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princecharmingmendes · 3 years

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Invisible String | Werewolf AU | Raul Mendes

Raul is a werewolf and his mate turned out not only to be human, but his best friend's little sister. And as much as he tried, he could not ignore that invisible string tying her to him.

Hello hello! This is a bit of an experimental thing and I'm really excited about it, I've always been highly interested in everything about alternative universe and fantasy in general, and ever since I received the first ask to write a werewolf piece I've been wanting to do it but also a bit nervous. So hopefully this meets your expectations and you guys like it! Let me know if this was any good and if you guys would like to see something else like this!

*Word Count: 8K+;

*Warnings: a few curse words, a little angsty (i guess), minor drinking;

*Posted: March 28th, 2021.

-*-

Raul felt like life liked playing sick little tricks on him.

Like the fact that werewolves had a very strict hierarchy and normally it worked nicely. The Alphas are the ones in charge and responsible for keeping the pack safe and in order. Betas normally were kind of the strength of the pack, trained to listen and do whatever the pack needed and physically skilled to fight off anyone. And the Omegas were the glue to all of it, the sweet and naturally more caring ones, and it was an ancient thing that was followed to this day. Until Raul and his twin brothers were all born Alphas. It was hard informing the pack that they’re all going to be the Alphas of their pack. And since normally it was only allowed one wolf to claim that position, it was harder to make older ones respect their decision and actually accept, but at the end of the day, they didn’t have much of a choice. The Alpha genes ran in the Mendes family for generations and thankfully their dynamic was actually great and the triplets formed a great group of wolves.

And that was just an example of the things Raul blames on fate or whatever for making his like a bit more difficult. But maybe the hardest one was having mated with not only a human, but his Beta’s younger sister. His best friend’s and right hand’s sister, one of the only girls that was off limits had to be his mate.

And it wasn’t even his choice. Mating is a common thing between werewolves and other creatures, often seen as a blessing, a reason to celebrate. It’s similar to what most people have as a soulmate. It’s two souls that were meant to be together and are deeply connected to the other. Sometimes it’s harder to notice, it can take a few years and sometimes it’s almost instantaneous, and it can’t be undone or ignored. And even though sometimes it can be denied by one of the sides, according to the ones who’ve been through it, it’s an awfully painful experience. Some even go as far as describing having a piece of you being pulled out of your heart.

It also doesn’t have to be necessarily tied to a romantic relationship, you can simply be friends with them for the rest of your lives, even though it doesn’t happen most of the time. Most of the time it isn’t even something to think about, it just feels natural, you feel whole when you’re around that person, they’re meant to be your other half and normally it just clicks. And when you grow up surrounded by wolves, it’s normally a beautiful connection to witness. Raul always found their parents relationship amazing, and deep down longed for a similar deep relationship with someone, finding his mate and falling in love. He just didn’t expect it to happen the way it did.

It was over four years ago and he was running a bit late to Mike’s, his best friend, nineteenth birthday he was having at his parents’ house. Raul got caught up sorting through some pack stuff and when he was finally done with it, he was already half an hour late and it was outside their little secluded “neighborhood” in the wooded area. It was a bit far from the town so the wolves wouldn’t have a problem with the humans since their existence was still a secret. Only very few and selected humans knew about them. So it was best for everybody if they built their little community on the woods just beside the town, and keep their presence among humans only when seen necessary.

Mike’s father, who is a werewolf, fell in love with a human (Mike’s mom) and they decided to move into town to be closer to her job since she was a nurse and needed to be near the hospital in case of an emergency. And when Mike was born a wolf, they decided that he was going to be raised like his dad was in the wolf community and would make his decision in joining it or not when he was older. And he did choose the pack life since it felt more natural to him. But Y/N, his younger sister, was actually born a human and was raised by his parents like any human kid, and she was never taken to their community since she was three years younger than her brother and Mike was very protective over her, not knowing how his pack would treat her or react to her.

So when Raul parked his car right outside the address that was sent to him and ringed the bell, he wasn’t expecting to be met with his mate. But there she was, Y/N stood with the door open as her eyes widened the slightest bit and he was sure he wasn’t breathing. He felt like he was floating and her sweet scent of something like Roses and Strawberries was all he could feel. All his other senses were clouded by her presence just a few inches away from him. He didn’t know how to react or what to say, and for the first time in his life he was completely speechless. Raul was normally a very socially skilled person, he was good at talking to people and reading someone’s expressions like a book, always had a sharp answer at the tip of his tongue and knew what to do at most situations, but Y/N caught him off guard.

She seemed a bit confused as well. Her mouth slightly a gape as she held to the wooden doorframe. Y/N was really happy she was finally meeting all of her brother’s friends and getting to know a bit more of this part of his life she was deprived of. And she was a bit shocked to notice how big and strong all of his friends were, specially Shawn and Peter, who Mike explained to be the Alphas. They were also incredibly nice to her, she suspects it was her brother’s doing since every time they would say something or curse, they would always look at Mike first. But when the doorbell rang again, she knew it was Raul, he was the only one missing and they knew he was late due to “pack stuff” as they explained. She felt a bit jittery and basically ran to the door from the spot she was sitting next to it on her phone, wanting to get to know her brother’s best friend for a while now. But she wasn’t prepared to meet him.

Sure, he was identical to his twins, but there was something different about him that hit her hard. Of course, he had more tattoos and a few more piercings, he looked a bit rougher in the edges with his leather jacket and wild golden eyes, but there was something that wasn’t about his appearance that took her breath away. And suddenly she didn’t know what to do, they’re both stuck in their place staring at each other. And even though her mind was screaming at her to stop being awkward, invite him in and actually act like a decent being, Y/N couldn’t move a muscle, and he’s probably thinking she’s an idiot and too polite to invite himself in. And in the middle of her internal turmoil, he regained some self control for the sake of both of them.

Raul cleared his throat shaking his head a bit “Hi, I’m Raul, you must be Y/N” he said and she swore she melted at the sound of his voice “it’s really nice finally meeting you”

He offered his hand to her to which she swiftly grabbed, feeling his warmth seeping throughout her palm, his fingers curling around her much smaller ones. He had a beautiful design tattooed on the back of his hand and she got a little lost in it.

Y/N sighed relief he broke the awkward moment and looked up back at him, trying to control her thoughts “Yeah, that’s me, nice to meet you too, would you like to come in?”

Raul smiled as he let go of her hand a bit reluctantly “sure” was all he said as he stepped in closer to her, being hit with a fresh wave of her sweet scent, forcing him to take a deep breath.

“The boys are outside in case you’re wondering” she said placing a strand of hair that fell out of her little updo behind her ear.

Raul held back the urge to do it himself “Oh, so they annoyed you into staying in the living room?”

“No no” her eyes almost budged out of their socket “I was just- I was just waiting for you since I knew you were running late and they’re all talking, so I didn’t want to intrude and I-“

“Y/N it’s just a joke” he said through a chuckle as he saw her face flushing “relax a bit, honey”

Y/N giggled softly as she closed the door “I’m sorry, I-“

“Hey, dude!” Mike called from across the room, making their heads snap towards him “how’s everything back home?”

“All settled” Raul said taking a step closer to his Beta “just arrived actually”

“Oh, so you met my little sister” and even though it seemed like a normal sentence, Raul knew Mike and knew his posture like the back of his hand, he knew this was a reminder of the conversation they had back home about staying away from her.

“Yeah, she opened the door for me” he said and from his peripheral he saw Y/N nodding confirming his line.

“I see, the guys are outside, let’s go grab a burger for you” Mike said patting him on the shoulder and dragging him away from the front door where Y/N seemed to be frozen in place.

Raul remembers vividly every little second of that night. Remembers how he decided he should keep his distance for the sake of his friendship and for Y/N herself. She was only sixteen when they met and she is human, which means the bond isn’t too strong for her, specially at first glance, and dating a werewolf was hard. He lived far into the woods and didn’t necessarily mingle with people in town, who were probably her friends and she wasn’t raised with his type, so maybe it would be too much for her. And Raul’s sure Mike wouldn’t be happy about it, at least not now where they first met and she’s that young. So he kept his distance, only talking to her when extremely necessary.

And that was a pattern he kept for the remaining four years of their limited interactions (which he intended keeping that way).

As older as Y/N got, the closest she got with the pack. She was always close to Mike, but since she was young she wasn’t allowed to walk or drive alone to the community, but as soon as she was old enough she was always around on the weekends and important dates. And she was just lovely, so everyone adored her, always wanting to have her around for monthly movie nights and even going as far as inviting her to spend the night. Raul couldn’t really blame anyone for wanting her around, he did too, but he couldn’t, so he didn’t say a thing about it. And he knew he made her hesitant on accepting those invitations, cause at every attempt she ever made to get closer to him, he shut her off. And he could see Y/N was hurt, but it was for the best.

He even tried dating someone else for a while and he noticed Y/N didn’t like it even the tiniest bit. The girl he was dating was a Beta that was temporarily living with them as her pack solved something around the area, and she was nice. But it didn’t last long, she was only staying for a few months, and on the day she left, there was a barbecue in celebration to one of the older wolves and of course Y/N was there. Raul was late since he was taking his ex to the airport, and Y/N didn’t even look at him when he stepped into the little location they were all settled. He found the act odd but didn’t say a word, only walking towards his brother’s and Mike who were laughing probably about something dumb one of them said. Raul spent a few minutes with them, but he kept looking over his shoulder where Y/N was sat, noticing after an hour she was missing and he instantly started trying to find her.

He dismissed his friends as he walked into the pack house, trying to clear his senses to track her in case she was hurt (since she was a bit wobbly on her feet already), but only to be met with her staring at her phone while sitting on the couch with a huge pout set on her lips. Raul was about to turn and leave when Y/N looked up, noticing his presence and he swears his heart stopped at that moment. She had tears filling her eyes and her lips were trembling slightly, a deep frown set on her brows.

“I’m sorry, I know I shouldn’t be here” she mumbled sniffling softly “I just needed to clear my head a bit”

Raul nodded with softer eyes as he walked closer to her “it’s okay, are you hurt? Are you in pain?”

Y/N shook her head “I honestly don’t know why I’m so upset, I didn’t even drink that much or anything, I just-“ she sighed heavily and looked up at the celling.

“Tired?” Raul offered gently and she nodded her head slowly “want me to drive you home?”

“No, please, just go enjoy the night, isn’t Samantha here?” she said as he sat down beside her, still keeping some distance.

“We broke up, she left today” was all he said and she looked up at him with wide eyes, but before she could start apologizing, he just pressed his hand to her knee gently “it’s okay, it wasn’t anything serious, no need to apologize, sweetheart”

“I- okay”

“Still wanna stay?” he pressed gently “I can still take you home”

“No, it’s okay, I was supposed to spend the night anyway” she shrugged.

“Wanna go upstairs and take a nap?” was all he asked and she shook her head.

“The thing is I was supposed to stay at Stacy’s room tonight, but her boyfriend showed up, so I guess I got the living room” she explained “which is totally okay, and I don’t want to seem ungrateful, I know you don’t like me much, and I don’t want to make things worse”

And at that his heart shattered “wait, what?”

“Oh no, I really don’t mind, I can call a cab too, I can leave in twenty minutes too, I’m sorry I-“ she started breathing a bit heavily as he picked up her heart racing more than usual.

Raul shook his head, turning on the couch to face her better “No, it’s not that, I’m not mad at you or anything, I just- who said I don’t like you?”

“I- no one” she opened her mouth a few times before closing it until she said something that shattered his heart in a billion pieces “no one, it’s just something I’ve noticed throughout the years”

“What do you mean?”

Y/N sighed deeply as she glanced down at her lap, fidgeting the bracelet she always wore, which Raul caught on a long time ago to be a nervous habit “I know you get uncomfortable when I’m around and Mike told me it was probably something about you not being used to have humans around, and I totally get it, it’s just sometimes it seems like my presence is enough to put you in a sour mood and I don’t think it’s because I’m human or anything, and I shouldn’t be saying this to you, I’m sorry”

Raul took a deep breath as he squeezed her knee gently and seeing her relax a bit at his touch “stop apologizing for everything, you did nothing wrong, sweetheart, well, besides assuming I disliked you”

“Oh” was all she managed out as her brain ran a million mile per hour.

Y/N has had a crush on him for years now, ever since the first time they met. He was the literal description of her type, but the dreamy part ended there. Of course Raul was always polite and never made anything to directly hurt her, but he kept pushing her away and avoiding her like the plague, and maybe it was all in her head, but he didn’t seem like that whenever he was around others. And that did nothing to help her case. She knew nothing would ever happen between them, he made it pretty obvious he wasn’t attracted to her, but she’d like to try and be friends with him but even that didn’t seem to interest him. And it wasn’t his fault, she didn’t even knew the reason as to why she felt the need to have him around, but she just did. So Y/N just lost hope after all the attempts to make him like her, but he was always so distant and it still affected her after all this years.

In the other hand, Y/N had no idea how hard it was to push her away. Raul was certain she knew exactly what to do to get to his heart, she had to. Every little thing she did made his heart flutter and she was just so good at having people wrapped around her fingers that she made her way through all of his friends lives. He thought they were mates at first glance, her scent was a great clue, but as they got to know each other better, even indirectly, just made him sure of it. Y/N meant much more than what he thought was possible, seeing her stressed over school stuff or sad about whatever reason was enough to put him in panic, not knowing how to keep his distance and stop her from hurting. And all his cold exterior wasn’t necessarily his choice, he knew Mike confessed he hoped his sister would not get with an Alpha, that meant she would have to give up a few things in her life and that would herself in danger for having Raul’s scent all over her. And Mike also told him he would do whatever he could to avoid that to keep her safe.

So he did it for her, to keep her safe from the problems that came along with living in a pack, dating a werewolf and being a human. But it was getting harder, and tonight he decided to ignore it, that she needed him more than she needed to stay away from him. And that’s what pushed him to wrap his fingers around her wrist, making her look up at him

“Do you want to watch a movie or something?” he offered in a lower voice “maybe it will help you clear your head a bit” and Y/N seemed a bit shook, looking up at him with wide eyes and she nodded slowly.

Raul smiled fondly at her as he got up with her following him up the stairs to the little movie room the pack out together for movie nights. They sat down side by side as he offered her to pick something for them, then Raul proceeded to reach for a fluffy blanket that was thrown on the corner of the sofa. When he turned back to her she still looked a bit lost, so he offered to put on a show he knew was her favorite, and she just nodded in response. Y/N was too nervous to do anything wrong that would push him back into being his closed off distant self, and she knew she looked ridiculous all tense and barely breathing by his side.

Raul noticed her stiffness right away and decided to turn off the lights hoping this would make her relax even a little bit. And as the episode progressed he noticed she was getting more and more loose. An hour later, in the middle of the second episode, he felt her leaning closer to him, probably searching for a bit more warmth, so he lifted his arm to rest on the back of the couch and to make room for her in case she wanted. It only took a couple more minutes for her to be basically leaning most of her weight on him, and when her arm slipped, she fell mostly laying on his chest. And as soon as Y/N was ready to start apologizing, Raul shushed her softly, asking her to relax and pulling the covers up both of their bodies, and so she did.

He didn’t notice he was falling asleep until he woke up many hours later with the sound of voices downstairs from his brothers. Raul looked down at his chest to find Y/N cuddled to him, sound asleep as his arm wrapped around her waist held her still. He took a deep breath and almost chose not to wake her and just go back to sleep, to deal with the stiffness due to the sitting position he held and the consequences of sleeping there with her in the morning. At least until he heard the door cracking open slowly and Shawn’s head popping in.

“Are you two okay?” his brother whispered as he noticed the girl asleep on the couch, and to that Raul nodded in response, afraid to wake her up “take her upstairs to your room, dude, Mike will find out you like her sooner or later and he’ll deal with it, just don’t let her sleep on the couch”

Raul sighed and nodded. Shawn bid his goodnight and closed the door with a soft click. Peter, Shawn and his mom were the only ones to know about his mating situation, and he liked it better that way. They tried convincing him to tell her at least, but they understood that maybe it wasn’t the right time just yet and let him decide what to do with his feelings.

So he ended up taking his brothers suggestion and as gently as he could, he rearranged the girl in his arms to he could carry her upstairs to his bedroom. Y/N grumbled softly in protest, nuzzling her face further on his neck as she quieted down. Raul had to stop himself from cooing at her. As he walked out into the bright hallway she mumbled something unintelligible before calling his name.

“It’s okay, sweetheart, I’m here, it’s just me” he whispered as they walked into his room, before placing a kiss to her hair, gently lowering her to his mattress.

Y/N slowly opened her eyes “Raul? I’m sorry, I fell asleep on you” she mumbled quietly.

“It’s okay, just thought a bed would be a better place for you to sleep other than the couch” he said standing up to his full height and bringing the covers up her body “that’s why I brought you to my room”

“Thank you” she said grabbing his hand and he just nodded at her with a gentle grin on his lips “why are you up?”

“I’m going to crash downstairs on the movie room” he stated caressing the back of her hand with his thumb and she started shaking her hand.

Her hold on him tightened “No, not a chance, I’m not taking you out of your bed for you to sleep on the couch, please stay here with me, please”

And how could he possibly say no to her looking so sleepy and so sweet?

He breathed a chuckle with a nod “just let me change first, do you need a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt instead of what you’re wearing?”

“Yes please” she murmured feeling a bit embarrassed for making him do all of this for her.

And as if he could read his mind “Don’t look at me as if you’re being a headache, yeah? It’s okay, sweetheart, let me just grab you some clothes” he squeezed her hand before letting go of it in favor of picking up what he promised.

He came back from his closet in only a pair of sweats and a thin white t-shirt, a similar paring folded in his hands for her. She got up to change on his bathroom as he climbed on his bed, trying to contain the excitement of the prospect of having the girl he’s been fond of for over two years, the possible love of his life. Y/N quickly returned in his clothes, following suit and diving under the covers, laying on her side away from him as he stayed on his back, trying to control his breathing after turning off the lights. A few minutes passed and he’s sure she was asleep, the room dark enough so he could only see the silhouette of her body by the faint glow of the moon seeping through his curtains. But then he heard the soft rustle of his sheets as she turned to face him, and he only turned his face on the pillow to properly look at her.

“Can I ask you something?” she whispered almost as if she was afraid to break the comfortable silence that fell over them.

Raul hummed in response “anything you want” his voice a soft and raspy tone, making her shiver slightly.

“Why are you being so nice to me?” her voice barely audible as if she was nervous to ask, or maybe the answer frightened her more.

“You don’t have to worry about it, you should just rest for now” was his response and she sighed in defeat, nodding her head before facing him away again.

The clear defeat on her features, despite the darkness was enough to make him regret his words. So Raul turned on his hand, raising a careful hand to caress her exposed bicep. She flinched at first, not expecting his touch, but quickly relaxing to it as he felt goosebumps raise on her skin. He decided to scoot a bit closer almost as if he were testing the waters and she shuffled closer in response. Soon the hand on her arm slid to wrap her waist gently and Y/N sighed happily in return, finally resting her back on his chest. Raul placed a kiss at the top of her head as she melted under his sweet gesture.

When she was in transition to dreamland, she swears she heard him whisper into her hair, the place he decided to muzzle his face “I’m sorry I made you think I disliked you, Y/N that’s not the case at all” he took a deep breath and she was far to gone to say anything back “You just seemed like you needed me tonight, and I’m sorry if I ever made you think your presence here was unwanted, you’re just too good and I don’t deserve you, sweetheart”

And not knowing if this was true or not, his whispered confessions with that slightly raspy and almost honeyed at the same time voice lulled her completely to sleep.

-*-

In the weeks prior to that event, neither of them said a thing about that night, not even in an indirect way. Raul barely spoke to his brothers about it, but they already knew what happened, and Y/N didn’t feel like telling Mike would be a genius idea, so she decided against it. And to her disappointment things got back to the old normal, at least for the most part. She felt like Raul was a bit more comfortable around her and didn’t try so much to stay away, but it wasn’t like that day, and it still hunts her that she actually caught a small glimpse of what their relationship could be. But it was also taking its tool on him, that night he slept like a baby and allowed himself to daydream that this could’ve been their reality if things were a bit different.

He woke up that morning pretty early as usual, for his perimeter check, but only this time Y/N was sound asleep on his chest, and maybe he stalled a bit to enjoy her sweet scent a bit more before slowly peeling her off of him and gently laying her back down on the pillows. There was only a bit of resistance in form of a whine but she ended up pulling his pillow to her chest before settling down. It was harder than he thought leaving her on his bed as he quickly changed and jogged downstairs to go on his run, but maybe it was better like this, this way he could run and put his head at ease and actually come up with his next moves. So that’s what Raul did, but as soon as he was back on the house, already in two feet only, she was already wake and preparing something in the kitchen as she chatted with Peter.

Raul leaned on the doorway as he watched her, back on the clothes from last night, talking about her next college project as his brother sipped on his coffee mug, so he cleared his throat not to scare her as he walked in “good morning”

“Morning, Raul, can you keep her company as she eats her breakfast? I actually need to run to Sam’s house to pick up some stuff before he leaves for work” Peter asked, a knowing look on his face as Raul just shrugged it off “thanks, got to go, Y/N, good luck with that sheet!” his brother said before leaving the kitchen completely.

“Hi” she said, eyes trained on the eggs she was making as he stood beside her, his hip leaning on the kitchen counter “would you like some?”

“Sure” he said looking around the room “did you sleep well?”

Y/N’s body visibly stiffened as she cleared her throat before answering “yeah, thank you about last night, by the way”

Raul nodded before changing the subject and seeing her relax at that, knowing it was for the best, mentally deleting the speech he came up with. And that’s where the whole conversation died.

-*-

Months later Raul found himself in an equally as hard situation.

Y/N was spending the weekend at the pack house that was a bit more empty than usual, since a few of the wolves (including Mike) decided to go on a little getaway to run from the cold that was arriving sooner than expected, and since her parents were out of town, his best friend asked if she could stay with them so Y/N wouldn’t be all by herself for four days during the possibility of a storm that was estimated for that weekend. And of course they couldn’t deny it, specially since she was very sweet and everyone loved her.

And tonight was the second night of her in the house and Raul was pacing back and forth on his room, probably about to open a hole on the floor from pacing too much, but he didn’t know what to do. She was downstairs on the living room working on some sort of paper for college and he decided he was going to bed, but as soon as he reached his room, the storm that was expected to happen finally arrived and he literally heard her heart rate speeding up exponentially, but didn’t know how to approach her or even if he should. However, when he heard her curse under her breath when a lightning lit up the whole house he knew he could not do nothing, so he opened the door to his room and basically ran down the stairs.

As Raul reached the bottom of the stairs, he identified Y/N to be the little ball wrapped up in a fluffy blanket in the middle of the couch. He took a deep breath before carefully walking towards her, he tried making enough noise so she wouldn’t get caught off guard but not enough to disturb her. But as soon as he reached the side of the couch she looked up at him with wide teared eyes from the little cocoon of blankets she was. Raul physically stopped himself from cooing at her and pulling her to his lap.

Y/N gave him a little sad laugh as she rubbed her eyes harshly “I’m sorry we always end up meeting like this, I must seem like an idiot, right?”

Raul shook his head sitting down beside her “You’re not an idiot, what’s making you so upset?”

She took a deep breath before answering “I guess I’m just tired, and this paper is a bit harder than I thought and I’m actually a bit afraid of storms, and this is all stupid and I-“

“Hey, it’s not stupid, it’s stressful and it’s okay, no one really like storms, they’re dangerous and pretty scary”

“Sure, when you’re five” she said playfully rolling her eyes as he chuckled softly.

“Oh, darling, you know that’s not true”

“Are you scared of storms?” she asked with an arched brow.

“No”

“See?”

Raul chuckled as he shook his head “you’re really something, aren’t you?”

Y/N shrugged as she saved the document before moving to the book she was using as reference “Why are you up if you’re not scared then?”

“You are”

Y/N turned her head in his direction “Oh, I didn’t mean to wake you up”

“You didn’t, I just knew you were afraid and decided to come check on you” he said already regretting admitting to it.

“Oh, I’m sorry, you didn’t have to come though, I’m a big girl, I can take it”

Raul gave her his signature lopsided smile that she had only seen a few times directed to her, making her insides a bit toastier than before “I know you can, sweetheart, just didn’t want you to be alone if I could come down and try to help”

“Yeah, that’s the Alpha spirit, right?” and with that sentence Raul rested his head on the back of the sofa with a laugh.

“Maybe” Raul turned his head to face her, deciding he was going to ignore the whole ‘pushing her away’ speech, at least for a moment “I was thinking that maybe we should make some hot chocolates if you want to finish this paper tonight”

“Are you serious?” Y/N had to confirm she wasn’t going mad and that he was actually willingly wanting to spend some time with her.

“Of course I’m serious, you can’t joke about stuff like this”

“What? Hot chocolate?” she asked holding back a laugh.

“Well obviously” he pushed himself up from the couch, relieved to see she seemed distracted enough to forget about the whole weather outside “I’m aces in the kitchen”

Raul offered her his hand and she smiled at him shaking her head before closing her computer and pushing it aside, taking his outstretched hand and letting him pull her up carefully “well, how did I just find that out?”

“Because I’m normally too tired and busy most of the time to actually make a meal”

She noticed he didn’t let go of her, and she wasn’t going to be the one to do it or point that out “oh yeah, being the Alpha and bossing everyone around must take a lot of your time and energy”

Raul chuckled as he walked her to the kitchen, letting go of her hand against his will in favor of grabbing the ingredients “Mike’s a bad influence, I bet his the one who told you that”

“You certainly didn’t, we barely talk at all” and as soon as the words left her mouth she regretted it.

Raul was with his back facing her as he sorted through the stuff to prepare their drinks, and she was ready to start apologizing, afraid he was going to push her out all over again. Why did she have to go and say something like that? As much as the mood between them was playful, mostly cause he was trying to distract her and she knew it, but it was light and fun, she had to say such thing and ruin it. Sometimes things felt so natural with him that she just forgets that they aren’t that close. But before she could freak out and start spitting strings of ‘I’m sorry’ he did something Y/N wasn’t expecting. Raul started laughing out loud, turning to face her and she ended up laughing as well, maybe out of nervousness or out of relief, either way she laughed.

“I deserved that” he pointed out “but I guess that will have to change since you have such a distorted vision of the Alpha role”

“I wouldn’t particularly mind” she added softly, in hopes he wouldn’t pay much attention to it, but again, Raul was, apparently, a little box of surprises.

“Me neither, darling” he said before turning on the stove.

Y/N felt heat rising up her chest to her face and decided to clear her throat before changing subjects “Who taught you how to cook? Shawn’s a mess in the kitchen, Peter’s good but I know he took lessons”

“I guess I just learned from watching my mom, when I was little I used to spend a lot of my time in the kitchen with her whenever she was using it, my grandma too, and I guess I somehow absorbed that”

“Oh, they’re good?” Y/N took a tentative step closer to him, eager to learn about him and taking the opportunity of his sudden interest in spending time with her to milk all the information she could.

“My mom’s good, but my nan is just fantastic, she told me she used to sit on the counter by her father and watch him, and I guess I did the same”

“Well, I guess I’ll have to do the same cause my kitchen experience resumes to making toast, sandwiches and eggs” she said and he looked at her from the corner of his eye as if he was pondering.

“Then do it, I don’t mind a little audience” he said and she giggled, hoping on the counter beside where he stood.

And that’s how they spent most of their night, with light chatter and a bit of healthy teasing going around and they were ecstatic about it. Y/N felt like she was finally able to relax after all the stress and she felt weirdly complete, almost as if before she was missing a piece. And Raul, he was over the fucking moon and already regretting keeping her away for that long, avoiding every type of contact with her and he was almost telling Mike to piss himself and ignoring all this stupid made up rules he made. He sat down by Y/N’s side as he helped her finish her paper and he was actually able to, finishing it in less than twenty minutes, so they just sat down side by side talking about random stuff, until he noticed she was starting to get sleepier and sleepier with every passing minute.

“You should go to bed, sweetheart” he pointed as she was basically leaning her weight on his side, not that he minded, but they got really close really fast

“Already trying to get rid of me?” she joked and he laughed despite being afraid that was something she actually believed in, and maybe that’s what drove him to ask her what he did next.

“Never, and if you’re still a bit nervous about the rain you can sleep in my room, I can always take the couch”

“I can’t kick you out of your bed” she said looking up at him

“You’re not kicking me out, I’m inviting you and offering to stay elsewhere”

Y/N shook her head “I don’t mind sharing if you do”

Raul didn’t expect it, but he also wasn’t mad about it “If you really don’t mind, then yeah”

“Okay, I’m ready for bed if you are” she said grabbing her stuff.

Raul nodded as he helped her to carry her school material up to his room, which he placed on top of his dresser before turning around to face her standing awkwardly in the middle of his bedroom.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?”

“Hmm, nothing I just-“ she mumbled as he chuckled.

Raul stopped by the end of his bed “I can still take the couch if you’re uncomfortable”

“It’s not that, you don’t make me uncomfortable” she said as she walked up to him “I don’t know what it is, I just feel safe around you, is it weird?”

Raul was not expecting it as he looked down at her “No, not at all, you can climb on the bed, darling” he offered as he did the same on his side.

She ended up taking up on his offer and laying down on the other side, pulling the covers up her body “you can be really sweet when you want to, you know?” she mumbled softly after a while, after the lights were already off and the only source of light in the room was coming from the lamp on his bedside table.

Raul said turning to face her, only to find Y/N already on her side facing him “Don’t think many think the same”

Y/N laughed and shook her head “guess you’re just good at pretending you’re this big bad Alpha when you’re just a big softie”

Raul laughed throwing his head back and she couldn’t stop herself from admiring the sound, his neck and his beautiful face, looking a lot more soft than normally.

“I really like your laugh” she blurted out before she could think.

His laugh was cut short when he realized her words and he smiled at her “I like yours, wish I could hear it more often”

“Well, it’s not really hard to get me to laugh”

Raul smiled at her “yeah, hm- I wanted to apologize”

“For what?” she asked, genuine curiosity shining on her eyes.

“For being a dick to you, for such a long time, there’s not an excuse for that, as much as I tried to come up with one” he finally admitted running his hands through his curls.

Y/N bit her lower lip as she looked at him “you’re never a dick to me, you’re a bit closed off, yeah, but never a dick, you never made me feel uncomfortable or anything like that, and ever since that night where you made it clear you didn’t dislike me, a few things started making more sense to me”

“Like what?” it was his turn to get confused.

She sighed heavily “I thought for a very long time you just hated my guts or didn’t want me near for being a human or an outsider, but then you said it wasn’t the case and you were so sweet to me that night, and the morning after, and ever since that day, even though you weren’t necessarily cuddling with me and being around me all the time, you were slowly opening up, spending more time around me when I was here and at first I was confused, but then yesterday I was talking to Peter and he may or may not have told me this was something to do with Mike”

“What?” Raul almost sat up, but he didn’t want her to stop talking, so he held back his impulse and just kept laying down.

“And I also talked to my mom about it, very recently, and she said my dad had a similar reaction to her when he found out they’re mates… I’m not implying anything, and I can be totally wrong about it, but I thought about it for a second and I swear it made sense, it explained why I felt so drawn to you since I first laid eyes on you” she admitted, coiling into herself a bit.

Raul was completely taken back, not knowing what to do or what to say, not expecting her to come into realization and not knowing how to proceed, that until she mumbled a soft “please say something, anything, just don’t shut me off again”

“No, darling, it’s not that, I’m sorry” he said reaching for her hand as grabbing it in his “I’m just speechless, I- you feel it too?”

“Is it true?”

“I- yes” he sighed in relief.

“You’re my mate?! Or I’m yours, I’m sorry, I don’t know how this works” she giggled nervously.

Raul couldn’t stop his smile to blossom on his lips as he nodded his head what felt like a thousand times “whatever you want, I don’t mind”

“So what does that mean now?” she said shuffling closer to him.

“It doesn’t have to mean anything, I know your brother wouldn’t appreciate the idea and I don’t want to hurt you or cause any pain, darling, I just want what’s best for you” Raul said squeezing her hand gently.

“You could never hurt me, and I don’t honestly care about what Mike thinks right now” she said placing a hand on his chest “what do you want?”

“Honestly?” he asked and she nodded eagerly, which made him chuckle “you, in any way you’ll have me, but I also don’t want to rush you into anything, this works differently for me since I’m a wolf”

“Yeah, I know how sensitive you guys can be” she joked and he laughed, leaning down to press a kiss to her forehead “but I want you, I feel the pull to have you near me almost as a need”

“I know, sweetheart, I feel the same way” Raul admitted pulling her closer by her waist “just don’t want to skip any steps with you, but I kept you away long enough”

Y/N nodded tipping her head back to look at his beautiful face better, their noses brushing due to the proximity “agreed, but I still want you close”

“We’re already close, darling” he breathed a chuckled and she shook her head.

“Are you afraid of kissing me? What are you? Twelve?” she teased and he laughed, pressing a kiss to the tip of her nose.

“Of course not” he whispered leaning a bit closer.

“Then what’s taking you so long?”

“Bossy little thing” he teased one more time before closing the space between them in a gentle kiss.

Y/N tangled her fingers in his wild curls as he cupped her jaw carefully, afraid that if he squeezed her even a tiniest bit she was going to disappear. But his gentle touches soon turned into a bit more urgent ones and she pulled his hair, encouraging him to deepen the kiss. Raul tighten his hand on her waist, trapping her bottom lip between his teeth, pulling it to him softly before lessening the sting with a swipe of his tongue. And unfortunately Y/N had to pull away too soon for her liking due to her stupid lungs needing oxygen. Raul leaned in to press a bunch of soft, barely there, kisses all over her face.

