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a-small-batch-of-dragons · 3 years

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Nobody Left Behind

Prompt: So I don't know if you're taking requests? But I just watched Lilo and Stitch for the first time since I got into TSS and I've adopted the headcanon that it is Remus's *favorite* movie (and he's memorized the script) and I love your writing and I'd love to see something angsty involving Remus feeling lonely/unloved by his brother, and maybe Lilo and Stitch is involved somehow. IDK, go wild. (and feel free to ignore this if you aren't taking requests) <3 - anon

it is Le Fluff™ hours my good bitches

Read on Ao3

Warnings: Remus has some abandonment issues, but it’s not too much

Pairings: it is platonic all the way down, babes

Word Count: 2935

Ohana means family.

Family.

FamILY.

What a weird word.

Sometimes it’s the people you’re born with. Well, not ‘with,’ not necessarily, but the people you are born to. A mother, a father, a sister, a brother. Sometimes two mothers, sometimes two fathers, sometimes a different parent. Sometimes two sisters, sometimes two brothers, sometimes a different sibling. Sometimes a mess of assorted people that all share the same blood. A family.

Remus wasn’t born.

He was made though, crafted and shaped and born out of the swirling chaos of a child’s mind that didn’t understand the world well enough without other people to help. He remembers getting cobbled together from scraps of thoughts and feelings and morphing them into limbs, into features, into something that vaguely resembled the body of the child he was made to fit. Not the ‘fitting’ was ever his job.

Just his brother’s.

Is his brother his family?

By all accounts he should be, right? A brother is one of those people that are traditionally part of the ‘family’ group, right, someone to laugh with, cry with, fight with, live with. But is Roman really his…brother?

That’s what they decided to call themselves because nothing else worked. They weren’t really brothers, they were halves. But they weren’t really halves because there was never a whole to begin with.

The King wasn’t a ‘whole,’ he was…well, he was the King. Half of a king is not a prince. Half of a king is not a duke.

Half of a king is a mess of blood and bones and viscera dripping off of the end of a Morningstar in the middle of the night when only a destroyed facsimile makes the insanity bleed away just enough to breathe again.

The closest thing to twins, is what they decided on eventually. They’re twins. One light, one dark. One that marches boldly into danger to confront the wickedness of the world, one that dwells in the shadows and cackles with the demons nipping at his heels. One that loves, one that isn’t loved.

Sure, they had some things in common. They both loved to fight, hence the scars and the bruises and the wounds that would never, ever heal, the distrust that would never be fixed ever, because the urge to sink their teeth into each other’s necks and rip never went away. They both loved to make, Roman the peaceful lies he tells himself to make up for the gaping wounds Remus leaves as he carves his perfectly tailored destruction. They both love Disney.

Roman’s made it part of his whole deal as the Prince, he loves Disney. He bursts into song every chance he gets, drags the others in until the Mindscape rings with joyful song and there’s nowhere left for any sadness or darkness. He takes his lessons from it, models himself using the traits of the characters he admires most. Cultivates his art of storytelling, perfect to a tee.

Remus loves Disney too. Loves how easy it is to twist the lens to distort the image just enough to let the darker parts of the Imagination run wild. What is the real implication of never growing old, never understanding what it means to die? What kind of person curses a ten-year-old boy for being cautious about who he answers the door to? What could the story have been if the prince never comes to save the day?

When they were smaller it was fine. When they were still getting used to the fact that they weren’t King anymore, they used to sit and watch so many Disney movies. Roman’s favorite was always changing, one week it was Beauty and the Beast, then it was Mulan, then it was Cinderella, it never stayed the same.

Remus’s was always Lilo and Stitch.

Roman never understood it, said it was boring, there wasn’t a prince, there wasn’t anything exciting. Remus said that aliens were plenty exciting, thank you very much.

But they would always watch it. The King wasn’t there anymore, but the prince and the Duke were.

…when they were smaller, there was one time where the prince wasn’t there at all.

Remus remembers waking up one day and feeling like he was being Split all over again. The maggots in his bones reached their awful little mouths into his heart and pulled, yanking him all the way across the bed and to the door, howling and screaming for his twin.

Only to be met with a blank wall.

He remembers howling at the top of his lungs until Janus had rushed to his side, kneeling down next to him and telling him shh, be quiet, hush now, you’re alright, you’re not hurt. And when he couldn’t explain that he was hurt, half of him was missing, Remus needed to go find him, Janus’s mouth had hardened into a thin line and told him that there wasn’t anything to worry about.

He remembers thinking that was a lie.

But it wasn’t. It wasn’t a lie.

Roman was fine.

Roman was more than fine, because Roman had a family.

Roman had Patton, who is the actual manifestation of sunshine and rainbows and loved so much it almost burns. The darkness that wrapped around Remus’s corner of the Imagination screeched and hissed at the very idea of being loved that much, even as part of him strained with all its might to get to it. But Patton would never set foot near this side of the Mindscape.

Roman had Logan, who represents everything true about the Mindscape, about Thomas, about the world. The reality of things that would never let anything Remus created make it anywhere close to anything important because it was dangerous, it was hurtful, and it was wrong. Logan wouldn’t want anything to do with something so useless.

And that was okay. Because Roman may have been gone but Remus wasn’t alone. Remus had Virgil, who lived with fear soaking every fiber of his being. Remus had Janus, who wrapped himself in darkness and obscurity and laughed.

But then Virgil left. And now Roman had Virgil, who used Thomas’s anxieties to keep him safe, to help Roman and the others figure out what to do, how to take care of everybody, and how to make the darkness go away. And Virgil would never willingly sink himself back into the darkness when he’d spent so long clawing himself out of it.

But that was okay, because Remus had Janus. Janus, who plotted and schemed and smirked at how easily the others were pulled along by his strings, luring them deeper and deeper as Remus readied his Morningstar for the trap to be sprung.

But then they sprung the trap and everything went wrong.

Roman didn’t want to fight. He just…he let Remus knock him out and didn’t show up again except to scoff and say he didn’t like him.

And that was…wrong.

Because Roman wasn’t supposed to like him but he was never only supposed to not like him. Roman was supposed to declare that he wasn’t welcome and try and slash him with his sword. Roman was supposed to try and banish him from the Mindscape and spit insults at him until he left, cackling all the while. Roman was supposed to hate him.

But Roman didn’t hate him, he just…he just said he didn’t like him.

But that was okay, because Janus could just come up with a better plan with him this time. They could do it properly, and Roman would hate him again and it would be back to normal.

But then Janus left. And now Roman has Janus, who keeps his eyes where the prince’s aren’t, when he can’t see what’s happening or he can’t bear to look, to help Roman figure out what to do when what seems to be happening isn’t anything that the prince is used to dealing with. And Janus would never willingly step away from a place that finally accepted him.

Roman has them now. Roman has people that chose him. Roman’s family chose him. He chose them. They chose each other.

Remus’s grip on his Morningstar slackens and the thing falls to the ground with a heavy clunk. He moves numbly through his room until he can fall to his knees on his bed.

He just came from the living room. They were all there. Roman was talking with Logan, ranting about some new show they were both watching. Janus was in the kitchen with Patton, making something for dinner that everyone—well, almost everyone—could eat. Virgil was on the back of the couch, reaching out for Roman’s shoulder every once in a while.

Remus had waited behind the couch. For someone to sit down, for someone to see him and shriek, or even maybe—just maybe—for someone to ask where he was.

But no.

Patton had come over and gently ruffled Virgil’s hair, saying that dinner was ready. Logan and Roman had moved into the kitchen, demanding Janus’s attention and pulling him into their conversation. Virgil had murmured a quiet thank you and Roman had asked him for what?

“Y’know,” Virgil had said, “for…this.”

“Of course,” Roman had laughed, the soft rustle of fabric as he probably pulled the emo in for a hug—what did those feel like?— “I should be thanking you?”

“What for, kiddo?”

“I dunno, it just…feels like it’s been forever since we’ve all sat down for dinner together.”

Remus’s chest had started to hurt.

“The whole family.”

The whole family.

Remus’s eyes well up with stubborn tears and he angrily swipes them away, baring his teeth at the memory and focusing intently on the things on the bed. Each hand-stitched, each carefully kept clean.

His family.

He reaches out with a shaking hand and tucks the blue frog plushie into the crook of his arm, crawling into the middle of the bed and balancing the purple spider on his shoulder. His hands keep shaking as he wraps the long yellow snake securely around his neck, clutching the head under his chin and nuzzling it protectively. The dark blue cat he holds in his other hand, careful not to tear its tie as he scrunches in on himself.

Wait.

Where is it?

No, no, no, no—

Remus growls, placing all of his family gently on the floor before all but tearing at his sheets. Where is it, where is it, where is it—his heartbeat starts to rise as his search grows more frantic, where is it, where is it—

The slightest little puff of red hair and he howls, lunging for it and sweeping it into his lap. He pauses to make sure the lion’s crown didn’t fall off and sighs when he sees it still in place. He sets the lion between his legs and leans over, adjusting everyone back into place and scrunching himself into a ball again. He rubs his nose against the lion’s fur and nuzzles into the soft fabric.

He’d never be able to forgive himself if he lost them.

Because Ohana means family.

Family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten.

——————————————————

There’s a knock on his door.

Why is someone knocking on his door?

They knock again.

Remus looks up, carefully butting the spider out of the way with his head and sitting up. The snake hangs off his shoulder and he lets it, only missing its warmth once the knock sounds again.

The frog and the cat watch him warily as he climbs out of bed, the lion clutched in his hand.

The door squeaks slightly as he opens it.

“So, I’ve got popcorn, I found the weird gummy snakes, and they had this chocolate-covered bacon which we have to try—Remus?”

Roman?

Roman stands there, his arms full of snacks and blankets, his head tilted. He glances behind Remus—probably to check something or other—and then back at him.

“Remus? Are you okay?”

“Why are you here?” Roman doesn’t like him.

“It’s movie night, Re, of course, I’m here.” Roman chuckles nervously before taking in his tear-stained face. “Hey, Re, what’s going on? Are you okay? Can I come in?”

Why is Roman here? Roman has his family, what is he doing here? With Remus?

“Remus—“ oh, right, Roman’s talking to him—why is Roman talking to him?—in a soft voice now— “Remus, hey, look at me.”

Remus blinks. Oh. Roman looks concerned now, he’s reaching for him.

“Hey,” he murmurs as he ruffles Remus’s hair, “what’s going on? Have you been crying?”

Remus nods dumbly.

“I’m sorry, Re, can I help?”

Help? Why does Roman want to help?

Oh, he’s waiting for an answer.

“…sure.”

“Thank you,” Roman says softly, “can I come in?”

Remus steps aside wordlessly and Roman walks in, pausing when he sees the rest of Remus’s family on the bed.

“Did you make them?”

Something dark twists in Remus’s chest as he sees Roman reach for the spider.

“Don’t.”

Roman backs off, stepping back as Remus snatches up his family and cradles them in his lap, glaring at Roman and curling up on the bed.

“I won’t, Re, I’m sorry,” Roman says, still speaking softly, “can I sit?”

“…floor.”

Roman sits on the floor, setting aside the blankets and snacks, looking up at him. He still looks concerned. Why? Roman doesn’t like him.

“Why weren’t you at dinner,” he asks gently, “I was worried.”

Worried? About him? Remus snorts.

“You had your whole family there,” he spits, “why would you worry?”

“But you weren’t there,” Roman says like that makes any difference, “so I was worried.”

Remus shakes his head. Roman doesn’t get it. Roman doesn’t worry about him, he worries about other things. But if Roman wants to know why he wasn’t at dinner, he’ll tell him.

“I was with my family.”

Roman’s brow furrows as he glances around again. “…your family?”

Remus huddles protectively around his family. “Yes. My family.”

Roman’s eyes widen as he takes in Remus’s posture and how he reacted when Roman asked about them earlier.

“…are they your family, Remus?”

“Yes.” He holds them tighter. “I chose them. They won’t leave me. They won’t forget me. That’s what family means.”

Something crosses Roman’s face and he lets out a wounded noise. Wait. Are they fighting?

“Wait, Remus,” he murmurs, rising up to his knees, “did you—did you think we forgot you?”

“You did forget me.”

“I’m sorry, Remus, I would’ve come to look for you, but I thought—“ Roman shakes his head— “no, it doesn’t matter what I thought. I should’ve come got you, Re, I’m sorry, I—I didn’t mean to leave you behind.”

Oh.

“…you didn’t?”

Roman shakes his head furiously. “No, Remus, I promise. I never meant to leave you.”

“But everybody leaves me.”

If possible, Roman’s eyes are now wider and he scrambles for the edge of the bed. “What do you mean, Remus, what do you mean everybody leaves you?”

“You left. Virgil left. Janus left. Everybody left.” The lion’s mane brushes against his lips as he bows his head. “But not them. They won’t leave me.”

