#tHe tAiNt OvErCaMe ThEm!! no | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

goldenbuckyyy · 1 year

Text

MATILDA

Summary: During the holiday season, Harry helps you realize that it’s okay to build your own family.

Pairings: Harry Styles x fem!Reader

Word count: 3.5kish

Warnings: Mentions of past childhood neglect, slight smut mentioned, angst, crying, anything else?? Let me know!!

A/N: hi!!! Merry Christmas to all of you!! I wanted to post this earlier today, but ended up spending the holidays with my family! I got this request by someone anonymous and I loved the idea!! Hopefully you all do as well. Inspired by: “Matilda” by Harry Styles.

All mistakes are my own. Please do not repost or translate my fics on any other site nor this one.

I appreciate any likes, reblogs, messages, and interactions.

Masterlist

Today is the day before your birthday.

It’s Christmas Eve.

And you are not a fan of the holidays.

You didn’t particularly enjoy any of them.

Mostly because you’ve never had a chance to ever actually celebrate them.

You’ve never had an Easter egg hunt on Easter Sunday. You’ve never popped loud fireworks on the 4th of July. You’ve never had a warm turkey dinner on Thanksgiving. You’ve never even decorated a Christmas Tree for Christmas holidays.

You’ve never even had Christmas presents waiting for you under the tree on Christmas Morning.

It doesn’t help the fact that your birthday is on Christmas Day.

Every memory you had of a holiday was tainted with the background noise of your parents fighting and you crying yourself to sleep.

One of your earliest memories was when you were eight and your godmother, Eva, gifted you a brand new pretty pink bicycle. You loved that bike from the moment you saw it. You remember the way your heart felt so full at that age and the overpowering feeling of excitement overcame you.

You learned how to ride it with her cheering you on for your birthday, you remember laughing so loud in happiness that your belly hurt, and when you yelled for your mom to watch you… she was reading the newspaper and waved you away with her hand as she said “It’s no big deal.”

You remember the instant dread you felt in the pit of your belly, the way your happiness was instantly stripped away from you, the way tears immediately filled your eyes which caused your vision to haze, your hands to shake, and it made you lose control of your brand new pretty bike.

Then, you fell. You scraped your knees which turned into a bloody mess, bruising all your legs and arms, and you spent the entire time crying. Only Eva helped you. You remember hearing her scold your mother, but she didn’t care.

The tainted memory stayed with you forever. The scar on your knees proves it.

You never rode that bike again.

After that, you only focused on school. You remember only focusing on your grades and your after school activities. You wanted to get the highest grades and the highest praises so you could go to the best college. You wanted to do whatever you could do to get away from your family.

You wanted to get out of this small town in this forgettable state and move far far away from here. You didn’t care about how you did it. You just had to do it.

Turns out.. you had a hidden talent for singing and songwriting. One hit song when you were seventeen right after graduation ended up landing you the record deal of the year. You had gotten lucky and you felt grateful every day since.

That song and album won you three Grammys in your very first year in the spotlight. It felt overwhelming.

Suddenly, you were being pulled in different directions. You had millions of fans. You performed sold out shows in the biggest arenas in the United States and all abroad. You were living the life you had never thought you would have ever wanted. But it made you happy.

You were the happiest you had been in years. In your whole life, maybe.

And you never went back home. Especially for your birthday. You didn’t enjoy celebrating it because everything about Christmas time reminded you of your horrible childhood.

So.. yeah. You weren’t a fan of the holidays.

And it didn’t help that your wonderful, loving, teddy bear of a boyfriend loved them. He absolutely loved Christmas time.

He was the type to hire decorators to decorate the outside of the house and then to come inside and go the full nine yards in here, too.

You admit.. it made you happy seeing him happy. It made your heart tug a little bit and all you wanted was for him to be happy. But this year, you were both going to celebrate in your shared New York City penthouse.

Harry said Anne and Gemma were aching to spend the holidays up here.

You had somehow managed to get out of the Christmas holidays the past three years. Always scheduling something so you wouldn’t be home, but Harry begged you to not plan anything this year. That he wanted to celebrate with you and finally be together for your birthday, here at home. With him. You love him and you know how much this means to him. You want to make him happy, so you agreed. He’s your entire world.

Harry came into your life like a bulldozer. Fast, unexpectedly, and it was life changing. He had reached out to you back in 2018 during the holiday season.

You remember seeing “Harry Styles just sent you a Direct Message” on your notification and you about had a heart attack. Of course you knew who freaking Harry Styles was. You had basically grown up with One Direction, but with you focusing on school.. you didn’t really have time to obsess over them. But you did know them and occasionally listened to their music.

So yeah, you knew who Harry Styles was. Young, devilishly handsome, and surprisingly single. And he was messaging you. Gushing about how much he loved your music and admired the way you carried yourself in your interviews. You had just released your second album at the age of twenty one and were about to start touring for it. He was already touring for his first solo album. (Which you loved)

He wanted to come to one of your shows. You gave him a seat in the family and friends section and a backstage pass.

You had been messaging back and forth since his first message a couple months back. You had spent all of your free time texting him and if your timing aligned with his time.. then you’d talk for hours on the phone.

It felt almost like you knew him. The connection that you felt with Harry was something you had never experienced before. And it felt crazy to you. This was all new to you and it was exciting. And a little scary.

And finally, he was able to get away from his own tour to come see you.

And he met you backstage after your show and immediately pulled you into his arms, praised you with his words, and the way you felt in his arms made you cry.

It was overwhelming and pretty embarrassing. It felt safe. Harry’s embrace made you feel safe. And you don’t even remember the last time you had ever felt that way. If you had ever even felt that way before that moment.

When Harry noticed, he immediately ordered everybody in the room to get out and the look on his face… he looked so worried. So sincere. So honest.

It made you incredibly emotional and you profusely apologized for ruining his shirt with your tears. And he said he didn’t care about his shirt.

That he cared about you.

And ever since the day you met him, that’s the one main thing Harry has always made sure you feel. That you feel safe.

It did take some time for you to open up to Harry about your childhood, but when you did.. you felt grateful. It felt good to finally talk to someone other than your therapist about everything you had gone through. He had always wondered why you never talked about your family or why he hadn’t met anyone other than Eva in the year of you guys dating. And when he finally knew, he held you and didn’t let you go for hours.

Harry felt like home.

Now it was the day before Christmas Eve 2021. You and Harry were cuddling on the comfy gray couch in the living room that overlooked the NYC skyline and the Christmas tree that you had both decorated together at the beginning of December was glimmering in the darkness. All the awaiting presents under it make you smile.

Anne and Gemma had already settled into bed for the night. They stated they needed some more sleep to adjust to the time difference and you couldn’t agree more. You and Harry had decided to stay up a little longer.

You cuddled into Harry’s chest as he held you while a Christmas movie played for you guys. You guys are watching ‘Elf’ and you admit it’s a good Christmas movie. No wonder it’s one of Harry’s favorites.

Harry feels extremely warm underneath you and it makes you want to stay here forever.

He’s rubbing your scalp gently with the tips of his fingers and your hand is underneath his sweater. Gently rubbing your own fingers on his almost non existent little belly.

But his body always held into a tiny little pouch under his belly button and you secretly loved it. You played with the happy trail there and ran your fingers over his abs slowly as well.

The atmosphere around you feels peaceful. It feels entirely calm and it’s a feeling that sinks deep into your bones.

You just weren’t used to this over the holidays and it felt almost weird to allow yourself to enjoy this.

Suddenly, Harry gets a slight hold of your chin and tilts your head up to meet his lips. His kiss surprises you, but you melt into him. He kisses you softly and lets his tongue slip into your mouth slightly. You smile into the kiss and hum in content when he pulls away from you.

Meeting his eyes, “What was that for?” You whisper as you wipe his bottom lip with your thumb.

His eyes twinkle with happiness and his arms wrap around you tightly, pulling you to sit on his lap completely, and he smiles so sweetly.

You let your hair fall over your shoulders as you look down at him. He’s so handsome.

“Happy birthday, my sun.”

You intertwine your hands in his own, glancing at the clock next to you that shows it’s exactly midnight, and you smile sheepishly at Harry. You lean down and kiss him again.

“Thank you, honey.”

“Let’s go to bed,” Harry says with a teasing smile as he holds onto your waist with one arm, shuts off the tv with his free hand, and easily lifts you up into the air.

“H!” You shriek with a giggle as you koala hug him to not fall down. He laughs lowly, “I’ll never drop you, sun.”

You both giggle until you fall into the mattress in your room, locking the door in a rush, but then Harry takes his time taking you apart and letting you come undone.

Helping you fall apart with his fingers, his tongue, and then with his cock.

And when he has to clamp his hand over your mouth tightly to keep you from screaming out during your orgasm, he’ll do that all night long just to make you happy.

•••

You wake up the next morning, slowly, and to the wonderful smell of bacon in the air.

You inhale the scent with a small smile as you stretch your limbs awake. You sit down on your bed, pulling the white comforter over your naked torso, and looking around for Harry. The floor to ceiling windows are cloudy with the Christmas chill, but it sends a wave of comfort throughout the room.

And it’s as if he knew you were searching for him.

Because he walks into the bedroom with a bed tray stacked with food.

You instantly perk up with a smile, “Hi.”

Harry leans down and kisses you, “Hi. Happy birthday, my sun.”

You giggle and shush him. “You already wished me a happy birthday.”

“I’m going to keep wishing my wonderful girlfriend a happy birthday all day long,” he says teasingly with a smirk as he sets down the tray in front of you.

You adjust yourself in the bed and admire the yummy food in front of you. “Did you do all of this for me?”

Your heart fills with warm love and your cheeks flush.

“Mom did. She made all of your favorites.”

Now his cheeks are flushing bright pink and you’re instantly overcome with a sense of love.

“She made all of this for me?” You ask in shock as you look at the chocolate chip pancakes, sunny side up eyes, fresh fruit, and amazing smelling bacon.

“Of course, sun. She loves you,” he says with a kiss to your forehead.

“Shouldn’t we go eat with them in the dining room?”

“Nah. You love eating in bed and today’s all about you,” he says as he starts cutting up your pancakes.

“But—“

“No buts.”

You shut your mouth with a smile as he feeds you the pancakes and takes some for himself with a teasing grin.

“We’re only doing what you love today. That’s all.”

And that’s how the rest of the day goes with Harry pampering you and only letting you do something if you truly want to do it.

You felt so lucky.

Now it’s the afternoon, you’re all gathered in the living room after eating a yummy and fulfilling dinner in your matching Christmas pajamas. Harry bought them for all of you guys and they’re grinch themed. You have to admit that seeing Harry so giddy and excited filled your heart with so much warmth and love. You truly felt so happy today.

You all had already exchanged gifts with each other. You two had gotten Anne and Gemma a full paid trip to Paris for a little winding down when you and Harry were going to go next summer. And you had framed two of your favorite pictures of the four of you together and gifted them each one. They loved it.

Anne had gifted you and Harry two homemade sweaters that she had knitted herself and it meant so much to you. Way more than any other money made gift.

Gemma gifted you a homemade shirt that she had stitched a quote for your favorite show and she had made Harry a matching one as well.

It was something cheesy, “you’re my lobster” and Harry immediately loved it. You did as well.

You have to admit that this felt insanely weird. You and Harry always exchanged gifts, but it was never in this type of setting. With his mom and sister.

It felt so intimate and loving.

So intimidating that it felt scary, but this was something that you didn’t know you needed.

“I wrote something for you,” Harry states as he gets the guitar from Gemma. It’s one of his favorites. It’s the one that was gifted to him from a friend. It’s the one with the starry design.

“You wrote me a song?” You ask with a grin as you grip onto your hot chocolate while you adjust yourself on the couch cushion.

“Another one?” Gemma says jokingly and Anne sushes her with a jab.

You see Harry’s cheeks blush faintly as he sits down on a small stool he pulled out from the pantry.

He slowly starts to make sure his cords are in key and he lets out a shaky breathe. He looks up to meet your eyes.

“This song… is for you. Completely and utterly for you. I hope you like it, my sun.”

There’s so much honesty in his eyes that it makes you feel completely warm and full inside.

He slowly starts to strum his guitar.

You were riding your bike to the sound of "It's No Big Deal"

A small gasp leaves your lips as your fingers grip into the mug. Instant tears fill your eyes as you hear the first sentence of your song.

And you're trying to lift off the ground on those old two wheels

Harry gives you a small smile as you stare at him with a wavering expression.

Nothing about the way that you were treated ever seemed especially alarming 'til now

Your bottom lip is quivering.

So you tie up your hair and you smile like it's no big deal

You can feel your water line filled with tears and you slowly set your mug down on the side table. You watch Harry intently.

You can let it go

You can throw a party full of everyone you know

And not invite your family, 'cause they never showed you love

You don't have to be sorry for leaving and growing up, mmh

You shut your eyes for a second, allowing his words fill your body, tears slowly start falling down your cheeks, and you allow yourself to feel the emotions. Allowing yourself to finally feel the emotions you’ve been keeping pilled down deep.

You feel someone sit by you and grip your hand in theirs. You open your eyes to see Anne next to you, smiling so sweetly at you, and hold your hand tightly in her own. Her own tears filling her eyes as she holds you. Her love these past years have shown you what your own mother couldn’t.

A mothers love.

Matilda, you talk of the pain like it's all alright

But I know that you feel like a piece of you's dead inside

Harry gives you a small smile as his own tears fill his eyes. The childhood movie you loved to watch fills your mind as it used to help you escape. You frown at the memories and grip onto Anne’s hand harder.

You showed me a power that is strong enough to bring sun to the darkest days

It's none of my business, but it's just been on my mind

You can let it go

You can throw a party full of everyone you know

And not invite your family, 'cause they never showed you love

You don't have to be sorry for leaving and growing up

Images of the last years rush through your mind. Everything you’ve managed to accomplish.

You can see the world, following the seasons

Anywhere you go, you don't need a reason

'Cause they never showed you love

You don't have to be sorry for doing it on your own

Harry lets his guitar rest on the space next to him on the floor and he reaches for your hand. You grip onto his hand with your free one and he continues to sing. His beautiful angelic voice filled the entire room. His raw voice fills your ears like heaven.

You're just in time, make your tea and your toast

His voice cracks and slow tears fall down his cheeks.

You framed all your posters and dyed your clothes, ooh

You don't have to go

You don't have to go home

Oh, there's a long way to go

Gemma walks out of the room and into the kitchen.

I don't believe that time will change your mind

In other words

I know they won't hurt you anymore as long as you can let them go

You can let it go

Harry kisses each one of your knuckles and holds your hand against his cheek, his smile wavering as he continues to sing.

You can throw a party full of everyone you know

You can start a family who will always show you love

You don't have to be sorry for doing it on your own

You can let it go

You see Gemma walking into the room with a beautiful baby pink cake with colorful sprinkles all over the top and matching long candles that are glowing in the dark night. You cry even harder.

You can throw a party full of everyone you know

You can start a family who will always show you love

You don't have to be sorry, no

Tears filled your eyes as you looked around the room. A wavering smile on your lips as you watched everyone in front of you wearing a giant smile and matching tears.

And just for a second… it was quiet.

There wasn’t any loud voices behind you yelling at each other. There weren’t any doors being slammed shut nor glasses being thrown to the floor or the walls.

All you could hear was the wood crackling in the fireplace, the soft sound of the Christmas music playing on the record player, the small sniffs of the people around you trying to hold in their tears as you let your own fall freely, and you could hear your own heart silently patching itself back together.

You sniffle as you watch Harry reach for the cake and he proceeds to move the cake at your eye level.

His beautiful green eyes rimmed red, nose tinted pink, and he’s smiling at you.

“Make a wish, my love.”

Anne’s hand lets go of your own and she instead starts rubbing your back in comfort. You wrap your own hands delicately around Harry's wrists as you let the candle's warmth coat your face so lightly.

“You’ve already made all of them come true,” you whisper as you slowly blow out the candles.

Your only wish is to only ever feel this way for the next holidays.

#harry styles x singer!reader #harry styles x y/n #harry styles x reader #harry styles x you #harry styles x fem!reader #harry styles x female reader #harry styles x famous!reader #harry styles au #harry styles #harry styles writing #harry styles angst #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles fan fic

827 notes · View notes

just-some-random-blogger · 1 year

Note

hi! your works are absolutely fascinating! so alive(?) and captivating. (if you're comfortable with it) can you please write something about daemon x rhae royce's younger sister who looks like a pretty lady but has a personality of a much harsher warrior than anyone could imagine. maybe she appears at the court right after rhae's death or even later. i just had an idea and it's totally you right to decide what to do with it. thank u in advance!