She giggled a bit breathlessly as she murmured “Mike will murder me when he finds out”

“Shh, we can worry about that when he’s back, he’ll have to get over it eventually”

Y/N giggled before leaning in for one more kiss.

“Okay, love, we really should sleep, and then tomorrow I can maybe take you on a date if you want” he said pressing a chaste kiss to her lips before resting his forehead on hers.

Y/N smiled up at him “Or we can have a little movie marathon here and you’ll make me dinner”

Raul laughed “you’re a mean one, you know that?”

“Why?”

“Because you know I can’t say no to you” he said and she smiled at him.

“Good boy, you’re such a good puppy” Y/N teased and he laughed.

Raul shook his head “okay, it’s definitely time for you to go to bed”

-*-

*Please reblog or like this post if you liked it so I’ll know.

*I’m sorry if there are any spelling mistakes.

*Please do not repost this without giving me the credit, this is a completely original piece and I do not give permission to copy this!

*Hope you guys enjoyed it!

*xoxo

-🌙

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internalsealpanic · 3 years

Text

Love Through the Ages (Jason Todd)

Summary: Love like baggage needs to be declared.

a/n: This is part three of a series that is a fic rec list disguised as a fic. For these fics, most of the characters will be speaking different languages, so unless specified otherwise assume that the characters are speaking in the first language I mention. They’re all vampires with centuries under their belt. Why wouldn’t I make them all polyglots. Also, thank you to the proof reading gang for putting up with my shenanigans. I will have links to the fics I recommend in the fic itself. ALSO, y'all can thank @littleredwing89 for the poem that comes up.

Warnings: Everyone is dramatic.

Masterlist

Series Masterlist.

You tap at your phone screen, planting seeds in a satisfyingly hypnotic rhythm, the sounds of the train vacillating in and out of your periphery. It was soothing having your own compartment, a little world you can isolate yourself in while you anxiously await for the inevitable.

It wasn’t a secret that you found Gotham stressful. It was about as much a secret as Tony Stark’s civilian identity. You pulled your knees up to your chest at the thought. Big cities were stressful but Gotham was a different beast entirely. It was a writhing monster of steel and smoke. You wrinkle your nose deciding to sweep the thought away.

Instead, you concentrate on your plants and your farm. You wince looking at your journal. It looks like you’d forgotten another quest. Pursing your lips, you decide to turn your phone off for a bit and pretend the NPCs can sort it out on their own as you look out the window.

You lean against the wall, pressing your cheek to the cool window. You can’t help but smile to yourself thinking of a sea of black curly hair interrupted by a shock of white, sea green eye perpetually alight with mischief or intelligence (9 times out of 10, you really couldn’t tell which it was.), freckles like star map, and a mouth permanently set in a cocky grin. It’s hard not to smile like an idiot when thinking of Jason Todd.

Your skirt flutters in the wind as you dance your way through the crowd, bobbing up and down on your tiptoes over the sea of humans. Sometimes the smell of them still makes your mouth water but not now, not when the smell of Gotham is so pungent in the air.

You see a gloved hand wave at you on the other side of the crowd. You pin your sunhat against your head as you rush through the crowd, your luggage dragging behind you.

Jason waves a two fingered salute at you in front of a motorcycle, his foot clearly stomping a cigarette. You toss your hat to him. It flutters over the crowd. Jason catches it easily, putting it on his own head.

"Hey Princess, welcome back." Jason greets, the syllables of your native French gliding off of his tongue so easily. Fighting down a blush, you swallow your own greeting. Jason would have been a great ambassador in a different life were he not inclined to murder someone with a desert spoon for being a jackass.

He offers his hat back to you, but you shake your head. "You might freckle too much in Gotham's sunny weather." He gives you a hearty chuckle keeping the hat on.

"Missed you too, princess."

You roll your eyes. Pinching your nose, you look around. "You forgot to tell me to bring a gas mask."

"Every city smells like this."

"Darling, you've been in Gotham for too long."

"And you've been in your French villa for too long." Jason says, putting his sunglasses on you. You glare at him through them.

"First of all, it's a cottage."

Jason snorts, "As if that makes a difference. It's still in the idyllic French countryside, isn't it?"

"I-"

"I rest my case."

You cross your arms. "You're welcome to visit, you know?" It was a hopeful suggestion at best.

"We both know the quiet will drive me crazy."

"I said visit," you say, "besides, I think the train ride alone would drive you up the wall." You remember how Jason is with tight spaces.

"Not with you there." Jason winks.

Your heart presses a bruise into your throat and you hate Jason Peter Todd all over again.

"Ah yes, you plan on driving me mad. Evil. Truly evil of you." You say, grinning back at him.

"Here's a wild idea, how bout we just not listen to Roy? How does that sound?" Jason gently suggests, handing you your offensively pink cup of caffeinated goop. Jason can smell the sickening amount of sweeteners added. He might gag.

"Nope," you say, smiling at him as you slurp your ooze. Jason's stomach rolls. Alfred would have an aneurysm. "He was even nice enough to get us both tickets." You hand him one, fingers brushing against his. They felt calloused as they always did. Jason suppresses any oncoming reaction.

He instead turns his attention to the ticket in his hands. Love Through the Ages: Gotham Museum Exhibition on expressions of love. Jason runs through the numbers. "These are $59 each."

"So sweet of him, isn't it?" You chirp adorably.

Jason makes a mental note to kill both of you. "You're only going along with this cus you want to watch me suffer." Jason says, slumping his chair. His foot kicks out to tap your foot.

"I'm doing it affectionately," you say, tapping his foot with yours. "Besides, it's a universal pass time at this point." You swirl your drink and grin at him. It was your real grin, all bright and eager and stupidly sweet. Something in Jason's chest twists. It's always hard to breathe when you smile at him but really Jason would rather all the oxygen in the atmosphere be burned up than see your smile disappear.

He sounds dramatic and he knows that but still he knows it's true.

"C'mon Jay, it'll be fun."

Shoulders slouched, Jason smiles at you indulgently. "Fun for who?"

"Mainly me but you can have fun too."

"You are so lucky you're adorable when you're being evil."

Your smile brightens and with a tap of his foot against yours, he thinks he'll survive whatever Roy has in store for him.

You and Jason have been walking around the museum for quite a bit with Jason's arm wrapped tightly around your shoulders and homicide radiating off of him every time someone even looks at you funny. He'd said that the arm slung around your shoulder was so that you wouldn't get lost. As for the homicide, he elected to ignore the question entirely.

You flush as Jason quotes another line from 'Master Valentine' back to you. You definitely regret letting him house sit. You regret even more not hiding your books. You squirm as Jason whispers the quote in your ear in a husky drawl. The erotica in the book is amazing and you're normally comfortable with talking to Jason about everything, but this- this was just cruel and unusual punishment. It's what you get for trying to make him suffer.

All the pet names he murmured in your ear crawled up your spine. You shove his face away hiding your own in your sleeve. He laughs into your hand enjoying your sudden bout of shyness.

Jason mumbles a half-hearted apology into your hand, pressing a soft kiss into your palm. You lower your head. You're still clearly avoiding his gaze but you let him press you to his side. Jason Todd is an asshole.

You point to a pair of ice skates so well worn and well loved that you almost miss the little penguins stitched on the side. "Love on the ice? That's so cute!"

Jason glances at them with mild interest. "Sounds like hypothermia." He says, shrugging.

Swatting at his chest, you pout at him. He rolls his eyes nudging your shoulder with his. You scowl at him and stick your tongue out. Jason leans down, unable to stop the urge to press a kiss to your brow. You scowl even harder.

"Admit it, doll. The whole exhibition is just Dickie's favorite fanfiction tropes."

"Professor Todd, be a dear and enlighten my troglodyte ass."

He snorts, "Princess, if I was a professor we both know I'd have the highest attendance rate."

"And the highest failure rate." You say cocking a brow.

"Probably."

"You're terribly humble today."

"I just know I look good."

No, you don't, you think. You shake your head. "That explains the leather jacket."

"You love my leather jacket."

"Well, Biscuit certainly loved your previous one."

Jason wrinkled his nose thinking of the yellow disaster. "That dog was a menace."

"She is the sweetest creature on earth."

"She destroyed my jacket and ate my wallet AND phone."

"I never said she was smart... wait, we're getting off topic."

Jason narrows his eyes at you then points to a crown. It was an intricate lattice of silvers and golds with diamonds that glittered like starlight. "Royal AU," he says simply, "go on read the description."

"A prince and a princess from rival nations are bound by a marriage of convenience. Through a series of missteps. They fell for each other.... that one was pretty easy. Do it again."

He points to a blue feather. "Mythology AU."

You arch a brow at him. He waves at it, urging you to read. "A god descended to earth to be with his mortal lover only for him to lose his memories of her." The feather's glow is incandescent. You can feel the power radiating off of it, a sure sign of divinity.

Once, you would have brushed it off as mere story. You've spent more than twice your lifetime now dipped into the world of myths. You glance at Jason. Simple divinity no longer fazes you.

"See?"

"I- Nope."

"You're just being stubborn."

"Would you have been my friend if I wasn't?" Would you have saved me if I wasn't?

You think Jason hears your unspoken question when he frowns. Instead, he turns on his heel to face the other direction. He points to a bouquet of wilted roses tied together by a green ribbon. They still smell of blood and something you couldn't identify. Your eyes drift down curious. Your eyes trace over the words feeling your stomach tumble.

"Gruesome." Jason vocalizes inanely. He hooks his head on the crown of your head, neatly slotting your body under his. You're safe, surrounded by walls of muscle. The crease in your brow softens. You would think that Jason would be less protective after you'd turned but now that you were a vampire, he was somehow even more protective. Roy always joked you only got Biscuit and your other dogs as lap dogs because you already had Jason. He may not have been too off on his guess.

"This should be in a horror exhibit," you say leaning into Jason's chest, "kind of reminds me of you though." You tilt your head up grinning at him.

"If you make a joke about me being jack the ripper again, I swear I'll-"

"-Bury me alive 6 feet under concrete with a recording of Roy singing Auld Lang Syne in a terrible British accent. Got it. What I meant was... you're just as protective as the man in the story." You say, smiling at him.

For good reason, Jason thinks.

Jason buries half of his face in your hair, hiding his answering smile. You smell like sugar and cinnamon. It's a familiar combination of smells that puts him at ease despite the atrocious amount of people in the museum.

You point to another artifact, afraid that you'd accidentally picked at an old wound.

"Star-crossed lovers." He mumbles into your hair.

"Bullshit!"

"Read it and weep, doll."

You read the plaque and the words 'meet' and 'different world' assault your eyes. You scowl at him. "Fuck you."

The grin on Jason's face is genuine. It makes something in your veins sing knowing how much fun he's having.

Your face softens. "You really love this romance stuff, huh?"

Jason narrows his eyes at you.

"You were the one bawling your eyes out when we binged Spaces Between Us. Who the hell cries during erotica?"

"IT'S TRUE LOVE AND YOU KNOW IT IN YOUR SOUL," you protest, pounding your fist against his chest,"besides, you're the one who was crying nonstop when we watched the IDHY duology."

"I was crying because they were accurate book adaptations."

You blink at him confused. "There's a book?"

"Yes, you illiterate heathen."

"You sound like a conquistador."

“....”

"At least they got their happy ending." You say, changing the subject.

"That's true."

"Still better than Titanic."

He furrows his brow at you. "What's wrong with the Titanic?"

"First of all," You pitch your shoulders like you're about to give him a lecture, "That was 3 hours of my life wasted on a shitty movie. It wasn't even that accurate."

"Princess, not everyone can survive the Arctic."

"And second, the most romantic scene in that romantic movie was the old couple staying together as they sank."

Jason laughs, a deep rumbling sound. It scrambles your brain, almost dissolving your annoyance until he opens his mouth again. "You sound like Damian."

"Jason Peter Todd, take that back." You screech, swiping at him.

He jumps back, his laughter still echoing. "Stop sounding like the demon brat first."

You run after him, telegraphing your murderous intent. Jason walks away faster, sticking his tongue out at you. Your growl and claw at the air. You screech obscenities as Jason continues to evade you. He is having way too much fun with this.

You chase Jason around the exhibition for a solid half hour before you come to a skittering halt.

Your eyes land on a vermillion book, leather bound and carefully crafted by skilled hands. You step closer to admire the swirling, arabesque patterns lining the leather. No title is embossed on the front. It's thick. You would wager it was at least 400 pages.

Your eyes drift down even further, finding a familiar scrawl. Below the book were photocopies of some of the pages. Pablo Neruda's 'If You Forget me', Beethoven's 'Immortal beloved', Ibn Hazm's 'My Heart', and a bunch of other poets you didn't know but recognized as ...

"Jason these are your favorites."

"What?" He says, walking over to you cautiously.

You look back down at the pages and your eyes catch on the one in the middle. From the numbering, it was the last.

Love is such a hard thing to define,

I don’t know if I could ever find,

The words to truly express the complexity of such an emotion.

It is an emotion felt in the heart,

Long before it makes sense to the mind,

illusive and uncertain until suddenly it just clicks.

Like so many things in this world,

we tend to know it when we see it in others,

even if we can’t be sure of it ourselves.

I think I’ve always known how much I love you,

When I look at you,

I see everything I’ve ever wanted.

When I look at you,

I see nothing else but your perfect beauty.

Inside and out.

I'm not a poet, (Y/n), but I will tell you anyway I can how much I love you.

-Jason Peter Todd

Jason is a stone next to you.

His mouth is filled with sand as he looks at the far too familiar handwriting. He knew. He knew the moment he saw the red book what it was. Hell, the moment you told Jason it was Roy who told you to go to the museum, he knew what it was. God, why can't he just turn to ash.

Jason can't make himself turn to you. He can't bear to see what ever disgusted expression you make. He just can't.

He feels a tug on his sleeve. He doesn't move. He feels another tug, this time harder. When he doesn't respond the second time, you lace your fingers in his and spin him around.

You squish his cheeks in your hands. "Jason, you actual sap." You say. You look like you're glowing. You beam at him, all toothy and scrunched faced. Jason's lungs stop working again. His mind can't process what you're saying. All Jason knows is that something warm is crowding his chest, pushing everything else out.

"Wha?"

"Jason, you absolute dork!" You repeat, unfazed by his temporary bout of insanity.

Jason is blushing, looking like a strawberry with his freckles. Jason is more adorable than anyone has any right to be. But that's ok. That's perfectly ok cus he's yours.

In a moment of uncontained affection, you pull Jason to you, pressing a kiss against his lips. It's soft and earnest and exciting. It was a kiss Jason spent lifetimes dreaming about. It was you and completely you.

"Jay, they're beautiful." You say in a breathless laugh.

Jason looked down at his feet. "I-" was never planning on giving it to you, he thinks. Because, why would you ever love someone like Jason? Especially, after what he'd done to you.

As if reading his mind, you press your forehead against his. "I love you too, Jay, and you can't argue me out of it. Sorry bud, you're stuck with me."

Jason can't help the smile as it curls on his lips.

He's happy. He's so stupidly happy and he blames you.

"Plus, I already knew."

"Why didn't you say it first?" He asks, his fingers brushing against his tingling lips.

"Cus," you say, pirouetting away from him, "you wouldn't believe me if I did."

"How-"

You put your hand up. "Trust me, Jay. I've tried before." You tilt your head back looking up at the sky light. The curtain of light fell on you like a spotlight highlighting everything ethereal about you. "Remember in Milan? When I told you I cared about you and you told me I didn't."

Jason remembered that. He was angrier back then. He snarled that to you like some wild animal and threatened to throw you out on your ass if you ever so much as spoke a word of that nonsense again. It was the first time he'd seen you look hurt. You face was wide open with shock. Jason felt something in his chest tear at that look. He stormed off, leaving you in that room.

When he came back, you offered him warm tea and a smile. You were quiet, inconsolably quiet.

It didn't…

He didn't…

It didn't occur to him that look in your eyes was heartbreak.

Jason curses under his breath.

You chortle at him, the mirth in your eyes incandescent.

"Yeah. Exactly." You say, clasping your hands behind your back. Jason would like to be buried six feet under with the only words carved into his gravestone 'I am so sorry (Y/n)'.

You snick seeing the look in his eyes. "Or that time in Paris. The one in the little patisserie when I told you in perfect Catalan that you meant more to me than anything else and do you remember what you told me?"

"I told you you were possessed." Jason's shoulders slump. "Please tell me you don't have a third example."

You smile at him pityingly. "I don't-"

"OH THANK FU-"

"I have 50. Well, 51 but the last one didn't count since I was joking that time."

In Jason's mind, his jaw hits the obsidian floor with an audible 'plop'. It would be loud enough that the entire museum would hear it were it real. He blinks at you. "You tried more than 10 times?"

"I was encouraged." You say shrugging.

"Of course, you were," he grumbles and you laugh. Jason's heart skips a beat but he pushes past the feeling in favor of pleading with you. "Please don't list them."

"Oh, I'm not." You hum.

Jason sighs with relief.

"I'm gonna leave that to Roy."

"Son of a- He knows?"

You look over your shoulder. "Yeah. Who do you think I complain to?"

"Who else knows?" He asks, trailing behind you as you walk to .... Jason doesn't know at this point and he doubts you do too.

"Oh just your family."

"I'm surprised they haven't given me shit about it."

"Oh I bullied them into not doing it."

"Impressive." He whistles and you preen.

"Always," you say smugly. You begin to walk a bit faster, craning your neck. "Now, let's go find out if Dickie installed that bakery I asked for."

"That's what you're after?" Jason laughs.

"It's a noble goal." You protest.

"You don't even need to feed."

"I need to feed my inner sweets monster. She's very fussy and is demanding crepes specifically."

Jason smiles softly at you, amused that of all the human traits you could have retained after being turned was a sweet tooth.

"Sorry to tell you doll face, Dickie still hasn't done it."

You look aghast like he'd slapped you in the face with a large baguette.

"What?!"

"He hasn't put in your suggestion from 10 years ago."

"Where am I supposed to get my fix?"

"Are we still talking about sweets or have you moved on to cocaine?"

"Dunno, have you tried snorting sugar?"

"No. Why- Have you?"

"...my lawyer advised against answering this question."

Jason cackles. "How am I the stupid one?"

"I-" Your scowl turns sickeningly sweet. "Yanno, the third time I tried was when-"

"OK. Stop." Jason's face lights up again. "I give."

"Pfff." You smile, looking far too pleased with yourself.

Jason straightens up, something sly passing through his eyes. You stop. The look in his eyes makes you nervous.

"I think I know where you can get something sweet."

You swallow nervously.

Jason leans in. He’s so close to you. You can feel his breath brush against your lips. Nothing else around you seems to exist at the moment.

You lean in to kiss him but you freeze when you register his voice.

“I’m taking you downtown. There’s a new bakery there and I heard the crepes were to die for.” He chuckles, turning to walk towards the exit.

“What the hell?!” You call out falling into step with him.

He grins down at you, arms folded behind his head. “Something wrong, princess?”

Heat rises in your cheeks and elbow him in the side.

“I want to take you on a proper date and I sure as hell am not starting here.” He says, rubbing his side and conspicuously not looking at you. There’s a dust of peach on his face. Your anger fades away. It gives way to a fluttering in your chest.

“Where?”

He looks at you then, brow furrowed.

“Why don’t I take you to the fair, princess? There’s plenty of sweet treats there that’ll tickle your fancy.”

Your mouth waters when you think about all the cotton candy they have.

“I heard there’s a kissing booth too, so if you’re lucky,” Jason continues, winking at you. Predictably, you blanch at him. You knock your knuckles against his chest. Jason chuckles, rubbing his chest. “Sorry princess, I mean if I’m lucky enough to get a kiss from you.”

The temerity.

The gall.

“As long as you get me something sweet.” You huff, exiting the building.

Jason stops on the steps, turning to you with a sly smile. Crossing your arms, you pause bracing for whatever trick is up his sleeve. Jason tilts his head. He says something but the little noises of the city make the words hard to discern. You lean closer to hear him better. Jason steps closer to close the distance, his lips warm against yours. You’re stunned. Your entire body divided on how to react, some parts stiffen while others turn to jelly.

He pulls away, wolfish grin unwavering. "That sweet enough for you sweetheart?"

@batarella, @anothertimdrakestan, @lucy-roo, @multifandomgirl-us, @bungunz, @birdy-bat-writes, @boosyboo9206, @americasmarauders , @l-inkage, @arestorationofbalance , @cloudie-skay, @wunderstell @hyp-oh-critical @glorified-red

#Jason Todd #jason todd x reader #jason todd imagine #vampire au #food

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starktonyx · 4 years

Text

Heal (Peter Parker x Reader)

Word count: 3.5k

Description: On a mission with the team, reader is mind controlled by HYDRA and attacks Peter.

Requested by anon: I wanted to request something really angsty with Peter like the reader is being controlled by someone and is sent to kill peter and she’s succeeding because peter refuses to hurt her and in the last minute when she snaps out of it because she thinks she actually killed him and yeah.

Note: Out of all of the angst I’ve written this is the most dramatic one (I think) so enjoy the heartbreak!. Also this is the first time I post in a while and I’m really really happy about it.

Masterlist

•

You had one mission, and it was the only thing repeating over and over again in your head.

Kill spiderman Kill spiderman Kill spiderman

A wave of coldness ran through your body, your hands slightly trembled. You didn't remember your name, or why you were in that military base in the first place. The only thing you knew was you were suited up and you had a mission, the small white 'A' embroidered in the side of your suit caught your attention, but you couldn't figure out what it stood for.

You couldn't hear anything other than a raspy voice with an accent ordering you to kill the man in a red and blue suit. Sometimes a faint desperate voice told you to stop, the voice sounded familiar but you pushed it back, there was no time for distractions.

You had to kill spiderman.

It didn't take long before you found the infamous man, although when you approached him and he spoke his voice sounded very teenager like. What was your age again? You couldn't figure that out either. That didn't matter anyways, you were on a mission.

The whole thing was almost blurry and too quick, one second you were in front of him and the other you already had the upper hand on the fight. You noticed your strength matched his, so you took advantage of that. He wasn't really fighting back though, he was pulling his punches and holding back. You didn't understand why.

"What the hell are you doing Y/n?" He desperately asked, but you just punched him again.

His voice was extremely familiar, and who the hell was Y/n? The raspy voice in your head quickly blocked further thoughts, so you kicked the guy this time.

He tried to defend himself with some sort of web fluid, but you were quick to crush the devices on his wrist with your own hands.

"You need to stop, I don't know what's wrong with you" He said, trying to evade your hits, but you were quick.

You suddenly remembered a move and jumped on his shoulders, wrapping your legs around his neck and hitting his head with your elbows. You were sure someone had taught you that but couldn't remember who.

"Stop this! I don't want to hurt you" He begged, why didn't he just shut up?

He held up quite well to your attacks, but since he wasn't exactly defending himself his body was slowly giving up.

The rest of the fight was quick, the more you hit him the more the raspy voice repeated itself in your head. You felt high, your vision was blurry yet you kept fighting, as if you were a muppet and someone else was controlling your movements, punches and kicks.

You couldn't stop until you killed him.

"Y/n stop! please. You know who I am ... love please don't do this" The guy kept begging, was he crying? You couldn't tell since the mask covered his face.

Love? The more familiar the voice sounded, the more you pushed it to the back of your head. Couldn't he shut up? You sure as hell couldn't stop yourself.

You were sure you shot him at least once, or perhaps stabbed him? Maybe both. You didn't even know where the blood was coming from.

"This is not you" He panted, spitting blood on the floor and clutching his side. "I'm not gonna fight you"

"As you wish" You replies, your low voice gave him chills.

You finally threw him to the ground, his head hitting the floor with a loud thud. He was so weak, he could barely lift his arms to stop you from choking him.

Peter didn't even know how he got into this position, everything happened so quickly. Of course you had been on his lap before, but this time wasn't like the others.

This time you were choking the life out of him.

He was terrified, he could look straight into your eyes for the first time in the fight. They were void, angry, a red cast covered them as if you were some kind of murder machine.

What have they done to you, he thought.

If you had been a mere human with no superpowers he would've been fine, he would've been able to stop you the moment you threw your first punch at him. But you weren't just a human, you had super soldier serum running through your veins.

His arms ached, and even though he pushed you with all the strength he had left it wasn't enough to stop you. Getting up wasn't even an option, the fractures you had caused with your kicks made it impossible.

Peter was slowly losing consciousness, and for a second he regretted not defending himself. But he couldn't hurt you, ever. He knew he would die first before lifting a hand to hurt you.

He suddenly had an idea, his last hope to bring you back to your senses.

He took his mask off.

It seemed to work, you instantly let go of his neck, he coughed until he was able to breathe again. You lifted your fist as an instinct, but before you could do anything he spoke.

"Yo–you know who I am" His voice was raspy from the trauma on his throat. "Come on love, it's me Peter ... your Peter"

You held your fist in the air, panting heavily as you analyzed the details of his face. You were no longer seeing spiderman, the man you were sent to kill. He was just a boy.

And you knew him.

You slowly lowered your fist as your mind adjusted back to reality, your head began to hurt when racing thoughts and memories came back. You could finally remember your name, you realized who was your actual team, and who was the person you almost killed.

Peter Parker.

He watched your thought process carefully, he finally let out a sigh of relief when he saw your face change from I'm going to murder you to what the hell is going on, and felt a wash of relief when your eyes softened and the red disappeared. The raspy voice inside your head was finally gone now.

However, the relief only lasted a few seconds, as he saw your face ultimately change to what the fuck did I just do.

Peter wished one day he can forget this moment, right when he saw the life leave your eyes, even when you weren't the one bleeding out on the floor, even when you weren't the one dying.

At least not on the outside.

As you snapped back to reality you got up from his lap and walked a few steps back from his body, unconsciously lifting a hand to cover your mouth but stopped when you realized thick blood covered it.

"Oh my god" You sobbed quietly, the weak sound of your voice was hidden behind your own heart beat stumping in your ears.

Peter tried to speak, he wanted to say something to assure you it wasn't your fault but breathing was becoming a harder task, let alone getting words out of his mouth. He used what was left of his strength to barely lift his head to look at you. He tried his best to give you a tiny smile, one you almost confused as a sign of pain from how weak it was.

You weren't able to keep eye contact with him, your eyes darted through the room but soon realized you couldn't keep looking at the place covered in blood and destruction either. When you looked Peter again you noticed he wasn't conscious anymore, and finally came back to your senses as if someone had slapped you in the face.

You needed to get help.

You realized how your comms had been deactivated, and as soon as you turned them on again you heard your teammates casually banter as they kicked ass like they used to every mission, completely oblivious to what happened.

"To–Tony" You called out, but your raspy voice wasn't loud enough and they kept bickering. You cleared your throat, taking a big breath to prevent your voice from shaking again. "Tony I need help, Peter is— Peter is down"

The whole team fell in silence, some punches and grunts could still be heard but even though the comms you could feel the tension building.

"I'm on my way" Tony's low tone made you shiver.

You walked further from Peter and waited in a corner of the room, looking expectantly at the window for Tony's arrival. A part of you wanted to hold Peter in your arms, but you were stuck on your feet as you were afraid to hurt him even more.

You couldn't get close to him, what if you hurt him again? The only thing that kept you from completely losing it was FRIDAY's reassurance that Peter's heart was still beating.

It didn't take long before Tony reached your location, the sound of his repulsors landing harshly next to Peter's body startled you, and he wasted no time in making questions as FRIDAY scanned him.

"What the hell happened here?" He asked, but you stayed silent in your position.

He was worried, how could he not be? His pupil was dying in his arms and his girlfriend was paralyzed in the other side of the room. He couldn't even understand why the hell were you standing so far away.

Before he could ask you Natasha made her appearance in the room, eyes quickly scanning the situation until they landed on your shaking figure.

You nervously hid your hands behind your back, you were scared to face the consequences of your actions.

You were ashamed.

"I'm so sorry" You couldn't contain the sobs anymore, shaking your head in denial like a terrified child waiting for punishment.

Tony was overwhelmed by how hurt Peter was and trying to patch him up before he bled out, so he couldn't understand why you would apologize for something like this.

But Natasha paid more attention, she noticed how you kept your bloody hands hidden, yet you forgot about the blood that stained your face. Of course she noticed Peter's wounds were common injuries in enemies you confronted, and even those never ended as badly because you tended to have mercy.

Yet none of that was enough to keep Peter safe.

It took only a matter of seconds for the trained spy to realize what happened, and she was a master in masking her reactions and emotions, but this time she couldn't keep herself from gasping in shock.

She took a step towards you, but she quickly was stopped by Wanda's hand. The latter had just arrived with Steve, and she didn't only know what happened.

She could see the images replaying over and over again in your head. So she walked towards you instead of Natasha, and only shushed you when you tried to explain yourself.

She has never been mind controlled, but she had been the one controlling other people, and she understood how vile and destructive it could be. So she could only hold your weak body breaking down in her arms, trying to block herself from the horrible images in your head.

As she walked with you to the jet she felt almost tired from the energy irradiating your body, as hard as she tried to not lurk through your thoughts she couldn't help but feel how miserable you felt.

You wished it was you dying instead of Peter.

So she knew it was best to send you to sleep through the whole ride home, and made sure you had only good dreams.

At least you could be happy in your sleep.

The ride home was silent, apart from the sudden noises the machine that registered Peter's heartbeat made every once in a while. The avengers were shocked, HYDRA had hurt the youngest members of the team, the purest and whatnot, and it happened right under their noses.

Tony beat himself up the whole trip, he had failed both of you, all his fancy systems and technology couldn't keep you safe.

The next days in the compound were hell to everyone. Even though Peter was having an excellent recovery due to his healing abilities, the progress was only physical.

He wanted to see you from the moment he woke up surrounded by doctors. He knew it wasn't your fault, he didn't blame you. He could never.

So he cried and begged to see you, but Tony wouldn't allow him. He knew you needed space, he knew how bad it would affect you to see Peter's injures. So he made him wait, at least until the the fractures healed and the bruises faded from purple to a faint yellow.

Until he didn't limp anymore.

And you? You were a mess. From the moment you arrived the compound you were put through multiple tests to find out what was wrong with you, but nothing showed up. Whatever HYDRA had done to you was momentarily, it left no traces and you were "fine".

Except nothing was fine, you couldn't trust yourself, not after what you did. So you isolated yourself, moved to a room as far away from everyone as possible. And they all knew not to bother you.

Almost the whole team had been through mind control at one point, they knew it took time to heal.

After a few days – that felt like eternity – Peter was finally allowed to go see you, although Tony made sure to warn him there was no guarantees you would even open the door to him.

Peter was more than nervous, his fingers fiddled together as he waited outside your isolation room. It took him time to gather up the courage and a big breath before knocking the door.

You knew Peter was outside from the moment he arrived, his hesitation made you wish he would just turn around and leave, but the knock on the door told you otherwise. You sat down in your bed and hugged your legs, laying your head on your knees.

"Y/n, it's me" He said softly, you just listened carefully on the other side of the door. "Can –can I come in? Please, I need to see you" He sighed deeply when he got no answer, but he wasn't doing to leave.

His voice was brittle, weak. Just like that day when he took off his mask and told you to stop. You shook your head in an attempt to keep the haunted memories away, and buried yourself more in your position.

You heard shuffling on the outside but he didn't leave, you guessed he sat down on the floor. You could almost picture him in your head, almost in the same position you were except he was probably messing up his hair, a habit he had when stressed.

Peter replayed the events over and over in his head. As much as he hated to admit it, you had been starring every nightmare he had since that day. He felt extremely guilty as well, he knew it was wrong to leave you alone in that hydra building. In every mission he was always by your side, but this time you insisted you were fine and you would collect the data yourself. You should've never parted ways.

You sighed, you knew he wasn't going to leave any time soon and you were just prolonging your suffering. Maybe if you just let him in for a moment and avoided him he would leave sooner.

Peter quickly got up after hearing you tell FRIDAY to open the door, and he took a deep breath before entering the room. The first thing he saw was you sitting on the edge of the bed, staring at your hands to avoid eye contact with him.

Of course you couldn't look at him, you were afraid to see him laying on the floor bleeding out just like you did days ago.

He stood by the door, afraid to come closer without your approval.

"How are you?" He mentally slapped himself as soon as the words came out, it was stupid question. He was just eager to talk to you. "I ... I'm fine– I mean, everything has almost healed" He felt stupid once again, he wasn't sure if what he was saying was what you wanted to hear.

And it apparently wasn't since you didn't answer, you just kept staring at your hands motionless.

"Love please, I need you to talk to me" He pleaded, his eyes starting to water. He unconsciously stepped forward to reach you but was instantly stopped by your harsh voice.

"Don't come closer, please" You pleaded too, fixing your eyes on the floor.

When Peter heard your voice he felt like a bucket of cold water was thrown over him. There was no warmth, no emotion, no love.

Just like your eyes that day.

"Alright, I want you to listen to me then" He said firmly this time, he was exasperated. "You know it wasn't your fault, whatever they did to you, you're not responsible for that" He began, softer tone this time. "I wish I could make you understand I don't blame you for this, I love you. I still do, I promise"

You finally lifted your head for your bloodshot eyes to meet his. Your heart skipped a beat when you saw his appearance. He did look better than that day, not as swollen and certainly not covered in blood anymore. But there were still bruises scattered through his body, faded out but you could only imagine how they looked before they did. And his eyes? You had never seen him so heartbroken before.

"How could you let me do something like this?" You finally broke the silence, biting the inside of your cheeks to keep you from sobbing.

You didn't mean to blame him, that wasn't your intention even though your words came out harsher than you wished.

But he could've done something. Anything.

"What?" He frowned, that wasn't the response he was expecting from you.

"You could've stopped me, you are strong enough to do it" You said getting up from the bed, all the anger and pain you kept inside was finally coming out. "Why didn't you stop me!?"