“Oh, Remus—“

Something big lunges at him and Remus whimpers, he doesn’t have his Morningstar, he doesn’t want to fight, he doesn’t—he doesn’t—

What’s happening? He feels warm and he’s being squished and Roman is pressing himself against him and what—what—

“What’re you doing?”

“It’s a hug, Remus,” comes Roman’s voice, slightly muffled, from over his shoulder, “I’m hugging you.”

Oh.

“R-Ro?”

“Yeah, Re, I’m here, I’m right here, I won’t forget you, I won’t leave you behind, you’re my brother, you’re my family, I choose you.” Roman’s grip tightens on him and Remus just about gasps. “I choose you and I want you and I like you.”

Roman…Roman likes him?

Roman chooses him?

Roman won’t…leave?

“No, Remus,” Roman promises as he cautiously asks, “I won’t leave. Not unless you want me to.”

“No.”

“Then I’m not going anywhere.”

That’s it.

Remus throws his arms around his twin and sobs, cries an entire ocean of tears into his brother’s shoulder because he’s here and he cares and he chose Remus. The darkness shudders as that small part of him surges forward, into Roman’s chest, finding a home in the prince’s heart and languishing in the warmth there.

“I’m right here, Re,” Roman murmurs, stroking up and down his back, “right here, I’ve got you.”

The snake drapes itself cautiously over Roman’s shoulder, the spider taking up watch on his knee. The cat and the frog stare at him, making sure he isn’t lying, that he won’t change his mind. The lion, sandwiched between them, feels the reassuring rumble from Roman’s chest and purrs.

After a long, long time, Remus pulls back a little and scuffs a hand over his nose.

“…did you say something about chocolate-covered bacon?”

Roman’s smile lights up.

“Let’s put on Lilo and Stitch and we’ll try it.”

Ohana means family.

Family means no one gets left behind.

Or forgotten.

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#dragonbabbles #sanders sides #fic #remus sanders #roman sanders #they're the main focus #creativitwins

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xxdragonwriterxx · 3 years

Note

Then allow me to make a dragon request(if ya don’t mind of course;))

Reader encounters a dragon in the forest but it’s injured. A horrible gash in his wing and foot so reader nurses him back of health by making herb pastes, bringing him food (she even brings him veggies and he’s like 🤮 then reader says “you need to eat this to heal. Don’t give me that face”) and finally when he heals, he doesn’t leave. Instead, he transforms into his human form and tells her being injured stopped him from becoming human and they just fall in love 😭❤️

A/N: HEY CADDY, MY LOVE!!!! Sorry for the wait, I was gone on a trip to visit home for a month and then when I was editing it last night I was interrupted by a horrible migraine. Also this fic is a fucking monster 😅. But I’m finally feeling better and had time to finish editing! This request was seriously so much fun to write, thank you so much for sending it in! I hope this was what you were looking for! ❤️❤️❤️

