"I'll give them shelter, like you've done for me" - Shelter (Porter Robinson)
Hi! I'm bnnuy. She/her, 18+. This is my writing blog. Linked at the side is my AO3 account.
I'll be posting whatever floats my boat, really. Don't like, don't read.
Below the cut is a list of stuff I've written.
Project Hail Mary
âą Either Way, We're Not Alone (i'll find a new place to be from)|
âą blinking in the starlight
âą PHM x Iron Man AU (platonic IronFox)
âą PHM x Iron Man Drabble
PHM AU - Avian!Grace
âą one bird, one stone
âą nesting habits
âą songs from a xenonite cage - 500 words or less collection
Assassin's Creed
âą Ego Sum Qui Sum
âą Spoiled Sweetly (to my blissful doom)
Minecraft: Story Mode
âą There's A Guide In Your Heart (and no matter how far or how long the journey takes)
âą to eternity, or perhaps even beyond
âą History Repeats AU - Discontinued
Star Wars
âą The Anthology of Kael Vizhen - OC-Focused
Tony Stark didn't usually do parent-teacher conferences, mostly because he wasn't a parent, and partly because he despised schools filled with sweaty teens, but Peter had managed to get a C-minus of all things in AP Chemistry, and Happy had intercepted a very sternly worded email about "unauthorized polymer synthesis using school-funded equipment."
And so, here Tony was, expecting to pay off a teacher into secrecy and to not look too closely at what Peter was making.
Instead, he got a man in a faded knitted sweater with a fox on it, sitting at a desk grading papers with the terrifying, rhythmic efficiency of someone who had done this for years.
"Mr. Stark," Grace said without looking up from his red pen. "Take a seat. If you're here to tell me Peter is a prodigy, save your breath--I know he is. Which is why it's insulting that he thought I wouldn't notice him cooking up a non-Newtonian fluid with a tensile strength that defies three laws of thermodynamics in my storage closet."
Tony blinked, mentally recalibrating his expectations as he slowly lowered himself into a plastic chair that was entirely too small for him.
"You didn't report him to the board?" He asked curiously.
"Because the board would take his experiment, lock it in a drawer, and fail him," Grace said, finally looking up. His eyes were incredibly tired, but there was a steel in them Tony wasn't expecting. "Peter's a good kid, but he's being reckless. Tell him to do his actual classwork, and if he's going to synthesize classified materials, he needs to use proper ventilation. The smell of burning petroleum gave me a migraine."
Tony stared at him. The man's face was familiar. It had been on the cover of everyone's magazine a year ago. The world's mysterious savior. The Man Who Thawed Earth.
"You're Doctor Captain Ryland Grace," Tony said, a smile curling onto his lips, intrigued. "You're the guy who saved the planet from becoming a popsicle and then told the UN to go fly a kite."
"I like teaching," Grace said, exasperated but tellingly didn't deny Tony's words. "And I prefer just 'Grace'. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have twenty-four more papers on covalent bonding to grade, and unlike you, I have a bedtime."
And so, Tony left the classroom completely and utterly smitten.
(Not in a 'let's get dinner' way, but in an 'I need to put this magnificent, grumpy specimen under a microscope and figure out how his brain works' way.)
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Cooked up a little drabble for my Project Hail Mary x Iron Man AU (check it out here).
Sorry if I just kind of disappeared. Finals are kicking my ass.
Ask and ye shall receive. Here's my platonic IronFox AU (Iron Man x Project Hail Mary AU).
(This post is dedicated to @icedcoffee2809, @stuxkykeener, and everyone who liked the post I made like two days ago about this)
Bear with me, I wrote this in one sitting and spent like an hour and a half nitpicking details. I'm also not the biggest MCU fan; it's been a while since I watched the Phase 1 movies, and I have consumed a lot of fanon material. So. Just be warned about that.
Might make a fic for this. Might not. Either way, feel free to give it a shot yourself!
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Project Hail Mary x Iron Man AU where Ryland Grace is Peterâs science teacher, Tony has the hots for him, and Grace just wants to grade papers in peace, please, especially after surviving a kamikaze mission to space.
(It's very much Grace and Tony-focused. Sorry, Peter, you're a plot device, lol).
Playing fast and loose with canon. When does this take place in the MCU? Roughly after the Chitauri invasion in 2012. When does PHM take place? Technically, the 2030s, but we're ignoring that for the sake of the crossover. How does Grace get home after the movie? Who knows!Â
ACT I
Grace comes back to Earth for health reasons. As much as he desperately wanted to stay on Erid, humans were just not made to live there. With the crushing atmosphere and the lingering health issues from the travel to Erid (starvation, vitamin deficiency, hell, he had scurvy!), staying on Erid would have just killed him slowly. Still, he didn't want to go, but the entirety of Erid loves their Saving Grace and would rather let him go so that he would live rather than watch him wither away. It takes a long time, but Rocky, Adrian, and the rest of Erid convince him to return to Earth.
Grace is greeted by an Earth changed, but they still consider him a hero. He was--is--after all, the one who made discoveries that made Project Hail Mary even possible (how to breed the Astrophage and more), and sent the Taumeoba back to Earth and saved it from an icy death.
Despite this, Grace refused any medals, interviews, and talk shows. He just wanted to go back to teaching, and most are hard-pressed to go against this simple wish, though they did convince him to teach high school instead of middle school. He gives the world leaders and governments the bare minimum, like about where the Taumeoba originated, but he tells no one about Rocky, Erid, hell--even the fishing mission where he got the Taumeoba with Rocky in the first place. Nobody knows what happened to Grace in space, and he likes to keep it that way.
Anyway, what catches Tony's attention is that maybe Peter was given a mid or poor grade? Or Peter was caught making web fluid in the science lab. Tony, who kinda has taken Peter under his wing at this point, is either mildly offended or intrigued (if it's the former, wary that someone could figure Peter out if the latter). When confronted, Grace is no nonsense--he's more confident now, thanks to all of Erid's efforts to make him feel loved and welcome, and god, he misses home so much--
(If it's the latter, he promises he won't say anything.)
Either way, Tony becomes curious. He's heard all about Ryland Grace, one of the brilliant minds of their generation who made first contact with an alien species (the Astrophage--the Chitauri was the second alien contact), was shot into space, and saved the world. He won't admit it either, but Grace is a good-looking guy (he's totally smitten).
Grace, however, wants nothing to do with anything big. He just wants to teach and do nothing else (quietly, he's bitter; he's better than ever physically, but his home is light-years away).
Tony gets Grace by targeting his very specific niche: alien biology. Who did Grace befriend? An alien. What did Tony just fight? Aliens! What better way than to entice Grace by offering him the ability to study more aliens at a molecular level? So he offers Grace the opportunity to study a Chitauri sample.
It works because, beneath everything else, Grace is a scientist, endlessly curious.
ACT II
So Grace starts coming over to the compound Saturday nights and most of Sunday. Unlike the no-nonsense man Tony met, the Grace that shows up to his lab is skittish--not exactly timid, but so obviously ready to bolt, much like the fox on the sweater he wears so frequently.
Grace ends up liking FRIDAY and Dum-E more than he does Tony at first. The funny thing is, the robots and AI warm up to him really fast too. FRIDAY reminds Grace of Mary, the Hail Mary's AI, and Dum-E reminds him of Armando, the arm nanny bot.Â
As time goes on, Grace starts to relax; however, it's only when he does stay late at the lab that he opens up ever so slightly, usually to FRIDAY or Dum-E. Tony usually has to be very quiet and not bring attention to the fact that heâs there, or Grace will clam up and leave for the night--and Tony, despite knowing that Grace is talking to FRIDAY and Dum-E only, listens in because he wants to know what happened to Grace. After all, as I said, Grace has revealed nothing to the public.
Anyway, bit by bit, Grace grows a bit more comfortable, a bit more open, with Tony himself. At this point, Tony knows Grace wonât date him--the latter is entirely uninterested in romance and has made that clear (AroAce Grace FTW), and Tony isnât the kind of asshole to ignore that. Instead, somewhere between the thinly veiled fondness through the banter and insults, Grace had managed to worm his way into the very small group of people Tony genuinely cares about.
ACT III
(Bear with me, the next stuff deals with my personal headcanons lol)
Grace absentmindedly mentions one day that he has had memory issues ever since he woke up in space with amnesia--he didnât even know his own name at first! And itâs still affecting him to this day. His life before joining the project is a blurry mess. Heâs accepted this, but he doesnât quite realize how concerning it sounds to Tony, FRIDAY, and Dum-E.Â
(He doesnât tell them *why* he had amnesia in the first place. That French drug Stratt had injected into him after he threatened to sabotage the mission⊠that story is for another day.)
It takes a lot of convincing, but Grace reluctantly agrees to get a brain scan. But itâs only for Tony, FRIDAY, and Dum-Eâs eyes only. He makes them swear.
The scan reveals that Grace has permanent brain damage. His retrograde amnesia has signs of being chemically induced (again, Grace did not say it, in fact, was chemically induced)--and chemicals are a fickle thing, especially when it comes to the brain. The fact that Grace has remembered so much of his life before waking up on the Hail Mary is a miracle.
Grace is not as surprised or angry as Tony expected him to be. When asked, Grace just says it feels like something that happened to someone else. The memories that made up Ryland⊠Grace only has some of it, which is why he considers Ryland dead and a separate person.
Tony, FRIDAY, and Dum-E aren't content, however, and start looking for what could have caused it. In the end, however, FRIDAY doesnât need to trace any French black markets.
Itâs Grace himself who tells Tony what happened, finally ready to confront this part of his past that heâs been avoiding and repressing for so long. The brain scan and results had started him on a path of acceptance, and for him to accept what happened to him, he needed to say it out loud. To make it real.
...There was a reason he preferred to be called Grace rather than Ryland, after all.
(Ryland was just a scientist--the world lead for the Astrophage, sure, but he wasnât an astronaut. That was Commander Yao Li-Jie, Olesya Ilyukhina, and Martin DubBois. Hell, it was even the secondary scientist, Annie Shapiro. Ryland was just a scientist. He wasnât an astronaut.Â
But then the Baikonur Research Facility exploded, and Martin and Annie died.
There were three days before launch.
They needed a scientist.
But Ryland didnât want to die.
So Ryland ran. He ran like a coward. Like a wild fox. Darting out into the field, running towards the fence. And he was so close. He just needed to reach out and--
And--
And he was tackled.Â
And Ryland was tackled and pinned down and stop it no youâre murdering me stop it no no no Iâm not I canât do this Iâll sabotage the mission stop stop help me help me help--
...