Served Cold

Daemon Targaryen x Royce!Reader

Summary: "Twas never my sister which was the ugly one between the two of us," I seethe, holding my dagger even tighter to the prince's neck, "Twas I."

Word Count: 1k+

Warnings: Depictions/descriptions of violence/death/murder, fem!reader, i spun a roulette to decide daemon's fate, i describe readers features, gaslight gatekeep girlboss, typos, etc.

A/N: I WAS SO EXCITED WHEN I SAW THIS NONNIE. RHEA WASN'T EVEN UGLY DAEMON NEEDS GLASSES AND TO GO TO JAIL. This is my vindication for the baddest babe that never got to be. I hope you like it nonnie, this took quite a dark turn lol Tagging: @pinksirensong @deniixlovezelda Part two anyone "I Want You, I Get You"

I made it a point to perfect my form before even practicing my moves. I was conscientious and sedulous in my work. Fair enough, I was not a quick learner like my sister. Rhea had always been better a picking up new things, but then again, I suppose the reason why it took me a while to learn something was because I wanted to make sure I knew every nuance, every sliver of detail about whatever it was that I was learning, before allowing myself to get into it.

And so when I was getting into him, by the time I was done, I knew Daemon Targaryen better than he even knew himself.

I knew it all. What he liked, and what he didn't. What got him turned on, what got him blood thirsty, and what got him bored.

I knew him like the back of my hand.

I knew what would make him tick before I even met him.

And I knew well to dress myself in colors that pleased him-- his house colors, of course, in all his vanity. I knew what style of dresses he liked on women; I knew the exact level of madonna and whore he was looking for.

I made sure the plunges of my collars were deep enough to attract attention, but modest enough to keep something for the imagination. I also I told my seamstress to keep my sleeves short and capped so he would want nothing more than to touch my bare arms.

If a tinge of decency overcame Daemon out of sport, I made sure to give him reason to avert his attentions to my skin by wearing some delicate silver jewelry.

I painted my face to accentuate the features I have been complimented on since a child. I drew on my eyes to make them look as though they were constantly gazing unto him with wonder, and brushed red on my cheeks, as though I was constantly blushing at his remarks, and on my lips, as though I was constantly pouting at his teases.

But all those things were nothing. The appearances I've had in front of the prince thus far, at court, during festivities and otherwise where nothing compared to what I had planned on our red-letter day.

Today, the kicker was my hair, my hair that was tied well enough to keep my thick, brown locks in fashion, but loose enough that with a strong enough flick, it would come undone.

"Lady Royce," Daemon calls, handing me a drink. I raised an eye at him and showed no acceptance of it as I crossed my arms.

He enjoyed that. He enjoyed it so much he poured the drink meant for me into his own cup and threw the empty one behind him with no regard. Why would he have regard, anyway?

He rakes in my appearance, "I see you have made a point to wear blue and red this evening," his lips curve, "could this be a marriage proposal between our two houses?"

Daemon is excited by my crass response, "you have not only already tainted my sister's being and bloodied your hands with hers, yet now you still thirst to defile the last remaining of her house?"

He tilts his head down at me as he narrows his eyes, "except I never touched that troll," the prince steps forward, "never wanted to touch her," he smirks, "unlike her little sister."

I lean close to him as I glare, "you're going to have to keep dreaming about it, my prince, because the day our skin touches is the day one of us dies."

Daemon breathes in my scent before I pull away abruptly. He chuckles from his spot, watching as I stormed off.

I was meant to exit the chamber and have him follow after me, but it seems that would not be happening, as Jason Lannister made it a point to grab my arm before I could depart.

"Lady Royce," he calls, making me turn and stand before him as he pulls away, "I apologize for the brashness, but I could not allow myself to have you leave without sharing at least one drink with me.

My lips curve at his words. A devious smile winds up on my lips, "why of course, my lord."

Jason then leads me off to where we could share a drink in relative quiet. I feel Daemon's gaze burn me with every move I made.

He was not particularly entertaining; Jason made it a point to talk about himself and how rich and powerful he was, but still, I made it appear that I was absolutely enchanted by our conversation, and that I was absolutely smitten.

I do say, Daemon had a timeliness to himself when he caught me genuinely laughing to the first funny thing Jason Lannister said all night.

And so when the vermin carelessly pulled me back with so much force, my hair tie finally gave up as I turned to him in offence.

I gasp at it, clutching my hair and its accessories, so that it would not further fall. Jason picks up one of my fallen clips as I rip my arm out of Daemon's clutch. I eye him darkly and mutter, "imbecile."

He lets out a dry scoff as Jason does a horrible job at trying to put my clip back where it was a while ago.

I grab his hand in both of mine and give a pinched smile, "I appreciate the efforts, Jason, but I think it is a sign I should retire. I could not go about the rest of the night like this."

"Nonesense," he shakes his head, "dare I say you look better this way."

I chuckle under my breath and begin to back away, "I thank you for your high opinions of me, but I really must go."

I take in Jason's expression as he steps towards me. Daemon eyes him darkly.

A clever thought springs in mind. I release a breath, "well, if you would like, we can meet at the gardens after I fix my hair."

The Lannister's face lights up, "I would want nothing more."

I give him one last look of regard, forfeiting one for Daemon, and make my way outside.

I make attempts together my hair up and fix it the way it was a while ago. It was I that fashioned my hair today. It was an easy task to do it again, even without a mirror, this time, more securely. I make my way out of the hall, towards the gardens.

I feel my stomach churn in anticipation when I hear the heavy footsteps behind me.

The next thing I know, I am pressed against the wall, being stared down my the riled up Targaryen, "you exasperating minx."

My nostrils flare at his expression and I shove him off me with a grunt. He reels back at my unexpected strength.

I give him a dirty look as I speed down the hall.

Daemon takes a moment before replying and chasing after me, "do you expect me to believe you did not plan for that to happen?"

I scoff as I gather my skirts in my hands, "oh, but of course I wanted my hair to come undone before Jason Lannister. That was the plan from the moment I was born."

When I hear his steps quicken, I bring my skirt higher and tighter in my grips, running faster.

Daemon is stunned by this and it takes a moment for the scene to register in his mind.

I eventually make it into the garden when he manages to grab me again. We are both heaving when he spins me around and tightly clasps my arms, "nowhere to run, little girl."

I grip my skirt tightly as I wrangle my shoulders in his grip. Daemon smirks at me all while using his strength against my actions.

"Now that you've had your fun," he leans in, "it's my turn now."

I bring my hand under my skirt. The moment he makes the mistake of withdrawing one of his hands, I knee him with all my strength in his groin, sending him crumpling down with a pained whine. That will hopefully prevent him from ever having children.

"You fucking bit-"

I tackle him to the ground, ripping my dagger off my thigh holster as I did so. With him pinned bellow me and my knee onto his back, I brought the blade to his neck, red immediately begins to gush against his skin, "you must understand something-"

I gag him with a piece of cloth I prepared in the chance he squirmed. He did not, I gaged him out of spite.

"Twas never my sister which was the ugly one between the two of us," I seethe, holding my dagger even tighter to the prince's neck, "Twas always I."

With one, clean, practiced move, I slashed the prince's throat. I made sure it was not enough to kill him, but enough for the guards to find him when I scream for help. We'll find out soon enough if it is his fate to meet my sister, or if it is mine.

I drop the blade to his side and pull away from him. I turn to my hands, smiling at the fact I managed to keep them clean. I then drop to my hind, and crawl back screaming, "HELP! HELP! SOMEONE HELP US! THE PRINCE HAS BEEN SLAIN!"

I continue my screams up until someone comes.

It's Jason, frantic and distraught.

Perfect.

#daemon targaryen x reader #daemon fanfic #daemon targaryen #daemon x you #daemon x reader #daemon targaryen x you #house of the dragon fanfic #hotd fanfic #daemon targaryen fanfic #daemon x royce!reader #daemon targaryen x royce!reader

418 notes · View notes

kikiwritesfanfic · 6 months

Text

Tainted Magic, Tainted Blood - Chapter Six

A "The Sun and Moon Show" AU x Reader

Masterlist || AO3 || Chapter Five || Chapter Seven

A/N: This one's a long one, bois! So buckle up - because some shits about to go dOwN.

*****

When the princess opened her eyes, there was a sliver of sunlight streaming through the fabric of the entrance to the tent. She took a moment to allow the sleep to leave her eyes slowly, surprised she wasn't being woken by Sun again. But after a while, her back began to ache, so she decided to leave the tent anyways.

She crawled out of the entrance and blinked into the early morning sunlight while her eyes adjusted. Her eyes swept the area of their temporary camp, landing on the sleeping figure of Sun - next to where the fire had been burning the night before. It was nothing more than a few smoldering lumps now, though. She stepped gingerly over to him, checking to see if he was actually sleeping or just waiting for her to wake up.

His eyes were closed, and his body rose and fell slowly with his even breath. She decided to take advantage of the opportunity, feeling a little twinge of childhood excitement as she looked at her surroundings. She could pretty much go wherever she wanted until he woke up, and he'd be none the wiser as long as she made it back before he did. Had Sun wandered off to find a stream last night? If he had, where had he gone?

The princess scanned the rolling green grass, seeing if her eyes could catch the sight of sunlight being reflected anywhere. But from where she stood, there wasn't much she could see besides wildflower-dotted hills. She decided she needed to get a higher vantage point, so she bounded towards the trees that the tent she slept in was tied to.

The first spot that she could place her foot was a bit too high off of the ground for her to just step onto. She had to jump and hoist herself up, almost immediately regretting her decisions as her body still ached. But Y/N ignored it, laughing to herself as she felt some of the cuts on her body open back up. She could deal with them later. Especially if she found a stream to bathe in.

She continued her trek up the tree, huffing by the time she reached the point where she could see the expanse of green for miles. She took a moment to catch her breath as she just enjoyed the view. The cool, early morning breeze tickled her exposed skin, making her suddenly thankful to still be wearing Sun's cloak. The sight before her was one to die for - the green rolling hills hugged tightly together as the rainbow of colorful dots scattered about gave it depth. The sky was perfectly clear, allowing the sun to beam down uninterrupted over the landscape. She wished suddenly that she had the ability to paint what she was looking at, so she took a moment longer to memorize what she was looking at to recreate later, once she was back home.

Home.

A sadness overcame her suddenly as she pictured herself back within the confines of the palace walls, destined to be queen to a kingdom that she knew close to nothing about. Married to Eclipse, doing boring queen stuff every day. Y/N sighed. She only had these few days of travel left of her freedom. Then she would be trapped in domestic life forever.

She perked up once a glimmer of blue caught her eyes, just at the bottom of the hill they were closest to. Looks like she'd be getting that bath after all. She looked back down to the ground, smiling at just how high up she was. A thrill ran through her body that she hadn't felt in a long while.

She used to climb all the time when she was younger. She knew that. She would be in places she shouldn't have been, constantly keeping her mom on the verge of a heart attack with how much she would pop out from up above just to scare her. There was something she enjoyed about being able to see more from higher up, allowing her to analyze her surroundings better.

After a few more minutes of staring, the princess finally descended the tree, slowly and carefully. She made it back to the ground safely and checked to make sure Sun was still asleep before setting out towards the stream. The walk through the tall green grass tickled her bare feet, making the childish smile return to her face. Before she knew it, she took off down the hill, just laughing up into the air as the breeze grew stronger in her increased speed. She discarded Sun's cape and left it hanging on a tree branch once she reached the shoreline of the water. She then stripped herself of the rest of her clothing, adding them to the same branch, before stepping into the stream.

The water was colder than she expected, but after a moment of standing in it, she grew used to the temperature and stepped further in. She repeated this process until the water was up to her chest and she was standing more or less in the middle of the onslaught of the current. The water felt amazing on her damaged skin, so she sucked in a breath and dipped her head down into it.

She spent the next fifteen or so minutes just enjoying the cool water and scrubbing at the cuts across her body gently. Afterwards, she stepped from the water and did her best to wring out her wet hair. Her eyes caught the movement of something small out of the corner of her eye, jumping when it clucked.

A small, brown chicken was scratching and pecking around at the ground a few feet away from her. She tilted her head to the side in thought. Where there was one chicken, there certainly had to be more. Maybe she could try her hand at making some scrambled eggs to repay Sun for his yesterday? Though she doubted she could successfully make anything that compared in the slightest to his masterpiece.

The princess redressed herself and approached the chicken, hoping to scare it enough that it would lead her to the others. After it realized that it was being watched and walked towards, it lifted its head and clucked incessantly, before walking back around a short, untamed hedge bush. When Y/N also turned the corner of the small hedge bush, she was surprised to see that there were several other chickens, though they were sitting embedded into the bush in their nests. Most of them had baby chicks under their bodies, keeping them warm against the morning chill. She smiled, scanning the bush for any stray eggs. She then saw one and chuckled. There was no way she was going to find more than that right now.

But that was fine. Sun hadn't eaten when he made her food. She felt like she had successfully "regained her strength," as Sun kept putting it, so she would make him food and just settle for not eating breakfast.

Satisfied with her mini adventure, Y/N started the trek back up the mountain and to their little makeshift campground. She collected brush and sticks along the way, hoping to herself that she could get the fire started again, or else she would be stuck giving Sun nothing but rations. And she was sure he was tired of eating the same dry rations every day, if her own souring attitude towards them was any example.

She spent the next few minutes just trying to remember what Sun had said about getting the fire started while he still slept soundly a few feet away. But finally, she figured it out, and before she knew it, she was walking back over to the horse to retrieve the small cast iron pan he had used the day before to make the same thing.

The princess let the pan heat up before cracking the egg into it. It started to sizzle and cook almost immediately, which concerned her for a moment. When Sun had made them, the pan was practically silent. But still, she pressed on, stirring the egg around until it somewhat resembled the meal that she was provided the day before. A thought occurred in her head suddenly and she pulled the pan from the flames to set down in the grass, rushing back over to the horse and pulling out... the last bundle of food rations.

Sun would just have to do with eating the last one. She couldn't eat it now, especially since he had been compromising his own health by skipping meals for her already. So she carried the dried meats over to the fire and broke them into small pieces to be added to the eggs. It smelled heavenly - but that could have also just been her hunger speaking.

Showered, fire blazing, and breakfast made, Y/N squatted down in front of Sun's sleeping body and whispered his name while she reached out to gently shake his shoulder. But she didn't even need to get that far, because as soon as her fingers grazed his skin, his eyes shot open, looking up at her with a confused expression. She smiled and sat back.

"I made you breakfast!" she exclaimed, picking up the eggs and holding them up so he could analyze her work. He still blinked at her in confusion, trying to figure out what was going on. He noticed the princess's wet hair, self consciously reaching to his clothes. His first theory of it having rained was out of the question, considering that he was dry despite being the one that was outside all night.

But then he caught the lovely aroma of the food she held in front of him. "You found more eggs?" he asked, reaching out to grab the food and inspect it. Y/N sat down next to him and hummed.

"Yep! And I started the fire and cooked them all by myself," she said, sounding like a proud child after successfully dressing themselves for the first time. Sun couldn't help the smile that stretched across his face. He took a bite of the eggs and immediately closed his eyes.

Not because the eggs were good.

It was the exact opposite, actually.

But he forced himself to hum as if it were, because he couldn't bring himself to knock down the absolutely ecstatic look the princess wore. She continued to stare at him as he chewed the eggs slowly, pretending to savor them.

Just tell her the truth, Moon said, chuckling inside their shared consciousness. If you don't now, you might have to endure her cooking them again, he teased, laughing as Sun swallowed the bite and... ignored his advice.

"This is..." he started, watching as Y/N's eyes widened in anticipation. "I-I can't believe you made these on your own!" he said enthusiastically, letting out a sigh of relief as she smiled wider and began wiggling around happily. He looked back towards the blazing flames and quickly changed the subject. "And I'm amazed that you got the fire started without my help as well. I couldn't make a fire without help until like- my seventh try."

"It took me a bit, but I just kept repeating what you told me yesterday," she beamed. Moon continued to laugh, finding the entire ordeal rather amusing. It took everything in Sun not to yell at his brother, opting instead for forcing himself to take another bite. He realized that there were bits of the dried meat from their rations in the eggs, making his face fall immediately.

"Did you use the last of the rations on me?" he asked, looking at her incredulously. She looked taken aback by his sudden outburst, speaking slowly as she responded.

"Yeah... But I promise I already feel better, and you've been skipping meals because of me. I can afford to wait a little longer for us to come across food." She stood to make her way over to the tent, Sun watching her with a bewildered look on his face now.

Looks like you can't get out of eating those eggs now, Sunny boy, Moon said, laughing hysterically at his brother's misfortune. Sun looked back down at the eggs and sighed, taking another bite.