"I–I tried, but you wouldn't listen to me" Peter couldn't help but get defensive too. "If I tried any harder I would've hurt you"

"I wouldn't have cared even if you killed me!" Your voice finally gave up and you broke down in sobs, covering your face in your hands.

Your yell startled Peter, and as much as he wanted to hug you he still respected the boundaries you had given him when you let him in. He took a deep breath and exasperatedly ran a hand though his hair, he didn't want to fight you, that's the last thing he wanted.

So instead of yelling back he softened his voice. "I would. I would have cared as much as you care about almost killing me"

You wiped your eyes to look at him again, and you noticed how bad he was restraining himself in his position.

"You can't say shit like that" He continued, trying control his brittle voice. "What happened to you is not fair, for any of us. I'm so sorry I didn't try harder to stop you, but I can't even bring myself to playfully hit your arm, let alone fighting you. Why do you think we never train together? I can't hurt you, I would never want that" He explained himself, sniffling after finishing his sentence.

"But I hurt you"

"You could never hurt me, not on purpose, I know that" He sighed shaking his head, there was only one way to change your mind.

He stepped forward once again, and even though you put your hands in front of your body to stop him, he kept walking this time.

"No no Peter– please don't" You stepped back but stumbled with the bed and couldn't back off anymore.

He gently took your hands and softly caressed them with his thumbs, trying his best to give you a smile.

"Hey hey, it's okay" He reassured you as if he was talking to a baby. "See? Your hands are not hurting me love, I know they won't" He said, you hesitated for a second but you had missed him more than anything, so you couldn't help yourself from jumping into his arms.

"I'm so sorry Peter" You sobbed in his chest as he finally engulfed you into a hug, his warm torso somehow bringing you the comfort you've needed the past days.

"I know" He sobbed too, and planted a kiss on your head. "I'm sorry too"

You broke the distance from the hug just enough to look at him. As he stared back at your teary eyes, he could finally see how broken your soul was.

"Do you really still love me? After what I did I–" You were interrupted by his lips on yours.

The kiss was salty, desperate. Filled with emotion and pain from two broken souls that deserved better. When the kiss was over you genuinely smiled for the first time again, and Peter couldn't help but giggle too.

"Come on, let's heal together love"

Tags (if you want to be added/removed let me know)

@geeksareunique @princessdancingonthesunshine @lyrxbz @spideygirl2003 @parkerpeter24 @calledthechildanya

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sirisuorionblack · 3 years

Note

Hello 👋 I was wondering if you could write about Remus Lupin bitting one of Harry’s friends, and they’re relatively alright with it but lovely Remus hates himself for it- a bit of angst but with happy ending?

Family

Remus Lupin x Sirius Black

Summary - The marauders are back at Hogwarts at the age of 34 for yet another adventurous night after years but this time it didn't end rather well but Remus had his family.

A/N Okie so this was a wonderful idea and I just had to write it and I might have tweaked my request status a bit. But, anyway, a few things before you start, everybody is alive, no voldy, no nothing. And since you didn’t specify which one of Harry’s friends, I naturally went for Ron to add in the drama. Also, this happens in their third year and Remus and Sirius are well, married, sorry if it isn't a pairing you are comfortable with. And this may be a bit rushed, idk but I loved it tbh.

Remus ran his fingers over the scars on his knuckles. Remus was gifted with such a beautiful life, his friends and family so close to him, leading a life filled with love and happiness, the sound of innocent laughter always echoing in his ears no matter what.

Over the years, he and his best friends had grown from adventurous teens to adventurous adults, still spending every full moon like a tightly-knit pack, running into the woods and barking in their animal forms. They had never grown out of it and Remus was more than grateful for it. It was truly a wonder, regardless of how much they had grown, married and having kids of their own, never spared a thought if any other was in need of help.

Thirty-four. It was bewildering how he managed to pass twenty-seven years tuning into a full-on beast with insane thoughts and no memory of his human self, only noticing the stag, dog and the rat that managed to keep him accompanied no matter what. He pitied the wolf at times, he would never have the chance to know what love is, never understand how people care about others and would protect their loved ones.

Remus knew what love is, Sirius taught him that like his life depended on it. Remus shivered every time he thought about this. They were no longer the playful and traumatized teens, they were adults with responsibilities now and it was terrifying. But Remus found comfort in the very aspect of it, teaching and just as his friends insisted he did become the Defence Against Dark Arts professor and he more than just loved it.

And now after years, they were back in the shrieking shack for the next full moon, this time, honestly dreading it. Remus suspected that Harry and his friends were rather curious about their shenanigans in the shrieking shack. Harry, of course, knew that Remus was a werewolf he had known it ever since he was realised, his father, Moony, Padfoot and Wormtail would go missing for hours and then his mother would be with Uncle Moony, treating all the new scars that Harry was told is a sign of bravery from a young age by his godfather.

For some odd reason, Dumbledore had requested that Harry must not know was that it was his very own Uncle Moony spending his night away in the shrieking shack for which Sirius had reasoned was solely for the drama it ensued.

“Moony, stop fretting,” James said, patting him on the shoulder and pulling him away from the window sill he was standing before, “It is Harry we are talking about, I think he would be rather cautious,”

“That’s the stupidest things you have ever told in your whole life, Prongs,” Sirius commented, smirking and looking out of the window, to see when the full moon rises.

“Hey!” James glared at him, “I mean, yes, he could be a curious little shit but he is…good,”

“This is not about if he is good or not, James,” Remus snapped. He took a deep breath and sat on a chair that had been placed near the wall, away from the three of them.

“Right, sorry,” James said, looking at him apologetically and remained silent giving Remus an opportunity to continue, “Just like you said, he is a curious child and his friends almost give him a run for his money and there is so little chance to no chance that they would not be coming here to “find out“ what’s going on! And like what if I accidentally hurt someone!?”

Remus shuddered as he said those words. Contrasting how he was speaking moments ago, he looked up to see Peter, James and Sirius looking at him and he fixed his eyes to Sirius’ and he whispered, “They could die or even worse become a monster like me,”

“Moony, enough,” Sirius said, calmly, drawing the attention to himself rather than Remus, “The full moon will be in minutes, there is nothing we can do,”

“Remus,” Peter sighed, emerging from the corner he stood in, “First of all - you are not a monster. Second of all - we are here, nothing wrong is gonna happen,”

”What if something does?” Remus argued. He didn’t have to see to know that Sirius closed his eyes to calm himself down.

“Sirius, do you hear yourself!?” Remus stood up abruptly, “Your words drip with irresponsibility!”

“It’s not irresponsibility, Moony,” he said, motioning Peter to take over as he walked towards Remus, “it’s the reality. What do you think we should do, then?”

For once, Remus Lupin was out of ideas. He didn’t know what to say but he knew Sirius was right, there was almost nothing they could do other than control the wolf and every full moon they deal with would be a unique tale of itself, never certain of what could happen. It was woven with time.

“It’s time,” Peter said, grimly. Remus took a shuddering breath and fell into Sirius’ arms, who was still in his human form, unlike the stag and rat, watching their moves carefully.

Remus was right. In the Gryffindor boys’ dormitory, Harry Potter laid wide awake, staring at the ceiling, the noises in the shrieking shack and the tales about it resonating in his mind. He was confused about what might be there and curious to find out when nobody would tell him the truth although they seemed to know. And today, they would unveil it.

James was rather happy that the full moon would end in a couple of minutes but he was not allowed to stay that way when he saw the wolf stop dead in tracks, sniffing the air. They all behaved rather weirdly, sometimes hilarious, in these forms but this time, it seemed different, like the wolf had encountered something out of order.

The stag and the dog stood cautiously, ready to pounce any moment while the rat, discreetly moved in the direction of the wolf’s sight and to a bush. They could hear whispers and murmurs as the animals and humans stood still on both sides, afraid of what might show and for the first time they all saw the wolf stand so extremely still.

And then slowly, a mess of unruly, jet black hair emerged from behind the bush. The wolf took deep, rapid, breaths that almost sounded like growling, bared its fangs.

The black hair further raised until they could see the bright green eyes, behind the round glasses and the wolf noticing the presence of the human, pounced.

The dog was rather quick to act and jumped on the wolf, redirecting its path but a stag and a dog wasn’t enough for the wolf to be distracted from its meal. Hunger in the pit of the wolf’s stomach derived its senses insane.

Harry stood up to his full height, wide eyes watching the wolf push a familiar black dog away from itself and leapt forward, fangs sinking into the flesh before it blacked out, falling to the ground.

He is going to get an earful from his father.

“Careful, Mr Lupin,” Madam Pomfrey rushed to him as Remus tried to sit up and take a look around. She gently pushed him back to a sleeping position on the hospital bed. Through half-lidded eyes, he frantically murmured Sirius’ name over and over again.

“Hey, hey, calm down, love,” Sirius was at his side, holding his scarred hand. Remus held onto it tightly and asked, “What happened?”

He could see Sirius hesitating to tell him and the vague memories remaining in his head from the night was not doing him any better.

“Sirus, please tell me what happened!?” He asked, anxiety rising in the bit of his stomach, the nasty churning feeling retuning. Sirius gently pushed the strands of hair from his forehead and leaned up, pressing his lips to Remus’ forehead.

“Th-the kids-” Sirius started just for him to be interrupted as Remus sat up, abruptly. He didn’t have time to sort out his chaotically, messy feelings and the one thing in his mind was what happened to the kids.

“Moony, Moony,” Sirius hurried to calm him down that, if anything, just made Remus panic even more in his hazy state of mind. Sirius placed his hands against Remus’ shoulder, pushing him gently to sit on the edge of the bed when he tried to stand up.

“Nobody is hurt, Remus,” he said, crouching a bit to look at Remus in the eyes but sighed with a pang in his chest when he saw Remus’ eyes unfocused and roaming above his head, at the various hospital beds.

Remus gasped and his heart sunk to the bottom when he saw the bed surrounded by kids and adults. It was Ron Weasley. His teeth had sunk into the boy’s shoulder blades where he could clearly see the bandages wrapped tightly around. He couldn’t imagine the pain the poor boy would have felt.

Remus Lupin felt like a terrible monster.

Why him? Why is it always him!? Just when he thought everything would be alright when he began to let himself wallow in the joy of being back at Hogwarts. And because of him the boy, merely thirteen, would have to become a monster every month.

“You are awake,” James, who seemed to have been outside the hospital wing, rushed to him, "Oh, thank gods-”

”I told you this would happen,” Remus whispered, hoarsely, staring at the foot of the empty bed before him. His mind was racing with unwanted thoughts. He felt mad at himself, at his friends, at the kids but was immediately engulfed in a pang of even bigger guilt.

A dry sob involuntarily escaped from his lips. He couldn’t understand how Greyback did that to the kids when here he was dying with guilt. He didn’t dare think of that one terrible evening when he was just seven.

Remus struggled to take a deep breath. “Moony, look at me, please,” Sirius said and these words in Remus’ head felt like a command. He slowly raised his head to look into those mesmerising grey eyes, sparkling like they always did in the sunlight. Those grey eyes were the only ones that had the ability to calm him down in seconds yet he found it difficult at the moment to regain his normal breathing pace.

“Hey, it's alright. I am here. We all are right here,” Sirius pushed the strands of hair out of his face as Remus tugged at his own shirt, as though it would help him breathe properly.

Sirius looked at James who immediately moved to the nearest window, pushing it open. The gush of fresh, cold breeze for some reason warmed his shattered heart. Remus, although still shaking, managed to take deep breaths.

“Listen to me, alright?” Sirius said, cautiously and slowly, “Nothing is wrong, everybody is doing good - I said you to just listen, Lupin. Ron did get a few injuries but, thankfully, since it was time for you to transform back, the bite was equivalent to that of a domestic dog or something,”

Remus didn't have the ability to comprehend what he was saying and just gawked, opening and closing his mouth like a fish.

Sirius smiled gently, looking at Remus’ wide, confused eyes. “Ron will not transform every month. You didn’t “ruin“ his life, which I am sure at this point you have confirmed. And Madam Pomfrey had down all the necessities so he would be alright in a couple of days,”

“Oh,” Remus breathed, chuckling lightly but happily. Ron was alright. He was alright! He wouldn't turn into a monster every month, he wouldn't have all those hideous scars, he wouldn't be weak every other day, he wouldn't seem to look way older than he actually was. He would be able to lead a peaceful childhood.

James sat next to him while Peter sat on the bed before him, “Now you might be wondering why is Molly crying buckets when her son would be alright,”

“No, I’m not James,” Remus rolled his eyes, pushing James away and shaking his head with a light smile. He discreetly wiped the tears forming in the edge of his eyes.

“Uncle Moony!” Harry yelled, and ran to his uncle. Remus tried to stand up as his nephew rushed into his arms, the boy holding onto him so tightly. Remus slowly wrapped his arms around the boy and felt Sirius stand up behind him, providing support to his weak frame.

“But you should ‘cause I have prepared an answer for it. If you are not asking me why then Padfoot go ahead,” James said and watched with a smirk as Sirius cleared his throat, and asked, “Why?”

”Thank you very much for your certainly not forced question - it is because she is a mother!” James said going jazz hands just for him to be hit with three pillows.

“I’m sorry, Uncle Moony,” Harry whispered into his uncle’s chest, feeling guilty as ever. He heard the man sigh and the arms wrapped around him grew tighter. Remus took off Harry’s askew glasses and whispered, “It’s okay to me, Haz but your mum,”

Harry giggled, burying his face into Remus’ chest, “I love you, Uncle Moony,”

“I love you too, Haz” Remus ruffled the boy’s already messy hair.

"Wait!" Peter said, jumping up and stood beside Harry, smirking, "Can we, I dunno, take points from him?"

"No! that's stupid!" James complained, shaking his head, "Gryffindor needs to win the house cup. We can ground him or something but not take away points,"

"Yes! Can I ground him, please?" Sirius asked.

"No,, absolutely not," Remus said, holding the boy closer to him, "Nobody is gonna ground the poor boy. Leave him alone,"

"Gah! You're no fun, Moony," Peter said, shaking his head in disapproval.

James, after controlling his laughter said, “Also, Harry, your mum told me to yell at you as a favour for her and she would do her job when you come home for break,”

"Uncle W," Harry said, making Peter chuckle at the nickname the boy insisted in calling him saying it was too weird calling his uncle "Wormtail", "I will steal your cheese sticks,"

"No," Peter groaned, dramatically, "Cheese sticks, my weakness,"

“But you won’t yell at me, dad,” Harry said, pulling away from Remus and putting his glasses on.

“I will,” James said, seriously.

“It is not that you won’t, Prongs,” Sirius said, from behind Remus, “It is that you cant,”

“Oh shut up,” James said, rolling his eyes.

Remus couldn’t help but allow his eyes to skip towards Ron every often and harry, of course, noticed it. “Ron is alright, Uncle Moony. He was actually saying it doesn’t hurt much anymore and he was rather bewildered why his mother was crying too. Oh! he also says you guys were so cool yesterday,”

“We know, prongslet, we are the coolest people ever to exist,” Sirius flipped his hair, dramatically. Harry laughed.

Remus took a deep breath. He would never forgive himself for what had happened, but he had his family with him and they sure would make him forget it. These wonderful people were his family.

#remus lupin #sirius black #james potter #peter pettigrew #harry potter #ron weasley #hermione granger #remus lupin x sirius black #wolfstar #remus x sirius #domestic wolfstar #wolfstar raising harry #jily #remus john lupin #sirius orion black #hogwarts #harry potter fanfiction

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lovecanbesostrange · 3 years

Note

#is it too late to write 2k words of how Ruby stays chained up and turns and she's in control yet scared but Belle stays with her NO!!! It is never too late for red beauty content

Is this a dare or are you just mocking me?

But, well, okay, let's go back to that night in the library then, shall we?

(under a read more, but also up on AO3 now)

Ruby frantically went through the rooms, making sure all the windows were shut, nobody else was here and she knew the layout of the place. But Belle was still here, that was not good. She needed to go, lock the main entrance from the outside.

"You need to leave. The moon's going to be up soon."

Belle didn't made any effort to go, instead she followed Ruby around. "But will the chains hold?"

"Hopefully." Like a familiar tune another conversation about chains played out in Ruby's head. Familiar and devastating. Those chains did hold. But only because they held a human back, leaving him defenseless.

"Then, I'm staying." Belle's determined tone stopped Ruby in her tracks. She was so upbeat and positive, as if this wasn't about a beast showing up any minute, who could tear her to shreds. Belle reached out, not just mentally, but physically now. Ruby felt the hands on her shoulders, a gesture to spark comfort. "Think of it as girls' night."

Ruby was at a loss for words. Belle was so cheery about all of this. So unfazed by the horror of the situation. Was this how Peter had seen her? When she convinced him he might be the wolf and he was ready to be tied up and send her away, but Red had stayed with him. Unintentionally dooming him to a grim death. Red had felt the same determination to stay with him that Belle showcased now. It was such a weird switch in perspectives. Except Ruby knew much, much better now.

Slowly Ruby backed away, breaking contact with Belle, who finally showed concern, but not in the way Ruby wanted. "What's wrong?"

How could Ruby explain all of this? The way her heart ached, because of a lost love, a life taken and now also because this thing might happen again. May have in fact happened again. Belle hadn't seen Billy's body. Belle didn't know how easily werewolf fangs tore human bodies in half. Belle didn't know that deep inside of Ruby a monster lurked. And that every bit of self-doubt made it stronger. That only self-acceptance could tame it and Ruby had run out of that this morning in front of the cannery. Why was she the only one that was afraid?

"I know David wants to believe the best, but I've killed before, and I'll do it again." Ruby picked up the chains, the rattling sound a faint promise of safety. "Everyone in this town is right to be afraid of me."

"Okay, well I'm not."

"You should be!" Ruby almost yelled back instantly. How did Belle not understand this? This was about her life! People outside gathered in a mob to hunt for a wolf and they were right. Because if Ruby had killed Billy, the sweet mechanic who always smiled and was up for a chat, then anybody could be next.

But Belle didn't budge. She didn't give in a single inch and Ruby stared at her. Trying to figure out what to do. "No matter what you might've done in your past, David sees the good in you and-" A slight pause, Belle's face was perfectly calm, her eyes warm and her lips twitched into a reassuring half-smile for a second. Just looking at her twisted Ruby's inside. "And that tells me one thing."

"What?" She was skeptical, because Belle didn't listen to reason, making up her own theories here. Ruby had on of the cuffs in her hand. Thinking back to Peter a thought formed. He would have been safe if Red had gone away. Maybe this was how she could keep Belle from getting hurt. Put this on her and leave. The building was secure. And the people outside took the risk serious enough to end the threat once and for all.

"That it's in there." Belle kept going, while taking a step forward. Stepping into Ruby's personal space again, closing this gap to show how serious she was about not being afraid. "So if we can all see it, why can't you?"

"You really think so?" All Ruby wanted was to believe Belle. Believe in her kind words, her trust that the wolf wasn't the problem.

"Trust me. I'm sort of an expert when it comes to rehabilitation."

Ruby looked at Belle. Her face. The utter and unfaltering support. The way her eyebrows moved, the corner of her mouth pulling up radiating optimism and just those gentle eyes.

"Maybe. Maybe you're right." Ruby played with the cuff. Now or never. She could leave Belle to safety and make a run for it. She deserved whatever the mob had in store for her.

But under Belle's gaze she faltered. For a split second she wanted to believe her so much, that she closed the cuff around her own wrist. She had only met this type of kindness once before and it overwrote her will towards self-destruction long enough to change her course of action.

"But you do need to leave." Ruby closed the second cuff and pulled at the chains a bit, the weight was noticeable, but she was worried if the pipe was sturdy enough.

Belle smiled. "I'm staying and now you can't throw me out anyway." She took Ruby's hands into her own. "I'll get you through this. And tomorrow you'll see that you worried for nothing. David will find out the truth."

Ruby ground her teeth. It was too late now. She could only hope history was not about to repeat itself. The literal hand-holding was maybe too much, but it had a calming effect. Ruby was not alone, even though she should be, while also not wanting to be. This whole day had taken a lot of energy from her and it was nice to surrender for a moment. But she needed to focus and let go of Belle.

When Ruby grabbed the other cuffs that were supposed to go around her ankles, Belle intervened.

"Wait, you need to straighten those out first, they're all twisted. You'll make it worse for yourself."

"That's kinda the point."

Again Belle gave her that sympathetic half-smile. "The point is to keep you locked up, not to strangle yourself. I have had my share of uncomfortable nights in chains."

Under any other circumstances Ruby would have a question about that, but she only stood there and let Belle straighten out the chains like christmas lights. She then knelt down to put the cuffs on. All Ruby did was raiser her feet one after the other a bit to help.

"All set?", Belle asked.

Ruby yanked at the chains, the pipes didn't give in. And the chain connecting her wrists and ankles now restrained her movement. The wolf would not be able to make huge leaps in those, even if it broke loose. She leaned against the wall and slowly glided down. "The last one around me, please?"

Now she had to look up at Belle and her stomach turned once more. Was this how Peter had felt? She remembered vividly helping him into the chains, securing him against the tree. Both believing it was the right thing to do. She remembered her love for him and the trust he wouldn't hurt her. Like Belle trusted her now contrary to all evidence.

A bit of shame rose up in Ruby, battling with her nervousness. She had given Belle a crash-course in everyday life in Storybrooke, but avoided any question about her pre-curse persona. And now here they were. Because of the wolf. If she had warned Belle from the start, she wouldn't be so insistent now on helping and staying. She wouldn't be crawling around on the floor of her library to fasten chains around Ruby.

"Done." Belle squatted in front of her.

Ruby had pulled her knees up to her chin and hugged her legs. "Please go?" It was more of a question than a request and Ruby knew the answer already anyway. Because Peter had said the same. And she had stayed. For him.

Belle cocked her head to the side, rubbing Ruby's leg for a moment. "I'm responsible for what happens in the library. And if my friend is chained up in here, I'm responsible for her, too." She brushed a strand of Ruby's hair behind her ear and locked eyes.

Ruby took a deep breath in. She could feel the beast creeping closer, the moon was rising. "But get back. Get to the door." She mustered every ounce of command she could. "You have to!"

Belle got up and stepped away. She made her way to the main entrance backwards, never taking her eyes off of Ruby. And Ruby felt exposed. It was time. The beast was near. The wolf wanted out. What was it that made her black out last night? She had been in the freezer and woken up in the woods. She remembered nervous pacing and endless worry. She had rejected the reality of what was happening. The thing Anita had warned her about.

The wolf was her, she was the wolf. Different, but the same. She was the beast, with fangs and claws and animal instincts. All of that monstrous potential. It was all her. All a part of her. Under her control.

Ruby turned. Her senses grew sharper, the noises and smells that already had been loud and clear, became more distinct. The strength that put her above normal humans was now fitted with all the right muscles. And there was an immediate need to move, to run, to use those muscles and to get outside. A want for fresh air and dirt under her paws.

Ruby threw herself against the chains and let out a howl. Belle had to press her hands against her ears, because the closed space wasn't the best place for such a noise. But the howl turned into a low whine, when Ruby kept struggling. The cuffs cut into the skin, not fitting her legs as well as a minute ago. And the chain around her body kept her from any decent movement. She was trapped. This was terrible. And Ruby panicked.

Deep down she knew this was what she had wanted. To be tied up in a way that would not allow her to escape. But the craving for freedom in her wolf form was far stronger than any human reason. This was the thing with being a wolf. Some things felt different.

"Ruby?"

Belle's voice reached her as she tried to get up on all four paws, but the chain yanking her back towards the wall.

"Ruby? Are you okay?"

Ruby barked. Once. A warning. She couldn't come closer! She growled, but also tried to retreat, she needed to make sure she was far away from Belle, right? This was her friend, she was in danger from something. Ruby needed to stay away.

When Belle stopped moving so did Ruby. She looked at her. If she stayed away all was right. Nothing bad would happen. If she stayed still herself Belle was safe. Ruby tried another approach and tried to lie down. The chains pressed against her body in various spots, but she managed. She pulled her ears back, flattened herself as best as she could and whined.

"Ruby?"

She only moved her ears in confirmation. Belle's face spelt surprise. But Ruby couldn't read if it was a good or a bad thing.

"I get it now, where the big part in big bad wolf comes from." Ruby growled and bared her teeth for a second. "No, no, you're not bad. Definitely not bad. But kinda big." Her furrowed brow smoothed out and she put a smile back on. "You are a big wolf. And I don't think that's the same as being a monster."

Ruby pointedly turned her head, not looking at Belle anymore. But she could hear her sitting down. And then a few moments of silence. Until a soft rustle piqued her interest. Belle was pulling out books from the shelf she leaned against.

"Sorry, I'm still reorganizing things. Some of these shelves don't make any sense to me." Her eyes darted over the back of a few books, skimming the contents. "The good thing is there is lots to discover I have never heard of." She held up a thick volume. "Here, an anthology with short stories and I don't even know any of these writers. Bradbury, Vonnegut, Ellison, Le Guin. Any of these names mean something to you?"

Ruby dared a quick tail wag, because buried in her false memories was reading Fahrenheit 451 as a school assignment. Belle put the book down and pulled out a much thinner one.

"The Last Unicorn." Ruby lifted her head. "Oh, someone we know? Maybe I should take that into consideration. Rearranging the fairy-tales and stories with people we've met."

She opened the book and started to read. "The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone. She was very old, though she did not know it, and she was no longer the careless color of sea foam but rather the color of snow falling on a moonlit night. But her eyes were still clear and unwearied, and she still moved like a shadow on the sea." Belle had a soothing tone that made Ruby forget the cuffs cutting into her skin, the chains hindering her from moving and biting into her body. She wasn't supposed to be comfortable. And Belle wasn't supposed to be here and definitely not reading to her.

There were people outside hunting for a bloodthirsty wolf and yet, Ruby was inside, hidden away, listening to the story of a lonely creature searching for her family. Belle looked up every so often, giving different voices to the characters and making facial impressions, but not disturbing the flow with comments on the plot. Ruby was too focused on her that she didn't even hear footsteps coming closer and she was startled when the door to the library was pushed open.

"We've got it!" David shouted, holding up Ruby's red signature cloak. "And you're cleared. It was all Spencer."

Granny followed, still some fury on her face. "He tried to frame you, so David would look bad. But we got him." Granny's grin gave away that she had used the crossbow in her hand.

"That's fantastic," Belle said as she got up. "See, no need to worry."

"Everything okay in here?", David asked when he slowed down as he approached Ruby.

"Nothing happened. I don't think she even needed the chains."

David threw the cloak over Ruby and the second she turned back, she hugged him. "Thank you, David."

"No, thank you for not doing something reckless. I've told you, I believe in you."

They both know the thing that wasn't said in this moment. That Snow had believed in her first and if she had been here, things would have been different. And with that Ruby noticed that David was holding back something else.

"What happened?"

"We can talk about that tomorrow." His smile wasn't completely genuine, but Ruby let it slide. She felt a weight lift off of her chest. Literally, because Belle had opened the lock on the chain keeping her down. David held out a hand to help her get up.

He stepped back. "I have to get back to Henry."

Ruby tried to pull the cloak tighter, but the chains prevented it and Belle took her hands. Again. "Let me." She held up the key. "This is the best part." And for what felt like the first time in years, but it had probably been only a day, Ruby smiled back at her.

When the chains fell down she immediately hugged Belle. All the worries about keeping a safe distance forgotten. The beast had been contained, in fact there was no beast to fear at all and her friend had stayed through it all. How lucky to have friends who believed in her more than she did herself.

Granny cleared her throat. "Are you coming home or are you going for a midnight run, now?"

Ruby looked at her over Belle's shoulder, still holding on and enjoying the way Belle hugged back firmly. "Run", was her simple answer.

And as sudden as they had come in, David and Granny vanished again, leaving the two alone.

"A midnight run?", Belle asked as she put the books back on the shelf, except for The Last Unicorn.

"Yes. That's all I could think about."

"And you remember everything that happened, while...", she gestured to where Ruby had been lying down so miserably.

The self-consciousness returned. "I hope I didn't scare you."

Belle laughed. "I was only scared for you, not of you. That looked unpleasant." She pouted.

"It was." Ruby picked up the book and thumbed through the pages, trying to find where they had left off and put a piece of paper in almost halfway through. "Will you read the rest to me?"

Belle took the book from her, lingering a bit when their fingers brushed. "I wanna know how this ends."

"This?"

"It. How it ends."

Ruby had seen a flashlight in the utility room earlier and quickly picked it up. "So, you want to join me?" She offered it to Belle. "A stroll through the woods?"

This night there was a wolf running around the woods surrounding Storybrooke. Circling around a woman wearing the well-knows red riding hood. When Belle sat down, Ruby put her head on her legs, enjoying a scratch between the ears and listening to the rest of the story. Maybe there was hope for finding companions when you thought you were the only one of your kind.

#OUaT #Red Beauty #Ruby Lucas #Belle French #OMG ANON WHAT DID YOU MAKE ME DO????? it's almost 3k now... what even....#do I maybe have feelings about them?! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯#if anybody throws a title at me I will proof read and throw this at AO3... it's only 8 years late...........#$!

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celestialvoid-fanfiction · 3 years

Text

Secrets in the Moonlight

After the disappearance of his uncle, coming back to Hogwarts is harder than Derek could have imagined. Especially now that he has a secret.

For @overthetopobsessed

“Mr Hale?”

Derek shook himself from his thoughts, straightening in his seat and looking up with wide, alert eyes.

Mr Harris stared at him with the same cold, unyielding glare he always wore, but his voice held a note of irritation—bordering anger.

“I’m sorry, sir,” Derek apologised quietly.

There was a quiet buzz of whispers around the room.

“Can you tell me the difference between a werewolf and an Animagus?” Harris repeated the question.

“No, sir,” Derek replied.

Mr Harris opened his mouth to lecture Derek when a voice called out from the back of the classroom, interrupting him.

“An Animagus is a witch or wizard who can take the form of an animal and return back to their human form at any time and of their won free will, whereas a werewolf – or any were-creature for that matter – changes form against their will based on the lunar cycle.”

Derek glanced over his shoulder at the boy who had answered.

Stiles Stilinski.

The boy met Harris’ gaze defiantly, a smug smile – a common trait among Slytherins – turning up the corners of his mouth. His dark brown irises glimmered with amusement at the professor’s stunned silence. His eyes shifted to Derek, his gaze softening and his smugness fading as a friendly smile played across his lips.

“Correct, Mr Stilinski,” Harris said, his voice tense—as if saying those words pained him. “Although, next time, I would appreciate it if you showed some degree of manners and respect and raised your hand before answering.”

“Sorry, sir,” Stiles replied, but his voice was dry and everyone knew he didn’t mean it.

Harris screwed up his face bitterly, drawing in a measured breath as he held his composure. “As for you, Mr Hale—”

Derek turned back around to look at the professor as Harris took a step closer and stood at the corner of Derek’s desk.

“—leave the day dreaming for outside my classroom and don’t come to class unprepared, understood?”

Derek swallowed hard against the lump in his throat and bowed his head guiltily.

“Yes, sir,” Derek answered meekly.

“Very good.” Harris let out a huff before turning sharply and strutting back to the front of the classroom and continuing the lesson.

Derek waited for a second before glancing over his shoulder.

Stiles met his gaze. Derek didn’t have to say ‘thank you’; Stiles could read it in his eyes and winked mischievously in response.

Derek turned back to face the front of the class, his heart skipping a beat and a soft rosy blush colouring his cheeks, but the feeling didn’t last long.

He looked down at the text book that lay on the desk before him, the pages open to the monstrous illustration of a werewolf. It didn’t look remotely human: its limbs were elongated and its body hunched over. It was covered in fur with the bony nubs of its spine sticking out rigidly. Its arms hung by its side, hands flexed to reveal its sharp claws. The face had been elongated into a snout, the creature snarling and bearing its jagged teeth. But what stood out the most was the bright red ink that had been used to colour in the creature’s irises, giving it the illusion of glowing red eyes that stared at Derek, making his heart fill with dread and terror.

Below the illustration, bold black letters spelt out ‘LYCANTROPY: WEREWOLF’.

Derek swallowed hard against the bile that rose into his throat, burning at his insides. A wave of anxiety and fear clutched his heart. Unease settled in his gut as he dropped his gaze—unable to look at the picture and not wanting to look up in case someone saw the fear in his eyes.

------------------------------------------------

“What’s this I hear about you getting in trouble with Harris?” Laura asked as she caught up with her brother and walked alongside him through the crowded hallway.

Derek looked at her. She was as radiant as ever; her long brown hair cascading past her shoulder and the bold navy blue of her Ravenclaw tie bringing out the sparkle in her dark eyes.

They used to joke about needing a fourth sibling since the three Hale siblings were sorted into different houses: Laura into Ravenclaw, Derek into Hufflepuff, and Cora into Slytherin. All they needed was a Gryffindor and they had a full house.

“I wasn’t in trouble,” Derek replied. “I just didn’t hear him ask me the question.”

Laura tilted her head slightly as she looked at her brother sceptically. There was a glimmer of worry in her dark eyes.

“You know you can talk to me, right?” she said, trying to gently coax the truth from him.

“I know,” Derek replied, trying to reassure her.

It didn’t work.

She kept her gaze fixed on him.

“I’m fine,” Derek insisted.

“If you say so,” Laura said quietly, backing down; she still didn’t believe him, but she knew him better than to keep prying—Derek would only shut down if she did.

Derek drew in a deep breath.

“I’m fine,” he reassured her. “I’ll see you at the quidditch game.”

“Who are you cheering for?” Laura asked—calling after her brother as he began to walk away.

Ravenclaw vs. Hufflepuff.

And his big sister was Ravenclaw’s star player.