Ryland died on Earth, nails digging into the ground as they put a needle into his neck.
Grace woke up alone in the vast vacuum of the dark, more a blank slate than a man, with no memories and two corpses to greet him.
Ryland was dead. All that remained was Grace.
...
Ha.
Hail Mary, Full of GRACE--)
ACT IV
Grace doesn't come to the compound for a long while after that.
But when he does, he starts to bloom like a flower under care.
While he wasnât exactly reserved, now that this invisible wall was out of the way, Tony could see how Grace had been holding himself back before. How wary, how scared, how shamefully he held himself as if being kidnapped and drugged and given permanent brain damage was shameful, and that he was a coward when no, all he had wanted to do was to live--
Overall, Grace was happier.
He starts sharing more bits and pieces about his time in space--about Rocky.
Tony internally preens every time Grace does so because Grace has literally never told anyone else this. He refused to say anything when he came back to Earth. It's *Tony* who gets that privilege, and so what if that strokes his ego?
Anyways, it ends with Grace realizing that, while he'll forever miss Rocky, Adrian, and Erid--the home of his heart--he can maybe learn to love Earth again too.
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And that's it!
I do have other ideas that could work as their own standalone, but same universe thing. Maybe I'll post those separately.
Chapters: 1/?
Fandom: Project Hail Mary (2026), Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Ryland Grace & Rocky
Characters: Ryland Grace, Rocky (Project Hail Mary)
Additional Tags: Other Additional Tags to Be Added, tags will be updated per chapter, Alternate Universe - Hybrids, Hybrids, Avian Ryland Grace, Fox!Sparrow Ryland Grace, Bird/Human Hybrids, Author Has Watched Project Hail Mary (2026), Author Has Read Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir, Ryland Grace Needs a Hug, Ryland Grace Is Not Graceful, Ryland Grace & Rocky are Best Friends, He/Him and They/Them Pronouns for Rocky (Project Hail Mary), Implied Human Experimentation
Series: Part 3 of have you heard of the flightless bird?, Part 5 of stargazer, you with your head in the heavens (PHM fics)
Summary:
A collection of short (500 words or less) works in the Avian!Grace AU
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1. foraging - Fox Sparrows find their prey with a characteristic âdouble-scratchâ involving a hop forward and an immediate hop back, during which they simultaneously scratch both feet backwards through the leaf litter.
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Project Hail Mary (2026), Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Ryland Grace & Rocky
Characters: Ryland Grace, Rocky (Project Hail Mary)
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Hybrids, Hybrids, Avian Ryland Grace, Light Angst, sorry i couldnt help myself, Angst with a Happy Ending, Ryland Grace Needs a Hug, Ryland Grace Is Not Graceful, Ryland Grace & Rocky are Best Friends, Fox Sparrow!Ryland Grace, Bird/Human Hybrids, Author Has Watched Project Hail Mary (2026), Author Has Read Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir, or reading through it still at least, He/Him and They/Them Pronouns for Rocky (Project Hail Mary), Implied Human Experimentation, Nesting, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Body Dysphoria, just a tiny bit
Series: Part 2 of have you heard of the flightless bird?, Part 4 of stargazer, you with your head in the heavens (PHM fics)
Summary:
"Grace sleep on sleep in hollow middle," Rocky tapped from his own bed behind the xenonite. "Many soft textures. Is nest, question?"
"It'sss n-not a nes-st!" Grace sputtered almost angrily, wings clamping tightly around himself. "I am a scien-tist! I don't m-make nests!"
OR
Grace is still getting used to his new avian traits.
And no, Rocky, that's not a nest!
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More Avian Grace AU! He gets a bit sad, but don't worry. Rocky's there to cheer him up
Basically a Sugar Baby Ezio AU. Summary below. Under the cut it the full outline. Feel free to use it if ever.
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WARNING: This AU includes mentions of child death (Federico & Petruccio) and child abuse (implied with AltaĂŻr, explicitly stated for Desmond). While not graphic, these themes are present. Additionally, IX. The Ultimate Test features Ezio struggling with his mental health. Please skip or click off if any of this makes you uncomfortable.
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Summary:
Ezio Auditore is broke, exhausted, and entirely too stubborn for his own good. Between law school, commissions, and barely making ends meet, he doesnât have time for handoutsâespecially not from two annoyingly rich bastards who think they can sweep in and take care of him.
AltaĂŻr and Desmond, unfortunately, have other plans.
Ezio resists. He really does. But then itâs their coffee in his hands, their jacket around his shoulders, their apartment he keeps finding himself in. One day, he wakes up and realizes he hasnât paid for a single meal in weeks. He should be horrified.
Instead, he just feels warm.
Or: Ezio tries to resist being spoiled. He fails spectacularly.
AU INFORMATION
If you end up using this, feel free to change the title, but I've been calling it "Spoiled Sweetly (to my blissful doom)"
Modern AU (No Assassins, Templars, or Isu/First Civ).
AltaĂŻr and Desmond are already in an established relationship by the start of the story.
This story is meant to span from Ezio's sophomore year to the start of his junior year (2nd Year to 3rd Year of University).
For the sake of the AU, Bad Weather (the nightclub Desmond canonically tended to) is a luxury location where the rich and wealthy gather.
I placed a timeskip between parts IX and X!
---
BACKGROUNDS
Ezio's Background
Law student, 2nd-year/sophomore, barely scraping by.
To make ends meet, he takes on odd jobs and art commissions, inspired by how he painted targets in canon.
The Auditores aren't exactly wealthy, but they get by.
However, when Ezio was young, a violent incident (break-in? mass murder?) took the lives of his father and brothers, leaving his mother in shock.
With no financial stability, debt collectors, loan sharks, and all kinds of opportunists swarmed them.
Maria, who was a housewife, had no means to fight back, and Ezio and Claudia were too young to do anything. They lost everything.
Maria fell ill from grief, and Claudia followed soon after.
Ezio tried his best to take care of themâworked odd jobs, bargained, and more,
But it wasn't enough, and he was all alone.
He was placed in the foster system, bouncing between orphanages and bad homes until around 16.
He fought tooth and nail for an early emancipation, managing to also get lucky enough to get a university scholarship early, even with the sub-par orphanage-provided schooling.
After managing to save up and get his own apartment, he worked odd jobs with terrible pay and dealt with awful commission clients just to afford rent and groceries.
AltaĂŻr's Background
Runs a VIP security service that caters to high-profile clients, former military, and the elite.
People find his personality generally unappealing or difficult to deal with, but he's in high demand because he's just that good at his job.
He was born into what was essentially a cult that worshipped god-like figures (inspired by the Isu/First Civ, though they don't exist here.)
The cult's leader, Rashid, took him under his wing after his father died.
He was raised under strict, militant disciplineâtrained from childhood to be ruthless, efficient, and detached, resulting in a variety of scarsâincluding one on his lip.
At 13, he met Desmond Miles, a runaway escaping his father, William Miles.
In usual Desmond fashion, he challenged everything AltaĂŻr had been taught, managing to shift his perspective on the world.
Somewhere along the lines, he ended up leaving the cult with Desmond.
AltaĂŻr ended up landing a job as a bouncer at a bar where he gained a reputation for being brutally effective.
His skills eventually caught the attention of legitimate security services, leading to a job offer in private security.
Over time, he saved enough money and built enough connections to start his own security company.
He and Desmond had spent years making allies on the streets who desperately needed jobs, and so those were his first hires.
Desmond's Background
Highly successful bartender serving celebrity clients and high-profile figures with information dealing as a side job.
Extremely charismatic with a wide social networkâa keeper of secrets too. People talk when they drink, and Desmond makes sure to note things down for later use.
Born into a private military family with high expectationsâhis family has a long line of sergeants.
As the only son of William Miles, a high-ranking officer, he was pushed to his limits from a young age.
He was trained relentlessly, sparred constantly, and lived under strict discipline.
At 13, a sparring match with a live blade went wrong, leaving him with a scar on his lips.
Deciding that was the final straw, he ran away, eventually crossing paths with AltaĂŻr.
He landed a job as a waiter at a bar, the same one where AltaĂŻr worked as a bouncer, and quickly worked his way up over the years, eventually becoming a bartender.
He steadily climbed the ranks, moving from small bars to high-end clubsâAltaĂŻr always close behind, of course.
Eventually, get managed to get an exclusive event bartender gig, leading to more elite events and connections with the wealthy and the powerful.
As a bartender, he hears a lot of confessions, knows things he legally shouldn't, so if someone needs information or a connection, Desmond is the go-to guy.
---
OUTLINE
I. Coffee & Coincidences
Desmond and AltaĂŻr are on a rare, private date at a cafe.
Ezio, meanwhile, was rushing to class, having stayed up to finish an essay that was due the night before.
Itâs actually Desmond who bumps into Ezio, though the coffee spills on AltaĂŻrâs coat.
Ezio stares for a moment because that coffee had been a luxuryâa little reward for himself after surviving back-to-back lectures and all-nighters to finish a commission.
- He had spent minutes justifying the expense in his head before ordering
- He didnât have a budget for another one.
- But that was his problem, not theirs.
Ezio starts apologizing, offering to cover the dry cleaning even if he knows heâll have to cut on his already meager grocery budget to afford it.
But Desmond is amused at the notion,
- âYou gonna foot the bill for that, pretty boy?â
- âI spilled it,â Ezio shot back, crossing his arms. âIâll pay for it.â
- âYou sure? Because this coat isnât exactly cheap.â
- Ezio scowled, âWhat, you think I canât afford it?â
- Desmond grinned. âOh, I know you canât afford it.â
- Ezio's eye twitched.
- AltaĂŻr sighed.
Introductions happen (reluctantly on Ezioâs part). Ezio doesnât recognize them at all, though thatâs not a surprise.
Desmond waves the incident off, and when Ezio tries to protest, AltaĂŻr steps in and tells him to let it go,
- Ezio was suspicious.
- But he was also late for class.
- âFine,â he muttered, grabbing his bag. âBut this isnât over.â
- Desmond chuckled. âLooking forward to it, baby.âÂ
The pet name doesnât register as Ezio rushes out.
Desmond is entertained, AltaĂŻr is unimpressed, and Ezio has unknowingly marked himself as their newest obsession.
---
II. "Accidental" Encounters
Ezio never believed in fateâlife had never really given him any reason to,
But when he started running to AltaĂŻr and Desmond againâand again, and againâhe should have been suspicious.
Instead, he mostly just felt annoyed,
- âYou again?â
- Desmond smirked. âYou sound happy to see me.â
- âForgive me," Ezio scoffed. "Iâve had a long day.â
He runs into Desmond at a cafe after getting groceries,
- Desmond subtly prods questions at him, though he doesnât realize.