The princess attempted to take down the tent on her own to keep her independent streak going, but she couldn't get it to fold up in the same way Sun was able to do so it could fit in the side pack on the horse. So after he finished his breakfast (which Y/N dully noted had taken him a little longer than she expected), he took over the task.

Not long after that was the fire stomped out and the camp packed up for them to set back out on their journey. For the first few minutes, they rode along in a comfortable silence. Y/N was fairly happy now that her cuts didn't sting as badly as they had before. Bathing in the stream really seemed to have helped. But she soon grew bored again of the passing scenery, and her mind strayed to the life she was going back to.

She wondered what Eclipse was doing. Was he worried about her? She had been gone for three days now. How long after she went missing did it take for him to even notice?

She audibly huffed, making Sun tilt his head to look at her. She turned the other way, though, frustration eating away at her mind again. If Eclipse cared so much, why was Sun the only one that seemed to be after her? She would expect someone that cared about her enough to consider it love to send an entire battalion to save her. But it had been three days, and they hadn't even crossed paths with anyone since they started their journey back to Adrastea.

"Sun?" Y/N practically whispered. She was so soft spoken that Sun wasn't even entirely sure if she had said anything for a moment. But then he turned and hummed, waiting for her to continue. "Have you ever been in love before?"

The princess felt his muscles tense the same way they would every time she asked a question with even a little bit of weight. He gripped the reins tighter and stayed silent for a long while. "I'm not sure," he finally said. Y/N tilted her head to peer around his shoulder.

"How so?" she asked curiously, almost completely forgetting the reason why she asked.

"Well..." he started, but then he hesitated. Surely the princess would think him insane if his only reasoning for such a claim was a measly little 'I don't know.'

But that had been the truth. He didn't know if he had ever been in love. There was something deep down in his thoughts that told him he had. But for the life of him, he couldn't remember anything. Moon had expressed that he felt something extremely similar. But there wasn't anyone else that would understand that there were just entire chunks seemingly missing from their memories. Sometimes the two of them could piece together different things that they each remembered, but the harder they thought about their past, the worse they felt.

They would be overcome with the worst dread either one had ever felt.

"Why do you ask?" Sun asked instead, hoping to veer the conversation away from himself.

"Doesn't matter, really," she mumbled, the frustration in her voice rather apparent. She couldn't get Sun to answer a single personal question about himself since they'd met. It was starting to get under her skin, but every time she tried to question him on why he was so secretive, he would just default to some variation of the same response - that he wasn't worth fretting over.

Y/N was irritated by that answer because she felt like he was worth fretting over. He had saved her life! And then there was that feeling inside her that felt like she knew him, although she had been doing her best to ignore that as of late.

"Well, I was thinking about the question you asked me yesterday," Sun said, trying to lighten the mood. "I would choose summer."

The princess lifted her head and smiled softly. "I knew you would choose that," she responded. The two of them spent the next few hours just participating in more lighthearted questions, successfully keeping Y/N's mind from the somber thoughts of her home life. They had been getting rather giggly with their questions and answers after a while, really falling into a silly mood as the scenery around them slowly became littered with more trees.

"So- So you're telling me that if an entire pack of wolves came out from around a corner, you'd simply waltz right through them?" Y/N was saying between giggles. Sun was chuckling heartily in front of her.

"I said I would try," he corrected. "They might sense my fear if I freeze and wait to see what they'll do! Might as well keep going anyways," he explained. But the princess was just waving her hands back and forth, trying to catch her breath in the hilarious disbelief she felt as she silently laughed.

"You're so full of shit!" she finally exclaimed, startling Sun.

"Language," Sun chastised immediately. But then he clasped his hand over his mouth as the princess laughed even harder. "I-I mean- That wasn't- I didn't think-"

"Did you just scold me for cursing?" she breathed, desperately holding her side in how hysterical she found the entirety of the situation. She almost didn't hear Sun when he shushed her suddenly, looking around them frantically.

"No, I absolutely will not shush! You just-"

"Princess, please," he said desperately, bringing the horse to a stop as he continued to scan their surroundings. Y/N stopped, feeling her heart sink at the sudden change of mood. His desperate searching of the trees around them made her anxious.

"What is it?" she whispered, disliking the fact that she had no idea what he was so concerned about. But Sun just shushed her again, and after a moment, she heard a twig snap somewhere behind her. Her head whipped around, trying to find the culprit of the sound, but ultimately saw nothing.

The princess's grip around Sun tightened as fear settled into the pit of her stomach. Was something following them? They had been traveling with absolutely no contact with anyone thus far. But they were getting closer to the kingdom. Did people really live this far out from the city center?

Both Sun and Y/N's heads jolted to the path in front of them as a voice called out to them.

"Looks like we've got ourselves some fresh meat, boys!"

A slim figure with a wild mane of gray hair atop its head slowly stepped out from behind a tree. The person was still too far for either of them to pick out any other defining details about her appearance, but they could tell that she was holding the reins to a horse that trailed closely by her side.

Several other figures slowly stepped out from the shade of the trees, rendering the princess and her savior completely surrounded. Y/N felt Sun suck in a shuddery breath, straightening his back up as the figures stepped even closer. "We were just passing through," he said boldly. The princess felt his voice vibrate her arms that still clenched his abdomen. "We won't cause any trouble."

The lady with the wild gray hair laughed heartily, all of the others shortly following suit. As she continued her approach, Y/N could see that she had a rather large battle axe strapped to her back. Sun seemed to have noticed as well, considering he had now dropped the reins and gripped her arms that still hugged him. But then he tapped on her arms, so she let go.

Sun swung his foot around and dismounted from the horse, holding his hand out to help her down after. Once she was on the ground, she felt a lot more vulnerable to the barrier of what she assumed to be bandits closing in on them. Most of them were in old, tattered clothing and held various weapons. It was obvious that the lady that had been talking was their leader, and as she stepped even closer to them, Sun reached his hand out again to push the princess further behind him.

"Stay behind me," he said quietly before turning back to the woman as she stopped a few feet in front of them.

"I assume you don't know who I am," she said, smiling wickedly at Sun. Y/N noticed that despite Sun's rather lanky build, she was still very close to his height. Her left eye was completely white, a scar crossing over the skin above and below it, almost like the makeup the princess would see on traveling jesters that would entertain her in the throne room sometimes. Her clothing seemed to be the best out of everyone surrounding them, black pants and dark red tunic in good shape. She placed her hand upon her hip as she waited for Sun to respond.

"I'm afraid I do not," he said politely, but his face remained frozen in an eerie smile.

"What about your little girlfriend you've got hiding behind you like a scared pu-"

"Leave her out of this," Sun cut her off, stepping further to the right to hide your frame from the woman even more.

"Aw, someone's in bad spirits," she responded, stepping closer to him. Sun instinctively took a step back, pushing the princess further away from the woman as well. She turned and spread her arms wide, acknowledging her posse. "You hear that boys? They don't know who I am!"

Snickering reached their ears as the men surrounding them found amusement in her statement. She turned back to the two of them and reached behind herself to retrieve the axe. Sun immediately drew his longsword from its sheath. Y/N noticed that it was no longer red with blood like she had last seen it. Maybe he had cleaned it one of the times he went to fill the canteen? Either way, the woman seemed to find delight in Sun's anxiety.

Battleaxe in hand, she leaned the haft on her shoulder and smiled deviously at them. "The name's Roxanne Wolf," she said, earning several cheers and whoops from the men around them. "I'm sure you can guess where I got the nickname from," she added, using her free hand to gesture to her mess of gray hair. She then pointed to their horse. "Whatcha got on you? Any valuables?" When Sun didn't respond she shrugged. "Suit yourself," she said.

The princess felt a hand grab her arm and yank her backwards suddenly. She yelped, garnering the attention of Sun as he turned and immediately swung his sword in the direction of whoever had her in a tight grip. She closed her eyes, fear of being sliced in half now taking over all of her thoughts, but then she felt the grip on her arm loosen, so she yanked herself towards Sun without another thought.

His arms quickly closed around her, keeping her from looking in the direction of the strangled choking behind her. Roxanne seemed to only find amusement in the entire situation. "Aw, that was my favorite guy to torment," she said, mock disappointment practically dripping from her voice. But then the sound of her battleaxe hitting the rocky path beneath them sounded, and her demeanor switched. "You'll have to pay for that."

Sun placed his free hand to the princess's shoulder and forced her to look at him. "Get on the horse," he said quickly, before tugging her towards the animal, now anxiously teetering in the wake of the commotion around it. She mounted the horse and Sun yanked on the reins hard enough that the animal jerked its head in protest and began trotting briskly back in the direction they had come from. Y/N heard Roxanne cry out in anger at the situation, but she was too focused on not falling from the horse to look back.

A few of the men from the group shouted as they mounted their own horses and raced after her. Panic rose in the princess's chest as she grasped the reins and wracked her brain for any knowledge from her horseback riding classes she was forced to take growing up. Her body began acting upon its own volition, pulling on the reins and making the horse come to a stop as she took in her surroundings. She couldn't just leave Sun. There were far too many things riding on him being the one to take her back home.

The voices of the men that had begun chasing her grew louder and she turned the horse around to face them as they rapidly approached. She noticed that none of them were wearing proper horseback riding gear, and all of them were riding without a saddle.

Perfect.

Y/N smiled as she started off in a trot towards the oncoming men, feeling the same level of excitement in her chest she had when she climbed the tree that morning. She reached behind her and pulled out the small cast iron pan, still dirty from the two times it had been used to make scrambled eggs. The men drew closer to her and she could hear the cockiness in their voices now as they watched her horse ease into a run as well.

Something sparked a memory in her mind (maybe the adrenaline coursing through her body?) as she pulled her feet from the stirrups and wrapped them around her ankles before sliding her toes back through them. She could practically hear her teacher yelling at her, but she didn't care. This was a life or death situation, and she was going to need the grip.

The first man on the horse was getting dangerously close, so she held out her arm with the cast iron pan at the last second to hit him square in the face. He hadn't been expecting it, so he fell right off of the horse and crashed to the ground while his ride kept running in the opposite direction. She cried out in excitement, slightly surprised that it had worked as well as she hoped. But the next man was approaching just as quickly, with the third one almost directly at his side.

She swapped the hand that the pan was in and watched as they split to ambush her on both sides. Her thighs instinctively tightened their grip on the horse as she braced herself for what she already knew was coming. She swung the pan harder this time, missing the guy's head but landing her hit on his shoulder with a sickening crunch. He cried out and fell from the horse, but before she could celebrate, she felt the hands of the other man attempt to grip her as he passed.

The force of him being yanked from his horse as her legs kept her on hers jolted the princess backwards enough that she dropped the pan. But the man couldn't keep his grip, slicing her on the way down with a pocketknife she didn't see he had. Hot blood ran down her arm, adding to the plentiful amount of cuts she already had. But this one was deeper than the rest, so she lulled to the side a bit as her horse kept up its pace, rapidly approaching where Sun was still squaring off with Roxanne and a few of her other men.

Y/N stopped the horse to the best of her ability with her one good arm, but cried out suddenly as a jolt of pain shot through her head. Sun's head snapped back to her, eyes widening as he took in her bloodied arm. But the distraction was enough for one of Roxanne's men to get a good blow on his back. He made a strangled sound of pain before quickly turning back and stabbing the culprit straight through his abdomen. The princess closed her eyes then, disgusted by the sight and also feeling the pain in her head grow stronger.

She leaned forward on the mane of the horse, trying to stop the pure agony in her head. She didn't even know what had caused it. Normally she would have to be thinking about her past, but she wasn't.

Y/N cried out again as she pulled her feet from the stirrups and leaned further into the horse's mane. Her vision was starting to double, and she couldn't see what was going on with Sun anymore. Panic settled into the pit of her stomach again as she heard a voice call out to her.

"Blood and kill and maim galore! This looks fun~ Fairly bloody fun!"

She coughed, feeling her entire body begin to shudder violently. Sun cried out in the struggle somewhere ahead of her, but she could no longer see anything but red.

And then she saw nothing.

*****

"Oh, I never got to catch your name, sweet cheeks," Roxanne said, towering above Sun as he lay on the ground clutching his bleeding abdomen. "Guess it won't matter in a minute," she continued, watching as one of the few remaining unhurt men from her posse pulled the reins of his horse towards her. "Oh and your girlfriend just collapsed off of the horse," she added, looking over to the mound of her body convulsing on the ground still. Sun lifted his head slightly, the pain in his stomach almost too much to handle. "Guess getting her arm sliced in the heat of the moment was too much for her. Pathetic, really."

Just get to the princess, Moon said inside of Sun's head. You can't give up. You have to get to her. Come on, Sun.

He tried his best to crawl in the direction of the princess's body, but Roxanne stepped on his wrist and laughed. "Going somewhere, hun?" she taunted, undoing the side pack on the horse. She then proceeded to rummage through the contents of it, barking orders at the men that still stood around her. "You know, I do have to give you two credit," she said now to Sun, still pulling contents out of the pack and tossing them aside. "I've never had anyone take down this many of my men before." The woman then threw her head back and laughed heartily, her gray mane of hair moving stiffly around her head. "But of course, nobody is a match for me. Everybody knows I'm the best, after all."

Sun's vision was starting to go spotty as he looked back towards where the princess was. But he could no longer see the heap of her body where it had been moments before. Had one of the men dragged her away? Or had she managed to escape without being noticed?

He desperately hoped for the latter.

"Ohoho what have we got here?" Roxanne said, pulling a tiny drawstring bag of coins from the pack. She undid the string and practically howled at the gold coins inside. "Looks like we're eating good tonight, boys!" She called out.

The sound of metal scraping against rock suddenly sounded from the opposite side of Sun. Roxanne was too busy relishing in her find to notice. He did his best to lift his body to face the other direction, but he fell as soon as he turned his head. His eyes landed on a pair of bare feet in front of him, sparking a new flame of hope inside of his chest. Blood dripped onto the ground next to them, and a slow, guttural laugh emitted from above him, clouding his brain with confusion.

He willed his body to lift his head one more time and looked up into the face of the princess. But her expression wasn't one he had seen on her thus far - her smile stretched far too wide on her face and the pupils of her eyes had been replaced with stars. Sun's little flame of hope quickly went out, and his head crashed back to the ground as he proceeded to pass out.

"Roxanne, was it?" the princess's mouth asked, but the voice that came from it was not at all what the woman was expecting. She turned to face the princess and tilted her head to the side, smiling.

"The one and only," she responded, stretching her arms wide at her sides. "What's up with you? Wanted a chance to one up your boyfriend by taking me on now?" She laughed again - seemingly thinking the audacity of the princess as she stood there, Sun's longsword in hand, was the most amusing thing she had witnessed thus far.

"What's up with me, she asks. Oh, brother, I cannot wait to tear her to shreds. What do you think her blood will taste like? Will it be fresh? Sweet, like the princess's? Oh I can hardly wait any longer!"

Roxanne's face contorted for the first time that evening from her amused look to one of confusion. "Looks like shorty over here went crazy from blood loss," she said, trying to ease the low anxiety that began brewing in her stomach. She snapped her fingers, ordering the last of her men to take her down. "You're not worthy of my attention," she said, turning back to the horse to continue rummaging through the side pack.

"The only one that will be experiencing blood loss will be you, dearest wolf lady," the princess said, bringing her bloodied arm to her mouth and licking up some of the blood. She stared at the men slowly approaching her with a deranged expression upon her face. "Fun, fun, fun! Which of you wants to be first?"

Roxanne whipped her head back around as the sound of a pained scream rang out around her. The princess was standing over one of her men's bodies, Sun's longsword stabbed straight through his abdomen. She watched in horror as she pulled the sword from the man and brought it up to her face, inspecting the red mess that soaked it. The other two men that had been approaching her stopped in their tracks, fear contorting their faces into looks of terror.

"Well don't just stand there and watch, get her!" Roxanne yelled at them, but they merely looked at her, then back towards the princess, and promptly took off running into the trees. The gray haired woman growled. "Fine then, if it's a show you want, then you can't have it without the star!" she said, pulling her battleaxe from her back and smiling at the princess.

Y/N focused her gaze on Roxanne, smiling wickedly at her. "We hope you prove to be more of a challenge than that oaf," she mused, allowing the tip of the longsword to drag through the gravelly path as she slowly approached Roxanne. "We will bathe you in red, wolf lady."

Roxanne took a hesitant step backwards. Something was definitely off about the young woman, she could tell that much. The glowing stars she had for eyes weren't there before. But still, she raised her axe and stood her ground, holding eye contact with her. "We'll see about that, hun."

