Summary: The life of a good girl is not as easy as it may seem. Between teasing, the obligation to always be perfect and polite, a monotonous life makes her understand that what she needs most is an unexpected adventure.
Warning: it’s an Prequel!AU The story is set in the 1970s, and the Lost Boys aren’t vampires yet.
Pairing: The lost boys x fem!OC (platonic and romantic)
Requested? No
Summary: It's a quiet evening for you, if it weren't for an unwanted person perched on your roof
Pairing: Paul x Emerson!witch!reader
Genre: enemies to lovers ;; slight smut
Warnings: MINORS DO NOT INTERACT swearing ;; vampires (blood, canines, bites etc..) ;; drug use ;; non-con biting ;;
Words: 4k
The darkness of the night had fallen over the Santa Carla area for a long time, while in the Emerson house the quietest silence reigned. Although that had all the air of being a rather placid summer night, there were quite different thoughts in your mind.
A good witch, even if like you a novice, she never lets her guard down and above all she has a more shrewd view of ordinary humans.
From the first that you and your family set foot in Santa Carla you understood that this place had its fair share of criminals and more...
Problems obviously didn't take long to knock on your door, as Michael had apparently befriended a group of bikers for days. You always knew your brother was a jerk, even though you were younger than him, you had to act like a second mom when Lucy wasn't around. But now that he has grown up and begins to feel within himself the irreparable urge to define himself as the "alpha-boy" of the family, it has been increasingly difficult for you to be able to counter in the decisions made by him.
A striking example was when Michael took your friends to dinner at your house, when Grandpa and your mother were absent and as David and his friends approached the door, your "witch spidey sense" lit up like an alarm siren. David had asked Michael for permission to enter the house and quite frankly, it was ridiculous for a punk gangster and biker like him to ask permission to do something. Between some unfriendly looks and lots of other glaring evidence, it didn't take long to figure out that they were vampires, and as you figured it out, they sensed you weren't a normal human.
Let's say that your always sitting on the sidelines on the sofa with Nanook next to you, or your exiting to your room and closing yourself all the time until you heard their bikes go away was not the utmost discretion.
However, despite your constant dissent, you understood that you would have to deal with this new reality, Michael had these new friends and this implies that they would lose your shit as long as they wanted to.
Particularly Paul, oh Paul...Any god damn that hyperactive vampire! Whenever you were within two meters of him, no matter how grim and angry your gaze at him was, Paul would come to you, perch on the first thing he found and start filling you with awkward and stupid questions, until of course you yelled at Michael to drag his "friend" away from you, always having the answer "C'mon sis, have a little fun for once".
Sighing in exasperation, you pushed your long stream of consciousness away, trying to go back to reading the last pages of that novel that had so fascinated you, the last thing you wanted was for a filthy bloodsucker to fill your mind.
Not a fly could be heard in the house, except from time to time Sam's soft snoring in the next room. It was just the two of you at home that night, Michael had decided to take Star somewhere, Grandpa was with the widow Johnson and your mother had gone to work and she would be back very late.
You didn't like going to sleep knowing that there weren't many people in the house, it's true, Nanook was on guard, but you weren't used to this kind of routine.
Waiting for Grandpa to get home would probably be the best thing to do.
So getting more comfortable on the bed you closed the book you were reading, after reading the last paragraphs and with a slight sigh you observed the small pile of books you had bought at a stall on the Boardwalk trying to decide which one you could start reading in order to entertain yourself. somehow. As you absently studied the covers though, something knocked on your window… no indeed, it seemed as if a pigeon had crashed into it, but of course birds don't fly after dark. With every muscle in your body tense you took the courage to slowly turn to the small window on the opposite wall, expecting anything but what your eyes discovered.
"Paul?!" you said indignantly but also shocked at the same time, as you strode towards the glass wall.
The shaggy blonde-haired vampire seemed to be mumbling gibberish as he alternated with idiotic sneers. You knew it wouldn't be wise to open up, but as long as you had some telekinesis spell on your side, maybe you had some chance of pulling it away.
As soon as the window sash clicked and opened revealing your nervous face, Paul looked up dreamily mumbling your name as if he had seen a goddess in front of him.
“Paul, what the fuck are you doing here?! This is my house!" you said in a low tone and with clenched teeth so as not to make noise.
"Hey, hey" the vampire said carelessly before leaning towards you "You have no idea what happened eheh"
“I don't give a fuck, Paul! You can't stay here! " you said shaking your head, then scratching the back of your neck in an exasperated way "Where is Michael? Does he know you're here?" you asked.
“Michael! Michael...? Ah yeah, Michael! Yeah yeah I know who he is! " he said, nodding quickly and then contracting his forehead in a vain attempt to think "No no, he went with Star---and I was sooo bored, because those two lovebirds made lovebirds, and David smashed our balls saying how jealous he was of those twoo---So, I went for a walk and I got a guy who gave me some weed, he said it was the best...the best of all, I swear!"
"Jesus Christ...you can’t be serious" to each word he added your face contracted into an expression more and more disgusted.
"So I got high, but you know maybe they put something stronger in the weed because---because I don't remember anything anymore, I lost David and the others and they went to eat, without me! You realize? Without me! And---And then I need you to let me in, baby, I really really need it"
"Tell me again why should I let you in, asshole?" you asked lacing your arms to your chest, while Paul made his best puppy eyes in distress.
"Because we are friends!"
“We are not friends, Paul. I barely tolerate you, you and your vampire friends just come to my house to scrounge food and annoy!" you answered indignantly, and then closed the window in his face and covered it with your colored curtain and then turned away from him.
Jesus, what the fuck! What did you do wrong to deserve this? You hated when the unexpected broke into your life without you having been able to foresee it, it made your blood boil in your veins. Bringing a couple of fingers to your temples you tried to take a sigh so as to chase away your negative energies and without thinking too much, you went down to the kitchen to make yourself a relaxing herbal tea.
Several minutes passed while you watched the cast iron teapot on the stove intent on heating the water, and even in that moment of tension the most complete silence reigned and no trace of Paul. Maybe he was gone, you thought naively. Well anyway, you couldn't help but wonder why he ever thought of going through these parts.
Sighing on the stove, you concluded that it was probably just an idiotic joke and that you would later give Michael another scolding.
"I do not believe it! Do you have weed in your garden? " Paul's voice caressed your ear, while within a split second you jumped in terror.
"Whatta - STAY AWAY FROM ME!" you yelled and then shut your mouth, afraid you had woken up poor Sam.
The absence of noises upstairs, however, made you realize that he was still sleeping, so you went back to Paul, who had staggered down on a chair crossing one leg over the surface of the table.
“How did you get in?! I didn't give you permission to enter! " you said angrily in a low voice, while he tilted his head in amazement at your way of carrying. In short, he was aware that the odds that you understood his true nature were high, but he certainly didn't think you were that well informed.
"Well—Michael is the host, he gave me permission to enter some time ago, right?" you rolled your eyes nervously, while with the tips of your fingers you drummed on the kitchen counter.
“Read my lip carefully, fucking vampire. Get.out.of.my.house” you said slowly to make yourself understood, while Paul looked at you almost with a broken heart and then whimpered like a dissatisfied puppy.
“Oooh c’mon! You don’t play fair,why are you so prickly, baby? Don't you help a friend in difficulty?" you in return gave him a fiery look and he curled his lips and said "A friend...of your sweet big brother?" he corrected himself in a vain attempt to convince you.
"You're stoned like a cooked pear, you're not in trouble" you ascertained as you turned your back to pour the tea into a cup.
"But I have a headache!" Paul complained shaking his head and moving his hands into fists like a crybaby baby "And I haven't eaten, I'm out of strength, baby"
A fasting vampire in your house was not the best of positivity, as if that were not enough we were talking about Paul and his aura so rowdy and hyperactive about him, not to mention that he was made of weed. It wouldn't have been wise to refuse it for too long even if it weighed on you. So putting Sammy's safety and yourself first, you decided to play along with him and please him.