- "You get all your meals from here?"
Then AltaĂŻr is at the library while heâs studying a case for his Criminal Law class.
Then, at a bookstore, while Ezio was struggling to justify buying a secondhand law textbook (that still cost way too much!).
Then at the university gym (AltaĂŻr was apparently an expert at hand-to-hand combat and had an irritating way of critiquing Ezioâs form).
Then at a vendorâs stall (Desmond buys a meal and smugly offers to split, the bastard).
Ezio isnât stupid. He notices the pattern,
- âAre you two following me?â He finally demanded after yet another âcoincidentalâ meeting at a bus stop
- Desmond snorted. âThatâs an interesting accusation.â
- AltaĂŻr, frustratingly enough, didnât even blink. âDo you really think we have the time for that?â
Ezio hesitates because it's not like they had a reason to stalk some broke law student. But it's still weird as hell.
Desmond just laughs and says it's fate, Ezio counters by saying he doesnât believe in it, and AltaĂŻr just cryptically says maybe he should.
If Ezio had been paying attention, he might have noticed the way Desmond leaned in slightly.
Or how AltaĂŻrâs smirk held something more than just amusement.
But he wasnâtâŠ
Oh well.
---
III. The Soft Sell
It starts small.
Desmond started showing up to the cafe (suspiciously always at the same time Ezio did), getting to the cashier first and conveniently ordering one extra coffee,
- âDonât be ridiculous,â Ezio scoffed the first time Desmond held it out to him. âI can pay for my own coffee.â
- Desmond raised a brow, âThen pay me back later.â
- Ezio narrowed his eyes, âI will.â
- âSure, pretty boy,â Desmond drawled, sipping his own drink with far too much amusement.
- Ezio grumbled but took the coffee.
Next, it was AltaĂŻr at lunch in the library,
- Ezio just stared at him. âYou canât be serious.â
- âYou donât eat enough,â AltaĂŻr said, utterly unconcerned.
- Ezio scoffed. âI eat plenty.â
AltaĂŻr didnât even look up from his book. âYou eat whatever is cheapest and smallest.â
- Ezio bristled. âThatâs notââ
- AltaĂŻr finally met his gaze, sharp and knowing.
- Ezio clenched his jaw.
- âThis is not charity,â AltaĂŻr said simply, pushing the food closer. âEat.â
Ezio barely recovers before the next âcoincidenceâ happens.
This time, Ezioâs walking home from universityâit was getting late, which was dangerous considering where Ezio lived.
Then a sleek black car pulled up beside him, the window rolling down,
- Desmond, grinning far too smugly, leaned against the steering wheel. âNeed a ride?â
- Ezio exhaled sharply through his nose. âI am perfectly capable of walking.â
- AltaĂŻr flatly scanned the dark, empty streets. âSure.â
- Ezio crossed his arms. âI donât need saving.â
- Desmond smirked. âWho said we were saving you?â
And it keeps on happening, over and over.
The thing is, Altaïr and Desmond never pushed or forced anything. They just⊠became a constant. A presence that became normal.
Ezio should have resisted harder, really, but every time he moved to argue, they would argue, deflect, or just plain ignore his protests,
- A well-timed reminder that he wasnât eating enough.
- A teasing remark to make it feel less like charity.
- A casual offer for something he hadnât even realized heâd need.
Yeah, Ezio was losing this metaphorical war.
---
IV. Desmond Plays the Long Game
Ezio had always been stubbornâit was both a blessing and a curse because it kept him going when most would have folded, but also made him terrible at accepting help.
He had a habit of brushing off kindness, of turning down offers even when he clearly needed them.
Desmond found it infuriatingly endearing.
So he did what he did bestâhe observed, learned, and most importantly, he waited.
He started picking up on the little things,
- The way Ezio tapped his fingers against the table when he was lost in thought
- The absent-minded way he ran his hand through his hair and tugged when he was frustrated
- The quiet sighs he let out when he was too tired to keep his guard up
Most people wouldnât notice, but Desmond did, so he started to intervene.
Desmond starts dragging Ezio into late-night walks, started by a casual text at odd hours,
- Desmond: You up?
- Ezio: Unfortunately.
They never have a destination in mind, sometimes ending up at a 24-hour cafe, other times, they just walk.
Ezio talks about anything and everything during these, and Desmond, ever dutiful, listens.
He gets attached, naturally, because underneath the exhaustion, beneath the snark and stubborn pride, Ezio was brilliant.
One night, after yet another exhausting day, Desmond invites him over to the one he usually tends toâBad Weather,
- Desmond: Come by Bad Weather. You need a drink.
- Ezio: I canât afford Bad Weather.
- Desmond: I didnât say you had to.
- There was a long pause before Ezio finally caved.
Desmond didnât think heâd show, but Ezio just rolls his eyes and accepts the drink Desmond poured for him without thinking.
The barâs full of rich and powerful people, so Ezio feels a little out of place,
- Ezio glanced around the bar, brows furrowing slightly, âI feel like I should be wearing a suit just to be here.â
- Desmond chuckled. âPlease. Half of the people here inherited their money and have no idea how to spend it. You actually work for a living. Thatâs worth more than their net worth combined.â
- âThatâs a dangerous mindset for someone who makes money off of these people.â
- âI donât take their money. They give it to me.â
Then, Desmond prods about law school, causing Ezio to start ranting,
- âSo, tell me. Howâs law school treating you?â
- Ezio groaned, dragging a hand down his face. âDonât even get me started.â
Desmond slides more drinks to Ezio as he talks. A few drinks in, and he was looser, his usual sharp edges softened.
Desmond keeps him talking about schoolwork, his workload, his art commissions.
He files every little detail away.
Then, casuallyâtoo casually, reallyâhe asks,
- âWhat if you didnât have to worry about money?"
Ezio laughs, thinking it's a joke,
- âWhat, are you offering to sponsor my education now?â
Desmond doesnât correct him.
---
V. AltaĂŻr Pushes Buttons
AltaĂŻr, unlike Desmond, took the opposite approach.
He engaged Ezio in a battle of wits and endurance, a game neither of them would ever explicitly acknowledge but would play anyway.
And AltaĂŻr, much to Ezioâs frustration, was really, really good at challenging him.
It starts subtly, with a few questions here and there,
- âExplain this case to me,â AltaĂŻr said, arms crossed as he leaned back in his chair.
- Ezio, naturally, rose to the occasion. âWhich part?â
- âAll of it.â
Ezio would huff, but his eyes would spark as he picked the case apart piece by piece.
AltaĂŻr would listen and absorb every detail, then poke holes into Ezioâs reasoning, questioning him and countering the logic.
Ezio thinks AltaĂŻrâs just being difficult, but then heâd see the subtly curl of AltaĂŻrâs lips when Ezio found a way to counter his arguments, something almost like approval flickering in his expression.
And Ezio thrived.
It becomes routine, the late-night debates over cases, philosophy, or even finer points of morally gray areas.
They argue for hours until heâs exhausted, slumped over a table but grinning,
- AltaĂŻr, the smug bastard, always looked perfectly composed in contrast.
Somewhere in the mix, AltaĂŻr starts pushing Ezioâs boundaries in other ways, too.
Sometimes, AltaĂŻr would slip a casual Arabic phrase or word, and subconsciously, Ezio starts picking up on their meanings.
Ezio doesnât realize heâd been absorbing it, just nodding along and responding until one day, when Desmond called him out,
- âSince when did you speak Arabic?â
- Ezio blinked. âWhat?â
- Desmond gestured lazily. âYou just responded to AltaĂŻr in Arabic. You even said it right.â
- Ezio turned to AltaĂŻr, eyes narrowing. âYou planned this.â
- AltaĂŻr just looked at him, perfectly neutral. âDid I?â
Then there would be the meals, surprisingly enough.
A moment where Ezio forgets to eatânot intentionally, of course, but with everything going on, he just⊠forgot.
Then, suddenly, AltaĂŻr places a plate of food in front of him,
- âIâm not hungry,â Ezio muttered, glancing back at his notes.
- AltaĂŻr didnât move. Didnât blink. Just said, calmly, âEat.â
- Ezio scowled. âI saidââ
- But something in AltaĂŻrâs tone made Ezio hesitate.
- AltaĂŻr simply watched him. Unmoving. Unyielding.
- Ezio glared for a few more seconds. Then, with a quiet huff, he picked up the fork.
- He ate.
---
VI. The Unravelling
With all that had been going on in the whirlwind of Ezioâs life, it made sense that he didnât notice at first.
When Desmond paid for dinner, Ezio barely batted an eye now. Didnât argue, didnât reach for his wallet, didnât even register the exchange until he was walking back home.
He brushed it off, told himself that it would just be this once.
But it happened again.
This time it was at the cafe he frequentedâEzio walked into the building where Desmond was already waiting, rubbing his temples after a brutal lecture, and Desmond just⊠slid a cup to him.
And Ezio automatically took it. Didnât even realize until half of the cup was empty. Ezio opens his mouth, but Desmond beats him to it,
- âDonât even start.â
-Ezio narrowed his eyes. âI didnât say anything.â
-âYou were going to.â
- Ezio scoffed. âYou donât know that.â
- Desmond raised a brow.
- Ezio huffed. He took another sip, muttering under his breath. âBastardo.â
- Desmond just grinned. âLove you too.â
Then there was AltaĂŻr.
Ezio hadnât commuted anywhere by himself in weeks.
He just started expecting to see the familiar sleek, high-end car idling at the curb at the end of university.
One day, Ezio just reaches for the passenger door handle before even registering what he was doing.
It happens again while Ezio is studying.
Now, he expects AltaĂŻr to have a snack or meal waiting for him every time he stops by the library.
Absentmindedly reaches out to the container before he even sits down because his stomach is growling.
But the breaking point happens on a cold night outside a restaurant.
All three had just finished dinner, Ezio halfway through a debate with AltaĂŻr about some case study, while Desmond stepped away to handle the bill.
A cold wind rushes past, making Ezio shiver, then AltaĂŻr shrugs off his coatâthe same expensive one he had spilled coffee on when they met all those months agoâand drapes it over Ezio without a word.
Ezio barely reacted, only pulling the coat around himself tighter as he kept talking.
It wasnât until they were halfway towards the car that it hit himâthe already paid bill, the warm and heavy coat, the car waiting at the curb.
Oh.
- Ezio froze mid-step.
- Desmond glanced over his shoulder, âYou good?â
- Ezio stared at the coat. Then at Desmond. Then at AltaĂŻr.