The two of them watched each other at a standstill for a long moment, assessing their options and trying to predict where the other would move first. But the princess grew tired of waiting, so she lunged at Roxanne - just barely grazing her shoulder. She watched as a lock of gray hair fell to the ground in front of her before looking back up at the princess angrily. "Oh, you're so dead!" she growled, lifting her axe and swinging it quickly at Y/N in front of her. The princess seemed to dodge the attack with inhuman speed, jumping to the left and quickly thrusting the longsword at the woman again. She barely ducked out of the way, dropping down to her feet to try to side swipe the princess's legs out from under her.

Y/N jumped to the side, swinging the sword down at her from above. Roxanne shifted her grip on the haft and blocked the sword's blade with it. The princess laughed demonically, the stars in her eyes glowing brighter. "My, my, this is a lot of fun! We love it when they fight back!"

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Roxanne yelled, struggling immensely at the sheer strength Y/N seemed to have gained. Her grip tightened on the haft, but her arms were shaking desperately as she pushed back against the longsword. The sound of wood splintering reached her ears as the princess snarled.

"Little wolf lady, down on her luck; better find a way out, before you're struck!" Roxanne gritted her teeth and used the last of her strength to push her axe forward, sliding the blade just fast enough to graze the princess's fingers. She yelped in response, stumbling backwards. The gray haired woman used the small breather to bring herself back to her feet and wipe a bead of sweat from her brow.

"Listen, girl," she huffed, standing with her battleaxe resting up on her shoulder again. "We can call this a tie and I can leave with what I've found." A slow, guttural laugh emitted from the princess's chest, shaking her whole body as she stayed facing away from Roxanne. "I'll even let you keep half of the coins," she attempted to barter. But the princess only threw her head back and laughed louder.

"You think us stupid?" she asked, turning back to Roxanne with a crazed look in her eyes. She brought her bleeding hand to her mouth and dragged her tongue across her fingers slowly. "We only want your blood! Yes, yes! Bloodshed! Bloodshed everywhere!"

Roxanne didn't even have a moment to blink before the princess lunged at her again. She turned to block the longsword from piercing straight into her chest, but in doing so, failed to notice the princess's outstretched hand. For a moment, the gray haired woman just stood there, chest heaving as she tried to make sense of what she was looking at. But it didn't take long for the pain to take over her mind in a searing flash of white hot agony. She stuttered backwards, bringing her hands to her face as the princess just laughed. Thick, hot liquid poured down Roxanne's hands as she fell to the ground.

"Poor little wolf lady," the princess mused. "What's wrong? Are you having trouble seeing?"

The gray haired woman didn't have to process what Y/N was saying to know exactly what was wrong. She had felt the same pain once before. She had lived with the consequences on a daily basis.

Y/N had rendered her completely blind by destroying her good eye.

*****

Y/N blinked as her vision slowly came back. Her head was boiling with hot pain, but she couldn't even focus on that as the sound of pure agony hit her ears. Someone was crying. Loudly.

"Why? WHY?!" the voice howled.

The princess's vision finally focused and she felt her blood run cold at the sight before her. Roxanne Wolf - the bandit that she had just been trying to save Sun from - was writhing on the ground a few feet from her. She had her hands to her face as blood dripped profusely on the ground. There was so much of it.

It covered her hands completely, trailed down her tunic, splattered the gravel path in front of her. Y/N felt rooted to the spot she stood, looking down at her own hands and feeling her breath catch in her throat. She stumbled back a few steps, kicking the gravel beneath her feet as she took in the sight.

Her left hand was covered in the same red mess.

"I can still hear you!" Roxanne suddenly shouted. She struggled immensely as she placed one of her hands to the ground to stand up, and suddenly the princess was overcome with fear. She frantically searched around her and took in the rest of her surroundings. She could see Sun's body lying motionless next to their horse, so she rushed over and dropped to the ground in front of him.

"Sun!" she whispered, shaking his shoulder. He groaned and relief washed over the princess in droves. "Come on, Sunny, we have to go, right now." She leaned down and pulled his arm over her shoulder, earning another groan from deep within his chest. She shushed him and quietly counted to three so she could lift him.

"Where are you?!" Roxanne called from where she still stood. The princess didn't even take another moment to look at her - struggling to keep Sun upright as she picked up the bag of coins and reached for the reins of the horse. She dragged them further on the path in the direction they had been heading before the chaos had started.

By some miracle, Y/N, Sun, and the horse all managed to sneak away from Roxanne and continue on their path. The princess continued to mumble words of assurance to Sun as they walked, despite the rising panic in her chest. He couldn't manage to respond - clutching his abdomen and whining.

They walked on for what felt like eons before the sound of music could be heard in the distance, sparking hope in Y/N's chest. Sun's steps were getting less and less coordinated as she picked up the pace, the music growing louder and louder. Soon, a building was visible, peeking from the trees and seemingly full of life.

The princess dropped the reins of the horse and tugged Sun's slowly dying body forwards, determination being the only thing keeping her positive attitude. "We're almost there, Sunny. Just hang on a little bit longer. Please," she pleaded as she pushed open the door to the building.

The inside was less full of life than the princess had expected. A small party of three sat at a round table in the corner playing some kind of card game, while a few people dotted the bar at the far side of the room. Nobody seemed to look up at Sun and the princess's arrival, but she pulled Sun towards the bar nonetheless.

"Can someone please help us," she begged, suddenly feeling the weight of her situation tugging at her shoulders as if trying to drag her down, although that could just have easily been Sun losing consciousness again. The man behind the bar looked up from the drink he had been making and blinked at her for a moment before rolling his eyes. His bright red hair flopped off of his shoulder as he spoke.

"First aid kit's in the back. Thirty coins for a night. Forty-five if ya get blood e'rywhere," he added as an afterthought. Y/N thanked him quickly before turning and tugging Sun the remaining way to the back where an old door stood. She pushed through it, almost falling under Sun's weight again. But she managed to drag him to a chair that was a few feet away from her and set him down before frantically searching the room for said first aid kit. After opening several cabinets and scattering various items to the floor, she finally discovered the one containing the emergency items.

The next few minutes were spent trying to keep Sun from losing consciousness again while she tightly wrapped his torso. After she stopped the bleeding, cleaned the wound, and was positive he wasn't going to slip under, she flopped back onto the other chair, closing her eyes and tilting her head back in anguish.

"I-I'm s-sorry," Sun whispered, making Y/N's heart ache.

"Don't you dare," she started, sitting back up and taking in Sun's physical state for the first time. His blonde hair was a matted mess - sticking to his forehead and dirtied with blood and sweat. The yellow tunic he wore was also covered in blood, ripped to shreds over his wound. Several cuts and bruises littered his skin, making his normally soft, pale skin look sickly. His blue eyes lifted slowly to meet hers, apologetic expression still on his face. "You couldn't have predicted a gang of bandits showing up. Just as much as I couldn't."

Sun didn't look convinced, but still, he sighed. It was a shallow sigh, given that any time he sucked in too much air, he winced from the pain in his torso. Y/N watched his eyes drift down to her hurt arm that she was only just now starting to notice the pain from. He made to get up, earning a sharp protest from the princess. She assured him repeatedly that she could handle it.

"We have to get you to bed anyways," she added, holding her hand out to help him up again. He gladly accepted the help, and together they tackled the staircase up to the inn rooms. They found an unoccupied one and worked to get Sun into the bed - though not without a brief argument about him taking the couch instead because of her status.

The princess briefly left him to fetch a glass of water from downstairs, but by the time she came back up to the room, Sun had already fallen asleep. She felt guilt tug at her heart again as she watched him struggle to breathe comfortably, setting the glass down on the nightstand and brushing a bit of his hair from his face. She decided to disappear to the washroom to fetch a wet rag, and proceeded to clean his face up for him.

After another long moment of just sitting next to the bed and making sure he was okay, she decided to head back down to the tavern and have a drink. The bartender looked up at her as she sat down, drying a glass that she was pretty sure was more than plenty dry. "What'll it be, princess?" he asked, earning a startled look from Y/N.

"W-What?" she asked, fear settling into the pit of her stomach. How did he know who she was so quickly?

"Drink? What kind of drink do ya want?" he clarified, furrowing his brows at her. "Ya do want a drink, don'tcha?"

The princess blinked at the man for a moment longer before shaking her head slightly. "Y-yeah, I'll have a drink. Just make me whatever will put me to sleep," she said, exasperation clear in her tone.

"Long day?"

Y/N scoffed. "Try days with an 's'."

"Well I've got just the drink for that," he said. The princess watched the bartender as he pulled a few glass bottles from under the bar. His movements were precise and calculated, giving small party tricks as he went about making the complicated looking drink. He smiled as he slid the cocktail glass her way, now filled with a green liquid. "I call it the gator."

"Fitting," Y/N responded, lifting the glass to her lips and taking a sip. The drink tasted of somewhat sour citrus, with notes of pineapple and kiwi on the back end. She felt the warmth of the alcohol spread through her body almost immediately, so she sighed and slouched further into her seat. "This is really good," she said, now smiling at the man. She took in his appearance more now that she didn't have a dying Sun threatening to make her collapse to the ground at any moment.

The bartender had bright red hair cut in a mohawk at the top of his head, contrasting his dark skin beautifully. The green tunic he wore donned a stitched red star, and his brown eyes had an eerie red tint to them in the dim lighting. There were several dark tattoos that littered his arms and what Y/N could see of his neck, reminding her almost of an alligator's scales. After a moment of wiping down the countertop, he spoke again.

"Wantin' to talk about it?" he asked, peering down at the princess as if he were looking over a pair of glasses. She shrugged, taking another long sip of her drink.

"Don't have enough time to go through it all."

"Try me."

Y/N chuckled at that, wanting so desperately to get out all of the pent up emotions that currently swirled and tugged around in her chest. But she still opted to indulge nothing, taking another long drawl of the green alcoholic drink. "I'd rather not."

"Fine. Suit yourself," the bartender responded, moving down the bar to collect the empty glass from a customer that had just departed. "Want some words of encouragement, at least?"

The princess chuckled. "Sure. What kind of great wisdom can you disclose for a struggling young girl you know nothing about- uh.."

"Montgomery, but most people just call me Monty."

"Okay, Monty. Lay it on me," she said, smiling now as the alcohol began settling in her system.

"Well, given that you came in here with your boyfriend bleedin' out in your arms, I'd say you could-"

"He's not my boyfriend," Y/N interrupted, setting the glass down on the coaster in front of her abruptly. Monty raised an eyebrow at her as she stared at the ice in her drink. "I'm engaged to someone else."

"Hohoho, well that sounds like a problem init of itself," he chuckled, prompting the princess to glare at him. He threw the hand towel he'd been drying glasses with over his shoulder. "Okay, fine. Nothin’ about your love life." The princess rolled her eyes and took another sip of her drink. She couldn't allow herself to think of Sun that way. He was nothing but her savior. No matter how much she liked looking into his blue eyes. Or how much she liked hearing him laugh. Or how much it felt like she's known him for years.

"Maybe what you need is to just stop caring," Monty said, shrugging his shoulders. When Y/N looked at him skeptically, he continued. "From the way you're carryin' yourself and the way you jus' snapped at me, I'd say you've got a lot on yer mind. Maybe you should just... let go."

The princess looked back down at her drink, pondering his words. Let go, huh? Stop caring? Something told her that she'd done that before with some distant memory she couldn't think of. But all she knew was that it gave her a feeling of dread. Still, she shrugged now, and then threw back the remaining bit of the drink. "Thanks for the wisdom, Monty," she said, chuckling. "I'll definitely take it to heart." She stood and attempted to pull out coins to pay for her drink, but Monty stopped her.

"It's on the house," he assured, already cleaning her glass. "You looked like you could use that."

After debating on that matter for a bit and giving up, Y/N thanked Monty profusely before heading up the stairs to the room Sun was hopefully still sleeping in. She continued to think about Monty's words of advice as she climbed the steps, allowing her brain to go over the events of the day for the first time.

Something happened to her earlier. She hadn't had the pain in her head become that unbearable before, and she'd never blacked out from it either. But blacking out wasn't what bothered her the most.

How had she ended up with Sun's longsword in her hands, covered in blood, and standing in front of Roxanne - seemingly having hurt her drastically? She didn't even know if she was the one to do it, but something told her that she was.

And another thing - normally when the princess tried to remember something she couldn't her, head would ache. But here she was - unable to remember what happened in the few minutes after she blacked out, and she felt nothing. No pain, no ache - nothing.

Y/N reached the door to the room with Sun and opened it slowly, trying not to disturb him. She stepped past the threshold and closed it as quietly as she could. But the door was old, squeaking louder the slower she tried to close it. She finally just gave up and closed it normally, then spun around to check and see if it had disturbed Sun.

But her heart quickly dropped into her stomach as she stared at a dark-haired figure lying in the spot she had left Sun not even an hour prior. For a moment, she wondered if she entered the wrong room. But the full glass of water she set on the nightstand still stood in the same spot.

Ever so slowly, Y/N crept towards the bed, eyes wide as she took in the stranger. He groaned, prompting her to stop in her tracks. His eyelids fluttered open, and it felt like the world fell still as they just sat there - staring at each other like deer in headlights.

Y/N recognized those eyes. Those same blue eyes.

"You-" she started, but was quickly cut off by the stranger.

"I- We- This can be explained," he said, attempting to push himself up into a sitting position but then wincing at the pain from his - Suns? - wound. Y/N's compassionate instincts took over as she immediately rushed to his side and gently forced him to lie back down.

"You can explain just fine without moving too much," she said, pulling the blanket back to check the bandages. Surprisingly, there wasn't any new blood from the time that she had left Sun up here for her drink. "Let's start with the question at the forefront of my mind right now." The princess sat down at the edge of the bed, bringing a hand to pinch the bridge of her nose. "Do I know you?"

The stranger sighed. It was just as shallow of a breath as Sun's had been earlier. "Yes, and no," he said. "We have met before. At the ball. I was your masked dancer, your highness." Y/N's eyes flew open at the mocking tone in which he spoke, immediately remembering the beautiful dance she had with him barely even three nights prior.

"That was you-?" she asked incredulously. Her mind spun at the realization, and then a blush quickly rose to her cheeks as she remembered their lighthearted flirting. "How...?"

"Listen, this is going to sound demented, but I need you to just let me finish, okay?" the blue eyed stranger said tentatively, earning an equally uneasy response from the princess.

"Okay..." she confirmed, drawing out the word.

"First, my name is Moon," he started. Y/N blinked at him in disbelief. Sun and Moon? Really? "Sun hasn't gone anywhere. He's just... up here." He brought his index finger to his temple and tapped it a few times. "We're brothers, somehow cursed to the same body. We don't remember how we ended up like this, to be completely honest. All we know is that when the sun is up, Sun is out. And when the Moon is up-"

"You're out," the princess finished for him, disbelief now audible in her tone. She stood from the edge of the bed and paced to the other side of the room and back. "So," she started, but then she closed her mouth and hummed, still not sure what to say.

"I know it's a lot to take in," Moon said, holding his hands up in an attempt to get her attention. "And Sun really wanted to tell you the truth but-"

"What? How would you know if he wanted to tell me anything...?" Y/N interrupted, voice now sounding almost panicked. Her hands were clenching and unclenching at her sides as she processed the information, unsure of whether or not she believed the words coming out of Moon's - and Sun's? - mouth.

"We can sort of... communicate with each other? I really don't know the best way to describe it," he said. The princess just continued to stare at Moon, hands moving in the same pattern as she tried to calm herself down. There was little she could do to slow her racing thoughts, though.

Her masked dancer that night at the ball was here. In front of her. Lying in the bed, hurt. There was nothing about this that sounded real, but there wasn't really any other explanation she could come up with for him having the exact same wound as Sun. So she closed her fists once more and took in a timed, shaky breath. "Okay," she started slowly. "I don't really know what to say in response to this. But I don't really have much of a choice but to accept it, huh?"

Despite the princess's attempt at calming herself down, her voice cracked several times and ended in such a tone of disbelief that Moon felt frustration tickling the back of his mind. Especially as Sun continued to yell at him in their shared mind about how she was never going to trust them now. But still, he did his best to scoot over on the bed and then pat the space next to him. "Come here."

Y/N stared at Moon for a moment, bewildered by his calm demeanor about the entire situation. She walked over and carefully sat down, nonetheless, watching every movement he made with wide eyes. "You deserve an apology," he said, making her brows furrow in confusion. "We should have told you from the beginning. But Sun didn't... want to scare you."

"Why would this scare me?" the princess asked almost immediately. It was Moon's turn to look bewildered.

"Why wouldn't it?" he asked. They continued to stare at each other for a long moment. The more Y/N thought about it, the more his reaction made sense. Why wasn't she scared? She just found out that her savior was two people, cursed to the same body. One that she had already met at the ball and the other that was willing to physically fight off bandits for her. Maybe it was the fact that this was the least surprising thing to have happened in the last few days.

