and turn my head away in a huff. “No, I don’t. You’re just putting on a show for Lili and once we leave, it’ll go right back to you treating me like a little sister again, picking on me and teasing me.”

He gasps, feigning indignation, then turns to Lili. “Will you excuse us? I think I need to make this stick.”

“Wait? What?!”

“No, not at all,” the girl snickers. She quickly shoves my belongings into my bag and into my lap. “Here’s your things Yona.”

“Come on,” he drags me to my feet, “my red-haired little princess. We need some privacy.”

“Whoa, Wait!” I tug at his hold. Damn it he’s too strong for me. “Where are you taking me?!”

Hak holds his surfboard under one arm and keeps his other hand gripped to mine. “You don’t believe me, so I need to prove it, right? Don’t make me throw you over my shoulder cause you know I will.”

“Ugh! Hak you’re so cruel to me!” I whine but give in to avoid any more embarrassment. “At least tell me where we’re going.”

“My place so I can shower and,” he grins down in a side-eye, “so we can have a private conversation.”

I gulp hard. Alone with Hak?!

The entire ride in his car, I sit there in the passenger seat running scenarios in my head. How was he going to prove anything to me? I’ve got years of dealing with his sarcasm under my belt, so it’ll take some effort to convince me I’m not just a friend. Though friends don’t normally go around kissing each other unless there’s more to it... Oh please, I scoff in my head. This is Hak, and to prove a point he just might. I’ve convinced myself of that notion.

“Tell me Yona, have you ever seen me with a girlfriend? Don’t answer, just think about it.”

“Because...”

He covers my mouth. “Just think about it until we get to my place.”

When he releases me, I stare out the window fuming. I know that answer! It’s because he’s always just focused on his martial arts and sports. When does he have time for one? I mean there’s nothing wrong with that, but don’t use it as an excuse to trick me. Ugh! And if he really wanted a girlfriend, nothing was stopping him from making a move.

He leaves the surfboard in the foyer and prompts me into the studio apartment. “Are you thirsty? There’s drinks in the fridge, help yourself.” I shake my head no. “Then come on, let’s take a shower.”

My jaw drops and cheeks flush the color of my hair. “S-Shower? With you?!”

“Why not? Gramps used to bathe us together when we were younger.”

“We’re not little kids anymore Hak,” I sputter out, “it’s inappropriate for us to do that now.”

He walks up and kisses the back of my hand. “Not, if I’m trying to seduce you.”

I roll my eyes. “You can drop the rouse now that we’re alone.”

He sighs and runs a hand down his face. “Yona, it’s not a rouse. I’ve always loved you. That’s why I’ve never had a girlfriend.” He turns to his bathroom with his head hung down. “You know what? I give up. Stay till I get out and I’ll take you home or you’re free to leave. It’s up to you.” He pauses his walk. “And for the record, I wouldn’t take advantage of you. I just wanted to see your reaction... guess I got it, huh?”

I watch the door close behind him and drop onto the edge of his bed. My mind is spinning, confused, this was the first time I truly felt like... I believed every word he said. The water turns on in the room, and the sounds of the shower curtain closing was like a nail being hammered into my coffin. Oh god, what have I done? No, no, no! I shake my cradled head. I hadn’t meant to push him away! But that’s exactly what I’ve done. The poor guy looked completely dejected now and here I am sitting on his bed alone.

The tears gather in my eyes and I no longer hold them back from falling free. This man really loves me? “Oh, Hak...” I’m such a fool. I curl up on his bed uncaring of being found this way as the tears stain the bedding. He deserves someone who trusts him, not questions what he does. I should know this man better by now. Hak would never do anything to truly hurt me, and yet here I just broke his heart.

Maybe I should just leave and take my shame with me. But I can’t bring myself to move nor get off his bed. So, I curl in tighter, clinging to the blanket, and covering my head with my arm. I want nothing more than to be with him...

The bathroom door opening doesn’t stir me. I don’t want to show my face. I want to hide, yet I’m too scared to lose him.

“Yona? Yona, why are you crying?!”

The concern in his voice make me sob harder. I feel the bed shift as he’s no doubt taken a place beside me. It makes me feel even worse to know I’d hurt him and yet he still cares too much to see me in pain. I don’t fight back as he gathers me into his lap. His warm body felt wonderful against my barely clothed skin, and his arms, so strong... I always feel safe within their confines.

“Please don’t cry Yona, you know I can’t take it when you cry.” He strokes along my back, soothing and gentle, with his voice soft near my ear. “I didn’t mean to hurt you, princess you know that’s the last thing I ever wanna do.”

“I‘m sorry,” I whimper through the tears. “But you really do love me, don’t you? Why’d I never realize this? I’m such an idiot.”

“No, you were right. I shouldn’t have teased you and just told you long ago,” he tips my chin up and softens his gaze, “how much you really mean to me.”

I reach up and cradle his cheek as he gently wipes away my drying tears. We gaze into each other’s eyes while time passes unnoticed. I have no idea for how long, but all I can think is how beautiful his eyes are... windows to the soul, and his is bared naked for me to see. I pull his head down and place a second kiss upon his lips. “And Hak, I’ve always loved you too. How could I not, even when you drive me crazy... in the end you’re the only one that’s ever made me feel happy.”

“It’s my body, right? You just love me because of my body.”

I smack his chest hard, “do you always have to ruin the moment and make a joke!”

As I move to hit him a second time, he grabs my wrist, laughing at my weak attempt. “I’m sorry, it’s just too easy to tease you. I’ll stop for now.” He kisses my fingers before releasing them. “I should get dressed.”

It was in that moment that I realize Hak only had a towel on leaving very little between us. My eyes widen, “o-oh!” One wrong move and the fabric would easily unravel.

“Are you gonna get off my lap?”

I take a deep breath, ready to make a move of my own. My eyes blink slowly, rising to meet his in a coy but stern flutter. “No.”

He chuckles, “no? Come on princess, let me get dressed.”

“Maybe... I’d rather you be undressed.”

Hak’s eyes shrink to pinpoints, with his mouth slightly agape in shock that I would say such a bravely seductive suggestion. I giggle, oh how quickly this bad boy crumbles. My hands weave around his neck, fingers ghosting along the skin.

This man has haunted my dreams and my loins for far too long, and now that I know he loves me, I’m not going to waste the opportunity. I shift my position to straddle his thighs comfortably, and lift my body pulling him to me, kissing, caressing, showing him, this was no fairy tale.

“Yona, wh-what are you doing?!”

“Showing you, I believe. Now shh...” placing a finger on his lips, “no talk, just drive.” I move his frozen hands from my waist to my ass where it’s bare warmth seems to revive them, for they squeeze gently and provide support. “Mmm,” I murmur against his lips; this was better than any dream.

“You’ll be the death of me my princess,” his lips press forward against mine. “But one I’ll gladly face.”

“Don’t worry Hak, we’ll slay the dragon together.”

He growls low, “careful. Do you have any idea how much I’ve pent up over the years?”

I narrow my gaze, “yes, I do.” Then unroll the portion of towel keeping it from unraveling in retort. “Now stop treating me like a kid.”

His blue eyes flashing wild are the last thing I register before finding myself flipped onto my back. I gasp, pinned below him, so small compared to his larger frame. He reaches behind my back and pulls the strings securing my bikini top free. I move to cover my chest on instinct, blushing fiercely from his lustful gaze.

“Now coy?” He teases lightly. So, I drop my hands slowly to the sides, baring myself to him. But I can’t bring myself to look him in the eyes just yet. “You know we can stop at any time, right? I won’t make you do anything you don’t want to.”

“No, no, I know... this is just new and a little scary.”

“Then allow me to make those fears melt away princess.”

I nod my head, “yes, please don’t stop Hak. I do want this too.”

My top is tossed to the side as he lowers himself further, kissing at the nape of my neck. His lips burn trails along my skin in a ring of fire, suckling, in pressured kisses. I want to tell him no hickeys please, but the words die away in my throat when I feel his hands begin to massage my breasts.

The temperature of the room rises along with my moans muffled to the roar in my eardrums. I hear little, but the rest of my senses are on overdrive. Every touch like electrical charges and the smell of sex quickly enveloping my nose. I can still taste a bit of sea salt from his lips.

“I still can’t believe it’s not a dream,” he mumbles against the swell of my breasts. Me neither, I purr back.

I gasp loudly and my body reacts when his mouth covets a nipple, arching and pressing into his oral kisses. He sucks and pulses against the sensitive button, teasing with both tongue and teeth in a twin assault, playing with one breast then switching to the other. His hands mold and caress, guiding my body where he wants it to go, while mine react based on his movements. They run through his hair or trail his back and neck. My fingers squeezing, nails digging into his flesh when he hits a sensitive area.

As he moves lower down my stomach, my breathing hitches. He’d left my breasts swollen and tender and now there’s a sinister glint in his eyes. He watches me watching him as he places the softest kisses in a trail.

Down he goes, yanking my bottoms off as his body slides off the end of bed. I squeak loudly as he yanks me to the edge of the bed but before I can grasp what he’s doing my legs are over his shoulders and his mouth clamps down on my sex. A gasping moan cuts through the air and my body freaks out with a jolt. “Hak!”

His hands grip my pelvis, keeping them in his clutches. I see the wide grin on his face as his tongue sweeps slow and steady from bottom to top parting my folds. When it comes center with my clit, he sucks hard and I see stars. My hands flail, grabbing and holding tight to the bedding around me. I bite my lip to stifle my moans but it’s a fruitless effort when he’s eating me out like a lollipop.

How is he so good at this?! Every pass of his tongue, swirling, sucking on my bud sends delicious shivers rolling through my body. I can’t think, I can’t see, my mind is consumed by his ministrations like a puppet on a string.

“Look at me Yona.” His deep voice commands and I do as if under a spell to follow his beck and call. My eyes gaze back, moist and glistened, half-lidded in the throes of lust. “Time for the next level,” he smirks.

Next level? What d... “Ha—kaaaa!” I cry out as his finger slips into my entrance. My thighs clench against his head, squeezing it like a cantaloupe. But he doesn’t stop there, sliding it in and out a couple times, then adding a second. His hand moves and holds me down by my stomach as my body begins to writhe.

His tongue continues to suck on my clit, but his fingers add to the heat roiling in my core like a rubber band being stretched to its breaking point. I’ve given myself little orgasms before but nothing like the explosion evident on the horizon. I can feel the friction they’re creating against my entrance. How the palm of his hand bumps when he pushes them as deep as they’ll reach.

His fingers scissor and curl in a come-hither motion pressing along the inside walls. I jolt and squeak when they hit upon a spot. I hear him chuckle. What the hell is he—oh, oh!!! “Hak—u!” The fiery friction his fingers create coupled with the sucking on my clit are too much, snapping the final coil. His garbled name sputters out in waves like the orgasm rocking my body, but he holds me down easily, relentlessly to make sure my orgasm has me seeing white.

It feels so good it hurts! “S-St-Stop—“ I push on his head as tears of joy cloud my vision. The area was on fire, sensitive to even the slightest touch.

Hak sits up on his knees licking off the clear juices coating his fingers with the biggest grin of accomplishment I’ve ever seen him sporting. “You’re so beautiful all flushed and out of breath.” His smile makes be blush again.

He crawls back on, helping me to scoot over to the center of the bed. I swallow hard when I see the size of his erection. Being a tiny girl with a big guy... you do the math. ‘Don’t freak yourself out now Yona,’ I calm my racing mind. Already my imagination is running wild at how it will finally feel to go all the way with Hak.

Seeing a worried tremble in my lip, Hak cradles me close against his body. He tips my chin, running his thumb against my cheek. “It’s up to you Yona if you want to continue. It was my pleasure simply satisfying you.”

“I’ve wanted this w-with you, to have you be the first Hak. I-I wanna make you feel good too. Please, let me?”

“Okay, whatever makes you happy.” He sits up with his legs bent at the knee and rotated to the sides. Then he pat his thighs. “I’ve heard this position is easier for the first time,” he explains, “you get to control things, especially in the beginning and stuff.”

I nod my head nervously. Hak doesn’t need to elaborate for I understand exactly what he’s talking about. Girls talk, and sometimes there’s pain if it’s too fast or rough. The fact Hak cared enough to know that relaxes me a little and makes me feel relieved.

He rolls on the condom I grab from his nightstand. “Just go-slow princess. There’s no need to rush. And you tell me if there’s something you want me to do.”

“Okay,” releases out in a long exhale. I position myself, saddling his lap and raised, poised over him. He holds his dick steady for me as I lower myself. A shiver ripples through my frame when it barely makes contact; my sex still swollen and tender to touch.

I nibble my lip and close my eyes, pushing myself onto him, gasping when the head pushes through. The instant heat also takes me by surprise. Guess all that blood flow served a second purpose. But it wasn’t just me who’d gasped. I look up and see Hak’s head tilted back slightly and his eyes closed. Even his fingers are curled against my hips. I press on, slowly sinking lower until it’s all the way inside. This wasn’t so bad after all. No, it felt freaking amazing! I bring his face back to focus and kiss his lips. “Are you okay Hak? You look shocked.”

He groans and presses deeper into the kiss. “If I’d known sex felt this good, I would’ve seduced you sooner.”

“This is your first time?!”

“Of course, it is!”

“But you seemed so skilled...” I blush, “you know earlier, I just assumed.”

“Jaeha’s been schooling me,” he blushes too. “I wanted to be ready if this ever happened. But don’t tell him I told you that!”

I giggle, “my lips are sealed, but...” I look down shyly, “I don’t know what to do next.”

“Oh!” He chuckles and starts directing my hips with his hands, “rock from you waist, use your thighs to help you. Just go by how it feels, and I’ll help you too.”

So that’s what I do. “Like this?” My hips start rocking forward and back. His hands drop down and cradle my ass and I feel them squeezing as he groans yes’s and his eyes roll back. It feels so good I join his moans. Wow it’s hard to focus at the same time!

His forehead falls onto my shoulder and his breathing grows haggard as I press longer, harder into my strides. I almost giggle out loud when my brain equates this to riding a stallion. Yup a stallion named Hak.

My breathing shortens as I pace myself. The heat building up in my core is aching again. This grind is causing a delectable friction that if I don’t slow down, I’ll lose myself too quickly.

“Fuck, Yona you feel so good,” he moans and kisses at the nape of my neck. “It’s settled, I’m marrying you and I won’t take no for an answer.”

I pull his face back up, “I accept,” kissing him on the lips. But as I hold the kiss, I lift my frame, sliding up his shaft and stopping when I feel the head pressured at the entrance. A muffled groan is trapped in his throat, redoubled when I slide down again. Oh, I like how this feels!

Over and over I do it, allowing the length to rub against the pressured walls, before pushing back down again. “Fuck,” he moans. “Yona, don’t stop, don’t... stop...”

As amazing as it feels my legs are growing tired. “I’m sorry,” I whimper, “ I can’t keep this up Hak.”

He lifts me up and rolls us over until I’m on my back and he’s nestled between my thighs. Then he maneuvers my legs over his hips, and I comply by hooking my ankles into his thighs. Hak starts pumping; I gasp and arch my back pressing my chest to his. Wow it’s deeper!

His head is rested on the bed next to mine as he uses his elbows to keep his weight off me. But his hands are glued to my pelvis and applying a downward force on them and his hips press upward.

“Hak,” I whine. He’s gonna make me cum a second time! His thrusts outpace my ability to keep up and I give in to the heat waves of my orgasm.

“Fuck,” he groans too as his breathing falters and voice grows strained.

Hak pumps his hips a few more times and I can feel a pulsing sensation inside coming from his dick that I assume is from an orgasm. Finally, after one last thrust, he buries himself to the hilt inside me and collapses in a panting mess.

After several minutes, he bundles me in his arms and rolls us to a side position while our breathing calms down. He kisses my forehead. “I love you so much Yona. That was more than I could have ever dreamed of.”

“Mmhmm,” I agree and nestle close to his warm chest. “I love you too Hak.”

“I meant what I said earlier, you know. I’m gonna marry you Yona.”

I lift my head and pull his lips against mine. “I believe you.”

#hakyona #akayona #Akatsuki no yona #hakyona fan fic #hakyona fanfiction #hak son #yona #son hak #hak #hakyona AU #hakyona smut #hakyona fan fiction #modern setting

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connordavidscamera · 4 years

Text

Welcome to Our Channel! | CB

A/n: here’s part 1 of a very (hopefully) long series to come. I hope you enjoy it because I already love this series and these characters so much.

Summary: Just a couple trying to navigate a YouTube Channel together.

Warnings: sexual innuendos? fluff?

Word Count: 1.8k

***

Connor sets up the camera in front of the big window of his apartment. I’m sitting on the floor in his hoodie, one of the cushions of the couch beneath me. “How’s the lighting, bub? Everything look okay?”

He hums, “Almost. Just gotta adjust - there. Perfect... Wow.”

“What?” I ask, playing with the ends of my hair.

“Nothing, you’re perfect.”

I feel the burn on my cheeks. “Con, stop it!”

“Never,” he comes around the set up and squats down next to me. “Can I have a kiss?”

“Always,” I grasp the side of his jaw and press a soft kiss to his lips. I lick my lips when we pull away, scrunching up my face. “You taste like coffee.”

“And you love it, don’t you?”

“The only way I like it,” I concur and lean in to kiss him again, letting him take the lead, deepening it just a little, his tongue brushing against my bottom lip. “Mmmh…” I groan and pull away. “Not right now, bub. There’s a camera,” I tease.

“It’s not on yet. Should I turn it on? Start our channel off with a bang… literally.”

I laugh and push him away, causing him to fall down. “You’re gross. Stop it.”

“You did not think it was gross last night. Or this morning. And probably not after we finish this video.”

“You never get tired, do you?” I ask, playing with the hem of my shorts, smiling adoringly at my beautiful boy.

“Not when you’re looking at me like that. Or when you’re in my hoodie like that. Which reminds me,” he leans in and presses a kiss to my cheek, “you’re keeping that on later.”

I bite my bottom lip and nod. “Yes sir.”

He groans, “Alright, lover, let’s get this going. Yeah?”

“Yes, let’s. Sit with me.”

“You can sit on my lap.”

I roll my eyes, “Just sit down, bub. You have the remote?”

He hands it to me, situating himself next to me. “We’re in frame?”

I squint at the viewfinder, “Yeah, it looks like it. Are we even in focus?”

“Yeah, I made sure when you sat down. You just have to press that button to start recording.”

“Okay, but what are you even supposed to say in an introduction?”

“Umm… we’re the Brashier’s and welcome to our channel?” He says with a raised eyebrow.

“Come on, Con. I’m serious. This is different from when I started my channel. I just reviewed some makeup. This is new territory for both of us.”

“I know, but hey, it doesn’t have to be perfect. We’re just starting out. We’ll figure it out as we go.”

“You also realize that doing this means fully exposing our relationship. Letting everyone in. We can’t go back to our secret love affair once they know,” I tease.

He bumps his nose with mine, “I do know that, Harley. But I also know that I can’t keep you a secret any longer. The taciturn posting has to come to an end at some point.”

I can’t help the laugh that escapes my throat, “Someone learned a new word today, huh?”

“I did,” he beams. “Hey that should be a thing in our videos.”

“What should?”

“Like a word of the day. Or a word of the week or something.”

“A word of the week, Connor, what the fuck?”

“It’s a suggestion. We can be both entertaining and educational.”

“Oh yeah, that’s definitely gonna be our hook. Get that alliteration thing going on. We just need one more ‘e’ word to really send it home. Entertaining, educational, and…”

“Electric?”

“Electric?” I repeat, a small smile on my lips.

“Yeah. Like what we have, our relationship. It’s electric. We’re entertaining, educational, and electric.”

I lean in a press a chaste kiss to his lips, “Connor Brashier, have I told you today how hopelessly in love with you I am?”

“Well, I’m just as in love with you, Harley Madden.”

There’s literally nothing I can do to hide the blush that creeps up on my cheeks. “We should start filming.”

He tilts his head toward the camera. “I think it already is.”

“What? I didn’t even press the button.” I look up and sure enough, there’s that familiar blinking red light.

“Well I don’t exactly know how much you got, but we’re not cutting it out.”

---

I look over at my boyfriend, “Is it bad that I’m nervous? I mean, yeah. We’ve confirmed that we’re together. But this is confirming we’re together. That’s scary, right? Tell me I’m not the only one that thinks this is scary.”

He chuckles and pulls me closer to his side, covering my legs with the blanket thrown over his lap. “You’re not the only one. I’ve liked the privacy of us too. But we both know that it was getting harder to hide from the public eye. Don’t you think it’s better for us to go in this way, just full force, no more hiding.”

“Well… maybe a little hiding. They don’t have to know everything.”