- ââŠIâm getting spoiled.â
- Desmond smirked. âFinally noticed?â
- Ezio opened his mouth. Closed it. Looked genuinely horrified. âNo. No, no. Iâ I am notââ
- AltaĂŻr raised a brow. âYou are.â
- âI am not,â Ezio insisted. âThisâthis is justâyou offeredââ
- Desmond snorted. âUh-huh.â
- Ezio turned to AltaĂŻr, desperate. âTell him heâs being ridiculous.â
- AltaĂŻrâs face was perfectly neutral. âHeâs not.â
- Ezio looked betrayed. âYouâYou are both ridiculous.â
AltaĂŻr and Desmond exchange a knowing glance.
And thatâs when Ezio realizes that they werenât going to argue or fight him on this, not because heâs wrong but becauseâ
- They were waiting.
- Waiting for the inevitable.
- Waiting for him to give in.
- Waiting for him to realize there was no way out of this.
- Ezioâs heart pounded.
- He was losing.
---
VII. The Breaking Point
Ezioâs day had been shit.
It started with his exam resultsâhe had worked hard, studied until his eyes burned, and poured hours into preparation.
But when the grades were posted, his score wasnât what he expected.
It wasnât a failureânot even close. In fact, he had done well,
But it wasnât enough (not for his standards anyway).
Yet Ezio was still Ezio, so he clenched his jaw and decided not to think about it.
Then came the commission.
He had been counting on itârent was due soon, and his budget was already spread thin,
But the client backed out with the excuse of finding another artist who could do it for cheaper, despite already agreeing to Ezioâs rate.
He swallowed down the frustration and sent a polite response, even though his hands ached to throw something,
And then, just to really twist the knife, his apartmentâs heating broke.
The landlord? Useless. Maintenance? Busy. Earliest it could be repaired? Next week.
- Ezio sat on his bed, wrapped in his thin excuse for a blanket, and pressed the heels of his palms against his eyes.
- Just for a second.
- Just to breathe.
Then his phone buzzes, and as Ezio is staring blearily at the screen, he realizes it's Desmond,
Desmond: Dinner. No Arguments
Ezio hesitates, because he should say no. He should stay in, tough it out, and deal with it like he always did.
But he was cold, tired, and the thought of being in his freezing apartment all alone made something in his chest curl tight.
So he puts on a sweater and goes.
When he steps inside Bad Weather, it's the warmth that hits him first.
Not just the temperature, but the atmosphereâthe low hum of conversation, the scent of food and liquor, the way Desmond looks up from behind the counter and immediately smiles,
- âHey, gorgeous.â
- Ezio scoffed, shaking off the cold. âDonât start with me.â
- Desmond just slid a plate across the counter. âYour usual.â
- Ezio paused. Looked at the food.
- Hot, fresh, and exactly what he would have ordered.
Ezio should argue. Insist on paying. But heâs too tired, too cold
So he sits and picks up the fork,
- âAltaĂŻrâs here, by the way.â
- Ezio barely had time to register that before a heavy warmth settled over his shoulders.
- He stiffened and turned his head.
- There AltaĂŻr was, draping a thick, expensive-looking blanket around him like it was the most natural thing in the world.
- Ezio blinked. âWhatââ
- AltaĂŻr said nothing, instead pressing the edges into place, making sure it was snug around him.
- Ezioâs throat felt tight.
He wants to fight it. To push it offâto pretend
But he doesnât. He just sinks into it, lets it happen.
Lets himself be taken care of.
---
VIII. Indulgence
Now that Ezio has finally caved, AltaĂŻr and Desmond stop trying to be subtle at all.
Ezio protests, of course, but itâs half-hearted at best now
One night, they catch him in a sweater AltaĂŻr bought him and a watch Desmond picked out.
Another night, Ezio just steals Desmondâs drink and a piece of meat from AltaĂŻrâs plate.
One minute heâs complaining about his old laptopâhow the battery barely holds any charge, how the fan sounds like itâs dying, how he lost an entire legal brief because it crashed mid-save
Next thing he knows, heâs being dragged to some high-end electronics store by AltaĂŻr and Desmond,
- âGuys,â Ezio protested, digging his heels in, âI donâtââ
- Desmond just slung an arm around his shoulders like he was a particularly stubborn shopping cart. âCome on, baby, just look around.â
- Ezio scowled. âI donât need a new laptop.â
- AltaĂŻr, who was already heading to the premium section, didnât even glance back. âYes, you do.â
- Ezio sputtered. âI already have a laptop!â
- âYou have a relic,â Desmond corrected. âThat thing belongs in a museum.â
Before they can argue further, AltaĂŻr just hands him a brand new laptopâtop-of-the-line. Sleek. Expensive. The kind that costs more than three monthsâ worth of rent,
- âWhat the fuck.â
- âConsider it an early graduation gift,â AltaĂŻr said, tone utterly impassive.
- Ezio was a sophomore.
- He gripped the edges of the box like he was considering throwing the damn thing. âI hate you both.â
- Desmond grinned, âLove you too, baby.â
- Ezio groaned, pressing the heels of his palms against his eyes. âYou absolute bastards.â
- AltaĂŻr just sipped at his coffee.
Following that, they drag him to a designer boutique of all places.
Ezio, of course, takes one look at countless racks of stupidly expensive clothes and tries to turn around and leave immediately.
Desmond catches him by the back of his sweater,
âI am not doing this.â
- Desmond just grinned, way too pleased with himself. âPretty boy, you are doing this.â
- âNo.â
- âYes.â
- âNo.â
- âYes.â
- AltaĂŻrâwho had been watching the exchange with all the patience of a saintâfinally stepped in. âEzio.â
- Ezio gritted his teeth. He knew that tone. That specific tone meant âstop fighting and accept your fate.â
- Ezio narrowed his eyes. âYou planned this.â
- Desmond didnât even have the decency to deny it. âYeah, kinda.â
- Ezio groaned. âI hate you both.â
He ends up with an armful of clothing anyway.
At some point, Desmond shoves a leather jacket into his hands, and it fits. It fits ridiculously well. Too well, even.
Because it made him feel like he belonged here, in a world of luxury and excess, with Desmond and AltaĂŻr.
It made something in his chest twist,
- Desmond stepped closer, adjusting the collar and smoothing out the sleeves. His fingers lingered at Ezioâs wrists, his voice softer. âJust take the damn thing, baby.â
- Ezio swallowed.
- For once, he doesnât argue.
---
IX. The Ultimate Test
Ezio doesnât mean to push them away. Not really, but the thought, once it appeared, refused to leave his head.
But as he stares at his reflection, wearing new clothes and spotting the new laptop sitting on his bed, some unpleasant thoughts start to make themselves known.
A whisper at first, then a murmur, and now a constant, vicious snarl in his head.
- What the fuck are you doing, leeching off of two guys who are happily in a relationship? Clinging to them like you belong?
- The thought was unbearable.
Itâs stupid. He knows itâs stupid. But the thought wonât leave him alone.
They had each other before he even came into the picture. They would be fine without him. Have been fine without him.
So what the hell is he doing? Why is he letting them take care of him like some helpless pretty thing?
Ezio is just⊠there. Their charity case. Their idiot, stray law student that theyâve inexplicably decided to pamper, and for what? What does he bring to the table? What does he give them?
The answer is obvious.
Nothing.
So Ezio stops.
He decides, in the only way he knows how, that heâs going to prove to himself and them that he doesnât need them. He digs in his heels and stubbornly refuses everything.
For the first three days, it isn't so bad.
Desmond swings by his apartment to pick him up for class. Ezio tells him heâs already on his way (A lieâhe takes the subway and hates every second of it).
AltaĂŻr hands him a coffee when they cross paths on the way to one of his odd jobs. Ezio shakes his head, feigning indifference. (The caffeine withdrawal headache kicks in two hours later.)
They try to buy him lunch, and he refuses.
They ask him about dinner, and he makes up some bullshit excuse.
Desmond and AltaĂŻr watch him. They donât push, but Ezio can feel their gazes, sharp and considering, like theyâre waiting every time they just so happen to come across each other.
By the fourth day, Ezio is flagging.
The subway is miserable. The coffee withdrawal is worse. Heâs eating the bare minimumâwhatever he can scrounge from his apartment or afford on his own.
Itâs familiar and lonely and stupid. So stupid.
But the thought of giving inâof crawling back with his tail between his legsâis unbearable.
By day five, heâs pushing through on sheer willpower alone.
Heâs exhausted. His body aches. His assignments pile up. He doesnât sleep because thereâs too much to do, and the lack of proper food is starting to get to him.
But he can do this. He doesnât need their money or their stupid fucking kindness. He doesnât needâ
He doesnât mean to pull an all-nighter, but the legal brief heâs working on refuses to cooperate, and before he knows it, the sun is rising and he hasnât slept at all.
Heâs sluggish, thoughts slow, and the only thing keeping him upright is sheer force of will.
He goes to class running on fumes, doesnât hear a single word of the lecture, and stumbles back to his apartment in a haze.
And then, somehow, Desmond is there,
- Ezio blinked, sluggish and barely comprehending as the door swung shut behind him.
- Desmond is standing in the kitchen, completely at ease, a bag of takeout on the counter.
The smell of food hits him like a punch to the gut, stomach cramping angrily, all the while Desmond looks at him with knowing eyes,
- âHey, baby.â Desmondâs voice is too soft. Too knowing. âRough couple of days?â
- Ezio stiffened, his grip on his bag tightening.Â
- Donât fold. Donât fold.
- âIâm fine,â he rasped, pushing past him. âDonât needââ
- His stomach growls. Loudly.
- Desmond snorts. âYeah. Sure.â
Ezioâs vision blurs for a split second as he grits his teeth, exhaustion making his body sway, and then Desmond is there, steadying him and guiding him into a chair before he can protest,
- âSit down,â Desmond murmured, nudging the takeout towards him. âEat.â
- Ezio swallowed. His throat felt tight. His hands clenched uselessly in his lap.
- âI hate you,â he croaked out.
- Desmond just smiled, brushing his knuckles against Ezioâs cheek. âI know. Eat, baby.â
- Ezio picked up his fork with shaking hands and took a bite.
- Itâs over.
The first swallow nearly undoes him. The second makes his vision blur. The thirdâ
Fuck.
Ezio makes a broken noise before shoving his sleeve against his eyes, before the tears can fully spill over.
But Desmond sees. Of course he does.