"You really have a big audacity to ask me for help" you muttered through clenched teeth but you knew he had heard you "Okay, I'll help you, but I want something in return" you said turning to him in a serious tone.
Paul, on his side, smiled like an amused child, as he excitedly drummed his hands on his thighs.
“Oooh babe, I'll give you anything you want as soon as I get back on my feet” he whispered trying to be seductive as he got up from his chair and staggered towards you, with a look that seemed to be eating you with his eyes. But you obviously pushed him away by placing both hands on his icy chest upset with him.
"I want you not to come inside my house, never again" you replied as his heavenly eyes met yours. You seemed really decided on this choice of yours and Paul could perceive it, yet he did not understand how you could resist him, in short, he was aware of being beautiful, but despite this you seemed to repudiate his nature and everything that was part of him.
But that certainly did not make him give up, on the contrary, a sly smile framed his pale face and as he dropped the weight of his body on the palms of your hands, he brought his face close to yours, giggling gloating.
"Then I have a whole night to change your mind"
"Gross..." you said and then pushed him away "Come on, I'll take you to my room"
You didn't have the slightest intention of letting him stay in the living room another moment, if someone came back you would have to run into other discussions and you really didn't want that.
"Ooh let's get straight to the point, you know I thought you were a good girl, you know those girly and pure---" Paul said in a lewd tone while some words were muttered due to his intoxicated state.
At that point your patience was really about to run out completely, so at a brisk pace you approached him and grabbing him by the arms, you tried to drag him with all your strength away from that chair and make him stand up.
"I swear to you that the next bullshit you shoot I'll throw one of those Evil-eyes that you will regret having to live forever" you threatened him with gritted teeth continuing to pull him, until the vampire stood up with a lightning snap to his feet, causing you to lose his balance, but obviously his cold hands grabbed you in time before you could fall with your butt on the ground. There was a really gloating expression on his face as he looked at you with the same curiosity as a cat with its new toy.
"Oooh then David had guessed it right" he commented bringing his lips to your ear "You're a witch! Aaah imagine the faces of others when they know it” he murmured with a pleased tone but that unlike what he had used up to that moment, he was far from being friendly. A shiver ran down your spine as you tried to push the vampire away from you with both hands.
"Go to my room immediately" you said, spelling out each letter as your face darkened with sudden worry. Paul now knew your secret and it was obvious that from then on the rest of his friends would find out too…sure you were good at defending yourself, but against four vampires, crazy to the core like them?
No, the chances of making it were slim. All this because an idiot vampire had snuck into your house, giving you only trouble with avalanches.
Meanwhile, Paul had dropped to the ground, giggling in a pestiferous way, while she watched you turn red in the face with anger.
"You will have to take me, baby" you couldn't use telekinesis to lift it, you had never practiced that spell on human bodies, you would have only done more damage.
So, rolling up your sleeves, you grabbed both of Paul's ankles, starting to drag him with great difficulty towards the flight of stairs and every time his head touched a step, the blond moaned in pain, begging you annoyed to treat him more delicately; Obviously you weren't in the mood to listen to him further.
As soon as you were able to cross the door of your room, with tired breathing, you grabbed both of his wrists to make him stand up with the intention of putting him on your bed and then looking for a method to quickly put him back on track.
But Paul seemed to want to put a spoke in the wheel on every floor you came up with, and as if it were a huge sack of potatoes, he threw himself dead weight on your shorter, smaller body as soon as you could get him off the ground.
The greater weight of his body made you stagger backwards, until the back of your knees touched your mattress wrapped in colorful blankets.
“Paul-No! You'll make me fall!" you said in a low voice even though you let out a small squeak when you found yourself lying on your bed, with the vampire's body completely buried.
The impact between the soft mattress and the blond's heavy body had left you short of breath, while your lips let out a deep sore breath.
"What the fuck!" you whispered completely nervous now, when would this nightmare ever end for you?!
Squinting in an annoyed grimace, you tried to push Paul away from above you, but the only part you could still move completely were your legs, which kicked from time to time.
Meanwhile, the vampire seemed as if he had fainted as the cold breath coming out of his nostrils and his lips slowly collided with the crawling skin of your neck.
"I'm so thirsty, baby" he whispered after long moments of silence, while your eyes opened in a frightened snap "I need to feed myself so much, my throat is dry just at the thought" his eyes were half closed as the fingers of his hand left stroked your side covered by your pajamas.
"Listen to me" your tone was serious, but seemed more vulnerable than you were before "I can help you, I know some spells to make you feel better, I—" your breath caught as the cold palm of that hand lifted the flaps. of the edges of your oversized shirt, revealing your belly.
"Mmmh, no. They wouldn't work right away, and I need a drink so badly, baby” his tone was as if he were tired and sleepy, but that didn't mean her body strength was failing.
You didn't want to die, you didn't want to end your life while watching a vampire greedily eat every strip of flesh. You didn't want Sam to get up on hearing your screams and find your body stripped down in your bedroom.
"Paul please" you never wanted to find yourself begging a vampire for mercy, it was really humiliating for a witch, but in that moment, the choices to survive were almost zero.
The vampire on his side smiled on your skin almost pleased, but at the same time very moved, there was something in your begging that awakened a strange fire in him that seemed to burn him alive from inside and all this made him mad.
"I won't kill you, I promise" you didn't believe him, you didn't believe him even one bit, you knew he was lying, all vampires lie. Those damned bloodsuckers have always thought only of their own advantage, why should they care about others?
Your vision became blurry due to tears, when the vampire's hand lowered the left shoulder of your shirt, so as to better show the hollow of your neck and one side of your collarbone.
"Your heart is beating so fast, baby, you have no idea how your body is inviting me" Paul's voice was more and more hoarse as he gently sniffed the sweet smell of your skin; maybe it was his state of intoxication or maybe because from the first moment he saw you he absolutely wanted to taste you, but the whole situation for him was absolutely pure ecstasy. Seeing you completely vulnerable under him, feeling your skin warm and soft under his touch, your blood pulsing fast in rhythm with your ever stronger agitation, the scent of your hair, made him not a little aroused.
"Now try to stay calm, you won't want to wake Sammy" the vampire whispered in your ear before his canines poked out of his mouth and buried deep into the flesh of your shoulder.
"Christ—" you sibled through clenched teeth in excruciating pain, while your nails dug into the shiny, black material of the vampire's leather jacket, regardless that you would likely ruin it. Your breath was stuck in your throat, except that you occasionally let out a few sobs in pain.
Meanwhile, Paul was delighted by the taste of your blood, it was so sweet and so hot, feeling it slip into his mouth made him quickly regain every fragment of strength that before he could hardly have. You were probably unable to notice it, or perhaps you didn't want to admit it, but the vampire could feel it, the warmth that gradually spread to your every limb, the inviting scent of your skin that intoxicated his senses even more than the herb, the your body wanted it, it wanted him and he just wanted a lot more, a lot more. But he knew he had to control himself, a voice inside him kept repeating quickly "don't kill her, don't kill her" and so even though reluctantly his mouth pulled away from your aching shoulder as Paul tried hard to chase his away. monstrous vampire face so as not to scare you further.
His head peeked out from the hollow of yours and slowly your faces found themselves at the same level, scrutinizing each other for a long time. The tips of your noses were a few inches apart, and Paul's tousled wheat-colored hair fell softly to the sides of your ears.
Your eyes were open with difficulty and shiny, some tears had streaked your face and gently reddened your cheeks, while your lips were parted trying to catch some breath of oxygen to breathe with difficulty. Your gaze, though not entirely clear, was looking at Paul above you, unsure of what to feel and perhaps too weak to react or think coherently. His lips were soaked with blood and a trickle was dripping from his chin, while with his tongue he tried in vain to clean himself, his celestial irises were now golden and lit like headlights, while his pupils seemed really dilated.
You feel the boy's rough thumb wipe away some tears, as he likewise accompanied a few strands of your hair, away from your face. You were so beautiful and she couldn't describe how much she wanted to kiss you and make you of him that night.