He nods and presses a kiss to my cheek. “But you also know that we don’t have to do this if you’re not ready. We can wait a little while longer.”

I stare at the video in front of us. It’s only 2 minutes and 37 seconds. Just an introduction. But this is giving everyone their first real view of our life. Of our relationship that’s been (for the most part) completely private. One that (even without full confirmation) people already have an opinion on. Sure there have been one or two Instagram posts without tagging, without captions. And for a year and three months, on almost every single video or photo I post on my social media, I get asked “Did Connor give you that necklace?” I subconsciously reach for my necklace that rests against my collar bone and rub my finger over the small “c” that connects the chain.

“What’s going on in that pretty head of yours, hmm?” His lips rest against my temple and press the softest of kisses to my skin.

I shake my head and curl deeper into his side. “Post it, bub.”

“You sure?”

I nod, “I’m sure. I think you’re right. Can’t keep you a secret anymore.”

He hums and lifts my chin. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” I murmur back, pressing my lips against his. His lips are like home - warm and inviting and if I could kiss them forever, I would do it without a doubt.

“A word of the week, Connor, what the *bleep*?”

“It’s a suggestion. We can be both entertaining and educational.”

“Oh yeah, that’s definitely gonna be our hook. Get that alliteration thing going on. We just need one more ‘e’ word to really send it home. Entertaining, educational, and…”

“Electric?”

“Electric?” I repeat, a small smile on my lips.

“Yeah. Like what we have, our relationship. It’s electric. We’re entertaining, educational, and electric.”

I lean in a press a chaste kiss to his lips, “Connor Brashier, have I told you today how hopelessly in love with you I am?”

“Well, I’m just as in love with you, Harley Madden.”

There’s literally nothing I can do to hide the blush that creeps up on my cheeks. “We should start filming.”

He tilts his head toward the camera. “I think it already is.”

The screen fades into the true intro of the video.

“Hey,” I say a little too chipper, which is definitely why Connor is laughing silently into my shoulder. “I’m Harley Madden.”

Connor clears his throat. “And I’m Connor Brashier. And welcome to our YouTube channel,” he shrugs with a soft smile.

His hand is resting over mine in my lap, playing with my fingers. He’s nervous about being in front of the camera, that’s obvious. He’s never really had to be the one in front. I bring our hands to my lips and litter his knuckles with kisses. He smiles fondly at me and leans in to kiss my cheek.

“We weren’t really sure how we were going to start this actually. But I guess we should start with this: Yes. We are in a relationship. Have been for a year and a half,” I nod. “Most of you, if you follow my makeup channel or my social media, you’ve been speculating since before we even got together. So here’s your confirmation. We are very happily together.”

“And because of that, we decided that it was time to share our love with you. And what better way than this? Letting you guys in fully.” He shuffles in his spot. “This is very new for us - not the relationship, obviously. But being so open with it.”

“But we have both decided that keeping each other a secret just isn’t what we want anymore.”

He nods, “So if you want to see more of our faces and our relationship, follow all of our social media, and subscribe to my pretty girl’s makeup channel - MaddenMakeup. And subscribe to us - Not So Brash Brashier’s.”

“And I guess give this video a like? Maybe? And comment below what you’d like to see from us because honestly we have no idea what we’re doing with this. We’re just winging it as we go. So give us video ideas and we’ll see you in the next one.”

---

Violet - my best friend since kindergarten, and current roommate - walks into the house, taking her shoes off at the door. “Hey Vi,” Connor says, turning to face the door, greeting her with that signature soft smile.

“You started a YouTube channel,” is her greeting.

We both laugh, “Yeah. We did.”

“I’ve been telling you to do that for like a year now!” She exclaims, plopping herself next to us, resting her head in my lap.

“It wasn’t the right time then. But… did you subscribe?” I ask with a cheeky smile.

She pinches my arm, “What kind of question is that? Of course I did. You think I wasn’t your first subscriber? What kind of best friend would I be if I didn’t?”

“Well, in celebration, I was planning on taking my girl out to eat. You want to come with?”

“Where were you planning on going?”

“Harley’s been saying for weeks that she’s craving pizza from the bowling alley by my place.”

I look happily at my boy. “Really? We can go?”

He nods, “You want to go put on some shoes and we can go before traffic gets too bad?”

I nod and press a quick kiss to his lips, “Let me change pants first.”

Vi sits up andI catch the end of their conversation before I walk into my room. “Sure, any excuse to beat Lee at bowling.”

“I heard that!”

“You were meant to!” She yells back.

***

I hope you enjoyed! Like, reblog, and leave feedback!!

Permanent tag: @soyalimoncada-blog @tinycertain @magcon7280 @daisyangei @fallinallincurls @lovewithanattitude @sinceweremutual @myyohmyuohmyy @perfectly-mendess @enchantingbrowneyedgirl @baroness-alison @lostinmendess @linanilssonfurberg @luvluvxx @mariamuses @shawnieeboyy @divinginfearlessly @mendesficsxbombay @shawnsthighs @zaahidahhh

* bold wouldn’t let me tag

** if you want to be added or removed from any list (permanent, Shawn, Connor, We Were Us, or Not So Brash Brashier’s) just let me know

#connor brashier #connor brashier imagines #connor brashier x y/n #connor brashier x reader #connor brashier imagine #connor brashier fanfiction #connor brashier blurb #not so brash brashier's

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emilyutonium · 4 years

Text

Dads in Charge

A Preview of the first part of my short story! ;) It’s about the boys having to take care of all their superpowered children while their wives are on vacation. It can by read on Wattpad, Archiveofourown.org and fanfiction.net under the username 3mi1y02. Enjoy!

---

The green puff bounced on top of her uniformly colored suitcase, struggling to fit all of her clothes as her husband laughed, laying on the bed beside her. She glared playfully, "Don't laugh, fucker. Help me."

"Shouldn't this have been done days ago?" He questioned, lazily getting up to help push the dark-toned tops and bottoms into the case. "Plus don't you think they would fit if you, I don't know, actually folded them?"

Buttercup gave him a weird glance before muttering, "Ew, extra work." to which he gave a polite chuckle.

She pursed her lips, "And yes but we're not gonna let Leader girl know that or she'll have my head. Besides I forget things when I don't pack last minute and I would have an even bigger problem with my other sister if I forgot our matching Powerpuff swimsuits."

"Mmm, wifey in a bikini?" Butch shut his eyes dreamingly, opening them again in a manner that resembled a pleading dog. "Please make sure I can get a picture of that beautiful sight before anyone else can?"

"You wish." She chuckled, not exactly denying her husband of that pleasure herself but reminding him of her younger sister. "Bubbles will have taken enough selfies and posted them before I can say 'Wait lemme pick up my privacy first'. That girl takes blogging to a new level." Buttercup finally giving up trying to zip the suitcase up all the way before she broke it, opted to just tell Blossom that she needed a bigger suitcase.

"Shame. Just another reason why your amazing hubby should be coming with you." Butch sighed, pulling her by the waist to stand between his legs on the edge of the bed. "Y'know we'd have a lot of good old fashioned fun down there."

"The whole point of the trip is to be just with the girls, Butch." She teased, knowing full well she wouldn't mind bringing him with her to a relaxing private island. It could've been like their actual honeymoon.

"I know but you could stash me in your suitcase like a-"

"Butch, my suitcase can barely fit the few clothes I even wanna bring. What makes you think I could fit you too- Bear? Hold on a minute." The 25-year-old mother turned towards the open doorway, where their son stood frozen. His back turned away from his parents as he tried to sneak past.

The 5-year-old turned slowly, grinning wide and facing his mother, said, "Yes, momma?" in the sweetest most innocent voice he could muster.

"What do you have in your hand?" Buttercup challenged, assuming an authoritarian stance that she had learned from Blossom. Legs spread. Hands on hips. Face stern.

"Ooo, you in trouble now baby Bear." Butch snickered at his son from behind Buttercup to which she reminded herself to punch him for later.

"What? Nothing momma..." The little boy lied before seeing his mother's disbelief stricken face. "Just this knife." He pulled a small needle-pointed knife from behind him.

"What is your obsession with knives lately? Give it." He obeyed. "Now go play with regular kid things like a damn baseball or something."

"Yes momma..." He muttered, hanging his head.

"That's my boy!" Butch called after his son as the door to the room closed.

"Where'd he even get this?" Buttercup's voice rang through the wood as Bear walked down the hallway, concentrating his hands together before a small dagger formed in his hands. He smiled and ran down the steps passing his red-haired uncle and aunt in the kitchen.

===

"Bear! No playing with knives, we need them and you could break something!" Blossom hollered.

"Ok Auntie red!" He responded, not even attempting to pretend as if he would listen and Blossom sighed. She loved her little nieces and nephews, she really did, but cripes did they ever listen? It only worried her how the boys would survive with all 6 of them by themselves.

"Ugh anyway, The twin's blankets?"

"Check." Brick noted, allowing Bailey, his 3-month-old, to grab at his beard. His super strength hadn't kicked in yet so Brick didn't mind. But it was possible that he probably wouldn't ever mind.

"How about Bailey's pacifier?" She asked, attempting to pace around the kitchen island while her 4-year-old son Bernard held her leg, following her everywhere she went. "Oh Bern honey, Mommy's not going anywhere. You can go play." The little boy shook his head and his mother sighed in defeat. She couldn't imagine what he'd do when she actually did have to leave for this vacation.

"He's got it right here." Brick said holding the baby out in front of him for his wife to see the cherry tinted pacifier between his lips. She smiled as Bailey giggled seeing his mother and kissed his forehead.

"Ok...packs of diapers?" Blossom quizzed, looking over the list in her hand.

"Check."

"How many? BC told me little Butterfly still hasn't gotten a hand of potty training so you'd need extras just in case." Blossom pointed out. "I'd hate to be all the way in Bora Bora when you all run out of diapers and face an accident of some sort-"

"Which is why I had Boomer go out and get 4 more packs. Something I can get him to do again if we do run out." Brick countered, knowing how anxious and worried his wife could get and was getting.

"Great, but what about-"

"Bloss, we'll be fine I promise you. We're all adults, parents even. 3 grown adults in charge while you three are gone. you don't have anything to be worried about, seriously." Brick reasoned, admiring Bailey as he attempted to eat his old man's sausage fingers.

"Yea but with 6 kids Brick? And you know Butch and Boomer can sometimes slip into man-children every now and then. I don't want you to have to be in charge of all 8 of them!"

"Ok, You got me there, babe. Last week I walked in on Boomer laying on Bubbles like he was her second child. Didn't even know where poor Bambi was." The red-eyed ruff cackled lazily. "But still, I'm here to keep them in check. I mean I've been doing it for what? 25 years now? You know I can handle it. Don't worry."

"I know, I just..." She trailed off, pulling Bailey's curls away from his chubby face. "I don't want anything to go wrong while I'm not- I mean.." She stopped looking down at Bern, who was watching her closely with his thumb firmly in his mouth. "I mean while I'm here cause I won't be going anywhere."

Brick rolled his crimson eyes as Boomer walked into the large kitchen, opening up the fridge for an off brand soda, "Hey little buddy, why don't you go watch some tv with your cousins in the playroom? Bambi told me Frozen 2 is really good, maybe even better than the first movie." The little boy shook his head silently, holding on to Blossom's pant leg tightly.

"Aw, why not? It'll be fun besides you can't stick by your mom forever."

"Nooo, mommy nah going anywhere." Bern spoke softly but firmly as if he knew for certain his mother would actually stay by him forever. Poor boy.

"It's ok Boom, we stopped trying." Brick sighed, Bailey now taking a liking to the tattoos that lined his skin.

"Well, it's gonna be really hard for us to calm him down after you lea- OW!" He yelped and rubbed an already fading burn mark on his arm. "I mean...right. You're not leaving to go anywhere. I don't know what I was thinking."

Blossom rolled her eyes, "C'mon Bern honey let's go recount the boxes of snacks that Brielle isn't allowed to eat." She strolled out of the kitchen and towards the garage, Bern holding her hand tightly as they passed his blue-eyed Aunt.

"Why hello, Bernie." He waved bashfully. "Bloss, do you have all your bags ready? I caught Buttercup upstairs trying to finish packing."

"Of course she was but yes, they're in the car. Ready as soon as I can find a way to get away from this one." She whispered the last part at a decimal that only Bubbles could hear and she nodded.

"Ah, gotcha. Well, good luck!" She giggled, lightly floating into the kitchen area.

"Thanks, I'll need it."

===

"Hello boys, are you two ready to take on all the kids at once?" Bubbles grinned excitedly, no doubt the whole idea of this trip had been her planning.

"Of course we are suger. We're all experienced caretakers with wonderful daddy skills. I mean look at Daddy red over there with his 3rd child. He's practically a baby expert." Boomer boasted, jabbing his thumb towards Brick who was starting to pick up a not so pleasant smell from his son.

"We'll be fine, childproofed the whole house and got all the rooms basically set up. Now if you'll excuse me, this baby expert needs to change this one's diaper before it spills out onto his arm." Daddy red stood up, holding Bailey's bottom away from his canine nose as he flew upstairs.

"I just can't wait to get there, I've never been to Bora bora y' know?" The blonde sighed, setting herself onto the counter next to Boomer as she daydreamed.

"You have no idea how jealous I am of you right now angel. A relaxing island getaway sounds like so much more fun than taking care of 6 children with my brothers."

"Aw don't worry Boomie. I'm sure you all will have lots of fun. In fact, I think I'm the jealous one here."

"You? How? You'll be soaking up the sun with a tall drink and a handsome waiter named Alejandro serving your every need." He joked with a hint of jealousy in his tone towards the handsome make-believe waiter.

"But I'll be away from you. And Bambi." Bubbles added, shifting her gaze to the living room, where the TV was blasting while no one watched. "I mean she's only a year old I'm allowed to feel a little separation anxiety right? Like I feel like I always miss her even when I'm in the same area as her."

"Angel, you're allowed to feel any way you want. And I get you. I guess you're right. I'd hate to be away from not only you but Lady adorable as well. But that's the point of the whole trip, isn't it? To get away from everything?"

The blue puff nodded, thinking to herself, "Well before I do that then, I think I need one more hug or else the sadness of being away from her will be too much to bear."

"I'm sure that must be some kind of motherly bond type thing, no?"

"Probably. I just hope she isn't too upset when I'm gone. I read online that babies have no concept of time so when they see that their mother or father isn't around they don't know if they are coming back. Do you think Bambi would believe that? That I wouldn't be coming back for her? Oh Boomie, I don't want her to believe that I would ever leave her." Boomer saw that her eyes were starting to tear up and hoped that she, like Bern, wouldn't cry when the time came for the girls to leave.

"Angel- Bubbles of course not-" He tried to wrap his arms around her before she jumped down from the counter, determination glinted in her eyes. Or maybe that was the tears, Boomer couldn't tell anymore.

"Where is she?"

"Uh-what?"

"Wheres's Bambi? I need to spend as much time as possible with her and make her understand that her mother isn't going to abandon her."

"Uh um I think she's in the playroom?" Boomer muttered, realizing it had been a while since he'd actually seen his child.

Bubbles' blue eyes abruptly flickered from determination to fear. "What do you mean you think she's in the playroom?"

"I mean the last time I checked on her, she was in there chewing on one of Brielle's toys."

"Oh Blossom, bless her heart, she tries but we have no idea where Brielle could've been with those things! Bambi! Honey! I'm coming for you! Your mothers coming baby!" She took off towards the steps, Boomer barely being able to follow as he dodged an angry 3-year-old.

#powerpuffgirls #rowdyruffboys #ppg #ppgfanfic #ppgblossom #ppgbubbles #ppgbuttercup #ppgbrick #rrbbrick #rrbboomer #rrbbutch #ppgboomer #ppgbutch #domestic #family #ppgfanfiction

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atinytokki · 5 years

Text

𝐙𝐞𝐫𝐨 𝐭𝐨 𝐎𝐧𝐞

Chapter 2: Mutiny

Summer was bearing down stronger than ever on the ATEEZ. Wooyoung swept his arm across his sweaty forehead every few minutes for hours on end as he toiled under the hot sun cleaning cannons.

Left and right, sailors were shedding articles of clothing to cool off and eventually Wooyoung gave in and dropped his shirt in the pile.

“Are those ribs I see?” Jongho teased from the forecastle. “We can’t all have your physique, Jongho,” Wooyoung fired back, smirking when their youngest reeled in fake indignation.

“I take offence at that! You certainly could if you joined the morning exercises I invited you to!” Wooyoung was preparing another jab at Jongho when Yunho appeared from the rigging and joined in.

“At least you two have a decent tan! It appears as if my skin hasn’t seen the sun in months.” All the boys laughed at the truth of this statement, but sobered on the arrival of their captain, who was eyeing the pile of shirts.

“Are you quite comfortable, sir?” Wooyoung joked, not expecting a response.

“If you think I trust any of you enough to take off this jacket and put it in the pile, you’re wrong,” Hongjoong put a protective hand on his lapels before returning to the pile. “Do these need mending or are you just overheating in them?”

“Captain, it’s sweltering out here!” Yunho exclaimed. Hongjoong looked up at his master rigger. “While we’re on the subject of mending, do me a favour will you and fetch the flag. There’s a small tear in it I’d like to patch up.”

Yunho laughed and obliged, flying up the ropes with effortless speed and lowering their special flag. Hongjoong took it back to his quarters with a word of thanks and nothing more.

“Does he always sew everything himself?” Wooyoung turned to the other officers. Jongho tilted his head in thought. “Mostly, yes. He taught Seonghwa to patch sails but everything else, he does on his own.” Wooyoung smiled fondly at the back of the retreating captain. “He’s got such a bold sense of style, so uniquely commanding, but what for?”

Jongho laughed wholeheartedly at this. “I’ve no idea, hyung! That’s just what captains do.”

There was rum and dancing after supper that night, but Hongjoong felt unwell and retired early, offering a flippant excuse of heat exhaustion.

For him, the night was long and sleepless. A disquieting sensation had settled inside that he was losing strength, each passing hour sucking more out of him. Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew he was becoming sicker than he’d ever been.

As morning dawned, Hongjoong brought a shaking hand to his forehead and immediately drew it back. His skin was burning at a dangerous temperature and he shifted uncomfortably in his already soaked sheets before giving up and rising to take the morning watch.

The world reeled from the motion of standing and there was a tight pain in his stomach, strong enough that his face was plastered into a grimace. Hongjoong inhaled shakily, trying to clear his mind and return to his work.

He would have to keep it together in front of the crew, construct a façade and hang onto it while he figured out what was going on.

Half a week of clear skies and speedy winds served the crew well and cheered spirits, largely dissolving tensions between sailors new and old. Reassigned to one of Wooyoung’s gun teams, Seunghyun caused no trouble and his unprecedented duel was near forgotten. However, the mistake of one of his lower-rank friends soon became a frigate wide issue.

“He left the food stores unsecured, and now we have a rat problem,” Mingi explained to a distracted Hongjoong.

“I love the life of a pirate! But I hate rats.” Jongho quipped to Wooyoung, unashamed at having overheard a private conversation. Mingi chattered on, already finished with the damage report before he realised he was completely unheeded. “Captain?”

Hongjoong snapped out of it, wide-eyed but desperately trying to create a semblance of attentiveness. “Yes! Rats?”

Mingi squinted at him, and he knew he had been quiet just a moment too long. The ruse was up. “What’s wrong?” Wooyoung and Jongho perked up again from their corner of the quarterdeck, doing their best to appear indifferent, while Hongjoong tried to convince his second in command that everything was fine.

“Maybe you should lie down?” Mingi’s voice was lowered for privacy’s sake but insistent nonetheless.

“It’s nothing! Why don’t we work on the rat problem instead?”

“Come on, Captain, a nap won’t hurt anything!” The words slipped out of Wooyoung’s mouth almost before he was aware. Both captain and quartermaster gaped at him from the helm.

Whoops...

Hongjoong stalked across the deck and drew up just an inch too close to Wooyoung for his liking. “Not a word of this to anyone, do you hear? It’s nothing, but it’ll get blown out of proportion if it reaches the men.” Though tempted to fire back, Wooyoung lowered his head and nodded submissively.

He watched the bright red jacket of his captain retreat, swaying slightly with each step, and turned with a frown to Jongho. “It’s not nothing, we both know that,” he gritted out. Jongho hummed a yes, eyes fixed on Hongjoong. “I don’t think there’s anything we can do, though. Even San can’t help him if he refuses treatment.”

Wooyoung’s eyes narrowed, a plan unfolding in his mind. “He wouldn’t do something as brainless as that, would he?”

It was 2AM a day later and Wooyoung was outside the Captain’s door with a fake story about some frayed nets at the ready as an excuse, when it turned out he didn’t need it. Hongjoong didn’t answer, even after five knocks. Wooyoung fetched San and the two of them crept inside. Sure enough, Hongjoong lay sweating and whining quietly in a mess of blankets.