And suddenly there are arms wrapping around him, pulling him close, his head tucked against a broad chest, andâ
- âShh, sweetheart,â Desmond murmured, pressing a kiss to his temple. âItâs okay. Youâre okay.â
- Ezio gripped the front of his hoodie with shaking hands, unable to stop the way his body folds in.Â
- He doesnât sob, not quite, but the tears donât stop, and when a second pair of arms wrap around him from behind, Ezio makes a choked sound
- AltaĂŻrâs voice is quiet, firm. âEnough of this, Ezio.â
- Ezio swallowed against the lump in his throat. âI justââ
- âYou are not a burden,â AltaĂŻr cuts him off. âYou are not an inconvenience.â
- Desmond tightened his hold. âYouâre ours.â
Itâs not fair how they make it so easy to fall apart.
They hold him, firm and unyielding, as Ezio lets the last few days break him.
When he stops shaking and the tears finally slow, he sags against them, wrung out and exhausted,
- Desmond pressed another kiss to his hair, voice warm with affection. âBetter?â
- Ezio sniffed, rubbing at his sore eyes. âNo.â
- Desmond snorted. âLiar.â
- AltaĂŻr hummed, a rare note of amusement in his voice. âWeâve let you suffer long enough.â
- Ezio scowled weakly. âDidnât let me do anything.â
- Desmond flicked his ear. âYea, okay, baby.â
- Ezio groaned, but itâs softer now, the fight bleeding out of him. Fuck. He hates them. He hates them.
- (He doesnât. He never could.)
He isnât getting rid of them, no matter how hard he tries,
- âYouâre not getting rid of us,â Desmond murmured, his voice dropping into something quiet, something unshakable. âStop trying.â
- Ezio closed his eyes, breath stuttering.
- âOkay,â he whispered.
Ezio doesnât move for a long time.
He eats.
He lets them hold him.
Heâs theirs.
---
X. Sweet Surrender
Ezio should feel victorious.
He thinks heâs entitled to feel some sort of sense of accomplishment. After all, he lasted longer than anyone (not that there are others to compare to).
A year ago, he had snarled at the mere suggestion of letting anyone, least of all two disgustingly rich bastards, take care of him.
Three months ago, he had been dead set on resisting.
Now?
Now Ezioâs sitting in the passenger seat of one of AltaĂŻrâs many cars, wearing a jacket Desmond bought him, with a new phone in his pocket holding a cup of coffee he hadnât paid for.
Desmond was in the driverâs seat, humming under his breath as he cruised comfortably through town towards their apartment (Because that was a thing now, Ezio having moved in over the summer).
AltaĂŻr was nowhere to be seen, having gone into some high-end restaurant to pick up their food.
Takeout because Ezio had refused to go inside and sit at a table where the cheapest thing on the menu cost more than his entire (old) grocery budget,
- ââŠIâm getting spoiled,â Ezio muttered.
- Desmond snorted. Didnât even look at him. "Youâre just now figuring that out?"
- Ezio glared. âI didnât say it was a good thing.â
- "Didn't say you did." Desmondâs lips twitched, his smirk sharp enough to cut. âBut you're sitting in AltaĂŻrâs car, drinking my coffee, waiting for our boyfriend to bring you dinner."
- Ezio choked. âYou two are not myââ
- "Youâre wearing the jacket I bought you, with the phone AltaĂŻr picked out, and you haven't paid for coffee in weeks." Desmond tossed his phone onto the dashboard, turning to him with an obnoxiously satisfied grin. "Face it, baby. Youâre ours."
- Ezio scowled. "I hate you."
- Desmond reached out, smooth and lazy, like heâd done this a hundred times before, and tugged Ezio in by the collar of his jacket, pressing a kiss to his temple.
- "Love you too, baby," he murmured against his skin.
Heâs happier. Healthier. More comfortable in his skin than heâs ever been.
Ezio still insists on paying things when he can, still glares when Desmond or AltaĂŻr swipe their cards before he gets the chance.
But nowadays he lets it happen, lets them take care of him.
Thereâs a moment, one lazy afternoon, where it truly sinks in.
Heâs sprawled on the couch, half-asleep, head pillowed on Desmondâs lap while AltaĂŻr sits at the other end, reading.
Desmondâs fingers are in his hair, absently combing through the strands, and AltaĂŻrâs hand rests against his ankle, warm and grounding.
Ezio sighs, sinking further into their touch. He doesnât fight it. Doesnât argue.
He doesnât need to.
Because, for once in his life, he doesnât have to do it all alone.
Because he is theirs, and they are his, and that is more than enough
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Project Hail Mary (2026), Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Ryland Grace
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Hybrids, Hybrids, Ryland Grace Needs a Hug, Ryland Grace Is Not Graceful, this is more of a set-up for the rest of the series, but anyway, Aian Ryland Grace, Fox Sparrow!Ryland Grace, Bird/Human Hybrids, Amnesia, POV Ryland Grace, Author Has Watched Project Hail Mary (2026), Author Has Read Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir, or reading through it at least, Light Angst
Series: Part 1 of have you heard of the flightless bird?, Part 3 of stargazer, you with your head in the heavens (PHM fics)
Summary:
"What is two plus two?" the computer insisted.
"Shut up," is what he wanted to scream, but instead, what came out was a panicked, two-toned trill.
OR
Dr. Ryland Grace was human before he left Earth.
He wakes up thirteen years later with downy feathers across his arms, claws for hands, and heavy wings on his back.
â
this is a set-up fic! i plan to have this be a series of oneshots! also grace is a fox sparrow for anyone wondering
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Project Hail Mary (2026)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Ryland Grace & Rocky, Ryland Grace & Original Eridian Characters
Characters: Ryland Grace, Rocky (Project Hail Mary), Original Eridian Characters (Project Hail Mary)
Additional Tags: i dont know how to tag this, this is grace literally just explaining how he sees and what colors are, Science, Colors, Fluff, They/Them Pronouns for Eridians (Project Hail Mary)
Summary:
"Photon sensing is short-range for navigation? How far Grace see?"
Grace's brows furrowed as he contemplated.
"In here? To the wallâabout six meters. But outside, or looking out into space? I can see things that are kilometers away. If it's a star, I can see it from light-years away."
All three Eridians clicked in surprise, the third EridianâGrace nicknamed them 'Mendel'âwobbling on their stool in surprise.
Either Way, We're Not Alone (i'll find a new place to be from) (3035 words)
Chapters: 2/2
Fandom: Project Hail Mary (2026)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Ryland Grace & Rocky
Characters: Ryland Grace, Rocky (Project Hail Mary), Eva Stratt
Additional Tags: Ryland Grace Needs a Hug, Ryland Grace & Rocky are Best Friends, Ryland Grace is a Leaky Space Blob, Ryland Grace Has PTSD, Protective Rocky (Project Hail Mary), Ryland Grace and Rocky are Platonic Soulmates, Rocky is the Best (Project Hail Mary), Ryland Grace on Planet Erid, Non-Consensual Drug Use, the coma and amnesia drug, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Ryland Grace has a Fear of Needles | Trypanophobia, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Post-Canon, Eridian Culture & Customs (Project Hail Mary), Partially Canon Compliant, rocky hates earth now, grace is just happy on erid, and eva stratt has no regrets
Summary:
âGrace leak from eyes,â Rocky leaned closer, emitting a soft, rhythmic purr that echoed concern. âHeart beat fast. Bad, bad, bad. Grace okay, question?â
And Grace didnât want to say anything. Wasnât planning to. It was shameful. It was cowardly. It was pathetic. Butâ
Butâ
âI didnât want to go, Rocky,â Grace wheezed out, the words spilling, tearing from his throat, jagged and bloody and ripping at the seams, and it hurtâ âI didnât volunteer. I-I didnât want to be a hero.â
Works: 2/2
Fandom: Minecraft: Story Mode (Video Game)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s)
Characters: Jesse (Minecraft: Story Mode), Petra (Minecraft: Story Mode), Axel (Minecraft: Story Mode), Olivia (Minecraft: Story Mode), Lukas (Minecraft: Story Mode)
Additional Tags: Hurt No Comfort, Loneliness ,Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, History Repeats AU, Emotional Hurt, Male Jesse (Minecraft: Story Mode), Angst, im sorry i like to hurt my favorite characters, I love them I swear
Summary:
Nothing built can last forever and history is bound to repeat itself.
Or,
A History Repeats AU where the New Order of the Stone follows in the footsteps of their predecessors.
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Minecraft: Story Mode (Video Game)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Aiden & Lukas (Minecraft: Story Mode), Jesse & Lukas (Minecraft: Story Mode)
Characters: Lukas (Minecraft: Story Mode), Aiden (Minecraft: Story Mode), Jesse (Minecraft: Story Mode)
Additional Tags: Character Study, Introspection, Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Found Family, Pre-Canon, Minecraft: Story Mode Headcanons, Friendship, pov lukas, everyone except lukas and jesse at the end is not named, no beta we die like Reuben
Summary:
Lukas begins alone. He doesnât stay that way.
Or,
A look into Lukasâ head as he learns what friendship actually is.
There's A Guide In Your Heart (and no matter how far or how long the journey takes) (600 words)
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Minecraft: Story Mode (Video Game)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s)
Characters: Lukas (Minecraft: Story Mode), Jesse (Minecraft: Story Mode), Axel (Minecraft: Story Mode), Olivia (Minecraft: Story Mode), Ivor (Minecraft: Story Mode), Harper (Minecraft: Story Mode), Otto (Minecraft: Story Mode), Slab the Immovable (Minecraft: Story Mode), Dewey the Ocelot (Minecraft: Story Mode)
Additional Tags: Canon Compliant, Canon Dialogue, Found Family, Implied/Referenced Mind Control, PAMA Arc Aftermath, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Introspection, Internal Monologue, no beta we die like Reuben
Summary:
The Games are over, the portals keep shifting, and it's time to go home. Lukas just hoped Dewey hadn't torn up the place looking for him.
Or,
A look into Lukasâ head before the gang makes it back home.
Basically a Sugar Baby Ezio AU. Summary below. Under the cut it the full outline. Feel free to use it if ever.
---
WARNING: This AU includes mentions of child death (Federico & Petruccio) and child abuse (implied with AltaĂŻr, explicitly stated for Desmond). While not graphic, these themes are present. Additionally, IX. The Ultimate Test features Ezio struggling with his mental health. Please skip or click off if any of this makes you uncomfortable.
---
Summary:
Ezio Auditore is broke, exhausted, and entirely too stubborn for his own good. Between law school, commissions, and barely making ends meet, he doesnât have time for handoutsâespecially not from two annoyingly rich bastards who think they can sweep in and take care of him.
AltaĂŻr and Desmond, unfortunately, have other plans.