🐉Song Recommendation: “Hey, Runner!” By: Arcadian Wild 🐉

Word Count: ~ 10.7k

~~~

🔥Embers At Midnight🔥

The forest was quiet, save for the sound of the rain as it pattered against the leaves of the trees and slid down to pool within the foliage, making the ground glitter with the reflection of the stars. Shadows sprawled out across the dark path, chased away only by the light of the full moon, giving the forest an eerily calm aura that words couldn’t begin to explain. The animals of the wood had settled down for the night, but the howls of wolves, coos of night owls, and flutter of cicada wings made the place feel lively as ever, allowing (Y/N) to feel a pleasantly comfortable feeling in her chest despite the possible threat of danger as she crept her way through the trees.

She had been coming to these woods since she was a small child. She knew this forest like the back of her hand, had been here too many times to count. But she had learned a long time ago that she couldn’t let her guard down regardless. Experience had taught her that she was still a foreigner to these woods, no matter how much time she spent within them, and the creatures who lived within would not hesitate to remind her of such.

Pressing her back against the trunk of a large oak, (Y/N) glanced around the corner for any sign of movement, her crossbow held firmly in her right hand, only continuing on when she had confirmed that the coast was clear. Her eyes scanned the moonlit clearing, her ears strained for any sound that could break the natural orchestra of the wood, her left hand clutching her basket of herbs so hard her knuckles turned white.

She knew it was dangerous to go into the forest at night. She had seen it time and time again with other healers before her, those who had ventured into the mysterious wood to look for new powerful medicines only to return maimed and broken, if they returned at all. But she couldn’t stay away. Something about this forest drew her in like a moth to a flame, beckoning her to come closer despite the imminent danger. It was stupid, she knew, but she fell for the call of the wood every time, leaving the safety of her home back in her village to traverse the forest in the middle of the night, searching for the magical herbs no one else dared to try to obtain.

As soon as she had reached the cover of another tree, (Y/N) glanced back and smiled when she saw a familiar shadow following her path, protecting her from anything that might want to sneak up on her from the rear. Bringing two fingers to her lips, she let out a series of low whistles, replicating the sound of a bird’s call to avoid attracting unwanted attention. Immediately, she saw the shadow perk up and pick up the pace, trotting up to (Y/N) with a large grin on their face. (Y/N)’s own smile widened in response as she leaned down to brush her fingers through the thick reddish brown fur of the dog now at her feet, giving her a scratch behind her floppy ears.

“Hey Captain, see anything yet, girl?”

The dog only whined and nuzzled her palm in response before trotting off again, her nose to the ground as she searched for danger. (Y/N) watched the sweet shepherd look around, waiting for the dog to wag her tail before leaving the cover of the tree she was standing behind.

So far so good. She just needed to make it to the famously large river that cut through the middle of the forest to find the last herb she needed, and then she could go home. She knew she was getting close, she could hear the low rumble of the water thundering over stones and rushing through the foliage even over the sounds of the downpour around her. Ducking behind a large boulder, (Y/N) pulled the hood of her cloak further over her head, keeping the rain out of her face as she did another scan of the surrounding area, keeping an eye out for anything that Captain may have missed in her search.

When she was sure the coast was clear, she darted out from behind the stone, pushed through the bushes, and let out a sigh of relief when the river she was searching for came into view, it’s surface white with frothy white caps and reflective moonlight. Captain was already on the other side of the river, having bounded across the stones lining the surface to make sure the clearing was safe, her nose on the ground and her ears perked. (Y/N) hesitated at the edge of the clearing, but when Captain came back with nothing but a large twig in her mouth and a wagging tail, she deemed it safe enough to venture further.

After throwing the stick for Captain to fetch, (Y/N) leaned down and began scanning the dark soil for the plant she needed, using her fingers to carefully pick through the surrounding wildlife. At first, she found nothing but ferns and thorn bushes, occasionally wincing when she felt her skin prick with pain, but after a while, her eyes lit up when she noticed signs of what she was looking for. Leaning down, she toyed with the roots and plant stems, her sharp eyes catching every little detail until she finally found the direction she needed to go in. Keeping her head down, she crept along the edge of the river, her eyes glued to the forest floor as she started to climb a nearby hill, knowing she was getting closer to her target.

Finally, she saw it. She was panting by the time she crested the hill, but her exhaustion was all but forgotten as her eyes landed on the herb she was looking for. It was a moon flower, a beautiful, magical bloom known for its immense healing properties and regarded by many cultures as a sign of good luck. The petals were a soft violet in color, emitting a faint glow that left (Y/N) breathless. She couldn’t bear to look away, too enamored with the beauty of the bloom to notice anything around her, until a sudden movement in the shadows caught the edge of her vision.

It was the sheer power of will over instinct that kept (Y/N) from crying out as her gaze flew to the shadowed corner of the valley to settle on the beast she now saw laying amongst a nest of pine needles. She clamped a palm over her mouth in an attempt to quiet the sound of her labored breathing, her chest heaving as she fought to stay calm.

It was a dragon.

It appeared to be dozing, its eyes closed as it shifted into a more comfortable position, its wings folded loosely against its body, but it was hard to tell, its movements seeming a little too frequent to appear natural in sleep. After the initial shock of the situation started to wear off, (Y/N) carefully pulled her hand away from her mouth and reached for one of the arrows resting in the sheathe strapped to her back. Keeping as quiet as possible, she knocked the arrow into her crossbow, wincing at the slight click that sounded when the arrow was locked into place. To her relief, the dragon did not budge, it’s eyes remaining closed as (Y/N) took her aim.

She knew better than to fire at a dragon, even a vulnerable one. Her arrow would do little more than anger the beast unless she hit a weak spot like its eye or the few inches of soft skin located just underneath the joint of its jaw, but having the weapon held at the ready made her feel more confident as she started to back away, her gaze never straying from that of the dragon. She was nearly in the clear, just a few paces away from the cover of the nearby foliage when a loud, vicious bark echoed out across the way, making (Y/N)’s blood freeze in her veins.

“CAPTAIN NO!!!” (Y/N) shouted in horror as a reddish blur flew across the valley floor, teeth bared and chest rumbling with protective snarls, heading right for the sleeping beast. Immediately, the dragon snapped awake, its head raising and its pupils narrowing into vicious slits as it caught sight of Captain.

(Y/N) acted without thinking, rushing for her faithful dog right as the dragon lunged, its jaws opened wide to snap up a midnight snack. (Y/N) gasped at the feeling of its sharp fangs snapping closed mere inches away from her back as she slammed into Captain, knocking both of them out of the way just in time. She grunted when she hit the ground, the air rushing from her lungs upon impact, but she ignored her sudden breathlessness, relying on her training to force herself onto her back, her crossbow already loaded and aimed right at the dragon’s face, ready to fire.

The dragon snarled at them, but (Y/N) caught the wariness in its eyes at the sight of her weapon, keeping it at bay. When she finally felt the air refill her lungs, (Y/N) pushed herself to stand, never allowing her aim to falter nor her gaze to break from that of the dragon's, her eyes narrowed on its every move.

“Captain, stay back,” (Y/N) growled, her free hand held out behind her to keep her dog from going after the dragon again. “We are going home.”

She could tell her dog wanted to lunge forward again, her fur ruffled and her teeth bared, but she had never once disobeyed (Y/N), and she wasn’t about to start now. Giving the dragon one last nasty look, Captain followed her master back up the hill, the pair leaving the forest to head back to the safety of their home.

(Y/N) waited a week before trying to venture into the forest again. She desperately wanted to collect that moon flower but she knew it wasn’t worth her life, so she waited, hoping that the dragon would leave with time. She hadn’t seen a cave or a den anywhere when they had confronted the dragon, so she was hoping it didn’t live there and had only been resting there by chance.

When she entered the forest this time, she left Captain back at home. She knew it was dangerous not to have her dog with her, but she didn’t want another incident to happen and the night was clear, so she trusted her ability to notice oncoming danger more than she had the last time.

Even so, (Y/N) was extra careful as she made her way through the wood, keeping her footsteps light and triple checking every area before continuing forward, hoping against hope that she could avoid confrontation with another one of the dangerous mythical beasts that roamed the forest. It took longer than usual to finally reach the river, but she didn’t mind, much preferring her safety to speed.

The loud rushing of the river comforted her somewhat, but it wasn’t enough to drown out the loud pounding of her rapidly beating heart as she slowly crawled back up the hill on the west side of the clearing. When she finally reached the top, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath before peeking over the lip of the hill, her eyes darting around the valley in search of movement.

For a while she saw nothing, but just as her breathing started to return to normal, a low growl rumbled throughout the clearing, making (Y/N) duck down again on instinct, her eyes closed tightly.

Shit.

(Y/N) swallowed hard and slowly opened her eyes, knowing she was going to have to sit up at some point if she wanted to get out of there. Taking another deep breath, (Y/N) steeled her nerves and slowly forced herself to stand, raising her head to see the dragon laying in the same spot as the time before, its silver gaze narrowed directly on her. (Y/N)’s brow furrowed, forgetting her fear for a moment as she analyzed the beast. She didn’t have much experience with dragons, but even she knew from her research that dragons were migratory creatures, that they loved to fly and explore and hardly ever stayed in one place for long. They were even known for having multiple dens claimed all over the world so they weren’t regulated to one area. And yet, it looked as if this dragon had barely moved in a week, as if it had done nothing but lay in this one spot for days on end.

Against her better judgement, (Y/N) inched her way down the hillside and approached the beast, only pausing when it gave a deep warning growl, but refusing to walk away. Something was wrong. She didn’t know why she cared, or why she felt compelled to find out what was going on with the beast, but she found she couldn’t fight the urge to help in any way possible as she scanned the dragon for injuries. Maybe it was the healer inside her, but she couldn’t just leave it there, even if it was one of the most dangerous beasts known to man.

“Hey… are you okay?” (Y/N) asked. She had no idea if the beast could even understand her, but she figured she had to try. She only received a snarl in response, making her flinch.

Okay, so maybe it couldn’t understand her. But she couldn’t see any immediate injuries, so she knew she’d have to look deeper to find out what was wrong. Closing her eyes, she swallowed the fear that clawed at her throat at the thought of what she was going to have to do. She only hoped that it would garner the reaction she needed rather than result in tragedy.

Kneeling low to the ground, she kept her eyes trained on the dragon as she felt around her for what she needed with her right hand. After a few moments of searching, she felt her fingertips brush against something smooth and round, and closed her palm around it, bringing it up with her as she stood. The dragon was watching her every move, hissing when it noticed her hiding something in her hand. The noise made her want to sprint back to the safety of her home, but she held her ground, raising her arm and throwing the stone she had found right for the dragon’s chest.

Just as she had hoped, the dragon reacted immediately, leaping out of the way of the sudden stone before launching at her, its wings flared open in a terrifying display of dominance. (Y/N) shrieked and jumped into the nearby foliage, but kept her eyes on the dragon, searching for any signs of injury. Immediately, she noticed the ugly gash sliced down the expanse of its left wing before it was hidden from her once again, the dragon tucking its wings back along its sides as it settled back down into its usual spot, glaring daggers at her.

Glancing down, she also noticed the trap clamped painfully around the dragon’s back leg, preventing the beast from moving more than a few feet from where it was laying. Now she understood. No wonder it hadn’t moved in a week. It was trapped there, broken and weak, without a way to get out or heal properly. (Y/N) wondered when the dragon had eaten last, knowing that without the ability to move, finding prey would be damn near impossible.

She knew that meddling with a hungry, angry dragon was the last thing she should be doing if she wanted to keep her head, but she couldn’t just leave it behind. She wouldn’t. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself if she just let this beast slowly starve to death because she let the fear of what the dragon might do control her decisions. Clenching her fists with renewed determination, she met the dragon’s gaze.

“I’ll be right back.”

The dragon didn’t respond, but it didn’t need to. She was off before she lost her nerve, heading into the woods with her loaded crossbow propped up onto her shoulder, letting the light of the moon guide her as she set off to collect what she needed.

The pain was damn near unbearable. Heat flared through his system, lighting his nerves on fire and making his whole body burn. He tried shifting into a more comfortable position, but that did nothing but send a bolt of white hot pain to the open wound on his leg, making him whimper.

Levi cursed himself. He knew he looked pathetic. He was trapped, starving, and alone, vulnerable and exposed. It made his skin crawl. Ever since he was a small pup, he had been able to take care of himself. He had learned to survive in even the worst conditions, so the thought of dying like this made him feel sick. He bit down on another groan and tried to roll his body enough to lick at his wounds, only to have to collapse back into his previous position when the pain became too much to bear.

He felt his panic rising. He wanted nothing more than to be able to slash his way out of this situation, to spread his wings painlessly and soar through the air to the highest mountain he could find, but he knew he wasn’t getting out of this one. Even if he did manage to get out of the traps, he was flightless, rendered so by the spear that had sliced through his wing like paper, which would mean nothing but a quick yet painful death for him. As much as he hated to admit it, he knew he was going to die in that pitiful valley, clamped to the ground by multiple traps, and alone.

Levi gave up on trying to squirm his way out of the trap and looked up at the night sky, suddenly realizing for the first time just how stunning it was. He couldn’t help the small whine that escaped his throat as he thought about how it felt to have the wind toying with his scales and dancing with his wings. He remembered how freeing it felt to rise and dip along the skyline, the brisk breeze chasing away his worries and allowing him a moment to relax, to silence his constantly whirring thoughts and feel nothing but genuine joy.

That is, until he was shot from his happy place, too lost in the moment to notice he had dipped too low to the ground, too close to the nearby hunter camps and villages. He lowered his gaze from the swirling stars above, wincing at the memory of his mistake, the small slip up that had gotten him stuck in this situation in the first place. Levi lowered his head to the ground, letting out a loud sigh and closing his eyes, willing to take responsibility for his situation. He hated the fact that he was going to die pathetically, but he felt he had no one to blame but himself, and moping around wasn’t going to do anything to numb the pain.