“Sir?” Their leader shot up, hand clutching his gun, and for a moment didn’t recognise them. “I’m fi—” “You’re not,” San cut him off verbally, but physically was still cautious in approaching until the gun was lowered. “It’s alright, we won’t tell. Just let me treat you.”

Hongjoong collapsed back into bed, in a sitting position that was more like a slump, and gripped his head in his hands. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me... I just woke up like this five days ago and I don’t know what it is—”

“Five days?” San plopped down at the foot of the bed, already holding his lantern up to the Captain’s face and examining it. “You should have told me!”

“I don’t know what it is, San,” Hongjoong bit out. “I need to be fit for command. We’re too close for something minor like this to get in the way.” “Something minor!” San gawked at him and threw up his free hand.

“How many fingers am I holding up?”

“San...”

“Tell me how many fingers!”

“It’s dark! I don’t know, I can’t see any!”

Wooyoung shook his head from his spot near the window and pinched his nose. “Let me tell the other officers.” It was more of a statement than a question, and Hongjoong frowned at him from the bed. “They need to know if you are unfit for command!”

The sickly leader groaned in a mix of protest and nausea. “Let San check me first,” he finally sighed, beginning to succumb to the fatigue blooming in his limbs.

San shook his head as he shone the light in unfocused eyes. “I need to go read up on this before I make a call. But I think we can all agree that it would be most prudent of you to remain in bed and avoid spreading it until the judgement is passed.” He sent a pointed glare to his patient on his way out.

Wooyoung followed and closed the door gently behind him. His exterior was stern but inside a nagging worry began to snowball out of control.

Something was really wrong here.

...

Mingi announced a rat-killing competition, offering double rum rations for the man that brought him the most dead vermin, as a sly way to keep the crew busy and clueless to the absence of their Captain on deck as his health rapidly declined.

Wooyoung was posted as supervision and to keep the hunt from turning into a brawl as the crew got rowdy. He had been doing his best to keep his attention off of San’s studying which was vicious and more frenzied every day.

Occasionally he disappeared into the Captain’s quarters to observe something or ask a question, but the surgeon spent most of his time in his sickbay getting his hands on every relevant material he could find.

From this fact alone, Wooyoung knew they were dealing with something deadly. He sat with Yunho in the crow’s nest, overlooking a perfectly swabbed deck with nothing else to do but mind the winds and sail on.

Even when silent, the master rigger’s presence was comforting. Every time they sat up there, sometimes loud and sometimes peaceful, Wooyoung always experienced a sense of home. This time, Yunho knew he needed to talk. Wooyoung felt soft eyes on him before a soft voice followed.

“It’s unnerving, isn’t it.”

Wooyoung nodded. “San running around like a chicken with his head cut off to find out what the sickness is...” he trailed off, not wanting to create a whole affair about it, but Yunho knew what he meant. “Exactly. It’s not encouraging. But I do think he’s getting close, he hasn’t slept at all the past couple of days.”

Yunho watched the men moving around on deck, minuscule as ants from his towering vantage point. “I do wish he’d come to our cabin at least and tell me what he’s finding.” “Maybe if Captain wasn’t so difficult,” Wooyoung knew his tone was more bitter than Yunho was used to from him.

Yunho wasn’t upset but couldn’t help but shake his head. “You’re not understanding his reasons. Hongjoong-hyung isn’t resisting because he doesn’t care whether the crew is in danger, it’s just part of his struggle with—with being strong for us.” Wooyoung was confused.

“Captain’s always...” Yunho was struggling to put words to emotions. “He’s always been so driven to spend himself on us. To give his time and energy to the commanding of this ship, one that he created with his own two hands, you know. Sure, he’s stubborn, but he knows what’s best ultimately and he’ll surrender when his body forces him to. I only wish that wasn’t the case.”

It was interesting to see Yunho, a tall, intimidating boy with the heart of a child and a truly light personality, so serious about something. He was still easy to talk to, and Wooyoung was still relaxed enough to ask a more personal question. “How exactly did you meet him?”

Yunho smiled sheepishly at the memory. “It was when my brother and I were living on the street. We had escaped the orphanage and to provide for our needs I begged, fought in street fights, and occasionally stole change. It was a wild time! I was picking food out of the rubbish at a tavern one morning when I saw a boy at the bar with a bag of silver hanging at his belt. Hongjoong-hyung, but I didn’t know his reputation then. To me he was just some random kid. He was certainly too young legally to buy rum so as he sweet talked the bartender I snatched the money bag. I made it two steps before a gun was on my back and a sword at my neck. And yet to give me a chance to win the money for myself, he challenged me to a fist fight. That was his mistake! He put up a decent fight but I beat him, and he offered me employment. I didn’t want to leave my brother but... the promise of enough money to buy a comfortable life convinced me. I’ll go back for him one day, when all this is over and the treasure is found.” He told the tale with a soft smile, reminiscence twinkling over his face.

“Have you ever doubted the existence of the treasure?” Wooyoung’s question was quiet, treading carefully among the stars in Yunho’s eyes.

Yunho’s expression didn’t waver but he turned to Wooyoung expectantly. “Perhaps the question you’re really asking is ‘have you ever doubted your captain’?”

Wooyoung blushed but didn’t deny it.

“And I can assure you I have not. I trust him, and he trusts the way to treasure. He’s never given me reason to doubt.” The answer was satisfactory, and Wooyoung gave a small squeeze of gratitude to the rigger’s shoulder.

“Officers report to the Captain’s quarters!” Seonghwa’s yell reached the crow’s nest and Wooyoung felt a sinking feeling hit his stomach.

When everyone was present and the door was thrice locked, San began explaining his discoveries.

“The symptoms are those of gaol fever so far. If it is some strain of that disease then you must have contracted it from the dead bodies you touched aboard that ghost ship. Those people must have escaped a prison where it was prevalent.”

Hongjoong sat at his desk, complacent, before asking, “Has anyone else caught it?”

San shook his head. “The period of time that it actively spreads must have passed while you were confined here. My other working theory is that the catalyst of the disease was already near death on the ghost ship and is significantly weakened now, having infected you. Still, I suggest we exercise caution and use good hygiene.”

Here he was lost in his mind for a moment, the stuffy room suffocating his thoughts.

“Will he...recover?” Seonghwa put forward the officers’ collective concern.

“It...I...I can’t promise anything. No one has survived anything like this, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible! It just means there’s not much I can do to heal you.”

Here he stared at Hongjoong with shining and apologetic eyes. But their leader nodded as if he had known all along. “I’ll do what I can,” San recognised guilt forming again and let it go. “But the fight is yours, Captain.”

“There’s a rash now,” Hongjoong admitted, resisting the urge to squirm in his chair.

“A sign of regression...” San almost whispered. “You may inform the crew,” he directed his words to Mingi, who by right had command now. “My official judgement is that he is unfit for command.”

Wooyoung’s heart went a mile a minute, and he couldn’t get over the sensation that he was hearing something unintended for his ears.

“How long?” Hongjoong’s voice was steady. He didn’t need to utter the rest of his question for the others to know what he was asking. “At best... two weeks,” San choked out before turning away.

The room was spinning in Wooyoung’s eyes from shock. He focused on San’s shaking back to reorient himself before running to him and enclosing his tense form in his arms. “I’m so sorry,” the doctor was whispering. “There’s nothing I can do.”

Hongjoong himself had his head in his hands and was refusing eye contact with anyone. He allowed Seonghwa to drag him to bed as silence lingered. The officers stood still, trying to work through what they had just heard.

Finally Seonghwa grabbed Mingi and stepped out for a discussion. The others were useless for the rest of the day, eventually retiring and, in the case of San, poring over books all evening again once released from Wooyoung’s grip. Sleep escaped Wooyoung, and he stared at the boards of the ceiling devoid of even aimless thought.

...

The fire in the kitchen crackled steadily, glowing in the two pairs of eyes that observed it.

“It’s your charge as quartermaster. This isn’t a conversation we need to have,” Seonghwa’s voice was almost as distant as his thoughts.

Mingi’s eyes were shining with unshed tears, yet flames danced in them. “I know... and I suppose I took the responsibility on myself when I accepted the position. But you and I both know I’m not the candidate who is cut out for it. You are.”

With a shake of the head and a shuddering breath, Seonghwa tried to make Mingi understand. “You’re saying that because you never wanted it to be your responsibility. It’s only proper that you take...” His brow knit together in remorse. “...take what’s yours by right.”

“Seonghwa-hyung,” Mingi whined. “I’m not trying to put the pressure on you so I can avoid shouldering the burden, but think of the crew’s need for leadership. At the very least, couldn’t we share it?”

“What would he say to that, I wonder?” Seonghwa looked to the door, half expecting Captain to walk in and tell them himself. “I feel silly even considering it. But we need to agree on our course of action, whatever it is. So maybe... maybe that’s the best option. The two of us delegating duties and making the important decisions together. And we both know our most important task is to find land and someone who can help.”

He followed a floating spark with his eyes until it went out, wishing he could wake up from this egregious dream. “If we have to take command, let it only be brief.”

“Oh thank you, hyung,” Mingi finally released the built up tension in his chest, lowering his head into his hands. “I could never do it alone.”

He sniffed in embarrassment and rubbed tears out of his eyes until Seonghwa appeared by his side, guiding him into a hug. “You’ll never need to,” he reassured him.

Both were weighed down by the gravity of the odds stacked against their leader. “Hey, hey,” he shushed the younger boy. “We’ve come through worse.” Mingi nodded as his weeping quieted, but he didn’t speak what was both on their minds.

We’ve never done it without Hongjoong.

...

“Wouldn’t it make sense that a cure could exist in the east for a disease that only exists in the east?”

San chewed slowly on his bite of breakfast and thought aloud. Yeosang narrowed his eyes at him over his spoon.

It had been established as an unspoken rule that the officers wouldn’t discuss Hongjoong’s condition, even amongst themselves. No one could blame San for continuing to search for answers, however, and they all grunted some noise of agreement before returning to their meals.

“I mean, there’s no record of any affective treatment for gaol fever, but this isn’t exactly the same thing, so is it possible...?”

Finally Yeosang dropped his spoon into the bowl. “San, are you saying there could be a cure somewhere out here?”

Suddenly aware of the attention on him, San became defensive. “Well, like I said, I don’t know. Really! I don’t! But...”

“It would be worth a try?” Mingi cocked his head to the side, understanding where San was going with this.

“Mingi, of course it would be worth a try! I’ve only been looking at known illnesses and this is something unknown which means of course there’s a chance. But it’s not my call, it’s yours and Seonghwa’s. And I suppose Yeosang’s if he can tell us where the nearest inhabited land is.”

Yeosang sighed at the out of place sarcasm. “Yes, I can tell you once I look at my maps. But do you know what type of cure to look for?”

San nodded, almost eagerly. “I’ve got it narrowed down between a few different concoctions. Get me to an apothecary and I’ll buy their most useful medicine.”

For the next day Wooyoung could be found faithfully at the crow’s nest with Yunho, waiting to sight land. The atmosphere was rife with agitation, and when he spotted it, the buzz around him grew. Land was a blueish green tinted shadow on the horizon, but to Wooyoung it held the promise of saving grace.

“Let it not be a wasted trip,” Yeosang mumbled, mostly to himself, but Wooyoung heard and countered with a nervous chuckle, “Optimism only please, Yeosang!”

Mingi called the crewmen together as they pulled up to the dock and announced “Dismissal for the afternoon. I expect you back at sunset.” He didn’t pay much attention to the practically forgotten Seunghyun and followers, who hung around the ATEEZ instead of exploring the harbour.

Seonghwa was at the helm, surveying the deck below for remaining rats, when he noticed Yeosang hanging around just past his peripherals. He grew in concern watching the younger boy who stared off into space as if his mind was running in circles.

“Everything alright?”

There was a pause and a tilt of the head before Yeosang answered, “Well, we both know it’s not.” His lips were pursed again, white rimmed and dry.

Seonghwa leaned heavier on the wheel, mentally begging Yeosang not to go there.

“I mean, last time I poked my head in he looked hours off from leaving us.” Seonghwa’s heart wrenched into a tight knot inside him. He couldn’t figure out if Yeosang was angry or something else. “He still hasn’t addressed us properly with—with instructions or advice or...or last words,” tears were bubbling to the surface, clouding his vision.

“We’re running out of time,” he cried and Seonghwa was there in an instant. His own breath was coming out in shaky bursts and finally he had to break down as well. “I don’t know what to say,” Seonghwa admitted, scrubbing his face furiously.

He had been putting everyone else back together as they split at the seams but when it came down to it, he wasn’t sure he could convince himself it would all be fine. “I’m scared too.”

Yeosang nodded at the voicing of his thoughts. Without the guilty eyes of the dying on them, they forgot everything and wept together.

...

Yunho’s eyes were rimmed with red. San took note and refrained from bringing it up. No need to point out how poorly they were faring in this disaster.

The hunt was soon well underway. The pair had taken off to scope out the new wharf while the others stayed onboard.

“What is this place?” Yunho caught the attention of a woman who passed them on the docks.

“Geobugi- the last pirate haven in the east.”

After jogging through the streets of the small seaside town, San located the apothecary shop on the southern outskirts. For being a remote establishment, it was still fairly busy.

Impatience radiated off of him as he stood in line listening to the string of detailed advice being given about plant care to the patron in front of him. When it was their turn he clasped his hands and opened his mouth before being cut off.

“Let me guess, you need to save a wilting rose too.”

...

Hongjoong had descended into incoherent mumbling and fits of coughs.

Mingi, Wooyoung, and Jongho played a card game in the corner of the Captain’s quarters, unsure of what to do during each episode. Just as Wooyoung was about to win the game a single knock sounded from the door, followed by a crashing sound as it was thrown open.

All three stood in shock at the sight of Seunghyun and his accomplices barging in. Seonghwa and Yeosang were trapped in their arms, two swords precariously balanced at their necks.

“What is the meaning of this!” Mingi took a step back as Seunghyun’s men tightened their grips on the prisoners.

“This, silly boy, is a mutiny,” Seunghyun laughed back. He hummed a lazy tune and sauntered over to the bedridden Captain, who at some point had become aware that his room was being invaded.

Hongjoong’s gun was locked, loaded, and aimed but a thin stream of blood winding down Yeosang’s neck lowered the weapon by itself. Seunghyun tutted at the shaking captain, limp hair plastered to his forehead, and held his hand out palm up. “Weapons, please.”

With the last of the officers’ guns the power was officially in the hands of the mutineers. Wooyoung held Yeosang’s fearful gaze and tried to send him a withering smile.

To his surprise, the captors removed the biting metal from their necks and shoved them at the other three, causing a collision and knocking over the card table. “You’re not killing us?” Seonghwa’s question was bold but sensible.

Seunghyun ignored him and drew his own sword, placing the long cold edge against Hongjoong’s throat. “No. I need you to help raise the anchor, or he dies.”

“I’ll tear your flesh off if you touch him,” Jongho wasted no time making threats. “I don’t think you’ll get very far, child,” Seunghyun teased, pressing the blade closer.

“Power was transferred peacefully,” Mingi shouted back. “You have no reason to mutiny!” Again the ringleader laughed. “You’ll figure it out soon enough. Now! Unfurl the sails, we have places to be.”

...

Yunho and San were already running down the hill with their prize when they spotted the ATEEZ. “Why are they leaving?” San was stopped in his tracks.

Yunho ran a hand through his hair. “There’s no way the crew already reboarded!”

To pick up the pace, he scooped up San and carried him on his back, covering the distance to the dock in long strides. When the surgeon was back on the ground he looked around wildly for their seamen. A dozen or so of their crew came running in behind them from the town all jumping, waving, and yelling in outrage at being left behind.

“Stay here, all of you,” Yunho instructed hastily. “We��ll go figure out what’s happening and come back for you.” With that he turned and dove off the end of the dock. San secured the medicine under his clothes and followed him.

“I see them!” Wooyoung’s sharp eyes were directed out the back of the ship through the tall windows of the captain’s cabin where they were confined. “Someone fetch a rope!”

Luckily, Hongjoong had his canvas bag in the room and there was enough rope to lower it to the two swimmers. Jongho secured the end to his own frame and braced himself on the desk while Yunho and San climbed up and were helped in by the other officers. “A last minute boarding,” Yunho gasped out, shaking water from his head. “Who is at the helm?” San surveyed the room in a panic.

“It’s Seunghyun. He and his minions staged a mutiny,” Seonghwa bit out, pulling up and stowing the rope. “He’s locked us in here and stolen Yeosang’s maps,” Mingi continued for him. “We don’t know where we’re going or why but he won’t kill any of us... I think.”

Yunho frowned. “Are there plans to take back the ship?” Jongho was righting the card table and shaking his head, “They far outnumber us now that the entire crew has been left behind. Did you at least find medicine?”

San nodded vigorously, pulling the little vial out safe and sound. He took it straight to Hongjoong’s bedside.

“How are you?” The question was inadequate for the pain San could see swimming in the Captain’s eyes.

“Alive.”

Hearing his voice crack between puffs of air, San shuffled around to pour a glass of water and helped him sip it. “I’ve got something to help you, if it’s not too late,” the surgeon told his patient softly, uncorking the bottle. “It won’t taste great but it may save your life, hyung.”

Trapped in Hongjoong’s room, the officers made do and spread their extra garments on the floor, sleeping in a huddled formation. San opted to pull up a chair next to the captain’s bed and keep an eye on him through the night. It took awhile with Yeosang’s arm flung across him and Jongho’s feet next to his face but eventually Wooyoung drifted off.

...

“Shoot me.”

Wooyoung jolted out of his sleep, the soft-spoken plea waking him abruptly. He sat up to check with San, but the tired doctor was fast asleep in his chair. Wooyoung swallowed and looked to Captain. It had sounded like his voice that had spoken, but no one else of the officers dozing around the room had noticed. Perhaps it had been in his head.

He settled back, unsure if he could fall back into the peaceful rhythm of sleep now. A groan from the otherwise still body of Hongjoong captured his attention, and he peered over at the patient to discover his eyes wide open and fixed on the ceiling. Wooyoung’s heart jumped in surprise.

“Shoot me.”

The words were distinctly his, Wooyoung observed, following the movement of his mouth before lips pressed tightly together into a hard line.

“Captain...?” His hesitant venture was lost on Hongjoong’s ears. The captain was delirious.

Nervous now, Wooyoung stood and leant closer, trying to catch the older boy’s attention. He wanted to say more, but his mouth had seemingly gone dry. Hongjoong was completely unaware and muttered another “Shoot me. Please.”

Deeply disturbed by what he was witnessing, the stricken gunner leaned over the bed and grabbed hold of San’s arm, shaking him awake. “What...? Oh!”

The doctor picked up on what was happening much faster than Wooyoung had, and rose to try to bring Hongjoong out of it. “Captain, can you hear me?”

“Please, I just want to go. I just want to be found already... let me leave!” His cries were growing in volume, and soon other officers were stirring from their slumber. Wooyoung looked on with a furrowed brow, trying to make sense of Hongjoong’s increasingly pitiful requests.

He was becoming agitated, strength enough to twist up his sheets granted to his limbs in the haze of delirium. “Come on,” San was shaking him, nothing else to be done. “Just wake up, it’s not real!”

“Someone end it, I’m-I’m begging... No! That’s an order, I’m ordering! Someone...someone shoot.” His stuttering trailed off, and Wooyoung turned the words over in his mind. “I just want to be found. Can’t you see?” These words escaped with perfect clarity and Wooyoung latched on to them.

He wants to be found? He began to think back to what he knew of Hongjoong’s past. “He thinks he’s on the abandoned island again,” Mingi supplied, joining them at the bedside.

“I just want to leave this place...” Hongjoong had grown exhausted again, fighting San along with the demons in his mind. His last entreaty left his lips almost too soft to hear. “Take me home.”

“You are home,” Seonghwa had joined them. Wooyoung saw wetness on his face and averted his eyes.

Hongjoong went quiet again, and the attention in the room was inadvertently cast on San, who busied his fingers with the bedding and avoided the eyes. “It’s not an improvement,” he finally said. “But it’s not the final stage yet.”

This was no comfort, but it sent the other officers to their beds in resignation. San paused over Hongjoong’s top blanket, clenching it in his hands before smoothing it out and returning to his chair.

Wooyoung could read frustration in the lines of his face. He wanted to say something, but again gazed elsewhere before returning to the floor. He didn’t sleep.

...

Hongjoong slept all the next day. A mutinous goon delivered some food around midday, but apart from that there was nothing to be done but sit around the card table, playing mindlessly.