"I'm not dying, am I?" you asked in a low tone as Paul shook his head with a small, amused smile.
"Did you really think I was going to kill you?" he asked him almost sorry, while he pinched your cheek with the knuckles of his index and middle fingers, you nodded.
"Why should I have believed you, Paul?" you asked sarcastically and then contracted your eyebrows as you felt the sting of the bite in contact with the cold air. Paul took a moment to take a closer look at you, tilting his head to one side, letting the palm of his hand caress some of your little strands of hair.
"We're friends, right?" He asked rhetorically, knowing that this would make you nervous again and that made him chuckle "and I don't kill people I like"
"I doubt that a friend feeds on the other, idiot" you replied giving him a weak punch on the chest, earning only a tender look from the vampire.
"And I doubt that a girl who didn't want to be bitten by me gets so hot between her legs, mh?" he replied with an amused smirk, while you looked at him confused.
"Bullshit..." you grumbled, trying to get up with your torso helping you with your elbows, but the gesture caused you a strong dizziness that made you fall back on the soft mattress "Ah-Damn, Paul! You didn't kill me, but you totally knocked me out!” you groaned in annoyance, as the distracted vampire washed the fresh blood from his mouth, rubbing her face on the sleeve of his leather jacket.
He then slowly got up from your bed, putting a hand on his side as he watched you completely vulnerable lying on the bed for him.
Mmmh, yeah. You were definitely a tasty snack from that perspective, he thought mischievously.
"Apparently now you're the one who needs help, baby" the blonde noted, while with a slight movement of the knee, he guided your legs to spread apart, while you let out an annoyed sigh. You could feel Paul kneel between them, while his hands, cold as ice, gently grasped your warm and soft thighs and his moist lips kissed the inside of one of them, making you shiver.
"Let a dear friend of yours return you the favor" he concluded amused, resting his face on your lower abdomen, before taking off your pajama shorts.
Requested? No
Summary: The battle of the five armies has brought with it so much devastation, the now arid fields are filled with the corpses of strangers and you desperately hope not to find that of Meludir among them. But a silhouette on the horizon returns to you familiar and...
Pairing: Meludir x fem!reader
Genre: romantic ;; a bit angst
Warnings: Mention of blood and deaths, well we're talking about the aftermath of a battle
Words: 1,912
In the land of Dale there was a persistent acrid smell of blood and ash in the air, so much so that your nostrils would instinctively curl up in annoyance.
Absolute silence should have reigned on that now desolate battlefield: a silence of mourning, a silence of relief and gratitude for those saved from violent death, the silence of those who have seen the horror of war pass them by. Instead, every couple of steps your aching feet took there was someone crying in pain or moaning, bodies slaughtered and mutilated, which by some cruel chance were still alive in the grip of madness.
You shrugged into your own shoulders and biting the inside of your left cheek you tried in every way not to be pervaded by pain and discomfort, to be strong and calculating, as Gnadalf had always taken care to recommend you.
Already Gandalf, your mentor, who knows where he was...A part of you now completely torn apart by your tired muscles, was begging you to drop to the ground like a sack of potatoes, and with lost eyes to wait for the gray sorcerer found you with his usual worried mutter. But you knew you couldn't do that, not until you made sure that one particular person wasn't dead: Meludir.
After leaving with Thorin Mirkwood's company, you had never had a chance to meet again, yet just before the battle, you had found him wandering about busy with preparations near King Thranduil's tent.
You never expected the young man (if one might say so for an elf) as soon as he caught a glimpse of you, he approached you with a seemingly relieved smile. On the other hand, after all that had happened why on earth would he have to remember you or worse still get close, knowing how hostile Thranduil was towards you?
"I see you're still alive" he said, catching your attention.
"I would have liked to meet you in a more different situation" you admitted a little tense and worried.
Meludir sighed looking at the horizon through the ruins of Dale: "These are difficult times..." he said.
"Will you fight?" you asked perhaps too stupidly, after a few moments of silence.
"If my king commands it then I will" he said calmly without batting an eye.
"Don't you think that all this is useless? We are talking about a skirmish between two rulers, it is not necessary to fight" Meludir smiled, he liked your calm soul, just like Mithrandir's, yet you didn't like it when he gave you those looks moved, you felt almost like a lost and defenseless child in front of his eyes.
"Sometimes we don't have the choice, but I'm sure this will last less than expected" you shook your head at Meludir's overly positive statement.
"Yet I have a bad feeling" you commented. You were always sure of what you perceived, even Gandalf always indulged you, because somehow your instinct as an emerging sorceress was never wrong.
"Come on, I have to fight some dwarves. He'll only be back with a couple of cuts on his knees," the elf replied carelessly before returning to the preparations of weapons and armor.
"Meludir" the boy immediately turned, hearing your lips utter his name was a call to which he was sure he could never fold back "Promise me you'll come back to me" you said lowering your gaze and then lifting it up again, hoping that your expression would not made you too fragile in his eyes.
Meludir smiled and giving you a little nod said: "Promised"
Certain promises cannot be made, you thought as you come back to the present, especially when an immense horde of orcs appear out of nowhere and make a slaughter never before seen on the battlefield...
The more time passed the more you were convincing yourself that you would not find more traces of Meludir, well maybe better this way rather than finding her body mangled in the middle of the field...you would not have made it mentally in front of the scene.
With your heart broken and exhausted you gave up and kneeling towards the beginning of a small hill, you rested the dirty palms of your hands on the ground letting your mouth throw out heavy breaths and small aching moans.
You wanted to cry, but you were too tired to even do that, you just wanted to go home and lock yourself in your little room and not interact with the world for a long time. Nothing was worth moving on now.
"YN?" that voice...your head rose immediately when you noticed a figure of an elf familiar to you above the small hill.
"Meludir?!" a rush of adrenaline gave you the courage to make the last few meters running awkwardly towards him, before wrapping your arms around his torso.
You knew that this type of contact wasn't usual among elves, but you didn't care now about the etiquette or if Meludir had been seized by a possible wave of discomfort, I was alive and that mattered.
When you felt his armored arms hold you tight against his slender body, a small gasp escaped you without your being able to contain it, as his hand let his fingers caress your hair.
"I told you I'd come back to you" he said with a smiling but very tired expression.
"I was afraid of losing you anyway" you whispered, while with both hands you gently grabbed his face, so that your foreheads touched. A chaste and affectionate gesture, which in the eyes of anyone would have been unusual, to see a human and an elf so linked was not every day.
Your eyes were closed as neither of you seemed to want to break away. The elf's hands had come down until they were laced softly on your hips, while a few strands of his brown hair fell smoothly near your face, gently tickling it.
"Come, I'll take you to the camp" he murmured, reluctantly pulling away before beckoning you to follow him.
* * *
Dusk had now fallen on Dale, while sadly you heard the news that Thorin, Kili and Fili were dead, as well as so many other exceptional warriors...and after being medicated, you decided to step away from the noise and sit down. with a blanket around his shoulders on what must have been a stone wall of the old Dale square that gave a wide view of the place outside the ruins.
Gandalf seemed very busy, so you decided to give yourself a moment of solitude, reflect and figure out what to do after all that happened. But the noise of someone taking a seat next to you made you turn your gaze to the left, finding a pensive Meludir man intent on observing the horizon.
"How are the wounds going?" he asked politely.
"They will pass with time, they will be scars to tell...how are you?" you asked after shrugging a hint of a sigh.
You took a moment to better observe the figure of the wood elf next to you, since now that nothing seemed to rush you.
It was the first time you saw him with war armor on, the golden and white color made him even more regal and captivating to the eye, despite a few dents here and there, while each metal shape and curve better accentuated his slender and tonic body.
The helmet seemed absent, however, as its long straight hair danced slowly in the air when the wind decided to caress it.
"I lost a lot of friends today, in the end you were right about your omen," he replied in a sad tone after a few moments of silence.
"Yeah...But for once I would have preferred to be wrong" you nodded lowering his head.