Ezio resists. He really does. But then itâs their coffee in his hands, their jacket around his shoulders, their apartment he keeps finding himself in. One day, he wakes up and realizes he hasnât paid for a single meal in weeks. He should be horrified.
Instead, he just feels warm.
Or: Ezio tries to resist being spoiled. He fails spectacularly.
AU INFORMATION
If you end up using this, feel free to change the title, but I've been calling it "Spoiled Sweetly (to my blissful doom)"
Modern AU (No Assassins, Templars, or Isu/First Civ).
AltaĂŻr and Desmond are already in an established relationship by the start of the story.
This story is meant to span from Ezio's sophomore year to the start of his junior year (2nd Year to 3rd Year of University).
For the sake of the AU, Bad Weather (the nightclub Desmond canonically tended to) is a luxury location where the rich and wealthy gather.
I placed a timeskip between parts IX and X!
---
BACKGROUNDS
Ezio's Background
Law student, 2nd-year/sophomore, barely scraping by.
To make ends meet, he takes on odd jobs and art commissions, inspired by how he painted targets in canon.
The Auditores aren't exactly wealthy, but they get by.
However, when Ezio was young, a violent incident (break-in? mass murder?) took the lives of his father and brothers, leaving his mother in shock.
With no financial stability, debt collectors, loan sharks, and all kinds of opportunists swarmed them.
Maria, who was a housewife, had no means to fight back, and Ezio and Claudia were too young to do anything. They lost everything.
Maria fell ill from grief, and Claudia followed soon after.
Ezio tried his best to take care of themâworked odd jobs, bargained, and more,
But it wasn't enough, and he was all alone.
He was placed in the foster system, bouncing between orphanages and bad homes until around 16.
He fought tooth and nail for an early emancipation, managing to also get lucky enough to get a university scholarship early, even with the sub-par orphanage-provided schooling.
After managing to save up and get his own apartment, he worked odd jobs with terrible pay and dealt with awful commission clients just to afford rent and groceries.
AltaĂŻr's Background
Runs a VIP security service that caters to high-profile clients, former military, and the elite.
People find his personality generally unappealing or difficult to deal with, but he's in high demand because he's just that good at his job.
He was born into what was essentially a cult that worshipped god-like figures (inspired by the Isu/First Civ, though they don't exist here.)
The cult's leader, Rashid, took him under his wing after his father died.
He was raised under strict, militant disciplineâtrained from childhood to be ruthless, efficient, and detached, resulting in a variety of scarsâincluding one on his lip.
At 13, he met Desmond Miles, a runaway escaping his father, William Miles.
In usual Desmond fashion, he challenged everything AltaĂŻr had been taught, managing to shift his perspective on the world.
Somewhere along the lines, he ended up leaving the cult with Desmond.
AltaĂŻr ended up landing a job as a bouncer at a bar where he gained a reputation for being brutally effective.
His skills eventually caught the attention of legitimate security services, leading to a job offer in private security.
Over time, he saved enough money and built enough connections to start his own security company.
He and Desmond had spent years making allies on the streets who desperately needed jobs, and so those were his first hires.
Desmond's Background
Highly successful bartender serving celebrity clients and high-profile figures with information dealing as a side job.
Extremely charismatic with a wide social networkâa keeper of secrets too. People talk when they drink, and Desmond makes sure to note things down for later use.
Born into a private military family with high expectationsâhis family has a long line of sergeants.
As the only son of William Miles, a high-ranking officer, he was pushed to his limits from a young age.
He was trained relentlessly, sparred constantly, and lived under strict discipline.
At 13, a sparring match with a live blade went wrong, leaving him with a scar on his lips.
Deciding that was the final straw, he ran away, eventually crossing paths with AltaĂŻr.
He landed a job as a waiter at a bar, the same one where AltaĂŻr worked as a bouncer, and quickly worked his way up over the years, eventually becoming a bartender.
He steadily climbed the ranks, moving from small bars to high-end clubsâAltaĂŻr always close behind, of course.
Eventually, get managed to get an exclusive event bartender gig, leading to more elite events and connections with the wealthy and the powerful.
As a bartender, he hears a lot of confessions, knows things he legally shouldn't, so if someone needs information or a connection, Desmond is the go-to guy.
---
OUTLINE
I. Coffee & Coincidences
Desmond and AltaĂŻr are on a rare, private date at a cafe.
Ezio, meanwhile, was rushing to class, having stayed up to finish an essay that was due the night before.
Itâs actually Desmond who bumps into Ezio, though the coffee spills on AltaĂŻrâs coat.
Ezio stares for a moment because that coffee had been a luxuryâa little reward for himself after surviving back-to-back lectures and all-nighters to finish a commission.
- He had spent minutes justifying the expense in his head before ordering
- He didnât have a budget for another one.
- But that was his problem, not theirs.
Ezio starts apologizing, offering to cover the dry cleaning even if he knows heâll have to cut on his already meager grocery budget to afford it.
But Desmond is amused at the notion,
- âYou gonna foot the bill for that, pretty boy?â
- âI spilled it,â Ezio shot back, crossing his arms. âIâll pay for it.â
- âYou sure? Because this coat isnât exactly cheap.â
- Ezio scowled, âWhat, you think I canât afford it?â
- Desmond grinned. âOh, I know you canât afford it.â
- Ezio's eye twitched.
- AltaĂŻr sighed.
Introductions happen (reluctantly on Ezioâs part). Ezio doesnât recognize them at all, though thatâs not a surprise.
Desmond waves the incident off, and when Ezio tries to protest, AltaĂŻr steps in and tells him to let it go,
- Ezio was suspicious.
- But he was also late for class.
- âFine,â he muttered, grabbing his bag. âBut this isnât over.â
- Desmond chuckled. âLooking forward to it, baby.âÂ
The pet name doesnât register as Ezio rushes out.
Desmond is entertained, AltaĂŻr is unimpressed, and Ezio has unknowingly marked himself as their newest obsession.
---
II. "Accidental" Encounters
Ezio never believed in fateâlife had never really given him any reason to,
But when he started running to AltaĂŻr and Desmond againâand again, and againâhe should have been suspicious.
Instead, he mostly just felt annoyed,
- âYou again?â
- Desmond smirked. âYou sound happy to see me.â
- âForgive me," Ezio scoffed. "Iâve had a long day.â
He runs into Desmond at a cafe after getting groceries,
- Desmond subtly prods questions at him, though he doesnât realize.
- "You get all your meals from here?"
Then AltaĂŻr is at the library while heâs studying a case for his Criminal Law class.
Then, at a bookstore, while Ezio was struggling to justify buying a secondhand law textbook (that still cost way too much!).
Then at the university gym (AltaĂŻr was apparently an expert at hand-to-hand combat and had an irritating way of critiquing Ezioâs form).
Then at a vendorâs stall (Desmond buys a meal and smugly offers to split, the bastard).
Ezio isnât stupid. He notices the pattern,
- âAre you two following me?â He finally demanded after yet another âcoincidentalâ meeting at a bus stop
- Desmond snorted. âThatâs an interesting accusation.â
- AltaĂŻr, frustratingly enough, didnât even blink. âDo you really think we have the time for that?â
Ezio hesitates because it's not like they had a reason to stalk some broke law student. But it's still weird as hell.
Desmond just laughs and says it's fate, Ezio counters by saying he doesnât believe in it, and AltaĂŻr just cryptically says maybe he should.
If Ezio had been paying attention, he might have noticed the way Desmond leaned in slightly.
Or how AltaĂŻrâs smirk held something more than just amusement.
But he wasnâtâŠ
Oh well.
---
III. The Soft Sell
It starts small.
Desmond started showing up to the cafe (suspiciously always at the same time Ezio did), getting to the cashier first and conveniently ordering one extra coffee,
- âDonât be ridiculous,â Ezio scoffed the first time Desmond held it out to him. âI can pay for my own coffee.â
- Desmond raised a brow, âThen pay me back later.â
- Ezio narrowed his eyes, âI will.â
- âSure, pretty boy,â Desmond drawled, sipping his own drink with far too much amusement.
- Ezio grumbled but took the coffee.
Next, it was AltaĂŻr at lunch in the library,
- Ezio just stared at him. âYou canât be serious.â
- âYou donât eat enough,â AltaĂŻr said, utterly unconcerned.
- Ezio scoffed. âI eat plenty.â
AltaĂŻr didnât even look up from his book. âYou eat whatever is cheapest and smallest.â
- Ezio bristled. âThatâs notââ
- AltaĂŻr finally met his gaze, sharp and knowing.
- Ezio clenched his jaw.
- âThis is not charity,â AltaĂŻr said simply, pushing the food closer. âEat.â
Ezio barely recovers before the next âcoincidenceâ happens.
This time, Ezioâs walking home from universityâit was getting late, which was dangerous considering where Ezio lived.
Then a sleek black car pulled up beside him, the window rolling down,
- Desmond, grinning far too smugly, leaned against the steering wheel. âNeed a ride?â
- Ezio exhaled sharply through his nose. âI am perfectly capable of walking.â
- AltaĂŻr flatly scanned the dark, empty streets. âSure.â
- Ezio crossed his arms. âI donât need saving.â
- Desmond smirked. âWho said we were saving you?â
And it keeps on happening, over and over.
The thing is, Altaïr and Desmond never pushed or forced anything. They just⊠became a constant. A presence that became normal.
Ezio should have resisted harder, really, but every time he moved to argue, they would argue, deflect, or just plain ignore his protests,
- A well-timed reminder that he wasnât eating enough.
- A teasing remark to make it feel less like charity.
- A casual offer for something he hadnât even realized heâd need.
Yeah, Ezio was losing this metaphorical war.
---
IV. Desmond Plays the Long Game
Ezio had always been stubbornâit was both a blessing and a curse because it kept him going when most would have folded, but also made him terrible at accepting help.
He had a habit of brushing off kindness, of turning down offers even when he clearly needed them.
Desmond found it infuriatingly endearing.
So he did what he did bestâhe observed, learned, and most importantly, he waited.
He started picking up on the little things,
- The way Ezio tapped his fingers against the table when he was lost in thought
- The absent-minded way he ran his hand through his hair and tugged when he was frustrated
- The quiet sighs he let out when he was too tired to keep his guard up
Most people wouldnât notice, but Desmond did, so he started to intervene.
Desmond starts dragging Ezio into late-night walks, started by a casual text at odd hours,
- Desmond: You up?
- Ezio: Unfortunately.
They never have a destination in mind, sometimes ending up at a 24-hour cafe, other times, they just walk.
Ezio talks about anything and everything during these, and Desmond, ever dutiful, listens.