He had nearly managed to fall asleep, his mind dancing along the edge of consciousness as he dozed when he heard it. His head shot up, his eyes narrowed as he tried to see past his slightly blurred vision and into the surrounding darkness. He listened carefully, his nostrils flaring as he waited for the wind to tell him who was in front of him. When he heard nothing, and the wind offered only the sweet smell of the nearby pine trees, Levi bared his teeth at the shadows. He knew someone was there, he could feel them, their pulsing heartbeat, pounding frantically against their ribcage as they hid from him. He knew they were there, he just had to get them to show themselves.

Taking a deep breath, Levi opened his jaws and aimed a stream of fire at the ground directly in front of him. Just as he had expected, the moment his flames billowed from his mouth, the intruder let out a squeak of alarm and leaped out of the way, scrambling to make it to the other side of the clearing even though his flames hadn’t been anywhere near them.

Oh. Damn it.

Levi swallowed down a frustrated huff as the light of his fire chased the pitch darkness from the valley and surrounding woods, bathing the space in a warm golden light. Ignoring the way his flames ate at the surrounding foliage, knowing the river would put a stop to the inferno before it became uncontrollable, Levi turned his attention to the human female standing before him, crouched low to the ground and half hidden by a nearby birch tree.

She didn’t seem very threatening, and she didn’t look like the hunters who had shot him from the sky, but that didn’t stop him from feeling every alarm bell fire off in his system, prompting him to pull his lips back and bare his fangs at her, a low warning growl rumbling from his throat.

Levi felt pride swell a bit in his chest at the sight of her flinch, but to his surprise, she didn’t leave, nor did she crouch further behind the tree. Instead, she slowly made her way out from behind the tree, her gaze never leaving his as she slowly crawled her way towards him. His heart rate sped up at the sight of the large crossbow strapped across her shoulder and he let out a louder growl, warning her to stay away before he decided to claim her as easy prey.

She paused, her eyes flashing with some unnamed emotion, before she slowly reached behind her, aiming for the large pack slung around her waist. Levi watched her warily, feeling the fire in his stomach bubble as he prepared to attack if necessary. She never once broke eye contact with him, her hand hovering over the button of her pack for a moment before she slowly opened it and slipped a hand inside. Levi growled again, and the human winced as if physically harmed by the sound, but she didn’t stop.

Levi was just about to open his jaws, ready to put an end to whatever this was before it was too late, when she finally raised her hand back out of the bag, three dead fish hanging from her grasp. Against his wishes, his stomach immediately growled, making Levi want to close his eyes in embarrassment. His embarrassment only seemed to amplify at the sight of the woman brightening at the sound, as if he had just given her permission to climb on his back for a flight around the world.

“So, you are hungry… I figured you were…” Levi heard the woman murmur.

“No shit, I’ve been stuck in this shit hole for days. I’m fucking starving.”

It was only when the woman looked up in alarm that Levi remembered she couldn’t understand him, only able to hear the growls and snarls he was capable of in this form. He almost felt sorry for her when he saw the flash of panic on her face, almost wanted to apologize for scaring her when she had clearly been thinking about him and his well-being. Almost.

Regardless of what she was doing, whatever this was, he couldn't trust her. She was a human, and he had learned a long time ago that humans wanted nothing but the best for themselves, and didn’t care who they stepped on to get what they wanted. She obviously wanted something. He had no idea what it was, but he found he didn’t care. He wasn’t going to let some dead fish coerce him into making a deal with her.

“Um… my name is (Y/N),” the woman said, dragging Levi out of his thoughts and bringing him back to the moment. “I would ask for yours but I know you can’t speak my language. I don’t even know if you can understand me right now. But I want you to know that I mean no harm, so I want to try anyway.”

Levi tilted his head slightly, watching her warily as she slowly started to approach him again. She clearly didn’t know he could understand her, but that wasn’t what he found so intriguing about her. She was there to help him? He found that hard to believe. But what could she want from him if she didn’t know they could communicate? He could already tell she wasn’t a hunter, all dragon hunters were aware of a dragon’s ability to speak many different languages, which was one of the reasons many of them were hunters in the first place, wanting to bargain and force the large fire-breathing beasts to do things for them in exchange for the healing properties that would give them their human forms back. He could also tell she wasn’t a witch. If she was, she would’ve used magic to subdue him before approaching him so she could steal his fangs, scales, and claws to make into potions or sell on the black market.

This woman seemed to be nothing short of completely ordinary with a surprisingly solid heart of gold. But that was just his hope, a delusion that the isolation and starvation had driven him to fantasize with. For all he knew, she could be hiding something dangerous, and he would be faced with a quick, somewhat painless death rather than a slowly drawn out one. He hated the idea of being killed by a human more than the idea of slowly rotting away in this valley, but he wondered if it wouldn’t be better for it to end this way.

(Y/N) flinched when a twig snapped beneath her boot, prompting Levi to lower his head, his fangs gleaming in the light of his fire as he watched her carefully, waiting to strike if he needed to. The woman took a deep, shaky breath, her foot hovering over where she was planning to take her next step as she fought to keep a hold on the slivers of courage she had left to keep moving forward. Levi almost wondered if she was going to give up and leave when she finally put her foot down again, taking two more small steps toward him before leaning down to place the dead fish at his feet.

He would be lying if he claimed he wasn’t surprised by her exposing her vulnerable back to him, lowering her head and breaking eye contact with him for the first time, giving him the perfect opportunity to go in for the kill if he so chose. It felt like an eternity as he debated with himself over getting rid of her before she could become dangerous or putting the same amount of trust in her that she was obviously putting in him.

His jaws parted, his eyes narrowed, and he leaned down quickly, making (Y/N) stumble backwards to land on her back, her hands propped up behind her so she could still see him properly.

(Y/N) was breathing heavily, gasping for breath and reaching up with one hand to grasp at the front of her shirt, over her heart, as she fought to retain her sanity. Levi could feel the panic rolling off of her in waves, her eyes wide and her jaw dropped open, but he found that he didn’t care as the taste and scent of the fish overpowered his senses as he ate. The taste flooded his mouth and he practically moaned in delight, barely recognizing himself as the hunger suddenly became unbearable. He had never been a messy eater, always staying surprisingly clean for a dragon, but now, he found himself devouring the meal in front of him as if it was the last one he would ever have.

As soon as the fish were gone, Levi licked his jaws clean before turning to face the woman, who was still on the ground, staring at him in shock. She blinked when she found his eyes on hers, and quickly scrambled to a standing position, dusting off her pants and shooting him a sheepish smile.

“I’m sorry that’s all I brought, I didn’t know what you liked and I wasn’t expecting you to eat it that quickly!” (Y/N) said. “Would you like me to bring you some more?”

Levi shook his head despite nearly drooling at the idea of more food, unwilling to tarnish his pride further by admitting his weakness to a mere human. The woman peered at him, her eyes narrowing as if she could see right into his soul. It took everything in Levi to keep from squirming awkwardly, feeling pinned by her intense gaze. Finally, she broke the silence, tearing her eyes from his as leaned down to scoop up the crossbow that had been thrown to the ground when she fell.

“I know you’re lying. It’s alright, I didn’t expect you to trust me right away, but I’ll be back soon with something more filling for you. Just wait there for me, okay?”

“Well it’s not like I can actually go anywhere, brat,” Levi snapped, letting out a frustrated sigh when he once again remembered the language barrier. To his surprise, (Y/N) giggled at the sound of his annoyed growls and hoisted the crossbow higher up on her shoulder.

“Don’t be so grumpy, I’ll be back before you know it!”

(Y/N) pulled her cloak tighter around her shoulders when a brisk wind fluttered past, making her shiver as she walked along the cobblestone streets of her village. Looking above the roofs of the surrounding shops and booths revealed nothing but thick gray clouds and bleak skies; winter was on its way. At this thought, (Y/N) picked up her pace, shouldering her way past the other people bustling within the square towards a large wooden cabin built along the edge of town. It didn’t take her long to reach her destination, but she was feeling impatient and nervous, which made her movements more aggressive than usual, leading to some mumbled apologies as she bumped into numerous people crowding the space. (Y/N) breathed a sigh of relief when she finally made it to the front door and raised her fist to knock, chiding herself for feeling so anxious.

A loud clang sounded from within the building, snapping (Y/N) from her musings and making her raise an eyebrow as she waited. She heard a deep male voice shout something from inside, followed by a bright female voice that continually got closer until the door was wrenched open, revealing a frazzled brunette woman with warm hazel eyes, iron-rimmed square glasses, and a black eye patch covering her right eye.

“Hanji,” (Y/N) breathed, a tired smile spreading across her face.

“(Y/N)!” Hanji quickly swooped down to encompass (Y/N) in a bear hug, squeezing the other woman until she could barely breathe. “It’s about time you showed up! Come in, come!”

(Y/N) allowed herself to be ushered inside and let out a satisfied sigh as she was wrapped in the warmth of the fire burning in the hearth and the cozy atmosphere of the small cabin. She smiled when she noticed Erwin and Moblit splayed out around the living room - Erwin perched on the armrest of a worn armchair and Moblit laying across the couch.

“Hey guys!”

“Heya (Y/N).”

“Hi (Y/N).”

The two men beamed at her, motioning for her to sit in the armchair Erwin was perched on while Hanji darted into the kitchen to make some tea - Moblit rushing to help her lest she burn anything. (Y/N) complied, settling back into the chair with a soft groan as she scanned the room, taking note of all of the new machines Hanji had been tinkering with as of late.

The pair remained silent until Hanji and Moblit reentered the room, only breaking the soothing quiet of the space to murmur a soft thank you to their friends as drinks were passed around. (Y/N) took the time to gather her thoughts, humming in satisfaction when the warm flavor of the tea chased the heavy cold from her body and heated her chest and stomach like a cozy blanket. Only when everyone had settled and taken a few sips of their drinks did Erwin turn to (Y/N), giving her a serious look.

“So, you wanted to talk to me?”

(Y/N) took a deep breath, “Yes.”

“Is this about the beast you found in the woods?”

Another deep breath, “Yes.”

“(Y/N), I told you, you need to stop messing with that thing. It’s dangerous and you could end up getting hurt or killed. Maybe it’s just best if you let nature run its course.”

“And I told you that I’m not giving up on him,” (Y/N) said. “I know he’s dangerous, but I can’t just leave him there. Winter is coming soon and I know he won’t make it if he doesn’t have someone to help him along.”

“(Y/N), this is a fucking dragon we are talking about here. This isn’t some stray dog on the streets. As soon as you heal that thing, it will kill you and it will be our fault for not trying to put a stop to this sooner.”

“Erwin, we are not going through this conversation again. If that dragon wanted to kill me, he would’ve done so two weeks ago when I first got close to him. I just want to heal him enough to send him back on his way, and then I won’t meddle in the matters of the forest anymore. But I have to do this.”

Erwin sighed, looking up at Hanji and Moblit - who were unusually quiet - for assistance only to be met with sympathetic stares and the slightest shakes of their heads. Closing his eyes, Erwin focused on shoving down all of his concerns before he met (Y/N)’s stare again, swallowing the fear in his gut before he opened his mouth.

“Alright, I’ve made my case. I know there is nothing I can do to stop you now. Just… promise me - us - that you will be careful?”

“I promise,” (Y/N) said, her eyes softening and her hand reaching out to squeeze Erwin’s shoulder reassuringly.

“Okay then, what do you need from me?”

“I need to know where the best herbs for healing an infected gash and a trap wound can be found. You are one of the best huntsmen in the country, I know you’ll have an idea of what I need to look for.”

Erwin nodded slowly. “I have a book I am willing to lend you, a guide complete with my own personal notes written in the margins if you wish to use that. I could tell you, but I think it might be easier to have it on hand.”

(Y/N) brightened immediately, “Really!? Thank you Erwin!”

Erwin chuckled. “It’s no problem, (Y/N). Just make sure to keep your promise, that is the only way I will feel comfortable giving it to you. I don’t want you to die or get injured because I gave you the key to the forest.”

(Y/N) quickly leaned forward and embraced her best friend in a hug, burying her face in his shoulder and holding him tightly to her body. Erwin was a little stunned at first, but quickly reciprocated the hug, squeezing her just as tightly. When they finally broke away, they shared a meaningful look before (Y/N) turned to Hanji and Moblit, her smile returning to chase the solemn expression from her face.

“Hanji, do you have any kind of tool or weapon that would work for destroying a ground dragon trap?”

Hanji’s smile turned wicked and her eyes flashed with excitement as she nodded energetically. Moblit nodded as well, but he looked more concerned than Hanji did, his eyes trained on the brunette scientist beside him as if afraid she would do something insane.

“I’m sure I could whip up something for that, (Y/N),” Hanji said, practically foaming at the mouth. “Let me get started on the plans for it right away! Moblit, you in?”

Moblit still looked a little like he was going to be sick, but his somewhat cheeky grin was genuine and his eyes were sparkling with warmth as he nodded at his partner. “Yeah, I’ll help you brainstorm.”

“Thank you all so much,” (Y/N) said with a bow. “I know it’s strange, but it’s something I have to do and I know I wouldn’t be able to do it without your help. I really appreciate you guys going out of your way to do something like this for me.”

“It’s no problem, (Y/N),” Moblit said. “Just like Erwin said, so long as you stay safe for us, we are willing to help you with anything you might need.”

The group finished off their tea quickly, chatting idly and catching up before Hanji dragged Moblit into the other room to brainstorm and (Y/N) walked with Erwin to the front door to head back to their respective homes. The wind was even more bitter when (Y/N) opened the door and stepped out onto the now nearly deserted village street, but she barely felt it, her heart warm and her eyes sparkling as she waved goodbye to the blonde hunter and jogged her way home.

Levi squinted his eyes against the bitter cold as another blast of wind stung his face, making him growl in frustration. Normally, his scales were perfectly suited for defending him against the cold, allowing him to live high in the mountains despite the severe wind chill in the winter, but his body had grown feeble from the weeks of entrapment. He could feel himself slowly starting to wither away, his once gleaming, solid scales now dull and brittle.

He shivered again, cursing himself and the situation he was in just like he did every day. He hated it, he felt like he was going to go insane if he didn’t get out of there soon. He sure as hell wouldn’t survive the winter. But his muscles had given up on helping him, and both of his wounds were infected from the weeks of exposure and continuous damage, leaving him helpless and dying in the cold.