Yunho volunteered to swap out with San in keeping an eye on his patient, and when San sank into a chair at the table during the whist game, Wooyoung felt his hopes sink with him.

“He’s almost gone,” San whispered unbidden. Jongho sat back in his chair like he had been struck across the face. Wooyoung was distinctly and unexpectedly aware of how young Jongho was to be in this situation.

“The medicine’s not working?” He asked quietly for clarification. San wouldn’t meet his eyes. “He should have shown improvement by now…”

“He’s stopped breathing!” Yunho suddenly screamed from the other side of the room.

Everyone was there instantly. “How long?” San was reaching for a pulse.

“Just now, I swear,” Yunho stumbled over his words. “I was watching him like you told me but he just—”

“Stand back!” San didn’t have time to hear the full explanation as he turned he motionless body over and began pounding on his back.

“Someone grab me the bellows!” He yelled and it was placed in his hand by Yeosang a moment later. “What are you doing?” The navigator asked, disturbed at how pale Hongjoong was.

San positioned the nozzle in his mouth and began squeezing air in. “Giving him breath.”

It went on for a full minute before San threw the bellows to the side and in desperation gave Hongjoong a strong slap across the face. This final attempt to revive him was successful.

Gasping and fighting for air, Hongjoong’s eyes flew open. There was a collective current of alleviation and San collapsed back into his chair.

Needing to resuscitate himself after the experience, Wooyoung opened the back windows and took deep gulps of the sea air. He realised his legs were shaking and leaned on the windowsill. Captain just died. He died and came back.

Yunho grasped Hongjoong’s hand and held it in between his. “Please don’t leave us again, hyung.”

Seonghwa’s hand was on San’s shoulder. “That was brilliant.”

“Too close. That was entirely too close.”

No one budged for the rest of the evening, terrified that doing so would send their captain back into respiratory arrest.

San noted after the sun went down that his breathing had actually improved significantly, and began to allow a spark of faith that he would survive to grow inside. “The stuff I gave him was made after an epidemic of a disease quite similar to gaol fever,” he told the others to pass the time. “I think it may be kicking in.”

On their third day of imprisoned sailing Hongjoong came to. It was as if he had needed to hit rock bottom before surfacing.

Mingi watched his eyelids twitch and struggle before sliding open, revealing eyes that were finally focused and aware of their surroundings. The officers didn’t need to be called over to see their captain was conscious, having heard the sound of his voice croak a timid, “Mingi?”

“Yessir?” Mingi responded, happy tears streaming down his face.

“How sweet,” came a sarcastic voice from the doorway. All turned to see Seunghyun, who had been absent since the mutiny. His mouth formed a sneer. “It’s still too late for you, sir. We’ve arrived.”

...

Taglist: @nightynightnyx @theinvisablessed @twolfiehowl

A/N: Haha take a shot every time Wooyoung doesn’t sleep! Feeeeeeel the feeeeeeeeels ppl! Fun fact: The beginning was a reference to Wave mv filming behind the scenes when Hongjoong claimed he wasn’t hot in that jacket xD I’ve had a lovely week sailing, poking around at the beach and basically having a refresher course in the minutæ of sea living and piracy which will be incredibly useful for the accurate production of this series :) and is of course also of great personal interest. Mum bought me a nautical curiosities book to gobble up :P so I’ll go read that now and then hopefully wake up to some notes tomorrow... P.S. if there are questions about the disease feel free to message me because we won’t really go further into that in the series proper, there’s just too much ground to cover!

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chocoluckchipz · 5 years

Text

Dance with Me, Chaton - 18

Read it on A03, WattPad, FF.net

Written for @ladynoirjuly2019

< Previous

18. Ticking clock.

Marinette looked great in his favourite t-shirt. It didn’t seem like much. Just a plain black t-shirt, but it was super soft and gloriously oversized. His father hated it; Adrien still kept it for indulging in wearing it at home when he had rare days off. Marinette rocked it as a mini dress. Paired with his blue scarf to hide his handiwork on her neck, she looked like any other girl wearing her boyfriend’s clothes for a day out. For his sins against her, Adrien could live with that.

“Have you seen my cell phone?” Marinette asked, exiting from his laundry. “I found my clothes and my purse, but no cellphone. Can you call me?”

“I would, but I can’t find mine either. We might have lost them.”

She made a face.

“Do you need it urgently?”

“Not really. It's a weekend, so I can go a few hours without, but I’ll need it by this evening.”

“Then may I propose we deal with the hickeys first and then look for our cellphones. I’m meeting Alya and Nino for lunch later today. If you want to stick around, we can ask them. Alya was the soberest one of us all. She might have seen them. Would spare us some trouble if she did.”

“Sounds good,” Marinette said. “Might as well introduce myself to the person who was nice enough to help me out yesterday.”

“You’ll like them,” Adrien smiled. “Shall we go?”

Marinette nodded, picking up her purse.

Adrien motioned for her to go out first. “Nice outfit, by the way.”

She rolled her eyes. “I know this is your favourite t-shirt. You’ve told me that at least a dozen times already. But I’m still not sorry for choosing it. It’s the only one big enough for me to serve as a dress. I’ll give it back to you next week, you big whiny baby.”

Adrien chuckled. “No, really. I mean it. It looks great on you. Wouldn't even say it's not a dress. And the scarf adds a nice touch. Still can't believe it was the design that got you into Gabriel. I love that scarf; wore it for years. It's soft and light but still very warm. Nice work."

“Thanks,” she said, her cheeks adorably rosy. “I’m just glad it hides your masterpiece on my neck for now, but your makeup thingy better work. It’s too hot to wear a scarf or a turtleneck to dinner with my parents without them suspecting anything.”

“I promise it will. They won’t suspect a thing.” Adrien opened the door to the outside for her. “Would you like to walk there? The store isn’t that far away, and fresh air might help us clear our heads.”

“Sure. Lead the way.”

Starting to the nearest Sephora, Adrien cautiously voiced a question he hesitated to ask until now. “Do you remember anything from the last night?”

Marinette pursed her lips. “I remember our annual charades challenge with Kim and Alix. Only, I was dateless, so I didn’t have a partner. That’s when I saw you and thought why not? You wanted to get to know people in the company. This was a fun way to start.”

“It was fun,” Adrien chuckled. “I’d love to do it again sometime… without the vodka plank, though.”

Marinette giggled. “I’d like that too. Or at least a less extreme plank.”

Adrien grinned. “Eat a dozen croissants plank.”

“That's not a plank. That's a reward for you.”

He laughed. “Guilty as charged. How about next weekend?”

She looked at him, her eyes wide. “Next weekend what?”

“We get together for a game night. I’ll invite Nino and Alya. My place. Pizza. No alcohol. So? It’ll be fun.”

Marinette squeaked, looking at him with her eyes wide.

Adorable.

“Are you sure?”

“Why not? Apart from yesterday, I’ve never been to a game night before, but it sounds fun. You three can introduce me to the phenomena.”

“Okay,” she smiled. Turning to look at the sidewalk beneath her feet, Marinette added, “I’m sorry for getting you into this mess. I haven’t lost for a long while, so I might have been a little overconfident.”

“I’m sorry for dragging you down.”

“That’s fine. It happens to everyone. And you did great for your first time.”

“Not an excuse for making you lose and getting us both drunk.”

Marinette stopped and groaned, hiding her face into her hands.

Adrien frowned. “Is something wrong?”

“It was the company’s party.”

“Yes? So?”

Marinette looked at him straight, pointing to her neck. “The whole company was there. They all saw us, saw you giving me those. It's probably already up on every social media possible. My parents aren't that tech-savvy so I'm good there, but how am I supposed to go to work on Monday?"

Adrien stalled, a chill running down his spine. “I… I didn’t even think of that.”

“I just hope we didn’t do anything worse than kissing.”

“I remember nothing past the second shot.”

“My last memory is of me drinking my first.”

“Kissing isn’t so bad, though, right?”

“Not unless you’re making out with the boss’ son. I’m screwed.”

He looked at her, biting his lip. “We’ll figure something out. It’ll be fine.” Reaching into his pocket, he pulled the lucky charm she gave him. “We have those. They’ll help us.”

Marinette nervously chuckled and, shaking her head, headed forward.

“Marinette, seriously,” Adrien followed. “News know better than to post any pictures or gossips. I’m sure we can employ privacy laws even against any leaks on social media if there are any in the first place. And I’ll talk to my father. He won’t fire you.”

Stopping in front of the Sephora, Marinette closed her eyes, shaking her head. “Let’s just deal with one thing at a time. First these.” She pointed to her neck.

“Alright,” Adrien mumbled and opened the store’s door for her.

The next thirty minutes they spent choosing makeup and trying to pretend that everything was fine. The girl that helped them was nice enough to share her own techniques on covering hickeys, using one of Marinette’s as an example. The crimson of Marinette’s face, though, Adrien wasn’t sure anything could cover. He kicked himself once more. Marinette was nothing but good to him. Why did he have to be a jerk and pay her back like this? Unfair. Marinette deserved better. Maybe he should stay away then? Because it seemed the closer he got, the more trouble he caused her.

“I’m so sorry, again,” Adrien whispered as they exited the store with a bag full of make-up. “I promise I’ll make it up to you somehow.”

“Don’t forget you already owe me for being your personal itch reliever,” Marinette snickered. “You’re in deep, Agreste.”

“Then how about if I start with buying you breakfast?”

Marinette nodded. “Sounds good. I am hungry.”

“How about that one?” Adrien pointed to a nearby bakery.

Marinette squeaked and, grabbing his arm, dragged him the other way. “Are you insane? I said I don’t want my parents to see the hickeys.”

Adrien laughed. “It’s just your father is waving at us from the window.”

“And he’ll think he got us mistaken with someone else if we keep walking away without looking back.”

A black car stopped at the curb right by their side. The passenger window rolled down. Holding his breath, Adrien froze in place. He couldn’t remember the last time Father had sent Nathalie after him.

“You aren’t picking up your phone, Adrien,” she said. “Your father wanted to see you.”

"Can't it wait for a little?" Adrien braved. "I haven't had breakfast yet?"

Nathalie quirked an eyebrow. “Say goodbye. We need to leave now.”

His shoulder slumping, Adrien turned to Marinette. “I’m sorry. I have to go, but if you want you can wait for me at my place? I should be back in time for lunch with Nino and Alya.”

Marinette shook her head. “That’s fine. Maybe some other time. I have my purse and I know how to deal with those thanks to that in-store demonstration, so I’ll just head home and do that and maybe try to find our cellphones. If you could bring me what’s left of my stuff back on Monday to work, that’ll be great.”

“Sure,” he sighed and passed her the bag with the makeup. “I’m sorry, again, and if I find out anything about our cellphones first, I’ll let you know. Don’t know how, but I’ll figure something out.”

Marinette nodded. “Okay. See you later. Good luck.”

“Thanks,” he mouthed and got in the car. The ride was quiet. Neither Nathalie nor Gorilla talked. Adrien resigned to watching out of the window and waiting for the inevitable.

***

“You called for me, Father?”

“You aren’t answering your phone," Gabriel said, barely allowing Adrien a glance.

“I might have lost it.”

Gabriel puffed, leaning back into his chair. “Were you too busy shamelessly making out in public to pay attention to your belongings?”

“I was drunk,” Adrien said, his head low. “I don’t remember what happened.”

“I thought we agreed that you stopped drinking, Adrien.”

“I—”

Gabriel wouldn't let him explain. “I appreciate the public and media attention from that little 'firing the designers' debacle being refocused for now, but you could have chosen a better way to go about it. One scandal was already more than enough for us before the show.”

“I didn’t plan on it.”

“You shouldn't have gone to that party in the first place. Those events aren’t for you, Adrien. Not for the people of your position.”

Adrien pressed his teeth together, saying the first thing that came to mind. “I went there to find Ladybug. She was going to be there.”

“And did you?”

His head low, he looked to the side. “No.”

Gabriel's laughter sent chills down Adrien's spine. "Well, you certainly found something. Yourself, in the middle of a scandal. Again. Look up #AgresteMakeOut. It’s been trending for a few hours already. It’ll refresh your memory,” he barked. “Next time go someplace private if you want to get laid.”

“I didn’t—”

“You are the heir to my empire,” Gabriel continued. “You can’t afford to do this stuff in public, even with all the privacy laws protecting you. There are plenty of idiots on social media who don’t understand what privacy and law mean. Do you even realize how little time I have right now to deal with taking that video down? I have enough hustle with the show and that little designer mishap.”

“Father, I—”

“And my advice to you, Adrien: the clock is ticking. You’ve got a week left. Stop slumming it with my employees and search for Ladybug if you want your freedom.”

Adrien didn’t respond. His fists clenched by his side, he silently watched the floor. Feeling like a guilty five-year-old was the last thing he’d expected today. His father just had a talent for making him miserable—the main reason Adrien wanted out of this place as soon as possible. He’d had to find another way, though, because Gabriel would never get Ladybug from Adrien’s hands, would he find her or not.

“Now, go,” Gabriel barked. “Unlike you, I’m too busy for this. Contact your lawyers, I won’t be dealing with this mess this time around.”

Adrien headed out. Nathalie informed him that she’d already contacted all the people necessary, and the video should be taken down by the end of the day. As for his cellphone, it was located at the Club Akuma.

“Thank you.” Adrien gave her a small smile. Nathalie was a complicated person, but even under his father’s dictatorship, she sometimes managed to make Adrien’s life a bit easier.

He glanced at the clock. Since he didn’t have his car with him, going to the bar now would make Adrien late for his lunch with Nino and Alya, and it’s not like he needed it now. He’d better use the time to take a walk and calm down. For that, Adrien had plenty of time. His cellphone can wait.

***

“Yo, dude. You look better already.” Nino bro fisted Adrien when the pair arrived at their appointed spot. “Got in some quality time with your co-worker?”

“If by fun, you mean making sure she could cover the hickeys I gave her, then yeah, we had a few hours of fun before Father summoned me.”

“Dude,” Nino grumbled. “Can’t you have some fun without being chastened for it?”

“Not if it ends up on social media. Can I borrow your cell phone for a moment?”

“What for?” Nino asked putting his phone on a table in front of Adrien.

“I haven’t seen what got posted yet. I only gathered it was a video, but I don’t have my cellphone on me.”

Nino quirked an eyebrow, chuckling. “Bro, you’re in for something. Honestly, I didn’t know you had it in you.”

Alya giggled. Nino gave him a wink.

Adrien groaned, opening Nino’s cell phone and finding the video. His eyes widened. He sat on a couch, Marinette in his lap, her head tilted backwards, as he was feverishly kissing her neck. One of her hands was brushing his hair; the other one holding onto his back. He pulled her closer and captured her lips. Passionate, almost desperate kisses. The way he looked at her in a split moment in between them… The way she watched him back…

His breathing irrational, his heart pounding, Adrien closed the video before he could finish it. He'd watch it later in private. Marinette had probably already seen it, or would soon. How was he supposed to face her now? No way. Not after this. Way to ruin a great friendship, Agreste.

“Don’t get all excited, bro,” Nino snickered. “You gonna get severe facial burns.”

“Breathe, Adrien. Slowly and deeply. Just breathe,” Alya added, chuckling.

“Not funny guys,” Adrien snapped back. “How am I supposed to face her now? The whole company saw it. Probably the whole of Paris. It's just… Ugh! She won't forgive me."

Alya laughed. “Don’t worry, she probably will. After all, she is your Ladybug and you’re her Chaton, right?”

Adrien’s eyes snapped wide. He jerked his head towards Alya. “What did you just say?”

“About what?”

“The bit about Ladybug and her Chaton.”

“Don’t look at me,” Alya shrugged. “It was you two who kept calling each other those names. You don’t remember that either?”

Adrien shook his head.

“Dude, seriously,” Nino said. “You need to work on your relationship with all things alcoholic. Even I remember that. Ladybug and her Chaton. Sounds like something from a kid’s cartoon. I mean you two are great at making out, but please, think of better names for each other. Even I was getting a second-hand embarrassment all evening long.”

_______________________________________________________________________

Next >

#ladynoirjuly2019 #Adrienette #LadyNoir #fluff #identity reveal #dwmc

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kumkaniudaku · 5 years

Text

Rock the Boat

Word Count: 3k

Warnings: Sexual Content (18+)

Written By: @kumkaniudaku

ANYWHERE MASTER POST

Recommended Listening: Rock the Boat x Aaliyah

A second wake up didn’t result in another round, but it did provide needed rest for the busy wife and mother. Chadwick had crawled out of bed long before Tasha for a run along the island’s beach, leaving his lover to wake on her own time. For months on end, she was up at the first sign of daybreak, leading the charge to have everyone dressed and prepared for the day’s events before taking a second to compose herself. The need for relaxation was obviously present in the days leading up to the trip when she would trudge to bed and pass out in a heap at night. So for as long as she needed to sleep, he was willing to grant her that space.

By the time she sauntered out of the villa into the patio space, she was buzzing with renewed energy and a faint glow of sexual satisfaction.

“Well damn, if I’d have known you’d come out looking like that, I would’ve decided to have you for breakfast instead.”

Chadwick took in Tasha’s multicolor monokini and all it’s cutouts through her sheer cover-up as she made her way to his spot at the small table beside the pool. The front of her bathing suit presented her stomach to the world, still soft from carrying two children, but featuring more definition than she’d been accustomed to since Noah was born. In the back, the high cut design got a run for its money against her wide hips, becoming more of a thong than its original intention.

With his arms outstretched, Chadwick welcomed Tasha into his lap to pull her against his clothed chest and press kisses wherever bare skin greeted him. His lips against her shoulders sent a chill through her body that starkly contrasted the tropical heat around them.

“You heard what Micah said last night,” she giggled as she squirmed in his arms. “Don’t bring home any more babies.”

Chadwick chuckled at CoCo’s spot-on imitation of their oldest, “Where does she get this stuff from?”

“Probably my mama and aunties. They don��t make her go to sleep over there and she soaks in everything they say like a sponge.”

“Is that why she calls everybody honey now like she’s 65?”

“More than likely,” she laughed, recalling the time Micah calmly asked for more oatmeal in her bowl one morning before adding a southern ‘honey’ to the sentence for emphasis. At nearly seven years old, she’d only lived in Southern California, yet carried around the grace of a Southern Belle several years her senior.

“Anyway, what’s all this? I am starving!”

“This, my love, is the honeymoon special. That’s not what Niha called it, but I can’t remember so I renamed it.”

“Clever,” she laughed before sneaking a kiss to his cheek.

Peeling back the plate covers unleashed the perfect aromas of local delicacies and American fusions of traditional breakfast items that had Tasha’s mouth watering at first glance. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was while she was being treated to orgasm after orgasm. Now she was almost ravenous as she scrambled to find a fork and knife to dig in.

In the alone time, they’d been granted, Chadwick was able to take in the scope of his wife. It wasn’t that he didn’t know she was beautiful. That was obvious. It was the little nuances of her movements that kept him intrigued.

While he watched the apples of her cheeks rise in satisfaction as she enjoyed her meal, he contemplated sharing a piece of life-altering information that he had been sitting on.

“I talked to Angelique,” he casually introduced, causing his wife to slow down long enough to look at him over her shoulder. “She gave me some advice about our plan if you wanna hear it.”

Chadwick was met with silence before Tasha stood to transition from his lap to the seat across from him.

“Mmmkay. Go ahead.”

“Well, she said that it’s great that we want to do this and thinks we have a great chance of being approved.”

“But,” CoCo interjected. There had been nothing but good news followed by caveats from the moment they decided to embark on this journey. A ‘but’ was always expected at this point.

“But, we’ll need to seriously consider a few things.”

“We’ve been considering things for months. What else is there to consider?”

“Nothing major, baby. Just a few details like the size of the house, whether we want to do an open or closed situation, or if we should foster instead.”

“Let’s start with the size of the house.” The mood had clearly begun to sour as Tasha placed her utensils down in front of her to clasp her fingers and place them underneath her chin.

“She recommends shifting the kids around to make space for one more, but I recommend us moving altogether. Wait,” he interjected just as she opened her mouth to counter. “Hear me out. We can afford to move to somewhere down South. It’s cheaper, we’d be closer to our parents as they get up in age, and both of us are still able to work with no interruption to what we do now.”

“Okay, I can’t argue with you there. I still would rather adopt a small child though.”

“And we can do that. But, please, give fostering some thought. We could really help a kid. Not too old of course, but maybe around 8 or 9?”

“Aaron…”

“Think about it, baby. We don’t need to answer right now. Enjoy paradise and we’ll talk about it later. Deal?”

Finding it counterintuitive to further the touchy conversation while so much beauty and wonder surrounded them, CoCo used the napkin in her lap as her literal white flag and surrendered. There were still three days left to enjoy each other with no distractions and neither Chad or CoCo was willing to spoil it with problems from life back home.