He gets attached, naturally, because underneath the exhaustion, beneath the snark and stubborn pride, Ezio was brilliant.
One night, after yet another exhausting day, Desmond invites him over to the one he usually tends toâBad Weather,
- Desmond: Come by Bad Weather. You need a drink.
- Ezio: I canât afford Bad Weather.
- Desmond: I didnât say you had to.
- There was a long pause before Ezio finally caved.
Desmond didnât think heâd show, but Ezio just rolls his eyes and accepts the drink Desmond poured for him without thinking.
The barâs full of rich and powerful people, so Ezio feels a little out of place,
- Ezio glanced around the bar, brows furrowing slightly, âI feel like I should be wearing a suit just to be here.â
- Desmond chuckled. âPlease. Half of the people here inherited their money and have no idea how to spend it. You actually work for a living. Thatâs worth more than their net worth combined.â
- âThatâs a dangerous mindset for someone who makes money off of these people.â
- âI donât take their money. They give it to me.â
Then, Desmond prods about law school, causing Ezio to start ranting,
- âSo, tell me. Howâs law school treating you?â
- Ezio groaned, dragging a hand down his face. âDonât even get me started.â
Desmond slides more drinks to Ezio as he talks. A few drinks in, and he was looser, his usual sharp edges softened.
Desmond keeps him talking about schoolwork, his workload, his art commissions.
He files every little detail away.
Then, casuallyâtoo casually, reallyâhe asks,
- âWhat if you didnât have to worry about money?"
Ezio laughs, thinking it's a joke,
- âWhat, are you offering to sponsor my education now?â
Desmond doesnât correct him.
---
V. AltaĂŻr Pushes Buttons
AltaĂŻr, unlike Desmond, took the opposite approach.
He engaged Ezio in a battle of wits and endurance, a game neither of them would ever explicitly acknowledge but would play anyway.
And AltaĂŻr, much to Ezioâs frustration, was really, really good at challenging him.
It starts subtly, with a few questions here and there,
- âExplain this case to me,â AltaĂŻr said, arms crossed as he leaned back in his chair.
- Ezio, naturally, rose to the occasion. âWhich part?â
- âAll of it.â
Ezio would huff, but his eyes would spark as he picked the case apart piece by piece.
AltaĂŻr would listen and absorb every detail, then poke holes into Ezioâs reasoning, questioning him and countering the logic.
Ezio thinks AltaĂŻrâs just being difficult, but then heâd see the subtly curl of AltaĂŻrâs lips when Ezio found a way to counter his arguments, something almost like approval flickering in his expression.
And Ezio thrived.
It becomes routine, the late-night debates over cases, philosophy, or even finer points of morally gray areas.
They argue for hours until heâs exhausted, slumped over a table but grinning,
- AltaĂŻr, the smug bastard, always looked perfectly composed in contrast.
Somewhere in the mix, AltaĂŻr starts pushing Ezioâs boundaries in other ways, too.
Sometimes, AltaĂŻr would slip a casual Arabic phrase or word, and subconsciously, Ezio starts picking up on their meanings.
Ezio doesnât realize heâd been absorbing it, just nodding along and responding until one day, when Desmond called him out,
- âSince when did you speak Arabic?â
- Ezio blinked. âWhat?â
- Desmond gestured lazily. âYou just responded to AltaĂŻr in Arabic. You even said it right.â
- Ezio turned to AltaĂŻr, eyes narrowing. âYou planned this.â
- AltaĂŻr just looked at him, perfectly neutral. âDid I?â
Then there would be the meals, surprisingly enough.
A moment where Ezio forgets to eatânot intentionally, of course, but with everything going on, he just⊠forgot.
Then, suddenly, AltaĂŻr places a plate of food in front of him,
- âIâm not hungry,â Ezio muttered, glancing back at his notes.
- AltaĂŻr didnât move. Didnât blink. Just said, calmly, âEat.â
- Ezio scowled. âI saidââ
- But something in AltaĂŻrâs tone made Ezio hesitate.
- AltaĂŻr simply watched him. Unmoving. Unyielding.
- Ezio glared for a few more seconds. Then, with a quiet huff, he picked up the fork.
- He ate.
---
VI. The Unravelling
With all that had been going on in the whirlwind of Ezioâs life, it made sense that he didnât notice at first.
When Desmond paid for dinner, Ezio barely batted an eye now. Didnât argue, didnât reach for his wallet, didnât even register the exchange until he was walking back home.
He brushed it off, told himself that it would just be this once.
But it happened again.
This time it was at the cafe he frequentedâEzio walked into the building where Desmond was already waiting, rubbing his temples after a brutal lecture, and Desmond just⊠slid a cup to him.
And Ezio automatically took it. Didnât even realize until half of the cup was empty. Ezio opens his mouth, but Desmond beats him to it,
- âDonât even start.â
-Ezio narrowed his eyes. âI didnât say anything.â
-âYou were going to.â
- Ezio scoffed. âYou donât know that.â
- Desmond raised a brow.
- Ezio huffed. He took another sip, muttering under his breath. âBastardo.â
- Desmond just grinned. âLove you too.â
Then there was AltaĂŻr.
Ezio hadnât commuted anywhere by himself in weeks.
He just started expecting to see the familiar sleek, high-end car idling at the curb at the end of university.
One day, Ezio just reaches for the passenger door handle before even registering what he was doing.
It happens again while Ezio is studying.
Now, he expects AltaĂŻr to have a snack or meal waiting for him every time he stops by the library.
Absentmindedly reaches out to the container before he even sits down because his stomach is growling.
But the breaking point happens on a cold night outside a restaurant.
All three had just finished dinner, Ezio halfway through a debate with AltaĂŻr about some case study, while Desmond stepped away to handle the bill.
A cold wind rushes past, making Ezio shiver, then AltaĂŻr shrugs off his coatâthe same expensive one he had spilled coffee on when they met all those months agoâand drapes it over Ezio without a word.
Ezio barely reacted, only pulling the coat around himself tighter as he kept talking.
It wasnât until they were halfway towards the car that it hit himâthe already paid bill, the warm and heavy coat, the car waiting at the curb.
Oh.
- Ezio froze mid-step.
- Desmond glanced over his shoulder, âYou good?â
- Ezio stared at the coat. Then at Desmond. Then at AltaĂŻr.
- ââŠIâm getting spoiled.â
- Desmond smirked. âFinally noticed?â
- Ezio opened his mouth. Closed it. Looked genuinely horrified. âNo. No, no. Iâ I am notââ
- AltaĂŻr raised a brow. âYou are.â
- âI am not,â Ezio insisted. âThisâthis is justâyou offeredââ
- Desmond snorted. âUh-huh.â
- Ezio turned to AltaĂŻr, desperate. âTell him heâs being ridiculous.â
- AltaĂŻrâs face was perfectly neutral. âHeâs not.â
- Ezio looked betrayed. âYouâYou are both ridiculous.â
AltaĂŻr and Desmond exchange a knowing glance.
And thatâs when Ezio realizes that they werenât going to argue or fight him on this, not because heâs wrong but becauseâ
- They were waiting.
- Waiting for the inevitable.
- Waiting for him to give in.
- Waiting for him to realize there was no way out of this.
- Ezioâs heart pounded.
- He was losing.
---
VII. The Breaking Point
Ezioâs day had been shit.
It started with his exam resultsâhe had worked hard, studied until his eyes burned, and poured hours into preparation.
But when the grades were posted, his score wasnât what he expected.
It wasnât a failureânot even close. In fact, he had done well,
But it wasnât enough (not for his standards anyway).
Yet Ezio was still Ezio, so he clenched his jaw and decided not to think about it.
Then came the commission.
He had been counting on itârent was due soon, and his budget was already spread thin,
But the client backed out with the excuse of finding another artist who could do it for cheaper, despite already agreeing to Ezioâs rate.
He swallowed down the frustration and sent a polite response, even though his hands ached to throw something,
And then, just to really twist the knife, his apartmentâs heating broke.
The landlord? Useless. Maintenance? Busy. Earliest it could be repaired? Next week.
- Ezio sat on his bed, wrapped in his thin excuse for a blanket, and pressed the heels of his palms against his eyes.
- Just for a second.
- Just to breathe.
Then his phone buzzes, and as Ezio is staring blearily at the screen, he realizes it's Desmond,
Desmond: Dinner. No Arguments
Ezio hesitates, because he should say no. He should stay in, tough it out, and deal with it like he always did.
But he was cold, tired, and the thought of being in his freezing apartment all alone made something in his chest curl tight.
So he puts on a sweater and goes.
When he steps inside Bad Weather, it's the warmth that hits him first.
Not just the temperature, but the atmosphereâthe low hum of conversation, the scent of food and liquor, the way Desmond looks up from behind the counter and immediately smiles,
- âHey, gorgeous.â
- Ezio scoffed, shaking off the cold. âDonât start with me.â
- Desmond just slid a plate across the counter. âYour usual.â
- Ezio paused. Looked at the food.
- Hot, fresh, and exactly what he would have ordered.
Ezio should argue. Insist on paying. But heâs too tired, too cold
So he sits and picks up the fork,
- âAltaĂŻrâs here, by the way.â
- Ezio barely had time to register that before a heavy warmth settled over his shoulders.
- He stiffened and turned his head.
- There AltaĂŻr was, draping a thick, expensive-looking blanket around him like it was the most natural thing in the world.
- Ezio blinked. âWhatââ
- AltaĂŻr said nothing, instead pressing the edges into place, making sure it was snug around him.
- Ezioâs throat felt tight.
He wants to fight it. To push it offâto pretend
But he doesnât. He just sinks into it, lets it happen.
Lets himself be taken care of.
---
VIII. Indulgence
Now that Ezio has finally caved, AltaĂŻr and Desmond stop trying to be subtle at all.
Ezio protests, of course, but itâs half-hearted at best now
One night, they catch him in a sweater AltaĂŻr bought him and a watch Desmond picked out.
Another night, Ezio just steals Desmondâs drink and a piece of meat from AltaĂŻrâs plate.
One minute heâs complaining about his old laptopâhow the battery barely holds any charge, how the fan sounds like itâs dying, how he lost an entire legal brief because it crashed mid-save
Next thing he knows, heâs being dragged to some high-end electronics store by AltaĂŻr and Desmond,
- âGuys,â Ezio protested, digging his heels in, âI donâtââ
- Desmond just slung an arm around his shoulders like he was a particularly stubborn shopping cart. âCome on, baby, just look around.â
- Ezio scowled. âI donât need a new laptop.â
- AltaĂŻr, who was already heading to the premium section, didnât even glance back. âYes, you do.â
- Ezio sputtered. âI already have a laptop!â
- âYou have a relic,â Desmond corrected. âThat thing belongs in a museum.â
Before they can argue further, AltaĂŻr just hands him a brand new laptopâtop-of-the-line. Sleek. Expensive. The kind that costs more than three monthsâ worth of rent,
- âWhat the fuck.â
- âConsider it an early graduation gift,â AltaĂŻr said, tone utterly impassive.