"What will you do now?" he asked at that point "I imagine that with this dangerous action by the orcs Mithrandir will have a lot to think about"
"I don't know...I, I'm too grieving to go in search of new adventures or follow Gandalf. Wherever I go, there are wars, betrayals, every sign of man's corruption and innocents always pay the highest price” you answered shrugging your shoulders and then resting your head on the elf's right shoulder, who did not seem to be sorry “What will you do instead?"
"The only thing I want now is to drink some good wine and hole up in my room, hear no orders from the king all the time and sleep, even though..." the elf seemed intent on observing his fingers. playing with each other as the tip of her tongue passed along the line of her soft lips with a shy way.
"Even though?" you asked a little perplexed.
"I would even more prefer to wake up with the scent of your hair next to me" your cheeks lit up a peach pink, when his deep gaze met your eyes a little open in surprise.
"M-Meludir I-I don't know what to say" in fact you would never have expected such a direct confession from an elf.
"I know, there are so many reasons why we shouldn't be together, but I'm tired of hearing them. And if my king doesn't want it either, then I'll be your knight, you and me, around the middle earth" both you let out a small amused smile to dampen that surreal situation, but then the elf resumed his serious tone
"Where are you going I'll go, I'll always come back to you" he concluded with a small nod.
He seemed really sure of himself, are we sure it was the same elf who a few hours earlier had told you that what King Thranduil would have commanded him he would have carried out without thinking too much?
"I didn't make you so bold, Meludir. I believed you anymore ---"
"A faithful guard?" he asked raising an eyebrow.
You wanted to say 'naively faithful' but you settled down and nodded.
"I still am" he admitted, perhaps a little wounded in his pride "But as you told me, certain wars are not necessary and perhaps it is time for me to start making my own decisions without a ruler guiding me as it suits him” his explanation at that moment seemed honest to you even if perhaps a little rash, probably having survived the fight had made him more mature, compared to the sunny and playful Meludir, but after all it was also right to grow and become more and more aware.
"So you are there?" he asked, waking you up from your thought with a friendly smile, the playful elf you knew is back.
"One step at a time, in the meantime we take a horse and try to go back to Mirkwood to rest. The rest will be seen as time goes on," you replied with your usual pragmatic way. Meludir then smiled happily and satisfied, he got up to fetch a horse for the journey.
In the meantime, you let him go, observing him from afar and unable to contain the emotion and happiness, a smile was printed on his face, while you hugged even more in that blanket.
Both departed, under the perplexed eyes of some elves and the judgmental one of Thranduil and close to each other, you crossed the lands gradually more and more green than the middle earth, leaving behind you the ashes and sad memories of a battle now over.
The shadow that comes from the forest || Chapter One
Summary: After the Shirai Ryu is slaughtered by the Lin Kuei warriors, Akiko, the last survivor, decides to embark on a perilous journey to the abode of the executioners. The target? A revenge that spares no one.
Pairing: Kuai Liang x reader // Kuai Liang x original female character
Genre: Slow-burn, enemies/lovers, revenge, smut, romantic, angst
Warning: Mentions of blood, death, sexism, bad language.
"What's your name?" The male voice of a Lin Kuei guard made Akiko awaken from her thoughts. She slowly raised her gaze to the stranger initially hesitating in replying "You, I'm talking to you, woman. I asked your name" said the latter with a hard tone and maintaining his erect and stoic position, like anyone of his clan.
"Yinlim, sir" she replied miming an insecure tone, as her cold hands met at her belly, then lowered her gaze again.
The member of the Lin Kuei seemed to turn up his nose slightly at her response.
"You don't have a surname, don't you belong to some family?" he asked, raising an eyebrow, while with one hand he gripped her face firmly, with the same air as one who was inspecting fresh meat at the butcher's counter.
Akiko had to grit her teeth to keep herself from badly dodging the man's presence, her habitual gesture would mark her end before her real journey began...
"I am an orphan for as long as I can remember, sir" she replied, looking up at the man's eyes, who seemed not to like her change of confidence. His grip then badly left her face, causing her to stagger a step back.
"Oh- this is a very good choice, my dear customer. This girl has nice strong arms, besides her skin seems very resistant to the cold" the voice of the slave trader broke into the cold conversation, with the honeyed tone of someone who just wanted to get some a profit.
"Did you work as a servant or maid, in housework?" the soldier asked without paying attention to the old man.
"In the fields...day and night. But I can learn more if you let me" Akiko replied, lowering her gaze again.
There was what seemed like an interminable minute of silence, and having reached a conclusion, the Lin Kuei soldier finally stepped back and pointed with his finger at the line of girls proposed to him.
"I want that over there and this one, strong arms can be useful for the heaviest jobs"
"Oh yes! Excellent choice, you will see the granmaster will not regret it" replied the seller, rubbing his palms already anticipating the money he was about to receive.
"The grandmaster doesn't care about our servants, what interests us is that they fulfill their duty. No ballast is allowed in the clan" replied the man disinterestedly.
Akiko already felt the weight of the days to come and the hunger that had gripped her stomach for some time; abandoning her past to create a new person hadn't been easy to accomplish in such a short time. But what the girl would not forget were the steps that had taken her to China and why she had to stay focused from that moment until the end of her days.
************
Maple leaves had begun to fall on the damp, autumnal earth of Japan. Akiko had always liked this season.
If you knew the forests around the house of the Shirai Ryu clan, you could see the most beautiful views of the area; A sea of blood-red leaves covered the landscape, as far as the eye was unable to reach.
Akiko was born in that season, which was why Hanzo Hasashi had given her that name. She is the daughter of autumn, the daughter of those red maple leaves like burning flames, the daughter of courage and the weight of abandonment.
This was how she had lost her loved ones. Each time with times impossible to predict, autumn took its toll ever since she was born, and like dead leaves every person she loved broke away from the branches of her life, flying away, as did her parents before leaving her in swings in front of the entrance door of the Shirai Ryu or falling to the ground as it happened that day.
Akiko was on the hunt, it was her turn that week to find the right provisions for the upcoming winter. Her light physique and her agility allowed her to capture more prey even if not too large in size.
That day she had managed to catch a fawn, and she was also planning to hunt a rabbit that appeared to have left traces nearby.
And now hidden in the branches of a bush, she was waiting for the perfect moment to shoot the arrow. She needed firmness in her hands and a lot of concentration, even the sound of a leaf could have played tricks on her.
An icy breeze deadly kissed her neck and hair, sending a sinister shiver through her entire body. The feeling was so unusual that it made her relax her muscles and lower her bow as her hand repeatedly stroked the back of her neck in a vain attempt to warm her skin.
Even the rabbit seemed to have perceived that strange sensation and in fact when Akiko returned to take aim, the prey had escaped.
It was already evening when she returned from the long hunting trip, the dusk had enveloped the sky, and while as Akiko returned home she felt a very strange cold sensation on her skin.
That cold became almost unbearable as her feet entered her entrance, and the air stank of blood and rotting corpses.
Fawn’s carcass slid off the girl's shoulders as she very slowly drew a kunai from inside the pocket on her hip. The graceful footsteps of Akiko crossed the small steps of Hanzo's house and, carefully sliding the door, the girl immediately went into a defensive position.
But there was no enemy inside. Just a countless expanse of corpses, corpses of members of her clan.
If it weren't for the cold, the young warrior was now convinced that the blood in her veins had started to freeze.
A single thought troubled her mind as she sensed that deadly silence: Harumi and her children.
Akiko therefore searched the rooms of the house, but found no trace, so by reason of exclusion, she rushed into the garden and only at that moment she realized that an unprecedented massacre had taken place in the house of the clan that had welcomed her long time ago.
There were corpses in every corner, even the garden and its vegetables had been stained with that scarlet liquid, as well as the walls of rice paper, as well as the slabs of the wooden floor.
But Akiko's bearing gave way when she saw Harumi's body completely frozen in front of her. The woman was kneeling, her face contracted into an expression of pure labor as she held her mortally wounded son in her arms, frozen like his mother.