“You,” Derek answered. “Like I always do.”

Laura offered him a sweet smile, but it fell from her face as her brother turned his back and disappeared into the sea of people. The worry still lingered in her eyes as she watched him leave.

------------------------------------------------

The library was a large space filled with towering shelves full of old hardcover books, leather bound journals and other books that looked like antiques, all bound in magnificent colours of scarlet, burgundy, deep green, gold, and grey. The spines of the books were decorated by gold or silver lettering that read the titles, adorned with small metal studs and a few were even fastened with small hinges that looked to be made of brass or silver.

The shelves covered all the walls, large ladders on casters were scattered about the room where the occupants had last left them. Higher up, there was a small platform that stretched around the room, a mezzanine that allowed them to access another storey of bookshelves that the ladders couldn't reach. High above everything was a dome-like sky light, the slightly misted glass allowing the golden light of day to drift into the large library and illuminate the shadowed space.

Several books moved on their own, returning to the shelves and sorting themselves into the right places.

On the far side of the room was a small fireplace with a marble mantelpiece. Atop the mantelpiece sat a few of the sturdier-looking books, some candles and a vase of flowers that never seemed to wilt—probably because the librarian hexed them. Before the fireplace sat two arm chairs and a larger couch, each made of beige fabric that were covered in a faded floral pattern. Two Gryffindor students sat on the rug before the fireplace with their books sprawled out in front of them as they talked quietly.

Derek sat on his own among the rows of tables and chairs set up for students to study.

The library was quiet, which was both a blessing and a curse: it was a place where Derek could get away from all the noise and chaos, but it also meant he was left alone with his thoughts.

He tried to drown them out, focusing on his homework.

A stack of textbooks were piled up beside him, several more lying open on the desk before him as his quill scratched at the paper of his notebooks, leaving elegant scrawls of ink in its wake.

“This seat taken?” a familiar voice asked.

Derek glanced up, his aventurine eyes meeting the smoky quarts depths.

“Uh, no,” Derek stammered. He gestured to the seat. “Please.”

Stiles set his books down on the table and pulled out the chair across from Derek. He sat down and opened up his books.

Derek bowed his head and glanced up through his eyelashes, watching as Stiles’ dark eyes danced across the pages as he read the lines of text.

“I didn’t get the chance to say thank you for this morning,” Derek said.

“No need. Harris is an ass and you didn’t deserve that.”

Stiles glanced up at Derek, offering him a friendly smile.

Derek smiled in return.

He wasn’t like the other Slytherins that Derek knew—he wasn’t obnoxious, prideful, arrogant or snarky. Maybe that was because he wasn’t a pureblood like most of the others; his mother was a witch, but his father was a muggle—a police officer, apparently. Stiles had grown up in the muggle world, far away from magic. He tried to make up for it—working twice as hard to prove he had what it took to be there, but he didn’t need to; he was smarter and more powerful than any other student. His only weakness was he was powerful, but he had no idea how to control it.

The hiss of whispers reached his ears. Derek turned his head slightly to see two students glance at him before turning away and gossiping.

“Ignore them,” Stiles said softly.

Derek turned back to his text book, feeling his chest tighten and his heart hammer against his ribs.

“They’re talking about my uncle, aren’t they?” Derek asked.

“Most likely,” Stiles replied.

Peter Hale was well known in the wizarding world, but he disappeared the week before Derek and his sisters went on break. No Aurors had been able to track him down and many believed he was dead. When the Hale siblings returned to Hogwarts, everyone looked the other way or talked behind their backs. The whispers followed Derek everywhere.

Derek looked up at Stiles. “Thank you.”

Stiles lifted his head, his brow furrowed slightly in confusion. “What for?”

“For not treating me different.”

The corner of Stiles’ lips turned up in a kind smile.

Derek bowed his head, trying to focus on his homework, but his mind kept going back to the monstrous illustration.

“You know a lot about werewolves,” Derek remarked, unsure of how to start the conversation.

“I guess so,” Stiles said modestly. “I tend to take in a whole lot of information—most of it is useless.”

“Is it possible for a werewolf to become an Animagus?”

Stiles sat back in his seat, thinking it over for a second. “I don’t know for sure, but I did read something about a werewolf gaining control of their shifts by defying their alpha. But that either means defeating them or finding an anchor strong enough to keep your humanity in control of you psyche.”

“An anchor?”

“An anchor is something meaningful to you; you bind yourself to it to keep your human side in control,” Stiles explained. “It can be a memory, a person, a place or an object—it just has to mean something to you. At least that’s what I read about Animagi Transfiguration, so I guess it would be something similar in the case of a werewolf controlling their transformation.”

Derek nodded thoughtfully.

“A werewolf becoming an Animagus is extremely rare and probably very difficult,” Stiles continued. “But I don’t think it’s impossible.”

Derek felt the tension in his gut ease, letting out a sigh of relief as hope found its way back into his heart.

------------------------------------------------

He felt the burn of power flow through his veins, setting his nerves on fire as the lure of the moon hummed ignited his senses.

He made his way out of the castle, sneaking out through the passage his uncle had told him about back in his first year—the one Peter had found during his time at Hogwarts. The cool night air met him, offering little relief to the searing heat that flooded his veins.

Beads of sweat gathered on his brow, soaking through his shirt and making the fabric cling to his skin.

His breathing grew heavy as he staggered towards the shelter of the forest that bordered the school.

A piercing howl rang out through the night, making Derek’s heart leap in his chest.

There was a sharp rush of air as a figure appeared before him. His dark hair a tousled mess and his clothing dishevelled. He clutched his fir wand, the pale wood standing out against the darkness.

“Stiles?” Derek rasped, feeling fear clutch his heart. “You shouldn’t be here.”

“I know,” Stiles replied. “I nearly got caught sneaking out of the dorms. I was trying to get to the Gryffindor dorms; seems like I missed the mark.”

Stiles froze, his eyes widening as he looked at Derek.

“Are you alright?” he asked, his voice edged with worry. “You don’t look too good.”

“It’s not safe out here.”

“What are you talking about?” Stiles asked, his voice catching in his throat as hesitation and anxiety filled his chest.

“You have to go.”

“Derek, you’re starting to scare me.”

Derek opened his mouth to say something but his words caught in his throat as a low growl echoed from the shadows.

Stiles wheeled around, his eyes wide and his heart hammering in his chest.

The bushes rustled, clumps of leaves and low hanging branches crackling, shaking and breaking as a big black shadow slinked into the open, broad feet thumping the ground. Their claws dug into the mud, upturning the dirt and releasing the sweet earthy scent.

A pair of glowing red eyes emerged from the shadows, the thin veil of moonlight illuminating the creature’s figure as it stalked forward. The creature rose up onto its hind feet. Its large form was unhuman; standing tall on curved, slender legs. The bright red eyes were set above an elongated snout. Long arms hung at its side, disfigured hands – hairy like a wolf’s paws – stretched, thick, curved claws lit by the bleeding streams of moonlight.

Stiles froze, eyes wide.

It snarled, baring its ivory teeth as it focused its glare on Stiles.

Stiles staggered back slightly, his mind screaming at him to run but he couldn’t move; his body was frozen in place.

“Derek?” he rasped, glancing over his shoulder.

The clouds parted, exposing the moon.

Derek winced, doubling over in pain.

“Derek?” Stiles called, alarmed.

Derek’s eyes flew open, his pale adventuring irises glowing crimson.

“Run,” he growled.

Stiles flailed about, stumbling backwards. His feet pedalled beneath him. He lost his footing on the uneven ground, falling against the damp earth. He turned, using a hand to steady himself as he leapt to his feet and tore into the darkness.

He ran along the tree line, glancing over his shoulder as he saw a dark figure charge towards him.

He sprinted through the dense forest, weaving his way through the labyrinth of thick tree trunks. He sprung over the fallen trees, broken branches and thick shrubs, his nimble legs and spring-locked ankles projecting him over the large logs. The thick undergrowth and claw-like twigs dragged at his feet. He tried to keep himself upright, struggling not to stumble or trip as he sprinted away from the massacre.

The sounds of low growls and spine-chilling howls drained away, disappearing behind him as he ran further and further into the dense forest.

He took a sharp turn, heading back towards the castle grounds. He broke through the tree line, slowing his pace as he neared the Whomping Willow. He turned, running on the spot as he looked back at the forest—checking to see if anyone – or anything – had followed him.

He let out a sigh of relief, letting his nerves calm. He drew in heavy breaths, trying to slow his breathing.

Stiles was tackled to the ground, letting out a pained wheeze as the air was knocked from his lungs. His eyes flew open wide, looking up at the glowing red irises of the werewolf.

He thrashed about, letting out a vicious animalistic cry as he tried to fight the creature off.

The werewolf pinned him to the ground, sharp rocks tearing open Stiles’ pale skin as the werewolf pushed them against the ground. Stiles felt a sharp wave of pain flood his arms, his bones near breaking.

Then, all of a sudden, the weight was gone.

There was a rush of air as the second werewolf tacked the alpha off of him, knocking him to the ground and fighting him.

Stiles rolled onto his side, scrambling to his feet and sprinting towards the swaying branches of the Whomping Willow. He dodged past the branches that swung at him, the thick wood hitting the earth with a heavy crash that snapped off twigs, shook the earth, and sent dirt flying through the air.

Stiles dove towards the trunk, something catching his eye. Among the twisted aged wood of the tree was an ancient door.

Stiles pulled open the small door that was built into the base of the tree. He pulled the ricket wooden door shut behind himself, staring at it for a second before slowly backing up.

He made his way down the flight of rickety stairs, following them into a large room. The windows were all boarded up, the moonlight bleeding through the thin gaps enough for Stiles to see.

He drew in steady breaths, calming himself as he looked around. The wind that blew past the windows echoed like screams as it rattled the glass and a draught blew through the warped wooden walls.

“Shrieking Shack,” Stiles muttered.

The wooden panelling of the doors were broken in, some doors lying off their hinges. The walls had patches of plaster missing, exposing the wooden framing beneath. The decorative wallpaper was peeling off the walls, the wooden floorboards warped, worn down with time and covered in stains. Every piece of furniture was moth-eaten and broken—as though someone has smashed it in a fit of rage.

There was a thin layer of dust over everything.

He stepped through one of the other doors, looking down the old staircase and into the foyer of the Shack. There was an old chair that had one of its legs ripped off.

He stepped back into the room. Beside him was an old four post bed, the wooden base snapped in half and the frame that had once held up the canopy had fallen down.

He edged over to the bed, lowering himself into the shadows that dwelled in the corner where the bed met the wall. He shrunk down into the darkness, pulling his knees up to his chest.

He waited.

Adrenaline coursed through his veins, stopping him from falling asleep, but his eyes grew heavy as he stared at the warped hardwood floors.

The light of dawn began to creep through the cracks in the boarded-up windows.

There was a loud crash as someone came sprinting down the stairs that lead up to the Whomping Willow.

Stiles’ heart leapt into his chest. He shifted, crouching behind the bed as he readied himself to run.

“Stiles?” a familiar voice called out.

Derek stumbled into the room, his shoulders heaving with heavy breaths as he frantically looked around the dark, decrepit interior of the Shrieking Shack.

Stiles shifted slightly, rising to his feet and stepping out from behind the bed.

Derek let out a sigh of relief. “Are you okay?”

Stiles tightened his grip on his wand, swallowing hard against the lump in his throat. His voice was quiet and raspy, but firm as he said, “Explain. Now.”

Derek dropped his gaze. “When my uncle went missing a few weeks ago, I stupidly thought I was the only person who could find him. I ran away from home to go look for him. A few hours after walking through the woods behind my family’s estate, I was attacked. It was a rogue werewolf.”

“One that holds its shape,” Stiles confirmed.

Derek nodded.

He fell silent for a minute, feeling his chest tighten and his gut twist in knots.

“It bit me,” he admitted.

“You’re a werewolf,” Stiles said. A thought struck him, a look of realisation washing over his face. “That’s why you asked whether a werewolf could become an Animagus.”

Derek nodded.

“And the, uh—the other werewolf. Was that the rogue that bit you?”

Derek nodded again.

“I’m so sorry… I never meant to put you in danger,” Derek said, his voice breaking and full of pain.

“You didn’t put me in danger,” Stiles replied. “I just have a tendency to stumble right into it.”

“Are you hurt?” Derek asked, his voice full of concern.

Stiles looked down at himself, his pale flesh was caked in mud and covered in bloody welts where sticks and stones had scratched open his skin.

“Just a few bumps and bruises,” Stiles said dismissively. “Nothing too bad. How about you?”

Derek seemed taken back by the question.

“I—I’m fine,” he said. He glanced down at his arms, the tan flesh marred by dark bruises and faint pink lines where thick gashes were stitching themselves back together. “Werewolves heal quickly.”

Derek glanced back over his shoulder, up the stairs at the door that lead back outside.

“We should gat back,” he said. “Everyone will be waking up soon.”

Stiles nodded, slowly edging towards Derek.

Derek took no offence to Stiles’ hesitation; he was surprised that he trusted him at all. He led the way up the stairs and pushed open the rickety door at the base of the Whomping Willow. He squinted slightly as he stepped out of the cool shadows and into the world lit by the golden glow of the morning light. He looked up at the thrashing branches, feeling his chest tighten anxiously.

Stiles stepped up to Derek’s side, both of them keeping their back pressed against the thick tree trunk. He held his wand out.

“Immobulus.”

The branches stilled, frozen mid-action.

Stiles drew in a measured breath and took a step forward, and then another, making his way across the divots and dirt holes that covered the ground beneath the Willow.

He and Derek made their way back across the open field and up to the gates of Hogwarts, where Mr Harris stood, his arms crossed over his chest and his cold eyes staring down at the boys. Beside him stood Coach Finstock, his dark unkempt hair sticking up at all angles.

“Mr Stilinski, I expect this kind of behaviour from you, but Mr Hale – I must admit – I am surprised to see you,” Harris said, his voice cold.

“Everyone’s looking for the two of you,” Coach added. “I hope you have a good explanation for this.”

Derek bowed his head, his stomach twisting in knots as a sickening wave of bile rose into his throat. This was it; he’d be exposed and sent to Azkaban.

“I was helping Derek study,” Stiles lied. “We nearly got caught outside of the dorms after lights out and we panicked, so we apparated and ended up outside where we were attacked by a werewolf.”

Derek blinked in surprise, glancing out the corner of his eye at Stiles.

Harris looked at him, his face deadpan with disbelief. “A werewolf?”

Stiles met his gaze defiantly.

“A werewolf,” he said firmly. “We were chased into the Shrieking Shack and hid there until the sun came up.”

“That’s quite the fanciful story, Mr Stilinski.”

“It’s the truth,” Stiles insisted.

Harris opened his mouth to say something but Coach Finstock held up his hand, interrupting them.

“We’ll decide what to do with the two of you later, for now go back to your dorm rooms and clean yourselves up,” Coach instructed. He turned to Mr Harris. “Why don’t you go tell the others that we’ve found them.”

Harris let out a measured breath and turned sharply, storming off down the hall.

Stiles and Derek turned the other way and began to head down the hall.

“Mr Hale, a moment,” Coach called after him.

Derek stopped, glancing at Stiles before turning back to Coach.

Coach lowered his voice. “I know things have been tough for you since your uncle went missing, but that doesn’t give you an excuse to start acting recklessly and breaking the rules. It’s not going to change anything.”

Derek bowed his head.

“Your sisters were worried sick when they found out you were missing,” Coach continued. “I know things are hard for you, but you’re not alone; think about them.”

Derek nodded.

“I’m sorry, sir,” he said quietly.

“I know,” Coach said. He gently patted Derek on the shoulder “Now, go get yourself cleaned up.”

Derek nodded again, turning and making his way down the halls. He made his way to the shifting staircases, the buzz of chatter reaching his ears. He glanced up to see crowds of students gathered on the stairs and the landings, staring at the walls and talking quietly.

Among the crowd he spotted a familiar face.

“Cora,” he called out, hurrying over to his sister’s side.

“Where the hell have you been?” Cora growled.

“It’s a long story,” Derek dismissed. “What’s going on?”

“The paintings,” Cora said.

The crowd parted and Derek saw what she meant. The paintings that hung on the walls were destroyed—the canvases were slashed, the frames broken or hanging crooked, and the living portraits injured and cowering in fear.

“What happened?”

“The paintings say some kind of wolf tore through the castle,” Cora replied.

Derek’s heart sank into his gut.

“A wolf?” Derek repeated, his voice catching in his throat.

His eyes followed the trail of destruction, a path winding around the walls and leading up to the higher flights of stairs—to the Slytherin dorms.

“Stiles.”

------------------------------------------------

Stiles dragged his feet across the smooth wooden floorboards of the dorm room. His eyes were heavy and his movements slow and lethargic as he shrugged off the mod-stained hoodie that he wore. He tossed it over the end of his bed, stepping over to his trunk and pulling out his uniform.

The sound of footsteps reached his ears. His brow furrowed slightly in confusion; no one else should be in the dorms.

He turned slightly, glancing over his shoulder to see who was there. His heart dropped.

He barely caught a glimpse of the alpha’s glowing red eyes before he lunged at Stiles.

Stiles dove aside, reaching for his wand, but the werewolf tackled him to the ground. He thrashed around, his elbow colliding with the creature’s jaw as he tried to fight back or break free.

The werewolf pinned him to the floor, pressing their weight against the teen’s wrists until his frail bones threatened to break. The alpha’s jagged talons tore through the pale skin of Stiles’ arm. The bitter metallic smell filled Stiles’ nose as streams of blood coursed across his skin, the searing pain igniting every nerve in his body and flooding his veins.

Stiles cried out in pain.

The alpha let out a low growl, his teeth bared in a vicious snarl as he leant in closer.

Stiles felt the heat of the creature’s breath against his skin, squeezing his eyes shut as tears fell from his eyes.

He let out a broken sob.

There was another growl, one more fierce than the alpha’s low, threatening rumble.

Stiles hesitantly opened his eyes to see the alpha tackled off of him. He turned his head to see Derek thrown back.

Derek let out a stifled grunt as he hit the solid wooden frame of one of the beds. He bared his teeth in a vicious snarl, his eyes burning with rage as he charged at the alpha.

He slashed at him blocking his bows and fighting back as he put himself between the alpha and Stiles; protecting him.

The alpha snapped and snarled, his claws tearing at Derek’s clothes and clawing open his skin.

Streams of red stained Derek’s skin, but he didn’t seem to notice.

He fought back, but the alpha was too strong for him.

The alpha threw Derek back against the far wall. His head slammed against the rough bricks, bursts of light and colour blinding him as he dropped to his hands and knees.

The alpha grabbed him by the throat, lifting him off his feet.

Derek let out a strangled breath, kicking out as he tried to free himself.

The alpha’s grip didn’t waver.

The crimson glow of the creature’s eyes was full of bloodlust as he raised his arm, flexing his claws; ready to kill Derek.

The alpha froze, his body stiffening.

His grip weakened.

Derek fell to the floor, coughing, sputtering, and gasping for breath.

The alpha collapsed, hitting the ground with a solid thud.

Derek looked across the room to see Stiles, half slouched against his bed with his other arm outstretched and his wand in his hand.

Stiles slowly lowered his wand, his shoulder rising and falling with heavy breaths.

There was a thundering crash as the door to the dorms was thrown open.

Harris and Coach rushed into the room, skidding to a halt as they looked around the room.

Harris’ eyes fell on the werewolf, growing wide.

“Quite the fanciful story, huh?” Stiles said bitterly between broken breaths.

Harris shook himself from his stupor, straightening as he looked between the two boys. “Let’s get you two to the infirmary.”

Derek sluggishly pushed himself upright, bracing himself on the wall and he rose to his feet. He staggered across the dorm room, holding his hand out to Stiles and helping him to his feet.

A crowd od students gathered behind Harris, craning their necks to look in through the doorway.

A small figure shoved her way through the crowd, pushing past Harris and into the room despite his objections. She rushed across the room, throwing herself into her brother’s arms.

Derek let out a small sigh, wrapping his arms around Cora’s narrow shoulders and holding her tight.

“It’s okay,” he whispered. “I’m okay.”

“Oh my God,” Coach uttered, his quiet voice catching their attention.

Cora stepped back. Derek and Stiles turned, following Coach’s gaze to where the alpha lay on the floor, shifting back to his human form.

Coach grabbed a blanket from one of the beds, draping it across the man’s body.

Derek couldn’t take his eyes of the man.

The slender body lay bare on the ground, his fair skin covered in pale white scars. His chest slowly rose and fell with even breaths. Black ink stood out on the underside of his forearm, the Slytherin crest tattooed into his skin and a bold black triskelion on his wrist. His light brown hair was streaked with grey and longer than Derek remembered, but the man’s weary face was the same as always.

Derek’s heart stopped.

“Peter.”

#sterek #sterek au #sterek hp au #sterek harry potter au #sterek fanfiction #sterek fanfic #sterek fic #long post #text post #slytherin stiles #slytherin!stiles #hufflepuff derek #hufflepuff!derek #please read the tags on ao3 #for overthetopobsessed #overthetopobsessed #sorry it took so long

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allegra-writes · 4 years

Text

“Fine line” Part II

Peter Parker x Reader x Harry Osborn

NSFW

Warnings: Smut, threesome.

SERIES MASTERLIST | MY MASTERLIST

You couldn't help the hiss that escaped your lips as Peter gently padded the cut on your shoulder with gauze.

"Sorry" He flinched, "I'm being as soft as I can…"

"I know, Pete, it's ok" You reassured him.

He sighed,

"No, it's not. I'm good at this, god knows I've had practice, but I'm not a doctor…" nonetheless, he grabbed the needle and medical thread, "You should have let Simmons take a look at you"

"She was rather busy"

"I know" Peter was well aware of the carnage, the attack on the city had been vicious. S.H.I.E.L.D Tower now laid in ruins, hundreds of agents hurt or even…

"Your sister is going to be ok" He reassured you. Again. You nodded, swallowing through the knot on your throat. Peter finished his work, placing the softest, most careful of kisses right under the injury. He knew how scared, how worried you were. He knew that was the reason you didn't let doctor Simmons take care of you, cause you didn't want to distract her from tending to Daisy.

"I mean it" He insisted, "She's strong, just like you"

"Yeah, I know" You sighed, "I just wish we were smarter"

You had been naive, the both of you, in believing you had seen the last of the Goblin for the night, not realizing the whole incident with Harry had been just a distraction.

But the Goblin had miscalculated too, he hadn't counted on your whole former team being in the city to meet your boyfriend. All of S.H.I.E.L.D'S best and brightest in the same place, at the same time.

That mistake had ultimately cost him his life.

"What happened to Norman?" You hadn't stuck around for the clean up, too occupied taking an unconscious Daisy, and other badly hurt agents, into the med bay of the Zephyr to get treated. "To the body, I mean"

Peter avoided your eyes, instead choosing to keep wrapping a bandage around your shoulder.

"Peter?"

"I took him back home" He finally blurted out, still not meeting your gaze, "His home, I mean. I know Fury probably wanted to study him or something but I just… Harry, I couldn't- his father, disappearing just like that? Harry deserves to know, he deserves to know his father is not coming back. O-or if S.H.I.E.L.D didn't take the body... I couldn't let Harry find him like that, all broken and bloody on the street. I just-... I just couldn't…"

It clicked then, watching your boyfriend's tear streaked face. All the late night phone calls, talking till sunrise, all the times his patrols around the city had taken him to Oscorp, his diving head first tonight to save Harry, suddenly it all made sense.

"You're in love with him"

"So are you" It wasn't an accusation, just the statement of a fact. You weren't really surprised he had realized, not when he could hear your heartbeat quicken whenever Harry showed up in the news.

The silence fell between you like ghost, a heavy presence, invisible but suffocating, for several moments, until Peter gathered enough courage to break it,

"I still love you, Six. This doesn't change that"

"I know," you sighed, "I still love you too"

"What are we going to do now?" He looked about as lost as you felt.

"I don't know, Peter…"

"I- I don't want to lose you" He choked out a sob.

"You won't" You stood, pulling him in, wrapping your arms around him. He held onto you hard, almost so hard it hurt, but you couldn't let go. You wouldn't. "You won't lose me, Peter, ever. Not for this, not for anything"

He leaned back just enough to crush his lips to yours, pouring all his desperation, all his fear and guilt into a bittersweet kiss. His arms wound even tighter around you in an iron grip, afraid if he let go for just a second, you would disappear from his side.

"Don't leave me… please don't leave me" He didn't realize the words were escaping his mouth between kisses until your answer reached his ears, soothing like a balm:

"I won't. I'm never leaving you"

The ground was swept from under your feet, as Peter picked you up, bridal style. He needed you, his sunshine, his anchor to-

"I'm sorry to interrupt, Peter" Karen's voice resonated through the apartment, "But Harry Osborn is in the lobby, asking for you"

You both froze. It wasn't completely unexpected, you knew how brilliant the blonde heir was under that frivolous bad boy façade, but Peter seemed to be taken by surprise. He searched your eyes, silently begging for guidance, but deep down, he knew what the right thing to do was, the only possible course of action.

"Send him up" He ordered Karen, gently setting you down on your feet again.

"Of course, Peter" The AI replied, with what Peter could have sworn was approval, if that was even possible.

You found a silk robe to put on over your flimsy summer pajamas, covering your body not out of modesty, but to somewhat conceal the bandages and bruises littering your skin. Peter smiled, it was just like you to hide your vulnerabilities, especially if you were expecting a confrontation. He took your hand, and you stepped out of the bedroom together. Come what may, you knew you could face it, as long as you had each other.

"Harry!" The gasp left Peter's throat unbidden, as soon as his eyes fell on his friend. It was a pitiful sight, the blonde still wearing the same clothes from last night, rumpled and dirty, the stench of alcohol coming out of his pores, so strong even you without your super senses could smell it from the other side of the room. He rushed to him, couldn't help it, but Harry's words stopped him dead in his tracks, in the middle of the living room.

"It was you wasn't it? You killed my father. I broke into his lab, read his files… he was the Goblin. Did you know?"

"Harry-"

"DID YOU KNOW IT?!"

Peter hesitated, but in the end he answered honestly.

"Yes"

"And you still killed him… you knew he was my father, and you still killed him!"

You took a step forward, subtly placing yourself between them; you knew your boyfriend would not defend himself if Harry was to lash out, probably believing he deserved it.

"No, Harry. I did." Peter might have knocked the monster out, but the coup de grâce had been all you. You could try to defend yourself, to make excuses, say you were following orders, that he was too dangerous to live. But the truth was, when you had seen Daisy go down, bleeding, her body shattered, limbs bent in strange, wrong angles, you had seen red. You would have done the exact same thing, even without director Fury's voice in your ear.

"The Goblin almost killed her sister" Peter intertwined his fingers with yours. Of course he would advocate for you even if he wouldn't for himself, "and he also... hurt Kate" Understatement of the fucking century, but at least her injuries weren't life threatening.

Harry crumbled in front of your eyes, all the fight leaving him at once.

"He tried to kill me too" His own dad, the one person in the world who was supposed to love him unconditionally, had tried to murder him. Without flinching, without hesitating, all to mess with Spider-Man's head. Had Peter made a different call, go for you instead of him...

"The serum that transformed him affected his mind, Harry" You pointed out, consoling, "We don't know how much of your father was left inside the Goblin"

Harry scoffed, it would have been easier to believe your words if it had been the first time. But he could still remember, if only barely, the cold water of the pool in winter, lungs burning with lack of oxygen, his small legs kicking desperately, uselessly, and his father's blue eyes, colder than the water, watching him from above, doing nothing. Until the gardener had saved him

No, Norman Osborn had been a monster long before becoming the Goblin.

And what did that make Harry, then? Why had he come looking for Peter and you? At first he had thought he wanted blood, but now, having the both of you in front of him, he wasn't so sure.

Without your battle uniforms, you didn't look like the super human, terrifying villains his alcohol ridden brain had built you up to be. Standing there, bare feet in your sleeping clothes you were frail, vulnerable. Red eyed and bruised, you looked almost as bone weary and exhausted as he felt.

He couldn't do it.

"Did you mean it?" He managed to get out through the sobs shaking his frame, "What you said back on top of that building? Tha-that it's the choices we make and… and not what we are… th-that define us?"

Peter sidestepped you, advancing towards Harry.

"Every word" Slowly, ever so slowly, like approaching a wild animal he didn't want to spook, he reached out, "Give me the gun, Harry"

Harry's eyes went wide, but he complied, untucking the small 9 mm from the back of his waistband. He handed it over to Peter, who in turn offered it to you. Quick as lightning, you released the latch, unloading it and tossing it on the coffee table.

"I'm sorry" Harry croaked between tears, "I'm so sorry"

He hadn't noticed how cold he was, until Peter enveloped him in his warm embrace.

"It's ok, Haz" You heard him whisper, "It's going to be ok. We got you now…"

"Make it stop" Harry's cries were muffled against your boyfriend's shoulder, but you still could feel the pain in his voice, loud and clear. It hurt like a physical blow to your chest, knocking the air out of you. You had tried, you really had, but apparently your feelings for the blue eyed boy weren't as under control as you had thought "Please… make it stop"

He wasn't even conscious of the words leaving his mouth, as he begged to a god he didn't believe in, to whoever might be listening, for something to numb the pain. To feel anything else than that soul crushing agony consuming him.

Peter's eyes found yours, a silent request for permission. You didn't know what was in his mind, but you trusted him, with more than your life: You trusted him with your heart.

You nodded. It was all Peter needed. He cupped Harry's face with his hands, and kissed him.

It was surreal. Suddenly, you were witnessing your boyfriend passionately making out with the man that had been haunting your dreams for months, and you should have felt jealousy or betrayal, but the truth was, those were the furthest things from your mind. Because Harry seemed to be finally kissing back, fingers tangling in Peter's curls, still wet from your shared shower, tugging just enough for the brunet to let out the most delicious little whimper and fuck, but that had to be the hottest thing you had ever seen in your life.

And Peter had probably felt the change in you, the rising in your temperature, the beating of your heart, cause he reached for your hand without even looking, pulling you closer, guiding the blond man towards your lips. His once familiar mouth quickly reacquainted itself with yours, tongue exploring, teeth nibbling softly. The shock sent shivers down your spine, as Peter's hands opened your robe, sliding the cool silk down your arms. His lips on your neck had your head spinning, and you had to hold onto Harry's strong shoulders to stop yourself from falling.

"Hello" He breathed out as you broke the kiss, cursing your need for oxygen.

"Hi" You smiled, "It's been too long"

"Far too long" Harry agreed, the beautiful ocean of his eyes, dark and turbulent with lust.

Peter didn't stay idle for long, agile fingers working open Harry's shirt, stepping closer, pushing your body further into Harry's space. It wasn't long till you found yourself trapped between two naked, equally stunning torsos, pushing and pulling, as Peter's and Harry's lips collided again over your shoulder.

You felt your boyfriend's hand slip inside your sleeping shorts, teasing you over your panties.

"Peter" You reached back, arm hooked on the back of his neck for purchase, as he tugged your underwear to the side, and buried two fingers inside your tight heat.

"Fuck!"

Startled, you opened the eyes you hadn't even realized you had closed. You were ashamed to admit you had pretty much forgotten the other man's presence, Peter was just that good, knew your body that well, but Harry was still standing in front of you, eyes fixed on the erotic way Peter's hand was moving inside your shorts. His other hand lowered the straps of your camisole one by one, baring your chest to Harry's wonderstruck stare.

The moan that escaped your lips as Peter started expertly massaging your breast finally pulled the golden haired man out of his trance,

"Can I…"

"Touch her?" Peter finished for him, placing a sweet kiss on your temple, as your head rolled back, coming to rest on his chest, "I don't know, buddy. You'll have to ask her"

You heard Harry's voice, but it was hard to concentrate with Peter's fingers penetrating you over and over again, grazing that perfect spot inside you every time. Peter chuckled a little smugly,

"Baby girl, is it ok if Harry touches you?"

"Yes!" You panted, at last "Yes, please, Harry… touch me"

He did more than that, lips closing around the nipple not currently between Peter's fingers, hands roving all around your body, tearing and ripping at clothes with Peter's help, until you were completely naked, and completely at their mercy.

Your boyfriend laid you down on the massive chaise lounge that dominated the living room, yellow, like almost everything else on your apartment, he wanted everything to remind him of his sunflower when you weren't there. He positioned you so your legs would hang out the border, guiding Harry to kneel between them.

"Bossy, aren't you?" The blond quipped, playfully.

"Oh, you have no idea" Peter smirked from behind his back, turning his head to capture his lips again in the filthiest of kisses. You watched Peter's hands trail down Harry's chest, lower down his abs and further south stil, undoing his button and his fly, disappearing inside his pants.

Your breath catched at the same time as his, when Peter's hand closed around his member, slowly pumping up and down, up and down, the same hypnotic, insanity inducing rhythm you had taught him a lifetime ago on a tropical island.

Harry's head fell forward, eyes closed in bliss, but that was when Peter saw you.

"Naughty girl," He murmured, eyes zeroing in the way your index finger was rubbing circles on your clit, "you know I hate it when you do that…"

Your smirk was defiant,

"What are you going to do about it?" You let your other hand travel over your skin, caressing softly, teasing yourself as much as teasing him "You have your hands full"

"I'll take care of her" Haz was looking at you longingly, "Please, Peter… let me take care of her…"

"Hmmm… only because you ask so nicely" Peter's words were a little slurred, and you knew he was drunk with the power. Having both you and Harry to dominate, to do as he said was making him dizzy, almost overwhelmed.

But for once, having his senses dialed up to eleven wasn't painful, no. He was in heaven.

"Put your mouth on her, Haz… she's fucking delicious, tastes just like strawberries…"

Harry bent over, licking his lips, eyes fixed on yours. The movement pressed his ass against Peter's hard on, making him hiss.