- Ezio was a sophomore.
- He gripped the edges of the box like he was considering throwing the damn thing. âI hate you both.â
- Desmond grinned, âLove you too, baby.â
- Ezio groaned, pressing the heels of his palms against his eyes. âYou absolute bastards.â
- AltaĂŻr just sipped at his coffee.
Following that, they drag him to a designer boutique of all places.
Ezio, of course, takes one look at countless racks of stupidly expensive clothes and tries to turn around and leave immediately.
Desmond catches him by the back of his sweater,
âI am not doing this.â
- Desmond just grinned, way too pleased with himself. âPretty boy, you are doing this.â
- âNo.â
- âYes.â
- âNo.â
- âYes.â
- AltaĂŻrâwho had been watching the exchange with all the patience of a saintâfinally stepped in. âEzio.â
- Ezio gritted his teeth. He knew that tone. That specific tone meant âstop fighting and accept your fate.â
- Ezio narrowed his eyes. âYou planned this.â
- Desmond didnât even have the decency to deny it. âYeah, kinda.â
- Ezio groaned. âI hate you both.â
He ends up with an armful of clothing anyway.
At some point, Desmond shoves a leather jacket into his hands, and it fits. It fits ridiculously well. Too well, even.
Because it made him feel like he belonged here, in a world of luxury and excess, with Desmond and AltaĂŻr.
It made something in his chest twist,
- Desmond stepped closer, adjusting the collar and smoothing out the sleeves. His fingers lingered at Ezioâs wrists, his voice softer. âJust take the damn thing, baby.â
- Ezio swallowed.
- For once, he doesnât argue.
---
IX. The Ultimate Test
Ezio doesnât mean to push them away. Not really, but the thought, once it appeared, refused to leave his head.
But as he stares at his reflection, wearing new clothes and spotting the new laptop sitting on his bed, some unpleasant thoughts start to make themselves known.
A whisper at first, then a murmur, and now a constant, vicious snarl in his head.
- What the fuck are you doing, leeching off of two guys who are happily in a relationship? Clinging to them like you belong?
- The thought was unbearable.
Itâs stupid. He knows itâs stupid. But the thought wonât leave him alone.
They had each other before he even came into the picture. They would be fine without him. Have been fine without him.
So what the hell is he doing? Why is he letting them take care of him like some helpless pretty thing?
Ezio is just⊠there. Their charity case. Their idiot, stray law student that theyâve inexplicably decided to pamper, and for what? What does he bring to the table? What does he give them?
The answer is obvious.
Nothing.
So Ezio stops.
He decides, in the only way he knows how, that heâs going to prove to himself and them that he doesnât need them. He digs in his heels and stubbornly refuses everything.
For the first three days, it isn't so bad.
Desmond swings by his apartment to pick him up for class. Ezio tells him heâs already on his way (A lieâhe takes the subway and hates every second of it).
AltaĂŻr hands him a coffee when they cross paths on the way to one of his odd jobs. Ezio shakes his head, feigning indifference. (The caffeine withdrawal headache kicks in two hours later.)
They try to buy him lunch, and he refuses.
They ask him about dinner, and he makes up some bullshit excuse.
Desmond and AltaĂŻr watch him. They donât push, but Ezio can feel their gazes, sharp and considering, like theyâre waiting every time they just so happen to come across each other.
By the fourth day, Ezio is flagging.
The subway is miserable. The coffee withdrawal is worse. Heâs eating the bare minimumâwhatever he can scrounge from his apartment or afford on his own.
Itâs familiar and lonely and stupid. So stupid.
But the thought of giving inâof crawling back with his tail between his legsâis unbearable.
By day five, heâs pushing through on sheer willpower alone.
Heâs exhausted. His body aches. His assignments pile up. He doesnât sleep because thereâs too much to do, and the lack of proper food is starting to get to him.
But he can do this. He doesnât need their money or their stupid fucking kindness. He doesnât needâ
He doesnât mean to pull an all-nighter, but the legal brief heâs working on refuses to cooperate, and before he knows it, the sun is rising and he hasnât slept at all.
Heâs sluggish, thoughts slow, and the only thing keeping him upright is sheer force of will.
He goes to class running on fumes, doesnât hear a single word of the lecture, and stumbles back to his apartment in a haze.
And then, somehow, Desmond is there,
- Ezio blinked, sluggish and barely comprehending as the door swung shut behind him.
- Desmond is standing in the kitchen, completely at ease, a bag of takeout on the counter.
The smell of food hits him like a punch to the gut, stomach cramping angrily, all the while Desmond looks at him with knowing eyes,
- âHey, baby.â Desmondâs voice is too soft. Too knowing. âRough couple of days?â
- Ezio stiffened, his grip on his bag tightening.Â
- Donât fold. Donât fold.
- âIâm fine,â he rasped, pushing past him. âDonât needââ
- His stomach growls. Loudly.
- Desmond snorts. âYeah. Sure.â
Ezioâs vision blurs for a split second as he grits his teeth, exhaustion making his body sway, and then Desmond is there, steadying him and guiding him into a chair before he can protest,
- âSit down,â Desmond murmured, nudging the takeout towards him. âEat.â
- Ezio swallowed. His throat felt tight. His hands clenched uselessly in his lap.
- âI hate you,â he croaked out.
- Desmond just smiled, brushing his knuckles against Ezioâs cheek. âI know. Eat, baby.â
- Ezio picked up his fork with shaking hands and took a bite.
- Itâs over.
The first swallow nearly undoes him. The second makes his vision blur. The thirdâ
Fuck.
Ezio makes a broken noise before shoving his sleeve against his eyes, before the tears can fully spill over.
But Desmond sees. Of course he does.
And suddenly there are arms wrapping around him, pulling him close, his head tucked against a broad chest, andâ
- âShh, sweetheart,â Desmond murmured, pressing a kiss to his temple. âItâs okay. Youâre okay.â
- Ezio gripped the front of his hoodie with shaking hands, unable to stop the way his body folds in.Â
- He doesnât sob, not quite, but the tears donât stop, and when a second pair of arms wrap around him from behind, Ezio makes a choked sound
- AltaĂŻrâs voice is quiet, firm. âEnough of this, Ezio.â
- Ezio swallowed against the lump in his throat. âI justââ
- âYou are not a burden,â AltaĂŻr cuts him off. âYou are not an inconvenience.â
- Desmond tightened his hold. âYouâre ours.â
Itâs not fair how they make it so easy to fall apart.
They hold him, firm and unyielding, as Ezio lets the last few days break him.
When he stops shaking and the tears finally slow, he sags against them, wrung out and exhausted,
- Desmond pressed another kiss to his hair, voice warm with affection. âBetter?â
- Ezio sniffed, rubbing at his sore eyes. âNo.â
- Desmond snorted. âLiar.â
- AltaĂŻr hummed, a rare note of amusement in his voice. âWeâve let you suffer long enough.â
- Ezio scowled weakly. âDidnât let me do anything.â
- Desmond flicked his ear. âYea, okay, baby.â
- Ezio groaned, but itâs softer now, the fight bleeding out of him. Fuck. He hates them. He hates them.
- (He doesnât. He never could.)
He isnât getting rid of them, no matter how hard he tries,
- âYouâre not getting rid of us,â Desmond murmured, his voice dropping into something quiet, something unshakable. âStop trying.â
- Ezio closed his eyes, breath stuttering.
- âOkay,â he whispered.
Ezio doesnât move for a long time.
He eats.
He lets them hold him.
Heâs theirs.
---
X. Sweet Surrender
Ezio should feel victorious.
He thinks heâs entitled to feel some sort of sense of accomplishment. After all, he lasted longer than anyone (not that there are others to compare to).
A year ago, he had snarled at the mere suggestion of letting anyone, least of all two disgustingly rich bastards, take care of him.
Three months ago, he had been dead set on resisting.
Now?
Now Ezioâs sitting in the passenger seat of one of AltaĂŻrâs many cars, wearing a jacket Desmond bought him, with a new phone in his pocket holding a cup of coffee he hadnât paid for.
Desmond was in the driverâs seat, humming under his breath as he cruised comfortably through town towards their apartment (Because that was a thing now, Ezio having moved in over the summer).
AltaĂŻr was nowhere to be seen, having gone into some high-end restaurant to pick up their food.
Takeout because Ezio had refused to go inside and sit at a table where the cheapest thing on the menu cost more than his entire (old) grocery budget,
- ââŠIâm getting spoiled,â Ezio muttered.
- Desmond snorted. Didnât even look at him. "Youâre just now figuring that out?"
- Ezio glared. âI didnât say it was a good thing.â
- "Didn't say you did." Desmondâs lips twitched, his smirk sharp enough to cut. âBut you're sitting in AltaĂŻrâs car, drinking my coffee, waiting for our boyfriend to bring you dinner."
- Ezio choked. âYou two are not myââ
- "Youâre wearing the jacket I bought you, with the phone AltaĂŻr picked out, and you haven't paid for coffee in weeks." Desmond tossed his phone onto the dashboard, turning to him with an obnoxiously satisfied grin. "Face it, baby. Youâre ours."
- Ezio scowled. "I hate you."
- Desmond reached out, smooth and lazy, like heâd done this a hundred times before, and tugged Ezio in by the collar of his jacket, pressing a kiss to his temple.
- "Love you too, baby," he murmured against his skin.
Heâs happier. Healthier. More comfortable in his skin than heâs ever been.
Ezio still insists on paying things when he can, still glares when Desmond or AltaĂŻr swipe their cards before he gets the chance.
But nowadays he lets it happen, lets them take care of him.
Thereâs a moment, one lazy afternoon, where it truly sinks in.
Heâs sprawled on the couch, half-asleep, head pillowed on Desmondâs lap while AltaĂŻr sits at the other end, reading.
Desmondâs fingers are in his hair, absently combing through the strands, and AltaĂŻrâs hand rests against his ankle, warm and grounding.
Ezio sighs, sinking further into their touch. He doesnât fight it. Doesnât argue.
He doesnât need to.
Because, for once in his life, he doesnât have to do it all alone.
Because he is theirs, and they are his, and that is more than enough