“Alright, Pookie, you have complete control of my body and my time for the next three days. What we gettin’ into?”

“Complete control of your body and your time, huh?”

Their eyes met in equally provocative glances that still carried the embers of the flame ignited mere inches from their current positions.

Biting her lip, CoCo made a of show leaning across the table to address her husband. Her arms purposely pressed against her breasts to give Chadwick a full view of her cleavage spilling out of her bathing suit. Restraint kept his hands planted around his glass of orange juice, but his eyes were given permission to roam as they saw fit.

“Especially my body. Wherever…”

“Whenever,” he finished before letting his eyes travel to meet her dark brown orbs directly. “I’ll hold you to that. Until then, Niha will be back in a few to take us around the other islands. How you feel about snorkeling and jet skiing before lunch?”

“I feel like you just wanna see me wet and half naked all day.”

“Trust me, sweetheart, I can get you wet and completely naked right now if I need to.” The confidence in his matter of fact statement and half smirk made CoCo’s face heat up as she turned her head to hide a smile. Chadwick took notice and let out a full belly laugh.

“Don’t hide that pretty smile from me, girl. You know I’m right.”

“Where is this new level of nasty coming from, Mr. Boseman? I like it.”

Leaning across the table, Chadwick pulled Tasha’s hands into his to graze his lips across her knuckles. “You want me to be honest? I’m living out all the things I wanted to do with and to you when we talked about this all those years ago. Believe me when I say we’ve only scratched the surface.”

In CoCo’s mind, it seemed impossible to go any further than they had already gone. They’d had more sex in 16 hours than they’d had in 16 days in their own private corner of the world. If it all had to end right then, their half a day in the Maldives would still be heralded as their best excursion to date. What more was there to do?

When Niha returned to lay out the full itinerary, CoCo was worried that they would need an extra hour or two in the day to enjoy everything.

Every step of the way, they became drawn to each other like magnets. As the snorkeling guide gave rules and tips at the top of their session, Chadwick kept a hand at the small of Tasha’s back to make the occasional rub across her behind as inconspicuous as possible. A request for more sunscreen became CoCo’s excuse to run her hands across Chadwick’s back and chest more times than necessary. A warning from Niha about the legality of public displays of affection kept them from going too far, creating tension that would be useful for their time back at the villa.

With her body secure in his hold against the back loveseat of their passenger boat, CoCo allowed her eyes to close and her mind to truly take in the scope of what was happening around her. Chadwick felt her shoulders rise and fall in a deep sigh and tightened his grip around her.

“What you thinkin’,” he asked before placing a kiss on top of her head.

“I’m thinking that I am the luckiest girl in the world right now. You have made every one of my dreams come true.”

“You deserve it, baby.” In their first public show of affection that day, their lips came together in rapid sweet kisses and carefree giggles.

“So, you know,” CoCo started as she pulled away to lean against Chadwick. “I gotta step up my game for you this year. If you pull out any more surprises we may have to go to the Moon.”

“Maybe wait until this next one before you make the final decision.”

“What?”

Finally taking the time to pay attention to their route, Tasha noticed that they weren’t in the vicinity of their villa. Open water gave way to an unpopulated boating dock and a boat that carried two waving captains.

“We’re here, Mr. and Mrs. Boseman,” Niha smiled over her shoulders. Your captains for the night are Kyle and Aisar. They’ll take great care of you.”

“Uh, Niha, where exactly is here?”

Niha looked to Chadwick for permission to answer CoCo’s question which he granted with a lazy nod and smile.

“You are about to embark on a Kuoni sunset cruise. Your husband has requested total privacy for your evening. This is the perfect time to watch the sunset and spot a few dolphins during your outing.”

Tasha never got the chance to express her shock or gratitude. Niha’s boat came to a stop at the dock before they were carefully escorted from one mode of transportation to the next. The traditional dhoni, covered in exquisite handcrafted wood and billowing lateen sails, was covered in white roses in the section set aside for Chadwick and Tasha to enjoy alone. Glasses of sparkling wine were presented as gifts to pair a general rundown of the trip before they were left to enjoy the view alone.

Their tour took them past picturesque islands, unaffected and uninhabited, able to exist in gorgeous peace. Conversation flowed as easily as the drinks and, soon, the decision to relax against the plush pallet and pillows followed/

The gentle rock of the boat added serenity to the moment between husband and wife and sat side by side to watch the sun take its final resting spot beyond the horizon. A dolphin jumping out of the ocean for a brief hello made CoCo smile, as she stared into the distance. A gesture so tiny would’ve been overlooked by most, but Chadwick couldn’t bring himself to look away.

If he had to choose, the moments when his wife was absorbed in her thoughts and with no concept of the world around her were his favorites. Her sunkissed skin absorbed the dwindling rays of sunshine and reflected them tenfold. Flecks of her college self still remained to mesh expertly with the more refined aspects of the beauty acquired through maturation. Chadwick would argue with anyone foolish enough to engage that his wife was the most stunning woman on Earth. But, instead of debating what needed no defense, he took her chin between his index and thumb to command her full attention.

“Can I get you anything else? More wine?”

“No, I think I’m good, babe. Thank you. For everything.”

Smiling, CoCo leaned in for a kiss filled with equal parts love and lust. With no one around, the risk of offense lessened and she jumped at the opportunity to push the envelope. That simple mantra of whenever, wherever rolled around the corners of her mind as she leveraged her position to straddle Chadwick’s lap. His hands took their time on the journey to her hips before settling in their preferred position.

“Okay, so we’re going to Mars for your birthday. I’ll start booking as soon as we get back.”

Chadwick laughed and shook his head, “You don’t have to go that far. I trust we’ll have a good time either way.”

Both of them could feel the heat of the other through the thin material of their swimsuits as the shared another kiss, this time more intense than the soft pecks throughout the day. Chadwick’s fingertips pressed into the soft skin of CoCo’s waist and hips to guide her movements. He could feel and hear the excitement building as her breathing became shallow. This was the whenever and wherever they’d be searching for.

At the swivel of her hips in his lap, Chadwick and Tasha shared a moan. Slow grinding was perfect for a night in, but time was waning. was a sense of urgency in the way that CoCo slid her bathing suit to the side, prompting Chadwick to follow her lead and push his shorts down his thighs. He helped her lift to her knees before using his fingertips to work her pearl in slow circles. Tasha quickly reached down to take him in her palm, forming a half circle around his length to assist him in reaching the peak of his arousal.

“If we’re gonna do this,” Chadwick spoke as he exhaled. “You gotta promise you’ll be quiet.”

Laughing, she bent down to nip at his earlobe, “I was gonna say the same thing to you.”

Their hushed giggles were cut short by simultaneous and different curses. Knowing that time was of the essence, CoCo braced herself with both hands planted on Chadwick’s chest as he adjusted his angle beneath her. Audible sighs of pleasure were lost in the sounds around them while they watched him disappear inside of her inch by inch.

Tasha’s body readily accommodated the stinging stretch of him, hugging and massaging his dick with every rotation of her hips. Satisfied with the honey coating her thighs and his, CoCo planted her knees on either side of her husband’s hips to start a moderate bounce in his lap.

Chadwick was relegated to breathless moaning as Tasha took control. Her face screwed in acute focus, eyes clamped shut, head thrown back and her bottom lipped trapped beneath her teeth. The setting sun cast erotic shadows against the aged wood to transform their bodies into one being.

Her fluid motions became entrancing in the pinks and purples of the impending nightfall. The graceful rise and fall of her breasts matched the rhythmic roll of her hips, adding a visual to the sensation that never seemed to get old when they were together.

“Look at you,” Chadwick whispered into the crook of CoCo’s neck. “So pretty ridin’ daddy’s dick. You gon’ come like this?”

“Yessss!”

“Show me, baby. Don’t stop ‘til you come.”

A dull burn in her thighs did little deter the chase of her approaching orgasm as Tasha went into overdrive. Shifting back to a grinding motion gave her the range to satisfy the throbbing ache within while her clit repeatedly grazed his pelvis. Any extra coaxing would’ve sent her to take her place amongst the stars, which Chadwick knew and used to his advantage.

Firm pressure to her clit with the pad of his thumb gave her the final piece of the puzzle as she came undone in one tremor after the other. Finishing was no longer a priority for Chadwick. His chief concern was getting his wife to the crest of her wave in her favorite position.

Tasha dug her nails into her husband’s back to control the scream bubbling in her chest. At the height of her release, the faint sound of hooping and hollering in the distance felt like an odd hallucination.

“Yeaaaah! That’s how you enjoy the ocean!”

“Get it, girl! Nice moves!”

Tasha rushed to hide her face from the lively group of spectators as their dhoni’s passed in the night. Chadwick held her close to shield her from embarrassment though he found humor in the situation. The lack of light in the immediate area kept their identities concealed, removing the worry of ending up on the front page of a tabloid.

“Y’all have a nice night now,” Chadwick hollered back in the midst of his laughter.

“Same to you, buddy! Enjoy the honeymoon! Don’t do nothin’ we wouldn’t do!”

Chadwick accepted the unsolicited advice with a wave of his hand and a thank you until the visitors were no longer in sight. Collapsing on top of each other in a heap, Chadwick set off a string of laughs at the absurdity of the situation.

“I can not believe that just happened. We fucked on a boat and got caught by the only other tourists for miles. What is life right now?”

“You put on a damn good show though, baby. Maybe we can get some of that on camera later tonight?”

“On camera you say,” she asked with a playful glint in her eye. “Good. I think I’m ready for my close up.”

____________

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27dragons · 5 years

Text

Name of Piece: The Bliss of Ignorance Square Filled: R3 - didn’t know they were dating Rating: T Warnings: None Summary: Bucky and Tony are friends. It only makes sense they’d do nice things for each other. But there’s nothing between them. Really. Created For: @tonystarkbingo

Bucky was playing paper football with Clint when Tony pushed into the coffee shop, arms laden with thick books, as usual. Bucky felt a warm little spurt of fondness. Of all the friends Steve had made while Bucky was deployed overseas, Tony was his favorite. Bucky waved, then dragged over a chair from another table.

“That stack must weigh almost as much as you,” he said as Tony dropped the books on the table with a relieved sigh.

“Just about,” Tony agreed. “But they don’t have ebook versions, so...” He shrugged. “It’s okay, I only need them for a few days.”

“Mechanical Engineering and Robotics,” Steve read off the spines. “Fundamentals of Robotics Design. Tony, what the heck? You took Fundamentals three semesters ago.”

“Yeah, but I thought I should brush up.” He grinned and bounced in his seat with barely-suppressed excitement. “I got that internship with Fujikawa!”

“What! Tony, that’s fantastic!” Bucky said, amidst the others’ congratulations. “You’re gonna blow ‘em away.”

“I hope so,” Tony said. “I mean, it’s just an internship, I know I won’t be actually working on design or anything, but--”

“They’ll be lucky to have you,” Bucky promised.

“Thanks.” Tony opened one of the books and took out a small stack of pages held together with a paperclip. “Of course, now I’ve got to fill in all this new hire paperwork. Anyone got a pen I can borrow?”

Natasha had one, because she was prepared for everything, always.

Bucky and Clint went back to their game while Tony muttered over the forms he was filling out and Steve and Nat bickered good-naturedly about whose turn it was to decide where their next date would be.

“Oh, dammit,” Tony sighed. “They want an emergency contact number. There’s no way I’m putting my parents on here.”

Tony’s wealthy father had cut Tony off after they’d fought over what Tony should major in, among other things. In defiance, Tony had gotten loans and was finishing up his degree on his own terms. Bucky was ridiculously proud of him. “Put me down, doll,” Bucky suggested.

“Really?”

“Sure,” Bucky said. “I’m mostly on night shift anyway, so I’ll be around when you blow something up.”

Tony huffed, but wrote Bucky’s name and number on the form. “Robotics doesn’t really involve a lot of explosions,” he said. “More’s the pity.”

“Okay, so when you accidentally create an evil robot that’s bent on destroying the world,” Bucky amended. Tony laughed, and Bucky ruffled his hair.

[’ware the readmore!]

Tony pushed open the door to Bucky’s apartment. Bucky had given him a key when it had come up that Bucky’s apartment was closer to the Fujikawa office than the fourth-floor walkup that Tony split with Clint and Pietro. “That way you’ve got a place to stash your books an’ stuff so you don’t gotta lug ‘em all that way,” Bucky had said.

It was handy; Tony kept a couple of changes of clothes at Bucky’s, too, in case he had to work late and crash on Bucky’s couch. And Bucky had given him space in the fridge, too, so Tony could eat dinner there before taking the subway back to his own apartment. They often ate together, in fact -- Tony’s dinner was Bucky’s breakfast.

Bucky was in the kitchen already when Tony came in, humming tunelessly as he made a mess of the eggs in his frying pan. He looked up with a bright smile when Tony came in. “Heya, dollface! Good day?”

“Yeah, actually,” Tony said. “I found a little flaw in the design I was proofreading, and my boss said I probably saved the company a couple of months on the project and a shit-ton of money.”

“That’s great!” Bucky said. He threw his arm around Tony’s shoulders and squeezed him in a quick hug before going back to his eggs. “We should go out to celebrate.”

“Speaking of celebration,” Tony said, “your birthday is coming up. You going to let me plan a party?”

“What? You don’t gotta go to any trouble for me,” Bucky said.

Tony glared at him. “It’s not trouble if I want to do it. C’mon, it’s the first birthday you’ve had since you came back stateside. Let us take you out and have some fun!”

Bucky made a face like he was going to argue, and Tony turned on the pout. Bucky could never resist Tony’s pout.

“Fine, okay,” Bucky sighed. His mouth twitched like he was trying to suppress a smile. “Nothin’ too crazy, though, okay? It’s just a birthday, don’t really mean nothin’.”

“I promise,” Tony lied cheerfully, and whipped out his phone. “Cancelling the hunky male strippers now.”

Bucky laughed. “Nah, you might as well keep those,” he said. “Makin’ Stevie blush is the best present you could give me, anyway.”

(“Oh my god,” Bucky said, three weeks later. “I thought you were kidding about the strippers!”

“Buck, I never kid about strippers,” Tony said solemnly. He’d had to badger Clint and Bruce and Natasha into helping him pay for it, but it was totally worth it for the way Bucky’s eyes had bugged out and the blush that climbed up out of Bucky’s collar.

“Best birthday ever.”)

Steve and Natasha were completely disgusting together pretty much all the time, but for Valentine’s Day, they took it to new heights. “Ug, get a room,” Bucky complained.

“Or,” Clint suggested with a practiced leer, “put on a show.”

“You have a boyfriend,” Bucky reminded him.

“It’s okay, I’ll film it for him.” Clint thumbed on his phone and turned on the photo app.

“Gross. Stevie, what the hell happened to the evils of the industrial marketing complex, huh?”

Steve managed to tear his gaze away from Natasha. “I guess when you’re this much in love, you’ll take any excuse to show it.”

“Oh gag me,” Bucky whined.

“Kinky,” said Tony in his ear. “We haven’t even gotten to third base yet.”

“Jesus!” Bucky jumped. “Where’d you come from?”

“Just got here.” Tony dragged out a chair and dropped into it, then tossed a package into Bucky’s lap.

“What’s this?” Bucky picked the box up and turned it over.

“Happy Valentine’s Day,” Tony said. “The bodega on Seventh already has their chocolate on post-holiday markdown.”

“Nice!” If Bucky was going to have to watch his paired-off friends being all sappy and cute with each other all day while Bucky was single, it was nice to have consolation chocolate to go with it. “But don’t think this means I’m putting out.”

“What about this one?”

Bucky leaned over Tony’s shoulder to read the Craigslist ad. “I dunno, this guy sounds like a creeper.”

“They all sound like creepers,” Tony pointed out. “It’s a roommate-wanted ad.”

Bucky chewed on his lip. He could appreciate Tony wanting to move out of Clint and Pietro’s apartment to give the two their privacy, but he didn’t like the idea of Tony living with a stranger. Especially not with the creeps and drug dealers that seemed to be all Tony was finding on Craigslist.

Fuck it. “You could always move in with me,” he said. Bucky’s apartment was small, but he had it to himself.

Tony gave him a wide-eyed look. “I already impose on you enough.”

“Nah. Half your stuff is at my place anyway, you might as well just bring the rest.”

Tony rubbed at the spot on his chest that meant he was considering it. “You’re sure?”

“Yeah,” Bucky said. “I don’t want to go back to night shift, but losing the pay differential kinda sucked. Little help with the rent and bills would be nice, honestly.”

“I’m graduating next semester,” Tony reminded him. “Once I get a real job, I can help out a lot more.”

“Bet Fujikawa’s gonna snap you right up,” Bucky said. “They keep re-upping your internship. They know you’re a keeper.”

“Okay,” Tony said. “Yeah, we can make that work. I bet Clint and Piet will be relieved to have the place to themselves, finally.”

“Everyone wins,” Bucky agreed.

Tony heard the door open, but didn’t look up from his homework. “Welcome home, snugglebug.”

“Hey there, shmoopsie,” Bucky shot back. The ridiculous pet names had started as mockery of Steve and Nat, and then turned into their own private joke. “Anything interesting happen today?”

“Rhodey nearly had a nervous breakdown in the computer lab when the printer ran out of paper and the IT guy said they wouldn’t be around to refill it until tomorrow,” Tony reported. “But I told him I’d print his paper here and drop it off when we meet up for drinks later. That okay?”

“As long as it’s not a hundred-pager,” Bucky agreed.

“Nah, just twelve.”

“No worries, then.”

“Oh, and we got our invitation to Steve and Nat’s wedding in the mail,” Tony said. He pointed at the table that was more of a dumping ground than a useful surface. “Singular invitation. One of them, for both of us.”

Bucky snorted as he picked it up and turned it over. “Fancy,” he commented. “What, no ‘and Guest’ for either of us?”

“Steve did say they were trying to keep it small and intimate,” Tony pointed out. “If either of us were dating anyone, they’d already know about it.”

“They didn’t have to send us an invitation at all,” Bucky said. “Seeing as we’re both in the wedding party.”

“I think that’s just so we can mark our dinner preference,” Tony said. He squinted at his homework, erased a line of math, and reworked it.

“Oh, yeah, here’s the card. Oh, you already filled it out for us. How’d you know I’d want the chicken?”

“Because you only like steak if it’s still bleeding, and there’s no way to get real rare steak from a catering venue.”

“You know me so well.” Bucky messed up Tony’s hair on his way past. “Guess you’ll be an okay date.”

“I hope I catch the bouquet,” Tony quipped. “Then you’ll have to marry me.”

Bucky snared Steve’s elbow and drew him aside. “Stevie. I hate to be a wet blanket at your own rehearsal dinner, but...”

“What’s wrong, Buck?”

“The room you got for me an’ Tony... Look, I’m super grateful to you guys for putting us up, but there was some kind of mix-up with the hotel, an’ they said they can’t change it without your say-so ‘cause it’s on your credit card.”

“Oh.” Steve looked relieved. “Is that all? We can swing by the front desk and do that. What’s wrong with the room?”

“It’s only got one bed.”

Steve hesitated. “That’s... that’s a problem?”

“What do you-- of course it’s a problem!”

“Sorry, Buck,” Steve said, his eyes wide. “I didn’t know. You guys have been together so long, I just assumed--”

“Wait,” Bucky said. “Wait wait wait. What do you mean, together? You mean Tony and me? Like, together, together?”

“Well... yeah?” Steve blinked. “Aren’t you?”

“Of course we’re not!”

“What do you mean, ‘of course’? You an’ Tony have been living in each other’s pockets for like... two years now. He moved in with you!”

“That’s no different than when he was livin’ with Clint and Pietro! It ain’t like we’re suckin’ face everywhere!”

“We just figured you weren’t all that demonstrative in public. Besides, you flirt with each other all the time,” added Steve.

“It’s a joke.”

Steve put his hand on Bucky’s shoulder and looked at him gravely. “Is it?”

Bucky’s mouth fell open, but no protest came out. Over Steve’s shoulder, Bucky could see Tony, laughing as he thumb-wrestled with Pietro over the last slice of bread. Bucky caught himself smiling fondly, and Steve patted his shoulder. “Maybe not as much of a joke as you think, pal,” Steve said. The jerk.

“I’ll... get back to you on that room thing,” Bucky said, unable to tear his eyes away from Tony.

“You do that, Buck.” And Steve was gone.

Shit. Shit. How had he never realized... All their friends thought they were dating? Had been, for... for years.

And sure, they lived together. They went everywhere together, but that was just convenience. It was nice, having company when you were out running errands. It was good sense not to wander the city alone, too, especially when you’d been out having a good time.

And okay, neither of them had gone on any dates in the last couple of years, either, but that was because Tony was focused on his studies and his internship and Bucky was...