The young warrior's heart began to beat at a disconnected rhythm, the cold sweat that beaded the palms of her hands seemed to crystallize as they trembled towards the frozen face of the now decayed wife of Hanzo Hasashi.
She feared that even touching her, she and her baby would shatter like thin glass...
Akiko could not understand why such an agonizing death had fallen on two so pious and pure souls.
But now another thought pierced her skull like a dart: where was Hanzo? Where was her mentor and her grandmaster?!
"Hasashi-sensei!" she didn't care if the executioner still resided nearby. She didn't care anymore. Akiko felt exactly as she had been from the beginning: abandoned.
"Hasashi-sensei!" she screamed again, while she searched desperately far and wide, but nothing...There was no trace of Hanzo, nor of her weapons of him.
The girl fell exhausted on her knees, and putting her hands to her face contrite by her despair, she burst into tears that took her breath away.
How could all this have happened?! And in such a short time?! Where had her grandmaster gone?!
Was she really the only Shirai Ryu member left alive now?! And were her enemies aware of this?
Too many questions that still weren't answered...
Akiko put a hand on her heart, feeling it crush in a dangerous and excruciating grip, and with difficulty she remembered to compose herself and remain steadfast in spirit.
Now more than ever she had to be lucid and alert if she was to understand what had happened that late autumn afternoon.
Rising awkwardly, she began to analyze the bodies of the warriors, particularly those that did not belong to her clan crest.
Approaching one, she unkindly opened his combat tunic and when beneath her she saw one with a sapphire blue pigment, a nerve under her skin made her make a quick grimace of pure hatred. No...they couldn't have gotten that low in their deeds.
On the left side of the man's chest, a coat of arms was drawn on the blue tunic and when Akiko traced the familiar contours with her fingers, she no longer had any doubt who was the culprit: the Lin Kuei.
************
Akiko together with the new slave were brought to the temple of the Chinese clan, pulled by a chariot that carried the rest of the supplies. The immense structure seemed to be supported above the highest point of that snow-covered hill that constituted the small town in its own right, while petals of snow fell from the gray clouds in quantities never seen before in the eyes of the young Japanese warrior. The temple seemed immense even if between the cart and it were still a few kilometers away, and when the pack mule stopped at the entrance and both women got off the carriage, that ancient palace seemed even more boundless and complex to walk through. The square was also empty and beyond that soldier and a man who looked like a kitchen attendant, there didn't seem to be anyone around, as if he were totally uninhabited.
Well, the warriors are cold, the weather is cold, the welcome is cold, Akiko meditated letting the warm breath come out of her mouth with a sigh, before being condensed by the passing temperature.
The young slave next to her, gathered even more around the shawl of rags that covered her shoulders and back, but without receiving the necessary heat to keep her teeth from chattering. Akiko on the other hand was also cold, but unlike other Shirai Ryu warriors, like Hanzo she did not suffer from the cold as normal beings did, she felt it but her body still seemed to maintain a sort of stove that warmed her. from the inside.
"Follow me" said the soldier who had bought them, walking briskly towards what appeared to be the entrance to the large complex. Akiko's eyes, however, remained for a moment enraptured and intrigued by the large statue that welcomed guests and newcomers to the empty square of the building.
A man sitting cross-legged and with his palms open had been carved in an icy rock, yet despite the frost, his hands protected two flames of fire that, regardless of the weather, continued to burn brightly.
Could he have been an ancient ancestor of the clan?
"YOU! Move now or do you want to get punished already?" the soldier asked threateningly, while the girl nervously biting the inside of her cheek went to join him and her new colleague.
They were taken to another district, probably where all the maids of the clan stayed there, this was easy to guess since they were presented to a middle-aged lady, of fairly robust size and with an investigative and severe gaze.
The soldier had not even bothered to introduce the two newcomers to their new colleagues, he had only ordered the Head Maid to instruct them properly on how to properly serve the clan and all their members.
He finally left, leaving the entrance room in an awkward silence, since neither Akiko nor the other girl had the slightest courage to say a word.
The Head Maid instead placed both hands on her wide hips, observing them with a raised eyebrow, while some of the heads of her other maids peeked out of her corridor, observing curiously the new arrivals.
"Come on you two, introduce yourselves" the woman urgently asked, attracting their attention.
"I'm Shi Qingling" murmured the girl next to Akiko, pervaded by yet another shiver of cold.
"My name is Yinlim" replied the Japanese with her false name, also lowering her gaze like her partner.
"Don't you have a surname, Yinlim?" the Head Maid asked confusedly, as her questioner shook her head.
"I'm an orphan, ma'am. If I had a family now I don't have any more memory to remember" Akiko replied with a veil of sadness, who for the first time seemed not to act. In fact, what else was left to her, if not loneliness and an exterminated clan?
The Head Maid stretched her lips in a flat line and then sighed, shook her head and joining her hands to her belly said:
"Well, I don't think your masters care if you don't have a surname...I'm Madame Yanyu, your Head Maid. I run this district and train my girls to serve House Lin Kuei as flawlessly as possible. The rules they are very simple and I will explain them to you as soon as possible "the tone of the woman seemed authoritative and severe yet Akiko did not perceive the coldness and apathy present instead in the soldier who had bought her at the market. Perhaps her old age wisdom had made her more resolute and wiser rather than cold ...
"...But first of all I demand that you take a bath and wear real clothes. In this district each of you, despite being of low rank, has the right to a bed to sleep on, regular hygiene, and proper nutrition” the woman explained, gesturing for them to follow her with her head.
The two girls followed her in silence, while the other maids that looked out from the numerous sliding doors made small nods of greeting or watched curiously. This obviously did not escape the eyes of Madame Yanyu who, placing her hands on her hips, said in a sonorous tone:
"Well? Don't you have any errands to run? Dinner for the warriors won't prepare itself or their rooms will magically clean up. Go to work!" and in no time at all, the numerous heads disappeared between the doors.
************
Silence echoed in the small shared bathroom of the maid district. Akiko wondered how long it had been since her last bath; since she had left Japan there were few opportunities that allowed her to bathe in a passing river without running into some stranger or catching a cold.
With a natural sponge she began to scrub the layers of dust or soot off her skin, although they often proved to be more difficult than expected.
Damn ... Harumi if he had seen her she would have given her a light pat on the back of her head and then remind her to take better care of herself, as any loving mother would. The very thought of her made the Japanese girl smile to herself.
"It's the first time I've seen you smiling" admitted Qingling from her basin, a few meters from Akiko who stiffened, making the girl regret having caught her off guard, who in fact tried to recover ground "...I mean, you've always been troubled by something ever since I saw you disembark from that slave ship. But I'm glad that every now and then there's something inside you that makes you happy” Qingling looked down embarrassed by herself, perhaps thinking that he was raving.
"Yes. Yes it is" Akiko answered after a long sigh, rekindling the expression of the other "I have few memories of home, but those few left I try to keep them tight"
"I see, I wish I could too" Qingling replied with a wistful smile, raising one eyebrow to the other.
"Don't you have any happy memories?"
"My parents sold me as a slave because they had too many mouths to feed in the family. Raising money for a dowry is just as expensive, so..." maybe there were no other words to add, Akiko understood what she might feel.
"I think --- I think I have to cut my hair, my tips are so tangled that it is possible to wash them" admitted the Japanese, changing the subject so as not to weigh down the atmosphere. "Maybe you could help me" she asked Quingling.
************
After having washed and cut their hair in a short and cheeky way, Akiko and Qingling wore the traditional maid dress with colors kept between white and glacial blue. Madame Yanyu had taken care to give them a simple meal and showed them their two beds. She then sat down with them at an empty tea table and began to explain the rules to the two new maids.
"The maid district is not very populated. This is because the Lin Kuei clan demands the utmost perfection and impeccability of what each of us does. Anyone who is considered a ballast is immediately kicked out and abandoned to their sad fate". The woman's tone was firm and serious, as she watched Qingling already tremble at the thought and Akiko instead tried to stay calm.