"Can I-"

"Yes, please"

Your boyfriend tugged both Harry's pants and boxers down. You couldn’t see exactly what he was doing, but Harry’s handsome face, contorting in pleasure, gave you a pretty good idea.

"Oh, god, Harry!" You gasped as his tongue, at last, made contact with your flesh.

He hummed as if in agreement, flattening his tongue over your slit before using the tip to tap your pearl. Your hand flew to his head, finding purchase in his golden curls as he licked into you eagerly, rocking his whole face against you.

He was nothing like Peter. This was messy, obscene, it lacked Peter's finesse and precision, but fuck it was good.

You could feel the coil tighten inside you, already so close to the brink from Peter's hand, but just as it was about to snap, Harry's lips left you.

"Oh, fuck!" His curse was muffled against your thigh. You could see your boyfriend's curls over the curve of Harry's back and you could only guess what his wicked tongue was doing to the boy between your legs.

"Oh yeah, he's quite talented at that isn't he?" You giggled despite your frustration

"So good" Harry moaned, "So so good…"

Peter came into view then, placing kisses along Harry's spine.

"If you want my mouth on you" He whispered in his ear, loud enough for you to hear, "keep yours on her"

Harry nodded, enthusiastically.

"And make sure she comes," He went on, "that's the only rule: Our girl gets to come… Over, and over," He punctuated every word with a kiss down Harry's back again, "and over, and over…"

The most wanton of noises left Harry and you knew conversation time was over as he dove right back in, separating your lips with his fingers, thrusting his tongue inside you as deep as it would go. Your back arched off the chaise, crying out loud when Harry decided to add a finger, and then another one, as his lips closed around your clit, sucking a little too hard.

It was too much.

"Haz… fuck, ah!... Slow down, baby"

"Keep going, Harry" Peter's tone was stern, as he watched you writhe in pleasure. He was on his knees again, coating two of his fingers with lube. When had he gone and fetch it, you had no idea. "Make her come… god you have to see her, she is so gorgeous when she comes…"

And it wasn't going to take long, with the way Harry's tongue was circling your clit and the vibrations from his own moans and sweet little whines, you could feel yourself right at that edge, all you needed was something to tip you over.

Harry's hand made its way to your chest, finding your breast and massaging just the way you liked it, the way you had done earlier. He was a fast learner. But you didn't have much time to marvel about that, cause you were finally falling, every nerve of your body going up in sparks, your cries of ecstasy intermingling with his, as Peter finally, finally entered him, torturously slow, making him feel every lavish inch.

The stronger boy's measured but powerful thrusts pushed Harry's body forwards. He wrapped his arms around your waist, burying his face on your stomach, mouth slack against your skin, muffling his sounds.

"Careful there," Peter warned, slowing down his movements almost to a stop, "She's hurt"

Harry opened his eyes, and they came to rest on your bruised ribs. You could see the thoughts behind his icy blues crystal clear, the misplaced guilt twisting a knot in his entrails: His father had done that to you. But you refused to let those heavy feelings invade your bubble of solace, refused to let his father ruin this for him too. Squaring your jaw, you looked up at Peter,

"What are you waiting for, Tiger?" Your boyfriend's eyes went wide at your commanding tone, "Fuck him like you mean it"

Peter gulped, goosebumps erupting on his skin. Oh yeah, he might be a big boy now, but your dominant voice could still make him weak. He wondered absently if it was simply you, and everything you did, that turned him to putty in your hands.

"Yes, ma'am" He grabbed onto Harry's hips, picking up his rhythm.

"Oh god!" Harry sobbed into your skin. You ran your hand through his curls, caressing soothingly.

"He feels good, doesn't he? So hard and big…"

"So big…" The blonde agreed, "so deep…"

"How does Harry feel, Peter?"

Your boyfriend was biting his lip, looking down, fixated on the place he was disappearing inside Harry.

"So good, so fucking tight…"

You sighed, yearningly. They were breathtakingly, heartbreakingly beautiful. All lean and strong muscles, locking and releasing, miles of soft creamy skin colliding on skin, tiny beads of sweat glistening in the soft morning light. It was fascinating, watching them move together, the dirty sounds leaving them more than enough to make you wet and ready again.

But before you could say something, you felt Harry's turquoise stare on you.

"Six… I need you, please" He pleaded, small and shy, as if afraid you would say no. You looked at Peter for reassurance, but he was already bending over, reaching for Harry's cock and unrolling a condom around it, pushing him further up your body. The blond whined in complaint when the movement caused Peter to slip out of him.

"You liked that, didn't you?" Your boyfriend moved closer, kissing his shoulder, "Like me filling you up so good…"

Harry and you moaned in unison, making him chuckle.

"It's her turn now. She needs to be filled too. So go on, bury that gorgeous cock of yours between her legs" Peter encouraged, softly, his tone a stark contrast to the vulgarity of his words, "and I will fuck you so hard she will feel it"

Harry cursed, Peter’s dirty mouth was going to be the death of him, he just knew it.

No, he was already in heaven, he decided, as he braced himself on his forearms at each side of your head, taking his sweet time entering you. He would be lying if he said he hadn’t thought about this, the truth was he had, a million times. In fact, every time he had taken a girl that looked just enough like you into his bed. But they were never quite right. Never had your perfume, or their hair was the wrong color, or their eyes were the wrong shade. Now it was really you, and never in his wildest dreams had he pictured it could be like this, your breathy moans underneath him, your heat embracing him so perfectly… As your boyfriend did obscene, immoral, delicious things to him from behind, driving him right to the brink of sanity.

And he didn't waste any time, thrusting hard and fast. Soon, Harry was a sobbing mess, trapped as every move to escape Peter’s cock drove him deeper into you, every motion backwards and away from you impaling him further on Peter’s cock. There wasn’t much he could do, but take whatever Peter gave him.

You clung onto his back, blunt fingernails digging into his skin,

“I'm going to come… Harry, I'm going to come on your cock”

Fuck, you were just as dirty as your boyfriend. And it was truth, he could feel it, feel your walls quivering around his dick, feel your body starting to shake with the force of your orgasm. Peter bended over, grabbing hold of his shoulders, changing the angle, hitting his prostate over and over, white hot pleasure exploding without warning. Harry drown his screams into your mouth, his climax almost painful in it’s intensity, his vision going black.

…

“…Alright, then what about the Academy of Science and Technology?”

You made a face,

“You need at least one PhD to get in…”

“I got a master’s in engineering, does that count?”

“You could get into the Academy of Communications with that” Peter interjected, lazily caressing your naked back. The three of you were in bed, a mess of legs and arms intertwined together, as the sun went down over the city outside.

“That’s the easiest of S.H.I.E.L.D’s academies to get into, right?” Harry mused. Freedom, what a strange thing it was: He had spent his whole life craving it, wishing to be able to do whatever he wanted, go wherever he wanted, be with whoever he really wanted, without fear of his father judgement, without fear of his wrath, and now that he finally could… It was slightly terrifying.

A part of him almost felt guilty, for being so eager to tear apart everything his father had worked so hard for years to turn him into. For allowing himself to feel something this good not even 24 hours after his death. But a touch of your hand, or a glimpse of warm brown eyes, and it all faded away. His second thoughts, his doubts, his responsabilities… In fact, everything outside that bed faded away until there was nothing more than the three of you, alone in the world, still tangled together just talking and touching and basking in the afterglow.

You nodded,

“Data specialists and field agents. But I seriously think you could get into Operations, if you really want to”

“I think she’s right. I'm getting into the Academy of Operations this fall, and” Peter decided, finding Harry’s hand under the sheets, interlocking their fingers together “I really would like you to be there with me”

Harry was speechless. He had wish, he had dreamed, but he hadn’t let himself hope. That this… whatever it was, wild, and exiting, and delicate and precious between the three of you was not a one time thing. He had tried to convince himself that he would be fine if it was, that he was going to treasure it anyway, be glad it happened, enjoy it while it lasted. Even if it killed him the next day.

It was a fine line between happiness and heartbreak, the one he had been walking with you today.

“I… Well, I mean” He stammered “I think I would love to. Go with you, I mean. If I can get in, that is”

Peter and you exchanged a look, one of those silent communication things you seemed to always have going on, and he felt the littlest pang of envy. He wanted to be privy to those conversations, like he wanted to be a part of yours and Peter’s world. He wanted to know what the Cavalry was and why Peter seemed to be so scared of it. He wanted to be able to keep up with yours and Peter stamina. He wanted to spend so much time with you that not knowing your name stopped bothering him, cause he literally knew everything else about you, like Peter did. He wanted to speak the same language you two seemed to share…

And maybe, just maybe, it wasn’t an impossible dream. Because suddenly he found himself with an armful if you, capturing his lips in a possessive kiss that spoke of something deeper than lust and passion, something permanent and meaningful and as inescapable as fate, ‘You are ours now, you belong to us. And we are never letting you go'

Yeah, outside of that bed, the world had shifted again, fallen apart and crumbled to pieces for Harry just like it had for Peter almost a year before. And once you left it, you were going to have to face the aftermath. Harry was going to have to deal with the press, and the fact that his father was a villain. Peter would have to deal with his aunt, and Pepper and to not only explain his sexuality wasn’t conventional, but his relationship now wasn’t either. And you would have to deal with S.H.I.E.L.D, and the rebuilt, and to explain Fury and May how you had ended up with no one, but two boyfriends that had once been your mission. And none of you had any idea how you were going to do that. Or how you were going to make this between the three of you work, because the world was cruel, and didn’t take kindly to things that were different. But you knew the alternative was to painful to even think about it.

Truth was, there was a lot the three of you didn’t know. But there, in each others arms, watching the NYC lights start to shine outside the massive window, you knew one thing: You were going to be alright.

THE END.

#peter parker #peter parker x reader #tom holland #tom holland x reader #harrison osterfield #harrison osterfeild x reader #tom holland x harrison osterfield #tom holland x harrison osterfield x reader smut #peter parker x harry osborn x reader smut #peter parker imagine #tom holland imagine #peter parker fanfic #peter parker fanfiction #peter parker smut #harrison osterfield smut #fine line series #fine line masterlist #fine line

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mirkwoodshewolf · 4 years

Text

Family reunion; Sirius Black x daughter teen reader

*Author’s note*

Okay so this is my first Harry Potter fanfic in awhile so if I get anything wrong, I apologize in advance. So this takes place during POA and I know it kinda drags along in some parts but I promise it gets better in some parts. Now idk if I'll make a sequel to this part, maybe with enough encouragement from you guys, maybe I'll get around to writing a part 2 that takes place during Order of the phoenix. But for now please enjoy this oneshot of Sirius Black.

Warnings: Swearing, mild violence, death of parent(s), bit of angst and fluff.

Taglist:

@plethora-of-things

@waddles03

@psychosupernatural

@ixchel-9275

@jd-johndeacon-or-jackdaniels

@queen-paladin

@platawnic

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If you had told me that when I first walked through the halls of Hogwarts that in my 5th year that I would reunite with my dad, honestly I would believe it. I always believed my father was innocent, even at just 3 years old I remember that night very clearly. Because it wasn’t just the night that my godfather James and god mother Lily were killed, but my mother was also killed that day.

I saw with my own eyes (my mum had borrowed my godfather’s invisibility cloak to hide me) as Peter Pettigrew killed my mother with the ultimate unforgivable curse. I remember crying over her dead body pleading for her to wake up, I remember daddy walking in and seeing us on the floor and him crying alongside me.

I especially remember when he left me at uncle Remus’ place for protection to go hunt Pettigrew only to be framed for murder of not only him but 12 muggles.

Since then my uncle was next in line to take care of me should anything happen to either my parents or godparents (my mum had no other living relatives and my dad wanted to ensure that I had no ties to the Black family tree should the worse happen).

For years I’ve been under my uncle Remus’ care who believed every word the Ministry said about my dad. He didn’t want to but the evidence was stacked against my dad (even though no deep investigation had been made).

Anyways—oh wait I’m getting ahead of myself. I tend to do that a lot. The name’s (Y/n) Lupin-Black, I’m currently a 5th year Hogwarts student in Ravenclaw (my mum’s house). Even though I’m in Ravenclaw I’ve been friends with the Weasley twins Fred and George since our first year when the two of them stole my notes and wouldn’t give it back till I could tell them apart.

Amazingly I did and since then they’ve stuck to me like glue. The three of us do cause a bit of trouble at times (I get my mischievous side from my dad and brains from my mum, according to Gryffindor’s head professor, Professor McGonagall).

I also have an ability that I also inherited from my dad. I am a legal animangus, in fact I’m the youngest animangus the Ministry ever recorded.

It took a lot of hard work and training in order to focus but by my second year I had mastered the ability. My animangus form is a puma, and I’ve used it to help with my uncle’s—condition. In fact that was the reason I wanted to become one.

He was at first against it but with a letter recommendation from Professor McGonagall and my head of house, Professor Flitwick, my uncle had no choice but to allow me to go through it.

Now as a 5th year, things have been—hectic these past few years since Harry Potter came to Hogwarts. The Chamber of Secrets had been opened last year, and we had an incident with a troll, lost 2 DADA professors (but what else is new with that), but this year my uncle is the new professor for that class, and so far according to the Golden trio, everyone loves him.

But back to this story about my dad. This year everyone at Hogwarts was on alert because my dad had escaped from Azkaban, the first ever wizard to ever do such a thing. Now our school was to be housing for the Dementors until my dad was found and captured.

I tried to keep a low profile about it but at nights whenever I helped my uncle out during his ‘wolf-trots’ I would also try to see if I could find my dad.

Then one night it happened.

I was out with uncle Remus but I had lost trace of him through the Forbidden forest. As I walked along in my puma form, my ears soon picked up the sound of barking. Not werewolf barks, they were—dog barks? But why was a dog all the way out here? Dogs are the sort of creatures allowed within a mile of Hogwarts, nor can they get pass the barrier.

I raced on ahead and when I stood over a cliff but lowered myself down behind the rocks. There I saw a scruffy, lean, but massive black dog barking at a few Acromantulas. God I hate those things, I don’t care what Hagrid says, spiders can’t be trusted! And I was right because right now this dog was being attacked by about seven of these things.

As one of them knocked the dog down and pinned it to the ground, ready to bite it and fill it with its venom, I let out a protective roar. The spiders all looked up at me and I leapt down from the cliff and stood protectively in front of the black dog.

With a slash of my paws, I struck one of the spiders across it’s many eyes before biting down on it and tossing it like a paper ball. I then leapt forward and pinned one of the other spiders down. Another one tried to attack me but as it reared upward, the dog suddenly came up and rolled around with the spider.

I bit the head off the one I had pinned before racing across and swiping the legs off another one. Soon realizing that they couldn’t win since a few of their siblings had already fallen, the rest of the spiders retreated back into their burrows and caves. I let out a loud and aggressive roar before turning towards the dog.

We walked towards each other till we stood face to face of one another. As I stared at this dog, something about it was familiar to me. Through the scruffy, madded fur and the very lean body I looked into it’s eyes and if I were back in my human form I would’ve gasped.

This wasn’t any ordinary dog, it—it was him. My dad. Of course this was his animangus form, I remember! All the times he’d chase me around in his dog form when I was little, our nights curled up under the stars whenever mum wasn’t home, it was him!

My ears bent back as I sniffed at him. When he noticed that I wasn’t any ordinary puma, he came up and sniffed around me. He let out a surprised grunt as his ears perked up and his tail went up as it softly began to wag.

I leaned my head up against his letting out a loud, affectionate purr and he nuzzled against my head as well. His paw would reach up and lightly touch the side of my head, almost as if he were embracing me. We continued to nuzzle each other and I knew that if we could both show our human forms, we’d both be weeping hysterically as we’d hug and kiss each other.

But for now, our animangus forms would have to do. As his head rested on my chest, I licked down his neck where I had seen a pretty bad scratch. I licked his wound when we both heard the sound of a werewolf’s howl. Uncle Remus.

We both turned towards the direction of the howl before looking back at each other. Dad gave me a gentle nod. I looked between him and the direction of the howls hesitantly while giving him sad eyes. How could I leave him when I just found him after 12 years. He came up to me and licked my muzzle up to behind my ears. He then backed up and let out a couple of confident yet soft barks.

I nodded and nuzzled him again purring before licking his face affectionately. I backed up and walked to where uncle Remus was but turned back to dad one last time. He let out another bark before I let out a low meow before racing on ahead to find uncle Remus.

That was over a month ago, but here is where our story truly begins. Harry and his friends were slowly starting to piece together the story of my dad and Peter Pettigrew but with some straying doubt from my uncle, Harry still believed that my dad betrayed his parents and sold them to Voldemort.

I myself have tried to get him to see that my father wasn’t a threat but Harry has shut himself away from me. He’s called me practically every name in the book and refuses to listen to me, hell he barely can even stand the sight of me. Ron’s also elected to ignore me and treat me just like the school and the whole wizarding world has treated my dad.

Hermione on the other hand tolerates me just a bit more. She wants to believe what I have to say but due to the 12 long years of ‘evidence’ against my dad, she can’t seem to fully understand why the wizarding community would lie about framing an innocent man.

I sat alone by the Black lake looking up at the gloomy sky and stared out into the still, calm lake. I let out a heavy sigh when I heard a voice behind me.

“You should really started heading back to the castle, it’s almost curfew time.” I turned around and there stood uncle Remus. “And I would hate to give my niece a detention.”

“Please. You couldn’t find it in your heart to ground me for a week when the Weasley twins and I exploded the supply closet in the potions classroom in our second year.”

“Yes but I did give you a stern good lecture about messing with those chemicals.” He sat down beside me on the rocky surface and stared out the lake alongside me. “This reminds me back to my years at school with your father and the rest of my friends. We always snuck out here to this lake for late night swims.”

“Now, now uncle don’t go influencing me. You never know I might just run it by the twins.” I teased.

“(Y/n).” he started in that lecturing manner of his.

“Kidding, kidding. I know of the dangers of this lake.”

“Plus I never approved of us coming here to swim. It was always James and…….” He trailed off.

“Uncle do you really believe dad did what people said he did?” I said as I looked up at him. He sighed deeply and said in a soft manner.

“As much as I want to believe it didn’t happen, I wasn’t there to say it wasn’t your father.”

“But I’ve told you countless times about my mother’s death! I saw with my own eyes who it was that killed her.”

“And I don’t doubt that. But with your godparents and those 12 muggles……your father’s family ties…..”

“Don’t define him! That’s why he made sure to not let anyone of the Black family tree get custody of me! Why he made sure that you were to be my guardian after papa James and mama Lily died!”

“If I‘m being honest he shouldn’t have done it to begin with.”

“Because of your condition?” he went silent. “Uncle……I never cared about that. You were never a monster to me. Why do you think I studied to be an animangus?” he turned to me.

“I’m just thankful you didn’t do the same thing your father did. Going ‘bout it the illegal route.” He cupped the side of my face, “You know Harry’s not the only one with his parent’s appearance.” I smiled solemnly.

“I know. My mother’s face but I have my father’s eyes.” It’s true. Throughout all my life I had been told of people, especially uncle Remus here that I look practically identical to my mother, my eyes however are just like my father’s.

“I wish that she did get to see the women you grew up to be. She would be very proud of you.”

“Sometimes I—fear that I’m starting to forget about her.” I admitted to him. Uncle Remus stroked my hair and allowed me to rest my head on his shoulder as an arm wrapped around me.

“Just think of how you succeeded throughout your schooling. That’s your mother right there. She was far too clever for her own right, even more than me. I’ll even admit that at times I was jealous of her at times.” We both softly laughed.

“I do recall dad telling me some of your little competitions you and mum used to do to prove just who was the most clever. She always beat you.”

“Not at everything!”

“I’m kidding. I know you did beat her at some stuff.” I looked up and saw my uncle looking toward the sky. He almost seemed deep in thought about something. “Uncle? Uncle? Uncle Remus?”

“Hmm? Oh sorry love. But back to the reason why I came here; even though I am your uncle and guardian, I’m still a professor at this school and I order you to get back to the castle.”

“Yes Professor Lupin.” I said as I got up and walked away. However I snuck behind a tree because I wanted to see just where he was going.

If he wanted me to get back to the castle so urgently, why not just take me all the way there himself? What’s he up to? So I quietly followed behind him in my animangus form. Sticking to the shadows and any tall shrub or bush to hide myself from my uncle, I crouched down low behind a rock as he now stood before the Whomping willow tree.

He took out his wand and said a spell which made the tree go still. Once the branches went still, I saw him enter inside a small entrance of the tree and I quickly followed, now phasing back into my normal form.

I noticed that this place now suddenly looked like some sort of shack. It was haunting and creaks and groans were heard all around me. I reached out for my wand but before I could even grab it, I felt something touch my neck and a low, graveled voice said.

“Don’t. Move.” Ahh bollocks!

“Professor Snape.” I said lowly, trying to not be a threat. Yeah much like my dad, Professor Snape pretty much hated me since day one (I’m pretty sure he hates every student that isn’t a Slytherin).

“Sneaking out past curfew, allying in your father’s hiding, I would have the right mind to have you expelled from Hogwarts and have you be taken to Azkaban alongside your fugitive of a father.” Oh man did I really wanna punch him at this point.

“Professor you know he’s—” I felt his wand press harder against my neck as he hissed in my ear.

“It’s your word against the Ministry’s. Now follow me and do as your told.” Knowing I had no other choice, I allowed him to lead me up the stairs where I heard my dad’s voice say.

“Peter Pettigrew. And he’s in this room! Right now!”

“Take your wand out, and if he’s armed, disarm him.” I took my wand out and as my dad was calling out for Peter to come out, I stepped forward and cried out.

“Expelliarmus!” I saw as a wand fell out of my dad’s hand and that’s when my dad turned to me in shock.

“(Y/n)?” he gaped at me.

“(Y/n) what are you doing here?! I thought I told you to go back to the castle!” uncle Remus said.

“You should’ve realized that she’s more like her father in every way. Including disobedience.” Professor Snape soon made himself known as he now aimed his wand at my back, making sure to let my dad see it. “Vengeance is sweet. How I hoped to be the one to catch you.”

“Severus—” my uncle started off. Snape sent him one dirty look and as usual my uncle submitted as Snape hissed out.

“I told Dumbledore you were helping an old friend into the castle and now here’s the proof.”

“Brilliant Snape. Once again you put your keen impenetrating mind to the task, and as usual it comes to the wrong conclusions. Now if you’ll drop your wand and step away from my daughter, Remus and I have unfinished business to attend to!” his wand moved from my back to my throat.

“Give me a reason. I beg you.” He challenged my father.

“Dad.” I pleaded with fearful eyes.

“It’ll be alright darling.” He assured me. His eyes then turned cold as he stared at Snape. “It’s one thing when you put your nose where it doesn’t belong, but when you force others to do your dirty work for you, that’s where I draw the line. If you don’t let my daughter go now, then I will show you a reason why I belong in Azkaban!”

“Sirius don’t be a fool.” Uncle Remus said.

“Well he can’t help it Remus it’s habit.”

“Quiet Sirius!”

“Quiet yourself Remus!”

“Listen to you two quarreling like an old married couple.” Snape said but that’s when dad sassed back at him.

“Why don’t you run along and play with your chemistry set!?” I was then shoved out of the way as Snape now had his wand right at my father’s neck now. I fell to the ground but was quickly brought back up and held in my uncle’s arms.

“I could do it you know. But why deny the Dementors? They’re so longing to see you. Do I detect a flicker of fear? Oh yes, a Dementor’s kiss, one can only imagine what that much be like to endure. It’s said to be unbearable to witness but I’ll do my best.”

“Severus please.” My uncle tried to reason with him again. Once again Snape glared at my uncle and sneered once again.

“After you. Then we can deal with that rebel daughter of his next.” The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife before suddenly Harry called out.

“Expelliarmus!” then Snape went flying back towards an old rotten bed which collapsed right on him.

“Harry what did you just do?” asked Ron.

“You attacked a teacher!” Hermione exclaimed.

“Tell me about Peter Pettigrew.” Harry demanded as he pointed his wand at my uncle and I.

“He was an old school friend of theirs.” I answered him.

“No. Pettigrew’s dead. You killed him!” Harry said as he now pointed his want towards my dad.

“No he didn’t. I thought he was too till you mentioned seeing Pettigrew on the map.” Uncle Remus said.

“The map was lying then!” Harry argued.

“The map never lies! Pettigrew’s alive! And he’s right there!” my dad said before pointing towards Ron.

“Me? He’s mental!”

“Not you Ron! Your rat!” I told him.

“Scabbers? But he’s been in my family for—”

“12 years?! Curious long life for a common garden rat. He’s missing a toe isn’t he?”

“So what?” demanded Ron.

“All they could find of Pettigrew was his……” Harry started off.

“Finger.” Both my dad and I said. The two of us looked at each other and softly smiled before my dad continued.

“The dirty coward cut it off so that everyone would think he was dead. And then he transformed into a rat!”

“Show me.” Harry ordered. At this point my dad went to grab Ron’s rat but of course he refused to let go. Once he managed to get Pettigrew out of Ron’s grip, Ron pleaded for my dad to leave Scabbers alone. Hermione and I held him back so that my dad and uncle could finish the job.

Unfortunately Pettigrew was too fast for them to get a good shot to change him back. So I quickly whipped out my wand and right as the rat went for a hole in the wall, I shot the spell and he soon morphed, for the first time in over 12 years, back into the stout, pudgy man that killed my mother.

My dad and uncle pulled him out of the wall and for the first time, Harry, Ron and Hermione saw Peter Pettigrew, the real man behind my father’s framed crime and the person responsible for Harry’s parent’s death and my mother’s killer.

“Remus…….S-Si-Sirius? My old friends.” Pettigrew praised before trying to make an escape for it, but they wouldn’t have it. When his eyes soon lay on me, I felt my blood boil. “Ohh little (Y/n). So much like your mother, and with your father’s eyes. You remember me right? Your old uncle Pete—” as he came closer to me, I allowed my puma claws to come out as I scratched him across the face. He whimpered as blood now began to seep down his face.

“You have no right to talk to me!” I growled at him. “I saw what you did that night! I WAS THERE YOU BASTARD!! YOU KILLED MY MOTHER!!” this time Ron and Hermione had to be the ones to hold me back from tearing that rat apart.

He shielded away from me in fear before turning to Harry who was just stunned in shock.

“Harry, look at you. You look so much like your father. Like James. We were best friends you know……”

“How dare you speak to Harry!” my dad hissed protectively. “How dare you talk about James in front of him!” soon the two of them had Pettigrew pinned by the piano, their wands at the ready.

“You sold James and Lily to Voldemort didn’t you!?” my uncle demanded.

“I didn’t mean to.” Wept the rat man pathetically. He then began to go off on a ramble of how Voldemort was powerful and had weapons we had no idea he possessed. “What would you have done Sirius? What would you have done?”

“I would’ve died! I would’ve died rather than betray my friends or the woman I love!” my dad exclaimed as Peter tried to make his escape. Harry blocked his escape but Peter whispered into his ear about something.

Finally I decided to step in and I pulled the rat away from my godbrother and aimed my wand at him. Without even hesitating my father and uncle joined at my side and I said.

“Then you should know uncle. That if the Dark Lord didn’t kill you, then we will!”

“No wait!” Harry exclaimed. My breathing sharpened as I said.

“Harry, this bastard……”

“I know what he is (Y/n). But we’ll take him to the castle. Together.” He placed his hand on top of mine and he softly whispered, “Would you mother want this?” I looked at him, tears starting to form in my eyes.

I turned back to Pettigrew who was now on his knees praising Harry for his mercy.

“Bless you boy. Bless you sweet boy.”

“Get off!” Harry snapped. “I said we’d take you back to the castle. Afterwards the Dementors can have you.” oh now this I like. The traitor’s face turned from pure bliss to absolute horror as he fidgeted fearfully trying to make himself smaller.

After leaving the Shrieking Shack and exited out of the Whomping Willow, I watched as my dad walked ahead and stood to look up at the school.

I looked to Harry and gave him a soft nod. His eyes showed hesitation but with a gentle shove he walked towards my father and I watched as the two of the proceed to talk with each other.

“You knew he was innocent?” Hermione said to me.

“Yes, I did. As I said back there it wasn’t just uncle James and Aunt Lily that died because of Peter. I was there to see my mother die right before my eyes. She had the invisibility cloak at the time, probably stole it from uncle James just to spite him or something. But she hid me with it and I saw as Peter came in and killed her with the last of the unforgivable curses.”

“I’m so sorry (Y/n). To think you had to see something like that.”

“We’re sorry we’ve been wankers to you about this (Y/n). Harry and I especially, can you forgive us?” Ron said. I softly smiled and ruffled his hair.

“There’s nothing to forgive Weasley. Although you’re gonna have to do a lot of kissing up to your brothers Fred and George. They’ve been wanting to slug you for your behavior towards me.”

Then something happened that I wished never did. The clouds slowly began to move away to reveal the full moon. Oh no!

“Uncle Remus!” I exclaimed but it was too late. He was starting to transform into his werewolf form.

My dad quickly ran up to him trying to hold his transformation back, but it was no use. The agonizing groans and screams coming out of my uncle as his bones snapped and broke before changing and morphing to fit his upcoming werewolf body. And to make matters worse, Pettigrew seized that opportunity to escape from our grasp.

Even though Harry disarmed him with an Expelliarmus spell, it still didn’t stop the rat from turning into true form before making his escape. My dad knowing he couldn’t hold uncle Remus any longer told us to run.

Soon my dad was thrown down the hill and I exclaimed out.

“DAD!!” I quickly ran towards uncle Remus hoping I could knock some sense into him before his final transformation came around. “Uncle Remus you can fight it! The monster does not control you, you control it! Fight it! Think harder on your human senses!”

Just like my father, I too was sent down towards the hill as the last thing I heard was the sound of my uncle’s werewolf howl.

When I opened my eyes, I saw myself in Madam Pomfrey’s nursing wing.

“(Y/n), oh thank goodness you’re awake. Can you stand up?” Hermione’s voice said over me. My vision finally came back and I said.

“What happened?”

“There’s not a lot of time to explain (Y/n) but your dad’s in serious danger. The Dementors are going to suck his soul.”

“What!?” I said fearfully as I shot up. “They can’t do that. He’s innocent!”

“Which is why I need to ask if you can stand and walk?”

“Yeah I can but why?” she pulled me up from my bed over to Harry who stood at the center of the room.

“Sorry Ronald but you can’t walk.” She then took a necklace out from her shirt and placed the chain around Harry and I before holding out what looked like a mini-hourglass.

The pendent began to spin around and soon right before our very eyes, the world around us seemed to go backwards. Night turned into the gloomy afternoon once more as the medical wing was now abandoned and Hermione stopped the pendant’s spinning and she said as she took the chain off of mine and Harry’s neck and tucked it back into her shirt.

“Where were we at this hour Harry?”

“Uhh going to Hagrid’s I think.”

“And (Y/n) where were you at this time?”

“I was down at the Black Lake with uncle Remus, why?”

“Alright come on!” she took off running. Harry and I ran after her confused asking her just what was going on.

That’s when she explained to us about the time turner necklace she had been given by Professor McGonagall, and she explained to Harry that that was how she was able to do all her classes this term.

So throughout the day we went down to Hagrid’s and I even got to see Hermione sucker punch Malfoy right in the nose (which I praised her on). We went down to Hagrid’s hut and we made our plan to save Buckbeak the Hippogriff (apparently Professor Dumbledore said that more than one life could be spared today).

As the day went on, it was nearly time to try and save my dad. So we sat just down the hill from the Whomping Willow. We watched as uncle Remus came in and made the tree stop it’s swaying for a brief moment before entering inside, followed by me shortly after him.

“Wait you’re also an animangus?” Harry asked me.

“Surprised?” I asked him.

“When did you become one?” asked Hermione.

“I was roughly around your age when I took my test before the Wizard council to get my official license. They said I was the youngest registered animangus there ever was.” I looked up and said, “And there goes Snape. Right in after me.”

The two young teens turned and saw that Snape did go in shortly after me.

“Now we wait I guess.” Harry said. We all made ourselves comfortable because we knew it would be awhile before we all left the Shrieking shack and came back before the Whomping Willow.

Then after seeing us come out, I watched as Harry went down to talk to my dad and that’s when he told me.

“You see me there talking to Sirius? He had just asked me to come live with him, you as well (Y/n). He talked about you and your mother a lot. As well as my parents.”

“I know. They were really good friends Harry. Even at just 3 years old, I knew my dad would never have betrayed yours. Never, not even if he were tortured. That’s why he named your parents my godparents.”

“I guess we were meant to be siblings either way.” I softly grinned at him and ruffled his hair before pushing his glasses back up his nose.

“I remember be so excited to have a younger ‘sibling’. Though I’ll admit I wanted you to be a girl, but you eventually grew on me.” Hermione giggled while Harry turned away embarrassedly.

Then that’s when the trouble began. We saw uncle Remus transform into his werewolf form, the fight between him and my dad (who was in his animangus form), and then even be chased by him when Hermione howled to stop him from attacking Harry.

I phased into my animangus form to protect Hermione and Harry in case my uncle came around to find us. When he did, I stood protectively in front of my brother and Hermione snarling and roaring at him. But before we could charge at each other, Buckbeak had came in and fought my uncle off.

Man poor uncle Remus is having a really rough night. I then felt a coldness in the air and when we looked up we saw the Dementors flying towards where my dad must’ve been at after the fight with uncle Remus.

I gestured for Hermione and Harry to get on my back and once they were on, I raced on ahead and we stopped across the frozen lake and we all watched with horror as the Dementors began to suck out both Harry’s and my dad’s souls.