Was...

Oh, fuck, was he in love with Tony?

How long had that been going on?

“No dice with the room?” Tony asked when Bucky came back to the table. It was fine, Tony had figured there was a possibility that the hotel’s double bed rooms had already been booked. They could share a bed for two nights; it wouldn’t be that much of an imposition.

“Uh. There’s sort of a... thing,” Bucky said. He looked a little pale.

“Hey, you okay?”

“What? Yeah. Yeah, I’m just...” Bucky looked up and down the table, then took a deep breath, as if steeling himself for something. “Come an’ take a little walk with me?”

“Sure,” Tony said, pushing his chair back. “You sure you’re all right?”

“Yeah,” Bucky said, leading Tony away from the noise and down a side hall. “I just... Um.” When the rehearsal party was out of sight and almost out of earshot, Bucky stopped and leaned against the wall. “So... the reason we got that room,” he said, eyes on the peeling wallpaper, “is ‘cause apparently everyone thinks we’re. Y’know. Together.”

Tony blinked. Then blinked again. “You mean together, together?”

Bucky huffed out a little laugh. “That’s ‘xactly what I said.”

“Oh my god,” Tony said. “Why the hell would they--” Except it made perfect sense, didn’t it, if you were on the outside, looking in. Bucky and Tony spent all their time together. They flirted. They gave each other gifts. They spent their holidays together. They gave each other Valentine’s gifts and planned each other’s birthday parties. They were each other’s emergency contacts, for fuck’s sake. “Huh.”

“Yeah,” Bucky said.

Tony was beginning to understand why Bucky looked so poleaxed. It wasn’t like he’d never thought about it -- Bucky was one damned fine looking man, after all. But he’d never taken it seriously. Bucky was not just gorgeous but smart and brave and funny and kind, and Tony was lucky enough just being Bucky’s friend. But apparently their friends thought there was more there. And he couldn’t help but understand why. “We’ve been dating all this time, and didn’t realize it,” Tony said.

“I guess so.”

Bucky glanced up, and Tony was arrested by the look in Bucky’s eyes. Longing and hungry. Bucky’s eyes dropped, but only to Tony’s mouth and neck, and Bucky licked his lips, let his teeth drag over his bottom lip.

Oh. Oh. Bucky... wanted that?

With Tony?

Tony’s breath hitched and Bucky’s eyes snapped back up to meet Tony’s gaze.

Tony swallowed. “It’s a nice bed,” he said cautiously.

Bucky nodded slowly. “Looked very nice. Big. Comfy. And it’d be a real hassle to make the hotel change our room now. It’s getting late, and all.”

“That’s true,” Tony agreed. “Maybe we should just keep it.”

“We are here together,” Bucky pointed out. “The invitation said.”

“Hang on, I want to try something,” Tony said. Bucky stared at him, and Tony leaned in, felt the soft rush of air as Bucky sucked in a breath. “Yeah?”

Bucky nodded, and Tony leaned in a little closer to brush his lips against Bucky’s once, twice, a third time.

Then Bucky’s hand curled around Tony’s neck, fingers pushing through Tony’s hair, and pulled him in for another, deeper kiss. Tony’s stomach filled with butterflies and a rush of heat flooded Tony’s body. “Oh god,” he croaked.

Bucky reached for Tony’s hand, lacing their fingers together, then glanced at Tony shyly. “Okay? If they see? If they know?”

Tony grinned. “Honey, apparently we’re the only idiots who didn’t know.” He squeezed Bucky’s hand tighter. “Come on, let’s go back to dinner and make everyone sick at how sappy we are.”

“Steve and Nat have it coming,” Bucky agreed. “And then after dinner...”

“After dinner,” Tony said, thrilling at the thought, “we’ll go back to our room and take advantage of that very nice bed.”

~fin.

#tonystarkbingo #tony stark #bucky barnes #buckytony #winteriron #au: no powers #my writing

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mr-eccentricist · 5 years

Note

Jas. M.H., I did see your long and thorough response when you posted it (the message to which you most recently responded was sent ten days ago, before you made your long response); but as I waited two weeks for your response, I felt that you could wait for mine. You have not been too forward; you have, however, been too tardy. Your punishment is that you have waited seven days for my reply: half the amount of time that I waited for yours. The humility and believability of your ... (1/5) — Eros.

... apologies are what prevent it being two weeks. (Be grateful that I

am not of a different nature, or you would have waited twice two weeks.)

Hero is, as you now know, ohthoumylovelyboy. I have corresponded with

them several times, and find them exceedingly lovely, highly

intelligent, and very talented. Now this is interesting, Jas. M.H.: you

say that you want to get to know me better, yet you can think of nothing

in particular that you want to know. You have no burning questions.

(2/5)

And this implies to me that what you want is, indeed, to *know me

better*: not to know *about* me, but to *have my acquaintance*. You

don’t seek knowledge *of* me: you seek acquaintanceship *with* me. How

intriguing. Your invitation to share something about myself is gracious

and humble; however, I am an exceedingly private and reticent person: I

am sure Marius can attest that sometimes convincing me to talk about

myself is like carving rock with a bisket ... (3/5)

... (imagine that, if you will: the sound, the grit, the lack of

progress …). Regrettably, however, if we wish to get to know someone we

must do the work of excavating them from strangerhood and constructing a

frame for association to be built upon; so my advice, Jas. M.H., is

that if you are serious about knowing me you should sharpen your tools

and follow Marius’s example: find some questions to ask me. You could

use an ask meme for inspiration, perhaps. I do not promise to answer …

(4/5)

... your questions, but they will give us something to start with and

will demonstrate to me that you are earnest. You write very well and

pleasantly, and your compliments and deference make me preen, which is

most agreeable; but, as you say, we are newly acquainted, and I am

unwilling to invest my time and energy in one who does not have the time

or energy to respond to me in kind. Please give my regards to Poppy, as

she, being a cat, is among the best creatures on this planet. — Eros.

(5/5)

MY DEAR EROS - You are, as ever, quite right; I have tarried too long and I shall make no excuse for my lack of alacrity. If one’s earnestness is to be believed it is best displayed with a visible, comprehensible, and demonstrable regard. Words, while charming, are hollow when they are unsupported by the necessary actions that would make them true or just so.I have done you a great disservice, and while I do beg your pardon, I crave your indulgence (if it please you) to make amends for my offenses.

I do seek acquaintanceship with you, although I have come to realise not only how much I am dependent on visual cues when communicating with another, but that I’ve never had to actively think about how I go about better acquainting myself with another before now (I am reminded of the phrase “Fish don’t know that they’re in water”). Hence why I am quite bereft and all at sea! (If you’ll pardon the expression.) Having not corresponded solely and expressly via the written word (by any medium, digital or otherwise) with another since we had pen pals at primary school, and some time having lapsed between then and now, I needs must set a precedent (and smartly improve upon my efforts thus far). This is far from a complaint, nor am I bemoaning the good circumstance in which Fate has introduced you to me, it is... an introspective reflection whose cry I shall endeavour to answer.

Ah! Thank you for the suggestion! You may not know this, but I am relatively new to The Tumblr having only been active on here since around August last year. I am slowly learning how this social media platform functions, and how it is used by its users (beyond blogging and re-blogging beautiful and/or hilarious things). I truly respect your privacy, and shall not press you to reveal anything beyond what you would care to share with myself, but also a wider audience. (I oftentimes forget how public this place is; everything shared herein is strictly between Me and Anyone Else Who Would Care To Happen Across It). I shall be quite satisfied with whatever you elect to share with me. The metaphorical imagery of actually carving a rock with a biskit gave me cause to laugh; first quietly, and then, gradually, something bordering on uproariously. I have a penchant for the ridiculous (in a somewhat Dickensian way), and the metaphor has had the desired effect of spurring me into action. I shall take up your recommendation of Asks. I shall use them as part of a foundation to build upon, along with what naturally occurs within our interactions together.

One question does come to mind. You are familiar with poetry, which is something that I have precious little knowledge about. Would you kindly make some me recommendations as to either poems, or poets/poetesses? My social circles are lacking in influence in this regard, and I seek exposure to verse that others have found beautiful. I do hope this question isn’t too personal? I do dread the thought of overstepping my bounds.

I have passed your regards onto Poppy. She has responded with what may phonetically be described as a most emphatic, and feline, “Prrrrr-up!”, which, in my experience of her (not so much as her owner, but as a member of her staff), is a Good Thing. I am glad you approve of cats; they are my Achilles’ Heel :)

I do hope this missive finds you well. I needs must make a valediction, and hie myself to rehearsal; the schedule of which states we’re to run both Acts 1 and 2 to-day. *Insert unbelieving laughter here* We’ll see how true that rings come the end of the day.

My Dear Eros, I do remain,Yr. Obt. Svt.,

James M.H.

#a correspondence with eros

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jarienn972 · 6 years

Text

Only a Little Superstitious - Chapter 18

I realized yesterday as I was getting ready to post the latest chapter of my other ongoing story that I hadn’t posted this recent chapter update on Tumblr yet. It’s been up on AO3 and FF.net for a little while so I apologize for the delay getting it posted here. This new chapter picks up right about the same time as the cliffhanger ending of Chapter 17 and if you haven't figured out yet why Kronk continues to pursue Emma and Killian, I've dropped a few not-so-subtle hints here.

Previous chapters on Tumblr: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

Carlos managed to make the hike back to his government-issue SUV in approximately fifteen minutes less than it had taken to ascend to the cavern. Armed with photographic evidence of the matching symbols, he had practically skipped down the mountainside, still lost in disbelief that this hidden hiking trail just might hold a gateway to another world. If they were right about everything, by tomorrow, he would be able to physically witness magic. Grandmother had always insisted that it existed and now, they would be able to see its return. He had heard these legends since he was a boy and never dreamed that some might just be true.

He tossed his backpack onto the rear seat before sliding behind the steering wheel and stretching across the center console to flip open the glove compartment, retrieving the charger cord for his phone. Not having a signal out here in the middle of nowhere was quite draining on the battery. He'd barely glanced at the phone all morning except to check the time or to make use of the camera since he knew he wouldn't have service until he reached Highway 60. As soon as his phone was in range of a tower though, his phone chimed with notifications and Carlos would soon learn of the drama unfolding down in the Valley.

Unlike his own beat up Suburban, the Park Service SUVs were fully equipped with built-in Bluetooth so he could listen to his messages without needing to fumble with the speakerphone button. He had only a single message but it had Carlos pulling off to the side of the highway the moment he heard it. There was no mistaking both the urgency and hint of fear in Emma's voice as he listened to her words, realizing that she'd left the voicemail for him just ten minutes earlier. Had she contacted Tim already and if so, what action might they take?

He'd barely screeched to a stop before slamming the gearshift into Park and grabbing his phone, dialing Emma's number impatiently while hoping she would pick up quickly.

"Carlos, I'm so glad you called," Emma answered on the third ring. "Did you get the message I left and are you back in the city yet?"

"Yes, I got the message but no, I'm not quite there yet. I'm still a few miles east of Apache Junction – maybe forty minutes away if I disobey a few speed limits… Did you get ahold of Tim?"

"I had him paged by one of the nurses here in the Emergency department. He's on his way." She didn't sound entirely convinced though.

"I'll give him a call myself in case they didn't relay the urgency, but I'm sure he's on his way. I'll make sure he knows what it's about and call you back when I'm closer to Mesa. I don't know how we'd do it, but I think we may need to get the two of you out of there…" Even as he suggested it, Carlos reflected on how risky that idea might be but he didn't see any other option.

"I'm honestly inclined to agree, but I don't think that would be easy…," Emma replied as a tall, dark-haired man in a cadet blue uniform pushed open one of the double doors across from her. "Carlos, hang on a minute… This might be your friend, Tim, now…"

"Sheriff Jones?" the uniformed man asked as he approached, extending his hand toward her in greeting. Emma nodded as she shook his hand, reading the name on his badge which confirmed who he was even before the security chief introduced himself. "I'm Tim Stillwater, head of security here at Mesa General. Glad to finally meet you in person, despite the circumstances…"

"Tell Tim hello for me," Carlos said with a chuckle from his end of the phone call. "I'll leave you in his capable hands and call you back when I reach Mesa."

"Excuse me one moment, Mr. Stillwater," Emma apologized as she wrapped up the call. "Thanks, Carlos." She disconnected the call and returned her attention to the man standing before her. "Carlos days hello and he's on his way."

"No need to apologize," Tim replied. "If anyone should be apologizing, it should be me as I got dragged into an incident out in the ambulance bay trying to help restrain some high as a kite guy paramedics brought in who attacked two orderlies. So sorry for that delay, but how can I be of assistance?"

Emma contemplated her words carefully. She knew that Carlos had provided Tim with portions of their situation but she hadn't been privy to those conversations so she didn't know exactly how much had been discussed. "You're familiar with how my husband got here?"

"I'm sure I don't know all of the details but I know that Carlos rescued you from up in the mountains after your husband was stabbed by someone. He also told me that the attacker was still at large which was why he chose to bring you here for my oversight…"

"He's here," Emma interrupted, not wanting to waste too much more time explaining right at this moment. "I just saw Killian's assailant, Nehemiah Kronk, in the cafeteria a few minutes ago. He was carrying around a box of flower bouquets, probably pretending to be a florist…"

"Okay, in that case, why don't you come with me?" Tim suggested, reaching for the radio clipped to his belt. "Let's go look at the security camera footage so you can point out the man, then I'll have my people get this place on lockdown…"

"No, you don't want a lockdown," Emma stopped him. "That might push this guy to do something rash. I don't want to put anyone else at risk."

"Okay, Sheriff," Tim began, taking her warning under advisement, "how do you think we should proceed?"

"Well, the first thing I need to do is get to my husband. He doesn't even know any of this yet but I don't want to go back through the cafeteria to the main elevators in case Kronk is still there. Is there some other way to get upstairs?"

"There's another elevator back this way that isn't open to the public. Your husband is still in the ICU right?"

"Yes. He was sleeping when I came downstairs to get coffee so he doesn't know Kronk is too close…" Emma stopped when she realized she was rambling, worried that Tim might think she was unstable.

"Do you think this Mr. Kronk knows your husband's room number?"

"We've kept that information pretty quiet so I doubt it. My parents don't even know the room number, but Kronk knows how seriously wounded Killian is. I don't know if he'd think about ICU though."

"This is a very large hospital campus so there are a lot of rooms for him to search unless he knows where to begin. Obviously, he would eliminate certain floors like pediatrics, but it will still take a while. Our staff is trained to protect our patients' privacy, but if he starts talking to other patients or their families and friends, we can't control what information they might give out."

"We're going to have to get Killian out of here," Emma stated as Tim pushed open one of the double doors into the Emergency area. "And we've got to do it fast, before Kronk finds us."

"This guy's pretty tenacious to have hunted you down. What exactly does he want from you?"

"I honestly don't know," Emma replied and she didn't even have to skirt around that answer. She really didn't know for certain why Kronk was trying so hard to find them. "It feels like he needs something from us and maybe it's about something that happened after the attack… I just don't really know…"

"Hard to gauge the intent of some people," Tim said, not questioning her vague response. "Now, I'll be happy to help you both out with getting your husband moved to another facility, but are you sure about this? It might not be safe to move him."

"No, it might not be, but I have to weigh which would be the bigger risk – potentially causing my husband further injury by moving him or the possibility of putting others in danger if Kronk doesn't find what he wants?" Emma's dilemma was certainly a valid one and she sensed that Tim didn't envy the choices she was facing. She knew she would also be making this same argument to medical staff very soon, but she didn't doubt her decision and she knew that neither would Killian. No innocent people would be put at risk for their sake.

By the time Carlos called back, Emma had already engaged in two separate arguments with medical personnel who didn't agree that Killian should be discharged and moved to another facility even if his condition had improved overnight. Tim Stillwater had intervened as best he could, explaining that it was a necessary relocation due to personal security concerns for the law enforcement officers. Tim was in agreement that remaining here at Mesa General wouldn't be safe for anyone so Emma had made a phone call to Dr. Whale, requesting a favor from him to set up a fabricated transfer of Killian to a private, unnamed location. After a few minutes of protesting, Whale agreed and had his administrative assistant draw up formal-looking instructions which were sent to Killian's attending physician in Arizona. The Mesa medical staff had finally relented, still voicing their disapproval while a nurse began disconnecting the multitude of monitors and machines he'd been connected to.

With Carlos only a few minutes away, Emma was hurrying to help Killian get dressed while Tim and his staff kept a watchful eye on the hallways and security camera monitors for any sign of the man Emma had identified for them in footage filmed earlier. Getting Killian clothed however was proving to be a more daunting challenge than planned due to his mobility limitations, and he was growing increasingly frustrated by his inability to perform even the simple task of pulling on his own trousers. She'd grabbed the most basic pair she could find amongst the clothing Carlos had acquired for them a few days ago – elastic waist, soft fleece pants which weren't too dissimilar to the ones Emma often wore to bed.

Killian despised this helpless feeling as he lay there allowing his wife to dress him. His chest still itched from the irritating adhesive that had once secured various medical sensors to his skin and he was anxious to be rid of the last remaining tether – the IV catheter taped to his forearm which was delivering a last dose of medication. He might as well get the last of the pain medicine before they departed this building. Emma had a long-sleeved, button-up shirt draped across his waist and was digging his boots out of the backpack when the nurse returned to yank out the IV, placing a bandage over the tiny crimson bubble left behind.

Emma gave her husband a quick sideways glance as she gathered up their belongings, shoving them nonchalantly into the backpack while awaiting their friend's call. As much as she was loathe to admit it, she still found the sight of Killian's bandaged chest unsettling, but she did her best to keep up a brave face. She knew he was doing the same in attempt to bolster her spirits, but she recognized the cracks in the façade, knowing all of this exertion was bound to take a toll on him.

With his arm free from the tubing, Killian reached for the shirt, determined to do at least one thing for himself. Despite a mild tremor, he managed to hold up the charcoal grey shirt long enough to shove his maimed arm into a sleeve, tugging the fabric as far up onto his shoulder as he could manage, already thankful to no longer have his deformity on display. He then raised his right arm above his head, reaching behind his neck in attempt to grasp the collar of the shirt, but it was just beyond his fingertips. With his teeth already gnashed from the discomfort this position was inflicting on his body, he struggled with the reality that he was going to need to ask for help. Emma spared him that indignity though as she moved swiftly to his side, taking hold of the fabric and moving it into a position where Killian could grab it and maneuver the other sleeve so he could slip his right arm inside. The pain he'd just inflicted on himself was agonizing but at least he felt as though he'd accomplished something, however small, but he conceded defeat when he stared at the row of itty bitty buttons.

"Could use a hand with these, Love," he said, eyes still downcast with embarrassment.

"Of course," Emma replied without judgement, recognizing how difficult all of this was for him. She buttoned it as rapidly as she could, wanting to be ready to move the moment Carlos called. Killian didn't even fight her as she pulled socks onto his bare feet then shoved his boots on. He was basically ready to go as soon as an orderly brought them a transport chair.

It was Tim Stillwater who first poked his head into the room though, informing them that one of his guards spotted Kronk on the floor below them, delivering one of the bouquets Emma had seen him carrying earlier, evidently in attempt to maintain his cover. He seemed to have no indication that he'd been made which was Emma's one consolation. Kronk was just getting too close though, she fretted, so caught up in that thought that she practically jumped when her phone rang. Carlos' timing couldn't have been better.

The conversation was brief – Carlos instructed her to meet him outside by the ambulance bay. She relayed the plan to Tim who ducked out of the room in search of the tardy orderly while Emma tossed their last few items into the backpack, the last of which was the specimen jar containing the broken tip of the dagger. They were going to need this later.

In minutes, they were ready to go and despite some minor grumbling on Killian's part, Emma and the orderly managed to get the pirate maneuvered into the wheelchair. He wasn't particularly enthusiastic about his wife having to push him, still cursing his inability to walk, but with no other choice available at the present, he swallowed his pride and accepted the aid.

Handing Killian the backpack to hold onto while she pushed the chair, Emma was noticeably tense while they awaited Tim's signal that Carlos was in position. Tim had already waved off the orderly, circumventing standard hospital protocol in this situation to avoid additional sets of prying eyes. So many thoughts were swirling through her head but her primary concern was for Killian. The morphine would wear off soon, plunging him back into severe agony. It pained her to even think of subjecting him to it all over again but hopefully, Grandmother would have a solution.

"Carlos is here," Tim announced as he re-entered the room. "Coast is clear to the service elevator, but we need to go now. I've got two of my men guarding the main elevators and one watching the east stairwell. They've been ordered not to engage Mr. Kronk should they encounter him, but I don't want to push our luck."

"We're ready," Emma assured the security chief. "No one else has spotted Kronk yet?"