Levi was just about to curl into himself, hoping to shield himself more from the harsh wind when the sound of a twig snapping made him whip his head around, his lips already pulled back into a vicious snarl.

“Sorry! I didn’t mean to spook ya!”

Levi relaxed at the sight of (Y/N), the stubborn woman who had never stopped coming back no matter how many times he snarled, snapped, or shot fire at her. She was definitely one to wonder at, someone he had yet to figure out, but he was starting to warm up to her. Against his better judgement, he was growing fond of her gentle mannerisms and bright voice. She was always cautious but never threatening, and she had never done anything more than bring him food and keep him company, talking to him even though he could not respond and keeping him from going insane with loneliness, even though he would never admit it aloud.

Even now, with food growing scarce and a freezing wind whipping around the valley, she carried a basket of his favorite fish for him and a wide smile on her face. He had no idea why she continuously insisted on helping him, but he had stopped asking himself that question a week ago, figuring it was better to just accept her help and get stronger than lose his mind over ‘what if’ scenarios.

“I hope I wasn’t too late, it took me a while to make it through the forest because of the wind, but I’m here now! And, if you’ll allow me, I’ve brought something for you.”

Levi tilted his head, cautious but curious, but was quickly distracted by the fish in (Y/N)’s basket, which was placed in front of him and tilted over so he could access the delicious food inside. He wolfed down the meal, grateful for the renewed strength as (Y/N) watched, her smile only growing wider at the sight of him enjoying the food. When he was done, she carefully dragged the basket away from him and threw it to the side.

“Alright, so you’re probably not going to like this when I first show you what I brought, but it’s really going to help, okay?”

Levi narrowed his gaze at her, “What do you have with you, brat?”

(Y/N) gulped a little at his suspicious growl but shoved her fear to the bottom of her stomach, unwilling to let it keep her from helping him. She knew this could go horribly wrong, but she needed to try. Bending down, (Y/N) dug through the bag she had set on the ground until she felt something thick, cold, and metallic brush against her fingers. Taking a deep breath, (Y/N) slowly pulled the object from her bag and held it out to Levi for him to see, her gaze never leaving his as she scanned his face for a reaction.

It was two solid metal poles connected together at a bent angle. One of the poles, a dark charcoal gray, was longer than its lighter silver counterpart, and had a spear shaped end while the other was tipped with a rubber claw. On the side of the lighter pole was a handle made of smooth wood. Levi eyed the piece, his gut twisting at the sight of the spear as he tried to make sense of what (Y/N) was holding.

“What the fuck is that?”

(Y/N) winced at his menacing snarl but stood her ground. “I’m sure you’re wondering what this is. It’s actually a device that one of my good friends designed for getting your foot out of that trap. It won’t hurt you, I promise. At least, not the tool itself. Removing the trap will be painful, but I’m sure you know that already. What I’m trying to say is, you can trust me. I’m not here to hurt you, so if you’ll let me, I want to help you out of that trap. I even brought some stuff to help heal your wounds once we’re done, but we have to get you out of this first and you’re going to have to let me get close to you if we’re going to do that.”

Levi tensed, his expression twisted with confliction. On the one hand, the thought of being free was almost enough to make him wag his tail in pure joy. Almost. But on the other, he nearly felt sick at the thought of letting (Y/N) get close to him, especially with a spear-like tool in her hands. She had been amazing so far, even if he struggled to admit it, but she was still a human, which were the same monsters who had put him in this situation in the first place.

(Y/N) could see the struggle on his face, but she kept quiet, letting him figure out what he wanted to do without her interference. If she was going to do this, she needed to do it because he felt comfortable enough to allow her to, not because she manipulated him into it. It was the best way to ensure none of them got hurt. Finally, after what seemed like hours, Levi gave her a curt nod, his gaze burning holes into her as he watched her every move towards his back leg.

Sending him a reassuring smile, (Y/N) slowly made her way towards the trap. She kept her eyes on him, constantly watching to make sure he was comfortable with every move she made until she was standing right in front of his injured foot. Tearing her gaze from the dragon hovering above her, she turned her attention to his wound, biting her lip at how infected it was. If she didn’t get him out of the trap soon, it was likely that his leg would lose the ability to function permanently.

Taking a deep breath and casting one last look in Levi’s direction, (Y/N) moved to stab the spear end of the device into the ground, wrestling with it until it was clear it wouldn’t budge. When she was satisfied, (Y/N) straddled his leg and pushed the pole with the rubber claw under the lip of the trap, right between the huge teeth lodged in the dragon’s flesh. A quiet growl made (Y/N) flinch, but she didn’t move. Instead, she used her free hand to stroke his surprisingly smooth scales in reassurance. Glancing behind her, she found Levi’s face to be only a few inches from her own, his gaze trained on her every move. She suppressed her body’s urges to fling herself off of his leg and get as far away as possible, instead focusing on gathering the courage to look into his intense gunmetal eyes.

“Are you ready?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be, brat.”

(Y/N) took his grumble as a sign to continue and turned back to face his injury, bracing her arms on the top pole and wrapping her hands around the handle. Taking a deep breath, (Y/N) pushed down on the handle, moving it in circles to make the pole with the claw extend, pushing on the edge of the trap. She suppressed a shiver at the pained growl she felt vibrating through her system, and focused all of her energy on pushing the lid of the trap, forcing the large metal teeth out of the dragon’s flesh. The trap was designed like a giant bear trap, which only made it that much more difficult to remove, but (Y/N) kept at it, using all of her strength to force the trap open.

Finally, with one last pump of the handle and a loud roar from Levi, the trap popped open completely, the teeth ripping from Levi’s leg to fall uselessly to the ground. (Y/N) fell backwards into Levi’s chest as the trap gave way, a grunt falling from her lips as she held her hands out to keep from collapsing. They were both breathing heavily, their loud pants filling the air as they fought to regain their strength.

“Whoa… we did it… we did it!” (Y/N) shouted happily, jumping off of Levi and pumping her fist in the air.

Levi snorted at her ridiculous antics but couldn’t deny the excitement he felt at the feeling of finally being free. He let out a quiet purr, leaning forward to tap (Y/N)’s back with his muzzle. He couldn’t help the wolfish smirk that spread across his face at the loud squeak she made in response, whirling around to stare at him with wide eyes and a dropped jaw.

“Gods… don’t do that, you nearly gave me a heart attack!”

Levi’s grin widened before he did it again, this time tapping her on the shoulder. She froze as he got close, but gave him a wide smile in return when he brought his face back, her eyes glimmering with an unnamed emotion as she stared at him.

“You’re welcome, you overgrown lizard.”

Levi frowned, “Fuck you, brat.”

Even though she couldn’t understand him, his annoyed growls made her burst into laughter, the joyous sound ringing throughout the forest as she bent down to begin dressing his infected wound.

“Oh for god's sake, stop being such a baby and eat the damn herbs,” (Y/N) said. Much to her dismay, the dragon in front of her turned his nose away once again, his lips pulled back in a disgusted sneer at the leaves piled in her basket.

“Come on, don’t give me that look, they're good for you! And they’ll help you heal faster.”

Levi snorted in irritation, “You are a real pain in my ass, brat.”

(Y/N) huffed, her hands on her hips with a glare on her face. Damn, he sometimes forgot how stubborn she could be. He couldn’t fathom why, this was the same woman that had been pestering him for the past month, but for some reason he always expected her to back down until she showed him otherwise. It was clear who was in control here, and despite the fact that he could feel his stomach rolling at the thought of eating the vegetables, he knew he would eventually cave and do whatever she wanted him to do. He owed her anyway, everything she was doing was for him and getting him back on his feet, the least he could do was comply with her simple demands.

The two glared at each other in silence for a few moments more before Levi finally lowered his head with an annoyed growl, dipping his muzzle into the basket of herbs to bite at the leaves inside. The moment he stopped being difficult, (Y/N) relaxed, giving him a gentle pat on the neck and a warm smile before she turned back to her bag to gather the mortar and pestle she always used to make poultices.

Levi’s face scrunched at the bitter taste of the herbs on his tongue, barely managing to swallow the foul stuff without gagging. (Y/N) turned at the sound of his pained swallow, her expression sympathetic this time as she gathered more herbs and began to mash them in the bowl.

“I know it doesn’t taste that great but I promise it’ll make you feel so much better. You’re already so close to being fully healed, you just need a few more days of eating these and letting me treat your injuries before you can finally be on your way.”

Levi didn’t respond, instead merely dipping his head back into the basket for another mouthful of the herbs. (Y/N) nodded in encouragement as he chewed on his next bite, finishing up with the paste she was making before bringing the bowl and fresh bandages over to his leg. Making sure to use careful movements, (Y/N) unwrapped the soiled bandage from his leg and examined his injury from the dragon trap, humming happily when she saw how far along it had come.

When she had first managed to pry the trap from his leg, the flesh had been inflamed, tender, throbbing in time with his heartbeat. It had been filled with pus and blood, and had caused most of his leg to swell to nearly twice its normal size. Now, the puncture wounds were nearly completely shut, the blood dried and scabbed over, and the muscles of his leg reduced back to their normal size with no inflammation or infection.

(Y/N) quickly put the poultice paste on Levi’s leg, beaming with pride when Levi didn’t flinch at the feeling, before wrapping it back up with a fresh bandage and moving on to his wing. His wing had been a different story, sliced open by the weapon of a hunter, it hadn’t been completely infected but it had been incredibly sensitive and difficult to heal. Levi had been lucky, the wound had been sliced mere inches from the nerve that, if damaged, would’ve rendered him flightless for the rest of his life. That injury had been painful in a different way than the one on his leg, and had been a challenge to get close to let alone heal properly.

But with proper medical supplies and a hell of a lot of patience, (Y/N) had managed to reduce the wing injury to nothing more than a scratch, no longer even needing a bandage with its cream. There would be a scar left, on both his leg and his wing, but she knew he was lucky to have even survived the injuries he sustained, a few scars would do nothing to impair his ability to live a normal life from here on out.

(Y/N) finished dressing his wing to find him watching her, his forked tongue licking the last taste of the herbs from his lips. She smiled at him, wondering how long he had been staring at her for while she daydreamed. Stepping away from his wing, (Y/N) grabbed the basket away from Levi’s jaws, strapping it to her backpack to carry back to the village.

“There you go, dragon! You’re almost completely healed now! Aren’t you excited?”

Levi gave an affirmative purr in response and (Y/N) beamed at him, making his stomach stir with an odd fluttering feeling.

“Yeah, I’m excited too! I can’t wait to see you fly for the first time, finally free,” (Y/N) said happily before her voice suddenly turned melancholy. “Although, I will miss having you around, you giant lizard. Don’t forget about me, okay?”

Levi was stunned for a minute. He had been conflicted with himself for weeks over the prospect of leaving, some hidden part of himself latching on to his weird feelings surrounding the woman who had never given up on him. He had battled with himself over the ridiculous notion of staying, he was a dragon for fucks sake, he had never stayed in one place for longer than he needed to, and yet…

But he had constantly told himself that even if he decided to stay, she would never care enough about him to want him around. It was clear she was helping him heal to set him free, why would she ever want to be around him long term? But this, her words… they changed things. An inkling in the back of his mind began to wonder if she would genuinely miss him as much as he would miss her.

“Don’t worry, brat, I could never forget you.”

(Y/N) gave him a sad smile before walking up to him and boldy placing her hand on his muzzle, once again stunning him as she gently rubbed her fingers along his smooth, warm scales.

“I’ll take that as a promise.”

(Y/N) sighed as she made her way along the familiar trail through the woods, the one she had discovered nearly two months ago with her dog, Captain, in search of a moon flower. She still couldn’t believe it had really been that long since she had found the deadly dragon she now considered to be one of her good friends. She still couldn’t believe she had managed to befriend a dragon in the first place. It all seemed so surreal, like a really long daydream she didn’t want to snap out of.

She shook her head. She couldn’t think like that. She couldn’t let herself entertain the idea of him staying in these woods just to be around her. He was a dragon, a creature known for travelling all around the world, sometimes several times throughout the year. There was no reason for him to stay, no reason for him to give up his freedom for some small little forest on the edge of a human village, home to the very hunters that had shot him down in the first place. She knew she would accomplish nothing more than making her heart hurt if she let herself get her hopes up.

Jumping over a fallen log and crossing the river, (Y/N) hoisted her bag further up her shoulder as she made her way down into the familiar valley. Steeling her nerves and shoving her feelings into the deepest part of her heart, (Y/N) focused on maintaining her composure as she rounded the corner and entered the clearing where her dragon friend had been living for the past two months.

“Hey dragon! I brought you some more of your favorite fish from the marketplace in my village! They were half off today and-”

(Y/N) stopped dead at the sight of the empty clearing, the space where her dragon had lain, completely clear except for a short, raven-haired man, who was examining a few scales on the ground. The man whirled at the sound of her voice and opened his mouth to speak, but barely even had time to take a breath before (Y/N) had her crossbow aimed and ready to fire, her gaze alight with cold fury.

“Who are you? What are you doing here? What have you done with my friend?” (Y/N) shouted, her voice firm and icy as she tried her best to keep it from cracking with fear.

The man quickly stood up to his full height and held his hands up, dropping the black scale to the ground. “(Y/N), calm down, it’s me.”

(Y/N) tensed. “How do you know my name?”

“You told it to me, when you first started to heal me.”

(Y/N)’s eyes widened and she quickly lowered her weapon, nearly dropping it in her shock. “D-Dragon!?”

The man in front of her smirked, his eyes twinkling with slight amusement. “The name’s actually Levi, but yes, I’m your dragon.”

(Y/N) didn’t think, ignoring the butterflies that exploded in her stomach at his words and letting her bag and weapon fall to the ground as she ran for him. Levi was surprised but held his arms open for her nonetheless, letting out a grunt when she collided with him and embraced him tightly. (Y/N) sighed shakily when she felt his strong arms encase her body after a moment of hesitation to hold her close to him, and couldn’t help the tears that were quickly falling to land on his soft black shirt.

“Y-You’re all better!” (Y/N) sniffled, burying her face in his neck.

“Thanks to you, brat.”

“Hey! Don’t call me a brat,” (Y/N) said teasingly.