“Now just wait Hermione, my dad will come. He’ll be standing right there.” Harry said as he got off my back and walked a few steps ahead of us. Hermione and I looked at each other sympathetically and she got off my back as well and stood beside him.

“Harry—your dad’s…….”

“Dead I know but just watch. He’ll cast the Patronus right there. Just like he did before.” We waited and waited but all we saw were my dad and Harry dying right before our eyes.

“You’re dying Harry. Both of you.” I said as I morphed back into my normal form. God I had heard of witnessing a Dementor’s kiss is something awful but—god this was torture. I wanted to step in and save my dad and Harry from the Dementors but what could I do? I’m not strong enough to conjure a Patronus charm, plus I would be outnumbered even if I tried any other spell I could name.

Next thing I saw was Harry racing forward to the spot where he said his dad was standing at.

“Harry!” Hermione called out but I wrapped my arms around her to stop her from racing towards him and that’s when we saw him lift up his wand and exclaim.

“EXPECTO PATRONUM!” Soon a bright light came from out of his wand and a bright wave of light shot out, which sent all the dementors away, saving Harry and my father from a terrible fate.

As I stared at my godbrother, I couldn’t be more proud of him. Not even I was able to conjure up a spell like that at his age, hell I can barely do it now. He truly was a gifted young man, and I couldn’t be more proud of him.

After saving himself, we were now flying on Buckbeak heading for the highest tower where my dad was being kept. I was sitting right behind Hermione while she was terrifyingly holding onto Harry for dear life.

“You were right Hermione. It wasn’t my dad I saw earlier. It was me! I saw myself conjured the Patronus before. I knew I could do it this time because—well I’d already done it. Does that make sense?”

“No! But I don’t like fly-AHHH!!!” She screamed as Buckbeak took a dive down towards the school, while Harry and I were cheering our heads off.

When we reached the tower, there we saw locked up in a cage, my dad looking forlorn as he awaited his fate. He quickly turned to us and I took out my wand and pointed it at the lock as I proclaimed out.

“Alohomora!” the doors unlocked and swung wide open. “C’mon dad, we’re busting you out of here.” I extended my hand out to him and he immediately took my hand.

The four of us now flying on Buckbeak with Hermione up front, me behind her then my dad and Harry.

And for the first time in 12 years, my dad finally felt free as a Hippogriff flying high in the sky. Never have I heard him sound so happy and it brought a smile to my face as I heard him cheering.

We landed in the garden wing of the school and as my dad helped Hermione as well as me off of Buckbeak he said as we walked towards the corner of the garden.

“I’ll be forever be grateful for this. To the three of you.”

“I want to go with you.” said Harry.

“One day perhaps. For some time my life will be too unpredictable. Besides, you’re meant to be here.”

“But you’re innocent.”

“And you know it Harry.” I told him. “Just like I’ve always known.”

“She’s right. And for now that’ll do.” As Hermione left the three of us to have our little family moment, my dad then turned towards me. He stood before me and gently cupped each side of my face. His calloused thumbs stroking my cheeks as he said to me, “I expect like Harry you might be tired of hearing this, but you are a splitting image of your mother. Except your eyes, you have……”

“Your eyes.” I finished for him. Tears flickered in my eyes but I tried to hold them back. “I’ve only dreamed of something like this happening, and—even now I fear this still feels like a dream.”

“I’ve told you once when you were little; Dreams can feel like many things. Whether to make us feel happy or afraid, but in dreams you can never feel what is happening to you. So this, right here, is real my darling kitten.”

He took my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. When I felt it, I knew that this was real. My dad was free, he was here, and he was right in front of me. I embraced him as tightly as I could, burying myself into the ragged cloth of his prison uniform. Slowly a few tears dripped from my eyes one by one as I felt my dad embrace me back just as tightly while rocking me from side to side.

“I’ve missed you so much dad.”

“Not as much as I’ve missed you. I’ve missed so much of your life. You were just a little girl when I was taken away and now I’ve seen you’ve become a beautiful young woman, just like I’d hope you’d be. Your mum would be so proud. Just as I am. I’m so sorry I put you through this.”

“I know why you did it dad. If I were older I would’ve done the same thing. I just……wish none of this had to happen.”

“As do I kitten. As do I. There hasn’t been a day that I don’t regret leaving you like I did. I made you lose both your parents.”

“That’s another thing I’ve inherited from you.” he looked at me confused. “Uncle Remus has always said I did get your stubbornness.” He softly chuckled before grabbing the back of my head and pressing his forehead against mine.

We stayed in that position for what felt like forever till he pressed a kiss to the center of my forehead before he guided me over to sit next to Harry. He knelt down before the both of us as he said to us.

“It’s cruel that I got so much time with James, Lily and (m/n) and you both so little. But know this. The ones that love us never really leave us. And you both can always find them,” he then placed his left hand over Harry’s heart while his right hand pointed towards mine, “In here.”

Dad stood up and walked over to Buckbeak and mounted on top of his back once again, gently gripping onto the chained reins. As Harry and I came up and stood beside Hermione, my dad complimented to her that she was indeed a bright witch for her age.

Buckbeak then reared as he let out a proud roar before taking off running before flapping his proud wings and taking off high towards the moon with my dad on his back.

Two souls finally free from the law.

The clock tower began to gong loudly and that’s when Hermine told us we needed to get back to the hospital wing. We quickly raced towards the medical wing before the last strike of the belltower.

We saw Professor Dumbledore with his back towards us as he peeked through the doors before closing them.

“Well?” he asked us.

“We did it. They’re free.” Harry said.

“Did what? Goodnight.” The headmaster gave us a wave before descending down the stairs. Oh that crazy old man. The three of us walked towards the door but before we went in, we had to watch ourselves disappear to start the whole rescue all over again. Once we disappeared, that’s when we came in the room.

“How did you get there? You were just over there. And now you’re there!” Ron said to us in shock.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about Ronald? Do you Harry? (Y/n)?”

“No clue. Maybe you should have your head examined Ronny, think you might be going mental.” I teased.

“Yeah Ron. How can people be in two places at once?” Harry joked alongside me.

Things after that were pretty crazy. After it had been leaked out about my uncle’s condition (damn you Snape!) my uncle resigned as professor at Hogwarts, Harry had gotten the new firebolt broom (curtesy of my dad) and he got to test it out.

I was in my bedroom just finishing the last bit of my packing to return home for the summer when my owl Arella came flying in. Her familiar grey and white feathers ruffled as she landed on her perch and she made her trilling sound.

“What have you have there, girl?” I noticed she had a small jewelry box tied to her back along with a note in her beak. I took the note then untied the box from her back as she shook herself out and ruffled her feathers.

I set the box down and opened up the note and inside was a letter written in my dad’s hand writing.

My beloved kitten,

This once belonged to your mother (I gave it to her just shortly after you were born) and I figured she would want you to have it. Keep it close to your heart and her memory will never leave you.

Your father,

Sirius Black

I set the note down and opened up the box now and inside was a necklace. It was a silver heart-shaped locket and I noticed a little button at the side of it. I pressed down on it and it opened up to reveal something that not only broke my heart, but also filled it with joy.

The moving picture inside was my mother holding me as a baby. Her wide smile as she held me in her arms, her eyes filled with nothing but love. When she looked up and her smile softened, I really did get to see what my uncle and dad were talking about.

I really did look like my mother. Same hair, same mouth, same face, almost everything was of my mother. A single tear fell down my cheek as I kissed the picture and held it close to my heart.

Soon I began to get brief flashbacks of various moments with my mother. I remember how she’d always sing me to sleep while having the windchimes of various creatures softly ring above me. The way she’d make breakfast, and how we’d play together at papa James and mama Lilly’s place.

I unhooked the chain and placed it around my neck and saw as the heart shaped locket actually rested against my own heart.

“Thanks dad. And thank you mum. I miss you, but you can rest easy now. Dad’s free.” I said as I stared up at the sky holding the locket closer against my heart.

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fantasticstoryteller · 3 years

Text

Under the Sea

The kelp waved despondently in the current as May clutched it. She turned wide, frightened eyes on her nephew, the last of her blood. She couldn't let him know how frightened she was. “This is—this is a great honor,” she said. The pale silver of her braids wrapped around her head as she tried not to look at him.

“Aunt May,” the calm voice, tinged with humor said, “I’ll be fine.”

May peered through her braids at her nephew. He was simply not built like most of the merfolk. Most of them had thick, muscular tails—well suited for pushing against even the strongest of currents. Peter—did not. His tail was long, yes, but it was also thin. Many had wondered when he was born if he would ever be able to properly swim. Most merfolk had thick, muscular bodies—fit for hunting even the most savage of predators. Peter—did not. Compared to most his body was thin, almost like his tail, and he was pale—too pale. Most of the merfolk were darkly colored and had mottled scales to help them hide in the depths. Peter—did not. The scales of his tail were bright red and blue, his fins were so white they almost glowed.

Peter could also use magic. There were others, of course, who could use magic—but Peter was the best. Peter’s magic allowed him to overcome his physical limitations.

And what else? May ignored the traitorous voice in the back of her mind. The important thing, the only thing, was that Peter was a good tadpole and had a kind heart.

A sob broke through her throat and she reached out for him; her tadpole—her son.

Peter willingly embraced his aunt, and gently smoothed the braids out of her face. “It will be all right,” he told her firmly. His embrace was firm. There was nothing, save the scrawniness of his body, to indicate that he wasn’t as strong as other merfolk.

“You’re my baby!” May wailed.

Peter soothingly ran his tail along hers as he hugged her. “I’ll be fine,” he said with confidence. “Everything will be all right.” She could only shake her head and cry, pearls falling off to clutter the floor of their little house.

***

“Shut up Wilson,” growled the dark haired man. The short, stocky man grimaced as he was hit with yet another ocean spray. “This is annoying enough.”

Wade, with no filter, gamely replied. “Aw, is it too wet out here for you?”

“That’s enough.” The order came from the leader of their little party and Wade automatically turned to look at the younger man. Scott had taken off his glasses, designed to save the people around him from getting blasted by his eyes, and was rubbing his lids. The lids had a dark, almost bruised look to them. Wade kept his mouth shut until the glasses were back on. While Scott couldn't actually kill him (no one could), he could make Wade miss out on this important event.

In an effort to create peace between the kingdoms of the land and the sea (the sea folk kept wrecking ships and the land folk kept hunting them) the sea king was sending five of his people to live on land for a year. The hope (from both sides; both rulers were sick of the bloodshed) was that bonds would be formed between the humans and sea folk. A group of five humans had been picked to meet them on the shore, to take the first steps towards trust and a better relationship.

Well, the others had been picked carefully by their ruler for the first gesture at peace. Wade was, as with most things, along for the ride.

[They should be grateful we’re here.] The long, thin beast sat next to Wade and watched sea with narrowed yellow eyes. Its white coat had taken a dull gray sheen from the surrounding land. [They have no idea how dangerous the merfolk are.]

The other beast ran into the waves only to fall back laughing. {But it’s fun!} The yellow beast rolled and looked at both Wade and the other beast with wonder filled white eyes.

The uninitiated would think that the two beasts were blind. Few knew the truth, knew what they truly were. Those who did know tended to look at Wade like he was a monster—and, maybe, he was.

Another splash interrupted Wade’s thoughts as the sea in front of them literally split in half. Rising from the depths, sea foam dancing around them, were five people. Four of them were tall, obscuring the fifth, muscular, and wider at the top than the bottom. They were covered in what appeared to be thin sheets of kelp. They were going to have trouble moving around on land.

[Don’t underestimate them Wade. They are far more dangerous than they appear.]

{A singer! This one’s a singer!}

Wade looked up in horror as Yellow bounced through the foam to jump up to the fifth one emerging. The fifth one looked surprised, but caught the beast before it fell back to the ground. Then, he smiled. Amazingly, impossibly—he smiled.

“Parker!” snapped the one at the head of the group. The boy flinched.

{I want to kill that one Wade. Can I kill him?} Yellow’s tail thumped gently against the boy’s side as the boy fearlessly held the blood beast.

“Put the beast down,” growled the leader.

Parker, the boy, carefully stepped away from the group, trotted onto dry (well, dry-ish) land, and set the blood beast on the ground. Then he gave a low note that made the water shiver off of Yellow’s coat, leaving the blood beast perfectly dry. In fact, a great deal drier than any of the humans on the shore.

In a flash White was next to Yellow and nuzzled gently at the other beast before purposefully nudging Parker with its nose. Wade watched suspiciously as the other members of the group realized (slowly) that something was going on. “Would you like to be dry too?” White gave a regal nod and the boy emitted that tone once more. Water and dirt flew off the blood beast, leaving a it a pure, pristine white.

[The singer is innocent.]

{We should keep him!}

Wade noticed the staring about the same time as the boy, and the boy stood and tucked an errant strand of hair behind his ear and shifted nervously. Scott, Logan, Anna Marie, and Hank stared at the boy—with the two suspiciously docile blood beasts at his feet. The other merfolk were staring as well and looked—annoyed.

“Parker,” growled the one in front.

The ears on both Yellow and White flattened against their heads and, as one, let out a low growl right back at the merfolk. Anna Marie cleared her throat. “Can we, uh, not antagonize the insanely dangerous blood beasts?”

“Welcome to our land!” said Hank, eyes drifting towards Parker and the beasts warily.

Of course he was wary. Wade was the one they were bonded to and he was wary. There was a reason that people avoided blood beasts.

“We’ve prepared places for you to stay,” Hank continued.

{Can we take him home? I want to take him home!}

[I agree. We must make sure the singer is not…tainted.]

By what? Wade wondered. Neither beast (no surprise there) answered him. Everyone knew that blood beasts, bound or not, answered to no one.

***

Peter watched as the person (Hank, he’d introduced himself as envoy of their land king) divided up the merfolk. Peter didn’t want to be separated from them—actually no. No, he could easily stand to be separated from them, but he didn’t want to be alone. Not on dry land. He remembered the stories…

The land beast, with yellow hair, leaned against Peter’s leg and tucked its head against his knee with a low whine. The landfolk stopped and stared for a moment, as though Peter was some kind of terrifying animal that would snap and kill them at a moment’s notice. Peter tried to ignore them as he reached down and gently pet the land animal. The white one nudged his other leg, wanting attention too and Peter was glad to provide it.

Their king hadn’t really given a lot of details as to how this mission was to be accomplished. He wanted to stop the kidnappings of merfolk by humans, and he wanted them to try and build a relationship with the landfolk. Something that Peter had, somehow, already managed to screw up.

He was interrupted from his thoughts by one of the landfolk (a human so bulky he could have been merfolk) slinging an arm around his shoulders. The yellow beast turned and snapped a bite out of the man’s leg. The man didn’t even seem to notice as the beast began to daintily chew the meat. Was that normal?

“Sorry Hank,” said the man. “This one’s coming with me.” The blue human opened his mouth to speak and the man quickly added, “White and Yellow insist.” Landfolk gazes turned to Peter before dropping to the beasts once again.

“And Wade’s home is open to that one. Ah,” the human raised his voice as Flash stalked over to Peter, “I wouldn't—”

Flash reached for Peter, who flinched, but the white beast was suddenly between them releasing a low growl that made the rocks around them tremble.

“So, uh, yeah,” said the man holding Peter, apparently his name was Wade. “See, White and Yellow are a little—unpredictable. And vicious. Very vicious. Not sure why this guy’s still in one piece. So—uh, try not to get too close? If you value your life? Sorry, sorry, not trying to break the alliance all by myself—sorry.”

Before Peter could react the yellow beast lifted its head and swallowed the meat with final gulp before trotting up to stand next to the white beast, tail wagging, tongue lolling. “Shit,” cursed the man as he strode up to the two beasts. He reached down and grabbed at the two necks.

His leg was now whole. There was a hole in the pants, where the beast had bitten through it, but the muscles underneath were once again in one piece and Peter could see the jagged skin through the hole. He stared.

Humans had better recovery powers than merfolk! No wonder their king wanted an alliance with them—perhaps, if they got the authority humans on their side they’d be able to stand a chance against the hunters! And this guy—wasn’t upset by Peter. That was new. That was…nice.

Wade turned to him. “I—I hope you don’t mind,” he said nervously.

It occurred to Peter, for the first time, that the humans were just as nervous as the merfolk. Neither side had had much interaction with the other. For the first time humans and merfolk were coming together. Peter smiled. “I don’t mind,” he said shyly.

The huge human looked at him before looking away. “Sorry,” he muttered. The white beast looked up at the man and he turned, offering a hand to Peter. “Name’s Wade,” he said nervously.

Peter, not entirely certain what the hand was for, reached out for it. “Peter,” he introduced.

The white beast gave a loud, sharp bark and Wade nodded. “These are White and Yellow,” he said pointing to the fascinating creatures.

“Hello White,” Peter said softly, trying not to get too much attention from the others. “Hello Yellow.” The yellow one jumped up and rested two paws on Peter’s chest before absently licking a stripe up the merman’s face.

“I think they like you.”

***

“Are you an idiot?” raged Antonius Stark (also known as Tony, to his friends), king of Vlagard, largest nation of the known world. He glared down at the men in front of him. “Do you have any idea how important this mission is?” he demanded. “Do you?”

The men, understanding their monarch’s anger, stayed silent.

The kingdom Vlagard had one huge strength and one huge weakness. Unfortunately, they were one and the same. The ocean provided food, for the citizens, and travel. It also provided shelter for the merfolk.

Some of the merfolk were harmless. They either wanted to learn more about the humans that looked like them, or they stayed far enough away. Tony was fine with either of those responses. He admired those that wanted to learn more about humans, and respected the ones that wanted to be left alone. That was fine.

What was not fine was the majority of merfolk, who could not tell the difference between a legitimate sailing vessel and a pirate ship, who would mercilessly attack ships and drown everyone on board. He had heard that they had a way of controlling the weather—but he didn’t put much stock in it. No one could control the weather.

He also understood the reaction. The pirates would hunt the merfolk and use them in gory, pain-filled ways that made Tony sick if he thought about it too long. He hated the pirates, would destroy them all if he could. The things they did—made him sick, they really did.

At the same time he had to protect his people—and he didn’t want to go to war with the merfolk. While all Vlagardians praised their navy and believed it to be unbeatable—Tony knew better. He knew that no matter how he enhanced his ships, how many weapons he made for them—they would be vulnerable to attack from below. There was no way around it—and from the bottom was where the merfolk would come from.

Luckily, the king of the sea was just as eager to end the war as Tony was. His reasons were different, of course; from what Tony understood the pirates had discovered the spawning grounds and were attacking there, slaughtering and kidnapping as the whims took them. Right now the pirates could hide amongst the legitimate—but if they could forge an alliance, all that would change. It was even possible that the mer and the humans could work together to destroy the pirates. Possible.

First though, they had to prove they could coexist which was not going to happen if one of the ambassadors got killed!

“Forgive me, My Lord.” Tony shifted in his throne so he could watch the approaching man carefully, warily. Lord Stephen Strange was the only true magician in the kingdom. He could use his magic to manipulate time, energy, and even living things. His living cloak was proof of his power. So far all he had done was in the best interests of the kingdom. “I was held up in divination.”

So far. Tony’s father Howard might have agreed with and held the magician in high esteem, but that didn’t mean Tony did. Tony believed himself to be a man with a practical nature. Sure, they lived in a world saturated by magic—but there was a reason the majority of the populace couldn’t use it.

“You only missed the threat to the treaty that my vassals allowed to happen,” growled Tony as the men in front of him flinched.

“Oh? The Singer is not with the man Bonded to blood beasts?” asked Stephen as he stepped into the room with a frown. “That would be—most unfortunate.”

“Singer?” asked Tony.

“Indeed. Here on land,” the magician theatrically put a hand over his heart, “we have magicians. Under the sea, they are known as Singers. I do believe that your aquatic royal counterpart sent one of them as an ambassador.”

Lady Tasha, unofficially the head of Tony’s entire spy network, stepped out of the shadows. As always, no one had realized that she was there. “Explain,” she ordered. Then, realizing she wasn’t dealing with one of her personal underlings, she explained herself as she rarely did. “Explain why it is important to allow one of our possible allies to live with an unpredictable, immortal man and his two bonded blood beasts.”

Tony shifted at the mention of the creatures. Blood beasts were dangerous, wild, and unpredictable. The two that had bonded with the former soldier were—slightly—more stable than the ones that hadn’t bonded, but that did not mean they were safe. He did not want to risk this mission by entrusting the safety of one of the ambassadors with them.

Stephen met her eyes calmly, living cloak fluttering around him in its own wind. “There are forces conspiring to destroy us, and that child is the keystone. Fortunately, they adore him.”

***

By the time they got to Wade’s home (a crappy little flat in one of the worst parts of the city) he was, understandably, nervous. The flat was small, cramped, and cluttered. It didn’t have any rodents in it—but that was because the two blood beasts were ruthless in hunting them out and killing them. He was certain that it was nothing like—like whatever the mer had under the sea.

The boy looked around the one-room flat with wide eyes. “There’s so much light,” he said as he looked around.

Light? The flat was just big enough for a bed, clothes chest, and chamber pot and the kid was talking about the light? “Uh, most places have light,” he said.

“Not in the sea,” explained the merman softly. He walked to a window and watched the play of the sunlight over the skin of his hand. “In the sea, only the wealthy have lots of light.”

[The farther down you go, the more the light is filtered by the water and the harder it is to see.] White watched the boy standing, just enjoying the sun for a moment. [Those at the bottom of the hierarchy are at the bottom of the floor, where there is less light.]

Wade stared at the beast. It almost sounded as though White had been there and seen it. But that was impossible—wasn’t it?

{Food Wade!} Yellow insisted as it wagged its tail furiously and panted. {We all need food!}

Yeah, right. Wade remembered what happened the last time he’d taken the two blood beasts with him to get food. “Yeah—no,” he told it.

“What?” asked the boy as he turned, still basking in the sunlight, to look at Wade. The glow of the setting sun softened already soft features and he looked so sweet, so pretty that Wade ached to reach out and touch—

[Peter. The singer said his name is Peter.] White trotted over to the boy who automatically—fearlessly!—reached out and pet it.

“Right. Peter.” Wade watched as the boy gently scratched White behind its pointed, twitching ears. Wade still found the sight freaky as hell. He looked at the boy. “What do you know about bond beasts?” he asked curiously.

Peter frowned and slowly, gracefully dropped to a seat on the floor. “Not much,” he said as Yellow bounded over to fling itself in his now presented lap while it panted excitedly.

Wade was very glad he was wearing loose pants. “You know,” he squeaked. He cleared his voice and tried again. “You know that the world is filled with magic,” he said as he tried not to let inappropriate imagery flow into his brain.

Peter nodded. “Of course,” he said.

Wade was stunned at how he managed to keep the insult out of his tone of voice. He swallowed. “Bond beasts—sometimes,” he said changing track, “a human is in a situation where they—impress a magical beast. The two—bond, hence the name, and they’re forever in each other’s heads after that.”

[And being in your head is quite the trial.]

“So you impressed them?” asked Peter.

White snorted with derision and Yellow convulsed into laughter as it rolled on Peter’s lap. “Well—we reached an agreement, of sorts,” Wade admitted.

{You didn’t die.}

[Not like we didn’t try.]

“And,” Wade said ignoring them with difficulty, “they said they’re hungry. Because they’re—them, I’m not allowed to take them into the general public if I can avoid it, and so I was wondering—would you like to come with me to get them food?”

White glared at him. [You must feed the Singer as well, Wade.]

“And us as well,” Wade added quickly. He thought about his usual place and winced. “There will be—a lot of people,” he said slowly.

Peter’s face, impossibly, brightened. “I’d love to meet more humans!” he said cheerfully. He gently rubbed Yellow’s face, scratching it behind the ears, before gently pushing the beast off his lap. And Yellow—didn’t—attack!

Wade shot the blood beast a look as he steered Peter back towards the door.

{Oh! I want to go! I want to go!}

[No.] White firmly sat on the blood beast’s tail. [If we go we may traumatize the Singer. We do not want him to get corrupted.]

Yeah. Wade was going to need White to explain that. Later. First—food. “Do you eat?” he asked, concerned as his hand spanned almost the entire back. “You look very—thin.”

“You’re sweet,” Peter said sweetly.

***

Francis took a long drag of his cigar as he kept a wary eye out on the clientele of the shady tavern. He knew they wouldn't turn him into the Guards, but there were a few that wouldn't hesitate to distribute what they saw as “justice” on him. He needed to steer clear of them, at least while he was on dry land.

Justice. They were just too weak to see the opportunity that presented itself. The mer were a goldmine. They cried pearls, bled rubies, and some were comely enough to grace noble beds. Ha! He bet King Stark had no idea how many of his court had illegally caught mer locked up as toys.

They’d be harder to get though, if both the Navy and the mer were after him. He just needed one more big haul, something large enough to outfit the ship for a voyage to a new land where no one knew him, no one knew his exploits. As long as it was filled with people he could use, he didn’t much care where he went.

He caught sight of a familiar scarred head and ducked into a shadowed corner as he cursed under his breath. Was he fast enough? This was not the time to be visiting that one…

But he had company. There was something—familiar in the way the young man moved. Almost graceful, even when simply moving around a puddle (piss or vomit; didn’t matter in this hellhole) on the floor. Graceful, flowing. Almost as if he was—underwater?

Francis realized what he was looking at. A mer—in human form! And a comely one! Oh, the prices people would pay for that in their bed…

He just had to figure out how.

***

The light was fading as the two of them walked back to Wade’s home. Peter wasn’t stupid; he could tell that humans prized space over light. Still, he’d lived in the shadows since he was a tadpole, and he’d always longed for the light. It was nice. It was warm.

It was drier than Peter had ever thought he’d be. He’d never been out of the water for so long before and his skin was starting to have an odd, tight feeling to it. The feeling wasn’t unpleasant, but was strange.

Then there were the people. As they were getting food the man (a thin, scrawny man that intrigued Peter because he’d never have been allowed to live to adulthood if he’d been mer), the man asked what kind of roast Peter wanted and Peter had replied that he didn’t eat meat. The man had simply smirked and said, “Wade must be disappointed to hear that.”

Wade had turned an interesting shade of red (Peter hadn’t known that humans could change their skin color like that) and paid the man before leaving while the other man cackled.

“Sorry,” he said, still red.

“It’s okay,” Peter assured him. “I don’t understand anyway.” For some reason Wade’s skin became such a stark, mottled red around his scars that he almost seemed to glow.

“It’s—yeah,” said Wade as he rubbed his neck. Peter had noticed the human made that gesture a lot, and it showed off the muscles in the man’s chest. He wanted to rub his hands over the lovely textured skin and feel the muscles rippling underneath, but didn’t know how humans felt about that kind of contact. Would his host welcome it, get nervous and explain why it was wrong, or just be so offended that Peter broke a taboo that Peter was booted out of the man’s home and sent to the palace? He just wasn’t sure.

“Well, well, well,” purred a voice as a thin woman with generous curves sauntered up to the two of them. Unlike most of the human women that Peter had met, she wasn’t wearing much in the way of clothing. “I heard you were playing host to one of the exchange mer, but I didn’t believe. The boys let it happen?”

Wade smiled, attitude changing to confident in a moment. Peter watched with fascination. It was as if the human was a rainbow of reactions to people. This person gets one reaction, this one another, and still another for this strange woman.

Mer tended to have two reactions; either they were protective and close, or rejecting and cold. Well, they were also respectful to Steve—but he was their king. Of course they all felt respect and a little awe for him.

“The boys insisted,” Wade told her.

She paused. “What, really?” she asked, disbelief coloring her voice.

“Really.”

She looked at Peter again, wonder and calculation in her gaze. “Wade,” she said without looking away from Peter, “he’s wearing seaweed.”

“To be fair, he was wearing that when—hey!”

The woman linked her arm with Peter’s and began gently towing the mer away. “Humans,” she said firmly, “wear clothes.”

“I’m mer, though,” said Peter, confused. Even more confused when Wade, trailing after them, began laughing.

“You are in human form, in human lands, and you need to dress like a human,” the woman said. She leaned close to him and whispered, “And there are Hunters on these streets. Dressing like a human will help throw them off.”

Peter shuddered. Hunters had gotten his uncle. He went along without protest.

“You going to introduce yourself Ness?” asked Wade

“Vanessa,” said the woman curtly.

“Peter.” The reply was just as curt and quick and he held his hand out like Wade had when the two of them were introduced. The woman shook it before leading him to a room filled with clothes. “Why do most of these have ruffles?” he asked curiously as he poked one item that looked like it was made entirely of ruffled cloth.

“For a different kind of hunting,” Vanessa replied, clearly amused. Behind them, Wade choked.

***

“Please, calm down,” Steve gently ordered the agitated mer in front of him. The elderly mer was twitching in a nervous manner that meant she was torn between attack, flee, and submit. Not many mer got to that part.

“You didn’t tell him the truth,” she accused, her eyes twitching between Steve and his mate.

“I told him the truth,” Steve said calmly. “He is a strong tadpole, with a good heart. I firmly believe that, out of all those we sent, he is the most likely one to bring us peace.” He didn’t add that Peter was the only one, the only mer that he knew, who was capable of looking into the eyes of a creature and seeing that creature’s soul. And that, having seen the soul, could love it no matter how horrific a creature it was.

Steve did not know if this ability was due to the tadpole’s power. A Singer hadn’t been born to the mer in so long that all anyone knew were myths and legends. Legends of great power, of civilizations created and destroyed by whims—they were even rumored to have had the ability to create new life out of nothing more than a song. Because of those legends, the young mer was outcast among his peers, tossed aside by his parents. But his aunt, his uncle—two mer who had so, so desperately wanted a child had taken him in, and raised him as though he was their very own. And the tadpole had responded by growing into a bright, vibrant, and curious mer. True, by mer standards he was not very strong—but he was smart. He was clever. He could use his power to make up for his weaknesses.

In sad truth the hardest part of deciding who to send had come down to who was clamoring for a chance to go that hated the young mer the least. Despite his humble approaches, despite his powers and abilities, he had a shocking power to create resentment and enmity among the mer. Perhaps it would be different among the humans.

“You didn’t tell him about the blood beasts!” the mer shrieked. Fish around them hid and rocks cracked.

“What blood beasts?” asked Steve, honestly confused. He’d thought they’d died out long ago, when they were banished from all the Seas and Oceans.

“I heard it,” whispered the mer. Tears pooling in her eyes had already gained the opalescent sheen of a forming pearl. “I heard his magic touch them.”

Steve’s heart seized. “What else did you hear?” he demanded of her. Had he sent the youngest, most naive of his people to a trap?

She shook her head. “I heard him use his power on not one, but two blood beasts. And—and I have heard nothing since.”

Bucky, cupping the bulge of the egg within him, swum quickly between the two of them and laid his other arm around her shoulders, as comforting as possible given that she’d been barren before her mate had passed and was unlikely to even attempt to get another one. “We didn’t know about the blood beasts,” he told her firmly. “We gave them a communication crystal.”

“You think they’ll let Peter use it?” snarled the mer.

“They will if I order them too,” replied Steve firmly. The mer hesitated, then nodded before swimming away. Bucky leaned back, secure in the knowledge that Steve would be there to catch him. “Do you think he’ll be all right?” Steve asked as he cradled his mate.

“I think he has the greatest chance of surviving an encounter with blood beasts,” Bucky replied firmly.

They both knew it wasn’t an answer.

***

Peter, having lived most of his life in the depths and only going out into the light to gather food, was fascinated by the different colors that the light turned as the sun set. Colors he’d never seen before—or even had words for!

“What is the name of those colors in the sky?” Peter asked Wade as he pointed up. He was currently carrying huge, rough bags of clothes that the woman—Vanessa—had insisted he take with him as he left and was wearing an outfit of loose pants that tied at the waist with a thin, soft rope and a large shirt that hung over one shoulder (he’d been told it was supposed to, and a lot of Vanessa’s friends seemed to wear their shirts like that).

“Which ones?” asked Wade looking up. He was carrying the food they’d gotten. He winced. “White’s right; stupid question. Well Baby Boy, the clouds are a bright pink—shut up furball, I don’t know the name of the shade—the sky behind them is orange, and the sky above them is purple. Or dark blue. Or dark blue-purple—come to think of it; I don’t know what that color is called. Huh.” The man sounded surprisingly pleased to note he didn’t know the color and turned a grin towards Peter.

Peter grinned back, watching the play of the light against the lively face beside him. The human he was with didn’t seem to be like the other humans—more like a mer that happened to have two feet. Peter found him to be endearing. And—best of all—the human didn’t hate or resent him.

He could remember far too many times when he’d been ordered to do impossible things. “Heal this wound.” “Kill that beast.” “Bring back the dead.” And every time he’d said he couldn't, they’d hated him more. After all, the Singers were supposed to be able to. What was wrong with Peter?

What was wrong was that Peter was the only Singer. He knew how to do basic things with his power like clean or find food (only plants though—he couldn't bear the thought of eating another creature). That was all he knew how to do, all he’d figured out how to do. The mer had no centralized place where learning was stored (he’d learned that humans called it a library). There was no one living who had ever even seen a Singer before Peter was born. All that considered—Peter thought he was actually doing really well.

Back at Wade’s room the setting sun made beautiful colors on the walls. More of that orange (which was nothing like the orange Peter was familiar with, nothing like the orange of fish), a little bit of pink, and an odd dark color that was both blue and purple, almost like the depths of the sea where he and his aunt lived. It was wonderful. He loved the way the light played on the walls, on the fur of the two beasts before him, and on Wade’s amazingly textured skin.

Wade calmly handed both beasts their buckets of dinner (mostly blood with entrails mixed in for good measure), and then he and Peter sat against the wall, in the fading light, as they ate their own dinners—which was something in a light brown lump. “What is this?” he asked with fascination.