"We've been keeping a close watch on the security cameras," Tim began as Emma carefully spun the wheelchair around, then pushed it through the doorway and made the turn to her left. "Unfortunately, the cameras don't cover all areas, but unless something has changed in the past few minutes, he's still on the third floor." Emma nodded, quickening her pace as Tim led the way down the unauthorized corridor toward the private elevator.

Reaching the ground floor, the elevator doors parted to reveal another uniformed guard standing sentry. The guard stepped aside to allow them to pass while confirming to his boss that their quarry wasn't in sight. No words were spoken as Tim cleared a path through the busy Emergency area for Emma to follow, making their way toward a side door that exited into the ambulance bay which was typically only used by paramedics. On the other side of that door, Carlos stood outside of the Park Service SUV and he immediately jumped into action to help Emma get Killian into the vehicle. They had to do this quickly as they didn't want to remain out here, exposed, for too long.

While Emma and Carlos scrambled to get her mobility-impaired husband into the relative safety of the SUV, above them, Nehemiah Kronk had reached the fourth floor, closing in on their prior location. Intensive Care was a little trickier for the former Marshal to navigate as the rules generally permitted only immediate family. He'd approached the desk in his guise of delivery man, inquiring about a patient by name of Killian Jones and very briefly explaining that he had a delivery from the patient's family back in New England, but they hadn't known his room number. The nurse behind the desk denied him any information, but as he listened to her response about patient privacy and safety, Kronk's eyes were soaking up every little detail around the desk. He noticed that the rack of patient charts contained six clipboards, but the names or codes printed on their labels were far too small to read from his vantage point so he mentally tried to correlate them to the surrounding rooms that might appear to be occupied. Out of the eight rooms in this ward, six had closed doors and but open curtains to allow nurses clear view of the patients, one had an open door and open curtain, and the eighth had its door open but curtains were drawn closed. If occupied rooms were indicated by those closed doors, what was different about this possibly unoccupied room that led to its curtains being closed?

Kronk grinned at his good fortune as an alarm suddenly drew the nurse's attention away. In the brief seconds that her back was turned to focus on another patient, Kronk darted into the room with the open door, prepared to apologize should the room be occupied but he couldn't help but indulge his curiosity that this room could be related to the pirate.

Ducking inside, he could tell that the room was either occupied or had been very recently vacated as the bed linens were still rumpled and a not-fully depleted bag of IV fluids still hung above the bed. The patient's chart had already been removed so Kronk took a brief inventory in hopes something might have been left behind that could confirm the identity of the room's occupant. The countertops were bare and monitors were already powered off, but he realized that the trash can hadn't yet been emptied as a basic brown, heavily taped cardboard box caught his eye. He snatched the box out of the waste can and a smile widened across his face as he recognized the addressee – Emma Jones, Care of Ranger C. Littlecreek.

The remainder of the address label was torn but he had enough evidence to confirm his suspicion. The Storybrooke savior and her pirate husband had been here, the injury he'd inflicted on the pirate severe enough to warrant Intensive Care treatment and scrutiny. He also realized that it meant that the item he sought likely wasn't here any longer. A surgeon would certainly have removed it, probably with complications, but it meant he'd still have to track down Sheriff Emma and his first clue was the second name on the discarded package.

C. Littlecreek. Ranger?

Was that how they'd made their way off of the mountain? Assistance from a Park Ranger?

He tried to speculate how this new information would aid him when his train of thought was momentarily derailed when a young, dark-haired woman clad in flowery scrubs strolled into the room pushing a small cart, presumably to collect the used bed linens.

"Oh, sorry," the startled woman stammered. "Wasn't expecting anyone to be in here…"

"Apologies," Kronk replied, plastering a fake smile onto his lips. "The patient who was in this room, Mr. Jones, do you know what happened to him?"

"Sorry, all I was told was that the patient room was empty and I got sent to clean up," the woman responded.

"Ah, well, someone Mr. Jones knew back East sent him a get well bouquet that I was trying to deliver. Unless we have a new location to deliver it, I guess it's going back to the shop," Kronk explained, hoping it would make his presence less questionable.

"Afraid I can't help you," the young woman stated as she yanked the blanket from the bed. Kronk smiled at her one last time before exiting the room, thankful that the nurse at the desk was still occupied and didn't appear to have noticed his nosing around the vacant room without authorization.

Pausing in the elevator lobby, Kronk took a moment to gather his thoughts and ponder his options. Had the pirate been move to a different room within this same facility or had he been discharged? The latter seemed unlikely from Intensive Care, but then the possibility remained that Jones died. If he wasn't dead, he might have been moved, but was he still here or had he been transferred to another facility? There were still dozens of rooms to search in this building but while he knew he was on the right track, should he keep searching or regroup and try another approach?

He thought about that second name on the torn address label, C. Littlecreek. He wasn't in Texas so the title of Ranger most likely would refer to a National Parks Service Ranger, the same inclination he'd had earlier, before he'd been interrupted. A fortuitous encounter with a Park Ranger had likely saved the pirate's life and it didn't seem like much of a stretch to think that the Sheriff might have befriended that same Ranger. She'd obviously had her package mailed to the Ranger's address, probably a place of employment based on use of the title. A Park Service field office maybe?

Now, armed with this new lead, he was convinced he was close. His prize was well within his grasp and with that, he'd be home soon.

Tagging @killian-whump for this latest update as I think I forgot to tag her on the last chapter. (I realize that this chapter is a little light on the whump unless you want to count bested by a button down shirt) Not done with the pirate just yet though. If anyone else would like to be tagged for future chapters, please let me know!

#cs ff #cs fan fic #cs fan fiction #captain swan ff #only a little superstitious

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bunny-wk-fanfic · 6 years

Note

Okay so there's this show called Lucifer on FOX and is all about the fallen Angel him self I can't help think that if he just happen to run in to Kagome it would be a hilarious and steamy encounter. Do you know the show, if so think you could do a little something??

Decided to go with a continuation of my first two Lucifer posts, if you’re interested, they can be found HERE and HERE. I hope you enjoy this piece!

Los Angeles was everything and nothing as she had imagined it to be. A lot of what was shown in shows and movies were true, and yet, she was still blown away but the culture of the city. Knowing one such individual made the rest of the city seem, well, rather tame.

Kagome bit her lip as she shifted in the dressing room, not at all comfortable with her current situation. Her case apparently crossed paths with one of Decker’s, so she was given leave to stay however long was necessary to work with LAPD to closer this. That, she had no issue with, but a lead was at a certain establishment and since Detective Decker was a well-known face to her end of the investigation, it required that she go in undercover.

Again, undercover work wasn’t an issue. Normally. Save for the fact that the establishment in question was a ‘Gentlemen’s Club’, to put it politely. And the female servers wore pretty much scraps, as she currently was. Shifting one more time to readjust her uniform, Kagome grumbled. It was actually a lot better than most places, the lingerie rather tasteful, covering much more than what most places had the women wear.

Still, the fact that she was wearing it for men’s enjoyment left much to be desired.

“You sure you’re okay with this?” Detective Decker’s voice echoed through the earpiece she wore, waiting with her backup team just outside. “We do have another officer that can take your place.”

“I’m good.” Kagome readjusted her bra as she stood before a mirror. “How’s the image, good?”

“Clear.” there was a momentary pause. “Now remember, all we need is a clear shot of their face and we have them. Don’t forget the codeword in case of any trouble.”

“Right.” Kagome nodded her head, giving her bra one final adjustment, secretly admiring the lingerie set and mourning the price it cost. “Right. Does it really have to be… well, that?” it was such an embarrassing thing to say.

“We had to come up with something that would not stand out too much in your surroundings, but enough to let us know.” Kagome could hear the grimace in Decker’s voice, even she found the code word awful. “Again, our officer is okay with this if you’re not.”

“No. I’m all dressed up and ready to go… Just feel naked without my own personal backup.” she sneered at her reflexion, grateful that she was wearing something that covered more than the standard thongs. But it wouldn’t allow her to bring a weapon along with. “I just really hope this is worth it.”

With a quick tussling of her hair, she put on a smile before leaving the changing room. Time to catch some bad guys. She was quickly given a tray of only the best of alcohol for the customers, as well as a reminder that said customers could only look, but not touch unless she gave them explicit permission. And never on the floor. There were booths for private lap dances, and nothing more. Kagome walked around, taking drink orders as well as reminding the customers that the kitchen would soon startup if they were hungry. All in all, she was admired but ignored. A few wanted to get a good look at the ‘new girl’ but otherwise, she was ignored.

“Well, hello Higurashi.” the voice was a low drawl that nearly had her tripping.

Spinning about, she stared up at the male that literally surprised her. “Lucifer?!” she had to fight the urge to step away from him in surprise. She was quick to school her expression as she quickly echoed Decker’s question. “What are you doing here?”

He offered her a smile, it grew as he took her new look in. “Lovely, very lovely. And in my colors too.” he cooed, his stance relaxing.

“Trust me, it was purely coincidental.” her eyes scanned the crowd, checking for anyone new or if anyone left. “Again, why are you here?” she waved another server over, swapping her empty tray out for the girl’s full one.

“Following a lead of course!” he obviously became more excited, not even passing the other girl a glance as she began to squirm before him, all but panting.

“Of course.” Kagome shooed the girl off. “And you didn’t tell Detective Decker because?” she trailed off, presenting the tray of drinks to him in a mocking to look like she was doing a server’s job.

“She wasn’t picking up my calls.” he gave a blase shrug, his excuse for showing up unannounced as well as sounding like an apology. “I’m meeting up with an old friend of mine. He has a few connections that might prove useful to the investigation. Figured I’d talk with them and help get the information needed.”

Sighing, Kagome searched the floor, spotting a table and leading him there. “This table should provide with enough privacy for your friend.” she gave him a menu once he took a seat. “And next time, please let us know if you plan on involving yourself like this.”

Lucifer smirked as he made himself comfortable in his chair, looking up at her with a smolder. “Have I begun to grow annoying to you as well?”

“Baka.” she was quick to flick his forehead. “It’s called worry for a reason.” she was quick to saunter off when a customer waved her down, it was best to keep up appearances after all.

It wasn’t long after that, did Lucifer’s friend show up, to which she directed him to where Lucifer sat. With a quick order, she continued weaving through the tables like the others. It was half an hour of the friend’s arrival did their lead finally show up. Kagome was at the table, refilling Lucifer’s drink, when all three of them looked up and watch the large man saunter in like he owned the place.

“That’s… that’s the guy.” the mousey businessman snatched a drink from Kagome’s tray and threw it back in one shot.

Flicking her gaze from him to the lead, she bit her lip before saying the codewords. Turning her head to the side as she reached for an empty glass on the table, she whispered to let Decker know. “Spank me.”

Both men looked at her in shock and surprise, the mousey man sputtering, coughing slightly as he choked on spit. Lucifer watched her, his gaze piercing as it stayed with her.

Neither of them got to say anything when the lead they were all here for spoke up. “Oi! New girl, come here and let me get a good look at ya!”

Kagome blinked wide eyes, mouth parting slightly to say something in retaliation. Before she could do such, the front doors crashed open with police spilling in as they loudly announced their presence. A squeak escaped her when she was suddenly grabbed and pulled down the moment the first shot rang out, it was muffled when Lucifer covered her with his own body in an effort to protect her.

She buried her face in his shoulder, hands clenching his arms tightly as his own wrapped around her. Now Kagome was no stranger to shootouts, but she was unarmed and without protection, and vulnerable. Her ears were ringing, making it a little difficult to realize when the firing finally ended. In fact, it wasn’t until Lucifer shifted above her did she open her own eyes again.

“Hello.” his voice barely managed to make it through the ringing and pounding in her ears, causing her to pinch her brows. “Now isn’t this a wonderful position we’re in.”

Kagome could only blink up at him, still not quite understanding his words. Though she did blush when he shifted, his position feeling far more suggestive than protective. An arm was cradling her head while his other hand slipped the waspie she was wearing, his touch feeling far too hot against her own skin. Ironic, considering who and what he was.

“…what?” a hand was slow to rise, fingers touching against an ear.

“Oh? Can’t hear me?” his own brows pinched together, his hand leaving it’s earlier perch to cup her cheek. “Did you hit your head?”

When he combed a hand through her hair, sliding along her scalp to check for injuries, Decker called out from further within the room. “Everything alright, Higurashi?”

“Y-yeah!” her voice croaked out, still tilted by Lucifer going all ‘Mother Hen’ on her. She raised a shaky arm to wave to the other detective that she was still alive and kicking. “I’m fine, Lucifer. Ears are ringing that’s all.” she tried to wave his concern off, to get him to back off.

“Well, I can honestly say I’m not surprised.” Decker’s voice drawled from behind Lucifer, drawing both his and Kagome’s attention. “Just couldn’t resist in copping a feel, could you?”

“I’ll have you know, I was protecting Detective Higurashi when you and your men began to open fire.” he scowled up at the other woman, actually reprimanding her. “Or had you forgotten that she was unarmed and without proper protection.”

Decker looked just as surprised as Kagome, her lips quickly pursing as she looked away. “I’m sorry. Our guy fired the first shot, along with his friends.” her eyes flicked along Kagome’s form that was visible since Lucifer shifted to look at the other woman. “You alright? The both of you?”

“Like I said, I’m fine. Just a little dizzy, and my ears are ringing.” Kagome waved the concern off, attempting to get up. A difficult task when Lucifer still sprawled atop her. “Really, I’m fine. Can I get up now?”

“As the lady wishes.” Lucifer was graceful and fluid, quick to offer her a hand.

“Wait… She’s a cop?!” the mousey man all but shrieked and sputtered.

“Tokyo PD, to be precise.” Kagome wavered for a moment, grumbling when she realized a heel on one of her shoes was broken. “Now that this is over, I’m going to change into something far more appropriate.”

“I thought you already were!” Lucifer’s voice followed after her, as did a few catcalls and wolf whistles from the other officers.

“Ha-ha! Laugh it up boys. Just remember, Decker knows your wives!” Kagome smiled when the catcalling and whistling stopped, a few whined, but they stopped. “Oh, and Lucifer.”

Said male was quick to make sure his gaze was on her face when she turned around, raising a brow to silently ask her what she wanted. Both brows shot up as well as his eyes widening when she struck a pose.

“Take a picture, it lasts longer.” she sputtered before laughing outright when he was quick to whip out his cell phone and do just that. “I see you passing that around, and I’m going to kick your ass.”

She nearly tripped when he called out to her, earning a few snickers from the other officers. “Is that a promise? Please tell me you’ll be wearing your current outfit while doing so!”

Waving him off, she continued on to the changing room, looking forward to once again be in her own clothing. She had quickly learned not to take Lucifer’s words to heart. Even if he honestly meant them.

#prompts #fanfiction #crossover #shows #Lucifer Morningstar #Kagome Higurashi

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mortallyshadypatrol · 3 years

Text

Full Mac Apps

On this website, I have covered a ton of paid apps, and that’s because in general, paid apps tend to offer more when compared to free apps. However, that does not mean that there are no good free apps out there. In fact, there are a ton of them. That’s why it is going to be a long article as I am bringing a list of 35 best free apps you can get for your Mac right now. Some of the apps on this list are evergreen and you most probably already have them installed on your device. But some of them are entirely new. Well, at least they are new to me and that’s the beauty of it. No matter, how old an app is, it is new for somebody out there. That said, no matter how avid a Mac user you are, I can bet that you will find new Mac apps in this article that you have never heard of before. So, open your Macs and get ready to download these awesome free Mac apps.

Facebook App For Mac

Video Download App For Mac

Mac Full Screen 2 Apps

Full Version Mac Apps

Best Free Mac App

Note: Be sure to read our must-have iPhone apps article to get the best apps for your iPhone in 2020.

Best Free Mac Apps You Should Install in 2020

While most of the apps in this list are free, some of them offer a paid option. That being said, when it comes to paid apps, I have only included those options that offer a generous free tier. I am using free versions of all the apps (that offer paid options) and find them suitable for most users. No app with a free trial or heavily restricted free tier has been included.

1. Audiobook Binder

The power of Mac. Taken further. Dedicated apps for music, TV, and podcasts. Smart new features like Sidecar, powerful technologies for developers, and your favorite iPad apps, now on Mac. Apr 06, 2020.

While you can listen to books in MP3 format, I like the M4B format more as it supports chapters. M4B is also the native format that Apple Books support. If you want to keep your music library separate from the book library, this is the format to use. Audiobook Binder is an app that lets you convert MP3 files into M4B files. It also lets you bind multiple MP3 files into a single M4B file and converts those MP3 files into chapters. You can also add custom book cover and edit book’s metadata including name, author, and narrator. I have been using this app for the past year and a half to listen to public domain audiobooks and lectures and it has never failed me.

Install:Free

2. LastPass

Password management is something people ignore. Since passwords are hard to remember and most third-party password managers charge a hefty monthly subscription fee, not everyone is aboard the strong and different password train. To those users, I suggest LastPass. LastPass offers a very generous free tier that allows you to use the software on two different machines. And if you want to use it on more, you can always use its web app that works everywhere. I have been using LastPass for the past two years to manage my passwords and I never had any problem.

Its apps are installed on my primary MacBook Pro (learn MacBook Pro tips and tricks) and my iPhone. Since it supports browser plugins and iPhone’s automatic password fill feature, I never have to type my password or remember them. All my passwords are secure, long, and use an alpha-numeric combination. If you are still using the same password everywhere or setting weak passwords, try out LastPass. It’s free for personal use and you have no excuses not to use it. Its one of the best free Mac apps that you can get.

Facebook App For Mac

Install:Free, $3/user/month

3. Brave

While I love Safari and use it for most of my tasks, it’s not perfect and I have to turn to other browsers from time to time. My biggest problem with Safari is its nescient extension library. Safari is also slow to adopt the latest web technologies. I know Apple does this to keep browsing private and secure, but sometimes it causes hindrance in my work. For a long time, I was using Chrome for this work but I hated two things about it. First, Google Chrome is a resource hog and decreases battery life, causes overheating, and several other problems. Second and more importantly, I don’t like sharing my data with Google more than I already do. It was one of the reasons why I switch from Android to iOS several years back.

The solution is the Brave browser. It’s a browser that is built on the same Chromium engine that Google Chrome uses, so you are getting all the features and extension support. But, since the creators focus on privacy, your data is always secure. It brings an automatic tracking blocker and even blocks most of the annoying ads. Since it blocks the most harmful scripts, you get to enjoy a faster internet. Also, in my testing, it’s far better than Google Chrome at handling resources. While it’s not as good as Safari, that’s a trade-off that I am ready to make. If you are also looking for a good Chrome alternative, you should try using the Brave browser.

Install:Free

4. CopyClip

CopyClip is a Mac utility that stores everything you copy in a clipboard. Copy-and-paste is so integral to our work that we cannot even imagine a time when this feature was not available. Still, Mac’s clipboard is probably the most neglected feature in the macOS. Even after so decades, you still cannot hold more than one entry in your clipboard. Enter, CopyClip. It’s a clipboard manager that saves entries into the clipboard. You can use a simple keyboard shortcut to easily copy any item and paste them anywhere you want. CopyClip not only saves text input but also preserves images and documents. While I use “Paste” for my clipboard management as it offers more features, for a free app, CopyClip works exceptionally well.

Install:Free

5. BBEdit

For a long time, it was hard to recommend a good free text editor on Mac. All the good ones were paid, and the free ones were just not up to the mark. Well, after a long hiatus, BBEdit, one of the most exemplary text editors, is back on the Mac App Store. For the past 20 years, BBEdit has been the text editor to beat and now that it’s back on the App Store with a freemium model, you can use it for free. Only the advanced features of BBEdit are hidden behind a paywall and 90% of regular users will not need those features.

Whether you want to write a long blog post, edit snippets of code, design website or web apps, BBEdit is the text editor to use. The best thing about BBEdit is how fast it works. It opens text files with hundreds of thousands of words in seconds and never falters. In my years of using this app, I have not lost even a single line of text. It has a powerful search that lets you locate and find keywords across files. There’s no free text editor out there that can match its prowess.

Install:Free, $49.99

6. NetNewsWire

The death of Google Reader placed a dark cloud over the future of RSS readers. But, if anything, RSS is showing a sign of resurgence in the past year or so. From the launch of acclaimed RSS reader app Reeder 4 to the rebirth of NetNewsWire, RSS readers are becoming popular again. And if you are looking to create a personal news feed, there’s no better app to do it with than NetNewsWire. Built on-top of free and open source reader named Evergreen, NetNewsWire is an excellent feed reader for Mac.