Moon winced again as he yawned, pulling the princess out of her stupor. "You need to rest," she said gently, pulling the blanket back over his torso. "If we want to attempt to make it the rest of the way within the next week, we really need you to recover."

"Oh, by the way," he said, sounding like he was ignoring what she had just said. "I wanted to personally apologize for the way Sun handled the situation earlier. He isn't usually one for violence. That's my job."

The princess looked taken aback. "Wha-"

"Anyways, goodnight!" Moon said, and with that, he turned over and closed his eyes, leaving the princess staring at his dark messy hair. But then she just shook her head and made her way over to the small couch to turn in for the night.

The events of the day lingered in her mind for a long while as she laid there, staring at the ceiling. But she couldn't bring herself to finish any of the thoughts that drifted through her mind, instead finding herself thinking about the ball again. She tilted her head to look at Moon's sleeping body and felt her heart flutter in her chest. Her masked stranger's voice echoed in her head again.

"I could never doubt you, Starlight~"

No wonder Sun had been aware of the nickname. He was there when they danced. That beautiful, majestic dance.

Y/N fell asleep not long after that.

*****

"No! Not like that!"

The princess tripped over her feet as she took another misstep in the routine. Eclipse stared at her apologetically, knowing that she was about to get chewed out by the instructor. She stared at the ground as the man berated her as if she was doing it on purpose. Sun and Moon stood a few steps away, staring at each other as if communicating through some unspoken language.

"Alright, take a few minutes, get water. Afterwards we will pick back up where we left off and hopefully some people can get their feet to listen to their head." The instructor left the ballroom, the violinist following closely behind him.

Y/N walked over to the wall and pressed her back to it, covering her face in her hands. "Why am I so bad at this?" she asked as Eclipse joined her. Moon walked out of the same door the instructor left through while Sun practically skipped over to them.

"I don't think you're bad!" he said cheerily, not even allowing Eclipse a moment to speak. "I believe there are many factors that go into learning how to dance!"

The princess looked up at Sun, rather surprised that he was attempting to comfort her. "You do?"

"Yeah! With Moon and I, there's-"

"It's different for the two of you," Eclipse cut Sun off, rolling his eyes. "You two always know what the other is going to do." He stood and held his hand out to the princess. "Let's run through the steps one more time. Maybe it's the instructor making you nervous?" he suggested. Y/N just sighed.

"I don't think that's it," she said, sounding exasperated. "I just can't dance!"

Sun was the next one to speak again. "Starlight, no! Don't say that! Like I said, I'm sure there's some other factor that's just making it difficult for you to learn!"

Before anyone had the chance to process his words, Moon, the instructor, and the violinist reappeared. The dark haired twin bounded towards Sun and nodded at him, before turning and giving their older brother a sly smile.

"Okay, before we go over the tricky steps, I'd like to see everyone run through what we've already learned," the instructor said. Y/N and Eclipse moved to the center of the floor but paused when the instructor continued. "This time, however, I'd like to see Moon and Y/N try it together."

The princess looked to Eclipse, confusion drawing her brows together. Still, she complied and made her way over to Moon while Eclipse walked back over to the wall. The same sly smile was still on Moon's face as he took Y/N's hand in his and pulled her close. "Hello, Starlight," he mused. "Excited for the change of pace?"

Before she had a chance to respond, the violinist began the same song from the beginning. Moon pulled the princess along, perfectly in time with the three count that the instructor was clapping out. She felt like she was moving more in sync with him almost immediately, accommodating every single shift of weight with him as if they were made to dance together. She felt her body move on its own volition, taking to his steps perfectly and soon enough finding herself smiling as they danced right up to the steps they hadn't learned yet.

"Absolutely beautiful!" the instructor bellowed, rushing up to the pair and showering them with praise. Eclipse stood on the sidelines with Sun, who was beaming like a child that had just been surprised with candy.

"You know," Sun said quietly. His tone was cheerful, but his body was rigid. "Sometimes people just need to realize that the only thing they do is hold others back." Eclipse balled his hands into fists as he continued to stare at the princess. He wasn't going to let Sun get to him that easily. She was already his, he knew that.

Sun then pushed himself off of the wall and approached the princess excitedly. "I want a turn with her! May I please?"

The instructor smiled and agreed immediately. Y/N grinned up at Sun, and even from where Eclipse was still standing on the edge of the room, he could tell that she was elated.

The violinist started the song over once more, and Eclipse watched as the two danced rather energetically - spinning and twirling about but somehow still managing to keep the basic steps the same. The princess actually found herself giggling as they continued on, making Eclipse cross his arms and huff as he looked the other way.

So what if they could dance with Y/N better than he could? He had plenty of other activities that they enjoyed together. His brothers could enjoy the dancing.

Eclipse looked back at his beloved dancing with Sun, feeling his heart twinge in despair.

They couldn't take her away from him like they had done with everything else.

Right?

*****

A/N: So?? How'd you do? Please pLeAsE PLEASE tell me how you feel about this chapter because I am absolutely feral to hear what everyone thinks of it! Also I am SO VERY SORRY it took me so fucking long to get it to you guys?? Idfk what happened lmao but honestly was it worth the wait? Because I think it was hahah

As always, likes, comments, kudos, and reblogs are GREATLY appreciated!!

Don't forget to take care of yourselves and stay sweet, my lovelies~!

Taglist: @jack-o-cel (comment here or message me to be added to the taglist~)

25 notes · View notes

0lvlup · 5 months

Text

English is not my first language. I'm happy about thumbs up and down.

OC is fowlers daughter.

Enemies to friends to pretend couple to lovers

Bottom Mizu

Slow burn, no smut.. yet

____________________________

At last, Mizu ascended to the 9th floor of Fowler's imposing castle, determined to claim what she desired most—his life. Along her way up, she had acquired numerous wounds, which only intensified her already simmering anger. Breathing heavily with her clothes tainted with both her own blood and that of the fallen guards. Coming to a halt, Mizu stood amidst shattered glass, the disconcerting sound of its fragments crunching beneath her feet echoed uncomfortably in her ears.

"Ah, the rat has finally arrived," Fowler declared from a makeshift throne, leisurely swirling a substance in his glass, possibly wine, though with this sadistic character, who could tell? "After all, they’re really smart animals," he continued, leaning forward with a sinister grin. "Anyway, I have prepared one last experiment."

A woman emerged behind the opulent chair, locking eyes with Mizu. Positioning herself between Mizu and Fowler, who observed the impending confrontation with malevolent satisfaction.

"Abijah Fowler!" Mizu exclaimed, trying to look past the woman positioned between them. The young woman's brows furrowed in disapproval as she found herself being overlooked by her imminent opponent. "Oh, you Japanese people with your accents! Even after all these years, it's still amusing," Fowler chuckled, but Mizu's attention shifted as she finally observed the woman blocking her view. Something seemed peculiar. Something Mizu has never seen before. The woman's hair resembled the colour of hay.

"My daughter," Fowler announced, producing a sound indicating a sip from his cup. "Beautiful, isn't she?" He continued with a singsong tone. "I would have thrown her into the tunnel you came through like the others." Fowler rose from his seat, allowing Mizu a clear view of himself. "But something, well, overcame me," he admitted, locking eyes with Mizu's oceanic gaze. It seemed that Fowler liked what he saw, and he couldn’t wait for this spectacle to happen right in front of him.

Fowler eased back into his seat, his hands providing support on the plush red cushion. "My precious little jewel, this man is here to end your father's life. But you won't allow that to happen to your daddy, will you?" With a subtle gesture, he signaled his daughter to commence. Thus, she unsheathed her Naginata. To Mizu, however, this young woman appeared almost like a different species, even to herself. For the first time, Mizu grasped what others saw in her.

Fowler's daughter seized the initiative, charging towards Mizu with her Naginata held at its utmost reach. Mizu knew she would swing it to see how fast she would still be able to move despite her many wounds. Yet, Mizu used her own weapon to deflect the attack, cautious not to exacerbate her own injuries by moving too much.

As the woman retreated, Mizu inclined forward, ready to intercept the impending strike. Fowler's daughter sought to goad Mizu into movement, exploiting her weakened stance from an earlier injury when a small metal pole had pierced her foot. Holding her sword close, Mizu employed her entire body in lieu of her arms for the attack. However, every attempt was met not just with parries or dodges but deliberate steps backward from her opponent. The blonde aimed to leverage the range of her weapon against the severely wounded Samurai.

Despite fatigue setting in, Mizu continued to block, feeling the pain in her shoulder. She gritted her teeth, stretching her blade to counterattack, aiming for her opponent's shoulder. Regrettably, Mizu fell short of inflicting any harm. Fowler's child agilely vaulted over Mizu's blade, extending her Naginata single-handedly while reaching with the other to grasp her. Mizu opted to endure the blade's impact rather than allow her opponent's hands on her. Consequently, the girl managed to sever a small portion of Mizu's finger, as her opponent used her hand to push herself away.

Surveying her hand, Mizu lost track of how many wounds and broken bones she had, so she sighed at the loss of her finger. Mizu saw how Fowler's daughter was distracted suddenly, glancing over at her father, seeking acknowledgment for her modest triumph. Exhaling, she hurled her sword at the girl, simultaneously closing the distance to slash her opponent's thigh with her blade and deliver a punch to the throat. She fell and backed up into the hallway, not wanting her father to see her failure. Coughing and heating through her lungs, the woman tried to collect herself, but Mizu didn’t give her any chance and stormed towards her.

She used her full body weight to launch herself onto Fowler's daughter as they tumbled through the hallway, each vying for dominance. Before long, their struggle sent them both careening down the stairs. Throughout the descent, Mizu clung to her opponent's collar. Upon reaching the stairs bottom, Mizu needed a moment to recover, but her adversary afforded her no respite. Swiftly, Mizu found herself kicked onto her back, a boot promptly planted on her chest.

“Fuck you.” The woman said and forcefully kicked Mizus chin before placing her boot back onto Mizus chest, applying weight onto her rips. Fowler’s daughter then chuckled and playfully wiggled her booth on Mizus chest.

“Tits?”

She said laughing. “I knew there was something off.” Attempting to dislodge her, the blue-eyed grasped the woman's foot but failed to budge her. Resigned to this, Mizu shifted her body, sinking her teeth into the woman's ankle. The blonde cried out in pain, allowing Mizu to propel herself out of a nearby window and onto the roof. Fowler's daughter promptly pursued her. Outside, under the open sky, her green eyes surveyed the courtyard filled with the lifeless bodies of her father's soldiers. "Took me no effort," Mizu remarked, spitting out blood, visibly staggering.

Fowler's daughter shook her head and looked back into those blue eyes with a stern look.

“You lost! You’re tired, wet, wounded, and almost bled out.” She asserted, lowering her Naginata.

Mizu's face remained emotionless, though an undertone of annoyance lingered. "I lost when I'm dead and rotten," she retorted.

The blonde looked puzzled.

"You don’t look like a soldier or anything. This seems personal," she remarked, eyeing Mizu. Blue eyes squinted as she struggled to hold her sword up. "My father told me about bastards like you," the blonde spat out the words almost into Mizu's face. "My father. He’s a smart man, you know. Tactical, loud, strategic—lets others work for him."

"Like you," Mizu interjected, throwing her words into the conversation. Fowler's daughter smiled. "The only reason you're still alive is that I know deep inside that you’re right."

As Mizu took a step closer, green eyes immediately fixed on her. "What he did cannot be forgiven. It doesn't have to end with both of you dying," Mizu asserted. Once again, the blonde laughed. Amusing how Mizu still believed she could emerge victorious. Suddenly, the sound of a blade dropping echoed. Green eyes widened as they saw Mizu standing with both hands up, the Katana sliding off the roof and about to fall eight floors down. The blonde girl swiftly caught it, only to be rewarded with a kick to the head by Mizu.

Footsteps echoed in the hallway—first, brisk steps on the stairs, followed by unsteady ones through the corridor. Abijah Fowler, still seated in his chair, observed as someone entered the room, dragging another person by their hair. Holding their rival's hair in one hand and a Katana in the other, they approached. "What took you so long?" Fowler asked his daughter as she presented him the lifeless body of Mizu. "Can I keep the Katana?" she inquired, snorting blood back up her nose.

His daughter collapsed to the ground, fatigued and coughing blood, yet her father appeared indifferent. "It's almost a shame. He was an excellent warrior," he remarked, lifting Mizu by her hair and examining one of her eyes. The lifeless right hand of Mizu then clutched her Katana and swung it. In his last moment, Abijah noticed that his daughter seemed to hand Mizu the weapon, but his reaction was too slow.

A moment of eerie silence followed before Fowler's head dropped to the ground, and Mizu fell forward onto her face. That strike had been the last surge of strength within her. Abijah's head rolled, knocking over a candle holder that set the carpet ablaze. Mizu observed with an unsettling expression. Fowler's daughter, torn between devastation and anger, attacked Mizu, wrestling her to the ground. Despite agreeing that ending her father's life would benefit the world, the blonde woman couldn't contain her grief. Mizu understood the conflicting emotions but realized she needed to escape. Unsure if she desired revenge for Fowler's death or if she was overwhelmed by her own emotions, Mizu felt the flames closing in.

Green eyes met blue ones, uncertain of what would unfold next. Eventually, Fowler's daughter relented, sitting beside her deceased father. "Go," she whispered. Mizu was perplexed; was she truly meant to perish in the flames? "Come with me," Mizu implored, extending her hand to her former rival, only to be rejected. "We need to go!" Mizu urged, but her plea was once again turned away. Respecting the woman's decision, Mizu left. The flames rapidly consumed the room and spilled into the hallway. Mizu retreated, searching for an escape when the blonde seized her wrist, leading her through what she assumed secret passages and locked doors.

In the courtyard, the blonde girl cast Mizu aside. Escaping would be simple from here. However, as soon as Mizu landed on the ground, the girl returned inside, locking the door. Her decision seemed final. Mizu wanted to retrieve her sword, which was still beside Fowler's lifeless body. Despite her desire to return inside, the building was engulfed in flames, and Mizu's condition made it impossible to navigate the danger both inside and outside. Leaving, was the only right .

Mizu, barely clinging to life, encountered Ringo as she escaped. He had come to assist her, and together they sought refuge in a place familiar from Mizu's childhood—the smithy of Master Eiji, a skilled sword master. “Master Eiji’s smithy, he is a sword master! I have my kitchen knives from here.” Ringo gasped, watched as she retreated inside and promptly collapsed unconscious.

Days passed before Mizu regained consciousness, pondering why she was still alive and how she endured staying conscious for so long. "Stubborn, as always," Master Eiji remarked with a smile. Ringo, still filled with anger, placed a bowl in front of Mizu. "Give him time," Master Eiji advised as Ringo left the room. “I need to go back,” Mizu said as she attempted to stand up. “Get my sword.” Despite her weakened state, she dressed herself for the journey. Eiji, shaking his head, called her both stubborn and stupid. Ringo heard how Mizu opened and closed the door, grunts of pain leaving the blue-eyed woman's mouth along it.

Ringo's expression shifted to concern, but despite his worry, he chose not to follow her. Mizu reassured herself that it would be a simple journey to retrieve her sword and return within a few days. However, the worry about her own wounds lingered.

Three days later, she arrived at the remnants of the castle, weak and slow. The once towering structure now lay in ruins, ignored by passersby. A fisherman's boat brought her across the water, demanding extra fees for the service. Mizu observed the collapsed floors, knowing the search for her sword would be challenging, if not impossible. Undeterred, she began her painful exploration. Her every movement caused immense pain, but suddenly she halted. Her blue eyes were drawn to a skeletal figure clutching something. As she approached, she realized it was Fowler's daughter, holding onto her father's head while burning to death. “I didn’t even know your name.” Mizu, broken by the scene, hoped to find her sword nearby. As she searched, her eyes repeatedly returned to the tragic sight.

It was hopeless, days would be needed, and more people to lift heavy remains.

Mizu returned to the fisherman, ready to concede. “Oh, there you are!” He said with an exciting tone. “You searched for a weapon right? This one?” But he didn’t held her Katana in his hand, it was a Naginata. Mizu nodded and knew there was no use in keeping the search for her own sword.

During the journey back, Mizu examined the Naginata and chuckled at its seemingly cheap craftsmanship. She promised herself a new blade for it.

Two days later, she returned to the smithy, welcomed by Ringo. Despite lingering anger, Mizu received a warm hug from him. Ringo eagerly inquired about her sword, and Mizu presented the Naginata, emphasizing the need for a better metal. As she removed the blade from its holster, she noticed engraved symbols she couldn't read. “Is that your name?” Mizu said as her fingers brushed over the engraved letters.

Mizu set to work, practicing with the Naginata while melting new metal in the forge. Master Eiji observed, remarking on the weapon's origin. Mizu brushed off his concerns, but memories of the Naginata's owner shutting the door and locking it haunted her.