"Each of you will have a form to follow and the tasks that you will have to complete at the set time and in the best way" continued the woman "It is not forbidden to interact with the warriors of the temple, few of your colleagues seem to have also acquired the their 'protection'" Madame Yanyu's eyes rolled with an exasperated and slightly annoyed sigh “But I advise you to leave the entertainment job to the concubines and the brothel. These men are trained to be war machines and love is not part of their training program, according to the words of the Grandmaster” the woman then looked at both girls with a nod.
“You will wake up at 5 in the morning, you will have the opportunity to eat lunch and dinner, but this will happen after all the warriors and your superiors will have made use of the kitchen. Am I clear?"
Both Akiko and Qingling nodded in unison and after the Head Maid stood up, she motioned for them to follow.
"Now come with me, I'll show you where you will work"
Summary: A moment before you were in your dressing room, having staged your eneima performance as an acrobat. A moment later you woke up in a completely empty Tokyo, but even if desolate the dangers are always around the corner.
Pairing: Takatora Samura/Last Boss x fem!reader
Genre: probablly smut ;;adventurous ;; romantic
Warnings: ‘WHAT-IF’ finale ;; mentions of harassment / violence / blood / death (I mean is AIB what do you expect?)
The stage lights were all aimed at you. Tears streamed down your heavily made-up face, but no viewer seemed to have noticed because of the distance.
Your face was framed by a wide toothy grin while your wet and red eyes were open more than ever.
Your arms were raised to the sky as if to collect all the cheers and cheers of your fans, while your left ankle trembled without any shame.
Everything had gone perfect, everything perfect. In your last jump, however, you landed incorrectly, and people noticed it, but your body did. A rush of pain on your ankle had almost paralyzed you, but without making the slightest moan you had finished your performance without any other mistakes.
Now you were sitting in the room of your dressing room, intent on removing your make-up with a towel soaked in micellar water, while the door of the small caravan opened with a solid blow that almost made you jump.
"Boss, what's going on?" you asked putting on your best smile, you knew what was going to happen.
"Show me your ankle" the large man ordered in a harsh tone.
"What do you mean I don't-"
"I said show me your ankle, you stupid acrobat!" he said raising his voice before turning your chair roughly, making every muscle in your body ice.
Without saying anything else, you raised your right leg, which was grabbed by the man who observed the obvious swelling on the spot he was interested in.
Your heart had stopped beating from the moment that beast of a man entered the caravan, you already knew that this evening would not end well and the very thought was making you die of fear.
You weren't even paid enough for what you did, but what other job choice was there for a good acrobat like you? In Tokyo too?
"You hurt yourself, weren't you?!"
"No no, I just slipped, I'll be fine tomor--" but your words died in the mouth when a full-bodied and calloused hand slapped your delicate face, turning it to the other side.
And here you are, after the show. Where your boss beat you up if you only dared to do something wrong. He couldn't afford to have his golden goose get injured in the middle of the tour and you had to remember who you were working for.
Every hit on your body was an extra desire to want to die in that instant, to disappear thanks to a wizarding for a fortune and appear in a place where no one would have made you suffer like this ...
Now you were there in that ramshackle dressing room, lying on the ground, with a livid face and a little trickle of blood coming out of your nose. You were sure that this would be your last night, your last breath, your last agony.
Then the lights went out, as if the show was over and then there was silence.
* * *
Your eyes watched the sunrise caress the Tokyo skyscrapers, while curling up in your sweatshirt you enjoyed that surreal silence around you.
Your bruises on your face were now almost gone, while your dirty hair manifested your need for a nice bath and above all to eat something. Your eyes then rested on the card that slipped selflessly between the two fingers: a 4 of hearts.
You didn't quite understand what happened before you got it; you only remembered waking up in your caravan still in pain, and without much desire you were dragged out of it unable to hear the usual noises that accompanied the busy mornings of your circus.
When you went outside you found the most absolute desolation, and even if you were perplexed, you dismissed the possibility that the circus had moved elsewhere and left you behind. After all, the marquee was still there, just like some animals...So what had really happened?
After checking every corner and ascertaining that everyone seemed to have vanished into thin air, the evening had begun to fall, as well as the darkness.
Afraid and at least a little bewildered, you wandered in fact, limped in streets you didn't even know in an attempt to understand if anyone was still present besides you.
Arriving towards a Tokyo suburban street you started yelling if anyone was nearby, if anyone heard you, but no answer reached your ears. Instead, what caught your attention was what looked like an office structure that magically lit up a few meters from you. Maybe you would have found someone? Well, indeed, yes, but not for much longer.
You found three other people besides you who seemed to have known each other for a long time. They roughly explained to you that you should have played a game and if you were going to lose, then you would be dead.
This didn't make any sense to you, the first thing that occurred to you was that maybe you were dead and that shit you were in was fucking Hell.
What other explanation could there be?!
Anyway, you didn't waste any more breath asking further questions to some perfect strangers and when your cell phone lit up you noticed the image of a poker card on it: 4 of hearts.
The faces of the three participants seemed to darken but yours was extremely confused, maybe it was the difficulty of the game?
The rules of the game are not very clear to you, you just knew that one of you would have to hide, and the others would have to find him. Whoever lost would die.
The game was probably designed to betray each other, but in your case the rule didn't apply, you didn't know any of them, so why would you have to save them? It was true that they were the only people you had found in Tokyo, but if you had to choose to trust yourself or rely on three unknown men, you would have gladly chosen the former with all the consequences. The lives of three people you didn't know couldn't have weighed that much, right? Wrong. But you didn't want to admit it. Admitting to yourself how sensitive and fragile you could be was an option to cross out and that you never wanted to choose, but that day ... that game, literally changed all the cards on the table.
You had found a hiding place in an air duct, even if those three had wanted to, they would never have been able to enter it to catch you, only a slim physique like yours could have entered and hide.
In any case you had not left your hiding place without evidence, in fact one of them noticed that the conduit had no screws to keep it closed, so taking a chair to climb towards it, one of the boys opened the hatch with a sharp blow, sliding off the two fingers.
40 seconds to the end of the game.
For the three to win they would have to see all three of you with their own eyes, but until he dragged you out of the shaft they couldn't.
"HERE YOU ARE, YOU UGLY BITCH" the boy yelled grabbing you at your aching ankle as you were trying in vain to slip away towards the narrow shaft.
"Get your dirty hands off, bastard!" you yelled as you kicked his face with your other foot, but his grip didn't quite give up.
30 seconds to the end of the game.
"You don't understand! We need to win! What are you good for? You won't be able to do it alone one day, so let us win!" the boy yelled desperately, pulling you more towards him, while your fingertips became white just to stick to the metal surface of the air conductor.
20 seconds to the end of the game.
"I said-" your teeth gritted as your kick hit the boy's septum.
"Take" another kick.
"Your fucking hands" another kick "off my ankle!"
Suddenly there was a strange noise, like a song.
GAME OVER!
You were about to ask what was going to happen but in a split second your opponent's head exploded in the shaft, covering you from head to toe. His now heavy body fell off the chair that held him in balance, dragging your body out as well, which fell ruinously onto the latter.
A groan of pain escaped your mouth as you desperately tried to get back on your feet. You put your hands on the nearest desk, trying to digest what had really happened in those few seconds. Your gaze rose confused looking around the room, especially the place where you had fallen and I had to barely hold back a retch at that view.
Your opponent's head was completely crushed, probably many pieces of it were on your face, while the rest fell from the slot of the air conductor.
His other two friends were slumped in a disorderly fashion at the exit door, headless too, and the splashes of their blood had littered a small area of the room near them.
Your cell phone rang a cheerful music thus attracting your attention. You grabbed it to understand what was happening. Maybe you would be dead too?
CONGRATULATIONS! GAME CLEAR!
And then the card of hearts you saw in the lobby appeared before the game started...
You had won, you were alive. But what price?