The app makes it easy to subscribe to RSS feeds and brings excellent search capabilities. It also brings a beautiful design and I adore its dark mode. It also supports online feed syncing services such as Feedbin. I still prefer Reeder 4 as it brings more features, but seeing how NetNewsWire is still young and free to use, I cannot fault it. If you are looking for a free RSS reader, you should try NetNewsWire.

Install:Free

7. DaVinci Resolve

While Macs come with a basic video editor for free (iMovie), anyone who is serious about video editing will have to go for the pro video editing apps. The problem with apps like Final Cut Pro or Adobe Premiere Pro is that they cost a lot. If you don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars, and still want to use a full-fledged video editor, DaVinci Resolve is the best option for you. Even when I am writing this, I cannot believe that such a capable video editor is free to use.

The latest version of the software, DaVinci Resolve 16 combines professional 8K editing, color correction, visual effects, and audio post-production all in one software tool. Color correction tools of DaVinci Resolve are better than most paid video editors including FCP and Premiere Pro. From custom timeline settings to facial recognition to keyframe editing, it brings all features that you require from a professional video editor. It is one of the best free Mac software that you can install. Free Mac apps don’t get better than this.

Install:Free

8. Folx

Folx is a powerful native download manager for Mac that not only works great but also looks cool. It features a true Mac-style interface and supports both direct and torrent downloads. The app also offers extensions for Safari, Chrome, Opera, and Firefox. The extensions help Folx in catching downloads and thus ensure that you are not using the crappy download manager of your browser. Folx can split downloads into multiple threads resulting in faster downloads and also support download pause and restart. The free version of the app is enough for most users. I was using it for years without any complaints. I only bought the paid version to support the developers. The extra features are nice to have but they have not drastically affected by usage.

Install:Free, $19.99

9. NightOwl

macOS Mojave introduced dark mode to our favorite desktop operating system. The dark mode on macOS Mojave is not half-cooked as it is on windows. When you turn on the dark mode on your Mac, not only it turns the system UI but also the stock apps. Not only that, apps that support automatic dark mode also adhere to the same guideline. Once you turn it on, they automatically default to dark mode.

While that's great in most situation, I wish Apple included a way to create a whitelist for apps that are not functional in dark mode. The default Mail app and the Evernote app are a few examples of an app that still work best in light mode. That's where NightOwl comes in. It's a menu bar app that allows you to create a whitelist of apps that you don't want to use in dark mode. Not only that, but it also allows you to quickly switch between dark and light mode with a simple click at its icon. You can read more about the app in our article here. The app is completely free to download and use with a voluntary donation.

Install:NightOwl

10. Unsplash Wallpapers

I want to start this article with an app which I have discovered just a couple of months back and have fallen in love. As its name suggests, Unsplash Wallpapers is a wallpaper app for Mac which gives you access to unlimited ultra-high resolution wallpapers for your Macs. One of the things that I love most about MacBooks is its display. Apple packs phenomenal displays on the Macs. Stop me if it’s just me, but I enjoy changing the wallpapers on a regular basis just because they look so damn beautiful on my Mac’s display.

Before I discovered Unsplash Wallpapers, it used to be a chore to change wallpapers. First, I had to find good wallpapers, then I had to download them, and only then I could use them. With Unsplash Wallpapers app, you can change the wallpaper just with one click. If you like a wallpaper, you can even download it. If you love wallpapers, you are going to love this free Mac app.

Install:Unsplash Wallpapers

11. The Unarchiver

This is one of the first free Mac apps that I download whenever I move on to a new Mac. The app is basically the best unarchiving app you can get for your Mac, free or otherwise. The Unarchiver cannot only unarchive common formats such as Zip, RAR (including v5), 7-zip, Tar, Gzip, and Bzip2, but it can also open formats such as StuffIt, DiskDoubler, LZH, ARJ, ARC, ISO and BIN disc images, Windows.EXE installers and more. Basically, it’s a one-stop solution for all your unarchiving needs.

Install:The Unarchiver

12. Amphetamine

We all know that Macs bring a long battery life and while some of it has to do with Apple’s excellent hardware, most of it is because of how macOS efficiently manages battery. One of the things that macOS does to preserve the battery life on your computer is to put it to sleep whenever you don’t interact with your Mac for a set period of time. While this is really good, sometimes you need to keep your Mac running even if you are not interacting with it. One of the examples that come to mind is when you are downloading a large file. If your Mac falls asleep during the download, it will stop it, and depending on the software that you are using to download the file, you might have to restart the download from the beginning.

Amphetamine solves this problem by allowing users to keep their Macs awake even when they are not doing anything. The app is powerful and allows users to keep their Macs awake for how much ever long they want. Not only that, users can also set triggers to keep their Macs awake. For example, you can tell Amphetamine to not put your Mac to sleep whenever a certain app is running. Lastly, it allows you to easily access all these features as it lives right there in your Mac’s menu bar. It’s one of the most useful apps for Macs and I love it.

Install:Amphetamine

13. GIPHY Capture

Gifs are all the rage today. More and more users are creating and sharing their own gifs. And if you want to be one of them then this is the tool you need. GIPHY Capture is an app that lets you capture and create gifs. Once you launch the app it will create a translucent green window with a capture button at the bottom. All you need to do is to drop the window on top of the video you want to capture and click on the capture button. Once you are done with the recording, click on the record button again to stop the recording. It is probably the easiest way to create gifs on your Mac.

Install:GIPHY Capture

14. Spectacle

Spectacle is one of the apps that I install instantly on a new Mac. Macs are good at many things but one thing that still eludes it is a good window management feature. Apple has not solved the window management problem in the latest macOS Catalina so I guess, we have to wait for one more year. In fact, the window management problem has become even worse in macOS Catalina in my opinion. If you are also fed up of Apple's native approach towards window management, you should Install Spectacle.

This is a simple menu bar app that allows you to easily resize and place windows with keyboard commands. I can easily set a window to either half of the display both vertically and horizontally, make it go full screen, snap it to the center, and more. Once you install this app, your window management workflow will become ten times faster.

Install:Spectacle

15. ImageOptim

ImageOptim is one of the most used free Mac apps on my MacBook Pro. In my line of work, I have to attach a ton of screenshots (like in this article). And before I upload any picture on my website, I pass it through ImageOptim. The app deletes all the unnecessary metadata such as GPS position and camera's serial number and compresses the image. This allows me to upload the image on the web without any privacy hazards and ensures that the file sizes are low.

The app is pretty easy to use. You just drag and drop images into its window and then click on the button at the bottom-right corner. If you share a ton of images on the web (whether on your blog or social media websites like Twitter and Facebook), it will be good for you to pass it through ImageOptim first. I have used paid image compression apps but nothing has been as good and as easy to use as ImageOptim.

Install:ImageOptim

16. Alfred 4

Alfred is an all-purpose tool for your Mac which can boost your productivity ten folds if you learn how to use it. Of course, there’s a learning curve to this app, but if you invest in it, it will pay you back. Alfred allows you to quickly launch apps, use text expansion snippets, search on the Mac and web, use hotkeys and keywords, and much more. Alfred used to be a paid app, but the developers were kind enough to release the app for free. There are add-on power packs that you can buy, to use cool features like Alfred workflows. But, for most normal users, the free app itself is enough to boost their productivity.

Install:Alfred 4

17. Pocket

Pocket is a popular read it later service which allows you to save articles offline so that you can read them later. I mostly browse for articles on my Mac and whenever I find something that I would want to read, I just save it in Pocket. Pocket has an excellent Safari extension that allows me to save articles and read them later. Since Pocket syncs across devices, all my saved articles are automatically synced to my iPhone where I can read them at my will. Recently, I have also started using Pocket as a research tool. Since Pocket allows me to organize saved articles using tags, I just tag the items I am using for research so that I can find them easily later.

Install:Pocket

18. Spark

Spark is my most favorite free app on Mac. For those who don’t know, Spark is an email client for Mac. I love spark because it intelligently categorizes all the emails that I receive into different categories, giving me access to the most important emails first. It also has a very robust set of features. I can easily snooze, archive, delete, and tag emails. I also love the fact that it allows me easily search for emails using natural language search. I can also search for emails based on attachments, and more. Lastly, Spark also has apps for both iOS and watchOS so no matter which device I am on, I can user Sparks to get through all my emails.

Install:Spark

19. GIMP

GIMP or GNU Image Manipulation Program is an open source photo editor for Mac which packs so many features that you won’t be able to discover all of them in your lifetime. It is basically Photoshop but free. You can use GIMP to perform any kind of image manipulation that you can think of. That said, since it packs so many features, GIMP also has a pretty steep learning curve. Also, being a free an open-source project, its user interface is not very intuitive and feels archaic. That’s why I recommend GIMP only to those users who need a robust photo editing software but cannot afford to buy one.

Install:GIMP

20. DarkTable

As per the description of the app on its website, 'DarkTable is an open source photography workflow application and raw developer. A virtual light-table and darkroom for photographers. It manages your digital negatives in a database, lets you view them through a zoomable light-table, and enables you to develop raw images and enhance them'.

Basically, it is super powerful photo editing app for Mac that allows you to use pro-level photo editing features for free. You are required to learn the app as it has a steep learning curve but once you get used to it, you won't go back to even the best-paid photo editing apps on the market. This one is definitely one of the free Mac apps that you can download in 2019.

Install:DarkTable

21. Simplenote

Simplenote is one of the best designed free Mac apps you can find. As its name suggests, Simplenote is an easy note taking app which allows you to easily jot down notes. What I love about this app is that even though it is completely free, your notes are synced across devices. Apart from its online sync features, I am also a fan of its clean user interface. Simplenote is also a really good app for someone who is looking for a clean app to write long-form content. You can use tags to organize notes easily and search for them using either their title, content, or tags. I have been using this app for quite a few years and I still don’t understand how it’s free. If you love writing, you will love Simplenote.

Install:Simplenote

22. Itsycal

Itsycal is an open source small menu bar calendar application for Mac. If you like Fantastical 2 for Mac, but hate that it’s priced so high, Itsycal is for you. Although Itsycal is nowhere as powerful as Fantastical 2, it brings all the basic features that you would want from a menu bar based calendar app. It shows you month view of your calendar, your upcoming events, and also allows you to create or delete events. I also love the fact that I can configure Itsycal to show not only the date but also the month and the day in the menu bar icon itself. It’s a good menu bar application and a must have for anyone who schedules everything on their calendar.

Install:Itsycal

23. Audacity

Audacity is one of those free Mac apps that is even better than most of the paid apps out there. For those who don’t know, Audacity is an audio editor app for your Mac (available for Windows PC too). If you are someone who deals with a ton of audio, you must have already heard about this software. If you have not, you probably don’t need it. Still, it’s such a good app that I couldn’t keep it away from the list. Just remember that if you ever need to edit an audio file to make it better, Audacity is the tool to do it.

Install:Audacity

24. Lightworks

Lightworks is a full-fledged video editing app which gives you access to all the tools that you will need to get your video editing on. To be fair, Lightworks also sell a Pro version of the app, however, the free version is powerful enough to handle most of the tasks. Whether you are a budding YouTuber or someone who just want to give an edge to their homemade videos, Lightworks is the right tool for you. What I love most about this app is that the website gives you ample tutorial videos to get you started. If by any chance you were looking for a free video editing software, look no further and download Lightworks.

Install:Lightworks

25. HiddenMe

HiddenMe is a small menu bar app which comes in very handy at times when you want to show a clean desktop without having to organize your stuff. The app lives in your menu bar and allows you to do one thing and one thing only, and that’s hiding everything on your desktop. With a click of the button, everything that’s on your desktop is hidden, giving you access to a clean desktop. I constantly use this app whenever I am giving a presentation or taking screenshots of my desktop for an article. This small application has saved me from embarrassing myself a number of times and it can do that for you too.

Install:HiddenMe

26. AppCleaner

Do you know that whenever you delete an app on your Mac, it leaves behind a ton of residual files which does nothing but eating up storage on your Mac? Well, it’s true and if you install and uninstall a ton of apps, you might have lost gigabytes of storage already. While there’s another app on this list which (Onyx) which can help you recover that storage, AppCleaner is an app which makes sure that the apps you delete don’t leave any residual files. Just launch the app and drag and drop the apps that you want to uninstall and it will take care of the rest. It is a must-have utility tool for any Mac user who wants to keep their Mac clean.

Install:AppCleaner

27. LiteIcon

LiteIcon is the app from the same developers who made the AppCleaner. It is a simple app which allows you to change your system icons quickly and easily. Simply drag an icon onto the one you want to change, and click the Apply Changes button. That's all you need to do. If you want your older icon back, just drag out the new icon. If you like to customize how your icons look on Mac, try out LiteIcon.

Install:LiteIcon

28. GrandPerspective

I have written about GrandPerspective a couple of times on this website and you might be familiar with it by now. For those who are new to our website, it’s an app which allows you to visualize storage on your Mac. Using GrandPerspective you can easily find out which files are using how much storage and find and delete the files which are not necessary. GrandPerspective is a very nice app for anyone who doesn’t have any idea as to where all his/her Mac’s storage went.

Install:GrandPerspective

29. Manuscript

Manuscript is a free Mac writing app for students which makes writing school assignments including dissertation easier. Manuscript is a powerful writing app which allows students to complete their assignments right from the planning stage to completing it. It lets students easily insert citations, figures, tables, mathematical equations, and more. The app also allows for importation of citations from various tools including Mendeley, Zotero, Papers 3, Bookends, and EndNote. If you are a student who is looking for a good writing app, you don’t have to look any farther than Manuscript.

Install:Manuscript

30. IINA

IINA is an open-source video player for your Mac which offers one of the best amalgamations of features and user interface. The app looks extremely beautiful and supports all the modern features including force touch, picture-in-picture, and even offers Touch-bar controls for the latest MacBook Pros. IINA also supports almost all the video formats that you can think of, including the ability to play even GIFs. The app also comes with theming capabilities allowing you to use either light or dark themes. I have discovered this app just a few weeks back and I am already in love with it. If you consume a ton of media on your MacBook Pro, this is the right app for you.

Install:IINA

31. OnyX

OnyX is your one-stop solution for all your Mac’s maintenance needs. In fact, I cannot describe the app better and more succinctly than what’s written on its website. OnyX is a multifunction utility that you can use to verify the structure of the system files, to run miscellaneous maintenance and cleaning tasks, to configure parameters in the Finder, Dock, Safari, and some of Apple's applications, to delete caches, to remove certain problematic folders and files, to rebuild various databases and indexes, and more. However, do remember that it is an advanced tool and hence before you do anything, make sure that you get familiar with the app as you don’t want to delete files which can corrupt your entire system.

Install:Onyx

32. SpotMenu

The last app on our list the SpotMenu app which is a nifty little menu bar application. The app basically allows you to control your iTunes and Spotify music player from the menu bar giving you access to controls such as play, pause, forward, and rewind. It’s a pretty basic application, however, it does come in handy. One thing that I like about the app is that it shows the name of the song that is currently playing right on your Mac’s menu bar. When you click on the icon, the drop-down window which harbors all the features also showcase the album art of the song that you are playing.

Install:SpotMenu

33. White Noise Lite

White Noise Lite is an app that helps you sleep better. If you are a light sleeper who wakes up multiple times in the night without any apparent reason then this app can help you sleep better. It brings fifty different HD quality ambient environment noises to help you sleep. The app brings a beautiful cover flow design which lets you easily swipe between cards to select different tasks. Although the app markets itself as a sleep enhancer, I mostly use to provide background music when I am working as it helps me concentrate. You should download this app right now and see if it helps you sleep better or work better. Whatever the result, you will be better off with this one in your arsenal.

Install:White Noise Lite

34. Shazam

Shazam is an app that needs no introduction. The app helps you discover songs by identifying whatever song is playing in the background. I personally use Shazam more as a tool to keep the list of songs that I have discovered. Suppose I am listening to a song and YouTube and want to save it. I just click on the menu bar icon of Shazam and it identifies the song and saves it on the list. I don't have to write it down anywhere. Later I can see the list and add to my Apple Music Playlist at my convenience. Shazam is a great app for discovering and keeping track of music that you like.

Install:Shazam

35. Muzzy

You know how when you accidentally yank headphones out of your iPhone, the music suddenly stops, well, Muzzy brings that functionality to your Mac. The app also does a lot of other things like allowing users to play, pause, and change the music from its menu bar app, integrates with Last.fm, shows songs lyrics, and more. However, I don’t care for any other features and I just use this app to stop music whenever I accidentally yank my headphones out. Sadly, the app only works if you are playing music through iTunes.

Install:Muzzy

Best Free macOS Apps: Final Thoughts

I hope that you found some apps which are useful to you. Do let me know which of these were your favorite and which ones you discovered. Also, if you know free apps that deserve to be on the list but aren’t, drop their names in the comments section. That’s all I have for this article. If you liked this article, share this on your social media profiles because we need your help to get the word out. As always, drop your opinions and suggestions in the comments section down below. We love to hear from our readers and your comments are always welcome.

You can browse and buy apps in the App Store on your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, on your Apple Watch, on your Mac, or on your Apple TV.

Browse and buy

To download and buy apps from the App Store, you need an Apple ID. Your Apple ID is the account that you use to access Apple services. If you use other Apple services like iCloud, sign in to the App Store with the same Apple ID. If you don't have an Apple ID, you can create one.

If you're in the App Store on any of your devices and see the download button near an app, you already bought or downloaded that app. When you tap or click the download button , the app downloads to your device again, but you are not charged again. You can also see a list of apps that you purchased and redownload them.

Learn what payment methods you can use to buy apps and other content. You can also create an Apple ID without a payment method when you download a free app.

How to buy apps on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch

Tap the App Store app on your Home screen.

Browse or search for the app that you want to download, then tap the app.

Tap the price or tap Get. You might need to sign in with your Apple ID. If you find a game that says Arcade, subscribe to Apple Arcade to play the game.

After your app finishes downloading, you can move it to a different spot on your Home screen. Apps stay up-to-date by default, but you can learn more about updating apps.

You can make additional purchases within some apps. If you set up Family Sharing, you can use Ask to Buy so that kids must get permission before they make in-app purchases. Learn more about in-app purchases.

If an app is sold with an iMessage app or sticker pack, you can open it in Messages.

How to buy apps on your Apple Watch

With watchOS 6, you can download apps directly from the App Store on your Apple Watch. You can also add apps to your Apple Watch from your iPhone.

Open the App Store app.

Browse or search for the app that you want to download, then tap the app.

Tap the price or tap Get. You might need to sign in with your Apple ID.

Apps stay up-to-date by default, but you can learn more about updating apps.

If you set up Family Sharing, you can use Ask to Buy so that kids must get permission before they download an app or make an in-app purchase. Learn more about in-app purchases.

Video Download App For Mac

How to buy apps on your Mac

Open the App Store.

Browse or search for the app that you want to download. Apps for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch don't always have a version for Mac.

Click the app.

Click the price, then click Buy App. If you don't see a price, click Get, then click Install App. You might need to sign in with your Apple ID. If you find a game that says Arcade, subscribe to Apple Arcade to play the game.

Mac Full Screen 2 Apps

After your app finishes downloading, you can find it and keep it organized in Launchpad. Apps stay up-to-date by default, but you can learn more about updating apps.

How to buy apps on your Apple TV

Open the App Store on your Apple TV.

Browse or search for the app that you want to download, then select the app.

Select the price or select Get. You might need to sign in with your Apple ID. If you find a game that says Arcade, subscribe to Apple Arcade to play the game.

After your app finishes downloading, you can move it around on your Home screen. Your apps will update automatically.

You can make additional purchases within some apps. You can use Restrictions to restrict, block, or allow in-app purchases. Learn more about in-app purchases.

The App Store isn’t available on Apple TV (3rd generation or earlier).

Get information about an app

If you want to know specific information about an app, like what languages the app is available in, the app’s file size, or its compatibility with other Apple devices, scroll to the bottom of an app’s page. You might be able to tap some sections to learn more.

You can also contact the app developer for help with an app's functionality.

Get help with billing

Full Version Mac Apps

Learn what to do if you see a charge from an app that you don't recognize.

Learn how to cancel an in-app subscription.

If you can’t update your apps because your payment method is declined, update or change your payment method.

If you have another issue with an app, report a problem or contact Apple Support.

Learn more

Best Free Mac App

If your App Store is missing or you can't find it on your device, you might have parental controls turned on. Adjust your iTunes & App Store Purchases settings and make sure that you choose 'Allow' for the Installing Apps setting.

Learn what to do if an app unexpectedly quits, stops responding while installing, or won't open.

Learn what to do if you can't download apps, or if apps get stuck.

If you want to download apps that are larger than 200 MB over cellular, go to Settings > [your name] > iTunes & App Store, then tap App Downloads and choose the option that you want.

If you bought part of an apps bundle, the price of the full apps bundle is reduced by the amount you already spent.

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