“Well, you called me an overgrown lizard, so you don’t get to dictate what I call you, brat.”

(Y/N) giggled and finally pulled away. “Your leg is fully healed? And your wing injury has finally closed up all the way?”

“Yes and yes,” Levi said.

(Y/N)’s smile gleamed brighter than the stars, her eyes filled with joy and excitement at finally getting the chance to see him be free. She met his intense silver gaze and felt a tidal wave of warmth in her stomach at the emotions she could see flashing in them. She had never imagined that he’d be able to turn into a human form when he was fully healed, but she was happier than words could describe at being able to fully communicate with him now. She had figured out that he was able to understand her by the actions he used to respond to her whenever she would talk with him, but there was something special about seeing him freed from his inability to communicate, to move, to fly.

Suddenly, that dark pit of sadness made itself known again, trying its best to swallow the joy (Y/N) felt as she quickly realized what this meant. He was leaving. She fought to keep her composure, but she was quickly losing, her smile faltering and the gleam in her eye dimming. She tried her best to keep it hidden, but Levi was quick to notice her strain with her emotions.

“Hey, are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m fine!”

“No, no, brat,” Levi hummed softly, taking a step closer to crowd her against the tree she hadn’t even realized was behind her. “Something’s wrong. Spit it out.”

Wow. Who knew he could be so blunt? (Y/N) sighed, foregoing trying to convince him she was fine when she wasn’t. She was quickly figuring out his human personality and it was clear he wouldn’t take “I’m fine” for an answer. “It’s nothing really, I’m just being silly and selfish.”

Levi raised an eyebrow. (Y/N), being selfish? He found that hard to believe, this was in fact, the woman who had just spent the past two months healing a dangerous dragon just out of the goodness of her heart. “Explain.”

(Y/N) gave him a smile, humored by his brusque tone. “I guess I’m just… going to miss you, is all. I don’t really want you to leave even though it is completely selfish of me to even think of asking you to stay. You’re my friend, and I’ve really enjoyed having you around. I’m so happy that you are finally healed and free, I just,” (Y/N) breathed out shakily and leaned her head back against the tree trunk behind her, “wish you would stick around a little longer.”

Silence filled the space after (Y/N) finished explaining, and she closed her eyes, too afraid to see the disgust and condemnation in his eyes at her stupid sentiment. She almost wished she hadn’t told him what was wrong, she didn’t want him to feel pressured or burdened by her selfish desires despite the relief she felt at finally getting it off her chest. A loud sigh from in front of her made her open her eyes to see Levi watching her with a sad look of his own, his hand reaching up to caress her cheek with his thumb. She leaned into his touch before she could think about her actions, nuzzling his warm palm.

“(Y/N), as much as I’d like to, you know I can’t actually stay here, right?”

(Y/N) closed her eyes again and nodded, swallowing back the tears that were threatening to slip from beneath her lids. She did know that, had known that from the day she started to heal him. She wasn’t going to make him feel worse by crying about it.

“But what if… I don’t know, maybe you’d be interested in coming with me, instead?”

(Y/N) eyes flew open, her jaw dropping in shock. “Huh!?”

Levi winced at the loud noise and slid his gaze to the side, unable to look her in the eye as a hint of a blush bloomed on his cheeks. “I-I mean, you don’t have to but I just thought, you know, we could spend some more time together. I could show you more than just the small ass village you’ve lived in your whole life and take you back to my place if you want. We can go for flights together and I don’t know, maybe this is just a stupid idea-”

Levi was surprised when he was cut off by the sudden feeling of (Y/N)’s lips pressing against his. The kiss was fleeting and sweet and soft, but it immediately made him melt. Much too soon, (Y/N) had pulled away, a sheepish smile on her face as she looked at him with the warm look in her eye he had come to love in the recent months.

“That sounds perfect, Levi.”

Levi couldn’t help but smile back at her as soon as he had regained his composure, leaning down to recapture her lips in a proper kiss this time, allowing his feelings to take over as pride and happiness filled him to the brim. He never could’ve imagined loving a human, but life was certainly full of surprises and so far, (Y/N) was the best surprise he had ever received.

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shinondraws · 2 years

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I had a dream that I had finished my Nuz and I was working on a video with best story moments.

Then I woke up to my alarm and I wanted to write my dream down and post it here. Which I did.

In a dream.

I had fallen back to sleep and I had dreamt of myself posting my dream on Tumblr.

Even now I'm not sure if I'm awake

#shinon's dream log #if you're reading this you're asleep #this is all a dream

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imagineswriting47 · 4 years

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Lost Voice.

A/N: this is for the anon who asked Can you write a Dean x reader? The reader hates her laugh and hides it all the time, but she giggles one day after Dean catches her off guard, and he thinks it's adorable? This took on a life of its own. I hope you like it.

All mistakes are mine and mine alone

Warnings: Mentions of abuse.

Summary: Finding your voice is never easy after a lifetime of pain.

Paring: Dean/Reader

The hunt had been an easy one. Salt and burn and no one had disappeared since we got into town, so I would call that a win for the three of us. What surprised me was the fact that after the hunt, Dean didn’t want to go out to the bar. Instead, Dean and Sam got some pizza and a case of beer before coming back to the motel room. With both of them, Sam and Dean telling stories of past hunts. I sat a little out to the side and away from. Not really having a lot to add to the conversation, I have been hunting as long as they had. With not having any stories to share, I was happy to sit and listen. Sam has his head thrown back, laughing at something Dean just said, pulling me back into the present.

“Come on Y/N, you can't tell me that wasn’t funny,” Dean says with a smile on his face. I just shrug my shoulder and laugh at him. Dean’s smile falls a little then. If I hadn’t been looking, I would not have noticed. But I did. It doesn’t help that I am always looking at Dean. Dean is just so beautiful, and he doesn’t even know it. Dean doesn’t know how I would love just to sit and count the freckles that cover his face. To look into his eyes to see every color that hides in their depths. Oh, don't get me wrong Dean knows that he is good looking. I just don't think that he believes hi is worth more than what he lets himself have. Before long, the clock is showing that it’s two in the morning. I leave my half-finished beer on the table before grabbing everything that I need and make my way to the bathroom—showering quickly, knowing that I need to go some hot water for the boys. After I finish in the shower, I turned it off; then, I can faintly hear the boy’s conversation.

“Sam, I don't think that Y/N likes me.” Hearing Dean says that makes my heartbreak. How could he think that I don't like him? “Dude…”

“I mean it, Sam in the time we have known Y/N I can count on one hand the times I have heard her voice.” I know I don't talk a whole lot. But I didn’t think that would matter to them. I’m a good hunter; I always follow the plan and make sure that I have their backs. Not wanting to hear the conversation anymore. I decided to dry my hair before getting dressed and leaving the bathroom “It’s about time Y/N.” The bathroom door closed, leaving Sam and me in the room.

“How much did you hear?” Sam asks me as I take a seat on the bed next to him, It was Sam, and I’s turn to share this hunt leaving Dean to have his bed. “Enough,” I whisper, my voice rough from not being used in a while. Sam knows a little about why I don’t talk. A lot, Sam had to piece together on his own as I didn’t come right out and tell him. Sam knows that I had been abused as a child. That my father would beat me if I made any noise. Even now, years after I had last seen my father, he still has this hold on me. My voice, I hate my voice. Every time I hear it all, I can think of is pain. How bad my father beat me this time for making a noise. The boys were the first guys that I can remember feeling safe around. But something just can't be unlearned.

“I can talk to him if you want. Set him straight.” Sam says to me as he takes hold of my hand. “No, I…” I don't get to finish as the bathroom door is thrown open steam rushing out of the room. “All your’s Sammy,” Dean says with a smile on his face. Knowing Dean, the smile is because he used all of the hot water. Usually, I would stay up to watch what Sam did to get back at Dean. But not this time. Climbing into bed, I make sure to leave enough room for Sam. Dean doesn’t say anything to me before climbing into his bed and turning the light off. Sam isn’t in the bathroom long, and by the time he crawls into bed. I can feel the cold just coming off of him. He tries to keep from waking me up, I reach behind me and grab his hand, pulling it over my waist. Sam gets the idea and rolls onto his side, his chest against my back. With my finger, I write ‘no hot’ against the end of his hand. I can feel him shake his head ‘no,’ putting a smile on my face.

With Sam understanding why I don’t talk, we have managed to find a means to speak without me needing to say anything. To most people, it would look as if we are just holding hands. It probably even looks that way to Dean. I know that he always looked confused when I would climb into his bed on the hunts that it was our turn to share. I know that I need to tell Dean that Sam and I are not together. Dean has asked Sam on more than one occasion if we were together and Sam being the amazing friend that he is by not agreeing or disagreeing. With my mind up to talk to Dean the next day. I let sleep pull me under.

I wake up the next morning to the sun shining in my face and an empty bed. Sitting up, I look around the room, finding Dean sitting at the table looking for our next hunt; Sam nowhere to be seen. He must still be out for his morning run. I was running my hand through my hair, hoping to get some of the knots out of my hair. I quietly make my way over to him before I tap him on the shoulder. When he jumps, it is then I notice the headphones that he is wearing. I give him a small smile hoping to show that I am sorry for scaring him. I take the seat next to him as Dean takes his headphones out and turning the music off before turning to me.

“I heard what you said last night, Dean, and I want you to know how wrong you…” I don’t get to finish what I was saying as Dean moves, and I can't help but flinch waiting for the punch. I must have a look of fear on my face as Dean’s eyes grow wide, and worry makes its way onto his face. Once I get my breathing under control, I tell him my story of growing up. How no matter the monsters we face, the worst ones will always be the human ones. What my father put me through as a child. All the pain, hurt, hunger. Everything I tell him everything, even the things that Sam doesn’t know. By the end, I feel lighter by getting it all off my chest. But that doesn’t mean that I can look Dean in the face.

When my voice falls quiet once more, I can hear the chair scrape across the floor as Dean gets up to move away from me is my only guess, How he knows how weak I am. So I am surprised when I see him kneeling in front of me, putting him right in my line of sight. “Can I hug you?” I nod my head yes before I am pulled from my chair and into his lap. His arms are wrapping around me. I forget about Sam until I hear the motel door open.

“What happened!?” Sam says in a panicked voice. I just pull myself closer to Dean, burying my head in the side of his neck and breathing him in. Sam lowers himself onto the floor next to us. He is going to worry until he knows that I am okay. Letting go of Dean’s hand with my one hand, I grab Sam’s hand to tell him ‘fine, told him.’ Knowing that Sam would understand what I meant.

Everything changes after that. They don't treat me any differently on hunts. But now I found myself writing on Dean’s hand just as I do Sam’s. I also start to find my voice. Talking some here and there to the point months after Dean and I’s heart to heart, I found myself speaking better often than not. On bad days the boys don't try and make me for that I am thankful for. The beautiful thing is I have gotten to know Dean better. I have gotten to know somethings that Sam might not even know. I have also found myself sleeping in Dean’s bed more than Sam’s. Dean and I seem to sleep better when we can hold each other. Sam looks happy about how everything between Dean and I are going. Sam knows how I feel about Dean might also be the reason as well.

A year after telling Dean about my childhood we are traveling down the road, I am half listening to Sam when Dean says, “I’m Batman.” Having heard about the hunt with the rabbit’s foot, I can't help but laugh. I can't help it, but picture Dean dressed up as batman. Only when I look, I notice both Dean and Sam are looking at me. Dean in the review mirror and Sam is turning in his seat to look at me. I can feel my cheeks turn red before saying, “What?”

“Just never heard you laugh before,” Sam tells me with a smile on his face. With Sam’s words, I can feel my cheeks turn even redder. Looking out the window, I don't see the look that the brothers’ exchange. When we stop for the night, Sam goes on to get us all something to eat. Feeling embarrassed about what happened in the car, I sit as far away from Dean as I can.

“You should laugh more.” I hear from across the room. “I mean it Y/N you have a beautiful laugh,” Dean says in a quiet voice almost as if he is afraid to speak those words. “I don't,” My words are spoked just as quietly as Dean’s. I don't take my eyes off my journal as I write about the last hunt we had only been on. I don’t see Dean get up or walk over to me until I feel the bed dip from Dean sitting on the bed next to me.

“You do Y/N I would love to hear it more.” He whispers as he lets his hand rest against my cheek moving, so I am forced to look Dean in the eye. I can't help but lean into his touch. His hand is warm and rough against my cheek. Dean slowly leans closer to me. Eyes are dropping down to look at my lips before looking back into my eyes. I gave a small nod of my head, closing my eyes. I can feel Dean's lips against my own. His lips are rough, chapt, plush. I gasp when I feel his tongue run across my bottom lip. Unexpectedly, Dean’s hand drifted to my hip. It settled there and pulled me closer. Inhaling sharply, I was against his warm chest, chiseled to perfection. Must he be so perfect? I splayed my hand against his. Dean’s breathing quickened as did mine. Dean began nuzzling my neck with delicate kisses. Thus faint, they were whispers. His head was angled slightly to the side as his lips came closer and closer to mine. Our breaths mingled. My heart fluttered inside my chest. At first, it was a delicate butterfly of a kiss. Then his arms encircled me before pulling away from me.

“That was…” I say, breathing hard. “It was.” Dean’s breath is warm as it ghosts across my lips. With that, I can hear the door to the motel room being open before Sam steps into the room. With a smile on his face, he just mumbles, “Its about time.” as he sets the food onto the table in the place.

A/N: Leave a heart or a reblog!! Furthermore, remember the requests are open!!

#supernatural #supernatural fanfiction #supernatural imagine #supernatural fic #dean winchester #deanwinchtser #dean x y/n #dean winchester fanfiction #dean winchester imagine #Sam Winchester #sam winchester imagine #sam winchester fanfiction #sam winchester x reader #sam winchester #jared padalecki #jensen ackles

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septicbro1005 · 3 years

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time to nuz the fuck out of this locke.

so! to keep y'all up to date with the introduction of a new nuzlocke chain, i'll fill you in on the pokemon i've got, where i got them from, what they're nicknames are, and my current objective.

cool?

cool.

Current Objective: Make it to the gym at Stow-on-Side and kick Bea's ass.

Current Team: Toast (Level 35 Cinderace: starter), Skittles (Level 26 Swirlix: Route 5), Guzma (Level 22 Linoone: Route 2), Pit (Level 18 Pidove, Rolling Fields Overland), Guardian (Level 18 Hoothoot, Route 1), and Taishi (Level 13 Slowpoke, Wedgehurst Station)