One night, Mizu woke to the sound of a sliding door opening. "I said I don't need more medicine, Ringo," she protested, but he placed a bowl next to her. Curious, Ringo asked about Fowler's daughter's appearance. As Mizu described her, the details painted a vivid picture—tall, green eyes like Fowler's, and yellow hair. “Yellow? Like Ginko leaves?” Ringo tried to imagine. “No, perhaps like the sun or hay.” Mizu said with more confidence.

“And you killed her?”

Ringo's question hung in the air, laden with sadness. Mizu clarified that Fowler's daughter's demise was her own choice. After some treatment of wounds, Ringo gave her space to rest. The night proved long and difficult, with Mizu's blue eyes seemingly unable to find rest. Two weeks had passed, yet the haunting memories clung to her as if it had occurred the same night. She turned to face the door, counting the holes and scratches as a feeble attempt to lull herself to sleep.

The night unfolded, and the rhythmic sound of Master Eiji's hammer eventually roused her.

"Good, good! You got a steady rhythm and strong arms.”

Master Eiji praised Ringo as he hammered onto the steel. Mizu, unperturbed, proceeded to refresh herself in the bathroom. On her way, she overheard Ringo singing in the kitchen. Her blue eyes focused on him and her ears on the clinking of a hammer against steel. Mizu peeked into the smithy and spotted the blonde woman vigorously hammering onto steel.

The fresh awoken wordsman sat in the doorframe, watching patiently. Ringo noticed her presence and brought her a snack, sharing that Master Eiji treated the woman as if she had been there all along.

Master Eiji sensed company and resumed hammering the steel himself. The blonde woman fetched a blanket, prompting Mizu to approach her. "You died," Mizu stated matter-of-factly.

"Did you see me die?"

"I... your skeleton!"

The green-eyed woman laughed, revealing that it was merely a trap to deceive others into thinking it was her demise., “Besides. I needed to give you this back” She handed Mizu a blanket containing her sword “Mizu,” The blonde woman said as she took out the sword with a smile. As Mizu took her Katana, she softly said “I made it myself, Mizu is my name,”

"Marina," the other girl said, capturing Mizu's attention. Mizu repeated the name, realizing that Marina seemed different than other names she heard. She smiled, adorned in a beautiful haori, standing before Mizu without intent to harm her, and now bearing a name. However, learning her full name as ‘Marina Fowler’ left Mizu feeling uneasy. "Marina Fowler," she uttered aloud, causing the smile to vanish from Marina's face.

"Your Naginata is cheap and useless. I'm making you a new blade."

"And still, it made you only be able to count to nine."

Blue eyes were stern and cold as her former rival mocked her with that comment. "But we can always rematch," Mizu laughed, confident that this woman wouldn't stand a chance against her for more than a minute, especially now that she had regained her full strength. Marina insisted, anyways with continuing to mock Mizu.

#blue eye samurai #mizu

20 notes · View notes

nyanggk · 2 years

Text

♡ ✒ TROPETEMBER SPECIALS ♡

. *▪︎ ♡ closed doors ♡ ▪︎* .

jungwon x fem!reader

trope 2 : forced proximity — zombie apocalypse au, slight angst, hint of romance, strangers to potential lovers, strangers to friends

warning : depression, the undead

— having been nearly eaten to death, you find solace in a younger boy who saves you amidst an invasion in hopes for the two of you to come out of it alive and together.

wc. 1.4k

It's been three days since you've been on the run from the undead. Three agonising days that you spent fighting for your life. Three days in which felt like three millenniums as you spend them outside, on your own.

In fact, you have no clue how out of everyone in your group, you were the only one to survive. You were the groups youngest after all and everyone was keen to protect you. In the end, they sacrificed themselves in order for you to continue living on.

And now, you're alone.

What's the point of living if you have no one else to spend your days with?

Questions like this keep on running around in your head. Cowardly, you can even say that you were close to ending it all when your life took a turn as fate seemed to have something else in mind.

See, with your backpack strapped onto your shoulders and a fierce grip on the handgun you had found, you quietly try to survey a nearby building, hoping to find a survivor or something of use to you. Needless to say, the least you expected was to come across a huge pack of zombies near the basement.

With all your might, you tried to outrun them as fast as you could, but fatigue soon overcame your system and your legs soon gave up. You thought that that was the end for you, that you can finally be put to rest. But you were yet again left in shock when a piercing lock of red hair came across your vision. It was a boy clad in his school uniform, blotches of maroon and brown tainting his clothes.

"Miss! Get up! We need to run!" The said boy shouted at you, gripping on your upper arm as he helped you stand up quicker. As you try to overcome your shock and stand up at the same time, your legs then begin to shake, inevitably resulting in you falling on the ground with a thud.

The boy stared at you in frantickness, eyes faster shifting between you and the zombies who were hastily catching up. Once noticing that your legs were barely going to assist you, he took the bold initiative and hooked his arms underneath your legs, carrying you in his arms as he ran for your lives.

You held on to the boys color in a fierce grip, both because of fear of getting eaten and of the fear to fall from his arms. The latter seemed to be foolish panic though as no matter how fast the boy ran nor how much he jumped, he still made sure to secure you safely in his arms.

Amidst all that running, the two of you finally reach a level where there seemed to be no zombies in sight.

Hearing the steps of the herd nearing the two two you, tell the boy to hasten to look for an unlocked room on this floor. Soon enough, with you still held in his arms, the two of you finally secure yourselves a vacant room, nearly being grabbed by the zombies.

Slamming the door shut, you sigh, grateful to have surpassed another chase before gently patting the boys arm, signalling for him to let you down while noticing his hastened breaths. The thuds and groans of the undead pick up as they slam on the door the two of you are now trapped in, the only way out being the huge windows on the side of the room. However, getting out is the least of your worries for now. Currently, you just want to lay down and rest your tired body. You can worry about getting out later, when you're rested up.

Despite his tiredness, the boy still makes it a point to check on you, "Are you okay?"

Stunned, you nod before realising that you haven't even thanked the boy for saving your life. Quickly, you gather your scattered thoughts before bowing your head deeply to him. "Thank you so much f-for saving me. I really don't know what would've happened to me if you weren't there." You thank gratefully, as your hands stutter to unwrap your backpack from your frame.

"It's all good." He shrugs off as if saving your life was a normal occurrence. "My name's Jungwon, by the way. I'm a student at SNU." He informs, reaching his hand out for you to shake.

Pausing your actions after you've opened the zipper of your backpack, you smile, taking him up on his offer. "I'm YN. I just graduated from college four days ago." You say sadly and the boy replies with a sympathetic nod, understanding your sorrow. "It's nice to meet you Jungwon."

"It's nice to meet you too." He says.

Again, you smile up to him, grateful to have company once more. You reach inside your backpack and Jungwon can't help but peek his eyes at your actions. Fishing out an energy drink from the bottom of your bag, you throw it towards the boy, to which he catches with ease. Tilting the can up to you in question, he points, "Mine?"

Getting a water bottle of your own, you nod, resuming to chug the whole thing down as you move to sit on the ground with your back resting on a wall. You heave out a deep sigh as you close your eyes, thankful that you could finally rest. Despite the continuous banging on the door, you feel as if your body could start hibernating at this moment. However you choose against it, wanting to be on guard when something disastrous comes. So instead, you focus your eyes onto the broad shouldered boy infant of you, eyes zeroing onto his fiery red hair.

Jungwon smiles cutely and this is the first time you notice the dimples he has that were deeply grazing his cheeks. "Thanks, Noona." He says before copying your actions and chugging down the bottle.

You can't help but reply to his smile, feeling the contagious symptoms bubbling up inside you and you blush involuntarily for thinking of such thoughts amidst a horrible pandemic. "Yeah, I raided a convenience store a day ago. My bag's filled with food, so just help yourself if you're still hungry." You half say and mumble at the same time, nudging the bag towards where he stood when you notice how quickly he finished his can.

Holding the empty can in his hands, he debates whether or not it's rude to take you up on your offer. Jungwon hadn't had much to eat in the span of three days besides the half eaten chocolate bar he had inside his pocket. His mouth is practically salivating while looking at the various biscuits and chips stuffed inside your bag.

Hearing you chuckle, Jungwon looks at your sleepy figure in interest. Like a cat, he tilts his head to the side as his brows scrunch in question to which prods you on to say, "Nothing nothing." You answer, waving a hand to dismiss him, but the smiley grin you have tells the boy otherwise. "Just take whatever you like, Jungwon." You assure him before he has a chance to question you further.

With that, Jungwon practically jumps on your bag, long arms rummaging to find a big snack. His eyes catch sight of a familiar packaging and he grabs it with excitement, tearing the packet open right after before munching on to the chips.

At the sight, you can help but laugh at the boys actions, finding him cute in such a scene and for a moment, you almost forget that you're part of a gruesome reality. For now, you want to forget. you want to pretend like everything's fine, like you're just on a date with a cute boy with dimples. And so, you do, you forget and you giggle.

This doesn't go unnoticed by the boy however as again, Jungwons eyes find their way to your frame, asking you the same silent question. And like the last time, your reply is all the same.

Preoccupied with his snack, Jungwon shrugs it off— only this time will he let it slide, as from then on, Jungwon would repeatedly question you about the source of your laughter, oblivious to the fact that he was your reason; reason for your joy and for you to stay alive.

"Noona," He calls out to you, a piece of chip between his fingers. "I'm glad I found you."

And to this day, you have no clue whether he said that because he was in dire need of food and you blessed him with it, or because he finally found someone he can cherish and protect.

PERMANENT TAGLIST: @amarillyis @samanthaaaa1 @meowmeowhoon @wonswondrland @axartia @heesflor @caty-catts @enhacolor @donghoonie-3 @artstaeh @thaliese @kuleo26 @heestart @kyanmeai @seonushine @jjongbadnae @seung-scrittore @avbbie @palajae @alex-is-sleeping @love-4-keum @wtfsuhani @lumiseung @jaylaxies @kimmchijjajang @hoon-lvr @brownsugarbaybee @2580jay @an-awkward-magical-being @yangrdn

authors who are part of this event. make sure you check their entries out! @vivvys @aira-mai @seattlesolace

want to check out my other works? click here to be directed to my masterlist!

want to see the other entries of tropetember? click here!

want to be part of the taglist? click here or send an ask!

#enhypen #enhypen jungwon #enhypen fluff #enhypen fanfiction #enhypen scenarios #enhypen x female reader #enhypen x reader #enhypen angst #yang jungwon #yang jungwon x reader #yang jungwon scenarios #enhypen imagines #yang jungwon imagines

162 notes · View notes

hearts4dwt · 2 years

Text

𝐎𝐍𝐄 | 𝐀𝐍 𝐔𝐍𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐔𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐎𝐂𝐂𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐎𝐍

SUMMARY: a few weeks ago, the fiancée of your cousin passed due to a virus that makes its rounds around the kingdom. on your way across the ocean to the palace of your cousin, your ship has an intercourse with the infamous nightmare.

WARNINGS: violence, mentions of death

PAIRING: dream x fem! reader (enemies to lovers)

SERIES MASTERLIST | NEXT CHAPTER

The soft glow of the sun seems to lay a veil of stars upon the ocean, as you feel the warm rays engulf your body tightly, standing at the head of the ship beside your guard. Due to the wind your hair seems to blow in every direction, blocking your sight from the nothingness of sea you’re travelling across. It has been hours since the ship took off, time seems to stretch for as long as it can — your feet crave the touch of safe ground, not the swinging back-and-forth, the gentle cradling, of the boat.

Just a few minutes ago your captain had announced it was only four miles left until you'd arrive on land, at the new-built Harbor located at the coast of your cousin's country, that was once your brother's, before he passed away.

Your cousin and his late fiancée, a noble lady of wealthy house, had made the best out of this kingdom. Although, now, after her early passing he seemed to fall down a hole of misery, and nobody was there to catch him, nor to heave him out. Not only he took harm of this: the people seemed to be tainted by the grief just as much.

You, on the other hand, had no time to grieve. To be honest, you didn’t really know what you felt — the whole situation was quite confusing in your position, as you never really got to know the woman. You had seen her once or twice, exchanged a few polite smiles and some meaningless chitchat, but you didn’t have a deep, emotional connection.

Nonetheless, you travelled across the ocean for her funeral, not only to give her your respect, but to give your cousin your respect and condolences as well.

You didn’t know anything about sailing, to be honest, and you never cared enough to learn it — although, you knew your ancestors had only come so far through their business of putting and selling ships of great quality. You felt bad only a little, though, it never really consumed you.

And although you knew so little about it — the only thing you could remember your grandfather teaching you were a bunch of different types of knots — you knew that the signs the spyglass-man above you gave the helmsman were anything but good.

You could feel a pit forming in your stomach as you watched the men on the ship hurry from place to place, uneasiness crawling up your spine, arising goosebumps on your smooth skin.

Eventually, it got too much, and the curiosity overcame you. Turning to your guard, whose face was also written with nervousness, you opened your mouth.

"What is going on?" Your heard yourself ask, voice slightly coarse from not speaking so long. He turned his head away from the anxious crew to look at you, sighing as he shrugged his shoulders.

"No idea."

Furrowing your eyebrows, you turned away from him to the front, and now it finally caught your eye: a huge, dark ship was only miles away from yours, the Wallflower.

You would never mistake this ship. You had heard too many rumours about it — everyone had. It‘s stories jumped around the kingdom like a disease, venom crawling into the people's heads, making them frightened for their life.

The crew really lived up to their ship‘s name — The Nightmare. It was exactly that, a nightmare. The people they'd capture were never heard from again — their names were only legends among the men on land now, a whisper brought out in fear The Nightmare would come for those who spoke of the captured as well.

They hoist their flag with pride, their sails with spur and tumble across the ocean like ice, letting the other ships know they are coming exactly for them.

You felt your breath hitch in your throat, swiftly turning around before you marched forward fiercely towards the captain, who stood beside his helmsman on the platform. Discarding the scarf that was tightly hugging your throat, shielding you from any cold breeze, you came to a stop after you conquered the staircase.

The captain turned to you with raised eyebrows and a taunting curl of his lips down, eyes flying over your body. You were wearing a gown, usual for a princess, wrapped in a warm coat as jewellery hung around your neck. The uneasiness in you grew as he eyed you, before opening his mouth.

"What is it, your highness?" He sneered, voice tight and squeaky, emphasising the title with all his willpower. He only barely managed to tower over you, thin, short legs not as long as yours, which was quite sad, to be honest, seeing as you weren't that tall yourself. Compared to the usual men at sea, at least. You fought the grimace crawling up your face, slightly amused and at the same time disgusted at the way he wanted so desperately to show off.

"What is happening?" Your words came out steady compared to his. The other corner of his mouth curled up into a taunting grin, which now arouse slight anger inside you. You didn’t catch the nervous glances the helmsman was now sending his captain, and neither did said man.

"I don’t know? You tell me, your highness." He said and you were still able to hear the mocking undertone, frown overtaking your face. "Everything is as it is supposed to be."

It was not. This was confirmed only a second after this thought occurred to you.

"Uh, captain, sir," the helmsman brought out hesitantly and soon enough, you heard manly groans behind you, messy yelling and iron clanking against one another. You felt your heart skip a few beats, and out of fear, you didn’t dare to turn around, hoping what you were thinking was a lie and there wasn’t even a hint of the Nightmare's crew, that was slowly but surely taking over your ship.

However, your plan of 'ignoring until it’s gone' didn’t turn out so good — in fact, it was actually very, very stupid. You spotted a man with long, blonde curls and sword in his hands trotting up the staircase behind the captain and his helmsman, wicked grin tugging at his lips and an even more evil glint in his ocean blue eyes.

You wanted to move — really, you did — but the fear brewing inside you held you back, restraining you as much as possible. You saw his gaze fall onto you, smirk now stretching over his face as he quickly turned away, let out a whistle to his back, before turning around again.

This didn’t go unnoticed by the captain though, and after you saw his eyes widening, almost popping out of their holes, he snapped around and grabbed the sword out of his Holster. The blonde was just about to strike him down, however, the Captain was fast enough to bring up his sword to clank it against his and eventually they would move to fight down below alongside the others. Still, you remained in your place, completely mortified, sharing a look with the helmsman who seemed just as scared.

You tumbled back a little, vision getting blurry, until you felt a strong presence behind you, drawing a gasp as you felt a blade being pressed against the soft flesh on your bare neck, just above your necklace. Your body tensed, heart picking up speed and nearly thumping out of your chest — you were sure the person behind you could hear and feel it beat rapidly. Needless to say you were scared for your life.