Wade frowned. “You never seen a pastry? No, stupid, of course you haven’t. Can’t bake in the ocean. Give a bite, you’ll love it. I think it’s mushrooms and kelp or some shit. I got beef.”

Peter did as he was told and nearly vibrated apart at the different tastes and textures on his tongue. In the ocean the only two textures were soft and soggy or rubbery and soggy and everything had a strong overtone of salt in it (of course). But this—this was crisp and soft and chewy and the different pieces actually had more textures to them as he chewed. The flavors were indescribable. He had nothing to compare them to. “’s good!” Peter mumbled around his mouthful.

Wade chuckled. “Of course it is,” he said warmly. “Weasel’s a lot of things—but he’s also a damn good cook.” He laughed at something else, and Peter thought it might be something one of the beasts said to him. He didn’t ask; just basked in the happy sound.

The two of them finished their food in the relative silence (for Peter) of the two beasts guzzling down their buckets. When Wade finished he stood up and Peter stared at the play of light and shadows on his body. “Can I—” he started. He stopped. He didn’t know enough about humans to know if what he was about to ask was okay or if it would cause a diplomatic incident.

“What?” asked Wade, half turning, partially silhouetted in the fading light.

Desire overrode caution and Peter felt himself almost pulled to his feet as he looked at the textured skin before him. “Can I—can I touch?” he asked breathily.

Wade stared at him with wide eyes and Peter flinched back. He didn’t want to upset his host, after all. Wade swallowed hard and said, “Yeah. Yeah, you can touch.”

Hesitantly, Peter rested a hand on Wade’s arm. Fascinated by the different textures—soft, rough, smooth, hard—he rubbed his hand along the skin. He barely noticed as he ripped into Wade’s shirt moving over the muscles, feeling them bunch and tremble beneath his hands.

Suddenly Wade’s hand came up and grabbed both of his wrists—gently. Far more gently than Peter knew he could move. “Peter,” said the man huskily, “if you keep going—you’re going to start something.”

“What?” asked Peter, eyes wide looking up into the shadowed face above him. Wondering what the other man saw.

The man swallowed. “Like—sex things. Mating things, White says.”

Peter thought about it for a moment. He knew that mer and humans could mate each other. It had happened before, although it wasn’t openly spoken of. And he knew that none of the other mer drew him like the human in front of him did. But—mating meant—that. Did he want that with Wade?

Yes, Peter decided quickly as he raised himself up for a kiss. He most certainly did.

Wade kissed him back, tongue (just as textured as his skin) ruthlessly plundering Peter’s mouth as his hands roamed over Peter’s body eliciting warm chills wherever their skin touched. Peter wanted more. He pulled Wade closer to him, grinding their bodies together and broke away to look down, puzzled. How did humans mate? He was in human form, as Vanessa had said, and he thought they should mate like humans—but how to do it?

Wade silently pushed both sets of pants down leaving them standing in the dim room, completely bare to each other. The human stopped, and stared as he breathed heavily. Peter’s hands began to roam again over the plains of the human’s back and Wade pulled him into another kiss as Peter’s hands roamed lower. He brought them forward and hit the expected erection—but there was smooth(ish) skin where he expected to encounter folds. “Huh,” he said.

“What?” asked Wade.

“We’re different,” Peter explained as he brought one of Wade’s hands around to feel the glistening folds under his own erection.

“We need to lie down.” Wade said firmly as he gently led Peter to the bed. “Can I—is it okay if I lick down here?” he asked.

“Sure, but why? Oh!” Peter gasped as the rough tongue probed the delicate folds and reached inwards. It went deep—deeper than anything. It reached and reached, stoking an insane fire in his groin—and stopped as Wade pulled away.

“Peter,” Wade gasped as he looked in the darkness at the form beneath him. Peter wondered how much the human eyes could see. “Can I—can I enter you?”

Peter reached up and pulled the human closer. “Yes,” he said firmly as Wade’s own erection lined up with his folds, trapping Peter’s erection between them as he slammed home. Peter gasped as orgasm forced seed out of him—and seed within him. He felt the merging all mer did when they met their Mate and felt the moment fertility was achieved. And then the two lay, in the darkness, as sleep overtook both of them.

***

[Can you hear me? Singer? I felt your souls mesh.]

{He can hear us? Really? What am I saying?}

Peter opened his eyes to look at the two snouts in his face. His body was tucked up into and partially under Wade’s. “What?” he asked, confused. He’d never heard of this—but then a mer had never mated a human with bond beasts before, either.

[You can hear us. Good. Wake the idiot. We have a lot to talk about and not a lot of time.]

Puzzled Peter reached out. “Wade? Wade, wake up.”

Wade groaned and pressed his head to Peter’s back, mumbling something and making his skin tingle. Peter ignored the shivers running through him and gently shook the human. The human smacked his lips and licked the exposed skin sending shivers through Peter. He hummed and did again.

“Wade!” Peter nearly shrieked. He wasn’t above starting those lovely activities again, but it seemed to him that White needed to talk to them.

“Hmm hmm what?” said Wade finally waking up.

[Finally. You’ve gotten too used to tuning us out.]

{Yes Wade. That’s very very rude. Peter! Pets!} Yellow thrust himself under Peter’s hands and Peter obliged as Wade suddenly sat up.

“What?” said Wade again, staring through the darkness at his beasts. Peter helped him sit up on the bed so they could face White as Yellow whimpered and wordlessly begged for more affection.

[I told the Singer to wake you up. We do not have much time left, and there is much you need to know.]

“What do you mean?” asked Peter.

“You can hear him?” demanded Wade in shock.

[Of course he can hear us, you idiot.] White lifted its lips from its fangs in a silent growl. [When mer mate they share souls. We are bound to your soul, and now to his as well.]

{Good thing, good thing. More pets please.}

Wade watched, stunned, as Peter obliged. Suddenly he swallowed. “I didn’t—I didn’t mean to shackle you,” he whispered.

Peter smiled. His poor mate. The human really didn’t understand mer very well, did he? “You didn’t,” he assured Wade, shifting to curl into the human’s side.

[That’s very nice.] White’s voice may have said it was nice, but his tone did not. [But all of that is outside the point. Wade, as mate to the current world’s only Singer, there are things you need to know. Singer, Wade is a brash, outspoken, immature moron, but he is the best you could possibly do out of these humans.]

“I can’t tell if I should be insulted,” grumbled Wade. Peter lifted a hand from Yellow to gently squeeze Wade’s hand as Yellow lifted its head and took a dainty bite from Wade’s side before Peter started petting him again.

White ignored them. [Once, long ago, the world had two clans. There was the Carry Clan and the Power Clan. The Carriers had the ability to allow the power of the world to flow through them, not touching them, but allowing them to see the world in a new way. The Power Clan could use the power, diverting it and changing its shape. All lived in peace—until a great Cataclysm rocked the very foundations of the world.]

Peter could feel Wade frown. “I’ve never heard of a cataclysm,” he protested.

“I have,” Peter said thoughtfully. “But—only in the most distant of legends, mostly forgotten.”

White bowed its head. [It was—a long time ago. But it tore the world into two parts—that of land, and that of water, and the people were not equipped to survive either. The Power Clan did not know which of the two would provide the greatest chance of survival, and so they divided. Half of the Power Clan used their power to turn their half of the people into Humans with the Power Clan with them turning to Mages, while the other half turned theirs into Mer and their Power Clan turning into Singers.]

“So—humans and mer were originally the same species?” Wade asked. “Then why…” His voice trailed off as his gaze dropped towards Peter’s groin.

White sneezed. [I don’t know; maybe it was a fetish. Stop interrupting. The mer moved into the sea—and met the kraken.]

“Kraken,” Peter said solemnly, “are huge beasts. They’re like a cross between a squid and an octopus, and they hunt in the depths.” He’d been ordered to kill a few. He hadn’t been able to—although he had been able to make them leave.

[Yes. And the mer—were not prepared. There had been no predators larger than them before the Cataclysm. The Singers did their best—but all they could do was banish the kraken.]

Peter privately wondered if they’d ever really needed to. He remembered the kraken he’d dealt with, that he’d convinced to leave. Perhaps they were the same?

[The Singer Loki decided mer needed more power, and a place to retreat to, so against the wishes of his king, he altered the mer. Thanks to his efforts every mer born can alter their form to walk on land, should the need arise. However, this led to the Singer being Outcast while with egg. He needed a place to hide. A place to grow the tadpoles forming within him. He needed protection. He created us, and named us Impulse] a nod towards Yellow still on Peter’s lap [and Memory.] White bowed its own head for a moment.

“The Singer could create life?” asked Peter with wonder.

Despite having no pupils or irises, the beast with its glowing eyes gave the impression of rolling them. [No more than any other mer. Or human, for that matter. We were taken from what we were and changed for his needs—and loneliness.]

Peter felt his heart ache for the ancient mer who had died long ago. Mer needed to be around people, to talk and to laugh, to feel the warmth of embrace from those around them. He could only imagine how crippling the loneliness had been.

[While he was holed up in his cave, practicing his arts and preparing for the eggs, the kraken once again attacked. Their greatest warrior, his mate, forsook the kingdom and swam out in search. By the time he found his mate, our Master, he was almost insane from the solitude. The mate’s presence eased the way quite a bit, and soon the four of us watched the eggs as the mate and the two of us took turns hunting to keep Loki fed. When the tadpoles hatched, the six of us were happy.]

[However, the king of the mer was not. He resented Loki for taking their strongest warrior, even though he knew the two were mated, and had exiled Loki in his mate’s absence. He led a raid on the cave, killed Loki’s mate, and slaughtered the tadpoles.]

Peter gasped, eyes wide. How? How had a king dared to hurt the tadpoles? All life was precious! He barely noticed that both Yellow and Wade were growling.

[Loki went insane. He saw the murder of his mate, the murder of his tadpoles, and saw the mer warriors coming for us, the last of his creations. The last of his children. He Sang a change in us, making us crave blood, giving us strength, and the ability to heal. We slaughtered them all—but our Master had changed. He was Corrupted. There was—nothing we could do.]

Wade wrapped an arm around Peter. “Why are you telling us this now?” he asked.

[Peter is the last Singer. The only Singer. There will soon be a time when he must make a decision to remain as he is, to elevate himself, or to be Corrupted. I do not know which you will choose, but I wanted you to know what your decision will mean.]

“But—I don’t know how!” Peter protested, panicking.

[It is instinctual. When it happens, you will know. Do not stress.]

“Thank you, White,” Peter whispered.

Wade wrapped an arm around Peter, his side already healed as Yellow chewed its meat. “Nothing will happen,” he said firmly. “I’m here to protect you.”

Peter grinned and leaned in for a kiss. “I know you are.”

***

Flash stared at the small mer in shock. Like all mer, he could see the binding of a mating. “You—mated a human?” he demanded harshly staring at the tall human behind the mer.

If Peter had to mate a human, Flash really doubted that the young mer could have picked a better one. Tall, broad, and clearly strong the human almost looked like a mer himself. But still.

While they’d still been in the sea, Peter would have ducked his head and swum away at the earliest opportunity. Here, on land and with his mate beside him, the young mer simply took his mate’s hand in his own and met Flash’s eyes squarely and answered without hesitation. “Yes,” he said firmly.

Flash nodded. “Well, Human,” he growled at the strange human, “come. King Steve wishes to speak with Peter through the Crystal, and might as well speak to his mate at the same time.” He got behind the two of them as he watched the human warily.

Humans were tricky, manipulative creatures. They could easily switch from being friendly to being enemies and Flash didn’t know how to gauge them. Mer were simply by comparison—if a mer liked someone they liked someone and none of that pretending. Flash supposed that it was possible for the human to have tricked Peter into mating him somehow—but he didn’t know how that would be.

At least he’d been briefed on the two beasts that were with the two of them. Blood beasts. Rumors still filled tadpoles with night terrors as their older siblings whispered them. Perhaps the rumors were exaggerated—but, given the way the humans gave the two beasts a wide berth, perhaps not. He eyed them warily.

The white one turned its head to look at him without missing a step, and very carefully, very obviously, winked.

Flash stumbled and almost fell. Fortunately, neither the mer nor the human in front of him noticed. He was going to have to reassess the beasts; not once, in any of the tales he’d heard, was it mentioned that they were smart.

Inside the building was a room they’d set the Crystal up in. It was on a stool, with a cushion underneath it to prevent the perfectly round surface from rolling off and breaking. As they approached the image of their King appeared within it. “Ah, Peter,” their monarch said. “I see—you’ve mated?”

Peter nodded, his hands never having let go of his mate. A gentle tug pulled the human forwards. “This is Wade,” he said, voice proud and soft.

Flash blinked. This was a new side of Peter. This wasn’t the young, cowardly mer who refused to hunt even to drive monsters away—this was someone new. Perhaps all Peter had needed to properly settle down to his life was a mate. Shame though; while mer could walk on land, humans could not swim under the sea.

“Well done. Have you—”

An explosion took down most of the building around them knocking the Crystal off the stool and shattering it against the hard floor.

***

Francis grinned. What luck! Most of the mer were ugly, horrid bastards, but the one he’d been tracing was there. And knocked unconscious! He didn’t have to waste any of that medicine. It was expensive. He and his assistant grabbed the mer and hauled it out of t he building as he planned the auction that would land them far across the sea.

***

[Those bastards!]

{Where’s Peter? Where is he?}

[We will kill them.]

“Damn straight,” growled Wade as he sat up. The woman bending over him shrieked and flailed backwards.

“About what?” demanded a voice. Wade and the three blood beasts turned, identical growls in their throats, to see King Stark’s spymaster, Tasha. Instead of her decadent court gown she was wearing the same kind of clothes that sailors wore working long stretches on the ocean.

“We will kill the fuckers,” Wade growled as he worked his way to his feet, “who took Peter.”

“Peter.” She blinked for a moment. “The mer staying with you?” Her eyes tracked to the beasts, who had healed quicker and were shaking themselves free of debris.

{I miss Peter. He could get us clean.}

[We will find him. And we will kill them.]

Wade growled an assent as the beasts cast around for the scent of the Singer. Of Wade’s mate.

Tasha went to stop him when a heavy hand landed on her shoulder and she looked up into the eyes of the magician. “Let them go,” he advised calmly, eyes searching the air as he performed divination on the dust forming in it. “It is all in their hands now.”

***

Peter’s eyes slowly fluttered as he tried to open them, or to get his body to work, period. “Look at that, Angel,” a voice said. A rough hand gripped his chin and forced his head up, making it pound even as his skin crawled from the sensation. “See? He’s still lively.”

“He’ll fetch a good price,” agreed a second voice, a feminine one. There was something—odd about it. Flat, almost. After a moment Peter realized what was wrong—there was no emotion in her voice.

He squinted to try to see them, eyesight still blurry. “Who—are you?” he asked.

His head was slammed into a hard surface making stars dance behind his eyes. “You don’t get to speak,” the man growled. “At least, not unless your new owners want to hear you beg.”

Owners? Peter—was going to be sold? He tried to force his brain to clear, to force his mind to work.

Peter was one of the ambassadors from the merfolk kingdom. Wade, his mate, worked for the human one. If anything happened to him it would mean war—his people being pit against each other as he had no doubt that his mate would do everything he was asked within the best of his abilities—even if that meant killing merfolk. The war would be bloody—the merfolk warriors were the best of their kind, tempered against the monsters of the deep—but Wade healed impossibly quickly. They would tear each other apart and he knew, knew his mate would be bleeding on the inside, impossible to heal.

No.

[There will soon be a time when he must make a decision to remain as he is, to elevate himself, or to be Corrupted.]

“The Singer could create life?”

[No more than any other mer.]

But—the singer had been able to change life—to alter it to a shape he needed.

White was right. Now that he was faced with it, now that he had an egg and a mate to protect, Peter knew exactly what to do. He opened his mouth and a single, pure tone rang in the air.

***

The air shivered, dust rising off the ground as people screamed and ran for their lives. “What is this?” demanded Wade as he pressed on, forcing himself through the crowd that seemed to determined to keep him from his mate. From Peter.

[He’s singing!]

{Oh! This is why you didn’t want to corrupt him!} Yellow absently bit a man’s hand off as he ran.

“Dammit Yellow!” growled Wade as he stopped to tie something around the wrist to keep the man from bleeding to death. “I told you to stop that!”

[We are losing time. The Singer is calling!]

“I’m going as fast as I can!”

[You are not.]

“How am I supposed to go faster?”

[Stop. Search yourself for the tie to your mate. Feel it in your soul. And pull.]

Wade, not entirely sure why he obeyed, closed his eyes. He could feel the tie. Now that he was looking for it, he could sense the rage and desperate need to protect swirling through Peter. He reached for it—pulled—

“Wade, look out!” He ducked as wooden club swung through the space where his head had been.

“If it isn’t the scarred one,” growled the man behind the club.

“Francis! Haven’t seen you since you tossed me in that pit and left me to die,” Wade commented as he circled the man. His blood boiled when he saw Peter.

The young mer’s legs had been tied together into a grim approximation of a tail and his arms tied behind his back. His face was bruised, scraped, and bleeding. Wade growled.

“Oh, you don’t like him? Too bad, my customers prefer them this way!” He lunged. Wade, distracted as he was, didn’t catch the blow in time. It sunk into his head. He felt, more than heard the scream.

[Call us! Call for us, Singer!]

Wade watched a single pure tone echoed into the air—for a moment before Francis slammed his club into Peter’s side. “None of that,” ordered the man.

The damage was done. Yellow landed on the man’s back and delivered a paralyzing blow to the back of the neck before proceeding to eat the evil man—feet first. White, quickly behind, growled and killed someone that Wade, still healing, couldn't see. He heard the snapping of teeth, the popping of bindings being snapped, and suddenly he was cradled in the lap of his mate with small, hard things bouncing off his face.

He crinkled his face as soon as he could. “What are you doing?” he asked looking up and seeing—pearls? Falling on him?

“Wade!” Peter pulled him close, moving his entire body, and cried more pearls which rolled off onto the rubble filled floor. “You’re alive!” he said with clear relief.

Wade smiled and reached for his mate. “I’m not that easy to kill, Peter,” he said warmly.

***

Several weeks later the two of them stood on the shore of the beach. “Are you sure?” Peter asked gently before they went into the water.

Wade ignored the way the rocks cut into the bottoms of his feet as he grinned at his mer-mate. “With you? Always,” he said.

{I want to have white spots!}

[Shut up!]

Peter giggled and Sang a change. He caught his mate as the human toppled over on his sudden tail. White and Yellow lost their fur, gained gills and elaborate fins, and were ready to get into the water again for the first time in hundreds of years, if White was to be believed. Peter changed himself and the four dove into the water and he helped Wade learn how to use his thick, powerful tail for swimming before they headed towards the ocean.

It was time for the Laying ceremony as the entire sea watched with bated breath as their King’s mate went to the spawning ground to lay his eggs. As the (only) human mated to an ambassador, Wade had been invited as well, and Peter was the only one who was capable of making sure he could make the trip into the depths without dying.

{Look! SPOTS!} Yellow swam, craning its neck to see the beautiful white spots decorating his fins.

After a few tries, Wade figured out how to speak underwater. “So,” he managed with a pointed look at Peter’s rounding belly, “will you be visiting the spawning ground, or giving birth on land?”

Peter swum around his mate, entwining their tails together as he smiled. “That depends,” he said.

“On?”

“On whether we prefer mating in the sea or on land.”

#Spider-Man #Deadpool #Spideypool #mermay2021 #mermaid Peter Parker

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factual-fantasy · 4 years

Photo

Its done! Its all finally done!! All 16 cars! Man, this took like, what, two weeks?? This is one of the biggest and riskiest projects I’ve done in a long while. My hands are bruised and sore and I hope now more than ever that this was all worth it! And yes, the two mystery cars were Dragsters all along! If you’re wondering how a race car like that can be even remotely similar to a Tank, a Tractor, a bathtub with an Engine, a little tikes car, AND a power wheels... well, they’ve got a butt ton of power, they’ve got the biggest friggin tires EVER, they’re basically just flat bowls with pipe legs and an engine, and they’re most certainly toys so... kinda? Also the whole “You’ll wonder what’s in my family basement” thing? They’re trophies. Lots of them.

And I know the names aren’t cool Transformer names, I just wrote down their main name as what they are most commonly called.

Also, I bet you’ve noticed that my persona is in a few of the drawings? Well I put myself beside the cars that are my favorites. The very first drawing, Suburban, being my all time favorite.

Now what I have after the keep reading is a list of summary’s for each cars personality. You absolutely do not have to read them, but I worked hard on it and think they’re cool so.. I at least encourage you to take a lil peek. :}

So you wanna learn more ey? Well let me give you a little summary on their personalities!

Note: Some of the cars’s pictures have been taken from google because I didn’t actually have a picture of the car in my camera roll. And The google image is not identical to the actual car, its just the closest thing I could find. Also for privacy reasons, I will not say the name, age, gender or relation of the drivers of the cars or how many drivers there are in total. And also for privacy reasons, all the cars aside from the google images have been cropped or blurred to hide the background.

Also I am writing their descriptions as if they are real Transformers and have met some of the real Autobots.

Now, to the cars!

Suburban: Is my favorite out of all our cars. Suburban is similar to Bulkhead in may ways, he looks kind’a like him, he is gentle, considerate and kind to those around him. Big and small. Although he isn’t a meat head, he’s a smart guy that thinks everything through before doing it to ensure everyone’s safety. And he isn’t a Wrecker, or a Soldier, he’s a field medic. He uses his size and strength to charge into battle and retrieve wounded soldiers. He tows people out of harms way and uses himself as a shield to protect, not to harm. Although he can kick aft if it is necessary. Because he is not super chatty, is very compliant and polite, he gets along great with Ratchet.

Miata: Miata is a very squirrely scout and energetic go get’er. She’s always bouncing off the walls and just itching to get back out onto the road and show the other bots just what she can do! Although she isn’t an air head and knows when to joke around and when to take things seriously. She points that energy in the right direction while out on the battlefield. She is one of the faster bots of the bunch and always uses that to her advantage during fights. She’s real witty and clever, so she gets along pretty well with U.M.Dragster. She seems to always be smiling and laughing, so just like Escort, she really brightens everyone up where ever she goes.

Escort: One of my favorite cars. Escort is a very old bot that has been through quite a bit. In real life its idle is so quiet you cant even tell the car is on. But I always kind’a pictured him having a tendency to be a bit chatty. He is a really nice guy but there seems to always be something wrong with him physically, He is a recurring patient in the docs office for sure. He is very small, not strong at all and not particularity fast.. but boy is he smart. He is an Engineer turned backup medic, He can fix just about anything and always manages to bounce back from any and every situation. Mentally and physically. He is really positive and normally brightens up the team because of it. He is polite to everyone and easy to get along with, all he wants to do is help people and not be a burden.

Brown Suburban: The Brown Suburban is a bot of few words, the strong and quiet type you know? However despite being normally quiet, he has the best laugh there is. The only time this old lug smiles is if he’s laughing. Which is probably partly why him and U.M.Dragster are such inseparable friends, U.M.Dragster is the only bot that can make him laugh. Brown is a guy that can handle a lot, when it comes to annoying kids or injuries, its difficult to get him wound up. He’s just too tired to bother getting upset or worked up over the little things. He’s not too easy to talk to because of the lac of response you normally get, but I assure you he listens to every word you say.

U.M.Dragster: U.M.Dragster is surprisingly our youngest car, currently standing at only 14 years old. And obviously, he is by far the fastest of our cars, he’s even faster than his sister. He is fast, witty, and courageous, but cant dead lift scrap. As a transformer, he’s an energetic young scout that somehow is friends with the big lug Brown Suburban. Some people think Brown only likes him because U.M.Dragster makes him laugh. Now, U.M.Dragster is guy that knows if he was just given another chance, he would really light up the race track. He can be a real stinker most of the time, but generally he’s real sweet and honestly just wants to be worth something again.

A.T.Dragster: A.T. Dragster is U.M.s big sister and our oldest car, currently standing at 51 years old. She is a lively spirit, and most certainly carries that big sister energy with the other Autobots, not just with her brother. She is a kind bot that uses her speed and agility to help out in any way she can. She just wants to help, and be of use again. She does everything in her power to stay alive and keep fighting. She tends to be a little more laid back compared to the other Autobots and doesn’t seem to get surprised by anything easily.

Green Truck: One of my favorites, and our second to oldest car. He has most certainly been there and done that. He has seen it all, war, injuries, death, betrayal, he’s heard all kind’s of screams and cries, all kinds of destruction.. He’s too tired to dwell on the memories anymore, he just focuses his energy on helping out in any way he can now that he’s back in the game. He’s a big guy, and despite his age, he is one of our strongest cars, standing in second place. He’s someone that knows that when duty calls, you just have to suck it up and get dirty work over with. And of course, due to his age he is a frequent flyer in the med bay. But he tries to not let that get him down. He’s still in fighting shape and can stand on his own two pedes. He fits something that Peter Cullen’s brother once said, “Be strong enough to be gentle”. Green Truck at his core is just an old soft hearted bot that gets along really well with basically everyone.. and just wants this stupid war to end.

Vega: Although Vega is very old, he’s one of the fastest guys on the team, but he isn’t one to brag. He is a frequent flyer in the med bay after all. He’s a humble bot, who still has so much more life left to live. He’s not really shy, but he’s normally a bit quiet around the other bots. He’s still adjusting to being around so many people again and trying to get his barrings back when it comes to fighting. Like every other Autobot, he’s a nice guy and is pretty easy to talk to because he’s a good listener. But don’t let him get too comfortable with you, because then he’ll be the one talking your ear off. Vega isn’t necessarily the smart one of the group, he’s better at just being told what to do and doing it how ever he can. Vega is also a bit nervous around Humans. He’s new to Earth and not great with kids, he has so much to learn it gives him a headache just thinking about it. No, Vega isn’t really the smart one, he’s the strong and fast one. He’s a Soldier. He’s a monster out on the track and can beat the snot out of you if he needs to.

Red Van: Red Van is the Mamma bot for sure. She may be a van, but she’s a real hot rod. In her eyes, everyone is her baby. Even Optimus. She goes to great lengths to ensure their safety and always puts them first. She is a nurse and is always checking up on everyone and worrying about them. She can be really sweet, and she adjusted to being around the Human children faster than any of the other bots did. Although she does have a tendency to be a bit chatty, she really does help to brighten up the atmosphere where ever she is. Because of the motherly vibe she gives off, the other bots feel more comfortable around her and normally go to her to talk about their problems.

White Truck: White Truck is a real go getter and is always ready to lend a helping hand whenever its needed. He may not be very fast, or very strong, but he’s fairly big and can still hold himself decently in a fight. He is also pretty smart, he isn’t a certified engineer but he knows his way around most gadgets. He’s careful with Humans and wants to better understand them, but he still has a lot to learn. He’s really kind and tries his best to help out in anyway he can, when ever he can.

Beluga: Beluga is a really chirpy and bubbly person, She gets along very well with Humans and bots alike. Although she is a completely different person on the battlefield. Some would even call her ruthless. When asked, she explains that she tries to be very kind to everyone all the time and just bottles up her anger and frustration over anything and everything. Big or small. And then later proceeds to release that anger out on the battlefield. All and all though she doesn't like to hurt people. Bad guy or not.. but because of how she handles stress and because of her physical strength being very great, she believes she can better help others by being a soldier.

Honda: Honda has never been one for close combat, no, she prefers long distance, so chose to put her already acquired skills to the test as a fighter pilot instead. Opting to not see her enemy as she kills them.. Like Beluga, she doesn’t really want to hurt anyone. Honda is a smart girl that can pilot and repair almost any kind of Cybertronian aircraft. Honda gets along wonderfully with the Human children, and just Humans in general. She is very patient with them and always remembers to be very gentle. Shes a really sweet young bot that can be a bit shy at times, but is normally very bright and bubbly. Her and little sister Beluga are inseparable.

Ranger: Ranger is a tough gal for sure. If Cybertron had a word for Cowgirl, it would be used to describe her. At her core, she has a soft spot for those she considers family and would do anything to protect those she cares about. At times she can be very laid back, but she most certainly knows when fun times over and when things are getting serious. Something most people don’t really know about her is that she has a deep fascination with Earths Oceans and other bodies of water. Any chance she gets while scouting or something similar, she likes to stop by a river nearby and just watch the water flow curiously. Because of her soft spot, she cares very deeply about the Autobots and despises the Decepticons. Primarily because their very existence is a danger to her friends lives.

Volvo: Volvo is the silent type for sure. He is extremely intelligent and has no time for chit chat. If he discovers a subject that he doesn’t know anything about and that he also believes could be useful information, he will work tirelessly to learn every single thing possible about that subject. He is a hard worker and takes everything seriously, he has no time for jokes and games. Him and Ultra Magnus get along swell. Although despite this all, Humans intrigue him, and he wants to learn more about them. So despite him and Magnus being virtually the same in most ways, he does partake in Human shenanigans to “learn more about their species and culture”.

Jeepy: Jeepy is a real hot shot, but the friendly kind. He thinks Humans are a riot and fun to play around with. Jeepy normally isn’t particularly careful with Humans because he hasn’t fully grasped the fact that Humans all have this genetic condition called uh, fragile. So a side effect of that is he takes Miko on these crazy dangerous fun rides in secret because Bulkhead has common sense wont take her. He may have his moments of not thinking things through.. but he truly means well and would never intentionally hurt an ally, same species or not. If he knew better, he would be more careful. He’s got a big heart and his drive to fight comes from wanting to protect others and end this war. To end the suffering of his friends. Of the Autobots.

Bash Buggy: If you know anything about Overwatch, he’s basically Junkrat, just not on fire 24/7. He takes weekends off. Now, Buggy is an Autobot, so his spark is in the right place, and at his core he is a genuinely good person. He’s just a little weird you know? He’s got a few screws loose here and there.. and a missing fender.. or two.. and a trunk.. and his back seats.. and an optic.. ANYWAY, despite his ragged appearance, he is not dumb. In fact, he is actually very smart, and disturbingly calculated when it comes to his explosives. Buggy actually makes all of his own grenades and is pretty knowledgeable when it comes to other kinds of weapons and how to repair them. But he’s no medic that’s for sure. Although he is generally smart, he’s kind’a of a dunce when it comes to the severity of injuries because of how durable he is. He could be in blinding pain and bleeding out of every crack and crevasse, and just go, ”Let me go back out there chief! I can still fight! ୧⍢⃝୨”.

#my ocs #transformers #transformer ocs

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ptergwen · 4 years

Text

love you the same

warnings: nah we’re good

summary: coming out to peter (bi!reader)

a/n: hi guys i’m so so so sorry for being ia i just didn’t feel comfy posting for a little while with everything going on. i might dip again but don’t forget to keep signing petitions and speaking up however you can! also HAPPY PRIDE YAYYYY this one’s for my fellow bi disasters <3

your heart is beating faster every second. you feel so nauseous that you can’t breathe right. you’re overwhelmed and terrified for what’s about to happen. it shouldn’t have to be so hard, hell you shouldn’t have to do it in the first place.

the idea that loving who you love needs a big announcement has never sat right with you. it’s not like there’s a default setting on every human being’s sexuality. nobody chooses who they are or aren’t attracted to. still, you want to do it. you’re tired of keeping all of this to yourself.

today is the day you’re ready to come out as bisexual. the first person you’re starting with will be peter. not your family, none of your other friends, but peter. you honestly trust him the most, and he’s always supported you through everything. you’re just not sure how he’s going to react.

obviously peter won’t be against it in any way. he’s not like that, actually far from it. what you’re afraid of is him seeing you differently. you’ve known each other since kindergarten. you used to do all that cheesy stuff like taking baths together. is this going to make him go back and analyze every second he’s spent with you for the last ten years? you’re about to find out.

you’ve been waiting at the door literally since he texted he was his way over. you open it after the first knock to reveal a surprised peter.

“someone’s excited to see me.” he wiggles his eyebrows, sidestepping past you to get inside. you shut the door behind him while he kicks off his shoes. “or maybe you’re not the only one with a tingle,” you joke. “reminds me of something that happened on patrol last night. you gotta hear this. i was-“ “can we talk about it in my room?”

you don’t mean to be abrupt, but you feel like getting this over with already. standing around and putting off the conversation is making it so much scarier. patrol updates will have to be postponed.

“um, yeah. sure. whatever you want.” he gives you a quick nod. without saying anything else, you take peter’s hand and lead him down the hallway. you let go once you get to your room. peter closes your door with a worried look as you gather your thoughts.

“why... are you in a rush or something?” he eyes you nervously. “i didn’t even get to say hi to your mom.” “she’s in her room doing work, so it’s fine. come sit.” you turn to him, pointing at your bed. peter takes the spot in front of where you’re standing. he’s making his signature puppy dog eyes up at you, and it’s so hard to get your words out. you inhale a deep breath.

now that you’re really doing this, you wish you’d made a plan earlier. there’s no right way to come out, but you feel like you’ll be the first person who manages to do it wrong. plus, you’re two kids with anxiety. neither of you wants to talk first.

“what’s going on, y/n/n?” peter finally breaks the silence, tilting his head to the side. “i wanna tell you something. i’m just not sure how because i’ve never said it before.” you twiddle your thumbs as a distraction. you’ve suddenly become very interested in the floor. peter takes one of your hands in his and squeezes it softly, willing you to look up again.

“whatever it is, just take your time. it’s okay.” “okay. thank you.” you squeeze his hand back with a nod.

this is exactly why you felt comfortable talking about this with peter in the first place. he’s so patient with you, and his little bit of encouragement reminded you that you’re making the right decision. you end up sitting down on your bed across from peter. he holds out his other hand for you, and you grab it.