The other pokemon I've got are Bitch Boy (Level 30 Gastrodon, Galar Mines No. 2), Spinel (Level 17 Drifloon, Watchtower Ruins Dynamax Den), Facile (Level 17 Butterfree, Dappled Grove Dynamax Den), Kirishima (Level 31 Carkol, Galar Mines), Motivation (Level 24 Sawk, Motostoke Outskirts), Namor (Level 31 Crawdaunt, West Lake Axewell Dynamax Den), Shedinja (Level 21 Shedinja, Rolling Fields Dynamax Den), Heart (Level 28 Barraskewda, Hulbury), Sam (Level 18 Purrloin, West Lake Axewell Overland), Ghoul (Level 25 Litwick, Motostoke Gym Challenge), Salmon (Level 28 Gyarados, Motostoke), Trubble (Level 21 Trubbish, Route 3), Volts (Level 16 Toxel, Pokemon Nursery), Spooky (Level 20 Pumpkaboo, Route 4), Luck (Level 26 Ninjask, Rolling Fields Dynamax Den)

Wow.

Okay.

I was gonna write more stuff, but nah. I'll write more in a hot second, hold up.

#septic's nuzlocke stress #pokemon #long post

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flowers-for-nuz · 5 years

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family

magnus is lying on his back on their bed, with alec lying between his legs, his head pillowed on magnus's stomach. magnus cards his fingers lightly through alec's hair, scratching the scalp a little and enjoying how alec's eyes scrunch shut in pleasure at that. alec mouths across magnus's hip bone and then presses a kiss right above his navel and pushes himself up a little, resting his chin on his arms and looking up at his husband.

"you're thinking about something," alec observes, noting the soft hesitation in magnus's eyes, the way he's biting on his bottom lip.

"yes," magnus agrees, sighing very quietly.

"wanna talk about it?" alec asks, tilting his head slightly.

"i went to st. ambrose yesterday to have lunch with catarina," magnus says, one leg shifting so that it falls over the back of alec's thigh, effectively locking him in place. "she told me about a young warlock baby who'd been referred to her for medical care after her mundane parents threw her out."

alec listens attentively, not interuppting. magnus's eyes are unglamoured now but his voice breaks with centuries of empathy for children like him. "she's just a baby, alec. i was at least nine."

"the world is cruel, magnus," alec says softly, rubbing soothing circles into the skin over magnus's heart, wishing it could act as a salve.

"catarina is looking into adoption," magnus continues after a beat. he sounds nervous now, "you said to me once, that i wouldn't be alone if i wanted to start a family." the unspoken question hangs in the air between them.

"i meant every word of that. i still do," alec replies, words careful and slow to assure magnus of their sincerity.

"i cant have children, but i know the lightwood family name means a lot to you. are you sure you wouldn't rather have a biological child?" magnus asks, his fingers stilling in alec's hair as he waits.

"magnus, i'm a lightwood-bane now," alec corrects him, "and biology means nothing to me if there's somebody in the world already who we can love and provide for. family is more than just biology. you of all people should know that."

magnus's face breaks out into a smile thst still manages to knock all the breath out of alec. "i love you, darling."

"i love you," alec replies, crawling up a bit so he can kiss magnus. "and i want to be raise a child with you. you have so much love to give, you'd make such a good dad."

"you would too," magnus smiles. "you're so good with madzie."

alec responds with another kiss, slow, sweet and lingering. it's almost time for them to get up and go about their day but alec settles in next to magnus and pulls him to his chest, wrapping his arms around magnus's body tightly. the clave and magnus's clients can wait a little bit.

#malec #magnus bane #alec lightwood #shadowhunters #malec fic #nuz writes #juust a littke something i couldnt stop thinking about #these two are Soft beyond words

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tenochtitlan-archive · 4 years

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Hello! I have been following your blog for awhile, and I have a question on resources for the main linguistic differences of Nahua dialects, I don't have much contact with my Nahua speaking relatives in Mexico due to poverty etc, and I was learning Nahua from an app but i found it's a different than Guerrero Nahua ( which is where my family is from OG) and if you had any other tips for reconnecting with language / culture that be cool too I really appreciate what your doing for our people 💪🏾

Nahuatl dialects all vary in that they have different words and slang in usage, some dialects use entirely different grammar and writing, take Tetelcingo Nahuatl as an example (mösiehuali, quixtiöno, xejnula, “Sente sohuatl qui̱bica icuie” a woman wearing a chinquete).

Every dialect has a difference in the syntax we use. Unfortunately, Nahuatl spelling has no standards so you have to memorize the sound of the word to understand what dialect someone is speaking (if you can understand them in the first place, I can’t understand dialects that are closer to CDMX). An example in dialectual differences are words that create a peripheral and central language divide.

egg - totoltetl (central), tekosistli (peripheral)

black - tliltik (central), yayauik (peripheral)

plural suffix - -tin (central), -mej (peripheral)

My dialect (Eastern Huasteca Nahuatl) uses the loanword piyo for chicken, but Guerrero uses the word kuanaka instead. Eastern Huasteca Nahuatl also uses peripheral words while Guerrero uses more central words. Unfortunately, I can’t find sources for Nahuatl language differences that are specific, but Wikipedia actually comes in handy this time!

Chances are the version of Nahuatl you were learning was Classical Nahuatl, which has the most resources for academic and recreational uses. It’s one of the easiest dialects to find online despite being an extinct language, and that makes it hard for Nahuas to find resources for their own dialects. Luckily enough, I know plenty of Guerrerense Nauatlajamej who are kind enough to hoard resources for the public. I’ll only put a few just in case. Good luck, noteki!

Guerrero Nahuatl online flashcards

Guerrero Nahuatl phrasebook (weird layout?)

NGU & NUZ comparitive vocabulary

Learning Nahuatl (Grade 3&4) < its the oldest age I could find

#my asks #ndn #nahuatl

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bellarkefanfiction · 5 years

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Something So Flawed and Free

written by: Josefine / @selflessbellamy

prompt: ‘ok this is awkward but my last one night stand didn't seem to enjoy my hickey, you're my best friend and has more experience than I do, so I was wondering...may I give you one so you can tell me what I'm doing wrong?’ for anonymous

authors note: I changed the prompt a little.

word count: 5070

rating: mature

Even though the sun is sinking beneath the horizon, coloring it soft pink and bright orange, the heat still hasn’t surrendered to the night. Because of this, Clarke has submerged her feet into the cool water of the pool. Closing her eyes, she can smell the rose bushes and hear the distant chirping of grasshoppers. If only her day hadn’t sucked so much, she’d be able to enjoy it.

Men, she thinks to herself. How disappointing.

In fact, there’s only a single one she likes. She pictures him: His Monet-like freckles and curly dark brown hair behind her eyelids, just before he shows up. The sound of the pool gate opening is what announces him, and she quirks up to see him walk closer.

“Hey, I brought your favorite,” is the first thing Bellamy says, wiggling a large tub of Ben & Jerry’s Half Baked ice cream, but moments later his brow furrows and he continues, “Are you okay?”

Although she knows that doing so will probably worry him more, Clarke stands and runs to hug him, because she needs it right now. Bellamy wraps his strong arms around her waist, pulling her closer, and she buries her nose in the crook of his neck. The scent of sunscreen from his skin has blended with the familiar one of his cologne. It’s soothing like nothing else.

“You’re scaring me,” he croaks while rubbing comforting circles on her lower back. Then he pulls away just enough to search her eyes. His earthy gaze holding hers is not unusual, but the way he’s looking at her, soft as ever, makes her heart swell and her mouth go dry. “Did he hurt you?”

Once he’s asked that the corner of his mouth twitches, so she decides to reassure him right away, placing her hand on his forearm. “No—he was just a bit of an asshole.”

Bellamy’s jaw clenches. “That’s not a comfort.”

Well, it probably isn’t. With a sigh, Clarke leans forward to press her lips to his sleeve-covered shoulder. She lets her hands roam his back for a minute, running them down his spine and across his muscles until he shudders.

“O—Okay. Enough,” he laughs, pulling away to grab her hand and lead her to the edge of the pool again.

Here, he sits down next to her, close enough that his knee brushes hers. “Do you wanna talk about it?”

Nodding, Clarke worries her lower lip as nervousness creeps into her bones. For the past six years, since she was twelve years old, she’s always talked to him about everything, and yet this is different, because it’s sex. They’ve dabbled in it before, telling each other about some things and people they found hot, but they’ve never discussed it in detail. Not like this.

“Did he make you uncomfortable?” It sounds as if Bellamy has to force the words to emerge, drag them out of their hiding. Knowing that it’s because he fears the answer, Clarke places her hand above his.

And he interlaces their fingers.

“No, but—” She cuts off when Bellamy winces. “But he didn’t make me feel comfortable either. I was very nervous, and he didn’t seem to care much about that. He just wanted to get laid.” As she speaks, her cheeks begin to burn, forcing her to look down.

“Clarke…”

Gently, he lifts her chin using his finger. When their gazes connect, she sees him swallow hard enough that his Adam’s apple bobs. “Did he ask for your permission before he did something to you, like before you guys...?”

“We didn’t have sex.”

Bellamy blinks, his jaw slackening a bit. “But I thought—”

“No. He wanted me to give him a hickey, probably so that he could brag about it to his friends, and then — after I’d done it — he had the audacity to tell me that I was bad at it. Do you think I was gonna let him put his dick in me after that?” Though her own choice of words has her cheeks feeling even more blotchy and hot, it makes Bellamy crack up.

Frowning, Clarke pushes at his shoulder. “You think this is funny? He said I was bad. It was so embarrassing.”

Placing his arm around her shoulders, he pulls her against his side. “Come on, Princess. You know you’re not bad at anything.” He mouths at her temple, which is something he’s done to cheer her up ever since they were kids, but this time he also presses a kiss to the skin there. “Don’t let that Tinder asshole get to you.”

“But what if I really am bad?”

He sighs, offering her an easy smile. “Then it doesn’t matter. Hickeys are overrated anyway.”

Sure, he might say that now, but if he thinks he has her fooled for one moment, he’s wrong. “You proudly showed off the one you had after you slept with Roma… She had one, too. Right here.”

She lets her fingertip brush the juncture between his throat and shoulder, causing him to scratch the back of his neck. Although he didn’t hide his hookup with Roma Bragg from her, they haven’t talked about it before, and because of this, it’s bound to throw him off that she brings it up now — just to prove a point.

Admittedly, Clarke thought it was weird seeing her best friend carry a bruise that someone else left. Even though she didn’t want to, she noticed and looked at it every day. It felt as if the mark was taunting her, though it was half covered by his shirt collar.

“That—“ he starts, biting his lower lip. “That doesn’t mean it’s not overrated.”

“Yeah, right,” she huffs.

At that, Bellamy grabs her shoulders to keep her from turning away. “Hey, I’m serious.” Despite the added force of his words, his eyes are still gentle, but they are more insistent. He’s doing everything he can to convince her, and yet it’s not enough, because she wants to be good at it. For some reason, it matters to her, even though she knows it shouldn’t.

As she looks at him, a dangerous idea enters her mind without permission; it’s unbearably loud, wants nothing more than to be heard. She has to bite her lip to keep it from flying out of her mouth.

“What?” he asks, his brow furrowing in confusion.

Shit. It would be so much easier to hide it if he wasn’t looking right at her, awaiting an explanation for her expression. In the end, she says, “Nothing. It was just a stupid idea that… popped into my head.”

“I’m sure it’s not stupid.”

Of course, he’s only trying to reassure her, but it doesn’t really help when she knows that it is — in fact — a horrendous idea, and even suggesting it could destroy everything, which is why she wants it to leave her brain.

After a minute of persistent silence, Bellamy urges her, “Come on, you can tell me. I won’t judge.”

Oh, now he’s really set a trap for himself. She can tell him, and if he is offended by it then he went straight against his own promise, and he hates doing that.

With that in mind, Clarke forces herself to keep looking at him as she makes the suggestion, “Maybe you could teach me—How to leave a hickey.”

As she’d expected, his mouth drops open, but not for long. Quickly, he seems to gather himself because he wants to speak, and yet no words leave his lips. Instead of saying anything, he turns away a bit, rubbing at the back of his neck.

“Just forget it, Bellamy,” she rushes, trying to keep the desperation out of her voice despite the fact that it’s gripping her lungs, making it hard for her to breathe.

Once another few heavy moments have passed, he suddenly speaks up, “No, uh… I can do it, if you really want me to.”

Wait. Did she hear that right or has the unforgiving heat made her delusional?

When he turns his face towards her again, she notices the light pink tint that has crept into his freckled cheeks, and her heart skips a beat. As she nods, her mouth dries out.

“I’m only doing this because it matters to you,” is what he tells her next, but before she can decide how she feels about that statement, Bellamy lets his calloused fingertip travel down the length of her throat.

“You can’t just pick a random place,” he mutters, his eyes darting to hers. “Do it where the skin is thin and will bruise easily: the throat or collarbone or…” His fingertip moves upwards until it settles below her jawline. “Here, maybe.”

Although her heart is beating so wildly that it’s hard to focus on anything else, Clarke registers that his voice sounds gruffer than normal.

It makes her shudder.

“Are you cold? Do you want my jacket?”

She manages a smile, trying to play it cool. “I’m fine.”

Honestly, it’s a little weird that he would be this oblivious to the effect that his touch is having on her. Maybe he’s just doing his best to write it off as something else, so he doesn’t have to deal with the reality, which is that he’s more than capable of turning her on.

“Which place would you pick?” she asks him, and to her relief, her voice sounds natural.

Humming as he ponders, Bellamy touches her throat again; only, this time he uses his thumb instead of his index finger. He lets the pad of it brush her sensitive pulse, and a needy whimper falls off her lips, to her horror.

If he heard it, he doesn’t point it out, but he does make an instant decision. “This one.”

Just when she thinks that he’ll bend down to kiss her there, Bellamy pulls his hand back to her shoulder, which he gives a small squeeze. “How do you want me to do this? Show or tell?”

Because her breath hitches in her throat, her response is a mere rasp, “Show me.”

For a moment, he rubs at his jaw, and her eyes drift to the line of it, which looks sharp as a mountain edge. “Okay. On one condition, though: You need to tell me if you want to stop or if there’s anything you don’t like, alright?”

Clarke nods, feeling her heart pound against her ribs. It feels awkward sitting still, just waiting for him to make a move. Maybe she should do something with her hands, but what? Before she’s decided on anything, however, Bellamy leans forward, and she’s half expecting him to get right to it, but instead he nuzzles a sensitive spot below her jaw, coaxing her to tilt and expose her throat.

Once she’s done that, he presses his lips to her pulse point.

God…

She doesn’t know what she expected it to feel like, but it certainly wasn’t this: The touch is enough to make her body jolt from pleasure. His lips are full, warm and slightly chapped. After that first kiss, Bellamy hesitates for a couple of seconds, almost as if he expects her to push him away. When it’s clear that she’s not going to do that, he kisses her throat a second time, and a third. From there, he parts his lips, making the kisses more passionate.

It terrifies her how much she loves them.

Soon enough, he begins to suck gently at her skin, sending a pleasant thrill up her spine and causing her heart to spark like fireworks. Still, the sucking becomes harder, hotter, which is something that she didn’t foresee. A moan tumbles from her lips without warning, and she has to resist the sudden urge to grip at his hair.