"Don’t move now, princess." A smooth voice called out from behind you in a whisper, drawing another small gasp from you, which made him let out a chuckle to your misery. You could feel his hot breath on the back of your neck as he (you assumed he was a man) pressed the blade further onto your throat, his hand flying up to your arm, holding you in place as he tilted your head with his dagger on your chin to look at you. You could feel his gaze travelling from your eyes to your lips as you let your eyes fall shut, nose scrunching up in fear.

"Don’t be scared," his voice called out again lowly, barely above a whisper, this time directly into your ear as he drew the dagger back to your throat and added even more pressure than before. You almost let out a whimper, but managed to collect yourself as you gulped down your fear and braced yourself. He guided you with his other hand that wasn’t holding the blade, dragging you to turn around, eyes catching up on the Wallflower's crew slowly but surely being killed by The Nightmare's. You wanted to squeeze your eyes shut again, but he prevented you by pressing the blade even closer.

"Don't," his voice was firm now, his body pushing against yours to move you forward.

"I want you to watch."

a/n: hope u enjoyed this first chapter <3

— join taglist! <3

#dreamwastaken fanfic #dreamwastaken x reader #dream #dwt x you #dwt #dream mcyt #dream x you #CAPTURED: dreamwastaken fanfiction #hearts4dwt #sapnap #georgenotfound #punz

89 notes · View notes

crymeariveronceagain · 2 years

Note

what if Sophie accidentally transmits her night terrors when they get really bad? not too far just outside her door to her bodyguards.

"She's dreaming again," Sandor said, quietly.

Grady sighed, sitting down next to him, offering him a cup of tea.

Sandor took it, it looking particularly fragile in his rough gray hands.

"What's it about tonight?" Grady asked, sounding exhausted.

"Keefe. Again."

The silence hung between them like sheets of ice that didn't want to be broken.

Grady leaned his head back against the door, and waited.

Sure enough, the pictures filled his mind.

Black cloaks, firey blue eyes, a smile that chilled every corner of him.

Flashes of her screaming, an intense feeling of pain, hot and unavoidable.

Grady wondered, briefly, why the stars had destined this for his daughter. Why it was written for her, and not him.

He'd have taken it a thousand times so she wouldn't have had to.

Sandor said, his voice soft and chiruppy, "She shouldn't be like this."

Grady shook his head. "No," he answered, "She shouldn't."

"What are you two doing out here?"

Grady looked at his wife, her soft blue eyes concerned as they met his. He didn't know what he was supposed to say.

What do you say?

Our telepath daughter gets so distressed by what her brain concocts that she actually spits it out in mental screams for the people nearest to her to hear, and I didn't want her to be alone?

He shrugged.

Sandor answered. "Sophie transmits her nightmares."

"Oh," Edaline whispered, her voice going soft like it always did when she got worried. She took a seat next to Grady, and leaned her head on his shoulder, "Again?"

Grady nodded.

"I worry about her," Edaline said. "I worry about her so much."

The shapes filled his mind again, blood and pain and screams and fire and water and the wind and the sea and Linh shouting, MOVE, STAY ALIVE, LISTEN TO ME, SOPHIE-- and of Keefe shouting for her to believe in him, that everything would be okay.

A hissy, dangerous voice overcame him, cloying and sharp and dangerous all at once.

No reason to worry.

Grady winced. "That's Alden," he said, quietly.

"The more I learn of him," Sandor said, "The less I know what to think of him."

Grady and Edaline said nothing.

The silence, thick and tainted with thoughts that hummed in the air like pain itself.

"There's no way to solve this," Grady said, into the heavy silence. "There's nothing we can do to help her."

The guilt leaned on them like a heavy weight.

"I hate this," Edaline said softly.

Sandor nodded, and then rubbed his forehead. "She shouldn't be able to transmit to me."

The two other adults turned to look at him.

"Elven powers don't work too well on goblins."

Grady looked away. "Sophie's different."

"Sophie's always different," Sandor said. "You're her parents, you should know that nothing is ever the same with Sophie."

Edaline looked up at the cieling. "I wouldn't want anyone normal for every peaceful night in the world."

The door opened, and a blonde girl with bags the color of bruises under her eyes walked out, looking incredibly small. She stopped when she saw everyone in front of her door, her face tear-streaked and her body trembling.

"Wh...what are you doing out here?" Her voice shook, and if you listened closely to the background, you could hear three hearts breaking.

Edaline smiled, sadly. " Don't worry about that, Love," she said, gently, "Come on, it's late, let's get you some tea."

Grady watched his daughter and his wife leave, the smaller girl leaning heavily on his wife, and he felt a sigh burn in his soul.

He released it like it was a wisp of smoke fleeing from his lungs, a thin stream that needed to be held onto as long as he could.

"I wish I could save her from everything wrong in the world." Grady's teeth gritted tightly together. "I wish I could take her place. If I could save her from everything, protect her from every bad destiny, I'd do it in a heartbeat. If some great creator slammed into my face and said, "You can do this for her," I'd do it a thousand times over. Anything to get that horrible look out of her brown eyes."

The silence that stretched between them was thoughtful and tight.

"Being a bodyguard is not an easy task," Sandor said, carefully. "But neither is being a parent."

Grady looked at him.

"I cannot care for her enough," Sandor continued, "And she will fight me every step of the way. And you must strike the balance between love and overprotection."

Sandor threw a throwing star in the air and caught it in his fingers.

Grady watched it move, glinting in the light. "I can try."

Sandor snorted, "That's all we can do. We try."

81 notes · View notes

astralcodex · 1 year

Note

makin this an ask so it's easier to spoiler tag, or just ignore since i am on your blog(ie i get it if you don't want an argument): branka and celene and marjorlaine aren't sexy tho. especially with branka's deal and hira trying to slave trade her gf, the npc4npc stories are not the same as ex isabela's delightful da2 storyline. people don't find fascinating joy in branka or marjorlaine or what hira did, their backstabbings are often bigoted or just plain too heinous. my other complaint is that bioware need to switch it up bc the npc lesbian plots are too predictable at this point

what's sexy is subjective!

it's totally cool if you don't like it or if you find it personally offensive. i think they are heartbreaking, interesting stories.

taking hira for instance - i am honestly loving the fact that we are seeing more stories about the darkness of a revolutionary hero. the lengths a person is willing to go through to for their 'cause', and whether or not the survival of that cause is worth the cost of the awful things you'll do it see it done. if you go too far, do you eventually just... become what you hated? isn't hira just as bad as rezaren in some ways?

another example of this was in andor: sacrificing kreegyr and all of his men in a futile attack on spellhaus to save the rebellion and avoid suspicion, a morally terrible thing that killed a lot of people. but the rebellion continued on.

there is also the intersection of people with privilege joining a cause and how they are often more willing to sacrifice others because they are more removed from the cost - and hira comes from privilege. her perspective is tainted by that, because she grew up in wealthy tevinter family, and that life was taken from her. as a result, hira is motivated by anger, while miriam is motivated by fear. hira spent the entire show telling miriam she shouldn't run and she should face her past but hira can say that because she has the privilege of not being afraid. her privilege and family history allows her to say 'oh, you would have been a slave for a little while but i wouldn't have let him have you forever'. ... hira can say this and not examine the truth too closely because hira does not have to face that reality. miriam does.

in the end, miriam overcame her fear and saved the little girl ("we have to save us") whereas hira is still being ruled by her anger.

i think better things are in store for miriam, but maybe not so much for hira. and i hope we meet them both in game.

anyways, this is not out of line for dragon age, which is full of heinous shit. like... the abuse of child slaves. conversion therapy using blood magic. tranquil skulls being used to power oculara. tranquility in general. that whole serial killer subplot in da2. what the qunari do to mages. and on and on and on. and like i said, they like to write your lovers betraying you in massive ways (not just the lesbians) - i'd argue what anders did was 'worse' than what hira did, but that's not the point.

i loved it and found it to be a very compelling narrative. an interesting story. and very sexy.

#asks #dragon age absolution #cameron7a #thanks for the ask!#imo im here for messy fucked up queer stories #but its ok if you are not #also i dont view these things as fights i think we can talk about the v v interesting meta of this without it being an argument #nobody is morally superior because of their dragon age opinions

18 notes · View notes

russieraholic · 1 year

Text

It’s come to the point where the Yiga Clan in my brain has diverted so extensively that it would literally make more sense to just name them something else. Like. Seriously. And I’ve had the name “East Desert Rogues” in mind for months now.

The lore is, in a nutshell:

The land of Terra-Exodeum was the first place to ever exist in the world and was the birthplace of the gods which correlated to and were the pure source and physical manifestation of all the elements, tangible or not. These deities were what created essentially everything- the serpent of ice formed mighty glaciers, the hyena of lightning called on powerful storms, the hound of water procured rivers and waterfalls, the bull of earth sculpted mountains and valleys.

After assuming more human forms as the eons passed, the deities who chose to not forfeit their godhood in order to pass down their elemental powers into their bloodlines, of course, had the desire to rule over their own territory. This was relatively easy and peaceful, for a while. One such deity, Saint Equinox, hound of water, was undemanding of a domain to rule over and generally spent his time lounging, training in martial arts and wizardry in his monastery.

A few thousand years later, however, the deity of Plague, along with the deity of Wind, held a massive siege against much of the land in hopes to gain territory. This lasted for centuries, in which the incredible power of the goddess of Ice eventually overcame and ended the siege.

Still, many descendants of deities, commoners, and even a few of the deities themselves chose to leave the tainted land in search of brighter prospects, Saint Equinox no exception.

After changing his name inspired by his element (“Kohga” meaning “old river”), Kohga eventually settled in a distant land, in a village that was just starting its roots (many of the settlers being direct descendants of the deities.) For centuries he would quietly watch over this tribe, elusively enough as to where he was not questioned about his longevity. He came to adore these people like his own. Their technological achievements were incredible, and intellectual prowess immediately evident.

However, one fateful day, a horrific attempt by the corrupt hierarchy to wipe out the tribe was made. The king both despised the race for no apparent reason, and also thought their advancements were a threat to his rule.

Many lost their lives that day. Kohga, of course, fought hard to protect them- but the only other survivors that were able to hold their ground without surrendering were the descendants of his fellow deities. He gathered up the survivors, and offered a chance to run away from and rebel against the wretched kingdom. Many chose to instead forfeit their prowess and go on to lead mundane, heavily governed lives. Those who didn’t, which were the descendants, chose to flee alongside Kohga.

From there they formed a rudimentary group, which Kohga vowed to the seven young men that he would teach them as their sensei and pass on all of his knowledge. Kohga realized that the way they could best protect themselves was by gathering as many descendants, or “elemental wielders/masters”, as possible and beginning a clan of their own, passing the deific powers through the bloodlines in said clan.

Not too far into their journey, however, they were accosted by kingdom soldiers and officials. Already exhausted from the days of walking and trekking through harsh conditions, all looked bleak, until a very powerful woman intervened and annihilated the squadron. After some questioning this woman turned out to be none other than the goddess of ice that had defeated the siege that drove Saint Equinox and many others away to begin with. She vowed to take the men under her wing and became their protector.

For a few years, the group searched for any other elemental descendants that could aid their cause- in the end they ended up with twelve founders (including Kohga himself). They would go on to found the culture, settle in the desert, and establish their yet-to-grow community in the heart of the desert.

Much of their culture focuses on deep understanding and celebration of both ethnic diversity and homosexuality. And though of course it’s evolved over time to be about queerness and diversity in general, it’s important to remember their roots.

Important things to note:

-The typical bodysuit that you see Yiga soldiers wear wasn’t established until about 1,000 years before the current time (the lore I mentioned ends at about 50,000 years before current time).

-Even though the clan’s main goal is to fight against the prejudice they face, it isn’t free from its own glaring prejudice. Over 98% of the clan are male/masculine. This problem lasted until their assimilation with the Marine Embassy, which had the same problem but with female/feminine.

Anyways. I think it’s abundantly clear that with the adjustment of just a few things, this whole story could be its complete own. I’m not saying it will be or won’t be, I just think it’s impressive to see how far it’s diverted from its source material.

10 notes · View notes

lecheroustaint · 1 month

Text

@thedcvilherself

There is an almost eerie silence that fills the night air as Javier closes the door behind him, the older male having become amazingly adept at coming and going into her room like a phantom. It helps that Sarah is a relatively heavy sleeper, he rarely never had to slip her anything to help make her more pliable to his nightly visits. Satan had always been in his ear as he was with everyone but it wasn't until Sarah came back into his life that Lucifer's influence overcame him. It was her fault that he began to lust over her - her tight, young body tempting day in and day out until he just had to do something about it. It started out innocent enough, guilt filled wank sessions to pictures of the girls underwear underneath her skirt. It wasn't long his hand wasn't enough and he had tracked down where Sarah lived before he truly fell to Satan's temptations. He told himself he just needed to get over the constant whisper in his ear. If he could just jerk off over the pretty young woman, he could be rid of the taint that marred his being. He was even bold enough on the first night to pull down her panties and cum all over her pretty, pink cunt. It wasn't long before even that wasn't enough and he was spending night after night sinking his long, fat cock into the warmth of her sleeping pussy. The silence of the night were slowly filled with the rhythmic, messy sounds of impressive manhood rearranging her insides on a nightly basis. If she didn't want this, why would her greedy hole get wet so easily whenever he would stretch her to the point he could see his cock bulge through her tummy. Tonight is no different, his heavy balls now accustomed to being drained on a nightly basis using Sarah's tight hole. Over time, he's gotten more brazen with how much he's able to get away with. On this evening, Javier has the young girl's elegant legs over his shoulders and giving a new meaning to the word mating press. He truly tests the give of the springs of the mattress below them. The elderly priest takes long, deep strokes inside her welcoming walls until the swollen, aching tip of his cock is kissing against her cervix. He's been able to get away with it for so long that he's begun to get reckless as he uses her like his own personal fleshlight. "Father forgive me." He whispers in between the loud slap of his cum swollen balls from slapping against her asshole.

#thedcvilherself #sorry for the delay #lmk if you need anything changed

1 note · View note

unbloomingmoonflower · 7 months

Text

FFXIVWrite2023 Prompt 18: Fish Out of Water

The smell of the ocean overpowered everything else in the grand city-state of Limsa Lominsa and the young Xaela's wide, mismatched eyes could scarcely take in the sights of the new location.

Fifteen winters she's lived, arriving to this city with the stench of embers and death on her, Shuri sniffled, forcefully blinking the tears that brew afresh in her eyes back. She shouldn't cry; not in this unfamiliar place, bustling with people. Her hands clutched at the front of her tunic, still trembling, as she shambled through the throng of people. Her stomach was beginning to tie itself in knots, bile threatening to rise to her throat, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to force the waves upon waves of fear back below the surface.

The mixture of stone and wooden planks beneath her bare, tender feet was an odd sensation. The materials felt hard and unwelcoming compared to when she would sink herself into the snow that had fallen upon the mountains where she lived her whole life. Tears threatened to fall once again, a lump forming in the Xaela's throat, as her ears picked up unfamiliar words. The language here was all garbled, incomprehensible, and anxiety knotted her insides once again at how she would be able to communicate if she could not even speak whatever language this was.

Pushing through the crowds once more, Shuri found herself at a square. There was a crowd amassed; surely, there was some sort of spectacle happening. The young Xaela inched closer, her horns picking up the sounds of music before her eyes found the source of the crowds' attention.

There, a bard stood off to the side and in the center was a woman dancing. In her hands were chakrams that glinted beneath the blazing sunlight, grey hair flowing to the motion of the most captivating dance Shuri ever beheld. Her heart all but beat silently against her ribcage as she watched, captivated by the dancer's grace, at how fluid her movements were--as if she were the very sea itself.

A girl of fifteen winters danced as a child when her father would play music in their homes, as her mother prepared their meals by the hearth. They would praise the grace she displayed with practice and that the sheer joy in her eyes was palpable. Shuri would dance beneath the moon, thanking the Dusk Mother for every moment she was alive. Just as swiftly, everything came back to her.

The dance of weapons against one another, her tribe falling one by one, with blood tainting the snow. The deathly dance was accompanied by the symphony of screams, with her father pleading for her to flee, to escape the slaughter, and her breath was all but stolen from her once again. Her tears broke free, racing down her cheeks as a violent river, her breathing haphazard, and her heart twisting as though a knife were plunged into it.

So lost in the throes of her grief was she, that Shuri barely realized that she was approached until a gentle hand rest against her shoulder. She recoiled, as if the touch stung her, and her teary, wide eyes met the dark eyes of the dancer she was just watching. Her lips moved, words leaving them, but Shuri could scarcely understand what was said.

The dancer must have realized this, for she spoke in Xaelic tongue then: "Khüü mini chi zügeer üü?"