“i don’t want what i’m gonna say to change anything between us, in a good or bad way. i’ll still be the same person. please don’t get freaked out.” you widen your eyes at him to stress your point. half smiling, peter moves both of your hands to rest in his lap. “we’re way past that. you know i’m not going anywhere.”

you find yourself laughing for the first time today. he truly has been by your side forever. every weird phase you’ve had, your family drama, and all the messed up stuff that’s happened along the way hasn’t scared him off. why would you liking girls be the thing to do it?

“true. i think i’m ready for real.” “then i am, too.” you play with his fingers like you were just doing with your own to keep yourself calm. “so, everybody knows i like boys. i talk about it all the time. i’ve told you my crushes.” peter nods so you know he understands. you let him sit with that for a few seconds before you continue.

“those weren’t all of them. that’s because some were girls. what i’m trying to say is, i like boys and girls. i’m bisexual.”

peter’s listening face changes into a huge grin. you hesitate, but raise your eyebrows at him to silently ask what that means. he throws his arms around you in a hug that’s so tight you almost fall over. you hug him back with your head on his shoulder and laugh in shock at his reaction. whatever you were expecting, it definitely wasn’t on this level. you’re enjoying it anyway.

“i’m so proud of you, y/n,” peter says into your ear, then pulls back and grabs your hands again. “that’s cool.” “it is? you’re not, like, rethinking our friendship?” he lets out a breath. “no, and you’re still the same y/n to me. i love you the same way i did before. promise.” “i love you, pete. a lot.” you wind your arms around his neck for another hug. he holds you close to his chest, smiling down at you.

“i’ve kinda had a feeling you were into girls for a while now.” your mouths drops open. “what? no you didn’t.” “i one hundred percent did. it wasn’t just a tingle, either. i have solid proof.” you cross your arms playfully. peter just shrugs like it’s nothing. “let me hear it because i thought i was pretty good at not giving myself away.”

“oh my god, no. there was that time when i caught you checking out liz and you said you were ‘doing research’ for me. you have a whole album in your camera roll dedicated to hot women. should i keep going?” you cover your face with your hands, peter laughing.

“no! that’s literally so embarrassing. also, how do you know about the hot women thing?” peter elbows your arm. “be more selective with who you give your password to.”

“you’re so annoying. but now that you mentioned it, wanna go through it together?” “i was waiting for you to ask.”

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officialyourdailyinspiration · 3 years

Text

Devotional Hours Within the Bible

by J.R. Miller

Christ Betrayed (John 18:1-13)

It was after the great intercessory prayer. Jesus now set out on His journey to the cross. The Garden of Gethsemane was on the way. This was one of His familiar sacred resorts for prayer, and here He lingered for an hour. Leaving eight of His disciples at the outer edge of the Garden to watch, He took three, His closest friends, with Him a little farther. "Sit here," he said to them, "while I go over there and pray" (Matthew 26:36). He was drawing near to the terrible experience of the cross, and sought help. Before He passed into the darkness, He wanted the lamps of comfort lighted. Though He was the Son of God, He sought strength and help - in prayer and communion with His Father. We know that the praying in Gethsemane made the darkness of Calvary less dark, and the woe less bitter. Indeed, the battle was really fought under the olive trees, and when the next day came with its darkness and anguish - He was ready for it and met it all calmly.

The great lesson for us, is that the way to prepare for coming perils and sorrows - is by prayer. A season spent with God, will make us strong for any experiences of struggle or duty. It is said that a young officer under Wellington, when ordered to perform some perilous duty, lingered a moment and then said to his commander, "Let me first have a grasp of your all-conquering hand - and then I can do it." We need to feel the grasp of the mighty hand of Christ - and then we can perform any duty, meet any peril, and endure any trouble. A mother whose life was very hard used often to go away upstairs to her room for a little while, when the burdens became unbearable, and she always would come back with a song and a shining face and a brave heart. We should always seek the Garden - before we have to take up the cross .

This Garden meant a great deal to Jesus. Often He had come here with His disciples in the troublous times when His enemies were plotting His death. Here we have a glimpse of our Lords devotional habits. All through His life - He had His times for prayer. There were mountaintops where He spent whole nights communing with His Father. We are apt to wonder why He, the Son of God, needed so much to have His seasons of prayer. But the holiest need prayer the most. Some people manage to get along without much praying - but it is at the expense of their spiritual life. Not feeding their souls - they grow very lean. Luther used to say he had so much to do - that he could not get along with less than three hours of prayer each day. Some of us would put it the other way, and say that we have so much to do - that we have almost no time for praying. But Luther was wise. A great deal of praying needs always to go - to a very little working. Then the habit of praying is important. Some people tell us that prayer should be spontaneous and that regular periods make it formal and take the life out of it; but if there are no regular seasons and places of prayer - there will soon be no prayer at all. Jesus had habits of prayer.

Jesus, as He was nearing His cross, sought strength in two ways. He craved human sympathy. He wanted His disciples to be near Him, and to wait and watch with Him. In this they failed Him. Then He craved His Father's help. In this longing, He was not disappointed. God never fails those who call upon Him in their distress. The cup did not pass from Him - but as He pleaded, His agony became less and less intense, until His cries were quieted into submissive peace.

As Jesus came from the Garden, He saw the torches flashing in the near distance. Every new line in the story of the betrayal, shows new blackness in the heart of Judas. Going out from the supper table, he hastened to the priests, and quickly got under way with his band of soldiers and police. He knew very well where Jesus had gone. Then, when he had found Him, the manner in which he let the officers know which one of the company they were to arrest, shows the deepest blackness of all - he went up to Him as to a dear friend, eager and ardent, and kissed Him! And the words mean that he kissed Him repeatedly, over and over, and with pretended warmth and affection.

Let us remember how the treason grew in the heart of Judas, beginning in greed for money, growing into theft and falseness of life, ending at last in the blackest crime the world ever saw! We should watch the beginnings of evil in our hearts.

A picture in the royal gallery of Brussels, represents Judas wandering about on the night after the betrayal. He comes by chance upon the workmen who have been making the cross on which Christ shall be crucified on the morrow. A fire nearby throws its light full on the faces of the men who are sleeping peacefully, while resting from their labor. Judas' face is somewhat in the shade - but it is wonderfully expressive of awful remorse and agony - as he catches sight of the cross and the tools used in making it - the cross which his treachery had made possible! But still, though in the very torments of hell, as it appears, he clutches his moneybag and seems to hurry on into the night. That picture tells the story of the fruit of Judas' sin - the moneybag with thirty pieces of silver in it (and even that, he could not keep long), carried off into the night of fiendish despair - that was all. The same terrible story of sin is repeated yet, whenever men sell their souls for money, or for any price this world pays.

Jesus was not taken by surprise. He knew what it all meant when He saw the soldiers and officers with lanterns and torches and weapons, coming toward Him. He knew the meaning of the kiss from Judas. But He was not startled. He met the betrayal calmly. He stepped forth, saying, "Whom do you seek?" When they told Him, "Jesus of Nazareth," He said, "I am He." They were panic-stricken and fell to the ground. Here we have a glimpse of the power of Jesus. Though He seemed to be ensnared and unable to escape - yet really He never was more free, than at that moment. He could have called legions of angels with a word, though even that would have been unnecessary, for He had almighty power in Himself, before which, had He put it forth, all His enemies would have been as nothing!

We must remember that Christ's death was voluntary. He gave Himself as a sacrifice. He laid down His life for the sheep. Here we see the love of Jesus in freely offering Himself as our Redeemer.

"When Jesus said, 'I am he,' they drew back and fell to the ground!" In this scene we have also a hint of the appalling effect which Christ's look will have upon His enemies on the judgment day. One glance of His holy eye, will send terror into all impenitent hearts and drive the ungodly forever away before the wind! They will call upon the hills and rocks to fill upon them, to hide them from the wrath of the Lamb - but in vain!

In the time of His own great danger Jesus did not forget His disciples - but sought and secured their safety. "If therefore you seek me - then let these go their way," He said. Illustrating the picture He had drawn of the Good Shepherd, He did not flee when He saw the wolf coming, leaving the sheep to be scattered; but gave His own life for the sheep.

The incident also illustrates the great work of redemption. Jesus procures the deliverance of His people - by surrendering Himself to shame and death, while they go their way in joy and safety. So watchful was He over His own people in their time of panic and fear, that as He had said, "Of those whom you have given me - I have not lost one." And that is just as true now, after nineteen centuries, as it was that day. He never has lost a single soul who trusted in Him. No one ever has perished, who took refuge in the love of Christ. His infinite power protects all who submit themselves to Him as Redeemer and Savior. At the day of judgment Christ will be able to say these same words, "Of those whom you have given me - I have not lost one." We need not be afraid to trust ourselves to the saving of Christ. No matter what our peril may be in any condition or circumstances, we need never be afraid, if we are doing our part faithfully and trusting Him. No power can snatch us out of the hands of Christ!

We are not surprised to find the disciples interfering in behalf of their Master. It broke their hearts to see Him handled so roughly. Peter was always brave. He could not restrain himself, and, after drawing his sword, which he carried, he struck at one of the guards and cut off his ear. But Jesus checked his assault and said, "Put your sword away! The cup which my Father has given me - shall I not drink it?" We ought to take this word of Jesus for our own. He meant that no resistance such as Peter had attempted, should be offered to His arrest; and the reason was that His betrayal, capture, and coming death belonged to "the cup" which the Father had given into His hands; and therefore must not be rejected. The lesson is, that there are some evils against which we should not lift a finger!

Just how far we ought to resist wrongs inflicted upon us by others - is often a difficult question to settle. We remember the words of Christ elsewhere: "But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well." (Matthew 5:39-40).

Possibly this doctrine of nonresistance may sometimes be carried too far; but there is no doubt that far more frequently the erring is on the other side. At least we are very sure that if the wrongs threatened belong to "the cup" which the Father has given us - we ought not to resist them.

#Devotional Hours Within the Bible #J.R. Miller #Christ Betrayed #John 18:1-13 #September 17 #2021 #devotional

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crystaljins · 4 years

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River lead me home | 02

Characters: Seokjin x Reader

Word count: 5.2k

Synopsis: Ever since coming to the human realm when you were child, nothing seems to fit, and this was just supposed to be a simple roadtrip to help you find yourself.

Is that too much to ask for?

Spin-off to A long journey home

Rating: Teens

Notes: I’ve gotten such a fantastic response to this!!! You guys have been so supportive and so thoughtful about my fic and I’m honestly so grateful! This chapter is a bit sad and angsty, but it’s necessary to launch into the adventure bit.

I hope continue to live up to expectations!!

Tags: @blue1928

Masterlist

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 FINAL

The portal to the other realm is located in a far, dark corner of the city you now call home. It is the only way between realms. No human technically knows about it (although you are aware of the incident about a month ago with Taehyung’s new girlfriend) and it’s in a shady enough corner of town that no one really stumbles upon it. The few that do are written off as high as a kite and probably hallucinating. And so the entrance remains unguarded and hidden in plain sight- a fake bathroom door in the back of an alley between a brothel and an antique store with creepy dolls in the window- literally the last public bathroom anyone would use even in emergencies. You tighten your backpack straps and hope the hello kitty on the front doesn’t look too out of place as you step into the alleyway.

Jungkook sits on your shoulders, kicking his legs idly. They bounce against the bright pink straps of your backpack as he glances around the dinghy alleyway. Even in the daytime, the place is a bit eerie and uncomfortable, like at any moment a rogue gang member may leap out and knife you.

“Scared?” Jungkook questions when the silence begins to stretch out between you for an uncomfortably long moment. You swallow past the dryness in your throat.

“N-no.” You say, but the stutter gives you away. You had snuck out of the house that morning under the guise of going to the part time job that you’d been fired from and your mother still felt too guilty about last night’s dinner fiasco to stop you. It’s only a five-day hike. There and back would only take two hours in this world. No one, not even Jin, would be able to work out that you’d ever gone over to the other world. But that’s only if you make it out alive. It’s been thirteen years since you crossed over to this world but as many fond memories as you have of your home realm, you have not forgotten the dangers it held.

Jungkook sighs in annoyance.

“Don’t tell me you’re backing out after thirteen years of angst-ing and being annoying.” He complains. He straights and launches himself off your shoulder to hover in front of you. “Shall I help you?” He asks, hands shoved in the pockets of his little jeans. You have a collection of naked dolls at home as you buy a doll whenever you see a cute outfit for him, and no one wants a doll without the accessories. This particular doll’s outfits consist of a fake blazer, a pair of jeans and a little white tshirt.

“How can you help?” You question, your voice as cautious as warranted when offered aid by a creature small enough to crush in your hand. Jungkook quirks a tiny brow and grins, fluttering closer.

“An old pixie charm for protection and luck.” He says and you miss the slight tick to his jaw as he mutters the words. He flies in close enough to press both hands to the space between your eyebrows. “Close your eyes.” He murmurs.

You follow his request, letting your lids flutter shut and inhaling deeply.

“You need an eyebrow wax. There are a lot of hairs here.” Jungkook mutters.

“Jungkook.” You grit out warningly. You feel his hands flinch in the slightest tickle.

“I’m just saying....” he defends himself before taking a deep breath. A little song that he sings fills your ears. You’ve heard Jungkook singing before- he likes to sing along to whatever comes on the old radio you keep on the roof and sometimes he comes across small mice or moths that are injured and he’ll sing them back to health. This song is different though- darker, and heavier. His voice is normally sweet, but this has an unusual edge to it- it doesn’t sound like a good luck charm. But honestly, you trust Jungkook with your life and so your eyes remain closed until the time peters out. Your eyes open as silence falls and the last of a faint glow to Jungkook’s form fades.

“There.” He says cheerfully. “Now you’ll see the river no matter what!”

You stare at Jungkook for a long moment and gather your courage. It’s stupid but a part of you knows that you won’t ever truly be happy if you don’t do this. It’s a lot to put on seeing a dumb river but as long as you cling to your home realm you will never truly feel settled here. You need a proper goodbye.

“Let’s go.” You say, clutching once more at the bright pink straps of your backpack and moving towards the dingy bathroom door that marks the entrance to a magical world. Jungkook nods and settles back on his favourite perch on your shoulder.

“Where are we going?” A familiar voice sounds from behind you.

If you’re being honest, you’re pretty sure your heart displaces from your chest to the base of your tongue for a moment. You blame being on edge in a dodgy part of town and nerves about travelling to a dangerous realm for the terrified screech you release.

By the time you recover, Jin has a hand clasped over his chest, also recovering from a terrified scream.

“I nearly had a heart attack!” He cries in outrage. Your eyes nearly bug out of your head.

“YOU NEARLY HAD A HEART ATTACK?!” You question incredulously. “What are you doing here?”

Jin blinks and glances around the alley in surprise as if he himself is only just registering where he is.

“I rang your boss.” He admits, folding his arms and leaning against the brick wall. He looks like a model, with the way he artfully deposits himself across the grimy red brick. “And she had some interesting news- that you had been fired almost two weeks ago. Which is weird, because I seem to remember you going to work every day this week. And when I called your mother, she said you had left early for work this morning without talking to her. Imagine my surprise and shock at hearing that!”

You swallow nervously, aware of the way Jin casually eyes you. His stance is relaxed and at ease, but his pose is deceptive. There is a slight tick to his jaw and an unamused glint to his eyes like at any moment he may grab you and launch into his most powerful Jant (Jin rant) yet.

“Oh, funny, that.” You say hesitantly, scrambling for an excuse. “You see, I-“

“You lied to me.” Jin cuts you off. The excuses die in your throat at the hurt in his voice. This... isn’t a Jant. With Jants, Jin’s anger boils over and you can’t get a word in edgewise. Instead, his voice wobbles and his words are slow and meaningful. Like the precise jabs of a needle. “I’ve been sitting here, feeling terrible for you, but this whole time you’ve been lying to me.”

“Jin, I-“ you say, finding your voice in an attempt to defend yourself, but he cuts you off.

“Save the excuses!” He practically snarls. “That’s how you always are! Always making excuses for your behaviour- you never take responsibility for the things you do! It’s like you’re not even trying.”

He kicks off the wall and strides towards you.

“And now? Now what? You were going to run away without telling any of us? None of us would have ever known what happened to you. All your mum would know was that you ran away after a fight with her and disappeared- did you really want that to be her last memory of you? How selfish can you be!” He scolds.

All the desperation to defend yourself drains out of you as the weight of Jin’s words hit you. That really had been what you were about to do. You feel Jungkook stiffen on his perch upon your shoulder and you drop your eyes in shame. He’s… he’s right.

“I’ve made excuses for you.” Jin is not finished. His voice cracks as he says the word. “Every time. Since coming here. I’ve always justified every stupid thing you’ve done- every mess you’ve made. ‘Her dad died, Jin. Of course she’s struggling to settle in.’ I’ve helped you every time because I felt bad for you. I could never stop you because I felt so guilty that my family was whole but yours was broken. And so, I’ve let you step all over me our whole lives, but this is enough. You’ve gone too far today. I’m not going to justify your immature and selfish behaviour anymore.”

Tears well up in your eyes at the mention of your father. You’ve never thought about how your actions may have affected Jin. But in hindsight you can see what it must have been like- having dates interrupted with calls from the hospital. Having to cancel plans with friends to pick you up from job interviews. Coming home from a long day at the hospital and being forced to make you a meal. You’ve been so preoccupied with how inadequate you feel next to him that you’d never considered how hard you were making his life.

“I’m sorry.” You say softly. Jin pauses, and the hard look in his eyes softens and he looks away.

“Look, don’t worry about it. Let’s just go home.” He tells you wearily. You nod meekly, with every intention of following him and putting this whole episode behind you like it’s nothing more than a delirious fever dream. But then something strange happens. Every muscle in your body locks up.

Panic races through you- you’re paralysed. Jin has already turned and is making his way back up towards the entrance to the alleyway, but your body won’t follow despite your desperate attempts to move.

“(Y/N),” Jungkook says urgently from your shoulder. “I have something to tell you-“

Jin interrupts him.

“What are you doing?” He demands. “Let’s go!”

“I can’t.” Is all you manage to choke out. There’s a weird tugging sensation in your body, like every molecule within you is being pulled. Jin’s eyes widen with anger.

“You’re kidding me!” He cries. “You mean after all of this, you’re still thinking of yourself?”

“It’s not that.” You protest pathetically. “Jin, I can’t move-“

“Save it!” Jin snaps. “For a moment I fooled myself again- I thought maybe you could be mature and I was almost ready to apologise, but as usual, I overestimated you. You really are the selfish brat I’ve always thought you were. Fine. Go to your stupid realm.”

Your eyes widen. Up until this point, you couldn’t get a word in to defend yourself because Jin was painfully right in everything he said. But... his final words are like a punch to your gut. Because, as much of a pain as you are, Jin has never given up on you before. Even the times where he would have been justified in doing so like the time you crashed his car trying to save a kitten on the side of the road. And even that day, back in highschool… that hadn’t been him giving up on you. But this time… all the warmth is gone from his eyes. He’s never looked at you quite like this before. The feeling is strange- like he’s torn open your rib cage with his hands and is snickering at your bruised heart. Until this moment you didn’t even know Jin had the power to hurt you in the way that he has.

“Jin.” You say softly. Tears stream down your face and you never get the chance to explain yourself.

“(Y/N)!” Jungkook cries again. “About the charm I just cast-“

A loud, eerie creaking cuts him off. Both you and Jin shift your gazes- the decrepit fake bathroom door slowly opens. The poorly oiled hinges release pained screeches as the darkness behind the door reveals itself. You both stare in confusion- the door doesn’t have the ability to open itself. One has to open it to be able to cross over into the other world. And though you’ve only seen the portal once before, you know it shouldn’t be black like that.

“What-“ Jin begins to ask, and then something horrible happens. A tendril of darkness shoots out like a whip and wraps around your wrist. You stare down in horror, but your body still will not obey- it does not allow you to attempt to wrench your hand free. Jin looks from you to the door, connected by the dark, rope like substance, and all the colour drains from his face.

Another whip like movement follows and suddenly your wrists and ankles are encircled by the same odd tendrils. You feel a powerful tug and your arms and legs are pulled backwards towards the portal.

“What’s going on?” Jin demands. Jungkook has been thrown off balance by the pull- he grips onto the material of your shirt and flaps his wings in an attempt to stay balanced.

“She has to see the river!” It’s Jungkook that calls, his voice high with distress. Jin turns a horrified look to the small pixie. Another yank has you stumbling backwards and then a steady pull slowly drags you to the door. “I... I put a spell on her!” He confesses.

Your heart drops in the same moment that Jin’s expression changes. You’ve never seen such an expression on his face. You’ve known him all your life, even when you lived in the other realm, and you thought you had seen every expression he had to give. But you have never seen such a look of pure, unadulterated fear on his handsome face before. You are a mere metre from the door now, still being dragged backwards and your body does not allow you to fight it.

“She has to see the river- the realm will not let her go until she does.” Jungkook cries, and Jin’s horrified expression changes. It sets with determination as he processes Jungkook’s words, like lava cooling into hard rock.

With long, sure strides, he turns back around and marches up the alley way, away from you. You are moved back, centimetre by centimetre and more tendrils snake out of the portal, wrapping around your arms, your torso, your legs, your throat. Gradually as you move closer the shadow seems to absorb your body into it. He’s… he’s leaving you, to get dragged forcefully into the other realm. To a place you could lose your life and he would never know. Panic fills you in a way it never has before- Jin has really, genuinely given up on you.

In your life, despite its ups and downs, there has always been one constant. And as much as you loathe to admit it, that constant has been Kim Seokjin. Even as a child, Jin was the one you’d drag along on adventures. He was the one you turned to when human children bullied you at school or when ex boyfriends dumped you. He was the one who held you in his arms every year on the anniversary of your father’s death. He drove you to school every day when he got his licence before you; he helped you move into your apartment when you were living away from home for college. Every step of your entire life, you’ve always had Jin there to support you. And you realise, for the first time, that he may not always be there- that Jin, just like anyone else out there, can and will give up on you.

But the day that he does that isn’t today, for right as he is about to step out of the alleyway, he pauses.

And then, in a burst of inhuman speed you’ve never seen him use in the thirteen years since coming to the human realm, he is before you. You are no more than a centimetre from the portal. but Jin does not hesitate as he wraps his arms around you. He pulls you in close and tight and his hands curve protectively around the back of your skull.

The last sensation you are aware of before the darkness envelops you is the steady rise and fall of his broad shoulders as he squeezes his eyes shut and falls into the darkness with you in his arms.

++++

When you finally rouse, it is to the distant sound of birdsong and the soft, earthy smell of a forest floor. As you blearily open your eyes, you find you are lying on your back, gazing at the way sunlight is filtered to emerald green through the luscious canopy above. The air is thick with a sensation you haven’t felt rush against your skin for thirteen years. The air writhes with the painfully familiar sensation of magic. It leaves you feeling more alive then you’ve felt in a long time.

Only, when you attempt to sit up, you find your body weighed down. Surprised, you gaze down as your midsection to find a masculine arm curled protectively over it. And your head does not press into the hard forest floor- instead it rests against the careful cushion of someone’s palm. You trace the arm thrown over your stomach with your eyes back up to its owner and register the broad shoulders. They slope towards a pale throat, a sharp jawline, familiar, full lips. Something molten bursts in your chest as you take in Jin’s face. It is similar to relief, but it burns hotter and more intensely. He didn’t leave you- he stayed with you. Despite how mad he was, despite your fight... Jin has chosen you. You swallow deeply and take a moment to soak in his features. It is rare that you get to study his features with such intensity- if he ever caught you staring, he would scowl. Jin loves when everyone except you appreciates his face. He lives for the ego boost other people can provide him but with you, your admiration has always been a burden to him.

He looks so peaceful, with his lashes fluttering gently against defined cheekbones, his face free of any scowl or frown. He looks young like this, and smaller than he is in your head. You’ve always thought of the three years between you as a huge amount- his personality is so big and so is his presence in your life. But seeing him small and vulnerable like this, you realise with a pang that Jin was only fourteen when you first arrived in the human realm. He was little more than a child as well yet since such a young age he’s had to play the role of mature adult for your sake. Your expression crumples with guilt. Have you really been that blind to how you were affecting him?

Jin’s lashes begin to flutter more, and you are seized with fear- you are not prepared to face him, after the things he has said to you. How can you be? Your heart throbs with shame and you are about to pull away from the safe embrace of his arms but as he rouses his arms tighten around you.

“Where’s the mosquito?” He groans. His eyes aren’t open, so you’re left staring in confusion.

“Huh?” You answer dumbly. He blinks one eye open and somehow, he manages to glare at you with just one eye. He seems completely unfazed by the way he holds you tightly in his arms.

“The. Mosquito.” He repeats darkly. A familiar fluttering sounds behind you and Jin’s hand shoots out using his enhanced-guardian reaction time.

“Ouch!” Jungkook cries and you crane your head to find Jin has easily seized the pixie in his fist. He yanks his arm out from underneath you and sits up, holding Jungkook before him. You wince when your head bangs against the ground, before following suit and sitting up. The forest air is oddly cool without his arms around you.

“You have five seconds to explain before I pull out the bug spray.” Jin snarls at the small creature. Jungkook struggles uselessly against Jin’s fist, pounding tiny hands against his knuckles.

“Let me go!” Jungkook cries. “You stupid big oaf! You’re going to crush me!”

You are about to rush to Jungkook’s aid but a firm glare from Jin has you freezing in your spot like a chastened puppy. You hang your head while Jungkook continues to attempt to squirm free.

“What did you do to her? So help me, you stupid cricket, tell me right now or I’m finding the nearest fly swatter.” Jin questions and there is a lethal fury to his tone that has never been there before.

“I already told you! I thought guardians were supposed to have good memory.” Jungkook whines, his wings flapping faster and faster until they are just a shimmering blur. Jin’s fist tightens just a fraction and Jungkook squeaks with pain.

“Jungkook.” Jin calls warning. Jungkook sighs and slumps defeatedly against the fist that holds him. His arms fall limply against Jin’s knuckles, which loosen at Jungkook’s defeat.

“A promise spell.” He finally says. “So that she can’t back out of seeing the river.”

“What river?” Jin demands. He whirls on you for explanation and you flinch.

“The Dancing River!” You confess fearfully. Jin glares for a moment longer- you briefly consider that maybe instead of being a doctor he should be a detective since he seems to be so good at getting confessions from people. Jin blinks in confusion and his expression fogs slightly as he struggles to recall the significance and existence of such a river.

“The… ‘the river loves those who take the plunge’.” He recalls. He frowns. “Why there?”

You flush and look away.

“He… he wanted me to see it.” You admit. Jin is silent- he does not need to ask who the ‘he’ is that you’re talking about. He bites his lip and scrubs a hand over his face. It is the hand that had been holding the back of your head when you fell. The knuckles of said hand are now scraped and bleeding- rivulets of blood trace paths over the back of his hand. It is already starting to heal, but the dried blood remains. Your heart squeezes in your chest at the sight- you did that to him. He is hurt because of your actions. It’s just another painful reminder of who you’ve been to Jin all these years.

“Why the hell would you cast a spell like that on her?” Jin finally asks, unable to face you. Instead he turns the force of his anger on the tiny pixie who has once again started attempting to break free from Jin’s iron hold.

“So that she would have to see the river. Obviously.” Jungkook spits at his captor. Jin’s eyes bug out of his head.

“YOU NINNY!” He shouts and both you and Jungkook flinch at the sudden boom of his voice cutting through the faint forest sounds. The birdsong goes eerily quiet in answer, but Jin does not notice. “DO YOU REALISE WHAT YOU’VE DONE? SHE CAN’T GO BACK HOME UNTIL SHE SEES THE RIVER NOW!”

“I mean… obviously I realise what I’ve done.” Jungkook sulks. He looks at Jin like Jin is stupid. “That’s why I put the spell on her. So that she couldn’t go home until she saw it.”

“Why?” Jin cries. “Why would you force her to see some stupid river?”

Jungkook pauses to consider why he would do such a strange thing, before pointing accusingly at you. You blink, staring in confusion at the tip of his tiny index finger.

“Because she won’t shut up until she does.” Jungkook says. “She’s going to keep being miserable and sulky and annoying until she gets what she wants- do you really want to put up with that for the rest of your life?”

Both Jin and Jungkook turn their heads in eerie unison to stare contemplatively at you. You shrink under their gaze. Jin sighs in defeat and releases Jungkook from his clutches. Jungkook crows in delight and darts away, flapping his wings cheerfully. Jin just continues to stare at you.

“Why didn’t you say something?” He asks quietly, almost drowned out beneath the sound of Jungkook celebrating his freedom. “If you were upset and you just wanted to come here for a quick trip, we could have told your mother and gone together. Instead, you lied to us and snuck off so that we’d never have known what happened to you! And I… I thought you were leaving forever. That you were running off without saying goodbye. I wouldn’t have… I wouldn’t have been as mad if I’d known it was just a quick trip.”

Jin’s heartfelt confession has you choked up and you duck your head to hide the guilty tears that well up in your eyes. In all honesty… You don’t really deserve a friend like him. The fact that he is here, with you, in this realm, is testament to the kind of person he is. He couldn’t leave you, even when you’d hurt him and that makes you feel sick to your stomach. Your eyes flick to where his hand rests at his side. It is completely healed now but the dried blood remains. Jin does not seem to have noticed he’s even injured.

“Well then let’s go!” Jungkook says, finally stilling from his excited zooming through the air. “Let’s see that river and get this over and done with!”

You nod, and get to your feet, dusting the dirt off your pants and stretching your hand out, towards Jin.

“Let’s go.” You tell him. Instead of accepting it and letting you pull him to his feet, however, Jin just stares at your hand in confusion. He gazes up at you and you don’t understand the expression on his face. He glances down at his apple watch, which has somehow survived the transition between realms unscathed. It lights up with the time back in the human realm. He swallows nervously.

“I… I actually had plans, (Y/N). In the other realm.” He says softly. You drop your hand when he gets to his feet himself and awkwardly dusts himself off. He spots the blood and winces, grabbing at the hem of his shirt in an attempt to wipe it off. He shoots a furtive look at you. “I… You didn’t even plan to have me along for this trip.” He points out. The blood smears across his shirt. Wordlessly, you pull off your backpack and pull out a bottle of water and a small towel. You dampen the towel and grab his hand, gently wiping off the dried blood without looking at him.

“Yeah.” You admit softly. “I was supposed to only be gone for two hours.” He nods and bites his lip as he watches you clean the last of the blood off.

“I’m not bound to this realm.” He says. “I can go back and wait for you. And if you… if you don’t come back, I can tell Auntie where you’ve gone.”

“You could.” You say softly. Jungkook has gone quiet, watching the exchange between the two of you. His wings hold him aloft in the air as he wisely chooses not to interfere. You release Jin’s hand, now clean of the blood. The skin under it is already fully healed- no one would ever know he had hurt himself in the first place apart from a faint discolouration.

“Then… it’s settled? You two can finish your journey and I can go back home?” He asks. You don’t respond for a moment, still scrutinising the faint, discoloured mark on the back of his hand. Finally, you look up and you can’t really explain the expression on his face. His eyes are sad, resigned. But he almost looks like he’s in pain- like he’s doing something that is hurting him. You suppose it’s always been like that for him- you, at the expense of himself. And you can’t keep asking him to do that anymore. Because Jin is just as important to you as you are to him, and for too long you’ve allowed your relationship to be too one-sided. It is well past the time Jin should have been allowed to live his own life, with his own friends. You shouldn’t have dragged him backwards while clinging as desperately to the past as you did.

“It’s settled.” You finally say. It’s weird- you don’t know why you just expected that he would come along with you. But obviously, if he’s not stuck here like you are, and if he has commitment back home… why would he come with you? He has far better things to do, and this can be your first step in being less selfish towards him. Letting him live his life. “Have fun with your plans.”

Jin nods, seeming mildly surprised, glancing over his shoulder where the portal back to the human realm is a few metres behind him. His eyebrows both fly up. It’s almost like he expected you to protest. He clears his throat awkwardly.

“Good! Good. I will. I’ll… I’ll have fun. So then… I’ll see you off and then I’ll go back.” He says quickly. You nod and glance at Jungkook, who continues to watch the two of you. He’s almost curious, in the way he watches the interaction between the two of you.

“Let’s go then.” You tell the pixie, who nods and lands on your shoulder, his favourite seat.

“See ya, Mr. Guardian.” He says, as a farewell to Jin. Jin squints at him and offers him an acknowledging nod.

“If anything happens to her, I’m tying you to a bug-zapper.” He tells Jungkook, almost cheerfully. He turns and regards you, with a half-smile. “And don’t think I won’t find out if you do anything stupid. Taehyung knows this realm very well and can definitely find your body.”

Despite the dark humour, you find yourself smiling. You shake your head.

“Just go, already.” You urge him. You hesitate for a moment, before stepping in close and pulling him into a hug. Jin smells familiar and warm- like the scent of home mixed with expensive cologne. You don’t know how long it will be before you see him again, but you don’t like leaving things between you on this note. Jungkook makes a noise of annoyance, launching himself backwards off your shoulder to avoid the hug. “I’m sorry. For everything.”

It takes Jin a moment, before he snakes his arms around your waist and pulls you in tightly. He tucks his face into the crook of your neck and shoulder.

“I know.” He answers, before pulling away. “Now hurry up. You’ve got to get back and apologise to your mother asap, you hear me?”

You nod, before retrieving your hello kitty backpack and slinging it once more over your shoulders. Jin watches the two of you with an unreadable expression as you finally turn away and begin to march eastwards, where you know you’ll find the first landmark on your hike.

He watches until you are both gone from view before turning back towards the portal.

After all, you both have separate paths to take.

#kim seokjin x reader #jin x reader #kim seokjin scenario #castlebangtan #bts scenario #writing

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