“Oh…”

Bellamy pauses at the sound, but judging by the way he pulls her closer (almost onto his lap) it invigorates him. His teeth graze her throat until she whimpers. When she does, he lets the tip of his tongue dart out between his lips to soothe the sting as he kisses the sensitive spot.

Unable to keep her hands still, Clarke gives in, burying one of them in his soft hair. Mindlessly, she tugs slightly at the dark curls, letting them slip through her fingers, and Bellamy groans against her throat, which sends delicate tremors through her body and makes heat coil in her lower belly.

His lips travel upwards, leaving her neck to kiss a delicate place below her earlobe.

The bliss that comes with that sensation surges in her chest, and she can’t suppress the contented noises that pass her lips. By now, he must know what he’s doing to her, but it’s not holding him back: His fingers tangle in her hair as he kisses a rough trail down her throat until he reaches her pulse point again. He sucks at it with little finesse, rendering her breathless.

“Bellamy—” she gasps.

It makes him still.

No, please. Keep going, is her desperate, needy thought, but he doesn’t read her mind like he usually does. Instead, he pulls back, trying not to meet her eyes, which has her heart quivering in her ribcage.

The sound of grasshoppers chirping in the garden seems amplified as the silence stretches between them. Looking down, Bellamy brushes his foot through the water. “Hope you learned something.”

Even though he won’t look at her, she notices the fear that flashes in his eyes. Feeling a rush of pure courage striking her, Clarke slips out of her floral skirt and pulls her t-shirt off to reveal the black bikini underneath. She gives him a second to notice it before she slides off the edge of the pool, into the cool water.

After a whole day of sweating in the heat, feeling the soft movements of the water against her skin is amazing.

She doesn’t want him to miss out. “You gonna join me or what?”

For a moment, Bellamy appears to be apprehensive, but he can’t keep his eyes off her. In fact, he’s staring at her, though not in an unpleasant way; he seems to admire her, the way someone would admire an ancient, priceless piece of art.

He manages a smile as he tugs off his shirt and unbuttons his jean shorts before following her into the pool. Clarke wants to make a sassy remark, but she feels too breathless at the sight of his bronze skin and toned upper body. Her fingers are itching to greedily touch every inch of it.

‘Clarke’, he mouths, though he — much like her — has no air to speak. Now that he’s standing in front of her, leaving only a foot of space between them, she is struck by the desire to feel him against her.

They take a step forward at the same time. He’s close enough, so she places her hand on his forearm, and he responds by pulling her in until he can lean his forehead on hers. The heat radiates off him, and it makes her lips part around a low whimper.

“I’m gonna ask you a question,” are the words that break his silence. “But you don’t have to answer it.”

Feeling braver, Clarke lets her hands move to his lower back and trail along the waistband of his boxers. Because of this, his jaw slacks, so it takes him a long moment to speak up again. “How far did you go with this guy?”

Her heart jolts again. As her teeth dig into her bottom lip, Clarke slides her hand up his back and grips his broad shoulder. “He didn’t even see me naked,” she admits, her cheeks burning. To hide them, she presses her mouth to his collarbone.

His skin tastes salty, which is oddly intoxicating.

A dangerous question is lingering on the tip of her tongue, and she thinks about swallowing it, but her need to hear his response overpowers every bit of sense left in her mind, so she doesn’t hold it back, “… Do you wanna see me naked?”

Although she whispers it, Bellamy clearly hears it, because his lips part again and his dark eyes widen as they stare at her. Placing his hands on her shoulders, he moves her back slightly to search her gaze, but he won’t find any uncertainty in it, she’s sure of that.

“Fuck…” he mutters before he pulls her flush against him. Still, she barely has any time to realize what that feels like, because his mouth is on hers within the next couple seconds. For a moment, she freezes in complete shock, but when his lips make their first real movement against hers, she responds as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Bellamy is incredibly nervous; the lack of finesse in the kiss gives it away: He sucks at her bottom lip with bruising force, their teeth clank against one another, and it’s just messy altogether, but somehow it still feels good. Kissing him like this, even though it’s chaotic, sparks a fire in her veins.

But it’s over as suddenly as it began.

Breaking away, Bellamy breathes hotly against her sensitive lips. “You can’t say shit like that,” he rasps.

“Why?” is all she can think to ask, since her brain has turned to jelly, same as her knees.

“Because I fucking want you!” It sounds as if he’s about to cry, even though the words are half thunder, and her heart quivers once again. Clarke is too affected by the emotion in his voice to understand the meaning of what he said until he repeats it, “I—I want you so much.”

Now, he’s more vulnerable than she’s ever seen him. The tears are welling up in his eyes, but he’s still looking at her as if she has his heart in her hands and it’s her choice whether she tosses it aside or holds it close. Usually, she knows exactly what to do to comfort him, yet everything is so different in this moment.

So she ends up rising to her tiptoes to capture his lips with her own.

This kiss is much sweeter, because she makes sure it stays that way. It’s supposed to be reassuring, not overpowering. When they draw back after a couple seconds, he gazes at her, and though a few tears still linger at the edges of his eyes the steady breath he takes reveals that he feels calm.

“I want you, too.”

She says it, not because it isn’t already obvious, but because she needs to, and because he deserves to hear it. Smiling, Clarke rests her hand against his freckled cheek, tries to battle the sudden urge to cry by touching him. To her relief, Bellamy smiles back and peers at her through his long eyelashes.

Encompassing her waist, Bellamy kisses her again, this time with every fiber of his being. His lips feel softer now, and their movements are controlled as opposed to frantic. He even soothes the invisible bruises that he left on her mouth earlier by grazing them with the tip of his tongue.

Woah.

Clarke shudders in pleasure when his hand travels up her spine to caress the back of her neck. After a couple of minutes, her lungs start to protest, and maybe Bellamy senses it, because he breaks the kiss, pressing his lips against her throat instead.

Knowing that he likes it, she tugs at his soft, damp hair until it pulls a hot groan from his mouth. Then he takes a small step back, which gives her enough time to unclasp her bikini top. “You wanted to see me, right?”

Of course, he never gave her a direct answer to the question, but what he did afterwards revealed his sentiment.

Bellamy swallows, pressing his forehead to hers. “Yeah, but don’t feel like you have to do this.”

“I’m doing this because I want to,” she assures him before finally letting the fabric slip from her body. It floats perfectly on the surface of the water. He doesn’t look at her chest right away, which she didn’t expect him to. Instead, he leans down to kiss her shoulder, and he lingers there long enough for her to wonder whether she’ll have to beg him to look at her.

But then he does.

He squeezes his lips together, as though he’s trying to keep himself from talking. In the end, however, the question emerges despite his efforts to retain it, “Can I... touch you?”

Oh, she’s dying for him to do just that. Sure, she would like to keep her cool, but the way she nods in response is almost frantic due to her excitement. “Okay,” he exhales before he reaches out to cup her right breast in his hand. Immediately, heat seeps into her skin from his touch, causing a moan to tumble out of her mouth.

The sound sparks Bellamy’s confidence, judging by his decision to touch her other breast as well. He’s gentle, using his fingertips to map and massage the ivory globes. For a while, he avoids her nipples entirely, but when he does graze them with the rough pads of his thumbs, a wave of pleasure courses down Clarke’s spine.

“That feels so good.”

“Yeah?”

His audible excitement is so sweet that it makes her heart flutter. Ignoring her flushed cheeks, Clarke gives him permission to kiss her chest and watches his expression brighten from the return of his boyish grin. Wasting no time, Bellamy bends his knees a little and sucks carefully at her nipples, switching back and forth between them every few seconds until she’s gasping for air.

“Please look at me.”

Clarke forces her eyes to open, and she finds him gazing up at her, eyes adoring. It takes her breath away, because she never thought he’d look at her like this, as though she’s of unearthly beauty.

When she smiles, he straightens himself up again. At first she feels heavy disappointment settle in her ribcage, because that must mean he won’t kiss her breasts anymore, but he asks her, “Can I carry you?” and the bad sensation evaporates from her body instantly.

Teasing, Clarke grins at him. “I don’t know, can you?”

Bellamy huffs out a short laugh before proving himself perfectly capable of lifting her off the bottom of the pool. To make it a little easier for him, she wraps her legs around his waist and anchors herself against his muscled back. While he carries her to the other end of the pool, she steals some sweet kisses, and when he puts her down to sit at the edge of the pool she’s trying to leave a hickey on his collarbone.

“You can do that later.”

“No, I—”

“Later, Princess,” he chuckles, moving a damp wave of hair behind her ear. “You have time.” With that promise, he leaves a lingering kiss on her forehead. This is something he’s done for a couple of years now, and she always interpreted it as his way of showing platonic fondness. But she’s questioning everything now.

His thumb brushes her jawline. “You’ve got me.”

After he said that, exposing herself completely to him doesn’t seem as daunting. Clarke makes sure her eyes are holding his while she lifts herself off the edge and pulls her bikini bottoms off. Although his gaze doesn’t flicker, she hears his breath hitch and watches his cheeks flush.

Despite this reaction, Bellamy places his warm palms on her thighs. For a minute, his fingertips trace invisible patterns on her skin, but soon he builds up enough courage to ask, “Can I kiss you?”

Something about the way his tongue curls around every syllable makes her think that he’s not asking for a regular kiss.

“Where?” she manages to choke out.

“Just along here.” As he speaks, Bellamy lets his fingertip follow the length of her leg, from her calf up to her inner thigh.

God, she wants that.

“Please,” she says, not sure why she feels the need to beg when he offered it to her — If the way his lips part is any indication, Bellamy’s surprised by it, too. Still, it doesn’t hold him back for long. He begins his trail, taking his sweet time to let every single kiss linger before his lips move on to the next soft spot.

In spite of his slow pace, he’s sucking tenderly at the top of her inner thigh way too soon for her liking. Her eyelids are fluttering through the pleasure, delicate flames are licking up her skin, and she mewls in need when he pulls back.

“You want me to stop here?”

Huh? He wants to go further? Nevermind the fact that his hot breath is fanning against her center, it still didn’t strike her that he’d want to put his mouth anywhere near… She bites the inside of her cheek, trying not to squeeze her thighs together, but the only way she can fight that urge is by spreading them more.

So that’s what she does.

“No. Just keep going.”

“Clarke— Are you sure?“

“Yes,” she says clearly, because screw nervousness. She trusts him to do this, wants him to do this, and nothing can stop it from happening. What she loves the most about this is that Bellamy has given her the full control to decide the things he does to her. It makes her feel empowered.

He looks at her for another hot second before his head disappears between her thighs. The first touch of his lips against her mound is but a soft, tentative brush, but she still gets the feeling that she needs to be anchored for this, so she wraps her hand in his hair.

Proving his patience, Bellamy builds a slow pace, adding more passion to each kiss as he places them lower and lower. Anticipation coils in her lower belly, fueling the fire that was already there.

“Oh—” she stammers when he massages her inner thighs with his thumbs. Hearing her moan seems to urge him on, as he presses an open-mouthed kiss to her folds.

Clarke throws her head back in bliss, has to blink away the stars that form behind her eyelids, because holy shit. For a minute, she’s blinded by how amazing it feels and the sounds that leave her lips are reduced to moans and gasps, but as soon as he starts using his tongue, it hits her.

He’s going down on her.

They’re having sex.

And in spite of everything, she tenses. But she doesn’t even have to say anything, since he pulls away immediately, most likely because he felt the sudden change in her body. “Sorry,” he blurts out, swallowing hard.

Fuck.

“Don’t—” she starts, choking on the rest of the sentence. “—I loved it, I’m just…” It’s difficult to hold the tears back now that the disappointment is weighing down on her chest and tying a knot in her throat. Bellamy offers her a smile, hopping onto the edge to sit next to her.

“You’re scared, it’s alright. We can—”

Shaking her head, she cuts him off. “No, not scared. You don’t scare me. I’m…” she takes a deep breath as his arm wraps around her. “Nervous. Really nervous.”

His eyes soft, Bellamy places his fingers under her chin and presses his forehead to hers. “So am I. But we don’t have to go any further. Let’s go inside, get warm and tuck into that ice cream that we completely forgot about.”

Clarke can’t help but laugh in pure relief. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

With that, he briefly slips back into the pool to collect her bikini. Because it’s obviously soaked, she doesn’t bother putting it back on, opting for her dry shirt, skirt, and no underwear. She can put on some panties once they’re inside the house, but she feels a little bad for Bellamy who wasn’t wearing his swimwear when he came here and had to jump into the pool in his boxers because she basically dared him to.

“Do you want me to turn around?” she teases when he tells her that he has to wring some of the water out.

“I’m not shy,” he replies, although the color in his cheeks tells a different story. To be fair, he just saw her naked, so this is all fair. When he takes the boxers off, however, she only looks down for a moment. Even though darkness has fallen now, the pool casts its silvery light onto his erection, and her face flushes immediately.

In the end, wringing the water out of his boxers doesn’t help much, so he has to go home to find another pair. In spite of the fact that his house is on the same street as hers, she insists on going with him, if only to hold his hand as they walk down the pavement.

When they come back fifteen minutes later, her dad’s car is parked in the driveway and the light is flickered on in the living room, which causes fear to grip them, although it’s not rational. They’re both dressed in a perfectly unsuspicious way, and it’s not unusual for Bellamy to be over at their house at this hour.

Everything’s fine. Don’t panic.

Just be cool. Oh, and don’t hold hands.

But as soon as they close the front door, announcing themselves, her dad calls out, “Hey, did you guys use the pool?”

Of course, Clarke’s first instinct is to tell a little white lie, but then she realizes that something must’ve given them away and decides against it. Instead, she replies, “Yeah. How’d you know?”

“Water leaves traces on concrete, Sweetheart. I saw two sets of footprints.”

Oh.

Jake Griffin chuckles warmly. “Did you remember to turn on the filtering system?” When she nods, he looks at them for a little longer than necessary, curiosity flickering in his crystal blue eyes before he turns his attention back to the football game that he was watching. Finally feeling that it’s safe to leave, Bellamy and Clarke scurry up the stairs to her bedroom and shut the door behind them.

“That was close,” he mutters, placing the tub of half-baked ice cream on top of her dresser.

As she nods, Clarke glances to her left to catch a glimpse of herself in the mirror and discovers the fresh bruise blooming at her pulse point.

Well, shit.

#bellarke fanfiction #a: selflessbellamy #bffwritingteam #wt: josefine #bffnet #title: something so flawed and free #oneshots #modern au #friends to lovers #best friends #pool #hurt comfort #prompts

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