Shuri's eyes widened impossibly more, her breathing still haphazard, yet relief was beginning to fill her to the marrow. "Chi minii kheleer yaridag."

The dancer nodded, her hand now gently taking one of Shuri's, before guiding her from the crowd. "Bi khiine. Nadad kheleech, chi yaagaad ingej uilj baigaa yum be?" she asked, her voice one of authority and yet so kind.

Averting her gaze, cheeks burning with shame, the Xaela couldn't muster up the answer that was fresh on her tongue. She could only squeeze the hand that held hers as another onslaught of tears overcame her.

"Chamaig kharaach," the dancer sighed, "Ta ünekheer zaluu mörtlöö ene yertöntsiin bükh aimshigt baidlyg üzsen met kharagdaj baina."

With those words said, the dancer drew the Xaela to her side before addressing the crowd in that unfamiliar tongue. The crowd dispersed and when the last of the stragglers had gone, the dancer returned her attention to Shuri. On her lips was the faintest smile as she wrapped an arm around the Xaela's quivering shoulders, leading her and the members of her group out of the square and away from prying eyes.

ᵀʰᵃᵗ'ˢ ʰᵒʷ ᴵ ᵐᵉᵗ ᴺᵃˢʰᵐᵉⁱʳᵃ ʷʰᵉⁿ ᴵ ᶠⁱʳˢᵗ ᵃʳʳⁱᵛᵉᵈ ᵗᵒ ᴱᵒʳᶻᵉᵃ. ˢʰᵉ ᵗᵃᵘᵍʰᵗ ᵐᵉ ᵗʰᵉ ˡᵃⁿᵍᵘᵃᵍᵉ ᵃⁿᵈ ʰᵒʷ ᵗᵒ ᵖʳᵒᶜᵉˢˢ ᵐʸ ᵉᵐᵒᵗⁱᵒⁿˢ ᵗʰʳᵒᵘᵍʰ ᵈᵃⁿᶜᵉ. ᴵⁿ ᵗⁱᵐᵉ, ᵇᵉᶠᵒʳᵉ ᴵ ᵈᵉᶜⁱᵈᵉᵈ ᵗᵒ ʷᵃⁿᵈᵉʳ ᵗʰᵉ ʳᵉᵃˡᵐ, ᴿᵃⁿᵃᵃ ʰᵃᵈ ʲᵒⁱⁿᵉᵈ ᵃⁿᵈ ˢʰᵉ ᵃⁿᵈ ᴵ ʷᵉʳᵉ ˡⁱᵏᵉ ˢⁱˢᵗᵉʳˢ. ᴵ ᵒʷᵉ ᵉᵛᵉʳʸᵗʰⁱⁿᵍ ᵗᵒ ᴺᵃˢʰᵐᵉⁱʳᵃ, ᵗᵒ ᵗʰᵉ ᵗʳᵒᵘᵖᵉ. ᵀʰᵉʸ ʷᵉʳᵉ ᵐʸ ᶠᵃᵐⁱˡʸ ʷʰᵉⁿ ᴵ ʰᵃᵈ ˡᵒˢᵗ ᵉᵛᵉʳʸᵗʰⁱⁿᵍ.

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

"Are you alright, child?"

"You speak my tongue."

"I do. Tell me, why are you weeping so?"

"Look at you."

So young and yet you look as if you have seen all the horrors of this world.

#moonie writes #ffxivwrite2023 #prompt 18 #this is when shuri first arrived to Eorzea and was more or less taken in by Nashmeira who taught her the language and to process her grief #i always said nashmeira was def shuri's mentor but i never wrote the capacity of how true it was in shuri's lore

5 notes · View notes

strawberrrier · 1 year

Text

Home Again

Jason Todd X Plus Size reader

A little valentines treat!! ☕💌💐🍰💗 Love again. Love today. Love tomorrow. ❣️

Chapter Twelve

Another declaration right in his very eyes but he could offer nothing. She was slipping away and he was letting her.

Unfinished Piece

Fear. Jason knew of it. But from his days and nights, he's gotten used to it. Used to it so much as if he didn't feel it anymore.

But when he was met with the sight of Y/N, her life threatened, a look on her face that he didn't know he'd be dreading—he felt it again. And he felt it so much when he held her hand, feeling it all from her.

Though if hearts exploding exists, he was sure he could be the living example of it as he heard his phone ring the second she pressed that call button.

What the fuck.

Jason stood there, never in his life that he became so ever still, unable to move, unable to even so much as think while his phone continued to ring. He didn't think his state could have gotten worse the moment he saw her but there he was. With that look she had on, he knew and so, like an instinct, he caught her as she fell unconscious and the flowers and her phone was now on the ground.

As his hands were wrapped around her and now carried her. The pain of his flesh still being torn apart was at the very back of him; ignored. His own pain was nothing when his blood continued to flow out from his wounds, tainting her. The sound of siren from the distance came closer and he just stared at her.

This is what had been haunting him then, just as he overcame that, just as he was so close to making another step closer after their beginning, this is where it led him—a broken promise, what haunts him; in his arms.

Fear staring right at him.

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

Sore again is what she feels as her eyes fluttered open, blinding lights met her and then came out a gasp as fragments of what was, came back.

Jason.

Y/N realizes she was in a hospital room and she sees Alfred on a chair just beside her, already looking at her with mellow eyes. She opened her mouth, "....That wasn't a dream?" Though she still asks unsurely as that what it felt, she knew the answer to it already.

"I'm afraid so," Alfred answered. Then Y/N turned to the ceiling again and let out a long breath from her mouth. She stayed as she was for a moment, letting countless questions run in her mind. Though one was clear.

What have I gotten myself into?

Then she laughed a little, "She would have killed you, Al."

Alfred laughs as well, "Yes, indeed she would have," he agrees, at the notion that he lives a life that he has. "But she would have been happy for you, nonetheless." Assured him.

Y/N nods, uttering a small hum of agreement. They never doubted it for even a second. That much was already settled.

She sat up and she sees that she was still in her clothes from earlier. Then Alfred finally fills her in, "You were out for more than thirty minutes. Thankfully, you were unharmed but because of the adrenaline spike, it was too much for you, you fainted."

"I think it became too much when I realized it." She scoffed, laughing.

The man of her much interest was none other than the Red Hood, a kid she had been bonding with, turned out to be a sword wielding vigilante that had saved her; two of which that she knows who works with the knight of Gotham, the fucking Batman. Who was Bruce Wayne and the father to them. Fucking hell, the father to all those vigilantes that whom she had been staying with. She cannot even begin on Alfred.

......What in the fuck.

Alfred only chuckled a little but it was seen that there was no amusement in his eyes, she sees this and smiled sadly, reaching for his hand and squeezed it. "I'm okay, Al.....it's okay." She assures, he just nods and held her hand.

The boquet and her phone on the table beside her was hard to miss the moment she woke up. Alfred hands the flowers to her, she holds it gently, hands tracing it and she sees blood on them; Jason's.

Y/N looked down, blinking away the memories and tried not to grip the boquet too tight. "....How is he?"

"His wounds have already been taken care of, but....he needs some time..." Alfred tells, he leans back on the chair, sighing. Knowing that the said boy was brooding off to whoever knows. He could only hope to blame Bruce for it.

Y/N clicks her tongue and placed back the flowers on the table, already expecting the answer. "I know," she replies quietly and laid back on the bed, met with the dull ceiling again.

"I have to go now, don't I?" Her voice was tired. Tensed fingers slowly gripped the sheets, trying to stop her chest from heaving as she was beginning to find it hard to breathe.

Alfred, never missing a thing, he reaches for her hand. "It's up to you both. But....yes, I think we already know the answer." Even when far away, he knew what the boy was thinking, and no words could make him change his mind, not even her—to his demise, as much as it is for everyone; he was sure of it. Alfred stares at her, both unmoving as they sink in the happening, then he spoke. "I'm glad you came here, Y/N. I don't regret it." Could it even count as a confession if much of the notion was already known?

Y/N smiles but only so little, "....I know. I don't regret it as well." She holds his hand assuringly.

God, I want to sleep.

She almost let herself go to rest and maybe be left in her misery, so as she feels—until the door opened to Bruce and Damian.

Or not.

Y/N sat up, smiling softly at the hesitating child and she offered her arms—Damian went for it. Happy to see that she was still welcoming as ever. She hugged the boy warmly, "My darling," she coos as she felt him lean more into her and she gently rocks him. "Thank you for saving me." Says her after they pulled away, a hand now on his face, unable to believe that the boy in front of her was capable of doing what they do. "How brave." She praised and kissed the top of his head. Damian only stayed silent, abashed at the show of affection just after what had happened to her.

Y/N chuckles and held his hands, having the feeling of what he was thinking. "Now, have your father already told you that you have no fault in this?" She asks, eyeing Bruce after then looked at the child again, not missing the said man breaking into a smile.

The way Damian was avoiding her eyes because of the subject, reminded her of Jason. Sure she was that he was going through the same thing......just much more worse.

"He has-"

"And do you believe it?"

Damian's surprised and the faltering gaze that followed, gave his answer, and she sighed a smile. "No one is at fault, my love. No one is." She pressed, tearing off her gaze from him to look at the old men. Hoping that they as well, understand the message. "If anything, it's mine," she almost laughed when she saw their faces but she just bit her lip.

Y/N truly believe that but alas, "It's been done. I'm unharmed, you saved me, you both did. No more what could have been." She declared, his small face in her hands again.

Damian was close to smiling but he frowned again, stepping back away from her, leaving her hands hanging. "Are you going to go?"

The old men in the back looked at each other for a second, their adorned smiles turned into a frown as well.

But Y/N never faltered. "I am," she began, a small smile rather than a frown. The reality that she'll indeed go immersing in her, she easily accepts it.

Might as well, rather than drown in dread.

She held out a hand to him, "We'll be okay." A promise to herself rather, she intends to keep it, dutifully.

Bruce smiled as Damian took her hand again.

Though the hope that he saw from her and him.....for them, had never changed. He knew what his son was feeling. That hope Jason held onto, despite the promise he so willingly broke, that his son accepted to let himself began for a new hope that came. He feels it.

Yes, Bruce's hope remains untouched but regret comes in easily, knowing that it had hurt his son. Be it on his failure-

"Master Bruce," a firm squeeze on his shoulder. It was Alfred, snapping him out of his thoughts that was beginning to spiral—Bruce knew that Alfred was seeing right through him. "Time for us to go home."

Bruce huffed, nodding with a smile. "Yes, we should,"

One misstep couldn't let themselves be strayed so far away.

How could I miss all of those?

Jesus Christ.

Y/N stares at the ceiling of her room, now alone to be in her own—in the process of her disbelief, that is.

Well, the second they left the hospital she started to think about it all. From where it all began, and she went on it until they got back in their home, to her taking a bath, and until now. Despite that it was already past 2 A.M. She was still wide awake. "God," she groaned, her hands sprawled on her face. She figures, who could sleep peacefully at such a time, anyway.

Y/N wrapped herself in her robes and tiredly stepped up from her bed. There she walked in the dim litted hallways, ignoring their words of concern from earlier. Walking again against the cold had her mind flashing of what happened, a chill ran through her body as she plays it all back. Having done it had her feel on edge, snaking her hand on her arm and held it tightly.

And of course....along all those, there the image of him in her mind; it never left her for even a second.

Whatever is gonna happen now?

Y/N sighed as she sat on the bench, eyes looking up at the sky. She hugged herself, her heart began to pound as she continued to think of him for longer than she could. "I miss you more now."

How could mere words break Jason so easily? If only it could fix him right back up than it did sometimes.

He walked closer to her and she felt his presence, but she didn't flinch rather turned her head down and closed her eyes, breath shaking from her mouth. "You knew I would come."

He didn't, he wasn't so sure of it. ".....I was..." hoping. "waiting." For even to even think of that word....it was a high price to pay, so he just stood there, not daring to move an inch further anymore. Afraid that if he stared at her, he'll see her eyes that was once filled with fear that can mirror his own, to see himself again in her eyes but now jaded; almost bare.

"You knew I'd be here."

"I hoped."

As much as what faces them now, regret was not in her, she couldn't possibly feel even a little of it, not when their time was always fleeting.

"I think I'll know what I'll say when I see him."

"I'm not sorry that I called you, even if it costs me my life." Declared her, aware of the consequence it can bring, it made her want more to say it as all the cards were now placed.

Jason shut his eyes tightly, not surprised by it, though he didn't see it coming. One question had been eating him. "Why me?"

"Because I thought of you."

Every second that passed, she was even more.....bolder and it seemed like he keeps getting thrown off. Not an ounce of waver as she said those words....she sounded proud. She was and he heard it loudly.

But.....nevertheless that she was proud. She still knew what was going on in him; a glimpse of an unfortunate what could have been.....what can happen.

"It can be a long wait though."

Y/N suddenly chuckled, shaking her head and stood up. "....I remember telling them that I'll wait for you," she says while turning to him, inhaling shortly from her mouth once her eyes landed on his, his gaze turning her weak. So she gripped her robes more, needing the strength. With the feet she tried to steady, she walked to him while he remained still.

Clenching his fists as she grew closer, empty was his mind now that she was in his eyes again. "I still am and will." Her voice breaking him out from his trance.

How could someone be so near and yet ever so far away?

The decision had been made, the second he laid eyes on her that time, it was made. And he made that decision. But she wanted to hear it from him.

"Should I go?" Their gaze never faltered on each other.

He didn't answer. He couldn't answer, not when he wanted nothing more than to dive her in his arms, to protect her in his hold, to feel her warmth again, not when he was seeing so much longing in her eyes, not when it mirrored his own. He couldn't bear it.

Coward.

Such thought could anger him and it did, but only within himself. He could not blame anyone by it but the truth; she made him weak. And it damn scared him.

He stayed silent but she heard him. "Huh." Y/N nodded and looked down. Though, even when sadness hits her, she forced herself to stand still and looked at up him again. She exhaled before reaching out to him. Softly, her fingers ghosted his bandaged arms, looking at them with such sad eyes, and even when they were covered, a chill ran through him. Then she hold his hands, he opened them freely.....willingly. Their skins were cold but they were now warming up each other as she clasped them together. That was all that he could give.

So she took the leap this time.

"....Nonetheless," Y/N began and stepped closer, their distance nonexistent. She laid her head down against his chest, the beating of his heart so strong that it resonated through her own, still he held his head high, and he feels her ease into him, her thumbs tracing his skin. "Thank you....you had your guns but you didn't use it, I remember seeing how your hands wanting to reach for it but you didn't...that was one of the many thoughts that crossed my mind when I realized and up till now." She spoke. More than flattery that she felt by his said actions.

Those words alone can show how much she weakens him so. Yet....he could never question what he did at the time.

"Thank you." Y/N says again and finally, she feels him at ease. Laying his head on top of her own, no doubt that the scent of her would easily be engraved in his mind again, more than it already is.

They stayed as they were, eyes closed, their breathing keeping steady as the same with their hearts. Much was supposed to be said but nothing came out from them.....but still they understood each other.

They tried to.

Y/N lift her head up gently to look at him while bringing their hands up to their chest. Only the sound of her breath was heard when she opened her mouth, choosing not to say more, she instead kissed his knuckles and pressed them to her forehead after.

Another declaration right in his very eyes but he could offer nothing. She was slipping away and he was letting her.

Slowly, she slid off from him, not giving him one last look as their one arm finally untangling from each other as she walked away.

Jason stares at her while she goes farther. Wounded was her, he could almost see her bleed—he turned away his eyes, a second more of it, he would have had his feet running to her.

The ground shook from how heavy he walked, one that made him restless, that drained the life out from him each step he made; it was back.

How he came back alive in his place was a fucking wonder to him.

A fool, a damn dool what she think she is as she let her tears fall in the hallways until she made it to her room. Quietly sobbing as she sat in her bed. Letting in all what misery she had been feeling. All that she was in the hospital was just a facade after all. A try to make the inevitable less painful, it failed. It failed the moment she saw him.

Idiot. Idiot. You fucking idiot.

Out of breath as she continued to cry, but she didn't stay there as for longer than she thought she would, she couldn't possibly let any time that she had left to be wasted. Not when hundreds of words could spill out from her. Sealing it in was out of the question.

Afterall, she's still only a human who wants to sleep without her heart feelings as if it'll tear itself apart.

So as Y/N finished packing up her things, as foolish as she felt, by the way, she cried all the way while she did. She found herself looking for a paper she can write on and after she did—tears and the ink of the pen flowed out like water.

Even when she had spilled what be of her heart, it teared itself apart anyway.

#jason todd #jason todd x reader #jason todd x plus size reader #batman #batfamily #bruce wayne #red hood #my bat shenanigans 🦇#home again 💌🦇#dc #fanfiction #chubby!reader

16 notes · View notes