You thought that taking out your sense of survival on strangers wouldn't weigh on your conscience. Your boss didn't seem to feel guilty when he beat you up!
Yet...Now you felt worse than that monstrous being.
The words of that player in front of you echoed in your ears:
"We need to win! What are you good for? You won't be able to do it alone one day, so let us win!"
You were alone, they were three. You were alone, they were probably friends. You were alone both here and in Tokyo, they maybe had a family that was waiting for them.
How could your life be worth that of three people?
You might have found out along the way, but how many people would you have had to kill before then?
Summary: Sean seems to have disappeared, but on his return he seems to have a strange surprise with him, and is it for you?
Genre: fluff ;; funny
Pairing: Sean Macguire x fem!reader
"Did Sean come back with the money?" Arthur's deep, scratchy voice made its way through the thick vegetation, as he returned from a long day's work. You rushed to help him tie his steed into place, and then give him some tasty carrot to munch on.
"Actually the last time I saw him was when you left this morning, Arthur. I thought he was going back with you" you answered with all sincerity, while the cowboy cursed something through gritted teeth, and then gave a kick to a poor pebble nearby.
"That goddamn rotten alcoholic rat..." he hissed adjusting his hat and then looked into your eyes "I gave him the stolen money, 70 dollars for him and another 140 dollars to give to Dutch for the camp" he explained as he put his hands on his belt nervously moving back and forth.
"Oh c’mon mr Morgan, I bet there's a valid explanation-" you tried to protect Sean, albeit unsuccessfully, while Arthur interrupted you by now on the verge of exasperation.
"Yes, he must have gone to town to have a drink, and if he didn't spend all the money on alcohol some motherfucker stole them from him" you opened your mouth to reiterate something, but no sound came out, and you decided to bring back yours pay attention to Mr. Morgan's horse starting to groom him.
"Good evenin, fellas!" a familiar voice made you peek out of Arthur's trusty steed, there was no doubt that it was the voice of that flaming Irish head Arthur was hunting.
Desperately trying to save him, you started looking with your eyes for the place where the young man would emerge so as to signal him to run away before being lynched by the whole Van Der Linde gang.
But when Sean came out your eyes widened not so much from amazement as from being incredulous. The Irishman was holding a large bouquet of colorful flowers, flowers with petals with very bizarre and exotic shapes, never seen before.
You knew that Sean was a very bizarre boy as well as an extrovert, but the reason for having such an exaggerated amount of flowers with him escaped logic even though you were trying hard to understand.
"Macguire! Stupid piece of-" barked Arthur approaching him in great strides, while the young Irishman seemed to jump on a floor of clouds, completely ignoring the cowboy and talking over him.
"Aaah Y/N! Dere you are, lass! You must know dat Arthur and I robbed a house full of bad guys" began to tell the boy approaching you, more and more confused "So after I saved Arthur frahm certain deat, I found a lot of mahney 'idden in a wall. So we divided dem and Arthur tells me to bring 'alf de sum to the camp and to keep a part for myself and so I wanted to do, I swear!" he continued to say, trying to highlight his totally unbelievable sincerity with the theatrical "But den i wanted to go to de city and I found a florist who was sellin sahme really beautifoehl flowers, i think he told me dat dese come from the Caribbean islands!" Sean showed you some beautiful pink flowers, with large and round petals, with a sweet scent "And those who come from the East, i dink 'e said Japan!" his smile widened, showing the small crack that showed the lack of his tooth.
"It's...really gorgeous Sean. What are you going to do with it? Want to sell it back to the highest bidder?" you asked on the verge of confusion, scratching your head with your hand, trying to ignore a furious Arthur on the background.
"What? No! No no no no! I got dis magical bouquet o' flowers for you, you are such a special girl and...so beautiful, and I had to bring you flowers that were at least at your level" he explained trying to hide between his numerous freckles the blush on his cheeks, meanwhile, you couldn't help but put your hands over your mouth to cover it, but you weren't sure if it was for the romantic gesture or for the fact that now that Arthur has discovered that Sean had spent all the money for flowers had somehow ushered in his death sentence.
"You want to tell me that you spent all your money on goddamn flowers?!" Arthur asked in all his fury, while Sean gave him a funny look, as usual, not at all touched by his threats.
"Oh no...I spent my share on flowers obviously, who ded you take me fahr, Mr. Morgan?" he asked almost offended, and for a moment you put your hand to your chest to breathe a sigh of relief "I spent de mahney frahm de camp, to book one o' de best hotel room in town and...an excellent restaurant!" your eyes almost popped out of their sockets in shock, what had that fool done?!
"MACGUIRE!" Arthur barked starting to charge towards him to be able to beat him, Sean on his side left you the bouquet of flowers with a quick shot before running like a hare, not before yelling at you:
"Tonight! At nine o'clock, let yourself be found near my horse! You don't need to dress up gorgeous, your beauty doesn't need bulky pomp! .... Ah! Come on Arthur! You wouldn't have done the same for the lady you are like it?!" asked the poor red-haired boy in the distance as he left you to your thoughts, with your heart pounding with emotion and a loving smile on your lips.
Summary: Kung Lao had yet another difficult day, luckily the monk has a friend who cares a lot about him
Pairing: Kung Lao x fem!reader
Genre: Fluff ;; Slight Angst
Words: 2,243
Even today Kung Lao had his dose of kicking on the ass. Not that it was a new event in the end, but you knew how much the burden of the wounded pride could weigh on the young monk for the umpteenth time.
It happened when he wanted to defeat Liu Kang in training, it happened when he asked Jade to go out with Liu Kang and Kitana and whoever took him lightly because of his slight presumption.
You know that his confident smile was short-lived from the moment Kung Lao retired somewhere to meditate, it wasn't that hard to guess that it was part of a mask, the last faltering attempt to keep that bit of dignity afloat stand in front of others.
The sun had set on Raiden's temple, and the evening had brought with it many thoughts and anxieties. You had searched far and wide for Kung Lao without many results, until Liu Kang (after having crossed you in some corridor) told you that most likely the young monk had holed up in his room, since no trace of him had been seen during dinner.
So, dismissing your friend, you approached your destination, not before going to the infirmary to get the right necessary.
You knew Kung Lao didn't go to the infirmary to get medicated after training, and that was bad. Although superfluous, many injuries, if not treated well, could cause serious infections, and with the earth always threatened, one could not afford the luxury of having a wounded warrior.
As soon as you reached his room door, you let out an anxious sigh hoping that what was a kindly helpful gesture didn't turn into a heated argument with your friend.
After sliding the door, you could see in front of you the Shaolin back’s silhouette kissed by the rays of the moon, intent on meditating. He didn't move from his position, but surely he sensed your unexpected presence.
"Do you no longer use knocking?" he asked in his usual sharp and ironic tone, while you put the infirmary equipment on the nearest table.
"I didn't want to disturb your meditation" you replied innocently but your expression was anything but that, and Kung Lao knew it.
The boy after sighing, relaxed his muscles and placing his hands on the ground gave himself the right push to turn towards you.
"Well, it's happened now" he admitted with a shrug. He took a few minutes of silence and noticing that you did not speak the monk stretched his lips in a clear perplexed line, thus showing off his pair of adorable dimples.
"So? What do I owe this visit to?" he asked, urging you to speak.
To be honest, you had a hard time expressing why you were there.
What if Kung Lao got on the defensive? Well, he probably would have done it anyway, so diplomacy can fuck itself.
"I saw you didn't go to the infirmary" you started by crossing your arms over your chest "...And Liu Kang told me you didn't eat"
"So you came to be a mommy?" Kung Lao asked sarcastically before rolling his eyes. You sighed in exasperation.
"I came to make sure you're okay"
"Well I'm fine, as you can see" he said, lying shamelessly. Classic.
"Really?" you asked raising an eyebrow.
"Really" he insisted.
"So you won't mind if I check it out" you said as you approached him so you could touch his arm, but the monk pulled away, before grabbing your wrist firmly but not too hard.
"Don't do that..." he said shaking his head and avoiding your eyes.
"Do what?" you asked hurt and confused.
"You treat me as if I were made of porcelain! As if I were going to break at any moment" he admitted with a harsh and offended tone "So you don't help me, you just make me feel like everyone else sees me: A useless idiot"
"Kung Lao, you are not like that" you replied immediately but your tone was more delicate than his voice.
"Yes. Yes, I am" he replied, before letting go of your arm and giving you a fiery look.
Your heart clenched in a cold grip at that statement. It was true, Kung Lao was not without flaws, but not so many that he deserved constant discouragement, in the end he had always done what he had done to protect the people he loved and the Earthrealm.
When he lowered the hand that had grabbed your wrist, you noticed his face against the light contracting in a quick grimace of pain and only in that instant, you noticed a small burn near his elbow.
Oh, Kung Lao...
Sighing softly, you got up again from the ground and then approached the table near the entrance. You took the edges of the table’s surface, carrying it near the body of the warrior, that this time he seem not to reply, even if his eyes expressed all his disagreement.
"You know, I met a person, a person very dear to me. Initially I thought he was just a swank and full of himself fighter, who don’t want to share his knowledge with others" you started with a calm tone, while with your hands you started to unfasten Kung Lao's armor, gently placing it back on the ground.
"But one day, at Wu Shi Academy, I sprained my ankle during a training session. It really hurt---I remember that when Master Bo Rai Cho took me to the infirmary, I felt like the most wrong person at the most wrong place ever. But then, I crossed paths with him, again; He too intent on getting medicated and while he saw me crying like a child, he smiled at me and said: there can be no sunny days if the sky did not give us the rain too. Everything will pass and when it will happen, the light you will see will be even stronger and brighter"
As you removed the hat from his head, Kung Lao gave you an intense look, but you didn't know if it was because you had removed the object most dear to him or because of your words.
But he knew the person you were talking about was him. You were sure of that.
In a moment of pause, you took a cotton ball and dipping it in pure alcohol, you brought it closer to the slight burns that the shaolin had on his arm with extreme delicacy. Of course, he still hissed slightly in pain, but it didn't seem to stop you.
"I began that day to see him differently. I learned that not only he was friendly and positive, but he was also funny, really funny. The missions with him seemed less bleak and if there was any danger lurking, he was always in the front row. fight” you started medicating his chest, where you put a soothing cream on the bruises of the side and then the abdomen.
"Many times, however, I saw him take on so many burdens, like the legacy that his name carried with pride" you gently grabbed Kung Lao's jaw while his eyes seemed intent on seeing you like something foreign to him but which at the same time was dazzling. His dark eyes seemed bright with a strange light.
"...Often his friends told him he was presumptuous, often people never thought he lived up to the expectations that that warrior had set for himself"
The Shaolin's gaze lowered but that didn't mean you stopped dressing a small cut on his soft cheekbone.
"And I think like them too" those words made the boy bite his lip in a frustrated way and only at that point did you understand how much this could really hurt him deeply.
"Because when we met in that infirmary for the first time, I asked him what his name was and he said: Don't you know my name? Then I said to him: Yes, I know your name, but I want to know if you do you remember it“ the young monk no longer had any doubt that you were talking about him and his eyes were fighting to hide a light veil of tears.
"He then only answered me: Kung Lao. He didn't say 'the Great Kung Lao' or 'Liu Kang's shoulder' or 'Lord Raiden's faithful servant', just Kung Lao" your tone was sweet as you walked away a little from her body, intent on putting the equipment back on the table.
"I am proud of the heritage you carry, but I have never seen you as someone else's shadow. I appreciate the Kung Lao who trains with me, who steals my eggrolls while I eat, the guy who gives me terrible puns, but that at the same time he gives his whole heart to the people he loves. I prefer my best friend. And whoever doesn't see your best part, then it means they're not as smart as they are strong”
A sincere smile spread across your lips, while his muscles seemed tense like a pulled rope. He seemed torn in doing two actions, probably composing himself as a good monk, or sending his pride to hell for once and hugging you tightly to him.
His dark eyebrows were furrowed, while his eyes looked at a low point in the floor, probably Kung Lao wondered if between the cracks of the wooden slabs he would find the right words to be able to reply, but just could not put them in a coherent syntax.
"Damn you, girl" he murmured "Why do you want to make me cry?" he asked nervously, before gripping you firmly by the hips, so as to drag you into his arms, wrapping around your body, as if he feared yours had slipped away like elusive grains of sand.
The warmth of your skin caused an inexplicable relief in his heart, as his nostrils filled with the scent that your soft locks carried with them. It was your presence that was slowly healing him, not the medications you had lovingly given him.
How could he have been so blind until now? He was so busy pleasing the other warriors, that he didn't even realize who already appreciated him and supported him without asking for anything in return.
Your hands slid across his broad back, occasionally tracing some old scars with your fingertips, while your gaze fell on Kung Lao's head, bent towards your chest, while a strange damp sensation began to ripple between the fabric of your dress.
They were tears. Kung Lao had finally given in and opened up to you, in all shades of his weakness.
"Do you really think this about me?" he asked at that point.
"Is it hard to believe?" you asked with a small smile, as he raised his head, showing his face streaked with tears.
"I just wish you would repeat it to me again" he admitted with a small smile of defeat, as you returned the gesture tenderly.
Kung Lao sat down more comfortably, helping you straddle his thighs as his arms slid back over your soft hips squeezing them gently.
"You are special Lao, and not because you are the descendant of a great champion" with your thumbs you gently chased away the tears from under his eyes, then wiping his face "You have a big and strong heart, a heart without fear and I don't say it because I care about you. But I say it because it's true! You don't have to be like Liu Kang to be special, you are already like this, you are perfect for me like this” you admitted without any filter, while you saw a small smile spread over your plump lips of the Shaolin, but not the usual mocking and joker smile, no, he seemed relieved and with his head in the middle of the clouds.
Kung Lao's face moved slightly to the side, so that he could lightly kiss the palm of your hand, to rest his cheek on it like a puppy in need of cuddles.
"Thank you for what you did for me" he replied with slow and terse words "And---forgive me if only now I notice how lucky I am to have you by my side, my friend" you knew how hard it was for Kung Lao to admit an excuse, but if he did it meant that he really meant it, even though his pride spoke another language.
Without even realizing your foreheads were delicately glued to each other, while the tips of your noses softly caress each other every now and then. Your eyelids were swollen, while the heat of your melting bodies created an unusual pleasant sensation in both of you. There was no malice, but something was slowly being born in you two, your hearts seemed to manifest it only in that moment.
"Is it bad if I say that for no reason in the world I would like to unstick from you?" Kung Lao asked in a whisper; his breath met your soft lips.
"Only if you think this could burden your Shaolin figure" you replied with a light laugh, as you opened your eyes to meet his almond-shaped ones, who gave you their usual prankster glitter.
"As I've always said, I'm an exception among ordinary monks" he admitted with a shit-eating grin.
"That's why I adore you" you replied before your lips joined in a sweet kiss.
i was thinking about the fact that i am writing a fanfic about ethan from maneskin. And I don't know, I would like to say again that it is absolutely not my intention to smear the person I mentioned in the story.
to be honest the ethan character only has ethan's name and face, because (obvsly lmao) I don't know his person and just build a personality that fits the circumstances of the story.
But I want to say that my fanfic is 100% fluff and sfw. The relationships that will exist between Ethan and Marlena are mainly platonic and soft in romantic fact (since it is also a slow burn)
"The flames in your eyes" was simply created by me in the memory of a wonderful summer vacation, the youth that we all lived, and in the reminiscence of how even despite adversity life can be beautiful in small fragments.
it was the best surprise I could have when I woke up, dear readers and bookworms.
I still remember when the Camdentown library was small and uninhabited, and now each of you contributes to the happiness of this librarian by reading books, supporting me and giving various opinions.
I hope we can become an extended family in the future, thanks again for all your support and love 💐
